JJ's Batman review

I'm going to state upfront that I've never been a huge fan of the Batman franchise.

Val Kilmer?

Michael Keaton?

Please.

George Clooney...

Him I can forgive.

But really, the whole thing was too cartoonish. Too unrealistic to be taken seriously as a film, never mind the acting, scriptwriting or directing.

Completely forgettable.

But then along Christian Bale and the new revival of the masked crusader with Batman Begins.

And I admit I was intrigued. Finally, here was a Batman I could sink my teeth into. He had more dimension. He had flaws and strengths and a reason for doing what he did.

Then came the fever over the new film The Dark Night - with critics hailing it as a dark, grim picture, but trumpeting Heath Ledger's disturbed and twisted performance as The Joker.

So with hesitation I went with hubby to see it tonight.

I am still on the fence about whether or not I liked it.

First, it gruesome and gory and little too realistic in some parts.

Second, I'm not sure I was in the mood for a dark tale about evil and those who enjoy it and enjoy inflicting it upon others.

Third, Heath Ledger's Joker is the first Joker that has made sense to me. Strange as that sounds give his bizarre, insane schemes.

Jack Nicholson? Jim Carrey. Compared to Ledger's performance they were pathetic and anemic. No comparison. Hands down.

I'm not sure the late Ledger's performance is Oscar-worthy as some are saying, but definitely one of the finest performances I've seen.

That's if you can get by his brutality.

And that's where I got stuck.

I don't want brutal right now. I don't to laugh or enjoy evil right now. I never do. But particularly right now.

There are too many that I know that are suffering right now. Too many struggling with evil. And it's not funny. And it's not comical.

In short, I'm sick of evil winning. I'm sick of hearing about crazy people killing their families, or some stranger on the bus, or gunning down worshippers at church.

I'm sick of sadness. I'm sick of broken homes. I'm sick of people hurting the ones they've vowed to love the most. I'm sick of the innocent bearing the pain and the guilty being set free. I'm sick of twisted and wrong being presented as right and true.

In the movie to overcome the Joker's insanity and chaos the characters look to themselves. But I'm so grateful the true cure for evil isn't found within me. It isn't dependent on my own scheming or planning or lying or breaking the rules or trying harder or blackmailing the next person.

The true cure for evil comes from my Savior Jesus Christ.

And when I'm sick of the world and all the filth it wallows in, I always come back to him.

It is his righteousness and his power that will prevail in the end.

So yes. The Dark Knight is a very dark movie. Yes it is grim. And yes it offers a pretty bleak picture of the world of Gotham.

And yes, our world seems very dark to me today. But the cure is still the same. And for that reason I am grateful for The Dark Knight.

Things are always darkest before the dawn.

So much trouble

There is trouble in the world. This I know.

God said so in the Bible for one thing. And I believe Him.

And for another this week has certainly offered it's own exhibits of numerous kinds of trouble. From sickness, to mental illness, to parenting struggles, to addictions, to marriages torn apart. I heard stories of all.

It vividly reminds me how un-homey I feel here some days. Oh I love my family and my friends. I love my little house. I love my little corner of the world and my tiny little garden and flower bed out back.

But some days I look around and I think...

Nope. I'm not really from here. This isn't where I belong.

Or... I'm surrounded by crazy people!

With so many around me (near and far) struggling, I think I must live a charmed life. No, not perfect. But so incredibly blessed. What on earth did I do to deserve all this?

And then I wonder... how can I help? Where is my role in all this? Do I even have one?

I've certainly had my own share of challenges in almost every category. And as I found myself listening, I felt a little like I'd come full-circle. No I didn't have a pithy quote or a neat nugget of advice. I just listened. I encouraged when I could. I nodded when I could.

Basically I was just there.

I'm sure I was really much use. But it's nice to "just be there" for others... stepping into the gap like so many others have on my account.

Sometimes, I think it's time like these when you hit your knees, broken-hearted by the traumas of your brothers and sisters in Christ, that the body of Christ functions the way it should.

May God bless his children - especially those who are hurting right now.

More Rider stuff...

Put up my pre-game thoughts at The Rider Report. Check it out!

Click here to go there!

New post up!

Hey everyone!

Thanks to some super quiet kids, I was able to get my new rider blog up and running.

Introducing...

The Rider Report!

Click here to go there.

For the next bit I'll keep updating this blog whenever I post to the new one.

So check out my post-game report at The Rider Report!

Peace out.

Addendum to previous post

Just FYI... I'm thinking of breaking off the Rider posts into their own separate blog. So keep checking here for updates until I figure where and how and when to do that.

