SAW 3-D: THE FINAL CHAPTER, R ( 1 hr & 31 min )

where: EDWARDS FAIRFIELD STADIUM 16 & I-MAX in Fairfield, CA
when: Thursday, October 28th, 2010
show: 10:00 p.m.
costs: $15.00 Ticket + $0.00 small Popcorn ( Free on Movie Watcher Rewards Card ) + $4.75 small Diet Coke = $19.75
auditorium: 5, with a 3-D screen
seat: 3rd row, 10th column

synopsis: A con-artist decides to exploit Jigsaw's surviving victims for fame and profit. But, in doing so, he gets put to the test to see whether or not he also has what it takes to survive.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) Leg stump; 2.) Display window; 3.) Stitches; 4.) Protection and immunity; 5.) Reborn; 6.) Prophetic nightmare; 7.) Racists; 8.) Survivors' group; 9.) The message on the mirror; 10.) "Start your life anew"; 11.) Flashback; 12.) "Understand your problems"; 13.) Safe-house; 14.) DVD; 15.) "Redefine your priorities"; 16.) The book signing; 17.) Video surveillance; 18.) "Verify your self-worth"; 19.) "Ignore your detractors"; 20.) " This is where he saved my life"; 21.) "Value your loved ones"; 22.) Self-dentistry; 23.) Trace; 24.) Secret room; 25.) "Embrace everyday as if it's your last"; 26.) The "familiar" game; 27.) Diversion; 28.) "You were warned"; 29.) The police station; and 30.) The tables turned.

audience reaction: I didn't really hear much, reaction-wise, from the audience.

recommendation: Go see this if you're into "Torture Porn." Otherwise, stay away from this perverted morality play.

spoiler alert! Couldn't the police have shot-out the glass? And a cop could have used the puppet's tricycle to jam/block the perpendicular saw while the other worked to disable it. And since it's just a department store display window, and more than likely electrically-wired in the typical fashion, one only has to pull the plug to disable the saw(s). There was no way for that piece of intestine to get cut-off like that--it would have been shredded-up, instead. After just one day, the sutured area should have become swollen--unless he had access to some Prednisone. When the glued skin tore away, it looked too rigidly fake. Depending on how tall the racist in the car was, he could have easily used his right foot to pull on the lever since his legs were not "crazy-glued" to the seat. Any big, gaping wound to the face and/or head will generate a lot of blood, but some of the victims in this movie didn't shed much blood. Contrary to what the author said, an injured mind doesn't heal as well as an injured body. Why didn't he stuff a sock in his publicist's mouth to lower the pitch of her voice? He could have used the heel of his shoe and his belt buckle to jam the sprocket wheel and break the chain to stop the gears. When those spikes penetrated his body at either side, the side where the liver is at should have spurted darker-colored blood. He should have told the man to pull out his shirt and use it to catch the key with. He was striking the tooth extractor sideways, so the tooth should have cracked and broken into pieces. When he dragged the victim's body out of the body-bag, there should have been a trail of blood, something which he would have had no time to clean-up. Knowing their suspect, when the machine gun popped-up, they should have ducked for cover since they had enough time. When each hook pierced through the skin, blood should not have squirted out since the puncture wounds were still tightly-sealed by the hooks. He could have hooked the hooks together and used them as a "stirrup" when he needed to hoist himself up. He was stabbed in the neck, but where was the blood? Why didn't she take with her the dead police officer's gun? Why were there still corpses in the torture room when an earlier sequel showed that it was discovered by the police and, presumably, the bodies were taken to the morgue for forensic work? Did Jigsaw's apprentice, at one time, work at a fortune cookie factory? The author's wife, as well as some other innocent people, should not have been included among the guilty victims.

fyi: Is this really the final installment of this franchise? I hope so.

Back in Ancient Greece, the "Brazen Bull" was invented to slowly roast to death a torture victim inside of its hollow body. It was equipped with a mouthpiece for the victim to cry into for help or in pain. But the victim's voice would get altered as it flowed through the pipes and out of the "bull's" mouth so that it would sound more like the bellowing sound of a bull. All the while, revelers would gather around it to witness the diabolically barbaric, macabre spectacle.

