Hero Inc.

Another year passes and that means it is time for the Alzheimer Association Memory Walk. The following is a quick email I sent out to many people concerning the event. With only a day passed from sending the email, I’ve already raised $315. I hope the donations continue and I reach my goal as well as help my team reach their goal ($10,000) as well.

With this yearly email, I’m starting to feel like the IRS requesting money each year. However, I’m hoping all of you who have received this email do not have a negative feeling to this cause and to what I’m about to say.

For those who have not receive this email previously, let me give you the fresh perspective The following quote was copied from the Memory Walk website.

Millions of American families are caring for a loved one with Alzheimer’s. The Alzheimer’s Association, the world leader in Alzheimer’s research, care and support, is dedicated to finding prevention methods, treatments and an eventual cure for the disease.

For all of those millions of people fighting this disease, I’m participating in the Alzheimer’s Association Memory Walk®. I hope to be able to raise at least $1000 to support the Alzheimer’s Association, which provides research, support and education for those living with the disease, their families and caregivers.

I am now going on my third Memory Walk. Each year I’ve looked forward to this event more than anything else. Throughout my life, I have encountered many events that have helped shape me to be who I am today. However, I feel that no other event has impacted me more than when I had to deal with my grandmother who had Alzheimer’s. I was able to see first hand what Alzheimer’s does to a person and to those loved ones who care. From that point forward, my biggest fear was/is Alzheimer’s. Every day no matter where I am or what I’m doing, you will find me wearing my Alzheimer’s “Mindstrong” bracelet. This item is both my crutch and reminder that helps me to keep strong in the fight against Alzheimer’s as well as anything else that I might face in my daily life.

Now, what I’m asking of each of you is one of two things (or both). Please either make a donation or pass this email on to someone that you know has been affected by Alzheimer’s in some way. You don’t have to donate because I’m asking, even though that would be nice. I want you to donate because you care. I want you to donate because you believe in the cause. I just want you to help in whatever way you feel that you can.

Thanks.
http://atlantachastainmemorywalk.kintera.org/btrice

From the first moment I saw this trailer, I knew I would love the movie. I trust a written, directed, and starring movie by Ben Stiller. The supporting cast couldn’t hurt too much either (Robert Downey Jr., Steve Coogan, Nick Nolte, Tom Cruise, etc.).

Tropic Thunder is a movie about a war movie being made. It is basically a lets make fun of all facets of Hollywood and how they make a war movie. Let’s have “full of themselves” actors, “don’t give a crap” producers, “I want to be artistic yet successful” directors, and “stay true to my script or else” writers.

Before the movie even hit the theatres groups were already yelling about a white actor playing the black male lead and the constant jabs the movie makes at the mentally handicapped. Well, all of those cries of disgust had their reasons, but it made me enjoy the movie that much more. My personal philosophy is if you can’t laugh at all groups, including your own, then it isn’t fair. Anyway, Robert Downey Jr. steals the show and you quickly forget you are watching an actor playing an actor playing another person. You just start seeing one messed up actor who can’t leave the roles he pushes himself to become.

Overall, it is the quotes and cameos that keep this movie funny and the visuals that make you believe this could have been a great war movie if it didn’t have all of the problems that most normal movies probably have. I left the theater with a headache from laughing so hard and not being able to breathe at times. I’d say that’s a good movie.

[Rating:4/5]

Last night instead of going out to enjoy my Friday night, I stayed at home to “veg” out in front of the TV. An old movie caught my eye that I remember watching as a kid and started thinking about great soccer moments in the movies. I love soccer, but being an American, it is rare a true, good soccer movie is made. Usually we only get flicks that push soccer even further back in the American eye. If it isn’t part of the American big three (football [NFL], baseball, or basketball), it will not receive its cinematic justice.

Therefore, I have decided to create the five best cinematic displays of soccer that I have seen.

