An Open Source Insight

I love older women

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 15:34:00 +0000

Happy birthday babe.

The end of The Bob?

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 02:30:00 +0000

Since I don't check up on the local happenings that much since we moved out east, I miss some pretty big announcements. Like the one about the new West Haymarket Arena.

I know that you need to have the latest and greatest facilities to attract fans and new recruits, but how can you get rid of The Bob? Just think of what kind of horrible experience the college kids will have when they camp out and wait for the Kansas game a day early. They need to earn that front row seat by standing on freezing concrete for 20+ hours and listening to people like Holbein call up the Embassy Suites at 3am and asking for "Jeffrey Graves." When the hotel operator actually patched him through, you just heard him yelling "All night long Graves. ALLLLL NIGHHTTTTT LONGGGG!!!!!"

I'm sure they'll still camp out, but with people cutting out of line to grab some fries at Lazlo's, it won't be the same. It won't be the same at all.

But, in the long run, if this can attract more recruits and start dumping bodies in the seats, then I'm all for it. Just as long as gma, mom and dad don't lose their killer seats. There's nothing like going to a game and listening to Matt Davidson tell you about which bars he's planning to hit up when he's done chatting it up with Kent Pavelka. (Yes, if you click that link, that's me in the background of the 2nd picture wearing my "Nebraska Engineering" shirt. I couldn't be more proud to make Kent's professional website)

A post-election day picture

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 21:24:00 +0000

I took this in the old market right before I left Omaha. I was extremely surprised to see such liberal postings in such a conservative state. Either way, I thought it was a great flyer and couldn't think of any other time to post it.

Enjoy.

Boo!

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 18:48:00 +0000

Today's blog title will be used as a double entendre:

1. "Boo!" - Used to express contempt or disapprobation or to startle or frighten. Christi and I carved out the pumpkin above last night in preparation of kids coming over tonight. We're happy we're finally together and not in an apartment on Halloween this year.

2. "Boo!" - Used as an exclamation of contempt or disapproval. Every year on Halloween I redesign and launch (or try) a new version of my website. As with last year, it looks like it's going to come a little late. There is a reason though. It's a complete overhaul and has much improved functionality and development techniques.

Since I won't be able to put everything up tonight, here's a sneak peak until it goes up.

Best costume ever

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 00:57:00 +0000

I received this in my email this morning from Ponec and haven't stopped laughing since.

Enjoy.

No posts in a while

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 00:56:00 +0000

I'm very sorry for the lack of posts on here. With the new job, moving into a new place and concentrating my time on the new look for this site, I really haven't spent much time writing anything. In short, here's what's been going on in the past few weeks:

Donna came to visit us and brought Beth along as a nice surprise that we weren't expecting. We had a great few day with them while they were here. On their full first day in town, they came to work to take the official tour at ESPN. What was supposed to be a 30 minute tour took around 1.45 to finish. We were lucky enough to have Doug Flutie and John Saunders shooting a promo on the football field in the middle of campus. We watched from the production room and saw how they make all of the calls down to them and how they shoot each segment. From there, we continued on and eventually made our way to the large wall that houses all of the Emmy awards. While there, Doug walks right past our group and says hi to everyone. It seemed, at the time, that the tour guide and myself were the only people who recognized who he was.

When we got home, I asked Christi if she knew who the guy in the college football promo and the guy who said hi was. She said, "Of course I do." Not believing in her mid-80s college football knowledge, I said, "OK, who was it?"

"What is it? Doug Flutes?"
"That's close enough. His last name is Flutie. Do you know what team he played on?"
"Yeah. Boston college."
"Alright, good. What's he known for?"
"A long touchdown pass at the end of a game."
(at this point I was completely impressed, but I pushed further)
"I'm impressed. Here's your trivia question: what team did he beat with the hail mary?"
"Florida? ... no, a team from Florida ... like Miami."

At this point, she confirmed to me once again that we made the right move to travel half way across the country to give me an opportunity with ESPN.

So, like I was saying, we had a great time with Donna and Beth. They came a few days after we moved into our new place. We finally have it organized the way we want it and now are beginning to put up a few Halloween decorations.