Incidentally, the "Brazen Bull's" inventor, Perillos, was its first victim! Well, somebody had to find out whether it worked according to its design. Perillos never imagined this as his reward for a job well-done ( 'get it? ). Actually, King Phalaris only had him roasted to "medium-rare." Then, the king had the hapless inventor sentenced to death by having him thrown off a cliff! ( Perillos should have had everything down in writing, first. )

word of advice: Have the punishment fit the crime.

tidbits: As I was about to enter the auditorium with my soda and popcorn in hand, a kind black lady offered to open and hold the door for me. That was so nice and polite of her and her husband to do for me. I don't think that that would have been the case here in Vallejo since there are a lot of people with no manners here.

After the movie, I asked the clerk where they have their recycle bin for the 3-D glasses. She told me that they don't have it, that I could either just throw it away or keep it--I kept it. My guess is that they only have a recycle bin in auditoriums 11 and 12.

PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2, R ( 1 hr & 36 min )

where: CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA

when: Friday, October 22nd, 2010

show: 4:15 p.m.

costs: $7.50 Ticket + $5.00 Snack Pack = $12.50

auditorium: 11

seat: 5th row, 5th seat

synopsis: A California couple with a newborn son soon find their home haunted by a malevolent spirit that has come to collect what's owed it from the family which conjured it in the first place.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) Vandalized house; 2.) Security cameras; 3.) Superstitious Hispanic nanny; 4.) Bathroom talk; 5.) Kitchen talk; 6.) Baby mobile; 7.) "Handsy, handsy, touchy"; 8) Explosion; 9.) Attempt at purging the house of evil spirits; 10.) "Attention span of a guppy"; 11.) Night vision; 12.) Bird; 13.) Kitchen; 14.) Pool cleaning machine; 15.) "What if it's mom"; 16.) Dog; 17.) Prank; 18.) Ouija board; 19.) Door; 20.) Baby; 21.) Google search; 22.) Security video; 23.) Toddler's toy; 24.) Kitchen surprise; 25.) Family line; 26.) Dog's encounter; 27.) Attack; 28.) Scratch marks; 29.) Evidence of attack; 30.) Call for help; 31.) Fighting with the possessed; 32.) Events of October 9th, 2006; and 33.) Sound effects during the Ending Credits.

audience reaction: There were four or five scenes which scared the audience. So, I guess that they got their money's worth.

recommendation: I kind of liked this movie but not by much because the novelty of the "pseudo-surveillance footage" scare tactic has lost its novelty for me. This movie would be perfect for people who still believe that Part One is actually true, i.e. the people who didn't read my blog on it.

spoiler alert! The security device installers showed what could only be motion-detector light switches. In which case, without any kind of movement by any object of substantial mass, the lights would have automatically turned off and perhaps would have then triggered the infra-red function of the security cameras. But there were a number of scenes showing no activity, suspicious or otherwise, which should have been automatically shot in infra-red mode but which weren't. The couple could afford to live in a fancy house and could spend a considerable amount of money on parameter security devices, but a bathtub faucet handle was broken and in need of ( an inexpensive) replacement! In an August 8ht, 2006 indoor scene, while the husband and the wife's sister's boyfriend were talking, there on the kitchen counter, one could see a spray bottle of Safeway brand's Bright Green All Purpose Cleaner set facing away from the camera to "conceal" its identity. But Safeway's Bright Green eco-friendly product line was not officially launched until November 20th of 2008, meaning that this movie showed the product two years, 3 months and two weeks too early! ( Do I have sharp eyes or what? Hey, what can I say ... I've got four eyes--which are better than just having two! ) With all that smoke that the nanny was generating, I was surprised that the smoke alarms didn't go off at all. With all that money he invested in the security devices, it puzzled me that he never showed an initiative to invest in the time to check on the claims made by his wife, his daughter and by the toddler's nanny. A bird will only crash into a clear and clean window pane if the curtains are not drawn or if the blinds are not closed. Otherwise, the bird would know that there was an obvious obstacle. And most birds, unable to see well in the dark, don't fly recklessly at night when it's dark outside. They got all those security devices installed but, somehow, they forgot about installing door alarms---Duh! I don't know if I'm remembering this right, but I think the old photo was stashed in a shoe box in the attic of the wife's sister's home in Part One, which Part Two, i.e. this movie, didn't attempt to show the actual process of. With all that noise and struggle going on in the basement, the toddler sure didn't cry in fear.

