5:42 PM
Like having one hole in the ozone wasn't enough, now we have two!
I'm not too worried though. There's a growing number of scientists who say that the level of ozone in the atmosphere has zero impact on global warming, and they've got some pretty convincing evidence! (I'd provide a link here if I had one, but I don't at the moment!)
2:14 PM
Whelp, it's official. Uniden will soon start selling the very first *trunking* digital scanners in the industry.
A few years back the LAPD switched over to an all-digital communications system. This meant that anyone with a conventional police scanner could no longer listen in to their transmissions. Not anymore! Uniden's bringin' it to ya!
10:43 AM
Tammy and I drove around Anaheim Hills this weekend with a Realtor. We didn't see much that jumped out at us, but it was only our first day of looking. We may even be able to afford a full-blown three-bedroom house out there, which means we can say goodbye to our plan of moving to a cramped condo or townhouse! We've got a great realtor out there, so she'll be keeping us updated as things become available.
In other news, I have to take the biggest dump in the world right now, but the city's working on the plumbing so the water's out till at least 2pm today. I need a cork!
8:28 PM
Did you know that Elvis Costello wrote a song for Chet Baker? And that Chet liked it so much he added it to his repertoire? It's true! The song is "Almost Blue."
4:07 PM
Saturday Tammy and I were at Broken Horn's once-a-year sale. I stood less than three feet away from a baseball-capped William Shatner as he shopped for horse supplies. Talk about a crazy day!
Sunday we went looking at some great townhomes in Anaheim Hills, nearly all of which happen to be in our price range. It'll be a painful commute, but it's a fantastic area with good-sized properties that we can afford. The plan is to buy something within the next six months.
5:04 PM
It looks like the 'Save Farscape' campaign is having some effect. Not the effect we want, but some effect nonetheless.
Sci-Fi has just entered into negotiations for a two-hour season finale, and the deconstruction crews have been ordered to stop for the time being. According to series producer David Kemper, this is a direct result of the thousands of faxes, emails, and snailmail they've been receiving.
As part of a concentrated effort to show solidarity with our brother and sister scapers on the picket line tomorrow I've been trying to drum up participation in an email barrage to Tom Vitale pressing the send button at 12:00 noon eastern time. I have been requesting that as many scapers as humanly possible email tv0ntv@scifi.com with the subject PLEASE SAVE FARSCAPE and have requested that they send a short polite note requesting Farscape be renewed for a 5th season.
3:17 PM
I don't have a whole lot of hope for Disneyland's Special Events department when they consider charging as much as $395 to a sneak-preview of a kids play area in a deserted theme park.
8:14 PM
If you use ICQ, Yahoo Chat, MSN, or AIM and are sick and tired of looking at ads and a bloated interface, then you definitely need to check out Trillian.
Trillian 0.74 was released today. This one program can replace all of your separate chat applications. Best of all, it's free!
Also released today is Trillian Pro 1.0, a $25 version with some extra bells and whistles.
9:32 PM
I've always felt that John Edward was a dirty scam artist who preys on the weak and the elderly.
The latest rumor is that his rising salary was partially to blame for Farscape's demise. If that's true, then I hate him ten times as much as I did yesterday.
7:51 PM
Henson Productions has put up a Farscape cancellation hotline recording at 323-802-1609. You can also leave messages, but you should really be directing your efforts at the SciFi channel.
The straight poop is this-
Sci-Fi had contracted for a 4th and 5th season of Farscape, but the contract contained a clause that allowed them back out after the fourth season if they so chose. As was defined in the contract, the 4th and 5th seasons would have cost the exact same amount of money to produce. After the fourth season ended, SciFi changed their mind about the amount of money that they wanted to commit to a fifth season. They went to Jim Henson's parent company, EMTV, and requested a reduced price for the 5th season. EM.TV, who has had its own share of very public money problems over the past five years, said "Yeah, right," so SciFi exercised their right to terminate the contract.
12:55 AM
So I'm up late tonight working, and who decides to drop by #farscape but D'Argo himself.
Here's a transcript, with all of the psycho fan commentary deleted. It's easy to figure out what was said.
