John – Page 88 – Deep Sand

Boy In The Striped Pajamas, The – A Movie Review

November 23, 2008December 13, 2008 John Asa Butterfield, Cara Horgan, David Hayman, David Thewlis, Drama, Friendship, hate, Holocaust, Jack Scanlon, Nazi, Rupert Friend, Vera Farmiga, War, War crimes, WW II

It is not often that I make a movie review one of our featured posts, but after my experience watching this movie, I realized that this was a movie that needs to be seen. It is a miraculous story with so many lessons about life and morality that I just don’t know where to begin. This is definitely a movie I may see again, and it’s certainly a movie I will encourage others to watch. Leaving the movie was like leaving a moving religious service.

Culture Food Places St. Petersburg

Central Avenue Oyster Bar – A Restaurant Review

November 23, 2008November 24, 2008 John downtown St. Petersburg, oysters, restuarants, seafood

Friday evening Lay and I ate at one of my favorite restaurants in downtown St. Petersburg, The Central Avenue Oyster Bar. This is one of a number of small storefront places in the 200 block of Central Avenue in downtown. We have not been there in a while, but have eaten there several times, and find the food, service and atmosphere excellent.

Culture Fun Stuff Movies

Kung Fu Panda – A Movie Review

November 17, 2008 John Adventure, Angelina Jolie, Animation, Dreamworks, Dustin Hoffman, Jack Black, John Wayne Stevenson, Kung Fu Panda, Lucy Liu, Mark Randolph Osborne, Seth Rogen

Enthusiastic, big and a little clumsy, Po is the biggest fan of Kung Fu around…which doesn’t exactly come in handy while working every day in his family’s noodle shop. Unexpectedly chosen to fulfill an ancient prophecy, Po’s dreams become reality when he joins the world of Kung Fu and studies alongside his idols, the legendary Furious Five — Tigress, Crane, Mantis, Viper and Monkey — under the leadership of their guru, Master Shifu. But before they know it, the vengeful and treacherous snow leopard Tai Lung is headed their way, and it’s up to Po to defend everyone from the oncoming threat. Can he turn his dreams of becoming a Kung Fu master into reality? Po puts his heart – and his girth – into the task, and the unlikely hero ultimately finds that his greatest weaknesses turn out to be his greatest strengths.

Election Featured Gay Issues Places Politics Society Tampa

Enough is Enough – The Fallout From The Gay Marriage Vote

November 17, 2008November 17, 2008 John Amendment 2, Civil Rights, Equality Florida, HRC, Kevin Beckner, Linda Saul-Sena, Marriage, Proposition 8, Stop the H8, Undo 2

Maybe, finally gay people have decided that enough is enough when it comes to having second-class citizenship foisted upon us by krazy kristian kooks. Across the country Saturday were a series of rallies decrying the enactment of three marriage amendments on election day which enshrine discrimination in the Constitutions of Florida, Arizona and California. As angry as we may all be, we should not be surprised at the outcome. There is no leadership within the gay community, and practically no community left anyways. The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) has become a parody, and while I respect the work done by Equality Florida, they too have been totally ineffective. So let’s take a look at what happened, and think about what comes next.

Congress Election Featured Gay Issues Politics Presidency Religion Right Wingnuts Society Technology War

2008 Election Wrap-up

November 10, 2008November 10, 2008 John Campaigns, Democracy, Democrats, mccain, Obama, Palin, republicans, Right Wingnuts, voters, voting

Last Tuesday night/Wednesday morning was certainly a bittersweet time. As I’ve said before, I’m not one of the millions of Obama-maniacs, but I was glad he won. I think America will soon be in far better hands than she is now. I was even more pleased to see a good number of hateful and bigoted Republicans kicked to curb, and their nasty campaign rhetoric repudiated. Obviously though, the passage of the three anti-marriage amendments was a great disappointment. In this post, I’ll provide my observations on where we are now relative to the election.