On the National Geogaphic Channel, Expedition Week happens but once a year. To celebrate this we at Paints in the Point have decided to Live Blog the special Great White: Face to Face. Who knows, there may be some basketball references along with our classic Paints in the Point hilarity.

“SHAARK!!” – The Franchise

“Why do they need that huge finishing boat to protect them from these sharks?” – The Franchise

“The Champ is a master of the seas” – The Franchise, well we will see about that.

“Man they got big teeth” – The Champ

“Look how big that hook is!” – The Franchise

Look! its Ron Artest

29′ 30” 66O7E4D71894

22′ 11” 590D83WFXDXI

11′ 67” RJ0UCQ146SB1

8′ 80” M1Z3O44Q6QF1

9′ 90” ZKHPXNHVA91L

5′ 34” FO94CX7D97Y1 

The Ship’s crew reels in the Shark to tag it.

dulce et decorum est pro patria mori

ha, the guy on tv said “sex,” The Franchise giggles.

"Making the decision to have a child-it's momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body." Elizabeth Stone

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the Ivy Leaguer, our Graphic Designer, made us this Larry Bird effigy, unfortunately his basketball IQ is a little off.

 Below the Franchise describes his fishing trip:

Had a limited amount of time to fish this afternoon but I wanted another Red Drum to bring my season total to 25.  I ended up with two more for 26.  I also hooked and fought for a minute or so an absolutely hugh shark before he found a weak link(mono leader)!  Seeing over 7′ of twisting shark leave the water like a missile is truly jaw dropping!  If I had suspected a monster like that was still off the beach I probably would have put on the big multiplier not the smaller drum reel and a wire leader.  Ah well thats what I love about this sport and keeps me coming back for more.  Anyway the Reds were fantastic with the first going 45″ and approx 35Lbs and number 26 went 42″ and close to 30Lbs.    

Thanks Franchise.

“How can they tell if its male or female that fast?” – The Franchise

“They just know” -The Champ

The Champ and The Franchise watched how Sharks reproduce… informative.

The Shark has a feeding tube.

MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL Browns 0 Ravens 0

“Shaaaarrrrkssss!” – The Franchise

…this is what happens when The Champ and The Franchise eat sugar.

"you touched her what?" Big Red has a baby.

"It's a party in the USA!"

The Shark Special has ended. Below for our loyal readers is the entire transcript of “Free Willy”

“the mysteries continue but so do the clues”

