Perks

The other day, we watched The Perks of Being a Wallflower. It's a sweet movie that takes you back twenty years ago, to when we were in high school and navigating all of the frustrations and disappointments and thrills that age presents. And with the subtexts of depression, abuse, drug use, loneliness, suicide, and homosexuality, it's not always a happy go lucky kind of movie.

The acting, from Logan Lerman to Emma Watson to Ezra Miller, is top-notch. Three outstanding young actors.  The soundtrack is also top notch--The Samples, The Smiths, to XTC and David Bowie--is representative of that era, though it also skews a bit more to the late 1980s. 

The high school is a bit timeless, until you remember today that cell phones and laptops and ipads would be ubiquitous in those halls. And long telephone conversations with a first girlfriend have been replaced by texting. How different is it today, when communication and bullying are so easily found electronically, in forging complicated teenage relationships?

I was very impressed by the movie, and it certainly deserved more awards show recognition. It was outstanding.

California and Home

Work trips always blend together somewhat, and I'm glad to be back. It was a hectic 48 hours in humid northern California. I ate enough, drank some Peet's, survived two events, and endured 10+ hours on planes. I saw People Like Us, which starred a fantastic Elizabeth Banks. The acting was good, though the plot a bit confused at times. I never figured out what the point was in Chris Pines' corporate bartering problems, and the subtext of the secret sibling relationship seemed weird. All I could think was: Wow, there is now way this single mom is not going to start to have romantic feelings for this mysterious stranger who all of a sudden is being so very nice to both her and her bratty pre-teen son.  It just defied common sense, right? The EW review is right on about how hard it tries to be heartfelt, but just too much was going on.

I also read a lot of the new Melanie Kirkpatrick book on Escape from North Korea. While Nothing to Envy featured tales more from the refugees' perspectives, Kirkpatrick's sensitive description of those rescuers provides another view on this horrible situation.  It's shameful that the U.S. took North Korea off of the terrorist list. The nuclear weapons and the torture of their own people warrants higher scrutiny. I have about 1/4 left to read.

On to the week ahead...Lions tonight, the World Series starts, and one last presidential debate.

Never Let You Go

On the flight home from Toronto, I watched the film version of Never Let Me Go.  I read that book last year. What a haunting film. I was overall quite impressed by the adaptation, and I thought the three leads were perfectly cast.  Carey Mulligan was coolly calm, impassioned yet aching in her role as Kathy H. Keira Knightly was an impassioned Ruth, and Andrew Garfield fit the mold of rebellious yet hopeful Tommy.  The ethical issues of cloning were subtle and not.  These were human being, rife with emotion, and not some automatons that should be sacrificed for science. Just like the book, you never saw Kathy meet her fate. But you were haunted by what would happen to her, just as what happened to both Ruth and Tommy. Very good film.

Blue Valentine

I saw Blue Valentine today.Wow, what a bittersweet, achingly saddening movie. Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling were so real, so evocative of the emotions of pain, sadness, love, heartbreak.  Everything from the near abortion scene, to the blowout at the doctor's office, to the sweet tenderness of that first date and the music/dance...to how she stopped driving to run to the woods and to be near tears.  To him blaming her for not locking the dog cage.

Best movie I've seen in a while. And god do you want them to make up and be together.  Yet you understand why they are being torn apart.

Both she and Natalie Portman in Black Swan nailed their performances.  Both Oscar worthy.

Movies

I saw two new movies: How Do You Know and Black Swan.  Both had stellar leading ladies in Natalie Portman, an Oscar contender for sure, and Reese Witherspoon. 

And tomorrow is NYE...

Another Trip

I'm off to Winston-Salem soon. Yet another trip. I'm burnt out thinking of it, but I will have a magazine to read and possibly a book.

I saw Eat, Pray, Love last night with Meg. I enjoyed it--pretty much fluff, beautiful scenery and eats, a story most 30-somethings can relate to on some level, and just a generally entertaining flick. I haven't seen any movies at all this summer, so I was glad to get out with a friend. Julia Roberts can be both annoying and endearing at the same time, but she's so under-exposed these days compared to Angelina and reality stars and whomever else is on the latest cover of Us Weekly. She is doing her thing, raising her family, and staying out of the limelight.

How is it already mid-August? I swear I do not know where the summer has gone. One more trip later this week, and then a break til September. Not much of a break, but it'll be Toronto!

