Post #2 of 2012 - So Exciting!

Oy vey, work's killing me. I'm not happy about it at all. Another 11 hour day and I could still be there I have so much work to do. I didn't even have time to eat my lunch today. I brought it back home and ate it for dinner.

For the first time ever, I made a New Year's Resolution...which I'm failing at miserably. My resolution is to knit for myself more. I have a ton of yarn that I've bought specifically for me, bought/found patterns which I want to make for me, etc., and so far, not so good.

Part of the issue is work. The other is all the people in my life having babies. I've already finished one baby blanket (co-worker's baby was due today). The second baby is due at the end of February (another co-worker) and I'm waiting for the pink yarn to show up (I don't generally buy pink yarn, as I don't like pink). Then there's my cousin's baby shower in March (it won't be done by then), and then a co-worker whose baby is due in May (yay, a boy, so I don't to knit with pink yarn), and then one more co-worker whose baby is due in July. *sigh*

I've told some people pointblank that they're not allowed to get pregnant, because I just don't have time to knit for them, dammit.

I have yet to finish my SIL's scarf from 2010 Christmas. *sigh* I hope she's forgotten about it and it'll be a surprise when I do finish it.

I signed up with my Knitting Guild's Sneaky Sheep (think Secret Santa, but not at Christmas) which means I'll have to knit something for someone. I think it's due at April's meeting. Let's hope I have time to complete whatever I end up knitting.

This past weekend I went to the Redford Theatre to see Forbidden Planet with a bunch of friends. I had never seen it, and I'm glad I went - I liked it. Only $4, plus reasonable prices at the snack/candy counter...and real butter for popcorn. The weekend before that I went to the Detroit Film Theater (DFT) at the Detroit Institute of Arts to see a restored "Director's Cut" of Touch of Evil with Orson Welles and Charlton Heston. This coming Saturday I have plans to head back to the DFT, this time to see Andrei Rublev, which is a film I've wanted to see for a long time! It's 305 minutes long!!! I'm pretty sure there will be an intermission or two. And since it's a matinee, it should only be $4. Gotta love economic prices.

Okay, I'm giving up on this post, as it's really difficult to type with Igor laying across my arms. Good thing he's cute. I hope you're all well.

September 2009's Books & Movies

Okay, enough of being sad. I think I've gone on long enough about Ed and being sad. I still have my moments, but I actually laughed at work on Thursday which was a huge improvement. I didn't think I'd ever laugh at work again. So, onward.

I believe that the last time I listed the books I had read and the movies I had watched was September which means I have a lot of catching up to do. Let's get to it.

September's Books & Movies

I was a bit of a slacker and only read two books in September.

43. Fordlandia: The Rise & Fall of Henry Ford's Forgotten Jungle City by Greg Grandin (2009) – 402 pages – Click the link…they have a photo gallery which is pretty sweet. (If you look the book up at amazon.com, they also have pictures.) The book was hard to read, not because it was written poorly or too erudite, but because it was such a complete cluster f*ck. Henry Ford was a brilliant man about many things, but didn't realise that the differences between Michigan and Brasil were so vast and that the peoples wouldn't respond to the same incentives. I think the really frustrating thing was that it didn't have to be such a mess and probably could have been successful, except for Henry's way of doing things.

44. Even Money by Dick and Felix Francis (2009) – 350 pages – Someone commented at sfgate.com in the article about Dick Francis' death that the last few books written with his son weren't as good. I disagree wholeheartedly. Everything I know about horse-racing I've learned from Dick Francis (I'm one of those rare women who didn't have a horse-phase as a girl, in fact, I don't like horses, they're big and scary and I've never ever ridden one and don't plan on ever riding one), and this one explained the intricacies of the betting industry in England. This one was little guy vs big corporation with the big guys trying to drive out the little guy and how the little guy fights back. As always I recommend anything written by Dick Francis.

Book of September: Even Money because I know I'll read it again. Is it a better book? Probably not, but I enjoyed it more.

I did a lot better movie-wise in September (which I hope makes up for the fact that I watched ZERO movies in October). Stupid DVR. Please note that I choose my links very carefully. I don't just go with IMDB. I make sure the link coincides with my thoughts on the movie. Just so you know.

51. (9/7) Frost/Nixon (N) – 2008 - Being a young girl when Watergate happened, all I remember is the front of the Detroit Free Press with the headline NIXON RESIGNS in huge font. To me, David Frost has always been a respected journalist/interviewer. I had no clue that him interviewing Nixon was the modern-day equivalent of being interviewed by Ryan Seacrest. I found the film quite fascinating and thought Michael Sheen was fabulous as David Frost and Frank Langella eerily quite Nixon-like.

52. (9/7) Quai des Orfevres (N) – 1947 – I have absolutely no idea now why I added this movie to my Netflix queue, and truthfully, if it weren't for the synopsis, I'd have no idea even what it was about. Ah, I figured it out. It's because it was directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot who also directed Wages of Fear which is a movie I appreciate. It's described as a "police procedural" movie vs a classic whodunit, although the audience doesn't know "whodunit" until the police do. If you like old black and white classic films, give it a go. If you hate subtitles and the lack of Technicolor©/VistaVision©/etc., then I probably wouldn't recommend it for you.

53. (9/12) Dial M for Murder in 3-D (Redford Theater) – 1954 – While I own this movie, who can pass up the chance to see it in the theatre and in 3-D? I thought the 3-D portion was minimal, but it did make the red dress Grace Kelly wears in the beginning really stand out (to the point where I question my copy of the movie as being in black-and-white, because the dress was GORGEOUS and I honestly don't remember it from watching it at home. Oh yeah, and of course, the part where she's reaching toward the camera to grab her sewing scissors to ward off her murderer. Reasons to see this movie: 1) Grace Kelly, 2) Alfred Hitchcock, 3) Robert Cummings (whom I love from another Hitchcock film, Saboteur (1942).

54. (9/13) Houseboat (TCM) – 1958 – Cary Grant and Sophia Loren. Need I say more?

55. (9/13) Serendipity (WE) – 2001 – John Cusack. What can I say? John Cusack is my age group's Boy Next Door. I don't know many women my age who don't love him as Lloyd Dobler in Say Anything. And therefore, I will see damn near any movie with him in it. I will admit that I wasn't expecting much, which I find helps any and all movies, really. I think I was the only person not disappointed with the first Batman movie (the one with Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson) because I didn't want to see it and was expecting absolutely nothing from it. I'm not saying I loved it, just that I wasn't disappointed. Now back to Serendipity. It's weird, as I get older and more set in my ways, i.e., not into dating, happy staying home with the cats and knitting (yes, at some point I got old), I find that I like chick flicks.

56. (9/17) Please Believe Me (TCM) – 1950 – The link will take you to a review by the New York Times back in 1950 when the movie came out, which I think is cool. In this movie, Deborah Kerr plays an English girl who had been a pen pal with some guy in Texas who ends up leaving her his "ranch." It shows her trip across the Atlantic with people thinking she's an heiress and men fighting over her. It was amusing, but I'd have to say a tad confusing (at least for me, I might have been knitting more than actually watching, but it seemed that they could have picked men who didn't all look a like to play the three suitors – I couldn't keep them straight). I wouldn't recommend going out of your way to see it, but if it's on and you have nothing better on the DVR, go for it. Even if it's just to tell me that it was really quite easy to tell the three men apart and that I really need to pay better attention. 

57. (9/19-20) Crisis (TCM) – 1950 – Once again I watched a movie solely because Cary Grant was in it. As the link points out, it wasn't the usual Cary Grant-fare (i.e., romantic comedy), but it was interesting enough to keep my attention (even if five months later, I couldn't remember what the hell it was about). I think that if someone were to describe the movie to me, I'd say, "Oh yeah, I saw that movie, but I have no idea of the title."

58. (9/20) Goya's Ghosts (Encore) – 2006 – Having been a Spanish major in college, I feel a special affinity for Spanish artists, so I watched this movie solely because it referred to Goya. Yeah, yeah, ranks right up there with judging a book by its cover, I know. While not as horrible as Quills, which I watched in August, I'd say that I won't see this movie again. It was "meh." Oh, unless you like to see Natalie Portman naked.

59. (9/21) Bogus (Encore) – 1996 – This was a cute movie, not spectacular, but cute. Haley Joel Osment (who I unashamedly love, hell, I own Pay It Forward) plays a little boy who is orphaned when his mother dies in a car accident (no father), and then shipped off to live with Whoopie Goldberg who was his mother's foster sister. As the review states, Whoopie's character is not in touch with her inner child, and has trouble relating to the little boy. She especially doesn't understand when he talks to his invisible friend, Bogus, played by Gerard Depardieu. I don't always like Monsieur Depardieu (he did NOT portray a starving coal miner very convincingly in Germinal, as he lost NO weight for the film), but he was very lovely in this.

Movie of September: Dial M for Murder

Happy Labor Day Weekend! August Books & Movies

Happy Labor Day Weekend!

I hope everybody has fabulous plans for the last real weekend of summer. The weather here in Michigan is finally supposed to be nice. 70s and sunny all weekend long! Woohoo!!! I'm going to sit outside Sunday and Monday.

Saturday is Yarn Fest Aught-Nine (that's what a co-worker named it) which means heading up to Port Huron to Mary Maxim's for the end of their August Tent Sale (better sale prices than at the beginning of the sale) for our third straight year. I have a list, so I'm not buying all willy-nilly (which will probably still happen – sigh – because I have ZERO self control when it comes to yarn), theoretically.

