Star Trek meets Spamalot.

I found this on Wil Wheaton's website and just laughed my ass off! I had to share it! Share this with your friends! Get ready to laugh!

Monty Python vs Star Trek

Star Trek... Lives?

Ok... I have to admit, I have not been keeping up on the new Star Trek film like most of you would normally think I would. I attribute that to a number of things. Busier days at work, a new high school student in my family, taking on heading up a youth organization at church, and generally just living la vida loca. But I think the number one reason why is that I have utterly and completely embraced, fell in love with, and can't get enough of Battlestar Galactica. It absolutely rocks and is the best thing on television. Hands down. Chuck, Boston Legal, and Nip Tuck are close, but they are not quite as good as BSG.

But enough of that for now. I saw the new Star Trek trailer, and it looks pretty good! I am still leary of a set of new actors for old familiar characters, but I am optomistic that it will work. I have been watching the Star Trek: New Voyages which is a low budget production company that is producing new "original" episodes of Star Trek, using our beloved characters but with different actors. They even have some of the original Star Trek production crew and writers working for them. Check them out. They have made 3 new episodes of about 1.5 hours each and they are fun to watch. Truly made in the spirit of the original episodes.

Ok, here is the trailer... And I hesitate to call it that, because it was recorded via a hand held from the movie screen. It is not official, but the site has a good critique of the trailer (which I agree with strongly) and veiwer expectations for a new Trek movie.

Enjoy!

STAR TREK TRAILER

In Honor of Veteran's Day

They are still among us... but not for long. The Vets of WWI. A they are some of the oldest living humans and they all had a part in the Great War. It is as though being in the war gave them the right to live to be older than a century. But all things fade and even these heros will fade into the past. Here is the Yahoo News story about their annual celebration of the end of the war. My greatest appreciation and respect to all vets who have served their country.

DOUAUMONT, France (AFP) – Europe on Tuesday marked the 90th anniversary of the end of World War I, with the handful of surviving veterans at the vanguard of commemorations for the fallen of the "War to End All Wars".

Leaders from the powers that fought the war, now allies, gathered at the site of the 1916 Battle of Verdun, where 300,000 men were slaughtered over 11 months of bloody trench warfare while ceremonies were also held in Britain.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy, speaking at the ossuary in the village of Douaumont which contains the remains of thousands killed in Verdun, spoke of the need to "honour all the dead, without exception."

He also said that many of the hundreds of French soldiers executed for desertion or mutiny during the war "had not dishonoured themselves, were not cowards, but had simply been pushed to the extreme limit."

Britain's Prince Charles, the speaker of the German parliament Peter Muller and Australia's Governor General Quentin Bryce also attended the ceremony at Fort Douaumont, the epicentre of the Battle of Verdun.

Smaller memorials were held in towns and villages across Britain, France and the other countries that took part in the disaster.

Far from being "The War to End All Wars", the so-called Great War merely set the tone for the 20th century's litany of brutality, although in terms of sheer mass killing on the battlefield it has rarely been equalled since.

Many conflicts followed but November 11 -- the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, when the World War I armistice was signed -- has become the moment when the world remembers the dead from all of them.

In London, Britain's acts of remembrance was led by three of the country's last four surviving veterans of World War I, and attended by Prime Minister Gordon Brown and other ministers.

At exactly 11:00am (1100 GMT), Henry Allingham, 112, Harry Patch, 110, and Bill Stone, 108, led a two-minute silence at The Cenotaph national war memorial, where Queen Elizabeth II had led national tributes on Sunday.

The medal-bedecked veterans -- among the five million men and women who served in British forces during the war -- were pushed in their wheelchairs to lay wreaths at the memorial in central London.

They represented the armed service they belonged to -- the Royal Air Force, the Army and the Royal Navy respectively.

Patch, a machine-gunner who fought during the Battle of Passchendaele in Ypres, said before the ceremony that he was "very happy" to be here.

"It is not just an honour for me but for an entire generation. It is important to remember the dead from both sides of the conflict. Irrespective of the uniforms we wore, we were all victims," he said.

Erich Kastner, the last of the German troops, died on January 1 this year, aged 107. The last French veteran, Italian-born legionnaire Lazare Ponticelli, survived him by only two months, dying on March 12 aged 110.

