Essential: My Careers, Yes. Lockdown, Yes. "Demon City Shinjuku", Maybe

*Blog started on March 24, 2013.

I guess I am one of the lucky ones. My two jobs have both been deemed essential. Unfortunately, a lack of computers with Internet browsers at the retailer and catching up on how things will operate with two less hours (those still being paid thankfully) means that the Monday blog did not even get started.

So again Morrisey confirms that he is a dick. He lied, everyday feels like Monday. With an ex-girlfriend whose job has deemed unessential, everyday will be silent and grey. That may be a bit of hyperbole. Actually, it is a fuck up because I thought the lyric was "everyday feels exactly the same". I guess I am the dick. How dare I not pay close enough attention to Moz.

Getting through lockdown with someone you do not want to rent with (I did not intend to break up with her, which she thought was a dick move but I think just indicates the misunderstandings of our relationship. If you want to see a dick move...) scares me a little. It took her a couple of days to realize the confining elements of it, but since she did not want to bug me with how to manage the finer points (applying for unemployment benefits, understanding all the tech I have to keep her from being bored), I have to hear try to translate her problems over the phone to her employer or parents. The circles she runs makes me think she just as well call the Philippines.

That is not racist, that is how customer service work. HGS, the biggest call center corporation, charges its clients like McDonald's more for its customers to speak with American representatives. If a client still needs a call center, but at a lower rate, Manilla or Bengaluru will take care of you. This makes me wonder, since Peoria is one of their call centers (and I was there), would people rather deal with racists instead of the well meaning?

Now if I wanna get truly racist (instead of leaning away from PC culture), I would go off on those wondering why they cannot come into the retailer. What we have here is a failure to communicate.

At least with my household communication failures, it is just simple electronic rearranging and loud, relatively inoffensive music (That means no Nine Inch Nails or Lords of Acid...probably Combichrist and My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult as well.) to relax in the spare bedroom. I say simple rearranging, but even after raising the bed up again, I still got boxes on the TV consoles that prevent me from moving the PS4 and Switch to the room. It feels simpler to just wait her out till she goes to bed, but when I am in the midst of an essential 13-day work week, do I have the energy to?

It is a good thing that my secondary website, NinetyForChill.com is dedicated to shorter movies. The only problem I have is it takes so much time to find them through all the streaming services. Amazon Prime has come through for me many a time when it comes to haste, but with on-demand Rifftrax, finding these less than 90-minute gems makes me feel like I am missing something, besides "Fleabag". It is still offers plenty of the familiar, especially in terms of the post-apocalyptic, so "Demon City Shinjuku" seemed right for a revisit.

IMDB.com - Demon City Shinjuku (1988)

Demon City Shinjuku

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"The Damn United" - A Real Life Jay & Silent Bob on the Pitch

Brotherly (true) love is something that American cinema seems embarrassed to discuss. "Superbad" is probably the best example of the concept, and of course it is buried by sophomoric humor. The true love concept is not even hinted at until the brief third act.

With the rise of the fascist tea party movement (This review's draft was written in 2010.), the ignorant masses' homophobia may make the coy approach a wise one. Imagine the freak out if this concept was juxtaposed with our football. How much did Gale "really" love Brian?

Fortunately, the Yankee assumption that Brits are poofs gives them the freedom to slide tackle this innocent concept. Shaun and Ed from "Shaun of the Dead", Billy Mack and Joe from "Love Actually", etc. The only problem with these lovers (not in a gay way) is that the comedy or subplots makes their morale secondary. This makes "The Damn United" a breath of fresh air. Not so much funny in terms of jokes, but a brilliant investigation of a theatrical British sport hero and the man who made him whole.

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90 min Red Box: "Snatchers" Diablo Cody with a "Gremlins" Twist

*Blog entry started on March 16, 2020.

And now the virus has left us without any opportunities for fun. That is a bit of hyperbole of course. With 14 video game libraries, two streaming devises, a region-free DVD player, a UHD Blu-ray player, and a VCR, there are plenty of means to have fun in my living room.

