This rare gift of time also allowed me to veg out this weekend. This week my parents decided they really missed having a dog around the house and they are now the doting owners of Riley the Sweetest Collie You'll Ever Meet. Just as one would for a birth in the family, I came as soon as my schedule allowed and have since been playing with Riley, letting her chase and herd me around the backyard, walking her round and round her new hood, and otherwise becoming her most favorite human.
My gloriously mundane weekend
So this week I was supposed to be on a consulting site visit in Cheyenne/Laramie, Wyoming but they canceled my trip. The project director is dealing with complications from her husband's recent surgery/chemo and it was too overwhelming to pull together my agenda and take care of him. I will need to shuffle my schedule and book another visit but in a way the decision was better all around. From my perspective it meant I didn't have to rush from Biloxi straight to Wyoming and headlong into Philadelphia. I was able to take this week in the office to catch up on email and get my piles under relative control...because the Philadelphia and Portland trips are in rapid succession.
This rare gift of time also allowed me to veg out this weekend. This week my parents decided they really missed having a dog around the house and they are now the doting owners of Riley the Sweetest Collie You'll Ever Meet. Just as one would for a birth in the family, I came as soon as my schedule allowed and have since been playing with Riley, letting her chase and herd me around the backyard, walking her round and round her new hood, and otherwise becoming her most favorite human.
This rare gift of time also allowed me to veg out this weekend. This week my parents decided they really missed having a dog around the house and they are now the doting owners of Riley the Sweetest Collie You'll Ever Meet. Just as one would for a birth in the family, I came as soon as my schedule allowed and have since been playing with Riley, letting her chase and herd me around the backyard, walking her round and round her new hood, and otherwise becoming her most favorite human.
On the Road Again | New Orleans Flea Market
To break up the work week while volunteering in Biloxi, we decided to head into New Orleans on Wednesday. With such limited time to spend in the city the trip amounted to wandering around the French Quarter -- stopping every two seconds so I could photograph more, more, more architecture -- eating dinner + quite a few beignets at Cafe Du Monde and then driving back to Biloxi.
To the surprise of no one, I enjoyed the flea market. It wasn't quite as huge and random as I had hoped, but it's still a great spot for people watching and gator heads. I mean really, why buy your gator heads anywhere else? What? Why buy them at all? Party pooper.
To the surprise of no one, I enjoyed the flea market. It wasn't quite as huge and random as I had hoped, but it's still a great spot for people watching and gator heads. I mean really, why buy your gator heads anywhere else? What? Why buy them at all? Party pooper.
On the Road Again | Biloxi, Mississippi
I spent last week in Biloxi, Mississippi volunteering with the Hope Coordination Center, a post-Katrina relief and redevelopment organization. It was incredible to see the city two and a half years after the storm. There are many reasons to be hopeful and inspired and yet many reasons to be angry and frustrated. Two and a half years after the storm and there are still FEMA trailers (pulling out in August...another issue in an of itself) and piles of rubble strewn about, entire city blocks completely vacant, and business still boarded up. Our country deserves better. Our people deserve better. And then you have the many community organizations and thousands and thousands of volunteers who work every single day to make the world of Biloxi a bit brighter.
We stayed at the Prince of Peace Baptist Church. It was not luxurious by a long shot, but why should it be? The communal bunker meant I drifted off each night to a cacophony of snores and giggles. I was eternally grateful for my shower flip flops, but didn't so much enjoy sprinting across the swampy wet lawn trying to make it back into the church building/toilet each morning.
The Hope Coordination Center is also known as the East Biloxi Coordination, Relief, and Redevelopment Agency (EBCRRA). The east side of town is to Biloxi what the Lower 9th is New Orleans. We helped a bit cleaning up trash/rubble piles, making dumpster runs, etc. but primarily we did finish work on Art's house.
We laid hardwood floors in the master bedroom/two closets, and the spare bedroom/closet. It was gorgeous. The large photo on the left is prior to us spending hours on our hands and knees with acetone and polishing cream.
