Way back in the day, like the late 70’s, one thing I looked forward to watching every year was the Bond films on ABC Sunday Night Movie. At that time, ABC always showed 4 films from the catalog of films which at that time was evenly split between the films of Sean Connery and Roger Moore. One of the films shown every year was guaranteed to be Thunderball which was one of my favorites in any event so I did not mind. Later, when we as a family bought our first VHS player, I was then able to rent the Bond films at my leisure, uncut and without commercials. Also, I was able to see the films that were rarely broadcasted like You Only Live Twice. Seeing that scene where the Japanese commandos assaulted the rocket lair of Blofeld was always a great thrill.
So, needless to say, I have always been a Bond film man. Like many dedicated fans, I had to pick my favorite Bond actor and like most it is Connery. I appreciate the fact that while he could be quite debonair when he wanted to, at heart he was a ruthless killer dedicated to his mission. Never got that impression from Moore’s interpretation of the character. As for other Bond actors, George Lazenby, Timothy Dalton and Brosnan Pierce I though them to be serviceable in their roles but nothing comparable to what made Connery’s films did.
Daniel Craig’s version of the James Bond character has come the closest to what Connery accomplished in making the role so definitive in our pop culture. Craig’s Bond is ruthless and dedicated to his mission. He does not engage in witty banter before taking on his enemies. He simply takes them out much in the way he took out Mr. Slate in a hotel room in Haiti. Not a word uttered by him. Of course, this single-mindness made interrogration a problem as M (Judi Dench) states when the leads keep showing up dead.
This Bond is no mindless assassin, though. As quick in seizing up a situation that calls more than brute force and he is able to dispatch the various minions sent against him.
Quantum of Solace ranks highly for me in the pantheon of Bond films. There is energy in this film that starts from the get go with a frantic car chase along the coast of Italy. There are times when the action is a bit too frenzied with an editor who seems to be cutting scenes at 1 second intervals especially on the roof top chase between Bond and the turncoat British agent. But this Bond never plays it cute in the style of Moore. When something happens, it happens with very little set up and there are no moral qualms. This Bond will take out his own people if they get in the way of mission.
As for the mission, it is never too clear what the mission is in this film. Is it Bond seeking revenge for Vesper’s death in Casino Royale or to stop a plot by the Quantum group engineered by Dominic Greene (Mathieu Alamaric) to corner the water supply in Bolivia?
As for the villain in the piece, Greene is the palest of shadows when compared to such figures as Goldfinger, Blofeld or even the KGB/Spectre functionaries. Perhaps this is in keeping with the more realistic approach to the Bond story where real life operators do not have secret lairs and fantastic doomsday machines. Gadgets are non-existent here save for the touch screen wall/table used by British intelligence to pull in information. After seeing the wonder walls used by CNN to track the election results this year, such technology does not seem too fantastic any more.
Still, this is a superb film in the Bond pantheon and a solid action film in its own right. Bond is definitely back.
News was released this morning that ABC is canceling three shows from its schedule: Eli Stone, Pushing Daisies, and Dirty Sexy Money. As usual, declining ratings for these second year shows was the reason cited.
I have not seen any of these shows so I can not admit to any bias towards them in any way though Pushing Daisies did piqued my interest at one time. No doubt, the writers strike of early this year was a major factor in these shows demise. It is hard to build any viewer support for a television when new episodes stopped being shown after the sixth or seventh episode. ABC gave each show a chance with 13 episode orders for the new television season but it was enough. Whether all of the remaining episodes of each show would be telecasted remains to be seen but they probably will be viewable in some format even over the Internet.
Still each show had some sort of following that will be disappointed in seeing their shows disappear. Now each show had some arc story that was part of every episode. For example in Pushing Daisies, a recurring story is how can Ned reconcile his feelings for his ex-girlfriend Charlotte, whom he revived from the dead but knows if he touches her a second time, she would lost forever. What fans of the show would be thinking on how would that story end but since the show is now canceled, they would never know.
Becoming a fan of a show requires a certain investment in the story line and characters and losing a show prematurely is a bit of a heartbreaker. It is not like a film where you know there will always be some sort of conclusion to the film. Character fates are known and plots resolved.