<Ploppy> Hi everyone - Anthony here - I've just come from my last scene as D'Argo - I wanted to start and end my day with the fans so I thought I'd drop in and say hi
<Ploppy> I'm very emotional. It was a strange feeling to be in the make-up today - quite a profound mood
<Ploppy> Well it's 5:22 pm here in Sydney town
<Ploppy> Jsut be senstive to the anniversary the world is sharing this week before you start sending heaps of boxes anyplace
<Ploppy> I got some great shots today. Very sad but great shots. The disasembling has commenced in earnest now
<Ploppy> We will never forget the community that has built up around this show - I hope to meet you all at conventions so we can have a laugh
<Ploppy> What you are all doing is fabulous - you were all the main point of discussion at lunch today between myself Andrew Prowse and various producers - we think you're all great
<Ploppy> I can assure you this is no PR prank - I have 3 auditions tommorrow (don't ask ;-) )
<Ploppy> No soap for me folks
<Ploppy> Don't have the clout in the industry to ask for out clauses (they'd laugh at me) so I guess...no
<Ploppy> Mat Roush (Is that his name?) at TV guide always gave us great reviews. Has his inbox been bommbarded?
<Ploppy> Don't start bagging other shows on their bb's. We want to enlist support - not antagonise people - kill them with kindness people
<Ploppy> I would love to keep the Qualta rifle and sword - they are very very cool props. Often sci-fi props look a bit ho-hum in real life but let me assure you the qualta rifle is awsome - even in person
<Ploppy> Nothing is for naught!!!!!!! We love Farscape. We're fighting - you're fighting. The reality is though we aren't super rich people (why do you think they cast and shoot in Oz) I'm not giving up. I'm looking for other work simply because I have to pay my mortgage on my house
<Ploppy> I had enormous changes in mind for D'Argo season 5. In fact if all wnet well I had a meeting tomorrow to discuss it - It would answer - Why Lo La? What's happening with the Luxan race? and What role does D'Argo have in the unwritten history of his planet
<Ploppy> Dave Elsey and I discussed an Episode in 5 with HEAPS of Luxans - his ideas for the elders and rulers of my home land are fantastic
<Ploppy> No the cast does not make money out of the DVD sales - but buy them anyway
<Ploppy> Perhaps fate marked him as a general for a reason and a greater purpose
<Ploppy> No residual payements for us - they're bought up front in perpetuity - now you're starting to understand why they shoot in Australia a little better ;-)
<Ploppy> No Australian decision at any level, government or production, had an influence on this decision - It was all made above us
<Ploppy> Well folks I'm off to enjoy the sunset on my balcony and have a few quiet moments to myslef
<Ploppy> You folks rock!! Thank you, You're efforts are NEVER in vain because your efforts liveon in the hearts of us making the show - and that means something
7:08 PM
Farscape series producer David Kemper has asked fans to write to SciFi to get the show renewed.
However, Anthony Simcoe (D'Argo,) has been popping in and out of the #farscape chat room over the weekend and he claims that Henson's parent company, EMTV, has pulled the plug on financing for the show. He claims that SciFi wants it, but EM doesn't want to foot the bill for production, and SciFi can't afford to keep the show afloat on its own.
There's a lot of different stories floating around about what the real reason was, but we probably won't know who's right 'till next week. In the meantime, Pilot has already been disassembled and boxed up. :(
There are countless letter-writing campaigns, online petitions, and other steps being taken to reverse SciFi's decision at this very moment. In fact, all of the major excecutives' voice mailboxes at SciFi are full, SciFi's fax machine is out of paper, and priority mail envelopers are on the way to their New York Headquarters right now.
For more 'try in vain to change the mind of a big corporation' action, visit #farscape on irc.scifi.com.
3:29 PM
My new name for soda is "Liquid Death." I'm trying to stop drinking soda, but it's an uphill battle. Fruit juice is loaded with sugar. The only healthy alternative here at work is water, and it's so bland I might as well be drinking air.
12:37 PM
Well Tammy and I had a talk yesterday and it looks like living in Redondo Beach is totally out of the question. We just can't afford it.
Small condos and crappy old houses in not-so-great parts of town are $450k. The ones that we would even consider moving to are in upwards of $600k.
Anaheim Hills, however, has some good-sized three-bedroom townhomes for like $325k. It'd add about 20 minutes to my commute, and take 30 away from Tammy's.
The only nice quiet places to live in LA are either on the far west side (super expensive) or on the far east side (super cheap, but far from everything). Oh sure, there's a few exceptions like Pasadena up in the North, but everything in thie middle is just crime-filled ghetto.
I fought long and hard for Redondo, but neither Tammy nor I earn a large enough salary to make that happen. Maybe someday.
9:44 PM
A limited-edition 5 disc Cowboy Bebop soundtrack just got posted to abs.anime. It contains rare and previously-unreleased tracks, and even some newly remixed tracks! Download it today if you're a fan of good music, or buy it if you're some kind of millionaire.
10:41 AM
The Huntington Park police department is on 155.790. My sub-micro handheld scanner can pick them up at my house in Palos Verdes - 38 miles away!
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