A pretty blonde with a bouffant shoots an unseen someone twice. After shooting the person, she breaks down, screaming and crying. She falls in a heap on the floor, cradling the gun. The whole scene is shot in a bright white light, and the only sound is that sort of underwater sound you get in a swimming pool.

Elvis is going down an escalator in an airport. A big, stylized sign, reminiscent of 50's travel posters, welcomes him to Honolulu. All the luggage comes out of a tunnel. Elvis retrieves his small suitcase, and the scene ends with an extended shot of the luggage coming out, going around the carousel, and going back into a tunnel. One particular suitcase seems to be the focus of the shot, and the scene fades out with the blue suitcase retreating into the tunnel. The mechanical sound of the luggage carousel and the sounds of women's heels clacking dominate the soundtrack.

A seedy motel, daylight. Elvis is checking into the motel. The Indian clerk asks how long he's staying, and Elvis says he's staying for a week. As Elvis walks away, the clerk gives him an odd look. Elvis uses the key card to get into his room. The first thing we see in the room a lamp shaped like a hula girl. Once in the room, he takes all of the clothes out of his suitcase and puts them away, hanging his shirts carefully. All of his shirts are very, very similar Hawaiian shirts. They all look brand new. He takes a shower, and while he's in the shower, the camera focuses on him washing his face very carefully, followed by the shot of the water running down onto the floor of the bathtub, past a horrific rusty stain. The sounds of the shower fade in and out with the sounds of a radio in an adjacent room. The music is a sad, slow Mexican ballad.

Much later in the evening, it's dark and Elvis goes down to the beach. He's wearing a clean, pressed Hawaiian shirt, and khaki slacks. There's a party at the beach, and it's very crowded. The only light is flickering bonfires and tiki torches. The camera lurches drunkenly towards the bonfires and torches. Loud, chaotic music with a fast beat and lots of trumpets is playing. All the other men are dirty and unshaven, and all the women are beautiful, but hard and greedy looking. Almost everyone is either smoking a cigarette or pot. The crowd parts and a beautiful woman with long, stringy blonde hair is standing there. She looks strung out. She's wearing a tiny bikini, and she has almost no breasts. She runs her hand slowly down her smooth, deeply tanned torso, stopping when she gets to her crotch. The implication is clear. A man steps out of the crowd and moves towards Elvis. He gestures at the woman, and says to Elvis "You like what you see?" Elvis doesn't respond.

Elvis goes back to his motel room. It's dark. He turns on the light, and there's a naked woman in his bed. She's beautiful, with white skin, raven black hair, and large breasts. He asks "Who are you?" and she responds "I had nowhere else to go!" He accepts this, and slowly gets ready for bed, putting on blue flannel pajamas, and brushing his teeth in the bathroom. A tiny window above the shower is open, much too small for her to have come in through. The dirty rose-colored curtains blow slightly in the wind. Once in bed, she reaches for him, but he turns away. She looks totally crushed. She sneaks into the bathroom and sobs silently. The fluorescent light on the ceiling flickers several times and goes out.

The next day, Elvis is standing in a bank. He's talking to the teller, a middle-aged, slim, black woman. He asks about a safety deposit box, and gives the teller a key. The teller walks into the back, and Elvis looks around the bank in a bored manner. The teller asks him to follow her, and he does. Women's heels are the only sound, other than the dialogues between Elvis and the teller.

Perfect, curling waves are breaking out in a perfect blue ocean. The camera is looking out towards the water, so no land is visible. The camera slowly sinks, and the sound goes from crashing waves to that same swimming-pool sound.

That evening, he goes back to the party on the beach. It's almost identical to the previous night. Elvis moves forward through the crowd, but this time, the crowd parts to show the blonde with the bouffant from the opening shot. She's wearing a tight, short-sleeved pink sweater, and long, full skirt with a crinoline. They see each other, they're lit with a white light, and the music changes to "I Can't Help Falling in Love With You." They move towards each other, and give each other broad smiles. For a second, the spotlight brightens to the intensity of the opening shot, and we see her sobbing and holding the gun. Then the spotlight fades back to normal. Her eyes widen and her smile gets bigger. She says her name is Betty. They smile. They're in love. He asks if he can see her again, and she says yes. As Elvis leaves the beach party, in a shadowy corner he sees the strung-out blonde from the night before performing oral sex on a man with long, stringy blonde hair. The man grins at Elvis, and he's missing several teeth.

