Black Friday Brings Shopping Madness Locally - Nashville News Story - WSMV Nashville

This is probably an easy post but give me a break. What the hell is the problem with these people that there would be an injury to a fellow shopped because she was trampled by other shoppers. What kind of society are we in that this is somehow tolerated? What are these people thinking that they would act in such a manner to get into Toys R Us before the rest of the dopes who went out to shop at midnight on Thanksgiving.

Question - is the store going to be held liable for the injuries that were inflicted?


Black Friday Brings Shopping Madness Locally - Nashville News Story - WSMV Nashville

Aintitcool Reviews LOVELY BONES

Checking out the entertainment news - and saw that Peter Jackson has a new movie out based on the book The Lovely Bones - story below

Harry says that LOVELY BONES is a lovely brutal film! -- Ain't It Cool News: The best in movie, TV, DVD, and comic book news.

My wife read this book, even after I had warned her that this doesn't sound entertaining - it is a story of a girl who is raped and murdered and she goes to "heaven" and watches her family struggle with the aftermath of her murder. The book also follows the murderer and his "trials". Does this sound like something you want to read?

Needless to say, my wife finished the book in tears (referring to it as 'horrible'). This is not to say to say the writing was horrible or anything like that - it is just a horrid topic...

It makes me think of the movie American Beauty that came out in 1999 as it was the critics darling (won 5 oscars!). After watching it (on DVD) I remarked to my wife (girlfriend then) that it was one of the most depressing movies I had ever seen. There was nothing redeeming about the movie at all and for all its talk of being "so realistic" and showing the viewer the dark side of suburbia all it did was make we want the two hours of my life back (along with giving the viewer various cliches - the Nazi is actually gay!! - how original...). The Lovely Bones strikes me like that and I have no interest in seeing something like that.

BEWARE! Holiday Foods That Could Kill

Live everyone else, I am looking to drop a few lbs now that I have turned 40. Easier said than done and I have started working out more and watching what I eat. What a better way to start Thanksgiving!!

In any event, in my inbox today I got this story from ediets.com about Holiday Foods that can kill. How could I not read an article like that?

I didn't know Chocolate is toxic (and could be fatal) for dogs and cats...hey I didn't know. Check out the rest of the deadly holiday foods at ediets.com at the link below (and watch out!!!)

BEWARE! Holiday Foods That Could Kill

Chelmsford school's holiday item ban remains in effect

Last week I wrote about this ban in a local Chelmsford school (basically the school was banning on holiday items from their annual holiday gift shop which I thought was at a minimum counter intuitive.

Well reading Boston's Fox news I see that the ban is still in effect.

Chelmsford school's holiday item ban remains in effect

The story notes that "The ban covers all religious items, including items featuring Santa, candy canes, stockings and anything red and green."

Santa is a religious item?? Oh no - not stockings!!! They are also banning things red and green. The school should be ashamed of itself for this silliness but that would make it red...and then it would have to ban itself from its own gift sale..? I digress...

The parents should not support this Holiday Gift shop nor cave into what appears to be political correctness gone awry.

‘Idol’ Runner-Up Sexes Up American Music Awards | NewsBusters.org

I can't stand American Idol anymore (I stopped watching it after Carrie Underwood who seemed to be a class act). When I read this crap I wonder why we call these people American "Idols" when they showcase crap like this. If you haven't seen it or heard about it, I am not going to give it the benefit of explaining it. Needless to say, American Idol is really proud of the press it is getting today.

Thanks for Newsbusters for the story.

‘Idol’ Runner-Up Sexes Up American Music Awards | NewsBusters.org

Belichick vindicated: Patriots defence contains Jets offence in 31-14 win (The Canadian Press)

Let's have the spears now...the Jets lost the to the Patriots today 31-14. It is never easy being a Jets fan and being one is Massachusetts is even harder. Dark days indeed.

Congrats to the Patriots.

Belichick vindicated: Patriots defence contains Jets offence in 31-14 win (The Canadian Press): "FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The defence Bill Belichick didn't want to put on the field a week ago kept the offence of the New York Jets off it Sunday."

