Day at the Zoo

Yesterday the kids and I went to the Saginaw Children's Zoo with my friend Andy and his two sons...Nicholas and William. We all piled into Andy's suburban and all headed out to the zoo. The kids had fun looking at all the animals of course, and they got to ride the Merry-Go-Round as well...so that was an added bonus. We've been to the Saginaw zoo tons of times in the past. It's a zoo that survives on a grass roots level. It's small and only takes about 45 minutes to go through the whole thing. Yet despite all that Ben always enjoys himself there and loves seeing all the animals. And now with Megan the age she is...everything is practically new to her so she loves it as well.
This summer has been a busy one for us. It's almost August and this was our first visit to the zoo this year. Usually we've been 2 or 3 times by now...but not this year. Oh well...I guess it shows we're busy with other things. Anyway, I'm sure we'll get back to the zoo one or two more times before school starts.

From The Shelf

A TERRIBLE GLORY: CUSTER AND THE LITTLE BIGHORN - Jenny got me this book for Father's Day, and I just finished reading it. As you can tell from the title this is a historical account of the battle of the Little Bighorn and Custer's last stand. Back in 1876 George Custer and 200 men were attempted to raid an Indian settlement...only to be then annihilated by 2000 Sioux and Cheyenne indians. This is first and foremost a historical book, but it's written more of as a narrative, so it's easier to digest. The characters here are entertaining and interesting of course...Custer, Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse, and President Grant. And the battle itself is both sad and powerful. For a history book this is a pretty good read. The battle itself really leaps off the pages...almost like a McMurtry novel. My only complaint about it is it's over 400 pages long. For a battle that took 2 days the book seems to be drawn out in parts. But other than being 100 pages longer than it should be this book is a great read for anyone interested in the American west.

The Marquette Rail Trail

One thing I don't think I've ever written about is our bike trail here in town. It's called the Marquette Rail Trail, and it's a paved path that runs on the same route as an old railway line from back in the day. The trail starts here in Midland and runs about 30 miles or so to a nearby town (Coleman). Back when we first lived in Midland (2000-2003), and before we had kids Jenny and I spent a good amount of time riding the rail trail, but ever since the kids came along we've always been busy with other things. Well...we got talking about it last night and we realized the kids had never been on the trail. So today we biked for about 9 miles up and down a portion of the trail. The weather was cloudy, but cool...so it was actually a pleasant ride. We stopped at a scenic overlook area and let the kids look at the river. Anyway, it was fun to get back on the trail again. It had been a long time.

Backyard Campout

Last night we had a backyard campout. We cooked some smores over the outdoor fireplace, and then later Ben and I went camping out in our woods. It was fun. The kids get a kick out of doing camping things right in our own backyard. We're going to Colorado for a week next week, so all of us are getting "Colorado fever." Can't wait! Anyway, the kids had fun last night. The summers are so short up here. Jenny and I try to grab nights like these while we can before the cold returns.

At The Movies - Ben Edition

G-FORCE - Ben and I saw this yesterday. It's about a group of guinea pigs who are also a team of super spies working for the government and they have to save the world. Ben absolutely loved it, and I thought it was surprisingly tolerable to sit through. Ben loved all the action and eye candy, but at the same time wasn't overwhelmed by it I think. He had a lot of fun with it and he sat through all of it holding his little G-Force stuffed animal I bought him.

ICE AGE 3: DAWN OF THE DINOSAURS - Jenny took Ben to see this last week. Ben seemed to like it, but he definitely liked G-Force better. I think it's a bad sign when even the kids are walking out of the ICE AGE movies saying "when is the squirrel going to get that acorn?" When Ben was telling me about the movie he said he thought it was getting boring that the squirrel never gets the acorn. Then he started to tell me what the 4th ICE AGE movie should be about. I think he said the animals should go up into space in a rocket. I'd say it's not a good sign for a movie when a 5 year old is telling you what the movie SHOULD be about. HA!