Again, Elvis goes back to his room to find the dark-haired woman. She's still naked. He asks her what her name is and she says "Veronica, my name is Veronica." She gives her head an affected toss. She looks like she's not telling the truth. Again, she's shown in the bathroom crying.

The waves are shown again. An Iiwi flits through the trees. The camera zooms in on the bird's eye. This shot is oddly grainy compared with the rest of the film.

Elvis and Betty are in a diner. They're both drinking milkshakes with long straws. They look very happy. Betty asks Elvis why he came to Honolulu, and Elvis replies that someone died. She looks sad for a minute, then brightens and says "Well, I'm glad you came!" He says "I'm glad too!" They hold hands. Betty asks if he would like to come over for dinner. Elvis says he would like that very much. Again, "I Can't Help Falling in Love With You" is heard.

The same evening, Elvis knocks on the door of a house. He's looking exceptionally clean-cut in a starched white shirt and tie. Betty's parents open the door. Betty's dad is tall and tan. He's wearing an argyle sweater. Betty's mom is dressed in a short-sleeved white blouse with a ruffled collar, a long skirt with a crinoline, and an apron. She's wearing pearls. She has a strangely hurt expression. They all sit down at the table. Betty serves them all. They're all drinking milk. Betty's dad asks Elvis what his father does for a living. Elvis responds that his dad manages a plant. Betty's dad smiles and nods approvingly.

After dinner, Elvis and Betty go into the den. The den's got wood paneling and a rock fireplace, and looks just like Mrs. Robinson's den in "The Graduate." There's an odd, strangely blocky red lamp in the corner. Elvis stares at the lamp, reminded of something. When he turns around, Betty is standing there naked. He moves towards her, embracing her passionately. Betty's father is shown leering at them through some wooden blinds from another room in the house. He clearly loves watching them together.

After leaving Betty's house, Elvis goes back to the beach. He thinks he sees the strung-out blonde, but he realizes it's another girl.

Elvis goes back to the motel, and Veronica is there. He doesn't say anything to her. She cries in the bathroom some more.

Waves. The Iiwi.

Betty and Elvis are on a picnic together. They're on a bluff overlooking the ocean. They've got a blanket spread out, and they're drinking cokes out of a bottle. Betty is a sweet, innocent girl again. No mention is made of the previous evening.

Elvis goes back to the party on the beach. He sees Betty talking to a group of rough-looking men. When Betty sees him, she moves towards him, blocking his view of the men. She's half-hidden in the darkness. He asks "What are you doing here?" She steps into the light, and he sees she's been crying. She's desperate, and wild eyed. He says "Come home with me. Come back to my hotel." Then he grabs her and holds her pressed against him.

They go back to his hotel, and it's a totally different room. This room is paneled in rich wood, and there are red drapes covering the window. This room is much nicer, and Veronica is nowhere to be seen. The red lamp from Betty's parents' den is on the bedside table. They get in bed and start to make love in slow motion. She's crying, and he kisses away her tears. The under water sound is heard, and the light turns into a bright spotlight.

The next morning, Betty takes a shower, and the water is shown dripping down onto the shower floor. It's a nice tile now. Slow music is playing, with lots of violins. Meanwhile, Elvis is packing. He opens the closet door, and there is nary a Hawaiian shirt to be seen. Betty comes out of the bathroom wearing a short jean skirt over a tight black bodysuit. Her hair is straight and shoulder-length with bangs and streaks. They smile at each other.

They're back at the airport, and they're getting on a plane together! They take their seats, and smile some more. They're very much in love. She pats her stomach, implying she's pregnant. Elvis looks at her proudly.

The closing shot is almost the same as the opening shot. Betty, with the bouffant, is screaming and crying. She falls in a heap on the floor, cradling the gun. White light, swimming pool sound.

Credits.

Arizona
*Gov. Janet Napolitano-- I've heard her name floated before. It would be unlikely to have two people for Arizona running.

Arkansas
*Gov. Mike Beebe-- He only got in last year. He's an unlikely choice.

Colorado
*Gov. Bill Ritter-- He only got in last year. He's an unlikely choice.

Delaware
Gov. Ruth Ann Minner-- Her term in office is over this year. I think Delaware would be "safe" without her, but we also wouldn't be giving up a good spot by picking her. She's the longest-serving female governor in the US today.

Illinois
Gov. Rod Blagojevich-- We're not going to pick someone else from Illinois.