Last night I crawled into my lovely warm soft comfy bed at 9:00 p.m., got all settled with both cats cuddled with me in their preferred locations (Boris at the knees, Igor at my upper arm) when we all got the ever-livin' shit scared out of us when fireworks started going off about 3 blocks from my apt. The cats lost their minds and were gone before the first firework faded. My heart started racing from the adrenaline of the cats rocketing off the bed, and it didn't stop for an hour.

To me, it looked like they were going off from my "favorite" bar, Crave, and I was secretly hoping one would backfire and burn the fucking place down (while not affecting any of the adjoining businesses or hurting anybody). I texted Urs to find out if she had a freaking clue why there were fireworks on Thursday, Sept. 3. She, of course – being the in-touch person she is (she follows the city on Twitter) – knew that the City was setting off the fireworks that had gotten rained out during Homecoming (first weekend of August). I believe my response to her text about settling in with a cup of tea because it was "promised to be the biggest of the year" was "Oh, for fuck's sake! My heart's still pounding from the initial shock." She laughed and said she could hear me saying "Oh, for fuck's sake" and that it was appropriate because her house was shaking as if we were having an earthquake and her dog was barking like mad.

After they were finally over I went looking for the kids. I never found Igor, but Boris was under the couch as low to the ground as he could go and looking out at me with HUGE eyes. Poor sweet pea. I told him it was all over and okay to come out, but he chose not to believe me and figured he was safer under the couch. I petted him for a bit and then went to bed where I had to practice deep breathing exercises in a worthless attempt calming myself.

Honestly, a Thursday??? What was wrong with any of the nights of this coming weekend? Bloody stupid decision making. I'm guessing City Council didn't work today.

My August Books and Movies follow…

Books

40. The Eight by Katherine Neville (598 pages) – This book should sound familiar because I'm pretty sure I've talked about it previously. It's my favorite book which is saying something since when I first read the back cover of the book way back when in the mid-90s I thought to myself, "Dear God, historical fiction about chess. This is going to suck." The premise was that there was a mystical chess set that had belonged to Charlemagne and had been buried in a convent in the Pyrenees because it was so dangerous, but the nuns dug it up during the French Revolution because the Bishop of Autun had passed a law which allowed the government to acquire all of the church's belongings. The chess set ends up dispersed across the lands and the story switches from the time of the French Revolution to early 1970s New York & Morocco. It's called The Game and there is a white team and a black team (the Black team is the good guys). At any rate, I started reading it (it was a Monday, I remember, because my plan was to start it that night but return it to the friend who had lent it to me the next night at the bar and back then Tuesday was bar night) and it hooked me immediately. Now, I do not enjoy the game of chess, although I technically know how to play in that I know how each piece moves, and a book about chess could not be good obviously. I was so wrong. I've now read the book three times with each subsequent time me wondering if it was going to stand the test of time. It does. I re-read it this time because Katherine Neville had finally come out with a sequel and I wanted to refresh my memory before diving in.

41. The Fire by Katherine Neville (451 pages) – The thing that struck me about reading The Eight this time was how prescient she had been about oil consumption, etc. And oil raised its head in The Fire. I enjoyed The Fire, but wish it had been longer and dealt with the historical aspect a bit more. I don't want to give away too much but suffice it to say that The Game starts up again with descendents of The Game played in the 1970s and a few players who are still around. It's a perfectly good book, but just not as good as The Eight.

42. The Kindness Handbook: A Practical Companion by Sharon Salzberg (172 pages) – This is a book I got from one of my book clubs by not stopping the stupid automatic shipment. It's about treating yourself and others with lovingkindness which in this book is one word. It was okay, but required more effort than I was willing to put forward right before bedtime (which is when I read this).

I wasn't a complete slacker book-wise, although it looks it. I'd also read about 180 pages of Fordlandia and 200 pages of Sophie's World. I could have finished Fordlandia if I had concentrated on it, but I'm finding it a bit difficult to read because that project was an incredible bit of cluster-fuckededness.

Book of the Month: I'm going to break my own rule here and choose The Eight (not that I don't think you should read The Fire as well).

Movies

I did much better on movies than I did books.

38. (8/1) Sands of Oblivion - 2007 (Sci-Fi) – I had DVRd this movie because it has Morena Baccarin and Adam Baldwin of Firefly in it. Wow, did it suck. If you want to read a synopsis, click the link. I'm not wasting my time.

39. (8/7) America - 2009 (Lifetime) – Another movie watched solely because it was filmed in metro Detroit . This one has Rosie O'Donnell working as a psychiatrist/social worker with at-risk youths in a group home. The title character was just a Detroit kid that Rosie saw in a downtown Detroit restaurant that had the look she wanted. My favorite trivia from the interviews were when she went over to his family having dinner, they said, "You're Roseanne Barr, right?" And she responded, "Close enough." I thought that was hilarious. The movie was what you'd expect from Lifetime – a tear-jerker and a bit overdone, but I thought the actors did a really good job.

40. (8/7) Witness for the Prosecution - 1957 (TCM) – From the TCM website was this synopsis, "A British lawyer (Charles Laughton) gets caught up in a couple's (Marlene Dietrich & Tyrone Power) tangled marital affairs when he defends the husband for murder." This is the movie where I first heard/saw Marlene Dietrich singing which had me in stitches thinking about Blazing Saddles and Madeline Kahn. I had always thought she exaggerated the singing style, but she didn't. Elsa Lanchester (you'll recognize her from Murder by Death and Mary Poppins) was very funny as the annoying nurse trying to take care of Charles Laughton's character.

41. (8/9) The Breakfast Club - 1985 (K) – I'm pretty sure I don't need to tell anybody about The Breakfast Club (or the following two movies). This was my John Hughes Retrospective Sunday.

42. (8/9) Pretty In Pink - 1986 (K) – Same as The Breakfast Club. For the record, having been a teenaged girl, the ending is what a teenaged girl would have wanted, so anybody who argues that she should have ended up with Duckie, stop thinking like an adult and try thinking like a teenaged girl.

43. (8/9) Ferris Bueller's Day Off - 1986 (K) – I have nothing fabulous to add, although I think there is some interesting trivia re: this movie. 1) the house where Cameron lived was put up for sale within the past few months. 2) The actor that played the principal had a run-in with the police re: child pornography. Try watching that movie now knowing that and think how much ickier it makes him.

44. (8/10) Quills - 2000 (N) – I have to say that I did not really enjoy this movie. I don't think it was as bad as Sands of Oblivion, but I still wouldn’t recommend it to anybody. The people at Yahoo! Movies gave it a rating of B…no way in hell it would get a rating that high from me. The acting was quite good, but I think it was a bit over the top.

45. (8/16 & 17) Coraline - 2008 (MKJ) – I love Neil Gaiman and I enjoyed the book. The movie is very well done, but as is usual it didn't follow the book and although I did listen to the commentary and the director/writer explained away his differences, I want to go on record that I do not pronounce "Pontiac" that way. I did enjoy looking for the teeny tiny knitted items she wore… ;-) The funny thing is that I borrowed this from a woman at work whose daughter loved the movie, but hadn't read the book. I gathered up all my Neil Gaiman and lent them to the daughter who read Coraline but didn't really like Neil's writing style, so wasn't even going to try the rest of the books. Does anybody else wonder if Neil is generational, i.e., appeals to those of us who are about his age, but teens/young adults don't get him?

46. (8/22) To Catch A Thief - 1955 (TCM) – Yes, I own this movie, but I have lent it to a girl from work and when I was over visiting some friends, I noticed they had it recorded on their DVR and I said what a good movie it is. Amy asked if it were appropriate for her second oldest (13?). Heck yes! It's 1955 and Hitchcock. I covered his eyes during the kissing scene (which he probably didn't want to see anyway). Her oldest son (16?) had been the one who recorded it, so I'm excited that kids these days appreciate old movies. Amy thinks he has an old soul. So, next time I go over, I'm going to take some old films.

47. (8/22) Flushed Away - 2006 (Amy) –Yeah, I know I just watched this, but the younger kids had come home by the end of To Catch A Thief, so we picked a kids movie. What can I say? I like this movie.

48. (8/23) Perfume: The Story of a Murderer - 2006 (N) – Another movie, like Quills, that I picked because it had some good actors in it and I thought the premise sounded intriguing. Not so much in actuality. I think the murderer was supposed to come across as sympathetic, but he didn't. Even though he was supposed to be some sort of perfume genius, he came across as slow and I don't mean like a turtle or a snail.

49. (8/29) Religulous - 2008 (N) – I enjoyed the movie, although I have to say that I thought the Catholics came across as the most with-it of the religious people interviewed, which probably helped my feelings toward it. If you're religious and believe the earth is only 6000 years old, you'll hate it, so don't waste your time. I can't argue with someone who takes on the Creationism museum.

50. (8/29) RocknRolla - 2008 (F) – If you liked Guy Ritchie's Snatch and/or Lock, Stock and Smoking Barrell, you'll like this movie. It's your typical Guy Ritchie British caper film. It was fun with excellent actors (Thandie Newton, Tom Wilkinson, Gerard Butler), and a set-up at the end for a sequel.

Movie of the Month: I'm following my own rules for this pick (meaning I have to pick something I haven't seen before): RocknRolla.

I hope you all have a great Labor Day!

16 Books - July Books & Movies

Happy last day of July, everybody! Sorry about no post last week, but we had a funeral to attend which brought the LB to town, so Saturday was spent watching le Tour and then heading to Grandma's condo for a big family get together. It was nice. I got to see some cousins that I haven't seen in quite awhile and aunts and uncles.