There he is, at one o’clock!
            – Let’s get behind him! – We’ll cut him off!
            – Get him! – Out there, about     yards!
            – Clear! – I got it!
            Full throttle!
            Let it go! Let it go!
            More throttle! Keep it up!
            That’s it! That’s it!
            Lay it down! Keep it coming!
            Yeah, fish!
            Yeah, fish!
            Go on there!
            Yeah, baby!
            Yeah, fish!
            Go on in there!
            Pin it! Pin it!
            Close it in! Close it up!
            He won’t get away! Keep the others away.
            We got him!
            Close it up!
            Get him in the middle!
            Keep closing it up!
            Excuse me.
            My mom dropped me off and forgot my bus fare.
            Could I borrow some money?
            Thanks! Have a good day.
            – I got to get home. Lend me a buck? – Get out of here.
            Excuse me, lady.
            My friends and I spent our money at the museum.
            We have to take the ferry home. Can you help?
            I suppose.
            Few bucks.
            – Shoot! I’m hungry. – God, man! I need some food!
            Let’s go!
            Go, Jess!
            Hey, you get…! Come back here!
              Come on, guys!
              The first time I ever went there…
              …it was so bad.
              My mom left me, then went to Houston.
              I never saw her again.
              I don’t care. I hate her anyway.
              I could eat this every day.
              – Well, I bolted. – You bolted from Cooperton?
              – I did, bonehead! – Yeah, right.
              Shut up! We both did. What do you know?
              They watch you like you’ll stab their back.
              I waited till some foster-home losers took me. Then I slipped.
              – You ain’t as smart as us. – Eat it!
              I am.
              I want my own place, like an apartment.
              Right. You and me.
              We’ll meet someone.
              With my brains and your personality, we’ll be rich.
              Get out of here! Go!
              Let’s split up!
              – See you, guys. – All right. Bye!
              This way!
              Go!
              Go! Go, man!
              – Run, man! This way! – Come on! Come on!
              Go! Quick, quick, quick! Move!
              Down here!
              Here, shut it! Quick!
              Check it out, man.
              Look at this.
              Perry?
              What is that?
              Jesse! Cops! Run!
              There he is!
              Hold it, kid!
              He’s heading up the stairs!
              Hey, kid!
              Relax! Calm down.
              Breaking and entering, vandalism, resisting arrest.
              – Anything else I should know? – I robbed a few banks.
              I’m glad you were only out three days.
              Did you miss me, Dwight?
              Was Perry with you?
              Perry who?
              Don’t play.
              Don’t be a bonehead. I hate telephones…
              …and I spent    minutes talking…
              …to police and that adventure park, trying to keep you clean.
              We were lucky this time. I kept you out of court.
              You have to clean up the mess at Northwest Adventure Park.
              That is your probation. Any problem?
              – Why should I? – I don’t know why I fool with you.
              I’m working too much overtime with you.
              But you split out again, and I’m out of the picture.
              You’ll be with Youth Authority. Court supervised and controlled.
              They’ll put you in baby jail. A lockup in juvenile hall.
              Okay, look.
              Your placement is still on. The Greenwoods are okay.
              They don’t even care about this incident.
              What’s with them?
              I see. Since they want you in their home, something’s wrong with them.
              What do you think?
              On paper, you’re still young, so you get some chances.
              Not an infinite number of chances, but a few, son.
              You get it?
              You got any questions about any of this?
              You hear from my mom?
              You still want me to hear from her?
              I just want to know if she’s okay.
              Nobody’s heard from your mom in six years, Jesse.
              Anytime you’re ready, big guy.
              – How are you, Annie? – Good.
              It’s been a long day for both of us.
              There he is.
              Can I carry your stuff?
              Why don’t we go inside and wash up? And we’ll have dinner.
              We got a little paperwork here for you.
              There’s always paperwork.
              I just bought a new car. With the contracts, it came to    pages.
              Well, this is a lease. I ain’t buying yet.
              You interested in computers?
              – I learned last year and can teach you. – I’m not into it.
              That makes two of us.
              I wasn’t either.
              But then I decided that I wanted a second career as a journalist…
              …and so I’m taking the summer off to write.
              A couple of weeklies have taken my stories.
              – I haven’t earned anything yet. – Just dig right in.
              I met Dwight while doing a story on Cooperton.
              Dwight’s a jerk.
              What exactly are you into?
              I’m not into talking while I’m eating.
              Here’s your room.
              Ours is downstairs, but you’ve got the best view in the house.
              Go ahead. Open it.
              It’s a welcome gift.
              You can open it later, if you like.
              I bought you some things. Some clothes, some socks…
              …and there’s lots of blue. Dwight said you liked blue.
              Anyway, if you don’t like them, we can exchange them.
              We’ll go now. If you need us, we’re downstairs.
              Good night, Jesse.
              It’s great to have you here.
              That turn before the bridge? That’s   th Street.
              My garage is straight up from there.
              If you go six more blocks, you’ll be home. Think you can find it?
              Inside, look for the Aquatic Theater. Ask for Randolph.
              Great.
              Hey, mister!
              Where can I find Randolph?
              He lives in the cottage right by the water.
              Thanks.
              Hello?
              Randolph?
              What’s this?
              Well…
              …the artist returns.
              Welcome back.
              We’ve all become admirers of your work here…
              …but all good things must come to an end.
              Time to let your creativity flow backwards.
              You know what to do with all this?
              Yes, I do.
              Good. See you later.
              Wow!
              What’re you doing up here?
              Nothing.
                   pounds, that one.
              Jaws powerful enough to crush bones to oatmeal.
              Willy gets into moods. You got to give him his space.
              Don’t bother him, he won’t bother you. Understand?
              Sure.
               y:i Ladies and gentlemen, girls and boys…
               y:i … our Sea Lion Show  y:i plays four times daily…
               y:i … and your pass  y:i will admit you to all sessions.
               y:i Show times are at  y:i ten, twelve, two and four.
               y:i As you can see, Olivia and Belinda  y:i “flip out” at lunchtime.
              Belinda, we have a nice-looking audience. What do you think?
              You look so beautiful. How about a kiss?
              You should be ashamed of yourselves.
              Wave goodbye to everybody!
               y:i Let’s give a big hand  y:i for Olivia and Belinda…
               y:i … and their trainer, Rae Lindley.
               y:i Soon you’ll be able to have a look  y:i at Willy, our prize orca whale…
               y:i … right here in the main tank.
              You’re that graffiti kid, aren’t you?
              I guess.
              You really messed up our observation area.
              Sorry.
              – You like whales? – I like him.
              He doesn’t like anybody. Be careful around him.
              Willy’s a case.
              A very special case.
              So?
              Who isn’t?
              Want to play catch?
              Catch?
              I like to throw the ball around.
              I’ve had this mitt since the eighth grade.
              I used to sit around and spit in it, smack it…
              …get a nice pocket there. Look at that.
              Let’s play.
              So how much they paying you to be my jailer?
              A jailer, huh?
              I’m making such a great deal, you wouldn’t believe it.
              You’re a regular cash cow.
              That, plus a million dollars, I could retire at     years old.
              You’ll have to help me out a little bit here.
              Dwight says I should make some rules for you.
              Problem is, I’ve always been a better rule-breaker than a rule-maker.
              So tell me what you think you need.
              You’re asking me?
              You’re the big expert, right?
              I don’t know any rules.
              Kid like you? Been around, been in trouble…
              What’s it going to be?
              Let’s see…
              I got it. First rule is…
              …you have to give me an allowance every week.
              Here’s five bucks.
              What’s next?
              I don’t know. I haven’t thought of those yet.
              While you’re thinking, I need you in bed at night by   :  .
              And up every morning for breakfast.
              I want you in the house every night by seven.
              And don’t disappear without telling somebody.
              We need to know where you are.
              Kid!
              Almost finished with this place.
              Come on, come on.
              You have a nice day too, grouch!
              He likes messing with people’s heads.
              Yes, he does.
              If I can’t get him to perform, no one can.
              Orcas are usually nice and smart. Willy’s smart and nasty.
              You really like him, huh?
              Good. You can help me out.
              Broken belly. Toss it.
              Look. This is a good fish.
              That’s a bad fish. Good fish, bad fish.
              We sort out what Willy can eat from the cheap crap they buy.
              Willy’s a killer whale, right?
              So, would he kill us?
              Orcas are just hunters. They eat fish.
              Well, sometimes they’ll eat porpoises, squid…
              …birds, sharks…
              What he really likes is salmon.
              That’s his chocolate.
              Kiss me, kiss me, kiss me!
              Ready to get back to your painting?
              You saved my life.
              You must have something special. He didn’t eat you.
              – What do you mean? – I don’t know.
              High blood, medicine roots.
              No way.
              Then you’re just one lucky little white boy.
              Willy has no problem with me. We appreciate each other.
              Appreciate?
              Willy saved your butt.
              Why does everybody have a problem with him?
              He doesn’t like visitors in his tank. What were you doing there?
              I came to say goodbye.
              Job is almost up.
              Didn’t want to say goodbye.
              Just maybe…
              Oh, old Indian stuff.
              Orcas.
              Ever look into Willy’s eyes?
              Those eyes discovered the stars…
              …Iong before man was a whisper on Mother Earth.
              They can look into a man’s soul, if they want.
              Willy won’t look at Rae or me.
              Maybe he sees you.
              Your parents are still up.
              They’re not my parents.
              Jesse, where have you been?
              – You’re soaked! – I was at work.
              You snuck out at night to clean up graffiti? That’s amazing.
              – I fell in the tank. – The whale tank?
              Somebody tell me what the heck is going on here?
              I fell in the tank. It’s my fault.
              – All right. – Folks, my name is Randolph.
              How are you? I’m Glen. This is my wife, Annie.
              I supervise Jesse at the park. He does a good job.
              Did his cleanup, helped out in other areas, and made friends.
              We could use him for the rest of the summer, if that’s okay.
              Make a job of it. Pay him a little something too.
              – What do you say to that? – I want to! Please!
              Finally found something you’re into?
              Okay, but days. No more sneaking out at night.
              All right. I promise I won’t.
              Just be straight with us from now on. If you need something, ask.
              Think you can do that?
              It’s past your bedtime. Get in the house, son.
              I’m not your son.
              Yeah, I know that.
              Watch those lines!
              Just get out of the way!
              I’m not in the way.
              This examination area is inadequate.
              It’s all we’ve got!
              Holding him in this net is dangerous! We’ve told you before.
              Finish the exam!
              No, he’s acting up.
              You and Dial bought Willy from a slimeball.
              He was too big and old to be caught.
              Then you put him in a dolphin tank, alone.
              He’s not a performer. You expect miracles?
              Train him, don’t analyze him.
              These weren’t the circumstances you described.
              You’re a professional. Make it work.
