Inspiring Words For Kids to Live By on Take Your Kids to Work Day
My colleague [redacted] at [redacted] had these inspiring words of wisdom for all those kids who showed up for Take Your Kid to Work Day at [redacted]:
Kids…this is the best time of your life. Enjoy it while you can. As you get older all your dreams of being “something” will be shattered by reality. Bills. Mortgages. Kids’ Tuition. Insurance. These things will suck your life dry of any dreams of becoming “something.”
When I was a kid I wanted to be Physicist just like my hero MacGyver (coolest dude in the world). Get the ladies and be able to diffuse a bomb with her lipstick (just pure awesomeness). But when I realized that it will cost me over $100K to go to go to a good school and that chicks don't dig Physicists and being stuck in an elevator with just a wheelchair and janitor cart was not realistic…we'll, lets just say that Hard Alcohol then becomes your only friend.
It’s a tough road ahead. Enjoy [redacted] today while you are here. Because based on resume acceptance rate, it’s harder to get in here then it is to get into Harvard. So this may be your last time. Some of your parents are just lucky that we acquired their old company, because honestly, I really don't think they had what it takes to be here. With the economy the way it is, your daddy or mommy will probably be the first people we lay off. Where does that leave you? I would assume Foster Care.
Anyhoo…Have a good day and grab some of those free snacks on your way out.
Cheers!
The basu! Guide to the Movies
(The Here-Comes-Summer Edition)
07 May 2010
The b! List
Ten things that are the best, ever (currently)!
1. “Take Over the World” by The Courteeners. This is the greatest song, ever! Seriously. Also, Morrissey loves them, which means The Courteeners are the best band, ever! Seriously.
http://bit.ly/cOCERZ
2. Noomi Rapace in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. The whole time I was reading the book (which thankfully I managed to finish a few minutes before we saw the film, boy TBH would have been mad if the film had left theatres before I finished) I was convinced that there was no actress in the world who could portray Lisbeth Salander. Boy was I wrong! Rapace is amazing! K-Stew (or Carey Mulligan…God say that ain’t so!) you now have some rather large shoes to fill (figuratively, technically Salander is a smaller girl). Amazing!
http://bit.ly/5lMtf0
3. Sons of Tucson (FOX, Sundays, 9:30/8:30c). A show so funny that it’s already cancelled. Sigh…
http://bit.ly/bfP3Mb
4. How to Train Your Dragon. The closest that DreamWorks Animation has come to making a PIXAR film. And yes, it’s better than Kung Fu Panda. You have to see it in IMAX though, they brought in the great Roger Deakins and the movie looks stunning.
http://bit.ly/2gKnxV
5. Top Chef Masters (Bravo, Wednesdays, 10/9c). Mostly because we ran into Susan Feniger in person and she is the absolute opposite of the arrogant-chef stereotype.
http://bit.ly/rJpii
6. Haunts of a Dirty Old Man: Charles Bukowski’s Los Angeles. The only way to experience the strange wonder that is Los Angeles is to take this Esotouric Bus Tour (one of many great tours).
http://bit.ly/aYjWgs
7. Kieron Pollard. So what if the Mumbai Indians fell short in the IPL Finals (good ol’ Sachin Tendulkar, giving away his wicket under pressure, again, and topping it off with some curious captaincy, again under pressure)? Pollard provided some of the most fun over the last couple of weeks. Enjoy it while you can, with all that’s been going on this may be the last IPL we see for a while.
http://bit.ly/c8EpJc
8. Fred Willard on Modern Family (ABC, Wednesdays, 9/8c). Oh…my…God, talk about absolutely perfect casting; he plays Phil Dunphy’s (played by the great Ty Burrell) dad. And you thought the show couldn’t get any better…
http://bit.ly/cflLb2
9. Andy Roddick. Not that anyone has noticed, but Roddick is playing some of the best Tennis of his career, and for a while there he was definitely the best Hard Court player in the world.
http://bit.ly/cIWytu
10. Ivan Ljubicic. Maybe it’s because we saw him take out the insufferable Rafael Nadal in person, but whatever the reason, that sparkling Indian Wells win was a nice little cherry on the top of a great little career for our man Ivo. Couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy!
http://bit.ly/9JLfeb
Special Mention 1: Ma. For putting up with being a golfing widow for all those years so Baba could finally get a hole-in-one in real competition (and shooting a 78). 78?! C’mon, really, at his age?! A 78?! Ridiculous!
