So one of the ads that did air here during the Superbowl was a commercial for McDonalds Canada that seemed to invite questions about the ingredients in their McNuggets:
For some reason, they chose “pink goop” as an ingredient to publicly refute. Which is fine except the question would really be more applicable to their “beef” products. I didn’t see the answer to that one.
But the commercial did provoke some thought. What DOES go into a chicken McNugget? I wanted to know. So I hopped online to find out:
So What Really Is In A McDonald’s Chicken McNugget? – Rense
“But perhaps the most alarming ingredient in a Chicken McNugget is tertiary butylhydroquinone, or TBHQ, an antioxidant derived from petroleum that is either sprayed directly on the nugget or the inside of the box it comes in to “help preserve freshness.” According to A Consumer’s Dictionary of Food Additives, TBHQ is a form of butane (i.e. lighter fluid) the FDA allows processors to use sparingly in our food…”
25 Ingredients in McDonald’s Chicken McNuggets | Care2 Healthy …
“Dimethylpolysiloxane– used as an anti-foaming agent, this industrial chemical is typically used in caulking and sealants and comes with a list of safety concerns. It’s best reserved for industrial sealants than for food.”
Er, okay McDonalds Canada. Thanks for prompting me to do my own research – and convincing me NOT to eat at McDonalds.
Hey, the Raleigh Chamber of Commerce has invited Michael Vick as a guest speaker for some event called the “Evening of Champions”. Kind of odd given that Michael Vick hasn’t won any championships over the course of his football career. Most recently, he played for the Philadelphia Eagles who backed their way into a division title – on the strength of back-up quarterback Nick Foles’ performance.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/03/michael-vick-evening-of-champions_n_4717230.html
Anyway, I can’t wait to see who they’ve lined up as their next speaker. Might I suggest a reformed serial killer or that Kony guy.
So far, the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce Facebook page has racked up over 1050 comments. And they aint exactly positive: RaleighChamber
Meanwhile, file this one under “You’ve got to be kidding me.” Dog surrendered to high kill animal control because owners are going on vacationexaminer.comUpdate via Pets Connect Us (Facebook): Oso was reclaimed by his owners. The reasons that pets are surrendered to animal control facilities are many…moving, ba Would love to offer this owner a few words.
Last week, I posted a story about Pennie Jekot, the director of The Humane Alliance of Rutherford County, who, it’s been alleged, swiped some poor, elderly couple’s chihuahua. Perhaps this all some innocent misunderstanding on the part of Ms. Jekot? Well, if so, she’s in no hurry to return the dog. Unfortunately for her, a lot of people are pissed off. And getting organized. If you’d like to help the Bring Buddy Back Home cause, check out their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/bringbuddybackhome/
Continuing our Stargate Atlantis rewatch with…Thirty-Eight Minutes!
Ouch. Many of the early episodes actually improve with a nostalgic reviewing. This one…not so much. Nevertheless, I kept my mouth shut during the screening so as not to unfairly sway Akemi. As it turned out, it wouldn’t have mattered if I had. She wasn’t a fan. In fact, she was downright bewildered.
Surprisingly, she didn’t bump on the plastic bug latched to Sheppard’s neck for most of the episodes, but she did have a problem with those two filler scenes. The first, the one in which Halling and the Athosians approach Weir regarding some Athosian pre-death ceremony; the second, Kavanaugh’s extended complaint scene with Weir: “Why? What the purpose? It’s like they just want excuse to show she is good commander.” Hmmm.
She also took exception to Sheppard’s poor marksmanship: “He’s not good at shooting. Jamil [SGU’s Ronald Greer] is better.”
Again, the episode highlights for her were humorous, both intentional (“I like the cranky guy. Chotto funny. McKay need sugar.”) and unintentional (“When the bug saw him with bug and left him. Adios.”). In fact, her most impassioned response came in the episode tag when the rest of the team visit Sheppard in the infirmary and Teyla walks in wearing a rainbow top. “WTF is that?!” And then, noticing Weir’s bizarre all-brown (leather? suede? mohair?) ensemble: “WTF IS THAT?!!”.
