The Guys

I've been finding and compiling pictures of Max for my family, and I've run across some pictures of those who have frequented my blog. I wanna share these with you guys.

La Familia Campbell

I've been finding and compiling pictures of Max for my family, and I've run across some pictures of those who have frequented my blog. I wanna share these with you guys.

Different world over there, huh.

Kath Rapps

I've been finding and compiling pictures of Max for my family, and I've run across some pictures of those who have frequented my blog. I wanna share these with you guys.

This was at my baptism.

Tyler Nichols

I've been finding and compiling pictures of Max for my family, and I've run across some pictures of those who have frequented my blog. I wanna share these with you guys.

To Max

The Best Dog in the World.
I love you, sweetie

1989-2009

Gael Garcia Bernal

When I was sleepwalking last night, I must have accidentally posted some of my early acting stuff. In response, Derek Smith says Andrew looks like this guy

This is the dirtiest picture in the world. It's coming off the blog soon, cuz I don't want to look at it everytime i open it up.

update: it's off

The Elms in the Movies

The other day I mistakenly said that Andrew looks the eldest incarnation of Samir in Slumdog Millionaire. Whereas that statement is baseless and false, I did, however, want to share with you all my cinematic debut from Hot Rod:

Jai Ho!!!

I recently saw the Oscar 'best picture' winner, Slumdog Millionaire. I liked it.

For those who haven't seen it the main plot is about an orphan from the slums of Mumbai who gets a shot at the Indian "Who Wants To Be a Millionaire?" (Even though the top prize of 20,000,000 rupees is the equivalent of around $410,000) He is able to apply his knowledge gained from experiences in his harsh life.

The movie's kinda like this, but in India. Remember those long pauses and cliffhangers? Who Wants to be a Millionaire was the catalyst that led to Tivo.


Remember on Oscar night when Slumdog won? It seemed like a thousand little Indian kids were running around like it was a Billy Madison graduation party. I like that the director Danny Boyle and crew were able to fly as many of the cast out as they could. They definitely took it all in. The reason I bring that up is that the movie really gives you a sense that it cares about the actors and the characters they portray. As a result the young actors, especially the children, shine. And since the actors are all unknowns, it reinforces the movie's theme of fate allowing one to overcome difficult odds.

Also, Andrew looks like Samir, the older brother.

Did I say Andrew? He looks more like a goomba. Does that mean Drew looks like a goomba?

The cinematography was great. Most of the movie took place in the sprawling slums of Mumbai. It shows third world poverty and overpopulation at its worst. Those visuals are so striking, all those people gotta be cg, right? It's unbelievable that people live in those conditions. Then they were able to create great chase sequences through this bustle. The setting also changes as time passes, although they do not do this as well as the astonishing City of God.

Speaking of which, Slumdog shares a lot thematically with City of God. Slumdog is set in the slums of Mumbai, City is set in the favelas of Rio. Both focus on the effects of poverty, violence, gangs, overpopulation, the values and flaws, the accomplishments and losses, and the humanity of those who live there. In slumdog, the main character Jamal maintains his purity and innocence. Fate then allows him to instantaneously leave his difficult circumstances behind, and get the girl. (Who grows up to be gorgeous. I wonder if he would still fall head over heels if she turned out to look like Juliet Lewis.) But how many people can fate allow to be on a game show?

She gets easily mistaken for Patrick Swayze

In City of God, all the characters struggled with their circumstances. There was no convenient escape. The characters in that movie had to choose to confront their society, or else be devoured by it. Rocket, the protag in City of God, was the closest to leaving the favela when he got a job as a photographer at a newspaper. But his assignment was to return to the favela to document what was taking place. In a memorable scene, he was stranded as a bystander in the middle of a gunfight.

