My Goodness, all we heard this v long week for NFL fans, was how the Cowboys had ARRIVED! AT LAST! They were for real this time! Farve would throw four picks, All Day would fumble thrice, ... well, so much for that. (I can't wait to hear Trent Dilfer tonight, ... hmmm, delicious as Bouchon restaurant in Yountville.)
Willie and Michael and all my Dallas friends: I feel your pain. It's the crappy pundits who have turned ESPN & NFL Network in to Fox News that I HATE!
And, as for Skip Bayliss: My dad went to high school w/ the Bayliss bros. Skip was an amazing sportswriter for the Times-Herald back in the day, at times he even rivaled Blackie Sherrod, one of the greatest sportswriters of all-time, whose "Notes" column has been ripped-off by at least one high-paying sportswriter in every newspaper market, but now, Skip has been FOX-ified, turned in to a reactionary sports pundit. Meanwhile, his brother Rick has turned in to an Oklahoma cooking legend, perfecting, yet still, remaining authentic to real Mexican food. And Rick Bayliss is a genuinely great guy. I don't know what Skip is like away from the studio, maybe he's got as good a heart as Rick, but his schtick on weekday mornings does not lead me to believe he is.
Whoodathunkit? I dint even know who Rick Bayliss was when I delighted to Skip Bayliss' amazing writing on the Cowboys and Phi Slamma Jamma and Navratilova. It's been all downhill since, hunh, Rick?
Jan 17, 2010
Jan 10, 2010
I Have Returned
Well, I have not logged-on here in a while. I have been sick (strep throat) and it has been an extremely stressful holiday season for me as a wine buyer. Sales have stunk for a while and my department has become really stale. I needed a wake-up call and I got one! I'm not going to get in to the details but it was enough to get me focussed on Xmas and New Years and I showed a big improvement. Still, with my recent illness happening the minute after the holidays ended (my body basically shut down), I am beginning to have doubts about whether I have the strength or passion for running a department that just is not very popular or hip right now. In these tough times folks are switching to spirits and especially beer (or Super Ale, as I like to call it.)
[By the way, a little sidebar: Craft brewers are killing beer
in this country. Someone explain to me, When, just when
did lager become a four letter word?]
Anyhoo, I am healthy again. I think I'm ready to mix things up and become a great wine buyer again. I feel like the navy guy from Barcelona, "Everyday in every way, I am becoming, ... "
So, for this post and for fun here are my listings for the best films of the naughts and then of all-time! Enjoy.
Best films of the naughts:
10. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (Wes Anderson, 2004)
I know, I know, ... most folks and critics prefer The Royal Tennenbaums (Wes Anderson, 2001) but Life Aquatic to me is funnier, more fun, and actually shows more depth and passion than Royal Tennenbaums. Both films are great. Neither are nearly in the league of Rushmore or Bottle Rocket.
9. Standard Operating Procedure (Errol Morris, 2008)
This film by documentary master Morris was a complete bomb. I guess no one wanted to rehash one of this country's worst moments again so soon. My partner, Renee, simply won't watch the film, nor, will my friend, Nick. Plus, there are partisan issues. Right-wingers don't want to hear an empathetic account for Ms England and the others involved. It is the "few bad apples" crap argument. I like this film much more than Fog of War and I believe Fog of War benefitted from the fact its subject was near death and that it was made forty years after the start of the Vietnam War.
8. Sideways (Alexander Payne, 2004)
Greatest buddy/road movie of all-time? It is arguable. My favorite moment is the surprising yet inevitable moment when Miles just knows he'll have to sneak in to that house and retrieve that wallet.
7. 28 Days Later (Danny Boyle, 2002)
Good gracious, who woulda thought that Boyle would become such a powerhouse? It all started with Shallow Grave. Then came Trainspotting, 28 Days Later, Millions, and most recently a best picture, Slumdog Millionaire. I like 28 Days Later best this decade. It is gripping, genre-transcending, full of amazing performances, particularly Christopher Eccleston, and is the action film paradigm, as far as I am concerned. It blows all the cgi New Zealand and Hollywood blockbusters away. No one does "bells and whistles" better than Boyle.
[Renee is going to cut my hair now. I'm not kidding. I will return to this tonight and/or tomorrow. Kisses!, mds]
[By the way, a little sidebar: Craft brewers are killing beer
in this country. Someone explain to me, When, just when
did lager become a four letter word?]
Anyhoo, I am healthy again. I think I'm ready to mix things up and become a great wine buyer again. I feel like the navy guy from Barcelona, "Everyday in every way, I am becoming, ... "
So, for this post and for fun here are my listings for the best films of the naughts and then of all-time! Enjoy.
Best films of the naughts:
10. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (Wes Anderson, 2004)
I know, I know, ... most folks and critics prefer The Royal Tennenbaums (Wes Anderson, 2001) but Life Aquatic to me is funnier, more fun, and actually shows more depth and passion than Royal Tennenbaums. Both films are great. Neither are nearly in the league of Rushmore or Bottle Rocket.
9. Standard Operating Procedure (Errol Morris, 2008)
This film by documentary master Morris was a complete bomb. I guess no one wanted to rehash one of this country's worst moments again so soon. My partner, Renee, simply won't watch the film, nor, will my friend, Nick. Plus, there are partisan issues. Right-wingers don't want to hear an empathetic account for Ms England and the others involved. It is the "few bad apples" crap argument. I like this film much more than Fog of War and I believe Fog of War benefitted from the fact its subject was near death and that it was made forty years after the start of the Vietnam War.
8. Sideways (Alexander Payne, 2004)
Greatest buddy/road movie of all-time? It is arguable. My favorite moment is the surprising yet inevitable moment when Miles just knows he'll have to sneak in to that house and retrieve that wallet.
7. 28 Days Later (Danny Boyle, 2002)
Good gracious, who woulda thought that Boyle would become such a powerhouse? It all started with Shallow Grave. Then came Trainspotting, 28 Days Later, Millions, and most recently a best picture, Slumdog Millionaire. I like 28 Days Later best this decade. It is gripping, genre-transcending, full of amazing performances, particularly Christopher Eccleston, and is the action film paradigm, as far as I am concerned. It blows all the cgi New Zealand and Hollywood blockbusters away. No one does "bells and whistles" better than Boyle.
[Renee is going to cut my hair now. I'm not kidding. I will return to this tonight and/or tomorrow. Kisses!, mds]
Jan 2, 2010
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
