I won!, I won!

Oh yeah, I held on to win the office tipping comp by one point. This gives me my fifth title from the past six years. Hopefully next season I can not cut it so close.

The O.C. & me - the finale

Well I'm officially done with The O.C. having now watched the 16 episodes of its fourth and final season.
Firstly, in season 4 everyone quickly moved on from Marissa's death (admittedly some faster than others) but Mischa Barton's departure was obviously not amicable, at least straight away.
In a way it is a shame that The O.C. was cancelled and had to wrap up so quickly because I think it was beginning to find its way again. It wasn't particularly lost but when a mjor character is written out a series almost always suffers. The plot revolving around Ryan and Taylor was fun, I didn't particularly like her in season 3 but in the fourth season she does grow on you in an annoyingly endearing way.
Ryan is still Ryan but he does show a softer side late in the series. Seth is at his brilliant best and the highlight was the couple of episodes where Chey though Seth was his soulmate and wanted to spend time with him. Strange but quite funny, particularly when Chey realises his soul mate could be another man.
The series as a whole really surprised me because I wrote it off. I still say One Tree Hill is a lot better (and the fact it is going into season 5 proves that) but there is a place for The O.C. I won't be adding it to the collection, at this point anyway.
I thought there was a clever line in the last episode about how teen dramas ``go on forever''.
Now that The O.C. phase is over I wonder what is next....

The Simpsons Movie

Not really sure where to start with The Simpsons Movie because there's so much to say.

Being a massive fan of The Simpsons since I was about 14, I'm always going to be heavily biased (unless it really sucked but it didn't) so keep that in mind.

Basically the film plays like a really, really, really, really good 90 minute episode of the TV show. It takes a few more risks (like a nude scene) than the small screen allows but in a nutshell just think about the best episodes of the show you've seen and that's what you're going to get.

Homer manages to sink to new lows of stupidity here and isn't it a delight to watch. Pure magic. Like how he comes across the pig.

At Krusty Burger, Krusty is filming an ad for his new burger and uses a pig with a baker's cap as a prop until he is done when he tells the crew to kill the pig. Homer decides you can't kill anything that wears human clothes and takes him in, starting a beautiful, but dizzyingly weird, relationship. I've already mentioned the Spider-pig scene a few posts back. A top moment, and the pig is also involved in a few other very funny scenes.

The plot revolves around Homer having to save Springfield from a destruction that he (and the pig) caused. It works pretty well.

If you pay attention there are some very clever bits, like Ralph right at the start and one involving Martin towards the end. I also liked a Homer line early on when in church and holding a bible during a crisis: `there's no answers in here!'

I was always guaranteed to like this, it is classic Simpsons and you get 90 minutes of it. Stay through the credits too for a few more laughs. My only criticism is that they didn't resolve what happened to the pig.

The hype surrounding the movie probably hasn't helped, as my expectation (as you would expect) was sky high. I'm not going to say it didn't live up to it but the bar was a very high one. A 9 out of 10 and a great piece of entertainment, though slightly surreal being on the big screen.

Tipping comp finale

Tomorrow is the last race meeting, at Warwick Farm, in our office tipping competition and I currently hold a one win lead. I'm by no means over the line but I think I have a good chance.
Here are my selections.
Race 1 - Universal Boy
Race 2 - Bellagio Wynn
Race 3 - Glenbawn Star
Race 4 - Only He Knows
Race 5 - Lang
Race 6 - Columate
Race 7 - Kanpeki
Race 8 - Go Cart

