Sunday, May 31, 2015

Rain?!  Yeah, but just a little bit.  Never enough but enough to get the ground wet.  As the saga continues for the drought in Southern California, we continue to consume and consume.  We have to consume to survive but I do not think water awareness is taking a front row seat as it should.  I wonder if the water company goes to homes to check on leaks instead of just looking at a meter.  I mean would it not be beneficial if they started doing that on top of meter checks and if they notice something wrong, let the home know or offer to fix it through some kind of program that is either free or reduced cost to the home owner?  I see these guys all the time and they come and go in like 2 seconds.  I am sure they have a busy job ahead of them but would it effect their job that much for a 2 minute inspection of the just the property?  Edison seems to be doing this and that is great with incredible programs for energy conservation.  Maybe the water company could take a lesson from them.

 Weekly Update:
I noticed something earlier this week ... if you are holding a baby and you are standing next to either a glass door or glass cabinet ... then that baby begins to pound on that glass you tell them to stop and they do not stop ... why do you continue to stand next to that glass?  I think taking one step away would solve that issue yet they continued to stand there, continued to say stop it and the cycle repeats.  Break the cycle people, it is not the hard.  Your one stop away is more than enough than their arm length to reach it anymore considering where you are standing now, they are barely reaching it but enough for a solid hit.  Honestly people ... this is not that difficult!

 At the movies:
Disaster strikes ... at the box office to win big as the action epic film San Andreas earns a hefty 53.2 million this weekend.  Above all expectations and decent word-of-mouth may help it carry into Summer a bit.  Holding on to #2 is "Pitch Perfect 2" with another 14.8 mil as it sings to a now 147.5 mil cume.  Dropping down to #3 is "Tomorrowland" with 13.8 mil as it unfortunately will struggle to hit 100 mil.  Still going at #4 is "Mad Max: Fury Road" with an extra 13.6 mil as it passes the 100 mil cume mark now.  And rounding off the top 5 and holding ground is "The Avengers: Age of Ultron" with another 10.9 mil and still trying to break half a billion domestic but will fall short.

 New movies that did not make the top 5:
Just one this week as Aloha chimes in at #6 with only 10 mil.  Word-of-mouth only fair to bad on this film so look for the fast burn.

 Quote of the week:
"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." - Maya Angelou

 Facts & Tips:
Hawaii has its own time zone.

 "Thats the sound we were looking for." - Greg Kinnear as Dick Vermeil in "Invincible."

posted by McDuck @ 01:51 0 comments

Monday, May 25, 2015

It is starting to feel like Winter!  So living in Southern California you do not have seasons whatsoever.  You get hot, warm and cold with no changes in foliage or where it snows and rains for days.  It maintains a wide range in temperatures though from say 60 to 110 in the day, that is a pretty good range but nothing that would be considered a season since it everything looks and remains the same.  So right now we would be a Summer season more-or-less but the temperatures are holding out in the Winter type of conditions.  Odd?  Yes, yes it is but I for one am not complaining about it!  So every morning is brisk, the day has winds to keep it chill and the nights are cold enough but jacket optional.

 Weekly Update:
I am seeing a lot of ads lately on TV (of all places) for this dollar shave club.  Ok, where in the world are people buying their razors and shaving cream that you need to subscribe to a club that mails you a razor and shaving cream??  According to the ad, the guy had to pretty much take out a small loan or mortgage his home to buy the two things needed to shave.  1) save up for an electric razor if this option is too expensive for you and plus it is not that expensive.  2) shop elsewhere if the place you are going to is actually charging you too much because are they made out of gold or something??  I bought a back of shaving gel for under $7 and that was 4 bottles which will last me for years!  YEARS!!  So break that down per day and it will cost me a piece of lint from my pocket or belly-button.  Razors, again, if used frequently you can buy a 10 or 12 back for just over a dollar each.  I do not understand this club or ad.  This seems like a really dumb club to join.

 At the movies:
The future of the box office is now as Disney's Tomorrowland takes top honors with a decent 32.2 million for the holiday weekend.   A little bit below expectations but still a good show with a lot of fair to good weather this Memorial Day Weekend.  Holding well at #2 is "Pitch Perfect 2" with another 30.4 mil and now well over the 100 mil cume mark.  Holding slightly better at #3 is "Mad Max: Fury Road" earning another 23.9 mil and just shy of the 100 mil cume mark but no doubt will get it by the end of next weekend.  New at #4 is the remake thriller classic Poltergeist with a 23 mil opener and exactly as expected.  Rounding off the top 5 is "The Avengers: Age of Ultron" with 20.9 mil as it just passes the 400 mil domestic cume mark and will be very short of half a billion.