I enjoyed the heck out of the Tour de France this year, especially since it's the last sport I truly enjoy, sadly it only lasts three weeks. I wish Versus would show the Vuelta a Espana.

Here are the books and movies I read and watched in July.

Books

32. Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling - 870 pages - 2005 - I wanted to re-read book 6 before I saw the movie and thought it would be smart to re-read the fifth book, before the sixth one.

33. Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling - 652 pages - 2007 - Ditto.

34. Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling - 759 pages - Well, after I had re-read the previous two, I had to finish the series, didn't I?

35. Fade by Kyle Mills - 344 pages - 2005 - I had read Kyle Mills' previous books and this had been out for a while (as you can see), but I finally picked it up. If you haven't discovered Kyle Mills yet and you like thrillers you are missing out. His books are meticulously researched and his characters are flawed but likable. In this one the title character, Fade, is an Arab-American who had been a Navy SEAL and ended up injured on a mission. The US government wouldn't pay for the very complicated surgery he needed and he ended up angry and embittered. However, the government now needs his special skills, but he won't play ball.

36. The Second Horseman by Kyle Mills - 339 pages - 2006 - In this one, a career thief, Brandon Vale, is busted out of jail by the person who put him there (for a crime he hadn't done), because he needs Brandon's special talents. There are WMDs, millions of dollars, behind-the-scene string pulling, and Israel-Arab tensions.

37. A Darker Place by Jack Higgins - 337 pages - 2009 - I've been a Jack Higgins fan since The Eagle Has Landed. I've read everything I've been able to find. It seems he's phasing out Sean Dillon (it's about time, he's got to be at least 65 by now) and Charles Ferguson (he's got to be at least 85), but I'm waiting to see where he's going with it. In this one, we had a Russian defector who wasn't quite what he seemed. It was less formulaic that I thought his previous few had been. He's still a classic thriller writer.

38. Darkness Falls by Kyle Mills - 299 pages - 2007 - This was very much a doomsday type scenario book. It scared the ever-livin' shit out of me. Again, the research done by Kyle Mills was extraordinary, this time into oil wells, production, fields, etc. I was especially happy to see that he had brought back Mark Beamon (from his first few books). Previously he was an FBI agent, in Darkness Falls he's the head of the energy department of Homeland Security, and he needs to find out why some major oil wells have stopped producing.

39. Finger Lickin' Fifteen by Janet Evanovich - 308 pages - 2009 - This might have been the one that pushes me over the edge on reading anymore of these. She blew up at least four cars in this one. I don't know why Ms. Evanovich think it's necessary for her plot line to blow up cars so regularly, but I'm really over it. The YS has bought the last two books, so at least I'm not wasting my money on these.

Movies

33. (500) Days of Summer (Theatre) - 2009 - I loved this movie. I had wanted to see it after I had gotten my VSL newsletter. I laughed out loud a lot, as did most of the crowd at the Detroit "premiere." My friend Katie had free passes and asked me to go when she watched the trailer and saw the lead actor wearing a Joy Division t-shirt. When she asked, I said, "Oh yes, I've been wanting to see that movie." The best part of the movie was that he wore THREE Joy Division t-shirts in it. Two were Unknown Pleasures but one when he was a teenager and another as an adult, along with a Love Will Tear Us Apart t-shirt.

34. Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix (K) - 2007 - I had to rewatch the movie before seeing the sixth movie. It sucked just as much as it did the first time around. Read the books, people, they're so much better than the movies.

35. Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince (Theatre) - 2009 - I already gave my opinion on this movie at Zombieslayer's place. I have to agree with ZS's assessment that the director sucked. It's the same director as Order of the Phoenix and when a certain character dies and I don't cry...that's a problem...same as in the fifth when another major character had died. I sobbed my way through the end of the book (every time I read it), but the movie was so badly done, I didn't cry. I'm highly annoyed. We won't even discuss the bizarre addition of the burning of The Burrows. WTF was up with that???

36. The Children's Hour (N) - 1961 - Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine own an all-girl's school and are working hard to keep it going. There's a mean, vindictive girl there who spreads a story about them because she had been disciplined. All the parents take the girls out of the school and the women are destroyed. It was friggin' depressing, but it was really well done.

37. Momma's Man (N) - 2008 - I thought this was going to be a comedy and watched it after I watched The Children's Hour thinking it would cheer me up. Yeah, not so much. This was another recommendation from VSL, but I have to say that I did not love it. In fact, I would say that it fights with HP & the Order of the Phoenix for last place in Movie of the Month.

Book of the Month: Fade by Kyle Mills (it was hard since I had read three Kyle Mills and they were all great, but I loved Fade most). Please give him a chance. if you don't want to spend money, go to the library. He really is a brilliant writer and super nice as he responds to every e-mail - I've written to him twice now (last time after I had finished Smoke Screen a good 3-4 years ago and this time after Fade).

Movie of the Month: (500) Days of Summer - There's a line in this movie that is so worth watching. It made giggle for a good five minutes after it was said. It might have been a little juvenile, but it was still stinking funny.

Rules: Don't take too long to think about it. Sixteen books you've read that will always stick with you. First sixteen you can recall in no more than 16 minutes. Tag 16 friends, including me because I'm interested in seeing what books my friends choose. (A friend tagged me on Facebook, but I figured what the heck I'd share with you kids, too.)

As this took me over a week to do, I'm obviously not big on rules.

1. The Eight by Katherine Neville
2. Stealing Jesus: How Fundamentalism Betrays Christianity by Bruce Bawer
3. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
4. Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson
5. The Sewing Circles of Herat by Christina Lamb
6. Our Endangered Values: America's Moral Crisis by Jimmy Carter
7. Sweet Jesus, I Hate Bill O'Reilly by Joseph Minton Amann & Tom Breuer
8. Alex Zanardi: My Sweetest Victory: A Memoir of Racing Success, Adversity & Courage by Alex Zanardi, Gian Luca Gasparini & Mario Andretti
9. The Eagle Has Landed by Jack Higgins
10. A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
11. Aztec by Gary Jennings
12. The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
13. The Dante Club by Arturo Perez-Reverte
14. The Rule of Four by Ian Caldwell & Dustin Thomason
15. The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
16. Torn Apart: The Life of Ian Curtis by Mick Middles & Lindsay Reade

Happy Canada Day (plus One)

Sorry to abandon you all so abruptly (especially you, LL, I know how much you appreciate Catblogging), but Thursday was spent packing and downloading pictures to my computer (from the February Vegas trip) and then putting 2007 pictures on disk to save up room on the computer hard drive. I left early on Friday from work for Baltimore where I was until Tuesday. I was visiting my friend Rebecca and her family, and on Sunday I got to visit with my friend LT and his family, including my beloved Tyler.



Apparently, Boris doesn't just love boxes, but anything of a particular beige color. How can you not love catblogging, LL???

Wouldn't it be crazy if I listed June's books and movies early in July instead of waiting until August or September, as I seem to be doing of late?

I did really well book-wise.

Books

21. Wicked Prey by John Sandford - 402 pages - John Sandford is one of those authors whose books I buy as soon as I see it's available (and then lend it to a friend, after I read it). His books can include some violence, but I find them enthralling and I read them pretty quickly. You don't really need to read the Prey books in order, so you can pick this one up w/o worrying about really missing anything, but I think you'll want to read them all once you start.

22. Fables: Legends in Exile #1 by Bill Willingham, et al - 125 pages - My friends Katie and Dan own Green Brain Comics and since I like to support my friends in their businesses, I asked Katie to recommend some comics/graphic novels that I would enjoy. I have never been much of a fan of short stories, which is kind of how I view comics, but I love fairy tales and I loved The Sandman series way back when, so I was willing to try something different. Fables' main theme is that the fairy tales characters were chased out of their own lands by something called The Nemesis (I think) and are now living in New York City. In this volume, someone seems to have killed Rose Red and Snow White puts the Wolf (who looks human for some reason - which is interesting since all the other animals are still animals) on the case to find out who did it. I thought it was quite well done, although I'm still in novel mode as I don't always remember that I'm supposed to look at the pictures. DUH.

23. A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway - 213 pages - A friend from work bought me this book after she had told me about it and I thought it sounded really interesting, especially since I was reading Shakespeare and Company already (only at night, so while I started it before the Hemingway book, I finished it afterward). Both are about Paris in the 20s and about all the ex-pats, mostly writers, who lived there.

24. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman - 312 pages - I love Neil Gaiman and this book is no exception. While it might sound gruesome, it was really a very sweet story about a boy whose entire family is killed one night (he was supposed to be as well), but he had crawled out of his crib and found himself in a graveyard where the "ghosts" of the inhabitants took him in and kept the assassin from getting to him.

25. Serenity: Those Left Behind by Joss Whedon - 87 pages - This is volume #2 in the Serenity graphic novel series. I'm enjoying these and I think the artists have done a great job in capturing everybody's likeness - some better than other, but still, enough to make me happy - old guy love and all.

26. Shakespeare & Company by Sylvia Beach - 220 pages - I liked this book better than the Hemingway book even though it was about the same period. I didn't know anything about the Paris bookstore when I bought this book, but it sounded quite interesting. Sylvia Beach owned the English-language bookstore in Paris until WWII. It was also a lending library for people who couldn't afford to buy books. She was also the first publisher of James Joyce's Ulysses which was banned in the U.S. and Great Britain. She also supported (it seems) Joyce, money-wise, but she didn't seem to mind, even though it seemed to me that he took advantage.

