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Thursday, July 3rd, 2008
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3:41 pm - Movie minute
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Last night, I had a momentary reprieve and saw Hancock. A notable event was that a little boy felt sick. His dad started leading him out, and unfortunately, he was almost heaving during a quiet, sentimental scene. I think the whole theater was thinking, "Ohhhh godddd." As for the movie itself, I totally agree with this review: 'Hancock' not quite super. I enjoyed it, but it was no WALL-E.
Last weekend, I saw both Wanted with yummy James MacAvoy and innovative film making (which our ex-cabin neighbors who happened to be seeing it too absolutely despised) and the spectacular, amazing WALL-E. So far, I've been OK with the summer movie fare so far. WALL-E is my favorite.
I've got a hectic week next week, including a possible trip to the cabin and then my conference-ing at Las Vegas. When I come back, Penelope is out on DVD, and then The Dark Knight comes out that Friday. SWEET.
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| Saturday, June 28th, 2008
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3:46 pm - Mountain update
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Hello from Fancy Gap! Erin and I are at the cabin right now killing time.
So far, we got in last night, dropped the puppy off (and our stuff), and went down the mountain to Lonestar Steakhouse. SO GOOD! Afterward, we dropped by the grocery store. Then we came back to get into PJs and turn on Definitely, Maybe. Yay Rachel Weisz!
This morning, we had breakfast while watching the BBC's Sense & Sensibility, which, yes, I had watched last weekend with Pae. However, it is SO GOOD. And Erin needed to see it. We enjoyed its glory while we lounged and had lunch. I actually feel asleep during part of it and was trying to keep myself from snoring. Oops.
Mom called in the afternoon to give me the crazy-Airstream-people update. Then Erin and I chatted awhile about our plans this afternoon and tonight before going upstairs. Seems we shall be going to see Wanted at a 5:10pm show, then afterward get some yummy seafood at Libby Hill, then come back to the cabin to walk Gunthar (if we have time), then go back to see WALL-E at the 9:30pm show. I'm excited.
It's possible we might see a matinee tomorrow of WALL-E if we get movie'd out, but we'll definitely go for Pizza Hut tomorrow. I've got a $25 gift card that's begging to be used. I enjoyed myself the last time I was there in the Galax one.
Anyway, life is so much slower and more comfortable here. While chatting, we saw a beautiful doe just walk across the street. It posed, as if to say "Look how graceful I am" and then slowly walked into the woods. Erin and I both appreciated this. And I brought up the new little dog bed I have been putting on the couch at home, and Gunthar loves it soooo much. He's curled up in it now (with his squeaky-carrot) fast asleep. Aww, so cute.
That's the update from the mountain at the moment. Hope everyone is having a good weekend!
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| Thursday, June 19th, 2008
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12:10 am - Geekery - Music
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I am a huge instrumental soundtrack buff. Don't get me wrong; my ipod's hard-rock (389 songs) and country (670 songs) playlists are also jam packed. But the most stuff I carry around with me have no words. That's 2550 songs or 5.7 days' worth of orchestral or synthesized music. Insane.
I've actually divided things into several playlists at the moment:
- Instrumental, which contains every soundtrack
- Preferred Instrumental, which usually contains my most recent acquisitions
- Favorite Instrumental, which are the tracks I like and play the most.
The interesting statistics of my ipod currently are that I've been playing X-Ray Dog's "Here Comes the King" about 170 times. This isn't a soundtrack to a movie, but music produced for trailers. You've probably heard this in many movie previews, and I'm told it's in the credits for "The Amazing Race" (fortunately I don't watch that show; otherwise it would probably be ruined for me).
Statistics aside, if you asked me what my favorite instrumental ALBUMS are, they are currently: The Passion of the Christ by John Debney and Children of Dune by Brian Tyler.
These composers aren't the most famous names currently out there, such as John Williams or James Horner. As much as I appreciate the work of those two, and still buy albums from them, I think they're all starting to sound the same. I do like me some James Newton Howard though; it's rare I hear something from him I don't like. Howard Shore's Lord of the Rings is amazing, of course, but I've not liked anything else he's done so far very much. There's Thomas Newman, who wrote the most glorious track from Meet Joe Black I cannot listen to anymore because I've worn it out so much! Finally, of course, anything by Hans Zimmer (Gladiator, Pirates of the Caribbean, Tears of the Sun, King Arthur, etc.) is usually worthy of downloading.
