Up until two years ago we could sleep in. We could stay out all night. We could leave food and books (the other white meat) on the coffee table. Then all in an instant, everything changed.

Haven’t looked back for a moment.  Glad you’re here Diego.

Great effects.   Loved the 3-D.  Thought the hookah-smoking blue caterpillar needed a movie of his own.  But that’s about where my love for Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland ends.

We caught the 3-D non-IMAX version of the movie at a sold-out showing in Del Mar last night.  The horde of entitled and self-absorbed high schoolers texting and walking in and out of the showing just reinforced my reaction to the movie: there was little to hold the attention for more than a quick jolt of eye candy.

Maybe my expectations were too high.  Whatever the reason, it just didn’t work for me.  Some great lines and fascinating visual takes on the individual characters just never found their way into a coherent story worthy of the hype and the assemblage of proven talent.

On the plus side, I did get to see the trailer for the upcoming Tron Legacy.  I’m feeling very good about that one.  I suspect that while the kiddies will be wearing Mad Hatter costumes at ComicCon this summer, the vendors will be pushing Tron for all they can make.

Didn’t watch much of the recent Winter Olympics. Not much interest in winter sports, and NBC’s archaic time-delay policies pretty much eliminated any suspense in the competitions.

Did see this photo of the U.S. Bobsled Team circulating the internet the last couple of days though. It’s been kinda hard to miss.

We’ve done our fair share of bobsledding.  We hit the local faux-Swiss alps regularly and catch sight of the Yeti now and then.  But somehow our post-ride team photo looks a bit different.

Maybe we need to get suspenders?

Doing the first of the month chores for the practice, and tweaking the backend of the photo gallery for the sites here.  Zen Photo put out an upgrade that’s working nice and smooth, and allowed for a new template that I’m really loving.  Nice to have a bit of freshness in place as we head into spring.

I haven’t shared that much here recently because life’s been a bit slow.  Winter, even a So Cal winter, can get me that way.  Spring will be here soon enough though.  Looking forward to some short trips and some sunshine to get me out of my current rut.

Neither of us are even in AARP yet, much less ready for Social Security.  I have to admit I’m not really expecting much to be left of Social Security by the time I get there, if I get there, in 20 years or so.

[via Towleroad]

It’s not just about that particular benefit though – it’s all the benefits of marriage and equal treatment under the law for everyone.

Out and about this morning I pulled into a local Mom & Pop gas station to refuel my little car.  My card didn’t immediately work in the pump, so after a few choice words I went inside, and spoke to a smug little woman I assume to be the Mom.

We don’t take cards anymore.

I pointed out the numerous signs indicating, even advertising, otherwise, and the presence of the card readers in the pumps, but she was “oh, we’ve ordered new signs” as if that explained it all.  I figured discussion was futile, and had other things to do with my morning, but as I drove away questions kept popping into my mind.  Do they think paying with cards is a fad who’s time has passed?  Are they making some kind of a moral stand against big banks, or against a particular big bank that’s cut them off for some reason?  And more to the point I guess, how long until there are a new Mom & Pop on that corner that understand commerce in the 21st Century?

In an age where much of my news comes from internet news feed and 24-hour dedicated news channels, I just can’t understand why NBC can’t just broadcast their coverage of the Winter Olympics live.  Vancouver and San Diego are in the same time zone ferchristsake – so why does our reception have to be delayed by three hours as it gets routed through New York?  Why should Californians have to try to avoid spoilers for hours before various events just because some East Coast media elites can’t adjust their schedules?  Live means live folks, and if you can’t program a network around breaking news, get out of the breaking news business.

Not my mysterious final words, but a nice gesture from the hostess at Paradise Grille last night.  Our choice for a Valentine’s Day dinner included a rose bud “for each couple” with their prix fixe holiday menu.  The hostess seemed to be handing them to the female halves of the other couples seated nearby and we’d talked a bit about which of us she was going to offer the special flower to.  Smart woman – she avoided the issue (and made any bets moot) by offering us each a rose.

Dinner was fabulous in their outside patio under the stars.  Nice browsing through The Book Works afterward too.  Simply a beautiful night with the man who’s been my Valentine for five of these special days now.

A bit surprised and disappointed that the restaurant wasn’t full though.  Restaurants have been closing left and right here for the last couple of years now, but even with the weaker competitors culled from the herd things are still very tough here in North County.  We even got a last minute e-mail from a place we’ve frequented in the past on the afternoon of Valentine’s Day announcing special deals and openings for reservations that night.  Admittedly we’d most enjoyed the place under it’s prior chef, but it’s still a decent restaurant and I’m surprised they aren’t doing better.

Yes, I remember the first time I saw Akira.  I was in my 20s, working for State and living in DC.  The official release date seems to have been 1988, and it probably wasn’t too long after that that I saw it.  I had a VHS copy, then stumbled on the books and started picking them up when I could find them here and there.  I don’t remember the genre being big in DC at the time, but it might have just been my sheltered existence.  When the opportunity arose it was one of the first VHS tapes I replaced with a DVD, which was a damn good thing because that old tape was getting mighty worn. I still try and fill in gaps in the book collection when I find them, because the movie only went so far, and the continuing story just kept getting better.  And yes, I feel old.

Just a little something I saw and had to share.  Love to do some philosophical thing about how words can hurt, and words turned loose in the abstract can have unintended consequences, but it’s too early and I need more coffee, so I’ll let the video stand on it’s own.  More or less.

[via Andy Towle]