We also tiled the kitchen, utility closet, laundry room, and only 90% of the living room...to leave a walking path. The living room involved a lot of whole tiles and was fairly simple. Cutting the detailed tiles for the bathroom and tiny angles in the closets was trickier, and expertly handled by my friends Michael and Greg.
We painted. A lot. I loved it. Doors, baseboards, window trim, molding, hanging and caulking the molding, hanging and repainting the baseboards, hanging and repainting the doors...you get the idea.
The week raised a lot of questions that I've raised in my mind before, but with this experience under my belt it makes the concerns even more relevant. I've been on four other builds across the western United States and so the week-long volunteer trip is not new to me and that's not the experience I need to process; rather, I need to process the experience of Katrina-specific relief and recovery. The other builds I've done have been with Habitat for Humanity and definitely dealt with issues of poverty and America's class system, but I haven't dealt with disaster relief until now.
How much should the federal government do? The state government? Individual citizens? We have institutionalized racism in this country to the point that it's as natural as breath and I fear not enough people are even aware of it. It's immoral and unethical, in my mind, to allow devastation like that to plague American cities two and a half years after the fact...and yet...? And yet what? And yet where do you start? Who starts? Where does the buck stop? I had answers to those questions swimming in my head and they changed every day I was in Biloxi. They changed every time I talked with Art the homeowner. They changed with each Katrina survival story I heard and each brave survivor I met. They changed each day I drove through the neighborhoods and shook my head in silent wonder. They are still changing even now.
We stayed at the Prince of Peace Baptist Church. It was not luxurious by a long shot, but why should it be? The communal bunker meant I drifted off each night to a cacophony of snores and giggles. I was eternally grateful for my shower flip flops, but didn't so much enjoy sprinting across the swampy wet lawn trying to make it back into the church building/toilet each morning.
The Hope Coordination Center is also known as the East Biloxi Coordination, Relief, and Redevelopment Agency (EBCRRA). The east side of town is to Biloxi what the Lower 9th is New Orleans. We helped a bit cleaning up trash/rubble piles, making dumpster runs, etc. but primarily we did finish work on Art's house.
We laid hardwood floors in the master bedroom/two closets, and the spare bedroom/closet. It was gorgeous. The large photo on the left is prior to us spending hours on our hands and knees with acetone and polishing cream.
We also tiled the kitchen, utility closet, laundry room, and only 90% of the living room...to leave a walking path. The living room involved a lot of whole tiles and was fairly simple. Cutting the detailed tiles for the bathroom and tiny angles in the closets was trickier, and expertly handled by my friends Michael and Greg.
We painted. A lot. I loved it. Doors, baseboards, window trim, molding, hanging and caulking the molding, hanging and repainting the baseboards, hanging and repainting the doors...you get the idea.
The week raised a lot of questions that I've raised in my mind before, but with this experience under my belt it makes the concerns even more relevant. I've been on four other builds across the western United States and so the week-long volunteer trip is not new to me and that's not the experience I need to process; rather, I need to process the experience of Katrina-specific relief and recovery. The other builds I've done have been with Habitat for Humanity and definitely dealt with issues of poverty and America's class system, but I haven't dealt with disaster relief until now.How much should the federal government do? The state government? Individual citizens? We have institutionalized racism in this country to the point that it's as natural as breath and I fear not enough people are even aware of it. It's immoral and unethical, in my mind, to allow devastation like that to plague American cities two and a half years after the fact...and yet...? And yet what? And yet where do you start? Who starts? Where does the buck stop? I had answers to those questions swimming in my head and they changed every day I was in Biloxi. They changed every time I talked with Art the homeowner. They changed with each Katrina survival story I heard and each brave survivor I met. They changed each day I drove through the neighborhoods and shook my head in silent wonder. They are still changing even now.
Yuppies: a handbook
Criticisms of one of my favorite blogs range from: "racist" to "narrow-minded" to "exclusively for rich white democrats" to "right on" and "hysterically funny." I will let you make up your own mind, but as for my two cents, I'll tell you I agree with all the criticism and then some. The passionate comments left on each post in said blog cover a wide swath of opinions and the beautiful thing is that everyone is right. You either get it or you don't. You turn on to the satire or you don't.
