Tony Island Blog - Sane Thoughts for an Insane World

Welcome to my blog! In less than a month, I will hit my mid-40s - the proverbial "mid life crisis". I'm already cranky and look back more than I look ahead. I do find society to be rather crass - I work among the public every day and see just how self-centered we as a society have become. It's all about "me" and what can you do for "me"? There's no chivalry in every day interactions. Kids are even worse - there's just no standard being set for them by their parents. I find I am losing touch with the latest in technology - even though at one time I was a programmer and had my eyes and ears open to what was happening in the industry. I had a previous blog entry about Facebook/My Space, but I can easily write about iPods and iPhones (though I am impressed by the iPhone commercials highlighting some of the apps available) being beyond me and my needs. I barely had time to embrace Web 1.0 before they started foisting Web 2.0 on me. All my favori...

Welcome to my blog! On July 20, 2009, we'll be celebrating the 40th Anniversary of the first Moon landing. I thought it would be nice, every week, to highlight books, DVDs, etc. that capture those magical days of the Apollo moon missions. This week's entry is the highly recommended Tom Hanks' HBO production From the Earth to the Moon . This is a 12 hour miniseries covering the Apollo missions. I saw it when it was first released on DVD. I remember it being very well done (it was nominated for 17 Emmys, winning 3, including Best Mini-Series). I found it very emotional - for some reason, I'd get choked up watching it. I should watch it again soon... One thing to be aware of: HBO released this twice - once in 1998 as a four disc collector's edition and again in 2005 as a 5 disc Signature Edition. While the Signature edition's fifth disc does have some impressive featurettes (I have the original release so have not seen this disc), HBO remastered the episodes themse...

Welcome to my blog! Well, it's a long weekend here in the United States - the unofficial beginning of the summer season (which will end unofficially Labor Day weekend in September). Monday is Memorial Day - a national holiday we set aside to remember the dead, especially those who died in the armed forces serving our country, from major conflicts like World War II to anti-terrorist strikes in Afghanistan and peacekeeping in Iran. There is a White House Commission on Remembrance which is tasked as follows: "The White House Commission on the National Moment of Remembrance was established by Congress as an independent government agency. The Commission encourages Americans to honor the sacrifices of America’s fallen and the families they left behind. It promotes acts of remembrance throughout the year and asks Americans to pay our debt of gratitude in memory of our fallen by giving something back to the Nation.The Commission is also tasked to unite the country in the National Mom...

Welcome to my blog! I'm surprised at myself for not ranting about this much earlier! Am I the only one that thought the Star Wars "prequel" Trilogy was a bunch of bullshit? And that Lucas' continuing attempts at modifying the original Trilogy each time they are released is bullshit? I can't wait to read about his changes for the inevitable Blu Ray release - and when I say 'read about' I mean it as I won't be buying the films on Blu Ray. He butchers the original Trilogy with new SFX and changes sequences for whatever warped reason he has THEN has the gall to release the original films (untouched AND un-remastered for DVD) on yet another DVD release. All of this after saying he wouldn't even release the Star Wars series on DVD in the first place! My, what buckets of money does to change one's mind! I waited 28 years to see the final installment of Star Wars and what do I get? Crap. Layers and layers of it. It wasn't as bad as the first two pr...

Welcome to my blog! This post appeared in our sister blog Just Stamps . I thought it was a neat stamp for those of us who grew up with the original Star Wars saga. It's real postage that you can order using the links below. Enjoy! Here's the classic Star Wars logo that started it all over 30 years ago! Use this stamp to let everyone know you're a fan! Episode IV: A New Hope by starwars For more Star Wars stamps and merchandise, shop Star Wars's Gallery . Thanks for reading my blog and Follow this blog!

Welcome to my blog! I thought I'd share this piece of fiction I wrote for a high school English class. Edenville was a typical American town. As a matter of fact, towns like it were spread all across the globe... The meat clever floated effortlessly through the air to its destination. "No! Please, please, stop it!!" pleaded the officer. He moved backwards towards the wall, frantically waving his hands in front of him. "Nooooo......!!!!" The cleaver plunged into his chest. The lifeless mass slumped to the floor as blood spurted wildly, staining the surrounding furniture. Quint moved toward the body, laughing almost uncontrollably. He dipped his finger into the fresh blood and scrawled the words "devil’s domain" on the wall. He licked his finger clean and left. "The third mysterious murder of a police officer within the past two days continues to puzzle police. A police spokesman says detectives are working on the assumption that these recent murder...

