Tag / Corona Virus

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Fitbit 6: Week 30

Week 23 of working from home due to the corona virus saw another slip back, though I did manage to get over goal 4 times.  Things got off to a poor start on Sunday, where I managed only 3800 steps.  Monday bounced back above goal, coming in just over 7500 steps.  Tuesday was more of the same, finishing 1 step over of 7600.  Wednesday was the biggest disappointment of the week, coming in just 1 step shy of 3300.  Thursday I rebounded a bit to 5200 steps.  Friday, I used another day off to go back over goal with 7700 steps.  A strong Saturday, with 7800 steps, wasn’t enough to save the week.

Total steps: 43,205

Daily average: 6172.1

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You Ought To Be In (14) Pictures

Movie_Reel_22

Many years ago, using the weekly TV guide that came with the Sunday Chicago Tribune, I started keeping track of all of the movies I had seen over the course of my lifetime.  The guide would list the two main stars for each movie, and that is a tradition that I’ve carried on in my database ever since.  So, given those guidelines, and thanks to a corona virus inspired uptick to my movie watching this year, it is time to look at the 100 actors that have starred in at least 10 films that I have seen, as of July 1.

Today, we continue with the 10 actors that have starred in 14 movies that I have seen, an increase of 3 at this level from 3 years ago.

Jason Bateman

Jason Bateman probably first appeared on my radar with 1987’s Teen Wolf Too.  After another film in 1992, he took the rest of the century off and didn’t reappear on my screen until 2010, when he started a streak of 5 films in 3 years, followed by another streak of 7 films in 5 years, culminating in 2018 Game Night.

Will Ferrell

The SNL alum first streaked on to the list of film actors I’ve seen in 2003 with Old School.  Since then, his appearances have been pretty consistent, with 2012-2013 being the longest streak of him not appearing on my screen.  The most recent film of his I’ve seen was 2005’s Bewitched, which I saw earlier this year.

Morgan Freeman

The first film I saw starring Morgan Freeman was the Kevin Costner vehicle Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves.  Starting in 2000, he put together a 6 year streak that covered 8 films.  My biggest Freeman years were 2000, 2005, and 2008, when I saw him in 2 films.  After a 5 year layoff, he returned this year in 2019’s Angel Has Fallen.

Winona Ryder

The last films of hers that I saw is still 2002’s Mr. Deeds, which I finally got around to watching in 2011.

Adam Sandler

2011’s Just Go With It, which I saw in 2013, is still my most current exposure to Sandler’s work.

Christian Slater

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Fitbit 6: Week 29

Week 22 of working from home due to the corona virus saw my streak of days above goal come to an end at 14 and my streak of surpassing my weekly goal stop at 2.  Things got off to a poor start on Sunday, where I managed only 4800 steps.  Monday bounced back above goal, coming in just over 7500 steps as I dealt with the damage caused by the derecho that blew through town.  Tuesday fell back down again, finishing 8 steps shy of 5600.  Wednesday was another disappointment, coming in just 5 steps higher than Sunday’s total.  Thursday had an early morning meeting that I could take on my phone, leading to a walk that staked me out to a 9100 step day.  Friday, I took my first day off of the year and ended up at Brookfield Zoo with Danny, which led to 12,300 steps, my highest total since last October’s trip to Boston to celebrate birthdays with Angelina.  A strong Saturday could have saved the week, but I finished the day with 6200 steps, leaving me about 2000 steps shy of my weekly goal.

Total steps: 50,508

Daily average: 7215.4

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You Ought To Be In (13) Pictures

Movie_Reel_22

Many years ago, using the weekly TV guide that came with the Sunday Chicago Tribune, I started keeping track of all of the movies I had seen over the course of my lifetime.  The guide would list the two main stars for each movie, and that is a tradition that I’ve carried on in my database ever since.  So, given those guidelines, and thanks to a corona virus inspired uptick to my movie watching this year, it is time to look at the 100 actors that have starred in at least 10 films that I have seen, as of July 1.

Today, we continue with the 6 actors that have starred in 13 movies that I have seen, an decrease of 2 at this level from 3 years ago.

Amy Adams

Nothing new from Adams since 2017, when I saw 2016’s Arrival.