I think the easiest way to describe the list of Stuff White People Like is to clarify that in this context "White" is synonymous with "Yuppie." Young Urban Professionals. When you understand the demography of yuppies and read the blog with yuppie colored glasses (slash snarky sense of humor) it makes total sense. Being a young urban professional and a yuppie who's comfortable in my own skin, I think the blog is genius and side-splittingly funny. I'm bugged when people spew "yuppie" as a slanderous moniker or assume that being a yuppie is diametrically opposed and necessary exclusive of a global world view and sincere compassion. But then again, that's such a self-righteous yuppie thing to say.
Check it out (posts as of 09 March):
I think the easiest way to describe the list of Stuff White People Like is to clarify that in this context "White" is synonymous with "Yuppie." Young Urban Professionals. When you understand the demography of yuppies and read the blog with yuppie colored glasses (slash snarky sense of humor) it makes total sense. Being a young urban professional and a yuppie who's comfortable in my own skin, I think the blog is genius and side-splittingly funny. I'm bugged when people spew "yuppie" as a slanderous moniker or assume that being a yuppie is diametrically opposed and necessary exclusive of a global world view and sincere compassion. But then again, that's such a self-righteous yuppie thing to say.
Check it out (posts as of 09 March):
- #85 The Wire
- #84 T-Shirts
- #83 Bad Memories of High School
- #82 Hating Corporations
- #81 Graduate School
- #80 The Idea of Soccer
- #79 Modern Furniture
- #78 Multilingual Children
- #77 Musical Comedy
- #76 Bottles of Water
- #75 Threatening to Move to Canada
- #74 Oscar Parties
- #73 Gentrification
- #72 Study Abroad
- #71 Being the only white person around
- #70 Difficult Breakups
- #69 Mos Def
- #68 Michel Gondry
- #67 Standing Still at Concerts
- #66 Divorce
- #65 Co-Ed Sports
- #64 Recycling
- #63 Expensive Sandwiches
- #62 Knowing What’s Best for Poor People
- #61 Bicycles
- #60 Toyota Prius
- #59 Natural Medicine
- #58 Japan
- #57 Juno
- #56 Lawyers
- #55 Apologies
- #54 Kitchen Gadgets
- #53 Dogs
- #52 Sarah Silverman
- #51 Living by the Water
- #50 Irony
- #49 Vintage
- #48 Whole Foods and Grocery Co-ops
- #47 Arts Degrees
- #46 The Sunday New York Times
- #45 Asian Fusion Food
- #44 Public Radio
- #43 Plays
- #42 Sushi
- #41 Indie Music
- #40 Apple Products
- #39 Netflix
- #38 Arrested Development
- #37 Renovations
- #36 Breakfast Places
- #35 The Daily Show/Colbert Report
- #34 Architecture
- #33 Marijuana
- #32 Vegan/Vegetarianism
- #31 Snowboarding
- #30 Wrigley Field
- #29 80s Night
- #28 Not having a TV
- #27 Marathons
- #26 Manhattan (now Brooklyn too!)
- #25 David Sedaris
- #24 Wine
- #23 Microbreweries
- #22 Having Two Last Names
- #21 Writers Workshops
- #20 Being an expert on YOUR culture
- #19 Traveling
- #18 Awareness
- #17 Hating their Parents
- #16 Gifted Children
- #15 Yoga
- #14 Having Black Friends
- #13 Tea
- #12 Non-Profit Organizations
- #11 Asian Girls
- #10 Wes Anderson Movies
- #9 Making you feel bad about not going outside
- #8 Barack Obama
- #7 Diversity
- #6 Organic Food
- #5 Farmer’s Markets
- #4 Assists
- #3 Film Festivals
- #2 Religions their parents don’t belong to
- #1 Coffee
Not since Kennedy
Whether you support Obama or not, whether you read every word of this post or not, whether you click on one, ten, or zero links, please take five minutes to watch this video. If you manage to make it through all 5 minutes and 46 seconds with dry eyes...check your pulse.
