Before I start, may I just say “thank you Google”. I LOVE that I can type in something as vague as “box office week of October” and find, yes, how various films did at the box office.

I decided to check to see how things were going. Wallace And Gromit had been #1 at the bo the week it opened, which totally thrilled me. I know there are fans out there but I had no idea that stop motion animation about a Dog and his Man (and bunnies!!!) would take the number 1 spot – and frankly, given the damn fire at Aardman, I’m glad they had some cool news. According to one site, it held at #2 for week two, which is just GRAND.

“Good Night, and Good Luck” only apparently opened in “select theaters’ on Friday, the 14th (only 68 theaters nationwide) and still managed to be in the 16th spot. Not bad for a film made for FAR less money than many. And Clooney plowed his salary as both writer and director back into the project – word is lots of them worked for scale (but that’s off an unofficial website so can’t be sure). Apparently, it will expand into over 200 theaters this week – so no more excuses, you! (oh STOP THAT). But seriously, it surprises me that it’s that well received, compared to what else is being offered. It’s a serious movie, about history in black and white. This is COOL.

Calendars – got yours yet? When did they start showing up in YOUR stores? Before the Christmas decorations? Or … The drugstore nearby has had the cheapy “cute kitty” and “American images” types for what, a month? The discount place, also a few weeks. University bookstore, which gets dozens, even hundreds of amazing calendars, has had ‘em on the shelves for a while. One’s head could explode.

Half Price Books tends to have some fascinating options and we’ve gone there at times; I remember getting a Pilobolus calendar there one year which I’d never seen. A couple of years ago , I got my first ever beefcake calendar when I bought a firefighter calendar. I was working a fundraiser for NARAL and one of the prizes at the auction was to be a judge of the next calendar’s finalists. Several of THAT year’s firefighters were there to sign that year’s edition and I could NOT pass it up. They were SO sweet and it was in such a good cause. And while I don’t tend to get all swoony about naked bodies, it’s not like I DON’T appreciate ‘em.

So when I went to CNN’s website this am, just to see if the world was still there, I saw a headline about a calendar from “The Colon Club” featuring photos of survivors of colo-rectal cancer. And their scars. See http://www.colonclub.com/colondar.html if you want to. I think it’s awesome and I remember for YEARS worrying about showing my scars to anyone. Finally realizing that it’s NOT my problem if it creeps people out. I’ve got some long scars on my back from the 2 fusion surgeries; At this point, I bet very few of my friends DON’T have scars from something but this was back when I was in my 20s and I worried. Then I stopped.

I decided to take a look at some of the resources out there for those wanting calendars for 2006. No, no, Don’t Thank me. Just enjoy your “Shania Twain” calendar.

How about the Skepchicks calendar? They’re apparently just getting started but this seems worth promoting, huh?

Skepchicks, Intl. is an organization dedicated to promoting skepticism and critical thinking among women around the world. And they’re offering a calendar.

Oh wait, sorry, I was over on cafepress looking at the “Fluffy Bunnies of Doom” calendars. I no longer remember WHAT I was doing!

They also offered “shirt for writers which includes several “titles are hard – writer’s block” tee-shirts …the Maltese Budgie, the Maltese Reticulated Python, the Maltese Hamster”…

Oh and LOOK at all the “Santos McGarry stuff….

Oh MANNNNN.

Signed, easily distracted Andi