My Top Ten CD's

Had a lot of top tens about a week or two back and it just hit me that I didn't look at my favorite cds of the last few years. I did hit a few with a top five of the moment post. Now, I'd like to expand on that thought. Some of the cd are the same and some have changed. So, here are my ten favs and a few special mentions. Most of these are within about the last 5-10 years with a few from earlier thrown in for fun. In no order my favs are:

1. Rilo Kiley -- More Adventurous
2. Tori Amos -- Little Earthquakes
3. David Grey -- Sell, Sell, Sell 
4. Idlewild -- The Remote Parts
5. Biffy Clyro -- Only Revolutions
6. Black Star -- Black Star
7. Florence and the Machine -- Lungs
8. Neko Case -- Middle Cyclone
9. Jenny Lewis & Watson Twins -- Rabbit Fur Coat
10. Oasis -- What's the Story (Morning Glory)

Special Mention: Amos Lee -- Mission Bell and Last Days at the Lodge, My Morning Jacket --Okonokos, Z (these two would have made the top ten .... if I had started listening to them earlier than a few days ago!), Marilyn Manson -- Mechanical Animals, Hole -- Celebrity Skin, Aimee Man -- Lost in Space, Live at St. Anne's Warehouse.

Life

"Sorrow makes us all children again - destroys all differences

of intellect. The wisest know nothing."

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Every now and then you get a wake up call from life. A kinda Chuck Norris punch to the face. Be it news of a personal nature or a world event. Both can shake you up and make you rethink your outlook.

Think about how you felt when you saw the news about the Kennedy assassination, the Challenger explosion, and 9/11.  All three are events that defined not only single lives but also the lives of a whole generation.  Now think about how you felt when you got news that hit closer to home, on a personal level?

The Kennedy assassination is nothing more than a historical event to me at my age. Even the Challenger tragedy was so early on in my life that  while I know I saw it happen live, it didn't really impact me. September 11th, 2001 on the other had was a whole new experience.

When I was woken up that day by my roommate, who told me that a plane had hit the World Trade Center, it kicked off about 48 hours of continuous news coverage and sheer shock.  The scale of the event was something that I had never witnessed before. With the exception of maybe the Oklahoma City Bombing in 1995.

That event changed my outlook for many months. A few weeks later when I was at a Chicago Bears game I found myself thinking about the event as a "soft target" and trying to plan out my "escape route". Both of which were thoughts that never crossed my mind before the attacks of 9/11. Heck, I'm not even sure if I knew what a "soft target" was? All I knew was these were the things I was thinking about as I watched the planes fly around Soldier Field.

Granted there were people who dealt with the events of that day on a more personal level than me. But, half a nation away I was still affected. It was an event that brought a global threat to a central stage. A strike at the country that American truly hadn't dealt with since the attack on Pearl Harbor

Personal tragedy can also be a shock to the system. A wake up of tectonic proportions. The end result of which is not necessarily loss of a loved one.

I still remember the day that my parents showed up at my work to tell me my cousin had died or when I was told at school by them that my grandfather had passed. 

When my parents showed up at my work to tell me about my cousin I knew it wasn't going to be good news since they were both teachers and since it was the middle of a school day there was no reason for them to both be stopping by. It's that kind of unexpected news that kinda rocks you the most.  For some reason I don't remember showing much emotion at the time I was told. But, about 8 hours later on my drive home I lost it...hands down no holds barred lost my emotional grip.

With the news that my grandfather had passed it was a little easier.

We knew he had been sick and was having surgery, but it wasn't expected for him to pass when he did. Even given the unexpected nature  was easier. Sometimes you get leveled with a wrecking ball. It knocks you down into a hole that you may feel you're unable to escape from. Other times it's just a minor course correction in your outlook.

You may feel like an event or news really has no impact on you...but you spend the rest of the day thinking about it. Or, you may wake up a few days or weeks later and think, "why didn't I react to that?" Grief is a funny animal like that. There is really no rhyme or reason to its impact.