City of God is a better movie, but Slumdog got the Oscar. It was the one I would have voted for out of those selected. It is more accessible than City of God, I guess. There were some dark and tense moments, but everything falls the way that we would want them to. I think it would be interesting to know what Jamal would do with his money, but unfortunately, the movie doesn't go there. If anything, he should spring for some dance lessons.

Which leads me to my turd in the punchbowl moment. Was the dance at the end of the movie necessary? It was out of place. It didn't fit the tone of the movie at all. I'm sure it was a nod to bollywood style movies, and maybe it was fun for those involved. But its still out of place. It would be akin to Benicio del Toro doing a Mexican hat dance at the end of Traffic. I knew some girls who would love to throw Bollywood parties, because they couldn't get enough of the kitsch and melodrama. I always thought that stuff was annoying.

This is Bollywood's Citizen Cane. I like it better than the American Superman and Spider Man movies,though.

So there we go. I was going to give it an A-, but I have to note that it had one of the worst soundtracks. I've ever heard.

Shudder. It's MIA. She has all the appeal of a kick to the min. Why is she still around?

That knocks it down to a B. But still recommended. Jai ho!!

Bill Hader does Keith Morrison

This kills me.

"You mean kills you with kindess? Hmmm."

Not Everything Goes To Plan

Kevin Garnett: "I got class coming out my ace."

And here I thought that Garnett was just a petty thug. He beats his chest after a win over the Raptors, blocks any incoming shot after the whistle, and throws his spindly elbows all game. Even the rookie DJ Augustin has had enough of their Bubish stuff. "They come in and intimidate you and try to punk you,” Augustin said. "But if you don't back down from them, they kind of fold.”

But maybe we got them him wrong. Maybe his is really a team of extraordinary gentlemen. Let him put it this way:


“You’re not going to get any of that on this team,” Garnett said. “It’s a team of gentlemen, a team of class and a team of individuals that respect each other. You’re not going to get any of that. . . . We win as a (expletive) team; we lose as a (expletive) team.”

Well put sir, well put. We all tip our top hats to you.

I've been tagged

8 favorite tv shows
1. The Simpsons (when it was good)
2. Pardon the Interruption
3. The Soup
4. Ren and Stimpy/Salute Your Shorts
5. Jeopardy
6 It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
7.Lakers/Dodgers/BYU/USC/Any NFL game
8.Tie-Seinfeld/Curb you Enthusiasm/Bear Grylls/24(when it was good)

The gross close ups were the best

8 favorite restaurants
1.La Calonia
2.In For Out
3.Red Robin
4.Beto's
5.Claim Jumper
6.Lam's Chinese
7.Shrump at Red Lob
8.Cheap Chinese(Bakersfield)

This only adds to the charm. Best Mexican Food in Utah. Plus, the fish you catch in the stream by the car dealership off of university parkway? Beto's will buy that ish.

8 things that happened yesterday

1.Taught math

2.Applied for an actuarial position in Utah

3.Got a TB test

4.Got fingerprinted

5.Fell asleep in Mux's bed

6.Held an Elder's Quorum meeting. Gotta plan the Christmas Party (how did we get it?)

7.Went to the institute

8.Played volleyball with the knuckleheads

A dog and his b#%&*. Mux looks exactly like Sarah Silverman's dog, 'duck.'

8 Things I look forward too

1.Thanksgiving

2.Next Lakers game (gotta watch it with Pepa)

3.The Dodgers signing Manny Ramirez

4.Next Challa Elms Memorial Classic football game. I'm gonna kill some children.

5.To watch Burn After Reading in the dollar theater

6.Kinda looking forward to watch new Bond movie. I liked Casino Royale.

7.My Birthday

8.Results for Financial Mathematics Actuarial Exam. (More like nervously waiting for 8 weeks.)

"You adopted another one?"

8 things I love about Fall/Winter

1.I aint in Utah for the winter/The wonderful temperature in California

2.Colors changing

3.Football

4.Birthday/Christmas season

5.Blankey weather

6.Mux stops the itching

7.Growing out the hair

8.Cookies

8 things you might not know about me

1.I play the piano/tuba/trombone/euphonium/little bit o'guitar.

