My father is a pilot, not professionally but purely for fun.  I went up with him a couple of times, even in his own plane, but it was never that much fun for me.  It was just so disorienting, to see things from up above and not be able to tell where I was in […]

read more from this topic.....

No one in my family ever served over in Vietnam.  No one ended up being quite that age when the draft was at it’s height and so no one ever went.  Not just in my immediate family, but in my extended family as a whole, no Vietnam veterans exist.  I worked with a couple of […]

read more from this topic.....

Mitch Mitchell died a few days ago of natural causes in his Portland, Oregon, hotel room, just days before he was to return to England after completing a Hendrix tribute tour. Most of the news stories about this event covered Mitchell’s membership in the legendary Jimi Hendrix Experience, but one key detail was not mentioned. […]

read more from this topic.....

Some concerts are designed to pump you up: an emcee yells into the audience, asking them if they’re ready for the main event, drums pound, and the artist interjects things like, “What’s up Chicago?!?!” between each song. Thursday, October 30th at Double Door, surfer-turned-musician Donavon Frankenreiter gave the antithesis of such a performance, strolling onto stage […]

read more from this topic.....

I love watching television commentary shows about politics.  Keith Olbermann is one of my true media heroes and I have a mad crush on Rachel Maddow, especially after seeing her in those glasses being interviewed by Stephen Colbert.  Speaking of which, Colbert also has a television show where he talks about the news.  Now he […]

read more from this topic.....

I like movies about Vietnam.  Some of them are good and some are just really bad, but they’re still interesting because they allow me to get a feel for an era that has passed us by yet still impacts us every day.  Now there’s a new, yet very unorthodox, one out right now.
Starting this November […]

read more from this topic.....

I am a member of the League of Conservation Voters.  It was partly because they gave me a free Obama bumper sticker and partly because it sounds like Conservative, which is always good for second takes.  I take the environment seriously and now there’s a new Disney movie out there which takes it even more […]

read more from this topic.....

I loved Chappell’s Show and was terribly upset when he left Comedy Central.  One of the greatest episodes of all time was the one which centered on the idea of a racial draft, where other races could draft whatever black people or groups they wanted to.  The Chinese ended up drafting The Wu-Tang Clan, who […]

read more from this topic.....

Scrubs is one of the few television shows I watch with great devotion.  Another is Gossip Girl, but have you seen Blake Lively lately?  How could someone not be devoted to that show?  The best part is that, due to syndication on some of my local channels, I can catch Dr. Dorian and his pals […]

read more from this topic.....

I can’t remember seeing any pandas in a zoo, although I’m sure I have.  One of the zoos I visit even has a panda in their logo, so there have to be some of them around there somewhere.  Nonetheless, they are a very cute animal, even if they can be ferocious at times out in […]

read more from this topic.....

I used to be way into kung fu when I was a kid.  It was exotic, it was cool, who wouldn’t like it?  Of course, I never tried doing anything with it other than reading a couple of books about it.  My life is just as fulfilling now as it would have been with a […]

read more from this topic.....

I like sad movies.  I also like sad songs.  Maybe it’s the Ben Gibbard in me, but feeling sad always feels more authentic than being happy.  That’s why when you are on a youth group trip, young and unblemished, you watch Remember The Titans and feel moved by their successes and accomplishments.  Yet as you […]

read more from this topic.....

I think Gregory Peck is one of the best actors who has ever lived.  Seeing him in To Kill A Mockingbird is what made me first want to become a lawyer.  His role, alongside David Niven’s in The Guns Of Navaronne made me believe in a different kind of patriotism, in the price we do […]

read more from this topic.....

I love some good satire.  Ben Stiller’s latest movie, soon out on DVD, is an excellent example of that.  When movies and actors lampoon themselves, how can that not be comic gold?  Satire is a dark humor, usually deliciously so.  That’s why I’m an Al Franken fan and even did some work for his Senate […]

read more from this topic.....

When I take a look at what I think of as my favorite movies, only two of them end up being in black and white.  Dr. Strangelove, or How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb being one of them and The Day The Earth Stood Still is the other and whose remake […]

read more from this topic.....