I'll also have a round up and possibly some smack talk after the game. There's always smack talk after a game with B.C.

This is it!

The moment Rider Nation has been waiting for since the players walked off the field in Toronto hoisting the Grey Cup has finally arrived. In just about 2 hours the stadium in Regina will fill with anxious, raucous Rider fans. (Like when are we not raucous?).

This is fans first glimpse of the new Rider team. There are still a few of those that tasted champagne from the Grey Cup last year (or was it beer?), but so much has changed.

I've been keeping my eyes open for roster reports and I gotta say... the Green is in deep.

We've got new guys all over the place, including our quarterback, and a new headcoach. Such things would be considered difficult obstacles to be sure, but last report I heard had the following vets NOT suiting up tonight...

Henri Childs, receiver Matt Dominguez (Crap! Can't wait to see him back in action!), offensive linemen Jeremy O'Day (crap!) and Mike Abou-Mechrek (I like him!), linebacker Maurice Lloyd and defensive backs James Johnson and Eddie Davis (No ED? ACK!).

So... um... like there's still a team left to play right?

I checked. Congi is kicking. Crandell is tossing.

Basically, I'll be cheering for the guys wearing green and white. Albeit not by name... ("Yo, number 16! get that guy!").

So scream loud and scream hard Rider fans. I think the newbies are gonna need to hear us roar!

And in regards to B.C. I for one am excited to see Wally Buono back in Riderville. I'm a little low on my quota for trash talk, so I'm sure he'll oblige me. Here's hoping the big fat dish of revenge they've got ready to serve up to the Green and White gets shoved back in their face! Remember, this is the team that was supposed to win the Grey Cup last year, but lost to a hungry Rider team on their way to a storybook ending.

Anyone wanna call the first sack of the year? I say 97 John Chick.

Final Countdown

In exactly one week the Saskatchewan Roughriders will take to Taylor field in what could be called the revenge match against the B.C. Lions.

7 days.

And can you believe The Hubby has a golf tournament that day?

The nerve!

Hopefully, he can wrap things up before game time.

In the meantime, tomorrow, the Green Team will be at Griffith Stadium in Toon Town to indulge all of us fans who happen to live north of Davidson. Get yer autographs and watch them work out.

I'd love to but that would involve breathing air overloaded with allergens and lately my body does not appreciate such things.

Are you excited?

Today is the day Rider fans have looked forward to since the dust settled in TO after the Grey Cup.

Training camp starts today as rookies hit the turf at Taylor Field. Veterans will join them Sunday.

So...

Are you ready to rumble Saskatchewan?

The hair post - for my mom!

As a hairdresser's daughter I'm not too afraid of picking up a scissor to hack at my hair when it bugs me.

Nor am I not afraid to try a new colour.

After all, as my mother and I always say... It's only hair. It'll grow back.

In my life my hair has been blue (though it looked really black), red, copper, purple and various shades of each. I even managed to get beautiful hot pink streaks in it one time.

Anyway...

Fast-forward to last weekend. My ends felt brittle and crispy and I could stand it no more. So I grabbed the scissors and trimmed my hair. At least I made a fair attempt at it.

Then I bought a colour, too. Ruby rush. A fitting name, I think.

We did our best to capture the colour, but our digital camera isn't all that great at picking up things like colour.

It was scary to be working with a permanent colour that looks suspiciously like blood. Our bathroom looked like a crime scene by the time I was done. Colour long hair is a pain, let me tell you.

I like the results. It really warmed up my skin tone. I got lots of comments at work.

Changing our hair is so much fun.

Countdown...

30 days til Rider preseason starts!

Can't. Wait.

When all is quiet... the kids are up to something!

As a parent there are just things you never anticipate having to explain. Such as: "Please don't put lego in your sister's diaper." But as they grow you think those times are behind you.

Not really.

I have been getting the kids up a bit earlier than usual lately, just to give them extra time to get ready for school.

That way - I figured in all my hitherto acquired mommy-wisdom - they wouldn't have to feel rushed and could start their day relaxed and not frazzled or stressed.

The other morning as I waited for them to come downstairs after getting dressed I realized they were taking an awfully long time.

It was about then that the cat came slinking down the stairs very slowly... wearing one of Mikaela's baby t-shirts! It's pink with a teddy bear on the front and says, "I was born at RUH."

The children peeked over the bannister, wearing sheepish grins.

"Hi, mom," Logan said trying not to laugh too hard, while his sister busted up beside him.

