Toon Time

I was excited about seeing some of the E3 trailers from Xbox live, however the sound is not working. Are they trying to get me to buy a slim? Sorry Balmer, you guys just got me a new console because my old one went RROD. As a result I am going to talk about a Steve Jobs Company.

Pixar is about to launch their next movie this week and I believe that I am more excited about Toy Story 3 than my kids are (and they are very excited). Even though I am excited, I am worried about TS3. Pixar has a lot to battle with this movie.

This is the third movie in the series and you will have a hard time telling me that the number three of any movie franchise that is good let alone the best in the series (Ewoks, put down your hands. Empire was the best and you know it). Godfather 3, Superman 3, Rambo 3 are prime examples.

Eleven blockbusters in a row will be what Pixar is shooting for with Woody et Trois. Pixar is bound to finally trip up and put up a massive stinking bomb with the third in any series. I do not care if my girl is the voice of a dinosaur in this or that Batman is the voice of Ken.

Dreamworks is catching up to Pixar and not just with the volume of animated films. Dreamworks may have 4 toons that will be released in 2010, but their first one (How to Train Your Dragon) proved that they can hang with Lasseter and company.

With all of this, Toy Story 3 will not only be another hit for the Mouse House, it will also be the number one movie of the summer. I say this because the Box Office has already been down and the entire industry is looking for something to hang their hat on and TS3 is the chosen one.

The marketing for this film has been epic. My kids watched a Toy Story celebration that was done very well. Not only did it show the first two films, but it had so many add ons, it would make a car salesman blush. As stodgy as Disney can be, they are some of the best marketers on the planet.

The main reason Toy Story 3 will be the hit of the summer is because it was created by Pixar. Good God, they are amazing. If you were not bawling your eyes out toward the beginning of Up, you have no soul. Monsters Inc. was one of the most inventive films ever and The Incredibles did a better job of the Fantastic Four than Marvel ever has.

This is another slurping of Pixar, but they earned it.

The Travails of a Traveler

My new life started in late January, because I got a new job. Although my previous gig was a good one, the new job let me do many more things that I wanted to do, including the perk of staying home more often. Last year, I was living out of a suitcase and it did get a bit tough after a while. However there were some upsides to the traveling and one of those things was learning to work the system.

I had been a Starwood whore for the previous few years, but I really learned how to get more out of the system. Since Four Points and Aloft hotels were on the lower end, I would frequent those establishments but even if I was staying for a few days, I would check in and check out every day. With Starwood, you get bumps in status by meeting certain thresholds and they are one of the few companies that allows you to qualify by number of stays or nights. To reach the top level it is either 50 nights or 25 stays and because of that, I hit Platinum in April or May. Also, every time you check in , you get bonus points.

Now that I am not traveling as much, I will lose my status and no more late nights staying up to watch Aqua Teen Hunger Force. However, staying at home is much better than Platinum except I don't get awesome shaving cream from Aloft anymore.