The cake is a lie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! D:
*walks out whistling, carrying a sign and a hammer* *walks in front of door, takes nail and hammers in nail8 *hangs up sign carefully* *shuts door* *walks to bed, curls up under fifty blankets and sleeps* Sign: "Gone to hibernate for rest of winter. Wake me up in the spring or better yet, in the summer. The rest of my replies will be answered by my cat Aiden."
Before I give my recommendation and why, let me get a few things clear. The author: John Mooney is someone at a very young age who was diagnosed with dyslexia, autism and a severe learning disability. He was told by the principal to his mother that he would never make past the first few grades, let alone through high school. His mother didn't believe him and pulled him out of school to teach him herself for several years before bringing him back. Despite the fact he couldn't read until he was twelve, he was a naturally gifted writer who despite all the teasing, got to high school and became a jock and a bully to "fit in". After failing out of Freshman year in college, he signed up for Brown University. Where it's unique program has no set classes you have to take to graduate. You choose the classes that fit your strengths and with this, he graduated with a masters in writing. After co-writing a book, he took a short bus where all the "disabled" kids had to ride in and traveled the U.S. to find more stories about people with disabilities who are coping and making it on their own despite their handicaps and societies judgment if any on them. And the definition of "being normal" is to these people and what societies judgment is. When I read this the first time, I just graduated from college with a bachelors after growing up with years of therapy to "fit into" societies norms. They said when I started school I would never, ever, make it. Reading this book brings you into the stories of peoples lives who are deaf, autistic, learning disabled and other such problems. But when you read them, you don't see that, you see human beings who live their lives despite everything thrown at them. It's a beautiful book. Many stories fill you with hope as tears slide down your face as you read about a little girl who is legally blind and has 200/20 eyesight in one eye while being deaf. But as you read on, you forget that and find yourself relating to her and her joy in the simplest pleasures. Or relating when she tortures her older brother like all sisters do. The whole book is filled with stories like this, and I'd highly recommend it to anyone.
Ah... The bane of my childhood. This is one movie that literally made Roger Ebert cringe, the one that he hates more than any other movie out there. The one he calls the worst movie he's ever seen, and the worst movie Roger Ebert and Roeper reviewed in their 20 years... North. The trailer is admittedly cool and flashy. It looks entertaining, then you sit down and watch it. Admittedly, they pull out all the stops with an all-star cast. Bruce Willis, Elijah Wood, Kathy Bates and two of the actors from Seinfeld amongst many, many, many others. But the writing is terrible and you have to give something to these actors for it to work. It's about a kid who decides his parents are crappy and divorces them. He then travels the world to find new ones. Great concept, isn't it? Here's the thing, the jokes don't make sense, like in Alaska the plane stops by bumping gently against the glass. The stereotypes are horrible, seriously, every single stereotype ever thought of is in this movie and then some. There's a scene where the Eskimos are sending their elders onto ice floes to die before they "embarrass themselves." And that's just one of the terrible stereotypes in the movie. It sounds like I'm bashing, but I'm not joking, this is honestly what happens in the movie. The acting is terrible, even if they have an all-star cast, they can't pull it off in this movie between the directing and the script. All the morals and lessons are screwed up, and the ending is just weird... Seriously, this is a movie to see to believe. To quote Roger Ebert in his review: "I hated this movie. Hated hated hated hated hated this movie. Hated it. Hated every simpering stupid vacant audience-insulting moment of it. Hated the sensibility that thought anyone would like it. Hated the implied insult to the audience by its belief that anyone would be entertained by it." He was too kind.
