Buzz Kill's Buzzkill

Do You Have an Accent? You Know You do.

2012-01-27T09:21:00.000-05:00

I love Pulp Fiction.

From time to time I talk on the phone with people from around the country. It's no secret that I'm from Southern NJ, but a lot people think I have either a New York or South Philly accent. I can hear those accents when I talk to people from those areas, but I don't hear it in my own dialect. Anyway, a friend sent me a link to an online quiz called The American Accent Quiz. So I took this quiz and damned if it didn't nail me as being from Philadelphia. Do any of you have accents?

A Day in the Life of a Boy Scout Troop Committee Member - Neckerchief Slides

2012-01-25T08:00:00.000-05:00

During the Troop’s December Court of Honor, it was painfully obvious to me that a number of scouts did not have neckerchief slides. Rubber bands, string and neckerchief ends tied into square knots (or granny knots in some cases) do not constitute neckerchief slides. A number of the more senior scouts have hand-made slides from various craft type merit badges (Wood Carving, Leatherwork, Indian Lore, etc.) from summer camp. The newer scouts have not yet had this opportunity. So, to remedy this situation, I have taken it upon myself to hold “Mr. Kill’s Wonderful and Wacky Neckerchief Slide Craft Night”. We could just have the scouts buy standard issue neckerchief slides from the scout store for about $4. That would be too easy. Anything worth doing is worth turning into a huge production costing hundreds of dollars and dozens of lives.

Your standard, run-of-the-mill BSA Neckerchief Slide.

Mr. Kill is, of course, out of his mind and still has nightmares about the Carpentry Merit Badge. *flashback dream sequence* Carpentry Merit Badge was an obsolete merit badge that was brought back in 2010 for the Boy Scout's 100th anniversary. It was only offered for the year, and then retired again. The troop committee thought it would be cool to have as many boys in the troop as possible earn this badge because of the historic significance (something to tell your grand kids when they're in scouts). And yours truly rogered up to conduct the classes and the final project, which was a simple foot stool, shown here:

Simple, right? Well the original Carpentry Merit Badge was active from 1910 (when scouting was founded) and discontinued in 1952 (replaced by Woodwork Merit Badge). The main reason it was replaced - the invention of power tools. To earn the Carpentry Merit Badge, you had to demonstrate your knowledge and use of such obsolete tools as a hand planer, rip saw and a spiral push drill. No power tools. The final requirement was "Make a simple article of furniture for practical use in the home or on the home grounds, finished in a workmanlike manner, all work to be done without assistance." So I had 19 scouts make 19 foot stools without power tools or assistance. It took us almost 8 months, once a week during the regular scout meetings. By the end I brought my cordless drill in and "helped" them with some of the holes and screws or we'd still be working on these things. I had the boys take them home to paint the foot stools and bring them back for final inspection because there was no way I was going to deal with paint.

So with that memory still stuck in my head, I am setting out to hold another troop-wide craft event. And it WILL last only one day. To make this as simple (and painless) as possible, I (with the help of my less-than-willing alleged son, The Pudge) will make a bunch of blank neckerchief slides out of PVC Pipe and wooden discs before-hand. They will be pre-painted in black, green or brown (mostly green and brown and they will be available on a first-come, first-served basis). They will consist of either a ¾” long PVC pipe with a flat spot or have a 1 ½” wooden disc glued to the ¾” long PVC pipe with a flat spot. A hot glue gun (operated by an adult) and paint and brushes will be available to finish the slides.

So (and borrowing from an email I sent out to the troop) each scout will be required to bring some sort of object that can be firmly glued to the flat spot or disc. Some suggestions would be:

1. Something from a camping trip or troop activity such as a stone, sea shell or other similar trinkets.

2. Something from home or a family vacation that has meaning for the scout such as an arrowhead, board game piece (get permission from your parents on this one), decal or small figurine.

3. Craft objects that could be made into a design such as dried pasta, beads, buttons or nuts and bolts.

Keeping in mind the item they bring:

1. Will be permanently glued to the slide with a hot glue gun.

2. Must be boy scout appropriate. It has to be something that they will be proud to wear with their uniform and at the same time doesn’t offend anyone.

3. Must be durable. They will be sliding it on and off quite a lot and they don’t want to have to fix it all the time.

This is what the prototype slides look like before the junk the boys bring gets glued to it:

This got blurry, but you get the idea.

I figure I only have to make about 40 more. Oh, the Scoutmaster has decided to do this in early February when we have the Webelos from one of the local Cub Scout Packs visit. The last thing the Webelos do before aging out of the pack (at the ripe old age of 11) is visit local Boy Scout Troops to see if they would be interested in "crossing over". Webelos that decide to continue on with scouting and cross over to a troop earn the "Arrow of Light".

So if they decide to join our troop, they'll already have a neat neckerchief slide. If they join another troop, they will impress that troop with how prepared they are (the Boy Scout Motto). If they choose not to continue with scouting, then they will have a neat souvenir that also doubles as a napkin ring or dust collector.

To be continued in February...

Culinary Smackdown - Battle Tofu?

2012-01-18T00:00:00.021-05:00

Boxer is hostessing this month's Culinary Smackdown and she has named the theme - TOFU! I'm actually Okay with this. Part of the reason we have the smackdowns is to use ingredients we may not normally use or try recipes we've never done. Tofu fits both of these criteria.
I never bought or cooked tofu before. And, as I soon discovered, there really aren't that many recipes that feature tofu. And to complicate things, I need to find some way to get The Mrs. to eat it. Those of you who follow me know that finding something The Mrs. will eat is - a challenge.

Then I had an epiphany. But a back story first. A neighbor on the street owns an Asian Fusion restaurant that's right out side of our development. The food is very good and we try to frequent it as often as we can. A couple of months ago, The Mrs. and one of her friends went there for a girl's-night-out dinner. She told me about an outstanding soup that they had recently been added to the menu. It was a crab and asparagus soup - and it had tofu in it too. I remembered this story because The Mrs. doesn't like asparagus and I've never known her to eat tofu. So I set out to find a similar recipe. The best I could do was Chinese Shrimp and Tofu Soup. I substituted asparagus in for the peas (because The Mrs. won't eat peas either).

So here's another back story to show what influences my cooking. The day I wanted to make the soup I discovered a hole in the fascia board behind the gutter on the 2nd floor roof. The Boy had been hearing something in the ceiling/wall of his room. I set out snap traps a couple of nights before and caught 2 mice, but decided to get the binoculars out and do a perimeter check of the roof (good maintenance tip for those of you with a 2nd floor) when I found the hole. I then discovered that my extension ladder was too short to reach the area of repair and none of my buddies had a longer one. So I had to run out to a rental store, rent the ladder, and it needed to be back by 3:00PM or they'd charge me an extra day - and it was lunch time.

I got The Boy to help (mostly steadying the ladder), went up the ladder, pulled the gutter back, discovered the hole was rotted wood with no evidence of teeth or claw marks, and proceeded to cut out the rotted wood with my sawzall (I love that sawzall). Then I did about another 30 trips up and down the ladder, cutting pieces of wood, getting tools and screws and caulk and aluminum flashing and slapping it all together so it was watertight and rodent proof. I got the ladder back to the rental place at 3:10PM and fortunately, the guys were still there. This whole thing felt like the final scene from Goodfellas where Henry Hill is doing coke, cooking the veal, stirring sauce and being chased by a helicopter. That's how I feel every day.

What does all of that have to do with cooking? I didn't have time to go shopping for ingredients. The Mrs. volunteered. And she actually got me all the ingredients I needed, including pre-diced tofu. Who knew there was such a thing?

Here's all of the ingredients including the stuff The Mrs. bought. That's the pre-diced tofu in the strainer - straining.

Here's a closeup of the tofu.

The garlic, shrimp and ginger. Another thing The Mrs. did right - pre-shelled and veined shrimp.

The chicken stock with asparagus.

The Mrs. made a salad to go with the soup. She actually hard-boiled some eggs - HARD-BOILED!

The finished soup.

The Verdict. The Pudge and I liked it a lot. I may have gotten a little heavy-handed with the ginger, but it had a good flavor and the tofu was an interesting, spongy texture. I don't thing the tofu really brought any flavor to the soup, rather, it was an absorber of flavor. The Mrs. - didn't like it. When I explained how I was trying to replicate the soup from our neighbor's restaurant, she started telling me all of the difference between that soup and mine. The asparagus was sliced paper thin, there was a hint of soy and there was not that much ginger (in fact, don't ever put ginger in my food again). These were things I would have liked to have known when I asked her to read the recipe. I'll have to try the neighbor's soup to see if it's all that (it probably is - he makes great food).

She Cut Down My Tree!!!!!!!

2012-01-13T00:00:00.003-05:00

I think I mentioned here how The Mrs. got this idea in her head to add an addition on to the back of the house. Prior to that, she bought me a new sawzall so I could cut back the deck around the tree that grows through the middle. Well, SHE CUT MY TREE DOWN. She hired some tree guys and SHE CUT MY TREE DOWN. To be fair, she told me she was going to do it, It still doesn't soften the pain because SHE CUT MY TREE DOWN.

I'm sure it was here a minute ago.

She had the tree guys cut down two more because they might be too close to the new addition and we wouldn't want some sticks or leaves to fall on it. That was the 2nd of my hamock trees to get the axe. She was nice enough to have them cut just above the hooks, so I probably have another few years to lie in the hamock that I never have time to use. And there's no shade there anymore either.

I now have a lifetime supply of firewood. That I have to split after is seasons.

To make way for the construction, I had to take up a lot of the pavers that I cast and installed 14 years ago. It took that long for the moss to fill in the cracks as you can see here.

I had to take out part of the fence so the backhoe can get in. I'm pretty sure she told me this was a turnkey project and I wouldn't have to do anything.

Haiku Monday - Nocturnal

2012-01-09T21:00:00.000-05:00

Boy on Winter Break.
Midnight XBox cussing blitz.
Pitch-black stair creeping.

This week's Haiku Monday is being hosted and judged by Scout over at Preserving The South. So many rules - and she makes them.

Christmas Traditions - Christmas Eve Escarole Soup

2012-01-06T13:00:00.005-05:00

For as long as I can remember, my mother always made Escarole Soup for Christmas or Christmas Eve Dinner. I'm not sure what started this tradition (a traditional Italian soup, my mother was Irish-Polish-French) or where the recipe came from, but it remains a staple of the Kill Family Christmas Eve Dinner.

Since my mother's passing 4 years ago, this tradition has been taken up by me. My oldest sister K has taken up hosting the family dinner and making the traditional Kill Family meal of lasagna, meatballs and sausage (and sometimes braciole). She actually had to break with tradition this year because of new floors being installed (way behind schedule) in her house. She went with a simpler menu of ham, beans and potatoes. But I still brought the soup.

My mom's original recipe - created on a typewriter.

My marked-up version of the recipe.

The boys helped me this year and rolled all of the little meatballs. Usually, they start to get bigger toward the end, but they stayed pretty uniform in size this year.

The Pudge actually does wash his hands. That's the escarole draining after it was cooked.

The finished product. I waited until I got to my sister's to add the egg-cheese mixture.

I forgot to take my camera to my sister's house to show the finished product. You'll have to take my word that it was good (I only had one serving left that I had for lunch a few days later) and that we drank a lot of wine. Belated Merry Christmas to everyone!

Halloween Terror...in January

2012-01-03T14:00:00.013-05:00

So here we are in 2012 and I haven't posted in like 2 months. Mostly because of the holidays, school schedules, the in-laws visiting for several days and the Mrs' insane idea to add an addition on to stately Kill Manor (more on that in a minute). I discovered in coming back to the office this week that I can now access blogger again. I don't know how long that will last, but I'll take advantage of the magic as long as I can. I need to look away from my work every now and then (to keep my sanity) and what better place to look than all my favorite cyber people's thoughts.

Anyway, I've been sitting on these Halloween pictures for a while and decided now would be a good time to post them. This is the annual Haunted House that the Pudge and his buddy Birch do every year. I talked about it here. I had the distinct honor of being in the last group of the season and took a few shots from various sections of the house.

That's the Undead Pudge on the left (I like that he's in a cage). I'm not sure who that is on the right. It's not Birch, though.

That catches me up through October. I might have a Thanksgiving post. We'll see.

Editor's Note: The following rant gives you, my loyal readers, an idea of why I haven't been blogging much and it makes me feel better at the same time.

So back to the addition. The Mrs' reasoning for needing an addition is because we have a relatively small kitchen and when we have people over for dinner or drinks, it gets cramped fast around the kitchen table. I would agree with this. However, is it worth a third of our house value to change it? This is where our opinions differ and my opinion, well you know what that's worth. She's totally out of her mind, of course. We have like 6 mortgage payments left to pay off the house and she now wants to (actually did) take out a HUGE home equity loan to add about 400 square feet to the back of the house. This will expand the kitchen and den areas. And when I tell you HUGE, if you haven't shopped around for general contractors lately, the cost is outrageous - even in this economy. And of course...I said yes. I always say yes. And we agreed that because of the cost, this would be our Christmas present - for the next 15 years.

Even with saying yes, she's pissed at me (at least I think she's pissed at me - because she's not talking to me). And I think it's because I did give her a Christmas present. Several in fact, as she did for me. But I spent way more money one her, including some expensive earrings that she picked out. I think the center of her pissed-atude is a really cool Belgian Waffle Iron with 6 boxes of really good (according to Amazon) waffle mix. The backstory here is that the Mrs loves waffles, always has. We had a very cheap, basic waffle iron that was rarely used because it was a pain in the ass to clean. And I noticed that at the last Marriott we stayed in for vacation, they had the nice, rotate-around waffle iron that she used for almost every free breakfast the two weeks we were there. Great idea right? Wrong. As she very coldly put it, "She's not Suzy Homemaker and why am I giving her kitchen appliances?" To top it off, she gave away 3 of the boxes of waffle mix to members of her family at Christmas dinner. Sigh...

And this was only the tip of the iceberg. This is what I'm up against. There's a whole lot of other things going on that I won't go in to. Don't get me wrong, I love her but this is a tough time for her and we don't have a dog for her to kick when she comes home from work...there's only me. So now that she's not talking to me, I find that I have time to blog. Woohoo! I get the feeling there will be more rants in the future.

Happy New Year to all!

Culinary Smackdown - Supplemental

2011-11-04T08:41:00.000-04:00

While I was preparing my Butternut and Acorn Squash Soup entry for the October Culinary Smackdown, I multi-tasked a couple of other things. Around Halloween, the Mrs likes to have candied apples. Not caramel apples, not chocolate covered apples, but basic, red candied apples - with no nuts.

These are getting harder and harder to find in stores. So while I was roasting the squash, I had time to make candied apples. I bought one of those kits where you add a shitload of sugar and water, bring it to a boil...

...then dip.

What a runny mess these turned in to. Over the next couple of days, the candy slowly slid off. I'm not even sure if the Mrs ate one, but she did thank me (which is a rarity).

After I took the squash out of the oven, and in an effort to be energy efficient, I made some Pillsbury Pumpkin Sugar Cookies. The Pudge and I were all over those.

Culinary Smackdown - Winter Squash

2011-10-31T00:00:00.004-04:00

Jen over at Our Good Food Life is hostessing this month's culinary Smackdown. You can find challenge details on her blog.

So for this challenge, I wanted to go the soup route for a couple of reasons. First, I was thinking of a butternut squash and champagne soup I had about 15 years ago at a local restaurant and winery - the Renault Winery in Hammonton, NJ. This soup was so amazing that I remember it 15 years later. Alas, they have changed the restaurant since then and don't have the amazing meals they once served. And after perusing the recipe sites, I was unable to find anything that resembled this soup. I had to give it up.

Second, I wanted something on the sweet side, so I found this recipe at http://www.allrecipes.com/ - Butternut and Acorn Squash Soup. I read a bunch of the reviews and made some changes accordingly. This is what I ended up with:

Butternut and Acorn Squash Soup

Ingredients

• 1 butternut squash, halved and seeded
• 1 acorn squash, halved and seeded
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup chopped sweet onion
• 1 quart chicken broth
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• ground cinnamon to taste (optional)
• fresh parsley, for garnish

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray PAM on the cut side of the squash halves and place cut side down in a baking dish. Bake 45 minutes, or until tender. Remove from heat, and cool slightly. Scoop the pulp from the skins. Discard skins.

2. Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat, and sauté the onion until tender.

3. In a blender or food processor, blend the squash pulp, onion, broth, brown sugar, cream cheese, pepper, and cinnamon until smooth. This may be done in several batches.

4. Transfer the soup to a pot over medium heat, and cook, stirring occasionally, until heated through. Garnish with parsley, and serve warm.

My starting ingredients in an artsy-fartsy Fall picture on the deck. The Pudge will be turning that pumpkin into a jack-o-lantern this Halloween Weekend.

Butternut and Acorn Squash from the local Produce Junction.

They were tough to cut, but had great color.

