Belated Friday Open Thread: Legends Are Mortal Too Edition

1. 2000 were chock full of kiddie movies for me. But in no particular order: No Country for Old Men, The Proposition, The Lives of Others, Tree of Life, and I’ll cheat and throw in a four-way tie between Wes Anderson (Life Aquatic & Tannenbaums), City of God, and WTF, Almost Famous.

2. Louisiana Purchase, which ultimately paved the way for Les Miles.

3. Five Guys. Panera. Trader Joes.

4. 2 cats (Gus, Louise) and a dog (Sheila)

5. A couple of tough groups….Germany, Netherlands, Portugal is nice, England vs France is fun, Spain and Italy in same group is cool. I can’t wait.

6. I had to look it up. Logic is wasted on the logical.

1. Dark Knight, Grizzly Man, Juno, Superbad, and No Country for Old Men
2. Louisiana Purchase (sorry Nighthawk). Just a monumental purchase and a monumental deal for the U.S.
3. Five Guys, Chipotle, Wendy’s, Papa Johns
4. No pets, but 4 younger siblings (ages: 13,10,6,4)
5. Not a huge soccer guy, but I don’t hate it, I get really excited during the World Cup, so I guess I’ll call myself a fair-weather soccer fan"
6. E) Chen

Germany will win Euro 2012

1. What are the five best movies of the 2000s? ME: No Country for Old Men, Mulholland Drive, Lord of the Rings (pick one), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (naming this one specifically), and Memento.

2. After the United States won their independence and drafted the Constitution, what was the most important moment of the next thirty years? ME: Despite being a windy Americanist historian (post-1865 and 20th century at that), I’m only going to name the event: War of 1812. With it, we finished our revolution from the English.

3. What restaurant chains are you a fan of? Favorite? ME: Chipotle, Starbucks, Jimmy Johns.

4. Do you have any pets? ME: Do plants count? If so, then yes.

5. For us soccer fans, what are your initial impressions from the Euro 2012 draw? For the non soccer fans, why do you hate soccer? Have you seen Alex Morgan? ME: N/A

6. Annie rides with Bob, and he paddles.

1. What are the five best movies of the 2000s? Lord of the Rings, Hot Fuzz, Donnie Darko, The Prestige, The Wrestler.

2. After the United States won their independence and drafted the Constitution, what was the most important moment of the next thirty years? Eli Whitney & the cotton gin. Always a great essay answer.

3. What restaurant chains are you a fan of? Favorite? I prefer locally-owned restaurants to chains. Can’t wait for DD to make it to my corner of KC, hopefully soon. My favorites are probably Five Guys (burgers), Chipotle (Mexican), Planet Sub (subs). And I really do like Taco Bell. Starbucks and Caribou for espresso, though Parisi coffe (KC local) has a cafe in Union Station that beats them both.

4. Do you have any pets? One dog, two cats, they all came with the wife.

5. For the non soccer fans, why do you hate soccer? Don’t hate it, have just never watched it. My high school didn’t even have a team until my junior year or so. I also don’t watch the NBA or NHL.

6. A logic puzzle……….. I spent too much time producing video last night to spend time on this one, though I should!

1. What are the five best movies of the 2000s? This question was posed in a game thread during the 2011 season, and led to a lengthy conversation. Take your time with this one, it is that important.

I’m guessing my list will have at least one that doesn’t make anyone else’s list:
1. The Tree of Life
2. There Will Be Blood
3. Children of Men
4. The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada
5. Amores Perros
HM (in alphabetical order): Amelie, City of God, Drive, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, 40-Year Old Virgin, No Country for Old Men, O Brother Where Art Thou, Oldboy, Requiem for a Dream, Step Brothers, 28 Days Later

2. After the United States won their independence and drafted the Constitution, what was the most important moment of the next thirty years? At least 200-300 words is required for this question.

Since the Constitution was ratified in 1788, I’d be inclined to go with the ratification of the Bill of Rights which happened in 1791. Obviously this seems like a bit of a cop-out on the question and is escaping on a technicality.

As that seems cheap, my second choice would be the start of construction on the Erie Canal which began in 1817 and in eight years time would create a navigable trade route from the Atlantic to Duluth. It ultimately allowed for the Union to easily transport goods keeping their troops stocked up with goods while the Confederacy was unable to reliably get food to their soldiers.

I guess if you wanted me to find something that happened in between June 21, 1788 and June 21, 1818, and I could only choose one event, I’d go with Marbury v. Madison, which established Judicial Review. That’s a gun to my head answer. One could certainly argue that something like John Adams keeping Washington’s cabinet who then undercut him at every turn, or Jefferson’s purchase of the Louisiana Territory could reasonably outweigh the long-term effect of Marbury v. Madison.