The community organizer in me greatly respects the community organizer in Barack. He is a force to be reckoned with and what makes him even more powerful is the fact that he in turn empowers people to realize that they are a force to be reckoned with. Sounds like democracy to me. Not since Kennedy, my friends, not since Kennedy.
In a recent email from Barack: "...supporters like you donated more than $55 million to this campaign in the month of February. That's a humbling achievement, and I am very grateful for your support.
The community organizer in me greatly respects the community organizer in Barack. He is a force to be reckoned with and what makes him even more powerful is the fact that he in turn empowers people to realize that they are a force to be reckoned with. Sounds like democracy to me. Not since Kennedy, my friends, not since Kennedy. In a recent email from Barack: "...supporters like you donated more than $55 million to this campaign in the month of February. That's a humbling achievement, and I am very grateful for your support.
No campaign has ever raised this much in a single month in the history of presidential primaries. But more important than the total is how we did it -- more than 90% of donations were $100 or less, and more than 385,000 new donors in February pushed us past our goal of more than 1,000,000 people owning a piece of this campaign."
THE BASICS
Here are a few ways you can learn more, get the latest news, and share information with friends:
MEET BARACK
Watch a brief video and learn about Barack's early years, his education, his work as a community organizer and civil rights attorney, and his years in the Illinois and U.S. Senate. This is a great introduction to share with your friends:
http://my.barackobama.com
OFFICIAL CAMPAIGN BLOG
Catch up on the latest news, photos, and videos from the campaign trail and share your thoughts on our official campaign blog:
http://my.barackobama.com/blog
ISSUES
Learn more about Barack's positions on a variety of issues, from his opposition to the war in Iraq to his plan for universal health care:
http://my.barackobama.com
FACT CHECK ACTION CENTER
Barack Obama stands for a new kind of politics -- without the smear tactics that we're all fed up with. You can help push back against negative attacks and distortions right now by telling people about Barack and his background. The truth is only as strong as your voice:
http://my.barackobama.com
VIDEOS
Watch a few of the more than 500 videos from the campaign trail on our YouTube channel:
http://my.barackobama.com
OBAMA MOBILE
Our movement is ready to go wherever you are. Text HOPE to 62262 (OBAMA) to receive text updates on your mobile phone and advance notice about local Obama events:
http://my.barackobama.com
ORGANIZING
Barack Obama got his start as a community organizer on the South Side of Chicago, and since he declared his candidacy in 2007, a nationwide network of supporters have taken this campaign into their own hands, organizing online and their local communities. Here are some ways to get involved:
LOCAL GROUPS AND EVENTS
My.BarackObama is an organizing tool that empowers you to take this campaign into your own hands. Connect with other supporters in your area and find out about local events, or create your own organizing group and schedule your own events:
http://my.barackobama.com
SPREAD THE WORD
Introduce your friends, family, neighbors, or coworkers to Barack Obama. Let them know why you support Barack and encourage them to join our movement for change:
http://my.barackobama.com
BLOGS
There are more than 40,000 supporter created blogs on My.BarackObama where they chronicle their campaign experience and interact with other supporters. Find one for your community or launch your own today:
http://my.barackobama.com
ONLINE PHONE BANKING
Supporters like you have put us within reach of making 1,000,000 phone calls to registered voters by March 4th. Use our online phone banking tool to reach out to voters in crucial states from the comfort of your home:
http://my.barackobama.com/call
POSTERS, FLYERS, AND ORGANIZING RESOURCES
Print your own posters, flyers, fact sheets, supporter cards, and dozens of other resources from our online resource library:
http://my.barackobama.com
COMMUNITIES
Women for Obama and People of Faith for Obama are just two of the many communities large and small supporting Barack Obama. Explore a few of them here:
http://www.barackobama.com
FUNDRAISING
Barack Obama does not accept donations from Washington lobbyists or special interest groups. Instead, we depend on a network of grassroots supporters giving whatever they can afford.