Iowa
*Gov. Chet Culver-- He only got in last year. He's an unlikely choice.

Kansas
*Gov. Kathleen Sebelius-- I've heard her mentioned before.

Kentucky
*Gov. Steven Beshear-- He only got in last year. He's an unlikely choice.

Maine
Gov. John Baldacci-- Maine should be "safe" without him.

Maryland
Gov. Martin O'Malley-- He only got in last year. He's an unlikely choice.

Massachusetts
Gov. Deval Patrick-- He only got in last year. NOT GONNA HAPPEN.

Michigan
Gov. Jennifer M. Granholm-- Not born in America.

Montana
*Gov. Brian Schweitzer-- He's got a degree in soils! Awesome!

New Hampshire
Gov. John Lynch-- Hasn't been in office very long. From a swing state.

New Jersey
Gov. Jon Corzine-- Hasn't been in office very long. Was a senator for a long time.

New Mexico
*Gov. Bill Richardson-- I've heard his name mentioned.

New York
Gov. David Paterson-- He's been in office what, two weeks? Not gonna happen.

North Carolina
*Gov. Michael Easley-- His term is up this year. He was attorney general of NC for a long time. Might make an interesting choice.

Ohio
*Gov. Ted Strickland-- He only got in last year. He's an unlikely choice.

Oklahoma
*Gov. Brad Henry-- Seems very conservative. One of the biggest issues in his campaign was cockfighting.

Oregon
Gov. Ted Kulongoski-- Oregon is probably secure without him.

Pennsylvania
*Gov. Edward Rendell-- Unlikely choice.

Tennessee
*Gov. Phil Bredesen-- Made a brazlian dollars running an HMO.

Virginia
*Gov. Tim Kaine-- He's pretty new, and we might not get another democrat in office there.

Washington
Gov. Chris Gregoire-- She'd make an interesting choice.

West Virginia
*Gov. Joe Manchin III-- Swing state governor.

Wisconsin
Gov. Jim Doyle-- Wisconsin should be pretty safe, but nevertheless maybe that's the way to go.

Wyoming
*Gov. Dave Freudenthal-- Degree in economics, former US Attorney, endorsed Obama.


Discuss.

What's your prediction for Pennsylvania?

I think Hillary's going to win it by 8 points (54 to 46), spin it as a hugh comeback, and stay in the race, despite the fact that she'll only net about 22 delegates and she'll still be about 114 delegates behind.

(This would increase her "must win" margin to 65% versus her current 62% in order to pull even with Obama before the convention, not counting superdelegates. This would also, ironically, lower Obama's "must win" percent to 43% in order to secure enough delegates for the nomination.)

What do you guys think?

This man is the scum of the earth, and his company is one of the most evil companies out there.

Burson-Marsteller is a PR firm. But it's not just a PR firm. These people defend EVIL. Clients include the Nigerian junta, the Indonesian government following genocide in East Timor, the Argentinian junta, Saudi Arabia, Monsanto, Union Carbide, Exxon, Blackwater, Philip Morris, Shell, the company that built the reactor at Three Mile Island, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (following Mad Cow worries), Dow Corning, McDonald's, and the company that made the Dalkon shield IUD. They created the group the National Smoker's Allience with money they got from Phillip Morris to lobby in favor of so-called "smoker's rights." They also created the group "Foundation for Clean Air Progress" which lobbies the EPA for weaker air standards. They've lobbied for "food disparagement laws," which prevent you from publically saying cheeseburgers are bad for you, as Oprah learned. They even handled the PR for the company that made Aqua Dots.

From their website:


Here's one of their proud case studies:




Direct Impact (The Grassroots Company) is a wholly owned subsidiary of B-M.

From their website:


There's a name for this. It's called astroturfing.

In summary, by hiring this man and his firm, Hillary Clinton has associated herself with pure scum, and she should dissociate herself from him immediately.

Donald Rumsfeld is giving the president his daily briefing. He concludes by saying: "Yesterday, 3 Brazilian soldiers were killed."

"OH NO!" the President exclaims. "That's terrible!"

His staff sits stunned at this display of emotion, nervously watching as the President sits, head in hands.

Finally, the President looks up and asks, "How many is a brazillion?"

