cluck norris

This tough guy was photographed with a Fuji point & shoot through chicken wire at my brother's house. Then they ate him. (Sorry, but that's what he was there for.)

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We went with friends to Hollywood Blvd Cinema to celebrate my wife's birthday. They have a bar at the entrance for people who have too much money and can't figure out a better way to spend it. Yeah, I never quite understood the bar thing. The place is decorated really cool, plus the location is cleverly set up to be a movie AND dining experience. The food has catchy names. For example, the spicy Italian sandwich is called the Al Pacino. Get it? They have a pizza with spinach and asparagus called the Linda Blair. That's gross. I ordered the Chuck Norris. It's a buffalo chicken sandwich (white meat with an extra kick).

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The movie was great, but my favorite moment that night was when the waiter came to my table, looked me right in the eyes, and asked, "Chuck Norris?" I wanted to take the plate and say, "No Son, I'm not Chuck Norris, but I get that all the time."

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Instead of trying to be clever and say something funny (that he's probably heard a thousand times already), I simply smiled and said, "Thanks."

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Wow, I totally blew that great opportunity! ...I'm such a big chicken.

morning has broken

Yeah, "morning has broken" ...split right down the middle, and daylight is in complete disrepair!

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I misplaced my sunglasses on Friday and squinted through this whole weekend. The shades finally turned up, but not until late Sunday afternoon. Usually, I wear them on the drive to and from work, because I drive East in the morning and West at night.

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[I know that it is foolish to multitask while driving, but I got ready at a red light, and by the time my camera was ready to shoot, the light had changed, so I just did a no-look "shoot from the hip" --cowboy-style. There was NO post-editing to those shots. They turned out fair... considering, don't you think?]

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This morning, the sunlight struggled to break through the atmosphere, and from the looks of the Northern sky's dark reinforcements, the light did not have a real chance of winning this battle. By the time I got to the office, the sun's rays had retreated, yielding to an ominous shroud that poured mercilessly as if we were standing under the deluge of a waterfall, and by now, not even the coolest dudes were wearing their sunglasses.

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Speaking of darkness, I saw the new Batman movie on Saturday with Mrs. Craver. We went for the Imax experience. My recommendation? Go now; don't wait for the DVD, but don't do Imax, either. The cityscapes were splendid, but too brief. The action was hard to follow on such a huge viewing area. We can't say too much about the movie without spoiling the story for anyone who hasn't seen it; but I liked it. This flic was packed with action and intensity without gore, immodesty or pervasive language. The Batman suit has a new cowl that allows him to turn his head. He breaks out a new bat-cycle in this movie and when I saw him do this one turn... a 180 off of a wall, I just about fell out of my chair! This movie will probably be useful for launching discussions about the morality of using force and where to draw the line between justice and wickedness.

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Photos 2 & 3 were taken at 7:36 AM and 7:54 AM respectively.

dark knight

I heard that the new Batman movie has accomplished two things which I consider to be good. If we get the opportunity, my wife and I may try to catch it at a local Imax soon.

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There are intense scenes where the result of violence is implied. Supposedly, you don't see blood and gore, even though you know that something bad happened. I think that's a classy approach. Do you remember the horror flics of old, where the music climaxes as the monster confronts his victim, and the scene switches to something else? The unfortunate prey was doomed, but we didn't see all the gruesome details. There are times where it is better to imply something and leave a little imaginative mystery in the details.

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The other thing I heard about this movie is that the bad guy is truly wicked. We don't get any sanitized Rogerian portrayal of a likeable villain who is basically good, and we would like him better if we just understood him. The bad guy in this movie is evil to the core. He hurts people. Gotham's citizens need to be saved from him, and he must be brought to justice. In other words, the Batman's bad man is really bad, Man!

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Have you seen it? Any yea-sayers on my anticipatory assessment or do you think I'm just a joker?