"If You Use Tact, You Can Say Anything and Make It Funny." -- Dane Cook

Memorial Day, eh! Might as well start off with a little D-Day action from Saving Private Ryan. Don't watch it if you don't like war, eh!



So this weekend's been pretty mellow. I've done some work, but I've done more reading and entertainment-watching, including: another viewing of Inglourious Basterds; a disc with a few episodes of a British sitcom called Black Books; and a half-dozen episodes of No Reservations, from the first season, which I really enjoy. You know, I admit that Anthony Bourdain is a bit of a prick and a souse, but honestly, I like him, and the show, in spite of its slight pretension. The show makes it very evident to me what I'm missing out on in life: travel, good food, companionship, adventure. I just sit on my slowly-expanding backside all day, in front of my computer, and live vicariously through the experiences of others. Or I play games, being a hero and saving the day/world from the safety of my own office. Pretty pathetic, really.

I suppose I could write the maudlin feelings off to the onset of my 40th birthday again, but that certainly wouldn't result in any sort of change in behavior. I know what keeps me penned in here in my office, and would love to elaborate upon it, but it would be inappropriate, especially if wifey ever decided, by some impossible fluke, to read this blog and stumble upon this post. She would not be amused by that particular rant. Well, risk big, win big; risk little, win little. Not that what I have (and consider to be treasure) is "little". But I'd rather cling to the treasure I have than risk losing it by gambling on something bigger. For better or for worse...

Whoops, better change the subject...

Look at this Scrabble board, and weep with me...

Have you ever seen a board more thoroughly, brutally locked down than that board? Only one possible hook, eh? If you had my letters, where would you play? I'll let you know in the comments what I did to try to introduce some breathing room there, and open the board back up a bit, but tell me what you'd have done?

So I have a bit of a head cold again. Or a sinus thing or something, I don't know. All I know is my head is a bit stuffed, and my nose is running. When a nose the size of mine starts running, everyone look out! Blowing it could damage nearby furniture and scare little children. "Mom! I'm scared of the thunder!" "That's not thunder, sweetheart. Dad just blew his nose. Go back to bed..."

One odd side effect of my congestion is that my voice gets deeper for some reason. It's the only time I can do a rich, deep baritone voice--which I usually combine with an annoying accent of some kind (this time, British), and proceed to drive everyone nuts around me. Hey, I have to take little bits of fun where I can, eh? The thing with accents is that once you find the "song" of the accent, you can simply apply it to whatever you're saying, and modify it to the "song" on the fly. I learned that instinctively long ago, well before reading it in a book on acting. Rather than trying to learn specific lines for a part and practicing the lines in an accent to "get it right," you just get into the "flow" of the accent, and then just talk that way all the time. That way it isn't dependent upon a specific line, you can improvise to your hearts' content... and as a side benefit, drive everyone around you nuts !

But, yeah, if I was so inclined, I'd record myself talking in the deep British accent and post it here, but hey, I'm not so inclined! Sorry! Perhaps if Logan posts another piece of his fiction soon, I'll record it and post it, so you all can be sufficiently horrified. MUAHAHAHA!!! What fun!

And now, a little Band of Brothers. I'm looking for a particular scene - when I find it, I'll probably replace this clip. But in the meanwhile, this clip is certainly gripping. Battle of Carentan. Not for the squeamish.



I recommend watching it, even if you are squeamish. These aren't supermen, these are soldiers not unlike people you know now. They turn extraordinary when put into extraordinary circumstances.

EDIT: OK, I found the Band of Brothers clip I was looking for. Instead of swapping it out, I'm going to embed it also.



That guy that crossed through the enemy hoard (twice!) had balls of steel. I'm amazed every time I see that scene.

On a completely unrelated note... this will be a bit hard to explain...

You know how when you're really exhausted, you get these, I don't know what to call them... these quick pulses of light-headedness, sort of mildly electric, that zap through your brain? Does that make sense? They sort of quickly wash through your head, from the center outward in all directions, usually in a quick series? I assume that's your body's way of letting you know that it would like you to lay down now, and get some sleep... anyway, I've been getting those a lot lately, regardless of how tired I am. Even just after I wake up. It isn't painful... feels strangely cool, actually. Might be tied into my stuffy-sinussy condition, who knows. But if it doesn't stop soon, I may start to get concerned....

Isn't that an incredibly amazing piece of art? I can just stare at that endlessly. That's from a recent post by Kekai, over at Cake Mix. That guy is a staggeringly good artist.

While I'm referencing other blogs, I thought I'd link over to Kris' blog, where an interesting discussion has emerged, in reference to the movie Citizen Kane, and whether it's really "all that". Some good input in the comments section has helped take the initial post to the next level, including a lengthy comment by our resident Movie Director/Future Oscar Winner Mattson Tomlin. Check it out, eh!

Well, I was going to post the clip from the Battle of Helm's Deep, from the Two Towers, but all the clips I'm finding have embedding disabled, so hey, it's your loss, ain't it! Ain't it!!!!??!?!

Meh, you'll live. Unlike Boromir...

OK, I guess I'm done for now. See ya when I see ya...

Dave