PERSONAL FUNDRAISING PAGE
Take the fundraising process into your own hands. Help support the campaign by reaching out to people you know and asking them to give through your personal fundraising page:
http://my.barackobama.com
MATCH SOMEONE'S DONATION
This campaign has always been about reaching as many people as possible and bringing them into the political process. When you make a matching donation you'll learn the name and hometown of the person whose gift you match, and even exchange a note with them through our unique system:
https://donate.barackobama.com
STORE
Let everyone in your community know that you support Barack. All purchases through our online store go to support our campaign and are considered political donations. Show your support in style:
http://store.barackobama.com
Required Listening (Best Make Out Music of 2008)
Saturday morning, as I was getting ready for the day, I listened with wrapt attention as Scott Simon (NPR Weekend Edition) interviewed Melody Gardot. From npr.org/music: "Four years after a serious car accident, Melody Gardot used the experience as a springboard to musical success she might never have achieved otherwise. The singer, now 23, was hit by an SUV while riding her bicycle. Her injuries were serious and left her unable to sit up for more than 10 minutes. She suffered short-term memory loss and acute sensitivity to light and sound. Gardot had played the piano before the accident, and a doctor suggested that she use music as a kind of recovery therapy."Her album Worrisome Heart is packed with sultry sexy jazz vocals and I absolutely love it. I found this debut album in iTunes for only $5.99. There are ten songs that are individually $0.99...so sweet deal. The interview on NPR is only 13 minutes and I promise you, worth listening to. Not only does Melody have a killer speaking (and singing) voice, her story is fascinating. She turns a beautiful phrase and it's difficult to believe she's only 23. Check out the story (and sample a couple songs) by clicking here.
Holding Pattern
I'm quickly approaching my non-stop travel season and feel as though I've been in a bit of a holding pattern in the meantime. For the past six weeks or so I've been out and about doing interesting things but I haven't been able to commit the energy of blogging about even a fraction of it...when normally writing is a welcome creative outlet. I think this lack of engagement with writing is because I know what a huge curve ball is about to be thrown into my schedule and I'm conserving energy to deal with it.
In the next couple months I'll be in Biloxi, Mississippi (volunteering for a week to help re-build post-Katrina), Cheyenne and Laramie, Wyoming (consulting site visit), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (presenting at and attending a conference), Portland, Oregon (more presenting and attending a conference), and finally Phoenix/Scottsdale, Arizona (again, presenting and attending a conference). Ironically enough with all this travel, I need a vacation to recover!
I'm excited for my time in Biloxi. Its reconstruction has been rather overwhelmed by exclusive talk of New Orleans. Even though I'm leading a group of students on the trip and it will be a lot of hard work, it will feel less like work than, say, presenting three times at the same conference (ie: Phoenix/Scottsdale). I built vacation time into my Philadelphia trip and I built a bit of time onto the end of my Portland trip as well. All in all I'm looking forward to the travel, I just know the havoc it will wreak on my workload and email inbox.
With that in mind, I'm about to post a bunch of random stuff that's been floating around in my head. I need to clear it out and get in gear...then tackle my email accounts and get prepped for weeks on the road. Here goes...
In the next couple months I'll be in Biloxi, Mississippi (volunteering for a week to help re-build post-Katrina), Cheyenne and Laramie, Wyoming (consulting site visit), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (presenting at and attending a conference), Portland, Oregon (more presenting and attending a conference), and finally Phoenix/Scottsdale, Arizona (again, presenting and attending a conference). Ironically enough with all this travel, I need a vacation to recover!
I'm excited for my time in Biloxi. Its reconstruction has been rather overwhelmed by exclusive talk of New Orleans. Even though I'm leading a group of students on the trip and it will be a lot of hard work, it will feel less like work than, say, presenting three times at the same conference (ie: Phoenix/Scottsdale). I built vacation time into my Philadelphia trip and I built a bit of time onto the end of my Portland trip as well. All in all I'm looking forward to the travel, I just know the havoc it will wreak on my workload and email inbox.
With that in mind, I'm about to post a bunch of random stuff that's been floating around in my head. I need to clear it out and get in gear...then tackle my email accounts and get prepped for weeks on the road. Here goes...