In both cases I have found that it is important to surround yourself with good friends and family. Don't let the grief rule you. Embrace it, for a time. Allow it to help you realize that which you have. Don't discard it, learn from it.

My Top Ten Books

Hey I'm not just a movie fan...I read too. Well, I don't read a lot with substance. But, I do read. So I decided to switch gears and throw out a list of my favorite books I've read over the last few years. Now, there aren't a ton of books on my list that will rank as Literary classics. They are all fun in their own way. So lets get to the list...that like the movies is in no specific order (with some ties going to books by the same author in a series).

1. Of Mice and Men -- John Steinbeck
2. The Name of the Rose -- Umberto Eco
3. Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood pal -- Christopher Moore
4. I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell -- Tucker Max
5. Killing Yourself to Live -- Chuck Klosterman
6. Messiah -- Boris Starling
7. Red Dragon,Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal -- Thomas Harris
8. A Time to Kill -- John Grisham
9. Fool -- Christopher Moore
10. Angels & Demons, The DaVinci Code, The Lost Symbol -- Dan Brown

SPECIAL MENTION to: Growing Up Doughnut -- Don Shields (you're welcome dad), every other book written by Christopher Moore,

The Second Sign the End is Near....

Four words sum this one up:

1. "Snooki"
2. Best
3. Selling
4. Author

I think this book being on the best seller list may be more than a guy can handle!

Now before you start hating on me...I fully admit I haven't read the book. Also, I have no intentions of reading the book.

To me it's kind of like the fad of the mid seventies (and even today) where a successful person in one area will attempt to harness that current "it" status to branch out into other areas.

Consider that this usually involves releasing an album. Some of my personal favorites of those past attempts at crossover success are:

1) Leonard Nimoy -- The Legend of Bilbo Baggins
2) William Shatner -- anything (Common People was actually a great track though)   for double your fun there is this best of album that features both Kirk and Spock!
3) Tim Curry -- Fearless
4) Sissy Spacek -- Hangin' Up My Heart
5) Bruce Willis -- The Return of Bruno

More recent fare has been of better quality but none the less unexpected:

1) Minnie Driver -- Everything I've Got in My Pocket
2) Christian Kane -- The House Rules
3) Ewan McGregor -- Moulin Rouge
4) Gwyneth Paltrow -- Glee and Country Strong
5) Jared Leto -- any 30seconds to Mars release

I understand that Ewan and Gwyneth are both related to movie projects. But, both actually have great voices in my opinion. Personally, I'm not a huge 30 seconds to mars fan but they sell albums and put butts in seats.

I was shocked that I thoroughly loved the Minnie Driver album and the follow up Seastories.  Christian Kane for those of you who aren't big TV fans was a regular part of Angel back in the day and is currently kicking ass as Eliot Spencer on LEVERAGE.  As a rule country is not my style...but I got sucked in when I heard a single from the album on iTunes and was hooked from there.

But, back to the whole Snooki's a best selling author thing.

This leads me to think about how consumer driven we are as a society now. We buy things we don't need based on the recommendation of people we don't actually know!

There was a point in history where the only way that a product became a top seller was if it really worked. Or, if it was actually a good product. Word of mouth has been replaced with the celebrity endorsement. We're now taking advice on what to buy from TV personalities and sometimes the use of the word "Personality" is truly ironic.

When it comes to TV personalities who I trust to sell me food/products that could end up killing me I would count...um...0!! Now I may take a recommendation for a band or a book from a celebrity that I like. But, those few people are people that I pay closer attention to than just what their character does on TV. AKA: I know the actors real name!

Nothing was more annoying then when I worked in retail and someone would come in and I'd have an exchange like this:

Them: "Do you have that CD that _____ (character name) was talking about?"
Me: "was it during the show?"
Them: "Nope, it was on Letterman."
Me: "You do know that _____ (character name) isn't their real name right?"
Them: "What does it matter?"
Me: silently ..."you suck!" out loud "Let's Check"

As for the whole Snooki thing I chuckle because for some reason I think of a rerun of Family Guy I just watched the other day.

