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[Matt H.]

Heading down now for more mystery adventures with Jessica Fletcher.

WBBL.

[Jane]

showoff! 

I don't wanna show off no more...

***VIBES OF INFINITE PATIENCE***

for DR vixmom!!!!!

DITTO, FOR TODAY & EVERYDAY!

[DERBRUCER]

LATIMES

Can 'Wall-E' make Oscar history?
...
Because of its unusual pedigree, "Wall-E" now has the opportunity to make Oscar history and be the first animated feature to win BIG outside the best animated film and music categories (plus one win for "The Incredibles" in 2004 for Sound Editing when there were only three nominees in the category and two were animated). Sure, three of its six nods come for the usual areas (music score, song, animated film)), but it has a real shot in the other three categories in which it's competing:  sound editing, sound mixing and, particularly, best original screenplay.It has a decent chance to rack up at least four wins if the Oscar gods are on its side but Original Screenplay is the nomination co-writer/director Andrew Stanton told me he is happiest about.

"I am prouder to be in writing more than anything else. At Pixar we say 'story, story, story.' It's the root of everything," he says. "It's the biggest pat on the back I can think of. We put ourselves fully into every aspect but it's all in service of the story."

It could be a tough sell to the overall academy (every branch votes on the final screenplay award) as a lot of members just don't understand how a virtually silent movie, in which the main characters speak their own language, could possibly have been "written."  But Stanton says it's no different than the process any other writer would go through.

"How you tell a story is just as important as what the story is. In my mind these characters were gonna speak. They just weren't gonna speak in a language you and I knew. When they spoke and why they spoke was just as important as if you could understand their language," he says.

Key to all this was the contribution by the sound team led by Ben Burtt whom Stanton calls his most important cast member.

"I needed someone who could make language out of sound and convey intention and emotion through  sound," he says. The sound branch must agree since it has awarded Burtt and company two nominations , and it certainly is the most unique work in a category where the winner usually is the loudest movie (again, all branches get to vote for the final winner here, and they often don't get subtlety).
…
Like "Milk" and its uncanny timeliness in regard to Proposition 8, "Wall-E" is being celebrated for its social consciousness and environmental concerns, but Stanton is blatantly honest in his original intention.

"I am very honored it is being associated with issues of the planet, but I would be lying if I said that was my agenda. It wasn't. It's not about global warming.  I wanted to show the last robot on earth, and I  wanted to show the loneliness so I could have the most potent love story imaginable," he says. "Anything I chose environment-wise was a selfish choice in order to make the love story work."

So can this lovestruck "Hello Dolly"-loving tin 'toon actually turn the tide and make Oscar history by prevailing in some categories, primarily in Writing, where animated films are strangers to the winners circle? Certainly it would be a popular win with the audience, but the academy may be just too set in its ways to go for the unexpected.

For Andrew Stanton, what counts is the experience of getting to make this very different concept come to life; everything else is gravy.

"I made 'Wall-E' out of an exclusive love of cinema and thought that might make it an odd man out. But I guess that was the right thing to do," he says now. "It gives me a lot of confidence to follow that voice again."

der Brucer

[Jane]

I love cupcakes. I don't get to eat them any more. Dr. Radakrishnan has seen to that.

Good for him!  Are you feeling better?

Actually I am feeling tons better now that I have cut down a lot on carbs/sugars. And I don't feel constantly hungry either.

PS: Dr. Radakrishnan is a she.

I must have missed the she part.  I'm glad you are feeling better.

[Ginny]

Back from the tour of the faboo conference facilities at our local hospital and a fun afternoon with my mom.  We went to lunch and then grocery shopping.  When she goes to the grocery on the bus from the retirement home, she feels rushed.  Today, I did my small shopping then waited at the Starbuck's kiosk while she savored the Kroger Marketplace.  She's probably taking a nap now.

[Ginny]

DR Ginny, my brother-in-law retired. He had been looking forward to it for months and had plans to do absolutely nothing for the first few weeks. On his first day, the office called and insisted he come in, because they couldn't figure anything out at all without him.

My workplace did the unprecedented and brought my replacement in for my last week.  It was helpful to her AND to me - I walked away from there knowing that the job was in very capable hands and have not lost a wink of sleep worrying about what's happening there.

[Ron Pulliam]

making scurrilous comments.

If you have something scurrilous to say... sit next to me.   

We'll be sittin' for a spell, then...! 

[Jane]

JMK-great news regarding your roof.  Vibes it turns out to be an easy fix.

[Jane]

DR Ginny, my brother-in-law retired. He had been looking forward to it for months and had plans to do absolutely nothing for the first few weeks. On his first day, the office called and insisted he come in, because they couldn't figure anything out at all without him.

My workplace did the unprecedented and brought my replacement in for my last week.  It was helpful to her AND to me - I walked away from there knowing that the job was in very capable hands and have not lost a wink of sleep worrying about what's happening there.