It sure as shit wasn’t the War of 1812.

3. What restaurant chains are you a fan of? Favorite?

Taco Bell (no ground beef, though), Delaware Subs (small, local/regional sub chain), Thundercloud Subs (another local sub chain), Culver’s, Wendy’s (as far as the national burger chains are concerned), Five Guys, Taco John’s (although there are none within about 700 miles of where I live)

4. Do you have any pets?

Not an animal guy.

5. For us soccer fans, what are your initial impressions from the Euro 2012 draw? For the non soccer fans, why do you hate soccer? Have you seen Alex Morgan?

Indifferent to soccer. I root against US men’s soccer because I don’t really like their style and the elation of victory in the World Cup should go to a country who actually gives a fuck. Unless that country is Germany. I dislike German soccer.

1. What are the five best movies of the 2000s? This question was posed in a game thread during the 2011 season, and led to a lengthy conversation. Take your time with this one, it is that important.

I’m really not a movie person, so pass.

2. After the United States won their independence and drafted the Constitution, what was the most important moment of the next thirty years? At least 200-300 words is required for this question.

The Louisiana Purchase seems to be a very obvious answer here – annexing half the country has to count for something. I might add victory in the War of 1812 on top of that (but not the Battle of New Orleans, because that came after the war was over.)

3. What restaurant chains are you a fan of? Favorite?

Chick Fil-A, Wendy’s, Five Guys. Maybe favorite is Five Guys.

4. Do you have any pets?

I have two rats.

5. For us soccer fans, what are your initial impressions from the Euro 2012 draw? For the non soccer fans, why do you hate soccer? Have you seen Alex Morgan?

I’m becoming more and more of a soccer fan, I guess it’s fair to say. My brother has gotten me into it. But I still know nothing of Euro 2012.

1. Top 5: There Will Be Blood, Memento, Children of Men, Before The Devil Knows You’re Dead, Munich

Receiving Votes: Brick, Zodiac, Requiem For A Dream, Step Brothers, The Virgin Suicides, No Country For Old Men, Inside Man, A History of Violence, Ghost Dog, 21 Grams, Lars and The Real Girl, Wall-E, Almost Famous, Drive, The Others, The Damned United, Matchstick Men, Tropic Thunder, Layer Cake, Road To Perdition, Frost/Nixon, Royal Tenenbaums

2. I’ll let this one play out to see what people think.

3. Five Guys Burger and Fries. I remember them when they just had a few restaurants in Northern Virginia, and they haven’t lost quality since branching out. Outside of them, I got nothing. They all stink.

4. I have my pit, Jack. He’s a 65 pound rock of muscle. Very gentle beast.

5. Somehow the Oranje always end up in the group of death, it isn’t fair. I think Germany looks scary right now. Excited to see the young Danish star. I think Ireland has a shot to advance playing their insanely boring style. Group A is a joke, how did that happen?

6. Annie is mistake free.

1. What are the five best movies of the 2000s? This question was posed in a game thread during the 2011 season, and led to a lengthy conversation. Take your time with this one, it is that important.

2001: A Space Odyssey…errr…nevermind:
1. No Country For Old Men- was effing flawless (and I read the book before hand)
2. There Will Be Blood- can Daniel Day Lewis win the Best Actor Oscar for this movie twice?
3. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind- just individual preference with this one
4. Toy Story 3- animation done to perfection because of intricate, engaging plot line
5. Inception- was just effing cool as hell

Honorable Mention: Requiem for a Dream, Finding Nemo, Inglorious Basterds

2. After the United States won their independence and drafted the Constitution, what was the most important moment of the next thirty years? At least 200-300 words is required for this question.

Free Masonry

3. What restaurant chains are you a fan of? Favorite?

My wife and I are huge fans of Texas Roadhouse: excellent service, food, and pricing. Only downside is huge crowds.

We also love (gulp) Olive Garden for the soup and salad anytime of day.

CHIPOTLE! Can’t go wrong there, except for the visit to the Commodores concert that happens 15 minutes later. In Liberty there is a Lemon Tree yogurt shop right next to Chipotle. I swear these 2 need to partner up. The stomach explosion of Chipotle combined with the mellowing of delicious frozen yogurt is so delightful. If I had a chunk of extra money laying around I would invest in Chipotle because they haven’t franchised yet. They have a simple way of doing business (menu hasn’t changed in forever and with the few items they never excessively waist resources because the pans empty daily) and if they franchise I look for a big boom.

Love me some Panda Express.
I like a lot of chains when they do it right!

4. Do you have any pets?

A gigantic 80 pound retired racing greyhound named Murphy whom I have shared pictures with y’all after he sniped my dinner one night. He is a big lover and is completely harmless (unless he gets his tail wagging).