After years of toiling on his "novel", and having it fail miserable, Brian (the family dog) gives up on writing. Only to write a second book on a dare once he reads a self help book.

Brian gets loaded and writes a book in one night that jumps to the top of the best seller lists making him an overnight celebrity. The best part is that the book is almost 90% blank pages. What you get is a chapter like "setting your goals". The book tells you to write down the goals that you want to set for yourself to help make you more successful. Then the book has you write down ways you plan on achieving your goals.

It is the pet rock of books! And it sells. The sad part is that I am convinced that a similar book would sell for real.

In the end people will always buy things they don't need, based on the recommendations of people they don't know. Truly though, if you can't count on a "Star" like Snooki to sell you a good book? Who can you trust?

Final thoughts on the Bears Season....

The season is over, the Bears are once again not playing for the Super Bowl and I have yet another gambling wager slip that is now worth nothing!

When the Bears lost to the Packers it was the end of a great season. But, a season with a lot of ups and downs.

A real low point (other than the NFC Championship game loss) was during the October 3rd game when the Giants found a way to sack Jay Cutler 9 times...in the first half. That game also saw the Bears rack up a total of 110yards of offense for the game. Thanks to the crappy play of the other teams in the division the Bears were still okay at this point. But, the nay-sayers were out in force. Jay Cutler would miss time with a concussion and the bears would go on to lose three of their next four games including a pair of three of three point defeats at the hands of the Seahawks and Redskins (two of the worst teams in the league)

After a reshuffle of the offensive line that saw Jay Cutler better protected the Bears would win seven of their last eight games. The only blemish on the last half of the season being a whooping a the hands of the red hot New England Patriots two weeks before Christmas.

With a playoff win against the "Division Champion" Seattle Seahawks the team fell flat against the Packers. A team they had the chance to keep out of the playoffs during the last week of the regular season.

While the NFC Championship game was hard to watch I don't fault Jay Cutler for not playing the second half. Turns out he had a torn MCL which is not an easy thing to play with. So all the Twitter and Facebook haters can take a step back. There were a few points that I did question the coaching staff.

Late in the third (or fourth) it seemed we had a Chicago timeout called just as we were getting ready to snap the ball and the result of the play was going to be a long first down pickup. Not the first time that has happened. Also, what the hell was the coaching staff thinking in the fourth quarter calling an end around on 3rd and 3?

If you're going to make that call don't you think you should at least put the ball in the hands of your fastest weapon in the person of Devin Hester? Just saying.

What I did see was the the Bears are in desperate need of some legit wide receivers. While the group of Hester, Knox, Davis, Bennett and Aromashodu all tried their best to be "the man" we don't have that one guy that other teams fear. We also need a third quarterback. Cutler is still the man, but Hanie showed me a lot of heart and skill with the way he played in a big game with little notice.

That interception by BJ Raji was just a fat man being in the right place at the right time. I mean really...how often is a 300+ pound lineman going to be dropping back into coverage like that? The Shields interception at the end was a bad throw and a crap way to end what was looking like a miracle comeback.

At least I have the Cubs starting soon! But, in true Chicago sports fan mode there's always next year...granted with the next season in doubt the phrase may actually be,. "There's always two years from now!"

The first sign that the end is near...

First sign of 2011 that the End is near...I agree with Kim Kardashian....

I blissfully remember a time when I didn't even know who the hell the Kardashians were (or Paris Hilton for that matter). But, now you can't follow reality TV, or sports for that matter, without getting a Kardashian name drop once a month. The frequency of mentions increases in direct correlation to how close to the greater Los Angeles area you are.

So to say that I don't care about what she or any of her sisters has to say would be a fair assumption. Usually, if the headline even has the Kardashian name in it I don't even click on the link or read the article.

This time I was compelled to read the story for some reason when I came across this headline on CNN.com: Kim Kardashian Blames MTV for Teen Pregnancies.

Now there's a zinger that can go a few different ways! But, in this case I think it was a spot on observation from the reality TV "star".