Remember Me Controversy

I am not sure if I'd see this, but I've been somewhat intrigued by the controversy surrounding the movie Remember Me. Basically, the protagonist dies in a "surprise" ending on 9/11. Some viewers are outraged, finding the twist exploitative. Others find it moving, an honorable tribute to those victims who really perished in the attack.

I find it somewhere in the middle. I'm guessing it is a rather insipid movie, but I don't think 9/11 should not be addressed. It's already been 8 1/2 years. But it's only been 8 1/2 years.

Anyone who is old enough to remember that day will never forget it. But glossing over it in the new or in the theater isn't going to make it less memorable, or more remarkable. It was a horrific day, and reminding people--including teenage girls too young to really remember--is so important.

Valentine's Day

I saw Valentine's Day yesterday. It was a total chick flick, but very enjoyable. Sometimes you need that: a quiet movie, away from the blackberry, with a bowl of popcorn and a storyline you don't have to think much about. The formula for these kinds of films usually works: engaging, likable characters, pretty scenery, surprising connections, etc. Jennifer Garner and Ashton Kutcher seemed particularly appealing: smiley, optimistic, good-looking, etc.

So many other movies yet to see...maybe I'll go see Shelter Island while Steve is traveling. Good way to spend a night alone!!

California Weekend

We had our annual conference this weekend at the Reagan Library. Gosh how perfect and beautiful and sunny and 65 degrees was it there! (in contrast to the snowy weekend DC endured!!). I spent some time hanging out on Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade and saw the insipid movie "When in Rome." When a movie isn't screened in advance, there's a reason, absolutely. We had dinner at Patina on Friday night. I had a vegetable mosaic appetizer followed by the Australian Barramundi. Also some sort of pear/fruity beignet dessert that escapes me. Great dinner with good friends.

I saw movies on the plane...Fame, which was the perfect entertaining plane film that I may not have ever seen, and Motherhood, which I had never heard of. It was sort of the woe-is-me liberal conception of motherhood, where you lose yourself and then find yourself. Pretentious blogging, an under-appreciated husband. But I gladly killed 90 minutes watching it.

But back to work today.

The Blind Side

Finally went to see the Blind Side this afternoon. Terrific movie, very positive. Sandra Bullock was amazing, and it reminded me why she has always been one of my favorite actresses. Michael Oher's story was pretty amazing, even if they took some liberties with it. And if he is as half as positive about his misfortunes as a child as the film portrayed him to be, it's such an important lesson. There was no reason someone like him should have ended up an NFL player, drafted in the first round, first runner-up to the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. But he did that.

A good man and a good role model. One reason to root for the Ravens (though until the Superbowl, it's Indy and Nola!).

The Day After

The day leaving the beach is always bittersweet. You've had a wonderful time with friends you don't get to see very often, you play fun games (poker, Loaded Questions, Scene It Simpsons and Seinfeld) and see great movies (The Hangover, Up in the Air, Love Affair), you eat amazing food (fajitas, steaks, pizza), and you don't need to be answering emails and having to wake up early or any of the boring, wearing daily activities. But there's a part of you tired of the excessive drinking, the out-of-the-ordinary food, the inflexibility of your schedule, the limited opportunities to work out. You are ready to go back to ordinary time. Just like the daily grind makes you appreciate vacation so much, vacation makes you appreciate the daily grind. Ironic, no? Plus you get Chick-fil-A on the way home :-)

I will miss Bethany. I'm not sure I want to go back to work, but I am ready to take on 2010. Best wishes ahead for a wonderful new year.

A quiet weekend!

It was a quiet weekend, cooked mussels and shrimp. Ran 7 miles on the treadmill on Saturday, and 5.4 miles outside yesterday. And it's gorgeous out now...70 degrees, very Fall-like. Yeah!

I saw two movies, He's Just Not That Into You and finally, three years late, The Devil Wears Prada. Yes, two totally chick movies, since the boy was at work. I enjoyed them both. I could relate to Jennifer Aniston's character, dating seven years!, quite a bit :-) And I definitely saw some of L's assistants in the Anne Hathaway character Andrea.

Hopefully this will be a quiet week, leading to another relaxing weekend. Monday is off to not a bad start. Yum, I'm a big fan of the peanut butter cookie larabar. I will have to stock up. I've never understood the fascination with bars, but this one tastes good and is a better snack than my Lance Whole Grain sharp cheddar crackers, though they are both tasty.

