Fun Times in Burlington, Vermont

hello! This morning I touched down in Seattle after a week in Vermont spent visiting a dear study abroad friend. The trip went swimmingly and, apart from a moment of severe turbulence on my first flight (Seattle to DC) during which I was minutes away from begging the two burly men on either side of me to hold me as we all plunged to our death, the travel was not that much of a pain. A little aside: airport security has gotten insanely high tech lately! Perhaps I am a bit late in noticing it but shoot, every time I feel like I am stepping into a sci-fi flick. Fun tidbit: I got selected for a "random screening" TWICE--once they rooted through my luggage (the attendant very courteously asked me: "May I?" before unpacking every bit of luggage. What if I had responded: "I'd really rather you not.") and the second time they swiped my palms with some magic terrorist-detector cloth that they ran through some secret machine before pronouncing me, seconds later, good to go.

I spent most of the week in Burlington, Vermont, a lovely town. Locals brag about it, saying it's a "slice of the Pacific Northwest" and they aren't wrong. My favorite part of my visit was probably the last full day. hannah had gone to work at the Gap on Black Friday (poor, poor soul) and I nestled myself in a nearby coffee shop called Muddy Waters. I ordered my London Fog and cozied up in a large leather armchair to read short stories by Nabokov. But people kept talking to me! And not even in a stop-talking-to-me-can't-you-see-I'm-trying-to-read sort of way, but in a really friendly chat-up-your-neighbor kind of way. I had two separate looong conversations with locals and they were just the greatest. The second one invited me to join him in a protest against WalMart (apparently I "looked like the right kind of person to ask"). I didn't end up going because it involved my traveling by car to which I had no access, but I enjoyed the invitation nonetheless. I like being included, what can I say! he then bid me adieu, well, actually he told me "good karma." Yeah, I like Burlington. I just about finished my book and spent the rest of the time doodling cringe-worthy doodles (that's right--so little talent that not even my doodles come out "right") phrases from the stories and am thinking I will start a new blog dedicated to these downright dowdy doodles (however, I am sufficiently embarrassed just thinking about the possibility so don't wet your pants about it just yet).

Anyway. I am very content and thankful for my time in Vermont with my good friends. It's always fun seeing a bit of the country outside of your own little bubble. The places I want to discover most are Portland, New Orleans, Quebec City, Montreal (not exactly in the country, I know), Nashville, Chicago, and everywhere in between. Speaking of in between, something this week of travel made me think of is the importance of all the "in-between" time. Particularly with travel, you have hours of waiting around for the next step, be it changing flights, buying a disgusting and disgustingly overpriced sandwich but you are already so hungry you don't give a crap, waiting for taxis, waiting for takeoff, waiting for your friend to get off work. Some of these periods of time may seem almost unbearable, but that's because we're only thinking about our lives as a series of appointments and are just so hopped up on moving on to the next big thing. You're probably missing a lot of opportunities for new connections, enjoyable eavesdropping, good writing material as you "kill time." Most of life happens in the in between moments so I'm working on giving them the time of day.

Life in a Day (2011)

Oh, the little pleasures in life. I just love it when I'm scanning the 'flix and something I had wanted to watch months earlier suddenly pops up on my "New to Instant" list. That's how I ended up finally watching "Life in a Day," a unique little movie whose preview I first saw this summer while enjoying a screening for the Seattle International Film Festival.

The idea behind "Life in a Day" is that two directors told the world to send them footage of whatever they pleased--as long as it occurred within the 24-hour span of July 24, 2010. They ended up with upwards of 5,000 hours of footage from 190+ countries (dude, there are only 196 I'm pretty sure...) and after what I can only imagine to be one of the most grueling processes in film history, compiled selected bits and pieces into a loosely-directional piece.

