Shuffleboard 13

1. "Hit" by James Horner from Patriot Games
Yes, James Horner has scored other things besides James Cameron films. I know, it's shocking.
Patriot Games has a interesting Irish-tinged score that's also fraught with action and tense suspense. It's an odd combo, but it makes for an exciting as well as dreary-sounding score, much like the film itself.
"Hit" accompanies the assassination attempt on Jack Ryan's family in the middle of the film. It's a harrowing scene featuring Sean Bean at his most brutal. The track is mostly ambient for the first three minutes, throwing some Irishy strings and flutes, before picking up a little around four minutes in, as the attackers near Ryan's family on the highway. The tension builds, and builds, AND BUILDS, speeding up and adding more flutes or drums or odd synth bass cues along the way.
I can't help thinking of Sean Bean's chilling line throughout this entire track: "How's the family, Ryan?"

Hope and Change

This post is written first to myself, Caleb Sommerville, and then to the tens of people that will read this.
The two words up for the prize of Buzzwords of the Decade.
Hope and Change.
The question no one (seriously) asks of Obama's catchphrase is this: Hope in what? Change of what? What are we supposed to be placing hope in? What exactly needs change and what does that entail?

The Five Weirdest Songs in My Library

As you tens of readers know from my occasional Shuffleboard© posts, I have a ton of music. A ton of really varied music. Over the years I've collected quite a few tunes (I'm up to 9032 songs, 24.1 days, or 42.48GB), so a few of them are bound to be weird, even to my eclectic ear.
Ooo. I'm saving Eclectic Ear for when I have a band.

I'm Leaving Apple (and AT&T)

Come April, when my two-year contract is up with AT&T, I'm splittin' town. My iPhone will remain in service as an iPod Touch, but my cell phone loyalties will be shifting to a competitor.
I can only stomach so much arrogance and buffoonery before I throw up.

Shuffleboard 12

1. "Prelude from Suite No. 1 for Unaccompanied Cello in G Major" by Yo-Yo Ma from Sounds of Yo-Yo Ma
Note: composed by Bach
Nothing better than a great cello. Yo-Yo Ma is the cello, as far as I'm concerned. Like Itzhak Perlman on the violin and John Coltrane on the sax, Ma is the definition of a great cellist.
This is one of the more popular Bach cello pieces. It's definitely written solely for a cello, and Bach certainly challenges the player to play some great sixteenth-note runs. In fact, the song is pretty much one long sixteenth-note run. Ma has exceptional emotion and dynamics throughout the shortish track, and you can't help but feel distinguished just by listening to it. Phenomenal.

Happy Birthday, REACTOR!

That's right, tens of readers, THE REACTOR is one year old, today. On July 29, 2009, I began reacting to things, and I'm still goin strong (and could go admittedly stronger).
So here's some stats (via Google Analytics) to round out Year One:

Total Visits: 3052
That's less than most minor blogs get in one day. Sad.

Average Time on Site: 1 minute, 1 second
Yup, internet short attention span FTW.

Mac or PC?

I wrote this as an application to be a facebook beta tester. 
The age-old question, indeed. And I'm going be weird when I say: both.
(Disclaimer: I have used both extensively)
The ads are vicious, the fanboys even more so. Macs are easier to use, no, PCs are, but Macs don't get viruses, etc. etc. etc.
It really all depends on what YOU need to use a computer for. Your "philosophy of use," if you will.

Sheepish Grin

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know. I joined Twitter. Seems like just yesterday/last August that I called it stupid. Ah well.
It turns out it'll probably be pretty useful in promoting my blog and getting info from various news outlets and cool people.
Just chalk it up to a guy named Leo Laporte. He's a tech guru who's on top of the latest trends and all that business. He likes to call it "hand-holding on the information superhighway." And he's super dorky, like me. Anyways, he's talked about Twitter being a sort of finger on the pulse of the web, filtering the staggering terabytes of data that pop up on the internet every second. And since I am a journalist interested in such things, I figured I should probably know the vital signs as much as the next person.
I'll mostly be retweeting (posting something someone else has already posted) and promoting blog posts and my photos on it, but that's okay. That's pretty much what it's for, and what it's evolved into.

Shuffleboard 11

1. "The Departure of Boromir" by Howard Shore from The Fellowship of the Ring
Howard Shore. The man is an enigma to me. He came out of nowhere (for me, at least), wrote hours of outstanding music for the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and hasn't written anything close since.
Nevertheless, his music for the epic movies is indeed epic in it's own right.
This track is from the "Complete Recordings" album, which adds even more outstanding music to an already outstanding score. It plays during the fight against the Uruk-Hai near the end of the first movie, playing over Frodo's separation from the Fellowship, and Boromir's heroic last stand to try to save Merry and Pippin.
Shore's sad pieces are heart-rending. Mournful strings, absolutely gorgeous french horn parts, eerie choral parts, and bittersweet oboes make for an earthy-feeling lament that is second-to-none.
Listen to some of it here.

Knee-Jerk

This blog is called THE REACTOR for a reason. I tend to be very opinionated (at the very least, in my own mind) about things that happen from day to day. I have knee-jerk reactions to many things, which sometimes I unfortunately write about and publish without a second thought.
Such is the nature of the blogosphere (+10 points for using that word), and it's not always bad. They say that the first initial reaction to something is usually correct. And I have several test scores in college that would verify that statement.
But sometimes, the knee-jerk reaction is cultivated into an almost reflexive hatred of something, or in this case, someone.

Guest Post: Velvet Elvis Review

For THE REACTOR's first guest post, my friend Isaac has written a review of Emergent Poster Boy Rob Bell's book "Velvet Elvis." Isaac is a firefighter, a language-studier, a fencer, a philosopher, a good friend, and an all-around jack-of-all-trades, so I trust his judgement and endorse what he says below 100%.

Shuffleboard 10

1. "'Ta-Ta Charlie" by Michael Giacchino from LOST Season 3
In what was certainly one of the most emotional parts of LOST, Michael Giacchino wrote some of the most emotional music as well. This sparse but strongly emotional (one of Giacchino's strong points) piano-and-string piece is played right before Charlie sets off to sacrifice himself for the sake of the other survivors. It was an extremely sad episode, and Giacchino wrote an extremely touching score to it. Charlie's music is some of my favorite in the whole series.

The Three-Dimensional Gimmick

Home 3D is the next big thing, if you listen to the entertainment and gadget world (or rather, the bigwigs that run the companies that run the entertainment and gadget world). If you listen to common sense, it's a giant load of hooey.

The Oil Spill's Other Story

An oil rig exploded in early May and is still leaking tons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. It's a horrifying ordeal, and one that will likely replace the Exxon Valdez as the Most Notorious Oil Spill in history. Political activists, mostly liberal, have jumped on the spill and Obama himself has threatened BP (the company that owned the rig) and told them he's "holding them responsible." Overall, it's a huge boon for environmentalists who hate Big Oil.
But that's not the whole story.