According to the CNN's Marquee Blog article Kardashian says, "I find it so sad and disturbing," the 30-year-old reality star writes on her blog. "It seems that shows like 'Teen Mom' are all of a sudden making teen pregnancy seem cool in the eyes of young girls. The kids from these shows are all over the news, even on the covers of magazines, and have become almost like celebrities, but girls, these are not people you should idolize!"

I agree with her. Let me step back and look at that statement for a second...

Okay, yeah...we agree.

The glorification of the "teen mom" lifestyle may actually be MTV's fault! That doesn't mean that you shouldn't hold parents and the kids responsible at the same time. But, lets give credit where credit is due...and MTV does deserve credit. With shows like "Teen Mom" having a baby has gone from being an Earth shattering event that could make a girl a social outcast, to a possible windfall of economic gain!

Somehow a few months ago the magazine US Weekly just showed up at the house. It was  in my sisters name for the record. We never paid for it--never will. But, for the first four issues, or more, it was all "Teen Mom" this and "Teen Mom" that. Two which I begged the question, "What the Fuck?"

The funniest part to me of the magazine coverage was the "shocking" side stories like, "Can Mandy do it alone now that Jeff is out of the picture?"  Really? They say it like the biggest problem that a fifteen year old single mother will face is will the fifteen year old father in the picture?! NO fifteen year old boy (or girl for that matter) is ready to be a parent!

I still, in part, subscribe to the theory that there are a lot of "adults" that shouldn't be allowed to have kids. Not sure we need to go as far as testing before giving a green light to people to have kids. But, there should be some checks and balances before some of these "adults" are allowed to care for their kids.

Keep in mind that this all comes from a guy with no kids. Who's only real opinion on the subject is governed by what the media shows. That being said, We all live in a world where media attention is usually focused on the horror stories rather than the good deeds.

Much like Mark Anthony's speech to the Romans in Shakespeare's Julius Cesear when he says, "I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him; The evil that men do lives after them,The good is oft interred with their bones..."  Such is life in a world where reality TV is king. No one remembers the good stories, while everyone remembers the train wrecks...TEMPTATION ISLAND!!

So now I find myself speechless...what's going to happen next? Is that Douche-Nozzle (capitalized to show it is a proper title, like President) Michael Savage going say something that doesn't instantly make me want to stick a red hot poker in my ears in an attempt to unhear it? Will I find myself NEEDING a Lindsay Lohan CD? Or, will the end of the world come swiftly and save me from the shocking truth that I have a comparable viewpoint to Kim Kardashian?

Given those options...I'd have to side with a swift and all powerful Extinction Level Event!!

First Half---Bears -vs- Packers

I was so excited for this game! But for some reason the Bears have decided to take the first half off! Packers were able to move the ball with little or no problems.

The "Monsters of the Midway" need to wake the hell at halftime...Cutler needs to make better decisions...and someone (I don't care who) needs to put Rogers down hard!

Second half is about to start with the Bears getting the ball. Fingers crossed we got our collective heads out of our ass during halftime.

Time Keeps on Slipping....

"The only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen at once." -- Albert Einstein

Right now I kinda wish it did all happen at once! Or, at least that it happened at a little faster pace.

Nothing kills a good day like the feeling that time has come to a screeching halt! We all know that time is an equally measured unit and doesn't actually move faster or slower given you current state of mind. But, damn if it doesn't feel like it sometimes.

Take tonight for example. Work was skipping along at a good pace. It seemed like I hit the 5hr mark and lunch with no problem....but it was all downhill from there.

I've tried everything I can think of to move the night along. I've avoided the clock, taken micro breaks to refresh, pushed the caffeine, and turned on the radio. Nothing is helping. Even writing this down seems to be taking too long....

With that: days off are too short, time at work passes by too slow....and the boredom is killing me right now! Bring on Sunday and the Bears.

Bears -VS- Packers

Well, the time is almost here. Time for another Bears Packers match up...this time for the keys to the kingdom.

Loser goes home, Winner goes on to Dallas and the Super Bowl.

