The HTC Touch Pro2

When I took the HTC Touch Pro2 out of the box that Verizon had sent me, the first thing that struck me was its amazingly large screen. Then, while still holding it in hand, I noticed its weight. It was heavy enough to do some damage if thrown. The 3.6-inch screen, with its stunning 480×800 resolution is made possible by the ginormous size, it measures 4.57″ (H) x 2.33″ (W) x 0.68″ (D) and weighs 6.4 ounces.

Comparing the weight to the iPhone’s 4.8 ounces and the Palm Pre’s 4.76 ounces, it’s a lot heavier. You may say 1.6 ounces isn’t all that much, but when it’s a full 33 percent heavier, I say that’s a lot. The Touch Pro2 isn’t as wide as Apple’s iPhone, but it’s extra thickness and height add to its bulk. When walking around with the phone in my pocket, it felt noticeable and not every phone is. Compared to the Palm Pre, the Touch Pro2 is wider, taller, thicker and heavier.

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<–Live radar of W. Michigan.  Nothing on it this Sat. Night.  Friday Evenings gusts:  50 mph at Spyglass at the Holland Channel, 49 mph at Lansing and at the Grand Haven Channel, 47 mph at Battle Creek, Muskegon and Ionia, 44 mph at Tulip City Airport in Holland, 41 mph at Grand Rapids.  Rainfall totals:  3.84″ near Mt. Pleasant, 3.58″ at WOOD (Heritage Hill), 3.49″ near Ludington, 3.29″ East G.R., 3.07″ Sparta, 2.93″ Benton Harbor   MoreRainfall totals listed here.   The record rainfall for GRR for Oct. 30 was 1.02″ and we tripled that!   Some flood reports from WOOD-TV. Hope the football fields can drain…otherwise they may have to play water polo instead of football.  More links:  Here’s GRR NWS radar, GRR storm total rainfall, Great Lakes radar Storm Total Rainfall, latest surface observations, a surface weather map, GRR NWS discussion, Visible Satellite loop (daytime), Infrared Satellite Loop (night), Here’s Milwaukee NWS radar and Chicago radar, Chicago storm total rainfall, the Spyglass Weather Station (Holland Channel) and the Muskegon GLERL weather station.  Gale Warnings for Lake Michigan.

<–this pumpkin isn’t real happy with the forecast.   9:15 PM – Only 10 kids at my house.  We had candy bars, pencils, WOOD Magnets and bags of pretzels – and they got one of each.  Just a few scattered lighter showers earlier today, and those pretty much tapered off by late afternoon.    The winds died down a bit and temps ranged from 39 at Big Rapids to 43 at Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo.     It was the coolest Halloween since 2004.  Five of the last nine Halloweens have brought us temperatures in the 60s.  We have had at least a trace of rain on 7 of the last 9 Halloweens.  The most rain on any Oct. 31 was 1.27″ in 1994, the most snow officially in G. R. was 1.5″ in 1917.  The warmest was 79 in 1950 and the coolest was 20 in 1988.  Happy November!

<–tree damage near Shreveport, La. (click the pic. to enlarge).  Six tornadoes struck in and near Sheveport, Louisiana Thursday evening.  There was one fatality when a vehicle ran into a downed tree near Vivian, La.  The steeple blew off a Methodist Church in Shreveport.  One man (a well-known local artist) in a passing vehicle was injured.  Eight others were taken to hospitals with various injuries in Haughton.  Check the picture at the link provided.  Video here.  It took nearly an hour to extricate him from his car.  The roof was heavily damaged at the downtown YMCA.  The storms also produced severe flooding.   A band of 6-inches of rain fell from E. Texas thru NW Louisiana and up into Arkansas.   The Emergency Operations Center in Bossier City, LA experienced severe flooding and had to be moved to Shreveport.   All Bossier City Schools have been closed for Friday, as well as Shreveport Catholic Schools.  Cars are floating on I-20 and underpasses are flooded.  Cars and at least two semi’s were blow off the expressway.  The Interstate is backed up for miles in both directions.  Evacuations are taking place.   Residents have been asked to stay off the roads.  Lots of pictures and additional information here.   The Red Cross has set up at least one shelter.  22,000 customers are without power.  Earlier winds gusted to over 70 mph at Stillwater OK.

