It’s all fun and games until somebody gets E. coli

But luckily, that’s not the case here in the Vancouver area. It was found there was no E. coli in Vancouver water. Phew. Let’s hope this is a sign of the water advisory being lifted soon.

In other news, ‘Prime Minister’ Stephen Harper continues making incredibly bold, highly conservative based decisions that are nailing the coffin shut on his entire political career. First off, he plans to privatize Cancer information in hopes of saving 400,000 lives in the next 30 years. You can tell this douchebag is from Alberta. Harper is obviously intent on privatizing health care in this country. I guess he didn’t watch the final episode of The Greatest Canadian. We, as Canadians, voted Tommy Douglas as the Greatest Canadian. Why? Because he gave us health care. Not a single, warm blooded, proud Canadian would ever give that up.

This is obviously a step towards privatization, not toward stomping out cancer. If Harper wanted to stomp out cancer, I would suggest this. Make smoking illegal. Period. Drugs such as marijuana and cocaine are illegal, primarily because they are harmful and potentially fatal. Smoking kills some 45,000 Canadians each year, more than all illegal drugs combined. Hell, if smoking were made illegal, would it not follow that we’d save the lives of 1,350,000 Canadians over the next thirty years? Even if I’m off in regards to the figures, 33% of that figure would meet Mr. Harper’s target. This is one Canuck who simply won’t let the asshole from Alberta fool him.

Mind you, this is small potatoes compared to the bombshell Harper unloaded in the House of Commons earlier this week. He wishes to officially recognize Quebec as an independent nation within Canada. What the fuck? This is the person, nay the imbecile, whom we voted to lead us, as a nation, UNITED? When I talked to a certain, Conservative friend from back in New York Jr. Toronto, they happily thought the idea was brilliant, saying, and I quote:

“Quebec gets what they want, to be their own nation, and Canada can be like their parent.”

It seems this friend is not under the Harper gag order. Nothing like someone who says what they mean. It would appear from the comment, that particular friend views La Belle Province very condescendingly. Only a generation since Meech Lake, since the debate, since the echos of the Trudeau ideal, and it seems the teachings are being lost. Quebec is an integral part of our past, our present, and future. If we as Canadians are to grow as a multicultural nation, we must learn to have a stronger partnership with Quebec. It is a shame that the attitude of so many Canadians outside of Quebec is so shocking. We are pushing them away just as fast as they want to leave.

In retrospect, Harper’s move could serve at least one of two purposes. Firstly, he may want to destroy all of Trudeau’s legacy here in Canada. Unfortunately, unlike our differently brained neighbours, the term Liberal is NOT meant as an insult, so there must be more to it. Maybe somebody will finally slip the gag order, and Harper’s true, diabolical intent may be revealed. Bear this in mind. As a member of the opposition, sitting beside Preston Manning of the Refooooorrrrrrrrrrmmmmmm Party, he voted against regarding Quebec as a distinct society, let alone an independent nation within Canada. But Gilles Duceppe, leader of the Bloc Quebecois, has given his support to the motion of Mr. Harper. Maybe the writing is on the wall, and Harper is creating a backup to stave off the inevitable defeat of his minority government, by creating a strong ally in the House of Commons. Alas, the latter is true, as many Canadians are realizing that Harper is currently, and always has been, firing duds. And I don’t mean JUST in the sack.

That is all.

Make it yourself Meh-me

A while back, MCF put up this post (well, okay, meh-me) to help identify which of the “102 Movies to see” list found via rogerebert.com we each have seen and what is remaining to see.

Well, I came across this list of the Top 100 Movies of All Time at Total Film, and I like it as a list for one simple reason. I like the pick for the number one movie of all time. So, I’m reworking the previous meh-me as follows:

From the list, bold face the films you have seen previously. Asterisk the films that you own in your video collection.

Now, for the list:

1. Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back *
2. Fight Club *
3. Pulp Fiction * (VHS only)
4. The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King *
5. The Shawshank Redemption (I used to own this, but it got stolen when I was broken into one of two times living in Windsor, Ontario )
6. GoodFellas * (VHS only)
7. The Godfather *
8. The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring *
9. Jaws
10. Donnie Darko
11. Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope *
12. The Usual Suspects *
13. The Matrix *
14. Raiders Of The Lost Ark * (VHS only)
15. Se7en * (VHS only)
16. The Godfather: Part II *
17. Gladiator * (VHS only)
18. Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind
19. Aliens
20. Sin City
21. The Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers *
22. LA Confidential
23. Taxi Driver
24. Die Hard
25. Batman Begins
26. Back To The Future
27. Schindler’s List * (VHS only)
28. Spider-Man 2
29. The Big Lebowski *
30. Heat
31. Reservoir Dogs *
32. Blade Runner
33. Terminator 2: Judgment Day
34. Alien
35. X-Men 2 *
36. Annie Hall
37. Léon
38. Casablanca *
39. Apocalypse Now *
40. Memento
41. Jurassic Park * (VHS only)
42. It’s A Wonderful Life (with as much airplay as it gets on television, there is NO need to ever buy this)
43. One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest
44. Monty Python And The Holy Grail *
45. The Third Man
46. The Good, The Bad And The Ugly
47. Toy Story 2
48. A Clockwork Orange *
49. Moulin Rouge!
50. The Apartment
51. The Wild Bunch
52. ET: The Extra-Terrestrial
53. Trainspotting *
54. Raging Bull
55. City Of God
56. Stand By Me
57. The Thing
58. Scarface (1983) *
59. Airplane!
60. The Silence Of The Lambs *
61. Blue Velvet *
62. Seven Samurai
63. Citizen Kane *
64. 2001: A Space Odyssey
65. Shaun Of The Dead (Yeah, this one kicks me a bit, but when I’ve wanted to see it, it’s always been overshadowed by something else)
66. Pirates Of The Caribbean: Curse Of The Black Pearl
67. Close Encounters Of The Third Kind
68. Lawrence Of Arabia
69. Halloween
70. The Searchers
71. Rocky
72. Once Upon A Time In The West
73. Platoon
74. Kill Bill: Vol. 1 *
75. Magnolia
76. The Deer Hunter
77. The Shining
78. American Beauty *
79. Fargo *
80. Chinatown
81. Saving Private Ryan
82. Vertigo *
83. King Kong (2005) (Nope, not seen the remake, and never intend to)
84. Goldfinger
85. The Wizard Of Oz *
86. Dawn Of The Dead
87. Requiem For A Dream *
88. The Terminator
89. Psycho *
90. Brokeback Mountain
91. Dr. Strangelove Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love the Bomb *
92. The Bourne Supremacy
93. The Incredibles
94. Some Like It Hot (I know, I’ve got to see this one for sure)
95. Spirited Away
96. Rear Window
97. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
98. This Is Spinal Tap *
99. Forrest Gump
100. The Exorcist

Well, it looks like my DVD collection still needs some work. Meh.

That is all.

When it rains, it pours

And funnily enough, it’s not just about Vancouver’s stereotypical weather patterns. Though I will say this: we get more than our share of unfrozen precipitation. They say bad things happen in threes. Divorces, deaths, tragedies. Always seem to come in clumps of three. Theoretically.

Consider this.

As the small handful of you who read this know, I worked on Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. Posting that information garnered the attention of these three forums of spoiler and information crazed people looking for a tidbit of information regarding the movie or those actors whom they pine for. It kind of reminds me of a friend of mine’s mother, who was just a bit more than obsessed about the Pride and Prejudice miniseries run on BBC, starring Colin Firth. There, from my friends recollection, was an online community of Firth fans who almost followed the actor step by step. Creepy. Well, some on these forums give me that same creepy, being stalked feeling.

But that’s small potatoes. Consider this.

Again, as consistent readers will know, I got injured on the set of Fantastic Four. You can read details on this post, or this post. One.

Well, as such, I hadn’t worked since. I was working for a restoration company through the temp firm I’m using to fill in the blanks between film gigs, but the risk of seriously infecting the burn caused me to grudgingly decide to not pursue that avenue until the scar heals well enough. Then yesterday around noon, I got another call. Night shooting on, to what I thought at the time, was “some show called Fallen.” I check the weather network for the forcast. Less than 1mm of rain for the evening. A clear one by Vancouver standards. BULLSHIT! It rained harder last night than it has in weeks. I’m still not thawed fully from last night. And to boot, I wasn’t called back (a rarity for me), this was possibly the worst crew I’ve ever worked with, and the show leaves A LOT to be desired. Two.

And to put the final nail in the proverbial coffin, the Canucks lost to the Nashville Predators 6-0 tonight. I mean, for crying out loud, the Preds play in the “Gaylord Entertainment Centre.” Three. Well, at least we beat the Red Wings last night 4-3. So I guess it isn’t all bad.

That is all.

Tell It To Me Tuesday Episode III

“What are five people, places or things you are thankful for?”

I do say, this doesn’t have the zing normally associated with the Remake TITMT or the As Seen On TV TITMT, so alas, I must stretch beyond the imaginary into the real for this one. C’est la vie.

Anyhow, on to my responses.

1. My partner Dawn. We always have the debate as to what we’d do without the other, and truth be told, I would find a way to get on with it. But without her, my life would be empty, lonely, and quite meaningless. Every day I’m with her brings new meaning, new hope, and a chance at a better future. I love you babe.

2. My parents. Very few people would have put up with me and my shit, and would have helped me grow from the mistakes I have made. Hell, how many would support their only son in a career with such a low success rate?

3. Being Canadian. I take great pride in knowing I live in the best country on earth. We have the best health care. Our stance on multiculturalism sets a precident which can serve as a global model for peaceful co-existance. Our hockey players are god-like, feared, and revered across the world. We have great role models to look up to and use their example to better ourselves and each other. Role models like Pierre Elliott Trudeau and Terry Fox. Those who taught us lessons like ‘Reason before passion’ and to have the courage to fight for what you believe in, and to fight to improve the well being of others. So we get a little snow. Pfft. And hey, Battlestar Galactica is shot here to boot.

4. Living here in Vancouver. Spending so much time out east in hell Toronto, it is wonderful to have a view, have clean air, and not have to deal with driving in the snow (and all we have to do to get some snow is just drive up into the mountains). I could never imagine ever going back east. Ever.

5. Working in the film industry. Yes, I bitch and whine and moan like hell when I’m not working, but it all becomes worth it when I finally get back on set. Though my focus is to one day direct and produce my own television series (I do like the idea of features still, but I think there is going to be a huge shift to television soon), being on set brings an energy back to me that I just can’t describe. And you know what else? I love days when you get paid loads of cash to make puppies.

That is all.

My world for a cuppa

You know, our water woes here in Burnaby are really beginning to take the fucking piss.

To start, since most of my water use for the purposes of consumption involves boiling the said two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen, I’ve not passed a second thought about our little situation. And because I pass by a local Tim Horton’s lately en route to work, I can at least approach my quota of 7 cups of coffee to get up, 4 more for breakfast.

Well, today, due to the lovely burn I received from The Human Torch that damn Silver Bullet, I’ve grudgingly made a decision to take a couple of days off of work to let the bugger of a wound heal. And taking advantage of free time, Dawn and I decided to head off to see our cat, Tara.

To make a long story short, I figured I’d just kill two birds with one stone and get coffee with my fill up. Imagine my shock when I saw literally NO URNS of coffee waiting to be purchased. And the Petro Canada station does do a five step water filter process before brewing a pot of coffee. Yet still, no coffee is being served due to the water conditions.

Just how long is this going to last? I can handle boiling water and then refrigerating for drinking. But creating a multiple step water preperation process for coffee?

Something has to be done now dammit!!! I’m four cups of coffee behind for Monday!!!

That is all.

Actually, we’re shooting a tampon commercial

Or: How I learned to stop worrying and love the Silver Surfer. Okay, the Silver Bullet. Not this Silver Bullet. Rather, this Silver Bullet.

But to that soon enough. Yesterday I got to work on Fantastic Four: The Rise of the Silver Surfer, constituting the first film call I’ve had in ages. And just as a note to those people who haunt all the Marvel, Fantastic Four, or Silver Surfer forums scouring the net for clues as to what happens in the movie, I would like to state the following:

1. I sign a confidentiality agreement with 20th Century Fox around my knowledge of the final product. As such, I’m not going to provide you spoilers. Anyone who desires to ask me for them will recieve an automatic lifetime ban from comments.

2. I’ve only worked a day on the show. How much could I tell anyway.

Bearing that now in mind, I do have to say there is something quite desireable about working on a high budget feature. They are, in no particular order:

1. Full scale pay rates. $25.14 per hour beats $12-15 per hour.

2. Lifelike set design. To this day, what the set decs, art designers, construction, painting and the like can do with styrofoam and plywood is remarkable.

3. Not only do we get paid full scale, but they also hire loads extra hands than they need. As such, even though it’s still organized chaos, it’s not physically taxing.

Of course, by physically taxing, I really mean there’s loads of standing around (or sitting if you can find anywhere to seat your buns that ISN’T a ballast). Now don’t get me wrong, I like staying busy, but when you work 14 hour days, a little rest in between grunting lights everywhere is well appreciated.

Though sometimes it is right taking the piss. Especially when you get to babysit lights on the street for oh, say, 8 hours. No changes for hours, and hours, and, well, you get the picture. Though you do get to do the PA’s job: crowd control. Well, question answering. Though I did find people ducking around the lights when they were obviously pointed at buildings, trying not to be in shot.

“Erm… the cameras are on the roof, shooting action ON THE ROOF!”

Unfortunately, the questions are more pressing:

“What movie is being shot?” [Fantastic Four]

“But I thought that came out?” [It's a sequel]

“Oh. Why are they shooting it again?” [It's a sequel. A continuation]

“That doesn’t make sense. Who’s in it?” [Jessica Alba is usually the only response I can come up with]

“Oh. She’s hot. Can you get me an autograph?” [She's not shooting today]

“Still, can you get me an autograph?” [By this point I want to extend my middle finger in disgust]

Well, I suppose you get the jist of these conversations. What’s really irritating is when I’ve actually got to adjust some lights, talking on the radio, and a pedestrian takes serious offence when you don’t give him/her your attention over your boss actually asking to execute a simple task at that moment.

Luckily though, I got switched to another set of lights in a back alley. Yay, no pedestrians. However, a faulty light. And no, I’m not laying blame. Adjusting the fixture I linked to and showed an illustration of above, the back door (which unlatches and opens to change globes) popped open, and burned my arm here:

Although I felt a sharp pain, it quickly dissipated until we figured out the latch was loose, held the door in place with a pony clip, restruck the light, and then I had a look at it. Then I could feel the pain. Ouch! Luckily, I had it looked at today, and it seems to be healing quite nicely.

If only I had told passers by that we were shooting a tampon commercial, I would not have had to endure the annoying persistance of questions. As well, if William F. White actually rented well maintained equipment, this might not have happened. But meh. No permanent damage.

That is all.

Tell It To Me Tuesday… Episode II

So I start reading The Art of Getting By a little more. And another Tell It To Me Tuesday just happens to crop up.

This week’s topic:

What are some of your favorite remakes?

Remember, the originals need not be your favorite songs. You may like the original so much you were happy someone did another rendition, or you may actually like the remake better than the original song itself. After all, music is in the eye of the beholder… or something like that.

Wow. Me. Remakes. Really in most cases not a good idea. I am, after all, one of few who stews in his own juices just over the thought of movies like King Kong being remade by the likes of [formerly respectable] Peter Jackson. But meh. There are, in my mind, certain acceptabilities in remakes. To put it simply, the remake must contribute something artistically, or be at least an update to reflect the current times. Not just a frame by frame reshoot to market a post-production and special effects house.

Seeing as the question was more intended toward music, I shall give an answer in the realms of music, film, and television.

MUSIC

All Along the Watchtower, originally by Bob Dylan, remade by Jimi Hendrix. In a mudhole in Saugerties, New York in the summer of 1994, I got to see Mr. Bob Dylan for the first time. I always respected him as a lyricist, an activist, and creative genius. But alas, I had known that in terms of vocal performance, he was no Placido Domingo. But listening to him at Woodstock ‘94, LIVE, that point was hammered home.

Enter Jimi Hendrix. In the late 60’s, he pushed the soundscape of rock boldly in new direction. I, to this day, find it quite fitting that such a great writer such as Dylan was stretched to fit a new mould for rock and roll. Truly a fitting collaboration of two of my favourite artists.

