R.I.P. Reggie

The world lost an acting legend earlier today when we learned that Paul Newman had passed away after losing a long battle with cancer at the age of 83.

His career was second to none. Newman was nominated 10 times for an Academy Award and finally took one home for best-actor for The Color of Money in 1986 and he also received two honorary Oscars.

As a leading man he starred in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and his love of racing was well known as a part owner of his own race team. He was also an avid driver himself.

I think he enjoyed playing the anti-hero — most notably, in Cool Hand Luke (1967), where he starred as a man who refuses to conform to life in a rural prison, in Butch Cassidy (1969), in which he played an outlaw, and in The Sting (1973), playing a con man.

The very first movie I can recall seeing him in was the 1974 disaster film, The Towering Inferno.

The list of his movies is amazing and you can view them by visiting his page on the Internet Movie Database.

From his brand of Newman's Own line of salad dressings, pasta sauces and salsa created in 1982 to his contributions to the fight against cancer and helping people to fight drug addiction he did it all.

Of course the role I will always remember him for was as Player-Coach Reggie Dunlop in what I consider to be not only the best hockey movie but the best sports movie of all time...Slap Shot (1977). It is a classic.

Here now for you to enjoy is a clip from that movie where Coach Dunlop finally gives the Hanson Brothers their shot to play for the Charlestown Chiefs. This clip is rated PG.

Embarrassed By CFL

I love football and in particular I loved playing football in high school.

I would have loved to continue playing after Grade 13 but I went to a College that didn't have the game. Sadly in Canada it's only the Universities that have football programs.

I will admit I enjoyed playing the Canadian game much more than I do watching it on T.V. It just isn't as much fun when you aren't banging bodies yourself.

But since my "glory years" are behind me, all I have is my memories and the weekly games on television to keep me entertained.

I honestly believe the Canadian game is better than the NFL but our friends south of the border know how to hype it up. Three downs is always tougher than four. I don't know how they can't get a first down every time they're on offense. But this isn't about debating which game is better or worse.

The one thing that has always bothered me regardless of which league I'm watching is the idiots who score a touchdown and have to do some crazy dance or one act play to celebrate. I can remember when you used to get a penalty just for spiking the football. Now it has just gone overboard with players jumping into the stands, wiping and burping the ball like a baby, doing a dance or pretending to pose for the imaginary camera your teammate is holding. It's a joke.

Maybe I'm bitter because I never scored a TD. I just sacrificed my body to make sure some other candy ass running back or receiver could get the glory.

This brings me to the latest incident that rekindled my disdain for these showboating boneheads. I was embarrassed when I saw this during a recent Canadian Football League game. The only thing that helped me to stomach some of it was that most of these guys (4 out of 5 I think) are American. It's time to play Duck, Duck, Goose.

It's Official: I'm An Uncle

I am pleased to report that I am officially an Uncle as of 2:38pm this afternoon.

Congratulations to my brother Scott and Sister-in-law Erin on the birth of their first child.

Noah Wilmot arrived in Sarasota, Florida and weighes 8 pounds 2 ounces.

Both mother and son are doing fine. The new Dad sounded a bit frazzled over the phone though.

Grandpa Wilmot and Grandma Joan were thrilled with the news of the arrival of their first Grandchild.

SNL Season Opening Sketch

I have been a fan of Saturday Night Live for a long time. I suppose it goes all the way back to the Not Ready For Prime Time Players, although I was just a young lad then.

Any way, another season of the late night comedy sketch show kicked off on Saturday night with Michael Phelps as the guest host. Although the show on the whole wasn't as humourous as it could have been, the opening sketch was pretty funny.

Here's that sketch.

Clip of the Week - September 15/08

As I'm typing this, the remnants of Hurricane Ike, now Tropical Depression Ike, is making its way across my area. It's just the edge of the remaining storm here and the worst weather is to the north of me.

The storm produced strong winds, high storm surge and plenty of flooding and damage along its path. Many lives were lost as a result of it as well.

Some strong winds and heavy rain are most likely what we'll see here in Ontario.

The storm wasn't without its humourous moments. Here are two videos for you to view.

The first shows one idiot dealing with the storm in his own funny, albeit stupid manner. The second video gives a good indication of just how strong the winds were associated with this system.

Clip of the Week - September 8/08

This Thursday marks the 7th Anniversary of one of the most horrific and unbelievable days of my generation.

Like the generations before me, I've seen wars and acts of hatred toward our fellow man but I think the attack of September 11, 2001 was a clear reminder of how much hatred really exists in this world.

I'm sure many people would like to forget that day and move on, hoping that something like that will never happen again or perhaps pretend that it never happened in the first place. I think that is the worst thing we can do.

Although evil acts like this may be beyond our control, we need to always be aware that someone or some group is always out there thinking of ways to attack freedom and take innocent lives.

I will always remember that day, what I was thinking and how I felt as those cowards took the lives of thousands of innocent people who's only mistake was to begin their day like everyone else in a free society.

Below you will find a few clips of a documentary of the day which interviews the Mayor of New York and used amateur video that every day citizens took. I realize you may not want to watch all of it, or any for that matter but I think it's important not to forget what took place. If you are easily upset then I want to make it clear that some images will be difficult for you to view. There is also strong language that may be found offensive but certainly captures the emotions of this emotional day.


Part One


Part Two


Part 3


Part 4

Canadian Hero: Terry Fox

The 27th annual Terry Fox Run takes place in Canada on Sunday September 14th.

Terry Fox became a National hero in 1980 when he dipped his artificial leg into the Atlantic Ocean to begin his Marathon of Hope. I was 12 years old when his dream of running across Canada and raising $1 for every Canadian began. Terry was running to raise money to fight cancer and to help with research to one day find a cure.

Although Terry died before finishing his cross-country journey, his message was received loud and clear. At first Canadians responded by raising $3.5 million during the first run in 1981. Since then, the dream grew and the run is held all over the world and over $400 million has been raised for cancer research.

Terry may be gone but he touched us all and he left his mark on. In a world that isn't always perfect, Terry's dream and the efforts that followed remind us that there is a lot of good left in us all.

I don't know if anything is taught about Terry in Canadian schools today but it should be. Here is a brief and inspirational video about Terry's story.

Intense Summer Storms

Summer Storm 1
Originally uploaded by *Bundy*

I feel sorry for those people dealing with hurricane season down south but they aren't the only one's dealing with some crazy weather this summer.

The summer of 2008 in my neck of the woods will go down as being one of the wettest summers ever.

Add to that the fact that we've had more intense thunderstorms than I can ever recall, it has been one wild summer season.

On average I'd say we might see two or three strong storms each summer with intense lightning. This year it seems almost every time we've had a storm roll though, which has been very frequent, it has brought intense lightning and heavy rain.

The storms we've had here in Ontario remind me of the type that blow in off the Gulf of Mexico when I'm visiting my brother and sister-in-law in Florida. The only difference is the storms down there don't last long. The thunderstorms here have lasted anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours.

One night I was at work and I sat and watched intense lightning striking the ground in all directions. Needless to say it was a tad unsettling.

The good news though is that the summer is almost over and the storms should be gone soon. Actually, I'd rather keep summer around and let the storms go on their own.

The downside to all of the rain we've had is I've never had to cut the lawn so much in my life and if the precipitation continues once the cold weather arrives....it could make for a very snowy winter.

Does anyone have a snow blower I could borrow?