New Blog!

Yes, I'm super bloggy. I've got so much blog in me that I had to start another blog.
But seriously folks, I started a new blog called Caleb Needs A Job to help promote myself during this ever-lengthening job hunt.
So tell your friends, tell your bosses, tell your potential employers, that Caleb has a blog, and Caleb Needs A Job!

Good Samaritan Stabbed, Ignored

"And I am reminded, on this holy day, of the sad story of Kitty Genovese. As you all may remember, a long time ago, almost thirty years ago, this poor soul cried out for help time and time again, but no person answered her calls. Though many saw, no one so much as called the police. They all just watched as Kitty was being stabbed to death in broad daylight. They watched as her assailant walked away. Now, we must all fear evil men. But there is another kind of evil which we must fear most, and that is the indifference of good men."

-The Boondock Saints

Shuffleboard 9

1. "Down Under" by Colin Hay

The original "Down Under," an Australian folk song by "Men at Work," is a weird, catchy, and apparently anthemic-for-Aussies tune straight out of the 80s. The words are strange, but sum up the easy-going life of Aussies.

This live version by "Men at Work" alum Colin Hay is outstanding. It's recorded at a bar (in Nashville, I think), so he jokes with the audience at the beginning and then plays the song.

The stripped-down man-and-guitar sound combined with the odd and haunting lyrics is eerie, especially with Hay's unique and raspy voice. There's no better recording of it.

2. "634-5789" by Wilson Pickett from In the Midnight Hour and Other Hits

Wilson Pickett is one of the pioneer R&B guys from back when there was more emphasis on what the acronym stood for: Rhythm and Blues.

Pickett was responsible for quite a few classic blues tunes of the 60s on 70s, including "Land of 1000 Dances."

This track is a standard blues/soul offering with Pickett backed by backup singers and a small horn section. The lyrics are forgettable, but catchy. You can definitely see The Blues Brothers doing this number.

3. "Caras Galadhon - Featuring 'Lament for Gandalf'" by Howard Shore, from The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring - Complete Recordings

I think we just set a record for longest song/album title ever.

The Complete Recordings has most of the music from the films, whereas the commonly released soundtrack has selections.

This track is featured while the Fellowship are entering Lothlorien after the disaster in Moria, resulting in the loss of Gandalf. It's sad, mournful, even ominous at times, but still manages to keep it's grand sweeping scale that Shore uses to portray the vastness of Middle-earth.

This video only features a part of the track.

4. "Weary Memory" by Iron and Wine from The Creek Drank The Cradle

When listening to Iron and Wine, you feel like you're on a dusty farm drinking lemonade and listening to overall-wearing bearded guys playing on the porch.

I think one of them does have a beard.

Anyways, just like all other Iron and Wine songs, "Weary Memory" features incredibly tight harmonies, an old guitar, and some slide guitar work too. The lyrics on most Iron and Wine songs are rich, but vary little. They all talk about the hard life in the country, which is maybe why they always sound sleepy.

A very good chill-out tune.

5. "Moody Monday" by Damien Rice from O

I happened upon Irish folk singer Damien Rice quite by accident. I heard one of his songs on an episode of House, wondered aloud who it was, and found that my roommate at the time was a Damien Rice fan. I've been fascinated ever since.

"Moody Monday" is perhaps my least favorite Rice song, almost exclusively due to the odd processing he puts on his voice during the chorus. He weirdly pitches his voice up (think Stitch from Lilo and Stitch) while singing "MOOODaaay, MOooooodaaaay..." It's odd and jarring.

Other than that, the song isn't bad. It features the same heartbreak, depression and desperation that makes Rice so unique and powerful.

Unfortunately, I couldn't find a youtube video of this track, so here's a 30-second sample.

The Cardinal Sins of Facebook

acebook has become as ubiquitous as Google these days. In fact, if Facebook were it's own country, it'd be the third most populous nation in the world, ahead of the United States and behind India and China.

At the risk of sounding pretentious, I was on Facebook in 2005, the year after it went public (became available to universities outside the Ivy League). I've been able to watch its dizzying ascent to Internet stardom, and at the same time, notice (and possible contribute to) its unwritten set of rules.

As these rules are unwritten, it is easier to point out when they are broken. Thus, The Cardinal Sins of Facebook.

1. Unending Game Requests

When Facebook opened its doors to third-party developers, the Internet itself went crazy. Everyone and their mother's uncle had an app to add. Gaming app developers soon figured out that making users request their friends to complete various in-game tasks equaled a lot more users.

That petered out about a year ago, though. Everyone is now using the apps they want to be using. It has plateaued. Developers are still under the impression that the growth will be exponential, so they haven't tweaked their systems at all. Newbie Facebook users (as well as clueless ones) therefore continue to request you join their mafia, become their farm neighbor, or answer awkwardly personal questions about them. And no amount of begging from you will stop it.

Absolution: If you see a request you don't like, Facebook has gloriously added a "block application" button. Use it liberally.

2. The Baiting Status

I remember a time before Facebook status updates.

Just let that sink in a while.

When statuses went live, Facebook users were all college students. We all experimented with the status function, either updating everyone about every little thing going on in our lives, or just ignoring the feature all together. The usage leveled out to activity updates, newsworthy accomplishments, interesting links, and even the occasional gloating status.

Then Facebook opened its cyberdoors to any and everyone with a email address. Thus, we got a slew of microblogging the day's events, spam ads, and the worst offender of them all, The Baiting Status (aka the Sympathy Fisher).

"really wishes some people would just grow up!"

"feels crappy."

"just wants life to be normal! please!!!!"

The list, unfortunately, goes on forever. These tricky statuses are designed to bait you into asking what's wrong, prompting either a pissed-off "nothing" reply, or a long paragraph you have no intention of reading.

Absolution: DON'T REPLY. If you know the person and are genuinely concerned about them, private message them or call them (and tell them not to post that crap on Facebook anymore).

3. The Copy-and-paste Status

These are the Facebook equivalent of chain letters.

"♥♥♥ put this on your status if you or somebody you know has suffered BABY LOSS ♥♥♥ the majority won't put it on, because unlike cancer baby loss is a taboo ♥♥♥ break the silence ♥♥♥"

I have no idea what that particular status means, but you know what I'm getting at.

When I was "researching" this topic via my own Facebook status, someone said this: "[I hate] copy and paste status updates that guilt you into thinking you don't love your husband, mother, children, sister, God, whatever if you don't paste it as your own."

That pretty much sums it up.

Absolution: If you aren't that friendly with the offender in real life, defriend them and move on. If that would cause unnecessary strife, simply delete them from your News Feed by clicking the "Hide" button next to their name.

