just one more time and then back to my general health

okay, so i know sarah shares the same gambling problem that i have so i don't have to ask.

the mcdonald's monopoly game ends this upcoming monday, and i am still missing boardwalk or golden ave (the most prized and least available pieces). i have been eating horribly for a little while now. not like 2 mcdonald's meals a day or anything. just 2 a week, which is still bad i think. i even go for the meal that has the most pieces availble--large fries, large drink, ginormous gut-buster sandwich.

so my point is: i know i won't win anything but a stupid mcflurry, but if anyone wants to share pieces with me to win some cash...let me know.

i need: pennsylvania ave., ventnor ave., tennessee ave., vermont ave.

chances are that you all need the same ones. maybe i should just get a large orange drink every day until the game is over...

A Few Thoughts on The Shining And Some Shining Related Business

Well it's been a while since I blogged but I've been pretty busy studying for the GMAT, hanging out with the wife and baby, and now i actually have work to do at work, so I don't have the browsing time that I used to.

Anyway,

A couple weeks ago Amanda and I watched The Shining. If you haven't seen it you should. *WARNING* There is a nude woman in the film, it's rated R, and its pretty damn creepy, but one of the best horror films ever made. I'm pretty sure it's Stanley Kubrik's best film (The director). 2001 A Space Odyssey was rather boring and I could never bring myself to watch A Clockwork Orange. Dr. Strangelove was pretty funny; "There's no fighting in the war room!" Man that line kills me. Full Metal Jacket might compete for best Kubrick film, but I'm going to stick with The Shining.

Kubrik mastered the art of using composed music to highlight scenes and create emotional tension long before P.T. Anderson was around, and The Shining is no exception. From Danny's pre-cognitive visions to the loneliness and desolation of the Overlook Hotel, the music enhances the overwhelming tension from beginning to end.

Kubrik's artistic vision coupled with phenomonal acting job by Jack Nicholson and the other actors created a movie that will go down in history as equal to any Hitchcock film. This leads me to my next point. The film is based on a Stephen King novel. As good as the film is, the novel is better.

Now there are lot of movies where I think the novel is better which makes me dislike the film, and in more rare circumstances a film that I like more than the book which makes me dislike the book more. However, I independently love both the book and the film. If either existed without the other, each can stand on it's own. But since they co-exist, the novel is better but mostly because it gives more insight the demise of Jack Torrence (The main character).

Now for those of you who have seen the film, and not read the book here is a little comparison. In the film you get the feeling that Jack (the character) is kind a prick from the very beginning. He seems a little short, he's only been on the wagon for 8 months, you feel like he could snap at any time, and it seems like he loves his family, but I was never really sure. So watching him sink further and further into himself as the Overlook takes over his psyche, you think...yeah I could see that coming. Bummer, but not too unexpected.

In the book, Jack Torrance is a much more likable character. They have fallen on hard times, he has been on the wagon for about 15 months, and he really does love his family. He is fighting for them and cares deeply for them. You are rooting for they guy. So to watch (I guess read is more appropriate) Jack fall slowly, ever so slowly into the catechism of the monster that is the Overlook is heartbreaking and gut wrenching. Especially when you can see how much Danny loves his father, and those feelings are reciprocated.

That is one of the many differences...

and...


*SPOILER ALERT***SPOILER ALERT**

Hallorann the cook lives in the book.


*SPOLIER DONE**SPOILER DONE*



Next to Shawshank Redemption, I think it might be the best movie adapted from a Stephen King novel. I don't know how many of you are fans of Stephen King, but I think he might be one of the best writers on the planet. I guess he must be fairly popular since you can buy a Stephen King novel almost anywhere and there have been a lot movies made based on his books. Nevertheless, I bet a lot of you dismiss his writing ability out of hand based on his popularity. I did that for a long time. I have a few theories on that.

1. There have been like a million movies based on Stephen King novels, and only a few, and by a few I mean maybe 3, are very good.

Ok. I think I might have been wrong. There are least 4 really good movies based On Stephen King novels.

1. Shawshank Redemption
2. The Shining
3. Stand By Me
4. Misery

Anyway my point is that since the majority of the movies based on his stories are not particularly good, people may think that he is not a good writer. As Dwight from the office might say. FALSE!

2. His popularity. As a society we tend to dismiss things that are popular as only popular because silly, stupid, or pop culture wannabe's like it. In most cases I would agree. (See N SYNC, Paris Hilton, The Hills, etc....etc....anything on MTV...everything except Best Week Ever on VH1).
But Stephen King really is an excellent writer, and one of my favorite author's. I will try to explain why...here it goes.

The Shining is a fantastic novel. The backgrounds of each character are interesting, compelling, and lead you to stand in line to root for them. You care about them and want them to succeed. The story is original. I don't have a good enough vocabulary or imagination to make a better description. If someone is a good writer, they just are. For example I really like Vince Flynn novels. Basically a spy novel that has featured the same character since the beginning. The books are entertaining, but Vince Flynn is not that good of a writer. He would be in the category of wildly popular, but not super talented. Stephen King's fame is deserved.

To further my argument, the character Danny in the novel has a gift called the shinning. Its part pre-cognitive part telepathic. That gift shows up on other characters in Stephen King's novels. In fact, almost all of his novels revolve around his Dark Tower series. The Dark Tower series may be one of the best series ever written. To me it rivals J.R. Tolkien and I think that I like it more than Tolkien s series.

