Neopi's Den

I've been attending E3 for a while now.  Every year except for one since 2001.  I must say it is one of the most enjoyable perks for being in the industry.  At the show, you get to meet a lot of people, you get to see a lot of things (new, old and some of both reworked into a different package).  This year was not any different than any other.  A most enjoyable show.

Well, this year was a little different for me.  I was actually volunteered to work the both.  All I was asked to do was to hand out bags and pins and greet people with a smile.  I hope I did that well, or well enough.  I'm sure I got on camera a few times, those watching news and game shows may pick me out of the crowd.  Too many cameras pointing in my direction for a shutter bug like me.

This year I saw Rich, he was the first person I saw that I knew I knew.  I stopped to talk to him for a few minutes then I walked around and was amazed at some of the booths and the games I saw.  You know, in the booth for the Lego's Harry Potter years 1 through 4 they have a life sized Hagrid made of Lego's.  I'll see if I can upload the picture later.  I saw Scott and Ima too.  Then saw Cindy and so many other people I cannot mention them all. 

For me the games I saw that I really want to play are:

• Grand Turismo 5 (PS3)
• Rift (PC - out next year)
• Lego HP (Wii - out later this month)
• Vindictus (ftp PC - no release date)
• Tron (not sure, sorry)
• Epic Mickey (Wii I think)
• Clone Wars (PC - out later this year, I think)

So many games, so little time and money!

Anyway, thank you industry! Thank you for a most enjoyable time. I look forward to next year. = )

First I heard sirens, then I heard helicopters and what I think was fireworks, however, it could have been gun fire.  Then the neighbors started screaming. 

I assume the Lakers won.

Congrats!

This is a television show that was suggested to me by NetFlix's Watch Instantly.  This show is like another cake baking show but in some ways better and other ways not so much.  The creativity and design of the cakes this bakery team show in this series is absolutely awesome.  The drama, not so much.  But then the bakery is run by an old Italian family that reminds me of my grandmother's neighbors.  The fights ... I mean, loud conversations always amazed me.

Anyway, take a look if you want to see some really neat cake designs.  The episode about Bridezilla is absolutely heart breaking.  If anyone ever came into my field of influence and did something like that...she "gunna get hurt real bad".  (quote from Russel Peters)

NetFlix - http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Cake_Boss_Season_1/70128591

I remember a while back I was reading somewhere that Nicolas Cage had done tons of movies so I looked him up in IMDB and found that he had done quite a few movies that I had never seen.  I added them to my netflix queue months ago and one of them finally came.  Lord of War.  This movie had an interesting story but I can't say that I liked it much.  Generally, I really like Mr. Cage's movies but this one just didn't do it for me.  Perhaps I wasn't in the mood for a movie about a gun runner and the glorification of supplying military weapons to third world countries and watching the effects as everyone blew each other up.  I guess, in the end, with the loss of his family and death of his brother he paid the price for his business.

I gave this movie three stars in netflix.

NetFlix - http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Lord_of_War/70038796

Ohh.. such a great movie.  I really enjoyed this one but then that might just because there were so many close up shots of the dreamy Mr. Depp.

This movie was about the life of a well known bank robbing gangster.  At times you actually felt sorry for him.  The movie was good, I gave it four stars in NetFlix.

 NetFlix - http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Public_Enemies/70111115

Like so many other movies the main character in this story is talented, has some hard times and saves the day and gets the girl in the end.  However, the acting in this movie was pretty good and I liked how they portrayed the story.  The dancing was awesome too.

The story is about a troubled teen from a broken family who could street dance.  He is caught as a couple of his friends are vandalizing an auditorium of a school for the arts.  He is sentenced to several hours of community service as directed by the school.  And then for the rest of the story you'll need to watch the movie.  It was pretty good.  I gave it three out of five stars on NetFlix.

NetFlix - http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Step_Up/70050484

What a wonderful movie.  Netflix had been suggesting this movie to me for several months now but I kept passing it over.

• Sam - Sean Penn
• Lawyer - Michelle Pfeiffer
• Lucy - Dakota Fanning

This movie is about a man who has lost his daughter and tries to get her back from the system.  He, Sam, is developmentally challenged and Lucy's mother left them shortly after Lucy's birth.  The story is about their struggle and their love.  Five stars!  Thanks Netflix, kinda scary how well they know me.

Netflix: http://www.netflix.com/Movie/I_Am_Sam/60021799

Space travel has always interested me.  I guess growing up in my generation it was a fascination of a lot of people.  My dreams of walking in space will never be fulfilled so I've taken to watching anything I can on man's progress into space.  This show, NASA Unauthorized is just an amalgam of all of the other shows I've seen.  Same footage same words same tributes to the fallen few that have died while heading to or coming back from missions in orbit.  I'm not sure where the "Unauthorized" part of the title comes in to play.

Anyway, if you're a space cadet..I mean space head like me then it's worth the watch.  I gave it three out of five stars.

Netflix: http://www.netflix.com/Movie/NASA_Unauthorized/70037424

When I saw the title for this movie I was thinking of something quite different than it turned out to be.  It was pretty good for the most part.  The movie had been in my instant queue for months and finally today I decided to watch it.  Its basically about a group of guys that unsuspectingly create a time machine...then use it.

Here is what Netflix wrote about it:

Quite by accident, an engineer builds a machine that can transport the user back in time. But his discovery comes with an ominous caveat: At the heart of this puzzling device, nothing is as it seems on the surface. David Sullivan and Shane Carruth co-star in this Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize winner, a film whose inventive narrative blends a patchwork story line with overlapping streams of dialogue that help build tension and suspense.

Netflix: http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Primer/60034782

 I gave it three stars.

Ok now that you've stopped laughing...  I've never actually sat down and watched this movie.  Yes, I realize it's been around a lot longer than I have and probably been on TV quite a few times too but I can't remember actually watching the movie.  I know I've seen bits and pieces but anyway...ok stop giggling, I know people who have never seen Star Wars.  Yah!

The movie was pretty good for a morality tale, it basically said ... With a little love and patience most anything is possible.

I looked the movie up in IMDB and was surprised to see that it was released in 1943. 

Netflix: http://www.netflix.com/Movie/My_Friend_Flicka/60026519