Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Jrand73]

DR JRand - FYI - Apple will be announcing the newest upgrades to their MacBook and desktop line tomorrow.  -There are even rumors of a price drop on their basic laptop - which is really not that "basic".  Stay tuned.  Or just check www.apple.com tomorrow afternoon after the keynote address.

Price drop!!!  I adore price drops almost as much as I enjoy early English perpendicular.

[Jrand73]

Page Three English Perpendicular Dance.

[JoseSPiano]

In other news...

I just watched a bit of the new "talk show", "The Doctors".  Or "The Drs." for short.  Interesting "casting" of the hosts.  Interesting format.  And some strangely gloom-and-doom "bumpers".  -Cute lead host, however. 

www.thedoctorstv.com

[singdaw]

***CONTINUED SUCCESSFUL SURGERY VIBES***

for DR JoseSPiano's mom!!!

[singdaw]

DR JoseSPiano - how did you manage to eat in - and not get thrown out of - Shopsin's?   

It almost sounds from the article like the inspiration for Seinfeld's "Soup Nazi"...

[singdaw]

Or "The Drs." for short. 

They finally made a TV show about us?

[JoseSPiano]

DR JRand - FYI - Apple will be announcing the newest upgrades to their MacBook and desktop line tomorrow.  -There are even rumors of a price drop on their basic laptop - which is really not that "basic".  Stay tuned.  Or just check www.apple.com tomorrow afternoon after the keynote address.

Price drop!!!  I adore price drops almost as much as I enjoy early English perpendicular.

Well... If anything, it will just drop to below $1000... meaning $999 (from $1099).  However, there's speculation of a higher processor speed, and some other new bells and whistles - including something that people are calling the "brick".

[Ginny]

TOD - I think DR Charles Pogue's Cincinnati remains more intact than DR Druxy's Seattle or my Detroit.  The Motor City was a great place to be until the late 1960's.  Favorite places included the big J. L. Hudson department store (imploded  ), the Fisher (professional) and Hilberry (Wayne State Univ.) theatres, the Detroit Zoo, Detroit Institute of Arts, main public library, and taking the Bob-Lo boat to the island amusement park downriver.  Speaking of the Detroit River, I also loved going to the riverfront and watching the Great Lakes freighters.  Out in the 'burbs, there was the Franklin Cider Mill and El Nibble Nook, a great Mexican restaurant with a funny name.

[JoseSPiano]

DR JoseSPiano - how did you manage to eat in - and not get thrown out of - Shopsin's?   

It almost sounds from the article like the inspiration for Seinfeld's "Soup Nazi"...

Why would I have gotten thrown out?

I read about Shopsin's a couple of times before I dined there.  As long as you followed HIS Rules - which were very clearly posted on the doors, the windows, each booth and the menus - you were guaranteed to be served.  Now, whether or not you got served what you ordered was - and, apparently, still is - a different matter.

*As for the "Soup Nazi" - I used to line up for the original "Soup Nazi" on W. 54th Street, and I can assure you that the "Soup Nazi" had nothing on Kenny Shopsin.  -Strangely enough, the original "Soup Nazi" storefront is still there, empty, vacant, with the awning fading away -- while another soup franchise set up shop a few doors down.

[Druxy]

Druxy, I grew up for several years in Seattle, too.  (Bellevue, actually--talk about changed!  When we lived there it was literally farm land and "downtown" Bellevue had two stores--a Nordstrom and a little drugstore called Marvel Morgan's.  Bellevue is now as big as Portland).  My dad was Commanding Officer at Ft. Lawton, which is now movie studio (or so I've been told), and in civilian life he managed the downtown Seattle Sears store on Roosevelt and 45th, right by the U, which is now a stripmall.

We won't even get into SLC. 
 

When I was in college, I directed plays at Bellevue's Bellfry Playhouse.  We did a very "controversial" production of CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF. 

Would you believe that we had to fight to let Big Daddy say "ass" on stage?

How times have changed.

[JoseSPiano]

So... Today's "The View" is All Hot Topics... Fun, fun, fun! 

[singdaw]

Would you believe that we had to fight to let Big Daddy say "ass" on stage?

Say it, or show it?   