I still owe a ton of people pictures, so those will be coming very shortly. I was going to do it today, but Christi said the house wasn't clean enough. Personally, I think the place looks great, but I have to go now and pick some stuff up so we can take pictures. Soon. Very soon. I promise.

'Watching' the NU-TTU game ... 79 texts at a time

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 13:48:00 +0000

We moved into our rental house on Saturday. Let's just say it is nice to finally get out of the hotel and get all of our stuff back. The only downside about the move is that it took place during the game and we didn't (and still don't) have internet or cable. So how do you watch a Husker game when you can't watch it? You have a few friends send you text messages every minute or so.

Before we get into that, here's something that happened before the movers arrived: Christi and I went out to stock up the fridge and get some last second things to keep ourselves organized. As we were taught (or grew accustom to) as we grew up, we were wearing our red proudly on Saturday. I believe we were looking at seasoned chickens when someone approached us. Her name was Marci and she graduated from UNK. She said she wouldn't have come up if she didn't see us wearing red. She did, however, notice our Jeep (with NE plates) in the parking lot and left a note under our windshield. You just have to love Husker fans outside of Nebraska (and inside). Ok, I digress, back to our story at hand ...

As you can see in the title, I received 79 texts, 5 phone calls and 1 voicemail (from mom when we tied it with seconds to go) during the game so I knew what was going on. There were times where I felt I would've known more about the game by reading my texts than if I were actually watching it live. Here's some brief highlights in case you were wondering how specific things were:

2.14 30mph winds and tstorms in Lubbock today!!!!! (via Ponec)
3.11 TT to get the ball, returns it to the 32 (via Ponec)
3.15 Tech runs for a first down, then we hold them 3 and out !!!!!!!! Graham Harrell is 0-3 (via Ponec)
3.28 We've been tackling well...but 3rd and 7, we sell out blitz, then run a slip screen to crabtree....7-0 TT (via Ponec)
3.29 Untouched....we brought 9 on the blitz (via Ponec)
3.49 F***ing right b****....another 3rd down conversion inside the 5. Next play TD CASTILLE!!! 15 PLAYS, 74 YARDS, 8:03!!!! That's how u do it (via Ponec)
3.50 Strike up the f***in band (via Urban)
4.25 17-7 at the half (via Ponec)
4.26 Bo's thoughts on the 1st half 'NOT GOOD ENOUGH' and ran off (via Ponec)
5.43 TD DREU YOUNG!!!!!!! 24-24 (via Ponec)
5.44 Band...u know what to do (via Urban)
5.46 If we win im streaking (via Urban)
5.56 QB sneak....TD Tech. 2:21 left. We'll score again, guarantee that (via Ponec)
6.03 Inside the 30!!!! Backtoback passes to Todd (via Ponec)
6.05 [Call from Ponec letting me know we scored to tie the game]
6.05 [While on the phone w/ Ponec, mom calls to say 'We just scored to tie it!!!! GOOOOOOOOO BIGGGGGGGGG REDDDDDDDDD]
6.13 TT starts w the ball, first play goes 24 yards, delay of game (via Ponec)
6.15 TD on an end around, PAT is no good!!!!!!! (via Ponec)
6.17 Pick by Ganz...ballgame (via Ponec)
6.20 Did that just happen? (via Urban)
6.20 Was hit as he threw the ball...this is the type of game teams win to change the tide of a program....f*** (via Ponec)
6.24 Well at least we didn't get our ass kicked...we would have a good team if we had a defense that had half a clue (via Urban)

That was the condensed version (28% of the texts I received). Ponec was actually showing off his football knowledge as he was telling me what types of routes the receivers were running and everything. If he would've pulled a Jim Rose and told me what color of pants our guys had on, I could've visualized the game perfectly.

Thanks to everyone keeping me in the loop.

Pictures to come when we receive a visit from Comcast.

Eight Great Years

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 19:30:00 +0000

Today is the golden anniversary of when Christi and I started going out. It's crazy to think that we've spent 1/3 of our lives together.

Feast your eyes on this awesome picture on how it all started. Good thing she stuck with me long enough to teach me how to dress ...

A long way to go

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:59:00 +0000

No matter how pumped people are that Callahan & Co. are gone or that Bo is the new head coach, Husker nation needs to get a reality grip on one thing. Nebraska football still has a long way to go until it's a national powerhouse.

