Movie Night

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Mrs. TANBI and I went to the movies last night. She sorta wanted to see Slumdog Millionaire and I sorta wanted to see Gran Torino, so we saw Coraline.

I hadn't heard much of anything about the movie except that it was stop motion. When we bought our tickets it was right under a sign alerting us that there was no 3D at this location. I didn't know it had been an option, so we didn't let the admonition stop us.

It's a really good movie, and I think a movie theatre movie - or at least worth seeing in a movie theatre movie. There were moments in the film I was fairly sure were designed for 3D, but not having the effect didn't take anything away that I could tell (although I can't say if having it would add anything). I thought it was a bit hard to watch at first. It took me a little while to stop looking for what was stop motion, what was traditional animation, what were sets and what was rendered - things like that. I'm not sure why, but for some period of time that seemed to matter to me. Also, I kept having the thought that early on in the process I bet this was a live action and animation film, with one technique applied to one world and the other to the other. In hind site I am not sure that would have added anything either.

There were a lot of kids at the movie. We went to a 7:30 show and I had figured that would end later than parents wanted to be out with their kids (this is after all Pittsburgh and not Vegas, where I routinely saw kids in the grocery at 3am), I was wrong. Interestingly, the story is pretty dark for kids. The film style suggests something that a 5 or 6 year old might enjoy, but I think the PG rating is spot on. There was a girl behind us I would be surprised to find was as old as 8 who got 100% out of the movie experience; shouting "No!" and "Don't go!" Toward the end I think she might have quite possibly, actually crapped her pants, I don't blame her, it was a scary moment.

The story is good, the animation is good, the music is good, it's just all really good.

And, I just checked out a lot of behind the scenes stuff on the web site and it would appear that there was very little other than sets and stop motion. Well done.

Shorties

• 16:14 Bored #
• 16:14 @thespophile covers are my favorites #
• 18:54 movie night? #
• 22:20 Bar Louie, Waterfront. #
• 22:21 @MitchAdler how come your sexy phone didn't fix that? LOL. JK. #
• 00:32 @aerdin really good movie. Not for eight year olds. #

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Shorties

• 13:55 Need a call for a same day meeting #
• 16:57 an hour behind all day today #
• 22:08 I had the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. Can I get a do-over? #
• 00:16 Pretty good BSG #

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Shorties

• 16:06 office - email IZ'd - green page next #
• 19:41 @PunkyPicc totally cool #
• 19:41 I love production meetings #
• 21:15 got the letter! #
• 00:29 photoshopping for the web #

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Got the Letter

I wonder what's next?

Shorties

• 14:57 Losing my fight with the power that is Freya #
• 15:56 @PunkyPicc Freya is (probably) our cutest kitten (not named for a bra) and she has the power to make you stay in bed for hours #
• 15:56 office, big fun, really #
• 17:42 Lighting candidate presentation. #
• 23:04 When will it not be cold? #

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Shorties

• 15:34 and back to work #
• 23:34 @thespophile not my finest retort - I apologize #
• 23:35 @scoutfinch2271 happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday happy birthday, happy birthday to you! #
• 23:36 not getting anywhere on the email backlog #
• 01:34 Cathching up on Damages - wheels in wheels. #

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Some Thoughts on Driving Cross Country

I guess maybe it should only be "Cross-Midwest" as I didn't really cross the country. I mean "overland," yes?

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I got a phone a little while back that successfully pairs with my GPS by bluetooth, so while driving I have a speakerphone. I hadn't used it much as the pairing and unpairing seems stupid when you'll be in the car for less than 20 minutes (I am probably doing something wrong), but for a long trip with maybe four hours between stops it seems like a good idea. I actually wound up using the speakerphone feature this time and discovered something. Since the GPS is fairly hard-mounted to the windshield, the person on the other end of the line gets a nice whooshing sound along with your voice. I am guessing it's the wind on the windshield being transmitted through vibration in the suction mount. Oops.

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In Indiana I saw a cell phone tower that had blown over. It was really cool and was gone before I could get out my camera. I mean I love you people and all, but not enough to stop.

I also should give a little shout out to the GPS nav system for continuing to keep my trips interesting. This time we got yet a third (fourth?) route through Northwest Indiana. So far we've used the Skyway and not used the Skyway, so thats 90 and 94 and then this time IN State 912. I cannot tell at all why the thing chooses one over the other. I know it can do real time traffic, but I also know it isn't enabled - because I don't know how and I think there's something I would have to subscribe to. I would say its using the day of the week and the time of the day except it must not know that because it can never seem to tell which way the Chicago reverseables will be open. Still, it did go quickly, and I think it saved me $2 in tolls. So thanks for that GPS.

The phone does other tricks beside the bluetooth. It's got 3G internet, so I could tweet and check email and even Facebook from the road - as well as look things up on google maps. I don't think the experience of driving is all that much better having these things, and I imagine it will cause a fair number of accidents from people Twittering instead of driving, but it's still a little cool none the less.

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I'd also just like to say, to have said it, that two people is not enough to staff a rest-stop fast food establishment, especially during the day. When you go into these places it's not for a relaxing driving sabbatical, at least it isn't for me. If I could pee, get food, and refuel without actually stopping that's what I would want. So standing there for 15 minutes while the two of you grind out value meals is enough to really make a man demented.

More annoying than that though... Coming into PA from Ohio I got stuck in one of these new toll-chutes behind some guy, and his dog, who were digging through the mats of his car to find enough change to pay a $3 toll. It would be ok if when you saw this you could maneuver at all but nowadays once you pick a lane - well, that's your lane. There should be some kind of honk-code you can do to get the attendant to just let the loser go and apply the toll to you. I would have much rather paid another $3 than to have had to sit there for 11 minutes. I mean, like I say above, I am trying to get from A to B.

Maybe I wouldn't mind the sitting around so much if the truck hadn't gotten to smell just a little bit like the monkey house at the zoo. Now I know this is sort of all on me, but two 8 hour drives in a short space, plus leaving the cooler in the car in between. Well, it wasn't a good recipe. Thankfully it wasn't a permanent change.

Shorties

• 13:18 Five Hour National pre-game show? We have lost our national mind. #
• 19:08 Can't stand the hype - switching to Animal Planet "Kitty Halftime Show" #
• 19:24 OK ready to be watching the #superbowl #
• 19:38 lol: gavroche: If Star Trek has taught us anything it's that it's better to wear gold than red. #superbowl #
• 19:42 I wish twitter was streaming the #superbowl like they did during the debates #
• 19:48 @PunkyPicc don't you live near a bar? #
• 20:02 first quarter of the #superbowl coulda been worse, woulda liked that TD though #
• 20:17 @aerdin um, huge pile of money? just a guess #
• 20:22 oops - game on #superbowl #
• 20:52 go 100 yards - come on - 100 yards!!! #superbowl #
• 21:30 time for part two #
• 22:05 three down, one to go. still not safe #
• 22:29 crunch time #
• 22:50 Ouch, just takes one play. Course, it'll just take one play... #
• 23:01 BOTH FEET DOWN!!! #
• 23:04 Well, nobody can say they don't at least make it interesting. #superbowl #

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Shorties

• 18:22 @MitchAdler this is one of the odder dimension of of the twitter experience #
• 18:22 finish the walk? gonna be 40 tomorrow - maybe take a chance and leave it #
• 21:54 @pennjillette tinyurl.com/byp6af #
• 22:16 Cocktails! #
• 00:27 @KatyK does pile up, doesn't it? #
• 02:02 too many cocktails, oops. getting old #

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