As a person who doesn't know much about Iron Man or his universe, I really, really, really enjoyed the new movie. Yes, triple "really" enjoyed it. Robert Downey Jr (who I wasn't expecting much from) truly inhabited the character of Stark and did great as a lovable douchebag. The action sequences are everything you'd expect from a big budget super hero movie, but what really blew me over was the comedic relief sprinkled throughout. Overall it was an awesome start to the summer blockbuster season. Indiana Jones and Batman better bring it if they don't want to be upstaged.

MAKE SURE YOU STAY AFTER THROUGH THE CREDITS FOR AN EXTRA SCENE!

I am desperately wishing I was on the east coast right now. Then I would only have to wait 20 minutes instead of 3 hours and 20 minutes for my next hit of Battlestar Galactica. But I guess in comparison to the 18 frakking months I've been waiting, three hours isn't much.

I have been prepping all week for this. Watching old seasons, reading Battlestar wiki. I am so ready. I know all the plots and character story lines. I have watched the Ron Moore and David Eck interviews. I am in the zone. From the spoilers I read this season is going to be awesome. I really hope so because season three was a little too heavy with the political and social disharmony. I want space battles and some good old character tension, which I am sure will come since four of the final five cylons have become aware.

So for those of you who haven't seen the "What the frak is going on with BSG?" or are just curious what the show is all about, here is a hilarious 8 minute clip that catches you up.



Update: The episode was awesome, particularly the first and last 15 minutes. The Sam and raider scene was too cool.

There is a wonderful interview of the Cookie Monster on NPR's On Air. I can't help but smile through the whole thing. So I thought I should share. I can't embed the video so you have to follow the link.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/incharacter/2008/02/cookie_monster_comes_to_npr.html

Ninja Warriors is a Japanese reality show that G4 is playing on heavy rotation. It is awesome! Imagine the Eliminator from American Gladiators outdoors, less glitzy but harder, stretched into 4 different stages with 100 competitors. Only a handful make it past the first stage, and I have seen seasons where no one makes it to the final stage.

It has been going on since 1997 and there have been 19 cycles since. In 2001, they created the women's competition. The men's competition tends to be heavy with upper body strength, while the women's competition tests balance.

I love it because it has all the camp I am used to finding in Asian TV (my mom gets it on satellite) yet the athleticism that makes it shout out loud good when someone makes it or fails.

Here is the camp:



And here is the athleticism:

Brandon and I got dropped off at corporate housing in Belltown, found a condo two blocks from there, and never really ventured much further. We hate city driving. Besides driving to synagogue and the grocery store, we don't really go anywhere that isn't in walking distance. We were missing all of Seattle above Denny Way.

So for Brandon's birthday, I booked a Seattle City Tour. They picked us up right outside our building, which led to Brandon being confused for days. The only thing I told him was he had to stand outside on the corner at 9:35 Saturday morning to get his birthday gift. The tour was 3 hours long. Though some bits were repetitive like Pike's Market, the waterfront, Pioneer Square, and Chinatown. Fremont, the Ballard Locks, Lake Washington, Gasworks, Discovery Park, and Magnolia were all new to us. Also it was nice to have someone else do the driving while we stared out the window.

I also discovered I am obsessed with the Fremont Troll.

Happy Birthday, Brandon!!!

and Happy Valentines Day to everyone else :)

While waiting for services to start last Sabbath, a group of us were talking in the pews...

OLLIE: I've never been drunk.

SANTOS: Never? What about tipsy?

OLLIE: Nope.

SANTOS: How about warm with a cuddly feeling inside?

OLLIE: Yeah, once. I went to a frat party, but I got really cold afterwards.

BRANDON (in the loudest imaginable voice): I remember that. That was the time you got the CLAP!

Awkward silence.

OLLIE: Uh, do you mean mono?

BRANDON: Wait, what? What did I say?

OLLIE, SANTOS, AND SUE (in unison): The clap!

BRANDON: Oh my god! No! I didn't mean that.

Group laughter.

OLLIE (quiet voice): Um...for the record, I've never had a venereal disease.

KJ (sitting down): Hey guys what is going on?

BRANDON AND SANTOS: NOTHING!

And scene


Random side note: I am in love with Santos's cat, Blanche Devereaux. We went over to play Mahjong but apparently she thought we layed the tiles out for her.

I have been flip-flopping back and forth between Obama and Hillary. Sometimes for good policy reasons; other times because I was sick of the misogynist bullshit being bandied about. But it didn't matter, or so I thought, because I wasn't registered to vote in Washington. I was content to let everyone else decide since I was being finicky about the whole thing.

On Thursday I get an email from the Obama campaign that they are going to be holding a rally at the Key Arena on Friday. Short notice but I got nothing going on. Apparently neither did the 21,000 other people who showed up. 18,000 of us got in. The other 3,000 outside were treated to a speech before the Senator entered the arena.



I learned two important things there: first, I won't succumb to an epileptic seizure despite being jostled and rudely treated by an eager crowd. Good to know because I hate crowds like nobody's business. Second, that you can register to vote at caucus and participate that day as well.

Yay, I was going to caucus! Crap, I have to make a choice.

Caucus was interesting. There wasn't much speech giving and debate. I thought there could have been better management of the whole thing to allow for this, but we were on a 2 hour time crunch and the leader guy would make us talk amongst ourselves while he tallied. There were six undecideds amongst us, who were heavily courted by both sides. But in the end, their votes didn't change the final tally.

Obama - 10 delegates
Clinton - 2 delegates

Mr Bell said that the two pets were constant companions. Arthur, who was a large cat, used to help Oscar, the dog, climb on to the sofa.

Oscar, an 18-month-old Lancashire Heeler, had watched Mr Bell dig a grave in the garden and then lower the cat into the hole. Mr Bell said: “He had managed to climb out through the cat flap in the night, obviously with the intent to get Arthur back. Bearing in mind that Arthur was a huge cat, Oscar must have used all the strength he could muster.

“Then he pulled him into the basket and went to sleep next to him. Arthur’s coat was gleaming white. Oscar had obviously licked him clean. It must have taken him nearly all night.”

Arthur is now reburied in a secure grave. And Oscar has a new playmate, a kitten called Limpet.

The part about him licking the cat clean totally made me choke up.

I dedicate this to Ashley and Aaron.