              Dial gave me a line. I won’t cross it.
              It’s not about crossing lines.
              Which words don’t you understand?
              If the whale brought in customers…
              …we could spend money on him. Make do with what you’ve got.
              Easy, Willy. Easy, son.
              Untie those back lines!
              What’s going on?
              What happened?
              I don’t know. The net came loose.
              I saw what you did.
              – So? – So, nothing.
              I’m sure Willy’s grateful.
              The whale’s not performing. We’re in deep…
              …and Rae says to expand the tank. – Very nice.
              I brought the animal in to boost business.
              We should move him into the Ritz with the $    …
              …I dumped into his insurance premium.
              The whale’s worth more dead than alive.
              It will cost at least $       …
              …to expand that psychotic malcontent’s pen.
              God, I hate that whale.
              You got any leftover scraps…
              …I could take off your hands?
              Might have.
              I got a friend named Willy.
              Why would he want scraps?
              – He’s a whale. – A whale?
              Hey, Jess!
              I’ll meet you up there.
              What’s up?
              New clothes. New gig?
              – I’m staying with some people. – Cool.
              What happened? I saw you get popped.
              Not much. Had to clean up all our mess.
              I’m working there now.
              They looking for me?
              Cool.
              It’s a total drag, man. Sorry.
              No sweat. Where you been staying?
              Dayton set me up. Working for him now.
              Looking out for cops and stuff.
              I mentioned you to him. I can hook you up if you want.
              I got to think about that.
              Snooze, you lose.
              Stop by sometime.
              See you. I got to bail.
              – See you. – Later.
              What’s wrong?
              Thought you liked these things.
              You’re supposed to eat it like this.
              You want me to put it in your mouth.
              I’ll make a deal with you.
              Don’t bite my hand off, and I’ll give you the fish.
              You like these.
              You’re sure feeling rubbery.
              Your skin peels off.
              Still a beautiful animal, though.
              Well, buddy, I got to go.
              We’ll save these scraps of fishes for later.
              What, you want to go with me?
              I can do that too.
              Can you do it with the other arm?
              Can you wave?
              Can you dance?
              Can you groove? Dance?
              What?
              Can you go in circles?
              You’re really doing it!
              Look at you!
              Makes me dizzy.
              Looks like Willy’s got a soul mate.
              – Can you feed him? – Sure, I can feed him.
              It’s easy.
              Want to try?
              Come on.
              Willy and I didn’t get off to a good start.
              I’m the Wicked Witch, because of all the medical tests I did on him.
              Out in the ocean, killer whales like Willy live in families. Pods.
              Some of them never leave their moms.
              Never?
              Their social structure’s important to them.
              Over    orcas have been seen together.
              Some of them stay together forever.
              – You’ve seen them? – My dad was in the Navy.
              He did sonar research on whales. I went out there all the time.
              Do you do research here?
              Here I’m just a trainer, but I want to work out on the ocean.
              I’m going back to school to get my Ph.D. In marine biology.
              If you do that, Willy’ll be alone and nobody will take care of him.
              Well, Charlie’s in school, so…
              Who’s Charlie?
              My boyfriend, Charlie.
              You have a girlfriend?
              – Why do you think I want one? – Just guessing.
              This isn’t him.
              Willy. Right here.
              – Sure it is. – His fin is flopped over.
              That happens in captivity.
              Why?
              Nobody knows. Maybe they need more room to really swim.
              Then why won’t Mr. Dial build a bigger tank?
              Because Dial treats animals like a commodity.
              What’s that?
              Just a big word Dial likes to use.
              Actually…
              Dial won’t build Willy a bigger pool…
              …unless he can make more money off of him.
              How’d you like to help me with that?
              Yeah, sure.
              Most orcas love to play and do tricks. They like the stimulation.
              – Can he see me underwater? – Sure. And hear you too.
              Now this, young man, is a target.
              Willy’s supposed to respond to it and follow it.
              When working on tricks or behaviors, we reward him with fish.
              Now, we’ll try to get Willy’s nose to touch the end of this target.
              Move out there.
              You’re doing great.
              Thanks.
              Now give him the fish.
              There you go.
              He likes that fish, doesn’t he?
              Roll on over.
              Orcas love to be touched, pet, hugged, anything like that.
              They love to have their tongues stroked.
              Wait a minute!
              You want me to stick my hand in his mouth and rub his tongue?
              – Yeah, eventually. – I don’t think so.
              You’ll learn to read him. You’ll be able to do it.
              What’s this?
              Thought you’d like to know about this. My father gave it to me.
              – It’s Haida. – What?
              Haida’s the name of my people.
                  years ago, there were so many fish in the water…
              …my people only gathered food once a week.
              Everybody ate like kings.
              – What else did they do? – Carved and painted totems…
              …made music, told stories, made babies.
              Sounds good to me.
               y:i Skaana.
              It’s the Haida word for “whale”.
              Natsaclane was a Haida who lived before there were orca whales.
              Hunting fish with other warriors, young Natsaclane lost his way.
              While he was searching, a fierce storm began.
              Natsaclane couldn’t find shelter anywhere.
              The otters came and took him underwater, where he’d be safe.
              After the storm, Natsaclane again searched for the braves.
              But all he found was a huge log.
              He carved a beast on the log and tried carrying it to the ocean.
              He found some water, but not the ocean.
              The great carving sank in this pool and disappeared.
              Natsaclane sat and watched and waited…
              …and said a prayer he’d never heard before.
              He kept saying this prayer. It was so weird.
              He’d never heard it before.
              It really got crazy, because the water started flying out…
              …and then this commotion started happening.
              And out of the water came the carving.
              And it wasn’t a carving. It was a whale like Willy.
              He flew down to the ocean, like a bird…
              …and Natsaclane went after him, to the beach…
              …he rode him all the way home on his back.
              – Isn’t that cool? – Very cool.
              What is this?
              It’s an orca, like Willy.
              Randolph gave it to me. It’s from his tribe.
              It’s beautiful.
              Well, you get some rest.
              Here.
              Sweet dreams.
              – Good night. – Good night.
              Hi, boy. What’s up?
              Hi, buddy.
              You like that?
              You like that.
              Got you!
              Hey, kid! You took my fish!
              I got your chocolate, buddy!
              What’s the matter?
              What are you making that awful noise for?
              – What you got there? – It’s a toy I made for Willy.
              Big slap!
              One more!
              Big slap, Willy!
              One more, buddy.
              Come on, Willy! Big circles, big circles.
              Come here, boy.
              Come on.
              Come here, boy. Here we go.
              There you go. There you go.
              – What’s up? – Annie. Dinner.
              Oh, terrific.
              Hold on one second.
              I need two sets of gaskets too. Bring them in the morning.
              Neat car!
              Check it out!
              You like that car?
              It’s a classic.
              It was the love of my life.
              I spent a year and a half putting it together…
              …getting it in primo condition.
              – And then I had to sell it. – Why?
              The simple reason that…
              …you can’t have more than one love in your life.
              You and Annie…
              …ever fight?
              Yeah, we schedule one every other month or so.
              – Why? – I was just asking.
              What’s this?
              That’s a picture of me and my mother, a long time ago.
              About your age there.
              Where is she now?
              She died about two years ago.
              My mom’s coming to get me one of these days.
              – She is? – Not too long from now.
              That’s funny. That’s not what they said.
              You don’t believe me, do you?
              It’s not that. I just was under the impression that…
              I don’t care what those people said. They don’t know anything!
              My mom has things to take care of, then she’s coming back for me!
              What happened?
              – He wasn’t at the park. – He wasn’t?
              Should we call Dwight? It’s after   .
              I know what time it is!
              I’m sorry.
              – Where’ve you been? – What are you doing?
              You weren’t at the park! You’re to let us know where you are.
              Doesn’t matter. You want to dump me? Go ahead.
              I’m not living here. Just staying here for a while.
              How you like that?
              Just when you think you’re starting to get through…
              …starting to make a connection… Whammo!
              He’s scared, and he’s pushing us away.
              I’ll push him out the door.
              – Don’t say that! – It makes you angry?
              Yes! It didn’t help when you yelled at him.
              – He’s driving me crazy! – You know why you’re angry?
              You feel for him. You’re scared because he reminds you of yourself!
              We tried. We did the best we could do.
              – Is this one of your crusades? – It’s not a crusade!
              We’re talking about a human being!
              Annie, I’m happy. Just you and me.
              Are you okay?
              I just got scared.
              What’re you scared about?
              I don’t know.
              I heard you guys fighting.
              It scared me.
              Adults argue sometimes…
              …but it doesn’t mean anybody’ll get hurt.
              I would never hurt Annie. Or you.
              You should know that.
              I know.
              I see you opened your present.
              Yeah, thanks.
              Let’s go outside and find the baseball.
              You won’t steal this one. I should charge you double.
              There you go.
              See you, kid.
              This is from me to you. There.
              I got that with all my pocket money. Enjoy.
              What’s up, man?
              – What is it? – It’s an orca.
              – Awesome! – Definitely awesome.
              So…
              I’m going.
              First Sacramento, then L.A. Dayton and I are business partners.
              You can get in on it.
              I can’t do that right now.
              Come on, man. This is major stuff!
              We’re going to be rich!
              All right, fool. Be that way.
              Here.
              This is where we’re going.
              If you ever get the guts to go, look me up.
              Sure.
              See you.
              Hey, Willy.
              You miss your family? Well, my mom’s a pain.
              Couldn’t take care of me. Couldn’t take care of herself.
              I haven’t seen her since I was a kid. But I still miss her.
              The Greenwoods are okay. They’re okay.
              You know, it’s rough. I’m nervous with them.
              That’s just the way it is.
              Could be a lot worse.
              Really.
              You understand?
              I’m sure you miss your family too.
              I hope you find them one day.
              I love you, Willy.
              They’re ready inside.
              Want to do some tricks?
              Don’t squirt me. Squirt them.
              Go squirt them, buddy.
              Swimming tail slap!
              All right!
              Why don’t we thank the people for their applause?
              Excuse yourself!
              Thank them.
              Good boy!
              Thank you.
              Want to play ball?
              Good boy.
              Big barrel roll.
              Good boy!
              All right, boy!
              Come on, Willy!
              Go, Willy!
              Double back bow!
              Now come to me!
              And that, gentlemen, is our show!
              You did it!
              You did it!
              Did you see him?
              You can do all that again?
              What you and Rae want costs money. I must be sure.
              Do dogs pee on brick walls?