I can't wait. As much as I would have loved to see the Packers lose that last regular season game and not make the playoffs I think it will be a more gratifying win to beat the Pack and head on to Dallas for a match up with either the Jets or the Steelers.

I'm really like a kid the night before Christmas...or to be more accurate. ME the night before Christmas. Having the Bears playing games at this time of year is always fun! But, to watch them take on the Packers for a change to return to the Championship game is all that much sweeter.

Plus, I found my betting slip from my summer trip to Vegas. $5 bet on the Bears to win it all will return $65...So I got that working for me. Also, it gives me another excuse to head to Las Vegas!

Here's to next year being this year!! Go Bears!

CBS Cares

I still can't believe this is a legit PSA!!

There is a Season...

next year is here...

It's officially time to start thinking about baseball. Spring training gets underway officially on February 14th when Cubs pitchers and catchers report to the training facility in Mesa Arizona.  Sure a few other teams report the day before...but who really cares about them?!

The team has gone through a lot of changes since the start of spring training last year. Lou Pinella is out as manager..Mike Quade is in!  Derek Lee is out at first base and slugger Carlo Pena was brought in as a free agent to fill the gap.  We've lost players: Ryan Theriot (who is now a Cardinal and bad mouthing the Cubs..but I still like him as a player), we've traded for a new top notch pitcher in Matt Garza (Rays) and we've brought back a guy who never should have left in Kid K (Kerry Wood).

To say that anticipation runs wild for this year would be an understatement. It would also be a statement that could have been lifted from the start of any spring training over the last 100 years!!

As a displaced Chicago fan I only get to see a few regular seasons games in person when they come to whip the D-Backs and as many spring training games as I can fit into my schedule.



Fits well with my Darth Tater and Spud Trooper Models!

 This year, thanks to a great birthday gift from my friend Sara, I will be going to the first game of the spring season versus the Oakland A's. I also got this totally bad ass Mr. Potato head who's all decked out in Cubs gear!


So I am looking forward to another year of sun, fun and some crazy beer prices at the ballpark!

So now I just wait for the MLB 2011 app to become available for my iPhone so I can listen to the games on the radio and be a happy boy during work hours!!

And let me end on this note... RIP Ron Santo this year won't be the same without you. As I said when you passed...it's too bad we couldn't get you into the hall before you got into heaven!

Movie Review---Die Hard Franchise

If you are a guy between the ages of 16 and 60, who likes testosterone fueled action movies, you have most likely seen at least one, if not more, of the Die Hard films.

Some will say the original was a crap film...some will say mindless action movies have no merit. I would like to start off by pointing out that the ooriginal Die Hard was nominated for 4 Academy Awards (Visual effects, sound effects, editing, best sound) and won the Best Foreign Language Film from the Japanese Academy...John McClane is big in Japan, enough said!

While all the films are gems of the action genre. I am partial to the first and second in the series. Much like the original Star Wars films...you can't beat the originals.

The recipe for the first movies is as follows: 1 part Hardened cop coming home for Christmas to reconnect with his ex-wife and kids, 1 part crazy high rise office Christmas party (technically I classify this as a favorite holiday film!), add in a bunch of bad ass terrorists (I'm looking at you Hans Gruber), and some inept Feds, mix in a bowl and watch tensions rise for approx 2hr and 10min.

When he's not running around the building killing bad guys, jumping off the top strapped to a fire hose, or dropping exploding computers down elevator shafts, all while rocking a pair dress pants and a white wife beater sans shoes he's throwing classic one liners at the terrorists.

When called a John Wayne cowboy type by Hans --"Yippee Ki-Aye.. Muther Fucker", aft"Now I have a Machine Gun...HO, HO, HO" (written in sharpie on a dead terrorists shirt), while climbing through the ventilation system "Now I know what a TV dinner feels like", and a personal favorite of mine--"Nine million terrorists in the world and I gotta kill one with feet smaller than my sister."

Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) is equal parts charming and brutal psychopath. In the end

**SPOILER ALERT**

You almost feel bad that John McClane had to drop him off a tall building! Almost....

