GOP Boulder Blogathon...........Round One (of 3): Where the Buffaloes Roam

Tonight at the University of Colorado in Boulder, Colo., one of our favorite places in America, the Republicans went at each other live on CNBC. The debate went up against Game Two of the World Series and American Pickers on History. But, even though we are not in Boulder and we didn't even watch the debate on tv, we did follow it closely on Twitter.

Left. Right. Center. Non-Partisan. Here are seven tweets about the debate and one about a college volleyball game as well as one about the weather forecast for Raleigh, NC:

1) Hillary Clinton: In the past two debates, no one said a word about equal pay. Maybe the third time's the charm.

2) Peter Sagal (NPR program host): These guys on CNBC are talking unaware that America is screaming at the them to shut up. They're living a nightmare.

3) Tom Tomorrow (liberal cartoonist): Most of the political cartoonists I know would have more interesting things than these chuckleheads.

4) Josh Kraushaar (National Journal): Rubio shakes Trump's hand, Jeb doesn't shake Rubio's hand.

5) Texas Volleyball: Early in the second set, TCU takes a 7-3 lead.

6) Chris Hohmann (TV weather person in Raleigh): Showers with heavy rain are moving into the Triangle and the Sandhills.

7) Patton Oswalt: Hey CNBC anchors, they're bringing the candidates out. CUT TO THEM. enough of your Fraggle Rock yapping.

8) Joan Walsh (The Nation): This commentary is stunningly conservative.

9) David S. Bernstein (Boston politico): Mork and Mindy was set in Boulder. CNBC could be showing some clips from it rather than this painfully bad routine.

http://www.colorado.edu

http://www.visitbouldercoloradousa.com

Friday Night Tweets: Big Ben and Domestic Politics

Greetings to our blog readers in Turkey, France, and Mexico........


We are closing out July with three consecutive blog entries (hmmm.....yea, we changed our mind), this one is dedicated to tweets that were posted during the 9-10 p.m., eastern US time, many of which dealt with the partisan political divide in the country.......

1) Big Ben (yeah, that clock in London, pict. top): BONG BONG

2) UbertFacts: Osama bin Laden was obsessed with Whitney Houston (pict. late) and wanted to make her one of his wives (alas the pop singer died a few years ago as did Osama)....

3) The Daily Signal: Senate leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky; pict: bottom) commits to Planned Parenthood defunding vote next week (He does NOT have the support of comedian Sarah Silverman who mocked pro-life groups with a video that is causing quite a stir)

4) Urban Dictionary: White Man_ A term used to describe a group of people who are blamed for all the problems in the world.

5) Adam Owens (A tv news reporter for WRAL, Raleigh, NC): Raleigh Police investigate fatal accident on Roy Road....

6) Psychological Facts: If you think someone is starting at you: 1. Yawn 2. If they yawn, they were staring

7) Martin DeGarmo: The function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers (a quote from Ralph Nader as the tweeter cited)

8) Jon Winokur (Advice to Writers): Talent is like electricity. We don't understand electricity. We use it. (a quote from Maya Angelou as the tweeter cited).

9) The Job Guy: "The only limits are, as always, those of vision," James Broughton, a late American poet.

http://www.dailysignal.com

http://www.urbandictionary.com

http://www.job-guy.com (This might not be the same job guy we mentioned!) 

Polar Vortex Tweets: Homeless in DC; Pipes Burst in Atlanta

An NHL hockey game in Buffalo, NY, against the Carolina Hurricanes from Raleigh, NC, scheduled for tonight was postponed due to blizzard conditions. But, things were not much better south of the large city near the Canadian city. NPR reported that homeless were seeking shelter in Nashville, Tenn., as was the case in Washington, D.C.

Pipes burst in Atlanta, record-low or near record-laws were reported in Charlotte, NC, and Roanoke, Va., with the Charlotte record dating back to 1884!

Here is a look at ten tweets which tell the story:

1) Roanoke County (Va) Schools: Roanoke County Public Schools will open two (2) hours late tomorrow (Jan. 8th) due to continued cold conditions.

2) Mike Mac (a Weather Channel correspondent): You know it's bad when they cancel a Buffalo Sabres game and the police are called on snowmobiles.

