Summer at the Movies

Last night, my boyfriend and I escaped the 90+ degree Seattle heat by hitting the movie theater. We attempted to find the least offensive (aka big blockbuster) film we could find, and end up seeing (500) Days of Summer.

It was cute, as expected, but also a bit cloying and overdone with the indie references, which I also expected. But towards the end I decided I did really like it. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is first off, a wonderful actor, and secondly, a total babe. Zooey did her Zooey thing which involves batting her gorgeous eyelashes and swinging her perfect hair around while prancing around in vintage frocks. (sidenote: this makes me sound like I dislike her, however, I actually think she’s awesome, but perhaps not the most talented actress. She certainly the indie it-girl of the last couple years and does that well.)

When pouring over our movie choices, I realized there is a lot of stuff that I want to see that’s not out yet. And truthfully, this summer has been kind of lackluster, with not very many options. I’ve seen Up (amazing!) and Harry Potter (which was going to be sort of a let down no matter what since I’m so in love with that book series, but still great!), and that’s about it. But this is what I have to look forward too:

Funny People

Ok, so this is the third Judd Apatow film, one that he’s actually directed and wrote, instead of just producing. I am a HUGE fan off Judd. I lived for Freaks and Geeks, and pretty much anything that has his name attached is funny and sad and kinda sentimental but not too much. I’m beyond happy that most of his F&G posse is getting famous and writing their own films (Seth Rogen, Jasen Segal, Martin Starr etc.). I also love that he puts his wife (the incredible Leslie Mann) in all his movies and she *ALWAYS* steals the show. This looks…different. Not bad, but different. Perhaps it’s Sandler? I don’t know, I still want to see it, mostly because of Leslie, Seth, Jason Schwartzman & Jonah Hill.

Paper Heart

First of all it’s a film by Charlyne Yi who I think is so hilarious. But everything I’ve read about it has me confused. Part documentary/part scripted? Real boyfriend Michael Cera plays fake boyfriend Michael in the movie? Did they meet while filming this or before, or did they end up dating after? But these questions all intrigue me, and the trailer looks cute and awkward and funny.

Jennifer’s Body

Ok, so this looks pretty bad, but as a Diablo Cody fan (she wrote Juno and also pens a hilarious pop culture column for Entertainment Weekly), I’m going to give it a try. Amanda Seyfried is in it, and I kind of love her. And we can all admit that Megan Fox cannot act. At all. But Diablo said she wanted this to Heathers-ish, and that sold me. Heathers is probably my favorite 80′s movie of all time. I don’t know, maybe I’ll wait to rent this? I can’t decide.

Whip It

The 14 girl inside of me is really geeked out to see this. It’s based on a cute YA book called Derby Girl. It stars Ellen Page who plays the same role in every movie (at least her last few parts), but is still awesome. It’s really refreshing to see so many movies with the lead actress being a kind of geeky and/or weird teen. I wish there had been more of those when I was that age. Also, this is the directorial debut of Drew Barrymore who I LOVE, and has a bunch of great girls that make up the derby teams (Kristen Wiig, Juliette Lewis, Zoe Bell). And Maybe from Arrested Development!!! It’s about time I’ve seen her in a movie.

Alright now’s the big one….the movie I am most excited to see this year:
Where the Wild Things Are

Let me preface this by saying I have seen this trailer twice in the theater, and each time it has choked me up and brought tears to my eyes. I have no idea if the movie itself is going to make me so emotional, but the trailer is PHENOMENAL! I have been hearing bits and pieces about this movie for years now (which makes sense since I think Spike Jonz has been working on it for 4+ years). My expectations are ridiculously high, so high that I will probably only be dissapointed. But if Maurice Sendak approves, then I think it might stand a chance. Here’s an extra video clip of Maurice talking about the book itself, how involved he was in making the movie and how proud he is of Spike:

Other movies I might like to see include <b>It Might Get Loud</b>, <b>Adam</b>, the new <b>Sherlock Holmes</b> with Robert Downey Jr and <b>Taking Woodstock</b>.

