Monday, April 21, 2014

HEAVEN IS FOR REAL, PG ( 1 hr & 40 min )

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where: CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when: Thursday, April 17th, 2014
show: 11:30 a.m. ( Dollar-Off First Show Matinee )
costs: $6.75 Ticket + $4.60 medium 30.0 oz Powerade Mountain Berry Blast = $11.35
auditorium: 13
seat: 5th row ( counting from the front ), 7th column ( counting from the left )

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2nd time

where: CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when: Monday, April 21st, 2014
show: 2:10 p.m.
costs: $7.75 Ticket + $5.10 Kid's Pack = $12.85
auditorium: 7
seat: 5th row ( counting from the front ), 7th column ( counting from the left )

synopsis/overview: The Burpo's ( Gregg Kinnear and Kelly Reilly ) only son, Colton ( Connor Corum ), has a near-death experience. Although Todd Burpo is a very likable minister at the local community church, he feels uncomfortable about relating to his son, Colton, who has visions of Jesus Christ and angels, and people that he could not have possibly known about in his entire short life. Based on a true story.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) Akiane Kramarik ( Ursula Clark ); 2.) "Is Heaven a hope"; 3.) Carpet; 4.) Howl; 5.) Sick man; 6.) Girl's dress; 7.) "Do you think mommy realizes how funny she looks when she does that"; 8.) Lion, Bear and Unicorn sermon; 9.) Gift; 10.) Softball game; 11.) "No, you were out"; 12.) Kidney stones; 13.) Substitute ministers; 14.) "Kids, we're going to Denver"; 15.) "Can we sing, We Will Rock You"; 16.) Fever; 17.) Ruptured Appendix; 18.) Hospital chapel; 19.) Prayers; 20.) "Dad, I want to hold that spider"; 21.) Seesaw; 22.) "We've got to pay the doctor"; 23.) Colton's story; 24.) Skeptical Psychology Professor; 25.) Bank; 26.) Questions; 27.) Siren; 28.) Newspaper interview; 29.) "He has markers"; 30.) Diner; 31.) Play yard fight; 32.) "I did turn his other cheek"; 33.) Bible pictures of Jesus Christ; 34.) "Yours are green, mine are blue. He's seeing us"; 35.) "My family is in there"; 36.) "Colton, this is just a visit. But, before you go back, I want you to meet someone"; 37.) Church board meeting; 38.) "They don't look like that"; 39.) "It's alright. No one will hurt you"; 40.) Argument; 41.) "You saw my grandfather"; 42.) "Nobody wears glasses in Heaven"; 43.) "In Heaven, everybody's young"; 44.) "Why does this have to be a myth"; 45.) US Marine son's grave; 46.) "She told me she died in your tummy"; 47.) "Come by Crossroads Wesleyan Church on Sunday. I'll tell you all about it"; 48.) "On Earth as it is in Heaven"; 49.) Mom's vision of her son"; 50.) "Look at this on CNN"; 51.) "That's Him"; 52.) "Todd, we're gonna need this"; and 53.) Bonus Pictures during the Ending Credits.

audience reaction: The audience liked it. But none gave it a "Hands Clapper" ending. Ditto for the second group of audience.

recommendation: I liked it, too. Go see this movie if you like ( predictable ) Inspirational Movies.

spoiler alert! The child prodigy painter, Akiane Kramarik, doesn't live in Lithuania. Her mother is from Lithuania. Her father is American. She was born and raised here in the United States. The newspaper picture of Todd and Colton showed them posing still for the camera even though the swing was in motion at the time that the photograph was taken.

fyi: A few years ago, I had a co-worker named Mike who had kidney stones. He passed a few of them in the restroom at work. And he showed a couple of them to me. Gad, they were awfully big and jaggedly frightful to behold! I'm glad that I don't have kidney stones---Knock on wood!

What follows is the hidden Communist Agenda of Psychology and Psychiatry ( do share it with others ):

 >>> TEACHING THE CHILDREN WELL
                                  

     Dr. Chester Pierce is a Harvard Professor, Humanist and a "New World Order" Guru. This professor instructs teachers and those students who aspire to become teachers of our children as follows: "Every child in America who enters school is mentally ill, because he or she comes to school with an allegiance to our institutions. Patriotism, nationalism and sovereignty, all that proves that children are sick because a truly well individual is one who rejects all of those things, and is truly the international child of the future."

     Dr. Sidney Simon, lecturer and educator [ is one ] who some say specializes in encouraging immoral and criminal activity in youth. He instructs teachers as follows: "We do not need more preaching about right and wrong. The old 'thou shalt nots' simply are not relevant. Values clarification is a method for teachers to change the values of children without getting caught."

     American teachers now use a 'modern' version of 'humanist' literature to teach our children. One such book, entitled "Weep For Our Children", might explain why crime rates in school-aged children are skyrocketing. Consider this one passage touting the humanistic "Values Clarification/Situation Ethics" program: "It is OK to lie. It is OK to steal. It is OK to have promiscuous sex. It is OK to cheat and kill if these things are part of your value system, and you clarified these values for yourself. The important thing is not what values you choose, but that you have chosen them yourself freely and without coercion of parents, spouse, friends, minister, or social pressure of any kind."

