Uncle Burger Revealed

So, this Monday was the day that A&W would be unveiling this "long lost Uncle" of the Burger Family. Needless to say, because of my love and obsession with fast food, I had lunch date at the dub.

I charged on up to the A&W here in Athabasca and was instantly underwhelmed by what greeted me.



They don't even have their special Uncle Burger foil bags ready yet.

But anyway, remember that Sirloin Burger they had a few months ago? Well, apparently, it was so popular that they decided to add it to the A&W menu full time, and they re-christened it the "Sirloin Uncle Burger."



Not a big fan of the Sirloin Uncle Burger. It's so ridiculously thick that it falls apart as soon as you take a bite, with all kinds of ingredients going squirting out the back. And it's rather bland tasting, too.

So, there you go. the long lost uncle is the Sirloin Uncle Burger.

Once again, something has failed to live up to the hype.

Stickers & Apologies

Today, I learned the meaning of disappointment.

Kevin Smith. One of my heroes. His spoken word performance, "An Evening with Kevin Smith," is funny as hell. when I heard he was coming back to Edmonton, I ran out to get tickets. I even booked the day after off from work so I could recover.

I drove right into downtown Edmonton. I found my really nice parking spot in downtown. I went bounding up the stairs to the Winspear Centre and was greeted by a several posters hanging on the front door.

"Kevin Smith: Postponed."

What? I just stood there on the front steps, flabbergasted. He's...not coming? The fine print on the poster said there were problems with his flight. What?

I started pacing around the front steps, unsure of what to do. Another guy walked by and saw my look of confusion. "I guess you didn't get a phone call either, eh?" he said to me. "Nope," I said. Obviously, I wasn't the only one.

Since I still had an hour before the doors were to officially open, I decided to hang out for a bit. For all I knew, this was some vicious hoax, perpetrated by a die-hard fan who wanted to keep the crowd numbers low so only he could ask questions to Kevin Smith. I walked around the block, found a Tim Hortons, had a hot chocolate and a donut, and then headed back to the Winspear.

Sonic 102.9 was the radio station sponsoring the event...they still sent their street team out to hand out stickers and apologies. I told them my tale of how I had to drive two hours and beg for time off work, and they were sympathetic. With 100% confirmation that it was a no go, I decided it was time to go home.

I thought I'd go see a movie so my day wouldn't be a total wash...but there's nothing really playing that I want to see. And I went home.

Never have I felt so angry and sad and disappointed.

Hey look! Kevin Smith has already blogged about this at his official blog.

Latest Targ's Up!

Ah, Sunday morning. Who knows what the new week will bring?

I can tell you with 100% certainty that it'll bring you a new episode of my podcast, U62: The Targ!

This week, I have for you, Episode 2.4: Read Along in your Book. I ramble about the Lone Ranger, Pirates of the Caribbean, and discover some music that I thought was long lost.

So, what are you waiting for? Give it a listen!

I present...the List

I've been spending most of 2008 disposing of my disposable income on finally getting all the DVD boxed sets of Star Trek: The Next Generation. I actually got the seventh and final season back in May, and I've spent a lot of my free time these past few months watching ALL of The Next Generation. I'm about 3/4 of the way through the seventh and final season now, and I'm starting to notice a subtle shift.

When the seventh season of TNG came around, Paramount was already hard at work at developing Voyager. And, halfway through the final season of TNG, the series is getting very...Voyager-ish. The dialogue, the plots, how it's filmed...everything has echos of what will become Voyager. It's a little off-putting, to watch one of the best Star Trek shows slowly morph into one of the weakest.

But I'm straying off topic. Hey! We're having an election in Canada!

A few blog entries ago, I said I'd pass along the complete list of candidates in my riding for Fort McMurray--Athabasca once it was announced. Well, it was announced back on Thursday, so I'd better get off my duff.

It's not too different from the one I ran back on Monday...the only difference is, sadly, those rumors of a Libertarian Party candidate turned out to be just rumors.