Tuesday's ceremonies placed a firm emphasis on reconcilation with France, Britain and Germany now firm allies within the European Union.

In 1917, after three years of bloody conflict in Flanders and on the Somme, the United States intervened on behalf of Britain and France, and brought with them ambulance driver Frank Buckles, now 107 and living in West Virginia.

Between 1914 and 1918, among the major belligerents, Germany lost 1.9 million troops, Russia 1.7 million, France 1.4 million, the Austro-Hungarian empire a million and Britain 760,000.

The Rainbow Bridge

Yesterday I went to the visitation of a beloved veterinarian from my hometown. This man was a wonderful person to meet and to have as a vet. He truly cared about the animals and the people he served. He helped me put to sleep two of my beloved dogs when the time came to do so. I struggled at the idea but he helped me to see that my love of the dogs was selfish and only prolonged agony for them. He did this with a compassion for both myself and my dogs that I will always remember. And I am sure he did this for every client that was faced with the same decision. Our town vet was active in the community and a huge supporter of our school system, especially the local FFA chapter.

He was only 58 years old. He had survived brain cancer years ago and returned to work as if nothing happened. He was a good man.

Yesterday while walking to the visitation, my wife and I were stopped in our tracks by an absolutely beautiful sunset which was accented by a huge, bright, completely full, 180 degree rainbow. It looked as though it were spanning the entire east end of our town. After admiring this beautiful site, my wife and I went into the funeral home for the visitation and to pay our respects. We moved along the line to the casket and family, but when we got there the family was not present. Apparently they too had been told of the rainbow and went outside to see it. I thought it a nice thing for the family to see on a day that was for them, very depressing. They returned with huge smiles and it was then that we were told of the poem that was in the memorial card printed up for the visitation. In it was this:

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.
When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor. Those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.
They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent. His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together....

Author unknown...


Pretty neat huh?

I don't know what you might think of it, but I am pretty sure that there are alot of happy pets greeting Doc right now.

Later!

Connectedness...

I recently signed on to Facebook and like many thing on the internet it is a way to waste some down time when there is nothing else to do. But one of the neatest things about it is the way you can reconnect with people you have lost track of, and while not meeting face to face you can still keep up to date and stay connected. That recently happened with a friend of mine who I found on Facebook. Years ago, this friend and I were fencing partners. We fenced so much we got to the point we could not beat one another in a sparing match. It was a alot of fun and along with the fencing we had a number of common friends and generally had a great time hanging out with everyone. And as life will have it, he moved on, moved out of the area and kind of disappeared off of my radar screen for a number of years. Well, we found each other again via Facebook and while reading his info I found that he has become a therapist and he put a little bit of his philosophy into his bio. Here it is:

Inspired by a day spent with Patch Adams at the 2005 Evolution of Psychotherapy conference in Anaheim, I have come to the conclusion that mental health boils down to connectedness: the health and strength of our relationship, not just with others -- but our internal selves as well.

I could not agree with him more. Having good, solid relationships with family, spouses, friends, and like he says, our internal selves, is absolutely key in finding happiness and stability. Both outwardly and inwardly. I have been lucky enough, blessed if you will, to have an enourmous amount of friends. And I am also lucky to say that I have a large number of close friends and my close relationship with my family is something that many would say is out of the ordinary. I try hard to cultivate these relationships and with it, I think it helps me as a person who feels good about himself. I can only hope that the reverse is true for my family and friends.

To have friends, you must be a friend. To be a friend to someone, you have to like and be comfortable with youself.

Thanks to my family and friends for keeping me happy and healthy!

What happens now?

Obama is now the president elect of the United States. In many ways, which I won't get into, this scares me. I do not think that he will be the healing leader that all his fans say he is. I hope I am wrong, but I don't think so. I personally think he is someone who will Europeanize the United States and bring us closer to socialism. We have been sliding that way for the last 20 years, and the momentum will only increase under Obama and a Democratic led Congress. And now that we do have a Dem President and Congress, at least I and the rest of America will know where to point the finger of blame when things go bad. But will they go bad? I hope not. I really really want America to be the best country in the world. I want it to be the leader in all things. I want the rest of the world to respect us, to fear us, and to need us. But here in America we have become so divided into an us and them, red and blue mentality (I blame the media for this brainwashing) that I feel we are sometimes on the edge of a new Civil War. And as Lincoln said, a divided house cannot stand. (oh, for a new Lincoln...) Government is going to grow under Obama. Welfare will expand. Taxes are going to go up. And most likely, the Democrats will self destruct like they always do when they have the top of the hill all to themselves.