Overall: “I preferred last night’s episode.” And leave it at that.
For my part, in reviewing the show, one thing stands out for me above all others: the Athosians. Damn, they’re annoying.
Also, Kavanaugh has a point. I mean, consider this: He and a bunch of scientists are in the midst of spinning various scenarios for rescue when he posits the possibility that McKay’s access of the puddle jumper’s systems could initiate an explosion, an explosion that could transfer through the gate. He doesn’t say it’s a certainty, but a possibility. Hell, the scientist he is arguing with doesn’t deny the possibility although he she considers it unlikely. It’s still a possibility. Weir’s response is to dress Kavanaugh down for having the audacity to bring up the potential danger, even going so far as to suggest he did so out of concern for his life over the lives of those trapped in the puddle jumper. Uh, what? If Kavanaugh’s worst case scenario does unfold, he’s going to be one of MANY Atlantis personnel injured or killed by the blast. Also, he wasn’t suggesting they give up on rescue (as Weir intimates), only that they reconsider allowing McKay to poke around at random.
Needless to say, I await tonight’s screening of Suspicion (Paul and my first Atlantis episode – and a heavy Athosian one no less!) like a street fight bracing himself for a baseball bat blow to the head.
Mailbag:
Line Noise writes: “The most memorable scene of Hide and Seek was when Sheppard pushed McKay off the balcony in front of Weir. Weir’s horror and the boyish gleam in Sheppard’s and McKay’s eyes is priceless.”
Answer: Agreed. That was my favorite moment in the episode.
Line Noise also writes: “I think Jinto just needs a mother. What happened to Jinto’s mum?”
Answer: Sadly, she ran off with a traveling hand-held fire-starter salesman.
Line Noise also writes: “What, for that matter, happened to Jinto’s dad’s leg that required him to hop around on crutches? Was that originally in the script or did Christopher Heyerdahl hurt himself and it had to be written into the story?”
Answer: Chris, the actor, suffered an injury prior to filming so Robert Cooper simply wrote it into the script – much like the Daniel appendicitis of SG-1 season 3’s Nemesis.
Deborah Rose writes: “this episode rose above the material. The energy monster was meh, though the way the heroes resolved it was sensible. Loved that Teyla saw what the others took a long time to grasp. Loved the comedy in the episode, especially Sheppard’s evil delight in having shot at McKay. Loved McKay’s growth, in stepping out to be the hero, even knowing the high probability of death. Handled less adroitly, this whole episode would have reeked. But cast and production managed to put together something that was worth watching, and even rewatching.”
Answer: Uh, you appear to be contradicting yourself here. You start off by stating the episode rose above the material (the implication here is “the script) and compliment the cast and production, but everything you lauded (“Loved that Teyla saw what the others took a long time to grasp. Loved the comedy in the episode, especially Sheppard’s evil delight in having shot at McKay. Loved McKay’s growth, in stepping out to be the hero, even knowing the high probability of death.”) was actually scripted.
majorsal writes: “Answer: True. If she enjoys Atlantis and wants to check out SG-1, I’ll probably start with season 9.
you’ve got to be kidding. to me, that’s the *worst* season of the entire sg1 run! come on, joe, let her see the golden and BEST of this series!”
Answer: As I said, if I sat her down to watch SG-1’s first season, she’d probably excuse herself and then secretly hop on the first plane back to Japan. That was a rocky first season with some very rough visual effects.
kabra writes: “We’re commenting on Hide and Seek, correct?? I am a little puzzled by the “force field” that McKay wears. He can pick up,physically wrap his hands around the the coffee mug, but he can not drink from it. How is that?”
Answer: Yes, a very unique force field that doesn’t allow foreign matter to enter the body (i.e. food and drink) with the exception of air. I’ve always wondered about the reverse.
arctic goddess writes: “I also loved McKay’s general hypochondria with fears that he was dying from all sorts of innocuous issues. Who came up with these very interesting personality quirks? Do writers add that to the script, then it is approved or not approved by the producer?”