I got my Bachelor's in Soil Science with a minor in Watershed Management back in 2003. I was originally intending to qualify for federal hydrology jobs, but alas, that extra semester of calculus just didn't quite happen my last semester in school. I've got some additional fun classes like climatology and geography that didn't apply to my degree, but that I took for personal enrichment. I've got to be frank and say that my grades were not all that. I chose a major that I thought would be a challenge, and it was. I worked hard for my degree, but I got a lot of B's and a lot of C's.

I've also been a bit of a birder for a few years, so when I was in school I did summer work as a biologist looking at birdies.

When I gradumacated I got a job as a biologist with an environmental consulting firm. Walking transects and writing reports for housing developers was ultimately soul-sucking, and I left that job after a year and a half.

Two years ago I got a job here in Santa Barbara with a different consulting firm that was much more to my liking. Instead of working for housing developers, we worked on power projects and other infrastructure projects. Unfortunately, I was downsized a couple months ago, and now I am at a crossroads.

Here are my options as I see them:

I could go back to school. I'm interested in exploring more of the technical side of hydrology and geology. I feel like there are holes in my learning, and I'd like to take more math, fluvial processes, minerology, structure, chemistry, and allied sciences. I'd also be interested in taking plant taxonomy ('cause I am teh worst botanist ever (more of which later)) and Spanish (because I am hoping to bird the bejeebus out of teh neotropics in teh next decade). I don't think I could get into a master's program without doing more undergraduate work and building my GPA. But I'm kind of wondering what new doors more schooling would really open.

I could go to work as a soil scientist for the Feds. I'd probably want to be more of a soil conservationist than a soil scientist. However, most of the soil jobs seem to be out in BFE.

My mom's an editor with an environmental consulting firm in Northern California and she could get me a job doing editing there no worries. I don't think I could get a job doing editing anywhere else because I lack experience.

I could just go with the status quo and get a job doing consulting biology.

I sort of hate consulting biology. First of all, I'm really not a biologist. I'm really good at wetland soils and hydrology (two out of three!), but I am hard pressed to identify any plants beyond like, the most basic level. Fir, pine, manzanita, willow, comp, grass, little forby jobber, and so on. I'm an ace birder, but I don't have permits for anything. I don't know shit about mammals, fish, inverts, or herps other than what I've picked up on the job. Therefore, most of what I write feels really half-assed. Which isn't to say that I think I'm doing a worse job than anyone else, I just have the good sense to feel ashamed of the substandard quality of my work.

Also, and I hate to say this, but most of my colleagues have been total dumbshits. I deeply suspect that most of what THEY write is half-assed, but they don't even have the sense to know that what they write is crap.

I just feel like a cog in the bullshit machine. And the worst part about it is working on projects you hate. I've been out to some beautiful rangeland areas that some asshole developer wanted to put 5,000 McMansions on. And you go back to the office and write the report like that's going to be the only development in the area, when you know that there are all kinds of other developments proposed for the next parcel over, and the parcel beyond that one, and the parcel beyond that one. It makes you feel like an enemy of the environment, a poser, and a hypocrite, but it pays the bills.

The argument in favor of working for the enemy is that I feel like I do have some integrity, and maybe it's better to have someone with some integrity doing the work instead of someone who's a total sellout. But maybe I'm kidding myself, and I'm a sellout and I don't know it.

The additional wrinkle here is that I currently live in Santa Barbara, which is SWEET, but the only jobs here are consulting biology jobs. I really don't want to move.

So what are my options? Tell me something good here.

Also, what do you guys do, and are you happy with it?

In pictures, the desert looks really desolate. I know there's lush vegetation around the rivers, but most of the place it just looks like there's nothing. No bushes, no trees, no interesting rocks, just flat desert.

Is this the case over much of the country, or is this a misleading impression?

Especially, how do you tell if he likes you as a friend or as something more?

Thanks.

Candidate A: Parents are both foreign born. Father was a bank executive in another country, and the candidate was raised abroad until age 13, when he/she was sent to the US to attend prep school.

Candidate B: Dad was a US Senator. He/she is the 5th of 6 children and went to a Catholic prep school. Was in the peace corps in the Dominican Republic.

Candidate C: Father worked in a factory, first as a floor worker, eventually as a supervisor. Mother worked for the postal service. Was the first person in the family to go to college. Child died in a car accident.

Candidate D: Eldest of the seven children. Father was a truck driver. While growing up his family moved 21 times and when they couldn't find a place to live they were occasionally forced to live out of their car.