I sprayed the cut side with PAM and roasted them in the oven for almost an hour.

I sauteed the onions and mixed everything in a pot with my immersion blender. I love this machine. No more exploding blenders of death.

Lastly, I wanted soup for a chilly Saturday afternoon - BLOCK PARTY! Last year, one of my neighbors decided to revive the decades-gone block party tradition of our cul-de-sac street. And she decided that a spring and fall party was in order. Out of 15 houses on the street, we had 10 families participate (plus 2 that no longer live on the street).

Here is my soup in all it's crock-potted glory with a chopped parsley garnish.

Here the fractured-finger Mrs is ladling the creamy goodness in what could be called our block soup kitchen.

MMMMMM - soupy goodness!

One neighbor made these "lady fingers". They were a little dry but cool to look at. The kids liked them (too much nose picking going on though).

We had a Guess the Weight of the Pumpkin Contest. In what turned out to be the big controversey of the night, the winning number weight was 38 pounds, followed by a correction by the neighbors husband to 28 pounds (I told you 28 pounds when I weighed it!). So 28 pounds took the pumpkin and 38 pounds took a consolation decoration, which the Mrs won.

There was also pumpkin painting for the kids.

Followed by marshmallow roasting in a fire pit in the center of the cul-de-sac. Probably not the smartest thing to do with all the leaves around, but we had been drinking and it seemed right at the time.

Anyway, the soup was a huge hit. Sweet (but not too), creamy and hot. You could also taste the onion and cinnamon in the background. I had at least five people ask for the recipe (which I promptly emailed the next day). If I were to make it again, I might add a little bourbon to the onion saute step because I think that would add nice flavor.

Hiatus Report - Part 3

2011-10-27T00:00:00.002-04:00

Local radio station WMGK hosted their inaugural Brew Fest on the Battleship USS New Jersey at the Camden Waterfront on 17 September - and I was there. So was my sister L and my longtime friend Mo. Every June, the Craft Brewers of New Jersey have an annual New Jersey Craft Beer Festival on the New Jersey. Mo, L and I have been there before and had fully intended to go this year. L and I even bought the tickets and I had a pass from the Mrs to go. Until she told me that The Boy's graduation party was that day. So L and I gave our tickets away, but Mo went.

Anyway, when WMGK decided to have their own Brew Fest on the New Jersey, we were all over that. The New Jersey is one of the most decorated ships in US Navy History. And it's been a museum on the Camden Waterfront since 2001. This ship is huge. You can't really appreciate that until you go below decks and start walking the myriad of passageways. You can do a self guided tour of the ship as part of your admission to the Brew Fest, but they won't give you your tasting glass until after your done. They don't want drunks walking the ship because you will get hurt.

The festival itself is set up under tents on the fantail. They also had a classic rock band playing. Good size crowd too. I'd say at any given time there were 200 - 300 people in there.

And then there was the beer. Unibroue was one of the better ones (there were over 50 different ones to choose from). They came all the way from Canada and had a La Fin du Monde which was very good. Another beer of note was Weyerbacher's Merry Monks, a Belgian style Abby Tripel that the 3 of us agreed was the best we had all day.

I also enjoyed Magic Hat's Number 9 and Hex beers too. Our bowling league's theme for team names this year is beer and Magic Hat is our team name, so it's dear to my heart.

It was an overcast and windy day on the river, which the sail boats liked.

We camped out near the stern when the crowds got too intense. From here we could easily get to the Unibroue, Flying Fish (a local favorite) and Woodchuck's Hard Cider.

Here's L and Mo discussing God knows what.

Here's Me and L hamming it up for a local photographer from who's site I lifted this picture.

This picture of Mo too.

All in all a nice day. We probably sampled about 15 beers (all we had was beer in teeny-weeny little glasses ala Richie Cunningham from Happy Days - anybody?). Some interesting cloud formations that day too. Here's a parting shot of the ship's ensign flying in the wind from the flagstaff and what was left of my Merry Monks Ale.

Hiatus Report - Part 1.1

2011-10-24T12:00:00.004-04:00

The other week I posted about the Mrs' and my trip to Grounds for Sculpture for our anniversary. I got a lot of good comments on the photos and decided to post a few more of what I liked.

The Mrs is a Monet fan and some of these sculptures were reminiscent of his work. The couple and the boats are all part of the sculpture.

She really liked this one with all of the poppy plants on the hill.

Some of the landscaping was sculpture like. I thought this pathway was cool.

This was some kind of sea monster in one of the ponds.

This one was set in a thick grove of trees and bamboo.

The above sculpture was surrounded by these silhouettes in the bamboo for a pretty creepy affect.

This is a sculpture of a table by the lake.

Another neat sculpture - that I talked too for a couple of minutes.

This was kind of a Stone Henge thing. The Mrs liked the floating lilies.

Hiatus Report - Part 2

2011-10-20T00:00:00.001-04:00

Turns out, right here in Philadelphia, we have the “Number 1 Haunted House in the U.S.” as rated by AOL City Guide (does anyone still use AOL?). And they are correct. Terror Behind the Walls at Eastern State Penitentiary is without a doubt, the best haunted house I've ever been in. I took the boys last year and The Pudge wanted to go again this year with a buddy of his who had never been there before. The Boy is away at college, so he wasn't part of this. The Pudge's buddy, Birch (I made that up to protect the innocent) is in Boy Scouts too. But more importantly, his uncle (with whom he lives) runs a major, neighborhood haunted house in his backyard every year. So The Pudge and I felt it appropriate that we take Birch with us. The two of them will be part of the uncle's haunted house again this year, so I don't have to take them out trick-or-treating anymore.

The uncle starts constructing his haunted house in August, and he really does a good job. He's an English teacher and a published author of horror novels (go figure) although I have not read any of them. He has never been to the penitentiary and I had hoped he would join us, but he had his own project to finish.

A note about Birch. I was a little concerned taking him to this because he came from a broken home and has some minor psychological problems. The Pudge has been friends with him since he transferred to his elementary school in 3rd grade. His uncle assured me he'd be okay. And he was, but I had that in the back of my mind the whole time we were there.

Anyway, the Penitentiary, opened in 1829 is massive. Surrounded by 30 foot stone walls and covering 11 acres, this place is huge. Al Capone did his first stint in prison here in 1929 - 8 months for carrying a concealed weapon. It was abandoned in the early 1970s and fell in to disrepair . It was opened again in 1988 as a historic landmark for tours and for the Terror Behind the Walls tour in 1991.

I decided to go last Sunday night (02 October) because it's less expensive and presumably less crowded. Street parking is tough because the prison is surrounded by row-house neighborhoods. We got there around 7:30PM and found parking about 5 blocks away. The ticket line wasn't too long and neither was the line to get in. I was able to pass Birch off as a 12 year old for a half price ticket (yeah, the boy scout in me wasn't too proud of that, but they made money on us at the concession stand). He's actually about 4 months older than the Pudge but very small. I think his mother had some drug problems while she was pregnant - but I digress.

Part of the adventure is waiting in line. They have dozens of actors in Hollywood quality special effects make-up that walk the lines and scare the crap out of people not paying attention to them. They will even crawl up the middle of lines and sneak up on unsuspecting people (women mostly) - you hear screams every couple of minutes.

Once you're in the prison, you go through different sections such as the infirmary and the prison block. The place is run down and gives it that "Munsters" look, but completely safe. There are actors everywhere, jumping out, making noise and opening doors and windows. It's mostly dark or eerily lit, fog machines everywhere and a lot of other surprises. It takes the better part of an hour to get through everything and is not for the easily scared or claustrophobic (The Mrs - she never goes to stuff like this).

About half way through, we saw a couple of security people (non-costumed) talking to a teenage girl who was totally freaked out. She did the rest of the tour with her head pressed into her mother's shoulder. At the end, we had drinks and funnel cake. While eating, we watched the actors sneak up on people in the concession area (who thought the show was over). That was fun to watch. We even saw one guy sneak up on an actor, who was sneaking up on an unsuspecting patron. The actor bowed to the guy after he had been frightened. That was really funny.

It was probably around 9:30PM when we left, and going out we noticed the line was huge. When we got there, I would say there was maybe 50 people in the ticket line. When we left, there had to be 500 people in line. After 9:00PM is half price for students, and there are several colleges in the area. I'm glad I wasn't part of that. All in all a good time was had by the three of us. Unfortunately, they don't allow pictures, so I have a few "borrowed" ones so you can get a feel for the place. We'll probably go again next year.

Hiatus Report - Part 1

2011-10-14T00:00:00.007-04:00

Well. I finally made my work deadline and dealt with all of the other scheduling problems over the last few weeks so now I can finally start catching up on my blogging. Although this weekend (14 - 16 October) we'll be doing the 3 1/2 hour drive to The Boy's College for Family Weekend, so I'll be out of pocket for a few days. Next week things should be back to "normal".

You know, after The Boy left for college I thought life and schedule would get easier. I was wrong. Turns out The Pudge and his schedule is really taking up a lot of my time. And the Mrs' job has her working a lot of late nights, so I'm sort of a single parent. Now that I've taken my work deadline out of the equation (I was working a lot of 12 hour days and weekends), things are getting better.

A few good things that happened during this time were the Mrs and my anniversary, my brother's 50th birthday party, Beer Festival on the USS New Jersey and a really good haunted prison. I fit all of these things into a schedule that includes CCD classes (Catholic Sunday school), guitar lessons, boy scouts and soccer. And I started going to the gym twice a week (I didn't realize how much I missed that). I'm really tired.

Anyway, I'll start off with the anniversary dinner and talk about the other things in subsequent posts. Those of you who watched Top Chef Season 7 may remember that the winning chef, Kevin Sbraga, was a chef at a restaurant called Rats in Hamilton, NJ (just north of Trenton). I had never heard of the restaurant or the surrounding park - Grounds for Sculpture. And I've lived in NJ all my life!

I did some research and made some reservations (2 months in advance for a Sunday dinner). It was an easy 45 minute drive. It was an overcast day and we weren't really sure what to expect. We had a 6:45PM reservation and we arrived at about 4:00PM. We checked in the restaurant with the hostess and she said that because we had dinner reservations, admission to the grounds was 1/2 price - nice. She also said 2 hours was enough time to tour the grounds and we were welcome to buy a drink and take it with us - nice again. So while the Mrs waited at the entrance to the grounds, I purchased our tickets and got us each a glass of Bordeaux Blend Chateau La Grange Clinet 2006 - and it was excellent. I didn't tell her I was getting us drinks and she was pleasantly surprised.

Here's what we saw:

This was part of the courtyard entrance to the restaurant. That's a sculpture.

Here is what we saw at the entrance to the pathways on the grounds. This was cool.

The gardens and sculptures (some 240 works) were beautiful. They ranged from the classical sculptures...

To the weird. I looked at this one for a couple of minutes. I couldn't look away.

Here's me with a pile of scrap metal. I didn't say I liked them all.

This is the back end of the restaurant.

The Mrs took over a hundred pictures (that's why she's not in many and they look so good). I just wanted to give you a taste of the grounds.

Dinner was good but not as good as I had expected. The restaurant itself looks like the interior of a rustic, French peasant house with eclectic artwork everywhere. We were seated in a 2nd story loft area where we could look down on the lower dining room and had a view of the foggy pond at the rear (see picture above). We started with appetizers of Traditional Onion Soup off the menu for the Mrs and an Heirloom Tomato Terrine (special) for me. Both were good. They also had a choice of several breads. I had an herb bread that was excellent and I don't recall what the Mrs had, but she liked it. My entree was a Halibut brandade cannelloni, local spinach, saffron - vanilla shellfish broth, Maya shrimp complement (menu), which was very good. The Mrs had the Magret duck breast miso grilled local eggplant, duck confit summer roll, plum sauce (menu). It was way too rare for her (or my) taste and the plum sauce was meh. For dessert, we split a very decadent bread pudding (special) that we both enjoyed a lot. Total bill with 2 drinks each and tip was about $130 - not too bad.

Overall this was a great experience. The Mrs really enjoyed it (I scored major points - I think) and she wants to definitely go again. Maybe in the Spring. The dinner itself was good but not what I would consider Top Chef caliber, but the service was exceptional. In all fairness to Kevin Sbraga, he left the restaurant about a year ago and there is a new chef running it. Chef Sbraga is suppose to be opening a new restaurant in center city Philadelphia sometime this fall, so I hope to check that out.

More "Hiatus" posts to come - maybe.

Mushrooms

2011-09-16T10:22:00.002-04:00

The Mushrooms I talked about here are starting to dry up and wither, but I did take a couple of really crappy pictures so you could see what I was talking about. It's a shame the Culinary Smackdown Challenge this month is Octoberfest and not shitake. The leaf blower should take care of them.

They're everywhere!

Pretty creepy I know.

Think of me as you enjoy your weekend knowing that I live in a world of spores, molds, and fungus (thanks Dr. Spengler).

Where's Buzz?

2011-09-13T07:50:00.001-04:00

For all my on-line friends who have been asking - I'm OK. Minimal storm damage although it's been pretty wet the last two weeks. The basement is dry and the roof is intact (more or less - it's over 20 years old and will need replacing eventually). We picked up 15 wheel barrows full of branches and leaves. And a gazillion mushrooms I've never seen before are growing - everywhere.

I am just under several work deadlines and The Pudge's schedule at night (now that he's back to school, although he was sick yesterday) is killing me. I'll be lurking but taking some time off from blogging for the next couple of weeks (no Haiku or MCW). Oh, the Mrs decided now is the time to clean out the garage, so everything is piled in the middle of the garage and I can't find any tools. Let's hope she doesn't break anything.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Best Character Involved In A Non Traditional Gender Profession

2011-08-31T00:00:00.002-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday dog tormentor, Boxer is too busy planning some kind of sadistic birthday abuse for her cute little 1-pound dog. So the lovely Joanna Cake again is performing the hostess duties she has become so good at doing. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. She has decided this week's theme to be - Best Character Involved In A Non Traditional Gender Profession.

Well, there's only one thing I can say about that - stripper/welder. I guess that's two things. Until Flashdance dance came along in 1983, I always thought women in construction looked like Rosie the Riveter. I didn't know they could weld a pipe to the deck, swing from it and then tidy up with a nice, on-stage shower. That's why I got into the construction field. Boy, was I misled. Believe it or not, Gene Simmons was considered for the part of Nick Hurley (Jennifer Beal's love interest in the movie). That would have been creepy.

I have absolutely no idea what movies people will leave over at Joanna's so you might as well go over and check it out.

Dim Sum Sunday and Culinary Throwdown - Bacon and Pie

2011-08-28T14:30:00.001-04:00

What the hell is he doing? Bacon and Pie? Well, as you all know (or should know if you pay attention to me at all) is that time for me is a priceless commodity. This week I had two different challenges thrown at me in the same week, took The Boy down to college and had to deal with earthquakes, tornadoes and hurricanes. So, in other words, a normal schedule for me, except for the two cooking challenges - that threw me for a loop.

On the one hand I have the Dim Sum Sunday Challenge - Pie hosted by Big Shamu over at he Karmic Kitchen. On the other I have the Culinary Throwdown Challenge - Bacon sponsored by Intuitive Eggplant and hosted this week by Grumpy Granny. So, you get why I combined the two. And to further complicate things, I had zucchini in the refrigerator that I didn't want to waste (see where I'm going?).

I found a recipe at Allrecipe.com for Zucchini Pie. That takes care of the Dim Sum Sunday Challenge and the zucchini, but no bacon. I read through the recipe and it was screaming (literally screaming) for some kind of salt - sweet. I added a half pound of bacon to the Zucchini Pie and viola - Buzz Kill's Zucchini Bacon Pie.

Well that was way to wordy, but it's already there. So here's what I did. I started with all of this stuff.

Then I got the bacon going. Hmmmmmm....bacon.

I sliced the onions and zucchini on my mandolin. I love this thing. I took the zucchini chips and cut them in quarters.

I cooked the bacon crispy and chopped it up. Hmmmmmm....chopped bacon.

Mixed all of the ingredients together (well almost, I forgot the vegetable oil and as you can see - it's sitting right there in front of me) and poured it in to a greased, clay, 12" pie plate. No crust necessary for this pie.

I baked it 40 minutes (10 minutes longer than what the recipe called for) and it came out great.

I grilled some boneless pork chops on the old George Foreman grill (there was a hurricane outside at dinner time so no Weber) with a Jack Daniels dry rub.

Consensus: This came out really good. I was afraid of the doneness, but I think it was just right. The zucchini wasn't soggy and was actually had a little crunch to it, and the center of the pie was moist. And you got the bacon and onion flavors. I think the missing vegetable oil would have made it a little moister and less likely to stick to the pie plate. It didn't stick much though. The Pudge liked it and he normally isn't a zucchini/eggplant kind of guy. The Mrs liked it too and pointed out that this was a quiche (son-of-a...). I have leftovers and am looking forward to seeing how it tastes after a couple of days.

Welcome to Jersey - You Gotta Problem With That?