Jamie Lee Curtis

My first experience with the former teenage scream queen was likely in the first Halloween, the franchise that is responsible for nearly 40% of the films on this list.  The frequency of my watching her films has slowed down significantly in the 21st century, though, and, after a 7 year lull, my last experience with her was in 2018’s reboot/continuation of Halloween.

Gene Hackman

Gene Hackman first entered my movie consciousness when I saw the original Christopher Reeve Superman.  My biggest Hackman years were 2000 and 2003, when I saw 2 of his films.  Hackman has pretty much retired from acting, so his older roles, like 1971’s The French Connection, which I saw in 2018, will have to propel him up this list.

Katherine Heigl

Katherine Heigl burst on to the scene in 1994’s My Father, The Hero, which I took in the following year.  She dropped off my radar, went through puberty, and came back in 1999.  After achieving television stardom, she leaped back to the big screen in a big way in the mid-2000s, including 4 films in 3 years between 2006 and 2008.  After a six year drought, she returned to my screen in 2017 and 2018, with the last film I saw of hers being the ironically titled Unforgettable.

Tommy Lee Jones

Tommy Lee Jones first showed up on my screen back in 1993 in The Fugitive.   My big Tommy Lee Jones years were 1997 and 2000, when I saw him in 2 films per year.  After a few years away, my most recent experience with him was earlier this year, in 2019’s Ad Astra.

Ryan Reynolds

Ryan Reynolds first appeared on my movie radar in 2006, when I saw him in both The Amityville Horror and Just Friends, which started a streak of 5 films in 4 years.  He had double shots in 2006, 2011, 2017, and 2019, where I last saw him in both The Captive and Deadpool 2.

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Here We Go Again

Tomorrow’s scheduled game between the Cardinals and the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field, which originally was tonight’s scheduled game in Iowa at the Field of Dreams site, has reportedly been cancelled as yet another Cardinals staffer has tested positive for the corona virus.  The current plan is for the Cardinals, who have played a grand total of 5 games so far this season, to arrive in Chicago on Saturday, by rental car if necessary, and play a double header against the White Sox, followed by the normally scheduled game on Sunday.

Assuming that goes off without a hitch, they would stay in town to face the Cubs, adding an additional double header to make up one of the games missed last weekend.  At this point, the chances of the Cardinals completing a “full” 60-game season seem rather remote, even if everything else goes as planned for the rest of the year.

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Doomsday Scenario

The Big Ten announced yesterday it was postponing its fall sports season, including football, because of concerns about competing during the COVID-19 pandemic.  It becomes the first Power Five conference to postpone and follows the MAC, who postponed their season last week, and the Mountain West conference, as well as Massachusetts and Connecticut, both football independents, who canceled their falls seasons this week.

Illinois recently announced it had 23 athletes, including 18 football players, test positive since June.  Northwestern paused workouts earlier this month after one player tested positive and 37 players were quarantined, until it was determined the test was a false positive.  Michigan State quarantined its entire team after 16 players tested positive, and Rutgers halted workouts after players reportedly contracted COVID-19 while attending a party, raising the team’s positive cases to 28.  A dozen Big Ten football players had previously opted out, including Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons and Purdue wide receiver Rondale Moore.

The conference hopes to move the fall sports to the spring, assuming the pandemic lightens up and allows for it.

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Fitbit 6: Week 28

Week 21 of working from home due to the corona virus was my 2nd consecutive week surpassing my weekly goal, the first time I’ve managed that in a year, when I spent two weeks in San Francisco last August.  I’ve also put together 14 consecutive days over goal, something I have not accomplished in the past 2 years.  Things got off to a good start on Sunday, where I managed to finish the day 8 steps shy of 7600, my lowest total of the week.  Monday saw a slight improvement, coming in at over 7600 steps.  Tuesday was the high point of the week, finishing over 8000 steps.  Wednesday was back down in the 7700 step range, while Thursday came in a single step over 7700.  Friday again came in at 7700 steps, while Saturday used a haircut and Danny’s graduation party to get up close to 7900 steps.