When I was a kid, I heard so many great things about this movie. When I saw the second Neverending Story, I was thrilled to find it and rented it. After watching it and thinking about how terrible the movie was, I returned it and gave up on the series. I was surprised when a third came out and I wondered why they would make another movie if the series was so crappy. I basically turned my back on the series without never, ever seeing the first one because of the second. This year, I sat down to one of my favorite critics online and watched him gut Neverending Story 2 and 3 while saying the first was one of the most beautiful children movies he's ever seen. I finally gave in and looked up the first on Youtube because of his praise. After watching it, my only thought was: "Dear Lord, what the hell did I miss?" The story is amazing, with a plot that intertwines itself perfectly inside the book and inside the readers point of view without imposing neither on the watcher. Bastian, a lonely boy who's lost himself into books after his mothers death. Which it doesn't tell you how or when she died, but that he's just deeply affected by her death has been doing bad in school with a father that either isn't coping with his wife's death well or is struggling into the position of a single father by shoving all these expectations on Bastian with him doing well in school, and also not joining the swim team. He's also massively bullied by kids on the way to school and flees to a bookstore where he takes a book from the bookstore owner after he tells him not to. Reading the book, you go to a world called Fantasia that is under attack by the Nothing. An entity for a better description that is making Fantasia disappear or no longer exist. In the hopes of saving their world, everyone goes to the Ivory Tower to try to get help from their leader: The Empress. Unfortunatly, The Empress has fallen ill and has sent for someone to save Fantasia from imminent destruction. A young boy named Atreyu who journeys on his horse Artax for answers. This is an amazing setting, the characters are well made, the music I still listen to with fond memories. The situations and emotions go from heart-wrenching, to joy, to fear, to everything else in the map as both Bastian and Atreyu journey through to save Fantasia from the Nothing. Bastian from reading the book, Atreyu from doing the journey itself. I won't go further because of spoilers and the emotions I think someone has to see for themselves. But I would recommend it to anyone.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8iSYMkFO2A This was in October 31, 2006. After several heavy rainstorms, over a hundred horses were stranded on a small island of land surrounded by water well over 2 meters or six feet. The water also hidden barbed wire, broken bottles and other hazards that can injure, break legs or kill horses. 19 horses in three days died of exposure and exhaustion. Several boats tried to rescue the horses at first, but the boats got stuck in the sand. They did manage to rescue 20 horses that were trapped there, including the youngest foals. A few days after the flooding, the waters receded to 1 to 2 meters. Three to six feet, in desperation the government asked for volunteers on horseback to bring the horses to safety risking not only their own horses, but their own lives to bring these horses to dry ground. Four women volunteered and after the firefighters made a route, rode out on horseback to save the 100 horses trapped on the mini island. The video is showing the moments of the rescue.
Molassia? I just found their website after watching some Nostalgia Critic. I can't believe it. It's actually a country that (technically) exists in the U.S. It's not recognized by the U.S., if you go there, you need your passport stamped and prior arrangements made. If you don't believe me, check out their official website via google. They have their own currency and national anthem too. And it's only 3.6 square acres. With this... I have officially seen it all.
I was watching an online video when they mentioned something very weird. BTW, apologies in advanced if this is in the wrong area. They're going to have something like a Surgeon General Warning that you see on cigarettes on M-rated video games. The U.S. rating as we have now notes the rating of the game, E, AO, T, M and a few others, in the right bottom corner. And on the back they have the rating again with notes on what is in the game to have the rating. Now, they're going to have it like cigarettes where it has a warning on what could happen on the affects of playing a M rated game on the box itself. Personally, I am against kids buying M-rated games, I don't think it's a good idea and I think they can wait a few more years to get it. But I find this hilarious in the context that they're doing this to stop the "video game violence" that is PLAGUING the nation. And note, I do not believe violence in video games causes any kinds of shooting. Before the torches and pitchforks come out to hunt me down. :p Reading further, this is actually a bill in Congress coming up. Seriously, this is a bill they're going to vote for in Congress. At least all that money I could be using to get a better life is going to good ol' POS things like this when I pay my taxes.
HAPPY WINTERENMASS EVERYONE!!!!!!!!1 A tad bit late, but you can still celebrate. Whether it's sitting in front of a computer for a MMORPG or a FPS, or sitting with a handheld or a good old controller in your hand, there's always time to celebrate the holiday for gamers. I've spent my time playing Chrono Trigger and nearing the ending. :)
I asked Mist where I should post it and she said here, so here it is. http://thatguywiththeglasses.com/videolinks/thatguywiththeglasses/nostalgia-critic This guy is really funny. His humor can be crude and very adult sometimes, but most of the time he'll make you laugh. He also does the movies I grew up on, so I get a kick out of listening to him review them. He does some really good movies, too. Movies he's reviewed: Quest for Camelot, Neverending Story 2 & 3, Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue, Batman and Robin, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (all movies and cartoon), and several others. He has well over 100. WARNING: He does have a lot of adult humor added in. Sometimes it can get gross, but most of them time it's some adult humor mixed with regular and parodies during his videos. You have been warned. Anyone else watch him?