Quote of the week:
"Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." - Dr. Seuss

Facts & Tips:
Harry Truman was the last U.S. President to not have a college degree.

 "Good. Glad to hear. Because in a month, my life could be your life. A cushy, $38,000 a year branch manager who is personal friends with Tom Skeritt? Not a bad life, is it?" - Matt Walsh as Thomas in "Ted."

posted by McDuck @ 11:48 0 comments

Monday, May 18, 2015

Rain!!  Yeah, we had some rain and a solid half-day of it.  Still no where enough from what we need but it helps.  It is like adding a drop of water in a extra big trash-bin you would see on the side of a building.  Just a drop though if I were to compare it but what is worse, no drop or 1 drop?  Sort of the lesser of two evils or is the kind of thing where it would have been better to not get anything at all?  I think it was good to get it because it supplied a drop of water and at the same time clean up the trash can a little bit.  We need a much more through cleaning!  And something than just a drop of water, anything ... anything.

 Weekly Update:
Went to an amazing event on Thursday for the Children's Miracle Network.  Some familiar faces and new ones, great eats and treats and then an amazing on-stage performance by Marie Osmond.  There was several kids there from the network and they were having an amazing time.  There were a couple of Disney Princesses and their counter-parts there as well which you could tell were a big hit with all the families.  Some great sponsors as well and got to enjoy a great fruit drink, some amazing natural fruit Popsicles and other odds and ends.  Some food related and others merchandise but overall just a great time!  It was a great day to remember and got to grab some pics with some folks:

 *L.J. Benet - from "Dog with a Blog" and all around great guy.
*Garrett Clayton - From "Teen Beach Movie" and a really nice guy!
*Atticus Shaffer - From the movie "Hancock" and a cool guy.
*Miles Brown - from the new TV series "Black-ish" and a good kid.
*Aubrey Anderson-Emmons - From "Modern Family" and very sweet.
*Brian J. White - from the movie "The Game Plan" and a really nice guy!
*Oscar Nunez - from "The Office" and really awesome guy!
*Marie Osmond - simply spectacular and been on many shows including her own variety show.

 At the movies:
Big surprises at the box office this weekend as Pitch Perfect 2 sings its way to #1!  Earning a hefty 70.3 million and over double all expectations, this song and dance show hits the chart strong!  Word-of-mouth is fair to good on the film and with Memorial Day next week, it could sustain for another solid week.  New at #2 is the remake Mad Max: Fury Road earning 44.4 million and also about double expectations.  Reviews are strong for this film with the stunts and action sensory overload going on.  Should hold OK for another week but not as strong as the #1 movie this weekend.  Holding ground at #3 is "The Avengers: Age of Ultron" with an extra 38.8 mil and almost to the 400 mil domestic cume mark.  With the holiday coming up, it should reach it by Monday of next week.  Drop to #4 is "Hot Pursuit" with 5.8 mil and quickly losing the chase.  Rounding off the top 5 is "Furious 7" with another 3.7 mil and pretty much out of gas at this point.

 Quote of the week:
"I distrust camels, and anyone else who can go a week without a drink." - Joe E. Lewis

 Facts & Tips:
Most cats don't like lemonade.

 "I'm gonna get us something from all four food groups: hamburgers, french fries, coffee and doughnuts." - James Belushi as Detective Sergeant Art Ridzik in "Red Heat."

posted by McDuck @ 02:37 0 comments

Monday, May 11, 2015

RAIN!!!  We had one glorious day and night of rain and it came down hard.  But as always, it was not nearly enough and there are reports of emergency water conservation now ... now?!  Why was this not being discussed years ago?  I know they touched upon it, discussed it and now it is an emergency.  I feel like if they took it more seriously say 7 years ago, we would be in better shape then we are now.  Over 10 years ago we were in a drought and it never got better so this is not being reactionary but post-reactionary to be honest.  It had to not get 10 times worse but they had to wait till it got 10 times 10 times worse to do something about it.  Not sure what they are going to do, I am not sure they know what they are going to do.  But something needs to be done.  Even if we took baby-steps years ago, that would have done a lot.