5. Any part with Larry’s (The Keeper) visions, The Big Green – Ah yes, the quintessential Disney formula for the mid-90’s:
   

   Misfit kids + A Sport + 1 Known Actor (Steve Guttenberg) + Humor = Release This Movie

   The Big Green may not have been as good as Mighty Ducks, but I loved the scenes where Larry was imagining the other teams attacking him as their mascots, most notably the Knights. It just goes to show you what magic goggles can do when worn properly on the soccer field. Maybe the goat was a bit much though.

4. Allies vs. Nazis, Victory – This movie could have been great. Mix great athletes with a good actor, Michael Caine, and you could possibly have a great soccer film. What’s that you say? To help it get exposure in the states you need to beef it up by adding Sylvester Stallone? Are you kidding me? Victory is great, but Stallone just kills it. It’s either his constant jabs against the game or his non-believable role as the team’s goalie. Otherwise, this movie is great. I mean, where else are you going to get Pele overcoming an injury to help his team out? Or classic 70s/80s soccer moments? Why Stallone? Why?
3. Team Shaolin vs. Team Evil, Shaolin Soccer – Mix cool fighting techniques with soccer and, of course, I’m sold. The basic plot is that five monks come together to relieve the great feeling Shaolin brought to them and maybe even have a great soccer match at the same time. Each character’s special Shaolin technique somehow magically matches to a great soccer skill. The graphics are pretty cool too.
2. Dirty Yellows vs. True Blues, Bedknobs and Broomsticks – Sure it may be a musical with that guy from Herbie and Marry Poppins (David Tomlinson) as well as the Murder She Wrote Lady (Angela Lansbury), but the soccer scene is great. Early mixture of live action and cartoon is just funny when the human has to be the ref with no control. Animals playing soccer offers the great lines:
   

   Charlie: That’s a foul referee.
   Carrie: They’re animals, Charlie.
   Charlie: That may be, but it’s no excuse for dirty football.

   The match also has probably two of the best keepers/goalies you will see in a film featuring soccer.
   

1. Cons vs. Guards, Mean Machine – I know what you are already thinking. This is just a rip off of The Longest Yard. Well, when the original Longest Yard with Burt Reynolds was released in the UK, it was given the name Mean Machine instead. I’m thankful someone took the time to provide soccer/movie fans with a good movie by modifying the original concept. Mean Machine follows the same formular as The Longest Yard:
   

   Pro Player – Everything Thanks to Broken Laws + Humor + Ability to Redeem Himself = Great Soccer Movie

   Vinnie Jones works well in his role as a drunken pro who threw everything away and now finds himself in prison. The game…..errr…..match has everything: Great Commentators, a Keeper/Goalie going on walkabouts, skills, violence, and a great team concept.
   

kAlarm to me is the app I was searching for months to find when I was using Windows. I always wanted an “alarm clock” application that could launch my windows media player. However, when I did search, I only found applications that didn’t truly work or required money I was not willing to spend. kAlarm does everything I want and maybe some more that I don’t even know about.

kAlarm can be found as part of the kdepim package, which will provide your KDE environment with many other mini applications design around personal information management (PIM). Since I use Thunderbird, most of the other PIM applications are not for me, but kAlarm is it hook, line and sinker. kAlarm is super easy to setup and repeat just like a normal alarm. It can be set to launch a note, script, file, command, or even email. I did write a simple Amarok script to launch my favorite “alarm clock” playlist, but now I just have it run the amarok command to begin playing. Either way works the same. I’ll probably try to write a new Amarok script to increase the volume as it plays over a period of time. This way I can keep the music soft when I fall asleep and increase the volume as the alarm clock goes off.

I did accidentally remove this application for a week or more and waking up in the morning was just not the same and not as easy to do.