Answer: On Stargate, the writers WERE the producers, so the steps to approval were very short. McKay’s personality quirks were scripted and developed by Robert Cooper and Brad Wright who based these quirks on certain individuals they worked with in the past.
Randomness writes: “Realistically do you think the Athosians could have settled on Atlantis over the long term? Naturally as the expedition was relatively new to the city, do you think there was some concern that they may press something/do something that may cause trouble(Even accidently), that could have made the team think that perhaps while they get to grips with the city and its functions that the Athosians would be better off elsewhere?”
Answer: Sure, I think that the Athosians could have proven themselves capable enough. But I suspect they would have been no less annoying.
Today’s entry is dedicated to blog regular 2cats. Happy belated birthday!!!
Huh. I kind of liked Thirty-Eight Minutes. Except for the plastic bug, I thought it had quite a bit of suspense. But most of all I guess it was because it pretty much involved the Stargate for the whole episode, and it is the name of the show after all!
It’s true that Kavanaugh brought up a valid point, but he was just so damned annoying about it. With such poor interpersonal skills, it is more of a wonder how he made it to the expedition in the first place – surely he had exhibited such antagonism before.
Update – Brio (the budgie) seems to be doing much better today. I guess he just didn’t want to eat while I was away? Not sure how that’s going to work out in the future when I go away for more than a weekend. We’ll see.
Ugh. I meant – “Except for the plastic bug, I thought it was pretty good and had quite a bit of suspense.” Sentences are better when they make sense.
It’s my understanding that there used to be pink goop in the McNuggets, at least in the U.S., but they got rid of it shortly after the issue started getting attention. Pink goop is from recovering every last bit of meat from bones and the processes used to get it I believe are banned for beef because of the fear putting so much nerve tissue in the food supply would spread certain kinds of diseases like mad cow disease.
I stopped eating at our nearest McDonald’s when I realized why the high chairs are gray – camouflage. I consider myself a terrible housekeeper but I’ve never had gray stains on a high chair. Brighter colors, yes, not gray. The greasiness of the spots reminded me more of an auto repair shop so the food there having some petroleum-based chemicals puts some plausible explanation into why there would be gray gunk.
Rutherford County, TN had another shameful story crop up, a prisoner strapped to a chair, pepper sprayed, and left in the fumes for a while. There was some confusion as to the date of the video that surfaced.
Joe: “Teyla walks in wearing a rainbow top. “WTF is that?!” And then, noticing Weir’s bizarre all-brown (leather? suede? mohair?) ensemble: “WTF IS THAT?!!”.”
You’ve piqued my interest, Joe, but my over-50 brain doesn’t recall the scene. I’ll Google, since I’m not re-watching, but do you perhaps have a handy screen-cap or two of those costumes? Thanks.
Hmm. I see your point about the contradiction. I will yield a little ground, especially on such points as Teyla offering the solution. Good scripting. But things like the McKay/Sheppard horse playing and many of the other points could have easily crashed, had the actors not pulled it off. It’s ironic also that I did appreciate how the tensions between the Atlantis expedition and the Athosians wasn’t shoved into the background. We have two cultures having to live with each other, but there are differences in what they believe and how they operate. And to give you folks your due, you didn’t simply address this once and let it go. We do see it come up again.
On the other hand, I loved 38 minutes. We have a countdown to disaster, in a nice compact space. Yes, we have bugs hanging from our hero’s neck, but I managed to suspend my disbelief enough to enjoy the episode. I do remember the first time I saw this wondering why they didn’t use simple Newtonian physics to solve the problem, but it was a drastic measure to take. I may take another look at this one later, just to see what in it makes you so ….reserved… about it. And Akemi’s reactions are still fascinating. At least in season two she shouldn’t have complaints about some of our heroes shooting. Thanks for the posting, and posting your reading list. It’s giving me some ideas, since for some reason I don’t seem to be hitting the book store as much as normal.