     This type of values & moral code ( or lack thereof ) is all too evident in our school system today. For decades, it has been the job of those within the field of psychology to introduce to the American public the idea that those who belief [ sic ] in God are sick and must be 'enlightened' or eliminated, and that immorality is the only path to the "New World Order". If you think that this change in the morals of our nation is accidental, you should read the book "The Soviet Art of Brainwashing--A Synthesis of the Russian Textbook on Psychopolitics", written by Kenneth Goff. In this book, Goff, a one-time dues-paying member of the Communist Party, writes: "During my training I was taught Psychopolitics, the art of capturing the minds of a nation through brainwashing and fake mental health." Kenneth Goff paid a high price for his effort to alert the American people of Marxist-trained psychologists being in place inside the U.S. He mysteriously died from poisoning in 1964. An excerpt from his book says: "This manual of the Communist Party should be in the hands of every loyal American, that they may be alerted to the fact that it is not always by armies and guns that a nation is conquered." In this book is found an address by Beria, the Head of the Lenin University School of Psychopolitics. His 1933 address to a group of Marxist Psychology students is most revealing. Speaking to a group who would be returning to ply their treachery in the U.S. he said:

     "A psychopolitician must work hard to produce the maximum chaos in the fields of 'mental healing'. You must work until every teacher of psychology unknowingly or knowingly teaches only Communist doctrine under the guise of psychology. You musty [ sic ] labor until every doctor and psychiatrist is either a psychopolitician or an unwitting assistant to our goals. You must labor until we have domain over the minds of every important person in your nation ( U.S. ). You must work until suicide arising from mental imbalance is common and calls forth no general investigation or remark. You must dominate as respected men in the fields of psychiatry and psychology. You must dominate the hospitals and universities. You can take additional instructions as worshippers of Freud. With it you can erase our enemies like insects. Use the courts, use the judges, use the Constitution of the country, use the medical societies and its laws to further your ends. Create chaos. Leave a nation leaderless. Kill our enemies and bring to Earth, through Communism, the greatest peace man has ever known. Thank you."

     This is an excerpt of Beria's speech to the visiting American students. Almost everything he asked these students to do has been accomplished. Our schools are teeming with "teachers" and "professors" who don't teach students HOW to think, but WHAT to think. Don't YOU think it's about time to cleanse our institutions of learning of this putrid "New World Order" infestation? Suggested reading: The Deliberate Dumbing Down of America, by Charlotte Thompson Iserbyt.

The above is from the Autumn 2008 copy of SCOOPIFIED ( Ms. Diane Morgan, Editor, P.O. Box 277, Bellingham, WA 98227 ), and is found as a page insert between pages 34 and 35. <<<

I found this on the Internet when I searched for Akiane Kramarik's painting of Jesus Christ entitled "Jesus, Prince of Peace."
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The painting, "Jesus, Prince of Peace," is not really of Jesus Christ but of a man who holds a close resemblance to Him. According to an article, Akiane couldn't find a suitable model for her Jesus portrait until a carpenter--notice the coincidence--came knocking at the Kramariks' door. Then and there, Akiane asked him to pose for the portrait. But the carpenter declined because he didn't feel worthy of such an honor. Then, he left. Akiane prayed that he would change his mind and return for the portrait sitting. And, sure enough, he came back to pose for the portrait. Akiane has a lot of portraits of models with blue eyes. But this Jesus portrait is one done with a greenish-eyed subject. Maybe because the carpenter is indeed green-eyed. But, of course, the choice in eye color for this portrait could also be just symbolic since the color green is associated with Life. And, since "(t)he eye is the lamp of the body ( New Testament of The Bible, Gospel of Matthew 6:22 )," it follows then that ( symbolically speaking ) Jesus' eyes would illuminate our darkened World through the Eternal Life emanating from within His body.
                                                                            
There are those who suspect that Akiane Kramarik is just a fraud since her mother is also a painter. But a search on YouTube shows a time-lapsed video of her doing one of her paintings. And that should be enough to dispel any doubt about her artistic God-given talent.

It is very easy to go around saying that you believe in God ... u-n-t-i-l ... your faith gets tested. Then, you realize all along that the faith you profess to have is nothing more than just  a "fair weather faith." I should know since I've been guilty of it a couple of times in my life. But I have come back spiritually stronger and wiser for the humble experiences.

In a near-death experience, a person's vision of the afterlife will not likely be that of another person's vision because a person's mind will access his/her own belief system to make such an experience less of a shock to behold. But I believe that such a vision is just transitional in form. I doubt that anybody experiencing a near-death vision will have the emotional and intellectual capacity to absorb the full grandeur of the Divine Everlasting from such a brief visit.

In all my out-of-body experiences, I never once turned around to look at my body. Why, you ask? Because I had a dream in which I had an out-of-body experience and my curiosity had the better hold on me and I turned around to look at my body; what I saw was a skeleton lying in my bed! That's why I never looked at my body in any of my out-of-body experiences.

