Nothing can stop them

In the  Genesis song "Return of the Giant Hogweed," they mention the plant's name as Heracleum mantegazzianum, a name I thought they made up as something that sounded botanical and similar to regular hogweed's real name. Being far more into music than vegetation, I honestly didn't know giant hogweed was real. Come to find out, giant hogweed is native to the Caucasus ("The Russian Hills") and central Asia. It may or may not have been a "Victorian explorer" but someone brought it "long ago" in the 19th century to Britain as an ornamental plant. It has also spread to the northeast and northwest US, southern Canada and parts of Europe. It's considered a noxious weed that displaces native plants. Described as "Queen Anne's lace on steroids," a phrase Genesis may wish they thought up, umbrella shaped white flowers might be attractive but the plant's sap is phototoxic and can cause blisters and black or purple scars on human skin. Maybe next I'll find out Triffids are real.

18 and I like it

Starting this past  month every 18 year old (about 575,000) in Italy, including foreigners, is entitled to a bonus of 500 euros, about $550 US dollars. It's the idea of Prime Minister Matteo Renzi who wanted to match the billion euro increased defense and security spending with another billion designated to be spent on culture since "culture beats ignorance." Take that, rock paper scissors lizard Spock. The teens have until the end of next year to spend the entire bonus. After they register, which can be done online, they can choose from museums and galleries, theatre, ballet, concerts, movies, books, archaeological and heritage sites. Says Renzi about this unique way to fight terrorism, “They imagine terror, we answer with culture. They destroy statues, we love art. They destroy books, we are the country of libraries.”

It's cool for cats

While watching Celebrity Name Game, I heard a contestant say if she won, she wanted to visit Cat Island. Not Catalina. Cat Island. Sounded like a place out of a children’s fantasy book. Turns out, there are many Cat Islands. The one she most likely meant was Japan’s Aoshima Island.

With an elderly declining population of about 100 people, Aoshima residents are now outnumbered by the stray/feral cats living there. In the past the islanders raised silkworms so cats were kept to help keep mice from the silkworms. Now they seem to be kept because people believe feeding them will bring good luck and prosperity. The only way to reach Aoshima is by a ferry which can transport 34 visitors per day. Not a lot of tourist trade, especially since no stores exist on the island. At least it sounds like the cats are being fed.

Separated at Birth?

Tove Jansson's Moomin character Little My and Olympic gymnast Aly Reisman? It's the bun, really.

 

I am envied by senior girls

Movie: The Bronze. Starring Melissa Rauch and co-written by her and her husband Winston. This is not your Big Bang Theory's Bernadette. This is a raunchy, potty mouthed, graphic but very funny (I LOL'd several times) view of Olympic gymnasts. Released just in time for the Rio games. Melissa's character, Hope, has a moment of glory at a previous Olympics. After an injury sidelines her, she continues to use her celebrity to manipulate and try to make everyone around her as miserable and bitter as she is. As events progress, she does learn something (how to give back) and changes her lifestyle a little. She was and will always remain a hometown hero. Guest stars and cameos from the likes of: Dominique Dawes, Dominique Moceanu, Olga Korbut. Not for the faint of heart, but neither is gymnastics.

Wavelength you never let me down, no

The Great Mica Plate Search of 2016. One Sunday I was about to make cookies. When I went to soften some butter in the microwave, sparks started flying around inside the thing. Hit stop. Not what I was going for. Take out butter. Look inside. Is that something stuck to the metal thing on the side? No, it's a hole in the metal thing on the side. The metal thing, the internet informs me, is called the Wave Guard. It protects food from the micro waves, logically. Rather than buying a new microwave, all one has to do is go to your local appliance or hardware store, buy a $5 mica sheet (see photo above) and cut it to the appropriate side. Replace.

Not so fast, Blofeld. I apparently live in the Middle of Nowhere. Every store I checked for mica had never heard of it. Bringing along my hole-y sample did not help. Employees looked at it like it was some strange metal from an alien spaceship or similar and looked at me as if I was from Mars. "I've never seen anything like this," they said, one after another. So much for shopping locally. Frustrated, I went home and magically ordered some mica sheets off the internet. They needed to take the slow boat from Hong Kong but arrived safely after about three weeks of microwaveless living. With scissors, I carefully cut one sheet to size and slid it in the wave guard spot and voila! Microwave works perfectly. It was a four dollar fix. Worth the wait. And since the mica comes in sheets of two, I still have a spare should this ever happen again.

