Missyisms

Dancing with Beyonce

This is too funny. They won't let the video be embedded, so you'll have to follow the link to see Shane dance with Beyonce. I'm so out of it, this is the first time I've heard the song, even though I've heard the title mentioned a few times. So, go. Have a laugh and dance with Shane.

Shadowing A Wonderful World

OK, this just needs to be shared. I've seen it on a few blogs, maybe you have also. Watch. Trust me. It's Wonderful.

You know what's great about blogging these things...it's not just sharing, but it's getting to come back and see it again when I want to, because it's in my blog where I can find it. Kewl.

iPod iScmod

Lately when I listen to music on my computer using iTunes, I'm getting a lot of skips and bounces during the songs. It's very, very, very annoying. I'm not sure what is causing this. Is anyone else having this problem?

I'm not sure if this started when I downloaded the first of version 7 of iTunes or when I had to replace my hard disk. iTunes just keeps getting bigger and bigger, requiring more system resources. So I'm not sure if it's causing the problem because iTunes is conflicting with or hogging resources from other software open at the same time. Maybe it isn't the software, but the new hard disk in my computer. It's a new drive to my computer, but I think they sent me a re-manufactured disk to replace the one that crashed. This could be a sign of problems...so I hope that isn't the issue. Maybe I don't have enough virtual memory set aside. Any thoughts?

So, anyhoo, if I want to listen to music while I'm working, I've been using an MP3 player attached to speakers. This is just fine except I like to set the player to shuffle and it keeps playing the audiobooks I have on the player. All MP3 players I've seen have a "section" for audiobooks, but apparently that's only for downloaded audiobooks. If you rip audiobooks from CDs, they go into the music "section." So when I play music in shuffle mode, the MP3 player shuffles in the audiobook chapters. Are you with me?

I can't listen to audiobooks and work at the same time, but I can listen to music and work*. So when the player keeps playing audiobook chapters, I have to take my hands off the keyboard and push something on the player to make it skip to the next shuffled track...sometimes the player attempts to play several audiobook chapters at a time. This all gets annoying after awhile.

If I was using iTunes, I could simply de-select, but not delete, the audiobooks. Why can't this be done with a MP3 player? If I want to delete the songs from my iPod, I have to delete them iTunes...because having them de-selected in iTunes didn't remove them from the iPod. (Hmm, maybe I just found a way to do this. Hmm.) Don't tell me to set up playlists, that's too much bother. Plus I don't want to limit the music selection. (Maybe I have to put everything but the audiobooks into one huge playlist? hmm.)

Any suggestions? Any similar problems?

*I almost changed this when I wrote it, but was lazy. Then Delmer's comment made me decide I really had to modify this claim. I can listen to music as I do some work, but not all work. If I writing content or reviewing somebody else's content, I can't listen to music. If I'm making decisions...no music. Then again, I can do all of this if it's a certain type of music, but that explanation would take forever. However, I can code, format, edit, and do some writing while listening to music. I'll also turn music on lightly if other noises are distracting. Whew, now I feel better. I've provided a nice, muddled explanation.

Harry Potter Artist

The Detroit Free Press has published an article on Mary GrandPré, the artist for the U.S. versions of the Harry Potter books. Here's a link. Unlike you and me, she's already read book 7! Lucky her! Even the British artist does not get to read the book prior to release date. GrandPré gets to read the book because Scholastic, the U.S. publisher, decided with the first book that they wanted chapter art. The British books don't have chapter art. Luckily, Scholastic continued this trend, even though they had to let the artist read the book earlier than everyone else.

Personally, I liked the earlier book covers the best. Those before Scholastic decided to squeeze even more money out of us by offering a separate line of books with more detailed covers. So, the first few books have wonderful details all over the covers, and then the later books pretty much stick to one scene...unless you purchase the excessively expensive versions to get the better art. I say shame on Scholastic. Still that isn't the artist's fault, they make decisions, she draws. Natch.