word of advice: "... (W)hoever humbles himself like (a) child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." ( New Testament of The Bible, Gospel of Matthew 18:4 )

tidbits: The first thing that I did today was to go to my dentist for a dental cleaning. His prognosis was not good. If I don't put more effort into my oral hygiene regimen, according to him, I'll end-up with false teeth soon. I already use a Conair Interplak Oral Irrigator
Conair Interplak Oral Irrigator. I found this on the Internet.
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and a Proxy Brush
Proxy Brush.  I found this on the Internet. I have the same exact color.
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before I brush my teeth and gargle with Peri-Gum Herbal Mouthwash
Peri-Gum Herbal Mouthwash. I found this on the Internet.
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in the morning, and I use my Conair Interplak Oral Irrigator and my Proxy Brush before I brush my teeth with my Oral-B Electric Toothbrush
Oral-B Electric ( i.e. Battery-powered ) Toothbrush. I found this on the Internet. Yeah, I know. It's a "Winnie, The Pooh" toothbrush. But it's what I've got--and it works just fine. Thank you. Besides, it was on sale. Ha, ha, ha.
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and floss my teeth before I gargle with Peri-Gum Herbal Mouthwash at night. What more can I do? My dentist told me that I'm likely looking at a full set of Dental Implants sometime in the future. And my remaining 27 teeth will all have to be extracted for the implants to be put in place at an estimated cost of $50,000.oo---I don't have that kind of money laying around!

I informed my dentist that scientists are already growing back teeth on patients in research facilities using Stem Cells. My dentist said that my teeth are not the problem, my jawbones are. My jawbones are badly eroded in certain areas as the latest X-rays show. Of course, he failed to mention that scientists are also regenerating bones using Stem Cells, too! And he forgot to take into consideration that I once was a dental lab tech who could easily fabricate my very own Partial Dentures if need be! I mean, to have all of my remaining teeth extracted just to have a full set of Dental Implants put in my mouth is a VERY DRASTIC MEASURE AND THE LEAST DESIRABLE OF ALL AVAILABLE OPTIONS!!! He and my Periodontist just want to gouge me for all the money that they can get their hands on to line their already fat wallets with--no wonder I don't live in a five-bedroom house and drive a Corvette!!!

I will not get Dental Implants! I can fabricate my own Partial Dentures if it will ever come down to that. Besides, I personally know of a local-area surgeon who is part of a medical research group doing experiments with Adipose-derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells. I'll pay him a visit in a few days.

In the meantime, I'm switching my Glycerin-free Aquafresh Toothpaste
Aquafresh Glycerin-free Toothpaste. I found this on the Internet. I now think that Glycerin is needed to coat the teeth and help to protect them from Plaque and Gingivitis.
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for Crest Pro-Health Clinical Gum Protection Toothpaste
I found this on the Internet. Yeah, baby, coat my teeth with some of that Glycerin ingredient!
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and my all-hyped/ineffective Peri-Gum Herbal Mouthwash for Alcohol-free Crest Pro-Health Multi-Protection Mouthwash.

I found this on the Internet. More Glycerin, please!

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I hope that these two changes to my oral hygiene regimen will be sufficient enough to arrest, mitigate and eliminate my dental problem, Gingivitis.

But I'll pay a visit to my Stem Cell Research Doctor acquaintance, just in case. Especially since he still owes me money and it's time to collect on it. Ha, ha, ha.

At the box office, the clerk asked me if I'd already seen GOD'S NOT DEAD and, if so, what I thought about it. I told her that I already blogged about it and gave her one of my Cine-Man cards so that she could check it out for herself.

And the ticket-taker also asked me what movie I was about to go see.

Dang, I'm getting too well-known at this particular theatre.

2nd tidbits: I started my day with a spinal adjustment at my chiropractor's clinic at 9:30 a.m. 

Then, I went to the Bank of America across the street on Sonoma Boulevard to talk with an accounts representative. Because last Thursday, I noticed a discrepancy in my savings balance when I made a deposit to my account at the Benicia, CA, branch. When I got home, I looked at my most recent BofA savings statement and, sure enough, there was an unauthorized withdrawal on April 13th of $25.00 posted on it from G.E. Capital. So, I showed my statement to the accounts representative today. And her computer also showed a previous withdrawal on March 14th of $25.00 from G.E. Capital under the name of Rachelle Valenzuela--I don't know who the f-ck this bitch is! But the name or alias sounds like it's a name of an illegal alien criminal that the current Illegal Administration granted immigration amnesty to. My savings account only has ONE automatic monthly payment on it, the one for my mortgage. So, I never authorized these withdrawals at all and had the bank's customer service put a Stop Payment on it and put the money back into my account. I hope that they catch this bitch and deport her/his(?) sorry ass out of this country and send her/him(?) back to whatever rat-infested sewer-hole of an excuse for a country that the no-good slimy lowlife crawled out from!

Then, I went to the MacDonald's Restaurant on the next block to access their Wi-Fi and to alert my siblings about the hack since they, too, have accounts with BofA. Maybe, the hack has to do with the Heartbleed Hack that has been getting media attention lately.

And I drove on over to the Goin' Postal Shop in the Food Maxx Shopping Center on the corner of Tuolumne and Redwood Streets to drop-off my 'phone bill and to pick-up a package. And I went to the Chase Bank branch inside of Food Maxx to see if one of my cheques had cleared.

I stopped for gas at the Flyers Gas Station on Tennessee Street. I only bought $6.00 worth of gas.

Then, I decided to go to the Selecta Pilipino Buffet on Springs Road to have lunch there before I go to see this movie. But, wouldn't you know it, the buffet restaurant was closed for the day! Today is the 5th Monday in a row that it was closed. I think that I'm eating too much of the proprietor's food and am sending him to the poorhouse! No wonder he would always ask me before if I don't work on Mondays---Now I know! 

