What their doing in the meantime, is running a free scratch cards campaign to promote their website, and their facebook page.  By commenting on their facebook page, you have a chance to win €20,000 in prize money.  Nice!  So get your your butt over their, and add some comments.  Their website and facebook page are pretty cool.  That is if your into entertainment, fashion, celebrities, and other bits of entertainment goodies.  It’s a great site with lots of up to date news, and other information.  What I really liked about it, is unlike other sites in their niche, it’s not filled with all kinds of advertisements.  Just the facts, news and some cool pictures.  Definitely worth wasting some of your surfing time over there.

I do have a bit of an addiction to movies and the stars that make a living acting in them.  They do live such a different lifestyle then the rest of us.  It is fascinating to see how they manage to cope (or not cope) with it all.  Most don’t seem to do very well with it, but others manage to thrive on it.  I’m not really sure how I would do in their shoes.  Not that I’m ever likely to get the chance.  Something tells me, that I would burn out pretty quick.  I don’t really think I could stand that much attention.  I still remember my wedding day, and all the attention I got.  I think that was the closest I’ll ever get to being a celebrity, and that’s good enough for me.

One example is “The Polar Express,” based on Chris Van Allsburg’s children’s books. Taking the cue from his talented illustrations, the story is brought to life on the screen as a young boy takes a train ride to rediscover his belief in Santa Claus. The animation is very lifelike, and the characters unforgettable. Another example of moves with magic can be found when you get “Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium.” This movie takes you into a magical toy store where the toys move, feel and interact with the customers. Everything from a magical book that has toys pop out to a room that can be changed with the swing of a dial are included.

Children and parents will also enjoy some classical films that offer a sense of magic of their own. “The Neverending Story,” “Cinderella,” and “Snow White” are ones that were made years ago, but are still just as popular. The story lines are engaging, and the characters are ones that anyone can relate to. Many of these movies have been remastered in the past decade using computer technology, which greatly improves the color and sound quality. They are also often released in special editions that feature behind-the-scenes documentaries, games, pictures, and interviews with those involved in the making of the film.

The “Harry Potter” series of films have been added to the grouping of movies with magic. They are beautifully adapted from the children’s book series and great care was taken in the choosing of actors to fill the roles. With quality screen writing, the books where brought to life on the screen. The technology available has made the special effects very convincing when seen on the screen.

Another innovation in this magic movies guide to films is the use of 3-D in movie theaters, which is now also available at home. The glasses come packaged with the movie and recreate the experience in your living room. This kind of magic is priceless when you feel you can actually touch what’s happening on the screen. There is no end to the enjoyment that is available with movies infused with a charming quality and amazing effects.

Eventually, once they spend enough time on the whiteboard, and insult enough people the patient is miraculously cured.  Yay!!!  Maybe it was the whiteboard, that was reminding me too much of work, but I finally gave up on the show.  Inspite of all the wonderful insults that House managed to come up with, I lost interest.  Well, the other day, my daughter was watching a House episode on demand, and I joined her.  I was pleasantly surprised, as to how much I liked it, and now a little perplexed.  I don’t remember seeing a single whiteboard in the entire episode.  It was the one where the patient is somewhat psychotic, and had an affair, and keeps threatning the doctors with all kinds of nasty language if they tell her husband.  The actress playing the patient was really good.  I quite enjoyed the episode, and think I’ll start watching it again.

Hugh Laurie was as brilliant as ever.  Not that I ever got tired of watching him in the first place.  The writing was first rate as well.  I may have to watch some House season 6 episodes to catch up on what I’ve been missing.  There’s so little good television on TV these days, I’d hate to miss one that’s really worth watching.  There are a bunch of new faces, that I don’t recognize,  so I’m looking forward to getting to know their characters a little better.  Especially that one brunette female doctor.  She definitely was worth watching.