A&E News - A&E Presents "The Jacksons: A Family Dynasty"

The state of current reality TV is not depressing enough I guess. In reading in my wife's newest People Magazine i see an advertisement for a new reality series starting the Jacksons that warns the reader "You only think you know them". I think to myself this has got to be some strange joke but lo and behold - it isn't (A&E story about the new series is below). It is bad enough that the family has tried to squeeze every last drop of fame from Michael - and then we get the story that Joe Jackson (the father) wants a stipend from Michael's estate seeing as how he was left out of the will (and was spending $150000 a month).

Face it - the rest of the family (except for Janet) just didn't make the cut. Spare us the drama of chronicling "... the personal and professional lives of Jackie, Jermaine, Tito and Marlon as they prepare for a Jackson Five reunion, while also coming to terms with Michael's tragic loss." (from the A&E website).

Can I get an amen!!

A&E News - A&E Presents "The Jacksons: A Family Dynasty"

WBZ NEWSRADIO 1030 - MA House orders staff - not member - furloughs

A continuing problem with politicians especially here in Ma. Can you believe the chutzpah of these guys (yes - not all of them are male - it is an expression). They order their staff to take unpaid time off but they do not (their salaries are mandated by constitutional amendment)? In my opinion, if this state is having so many financial problems why don't the House members volunteer some of their salary and take the furloughs as well?

In my opinion, this is typical of politicians who always look to for other people to sacrifice for the greater good. Taxes are paid by someone else, balanced budget restraints are for someone else, unpaid off is for someone else to do.

Maybe it is time for someone else to work in the House??

WBZ NEWSRADIO 1030 - MA House orders staff - not member - furloughs

Postal Service to Resume Santa Letter Program - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com

I blogged recently about the Postal Service dropping the Santa Letters program.

Well I am glad to report that it looks like saner heads have prevailed. Tks to Fox News for the updated story.

Postal Service to Resume Santa Letter Program - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com

Final Verdict - Uneven ‘Prisoner’ gets caught in plot loops - The Boston Globe

As I blogged about recently, I was looking forward to AMC's reworking of "The Prisoner", based on the old tv series. Being a Lost fan, I heard that the old show was one of the influences of Lost.

All I can say is wow - this was a tough show to watch. Very choppy editing and little character development and a hard story to follow really made the 6 hours of the series painful to watch. As the Boston Globe puts it:

"...the AMC remake is numbingly paced, heavy-handed, aimless, and humorless. Worst of all, there’s not a single character in the cold, visually cliched world created by director Nick Hurran who evokes sympathy or enduring interest."

That about sums it up. I wanted to like this...I just didn't.

Story from the Boston Globe - Uneven ‘Prisoner’ gets caught in plot loops - The Boston Globe

Florida Jury Awards $300 Million in Ex-Smoker's Suit - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com

Am I a bad person if I don't agree with the outcome of this suit? According to Wikipedia, cigarettes were labeled as early as 1967 with the warning "Caution: Cigarette Smoking May be Hazardous to Your Health (1966-1970)". The story notes that the plantiff started smoking in 1968 since "it made her look older". Shouldn't she have know better? She was 20 when she started smoking?

Something just seems wrong to me on this.

Florida Jury Awards $300 Million in Ex-Smoker's Suit - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com

AAA: Thanksgiving travel to go up

Not a fan of traveling on the holiday - reading that it will be more expensive continues to reinforce this.

AAA: Thanksgiving travel to go up: "WASHINGTON - A leading auto organization is projecting a 1.4 percent increase in Thanksgiving travel this year, although fewer people will travel by air due to budget concerns, reduced airline capacity and added charges."

Starting February, LOST Will Air Tuesdays!! -- Ain't It Cool News: The best in movie, TV, DVD, and comic book news.

Just reviewing the myriad sites with all kinds of news and caught this that I thought was good enough to post. Thanks to Aint it Cool News for this. Lost will be airing on Tuesday, not Wednesdays.

Good, bad, indifferent??? Story link below.

Starting February, LOST Will Air Tuesdays!! --
Ain't It Cool News: The best in movie, TV, DVD, and comic book news.

Ho Ho No: Postal Service Drops Santa Letters Program

(Updated) - Postal Service reinstates this service.

Say it isn't so?? No more letters to Santa?

But does he still answer the email? Fox News Story below on Postal Service dropping the Santa Letters program.

Ho Ho No: Postal Service Drops Santa Letters Program: "Thousands of starry-eyed children all over the world are writing letters to the jolly man at the North Pole this holiday season, but they will not likely get a response from Santa Claus or his helpers."

