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I was being interviewed last week about my theatrical career on PEI, and one of the questions was about my goals for the future.  I think I kind of stumbled through some sort of “I’m lazy” answer about how I don’t really set goals for myself, because then you actually have to strive to achieve them.  I couldn’t really think of anything interesting to say except for that and some vague notion that maybe someday I’d perform a one-man show featuring some of the characters and songs I’ve created over the years.  Even as I was saying that, though, and again as I type this, I found/find that notion to be awfully yawn-inducing.

What I should have said though, was that I had always joked that someday when I’m an older gentleman, I’d “retire” into the role of Matthew in Anne Of Green Gables and live out my golden years in Avonlea.  Of course, I don’t really plan to do that (I’d be more Cecil the Farmer material perhaps), but today I was thinking about the concept when it struck me:

For many actors on PEI, getting a role in the Confederation Centre’s Anne of Green Gables would be the “real world” equivalent of “gettin’ a government job”.  Pay is pretty good (I imagine), it’s seasonal (don’t think you can qualify for EI after, though??), and (again, I imagine) once you get into the routine of the job, there wouldn’t really be a lot of reward to performing it.
Plus, once you land the gig and perform it at least at a satisfactory level, it’s potentially yours for as long as the government in power (the artistic director) stays in power.  After they get ousted, you hope you make it past the inevitable  new-government cuts and subsequent patronage appointments.

It’s only 3 hours until the beginning of the final episode of The Sopranos.  4 hours until no more new scenes will be ever seen.  Such mixed emotions.  I’ll not try and guess what will happen, other than to say I bet I’ll get teary eyed when I hear “Woke up this morning, Got yourself a gun…”

Wish us all luck!

Okay, here’s the deal:

We have a 1991 Chevy Lumina that we want to remove from our sight.

We stopped using the car last July when we got a new-to-us car (stopped paying insurance on a car we weren’t going to drive). Until that point, the Chevy Lumina was our primary car. It was serviceable, although not without problems. Most of those problems had been fixed (new ignition, new alternator the most recent repairs). One problem not fixed is the passenger’s side power-window does not work (motor needs to be replaced). The engine works did work well. Body is in pretty good shape.
Like I say, when we stopped using it in July 2006, the car was working well. The inspection became due in August 2006, but we never bothered to get it inspected. In October, the rearview mirror fell off the front windshield, and is now dangling from the electrical cord. It needs to be glued (??) to the windshield.
Over the course of the winter, I was starting the engine every couple of weeks, keeping it active.  It had always started easily. However, in February, I neglected to do so, and the next time I tried to start the car, in March, there was nothing. No power. The ignition doesn’t even turn over. Absolutely dead.  Tried to boost it. Nothing happened.  Thinking it might be loose battery connections, I removed, cleaned the leads and reattached, to no avail. There is no power whatsover.
Another problem: the front passenger tire developed a slow leak over the winter and flattened over the last couple of months. I removed it, and the tire is in rough shape (it’s in the trunk). Currently the utility spare is on that wheel.  The jack is in wonderful working order, by the way.

I am sick of seeing this car and want it removed from our property. Obviously, with a 16 year old car that is not inspected, does not start and is standing on three good tires, we’re not in much of a bargaining position in terms of expecting much money for the vehicle.

If this is a vehicle you think you could use in some way, make us an offer. I’d be surprised if your offer was refused. Email me at the address to the left of this post.

So, I made it through an entire day (24 episodes) of 24.  I usually can’t get past the first few hours because I can’t get past the leaps in time-logic that one is required to make in order to allow oneself to enjoy the show.

For instance, in this season’s “day”, Jack Bauer’s dad was found to be the man responsible for a lot of the badness that took place on this day.  The whole day (as is every “24” day) was a jumble of hatched plans, failed plans, failed contingencies on those plans, and last-second thrown-together plans.  The characters, good and bad, are constantly in a state of “that didn’t work, so now here’s a back-up plan”.  How in the world do they find time within that day to organize the newly hatched plans?

From where did the henchmen guys that Philip Bauer had on the oil rig in the last episode come?  I mean, it seems that the oil rig was a last-second sort of plan from Philip.  There can be no way, even three hours earlier, that he’d know the circumstances that were to come would lead him to taking his grandson and the computer chip (that the Chinese wanted so badly) to that oil rig, to perfectly coincide with the arrival of a Chinese submarine.  Half a day earlier, Philip Bauer was seemingly out of options, and out of the picture.  His intitial plan had blown up on him.  Obviously this new “oil rig” plan was a last-second scramble type thing.  So, how did he find the henchmen to come with him to the oil rig?  And when did he find them?  And what was their motivation?

So many questions that must remain unasked in order for one to enjoy the show.  It is really hard to ignore those questions.

But I’ll likely try next season to ignore some more glaring time-logic leaps of faith.

I’m getting a lot of buzz, it seems, about my fake candidacy under the banner of my fake party.  At least two people have bothered to comment.  It’s a start!! If they tell two people, and those two people tell two people and so on… well, i don’t really know the math for that (I did have an Island education, after all) but I’m guessing it adds up to more than five…

Anyway, on to today’s promise:

Today, I promise to offer free caddy lessons for every Islander.

