And I need a haircut

I forgot what I was going to say. Oh, yes, that was it.

Once of the things I didn't like about iTunes but was no big deal was that I couldn't find an easy way to add an album cover to an album if iTunes didn't automatically have access to it. As far as I could tell you had to add the art track-by-track and that just wasn't going to happen on a regular basis. With the recently released iTunes 8, this problem has been largely resolved as in 'grid' mode I can add art to the entire album with one drag-and-drop. Nice!

Of course now I want to fix all the 'blank' areas and, well, I really don't need another project to play with. Stupid obsessive compulsive nature...

And where's my other notebook? Turns out I didn't type up some scenes I thought I typed up and I need the notebook before this one for that project. It's gotta be around here somewhere. That's the problem with cleaning up; I can never find anything afterwards...

Am a bad influence

I'm good at being a bad influence on people's wallets. It's not that I'm a good salesman or anything like that. I can't talk you into wanting something you don't want but I'm good at talking my friends into getting stuff they already want. Sometimes they're hesitating or delaying a purchase and I go 'see how cool this is?' They agree and are doomed.

To those most recently caught in this web, I must say to you the words spoke to me by the mighty Parker:

'You got more money than that.'

Eye of the Beholder or Belaugher I guess

So I'm watching Sesame Street yesterday and Jenny McCarthy makes a guest appearance. This boggles my mind briefly as I try to wrap my brain around the idea of a former Playmate on a children's programme.

Then her impressions of different insects just gets sillier and I just sigh. There may be little else I appreciate more than a pretty lady with a sense of humour and a willingness to look silly while expressing it.

I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one to think that way. I think that's how Tina Fey got so overrated. She's pretty and has a sense of humour but she's not funny. Not to me anyway. Not regularly anyway.

To each their own. Odd too because normally, from an appearance standpoint, I'd side with the brunette with the glasses over a bleach blonde. Beauty and funny are both in the eye of the beholder.

Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Gates - Wha?

I've seen the big budget Microsoft commercial a couple of times now. Bill Gates! Jerry Seinfeld! Woohoo?

It's dumb. I'm not a fan of either gentleman's product and this commercial does nothing to change that. It's silly but not in a funny sort of way. It feels contrived, sort of a 'hey, lets be wacky guys!' sort of way that doesn't feel natural to the players.

Most importantly, it doesn't change my opinion of Microsoft for the better. It doesn't show the product being useful. It doesn't have the brand rubbing up with a hip young entertainer that the young people might enjoy and pay attention to (it would be like Milton Berle doing commercials in the late 60's/early 70's, a decade after his tv success). It doesn't even really show Bill Gates in a good light either. 'Oh look, the billionaire buys cheap shoes, isn't he normal?' Whatever.

Just as importantly, I don't think it does anything for Seinfeld. I saw a recent article that noted an attempt to interest today's college students in his tv show. I didn't catch if they were successful or not. As an ad for the style of humor he used in that show I think it fails as well. Jerry showers full clothed? While he does the serious Jerry 'look I've thought this out' moment after that revelation, he comes across more crazy than anything. It's not a Jerry moment, it's a Kramer moment and doesn't feel right coming from him.

There is another Microsoft ad running around the channels now, one where they have unsuspecting people use the 'next Microsoft OS' and it turns out to be Vista the whole time. People saying 'once you see how to use it, its nice' does a lot more for the product than Jerry Seinfeld wondering if Microsoft will make computers edible.

At least that's what I think. But I didn't get paid millions of dollars to make a commercial for a company that really doesn't need to advertise. Once the money is in your account, what else matters?

'Silent Night, Deadly Night' Review

Billy just never had a chance. When he was about six, his parents were killed in front of him by a man dressed like Santa Claus. Strike One. Instead of becoming a superhero, he was sent to an orphanage (He could have still been Cyclops, but no...). The Mother Superior taught him that punishment is necessary, with beatings. Strike Two. As a young adult, he gets a job, starts to like a girl, but is forced to dress like Santa and his girl goes off with another guy at the Christmas party. Strike Three. Straight to crazed killing spree!

Now, having just watched most of 'Killer Klowns from Outer Space', we were expecting something more silly, more over the top as the other movie had been. This was not the case. 'Silent Night, Deadly Night' was grim by comparison. There are moments of humour in it but they are moments. They are not generally associated with the murders, not something started by the slasher. In other words, he's not a Freddy Kruger type character. This makes him that much creepier. He's a normal (almost) guy, no supernatural powers, that loses his mind and goes a-killing. You don't know what his limits are and that makes for some tension.

There are a few moments that stretch believability a bit. One in particular that involved a deaf priest was so ridiculous that it made me laugh out loud. The uncut version of the movie that Anchor Bay offers comes with the apology that certain scenes come from a lower quality print. The change is obvious but the lower quality scenes aren't all that bad.

All in all, I was impressed by the film. I thought it was gritty and creepy. I called a joke and a few plot twists but was still concerned about some of the characters. Since the focus was on the killer and not the crew of young adults (aka the victims) it was trickier to determine who would survive. I'm sure the grim quality is part of the reason it was banned at the time of release.

Recommended for those that enjoy slasher films with crazed murderers, blood, and exposed breasts. I'm guessing no one else will be interested.