What will I do for the next two years is do what I have always done. I will work to make my family safe, comfortable, and happy. I will not ask for handouts. I will go to work, put in a full days work and be happy about it. I will do all the things that I have always done to make my life worthwhile. I will continue to support things like my church, politicians who fight for smaller government and less welfare, the NRA, the Boy Scouts, and all those things that I think made America a great country. I think we will have a weaker country for the next few years and will be more of a follower instead of a leader. I will work for change if change is needed.

I will wait and see.

Good news in the neighbor hood.

I am happy. My neighbors moved away yesterday, and without a nod goodbye! Normally that sort of thing might make one a bit sad, but not this time! My neighbors were not bad people, just bad neighbors. As some of you might know, I like to have things looking a certain way, and I also believe that when you join a neighborhood, you have a duty to fit into that neighborhood and make it a better place. Well, these neighbors were literal hermits in our neighborhood for the last 12 years. They did no maintenence to their home, mowed their yard only when a hay bayler was required, never participated in the Halloween night giveaways, (or any activities for that matter) and they let their dogs crap all over the place and never cleaned it up. Literally to the point that the smell was ever-present, and they left junk all over the place in their yard. The thing is, they lived in a fairly decent place and the neighborhood we live in is not a trailer park. But they sure lived like it! All they were missing was the mobile home! I hated looking over at their yard. Now that they have moved and the house is for sale, (which I am thinking of finding a way to buy) the yard has never looked so good! They were told by the real estate agent to clean it up. There is still stuff laying around that they left, but I am sure that late night gnomes will clean that up at some point!

I hardly ever talked to them and do not miss them. I am glad they are gone. If I can't buy this place and fix it myself and guarantee the quality of my neighbors myself, I hope that whoever does buy it is better than they were. The couldn't be much worse!

If you are reading this, and are part of a neighborhood, do me a favor. Look around your place. Does it need a bit of sprucing up? If so, take a weekend and do it. I guarantee that you will like the looks of it better and so will your neighborhood.

My neighbors are gone, and I am happy!

Later!

Sing Non Nobis...

Tomorrow is St. Crispin's Day. Very few know who St. Crispin and his brother Crispinian are. Saints Crispin and Crispinian are the Christian patron saints of cobblers, tanners, and leather workers. Born to a noble Roman family in the 3rd century AD, Saints Crispin and Crispinian, twin brothers, fled persecution for their faith, winding up in Soissons, where they preached Christianity to the Gauls and made shoes by night. Their success attracted the ire of Rictus Varus, the governor of Belgic Gaul, who had them tortured and beheaded c. 286. Probably the best known reference to St. Crispin is the speech given by Henry V in Shakespeare's play of the same name.

This play was made into a movie by Ken Branagh, who both acted and directed it, and gave what is in my opinion the best rendition of this speech. And also in this same movie is the a great scene of "celebrating" the victory at the battle of Agincourt in 1415.

I present to you these speeches to you for your entertainment. First is the speech and the second is the singing of the chant, "Non Nobis."

I think I might even add future blogs with inspiring speeches. who knows...

Later!