So, if you live in Athabasca, Fort McMurray, or any point in between, here's what you have to choose from.

In this corner, the reigning champion, representative of the Conservative Party, in the blue trunks...Brian Jean! I've interviewed Jean a few times in my former job as a reporter, and I can say that Jean is a very good backbencher. He has very few opinions of his own. Whenever I interviewed him, it would quickly turn into him going, "Isn't Stephen Harper wonderful?" Yeah. To quote Shania Twain, that don't impress me much.

Make your own opinion. Here's Brian Jean's Website.

And now, the challengers. In the red trunks, representing the Liberal Party, we have John Webb. Webb is a lawyer from up Fort McMurray way. I don't much about him yet.

But hey! He's got a website where we can learn all about him!

Looking dashing in his orange trunks, we've got Mark Voyageur. I don't much about him yet. I can tell you this...the original NDP candidate for this riding pulled out shortly after the writ was dropped. He was also going for a union boss position at Suncor, and didn't want to be running two election campaigns. So, Mr. Voyageur stepped into the task. All I know about him so far is he's a heavy equipment operator at Suncor.

Here's his page at the NDP website, which isn't quite active yet.

Over here, sporting a green kilt for the Green Party, it's Dylan Richards. Now, I'm a little reluctant to make semi-sarcastic remarks about Dylan like I have with most of the candidates so far, mainly because I know Dylan. I like Dylan. He's one of the few friends I have outside of work in this town, and he's a real cool guy. I've got some stories about him...that I'll tell after the election, because we know all the parties these days are trolling the blogs, looking for skeletons in the closet. Until then, let me just say that he'll make things interesting.

Here's his profile at the Green Party website, or I can just bring you along next time he invites me over to play Rock Band.

Now, we get into our other choices...the so-called "fringe candidates." I've always wanted to run in a riding full of fringe candidates...turns out I should be careful what I wish for.

For the Christian Heritage Party, it's Jacob Stydhorst. Strydhorst...why does that name sound familiar? Oh, that's right! He ran under the CHP banner in my home riding of Yellowhead two federal elections ago! Heck, even in his website, he says he was parachuted into this riding because the people demanded a CHP candidate.

I'm not lying. Check out his profile at the Christian Heritage Party website where he says so himself.

For the First Peoples National Party of Canada, it's John Malcolm. I don't know much about him, or this party, so I'll keep all sarcastic comments to myself.

Here's his candidate's profile.

And, we have the fringiest of the fringe candidates...an independent. Shawn Reimer. An 18 year first year PoliSci student at Keyano College. Wow. Someone has too much money and too much time on his hands.

But he's got a website, where you can read his platform. Man, he wants to get more young people interested in politics. That's what every 18 year old candidate with too much money and too much time says.

And that's it. My fellow Athabascans, be sure to circle October 6 on your calendars. That's when we'll be having an all candidates forum at the Nancy Appleby Theatre. It'll be interesting to see who shows...as my colleague in the newsroom shared with me, both Webb and Voyageur have said they'll probably do most of their campaigning just in Fort McMurray, just because they can't afford to travel. And I'm guessing Reimer will only come if his mom doesn't need the car that night.

And as always, I quote the words the Guardian of the Holy Grail spoke to Indiana Jones: you must choose wisely.

First, the Caribbean. Next, the Old West.

So, the Walt Disney Company had a big gala presentation in Hollywood yesterday where they talked about some of their upcoming live-action films.

The biggest news is that most of the creative talent behind the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy are re-teaming to bring us a brand-new movie version of the classic masked avenger, one comic book hero that I still have a soft spot for, and just an all-round cool guy. Return with us now, to those thrilling days of yesteryear, for a brand new movie version of....

The Lone Ranger!