For the second film in the series , aptly titled Die Hard 2-Die Harder, the scene shift from Nakatomi Plaza to an East Coast Airport besieged by terrorists..again at Christmas time! John McClane has the worst holiday luck ever! It's kinda like getting on a plane now and seeing a member from the cast of Jackass sitting in the next row...you know this may end up being be an interesting ride.

While trying to fly home, again to see his ex-wife and kids, John now has to deal with Terrorists in an airport. These guys though have no thoughts of money. Instead they are hell bent on freeing a political prisoner who is schedule to fly in ... in SECRET, to the airport. To do so they end up hijacking the air control system and wreaking general havoc for all involved.

Where the first film had the fun of Johnny boy jumping off buildings and scampering though ventilation ducts, Die Harder ups the ante with crashing planes and snow mobiles! Seriously, I love this film. Now, the main bad guy is no where as cool as Hans Gruber, but William Sadler's Col. Stuart does his best to stop our cop hero. And per the first formula you have: 1 harden cop, a bunch of terrorists, again some inept Feds, and a passable bad guy. change bowls...shake and re-heat!!

For me this movie was the first time I had seen Fred Thompson on screen which was nothing at the time...but did cause some confusion for me a few years later when I saw him on C-SPAN. It was the first time I think I ever had to do a little research to see if he was an actor or a Senator. For some reason I couldn't wrap my 15 year old mind around the fact that he could be BOTH. I also remember that I wanted John McClane to keep kicking bad guy ass for as long as he could.

In 1995  I would get my wish as John McClane would team up with Zeus Carver (Sam Jackson) "Yeah, Zeus! As in, father of Apollo? Mt. Olympus? Don't fuck with me or I'll shove a lightning bolt up your ass? Zeus! You got a problem with that!!" To take on Jeremy Irons "Simon Gruber"...trying really hard to re-capture some of the uber cool that was Hans Gruber. (hint: the characters were supposed to be brothers)

Then again in 2007 52 year old Bruce Wills again donned the cocky attitude and gun to bring everyone's favorite wise ass cop to the screen. This time paired with a young hacker, played by Justin Long, it's up to the two of them to foil the plan of domestic cyber terrorists lead by Thomas Gabriel (the always fantastic Timothy Olyphant).

With a box office take of almost $135Milion it proved that the cop/terrorist/inept Fed plot line still puts butts in seats. This time you get to throw in some crazy jet plane shooting at a tanker truck...basically it was the movie equivalent of Fonzie jumping the shark.

All in all the four films have made almost $432Million. With the last movie being the top grosser of the series. I wish I could say it was time for Bruce to hang up the John McClane shield and move on...but the man still makes a kick ass action flick! Which means as long as John McClane is in a movie, and he's played by Bruce Willis my ass will be firmly placed in a seat at a theatre nearby!

My Top Ten Sci-Fi/Horror Films

Keeping with the weekly theme that has developed...

here are my top ten Sci-Fi/Horror films. No order

1. The Shining (1980)

2. Serenity (2005)

3. Resident Evil (2002)

4. Shaun of the Dead  (2004) walks a fine line...but I'll allow it!

5. Alien (1979)

6. Cloverfield (2008)

7. Star Wars: Ep IV (1974)

8. Independence Day (1996)

9. The Fifth Element (1997)

10. Stargate (1994)

My Top Ten Drama Films

I've been thinking more and more about this over the last few days...

I'm gonna keep the theme rolling on with a look at my

favorite dramas. Again in no set order.

1. City by the Sea (2002)

2. Silence of the Lambs (1991)

3. Of Mice and Men (1992)

4. Inception (2010)

5. Contact (1997)

6. Untouchables (1987)

7. Ninth Gate (1999)

8. Candy (2006)

9. A Clockwork Orange (1971)

10. 12 Angry Men (1957)

Barrett Jackson 2011

So I spent the better part of the afternoon with my father at the Barrett Jackson Auto Auction. If you are not sure what this is let me enlighten you.

