2B
whazzup
Thursday September 9,2000
HOROSCOPES
Today's Birthday (Sept. 7).
Once a financial conflict has been resolved, your life life should improve. You have to face some hassles, but you get luckier as the year goes on. In September you may be worried — and with good reason. By the end of October your fears should have materialized and been resolved. Rest with a good book or two in November, and then make a few necessary changes to your home around December. January looks good for romance, and you'll be ready for a vacation then, too. The workload increases in February, so it's hard to get away then. You're in line for a promotion around June, however. That could lead to more stress in August, but it's worth the effort.
Aries (March 21-April 19) — Today is a 5.
Taurus (April 20-May 20) — Today is an 8.
You're still in a rather difficult spot. They say discretion is the better part of valor, and that could be the case now. In other words, you don't have to lie. You don't have to offer what you know without being asked, either.
Taurus (April 20-May 20) — Today is an 8.
A person who's playing hard to get could feel left out in the cold. You're having so much fun without him or her, who cares? A fit isn't going to get your attention*, either. This person has to be nice, and that's all there is to it.
Gemini (May 21-June 21) — Today is a 6.
You and your sweetheart could argue over money. It's sad, but true. A purchase that looks sensible to you could look extravagant to your partner. Focus on the love you share, and everything else will seem unimportant — which it is.
Cancer (June 22-July 22) --- Today is a 6.
Cancer (June 22-July 22) --- Today is a 6.
Explain your feelings in words if possible. It's the only way you'll get your point across. Others will miss your subtle innuendoes or misinterpret them completely.
Leo (July 23-Aug. 22) — Today is a 6.
Leo (July 23-Aug. 22) — Today is a 6.
You may feel like you are working too hard, but the money should be good. If it's not, you're in the wrong place. Don't quit your job before you have a better one. Don't let a silly error get you down. Everybody makes them.
Virgo (Aug, 23-Sept. 22) — Today is a 7.
All of a sudden something makes sense to the other people. You had it figured out days agol Even if you still have to do some explaining, staying calm should be easier. Stick to your position, but be a good listener, too. Especially if you're right.
Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) — Today is a 6.
Your charms may not work as well as usual. A person you'd like to change may ignore your attempts. Maybe you ought to give up. If you accept this person as is, you'll both be happier. It's the only way that will work!
Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) — Today is a 7.
Don't talk about something that's best kept secret for a while longer. Even a person you think you can trust could accidentally spill the beans. It's even more awful when that person is you! Mum's the word!
Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) — Today is a 6.
Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) — Today is a 6.
Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) — Today is an 8.
You're going about your business and think you have everything under control. Watch for a possible glitch. It will most likely involve a sensitive person and a misunderstanding. Since the sensitive person outranks you, take care.
Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) — Today is a b.
Making a long-distance connection may be more difficult than you expect. Later is better than earlier, and this weekend will be better yet. After an old debt's paid, just about everything will seem easier.
You can't quite complete the goals you've set. Don't let this keep you from practicing and fine-tuning your plans. An older person could come through with a bonus when least expected. Make it easy for him or her to do that.
Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — Today is a 7.
You may encounter a temporary disappointment, regarding a purchase you'd planned. Don't let this stop you. If you keep looking, you'll find another source of funding. You might find a better deal over the weekend, too.
Note: Horoscopes have no basis in scientific fact and should be read for entertainment purposes only.
Reeve's Watcher not worth watching
By Ryan Dolan
Kansan movie critic
Some film fans — and thespians — are worried that actors may someday be entirely replaced by computer-generated images. Their worries may be well-founded because robotic actors already grace the silver screen.
The most popular example of this is Keanu Reeves, who stars in Universal Pictures' The Watcher, as serial killer David Allen Griffin. Like any credible Hollywood studio, Universal produced enticing previews to the Reeves' suspense thriller with tag lines such as, "Don't go home alone."
It scared this reviewer's friend so much, she refused to see the sneak preview. Good thing.
Former FBI agent Jack Campbell (James Spader) lives in Chicago, where he undergoes therapy from an understanding, yet inexperienced, social worker, Polly (Marisa Tomei). Ingesting and injecting several psychiatric drugs to battle anxiety and post-traumatic stress, Campbell tries to forget his former Los Angeles nemesis, Griffin.
Despite a good supporting cast and some terrific cinematography and special effects, The Watcher's tag line should read, "Don't go see this movie alone ... or with friends, family or worst enemies."
Griffin eventually moves to Chicago to continue his hobby of strangling young women with piano wire, while taunting Campbell. Campbell receives photographs of the next victim 24 hours before Griffin plans to kill her.
Reeves is an A-list actor who excelled as an action hero in *The Matrix* and *Speed*. He also is adept as Joe America, who fends off villains in movies like The Devil's Advocate. He probably was itching to tackle a psychopath. Unfortunately, he does not have the charisma, charm or acting ability to pull that off.
The Watcher:
Plot ●●○○○
Acting:
Keanu Reeves ●○○○○
Rest of Cast ●●○○○
Cinematography ●●○○○
The movie never creates any dramatic tension that prods the imagination or fools the senses. Griffin's stalking and killing of the young women, while not pleasant, does not leave the audience hiding its face.
Griffin continues his killing spree because of his desire to maintain a dysfunctional work relationship with FBI agent Campbell. It is infuriating to Griffin, that Campbell might place a personal relationship ahead of the office. Griffin's initial instincts to murder young women are murky at best.
