Lost: Oct. 25, 2006 (3.4) – “Every Man for Himself”

Things are looking up. To re-cap: As M.H. at my work had predicted we were rewarded with Sawyer flashbacks tonight. In the “present” there was a beach storyline (brief), a Sawyer/Kate/Ben storyline, and a Jack/Juliet storyline.

The Beach: Desmond is still freakin’. Specifically he’s still seeing the future. After unsuccessfully trying to get Claire and Aaron (the baby) to move out of her shelter while he “fixes” it, he borrows the nine iron from the communal golf bag and constructs a lightning rod that saves Claire and Aaron. Charlie starts to suspect Desmond’s ability.

Sawyer and Co.: Sawyer schemes to escape and instead is out-conned by Ben. In a variation on a classic con, he is sedated and convinced that they have inserted a pace maker in his heart that will kill him if his heart rate goes very high. Sawyer falls for it and in the process convinces Kate not to try to escape (they are being watched anyways). In the end, Ben takes Sawyer up to the top of a bluff overlooking the water and shows him how they are on a smaller island “twice the size of Alcatraz” a few miles from the main island. Kind of makes you wonder why they aren’t on the main island… hmmm… Oh yeah, Kate says she loves Sawyer. Does she?

J & J: Juliet gets Jack to operate on and try to save “Colleen,” the woman who Sun shot last week. She dies. Jack sees the x-ray of an adult male with a tumour on his spine. Is this why he has been selected by the others- he happens to be a spinal surgeon.

Overall: Not bad. Not bad at all. The gag of having Sawyer’s hear rate go up while Kate was changing was kind of a cheap gag, though. Good set up for next week, hopefully.

B.

America, is this what you really think of us?

So far, I've kept this blog to some pretty light topics. Yesterday I
heard a story on the news that has compelled me to protest here using
all the blog-space I can.

Here's the story: an American citzen named Malcolm Watson was convicted in New York State of sexually abusing a student he taught at a prestegious all-girls private school. He made a plea bargain that was accepted by the state prosecutor (district attorney?) and by the judge, pleading guilty to one count of sexual abuse and one count of endangering a child. The "bargain" was that he could return to live with his wife and children in Canada for three years and stay away from US for that period except to visit with his probation officer, or he could spend one year in prison in the U.S.

Here's the full story from the CBC: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2006/10/23/exile.html

What the heck? Is this how we (Canada) rate for the U.S. or at least part of it? Is our children's safety is worth that much less than their children's safety? I've been around enough to realize there are probably several legitimate but conflicting perspectives on this story with reference to how high the risk of him re-offending, international law, citizenship versus permanent residency, and differences between Canadian and American law. It's true the legal age of consent is lower in Canada than in New York State (14 vs. 17, I think), BUT the fact that he (as a teacher) was in a position of trust over this student, he could still be guilty of an offence in this country.

So, his choice was one year in jail in the U.S. or 3 years living with his family and working in Canada.... In summary, this whole despicable incident is a:
1) Good deal if you're Malcolm Watson.
2) Good deal (in a really short-sighted way) for the U.S.- one less sex offender for a few years.
3) Bad deal for 33 million Canadians, who happen to include a number of children I'd like to keep safe.

B.

An Actual Update

I probably should write an actual update, instead of only posting fun stuff. We had a quiet but great weekend. We had a marshmallow-filled campfire between rain showers Saturday night. Also went to the children's library with the girls this PM and met up with my mom.

Super Girl is 95% toilet-trained. It probably felt like a stronger, tougher struggle than it actually was this time around. She's worked hard at it, though. She just had to get to the stage where she wanted to do it.

Skating and gymnastics are going well for Action Girl. Neither is a very high-intensity sport when you're five, but that's as it should be.

I'll write more soon.

B.

Lego block head of Binky

Lego block head of Binky
Originally uploaded by Binky

Have you ever wondered what you and those closest to you would like if they were made out of Lego? Well, I hadn’t either, until I stumbled across this site:

http://www.reasonablyclever.com/mini/index.htm

If you follow this link you can make your own virtual Lego “mini” figure (the king with the yellow head and blank stare. What? Still not interested? Well, you too could preserve the likeness of those closest to you in well… virtual plastic toy-hood.

B.

