Robriefs 4.21.2008

Robrief no. 1: “Sweet Nothing In My Ear” movie was okay
The CBS Hallmark movie last night, “Sweet Nothing In My Ear”, which starred the amazing Marlee Matlin and centered around the controversy of cochlear implant was, in my opinion, okay. Not impressive enough to compel me to stay really interested in the movie throughout. Cochlear implant is such a touchy, controversial subject for the Deaf community and I empathize with them somewhat. I don’t like the idea of having a plastic pad on my head with wire sticking out to a hearing aid, like a Borg. While I applauded Matlin’s performance in the movie and for bringing awareness of the Deaf community’s feelings about CI to a wider audience, the movie doesn’t provide enough deaf-centric subjects like why ASL is important to the deaf culture and the history of the deaf people in a melodramatic fashion, but then, the movie was only two hours long and the emphasis was all about the CI issue.

Maybe a bit too much of the subject of CI, with the deaf as the bystander between a rock and a hard place, as Marlee’s character demonstrated. Should have been better with a more convincing, representative statement of the Deaf community’s issue against CI. It would make for a compelling entertainment, even for a Hallmark movie.

At the same time, I had to switch back and forth the movie with the VHI channel on awesomely wild Rock of Love 2 Reunion show (Bret got the right rocker babe) and the awesome 1979 movie, “North Dallas Forty” on ESPN Classic. Here’s hoping Marlee wins “Dancing with the Stars” show all the way. As Bret so fond of saying this, “Awesome!”

Robrief no. 2: Observational Matters – Why gas prices are so high?
For the last few years, while I was driving on the highways and roadways, usually from home to work and back to home after work, I have been observing all the moving vehicles around me, with all sort of drivers inside. There are many different types of people driving different types of vehicles for different reasons. I’m assuming most of them only drive to work, then homeward after a long, hard day at work. But not always. There are people driving on the highways and roadways who aren’t going to or from work, as I’ve learned by talking with other people over the years, it seems that half of all the drivers on the roads are only driving their vehicles most of the times for three separate reasons and these will surprise you:

• Some are just cruising around or speeding for fun because they’re bored at home or work.
• Some wanted to show off their “pimp-up” or flashy, sporty vehicles around, with music blaring (why? Because they’re bored and wanted to show off!)
• Some actually work on the roads or drive around, going from one short stop onto the next, then onward to other places (not just delivering something but just to make a stop for something).

These kind of drivers are consuming a great amount of gas daily for their driving needs. I’m sure either some goes to high school, college or business school or they do not actually work (or looking for work), but my conversations with other people I work with or associated with outside work revealed otherwise. These “bored” or mobile at-work drivers demanded lot of fuels on a daily basis. They are wasting essential fuels that should have been reserved for a wide majority of drivers who actually goes to work and come home afterward, they wouldn’t have to deal with paying too much money for gas so other “slacker” drivers out there wanted to cruise around, show-off or working mobile for reasons unknown (what are they really up to?). They are heavy wasters.

Then there are heavy users of gas. We are talking about the vehicles that consume excessive amounts of gas and exhaust its energies sooner than later on a daily basis. Heavy vehicles with low mileage-per-gallon: SUVs, big pick-up trucks, big vans, dumpster trucks (diesel or unleaded, gas is gas), trucks that haul landscaping or construction equipments around, etc. Then, there are the very heavy users of gas: the less-than-load (short haul freight) and the long-haul big rigs.

These heavy and very heavy users of gas ride their vehicles either on a daily or an hourly basis! These vehicles do really consume more and more of gas everyday – drive fast while hauling something heavy or very heavy, make quick-short stops, and can be left idle when not in used.

Follow my example: when you’re driving to work or to home, take a practical observation of other drivers and their vehicles on the roads every day and you will get a better picture of life on the move for everyone eventually. It took me years to pick up something interesting, bizarre, irksome or habitually annoying from other drivers and the vehicles they’re riding and keeping tabs on the rising prices of gas.

And you’re still wondering why gas prices are so high? Take a good look at all kind of drivers and vehicles (especially the heavy ones) around you while you’re driving to and from work (and be sure to keep your eyes on the road as well!). Every day.

Robrief no. 3: Superquake prophecy in the Midwest back in 1973?
Few days ago, there was a major earthquake north of the Madrid fault in the Midwest: the Illinois quake of 2008. It was felt as far as in Columbus, OH or Atlanta, Ga. But I have never felt such a thing at the time, though it apparently explained the freakish behaviors of my cat the night before. My paternal grandmother and her family was near San Francisco when the great quake of 1906 struck, she was a teenager at the time. However, as I just learned this afternoon, there was a Superquake prophecy made in 1973 by Chuck Youngbrandt, predicting that Chicago and all the areas around the region would be destroyed by what it would be the largest, most destructive superquake ever. An excerpt of the prophecy below:

1973, Open Vision Lasting Almost A Week, Accidental Bombing Of Four American Cities & The Chicago Earthquake & The Invasion Of The United States — In 1973 the Lord gave me a vision of a massive earthquake striking the Midwest U.S.A. centering in Chicago, Illinois on some day in July in the future. This destructive earthquake led directly to an all out nuclear attack on the U.S. by Russia, China with Japan and the start of World War III. In that vision I saw a huge jet airliner on a glide path to land at O’Hare Airport north of Chicago [after the quake] when Lake Michigan roared out of its lake bed and swept over the city in what was a wall of water 100 feet+ high. The huge jet airliner turned on its jets full blast and black smoke poured out of its engines as the pilot frantically worked to pull up and away from the wall of water that was destroying Chicago.

I was puzzled at the time [July 2, 1973] because the aircraft I saw was a massive two stories high, unlike anything I’d ever seen. [In 1973 the Jumbo Jet had not yet arrived, it was being designed].

While the Jumbo Jet [747-400] with its two story bubble in the front of the aircraft looks “like” what I saw in 1973, this new airliner, the A3XX, shown in the June 24, 2000 news clip [The Dallas Morning News, Saturday, June 24th 2000, 2F, Airbus gives green light to super jumbo jetliner] “is” 2 stories high and looks more like what I saw in the 1973 vision.

I don’t know what you would make of this. I must say that Chuck Youngbrandt might have an overactive imagination at the time or was he really given the prophetic visions from God, warning of such a terrible, tragic thing to come?

Robrief no. 4: Food rationing in America? Yep, it happened before, it can happen again.
In World War II, many Americans went through a period of food rationing while the war was on. However, the days of America being the breadbasket of the world could be numbering. Maybe it will help eliminate obesity among overweight Americans? Hopefully. I have actually cut back on some foods that are too convenient, fattening or luxurious and focus only on the basis essences for the time being. Perhaps food rationing in America may be the best thing to happen yet? Who knows?

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