 Weekly Update:
Just another week, all of it a blur.  I swear I can almost fall asleep on the spot as soon as my head hits any kind of pillow or cushion.  More and more I am finding myself falling asleep by 10 and then waking up around 1 in a drunken like state (what I am guessing what a drunk would see and feel like) to make my way to bed to fall asleep and the alarm goes off in less than 4 hours later.  Rinse and repeat!  But I just can not fall asleep on my own till around that time, sometimes it will go till 11PM till I start to drift and not realizing that I have fall asleep (but who does) and then wake up to seeing the TV on.  I guess that is good I watch TV otherwise if I just came home and laid down then I would never know what time it was and wake
up late or something!  Day and night, it confuses me.

 At the movies:
No surprises this weekend as "The Avengers: Age of Ultron" continues the box office domination with another 77.2 million and now a cume of over 300 mil.  It is a significant drop from last weekend but will continue to have legs well through June.  New at #2 is Hot Pursuit with 13.3 mil and may get a slight boost today for Mother's Day. This one was right about expectations as well.  Holding ground at #3 is "The Age of Adaline" with another 5.6 mil.  Still in the top 5 is "Furious 7" earning an extra 5.3 mil and about out of fuel but still making at least 340 mil domestic.  Rounding off the top 5 is "Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2" with 5.2 mil and pretty much out of power.

 Quote of the week:
"The ultimate inspiration is the deadline." - Nolan Bushnell

 Facts & Tips:
The average bar of soap lasts twice as long as a bottle of body wash.

 "I'm gonna treat it like a UFO sighting. I saw something, but I'm not quite sure what it was." - P.J. Soles as Stella Hansen in "Stripes."

posted by McDuck @ 01:52 0 comments

Monday, May 04, 2015

I feel like we are getting a 2nd Winter (despite not really having a first one to begin with) but with no rain.  The weather feels and smells like our usual Winter when we have them but having it now?  Sure is odd weather patterns we are experiencing and each year it seems to be getting more strange.  The air smelled of moisture and it was a little cold outside during the day and night.  This is good but we do need rain with it otherwise it seems a bit pointless.  I am sure this weather will continue to be odd throughout the year and probably this time next year, it will be insane or something!  I am sure the weather is great for the green but I think it is making me sneeze and have a constant running nose.  I feel fine but I keep having to blow my nose all the time.  Not getting worse or better, just there.

 Weekly Update:
I did not do anything this past week which is fine with me since Vegas was a bit draining for me.  This past weekend was Free Comic Book Day and it is almost a national holiday which it should be!  I know they are comics but they do encourage kids to read and also cause for nostalgia for adults.  It is a time of both new discovery and remembrance of ones childhood.  It should be recognized as a holiday, why not?  Its educational, creative and inspiration with most of the characters being super heroes.  It sure beats out other days like Record Store Day which is trying to jump-start a dying medium.  Might as well have newspaper day or black and white TV day at this point.  But comic books ... they seem to be stronger than ever right now.

 At the movies:
Of course there is only one winner this weekend and probably a couple of weeks to come ... The Avengers: Age of Ultron opens with a huge 187.7 million which is still an amazing record for a non-holiday weekend and very close to our expectations.  Some other factors did effect the box office such as amazing weather and the big fight on Saturday night.  But despite all that, the film is on its way to reach 500 mil domestic an
d should hit 200 mil at least by mid-week if not sooner.  Word-of-mouth is strong on this film and repeat business is going to carry it for awhile. Holding at #2 is "The Age of Adaline" with another 6.3 mil and will slowly fade away.  Dropping down to #3 is "Furious 7" with 6.1 mil but now in the 300 mil mark and gas will run out for it soon.  Holding at #4 is "Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2" with 5.6 mil and the batteries running out.  Rounding off the top 5 is "Home" with another 3.3 mil and likely the last we will see it in the top 5 but sure had a solid run at the box office.

 Quote of the week:
"There are two levers for moving men -- interest and fear." - Napoleon Bonaparte

 Facts & Tips:
All of the major candidates in the 1992, 1996 and 2008 U.S. presidential elections were left-handed.

 "I asked him his name. He didn't know." - Nancy Allen as Officer Anne Lewis in "Robocop" (1987).

posted by McDuck @ 11:51 0 comments