Watching the Missouri game a few nights ago humbled me to how good the team really is this year. Missouri scored on all but two possessions Saturday night. Those two were a 59 yd. FG attempt as time expired in the first half and running the ball up the middle on 4th & 4 with a few minutes left in the 4th quarter so they wouldn't run up the score anymore than it aleady was (which was nice considering they converted a fake field goal to a TD last year while up 34-6 in the 4th).

This means that Nebraska really didn't stop Missouri. Ever. I know Bo doesn't have his players yet and that Missouri has one of the best offenses in the nation, but that's a pretty big problem. Looking down the schedule doesn't make you feel any better with Texas Tech and Oklahoma looming in the next few weeks. It'll be quite a challenge to get the D in full gear to pick up 7 wins (or more) before December rolls around.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a Husker fan through and through, and there will be nothing stopping me from believing that we can go into Lubbock and pull off an upset, but sometimes you have to put things into perspective. My dad once told me that you can't get too mad after a loss. He said that they're just a bunch of 18 and 19 year olds running around. When you think about it like that, it makes it a lot easier to go to bed after the Tigers put together an absolute show at Memorial Stadium.

Stan's 1st Birthday

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 02:01:00 +0000

Yesterday, our little guy turned 1. It's sure hard to believe that since he's 75+ lbs. and is still as hyper as the day we got him. Although, with Christi working from home now (and Stan not being in the kennel), he has been going to bed a lot earlier. He's growing up and going into the bedroom to sleep without us now.

Anyways, for his birthday, we got him a brand new toy and a nice bone that took him most of the night to demolish. We planning on going all out and buying him a dog birthday cake and stuff like that, but that whole job/moving thing hindered our plans recently.

See pictures of Stan's birthday click here and to see the West Hartford Reservoir that he took us to, click here.

First day at ESPN

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 11:17:00 +0000

ESPN is everything I thought it would be ... and so much more. Today is round 2 of Rookie Camp, and then I'll get thrown into the fire and actually start working instead of watching killer company videos and seeing Mike Greenberg walk down the hallways.

I must have made a good impression because they let me know upon my arrival that they would be airing the Nebraska - Missouri game on their network just for me (and maybe for a few Mizzou fans working there). It'll start at 9.00pm our time, but you have to give and take.

I'm still holding my breath that they give us the NU-Va Tech game instead of watching Penn State this upcoming Saturday. I'll see if I can find the guys in charge of regional coverage today and put my two cents in ...

More room for Stanley

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 14:39:00 +0000

Since we can't take our stuff out of storage until our temporary housing is up, or we find a place to live, we had to bring everything we needed for our first 45 days with us in our Jeep. That didn't leave us, or Stanley, too much room.

To make up cramped sleeping spaces to our dog, we found a very nice place to rent in West Hartford yesterday. We'll be living on the entire first floor of a home that was built prior to the Civil War (in the 1850s). We'll sign a lease early next week and probably move in around the 11^th. At that point, we'll be sure to take some pictures and post them up here.

Speaking of pictures, I finally had a chance to post some pictures of when we left Omaha. Those can be seen here. With this, I now have 3 different Flatiron buildings (NYC, Denver and Omaha) in my picture collections. I'll see if I can find another one out here.

We made it to Connecticut ... Eventually

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 00:33:00 +0000

Our two day journey started Monday morning, and we arrived in Connecticut late Tuesday night. Both days gave us some traffic obstacles, so it feels good to finally walk around and not feel like we're trapped in the Jeep. Stanley thanks us for that as well.

During our trip, I took some pictures (the best I could) of something from each state that we went through. Nebraska doesn't get one since we were only in it for 20 minutes and Connecticut doesn't either since it was pitch black out when we arrived.

Driving through the state of Iowa might be the 2^nd most boring drive in the country. Behind Eastern Colorado/Western Nebraska, of course. It's just a monotonous boring where it seems the scenery never changes.

I've never seen so many "Wide Load" trucks in one state before. There were make-shift houses and long flatbeds as far as the eye can see. The only cool ones that we saw were six trucks carrying the arms for the large wind powered windmills. I've never seen that up close before, so it was cool to get a perspective on how big each one of the arms really is.

