56.1%

John Doyle asks the same question in the Globe today that I asked last week: what happened to The Shield?

.:.

One weird thing about this building: it’s incredibly dry. My skin is so dry that my knuckles are cracking and bleeding, and my face looks like I’ve just gone for a job through the Alkali salt flats. I guess it’s because I’m living in recycled air 24 hours a day, or because the towels are like #30 sandpaper.

.:.

I cannot believe how stupid this movie looks. Which means it’ll do great business at the box office.

24.3%

Day two: down. Just finished most of my “homework”. Will probably get something to eat, finish the rest, review some other stuff and maybe watch 24 before heading to the bar to see who’s out and about. No exercise tonight: it’s yoga and volleyball in the gym.

.:.

Have been having weird computer problems all day. Half the time my laptop can’t find an IP address on this network, but it only seems to be my laptop. The tech support guy thinks it might be a security policy that was pushed down last week and is causing some problems for me now. All I know is, it seems to come and go randomly, so…argh.

Potential bred

The Toronto star does a little metareporting today, listing the Canadian CDs that have scored 80 or better on Metacritic this year. No surprises, really.

.:.

Forgot to mention this last night when writing about the Habs-Leafs game. Darcy Tucker was dirty when he played for Montreal, but I think he now holds the unofficial title of dirtiest player in the NHL. The Leafs, as a whole, pretty much have the title locked up as a team as well — having cheap-shot hacks like Tie Domi and Luke Richardson on your team and whining about the refs after every game will do that — but Tucker may be the worst. Last night, as they were getting pounded, Tucker decided to throw an elbow at Alexei Kovalev and clipped him in the forehead. Kovalev isn’t a fighter by any means, but rather is the Canadiens’ most talented offensive player. He isn’t, however, small or week (unlike Mike Ribeiro, who Tucker had decided to jump earlier in the game) so two minutes later as he skated toward the corner — being lined up by Tucker for another hit — he skated into Tucker…elbow first.

I don’t normally like such plays, but the refs hadn’t called Tucker’s elbow attempt, and the little shit was determined to hurt somebody…so Kovalev did something about it. Tucker wasn’t hurt — he got up started punching Kovalev — so there was little harm done, but I honestly think thatbacked the Leafs down enough that the game didn’t spiral completely out of control. That loss practically eliminated them from the playoffs, and they seemed hell-bent on taking out the their frustration on the Canadiens.

.:.

I’m off to my course in about an hour. Posting will probably be sporadic, or at least limited mainly to whining about how the week is going. These courses are usually a little better in that you don’t work until midnight or 1 AM every night, and I haven’t seen my classmates in four months now, so I’m kind of looking forward to this one a bit. That said, by Tuesday I’ll be more than ready to come home. ๐Ÿ™‚

Everything. Everyone. Everywhere. Ends.

Busy day. Got to work around 7:30 and left around 7:00. I can’t really remember doing anything major today, just a pile of little things. Seems like that’s all I can get done anymore. I’m thinking about booking a small room for myself one afternoon every week…no email or phone, just a notepad and a pen and my brain.

Anyway, it was partly busy ’cause I’m away all next week. Course number…6, I think. A friend of mine from university is coming into town tomorrow, and I have about 10 other things on the go, so I have lots to do between now and Sunday morning.

.:.

I just pre-ordered the fifth season of Six Feet Under. Good thing Nellie has her Young Riders nostalgia to keep her occupied, otherwise I don’t think she could keep her mitts off the SFU discs until I get home.

.:.

I’ve been pretty silent on music & movies lately. This is what I’ve bought in the last month or so:

  • Living Things . Ahead Of The Lions
  • Cat Power . The Greatest
  • Rogue Wave . Descended Like Vultures
  • Trespassers William . Having
  • Mogwai . Mr. Beast
  • Neko Case . Fox Confessor Brings The Flood

I also have new albums from Ben Harper, Gomez, the Fiery Furnaces and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs in my ‘inbox’ waiting to be reviewed. The new ones from Clearlake, Magneta Lane, Rainer Maria and Beth Orton are on my wishlist.

As far as movies that are still out in Toronto that I want to see:

  • Ask The Dust
  • Beowulf & Grendel
  • Cache
  • Inside Man
  • Match Point
  • Tristram Shandy: A Cock And Bull Story
  • V For Vendetta
  • Why We Fight

The movies coming up this spring/summer that I really want to see: American Dreamz, Flight 93 and X-Men 3.