I like the holiday season.  It’s fun and nice and I have some great holiday music from Sufjan Stevens on my computer and I can’t wait for an excuse to listen to it again.  Actually, the best Christmas song ever is by The Flaming Lips, where they talk about how Christmas makes them believe that […]

read more from this topic.....

I had my own comic strip once.  I was in middle school, if I remember correctly, and got the idea at a random graduation party.  It was called “The Buddha And Hitler Show.”  It was co-hosted by Buddha and Hitler and reveled in obscure references, social commentary and incredibly absurdist humor.  I even posted it […]

read more from this topic.....

I grew up with Jim Henson being one of the pivotal influences in my life.  I would watch his television shows, play with licensed toys of his creations and all those things had a special place in my heart.  I remember when he died and I was genuinely upset, even as a five year old […]

read more from this topic.....

Exactly how a film becomes a cult classic is still somewhat of a mystery to me.  The genre consists largely of movies or television shows which were never well accepted or particularly spectacular when they were initially released, yet went on to have a huge underground following.  Some directors seem to make those types of […]

read more from this topic.....

I’m a nerd, no lie about it.  And now one of the greatest contributions to nerd life is ready on DVD once again.
Starting this October 28th, now available as a four disc collectors edition boxed set from Shout Factory comes the anniversary collection of everyone’s favorite show about yelling back at a movie screen.  Mystery […]

read more from this topic.....

I woke up at six this morning to go vote.  I got to the polls early, registered with my passport and voted for all the important races in my nation, state, town and precinct.  It was a fantastic experience and I’d been waiting to cast that specific vote for over two years.  The polls were […]

read more from this topic.....

I used to love snow days when I was in school.  It was snowing outside and I didn’t have to go to school.  What could possibly be better?  The best was when I was a senior in high school, because I graduated at a set date no matter what, so I never had to make […]

read more from this topic.....

I like this winter a lot.  The cold doesn’t bother me too much, I like the way the snow looks and there is time for all sorts of fantastic winter sports.  It doesn’t snow enough anymore to justify buying some nice snowshoes, even though I’d really love to.  You can’t bike in the snow and […]

read more from this topic.....

British humor is simply sublime.  There are no two ways about it.  The British have exceeded the Americans for decades with their understanding of what exactly is and is not completely hilarious.  Monty Python, Fawlty Towers, the whole Shaun Of The Dead crowd, what’s not to love about such groundbreaking humor?  Now there is a […]

read more from this topic.....

By Honey Gillard
Legendary US rocker Bruce Springsteen wowed an open-air crowd of 80,000 on the White House campaign’s final stretch in Cleveland this past Sunday, with a moving set at a campaign rally for Democrat Leader Barack Obama.
With his acoustic guitar and harmonica in hand, Bruce Springsteen sang through a play list that included […]

read more from this topic.....

I like watching Comedy Central.  It is usually a pretty safe bet for some quality entertainment, particularly on slow television days.  They play a quality selection of movies and the shows they have in syndication are always good ones.  Their original shows are funnier than most and it’s the stand-up comedy specials which always keep […]

read more from this topic.....

By Honey Gillard
Hayden Panettiere no longer wants you to “save the cheerleader”, instead she wants YOUR help to “save the whales”.
Just one-year after the ‘Heroes’ star stirred up much trouble in Japan by partaking in various anti-whaling rallies and initiatives, the actress has got back on ‘anti-whaling’ boat, this time asking for you to […]

read more from this topic.....

I used to go to those fur-trading festivals you see every now and again during your vacations to rural “Real” America.  They are called rendezvous and I used to even dress in costume and cook period appropriate foods and participate in all sorts of contests.  My dad was really into all that, so that was […]

read more from this topic.....

I haven’t been on a train trip in years.  I ventured into the world of riding the Greyhounds, but that’s nothing like the confinement that comes with being on a train.  They can be such a world unto themselves as everyone travels to the same destination, completely trapped and stuck feeling every bump of the […]

read more from this topic.....

I really enjoy the story of Peter Pan and his lost boys.  It’s probably the flying and the sword fights, because both are things that I wish I could enjoy far more often in my every day life.  It’s a tale of adventure and pirates and a ticking crocodile, all of which are very interesting.  […]

read more from this topic.....