WTF

Movie: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot. When the box said pervasive language it really meant it. Based on the book by Kim Baker, an American journalist who volunteers circa 2003 to cover the no longer fashionable war in Afghanistan. Why she volunteered is beyond me (the challenge, maybe?) but her experiences shown in the movie made me want to read the book. The movie was well done, insightful and thought provoking. Actually, she made a point to her boss that is something I've wondered about for years: why we don't see what's going on over there on our news stations. Apparently we don't want to. That's news to me! Interesting or something (creepy?) seeing Martin Freeman and Billy Bob Thornton together again post-Fargo. Freeman's affected Scottish accent helped erase some of those Fargo images because yes, I believe it's true, no matter if you're not the best looking or nicest person, a Scottish accent will make anyone appealing. He turns out to be an okay guy, after all. Why this movie didn't do so well at the box office when Fey's clunker, horribly sophomoric Sisters did seems criminal. 

By any other name

Documentary: Meet the Hitlers. More disappointing than interesting, which it could have and should have been. Concerned the stigma of having your name be Hitler. The European fellow seemed to believe he was related and subsequently ostracized but likely wasn't related at all but just a loner or recluse. The American teenager with an extra T appeared well adjusted, with friends and only slightly teased at school. Gene, also no relation, was endearingly memorable for his touching love for his late wife. His family seemed great.

Where we ran into difficulty was with a White Supremacist with children of questionable names, one being Adolph Hitler, another Aryan Nation. Names aside, the man seemed in need of education about totalitarianism and the Holocaust. Fascism means giving up individuality and your individual rights. As for the creation of Hitler's master race, this meant many millions more than Jews were exterminated. Political opponents, authors and artists considered subversive, priests, mentally and physically disabled, Boy Scouts, prisoners of war, etc. Where does it stop once it starts? He needs to learn the answer is not to start.

The other disturbing part was the journalist hounding the three actual great nephews who only wanted to be left alone. They changed their name and vowed to stop the bloodline. They've done the right thing. Let it go, dude. Most sensible thing about the documentary was the interview with the Holocaust survivor, a nice elderly man who understood any descendants of Hitler are not responsible for their unmet great uncle's crimes.

What's in your head?

Movie: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Based on the book by Seth Grahame-Smith. I've never been interested in the zombie craze that has permeated popular culture the past few years. Guess I prefer my monsters with a little more substance. Vampires and werewolves have personalities, Cybermen are tying to upgrade everyone to a super robot race, Daleks are globs of pure hate but zombies have nothing besides the Eat Brains Obsession. That said, their inclusion in this Jane Austen parody/alternate history makes for entertaining viewing. Who would expect the five Bennett sisters to be proficiently trained in combat arts? Good for them, not just sitting around in an old book gathering dust and playing endless games of Whist. Nice to see Matt Smith post-Doctor and witty as ever.

I want to fly like an eagle

Movie: Eddie the Eagle. I remember some things about British ski jumper "Eddie the Eagle" Edwards from the 1988 Winter Olympics. How happy the sport made him despite his placing last. There was controversy as to whether or not he should be allowed to compete at all since he wasn't proficient at the sport. At the time, he did what he needed to do to qualify (the rules have since been changed so a lesser skilled competitor would not be allowed at the Olympics) and he loved the sport. His excitement at breaking the British ski jumping record is something everyone watching must remember. At the time, as it still does, the controversy seemed unfair and I thought and think anyone saying he shouldn't have been allowed to compete should just once (much less 60 times a day as  Eddie was) have to jump the 70 meter. It took enormous courage and strength and that's what the Olympics should be about, not just who can win gold. The movie takes some license with conversations but not with the competitions nor Eddie's spirit. Good for him and good for everyone involved with the film for winning our hearts.