              I mean, yes, sir. We can do it again.
              Anytime.
              We’ll set it up.
              – We may turn this around yet. – It’ll cost to set up a show.
              So what? We let the kid work up a presentation.
              It catches on, and we’re back on track like we planned.
              “The Willy Show.”
              It’ll make money.
              And that is what we are all about.
              You’ll have a whale of a time when you see me at “The Willy Show”.
              Programs for Willy the whale!
               y:i Ladies and gentlemen, girls and boys!  y:i Please take your seats.
               y:i “The Willy Show” will start  y:i in five minutes.
               y:i Just a reminder:
               y:i Please remain seated at all times  y:i during “The Willy Show”.
               y:i If you wish to buy Willy souvenirs…
               y:i … our gift shop has a great selection.
               y:i It’s open all day,  y:i right outside the Aquatic Theater.
              Lots of people out there. You nervous?
              What’s this?
              A little present from Randolph and me.
              Hey, cool!
              Thanks.
              You’re welcome. See you.
               y:i Please take your seats immediately.
               y:i The show’s about to start.
              Hey, Dwight, how you been?
              This is exciting. I’m proud of you.
              Thanks.
               y:i And now…
               y:i … we proudly present  y:i “The Willy Show”.
              Go get them, champ.
              Ladies and gentlemen…
              …presenting the superstar orca of Northwest Adventure Park…
              …let’s hear it for Willy!
              This could be big.
              This could be big.
              And this is Willy’s friend Jesse.
              Jesse and Willy have a special show for you.
              Get them!
                He’s not into it. Something’s wrong.
                Try something simple. I’ll talk.
                Willy is a   -year-old orca.
                He is    feet long and weighs over   /  tons.
                Come here, buddy.
                What’s up, guy?
                Come on, you know the signals.
                Willy, this is important to us.
                Please, Willy! Please! Don’t blow it.
                Come on, Willy.
                I know you can do it.
                All right? Now let’s go, bud.
                All right.
                – Get off the stage! – Shut up.
                Come on, you big sack of blubber! Let’s go!
                Hey! Stop! Stop!
                Like every great performer, sometimes Willy gets stage fright.
                He just wasn’t ready.
                No.
                That wasn’t your fault. You didn’t do anything…
                I’ll hold it, you kick.
                It takes a lot of courage to do what you did…
                …to work with an animal that’s so big and strong.
                Maybe that whale doesn’t want to be a performer.
                You gave it your best shot.
                You worked hard and did everything you could.
                We’re very proud of you.
                I’d get nervous too, if I had to do tricks in front of those…
                What’s up? Show wasn’t…
                Screw the show. Screw the Greenwoods!
                – So now they’re against you too? – Like everything else.
                You don’t have such a bad thing with the Greenwoods.
                Then you go live there!
                I’m sick of this place! I’m going to find my mom.
                You mean hit the streets again?
                – No, I’ll go find my mom! – Right.
                The state and federal government can’t find her!
                I’ll find her.
                When will you get it?
                When will you get it?
                She’s not coming back.
                Forgot the day she dropped you off?
                Forgot about that? I remember.
                Turned around and drove away.
                Didn’t look around, slow down, or look in the rear-view mirror.
                That sound like somebody’s mama to you?
                These two people want to be your friend.
                That’s more than your mother was.
                You could use a friend. Because if you go off on your own…
                …you’ll end up losing, big time. You got that?
                Shut up and leave me alone!
                I feel sorry for Willy.
                Me too.
                You know…
                …animals can be unpredictable…
                …and they can misbehave sometimes…
                …just like people.
                But that doesn’t mean you have to lose faith in them.
                Right?
                Well…
                …good night.
                What do you want?
                Get out of here.
                Just go.
                Now you want to mess around.
                What happened today?
                You choked, didn’t you?
                Quit it!
                Better stop that!
                Quit it!
                See this?
                It’s going bye-bye and it’s never coming back.
                Don’t you start that.
                I’m out of here.
                Going to California.
                Have a good life.
                It’s your family!
                Randolph! Randolph, wake up!
                Randolph, wake up!
                Randolph, wake up!
                There’s a hole in Willy’s tank.
                They’re trying to kill Willy!
                – Wade was with them? – Yeah, and they dropped this!
                It’s part of the tank.
                Dial’s trying to collect the insurance.
                – Willy’s worth a million dollars. – A million dollars?
                Let’s free him!
                Let’s free Willy. We could put him in the water down at the bay.
                I never liked this job anyway.
                It was no accident. Dial’s trying to kill Willy.
                We’re putting him back in the ocean.
                – You two? – And you.
                – And me? – That’s right.
                Wait a minute!
                He’ll die if he’s dry too long. The tank’s beyond repair.
                His family’s out there! I heard them.
                He’s homesick. That’s why he acts so weird.
                They tried to kill him!
                Hand me that.
                Did you call the police?
                What good would that do?
                If we don’t get Willy into water, he’ll die.
                Either get out of here or turn on the pump.
                Come on!
                Come on, Willy. That’s it.
                Come on, boy.
                Get out of there!
                Come on, Willy! Now!
                Please, Willy!
                Help us get you out of here.
                Attaboy.
                Please, Willy! Please! Just cooperate!
                Come forward.
                Come into the net.
                Good boy. Good boy.
                Good boy, Willy.
                Good boy!
                It’ll be okay.
                It’ll be all right.
                That’s good enough.
                Come up.
                Bring him out more.
                Come on!
                Nice and slow.
                Watch his pecs!
                Come on.
                You’ll be okay.
                How’s he doing?
                He’s all right.
                He’s been moved before. As long as he’s wet, he’ll be fine.
                How’ll we pull him?
                – Hurry, hurry! – I’m hurrying!
                – Go! Go! Go! – I’m going!
                License plate number  – -Zebra-  -Baker.
                Hold on a second. Just now.
                Jesse’s not here. His things are gone.
                Take care of Willy.
                Do we go straight to the marina?
                It’s the only ocean access for miles. Better stick to the back roads.
                Jesse, this is Glen.
                If you’re there, answer me.
                This is Glen. Are you in the truck?
                 y:i If you’re there, answer me.
                 y:i Jesse, please. Answer us.
                 y:i Are you there?
                Okay, let’s go!
                It’ll be okay.
                We won’t let anything happen to him. I promise.
                What do you think?
                The Old Forest Road?
                It’s the least conspicuous.
                Nobody steals a whale.
                 y:i The whale is gone.
                 y:i The trailer and forklift are gone.
                 y:i The trainer and the Indian  y:i must’ve done it.
                – This is a disaster.  y:i – Why?
                Because we don’t have theft insurance on the whale!
                Tell Wilson to bring his crew down.
                See that?
                Oh, no. What are we going to do?
                We’ll have to back it up. Let’s go.
                Keep going.
                It’s okay.
                Watch it!
                Stop!
                You okay?
                It’s okay, boy.
                It’s okay.
                – How’s he doing? – I don’t know.
                He’s pretty scared.
                Maybe we should go forward again.
                If the trailer tilts any further, we’ll lose him.
                It’s okay.
                You’ll be all right.
                – Heard anything about a stolen truck? – It’s yours?
                The whale yours too?
                The whale?
                Back!
                Down!
                Stop!
                We’ve definitely hit some kind of low.
                No question about it.
                We need help.
                 y:i You guys there?
                – Are you all right? – I’m okay.
                What’s going on?
                What are you doing with my truck? And this whale?
                – They tried to kill Willy. – Kill him?
                We’re putting him back in the ocean.
                Glen, help us.
                Help us, and I’ll do anything. Anything!
                What is it that you think I want?
                I don’t know what you want from me.
                Look…
                …I have to look out for Willy, and do what’s best for him.
                You understand?
                Please, Glen.
                I’m asking for your help.
                He’s going to die.
                There’s a chain and a winch behind the seat.
                Go and get it.
                Thanks, Glen.
                Behind the seat. The only place I didn’t look.
                Come on.
                Don’t worry, you’ll be okay.
                Glen’s working on it. We’ll get you out of here.
                Hand me the other board!
                Keep him wet.
                – Coming up! – Keep going!
                Keep going!
                Move your car and lock it.
                Hang a right!
                You’re good!
                Good.
                Jesse, sit down.
                We have to wet him down, he’s getting too dry.
                The sun’s going to come up.
                I know a place we can go.
                Don’t worry, we’ll just give you a nice rinse.
                Open his mouth.
                All right.
                Open up.
                Good boy.
                Good boy.
                Thanks.
                Sorry, I haven’t got a fish for you.
                All right, let’s go.
                – Nice whale. – Thanks.
                It’ll be okay.
                Hang on, we’re almost there.
                We’ve got to hurry! He’s not doing so good!
                Please, Glen! Hurry!
                You’ll be okay.
                Hurry, Glen!
                Go for it!
                Stop them!
                Hurry!
                Come on! We got you to the water, now do your part!
                Don’t let that whale get away!
                Why isn’t he moving?
                You said he’d be okay in the water.
                He’s been out of the water a long time.
                Come on, Willy!
                Go! Get out of here!
                Come here, kid!
                Let go of my boy!
                Good boy.
                I love you, Willy.
                Go, Willy! Go!
                He won’t make it!
                That whale won’t escape.
                Water’s    feet. Those nets will touch bottom. Close it in.
                Come on! Come on!
                Get back here!
                Come on, get out of here! Go!
                Come on, Willy!
                Come on, boy!
                Follow me to the breakwater!
                Hurry!
                Go, Willy!
                Get away from the boats!
                Swim!
                Come to me, Willy!
                Get away from those nets!
                Over here, boy! Hurry!
                Over here!
                Hurry, Willy!
                Come here, boy.
                Come on!
                Come here, boy.
                I’ll miss you.
                Don’t forget me, okay? I won’t forget you.
                Say hello to your mom for me.
                I really love you, boy. I believe in you.
                You can do it. You can be free.
                Now, do it. Do it!
                Come on, Willy. I know you can do it!
                I know you can jump this wall!
                I believe in you! You can do it!
                You could be free! Come on!
                You can jump it!
                Come on, Willy! You only have to do it once! Just once!
                – You ever see him jump that high? – Things can happen.
                I hate that whale.
                Bye, Willy.
                I’ll miss you.
                Hope I get to see you again.
                I love you.
                Thanks, guys.
                Thanks a lot.
                So long, Willy.
                Let’s go home.