So, I had a quick lunch at the Taco Bell Restaurant in the Target Shopping Center on Admiral Callaghan Lane before I went to see this movie for the second time. I ordered their Box Lunch with Beef Nacho. But my order didn't even come in a box! Instead, it came in a tray. How cheap could they get! No cheaper than this, I'm sure .... But, at least, I liked their Mango Tea fountain drink.

I wanted to see this movie last night since it was Easter Sunday. But I was too tired to head straight to the theatre after work. 

I went to see this for a second time today because I didn't take notes the first time that I saw this movie. And I wanted to share some relevant information with you, my readers, that I wouldn't have been able to otherwise if I didn't take notes first.

When I got back to my car after the movie, I started to unlock The Club security device from my car's steering wheel only to realize that it was already in the unlocked position. Yup, 'still happens once in awhile after all of these years. Entities are still watching over me---'Good to know!

I hope that everyone had a Happy Easter/Happy Passover, to whom this may apply!

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Saturday, April 12, 2014

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER, PG-13 ( 2 hr & 15 min )


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where: AMC METREON 16 in San Francisco, CA
when: Friday, April 4th, 2014
show: 10:30 p.m. show
costs: $12.00 Ticket + $6.75 Kid's Pack = $18.75
auditorium: 13, 3rd floor
seat: 4th row ( counting from the front ), 9th column ( counting from the left )

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2nd time

where: AMC METREON 16 in San Francisco, CA
when: Sunday, April 6th, 2014
show: 8:30 p.m.
costs: $12.50 Ticket + $4.75 20.0 oz VitaminWater XXX + $5.99 loaf of Greenlee's Best Cinnamon Bread + $8.60 round-trip BART Train Ticket + $5.00 Carquinez Bridge Toll Fee on the way home to Vallejo = $36.84
auditorium: 15, 3rd floor
seat: 4th row ( counting from the front ), 12th column ( counting from the left )


This is the loaf of bread that I brought with me. I hid it in my Goggle Chromebook's computer bag. I found this on the Internet.
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3rd time

where: EDWARD'S FAIRFIELD STADIUM 16 & I-MAX in Fairfield,  CA
when: Wednesday, April 9th, 2014
show: 10:00 p.m. I-Max 3-D
costs: $18.00 Ticket +$5.00 small 32.0 oz Pink Lemonade +$13.73 dinner @ Empire Chinese Buffet ( + $2.00 Tip ) in Vallejo, CA, before seeing this movie = $38.73
auditorium: 12
seat: 5th row ( counting from the front ) , 10th column ( counting from the left )

synopsis/overview: Captain America a.k.a. Steve Rogers ( Chris Evans ) tries to adjust to modern life in the nation's capital. But when a S.H.I.E.L.D. colleague is gunned down, Capt. America goes in search of the responsible party with the help of Black Widow ( Scarlett Johansson ) and a new ally, the Falcon ( Anthony Mackie ). And they uncover a web of deceit and intrigue that threatens to destroy the very thing that they all believe in and uphold as they face an unexpected deadly enemy.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) "On your left"; 2.) To-Do list; 3.) "Is he wearing a parachute"; 4.) "I told you, S.H.I.E.L.D. does not negotiate"; 5.) "That's your mission"; 6.) "Soldiers trust each other"; 7.) "You know, they used to play music"; 8.) "They're a little bit bigger than a .22"; 9.) The Smithsonian Museum"; 10.) The old sweetheart; 11.) "Access denied"; 12.) Bad cops; 13.) "Air conditioning is fully operational"; 14.) Car bomb; 15.) "I think you left your stereo on"; 16.) Sniper; 17.) Hospital vending machine; 18.) "Why do you think we're talking"; 19.) Elevator fight; 20.) Hover jet vs. Capt. America; 21.) Fugitive; 22.) "I know who killed Fury ( Samuel L. Jackson )"; 23.) Computer store; 24.) "Kiss me"; 25.) Old, abandoned military base; 26.) "This building's in the wrong place"; 27.) HYDRA; 28.) "Call in the asset"; 29.) Housekeeper; 30.) "When I first joined S.H.I.E.L.D., I thought I was going straight"; 31.) "Digital book"; 32.) Freeway fight; 33.) "Put the gun down. Not here ... not here"; 34.) "The thing was squeezing my brain"; 35.) "About damn time"; 36.) "Mission report"; 37.) "Don't look at me. I do what he does, only slower"; 38.) "He's the kind you stop"; 39.) "Oh, man. I am so fired"; 40.) Announcement over the intercom; 41.) "Captain's orders"; 42.) "If they're shooting at you, they're bad"; 43.) In disguise; 44.) Winter Soldier vs. pilots; 45.) "Don't worry. Company's coming"; 46.) "You need to keep both eyes open"; 47.) "I had a big breakfast"; 48.) "I'm grounded"; 49.) "Please don't let me do this"; 50.) "That was armed the moment you pinned it on"; 51.) "Shut the hell up"; 52.) Target Saturation; 53.) "Fire now"; 54.) "Forty-first floor"; 55.) "You know me your whole life"; 56.) "You're not gonna arrest me"; 57.) Cemetery; 58.) Bonus Scene during the Ending Credits; and 59.) Bonus Scene after the Ending Credits.

audience reaction: It was the first-show matinee. And there were just about two dozen people in the audience, not enough people to gauge an audience's reaction with.