And the scene in the poster shown above is not in the movie.

fyi: There's another sequel, also, called PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2: TOKYO NIGHT. It will be shown here in the States in December.

I think somebody took my observation in my spoiler alert for Part One to heart and made the "drag-the-victim-around" scene more realistic---Hey, aren't you gonna thank me, whoever you are who followed through on my observation ...?

I saw this documentary program on TV years ago about a haunted house where the pets, a dog and a cat, were so frightened by what they each saw that they both died of a heart attack!

There is a famous haunted house here in Benicia, CA: Fischer-Hanlon House ( a hotel, originally ) , at 137 West G Street. It was built in 1849 and was moved to its present location in 1856. And it was donated to the State in 1969. Its last occupants reportedly haunt the place, according to a local customer of mine who told me about it.

word of advice: It runs in the family.

Don't put a curse on someone who's innocent.

tidbits: During the Ending Credits, a teenage boy walking down the steps on his way out said, "Thank you, Todd." Todd, as in: Todd Williams, Director. Some people in the audience laughed.

On my way to the men's room, I saw a co-worker, C. S., walking out of an auditorium. She had just seen SECRETARIAT. She asked me what I came to see. I told her that I came to blog about HEREAFTER and PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2. She asked me if I'd seen SECRETARIAT, and what I thought about it--she obviously is not a follower of my blog. So, I told her that it was a good movie but I didn't like the fact that they embellished upon it, Hollywood-style.

HEREAFTER, PG-13 ( 2 hr & 6 min )

where: CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA

when: Friday, October 22nd, 2010

show: 1:00 p.m. ( Dollar-Off First Show Matinee )

costs: $6.25 Ticket

auditorium: 1

seat: 4th row, 5th column

synopsis: A French journalist, Marie ( Cecile De France ), and a surviving twin boy, Marcus ( Frankie McLaren ), whose lives have each been devastated by tragedy, come into contact with a reluctant American psychic, George ( Matt Damon ), "cursed" with the ability to see the dear departed of grieving loved ones. George desperately wants to leave his past behind and just lead a normal life, then sees that opportunity when a troubled beautiful stranger ( Bryce Dallas Howard ) walks into his life.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) Tsunami; 2.) Brotherly favor; 3.) "A life that's all about death is no life at all"; 4.) June; 5.) Photograph; 6.) Drunken mom; 7.) Child protective services; 8.) 'Phone call; 9.) Bullies; 10.) Accident; 11.) TV interview; 12.) Visions; 13.) "You came back too soon"; 14.) Italian cooking class; 15.) Pleading woman; 16.) Freak; 17.) Church service; 18.) Foster care; 19.) Book idea sales pitch; 20.) "When you die, you die. The lights go out"; 21.) Blindfold taste test; 22.) Flash of vision; 23.) Charles Dickens; 24.) 'Phone message; 25.) Choice; 26.) "I'm sorry for pressing you like that'; 27.) Staircase; 28.) Foster home; 29.) YouTube; 30.) Hospice; 31.) Research; 32.) Downsized; 33.) "Your website's still up, waiting"; 34.) Missing money; 35.) Psychic center; 36.) Fake psychics and paranormal investigators; 37.) Website; 38.) Subway; 39.) "Conspiracy of Silence"; 40.) New billboard poster; 41.) "You've always told me to ask the tough questions"; 42.) The publishers; 43.) The goodbye letter; 44.) Tour group; 45.) Book readings; 46.) George's hotel room; 47.) At the May Fair; and 48.) What the future holds.

audience reaction: A lot of people turned up for this show, people who are searching for answers and, perhaps, closure. And they were all genuinely entertained by this movie.