3) Politics and Prose (indy bookstore in Washington, DC): DC readers if you see a person in need call 1-800-535-7252 for shelter hotline.

4) WSOC Weather (CBS tv station in Charlotte, NC): Today's low of 6 degrees breaks record set in 1884.

5) ABC_11_WTVD (tv station in Raleigh, NC): Duke Energy is asking customers to reduce their usage for the next 24 hours due to high demand for electricity because of the cold weather.

6) Capital Weather Gang (Washington, DC): Anchorage, AK, currently 19 degrees. Dulles is 10 degrees. Anchorage high is headed to the 30s.

7) Mother Jones: Temperatures ranked worst to best_ 5) Blistering heat; 4) Freezing cold; 3) A bit chilly; 4) a little warm; 5) just right.

8) Jonathan Chait (columnist for "New York" magazine): How many polar vortexes have we had before we decided to label it a 'polar vortex?' This can't be the first one.

9) National Weather Service (Blacksburg, Va, bureau): "Readings this morning were so cold, all climate sites set new record low temperatures!"

10) CBS Atlanta: "Marietta_ watch out for ice due to water main burst at Powder Springs Rd."

http://www.wunderground.com/

http://www.weather.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/

http://www.motherjones.com

Hooray..........the Shutdown is Over

Park rangers, Washington DC-area taxi drivers and museum guards can rejoice, the federal government shutdown is over.

WRAL-TV out of Raleigh, NC, listed all the House members who voted for and against the House bill that ended the shutdown. Every Democrat in the House supported the measure, but a fair number of Republicans decided enough is enough as well.

In the Tarheel State, the three Republican congressional members who voted to cease the shutdown were Congs. Howard Coble, Robert Pettinger and Patrick McHenry.

The Republicans who towed the arch conservative party line were: Renee Ellmers, Virginia Foxx, Walter Jones, Richard Hudson, Mark Meadows and George Holding.

The Democratic members from North Carolina are: David Price, Mike McIntyre, Mel Watt and G.K. Butterfield.

Both the Great Smoky National Park and the Wright Brothers National Memorial will now be in full operation once again.

http://www.ncdp.org

http://www.ncgop.org

http://www.thehill.com

For a look at how Virginia Congressional members go to our sister blog: http://www.politicscultureandotherwastesoft.blogspot.com

Last Ten Films I've Seen- Garbo Laughs

Among the last ten films I've seen is a notorious "Jaws" rip-off, two films directed by playwrights ("Margaret" and "Seven Psychopaths") and a vintage British horror film ("Repulsion").

There are also two films with Johnny Depp in the lead ("The Libertine" and "Dead Man") and the film in which cinematic goddess Greta Garbo laughs ("Ninotchka").

In addition, there are two films which are still in cinemas ("R.I.P.D., which I actually saw at a drive-in, and "The Way, Way Back"). Movies I have seen previously are marked with an *.

Here is the list:

1. "Holy Smoke" (1999. dir-Jane Campion)

2. "The Last Shark" ("Great White") (Italy. 1981. dir-Enzo G. Castellari)

3. "Dead Man" (1995. dir-Jim Jarmusch) *

4. "Seven Psychopaths" (2012. dir- Martin McDonagh)

5. "Margaret" (2011. dir-Kenneth Lonengan)

6. "The Way, Way Back" (2013 dir-Nat Faxon and Jim Rush)

7. "R.I.P.D" (2013 dir-Robert Schwentke)

8. "The Libertine"   (2004. dir-Laurence Dunmore)

9. "Repulsion" (1965. dir-Roman Polanski) *

10. "Ninotchka" (1939. dir-Ernst Lubitsch)

http://thesacodrivein.com/now-showing/ (Drive-in theatre in Saco, Maine, (not where I saw R.I.P.D)

http://www.therialto.com (Cinema in Raleigh, NC, that is now screening "The Way, Way Back")

http://www.filmcomment.com (The magazine that started the 'last ten films I've seen series)

Happy 200th Birthday, Richard Wagner

When we saw that 'Wagner' was trending on Twitter, we thought: "Hey, there is no way there are referring to the German classical composer Richard Wagner." But, as it turns out, today is his 200th birthday.