The Pirates talent that's already on board to bring this to the big screen are:

- Producer Jerry Bruckheimer
- Writers Ted Elliot and Terry Rosio
- And Captian Jack Sparrow himself, Johnny Depp, will be playing Tonto, the Lone Ranger's faithful sidekick.

I think this is going to be very, very cool...unless the bog it down with an overly complicated and unneccessary mythology, like they did with Pirates.

Oh, and speaking of, they also took advantage of the event to announce that, yes, Pirates of the Caribbean 4 is in the works.

You Must Choose Wisely....

Wow! Elections Canada is going to have official lists of all the candidates tomorrow, but really, I'm thrilled. Never have I had so much choice in an election! I blame it on the fact that the top-right corner of my riding contains Fort McMurray...the 5th largest and fastest growing city in Alberta.

Doing an update on candidates I may have missed, Elections Canada is reporting today that we have an independent candidate running by the name of Shawn Reimer.

And, one of the province's most popular political blogs, Daveberta is reporting that we've got a Libertarian Party candidate by the name of Tim Moen.

So, in my riding of Fort McMurray--Athabasca, the election is shaping up like this:

Christian Heritage - Jake Strydhorst
Conservative - Brian Jean
First Peoples National Party - John Malcolm
Green - Dylan Richards
Independent - Shawn Reimer
Liberal - John Webb
Libertarian - Tim Moen
NDP - Mark Voyageur

Wow, I always wanted to vote in a riding full of fringe candidates, and now I've got my chance!

But, as I've been sarcastically saying the past few days, it's just more people who'll try to act surprise when Brian Jean gets reelected. According to stats on the CBC website, this riding has been Tory blue since 1958.

Yeah, I'm certain that this what the Conservatives consider a "safe riding."

But still, like Indiana Jones on the last crusade, I'll do my best to choose wisely. Just because that's how it's been for 50 years, it doesn't necessarily mean it's the best.

Elections Canada will have official lists tomorrow. I'll let you know the official story.

Hey! We're Having an Election!

I got an e-mail over the weekend from a CPAC reporter. This reporter stumbled upon an old blog entry of mine in which I passed along the tale of Rob Anders.

For those who don't remember, Rob Anders created a bit of a stir when he ran for reelection in the 2006 Federal election. When the writ was dropped, he dropped off the face of the Earth. He wasn't door-knocking, he wasn't showing up for candidate's forums. He just...vanished. I used this as an example of the fanatical devotion to the Conservative party here in Alberta, because he even though he was no where to be found in his riding of Calgary West, he was still expected to get reelected in a massive landslide. And he did.

Anyway, this CPAC reporter was e-mailing me to tell me that Rob Anders has once again dropped off the face of the Earth, and could he interview me for a candidate profile for Calgary West? I told him that I wasn't in Calgary West anymore, so thanks, but no thanks.

Of course, you and I both know that I've never set foot in Calgary West.

For those who don't know, today, September 22, is a very important date in the Federal election. This is the day that the nominations close. Starting today, you'll be able to know just exactly who all is running in your riding. Elections Canada is saying that they'll have complete lists on their website by Thursday, but odds are your local media will have the lists tomorrow.

And lucky for you! In the riding of Fort McMurray--Athabasca, I am the local media! This is what we've got:

Representing the Conservative Party, the incumbent, Brian Jean.

Representing the Liberals, John Webb.

You down with NDP? Ya, you know me! Then you'll be marking your X for Mark Voyageur. Hmm.... The NDP don't have a page for him up yet.

If you're feeling all environmentally conscious and feel like going Green, then you've got Dylan Richards on your side.

Representing the First Peoples National Party of Canada, we have John Malcom. He's the only for this party running in Alberta.

And for the Christian Heritage Party, we've got Jake Strydhorst.

That's all we got for now. When Elections Canada unleashes the official list on Thursday, I'll update as needed.

I will admit, this is the one thing I really hate about rep-by-pop. Fort McMurray--Athabasca is the largest riding in Alberta, geographically. Many candidates have already said they probably won't do much campaigning outside of Fort Mac because they can't afford to travel.

