Hosive

one of the most innocently haunting movies i have ever seen. this is the holocaust through the eyes of youth…asking ominous questions that we as the adults watching know the answers to but the adults on the screen seem to deny. there are the horrfic details that we recognize but are mysteries to the children: the “pajamas” that the jews wear, the smoke from the chimneys, the stench from the “farm”, the disappearing family members.

in the midst of this horror is the beautiful friendship between the children of predator and prey.

i will not say any more as to not ruin your viewing…..but that this is not as brutal as schindler’s list or saving private ryan but raises the same important issues that will keep us from forgetting this holocaust and help us to see current holocausts in our midst that we need to immediately quell.

i do not know if i would buy this movie but i may watch it again…well, most of it. some parts, i may turn down the volume to and some parts i will need to look away and cry.

a quick thanksgiving day version so you can get back to more important things today like being with friends and family and counting blessings…

fail! there is a line on the horizon and i don’t like what i see. more doubles!  we got another marge and another lisa. i don’t know how much longer we will try these blindboxes. oh well…..but they are still darn cute! trying to make the most of it by collecting a set of the family at home and a set at theresa’s office.

but get back to the real world! enjoy this day(though my heart is heavy because of mumbai)

happy thanksgiving, everyone!

Posted under android dungeon/card shop, kid robot

when we left maryland to the cosmopolitan metropolis, weknew  that we would be leaving behind(at least)one thing we love for sure….chick fila. we heart this franchise with its tasty real meat sandwhiches and nuggets with a southern spice; their fresh lemonade and sweet tea; and waffle fries…..also wraps and other periodic goodies. since chick fila has a sabbath policy and shuts down on sundays, it makes it nearly impossible to compete in new york…at least to make profit. we searched the website in vain to find a city franchise….however, the rumors persisted of a secret location on the campus of nyu…..an unpublished hidden spot……

gathering clues and asking students directions, my sweet t and her adopted daughters, steph and angie set out to look for some secret chick fila to suprise me with. that’s angie sharing the joy…and steph is holding the camera.

i was speaking on campus giving them time to explore and excavate. the fear was that you needed id to get into the building but it turns out that the franchise is in a public food court.

look how adorable she is happily finding chicken and waffle fries. she’s glowing like she’s pregnant.

in the book series, not so big house, the key to getting the most out of a small space are niches. even in big homes, what makes a home “homey” are the small little places that feel cozy and safe. where memories are made. so good architects, builders and home makers build little spots into a house or apt to make the space memorable and alive. i’ve been blessed to live in a few places with little nooks and spots that radiate with life.

we bought one of the not so big house books because we were moving from a 2400 sq/ft md house into a 1100 sq/ft nyc apartment. but it turns out the not so big homes in the not so big house books were not so not-so-big. they were huge places! we have different definitions of not so big house!

in these features, i’ll detail mundane little spots around our apartment…..the spots where we live…and life is made.

what gives our place an open feel and yet a sense of boundary and closure is this island. it allows the apartment to flow from the kitchen to the dining area into the living room…and at the same time marks the kitchen as it own space….while being its own niche as well. its one of the countless favorite little places in our place. this is why we love our home!….there are so many parts to love.

from the kitchen view, you can see all the storage it gives us with pots and pans; drawers for utensils and gadgets. plenty of storage for a nyc pad…which makes theresa happy….we can almost fit all our kitchen gear from maryland.

looking into the kitchen, you see how the island works as a serving station when we entertain friends, family and church folks. drinks, food, water and utensils all fit….allowing for a buffet setting for large and small groups.

another view from the kitchen, closer to the stove shows the vast usable space available to us….theresa likes it when its completely clear and clean looking. but that only happens once in awhile since we have people over all the time.  when not entertaining, we use the end of the table for mail, messages and stuff to remember to do.

for quick lunches and dinners, we also like to eat here. these two stools look like they were made for our apartment from the height to the color. in maryland, we had an island and made the mistake of buying three seats and that made the island look crowded. we did not repeat the mistake. this looks snug and right.

on other days, the area is my work station….or brunch spot….and even a place for coffee and the new york times print edition. i still get the paper….i’m archaic.

underneath the counter are two important fixtures of our home….the fire extinguisher….and that pc looking things is….

our korean rice storage and dispenser…it evenly dispenses the right amount of cups when the lever is pulled. we use the rice pc all the time…..but thankfully have not had to use the fire extinguisher!