4. Old(er) people using internet acronyms from 1998

Seriously guys. Many more people can type quickly these days, foregoing the need for "G2G," "LOL," "AFK," and any number of MSN Messenger-bred acronyms from our middle-school days. The old(er) people on Facebook seemed to have just discovered them, and are therefore using them as liberally as we did back in the day. Shudder.

They're even inventing their own. On one status last week I saw both "PTL" and "WTG" in one status. The first is for "Praise the Lord," and I believe the second is "Way to go."

Really? We need acronyms for that?

Absolution: I dunno, offer to pay for typing lessons for the offender. To prevent yourself from giving in to acronym temptation, just type the same things you would say in person. It usually comes out sounding much more human, and less like a 7th-grader in 1998 on his Gateway computer talking to his friends on MSN.

5. Not realizing the difference between a message and a wall post

While none of my Facebook friends have made this mistake, failbook.com has a large collection of such offenders.

The foremost example is located here, but be forewarned, the language is very, um, private (NSFW).

Facebook (and Internet in general) newbies often complain of "all the stuff." No matter how simplistic and easy Facebook makes their layout, someone is inevitably typing stuff into the wrong box, complaining about changes (see number six), and sending people public posts about private issues.

Absolution: KNOW THE DIFFERENCE. Teach those less fortunate than you.

6. Complaining every time Facebook tweaks its layout

Goodness is this ever an epidemic. Every time Facebook changes its UI, people get in an uproar over "the new facebook." They complain about not knowing where anything is, that it looks stupid, that facebook shouldn't just change without asking people, etc., etc., etc.

Facebook is a company. They own the website. They are allowed to change it as they see fit. I would venture a guess and say that 80% of the changes made are beneficial to users. Whether it's a layout change like moving the notifications to the top of the screen or adding cleaner lines to the New Feed, it seems as if the general public is unhappy. They want things the old way. They want Facebook to never ever change.

If the Internet never changed or upgraded its looks, we'd be browsing News Feeds on something like this:

Absolution: Stop whining. That is all.

LOST Reaction: "Dr. Linus"

Sorry I've been so behind on these.

This week's LOST, "Dr. Linus," was yet another great Ben episode. Ben is either terrifying or weirdly endearing (or obnoxiously evil), and our perception of him seems to change every episode.

Ilana finds out that Ben killed Jacob, which is apparently worse than we thought. She looks like she's about to eat him once Miles reads Jacob's ashes (WTF?) and tells her it was all Ben.

They go back to the beach (once a-fricking-gain), and Ilana forces Ben to dig his own grave. He's penitent seemingly without ulterior motives, which is a first. Smokeylocke sets him free and tries to recruit him, but Ben explains to Ilana, while holding her at gunpoint, that he feels terrible for killing Jacob, and blames it on his distraught state of mind after Alex's death. He seems genuinely sorry, and says he's going to Smokeylocke because "he's the only one that'll have me."

This exchange really intrigued me. Ilana then goes against everything she's already said and accepts Ben. "I'll have you," she says, picking up her gun and heading back to the beach.

Did she forgive him? Does she know that he truly is sorry? It's an intriguing view of forgiveness, and I think it's high time Ben was truly redeemed.

The other Island storyline, with Hurley and Jack running into Richard, was incredibly illuminating. Richard explains that he was touched by Jacob and therefore given a gift. Both Hurley and Jack were also "touched" by Jacob, so what does that say? Are the Losties candidates for Jacob's job, or Richard's?

Richard leads them to the Black Rock where he tries to get Jack to kill him, which doesn't work. It's obvious they both, in the words of Walt, "still have work to do."

As for the LA timeline, I found it be quite interesting. Ben is a high school teacher who deserves more credit then he gets. He's a great teacher, cares about his kids (one of which is his alt-adopted-daughter, Alex), and is friends with a growingly-obnoxious Arzt. Seriously. A one- or two-second cameo was enough. The guy's annoying now.

Anyways, he's trying to get his history club back together (by inexplicably trying to become principal, some weird school politics if you ask me) and tries to blackmail the principal with lascivious emails, only to be reblackmailed into choosing between the principal job and Alex's future. And once again, a alt-timeline Lostie chooses others instead of themselves. He chooses Alex and goes back to being pitiful Dr. Linus again.
I think the alt-timeline characters are proving to be a lot more sane than their Island-bound selves. I hope all the flash-sideways tie together and prove useful, and aren't just filler. I really hope they have something to add to the story, but so far, they don't really have a bearing on the Island timeline.

Time will tell.

The Best Omegle Chat Ever

You're now chatting with a random stranger. Say hi!

You: What are you?

Stranger: Imm'a machine.

Stranger: Built tough... like a ford.

You: I am a sock.

Stranger: MHMMM yess sir built tough like chuck norris

Stranger: But not as tough...

Stranger: How is that? typing with no weight

Stranger: or strength or anything.

You: I am a prehensile, self-aware sock.

You: FEAR ME

Stranger: OH CRAP!

Stranger: PREHENSILE, SELF-AWARE SOCK VS MACHINE

Stranger: FIGHT

Stranger: MACHINE USES ROCKET LAUNCHER

You: SOCK USES DRYER SHEET, MACHINE NOW SMELLS OF FRESH LINEN

You: *HEADSHOT*

Stranger: LMAO

Stranger: SOCK WINS!
FATALITY

You: You have fought well, worthy adversary.

Stranger: *bows*

Your conversational partner has disconnected.

Another Little Awesome Thing

It's getting close to Easter, which is awesome for two reasons. First, it is a time for us to remember Christ and His sacrifice on the Cross to pay the punishments we all deserve every day. And we should never forget that.

But it is also the season of the best jellybeans known to mankind.

The perfect candy exists, and it is Sweetarts Jelly Beans. I discovered them a couple of years ago. I usually don't get into the whole bunny/candy/not-related-to-the-actual-Easter-in-any-way thing, but these are certainly an exception. I remembered them as Target was beginning to put up the ridiculous baskets and assorted not-really-Easter decorations and patiently waited for the candy to be put out.

Suddenly, one day at Hy-Vee, I found them. There, in their glorious pink, blue and green bag, were the little nuggets of awesome.

This was about a month ago. We are on our fourth bag. They are THAT good.

They have a normal gooey jelly-bean center, but it's the coating that makes them spectacular. It's like they crushed actual Sweetarts and coated jellybeans with them. I can't get enough of them. My wife doesn't like them as they are a bit sour, but eats them anyways.

"They're okay if I just suck off the outside stuff first," she says.

Either way you eat them, Sweetarts Jelly Beans are yet another Little Awesome Thing that makes my day just a little bit brighter.

Five Ancient Versions of Websites

The Internet's not that old. But, interestingly enough, it IS old enough to look back on and notice how old and outdated some webpages were, back in the day. So here, courtesy of the Wayback Machine, are five of the greatest examples of Digital Nostalgia. (Go try it out yourself, it's addictive!)

1. Facebook

I can remember when there wasn't Facebook. That makes me feel really old. The original design, when I first started using it, was pretty clean. They've kept that up, for the most part.

