Why politics should never be discussed with someone you don't know

Today at work I was verbally attacked...this was the conversation:
(yes, I wrote it down right after it happened so I could tell you all, and I put it in patriotic colors for your enjoyment)

old man: who are you voting for? have you decided yet?

me: yes, I'm voting for Obama.

old man: now why would you do a cotton-pickin thing like that? do you have a reason?

me: yes, I have lots of reasons

old man: okay, name 2

me: mainly, I'm voting for him because I believe him when he speaks

old man: oh so you're voting for him because he's a good orator

me: I believe him. when McCain speaks, I don't believe him.

old man: it's amazing how many people believed Hitler.

me: ...see, this is why you shouldn't talk politics

old man: (interrupting) no, no, no. have you read up on it?

me: yes, I've followed the entire election

old man: really?

me: yes

old man: the news is so biased

(I nod)

old man: it is, don't you think?

me: definately.

...

old man: did you think OJ was innocent?

me: no.


The end. (This is Jesse, by the way)

Poll Predictions

Having just got home from work and seeing all the beautiful scores and highlights from today, here is my prediction of what the top ten will look like, and what i think it should be:

What it will look like:
1-Oklahoma
2-LSU
3-Alabama
4-Texas
5-Missouri
6-Penn St.
7-Texas Tech
8-Georgia
9-BYU
10-USC

What it should look like:
1-Oklahoma
2-Alabama
3-LSU
4-Missouri
5-Texas
6-Penn St.
7-BYU
8-Texas Tech
9-South Florida
10-Georgia

Cool Hand

Even though we all must die sometime (at least that's what they tell me, i am still trying to figure out a way around this) it doesn't make it any less tragic that Paul Newman has died. It hurts my poor little over worked heart. Not only was he one of my favorite actors, but he was one of the finest actors in the history of Hollywood and more importantly the greatest man in Hollywood. He wasn't just a ridiculous good looking man that made ridiculously great movies (i.e. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Sting, Cool Hand Luke, The Hustler, The Verdict, Road To Perdition etc. etc.) but he was a true humanitarian. This year marked His 50th wedding anniversary to his wife. Yes, 50 years. He donated tens of millions of dollars of his own money to charities, and the company he founded with his original salad dressings, donates ALL of it's profits to charities. His company has donated approximately 178 MILLION dollars to charity. He is one of those people that i obviously never knew, but wish i did. If you have never seen Butch Cassidy, The Sting, or Cool Hand Luke this should be made a top priority. It's tragic, and even more tragic that we must lose the Paul Newman's of the world and still be riddled with the Shia Labeouf's and Lindsay Lohan's.

Movies TOO Long

Lately, every new movie I've seen has felt really really long. I don't know if its me or if our editors in Hollywood have problems. Every time, I think, they could have cut a half hour out of this! I just want to tell them that movies don't have to be two hours long, it's okay to cut it down. Whatever happened to nice, neat, concise writing? Anybody with me on this or is it just me?

Just a few examples: Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Leatherheads, Deception, and Knocked Up (plus many many more)

Somebody giveth and taketh away...

And in this case i don't think it is God. I think he has more things to worry about, in an eternal perspective, than the functionality of our dvd player. Or maybe he does take an interest in my dvd player. If he does than i hope he will make it work again (that is a little prayer). And contrary to what garth brooks would have you believe , there are no unanswered prayers. Take that garth, or should i call you chris....? So anyway, our dvd player just decided to stop working last weekend. Two weeks ago, we get our car fixed, finally and then the falling weekend our dvd player quits working. So now i have this dvd player, and this set of speakers that have absolutley no use to me. What's a boy to do with these? I am just hoping that it just decides to work one day. Is that really too much to ask? I am not asking for free everything for life, but that would be nice too if we could swing some kind of deal there too. Now we have to use this little guy dvd player that we bought for our room. It cost about twenty dollars. Even though he tries hard, there is no way he is going to be up to the task of all the movies we watch. Oh well, i guess we will just have to survive without our surround sound. Stupid mono sound.

Justin

I Recommend

I just wanted to tell everyone that I've seen some very good movies lately and I recommend you all see them too. First off, Young at Heart. I think everyone will love this one. Secondly, Run, Fatboy, Run is so hilarious and good. So, go out and see them and then let me know what you think!