FILM

This one is quite hard for me, as I really am anti most remakes. However, I shall remit to say this.

Reservoir Dogs. It is heavily inspired (and thought by some to be a rip-off of) City on Fire. In film school I actually took the time to see both (well okay, City on Fire, I had already seen Reservoir Dogs). And I must say, though there are strong similarities in plot, Quentin’s narrative and style gives him a panache I haven’t seen in a director in ages. Well, until I saw Clerks.

TELEVISION

Anyone following this blog for any length of time knows the answer to this right away. Battlestar Galactica. Plain and simple, the best non-Canadian series out there. Though Dawn will argue it’s all about Starbuck, I digress. The series, in the way it’s written, shot, sequenced, edited, and how the CGI is done, really captures the essence of the series. The last 50,000 (I know it’s somewhat less now) humans known to exist, fighting their very likely extinction at the hands of their own creation, trying to find a new home and survive to grow in numbers again. Even though I loved the story and characters from the 70’s take, the campy 70’s feel to it just doesn’t ring true for me. The remake, definitely does.

And hey, it’s shot here in Vancouver.

And guess what else is shot here in Vancouver? Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. And guess who’s gonna be on set after a hell of a long hiatus tomorrow?

That is all.

Legalized Extortion

Read: Swindling people out of money as a landlord in the Lower Mainland.

As those of you may have already read here or on Dawn’s blog, we are moving into a new apartment in the beginning of December (to the lovely environs of Surrey, BC no less) as our current place of residence, in a manner of speaking, will not allow us to get a cat. To have a cat is a decision both Dawn and I feel is the correct direction to go in, and as such, we’ve spent the better part of October through to the first week in November looking for a place.

However, had we understood the true nature of renting in the lower mainland at the beginning of our search, we could have enjoyed the October evenings, and begun our search on 1 November. However, in an attempt to act responsibly, we spent October looking for a place for 1 December, so we had more than adequate time to give the appropriate 1 month’s notice to vacate. Sadly, the system exists here that landlords do NOT tend to post advertisements for apartments for rent that far in advance. So, a few days into the month of November, we found our apartment. And as our landlord, who does in fact live upstairs, could not be reached when we got our new place, we left a note in the mail slot so that we could do our best to leave as much notice as possible.

There is only one flaw. He rarely cleans out the mail box. I know this because we all share the same mail slot. As such, it was only until tonight that he apparently actually got the notice. Fucking git. Because he only got notice now (15 November, even though the notice had been available to him much longer than that), we lose out on our security deposit.

I sure as hell hope there is some way to fight him on this, because I know damn well I did everything I possibly could to ensure I gave as much notice as possible. And besides, how is someone supposed to give one months notice when you can’t get an apartment secured further in advance. This shit is completely and utterly shocking.

That is all.

What has happened so far this season?

Well for those of you who read this load of tripe regularly and like hockey (okay, maybe that could have been shortened to just Peter), I have held very low hopes for the Canucks this season. When we’ve replaced Bertuzzi, Jovanovski, Allen, Carter and the like with Luongo and a bunch of warm bodies, one thought pressed in my mind.

Luongo better be a 30 goal scorer as well as a Vezina trophy winning netminder.

As such, my hopes for a strong Canucks season fell to the wayside as it appears to be a rebuilding season, not a run for the Holy Grail.

But alas, at this random point in the season, Vancouver actually holds a playoff spot. And as I sit typing this, Vancouver leads the Calgary Flames 2-0. So after tonight there is still a good chance we’ll still be in the top eight in the west. Whether we can stay in the top eight by April is another thing though. We lost Thursday to the Anaheim Ducks (formerly the Mighty Ducks). A bunch of Disney kids beat us 6-0. How utterly embarassing is that? Well, as embarassing as Disney releasing Miracle in Canada and expecting us to pay money to watch a film that features America winning at hockey.

Frighteningly enough, some Canadians did. But not me.

As for other things in the West, what doesn’t suprise me:

1. Detroit made their way to the top of the Central Division. Not a shock, even bearing in mind that Yzerman retired and Shanahan is in New York. This is THE weakest division in hockey.

