RECENT SCREENING LOG_

Havent' watched any movies this week, although my next Netflix movie is the documentary Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price. Haven't heard much about this one. Just that it's main arguement is that Wal-Mart is a prime example of capitalism run amock, and they don't treat their employees fairly. As a former Wal-Mart employee, I guess I could atest to that. Although, the reasons for me being fired from the W were mostly my fault. But even when I worked for Wal-Mart, I felt like I was violating my own code of ethics in that environment. Working there seemed like the wrong thing to do on my part. My pet economic theory is that as Wal-Mart grows into this mass infection of consumerism, the more they have to mass produce goods, the quality of those goods is going to diminish. On one hand, I hate Wal-Mart, and I can only stand to spend about 20 minutes in there about once or twice a month before I go nuts. On the other hand, I know that if McCook didn't have a Wal-Mart, my mom would have no place to shop for groceries at those kind of prices. Which brings me to another point; I was quite happy working at Wal-Mart in McCook. I was treated well, paid well, and I had friends there I enjoyed talking to. Past is the past...

I'm reading a great, brisk read right now, Sarah Vowell's Assasination Vacation. Very insightful, very funny, alot of fun to read, especially if you're interested in things like history, and the suprising and unbeknowst connections and coincidences between historical figures and places, etc. I'm in the middle of the chapter on Lincoln. Vowell seems like the kind of person who people can say, "She makes history come alive!" In many ways, she seems to obssess over historical trivia and fact, as if it's her own form of needlepoint; a meticulous hobby. Luckily, she doesn't have to wear an self-fashioned old timey hoop skirt dress, carry a fan, wear a frilly bonnet, speak in antiquated mannerisms, or break out into stirring renditions of "Dixieland" or "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" to do it. Blech.

So I watch American Idol last night...The "Elimination" Show, where 4 contestants were dismissed from the competition. Bobby, Patrick, Sky, and that one model chick who's posed recently for Maxim. Anyway, good. They needed to go. In true American Idol fashion, the producers decided the best way to kill not only an entire hour, but their audience as well, was to have the losers sing their losing, gutbusting songs after being told they would not proceed to the next round. May I have a little insult with my injury? Yes, thank you. We needed to hear Bobby sing "Copa Cobana" again. Our souls' salvation depended on it... Luckily, DVR remote in my clammy palm, I was able to fast forward through most of this boorish waste of time, and amazingly, I maybe only watched 5 minutes of the actual show, which basically boiled down to the eliminations only. Technology isn't just the black beast its made out to be, but it can also be a friendly giant sometimes. Last night, the real American idol was my DVR. It did what none of the contestants on the show can actually do: it kept quiet, and did its job.

I may write more later... A dreary day.