Super Girl in Lego Oct 21-06

Super Girl in Lego Oct 21-06
Originally uploaded by Binky

This is how Super Girl, age 2.5 yrs, sees herslef in Lego. Cute, eh? Yes- she really did pick those eyes.
B.

Action Girl in Lego Oct 21-06

Action Girl in Lego Oct 21-06
Originally uploaded by Binky

Action Girl, age 5.5, picked the microphone, cap, and cape to prove that she is in fact a "rock girl."
B.

Binky in Lego Oct 21-06

Binky in Lego Oct 21-06
Originally uploaded by Binky

When I showed my sweetie the Lego mini-figure site, this portrait of me, by her, was the result. Uncanny isn't it? That may be next year's haircut, though.
B.

Super Mom in Lego Oct 21-06

Super Mom in Lego Oct 21-06
Originally uploaded by Binky

Super-Mom, the love of my life, in Lego. Considering her portrait of me, I think I've shown some restraint in not enhancing this picture.
B.

Happy Birthday Super Galactic Space Mom

space mom oct-06









My far better half's birthday is today!
Happy birthday, sweetie!
B.

[Picture: This is a drawing that Action Girl (age 5) made of herself, her mom and Super Girl (age 2) going to a planet to meet aliens. Its not every mother that could inspire that level of adventure. ]

Lost Season Three, Ep. #2: Yawn…

Last night’s episode of Lost wasn’t that bad, I guess. In case you missed it (and you want to know), it basically involved a Swayer-Kate storyline about a kiss and an attempted escape and a Jin-Sun storyline that involved a lot of flashbacks to Korea.

Basically, Jin did have an affair with Jae, her English tutor. Sun’s father discovers this band sends Jin to go to kill him over some supposedly uncollected debts. Jin cannot kill him and gets him to promise to leave the country. But, as Jin goes to leave Jae comes crashing down onto his car- did he jump or was he pushed? He’s holding a set of pearls that he tried to give to Sun earlier. I can’t remember if she accepted them or not. If she did, then presumably she pushed him. If she didn’t then he jumped, heartbroken. In the “present” Jin, Sun, and Sayid try to ambush the others at the dock only to have the sailboat (“The Elizabeth”) taken by a squad of others. Sun shoots one of the others in the stomach in the course of this.

Sawyer and Kate are sent to break up rocks… No really, to break up rocks… Sawyer kisses Kate and tries to escape. He almost gets away, but doesn’t. I think the important thing in his mind is that he got to kiss Kate. In the last scene, “Henry” (“Ben”) sits down to speak to Jack. He tells him his name and that he’s lived here all his life. There seems to be a real naivety in Ben that I can’t quite sort out…

So, what’s the third season going to be like? The tough thing is that with the suspense of the first two seasons is going to be really hard to top, or even equal…

B.

Recent News

1) We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I’ve added a few pictures from that w/end to my Flickr page at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/binkygetsby/

2) Super Girl is now (mostly) toilet-trained. Yay!!! Good for her!

3) Super girl (age 2 2/3) can identify the letters J, L, and A by name. Neat!

4) Our next door neighbour had her baby yesterday (on the 11^th). “C” is a brother for “A” who is Super Girl’s age (within a week). Action Girl is determined to one day be his babysitter.

Good night for now,

B.

Picture of Herbie the cat

Herbie Cat Sunday October 8 2006

(my in-laws' house cat)

I love the expression on his face.

B.

Lost Season Three Premiere: Your Comments via e-mail

A few of you sent me comments about my Lost season premiere post. Here
they are with all identifying info removed.

#1
Dear Binky - you are indeed a die-hard fan of Lost. I say this because
of noting that
only a short time after the airing of the premiere you have posted a
well thought out
description. While talking to a friend this morning, she suggested
that to her memory
(which I must admit, is much better than mine) Carrie's partner was a
woman of color?? I must say I don't remember that but thought you had
remembered it correctly.??? This too will unfold eh! ---- Another
die-hard fan.

#2
Hey B.,
I was excited to see the show again but I must say, the numbers of
unanswered questions outweighed the answers and it frustrated me
somewhat.

