Crazy Uncle Ryan's favorite quotes


"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."— Arthur C. Clarke

Sunday, January 31, 2010

Farewell to the Dollhouse

Well, it's over. Back on Friday the series finale of Dollhouse aired on FOX. I really enjoyed the episode though I think it would have been much better if it had aired after several more seasons. It always kinda sucks when a show you really like gets cancelled before it's has a chance to really get going. Fortunately for this show however, creator Josh Whedon knew going into this second season that the show would likely be canceled so he had a chance to try to put together a good ending and wrap up the various storylines. But, it still leaves me feeling like if it had been able to run longer it would have had a chance to be a lot better. It's a bit like if J.K. Rowling upon publishing Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone had been told by her publisher that they would only allow her to write one more book. She likely would have been able to find a way to bring the story to some kind of conclusion but, anybody who knew that she had a plan for seven novels would know that they had missed out on some pretty good stuff.
So, as much as I liked this show I have to ask myself why it was that it ultimately didn't make it. Here are some of my ideas:
  • It came from the mind of Josh Whedon. Now that is not meant as an insult to the show's mastermind but the fact of the matter is, Josh Whedon tends to make some really quirky shows that often don't have mass appeal.
  • Eliza Dushku is kind of a twit. Sorry, she's a decent actress (as she clearly showed in the finale) but when it comes down to it she probably just wasn't the right person for this role. She simply doesn't play the "butt-kick chick" part of her role very convincingly. It also didn't help that she's the star of the show and she seemed to be upstaged by Fran Kranz, Enver Gjokaj and most every other member of the cast.

So, whatever the reasons may be, it's over and I for one am sad to see it go. I shall however, take comfort in the fact that at least LOST returns this week.

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Work Update

Well, I know that all of you have been simply dying for an update. I have been at my new job for a little over two weeks and things are going very well. I am steadily learning my duties and though I still have a ways to go I feel really good about what has happened so far.

Alisa's last day of work is February 3rd and she is so excited to be able to stay home with Collin.

Monday, January 4, 2010

THE NIGHTMARE HAS ENDED!

I GOT A JOB!!!!

At 10:30am on Thursday December 31, 2009 I had the chance to interview with a Freight Forwarder in the area called Air & Sea International/Freightlink. About a half-hour after I got home they called me up and offered me a position in their Operations Department. Alisa and I took the weekend to talk it over and come to a decision. This morning I called them up and accepted the job.

I have been out of work for about 14 and a half months. Alisa and I are very grateful to everyone out there that has helped us and prayed for us throughout this difficult time. In particular I want to thank the McAllisters who have watched Collin during most of the job interviews I have had over the past months.

I officially start on January 12th. I am really looking forward to getting back out into the workforce. Thank you all again for everything you have done for our family.

Owing to the fact that this is such an exciting occasion I have decided that I need to celebrate. And what better way to celebrate than with a 21 gun salute?! Well, I'll tell you. A better way to celebrate would be to 1 up a 21 gun salute and do a 22 gun salute. But you know, this is so monumental that I need to 1 up the 1 up and make a 23 gun salute. I could 1 up the 1 uped 1 up and go for 24 but that would be just getting carried away. So, I give you the 23 gun salute brought to you by some of my favorite TV shows.

Saturday, January 2, 2010

2009 In Review

Let's be honest; 2009 kinda sucked for me and my little family. But, I'm not gonna spend a lot of time talking about that. Instead, I have decided to list some of the good things that happened over the past year. So, here we go:
  • I increased the size of my coin collection.
  • The International Astronomical Union did not eliminate any more planets from the Solar System.
  • Josh Whedon gave the world of television a wonderful, albeit short lived, gift. And the gift was called "Dollhouse."
  • Alisa got prettier
  • Patrick Rothfuss turned in his first draft of The Wise Man's Fear to his editor.
  • Collin got cuter.
  • I acquired The Ultimate Recording Device.*
  • J.J. Abrams' remake of Star Trek was just plain awesome.
  • Chuck got renewed for a 3rd season.
  • I got a new nephew and a new niece.

*The Ultimate Recording Device is a VCR/DVD Recorder Combo with a digital tuner. This device allowed me to continue to record my TV shows after the digital transition.