27. Fables: Animal Farm #2 by Bill Willingham, et al - 127 pages - The animals, save the Wolf as I've already mentioned, from fairy tales are stuck living on The Farm because, I guess, talking animals living in New York City would freak regular non-fable people out. Anyway, the animals revolt lead by two of the three pigs (a tad reminiscent of Orwell). It was quite good. I'm proud of myself for branching out into comic books, even if I am limiting it, so far, to Fables and Serenity.

28. The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling - 111 pages - I think J.K. Rowling is awfully clever to write fairy tales for witches. Maybe I'm easily impressed, but these are the stories she mentioned in the Harry Potter books. And if you go to that link, you can even hear her read one of the tales.

29. The Sorcerer's Companion by Allan Zola Kronzek & Elizabeth Kronzek - 274 pages - This was written in an encyclopedic way, but I read it in order. It was interesting, and was well-researched, I thought. For example, it discussed dragons and how they were scary in Europe, but considered good luck in Asia - with a bit more information than that. ;-)

30. Things I Learned About Knitting...Whether I Wanted To or Not by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee aka The Yarn Harlot - 160 pages - Stephanie Pearl-McPhee is an absolutely hysterical writer of knitting books. If you're not a knitter, you might not appreciate her writing fully, but omigod, I laughed out loud a lot while reading this book.

31. Facing the Extreme: One Woman's Story Of True Courage And Death-Defying Survival In The Eye Of Mt. McKinley's Worst Storm Ever by Ruth Anne Kocour with Michael Hodgson - 273 pages - I needed a book to take to Baltimore with me and this one won out because it was small enough to fit in my purse. I read it Tuesday and it proved to me that while I love reading mountaineering books, I have no desire ever to climb a mountain, especially one where it snows. It wasn't the best mountaineering book I've ever had, but it was pretty good.

Book of the Month - The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Movies

27. - 6/6 - The Paradine Case (TCM) - 1947 - This movie was unavailable for a while on DVD, so when it came up on TCM (last June 26 - yeah, it was on my DVR for damn near a year), I DVRd it. After watching it a second time, I realised that this is a Hitchcock film I don't need to own. It's not that it's bad. It's just not a very happy film and it makes me sad to see Gregory Peck so pathetic.

28. - 6/7 - Bell, Book and Candle (TCM) - 1958 - I remembered seeing this movie many many years ago and wanted to see it again as I remembered liking it. Tastes change as we get older, I've discovered. It wasn't bad, it just wasn't extraordinarily fabulous. I wasn't in love with Kim Novak and Jimmy Stewart together in Vertigo, and it didn't work for me here either.

29. - 6/7 - The Last Metro (N) - 1980 - This is about a famous Jewish French play director during WWII who goes into hiding (supposedly left the country), while his wife, Catherine Deneuve, continues to run the theater with a very young Gerard Depardieu as leading man in the new play. It was told as a true story...no clue if it is. It helped keep me in my WWI/Nazi theme of the past couple months. *sigh* So uplifting.

30. - 6/26 - Flushed Away (RR) - 2006 - When you visit friends with a 5-year-old you end up watching animated films - not that I'm complaining, because I love animated films, and I got to see two (see #32) new ones (okay, new to me). I love Aardman and this came from them. It was very cute. Premise: Roddy is a pet rat who gets flushed down the toilet by a pretty disgusting rat and he spends the movie trying to get back to his cushy life as a pet. He meets up with the usual cast of characters - bad guys with an evil plan, normal rats living their lives, love interest, etc. And, of course, learns what is actually important in life.

31. - 6/26 - After The Thin Man (K) - 1936 - I had sent my DVD excel spreadsheet to my friend Rebecca on Thursday to see if there were any movies she wanted me to bring and she asked for a Thin Man movie. The first one is lent to a friend from work, so I brought the 2nd one. I love the Nick and Nora movies and this one has a very young James Stewart. If you haven't ever seen one, please do yourself a favor and watch them. They are quite clever and what is funnier than a police detective getting all angry and swearing heartily by saying "Phooey."

32. - 6/27 - Robots (RR) - 2005 - This was my second children's movie of the weekend (and better than my other option of Madagascar 2 which I had seen and wasn't overly fond of). I quite liked this...I thought the main character robot was cute and it was a lovely story appealing to my socialist heart. ;-)

Movie of the Month - The Last Metro (although I'm more likely to watch Flushed Away again, as it was a tad happier)

April and May Books and Movies

So, I've been contemplating blog entries for oh-about-two-months now. ;-) First off, I don't know if you're getting this commercial in the rest of the country, but I'm ready to throw my radio out the window (the DVR has spoiled me as I never watch commercials on TV anymore, but still have to suffer through them on the radio – most of the time). It's a Kroger commercial – which is bizarre to me. They never advertised when they had competition from Farmer Jack (which closed all its stores a year or so ago – selling some to Kroger – in fact, in my neighborhood, they bough the Farmer Jack that was RIGHT ACROSS THE FRIGGIN' STREET – so yes, there are two Krogers facing each other). Anyway, now that their only competition is Wal-Mart (do people actually buy food there? I refuse to shop there, so I don't know) and Meijer (I finally got one near me, but it's in this new complex which is a bloody nightmare to get into and out of, so I don't go there), Kroger has started advertising non-stop – radio and television.

The one that bugs me the most is the commercial for their meat department. Now, it doesn't bug me because I'm a vegetarian, it bugs me because it's annoying and stupid. They are interviewing supposed real customers (they sound ignorant enough to be real customers) and one woman says how the meat is so great it just makes you want to go home and cook and then says, "It's awesome." NO! It's not fucking awesome, it's a G-D meat department. The Himalayas are awesome. The Grand Canyon is awesome. I'll even concede that Mount Rushmore is awesome, but the Kroger meat department does NOT fit the definition of awesome. In fact, I'd like to declare a moratorium on the word. Never ever fucking use it! Very few things in this world are truly awesome and the word has lost its true meaning. My mother uses it all the time and it drives me up a wall. No, the scarf I made her was not awesome…it was attractive. It was nicely done. It's pretty, etc., but it wasn't awesome. The yarn was fabulous, but NOT AWESOME.

Okay, now that I've gotten that out of my system. I seem to have not listed my books and movies for April and it's now time to do May. I think I’m doing pretty well for the year, as I finally got smart and copied Heather (who hasn't blogged in more time than me) and number them as I go along.

APRIL

Books

16. Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil by Hannah Arendt - 298 pages – 1963 – I bought this book a good 20 or so years ago (when I was transcribing a Holocaust survivor's story for the premier Holocaust historian in the country), but trust me, transcribing that was depressing enough. I finally decided to read the book because I had bought the book Becoming Eichmann (TWICE – which I took as a sign). I gave away the 2nd book to my former boss' son who is studying the Holocaust and is even going to Germany/Austria this summer to visit concentration camps. He was very excited about the book and after I finished the Arendt book, I lent that to him. Anyway, it's not a difficult read and was very interesting. I've started the Becoming Eichmann book, but it's a bit denser of a read and there's really only so much Holocaust/Nazism I can handle at a time.

17. The Soul of Baseball: A Road Trip Through Buck O'Neil's America by Joe Posnanski – 282 pages – This book was a birthday present and I loved, loved, loved it. I don't care if you're not interested in baseball, this book is simply lovely. I'm sorry that I didn't ever get to meet Buck O'Neil. I also want to go to Kansas City and visit the Negro Leagues Museum. This is definitely a feel-good book w/o being schmaltzy.

Book of April: The Soul of Baseball, hands down.


Movies

15. (4/10) – The Nun's Story (N) – 1959 – As much as I love Audrey Hepburn, it wasn't until I read the biography in March that made me want to watch this movie. I'm Catholic, even, and I wasn't sure I really wanted to watch a movie about a nun. It, however, was so much more than that. It was based on a book by the same name and about a real nun who left her well-to-do family to join the convent as a nurse and how hard it was on her and how all she really wanted to do was go to the Belgian Congo, but to show her humility (she was the smartest nurse/nun), they didn't send her there. And then they brought her back to Belgium and during the war she discovered that it was much too hard on her to treat the Nazi soldiers needing care the same way she treated the Allies soldiers. It was Audrey's favorite movie that she starred in.

16. (4/10) The Lavender Hill Mob (N) – 1951 – Alec Guinness and Stanley Holloway made this an enjoyable romp of a crime movie. Alec Guinness plays a steady, bank employee who plans to rob his own bank's armored car with the help of a couple of real crooks and someone he met in his boarding house. It had moments of silliness, but was a good time.

17. (4/11) Kate & Leopold (K) – 2001 – I went to a friend's house to hang out and she had requested that I bring this movie because the last time I had gone to watch movies with her she was surprised to find a "chick" flick in my bag of movies. She wanted to see what kind of "chick" flick I liked. She still has it, in fact, and has watched it at least once more. So, she liked it, too.

18. (4/11) The Stranger (K) – 1946 – This was the 2nd movie of the night that we watched (we started early as we are old). My friend loves Orson Welles and didn't know this movie. Very film noir with Orson Welles being sufficiently creepy as the Nazi war criminal hanging out in a small New England town but without overdoing it. It even has Edward G. Robinson as the Nazi war criminal seeker-guy.

Movie of April: The Nun's Story – Honestly, this is absolutely worth the time.


May

Books

18. Plum Spooky by Janet Evanovich – 309 pages – 2009 – More of the same. Good escapism…even better, no car blew up in this one. She's still having ridiculous car issues, but at least it didn't get blown up. Maybe Ms. Evanovich has figured out that she was stretching even fiction's bounds of realism.

19. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry in to Values by Robert M. Pirsig (with New 1999 Intro by author along with the 1984 Afterword by author and A Reader's Guide) – 449 pages – 1974 – This is one of those books that I've heard about for half my life and people just love it. It was a common book for Comp 105 back at University, but my Comp 105 teacher (I don't think he was a professor, i.e., had a Ph.D.) chose a different book. Anyway, I absolutely and positively hated ZMM (as it's apparently known). I liked the actual motorcycle trip, that was interesting, but his "Chautauquas" sucked. I started calling them soliloquies. My eyes would glaze over and it started early on when in answer to his son asking him if he believed in ghosts, he talked about the Law of Gravity being a ghost. I was, however, bound and determined to finish the book, if only to know how the trip ended. One statement in the book struck home to me (from page 322) "Anxiety, the next gumption trap, (don't ask) is sort of the opposite of ego. You're so sure you'll do everything wrong you're afraid to do anything at all." My aunt used to say this about my family all the time, because we were all so scared of the Former Father and disappointing him by failing at something that we just didn't try. To that end, I've started my own first sweater…we shall see how that goes. Baby steps, people, baby steps.

20. Serenity: Better Days by Joss Whedon, Brett Matthews & Will Conrad – 73 pages – 2008 – This is a prequel to the Serenity movie (obviously to anybody who reads it and has seen the movie). I haven't read a graphic novel since V for Vendetta and before that it was the Sandman series a very long time ago (pre-1996), but my friends own a comic book shop and I like to support my friends' business adventures. There were three separate "comics," but I bought the all-in-one version. I'm not good at waiting to find out what happens next. There's supposedly another one for which I'm waiting. The characters look like their actors which is cool. If you're a Serenity fan and didn't know that Joss had branched out, here ya go, although I'm betting I'm the only one who didn't know.

Book of the Month: Serenity: Better Days


Movies

19. (5/2) Sophie Scholl: The Final Days (N) – 2005 – The Libertarian lent me this and as I had just finished the Hannah Arendt book and started the other Eichmann book, I figured what the heck on more rampant Nazism. Now, I had heard about the White Rose movement, but didn't really know anything about it, until this movie. Sophie Scholl and her brother as part of the White Rose movement were arrested in 1943 for distributing leaflets at University that were against the Nazi regime, which the Nazis didn't look upon too kindly. They were interrogated and finally put on trial, found guilty (of course) and execute. While not exactly an uplifting film, it was an excellent movie which showed human strength and dignity in the face of evil and inevitability. Please see this movie.

20. (5/2) Paris When It Sizzles (N) – 1964 – I saw this because Audrey Hepburn was in it. She's marvelous…the movie, itself? Hmmm, not so much.

21. (5/2) Faraway, So Close (N) – 1993 – I had seen this movie when it first came out (or close to it), but wanted to see it again. Sadly, it's prequel (Wings of Desire) is no longer available from Netflix for some stupid reason, so I couldn't watch it first which had been my plan. ;-( Peter Falk is in it, in a much smaller role than he had in Wings of Desire – from what I can remember. And Lou Reed. I think it could officially be called "an art house" film, if you're so inclined to put things into categories. However, it's a beautiful movie, cinematographically and plot (although there are some ugly scenes – if that makes sense). Click the link – it explains it way better than I could since it's Wim Wender's (director) own website.

22. (5/2) Transformers (F) – 2007 – I hadn't seen Transformers when it first came out, because, quite frankly, I didn't care. But Pamela mentioned that she owned it and was going to re-watch it before the new film came out and I questioned her about the 2007 film. I.e., "Really? You liked it?" I was incredulous, truthfully. I honestly didn't think it appealed to women over a certain age and was basically geared to teenaged boys. She lent it to me (and it took me forever to watch it) and I have to say that I quite liked it. You really can't go wrong with the classic "Good triumphs over Evil" storyline.

23. (5/9) The Iron Giant (K) – 1999 – I point blank love this movie. It occurs back in the 50s when everybody was scared to death of the Red Menace and nuclear holocaust. The Iron Giant lands on earth (Maine) and eventually befriends Hogarth who does what he can to keep the government official sent to find the thing that fell from space from finding the Giant. Great movie.

24. (5/19 & 21) Castle (9 episodes – I missed one, dammit – OOOOOHHHHHH!!! However, it appears I can DVR the one episode I missed this coming Saturday. WOOHOO!!!) 2009 – Thankfully, Fermi's and NYPinata's love of Nathan Fillion brought this TV show to my attention, so I could continue my own "old man" love (as LL likes to call it). It's a good show with him playing a famous author working on a new series and he's learning about police work by following around a female homicide detective. He's got the good teenaged-daughter, the off-the-wall mother and an even crazier ex-wife, but it all works – at least for me. I still prefer him in Serenity, but I can watch that whenever I want (to say nothing of seeing his comic book/graphic novel character).

25. (5/25) Untamed Heart (Movieplex) – 1993 – I had DVRd this movie quite some time ago, because I had been wanting to see it and had contemplated buying it, but it had been a number of years since I had seen it and wasn't sure I really wanted to buy it (even for $9). It's not what one would call a happy movie, but there's something very uplifting about it. I think Christian Slater does a great job in it, playing the busboy everybody thinks is slow, but is really just more of a loner due to being raised in an orphanage and having a weak heart. Marisa Tomei is perfect as the young woman who keeps falling in love with the wrong guy, but eventually falls for someone who treats her well. I would say this is an unadulterated chick flick (even with the hockey game scene).

26. (5/25) Ladies in Lavender (Enc) – 2004) – Maggie Smith and Judi Dench play sisters who live in the late 1930s and find a young man half-drowned on the beach in their small English town. He doesn't speak English, but they manage to communicate in German. The sisters' relationship with each other becomes strained as they both have different ways of dealing with their guest. It's not action-packed, but it was very well done and worth the effort.

27. (5/31) Prayers for Bobby (Lifetime) – 2009 – I DVRd this way back in January when it aired, but I'm really slow on the movie watching these days (in case you hadn't noticed). I wanted to see it for the topic and because it was filmed in Detroit. When Bobby and his brother walk along the railroad tracks there's a bright turquoise building behind them that says Flair. A former co-worker's sister owns that shop and I helped them on Opening Day (pricing earrings). And the final scene during the gay pride parade was held on a street where I drive every Monday on my way to see Maureen. I remember driving it one day last year and wondering what the hell the banners and tents were all about. Who knew metro Detroit could pass so easily as Walnut Creek, CA and Portland, OR? I recognised it as Detroit, as I think any Detroiter would (just like all Detroiters laughed their asses off during Bird on a Wire which supposedly took place in Detroit, but very obviously wasn't filmed here at all). I think Prayers for Bobby could easily have fallen into being too much, but I feel it was poignant w/o being over done.

Movie of May: Sophie Scholl: The Final Days

Well, this post only took me three weeks to write. *sigh* I'm a horribly slackeresque blogger, aren't I?

Cat Scratch Saturday & March Books & Movies

Igor and Boris looking like they get along...silly boys.

Books

11. Enchantment: The Life of Audrey Hepburn by Donald Soto - 340 pages - I love Audrey Hepburn. She was an unbelievable woman - living through WWII, dealing with the abandonment of her father, the coldness of her mother, etc. All she ever wanted in life was to be loved and to be a mother of many children. She ended up married to two men who did not appreciate her or love her the way she wanted to be loved. Such a sad story.

12. Mystery of Crocodile Island by Carolyn Keene (#55) - 180 pages - Nancy and friends left River Heights and its myriad mysteries for the Florida Keys and some bad guys owning a crocodile farm and smuggling illicit goods. I know this will shock you but she solved the mystery and avoided great danger to her and Ned.

13. The Thirteenth Pearl by Carolyn Keene (#56) - 179 pages - This is the last of the Nancy Drew books. She leaves the country with her father, Carson Drew, for Japan where she dresses in disguise as a Japanese girl (somehow the people she comes into contact with fall for it), figures out the key that will help her solve the mystery of the missing pearls once she gets back to River Heights where her friends help her once again. Whew, I was worried on this one. ;-)

14. The Rhino with Glue-On Shoes and Other Surprising True Stories of Zoo Vets and Their Patients Ed. by Lucy H. Spelman, DVM and Ted Y. Mashima, DVM - 311 pages - The title of this book caught my eye as I do love rhinos, the subtitle convinced me to buy it. It contained great stories of vets figuring out what was wrong with their animal patients and how they cured them - at least most of them. It also had pictures of all the animals. I would definitely recommend this book to any animal lover, especially LL.

15. A Walk in the Woods By Bill Bryson - 274 pages - Somebody gave me this book years ago and told me it was very funny, but I had just never gotten around to reading it. After I read his Shakespeare book last month, I finally took it off the bookshelf. The person (whoever it was) who gave me the book did not steer me wrong. This book is one laugh after another and is about Bill Bryson's attempt to hike the entire Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine. I actually know someone who has accomplished this particular feat and I've also hiked the last bit in Maine myself where I saw people who were finishing the AT themselves (some were nice, some were a bit snotty, as if they are better than day hikers). Whatever. I'd definitely recommend this book, even if you're not hiker (I don't consider myself to be a real hiker).

Movies

11. A Night To Remember - 1955 - Retroplex - I read the book that this movie was based on when I was in grade school (multiple times). I was fascinated by the Titanic story. While I hate the James Cameron/Leonard diCaprio movie, Titanic, I loved this movie, as it's based on the book by Walter Lord and he had interviewed many of the survivors to get as true a story as possible. I cried throughout The Night to Remember which I did not do at all during Titanic.

