Time:	10:42 am.
Mood:	amused.

I saw The Forbidden Kingdom last night at Sunset Place with Andy and Adam.

Very silly, but thoroughly enjoyable. The plot was pretty thin, following a magic staff (MacGuffin?) through time as it changes hands from Immortal to mortal and back again. Most of the storyline is convoluted--having borrowed here and there from ancient Chinese myth, pulp stories, and 20th century kung fu movies--but is serviceable enough in tying together the fight scenes and comic interludes. The protagonist wasn't terribly interesting but he was watchable as a vague everyman/geek caught in the middle of epic battles between crazy wushu masters using "qi magic". Dialogue was strained most of the time, with occasional witty lines. The action sequences made up for any failings, though.

I could watch a whole movie of just Jet Li playing the Monkey King. His screen time in that role was far too brief.

Comments: Add Your Own.

Subject:	NationStates
Time:	12:40 pm.
Mood:	blah.
Music:	Sasha Dith - Russian Girls.

Any of you guys heard of this before?

http://www.nationstates.net

NationStates is a free nation simulation game. Build a nation and run it according to your own warped political ideals. Create a Utopian paradise for society's less fortunate or a totalitarian corporate police state. Care for your people or deliberately oppress them. Join the United Nations or remain a rogue state. It's really up to you.

Haven't played it, but it looks interesting. Bet Sansone would get a kick out of it.

Comments: Read 4 or Add Your Own.

Subject:	This is for fighting, this is for fun
Time:	3:37 pm.
Mood:	cheerful.

Brian and Fabio and I went to the Trail Glades shooting range yesterday. I'd never gone trap shooting before, so it was a fun new experience.

When I was much younger (10-13 years ago) my dad and I used to go to the range to shoot handguns at still targets. It was nice to spend time out there with my dad, but I found the actual shooting kind of dull and repetitive--plus I had pretty terrible aim.

I guess years of video games (paired with using a gun that has a much wider spread of fire) suited me well. Brian used his dad's gorgeous Beretta (which is very accurate because it has a narrow spray) to shoot the clay pigeons, while I used his police riot shotgun. Fabio didn't want to shoot; he said he wants to start on stationary targets before trying the moving ones.

We shot for two rounds, each of which is broken into five segments. A line of five shooters stand at their marks, with each shouting "pull" before taking a shot at the launched clay pigeon. You get one shot per clay pigeon and each person shoots in sequence. After each shooter has had five shots from their mark, the entire lineup rotates. This is done four times, ensuring that everybody shoots a total of twenty-five shells, with five shots from each position.

I was unsure how to properly do it the first round, so the man who oversaw our section of the gun range (Mike) gave me pointers. He had known Brian's father for a long time and seemed especially attentive to me and Brian, which meant that he was telling us every single thing that we needed to fix.

I was somewhat nervous the first round and kept lifting my head, hesitating, moving my body, etc., leading me to hit only five of the twenty-five clay pigeons. I figured 20% wasn't a bad hit ratio for my first time, so I kept as much of Mike's advice as I could in my head and tried to do it properly the second round. It paid off; I hit nineteen out of twenty-five targets the second round.

Though I can't imagine using a shotgun to hit a living thing (unless you count zombies) and am not interested in hunting, shooting clay pigeons at the range was a bit of fun in which I'd gladly participate again. I think I'll be joining Brian the next time he ventures out to the range.

Comments: Read 7 or Add Your Own.

Subject:	They really should know better.
Time:	3:23 pm.
Mood:	annoyed.

Every morning, while driving to work on US-1, I pass an old Miami Subs that is being converted into a U.S. Century Bank. There is a sign out front advertising the new bank with this cryptic slogan:

"Ask about our great
Home Equity Line of Credit?"

I cannot fathom why they felt the need to place the slogan in quotation marks or to end the statement with a question mark. Are they as confused as I am that somebody would state a declarative as an interrogative and therefore placing it in quotes to show attribution instead of claiming the statement originated with them? Or are the authors of the sign just retarded?

Comments: Read 4 or Add Your Own.

Subject:	You didn't really think Harry was gonna die, did you?
Time:	3:11 pm.
Mood:	happy.

I read the final Harry Potter book over the course of Saturday and Sunday. It was by far the darkest, bloodiest book of the series. Dunno where the "two characters die in the new book!" rumor came from; a few secondary characters died in the first half, but by the time the final battle commenced, J.K. Rowling was killing off secondary characters left and right.

Don't want to give any more spoilers (since plenty of people intend to read the book and haven't yet), but I think the book can be summarized pretty well by this quote from the great Oscar Wilde:

The good ended happily, and the bad unhappily. That is what Fiction means.

Comments: Read 2 or Add Your Own.

Subject:	Christ, this better not start a stream of bear/otter jokes.
Time:	10:58 am.
Mood:	amused.

Ganked from

babayada:

Your Score: The Otter

Here's your results! Your spirit animal has a Nobility ranking of 11 out of 18.

Your spirit animal is the otter. Playful, curious and fun animals, they are truly the start of what can be considered a noble creature. Otters are good at figuring things out, and make great friends. You are lucky to have one as a spirit animal. Otters are fairly rare as spirit animals.