2011-08-27T12:50:00.002-04:00

Well, Irene is almost here and this is the headline in Saturday's local paper. I love our governor.

We've taken in or tied down all of the outdoor projectiles and we're ready to see what this punk-ass storms got. I hope everyone fares well.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Best Love Story

2011-08-24T00:00:00.005-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday work-a-holic, Boxer is too busy picking blackberries and making cake soup out of them. So the lovely Joanna Cake again is performing the hostess duties she has become so good at doing. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. She has decided this week's theme to be - Best Love Story.

I'm a dude - what do I know about love stories. You might say to yourself (or out loud if you want to seem crazy), Buzz, aren't you married? Isn't there a love story there? My answers are yes and yes. But the love story is only interesting (barely) to the Mrs and me. Hence my dilemma in picking a movie about the best love story - BORING. It's only interesting to the people it's about - from the dude perspective.

So instead of going for "best" (because in my world that doesn't exist), I'm going for "quirkiest" because that semi holds my interest. What a build up, huh? Alright, settle down people. I went with an obscure (read independent) little movie from 2002 called Secretary. This is about a woman (fresh out of a mental institution - just the way I like them) who becomes a secretary for a lawyer. The sado-masochistic relationship that these two have is entertaining, creepy and most of all - interesting. Maggie Gyllenhaal plays the secretary and James Spader plays the lawyer (but I'm not sure he knows he's doing a movie). Gwyneth Paltrow was originally cast in the role of Lee Holloway (secretary). I wouldn't have mind seeing that. Here's the trailer because it's the only PG clip I could find.

A little too over-the-top? I think this movie may be one of my better selections for Miss Joanna. Now, put your hands on the desk... Did I say you could leave a comment?

Movie Clip Wednesday - Movies on a Train

2011-08-17T00:00:00.013-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday work-a-holic, Boxer is too busy...wait a minute, allow me to digress. I make sport of her from time to time because, well, there's a lot of material to work with. What she does to those poor dogs is borderline criminal. But she's had a tough year and she keeps up her blog, she's an aspiring artist, domestic traveler and overloaded business woman. So if she doesn't have time for her movie clip bastard child - well, it's understandable. She'll be back - eventually, oh she will be back.

So the lovely Joanna Cake again is performing the hostess duties she has become so practiced at doing. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. She has decided this week's theme to be - Movies on a Train.

Old Buzz is going to take liberties with the theme (not again! - son-of-a...) and choose a movie that is not technically on a train but centers around a train. A train we don't actually see until the very end. I'm talking about The Bridge On the River Kwai (1957) starring Obi-Wan Guinness. I love this movie because of this scene. The instant Colonel Nicholson realizes the mistake he's made in helping the enemy is priceless. On the first take of this scene, the explosions on the bridge didn't detonate. The train crossed over safely, only to crash down a hill on the other side. Bwahahaha And Alec Guinness never saw the bridge blow. He had completed all his scenes and returned to England when the explosion was filmed.

Okay, okay, here's another clip that keeps with the theme - for about 20 seconds. This is the funniest scene in Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?

Planes, trains, automobiles...no, just trains over at Joanna's. All aboard!

We're Not in Kansas Anymore

2011-08-12T09:01:00.002-04:00

If you think you're sick of this movie line now, wait until you're finished with this video. I stumbled across this video purely by accident. What we have here is a guy with waaaaay too much time on his hands. But this is really fascinating.

You can try and guess all of the shows or you can go here for a list:

http://fourfour.typepad.com/fourfour/2010/12/not-in-kansas-anymore-a-supercut.html

But frankly my dear, I don't give a damn.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Best Man Pretending To Be A Woman

2011-08-10T00:00:00.006-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday work-a-holic, Boxer is too busy building a shinebox for her brand new boots. So the lovely Joanna Cake again is performing the hostess duties she has become so good at doing. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. She has decided this week's theme to be - Best Man Pretending To Be A Woman.

To be honest, I don't like this theme at all. I have no desire to dress as a woman or see another guy dressed as a woman. It's not homophobia, it just creeps me out to no end. So to that creepy end, the very first thing I thought about for this category was a small scene from Gangs of New York. Of course I couldn't find a clip, but there is a scene where there is a church dance and the church reverend is walking down a line of women to pick the queen of the dance. He gets toward the end and there are 2 of the worst looking transvestites (heshes as they call them in the movie) I've ever seen. Five-oclock shadows and all. I laugh every time I see that scene.

So, speaking of creepy guys, I settled for 1993's Mrs. Doubtfire. Robin Williams is a fairly convincing old woman and and it's kind of funny. Interestingly, in real life Robin Williams divorced his wife in order to marry his nanny. In this film he divorces his wife and becomes her nanny. Bwahahahaha

If you're in to this kind of thing (not that there's anything wrong with it), man-up and head on over to Joanna's to see - well, God only knows what.

A Charmed Life

2011-08-05T13:18:00.004-04:00

The Boy and The Squeeze on the Las Vegas strip. I've never been to Vegas. The Mrs has never been to Vegas (that I know of). WTF?

The Artist I Remember

2011-08-05T10:30:00.010-04:00

This is a quick post for Chicky (well maybe not so quick). I left several comments for her during her Process Series on her Flannery O'Connor portrait. I told her this series of posts brought back memories of and "Uncle" of mine from my childhood who was also an artist. He was a huge influence on me and my siblings and here is a condensed version of that story.

I lived across the street from him for the first 25 years of my life and my siblings and I would visit often to learn about art. He was a painter but was famous (and published) for his work in Linoleum Block prints, wood cut prints and silk screening. He and his wife were like family and we called them Aunt Pat and Uncle Henry.

Uncle Henry worked for Speedball Paints and was a product tester. I can remember seeing big plywood sheets with dozens of dabs of different color paints, dates and notes on them in his studio. We would then use those paints for our own projects after he was done with them.

This is off of Speedball's website and that's Uncle Henry in the lower Right corner. I'm guessing from the 1950s.

Uncle Henry was also an avid horticulturalist and gardener. They had a huge property (relative to the town) and he had all kinds of exotic trees, bushes and plants. He did all of the landscaping himself that included rock patios and walls, a pond, trellises and numerous statues, some of which he made himself. And he had a vegetable garden that was about 150' x 100' and grew all kinds of tomatoes, corn, potatoes, beans and lettuce. He also grew rhubarb, horseradish, raspberries and had about 20 grape vines. It was a beautiful property and we all liked to go over in the spring, summer and fall to help "work the farm". Uncle Henry use to turn the garden plot by hand every year.

We use to celebrate birthday parties at our house and theirs and a lot of the decorations were hand made by him and us. He silk screened birthday, Christmas and special event cards for us all of the time. I still have some of them kicking around somewhere. He also did lithography and made wood carved lithographic plaques of adages and prayers. They also vacationed in New Hampshire every year for a month and he would trace the bigger fish that he would catch onto scrap lumber, cut it out, paint them and hang them on the exterior of his studio and garage. He had a number of paintings (some by us) that he would polyurethane and hang on the walls too. They had no children of their own, so we were it. It was a good part of our childhood.

Uncle Henry and Aunt Pat passed away within about a year of each other. We always thought Aunt Pat would go first because she had a fair amount of medical problems. But Uncle Henry passed first from cancer. I'm not exactly sure how old he was, but I would say early 90s. He had a brother that was wounded in World War I and my sister L has a collection of letters from him to the family while he was recovering. I want to get those from L and read them again.

When Aunt Pat died, the only relatives they had (and who the estate was left to) was a cousin in upstate Pennsylvania. We had met him and his sons a couple of times over the years, but really didn't know them. The estate was worth several million dollars in 1990 dollars. You would never get that if you saw how simply they lived. depression era mentality I guess. My family tried to get the town leaders to apply for Green Acres funding to purchase the property so that it could be made into a park or town art/rec center. But you know politicians. They talk a good game but never applied for the funding. The Mrs and I considered purchasing the property, but decided it wasn't right for us

Shortly after Aunt Pat passed, my sister L went to the studio and took some of the sentimental prints and art work. So she is the keeper of most of it at her house and I need to get over there some day to see if there is some things we can hang in our house. It's a shame for it to be stored in a basement.

The estate promptly sold the property to developers and the studio and gardens were bulldozed and property subdivided into 5 buildable lots. Within a year of Aunt Pat's passing, the original house was all that was left. Five new houses stood where the studio and gardens once were.

This is not one of Uncle Henry's woodcut prints but one I know he admired. This is a very similar style to his although he would use brighter colors.

This is a painting Uncle Henry gave me when I bought my first house. This was a very typical landscape that he would do. Bright colors (I suspect partially because those seamed to be the colors he tested) with trees and houses and sometimes lakes. Sorry for the flash in the glass, I'm too lazy to take it out,
I found this wood print on line that is attributed to Uncle Henry circa 1964. I believe it is one of his because it is definitely the style I remember.

So you see Chicky, artists do influence more people then they know. And technology can make you live forever (kind of like Highlander). I don't think Uncle Henry ever saw a computer, but 20 some years after his death, his art and influence are still around. If I find anymore of his work at my sister's, maybe I'll do another post.

EDIT: I forgot that I found some on-line pics of Uncle Henry's Book. My sister L may even have copies of the book. I can remember seeing a whole box of them in his studio - many years ago.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Best Movie From A TV Series

2011-08-03T00:00:00.001-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday eggplant humiliater (is there a PETA for vegetables?), Boxer is truly a one-woman-show for the foreseeable future. So the lovely Joanna Cake again is performing the hostess duties she has become so good at doing. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. She has decided this week's theme to be - Best Movie From A TV Series.

I've actually done several posts (different themes) about TV series that made good movies. Police Squad brought us the Naked Gun movies, Get Smart and The Brady Bunch turned out to be good movies and, of course, the biggest movie franchise from a TV series of them all (and Joanna's post this week I suspect) - Star Trek. So what's left? What am I to write about?

There is ONLY one other great movie based on a TV series. And that would be 1987's - Dragnet. Alright, settle down...I'll clear the room! OK, maybe not the the BEST movie based on a TV series, but I liked it. I thought Dan Aykroyd did a good job as a modern-day (for 1987) Joe Friday. And a young Tom Hanks is always funny. This scene is a spoof on what made the TV show so interesting - the witness's statement. You may recognise Kathleen Freeman, who plays Enid Borden, as the infamous Sister Mary Stigmata ("The Penguin") from The Blues Brothers (or not).

I'm sure Joanna has some interesting movies based on TV series (Khan!!!!!!!) over at her blog.

Culinary Smackdown - Eggplant

2011-07-31T20:30:00.002-04:00

I'm going to have to make this quick because I'm short on time (that's different for you Buzz). I had to take The Pudge to Summer Camp with the Boy Scouts today and I didn't get home until 5:00PM. So it was a mad dash for the smackdown.

Eggplant! Hey, I have one of those. If you'll recall, I had one lone eggplant in the garden. And I picked it this week, along with a jalapeno pepper to make a recipe that Fishy graciously shared with me.

Grilled Spanish Style Eggplant:
2 small eggplants
1tbs coarse salt
2 tbs chopped garlic
2 jalapeno chillies, seeded and finely minced
1 tsp red chili powder
1/2 cup light soy sauce
1/4 cup toasted sesame oil

Slice eggplants lengthwise @ 1/8" thickness
sprinkle with coarse salt an set aside for 20 minutes. Pat with paper towel to remove remaining moisture.

In a large bowl combine garlic, chilies, chili powder, soy sauce and the toasted sesame oil. Whisk together, add eggplant and allow to marinate 4-6 hours.

Heat a large non-stick skillet, cook slices for 3 or 4 minutes on each side until lightly browned.

The only change was the sesame seed oil - didn't have any. So I used olive oil and sesame seeds. I also only marinated for 1/2 hour.

A 1/2 hour marinade in a Ziploc.

On the Weber. Love the grill marks.
I finished with some freshly grated parmisian.
What to make for the rest of the meal? The Mrs bought these Hilshire cocktail weenies about 6 weeks ago and I've been tripping over them in the refrigerator the whole time. So I found a recipe called BBQ Hot dogs and Rice and a whipped together a tomato-cucumber salad with fresh basil and oregano. Done in 45 minutes.

Everyone was good with the eggplant. It had good flavor that I think would have developed had I marinaded it longer. And it wasn't too spicy either, so the Mrs liked it. The Boy had The Squeeze over and she didn't care much for it. But then again - she goes out with The Boy.

Lame entry, I know but an entry none the less.

How Does Their Garden Grow?

2011-07-29T10:50:00.001-04:00

This is the 2nd part of How Does My Garden Grow? I walked the farm the other night and tried to take some shots of the more unusual things I see up there. Also, the row designations go up to "DD" and 6 deep. Rough estimate is 175 plots. When I walk the farm at dusk, I see dozens of rabbits on the perimeter and in the gardens without fences (the sacrificial gardens as I like to call them).

Here's the guy that uses a lot of PVC pipe and roof gutters (although it's hard to see either in this picture). He also plants stuff in some kind of plastic bags and has netting all over the place. His garden looks pretty good.

This garden has the best (and most plentiful) cantaloupes around. I bet he has 50 in all.

A lot of marigold growers at the farm. These are some of the better ones (for Chicky).
This is a nice size pumpkin for mid-July. I'm curious to see how much bigger it gets.
There is one corner of the farm that has gardens that are not plowed under at the end of the year. So they have a lot of nice perennials - like these - whatever they are.
People bring all sorts of stuff to the farm. Keep in mind, with the exception of about 12 plots that are un-touched, everyone starts with a 25' X 25' plowed dirt plot and a marker stake with your name and plot number. Everything else is brought from home. I doubt this scarecrow works. There was a bird on it earlier in the week. Maybe it scares the deer.
This is the edge of another perennial garden. I don't know what they are, but there's a lot of them.

Scarecrows and bamboo. Some people don't seem to know when to stop.
A lot of sunflowers this year. They seem to be extra big too. One guy was carting off a sunflower head that was bigger than a football. He said it collapsed under its own weight and he was taking it home so his wife could get the seeds. Wish I had a camera for that because it was the biggest one I'd ever seen. This guy is 2 plots down from me. He has the biggest and most tomato-ladened plants on the farm. And not a ripe one to be had. Our tomatoes seem to be the only ones ripening.
My crumby camera skills really don't do justice to this farm. I see something new every time I walk it. I would love to be one of the retired guys that always seem to be here so I can work on my plot a lot more than once or twice a week. I actually think they're all hiding from their wives.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Best Woman Pretending To Be A Man Movie

2011-07-27T00:00:00.000-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday Stripper Chair Finisher and Dog Tormentor, Boxer is too busy checking out potato farming in Idaho (she's all over the place this week). So the lovely Joanna Cake again is performing the hostess duties she has become so good at doing. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. She has decided this week's theme to be - Best Woman Pretending To Be A Man Movie.

I can only think of three movies that fit the category. Victor/Victoria - sort of a musical that I didn't like very much; Just One of the Guys - an 80s teen movie that had a good-looking lead (Joyce Hyser) that couldn't act; and Yentl - Barbra Streisand - 'nuff said. So at the risk of blogger jinx, I chose none of them.

My original thought was to use 1991's Robin Hood where Uma Thurmon's Maid Marian infiltrates the Band of Merry Men as a boy. Who'd of thought I couldn't find a clip of that - right? So I decided to take a bunch of verbal abuse and go with 2000s Charlie's Angels (remake). Yeah, I know it's a not-so-good T&A movie, but I thought in this scene, Cameron Diaz and Drew Barrymore did a fairly good job dressing as guys. And Lucy Liu as a dominatrix was just gravy.

Girls will be boys over at Joanna's, so head on over and check it out, but leave your girly dresses at the door.

Haiku Monday - SWEAT (Winner)

2011-07-26T13:00:00.002-04:00

Some good entries from a hot, sticky weekend. Now, to start, I am a novice poet (if I may be so bold) and can't hold a candle to critics such as Troll, Moi or Master Basho's Ghost. So I will comment on the Haikus in the order I received them and attempt to render a fair and impartial decision. Members of the Kill family are ineligible to play and all decisions of the judge (that would be me) are final. And the winner may proudly display the Haiku Monday Badge of Great Honor (with Master Basho's Ghost's permission, of course) on their blog. That will be prize enough (Buzz - you cheap bastard). And please, no wagering. So let the games begin.

Fishy shared my sentiments for Sunday morning (or any morning this past week). I have a digital thermometer in the bathroom that greets me every morning and I think 78 was the lowest it went. I like the way she did her first line with numbers and symbols to get the syllable count.

Sunday Morning

Eighty @ 6:10
forecasting triple digit
sweat expectations

Troll seems to be conveying a true story maybe? Interesting that it was hot, sweaty sex as opposed to the regular kind. Maybe she (and I'm assuming Riko is a girl) was the racist here. Troll raises all kinds of questions that maybe he'll clarify for us - or not. By the way, I couldn't access the link for the visual.