<–Deer struggles through deep snow in Colorado & about 2 feet of snow on the poor pumpkin.   Drifts of snow are reported over 8-feet high north of Cheyenne, WY and the visibility there was down to 20 yards.   Check out the heavy snowfall in Colorado!  Up to 45.8″ at Pinecliffe and 40″ at Black Hawk and Evergreen.  Boulder’s had 20″!  Loveland Pass was closed west of Denver…same for I-25, I-70 (east of Denver), I-76, US 24 and US 34.  More info here.  The Denver Airport has had more than 6″.  Four miles south of the airport they report 11″.   Snow totals in the mountains could reach four feet!  Winter Storm Warnings continue through today.   At 8 PM -  snow and 24 degrees in both Denver.  Monarch Pass and Wolf Creek Pass reported temperatures of 9 above and Leadville dipped to -2.  Akron reports heavy snow and a wind NW at 26 mph.  Berthoud Pass is still S+ (heavy snow).  Drifts are 5-6 feet in the mountains.

Halloween is here… and there are plenty of options in theaters… or you can check our Top 50 Scary Movies of All Time poll for ideas on what to rent for Halloween… or check out the Michael Jackson concert documentary “This Is It” or the limited release options…

New at Theaters (Friday): “Michael Jackson’s “This Is It” (opened Wednesday), “The Boys Are Back” (limited), ”It Might Get Loud”  (The Harbor Theater in Muskegon)

Limited Release in Grand Rapids market: 
“Halloween II” (Celebration Cinemas Friday & Saturday nights only),
“The Boys Are Back” (Celebration! North, Celebration! Crossroads, Celebration! Carousel Muskegon),
“Tony Manero” (UICA in Grand Rapids through 11/5),
Scarefest 2009 – Saturday at the Harbor Theater in Muskegon,
“Bright Star” (The Harbor Theater in Muskegon through 11/5),
“Capitalism: A Love Story” (The Harbor Theater in Muskegon through 11/5),
“It Might Get Loud” (The Harbor Theater in Muskegon through 11/5)

Moving to Woodland Mall this week ($4.00 shows): “The Final Destination” (3D & 2D), “Pandorum”, “Jennifer’s Body”, “Fame”

Best Bet(s): If you’re a Michael Jackson fan, go see “This Is It” - its scheduled to be in theaters for 2 weeks only… otherwise if you’re looking for something scary for Halloween, there’s “Paranormal Activity”, “Saw VI”, “Halloween II”, “The Stepfather”, “Cirque Du Freak”, “The Final Destination”, “Pandorum”, or “Jennifer’s Body”. 

 CLICK HERE TO FIND A MOVIE SHOWTIME

New on DVD (Tuesday): “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs”, “Nothing Like the Holidays”, “Orphan”, “Stan Helsing”, “Whatever Works”

Best Bet(s): You’re on your own with five very different options, none of which I’ve seen yet: the 3rd movie in the popular family franchise “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs”… the holiday movie focused on a family ”Nothing Like the Holidays”… the thriller “Orphan”… the spoof “Stan Helsing”… and the Woody Allen romantic comedy “Whatever Works”.

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Next Week at Theaters: “The Box”, “A Christmas Carol”, “The Fourth Kind”, “Men Who Stare at Goats”, “A Serious Man” (limited), “More Than A Game” (limited), “Big Fan” (The Harbor Theater in Muskegon), “September Issue” (The Harbor Theater in Muskegon), “No Impact Man” (UICA in Grand Rapids), “The Way We Get By” (UICA in Grand Rapids)

Next Week on DVD: “Aliens in the Attic”, “The Answer Man”, “Food, Inc.”, “G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra”, “I Love You Beth Cooper”,  “The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3″

MY REVIEWS OF OTHER MOVIES CURRENTLY PLAYING IN THEATERS OR AVAILABLE TO RENT/BUY:  (more…)

I’ll was on WOOD-AM today (Thursday) from about 9:05 AM to 10 AM on Mouth to Mouth with Scott Winters and Michelle McKormick.  Michelle is in Colorado (see thread below, hee hee)  Listen in live online,  During the show call me on the Studio Lines at 616 774-2424 or Toll Free at
1-866-290-BUZZ (1-866-290-2899).  You can also email me a comment or question at: mouth2mouth@woodradio.com or scottwinters@woodradio.com