While Canadian tv series don’t make it to US television networks as often as I’d like, you should be able to find plenty of Canadian tv online if you can’t find it on ABC, NBC or CBS. Also, many of my favorite Canadian shows are available on DVD.

Here’s a few faves that you might want to consider viewing!

For teens, Degrassi High was a big Canadian hit. It actually is a group of television shows and the latest incarnation is Degrassi: The Next Generation. Each series features thought-provoking and hard-hitting stories about teenagers’ lives.

If you are in the mood for a little more escapism, Flashpoint is a great cop show about a SWAT team in Toronto. It debuted in 2008 and has been a big hit in both Canada and the US. In Canada, it airs on CTV and in the US it airs on CBS. If you would like to catch up with it, you can watch CBS shows online, or visit the CTV website to watch it there if you live in Canada.

A few of my other Canadian favorites have finished their runs, but you can pick them up on DVD. For Victorian mystery solving, check out Murdoch Mysteries and for cutting edge science mysteries, you’ll want to get your hands on ReGenesis.

Also, my all time favorite Canadian tv show is Due South — about a Canadian Mountie assigned to the Chicago Police Department. Starting Paul Gross, this is one of Canada’s best shows and it is very funny and sometimes very dramatic, so pick up the DVDs if you want to watch some great television.

Before leaving, you should research the countries you are going to see. If you know a bit of the history of the country, you will appreciate it more when you see it firsthand. You can purchase some pretty great travel books that are dedicated to providing thorough travel information on specific countries. Lonely Planet and Frommers are two better known series.

You may also want to consult general information on travel, tourism, accommodations, food, and safety in the general area you are traveling to. Depending on the area, it may be harder to get around, find affordable accommodations, or the country may be experiencing unrest that you should be aware of before deciding to visit. You also want to make sure that you will be in the country during good weather. Make sure you know when the wet seasons are, when their winter is, or when hurricanes/cyclones/typhoons are most prevalent. You can find all this information on the internet or in travel books.

Travel movies, although mostly fictional, can help to provide some insight into the life of a traveler. Some movies convey quite aptly the experiences that travelers face, the ups and downs of being so far from home, and the feeling of impermanence that is felt by travelers as their scenery, friends, and beds keep changing. They also show the adventure, the fun, and the new and exciting experiences that travelers face.

There have been so many movies and books made about travel, or with a travel story found within it, that it is very hard to narrow them down. So I have decided to make a list of the five best travel books that have since been turned into movies about travel. The movies on this list were all fascinating books that translated well onto the screen.
• The Motorcycle Diaries: This movie follows the early life of Che Guevara as he travels from Argentina on up the coast of South America. This movie has beautiful scenery as we get a special look at rural South American life during that tumultuous time period.
• 7 Years in Tibet: A German mountaineer travels to Tibet and spends time with the Dali Lama. This thoughtful story gives an insightful glimpse into Tibetan Culture before the invasion by the Chinese.
• The Beach: Even though I prefer the book to the movie, in the movie the beautiful, descriptive imagery comes to life. It is a story about backpackers searching for Utopia in Thailand’s beaches.
• Under the Tuscan Sun: Tuscany serves as the subject of this film instead of merely being the backdrop. It is a beautifully told romance that makes you want to book a trip to Tuscany.
• Into the Wild: This is one of my favorite books and it translated really well to the screen. It is based on the true story of a young man who denounces his capitalistic fate for the freedom of a natural and simple existence. It is relatable to most backpackers who find everyday life dull in comparison to traveling.

Nothing specific in the movie making profession mind you, but just something that lets me be a part of the process. Then I could be in one of those really cool “making of” snippets that are included on most DVDs these days. I always enjoy watching those features. Often, I end up coming away with more respect for the movie I watched first after viewing one of these little stories afterward.