Floating on a sea of love

If you're looking for a new and exciting place to call home (and who isn't) and you have several million to spare, look into the stunning Floating Seahorse villas. Built on a man-made archipelago two miles off Dubai's coast, the Signature Edition home has 4,000 square feet on three levels of everything you could want, like wi-fi, televisions, and a butler service, whatever that entails. The lower underwater/submerged level has a master bedroom and bathroom with floor to ceiling windows that give you perfect views of marine life swimming around artificial coral gardens. The second level has a kitchen, dining area, a sundeck and pool. The upper level features a glass bottom Jacuzzi. By 2018 there should be 125 or more villas, perhaps depending on the demand. Get yours while there's time. Apparently the first 42 are already sold out.

Work, work, work harder You say

Movie: Joy. Somewhat based on the life and work of Joy Mangano, the creator of the Miracle Mop although the movie does not call it that. An engaging film about how she came up with the idea, found financing for it and tried to market it. At first she didn't succeed and the try, try again ending to that phrase is what made her successful in the long run. Isabella Rosellini was wonderful as her father's girlfriend. It seemed very true to life how family members like her father (Robert De Niro) would be giving her negative advice, like, it's never going to work, you should give up, you tried but failed so file bankruptcy. I think we all learned how important it is to follow your instincts and stick by what you believe in. Nice to see Dascha Polanco released and out of the orange and/or khaki. I wondered why the Joan  Rivers impersonator was so spot on until seeing in the ending credits that Melissa Rivers played her. Marvelous.

The queen of my highway

While watching wonderfully humorous travel writer Tony James Slater's video experiences on his and Roo's driving the electric Twizy car, and laughing along with them, I decided to look into this unique car. Made by Renault and manufactured in Spain, Twizy is powered by a litium-ion battery pack, located underneath the front seat. Due to its ultra-compact small size (under 8 feet in length, about 3 feet in width and a height of just under 5 feet) it seats two people, one driver and one somewhat folded up and flexible passenger in the back seat and is classified in Europe as a "heavy quadricycle." Whatever that is. A vehicle with limited speed, I guess. The Twizy averages 30 to 40 mph.

There are three models, costing somewhere between seven and nine thousand euros, not including the battery pack. That's a separate monthly fee to lease (around 50 euros), but does include roadside assistance and a battery replacement, should you need one. In some models the door are optional. Others have no windows so dress according to the weather. It takes about three hours to charge the battery. It's scheduled to be released on the Canadian market soon. No word on the U.S. It looks like a blast to drive.

I've seen a lot of what the world can do

Documentary: Where to Invade Next. Michael Moore-lite. Not what one would expect from the title, which would be a rehash of where the US has invaded up until now or what countries we should invade (although the latter would be a very short film, since the answer to that should be none.) More of a travelogue, this concerned some very interesting practices of a variety of different countries that perhaps the US should implement, especially since the ideas, the film claims, seemed to originate with us. Examples: Italian work ethic, or more likely, Italian relaxation ethic which serves to improve their quality of work. French school lunches being a gourmet meal on fine china everyday. I cringed to see Moore introduce American fast food to these wonderful French children. The Slovenian concept of free college tuition for anyone on the planet. Norwegian prisons that are without uniforms and more like dormitory living. Finnish excelling at education although they have no homework, no testing, and spend very little time in school. I found the discussion most interesting where they were pointing out the difference in mentality, the community minded versus the individually minded. On the down side, sadly every country has issues. No place is perfect to live. It's unfortunate we can't all be have the resources to find where we fit in best and live there.

You're gonna need a bigger room

Movie: Room. I thought this was very well done. While some claustrophobic people may have had difficulty watching the first part where the action is enclosed in 11x11 or less, it didn't bother me. The acting was wonderful, especially Ma and Jack (Brie Larson and Jacob Tremblay.) The little boy emoted so well, often without saying anything. I haven't read the book so I don't know how it compares. The only thing that bothered me was the reporter/interviewer and her stupid question of didn't Ma think she should have given Jack to Old Nick to take anonymously to a hospital so Jack could have a better/normal life and Ma's response which was to question herself and send her into a downward spiral, not helped by PTSD as it was. I was hoping Ma would defend herself and say, hey! How could I possibly know Nick wouldn't have immediately killed the child? The question was totally unreasonable and the correct answer missing.