I was sad after I read the last book of the dark tower series. I was fully engrossed in the world Stephen King created and a small part of me wished it were real. Almost every other book King has written shows up in that series is some way or another; A character or a gift, and it all ties together yet each book can stand on its own. If that doesn't prove how capable a writer he is, i don't know what will.

man, i'm a jerk

i just watched the guys that come to pick up recycling sort out all my stuff into the truck...in the freezing rain.

geez, i'm a jerk.

i sort of forgot that i was supposed to be doing that all along...

at least i recycle, right?

already a little person

these pictures are a little weird, but i figured i shouldn't show off how cute my baby is all the time and show her weird-face side.

we started feeding her rice cereal every night, so that she could get used to eating solids and as a supplement (since i don't do night feedings anymore). did i mention she still has not taken a bottle yet? yeah. she is stubborn, and i grew tired of the "fighting." i let her play with a bottle every once in a while, so i hope she will one day think it is fun to drink out of one. if not, it's off to sippy cups we go.



this is her sitting on her own on the couch. not amazing, i know. but i think she looks totally hilarious. she's getting close to doing this on her own without support, but she still keels over. that's funny too. oh man, last night...i found her sleep crawling. how do you capture that on film without waking her up?

just in time for halloween

i remember reading in the pregnancy books that one's hair can change during pregnancy or after. i didn't think it would happen to me, but it did.

my hair is coming in curly. yes, people. curly. BUT...it's not all over my head. there is a very distinctive spot on my head where my hair decides to part that it is coming in curly. AND that is the only spot. the rest of my hair is the same ol' straight asian hair. **note: i've always wanted curly hair, because that's what you do. you always want what you can't have naturally. but i never signed up for this.

is it awesome? right now, no. the hair looks like a bad 80s crimp job or crazy halloween witch hair (hence the title of this post).

and, no. i don't want to show you yet. i just bought a cheap flat iron to see what i can do about this. in the meantime, i will conjure up the courage to take a picture of it and show you my hair tragedy.

guess who has 2 thumbs and sleeps in her crib now?

this girl!

these are so addicting

recently, i decided to try out watching veronica mars. i'd heard good things from a couple of people (yes, only girls), and i had time to kill while i nursed izzy. what else am i going to do when i can't move or use my hands?

anyway, this series rocks. pete was skeptical, but he ended up liking it too. it's funny and interesting, and the characters are all really cool. especially kristin bell (veronica mars) who btw is on heroes now. there's a lot of hilarious quips and references to pop culture stuff--like battlestar galactica and the big lebowski, to name the more popular quoted things on the show. i even saw a girl i knew from my freshman dorm days at byu in one of the episodes.

so if you are lost for a new series to watch in your netflix queue, check it out. you won't be let down.



i've brought up this guy before too, but i was just noticing the other day that there is a giant life-size domo hanging by the front doors of all the targets. remembering my merchandising days at borders, i recalled that we usually threw away all marketing materials. or if they were cool enough, we took them home ourselves or gave them away. anyway, i want one, and i asked the guest services girl. she was very informed, mind you. she told me that they do not sell, give away, or throw away old marketing materials. they send them back to the company that they purchased them from. bugger! i think i am going to have to call in a favor to someone from church that works at target.

teaching english abroad

so pete is applying to mba school soon, but he and i are feeling the travel bug too. we're interested in teaching english abroad, but we're undecided on where we want to go. we have to make enough money to survive there with a baby, plus be able to pay for stuff here still (house stuff). does anyone have any good connections abroad?

*i'd really like to go to japan to rekindle my language skills, but we are open to anything. let us know.

sleep training

so after a couple of months of endless crying and zombie-like crankyheads, pete and i ended putting izzy in our bed at night to sleep. it was something i told myself and other people (to my shameful dismay) that i would never do, but it became a survivalist method. we just couldn't get her to sleep anywhere but next to me.

anyway, she is now 5 months old and getting closer to a safe age where she can go through the night without a night feeding. i want to try some sleep training with her, so we all can get regular sleep in our own beds. although i love having her next to me, i miss cuddling with pete and i sometimes feel like i can never get deep sleep.

a bunch of parents from church recommended "healthy sleep habits, happy child." they all say it was a lifesaver for them. what i've read so far intrigues me, and i think i will attempt it within this next month. izzy does take a midmorning nap every day that lasts at least 1 hour. once in a blue moon, she takes a second nap. these naps always are in her swing, unfortunately, because she got used to the swinging motion i guess. i will have to break her of that too.

i do have some questions for any bloggers out there who have used dr. weissbluth's methods.

*how long did it take to get your kid to sleep thru the night? or what age were they when they slept thru the night? (i know all kids are different. i'm just curious.)

*did your kid have some mobile capabilities when you tried the sleep training? izzy can roll from her back to her stomach now, so i worry about the whole leaving her be thru the night thing. i'm trying to hash it over in my head how i will keep her from doing this in her rage from not being able to sleep next to me at night.

alright. i am out.

best invention ever

for a long time, our cat afi (yes, like the band. it's a really terrible joke that went on too long.) has shed monster globs of hair all over our house(s). each day would seem like a cancer cat was moping around and dropping precious bits of herself for us to remember her by.

but...i bought a genius tool this past week! FURMINATOR! that's what it's called, and it's amazing. someone recommended it to me when i told them i didn't want to pay someone to shave her all the time or comb her out. it costs $60 every couple of months. highway robbery, y' know?!

we got our furminator in the mail, and it combs the living daylights out of that cat. oh man, does she love it too.

so if you have a mini ewok/owl cat/dog walking around your place making it look like you just laid down animal carpet, get the furminator. it's worth it. hasta la vista, kit-ty cat!