At only 90 minutes, it is not a huge investment, and I would recommend it to most anyone. Some of the pieces are more like vignettes--my favorite was probably about a single Japanese father and his zombie-esque son, but that was mostly due to the fact that he used a fisheye lens which really highlighted the absurdly chaotic, small, and crowded 'apartment' in which the two live. The rest are little snippets. The film strives to cover the major things that arguably make us human, and make us One: What do you love most? What do you fear? What's in your pocket? Overall, the film fulfills its role of the arty, voyeuristic, optimistic little flick and my only major complaint is the last scene. I'm sorry, but it really had me going and then lost me completely on a non-compelling, non-novel final bit. And it does feel a bit like an elongated Kodak commercial. It did, however, remind me to continue to work on being present in everything I do; hell, if footage of an overweight dude in his undies brushing his teeth can make it to hollywood, it must be important.

I'm Baaaack!

Dear 12 followers,

Whether or not you check my blog consistently for updates does not matter. What is far more important is the fact that I have finally, after several months as you can tell, figured out how to re-login to my blogspot account. I am not the most clever when it comes to computers and internets, but I managed to figure out I had some weird "gtempaccount" from which I was supposed to be signing in instead of my regular Whitmail account.

ANYWAY.

It's late November! Go figgur. Time flies, darlings, and how I have missed reporting on movies I watch and things I bake! Because both you and I have been deprived, I will promptly recommence my reviews.

Be well.

Crazy Stupid Romantic Comedies

Went to see "Crazy Stupid Love" at the Big Picture in Seattle tonight. Firstly, this theater is fantastic. I remember my mom and I pulling up in front of it when I was about 15 years old, eager to see a movie featured in that summer's international film festival, and being told the theater was 21+. So that was a bummer, and I promptly forgot about it. But thank goodness for the rediscovery! It's a cocktail lounge with temper-pedic seats and bartenders will actually deliver drinks to you mid-way through the movie. It's swanky silly. Definitely feels like stepping into 1920s America.

Right, I was going to write about the movie. Ah, the rom com. We love em, we hate em. I mostly hate em. Or so I thought, but then I decided to take a peek at all-time favorite movies and realized that a couple fit the rom com genre (Amelie, The Princess Bride). Whereas I usually gravitate towards the dram com genre (A Room With A View, Match Point, harold and Maude, Moulin Rouge) I could not deny my penchant for laughs AND romance.

So despite refusing to see anything starring Sandra Bullock and/or hugh Grant (they've got to have been in a movie together by now) for years, I decided I kind of maybe wanted to see this new cute rom com. Also vastly important was the presence of Ryan Gosling, Julianne Moore, and Emma Stone, on all of whom I have vague celebrity crushes. (how grammatically maladroit!)

The acting was good, the wardrobe was incredible (seriously, more than anything this movie made me ache to shop for men's shoes) and the soundtrack cute (although Middle East's "Blood" seems to be getting overused recently). Don't be fooled by the title, there is nothing particularly "crazy" about the movie, so if you're looking for thrills, well, don't. Ryan Gosling's charm and body definitely made the movie, without which it would have been outweighed by the dull, formulaic scenes and structure which burdens it regardless. All in all, it's kind of a hit-AND-miss, so it just depends what you're jonesing for on this particular movie night.

A Trip to the Movies

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 (2011)

I don't believe I need to post a trailer to this one as man, beast, and flora has been subject to its special effects.

Unnecessarily sarcastic comments aside, this movie was, by far, one of my favorite of the series. I actually saw it twice in theaters, and the first time I went with my poor brother who had no idea what he was in for. By that, I mean I wept through the entire Snape storyline and, after I had exhausted my own sweatshirt as a sponge, I moved on to my brother's tshirt. he was a very good sport.

Win Win (2011)

I stumbled upon this little movie while I was checking what was playing at the Crest, the $3 theater in north Seattle. It had quite a few little yellow stars by the title, so I decided to check it out. I should have avoided reading the glowing reviews before seeing it because I was a bit disappointed. To be fair, I was exhausted after a long day's work, but I found myself spacing out on more than one occasion.