There are no Google Doodles to commemorate this; our assumption is that this might because Wagner's scandalous anti-Semitic views.

But, since "Rigoletto" is one of our favorite operas, we thought we'd quip Wagner for this occasion:

"One Supreme fact which I discovered is that it is not willpower, but fantasy-imagination that creates. Imagination is the creative force. Imagination creates reality."

We saw a tweet from the North Carolina Symphony in Raleigh in regards to Wagner's birthday, and the Met Opera in New York has been performing Wagner operas in honor of this milestone.

One can also listen to the delightful American public radio series "Performance Today" which we assume will run a Wagner tribute today; the shows airs on WFDD-FM, a public radio/NPR station in Winston-Salem, NC.

And, of course, it is also our civic duty to remind young people that Richard Wagner (they would probably pronounce his name like Robert Wagner not Vagner as is the proper way) is not the one who sang the 1981 hit song "Jessie's Girl." That distinction belongs to Rick Springfield.

THE WHOOPS DEPARTMENT: We just realized that only is "Rigoletto," not a Wagner opera, it's not even German! It is a work by Verdi, so therefore it's Italian. But, as Kevin Spacey said in "Swimming with Sharks:" "Never apologize; it's a sign of weakness."

http://www.wfdd.org

http://www.performancetoday.publicradio.org

 http://www.ncsymphony.org

 http://www.metoperafamily.org

 http://www.rickspringfield.com 

Friday Night Tweets, Contd_ The Bard is Back

Yes, it's a snowy night here in Coffin Gulch, Nebraska.....well, that is a fictional town in the tv version of Lucky Luke aka the French cowboy and we are pretty far from the Cornhusker State, but it is snowing here in the Mid-Atlantic part of America.

So, we thought it was a good time to post some new entries and look at tweets from the college gymnastics world, pro hockey and PBS, which we imagine Mitt Romney is watching right now with his grandchildren (forgive the political humor); here are the tweets:

1) Alabama Gymnastics @BamaGymnastics: Sophomore Kayla Williams just tied her career best on the balance beam with a a score of 9.9

2) IlliniGymnastics @IlliniGym: #Illini women vs. #spartans tomorrow at 4. #PinkMeet RT @ MSUGymnastics: We have arrived in Champaign.

3) Washington Capitals @WasCaps: Ilya Kovalchuk scores Devils goal in overtime: Final score: Devils 3 Caps 2 OT

4) AngelicaAlvarez_WTVD @Alvarez_wtvd: Car having trouble getting up a hill on Wade Ave in Raleigh.

5) UK Gymnastics @UK Gymnastics_ Kentucky is facing Alabama tonight on the road: Kenzie Hedges and Shannon Mitchell post solid scores for UK both earning 9.85

6) Pete Cashmore @mashable: Exxon Mobil Passes Apple to Become World's Most Valuable Company.

7) PBS @PBS: If you're watching Shakespeare Uncovered tonight let us know what you think please use hashtags #PBS


http://www.womenslacrosse.com

http://www.unc.edu

http://www.ncat.edu

http://www.wdbj7.com

http://www.gopack.com

http://www.cornellsun.com

Tweets for a Snowy Friday Night

Since there is a major SEC women's gymnastics meet between the University of Florida Gators and the Auburn Tigers tonight, we thought we'd go with this image of an alligator; our apologies to Auburn fans as we would also post an image of a tiger but we want to get this entry up before 5:00 a.m., Dubai time (they are nine hours ahead of New York); here we go!:

1) Auburn Gymnastics @AuGymnastics: "Florida native Abby Habicht scores a 9.775. Megan up now."

2) Washington DC News @wasdcnews: "Obama Heaps Praise on Hillary Clinton in Joint Appearance."

3) Gator Gymnastics @GatorZoneGym: "Ashanee Dickerson scores a 9.925 on vault! Go #Gators! #LinktoPink

4) Sundance Channel @SundanceChannel: "@ItsDakotaFannin stopped by #Sundance Channel HQ to tell us a secret and discuss Very Good Girls."

5) AnthonyWilson @AWilsonABC11: "Downtown Raleigh, a ghost town. The ice u cant see can hurt you, so avoid the roads and #dont drive."

6)Hartford Courant @hartfordcourant: "Legislators Hear Calls for More Mental Health Services in Schools, More Police Officers."

7) Post Sports @PostSports: "Nats name William Howard Taft new racing president."

http://www.auburngymnastics.com

www.gatorzone.com/gymnastics

http://www.sundancechannel.com

http://www.sundance.org/festival

http://www.courant.com

http://www.washingpost.com/nationalsfans

Pre-Election Day Tweets_ Rallying the Troops

Perhaps, in a more perfect world, an independent voter in Blacksburg, Va., a college town  with Virginia Tech which happens to be in Montgomery County, one of the most politically split jurisdictions in America according to today's "Roanoke Times." could order "Red Dawn" (1984) and the Michael Moore documentary "Sicko," about the decline of the American health care system from Netflix and invite uber-partisan liberals and conservatives for a wine and cheese party.

That's not likely to happen, but one thing all sides might agree on is how expensive political races are becoming. "Indy Week" announced in its current issue that Chad Barefoot, a 29-year-old Republican, has spent $916,754 to face incumbent state senator Doug Berger, a Democrat, for a Wake County (Raleigh) state senate seat. Reportedly, most state senators in North Carolina make circa $40,000.

These are insane times indeed, and perhaps that is reflected in these tweets we collected from last night:

1) @PaulFeig (Creator of the cult tv show "Freaks and Geeks"): "Whichever candidate you support, make sure to take down the sign in front of your house immediately, if they win. Nobody likes a gloater."

2) @PaulBegala (Paul Begala, a center-left tv commentator): "Okay @CNNOpinion, here's final predictions: POTUS wins with 297 electoral votes; Romney 241.

3) @TeaPartyCat (Top Conservative Cat, actually a liberal political satirist): "Chris Christie: 'I'm still very satisfied with Obama and FEMA. And, oh, thanks Mitt for saving New Jersey with $5,000 of canned goods."

4) @AnnaMarieCox (Anna Marie Cox is a liberal pundit in Minnesota, a swing state): "Just today, a reporter asked me: 'Do you know how they're getting all these people to Romney rallies? Answer: By force?"

5) @tbtduluth (Trampled by Turtles, a popular band from Minnesota): "Remember when your politics, religion, and income were nobody else's goddamn business? That was nice."

6) @NRO ("National Review," a conservative magazine): "Romney's Bucks County, PA, rally matches President Bush's in '04 just 5 days before he defeated John Kerry." (Of course, we should point out that these tweets do not necessarily reflect the views of our managing editor Tilly Gokbudak, who happens to be moi).

7) @MMFlint (Michael Moore, pictured bottom with glove; the liberal icon is ironically from Michigan, Romney's state of birth, also a swing state): "Plus, a few dozen Repubs need 2 be removed from the House if Obama is 2 get anything done. Every swing state has a Repub or 2 who need 2 go."

8) @BilgeEbiri (Bilge Ebiri is a movie critic for "New York" magazine): "I think the strangest irony of this election might actually be that Scott Brown appears poised about losing his senate seat."

http://www.michaelmoore.com

http://www.nationalreview.com

http://www.roanoke.com

http://www.indyweek.com

http://www.netflix.com

Monday Night Pre-Debate Tweets: Can Dogs Decide the Election?

Hmmm.....there are no images here which actually match tonight's presidential debate in Boca Raton, Fla., which will focus on foreign policy...oh well!

The reasons why we are featuring images of a Scottish terrier, the cast of "Freaks and Guns," reruns of which are still on The Sundance Channel and a Cayman blue iguana will soon be revealed....just scroll down....


Here are tonight's tweets:

1) @Albertbrooks (Albert Brooks, a comedian/actor/film director/novelist): "Going to watch the debate tonight with 12 undecided voters, well actually they're dogs." (Yes, that's the reason for the Scottish terrier, which was the breed of George W. Bush's White House dog).

2) @WSJ ("Wall Street Journal"): "Bad news for nerds. Popular kids in high school earn 10% more 40 years after graduation." (Yes, that's the reason for the image of the "Freaks and Geeks" cast).