Ted Williams, a homeless beggar held an interesting sign for any driver passing by. He's spent the last two years in a tent after quitting drugs and alcohol that destroyed his life. A poster for youtube out of sheer curiosity stopped and gave him a dollar to hear his voice, that was Monday January 3, 2011. This is what started it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O6kI_u3ho_c&feature=related In these five days after, he's gone from a homeless beggar with no job to a national celebrity. People are asking him to do commercials, work as an announcer for a basketball team, and several others. He's been on the Today Show, John Carson, and today, has reunited with his mother after twenty years. I found this recent article about it: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/gossip/2011/01/ted-williams-sudden-fame.html This is a Cinderella story, and it brings a tear to my eye just thinking about it. Comments, thoughts?
HAPPY FESTIVUS EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *and a big fat cookie to people who understand the joke* A FESTIVUS FOR THE REST OF US!!!!!
This is one of the best animated movies of the last decade. The whole setting is gorgeous, the plot is heartbreaking and uplifting at the same time, and the characters are excellently made. It's about a mustang stallion, a wild horse in the U.S. for people who don't know. Who gets caught by the U.S. Army during it's invasion of the West. It shows the truth of the brutality of most cowboys back then on breaking horses and mustangs to get them to work for them. It also shows the kindness of humanity in other ways when Spirit, the mustang gets caught by Native Americans and they try to gentle the horse using their own ways. I won't go into full details because of spoilers, but it's heartbreaking to see what the stallion goes through and uplifting despite all that happens, he still stands for what he believes in: being free. There's no dialogue between the horses. They communicate with nickers, whinnies and snorts. Spirit does do an inner monologue from time to time, but it's not at all imposing in my opinion. The characters develop over time and it's a development that you can enjoy and cheer for. Being a horse person, I have read about the breaking of horses over time, and sadly this is accurate. Most younger kids probably won't understand fully the significance of what's happening, but I'd still recommend it for any age.
http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/11/09/california.contrails/index.html?hpt=C2 I'm guessing either plane or nuke. Me watching Call of Duty for the last few days has nothing to do with it. But it does make me feel reassured that the Pentagon has no idea what it is, if a nuclear disaster ever does happen, I know I can count on them to interpret it within the first five minutes to launch a counter to stop it.
I GOT THIS FUZZY GRAY LUMP ON MY LEGS THAT WON'T MOVE AND I HAVE TO GO TO THE BATHROOM!!!!!!!!!! D: And I'm hungry....... Anyone have food?
There's a lot of versions of this converted to books/tv shows/movies, etc. That's why I tried to make it as specific as possible. Also considering a movie has recently come out for it, I narrowed it down to Robin Hood for BBC. A few days I fell onto this gem. Maybe it's me watching it for hours at a time that my interest wanders back and fourth, but overall it's an excellent show. The casting is great for it, and the sheriff and his lackey are excellently cast. It has sometimes a modern touch with some humor and clothing, but it still makes an excellent watch just for the humor and fun of it. Anyone else see it?
Back in the 1990's, I was playing some computer games before MMORPG's came out and FPS's were still on Doom and other such games. I found a game called Myst at a computer store and considering I didn't have a computer at home back then, I went to a demo one and tried to play it. To my immense frustration and amazement, I couldn't get past the first room. Something about it made me completely and utterly stuck in that first room. A few weeks ago, a series of videos I watch brought up the genre of Myst. Point and click adventure games that make you want to pull your hair out. These games had little or no replay value due to the fact if you figured it out and (hopefully) remembered it the next time, it was a cakewalk. In exchange for this, the developers took the immense pleasure of making it so hard that you couldn't beat it without at least two months of gameplay through it. Games like: Gold Rush, Hero's Quest, Space Quest and other such games were the norm. They had funny scenes that made you want to come back for more punishment even as you die by just walking past the wrong end of a horse. *has had that happen several times, by the way* They bring you back to the olden days before advanced graphics and other such things became more important than a puzzle that got you stuck in the first room with no way out. Anyone else remember these games?