Knocked Up

Knocked Up is quite a simple film.
As the title suggests it's about a one night stand that ends up in pregnancy due to a miscommunication (depending on how you see it).
What it does do is give hope to us average guys that a beautiful woman might actually want to go out with us (pardon the self-deprecation).
Though overly long, I thought, it is the charm of most of the characters that makes you overlook the fact it should have been about 20 minutes shorter.
Seth Rogen plays Ben Stone who, through some kind of miracle or twist of fate, meets Alison Scott (Katherine Heigl from Grey's Anatomy) and they end up, well you know the rest.
The movie depicts the misadventures of Ben and Alison as they prepare to become parents and try to work out what their relationship is.
A couple of side stories are also quite hilarious, including the one involving Pete (Paul Rudd who was very, very good in this) who is Alison's brother-in-law and his wife's suspicions that he is cheating on her and Ben's pothead mates who catalogue nudity in films for `work'.
Yeah it's a crude film at times and there's a birth scene that might put me off wanting to have children for a while (not that it is a pressing problem at the moment) but I had fun.
As I said it's a simple film made above average by a solid script and decent acting and you can't ask for much more in such a movie. A 7.5 out of 10.

One Tree season 5 trailer

Haven't seen the end of season 4 yet but the trailer for season 5 is mouth watering.
It's a bold move to skip four years into the future, no show of its kind has done it, so it will be great to see what happens in One Tree Hill.

Spider-pig!

A clip from the Simpsons movie had us in hysterics at work today. For a spiderman fan like myself, Spider-pig is probably a bit offensive but because it's Homer Simpson, well, he can get away with it.
Hope I'm not hyping it too much but this is pretty funny.

Classic Simpsons Quotes

In honour of the Simpsons movie starting oh so soon, I'm going to roll out some of my favourite Simpsons quotes (admittedly most are from Homer), starting with my number 1 Homerism. Enjoy!

``I'm normally not a praying man, but if you're up there, please save me Superman.''
``I'm having the best day of my life, and I owe it all to not going to Church!''
``Lisa, if the Bible has taught us nothing else, and it hasn't, it's that girls should stick to girls sports, such as hot oil wrestling and foxy boxing and such and such.''
``I'm not a bad guy! I work hard, and I love my kids. So why should I spend half my Sunday hearing about how I'm going to Hell?''
``God appeared before me in a dream and I knew that was special because I ususally dream about naked.....Marge.''
``It's not easy to juggle a pregnant wife and a troubled child, but somehow I managed to fit in eight hours of TV a day.''
``How is education supposed to make me feel smarter? Besides, every time I learn something new, it pushes some old stuff out of my brain. Remember when I took that home winemaking course, and I forgot how to drive?''
``I've always wondered if there was a god. And now I know there is ... and it's me.''
``Hey, just because I don't care doesn't mean I don't understand!''
``You can't keep blaming yourself. Just blame yourself once, and move on.''
``Lisa, if you don't like your job you don't strike. You just go in every day and do it really half-assed. That's the American way.''
``We live in a society of laws. Why do you think I took you to all those Police Academy movies? For fun? Well, I didn't hear anybody laughin', did you?''
``Dear Lord.. The gods have been good to me. For the first time in my life, everything is absolutely perfect just the way it is. So here’s the deal: You freeze everything the way it is, and I won’t ask for anything more. If that is OK, please give me absolutely no sign. OK, deal.''
``Lisa, Vampires are make-believe, like elves, gremlins, and eskimos.''

Tipping comp update

With just two Saturdays to go in the racing season I am sitting in equal first place in our office tipping comp. It's been quite a revival in the last month or so having been five or six off the pace going back a few weeks.
There are only three in with a chance and only one point between us all.