3) @HuffingtonPost (Huffington Post): "Grand Cayman's blue iguanas no longer listed as critically endangered" (yes, that's the reason for the blue iguana).

4) @ABC11_WTVD (WTVD is Raleigh, NC's ABC affilaite): "Obama camp says battle for NC is not over. Romney's team telling us the president's campaign yanking ads from the state."

5) @JenGanholm (Jennifer Granholm is a former Democratic Michigan governor and a tv show host on Current TV): "John Kerry: Mitt Romney has 'Rosetta Stone' foreign policy."

6) @Dailykos (Daily Kos, a liberal blog): "Open thread: Lesley gore tells Romney: 'You Don't Own Me," this is in reference to pop singer Lesley Gore from yesterday who had hit song "You Don't Own Me," at first we thought she was one of Al Gore's daughters....good thing we googled Lesley Gore!

7) @MarketPlaceAPM ("Market Place" is a daily radio show airing on most NPR stations): "Yes, it's true. Some voters are still undecided. Lynn @Vavreck on why some voters haven't picked a pony yet." (The segment said that women voters were more undecided than male voters due to household pressures).

8) @thenation ("The Nation" is a liberal magazine): "Romney campaign, media collude in unprecedented politicization of Benghazi, Libya, affair."


http://www.caymanislands.ky

http://www.albertbrooks.com

http://www.sundancechannel.com

http://www.current.com

http://www.thenation.com

http://www.stca.biz (Scottish Terrier Association of America)

Dexter Trivia (2 of 4)_ How Many People Has Dexter Killed?*

Yeah, we couldn't resist: This is an image of a cereal killer. We can't tell if Trix Cereal is one of the cereals or not.

At any rate, we are NOT including any people who may or may not have been whacked in the season premiere of "Dexter," the reason for the star* in the header, which Javier the Intern (a running gag) says is re-airing tonight on Showtime, but today's question is "How many people has Dexter killed?"

A) 117

B) 119

C) 121

D) 123

The answer for the last question was A) Raleigh, NC, is the city where Michael C. Hall was born in 1971.

PS_ Yeah, this entry was supposed to be posted like six days ago....

Quote of the Day/Week-Svetlana Khorkina

Today's quote/day week, our final one for April in our series of quips from gold or silver-winning Olympic international athlete (summer games); tomorrow we will start quoting famous American Olympians.

Last week, we quoted the Belorussian gymnast Svetlana Boginskaya; today we quote her names sake the Russian gymnast Svetlana Khorkina, 33, who won gold at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and the 2000 Sydney Olympics on the uneven bars.

But, she is best-remembered for a series of equipment mishaps which plagued the Russian team in Sydney, forcing them to be awarded with silver medals at the games instead of gold; this quote is a reflection by Khorkina regarding those unfortunate series of events:

"I knew well in advance even before I stepped on the stage for my first event that I was going to lose."

SIDEBAR: There are perhaps very few people who would see both the slapstick/frat boy humor film "The Three Stooge," a modern update on Curly, Larry and Moe, and the French art film "The Kid with a Bike." But, I saw both films over the weekend, and for the most part, both were exactly what I expected.

For those of you living in the Washington, DC suburb of Farifax, Va., (not where I saw the films), you can "The Three Stooges" at United Artist Farifax Towne Center 10, while "The Kid with a Bike" can be seen at Cinema Arts Theatre.

The French is also playing at Galaxy Cinema in Cary (Raleigh), NC, and at the Aperture Cinema in Winston-Salem, NC.http://www.cinemaartstheatre.comhttp://www.mygalaxy.comhttp://www.aperturecinema.com

Double Bonus Picture to Fill Space-Scotish Fold Cat

Since Maru the Cat, the Scottish fold cat who resides in Japan, has become a Youtube sensation, we thought we'd thought an image of a cat from the same breed; this particular one presumably resides in Latvia.

On Sat. April 20th, the Safe Haven for Cats, a no-kill shelter in Raleigh, NC, will host its annual Tuxedo Cat Ball at the Marbles Kid Museum in downtown Raleigh. the contact number for the shelter is (919) 872-SAFE.