Lately there's been massive debate on the press about the schools policy on banning anything that seems to pose a danger to students and/or teachers. Toy guns, key chains, plastic knives, etc... Being a person in high school during Columbine, I understand where the policy is coming from. Even though not in the state that the tragedy happened, my school had bomb scares for at least a year afterward. Whether or not its tied to the tragedy, who knows. But plastic knives, I don't see a problem, a Muslim girl wearing her scarf as her religion dictates it, I don't see a problem. Real knives, guns and other such weapons, yes I do see as problems. I see why it would be a problem, but imagining most kids who stab anyone with a plastic knife in the eye, or a girl who kills someone with her scarf, now it's getting beyond anything I can imagine. Something in my POV needs to change about the laws. Thoughts?
A very rare book to find these days, made in the 1970's and never rewritten. But graphically accurate. A girl who is riding the family's Arabian stallion jumps over a fence while exercising him and the horse lands on broken glass, shredding his leg to pieces in the process. In desperation, she turns to the nearest farm to get them to help. A show stable who takes the horse in to heal, and the girl agrees with the owner to work at the stable until the Arabian is better to pay for the fees. This book is an eye-opener in many ways. I love riding and horses, and this book shook me to the core about what happens behind the scenes at many show riding stables. Granted, I've seen it a little myself at one stable where I rode at for about eight months before I left due to the cruelty of not only the riders, who were 12 at the time, but also done to the horses. The author, Jean Slaughter Doty spares no expense in diving into the immense industry of horse showing. It shows the goods and many evils of what happens to the horses and sometimes the children in this sport. Drugging, fraud, and at one point a child losing her pony because he would never win more than third place in the arena due to his looks is laced in the book. Interspersed with points about the bond of horses and their riders and the joys of winning. The book breaks your heart and at the same time lifts it. At some points, you wonder if there's no hope left in the show arena and then you see something where you wonder if there's hope after all. It's a must-read for any fan of horses, and a must-read for any parent who has their child involved in horse back riding. If you find it, it's a treasure for anyone to read.
An old movie, but a fascinating true story. As Secretariat comes out, I go back to this film that isn't about a horse who dominated the Triple Crown and was a horse that was mostly unstoppable. This goes back to the depths of the Great Depression, when unemployment was at 20-30% and people had nothing to look to or look forward to. Seabiscuit was born I think in 1933, one of the deepest and darkest days of American history. He started racing in 1935. A horse, who at two years old, had an astounding and grueling 45 races where he only won fifteen of them. At the time, he caught the interest of a horse whisperer called "Silent Tom" a man who suffered for years in the old west when the new west was rapidly taking over. His employer, Charles Howard, was the opposite, a man who didn't introduce the automobile industry to the west, but fine-tuned it to make it a booming industry. A massive millionaire who had everything going for him except his son's death, a massive hole in his heart that haunts him through the rest of his life. When Tom and Howard get Seabiscuit, Tom sees something no one else has. And rapidly over time, people start to see it, too. If nothing else, they see exactly what they're going through in this horse. Watching a beat-up wreck of a horse rise from infamy to challenge the best horse of that time. From a book called the same title of the movie, Lauren Hillenbrand's book comes from the pages to show what the era was like. Not only for the horse, but for the trainer, owner and jockey also. It describes in detail what life is like for each individual without hammering it home to the point where you don't want to hear it anymore. The story of tragedy to triumph to tragedy again is amazing. I won't say what happens with the horse and jockey after the last tragedy, it's something to watch with your own eyes. The clothing and commentary is accurate and even in one case, they use the actual commentary from one of the races heard by millions of people over the radio. It's a great movie, and I recommend it to anyone.