So there we were, driving home from work. As I pulled away from the curb, I immediately heard a funny (not so funny) noise from big red’s engine. It actually sounded like I was dragging a bunch of leaves under my right tire. Then, as I slowly turned another corner I heard another ugly noise like hissing and popping under the hood. I noticed that the power steering was going out. I was in a panic. I was frantically asking Kari who was patiently sitting in the passenger seat, “What should I do? What should I do???!?!” I think I remember her saying to me, “You should call Click and Clack on car-talk!” As I crossed the busy intersection and pulled into the proper lane, big red went Hisssss, boom, bang, woooooooosh, …. and then died. Right. there. in. the middle. of. Portland. evening. traffic.

About an hour later after I had called my car insurance roadside assistance 800number for a tow truck - I  came to the conclusion that PORTLANDERS ARE SOOOOOO NICE!!!!!! An elderly man stopped in front of us, got out of his car and asked if we needed a jump or anything. I told him ‘no, thank you’ and that he was so kind, and that we were patiently waiting for a truck. And, two different cyclists stopped along their wet tracks to ask if they could do anything like offer their cell phone. I heart Portlanders!

So, finally I got a call from Speedy Tow Truck company driver- George. Ohhhhh, George. Apparently George was turned around and couldn’t find our location because he didn’t know how to spell “Lloyd” on his gps machine. When he finally arrived, he jumped out of his truck, approached the car and said through his missing teeth, “I woulda been here sooner. My darn gps quit workin on me. I even stuffed a ding-dong foil wrapper that I found in my truck into the gps to make it work. I’ve driven on this street a hundred times and never knew what it was called. AND, who ever spells Lloyd with two L’s!!!!?!!!!” George continued to explain as he was towing us and big red back to our house, “I kept typing into the gps L-O-Y. And, it kept tryin to take me to LOY street. Damn gps. I still don’t know who ever thought to spell it with two L’s. …Say, did I tell you about the time I was towing this guy who musta been homophobic cuz I kept grabbin his ass and then he’d punch me real hard? Boy, he definitely had a good arm! Har Har Har Har!”

Did I tell you that his tow truck smelled like a honey bucket?

The Homecoming festivities continued last night with the street parade down College Heights Blvd. and Festival of Friends on the WKU Football practice field. Dozens of floats and campus groups turned out for the annual celebration, including the newest member of the WKU Hall of Distinguished Alumni – 5 time Super Bowl champion Romeo Crennel. The fun wraps up today with tailgating and the big game against Troy at 4.

Go Tops!!

-Clinton

Saturday, November 28, 2009
8:00 p.m.

Following the sold-out success of the 2007 contest, Boston University Assistant Vice President and Director of Athletics Mike Lynch and Cornell University’s Meakem*Smith Director of Athletics and Physical Education Andy Noel announced today that Red Hot Hockey will burn again at Madison Square Garden on November 28, 2009, as Boston University and Cornell resume an 85 year-old rivalry in a non-conference NCAA Division I men’s ice hockey match-up.

Reserved discounted tickets in the Class of 1996 section are now available to alums by completing the form linked below and returning it by email to the ‘96 Class Council.  cuclassof96hockeytixorderform3

Full price unreserved tickets are also available through ticketmaster and stub-hub.

“This is an exciting opportunity to return to the Big Apple for what only can be described as a big game against one of our biggest rivals,” said Lynch. “Thousands of alumni from both schools sold out the first edition of Red Hot Hockey, and many more have been asking if we could bring another game to New York City. We are excited that BU-Cornell will return to Madison Square Garden, and we encourage fans to purchase their tickets and make their travel accommodations for Manhattan as soon as possible.”

The inaugural Red Hot Hockey event, in front of 18,200 passionate students, alumni, parents and fans, was a resounding success. Held on November 24, 2007, it marked the first time a collegiate hockey game had sold out the “World’s Most Famous Arena,” and featured the attendance of prominent alumni from both schools, including members of the 1980 gold medal-winning U.S. Olympic hockey team Mike Eruzione, Jack O’Callahan and David Silk from Boston University, as well as former NHL great and Cornell alum, Joe Nieuwendyk.

“I am thrilled to continue the great rivalry with Boston University,” Noel said. “They are currently ranked #1 in the nation and are one of the finest teams in collegiate ice hockey. This game provides terrific competition for our athletes and represents a major event for our alumni and friends in the metro-New York area.”

Both schools are perennial college hockey powerhouses. Boston University, which has sat atop the national polls for much of the 2008-09 season and is currently ranked #1 in the nation, has won the national championship four times (1971, 1972, 1978 and 1995), while Cornell, currently ranked #12 in the nation, has claimed the title twice (1967, 1970). Combined, the two schools have seen 80 former players forge careers in the National Hockey League, including the likes of current Rangers captain Chris Drury, Keith Tkachuk and Tony Amonte (Boston University), as well as Doug Murray, Ken Dryden and Joe Nieuwendyk (Cornell).

“We are excited that two of college hockey’s most storied programs will return to The Garden,” said Joel Fisher, executive vice president, Madison Square Garden Sports. “The 2007 match-up was sold out proving that college hockey has a place in New York City. We are proud to welcome back Boston University and Cornell University to Madison Square Garden, and look forward to hosting this storied match-up once again.”

The BU–Cornell rivalry began on Jan. 10, 1925, with a 7-2 victory by the Terriers, and includes two match-ups in the NCAA title game (1967, 1972). However, the schools met only sporadically since BU left the ECAC to join Hockey East in 1984-85 before the initial Red Hot Hockey event in 2007. Madison Square Garden, home to the NHL’s Rangers and NBA’s Knicks, will once again serve as the venue to showcase the next chapter in this storied rivalry.

“Obviously, it was a tremendous event last time, getting these two storied programs together at Madison Square Garden,” said Cornell head coach Mike Schafer. “It was great to see the support from the fans that made this game a tough ticket to get last time around, and it’ll be exciting to get back down there and play in front of another great crowd.”

“Getting BU and Cornell fans to fill up Madison Square Garden last time was something special,” said BU head coach Jack Parker, whose 808 career wins rank second among active NCAA Division I college hockey coaches. “It was special for the fans and I know it was special for the players. It’s a great venue and a great showcase for college hockey, and we’re looking forward to creating that kind of excitement and energy once again.”

Don’t know if we could’ve had more turnovers if we tried. This was my second time shooting college football, and I’m not sure if I improved over my last effort or not. Here are my top five shots, if you want to see the other 11 that I picked check out my flickr at http://flickr.com/andrewdickinson – the final score was Nebraska 7, Iowa State 9.

Two Iowa State players celebrate after an interception.

Dontrayevous Robinson prepares for the imminent tackle.

Dontrayevous Robinson says a quick prayer after scoring his first career touchdown.

Niles Paul attempts to break an Iowa State tackle.

Tim Marlowe lands on top of an Iowa State tackler.

Motorola Droid

Recently, Verizon and Motorola (and perhaps Google) have struck back at Apple Inc.’s iPhone with a “Droid Does” ad campaign that highlights many of the lacking features of the iPhone. It’s a pretty cleaver ad that parody’s Apple’s own cutesy iPhone ads (check below). The ads have recently popped up during the MLB postseason and a lot over this past weekend during NFL football. According to cell phone megasite Boy Genius Report, the Motorola Droid is the best Google Android handset to date.

It’s been about 2 years since the original iPhone came out and there have been many who have claimed to be THE “iPhone Killer” yet none have actually lived up to the moniker in terms of sales or usability (the usability can be debate with the Palm Pre and my current favorite Android handset in the US, HTC’s myTouch). Whatever opinion you may have about Apple Inc., there is no doubt to the fact that Apple forever changed the mobile cell phone industry with their iPhone and its exclusive U.S. deal with AT&T. For Verizon, it is clear that this one single phone from Apple has been a pain in their ass despite being the superior mobile network over AT&T. Whatever you believe about the deal that didn’t happen between Verizon and Apple back in 2007, the fact is Verizon did not get the iPhone and has been looking that signature phone ever since. Verizon put their eggs in the basket before by touting the Blackberry Storm as the “iPhone Killer” and the result was a mediocre at best for both Blackberry and Verizon.

For Motorola and Google, the success of this phone is not only important from a business standpoint but in many ways revenge towards Apple. Google and Apple recently had a fallout that resulted in Google CEO Eric Schmidt resigning from Apple’s board of directors and there is the ongoing saga of rejection of Google Voice from Apple Inc.’s App Store. Those who have been following Google probably saw the collision course with Apple was inevitable when Google released the Android OS for mobile technologies and when they announced the Chrome OS for computers – territories that both Apple compete in. As for Motorola, their cell phone division went from having the hottest phone in the world (the RAZR V3) to barely surviving in less than a decade. Apple did partner with Moto to release an iTunes-enabled phone that was both a sales disaster and innovative failure for both companies. Apple ditched Moto and created the iPhone while Moto failed to be relevant. There have been industry whispers that indicate Google having a direct hand in production of Moto’s Droid handset. The Tripartite Pact between Verizon, Google, and Motorola is a clear shot for vindication.

My take? I like my iPhone, but seeing the huge jailbreaking community only verifies the lacking capabilities of the iPhone. In other words, the iPhone could do so much more. Plus the big elephant in the room is AT&T. God I have no idea how I have been an AT&T customer for 10 years now, but damn I can’t take it anymore. I don’t need to elaborate further, just Google it yourself and you will see the dissatisfaction with AT&T among iPhone customers. The exclusive deal with AT&T has to end not only because AT&T sucks but because it will help Apple achieve further sales success. It’s only smart economics. I also like what Android brings to the table, and hopefully the Moto Droid does some innovative things to perhaps force Apple to innovate further and faster (c’mon Apple is clearly holding back). I don’t know if the latest Verizon campaign dampens the possibility of the iPhone going to Verizon, but please get this phone on there.