Probably the oddest thing in the Universe

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy books, radio series, television show and movies all employed the Babel Fish: a small, yellow alien fish that you could put in your ear. Once there, it fed on your brain waves and somehow translated any languages coming into your ear to your language. It served well as a translator throughout the universe. Many times I have wished for one of these little critters in real life to make it easier to understand foreign languages without taking the time or effort to learn them. Now there may be such a thing for real. Called The Pilot System, developed by Waverly Labs, it seems to work on a similar principle as Google translates. It you wear it, it listens to your conversation and communicates with your phone to translate what you hear, whispering it back into your ear possibly by magic.  Current languages it works with are French, Spanish, Italian and English.

Alone until I get home

Movie: The Revenant. Very loosely based on novel loosely based on some incidents in the life of trapper Hugh Glass, circa 1823. I admit to ff'ing through some of the violence and gore because that's not my deal so I can't speak for normal speed, but in ff that bear didn't look very real. Leo, beyond the beginning, didn't have many lines as he was trying to recover from his mauling. Really no one came across very good but life was hard back then. Unfortunately they made the bad guy the only one to spout religion. It's been done before (see Les Miserables) and far better. The vision at the end made it seem like Hugh was mortally wounded and drifting off to the Heavenly Realm but he lived for ten years after these events. Also, it was tough to figure out locations. We guessed the Dakotas just by the landscape and yes, it was South Dakota. I never heard mention of any places that would've answered definitively. Towards the end they talked about Yellowstone, but that's Wyoming, so I was totally confused. If the states were not yet states, they could have shown a map of sorts to give us some frame of reference. Overall, they probably should have stuck closer to the book because compared to the likes of Jeremiah Johnson, all this has to offer is great scenery.

If communism comes knocking at your door

Movie: Trumbo. Nice to see Bryan Cranston in a non-Walter White role and he did a great job with it. About the communist witch hunt in Hollywood that coincided with the beginnings of the Cold War. Very strange anyone was sentenced to prison when the Constitution allows for many different political party affiliations. How paranoid do people have to be? What really astonished me about Dalton Trumbo was his ability to churn out so many screenplays - and excellent ones at that - in such a short amount of time. To be told you have a week to ten days to write a gem and agree and then do it is staggering. To spend decades writing brilliant and often Oscar winning screenplays (see Roman Holiday, The Brave One, Spartacus, The Way We Were, Hawaii, Exodus) is genius. Luckily he did not let prison or blacklisting silence his talent. And good for Kirk Douglas for being brave enough to credit him when no one else dared.

Stuff you, Bret!

Some of the very cool posters they use in Murray's office on Flight of the Conchords.

• New Zealand: Why not? 
• New Zealand, take your Mum
• New Zealand: Ewe should come 
• It's not boring in New Zealand
• New Zealand: Like Scotland but further
• New Zealand: only 18 hours from New York
• New Zealand: Don't expect too much - you'll love it!
• New Zealand: It's Not Going Anywhere
• Woolcome to New Zealand
• New Zealand: It's not part of Australia
• New Zealand: Come visit us down underer
• New Zealand: It's better than Old Zealand
• New Zealand: Cool!
• New Zealand... Rocks! 
• New Zealand: Like Lord of the Rings
• New Zealand: 100% further than you think. 
• New Zealand: Worth a go
   
  

Escape now, hug later

Movie: Star Wars 7: The Force Awakens. Pretty sure I'm the last person in the universe to see this, but if that's not true: spoiler alert. What I've liked about Star Wars from the original was how it puts you right there. I've always felt like it could truly be happening and that's not an easy feat for SF. This episode had lots of action, excellent repartee (especially between Leia and Han, some between Finn and Poe), old characters we liked, new characters we like or fear (what kind of makeup and/or lighting did they use on Adam Driver? He hardly looked like himself. Maybe it was the hair gel.) One particular unfortunate event I didn't like. Harrison must not want to continue in the franchise which is a real bummer because no one has the same swagger, snarky attitude and clever lines. A horrible loss to the future movies and, knowing Star Wars's past "daddy issues" themes, rather predictable. The Rey character is a good addition, however Kiera Knightly twinny at times. I really liked Maz but fear she may have bit the dust. It was not clear. Finn has we'll see potential, though it's a bit disconcerting he was raised/trained to be a storm trooper and his original name was FN-#. Really? Effin? Luke did not show up until the last couple minutes which made me wonder how much Hammill got paid for that. Like, five dollars? And he didn't even have any lines. Not one word. Could have at least said. "Thank you." I say bump him down to four dollars. Maybe three fifty.