Actually, all three groups of audiences didn't give this movie a rousing "Hands Clapper" ending!

recommendation: I liked it. I think that this is better than the first installment. Go see this if you like Superhero Movies.

spoiler alert! The fight between Capt. America and the bad guy on that ship should have ended sooner since Capt. America was faster and stronger--he could have easily broken the bad guy's bones and/or dislocated some of the bad guy's joints. If bullets couldn't penetrate the SUV's armored body, simple logic would suggest that the bullets would bounce-off, i.e. ricochet, and hit the bad guys who were standing too close to their target. The Winter Soldier ( Bucky/Sebastian Stan ) should have hurt his back--I'm talkin' seriously pulled muscles--when he ripped the door off from the armored SUV since he only had a robotic arm with nothing to suggest that the rest of his body's muscles and bones were "upgraded" to handle extreme biomechanical stresses. When a "bunker-blaster" missile blasted the room at the abandoned military base, Capt. America used his shield to protect himself and Black Widow from the blast debris BUT the circular shield could not have fully protected their bodies. None of them had a seat belt on when Winter Soldier attacked them on the freeway. In the freeway fight scene, why didn't the bad guys shoot Capt. America in the legs since his legs weren't shielded at all? What kind of a name is Bucky for a bad guy? Shouldn't that shield at the museum be just a prop? The headbutt used was all wrong.  The "slo-mo" scene of Capt. America falling from the sky seemed like a derivative of Iron Man's fall from the sky in the Avengers movie which preceded this one. Why didn't the water affect the robotic arm's circuitry?

fyi: Too much jogging is bad for your heart. The man who popularized jogging, Mr. James Fixx, died of a heart attack while jogging. A biology professor of mine who was also an avid jogger, died of a heart attack while taking out the trash. Jogging strenuously every day for a long duration strains one's heart in such a way that scar tissues form in its blood vessels and increases one's chances of dying of a heart attack, according to scientists. The scientists who did the study say that one should only jog for a maximum of one hour every other day three times a week.

word of advice: Walk, don't jog.

tidbits: I wanted to take my cousin and his family to see this movie. But they wanted to do more shopping. So, I went by myself.

The ticket-taker gave me a mini poster similar to the first movie poster shown above.

2nd tidbits: I went back to San Francisco after work today in the hope that I could still catch my cousin and his family for the last time before they'd leave for Los Angeles, CA, to attend the wedding of his late brother's only daughter. But they had joined the Ramirezes ( see previous post ) for an overnight stay in Fresno, CA. Therefore, I wasn't able to give them their going-away presents ( I'll just have to ship the package to the Philippines ), and a 16.0 oz loaf of Greenlee's Best Cinnamon Bread that I hoped they'd get a chance to taste.

As I watched this movie, I helped myself to the loaf of Greenlee's Best Cinnamon Bread that I brought with me and which I kept hidden inside of my Google Chromebook's Targus bag. Before long, I realized that I had eaten most of the bread without even knowing it! I think that I devoured at least 2/3rds of it.


This is the same exact model of Targus Shoulder Bag that I have for my Acer C7 Google Chromebook.
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After the movie ended, someone in the audience let-out the spoiler (?) that Capt. America will get killed and that Winter Soldier will take over for him. I don't know if this is true or not.

When I got home, I decided to eat the last egg in the carton that had been sitting in my fridge since the first week of November OF LAST YEAR!!! Exactly five (5) months ago! Yes, that long of a time. I kept putting-off eating the eggs because I thought that they'd just been in my fridge for less than three months. When I realized just how old they were, I didn't throw them away ( there were still about eight (8) of them left ). I decided to eat an egg each day ( hard boiled or sunny-side up ) until I finished the remainder of the batch. But when I left for my vacation, there was still one egg left. The one I boiled and ate tonight. Was it still okay? Yeah, there was no difference in taste at all; although the Air Cell had sifted by then. And I'm still alive and well, ain't I? So, now it's official: A non-organic, unfertilized chicken egg will still be edible after being stored in a refrigerator for five (5)--count that--months! But I suspect that its "shelf life" had to do with the possibility that the hen that laid it was fed a diet laced with preservatives and growth hormones. ( Only in America .... Ha, ha, ha. )


Proof positive that I ain't lying.
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If you wanna buy eggs that will keep a long, long, long time in your fridge, this is the brand to buy. Take it from me, Cine-Man, Human Guinea Pig Egg Eater!
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3rd tidbits: At work today, I asked a co-worker, Loven, if she had already seen the Capt. America movie. She said she hadn't yet because knowing that Chris Evans also played the part of The Human Torch was, in her own words, "F-cking with my mind!"

And I said, So what? Ben Affleck will play the role of Batman in the upcoming Superman movie even though Ben Affleck played the part of George Reeves' TV Superman in the movie, HOLLYWOODLAND ( 2006 ). But, I added, he will look the part of the costumed hero.

"No, he played Daredevil ( 2003 )," Loven tried to correct me.

Yes, he did, I answered. But he also played Superman on the Big Screen.

I switched the subject by asking her who is hotter, Scarlett Johansson or Cobie Smulders. Loven said that Scarlett Johansson is prettier and sexier, after she checked-out photos of Cobie on the Internet with the use of her Samsung Note 4. But I seriously think that Cobie Smulders is hotter. Let me put it this way, if both Scarlett and Cobie were to come up to me and ask me out on a date and I could only pick one, I'd pick Cobie Smulders without hesitation!

And I said that Cobie Smulders should have been picked to play the part of Wonder Woman in the upcoming Superman/Batman movie, instead of Gal Gadot!