Illinois welcomed us by being the only state where unleaded fuel was more expensive than diesel. The strange fuel prices were an indicator of how our drive would fare throughout the state.

We made it five miles from the Indiana border with no problems at all ... then we entered the toll road. It was 4.40 when we payed our $0.60 and knew that we would be in Fort Wayne, IN by 7.30 or so to have dinner with Jared and Tesa. Little did we know, we would still be in Illinois at that time. Right as we payed our fare, we came to a complete stop on the other side. Five lanes of traffic were merging into one lane to ironically merge onto the five lane Interstate.

Because of Hurricane Ike flooding the Interstate and major Highways near Gary, In, the DOT was merging all of the traffic south. It took us seven hours to move seven miles. If you actually think about that, we sat in our car and did not move for a very long time. There were 20-30 minute stretches where we didn't move. We didn't even creep forward a few inches.

After we made it south to Hwy 30, the Jeep's speedometer finally hit double digits and we crept to a normal pace to complete the rest of our journey. Jared and Tesa couldn't have opened their home and their hearts more to us as they allowed us to stumble in at 2.30 in the morning. After 19 straight hours driving (which is not a personal best), I was ready to crash ... even if it was for only five hours.

We woke up Tuesday morning, showered and let Stanley hang out with someone other than us. After driving the graveyard shift to get to their house, we didn't have too much time left until we arrived in Ohio.

Since we didn't go through any major cities (and by major cities, I mean the two which house MLB teams), the drive wasn't anything special. Akron was the only major city to break up the same view that we had through the state. I was disappointed that in our only fuel up in the state, they discriminated against the two dollar bill.

After taking an unexpected detour by going on the wrong highway, we finally got our bearings straight and headed towards Pennsylvania. We can't thank mom and dad enough for lending an atlas to us for our drive. With our Google Map/Mapquest generation, I had two pieces of paper with directions to get out there, but never thought about what would happen if we went off course. We ended up using the atlas more than we thought and it really helped us pace our journey.

My body finally told me that I needed to stop driving and catch up on some sleep. I decided to listen and Stan and I took a nap while Christi took over the wheel. After a few hours of sleep, I awoke to the most beautiful and scenic drive that I've ever been on. Whomever designed the interstate system through Pennsylvania should receive an award, or a pat on the back at the very least.

Until we entered New York, there was never a moment where we weren't amazed by the surroundings.

New York wasn't much. It was getting dark and we passed through the state in about an hour. Having been to NYC before, we feel that we have already experience a lot that the state has to offer.

Once we got to Connecticut, we thought our trip was finally over. We were then greeted by another toll road and more road construction which backed up traffic (and our trip) for an hour. Finally, we made it to Farmington and were able to unload our Jeep and get as settled as we could.

Tomorrow we are traveling around the surrounding areas in search for a place to live. Our temporary housing is nice, but we already can't wait until we can unload all of our boxes and have our belongings returned to us.

The house is packed, sold.

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 18:58:00 +0000

A year ago today, we drove the UHaul from Colorado and moved back to Nebraska. Our intention was to move back and stay here for a long time. But, as many of you know, those plans have changed. Tomorrow, 366 days from the last state we were in, we'll start up the Jeep and begin our journey out east. We'll make a stop in Fort Wayne, In to crash at my cousin Jared's house and then drive into Connecticut on Tuesday.

We'll have a camera and computer when we get there, so if there are any interesting stories or things we saw along the way, I'll try to get them up when I get into town.

The amazing news about our move is that we sold our house a few days ago. Our realtor was absolutely amazing and we sold it in about a month since we first put it up on the market. Not too bad considering the crazy market that we're in.

Work at ESPN starts on Monday, so I'll try to get a few posts in while I can. We'll miss everyone here, but will be excited about the new journey ahead ...

On the things I'll truly miss

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 14:14:00 +0000

Husker Football
I know UConn has an up and coming football team, but nothing will compare to game days in Lincoln. I'll definitely miss the atmosphere and will have to strategically plan trips back to Nebraska while the Huskers have a home game. Luckily enough, going to game is something that I have grown accustom to, and now I'll be one of those poor saps shelling out $30 per weekend to see if I can watch the game from our house (per wife's approval, obviously).