We got around three or four weeks people! Let's enjoy the ride.

Latest Targ's Up!

Ah, there's nothing like an autumn Sunday morning. The leaves are turning, there's a brisk chill in the air, and I've got a new episode of my podcast, U62: The Targ, up and available for download!

This week, it's Episode 2.3: Filling Time. I'll let you in on a little secret. It's been known for some time now that I record these after hours at work. Well, as part of new mentality for doing this, I now record these on Friday before I leave work, to free up my weekend a little more.

And you know what? In the past 48 hours, I've already forgotten what this one is about!

So it's going to be as much of a surprise to you as it is to me!

So, let's go have a listen together, shall we?

Feeding the Addiction

Oh no! I was hanging out at West Edmonton Mall today, and I made the shocking discovery that they closed the loonie theatre!

I don't know why I keep calling it the loonie theatre...they haven't charged $1 to get in in at least 10 years...maybe more. Hell, I even remember when it wasn't the dollar theatre, but a regular theater! I saw many classic films there...Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Back to the Future Part III, Batman Forever, Kill Bill vol. 1, Hulk, Independence Day...so many great films! And it's gone now.

West Edmonton Mall used to boast three movie theatres...now it's down to just one.

When the first one closed down, I often dreamed of turning it into an art house theatre. Would an art house work in a mall? Would the same crowds taking a break from Christmas shopping to catch the latest winter blockbuster also take a chance on the latest foreign films and indie fare? I don't know.

However, the main purpose of today's trip to the city was to get THE GREATEST MOVIE OF THE SUMMER ON DVD: Speed Racer. I cannot rave about this film enough. It's a whole lot of fun and really really...just amazing. Check it out.

That was all I wanted to buy, but then I went by HMV and I couldn't help but go poking around in the discount bins.

There are some DVDs, when you stumble across them, you can't help but pick them up for their obscurity. That happened today when I bought the DVD for Fires of Kuwait. You might remember the tale: at the end of of Operation: Desert Storm, the retreating Iraqis blew up a bunch of Kuwaiti oil wells, leading to a series of massive and devastating oil well fires. This led to a massive multinational effort of firefighters to put out the flames. Fires of Kuwait is an Oscar-nominated IMAX documentary about that multinational effort.

You might be going, "Wha? An IMAX documentary on DVD?" Yup. They released a bunch of them to DVD in the late 90s/early 00s to help get the new DVD format. So, when I saw Fires of Kuwait in the discount bin for $10, I said, "Why not?"

And then, also in the discount bin, for just $6, was The Mask. Still probably my favourite Jim Carrey film. It was just his second film, he was still hungry with something to prove. Plus, there are three magic words in the opening credits: "Introducing Cameron Diaz." Yup, it's officially her first film. As the legend goes, she was a model looking to break into acting, she auditioned for a minor supporting role, but the director was so blown away by her talent he offered her the female lead. But it's a cool movie, and i"ll be watching it real soon.

I'm trying to cut down on my DVD purchasing because I'm still trying to work my way through Star Trek: The Next Generation -- Season 7. That, and, I'm trying to get outside and play more before the snow comes.

And speaking of the snow coming, let me leave you with this frightening scene: Zeller's is already selling Christmas trees.

New DVD Day!

Ah, Tuesday. New DVD day. I'm going to be blowing my paycheque quite a bit over the next few weeks, because this is when the summer blockbusters start hitting DVD. Plus, with the new TV season, and most shows debuting their "x" season, that means a lot of "The complete (x-1) season" are starting to come out, too.

First up, let's not forget that I'm one of the 8 people who thought that Speed Racer was an absolutely brilliant film. Look, all the Wachowski Brothers did was exactly the same thing that Robert Rodreiguiz did: use the latest cutting edge digital technology to create a film that's 100% faithful to its source material. The difference is that Rodreiguiz brought Sin City to the big screen...one of the most critically-acclaimed series of graphic novels over the past 10 years. The Wachowskis, however, gave us a fondly remembered 2-dimensional anime dating from the 1960s.