Holy crapinaw!

After years and years and years of waiting, Nellie’s wishes have finally been answered. Season one of The Young Riders has been released on DVD. I’m not kidding. She was squealing with joy as she opened the packaging.

.:.

I’m watching the Leafs and Canadiens play on TSN. Even though the game’s in Montreal and TSN’s usually a fairly impartial network, it’s like watching the game in a Toronto bar ’cause Joe Bowen and Harry Neale are calling it.

.:.

Just ordered our festival pass for Hot Docs. By the time I get back from my course next wek the lineup should be announced. I love Hot Docs; dollar for dollar it’s the best festival value in the city.

Of Mice and Lem

Finally back at work today. Still not at 100%, but at least I no longer feel like patient zero.

.:.

CH (the local channel that picks up Global Television’s scraps) has pissed us off once again where The Shield is concerned. Nellie discovered that, with two episodes left in the season, they’d moved the show without announcing it. Good thing she noticed when she did; the finale is this Sunday (which I’ll miss ’cause I’ll be on course…gack!!), so we had to bittorrent the second-to-last episode. And maaaaaaaaaaan, is it gettin’ good. To take a show that good and add Forest Whitaker…it’s almost too much. I’m practically giddy thinking about the showdown that’s coming up. There’s not much on TV that can catch my interest like this.

Typhoid Danny

Had to stay home from work today. I’m coughing and sneezing so much that I’d just cause an outbreak, so I worked on my couch. I’m hoping to be ok enough tomorrow that I can a) go to the office without causing the black plague and b) play basketball, but I think that might be a stretch.

.:.

Nellie managed to locate episode 1 of the new Sopranos season last night, and she’s working on episode 2 right now, so we might be almost up to date. It’s been practically impossible to avoid news about the previous night’s episode (just as I’ve heard spoiler information about other shows, such as Six Feet Under…which finally comes out next Tuesday!) so maybe this way we can shorten danger period from months (’til they come out on DVD) to a day or two.

Hey Mr. Clean…you're dirty now too.

I watched two movies this weekend (somehow, in between all the basketball), both centered around music:

Lightning In A Bottle (imdb | rotten tomatoes) is a must-see if you like the blues. Antoine Fuqua filmed a pile of blues artists — some old, some new, some not blues artists at all but covering old songs — for one night at Radio City Music Hall. It was at the film festival way back when, so I put it on my zip list…then it arrived and sat by my TV for a month. I guess I just had to be in the right mood to watch it but I wish I’d gotten in the mood sooner…it was amazing! My favourites were Robert Cray and Shemekia Copeland doing “I Pity The Fool” and Solomon Burke doing…well, anything, even talking…but really it was all great. Plus watching David Johansen sing Howlin’ Wolf, and seeing Chuck D and Chris Thomas King freak out the old folks was entertaining.

Even if you don’t like the blues it’d be pretty hard to dislike this movie. And really…who doesn’t like the blues?

.:.

Greendale (imdb | rotten tomatoes) was a very different animal. Another film festival entry that we missed (seriously, I think we need to get the 30-pack), it was Neil Young’s vision of a story told through song in a fictional American town. All rookie actors (some of whom were members of his band) with no dialogue, but rather lip-synching along with Neil’s lyrics as the music plays over the scenes. Strong pro-environment, anti-war and anti-Bush overtones (and other popular lefty causes) permeate the whole film. It was very, very weird, and probably unwatchable for most people. I didn’t like it, but at least it was interesting.

.:.

As the West Wing winds down, I have some advice for Josh: Goddammit, man, next time you PICK UP THE KEY IMMEDIATELY!!!!!!

Ahem. Sorry.

Triomphant

We just had our second amazing meal in as many nights. Triomphe, a newish restaurant next door to our hotel, was reaaallllllly good. Check out what I had:

  • Baby spinach salas w/ bacon lardoons, tomato, candied walnuts, stilton cheese and sherry vinaigrette
  • Maple glazed pepper crusted venison red leg with caramelized pears, sweet potato puree and brussel sprouts & mashed potatoes drizzled with truffle oil
  • Bittersweet chocolate truffle cake served with fresh whipped cream, berries and pomegranate molasses
  • A bottle of Jink’s Creek Shiraz (shared with Nellie, of course)

We made it home just in time to watch the Daily Show, which is surreal. 5 hours ago we were watching this live. Weird.