First Friday Films | Take Seven
First Friday Films Take Seven
Gone Baby Gone
I knew he had it in him. He showed us what he was capable of with Good Will Hunting; but then while his better half went about building a stellar body of work, he made Gigi and went tanning with JLo. To watch the special features of this DVD made me so happy. I've always wanted to believe that Ben Affleck was smarter than some of his decisions imply and knowing that he directed this film completely restores my faith. A large portion of credit goes to Dennis Lehane for writing a killer book.
Gone Baby Gone is a tense thriller/drama about a kidnapping, corrupt cops, drug dealers, and the chaos swirling around them all. I like Casey Affleck a lot and have always thought he has the chops to hold his own -- this film proves that. Casey's in the lead role of a young cop trying to do right, even when his version of "right" is highly controversial, and he plays it perfectly. It's set in gritty south Boston, where the Affleck's grew up, and so the authenticity is hard to debate. It's rough and crass and many locals were hired as the extras. I liked it a lot.Sex and Breakfast
I'm about to make an assumption without Google-researching the hypothesis: this film was written and directed by those young annoyingly spoiled filmmakers who were born in and then never really left LA and their shallow version of "problems" is embarrassing to watch and difficult to take seriously. It's not easy to describe, but it you watch enough movies you can spot these Made in the Los Angeles Vacuum flicks from a mile away. Sex and Breakfast is a prime example of this genre. I'm not going to take the time to Google my assumption, so if it ends up that my theory is proven wrong, I apologize for being so mean.
I'll readily admit that I was sucker punched by the provocative title and beautiful actors. I like Macaulay Culkin and Eliza Dushku is astonishingly beautiful, what can I say? So the movie was interesting enough, but I have a really really hard time believing that outlandishly gorgeous couples in their young-twenties are serious enough and mature enough to seek counseling for their fledgling relationships (or rich enough, by the way, to live in impossibly hip and huge lofts in downtown LA...or paid for said therapy). The premise of the movie is that two such couples sign up for "group sex therapy" - which is to say orgies arranged by the therapist - and we're supposed to be enthralled by the tension of will or won't their relationships survive the night of group sex. I'm sorry, but beautiful people and provocative title or not, who cares?!West Bank Story
Hysterical. Hysterical. Hysterical. It can't be described because it sounds insane and racist and offensive, but it's absolutely...hysterical. It's a short film that uses two fast food restaurants, and the arguments between the owners and employees, to symbolize the conflict between Israel and Palestine. Dueling falafel huts where every time the Jews say "hummus" it causes mass confusion because it sounds like "Hamas," song and dance numbers in the streets (a la West Side Story) detailing the love story of an Arab girl and an Israeli border guard, and a large brick wall built in between the two restaurants when the Israeli kitchen equipment encroaches on the Arab's property. It's a riot, it was an official Sundance selection, and it won an Oscar in 2006. Check it out!The Other Boleyn Girl
I had this same feeling about Kite Runner: the unfulfilled longing for an amazing movie on par with an amazing novel. It's not that Kite Runner is bad, because I liked it, and it's not that The Other Boleyn Girl is bad, because I liked it too; it's just that movies rarely compare in quality to their literary counterparts. The individual performances in this film are great. Natalie Portman steals the show and delivers an amazing performance as Anne Boleyn. Scarlett Johansson deserved way more screen time and freedom to be her powerhouse self (Mary Boleyn in the book is vastly a larger character than Mary Boleyn in the film). Eric Bana is moody and brooding and wicked hot and pretty much exactly what he was supposed to be as Henry VIII. Oh and by the way, Jim Sturgess (the lead in Across the Universe) was a pleasant, pleasant surprise.
