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By Brendan Loy
Subtropical Storm Olga has formed.
UPDATE: Alan Sullivan writes: "At this time the radar display shows violent, twisting thunderstorms, but no distinct core. Olga's inner circulation seems to consist of multiple, orbiting swirls. Central pressure is dropping, however, and if a more distinct core forms, modest intensification could occur. Upper winds remain adverse for the development of a full-blown hurricane."
By JLR
As Brendan noted earlier, Baby Loy is now a "full term" baby. In recognition of this milestone, I am taking this opportunity to post everyone's predictions in the Irish Trojan Baby Pool.
It's interesting to note--only one person (me!) actually picked the baby's due date! To quote Brendan (in an e-mail to me):
You're the only person who predicted the baby will be born on her actual due date? LOL!
I wanted to point out that, yes, I am the only one to pick 12/31. You'll also note that I picked 11:59pm--a nod to the fact that Brendan and Becky get a tax break for all of 2007 even if Baby Loy comes a minute before the year ends. I'd probably have picked this date and time even if Becky was due on 12/25 or 1/5 :-P
And just a reminder: we're not playing The Price Is Right--whoever is closest to the actual birth time will be declared the winner. So, if the baby is born at noon on 12/31 or midnight on 1/1, I still win the pool by virtue of the fact that I'm closest to the right answer.
You can see the actual guesses after the jump. Some people have the baby being born as early as next week, and others say it won't happen until the middle of January. Again, to quote Brendan:
someone needs to familiarize Alasdair, Wobbly and Sandy with the concept that most doctors will not let a woman go more than a week past due before inducing labor...
There, Brendan, it's done. Congrats again to the two of you, and we, the entrants in your pool, wish you both (and Baby Loy) all the best of luck in the future.
By Brendan Loy
Rumors on the Internets are that he's been offered the job. That'd certainly be interesting.
P.S. The Daily Breeze also reports that Chow is a top candidate. And late last month, Conquest Chronicles quoted ESPN's Bruce Feldman as reporting that, according to a source, "Chow really wants the job." We shall see.
By Brendan Loy
Apparently I'm not the only one who thought it wasn't that good. New Line's $250 million adaptation of The Golden Compass is a box-office flop, making just $26.1 million in its opening weekend, a "dismally low figure" that "almost certainly means no sequel for the proposed trilogy," according to MTV.
Deadline Hollywood Daily's Nikki Finke says, "This flop should sink New Line Cinema chairman Bob Shaye's chances to stay on when his contract expires in 2008." Cinema Blend's Josh Tyler says we should just "pray New Line can remain solvent long enough to get The Hobbit made." As for Compass, Tyler writes:
I’m sure the religious right will declare the failure of The Golden Compass at the box office this weekend as some sort of victory for Jeebus, but the truth is the movie failed because it wasn’t that good, and audiences are getting sick of these second-rate fantasy adaptations.
I think that's about right. Personally, I don't care what, if any, religious messages my movies preach. But I do generally prefer films that actually take the time to develop their characters in some semi-meaningful way. And if the plot makes at least a modicum of sense, all's the better.
By CNN
-- Ex-NFL star Michael Vick sentenced to 23 months in prison for his role in a dogfighting conspiracy.
By Brendan Loy
Baby Loy is officially full term!
That's right: as of today, Becky is 37 weeks pregnant, so although her due date is still three weeks away, the little one wouldn't be considered premature if she were to decide that today's the day. (That said, can we please wait at least until tomorrow, baby? Today would be kind of inconvenient. ;)
Anyway, today's what-size-food-is-the-baby fun fact involves not a fruit, as in most previous weeks, but a vegetable:
Your baby weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches, head to heel (like a stalk of Swiss chard).
Here's the Wikipedia page for Swiss chard, if you were wondering.
P.S. The earliest predicted arrival date in the baby pool is December 19, by Nadine. Maybe we should mark our calendars; Nadine's clairvoyance in such matters has already been demonstrated. And that'd be just about as early as I was...
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