Painting

If anyone wants to see a painting I did, go to my parent's blog:

http://vblaws.blogspot.com/

I painted it from a photo of my parents when they were young kids just like me. Here it is:


(p.s. the painting is acrylic on wood)

Hypocrites...

Has anyone else noticed the hypocrisy of college football? They stress good sportsmanship like crazy and are even willing to flag you for celebrating in the endzone in the final seconds (which still is the right call by the way) calling it a "non judgement" call, but the only way to get any respect or to advance in the polls is to drive up the score and try to rub it in as much as possible. I don't know, it seems a bit hypocritical to me.

Just kidding, I'm sick.

Allergies are dumb

I have been feeling on the verge of being sick for DAYS now, and all I have to say is that allergies are dumb. I never used to have them, either. All of the sudden they developed and I am not adjusting well. I would rather be really really sick for two days than suffer from the incessant allergies for weeks. Anybody out there with me? Let me hear you say whoa-oa-oa!

Jesse

Stars that can be serious actors when they want to be, instead of the silly stuff they normally do, and examples to back it up.

Jack Black: The Holiday
Jim Carrey: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Will Ferrell: Stranger Than Fiction
Ashton Kutcher: A Lot Like Love, The Butterfly Effect (thanks, Nic)
Keanu Reeves: Something's Gotta Give
Adam Sandler: Punch Drunk Love, Spanglish

Rating movies on netflix is the greatest pasttime....ever

We are back on netflix folks!!!! It's true. Now you may be saying to saying to yourself "but you work at hollywood video and get endless amounts of rentals for free, why would you pay?" Now, i understand why you may initially ask yourself this question, but let me assure you that this is not a valid question. First of all, i only get three movies out at a time at work.....anybody that knows me knows that this is not nearly enough. B-There are some movies that we don't have at work that we really want to see, and third and finally........rating movies on netflix is the greatest pasttime ever. Seriously. I would have a netflix membership and just completely leave my queue empty and never get movies, just so i could go through them all and rate them (only if i could afford it of course.) Those little red stars that you get to turn into little yellow stars is so fulfilling it would replace my sex life (if i were single). There is something so magical about it. I don't even know what it is. It's like when you make mashed potatoes and you make the swimming pool in the middle of them and pour in the gravy, and the gravy seems to just float in it as if content to sit there for all time and eternity. Don't worry i have not completely lost my mind, netflix will never be mashed potatoes, but i think it is the new high five.

I Hate Oscar Buzz

Sometimes I just want to give the Academy the finger, or maybe a swift kick in the butt. I know I may be alone in this, I know there are tons of people out there who revel in Oscar talk, even if 5 months in advance (thanks, USA Today article: "Never Too Early For Talk of Oscars"). I'm not one of these people.

Don't get me wrong, I love the Academy Awards. I love watching them, voting on the winners, and all that jazz. I just don't get "Oscar Buzz." What does it mean? Critics start "buzzing" around to each other that a certain performance or film deserves a nomination, if not a win. It's like beez buzzing about which flowers are sweetest. Problem is, not all the flowers are out yet, and this bee want to try them out for herself.

It seems to me the whole system is flawed. Critics see movies before regular audiences at private screenings, debuts, and film festivals. They decide what's noteworthy and tell the rest of us, sometimes even before all the films are out. How do they know there's not going to be 5 much better performances later on in the year to dethrown their current "Oscar-worthy" performance? The buzzing escalates until we don't know if we're agreeing/disagreeing based on the little whispers in our ears.

Some make a stand against being influenced. I am one of those. I don't want any insight, I don't want to be influenced in any way. I'm one of those that will potentially get violent on the occasion of a spoiler. I'm one of those that can't stand how previews to movies get more and more revealing the longer the movie is out. I'm one of those that doesn't care what the critics think; I want to form my own opinion. I want to enjoy a movie for entertainment's sake. I don't want some critic telling me a performance is Oscar-worthy, and therefore, influencing my reaction to that performance, without me even realizing it.

I choose to just say no to "Oscar Buzz."