Here’s the year 2009 so far.  I’ll start with % of sunshine/average for the month:  Jan. 26/29, Feb. 33/39, March 72/46, April 49/51, May 65/56, June 64/61, July 64/64, August 61/61, Sept. 64/54, Oct. 24/44.   The weird part is that relative to average, March has been the sunniest month and October the cloudiest.  We have not had a single day in October with more than 80% sun.  I was surprised to see the July was normal, that seemed cloudier to me.  Precipitation has been 35.68″.  That’s 4.97″ above average and continues the overall wet pattern from 2008.   Here’s the temperature departure from normal:  Jan -4.9, Feb. +2.8, March +2.7, April +1.1, May +0.2, June +0.5, July -4.3, Aug. -0.4, Sept. +2.3, Oct. -3.2.  We’re about +0.1 for the year, so pretty much at average.   The two biggest severe weather events were June 19, when Holland got up to 8″ of rain and we had 3 tornadoes in Allegan Co., and August 9, when 85 mph winds hit Fruitport. The most snow midnight-to-midnight was 4.8″ on 2/21.  We had 2 days with 4.7″ in January.  Obviously, storms usually overlap days…but we could certainly have a day that tops 4.8″ in late Nov. or Dec.  No general hail days like 7/2/08 and the number of severe weather events has been considerably lower than average both here and for the U.S. in general.  Final note…looks like a decent snowstorm from Colorado thru western Neb. and the western Dakotas.  Already:  St. Mary’s Glacier, Colorado 17.0″, Meagher Co. Montana 16″, Centennial, Wyoming 14″.

 ”This Is It” IS the concert the world never got to see.

If you’re a fan of Michael Jackson and his death left you feeling empty and looking for a final performance from the King of Pop, ”This Is It” is an absolute must.

I’m giving three options here because if you were looking forward to this movie, see it, you probably won’t be disappointed… but if you’re just mildly curious, wait and enjoy it when it is released on DVD.
 

(Spoiler-free review)

The very personal look at the making of what was to be MJ’s final concert tour is well done, blending the songs and all the back stage footage as if we the audience were attending a concert, while on stage with the music legend.

“This Is It” is taken from more than 80 hours of rehearsal, soundchecks, and backstage footage over several months as MJ and his team of performers, musicians, and technical crew prepared for his planned shows in London.

The music documentary is riveting, showcasing MJ’s creative, inspiring professionalism.  Its an amazing final performance from MJ, who at 50 years old, looks very healthy and energetic… showing he’s still got the moves and the vocals.

But its also a very personal look at how MJ conducts business with loving determination, pushing the performers and technicians to make it the best show for the audience.   While he’s surrounded himself with some of the best talent in the world, he is still carefully and calmly teaching and leading them with a caring hand to help them shine.   MJ is very hands on, which gains him respect amoung the crew.. but he is the creative force when its all said and done.

Its interesting to see the 50-year-old MJ dancing with and setting the pace for dancers and musicians 20-25 years younger… and watching them try to keep up, while he is just in warm up and rehearsal mode.  Its amazing to think what this concert and MJ would have been like in full speed “live” mode.   The dancers are the supporting cast – as the documentary points out, the dancers are “an extension of Michael” – they even go through regular pillates, ballet, and choreography for the famous ‘grab’ to keep their skills sharp.

As you can imagine, the movie, like a concert, moves from one song to another through different devices like sounchecks, lighting, and choreography.   The song list includes “Beat It”, “Black or White”, “Jam”, “Billie Jean”, “The Way You Make Me Feel”.  Like a throwback to his classic music videos, new scenes were shot for the intro of “Thriller”… and for “Smooth Criminal”, MJ is put into a scene from the 1946 movie “Gilda” to set up the whole gangster motif.   Later, in “Man in the Mirror”, he’s singing with vocalists who grew up singing the song.

He’s a man with a message too – “This Is It” also captures MJ’s environmental concerns that he put into his songs and was planning for the London shows.

THE BOTTOM LINE:

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31 Best Scary Movies

Last year, I put out my list, but this year I spent a lot more time analyzing my picks and set a standard for myself on how to judge them.   This list is not just simply the scariest movies, its the best scary movies I have seen.

First of all, that means there’s a list of movies you might think are better that I haven’t seen because I can really only convince myself to see one really scary movie a year… and this year it was “Paranormal Activity”. 
Second, to seperate the really good from the just okay, the movies on this list are quality, well made movies and the movie (or a certain part of it) is the kind of frightening, creepy, or scary that stays with you and impacts you: the stuff of adult nightmares. 

So here it is (as of 2009), the 31 Best Scary Movies (that I’ve seen):
 

1. “The Ring” (2002)
2. “The Shining” (1980)
3. “The Exorcist” (1973)
4. “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (1974)
5. “Halloween” (1978)
6. “Psycho” (1960)
7. “Paranormal Activity” (2009)
8. “Saw” (2004)
9. “The Grudge” (2004)
10. “The Sixth Sense” (1999)

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