The 31st Apple does it again! They keep amazing me with the way they're able to make their computers better and better. The new iMac G5 is one more step towards making the personal computer even more simple, smaller, and (what I like best) free of even more cables. The way they managed to integrate all of the components into this new design is crazy and the slot loading drive on the side is just cool. If I had a bunch of extra cash I could use to spend on new computers floating around (and wanted an iMac instead of a G5 Tower) then you can bet I would buy this puppy. The iMac G4 was super-cool and had a really stylish and unique look but this model looks much sleeker, solid and attractive. Plus all of the guts are pretty drool-worthy. I wish Apple would pay me (in merchandise) to write this crap. The 26th I went to see Open Water tonight with Nathan and Greg even though part of me didn't really want to see it. Not because it was a movie I didn't want to see but because sharks freak me out. Actually, I originally thought this movie would just be another shark movie but after I found out it was an indie film shot for 120 grand I had to see it. I wasn't disappointed either because it wasn't just another shark movie. I thought it really made you feel like you were there and the fact that it was low budget and that they used real sharks just made it seem all the more realistic. A school of sharks circling under two stranded divers made me bawl. I hate sharks. Scariest things on earth. The 25th I've been doing pretty well for getting out to see movies lately. Me, Nathan and Greg went to see The Manchurian Candidate the other night and it was actually a lot better than I was expecting. I figured it would be just another remake but it was really well done. I thought the cast was great, the pace and feel, and so was the plot. Just enough weirdness and paranoia too. Yesterday we went to Moncton for a shopping/get off the island trip and ended up going to see Exorcist: The Beginning. This one was better than I expected too but it still wasn't all that great. It certainly didn't compare to the first one or even the third for that matter (which was actually an excellent sequel by the way). I just thought it didn't have the same calibre as the first and used too many Hollywood tricks to get a scare or twist the plot. There were a lot of messed up scenes though but unfortunately a lot of them were ruined by very poor CGI which is weird when smaller films seem to be able to pull off more believable effects. One additional note about the Moncton trip: beware the Manchu Wok. The 22nd Saturday night I went to see Catherine open for Susie Arioli with Tammy, Kira and Fiona. Cat has some really nice songs with great songwriting and it's going to be nice to hear her album when it's done. Susie and her band were excellent. Her voice is amazing and her guitar player and stand-up bassist were crazy good. I'm really glad I got to go see that show. Afterwards we headed over to The Deckhouse to see Brook Millar play. The show started off badly because of a gaggle of loud, drunken gals from a stagette party wouldn't shut their booze holes. But after they left Brook's show went really well. The atmosphere became a lot more intimate and everyone was into the music which rarely happens. Hopefully she'll play again because I'd really like to see her play in town sometime. The 17th Normally when I go to see a movie and make a post about it here, I will add the movie poster for a little visual interest. However, Alien vs. Predator sucked so much that it doesn't warrant the extra effort. It had potential but so much back story had to be introduced in so little time and characters had to make so many jumping conclusions to put the puzzle together that it was just ridiculous. The only good thing was that I got to see Lance Henriksen and even him playing that character makes no sense at all considering the timeframe in which the movie takes place. The 15th Last night a bunch of us went up to The Landing to see The Rattlesnakin' Daddies play and hang out with River before he headed out in the morning for Australia. The Landing is a great place with a really good atmosphere but the turnout for Mike and Troy was pretty poor. At least it was fun though and River got up and played a few songs too. It was sad to see him go though. He's probably in some strange time zone dimension right now between Hawaii and home. The 11th The summer is just flying by and that sucks. Cory and Lauren are home to visit and are already heading back after being here a week. It seems like they just showed up a couple of days ago. If this is how fast summers are going to go by at age 26 then 50 is going to be ultra-depressing. At least I'm doing some stuff so that the summer isn't a total waste. I went to Charlottetown last week with Luke and Sharon to play trivia at Myron's. First time I was ever in there, probably the last. Trivia was fun but an hour drive is a long way to go for trivia. Last night I went to see The Rat Pack show at the Jubilee with Tammy. I'm not big on musical theatre but this was pretty much just a jazzy show with songs by the three of them with a full swing band. It was really good with a lot of goofing around and classic cool humour. After that we went to Locke Shore with Catherine to watch the meteor shower on the beach. We saw quite a few but I guess it hit its peak tonight or something. It's nice to be able to get outdoors and enjoy it even if it's only for a couple of hours. The 5th I got up yesterday morning at 8:30 so that I could be downtown for my beginner's test at 9am. I got there to find out I made a mistake and wasn't supposed to write my test until today. I went home and went to bed. Thankfully I was able to get a driver's manual from my sister's boyfriend before I went for my test. It helped but I guess I didn't read enough. I went for my test this morning at 9am (for real this time) and ended up failing by a damned 2%. I missed points on a trick question and some on a bunch of stupid questions regarding technical/legislation stuff that no one would know unless they had the proper handbook. There's no way I was going to read 3/4" thick driver's manual for a beginner's test just because the province's handbook no longer comes with the $20 registration fee but is now an additional $10.70. So people like me who don't want to give more money to the government for some over-priced handbook end up flunking the test and have to take it over, except pay again for the test a second time around. Damn goverment. No doubt they'll be fleecing me for another 20 bones. Of course, the person at the front desk who wanted my $10.70 the other day conveniently didn't mention that the handbook could be downloaded from their website as the test lady today informed me. So in my tired, irritated and sluggish state I decided to get pancakes at the First Cup. I was quickly reminded that I go there for the food and not the music. There I sat with morning coffee in hand. I was suddenly made aware that until that moment I was going through life knowing that one horrendous thing had been removed from my subconscious. During just one sinister block of radio programming, Magic93 had to plant Extreme's "Hole in My Heart" into my brain all over again and bring back a flood of musical trauma from the 90s that will haunt me for years to come. The 3rd Summer began about 43 days ago. During those past 43 days I have been to the beach only once. That's a beach frequency of 2.33%. That's pathetic. I went to Thunder Cove this afternoon with Tammy and River under the blazing sun. I don't like the beach during the day but I figured this may be my only opportunity to go this summer so I couldn't pass it up. It's not so bad if I can find some shade to sit in so I may very well go again during the day if I get the chance. The 2nd I woke up this morning (well, this afternoon) and realized that if I sit around the house sweating and being a lazy bastard then I'm going to feel like crap and/or go crazy. So I paid Tyler a visit. I hung out and painted with him and Jade and later we got D'anyil to say strange words like "Bela Lugosi" and "Dirty Hippie". I stayed for supper and coffee too which was really good. Too much with the both of them being really good cooks. Had I not gone over there I would have watched 5 hours of TV, ate waffles and fudge, and otherwise felt like crap. In other words, it was nice to get out of the house. Tonight me and Nathan and over to Tammy's and we had a little surprise party for Winston. He was actually surprised and was super-grateful for it. He's always good to sit around talking with because he's just got so many weird lines and ways of thinking. He's beyond classic. I otherwise haven't been up to too much and it's sad because it's the summer and more should be getting done while it's nice. I've seen quite a few movies lately so that's not too bad. The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra was hilarious, B, cheap and beyond cheesy but that's the whole point. Fahrenheit 9/11 was really good and just makes me despise Bush and his government even more. Crooked, crooked, crooked. The connections, the manipulation, the bravado, the smugness...I can't stand him and I hope he's cast out in a landslide vote. And then just the other night I saw The Village which was good but I was only slightly let down. It was a great film but I was expecting more creepiness, though there were some good jumps and scares.