post of immense self-pity
yes, i pity myself tonight, even though i know that it doesn't help anyone or anything - least of all my self. for two fucking weeks i've been more or less under the weather. fever, sore throat, muscles pains, embarrassing stomach issues and on and on and on. i've been poked, prodded, had my blood taken and other stuff which i'd rather forget. still, it's one step forward, two steps back. like last night. i was in kind of a good mood. sure, i had a little fever and my throat was killing me, but it still felt like i'd hit a turning point. yeah, right, this morning i woke up with worse throat than ever, the muscle pains had returned and no word on any of the tests i took.
and in the middle of all this, elli's been an angel with her patience and i feel like my bad temper for being ill is spilling out over her. i don't want that. elli's my rock. so, anyone have any idea on how long you can have fever before it starts getting dangerous? i mean, it's not a high fever (then i wouldn't be healthy enough to complain) but it's still there. anyway, officially worst halloween ever.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Why Write A Holographic Will
time to switch focus?
read in the paper this morning that there will be yet another benefit show for breast cancer fund raising. don't get me wrong, i'm all for fund raising for good causes, but isn't it time to switch focus? in a related article i read that today about 90% of all people (not just women, men can get breast cancer too, you know) are saved. still a high number of patients that don't make it, but a 90% chance of survival isn't half bad. so, i decided to look up some numbers. apparently, skin cancer is the most common type of cancer, but has "only" a fatality rate of about 1%. in sweden, where i live, the second most common type of cancer is prostate cancer which affects about 10.000 men each year. around 65% diagnosed with this disease are cured. it seems to me that if a more common form of cancer than breast cancer is deadlier funds should be redistributed to research the former. then again, i guess a prostate isn't as sexy as a breast. what do i know?
read in the paper this morning that there will be yet another benefit show for breast cancer fund raising. don't get me wrong, i'm all for fund raising for good causes, but isn't it time to switch focus? in a related article i read that today about 90% of all people (not just women, men can get breast cancer too, you know) are saved. still a high number of patients that don't make it, but a 90% chance of survival isn't half bad. so, i decided to look up some numbers. apparently, skin cancer is the most common type of cancer, but has "only" a fatality rate of about 1%. in sweden, where i live, the second most common type of cancer is prostate cancer which affects about 10.000 men each year. around 65% diagnosed with this disease are cured. it seems to me that if a more common form of cancer than breast cancer is deadlier funds should be redistributed to research the former. then again, i guess a prostate isn't as sexy as a breast. what do i know?
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Gay Cruising Spots Las Vegas Nv
the midnight meat train
title: the midnight meat train
starring: bradley cooper, leslie bibb, vinnie jones etc.
director: ryuhei kitamura
producer: lions gate films
length: 100 min
year: 2008
country: usa
rated: ranging from 16 years of age (holland) to 21 (!) years of age (singapore)
reviewed copy: dvd preview copy
tagline: "the most terrifying ride you'll ever take"
plot
leon kauffman is an aspiring photographer living with his girlfriend maya in new york city. after being told by a big shot in the art world that his photos lack what he's looking to portray (a "real" portrayal of the city) leon starts going out late night hunting for motives. when he scares off a gang of thugs trying to rape a model he also gets a great shot. however, a few days later the model disappears without a trace.
acting
generally well over the standard of your average horror movie. cooper is good in his role as the increasingly obsessed photographer kauffman and vinnie jones, despite (or maybe "because off") having only two lines in the entire movie is one eerie bad guy. the only one giving a slightly substandard performance is leslie bibb as kauffman's girlfriend maya. be on the lookout for some semi-known actors and actresses in smaller parts, such as brooke shields and ted raimi.
direction & script
based on the clive barker short story by the same name (you can find a review of that in the archive under "books of blood" if you're interested) this is an in my mind successful expansion of the storyline to incorporate more human relationships. while the story was short and creepy the script has a tendency to become somewhat long-winded. other than that i have no complaints about the script - a truthful adaptation to barker's original short story. the direction is also good with one or two really misplaced scenes. the one i reacted at was the sex scene between leon and maya. did anyone else get the feeling she was...raped? she sure as hell didn't look like she enjoyed it anyhow. cut to next morning and a typical "good morning, honey" kind of scene. did i miss something here? apart from this sequence the movie is tightly directed with a bleak and realistic sort of look not often found in american horror movies these days. one thing i feel i have to mention is the special effects. while generally good, all of a sudden some really terrible cgi rears its' ugly head. and this is not just slightly sub.par effects work but rather breaks the suspension of disbelief.
bottom line
this film is altogether one of the better horror movies i've seen this year. it's not excellent, but it had me in my seat for 100 min without glancing at the time, which is a good sign if any. if graphic horror with a touch of psychology is your deal, this one's for you. and yes, it has a surprise ending that i'm not giving away, but which i suspect people will either love or hate. i kinda like it.
title: the midnight meat train
starring: bradley cooper, leslie bibb, vinnie jones etc.
