Edge of Tomorrow, In the News, and Enjoy

Edge of Tomorrow - Edge of Tomorrow is a strange movie.

An officer (Tom Cruise) finds himself caught in a time loop in a war with the alien race. His skills increase as he faces the same brutal combat scenarios, and his union with a Special Forces warrior (Emily Blunt) gets him closer to defeating the enemy.

I am not a fan of Tom Cruise. I enjoy the Mission Impossible movies, but they are fantasies, and I accept them as pure entertainment.

Edge of Tomorrow is fantasy, certainly, but Cruise's acting goes well beyond fantasy and slips into low comedy often. I cannot refrain from imagining another actor in the role and how much the movie would benefit from that.

Emily Blunt's performance is excellent, and Bill Paxton's portrayal of Master Sergeant Farell is outstanding.

IMDB gives the movie a rating of 8.1. I would rate it 8.1 quickly, were another actor in the lead role. As it is, I rate it 6.0.

This is not to suggest that I do not recommend the movie. I do! If you enjoy action and special effects as I do, the movie will not disappoint you.

In the News - They walk among us!

NYC Mailman Hoarded 40,000 Pieces of Undelivered Mail in His Home, Car, Locker

Struggling U.S. Postal Service Wants to Deliver Groceries

Man Charged with Smuggling 51 Turtles in His Sweatpants

U.S. Military to Allow Undocumented Immigrants to Serve

Uber Driver in Orlando Arrested for Groping Passenger

Enjoy - Relax and enjoy these images and videos!

They're Not Here!, 'Tis the Season, -and- Come Fly with Me

They're Not Here! - alien ad campaign angers New Mexico tourism officials
'Tis the Season - Americans fed up with "Happy Holidays"
Come Fly with Me - regional airlines lower bar for pilots

On this day in history: November 26, 1975 - Manson family member Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme found guilty of attempting to assassinate President Ford.

Born on this day in history: November 26, 1938 - Tina Turner (1938 - ____) singer. She won Grammys for "Proud Mary," 1972 and "What's Love Got to Do With It?," 1984.

Scripture of the Day: "Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe." (Hebrews 12:28)

Video of the Day: Laser Cats - submitted by Phillip

I hope that everyone had a festive and safe Thanksgiving. The weather here was beautiful throughout Thanksgiving and the weekend. Mornings were cool, but the sun was bright, the sky was clear, and the days were warm and wonderful.

Laura and I attended a candlelight Thanksgiving service at Harvest Christian Center Wednesday evening. It was an awesome experience.

Following the candlelight Thanksgiving service, we dined upon a 10-topping Freschetta pizza and retired early.

Thursday morning, we made preparations for Thanksgiving dinner. I poached two large bundles of asparagus and placed in the refrigerator to chill. I sliced a loaf of garlic sourdough bread into cubes and toasted in the oven. I sautéed two medium white onions, two heads of peeled and chopped garlic, six diced Jalapeños, a diced red bell pepper, four large sliced white mushrooms, three sliced celery stalks, and seasonings in extra-virgin olive oil. Laura tended to this as I drained two jars of Pacific oysters. Laura added the oysters to the sauté pan and broke them apart with wooden spoons. Laura then added a large package of baby spinach to the sauté pan and continued to tend it. I took the toasted sourdough cubes from the oven and placed them in a large stainless-steel bowl. Laura added the contents of the sauté pan and a can of chicken stock and stirred the dressing. She then placed it in a large Pyrex baking dish, covered with aluminum foil, and placed in the refrigerator. She did a spicy dry rub on a 5-pound turkey breast. I roasted the turkey breast at 350 degrees for one hour, uncovered, in a roasting pan. I placed an aluminum foil tent over the turkey and continued to roast for another two hours at 225 degrees. When the turkey was done, I removed it from the oven, covered with the aluminum foil, and allowed it to rest while I baked the oyster dressing for 30 minutes at 300 degrees. I sliced the turkey breast, removed the asparagus from the refrigerator and placed it on the dining table, along with the sliced turkey breast, oyster dressing, a pot of turkey gravy, and a bowl of cranberry sauce. The meal was delightful. Champagne accompanied the food.

Friday evening, we revisited the Thanksgiving meal—without the asparagus, which had been fully devoured on Thanksgiving.

Saturday morning, I made baked cubed white potatoes, sliced white onion, a head of whole, peeled garlic cloves, and two sliced Jalapeños in the microwave oven in a Pyrex baking dish for eight minutes. I removed this from the microwave, seasoned with sea salt, ground black pepper, and Cajun seasoning, cracked six jumbo eggs and arranged them on top, and baked in the conventional oven for twenty minutes at 400 degrees. Laura grated some medium cheddar cheese and distributed it atop the food when I removed it from the oven. It was a delightful meal.

For dinner Saturday evening, Laura made chicken enchiladas—using the four leftover chicken breasts I had grilled earlier in the week. I made a fresh salsa with diced Roma tomato and diced Jalapeño. It was a wonderful meal. Five enchiladas remain and shall be our dinner on Wednesday, following Bible class at Harvest Christian Center.

Sunday, I grilled a large tri-tip and made a casserole of steamed white potatoes, cauliflower, broccoli, and baby carrots. We enjoyed this with an extraordinary Woodbridge Zinfandel.

Now, it is Monday, and it is time to toil once again!

Grave Injustice, They're Here!, -and- The Unfriendly Skies

Grave Injustice - German crematorium employee stole gold fillings from the dead
They're Here! - Shirley MacLaine cheers Kucinich's UFO-moment
The Unfriendly Skies - planes underfueled to lighten load, save money

On this day in history: November 9, 1997 - Michael Paul Lookinland, aka "Bobby" from the Brady Bunch, charged with drunk driving in St. George, Utah. With a BAL of 0.258, the 36 year old former child star was very drunk.