Lynda Carter, the original Wonder Woman. I found this on the Internet.
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Cobie Smulders, an artist's rendering of her as Wonder Woman. I found this on the Internet.
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Gal Gadot, an artist's rendering of her as Wonder Woman. I found this on the Internet.
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But, no matter, Lynda Carter--to me and to a bunch of other fans of hers out there--is the definitive Wonder Woman!!! Heck, yeah!

I've mentioned eating at Empire Chinese Buffet Restaurant here in Vallejo but never posted a picture of the place. Well, here it is, before I stepped in to dine and wait until it was 45 minutes close to the start of the movie:

Shouldn't it be Korean B.B.Q.?
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Monday, April 7, 2014

SATURDAY, APRIL 5TH, 2014 = SAN FRANCISCO VACATION

REUNION, 5TH DAY

And, so, our reunion ended--aptly enough--where it all began on Tuesday, in the lobby of Grant Plaza Hotel in San Francisco, CA, yesterday ( a Saturday ) at around 10:39 a.m.

The couple on the right, the Ramirezes, my cousin and his wife's friends and former office mates in Cebu, Philippines, came by to take my cousin and his family on a further tour of San Francisco landmarks, notably the Golden Gate Park and the Palace of Fine Arts. I was gonna rent a van yesterday to take my cousin and his family to see Vallejo, Mare Island, Benicia, Fairfield and Sacramento had my sister not invited us to have dinner with her and her family at Fisherman's Wharf last night. 
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When I checked-out at the front desk, I learned that the $69.00/day special posted on their storefront window only applied to a very few off-season days of the year--you have a better luck of winning the lottery than getting their off-, off-, off-season rate! And booking in advance only guarantees you a room, not their special rate.  I had to pay their $89.00/day rate for a single occupancy.  But I had the presence of mind to remind them that I stayed at their hotel twice before. So, at least, I got a $23--something discount. Oh, well .... Now I know better. 

Then, it was time for me to trudge with my belongings down to the BART Station. Well, at least my thigh muscles were no longer sore; but my shins were still somewhat sore. At first, I wanted to board the train at the Montgomery BART Train Station but changed my mind when I realized that the train would be near-capacity if I board it there. So, I boarded the train at the Powell Street Station.

At the El Cerrito Del Norte BART Train Station, the # 80 SolTrans Bus arrived 10 minutes late. It was supposed to be there by 12:25 p.m. So, of course, it meant that I would miss my transfer to the # 4 SolTrans Bus!

Sure enough, when the # 80 bus got to the Vallejo Transfer Center ( VCT ), the # 4 had already left. But that gave me time to use the restroom and to walk across the street to the Vallejo Main Post Office to pick-up my "vacation hold" mail. And I had additional time to do more of my Zhunti Mantra--which is always good--until the # 4 arrived at 2:00 p.m.

I got home close to 2:30 p.m. I rested for just a few minutes because I had some stuff to do.

Then, I drove to the MetroPCS Center on Sonoma Boulevard, here in Vallejo, to pay a monthly on my cellphone service. I then went to the Selecta Pilipino Buffet to have lunch and to buy a "quick-pick" for the Powerball. And I drove to Benicia, CA, to check my work schedule for the following week.

And I decided to see Arnold Schwarzenegger's movie, SABOTAGE, at the CENTURY 14 VALLEJO, for the 4:45 p.m. show.

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Which I liked, by the way, although it had some "plot holes".

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Saturday, April 5, 2014

FRIDAY, APRIL 4TH, 2014 = SAN FRANCISCO VACATION

REUNION, 4TH DAY

I finally had a good 8 hours worth of sleep last night--about time, too!

Then my day started with me eating the second half of the foot-long Subway Sandwich that my cousin dropped-off at my hotel room last night while I was busy "Facebooking" yesterday' events. I ate the first half of the sandwich last night but I was too full to eat the second half--imagine that, me, Mr. Pig-Out Man, who loves to eat at buffets 3 to 5 times a week! Ha, ha, ha.

My cousin wanted to know on Facebook if I would like to join them for breakfast today. But I already had the 2nd half of the sandwich waiting for me and it would be a waste of a perfectly good sandwich to just throw it away. They had in mind to go try out the Posh Bagel Shop on Sutter Street, between Grant Avenue and Kearney Streets, the bagel shop that I frequent whenever I am in the area. I hope they like the place.

Last night, I also asked my cousin if they would like to see a movie with me today, the CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER movie showing at the AMC METREON 16 on Fourth Street. He said that his wife and daughters want to go shopping today.

I will just meet with them later so that we could join my sister and her family for dinner down at the Fisherman's Wharf.

So, I went down to AMC METREON 16 to see CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER. I will need to do a separate entry on this movie because I need to see it again to further scrutinize it. But, overall, my first impression of it is that it's a good movie. It is a definite "must-see!" And stay 'til after the Ending Credits because there is a Bonus Scene during the Ending Credits and another one after the Ending Credits is over.

After seeing the movie, I stopped by the 7-Eleven on Sutter Street near the corner of Kearney Street to buy a half-litre of 7-Eleven bottled water, a Kombucha Guava, a banana and 2 pieces of mini tacos. 

I stopped by the hotel to leave my stuff behind. Then, I went to Chinatown to check-out a discount store, the Discount Imports. Then, I went to the Chinatown branch of Bank of America directly across the street from Discount Imports to withdraw some money. And I went to the Eastern Bakery a short distance away to buy some snacks.

