Life In The Weeds

Shark Attack

Last week, Stephan Shafer, was attacked by a shark in Stuart, FL. A lifeguard paddled out to rescue the struggling kite-surfer and noticed several shadows beneath the water's surface...he pulled him onto his rescue board and paddled him back to shore...but, Shafer died shortly afterward.

It got me thinking...

The International Shark Attack File at the University of Florida's Museum of Natural History lists only 1,032 documented shark attacks in the United States since 1690 - 50 being fatal.

Since my brother suffers from Shark-phobia, I thought I would dig into some statistics.

In 2008, there was ONE documented shark fatality in the US, compared to:

716 bicycle related deaths (he bike's often with his three kids)

23 dog attack deaths (he owns a dog)

In addition, since he lives on a lake in NC - with a boat - here is another telling statistic - 

Since 1990, there have been almost 300 boat related deaths in North Carolina, versus ONE shark attack fatality in North Carolina.

Live a little Bro...face your demons and swim with the fishes!

mj

Super Bowl Ads

Well, the game lived up to the hype...but what about the Ads?

We were watching the game at Super Bowl party, which makes it hard to catch the commercials...here is a link to ALL the commercials, in order.

From the ones I saw during the game, it looked like Bud Light and Doritos were the best...

Super Bowl Commercials

mj

Christmas Lights, Really?

Believe me, I know what a pain in the arse it is to deal with putting up the outside Christmas lights!

You typically get the inclination (and inspiration!) to get them up "early this year"...like the first weekend in December.  Then, that first weekend passes and you feel a bit of pressure, as the neighbors Christmas lights twinkle on your way in the driveway from work.

So, after reluctance, procrastination and peer-pressure, your lights "go up" and shine brightly for all to see! Your proud of your work because this year you decided to light a few extra trees out front or run the icicle lights a bit further this year...

Christmas comes, and goes!  New Years comes, and goes!  Then all the sudden, it's Martin Luther King's Birthday...January 18th, and your shiny, twinkling Christmas light are still shining bright...then it's February...

That's a problem!

What's the rule?  I say, the first weekend AFTER New Year's...lights OFF!  Maybe not down, but certainly keep them off.  

Driving home from the station last night, there were a surprising number of homes with their Christmas lights still up and ON.

Christmas lights in February, really?  

mj

Will Ferrell is a Genious!

I certainly do not think everything Will Ferrell's does is hilarious...but, you can't argue with his comedic brilliance!  His comedy comes to us in many forms...movies he stars in, movies he just shows up in, viral videos and, of course, Saturday Night Live skits.

Here is a breakdown:

His best movies:          Old School, Anchorman, Talladega Nights, Elf, Kicking and Screaming

His worst movies:       Land of the Lost, Blades of Glory, Semi-Pro, Step Brothers

His best cameos:        Wedding Crashers, Starsky & Hutch

His best viral videos:    The Landlord, The Green Team, Good Cop, Baby Cop, Bush PSA spots

His SNL work: Endless!

Here is an SNL skit that I had not seen - enjoy!

mj

The Birth of the Alley-oop!

For hoops fans, this is a really funny clip from an awful movie.  Semi-Pro is a movie about a amateur basketball team starring Will Ferrell and Woody Harrelson (among others).  I am a huge fan of Will Ferrell, but this movie is just terrible. 

For someone so talented, it makes you wonder HOW they decide on what movies to take on?

In any case, check out this scene...arguably, the birth of the Alley-oop.

mj

He's very good at what he does

Someone used that phrase with me today and I confess, it drives me nuts when I hear it and never more so than when someone uses it about himself.

Do people use it because they think it is the highest possible compliment or do they presume that it totally clarifies things. I am always bewildered when I hear it - "What exactly do they do and why are they very good at it?", is what I say to myself.  

It may make sense if a person's job included just one task - diamond cutter, mohel, matchbook artist - but otherwise save it for your conversation with other MBAs.

O.D.O.o.O.D.B. 

The Oscar Nominees are in...ALL 10!

It's Oscar time!

The opportunity to here your name called onto the stage and except a golden, bald statue named Oscar.

They changed the format this year and I'm not all that happy about it!  Truth is, I really don't care...I mean, I'm not a Oscar freak, but I do have an opinion on a change they made this year!

You'll notice that the academy has expanded the list of best picture nominees to 10...yes, 10 films!

Here they are:

Avatar; The Blind Side; District 9; An Education; The Hurt Locker; Inglourious Basterds; Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire; A Serious Man; Up; Up in the Air.

It seems to me that expanding to ten will only dilute the voting and make it even more difficult to pick a true winner.  I guess it's nice to give more exposure to the the films, but why is this the only category that the expanded?  

Sadly, my children have seen more nominated films then I!  My oldest kids have seen both Up and Avatar...I have only been able to catch The Hurt Locker (not even in the theater!).  

Here is the complete list of nominees for the 82nd Annual Academy Awards.

mj

2010 Grammy Awards

Last night was the 2010 Grammy Awards at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

For some reason, I find myself drawn to "awards" shows...I like to see the latest and greatest when it comes to staging technology and performances.  And, maybe, it's a great excuse to get caught up on the latest in pop culture...movies, music and television!

In any case, the stage was impressive...multiple levels, wide, wrap around screens and a center island stage in the middle of the audience.

However, what caught my eye was a pre-Grammy technology called a Glam-Cam.  It appears that this technology has been used for the Emmy's and Golden Globes, but it's the first time I have seen it used...and, IMHO, I think it's super cool!

Check it out here.

I love how the picture is available instantly...I think it works really well with a group shot!

mj

Feel Good Story

We have all received "feel-good" e-mails with video clips embedded.  If you are like me, your immediate reaction is to hit "delete" and move-on to the million other things you are working on at any given moment.

However, for some odd reason, on this particular clip, I hit on the link...and stayed through the end.

It's 6 minutes out of your day and worth the view.

It will humble you and force you to ask yourself, "do I really have it that bad?" or "I'm I really doing enough?"

Enjoy.

mj

Operating

Five surgeons from big cities are discussing who makes the Best patients to operate on.

The first surgeon, from New York, says, I like to see accountants on my operating table because when you open them up, everything inside is numbered.'
 
 The second, from Chicago, responds, Yeah, but you should try electricians! Everything inside them is color coded.'
 
 The third surgeon, from Dallas, says, 'No, I really think librarians are the best, everything inside them is in alphabetical order'

 The fourth surgeon, from Los Angeles chimes in:'You know, I like construction workers...Those guys always understand when you have a few parts left over.

 But the fifth surgeon, from Washington, DC shut them all up when he observed: 'You're all wrong. Politicians are the easiest to operate on. There's no guts, no heart, no balls, no brains and no spine, and the head and the ass are interchangeable.