Provided you can deal with the company of a hard-to-read former better quarter. (Eva the Cat will always get half). Ironically, I think I have become the cat in the relationship. She just loves having living things around her. If they do not come up to her for pets and snuggling, their activities do not matter to her. Perhaps I should find a dead mouse to tell her to get involved with the environment. At least that will provide me with a chance to get in trouble, if only for a few minutes.

What I cannot do go out and is get into trouble. If you cannot do that on Saint Patrick's Day, when can you? Are the Irish-Americans (my lesser quarter) going to get an unofficial? Maybe I should start printing up some green racist shirts.

My current job and my access to it would make it the ideal speakeasy. It is the Roaring 20's after all. Call in some of my friends in the performance industry from Peoria, and there would be some money to be made. The parking is off the street, so no reason for suspicion. And we do have a guy with access to kegs and other booze. If it was not for old people being the primary people coming into the establishment, there would be zero risk of viral concerns. But the lobby is closed.

Alas, everyone at the day job (fortunately) still has a day job, so no one is taking the idea seriously. I should be use to I since I (we) have yet to get my (our) no/low-budget, feature-length, pro-wrestling zom-com "Main Event of the Dead" out of development hell (If you have any suggestions on how to get this production going or need a proof-of-concept/script treatment, email me at russthebus07@gmail.com). If only this nonsense did not sound so much like Will Ferrell's "The House".

Thank the gods the liquor stores are still open. That may be able to numb the loneliness further enhanced by my ex's nature. Then again, I might just go on a seeming endless YouTube dive as I wait for her to go to bed like she says she will. She was nearly asleep by the end of the "Westworld" season premiere, but the lights go on, and her crafting catalogues are then opened. If you are just bored, let me know. I want to get to bed at a decent hour, so I will be more than happy to move to another room to watch the pregnancy-horror comedy that I suspect you will lack the stomach for. Fifty five cents is all I want to give Red Box at a time.

Snatchers - Overly Clever Title and Story

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IMDb: Snatchers (2019)

Too Much Corona, Not Enough Self Pity

*Blog entry started on March 12, 2020.

It seems like we are getting back to the old format of the blog. It is obviously a different social/existential dilemma, but at least I asked for this one. It feels like I am back where I started four years ago.

It seems I am nothing more than a "All Employees Wash Their Hands Sign". It makes the customer feel good, but that is a lot of trust to assume. It may elevate my self importance during the rise of corona viruses.

Since this is a Google platform, if I was making any money from AdSense (I am not using the ad service, despite I really need a means to get my low-budget, pro-wrestling zom-com "Main Event of the Dead" out of development hell. Any suggestions on how to approach the stall or proof of concept, email me at russthebus07@gmail.com.), would this blog be demonetized for the now more nefarious C-word?

If anything, COVID-19 has been a nice distraction for a guy working at a small-town financial institution. It reminds you that there is a reason why Rep. Rodney Davis represents the most liberal downstate population.

I thinks the disease is being covered solely to cause economic chaos for other people to gain.

Keep that shit in Peoria bitch. For a person who loves to hear is own voice (Per the former better quarter, Eva the Cat will always get half.), my ability to keep my inner monologue in check should be admired. I guess it is something I can shut off when I am at work.

Oh work, if only it applied to the verb version. Did I put enough in when it came to my felisapien? (That better quarter should take that description as a compliment.) If I had, would I be feeling like I am in an existential crisis?

At least when it comes to the noun version of work, I have found that the virus is bugging people in many a way.

They better not cancel the Khabib/Tony fight.

Just fight it in an empty arena, and if it is good, you run it back for more money.

As for how it is affecting me, I am worried about my trip to England (Because Trump does not know what he is doing, white, native-English speakers will eventually be fucked by the travel ban.), but otherwise it is just the fear that my current apartment building gets quarantined before I can secure my next dwelling. It feels like I am being cursed by dating an avid church goer. She is the walking into death trap. What bar can hold more than 50 people in downtown Champaign?

And when it comes to bars, I cannot help but think about the strip clubs and how they are effected. Of course, all the bills had just been paid, so it is not like I have the means to investigate.

reddit.com

*March 13, 2020

Per Facebook: Games Cancelled? Come See Our Action at World Famous Big Al's. $3 Corona and Corona Light Specials.