Unfortunately, the Wayback Machine only has the login page, but you can still see that is was a lot simpler back then.

2. Google

Back in the day when you still had to choose a search engine (and when Google wasn't a verb yet), I mostly used Lycos and Excite. But I gradually came around, and now most of my life is uploaded and synced with Google and their servers. Back in the day, they were just a prototype at Stanford, but still colorful.

3. Excite

I was the one kid in sixth grade who didn't get a Hotmail account. I decided to go with Excite as my search engine and webmail of choice. I remained steadfastly an Excite user until 2006, when I finally broke down and got a gmail address. No, I am not making that up. I had an Excite.com email address for more than ten years. And I still have one that's so full of spam I could sign it up for a Monty Python sketch.

The first iteration of the lame-o search engine is a classic victim of late-90s webpage design. "Let's just put everything on the front page all at once! That's easy, right?"

4. The New York Times

I never was much of a news junkie until I got to college, and then I mostly used the start page of iGoogle or Excite. It wasn't until I was actively taking journalism classes that I started getting my news directly from news sites.

The New York Times' first iteration from 1996 is hilariously bad. It looks like they half-scanned the first half of the front page and stopped there.

Note the "Please open your window to the width of this line of text" banner across the bottom.

5. 3M

And finally, an example of what corporate America was thinking about this whole Internet thing in the late 90s. I've worked for 3M, my father still works there, and I've always gotten the impression that 3M was so massively gargantuan that it takes them a long time to change directions as a company.

Their first website, launched in February of 1997, is no exception. It looks like someone who read a book on HTML got his hands on a few press releases and lumped it together into a "Website." Oh well, the net was young, and we were foolish.

Shuffleboard 8

1. "Happy Is A Yuppie Word" by Switchfoot from Nothing Is Sound

I'm a big fan of Jon Foreman and his lyrics. This track is no exception. "Happy Is A Yuppie Word" is a rather odd title, but the song is still a cheerful, upbeat song. With lines like "nothing in the world can fail me now" coming right after the title line, the song shows that happiness is not necessarily the thing to strive for.

One line sums up the whole idea of the song: "Blessed is the man who's lost it all." In a way, it's a reprobation of the suburban feel-goodery that has all but taken over the modern church in America (I'm looking at you, Joel Osteen). Another great offering from Switchfoot.

2. "The Water Buffalo Song" by Superchick from Veggie Rocks

How did THIS get in there? Ahem...right. Well, the show must go on.

I've been watching Veggie Tales for quite a while. I actually own the Lord Of the Rings (Lord Of The Beans) DVD. My mom got me the Veggie Rocks CD many years ago, which features several Christian artists covering Veggie Tales songs.

"The Water Buffalo Song" was the first Silly Song with Larry, a series that continues to this day. This cover is done by Christian mainstay Superchick, and it's a fun and random track. It also features one of my favorite background lines of all time.

"Look, there's one!"

"Nope, that's a dog."

Hehe.

3. "Trinity Dream" by Don Davis from The Matrix Reloaded

I first saw all the Matrixes (Matrices?) back to back to back, so I like them all. I'm not one of the rabid fanboys that refuses to admit there were sequels. I liked them.

Anyways, Davis wrote some incredible music for the Matrix trilogy. It's jarring, odd, and the score's ever-present bell-tone trumpets and high brass make for exciting action cues. His softer romantic stuff wasn't the best.

This track opens the second film, when Trinity is beating up security guards with a motorcyle helmet and falling from a skyscraper while gun battling an Agent. It's one of the coolest and most imaginative sequences I've ever seen. The score highlights both aerial bits, as well as a eerie drop off once Trinity's hit. Davis excelled at the fever-pitch strings and high brass when Agents were attacking, and this track is no exception.

4. "Junior" by RJD2 from Magnificent City Instrumentals

I debuted RJD2 on my last shuffleboard. This track is similar, hip-hop/electronica background music. Fun to listen to as background noise, no doubt. When actively listening, it gets slightly repetitive, but it's meant to be a backing track. The drum beat features Christmas bells every once in a while, the fuzz bass line is catchy, and the action is broken up every once in a while by a flute and even some soft female vocals. A great background track.

5. "Treasure" by Trevor Rabin from National Treasure

National Treasure was a great fun movie, full of conspiracy theory stuff that I love. The score, unfortunately, was mostly forgettable. It had a few okay moments, like instilling a little awe when they were holding the Declaration of Independence in Independence Hall, but overall it was rudimentary at best.

This track is the closer, played when the heroes discover the vault of treasure beneath New York. It's a little sappy, but features the "thinking" theme (tinkling pianos) as well as the triumphant strings/synth-sounding brass theme for America or something like that.

It fits the scene okay, I guess, but I'm definitely not a fan of synthed instruments. Good Lord, this was a Disney-fueled film, you'd think they could have sprung for a full orchestra or something. Oh well.

The Omegle Project, Mk II

I ran an experiment a few months ago on a random chat site, Omegle. Read over that one, and then check out this updated version of what random people from all over the world think of Obama and how he's running the country.

1. The New Yorker

You: Hi, where are you from?

Stranger: hey

Stranger: new york

You: Hi, I run a blog called The Reactor (the-reactor.blogspot.com) and I'm doing a survey about politics. What do you think of Obama and how he's running the country?

Stranger: i think he's doing a good job for the most part, i still support him

You: Did you vote for him in 2008?

Stranger: well i couldnt vote yet but i did support his campaign

You: And what do you think of all the criticism he is getting from both Republicans and Democrats?

Stranger: well i think Republicans have no credable argument to make against Obama's policies, they have turned into a party ruled by positions they think will get the "tea party" to vote for them

You: What about the criticism from the Democrats?

Stranger: well from my perspective i think democrats make more sense, especially when they critize him about the war or banning dont ask, dont tell, they can make clear arguments i can support

You: So do you disagree with anything Obama has done or has talked about?

Stranger: waiting a year to ban dont ask, dont tell, his support of private companies like Blackwater in Iraq, and his general lack of fight when Republicans tells lies about his positions

You: What lies have the Republicans told?

Stranger: death panels, that he is a socialist, an secret muslim, he was born in Nigeria, the stimulus plan did not work, he is weak on terrorists, etc

Stranger: i could go on and on

You: Alrighty, thanks. That's all I needed. Be sure to check out the blog for your response and many others!

Stranger: yea i did, i loved last nights Lost btw

You: Thanks a lot! Bye.

2. The Clueless Aussie

You: Where are you from?

Stranger: 'Ello 'ello.

Stranger: I'm from Australia.

You: I run a blog called The Reactor (the-reactor.blogspot.com) and I'm doing a survey about politics. What do you think of Obama and how he's running America?

Stranger: Yes, sort of...

You: Sort of what?

Stranger: I don't really know too much about politics HERE, let alone in America. I'm only 14.