It is difficult for me to imagine any workplace would not have a qualified employee train the new person before leaving.

[Laura]

~~~~VIBES FOR DR LAURA'S DEAR SISTER~~~~~~

Thanks, Vixmom. Today should be her third chemo treatment.

[Ginny]

DR Ginny, my brother-in-law retired. He had been looking forward to it for months and had plans to do absolutely nothing for the first few weeks. On his first day, the office called and insisted he come in, because they couldn't figure anything out at all without him.

My workplace did the unprecedented and brought my replacement in for my last week.  It was helpful to her AND to me - I walked away from there knowing that the job was in very capable hands and have not lost a wink of sleep worrying about what's happening there.

It is difficult for me to imagine any workplace would not have a qualified employee train the new person before leaving.

Usually, there is the hope that there's a period of time when that salary is not being paid to anyone and that the replacement will come in much lower on the pay scale than the predecessor.

[Ginny]

Third-treatment vibes for DR Laura's sister!

[Laura]

We hear about kidnappings rather frequently here. I don't mean to seem racist (a terrible crime here), but they are usually Mexican males.

[DERBRUCER]

It is difficult for me to imagine any workplace would not have a qualified employee train the new person before leaving.

Well, there are two occasions when this happens.

A. Retirement - the time frame for planning on a replacement is too long - so management forgets about it 'til it's too late.

B. Employee quits (gives two weeks notice) - and two weeks is rarely time enough to hire a replacement (even if the replaceement is an in-house transfer, you usually have to "advertize the positon" and do interviews and evaluations).

Also, today's workplace seems adverse to succession planning - no matter how often they get burned.

It's even more fun when a worker is a "one man show" - Woody is the only billing clerk at his market; there are no comprehensive written procedures for the job; if he should be absent for more than a day, they would be required to call in someone from out-of-town and hope they could help (of course all of the out-of-town candidates are in "one man show" jobs of their own. The store has no provision for Woody to ever be able to use his vaction time.

der Brucer

[Laura]

Monday is a Federal Holiday, and according to the USPS website, there will be no delivery that day.

I have already uttered my first round of curses about that. I'm sure on Monday, I will begin a new round of invective.

Hurray! My DH has Monday off!

[DERBRUCER]

We hear about kidnappings rather frequently here. I don't mean to seem racist (a terrible crime here), but they are usually Mexican males.

OK - you're not a racist - YOU"RE A SEXIST!

der Brucer

[Ginny]

DR Vixmom - you have every right to be an impatient patient!

[Ginny]

...Also, today's workplace seems adverse to succession planning - no matter how often they get burned....

der Brucer

My former workplace got lucky, ver-r-r-ry lucky.

[Jane]

...Also, today's workplace seems adverse to succession planning - no matter how often they get burned....

der Brucer

My former workplace got lucky, ver-r-r-ry lucky.

And you got lucky training someone who is competent. 

That statement from DB is why I never get the "waiting until the person leaves" mentality.  At least for most jobs.

[Jane]

DR Laura, THIRD CHEMO VIBES FOR YOUR DEAR SISTER!

MAY THIS ROUND BE EASIER THAN THE LAST ONE!

[Jane]

All this time I thought the new movie THE UNINVITED was to be a remake of the 1944 Ray Milland film.  To my relief, I now realize it is a remake of the 2003 Korean Horror film JANGHWA, HONGRYEON.

[DERBRUCER]

...JANGHWA, HONGRYEON.

Which loosly translates as "Jane, Hungry!"

der Brucer

[elmore3003]

We hear about kidnappings rather frequently here. I don't mean to seem racist (a terrible crime here), but they are usually Mexican males.

OK - you're not a racist - YOU"RE A SEXIST!

der Brucer

 

[elmore3003]

DR Laura, THIRD CHEMO VIBES FOR YOUR DEAR SISTER!

MAY THIS ROUND BE EASIER THAN THE LAST ONE!

I'll drink to that! Oh, waiter, another margarita, please!

[DERBRUCER]

DR Laura, THIRD CHEMO VIBES FOR YOUR DEAR SISTER!

MAY THIS ROUND BE EASIER THAN THE LAST ONE!

I'll drink to that! Oh, waiter, another margarita, please!

Don't get too sloshed - In case you've forgotton, BURN NOTICE is on tonight!

der Brucer

[Laura]

My computer has frozen up four times this afternoon.

[JMK]

I just spent way too much money at FSM.  Is it too late to attach a special rider to the Stimulus Bill?

[elmore3003]

My computer has frozen up four times this afternoon.

Perhaps you need to defrost it?

[elmore3003]

I just spent way too much money at FSM.  Is it too late to attach a special rider to the Stimulus Bill?

I should own stock in Amazon.com!

[Laura]

Today we went for a drive, and this is what we saw: