Movie Ideas

So Lately I have been thinking about a lot of things.

And I have to ask, Why is it that Hollywood is incapable of anything original anymore? All the movies you see anymore are remakes sequels or prequels. But none of them are original.

I think that what needs to happen is that Hollywood needs to get rid of all the writers, actors and directors who have been there for so long. After all they have all had their chance to make it big, give someone else a chance. And that will also give a fresh perspective on how things could be done.

That’s what we need is for a new breed of entertainer.
Maybe we could also get cleaner movies. That would be a good thing! I am very disturbed about moves that are presented as being suitable for children! I mean Tim Burton, In my opinion, ought NOT to be making kid flicks and neither should Johnny Depp. These movies are to dark and disturbed for any children I know.

Same goes for Mike Myers… I mean I really feel the Cat in the Hat movie seemed to be a travesty of what Theodore Geisel wrote. And Shrek???? What The Heck???? Let’s teach the kids how to be totally gross and disgusting, like that isn’t already enough of a problem.

Oh back to the Tim Burton/ Johnny Depp combo… What was the point behind the Charlie and the Chocolate factory remake? I actually heard that they said it was closer to the book and Roald Dahl‘s writing.?! HUH?? How could it be closer to what Roald Dahl was intending when the original was supervised BY Roald Dahl himself? I mean I think if he was sitting on the set telling people how to do things then that is more likely to fit his idea then a movie made that has only an interpretation by someone else?

And what was that with Alice in wonderland?

Some people will say, “well kids today are more mature.” But I do not really think that is a good thing. We should let our kids BE kids. Let them have a childhood, let them enjoy the innocence that comes from such times. They will have to grow up soon enough.

You know I remember what it was like to be a kid and I know they will want to go see the “adult” movies (the 10 year old who wants to look all grown up so he wants to go to a P.G. 13 movie or such) But how about if we make the movies cleaner so a G rated movie is really good for kids (say 4 - 7 years old) then make movies like Shrek or the Alice in wonderland/ Wonka remakes into P.G. or even P.G. 13 movies then it might not be so bad when the 10 year old goes to see them.

a flash of common sense

lately I have been noticing a lack of common sense being displayed on our televisions.

I mean I have seen a worse then usual display of idiocy.

First I want to address the issue/s with Toyota. While I understand that there are problems with Toyota and some of the issues that have come out of that, I have to take a moment to pause and say "but I would rather own A Toyota than ..." you see I look at the Ford pinto or the Crown Victoria and here we have two cars that have shown a tendency to explode when rear ended, there are several GM cars that have also, apparently, displayed some homicidal tendencies.
the worst people can say about Toyota is the vehicle/s may accelerate on their own.

my view is, there is very little I can do about getting rear ended by an idiot. (maybe he is driving the toyota?)but if I am driving a toyota and it starts accelerating I can do something about it.

Once, when I was a school bus driver, I had the throttle on my bus stick open while on the highway. I had a load of students on my bus and teachers as I was driving for a field trip.

When this became an issue I was able to put the gear selector in neutral and pull to the side of the road and come to a complete and safe stop.

I then proceeded to fix the problem and finished taking the students to their destination.
The teacher's comments were that they didn't even realize there was anything going on until we stopped at the side of the road. And I started working on the problem.

ANY good driver who has common sense ought to be able to do this.

You can ALWAYS put the car in neutral, turn off the ignition etc... I have NEVER experienced loss of control for having my vehicle in neutral. So anyone who is "capable" of driving the car they ought to be able to take control if something goes wrong.

It is plain common sense.

The other point is a commercial I recently have seen for a new, hands free, soap pump from, I think, Lysol which states that "you" can avoid the horror of contamination by getting the new pump.
My very first thought was "wait a minute, that doesn't make sense."

If I am using soap then I am already washing my hands. I do not make a habit of touching a soap pump AFTER washing my hands so to have the pump be hands free is ridiculous.
Any germs I MIGHT pick up off the pump will wash down the drain along with the germs already on my hands that caused me to be washing in the first place.

So please people get some common sense. stop letting the advertising people out there take away your intelligence.

Stand and deliver

I think it is really sad that we have lost Mr. Escalante. We need more people like him. he had common sense and was an inspiration. Unfortunately with his loss I believe we All lose out. Anything that lessens people like him lessen us all.


Jaime Escalante was a man from Bolivia who worked hard to become a teacher in Garfield High school. He taught math and got very frustrated at what he saw as the dumbing down of the kids in his school.
He fought the critics and the other teachers, he went against the politically correct and the naysayers, and he single handed, brought Garfield High to being one of the top schools in all of America.
By 1981 THERE WERE ONLY A HANDFUL OF SCHOOLS IN THE ENTIRE COUNTRY that could match Garfield in mathematical excellence.

The entire life of Senor Escalante was so inspiring they made a movie "Stand and Deliver" that detailed his life.

Sadly we do not get to know all that happened later. it turns out that finally the politics won and they drove him out of Garfield and they have seen a steady decline in the competence of their students until we reach Last year when only five percent of the students at Garfield High tested proficient at ANY level of math.

This is really sad because when Jaime first started teaching the high school math there he compared the level of math they were learning to be on par with a basic FIFTH grade education in math in Bolivia.

So now we have all lost out. If you are a teacher or parent please push for better standards see Mr. Escalante's life as a standard to reach for and try to teach your kids that well.

I would also encourage you to watch the movie of his life. (remember that was stand and deliver) I only saw the movie once but it was very inspiring to me.

By the way just so you know one of the things that was used against Mr. Escalante was that even though he was from Bolivia he believed that the students of America needed to learn English and classes needed to be taught in English only.
Another point apparently used against him was his advising President G.W. Bush.

How sad that common sense and trying to make a difference in our lives cause so many to rise up in anger, and destroy a great person.

Moments

oh boy!
I got a good one today!

Apparently my eldest daughter was unwell last night, so I jokingly, because school has been out for a month now, said "Well then I guess you don't get to go to school today."

Her Nostrils flared, her lips pursed, her eyes narrowed and she said "I don't HAVE to".

I want to make clear here that she was not "sassing" me, she was referring to the fact that school was out, and honestly she was quite cute. REALLY. And My wife and I laughed.

Sometimes it seems that they grow up altogether too fast. but then there are the moments when you can "live forever" in the moment.

I am a true fan of Science Fiction!
I love Star Wars and, oddly, Star Trek.
I say Oddly because usually star wars fans and star trek fans are at loggerheads so it is rare to find one person who enjoys both as much as I do.

But I digress...

One of my favorite Star Trek movies is Insurrection.
In this movie there is a point where Captain Picard and his current "female person of interest" share a moment which is really cool.

And everything around them slows down.

I often find myself wishing that I could do that. but it is moments like the one this morning that come the closest for me.
In those moments we establish the memories which we can relive over again at our leisure.
And sometimes that is enough.

live, laugh, love, and learn!

Should Security Officers be memorialized?

On 6-23-09 I was listening to the radio as I worked (as usual) when I heard something interesting.
The host of the show I was listening to asked his listeners how they felt about the idea of the security officer (Stephen Johns), who was killed recently, having his name memorialized on the law enforcement memorial in D.C.
(for more on the funeral service for this officer click here)

Apparently on the one hand the argument is along the lines of… “He worked in a form of law enforcement and he died in the line of duty, thus his name ought to be on there.”
Of course THAT would mean we would have to put ALL the names of ALL the security officers who died in the line of duty on there also.

On the other hand, the other side says… “Security officers are not held to the same standards, do not have the same level of responsibilities or receive the same training as law enforcement, so they do not belong on that memorial no matter how similar the sacrifice.

There is an implication in that. That statement says, because it is “less difficult” they must not be as dedicated to their jobs.

I have worked as a security officer and indeed it is work that I am, even now in. And I know as well as any what kind of dedication it really takes. But I thought I would be the odd one in this argument. Because I think that he should not be memorialized on that monument.

It is there specifically for officers employed by civilian governmental law enforcement. (That’s Right Military police are not allowed to be on it either.)

What was interesting to me was that I was NOT the odd one. Every other Security officer who called in agreed! What’s more they even agreed with my idea that, if anything, they ought to create a whole new Memorial for private security.

See even though security officers are not “as dedicated” or whatever we do a great service. And we are often made fun of even though we do provide such an important service.
That was my original thought but then I thought a bit further and I realized something, even better than a memorial would be… RESPECT.

Security officers DO provide an important service and they often take on the brunt of a really dangerous position, and they are not the only ones.

What about the Janitors, the Waiters/waitresses, the plumbers, teachers, Bus drivers, dishwashers and taxi drivers, the mechanics and train engineers.

All of these people perform important tasks and they get little respect for it. They seldom receive thanks from those who most depend on their service, BUT the first time there is a mistake everyone is all too eager to jump on them and punish them for not doing the job well enough.

Do you ever stop to think about what they do?

When you finish your day and go home, that is usually when they start working.

As you help your daughter with her homework the Janitor is trying to make your office a pleasant place to work in for tomorrow, and his daughter is struggling in school without him around to help because of your needs. In return you make fun of him and declare how easy it would be to replace him… after all anyone can push a broom right? Try looking at all he really does, taking out your trash, cleaning the windows, putting up with whatever you didn’t want to.

Or what about the Security Guard? While you are letting the stress of your day wear off by playing catch with your son he is laboring to make sure your stuff at work is safe. And his son wonders if dad is even going to be there in the morning to say hi to.

The school bus driver usually goes to work before you even think of waking up for work and he might even won’t get off until way after you have been home and had dinner. His day is longer but because it is broken up in ways you never experience he gets paid a lot less.

But All too often we make fun of these people when they are only doing their best to make our lives easier.

What would you do if there weren’t someone to make sure your water was clean and that you toilets worked?
How nice would your life be if you had to clean your own office?
What would happen if there were no teachers to help your kids learn? How would you teach them the basics and still make a living?
How would you get around a strange town without the bus drivers and taxi drivers?

See all these people, whom you take for granted, work hard 24 hours a day in order to make your life easier.
They make sure that YOU do not have to deal with the stuff that comes out of you on the toilet once you have flushed it down.

They bring you food (hopefully not the SAME people as in the last example) so that you can eat well.
They bag your groceries and they take away your trash.
And in return what do “you” do?

Do you make jokes at their expense? Do you call them incompetent? Or say they are too lazy to get “real” jobs? Do you laugh about their lack of education? Do you poke fun at their hopes and dreams?

I hope not.

But that is what many DO go out and do.
So maybe what would be better is for us all to respect them. And even make sure they are paid well enough that they can get a tutor for their kids… or at least enough that they can afford to live and even take a little time off once in a while to be with their families.

PARENTHOOD

I know that this is supposed to be my "light" blog, but, with father's day on the way it occurs to me to bring up a point that is very near to my heart.
See I believe that being A dad is more than just making a baby.

I feel I am very well qualified to judge on the subject for several reasons.

First on the basis of having been a son.

Second on the fact that I have had Three "dads".

Third, even with the first two qualifications, I feel that I never had a GOOD male role model while growing up.

And Fourth, I am a dad. And what's more in my honest opinion I am doing a fair job (maybe even a good one) in being a dad to my children (at least a better job than was done by the role models I had.)

I have actually classified the different names of a dad.

First, there is a father, this is the guy who gives life. A father helps to "create" the child but there is not much more than that.

Second, you have Dad, a guy who is there when needed, sometimes fun, you can "pal around" as it were, with him.

Third is Daddy, this is a close relationship, daddy is a friend and supporter of you, daddy is who you run to for love and comfort when you are hurt in body or heart.

So, if you are a male parent, which are you? You can be all three or any combination of the three. But you probably do fall under one of these.

My advice today is geared towards fathers but mothers can benefit too.

First take the time to be with you kids.
You need to take the time to show them that they are more important than the video games or T.V. set or the baseball game or work or...
Well I think you get the idea.

Second help them to grow! my male role models never bothered to teach me the simple stuff like how to shave, or how to talk to a girl. (They never even bothered to show me how the things they cared about worked; let alone the things I needed to function in life. I never learned about base ball, cars or football from my dad, let alone Shaving, job hunting, Dating...I had to go out and figure these out on my own.)

Third let them know you love and care about them. None of my Male role models ever saw fit to let me know that I mattered.
The message I got from ALL of them was they were the important one, they were the one that mattered And I was generally little more than a useless blob of tissue taking up space in their presence (or that I was there as their personal servant.)

Out of all of them the best I got was my adoptive father who at least cared enough to adopt me.
The first man, the one who fathered me, told my mom effectively that he wanted nothing to do with me when they divorced.

