Step Brothers

Yeah I know it's a silly comedy but when you know what to expect it rarely disappoints you. That's the theory anyway.

While Step Brothers is not really my type of film I went along with a mate who is more into it and we both agreed it was good but not great.

Not a Tropic Thunder, not a Blades Of Glory.

It's a simple premise: Dale (John C Reilly) and Brennan (Wll Ferrell) are 40-ish single men who still live with their respective parents. When the parents marry they become step brothers. And they hate each other.

I wondered while watching whether you were supposed to think they are actually 12 year olds and not grown men throwing tantrums and playing on their parents' sympathies.

I don't think the review needs to go much further. I had some laughs, there were some pretty funny scenes. But my main criticism is that when in doubt, the likes of Ferrell and co default to gross humour and is doesn't work as often as they'd like to think it does.

A 5.5 out of 10. Like I said, I had some laughs and that's all I really expected.

Priorities

I haven't been as diligent with my posting in the last few weeks and I think it has come down to priorities.
It's not that I have nothing to say but other things have been on my mind, not bad things, and I haven't made the effort I usually do. Having said that I have plenty to say in the coming days as I process some information that has come to light in the past week.
This coming week is going to be a big one as it is only nine days until the Melbourne Cup, so there is plenty happening.

Cold snap

It's closing in on the end of October and suddenly we have a maximum of 15 degrees and snow on the mountains. Add some rain and high winds (my umbrella escaped with its life this afternoon) and it's been a weird one.
For the benefit of those friends who are overseas, at this time of year 15 is a common minimum temperature - last Saturday is was 30 degrees and around 17 at night.
Funny weather, good for sleeping I suppose and I am opting for the long pyjama pants tonight.

What comes to mind

I don't have any plan for posting at the moment but I felt that I needed to.
It's been a good weekend on the whole, nice and warm and I had one of those lazy summer-ish times where I dozed a bit on my chair out the back and took in some sun.
I wouldn't want to fall asleep doing that, though, as sunburn isn't pleasant.
Friday was quite a big day. After work I went over to a mate's place at Bronte to catch up for a while, he's one of a few guys I know who is awesome to hang around, and there is something therapeutic about the beach.
I then progressed to Coogee to hang out with a couple of mates for the evening. It was an interesting night, aside from it being a much later one than I had wanted, there was a fight nearby us that broke out around 11.30pm and resulted in an ashtray being hurtled in our vicinity.
Anyway, it's all good. I had a great time there.
Sometimes I think I'm going to have heaps to say and unless I feel a huge need to unload what I'm feeling, which I'm not really at the moment, it can get frustrating. There are wheels turning but the information hasn't been processed yet. Watch this space, as they say.

It can happen to anyone

Something that has become clear to me recently is that no-one is immune from tough times and how they can unexpectedtly get on top of you.
I'm not talking about me here, but a long time friend of mine has been having a battle with depression that, initially, surprised me. Then I heard more about what has been going on in his life. The more I thought about it the more I realised that it can happen to anyone.
Just because you appear to have it all - vitality, family, children, health, strength - doesn't mean you can't be weakened and the things you took for granted can't slip away.
It hasn't come quite that far yet but just talking to him you can hear struggling in his voice. It's really unsettling. It's unsettling because this is a guy who I would never have thought would be beaten up by troubles like this.
I'll say it again. It can happen to anyone. If it is happening to someone you know then make sure they know you care. Tell them not to give in to it. It's not an easy thing to fight but it can be beaten.

Reassessment

I have been doing quite a lot of thinking this weekend and have come to some conclusions.
While I didn't set out to spent time assessing what is going on a number of events these last few days caused it to happen.
I caught up with a friend on Friday night and, at the time, I was feeling not myself exactly. I was preoccupied with a few things going on in my head and it was great to get them out. A lot of the stuff wasn't new. Somehow I had found myself in a state of mild anxiety (in hindsight. It doesn't feel mild at the time).
The piece of advice that resonated was his thoughts on joy and how it comes from the heart. It struck a chord with me because I had recently finished reading Happiness Now! (thanks Bron) and it is largely about discovering the joy in your life.
There is no coincidence there.
Saturday brought to the surface something that has been brewing for a while, despite my being aware of it to a degree. My work is great but what it has done has changed something I used to have as a hobby into something greater. Now I need to reduce it back to a hobby.
I'm not in any trouble or anything but I have just noticed some things about myself, my habits and such that has raised a flag.
It's a good time to be challenging myself on that score as well.
Today I kicked back after dinner and watched the Mariah Carey concert DVD I bought a while back. I could go on and on but, say what you like about her, I consistently find her songs overflowing with inspiration.
She kept saying to the crowd how you should never let anyone else put you down and to fight for what you believe in. I was taken aback to hear her talk about Hero, my favourite song, in terms like `I didn't think much of it when I wrote it', but she did say she came around to it after everyone just took it into their hearts. She told how she has to sing it every time she performs in case someone needs to hear the message.
It was a song that really hit me back when it first came out in the early 1990s. I was having a tough time and the words helped me no end. They still do. When I need a lift I will often play Hero and it always works. I will never forget when I saw Mariah in concert and she closed the show with the song and it brought the house down. I recall standing there (yes everyone was out of their seats) with my hand on my heart singing my lungs out (and I am not ashamed to say it).
A great moment.
So hopefully this weekend can be a watershed for me. I definitely rediscovered something tonight that I hadn't let go of but that I had put aside for a while.