Stranger: So I'm sort of useless. My apologies.

You: Not a problem. What have you heard?

Stranger: Hm...

Stranger: ...

Stranger: Actually... I can't really remember! Sorry for wasting your time.

3. The Non-starter (once again, there were tons of these)

Stranger: eey

You: Hi, I run a blog called The Reactor (the-reactor.blogspot.com) and I'm doing a survey about politics. What do you think of Obama and how he's running America?

Your conversational partner has disconnected.

4. The Recycling Fan

Stranger: hi

You: Hi, I run a blog called The Reactor (the-reactor.blogspot.com) and I'm doing a survey about politics. What do you think of Obama and how he's running America?

Stranger: Well I don't hear much on what hes doing so I feel he has done very little, but he is perfecting recycling and stuff so thats good

You: Where are you from?

Stranger: USA

You: What have you heard, exactly?

Stranger: nothing

Stranger: now bye

5. The Civil Chatty Canadian

Stranger: Ask me anything!

You: Hi, I run a blog called The Reactor (the-reactor.blogspot.com) and I'm doing a survey about politics. What do you think of Obama and how he's running America?

Stranger: I'm not in America.

Stranger: But!

You: Where are you from?

Stranger: Quebec.

You: Okay, so what do you think?

Stranger: I think he's doing fine, for a politician.

You: And what do you mean by that

You: ?

Stranger: I'd like to see him adhere to more of his campaign promises, but I won't say I'm surprised.

Stranger: He's failed to close Guantanamo Bay or step down the US' war efforts.

Stranger: His focus on healthcare, while honourable, is single-minded.

You: How so?

Stranger: He seems to be devoting the brunt of his executive energies to that.

Stranger: Still, he's put a fresh face on US politics, and his day-to-day dealings with foreign nations have been positive.

Stranger: I like his support for science.

You: And what do you think he should be "devoting the brunt of his executive energies" toward?

Stranger: Same thing any president should: a full range of foreign relations, domestic initiatives, and budgetary improvements.

Stranger: As I said, I'd like to see him do more to end the United States' foreign entanglements, and restore civil liberties in that country.

Stranger: Still, he can't be held fully responsible: the legislature is materially responsible for these changes.

Stranger: And his positions are overall agreeable.

You: Well thanks very much! That's all I needed, be sure to check out the blog for your response and other's from around the world!

Stranger: Word.

Stranger: Good luck.

6. The Odd Tarantino Fan

Stranger: They're coming.

Stranger: You have to get out of there.

You: Hi, I run a blog called The Reactor (the-reactor.blogspot.com) and I'm doing a survey about politics. What do you think of Obama and how he's running America?

Stranger: Is he the guy from Inglourious Basterds?

You: He's The President of the United States...

Stranger: ... That's a no, then?

Stranger: Wait.

Stranger: I thought the president was that Appalachian guy.

Stranger: Aldo Raine?

You: I honestly have no idea what you're talking about. [NOTE: Apparently he's from a Tarantino movie]

Stranger: So...

Stranger: Let me google this Obama guy.

Stranger: Oh, very f***ing funny.

Stranger: Like a black guy could be prez.

Stranger: I'm sure in 2012 we'll be electing Captain Homosexual McLiberalton.

You: Thanks for your time.

Stranger: And yours.

7. The Non-sequitur

You: Hi, I run a blog called The Reactor (the-reactor.blogspot.com) and I'm doing a survey about politics. What do you think of Obama and how he's running America?

Stranger: What’s the password?

8. The Racist (you can't escape them on the internet)

You: Hi, I run a blog called The Reactor (the-reactor.blogspot.com) and I'm doing a survey about politics. What do you think of Obama and how he's running America?

Stranger: hi there#

Stranger: obamas still better than bush or mccain

You: And why is that?

Stranger: more chicken in the white house

You: What do you mean?

Stranger: kfc

You: Why is that?

Stranger: negroes

You: And that's why Obama is better than Bush and McCain?

Stranger: with mccain you would have another 1000 years of war, and obama has at leat a few good ideas....

You: Like what?

Stranger: his medical plans....

Stranger: plans to end the war

Stranger: plans to do something in the gaza strip

Stranger: and a few other things, like the idae of talking before boming

You: Thanks for your time, that's all I needed! Be sure to check out the blog for your response and others

LOST Reaction: "Sundown"

Will anyone survive this final season of LOST? The answer's starting to look more and more like "no."

This week, we got to see just what the "darkness" growing in Sayid is capable of.

He killed Dogen and Lennon, and got an extremely creepy grin on his face after Smokeylocke destroyed the Temple. As far as the Island timeline goes, there's not much else to say. Claire and Sayid let Smokeylocke in the Temple, Kate discovers Claire is crazy, and Ben (where on earth were Ben, Lapidus, Ilana and Sun? They just randomly appear at the end of the episode) is terrified of new Sayid. If Ben is scared of something, it is truly something to be feared. I almost got chills when Ben backed slowly away from Sayid. Ben's seen that darkness before.

The question for the Island timelines is now what Smokeylocke and his "team" are going to do, especially since Kate inadvertently joined up with them.

Sayid's LA timeline showed his softer side (as has been the trend; I'm thinking that the LA timeline Losties are going to fare better overall than the Island-side ones) as he protected his brother's family from mobsters led by the insufferable Keamy. The story was a throwaway loan shark cookie-cutter plot, with familiar characters thrown in there for twists. Don't get me wrong, I cheered when Sayid shot Keamy. I was dreading having to listen to his sadistic low-pitched mumbling. Obnoxious character FTL.

What really got me curious about the LA timeline was Sayid's discovery of Jin in the mobsters' freezer. How was Keamy involved with Paik Industries?

With all these new questions being raised, I'm wondering if Cuse and Lindelof can really deliver on the their promise of answers.

LOST Reaction: "Lighthouse"

I'm gonna keep these shorter from now on. Just my reaction, no synopsis.

It was another whirlwind of "Holy Crap!"s and "What the...?"s last night on LOST. Hurley has become a weird sort of spiritual leader for those still in the Temple, as he can "see" Jacob. Jacob sends Hurley and Jack to a lighthouse that no one has ever noticed before, and Hurley does a fine job of being a leader and convincing Jack to go with him. But we'll get to that in a bit.

I like this new version of Hurley. He's not as crippled by his fear of bad luck or himself anymore. He knows that he has a purpose on the island, and he's doing his darnedest to live that out. Even if that means he has to lie to a samurai (one of my favorite Hurley lines).

Jack continues to piss me off. For the first four seasons he was the sensible leader of the Losties, making mostly good decisions and doing what he could for everyone. Starting last season, he was a resigned whiny-pants pansy who asked "Why?!" every other sentence. Ugh.

I'm not sure how I feel about the whole Crazy Claire line. Is she Smokeylocke's apprentice or something? They're drawing a lot of parallels between Claire and Rousseau, even though I don't think Rousseau was ever "infected." Her team was, but I don't think she was ever infected.