Apparently my mommy-wisdom failed to anticipate the impact of a leisurely morning on our cat.

After several minutes of coaxing the cat to come close to me and then calming the cat down, while stifling a smirk, I carefully extricated the cat from the shirt.

The kitty for her part, tossed me a look that said something along the lines of... "You raised them!"

And then I found myself saying... "Please don't dress the cat in baby clothes."

I had to laugh when when they both replied so earnestly, "But why, mom?"

There are days...

Day ten: aka Happy Birthday to me!

I've been ten days without consuming anything made with or contaminated with mold spores.

Yay me!

It's also my birthday, so I'm in a celebratory mood. I figured accomplishing ten days with any type of lifestyle change (even if temporary) is a reason to whoop it up!

So far I have concluded a couple of things...

I really miss tea. But I can live without.

And fresh is always best.

We have certainly become dependent on our convenience foods in North America and I don't think it's been to the benefit of our health.

Fresh is best. Fresh, made-from-scratch or grown yourself is even better.

We'll have to see what the coming days will bring as I start putting stuff back into my diet.

Countdown to football... 38 days... I think. I hope I counted that right...

Day three: mold-free

It's amazing how much you take for granted when you don't have to think about what you eat.

Today is the third day of my mold-free adventure.

So far the toughest part was giving up tea and the ensuing caffeine withdrawal. The headaches are wicked, but I think that's subsiding now.

Still, I miss tea.

This morning I drank a cup of hot water, just because I missed my tea so much. It didn't quite measure up to a cup of sweet warm dark earthy taste of tea, but it was nice to hold something warm in my hands anyway. I've also squeezed a bit of lemon juice into hot water.

I am also going to miss cheesecake on my birthday. That had been my only request to Richard for my birthday. Creamy smooth, sweet cheesecake, with gooey toppings or chunky chocolate bits. Yum.

Thank goodness I can still have ice cream and popcorn or I'd got totally crazy.

But so far I'm coping. It's nice to know that it's only for 10 days. It's amazing what we can put up with when we know it's only temporary.


Pending assignments: 2

Out to get me

Computers of the world are out to get me today.

I have no idea how I may have offended the collective circuitry of the world's computers, but it's becoming more than a little irritating.

Today I spend half of my time trying to solve a problem with a wee bit of potentially malicious code called spyware.

This particular bit of code would redirect any google searches to obscure websites advertising other websites. Annoying, but probably nothing sinister. Still anytime your computer is hijacked to a different web destination than originally intended there's the potential it will be eventually be sent to some place with damaging consequences.

So as I said, I spent any spare moment I had scanning, googling, scanning, and googling.

It all had little effect as both Ad-aware and SpyBot couldn't kill it.

They could happily point fingers and identify the perpetrator, but that's about it.

It's pointing at a nuclear missile silo and saying... yup, that's a missile all right.

Sigh...

I had to leave before the problem was solved.

I came home and decided to be a good little steward of my newly acquired MacBook and check for software updates.

Unfortunately, I was met with a privileges error as I tried to install the update.

I was dumbfounded.

Keep in mind trying to do anything on my Mac takes a few minutes longer than normal cuz the thought process goes something like this...

Run repair disk permissions in the disk utilities area, in the utilities folder.

And I'm like... utilities folder is in system preferences... wait no. Um... Finder... Go... Oh there it is!

Sigh...

It's a learning process.

Happily, the downstairs PC updated it's spyware scanner and all is well.

I think...

On second thought, I'd better go check...

Breakin' the mold

So I had an allergy test today.

It wasn't as uncomfortable as I thought it would. But I did learn some very surprising and not-so-surprising things.

First, it has been concluded that should Richard ever be on penicillin again, I shall continue to be vigilant and keep my distance. And I will not, under any circumstances touch the medicine bottles.

That was a given.

Nothing earth shattering there.

The test also revealed that I am allergic to tree and grass pollen.

Ok. Also no stunner there. I could have told them that.

And given that I am so allergic to penicillin it would stand to reason that I would react to molds of all types.

I also reacted to various foods like halibut, peas, cabbage, flaxseed, sunflower seeds, honey, coffee, strawberries and...

worst of all...

... chocolate.

The doctor is advising a mold-free diet for ten days. It starts on Sunday.

Sounds fairly simple, I think. I mean who eats mold on purpose?

Then I got the list of foods I have to avoid for a week and a half.

The list includes: cheese, sour cream, milk, beer, wine, processed meats (no trouble there, I usually avoid them anyway), vinegar and vinegar-containing foods, soured breads, breads made with large amounts of yeast, all dried fruits, melons (especially cantaloupe, watermelons, honeydew), soy sauce, tomatoes (other than fresh), malted breakfast cereals, canned or frozen juices.