Troll Turned Down in Tokyo

Riko said "No!" to
hot sweaty sex. Racist? Or
anti-perspirant

Moi had a visual to go with her haiku. More traditional in the sense that she writes about good, old fashion, summertime sweat. Ineffectual swipe is really good and conveys the helplessness of sweating. And who hasn't had Coppertone hit their eyes like a can of pepper spray?

Heat blazes, brow pricks.
Ineffectual swipe. Ow!
Sunscreen burn blinds eyes.

Czar, in coming up empty, made sort of an anti-theme haiku (for lack of a better description). Making the jump between perspiration and inspiration was brilliant (I thought). And I think the new word "haikuless" may make Webster's next year.

coming up empty

Haikuless Monday.
on per- . . . no in-spiration.
Not gonna sweat it.

Chicky chose to go the shameless product placement route with her explanation of the science behind the sweat. Strong enough for a man, but made for a woman during the "K9 days" of summer. I did like the "pheromone blast" imagery - and I'll stop right there.

A pheromone blast
by means of cooling system;
Kill it with Secret!

Fleurdeleo had me toweling off after this one. The sensual side of sweat and culinary pairings. I could actually hear a Poison or Whitesnake tune in my head while I was reading this....over and over....

Blazing Boardwalk

Frozen custard cone.
My tongue glides along my lip
tasting cream and salt.

Intuitive Eggplant had a visual of some nice looking Turkish Eggplant (who knew there was such a thing) presumably for the Culinary Smackdown this Sunday (31 July). I like that she doubled up the Haiku with her (our) Smackdown. I'm all about efficiency. And she savors her victory over all of the other safari participants. And it was very close to rhyming too.

Sunday Morning Farmers Market

Daunted, drenched by nine.
Then rare orange veg espied.
Others' sweat, I'll prize.

Karl scares me. *cue James Bond theme* While other people contemplate changing shirts 3 times during the day, Karl contemplates the type of long underwear one would wear while setting magnetic explosives to the hull of a Russian trawler. I think Troll (and Master Basho) can back me on the fact that you don't see "thermocline" in too many haikus. Shamelss sucking-up is - always appreciated.

The dry-suit dilemma:

Thermals in summer?
Too hot above the thermocline
Wet and cold at depth

Aunty conjures a very southern image of the lazing Uncle (right?) passing the time in an Americana-esque backyard scene. Does haloed imply saintly, or the amount of body heat the human body gives off on a scorching day? The reader is left to ponder this image with the rather disgusting thought of bugs drinking - anything. And the title of this haiku (more than any other this week) really helps put an image in my head.

Book on Chest

'Neath noonday haze the
hammock stills; gnats sip at his
Beaded haloed head

Some very different takes on a common problem this week. I'm sure I missed a lot of pieces to these haikus that I hope you will all share. My stylistic poetry and one-dimensional essays about poetry will hopefully prevent me from winning/judging in the future.

All said and imposing my authority as grand poobah of this week's theme, the top three are Czar, Fleurdeleo and Aunty. And I wittled it down to Aunty and Czar - with Aunty coming out on top. The mental imagery I got from Aunty's words were what did for me.

So congratulations to Aunty Belle. Display the Haiku Monday Badge of Great Honor with pride knowing you had great competition. Everyone stay hydrated.

Haiku Monday - SWEAT

2011-07-24T00:00:00.007-04:00

Jesus H. Christ it's hot here in the northeast (H for humidity) - and I don't do well in the heat. We get hot summers but not consecutive 100 degree days. We've been over 90 degrees for 7 consecutive days. Storms have been in the area and either track north or south of us, missing by a mile or two (I watch the Doppler on http://www.weather.com/ all the time). We're in some kind of meteorological dead zone here.

So SWEAT is definitely on my mind - and my forehead - and down my back. So let's here what your poetic alter egos think about sweat.

Place your 5-7-5 format Haiku in the comments section below to be eligible for the Badge Of Great Honor. I will judge only 1 Haiku per entrant. So, if you post more than 2 below, let me know which one you want judged.

And, of course, you can post more haiku and visuals at your own blogs/websites if you are so inclined. I'll give everyone the whole day Monday and judge sometime on Tuesday.

Days humidity.

Cool rivers snake down my back

Amazon shirt glue.

Everyone knows girls don't sweat.

How Does My Garden Grow?

2011-07-20T15:30:00.001-04:00

Notice I say "My Garden" because the Mrs pretty much has left it to me to tend to. She did pick out most of the plants for this year. Mostly from a school fundraiser. She bought 72 tomato plants and we ended up planting around 50. So we're up to our necks right now in tomatoes.

We set up the garden during the first week we were permitted (I think it was around the 2nd week of April). The town plows the entire garden under that week, so it's a good idea to get set up because the weeds grow with a vengeance here. About 3 weeks in, the Mrs noticed a lot of sunflowers popping up in gardens that hadn't been set up yet. So she poached them. Legal and moral issues aside, they're only flowers and (as you can see) everyone gets to see them. Some are at least 8 feet tall.

In the foreground, we have cucumbers, hot peppers, one eggplant and some other stuff I'm not sure of. In the center are three pumpkin plants that aren't doing to well. We were late planting them, but some people have huge vines with basketball size pumpkins on them all ready. In the background are whats left of the strawberries, some jalapenos that I planted and some asparagus that didn't do well at all. I'm sure there's some tricks to the asparagus - I just don't know what they ae. This is the 3rd season for the strawberries. I take them out at the end of the season, pot them and put them in our backyard (covered with leaves). They keep coming back.

Here's a close-up of the ill-gotten sunflowers.

Here's the loan egg plant that I hope to use for Intuitive Eggplant's Smackdown.

My Jalapenos. They're doing pretty good.

Here's a shot of a good portion of the farm. We have a corner plot (A1) and, although I've never really paid attention, I'll bet I'll bet it goes down to Z1. I'll have to pay attention the next time I walk around (there's markers at every plot).

Oh, I forgot, here is probably the biggest cucumber we ever grew.

Part of my routine when I visit the farm is to pick and weed our garden, hit it with a bunch of water, then go for a walk around the entire farm. This is for exercise, to let the water soak in (I water again after my walk) and to see what's doing in other people's gardens. I'm nosey that way. This woman's flower garden is probably the best on the farm. She's there practically every day.

A lot of people grow sunflowers (all the better for the Mrs to pilfer next year).

Last year there were probably 3 dozen plots that went unplanted. That is, people signed up, paid their fee and did nothing to the plot. The woman that runs the farm is really cracking down on this because she has a wait list of around 50 people. This year I noticed only around 1 dozen plots unattended to. There's a lot growing up here. Some people have interesting and unusual planting techniques. One Asian guy uses a lot of PVC pipe and roof gutters for planting. I'll have to get some pictures of some of the other plots for a later post.

Tonight I'm going to attempt a vodka cream sauce and pasta with some of our tomatoes. Then I have to get up to the farm for watering. With this heat and lack of rain (a huge storm hit about 2 miles south of us last night and we didn't get a drop) I have to go up every couple of days.

Haiku Monday - SWEAT

2011-07-20T12:45:00.005-04:00

The Monday, July 25th Haiku Theme will be SWEAT.

We'll use the standard 5-7-5 format Haiku. I will judge only 1 Haiku per person. So, if you post more than 1, let me know which one you want judged. And you can post more haiku and visuals at your own blog.

Stop by the Buzzkill this weekend (probably Sunday July 24th) to submit your Haiku. Good luck and have fun with it - you know I will.

UPDATE: Please post your Haiku entry here.

Movie Clip Wednesday - New York, New York

2011-07-20T00:00:00.004-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday Small Business Rabble Rouser, Boxer is too busy hiding her business from the IRS. So the lovely Joanna Cake again is performing the hostess duties she has become so good at doing. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. She has decided this week's theme to be - New York, New York.

There are many movies that prominently feature New York City including Ghost Busters, Saturday Night Fever and The French Connection. But the one I like the most and that I think features the "real" NYC is 1976's Taxi Driver. The sleaze and corruption of this city can turn cab drivers into cynics and is what made Travis Bickle the vigilante anti-hero we all know and love (are you talking to me?). This scene describes his feelings about the city and how it is affecting him. Jeff Bridges was considered for this part. I don't know, I can see the Dude saying "I take people to the Bronx, Brooklyn, I take 'em to Harlem. I don't care. Don't make no difference to me. Come on, man. I had a rough night and I hate the fuckin' Eagles, man!

And as an added (non-embedded - friggin' YouTube) bonus, what trip to NYC would be complete without a ride on the subway? My other favorite NYC movie with my favorite NYC actor - King of New York Subway Scene.

So , do you want to be a part of it, New York, New York? Let that British Big City girl Joanna make a brand new start of it, right there in old New York (well, I hosed that all up).

How I Spent My Weekend

2011-07-18T09:00:00.009-04:00

I've posted pictures of my deck before and as some of you may remember, I built it around a tree because I thought it would be cool. In doing so, I grossly underestimated how fast the diameter of the tree would grow. So twice now, I've had to widen the deck around the tree. The last time I did it (about 7 years ago) I had access to a Sawz All at work. I don't anymore.

For the last 2 years I've realized that I needed to cut the deck back and have pleaded for a Sawz All for my birthday, father's day and Christmas - to no avail. I even sent the Mrs a link for the Milwauki Sawz All that I wanted. This past father's day, I did the same thing and told her I would need to buy it if she didn't. She finally got the message and I got a new Bosc Sawz All (yeah, I know) for Father's Day.

So this was the weekend for the cutting before it got too hot. Here's the tree.

Because I (make that the Mrs) waited so long, the tree is applying outward pressure on the boards, which tends to bind the blade. This maximized my wood-cutting, sweaty fun.

Here's my new Bosc Sawz All with 12" wood blade (I ended up using 2 blades).

Two and a half hours later and about 6 1/2 linear feet of cutting, it's done (I'm sure my neighbors loved me). I had to cut through some of the box joist that I built around the tree. That made the total thickness in some spots 10 " thick.

I sweated an awful lot and my arms and wrists were killing me when I was done. I should be good for another 5 years or so. Well, I did get a Sawz All out of the deal and they come in handy for a lot of things. The next project will be to replace a section of garage door and I'm sure the Sawz All will play a part - even if I don't really need it (cue Tim Allen grunt).

Update: That night (after I showered and pumped myself full of pain killers) we went to our local swim club for the annual "Pool Jam". It featured 2 bands (yeah, at our swim club). One was from our club called Band Test. They did a lot of Tom Petty and Stone Temple Pilots. They were pretty good although the lead guitar had a problem with his sound (in that ou couldn't hear him over everyone else). The base player is a friend of the Mrs and me.

The other band was from a swim club in another development called The 8E's (yeah, pretty cheesy). They did Blondie, Thomas Dolby, the Violent Femmes and finished with Cheap Trick (which I really appreciated). Then the Mrs helped me out of the lounge chair and drove me home.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Best Garden Scene

2011-07-13T00:00:00.007-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday Blog Summit traveler, Boxer is still detoxing from her New Mexico road trip and I'm finally back after a 2 week (12 days too long) hiatus on the kid's vacation. And the lovely Joanna Cake again performed the hostess duties in the face of dwindling participation. Well fear not Joanna - I'm back. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. She has declared this week's theme to be - Best Garden Scene.

The themes are getting narrower and narrower, requiring much thought and movie memory (both of which are in short supply for me as I get older) - I like it though. So what constitutes a garden? A cotton field like the one in Places in the Heart or a cornfield like in Field of Dreams? Maybe a non-traditional garden such as a cemetery in Gardens of Stone or the infamous human garden in Motel Hell (I almost went with that but it's not for the squeamish)? Karl's Victory Garden PBS educational film (I'm sure there's some kind of espionage going on in there)?

No, I went with the more traditional backyard garden. The infamous Italian garden where basil and tomatoes grow - and the Godfather dies. Coppala's directing of this scene is outstanding, especially the end where Don Vito drops over in the background and grandson Anthony continues playing in the foreground. I always thought it was funny that in this scene, Vito takes the bug sprayer away from Anthony and puts it right next to the food. If he didn't die in this scene, he would have kicked a couple of days later from DDT. This scene also features the Godfather Orange Theory where someone dies in any scene that features oranges.

So, What's the gardeners favorite movie? War and Peas. No? How about a gardening quip from Rodney Dangerfield: My wife's a water sign. I'm an earth sign. Together we make mud.

Go over to Joanna's and I'll stop right here.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Movie One-Hit Wonder

2011-06-22T00:00:00.005-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday Advent Wreath builder, Boxer is still too busy making tent chandeliers (yeah - I know - where does she get the energy?) to care for the wayward child that she gave birth to. So the lovely Joanna Cake again will perform the hostess duties. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. She has declared this week's theme to be - Movie One-Hit Wonder.

Tough, tough category. I gave this a fair amount of thought as to what constitutes a one-hit wonder. It would have to be a recognizable character (not necessarily the lead) that may have had an impact on the movie industry or culture. And then the actor/actress basically faded into obscurity.

I came up with several actresses who I believe made one good, solid memorable film. And even though they may have continued acting, they never scored big again. They would be Phoebe Cates in Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Mia Sara in Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Both of whom I've previously posted on. Actors such as Chris Makepiece in Meatballs and Ilan Mitchell-Smith from Weird Science also come to mind. And an argument can be made that James Dean was a one-hit wonder with East of Eden, but I truly believe he would have had many more successes had he not died. Same deal with Heath Ledger.

No, I'm going with a semi-obscure Steven King based movie - 1983's Christine starring Keith Gordon. He played the nerdy mechanic wannabe Arnie Cunningham who fixes up an old (possessed) 1958 Plymouth Fury in order to get the girl. Kieth Gordon did go on to have a semi-memorable part in Back to School but was pretty much upstaged by Rodney Dangerfield. He has since gone on to direct some 15 films and TV series including Showtime's Dexter, but he never acted in a memorable film after Christine.

See who everyone else thinks is a one-hit wonder over at Joanna's. There won't be any seconds.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Best Gunfight Scene

2011-06-15T00:00:00.001-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday domestic traveler, Boxer is still drying out from her sojourn to the southwest. So the lovely Joanna Cake again will perform the hostess duties. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. She has declared this week's theme to be - Best Gunfight Scene.

Well, I'm short on time because I just found out the theme on Tuesday night. But there is only one movie gunfight that comes to mind immediately, and that's 1995's Heat. It stars Robert Deniro, Al Pacino, Val Kilmer and Tom Siezmore in one of the most intense, sociopathic street fights that I've ever seen on film. What really makes this fight is the sound, and I have an HD version for your veiwing pleasure. It is a little long, but you won't be able to stop watching once you start. Warning - graphic, unadulterated violence - Oh yeah!

The rest of the movie isn't very memorable, but it's worth watching just for this scene. Head on over to a Joanna's for more carnage.

Boy Scouts - Eagle Ceremony

2011-06-08T09:45:00.001-04:00

Well, it's official, The Boy is an Eagle Scout. The troop held a court of honor a couple of weeks ago and we pinned him.

The official eagle neckerchief.

Lame attempt at photoshopping the cake.

The Boy and The Pudge.

The Boy and The Old Man.

The Three Stooges.

Semper Paratus - Always Ready - Be Prepared!

The Boy's Prom 2011

2011-06-03T13:15:00.004-04:00

So The Boy had his High School Senior Prom this week. His date, "R" looked great but (in my opinion) is way too good for him. He informed the Mrs and I the day before that 3 other couples and a limo were showing up at our house for pictures. Here are a couple of the pictures.

I may have some pictures of the other couples at a later date.

As for the Prom, The Boy and R were going as "friends" although they briefly "dated" about 6 months ago. His main squeeze "L" was going to the Prom with another guy who, according to The Boy, is "gay" (why is everything in quotes?). I'm not exactly sure what transpired (and will maybe provide an after action report later when I do find out) but The Boy and L are through, done...she's not coming around anymore. L was too good for him too (she is going to a reputable university to study medicine). And I'm not sure what R's status is as of this writing. Oh to be a stupid teenager again.

The Boy gets home from the Prom at around 11:30PM and comes into our bedroom to let us know (actually the Mrs because he knows I don't care) that he's home and packing to go to the shore. It's a long time New Jersey tradition to go to the shore after the Prom. I did it 32 years ago.

Here's the kicker. He's taking his buddy "M" with him to the shore (it's about 75 minute ride) and when the Boy comes in to our room to talk to the Mrs, his buddy M comes in the room too! Is it me or am I right to be upset by this? The Mrs shook it off as boys just not knowing any better. There is no way I would have ever done that at his (or any other) age.

In any event, The Boy is down the shore for a couple of days, which means peace and quiet for me and The Pudge.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Best Flood Scene

2011-06-01T00:00:00.005-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday birth mother, Boxer is still an absentee parent. So the lovely and scantily clad Joanna Cake again will perform the hostess duties. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. She has declared this week's theme to be - Best Flood Scene. I think I proposed this one because it was on my mind with the resent events in the low lands of the Mighty Mississippi.

