Thursday
For the most part, it was a quiet day.

I had a late lunch with ; from that point, the day’s pace picked up. After dropping off ‘s truck to , it was off to get and head to The Gateway for…

Tonight’s screening of Constantine. I went into this movie with more than “a little” trepidation. After all, Keanu Reeves was the lead. In a movie whose title character was based on the premise of Sting. Yeah, that Sting, if he was an occultist. And a bit of an arrogant ass. And wore a trenchcoat. And… well, it’d be better if you read Alan Moore’s account of what he had in mind when he came created the character. We met up with , Mary and Chris at the theatre. We showed up early to ensure that we’d be able to get seats. Actually, we showed up VERY early. We killed some time by going to Applebee’s for a bite to eat. (Sidebar: Jenn, our waitress, had a facial structure that reminded me of Britney Spears.) Back up to the theatre… to stand in line. We were wanded down (had to make sure that we weren’t smuggling videocameras or something into the theatre) and then we began the quest for seats; we wound up sitting in the front section, but it was not so close that we could count Keanu’s nose hair.

The movie was good. Very good. Much better than I expected, in fact. Granted, they didn’t say where John Constantine was from, but he was definitely not British. And that’s my only gripe. The visuals were great. The dialogue was dead-on Constantine. And the pacing was good. I remember reading that there was no immediate plans to do a sequel but, assuming that the same creative team was involved, I would see a sequel. I’d even go to see this movie again. And, I’d gladly recommend it to others.

News
Morning Edition: To the Letter: Thriving in a New Job
Morning Edition: Israeli Pop Star Mines Ethiopian Fold Music
Morning Edition: California Woman Insists She’s Alive, Despite Error
Talk of the Nation: Black Hollywood, Then and Now
Day to Day: Slate’s Explainer: Show Dog Names
Day to Day: Village Vanguard Celebrates 70 Years
All Things Considered: Uncovering Those Little Parental Fibs, as a Grown-Up
All Things Considered: Tips on Avoiding Identity Theft
All Things Considered: Everything ’80s Is New Again for Global Musicians

Stray Toasters

  • I started a new pet project this afternoon. Something that neither God, Mother Nature nor Darwin ever intended. But, it entertains me. And that’s all that really matters.
  • By way of : Tori Amos will appear on Thursday night’s episode of The Late Show with David Letterman.
  • From Broken Frontier: Why I Hate Valentine’s Day and the SSCW
  • Luna-tic Girls
  • From Comic Book Resources: You’re a Good Team, Ron and Justine: Talking Tales of the Terminal Diner

    “Ron remarked on how many [Twilight] Zone stories are set in diners, and how often diners appear in movies and commercials,” Justine reflects. “We talked about how much we love the diner spirit: Wholesome food at a fair price, a place where everyone is welcome – and everyone has a story! Ron realized a diner could be the place for all our unpublished stories, the ultimate ‘play place’ from which to tell any kind of tale.”

  • : LoSH: Lightning Lad (I must admit: I like Kitson’s nod to Garth’s uniform from the late 70s/early 80s.)
  • Whose house…?
    Run’s house!!!

  • J. Michael Straczynski (Babylon 5, Jeremiah and an impressive run on Amazing Spider-Man) and a collaborator have come up with a series bible for a new take on the Star Trek franchise.
  • If you haven’t already seen it, there’s a new trailer for The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy on Amazon.com’s front page. Thanks to for pointing this out to me.
  • I still have nine eight Cadbury Creme Eggs left!
  • said that she thought of me when she saw this. Awww.
  • “You know I could kill you before you could make even a squeak, right?”
    “Squeak?”
    “See? You’d be dead by now.”

  • Because I know that will get amusement from this: Goatse t-shirt design
  • Original Fawlty Towers goes for 1.5M Pounds

Namaste.