The Hospitality
Two weekends ago, the good state of Nebraska reminded me one of the main reasons that we moved away from the upscale people near Aspen. First, Christi and I have been trying to go out to a lot of the local places that we will miss. On Sunday, we went to Lazlo's and let the waitress know up front that we had nothing planned for the night and that we wanted a nice relaxing night. No worries on how fast the food comes out or how many times she comes to the table. So we order and wait, and wait and wait some more. But, we're in no big rush. All the sudden, our main entrees come out before our appetizer. We remind them it's no big deal, and our correct order came out a few minutes later. Once we were done with that and our meal came out again and we began to eat. Half way through, the manager comes out and apologizes many times over for how we were treated during our stay there. He said our meal was on the house and to have a wonderful night. Regardless to say, our waitress received a nice tip for the night.

The next day, on Labor Day, I went back to Seward to golf with Dad and clean my room (finally) for mom. Dad and I played 18 holes, had 6 beers and bought a bag of range balls to straighten out my drives. Total cost? 22 Dollars. You've gotta love small town USA. Cheap golf and the 4^th of July won't be the same out on the east coast.

Cheap Gas?
Looking at some stuff online, and my short experience out there, Connecticut is always one of the national leaders for gas prices. When I went out, gas was between 50-60 cents higher than Omaha. It'll be weird to say that I miss gas that costs $3.50 per gallon. But then again with Christi working at home, and having my drive time shorter than it is here, we'll actually save a ton of money (and miles on our cars) while we're out there.

The house on Dewey Circle
When we moved back (less than a year ago), we found an amazing house in a down market and got an absolute steal on it. It would have been an amazing investment ... if we lived there for the next five to ten years. Regardless, the wife and I will miss our 3,500 sq. ft. and will have to realize we won't find something with half the size for the same price (or more). Also, Stanley will definitely miss the yard that he grew up in. How many other yards will he be able to kill babby bunnies (yes, that just happened) and then eat tomatoes out of our garden (probably to get rid of the taste of the fur)?

Friends and Family
Family and close friends, as well as the Glenwood Springs Target store being horrible, are the reasons that we are where we are right now. We could have chosen to stay in Colorado or venture out somewhere else, but having great friends near us and being able to see our family whenever we wanted were reasons enough to make the short trek back to the home state. We are also fully aware that the Sunday night dinners that we plan to put on out there will in no way match the ones that we're used to at gma's house.

On Sweet Logos

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 22:22:00 +0000

Last night I came across two very nice logos. Both got their point across, and both added a subtle touch to set them apart.

First, I picked up my tux for Ben's wedding and saw how awesome the MW Tux logo is. I went a few weeks early to buy a new suit for my ESPN interview and got fitted for the wedding at that time. I'm not sure why, but I never checked out the logo.

Later on that night, I was working on the TrailRunner site, and saw the Five.Ten logo. I'm sure I saw it every single day I worked out in Colorado, but after recognizing the MW Tux logo, I think I was in a mindset to truly appreciate how much time graphic designers dump into things like this.

So with that, here are two absolutely beautiful logos. I'll see what I can do about the "BH" when I redesign in a few months.

Let's Get Going

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 18:33:00 +0000

A Humbling Experience

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 17:35:00 +0000

I just got back golfing with Ben and Ponec where I drove a Par 4 within six inches of the hole ... then missed the eagle putt. Most people would be disappointed, but I'm happy to land the birdie whenever I can.

One of these things ...

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 15:35:00 +0000

... is quite like the other:

In the realm of web design and web development, there is generally one rule: don't copy someone else's site. First off it's illegal and secondly, it's a quick way to get your name banned in the industry.

I've heard that imitation is the highest form of flattery, but you hate to see so much of this floating around the internet. I usually see sites that find people who copy the look and code from others, but I stumbled upon these on my own. I've kept the site on the left (buzzgraphics.co.uk) on a long list of sites that I bookmark and look at for design inspiration. Then, about a week ago, I found the site on the right (meiio.se).

I emailed both parties and tried to look at www.archive.org and recent DNS changes to see who the guilty party is, but couldn't come up with any solid proof either way.

Needless to say, don't copy and paste someone's site.

Gma is amazing

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 19:04:00 +0000

As we were sitting at Sunday night dinner, grandma starts talking about the Wii. About how she wants a Wii. Quickly. So last night, her and Robert were supposed to take a trip into Lincoln to pick one out and bring it back to the cabin to set up.