What I had in mind was not your standard Ten Commandments parting of the Red Sea type flooding (although that was pretty cool). Or your typical farm flooding like Mel Gibson's The River. No, I'm talking about the worst possible place to have a flood, and that's at sea. If you're in a ship or a submarine, the ability to float means an awful lot. There are some great sea flooding scenes from The Poseidon Adventure and The Perfect Storm, to Das Boot, Gray Lady Down and Crimson Tide.

I decided to go with a more "instantaneous" nautical flooding scene, and that was the mini-sub implosion scene in 1989's The Abyss. When that glass starts cracking and you know it's just a matter of seconds before Lt. Coffey is done, that's edge-of-your-seat suspense. The rest of the movie gets a little hokey and there is the whole plot twist at the end, but I love this scene.

Everyone should be up to their necks with this theme (groan) so head on over to Joanna's for more interesting water sports.

As a special bonus and at no extra charge to you, the consumer (I thought of this one after I did the write-up), I present to you what I think is one of the funniest flood scenes ever. It's a little long but worth the watch.

Boy Scouts - Swinging From The Trees

2011-05-25T19:28:00.008-04:00

Editors Note: Sorry about the paragraph spacing. I don't have the time or patience to figure it out.

A couple of weekends ago, the troop got together for a weekend camping trip to a Boy scouts of America Scout Reservation in eastern Pennsylvania. The purpose of the trip was to participate in the camps Challenging Outdoor Personal Experience project or COPE. It consists of different challenges for groups of scouts that involve teamwork and problem solving (Low COPE), and for individual scouts that test agility and individual skills (High COPE). The underlying purpose is to develop leadership.

The project varies from one reservation to another, but this one is suppose to be one of the best on the east coast. I personally had no idea what to expect but some of the older scouts knew what the course looked like from previous summer camps. The troop has been doing week-long summer camps here for the past several years and will be coming back again this year in August.

We set up camp Friday night. It was a beautiful night with the temperature in the upper 50s. The camp site had both 2-man tents and 3-sided wooden lean-tos called Adirondacks or Ads. They sleep 6 (3 sets of wooden bunk beds) and the boys used them instead of the tents. The site had a small pavilion and we draped one of our tarps over it to make a bigger dining and cooking area. The weather forecast for Saturday and Sunday was rain, so we wanted to take advantage of the dry night to get everything set for the rain.

Here's the pavilion and one of the 2-man tents (in the background) that we used for a supply tent.

Here's the pavilion and an Ad (in the background) and the fire pit in the foreground.

Saturday morning, after a cold breakfast of cereal, OJ and fruit, we headed over to the COPE course. The morning program was on the Low COPE course.

Here half of the boys are blind-folded and the other half have to guide them along a puddle laced dirt road with voice commands only. That's The Pudge with the red bandanna.

The boys have to balance on a beam while singing "Happy birthday". The COPE counselors were a sick and twisted bunch.

The boys had to get the patrol from one platform to the other using 2 short boards. It involved planning and counter-balancing.

This was a balance seesaw that the patrol had to balance on while singing "I'm a Little Tea Pot".

This is the Leap of Faith. The scout on the platform (The Pudge) has to fall backwards into the waiting arms of the rest of the patrol. This was a trust exercise and was great fun.

Here the boys had just finished the wall climb where you had to lift or push the whole patrol over the wall. They're just photo opping - and resting.

Lunch was ham and cheese sandwiches, juice, fruit, chips and cookies. There were 3 other troops participating and each troop brought their own food. The COPE counselors were suppose to have water jugs but didn't bring them. So yours truly had to hike back to camp and bring 2 - 3 gallon jerry cans of water (that's like 50 pounds) and it was about a mile. I was sweating pretty good when I got to the picnic area. The rain has held off so far to one little 5 minute shower.

The boys eating lunch under the soon-to-be-completed new pavilion.

After lunch the boys donned their safety harnesses and helmets in preparation for the afternoon High COPE course.

The Pudge all suited up.

The first thing they did was go over safety and "belay" training. The belay lines are attached to steel cables along the course with the other end looping through an overhead pulley and is then attached to the scout. Two boys man the belay line and walk along with the scout that is up in the trees.

Belay training.

The Pudge up on a platform (with a counselor) after having climbed the Giant Ladder. He's on a platform and is tethered to the tree - waiting his turn.

The Pudge walking one of the rope bridges.

Once again my photography skills are not very good. These bridges are about 30 feet off the ground and the belay line and boys manning the line are out of sight. This course is very safe and, other than some scratches and rope burns, no one was hurt. There is also a 300 foot long zip line at the end - a reward for completing the course that the boys really look forward to.

We got back to camp around 6:00PM and had a quick dinner of stew, rolls and devil dogs. We had a very mellow camp fire and got the boys in their racks by 10:00PM. They were so tired we didn't even have to tell them. By 10:30PM the rains came and it rained all night, clearing in the morning in time for breakfast. We had a big breakfast of French toast, sausage, OJ and fruit. We broke camp at around 10:00AM and were home by noon.

The boys had a great time and a number of them want to do the Endurance COPE during summer camp. That consists of High COPE, Belay Training, rock climbing and rappelling. They do it over the course of 5 days and can earn the rock climbing merit badge for their efforts. That should be fun.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Movies That Make You Think Of An Ex

2011-05-25T10:15:00.001-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday Film Buff, Boxer is off doing still-lifes of naked dolls (it frightens me just to say that). This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. So the lovely and provocative (because she has a great story to go with her theme this week) Joanna Cake again will perform the hostess duties. She has declared this week's theme to be - Movies That Make You Think Of An Ex. Talk about a buzzkill.

I only have 2 ex-girlfriends (of note) and one I talked about here already. The other one I don't ever recall taking to a movie or can even associate with a movie. I really thought about it too. I dated "E" toward the end of college and for a year or so after. And after college she became geographically undesirable (2 hour ride) and we ended up going our separate ways. She was a red-headed Irish girl who was a first generation American. As such, she had a fierce love of Irish bands. Most notably - U2. So when I hear 1981's Gloria - I always think of her. I'm thinking about her now...

Head on over to Joanna's if for no other reason than to just hear her date story. Very hot.

The Kill Family Night on the Town (UPDATE)

2011-05-18T10:25:00.001-04:00

Well, I received the Kill Clan Family photo with Patty Duke. I won't identify everyone, but you can probably figure out who's who (I'm the mustached mutant on the left).

And my family is having a lot of fun with my sister and this gem. That's my head sticking out of my sisters back. Kind of freaky if you ask me.

The Kill Family Night on the Town

2011-05-16T13:15:00.003-04:00

"But they're cousins,
Identical cousins all the way.
One pair of matching bookends,
Different as night and day."

That is the tune that was playing in my head all night long when the Kill family recently went to the Big Apple to attend a charity dinner that featured none other than - Patty Duke. But first, some of the back story (sit right back and you'll hear a tail...wait, wrong show - but this gets a little long). My sister, L is a member of the board of directors for a New York based charity known as ICL:

The Mission of the Institute for Community Living Inc. (ICL) is to assist individuals and families affected by or at risk for mental and developmental disabilities with services and support designed to improve their quality of life and participation in community living.

ICL celebrated it's 25th anniversary and tapped my sister to be the board member "Gala Chair". She said her company bought a table for the event and she invited me and the Mrs, my 2 brothers and their wives, my other sister and her husband and a friend to go with her. Truth is she was nervous about it, wanted some moral support from the family and I know she paid for the table out of her own pocket, which was a lot of money I'm sure. The Mrs chose not to go for reasons known only to her, but I will tell you she missed a great time.

The evening started in a Greyhound parking lot (yeah I know but it was convenient) where we were met by a white stretch limo that my sister hired to take us to and from NYC. My brother-in-law G brought the beer and wine. There were 9 of us and the car held 10, so it was a little crowded but comfortable.

The whole ride up my sister briefed us on what not to do or say in the presence of Ms. Duke. We were not to ask her about her identical twin - Kathy Lane (some show trivia for you). And we were not to ask her about metal illness - specifically hers.

Now driving to NYC is a crap shoot. You never know what the traffic will be like within 20 miles of the city. On a good day you can make it in under 2 hours; a bad day will take you 4 hours. We needed to be there at 5:30, so we left at 3:00. Our driver Frank got us there in an hour and 45 minutes. We drove past the World Trade Center construction site to get to our destination - the Ritz Carlton Hotel.

We sat at the bar for about a half hour, enjoying the beautiful hotel. I was tempted to take a picture of the men's room (for Heff) because it is the nicest one I've ever been in, but I thought that would be - gauche. My sister L picked up the bar tab too.

We then went up to the 14th floor bar and outdoor terrace. The view is spectacular and the weather was perfect (mid-70s). You could see the Hudson River, the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island and just about everything else NYC has to offer. Some of the Hors D'oeuvres they served were stuffed artichokes (good), crusted braised beef (very good) and tuna tar-tar on tortilla (kind of bland).

The view from the 14th Floor balcony.

After about a half hour, the sea of people parted and there she was - Patty Duke. The first thing I notice is that she is tiny. IMDB has her height listed as 5'-0" but I will tell you she's got to be like 4'-10", maybe 85 pounds. The girls think her dress is size 0. She came over to our group and met with sister L first (because she's a big deal board member) and then introduced herself to each of us individually. She was extremely gracious and chatted about her visit that day to one of ICL's facilities. And I heard almost nothing she said, just that friggin Patty Duke Show tune in my head.

And here she is. The blond in the pictures is my sister L. She looked very nice in her black evening dress. I don't get to see her all dolled up that often.
These are all of the board members and VIPs.

Afterwards, we went down to where the banquet room was set up. Outside they had a silent auction of paintings, jewelry and sports memorabilia - none of which I could afford. One guy at our table won a Joe DiMaggio autographed ball - for $500.

Here's the swanky banquet room and table setting.

The dinner was very good. Here's the menu and some of the plates. The only thing that I didn't like was the lobster tail. Mine was extremely overcooked (to the point of mush).

My sister L went up on stage 2 different times. Here was my view of the stage. Not the best seat but hey, it was free.

She only messed up at the very end when she said "Frank you very much". No doubt thinking of the limo driver (who incidentally reminded me of Dennis Farina for some reason).

Patty Duke spoke for about 15 minutes discussing her bouts with manic depression and how she saw some of the residents at the ICL facility re-enact a scene from the miracle worker. And all of the actors were blind (kind of funny but actually touching). After the program was over, she stuck around and talked with people and even signed some autographs. She seemed to be a genuinely nice person.

The front of the Ritz-Carlton as we left.

Our ride home.

The cool lights in the limo. So there you have it. We left about 9:30PM and Frank had us back to the Greyhound terminal before 11:00PM. A good time had by all. There was a professional photographer at the event who did a group shot of Patty and the whole Kill family, so if I get that picture, I'll post it.

Can't get that tune out of your head, can you? Me neither - don't bother to thank me.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Most Memorable Thin Man Role In A Movie

2011-05-11T00:00:00.009-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday Film Buff, Boxer is off on an adventure at Chickory, so she won't be hosting anytime soon. One can only imagine what's going on there. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. So the lovely Joanna Cake again will perform the hostess duties. She has declared this week's theme in Karl's honor - Most Memorable Thin Man Role In A Movie.

This is a stumper because I've never seen any of the Thin Man series all the way through...just select scenes...from Karl. So I did some Googling and found a character that I see all the time as a crossword puzzle answer - Asta. So here's a funny clip of Asta in action from After the Thin Man (1936). That Mrs Asta sure is a tramp.

I'm really curious as to what will turn up at Joanna's. But one thing you can bet on - it'll be in black and white.

Visual Haiku - First Kiss

2011-05-08T12:00:00.003-04:00

Radio contest.
Humor, jazz...alluring blend.
Pick-up dalliance.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Hottest Vixen in A Teen Comedy

2011-05-04T00:00:00.014-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday Film Buff, Boxer is not only on hiatus, she doesn't even participate anymore. What's up with that? This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. So Joanna Cake again will perform the hostess duties. She has declared this week's theme in my honor - Hottest Vixen in A Teen Comedy. Should I be flattered? Embarrassed? Arrested? You people decide.

(UPDATE)This explains it perfectly (except change the 40 to a 51):

This theme is right in my wheelhouse but I had difficulty not only deciding on a favorite, but one that is supported by YouTube. Let's start out by saying the number one pick for this theme, hands down, is Phoebe Kates from Fast Times at Ridgemont High. Carrot scene? Pool scene? Bueller? I used that clip before and I figured Karl would pick it anyway.

Speaking of Ferris Buller's Day Off, this was going to be my choice if I could find a video clip of Mia Sara at the pool (again with the pool). But You Tube failed me. Mia Sara was unbelievably hot in this movie but then she made some bad movie choices and faded into obscurity. She was married to Jason Connery, Sean Connery's son, but that's about it.

Which brings me to my choice for today. This actress was way hot in this movie and she had the sexy British accent (I am not kissing up to Joanna - well maybe a little) to go with the looks. Of course I'm talking about Kelly LeBrock in 1985's Weird Science. Although Bill Paxton's Chet character stole the movie, Kelly at least looked great in every scene. Not so much today though - she didn't age well - and she's only 2 weeks older than me! I guess being married to Steven Seagal will put some hard miles on a woman. Anyway, here's a clip of the very first time we see her:

So how could you not want to see what everyone picks this week? Go over and visit Joanna for more hot vixens.

Visual Haiku - Music To My Ears

2011-05-01T20:00:00.002-04:00

Born on Iron Horse.

To the V-twin thunder roar

Be wild summer knights.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Best Movie Wedding Scene

2011-04-27T00:00:00.001-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday Film Buff, Boxer wants to take a little break from Movie Clip Wednesday. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. So Joanna Cake has graciously picked up the standard and is running with it. And because she's British and they have that royal weeding thingy going on over there this weekend, her first theme out of the chute is Best Movie Wedding Scene.

Weddings can bring a dramatic element, a comedic element or a mushy boring element to a movie. The mushy boring ones like My Best Friend's Wedding or The Wedding Planner I can do without. A dramatic one and best movie wedding without a doubt (in my opinion) is Connie and Carlo's wedding in the opening of The Godfather. I like the old-timey-ness, the music and all of the subplots going on during the wedding. It's really too long of a scene to present here, so I'll just say it's the best and move along.

That leaves the comedic element and for that one I chose to go with Frank the Tank's wedding in 2003's Old School. Not so much the wedding but the reception. And what made the reception was The Dan Band. They are known for performing originally female-performed pop songs, with added obscenities and swearing. They were also in 2009's The Hangover. When you see this clip, listen carefully to the vocals and also look at he older dancers on the floor.

So there you have it. I wonder how Will and Kate's wedding would go over with this band? Anyway, get out your Kleenex (because there's always crying at weddings - what?) and head over to Joanna Cake's for more zany nuptial madness. And thanks to our new hostess for continuing the MCW tradition.

Visual Haiku - Chicken

2011-04-25T00:00:00.001-04:00

Know southern fried pride?
F-ed with genetically?
Could be last supper.

Happy Easter 2011

2011-04-23T11:59:00.000-04:00

Boy Scouts - The Trail of (Raindrop) Tears

2011-04-18T20:50:00.007-04:00

This past Saturday (April 16th) the Troop did a hike in eastern Pennsylvania along the Skippack Creek Trail in Evansberg State Park. We'd been wanting to do a hike for some time because we have a number of scouts that needed a 5 mile hike and compass/map reading training as a requirement for the rank of 2nd Class.

We had postponed this trip two other times because of scheduling conflicts and were on the edge as far as canceling this trip. The weather forecast (as everyone now knows) was not promising but we felt we could get it in before the heavy stuff came down. We ended up with 5 scouts (including The Pudge) and 3 leaders (including yours truly). The Boy was supposed to go but I couldn't get him out of bed and quite frankly, I didn't try too hard. This was just going to be a trip for me and The Pudge.

No one in the Troop had ever been to this state park or done this trail before, so it promised to be an adventure. It was only an hour or so ride and the GPS found it with no problems. So after we huddled up and decided what routes we wanted to take (there were several options), went over some basic map reading skills and discussed safety, we were on our way at about 9:30AM.

The sky was overcast, temps around 50 and the forecasters said it would start raining around noon. That gave us 2 1/2 hours to cover 5 miles - no problem right? Well, we forgot we were in Pennsylvania. The first couple miles were relatively flat, maybe 20 or 30 feet of elevation change and mostly followed the north side of the Skippack Creek. The trail criss-crossed with the horse trails which were rocky and made of brownish clay. The horse trails were well used and pretty sloppy because of the hoof prints and "horse deposits".

The only other people we saw were fishermen who were trout fishing in the creek. We got to a highway bridge that took us to the other side of the creek. Looking at the map, we decided to cross to the south side of the creek and go down about 3 miles to another bridge where we could cross back over. This turned out to be a tactical error on the part of the leaders as I will explain later.