Candidate E: Father started a successful business manufacturing drapery fabric. Went to public schools growing up. After completing his/her BA, spent a summer washing dishes in McKinley National Park and cleaning fish in a cannery in Valdez. He/she was fired from the cannery for complaining about unhealthy working conditions. Volunteered providing free legal services for the poor, and won a grant to research working conditions among migrant laborers.

Candidate F: Father was a Senator, mother was a lawyer. During summer vacations he/she worked on the family farm. Went to a swanky prep school. Volunteered for Vietnam. Worked as a reporter exposing corruption in government.

Candidate G: Born to immigrant parents. Father was a painting contractor. Went to Catholic schools growing up. Put himself/herself through school driving a taxi. Has dyslexia.

Candidate H: Parents divorced when he/she was 2, and dad moved out of the country. At age 6, mother remarried and the family moved to Jakarta. Moved back to the US to live with grandparents from the age of 10 until after graduating prep school. After finishing school, he/she lead voter registration efforts in poor neighborhoods.

Candidate I: Father was a car salesman. Attended Catholic prep school. Spouse and child died in a car accident; other two children were seriously injured.

Which candidate will come in far below where the polls indicate they should?

Was it a pain or was it a joy?

http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/p/m/1e...

Best thread ever.

Three ideas come to mind: Knockturn Alley, Percy, and both the part where Dumbledore says help will be given and the part where Dumbledore is talking about Fawkes.

The frustration of the second film is how closely it follows the book but misses some of the je ne sais quoi.

What are your theories about movie 2?

I'll also say that the beauty of the reread is that the first time I read EACH of the books, there was some MAJOR plot twist that seemed TOTALLY random, but on reread either seemed like a minor turn or seemed totally inevitable based on what had come before.

Chamber of Secrets is a good example of this. It's my least favorite book as a stand-alone read. All the red herrings with Hagrid and the spiders, the fact that many people are hurt but not killed through random twists of fate, and Ginny's ultimate involvement didn't make a very satisfying read, but now that we've seen the broader plot there's SO MUCH there for speculation and there's a huge amount of character development that comes back WAY later in the series. This is the book where you learn a lot about Ginny, Riddle, and oddly, Hagrid. (Rowling has said that originally Half Blood Prince and Chamber of Secrets were one book, that she split and rewrote.) I had a special chuckle on the reread with the way she brings Lockhart back into the plot in Order of the Phoenix.

But these plot jerks are why I think a lot of people read the series and are bored or irritated. If I'd only read the series once I would be bored and irritated with it, but right around book 4 the series starts getting really strong plots between the books and the characters start getting more complex.

Snape is a perfect example of this. I was indifferent to him before book 5, and then he suddenly became one of my favorites, especially in the rereads. I'm pretty convinced that he and Dumbledore had a deal, and I'm also fairly certain that Dumbledore doesn't know everything about Snape. There are many years missing between Snape's worst memory, the death of the Potters, and Harry's arrival at Hogwarts that we just don't have information on. After my reread of book 3, it really struck me that the reason Trelawney is at Hogwarts isn't to teach divination, but for her own protection, and it wouldn't surprise me if there was something like that going with Snape (and Hagrid) too.

Draco is a weak person caught in a jam. His parents are evil, and they raised him to be evil, but he still has a choice, and I don't think he's passed the point of no return. Right before Snape arrived, Draco was lowering his wand. I truly suspect that he's never really questioned why he's picked the Death Eater side before book 6. I'd love to be a fly on the wall during the flight of Snape and Draco, especially if Wormtail is a part of that crew. And I'd extra especially like to be that fly if Snape turns out to be good and Draco has really started to think hard about which side he's on. Like I can just see them stopping somewhere for a moment and both just going "Oh shit."

Wormtail is a totally weak and opportunistic person who was also sort of treated badly by James and Sirius, and treated similarly by Snape in book 6. He's weak and opportunistic, but not so weak he doesn't take the opportunities that are given to him. That life debt is still hanging out there. Sirius and Lupin would have killed him, but Harry said he didn't think his dad would have wanted them to become murderers, so Harry made them spare Wormtail. He's also been listening at doors...

Rowling's got such a complicated cast with all of them having strong opinions of one another.... I think the thing that has really sucked about the movies is how they focus more on the physical scenes, but the real joy of the books is in the scenes where the people are just talking and interacting with one another.

What scenes are your particular favorites, just out of curiosity?

what kind of arms and armor did they have?

What kind of arms and armor did the Mongols have?

ps Ace of Base is right out.