Me in a winery. Dan-ge-rous.
It's not red, dammit! It's international orange. Get with the program.
You're mine, bitches.
Hmmm, wait a minute, I've heard of that island!Monday, November 16, 2009
Images of San Fran
Me in a winery. Dan-ge-rous. It's not red, dammit! It's international orange. Get with the program. You're mine, bitches. Hmmm, wait a minute, I've heard of that island!
Monday, October 12, 2009
Friday, September 11, 2009
West Wing, S1, E18: 6 Meetings before Lunch
Seems I missed this episode...funny.
It’s Toby’s day of jubilee – Mendoza is going to be elected today by at least 51 per cent of the Senate – but Toby won’t let anyone celebrate until the 51st vote is cast. Obviously in the last few episodes, Toby and Josh have been working on the confirmation process but we haven’t seen much of it.
But Mallory is going to disturb Sam’s day of Jubilee, she’s upset about a position paper that he has written about school vouchers and she commands his morning to talk about it, Sam is hapless and goes along with it even though it was a paper that was arguing the opposite of what he actually thinks. Mallory (played by Allison Smith) eats her words.
CJ has a great moment in this episode, as she lip synchs “the Jackal” for her colleagues. Allison Janney, as usual, is just great. She spends most of the episode trying to keep a story smothered about a supposed drug dealer that was arrested at a party that Zoey Bartlett was at (she left before he was arrested apparently).
Josh spends most of the episode talking to a black civil rights leader he wants to appoint to a higher office about financial reparations for slavery. It’s a good discourse and well worth listening to.
Mandy makes a pretty lame appearance here. We know she’s not in the next season and I guess that Sorkin was just trying to find something for her to do – I’m sure she was under contract and so might as well be used. She’s concerned about getting the National Zoo a new panda bear after the last one died. Boring!
It’s Toby’s day of jubilee – Mendoza is going to be elected today by at least 51 per cent of the Senate – but Toby won’t let anyone celebrate until the 51st vote is cast. Obviously in the last few episodes, Toby and Josh have been working on the confirmation process but we haven’t seen much of it.
But Mallory is going to disturb Sam’s day of Jubilee, she’s upset about a position paper that he has written about school vouchers and she commands his morning to talk about it, Sam is hapless and goes along with it even though it was a paper that was arguing the opposite of what he actually thinks. Mallory (played by Allison Smith) eats her words.
CJ has a great moment in this episode, as she lip synchs “the Jackal” for her colleagues. Allison Janney, as usual, is just great. She spends most of the episode trying to keep a story smothered about a supposed drug dealer that was arrested at a party that Zoey Bartlett was at (she left before he was arrested apparently).
Josh spends most of the episode talking to a black civil rights leader he wants to appoint to a higher office about financial reparations for slavery. It’s a good discourse and well worth listening to.
Mandy makes a pretty lame appearance here. We know she’s not in the next season and I guess that Sorkin was just trying to find something for her to do – I’m sure she was under contract and so might as well be used. She’s concerned about getting the National Zoo a new panda bear after the last one died. Boring!
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Here is one of the reasons why I found, and still continue to find, India an extremely frustrating country. This article just made me mad. Most of the malnourised people in India are women and children, especially female children. If there is food, it almost always goes to the men and boys first because of the cultural bias towards men. Therefore, the Indian government is punishing the most marginalized people in their society with this policy and decision.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/indias-poor-suffer-in-official-food-fight/article1263143/
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
WW, S1, E20: Mandatory Minimums
The administration starts their carpet bombing with the President sneaking in a comment in one of his speeches about the fact that against all tradition, he will nominate whoever he wishes to the FEC instead of taking recommendations from the political party hacks. All hell breaks loose with the press. The fury of the RNC is going to be unleashed and the senior staff are all for it. Bring it on.
We meet Andy here for the first time, Toby’s ex-wife who is a congresswoman. She’s smart, sexy, savvy and it’s obvious that Toby and her still have something going on.
But Danny’s in the doghouse himself for writing about Mandy’s memo. CJ is giving him the cold shoulder and then they have a big blowout in her office. It’s ugly. Mandy is still on the outs as well.
In their new invigorated spirit, the President is holding a series of brainstorming in his office to decide what to do next. They talk new drug laws and mandatory minimums surrounding drug arrests. And Leo threatens 7 hill staffers that if their reps don’t support him, their own demons with drugs will be put to air.
To do some polling they are bringing in Joey Lucas from California. Josh puts on a nice suit on for her. It turns out she is not sleeping with that creep guy she was before hand, which makes Josh happy.
Everyone is revved up to the max and ready to play ball…what will be the next step?