As we followed the creek on the south side, we had a substantial elevation change, maybe 100 to 150 feet. And it was an almost straight drop down to the creek below. No big deal but it was a lot more effort. Along the way we saw this tree and weren't sure if it was woodpeckers or bugs. I'm thinking woodpeckers or some other type of bird.

The boys also found these raccoon tracks. Part of another 2nd Class rank requirement is identifying indigenous animals.

The park boasts that there are a lot of 18th and 19th century structures and ruins throughout the park. We came upon one around 11:30AM and decided this was a good place to eat lunch.

After lunch we continued on about another 2 miles - and the rain started. Nothing heavy but enough that we broke out the rain gear. We got to the 2nd bridge and found that it was - OUT. I mean gone - as in not there - under construction - no way to cross. We looked at the map again and we had 2 options; proceed forward another 2 miles to a bridge we crossed coming into the park and then walk another 4 miles to the cars or backtrack about 4 miles. We chose to backtrack.

As we started back up the higher elevation, we noticed the clay paths were becoming extremely slippery. And I noticed I was starting to get a lot of pain in the groin area of my right leg. But we kept moving along. One scout (Simple J from my Eagle Project post) was having a real tough time keeping up with the scouts and started having a meltdown on us. Fortunately, he's the scoutmaster's son, so he dealt with that.

The rain kept steady but the wind started picking up. The scouts were troopers though and once we got back over the first bridge, even Simple J was in better spirits. The scoutmaster had a GPS that tracked our distance, so all told we hiked almost 8 miles on a trail I would classify as an intermediate level of difficulty. A couple of the younger scouts (and one who just joined the troop with this being his first scout outing ever) who I thought might have trouble doing the trail were outstanding, even leading a good bit of the time with The Pudge, who was the senior scout on the trip. I, on the other hand, didn't fair as well and could barely lift my right leg at trails end and am still in some pain (but getting better) on Monday afternoon.

We huddled up again under a pavilion to review the map and trail we had just taken. We also reviewed some orienteering skills and everyone got the requirements signed off in their handbooks. This state park was in very good shape and very clean. The trails were well marked and very clean. Except for the rain and my crumby picture taking, it was a nice trip and one that we all decided we would like to do again sometime. Maybe a Fall hike.

See Boxer, I'll still post when I have something to post.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Best Movie from Outer Space

2011-04-13T00:00:00.019-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday Space Age Barbarella, Boxer wants us to leave the confines of earth for this week's Movie Clip Wednesday. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is Best Movie from Outer Space or Best Movie Set in Space, depending on which part of her blog you're reading. I will go with the latter because, quite honestly, I don't know any movie that has come from outer space with the possible exception of Caddyshack 2.

Well, this isn't the best movie set in space, but I like it a lot and it's keeping with my recent movies-from-the-80s sub-theme. That movie would be 1984's The Last Starfighter. It's a movie about a boy (Lance Guest was 24 when the movie was made) who is recruited through a video game to "defend the frontier against Xur and the Ko-Dan armada". One of the first movies to use CGI, it has some good battle scenes and some good sets. It's kind of a Star Wars knockoff and has a certain Spielberg-esque quality to it. This was Robert Preston's last film.

And this is a first for me. I have secured the services of both Hulu and YouTube to show the actual scenes that I wanted to show (God, I hope it works). The 2nd clip is the infamous "Death Blossom" scene. I always thought that was cool name for a weapon of last resort. Make sure you click on "A Gung Ho Iguana".

A Gung Ho Iguana The Last Starfighter at MOVIECLIPS.com

If you're looking for some good alien-on-alien scifi action, then head on over to Boxer's, Princess Leia of the bloggoshere.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Best Party Scene

2011-04-06T00:00:00.021-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday Birthday Girl, Boxer wants us to celebrate (belatedly) her birthday with this week's Movie Clip Wednesday. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is Best Party Scene. After having deferred her birthday celebration to do a tribute to Liz Taylor, the inventor of the vodka fountain has decided to revisit the topic of parties (she is presumably dried out by now). Party scenes? - well there are the classics like Animal House, Revenge of the Nerds (wonder joints?) and Old School. But in honor of the birthday girl, I wanted to go a little more off the beaten path (Buzz, that's different for you).

And once again, thanks to YouTube, I had to go with my third choice because of clip un-availability. But my first choice was the morgue party scene from 1982's Nightshift with Michael Keaton and Henry Winkler. This was the first time I ever saw Keaton and he was funny. The whole scene with the fraternity partying with hookers in a morgue to the blaring sound of Van Halen's You Really Got Me reminded me of - Boxer.

Chuck Lumley: As we sit here and idly chat, there are woman, female human beings, rolling around in strange beds with strange men, and we are making money from that. Bill Blazejowski: Is this a great country, or what?

My second choice was 1984's Bachelor Party. The first Tom Hanks movie I can remember (although I did see him first in Bosum Buddies) featuring the very hot (although now Charlie Sheen certifiable) Tawny Kitaen. Who can forget the hotel party with the drugs, the hookers, Angel and The Reruns (big hair B-52s styled girl band) and bestiality, all of which reminded me of - Boxer.

Rudy: Let's have a bachelor party with chicks and guns and fire trucks and hookers and drugs and booze!

So the clip I offer today - my third choice - is Rodney Dangerfield's Back To School (1985). The Oingo Boingo party in the dream dorm only reminded me of Boxer because of the hot tub scene. The clip is a little long (Well, maybe you can help me straighten out my Longfellow) but here's Rodney with some of his best one-liners:

So there's your party scene Ms. Mayhem. I hope you all enjoyed my little romp through the puke and beer cans.

Trendy Man: Mr. Melon, your wife was just showing us her Klimt.
Thornton Melon: You too, huh? She's shown it to everybody.

Eagle Scout - Update

2011-04-05T11:30:00.001-04:00

I forgot (well, I didn't actually forget - I was busy) to post that last week The Boy passed his Eagle Board of Review and is officially an Eagle Scout. I never thought we'd ever get here, but we did. And amazingly, he wants to stay active in the troop as a Junior Adult Leader and Merit Badge Counselor. We'll see how long that lasts once college starts. All we need to do now is figure out if he wants some kind of ceremony/party. He says not but I think the Mrs. has other ideas.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Favorite Elizabeth Taylor Movie

2011-03-30T00:00:00.004-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday Mistress of the Wishy Washy, Boxer is changing her already posted theme to honor the passing of a Hollywood starlet in this week's Movie Clip Wednesday. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is Favorite Elizabeth Taylor Movie. I had the party theme about half way done - DAMN YOU FICKLE WOMEN! I feel better now.

That said, I'm not much of a Liz Taylor aficionado. I mean, there's Cleopatra which is an epic, grandiose spectacle - but a little boring to me. And there's the one I'm choosing because for some reason, I've seen it several times on TV and liked the hometown feel to it. Even though it's a chick movie for the most part. And that movie would be Raintree County (1957).

It's like a scaled down Gone with the Wind. Liz, Montgomery Clift and Eva Marie Saint (who is really hot in this) give outstanding performances. Here's the trailer clip: Interesting fact from IMDB: On May 12, 1956, during the shooting of this film, Montgomery Clift was involved in a serious car accident on his way back home from a party at the house of Elizabeth Taylor. His friend Kevin McCarthy witnessed the accident from his car, drove back and informed Taylor and her then husband Michael Wilding, who immediately drove to the location together with Rock Hudson. Taylor entered the car through the back door, crawled to the front seat and removed the two front teeth from Clift's throat that threatened to choke him. Hudson finally managed to pull him out of the wreck and together they protected him from being photographed until the ambulance arrived. This was necessary because soon after the emergency call had come in to the local police station, reporters were already on their way and arrived at the scene when Clift was still in the car. The accident was well publicized. After nine weeks of recovery and with plastic surgery, Clift returned to the movie set and finished the film, but with considerable difficulties. His dashing looks, though, were gone forever. If you notice in some scenes, his nose and chin look different, and the left side of his face is more or less immobile.

Liz made 3 movies with Clift, this, A Place in the Sun and Suddenly Last Summer. They were scheduled to make a fourth movie (Liz put her salary for the film on the line as insurance), Reflections in a Golden Eye but he died before shooting. So Liz had a very compassionate side to her that didn't come across in her films or show up in the media (as far as I'm concerned).

So if you're not doing anything, head on over to Boxer's for some more Liz inspired devotion.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Best Hitchcock Film

2011-03-23T00:00:00.001-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday Maven of Murder, Boxer is going old school horror/mystery for this week's Movie Clip Wednesday. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is Best Hitchcock Film. This is a tough one for me because I just used Hitchcock's Life Boat for a theme a few weeks ago. And there are a finite number of good films that he made, so I predict a lot of blogger jinx on this one.

Anyway, I was flipping through the channels a couple of weeks ago and landed on my selection for this week. The Pudge came in and started watching with me and I explained that this was classic horror for 1963. At 12 years old, he couldn't believe people were afraid of The Birds. For someone who's seen movies like Resident Evil and District 9 and played video games like Bulletstorm, I would have to agree with him. I told him it was more like Jaws in that the unknown and unseen can be scary. He wasn't buying it. Then I told him to look at Tippi Hedren's mint green dress. That still wasn't enough. Then we got to this scene and he all of the sudden found some interest. Explosions and guys on fire will do it every time.

And I forgot that Suzanne Pleshette was in this too. An interesting side note (to me). About 12 years ago we were down at Universal Studios Orlando and they had an attraction called "Alfred Hitchcock: The Art of Making Movies". It's not there anymore but part of the show was a made-up scene from The Birds in 3-D. We had the glasses on and I remember it being some of the best 3-D I had ever seen. The Boy was like 6 - 7 at the time and he still remembers it too.

I don't think there's any question that Hitchcock was a master film maker. He was pretty funny too as revealed in some of his cameos. So head on over to Boxer's and see what Hitchcock classics she has in store.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Best Drug/Drunk Scene from a Movie

2011-03-16T00:00:00.017-04:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday Gypsy - Acid Queen, Boxer is riding the magic bus for this week's Movie Clip Wednesday. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is Best Drug/Drunk Scene from a Movie. Oh, there are so many movies with great drug and alcohol scenes. Cheech & Chong's car ride scene in Up in Smoke, any scene from Arthur, the Vincent Vega heroin scene from Pulp Fiction and the diet pill scene from Requiem for a Dream are just a few. I really wanted to show the Jerrytown scene from PCU. This is a lesser known college movie with Jeremy Piven but I couldn't find the clip. But I laugh hysterically every time I see this snappy repartee between Gutter (Jon Favreau) and Mersh (Jake Busey - son of Gary Busey):

Gutter: Listen, Mersh, uh, I gotta get beer for this party tonight...so I'm gonna be a little late for my ride to Hartford.

Mersh: Oh, sorry, Gut man. No can do. [Chuckles] The grand master of funk...descends on the civvy at 8:00 man, and we will be there.

Gutter: Mersh, you hate punk.

Mersh: Funk, Gutter. Funk. George Clinton. [Laughing] Parliament Funkadelic. Dude! Aren't you a music major?

Gutter: Yeah.
[All Laughing]

Gutter: Well, what am I supposed to do?

Mersh: Have a bong hit.

Gutter: What good is that gonna do me?

Mersh: Just one little binger to brighten up your day. Come on, man. [Laughs]

Gutter: Just...one...hit....

It's a lot funnier in clip form. PCU is definitely worth watching if you've never seen it.

Anyway, I went with my 2nd best scene that I could find a clip for. That would be 1980's Where the Buffalo Roam with Bill Murray and Peter Boyle. Murray plays Hunter S Thompson and is really funny in the part. I saw this in 1982 and it was the first time I had ever heard of Thompson. And this is way better than Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Although I will say that Johny Depp seems to turn up in a lot of drug and alcohol scenes. For some reason, I find Murray doing coke funny. I don't know - you decide.

You want to see some more mind-altered freak outs? Than toke, pass and head on over to see Boxer - you'll forget you did.

Haiku Monday - Pulchritude

2011-03-14T08:40:00.000-04:00

White wheat thunderhead.
Cloudy cascade of brilliance.
Farmhouse Summer Ale.

Dim Sum Sunday - Potpie

2011-03-13T12:00:00.009-04:00

Big Shamu over at the Karmic Kitchen has brought out the 2 year anniversary edition of her popular food challenge for those of us that are cooking challenged - Dim Sum Sunday. The theme for this week is Potpies. A week or so ago I had to take The Pudge to the orthodontist to have his braces fixed (again). While I was waiting, I started leafing through the current Good House Keeping (I read it for the recipes. What?). I came across a different kind of potpie recipe that I had not seen before and decided that's what I would make for this challenge.

The recipe is Vegetable Beef Potpie. This is as relatively simple recipe that I modified slightly. The only ingredient I had to buy was pizza dough. Everything else I had on hand. I added a cup of celery because I had that in the fridge and thought that if you're going to call it "vegetable", it should have more than tomatoes, carrots and onion.

I chopped and cooked the carrots, onions and celery first.

Then I added the hamburger, cooked it fully and drained the grease. Then I added the chili powder, tomatoes, salt and pepper.

Here's where I got tricky. The recipe calls for the mixture to be poured into four small casserole dishes. I don't have those, so I decided to make one big pie and leave it in the saute pan (less dishes to clean too). I cut the dough into strips and did the lattice work. I don't do that to often so this took some time. And the heat from the meat mixture was softening and stretching the dough. I got it done and brushed the dough with an egg wash.

Now because it was a bigger pie, I decided to add 10 minutes to the baking time. But I was concerned about the dough burning, so I threw some foil over it for the first 10 minutes. When I went to pull it off, it stuck at several points because of the egg wash. I probable should have covered in more loosely and sprayed the foil with Pam. I freed the foil with a spatula, made some quick repairs and then back in the oven.

Anyway, it came out after 25 minutes looking really good. All were impressed.

The verdict. Everyone (including the Mrs) loved it and the boys went back for seconds. The sauce was a little thin and I may add a can of tomato paste the next time I make it. The Mrs thought it was a little spicy (because of the chili and black pepper) but the rest of us decided that shes just crazy.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Best Movie Set in England/Ireland/Scotland and Wales

2011-03-09T00:00:00.021-05:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday Irish lass, Boxer is going all UK on our asses with this week's Movie Clip Wednesday. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is Best Movie Set in England/Ireland/Scotland and Wales (I'd like to see who comes up with a movie from Wales)! I did some Google searches and found that most movies that are considered good and fit this category - I've never seen and in a lot of cases - never heard of them. The few I do know have been discussed ad-nauseum for other themes (like Braveheart, anything Monty Python, Austin Powers or Peter Sellers). What to do...what to do.

So I took a different tact on this and asked, what common theme do most of these locations evoke? Knights! Another Google search and I didn't fair much better. But in my research a movie clicked in my head (and it wasn't in Satan's voice - this time). I came up with a movie that I've been wanting to use in a horror/comedy theme, but I'm pulling it out here because - well, I'm desperate. It meets the theme requirement in that it was mostly set in England (although not filmed there). I'm talking about that Sam Raimi classic, and third installment in the Evil Dead series - Army of Darkness, 1992.

For the un-initiated, the Evil Dead series follows the exploits of our hero, Ash (Bruce Campbell) who keeps battling the power of the Necronomicon - The Book of the Dead. He is transported by the book back to 1300 A. D. England (I think) where he wins over the locals, battles the Deadites and finally goes home. This is one of those horror/comedies (in the vein of Shaun of the Dead) that is friggin' hysterical. And this is all Bruce Campbell, playing the arrogant, quiet-cool (sometimes) anti-hero (also sometimes) to perfection. This is Sam Raimi directing and writing at his best. A funny, director's trademark in this (and many) of his movies is Raimi's beat-up Oldsmobile that goes through time with Ash. He included it in most of his early movies, each time more banged up than the last. The items in the trunk of the Olds are not product placements; they're what Raimi actually had in his trunk. Enjoy.

And I had to include the end scene because it's the best line in the whole movie:

Well, that's my version of jolly old England. Head on over to Boxer's to see what else the British Isle's have to offer.

And remember: Alright, you Primitive Screwheads, listen up! You see this? This... is...my...BOOMSTICK! The twelve-gauge double-barreled Remington. S-Mart's top of the line. You can find this in the sporting goods department. That's right, this sweet baby was made in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Retails for about a hundred and nine, ninety five. It's got a walnut stock, cobalt blue steel, and a hair trigger. That's right. Shop smart. Shop S-Mart. YOU GOT THAT?

Hail to the king, baby.

Haiku Monday - Sign

2011-03-06T19:00:00.000-05:00

Foragin' fer food.
They wuz Deer Woods long ago.
Stompin' ground garden.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Favorite Political Thriller

2011-03-02T00:00:00.014-05:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday movie maven, Boxer is hitting her stride as the political puppet master to us, the deep-cover operatives of Movie Clip Wednesday. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is FAVORITE POLITICAL THRILLER. Political thrillers are okay but not my cup o tea unless it's tied in with a war theme. There are some classic (obvious) thrillers out there such as Dr. Strangelove, All the Presidents Men (which I actually found a little boring) and The Manchurian Candidate. I was going to go with Fail-Safe because of it's interesting (if not unbelievable) storyline but couldn't find a descent clip.