SPIRIT: LEGEND OF THE CIMMARRON - Our local library has free kids movies during the summer every Wednesday morning. So that's where we caught this one. And I tell you what...all three of us were surprised at how good this movie is. Ben and Megan loved it...and I actually liked it a lot myself. It's the story of a mustang who gets caught and sold to a calvary outpost somewhere around Arizona. Then he befriends a native American and somehow finds his way back home to his family. This was the first time Megan sat through a whole movie in her seat...so that has to tell you something right there. Ben liked it so much he cried at the end when the horse had to say goodbye to his Indian friend. And now because he cried he doesn't want to see it again. Anyway, the three of us went with a friend of mine and his son. My friend and I looked at each other half way through and said, "wow...this is actually pretty good." We were laughing about that and picturing ourselves standing up in the theater..."RUN SPIRIT! RUN FROM YOUR INDUSTRIALIZED OPPRESSORS!"

At The Movies

THE WIRE: SEASON 2 - After hearing so many great things about this series Jenny and I decided to give it a try. So about a month ago we started with Season 1 and we were anxious to get into it. While I admit we enjoyed the first season, I thought it was an acquired taste, and often times laborious to get through. However, the season improved with each episode and by the end of the first season we liked it. So here we are now with season 2...and oh my...what a step up. The second season of THE WIRE is fantastic. Not only is there a new storyline to follow, but several minor storylines follow all the characters from the first season as well. Such a great show. Great directing...acting...storylines...etc. The show is not for casual watching mind you...but it's very rewarding if you give it a chance.

CHAPTER 27 - This film is an account of the few days leading up to the murder of John Lennon in 1980. Jared Leto stars at Mark David Chapman. Leto put on an extra 60 pounds for the role, and plays Chapman very convincingly. The film is rather slow to get into thanks to Leto's constant voice overs, and is sometimes convoluted since most of the story is told through Chapman. But overall I'd say this film is pretty interesting. One of my all time favorite books is CATCHER IN THE RYE, (which now that I admit it may put me on some government watch list.) And since Chapman was arrested with a copy of the book, we get a lot of scenes in the movie of him reading the book...voice over exerpts taken from the book...and him introducing himself to others as Holden Caulfield. So all in all I found that part of the film interesting obviously.

BANGKOK DANGEROUS - This is the original version of this film...released in 1999 from the Pang brothers, (there was an American release of this film in 2008 with Nicholas Cage). This is one of those Asian gangster films in the style of John Woo movies and Chow Yun Fat films. I've always been a fan of Woo and Fat films, so I was always interested in this one. While some of the action sequences are pretty cool, the dialouge is awful (as expected) and the storyline is forgettable and pointless. There is a gangster-for-hire guy who's deaf and mute, and there's a triad who's out to get him. Something like that. But like I said...you're not watching this for the story. The action is pretty cool...and the style and look of the film is interesting. Pretty cool asian-gangster flick. Not as great as John Woo...but not bad either.

WANTED - Angelina Jolie, Morgan Freeman, and James McAvoy all star in this shoot-em-up action thriller about an underground society of assasins who are able to make bullets "bend" in mid-air. The movie is based on a comic book series from a few years ago, and has a very "adrenalized" look and feel to it. Sure the stars are there...and sure the action is over-the-top. But I found little to keep me interested with this one. Pretty much a yawner if you ask me. McAvoy does a good job of playing the lead character, but everything else here feels tired and worn.

TAKEN - Liam Neeson plays a father who is a retired CIA agent...and he has just learned his daughter has been kidnapped in Paris. Instead of calling the police he decides to take matters into his own hands and attempts to rescue his daughter on his own. The movie is kind of in the style of the Jason Bourne movies, and I think it works very well. At first I didn't quite see Neeson playing this kind of role, but he actually plays it perfectly. His character can do all the things Jason Bourne can do, but unlike Bourne...Neeson's character occasionally gets cut or bruised. Still he fights on knowing his daughter is somewhere out there. Some of the supporting cast here are a little annoying (like the ex-wife), but for the most part I thought this was a pretty good film. I was surprised.

