Friday, June 30, 2006

Quapees

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York will be sending 135 pieces to display in the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston while the Met undergoes renovation.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ent/4014184.html

Works by Degas, Monet, Cezanne and Renoir will be amongst the pieces that will be sent here, then after a few months they will go to Germany before returning home to NYC.

I will be sending the Met a thank you letter. I'm used to picking up the paper and seeing bad news story after bad news story, so seeing something like this right off the bat in the newspaper made my day!

I've had a list of museums around the world that I've wanted to see, and I've had the good fortune of visiting three of them (The Vatican, The Uffizi, and the London National Museum), and believe me, the Met was on that short list. Nice to know that they deliver!

We don't focus on the good news often enough. In Kuwait yesterday women participated in elections for the first time. Instead of celebrating this long overdue change, some are harping on the fact that it took so long. It's a step in the right direction, and the Kuwaitis should be congratulated for it. Focus on that positive.

A huge stink is being made about not using the phrase "and the American Way" in the new Superman movie...but you know what? Why are people focusing on that one little omission rather than celebrating what a good, inspirational movie that it was?

I call these people Quapees. That is derived from "Perpetually Pissed Portion of the Population." Four "P's" or Quad "P's." Quapees. Feel free to use that term, but you owe me a nickle each time you use it.

Thursday, June 29, 2006

An "I'm watching Tombstone and these are my meandering thoughts" post

The good news is that the Astros didn't lose today. Gotta love off days!

The greatest movie in the history of American Cinema has to be Tombstone. How much more can a movie freaking rock than Tombstone does? The characters, the quotes, the not-quite-historically-accurate-yet-still-entertaining story.

Val Kilmer as Doc Holliday may be his best role. So many quotable lines from this flick!

I've actually been to Tombstone, AZ. I've gotten drunk in Big Nose Kate's Saloon; I've been to the Birdcage Theatre; I've walked the streets at night while a storm blew in...awesome! It's so funny because Modern Tombstone is such a typical small town that has this amazing window into the past. If you're heading across I-10 and you have the time, it is definately worth the detour to head down there and witness American History that has been preserved.

The Old West really was so uniquely American, and there's not a lot that we can claim in that regard. The reality is far more fascinating than the Hollywood equivalent, too.

Speaking of travelling, I used to do a lot, and all of it in cars. One thing I miss is reading the local papers of the towns I was in. I was never one for USA Today, I would rather immerse myself in whatever town I was in, for as little or as long as I was there. You don't just read the news that way, you meet the people and get a glimpse into their world.

Now I feel like going on a Road Trip...oh wait, just remembered the gas prices - I'll stay put! ;)

Wednesday, June 28, 2006

Thank goodness I won't have to cheer for that Gay guy!

Mark me down as a Rockets fan who likes the Swift and Gay for Battier deal.

Man...that sounds so wrong!

I realize that Richard Gay has all kinds of potential, but we are already loaded with potential, and now Battier gives us consistancy. Good move for the Rockets. Something tells me that Mike James is going to get his wish and rejoin this team as well. I kind of like the idea of this lineup:

PG: Alston
SG: James
SF: McGrady
PF: Battier
C: Yao

If he is brought back, tho, Mike James needs to understand that he is not the first, or even the second scoring option on this team.

I missed the draft itself, as I was off watching Superman Returns. I had pretty high hopes for this film...and those hopes were exceeded. Amazing flick. I had goosebumps at the beginning as the credits rolled. Felt like a kid again. I will definately buy this when it comes out on DVD.

The world is a messed up place right now, and I think that a good, inspirational hero like Superman will be just what some people need right now.

Marvel's been ruling the movie world as far as comics go for a while, but with Batman Begins and Superman Returns, I'd say that DC has stepped up and hit two out of the park. Batman Begins is my favorite superhero movie of all time, and I have a feeling that Superman Returns may come in at a very close second.

The bar has been raised very high for DC's movies. Hopefully Joss Whedon won't drop the ball with Wonder Woman. I know that David Goyer will give us a good Flash film (Make it Jay, pleeeeease!!!!).

I really miss the JLU cartoon. It was such a treat for DC fans like myself. I hope that the rumors of direct-to-DVD movies are true, as that would be a great way to tell more wonderful JLU stories. The news of the New Frontier animated movie has taken a bit of the sting out of JLU's baffling cancellation.

I am still holding out for hope that we'll see a movie version of Aquaman starring Owen Wilson as Aquaman, Ben Stiller as Black Manta, and Luke Wilson as the Ocean Master. We will get Will Ferrell, Steven Cobert and Vince Vaugn in there somehow as well. I know that seems like quite a departure from the way I feel about the Superman and Batman movies, but let's face it - an Aquaman comedy would be box-office gold!!!