I love this movie because it is truly a live-action Japanese cartoon. The acting, the editing, the storylines...this is every technique you see in anime applied to a live-action film. And you have to be a specific kind of geek to get it. I'm one of those geeks.

Anyway, because of it's status as a bomb, they went incredibly cheap on bonus features. All you get are two featurettes. But that's not going to stop me from buying it and watching it over and over and over!

---

Also on DVD today is The Love Guru. You know, I've traditionally been a fan of the comedic stylings of Mike Myers, but the overwhelmingly negative reviews for The Love Guru kept me away from theatres. I guess now I can finally give it a chance on DVD. And that's OK, becuase it was on DVD, or rather, it's predecessor VHS, where I first embraced Wayne's World and the first Austin Powers.

For bonus materials, you get the usual assortment of featurettes, deleted scenes and bloopers. You also get a running commentary with with Myers in-character as the Guru Pytka.

---

I'm one of the many people who thought that Pushing Daisies was one of the most brilliant new TV shows of last year. Well, Pushing Daisies: The Complete First Season is out today, for those who may have missed it last year.

If you did miss it, the show is about Ned, a humble piemaker with the power to bring dead things back to life with his touch. There are a few rules to his power: if the dead thing is alive for longer than 60 seconds, then something nearby will die to preserve the balance. If he touches the dead thing a second time, it'll die permanently.

Well, a private investigator, Emmerson Cod, discovers Ned's power, and they use it to make money. Ned resurrects a recently murdered person, Emmerson and Ned ask him how he died, they return him to death, they split the reward money.

And then things get complicated when a murder victim that they resurrect is Ned's childhood sweetheart. He can't bring himself to return her to death, so she stays alive, and they begin a romantic relationship where they can never touch each other.

Trust me, this show is freakin' fantastic. Season 1 was only 9 episodes long because of the writer's strike. For bonus materials, you get a whole bunch of featurettes about the show.

Oh, and season 2 premieres on October 1.

---

And finally, for those who know me, you know that, ever since I got my DVD player, I've been slowly amassing the filmography of Tim Burton. It's been going slowly because I've been waiting for super-mega-ultimate-special editions of his films before buying them. Well, today, I might finally break down and buy Beetlejuice which is out today in a brand-new 20th Anniversary Edition.

Sadly, though, they've gone kind of cheap on bonus features. All you get is a vintage featurette from 1988 and 3 episodes of the Beetlejuice cartoon. But it's got beautifully restored picture and sound.

And that's what I'm buying today!

Uncle Burger? WTF?

You know me, I love my fast food, and I'm sucker for new tastes.

I've often joked about the Mozza Burger should be called to make it into the Burger Family at A&W. The Brother Burger? The Grandma Burger? The Cute-Cousin-You'd-Totally-Hit-On-If-You-Weren't-Related Burger?

As I was up at A&W having lunch today, the whole restaurant was covered with this logo:





What's this? An Uncle Burger? Coming on September 29?

Actually, I want to make an obscene joke about how he's not long lost per se, just finally being released from prison. Yeah, the Burger Family didn't talk about the Uncle Burger much after he knocked over that McDonald's and shot Grimace in the shoulder....

I'll keep you posted.

Targ Ahoy!

Wow, I'm just on a creative roll these past few days. Yesterday, I post my latest movie, and today, I return to my first love, my podcast, U62: The Targ!

This week, I have for you Episode 2.2: So You Think You Can Sing. See, back over the summer, I got a new MP3 player. And I went nuts loading it with celebrities who think they can sing. Some are good...some are not.

Go give it a listen!