Hillsong: Saviour King

I currently own seven Hillsong live CDs and four Hillsong United CDs and until picking up the latest, `Saviour King' I was very concerned that they were getting progressively worse.
When I say that I mean this.
In the days of the For This Cause, Blessed and Hope CDs you, meaning I, could quite happy listen to the CD in its entirety. This was less the case through the more recent releases. There are two reasons for this I believe: Darlene seems to be phasing herself out of providing songs for the albums as hers were always the best (IMO); and I started buying the United CDs which would then be basically redone for the Hillsong live recording. That was very frustrating.
I didn't buy the United CD `All Of The Above' and I think this is part of the reason why I like the new recording. Several of the tracks have been redone but they were all new to me.
What I like most about Hillsong music is how emotive it is, and I really connect with that and feel closer to God, and it quite often send chills through my body. The songs that do that are the best ones too. Songs like Shout To The Lord, Everyday, Blessed, Made Me Glad, Hallelujah, More Than Life, There Is Nothing Like, Hope, At The Cross and From The Inside Out.
I can now add to that list You Are My Strength, You Are Faithful and Saviour King.
Of course I have only listened to the new one once and these are the songs that struck me.
I think the key to me enjoying future Hillsong releases is to not get the United CD, because they seem to re-record all the best ones for the major release anyway.
Welcome back, Hillsong.

Indecision part II

I'm no closer to settling the issue I railed a couple of weeks ago.
On one hand it is a source of some frustration and on the other, I guess, I'm happy not to feel bound to anything. That may be a little over the top.
The really busy period at work, which has run for the last month, should ease from tomorrow and hopefully I can take it a bit easier. I'm feeling a shade frayed. Ultimately how much I dive into work is up to me and it is very hard to resist getting completely immersed. That's the occupational hazard of loving what you do. And things have been going very well at work lately.
I'm a little spooked at the moment as well. Had a few off days here and there, most likely due to a cold or something like that, and that always raises my alertness. With only six or so months passed since I got better from the last time I really don't want to go back there anytime soon.
It makes me wonder if I actually learned anything from the last experience.
While I've had some really great times lately, and it's awesome to wake up and not feel tired and run down, I think I still fear returning to the times around Christmas at least as much as I did before. The mind is a much more powerful thing than we give it credit for.
I know there is no point in worrying about something that is largely out of your control, aside from everything that I am already doing, but somehow it's always there. In the back of my mind and at times it creeps forward.
The bible says to offer all your anxiety and worry up to God. Maybe I haven't been doing that enough. I try not to pray for myself too often and when I do I try to make myself last.
At the moment one of the things I'm asking God for is to help me make up my mind.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Maybe it's been too long between films, or maybe it was that Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix wasn't as good as the previous films but something just didn't seem right.
The fifth movie in the series really had the feel of the movie they had to make before things got serious.
What is obvious from the start is that Harry and co are growing up and pretty fast. Perhaps that's why they've fast-tracked movies six and seven for release within 12 months or so of each other, or so I have heard.
We get to see Harry Potter as a leader here and I'm guessing (not being a reader of the books) that will become important in the next films. Aside from growing up the characters really haven't changed much.
the new addition to the cast is Imelda Staunton as Delores Umbridge and she wears the most hideous pink outfits. I guess you weren't supposed to like her and I certainly didn't. Emma Thompson's character Professor Trelawney is wasted or at least the actress is.
The star of the film, yet again, is Alan Rickman as Severus Snape. He's wickedly dry, very mysterious and just a brilliant character played by a brilliant actor. If the film has a redeeming feature it is him.
Basically, Harry Potter 5 is good enough to keep you interested to see what happens next. (Of course everything will be spoiled in a matter of days when the final book is released and the world finds out the conclusion, whether they want to or not). It had its moments, there were some laughs but overall a shade disappointing. A 7.5 out of 10.

Happy birthday mum!

Today may be unlucky for some but my mother reckons it's not so unlucky.
Happy birthday!