In the LA timeline, I thoroughly enjoyed Jack having a son. Jack has the worst daddy issues on the show (I guess except for Locke and the whole being pushed out of a building thing), and seeing him deal with it by doing things differently with his own offspring is refreshing. Dogen popping up at the recital was a great addition, in my opinion. It really shows that everyone is always intertwined, no matter what happened.

As for the episode's namesake, the Lighthouse was a big reveal. This ancient tower was how Jacob watched, and for all we know, communicated with the Losties during their lives. I only glanced three locales in the mirror before Jack got all angsty. The church where Sawyer's parent's funeral was (and where Jacob gave him a pen to finish his letter to the con man), the setting of Sun and Jin's wedding (where he congratulated them in "excellent Korean), and Jack's mom's house. The candidate's names around the outside of the wheel was intriguing, and I was really hoping we would see who's at bearing 108. 108, by the way, is what 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, and 42 add up to. Trippier and trippier, man.

LOST Reaction: "The Substitute"

Island Timeline (present day)

The episode featured Smokeylocke and Sawyer (and Richard, kind of). An intriguing Smokey-eye-view shot through the jungle opened up the episode. We see (or rather, are) Smokey chattering and clanking through the jungle, pausing outside a Dharma house to listen to some music coming from inside (which turns out to be Sawyer), and zooms back into the jungle to find a machete. He then presumably turns back into Fake Locke (which Ilana later says he's trapped being; he can't change the people he's imitating again) and cuts Richard down from a tree. He tries to recruit Richard for some unknown purpose, and Richard wisely refuses and is clearly freaked out by Smokeylocke.

While Smokeylocke is out and about (this also happens with Sawyer later), he sees a small blonde boy. He chases him later and the boy tells him "you know you can't" or "you're not supposed to kill him." I can't remember which. Smokeylocke was visibly freaked out.

Smokeylocke then successfully recruits Sawyer, taking him to a mysterious hole in a cliff. This is where the big questions came from. There was scale right inside the entrance with two rocks on it , one black and one white. Smokeylocke threw the white one into the sea, calling it an "inside joke." He is relishing in his supposed victory quite disgustingly. Then comes the big one.

Smokeylocke shows Sawyer a cave with names scribbled all over it. This is the origin of the mysterious "lists" from previous seasons. And there's a few names we recognize.

Jarrah, Reyes, Ford, Shepherd, Kwon, and Locke. Each corresponded with 4, 8, 15, 16, 23 or 42.

Kate was noticeably absent from this list, even though Jacob interacted with her before the Island.

No mention of the Temple folk this week. Instead, we have the beach folk (Ajira flight). Ilana, Ben, Lapidus, Sun, and a few others decide to go to the Temple where "it's safe." Sun insists on burying the real Locke, which they do, next to the other people who have died on the Island (Boone, Shannon, Eko, Ana-Lucia, etc.). Ben delivers a possibly heartfelt apology in which he reveals that he killed Locke. Lapidus says "This is the weirdest d@#$ funeral I've ever been to." Truer words were never spoken, Lapidus. He's becoming the new Hurley in terms of comic relief.

LA Timeline (2004)

This was a Locke-centric, so we got to see Locke back at his old job, which he gets fired from for lying about attending a conference in Sydney. We also discover that, much like the other 2004 timeline, he tried to go on a walkabout, but was not allowed because of the wheelchair.

In happier news, Locke is engaged to Helen! It looks like he didn't get conned out of a kidney or any of that, so he didn't get weirdly obsessed with his punk dad.

Hurley is back and even more awesome. He is apparently so rich that he owns a temp agency, which he uses to help Locke get another job, and the box company that Locke got fired from. Lucky happy Hurley is much more enjoyable than sad and freaked-out Hurley.

Locke eventually lands a job (with the help of Rose, who runs Hurley's temp agency) as a substitute teacher, where he meets another teacher at the school, our dear friend Ben Linus.

Ben's back, and he's an obnoxious European History teacher. This should be good.

Reactor Reaction

Locke-centric episodes have ranged from illuminating to depressing. This was definitely on the illuminating side, a trend that I expect to continue for the entirety of the final season.

I thoroughly enjoyed the 2004 timeline, seeing that Locke didn't give up so easy this time around. Him being connected with Rose, Hurley, Jack and Ben should prove quite interesting as the story moves along.

As for the Island Timeline, seeing Richard that scared of something is a pretty big red flag that something's going down. My theory on Richard is that he's seen most of Smokey's tricks, and it appears that what Smokey-as-Locke is doing is new and terrifying.

My wife and I hypothesized that the names on the cave wall were for "candidates," a suspicion that was confirmed by Smokeylocke. We know we can't take his word for it, so the Jacob(s) of the Island must be protecting it from something. Another interesting idea we came up with is that Jacob is the goalie, keeping Smokey on the Island and away from the rest of the world. Smokeylocke keeps pushing to get off the Island, so we can only assume that something bad will happen, should that occur.

The candidates' names being associated with The Numbers is also very intriguing, and hints at just how long Jacob and Smokey have been at this game. If the Numbers were broadcasted 30 years before all this happened and Jacob had interacted with many of the Losties during that time, that could mean that Jacob was preparing for those seven for more than 30 years.

Trippy stuff.

Music Out Of NOWHERE

After living here in Kansas City for almost ten months now, my taste in music has widened considerably, due in part to the library and to the radio. Yes, I know, that's SOOOO 1990.

The public library system in Johnson County has a buttload of music. I have been going through their collection and finding new and wonderful things, some of which I didn't even know I would like.

I listen to 96.5 ("The Alternative, 96.5, The Buuuuuzzzz....") here in KC, which plays alternative rock, as well as some weirder stuff. I've gotten hooked on three or four bands because of this station. If you're in the KC area, though, don't listen from 12-3pm or so. The DJ that runs that slot is a nutjob.

Here's two albums and artists that I've discovered recently. I'll post some more now and then.

1. The Republic Tigers, "Keep Color"

I have a few sources to thank for this one. Amanda and I watch NBC's "Chuck" every week, and while I was waiting to get married this summer, I noticed a Republic Tigers song ("Buildings and Mountains") in an episode, and recognized it as something I had heard on 96.5 a few times. I found the album and was hooked.

The Republic Tigers are out of KCMO, which makes it even cooler. They are an indie-style band with non-indie lyrics. Sure they're ambiguous and odd lyrics, but decidedly on the happy side. The music is diverse and is easily repeatable live. They even have a song about playing air guitar.

Here's a live vid. Pretty awesome.

2. Jon Foreman, "Spring and Summer"

I found Switchfoot's frontman's album at the library completely by accident. His two-disc "Spring and Summer" is outstanding stuff.