Born on this day in history: November 9, 1935 - Bob Gibson (1935 - ____) baseball player. He pitched a record thirty-one strike-outs in the 1964 World Series; won the Cy Young Award in 1968, 1970; inducted into Baseball Hall of Fame, 1981

Scripture of the Day: "'Come now, let us reason together,' says the LORD. 'Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.'" (Isaiah 1:18)

Video of the Day: Lightning Tokyo - submitted by Amber

Jalapeños! Here is a photograph I took a few years ago of some Jalapeño
peppers I had just cleaned with my Spyderco knife. I generally do not
remove seeds and membranes, but I was preparing a batch of salsa to be
shared with people who had a low tolerance to heat. Click to enlarge.

Recommended Site: Corning California Net - A free forum for Corning, California!

Recommended Site: Nikon Photographer - A free forum for all photographers (NOT just Nikon users!) and anyone interested in photography!

Photographs from Harvest Festival at Harvest Christian Center will be available for your viewing pleasure by 11 AM this morning. From the Local Events Photo Gallery link below the visitor counter, choose Harvest Festival. Enjoy!

To Serve and Protect, Call Jenny, -and- Just Say No

To Serve and Protect - deputies flatten tires on wrong cars
Call Jenny - Santa told to slim down for Christmas
Just Say No - passengers revolt after being told to fly on jet with its wing tip missing

On this day in history: November 5, 1975 - Logger Travis Walton is abducted by aliens near Snowflake, Arizona and is missing for five days. Aliens performed "various experiments" on the abductee. Walton finds the experience immensely lucrative as his experiences are chronicled in the mediocre book Fire in the Sky and a very bad film by Paramount.

Born on this day in history: November 5, 1926 -
John Berger (1926 - ____) painter, teacher, art critic. He began his career as a painter and teacher of drawing; became art critic for the "Tribune," and "New Statesman."

Scripture of the Day: "This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, who give their full time to governing." (Romans 13:6)

Video of the Day: History of LOL Cats - submitted by Chris

Recommended Site: Corning California Net - A free forum for Corning, California!

Recommended Site: Nikon Photographer - A free forum for all photographers (NOT just Nikon users!) and anyone interested in photography!

Friday evening, we had a Red Baron Special Deluxe pizza. I chopped two large Jalapeño peppers, and Laura sprinkled them atop the pizza prior to cooking it. These pizzas have been on sale at Sav-Mor Foods of late for less than $3.00 each!

Saturday morning, I made a delightful brunch: I sliced grilled London broil into thin pieces and sautéed in extra-virgin olive oil, with sliced red onion, minced garlic, and sliced Jalapeño peppers. I seasoned with sea salt, ground black pepper, and Red Monkey Cajun Spice. When the onions were caramelized, I added eight beaten eggs, stirring as the mixture cooked. Laura grated some cheddar cheese. When the eggs were done, I warmed some large flour tortillas, and we made breakfast burritos. They were wonderful.

Saturday evening, one of my brothers came to dinner. I made a pasta salad, with rigatoni, red bell pepper, fresh cilantro, garbanzo beans, kidney beans, celery, red onion, pear tomatoes, extra-virgin olive oil, rice wine vinegar, fresh lemon juice, sea salt, ground black pepper, and Red Monkey Lemon Pepper Spice. Laura grilled pork loin chops and Johnsonville Italian sausages. I made two dipping sauces—one mild, for my brother, and one very spicy, for Laura and me. It was a delightful dinner.

Sunday—following service at Harvest Christian Center—we had the leftovers from Saturday's brunch. Instead of tortillas, we used Mission tortilla chips and Casa Lupe salsa. It was excellent.

For dinner Sunday evening, I made a marinade with extra-virgin olive oil, rice wine vinegar, minced garlic, grated ginger, sea salt, cumin, and Red Monkey Lemon Pepper Spice. Laura cleaned and marinated eight large Tyson boneless, skinless chicken breasts. She grilled the chicken, red potatoes, huge white mushrooms, and large Jalapeño peppers. It was a wonderful meal. Some of the leftover chicken will find its way into the leftover pasta salad and be enjoyed after Bible class on Wednesday.

Homos on the Range, Alien Nation, -and- Brave New Schools

Homos on the Range - "gay" cowboy love scenes traumatize schoolgirl
Alien Nation - Travolta leads attack on BBS exposé of Scientology
Brave New Schools - convicted prostitutes becoming teachers?

On this day in history: May 14, 1976 - Keith Relf, former vocalist of the Yardbirds, is electrocuted in his London home while playing a guitar in the bathtub.

Born on this day in history: May 14, 1944 - George Lucas (1944 - ____) film director. His films include "Star Wars," 1977; "The Empire Strikes Back," 1980; and "The Return of the Jedi," 1983.

Today's Video: 1968 Dodge Charger R/T in Action

VIDEOS: The videos are now available via the link "Amazing and Amusing Videos" in the Links section, below the visitor counter.

May Madness, Corning's annual car show, was a great success. The burnout competition—held in front of the police station!—was, as always, a popular event.

Mr. Nitro took us to Chico on Sunday. He has less than 400 miles on his odometer, so he was excited by the opportunity to go for a journey. His gas mileage average for the trip—including some city driving—was 20.9 mpg. I thought this was particularly good, given his newness.

Here is a photograph of Mr. Nitro, freshly bathed and awaiting the journey, and gleefully displaying his new license plates. Click to enlarge.