I cannot believe it is already August 31; the summer has flown by, although it's not Labor Day yet for an entire week. I love the turn to more fall-like temperatures here, but I'm sad that it gets dark so much earlier and my great evening outdoor runs are coming to an end soon. I should try to get up earlier, but I can't.

Recent Reviews

So I've actually been reading and seeing a couple of movies lately:

• Julie and Julia...both the film and the book. I marginally liked the movie lately, if only because the protagonist author seemed so unlikeable to me. (Plus the gratuitous slams at Republicans irked me!!!) But I loved the film about cooking, Meryl Streep was fantastic, and it was nice to read a happy book about happily married couples. Rare in Hollywood, and in print. The book did a better job at setting the post 9/11 stage, the angst at turning 30, and the desire to do something memorable.
  
• I read The Middle Place, mostly at the DMV. It was a funny, relateable memoir, and it made you think that cancer can happen, bad things can happen, but you can survive.
  
• Having missed Star Trek thanks to United Airlines, I did see Ghosts of Girlfriends Past enroute home. It was a fun movie, I really thought Jennifer Garner looked beautiful, and Matthew McConaughey was perfectly cast. It helped that portion of the trip go by much more quickly.
• I started the American Sphinx book, but took a short break from it. I'm going to finish that before starting Steve Hayward's Age of Reagan Part Deaux.
  

Fun Weekend

We had a nice weekend with friends. Jenny's shower was on Saturday morning, and then we had the group over for fajitas Saturday night. It was great to see PK again, and his month back "home" has gone by too quickly. He came over again last night for croaker tacos after the boys went to see the Real Madrid/DC United game. I went to see Julie & Julia which was mostly terrific. Meryl Streep was SO Julia Child, and her marriage with Paul was just happy and sweet and endearing. It definitely made me a bigger fan of her. The Julia character grew to be annoying after a bit--narcissistic and self-absorbed. But I'm still going to read the book, just for the cooking/foodie part! And it was nice to see a feel-good movie, with (mostly) likeable characters, as opposed to violent, unhappy, depressing flicks. It was a nice afternoon, followed by a trip to Target. But sheesh, I spent a lot of $$ this weekend! And I still need a Vegas outfit.

Movies

I saw FOUR movies this weekend, making up for some lost time. Yesterday, I saw I Love You, Man with the always very funny Paul Rudd, Rashida Jones, and Jason Segel. I thought about seeing something heavier, but something light and funny struck my mood. These actors are all great, and the movie was solid, fun, and perfect for a Sunday afternoon.

On Saturday, I saw the Changeling. The story was fascinating, though the film was a bit too long. I thought it was curious that there were conflicting accounts on what really happened to Christine Collins.

Then Friday, I watched both Rachel Getting Married and Reservation Road. Both were good, but not great. Rachel Getting Married was all about Anne Hathaway, and the rest of the film annoyed me in its pretentiousness, its PC'ness, its love of all things diversity and Connecticut. Reservation Road was a little too small town whimiscal for me, though the acting was stellar. A sad film, though, and Jennifer Connelly just rocked in her grief.

Eventually I'll see the Oscar flicks, but when given the opportunity, after three very somber movies (killing a brother, a son killed, a son kidnapped), I definitely am glad I went for funny yesterday. I needed it, though it seems so long gone already.

Travels, Books, Movies

I just got back from my first trip of the year, the annual sojourn to the Ronald Reagan Library. There is something energizing about being amongst fellow Republicans and President Reagan admirers. There is something almost spiritual about the place, in beautiful scenic Simi Valley, overlooking the mountains all of the way to the water. Peaceful. I suppose the admiration and affection that conservatives feel for President Reagan is akin to what liberals feel for President Obama. His funeral was the closest I've felt to that, I suppose. I think being there reminds me of being a kid, too, the good part of growing up in the 1980s, at least. Look how it's inspired and driven me in my life.

Enroute, I finished up Peter Rodman's Presidential Command. Rodman passed away on our wedding day, and before even knowing this, I felt a kinship to him. He seemed like a decent man, and googling his obituaries upon completing the book, everyone said he was kind, earnest, and yes, decent. The book portrayed a fascinating, mostly first person account, of presidential foreign policy since Nixon. Fascinating for a public policy grad like me, even the more esoteric details on how a secretary of state's bureaucratically oriented perspective differs from the more executive-friendly National Security advisor. I finally bought Al Regnery's Upstream. Much of this I know, but I thought I'd benefit from some of the anecdotes and the short bios of some of the conservative forefathers who've inspired the movement that I am less familiar with.

