Joey is a wiggly weight bar and other abnormalities

A couple nights ago I tried to dead lift Joey. He sprawled on the floor after his workout and eventually asked me to help him up. I have been working out for the past month on various skills, and I finally had a chance to put them to use. I got behind him and placed my hands beneath his armpits and attempted to pull him up. I did not consult him about this beforehand, and both us were shocked when he slipped from my grasp. All the training of "push on your heels" and "don't use your waist" disappeared in my mind during the process, and I almost pulled my back.

The lesson of that night was: 180 plus pounds of wriggly flesh is much less complacent than a 45 pound bar.

A few days ago Joey and I attempted to watch In the Name of the King: a Dungeon Siege Story. Despite the impressive cast ensemble, the movie did not deliver its full potential. The computer generated graphics in the movie were seamless, and the costumes and setting were grand and impressive. As far as entertainment value is being graded, I enjoyed it despite the terrible acting.

Even though the plot line was trite, that did not deter my enjoyment. I don't mind predictable story lines as long as there is enough eye candy in terms of stunning fight scenes and over abundant fireworks. The acting and casting however, nearly killed the movie. Like most Middle Earth movies, the story is set in Medieval era Europe, most commonly England. Jason Statham had the accent, but his thuggish demeanor did not convince me of his royal lineage. Ray Loitta convinced me of his evil personage, but his Midwestern American accent ruined the credibility of the setting. I focused so much on the inconsistency of the accents that I did not even notice the plot holes that Joey pointed out later.

However, I'm not one to over dissect action movies, and this movie did try to over exert itself into some racy plot elements. The sexual tension between the battle maiden and the Moor (I can only assume due to historic context) general could develop into something larger, but the director did not press on it any further than one symbolic fencing scene. I also admit to be completely shocked when the antagonist killed the main character's young son. Most Hollywood movies have spared children from being killed unless it's in cases of specially sadistic movies, but I did not expect Dungeon Siege to fall in that category.

Plus, for a movie to have ninjas, Moors, and battle mages, I would have expected to see dragons and pirates, both of which were disappointingly absent.

Last of all, Joey is starting his own blog!

The Den of the Arch-Bear

La-dee-dah!

I am starting my new job this Thursday! It'll be my first meeting with the professor whom I'll be assisting. I'm quite excited and I hope I'll do well this semester.

I attended the first part of the orientation for new TA/RAs today, and there were a lot of people. I think altogether, there were about two hundred grad students, but I definitely look the smartest.... Joey will testify!

On Saturday we went to a Greek restaurant called Kostas, and it was absolutely great! The environment was classy, the service was fantastic, and the food was absolutely fabu. I can't believe we never went in before. The only thing I was a little disappointed with was its outside image. Even though it was nice and clean, there's really not that much to suggest it's a restaurant. In fact, for years I thought it was a garage... but without mechanics hanging outside.

I also went to Woolie Ewe on Saturday and I was completely overwhelmed, in the bestest of ways, by the great service. Sue, the owner, helped me out for nearly an hour and did not gripe at all about my cluelessness. She not only helped me revise the sweater pattern I had, but also helped me pick out the yarn. I ended up making the purchase on Monday instead because the yarn I was eying was being held for another lady.

Here's what I came home with! And of course, my quality control officer was the first to arrive with some... quality control.



It's a nice bamboo and wool blend that is soft to the touch yet very durable. Perfect for my Joey. He's already seen it and knows what it's for... anniversary present come this February. A while back we got a sweater for Joey from Burlington Coats Factory. It was the most worthwhile twelve dollars he spent, and he wore that sweater to death until it finally broke from his love. I'm hoping I could replace that trooper of a sweater with something handmade.