Quote of the Day/Week-Nazim Hikmet

It turns out that we have had visitors today from Afghanistan?! Of course, we have no idea if those blog hits are from American troops or village dwellers in Kandahar province, but either way_ thanks for visiting.

Today, in honor of both National Poetry Month and the up-coming Nazim Hikmet Poetry Festival in Cary (Raleigh), NC, on April 15th, we quote the great Turkish poet Nazim Hikmet (1901-1963).

The great irony of Hikmet's life is that he lived in exile in her later years in Russia because he was a communist. He ended up dying in Moscow, but today he is the national poet of Turkey and his once-revoked Turkish citizenship was given back to him posthumously.

This year's Nazim Hikmet festival honors the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda.

Here is the quote from Hikmet, who is also my personal favorite poet, with Charles Bukowski being a close second:

"However and wherever we are, we must live as if we will never die."

Quote of the Day- Johannes Brahms

Today, since we are quoting famous Germans throughout November, we are going to quip the great composer Johannes Brahms (1835-1897), who along with Ludwig von Beethoven and Johann Sebastian Bach is one of the 'three bs.'

This quote seems like one which might come from a counter-culture icon of the 1960s like Lenny Bruce or Frank Zappa:

"If there is anyone here whom I have not insulted, I beg his pardon."

I teased a young, blonde female Starbucks barista in Front Royal, Va. (not the actual Starbucks where I met this woman) whose boyfriend is into classical music that there is in fact a 24-hour classical music station in Washington, DC, (actually WETA-FM is based in the DC 'burb of Arlington, Va).

There is also a 24-hour classical musical station WCPE in Raleigh, NC, which offers simulcasts to radio stations in Hot Springs, Va., Joplin, Missouri, and Sioux City, Iowa.

WETA-FM, an NPR station, played portions of the Brahms' Piano Concerto today, circa 11:00 a.m., while WCPE-FM played portions of Brahms' Symphony #1 at around 1:15 p.m.

Of course, Germany is known for other kinds of music besides classical, as the '80s hard rock band The Scorpions ("Rock Me Like a Hurricane") and the political New Wave pop singer Nena ("99 Luft Balloons") also hailed from there.

Quote of the Week- R.Crumb

One of our heroes R. Crumb, the creator of "Mr. Happy" and "Fritz the Cat," is heading down under to speak at Sydney Opera House in Australia on Aug. 21, which is a long, long way from here in Goldsboro, NC (I am actually in a different town in the Tarheel State, but all of us are experiencing near 100-degree heat!).

Here is his quote:

"When I come against the real world, I just vacillate."

In our last entry on our other blog, we mentioned Safe Haven for Cats in Raleigh, NC. The no-kill cat shelter has an ad in the current pet issue of "Independent Weekly" which can give a ten-dollar discount of spaying and neutering. The shelter's phone number is 919-872-1128_the picture of the tuxedo cat in the ad looks amazingly like our beloved family cat Godzilla (not his real name) who turned seven last week.

THE WHOOPS DEPT- this entry was meant for the other blog!

Things We Learned on Google Today- The Kid for Chivas

Since the Mexican team Chivas Guadalajara (not to be confused with the American MLS team Chivas in Los Angeles) played Italian powerhouse Juventus in Raleigh, NC_ of all places this week, we thought we'd mention Chivas in today's entry in our "Things We Learned on Google Today" series. Alas, Chivas lost the game 1-0 as Fabio Quagliarella, 28, who should qualify for our next "People with Long Names" list, score the lone goal of the match for the Italian team.

The turn-out at Carter-Finley Stadium was a disappointing 16,124 people, but it was the first time a game between two international clubs was played in the Raleigh-Durham area.

So, we actually asked Google two questions pertaining to Chivas. The first was 'how many first division soccer teams are there in Guadalajara?' (it is Mexico's second largest city). And, the answer is three with Atlas and Tecos, being the other two squads.

We then asked Google who the star player for Chivas is, and it appears to be Marco Jhonfai Fabian, 22, (pictured here) who scored his Mexican first division goal during a 6-0 route of the team Jaguaes (the Jaguars) on Nov. 10, 2007.

Fabian scored his first international goal for Mexico just a month ago in a 1-0 victory over Ecuador.