I've had a love-hate relationship with Switchfoot. I hated Foreman's voice when I heard one or two songs on the radio back in 2001. Once I got a few albums, I appreciated his voice and song-writing styles even more.
His solo work really allows his writing to shine. It's a lot more pared-back than Switchfoot's surf rock. It's more indie-tinged, with a few songs featuring just Foreman and a guitar (and sometimes a very well-placed cello).

Foreman and Relient K's Matt Thiessen are two of the music industry's most creative and underrated songwriters.

And best yet, Foreman's solo work retains Switchfoot's sunny feel. I'm listening to a few songs right now while it's 20 out, and my mind is drifting back to Southern California...ahhh.

Here's one of the best of the album.

LOST Reaction: "What Kate Does"

LOST continues to weave its tangled web.

Island timeline (2008?)

In this week's episode, "What Kate Does" (which plays off the older Season 2 episode "What Kate Did"), we start off in the temple and go through a lot of "Who are you people?" and even more "I don't trust you/I'm going off into the jungle/I'm coming too." It got old real fast. Almost as old as the Temple folk, Lennon (the hippie guy) and Dogen (the Chinese dude) who have hilariously nonthreatening or impressive names saying "Come with us. We need to talk to you."

That stuff got old, but Dogen's attempts to "diagnose" Sayid's resurrection are quite foreboding.

Sawyer stomps off into the jungle, Kate, Jin, and two other Others go after him, Kate runs after Sawyer after knocking out the Others, etc. One of the Others mentions that they are protecting the Losties from Smokey. Pretty standard running through the jungle stuff. Kate finds Sawyer digging out the engagement ring he bought for Juliet, and the two have a sad and heartbreaking conversation. Kate leaves.

At the temple, Dogen tries to get Sayid to take a pill, which Jack convinces him not to, because it ends up containing poison. I swear, these people have some of the most messed-up trust issues I've ever seen. They're all diagnosable.

Dogen tells Jack that Sayid is "infected" and "claimed" by something.

The Others try to kill Jin as he makes his way back to the Temple, but a Rousseau version of Claire shows up and saves him. Looks like she's been setting traps, too.

LA Timeline (2004)

These flash-sideways are going to get confusing real fast. Kate commandeers a cab with Claire in it, but not before seeing Jack and having deja-vu. Weird.

Kate kicks Claire out of the cab and gets her handcuffs cut off by a mechanic that almost looks like Mr. Friendly/Tom. Kate realizes she took Claire's bag of baby stuff and brings it back to her. Aww.

Kate then gives Claire a ride to the family that's going to adopt Aaron. Why Claire ever gets back in the car with someone who just hijacked it a few hours before is beyond me.

Turns out the family doesn't want the kid, and Claire starts having contractions. They run to the hospital, where Claire's doctor is Ethan.

Yes, Ethan. Only this time his name is Ethan Goodspeed, which means he took his father (Horace)'s name. Does that mean Horace is still alive? The island is underwater in 2004, so what does that mean for the Dharma folks?

Kate leaves, Claire might keep the baby.

Reactor Reaction

Kate-centric episodes are always fraught with a lot of Kate pretending to be a lot tougher than she is and a lot of close-ups on people crying. Sawyer being emotional is fine, but good night give the guy some screen time when he's not crying or scowling. I have a feeling that the whole love story is about to get a lot more sappy and obnoxious this season.

The revelations at the Temple are most certainly foreboding. Who/what is Sayid, really? What did Dogen mean when he said the same thing happened to Claire?

Ethan's reappearance is startling. What happened to the Dharma folks?

It was a good episode in terms of fitting together puzzle pieces (or showing gaps in the completed puzzle). I can't wait to see how the two timelines interact. It's obvious that they're connected. Ethan is still Claire's doctor, Kate is still connected to Aaron, and she and Jack have both had deja-vu.

Questions, questions, questions. Let's hope they're all answered, otherwise ABC's going to host the nerdiest riot ever.

LOST Premiere Liveblog (LA X)

I'll be posting my reactions to the LOST premiere episode, "LA X," during every commercial break.

8:00 pm: The Quick Recap: Starting off with the MIB and Jacob talking about progress, Ben killing Jacob, Flocke kicking Jacob into the fire.

Then over to Faraday explaining The Reset. The crew runs to The Swan, Jack drops the bomb, Juliet falls down the shaft, and hits the bomb with a rock.

Flash to white. Recap over.

Now we're looking out the window of a plane...and there's Jack! He looks younger. Did it work?

Cindy the stewardess asks about Jack's drink...this is all from the pilot!

Here comes the turbulence, and Rose explaining turbulence to Jack. Plane shaking more and more...and...nothing happens.

This is different.

Rose tells Jack he can let go. They didn't crash! Bernard comes back from the bathroom, everything's okay. Weird.

Jack gets up and goes to the bathroom. He looks confused, and there's something weird on his neck. And...Desmond's on the plane! Holy crap! "Thanks brotha" got a weird look from Jack.

Jack has deja vu...

And camera goes down through the clouds and water...the island's underwater?! LOL at the Dharma Shark!

And there's the foot!

Amanda asked "Did the Hydrogen bomb sink the island?" Hmm...

8:09 pm: Recap back to Jack dropping the bomb, Juliet falling down the shaft, and hitting the bomb.

Flash to white again.

Close up on eye...and it's Kate. She's in a tree. The sound is muffled...I feel like I need to pop my ears. Wow. Cool effect.

She's stumbling around the jungle, and runs into Miles. They find a Dharma door, and the imploded Swan Station.

Looks like they're back in the present. Or Future. Or something.

They find Jack knocked out.

Ian Somerholder's name just popped up...Boone's back?!

Sawyer punches Jack into the hole and is pissed.

Are there two timelines?

A different flashback noise, and Jack's on the plane. Then he runs into Kate. Still looks deja vu-y.

Sawyer bumps into Kate and the federal marshal.

Hurley does a Mr. Cluck's impression for Doc Artz. Whoa.

Hurley tells Sawyer he's the luckiest guy alive. Weird.

Back on the island...

Hurley and Jin are back by the Dharma van. Jin gets Jack to help him with Sayid.

Kate picks through the Swan wreckage, and hears something. Is it Juliet?!

Back to Sayid. He's sounding rather pessimistic about his current state.

And something's in the jungle...Hurley's trying to use a gun, and it's not working.

And out of the jungle pops...Jacob?!

8:22 pm: Sun and Jin on the plane, Looks like Jin is back to being a jerk.

Locke is reading the emergency guide, and Boone is pessimistic about a possible crash. They talk about Australia. Is Shannon not on the plane?

Locke actually went his Walkabout then! Awesome!

Back to the island, Flocke cuts a piece of cloth out of Jacob's rug. Ben's staring at the fire, but Jacob's not there.

Flocke sends Ben to get Richard.

Near the foot, Richard is talking to Ilana and her crew. Lapidus and Sun are suspicious. Lapidus fills Sun in on "the good guys."