Would I get the Moto Droid? Let’s put it this way: Verizon = Awesome, Google = Very Awesome, Moto = uh…

Yep, Moto is the weak link in this Tripartite Pact and I’ll hold my judgment until this things come out. If HTC made the phone, I’d jump it no question. Moto just makes me hesitate and I have a wait and see approach right now.

Moto Droid's Virtual Keyboard

Droid's back

Sliding Keyboard

What is for sure?…Windows Mobile sucks. Big time.

By Melanie Breault ‘11

ITHACA, NY— The whistle blows. It’s 6:45 p.m. and practice is over. As the other teammates walk leisurely to the locker room, Melanie Jue sprints. She rips off her cleats, drops her stick and flies through the silver painted halls. She cannot be late.  “I have to run to the ice,” she said. Jue laces up her skates, puts on her gear and makes it, but not without her other stick first.
Jue is a senior field hockey and ice hockey player at Cornell University. She is also a business student, majoring in applied economics and management with concentrations in marketing and strategy. Jue was first recruited to Cornell to play both sports, but didn’t join the field hockey team until last year.
“I came in and I just didn’t want too much on my plate at once,” Jue said.
After a while, Jue said she realized she missed the field and decided to take more on. Coming from a very sport-oriented family in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada, Jue has been able to perfect her skills with help from the professional athletes in her family.
“My cousins used to take me out skating, a typical Canadian type thing,” she said. “I always wanted to hang out with them so I’d always play with them.”
One of Jue’s 11 cousins, Bryan Chiu, is a professional football player for the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League. Jue said that she does feel some pressure to strive in sports, but it is not a family requirement.
“[My family] is very competitive by nature,” she said. “I do feel a little bit of pressure because of that, but it’s more self-motivation and my parents pushing me as well.”
Jue’s family is not the only factor pushing her athletic career. Because the field hockey and ice hockey seasons overlap for a two-month period, Jue said the pressure comes with balancing the two.
“I like to keep people happy, so it’s definitely hard to play both sports and keep both coaches happy at the same time,” she said. “I have to give and take a little bit.”
Doug Derraugh, head coach of the ice hockey team, said it’s fine with him if Jue chooses to play both sports.
“In our fall season right now, she keeps in shape with field hockey and then comes out on the ice for our practices,” he said. “It’s worked out pretty well so far.”
During Jue’s short time as a field hockey goalkeeper at Cornell, she was named Athlete of the Week, Sept. 28, 2009, as well as first-team All-Ivy and co-defensive MVP following the fall 2008 season. Head coach of women’s field hockey, Donna Hornibrook, said that in her short period of time, Jue has been a real asset to the team.
“Trying to balance the demands of being a field hockey player and an ice hockey player is not easy,” she said. “Being a two sport athlete is a rarity at Cornell.”
Jue’s ice hockey assistant coach, Danielle Bilodeau, said it will be very hard to replace Jue on the team after she graduates.
“If you ever come out and see Melanie play, I think you’ll see that she has a very particular skill set that not a lot of other student athletes have,” Bilodeau said. “Her teammates feed off of the incredible intensity that she has, and that’s something that is going to be hard to replace in the recruiting process next year.”
Kendice Ogilvie, a sophomore forward on the ice hockey team, said Jue has made her last two years on the team not only challenging, but fun as well.
“She is fierce [on the team],” she said. “You don’t want to get in her way because she will probably eat you alive.”
Physically, Jue said she is definitely worn out once both field hockey and ice hockey seasons are over, but her physical pain is nothing compared to the withdrawal she feels when she is not being active.
“Once the seasons are over, I get physically sick,” she said. “I don’t like not being active, so I do other sports like golf and badminton during the spring.”
Although Jue has many external pressures, in the end, she said her biggest critic is herself.
“I think most of the pressure I put on by myself,” she said. “I’m very hard on myself, and [being a student and a double athlete] is tough, but it’s totally worth it.”

http://www.discogs.com/Big-Red-3-Diamond-D-Created-A-Monster-How-They-Want-It/release/506468

ripper…. . [DCS]QuBe year…… 199?
label….. . White Label size…… 19.7 MB
encoder… . Fraunhofer tracks…. 04
source…. . Vinyl

01 – Created A Monster
02 – Created A Monster (Instrumental)
03 – How They Want It
04 – How They Want It (Instrumental)

Dope Diamond D production, I tried to make the soundquality as good as possible.

http://www.mediafire.com/?tnmgdtzt3mj

It’s Bill and Big Red in the Ring this week for Capital One National Mascot Competition.
Let’s see who wins!

It’s the end of the road-trip in the Capital One RV.  The videos and suspense was a fun campaign and now it’s time to get into the mascot match-ups for the challenge and the prize.

In a past posting, I talked of fitting four people in a Mazda 626 and driving 1500 miles.  Nothing seems to top the family travel stories that have collected over the years.  One involved my il-prepared father having us hit the road in a vehicle with a slow leak in the back tire.  At a rest stop where he decided to check it once again, the timing and fates aligned.  My little brother hopped into his back  seat position and slammed the open door shut.  Unfortunately my father decided to bend down with the air pressure gauge at the same time as the door slammed.  Some may wonder how a man can have goose eggs or marks on both sides of his head…my dad got’em by not getting a tired fixed and get getting his head hammered in a car door!  I’ve never heard moans like that ever before or ever since and my mother not wanting to tell a gas station attendant what REALLY happened, went in for ice and told the man her kid had gotten a hand slammed in a car door.  Give all involved a hand on this story!

Unfortunately the other ultimate road story involves my little brother again.  This time different car, different destination and different parent.  My brother was a persistent young man that would try and try until he solved the problem or mastered the task at hand.  The task in question was blowing a bubble gum bubble.  He would chew and chomp and blow and try again.  Positive side, he’s quiet and occupied for a few miles, negative-it’s before seat belt laws are enforced and he’s practicing right behind my mother’s head o’ hair.

We heard him blow, chomp, blow, chomp, spit the gum into my mom’s hair, and then a little voice say “ooops!”  Emotions ran high and I have never seen my mother cry, laugh, and yell at my dad to find fingernail scissors to cut bubble gum out of her hair.  Pretty exciting while pulled over on the side of an interstate freeway!  To complete the story, my brother then asked for another piece of gum as soon as we got back on the road.

Back to the Challenge, this year, the RV picked up  BearCat, Bill, Big Red, Boomer, Bucky, Butch, Hairy Dawg, Mike, Jack Rabbit, Sebastian, Super Frog and Testudo.

This week’s match-ups have Super Frog with more votes than Bucky, Big Red beating Butch, Jack Rabbit and Testudo neck and neck to the finish, Bearcat making a meal of Sebastian, Bill over Hairy and Boomer and Mike at a draw.  First round results will be posted on Monday…Check out the Capital One Bowl site today and write in or vote!

What do you do if your calculator isn’t big enough to show your country’s debt?

When Matt Miles couldn’t find one which could show 16 digits needed to displays the USA’s debt he made a new one that does.

The USA’s national debt totalled nearly $11.8 trillion – or $11,792,918,170,836.43 – at the start of September and  Big Red (I suspect the pun was intended) calculates trillions with ease.

But it’s not just a gimmick. Matt says:

We hear people talking about deficit spending and the national debt – the amount our children will owe if we don’t do something about it – and it seems scary but somewhat distant. But when you actually look at the numbers and realize just how big it is. . .

But it makes a much bigger point. It helps us realize what we’ve created in deficit spending and how it effects our national debt, it sobers us up to think about what we must do to shrink the debt, and it gives us all an opportunity to share this thinking with others.

If you want to scare yourself, click here to watch the total grow.

The size of that debt doesn’t just have implications for people in the USA. That country’s place in the global economy means it will have an impact world-wide.

China and India are growing quickly which might off-set some of the effects, but even so if the USA is limping it will hold back economic recovery elsewhere.

Whoop here comes rock hopper! are you ready for him?! I am as you can see I’m very happy he is coming. Here is a picture of what he has in his captain quarters When he arrives and you see you can’t enter all you have to do is go to the book room (located on the top of the coffee shop and read all the books until the end until one secret one of them has a key! GOOD LUCK! p.s well done job soccer11097 for winning the contest qb47’s coins are 81,465! Soccer was the closest guess once again congratulations

Avant son concert du 29 juillet, Big Red (alias Stéphane Joaquim) est venu rencontrer ses fans pour une séance de questions réponses.

C’était l’occasion de mieux découvrir l’artiste tout en retraçant sa carrière, ses influences, son style et surtout sa façon de voir les choses en tant qu’artiste sur la musique en général.