So this is my suggestion to the television executives. For shows that have managed to survive their inaugural season and have plot lines that extend over separate episodes but now are considered to be canceled, commission one or more episodes that allow resolution of the series storyline and give fans of the show some piece of mind on what happened to their favorite characters. The show does not necessarily have to be broadcasted but could be packaged with a DVD release of the series episodes and so many television shows seem to be doing these whether or not they are successful.
I like watching series from British television for several reasons including the quality of the shows but one aspect of the shows I like is that many of them are limited series. Perhaps 6-10 episodes over a season, tightly scripted so that the season end is finished and nothing is left hanging at the end. Some have set number of episodes; after the number is reached, there would be no more. Similar to the old mini-series format on American television but considerably more episodes.
Lost on ABC is doing this. We know now when the last episode will be shown; it probably has been scripted already if not filmed. By doing that, the show writers are freed from continuing to pump out additional episodes just to fill the time. Plots can be written in advance knowing how things will turn out in the end. Many series on American television decline at the end of their run because writers could not come up with any fresh takes on stories or characters and end up recycling old ones which in turn push away viewers who have seen it all before.
All television series have a pre-defined life to them and when reached, should come to that end and not prolonged. But for those series who leave us prematurely, I think one more episode to tie up the loose ends would be a good thing for television viewers and good for the industry as well.
When I moved to Winston-Salem in 2002 to start a new job, downtown Winston was pretty depressing. Very little to do, not too many places to eat and no real incentive to hang around after work. In the past four years though, through steady persistent work on behalf of the city, developers, and businesses and more than a bit of hope and good fortune, downtown Winston is recovering and poised to return to something of its former glory.
The original centerpiece of downtown development was the Restaurant Row program which has succeeded quite well despite some notably losses like the Indian restaurant Kababs. The Arts District is coming along nicely with art gallery and craft stores with a few restaurants tossed into the mix.
Yet restaurants and art galleries is not enough to create a vibrant self-sustaining downtown that can take care of itself without the need for civic funding. People need more of a reason to come downtown other than seeing a painting or grab a bite at Mellow Mushroom. For the people living downtown, there has to be enough things downtown so that they do not have to travel to Stratford Rd or Hanes Mall.
So what are the sort of things that downtown Winston-Salem needs to be more well-rounded and be an alternative place to go for shopping and entertainment?
Let me throw a few things out there:
- Upscale men’s salon – I used to go to American Male salon when it was in the tower at One West Fourth. It was great getting a hair cut during working hours and get a relaxing shoulder massage as necessary. But the location killed it as few people knew that it actually existed. So now it is gone and there is no other place downtown to get a great hair cut. So now I go to Great Clips at a strip mall. A street level barber shop/hair salon along Fourth or Trade will do well I figure. There is a new Spa opening up at the Embassy Suites for the ladies but gentlemen do not have an alternative.
- Performing Arts theatre – this was considered to be one of the main structures for Unity Place when the initial plans for that re-development came about. With that failure, troupes like the Little Theatre housed in smallish community type theatres scattered around Winston have remained far from downtown where I think they will thrive through better attendance and visibility. A small theatre with the ability to hold small and mid-size productions for upwards of three hundred people in attendance is required. The Steven’s Centre as a venue is too large for many of the community style productions these troupes perform. As it is, the Steven’s Centre in the prime months od September through April usually has a full calendar. As for location of the new theatre, it is important to leverage all of the new restaurant development along Fourth and in the Arts District because people going to plays will make a night out of it with a dinner and a show and they probably would like to walk from the restaurant directly to the theatre without returning to their car. I would favor the Arts District area over Fourth primarily because there is more land available there for redevelopment particularly along Liberty St and I think the Arts District is going to see an surge in restaurant dining if a theatre with regular productions is located there. However, the Sawtooth Center is getting a make-over which would include a new theatre that would meet this need provided that the funding holds. With corporate donors originally signed on as sponsors of the new theatre, the economic collapse may affect these plans. For now, it is a wait and see approach.
- Film theatre – similarly, a film theatre geared for downtown audiences may also work well. There is a need in this city to see films that would not normally get a wide release but would attract a nice audience here in Winston-Salem. The film series held at the Stevens Centre did well initially in bringing in films that were ignored by other multiplexes in town. I can imagine a 3-4 screen theatre that sits 150-300 people with a cafe lobby and perhaps some nice touches like bigger and plusher seating. The theatre will also serve as a venue for the River Run festival which tends to scatter its films all over the downtown area in venues that were not set up as theatres in the first place. Again, this gives downtown another entertainment option which if it brings people in from outside of the downtown area, will give a boost to the clubs and restaurants.