Let’s face it.  The dimples on golf balls are starting to prove more lucrative than the eyes on potatoes.  My plan is to, within fifteen years, make the entire island, even the residential properties, nothing but golf courses.  Think of how beautiful the Island will look with perfectly manicured fairways, putting greens and bunkers in every yard!!  Potato fields replaced by Par 5’s… Estuaries will become water hazards.  Sand dunes will be fantastically challenging sand traps.  Not even the Plovers will be exempt.

As the number of rich Americans come to play the island, more and more caddy jobs will be needed.  That’s where the majority of Islanders will reap their rewards.  I’m not sure how much caddies make but it’s got to be more than minimum wage, right?  Add tips on top of that (and remember to claim those tips, right? wink wink) and that’s a pretty sweet income for most of us.  And I promise that training for everyone will be free.

Lots of chances for tourism opportunities too.  How many people do you think will want to take on this challenge:  Golf the entire Island – Par 14990 – in 4 months.  Just imagine, rich americans here for a full 4 months, spending their money, as they golf the entire Island.

I’m getting a lot of buzz, it seems, about my fake candidacy under the banner of my fake party.  At least two people have bothered to comment.  It’s a start!! If they tell two people, and those two people tell two people and so on… well, i don’t really know the math for that (I did have an Island education, after all) but I’m guessing it adds up to more than five…

Anyway, on to today’s promise:

Today, I promise to offer free caddy lessons for every Islander.

Let’s face it.  The dimples on golf balls are starting to prove more lucrative than the eyes on potatoes.  My plan is to, within fifteen years, make the entire island, even the residential properties, nothing but golf courses.  Think of how beautiful the Island will look with perfectly manicured fairways, putting greens and bunkers in every yard!!  Potato fields replaced by Par 5’s… Estuaries will become water hazards.  Sand dunes will be fantastically challenging sand traps.  Not even the Plovers will be exempt.

As the number of rich Americans come to play the island, more and more caddy jobs will be needed.  That’s where the majority of Islanders will reap their rewards.  I’m not sure how much caddies make but it’s got to be more than minimum wage, right?  Add tips on top of that (and remember to claim those tips, right? wink wink) and that’s a pretty sweet income for most of us.  And I promise that training for everyone will be free.

Lots of chances for tourism opportunities too.  How many people do you think will want to take on this challenge:  Golf the entire Island – Par 14990 – in 4 months.  Just imagine, rich americans here for a full 4 months, spending their money, as they golf the entire Island.

If you haven’t been watching this latest series of Survivor, this won’t be of interest to you.  If you haven’t yet seen the finale episode, don’t read this if you plan on watching later.

There’s lots of debate on the internets today about how immoral Dreamz was to betray Yau Man’s trust and renege on the promise he made in return for the truck Yau won.  Most everyone thinks Dreamz did something truly awful when he went back on his word.  I have a different opinion.
If I was a contestant in the game of Survivor, one thing that I would know about myself is that, within the confines of the game, I’d say anything to better my chances of winning.  I would swear on my whatever’s life to make a promise and then turn around and break that promise if it suited my situation in the game.  Absolutely everything I said to anyone in the game could possibly be a lie.  I would also expect that absolutely everything that anyone in the game said to me would potentially be a lie.  I am always surprised when players in the game don’t take that into consideration.

I suspect that when Dreamz initially and impetuously made the deal, he (despite his arguments to the contrary) fully expected to follow through on his promise, and only later on did he change his mind.  Some people think because of this, it makes him a lesser human.  It makes him a liar and betrayer. I don’t think so.

For me, anything goes within the confines of the game.  Like he said, there’s “the game” and there’s “reality”.  In my opinion, you can say anything in the game and it should not be taken as a representation of the way you’d behave in reality.  So Dreamz, you’re okay in my book.  Doesn’t that make you feel better?

As for Survivor Fiji, I thought it started out pretty weak.  I didn’t like the Upstairs/Downstairs luxury vs. poverty angle and thought the show was pretty boring until they ditched that concept at “the merge”.  After that, though, I thought this was one of the most strategically interesting rounds of the show yet.  Many aspects and strategies and counter-strategies worked so perfectly that I actually started to wonder if the show was being “written” a bit.  A few too many perfect coincidences, I thought.  A couple of times when a contestant would say something bold and declarative, only to have that surety pulled totally out from under their feet.  There were some fantastic, literally, jaw-dropping moments this season, all of which made for great television entertainment and made up for the lacklustre start to the season.
Reflecting on the contestants, it’s obvious that Lisi needs some psychiatric help.  She reminds me of Tony Soprano’s sister Janice.  Nutjob.  YauMan was a real treat to watch, a great player.  As was Earl.  I was disappointed that Cassandra made it to the final three, as I never really like the player who succeeds solely by latching on early to a strong alliance.
Anyway, blah blah blah.