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I ate some of the snacks that I bought while I sat at the bench outside the bakery.

Later on, after I had taken a shower, I went back to Chinatown to buy a varsity-style jacket 'cause I liked the way it looked.

This is where I bought my jacket.
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And this is the jacket that I bought for $21.74, including tax ( and 11 cents for the plastic bag to put my purchase in? ).
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I looked for the Buddhist Nun but there was no sign of her anywhere. And I couldn't find a Buddhist Monk, either. Someday, eventually, I hope to be able to donate the $60.00 I had promised to donate to their Gold Mountain Sagely Monastery.

The following is a copy of my most recent Facebook post. And since I copied and pasted it from my Facebook page, the paragraphs and sentences will not be properly formatted and I don't want to go through all of the hassle just to correct it. I will just leave it "as-is"!

At a little after 5:30 p.m., I took my cousin, Alan, and his family back to Fisherman's Wharf via the Bay 

& Taylor Streets Cable Car. It was good to know that both cable car routes were operational today. 

We went there to meet with my sister and her family so that we could all have dinner at the Alioto's 

Restaurant. And just about everyone had a side order of Clam Chowder. Midway through our dinner, I 

told everyone that I had to Facebook my sister in Michigan because I have to file a nightly report with 

her. And I Facebooked my brother to see if he could meet with our cousin sometime this weekend 

since our cousin, Alan, and his family will still be staying here in San Francisco all weekend long--and 

don't think that my brother ( at one year of age ) and our cousin ( at four years of age ) had even met 

over 48 years ago ( at least, not to my knowledge ). At this dinner get-together, it was also the first 

time that my sister and our cousin finally met again after over 48 years; and it was nice to see all of 

our nieces acquainting themselves with each other for the first time ever. And one of my sister's 

daughters brought along Andrew, a male friend, who was quite amicable and gentlemanly in nature. 

After dinner, we had ice cream dessert at the Ghirardelli Square Ice Cream and Chocolate Shop. A 

waitress tipped over one of the ice cream cups while the other waitress brought the wrong ice cream 

for my sister; and we didn't get enough spoons. And our cousin Alan looked dismayed at the size of 

his ice cream dessert since the portion sizes in this country tend to be BIGGER than what he and his 

family are accustomed to back in the Philippines. Can you say, "Super-Size us!"? Ha, ha, ha. But, 

overall, a good time was had by everyone as we reestablished our familial bond at both Alioto's and 

Ghirardelli. Finally, it was time to say, "Goodnight and goodbye." We boarded a cable car at Hyde & 

Beach Streets. It was almost 10:00 p.m. when we got back to our hotel. Here are the photos of today's 

family reunion:


I took this photo at the end of the line at Taylor and Bay Streets. After I took this picture, a blonde girl asked me to also take a picture of her and her friend ( another blonde ), using her I-Phone.
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We met with my sister here at Alioto's Restaurant. I copied this picture from the Internet.
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I took this picture and the one below it inside Alioto's Restaurant.
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This picture and the one below it where snapped inside the Ghirardelli Square Ice Cream and Chocolate Shop, on the top floor.
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I don't know who the bespectacled guy with a mustache and wearing the black shirt is. Maybe the guy in the previous photo is a shape-shifter who shifted into this form. Yup, I think that about explains it. Ha, ha, ha.
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Thursday, April 3, 2014

THURSDAY, APRIL 3RD, 2014 = SAN FRANCISCO VACATION

REUNION, 3RD DAY

Last night, at 9:30 p.m., I walked on down from the hotel all the way to the AMC METREON 16. I did so because Fandango doesn't have any Thursday movie listing for this theatre at all. And I wanted to treat my cousin and his family to an advanced screening of CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER. What I learned was that Bill Gates reserved the theatre for the whole day! And I don't even think that he lives here in San Francisco. That was so selfish and inconsiderate of him to do so. I swear,  some people with tons of money don't have better things to do other than to flaunt there enormous wealth at the rest of us, the 99%. We should do a protest, an "Occupy Microsoft!" protest.

Later, I went up and down Market Street looking for a newspaper dispenser which has free copies of The Epoch Times. I finally found one. 

And with that taken care of, I went to the 7-Eleven near the corner of Sutter and Kearny Streets to  buy a litre of 7-Eleven bottled water and a bottle of Kombucha Multi-Green drink.

It was at around 12:30 a.m. today when I got back to my hotel room.

And I stayed up until past 4:00 p.m. because I couldn't get on the Internet to do my blog right away because my free Wi-FI access was so slow! Using Dial-Up would have been faster.

I copied and pasted the following blog from my Facebook page which is why some of the paragraphs and sentences are not formatted correctly. And I am not about to waste my time fixing it because I thought copying and pasting it from my Facebook page would save me the trouble of having to write the whole thing all over again. But I'm just gonna leave it the way it is. Sorry ....

We stepped out of the hotel after 11:00 a.m. to go to a Chinese buffet for lunch. But, first, we went to 

The Galleria on Sutter Street to check out the shopping center and the farmer's market's produce 

items all displayed by assorted vendors. My cousin and his wife told me that the shopping malls and 

shopping centers in the Philippines are much nicer looking. 


I then took my cousin, Alan, and his family for lunch at a Chinese buffet restaurant near the corner of 

Geary and Kearney Streets here in San Francisco, CA. 