Special Mention 2: Andy Colville. For winning a WGA Award for Mad Men. Very, very cool!
Special Mention 3: Shiv Singh. For writing a book at his young age! And Social Media Marketing For Dummies sold out its first press run. Amazing!
Movies: Truth-is-More-Corrupt-Than-Fiction Department
Casino Jack and the United States of Money
Directed by: Alex Gibney
Starring: Jack Abramoff
Plot: A documentary detailing how a lobbyist corrupted the US Congress on behalf of Special Interest groups. You-couldn’t-make-this-up-if-you-tried type complications ensue.
The basu! Buzz: My old pal Doney always says that documentaries touch people in a way that fiction films can’t. And boy does this film touch many powerful people. Gibney is the man behind Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room, and is an expert filmmaker. His films are always worth checking out. Of course, this is not to be confused with the upcoming Casino Jack, starring Kevin Spacey as Abramoff. Can’t wait for that!
Bottom Line: Those Lucky Few in Manhattan and Los Angeles: Theatres – Eventually; Other, Less Geographically Fortunate Souls: DVD
Other Movies to Check Out (as well): Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room; Taxi to the Dark Side; Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson
Movies
Iron Man 2
Directed by: Jon Favreau
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Mickey Rourke, Don Cheadle, Scarlett Johansson, Sam Rockwell, Samuel L. Jackson, Gwyneth Paltrow, Garry Shandling, Paul Bettany, Kate Mara
Plot: A billionaire-slash-superhero defies the government and takes on super villains all by himself. Talk-about-a-Tea-Party-wish-fulfillment-fantasy type complications ensue.
The basu! Buzz: Okay, I know you’ll think I am crazy, but when Spider-Man 3 was released I remarked that in an alternative universe villain Topher Grace would have actually made a great Spider-Man. I mean, it’s a little crazy, but not John Krasinski-as-Captain-America crazy, more Val-Kilmer-as-Batman-inspired crazy. Similarly, don’t think you think that in an alternative universe the brash, bold, and quasi-arrogant Rockwell would have made a great Iron Man? Right? C’mon, then, as good as Iron Man (1) was, we wouldn’t have to put up with Downey Jr.’s increasingly irritating ironic-but-not-really smug self-absorption.
Bottom Line: Me, and Other Fanboy Geeks Who Really Should Know Better: Theatres – First Week [On IMAX]; Other, More Measured Souls: Theatres – Eventually [On IMAX]
Other Movies to Check Out (as well): Iron Man; The Dark Knight; Batman Begins; Superman; Spider-Man 2
Babies
Directed by: Thomas Balmes
Starring: Bayar, Hattie, Mari, Ponijao
Plot: A look at the first year of the lives of four babies from the furthest reaches of the globe. Almost-too-cute-to-handle type complications ensue.
The basu! Buzz: They should have subtitled this movie: “AKA All Those Kids My Friends Are Having.” I mean seriously, it’s like some gigantic global biological clock went off and boom, many, many FOBBs (Friends of Basu babies). Wow!
Bottom Line: All My Friends Having Kids: Theatres – Eventually; Other, Less Harried Souls: DVD
Other Movies to Check Out (as well): Rosemary’s Baby; Three Men and a Baby; She’s Having a Baby
Mother and Child
Directed by: Rodrigo Garcia
Starring: Naomi Watts, Annette Bening, Kerry Washington, and the great David Morse
Plot: Three women must deal with the many different consequences of motherhood. See-Now-You-Appreciate-Your-Mother type complications ensue.
The basu! Buzz: Smart counter-programming to go up against Iron Man 2. And it’s Mother’s Day! Man those cats over at Sony Pictures Classics are approaching Fox Searchlight-type smarts!
Bottom Line: DVD
Other Movies to Check Out (as well): Babel; Mammoth; Amores Perros
The Top 10 Movies of 2010
How to Train Your Dragon (new entry)
Shutter Island (new entry)
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (new entry)
Green Zone (new entry)
Alice in Wonderland (new entry)
Top 10 Films Out Right Now That I Positively Have to See
The Secret in Their Eyes
Exit Through the Gift Shop
Clash of the Titans [2-D, not 3-D)
The Ghost Writer
Hot Tub Time Machine
Kick-A**
The Bounty Hunter
The City of Your Final Destination
Date Night
The Losers