- Book store (new or used) – I like to think that a downtown without a bookstore of any sort can not be considered a true downtown especially one with an arts district. Despite being the Internet Age, people still read books, magazines and newspapers. Yet there is no outlet downtown that sells these items inclusively. I would like to think that as part of the downtown experience, someone living at the Gallery Lofts gets up on a Saturday morning, stroll over to the Arts District, buys a few papers, walks to Chelsee’s for a cappuccino, have a relaxing read of the news and smile to himself that it is moments like this that he was glad that he moved downtown. As for the type of bookstore, I would favor an used bookstore with a newspaper and periodical section as I think people would still go to Barnes and Noble or Borders to pick up the new releases of books unless this bookstore specialises in a certain subject like cooking or children’s books.
- Gourmet Food Shop – for better or for worse, the new residential developments downtown seem fixated on the higher end of the price scale which tend to be the market for young upscale professionals and well-off retirees. One aspect of this market is that they take their dining seriously but probably can not afford to eat out all of the time. A gourmet food store like a Fresh Market and not a grocery store per se like Kingz Downtown Market, that can offer a variety of expensive food stuffs like imported cheeses and meats may do well. 6th and Vine I think has a side business in retailing wine and there is the Farmers’ Market nearby on 6th Street during the growing season. That helps provide for part of the need. Being a high margin type of store will go part way to address the low volumes of the local market. It may act also a store of last resort for the restaurants in the area if they run out of something during the course of the day.
This is by no means an exhaustive list. There are far more types of things downtown Winston-Salem needs to become more fully rounded and not necessarily retail either. A park or two and a new library are also important I think to bring downtown Winston up to the level of great downtown cities.
From the time we start handling money as children until the day we retire, we are constantly extolled to save money. Put some aside for a rainy day. Every penny counts.
Background
Lately, I have been seeing quite a few opinion pieces lamenting the virtually non-existent savings rate that exists in this country. Very few people maintain any sort of balance in their bank savings accounts if they have one but savings also includes things like 401k plans or IRAs. When the median amount in 401ks is about $23,000, people who are expecting to live comfortably in their retirement are in for a bit of a shock. Naturally people who earn much more tend to have more savings but interestingly enough so do those on the other end of the income scale. These low-income workers do have quite a bit of cash savings because of lack access to credit but also they know that their situation can turn bad at any moment and they need something to fall back on. It is the vast middle class that seems to be in the worst situation.
There is no question that saving is difficult; temptation dogs every step of the way: buy this iPod, get these new shoes, furnish your home from Pottery Barn and we give into this temptation because it is easier to do so. But I do not think that is the real problem though. Having a normal life today with everyday expenses like gas, groceries, utilities, and basic clothing consumes nearly all of the net income we have.
When I hear about various government initiatives to increase savings through raising 401k limits, Healthcare Savings Accounts, Social Security replacement saving accounts, education saving savings accounts, I wonder if these lawmakers realize just hard is to save any portion of your income today. As growth in middle class incomes have essentially flat in the past six years, any price increases such as we are experiencing now with gasoline and healthcare insurance premiums gnaws away what little remains of the paycheck.
Saving today is just a way to defer spending money into the future but people have to deal with the needs of today. Saving for your family or retirement is problematic.
Family Planning
A change in circumstances like a prolonged illness or a birth of a child can wreck havoc with the family finances. For example, placing my newborn daughter in daycare a few months ago meant a transfer of money from other household expenses to the daycare. For her day care, I will be paying about $8300 this year which is a large portion of the family discretionary income. It is offset by some through the child tax credit and dependent care tax credit but only by $2100. The difference represents a shift in either spending or saving for the household to the daycare. It will be a similar situation if a family member took ill and required prolonged care.
So many families are faced with the situation that to save would required significant sacrifice and far too many families just do not have the ability to make those sacrifices. This is a reason why many people are in debt not because of extravagant spending but paying for everyday expenses and emergencies.