Never mind, found some reference photos. Here’s one with both outfits:
http://props.stargate-wiki.org/wiki/File:Teyla%27s_costume_from_Thirty_Eight_Minutes_01.JPG
Weir’s jacket:
http://www.gateworld.net/gallery/displayimage.php?album=255&pid=197884#top_display_media
From these & other photos, I’m thinking upscale track suit in a brushed satin-like polyester or a close-cropped velvet.
Teyla’s costume with description:
http://props.stargate-wiki.org/wiki/Teyla's_costume_from_Thirty_Eight_Minutes
I like the multicolor Bohemian /Athosian look of the blouse.
(About 45 years ago, I dreamed of being a costumer when I grew up.)
joe/Answer: As I said, if I sat her down to watch SG-1′s first season, she’d probably excuse herself and then secretly hop on the first plane back to Japan. That was a rocky first season with some very rough visual effects.
what about just showing her a few episodes from each season?
i went through gateworld’s ep guide and created a list. i chose the season premieres and finales in each season (except 9 and 10), and a few general eps that i thought stood out for any reason. sometimes i chose ones that i thought were a good character ep for each team member. or just one i liked. :p
i had a lot of trouble with seasons 9 and 10, so… sorry. :p
k, here’s the list:
s1-children of the gods, The Torment of Tantalus, solitudes, Within the Serpent’s Grasp.
s2-the serpents lair, in the line of duty (good carter ep), the tokra 1/2, a matter of time, out of mind.
s3- into the fire, legacy (good daniel ep ) , jolinar’s memories, the devil you know, foothold, urgo, maternal instinct (b/c it’ll show her the introduction of the glowy ancients), nemesis.
s4- small victories, window of opportunity, beneath the surface, entity (amanda was very good in this) , exodus.
s5- enemies, 48 hours (b/c it introduces her to mckay), meridian, revelations.
s6- redemption 1/2, allegiance, prometheus, unnatural selection, paradise lost (good jack episode), full circle. (not sure on my selections)
s7- fallen, lifeboat, evolution 1/2, heroes 1/2, lost city 1/2. (great season!)
s8- new order 1/2, avatar (good teal’c episode) , reckoning 1/2, threads, moebius 1/2 (but it could really confuse her, like the rest of us! :p)
s9- i only liked one episode, The Scourge.
s10- the pegasus project, 200, the quest 1/2, line in the sand. (iffy with this selection)
so what do you think, joe?
Hey! I got a blog dedication for my birthday, (and it actually is today, the 4th) ;-), gee thanks Joe!
I gotta say, Hide and Seek didn’t do much for me. I recall the week it first aired, SG-1 also some shadow/fog creature and I thought the writers had shadow critters on the brain… (sorry). However, I did enjoy 38 minutes because of the SFX and practical work and the interesting back story of Wraiths evolving from the Wraith-bugs.
I have to agree with Akemi about the filler scenes which didn’t seem needed at the time.
So… Suspicion is next ep?
(McD’s still has great fries)
2cats
My two cents about Hide and Seek…
Jinto should have been about 8 years old. It would have made his antics more believable, and it would made one line from his father far less creepy. It’s the line about nothing being as big as my love for you. Cute when said to an 8 year old. Kinda creepy when said to a kid who looks about 12. My Nephew is 12, so….yeah….
My favorite line…McKay’s “In-vul-ner-able” with hand gestures.
38 Minutes is one of my favorite episodes. Particularly because of the Shep Whump and the Team coming together in the jumper. And the shirtless Shep scene (I’m shallow). The bug was kinda hoakey though!
The thing I didn’t like (if I am remembering the episode correctly) was that Dr. Elizabeth just cut the Athosians off when they wanted to do a ceremony for Teyla. Way to respect other’s cultural beliefs….NOT! I must admit I never really warmed up to Elizabeth until she was gone, unfortunately.
Also, it has been debated/explained in many a fic, what exactly Shep was going to say and didn’t get to finish his thought.
38 minutes was actually one of my “I out” eps. I found the bug sucking leach thing so unbelievable that I just couldn’t take the episode seriously. I was already on the fence about the show and about ½ through the episode I just turned it off.