Welcome to my blog! Stressed out? Worrying about your next date or the big presentation to your boss? Feeling low? Instead of running to the closest book-store to find a trendy self-help book, get MindHabits . Find relief at the click of a mouse. A video game that is actually good for you? Now, that's a concept! Based on social intelligence research conducted at McGill University, these stress busting, confidence boosting games use simple, fun-to-play exercises that help players develop and maintain a more positive state of mind. I downloaded the demo - it's pretty interesting. They explain each game's scientific basis. You can keep track of your progress with the Progress Tracker. Click on the banner below to check it out! Thanks for reading my blog and Follow this blog!

Welcome to my blog! As a child of the '60s/'70s/'80s, I was first exposed to Batman via the 1966 TV series starring Adam West and Burt Ward. I thought it was the greatest - a comic book come to life. Full of bright colors and colorful Bat-villains, the series never failed to entertain me - over and over again. I loved the addition of Batgirl in the third season and wished it had continued for a few more seasons. Watching it as an adult, the writing is clever and sharp. It's great! Even though I've seen the Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher films and Chris Nolan's The Dark Knight (I haven't seen Batman Begins yet), the true "accessible" Batman will always be Adam West. I know the diehards detest the 1966 TV series, but it's their loss as the saying goes. So my question today is: Who's Your Batman? Which Batman do you connect with most? 1960s TV? 1980s movie series or 2000s movie series ... and why? Let us know by leaving your comments below! Thanks...

Welcome to my blog! As you know from a previous entry, I have a collection of DVDs. Many of them are TV series along with the James Bond movie series. I usually enjoy doing the Bond movies in chronological order. I tend to do the same with TV series though there are some TV series (Space:1999) that I like to watch favorite episodes in any order. For movies (Bond in this case), I'll watch one a day -- perhaps 2-3 per week till I finish off the series. For TV, I tend to watch several episodes in a day and sometimes get through a series within a week or so. So what's your DVD Marathon Viewing style? Do you watch a group of TV episodes at once or spread them out? Spread out a movie series (any series) over a few weeks or gulp them down in an afternoon? Let us know by leaving some comments below! Thanks for reading my blog and Follow this blog!

Welcome to my blog! Well, it's only May, but CBS Sports has decided to publish an NFL " Power Rankings " for the upcoming 2009 season. And, with the predicted return of Tom Brady, the Patriots snag the number 1 spot along with a Super Bowl favorite endorsement. Of course, we all know how these things can turn out. But, it's fun to think about in May. Thanks for reading my blog and Follow this Blog!

Welcome to my blog! Just a warm wish to mothers every where: Happy Mother's Day! Thanks for reading my blog and Follow this blog!

Welcome to my blog! From Airlines to Newspapers and everything in between, once great industries and companies are collapsing in America. If you look at one of the common threads you'll usually see that each of these industries is heavily unionized. Is it a coincidence or a cause? Right now, as I sit here writing this entry, General Motors and Chrysler may be near bankruptcy and an iconic newspaper, The Boston Globe, may be shuttered for good. Each of these companies is highly unionized, driving up costs unnecessarily. While the auto unions seem to be understanding the need to make concessions, it seems the newspaper union is "out to lunch". They'd rather their members be out on the street than work for less pay or benefits. Actually, it's only one of the newspaper unions that seems to be stalling on certain benefits (lifetime job guarantee). But either way, it's possible The Globe could go the way of the Model T. For sure, it's not only the Unions that ar...

Welcome to my blog! Well, this will probably wrap up my Summer Movies postings for a while (at least until I get to see the movies listed!). For July 1, it's Public Enemies with Johnny Depp: For July 15, it's Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince : I'm not a huge Harry Potter fan, but these types of special effects movies should be seen on the silver screen. What are your picks? Leave a comment below and let us know! Thanks for reading my blog and Follow this blog!

Welcome to my blog! From June 5th - 19th, there's really not that much I care to see at the theater. For June 19th, the silver screen pick is Food, Inc : Also, Moon which was previously discussed. What are your picks? Leave a comment below and let us know! Thanks for reading my blog and Follow this blog!

Welcome to my blog! May 29th's silver screen choice is Disney Pixar's "Up". Enjoy the trailer! What's your May 29th silver screen choice? Let us know by leaving some comments below! Thanks for reading my blog and Follow this Blog!

Welcome to my blog! May 22nd's silver screen choice is Mystic India. Enjoy the trailer! DVD choices: Country Teacher Summer Hours Once again, share your choices for May 22nd by leaving some comments below! Thanks for reading my blog and Follow this Blog!

Welcome to my blog! The silver screen movie of choice for May15th is the controversial Angels & Demons. Enjoy the trailer! What's your silver screen pick for May15th? Let us know by leaving a comment below! Thanks for reading my blog and Follow this blog!

Welcome to my blog! For May 8th, the silver screen movie of choice is, of course, Star Trek! I'm no Trekkie by any means, but it looks kinda interesting. Enjoy the trailer! What's your silver screen movie for May 8th? Let us know by leaving a comment below! Thanks for reading my blog and Follow this Blog!