 

Holy crap, a whole month!

I have let this blog waste away for over a whole month. I have had many planned posted, that due to my complete laziness, have gone un-posted.

So let’s see, MJ died. And I’m sorry to say but I’m over it. I work in a record store, and in a five minute period, I found out that:

A). He had been rushed to the hospital
B). That he was dead
C). That we were going to have to order a shit ton more Michael Jackson CD’s, because people have a weird fascination with dead people, and we had already sold out 1 hour later.

I don’t understand how people do not own Thriller already. I find it baffling. This is the king of pop.

Anyway, I then proceeded to spend the weekend house sitting with my boyfriend, in a home that has cable. With mean that I sat through:
Michael Jackson: The E! True Hollywood Story.
Janet Jackson: The E! True Hollywood Story
The Jackson Five: The E! True Hollywood Story
The Jackson Family: The E! True Hollywood Story.

Seriously. So I’m kind of over it. It’s sad. But let’s move on.
(and perhaps I should have changed the channel. I’m sure the food network wasn’t talking about MJ. and I bet Ace of Cakes was on!)

It’s going to be hot as shit today. Which will give me a good excuse to go outside, park it up, and get caught up on my summer reading. Which consists of: young adult fiction, gluten free memoirs, anorexia memoirs, anime loving japan traveling memoirs, memoirs in general, birthday cake making, melancholy graphic novels and rebellious women in history. Sometimes I wish I just had days to sit and read and do nothing but that, but then I realize that I would get really bored after about a day, and that it’s just plain lazy.

Alright, I’m going to try to keep this blog updated more, even though 2 people read it. (Hi Jeff. Hi Scottie!)

 

Things have moved, stuff is still sitting

So, the movement has commenced. We are officially in our new abode! Stuff is (mostly) unpacked! Records have been re-alphabetized and put away, I actually own a bookshelf now instead of stacking my books precariously around the room and clothes are sort of hung up.

So far, so good.

Our apartment is light filled and lovely. I wish I had a camera to document our space, but alas that is one high tech tool that I have yet to acquire. We have a huge almost floor to ceiling window in the living room, and our (yellow!) kitchen has 3 big windows that look into the shared courtyard. Most of the walls are painted a bit of a sickly mint green at the moment, but I kind of like it. Sickly is perhaps the wrong word to describe it. More like spearmint gum. I wouldn’t mind a bit darker of a green, but so far, there’s no way I’m moving all this furniture again to paint! Perhaps that should have been thought of before we started unloading, and moving things around.

And we actually live in a neighborhood! It’s hard for me to convey how much that means to me, because I just spent the last two years living on a bar/club lined main street in downtown capitol hill/seattle. At 11 p.m. here, I can sit and read a book and just soak in the quiet. I don’t have to go to sleep with earplugs! And the neighborhood is really nice. Full of HUGE leafy trees and planted flowers and neighbors who say hello when you pass on the sidewalk. I cannot wait for fall, when all of these trees leave’s turn. It’s going to be too much awesomeness for me to handle.

 

moving = hell ? or is it just me?

I am currently immersed in my own personal hell. I like to call it moving. CHRIST!

Let me back track a bit, and say that I am in the process of moving into a new apartment with my boyfriend. This equals awesome. However, packing up everything, and bringing it to the new place is AWFUL! I haven’t moved in 2 years, and in that time I have accumulated a crap load of stuff.

a crap load.

I own too many records for my own good, and to be perfectly honest? I wouldn’t mind owning five times the amount I have now. Both my knees are busted and swollen from carrying heavy LP boxes and tubs of books up and down flights of stairs.

Did I mention I own way too many books as well? And DVD’s?

But you know what the delicious cherry on top of this pity sundae is? I get too live with my amazingly cute, smart, funny, and fellow record collecting boyfriend. Who is putting up with my insane stress, and weird measuring obsession. (I have to measure everything to make sure it will fit. I’m not sure why.) Every few hours he has to smack me across the face (metaphorically speaking of course), and remind me that everything is going to be fine.