Return to Las Vegas

My wife and I have returned to Las Vegas so that she can attend a Web Conference at the Mirage. This is our second time in Vegas and rather than rehash our time here, as we will probably repeat a bunch of what we did about two years ago, I will give you an little insight into what we have learned on our repeat.
Here Goes:
The Mirage Hotel is nice, but is nothing compared to Caesar's Palace. Compared to it, the Mirage is a Days Inn. The rooms look like the Trading Spaces crew remodeled it.
The more you pay for a hotel room, the fewer amenities you will receive. Go cheap and get more! Go pricey and you will pay for more.
The Bellagio still has the best place to get great desserts and such. Jean Phillipe's Patisserie. Damn is it good.
No matter where you go, McDonald's still cost the same... thank goodness.
The Palazzo must be the most attractively decorated and designed hotel on the strip. Too bad the air freshening system smells like an old woman's talcum powder.
When in Las Vegas, you must do two things... go to the Gun Store and shoot machine guns, and go to the Pinball Museum and play pinball games from the 30's to the 90's. Two fun things that if you average the cost laid out for both, is actually pretty cheap! (and they are pretty much right next to each other!)
Each part of the strip, depending on what hotel is along it, has it's own soundtrack playing at all hours. The best are Caesar's, Bellagio, and Planet Hollywood hotel.
Watching the dancing fountains at the Bellagio never gets old. (Even if it is set to a Celine Dion song)
You can go to Las Vegas and not spend a single cent on gambling, and still have a good time. The shows are great here. Make sure to do at least one show while in town.
I think that Nine Fine Irishmen is probably one of the few "real" bars or pubs on the strip. It actually has regulars that frequent the pub. Smack in the middle of New York, New York Casino and Hotel, this pub feels like it could be in any small town in America.
Never forget where you are from while here. It is very easy to think that you are not up to snuff here in this town. But remember that back home you are just fine!

Fear of Girls....

While looking through old emails and looking for a way to relieve a bit of stress from work related activities, I found this fun little video! If you know a gamer, especially a D&D gamer, show them this. Enjoy!


Later!

More Music that I think is cool...

From Henry V... one of the coolest religious chants from one of the coolest movies ever. Non Nobis Domine (Now if I could just get my archer buddies to sing like this!!)

From Last of the Mohicans: The opening titles and score If this site doesn't work, try this - Promentory

From Gladiator: Now We Are Free

A real for what it is worth...

I was recently listening to some soundtrack music by Basil Poledouris and thought, you know what? More people should know about this guy. So here is my primer to the composer Basil Poledouris. Even though Basil Poledouris has been gone for over 2 years, I think that he is still the best movie soundtrack composer ever. I present here, a few examples of his work.

From Starship Troopers

From The Hunt for Red October

From Lonesome Dove

and of course, from one of my favorite movies, Conan the Barbarian

He has been part of some of the coolest movies ever made, and each time, his soundtracks have added so much to those movies that the scores become as much a part of the movie as the actors themselves.

Anyway, for what it's worth. Thanks Basil!

The Election, Politics, Tolkien, and D&D all in one article. Wow. What more could you want?!

I was directed to this article by Bill Whittle from the Rachel Lucas blog. Normally I do not go to other links to read full articles, but this once, I did. Boy am I glad I did! And I suggest that you go to the full article too. The link is at National Review site


Take a bit of time and read it and think about it. I have never read Whittle's stuff before, but if he writes like this, I will make sure to read more of him.

Another thing I got from this, is I am REALLY glad I live where I do. I would be silly crazy if I lived in his part of the country. How does he keep sane?

Later!

So what makes Obama more qualified?

In a string of hypocritical comments by someone I was talking to yesterday, I realized that everything negative this person was saying about Sarah Palin, could be turned around and said of Barack Obama.

First, Palin has had very little time as a politican, with only time as a mayor and two years as a Governor. Well, guess what. Obama is only a freshman senator from Illinois (where most of us in Illinois had never heard of him!) and most of that time has been spent campaigning instead of working on behalf of Illinois citizens in Congress!

Next, Palin has no foreign policy experience. Well, I don't think good old Barack has any more experience. As a matter of fact, I would think he has less! At least as a governor, you are making deals and working with foreign leaders for business matters and the like. I would count that as having some experience.

It was also said, that Palin is popular because she is just like the majority of Americans. Trouble at home, busy schedules with school, work and kids, and other things that plague normal American families. It was said, that the American people should not vote for someone that is just like them or reminds them of their neighbor, but vote for the smartest person or the person that is part of the political machine because they are better suited for it. Well, as far as I can tell, it has been the "smart politicians" who have failed us and maybe we do need a regular old neighbor like person in the White House. Maybe balancing a checkbook will not be so unfamiliar to them that something like a balanced budget is not a unknown concept to them!

