Table Topping

Re-Energized FBR

I spent most of yesterday involved in a table top exercise put on for my company by the TSA. I was dreading this because the other ones I’ve been involved with ended up being a bunch of government bureaucrats sitting around contemplating their navels for no discernible benefit other than their travel expenses. I was therefore very surprised and almost elated when it turned out be a highly effective and well run exercise. They involved everyone from the bus drivers and mechanics all the way up to the political leadership. They ran a very credible scenario which was spookily brought to life with some very real seeming news reports about a terrorist attack on one of our buses. I was impressed and it brought home the reality of today’s security environment to everyone attending as we walked through what our responses would be to these seemingly real events.

The FBR saw the doctor yesterday who provided some anti-biotics to treat her persistent cold and by the end of the day it was starting to pay benefits. I had a nice long talk with her mother last night where she said the FBR started exhibiting some of her trademark energy late in the day, conveniently just before bedtime. Since my granddaughter had already bequeathed the same cold to my daughter this return to form wasn’t greeted with the expected enthusiasm. My daughter is working at home today as she fights her cold and is trying to figure out how to do a couple of important conference calls with the re-energized FBR flying around. They caught me going out the door this morning with a surprise FaceTime call the FBR demanded. Possibly the nicest surprise imaginable – even when she then refused to talk with me.

Newest in a Long Line of Family Chuggers

My Favorite Son has run into a problem with the BRS in her bottle training effort. She’s too good at it and this after only a few days. The problem apparently stems from an inborn ability to excel at chugging. She put away 2 ounces of momma’s milk in less than two minutes last night. I make no claims whatsoever as to where she inherited this ability to chug from but any of my compatriots on the annual pub crawl can draw their own conclusions. Her dad wasn’t as justifiably proud as I thought he would be since the chugging leads to increased gas and spitting up. As with most things I guess a different perspective is needed and this falls into being a grandparent is so much more fun than a new parent.

My new MoviePass was re-energized last night as I went to see Gringo and not just because that’s a role I’ve been fulfilling for the past 36 years of marriage. I’m mystified as to what the filmmakers were attempting here with a vastly over qualified cast. I think they were aiming for a very dark comedy a la Kiss Kiss Bang Bang territory but they failed miserably. David Oyelowo is fantastic and very likable in the main role of a Chicago pharmaceutical executive with his life imploding around him during a business trip to Mexico. Despite their lofty credentials the only other cast member that stood out was Charlize who was doing her usual mass consumption of scenery. She is just so good and worth watching the movie just to see her play one of the bosses from hell. There was fertile ground for comedy but none of the other characters were allowed the space to develop and Sharlto Copley was completely wasted in a role he was born to excel in. A trite conclusion did nothing to rescue this mediocre mess.