director: ryuhei kitamura
producer: lions gate films
length: 100 min
year: 2008
country: usa
rated: ranging from 16 years of age (holland) to 21 (!) years of age (singapore)
reviewed copy: dvd preview copy
tagline: "the most terrifying ride you'll ever take"
leon kauffman is an aspiring photographer living with his girlfriend maya in new york city. after being told by a big shot in the art world that his photos lack what he's looking to portray (a "real" portrayal of the city) leon starts going out late night hunting for motives. when he scares off a gang of thugs trying to rape a model he also gets a great shot. however, a few days later the model disappears without a trace.
generally well over the standard of your average horror movie. cooper is good in his role as the increasingly obsessed photographer kauffman and vinnie jones, despite (or maybe "because off") having only two lines in the entire movie is one eerie bad guy. the only one giving a slightly substandard performance is leslie bibb as kauffman's girlfriend maya. be on the lookout for some semi-known actors and actresses in smaller parts, such as brooke shields and ted raimi.
based on the clive barker short story by the same name (you can find a review of that in the archive under "books of blood" if you're interested) this is an in my mind successful expansion of the storyline to incorporate more human relationships. while the story was short and creepy the script has a tendency to become somewhat long-winded. other than that i have no complaints about the script - a truthful adaptation to barker's original short story. the direction is also good with one or two really misplaced scenes. the one i reacted at was the sex scene between leon and maya. did anyone else get the feeling she was...raped? she sure as hell didn't look like she enjoyed it anyhow. cut to next morning and a typical "good morning, honey" kind of scene. did i miss something here? apart from this sequence the movie is tightly directed with a bleak and realistic sort of look not often found in american horror movies these days. one thing i feel i have to mention is the special effects. while generally good, all of a sudden some really terrible cgi rears its' ugly head. and this is not just slightly sub.par effects work but rather breaks the suspension of disbelief.
this film is altogether one of the better horror movies i've seen this year. it's not excellent, but it had me in my seat for 100 min without glancing at the time, which is a good sign if any. if graphic horror with a touch of psychology is your deal, this one's for you. and yes, it has a surprise ending that i'm not giving away, but which i suspect people will either love or hate. i kinda like it.
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Tile And Trim Around Tub
the presidental debates
ok, so we've seen mccain taking on obama and biden taking on palin. here are my thoughts:
mccain vs. obama
my first impressions were that mccain is the better debater, but obama had the better arguments. neither are great public speakers though. mccain was kind of transparent in the points he was trying to make though, i.e. "obama isn't experienced enough" and "i've been in the military, i know what it's like". the first argument, well, you can't really argue with that. then again, experience doesn't equal wisdom. the second argument however is pure bullshit. yes, you were in the military, but what did you do? spend a couple of years as a p.o.w. is what. you are not the "great warrior" you'd like to portray yourself as, now are you? another thing that bothered me was the constant claims from mccain that obama did this and obama did that when it only took the first few seconds of obama's reply to realize that mccain was talking out of his ass. all in all, i thought that it was a close call deciding who "won" the debate, but i'd have to go with obama. more valid arguments, a calm which his opponent didn't show and an altogether better presentation.
biden vs. palin
sometimes i wonder if the journalists of the world basically are puppets controlled by some evil mastermind. i've been reading in the papers and in the blogs covering the campaigns that the debate was a tie. a tie?! palin got her ass kicked! she had no real valid arguments when it came to a single issue and she replied to biden's questions and claims with a rhetoric that was as transparent as water. what's wrong with people? did we see the same debate? palin was like a schoolgirl dressed up in grown-up clothes. biden crushed her!
very well, we'll see how it turns out. right now i'm not positive that obama will win. why? because the public consists of wankers in general.
ok, so we've seen mccain taking on obama and biden taking on palin. here are my thoughts:
my first impressions were that mccain is the better debater, but obama had the better arguments. neither are great public speakers though. mccain was kind of transparent in the points he was trying to make though, i.e. "obama isn't experienced enough" and "i've been in the military, i know what it's like". the first argument, well, you can't really argue with that. then again, experience doesn't equal wisdom. the second argument however is pure bullshit. yes, you were in the military, but what did you do? spend a couple of years as a p.o.w. is what. you are not the "great warrior" you'd like to portray yourself as, now are you? another thing that bothered me was the constant claims from mccain that obama did this and obama did that when it only took the first few seconds of obama's reply to realize that mccain was talking out of his ass. all in all, i thought that it was a close call deciding who "won" the debate, but i'd have to go with obama. more valid arguments, a calm which his opponent didn't show and an altogether better presentation.
sometimes i wonder if the journalists of the world basically are puppets controlled by some evil mastermind. i've been reading in the papers and in the blogs covering the campaigns that the debate was a tie. a tie?! palin got her ass kicked! she had no real valid arguments when it came to a single issue and she replied to biden's questions and claims with a rhetoric that was as transparent as water. what's wrong with people? did we see the same debate? palin was like a schoolgirl dressed up in grown-up clothes. biden crushed her!
very well, we'll see how it turns out. right now i'm not positive that obama will win. why? because the public consists of wankers in general.
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