The film might have worked if Spader and Reeves had flip-flopped roles. Spader's trademarks — angst, dry wit and intelligence — definitely carry the movie.
underrated Marisa Tomei, who has been stereotyped and scorned since she won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for My Cousin Vinny, credibly handles the therapist role as Polly. Unfortunately, the studio monkeys push the sexual tension in her relationship with Campbell and also turn Polly into the sniveling damsel in distress as the film wears down.
unleashed in the music video/action scenes — especially toward the climax of the movie.
“It’s the first time I can remember a film where we find out who the killer is so soon,” said Nile Miami, one of The Watcher's producers, on the film's Web site. “It allowed us to establish the suspense in a completely different way.”
Or not establish it at all.
Edited by Amy Randolph
Kansan.com poll Other 3% "Weird AI" Yankovic 10%
Last week's question
Which '80s hair metal band should throw in the towel?
Motley Crus
Skid Row
"Weird AI" Yankovic
Kiss
Poison
Other
Note: This poll is not scientific.
Twenty-six people voted in this poll.
What is Keanu Reeves' best film — The Matrix, The Devil's Advocate, Point Break, Speed, Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure or The Replacements?
Find your dream date ...
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If you're tired of having to try to get a date — let the Kansan set you up with someone single. We'd like to feature a blind date on the cover of Jayplay for an October issue. If you're interested, call or email BrAnne Hess at 864-4810 or joylay@kansan.com and tell her your name, phone number and some of your interests.
Man's exhibition puts him behind wipers, bars
Authories said that David Compton put his own nude picture under the windshield wipers of parked cars and then watched for a reaction.
COVENTRY, R.I. — Some folks hand out business cards, others try resumes, but police in Rhode Island said one man went a little too far in displaying his assets.
Coventry police said Compton tried the stunt at a Wal-Mart and put the photo on the windshield of a young woman's car. He then allegedly followed her.
Now, Compton may have another picture for his scrapbook — his mugshot. He's been charged with disorderly conduct and stalking.
Web site helps parents track teens' road skills
DE PERE, Wis. — A confrontation with a nasty young driver convinced Jay Van Zeeland there should be a way to inform the parents of youthful motorists about their behavior behind the wheel.
ing, driving erratically or committing some other infraction can log on to the Web site to make a report or call a 24-hour toll-free number.
Like the "how's my driving?" stickers on some trucks, Van Zeeland is offering parents a bumper sticker for the car their teen will be driving.
Van Zeeland, an emergency medical technician, said the idea for the service started with an incident a few weeks ago, when a motorist ran a red light and almost hit his vehicle.
The answer he came up with? "Tell-My-Mom.com."
The service is expected to be fully operational tomorrow.
Anyone who sees the car speed-
Rainwater, sunshine help company conserve
ANNAPOLIS, Md. — When the Chesapeake Bay Foundation moves into its new headquarters later this year, employees will use flushless toilets and wash their hands in unheated rainwater.
In the interest of energy efficiency, a system of computerized red and green lights will tell them when they should open and close windows. Photo sensors will turn off the lights when there is enough natural light shining through the glass walls.
Rain that runs off the parking lot will be routed through two filtering systems and wetlands before entering the bay, at which time it is supposed to be pure enough to drink.
Those are just a few of the features incorporated into what foundation officials think will be one of the greenest office buildings ever built.
There aren't even carpets — onlyork
Chuck Foster, director of fleets and
facilities for the foundation, said environmental criteria guided every decision including the selection of building materials and office furniture, landscaping and the height of outdoor lighting, which is low to reduce the impact on birds at night.
Web surfers find thrill on decaying-meat page
MEDFORD, Ore. — Peeking into college dorm rooms. Inspecting traffic patterns. Peering into zoo cages.
Now there's a new thrill for Internet surfers — watching raw meat decompose.
Mahon Smith and Chad Sobotka launched their first "Stinkymeat" Web page to document the decay of steak, ground beef and hot dogs hidden in their neighbor's backyard.
The duo have now become cyber icons, generating a Web site genre called cyber-stench and inspiring spin offs in Australia and the United Kingdom.
The first day, the Web site had 60,000 hits. Now, the Web site receives approximately three million daily visits to www.thepark.com.
Encouraged, the Web site's creators set up "Stinkmeye 2."
The project began when Smith and Sobotka discovered that their neighbor had read a postcard addressed to Smith in the community mailbox. They did not approve and hoped the rotting meat would serve as an appropriate insult.
A Massachusetts-based computer firm bought the rights to host the first two Stinkymeats.
Fans, apparently, are begging for a third.
"I'm not really sure what the appeal is," Smith said. "It doesn't get much more immature."
Man survives second round with lightning
BUCKLEY, Wash. — Charles Doremus learned the hard way that lightning does indeed strike the same place twice when it hit him for the second time.
Doremus was treated for burns on the chest, feet and head.
"He feels like he's been hit by a semi truck," said his son, Blair Doremus, Monday.
The family was looking at a new outdoor swimming pool Sunday when they heard a tremendous blast, ran inside, looked out and realized lightning had struck a maple tree, the son said.
While the family was looking out the window, down came another thunderbolt.
"It actually hit the tree again, if you can believe it," the younger Doremus said.
The blast sent his father flying into a fence, left a crater in the ground about 4 feet wide and 18 inches deep and fried four television sets, a satellite dish, a computer and the telephones in the house.
EVERYTHING BUT ICE
BEDS • DESKS
CHEST OF DRAWERS
BOOK CASES
unclaimed freight &
damaged merchandise
936 Mass.