2.I like to sing

3.I lived in Central America/speak Spanish.

4.I love to play basketball/swim

5.I think politics is kind of stupid.

6.I hate M.I.A.

7.I can swallow my tongue

8.I hate meatloaf. (The food, not the singer)

No one in the corner gots swagger like this? Thank goodness that's the case.

People I tag

1.Drewsoph

2.The Nichols

3.The Morenos

4.Abby

5.La Familia Campbell

6.The Bubbinator

Things to experience in Germany: #1 Oktoberfest

What better way to celebrate German reunification than to get completely tanked, then get all grab-butt with each other? Because we all know that Germans get all huggy and gropey when drunk. This is Oktoberfest, where the beer flows like wine, and the grandmas all make it a point to drink you into the ground, then stand over your body to call you a sissy boy.

"You twist the boot to avoid the air bubble... sissy."

Although this is the definitive German celebration, there is the fact that Andrew and fam don't drink, thereby missing what makes Oktoberfest, Oktoberfest. But all is not lost. You can take advantage of the season.

You can eat hearty German food of schweinsbraten, haxn, wurstel, and weisswurst. I don't know exactly what these are, but at least I know that they come from part of a pig. The word o' wisdom don't say you can't eat pork! Hooray.

Moreover, as scary as this might seem, you will be the most sober person in the country. You will have the clearest mind, kinda like Luke Wilson when he traveled into the future.

Or if you want, you can be totally uninhibited. Want to punch somebody? Sock him in the face! You don't want to wear clothes? Streak to your hearts content! How is all this possible? From what I hear, during Oktoberfest, public intoxication actually earns its citizens a small monetary reward. All it takes is to act the part.

If you need help, just remember, WWDSD, What would Donald Sutherland do?

Gut (G)Luck, Andrew. Germany Won't Know Hit 'Em.

Well, my brother Andrew's in Germany fulfilling his three year obligation to Army for paying his debt to the racket that USC calls its dental school. He's there already, with Shawna and the baby Ellie joining him next week sometime. He's a doctor, an officer, but certainly not a gentleman. No wonder Goebbels talked crap about his kind back in the day.

How is this not considered the master race?

I'm proud of him, though. He's half a world away, opening up his most ironic new chapter in his life's book. For a kid who never put up with authority figures (During Halloween, he once called out his high school campus security for impersonating an officer), he ends up in Army. Hooahh. At least he's the authority. All the grunts will have to salute him. Maybe he'll take it too far, abusing his power by punishing the cadets in new and interesting ways.

If Major Payne was German, the Nazi's probably would've won those freaking wars.

Y'all be sure to check out the link to his blog on my page if you want updates straight from the horses laptop.

As for Andrew, keep it up. I'm sure Germany will treat you well. It is the foremost authority on a plethora of subjects, which I will be touching on in 5 updates over the next 5 days (yes, I know. Updating my blog for the next five days will double the content that I've put on over the past 5 months.) So you got that to look forward to, which is nice.

History Test

I have enjoyed a number of subjects as a student, and history I guess is one of them. Nothing beats watching historical fiction movies in Dale Barker's class. I crack up when I remember Steve McQueen calling the Chinese slopeheads in The Sand Pebbles.

But I have taken only 4 history classes thoughout all of high school and college. History would definitely be my weakest link if I were to go on Jeopardy. That and opera. Because honestly, who gives a crap about that?

Cracked.com had a list of 25 significant historical events as depicted by 5 year-olds' drawings. Can you tell what each event is? Some drawings are easy, some are cryptic, and some are funny. So give it a shot. Score 1 point for each event you indentify. I'll put my answers in the comments section, so you can compare. Tell me what you got. You can click on the pictures to biggasize it. Good luck.

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