I appreciate the idea that they are still open, but should they be? I thought Darling Nikki was pretty cool. I guess the apple does not fall too far from the tree. I do not need people to play on us nihilist who figure, "Why the hell not?"

COVID-19 can affect everybody, so that is the hell not. My Sunday is clear and it is not like I have not gotten home from a road trip at a ridiculous hour only to get up for work the next day. Riot Fest showed that I still had that strength. Also, this road trip allows me to visit my folks while there is little-to-no chance that I am a carrier. What else am I going to use my $45 check from the retailer?

With all the pointless panicking over the pandemic, there is no chance to use it for the cheap things. My air fryer has too much grease from all the chicken I fried (If someone can get me [russthebus07@gmail.com] the recipe to Gardner's Wings hot sauce, we might be able to fund "Main Event of the Dead" that way. Champaign needs a great wing place.), so baking cinnamon rolls in it was not an option. Hence, a trip to Walmart was in order since Big Lots did not have cake pans.

I also needed some Lava Hand Soap because the Just for Men Beard Wash was staining them (It was not enough that it does not seem to work with longer grays). It could not hurt me that much to add an exclusive Funko Pop Doc Holliday from "Tombstone". The trip seemed fruitful until you realize that only have the lanes were open and upwards to 75 people in the line who felt the shelves needed to be cleaned. This was weird because I thought the toilet paper was already cleared out the day prior.

If we go back to our Deep State theorist from earlier, it seemed like her fellow conspiracy enthusiast were making up the majority of those in line. Trump supporters are falling for this delusion and blaming the innocent liberals. That leaves me torn on what was worst, the undeserving fear mongers or Walmart's evil nature. Everyone is afraid that they cannot earn a paycheck, but with at least 20 unattended registers, so there should be the opportunities.

The world is just too crazy to try and relate to. I do not know if that means get back together with my favorite crazy woman I know (She should take that as a compliment. But I will say the congressional candidate is more fun.) or just surrender to celibacy. There is no way that I can myself to be associated with proud boys, so better put myself at risk of literally destroying a senior citizen community. At least I would be a hero to the zoomers.

90 min. Redbox: "Arena": Can Samuel L. Jackson Save a Title Timur Dropped.

Thank you Redbox for so many promo codes (This review was written in 2011. Why so stingy now?). Netflix (DVD) may have had "Arena" (2011) in stock, but with the vast library of suggestions, who knows if I would have come across such a ridiculous feature.

I am familiar with two other films called "(The) Arena". The premise is pretty much the same for each one. They are tales of a person's survival through brutal one-on-one combat. The 1989 (brilliant) low-budget take is about a human fighting aliens and the 2001 use of the title was Timur Bekmambetov's international debut about female Roman gladiators, and after further investigating I found that was a remake of a Roger Corman B-movie from 1974 of the same name. With this history  lacking luster (or lack of interest), how can Sony believe this can possibly be a made-for-DVD gem?

Pick Your Three Words: Samuel L. Jackson or Sam "Motherfuck'n" Jackson. Sony proves that I am not the only one to believe there is no such thing as a bad feature from this legendary performer. With the amount that he works, it makes me wonder why there have been any bad movies since 1988.

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CityonFire.com - Arena DVD

https://cityonfire.com/arena-dvd-sony/

Drooling Cats and "The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard"

"I don't think you can be accommodated for."

You provide examples of what you need in a relationship, and they are considered petty (when compared with not talking to you for nearly an entire week because they are upset with over their lack of effort), you best get out of that, I think. I feel kind of sick, but I think that is more or less from me allowing my coworker's possible cat emergency serving as distraction. No kitty should suffer for my relief.

My new ex's nickname involved cat, but after the past few weeks of apparent aloofness, I have done my best to remove the implications she may have thought the nickname allowed.

"You have opposable thumbs, so you can't cat. I would say the same thing to the polydactyl pussies. If Eva can open a door without them, you need not be so whiny."

We managed to successfully review the situation and why I am not taking back my decision. Everything seems to be fine, unless my on the drunkenness from two nights removed sent some mixed messages. I still love her, we are just in a state where we have to find more in common with each other that might inspire her to actually NOT CAT. Fortunately for her, she is from the area and has friends of varying degrees to consult. As for me, not so much.