It's, in my opinion, the top collector car show in the world. They hold many auctions each year...with the big event being this time of year in Scottsdale Arizona. This is where you can find the one of a kind treasures from your youth up for auction. In years past they've had The General Lee, The Batmobile, KITT (old and new) and many more iconic TV/Movie cars roll across the auction block. You can also have the chance to buy historic cars like this years feature the ambulance that carried JFK's body. Should go across sometime during the last two days.

2011 Camero Convertible ($36,000 as shown)

You can also see hard to find older cars or if you tend to lean more modern you can find concept cars and new off the line models of some of your favorites.

This year was the first time I've had a chance to attend. My father and I didn't spend too much time in the actual auction as the first few days are filled with nice cars that are, for the most part, cars you see all the time. As the week goes on the cars become more collectible and rare..and the prices keep going up.

For example the first car on the auction block was a 1992 Oldsmobile Delta 88  that was sold on a salvage title only, was not legal to be driven, and sold for about $4500. As we edge closer to the end of the show you will see those figures climb into the six figure range.

2011 Bugatti Veryon Super Sport

One of my favorites at the event isn't even going to be up for auction I don't think ... it's a 2011 Bugatti Veryon Super Sport that has a top speed of almost 270mph. Speaking with the company rep he told me that there will only be 40 of this car produced this year and the currently the one at the show is the only one that is in the United States at this time. This car looks fast just sitting still!

2011 Bugatti Veryon

The fact that the regular run of the Veryon this year that will include the Super Sport above and the regular silver and black model will only have a production run of about 300 will make this one sought after car to have in your garage. When you also factor in the reported plans to stop production on the Veryon after this year it will only drive up the value of this sweet ride.  Granted if last years price is any indication you will need to have a small fortune to take this bad boy home. The 2010 Veryon Super Sport when for $2.5Million.

Other nice cars that were on hand inside the main tent were the new 2011 Corvette, the 2011 Chevy Camero Convertible ($36,000 for those interested) and if you are thinking green .... a large selection of SMART cars.

If you thought you might die if you ever bought a SMART car and had to drive it around...may I suggest you spend you $19.000 on the convertible model! Seriously, it was so offensive to look at that I didn't even take a picture. It was like an assault on my eyes. A train wreck that I couldn't look away from. But, it wasn't because I was intrigued by it! More like I was confused by the concept.

"So let me get this straight...you want to put me in an auto with just barely more protection that riding a motorcycle...and you then want to make it a rag top?" You need to have a good come to Jesus talk every time you sit down in that thing just to make sure all your affairs are in order before you hit the highway! Seriously, helmet laws should apply when driving one of these little tinder boxes!

Gumpert Apollo

Another favorite of mine was the Gumpert Apollo. A car that brings a race car mind to the street.

With a top speed of almost 230mph this car will get you on the evening news should you try to foolishly outrun the Cops while testing out that top speed. And at a cost of about $400,000 you will only have to win a small lotto prize to drive it home rather than the Mega Millions.

With this toy you can push it almost as fast as the Veryon (current world record holder for fastest production car at 267.81mph) While still having almost $2Million in the bank to pay for tickets, repairs, gas and other unforseen expenses that come with have a car that costs more than half the houses on my block put together.

All in all it was a fun birthday with my dad. I got to see some great cars, talk to some great people and generally bum around for a few hours. So I think I'll call this a win.

Another Year older...

Another year in the life of me has come and gone. I'm a year older and really none the wiser. I'm not making the same mistakes that I made in my youth...but still making mistakes!!

What fun would a mistake free life be? Lucky for me none of the mistakes that I am making now are "life changers" Most of my recent mistakes are of the money management type. But, with a new years come a renewed effort to change that....or at least alter it a bit.

The new year always brings resolutions give you something to strive for during the year....but over the last few weeks I've seen a ton of people update their "bucket list"....AKA things to do before you die!! Kinda like a new years resolution, but with more time to follow through than just a year *hopefully*

So not to be one to miss out on a current trend I too will throw in my 2cents and push forth a bucket list.