Kath & Kim, US version

Why?
Seriously. Why did they make this.
I'm not crazy about the (original) Australian version but this makes it look like the funniest thing on TV. I watched 10 minutes, and I don't know why, and didn't even smirk.

Eagle Eye

Jerry Shaw (Shia LaBeouf) is an average guy, he swindles money off his work mates playing poker during breaks and he works in a photocopy centre.

That all changes when he returns home from his twin brother's funeral to discover a massive payload of weapons in his apartment. A voice on his phone tells him to run as the FBI were on their way.

Jerry is completely innocent but is captured and interrogated.

Rachel Holloman (Michelle Monaghan) is enjoying a night out with the girls after dropping her son off for a school trip to Washington. She too receives a call and is `activated'. Unwittingly and unwillingly Jerry and Rachel are manipulated into following the orders of the voice on the phone.

Eagle Eye in some respects can scare us with the use off readily available technology to trap and track individuals and force them to carry out someone's will.

As plausible as it seems the film does fall short of being more than your average technological thriller. At times it can be pedestrian. And it is very disappointing when you work out what's going on.

Having said that Shia LaBeouf continues to be extremely likable and that helps a lot. Same goes with Michelle Monaghan. While they don't have an awful lot to work with their performances go some way to making up for the flaws and the cliches that bog Eagle Eye down.

I was expecting something a little less predictable and already tried. On that score I was let down. However, thanks to the leads it is enjoyable enough.

A 7 out of 10.

Surprise encounters, evaluations and grand finals

The past few days have been interesting to say the least.
Whether through coincidence, if you believe in that, or some higher reasoning, I bumped into a couple of people from a previous church this week.
Completely out of the blue. Had I taken different paths to where I was going at the time I wouldn't have had either encounter.
The first was with a guy I listed on my `old friends' post a week or so ago.
Seeing Nathan was great and I wasn't surprised to learn his life is still ridiculously hectic. Everything I like about him was still evident and he didn't give me the impression that I was bailing him up either. That's what makes my comments about some regret in the way things went while we were friends (I'm not saying we aren't now but it is hard to be friends with someone if you never see them) even more pertinent.
I left that conversation hopeful that there is a future there but, realistically, I'd say there probably isn't. But you never know.
Less than 24 hours later I bumped into Melissa at my local shopping centre.
Strangely enough I had wondered what she was up to not long before and there she is. Off overseas with the husband to try their luck.
By Saturday I was wondering who I was going to run into next. You know what they say about things happening in threes! Anyway I didn't so I guess there were no signs of anything there.
On Friday night I caught up with a good mate who, surprisingly, I hadn't hung out with at all this year due to several different circumstances.
Craig is a guy who was always a very good influence and support (and I'd like to say I've been the same back on the latter score) and little has changed there despite both our situations changing slightly. We didn't do much as it was the end of a long week but it was great going out for dinner and talking, about trivial and serious stuff. We have vowed to do it more often and I'd say we will. I haven't talked about him much on this page but he is one of my favourite people.
It's been a nice weekend, albeit a bit frustrating with some close calls with my selections for the races yesterday.
I enjoyed the weekend, particularly a reasonably laid back Sunday, and even Manly winning the grand final 40-0 won't spoil it. They played better and deserved to win. At least people won't feel bad about hating them next season. You know, everyone has two teams - yours and the one playing Manly. Just how rugby league should be.

I'm Yours

I'm Yours by the Script has fast become one of my favourite songs at the moment. Beautiful, simple, touching. Worth a listen.


You've touched these tired eyes of mine
And mapped my face line by line
And some how growing old feels fine
I listen close for I'm not smart
You wrap your thoughts and works of art
And there hanging on the walls of my heart.

I may not have the softest touch
I may not say the words as such
And though I may not look like much
I'm yours
And though my edge is maybe rough
I never feel I'm quite enough
And it may not seem like very much
But I'm yours.

You healed these scars over time
And braced my soul, you loved my mind
You're the only angel in my life
The day the news came, my best friend died
My knees went weak, and you saw me cry
Say I'm still the soldier in your eyes.

I may not have the softest touch
I may not say the words as such
And though I may not look like much
I'm yours
And though my edge is maybe rough
I never feel I'm quite enough
And it may not seem like very much
But I'm yours.
I may not have the softest touch
I may not say the words as such
And though I don't fit in that much
But I'm yours.

The I.T. Crowd

I've got to say I am a sucker for British comedy - they just seem to be able to hit the spot.
A while back I was given The I T Crowd by a mate but for whatever reason (distraction with Dexter probably) haven't watched it until this week.
What a mistake!
This is one of the funniest series I have seen in a while, and I've only watched series one (of two to date).
It centres around computer nerds Roy (right in the picture)and Moss (centre) and the newly appointed employee Jen (left), who doesn't know anything about computers.
I just loved the scene in one of the early episodes where Moss, who is amazingly well played, responds to a fire breaking out by sending an email asking for help when he can't remember the phone number. Look for it on YouTube, it's a classic.
I very much like witty comedy and for some reason British comedy hits the spot much more often than the Americans and they normally don't overdo it. Only 12 episodes of this show so far whereas a standard US season is around 24.
Check it out, it's a good laugh.