The resounding theme for me is experiment, experiment, experiment with
the prisoners! It freaked me out when Juliette knew all details of
Jack's life (beyond what they simply would have overheard him say). I
picked up on a little strife between Juliette and Ben which could be
interesting. Also, it seems these 'others' are leftovers from the Dharma
(?) initiative but I cannot get a sense of their purpose in their quaint
lives on the island or their need to 'test' the new arrivals. Hence, I'm
just too stumped at the moment.

I'm always interested in other's views. And yes, this Juliette
character was on ER. I did not recall where I saw her before until you
mentioned. Have a great day!!

#3
my theory.....Jack didn't escape he was hallucinating

#4
I'm "Lost" for words B. To put it more simply, when it comes to this
show I don't know my arse from my elbow. I so badly want to figure out
what is going on, but just come up empty handed (similar to the K Rock
Fugitive scenario). Just when I think I have a bright idea, it's
squashed by something even more bizarre and complex. The suspense of
this show kills me, yet I don't really want to know the truth because
that would just be boring. Can't wait until next week!

TV Time: What else am I watching?

(1) Battlestar Galactica (the 2003-now version) (Season 2.5 on DVD). One of the greatest dramas ever on TV... Certainly the best written science fiction show ever made... The original version (1978-9) was quite a different show.

2) Survivor Yep, I'm still hooked.

3) ER Maybe... ER's hold on my viewing is now tenuous. They've written everything. I was left with the sense that some of the long-time cast is just going through the motions.

4) The Amazing Race This season is looking up- my only problem is that I can't remember to watch it.

5) How I Met Your Mother Funny show, a very funny bittersweet show... Okay, maybe originally I started watching it because Allison Hannigan was on it, but I stayed for the laughs. I don't see it all that often, though.

6) CSI The original is still the best.

7) Two shows I'd like to watch but don't: The Office, My Name is Earl, and Scrubs. All are funny, funny shows.

B.

TV Time: Lost has returned to us!

Lost had its season premiere last night! I was not disappointed. The show has already gone in some very challenging directions that will probably work for some viewers and not others. I hope to be in the first group (if you haven't seen it yet, you may want to skip this whole post). We're shown the tranquility of the Others' little residence village and how

Basically, Jack, Kate, and Sawyer are now "the Others'" prisoners. The episode was centered around Kate's interrogation by a new character, "Juliette." He makes an impressive escape attempt and through this, we get quite a bit more of his back-story, including some insight into the end of his marriage and his relationship with his father. Does the actress who plays Juliette look really familiar to anyone else? Was she Carrie's first girlfriend on ER? (I remember because her character was a social worker- there's not a lot of us portrayed on TV, as we have a wee bit of an image problem... or maybe people just don't want to think about us.)

Sawyer is kept in a polar bear cage (empty). He befriends (sort of) a young man who is in the next cage over and joins his new friend in an apparent escape attempt that Juliette stops. The whole Sawyer learns how to do polar bear tricks theme was really, really funny, including when "Henry" tells him that the bears figured out how to work the food release in two hours (less than Sawyer). Sawyer defensively then asks "how many of them were there?" or words to that effect. His new young friend is then lead away, presumably to be shot. The oldest trick in the books!

Kate, is taken away to shower and then given a pretty dress (I honestly don't know how else to describe it). Then, in a scene/twist incredibly similar to what happens to Marion's character in Indiana Jones, she has a nice breakfast with Henry. Did anyone else think that basically the same scene? Anyhow, a long story cut short we then find out that Henry's real name is Ben.

What did everyone else think?

B.

October, here we come...

Posting on this blog weekly still seems to be something just out of my
grasp. That said, everyone in our happy yellow house is doing well and
settling into our autumn routine. Action Girl (5.7 yrs.) started
gymnastics a few weeks ago and can already do actual somersaults
(something she though she could do for some time). She also starts
skating lessons on October 9th.

On Friday, September 14th, both of our girls took part in the
pre-school Terry Fox Run.

Super Girl (2.8 yrs.) is just as excited about skating this year even
without lessons. She did skate a couple of times last year on borrowed
skates- here's what adorable scene that looked like.

In other news, our next door neighbours, A. & S. are going to have
their second child any day now. Our girls are pretty excited for them
(we are too). A-Girl is already talking about babysitting the new baby
(not for a few years). Our two year-old neighbour "A" is, if you ask
him, absolutely convinced he is getting a baby brother. Hmmm...

B.