Funny Signs

This past weekend, I went with my wife and brother-in-law to pickup another brother-in-law's motorcycle to bring home since the motorcycle is currently non-functional. On the way there we were waiting for a light to turn green and I glanced over and saw a couple signs posted on the side of the road... like those ones that you see that say "Having trouble selling your house? We'll buy it!" or "Lost Dog" etc. Well, this sign happen to say "Sneaky ways to lower your mortgage, call this number" (yes, the word Sneaky was actually on the sign). Isn't there something inherently wrong when they let you know that what they're doing is sneaky or unethical from the beginning!?

Secondly, on the freeway I saw one of the ever so popular "Baby On Board" signs suction cupped to the rear window of an SUV. Now, I can't remember if I heard this idea somewhere, or if I thought of it (I'm pretty sure I heard it somewhere else), but isn't this sign a little funny. Can you picture a guy sitting in his car, driving along on the freeway saying to himself "Let's see, who should we hit today... how about that one" and as he starts speeding toward his target he realizes that this sign is hanging from the back window and thinks "Oh no, I can't hit this car, there's a baby in there! Nevermind." Or someone about to get in an accident and think to themselves "Well, I really wanted to get into this accident, but since that Baby on Board sign is there, I think I'll change my mind.... just this once."

Case in point

For those of you who may have read the previous entry on Catalina, I mentioned a young child who came up to me and told me that I should wallow in sludge... and I went on to wonder if this child was an evil mastermind. Well, my parents found some pictures from our wedding rehearsal over a year ago and I stumbled across this one of that same child. Clearly, this toddler genius is capable of manipulating time, space and energy as this photo was taken just moments before a small force field was generated in between his hands. Look at the focus in this child's face. It's obvious that I'm done for.

Movie Madness!

So, this past weekend Wilhe and I did a bit of a movie marathon. We rented and watched "Heist" (Based on a fellow youth group leader's suggestion), "The Score" (I thought this was a great movie the first time I watched it, whenever that was) and "The Game" (which my wife recommended). Of the three, I would have to say The Game was the best (no, my wife is not watching me type this right now). The Score was pretty good the second time, it just seemed to be at a bit of a slow pace for the first half of the movie, while Heist was fairly entertaining... it just seemed a little cheesy at times.

Last week at youth group, our friend who recommended the movie was trying to remember the name of the "old guy" actor in Heist, but he couldn't remember anything else he was in, and no one else in the group had seen it. Eventually we came to the realization that it was Gene Hackman after following several trains of thought involving things like "Is it so-and-so?" "Nope. But he kinda looks like that guy."

I seem to have those moments more frequently where I'm watching a movie or TV show and I recognize someone and I'm trying to figure out what else they're from... it seriously consumes 90% of my brain power until I figure it out....

Catalina!

This past weekend, Wilhe and I went to Catalina to celebrate her grandma's 90th birthday. Yeah, 90. Apparently, the first time the family went to Catalina was to celebrate her 80th birthday, and they've just gone back every summer since. Anyway, here are the highlights:

• Tim and I losing any form of knuckle hair we once had before BBQ-ing some sweet chicken goodness
• Watching Tim flip his kayak over as soon as he got in it
• Flipping my own kayak over, losing a $4.50 pair of sunglasses in the process (may Davy Jones wear them in style)
• Watching Geoff and Tim flip Sam over in his kayak
• Having a toddler come up to me and say "Here is some sludge. Wallow in it." -- At this point, I'm not sure if I should just laugh it off, or be afraid that an evil mastermind genius villain has been born, and has his sights set on me.
• Having dinner with about 90 people related to Wilhe's family in a restaurant with maximum occupancy 75.
  
• Dancing with my wife to 80's and 90's music at Club Chi. Catalina must not get music until about 10 years after the mainland. That's the only logical explanation I can come up with.
• Having people rest on the back of our chairs on the Catalina Express on the way back, being as loud and obnoxious as any loud or obnoxious person could be. It was so bothersome, that it caused the lady next to us to abandon her child and belongings immediately to find a seat somewhere else so she could finish reading her book.
• Arriving home and relaxing with my wife for 2 hours before we went to sleep to start a whole new week of work.
  

Starcraft 2

It's about time. That is the great, and all too true, slogan for the sequel to Starcraft (released in the late 90's). I had been hoping for this sequel release since I came to love the original. (Note: That Ghost release for console units doesn't count. I don't even remember hearing anything about that game once it was released) It all started when my roommate (who had the same name as me) introduced me to this game. We played 8-person battles in the dorm and continued to battle through graduation of college. We were so into it, that after these 8-person battles, we would hold debriefing meetings in which we would discuss strategies and everything that went down. Yes, I am a nerd. And I am proud of it. In light of this announcement, I've had no choice but to load the original game (and expansion pack) back on my computer to relive the story line of the campaign, so when the sequel comes out--whenever that may be--I'll be ready. If you're interested, Blizzard has a whole site dedicated to the sequel at http://www.starcraft2.com.

Free Healthcare for Everyone?

So, here's a disclaimer: I'm not a fan of Michael Moore or his work, therefore this opinion is quite biased :) I was reading some of the latest news regarding his new movie "Sicko" coming out which promotes Universal Healthcare in the U.S. and I stumbled across an interview (you can read the whole thing here) in which he is quoted saying the following:

We're plagued with an every-man-for-himself attitude. That attitude may have been good in helping us build this country and helping us become the innovators that we are. But we won't make it through the 21st century intact as a great country if we don't adopt a different ethos that says we're all in the same boat. We sink or swim together. We have to help each other.

Isn't this the same thing as saying "We've been doing something right for a very long time and it has gotten us to be the great country that we are. It's time to change." If so, that seems a little bit off. What good are we without innovation?

Google Street View

I was browsing through some Technology news on eWeek.com and came across the following picture. Apparently they have some section that has a weekly "Kattoon" which usually features a cartoonish cat somewhere in the picture. In any case, this cartoon is poking fun at the recent claims about Google Street View invading people's privacy. If you're not familiar with these faces, you don't have an inner nerd, but that's okay, because I can explain it for you :) This is Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer (Chairman and CEO of Microsoft) standing outside an Apple store (which is made of glass) holding a brick and a rock, respectively. I just thought it was funny, so I thought I would share. Have a great day!