Movie Review: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

Title:	Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006)
Rating:	3/10

I'm not sure what to say about Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. I really liked the predecessor Curse of the Black Pearl; it was light-hearted (primarily because of Johnny Depp's Chaplin-esque Jack Sparrow), of was of reasonable length, had an undertone of romance (that didn't get in the way), and had enough action keep a lively pace. Dead Man's Chest tries to recreate the magic of the first, but using a plot vehicle that spins its wheels and goes nowhere. Thankfully, there is enough screen time for Johnny Depp that the movie doesn't completely drag on (e.g. suck completely). Here is one such moment where Jack Sparrow celebrates his irresponsibility:

Elizabeth Swann: "There will come a time when you have a chance to do the right thing."

Jack Sparrow: "I love those moments. I like to wave at them as they pass by."

Too funny.

Summary: Not nearly as good as the original.

The Movie Pit
I snapped this picture today of the three kids watching a movie in the attic "movie pit" complete with their pillows/blankets made by my Mom (e.g. "Grandma Berrett"). This picture illustrates the size of the sectional relative to the kids.

As can be seen, there is plenty of room for all five of us... and we have had a family movie night now and again with the new sectional. It is a wonderful way to spend an evening; just cuddled up together, "vegging out", and watching a movie.

I need to clearly point out that all of the credit for this coming together belongs to Kristy. I didn't even want to buy a new TV for the attic as I felt the one we had in the old bonus room (32" in size) was sufficient. I was wrong; Kristy was right.

Home Renovation Project: Back Patio Deck: Fireplace Research
Baxton arranged to have a fireplace sub meet with us this morning to prepare a bid for the outdoor fireplace we are going to install as part of this project. Kristy and I were previously considering a free-standing chimney with fireplaces on both levels; patterned after the style of one in a nearby neighborhood I've seen (highlighted here). But after some further (and more careful) thought, we have decided to just put a gas fireplace insert in the lower level only and use our current portable (wood-burning) fire pit on the upper level. Instead of building the free-standing chimney, we will just build a rectangular prism for the gas fireplace that will measure about 8' wide by 2½ deep by 7-7½ tall. For the insert, we have decided to use an outdoor gas fireplace manufactured by Heat&Glo called the Dakota.

So, a rep from a local Heat&Glo dealer came out to take a look at our gas meter and the max BTU load our current gas-consuming appliances (furnace, water heater, range, and two indoor fireplaces) are putting on the system. Fortunately, we won't need to upgrade our meter (phew!), and it appears that we can tap off one of the 1" gas pipes that is running down in the crawlspace, feeding the two indoor fireplaces. The alternative source would be to have to trench around the side of the house back to the gas meter (at considerable expense and inconvenience). Well, the rep was optimistic about the prospect of tapping in down in the crawlspace anyway... he still has to run the numbers and get back to us. I hope he comes back with the "right answer" or we'll have to find another subcontractor that will (give us the right answer).