[singdaw]

  the "brick"

Apple meets Cat on a Hot Tin Roof?

[Ron Pulliam]

I shall never understand why Leopold & Loeb didn't have as many hits as Meltz & Ernest.

They got caught.

[JoseSPiano]

-My Dad just called again from the hospital.  My Mom is all settled in her temporary room -- after her surgery she'll be moved to ICU for two days.  My Dad is most likely staying there all afternoon, and then will spend the night there tonight.  I think I'm going to head over in a few, especially since it looks like once my mom is moved to ICU, she won't that "accessible", and she also won't be able to talk for a while, so...

Thanks again for all the Prayers and Vibes. It really does mean so much more than you could ever imagine.

[bk]

On the phone with Apple Care - apparently my wireless router has decided to change its settings and isn't working.

[JoseSPiano]

On the phone with Apple Care - apparently my wireless router has decided to change its settings and isn't working.

bk - Take notes.  It will help the next time this happens. 

[Druxy]

Would you believe that we had to fight to let Big Daddy say "ass" on stage?

Say it, or show it?   

This is bringing back memories.

The Bellfry Playhouse was located in a reconverted church on a Bellevue side street.  It was started by this very elderly lady (Dorothy "something"), who had been a stage actress way back in the early years of the 20th century.

She had chosen a season of plays, LOVE RIDES THE RAILS, SMILIN' THROUGH and other relics, that modern audiences could care less about.

When I was asked to direct something, I gave her a long list of more "contemporary" plays, and the only one she would even consider was LAURA.

I'd never seen the play, but I did like the movie.  I figured that the play couldn't be too bad.

It was.

We did, however, wind up with a decent production and, as a result, I was able to talk the newly established Board of Directors into letting me do CAT...with certain cuts in Williams' script.

It was really a battle royal, but CAT did make enough money for the struggling theater to keep it going.  After that, they started doing more commercial plays and I moved on to start my own theatre group...taking most of the better Bellfry actors with me.

Our first production was Tennessee Williams' SUDDENLY LAST SUMMER.

I miss working in theater.  Hopefully, when we move to Austin, TX, next year, I can get involved again with it.

[Ron Pulliam]

Weekend DVD viewing:

"August Rush" -- HDDVD -- beautiful-looking fantasy film with enough plot holes to accommodate several Titanics.  Yet, it holds my attention and moves me.  An unusual film with winning performers/performances "despite" the execrable Robin Williams (who could never make another film and "my world" would be all the better for it).

"The Happening" -- DVD -- Oooh.  The first true misfire from Shyamalan, IMO.  It's well-made but takes forever to get to a point and by then it's...like..."who cares"?  Attractive-as-hell-cast, superb photography, production design and underscore.  But the story was really dully written.  It may have looked good on paper, but the film isn't going to be in any of my M. Night Shyamalan retrospectives any time in the near future.

"Sleeping Beauty" -- DVD -- Amazing-looking.  Truly spectacular depth, clarity and color.  Upconverted on my Toshiba XA2, this film has considerable 3-D qualities.  I noted no disparity in image quality throughout my late-night viewing.

"Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" -- DVD -- It's always fun to see a an up-and-coming actor step up and hit a home run.   That's what I got from Shia LeBoeuf's performance as Henry Jones, Jr., aka Mutt.  He more than held his own with Harrison Ford and the delightful Karen Allen.  The bulk of the film, though, creaked and groaned most of the way through, borrowing this from the orignal film, that from the first sequel and the other from the "other" sequel.  Even John Williams' underscore was a "revisitation" of past themes from past films.  At times when I was occupied with something else (!!!), the film sounded like some of the others.  I understand a 5th Indiana Jones film is in the works.  Hopefully, "Mutt" will carry that film.

[MBarnum]

continued vibes for DR Jose's mom!

[Laura]

I just received an email from the City about their composting-making bins.

"We have them in stock at this time. They are great fun as an individual hobby or a family project."

Looks like I am in for great fun with my new individual hobby!!!

[MBarnum]

Home town: Medford, Oregon

Favorite places:

Downtown area, particularly the lunch counter at Woolworth's, the 10 cent store, and the toy/hobby store.