recommendation: I liked this movie, too. Although, I must confess, it was the Tsunami Scene in particular which made me go see this movie. But the Ending Scene, with its "seeing-into-the-future" bit was somewhat off-putting since it brought-up a psychic ability which is in sharp contrast to George's other ability, making it seem "added-on" at the last minute. ( Or maybe the whole thing was just wishful thinking on George's part. )

spoiler alert! If I saw coconut trees toppling over like that and accompanied by the loud sound of crashing water, heck, I wouldn't stand around looking on at the spectacle that was obviously heading my way. The tsunami was not done right: The time between when the water receded and when it came back in force should have been farther apart. There should have been fish flapping around on the sand when the water receded. The water was too clear; it should have been gritty with sand and muddy-colored, also. But since they insisted on making the water clear for underwater shots, they should have picked the color blue ( for saltwater ) and not the color green ( for freshwater ). With all that water channeled down the road, more objects and debris should have been carried along, too. I have seen how people in San Francisco's apartment complexes park their cars at the curb: Practically bumper to bumper. And there is no way that anyone who's just a visitor can find a big enough spot to squeeze his car into at the curb during the night when everybody's home from work or school. Why were the Sikhs inside a Christian church for funeral services? The hotel receptionist sure was rude to the boy.

And does every Clint Eastwood-directed movie have to feature one of his penned musical compositions, too? Is this the only way that he can get people to listen to his music?

fyi: On the evening of December 17th, 2004, I was on the freeway heading off to my other job in Oakland, CA. I was still in the Vallejo area between the Tennessee Street and Georgia Street exits when there, descending in a 45-degree angle from the upper left of my windshield, appeared a very huge glowing disc emitting a red, yellow, orange and blue glow heading down into the distant Pacific Ocean. ( My eyeball "guesstimate" for this distant object's size is that its length is approximately half the diameter of the moon! ) I expected to witness the flash of an explosion but it never occurred.

I was so excited that when I got to work I promptly told all of my co-workers about the UFO that I saw. And, the next day, I also mentioned it to some of my co-workers at my other job here in Benicia, CA. But nobody seemed to take me seriously. So, that night, I called the Vallejo Times Herald to report what I saw. But the reporter that I wanted to speak with was not in. Then, I called the CHP Hotline to report it. The highway patrol officer who answered the 'phone said that she didn't get any similar calls. She told me to call the local Coast Guard and the Oakland air traffic controller. I didn't get any luck from either one, too. But I do know that at around the same time of my sighting, there was a Vallejo Police Helicopter flying in the air whose radar may have picked up the signal. I didn't bother to check with the VPD, though. So, I was left with no proof at all of what I saw.

Nine days later, an Asian Tsunami killed about 300,000 people. I never really thought that there was any connection at all between this tsunami and the UFO that I saw. Until I read the book, AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A YOGI. In it, it's author, Paramahansa Yoganda, talks about how when a great multitude of people are about to die here on Earth, an equal number of souls are transported here to replace those people that are about to die. In other words, what I saw was not a UFO; it was an SOS ( ship of souls ).

Identical twins have the unenviable tragedy of seeing themselves die twice: First, a twin sees the death of the other; then, he/she witnesses his/her own death.

The C & H Pure Cane Sugar Plant is just across the bridge from Vallejo, CA.

word of advice: Psychic abilities are gifts from God. Use them wisely.

tidbits: I would have gone to the midnight show had I not been scheduled to work today.

SECRETARIAT, PG ( 1 hr & 56 min )

where: CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when: Sunday, October 17th, 2010
show: 1:00 p.m. ( Dollar-Off First Show Matinee )
costs: $6.25
auditorium: 1
seat: 4th row, 8ht column

