DIY surgery

Posted on January 23, 2008 by Steve

Lack of access to health care is a serious issue to many people, but it's a routine matter of fact for action movie heroes and villains, who often resort to improvised stitching and wound dressing in a pinch. Watching Anton Chigurh tend to a gunshot wound made me realize that this happens often enough to be a cliché.

Anyone care to contribute to a Top 10 Self-Medicating movie scenes? To qualify, there has to be blood -- a self-administered morphine jab doesn't cut it. Here's a classic to get started: John McClane picking glass out of his feet.

Unusually Historically-informed Cashier Rings Last Sale

Posted on January 21, 2008 by Steve

RESTON, VIRGINIA -- Dennis, a cashier capable of making historical small talk over small dollar amounts, has left his position at Safeway of Hunter's Woods Plaza, according to well-placed sources. Dennis earned his remarkable reputation after ringing up a customer for $10.66 and remarking that it was "a bad year for England." On another occasion he observed that there was "not much happening" during the seventh century after a late-night sale of breadcrumbs and sundries came to $6.53.

Customers recall that Dennis was a source of information beyond the merely historical. When checkout line conversation turned to tortoises, he recalled a living tortoise of Steve Irwin's named Darwin which had been collected by the naturalist in the 1830s. He was also observed to be conversant in matters of produce prices, coupons, and membership card applications.

Dennis left his job at Safeway sometime "before Christmas," as explained by another evening cashier, between shouts of "write corporate" to impatient customers upset about the small number of lanes open.