[Jane]

I just stopped in to check on DR Jose.  Thank you for the updates.  You and your family are in my thoughts today.

[JoseSPiano]

Weekend DVD viewing:

"August Rush" -- HDDVD -- beautiful-looking fantasy film with enough plot holes to accommodate several Titanics.  Yet, it holds my attention and moves me.  An unusual film with winning performers/performances "despite" the execrable Robin Williams (who could never make another film and "my world" would be all the better for it).

Yep, lots of big, meteor-crater sized holes in that plot - and don't get me started on the "time compresson" involved with getting a piece written, discovered, copied, rehearsed and programmed(!) in such a short amount of time.  However, a charming movie.  -Robin Williams didn't bother me that much.  And I loved how New York City was showcased too.

"The Happening" -- DVD -- Oooh.  The first true misfire from Shyamalan, IMO.  It's well-made but takes forever to get to a point and by then it's...like..."who cares"?  Attractive-as-hell-cast, superb photography, production design and underscore.  But the story was really dully written.  It may have looked good on paper, but the film isn't going to be in any of my M. Night Shyamalan retrospectives any time in the near future.

"The calculus... the calculus..."  -What about the plot.. the plot... the twist... the twist... the dialogue... the dialogue... ?? I was sooooo "glad" that I only paid $6.00 to see this one - and I still wanted my money back - as did everyone else in the theatre.  -People booed during the credits.  I was at least expecting some diatribe on prime numbers or the Fibanocci sequence.

*However, I am intrigued by the "intense scenes" added for the DVD release.  I didn't think anything was that "bad" in the theatrical release.  Yes, it was graphic, but it was so planned and staged.  -And I was laughing through the whole sequence in the zoo since it started off with a product placement for the Apple iPhone. 

[FJL]

Vibes for Jose's mom

[Ginny]

Continued vibes and prayers for DR Jose's mom.  I hope she has a restful night before her procedures tomorrow.

[JoseSPiano]

Back to the Topic of the Day...

From the first time we lived in Arlington, VA: going grocery shopping with my father at the Ft. Myer commissary.  Just seeing all that food all in one place, and since the commissary did look a lot different from the neighborhood Safeway.

From Port Angeles and Seattle: Riding the ferry back and forth, while drinking hot chocolate and eating Corn Nuts.  Our neighborhood was also nice.  Lots of kids, and it was a good block to run or ride my bicycle around.

From Connecticut: We lived at the bottom of a big hill, perfect for skateboarding, sledding, etc. There was also a great little park nearby, and in the woods there was this big rock that was perfect for sitting on and daydreaming.  I also loved the weekly trips to Caldor and Vality's(?).  I bought my first "real" origami book at Caldor, and still have it.  I also started taking piano lessons when we lived in Connecticut, so my living room - which was my practice room - was also a special place.  I loved watching the piano tuner whenever he would come over.  Soooo magical.

From the second time we lived in Arlington: Going over to my cousin Richard's house, and then going over to the Ben Franklin down the street from him and playing video games and buying way too many knick-knacks, cheap toys, water balloons, and candy then we knew what to do with.  I also loved walking and biking along the trail in Beaumont Park - which is still one of the nicest strolls around.

[JoseSPiano]

Hmm... So, the Noon News on the ABC affiliate here in Richmond ended... At 12:23.    At first I thought that the cable box's clock was off, but... Then an in-house produced infomercial for a local window and siding company started, and it was hosted by one of the team of newscasters.  And that's what filled the rest of the Noon "news" slot.  Interesting. 

[bk]

I did take notes.  I thought I'd done everything we ended up doing, but maybe I missed a step.  The Apple guy, who is an Airport expert, said sometimes another wireless device that's in close proximity can mess up the signal momentarily and when that happens you have to unplug the modem and the Airport device and then plug them in modem first, then Airport, then restart and that usually fixes the problem.  I may have unplugged both but plugged the Airport back in first rather than the modem.  We also found out that I was two firmware upgrades away from the most current version, so we did that, too.  And all is well, except it's not the way I wanted to start the morning, and I had to talk continuously with almost no voice for forty minutes.

[bk]

It's really windy out, which is going to make the jog not so easy, but jog I will.