1. Travel abroad (hope to check this off this summer)
2. Go to a "ghost hunt" event at the Stanley Hotel
3. Get married and have kids
4. Go to a Superbowl/World Series game featuring the Bears/Cubs
5. Make/Win enough money to own a car that costs more than small house
6. See the Pyramids
7. Shoot under par for a round of golf at a major course
8. Kiss a girl on the observation deck of the Eiffel Tower
9. Fly in a private jet
10. Go to the baseball and football hall of Fame
11. New years in Time Square

Those are the major items...minor items to be filled along the way (in conjunction with above): Irish Pub crawl in Dublin, Jack the Ripper walking tour, visit the Great Wall of China, Fish and chips from a lunch van after a night of drinking in London...]

For right now I would say those are the main items on my list. I don't feel a great urge to swim with the dolphins, or write the great American novel. If either happen I won't be mad...I just won't be looking to actively check them off of my list.

My Top Ten Action Films

Time to kill...lets look at my personal favorites in the world of Action films.

1. Boondock Saints (1999)

2. Die Hard (1988)

3. True Lies (1994)

4. Under Siege (1992)

5. The Patriot (2001) -- Mel not Steven

6. F/X (1986)

7. The Expendables (2010)

8. Rambo: First Blood (1982)

9. The Saint (1997)

10. Guns of Navarone (1961)

My Top Ten Comedies

Writing a review of Galaxy Quest got me thinking about my favorite Comedies...they are (in no specific order)

1. Monty Pyton and The Holy Grail (1975)
2. Galaxy Quest  (1999)
3. Stripes (1981)
4. Evolution (2001)
5. A League of their Own (1992)
6. Tommy Boy  (1995)
7. Blazing Saddles (1974)
8. Roman Holiday (1953)
9. The Jerk (1979)
10. Top Secret (1984)

Review time....

Today my sights are set on a fun little film that you need to watch (repeatedly) if you haven't seen it before.

Galaxy Quest

If you look back and fondly remember old sci fi shows like; the original Star Trek, the original Battlestar Gallactica, Buck Rogers, etc.. then you may find a soft spot in your heart for this movie.

Basically, it's the story of the cast of a cult Sci Fi show. The 'crew", years after the show has been off the air. is doing what many cult favorites do...they're working the conventions.
You have the former child star (Daryl Mitchell), the hot actress who really didn't do anything on the show (Sigourney Weaver), the angst-y British actor who now hates the character and catchphrase that made/broke his career (Alan Rickman), the mellow almost strange engineer (Tony Shalhoub), the random "red shirt" crew member who would always die in every show (Sam Rockwell), and of course  the cocky lead who still thinks he's big news (Tim Allen).

The action begins when Commander Jason Nesmith (Allen) is approached at a convention about what he thinks is a paying gig. Turns out it is actually a group of aliens who have been watching the "historical records" of the spaceship NSEA Protector.  Basically, the dummies have been watching reruns as if they were the Earth History Channel (and it wasn't even Nazi week).

From there hilarity ensues! It's a combo fish-out-of-water and standard Sci-Fi spoof.  But in an absolutely fabulous way. You will also recognize a ton of other actors throughout the movie. Not big names...and you may not even know the actors names. But, if you watch TV and moves there a lot of fun appearances including: Justin Long, Enrico Colantoni , Missi Pyle and more!

Where most spoofs try to reference a specific scene in a movie Galaxy Quest hits the broad strokes of the genre and does it with vigor! It's a ton of fun, really funny and in my opinion holds up well to re-watching. Probably in my top ten of Comedy moves....which I now want to sit down and think about...that may come later today if I have free time!

Go Bears

Watching this Bears game I start imagining a world where I see a Bears team as Super Bowl Champions.

Then I have to temper my enthusiasm a little bit when I remember that we are playing a team that won the worst division in football. Granted they did knock off the defending champs in the Saints last week...but this team is awful!

The only mistake the Bears have made all day was an interception...thrown by Matt Forte. That was a bad play, but the Bears were up 28-3 at the time, that didn't hurt them.

So bring on the Cheese knobs and lets get this thing done next week so we can get to another Super Bowl!!

Go Bears!!