When I say I would do anything to be part of the movie making experience, I don’t exaggerate. Being the guy responsible for shining all the swords used on The Lord Of The Rings trilogy of movies would have been pretty cool. I really wouldn’t have had a problem shining swords for three years, if that’s what it took to be part of that huge family. I suppose part of what it is that looks so interesting for me, is all the different cool people you get to meet. I worked in a cubicle for a lot of years, before I started branching out in my professional interests. When I first start consulting and traveling all around North America to do my job, what impressed me most, was the type of people I got to meet. They were a little more adventurous, a lot more outgoing, and just a little bit crazier than the average cubicle jockey.

That’s what people in the movie business look like to me. The whole creative type of persona is kinda cool as well. It goes with the business they would say, and I kind of understand why everyone has a bit of it. There are multiple jobs involved in making movies, and that’s appealing to me as well. Since, I have a reputation for getting bored quickly with a career, and am always looking to make a change. So while polishing swords for three years on a movie set may be appealing, it’s nice to know I can switch over to polishing body armor whenever I feel the urge.

We all of course know, that an anachronism is the placement of a person, place, thing or idea into a time period in which it doesn’t belong.  Imagine if you will, that your watching a movie about the dawn of civilization.  You know, volcanoes, dinosaurs, caveman, and pterodactyls flying around all over the place.  During this movie, you a few of the hero caveman main characters wander into the encampment of some neighbouring caveman.  Well, the neighbouring caveman don’t appreciate this intrusion, and amongst all the grunting, posturing and waving about of caveman clubs, a fight starts out.  Well just as the fight get’s going really good, and your quite enthralled by the whole scene, your hero caveman is punched one of the bad guy cavemen, and as his fist flys across the screen, you notice a Cartier replica wristwatch on his wrist.  Hang on you think, that’s not right.  I mean, first of all where would a caveman go to buy replica Cartier watches in the first place?  As your suspension of disbelief is slowly being eroded, you start to wonder, does this caveman have a whole collection of watches at home on his dresser?  Of course not, but it’s kind of funny to think about isn’t it?

Now, if the above movie was meant to be funny, then the scene works, but if is supposed to be a serious caveman move like “Quest For Fire”, than someone messed up big time.  I mean, there are some movie where anachronism works beautifully as comedy.  Take for instance the ever so popular comic series the Flinstones.  Betty and Wilma have some of the nicest modern appliances around.  Fred has a car, albeit a little behind on the technical side being foot powered and all.  But a car none the less.  And of course, everyone knows that caveman and dinosaurs didn’t walk on the earth at the same time.  If you were paying attention, you would have caught that little extra anachronism in my previous example.

Did you ever see the kids movie cartoon Aladdin?  Robin Williams plays the part of the genie, and there’s one particularly hilarious scene where he jumps around all over the place as different characters or makes reference to certain characters like Tarzans Cheetah, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ed Sullivan, Groucho Marx, Gomer Pyle, Peter Lorre, Robert Dinheiro, and an airline stewardess.  Of course none of those characters would exist in Arabian times.  So, now you know what a movie anachronism is.  And the answer to whether cavemen wear watches or not is . . . “it depends”.

This is where a fitness video comes in.  While most people probably think about Richard Simmons, or Tony Little, when they think about exercise videos, the fact is, that there is a wide variety of exercise videos available, ranging from yoga, and pilates workout videos, to heavy weight lifting, bun busting step exercises, ab sculpting workout routines, and even some for the kids too.  There is no reason to neglect exercising your body any longer, because videos make it incredibly easy to get in front of your TV, and start burning some calories.

Before you pick up a video though, you are going to want to browse through, and determine exactly which type of exercise regiment you are looking for.  Whether you want high intensity, or low, calorie burning, or strength building, there is a video for you, as long as you know what you want.  Take a few minutes to think about your goals, and what you intend to achieve, and then find one that you think will fit best into your life.  Once you receive the video though, the work has just begun.  You are going to have to implement what is taught in the video, and practice daily, instead of just pushing it aside, because thinking about exercising made you feel better than exercising does.  Get over the hump, past the first few weeks of training with a fitness video, and the great feelings of elation soon follow.