Posts tagged escape
“Chasing Mavericks” More Like “The Surfer Kid”
Nov 3rd
“The Surfer Kid”
“Hotshots” looks at a movie!
Chasing Mavericks is not a story about ranch cowboys chasing after motherless calves, but is instead based on a true story about one particular teenage boy who wanted to learn how to surf some of the most dangerous waves in the world.
Those waves are located near Santa Cruz, California, they are created whenever an El Nino weather system occurs, and they are called “the mavericks.”
The story begins in 1987, and we see 8-year-old Jay and his slightly older friend Kim playing near a beach with heavy surf. Jay jumps into the water to save Kim’s dog, but then Jay gets caught by the waves and could easily drown.
Suddenly a man who had been surfing appears, and he pulls Jay out of the water.
The man is Frosty Hesson, played by Gerard Butler, and surfing is his passion, his life, and his escape.
Jay learns how to surf, and then we jump seven years later when he is now played by Jonny Weston. Coincidentally, Frosty lives right across the street with his wife and two kids from where Jay lives with his alcoholic mother, played by Elisabeth Shue.
One night Jay hitches a ride on Frosty’s van when Jay sees him leave to go surfing, and he watches Frosty and three men surf the most powerful waves you can imagine, which are talked about in the area, but no one knew for sure that they existed.
As Frosty tells Jay, “That wave is a myth, and the four of us want to keep it that way.”
Well, you can imagine the rest of the story. Jay asks Frosty to teach him how to surf the mavericks, Frosty reluctantly agrees, and then we watch a regimen of training right out of the 1984 The Karate Kid, but fortunately without the “Wax on, wax off” scenes, only there are some shots of Jay waxing his surfboard.
Although the movie is about surfing and includes many scenes of surfing, there are additional subplots involving Jay’s personal and home life, Frosty’s relationship with his wife and family, and Jay’s relationship with Kim.
In other words, it is a traditional movie about a nontraditional subject, and the “big game” at the end this time is surfing the “big wave.”
Chasing Mavericks could even more likely have been called The Surfer Kid.
I’m Dan Culberson and this is “Hotshots.”
“Argo” Is Funny and Serious
Oct 20th
Hotshots, October 17, 2012
“Funny and Serious”
“Hotshots” looks at a movie!
Argo is an excellent film based on a true story you might never have heard about concerning the 1979 takeover of the U.S. Embassy for 444 days by Iranian militants.
It is also a very funny film that pokes fun at the filmmaking business in Hollywood, which together makes it a sure-fire candidate to be recognized at the 2013 Academy Awards.
As a matter of fact, the film was a surprise hit at the 2012 Telluride Film Festival, where director Ben Affleck told a screening audience that he tried to make a film that was one part action thriller, one part comedy, and one part inspired by a 1970s film like the 1976 All the President’s Men.
He succeeded, and he should be very proud of the results.
What the world didn’t know at the time was that when the American Embassy was taken over in November 1979, six men and women managed to escape and hide out in the Canadian Embassy.
Affleck also stars as Tony Mendez, a CIA “exfiltration” specialist, and he comes up with a risky and dangerous plan to get the six Americans out of Iran without the militants knowing about it.
Once Tony’s plan is approved, his boss, played by Bryan Cranston, tells him, “The whole world is watching you; they just don’t know it.”
What Tony proposed was that he pretend to be a Canadian filmmaker, get into Iran with all the necessary documents for himself and the six Americans, and then convince the Iranian authorities that all seven of them were a Canadian film crew who were in Iran scouting for locations for a science-fiction movie they were making, using a script for an actual movie in turnaround called Argo.
However, in order to do that, Hollywood has to be convinced that the story is real, as well, and Tony gets the help of a producer played by Alan Arkin and a makeup artist played by John Goodman.
The title of the ARGO movie is used in a very funny and profane way, and you won’t be able to hear the word again without smiling or laughing.
When Tony tells the six Americans what he wants them to do, they aren’t completely cooperative, and the tension keeps building and building until the very end.
Argo is very funny and serious.
I’m Dan Culberson and this is “Hotshots.”
END
St. Augustine News and Notes for October 12, 2012
Oct 14th
This year’s theme, “Have 2 Ways Out,” gets extra emphasis from fire department this month
For the last 90 years, the week in which October 9 falls has been designated as Fire Prevention Week, but for the St. Augustine Fire Department, what is nationally a week is locally a month. Taking advantage of the nation-wide emphasis on fire prevention in October each year, the St. Augustine Fire Department uses the themed month to educate the public on fire safety.
Much of that education takes place in the community’s elementary schools, pre-schools and daycare centers where fire personnel are greeted by an audience ready to listen and willing to learn. According to John Rayno, St. Augustine’s Fire Marshal and Assistant Fire Chief, having firefighters visit schools is a very effective way to get information into the home.
This year’s Fire Prevention Week’s theme is “Have 2 Ways Out,” focusing on the need for escape plans to incorporate two exits for each room. Taking stock of available exits is essential to every escape plan, whether for home or business, and those plans need to be well known and practiced.
While the month of October has an emphasis on prevention education, fire department personnel are ready to bring tailor made programming to civic associations, businesses, living facilities, churches and anywhere else a group wants to know more about fire prevention.
For more information about Fire Prevention Week and the work of the St. Augustine Fire Department,
click here.
