Newspaper Page Text
8A
♦ THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2005
I fIHHHHHHk.
Nick Campbell
In the nick of time
nickscampbell@hotmail.com
Blowing out
the candles
after a year
It doesn’t seem like it’s
been that long ago, but
this week marks the first
anniversary of my inaugu
ral In the Nick of Time for
the Lifestyle section.
The column came to be
because when I was finish
ing up high school, I
thought it would be fun to
write a Lifestyle column.
I went to the Houston
Home Journal office to
talk to Mrs. Charlotte
(whom I had met previ
ously due to my work as a
sports writer). I told her I
wanted to write a light
hearted column called In
the Nick of Time, a name
suggested by one of my
friends and former sports
writer Mr. Phil Clark. She
was pretty receptive of the
idea, and she gave me
some guidelines of what to
do.
She said that I should
have my columns in on
Monday morning, but on
rare cases I could send
them on Tuesday. She said
that it would probably be
a good idea to write a few
columns to begin with to
get used to it, too.
After coming back from
my senior cruise, I real
ized it was time to start
writing. The only problem
was that I could not figure
out anything to write
about. After brainstorm
ing for at least three min
utes, I decided that
Lifestyle writing wasn’t
for me, and I informed
Mrs. Charlotte of my deci
sion.
She wrote me back and
told me that I had to have
a column in her Inbox
within the next week. By
the sound of her e-mail, I
thought it would be in my
best interest to write the
column, and I’m glad I
did.
I finally decided on writ
ing about what my college
major was going to be,
which was pre-med. I
based the decision largely
in part because of the
work of Hawkeye Pierce
on the television show
“MASH.”
Somehow or another,
one year has come and
gone. I found out a lot of
myths about college are
just myths. I also found
that a lot of them are true.
I managed to take
advantage of the “rare
Tuesday extension”
approximately 48 times
out of the 52 times I’ve
sent in columns.
I’ve been able to use this
column as almost a per
sonal diary to vent out my
frustrations with some of
the stressful parts of col
lege life, such as dorm
rooms, laundry, and chem
istry lab.
Oddly enough, I have
also somehow managed to
keep the same major for a
year. I’ve done significant
ly more research on being
a doctor, research that is
not entirely based on a
1970 s television show. I’m
leaning toward dermatol
ogy, but my preference
changes quite frequently.
I’m glad to have my first
year behind me. I’ve
already started getting
ready for my second year.
Rest assured that there
will probably be several
columns about what new
adventures I get myself
into during my sophomore
year.
But for now, I’m going to
blow out the candles on
the birthday cake for In
the Nick of Time and
relax.
Amazon expert lists 'Must-Reads’ lor this summer
By ALLEN PIERLEONI
Sacramento Bee
What books will be
“must-reads” this summer?
We asked expert Brad
Thomas Parsons to weigh
in. He’s a senior editor in
the books department of the
online merchandiser ama
zon.com, and each year
compiles a forecast of his
favorites. The comments
are in his own words:
Fiction
• “Specimen Days” by
Michael Cunningham
(Farrar, Straus and Giroux,
$24, 352 pages): “It echoes
‘The Hours’ in terms of a
major literary figure (Walt
Whitman) playing a role in
the book. In ‘The Hours,’
that was Virginia Woolf.
Cunningham is playing
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
“Mr. and Mrs. Smith”
• Rated: PG-13.
• Suitable for: Mature
teens and older moviegoers.
• What you should know:
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie
are assassins who work for
competing organizations.
After they realize that, and
try to kill each other before
teaming up, they find the
spark in their marriage.
• Language: One use of
the f-word and about two
dozen less offensive words.
• Sexual situations/nudity:
Jolie, clad in a barely there
patent-leather outfit, acts as
a dominatrix, in an effort to
get close to a target she must
murder. She and Pitt kiss
passionately and nearly kill
each other before having sex,
which is not shown.
• Violence/scary situa
tions: The movie is filled
with murder, mayhem, gun
fire, massive explosions, car
crashes, car chases, knife
play and other violence.
• Drug and alcohol use:
Alcohol is consumed
throughout, by adults.
“Adventures of Shark
Boy and Lava Girl in 3-D”
• Rated: PG.
• Suitable for: School-age
children and older.
• What you should know:
A large chunk of the movie is
in 3-D, and moviegoers must
wear the glasses (cardboard
frames with one red and one
blue lens) to be able to see
the action. Otherwise, the
image is blurry. The movie is
about a 10-year-old misfit
who dreams up the title
characters and is taken to
Planet Drool to save the day.
• Language: Some rude
language, nothing more.
• Sexual situations/nudity:
None.
• Violence/scary situa
tions: The movie has mild
peril and scary situations.