It also means, I can not have leftovers more than 24 hours after they were cooked.

Hmm... that is quite the list.

So starting Sunday I shall be getting rid of the mold in my diet.

If I feel better then I can add back these verboten items one at a time. But if not then I get to eliminate the rest of foods that I reacted to.

Should be fun!

How to tell...

you're a Saskatchewan Roughrider fan...

1. You've ever spent more than an hour inputing the latest season into your computer calendar... complete with email reminders. Ok. Maybe that just means you're a nerd. Like me.

2. You've ever had the following conversation with your spouse...
"Should we?"
"I don't know. It seems kind of 'bandwagon-ish'"
"True."
"And you see them everywhere!"
"Good point!"
"We'll skip the car flag, and I'll just wear my jersey."

3. You've ever given or received a Rider jersey, t-shirt, bunny hug, hat, mittens, toque or other apparel as an anniversary, birthday or Christmas present.

4. You know the words to "Green is the colour..." and you've sung it with complete strangers in a public place at least once!

5. You've ever considered purchasing a one piece snow-suit on the off-chance the Riders make it to the playoffs. Hey, at least you'll be warm.

6. You've ever stared at a complete stranger in absolute awe who's wearing Rider Green gear in devil's playground like Calgary or Edmonton.

7. You've ever laughed at Rider put down jokes, cuz you know they're true.

8. You've considered painting your face green and/or you've ever purchased a watermelon with the intention of wearing it.

9. You plan your social get togethers around who has TSN.

And finally...

10. You can tell you're a Roughrider fan if you or any of your offspring have worn Rider gear before they knew how to talk!

Go Green!

The countdown is on!

The best part about hockey playoffs starting this week is it means only nine weeks left until Riders start their preseason.

Just saying...

...

Does that make me a bad Canadian?

...

First game will be against B.C. in Regina. Of course, the Lions will be looking for revenge after last season's crushing defeat at the hands of a hungry Rider team on their way to Grey Cup glory.

All I can say is...

Bring. It. On.

More culinary escapades

Last week I indulged in cooking up some rich (and yes fattening) treats for hubby and I while the kids were out of town.

Tuesday I made a delicious supper just for my hubby. I made cream of mushroom soup.

From scratch.

The recipe included half a bottle of red wine. And a couple of pounds of fresh mushrooms. The result was delicious.

With it I served a salad including greens, sunflower seeds, grapefruit and a creamy orange dressing. I also warmed up this amazing pepper garlic bread.

To end I served one of the most incredible desserts I've ever tasted... Chai tea pudding over fresh raspberries, topped with mango-ginger coulis. It was so light, fresh and spicy. The tart raspberries were a perfect balance.

A couple of nights later I made one of my all time favourite and easiest dishes ever... Shrimp with garlic and tomatoes. The fresh tomatoes melt into a delicious sauce. I served it over spaghettini.

Last Friday I invited a dear friend of mine and her three girls over for an Indian feast, along with another very dear friend.

Again, I served:
Grilled Tandoori Chicken with butter sauce
Basmati rice
Aloo Gobi
Naan bread
Salad (with cranberries and raspberry vinaegrette)

For dessert I discovered the most amazing combination. It's a treat for the eyes and the taste buds... vanilla ice cream topped with fresh mangoes and mini chocolate chips. Never would have thought of putting mango with chocolate.

Delicious.

So those have been my recent culinary exploits.

Pending assignments: 3... whee...

Email withdrawal

My home email has been down since I got home from work. Boo-hoo. I finally phoned my ISP and I was greeted by a polite, but slightly testy voice recording saying...

We are currently experiencing techinical problems with some email accounts timing out and not accessible through webmail. Our techinicians are working to fix the problem. If you are calling regarding this technical issue, please hang up NOW!

Ok.

Apparently they've had a phone call or two already...

In the meantime I shall just keep hitting refresh. Sigh...

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday to me! Happy birthday to me! Happy birthdaaaaaay...

Ok. So it's not my birthday.

I can still celebrate. Especially since hubby got me my birthday present early.

He bought me a brand new Mac Book Pro.

I've wanted a Mac for a long time, so this was so exciting. I'm typing this on my new laptop!

Of course, my hubby's ulterior motive is to give me more freedom to do my writing - specifically fiction writing.

So I guess I have no more excuses for not getting that book written!

Pending assignments: 4 (eek!)

Listening to: The History Channel