5. For us soccer fans, what are your initial impressions from the Euro 2012 draw? For the non soccer fans, why do you hate soccer? Have you seen Alex Morgan?

got too much on my plate for the madness

6. A logic puzzle………..

I tried, but my mind is shot after 2 papers tonight. Good one though. Like the jug/water problem from Die Hard 3. I think about that one all the time and quickly remember how to do it.

1. Lord of the Rings, Snatch, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, There Will Be Blood, No Country For Old Men, True Grit (if 2010 is included), Memento, Brick, Elephant, Star Trek, 28 Days Later, Sunshine (Danny Boyle). I’m sure there is a lot I’m forgetting.

2. Too many of great import to narrow the list. Louisiana Purchase, Lewis and Clark expedition, Bill of Rights, War of 1812 and the Treaty of Ghent, Thomas Paine’s The Rights of Man. The cotton gin was pretty big. Had a huge impact on the next several decades by reviving the slave-driven South’s economic struggles. Big time for the nation. Although it doesn’t compete with the last thirty years of the 19th century for historical significance.

3. Is Habanero’s a chain? Probably my favorite restaurant. 75th St. Brewery, Chipotle, Waldo Pizza, Minsky’s, Mr. Goodcents.

4. I don’t technically no. My roommate has a dog, so I guess I kind of do.

5. Group A: Underwhelming
Group B: Congratulations Germany
Group C: On paper looks to be the most competitive group
Group D: Would love to see the Republic slip in over Italy.

1) Films, in no particular order: American Beauty, Sideways, Election, Momento, Restrepo, but this list could go on and on.

2) Moment in History 30 years after ID: Laura Linney marrying Paul Giamatti in “John Adams”; from that point on, doofy looking American men could have hope that a hot, smart woman could someday be with them, as well.

3) Chains: Trader Joes, Aldi, Skyline Chili

4) Pets: None, but only because I travel quite a bit.

5) Soccer: don’t hate it but don’t like it. If I had to say why, it’s that I don’t like games that end in a tie and are not then decided by playing the game (having a shoot-out to me makes as much sense as having a ‘Punt-Pass and Kick’ contest at the end of a tie football game), don’t like there not being a clock to see a count-down, don’t like that the clock continues during a celebration (why not go up 1-0 and then tap a keg and party down ‘til the ref blows the whistle?), and soccer is basically basketball with your feet, so I get my fix of that type of game with basketball and to a lesser extent, football; don’t have any more room in my sports brain for another ‘ball down the field/court to a goal’ game, I guess. Oh, and soccer always reminds me of douch-bags from St. Louis.

But here is the answer to #6

Annie and Bob go across first= 2 minutes
Annie goes back to get the others=1 minute
Charles and Dan go across=10 minutes
Bob goes back to get Annie=2 minutes
Bob and Annie go across again=2 minutes

17 minutes

1: Five that I liked a lot: In the Loop, A Serious Man, Broken Flowers, The Royals Tennenbaums, Adaptation

2. Whoah. Dudes have some spare time up in here..

3. Taco Cabana in TX is pretty good for fast food. Does Gates count? Winsteads?

4. No pets now. We’re planning on getting a dog once our son is old enough to appreciate the experience of getting one, as opposed to it always having been there. (I hope that makes sense.)

5. I think soccer’s great but with college hoops, NBA, and baseball – to say nothing for an infant at home – there’s only so much time. Also, it’s hard to follow in the States without having to pay for bonus cable packages I otherwise wouldn’t use (Big 10 network, etc), though that seems to be improving.

6. $%^*#$!@&$&^%&&&(%&$!#!#$E%^&%&*(^&%^$%#^&#$%^

1. City of God, The Life Aquatic, No Country for Old Men, Man on Wire, There Will Be Blood – it occurs to me that the movies with the biggest impact on me often correspond directly with a similar event on my life - for example I watched City of God with a close Brazilian friend, I watched The Life Aquatic when I was on a 2 month boat-trip, and watched Man on Wire right after I took the bar exam and was about to start my legal career- all three movies really hit me hard, because they each related to something very important and personal to me.

2. Monroe Doctrine – this is just outside the time frame, but the political, military and economic consequences of American domination over Latin America and South America was key to economic growth and military stability.

3. Only chains that get me excited anymore are Jimmy Johns and In-and-Out, but there and none of either around me.

4. My roommate has a dog, which is cool, because I get to play with him, but am not responsible for him otherwise. Win-win.

5. Love soccer, but only World Cup and club soccer – don’t follow the Euro cup.

6. Start with the fast guys, leave one, then the slow guys go over, fast guy comes back, two fast guys go again.