One recommendation that financial planners always put forth is to have the equivalent of three months of income stashed away in a special emergency fund. It is never clear whether they are talking about net or gross income but regardless, for most families the equivalent of having 25% of your income placed into such of an account is nearly unattainable. Certainly it can not be accomplished within a year; it may actually require five to ten years to build up this type of account at the near exclusion of all other savings.
Then there is the case of saving money for university and post-secondary education. Sending your child is getting more and more expensive. Not everyone deserves to go to college but many families think it is their right and would do everything they can to put their children through. There are various saving vehicles available. Some provide prepaid tuition and fees; others are set up like IRA accounts where the money withdrawn is not taxed. But still you have to contribute to an event that is as far into the future as fifteen years away with no idea how much it would really cost for the initial four year program. Many families now are realizing how grossly they underestimated the costs and have to use mortgage refinancing or have the child take on student loans to pay the costs. People do not think about college costs until the child is almost in high school but then again consider that when the child was born, most families are young and just starting off and getting by.
For most families, it is the paycheck to paycheck living that really raises the stress levels. This is really an acknowledgement that the social safety net is quite weak and that you are on your own for the most part. Having substantial savings can alleviate that stress significantly knowing that for awhile you are okay. But in the real world, saving is a luxury only some can do and rest of us just gets by.
Retirement Savings
The real problem though is saving for retirement. Company pensions are becoming scarcer these day and while the Social Security crisis is a bit overblown, there will be less forthcoming from the government in the future for senior citizens. So to make up the difference in income and the lifestyle they want to lead as retirees, people have to save now. Again, though, family incomes today do not have the ability to contribute to any sort of retirement plan. The median amount people will contribute to their 401k or similar plans is about $2400/year. Very few people can contribute to the maximum amount which for 2006 is $15,000, up from $14,000 last year. As for me, I will contribute about $9600 this year into my 401k plan. That amount represents a significant portion of my income but I think it is essential to have funds in the account now so to take advantage of the long term growth of money. I could use the contributed money to pay for expenses today but then I will be shortchanging myself for the future.
However, it is the expectation that the stock market will continually grow that underpins the whole rationale for investing in 401k and IRA plans. A stock market crash or a prolonged recession can undo years of careful saving and sacrifice. But that is the risk you have to take when you invest. Otherwise you may just be better off placing your money in real assets like real estate.
Thinking about the future
There is a saving crisis in this nation. Of that I have no doubt but it is just one of many crisises facing families today. If a family has to split its income and follow the recommendations of various financial planners and put some money in 401k plans, some in college fund accounts, some in a rainy account, there will be scarcely anything left over to survive on.
Sometimes I think people have a lottery mentality to life, that some event will put a large amount of money in their hands whether it is the lottery, a college scholarship, a big tax refund or an inheritance of some sort. That is a dangerous way of thinking in expecting that the future will take care of itself. Most likely it will not happen. But in a way, it is helpful to be optimistic considering most families’ current saving situation is rather depressing.
I have no real magic recommendations on how to save. Saving requires patience, time and sacrifice. If you remain focused on your saving goals then you can succeed to some degree. My income does not allow me to save for every situation I mentioned above so I decide to focus my savings on retirement and college funds and hope that no calamity befalls us. It is a bit of a tightrope act to keep it all together and a fair bit of sacrifice on my part but slow steady wins the race which in this case is the race of life.
In a previous post, I discussed the path for Wake Forest to return to the ACC Championship game which takes the winner to the Orange Bowl.
On paper, this looks like a game that Wake Forest should win. NC State’s only ACC win this season has been against Duke and on various stats, the Wolfpack has been near the bottom. After a rough middle part of the schedule, Wake Forest has been on the rebound and with the modified offense, the Deacons have been improving their stats a fair bit. But in the 2008 edition of the ACC, nothing should go as expected.
The critical games that Wake Forest and its fans will be watching are the Maryland versus North Carolina and the Boston College versus Florida State. Victories by North Carolina and Boston College will clear up the situation immensely for the Deacons. Florida will not get the top spot in the Atlantic division because of Wake’s tiebreaker win over the Seminoles and the Terps will be two games down. That then makes the Boston College-Wake Forest game next week the one to watch next week. A win by Wake Forest will give the Division title.
Game time: 3:30pm
Television: ESPNU