Jesse

Why I'm Voting For Barack Obama

I'm an Independent, have been for some time, since I came to the conclusion that no party has all the answers (at least not all the right ones). I also know that all the candidates will do absolutely anything to win. Listen up, peops, there's a civil war going on, it's just of the passive-aggressive nature. The Parties tend to hurt us more than help us, splitting America cleanly down the middle. What I'm saying is, I am determined to weigh all the candidates and find the best man for the job (sorry, Hilary). I've chosen Obama, not because he's the lesser of two evils, like in past elections, but because I truly believe he can bring about change.

Vice Presidential Nominees and Lots of Fuss

Lately, all the talk has been about the VP candidates. Is Sarah Palin ready? Republicans say yes, Democrats say no. Is Joe Biden ready? Republicans say no, Democrats say yes. Here's my thought. The fact that a woman is nominated for the 2nd highest position in all the land absolutely thrills me. And Sarah Palin is a charismatic lady. It's obvious that she's strong and willing to do the job. Women can balance a career with motherhood. But, no, I don't think she's ready. Here's why: Palin is in her first term as Governor of Alaska, and although that gives her more executive experience, it was "hands-off" experience. She spends most of her time in Wasilla, which is a small town about an hour outside of the capital. This executive experience is said to give her an advantage; she can lead and make decisions. I don't know what the advantage is, I don't see anyone (McCain, Obama, Biden, or any other candidate, politician, public figure) having trouble making decisions. It's a question of making the right decisions, on a huge scale. It's true that Palin doesn't come from Washington, far from it, but why does that equal change, and the right kind of change? Someone that far removed from Washington isn't exactly in touch with those of us not living in Alaska. Lastly, Feminists might burn me at the stake for this, but Sarah Palin doesn't just have a family, she has a family with tons of issues right now, and I'm afraid they're going to suffer. With her daughter pregnant, and a brand new special-needs baby, it seems like very bad timing for her to run for office.

Joe Biden? Who is this guy? It's surprising that everyone started to frenzy when Palin was named Republican VP nominee, with questions like: "Who is Sarah Palin?" But, because Biden's been in the Senate for forever, no one said boo. But, I'm an average American and I don't know this guy. McCain really trumped Obama this time: Palin's getting all the publicity, and Biden slowly fades into the background. (By the way, according to McCain's standards, isn't Palin reaching unacceptable "Celebrity Status"??) All we know about Biden is his limited executive experience, and his extensive international experience. It will be interesting to hear Biden and Palin debate. But, it's really about who will be President, right?

Why I Won't Vote For John McCain

John McCain is an American hero, and he has lots of experience in the Senate and in Washington. I agree that he loves America and wants to lead us in the right direction. I just don't know if he knows what that is. In his career in the Senate, he has voted with George Bush 90% of the time. This year, however, 2008, he has voted with George Bush 100% of the time. For someone who talks about change a lot, he really doesn't have the record to back it up.

Now, Obama doesn't have a strong record either. He hasn't been in the Senate long enough to establish a body of work to compare. Both McCain and Obama walk the walk and talk the talk. Who do we believe? Experts say that most of their goals are too lofty to complete in the time frames they've promised. We all know polititians will do and say anything to get elected. They exaggerate, if not lie. The conventions are no help. The audiences are packed with cheering supporters, enough to get anyone jazzed. And you can't really look too hard at their policies. You agree with bits and peices and disagree with the rest. How do we choose?

I'm voting for Obama because when he speaks, I hear passion and conviction. I hear that he means what he says. When McCain speaks, I always hear some kind of angle, some way that he is manipulating me. It could be that Obama is just a better liar, but he would have to be pretty dang good. Obama is so sick and tired of the same old way things are, that he is fired up enough to do something about it. I like that.