Roughly 5 days and 23 hours until the NFL season begins. Ok, it may not truly begin but the preseason games do for the Atlanta Falcons. This weekend, the Falcons spent time in scrimmages that were open to the public in hopes of reaching more fans and giving us all a taste of what is to come in the coming season. I attended the Allstate All-Access Roam The Dome event on Saturday where I took pictures and notes on what this year’s team is doing.

First off, let me say that the Dome looked amazing. I can now easily tell what team plays in this venue and what team will be playing their in December for a conference championship. The outside looked great and the inside change of seats was even better. It almost made me begin looking to the season even more.

As for the scrimmage, the team was divided into two teams: white and red. The 1st team defense was on the red team as well as the 1st team offense. Here are a few points of interest I gathered from the day.

• The name of the day seemed to be D.J. Shockley. Sure I might be a little biased, but he seemed to be cool and calm out on the field and easily moved the ball down the field against the 1st team defense. Out of all the QB’s, D.J. shined the best and truly made it seem like there could be a real fight between the QBs before the season begins. All of Shockley’s throws were on target and the incomplete throws were more an issue with the WRs not pulling in an easy to moderate catch more than a throwing issue.
• As for the other QB’s, no one really shined. Matt Ryan’s first pass of the day was a horrible low thrown ball that was easily tipped at the line of scrimmage. He also threw an INT when his team was inside the 20 that was returned to the 5 by Blue Adams. It looked at times that Ryan was focusing on Roddy White too much instead of looking at the entire field. He could have been looking to relieve the magic of the night before where White and Ryan connected on a 65 yard TD pass.
• The running backs looked great. The tandem of Norwood and Turner will be great. I really like the idea of two “starter” backs since you can use one to wear down a defense and then turn up the energy again in the second half with your second back. It worked well two years ago when Norwood was picking up between 6 to 8 yards a carry because of the tired second half defenses he was facing thanks to Dunn’s help. Jason Snelling looked good as well and a few good “power” runs (even though that’s difficult in a two hand touch scrimmage). For those also wondering, Thomas Brown did not look that great. I’m not sure if it was the plays he was given to show his skills but he was probably the least effective out of all the RBs. I’m hoping he is looked at more for his return abilities since the team seems to be looking for Adam Jennings on offense instead of returns.
• With the return of Grady Jackson, the Falcons are switching to a 3-4 defense instead of their previous 4-3 (4 defensive linemen and 3 linebackers). However, I don’t see this defense being run on every play because Grady doesn’t have the stamina to work every play and I’m not sure if the other DTs are big enough to fill the hole that Grady fills. It did look nice to see that LBing core….
• Linebackers. It seems that the once UGA notable Tony Taylor could have a chance at starting linebacker this season. He was on the 1st team defense and was playing MLB with Keith Brooking and Michael Boley playing on the opposite sides. John Abraham was the other defensive lineman who was dropping back to play LB when the 3-4 was run.
• The race to fill the D. Hall spot looks to be a good one. Both Blue Adams and Brent Grimes looked decent in the scrimmage but we will have plenty of time to see their capabilities during the preseason games. I cannot offer my thoughts on Chevis Jackson’s scrimmage play because I did not see him (forgot to look). I’d like to see Grimes become great because he is coming from a Division II school just like his current mentor, Secondary coach and Hall of Famer Emmitt Thomas.
• Before scrimmage started, the defense was announced and stepped out of the tunnel individually. Each player performed a “dance” that was quite entertaining. One player (I forgot which), even gave the crowd a taste of the “Dirty Bird” again. Brent Grimes was the only player with no dance. His name was called and he played it straight and ran straight to the rest of his teammates. I will say that I don’t think I’d like to see Keith Brooking dance ever again unless it is due to a game winning INT returned for a TD.

Overall, I don’t think we, the Falcons, are as bad as everyone expects us to be, but I don’t think we should look for anything other than trying to compete in our own division. Let’s build the team for the year and look to the future for further improvement.  I’d say the first goal would be to get past the stigma of the Falcons not being able to produce back to back winning seasons.