BREAKING NEWS FROM THE HOUSTON SPORTS WORLD!!!!

The Houston Astros fail to provide Roger Clemens with any run support. Stand back while I use the paddles on myself as my heart has stopped from the shock! Thank god I have sarcasm to keep me going! Eessh!!!! What's up, Astros? You're embarrassing yourselves.

That said, hats off to the Detroit Tigers. They seem to be for real this year. You can't be too unhappy with a team like that beating your team when they've been bad for so long.

Man, the more I'm thinking about it the more I think this was a good night - Superman Returns was incredible, and the Rockets made a really good trade. Oh, I also picked up some comics, so I will be reading those tonight. As for real books, I will be starting Theodore Rex soon. Teddy was one of the most fascinating US presidents in my opinion, but I won't go into that now. This post has meandered enough as it is.

Oh, and it seems I was dead wrong about Natasha Irons being dead, right?

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Lowdown on the Low Post

Well, the NBA draft is Wednesday night and I can't figure out who the Rockets are taking. Hell, I expect them to trade out of that pick, to be quite honest. There's some good players available, but I will be super-pissed if we take on a bad contract and bad attitude (like Darius Miles) in order to move up a couple of slots.

Mostly, the Rockets need a visit from the Health Fairy, STAT!!!!

Speaking of Basketball, I was talking about Manute Bol earlier today. Now, I knew that he was involved in a lot of humanitarian activities after leaving the NBA, but I had no idea of the scope of his life's mission. I'm going to start researching this man's life some more and share his stories with you all. If you know any good Manute stories, please link us to them!

Center is my favorite position in basketball. As a fan, of course! The only way I could play center is if I were playing alongside dwarves. I do not like the dwindling role of the Center in basketball, but it's hard to argue with the success of guys like Nowitzki and Garnett in terms of what position they play.

My 5 best NBA centers are:

1) Hakeem Olajuwon
2) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
3) Wilt Chamberlain
4) Moses Malone
5) Shaquille O'Neal

Now, I realize that some may accuse me of being a homer by putting Hakeem first, but honestly familiarity plays a bigger role in it. I saw Olajuwon and Jabbar play, so they have a bigger impact on me. Plus, there is the fact that I think that he was better!

A lot of players have sweet moves, but the Dream Shake was artistic expression!

Monday, June 26, 2006

Who says that Crime isn't Fabulous?

http://www.neworleanscitybusiness.com/uptotheminute.cfm?recid=4912&userID=0&referer=dailyUpdate

My, oh my!

6-foot transvestite kleptomaniacs? It sounds like something that Frank Miller would right. Initially I said it sounded like something that Grant Morrison would write, but as a friend pointed out, transvestite kleptos is more of a Miller thing.

If it were Morrison, then the street would be a transvestite, not the people!

Speaking of the Doom Patrol (which no one who is not a comics fan realized I was doing), I am really hoping that this new Doom Patrol gets an ongoing, or at least a mini. Geoff Johns did his magic again, taking good parts of conflicting versions and turning them into a damned good take. He's kind of like the gourmet chef of comic writers!

The new Doom Patrol brings back the original cast, and does it in a way that makes sense...to a comics fan, anyway. The Chief retains his borderline evil persona from Morrison's run, and we don't have a problem with good, but traumatized people following him. It's more like a cult then anything else.

Excellent revamps of Mento (even acknowledging that horrible run of his in the New Titans), Elasti-Girl, and Negative Man (who seemed to take his dialogue cues from the cartoon, and his fashion cues from Rebis). Bumblebee and the newly-named Vox have actually become interesting!

So, is the Red Tornado actually infused into Vox? Time will tell, I guess.

I love how the Chief is manipulating their emotions to bend them to his will. I'll say it again - he's a cult leader, and these "freaks" aren't much different from the people who followed Koresh or Jim Jones...except they didn't have talking, gay, French Gorilla's in love with their disembodied masters in Waco or Jonestown....or did they???

Give us an ongoing, DC! Clone Johns and make him write it, too!

Sunday, June 25, 2006

A Grand Slam of Grand Slams!

OK, the Chicago White Sox have hit three grand slams in three straight days against my beloved Houston Astros. If that is not amazing enough, the last time they faced each other before this, the White Sox hit a Grand Slam against my Astros.

Four Games, Four Grand Slams.

Wow!