Total steps: 54,382

Daily average: 7768.9

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You Ought To Be In (12) Pictures

Movie_Reel_22

Many years ago, using the weekly TV guide that came with the Sunday Chicago Tribune, I started keeping track of all of the movies I had seen over the course of my lifetime.  The guide would list the two main stars for each movie, and that is a tradition that I’ve carried on in my database ever since.  So, given those guidelines, and thanks to a corona virus inspired uptick to my movie watching this year, it is time to look at the 100 actors that have starred in at least 10 films that I have seen, as of July 1.

Today, we continue with the 10 actors that have starred in 12 movies that I have seen, an increase of 1 at this level from 3 years ago.

Kristen Bell

The Veronica Mars star made her first “big screen” appearance in my life with the television remake of Reefer Madness in 2005.  She’s been a pretty steady presence since, with a 2 year gap in 2015 and 2016 being her largest.  Like Father, which I saw earlier this year, is my most recent exposure to her.

Michael Douglas

I have not seen a Michael Douglas starring project since 2015’s Ant-Man.

Aaron Eckhart

Aaron Eckhart first showed up on the list of film actors I’ve seen way back in 1999 with Your Friends & Neighbors.  Since then, his appearances have been a little haphazard, with nothing more than 3 2-year streaks over the past 18 years.  The most recent film of his I’ve seen was 2014’s atrocious I, Frankenstein, which I unfortunately saw earlier this year.

Corey Haim

My final Haim film was 1993’s Just One Of The Girls, which I saw in 2004.  Haim passed away in 2010, so he is not likely to be moving up this list anytime soon.

Woody Harrelson

In 1992, I headed to the theaters to see White Men Can’t Jump, where I first encountered Woody Harrelson in film. 7 of Harrelson’s films came between 1992 and 2000, after which there was a long lull.  Harrelson came back in to my world in 2008, then added 2 more in 2010.  After a 9 year layoff, Harrelson returned earlier this year with 2019’s Zombieland: Double Tap.

Mila Kunis Continue reading →

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Book 14 (of 52) – The Answer Is…

The Answer Is… Reflections On My Life – Alex Trebek

Alex Trebek is dying. The long-time host of Jeopardy!, who turned 80 last month, announced that he had been diagnosed with stage IV pancreatic cancer last March.  With that backdrop, he finally decided to put pen to paper and write a memoir, with, as the subtitle indicates, brief reflections on the important moments of his life and a behind the scenes look at one of the most popular game shows of all time.

Born in Sudbury, Ontario on July 22, 1940, Trebek introduces us to his parents, a Ukrainian-immigrant chef father and a French Canadian mother, while detailing his early years.  After gaining early notoriety as a CBC announcer and host, he came to the US in the early 70s to become host of a new game show, The Wizard Of Odds.  This led to a string of hosting gigs, most for game shows whose lifespans were measured in weeks instead of years.  In 1984, he was hired as the host of a syndicated revival of Jeopardy!, where he has remained for the past 36 years.

Some of the most memorable Jeopardy! champions get chapters devoted to them, including Ken Jennings, James Holzhauer, Chuck Foster, Frank Spangenberg, and Eddie Timanus, the first blind contestant on the show.  Trebek also brings us behind the scenes of the show, with a typical shooting day starting with his review of the day’s game boards and the production meetings to make sure everything runs smoothly.

Trebek continues to receive treatment for his cancer, but is forthright about the limited amount of time he has remaining.  For him, the shutdown of the world due to the corona virus may have been a blessing in disguise, as it has given him the opportunity to spend additional time with his wife and grown children.  As someone who has been welcomed into millions of homes over the past 36 years, including mine, this was a worthwhile read and a rare opportunity to learn more about the person we all think we know.

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A Pause In The Season

This weekend’s series between the Cubs and the Cardinals in St. Louis has been cancelled after an additional two Cardinal players and a staff member have tested positive for COVID-19.  In total, nine Cardinals players have tested positive for the corona virus since last week and the team has not played since July 29th.  Assuming they can resume play on Monday, they will need to play 55 games in just 49 days in order to complete their 60 game schedule.

The Cubs will head back to Chicago tonight, and then likely hold work outs at Wrigley Field before resuming their schedule on Tuesday in Cleveland.  They aren’t scheduled to return to St. Louis this year, so making up these games will likely include some combination of double headers at Wrigley and mutual off days, if the games are made up at all.