So I'm going out in left field (again? - you don't even play baseball) to pick a movie I watched a bunch of times last year and have been looking for an excuse to use. The IMDB story line is that he is a gun-for-hire known only as Agent 47 and is hired by a group known only as 'The Organization' and is ensnared in a political conspiracy, which finds him pursued by both Interpol and the Russian military as he treks across Russia and Eastern Europe. Do I meet the theme criteria? Good. I know I'm going to take some heat for this movie because it's based on a video game, but I selected 2007's Hitman.

It features Timothy Olyphant as the passionless, 2-dimensional killing machine, Agent 47. That's just the way I like my assassins. And, of course, the sensuous, uninhibited and very hot Olga Kurylenko as Nika Boronina. Which is just the way I like my prostitutes. Enjoy.

Nika Boronina: What colour underwear am I wearing?
Agent 47: You're not wearing any underwear.
(Shades of Tallulah Bankhead)

Looking for more insufferable politicians, espionage and intrigue? Grab your passport and head on over to see what international incident that Boxer has caused for you.

A special "thanks for the memories" to Jane Russell who passed away this week. She helped many of us boys become men through her racy (for the time) films and could fill out a sweater better than Marilyn Monroe.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Most Overrated Oscar Winner

2011-02-23T00:00:00.007-05:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday matron of honor, Boxer is going for two in a row as the Alistair Cooke of Masterpiece Movie Clip Theater. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is MOST OVERRATED OSCAR WINNER. Now I've said it before. Any time we have a most overrated or worst of category, it's tough to pick and tough to watch. But I think you need to have them (every now and then) so you can discern the good from the bad.

That being said, for this theme, I decided to just look at Best Picture Oscars figuring that would be narrow enough for a selection. I was right, of course, but I did wade through a bunch of really good titles to settle on a not so good one. And what set my selection apart was the other films this particular film won over. The year was 1979 and the other nominees were All That Jazz, Apocalypse Now, Breaking Away and Norma Rae. What movie could possibly do that (especially Apocalypse Now)? That would be that yawn of a divorce movie, Kramer vs Kramer.

I know it has two heavy hitter leads in Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep, but I was bored to tears by this thing. The endless droning about "not being fulfilled" and "I should have custody of the kid" and "I'm a single father". This is like watching a Lifetime chick flick (the Mrs makes me do that sometimes). This was followed up by the 1981 Best Picture Ordinary People followed by 1982's Watching Paint Dry. I was there in the early 80s and I don't remember it being this boring. Beleive it or not, the first cut of this movie was 43 minutes longer than the final cut. That would have made it 2 1/2 hours long!

So I mercifully found a 2 minute clip to illustr....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

OK, I came too. Wouldn't it be funny if everyone picked this movie? No, I didn't think so. Head on over to Boxer's and maybe someone will pick something we can argue about, because I sure didn't.

Eagle Scout Project - Part 2 (with probably more to follow)

2011-02-20T09:35:00.001-05:00

If you followed my Eagle Project Part 1 post, you know The Boy was making a Hail Mary pass to complete his Eagle Scout Project before he turns 18 on March 8th. The actual project took place on Saturday, February 19th. And believe it or not - he got her done.

The Boy and I got started around 7:30AM loading the truck with tools and getting everything prepped at the school for the volunteers who would arrive at 9:00AM. We had bright sunshine, temps in the mid 40s but high winds gusting to over 50 mph. It could have been worse.

When we pulled the plastic up we found that the ground was thawed although there was still ice around the perimeter of the work area. As the day progressed we found that this corner gets no sunlight at all.

Here the boys (7 in all) are digging and leveling.
Here's the stump they had to take out.

Meanwhile, I supervised The Pudge and his buddy, Simple J in the assembly of 3 garden benches. We set up in the schools all purpose room where it was nice and warm.
We set up tables in the main hallway for pizza for lunch. The Boy was able to get some of the pizzas donated.

Here's the completed project. We had some minor excavating and leveling problems that The Boy fixed. It took us longer than we thought (by 1 1/2 hours) because the boys took too much dirt out and we had to bring back about 8 wheel barrows of dirt from the dump area about 200 yards away.

The Boy owes a few favors for the effort his buddies put into this project. It was interesting working with The Boy's friends and overhearing the conversations and joking that went on - constantly. When one of the guy's sister walked by, our job site turned into your stereotypical hard-hat wearing teamsters job site. Good Boy Scout fun.
Now every things done except the paperwork, but this was definitely the last big hurdle to clear. The principal of the school needs to sign-off on the project, his eagle application with 5 reference letters needs to be submitted to council and he needs to learn 5 fishing knots to finish the fishing merit badge (the last badge he needs) all before March 8th. I think he'll get it done but I'm sure it will take some nagging on my part.

Then it's an Eagle Scout board of Review before council (which can happen after the 8th) and he's done. I still can't believe it. I'll probably go through this again for The Pudge in 3 or 4 years.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Best Broadway Play Adapted to Film

2011-02-16T00:00:00.006-05:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday matron of honor, Boxer is actually back in the saddle and hostessessing this runaway train she started. So, the Milk River Madman can sit back, relax and just worry about his selection. This MCW Meme has everyone picking a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme while trying to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is BEST BROADWAY PLAY ADAPTED TO FILM. I guess this could have been worse. Believe it or not, I have a Broadway Musical in mind and it comes with personal story (I'M NOT GAY!).

The Mrs has a 1st cousin, the Act-tour who has done some bit parts in movies and Broadway shows. So back in 1998 we were invited to see him in an off-Broadway show at the St. James Theatre. We took the Greyhound up to NYC (about a 2 hour ride) and saw the show that night. We stayed in a dump of a hotel that cost $200 a night (back then) which I have thankfully forgotten. We did go to a diner off of Times Square with the cousin and his hot Japanese girlfriend who was a dancer in Miss Saigon.

Anyway, the play was A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. The Mrs' cousin was part of the ensemble cast and played something like 5 different parts and did a lot of the chorus singing. The show ran for more than a year and opened with Nathan Lane in the lead role of Pseudolus, the slave. By the time we got to see it, the lead was taken over by...wait for it...Whoopi Goldberg. How do you go from Nathan Lane who is one of the whitest white guys I know to Whoopi Goldberg, a very black woman? Surprisingly, she did well and we got to meet her for a minute after the show. We also met Ernie Sabella who played Lycus, a buyer and seller of courtesans. He is better known as the voice of Pumbaa in the Lion King and he was a really nice guy.

So, that's my story. And here's the opening sequence from 1966's A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. This starred the very funny Zero Mostel as Pseudolus. This also features Buster Keaton in his last role as Erronius. Even though he was suffering from cancer (which ultimately killed him) he insisted on doing all of his own stunts.

As an aside: This movie also came to mind because I've been following Spartacus: Blood and Sand and Gods of the Arena on Starz (Seriously, I'm not gay). The gladiator fights are off-the-hook violent and CGI enhanced. It's really entertaining if you haven't seen it.

So there you have it. Another Buzz Kill brush with greatness. Head on over to Boxer's (not the other guy) for more Broadway fun and show tunes.

Eagle Scout Project - Part 1 of 2 (I Hope)

2011-02-14T12:45:00.000-05:00

A Special PNW Valentine's from my friend Boxer.

If you had asked me 2 months ago if I thought The Boy would make Eagle Scout, I would have given you an emphatic "No". He was 4 Merit Badges short (2 of them Eagle required which are more difficult) and hadn't even thought about his Eagle Project. FYI - The Eagle Project is an extensive service project that the Scout plans, organizes, leads, and manages. And this all must be completed by the Scouts 18th birthday, which for The Boy is March 8th.

Fast forward to this past weekend and he has 2 Merit Badges completed and the other 2 about 90% complete, came up with an Eagle Project, wrote up the entire Eagle Project Plan, went before the Council Review Board and (after some minor corrections) got approval. The project will be performed at his old Elementary School which is a logistically desirable distance from the house.

What's the project you ask? (Not an outside project, not an outside project) It's an outside project - Doh! The school principal asked for a patio area with benches off of the main entrance walkway so that parents will have a place to wait when they pick up their kids in the afternoon. Apparently it's a free-for-all at 3:15PM and the waiting parents block the exit of kids trying to get to the bus.So this is one of those nice things to have that will help the principal out but that the school has no funding for. Did I mention this was an outside project? Here's what the area in question looked like this past Saturday.

This is the main entrance for the school in it's pristine state.

This is where the patio is going. See the problem?

So, The Boy started shoveling. Note the shorts. It's a good thing common sense isn't an Eagle requirement.

And shoveling. The Boy's buddy - Sargent Cookie (long story) came over to help. Interestingly, the Sarge is not a Boy Scout and even though out Troop is comprised mostly of boys that go to other schools within the district, everyone in the Troop knows him. Fascinating.
I will mention at this point that I felt the biggest obstacle to this project (besides the frozen ground which I will talk about in a minute) would be funding because of the short time frame. The Boy went to the PTA with his project and these "women" had him relocate the patio to it's present location (causing The Boy to rewrite and resubmit his project plan) with the promise of at least partial funding. This took several weeks to do and, of course, after he had everything to their liking - the PTA reneged. Welcome to life lesson 101 - never count on a group of women for anything. Both he (and I) had some un-scout like thoughts after that fiasco.

So plan B was to come up with a bunch of letters to different, local merchants to ask for material donations - not money, and I think this was a key strategy that paid off in spades. So he put on his uniform and went to a bunch of stores to talk to the managers and hand deliver the donation request letters. The local Lowes donated all of the pavers and 3 benches (that's like $400 plus - I couldn't believe it), Home Depot gave him $75 in gift cards, the Ace Hardware gave him a dozen work gloves, Dunkin Donuts is kicking in coffee and donuts and 2 pizza places are probably (he needs to follow up this week) going to give him pizza and soda. Not one place he went to turned him down. In this economy, I find that amazing.

So back to the next problem - the frozen ground. We have had (and still have) snow on the ground for going on 6 weeks. I can't ever remember snow lasting this long. My Christmas Reindeer are still frozen in the ground. To install these patio pavers, we're going to have to dig and level 3" - 4" of frozen ground in the area. The good news is that we are finally getting a warm spell where temperatures will climb to the 50s most of the week with bright sunshine. So our plan is to clear the area of snow and build a plastic "greenhouse" over the area so it will thaw faster and not re-freeze at night. So that was the 2nd part of our Saturday.

Did I mention there was a large bush that had to be removed? Courtesy of the PTA!

Here is the tent "greenhouse" we hope will work.

Leveling sand was the only thing we still had to get. So Sunday we drove up to Home Depot to use the remainder of the gift cards. They, of course, were out of leveling sand and didn't expect delivery until March. Because who in their right mind is going to be digging in frozen ground, right? We then went to Lowes and they had 14 of the 15 bags we needed. They opened the doors for the outdoor garden center and we wended our way back to the sand pallets where the bags were covered with ice and frozen solid. I found a sledge hammer (I don't know why it was out there but didn't question the magic) and we spent about a half hour breaking these things loose. So now there are 14 frozen bags of sand thawing in my driveway. We also got 38 pavers (each weighing about 40 pounds) and 3 benches a few days before and they're sitting in the garage. This stuff weighs a ton and I was feeling it on Sunday night.

Phase 2 of the project happens next Saturday. Rain or shine, frozen or thawed we need to get this done. So I am hoping there will be at least a part 2 to this post. With all the work and obstacles he's overcome so far (and there will be more - you can count on that) I think his Eagle Badge will be well earned.

Of course he keeps throwing in my face the fact that I never made Eagle. I only got as far as Life, which is the rank below Eagle. I always remind him that I didn't have "Me" like he does. I hope that sinks in some day.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Favorite Movie from the 1930s

2011-02-09T00:00:00.005-05:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday recluse, Boxer is actually going to come out of hiding and resume her hostess duties starting next week - so she says. And just when I already finished picking my "Favorite Movie from the 1920s" - silent selection. Whoohoo - I mean, sorry to see the Madman go. So, for the very last time, the Milk River Madman will host MCW, the Meme where everyone picks a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme and tries to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is FAVORITE MOVIE FROM THE 1930S. So it's only appropriate (in light of this Boxer rebellion) that I choose 1935's Mutiny on the Bounty. I actually like this movie and most of it's remakes (The Bounty with Anthony Hopkins and Mel Gibson) and permutations (The Caine Mutiny). And Charles Laughton has the biggest eyebrows you'll ever see on a man. Those things have their own zip code. And Clark Gable, not much of a Fletcher Christian, but cool in everything he does.

Interestingly, it is the only film in Oscar history that had three nominees for Best Actor: Clark Gable, Charles Laughton, and Franchot Tone. Because of this, the Academy introduced a Best Supporting Actor Oscar shortly afterward to ensure this situation would not be repeated. They all lost to Victor McLaglen for The Informer (1935), the only nominee not in this film.

So go on over and see the Madman for the last time. He's been a great host even when his schedule was hectic. Sometimes confusing, sometimes late with the theme (causing me ulcers) but always entertaining. Thanks big guy.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Favorite British Comedy

2011-02-02T00:00:00.006-05:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday dog torturer, Boxer is way too busy dragging her poor dog through the mud to return as hostess. So it's the Milk River Madman that continues to take up the mantle that is MCW, the Meme where everyone picks a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme and tries to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is FAVORITE BRITISH COMEDY. Well, apparently Moi picked this category and I've gotta tell you, it's a tough one for me. Joanna Cake and Roses should have no trouble with this. But for us Americans (well, me anyway) British humor is mainly Monty Python, Peter Sellers and Mr. Bean (and I hate Mr. Bean). And we've kind of done those to death.

There is, however, a relatively new (again, for me anyway) British upstart who I like a lot. Simon Pegg's big claim to fame is 2004's Shaun of the Dead, which is truly hysterical and that I've posted on before. He did another film in 2007 called Hot Fuzz which I also found pretty funny. It co-stars Nick Frost (Ed from SotD) who is Pegg's buddy, who has appeared in several of his films and is John C. Reilly funny as the classic sidekick. So here you go:

I love this scene:

Head on over to the Madman's and see what Python, Sellers and Mr. Bean flicks he has going on this week. Next weeks theme - Favorite Middle Eastern Hygiene Movies. What? (I sure hope I'm kidding).

F-ing Snow

2011-01-30T10:00:00.002-05:00

This is what's left of the snow we had Thursday morning. These were taken Saturday afternoon. This stuff just won't go away (like the kids) and they're calling for more on Tuesday.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Favorite Movie from the 1940s

2011-01-25T20:50:00.000-05:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday haiku extraordinaire, Boxer is far too busy composing winning haiku rants to return as hostess. So it's the Milk River Madman that continues to take up the mantle that is MCW, the Meme where everyone picks a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme and tries to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is FAVORITE MOVIE FROM THE 1940s. After having favorite movies from the 1950s, I can just cut and paste and fill in the blanks.

There were a lot of good movies made in the ~~50s~~ 40s like ~~The Bridge on the River Kwai, Rebel Without a Cause and 12 Angry Men~~ Citizen Kane, Casablanca, It's a Wonderful Life and classic kid's movies like Pinocchio, Dumbo and National Velvet, just to name a few. Alright, enough of the strike out crap.

The last couple of weeks we've been talking (well some of us have been talking) about that master of horror, Alfred Hitchcock. But he did some petty descent non-horror type movies. One I like (from 1944, coincidentally) is Lifeboat. It starred wild party-girl Tallulah Bankhead who gave an outstanding performance (it was nominated for 3 Oscars) as the stuck-up journalist. It's the story about a ship and a German U-boat involved in a battle and both are sunk. The survivors from the ship gather in one of the boats and then they pull a man out of the water who turns out to be from the U-boat. It also features a very young Hume Cronyn. I say young because I only remember him in his later years being married to Jessica Tandy.

An interesting tidbit about Tallulah Bankhead was that she was infamous for not wearing underwear. According to Hume Cronyn, during the filming of Lifeboat the crew complained about her flashing them when she had to climb a ladder to go into the mock-up of a lifeboat. When their objections reached Alfred Hitchcock, he reportedly quipped that he didn't know if it was a matter for wardrobe or hairdressing. Bwahahaha - oh that Hitchcock.

This once again is Karl's category to lose. Bwahahaha Go on over to the Madman's and see what other Black and White flicks he can drum up.

Dim Sum Sunday - Vegatables Kids Will Eat

2011-01-23T19:22:00.001-05:00

Big Shamu over at the Karmic Kitchen has resumed her popular food challenge for those of us that are cooking challenged - Dim Sum Sunday. The theme for this week (as I understand it) was to prepare a vegetable dish that kid's will eat. This was suggested by Making Space whose kids are fickle when it comes to eating vegetables.