W.A.T.C.H. world against toys causing harm, inc.

The World Against Toys Causing Harm (or W.A.T.C.H.) has released their list of the 10 worst toys for kids this Christmas season. It is no surprise that this group was founded in Massachusetts. Anyway - unfortunately many of these toys look pretty cool...hopefully no one buying for my kids will read this list.

W.A.T.C.H. world against toys causing harm, inc.

LucasArts.com | LEGO Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues

The first Lego Wii game featuring Indiana Jones was great and I just found out there was a new game coming out. Of course at basketball when I was talking to some of the kids after the game they knew all about it. I need to get on that internet.

LucasArts.com | LEGO Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues

Chelmsford school bans holiday items at gift shop | Byam Elementary School |

Chelmsford school bans holiday items at gift shop | Byam Elementary School |

This is a joke right? A local Chelmsford school has gone so far as banning red and green tissue paper because it looks too "Christmasy". As if that is the the worst thing Chelmsford (and this state) need to worry about.
I like that the school is banning items such as Santa, candy canes, stockings and other items from its "annual holiday gift shop". What holiday would that be?
Merry whatever!!

Underperforming Boston schools may shut down

Continuing the education theme today - another story from the local Boston Fox website.

Underperforming Boston schools may shut down

Question - why wouldn't they be shut down? Certainly there would be better alternatives for the children being affected wouldn't there?

Weight in as promised

So I tipped the scale at 284 today. Ugh - I guess the oreos didn't help.

Teachers union opposes bonus program

Not sure why the unions would be opposed to merit based bonuses for exceptional teachers. I for one would want my kids being educated by teachers who get these bonuses.

Teachers union opposes bonus program: "

BOSTON - The Boston Teachers Union wants to stop hundreds of teachers from pocketing bonuses. The union is opposing a performance-based bonus program started in 2008 and funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates and Exxon Mobil foundations.

"

Running update

So am trying to be more healthy and have run a couple of times now. Just got back from a slow as$ run (sorry for the language). Did a couple of miles and did a lot better than the first time I ran on Sunday but still a lot slower than I would like. Why do we abuse our bodies for so long and expect a change overnight - hmmmm

By the way, a friend tipped me onto this site -http://www.logyourrun.com/

I am using it to track my progress - goal for this week is to run two more times by Sunday.

Weigh in tomorrow.

Amazon savings

I know it is going to be a good day when I get emails like the one I just got from Amazon. It is as follows:

Greetings from Amazon.com.

You saved $0.02 with Amazon.com's Pre-order Price Guarantee!

The price of the item(s) decreased after you ordered them, and we gave you the lowest price.

The following title(s) decreased in price:

xxxxxxxx (what I bought was irrelevant)

Price on order date: $9.00
Price charged at shipping: $8.98
Lowest price before release date: $8.98
Quantity: 1
Total Savings: $0.02

$0.02 is your total savings under our Pre-order Price Guarantee.

Alright!!!! Every little bit helps

Out for a run

Went out to work off the Jets loss. Had an ok run but it felt good to exercise after a day of working around the house.

Also trying out new iPhone app for blogging.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Scobee kicks 21-yard field goal as time expires to give Jags 24-22 win over Jets (The Canadian Press)

Crap - Jets drop one to the Jags and also drop to 3rd in the AFC East. It is tough some times to be a Jets fan.

Scobee kicks 21-yard field goal as time expires to give Jags 24-22 win over Jets (The Canadian Press): "The Jacksonville Jaguars boosted their playoff chances with a big road win and sent the New York Jets to another devastating loss."

Complete coverage of NY Jets vs. Jacksonville Jaguars | New York Jets - - NJ.com

Complete coverage of NY Jets vs. Jacksonville Jaguars | New York Jets - - NJ.com

Update - Jets lose to Jacksonville (24-22). What does this mean for their playoff hopes as the Jets Coach (Rex Ryan) stated "If the Jets (4-4) had any prayer of making the playoffs this season, they needed to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars".

I guess it is going to be another disappointing year for us Jets fans.