Among them: Characters
(To submit your event for the
Night Life listings, fax the
details to 988-1181, e-mail to
hhj@evansnewspapers.com or
mail to Houston Home Journal,
P.O. Box 1910, Perry, GA
31069.)
Thursday, June 16
• karaoke, Our Place, 2132
U S. 41 North, Perry, (478) 218-
2299
• DJ Oronde, The Ville Case,
2607-A Moody Road, Warner
Robins, (478) 918-0660
Friday, June 17
• The Interference,
Shenanigan's Case, 1291 S.
QUIZ
From page 7A
Ocean. - Getting it right
were Beth Harper, Agnes
Farr, Betsy Bazemore, Bill
Harrison, Claudell Crooms,
Jim Worrall and Jolene
Pierson. Corrections: Betsy
Bazemore also got the
extra challenge and the
Georgia quiz last week.
Extra Quiz
Along with the real
names of people who called
or e-mailed in their
ENTERTAINMENT
with genres. The first novel
la is an industrial-age ghost
story; the second is a post
-9/11 thriller; and the third
is bizarre sci-fi. It’s going to
get a ton of review atten
tion.”
• “Until I Find You” by
John Irving (Random
House, $27.95, 848 pages,
July 12): “This is a doorstop
of a book, billed as his most
personal yet. He changed
the point of view from first
person to third person,
which delayed its release.”
• “No Country for Old
Men” by Cormac McCarthy
(Knopf, $24.95, 320 pages,
July 19): “His previous
three books - ‘All the Pretty
Horses,’ ‘The Crossing’ and
‘Cities of the Plain’ - estab
lished (his greatness)* so
this one will be on people’s
lists.”
appear lifeless but are fine, a
boy is separated from his
father, bullies chase a class
mate on the playground, rid
ers are trapped on a roller
coaster, a teacher is re-imag
ined as a villain, bridges col
lapse and, because it hap
pens in a realistic setting, a
tornado appears outside a
classroom.
• Drug and alcohol use:
None.
“Sisterhood of the
Traveling Pants”
• Rated: PG.
• Suitable for: Mature
tweens, teens and older
moviegoers.
• What you should know:
This is based on the popular
novel of the same name by
Ann Brashares.
• Language: A couple of
words, the sort commonly
heard on TV are used.
• Sexual situations/nudity:
Couples kiss and a girl loses
her virginity, off screen,
although she later regrets
her actions. Younger viewers
may not realize what tran
spired. A girl strips to her
underwear and goes for a
swim.
•Violence/scary situations:
A supporting character has
leukemia, which proves to be
fatal. The girls gather at the
funeral for one of their
mothers, who committed sui
cide. Mildly scary moments
include a boy getting hit in
the face with a tennis ball
during a game and an angry
girl throwing a rock at a win
dow.
• Drug and alcohol use:
College-age students and
other adults consume beer,
margaritas and other drinks.
“Lords of Dogtown”
• Rated: PG-13.
• Suitable for: Teens and
up.
• What you should know:
This is a fictional version of
the documentary “Dogtown
and Z-Boys,” about the teen
NIGHT UFE
Houston Lake Road, Warner
Robins, 988-8252
• Mainline, The Ville Case,
2607-A Moody Road, Warner
Robins, (478)918-0660
Saturday, June 18
• Tim Chandler,
Shenanigan’s Case, 1291 S.
Houston Lake Road, Warner
Robins, 988-8252
• Mainline, The Ville Case,
2607-A Moody Road, Warner
Robins, (478) 918-0660
Wednesday, June 22
• DJ Bill Barker, Our Place,
2132 U S. 41 North, Perry,
(478)218-2299
answers is the name of a
vice-president of the United
States. Can you find it?
Last week's answer:
The answer to last
week’s extra quiz is that
Max wore his wolf suit in
the children’s classic,
“Where the Wild Things
Are” by Maurice Sendak.
Getting it right were Betsy
Bazemore and Bill
Harrison.
• “The Mysterious
Flame of Queen Loana”
by Umberto Eco (Harcourt,
S2B, 464 pages): “It’s really
beautiful. He traditionally
writes historical fiction
(‘The Name of the Rose’),
but this is a kind of autobi
ographical tale with a con
temporary character, a rare
book dealer who gets amne
sia, and the only way he
reconnects to his former
self is through the books
and comics in his library.”
• “The Wonder Spot”
by Melissa Bank (Viking,
$24.95, 336 pages): “If you
liked her first book, ‘A
Girl’s Guide to Hunting and
Fishing,’ you’ll definitely
see the common threads
that connect that one with
this one.”
• “The Historian” by
FAMILY MOVIE GUIDE
surfers in the 1970 s who rev
olutionized the sport.
• Language: A very liberal
sprinkling of objectionable
words are used throughout.