I wonder, now, when I'll be returning to my first first love...writing. I described Chaos in Print as a chronicle of my quarter-life crisis...I'll probably start again when that mid-life crisis rolls around. Or, you know, November will be on us soon enough. Maybe I'll finally give that NaNoWriMo a shot.

My New Movie: Community Registration Night

Ah, another Saturday night at home. Most of my Saturday nights are spent popping a classic film in the DVD player and re-living blockbusters of summers past. This particular evening was Terminator 2, still regarded by many film critics as one of the finest action films ever made.

Now, while I may be no James Cameron, I'm still trying my hand at this movie-making thing, and I'm pleased to present my latest opus, Community Registration Night.





If some of the things I say in this movie come true, then I guess I'll have more to do on my Saturday nights than watching old DVDs.

The Zack and Miri Countdown Begins!

Got lots of news today in regards to my hero, Kevin Smith!

First up, his latest movie, Zack and Miri Make a Porno, had it's world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival last week, and reviews so far have been overwhelmingly positive. That's really good to see.

Secondly, the movie posters have been unveiled. There's two movies posters: one for us Canadians, and one for the Americans.

This is the poster the we Canucks are going to see in our local cineplexes:





Now, apparently, that was considered a little too risque for those tender Yankee virtues. So this is the poster that the Americans get:





It's still slated to come out on Halloween, and as I'm working that night, you just know I'm going to see it on November 1.

Next up, my DVD collection is getting a little bit bigger. Kevin Smith's latest concert DVD, Sold Out: A Threevening with Kevin Smith just got the release date of October 21. This spoken word performance was filmed in Kevin Smith's hometown of Red Bank, New Jersey on his 37th birthday. I have his first two, and they are as funny as hell. Watch them if you can!

And, let's not forget, Kevin Smith bring his spoken word show back to Edmonton on September 28! Let me check my wallet to make sure I still have my ticket...yup, I do!

Please Get Peter Cullen and Frank Welker....

Doing some reading up on the upcoming TV season, and it wasn't long until my attention was drawn towards The Simpsons and the latest installment of Treehouse of Horror, aka "The Simpsons Halloween Special." I don't know...the past few Halloween episodes have been rather lame affairs. They've got this whole "we're doing it because we have to" feel to them, and now that they do at least 2 or 3 of these "alternate reality" episodes per season, they've lost their uniqueness.

Although, I did grin from ear-to-ear when I read that this would be a segment in this year's Treehouse of Horror:

"Transformers parody: Bart buys a Christmas present from a 99 cent store, which turns out to be a Transformer. When the Autobots and Decepticons bring their conflict to Springfield, Marge asks why the robots war with one another, inspiring them to team up and conquer the human race."

My God, I hope that's good. Apparently, the Simpsons' writers have already gone on record as saying it's a spoof of the live-action film, and not the franchise as a whole.

And, just like everything Transformers-related, here's hoping they get Peter Cullen to voice Optimus Prime, and Frank Welker to voice Megatron. They could probably get Frank Welker...Welker's got Simpsons cred, having done the voice of Santa's Little Helper in the early season, and the voice of Nibbler in their sister franchise, Futurama.

In case you're curious, the other segments in Treehouse of Horror XIX are:

It's the Grand Pumpkin, Milhouse - A spoof of It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown, in which Milhouse holds out faith that the Grand Pumpkin will appear on Halloween. Of course, the Grand Pumpkin does appear, it turns out to be a demon, and goes on a murderous rampage...a spoof alread done on Robot Chicken.

Untitled Political Spoof - Homer wants to vote for Barack Obama, but accidentally votes for John McCain.

Wow, they relly aren't even trying any more, are they?

The Dark Knight Returns...to Theatres!

Well, Warner Brothers just announced today that they're going to be re-releasing The Dark Knight to theatres in January!

The reason? January is when Oscar ballots get sent out, and they're hoping to get The Dark Knight a few Oscar nominations.

No word yet on when The Dark Knight will be hitting DVD, but early estimates say December.