I am sooo looking forward to a few weeks from now when everything is unpacked (hopefully, and that’s my favorite part), we’ve made a trip or two to ikea and goodwill to pick up some last minute furnishings, maybe we’ve just cooked up some chicken and broccolli, and are sitting down to watch something awesome like the West Wing etc. I will then breathe a deep sigh of relief, and unclench the muscles in my neck that seem to be perma-tense.

That will be a good day.

 

You know what I really hate/You know what i really love?

I LOVE white cheddar cheese flavored popcorn. But you know what I really hate? When I’m shoving a handful of popcorn into my mouth, and all I get is seeds and the sound of my teeth almost breaking. Seriously. How much does that totally suck? White cheddar corn is so delish, but eating it can be such a dissatisfying experience. It doesn’t fill you up because duh, it’s popcorn. It’s totally fatty and bad for you, even though it says SMART FOOD on the package (don’t even front like you’re healthy). Has anyone woofed down a whole bag in one sitting? I have. And let me tell you, it wasn’t pretty.

You know what I LOVE? And don’t hate in any way, except that my netflix DVD’s of the next season aren’t here yet?

Battlestar Fucking Galatica.

Holy shit, this show rules. I had no clue. NO FRAKKIN idea. Yeah, I just went there. I am not a fan of sci-fi, but B Star G is hands down, one of the most addictive and amazing shows I’ve seen in years. I tend to rant happily about TV (especially on DVD). You will see lots of posts about how I love some new show. But nothing compares to my newfound obsession of Battlestar. I’ve watched 2 seasons worth in a matter of days, which hasn’t happened since I became addicted to Lost. I’ve got season 3 coming through Netflix and I am honestly, *itching* for it to get here.

People…I daydream about if Apollo and Starbuck are ever going to get together, and not just get down. I find myself blanking out at work and thinking about who else is a cylon, and what that will mean for the show. And I’m not the least bit shamed. I’m just embarrassed it took me so long to realize how great it was.

 

getting healthy

so, everyone makes New Years Resolutions. I tend not too, except obvious ones like don’t take out my PMS on my boyfriend and call my mother more often etc.

however in the past month, i’ve attempted  a few goals that i guess could be considered resolutions. I have been wanting to join a gym for a while, mostly because i feel like i eat my feelings and i’ve been extremely happy the last 2 years, which has resulted in a larger than usual waistline. (I’m a happy eater, okay!) With the economy in the shitter, everyone seems to be giving a discount, including the local gyms. I have not yet joined for the reasons i don’t do anything:

1. I’m a little scared
2. I’m sort of lazy

those are my excuses for pretty much anything i don’t do. however, i’d really like to feel healthier and now’s the time to do it because (duh duh duh)…I QUIT SMOKING!

this is monumental. and really, it wasn’t something i thought about, or was even planning on doing. I just caught a bad case of bronchitis and figured, what the hell…i might as well quit while my lungs are in hell. and it worked. I’ve been smoke free for 1 month and almost 2 weeks. which brings me to my NEXT rant:

oh my god, I love Mad Men. But quitting smoking, while watching this show is the most torturous process. it’s good to know my willpower is holding, because they’re smoking in every god damn scene. but besides that, it’s an amazing show full of great dialogue and incredibly interesting, not too mention well dressed, female characters. i mean look at these ladies!

 

a blog for people who like to blog?

hmm. it’s always weird to start a blog and try and think of something witty and clever to entice readers with. i don’t really have anything. this isn’t starting off too well.

basically i wanted to have a place where i could vent out my loves and hates involving pop culture, music, books, knitting/crafts, food and anything else that randomly pops into my mind. i look forward (wait…i always spell forward wrong. it’s engraved in my brain to spell it foward, do not ask me why.) to engrossing you with enlightening posts involving my deep love of the Sweet Valley High Series, how I busted my wrist knitting too hard the other night, why i believe coke in a can is better than in a bottle etc…
here, let’s start things off with a picture of some random LP cover that i find amusing: