Having a wonderful time in Dalton

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Ed Kirbys Adventure Cars in Dalton, Ga near Chattanooga and Atlanta says enjoy another episode of Dancing with the Cars. View this 2009 AUDI A4 2.0T CONVERTIBLE STOCK # 91111A.

Go to http://www.AdventureCars.Com click Testimonials, and read what our customers say about us.
Our vehicles sell QUICK so Call Today! All pre-owned vehicles go through extensive inspection and reconditioning which is why we include a 30 day comprehensive/ 90 day component warranty (if factory warranty has expired) plus a 3 day money back guarantee and We can Ship nationwide! Call today 800.291.9086

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Ed Kirbys Adventure Cars in Dalton, Ga near Chattanooga says enjoy another episode of Dancing with the Cars.  View this 2008 LAND ROVER LR2 STOCK # 10049P.

Go to http://www.AdventureCars.Com  click Testimonials, and read what our customers say about us.
Our vehicles sell QUICK so Call Today! All pre-owned vehicles go through extensive inspection and reconditioning which is why we include a 30 day comprehensive/ 90 day component warranty (if factory warranty has expired) plus a 3 day money back guarantee and We can Ship nationwide!  Call today 800.291.9086

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I don’t know whether I am just a wee bit dim, or whether I am being ‘deceived’, as George Keeming says (see comment on Oct. 22 blog), but the more I talk to people the more I am less enlightened. I watched a wee video meant to explain to real estate professionals how this will all work. The gentleman was describing how this will affect our clients in terms of added costs, and the lady took the other side and explained that Canadians are used to paying taxes and that this will just be another adjustment to adapt to. I disagree! I don’t think we are used to it as much as we grudgingly tolerate it.

Don’t get me wrong, I am very, very, very grateful to live in Canada, and after a recent trip to an education conference in Atlantic City, NJ, I am even more grateful. I talked with so many people about the education and health care systems and couldn’t wait to come running back home. I wanted to know how bad the health care really was down there – just didn’t want to take Michael Moore’s ‘Sicko’ at face value – but it really is that bad! So yes, please, tax me for our wonderful health care! I know there are issues with wait times, especially in more remote areas, and there are other problems of course, but we are really so very lucky!

And I also don’t want to be biased in my blogs and not give fair explaination for the ‘pro’ side of this tax, but I personally need more explanation. In a course last week on commercial real estate and litigation, presented by 6 lawyers from a local firm, I learned some of the positive ideas for this tax:

• some of this tax will be used as relief for small businesses, promoting economic growth and prosperity (agreed! – but I still think it is the ‘little guy’ who will be hit hardest in this – not the rich, not the poor, but the majority of those in between who are just trying to make ends meet and are tired of being stretched)
• many countries have a VAT (value added tax) structure to help businesses already; Quebec has its own as well (true! – but again with the ‘little guy’ – I know several people in Europe who are far from impressed with the VAT)
• bottom line is new tax treatment of new capital investment by corporations would promote increased investment and productivity in Ontario (my main thought here is also the fact that so much of any government’s budget is wasted on the ridiculous. I am not going to even get into this because I could write volumes, but I challenge anyone to disagree with me that government spending is inefficient. I think we could reorganize instead of sucking more out of the citizens)

NDP leader Andrea Horwath had the following to say (disclaimer – I am neither NDP, nor Liberal):

So in conclusion, I humbly ask for your input and explanation!

Tiffany McGregor: Educator/REALTOR®

Email me! – tiffismyrealtor@gmail.com

Follow me on Twitter! – twitter.com/tiffismyrealtor

Become a fan of my facebook page! – see blogroll to the right

Check out my website! – tiffismyrealtor.com (website currently under construction)

12h04 – É Seu Direito – Transplantes

12h35 – Ciranda Cultural – Revista Joaquim

13h05 – Tempero da Terra – Quirera Lapiana

– Serviços Públicos – Polícia Rodoviária Federal

– O Dono da Rua – Heitor Stockler de França

– Sabe Como? – Acidente de Trânsito

– PR399 – Foz do Iguaçu

13h35 – Brasil Eleitor – Programa nº 289

14h00 – Esquenta ao vivo

14h30 – Sessão ao vivo

17h00 – Onde Você Estava? – Assalto ao Banestado

– Tá na Lei – Lixo Tecnológico

– Essa Casa Tem História – Catedral de Palmas

– Aqui é Assim – Gráfica

– O Dono da Rua – Barão do Serro Azul

– Sabe Como? – Doação de Órgãos

– Tempero da Terra – Broa Polonesa

– Tá na Lei – Acesso a Calçadas

18h00 – TelejornAL ao vivo

18h30 – Plano Geral – Incentivo à Cultura

19h30 – É Seu Direito – Transplante

20h00 – Reprise Sessão

22h30 – Onde Você Estava? – Assalto ao Banestado

– Tá na Lei – Lixo Tecnológico

– Essa Casa Tem História – Catedral de Palmas

– Aqui é Assim – Gráfica

– O Dono da Rua – Barão do Serro Azul

– Sabe Como? – Doação de Órgãos

– Tempero da Terra – Broa Polonesa

– Tá na Lei – Acesso a Calçadas

23h30 – Reprise TelejornAL

– Perfil Parlamentar – Luiz Cláudio Romanelli, Nelson Justus, Cida Borghetti, Mário Roque

Recently Supreme Court Justice, Anthony M. Kennedy visited Dalton, a private highschool in Manhattan to make a speech at an assembly. He requested that the schools newspaper the Daltonian not publish any articles about the visit until they were approved by his office. His office claims it was to make sure quotations were accurate. Frank D. Lamonte, the executive director of the Student Law Press Center, thinks the request shouldn’t have been made. The controversy of the request found its way into an article in the New York Times titled  “From Justice Kennedy, a Lesson in Journalism.” Both the writers for the Daltonian and Supreme Court Justine Kennedy refused to give an interview to the New York Times.

I am confused for a number of reasons. First off, by requiring the paper to allow his office to approve articles about him Kennedy is violating the first ammendment and he’s a Supreme Court Justice, so thats kind of…weird. Second, his office did it likely to control how he’s portrayed in the public eye, but  now as a result there is a New York Times article about the controversy, which likely will do more damage to his image than an article in a highschool newspaper could have done. As well, refusing to give an interview to the Times doesn’t help his image either.

It seems to me like the school is partially to blame here as well. They should have said no this is not an acceptable request, by not doing so they are teaching a poor lesson in journalism to their students. I can perhaps understand that they might give in to demanding requests for worry that if they didn’t the Justice might not come and that would be a loss for the school. I can see that logic, but still, this  could have been a great opportunity for the writers at their newspaper. A national figure is coming and he’s worried about accuracy, so lets ensure accuracy here. Get out the voice recorders and have loads of people copy edit. Letting people read stories about them before publication almost never happens in the real world of journalism, why should it happen for journalism students? Shouldn’t they be prepared for the real world? Maybe they are less professional, but that is what faculty advisors are for.

I know that being in the world of politics and constantly being scrutinized by the public must be hard to deal with. I personally am not that well educated when it comes to politics. I had no idea who Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy was before I came across this article, but I do now and I haven’t come across him in the most positive light. If I was part of his office I’d rethink its press strategies.

Not the cornucopia of upsets we had last week, but if you thought there was nothing to talk about in college football, then you could not be more wrong. Florida and Alabama held serve and will meet in the SEC Championship game as, in all likelihood, undefeateds. Let’s get to some of the games before turning to the BCS and Heisman races.