Separated at birth?

Eddie Murphy's Buckwheat

and Jimi Hendrix?

The world is going to put you under the spotlight

Movie: Spotlight. 2016 Academy Award winner for Best Picture. Before viewing, I was concerned this would be cringe-worthy due to the subject matter but they avoided showing personal experiences in favor of focusing on the journalism involved. As in: discovering a news story, investigating it, finding leads, corroborating evidence, gathering facts. How a story develops from idea to publishing. Underlying that was the theme of the power of the Catholic Church. Priests revered to the point of deification, their thoughtlessly breaking sacred vows and laws, the church's decades or longer systematic cover up, and what seemed like a nonchalant attitude of oh well, these things happen. Unanswered may have been questions like: What leads anyone to this? and If priests were allowed to marry, would these crimes nearly stop?

There's surely something to it all

When I first bought Steve Hackett's second solo record, Please Don't Touch, it was back when cassettes were replacing vinyl. So I bought the cassette. Back then, a lot of record companies didn't add much packaging so only the song titles were listed on the little slip of paper inside the case. I've listened to this record so many times since then but never knew many details about it. Thanks to the marvelous world of the internet and especially Wikipedia, I decided to learn more.

Side one starts with "Narnia," obviously based on CS Lewis's book The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe and features vocals by Steve Walsh and drumming by Phil Ehart, both of Kansas. The band, not the state. The song was considered to be released as a single but Kansas's record company wouldn't allow it. Sad, because it's catchy and cheery enough to have been a big hit. "Carry On Up the Vicarage" is a tribune to Agatha Christie with Hackett on vocals, however distorted, so he's singing both very high and low at the same time. The lyrics mention many ways one could die, particularly if one was a character in a Christie novel. I always thought the second line was "People die from circumstance all the time" but it is "People die from sudden strokes all the time." Lots of effects in this song: choir, musical box, glockenspiel, church organ, laughing gnome, distorted echo at the end. "Racing In A" is the fastest and rockiest song on the album and one that I often find playing in my head, even if I haven't heard it for years. The lyrics (again sung by Walsh) describe getting away from it all, to the sun in the warm country air. Always a dream of  mine! After 3:50 the rock part ends and the guitar plays a classical finale.  "Kim" is an instrumental inspired by Erik Satie's "Gymnopédie No 1" and Hackett's then wife, Kim Poor. His brother John plays flute. "How Can I?" is a slow folk ballad with Richie Havens's smoky deep voice singing. Apparently Hackett and Havens met in 1977 when Havens opened for Genesis. Hackett wanted to work with him and brought up the idea. I didn't know that this song was released as a single, complete with a video with  Hackett and Havens. Was it not released in America?

Side two starts with "Hoping Love Will Last" featuring R&B singer Randy Crawford who Hackett saw perform in a bar in Chicago. Hackett wrote this for Genesis but wanted a female singer for it, so the band couldn't use it. Hackett said: “It was the kind of song that I wanted to do that could become a standard, that even Frank Sinatra could sing.” The guitar at the end moves into "Land Of Thousand Autumns," an instrumental ending with a drum fill that moves into "Please Don't Touch" which was also written for Genesis but they rejected it. The song was apparently a variation on a theme in "Unquiet Slumbers for the Sleepers..." "Please Don't Touch" is driven by a bass pedal that John Hackett hammers with his fists. Add hypnotic keyboards and Chester Thompson's driving drum beat. Hackett advised: “For maximum effect this track should be listened to as loudly as possible with as much treble and bass as your system can muster. - Not to be played to people with heart conditions or those in severely hallucinogenic states of mind.” Steve and John then play a merry tune as duet of flute and guitar in contrast to the rest of the piece. Steve wanted to include "Please Don’t Touch" on Genesis’ Wind & Wuthering. The band rehearsed it but the others rejected it. "The Voice of Necam" carries on with an organ and noises of whirs and steam. The computer enters and grows louder, pushing all other instruments aside until the guitar plays a calm, classical piece that moves into the last song, "Icarus Ascending" where Havens again guest vocals.  He is accompanied by choirs, a flute solo by John and an ensemble of instruments.The song fades away, like walking into the sunset or a cloud.