Ilana tells Richard that Jacob invited them there.

Ben tells Richard that John wants to talk to him. Richard shows Ben dead Locke. Weird music.

8:30 pm This is taking too much work. I'll just post a quick reaction to each segment.

Jacob tells Hurley to take Sayid to the Temple. They try to get Juliet out, Sawyer threatens to kill Jack if Juliet dies, and (back on the plane) Jack and Sayid find Charlie passed out in the bathroom. Looks like things on the plane have a slightly different chain of events.

8:40 pm Jack digs a bag of heroin out of Charlie's mouth. Sayid is helping.

Sawyer digs into the Swan wreckage and finds Juliet alive. Their love story is surprisingly resilient, by LOST standards.

Hurley convinces Jack to let him take Sayid to the Temple. Hurley finally grew some balls.

Ilana's crew (sans Ilana) goes in see Jacob, and they try to kill Flocke, who disappears and turns into Smokey (offscreen). The head dude protects himself for a bit with a circle of ash, but Smokey still gets him. And Flocke admits to being Smokey. Whoa. He's terrifying in both forms.

8:53 pm Juliet dies. One of the sadder moments in this show. Sawyer's blaming Jack. That should create some massive tension.

Back on the plane, Charlie gets arrested. A sentimental shot around the plane of all the characters as they land at LAX. Charlie is escorted off the plane by cops. And, Locke is carried off the plane in a wheelchair. So not everything's different.

9:04 pm Part 2. Hurley, Jack, and Kate take Sayid to The Temple while Sawyer and Miles bury Juliet. Sad stuff.

Back in LA, Jack finds out the coffin wasn't on the plane. They lost it. Where's Christian?

Back on the island, they bring Sayid down into the hole under the Temple. They all get caught by The Others and brought to the real Temple. It's a giant pyramid. I guess all we've seen is the wall of it...this should be interesting.

9:15 pm In LA, Kate knocks out the marshal and escapes! Kate's kinda scary. She and Sawyer run into each other. Sawyer covers for her and helps her duck some TSA guys.

Back on the island, Miles talks to dead Juliet, who said "It worked." Does she know about the alternate timeline?

At the Temple, some Chinese dude and a hippie try to kill Hurley and the others. Hurley tells them Jacob sent them, and gives them a giant Ankh in the guitar case. A list with all their names on it is inside. The hippie dude says that if Sayid dies, they're in trouble. Are these the real Others? Why is Cindy, the stewardess from 815 one of the heads?

9:28 pm In LA, Jin gets busted with a buttload of cash. Sun isn't married to Jin (the TSA lady called her Ms. Paik), and doesn't speak English. How did that happen?

Back in the Temple, a pool is red, and that's bad. Apparently.

The Others put Sayid in the pool, and the Chinese dude turns a hourglass. They hold Sayid under the red water, and he starts to thrash around. The hourglass is done, and Sayid isn't moving. He's dead?! What the heck? What did The Others do?

9:40 pm We're back in LA. Cops are looking for Kate. She's trying to get a taxi, and the marshal spots her. She gets in a taxi with Claire! She's back! Woo!

Back in the Temple, the Others capture Sawyer and Miles. Hurley tells Chinese dude and hippie that Jacob's dead. They freak out and start lighting fireworks and pouring ash everywhere. Are they preparing for Smokey?

Under the foot statue, Ben confronts Flocke/Smokey. Flocke makes fun of Real Locke. Interesting shots of him in shadow and sunlight. Interesting.

Flocke/Smokey tells Ben he wants to "go home." Followed by a really scary look.

9:51 pm In the Temple, everyone's bummed. Sawyer's still pissed at Jack.

In LA, Jack and Locke start talking in the lost luggage room. Locke starts talking about some existential stuff. Jack talks to Locke about his spinal injury.

And we're back on the Island. Richard sees the fireworks. Flocke/Smokey knows Richard and tells him "it's good to see you out of those chains." He then beats him up and takes him. What the heck is with Richard?!

Back in the Temple, Hippie man threatens Jack.

And Sayid's awake.

Fade to LOST.

Shuffleboard 7

It's been awhile since I've subjugated the Internet to my weird music preferences. Shall we?

1. "Den of Vice" by Atticus Ross from The Book of Eli

I haven't seen The Book of Eli yet, but it's high on my list of movies-to-see. I picked up this soundtrack because I read that Atticus Ross worked with Nine Inch Nails on some of their instrumental stuff, which is some of the most unique and enjoyable weird stuff out there.

As for this specific track, it's ambient, it's eerie, it's odd, and it makes me want to see the movie all the more. Ross' whole score is ambient, save for a few action cues, and that really illustrates the bleak post-apocalyptic world portrayed in The Book of Eli.

2. "Disconnected" by RJD2 from Magnificent City Instrumentals

Oh man, how did I not discover RJD2 sooner?! I'm getting more and more into weird stuff, and RJ's odd blend of electronica, Moby-style samplings and grooving R&B/Hip-Hop beats is up there with some of my new favorites.

This track sounds like it belongs in one of the Ocean's movies. Hot horns, a little rock organ, and a few drum tracks. It's stylish, makes you bob your head a little, and if you listen to it while walking down the street, you automatically feel cooler.

As for the video, just listen. Don't watch. It's a ninja dancing. It's weird.

3. "Fall: Marion Barfs" by Clint Mansell from Requiem for a Dream

From one of the all-time most depressing movies (seen it once, will never see it again) comes one of the most overused pieces of music ever. Mansell's "Lux Aeterna" theme has been used/remixed into more movie trailers than explosions or cheesy 70s love songs.

This track is from halfway through the film, when stuff starts to head downhill. The three main character's plan of getting rich by being drug dealers is backfiring as they become more and more addicted.

The score for the whole film is somewhat repetitive, but effective. It's depressing and really accentuates the feelings of absolute despair onscreen.

As the scene is pretty intense and disorienting(and isn't embeddable), you can view it here.

4. "Volare" by Dean Martin from The Capitol Years

I got a whole bunch of Dean Martin, Billie Holiday and Frank Sinatra for our wedding reception. The library is wonderful for free music!

Dean Martin isn't my favorite, but it's nice every once in a while. This song has an English section and an Italian section, so you know it's sophisticated.

Fun Note: Volare is Italian for "to fly."

5. "The Slug Party" by Nicholas Hooper from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

When I started watching the Harry Potter films last year, I was sad to discover that John Williams had only scored the first three. The score for the forth was boring, but then I found the fifth and sixth, both done by Nicholas Hooper. He really "grew up" the score, which is appropriate, as the movies definitely grew up.

This track accompanies the great scene where Harry and Hermione are invited to a horribly stuffy party by their weird professor. The track is uncharacteristically upbeat for the rest of the score, but portrays the ridiculous party well. A jazzy beat (with bongos!) and bass line back up an awkward string melody. This is how the attendees saw the party, no doubt.