Larocque and Roll

Be Aggressive! B-E Aggressive! March 12, 2006

This past weekend was the annual shinny tournament, hosted by my sister and b-i-l. And once again, it was a blast. Unlike last year, there was no snow - in fact, it was sunny and warm enough that some participants didn’t wear their jackets. Also this year, my sister in Owen Sound couldn’t make it, and I’m not aggressive enough to try and steal Denise’s hat and fill it with mud. Plus, she wasn’t wearing a hat.

This year, the winner of the Furthest Distance Traveled to get to the game went to a friend of Mike’s sister, who came all the way from New Zealand. Not specifically for the tournament, but it definitely beat the Ottawa contingent by a few miles.

In a change of pace, the post-game meal wasn’t chili this time - it was lasagna and peirogies, both homemade. There was much feasting and groaning, and much, much discussion about what bar(s) to hit Saturday night. Once again, it was an argument I didn’t participate in, since I went home with the couple at whose house I was staying. Breakfast this morning was another feast, and the drive home was alternately sunny and foggy, but I made it home nonetheless.

And here is your 2006 Shinny Team - we forgot to decide on team names this year.

iPope* March 8, 2006

*No, this headline is never going to get old. Learn it, live it, love it, people!

Apparently, the Pope now has an iPod nano. It came loaded with classical music and special Vatican Radio programing.

Boooooring.

What the Pope needs is some music that will help bring him into the 21st century, help him relate to the kids today.

Ministry - Jesus Built my Hotrod
Perfect! They have an appropriate name, AND the song demonstrates how our Saviour is with us at all times, and helping us whenever we need it.

Marilyn Manson - Personal Jesus
Even though he looks like Satan, Mason tells us about how important it is to have Jesus in our everyday lives.

Rufus Wainwright - Gay Messiah
The Pope, like many other Chrisitan leaders, apparently labours under the assumption that Jesus doesn’t like gay people. I know they’re wrong about that, but just in case, Wainwright sings about the Messiah who is coming exclusively for homosexuals.

AC/DC - Hell’s Bells
Need a reminder about what happens to sinners when they die? These “bells” of hell will ring out to remind you to stay on the path of righteousness!

Joan Osborne - What If God Was One Of Us
Well, He may actually already be one of us - ever think of that, Benny?

The Charlie Daniels Band - The Devil Went Down to Georgia
Which explains a lot.

Rolling Stones - Sympathy for the Devil
See what happens when you sympathize with the Devil? You become inexplicably attractive to the opposite sex, you drink and do a lot of drugs, and become millionaires with throngs of screaming fans. Wait… is that supposed to be a bad thing?

B-52’s - Love Shack
I think all places of worship should be called “love shacks” from now on.

Led Zeplin - Stairway to Heaven
Only young, fit folk need to climb the stairway to heaven - the elderly and infirm will take the express elevator.

Tom Waits - Chocolate Jesus
How sacreligious! I can’t imagine what a song like this is doing on the Pope’s playlist!

Johny Cash - Ring of Fire
If you’re not careful, you’ll end up going to hell too!

Okay, I’ve given you a head start - what are some other songs I should put on here?

(Incidentally, a co-worker told me George Stroumboulopoulos did something similar on his show recently. However, I can’t find the list anywhere, so you’ll just have to put up with mine.)

Thanks to my posse at work for the suggestions at lunch today.

Sockapaloooza Update #1 March 7, 2006

After a week of knitting, which includes ripping out a good three inches and starting again, this is what I have:

Yay! Two and a half inches of Jaywalker!

(Can I just say how envious I am of people who can whip up a pair of socks in a weekend?)

(And can I just also say how ironic it is that someone in my group has chosen the same colour as me? Lorna’s Laces in Gold Hills… wait, I already told you that. Sorry!)

(See update #2)

My Oscar thoughts

Gee, like it hasn’t been done to death already. But I took notes, so here it is!

Jon Stewart - I wasn’t sure if I was going to like him in the job as host, since it was going to put a crimp in his style. Either that, or he’d be funny but no one would laugh at this humour. Happily, I did like him, and I did think it was funny.

The cowboy montage was hilarious.

Ben Stiller and his green screen suit wasn’t funny. Not even a little. Shut up, Ben. Also annoying was the music they played while the winners were accepting their awards - it was distracting!

The skit about how winners would know their time was up was amusing. Kudos for Tom Hanks for being hit over the head with a viola.

Wait a minute - Beyonce isn’t singing all the nominated songs this year?

John Canemaker (Best Animated Short) thanked his boyfriend - awwww!

Someone needed to tell Colleen Atwood (Best Costumes) that she looked like she was trying to dress half her age. I mean, the sides were open all the way up, and it was very low cut. Maybe on a younger, more svelte woman, but not her.

Will Ferrell and Steve Carrell - hee. I would kill for Steve’s fake eyelashes.

The fake campaign commercials were dumb, but funny. Still, Dame Judi didn’t look all that amused.

Jon nailed it when he asked what was up with all the montages. Seriously. They cut people’s speeches short, but there was a montage for everything. I felt sorry for Lauren Bacall - she started to loose it about halfway through, and I held my breath hoping she was going to make it to the end.

It seemed the predominate colour scheme was neutrals and ivory, which was dull, as most of the women wearing it were blond. It made them look bland and washed out. Except for Salma Hayek, who’s turquoise gown was gorgeous. (And thank you for not appearing alongside Penelope Cruz again this year - it’s been a few days since I’ve gone for a walk and I’d eaten a lot of waffles on Sunday, so I don’t need any further reminders how bloated I am right now.)

(I don’t have many notes after this point, so I’m winging it now.)

Steve Box and Nick Park - so cute with the bow ties for the awards! And the stuffed penguins! Also so cute!

I cannot believe “It’s Hard Out There For A Pimp” won. There are a myriad of cultural and social reasons why a song about pimping and exploiting women is wrong wrong wrong, but also that the song just plain sucked. Dolly should have won, but was the picture of grace when those yahoos got the award instead of her.

Phillip Seymour Hoffman, George Clooney, and Reese Witherspoon all had excellent acceptance speeches. I won’t speak on Rachel Weisz because Michelle Williams was ROBBED. (So was Jake Gyllenhaal, but I can live with that.)

Lord love Larry McMurtry for wearing a “Texas tuxedo” (jeans and cowboy boots with a tux jacket).

Corinne Marrinan (Best Documentary Short) was adorable. And she got to sit next to The Clooney at the nominees luncheon - so lucky!

I can’t believe Crash won Best Picture. Sure, it was a great movie, but it relied on multiple plots and a vast list of characters to pull it off. Brokeback Mountain was carried by two actors, who made it a spectacular film. Grrrr…

Disco isn’t dead, sadly March 2, 2006

So, on my way into work yesterday I heard a Bee Gees song, and I realized I don’t have enough Bee Gees in my life right now. I’m open to suggestions as to what should be my Bee Gees theme song should be. (But it can’t be Stayin’ Alive - be creative!)

The rest of my day was tedious. An hour at the dentist to get a root canal filled, then two hours at Canadian Tire to get my car fixed. I brought my Sockapaloooza sock with me, and ended up having to frog the whole damn thing when I realized I’d messed up big time. Argh.