The award-winning photo

As Nora recently pointed out, despite my amateur status, I can now call myself an award-winning photographer! For some time now, I've been wanting to give my photos some exposure, and one day it just occurred to me to enter some into Gratz Fair, which is a local carnival that takes place every fall near my hometown. So after some careful selection, I entered my Supreme Court photo into the fair's photography competition . . . and I won first prize!

Earworms (IV)

I'm renaming this series to "Earworms" from its original title of "Where's a Vulcan mind meld when you need one." I'm doing this because the original was simply too long, and "Earworms" is much easier, not to mention shorter. (The original Vulcan mind meld posts will retain their original titles, though.)

Anyway, some might find this an odd choice of music to get stuck in my head, but I am of the opinion that the '60s generated some fabulous music, not the least of which is this little ditty.

Those blue eyes have been closed

I about stopped in my tracks this morning when I learned that actor Paul Newman had died at the age of 83. It's almost impossible to imagine this, as he's been such a landmark in cinema for so many years, starring in such notable films as The Hustler, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Cool Hand Luke, The Sting, Slap Shot, and his Oscar-winning turn in Martin Scorsese's The Color of Money. Like so many others, I was kinda holding out hope that one day he'd pair up with co-star Robert Redford again, but alas, it wasn't meant to be.

This is my favorite Paul Newman scene, as shown in The Sting.



Rest in peace, Paul! You will certainly be missed.

100!

Well, it's official: the Nats have secured 100 losses this season. That's pretty awful. I love my Nats, but that's just disgraceful.

An early contender?

Looks like the search for an Oscar host is getting under way, if IMDb tells me true!

British comedian Ricky Gervais is hotly tipped to host next year's Academy Awards.

Gossips claim new Oscars bosses Laurence Mark and Bill Condon were impressed with The Office creator's laugh-raising stint at Sunday's Emmy Awards, and they want to audition him for the Oscars.

I'm almost embarrassed to admit this, but I've never heard of Gervais, and I don't know what his particular brand of comedy entails. Though this much I can say: it may be a tall order following in the footsteps of Ellen DeGeneres and Jon Stewart. They did a fabulous job of hosting the ceremonies in recent years, so the bar for a good and engaging host may be a little higher.

Happy birthday, Jim Henson!

Jim Henson: the visionary behind The Muppet Show and Sesame Street, a revolutionary in children's television, a man who died well before his time, a man who left behind a wonderful and timeless legacy for children and adults alike.

Were he still alive, he would have turned 72 years old today. And what better way to honor his birth than with his own creation?

Happy birthday, Mom!

My mother turns another year older today. And what is she doing to celebrate? She's taking a vacation to France in a couple of weeks!

A visit to the Pentagon Memorial

With the recent opening of the Pentagon Memorial, I had the chance to go see it this weekend while my mother was in town visiting. I must admit, this is the first memorial that affected me emotionally—partially because I was living here on 9/11, but also because the benches add a human element to the loss that took place at the Pentagon seven years ago: each bench represents one human life that will never return.

You can see my photo stream here.

RIP Gregory Mcdonald

When I was in middle school, I read a lot of the books in the Fletch series, written by author Gregory Mcdonald (with the first book adapted into the now famous Chevy Chase movie). This morning, I was saddened to learn that Mcdonald passed away on Sunday.

Has it already been seven years?

I wish I had more to say, but I think the sight of the flag draped over the Pentagon, just to the side of where the plane struck seven years ago today, says it all.

Muppet moments (II)

The episode with George Burns is one of my favorites.





Closely followed up by my favorite sketch, courtesy of the late great Peter Sellers.

The best thing since sliced bread?

So much for age being just a state of mind! During today's Penn State game, it was revealed that head coach Joe Paterno is in fact older than sliced bread, by two years! So unfortunately, that means we can no longer say that JoePa is the best thing since sliced bread, because technically it wouldn't be true.

They're ready to believe you . . . again?

Oh, boy. Apparently Hollywood is continuing to contemplate making sequels to franchises that haven't been heard of since the '80s or '90s. This summer met with Indy 4, which admittedly wasn't as bad as I feared, followed by the second X-Files installment, suitably entitled I Want to Believe (which I haven't seen yet).

Rumored to be next in line for reinvention? Ghostbusters. And if IMDb tells me true, then a script could be in draft as we speak.

Recent reports suggested bosses at Columbia - the studio behind the first two movies in 1984 and 1989 - were lining up Seth Rogen, Steve Carell and Paul Rudd to join original stars Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis and Ernie Hudson in a new movie.

I hate to constantly be the naysayer in situations like these, but please . . . let it be!!! The original Ghostbusters was a genuine classic, but the 1989 sequel was just wrong, and I don't even know if Harold Ramis or Ernie Hudson have been on the receiving end of a camera in the last 15 years. But if a Ghostbusters 3 indeed came to fruition, I can't help but think it'd quickly turn the franchise into a modern-day vehicle for Seth Rogen and Steve Carell.

So please, let the rumors remain as rumors, and let the Stay-Puft Marshmellow Man rest in peace.

The one-year anniversary of a beautiful memory