The Astros fan in me is disgusted with this, but the baseball fan in me is impressed. I have never heard of anything like this ever happening. I'll have to tune in to some sports radio, or ESPN later to find out, as I'm sure that they've got their hoardes of baseball statisticians on the case already.

Once again, wow...and screw the White Sox! :p

Saturday, June 24, 2006

Solutions, Not Problems

Every once in a while I like to be serious.

http://z13.invisionfree.com/SolutionsNotProblems/index.php?

Solutions, Not Problems is a new forum that I have created in which people discuss ways to resovle the many problems facing this world, rather than just complain about them.

This will be a place for ideas and discussion, but not fighting and pissing matches. There are plenty of other places around the net for people to act like dicks - this isn't one of them.

Check it out, already!

Friday, June 23, 2006

Who wants to dance a Texas Sidestep in November?

Well, it looks to be an interesting election in Texas this year, as we have five candidates on the ballot for governor. It would appear that for the first time since Ann Richards beat Clayton Williams and Jeff Daiell in 1990 the Governor of Texas will be elected by plurality, rather than majority.

Here are the contestants:

Rick Perry, incumbent candidate representing the Republican Party.

Chris Bell, the representative of the Democratic Party.

James Werner, the representative of the Libertarian Party.

Carolyn Keeton Strayhorn, on the ballot as an Independant.

Kinky Friedman, on the ballot as an independant.

Werner, Strayhorn and Friedman all managed to gather enough signatures to challenge the Big Two, and are the three candidates that I will be choosing from. There is no way in hell I will vote for Chris Bell or Rick Perry. I am leaving it to the Lib and the Indies to win me over.

It's hard to say which candidates will "take votes" from others. Usually when discussing that you are talking about the Big Two losing votes to third party and indy options. In this election I can see these three "taking" votes from both Perry and Bell, but ultimately I feel that Perry will not be filling out a change of address form come January.

Now, this had the potential to be the most amazing (and to me, heartbreaking) gubanatorial election in Texas several months back. At one point I thought that we would see an election between Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson and Houston mayor, Bill White. Kinky would have been there, but not as big in the picture. I say that is heartbreaking because I would have been forced to choose between two of the only politicians in this country that don't make me sick to my stomach. Hell, they may be the only two! Senator Hutchinson was talked into staying in the Senate one more term, and Mayor Bill is still running the city of Houston better than it has been in ages.

So...instead we get this. Like I said - I'm not paying attention to the Big Two, but I am eager to see what the Little Three have to say. More on this as it develops!

My Interview with God, Part One

Tin Foil Hats is proud to present a new chapter in our sporadic life - the interview!

Now, we will not interview just anyone. We set the bar pretty high here. We were hoping to land Gene Simmons, Geoff Johns, Elle MacPherson or Eddie Izzard, but none of them had time in their schedules to appear (jerks)...

I did find a good first guest for our program. Ladies and Gentleman, please give a warm welcome to God!!!!!!

begin transcript

Tin Foil Hats: Wow! God. This is really cool!

God: Yeah, it is cool. Thanks for having me on.

TFH: Wow.....God....

G: Wow...Tin Foil Hats!

TFH: Wow!

G: .........

TFH: God, my name is...

G: I know.

TFH: I'm sorry. Have we met before?

G: .........I'm reasonably sure, yes.

TFH: So, God...or should I call you Jehova, or Lord Almighty?

G: No, no....God's cool.

TFH: Cool....OK, well then God, I want to thank you for showing up tonight!

G: Hey, it's no problem. I'm kind of everywhere, you know!

TFH: Right, right...the omnipotence! What is that like?

G: Honestly? It's kind of overrated. You don't want to know what people are doing most of the time.

TFH: Really?

G: Yeah, I was kind of using you as an example.

TFH: Hahahaha!!!!

G: No, seriously...you don't need to do that that many times a day.

TFH: Hahahaha!!!! That is so funny, God! How about a high five?

G: Um....can you use your other hand?

TFH: You're a riot, God! I do have some serious questions for you, tho...

G: Well, that's why I'm here.

TFH: And we appreciate you taking time from your schedule to be here.

G: Don't mention it.

TFH: No, really we app....

G: I said, don't mention it. Now, if you want your mouth back then nod and move on to the next question.

TFH: Fair enough. What is your favorite color?

G: Green.

TFH: Really? I would have thought it was blue.

G: Don't get me wrong - blue is cool. I like all my colors, but I really dig green. It's my favorite.

TFH: Do you have a favorite tree?

G: Wow...that one is kind of tough. I really like the Live Oak and the Cyprus.