Then, we took BART Train to downtown Oakland. The outside area of the 12th Street BART Train 

Station in Oakland has changed so much since I last visited this place back in August of 2002. It is

much nicer now. I didn't recognize the area anymore as it looked completely alien to me. I had to ask a

stranger to tell me where Broadway Avenue was just so I could get my bearings back. We

walked the stretch from 10th Street to 20th Street along Broadway Avenue. 


We got back on BART Train at the 19th Street Station to go to Downtown Berkeley. 


I told them that there used to be a parade here in Berkeley every last Sunday of September that would 

wend from University Avenue to Shattuck Avenue which would have completely naked people ( except 

for shoes ) join in the parade.But they don't have the notorious parade anymore. Darn it!


And I added that there used to be a UC Berkeley student that would walk on campus and the 

downtown area and would attend all of his classes butt-naked.  I think that he died of hypothermia one 

cold winter night! Ha, ha, ha.


We went to the front entrance of UC Berkeley and sat in the semi-circular bench across from the

entrance. While we rested there, we hand-fed 3 squirrels who were expecting some freebies when 

they saw my niece, Rosean, with a pack of Philippine brand saltine crackers in her hand. 


Then, we went to the MacDonald's Restaurant on the corner of Shattuck and University Avenues. 

There was an old white woman who probably hasn't showered in well over a year who just stank-up 

the bathroom before we could get a chance to use it. And, when the stinky little old white woman 

walked by me, I almost vomited. 


When we got back to San Francisco, we went to the Westfield Shopping Center to do

some shopping. My nieces checked-out some custom I-Phone cases before they went to H & M to 

shop for some clothes. 


As we started walking back to the hotel, we decided to walk in the Levi's Jeans store nearby. It used 

to be that Levi's were all made here in San Francisco. But a helpful and informative clerk told me that 

it is all outsourced now to Los Angeles, CA, and to some countries in Europe, and to Turkey, also. 

'Noticed that I didn't mention "Made in China"---Yay! Here are the pictures that I took of today's trip:



It was bad enough that the most sleep that I could get today was 5 hours. But the road work at the intersection of Pine Street and Grant Avenue down below cut my sleep short even further!
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We dined here at the Jade Restaurant, a Chinese buffet restaurant, that I had a devil of a time finding practically a year ago today.
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This is outside of the Jade Restaurant after we got done eating.
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I was gonna have us all catch a train at the Montgomery BART Train Station but I anticipated that the 

train would be full by then. So, we just walked back a few blocks to catch a train in the Powell Street 

BART Train Station. There were homeless men lying around on the subway floor.


My cousin and his family were standing on Platform 2 in the Powell Street BART Train Station when I took this picture. We just missed the Richmond-bound train but the Pittsburgh/Baypoint train was well on its way so that we didn't have to wait long for a train.
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This is outside the 12th Street BART Train Station in Oakland, CA. This place is so beautiful now that I may just have to frequent it to familiarize myself with the new and improved area.
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This is the semi-circular bench just across the entrance to UC Berkeley. I had to ask a student to point us in the right direction. We rested in a shady area surrounded by trees which were populated by squirrels. The saltine crackers that we gave the squirrels will just probably end-up rotting their teeth and giving them gum disease. I think there is a future in Veterinary Dentistry.
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I tried my mini laser flashlight on the birds and the squirrels. I think that the birds could not see it. But a 

squirrel approached me when I shone my laser in front of it.


This is the entrance to UC Berkeley.

We had a quick fast-food meal at this MacDonald's Restaurant on the corner of Shattuck and University Avenues. It was here that I told them that there are a lot of crazy and homeless people here in Berkeley who were probably university students at some time that went crazy from all of that academic stress or became homeless because they were overwhelmed by their student loan debt!
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I took this picture of my cousin and his family inside the San Francisco/Millbrae-bound train. It's kind of blurry because the train was in motion.
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We got off at the Powell Street BART Train Station and went to the Westfield Shopping Center. On 

the way, I put a dollar in a street musician's guitar case.


In this picture, my nieces are checking-out some custom I-Phone cases.
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These two pictures are of my nieces ( above ) and my cousin's wife ( below ) inside the H & M fashion store.
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These two pictures of my cousin's wife and two daughters ( above ) and of my cousin and his family ( below ) were taken by me inside the Levi's Jeans Store just a short distance from the entrance of the Westfield Shopping Center.
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While we waited for my cousin's wife and daughters to get done with their shopping, my cousin and I stood outside on the sidewalk. There was a newspaper rack outside the store. I thought it an opportune time to finally try one of my Samsung Galaxy Mega's apps, a foreign written word translator. My cousin said to try the English-to-Cebuano ( our native language ) translation on a particular headline. The translation read: "Lapok  ( mud ) Balay ( house ) Linog ( earthquake ) Nasod ( nation )." It read like how a Chinese would speak Cebuano! No wonder, my Samsung Galaxy Mega was assembled in China. Ha, ha, ha.

I would translate the above to this: Nalubong sa Lapok and mga Balay sa Linogon Nasod ( English: Houses are buried in mud ( i.e. mudslide ) in earthquake country.

I told my cousin that I should go and interrupt Bill Gate's conference--or movie-watching--and tell him to hire me to improve their foreign written word translator for English-to-Cebuano. Then, we both laughed about it.

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