I just kept thinking how cool it is that my grandma wanted one to play. There was no influence from any of the grand kids (or regular kids for that matter) on whether she should buy one or not. It was completely her call.

I know we'll be heading out soon and will miss the regular Sunday night dinners, but now we may miss them for an entirely different reason. Way to go grandma. Way to go.

The Helge's are moving ... again

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 14:55:00 +0000

Less than a year since we came back to Omaha, the Wife and I will be pulling up our stakes and trying out the northeast territories. Our nomadic traveling across the country has become a common feat before the Holiday times roll around. This will mark the third straight year that I will pack up my belongings and move before Christmas.

So why are we doing this and where are we going? We'll be heading out to Connecticut (Bristol/Hartford area) so I can start a career with ESPN. Yes, that ESPN.

I'll be working on ESPN.com as a front-end web developer, starting in the middle of September. Christi will still be working for Alegent, doing everything from her phone and the internet. As for Stan? Well, he seems to be pumped up to go out and do something different. I don't think he knows exactly what's going on yet, but he's getting extremely curious with all of the cardboard boxes floating around.

It'll be tough to leave behind all of the family and friends that we returned to see, but this will be a career opportunity of lifetime and we're hoping to be out there for quite a while.

The best part was that they were extremely flexible with my starting date. I told them I had some weddings to attend and a few Husker football games to see, and they said they would've stuck around to get those in as well.

So if anyone knows someone that needs some furniture (or wants to purchase our house), let us know.

The Chinese don't lie

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 01:41:00 +0000

Details soon. I promise.

Oh so close ...

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 16:16:00 +0000

Greg Norman was the greatest ~~golfing~~ sporting story this past weekend. It will be one of the best stories for the rest of the year leading into April of 2009.

With his top four finish (after another final day collapse), he sealed himself a spot for the Masters in Augusta next April. I've been a Greg Norman fan ever since I was young and I was glued to the TV this weekend watching him back in top form. You always have to cheer on the underdog, but for what Greg has gone through in his professional career, you hoped even more that he could hoist the Claret Jug one last time.

No matter what happens next year, he'll definitely be a headliner and will be great publicity for the game of golf. Collapse or not, the fans will love to have him back. Getting to watch him again this weekend reminded me what he stood for all of those years ago. From Bob Tway's bunker shot to Faldo's comeback, Norman reminds us all why he's been so beloved: He's a true sportsman that can lose with grace.

Jack or Heath?

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 03:48:00 +0000

Christi and I saw The Dark Knight this evening, so it gives me a chance to weigh in on a question I've been waiting to answer: Does Jack or Heath play a better Joker?

As kids, Erica and I used to pop in the original Batman movie at least a handful of times every year. From watching it so often, you become familiar with a role and the person who plays it.

Before I begin, anyone who sees this movie has to be saddened by the untimely death of Heath Ledger. His acting was absolutely amazing and it is uncanny to think that someone could look at a character and portray it in such a sick, sadistic, but somehow very believable manner. Christi brought up an excellent point that during the whole movie, you never thought it was actually Heath up there, and you bought into the portrayal. Since this is a new darker Batman movie, Heath played the Joker perfectly. Every time that he came on screen, it was an enjoyable part that kept your attention to the fullest.

All in all, I still liked Jack a little bit better. It's tough since both of them did such a good job in the eras that their movies were shot. I think the only reason I put Jack above is because of the laugh. I'm not a huge Batman fan by any means, but there was the way he laughed throughout the entire movie made the character come to life. Plus, Jack's just a crazy enough guy to be the ideal actor to play the part.

The Dark Knight is one of the best all around movies that I've seen in quite some time. From Heath's Oscar winning performance (should be a given) to hearing Christian Bale try to talk as low as Hal Douglas, watching this movie should be on everyone's to-do list before the end of the year.

Our Resilient Dog

noreply@blogger.com (brianhelge) — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 01:52:00 +0000

Above is a clip of Stanley ... 15 minutes after we turned the sprinkler on. No matter if we're watering the garden or washing our cars, anytime that he sees water, he tries to attack it until he wears himself out.

For more Stanley online, I finally got around to posting some pictures of him.