synopsis: A housewife, Penny Chenery Tweedy ( Diane Lane ), finds herself in charge of her ill father's horse stables. But, despite her lack of experience, she helps to raise and train a horse which is destined to become a legend, Secretariat, the greatest horse in horse racing history.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) The 'phone call; 2.) Childhood memories; 3.) Mother's pin; 4.) "I'm a professor, you're a housewife"; 5.) Fraud; 6.) Superfly; 7.) "Fore"; 8.) Record book; 9.) Coin toss; 10.) "You've done four"; 11.) "It's just beginning"; 12.) "How much did you spend on that hat"; 13.) "If there's a price, how's it freedom, Dad"; 14.) "Do you like my hat'; 15.) School play; 16.) "I'll be ready. Why wouldn't I be"; 17.) First win; 18.) "Horse loves the attention"; 19.) Trophies; 20.) Dance; 21.) "Seven wins in four months"; 22.) Horse of the Year; 23.) Hospital; 24.) Tax issues; 25.) Select opportunity; 26.) No's; 27.) "They call you tiny"; 28.) The Triple Crown; 29.) Newspaper article; 30.) "Good evening, K-Mart shoppers"; 31.) Grandest words; 32.) "One loss can happen, two is non-performance"; 33.) Abscess; 34.) The stare-down; 35.) "Can I have a moment with him"; 36.) Get ready; 37.) Fastest Derby ever; 38.) The Preakness Stakes win; 39.) "Belmont is the graveyard of speed horses"; 40.) "He knows ..."; 41.) "Second fastest ever"; 42.) "He'll be wearing wings"; 43.) The coin; 44.) Newspaper clippings; 45.) "I've ran my race, now you run yours"; 46.) "He knows what's going on"; 47.) "Don't burst his heart"; 48.) "I got a tip on a horse"; 49.) Too fast; 50.) "Let him run"; 51.) Thirty-one lengths; and 52.) Picture series during the Ending Credits.

prediction: Diane Lane will win an Oscar.

audience reaction: The audience, and there were many who turned up for this show, liked this "Feel Good" Sports Docudrama. Some of them even clapped their hands in each scene wherein Secretariat won the race.

recommendation: I enjoyed this movie, too. Go see it.

spoiler alert! The movie starts in 1969 when Penny received the news about her mother's death. When she arrived at the family's stables, her ill father, Christopher Chenery ( Scott Glenn ), was there. Wrong. Her father was committed to a hospital the year before and stayed there for about five years until his death in 1973 ( the main reason why the family-run business was losing money ). The movie shows only one sibling, a brother, when, in actuality, she had other siblings. The mark on the forehead and snout of the horse that played the part of Secretariat, a white star with a blaze extending toward the tip of the snout, kept changing in sharpness, in shape and in length; and in one scene the blaze looked like it was drawn with a chalk and a ruler's edge. Bull Hancock ( Fred Dalton Thompson ) advised Penny to hire Roger Laurin to run the stables and train the horses, which Roger ( Lucien's son ) did until he received a better job offer from Ogden Phipps ( James Cromwell ). And it was only then that she hired Lucien Laurin ( John Malkovich ). The Belmont Stakes is not the infamous "graveyard of the favored to win." That honor belongs to the Whitney Stakes were Secretariat lost after his Triple Crown win. There was an indoor scene later on where in the background, on top of a mantle, shelf or wooden file drawer, you could see a statuette of a greyhound dog; I don't know about you, but this struck me as an oddity since the movie is not about race-dogs but about racehorses. One of the news photographers at the press conference didn't have a flashbulb attached to his camera when everybody else did. I wouldn't have noticed it except that the idiot was in front, clicking away with his camera.

fyi: The fuzzy TV reception sure brought back memories. Ah, the "good" old days .... NOT!!!

I wonder if Secretariat is the inspiration for the Big Red chewing gum.

I had a co-worker, a lovely, wonderful woman, who passed away approximately a year ago. She would have loved this movie.

I wanted to see this movie in Walnut Creek, California, tomorrow, because that is where I saw 2003's SEABISCUIT, another legendary racehorse from the late 30s. But I couldn't wait any longer.

Interestingly, Seabiscuit was originally owned by the Phipps family who once owned the Claiborne Farm which was later sold to Bull Hancock.

Back in Matina, Davao City, Mindanao, Philippines, the name of Secretariat became familiar to me because it was almost always listed in the sports section of the newspaper. I don't follow horse racing, but there are a lot of horse racing fans in the Philippines, too.

Secretariat was buried in Claiborne Farm, and is probably the only racehorse buried whole. Traditionally, only the head, heart and hooves of a winning racehorse are buried; the rest of its body is cremated.

