Senate I Want to Believe-The Senate's Social Thread and Secret Society Roundtable

Welcome to 2008's social thread.

A place where smoking men reveal shadowy secrets, the fate of nations are decided by the contents of a envelope, and the Stonecutters really do make Steve Guttenberg a star..

Ok, maybe not. But because it is the social thread, it's a place where everyone can relax, get to know everyone else, and post about anything.





(and on the off-chance that she stops by, this is dedicated to NP and the upcoming X-Files movie...)

 

You know, they're doing a terrible job of promoting the new X-files movie. The posters are like decipherable only by the 5 remaining fans. I'll be surprised if it makes 5 million.

Which sucks because I really liked X-files and want it to be sucessful like Star Trek.

*le sigh*

 

New X-Files movie?

 

I would like to see it do well also but though it ended well enough the show was dragged on too long and it's been a long time since X-files anything has been mainstream.

In all honesty though there are a few films that have done, are doing, and will do well most movies seem to struggle and I think national fatigue concerning world affairs is the culprit.

 

I admit, I'm still enough of a fanboy that I'll see it.

 

I just know they're gonna ruin my childhood with that movie. They've done that for everything else.

 

I chalk it up less to world affairs and more to Hollywood failing.

 

I thought the last one was well done...too bad they completely dumped the mythology afterwards.

I think this one is supposed to be a standalone like the MOTW.

 

It's surprising they decided to make another X Files movie. The first one was a financial letdown and not very interesting. Don't get me wrong, I'm definitely going to see it. But that's not saying much. I'm not very discriminating about movies.

 

I'm gonna see this movie some time. Hope it doesn't suck.

Anyway, here's what I've been up to the last week.

Jifty's pics of Berlin

Wonderful city, I absolutely recommend it for any history buff. Great food, great sites, great public transportation. It's unlike any capital city I've ever been to. I'll be uploading today's pics tomorrow (it's nearly midnight here now, and I had a long day). Went biking with my dad in a forest here. They have a forest inside the city, a huge frakking forest. And then I just bounced around the U- and S-Bahn just doing some crowd watching. Tomorrow we go to the Allied Museum to see the display on Sgt. Elvis Presley.

More to come.

 

If you like Berlin, I think you would love Budapest for the same reasons.

I mean there are monuments in the city that have stood since the 950-980's. That's not as old as some, but they represent architecture from the "Holy Roman Empire" revival period.

It's also interesting to contrast the stark difference between the buildings of the communist period- which have a stark utilitarianism that is at home in a Scifi movie- and the buildings that were erected after as a commentary.

The food is good, but everything is either made with cabbage, bacon, or sour cream...

 

My dad was in Budapest for a little bit. He seemed to like it a lot. But yeah, Berlin is certainly a "new" city by European standards. When I lived in Germany the first time, the military base I lived near was in a town that was founded in 999. 1999 was their millennial celebration, and they came out with a kick ass beer at the brewery for it.

 

Bacon tastes good, Mr44.

 

I've got a home project when I get back from this deployment.

I'm going to take Gethsemane/Redux 1/Redux 2 into Windows Movie Maker and edit them together into my own damn X-Files movie.

 

Bacon tastes good, Mr44.

oh, that's a given.

But there is just something unsettling about thick cut bacon wrapped with more bacon strips, covered in sour cream...

 

J_F_T, I've been to Germany. It is the most Western of any European country I've been to. It's a good place. I went a little off the tourist traps to see the family owned shops where they make coo-coo clocks. The use lathes that are no bigger than my hand! Incredible craftmanship!

About movies;

Is it just because I was a kid in the 80's or were some of the best movies made in that decade? Lethal Weapon, Die Hard, Aliens, Total Recall, Demolition Man, Breakfast Club, Chariots of Fire, Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street, Indianna Jones, E.T., and on and on.

Do this decade's movies stand up? Spider-Man, Iron Man, Lord of the Rings, Matrix, Harry Potter, 40 Year Old Virgin... Great movies, but I feel they may not stand the test of time as well.

And what happened to the movies from the 90's? Culturally the 90's may become the new 70's! Jurassic Park and Independace Day are really the only movies that come to mind.

Comments?

 

70s and 80s were definitely a golden age for Hollywood blockbusters.

1975-1984: Jaws, Star Wars, Empire Strikes Back, Raiders of the Lost Ark, E.T., Return of the Jedi, Ghostbusters, Beverly Hills Cop.

 

Bacon covered in sour cream?

That should be illegal.

Give me a side of bacon with chocolate-chip pancakes, or on a thick Angus cheeseburger with fries.

If I'm feeling expensive, wrap them around some scallops.

But sour cream...?

 

Speaking of the Austro-Hungarian empire, there's a delicious Austrian dish made from mashed bacon and bacon fat, aged in the cellar for 3-4 weeks, then eaten spread on bread like peanut butter. Sort of an open-faced cholesterol sandwich.

 

Sour cream tastes good, V03.

 

Let's not forget 1978's Superman and also The Terminator and Red Dawn in 1984.

 

Superman - how could I forget? Still maybe the best of all comic book movies.

Red Dawn.

That movie still brings tears to my eyes every time I see it. Jennifer Grey and C. Thomas Howell, their faces all smudged with dirt, their narrow shoulders slumped under the weight of their submachine guns. Harry Dean Stanton in that awful communist concentration camp.

 

Me too! And let's not forget about 1983's The Outsiders. I cry every time! "Stay Golden."

 

They know that the built in fan base will go see the movie regardless of how much is spent on promoting it. Why waste money on convincing others to see it when they probably won't anyway? At least, that is probably what they are thinking.

 

I did that my first time in Germany (absolutely stunning work, I agree), this time is pure Berlin History. Found a nice shirt that says, "Berlin: A Sunny City for Shady People". God, I love Cold War humor. And there's this nice (and free) walking tour of Berlin. A wonderful time.

My only real problem with Berlin is it's lack of good Schwäbisch food. I deride the lack of Jägerschnitzel with Käsespätzle. Even their Döner-Kebap is different, because they use a thinner, crispier bread rather than the nice, soft pita used in Southern Germany.

Still, I'm loving it here! Few more days left. I'll be seeing Knut (the polar bear the Germans went wild for a couple years ago) at the Berlin Zoo tomorrow, so I'll make sure to get pics there as well.