Kim Poor designed the album cover after visiting a shop in London that sold old automats and toys. It portrays a Victorian couple attacked by wind up dolls, small robots and other toys in a toy shop, and inspired a scene in Ridley Scott's Blade Runner where Harrison Ford's character is attacked by living toys.

Fubar, yah? Okay, then.

Series: Fargo, Season 2. I expected the body count to be even higher than Season 1 and sure enough, it was, by far. Luckily there was a whole buncha good acting (Danson, Smart, Dunst, etc.) to go along with the steamer full of stupid that was these crazy characters. My favorite moment had to be when Danson said to  Dunst, "Well, you're a little touched, now, aren't you?" To put it diplomatically. In a few areas I questioned motives, particularly when Hansee (I kept expecting someone to call him Fonzie) betrayed, well, everyone. Perhaps he'd had enough of being treated like an inferior and the racist remarks didn't help. Also, the uncle killing his niece was mighty cold and the UFO appearance was strange, but handled funny by Peggy. Interesting foreshadowing back to Season 1. Made me want to watch that again. I'm not sure there's any plastic surgery that could physically turn Hanzee into Tripoli, though. Perhaps they should have implied he traded places with Billy Bob. A minor gripe: while they chose interesting songs, I don't think any of them were from March 1979. It was as if they grabbed a CD called "Hits of the 70s" and thought, good enough. With the internet, it's easy to find out what was in the top 40 then.

Happy Trails to them

Movie: A Walk in the Woods. Produced by and starring Robert Redford as he returns to a buddy film. Originally optioned in 1998 for Redford to team up again with Paul Newman but sadly Newman's health didn't allow it. In a way the rapport Redford and Nolte had reminded me a lot of Redford and Newman from Butch Cassidy and The Sting movies. Redford has that marvelous sarcasm with perfect timing and tone. We laughed out loud several times throughout the movie. Rated R most likely for some colorful language. Made me interested in reading Bryson's books. On the list for: someday.

My friends from college, they're all married now

Documentary: Meet the Patels. While I'm sure the Patel parents are wonderful people - they seemed very nice from what we saw - I am grateful to have been born to parents who never pressured me to marry and give them grandchildren. And especially didn't pressure me to meet as many potential spouses as possible and choose one who wasn't so bad and from the right neighborhood. I am not married and have not ever been married. From the point of Papa Patel, there appears to be nothing I have to offer society. Wow. The son was obviously totally infatuated with the ex-girlfriend and wouldn't or couldn't look beyond his feelings for her to even see anyone else. The ex-girlfriend wanted him to commit and it seemed he couldn't because he was afraid his parents would disapprove of his marrying a white woman (which it seems they did, especially the mother.) I hope for everyone's sake things work out and the grandparents can enjoy and dote on their eventual grandchildren they were so desperate to have.

I laughed at all of your jokes

As Downton Abbey closes permanently, let's look back on some wonderful quotes from my favorite character, Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham:

• "No Englishman would dream of dying in someone else's house."
• "I couldn't have electricity in the house, I wouldn't sleep a wink. All those vapors floating about."
• “First electricity, now telephones. Sometimes I feel as if I’m living in an H.G. Wells novel.”
• “Everyone goes down the aisle with half the story hidden.”
• “I don’t dislike him, I just don’t like him. Which is quite different.”
• “I wonder your halo doesn’t grow heavy. It must be like wearing a tiara around the clock.”
• “We can’t have him assassinated. I suppose.”
• "Vulgarity is no substitute for wit".
• "All this endless thinking. It's very overrated"
•  "You must know by now, I never answer any question more incriminating than whether I need a new rug."
• “My dear. A lack of compassion can be as vulgar as an excess of tears.”
• "At my age, one must ration one's excitement."
•  "You are a woman with a brain and reasonable ability. Stop whining and find something to do." 
• "It always seemed rather dark when my mother-in-law lived here; but then, she made everything rather dark." 
• "I have plenty of friends I don't like."
• "That is the thing about nature, there's so *much* of it."

