Pontifications and Revelations

OK friends, get ready-- this is a long one! But I know you won't mind because you look to me to lead and guide you in all things, right? Right? (Crickets chirping here? Oh well, let's not put off the inevitable free advice!)

First, let's talk about a movie you should never see:

I think "Georgy Girl" is one of the most depressing shows ever. Because you're not going to see it anyway, I'm going to tell you why it is so awful. If you are a sadist and think you'd watch it despite my best advice, go ahead and scroll down. I believe this is the only spoiler alert I'll need in this blog, ever.

OK, so here's the premise: Lynn Redgrave plays Georgy who is absolutely bonkers, but is generally a good person. Gives us a sense of empahty, right? Plus also, she is a bit on the chubby side and a virgin, and one would initially think this film is my life-story, right? Wrong. Poor Georgy has awful parents-- her father thinks she should do whatever she is asked by his rich employer, even if it's awful. Daddums also tells Georgy what an ingrate she is, and consistently calls her ugly. What a chump! Then you've got the rounder who employees Daddy, who honestly asks Georgy, via contractual agreement, to be his mistress! Cheeky and entitled, I'd say. Poor G also has a self-absorbed roommate, and falls in love with the father of roommate's illegitimate child. This guy is a slacker and a nutter, and in the end Georgy is left holding the responsibility bag for just about everyone. The moral of the story seems to be "Heaven help you if you're weird and overweight. But maybe you'll get lucky. No, of course you won't find true love, but you might end up married to a rich old man." And it's all set to a very chipper tune. The English are a very cruel lot, or at least they were in the 1960s. If you want irony, go watch "Harold and Maude" instead.

Next up, a little information about a book you can take or leave:


Ann Brashares brings us an update on Tibby, Lena, Bridget and Carmen in this latest installment of "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants." The bottom line: read it if you were somewhat invested in the initial four books, but if you miss it, don't feel like your world is ending. To be honest, I didn't like the 4th book in the series at all, but when I saw this at my local Hastings, I decided to give it a whirl just the same (this, it should be noted, should be a book you borrow, not buy, but Lou has the others in her Leyte Library, so I thought I'd complete the series... I'll send it soon LS!). To her credit, Brashares has created characters so strong that as you read the book you realize "Of course this is what B would do. Lena wrote herself!" The story is engaging, and still will tug on your heartstrings.

Of course, if you want a real page-turner, may I suggest:

If you love Brandon Mull, and you know you do (and you know I do), the second installment in his Beyonders series is delightful. I'm not finished with this one yet. I love Brandon's work so much, and taking the time to savor it is difficult-- I'd love to sit down for a few hours and read it at once, but as he only has about one book come out a year, I'm taking my time with this one. So far, very engaging. I do wish I'd re-read the first one before I jumped in again, only because there are so many characters, but Brandon refreshes our memory without a ton of heavy exposition.

So what else have I been up to besides reading and watching DVDs (it should be noted I've finally broken down and started trying to watch all James Bond movies-- Pierce Brosnan is not my favorite Bond)? Believe it or not, I've actually had a life recently! I'm happy to tell you about it.

Cute story alert: One highlight of my life comes in the form of spending time with the nieces. I love the two I have, and we're getting No. 3 on Friday! Yes, they wear me out, but they're really what I live for. On Friday the fam went out for my dad's birthday to our favorite restaurant. Zoey, 4, came in with four pennies in hand and slapped them on the table saying, "I'm paying tonight." Love, love, love!

Another fun Friday fact: Did you know that Smith's in the Mountain Run Shopping Center has sensors in their aisles for saving light usage/energy? Pretty cool, except the place did seem a little dark. I heart grocery shopping (or any kind of shopping) with Michael. I was pretty excited when he bought this:

Yum! Blood Orange juice is to die for. Bahahahaaha! I really love it, though.

As a matter of fact, Michael and I had several food adventures this weekend. He'd never been to Sweet Tomatoes (gasp!) so we hit it for some most excellent salad and the Grilled Cheese Focacia. Yum, yum, yum. They only have the GCF in March and for one week in October, so I take advantage. After lunch, we joined the beautiful Christina V for Albuquerque's Chocolate (and Coffee, though CV was the only one partaking) Festival. Hooray for Chuck from Theobroma. He was delightful, and his wares were the prettiest in the whole show!

As if that weren't enough, we capped off the afternoon with "The Hunger Games." To Seneca Crane, in the immortal words of Ke$ha, "I like your beard."

So you see, my life has been pretty jazzy lately. Mostly it's been work, work and more work, but the weekends are packed with fun. Of course, it's not all just hearts and flowers. I did have a minor-major-breakdown (if you see what I mean) which, upon reflection, I think stemmed mostly from a) M and I talking about my old bf and b) the fact that my doctor didn't authorize a refill for the good old tri-sprintec in time for me to start the Rx, and I'm pretty sure a month without it is making me an emotional wreck, if also atypically fertile. Sigh. Such is life.

But one other important thing: My friend Corey needs your advice. He's going to Thailand for his 30th birthday in a couple of months and can't decide-- to wax, or not to wax?

I apologize for the less-than-stellar representation. I'm not sure this is exactly what his body looks like because for some reason he didn't want to show me his shirtless chest (though he wanted me to touch it-- WOOT for 2nd base-ish!). He is orange because he is planning on getting super-tan. His arms are lumpy because a) Paint is a crap program, and b) Corey has been working out. If you know him in real life, I suggest you go check out his arms. Nice.

Anyway, please weigh-in with your opinion. Corey wants to know what the ladies like, and doesn't trust just my opinion. I think I'm getting more tolerant of weird body hair in my old age (see picture of Seneca Crane above). I promise to forward all relevant information and comments to him. That way, you can exert your expert opinion in the same way I do! Thanks friends!

Pure Pleasure

The other night in bed just before I fell asleep, I counted my blessings, and sometimes you just have to express gratitude for things that make you blissfully happy. Here's one of mine:

"The Invention of Hugo Cabret" by Brian Selznick. Have you read it? What are you waiting for?

Not only is the story enchanting, but the artwork is fantastic. I love pencil on watercolor paper. The texture makes the work that more emotive. Also, major props to Martin Scorsese for being so true in the film adaptation, which I loved months ago.

But if I'm being really honest, the experience was heightened by the pure joy from the way the book smelled. Bibliophiles know what I'm talking about. And if you happened to attend BYU, you'd recognize the smell of "Hugo." It smelled like every official booklet you ever received-- from Orientation to Grad Guide, there's this particular smell of ink on that thick paper, and you can experience it all again by picking up a copy of this book.

Many thanks to McMichael MacHansen for his recommendation.

Not gonna lie--I take a lot of pleasure in the viewing of this picture. I knew Michael and I would be friends from the beginning, mostly because we both have great hair. But you know how I adore people who celebrate their heritage.

PS. I ironed that kilt the night before.

In Praise of my friend Luis

I know, I know. I'm not gonna waste time with apologies. Allow me to jump right in.

Have I told you about my friend Luis? Let me tell you now.

L is fantastic. He carries things out to my car, which is always appreciated as I generally have more junk than one person can carry alone. He opens doors. He does dishes, even when he's not the one who messed them in the first place.

That is all. I mean, there's a lot more to Luis, but that is all I have to say today.