I also saw two movies this week: Forgetting Sarah Marshall on DVD, and Death Defying Acts on Houdini. Both eh. I only saw the second because it was on the plane coming back from Southern California.

Thanksgiving

We were in Harlingen for Thanksgiving. It was a nice trip, despite the 5:30 am departures. The first class was nice...though it is nine now, and I've been awake for many hours at this point! We ate and drank too much like usual, shrimp and turkey and even chik filet. We saw Four Christmases, which was pretty amusing, actually. Vince Vaughan and Reese Witherspoon were pretty funny. We even made it to the Island...south padre beach and shrimp and fish tacos and eighty degree weather. Oh so nice.

We got back around 11am, and I did errands, box collecting, gym workout, and some kitchen packing. SO much to do coming up. I am already tired, and I know in two weeks we'll hopefully be in our new home. Very exciting.

I downloaded two new CDs...finally She & Him and Sia. I was tempted to get one more at five dollars a download...love amazon. Mates of State? Still, some good music. I really have not bought all that much this year.

I don't even think I mentioned the convention. Other than the scary moment with the AG, things were fine. Much easier without responsibility. Always good to see friends. Struck by how everyone has to sit together on Saturday, and when I deflected and they're like oh, she's working. Yeah. I had a good time with my Texans. And the rest.

Oh am I tired. I am watching Desperate Housewives. Not sure if I will make it to Brothers & Sisters. But I want to stay up late so I sleep really well. Last night I napped too much and didn't sleep so well.

So ten for this week...

10. Listen to my new CDs.
9. Catch up on my new facebook friends.
8. Get a few good workouts in. I know the latter half of the month I won't have a chance!
7. Order pictures for Christmas gifts for both sets of fam. Figure out Joey's Christmas gift!
6. Pack!
5. Get some good nights of sleep.
4. Find boxes.
3. Figure out what to get Paul & Megan for their wedding gift. I am guessing it will come from Pottery Barn.
2. Pack.
1. Shill out life savings for the big day on Tuesday!!!!!

Movies/books of Late

First, a cool link: Hitchcock's most memorable moments.

I rented two movies this weekend. Still trying to make it through Into the Wild, which is pretty but not terribly interesting. Only 1/3 of the way in, I can tell that I much prefer the book.
I also rented The Life Before Her Eyes. Gorgeous cinematography, and both Uma Thurman and Evan Rachel Wood were fantastic. The story seemed a little thin and predictable.

Not sure if I mentioned that I finished Devil in the White City. I thought it was fantastic, a mesmerizing read. Perfect combination of non-fictionalized drama and a great history lesson. Now I'm between books and not quite sure what I want to turn to next.

Busy Weekend

We finally saw Batman. Both of us were underwhelmed. It was super-violent, went on too long, and almost too tragic. Heath Ledger was remarkable, eerie, frightening and alarming. His performance made the film. But one of the best of the year...no way.

I went to Coco Sala twice in the past week. Definitely liked the bacon mac and cheese, the cheese course, the beef slider. The cheese souffle was too small. Drinks were OK, but too pricey. The company was the best part! I walked to and from, to get in a 5 mile walk.

I am loving my latest book the Devil in the White City. I read way over 100+ pages yesterday. Looking forward to more tonight!

Also cooked some good meals...the spinach florentine pasta, the spicy shrimp pasta, crabcakes. Not sure what tonight's menu calls for!

We also went to Kathryn's party on Saturday. We are definitely getting old!

As for Joe Biden...well, I can hardly wait til he makes his next stupid comment. Now if only John McCain could get his act together!

Movies and holiday weekends

I saw two movies this weekend: Gone Baby Gone and Atonement. GBG was on DVD. I have to admit, I was underwhelmed. I definitely got its comparisons to Mystic River, and Amy Adams was phenomenal. But eh, B-. Atonement was good, though I felt it ended a bit abruptly, if not to say surprisingly. Keira Knightly looked luminous, and James McEvoy is one great actor. Also that little creepy 13 year old girl. I will give this one a B+.

I should also mention I re-watched Father of the Bride. A+ all of the way.

I also spent time reading and we made Jenny & John over for an impromptu dinner on Saturday night, preceded by Scrabble. I guess I need to go back to wedding stuff. Ugh.