We meet Andy here for the first time, Toby’s ex-wife who is a congresswoman. She’s smart, sexy, savvy and it’s obvious that Toby and her still have something going on.
But Danny’s in the doghouse himself for writing about Mandy’s memo. CJ is giving him the cold shoulder and then they have a big blowout in her office. It’s ugly. Mandy is still on the outs as well.
In their new invigorated spirit, the President is holding a series of brainstorming in his office to decide what to do next. They talk new drug laws and mandatory minimums surrounding drug arrests. And Leo threatens 7 hill staffers that if their reps don’t support him, their own demons with drugs will be put to air.
To do some polling they are bringing in Joey Lucas from California. Josh puts on a nice suit on for her. It turns out she is not sleeping with that creep guy she was before hand, which makes Josh happy.
Everyone is revved up to the max and ready to play ball…what will be the next step?
WW, S1, E 19: Let Bartlet be Bartlet
The President is apparently not getting enough ruffage in his diet according to Mrs. Landingham. He’s in a pissy mood as he is about to start an address to the United Organization of Trout Fishermen. Really.
The administration is in neutral. They are getting nowhere in so many areas of their agenda….and they all know it. To make matters worse, a memo has surfaced written by Mandi when she was working for the opposition. It systematically goes through the weaknesses of the administration and tears apart the senior staff. Mandy is in the doghouse. And Danny has the memo and he’s going to publish it.
To make matters worse, Toby and Sam are sitting down with some armed services staff about the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy they have inherited. Everyone knows that the policy is going nowhere. That’s the way it is in this administration.
The wheels are just spinning. Something has to change. The senior staff are chomping at the bit to actually DO something.
The President and Leo have it out in the oval office. Leo thinks the President drives him to the center, and plays it safe, looking towards a second term. Leo is the hall monitor. Something has to change.
In the end they decide to let Bartlet be Bartlet. The senior staff serves at the pleasure of the president. The staff are off the leash.
The administration is in neutral. They are getting nowhere in so many areas of their agenda….and they all know it. To make matters worse, a memo has surfaced written by Mandi when she was working for the opposition. It systematically goes through the weaknesses of the administration and tears apart the senior staff. Mandy is in the doghouse. And Danny has the memo and he’s going to publish it.
To make matters worse, Toby and Sam are sitting down with some armed services staff about the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy they have inherited. Everyone knows that the policy is going nowhere. That’s the way it is in this administration.
The wheels are just spinning. Something has to change. The senior staff are chomping at the bit to actually DO something.
The President and Leo have it out in the oval office. Leo thinks the President drives him to the center, and plays it safe, looking towards a second term. Leo is the hall monitor. Something has to change.
In the end they decide to let Bartlet be Bartlet. The senior staff serves at the pleasure of the president. The staff are off the leash.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
West Wing, S1, E18: 6 Meetings before Lunch
It’s Toby’s day of jubilee – Mendoza is going to be elected today by at least 51 per cent of the Senate – but Toby won’t let anyone celebrate until the 51st vote is cast. Obviously in the last few episodes, Toby and Josh have been working on the confirmation process but we haven’t seen much of it.
But Mallory is going to disturb Sam’s day of Jubilee, she’s upset about a position paper that he has written about school vouchers and she commands his morning to talk about it, Sam is hapless and goes along with it even though it was a paper that was arguing the opposite of what he actually thinks. Mallory (played by Allison Smith) eats her words.
CJ has a great moment in this episode, as she lip synchs “the Jackal” for her colleagues. Allison Janney, as usual, is just great. She spends most of the episode trying to keep a story smothered about a supposed drug dealer that was arrested at a party that Zoey Bartlett was at (she left before he was arrested apparently).
Much of today’s episode is used to frame a discussion Josh has throughout the hour with a black civil rights leader. The young lawyer that Josh wants to appoint to a higher office believes that the US owes financial reparations for descendants of American slaves. It’s a good discourse and well worth listening to, and as it’s been broken up throughout the whole hour, the minutiae is not too much to take in.
Mandy makes a pretty lame appearance here. We know she’s not in the next season and I guess that Sorkin was just trying to find something for her to do – I’m sure she was under contract and so might as well be used. She’s concerned about getting the National Zoo a new panda bear after the last one died. Boring!
But Mallory is going to disturb Sam’s day of Jubilee, she’s upset about a position paper that he has written about school vouchers and she commands his morning to talk about it, Sam is hapless and goes along with it even though it was a paper that was arguing the opposite of what he actually thinks. Mallory (played by Allison Smith) eats her words.
