Or maybe it's the kids at the Chain Video store, with whom I had a surreal encounter on Friday night. They've always had a no-bags policy: check 'em at the door, presumably to curb theft. I stopped before the detectors on the way in to get the tapes out of my backpack. I handed them over to the kid behind the counter and started to hand him the backpack as well. The kid said, "Is that your purse? Go on through."

They don't let anyone in with a backpack. "You never let anyone in with a backpack. Have I achieved some kind of preferred renter status to be able to keep mine?"

"Well, if it's your purse, you can keep it."

"Because women won't put stolen videotapes in a purse? Or because the pack is too small for a bomb?" I was getting really curious.

The kid was getting really flustered. "No, it's just that it's a purse."

"So a guy could come in here with a backpack if he said it's his purse? Who gets to declare what's a purse and what's not a purse?" I had hit my stride and escalated to harassment.

But he didn't answer me. There were ten people in line waiting for him, and they must have been more immediate. I must remember to single this kid out again and find out about the purse situation. Maybe bring in a huge camping pack with a frame and see what he says.

I watched "The Minus Man" (I'm sick of coding everything in italics; people in the biz use ALL CAPS for titles, you can deal with quote marks) and found it strange. People, this is a movie for people who love movies. This is Sundance material, as Ebert said (the Man and I agree on movies more often than not). This is an interesting film, but bring your indie creds with you; you'll need 'em.

It drags in places. The editing is uneven. The pauses become so uncomfortable that I was begging Owen Wilson to talk, already, dammit, and wondering what Janeane Garofalo's character saw in him. He's the Forrest Gump of serial killers. And scenes between two insane characters are disorienting.

But it's worth watching. Especially if you really love movies.

The other one was "Gattaca," which was enjoyable and sort of unremarkable. My dad is a space buff, though, so I tend to have warm fuzzy feelings about a character who dreams of going to the stars; on top of that, Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman and Jude Law look good on film. Thumbs up and all that.

I need some sleep.

PS: the opening of this Push Stars song always reminds me of Tom Lehrer's "New Math." It's something in the cadence. Every time I hear it, I hear the words for "New Math" start up in my head. You can't take three from two, two is less than three, so you look at the four in the tens place...