The Targ Returns!

Ladies and gentlemen, your long, cold summer is over!

My little old podcast, U62: The Targ is now back with new episodes! I start things off with the appropriately titled Episode 2.1: How I Spent My Summer Vacation. I tell you the true reasons for my hiatus, talk about the movies of the summers, and explain why everything's the same.

Yeah, you might remember that back when I went on hiatus, I revealed that I was going to take some time to reflect and maybe even re-title the whole thing and re-launch it as something new. I decided not to, and you'll hear why in Episode 2.1: How I Spent My Summer Vacation.

So go give it a listen!

Mark Cappis: That Crafty Geek

Just finished watching The Nightmare Before Christmas with the brand-new running commentary with Tim Burton, Danny Elfman, and director Henry Selick. I learned something about the film that I never knew before!

Tim Burton had originally wanted his idol and friend Vincent Price to do the voice of Santa Claus! Director Selick explains why they ultimately didn't use Price. He was getting on in years, and his wife had recently passed away, and it hit him hard. Says Selick, his voice was frail and full of sadness.

Anyway, let's switch gears and talk about another of my heroes..."Weird Al" Yankovic! Weird Al just announced on his blog that his Straight Outta Lynwood tour is officially done. I'm really glad I finally caved and went to see him in Edmonton...who knows how longs its going to be now before he returns?

Check this out! Because I was close enough to the stage to catch the various items that were thrown into the audience, here's the little memento I made from the concert!



So, that phony $100 in the centre is what he sprays on the audience when he sings I'll Sue Ya, the red border is actually one of the red streamers that gets fired out into the audience when he sings Canadian Idiot.

Now, I just need a spot in my tiny, tiny rented basement to hang it.

Darn it! I need a house!

Zack and Miri and Disney

Ya know, one of my favourite things that I loved about watching the Disney TV show when I was a kid was when they'd do episodes about Disneyland...you know, have a whole show dedicated to one ride and they'd show you how it works and all that. Yeah...I miss those. The last one I remember was on in 1998 or so when Disney's Animal Kingdom first opened, and Disney had a big TV special where Drew Carey took us on a tour of the Animal Kingdom.

So, one of my favourite bonus features on the brand-new, 2-disc super-special edition of The Nightmare Before Christmas has to do with The Haunted Mansion. For those who don't care, every year at Disneyland, starting at around mid-October and going to the start of January, Disney completely redoes the Haunted Mansion in a Nightmare Before Christmas-theme, and they call the end result Haunted Mansion Holidays. They started doing it in 2001, and it's become one of Disneyland's most popular seasonal attractions.

So, the new Nightmare Before Christmas DVD has an extensive featurette all about Haunted Mansion Holidays, it's genesis, how they do the makeover, and stuff like that. It's really cool, and I wish Disney still did documentaries like it.

---

And now, we move onto my hero, Kevin Smith! His next movie, Zack and Miri Make a Porno, is less than 2 months away, and today, we finally get our first trailer!

Please, enjoy, the Zack and Miri trailer!

I'll warn you now, it's full of naughty language and NSFW.

My New Movie: the Harvest Gold Fiddlers Weekend

I often wonder if I should be more...socially responsible in my online endeavours. My second best friend maintains a blog, and her focus is kept tightly on feminism, homosexual rights, and various other "stuff that matters." My best friend remarked to me once that "blogs are for people with little to say and even less to do," and that he only adds entries to his blog when he has "something worth saying." As such, his blog has remained silent for well over a year.

And then there's me, who just made a video about Athabasca's annual fiddle contest. All remarks about me fiddling while Rome burns seem very appropriate.

But I'm actually quite proud of this video, about The Harvest Gold Fiddlers Weekend. I've got my best attempt so far at a musical montage, an end credit sequence that always makes me smile, and lots and lots of great, great music!

So please, have a look at The Harvest Gold Fiddler's Weekend.