12. Ratatouille - 2007 - Encore - I have a thing for animated films, but I hadn't seen this when it came out. I thought this was very cute. The concept is a rat that has a thing for cooking shows and ends up in a Paris restaurant where he helps the true owner (but we don't know that yet) take over the restaurant from the mean guy. If you haven't seen it, and it's shows up on cable, definitely check it out.

13. Coffee and Cigarettes - 2003 (N) - This marked the end of my Jim Jarmusch phase and I have to say that I bloody well hated this movie. It was all I could do to finish watching it. And it had Iggy Pop, Tom Waits, Steven Wright, Roberto Benigni and Kate Winslett in it. Premise was a series of vignettes where people meet over cigarettes and coffee, not a horrible premise, but it was horrendously boring and I wanted to slap people. Honestly, it had Iggy Pop in it and I hated it.

14. Slumdog Millionaire - 2008 (Star-Sfld) - I don't see many movies in the theatre, but I really wanted to see this one, so I went one Sunday with Pamela after she cut my hair. I didn't know much about it (i.e., the violence and torture), except that it was about a slum kid in India who gets on their version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire. I quite liked it.

15. Velvet Goldmine - 1998 (N) - I had been wanting to see this movie again for some time, especially after reading the Iggy Pop biography. I have to say that knowing more about Iggy gave me a new perspective on the movie. It's not a bad movie, but it didn't work for me as well as it had before. Sometimes too much knowledge can take away the enjoyment of a thing.

16. MacGyver - Season 2 - I love MacGyver.

Book of the Month: This is tough...the Audrey Hepburn book was great, but it was sad. The Rhino with Glue-On Shoes was fabulous, but Walk in the Woods was hilarious. I'm going with A Walk in the Woods.

Movie of the Month: A Night To Remember - See it...especially if you think DiCaprio's Titanic was good.

Cat Scratch Saturday #2(3)

I've been debating about today's picture - one of Boris and Igor (the wallpaper on my phone) or a picture of Tikal or Zapata (my previous beloved cats).

And I still haven't decided...I'm going to search for a picture and see what appeals.



I decided on a picture of Boris with a cameo of Tikal.

I know you're all anxiously awaiting the books and movies of February, so here it is. I'm also watching Top Gear, so we'll see how well I summarise them when I'm not completely concentrating.

Books

4. The Supernaturalist by Eoin Colfer (267 pages) - If you haven't yet discovered Eoin Colfer (then you haven't been reading me for very long, or you've ignored my recommendations - and I'm crushed). He's an Irish writer for the Young Adult genre and he's utterly fabulous. This is (possibly) a one-off (i.e., not part of the Artemis Fowl series, which is supposedly done) and was a little sad (orphans a la Dickens but in the future), but there is, of course, upsides. The premise was that in the future there are no real countries, just areas controlled by different corporations. For some reason, there were lots of orphans who were essentially guinea pigs for the resident corporation - information which comes in handy when the hero orphan escapes and hooks up with a fringe element of three people who are actually the good guys. It's much more novel than I have explained.

5. Airman by Eoin Colfer (412 pages) - This is the latest book by Mr. Colfer and took place before the time of flight on some little island off the coast of Ireland which was its own little country. (Oh, kickass, I love Top Gear, they're playing Joy Division as background music - as if that would ever happen here.) The country had a good king who wanted his citizens to have a good life (vs. the older kings who wanted everything for himself). The king had a daughter, his head of army had a young son who were best friends. Good king is killed by bad element who also kills the tutor of the princess and her best friend. The boy sees it happen, so bad element throws him into the country's smaller island prison (mining diamonds) by pretending he was part of the assassination (but as a different person - it was all very convoluted, but in a way that made sense). He escapes eventually (think of the title of the book) and fixes everything.

6. Iggy Pop: Open Up and Bleed by Paul Trynka (354 pages) - I was very disappointed with this book, because although it covers Iggy's life up until 2006, it didn't discuss AT ALL the triumphant return of The Stooges to Detroit in 2003. I was already annoyed with Mr. Trynka for calling a lake here in the Detroit area as St. Clair Lake when its name is Lake St. Clair. It's a small editing issue, per se, but if I caught something that BASIC, who knows what else was wrong.

7. The Secret of the Forgotten City #52 by Carolyn Keene (180 pages) - This one was cool because the Forgotten City was in Nevada, not far from Vegas and she even went to The Valley of Fire, which I thought was pretty cool, considering I've been there and could picture some of the locations in the book. I hate to give away the ending, but Nancy finds the Forgotten City with the help of Bess, George, Ned, Dave and Burt. Yes, shocker, I know!

8. The Sky Phantom #53 by Carolyn Keene (180 pages) - We are getting VERY close to the end of the Nancy Drew books and it's making me sad. This is one that I didn't read a jillion times as a child, so I didn't remember what happened. It was one of the more outrageous Nancy Drew books as Nancy (at the tender age of 18) is taking flying lessons and proving herself to a brilliant pilot (along with her skills as a dancer, drawer, painter, actor, horseback rider, skater, skier, etc., from all the other Nancy Drew books). *eyes rolling*

9. The Strange Message in the Parchment #54 by Carolyn Keene (180 pages) - A thought came to me while re-reading the Nancy Drew books over the past few years. And that thought was "Nancy Drew was the precursor for Hart to Hart." What? You're thinking. Yes, you know how the Harts knew everybody in the world - especially those mixed up in some sort of crime or mystery - well, that's Nancy and her father.

10. Shakespeare: The World As Stage by Bill Bryson (196 pages) - I'd say if you want to know about Shakespeare, read this book. Bill Bryson is HILARIOUS and he pulls no punches and tells you what is actually known and even discusses the discrepancies between other books on Shakespeare - essentially, stuff people made up - not out of any real sense of maliciousness or anything, but stuff that just isn't proved out by the evidence. It's short and sweet.

Book of the Month: You know, I really want to pick the Iggy Pop book, but I'm still pissed off, so I'm going with Airman by Eoin Colfer.

Movies

6. The 49th Man (1953 - TCM) - This movie was about the smuggling of an atomic bomb (in pieces) into the United States. I thought it was very interesting and well done. I won't give away the ending because that would be wrong. If you like older movies (b/w), definitely check it out.

7. Down By Law (1986 - N) - I was still in the midst of my Jim Jarmusch phase here. This one has Tom Waits, John Lurie and Roberto Benigni as cell mates (the movie starts off showing how they all end up there individually) in a New Orleans prison and shows their adventures of escape and their bid for freedom. It was better than the one I just watched last week (which will be discussed next month, of course - trust me, it won't be the movie of March). In fact, I'd say that of Jarmusch's older films, I have liked this one the best.

8. How to Steal A Million (1966 - K) - For Valentine's Day, I went over to my friend Marianne's house (we got Thai take-away) with other friend Susan to watch movies. I took a bunch of movies and they chose a very fun Audrey Hepburn romantic comedy. I love this movie wholeheartedly. Audrey is gorgeous and sweet and lovely. Peter O'Toole is incredibly handsome and funny. It definitely asks you to suspend your disbelief mechanism and I have no problem. If you have never seen this movie, once again, you haven't been listening to me. Watch it. You will love it.

9. Murder By Death (1976 - K) - I had not seen this movie for many, many, many years, but I remembered the gist. However, as I had no knowledge of The Thin Man movies 30 years ago, some of the spoofs were lost on me back then. I kind of object to Neil Simon making Nick and Nora British - just for the record, that's just wrong. How can you object to a movie with Truman Capote, Alec Guinness, David Niven, Maggie Smith, Peter Sellers, Eileen Brennan, Peter Falk, Nancy Walker, Elsa Lanchester and James Cromwell?

10. Hammett (1982 - N) - I'm starting my Wim Wenders (as well as I can since Netflix is no longer carrying Wings of Desire - pissed me off) film retrospective. The premise here is that Dashiell Hammett has to solve his own mystery using what he knows from writing mystery books. It takes place (obviously) in old San Francisco. It was nicely done and fun to watch with Marilu Henner and Peter Boyle. I would say that it's not Wim's best, but I still liked it.

Movie of the Month: I probably can't pick How To Steal A Million, eh? I'm going to go with The 49th Man. It kept me on the edge of my seat and surprised me at the end.

Now, it's time for Top Gear to have my full attention. James and Richard are racing in Italy - Richard in a 40 year old Ferrari Daytona and James in a fancy ass boat of some sort.

I'm Bbbbbaaaaaccccccckkkkkkk!!! Be very scared. ;-)

So, I've been remarkably absent, haven't I? I have any number of reasons. 1) Super busy at work where I was working more than 8 hours a day. 2) Super busy at home knitting scarves for visiting California-based family members who were coming in for Grandma's 90 Birthday Party in the midst of the coldest weather of the winter. 3) I was sicker than a dog with bronchitis for 2 weeks (and I actually haven't fully eliminated from my lungs quite yet – 4 weeks later). 4) Two weeks ago I joined Facebook.

And I've, somehow, managed to create a list a mile long of knitting I need to do. And the funny thing is that none of the knitting that "I need to do" is for me. Sometimes I'm just too darn Catholic. I have a boatload of yarn that I've bought for ME, but I never get that far. I'm working on three scarves right now: 1) Knit Picks Felici Sock Yarn in a very pretty feather & fan scarf for my cousin, 2) red mohair lace patterned scarf for one my Mexican family members (the others have been done for months, but the mohair lace is taking a LOT longer), and 3) scrap yarn scarf for the nephew's girlfriend who likes crazy things (this is almost too crazy, but nephew insists the GF will love it). Oh yeah, and a baby blanket for my friend Julius' new baby who was born in December. Dang it!