TFH: I like Apple trees!

G: Yeah, but you also like the Silver Sorceress.

TFH: How did you know that?????

G: Um....omnipotence?

TFH: Oh, right! Yeah, the Silver Sorceress rocks all kinds of wicked awesome, but we'll talk about that another time. Right now we have more important things to discuss.

G: Hit me!

TFH: No way! You'll kick my ass!

G: No, I meant ask your questions.

TFH: OK - the platypus. What the F@#%?

G: Excuse me?

TFH: The Platypus - were you drunk or something?

G: Aren't you worried that you're being a tad bit disrespectful now?

TFH: Not really....I'm on my eighth beer. I'm not worried about much now. Just stop ducking the question - what the f@#% is up with giraffes?

G: I thought you said Platypi.

TFH: Oh.....I get it. You're a wise guy!

G: Well, technically I am the wisest guy....

TFH: .............touche.

G: Oooookay....

TFH: ..............

G: ..............


TFH: ..........So, do you like comics?

G: Yes I do! I'm a big fan, in fact!

TFH: Are you a DC or Marvel guy?

G: OK, you have to understand that I can't answer that.

TFH: BAWK BAWK BAWK BA-BAWK!!!!!!

G: .........no, I'm not being a chicken, it's just that any time I show preference over one side or the other in any situation a bunch of assholes get all uppity and kill other people in my name.

TFH: That's not cool.

G: No, it really isn't. I don't want rabid comics fans killing others just because I preferred Infinite Crisis to House of M.

TFH: You mean like those people over there? (pointing to the left)

G: Hey! HEY!!!! STOP THAT THIS INSTANT!

TFH: You should go old school and turn them into pigs!

G: ......dude, that was Circe.

TFH: Ohhhh......right. OK, so you can't turn people into pigs...

G: No, I can.

TFH: But you just said that you needed Circe to do that

G: No...I was pointing out a historical / Literary reference.

TFH: Whatever, bra! You just can't turn people oink oink oink oink

G: I'm sorry, what were you saying?

TFH: OINK! Oink oink oink oink oinking oink oink?

G: Dude - it's not cool to take my name in vain....not even in piggese.

TFH: That was not cool.

G: Oh, lighten up!

And that is it for part 1 of the Tin Foil Hats' interview with God. Please check in later for the next installment!!!

Thursday, June 22, 2006

I'm black! No wait...I'm back. I'm still a honky.

Well, seven weeks after my last entry I am finally updating this. Obviously I have not been keeping up with my weekly 52 updates. In fact, you could say that my timetable has been Grant Morrisonesque.

Here's a tip for people doing these things - do not change your password and forget to write the new one down. It has taken me weeks to remember what I had changed this to. Anyway, I am back and ready to pick up with week seven of 52, along with a few tidbits from prior weeks.

I'd like to point out a theory that I've been kicking around to a few people: Natasha Irons, Steel's niece, is dead. Dead, deceased, finito, kaput, no more! D-E-D, Dead!

I think that she was killed in the battle of Metropolis. Her "appearances" with her uncle in 52 are the result of him not being able to deal with her death. We have already seen that he is hallucinating, and I think that he is hallucinating Natasha as well.

He is acting like an engineer who's project failed - he is going back, looking at the details, trying to figure out what he could have done differently to prevent the disaster. In this case he is acting like a more stern parent figure.

But wait - there's more!

He's rebuilding her. He is building a new body and will hunt down T.O. Morrow and Doc Magnus to figure out how to create an artificial soul. It is his way of bringing her back from the dead.


Other 52 notes:

How cool was it to see Spanner's Galaxy mentioned? I had a damn near geekgasm when I saw that!

Red Tornado's body seems like it was hit by a spherical object. In Rip Hunter's lab we see his time sphere...and it's been damaged! Where in time is Rip Hunter now?

I don't know if anyone has heard, but Batwoman is being re-introduced as a buxom, lipstick lesbian. Originally they were going to introduce her as a flat-chested, lipstick lesbian, but they looked at the sales on the Power Girl storyline in JSA: Classified and came to the conclusion that a lot of guys like big boobs, and it is the horny 16-60 year old male population that they are targetting with this character.

Devem, from the CCC (Creepy Cult of Conner), is a take off of an old Legion of Super-Heroes character - Dev-Em. Dev-Em was the last kryptonian in existence in the 30th century and he was quite religious. Oh, and he was a spy.

Black Adam is cooler than you.

Manthrax needs an ongoing series.

OK - that's it for now. I'll get to work on the week seven notes. Welcome back!