Nous avons aussi appris qu’il avait récemment changé de surnom passant de Big Red à 9ja Red. Explications en images.

Le 29 juillet dernier, Big Red est venu créer l’événement à Roubaix en venant donner un concert gratuit au Bar Live (au 301). A l’époque, Big Red faisait partie de Raggasonic, le plus important groupe de ragga français des années 90.

C’est depuis 1999 que l’artiste a décidé de se lancer dans une carrière solo, avec déjà quatre albums à son actif : Big Red-emption (1999), Redsistance (2002), Raggamuffin Culture (2005) et le dernier paru en 2008 s’intitule FTW (soit Fuck The World) .

Ses fans se sont laissés entraîner par son flow et ont pu profiter pleinement de la soirée dont voici quelques extraits.

Ah, the road trip! Nothing can be sweeter.  Wind in your hair (or at least the idea of the miles passing by) and the romantic notion that this is the way to see the world.  The reality is that even adults want to know “if we’re there yet” and if you have kids, it’s the longest self imposed torture.  I’d love to hear from readers tell their stories and  top driving around 1500 miles from Chicago to Dallas in a ‘84 Mazda 626 on several trips to visit the family.  By the end of the return drive, we would all get home, head to an empty room and savor the space and quiet.

My brother and I would draw an imaginary line and conveniently beat the tar out of each other when “the line” was crossed.  One Christmas, we got an early presents of walkmans and mom said that was the best gift for all concerned since it was the quietist trip we had.

So what to do to pass the time and miles?  Count the birds on the fences and telephone lines, look at the cows, and stop for pecan logs, moon pies and dr.peppers.  Take a look at what’s been going on in the Capital One RV lately.  Big Red seems to be entertaining the masses of mascots.

As most of the trendy things in the US today find themselves just as trendy in Tel Aviv sooner rather than later, I bring you news of something new on the market which has the potential to change the dynamics, if not the very foundation, of the essence of Israeli romanticism (is that an oxymoron?).

It seems that a New York based cosmetic company, who go by the stylish name – Lotta Luv – have built quite a following specialising in lip glosses and balms based on well known Americas favourite food items such as Cheese Cheetos, Hersheys chocolate, Reese’s peanut butter cups and Twinkies.

Recently, they signed up Wrigleys, the chewing gum company and have announced they will be releasing Big Red, Juicy Fruit, Doublemint, Winterfresh and Wrigley’s Spearmint balms and glosses later this year. And with Wrigley now being owned by Mars, it is surely only a matter of time before Snickers, Milky Way, M&Ms, Twix and Skittles will join the product line.

OK, so maybe these are not necessarily the most exciting of flavours for the those Israelis who are not American Olim, but you know where I am going here.

It will take little to adapt this cosmoceutical innovation to the Israeli psyche. What charming Frecha will not want to please her man by wearing a Shawarma gloss or a Bissli balm? Surely, not one single member of the Arsim subgenus will be able to resist a pair of lips sporting a Falafel balm or Bamba gloss. Different partner, different night or just want to ring the changes ladies? Theres always Shislik, Humus, Krembo and Schnitzel!

And a thought just crossed my mind, maybe its time to re-release that classic movie – 9 1/2 Weeks!

We are nearing ever closer to the departure date as well as the benefit concert preceding the departure. 

My plane tickets are purchased! Official dates:

Sept. 2- Nov. 24

If you’re in the Portland area, be sure to check out my benefit concert on the 29th of August. Its right across the street from Multnomah at Big Red and will feature local artists such as Chris Delaney, Ryan Topper, Kyle Dalen and Myself. Also Kristin Vantrease will be selling some of her artwork.

I’ve been writing a bunch of music this summer so there will be some new stuff as well as some classics.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=io00rgkXFqQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6WAph1tERbA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9dSY2fLdY8Y

Don’t miss this great event for a great cause!

I’m still about half way as far as my funds go. Keep praying for the trip and for the incoming funds.

The following is my third article to appear in The Sun News in The Macon Telegraph. It was originally published Wednesday, July 22, 2009. The online version can be found here.

Let’s face it; today it seems that everyone is in a hurry to get to somewhere other than where they are without giving others a second thought. So, to be honest, I half thought Southern hospitality would be a thing of the past. Something that only the older generations would still take to heart.

I was wrong. Southern hospitality is alive and well.

The first meal I wanted to cook in my apartment was spaghetti and meatballs. I had the meatballs. I just needed the spaghetti and tomato paste. So I ran up to the store in search of those items.

I found the paste easily enough, but the spaghetti was a little harder. I only recognized one brand. When a woman and her daughter turned down the aisle, I asked if there was a brand that they could recommend. She said she tried to use store brands whenever possible, but had not tried the spaghetti. She made a suggestion, and dinner was good.

The next week I was dog-sitting, and the dog had already gotten out when I arrived. After retrieving him, I saw where he had dug a hole to get out, so I blocked it from the front.

I went over a few hours later to check on him, and sure enough he was out again. I barricaded the hole once again. This time though, I saw a neighbor pulling into the driveway. I went over and explained the situation and asked if she would give me a call if the dog got out again. The next morning I got a phone call — the dog had gotten out again, and the neighbor had put him back in the backyard.

After a trip to Lowe’s, a more permanent solution was installed. Even though the dog was staying close to the house, I am still extremely grateful that the neighbor called me when she saw him out.

Last but not least, I have received several responses to my grocery store article last week. Not only have I received store suggestions, but I have also received shopping tips on how to save money without sacrificing quality. Thank you Middle Georgia for making sure the famous Southern hospitality stays alive.

On that note, may I ask a favor? One of my all-time favorite drinks is currently not being distributed to the Middle Georgia area. It apparently exists all over northern Georgia, but does not extend down here.

The drink in question is Big Red. It can best be described as having a cream soda taste with a hint of vanilla, like bubble-gum. Given that it already has a hint of vanilla, it’s not a surprise that it makes a great float, perfect for these hot summer months. It also goes exceptionally well with Mexican food.

If you are willing to help get Big Red to Middle Georgia, the regional manager for Florida/Georgia/Alabama said we need to ask for it in our local Wal-mart, Publix and Kroger stores.

I find it gratifying and delightful that our oldest existing story native to English — the Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf — is unabashedly a monster story. Isn’t that wonderful? It’s generally dated to the eighth century, which means it has stood the test of time to reach us well over a thousand years later; we study it in our schools; our scholars analyze it anew in each generation; it has inspired novels, music, and films. And it’s a monster story.

It’s told well, of course. It’s a poem. It uses language that conjures pictures in our heads and brings music to our ears. It has characters we can relate to and it takes us fully into their world; in short, it does everything that good literature is supposed to do. And it’s a monster story! It satisfies the college profs, but it also satisfies the little kid in us who yearns for creatures that pad up to the door of the mead-hall and smash it  asunder.

What does that tell us about fundamental, archetypal storytelling? All those of us who love a good creature tale can hold our heads high. Our kinds of stories were there at the beginning; they’re still there behind it all. Things go bump in the night, and all we who huddle around the fires want to hear about them — from a safe distance, if possible.

The title of this post comes, in part, from a phrase used in Beowulf to describe the monster Grendel. (In John Gardner’s 1971 novel Grendel, told from the monster’s viewpoint, Grendel describes himself as “a shadow-shooter, earth-rim-roamer, walker of the world’s weird wall.” Nice, huh?) The original epic Beowulf emerged at a time when Christianity was spreading among the pagan cultures of Europe, and the poem is a fascinating blend of Christian and pagan elements. [I remember reading another poem from the general era in which Christ was portrayed as a warrior-king, conquering death for His people in the same way that Anglo-Saxon kings conquered enemies. In the poem, Christ leaps up onto the cross, grips it in His brawny arms, and hangs on tight until He has strangled the last breath out of death, thus winning salvation for the thanes He protects. That's a world different from the pale, suffering Christ depicted in later years, but they're both aspects of the work He accomplished.]

In Beowulf, one manifestation of the Christian element is the poet’s painstaking effort to connect Grendel with the Biblical Old Testament. Grendel is descended from Cain, the first murderer. There is also some association with the fallen angels who warred against God and were cast out of Heaven.

Interestingly, there’s a correlation in our own times. Just as the early tellers of Beowulf felt a need to fit the monster into their Christian world-view, I’ve heard of a similar phenomenon going on today in Christian fiction publishing. (I’m talking about books published under the label of “Christian fiction,” not simply books by Christians such as The Hobbit.) A good friend of mine has spoken at length with editors and agents who work in this genre, and apparently the rule in place among many (most?) of them is that any supernatural element a writer uses has to be supportable with Scripture — in other words, if you use a monster, it has to be one from the Bible.