Star Wars in Concert | Anthony Daniels | Star Wars C-3PO | Star Wars |

Star Wars in Concert | Anthony Daniels | Star Wars C-3PO | Star Wars |

The family checked out Star Wars in concert yesterday afternoon in Boston. Absolutely superb as the concert with a live orchestra played music to snippets from all the movies as the story was narrated by C-3PO himself Anthony Daniels. I was so impressed with it a did a quick Google and found this story from the local Fox station interviewing Anthony Daniels about the show.

After hearing he was on twitter I sent Anthony Daniels a quick tweet to thank him again for the show. There were two standing ovations and as I tweeted, he especially looked quite overcome and I for one, thought it was a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

AMC » The Prisoner

So as a huge Lost Fan, I am looking forward to AMC's The Prisoner Miniseries tonight. Link follows. I am worried about having unrealistic expectations but with Lost not returning to 2010, hopefully this miniseries will help.

AMC » The Prisoner: "Official site for AMC's The Prisoner miniseries. Sneak peeks, cast interviews and making-of videos; plus episode & character guides, contests, and talk forums."

Skip The Hand Shake Now Has A Wristband

Tks to Tech Crunch - it looks like there is a movement to make the handshake go the way of the Dodo. I guess it is more sanitary.

Link below.

Skip The Hand Shake Now Has A Wristband: "

No Righteous Cause is complete without a colored wristband. That’s why I’m so excited that the no-hand shake movement (yes, movement) now has an official blue wristband for people who want to show that they support the effort. Get a ten pack of them here for $20.

Here’s who has (sort of, not really) pledged their support for the No Handshake cause to date:

• OpenCandy, Bessemer Venture Partners


• Some German city
  
  


• CNN, Dalai Lama And The Obamas


• One in three Canadians


• Brad Feld and Boston Globe


• NEW – The New Yorker, via this cartoon

Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0

"

Bon Jovi Hair Retrospective

Bon Jovi Hair Retrospective: "THEN/NOW: To celebrate the release of 'The Circle,' we follow the boys back through thousands of cans of Final Net

I know it is probably not "cool" to be a fan on Bon Jovi but they remain one of the best concerts I have seen (the Have A Nice Day Tour in Boston). They have a new album coming out that is a return to rock (moving away from their last album that was country 'influenced') and the first single (We Weren't Born To Follow) is definitely a good 'arena rock' album.

Court rules natural gas a dangerous weapon

Court rules natural gas a dangerous weapon: "The Massachusetts Appeals Court has upheld the conviction of a man who tampered with a natural gas line inside his estranged wife's home, finding that gas can be considered a dangerous weapon. "

From the desk of the blatantly obvious...I like the defense position that the conviction "should be overturned because (the defendant) did not seal the house or stop the people inside from leaving"

Ok - in any event the Court got it right.

Geocaching T-Shirt

We have recently gotten very into Geocaching (we have found about 30 caches) so far. Don't know what I am talking about? See http://www.geocaching.com/ for more info.

A friend of mine sent this to me as a joke but in some perverse way, it is actually kind of true.

I just won the Irish Lottery

I just got this email...I think it is legit

Irish National Lottery

Your email have been lucky to have been selected among 50 Recipient of £891,934.00 pounds sterlings. each by Irish National Lottery Board.

For further inquiry,please Contact our claim desk with your Details: names,Address,Tel,Age,Occupation,Country immediately.

Claim Department:FOREIGN TRANSFER MANAGER - Contact Mr. Sean James Email:irsboard-sj@msn.com

Your`s Sincerely,
Mrs.Linda Owen.

I am so lucky - yeah right.

Local gas prices rise for 4th time in month

Local gas prices rise for 4th time in month: "Give another penny to the gasoline pump. Prices in our area are up another cent, according to the last survey by AAA of Southern New England. On average, self-serve regular now costs $2.64 a gallon. It's the fourth increase in as many weeks."

Uh oh - this looks like it is going to be a tough winter.

I want to believe that the new XFILES movie doesn't stink

So I was able to see the new X-Files movie over the weekend (love the free movie channel preview) and found it confusing and by far inferior to many of the TV shows that were based on the "monster of the week" rather than the X-Files mythology with the Government and Aliens trying to colonize the Earth. This movie took so many illogical jumps (yes I know it is a movie) that I find even my credulity tested.

I did record Frost/Nixon so I have higher expectations for that. With regards to the X-Files movie, it is time to wrap that up - the ship has sailed.