And what really struck me was that this person was comparing Obama to Palin. Like Obama was running against Palin. Excuse me, but isn't Obama running again McCain? Looks like this person, and the media for that matter, are more afraid of Palin than McCain. Either way, I think that having Palin on the Republican ticket, has made people look more closely at Obama and they are coming to realize that maybe, he is not the messiah that they thought he was.

I don't like to talk politics but I was just floored by the fact that everything that was spewed to me, could have been completely reversed and applied to Obama, but it never occurred to the person to do so. Talk about single mindedness.

For what it's worth...

Later

How's this for an ego booster?

Recently, while substitute teaching at my local school, I was treated to a wonderful ego booster from one of the 5th graders I know. I will call him Eleven, as his volume goes that far. I have know Eleven for a number of years now and he has always seemed to take a shine to me. I was his Cub Master and he is in the same grade as my daughter. Anyway, I was in the classroom I was a substitute for and Eleven comes in and sees me there and immediately begins to act like an announcement was made that pop tarts, candy and pop will be served for lunch. Anyway, I manage to get him under control for the class. But then, out of nowhere, during a lull in the class, he blurts out, "Deane, you are just too awesome for this school!"

Daaaannnng! What a compliment and one coming from a 5th grader at that! I guess I passed some test of his at some point and became one of the cool guys in his life. I also assume I made his day by being a substitute teacher, but I know he made MY day with his comment!

So just in case you ever wonder or in doubt, I am "too awesome" for school!

Later!

My very own Motivational Posters! Ain't I just cool as all getout...

What my birhtday means.... according to Facebook

Oddly, alot of this is spot on right about me. Fun little application!


October 8, (year deleted)

Lucky Color: Amber
Personality Strengths: Compassion, Drive
Personality Weakness(es): Impatience
Successful Career Path: Fashion
Sense of Humor Style: Quick-witted
Adjectives to Describe You: courageous, enterprising

Description:
Driven and focused - you know what you want from life and importantly you know how to get it. You have always been hard-working and a perfectionist, you understand that there is no substitute to hard work in life.

And you thought American Animal Righters were loopy!!!

Here is a short blurb from the my local paper. I will reprint in it's entirety. It is part of the Earth Week: Diary of the Planet articles that appear in many newpapers and is distributed by Universal Press Syndicate.

Here goes... you won't believe this.

Swiss Animal Rights.

Strict new laws that went into effect across Switzerland on Sept. 1 have some wondering if legislators have overreached in efforts to safeguard the animal kingdom. It is now illegal to flush live goldfish down the toilet. The law stipulates that they must first be knocked out and killed before being disposed of. Fishermen may no longer practice catch and release fishing, and the use of live bait is prohibited. Pets such as parrots and hamsters may no longer be kept by themselves, and livestock such as sheep and goats must have at least "a visual contact with their fellows," under the new law. Dog owners are now required to take classes to learn how to keep their pets from biting. Even with regulations saying that pigs have a legal right (my emphasis)to shower and freshen up after roling in the mud, the country's leading animal rights group, STS, says the new law doesn't go far enough.

Holy Crap. Not far enough? Legal rights to shower for pigs? I think that too many centuries of neutrality has rotted the brains of Swiss legislators. I really don't know what to say of this. Apparently, some law makers in Switzerland are taking big bankrolls from the animal rights group, otherwise I cannot imagine anyone in their right minds coming up with laws like this. I believe in the ethical treatment of animals, but not to the point where you elevate them to human status! Oh I am so disappointed in the Swiss.

Later!

BattleStar Galactica/Presidential election. Compare and Contrast!

For those familiar with BattleStar Galactica, this will mean alot to you! For those unfamiliar with it, you poor, poor bastards. It is the best sci-fi show, possibly the best all-around show, there is on TV. Watch it Damn It! And for those who are familiar with the Rachel Lucas Blog,(www.rachellucas.com) then you might be familiar with this posting. If you are not familiar with her blog, you should be. Anyway, you should definately check this out! It is bang spot on with the current selection of candidates. If you have to ask, who is who in the photos, then you need to watch BSG! Just take it that the the lower two are Cylons... (bad guys!)

http://rachellucas.com/index.php/2008/09/03/so-say-we-all/

Get with the PLAN!

Time to stop letting third world countries lead us around by the short and curlies! The Plan makes sense! Check it out!