All in all I think the movie tried way too hard to be megaplex marketable. I wish that it had been three hours long, art house dramatic, and at least attempt to tell the vast and sweeping story the book tackles. The movie boiled it down, way down, and it was the worse for it. The film also focused way. too. much. on the George Boleyn/Anne Boleyn incest situation, even claiming it was the sole reason she was executed. Not true. It's much more complicated than that. Anyway, I guess they thought that story line would make the film salacious and interesting. And yet they completely neglected the fact that George was gay and had a boyfriend and Mary enjoyed a beautiful romance with William Stafford and Anne herself was virtually responsible for the creation of the Church of England and so many other fascinating details that were completely ignored. And yet...you know with that cast...I'll totally see it again.Vantage Point
Summary: An innovative filmmaking concept that pulled off successfully for about 70% of the movie and then it all went to pot...or at least it went the way of every other action movie ever made: long car chase followed by quick plot wrap up with little explanation or logic. That first 70% was the exact same moment repeated about six different times from six different points of view. Rather than keep that arty momentum and let the entire film be a handful of vantage points, it stopped telling the story that way and it became one perspective, one action shot, one single story to wrap it all up. It was worth seeing and definitely entertaining (can't imagine why it wasn't released with the other brain drains in July), but it could've been a lot cooler.
It also could have been a lot more political. They hint at the global anti-American sentiment and they hint at a president who may or may not have remarkable similarities to a one George Walker Bush (ahem), but they never hit it hard. I guess that's probably not the role of a bubble gum action flick, but I think it could have been.
Definitely, Maybe
I usually hate movies like this and seeing this movie was not a choice I made...but I'll admit I totally loved it. Totally. Loved. It. I was surprised by how adult it was and how much I related to it. The premise is simple: A father in the midst of a divorce is asked by this ten-ish year-old daughter to share the story of how he met her mother. He proceeds to tell the story of three significant relationships from his past, with the somewhat contrived premise that the daughter will guess which woman is her mother.I should warn you that this movie is an Obama commercial masquerading as a Clinton campaign flashback (you'll see what I mean), but I obviously didn't mind that. At any rate, the reason I like the movie is because Rachel Weisz...errr...that too, but because related to the relationships. I've been in many similar situations in my own romantic relationships and the way the stories were told resonated with me. On top of that Ryan Reynolds is hysterically funny and btw - if you've ever wondered what my brother looks like (why would you?) - look no further than Ryan Reynolds. It's creepy because I think Ryan Reynolds is hot. Huh.
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day
The Film Center had a free screening of this movie and I'm glad they did because I don't know that I would have seen it otherwise. My friend and I both agree that the preview doesn't do it justice. It's a campy lighthearted romp, to be sure, and completely predictable, but the movie is surprisingly better than you'd expect.
The premise -- a dowdy old housekeeper becoming a "social secretary" (ie: one who shuffles one lover out the back door while shuffling another in the front door) for a flighty vixen, while in the meantime dowdy old housekeeper finds her own lover -- is trite. But I will say that it's better than it sounds and it's a great way to chill out for a couple hours.
The Golden Compass
My Harry Potter indoctrination last month opened for me a whole new world of interesting movies: children/youth fantasy adventures. That's probably not even a real genre and something that I just now made up, but I'm sure you know what I'm talking about by that description. I didn't know The Golden Compass was the first film in a series. While I went to this movie expecting a clean wrap-up within two hours...I was left hanging with the realization that this will now, along with Harry Potter, be added to the list of sequels I wait for.
I really liked this movie. I remember seeing the preview and thinking it was a "maybe" and then the polar bear started talking and it went back to a "no" and post-Harry Potter I thought I'd give it a go. It's a fascinating way to teach children about subverting authority (a valuable lesson...and I'm not being facetious) and thinking for themselves, dreaming for themselves, and acting for themselves. I heard there was some scuffle from the religious right about this film being anti-Christian. It's not anti-Christian, it's anti-establishment in any possible form The Establishment takes. It's about standing up to an Orwellian culture of blind obedience and making your own decisions based on your own passions. Right on. (Side note for my LDS peeps -- Mark my words: coming to a ward near you there will be an over-the-pulpit reference to the golden compass metaphor within six months. The doctrine of agency and a little instrument called the Liahona...sound familiar? "It is the Alethiometer. It tells the truth. As for how to read it, you'll have to learn by yourself.") The religious right is lame. The Golden Compass is rad.
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