• Sexual situations/nudity:
At a party, a girl opens her
blouse and makes it clear
she’s available for the ask
ing. A joke about oral sex is
made, and couples are shown
kissing, casually or as a prel
ude to something more seri
ous.
• Violence/scary situa
tions: Skateboarders engage
in ill-advised behavior, such
as jumping off roofs, hanging
onto the back of a bus and
turning empty pools into
their playgrounds. Punches
are thrown, kids wrangle
with cops, and one of the
main characters lands in the
hospital after being hit in the
eye. Someone is diagnosed
with brain cancer.
•Drug and alcohol use:
Beer and harder stuff flow
freely, and marijuana is
smoked, for medicinal and
other purposes.
“Cinderella Man”
• Rated: PG-13
• Suitable for: Teens and
adults.
• What you should know:
Director Ron Howard finds
and enshrines another hero,
Irish-American boxer Jim
Braddock, whose personality
was unheroic and whose
career was considered
“washed up” by injuries and
the Depression, but who cap
tured America’s underdog
determination in his 1935
fairytale-comeback victory
over Max Baer.
• Language: Frequent use
of mild profanity.
• Sexual situations/nudity:
None.
• Violence/scary situa
tions: The film’s half dozen
fight scenes - particularly
the last two - are intensely
violent, depicting the blows
and bloodshed graphically
(sometimes in slow-motion)
• karaoke with Billy Williams,
The Ville Case, 2607-A Moody
Road, Warner Robins, (478)
918-0660
Live Entertainment Every Wed.-Sat.
Appearing June 15th thru 18th
BRIAN LEE
BUDWEISER HOTBODY SWIMSUIT CONTES!
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www.whiskeyriver.tv
Elizabeth Kostova (Little,
Brown, $25.95, 656 pages,
Tuesday): “This literary
thriller is about a contem
porary woman who finds
that her family tree con
nects her to Vlad the
Impaler (Dracula) so she
travels abroad to dig into
this dark secret. It’s defi
nitely a big-buzz debut.”
• “A Long Way Down”
by Nick Hornby (Riverhead,
$24.95, 352 pages: “It fea
tures the voices of four
interconnected characters
who meet at a popular sui
cide spot in London on New
Year’s Eve and sort of
befriend each other. It’s a
little sentimental but defi
nitely well-written.”
Nonfiction
• “1776” by David
McCullough (Simon &
Schuster, $35, 656 pages):
but never pruriently or at
excessive length. Much scari
er, perhaps, for young view
ers are the grimly realistic
scenes of hunger, poverty,
unemployment and other
deprivations in the Great
Depression, plus one highly
violent scene of a police raid
on the “Hooverville” shanty
town in New York’s Central
Park.
• Drug and alcohol use:
Male characters are fre
quently seen drinking beer
and hard liquor during meet
ings and conversations in
tough dockyard bars.
“Madagascar”
• Rated: PG.
• Suitable for:
Preschoolers and older.
• What you should know:
This is from the studio that
gave us “Shrek,” but it
skews younger. It’s about
four Central Park Zoo ani-
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■ One of Macon’s
Favorite Comedians
SPANKY BROWN
As Seen On HBO
& BET's Comic Review
» Cover Includes Free Admission to
% Whiskey River Night Club
{ comedy smorgasbord
V 1 llam-2pm Lunch Buffet
I . ( Monday-Friday)
■ Includes Coffee or Tea
THE HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL
“It’s a history of one year of
the American Revolution -
definitely the nonfiction
pick of the summer.” - “Oh
the Glory of It All” by Sean
Wilsey (Penguin, $25.95,
496 pages): “We’re really
hot on it. It’s a debut book
about a boy growing up in
San Francisco high society
set in the 19705. His mom
and dad had a very public
divorce, and his dad left his
mom for his mom’s best
friend - a wicked stepmoth
er character. It’s an original
story told in an interesting
narrative style.”
• “My Friend
Leonard” by James Frey
(Riverhead, $24.95, 368
pages, Thursday): This is a
little darker. It’s about a
larger-than-life Vegas mob
ster who becomes a father
figure to Frey.”
mals who end up marooned
on Madagascar.
• Language: Some crude
humor, including monkeys
making jokes about throwing
waste. A sign attempting to
spell out “Help” comes out
“Hell.”
• Sexual situations/nudity:
None.
• Violence/scary situa
tions: Most of the violence is
cartoonish and it’s more dis
turbing than frightening to
watch the suddenly savage
lion eye his pal, a zebra, as
possible food. A skeleton is
shown, attached to a para
chute. Fossas, who prey on
lemurs, are scary looking.
• Alcohol and drug use:
Champagne is popped and a
tranquilizer dart prompts a
hallucinogenic haze.
Distributed by Scripps
Howard News Service,
http://www.shns.com.
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