A go-to simple recipe that I use all the time with my 17 and 12 year old boys is Buttery Cooked Carrots that I lifted off of AllRecipes.com some years ago. This is as simple as it gets and it has butter and sugar, two food groups that kids love.

Here's the ingredients with the carrots in a steamer already going (I was running late this week). The recipe calls for boiling, but I thing they get a little too water logged that way. I retain about 1/2 cup of the carrot juice water for use with the recipe.

Here's everything mixed with the carrots soaking. I try to leave them in as long as possible.

Here is the finished dish. You can pour some of the sauce over it if you want. The Mrs says it's too sweet that way, but the boys like it that way.

And here was dinner. Carrots, rotisserie chicken (Shoprite) and Rice-a-Roni, that San Francisco Treat. Everyone was good with it.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Favorite Movie from the 1950s

2011-01-19T00:00:00.006-05:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday urban trekker, Boxer is far too involved in recording the artistic elements of downtown Seattle. So it's the Milk River Madman that continues to take up the mantle that is MCW, the Meme where everyone picks a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme and tries to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is FAVORITE MOVIE FROM THE 1950s. There were a lot of good movies made in the 50s like The Bridge on the River Kwai, Rebel Without a Cause and 12 Angry Men just to name a few.
But for my selection this week, I'm going back to my childhood (again).

My mother was pretty religious and encouraged us to watch religious themed movies. In fact, she bought me a book full of screen shots based on this movie. And that would be 1959's Ben-Hur. I'm not sure if this is based on an actual biblical story, but it's pretty cool just the same. It's sort of like an early version of Life of Brian. Bwahahaha This movie won 11 academy awards including best picture and best actor for Charlton Heston. The two best scenes are the naval battle and the chariot race. Interesting fact, the large island in the stadium made a backdrop of a stone wall and was cheaper to film than a backdrop of thousands of extras but it blocked a lot of people's views if they were real Roman spectators. The chariot race (a precursor to NASCAR?) is a bit long but is so spectacular that it's worth the watch - and no CGI here.

I'm curious to see what Karl comes up with because this is right in his wheelhouse. So head over to the Madman's to see some great old flicks.

Haiku Monday - Arizona

2011-01-17T00:00:00.007-05:00

Oil surfacing souls,

When survivors join comrades

the Pearl sheens no more.

Haiku Monday is hosted and judged by the Troll. All decisions by the Troll and Master Basho are final. Please, no wagering.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Favorite Fantasy Moive

2011-01-12T00:00:00.007-05:00

That Movie Clip Wednesday tormentor of small dogs, Boxer is too busy trying to get Cocostuck under a forklift. So it's the Milk River Madman that continues to take up the mantle that is MCW, the Meme where everyone picks a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme and tries to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is FAVORITE FANTASY MOVIE. This theme is wide open to interpretation. Are we talking an actual fantasy I'd like to have (we may be delving in to the XXX arena) or a fantastic place or time? In consideration to the women, I chose the latter.

And what better fantasy film is there than Conan the Barbarian (1982). This was Arnold Schwarzenegger's first staring role and it led to his 1984 defining role as The Terminator. Nobody can wield a sword, work the Wheel of Pain, or beat the crap out of giant, hammer swinging mullet heads like Conan. He wades through cannibalistic orgies (his camouflage may have been the inspiration for Predator), kills more expendable guards and soldiers than Cecil B Demille and reconditions his own weapons by banging the rust off of them. This also featured the very hot Sandahl Bergman as Valeria and a very young James Earl Jones as Thulsa Doom - half man, half snake, all ham in this performance. Enjoy.

And what is best in Life Conan?

Conan (translation): To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of their women. Words to live by Arnold, mumbled words to live by. Bwahahaha

If you've got nothing better to do (and that fact that you're reading my blog says that you don't) then head on over to see what fantasies the Madman is conjuring up.

Haiku Monday - Crescent

2011-01-10T10:10:00.001-05:00

Terror finds harbor,
Crescent and five-rayed star
Nuclear back stab?

Movie Clip Wednesday - Favorite Movie Set in Winter

2011-01-05T00:00:00.001-05:00

The New Years Eve Grand Dame of Movie Clip Wednesday, Boxer is too busy cleaning eyelashes out of the vodka fountain. So it's the Milk River Madman that continues to take up the mantle that is MCW, the Meme where everyone picks a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme and tries to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is FAVORITE MOVIE SET IN WINTER. A fairly narrow theme this week and appropriate because of the Nor' Easter that ripped through most of the US and affected just about everyone in some way. From digging out 10" of snow to delayed holiday flights, it let everyone know winter is here.

When I think of winter in movies, I think of war films. War is hell but it's way worse in the winter. A slightly obscure little Navy flick that takes place in the North Atlantic was the first thing that came to mind - 1965's The Bedford Incident. It has a star studded cast including Richard Widmark and Sidney Poitier and is about a cat and mouse came played by a US Destroyer and a Soviet submarine in the waters between Iceland and Greenland. A really good movie but I couldn't find a descent clip. I'm sure Karl has seen this one because it's a tension filled Cold-War era Navy movie - and because it's in black and white.

So instead I went with another 1965 war flick - The Battle of the Bulge. Another all-star cast (Henry Fonda, Telly Savalas, Charles Bronsin, Robert Shaw, etc.) with great tank battle scenes (although they are models) and winter ground fighting leading up to the siege of Bastogne. A better representation of that particular battle was in 2002's Band of Brothers, Episode 6 - Bastogne. Interestingly, both of my picks featured James MacArthur (Dano from Hawaii Five-O) who passed away this past year. Here is the movie trailer clip (a little long).

If you're not too hung over from Boxer's NYE Bash, head over to the Madman's for some winter chills and thrills.

The Spawn of a New Year - Navy Bean Soup

2011-01-03T20:15:00.001-05:00

So I had this really nice ham bone left over from the "real" New Years Eve Party at Stately Kill Manor. I decided to make some Navy Bean Soup. The only deviations from the recipe were to add a cup of white wine and celery (also left over from the party) and to use the ham bone and some ham chunks instead of bacon. This had really nice flavor and it thickened up pretty good after simmering for about 3 hours.

The beans were nice and tender but not mushy because I also did a quick soak on the Navy Beans by cooking them in boiling water for 2 minutes and letting them rest in the water for an hour. Otherwise you're suppose to soak them in cold water over-night and I didn't have the time.

Here are some bad pictures of the effort.

La Diva had a great suggestion about blending half of the soup to thicken it up. That is a brilliant suggestion that I failed to think of. And the Mrs gave me a new Immersion Blender for Christmas that would have been perfect for blending the soup.

In the words of Jack Sparrow - If you were waiting for the opportune moment, that was it. Damn.

New Years Eve Aftermath

2011-01-02T12:40:00.003-05:00

I have been tied up (not literally, unfortunately) with NYE party and Christmas decorations clean up and had hoped to get back to everyone much sooner than this. Sue me.

First, thank you Boxer for hosting the best (only) virtual New Years Eve Party I've ever attended. Huge participation and commenting from a ton of people. Some really funny and interesting stuff.

Second, I apologize for the bad link in my post for the Boy Scouts of America. Completely unintentional and I didn't realize it until today. All this linking got me turned around.

Thirdly, I think because I was tied up with a real NYE party here at Kill Manor, my overall participation affected how many people who visited my site and the charitable donation amount. I had 28 total comments at 50 cents per comment that would make the donation $14. I'm going to round that up to $50 and that donation went out today to the Southern New Jersey Council, White Horse District. This is the council the boys belong to and they can always use the support. Thank you all for humoring my New Years Eve Blog.

Fourthly, I hope everyone not only had a virtual good time, but a "real" good time this New Years in however you celebrated. We had 3 neighbor couples with kids come by and it was a nice, quiet evening (because I threw the kids in the basement with the Xbox and some Cheetos). We had one broken wine glass on the kitchen floor (red Zin - that stuff makes a sticky mess) and one couple actually bailed on us at 11:00PM. That was not an indication of how boring we are but rather, how boring they are (the Mrs and I were taking bets before they arrived as to when they would leave). We had more than enough food with a spiral ham, meatball sandwiches and stuffed shells (all store bought) along with various appetizers. We let the kids out at midnight but they all immediately ran back in the house because it was too cold - pussies.

Fifthly, I'm going to try and make a Navy Bean Soup with the leftover ham bone and may post about that.

Sixthly, one last time - Happy New Year to all!

New Years Eve Extravaganza

2010-12-31T00:00:00.008-05:00

Well, everyone has been talking about this all month - Boxer's Blogger New Year's Party. I'm not exactly sure how this is going to work, but it starts Friday, December 31st at 12:00 AM EST and ends sometime on January 1st. There will probably be some 50 or so bloggers (by my count) in attendance and Troll , Moi and Intuitive Eggplant will be big time participants/hosts.

I figure that, being the party guy that I am, I should provide some entertainment. And what better game could there be than Homer the Flanders Killer. This is way easier than the Troll Barmaid Bottle Catch Game and I don't think there's any scoring involved (Edit: There is scoring - I got 268). It's just kill or be killed - by Flanders - who is unarmed - Edit: He actually can kill you in later rounds).

Anyway, the underlying theme of this Boxer Bloggapalooza is charity. To start the new year right (and so that I can feel good about something) I will donate 50 cents for every comment left on this post. The money will be donated to our local council of the Boy Scouts of America.

I'm using the autolaunch publish so that this can come up at 12:00AM EST on Friday, which is way past my bed time. Especially if I'm going to stay up late for New Years Eve. We're apparently hosting a "real" party at stately Kill manor - so I'm told. So I'll start cruising around Friday in between cooking and cleaning. I have a feeling this thing may be "ever evolving" and I may add some additional stuff to this post, so come early, come often.

So remember to have a good time, straighten up, fly right and have a Happy New Year!

Supplemental: Chickory Garland Thing

So as part of Chickory's New Years Eve Party Activity, she encouraged the artistically challenged to make some New Years Garland. I took a shot at it. I started gluing it to the string but it wasn't sticking. Then I realized I was using Blistex. Plan B called for tape and that sort of worked.

Here's the Kill Family Tree. We usually get the tree from the local little league, but they didn't sell this year. So the Mrs looked online and we found a farm 18 miles away where we could "cut our own". So we trekked out there only to discover they're brought in from Pennsylvania and that this was a tomato farm and not a tree farm. Still, it's a nice tree and the Mrs was happy with it.
Here's my lame-ass garland.
Do you detect a theme to my blog? Anyone get this?
Here's the traditional Kill Christmas Village assembled by the Pudge.
Here's my tribute to Chevy Chase in Christmas Vacation.
That's all for now.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Favorite Foreign Actress

2010-12-29T00:00:00.007-05:00

The Materfamilias of Movie Clip Wednesday, Boxer is now busying herself with hosting what promises to be the wackiest New Years Eve Party of the blogosphere. So it's the Milk River Madman that continues to take up the mantle that is MCW, the Meme where everyone picks a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme and tries to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is FAVORITE FOREIGN ACTRESS. After thinking (drinking?) on this, there is only one foreign actress that does it for me, that Mexican hottie - Salma Hayek. The role I really liked her in (and so did the Academy because she was nominated for Best Actress) was Frida Kahlo in 2002's Frida. The best part of the movie? This tango sequence with Ashley Judd. And who else could make a unibrow looped pigtail hair thingy look sexy?

The first role I ever remember seeing Salma in? Two words - Satanico Pandemonium! in 1996's From Dusk Till Dawn. Best dance sequence in a movie - EVER. I'll spare the woman folk that scene and instead show how Mistress Salma puts George Clooney in his place.

I think we're going to see some interesting choices over at the Madman's today - not to be missed.

Drive-by Holiday Spirit

2010-12-22T11:30:00.001-05:00

Do you believe in Christmas?

Do you renounce the Grinch?

Do you renounce the Grinch's works?

“You must love this country more than I love a cold beer on a hot Christmas morning.” ~Homer Simpson

This is what I see happening at Boxer's New Years Party.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Favorite Christmas Movie

2010-12-22T00:00:00.005-05:00

Boxer is now busying herself with hosting some kind of weird blogger New Years Eve Party. So it's the Milk River Madman that continues to take up the mantle that is Movie Clip Wednesday, the Meme where everyone picks a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme and tries to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is FAVORITE CHRISTMAS MOVIE. A timely theme for sure and one that's been done before, but 'tis the season...

You can't think about traditional Christmas movies with naming those two Yuletide dynasties - It's a Wonderful Life and a Christmas Carol. So I chose a Christmas Carol. The version I like is more correctly called Scrooge. Made in 1951 and starring Alastair Sim as Ebenezer Scrooge, this period piece of jolly old 19th century England absolutely screams Christmas at me every year.

Then on the other side of the Christmas genre we have the comedies. A Christmas Story use to be my favorite but the USA channel killed it for me by running it continuosly for days. Hard to believe that Peter Billingsly (Ralphie) is almost 40. And you all know one of my other favorites is Bad Santa, so I won't go into that. But because it's the holiday season, I'm going to drag out another Chevy Chase movie (I did Caddyshack a few weeks ago) that I think is hysterical. 1989's National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. I saw this in the theater and never laughed so hard at a Christmas movie (not even Bad Santa). And anyone who's ever ventured into the world of exterior illumination will really appreciate this scene (a little long - sorry):

So go on over to the Madman's and see if there's a little something under his tree for you. So Merry Christmas to all.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Most Overrated Movie

2010-12-15T00:00:00.003-05:00

Boxer continues tormenting her dogs and has apparently started hanging around dumpsters (weird, huh). But it's the Milk River Madman that continues to take up the mantle that is Movie Clip Wednesday, the Meme where everyone picks a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme and tries to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is MOST OVERRATED MOVIE. This was actually easy for me to pick because I've discussed this at length with friends (not on this blog) that I never understood the appeal of this movie.

I will back-track a second and say that my very first thought on this theme was Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. I like Kubrick. Full Metal Jacket is one of my favorites. But this...the monolith, HAL, monkeys, something wonderful, blah, blah, blah. I didn't get it and could never sit through the whole thing. It was SO BORING. But this wasn't the movie I picked.

The movie I picked is 1983's Scarface. As of this writing, this is IMDB's #157 most popular movie. And if you ask any gangsta rapper (and we all know a few, right?) they'll tell you it's their all-time favorite movie. Al Pacino, Frank Logia and F. Murray Abraham as Cuban/Central American drug lords - Really? The accents are horrible and the dialogue atrocious. Oliver Stone wrote this thing and Brian DePalma directed it. The only redeeming scene in this movie is - the shower scene (and I'm not talking about Dressed to Kill either - also Brian DePalma). So here you go:

So this is another theme that will not be real pleasant to watch, but go see what else is going on at the Madman's anyway.

Early Christmas Present

2010-12-10T10:20:00.002-05:00

You all may remember a contest that Chickory had and that I, unbelievably - WON. Here were my prize choices. Anyway, I get home last night and there on the front step was this (soon to be cherished) work of art. The Mrs immediately put it on display at the edge of the family hearth.

Thank you Chickory. I know so few artists and it is truly an honor to receive personalized artwork. Merry Christmas to you and your family from the Buzzkills.

Movie Clip Wednesday - Favorite Police/Detective Movie

2010-12-08T00:00:00.007-05:00

Boxer continues her hiatus and disturbing penchant for taking pictures of dogs wearing hats. But it's the Milk River Madman that continues to take up the mantle that is Movie Clip Wednesday, the Meme where everyone picks a clip from their favorite movies based on a weekly theme and tries to keep the clip or clips to around 3 minutes long. This week's theme is FAVORITE POLICE/DETECTIVE MOVIE. Well, for those who know me. the obvious choice is 1971's Dirty Harry and it's sequels. I think this is the definitive detective movie. Harry Callahan lives on the edge on the law and tracks down the bad guys even with all the liberal red tape he's forced to deal with. To hell with Miranda and coddling criminals, Harry gets the job done and is the coolest human being on the planet. It's hard to believe that Frank Sinatra was actually the first choice over Clint Eastwood for this role. However, I know the Madman and Karl both have an affinity for Clint, so I decided not to go the Dirty Harry route.

Instead, I've gone to the other end of the police movie spectrum for one of the funniest cop movies ever made - Police Academy. Alright, I'm just kidding. I wouldn't do that to everyone. But the police comedy I did choose was 2001's Broken Lizard's Super Troopers. Admittedly, this is a guy's movie. And it's way funnier than the trailer movie clip that I have here (pickins' were slim on youtube) . It's about a bunch of Highway Patrolmen in Vermont (played by the Broken Lizard comedy troupe) and the wacky stuff they do. What makes it funnier is their captain. The captain is suppose to be the voice of reason, the disciplinarian. This captain (played by Brian Cox - Hannibal Lecter in the film, Manhunter) is just an older version of these nutjob cops. It's worth a watch if you've never seen it.

If you like a good pistol whipping, bad wardrobes and cheesy mustaches, then head on over to the Madman's and stakeout his blog (see what I did there with all the police references?).