Brave is another one of those movies we missed while I was recovering from surgery this summer. It’s the story of a feisty princess called Merida who is skilled with a bow and arrow. The King and Queen decide it’s time to marry Merida off to one of the local princes so they invite three clans to an archery contest. Two of the princes are inept, but the third hits the bulls-eye. Then Merida enters the competition. You can probably guess what happens. But what you won’t guess is Merida going to a witch to get a spell to change her Fate. I didn’t see that coming. And, with all magic spells, there are unexpected consequences. Brave is a little too complicated and a little too dark for its target audience. Pixar considers Brave an under-performer. But I found it surprising and subtle. You will too. GRADE: B+

Last week, Diane and I drove down to Pittsburgh to watch Patrick defend his dissertation at Carnegie-Mellon University. The defense was held in a large classroom. About 50 faculty members and students showed up to watch Patrick talk about the privacy issues he studied for the past six years. One of the requirements of the defense was putting up at least 10 posters announcing the event. If you want to see more and read more of Patrick’s work, click here.

Patrick delivered a 45-minute PowerPoint presentation. Then there were 20 minutes of questions from the audience. Then 30 more minutes of grilling by Patrick’s doctoral committee. Then we all had to empty the room except for the committee. After some deliberation, the committee told Patrick that he had successfully defended his dissertation. Patrick has to tweak his dissertation a bit before he submits it to the Graduate School, but for all intents and purposes, he has earned his dissertation. Patrick will be “hooded” at a graduation ceremony in May. Congratulations, Patrick! We’re very proud of you!

The Real Games begin for the Bills and the Jets today. Both teams (and their fans) are jacked up with high expectations. The Bills signed Mario Williams and now have a legitimate pass rush–something missing for the past ten seasons. The Jets signed Tim Tebow. ‘Nuff said. For either team to make the playoffs, one team will have to dominate the other in their two meetings. Fourteen of the 16 opponents on the Bills and Jets 2012 schedule are the same. The differences: the Jets play the Steelers and San Diego. The Bills play Cleveland and Kansas City. Other than those two team variables, the Jets and the Bills have identical schedules. I know it sounds pretentious, but the result of today’s game may decide the Fate of both of these teams this season. Hope your favorite team wins today!

Patrick and I have been talking about updating this blog and now we’ve decided to make the changes toward the end of October. The end result is that blog will be down for about a week. I just wanted to give you a heads-up to what’s in the works. We’re going to try to make this blog more visually appealing. But the mission to bring you reviews and insights into books, CDs, DVDs, movies, concerts, and consumer products won’t change. This blog is here to inform you, entertain you, and make you smile.

Philip K. Dick is a maddening writer. He can write great books like Dr. Bloodmoney and Martian Time-Slip but also write stinkers like VALIS and The Divine Invasion. However uneven Dick’s novels are his short stories hold up much better. Subterranean Books just published Upon the Dull Earth, Volume 3 of their wonderful ongoing project of reprinting all of Philip K. Dick’s short stories, novelettes, and novellas. Dick published some of his best short fiction in the 1950s. In general, I find the later Dick novels and short stories unreadable (meaning I couldn’t finish reading them) even though I tried. If you’re a Philip K. Dick fan, this is a must-buy. If you’ve always wanted to read Philip K. Dick, this is the perfect place to start.

Table of Contents

Fair Game
The Hanging Stranger
The Eyes Have It
The Golden Man
The Turning Wheel
The Last of the Masters
The Father-Thing
Strange Eden
Tony and the Beetles
Null-O
To Serve the Master
Exhibit Piece
The Crawlers
Sales Pitch
Shell Game
Upon the Dull Earth
Foster, You’re Dead
Pay for the Printer
War Veteran
The Chromium Fence
Misadjustment
A World of Talent
Psi-Man Heal my Child
Notes

I’ve been a big fan of Margaret Atwood’s work for years. Somehow this 2002 collection of Atwood’s speeches on writing slipped past my radar. Atwood believes “that not just some, but all writing of the narrative kind, and perhaps all writing, is motivated deep down, by a fear of and a fascination with mortality–by a desire to make the risky trip to the Underworld, and to bring something or someone back from the dead.” Atwood argues her case with wonderful examples from her writers: Borges, Connolly, Davies, Graham Green, Kafka, D. H. Lawrence, Alice Munro, George Orwell, Adrienne Rich, and Eudora Welty. If you’re in the mood for a personal survey of the creative process, I highly recommend Negotiating With the Dead. GRADE: A

Diane thought Hit & Run was silly fun. I thought it was just stupid. Dax Shepard plays a guy in the Witness Protection Program. He’s “protected” by Tom Arnold who plays a totally inept U.S. Marshall. Kristen Bell plays Dax’s girlfriend who doesn’t know his criminal past. Kristen Bell has a jealous ex-lover played by Michael Rosenbaum who is pretty much wasted in this film. Kristen Bell gets a job offer in Los Angeles so Dax decides to leave Witness Protection to drive her there. The rest of the movie revolves around how plot points can generate a car chase. Or, a dune buggy chase. Or…you get my drift. Hit & Run is being marketed as an “action comedy.” There’s plenty of phony “action” (the tedious car chases) and very little comedy. You’ve been warned. GRADE: C

Today I find out if I can stand in front of a class of students for an hour. Or will my new knee buckle? Will I have enough energy to make it through a nine-hour work day? The First Day of classes is always chaotic: students wanting to add classes that are closed, students who signed up for the wrong classes looking for the right classes, former students who inexplicably choose the First Day to pay their favorite professors a visit, dozens of student emails and phone messages to answer, etc. I wish I had a couple more weeks of Physical Therapy to prepare me for this, but I’ll have to play the hand I was dealt. I’m always excited when a new semester begins. New classes, new students, new surprises. Time to rock & roll!

Postscript: I survived the day. No pain in my knee (thank goodness for PT!). I had less fatigue than I thought I would have (thank goodness for the pool!). Thanks for all the encouragement! I took Jackie Meyerson’s advice and bought a celebratory pizza on my way home. Looks like the Fall Semester got off to Good Start!

This is the 11th Annual orgy of chicken wing eating. Wingfest was a hit from Year One. Now, the event is held at Coca-Cola Field to accommodate the thousands of hungry attendees. Over 100 different varieties of chicken wings are available. Over 30 tons of chicken wings will be consumed. Good thing the new cardiac wing for Buffalo General Hospital just opened! Vendors from 46 states and a dozen countries will be serving up their own special style of chicken wings. If you’re a fan of this delicacy, you’ll want to make the pilgrimage to Wingfest sometime. It’s always held on Labor Day weekend so make your vacation plans now! This is one of Western New York’s most successful events.