Latest Listening (and Viewing) Pleasure - Nightwish's Imaginaerum Movie

My latest listening/viewing pleasure is the new movie," Imaginaerum,"  by Nightwish.  My favor for Nightwish has been well documented by LLP posts here and here.  In the former I claim I shall buy the box set when the movie comes out, and I stick by that if it ever becomes available in the US.  I share the movie here because, well, it is available on Youtube now, and just because I can.  But also because no one who sees it here on my lil' ole site knows what this is anyway, and maybe they'll like it and become a money spending fan like I and enjoy and support the band.

Really, Nightwish is an incredible experience and this movie shows just what an inspired effort between an excellent composer and an imaginative director can produce.  The music is almost secondary in this movie, though it only happened because of the music, and it outlines the themes with the band only playing in the background.  This story is of a dying composer caught within his own memories and his daughter caught resenting, then understanding her dying dad as he relives his memories and ultimate legacy.  This is very much oversimplified, but I wouldn't post this unless I felt that strongly about this band and this project.  Remember, normally I'm not a movie guy at all, but I say watch this now!  Fullscreen!

Nightwish - Imaginaerum - The Movie

Update 12/9/13:  Link is dead and has been for quite some time.  I have not been able to find the full movie online and it is not offered for sale yet.  Read wiki here for a great description.  Spoiler Alert!

Update 7/18/15: The movie is available worldwide now.  I have a dvd from Germany that I got last year, and a month or two ago I got the US dvd+blueray when it was released.

Update 5/21/16

Raccoon Hole Revisited

A while ago I wrote about the saga of Mama Raccoon and her 5 babies that made a home in my neighbor Dave's attic, you can read that story here.  Well, though the critters have been removed, the critter guy has been AWOL without doing the repair part of his service for a few weeks now.  I had offered to neighbor Dave that I could fix it and that I had the tools and wood to do it, and when it became apparent the critter guy was less than reliable he took me up on my offer.  So yesterday I had a half day off and went about fixing it for him.

I took only one picture of the mama as she was going back in, and none on the ensuing saga with the babies, but I can share these before and after pictures of the repair.  The back of the house is an old addition which left an odd corner of the roof where the raccoon was able to make a hole through some old wood and get into the addition's attic.  To fix this I just blocked off the whole corner with some of my spare treated lumber and sealed it with roof sealer.  After a few days of drying, Dave will paint it and make it less noticeable.

Dave is an older gentleman that lost his wife about 10 years ago.  He is seventy something and hard of hearing but very nice and good neighbor to have and I was happy to be able to help him out.  He was outside with me the whole time so I showed him exactly what I was thinking and made sure he was okay with it.  The wood and hardware was all stuff that I had, I only had to buy the roof sealer but I was not going to charge him for anything.  I was all finished in a couple hours and then we went out for a late lunch together and he insisted on paying - I expected he would and I let him.

I know he really appreciated the help, but hey - that's what neighbors are for, right?  Besides, any excuse for me to make big pieces of wood into little pieces of wood and assemble them into something useful is always a good thing.  PTFO

Spring Party 2013

In what has become an annual event, at least when I'm in good health, we had another spring party for our friends, neighbors and some co-workers on Saturday night.  While the party started at 4 in the afternoon, this pic is much later when we were around the fire, dark and far away to protect the innocent!

The day turned out very nice, after several rainy days during the week and before it cooled off on Sunday.  We didn't have quite as many people as we expected, some friends and neighbors that we thought would be here didn't show up, but we did have about 35 people overall and I think they all had a good time.  Kate again made some wonderful sides and I grilled up 5 dozen brats so there was plenty of food and drink for all.  Most had left by 11:00 but a few hung around into the wee hours.  It's a lot of work to put on this party but we had a lot of fun!  Thanks to all who were there!

Nothing To Say?

I have been feeling that a post is due, yet I don't know what to say, really.  Maybe it's time to just start thinking and typing the see what spills out all over the page.


The weather, despite a cool and damp holiday weekend, seems to be catching up to 'normal'.  The planet's movements will not be denied, Summer will happen eventually.  Rain is forecast off and on for the next several days, ending sometime this weekend.  Hopefully it will be done by Saturday afternoon, when we will be hosting an outdoor gathering for all of our friends and neighbors.  We did this a few times with mixed success due to weather, then missed a couple years due to my various injuries and surgeries, etc.  Now, with good weather, I am hoping for a large turnout and a fun evening for all.

The kitties and I were alone last week.  My wife was sent by her work to Michigan for a week long seminar.  She left Monday morning and arrived home very late Thursday evening, foregoing an extra night, along with her work companion, to get home sooner.  The cats and I managed to survive the ordeal.  We didn't starve to death yet or even mess up the house too much by the time she got back, but we all missed her and loved having her back early.

Kate added 4 strawberry plants to the 4 or so we had left after the squirrels marauded the early planted plants.  I took a lot of pictures of the yard and garden that day, but none after the planting.  I have to remember to note it over at the garden blog.  I do try to make that place look nice and all, but really it is kind of our 'garden diary'.  Several times we have referred back to earlier posts to check how things were last year or before.  Mostly interesting to only us.

I have been complimented on our lawn a few times by friends, and I am thankful.  Now that I own a house the outdoors and lawn are a focus of mine.  I do want a nice lawn, but I do really, really hate dandelions (and other weeds, but I really hate dandelions) and I am learning how to seed and fertilize as we go.  We inherited a pretty good lawn when we got the house, thankfully, and I think I'm getting better at maintaining and improving upon that.  I'd like to say that I never thought I'd be that way, but, yeah, I am and always have been kind of that way.


That's all I can think of that I can talk about right now.  If you're still reading, thanks for showing interest.  Until next time - PTFO

Memorial Day 2013

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