The long and winding solar road

During our often snowy Western New York winters, I find myself wondering why we don't have solar roads and sidewalks. And for that matter, driveways. It seems like in the long run, not having to pay for workers to plow and plows and upkeep on plows in addition to salt and sand, solar roads would be less costly and safer. In the Netherlands, they are already working on Solar Roads, or SolaRoads. A couple years ago they built a 70 meter (230 foot) test track along a bike path on the outskirts of Amsterdam. The panels underneath the road generated over 3 thousand kilowatt hours in six months. Enough to provide a household with electricity for a year. Cheap mass produced solar panels are layered between glass, silicon rubber and concrete. If one panel breaks, only that panel is switched off. Developers are working on solar panels that can take the weight of buses and large trucks. Eventually electric cars might be able to make use of the energy created.

What can I give you in return?

Movie: Bridge of Spies. You can always count on Tom Hanks to give a solid performance. Because of the serious subject matter, this didn't leap off the screen like the "thriller" the box proclaimed it to be. They seemed to enlist the talents of the Coen Brothers to make it more exciting but the material they added was fiction so that rather messed with the historical accuracy they might have wanted to keep. Mentioning Abel's accent a couple times as being not Russian but rather English was strange because it was so obviously Scottish. All they had to do was say he was born in Northern England but attended school in Scotland. Maybe because the world was bigger then, Americans didn't know what a Scottish accent sounded like? Pre-Lulu and everything. I don't know. One thing that was really noticeable was Donovan calling home from overseas with what appeared to be a quarter or two. When I was in Scotland in the late 1980s, I thought about calling home but knew I would need a lot more coins than I had in my pockets and I had a lot of coins in my pockets. The photographers flashbulbs really brought one back to a different time (although personally I wasn't actually in that time.) Seeing them on the floor made me wonder whose job it was to clean them up. Hello to Bono's daughter Eve Hewson who plays Donovan's elder daughter. And Sister Bernadette who sure looked like the wife but wasn't
ETA: Congratulations to Mark Rylance for winning best supporting actor at the Oscars. 

C'est Banana

Movie: The Minions. I'm not a fan of animation, but this was so huge and my little great nephews love the minions, so I thought I'd give it a try. Best thing about it: killer soundtrack since it was set in 1968. Happy Together, 19th Nervous Breakdown, Break on Through to the Other Side, Hair, You Really Got Me, Purple Haze, The Letter, My Generation, Got to Get You Into My Life, Mellow Yellow. Always an Ab Fab fan, I appreciated Jennifer Saunders voicing the Queen. I kept waiting for The Beatles cameo and was not disappointed. They were partially seen crossing Abbey Road, albeit a year too soon. Unless they used this zebra crossing regularly. I didn't find the Minions voices irritating. It seemed nice that Cousin Itt and the Jawas from Star Wars have found some voice over work after all these years. I'm not sure what this movie and its sequels in the Despicable Me series mean to children, though. Searching for an evil ruler to serve seems odd.
ETA: I let the ending go for a few minutes and caught a few extra scenes but once the credits started, I stopped the DVD. My mistake. After the credits finish, they return with one final song, The Beatles Revolution. Don't miss it, as I did.
 

I've been hanging around libraries

What is your library worth to you? Head on over to I Love Libraries to calculate how much. Just enter how often you check out or use any of their library materials or services per year and the site will add up what it would cost you without the library. My total was over a thousand dollars. To me, the library is invaluable. If you think so too, consider making a donation to your local library.

There's a Starman waiting in the sky

Movie: The Martian. One of the best movies I've seen in months or longer. When last we saw Matt Damon, he was a nasty slime bucket in Interstellar. In a dramatic role reversal here, he plays a motivated, logical, enterprising MacGyver type protagonist. Well done, sir. Technology aside, I didn't understand why or how a woman crew member of this day and age (probably in her late 20s) would be into disco music but was grateful that they played mostly good disco songs from the likes of Vicki Sue Robinson, The Hues Corporation, Gloria Gaynor and Abba compared to some of what my ears had to live through in the late 1970s. The council of Elrond inside joke with Sean Bean was funny but I didn't like Kristen Wiig's disparaging lines about it because it reinforced stereotypes often found on The Big Bang Theory that women do not like and/or are not interested in and/or can not possibly comprehend science fiction. Minor gripes. Nice to see such good usage of duct tape: "The handyman's secret weapon." Next trip: bring lots!