This week's weather report is good. The days were not so hot and the evenings were very cool which is about right for this time of year. One day I had a feeling of winter (for Southern California) and it was semi-nice ... now we just need to get some rain because I drove by the river bed the other day and it was bone dry which isn't good. Even when we have water, it is brown as anything but at least we have some water moving so it getting into the ground, watering everything and flowing to the ocean. Also cleaning out the streets and such which is good and bad. Good for clean streets, bad that it all goes to the ocean and probably unfiltered.
Weekly Update:
So on Monday finally got the water heater fixed and that was nice to get a hot shower again. It cost me about $500 out-of-pocket but supposedly with the Home Shield it would have cost me over $1200 ... I kind of think the plumbing company they work with over charges for everything because I had two optional fees which I opted out of. One was a permit which they charged $200 and I learned online I can do it for $50.58. Ok, the 2nd charge was disposal for $50 which the city I live in does it for free. Just makes me think that more plumbers and companies like that are very shady which I know they are not all like that but with my limited exposure with them, so far not that great in general.
Another bad week in Hollywood as a great character actor passed away from a short fight with cancer. Actor Ed Lauter who has played many characters from the 1930's and up as an Army Officer, G-Man and others of the like. I remember him well from "The Rocketeer," "The Tuskegee Airmen," and the original "A-Team" TV show. Lauter was diagnosed back in May with a form or terminal cancer commonly caused by asbestos. Lauter was 74.
At the movies:
Staying up at the top is "Gravity" winning it's third week in a row with another 31 million (only a 28% drop) and now reaching 170 mil cume, should get to 200 in the next week. This film continues to amazing both audiences and box office. Really good hold at #2 is "Captain Phillips" with another 17.3 mil which equates to only a 33% drop. Two movies with very below average drops is pretty amazing especially during this time of year. New at #3 is the remake of the horror classic Carrie earning 17 mil. Not a terrible number but expectations were higher. Continuing to hold it's ground as well is "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2" with another 10 mil as it closes in on 100 mil cume. Rounding off the top 5 is the action film Escape Plan earning 9.8 mil for veteran actors Stallone and Schwarzenegger.
New movies that did not make the top 5:
Just one this week as the suspense-drama of The Fifth Estate comes in flat with only 1.7 million and also enough to take 8th place this week. Another movie to keep an eye out on is 12 Years A Slave which comes in at 16th place with $960,000. This may sound low or why is this worth watching ... it opened on 19 screens for a per screen average of a solid $50,526! Now we have seen higher per screen averages but with the performances and Oscar buzz around this film, it will climb up the rankings as the weeks go. A good average for a film like this is around $30k per screen so this hit the above average mark.
Quote of the week:
"I never did a day's work in my life. It was all fun." - Thomas A. Edison
Facts & Tips:
Less than 2% of the water on the Earth is Fresh.
"This had better be good. I'm supposed to be chairing a seminar at the Academy." - Nichelle Nicholas as Uhuru in "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country."
So on Saturday night I almost saw a 4 car collision. I say almost because I heard it while I was at my usual stomping grounds, the comic book store. I heard a slow muffled screech and then a big solid thud of a hit. Went outside to see two cars in the middle of the street, one car off to the side up on the curb and another car rear-ended on the opposite side of the road. It was pretty crazy and I would say the police responded with in 5 mins. Now that may seem fast but what you do not know, the police station is right next to the comic book store and the accident was maybe 40 to 50 yards from me. I could hear someone yelling "help, help!" and I would have ran over but then I saw about a dozen people rushing who were a lot closer than me. I mean if I ran over, what would I do, just be another person looking? Eventually a couple of firetrucks and ambulances showed up. Once more police units arrived, I couldn't really see the main center accident anymore because a car was blocking it. It was pretty crazy being so close.
Weekly Update:
Not too much happened this past week which is nice. Saw a little rain and of course I thought it would be enough to get the layer of dirt off my car, nope, sure wasn't and it looks all spotty again. We need some good rain!! But aside from that, not too much else went on other than working on a few small projects. OH, my water heater broke on Thursday. The plumber who was out about a year ago said it should last another 5 years, he was checking it out for another problem but didn't see anything wrong ... that plumber sucks. Been taking cold showers the past 3 days and boy does that make you take quick showers!
In other news, Indian character actor Kumar Pallana passed away on Thursday. He was a
staple in Wes Anderson films but I remember him best as the silly grumpy janitor in "The Terminal" with Tom Hanks. His funny expression and catchphrase "Do you have an appointment?" was enduring. He use to entertain as a boy spinning plates and juggling. Traveling around the world, he would end up working at the coffee shop his son owned were Wes Anderson and Owen Wilson would frequent. After that, the rest, as they say, was history. Kumar was 94.
At the movies:
No weight on their shoulders ... literally! "Gravity" (or lack thereof) manages to hang on to the #1 spot for its 2nd week in a row earning a NICE 44.3 mil and now over 100 mil cume for the first 10 days. This is only a 21% drop which is very rare. New at #2 is Captain Phillips based on a true story with 26 mil. Not a bad number by any means for this time of year. Slight drop to #3 is "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2" earning 14.2 mil and now about 78 mil cume domestic. Should hit 100 mil within in the next 10 days if it stays on this kind of tracking. Popping up at #4 is Machete Kills which is the sequel of the movie that started off as a fake movie trailer in another movie ... did you get all that? This is a very distance 4th place with only 3.8 mil ... this isn't good for the struggling theatre-owned circuit. Rounding off the top 5 is "Runner Runner" with 3.7 mil. It suffered a 52% drop-off from the previous week but you know what, that is below average (which is good).
Quote of the week:
"Wise men don't need advice; fools don't take it." - Benjamin Franklin
Facts & Tips:
A fifteen-year-old boy invented earmuffs in 1873.
"Because I can be." - Shannen Doherty as Heather Duke in "Heathers."
It is getting colder! But I like that because as you know, I always say it is easier to get warm than it is to cool down. Now I wish we just had some rain, than we will be in business not to mention my car getting cleaned ... I hope! But I am sure the rain will come in another few weeks as we get closer to the holidays and such. Oh, early reminder that Daylight Saving Time occurs this coming Saturday to Sunday and we get to set the clocks back one hour! I always like this particular one, the extra hour ... that is how it should always be and who cares if at 12 noon it is pitch black, in 12 years it will be back to normal again!
Overall the week itself was kind of quiet but had some busy days and nights. Thursday night I took Samantha Jo to the 1337 Lounge Live for some fun and an interview. If the name is not familiar, no worries. Up and coming actress who was recently in the online series "Mortal Kombat: Legacy Season 2" as Kitana, one of the original characters from the video game that the series is based upon. She is quiet amazing and nice as well as having a great time at the Lounge. That pl
At the movies:
Facts & Tips:
