Mylo and Herbie

I know, I know I just resort to writing about dogs when I can't think of anything else. Sue me.

Most of the other dogs I've fostered have been mostly normal, apart from maybe Jasper.

Mylo and Herbie were picked up by me at the vet along with a few other carers who were picking up random other animals which had been rescued from a puppy/kitten mill/hoarder.

It was crazy. The woman brought down about 5 dogs in various states of mood and physical deterioration in a dog trailer and in her Ute she had a several cat cages.

There was a very hyper (and on heat) King Charles cavalier, a west highland terrier who couldn't really see through the hair in his eyes, a spotty dog that the woman was adopting and then there were my two Labrador boys. They were almost comatose.
Mylo has severe mite mange but was wagging his tail but didn't want much to do with us. Herbie would not move. They both had pee and feces on them from the trip and also from soiling themselves anytime there was human contact. I had to carry Herbie into the vet for his vaccination, and got another carer to try and pull Mylo in on his lead. They'd never been socialised and presumably just stayed in the one spot at the back of the shed for their whole lives. They just didn't know what a lead was.

Every time the vet came back into the room, both dogs cowered, the breeder was a man and I'm not entirely sure what he did to them in their 4 months, but their reaction was heartbreaking.

Once we got home, they tried to get under the water bowl (which is connected to the water source and stuck to the wall) and didn't seem to move all day. They eventually found a jasmine bush growing along the wall and managed to wedge themselves amongst its roots.

Luckily they are both quite food orientated so I think this helped to get them out of their shell. They now come into the house by themselves and lay on the rug quite contently, though Mylo is still so skittish. While he initially seemed like the more outgoing one as he walked a little bit around on the first day and is always wagging his tail, he is actually the one that is going to take more time. They just don't trust us enough, and don't understand the things dogs who have grown up in a normal household would. Noises such as the washing machine, the TV are all new, as well as not sleeping in waste and that raising a hand doesn't mean something bad.

They are also now learning how to be puppies which is so sweet. My dog loves having other dogs chase her, and Herbie has resorted into the very puppy like behaviour of stealing things out of rooms and then hoarding them on the lawn.

I know some people get really angry about the people that cause these reactions and behaviours, but I've barely thought of him. It really killed me to see their sad little faces those first couple of days, but now I'm also seeing improvement so I'm glad they were brought out in time. I really can't believe they're the same dogs I met six days ago.

Get Him to the Greek

I finally watched this film with Russell Brand and Jonah Hill. It uses the character of drug addicted rocker Aldous Snow from Forgetting Sarah Marshall and pairs him again with Hill but he is playing a different role. Here he is Aaron Green a record executive or something who needs to get Snow to the Greek Theatre in LA from London for a 10 year reunion concert in 72 hours.

I really liked FSM and I think this was due to the likability of leads Jason Segal, Brand and Mila Kunis. I thought Brand was hilarious and his interactions with Segal great. Never mind that he is essentially playing himself in some ways (I enjoy his stand up as well so this makes me biased) - he does it well.
I liked FSM better than GHTTG, maybe it was the preference of Segal to Hill or maybe the storyline just made a little more sense (I did enjoy the scene in the hotel room with Snow, Aaron, Snow's dad and Sean Combs though. Mind fuck indeed).

Rose Byrne plays Snow's ex girlfriend though and her scenes were too far and few in between. I couldn't believe it was the same actress from the serious films and TV shows she normally does.
With her cockney English accent she really pulled off the skanky girlfriend with more aplomb I would have thought possible. She always comes across as so ladylike and proper in interviews and other roles she takes, so it was interesting to see her play against type.

Seeing as Brand is an addict himself I often wondered how close to home filming some of the scenes hit.

Overall I think the film got a little muddled in the end and it seems like a quick personality turnaround for Snow and the attempted threesome scene was just odd.

But you know twas an enjoyable film to wile away some time. 3 stars.

Roseanne vs Blossom

Not a bizzaro dream I had (I think we all know who'd win that fight though) but merely something I was pondering as I was drifting off to sleep last night.
Would I rather have starred in Roseanne or Blossom?
Well technically I couldn't have starred in Roseanne as I wouldn't be playing Roseanne but rather Darlene, her middle daughter (which was one of my favourite names to use when drawing pictures of my 'characters' in my books in primary school).
Both were family sitcoms but couldn't be more different. Roseanne was a family of 5 with sister Jackie frequently involved as well, while Blossom lived with her dad and 2 brothers and Six, her best friend was always over. Both were comedies but Roseanne was sarcastic, not always the best mother and they were usually struggling for money. Blossom showed the more traditional struggles on a teen orientated show and how her dad struggled with being a single father.
Really I shouldn't even be comparing these shows, but whatev.

And let's just ignore the other technical aspects of why it couldn't have happened (wrong age, nationality, disposition etc) and just look at the pros and cons.

Darlene

I think more people remember the show Roseanne than Blossom
Sulky, sarcastic teenager (more my style than the perky Blossom)
Got to hang out with Johnny Galecki
Due to early appearances also worked with Leo DiCaprio and now IMBD tells me they are 'close friends'
Likes the plaid, as do I
Pushed the boundaries at times with issues of abortion, homosexuality, was the first 'blue collar' family to be shown as a popular series
Would have been working with John Goodman, who surely is as similar to a big teddy bear as I imagine
But would also have to work with Roseanne
Lasted 9 seasons

Blossom
Had her own show, main character
Got to rock some awesome outfits (including a ton of hats)
Got to dance in the opening credits
Was a bit too family friendly although not as bad as other 'family' sitcoms at the time
Lasted 5 seasons

Looking at the careers of both Sara Gilbert and Mayim Bialik I wouldn't say either are particularly well known. They've both recently had recurring roles on The Big Bang Theory, Bialik to a slightly greater effect I think.

Bialik in The Big Bang Theory, Sheldon's 'girl friend'

Purely for nostalgia's sake I will have to go with Blossom. Hearing the theme song again on YouTube was a joy to be treasured and I still remember watching around the TV set with my family and laughing at the inevitable 'whoa' from Blossom's brother Joey.

Mad Max

I've decided to revert all ownership of Mel Gibson back to the United States as he was born in New York. Apart from the period where he made Mad Max and it's sequel (more well known as The Road Warrior). Thunderdome can stick it. Watching that monster 20 times for an english class has ruined any (if any) enjoyment it once gave me.

Mad Max shows a bleak future in Australia, it's a raw story featuring some crazy car and bike stunt work for the time (1979). Max (Mel Gibson) is a policeman trying to maintain society's last shreds of order and decency against the highway road gangs. The fight gets personal against these gangs when his best friend and family are hurt and Max is out for revenge.

Made on a shoestring budget, director George Miller (Babe, Happy Feet) was a former ER doctor who saw many injuries people sustained who had been in road traumas. Apparently the van smashed in the opening chase scene was Miller's own as money was running out.
This movie is not without it's faults. Characterisation could have been explored more, maybe a bit more of a back story. But the real reason anyone is going to watch this is for the car chase scenes.

I am not into cars at all. Living in a somewhat bogan culture though I have seen this film several times, more because I consider it a classic (and also to see a young good looking Gibson). My boyfriend is a mechanic also, so I hear a lot about cars. Unfortunately.

Max Max: Fury Road is supposedly currently in production, due for release in 2012. Although I would see another sequel to see what they do with it, I mostly wish they weren't making it. Some films are just better left in the past.
This was a unique film and I can just imagine the latest will be too flashy and not gritty enough. Although Miller is directing again so who knows. Has he mellowed too much from Happy Feet though?