CJ has a great moment in this episode, as she lip synchs “the Jackal” for her colleagues. Allison Janney, as usual, is just great. She spends most of the episode trying to keep a story smothered about a supposed drug dealer that was arrested at a party that Zoey Bartlett was at (she left before he was arrested apparently).
Much of today’s episode is used to frame a discussion Josh has throughout the hour with a black civil rights leader. The young lawyer that Josh wants to appoint to a higher office believes that the US owes financial reparations for descendants of American slaves. It’s a good discourse and well worth listening to, and as it’s been broken up throughout the whole hour, the minutiae is not too much to take in.
Mandy makes a pretty lame appearance here. We know she’s not in the next season and I guess that Sorkin was just trying to find something for her to do – I’m sure she was under contract and so might as well be used. She’s concerned about getting the National Zoo a new panda bear after the last one died. Boring!
West Wing, S1, E17: The White House Pro-Am
The First Lady is back, and all the tension is between her staff and the President’s senior staff. Are they trying to handle the First Lady? No one handles Abigail Bartlett.
The chair of the Federal Reserve kicks the bucket and a story is leaked out that the First Lady favours one candidate in particular (her ex-boyfriend, no less). The senior staff is pissed – they wanted to control the news cycle. The President wants a day to sort stuff out.
In the meantime Josh and Toby have to court some congress votes for a trade bill that they already have won by 15 seats – but they have to go through the motions. There’s some wonderful writing here, and acting between Richard Schiff and Bradley Whitford. But while Sam is in the gym, he is told by a congresswoman that she is attaching an amendment to the bill, stalling it. In the end, Toby has to bring out his game face and suck up to the senators.
The President finally sits down with Zoey to tell her about the death threats against her. She won’t be able to go to a club opening with Charlie – white supremacists are out for them and the club just doesn’t give the right protection. Charlie gets his back up about it – but a quick talk with Danny convinces him that his job is to make Zoey happy at the moment. Being the first daughter cannot be a cake walk.
Abigail also saves the day by getting the congresswoman to stop her amendment. The episode ends with a rocking, socking dust up between the President and Mrs. Bartlett, right in the Oval office. Abigail and stand up to herself, yes she can!
The chair of the Federal Reserve kicks the bucket and a story is leaked out that the First Lady favours one candidate in particular (her ex-boyfriend, no less). The senior staff is pissed – they wanted to control the news cycle. The President wants a day to sort stuff out.
In the meantime Josh and Toby have to court some congress votes for a trade bill that they already have won by 15 seats – but they have to go through the motions. There’s some wonderful writing here, and acting between Richard Schiff and Bradley Whitford. But while Sam is in the gym, he is told by a congresswoman that she is attaching an amendment to the bill, stalling it. In the end, Toby has to bring out his game face and suck up to the senators.
The President finally sits down with Zoey to tell her about the death threats against her. She won’t be able to go to a club opening with Charlie – white supremacists are out for them and the club just doesn’t give the right protection. Charlie gets his back up about it – but a quick talk with Danny convinces him that his job is to make Zoey happy at the moment. Being the first daughter cannot be a cake walk.
Abigail also saves the day by getting the congresswoman to stop her amendment. The episode ends with a rocking, socking dust up between the President and Mrs. Bartlett, right in the Oval office. Abigail and stand up to herself, yes she can!
West Wing, S1, E16: 20 hours in LA
The President is taking Air Force One out for a spin – the crew is going out to LA for 20 hours to swing through some meetings, townhalls and to do a fundraiser at a Hollywood bigwig’s house. The bigwig is pissed that the government isn’t doing enough for gay rights, and threatens to cancel the $50,000 per couple fundraiser. He dresses down Josh.
On the way, the President meets agent Gina, who will be responsible for Zoey’s security detail. She’s played by Jorja Fox, who went on to be on CSI for years. She’s a good actress and her story ark goes for quite a few episodes.
The main part of this episode is that the team is down to a 50/50 split on an ethanol tax which is suppose to be going through the house. The team tries to break the deadlock in their favour, but they are having trouble doing it. It may have to come down to the Vice President breaking the tie, meaning he would have to go back on several years of his own policy decisions.
After sitting through some mind-numbing meetings about the subject, the president asks if there’s an epidemic of flag-burning throughout the country.
There’s cameos here of David Hasselhoff, Jay Leno, Veronica Webb. Josh, Sam and CJ are approached by movie hacks trying to recruit movie developers. Marlee Matlin is also back here, Josh obviously has a thing for her character Joey Lucas..and she dazzles the senior staff with her interpretation of the latest polling numbers. Obviously Joey Lucas has a future with the President’s people. But maybe not for Josh – he goes to say goodbye to her in her hotel room and finds her just coming out of bed with a cretin. He’s crestfallen.