Amazing Grace

What an outstanding film!
Sometimes I think the simpler, less complicated, movies are better than those with convoluted plots or last minute twists (which are excellent don't get me wrong) and Amazing Grace is one of the former.
The true story of William Wilberforce (Ioan Gruffudd from Fantastic Four), a man whose passion is to see the slave trade to England abolished. Set in the late 1700s, Amazing Grace is a film with heart and one with standout performances.
Most notably Gruffudd, who must carry the film, and from Albert Finney as John Newton, the man who wrote Amazing Grace, the song we all know and love.
While telling the story of his work as an abolitionist where the film really delivers are in other areas: his lasting friendship with William Pitt who became Prime Minister; his whirlwind courtship of his wife Barbara Spooner; his struggle between living for God and his crusade to free the slaves; his relationship with Newton; his battle with colitis.
All these details could easily have been swept by in passing but they were responsible for showing us who William Wilberforce was and I thought that by knowing him and knowing his passion it gave access to the character. And I thought Gruffudd shone here.
On a personal note it was a bit hard for me to watch him keeling over in pain when the colitis struck. I know only too well how he would have felt, though not to the same extent. So to see all the great things he achieved while living with it was an inspiration.
Films like Amazing Grace don't come along too often these days, days dominated by blockbusters and the quick buck. If you're looking for a good story, well acted and that's not overdone you can do a lot worse. It's an 8.5 out of 10.

What's going on...

It's been quite a busy week but a good one.
With a man down at work there's more to do, and unfortunately I have had to bring some stuff home but it is more on my own terms. But I am still wary of overdoing it.
The week ahead will also be hectic but it is the last one before we're back to full strength.
Aside from that the days have been generally enjoyable at work and I'm almost used to getting up as early as I have to each day. I don't think I'll ever like it but I'm at the point now where I can't sleep in much anyway.
What I have noticed though, is an indication that I'm much more myself than I was a few months ago. I can tell this by how interested I am in my work (and other things) like I'm always coming up with ideas, suggesting things and just being active in the office. This is as opposed to before when I'd turn up and just get the job done.
Again, I have to be wary of not crossing the line. But I am only too aware of the possible consequences.
Outside of the workplace there are two films I am looking forward to seeing this week.
The first is a preview screening of Amazing Grace, which looks awesome, and the other is of course Harry Potter and the Order Of The Phoenix.
I'm hoping to catch up with a very good mate who isn't the easiest to get hold of as he only lives here half the time. Saturday night also promises to be fun.
Hopefully it's another good week. And hopefully you all have one too.

My issue with Facebook

It is basically just another way for the world to separate people from people. They do this by creating a sense of community that seems personal but really isn't.
Sure, things can be organised but in the end it's more impersonal than e-mail and makes the phone seem like an intimate piece of technology.
Churches shouldn't be embracing this phenomenon if it is in the guise of creating community because, really, it is alienating when personal connection is being watered down like it is.
I'm not against anyone using something like Facebook (I have this blog) personally but when it is being shamelessly promoted as this awesome way to connect just makes me think there are a lot of sad people out there.
Soon we'll be doing church that way and no-one will have to bother going.
But hey, I'm very much into personal connection. I use technology (and sms more than I should) but at the end of the day I'd take a coffee or a movie or a walk or just hanging with a person as opposed to a machine.

F4: Rise Of The Silver Surfer

As far as superhero sequels go, Fantastic 4: Rise of The Silver Surfer gets a pass mark. And perhaps a shade more.
I'm not known for saying this in such movies but I think they spent too much time trying to build the story and the plot and not enough time on the action and conflict between the 4 and Von Doom and the Silver Surfer.
All the effects were great, particularly the scene towards the end with Galactus devouring the planet, and the last half an hour was pretty spectacular.
They got a bit bogged down early on. There was promise with the bachelor party scene, the power swapping scenes and the early bits where the surfer reveals what he is on Earth for.
I thought Chris Evans (Human Torch) was particularly good as the fun-loving no responsibility Johnny Storm and Julian McMahon (Victor Von Doom) has turned into a creepy guy. Far cry from the Dannii Minogue `This Is It' video clip.
I don't think this review needs to go any longer. The fact they signed a three movie deal and the very open ending confirms another sequel. Lets just hope there's a better script. A 6 out of 10.