2. San Jose is playing strong. They can skate, they can score, they can stop the puck. They should go deep in the playoffs.

3. St. Louis, Columbus, and Chicago all suck ass. What a shock. And they represent 24 games of Detroit’s schedule.

What surprises me in the West?

1. Phoenix and Calgary suck balls. Phoenix acquired Jovanovski, Nolan, Roenick, Laraque, Perrault amongst others in the offseason, are coached by arguably the best player ever to play the game of hockey, and they are DEAD LAST in the West, and tied with Philadelphia as DEAD LAST in the NHL. Calgary added Alex Tanguay, and had such a horrible start out of the gate.

2. Anaheim has the best record in the west. I know they have both Neidermeyer brothers and Pronger now, but who sold their soul to Satan to make the Ducks so good? Excuse me while I vomit.

3. Dawn, my beloved partner, has decided to become an Oilers fan. No Wednesday jokes here, I’ll just say I hope she doesn’t expect me to shuttle her to Rexall Place anytime soon to see the Oil in action.

As for the East, I will just say this:

1. I don’t see Buffalo as a surprise. They were one game from going to the Stanley Cup last year. The fact they got off to such a good start shouldn’t be shocking. Last season’s revival should be more of a shock.

2. The Flyers suck. A good result, but for that group of Canadians who are Flyers fans (there is a singificant amount of them), let them whine, let them whine, let them whine.

3. Montreal is coming out strong early. I know I say this and the dreaded Make Beliefs beat them tonight, but I have confidence new coach Guy Carbonneau will guide them toward continued success. It was nice seeing the Hall of Fame inductees join Canadian war veterans in a ceremony before the game. It was also nice to see the greatest goalie ever, “Perfect” Patrick Roy, who will be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on November 13.

I’m sure Peter is feeling sick at the mention of such a great Wing killer, so I’ll leave him with an image of the Nordique Roy taking it to Detroit:

Whereas I prefer to remember this visage of Roy, as a Canadien, not a Nordique:

Damn. Calgary scored to make it 2-1. Guess I should watch the game now.

That is all.

Tell It To Me Tuesday

I really should read the blog The Art of Getting By more often. I every now and then see Meh-me’s as MCF has done them, and do like the questions aside from the typical drivel that seems to circulate around this virtual world.

As for this week’s Tell It To Me Tuesday:

“What fictional character on television, past or present, do you (or did you) most relate to and why?”

You can pick more than one, but the more you pick the reasons you chose them is going to grow to be even more important. I suppose you could even branch out and go into film too if you are so inclined.

MCF went ahead and did no less than 10. You can see his answers from the link above.

As for me, I think there’s three eras of television that I really pine to. First, Pre-University. Why? I grew up alone. No brothers or sisters, few friends who were close or lived close. TV filled certain voids (ineffective as they were though). Second, during University, where very little television was actually watched. Feature film dominated, though what quality TV I found, we scheduled classes and homework routines around. Thirdly would be present day. With all the specialty channels now, I no longer have to bear the nausea of network sitcoms, awful reality programs, over the top, cheesey, propaganda filled dramas. There is now a host of programming with solid content and original Flair (WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO).

Anyhow, to my responses:

PRE UNIVERSITY (1972-1991)

Special Agent Dale Cooper. Always the outsider looking in, it is very rare that I have felt truly accepted by any group of people. And, just as Cooper does, I feel I have a rare gift of insight into what is truly happening. And as Cooper was, I was from the East with a strong desire to move to the Pacific Northwest. It is also from Cooper that I chose to drink my coffee black, no sugar.

UNIVERSITY (1991-1996)

Special Agent William Fox “Spooky” Mulder. Both of us are very skeptical in nature, with a deadpan personality. We both feel the need to open the truth to the masses, but face tremendous resistance and skepticism from the masses.

PRESENT DAY (1996-Present)

Stewart Gilligan Griffin. Simply put, Stewie must have been what I was like as a child. Seth McFarlane should pay me rights.

Though a certain quote from Lt. Kara Thrace should put it all in perspective:

“‘Cause I’m a screw-up, Lee, try and keep that in mind.”

That is all.