finally from this angle and this shot, you get some good views of our soft bamboo floors. they’re usually great except when you drop(heavy)stuff on the floor as  they dent easily. good news is that bruises and scratches blend into the look and fabric of the floor so no worries.

niches within niches and magical floors…we love our home!

its thanksgiving so we’ll be traveling down to baltimore to visit theresa’s family and we were planning out our favorite must have meals when we are in md. again, not necessarily the best or whatever superlative…just places we go to regularly when we are in your town.

the one must have maryland meal is usually had here…the nibbler….our favorite peruvian joint.  it is almost always the first place we go when we are in montgomery county.

the restaurant creates the vibe of eating outdoors in a small town complete with planes landing on a nearby airstrip.

we also bring everyone we know to share in the goodies. the restaurant is very close to the church i used to work at so this was the dining option of choice for lunch and post church meals.

we know the owners, the ochs….a german husband and his filipino wife who found their true calling recreating different peruvian dishes after cooking in hotel restaurants for many years. we even invited them to our wedding 5 plus years ago.

our money dish is the ropa vieja. this version is twice cooked meat….slow roasted beef that is then fried to get a crispy texture. sometimes both theresa and i get this exact same dish rather than get two different ones to share. another popular dish is the lomo saltado …flavorful salty beef with fries over rice. i usually pass on this since it has cilantro….besides, if i want beef, i’m getting the ropa! not pictured is the aji chicken dish that we sometimes get but will likely not get as much since we found a good sub for it up here in the city. but the ropa here is still magic.

and we love the sauces…there’s a mild sauce that is just enough punch for me and a spicy sauce that is great for theresa but fire for the rest of us. theresa wound up picking up some of the latter last time we were in town.

we will defintely be making a stop here this week sometime!

i was thinking that we need a mascot for duh!journal….or a funny pages section….or at least one regular comic strip. most newspapers and magazines have at least one of these. even the new york times….on sundays….in their magazine is a weekly strip. so i scoured the earth and am going to post the sasquatch ads from jack links beef jerky.

here’s our second offering…the pickup:

these videos communicate duh! because the humans in the videos mess with the monster known as sasquatch with disastrous results. you don’t mess around with monsters!! what makes it double duh! is that the dumb@$$e$ buy, consume and enjoy the product the commercials are selling giving the subtle subtext of dumb@$$e$ eat and like our beef jerky; we’re dummies! and you can be just like us! by eating our products!

sure you could look them up on google or youtube…..so what would be the point of watching them here?….but isn’t that the case with any video that’s posted? maybe you have found out about the videos here….will watch them elsewhere….and relive them here as i post them periodically.

here’s the special internet only extended version of the pickup:

this the last time i’ll see conan in the fall in nyc as he is set to move to la to take over the tonight show from jay leno. jimmy fallon will then inherit the late night show sometime in march. so the winter is your last chance to catch conan….at least in nyc. here’s how…….

after you go to the late night website on nbc.com to get the number for tickets…call and check for availablity….then reserve up to the max of 4 tix. find three friends and gather on the mezzanine at 30 rock/nbc studios at 49th between 5th and sixth between 2:30 and 3:15 to pick up your tickets and wristbands. the instructions say to come no later then 4:15…but i do this 3-4 times a year…sometimes they hand out better seats in the order that you line up so its worth it to show up a bit earlier(only one time was it completely random where you sat relative to when you lined up to pick up your tickets). then come back at 4:30p to line up according to the assigned placement.

the best part of all this: tickets are free.

this time I went with debby fung, angie and steph.its really nice to have debby back in the fold as our lives had a big hole without her.

snoop dogg, comedian brian regan and musical guest blitzen trapper were on. snoop dogg infuriated steph by saying that football was a man’s sport and not for girls! the usually super funny brian regan was only regular funny…which is still good. blitzen trapper was too folksy for me but its nice to hear real music and not commercial crap.

a bit sad as conan finishes his long run in my city.

conan has already bought a 10 million dollar house in the los angeles area. i hope to one day catch a conan show out there as well.

do my wife a favor and write a quick email to hit entertainment who released the first 3 seasons of fraggle rock but will only release the 4th season as part of a 4 season set to screw those who faithfully bought the first 3 seasons. i’ve done most of the work for you. all you need to do is cut and paste(but feel free to add your own words too):

send this:

dear sirs:

i will not be buying the complete fraggle rock set as a protest to your decision to not release the 4th season of fraggle rock.
i will also be very conscious of any future releases you have and will not be purchasing any of those.
further, like many fans, I will use blogs, internet postings and word of mouth urging others not to do business with you until you change your mind.

in fact, i learned of this on a blog posting!

please release the 4th season so that your loyal fans can complete their collections.
please also keep me updated of the situation so that my buying habits can adjust to your decision.

thank you,

to here:

consumerrelations@hitentertainment.com

here’s the full story:

Back in January it was announced that HIT! Entertainment was planning to release “Fraggle Rock: Complete Fourth Season” on DVD in fall 2008. The box set would be the final installment for Fraggle collectors, including the final 26-episodes of the beloved show plus another helping of exclusive bonus features.