Both of those scarves have grown since I took those pictures.

At one point, I know I typed up the list of movies and books from November and December, but I have no clue where it went. I'm not sure how much of a synopsis I'll be giving, but I do at least want to maintain my lists.

January Books

Rough Justice by Jack Higgins (326 pages)

Fidelity by Thomas Perry (357 pages)

Heat Lightning by John Sandford (388 pages)

My favorite authors came out with books in December, which made for a large Borders bill, but they're so worth it. I loved all three books so I can't pick one for Book of the Month.

December Books

The Invisible Intruder by Carolyn Keene #46 (175 pages)

The Mysterious Mannequin by Carolyn Keene #47 (178 pages)

The Crooked Banister By Carolyn Keene #48 (179 pages)

The Fourth Crusade and the Sack of Constantinople by Jonathan Phillips (320 pages)

The Secret of Mirror Bay by Carolyn Keene #49 (178 pages)

The Double Jinx Mystery by Carolyn Keene #50 (180 pages)

Mystery of the Glowing Eye by Carolyn Keene #51 (181 pages)

Silks by Dick and Felix Francis (338 pages)

I love Dick Francis, so when it came time to choose which of my favorite authors' new books would be read first, there was no contest. The Fourth Crusade book was a birthday present and it was extremely interesting. I know damn near nothing about the Crusades, so I feel enlightened. The cool thing about the Nancy Drew books this month is that The Mysterious Mannequin ends in Constantinople so there was a theme.

Book of the Month: I have to go with Silks, just because it was the only non-Nancy Drew book (save for the Fourth Crusade book - and while it was good, nothing beats Dick Francis).

November Books

The Moonstone Castle Mystery by Carolyn Keene #40 (178 pages)

The Clue of the Whistling Bagpipes by Carolyn Keene #41 (177 pages)

The Phantom of Pine Hill by Carolyn Keene #42 (176 pages)

The Mystery of the 99 Steps by Carolyn Keene #43 (176 pages)

The Clue in the Crossword Cipher by Carolyn Keene #44 (177 pages)

The Spider Sapphire Mystery by Carolyn Keene #45 (176 pages)

I also read 176 pages of The Fourth Crusade book in November – academic treatises take me a tad longer to read than Nancy Drew books.

Book of the Month: Oy vey...I'm going with The Clue in the Crossword Cipher because it taught me a few Spanish words way back when. Can't really pick The Fourth Crusade since I didn't finish it in November.

January Movies

1/4 – Stranger Than Paradise – 1984 – (N) – Jim Jarmusch's second film (watched his first in December) and like most of his stuff, it's truly independent (unlike those pretend Coen Brothers) and different. I'm terrible at summaries, so go read and the link – although let it be known that the person who wrote the first summary didn't seem to watch the movie. The second summary is much more true to the movie.

1/4 – Forgetting Sarah Marshall – 2008 – N – I forget why I moved this to the top of my list and got it in the middle of my Jim Jarmusch film retrospective, but something made me do it. Oh yeah!!! Russell Brand I had seen him a few times on The Graham Norton Show and found him extremely entertaining (and a tad attractive).

1/24 – Anatomy of a Murder – 1959 – (Redford Theatre) – From the Redford Theatre's Calendar of Events, "Filmed in upper Michigan 50 years ago, this exciting small-town courtroom drama with James Stewart as the easy-going but cagey defense lawyer gives the audience first-rate fare with sterling performances by George C. Scott, Ben Gazzara, Arthur O'Connell and Eve Arden. I had seen this movie a few years back but when there was the opportunity to see it on the big screen, I took it. At the end, I queried, "Why did we want the wife-beater to beat the murder charge?" I think it's solely because Jimmy Stewart is his lawyer. The judge in the case is not an actor, but the attorney who took down McCarthy – Joseph Welch. If you go to IMDB, you'll see that someone started a discussion thread talking about how bad the actor playing the judge was. I have to say that I disagreed wholeheartedly with that person.. I thought the judge was great. Watch it and let me know what you think.

1/31 – Wit – 2001 – (N) – This is an Emma Thompson made for TV movie, but not of the bad Lifetime variety. For some reason I think it was made for HBO, but I can't find that information anywhere. This is not what I would call a light movie, as it deals with cancer, and in fact, by the end I had tears streaming down my face. I read at imdb.com that medical schools show this movie as an example to doctors-to-be of how not to treat patients.

After that, I needed something to cheer me up, so I broke into my MacGyver DVDs and I made it through the rest of Season 1. I love Richard Dean Anderson as MacGyver.

Movie of the Month: Anatomy of a Murder - I mean, really...I couldn't really pick Forgetting Sarah Marshall over Jimmy Stewart.

December Movies

12/1-6 – Firefly & Serenity – I was in the mood for some Nathan Fillion and a little futuristic sci-fi-western. You all know it. If you don't, I'm sorry for you, because it is so worth the time investment.

12/7 – Saboteur - 1942 –(K) - I love Hitchcock as you all know and this is one of my faves – with the Statue of Liberty ending and Vaughan Glaser telling our young hero as he goes off to save the country "and practice that triangle." That part just makes me laugh.

12/7 – Ocean's 11 (K) – What can I say? I was in the mood for something familiar.

12/6 & 9 – 27 Dresses – 2008 – (N) – I watched this over the course of two days because the bloody disk was messed up and I had to return it halfway through. I don't watch a lot of chick flicks (I'm not completely averse to the, but there are just other movies to watch that normally interest me more), but occasionally, you need a little frivolity in life. I have to say that I liked this movie. I thought it was cute. I laughed my ass off at the scene where she tries on every single one of her 27 dresses. I laughed out loud at the first wedding (and all subsequent weddings) when the bride said, "I picked that [bridesmaid] dress, because you'll be able to wear it again." Every single bride (or damn near) has said that to their bridesmaids as they're foisting some ugly-ass taffeta number on them and it's never ever been true once.

12/21 – National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation – 1989 – (Friend's) – This is an annual Christmas event with my friends from the University (colleagues from when I worked there, not fellow students from when I studied there). Even though I think it's a tad silly, it's growing on me and I laughed out loud at parts this year that I didn't laugh at previously.

12/28 – Madagascar 2: Escape to Africa – 2008 – (IMAX) – I walked across the street to watch this with my friend Marianne and her two kids. It was cute, but the first one was better. And it made me sad seeing Bernie Mac's name up on the screen.

12/28 – The Librarian: Quest for the Spear – 2004 – (TNT) – As some of you might know, I watch Ellen every day (she makes me laugh) and one day Noah Wylie was on plugging the third of the Librarian movies. They sounded fun (besides the clip they showed of the 3rd one had him sword-fighting and I love sword-fighting). TNT played the first two that Sunday that they showed the new one, so I DVRd all of them in that one day. While not exactly Oscar worthy films, they are enjoyable. Besides, they have Jane Curtin and Bob Newhart. I enjoyed all three of them.

12/28 – The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mine – 2006 – (TNT) – See above.

12/29 – The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice – 2008 – (TNT) – I think TNT played them against this past weekend, so if you happen to be home one day when TNT is showing them again, you might consider them worthy of a peek.

12/29 – Permanent Vacation – 1980 – (N) – Jim Jarmusch's very first film which was from his film student days. I liked this better than Stranger than Paradise (January Movies). PV follows a young man around New York City where he meets interesting characters.

12/29 – The Diving Bell and The Butterfly – 2007 – (N) – Based on the book by Jean-Dominique Bauby who has a stroke while driving one day and ends up paralysed from the neck down, but unable to speak and able to move only one eyelid by which means he dictated his book – assistant would recite the letters of the alphabet in order of frequency and when she got to the letter he wanted, he would blink and she would writ the letter down and repeat the process. While a depressing topic, it wasn't a completely depressing movie as it showed what you can accomplish if you try.

12/29 - Bonneville - 2006 – (N) – The link contains spoilers, so don't click if you don't want to know. I saw the trailer for this on the 27 Dresses DVD and thought it looked like fun. Middle-aged women on a road trip in an old Bonneville – and thankfully, it didn't end with them driving off a cliff. I have to say that I really really really really liked this movie.

12/31 – Atonement - 2007 – (GG) – A work friend lent me this movie because she just loved it. I didn't. It was unbelievably depressing, and no, writing a better ending than real life because you fucked up does not make up for the fact that you ruined people's lives. I wanted to slap the little sister. The high point of the movie for me was the green dress Keira Knightley wore at one point. Dear heavens, it was a GORGEOUS dress - that picture does not do it justice, I have to say.

12/31 – MacGyver: Season 1 – (K) – After suffering through Atonement, I had to cheer myself up, so I put in Richard Dean Anderson. I still wanted to slap the shit out of the little sister from Atonement, but it helped me to put it aside long enough to go to sleep.

Movie of the Month: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly - Although I really did love 27 Dresses and Bonneville, almost as much. I'd recommend all three of these, but for different moods.

November Movies

11/14 – Patti Smith: Dream of Life - 2008 – (DFT) – A cinematographer followed Patti Smith around for a good number of years and then edited it all down into this movie. She was followed on a visit her parents and essentially, just being a regular person. I'm not really a fan of Patti Smith, but I have to say that I liked this movie.