Luckily I had a friend who that stuck with the show and really enjoyed it. She talked me into buying the first season once it was out on video and I started to watch it. I skipped 38 minutes and ended up falling in love with McKay’s character. His snarkiness speaks me.
I’m not watching 38 minutes again, just can’t do it. 🙂 There was an episode of ST Voyager with a bug thing like that and I watched it once and was done. No re-watching.
@2cats: Happy Birthday!
It’s Riley’s 2nd birthday today, as well, and is having a lovely time with her new toys. 🙂
http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu284/pbugsmom/MikeyandRileyHailePlantationhouse_zps2288ac80.jpg
Happy Birthday to the big boy!
I could never stand that scene between Kavanaugh & Weir. It made Weir look petty and stupid. 🙁 (I also hate that scene in The Eye, where McKay has wrapped the bandage around his arm over his jacket. Man has a PhD in engineering and wouldn’t realise a bandage goes *under* the sleeve? Pfft.
I do have to agree with Akemi on how daggy Weir (in particular) looked in season 1, but seeing as I look pretty damn daggy all the time, I don’t mind so much.
Deni, happy birthday to Riley!
Happy Birthday to 2cats and Riley! 😀
How can you pick on the gentle Athosians, when they shared their tea with the team? They are a village of hotties who always need rescuing, and who gave the world Teyla who is awesome from Wraith genes. The military landed in their backyard and brought the Wraith and floods and kept moving Atlantis, of course they’re cranky.
Today my whole kitchen smelled wonderful, just like my grandmothers; I blended the adobo and chimichurri just right on the baked boneless ribs and butternut squash.
Huh, I had completely blacked out those particular costumes. I’m with Akemi, there. I don’t think any of those clothes are from the 2000s. 1970’s perhaps?
Yeah, 38 minutes isn’t my favorite episode. But, I suppose it needed to establish the 38 minute window for non SG1 viewers and it certainly gave some interesting background to the wraith (and provided fodder for your future Michael episodes). You know who is really annoying? The Ancients. They refuse to fix the problems they created once ascended and man, did they create some doozys. Mad scientists gone wrong.
As for Kavanaugh, I hate him as much as McKay does, but this scene is reminiscent of McKay’s first episode on SG1 – the naysayer and doom speaker. How did he manage to stick around the SGC all those years when McKay got shipped to Russia?
Speaking of dresses.
Here you have a secret weapon then.You let him see Carter in “emancipation” and Akemi would do SEPUKU.
Although Im not clear if she do itself or to you. 😆
Have you seen? Shingeki no Kyojin: Ilse no Techou; Attack on Titan: Ilse’s Journal. OVA 💡
about the february deadlines ? i hope you have your hands full.
38 Minutes is one of my favourite episodes of the first season. Along with bacon, everything is improved with a countdown . . . bombs, microwave ovens, golf.
Maybe my standards are low but I didn’t have any problem with the plastic bug. Kavanaugh, on the other hand, was damn annoying. I see your point about him having valid concerns about the jumper exploding and Weir’s reaction being contrary to the safety of Atlantis as a whole but his combative and egotistical attitude doesn’t do him any favours. I’m glad he disappeared after a few episodes. I’m sure the psych profiles that every crew member would have had to have before being selected (hell, you even need to have one to work in Antarctica!) would have flagged Kavanaugh as unsuitable. Still, well rounded and stable people don’t make for dramatic TV.
A couple of times in the previous episode and, I think, even in this episode it’s mentioned about how the Ancients were smart enough to put failsafes into their technology (Atlantis rising out of the water before the shield fails, for example). And yet none of the Ancients thought to put a sensor into the jumper side pods to detect if they’re retracted before the automatic gate traversal system takes over? Sloppy engineering!
I was less shocked by the lack of fashion sense by the team and more shocked to actually see them in casual gear at all. I’ve never really thought about it but I now realise that the Atlantis crew all wear uniforms even though most of them are civilians. I’ve worked with a lot of scientists over the years and I can tell you that few of them would willingly wear uniforms. A lab coat or brown corduroy is about as close as they get. It’s fair enough if they’re going off-world and the military, of course, would wear uniforms while on duty but I would expect the civilians to be in civvies most of the time.