The Bible quote about a war horse racing off to battle is from the Old Testament's Book of Job 39: 19 - 25.

word of advice: Go for it.

tidbits: It's official: Non-fertilized eggs kept refrigerated can still be fresh enough to eat after 112 days! ( Refer back to my tidbits on WALL STREET: MONEY NEVER SLEEPS. ) I just ate one--of the last two that I boiled--at 12:40 a.m. today. What a way to start my day!

At around 10:00 a.m., I had a craving for Chicharon. So, I made a quick trip to Vargas Market, a Mexican store, on Sonoma Boulevard to get some. But the pieces that the butcher selected for me were hard and not crunchy enough. In other words, they were not prepared and cooked properly. What a waste of $8.80!

Tomorrow, I'll be sure to buy the much better Philippine-style Chicharon at Selecta Filipino Buffet on Springs Road.

As I sat to watch the Ending Credits scroll down, some man walking out with the crowd touched the top of my head with his bulk candy bag--and didn't apologize for it. How rude! 'Remember what I said about the Vallejo crowd ...? Well, here's another clear example of it.

After the movie, I swung by the Dollar Tree Store in the Target Shopping Center and bought a bag of Cat Food, a pack of Fudge Grahams, and a box of Devil's Food Cremes.

RED, PG-13 ( 1 hr & 51 min )

where: UA EMERY BAY STADIUM 10 in Emeryville, CA
when: Friday, October 15th, 2010
show: 9:45 p.m.
costs: $10.75 Ticket + $5.75 Zap Pack + $5.00 Carquinez Bridge Toll = $21.50
auditorium: 7
seat: 4th row, 12th column

synopsis: Geezer Force on a road trip.

Four r.e.d. ( retired, extremely dangerous ) agents find themselves back in action because of an old covert operation in Guatemala. But, this time around, they are the targets for execution to cover-up a dirty conspiracy.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) Christmas lawn decorations; 2.) Romance novel; 3.) Intruders; 4.) Finally meeting each other; 5.) Hanged man; 6.) "That's just perfect"; 7.) Fingers; 8.) Pieced together check; 9.) "They can still shoot you"; 10.) Active 911 call; 11.) "I am high"; 12.) Cop car crash; 13.) "I was hoping you'd have hair"; 14.) Retirement home hit man; 15.) Victim's mom; 16.) "You speak Chinese"; 17.) "I didn't know this place existed"; 18.) Retired, extremely dangerous; 19.) Eliminator; 20.) "All we need is a banjo"; 21.) Decoy; 22.) The list; 23.) "I'm getting the pig"; 24.) The frightened female stranger; 25.) "Open the pig"; 26.) "Old man, my ass"; 27.) "You really know how to show a girl a good time"; 28.) Inside the Russian Embassy; 29.) Elevator; 30.) Guatemala file; 31.) "Change of plans"; 32.) Ambulance; 33.) "You just got your ass handed to you by a retiree"; 34.) "I take the old contract on the side"; 35.) Old gang back together; 36.) "If you break his heart, I will kill you"; 37.) Non-sanctioned relationship; 38.) "You can't touch me"; 39.) Surrounded; 40.) Bullet scars; 41.) The raid; 42.) The file; 43.) "He's gonna eat you for lunch"; 44.) "Plug me into their detail"; 45.) Storage unit; 46.) "Blink of an eye"; 47.) "I smell gas"; 48.) Fooled; 49.) "I could be of assistance"; 50.) Suicide bomber; 51.) "Pull over"; 52.) "I'm one of the men you ordered killed"; 53.) "Surprised to see me"; 54.) "Wanna get pancakes"; 55.) "Little favor"; and 56.) "Moldova sucks!"

favorite scene: I liked how Frank Moses ( Bruce Willis ) stepped out of a spinning patrol car with his gun at the ready.

audience reaction: The audience enjoyed this movie.

recommendation: I enjoyed this movie, too. Go see it if you're into Action/Comedy films.