Lions and Helmets and Bears...Oh My!

Swollen heads too big for Bears' helmets? Yep!

Just as they did in 1985 when the Bears last made it to the Super Bowl, the famed 113 year-old lion statutes in front of the Chicago Institute of Art are being dressed up in Bears' helmets. Only...oh my!

These are brand new, custom-made, fiberglass helmets that they tried to put on the lions this bitter cold morning...don't fit! Whether they were made too small for the lions' manes or whether the cold weather made them inflexible, the helmets just wouldn't go on!

The helmets made in 1985 fit, but there were problems then too. They were stolen twice and finally had to be removed. Here and here are (conflicting) articles about what happened to those helmets.

A few years ago the lions were decked out in White Sox caps when the Sox were World Champions and at Christmas time the lions proudly sport wreaths (scroll down to see this blogger's pictures).

They claim they are going to try to stretch the helmets to make them fit the lions, but I also saw a report that one helmet broke in today's attempts.

Picture above is copyrighted: (Tribune photo by Nancy Stone Jan 30, 2007)

Towering Sale or Not?

Tower Records here in the U.S. is closing down and selling out all their CDs and DVDs. This started out as a pathetic sale because their prices were only 10% off their lowest ticketed prices. Sounds good, but their lowest ticketed price was full retail! So their 10% off was 10 to 30% higher than online retailers; i.e., not a deal at all.

But, they've now increased their sale to 40% off their lowest ticketed price. I stopped by one of the stores this evening, but at this price people have already bought a lot and there wasn't anything left I wanted. But hey...check the store near you, you never know what you might find!

Top 25 Musicals

The American Film Institute (AFI) has released their list of the top 25 musicals. I used to love musicals, but I think I over watched them and have needed a break from them the past several years. I have to agree with both EEK and Laura that this AFI list is, well, pardon the pun, off a beat.

Let's take a look at their list. In general, I haven't seen many of these in years, but SINGIN', WIZARD, and SOUND have always been favorites. They selected:

Film	My Comment, if any
1. SINGIN' IN THE RAIN 1952 MGM	SINGIN' always cracks me up: the plot is that they completely botch their first attempt at a talkie...so they fix it by making a much more difficult musical!!!! Favorite line, Lina's squeal: I can't stan' it!
2. WEST SIDE STORY 1961 United Artists	I have to agree with EEK, this is a little dated.
3. WIZARD OF OZ, THE 1939 MGM	This is a fun movie to read about. So many things happened! Changing directors, almost killing Buddy Ebsen, badly burning Margaret Hamilton and Margaret's stand-in, etc. Poor Buddy, the studio almost kills him with the Tin Man's make up, he ends up in the hospital, and they re-cast the role so he's out! As much as I love Shirley Temple, I'm so glad they failed to get her for Dorothy!
4. SOUND OF MUSIC, THE 1965 Twentieth Century-Fox	It's sad to think that the von Trapp family got little to NO money from this version of the movie because Maria had sold the rights years before for very little money. I think Maria did get some money for the Broadway musical, but not a lot and only because Mary Martin insisted the producers pay Maria something. Favorite line, the nuns after disabling the Nazi's cars: Forgive me Reverend Mother, for I have sinned.
5. CABARET 1972 Allied Artists	I agree with Laura, too many 1960 and following musicals on the list. Most of them won't stand the test of time.
6. MARY POPPINS 1964 Disney	I haven't seen this since my niece was 16 months old and calling Mary Poppins..."Mimi." (Don't ask, we don't know why.)
7. STAR IS BORN, A 1954 Warner Bros.	At least they picked the Garland version.
8. MY FAIR LADY 1964 Warner Bros.	Cary Grant refused to be in this movie. James Cagney refused to be in this movie. I wonder what the movie would have been like if Audrey Hepburn had also refused <I believe she's always blamed the studio for forcing her and that might be true...she wasn't as big a star then as Grant or Cagney and might not have been able to say no>. I'm not sure MARY POPPINS deserved Oscars and a higher ranking on this list over LADY.
9. AMERICAN IN PARIS, AN 1951 MGM	Oh dear, oh dear. I have to admit and I'm sure I'll hear about it...I've never seen this movie all the way through! (ducking) I just get sick of Gene Kelly's bravado and stop watching.
10. MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS 1944 MGM	Judy's 3rd in the top ten. Only Julie had a chance of beating her, but see number 8.
11. KING AND I, THE 1956 Twentieth Century-Fox	I went to the same school as Margaret Landon who wrote the book this movie is based on. Et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.
12. CHICAGO 2002 Miramax	See number 5.
13. 42ND STREET 1933 Warner Bros.
14. ALL THAT JAZZ 1979 Twentieth Century-Fox	See number 5.
15. TOP HAT 1935 RKO	This is way, way, way too low and it's the only listing for Fred and Ginger! Big oversight! SWING TIME should be on the list also. I quoted my favorite TOP HAT line here.
16. FUNNY GIRL 1968 Columbia	See number 5.
17. BAND WAGON, THE 1953 MGM
18. YANKEE DOODLE DANDY 1942 Warner Bros.	If only Cagney could have made more like this. ;-)
19. ON THE TOWN 1949 MGM	The best of this formula series for Gene and Frank. (See TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALL GAME, ANCHORS AWEIGH, etc. for the others with the same formula.)
20. GREASE 1978 Paramount
21. SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS 1954 MGM	This used to be one of my favorites, but I've seen it too many times. It is credited with giving movie musicals several more strong years.
22. BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 1991 Disney
23. GUYS AND DOLLS 1955 MGM	Don't understand this choice!
24. SHOW BOAT 1936 Universal	I bet most people didn't even know this Irene Dunne version exists! I'm sure most people think this is referring to the Kathryn Grayson/Howard Keel/Ava Gardner version. I love the song BILL from SHOW BOAT.
25. MOULIN ROUGE! 2001 Twentieth Century Fox	See number 5.

Overlooked: SWING TIME, OKLAHOMA!, EASTER PARADE, HOLIDAY INN, WHITE CHRISTMAS, a Judy and Mickey movie--maybe, THE JOLSON STORY, KISS ME KATE, a Jeanette MacDonald/Nelson Eddy musical, etc. The ballot is shown here.

I think it's funny that I haven't commented on the "musicality" of most of these movies...but I wasn't in the mood. Besides, the trivia is more interesting. ;-)

Click

OK, trust me, you have to click here. Just click the link. Trust me! Then keep clicking and clicking and clicking and clicking and clicking and clicking.... I still haven't found the end of it! Trust me...click!

(Does require the ShockWave plug in, but definitely worth it. CLICK!)

Sunday in the Park Imitating George

This is great! A group of people in Beloit, Wisconsin decided to create a modern-day version of this famous George Seurat painting, “Sunday Afternoon on the Island of LaGrande Jatte.” I'd love to put a version of the new image in my post, but I'm sure it's copyright protected...so you'll just have to trust me and check it out yourself by clicking the links below!!

First, here's the image and the article explaining the recreation. I think one of the best parts is using the bag to "recreate" the original woman's bustle in the front right of the scene. Here's some detail about the picture (hold your mouse over the image so the "boxes" show up). Click here to see further versions of the shoot. And here's a progression of photos as they stage the picture. I think they should have "pixelated" one version of the picture, don't you? (Note: These last three links are all to the same Flickr user's site, I don't know how long they'll last, but they are worth seeing!)

Pretty darn good for a bunch of cheeseheads!

Create Your Own Art

In the past I told you how you could write like Jane (as in Austen, of course). Now here's a link for you to paint like Jackson Pollock. It's splashy good fun!

(Left click to change colors while painting.)

Hat tip: Jen.