Iowa 24, Ohio State 27

I called the Ohio State win, but I did not think it would be so painfully close for the Scarlet and Grey. If not for the special teams hiccup, it might not have gotten so close, but special teams are part of the game and Ohio State’s blunder almost cost them dearly. However, Ohio State pulled it out and can book their plane ticket to Pasadena to play in the Rose Bowl. Who they will play remains cloudy as Oregon is leading the Pac-10 but still has games against Arizona (a very good team) and Oregon State (good and a rival) remaining. Stanford has been extremely impressive, including a rout of USC in Los Angeles, but will need help from Oregon to win the Pac-10. All that stands between them and the Rose Bowl is Cal (a rival) and Notre Dame (talented despite sucking). Oregon State is in the same boat as Stanford in that they need a little help to win it, but instead of needing Oregon to lose, they need Stanford to lose since they still have to play Oregon. Any of these teams could win the Pac-10 and conceivably Arizona is still in the mix too. Crazy race.

Stanford 55, USC 21

One of the most underrated RBs in America

See above paragraph for Pac-10 race info, but Stanford was impressive. I picked them to cover, but never did I think they would score 27 in the 4th quarter to run USC out of their own building. Toby Gerhart might be the best white running back in the NFL since John Riggins. I know it sounds crazy, but he was the last white running back to be really successful in the NFL. Not being racist or anything like that, just making the observation that there have been 0 good white running backs since Riggins. Gerhart is that good though, he is built for the NFL and will be an impact player for a team like, let’s say, Green Bay, Tampa Bay or Buffalo. He is the real deal, keep an eye out for him.

TCU 55, Utah 28

I didn’t need to tell you that TCU was good, but I was trying to tell you just how good they really are and they wentoutand proved it. They are fast, they can run it and throw it, they run adefense that no one really knows how to deal with, and they can get after the QB. What else could you possibly want? They could hang in there with any tea

So awesome

m in the country. ANY. You don’t want to face this team. On top of all that, they are wearing the jerseys that were promoted in this awesome Adrian Peterson commercial. Scary and awesome, just like the Horned Frogs.

It might seem obvious, but I feel the need to say one more time for everyone that the Horned Frog is one of thebest mascots in college football. Intimidating, exotic and regionally relevant. Kudos.

The Rest

Arizona, Miami, and Houston all fell this week, with two of those (Arizona and Houston) just about ousting themselves from conference title races. I called the UNC upset of Miami, but it was not all that surprising given how inconsistent Miami is and how underrated UNC is at home. Pitt, Cincinnati, LSU and BYU all survived scares against inferior opponents. The final verdicts from the games were fairly predictable too. Pitt is good, but not that good as they struggled with a mediocre Notre Dame team. LSU is talented but always struggles at weird times. Cincinnati is not elite, but is very good, and BYU is just another team with good players. Frankly, no one cares too deeply about these teams. Cincinnati is probably the best among them, but we will know when Cincy and Pitt hook up later this year. That one will be for a BCS bid.

BCS Bowl Predictions (My pick in Italics)

BCS Championship Game

Florida (SEC Champ) v. Texas (Big 12 Champ)

Rose Bowl

Ohio State (Big Ten Champ) v. Oregon (Pac-10 Champ)

Orange Bowl

Georgia Tech (ACC Champs) v. LSU (SEC at-large)

Fiesta Bowl

TCU (MWC Champs, BCS at-large) v, Boise State (WAC Champs, BCS at-large)

Sugar Bowl

Alabama (SEC at-large) v. Cincinnati (Big East Champs)

A quick note on these picks. I really hope they have Boise and TCU split up so TCU plays Alabama and Cincinnati or LSU plays Boise, but I have a feeling they will get lumped together. I would like nothing more than to see the other matchups, but the BCS has a way of screwing the public over, so it might just be TCU v Boise. It’s a shame, it really is.

Heisman Race

The perfect name for a Texas QB and the perfect ending to a great college career.

1. Colt McCoy
2. Tim Tebow
3. Mark Ingram
4. Kellen Moore/ Andy Dalton
5. Jimmy Clausen

McCoy has really stepped it up lately and has a legitimate shot at this thing this time around. Ingram has the numbers, but I have a feeling that the loss to Florida in the SEC Championship game is going to kill his chances. Tebow and McCoy will get the undefeated bump that Ingram will not, bumping him to third. The guys in 4th are extremely good, but have not gotten the publicity needed to make a real run at the Heisman. Clausen will probably make the trip to New York instead of them simply because of publicity, but it is really a three-horse race.

CLOWN OF THE WEEK: The NFL. The NFL fined Chad OchoCinco $10,000 for offering a referee a one dollar bill in a joking manner and saying, “Come on can I get a call?” That is funny, I don’t care what the NFL says. The NFL needs more guys like Chad, as long as it is happy Chad instead of mopey Chad, which we have seen the last few years.

12h04 – Essa Casa Tem História – Couto Pereira

– Sabe Como? – Carteira de Trabalho

– PR399 – Rio Negro

– Aqui é Assim – Patrimônio

– O Dono da Rua – Marechais

– Tá na Lei – Crimes na Internet

– Tempero da Terra – Pintado na Telha

– Sabe Como? – Farmácia Popular

– Onde Você Estava? – Homem na Lua

– O Dono da Rua – Rocha Pombo

13h05 – Resumo da Semana

13h30 – Mundo da Fotografia – Marcos Piffer: Paisagem do Mar

14h00 – Ciranda Cultural – Revista Joaquim

14h40 – Mundo da Alimentação – Churrasco à Gaúcha

15h05 – Mundo da Arte – O Artesão de Ilusões: Wesley Duke Lee

15h30 – Plano Geral – Bolsa Família

16h35 – Memória Política – Evandro Lins e Silva

17h35 – Reprise Resumo da Semana

18h00 – Essa Casa Tem História – Couto Pereira

– Sabe Como? – Carteira de Trabalho

– PR399 – Rio Negro

– Aqui é Assim – Patrimônio

– O Dono da Rua – Marechais

– Tá na Lei – Crimes na Internet

– Tempero da Terra – Pintado na Telha

– Sabe Como? – Farmácia Popular

– Onde Você Estava? – Homem na Lua

– O Dono da Rua – Rocha Pombo

19h00 – Ciranda Cultural – Revista Joaquim

19h40 – Essa Casa Tem História – Instituto de Educação

– Serviços Públicos – Defesa Civil

20h00 – Reprise Resumo da Semana

20h25 – Memória Política – Evandro Lins e Silva

21h30 – Plano Geral – Bolsa Família

22h30 – Onde Você Estava? – IMI 70

–Aqui é Assim – Pianista

– Essa Casa Tem História – Hotel Cataratas

23h05 – Assembleia em Debate – ONGs

– Perfil Parlamentar – Antônio Anibelli, Fernando Scanavaca, Antonio Belinati, Luciana Rafagnin

IT’S that time of year again with the prospect of icy mornings and all the hazards which go with it, especially for local motorists.

With that in mind, I’ve been intouch with Lancs County Council to request that our area receives decent gritting during the winter months.
In the past few years, residents have been told that gritting is mostly kept to the major routes. However, I have drawn the Council’s attention to the following routes which may (or may not) be on their priority list but are in any case well used and therefore extremely hazardous when icy:

- Church Road, Old Skelmersdale
- School Lane, Old Skelmersdale
- Kestrel Park, Ashurst
- Mill Lane, Up Holland
- Spa Lane, Lathom
- Plough Lane, Westhead
- Hall Lane, Lathom
- Beacon Lane, Ashurst/Dalton
- Wigan Road leading onto Windgate, Old Skelmersdale
- Whiteleys Lane, Lathom/Ormskirk

With regard to the latter, Whiteleys Lane is – for those of you who don’t use it – a rural route but is extensively used as a ‘back way’ into Ormskirk, especially by residents coming from the Skelmersdale/Lathom/Bickerstaffe/Up Holland areas, and comes out by the old Grammar School on Ruff Lane.

There have been a number of incidents on this route over the years due to lack of gritting. The road is made all the more hazardous as there is a ‘dip’ in the road before its junction with Wellfield Lane which means that a) rain water gathers there and b) this turns icy quickly as it is sheltered.

A lot of the estate roads in Skelmersdale suffer from the same problems, even though they aren’t rural (although some are), because they have rather steep gradients, such as Wigan Road and Kestrel Park.

By the same token, Hall Lane and Plough Lane between Westhead and Lathom can be real death traps purely because of the speed people can get up to on these routes, even when ice is present.

If you think your road, or you know of a road, which should be on the Council’s list, I’d urge you to get intouch with them ASAP before the ice appears.

Tired. Late. Whataburger. Big truck. Family. Housewarming. Anniversary. Birthday. Fire. S’mores. Love. Happy.

Next summer (2010), the Ontario Government is set to put into force its new harmonized GST/PST sales tax which will apply a 13% sales tax to everything we purchase.

Things That Were Not Subject To The Current 8% PST Will Be Now Taxed –  As a result, things that were not previously taxed under the current Ontario Provincial Sales Tax (PST) will be taxed at 8%.

The new 13% tax will therefore apply to things like your electric bill, your gas bill, your water bill, condominium fees, insurance premiums, and every other good and service you purchase. There are almost no exemptions.

The current Ontario PST tax does not apply to services, nor does it apply to  the purchase of certain goods. The new 13% tax will therefore extend the old 8% PST tax rate to the purchase of all goods and all services.

The New 13% Tax Will Apply To The Puchase of All New Homes – The new harmonized GST/PST will also apply to all purchases of all new homes.  If a person were to purchase a new $1 million dollar home in Toronto, they would have to pay roughly $200,000 in taxes as a result of the Ontario land transfer tax, the new City of Toronto land transfer tax, and the new harmonized 13% GST/PST.

Think about that and what that would do to real estate values in Toronto. It will cause property values to fall and kill the new home construction industry and the jobs it creates.

And it won’t be long before you’ll hear our elected representatives telling us that, because of the harm that has been inflicted to the new home construction industry by the new 13% tax, it would be “fair” to extend the new 13% tax to sales of existing homes.

The New 13% Tax Is An Assault On Your Primary Residence Canadians have had two things that they have always been able to count on as being tax free – things that they could use to save money and accumulate wealth. They are your: (a) primary home; and (b) RRSP. That’s it.

The extension of the new 13% GST/PST to homes is simply a tax assault by the government on your primary home. They want to tax your primary home and you will suffer because of it.

Why? Because if a purchaser has to pay almost $200,000 in taxes to buy your  $1 million dollar home, the purchaser is going to pay less to you for your home. The purchaser will reduce the amount he or she is willing to pay to you in order to pay all the taxes.

The New 13% Tax Will Effectively Raise Your Income Taxes – Currently, the combined Federal/Ontario income tax rates are roughly 25% on the first $20,000 of taxable income, 42% on the next $40,000 of taxable income, and 46.5% on each dollar of taxable income over $60,000. On top of that, you have to add the “Fair Share Health Tax” of up to $1,000 each of us has to pay.

If the Ontario Government gets away with implementing their new harmonized GST/PST sales tax of 13%, the top effective income tax rates in Ontario will  be as follows (since you can’t spend any of your tax paid dollars without paying the new harmonized 13% GST/PST tax):

38% on the first $20,000
53% on the next $40,000
59.5% on every dollar over $60,000

On top of that, you have to pay your Ontario Fair Share Health Tax, your city realty taxes, your city garbage fees, your city water fees, your city street  parking permit fees, your annual Ontario and new City of Toronto vehicle license plate fees, your Ontario land transfer tax, your new City of Toronto land transfer tax, your gasoline taxes, your liquor taxes, your air departure taxes, your entertainment taxes, and so on.

OF ALL THE MONEY YOU WORKED HARD TO EARN, WHAT PERCENTAGE ARE YOU REALLY  KEEPING FOR YOUR OWN USE? 25%? 20%? 10%?

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH – FIGHT BACK- THIS HAS GOT TO STOP HERE OR WE WILL ALL SOON BE WORKING FULL TIME FOR THE  VARIOUS LEVELS OF GOVERNMENT IN ONTARIO .

AS A RESULT, I URGE YOU TO TAKE THIS ISSUE SERIOUSLY AND TO SIGN  THE PETITION AT http://www.unfairtaxgrab.com

I WOULD ALSO ASK YOU TO SEND THIS E-MAIL ON TO OTHERS THAT YOU KNOW AND ASK THEM TO DO THE SAME.

IF WE DON’T WORK TOGETHER ON THIS ISSUE THE NEW HARMONIZED 13% SALES TAX WILL BECOME A REALITY NEXT SUMMER.

THANK YOU.

No Fluminense, o zagueiro Luiz Alberto foi barrado pelo técnico Cuca, que deu chance ao jovem Dalton. Luiz Alberto é atualmente o jogador com mais tempo de clube, ao lado de Fernando Henrique, que também perdeu espaço dentro da equipe.

- Fiquei surpreso quando o Cuca definiu a equipe. É uma responsabilidade entrar no lugar do capitão. declarou Dalton.

Zagueiro enaltece entrosamento adquirido com Dalton em Xerém e pede o apoio da torcida nesta reta final do Brasileirão.

Cuca já confirmou que o antigo capitão Luiz Alberto seguirá barrado contra o Atlético-MG, quinta-feira, no Maracanã, e que Dalton ganhou a vaga. Com isso, o trio de zagueiros do Fluminense tem em Xerém a sua base.

É que Dalton e Digão foram titulares dos juniores do clube em 2008. Apenas Gum, que veio da Ponte Preta, não foi revelado nas divisões de base do Tricolor. Isso significa que o entrosamento deve melhorar nas próximas rodadas e os erros cometidos no empate com o Goiás, no último domingo, no Serra Dourada, prometem ser corrigidos.

Time teve sete igualdades em seus últimos dez jogos. ‘Só vamos sair dessa situação se vencermos’, diz o goleiro Rafael.

Numa rápida análise das estatísticas tricolores, é possível perceber que o time teve recentemente uma pequena evolução. Nos últimos dez jogos, incluindo a Copa Sul-Americana, o Fluminense só sofreu um derrota (para o Flamengo). Mas os mesmo números não escondem um problema a ser corrigido: o grande número de empates. Neste mesmo período, foram sete, com apenas duas vitórias.

No retrospecto apenas do Brasileiro, já são quatro jogos invictos. Mas foram três empates e uma vitória. Se for mantido este desempenho, o time será rebaixado.

Time teve sete igualdades em seus últimos dez jogos. ‘Só vamos sair dessa situação se vencermos’, diz o goleiro Rafael.

Numa rápida análise das estatísticas tricolores, é possível perceber que o time teve recentemente uma pequena evolução. Nos últimos dez jogos, incluindo a Copa Sul-Americana, o Fluminense só sofreu um derrota (para o Flamengo). Mas os mesmo números não escondem um problema a ser corrigido: o grande número de empates. Neste mesmo período, foram sete, com apenas duas vitórias.

No retrospecto apenas do Brasileiro, já são quatro jogos invictos. Mas foram três empates e uma vitória. Se for mantido este desempenho, o time será rebaixado.

Zagueiro enaltece entrosamento adquirido com Dalton em Xerém e pede o apoio da torcida nesta reta final do Brasileirão.

Cuca já confirmou que o antigo capitão Luiz Alberto seguirá barrado contra o Atlético-MG, quinta-feira, no Maracanã, e que Dalton ganhou a vaga. Com isso, o trio de zagueiros do Fluminense tem em Xerém a sua base.

É que Dalton e Digão foram titulares dos juniores do clube em 2008. Apenas Gum, que veio da Ponte Preta, não foi revelado nas divisões de base do Tricolor. Isso significa que o entrosamento deve melhorar nas próximas rodadas e os erros cometidos no empate com o Goiás, no último domingo, no Serra Dourada, prometem ser corrigidos.

After running out of dinners I hitched into town at 6:00p.m. not having a clue of where to sleep. Immediately the pizza joint attracted my attention and moments later a 16″ pie was on the table in front of me. Sure enough, a few moments after that an empty plate was on the table in front of me. Its a funny magic trick that thru-hikers can pull with mass quantities of food.

A food challenge that a fellow hiker wants to attempt with me is the Vermonster. Its something like twenty scoops of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream with brownies and fudge and all that good stuff. I must say, the thought of that much cream in my belly makes me cringe. The half gallon challenge in Damascus, VA is much more manageable, despite the record for emptying the carton being well below ten minutes.

The Godzilla in Dalton seems a worthy opponent for the garbage disposal pit of a thru-hiker. A twelve egg omlet loaded with peppers and sausage on top of a plate full of home fries and other good fillings. Despite the thirty plus hikers to attempt the Godzilla, I can count the number of completions on one hand.

I have begun creating new challenges for myself. One seemed undaunting yet ended disastrously. A dozen jelly donuts did not feel too rough but after glancing at the profile map of the next mile of hiking I realized this challenge should have been left for a day off from hiking.

I know I need to step the pizza size up to eighteen inches and ten pop tarts and an entire box of cookies is no longer a challenge.

My hunger is not curved and my metabolism only is getting higher with the cold.

Those are my 4th graders sketching during an assembly with David Macaulay yesterday. Yeah, that David Macaulay.  And, yeah, I’d be jealous too.  That is, of a school that had him coming once a month for the whole year as a visiting artist.  You see, we’ve this terrific program called Original Mind where, well, original thinkers come and work with us in all sorts of ways all year long.  David is the third, following Sarah Sze and Natasha Trethewey.

He’s doing all sorts of things, but for me one of the coolest is that he is getting us sketching.  We’ve all got sketchbooks and are using them in so many different ways; check out this great blog to see some of them.  It is still early in the school year and so I’m still considering all sorts of ideas of how to use them in my classroom, but the kids are already loving them.    You can see their beautiful covers and a few of the sketches they’ve done  here. More, much more to come.

Okay guys. I literally just finished watching my favorite movie of all time. This is a documentary about a man named Dalton Trumbo. It is so eye opening, hilarious, inventive, and has the best excerpts in any movie I have ever seen, ever. I’ll break it down for you. We’ll start with the excerpts.

Okay, so all of the excerpts in this are read by very famous celebrities. Two of them are a couple of my favorite actors of all time: Liam Neeson and Paul Giamatti. However I have to give credit to all of the actors who read the excerpts because they did an amazing job. They were all extremely charismatic and brought Trumbo’s words to life so well that I felt like he was in the room saying them to me. It was incredible absolutely incredible. I won’t spoil anything, but my favorite one’s were the last one, the first Paul Giamatti one, and the one on masturbation (it’s a friggin’ scream).

Anyhow, the excerpts were so well done and I am so proud of everybody involved with the making of them.

Now you may think after what I’ve said that the excerpts overshadow the documentary part of the movie, but no. The great thing about Trumbo, is that the importance of both parts of the movie is balanced perfectly. You’re always excited to get to the excerpts, and you’re always excited for more documents. And some of the stories are amazing. They’re all told in great detail and you feel very satisfied after each one has been told. Some are very sad, but some made you laugh out loud. Some are very heartwarming and some are very mysterious, making you feel like a detective on the biggest case of your career. It’s an awesome thrill ride that anybody can enjoy.

I recommend Trumbo to writers and people in the movie industry, as well as people considering getting into politics. This movie is practically flawless and there is a reason I call it my favorite movie of all time. Buy this movie, now! It may be a little late to be talking about this, since it was made in ‘07, but hey, if you think that way consider it “an oldie but a goodie.”