Jesse

College football only exists in the east

Whatever happened to the statements, "a win is a win," or "it doesn't matter how you win, just as long as you win." Apparently these don't apply to college football. I am tired of all this talk about power conferences, and weaker conferences. Teams play each, and they win or they lose. Who cares how much they win by?! That shouldn't even matter, unless you are the #1 ranked team and you come to cedar city to play me and you only beat me because you got a safety because i don't have an offensive line, well, because there is only one of me. Then you should drop off the polls. Now that i have vented (in my earlier blog) i feel better. Here are five things i have learned through two weeks of college football: 1-Tim Tebow is still the most overrated player in college sports. Everything this guy does they think is the greatest thing ever. If he throws the ball over his receivers head they say "oh what a smart play, he was putting where only his receiver could get it." If he is about to get sacked and scrambles for five yards they freak out and say "what an athlete, his field iq is so remarkable," like any other qb that was about to get sacked isn't going to run for their life? I imagine if he raped a girl they would say "what a great girl he picked though, did you see how cute she is? Man he sure knows how to pick 'em." 2-Ohio st. once again is retardedly overrated. Just refer back to the past two championship games, and heck, the basketball one too. I will refuse to watch anymore football if they put them back in the title game. 3- Any team in the "power conferences" could play all 1aa schools and they would still be the toast of the town. Yes,georgia, you haven't played a real team yet. BYU only played northern iowa because nevada backed out, so shut up about that. 4-BYU will never make it to a bcs game. It will be close at the end of the year, but they will give somebody else the bid because they "should have lost to washington." Which brings me to my fifth point. 5-If you are going to narrowly win, you may as well lose. Seriously, its going to be the same result in the polls. Everybody is looking at byu like they lost and saying they should have. Whatever, they blocked the freaking kick and they deserve credit for that! Plus, the pat would have only tied the game. There would have still been overtime. But the right call was made and the team that made enough plays to win won. Only in college football are you punished for barely winning or not playing at all. That to me is so screwed up.

Rise and shout the Cougars are out!!!

This post has two purposes. 1-To talk about how awesome cougar football is, and the second to face the reality of cougar football. So if you don't want to face the reality, or the reality the way that i perceive it, then don't read paragraph two. But first, i am so glad to hear the head official dude of the pac-10 conference defending the unsportsmanlike conduct call at the end of the game. IT WAS THE RIGHT CALL!!! So all you anti-byu fans out there can quit crying about it. It is stated clearly in the rule book that if a player throws the ball into the air, you (as an official) basically have no choice but to throw the flag. And all the officials were told before the season started to crack down on celebrations. It was the right call. Plain and simple. BYU football rocks my world. It is easily the best five months of the year. However, they do have many problems that they need to fix if they want to continue on their quest for perfection, or that quest will end this saturday. I love going in a rush to applebee's two weeks in a row to see the final minutes of the game. I love it. But i believe the biggest fans are the harshest critics, and i have quite a bit to say. I love them. BYU is the best kick blocking team in the nation. I love mr. Jan Jorgensen. You may want to stop reading at that point or you may accuse me of cougar heresy and never look at me the same.
Having said how much i love them, Are you kidding me?! It came down to that to beat a lousy washington team! Wake up linebackers and Db's. Here's a clue, Locker is going to run the ball! The guy couldn't throw the ball into the ocean so you think they are going to rely on his arm?! I don't think so. Ridiculous that it came down to a blocked pat (awesome, but ridiculous.) This is where the heresy comes in. I hope i am wrong, and i never in a million years thought i would say this, but unless they fix their defense, their whole season will be for nothing because they will lose to utah. There i said it. Did anybody else see how freaking wide open all of washington's receivers were on that final drive. If locker could throw a ball the outcome might not have been so favorable, and it won't be against utah. Utah is looking good, and all they have to do is watch the washington tape and they already have their gameplan. Do an even mix of qb draws and deep balls and BYU won't be able to stop them. With how absolutely crappy our defense looks, Brian Johnson is going to throw for 400 yards and rush for 100. That's not even counting the braided hippie boy they have running the ball too. That also goes with our other major problem. Can somebody please hold on to the freaking football?! We can't continue to do that (especially this weekend and against utah) and expect to win. I hate the attitude BYU is playing with. I always wanted them to have attitude because it helps, but they are playing with complete overconfidence. They are playing like they can't be beat no matter how they play. And yes, you could argue that's a good thing, but you have to have in your head that you still have to outplay the other team. They come off a little arrogant to me and i think they need to check that or ucla will for them. I feel better. I love my cougar football and i couldn't live without it. I almost jumped out of my applebee's booth when they blocked that pat. I had ribs all over my hands and face, so i would have looked very silly, but who cares when you are rooting for the cougars. I love them, i do.