We expect he will have a great career, and perhaps he may end up playing for a European like....well, Juventus!

Things We Learned on Twitter Today- Sofia Coppola Likes Rango

Since I have longed though that film director Sofia Coppola was a private person, I was surprised when I heard her give an interview to Terry Gross for the NPR show "Fresh Air." And, I was even more stunned to see that she has a Twitter account.

And, apparently, the director of "Lost in Translation" who turns 40 in May likes the new animated film "Rango" that stars Johnny Depp (well his voice any way):

"Rango is such an amazing film, has anyone seen it? It's like Chinatown for kids, even the old turtle resembled John Huston."

I thought the tweet was a bit ironic since in a book about the Oscars writer Danny Peary said that "Chinatown" should have been chosen as the Best Film of 1974 instead of "The Godfather, Part 2," which Sofia's father directed. (We're not getting into this debate, as fighting and arguing with radical rapture-seeking right-wing extremists like the Rev. Johnny Robertson of Martinsville, Va.*, is our top priority around here!).

As for Sofia Coppola's new film "Somewhere" is showing at one of our favorite cinemas, the Galaxy Cinema in Cary, NC (Raleigh). They are not showing "Rango," but they are also screening "Barney's Version" which a friend of mine in Bethesda, Maryland, really enjoyed!

*- Yes, this is a real person and (of course!) he has his own tv show!

Beers from Around the World (#49) Kingfisher from India

We are concluding our Beers Around the World segments on our two respective blogs today, and we start with Kingfisher Beer, an Indian beer known by its motto: "The King of Good Times."

Kingfisher is indeed India's most popular beer, and according to its web site, it boasts that it is available from Norway to New Zealand.

Kingfisher can also be found widely in America, though I'm not 100 percent certain they serve in The Chefs of India restaurant in Cary, NC, (a Raleigh suburb) even though I've heard it's a great place to dine.

The beer has a 4.8 percent alcoholic content, but for Gen Y Bollywood movie-goer types Kingfisher does have the Kingfisher Blue which has an eight percent alcoholic content. And, the brand also offers the seasonal Kingfisher Red.

This reminds me that it's been a while since I've seen a Bollywood film, though we gather (and we could be wrong about this) that many are being shown at the Glasgow Film Festival currently underway in Glasgow, Scotland. Some Bollywood films have been known to last close to four hours in running time!

Quoting Romeo and Juliet for V-Day

Yes, there is considerable irony here dear reader as I hate and despise Valentine's Day pretty much as much as you do, but I couldn't help think that this was a good opportunity to shamelessly quip the one Shakespeare play that may have influenced those hot Mexican soap operas one might come across on Telemundo_ that is of course "Romeo and Juliet."

So, here is a quote from the story who's ending has been given out via spoiler alerts since I was in the eighth grade in 1985:

"Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow."

The American Shakespeare Center in Staunton, Va., is not currently performing "Romeo and Juliet," but they are staging another Shakespeare play "The Comedy of Errors," with one the impressive Sarah Fallon as Adriana.

SIDEBAR: Though there initially appeared to be a major conflict, it looks like if (and that's a big if) I'm willing and able, I might just be able to head down the road to Raleigh, NC, to see speed metal band GWAR perform at the Lincoln theatre on Thurs., Feb. 17. Alas, my soon-to-be 41-year-old ears have been pretty messed up ever since I listened to a concert by The Kinks on the now-defunct "King Biscuit Flour Hour" on the also now-defunct Rock 105 out of Blacksburg, Va., in 1987 (I think singing "Lola" at the top of my lungs that very same night almost made me a homeless teenager).

GWAR will also perform in Alletown, Pa., on Feb. 18 and in Brooklyn, NY, on Feb. 20

But, don't presume one can not enjoy both speed metal and the works of history's greatest composers (I should host a "Mozart and Metallica Hour" on some indy or college radio station, but there may only be three listeners even if you pick up the live stream in Kuwait), as we will also mention here that the Louisville Symphony is performing the works of Haydn, Ravel and Stravinsky on Feb. 24 at 10:30 a.m. on Feb. 24. The concert will feature a Paris-theme. We take it that wearing Van Halen t-shirts to the event might be a very bad idea.