Happy Thanksgiving, and thanks to the steady stream of Wii shipments arriving in stores daily since the launch. I walked into Toys’R'Us after lunch the day before turkey and lo and behold, a delivery box lay on the floor next to the register and within rested three freshly delivered Wii systems. And there I was, buying one of them while a nervous guy the same age as me stood silently with a worried look on his face, obviously concerned if there was still one for him. I left as I heard the cashier ask him if he wanted any games with it, so he was probably smiling by then.

Thanksgiving Day itself was a lovely affair with mom, Melissa and Bob at the Hartland house. I provided the Wii. I never in my life thought I would be sitting on the couch watching mom hog the video games. I also never in my life thought I’d get sore and sweaty waving a motion sensor remote about like a maniac this early into the 21st century, but there you go, sometimes the future IS now.

And as a testament to Nintendo’s genius move for this new generation of gaming, I am writing this while Sun continues to swing the remote and nunchuk about playing Rayman Ravin’ Rabbids. Sun, who couldn’t get into today’s gaming but remembers games in her youth, is hogging the Wii, just as mom hogged it over Thanksgiving. This sort of reminds me of last year, when I convinced her to get a Volvo V70 T5 and now don’t get to drive it much as she loves the car dearly.

Anyhow, it’s just as well. My arms are sore. They’ve been sore for three days now. So to end this fanboyish entry, Happy Thanksgiving and thank you for the Wii, Nintendo.

I’m gonna go see if I can get a turn in. Cheers.

James Bond returns and does so, here comes the clich?, with a vengeance. A lot of long-standing fans may not like this “”faithful”" adaptation by Daniel Craig, preferring the Bond of film, but a lot will welcome it, and many new fans will probably flock to the theaters to see a Bond that isn’t cheesy, whose come on lines aren’t so damned punny, and who gets seriously busy in the business of killing that coms with a license to kill. I still have a soft spot for all the Bonds before this one, Connery in From Russia With Love and Goldfinger, Dalton’s turn in The Living Daylights, Brosnan’s final films, and even a couple of Roger Moore’s; and we shall not forget the singular performance by George Lazenby. I actually can honestly say I’m a fan of all and can also easily say that more than half are serious pieces of crap (one summer in 1988 I dug through couches for the$1.07 I needed for a video rental, and in this way watched every James Bond movie up to that point in release order, so I know of which I speak).

The movie is a bit long, and there are parts that seem disjointed enough that you’re not quite sure what happened. But in a way, much of it makes for more realistic espionage. Bond doesn’t have a supercar, but the car does come equipped with a kit befitting a secret agent in need of communications, weaponry and first-aid. He doesn’t have gadgets galore, but he does walk around with a fairly sophisticated, obviously Q-branch mobile phone, even without the silly Q lab walkthrough. And people die. And sometimes Bond isn’t all that super and people rescue him (watch older Bond movies and you’ll notice Bond isn’t as super as he ended up becoming as the years went by). I welcome the change, and I look forward to the next installment.

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I liked this movie. I liked the concept, I liked the characters, I liked the story. It affected me. Were I in a slightly different frame of mind it may have even profoundly affected me. Grosse Pointe Blank did that back in 1996, and yes, I realize it’s not exactly a masterpiece, but that’s the thing with these things, you don’t need a masterpiece to have it affect you. Hell, the crappiest movies can affect you. And you know they’re crappy, and you’ll always think they’re crappy, but they’ll still affect you. So Stranger Than Fiction didn’t quite get to that level, but it certainly got close. Is that a recommendation? Or a condemnation? Not sure. But yeah, I liked this movie.

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I’m going to say Virginia belongs to Webb and Congress belongs to the Democrats, bringing in effect the best situation for government under any administration: the party in the White House must not be the party that controls Congress. That should almost be a rule, but as it isn’t, it’s nice when it’s the case.

Another bit of good news is that Rumsfeld finally “resigned”. Love that word. Like he wanted to leave or something.

The only true disappointment I have is that California overwhelmingly believes in continuing to punish former sex offenders such that they passed a proposition that sadly will most likely defeat the best intentions of those that drafted it in the first place while never addressing the issue of a failing penal system to boot.

In the meantime, get ready for California Build Up, Round 2. Where Pat Brown accomplished Round 1 in the 1960s, Schwarzenegger plans to establish his own legacy in the new millenium. I wish him luck. After all, I’ve voted for the man twice now.

246 26th Street
Santa Monica, CA 90402
310-393-0558

A sprawling French restaurant in that corner of Santa Monica near Brentwood, Chez Mimi is a favorite place for a nice dinner out without breaking the bank. I’d say the food is excellent, and from what others order I’m sure it’s true, but I have to admit, all I ever order and all I probably will ever order is the Poulet moutarde/Mustard chicken. It is, without a doubt, one of the best dishes I have ever had the pleasure to encounter. Go just for that. You will not be disappointed.

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1201 Abbot Kinney Blvd.
Venice, CA 90291
310-399-8801

Afternoon tea, zen-style in chic Abbot Kinney. On the pricy side, but on par with anything else on that particular street. I have no love for Abbot Kinney’s sense of self-importance, but I have to admit that some of the eateries there are certainly worth visiting (I have no appreciation for shopping, so that’s your call). One of these places is Jin’s Patisserie, a house converted into a tea/pastry shop. The front yard is enclosed to give it a sense of isolation, but in so doing voices are magnified and this particular tea place having an 80% female population meant all those stereotypes of moms meeting and gossiping were realized for me that afternoon.

Ignoring that, the tea selection wasn’t extensive but suitable, but the pastries… dear, oh dear the pastries. They were… awesome.

Thankfully, you can walk in and take out these delicious little yummies. I wouldn’t recommend the atmosphere for a sitdown, but I certainly would visit for a few minutes to have a few baked good put into my hands for enjoyment elsewhere.

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