Where this comes into particular play is in vampire fiction. Believe it or not, my friend tells me that certain Christian publishers are actively seeking vampire fiction. It’s just that they require it to “have its theology right.” Really, it’s always been my theory that the older vampire stories in the western canon are inseparable from a Christian understanding. Vampires (traditionally) can’t endure crosses and crucifixes, right? They avoid churches. Why would this be, unless we’re acknowledging the power of God and God’s opposition to evil? (When people ask me what Dragonfly’s category is, I say “dark fantasy, or maybe Christian horror.” Heh, heh!)

But, as my friend reports it, you can’t say a vampire is a “vampire” in official Christian fiction and leave it at that, because there are no vampires in the Bible. (Well, actually, there may just be a hint of them, but that’s a whole other posting! We can get into that if anyone’s curious.) So you have to say that vampires are demons masquerading as vampires. My response to that is, why can’t a vampire simply be a kind of demon? That’s the way it’s handled in Buffy: vampires are frequently referred to as “demons.” The soul of the human departs from the body at death, and the body is taken over by an evil, demonic spirit who is wholly other than the departed human, yet with an awareness and command of the residual mind and memories of that human. So it’s that human in a way, but without the most important part — the soul — and with something extra and evil added in — the demon. That, to the best of my observation, is the way it works in the Buffyverse, and that model works fine, theologically, for me! So there you have it: on this point, Buffy has its theology straight. (We won’t get into Willow’s religion. . . .)

But back to the creatures that walk in the night (not just vampires) — stories about them have sprung up all across cultures and throughout history. We humans can’t leave them alone. Theories abound as to why. Perhaps these tales grow out of our fear of the dark and the unknown; we give faces and physical forms to our fears, because any monster, no matter how terrible, is somehow easier to deal with than the truly faceless and unknown. Once we know it’s a dragon, we can work on how to defeat it.

Or maybe the stories are one way of dealing with the forces we know about but can’t control: storms . . . enemies . . . unexpected violence . . . illness . . . loss . . . death. Give it a face, let it pursue you for a while through a harrowing tale, and then overcome it. Escape.

Maybe the monsters somehow represent the mystery, power, and vastness of nature itself. This is a recurrent theme in the stories of Algernon Blackwood, particularly “The Wendigo” and “The Willows.” (Even my mom — my mom, who never went out of her way to read any horror — remembered “The Willows” as “the scariest story [she'd] ever read.”)

Or yet again, maybe our monsters are our way of separating out the bad parts of ourselves. The truth is, there’s darkness, greed, and malice inside us — monsters give us scapegoats. They siphon out this badness from inside us, and we can point our fingers at them and drive stakes through their hearts. That certainly may figure into stories of werewolves, which explore the notion that there can be beasts within us that sometimes emerge, terrible and separate from the part of us that is human. That all may be part of it. . . .

Or maybe we know that we really do live in a world where lonely things howl in the desolate places, and to tell their stories is as natural as telling our tales of journeys and discoveries, of courage and love and triumph.

Isn’t it interesting, though, how many of our monsters have been changing over the years? Vampires were once utterly evil, alien, and repulsive. Remember Nosferatu, with his pointed ears, his bald, bulbous head, his rat-like demeanor, prominent fangs, and the stark, twisted shadows he cast on the wall? Then came Bela Lugosi, who still portrayed an evil vampire, but was also charming and seductive. Ditto with Christopher Lee. Decades went by, and then came the Anne Rice vampire books, beginning with Interview with the Vampire, in which vampires were the main characters — we were inside their heads, sympathizing with them, understanding why they did what they did. We rooted for the good ones and hissed at the bad ones. When Joss Whedon gave us the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, we had vampires who — under certain conditions — could be noble and heroic.

And now we have an explosion of vampires in the pop culture, and in many instances the good-aligned vampires aren’t even sorry to be vampires — no one is sorry . . . they altruistically find ways to feed without harming humans, they help people, they’re beautiful and romantic, women and men swoon over them, and they’ve essentially become like Tolkien’s Elves: the species that we’d be if we were a little better — if our limitations and infirmities were taken away.

Mary Shelley undoubtedly helped to bring about this shift in the role of the monster. In her 1818 novel Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus, the monster, though he behaves monstrously, is the victim; his creator is the true monster, the source of the harm and tragedy.  So, too, in the latest retelling of Beowulf — the 2007 film written by Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary — the monster is both terrifying and greatly to be pitied; he is not so much ravenous as he is tormented. (And whoever thought back in the eighth century that Grendel’s mother would one day look like that — like Angelina Jolie covered in gold, wearing high-heeled feet?! Oh, the roles of monsters are a-changin’ . . . but perhaps not so much. There have always been sphinxes and lamias and succubi, so I guess even with gold, seductive Grendel’s mother, there’s no new thing under the sun. Or under the wan moon.)

Sooooo . . . something wicked this way comes, and if you’d prefer not to talk about it, then don’t. Turn back while you still can! But does anyone care to tell about the earth-rim walkers that particularly chilled and delighted you when you were small?

I’ll start us off with a few. First of all, my nextdoor neighbor Chris and I were convinced that there was a Bigfoot-like monster haunting the creek behind our field. (Or if we weren’t absolutely convinced, we worked hard to convince ourselves.) Since every monster needs a name that sounds both innocuously childlike and yet sinister and creepier the more you think about it, we called him “Funnyface.” We knew that he came up through the cornfield at night — we knew, because now and then we’d find a cornstalk that had been knocked down . . . by something obviously big and heavy. Any oddly-shaped depression in the field’s dirt became a partial footprint . . . any strange sound from the woods became his yowl. We found some scratch-marks high in a tree that we declared had been made by his claws. And the clincher — the final proof of his existence — came when we tied a piece of lettuce (was there some ham, too?) by a string from a tree limb — high enough from the ground, in our reasoning, that no small animal could get at it. And when we came back a day later, the lettuce was gone!

I won’t embarrass Chris with our other demons here, but I’d love to hear his recollections of them if he can be goaded into telling about them. (If not, I’ll understand!)

But also, a group of friends and I had a kind of club that gathered, during recess, under the apple trees at the far edge of the schoolyard. While other boys were playing “Kick That Ball” (that’s what they called it!), we sat under those trees and talked breathlessly in hushed voices about the monsters we had personally seen. And we saw them often! Talk about Sagan’s Demon-Haunted World! In our childhood, monsters were always popping out of hedges and shambling along roadsides, just barely visible in the twilight.

I told about Funnyface, of course. He didn’t just stay in the cornfield, either. Sometimes he lurked in the barn and watched Chris and me playing outside. Every now and then, we’d get an eerie feeling that we shouldn’t go into the barn. Those were the times when he was there, so we kept to the yard and peeked at the barn through weeds or over the edges of roofs.

I also had an Alien that poked his helmeted head above the multiflora rose bushes in the northwest corner of the yard — and always in the last gleam of twilight. He wore dark shades like sunglasses and had a long, hooked nose and protruding chin. I think his skin was blue.

And I had an Old Lady Ghost who is a separate topic unto herself — let’s save her for another time.

G. lived in a house where the yard backed against the railroad tracks. So his childhood was always full of the roars and rattles of passing trains, the mournful whistles in the night. His monster was a humanoid thing with long hair sprouting from its shoulders. G. always saw it only from the back (which we thought was just plain creepy!), and in the gathering dusk, the thing would jump up and down in place, away down the tracks. Up and down, up and down, in some bizarre monster ritual or dance, until it got too dark to see it anymore.

R. had a Deer Man — a furtive, tawny, human-like figure with big antlers on the top of its head. When R. looked out into his moonlit yard just before he went to bed, the Deer Man would climb over the fence, run lightly across the grass, looking around nervously, and then climb over the opposite fence and vanish into the night.

H. told of a giant frog named Old Smiley that inhabited the marshy creek behind his parents’ trailer court. H. would creep down there among the weeds and see Old Smiley sometimes, who was as big as a coffee table. Smiley would look at H. with his enormous round eyes, say “RIVET!” and hop into the water with a tremendous splash. What made this monster truly great was H.’s imitation of him. H. was a gangly kid, all bony elbows and knees, and his mom used to dump so much tonic on his hair that we called him “Syrup Head.” H. would show us how Old Smiley jumped: he’d crouch low against the playground and then uncoil himself, shouting “RIVET!”, and bound into the air. We laughed at how funny it looked. And then we’d look at one another and go “Ooo” in subdued voices, thinking about how it would be no laughing matter down in the weeds and the dark and the mud, with only a few lights from the trailer court off in the distance.

Finally, S. had a disembodied eyeball called Big Red who prowled in the bushes behind S.’s house. S. would part the bush-branches at times, gaze into the depths, and Big Red would be staring back at him.

Ah, Earth-Rim Walkers! Gotta love ‘em!

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