spoiler alert! All of that automatic weapons fire and explosions yet none of the neighbors called 911? Okay, so out in broad daylight, a man drove a car--not a taxicab--with his lone passenger seated in the backseat and with her mouth duct-taped, and nobody notices ...? That hanged man will show missing hair around his wrists as well as adhesive residue, so forensics will know that it was a case of foul play, not suicide. The killer didn't plant the hairs in a sterile way to keep it from being contaminated with his own body's sloughed-off cells--he should have covered himself from head to toe. What retirement home in these days of HD television broadcasts still uses an indoor TV antenna from the 60s or 70s? How were they able to get their weapons past the airport security? Why didn't any air traffic controller in the control tower notice anything suspicious about the helicopter hovering in place above the tarmac? William Cooper's ( Karl Urban ) wife, Michelle ( Michelle Nolden ), didn't look too terrified even though their house was being raided by cops with guns drawn--I, on the other hand, would have cr-pped in my pants or fainted or gotten a heart attack or stroke or all of the above ... you know what I mean. In the parking garage scene, none of the dozens ( hundreds? ) of bullets fired, ricocheted. The Ending Scene seems to suggest that there won't be a Part Two since it puts a "The End" stamp to the end.

fyi: My late mother was a casual friend of Ernest Borgnine's first cousin's wife.

Once again, here's another movie wherein only the black guy gets killed off! Enough already. Come on!

A couple of newspaper movie reviewers got their facts wrong. Not all of the field agent retirees were from the CIA: One of them was from the MI6 and another one was from the KGB. Victoria ( Helen Mirren ) didn't mow "... down a garage-full of government goons," she just pinned them down. It was not "a pink stuffed bunny" but a pig--you'd think that it would be no problem at all for anyone to tell the difference between a bunny and a pig; after all, even Bugs Bunny doesn't look anything like Porky Pig!

word of advice: "Silence is golden but duct tape is silver." Title of a song by Against All Authority ( It's on YouTube )

tidbits: I went to Oakland earlier in the day to drop-off the juicing book at Hector's place. It will be interesting to see how much of his pot-belly he'll lose on his juice fast. I told him, If you want to be skinny, eat at Chinese buffets everyday just like those Chinese waiters and waitresses who are all skinny.

Hector made spaghetti for lunch. And I cooked a cheeseburger pasta dinner. Pasta and margarine-slathered bread .... What a way to start his diet! Just call me, Mr. Sabotage--Shh ... don't tell him.

Well, according to today's Oakland Tribune newspaper's front page news, Hector lives in a very high crime rate area in Oakland were they have the most concentration of gangs. My family used to live in the same neighborhood years ago, less than a mile away from his place. But it has changed considerably and dramatically since then. I wouldn't feel safe walking around my former street at night, nowadays.

The other reason why I went to Hector's place was because my computer has been acting-up ever since I installed the latest Norton Anti-Virus software: If I'd leave my computer on and unattended for a few hours, I wouldn't be able to go to any website other than the one that I'd be presently on when I'd get back to use it, unless I'd reboot it first. I didn't want to take a chance and risk deleting my entry again. So, I used Hector's computer to finish my blog for LIFE AS WE KNOW IT and to write my blog for JACKASS 3-D. Of course, I had to wait 'til I got home to download the Jackass movie poster onto my post.

On my way to Oakland, California, a red Honda bike passed me by on the diamond lane in the Berkeley/Emeryville area of the I-80 freeway. The center lane that I was on was slow-and-go traffic. I very much wanted to catch-up with the Honda because I wasn't sure if it was a scooter ( Helix, Reflex or Silver Wing ) or a motorcycle. And I wanted a closer look. I never caught up with it, though.

Now, imagine my pleasant surprise at finding the same red Honda bike in the parking lot of UA Emery Bay Stadium 10! Holy Serendipity, indeed! It was a motorcycle after all with full body fairing: The Honda PC800 Pacific Coast, an 800 cc bike in production from 1989 through 1998 which was aimed at the "white collar professional" buyers. I like how it looks. 'Too bad that they don't make it anymore. Maybe, someday, I'll find one for sale after I learn how to operate a motorcycle. Who knows, the Chinese might be offering a cheap knock-off by then, too!