GODS & GENERALS - This is part one in a Civil War trilogy...all based on the novels of Jeffrey Shaara. This has been in my Netflix queue for years now, so I decided to give this one a try...knowing it was going to take a while to get through. Now I wouldn't call myself a Civil War "buff," but I do find the Civil War fascinating. In GODS AND GENERALS, we see the beginnings of the Civil War, and some of the early campaigns. There are some scenes here with Robert E. Lee (played by Robert Duvall), but for the most part the movie is based on General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson's life, and his rise and fall. The story here is authentic and as factual as you can get, but the acting (in most parts) is surprisingly average. Some of the scenes are dragged out beyond belief. But the battle scenes are what make this movie. Not only are they grand and ferocious, they are maticulously authentic. Some of the battle scenes were shot at actual locations, and the clothing is so accurate even the boots and shoes are the same as the soldiers wore. I wouldn't say this movie is for everyone. It's 3 1/2 hours long. But for those who are interested in history, war, and the Civil War, GODS & GENERALS is worth the effort.

GETTYSBURG - And that leads me to GETTYSBURG...part 2 in the Civil War trilogy that I talked about above. Though technically a sequel to GODS & GENERALS, GETTYSBURG actually came out first (in 1999). The characters are the same here, but some of the actors are different. And unlike GODS & GENERALS, which covers several locations and battles and storylines, GETTYSBURG focuses solely on the one 3 day battle. The battle scenes are excellent and convincing, and the acting this time is excellent as well. Make no mistake...this is a 4 hour movie...but it's great. Jeff Daniels reprises his role as Colonel Joshua Chamberlain, (who led a bayonet charge that kept the confederates from taking a strategic hilltop) and Martin Sheen and Tom Berenger play Robert E. Lee and James Longstreet...who play off each other wonderfully. If you're a Civil War buff and you're familiar with the 3 day battle you'll be pleased to know that everything of importance is recreated on film. There's "Pickett's Charge," "Chamberlain's bayonet charge," you name it. And best of all...for further realism the movie was shot on the actual Gettysburg site. In my opinion GETTYSBURG is a far superior film than GODS & GENERALS, but both are worth checking out. There is a third title in the trilogy...LAST FULL MEASURE. Both GETTYSBURG and GODS & GENERALS were both financed by Ted Turner, and at this point he has said publicly that he has no plans to finance a third (due to poor box office results).

Nature Camp at the Nature Center

All this week Ben has been going to a Nature Day Camp at the Nature Center. He was there with his friends Kelvyn and Miles. The three of them went every morning from 9:30-12, and got to go hiking...looking for bugs, worms, turtles, frogs, and other creepy crawlies...learn about animals, birds, and bats...and do outdoor related activities and crafts. I'd say outside of our two trips this summer (4th of July in Texas and Colorado next week) this Nature Camp was the highlight of the summer for Ben. The first day he was a little skiddish about going because it was so different (lots of different kids and a teacher he didn't know). But by the end of the week he had had so much fun and he was a little sad the whole camp had come to a close. He's already talking about wanting to go back next summer. Anyway, here are some highlights of his week at Nature Camp.

Aquasaurs!

A while ago for Ben's 5th birthday, one of his friends gave him an Aquasaurs set. For those of you who don't know (which we didn't before now) Aquasaurs are kind of like sea monkeys. You pour water in a tank, deposit tiny eggs into the water, wait 4 days, and then they all hatch and you start feeding them. Supposedly they're tiny aquatic species from the time of the dinosaurs. They kind of look like very small stingrays. Anyway, Ben's all over this as you might expect. He's coming up with names for all of these tiny guys. Names like "Dorothy," "Dino," and "Blubby." He seems to be very interested in the whole thing. This got me thinking when the Aquasaurs finally kick the bucket we might get Ben a fish to take care. He and Megan would get a kick out of that I think.

Life At Random

Here are some random pictures of the kids doing various things...including storytime at Dow Gardens, playing puzzles with Nichols and William, picking vegetables, running through bubbles, and having lots of fun in the sun.