My adoptive father (or dad from now on.) didn't know how to show love to more than one person at a time. (In fact I was constantly in a state of what is called sibling rivalry with him since he was always fighting with me for my mother's affection.)

As for my Stepfather, well to give him the benefit of the doubt he did have a daughter of his own and a lot of difficulties linked with that, and a REALLY bad relationship with his own father, not to mention his ex-wife.
But still the most memorable thing I got from him was A BUNCH of really LOUSY birthdays.
The first one after he became my stepfather was a party that he decided (probably with my mom's help) needed to be their wedding reception.
Even though they got married weeks before, they chose to celebrate on my birthday.
Making me feel left out because, in the end, the party was for them and their friends, not me.
And I or my feelings Or my birthday didn't matter (My friends were all made to feel unwelcome and they left after spending VERY little time there).

Then there was the Birthday where his grand gift to me was to kick me out of the house. His great contribution to me was to make me homeless.

He might have thought these things were in my best interests but he didn't think it through.
In fact when I finally confronted him and mom about the first example the response I got was "well you didn't have all that many friends and we wanted a good party besides you just need to grow up and learn how to make friends".
The end result though was that I now have an even harder time interacting with people; even the ones I am close to because all I expect is disappointment.
(It is true I have suffered from a mild depression ever since.)
As for my second example... I do not like to talk about it much. Suffice it to say that I was hurt. Badly.

See they were never the kinds of role models I needed. I think I said more here than I intended but maybe it's good to get it off my chest anyway.

Please be a good dad! if you are a single mom I would encourage you to find a good man to be a role model for your child.

What is a good role model?

If you have a son, a good role model is one who will teach the little things to him, shaving, sports, Finances, etc.
If at all possible this should also be a man who shows the boy how to love and care for a wife (When I say love I do not mean have intimacy with, I mean do loving things for, thinking of her needs first).
A Man who will encourage (not push) and support (not name call) the boy.
He shows the boy how to defend himself appropriately.
Someone who will make it unequivocally clear that no matter what the boy does he is loved unconditionally.
And Showing the boy there does not need to be competition for the mother's love.

However if you have A daughter, a good male role model shows her how to expect to be treated by a boy.(WELL)
He will give her the sense of self that allows her to be equal in her relationships.
Again He will encourage (not push) and support (not name call) the girl, he will make it unequivocally clear that no matter what the girl does she is loved Totally and unconditionally.
And he will protect her from the dangers that are out there that are relatively unique to girls. (He can even show her how to defend herself too.)

A positive male role model offers protection to the child (Son or Daughter)A man who will defend the child and child's mother, standing up for what is right.
A man who knows how to control his appetites not becoming addicted or abusive.
And he would also be a man who takes the time to learn about the child he is role modeling for.
He figures out What it is that makes the child tick, He is then ready to teach that child in the way that the child can learn NOT in the way that "father" "knows" how to teach.
(Yes that's right a good father keeps learning and growing putting others first.)

See I had a "Father" who gave me life, then rejected me, I know what that is like.
I had a "dad" who adopted me, but was never a good role model (until after he divorced my mom and the rivalry ended but then he died of cancer a few years later.) I even had a step father. but I never had a daddy.

Please help your child to have a better childhood than I had. Please give your child a daddy.

Love them
Teach them
Show them
Support them
Care for them
and yes, when they get to that point where they are ready to fly the nest, Let them go.
IF you have been a good father, and taught them what they need and given them a solid foundation, THEN they will be able to FLY, and you will be able to stand there and watch them soar like eagles and you can be proud of them and all they will be able to do.
And THAT is the best thing, the best gift you can have when father's day comes around.

Ah I didn't know I was that far behind.

My wife was so funny yesterday, she had read one of my other blogs and she said she had seen the bumper sticker I was talking about and she wondered why I hadn't blogged about it yet. So I just wanted to say to here here, Sorry it took me so long. I will try to improve on things hun.
I love you!
any way
If you guys out there wish to hear my opinion on a subject drop me a line. I might even comply. And if I do and you let me know your E-mail address, I can even send you an E-mail telling you where to look for my response to your subject. (since I have several Blog's and it could break down into one other than the one you might follow.)

Allrighty then,
I hope all of you are well out there. I am probably praying for you too.