Last night we had the first rehearsal of the fire scene for Theatre Guild of Rockingham County's production of The Best Christmas Pageant Ever and it was a scream! "Well-choreographed chaos" is the best way to put it. And lo and behold, as a Fireman I get to be right in the center of it all! Some terrific hijinks ensue in just a minute or two of performance time and we more or less got it all nailed down pat last night. Well, 'cept for doing...
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Second episode of ABC's new V just aired
I'm still enjoying this re-imagined V (slam here for my review of the pilot episode). ABC is doing a fine job of updating the concepts of the original. However, I'm more than a little compelled to say that this show needs to ratchet up the intensity. Tonight's episode "There is No Normal Anymore" picked up right after the end of last week's premiere, and then hit a plodding stride.Maybe this is still just "setup" for a bigger payoff later. I...
Worst recent Supreme Court decision now wasted: Pfizer abandons New London
Few things convinced me that this country has gone completely off the rails more than did Kelo v. City of New London: the horrendous decision by the Supreme Court in 2005.To recap: the city of New London, Connecticut set about in the late Nineties to use eminent domain to seize the land of private homeowners... so that it could lure big companies like pharmaceutical giant Pfizer to the area and sell them the same property! It was the very worst...
Happy 40th birthday SESAME STREET!
"You've never seen a street like Sesame Street. Everything happens here. You're gonna love it."-- Gordon (played by Matt Robinson)the first words spoken on the first episode of Sesame StreetNovember 10th, 1969Forty years ago today a new kind of television burst onto the scene. It was an educational program, but one that eschewed dour and boring lessons. Instead, fast-paced...
Monday, November 09, 2009
Homeland Security is now officially worse than useless
Malik Nadal Hasan, the U.S. Army major who massacred thirteen people and injured more than forty others at Fort Hood in Texas last week, made numerous attempts to contact members of the terrorist group Al-Qaeda by e-mail......and the FBI and other U.S. government intelligence agencies knew all about it but did nothing! Their general consensus was that Hasan's activity wasn't important enough to investigate.So let's ask the obvious question: WHAT...
We saw STAR WARS: IN CONCERT in Charlotte this past weekend!
The Force was with us on Saturday night! Along with lifelong friends Chad Austin and Eric Wilson, I got to see Star Wars: In Concert when it came to Charlotte.Chad and I hooked up in Burlington, and then high-tailed it down I-85 to rendezvous with Eric at his impregnable fortress. We wasted a few hours at Concord Mills Mall (which according to Eric is now the most visited...
Johnny Robertson DOESN'T know the Bible... again!
I must confess: it's entered my mind that the more local cult leader Johnny Robertson harasses others and tries to destroy lives and congregations, the more opportunity he's providing for others to seriously present what the Bible really says about Christ and salvation because of His grace.There was much to observe from last night's What Does the Bible Say? on WGSR. For openers,...
The Berlin Wall came tumbling down twenty years ago today
It was built by the East German government in 1961.It completely encircled what was then West Berlin.It was one of the most tangible symbols of the Cold War.It was declared by communists throughout the world that the wall would last forever.I know of no better additional commentary that can possibly be made besides this picture of the chunk of the Berlin Wall that I have owned...
Adult cells can be "reset" to form stem cells
Stem cells hold great promise for medical research, but their use are very controversial because of their primary source: cell lines cultivated from fetal tissue.But now there may be another route opening up. Researchers have discovered a method for "reprogramming" adult differentiated cells into a condition very much like stem cells. The team, working at Whitehead Institute...
"Health care reform" bill passes in House, BUT...
...it MIGHT not have enough votes to pass in the Senate.All the same, it wouldn't surprise me in the least if it wound up clearing through there as well. And I have never been more supremely disappointed in the House of Representatives than this past weekend for passing this.These are supposed to be men and women of sound mind, great wisdom and far-reaching vision. With very little exception, they are short-sighted and sold out on principle utterly.Leadership...
Keeping an eye on Hurricane Ida
Hurricanes are horribly fascinating in my mind (maybe too fascinating, as anyone who followed this blog prior to and following Katrina will probably attest). They're right up there with tornadoes and freak blizzards on my list of favorite meteorological events. And even though each of those things devastates property and can rack up a priceless loss in human life, hurricanes...
Cellphones adapted into microscopes (Is there an app for that?)
Using software he developed and about $10 of standard off-the-shelf parts, a solid-thinkin' dude named Aydogan Ozcan has converted camera-equipped cellphones into rather powerful microscopes.When set up with the package, a cellphone like the Samsung model in the photo can image blood cells and bacteria. The phones can then send the data over a wireless network or be connected...
Sunday, November 08, 2009
Comic books found to increase childhood literacy
Comic books and graphic novels - once derided by "experts" as being the bane of adolescence and moral society in general - are now receiving praise for encouraging a love of reading while also greatly increasing the range of vocabulary in children.According to a new study published in the journal School Library Monthly, comic books are just another form of literature that demands the same amount of reading comprehension as traditional novels or any...
Saturday, November 07, 2009
Nancy Pelosi attempting to bring back debtors prisons!
Well, when the Speaker of the House is pushing "health care reform" that obligates people to purchase $15,000 of medical insurance or GO TO JAIL FOR FIVE YEARS, what the hell else are we supposed to call it?Click here to read the report from Representative Dave Camp of the House Ways and Means Committee.The House vote on this... thing... may come as early as today.If this...
If you haven't stopped by Sci-Fi Genre in Durham lately...
...then you really oughtta should check them out anew. I first wrote about this place a few months ago. Well, they're at the same location - 3215 Old Chapel Hill Road in Durham, North Carolina - but since then the store has expanded in size! There's now about twice the space as before, all of it devoted to more games, comic books, action figures and other collectibles....
Friday, November 06, 2009
Alliterative observation
The prostitution of persona in the pursuit of power is the perishing of progre...
Thursday, November 05, 2009
A prayer from the heart
Dear Lord,I know that it rains on the just and the unjust alike.I'm trying hard not to doubt Your will, and Your timing.Lord, all I'm asking is that You please let it fall not so hard for awhile on really good people who are going through a very hard time right now.(And for all of you reading this blog, I'd really appreciate it if y'all would keep the McCollum and Webster families in your thoughts and prayers.)The peace of Christ surpasses all understanding....