In the end, the bill doesn’t pass, because the President won’t put the VP in the position to go against his morals. But it means more battles in the future.
On the way, the President meets agent Gina, who will be responsible for Zoey’s security detail. She’s played by Jorja Fox, who went on to be on CSI for years. She’s a good actress and her story ark goes for quite a few episodes.
The main part of this episode is that the team is down to a 50/50 split on an ethanol tax which is suppose to be going through the house. The team tries to break the deadlock in their favour, but they are having trouble doing it. It may have to come down to the Vice President breaking the tie, meaning he would have to go back on several years of his own policy decisions.
After sitting through some mind-numbing meetings about the subject, the president asks if there’s an epidemic of flag-burning throughout the country.
There’s cameos here of David Hasselhoff, Jay Leno, Veronica Webb. Josh, Sam and CJ are approached by movie hacks trying to recruit movie developers. Marlee Matlin is also back here, Josh obviously has a thing for her character Joey Lucas..and she dazzles the senior staff with her interpretation of the latest polling numbers. Obviously Joey Lucas has a future with the President’s people. But maybe not for Josh – he goes to say goodbye to her in her hotel room and finds her just coming out of bed with a cretin. He’s crestfallen.
In the end, the bill doesn’t pass, because the President won’t put the VP in the position to go against his morals. But it means more battles in the future.
Monday, July 06, 2009
WW, S1, E15: Celestial Navigation
Mendoza has been pulled over in Connecticut for drunk driving when he’s on an antiquing holiday. Funny thing is, he doesn’t drink. He was actually pulled over because he was Hispanic and in Connecticut.
I like this episode because it takes us outside of the normal stalking grounds of the senior staffers. Josh is at a university speaking engagement where he’s telling the audience about the last 24 hours in the White House through flashbacks. Toby and Sam are sent out to Connecticut to pick up Mendoza. We get to se the actors outside of their comfort zones, mixes things up a bit, and we get to see Sam and Toby bicker about the directions to the Connecticut courthouse.
Allison Janney has some lovely comic moments in this episode, after CJ has an emergency root canal. She can’t do an important briefing about a new education bill, so Josh decides to do it. Some of this is quite slapstick. Josh is an unmitigated disaster as the Press Secretary. By the end of it he has told the press that the President has a secret plan to fight inflation, and called one member of the Press stupid for asking if the President still smoked. He gets a serious but amusing dressing down from the President.
“CJ, if blood is gushing from the head wound you just received from a stampeding herd of bison, you do the press briefing.”
Great, great lighting in this episode, especially in the jail cell.
WW, S1, E14: Take this Sabbath Day
A man’s death sentence has been upheld by the Supreme Court, and it’s up to the President to decide whether or not to commute the sentence. This puts the staffers in a hard situation, and to boot it really ruins their weekend plans. Sam is suppose to go sailing, Josh has a bachelor party, but Sam convinces Josh to come in on a Saturday to take a meeting with someone named Joey who is trying to get a congressman elected.
There are some wonderful comic scenes here between Josh and Donna. Josh spends the night on the floor of his office after a very large night out, and Donna ends up putting him in Sam’s sailing gear, rubber boots and all when Joey Lucas shows up. Joey ends up being a she – played by a wonderful Marlee Matlin.
We also get to know a bit more personal information about Toby in this episode. We see him at temple and trying his best to reconcile his Jewish beliefs with his governmental duties and the restraints of his position.
This episode also gives us a look into the spiritual side of the President. He calls on his priest to help him deal with the emotional consequences of the decision he will have to make. He wrestles with the decision he has to make, whether or not to commute the sentence. Sadly, Karl Malden, an Academy Award winning actor who has died recently, has a nice role here as the President’s priest.
There are some wonderful comic scenes here between Josh and Donna. Josh spends the night on the floor of his office after a very large night out, and Donna ends up putting him in Sam’s sailing gear, rubber boots and all when Joey Lucas shows up. Joey ends up being a she – played by a wonderful Marlee Matlin.
We also get to know a bit more personal information about Toby in this episode. We see him at temple and trying his best to reconcile his Jewish beliefs with his governmental duties and the restraints of his position.
This episode also gives us a look into the spiritual side of the President. He calls on his priest to help him deal with the emotional consequences of the decision he will have to make. He wrestles with the decision he has to make, whether or not to commute the sentence. Sadly, Karl Malden, an Academy Award winning actor who has died recently, has a nice role here as the President’s priest.
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