Boats on a Highway

This is fun.  I watched two films on the same day last week, both involving people traveling in boats on the highway.  I don't say this to sound superstitious nor do I utterly dismiss anything as a simple coincidence.  Instead, I prefer to say "Ha!  Check that out!"

The first movie was Heroes.  It just so happens that Harrison Ford is my favorite actor and Netflix had only so many of his films up for grabs, so when I saw Heroes, I jumped to the 8am occasion and said "Play!"  To my disappointment, the first film star that I noticed was Henry Winkler, The "Fonz" from the 'old school' television show "Happy Days" and also the pathetic coach Klein in The Waterboy (1998) - an outrageous comedy favorite of mine, by the way.  Along with Winkler is Sally Fields (who'll be seen next summer in the new reboot of The Amazing Spiderman and also starred in the award-winning Forrest Gump, as Forrest's mother).  I'd say the two are fairly classic, yet this film was never on my radar, and the fact that I was forced to wait to see Harrison Ford's face really kept me on edge.

Winkler plays "Jack" who escapes from a veteran's hospital, meets Carol (Fields), and goes on a nutty roadtrip across the country to meet up with some old army pals of his to start some kind of business.  You have a difficult time figuring out just how crazy Jack might be, but once you realize he actually has plans that involve real people, you realize Jack isn't trying to ruin everyone's life around him, which he does.  The first from unit that he manages to get in touch with is Harrison Ford, who plays something of a country bumpkin named Ken.  Ken passes up a road race and decides he'd rather give the couple his sporty red and pink sports car (which despite the door latch, they have to climb in and out through the windows).  When the car gets beat up in a crash-through-the-wall bar fight, the couple is forced to abandon "ship" and hitchhike to California.  One successful ride-giver just happens to have a boat attached to the back of their car, so you see the couple start out cruising in a close cuddle, with Jack at the wheel and the shot zooms out to show their "driving" a boat on the highway.  It was really fun to watch.

Overall, the movie doesn't really wrestle with Jack's problems of post-traumatic stress disorder until the very end, but maybe the film was simply building up to it.  Is Jack really out of his mind?  I don't think so.  Is Carol out of her mind?  IMDB says she's "sympathetic."  You watch it and you tell me.

My response would simply be "only in Hollywood."  This brings me to Pineapple Express.  It was choir tour, 2009.  We had just returned from Italy.  And after a long time away from home (that is, Clinton, NY), I want to do two things: eat amazing food and be with my girlfriend.  Other than that, I really don't want to do anything, or be talking to anyone, and then... shouts across the bus ring out about what movie to watch.  And we've got a 6 hour drive from NYC to Clinton.  I'm not in the mood.

I don't recall how I knew it was Pineapple Express that was on.  I managed to catch the picture of the cross-shaped-joint, (in the beginning) and someone getting stabbed in the back with a fork later on.  That's all I remember to this day from that bus ride.  Going through one of my roomies' DVD collections, I came across the movie a couple times this summer and thought "meh!" and shrugged my shoulders and moved on.  Only 4 hours or so after watching Heroes, a goofy comedy about drugs, backstabbers, and ... I didn't-know-what-else, sounded like a great idea!

Again, another banged up car situation, and a couple of lost travelers needing a ride, gets Seth Rogen and James Franco a free ride on the back of someone's car in their boat.  I watch this and my eyes go POP!  I wonder, was it copied?  The shot wasn't even closely related, but I wonder who thought up the idea!  I didn't do my research to see how many other films involve people riding in boats on the highway, but it could totally help the environment now couldn't it?

Next time you're going on a roadtrip, bring a boat!  You could advertise it on Twitter, Facebook, or even Craigslist.  Then again, after watching these two movies, maybe you'll regret bumping into some stranger.  Then again, only in Hollywood would that person that you've hated for the 3 day road trip is the love of your life, or a near fatal encounter with a drug dealer.  Only in Hollywood.

Baby Blue Eggshell

Two weeks ago, I nearly stepped on a baby blue eggshell, another sign that Winter's frozen butt is far, far away.  How happy are they that relish in the sun.  I left this post for fear of my love of writing, and a possible addiction to sitting in front of computers.... so, 12 days later, I'm picking up the pieces.


Well, all that to say, my last ramble left me with promises I've now failed to keep for over 2 weeks, and I wish to put an end to this sort of rabble-frabble.


Let's talk about New York.  I'll tell you why, so don't ask!  I've actually had this little fear of the Big Apple, but every time I went, growing up, it was always with my old man, who never enjoyed driving at night.  We'd maybe stay a while for a little family time to see his brother, (my uncle, aunt, and cousin), and then we'd usually proceed southward towards our nation's capital.   <<Capital vs. Capitol... see below>>


I've always been a city boy.  One of my youth group kids asked me on Sunday if I had my beach sticker yet, and my response was "I'm a city boy... I like smog!"  (I guess that's equivalent to saying "I love asthma!")  I love cars honking, taxis, people shopping and doing all that jazz, but the thing I like about NYC far better than Boston is nobody ... cares.  Sounds awful right?  Especially coming from a Christian, who's viewpoint is to have a heart for others.  Still, when I was visiting my dear friends from college, I felt I could lose myself, and just blend in with this lot of busy-walkers.  


I suppose I could do the same thing in ANY city.  Europe would be the best place to start, because there are plenty of places where speaking English is far from cool.  Displays of ignorance and the camera-flashing tourist drive people away from our French Fry smell and baseball shaped hearts.  


Why do I say all this?  New York was a breath of fresh air, Boston is home, but no matter where I am, I think I'll always have a heart for people.  Living on the North Shore of Massachusetts has actually given me my first real sense of community, and it starts with my church family (The Anglican Chapel, soon to be Hope Chapel), and then local shops and what not.  I hope the next time I'm driving around town, when people hear Boston's "More Than A Feeling," they'll think of me.  Or, perhaps, they'll throw eggs telling me to "toin it awff!"


Those eggs will not be baby blue.  Speaking of which, check out this youtube video!
Baby Blue - Emiliana Torrini

(http://www.grammarist.com/usage/capitol-capital/)