Quoting myself in a phone conversation with a friend, Win Win is about "Paul Giamatti being fat and high school wrestling." Pretty accurate, that. Giamatti is a husband and father to a young daughter. his law practice is about to go to the dogs when he finds he can make a bit extra money per month by finagling his way into being a guardian for one of his dementia-riddled clients. Eventually Giamatti comes across the guardian's estranged grandson and through a series of events, becomes a father figure, coach, and mentor to this silly, bleached moptop. The movie tries to be quirky but comes off as a bit too cozy, and I'm not a huge fan of Giamatti, so I felt that I was forced to look at him a bit too often. The dialogue with the grandson got quite a few giggles out of me, but I think this independent film is being overhyped. I've seen much, much better.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPJOmH9g8WM (embedding disabled, copy and paste)

The Tree of Life

Where to even begin with the The Tree of Life... This piece of art is a two+ hour meditative poem on the existence of faith and the meaning of life. It is exquisite, every frame is carefully crafted and could stand alone as a piece. The acting reaches unusual depths; there was not only a complete suspension of disbelief throughout the dream (?) sequences but immense emotional involvement.

The Tree of Life tells the story of a grown man, Jack (played by Sean Penn), who looks back on his life growing up in suburban Texas in the 1950s with his two brothers, father, and mother. he struggles to come to terms with the death of one of his brothers, his pubescent loss of innocence and period of rebellion, and most importantly, aches to reconcile the struggling forces of Nature and Grace, Father and Mother. The only frustrating part of this film was that the bits with grown-up Jack didn't seem to fit into the grand scheme of things. His scenes read as sad little add-ons and almost took away from the emotional depth of the flashback familial scenes.

This film works as a patchwork of scenes. It is totally anachronistic, has no plot, and includes a CGI sequence of considerable length that documents the creation of life, from the Big Bang to dinosaurs, and eventually back to our Southern suburbia. I would hesitate to recommend this movie widely, because, well, quite odd, and undeniably slow at times (though that never bothered me). Many people will be put off because they expect a linear story, or a story at all, and I respect that. But if you think you can handle the nonconventional nature of this film, I urge you to see it immediately. It is exquisitely beautiful, involving, and thought-provoking. The soundtrack is also unbelievable.

(If you've seen it, did the final beach scene remind anyone else of "Big Fish"?)

Bridesmaids (2011)

Silly, goofy, gross fun. Kristen Wiig doesn't turn off the funny. I'd say she is the funniest cast member of SNL. Sadly, this movie has been mismarketed as a typical chickflick (actually, it's really been undermarketed). It's fresh and although not surprising plot-wise, will cause you to belly laugh at least once. Probably during this scene:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABmTxZl4NK4

Horrible Bosses (2011)

Mehh, pretty funny. I laughed the most at Charley Day, and that's probably because I was getting "kitten mitten" flashbacks from that episode of "It's Always Sunny." It's far from original but the cast is impressive and the naughty bits are entertaining, obviously.

Red Velvet Cake!

This fine summer evening I baked a classic Red Velvet Cake. I had never made one before, although I had made it in the form of cupcakes. My greatest challenge when baking at home is to weasel my way out of many disasters that occur due to a paucity of baking paraphernalia. Translation: NOBODY BAKES HERE EXCEPT FOR ME. I'm lucky if I locate a measurement cup, and we don't even have a single flexible spatula. Oh! Nor do we own an electric mixer, so everything, including beating egg whites into stiff peaks for mousses and tiramisu, is done by hand. WITH A FORK.

Ok, I'm done bragging.

I used Paula Deen's Food Network recipe and replaced lemon juice for distilled vinegar (we had none), doubled the cocoa powder, and used my own recipe for the cream cheese frosting.

Updates

I haven't been much in a place to write because for two weeks I was in Walla Walla without consistent internet, and now I am back home working 10 hour days all week. Also in bed with a slight fever at the moment. But no worries! As soon as I get through this week, I'm all yours, blogosphere. I have a massive food post to share with you. My time in Walla Walla was wildly culinary, and I simply cannot keep all of the recipes to myself.

Meanwhile, I lay in bed, worrying about psychology vs. social work, re-watching Season 2 of Arrested Development for god knows which dozenth time, The Man Who Wasn't There in queue, and drinking adorable iced earl grey tea. heart shaped ice cubes that actually ARE earl grey tea so that as they melt your tea doesn't get diluted! Jump on board, folks!