"Well, that can't be good."

The Movie: Evolution, 2001 (David Diamond, David Weissman and Don Jacoby, screenwriters; Ivan Reitman, dir.)
Who says it: Dan Ackroyd as Governor Lewis
The context: A National Guard officer informs the Governor that they have just lost video feed of the devastation being wrought by alien invaders.
How to use it: To express alarm in an understated way.

What a waste of talent this movie was. It's a good line, though, if only because I already say it all the time.

Yesterday I called my movers, and talked -- again -- to a nice dispatcher named Penny. Penny had no memory of having talked to me at least twice before (I've also talked to a dispatcher named Nina), and no memory of having read the e-mails I've sent them. She could not tell me the status of my shipment, but spent a good ten minutes explaining the process for filing a claim or a complaint. Then she said she'd look into things and call me back.

She called back to say that my belongings were still in California, because they haven't yet been able to find a truck that's going to Maine. She assured me that her manager would be making calls all day to find a truck, and that she'd call me today to let me know the status.

It doesn't surprise me that he's having a hard time finding anyone else moving from California to Maine, because let's get real -- who does that? And who does that at the beginning of winter, for heaven's sake? Hee. (That's half a giggle, which is all I can muster.)

"What is it with you and stuff?" my freshman roommate Leigh asked last night, on the phone.

"I don't know," I said. I think the universe is calling me on my claim that I don't really care about material possessions.