11/23 – Un Chien Andalou – 1929 – (DFT) – While I had seen Un Chien Andalou years ago (college), BST hadn't seen it and the DFT was playing it along with two other films of similar vintage - Entre'acte - 1924 – and L'Age d'or - 1930, which I hadn't seen. L'Age d'or is in my 1001 Films You Must See Before You Die book, so I took the opportunity to check it off. They were all surrealist films (Buñuel and Dalí) and therefore, no real plot. I remember fighting to keep my eyes open during Un Chien Andalou (none of which was familiar except for the slitting eye scene). L'Age d'or was completely insane as it followed this couple who apparently were in hormonal overload and couldn't keep their hands off each other, especially in public places. And I believe at one point there was a huge cow in a canopied bed.

11/23 – Henry Rollins: Uncut from New Orleans – 2008 – (IFC)
11/26 – Henry Rollins: Uncut from South Africa (IFC) – I love Rollins, but after watching this I loved him even more because he declared Iggy the King of Rock and Roll.
11/26 - Henry Rollins: Uncut from Northern Ireland

11/26 - Mr. Smith Goes To Washington - 1939 – (TCM) – I had never ever seen this movie, and instead of going dancing on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, I stayed home and watched Jimmy Stewart instead. I loved this movie and wish the Democrats would make the Republicans filibuster like this now!

11/28 - Seventh Seal - 1958 – (TCM) – Like Un Chien Andalou, I had seen this film many years ago, but didn't really remember anything about it except for Max von Sydow playing chess with the Devil. I know some people LOVE Bergman and others LOATHE Bergman (Ingmar, of course), the latter calling the former pretentious. I'm in neither category as I haven't seen many of his films, but I have to say that I quite like Seventh Seal. I wouldn't say it always makes sense, but who cares, especially since it made way more sense than the surrealist films I watched earlier in the month.

11/28 – Juno – 2007 – (N) – Yes, I was the last person in the world to see Juno. I loved it. It was so cute and dealt with teenage pregnancy w/o making light of it or making it seem as if the world is coming to the end either.

11/28 – Death Becomes Her - 1992 – (N) – I never watched this movie when it came out because I've had Meryl Streep issues ever since Kramer vs. Kramer, but when Goldie Hawn was on The Graham Norton Show (yes, it's a trend), they talked to her fans some of whom were OBSESSED with this movie. For some reason, they made it sound appealing and I added it to my queue and moved it to the top. Was it utterly brilliant and profound? Nope, but it was funny and worth watching. And I might have gotten over my Meryl Streep issues. I'm glad I watched it.

11/28 – Goth Cruise - I found this on On Demand and had to watch it. I want to go on a goth cruise!!!! The possibility of being on a cruise and dancing to good music instead of complete dreck is such a draw! Some of the people seemed a tad over the top, but generally, most of them were just normal people who like to wear black and listen to Goth music.

11/29 – The Queen - 2006 – (EGC) – My dear friend EGC lent me this DVD and I finally got around to watching it. I wasn't sure I was ready to live through Princess Diana's death all over again. I'm of the age that I watched the wedding on TV and thought she was utterly beautiful, to say nothing of her charity work over the years. While showing the Queen in a slightly more human light (at some points) than we usually see her, it didn't make me think of her as a good person. In fact, I had always liked the Queen Mum and if the way this movie portrayed her was even slightly accurate, I'm sorry I wasted that affection over the years.

Movie of the Month: It was a toss-up between Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and Juno - do I go with the classic or the clever, new movie?

November Events

I had one event in November…The Crüxshadows in Detroit ( Hamtramck , really) on 11/8. I dragged Marianne with me (everybody else bailed on me that day). I still loved I:Scintilla (first opening band) and even bought their CD after the show and got the entire band to autograph and then got my picture taken with them. I'd link to the picture, but that would require me to have downloaded the pics to my computer which hasn't happened yet. I want the dress the lead singer wore that night. Ayria was interesting solely because I was watching the water that the stupid bitch next to me spilled by putting her drink on the stage and then knocking it over and doing NOTHING about it. I was scared Jen (lead singer) was going to slip and fall and kill herself. It turns out that Rogue and most of the Crüxshadows (and a good number of the other two bands) all had the flu.

I was right up close – right up against the stage – much to the stupid bitch's dismay next to me who spent the first two bands and the hour or so before they even went on stage trying to get me to move because a friend of hers showed up after me and wanted to squeeze in on the other side. After the second band, I finally called her out and told her that she might as well stop elbowing me because I was going fucking nowhere. She tried to protest that everybody was pushing and I said, "No, they're not. It's just you. You want me to move because your friend showed up late and you think that I'm going to move if you're annoying enough, but I won't, so you might as well stop." Amazingly enough, she and her stupid boyfriend finally did stop trying to get me to move. Honestly, I might be old, but that just means that I've been to more concerts than you, honey, and I can hold my own.

The stage at Small's was significantly smaller than the stage at the DNA in San Francisco and I worried that they weren't going to have room , but they made it work. Of course, the stupid bitch next to me kept putting beer bottles on the stage (right where all the lead singers were going to be standing) and I kept picking them up and passing them out of danger's way. I swear I wanted to slap the shit out of her and her stupid boyfriend. Inconsiderate, poorly raised assholes.

After the concert, I got to meet Rogue and got my picture taken with him (I look fat in it, so you won't be seeing it). The poor thing was absolutely sicker than a dog and you could tell – but not during the concert. I think it was a better concert than the San Francisco one. I was ready to drive to Cincinnati or Pittsburgh the next weekend to see them, but couldn't find anybody to go and the weather was complete shite and I wasn't going to drive I-75 in the snow. I'm nuts, but I'm not insane.

And there, you've caught up with the last three months of my life.

October Movies/Events - Dinner with Jorge

Okay, here is the list of movies I watched in October. I don't feel like linking, so you're on your own!

10/5 - Newsies (N) - I watched this with Sal & Coy while in SF. Coy had recommended it to Sal, and they started watching it Sunday morning when I was there. It was a musical which I wasn't expecting, but it was a good movie. If I remember correctly, it had a very young Christian Bale in it.

10/25 - Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (N) - 2000 - This is a Jim Jarmusch film which I had somehow missed. Forest Whitaker was the Ghost Dog who was an assassin for a crime family - kind of a cross between Sho-gun (with an African-American samurai) and The Sopranos. It wasn't exactly a happy movie, but I still liked it...especially after the next movie.

10/25 - Before the Rain (N) - 1994 - This dealt with the tensions between Christians and Muslims in Macedonia (if I remember correctly). The lead character was an award-winning photograph who was living in England, but decided to return home to Macedonia and discovers that things have changed in the many years since he had left. It was a very good movie, but bloody depressing.

10/26 - The Good German (Enc) - 2006 - I had read the book a while back (May 2006, apparently) and have been meaning to see the movie and finally got around to it. They didn't follow the book as much as I would have liked (from what I could remember), but since I didn't re-read it, I can't really tell how different it was. Yeah, I should probably do this more often, so I wouldn't get so upset. I'd say read the book, though, if you're only going to do one.

10/26 - Reality Bites (End) - 1994 - Yeah, I know, I'm the only person of my generation who didn't see it when it first came out. I liked it. After the three previous movies (which were all a bit on the depressing side), I needed something a bit more light-hearted. I'd definitely watch it again. I liked it better than Singles (I think, but it's been a long time since I've seen that).

Events

10/7 - The Cruxshadows - DNA Lounge in SF - What an excellent night this was. I met the Zombieslayer and Badman that night. I had a lovely time with them. Zombieslayer is not the hardass he pretends to be. Badman is exactly as he puts himself out there, which is rare, I think in the blogging world. I:Scintilla and Ayria opened for The Cruxshadows and I have to say that I liked I:Scintilla better than Ayria. The lead singer for I:Scintilla is very sweet. Zombieslayer bought their CD and then got the whole band to sign it. If they're coming to your town, do yourself a favor and go see them. You get a kickass show for $15 ($12, if you buy ahead of time).

10/31 - Regis Philbin - Casino Windsor - Don't laugh. Yes, in one month I saw a goth/darkwave band and Regis. HRH *loves* Regis and since she's a gambler, she got free tickets and a free hotel room. She drove down from Toronto and I crossed the river. I have to admit that I laughed awfully damn hard but it was mostly *at* the people from the audience that he pulled up on stage to talk to. Other than the woman's granddaughter next to me, we were pretty much the youngest people at the show.

Movie of the Month - Hmmm, this is tough...I think I have to go with Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai.

Event of the Month - No offense to HRH or Rege, but I have to go with the Cruxshadows. I got to wear my kickass boots, which are fabulous, and relatively comfortable - I was even able to dance in them.

I just got home (okay, it was close to an hour ago at this point) (Oh crap, I forgot to call my sister-in-law back) from dinner with Jorge - which makes him my fourth blogging meet in a month (Knucklehead, Zombieslayer, Badman and Jorge) - and his lovely wife, Mona and daughter, Peanut. I had a very nice time and just hope that meeting a person from on-line didn't freak Mona out too much. I"m used to it, considering I've been meeting people from the Internet since 1995.

Have I told you that Thanksgiving this year is going to suck? No? Well, it is. It's my favorite holiday and it's going to suck. I'm ready to chuck it all in and just stay home, but I have a feeling that Mom, the BAB, SIL and Terror Children would be offended that they weren't good enough. Seven people does not make a Thanksgiving, although SIL said she'd invite her mother, brother, sister and BIL which will at least put us into double digits. Barely. *sigh*

Time to go to bed. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day. I really need to get to work by 5:30. I just hope I got enough sleep this weekend, so I can get up in the morning. I haven't been able to get up on time for at least two weeks. That has to change tomorrow!