If/When you do begin SG1, start on Season 4. 4’s where it changed from being “That boring sci-fi show that I never watched.” to “OMG!OMG!SG1!!!”
Thanks Joey! Just so you know, Riley’s a girl, not a boy. 😉
Ben Cotton’s first appearance as Kavanaugh. He was impressive as a man with questionable ethics…or possibly just misunderstood because his social skills were lacking – but so were McKay’s social skills. While we are at it, so was Robert Carlyle as Nicholas Rush. Hmmm, is a pattern emerging? Scientists just don’t have social skills, huh?
Best line: Carson’s, ” I’m told you have something of a cling-on.” Brad Wright must have been quite the Sci-fi fan.
Question: As a Stargate writer/producer, were you ever surprised at how popular it was with female viewers?
“McKay need sugar” … indeed.
I think both Kavanaugh and Weir wind up looking poorly. Weir because she ignores important advice (worst case scenario) and Kavanaugh because he stopped helping to have a hissy fit.
I think Weir dismisses Kavanaugh because of the pony tail. He does look absurd. And after that their mutual dislike and distrust is set, as we shall see. I hunted down and destroyed all pictures of me with a ponytail. It was the only rational thing to do. I’ve noticed this often happens with people, especially in larger groups that have to be together. One person will get chosen as a sort of scape goat. Poor Kavanaugh.
Carter was also a better marksman then John Sheppard. She can hit a swinging log at fifty yards, and the rope too. But the US armed forces say some 10,000 rounds of ammunition are fired during war for every casualty.
I always thought a better weapon against the wraith would be a pump action shotgun that takes 3″ magnum shells with buckshot or an expanding slug, fired point blank into the head or neck of a wraith. Or a 3.06 with explosive rounds. If a wraith gets shot in the head, if it manages to heal it might at least forget what it was doing. Or perhaps incendiary rounds. That would give them something to think about. Put a fire in their belly.
I don’t think the episode was all that bad. Yes, the bug looked pretty bad, but I’ve seen real bugs that looked pretty phoney. I recall I once caught a June bug that flew into my house. I was holding it in my hand and studying it, trying to figure out what the white furry stuff was around the base of it’s legs and thorax. Then the white furry stuff divided into about 10,000 white specks and crawled onto my fingers. I freaked out. I don’t study bugs too closely these days.
I agree the first season of SG1 was pretty rocky. Not the entire season. I suggest people start watching about episode 18, Solitudes.
Zelenka…favorite part of the episode is the introduction of Zelenka…I enjoyed the battles between him and Rodney and the lapses into Hungarian.
Yeah I was thrown by the off duty clothing at the end of the episode too. It seemed like later in the series, they were always in their uniforms..the leisure clothing threw me….and Teyla’s was belted around her bare midriff..bizarre…
Well, here in NW Indiana my kids have lost all of their snow days plus one. This has been the roughest winter we have had in a long time. FB has been filled with comments and posts about our ordeal. Here is a school’s cool school closing message http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wP0QLpVuCLo I would love if our schools would do something like that. My poor dogs have had to deal with the sub zero temps and mounds of snow. Holly, our greyhound, loves to run in it but can only stay out in it so long. Mushu, our ten year old yorkie shih tzu mix, doesn’t enjoy it. He’d rather be downstairs in our sci-fi room by me. Today it is 27 degree (f) and feels like 14. We woke up this morning probably to 6-8″. Our area that we dug out for our dogs to go potty is gone. My son is SOOO thrilled that he’ll be back outside shoveling yet again. The only good news out of all this, everyone got to sleep in again. Hope you are all staying safe and warm where you are. Be extra watchful over your pets during times like this. Take care!! 🙂
I expect she’ll love Sanctuary,,,and perhaps even my favorite line,,,” Oh my God, he IS Kirk…”
38 minutes. Yeah. I didn’t like this one either. I did like Rising though.