***Wondering how this animal was chosen for you? These questions were carefully thought out to see how important you hold certain virtues such as: humanism, self-knowledge, rationalism, the love of freedom and other somewhat Hellenic ideals. Some of the questions were very subtle. Your score was then matched with an animal of corresponding nobility. However, you shouldn't think this was a right/wrong sort of test, but more of an idealistic values test. It's ok to not hold these values, you'll just get an animal spirit of lower stature if you do!***

Link: The What is Your Spirit Animal Test written by FindingEros on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test

When I changed a couple of answers, I got The Wolf instead.

Comments: Read 5 or Add Your Own.

Subject:	Yet Another Navel-Gazing Meme
Time:	3:00 pm.
Mood:	calm.
Music:	Dungeon Family - Crooked Booty.

Ganked from my cousin

eevieivy:

My Personality


Neuroticism	23
Extraversion	61
Openness To Experience	70
Agreeableness	43
Conscientiousness	70

You are neither a subdued loner nor a jovial chatterbox. You enjoy time with others but also time alone. You are generally calm and composed, reacting moderately well to situations that most people would describe as stressful. Novelty, variety, and change spice up your life and make you a curious, imaginative, and creative person. You have some concern with others' needs, and are generally pleasant, sympathetic, and cooperative. You set clear goals and pursue them with determination. People regard you as reliable and hard-working.

Test Yourself Compare Yourself View Full Report

Our range of Ugg Boots

Comments: Read 2 or Add Your Own.

Subject:	But I felt it, I swear...
Time:	4:24 pm.
Mood:	hot.
Music:	Psychic TV - Good Vibrations.

This USA Today article--unlike the majority of that publication's content--is actually relevant to me. While most of USA Today is fluff (and this article, arguably, still falls in that category), I've noticed "phantom vibrations" ever since I first got a cellphone a couple of years ago. It's nice to see I'm not alone here.

Also, summer is definitely here. Miami is sweltering as ever. Good thing we have plenty of rain to flood the streets (and knock out the power at my house) when the day star isn't trying to blister the skin off of our bodies.

Comments: Add Your Own.

Subject:	I'm a Kiwi, I guess.
Time:	2:10 pm.
Mood:	hungry.
Music:	TMBG - The Spiralling Shape.

You Belong in New Zealand

Good on ya, mate
You're the best looking one of the bunch
Though you're often forgotten...
You're quite proud of who you are

What English Speaking Country Are You?

Not a terribly well-written meme; too few questions to determine the outcome, really. I went back, changed one answer, and ended up with England. Changed one more answer and I became America.

Comments: Read 6 or Add Your Own.

Subject:	"Metrobus plows into Miami church"
Time:	10:12 am.
Mood:	awake.
Music:	Ministry - Stigmata.

From today's online edition of The Miami Herald:

The pastor of a Miami church made a startling discovery when he arrived at work Wednesday morning: a Miami-Dade Metrobus had plowed into the building.

A Metrobus and a white pickup truck collided at Southwest Eighth Street and 12th Avenue about 4:40 a.m. Wednesday, according to Segundo Fallat, transit supervisor for Miami-Dade Transit.

The bus, which was being driven by a woman and contained no passengers, then veered into Iglesia del Dios Vivo la Luz del Mundo, ramming through a concrete wall and into the church. The front of the 40,000-pound bus ended up completely inside the church, which was empty at the time.

The bus driver was taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital, the pickup driver to Mercy Hospital.

The bus has since been towed away, but not before surprised parishioners showed up for the 5 a.m. service.

After reading this, I wish I'd had two or three digital video cameras set up around that area this morning. It would be awesome to have footage of this accident from different angles; I don't know where I'd use it yet, but it would make great stock footage. And considering that only property was damaged--no human deaths at all--one could enjoy the spectacle with a clean conscience.

Comments: Add Your Own.

Subject:	Thanks, Adult Swim; we can ease our minds a bit.
Time:	11:24 am.
Mood:	optimistic.

Adult Swim adds shows, seventh night

Cartoon Network's Adult Swim is launching three series and a seventh late night of programming.

Two series -- "Fat Guy Stuck in Internet" and "Superjail" -- join the previously announced summer premiere "Lucy, Daughter of the Devil."

"Fat Guy," a live-action comedy about a computer programmer who finds himself inside the Internet and chased by a bounty hunter, will debut in the fall. "Superjail" is about the universe's most violent prison. It will premiere next year.

The seventh night will be added at 11 p.m. ET on Friday, July 6.

Picked up for additional seasons are "Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job," "Moral Orel" and "Assy McGee." Also returning are "Frisky Dingo," "Robot Chicken," "The Boondocks," "Metalocalypse," "The Venture Bros.," "Squidbillies," "Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law" and "Aqua Teen Hunger Force." "Aqua Teen" will have new episodes in the fall and a fifth season in 2008.

--Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

I'm just glad the internal changes after the Mooninite incident in Boston didn't ruin their line-up. I was afraid some of my favorite shows might end up cancelled, so this is quite reassuring.

Comments: Read 7 or Add Your Own.

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