Back in April, HIT Entertainment representatives began sharing an exact release date for the highly-anticipated box set. The exact message sent out by HIT’s Consumer Services (as late as July 2008) said that “Fraggle Rock Season 4 will be releases on October 28, 2008. We are not sure of what bonus features this set will include. You may want to try and email us again in August. Thank you for your interest in Fraggle Rock.” And even as late as a July 27th presentation at Comic-Con Internation, Henson Company representatives (including Red Fraggle herself) stated that the fourth season was planned for release later this year.

Now it was also announced at Comic-Con that HIT Entertainment is planning to release “Fraggle Rock: The Complete Series Collection” this fall as well. This 20-disc DVD set, with all 96 episodes, would feature the content of the first three season box sets plus the remaining fourth season episodes and a handfull of new bonus features. The item has a suggested retail price of $139.98 and is planned for release on November 4, 2008. The indication at the time of the announcement was that this big box set would arrive in stores as a complement to the separate release of Season Four on DVD. However now the studio is telling the fans something completly different.

With the formal announcement of the Complete Series Collection, eager fans and collectors began to send inquiries directly to HIT! Entertainment to find out the exact details of the supposed fourth (and final) box set. However the fans received a new and startling report from the customer service staff:

“Thank you for contacting us. As of right now, we are not releasing Season 4 as a stand alone item. It is only available as part of the complete series collection. There are no plans at this time to release it alone.“

According to company spokesmen, the current plan is to only release the complete series, with no current listing on the schedule for the fourth Season as a separate DVD. Needless to say, fans and collectors are outraged by this news.

People who faithfully purchased he individual season sets for the first three seasons, are now forced to re-buy seasons those seasons just the get the final 24 episodes and the last batch of bonus features. With a suggested retail price of $49.99 per season, faithful fans have already invested approximately $150 in their collections. But now they’ll have to shell out another $140 just to get the content of the last five discs of the 20-disc series set. Many fans simply can’t afford this, especially with the current economic climate.

As HIT has touted in many of their press releases, the season box sets of Fraggle Rock came as “a direct result of a fan-driven campaign calling for the series’ DVD debut“. Legions of fans proved that they were down with Fraggle Rock, as they created an online petition that was signed by more than 35,000 fans urging for the DVD release of Fraggle Rock. HIT Entertainment responded and released “Fraggle Rock: Complete First Season” in 2005. Fan loyally and enthusiastically purchased the season set, as HIT said the success of the first season would determine if the subsequent seasons would be released. Sales were good, and the second season followed in 2006. Fans again flocked to the stores to show support for the series, hoping their support would sustain the franchise. And in 2007 when season three was released, the fans purchased the set with hopes that their collections would soon be completed. However now it appears that the only way to finish one’s collection is for fans to re-buy what they have already purchased. HIT’s total disrespect for the loyal fans who have faithfully supported the series is disheartening.

We urge HIT Entertainment to rethink their strategy and release the fourth (and final) season box set separate from the complete series package. While “Fraggle Rock: The Complete Series” is great for newcomers to Fraggle Rock on DVD, HIT shouldn’t penalize the collectors who have already purchased the first three seasons independently. Fans should not have to re-buy seasons one, two and three in order to get the final installment of the series.

Now here’s where you come it; petitioning and fan support helped get Fraggle Rock onto DVD, so together hopefully we can get urge HIT to give us a respectful (and economical) close to our DVD collections. Please, take a few minute to contact HIT Entertainment and request an independent DVD release for Fraggle Rock Season Four.

The HIT customer service number is:
1-866-405-7625

You can write them a letter at:
HIT Entertainment
Attn: Consumer Relations (Fraggle Rock)
PO Box 9000, Allen TX, 75013

And you can e-mail them at:
consumerrelations@hitentertainment.com

With your help, the joy of Fraggle Rock can be shared with all fans and viewers in a fair and economical way.