Movie Review: {Live Free or} Die Hard(er) [with a Vengeance], #1

These movie flat-out rock.  Even #2, which is kind of cheesy and only rates 2 stars, is well worth watching.  Weird, even though the series started 22 years ago, I’d somehow missed the whole thing.  Until now.  Will post a review a day for the next four days to avoid the wall-o-text effect.

#1, Die Hard:  4 Stars.

NYC cop John McClane (Bruce Willis) jets out to LA at Christmas to make up with his estranged wife, a bigwig exec.  He’s limmo’d from the airport to the wife’s work Christmas party, a pretty swank affair in her company’s new skyscraper.  Euro-trash bad guys move in, cut outside communication, and now McClane has to (a) get word to the local cops, (b) minimize trouble to the party guests, and (c) stay alive while doing all of this.  Lots of action, cat-and-mouse games, outright puzzles for McClane to solve, and wisecracks that became the trademark of the series.  (The quip “Welcome to the party, pal” has  become universal shorthand for “Now that you’ve been whacked with a clue-by-four, thank you for finally waking up to the situation.”)

So why 4 stars?  Because McClane uses his brain, uses his brawn, and just doesn’t quit, ever.  A shining example for us all.  That, plus Alan Rickman in the role of the head bad guy Hans Gruber held the trophy for Best Bad Guy Ever until Heath Ledger as Joker finally took it from him.  Yeah, Rickman’s Hans Gruber is that good.

In case you hadn't gotten word yet...

... Zee Avi sounds pretty good.


See?  "I’ll put up something short and light soon."  Yep.

H1N1 post-sick note to friends

Sure, the H1N1 rush is over and this post is a little late, being recycled out of some old emails from last September.  But it’s worthwhile content because the Fat Lady still hasn’t quite sung on the topic yet.  I won’t say “enjoy;” let me just say “go buy some Robotussin, just in case” and leave it at that.  

ps - I’m not an MD, so take this all with a mine of salt.

pps - This isn’t the most fun topic either, and it is a wall-o-text post too.  I’ll put up something short and light soon.

1:  It wasn't that bad.  Maximum fever was 101.3.  Have tylenol and ibuprofen on hand.  By day 3, reading and light housework were bearable.

2:  Minor nausea and diarrhea were there, but nothing spectacular.  I've certainly had worse with other flus.

3:  Plain, original Robitussin (or the store-brand equivalent for me, ‘cause I'm cheap) works wonders to get that heavy mucus out of the lungs, especially on days 2 & 3.  The mucus levels were never really dangerous, but one more click in the wrong direction on day 2 and it would've started to be cause for concern.  [Post restocking trip note: the same stuff (guaifenesin) is available in pill form, which seems much preferable to that nasty syrup stuff.]

4:  There was incredible sinus pressure and drip on days 4 & 5.  A good decongestant would've been much appreciated, but by then we were too sick to go get some.  Something softer than paper towels would've been nice too; my nose still looks like  W.C. Fields'.  [Post restocking trip note: guaifenesin pills with an added decongestant were a help over the following week.  Having the two in the same pill is good because you don't have to worry about the two drugs interacting badly (assuming the drug company's done its homework).]

5:  We ate through groceries at close to normal pace, and were just short of getting down to hurricane supplies when this crud let up.  It was good to know there was enough food on hand to outlast the virus, but I’m not sure I wanted to face five year old foil pouches of “Country Captain Chicken” on top of being that sick.

6:  Was it really H1N1?  Dunno, didn't get tested.  Knew it was flu, didn't see any need to go out and cough all over other people.  CDC says H1N1's about 98% of what's circulating in the area right now and the symptoms matched, so it probably (98%+) was.

On the whole, I'm glad to have this one out of the way with so little trouble.

And here’s the almost-scary part, from another letter to the Sis while I was well and truly still sick:

Mucous... felt like I was drowning in the stuff until after I got a dose [of guaifenesin] in me this morning.  You want the one without the letters "DM" or anything else, because this is a cough you *don't* want to suppress, you want that crap to come up.  Hocked up damn near a mouthful, then was breathing fine.  (Probably don't want to tell Momma that last bit.)

So yeah, apart from the whole waterboarded-by-a-virus feeling, wasn't so bad.  Go buy a couple of packs of guaifenesin tablets anyway.

brief stop in New Orleans

And an early supper at Central Grocery made everything right with the world. 

Protip: don't drop, much less toss, even a bit of crust to a seagull while while munching your muffuletta on the river levee.  For minute there I thought Alfred Hitchcock might show up with a camera crew.

The Daily Funnies

Well I think they're funny.  You may disagree.  Note: all but the last two frequently sport PG-13 content.  You have been warned.

XKCD: Go ahead, just try to pronounce it.

Wapsi Square: 20-somethings and their otherworldly friends go on adventures.

Day by Day: Lame name, interesting story lines.  Frequently has very timely content.

Wondermark: Victorian illustrations, modern snark.

The Argyle Sweater: The Far Side's geeky little cousin.

PhD: The unvarnished truth about grad school.  Latest story line started a week or so ago here.

Picked up the Sunday paper yesterday, flipped through it, tried to enjoy the print comics.  The just felt so... stale and... irrelevant.  Cue the Bob Dylan.

Yesterday's Ride

With pictures, courtesy of Anna.  Man, but that was fun!  Here's the announcement posting from the Club b-board:

In an effort to stimulate some use of the Bethel trails, we are going to start a Tatonut-style ride at the Bethel Trails, 3rd Saturday of the month at 9am. Anna said she would bring Tatonut donuts for the Feb ride. Hunting season is over. Same format as the Tatonut road ride - casual atmosphere for the new, occassional, and die hard road riders. 

FIRST RIDE WILL BE 20 FEB

So dust off those mountain bikes, bring a friend or two, and come have some fun in the dirt/mud/sand. The SCRCS MTB racing calendar and this ride have been deconflicted - with the exception of March.

Directions: From Hwy 49 @ Saucier take NEW Hwy 67 S. to 3rd intersection of old Hwy 67 turn left, go to 4-way stop continue on Bethel Rd. watch for Bike Trail sign & turn right onto dirt road . From I-10 Exit 46 north traveling on Hwy. 15/67 for about 2 miles. Exit onto Hwy 15 North and continue on for approx. 9 miles. Look for Bike Trail sign on west/left side of the road. Follow Forestry Rd # 426 for 1 mile to Couch Trailhead on the west side of the road.

And it was fun, and it was casual, and the doughnuts were good.  Even broke part of the shift cable guidance on my bike (the "Rollamagig" – not exactly common anymore) and managed a trailside repair to get going again with a 3x1 drivetrain.  That just made it all the better.

Yeah, if I was in the market, I'd buy one there.

If it's a decent sales pitch with built-in humor that you're looking for, watch this ad.  Or don't.  I don't care.


Long day involving unscheduled trailside deraileur repairs and high-octane coffee in the French Quarter.  Might have something more clever to say tomorrow.