Hence, I tried to see if my estranged best friend had made any return to social media. Drunk texting is rarely good. She has gotten back online...because she is trying to mount a campaign for the district's Congressional seat. This leaves me to believe I will not be getting a text response back to my congratulatory text messages for starting her campaign.

I never respond to political text messages anyhow (BERNIE BROS), so the continuation of the estrangement seems appropriate. Still, there is a feeling of there being a bit of heartlessness to that. That might serve her politically...

At this point, I could go on about our drama and perhaps the 2014-2016 themes of this blog that is suppose to be dedicated to the production of my low-budget, pro-wrestling zom-com, "Main Event of the Dead" (Requests for the script treatment or tips on how to get it out of development hell can be emailed to russthebus07@gmail.com). Wisely, I did manage to watch a heartless 90-minute comedy while all my internal drama is going on.

Catching up on my postings is making me get off my ass. It maybe time to get to work on that pilot instead of dealing with whether or not it is okay too watch pre-#MeToo Jeremy Piven movies.

Bringing a laptop to work or installing Celtx on a company computer would probably be frowned upon. I need more Saturday shifts. Darn supervisors.

The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard

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"Kickboxer: Retaliation" How to Warrant 110 Minutes and I, the Retarded Garland

funnyactionmovies.com - 

‘Kickboxer: Retaliation’ Movie Review | David vs. Goliath

*Blog entry started on March 3, 2020

I have been in a fried state since C2E2. It was quite the learning experience. This was an experience that someone who turned 40 during it may have not been ready for. Maybe movie and pro-wrestling geekdom was too much to handle for someone who has close of 20 years of aspiration to make a mark in one of those fields.

It is good to know that I am only 15 years behind Alex Garland. His first novel was at 26 and I had not even started writing fiction until I was 27. Since "The Beach" was based on his vagabonding adventures and I am an underemployed pro-wrestler (I may not be working, but I am already open.), perhaps my mistake was abandoning "With a Capital C (working title)" to complete the script for my low-budget, pro-wrestling zom-com, "Main Event of the Dead". Feel free to email me a request for the treatment or offer advice on how to get it out of development hell at russthebus07@gmail.com. There is an order to things that I did not follow properly.

If only I knew the proper order when ending a relationship. I guess it was destiny for this blog to be hastily put together. It turns out that the amount of head trips that I had typed up was used up. Should I be worried about discussing things with about my better quarter? (Eva the Cat will always get half, but regardless of relationship status, she deserve a percentage.) There is a good chance this blog will not end up on her Facebook feed. But, I will not see her till probably after "AEW Dynamite" airs, so I might end up posting this before "the talk".

It is a new experience for me. My first relationship was in junior high, so to find out a week after the relationship started that she wanted to pursue my best friend, that was no big deal. The second relationship that started 13 years later, there was a lot of drama when it came to how it ended, but my insensitivity towards her and my ignorance about relationships were the root causes. This time around, compatibility may have just worn itself out, and that is a tough thing to accept. Hence why I want to have talk to her, it is just there are stakes this time. I am just wondering if it my ego or my heart that will be broken up.

But the lack of communication over and early bed time from her being upset that she had to fulfill the C2E2 obligations at least allows me to knock out a movie review for ninetyforchill.com. The only problem was determining movies that I have access to see, have yet to see, she might want to see (like "Paradise Hills" with Awkafina and Milla Jovovich), and what I was in the mood for. Relationship turmoil did not seem right for any Gregg Araki films.

My solution, turn that to a physical expression of turmoil in the form of "Kickboxer: Retaliation" a sequel to the 2016 reboot that I really enjoyed. Now this film was one hour and fifty minutes, so you may say, why does this qualify for a website that puts a cap on length at 97 minutes (You will never know how many movies you own that end at 1:38 until you enter an endeavor like ninetyforchill.com.)?

That is because, if you were able to establish a universe in your first film, you get to expand it in your sequels. "John Wick" was just over an 1:45. "John Wick: Chapter 2" was nearly 2 hours 10 minutes. Did we complain about that? No, because Jonathan earned it.

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