This week on The Break Room: Fire Prevention Week
Assistant Fire Chief and City Fire Marshal John Rayno stops by The Break Room this week to discuss this month’s educational efforts as part of Fire Prevention Week and, shares with program host, Paul K. Williamson, some specific fire safety guidelines.
Each week the friendly and informative style of The Break Room offers the community an opportunity to know a little more about how their city works by getting to know those who do the work every day. The Break Room airs Wednesdays at 5:30pm and Saturdays at 8:00am, and each program is archived at www.breakroom.info as podcasts available for download anytime. To listen to this week’s program immediately, click here.
Avenida Menendez crosswalk installation necessitates lane closure
Traffic reduced to one lane in each direction during installation work
The installation of crosswalks at two locations on Avenida Menendez will necessitate the reduction of traffic to two lanes, one for northbound traffic and one for southbound, in two locations on two different occasions in coming weeks. The crosswalks at Fort Alley and Cuna Street, currently delineated with stamped asphalt to simulate brick, will be replaced with historic, authentic brick.
To accommodate the extensive work, Avenida Menendez will be reduced to two lane, two way traffic for a period of four days lasting from mid-day Sunday through Wednesday evening. At no time will Avenida Menendez be closed, but traffic will be slowed through the area during the work.
The work is scheduled for:
— Fort Alley crosswalk installation: mid-day Sunday, October 21 through the evening of Wednesday, October 24.
— Cuna Street crosswalk installation: mid-day Sunday, October 28 through the evening of Wednesday, October 31.
The crosswalk installation is the final element of an extensive project that began in early February of this year and includes extensive pedestrian improvements along south Castillo Drive that have included the installation of new street lights, widening of sidewalks, and improved signalization for both pedestrians and vehicles.
Funding for the project was secured by Congressman John Mica who, during a visit to St. Augustine, noticed the challenges pedestrians had in the congested area lying between popular St. George Street and the Castillo de San Marcos National Monument. He then set about seeking an appropriation to fund the changes needed to alleviate those challenges.
To read a story on the city’s Web site regarding the project, click here.
For more information, contact the Planning and Building Department at 904.825.1065.
City plants 23 trees in just two days
Live oaks, red cedars and magnolias replace trees removed following tree assessment program
If it is true that any day is made better by the planting of a tree then last week the City of St. Augustine gave the community some great days by planting over 20 new trees in just a two-day period.
Most of the plantings are replacement trees for those that had to be removed following receipt of the results of a tree assessment that identified 15 trees in the city right-of-way that were deemed to be so far decayed as to be unsafe, commonly referred to as hazard trees.
The new trees included Live Oaks that were planted along the most northern section of San Marco Ave. and at Vickers Field, Magnolias planted on Riberia St. next to Francis Field, and Red Cedars along Flagler Blvd. and at the Visitors Information Center.
To learn more, click here.
Thirty-six days until Light-Up! Night
Nights of Lights’ 19th season begins on November 17
Have you seen your neighbors checking their holiday lights? Seem a little early? Not really when you consider that the 19th season of Nights of Lights is only a few weeks away.
Recognized as one of the Southeast’s major seasonal events, Nights of Lights has brought holiday excitement to the Nation’s Oldest City annually since 1994. The 10-week long event begins each year with a simple flip of a switch on the Saturday before Thanksgiving known as Light-Up! Night. To read about last year’s opening night, click here.
Don’t be “left in the dark” when the Nation’s Oldest City is transformed into an enchanted city of light.
For guidelines to participate in the Nights of Lights by adding displays to property in the city’s historic districts, click here.
For visitor information including dining, shopping, lodging, attractions, and tours, during the ten weeks of Nights of Lights, contact St. Augustine/Ponte Vedra on Florida’s Historic Coast by calling 800.653.2489 or visiting www.nightsoflights.com.
4 Ways 2 Stay in the City-Info-Loop
The city’s Public Affairs Department strives to keep the city’s constituents informed by making information
readily available and does so in a number of formats. In fact there are four ways to stay in the information loop. To learn what they are read this new story on the city’s web site by clicking here.
Opportunity to serve: Code Enforcement, Adjustments & Appeals Board
The City Commission is accepting applications to fill vacancies on the Code Enforcement, Adjustments & Appeals Board. Interested individuals who reside within the city limits of the City of St. Augustine are invited to submit applications for this volunteer board. Applications are requested by Friday, November 30 with appointments tentatively scheduled for the City Commission meeting of Monday, December 10. For information concerning qualifications and applications please contact the City Clerk’s office at 825-1007. The application form is available on the city’s web site by clicking here.
Agendas
The Code Enforcement, Appeals and Adjustment Board meets on October 9. The agenda is available here.
The Historic Architectural Review Board’s October meeting date has been rescheduled from October 18 until October 30. The agenda is available here.
All agenda, minutes and GTV info
Agendas and minutes for all city meetings can be found at www.staugustinegovernment.com with a schedule of upcoming meetings listed under City Calendar. City Commission meetings are broadcast live via GTV (Comcast Channel 3 in St. Augustine) each second and fourth Monday at 5:00pm. Commission meetings are also recorded and rebroadcast as are Planning and Zoning Board and Historic Architectural Review Board meetings. For a current schedule of all programming on GTV, click here.
Source: City of St. Augustine