'Who Killed the Electric Car?'

Who Killed the Electric Car?

dvd

2006

An interesting documentary. Didn't get me too fired up which was strange because usually after a 'change the world' documentary I come out of it feeling like I should do something. This left me with a sick sort of feeling, the kind when it's completely out of your control.

It was a well developed and thought through piece of film-making. I enjoyed the rise and then demise of the EV1 car and concluded that I don't see quite to eye to eye on the whole electric car thing any more. There seemed to be a strange sort of logic behind it all, loosening our (Western countries) grip on petrol/oil reliant personal transportation in the hope that it will bring peace to the Middle East, and stop pollution and global warming. Well, burning coal like a total maniac to create electricity is harming the planet just as much as war so I don't see the solution there. It featured a tiny segment on the alternatives for producing electricity (solar/wind) although I would have been sold on the whole idea if this was more developed as part of their argument.

Overall, it was a good look at another fuel alternative for private inner-suburban automobile use although I wanted it to go further and really tackle the bigger issues. How can we source better/cleaner electricity? If (as the doco reports) Americans travel only 29 miles in the day, is there an actual need for a personal car or should resources be put into better public transport? Or even, would the US even give a rats about the environment if they didn't have to pay and bleed for their oil? Ouch.

'Invincible'

'Invincible'

dvd

2006

This was a perfect, feel-good weekend movie. A Walt Disney pictures recount of an NFL football player who rose from the streets of Philadelphia to play as a professional after the team's coach puts out a general invitation to new players in the hope of breaking their losing streak. Mark Wahlberg is not the best actor by far but I think it's all good fun. Worth a look if you want a punch in the air, feel-good emotional rollercoaster with a linear plot.

All Pottered Out

Well I gave it my best shot. Trying to knock off the 6 Harry Potter books before the new one came out. I only made it up to Order of the Phoenix (halfway through) and things sort of ground to a halt. It's a very interesting series and I'd imagine it'd be a breathtaking series for anyone from 10-15. I just can't take another unedited chapter from JK Rowling or another temper tantrum from Harry.

So it's books down for a little bit and onto something different for a while. Will get back into them once I give myself a chance to see what else is on offer.

Looking forward to Scarlet by Stephen R. Lawhead.

War of the Ring board game

Today I went into Game Quest to get my hands on a copy of War of the Ring, a Lord of the Rings based board game I played a few weekends ago with my cousin. I ended up buying the new offering from the Axis & Allies people: Battle of the Bulge. Yeah baby! And as I was in there talking with the guys I was thinking, these are my people. These are the guys that part of me connects with where it's not taboo to talk about plastic figures or rolling a bunch of dice. I had a good chat about nothing.

War of the Ring was a great adaptation of the LotR plot. It played out similar to those games from Axis & Allies (previously Milton and Bradley, now Avalon Hill). You could break out different members from the fellowship, move them covertly across the map, the whole time trying to outrun roving Nazgul which might give away your position at any stage. There was a desperate battle for Minas Tirith (which I lost, and in which Aragorn lost his life, hehe oops) and I had Meriadoc leading a band of rangers across the plains of Eriador.

You can focus on a military victory or getting the ring to Mount Doom, or both. It plays out very much like the book although there's more scope than you think as you're deciding on who goes where, what to attack etc.

I thoroughly enjoyed myself and have lined up another round soon.

Yes, I am alive

I am breathing, I have the power of thought and speech. I'm just being a Mr Lazy Bum over the winter months, with nothing too much going on besides the hum-drum of every day. I've been watching a lot of movies, been on a few walks, and have bitten the bullet and got involved in Lord of the Rings Online. How can a nerd deny his genetic makeup? It's like telling a duck he now has to climb trees.

Before the end of the warm season I went on a massive hike along the Yurrebilla Trail and wrote up an awesome review of it. For some reason Internet Explorer decided to not work and then I lost it all. Now Blogger saves automatically as you go so that will save me some time in the future, although I honestly felt like putting my fist through the monitor. Half frustration about the computer world (and its never ending role in my life) and half from being pissed off with myself for setting my goals too high with my walking routine. It was bound to come down at some point and I let myself be disappointed.

I'm looking forward to getting back into it all again and aim to get in some winter walks, with nice hot showers after traipsing through long wet grass and boggy puddles.

Other news is that I may be able to do the Camino with my sister April, who thinks it's a good idea and I feel kinda relieved that I won't be facing the physical/social challenges alone. The plans are still in the pipeline. Haven't given up yet.

More reviews to come. Life is funny.