It's True :(

Check it out:

http://movieblog.ugo.com/index.php/movieblog/more/sam_tobey_back_for_spider_man_4and_5/

Free Write

I haven't just written about what's going on for awhile. Here goes. Justin and I are going to school, and kind of sick of it already. I'm taking Major Authors: Dickens, American Literature, Intro to Visual Arts, Beginning Drawing, and Intermediate Fiction Writing. By the way, why do the professors here at SUU feel like they have to babysit their students? Each of my classes have their own weird little attendance policies, which blows my mind. One of my classes says that if you come in late or leave a little early, that equals 1/3 of an absence. If you have more than 3 absences, your entire grade gets dropped one letter grade. How do they come up with this stuff?

Oh, that reminds me of something else that totally blows my mind. Yes, Nic, Logan drivers are the worst, but Cedar City drivers are right there with them. Justin and I were talking about this the other day and he came to the interesting conclusion that Logan drivers are just stupid, they don't know what they're doing, whereas Cedar City drivers and just bad, meaning they know what they're supposed to do and just don't do it. The biggest thing that I cannot fathom is how Cedar City drivers don't pull over for ambulences. I know, what?!?! It's true. Within a week, I saw it happen twice. An ambulance is coming, I pull over to the side of the road, and people that were behind me actually pass me and keep on driving...I don't get it. I. don't. get. it. Yes, you getting to Wal-Mart 5 seconds earlier than you would if you had to pull over IS more important than somebody's LIFE.

But back to school, Justin seems to like these classes much more than last semester. He's taking Child Development, Intro to Criminal Justice, Intermediate Writing, Humanities, and Forensic Science. We never feel like going to school, or doing homework for that matter, and I think it's much harder to stay focused on those things when you're married. Especially when you're newly married, and both working at opposite times, and going to school at opposite times. Meaning, whatever "free" time you have, you want to spend together, canoodling on the couch, watching movies, chatting it up, or some other stuff. You don't want to be reading The Old Curiosity Shop, or Mary Rowlandson's captivity narrative, no matter how interesting they are. This is also why my screenplay isn't completely finished already. I have it all worked out, just not written out. And all because I want to see my husband once in awhile.

Oh my gosh, I just heard someone talking about ANOTHER Spiderman movie. ...is this true?? If anyone knows if this is true, please let me know. Remember how I said the LAST thing Hollywood needs is another movie about Spiderman? I have no more words on the subject.

So, there's the random stuff that I'm thinking about at the moment. Oh, except one more thing. In all my english classes, there is this group of really snotty girls present. They are the same girls, give or take a few, and they think they know it all, and they think they are very clever. Both of these are incorrect. I just found out that they all work in the Writing Lab in the English Building and all of the sudden, it made sense. This brings me to my point. I don't understand why people think they have to act superior to others, or react abrasively to new ideas. Is it a defense mechanism, or do they really think they're entitled to act this way? I have self-confidence, but I don't presume to think that I'm better than everyone else, or that my opinions are the only right ones. The thing I love about literature is that everyone can look at it a different way and come to a different conclusion. Discussion classes used to be about sharing personal and new insight. If anyone has any insight on this topic, please let me know.

Jesse Writes the Following:

I've been thinking about how sometimes writers will put the first chapter of their book up on their website, or put the first chapter of a sequel at the end of the book before it, you know, just to get some reactions from people. So, after much inner debate on my part, here is the link to the first scene of my superhero spoof screenplay:

http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dctxt6q5_11hh5m55cb

Enjoy! And please comment like crazy, I can take all kinds of criticism.

Movie Crazy

I don't know if you've noticed any of the changes on our sidebar, but I would invite everyone to pay attention to the "Movies We've Watched This Month!" section. We thought it would be fun/funny to see just how movie-crazed we've become. Justin getting unlimited free rentals at his job has just further fueled our obsession. I'm sure this section will soon turn into "Movies We've Watched This Year!" and then we can start the process of calculating just how much time we spend watching movies. It could get scary, folks.

Yea!

Guess what? I am so excited. Justin is getting me a brand new Dell laptop! Oh how I love this man! Now I can play on the internet during class!

What Did We Do Over The Weekend??

We made a sweet, awesome FORT.