The Boys' Club

It's amazing how you can take some things for granted. That's not a new notion.
For at least the last seven years a group of guys, which stemmed from a local church but is not exclusive to it, of which I'm happy to say I am a part of have been meeting for dinner once a week (thereabouts).
I struggled with where I fitted in the group for a while when I left the church it grew out of (almost six years ago). The guys knew it. It took a while but I soon worked out that I still belonged there.
There's anywhere up to a dozen guys who would fall into the semi-regular category which is great for variety but there's probably a core group of four to six.
I count these guys as among my best mates and appreciate them more than they probably know (or at least I let on). It's amazing the impact that someone who knows you on a deeper level can have on you.
It's because they know me (and my quirks) too well and have forgiven me for them that it makes it easy to go on the chosen night (which has changed from time to time) even when I really don't feel like it.
It's the ability to talk about anything that's on your mind that is priceless. Most of the time the conversation is pretty frivolous but there are also times when it is extremely enlightening or controversial. Then there are the movie nights.
Some of the guys are married and I'm sure the other singles (like myself) appreciate the insight into life on the other side of the fence. It' also great that time out with the boys can be prioritised. In my experience some people just disappear when they get married.
As I said, the value these nights provide is priceless and I'm sure I'd be a different person in many ways if it wasn't for the great men I get to have a few hours hanging out with each week.
One of the guys sees it as like going to church. In some ways it is, in some ways it is better, but whichever way you look at it this time spent is cherished and will continue to be.

Clubland

The new Australian comedy/drama Clubland was supposed to be a vehicle for British actress Brenda Blethyn, and don't get me wrong she is excellent, but little known Aussie actor Khan Chittenden steals this show.
The film centres around the close relationship between Jean Dwight (Blethyn), an entertainer/comedian who regrets having a family at the expense of what she saw as a glittering career.
She has two sons Mark (Richard Wilson), who was brain damaged at birth, and Tim (Chittenden), who is very much depended upon by his mother for support and transport.
As a result Tim is remarkably shy and innocent around most people, particularly girls. Until he meets Jill (Emma Booth) and slowly comes to realise that he can't live with his mother forever.
This film could have gone very wrong and delved into farce but at the centre of the film is a sweetness that is difficult to describe.
There are laugh out loud moments, some very touching scenes and you leave feeling good.
The revelation in this film though, as I eluded to earlier, is Chittenden. Some would have seen him in the Foxtel series Dangerous where he played a western suburbs bad boy and totally removed from his unassuming character here.
Perhaps having seen him in Dangerous it might have made this performance look much better than it was but for me he was the star. Interestingly, the movie has another title, possibly for international markets, of Introducing The Dwights. I'd go with Clubland.
A warm, entertaining and very Australian film, Clubland is a quality movie worth checking out. An 8 out of 10.

Heroes season finale

This week sees the season final of Heroes, one of the outstanding new shoes of 2007.
It has become compulsory viewing, is well written and quite funny at times and the characters (including Peter Petrelli (pictured), my favourite character) are just average people thrown into extraordinary situations. Some handle it humbly like Hiro, the ridiculously likeable Japanese desk jockey turned samurai warrior. Others cause trouble, like murderous Sylar, when they are ostracised by society.
Can't wait to see what happens, though a review this week said the finale was `silly' but we'll see.
The good thing is that apparently Heroes season 2 will premiere here in September not long after the USA. So we don't have to wait until February. I bet they don't do that with Brothers & Sisters, the other must-see show of the year.

Indecision

An important decision needs to be made.
Without going into the details, because anyone who knows me will know what that decision is, what I must settle on relates to my growth as a person.
Not so cryptic, hey.
I guess I've been doing some fence-sitting on the issue for a while and just going with the flow but I can't do that forever.
I've been thinking about it for quite some time, looked at a couple of different perspectives, taken a step back, considered an alternative, and finally considering what I think is best for me and the best way to move forward.
All this thinking out loud isn't making it easier to decide what to do....