Up-and-comers, for me, include:
Harry Gregson-Williams (Man on Fire),
Harald Kloser (The Day After Tomorrow),
Steve Jablonsky (The Island),
Nick Glennie-Smith (We Were Soldiers),
Anne Dudley (Tristan & Isolde),
Phillip Glass (who's OK and not the bees knees most people think he is, wrote the highly repetitive The Hours),
Marco Beltrami (3:10 to Yuma),
Agelo Badalementi (A Very Long Engagement) and
Dario Marianelli (whose sweet piano-ridden Atonement and Pride & Prejudice I'm simply in love with).
I realize these folks have probably been a long time, but they've been populating my Instrumental playlist with more and more frequency.
Have I freaked you out with my gratuitous soundtrack knowledge yet? I actually gave a pseudo-lecture on it during one of my creative writing classes in Ireland, and the professor, poet Gerald Dawe, was absolutely infatuated. He thought I was giving a "Master lecture" when I was like, um, wow, I just know stuff. He tried to convince me that I should write something about this. One day I will, but I don't have a solid idea yet.
Anyway, what this ALL leads to is that I just got my $50 itunes gift card from my over-worked VISA card. I get points for ScoreCard rewards where you can get merchandise. That's where I got my Bose Headphones (which they don't offer anymore, amazingly!). But this time around, I decided I wanted an itunes gift card rather than, say, a shredder.
So I've been having fun picking up some soundtracks that ordinarily might be hard to find, mainly from Brian Tyler. I've just gotten the awesome-to-drive-to The Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift and the wholesome The Greatest Game Ever Played. Exciting!
Instrumental music is the best kind of music for reading and writing. It's so unobtrusive whereas I find myself listening to lyrics otherwise. I usually turn on some rock or country when I'm doing layout for work, but when I need to focus, I turn to my, oh, 2550 songs. :-D
I actually have a favorite game, where I put these songs on shuffle and have to guest the artist and movie it's from. And the scary thing is I'm about 85% correct about thirty seconds in. That's a lot of obsessive listening!
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| Sunday, June 15th, 2008
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5:56 pm - Hmm
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On Friday, I went over to Jason's house to see No Country For Old Men which I liked -- but Best Picture, really? The ending was bizarre, and I'll have to look around on various websites for an explanation. It was really strange. Jason also showed me images of him in Jerusalem, Afghanistan, Tunisia, Spain, etc. Pretty fascinating. He also introduced me to Leinenkugel's Berry Weiss, which I just bought more of at the grocery. Yummy!
I finished watching HBO's Deadwood. I really liked it, although it was interesting discussing it with Jason, who loves the show. The swearing language was initially off-putting. But then I thought more of an issue was the Shakespearian dialogue, which was so convoluted at times that I didn't really know what someone was talking about. And when the creator, David Milch, explained "I don't outline," suddenly my liking of the show diminished. I could definitely see how things wandered. However, that being said, many of the major plot points were historically accurate, so I can't fault him for that. It really sucks that there wasn't a season 4, but I definitely think there are two sides to every story. Yeah, I bet Deadwood was expensive to make, but I also wonder if people behind the scenes were difficult to work with. I could TOTALLY see that. But I wish they had done season 4, even if it was only six episodes. But okay, it ended.
Even MORE distressing is how Battlestar Galactica had its "Mid-Season Finale" Friday night. It was, as always, ridiculously awesome; I even got choked up toward the end. But those fools at Sci Fi have paused the season ... until 2009!!! WTF?!? And now the Writer's Strike is over, the SAG is planning on striking too, so some of the shows one would ordinarily expect to see in September (like The Office) may be delayed AGAIN. This just goes to show it's sometimes better to just buy all the seasons on DVD. Because clearly, nothing else is on.
I just got home from the grocery, and it appears my battle with the little black ants continues. But this time I have Raid in hand. Ugh. I hope I've squelched them for good. I'm being careful about leaving Gunthar's food out for them to find. But in any case, I now have new foodage that should last me the week. Cabin this weekend!
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| Wednesday, June 11th, 2008
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12:44 am - For those of us dying in the heat ...
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It is stupid, re-donk-ul-lous hot. In North Carolina, we broke all sorts of records this past weekend. As in, we made it over 101 I think on Sunday. I was walking the dog talking on my cell phone, and when I came back in, it was like my elbow had been underwater. Sweat was just dripping off.
And then my parents explain they are currently enduring a blizzard in Glacier National Park:
*Maggie Simpson blink .... blink*
I don't understand ice existing in heat like this. What?? A SNOW warning? They say they might get twelve inches! And of course, they brought no winter coats and shoes. Silly people. But I understand why not!
My mind can't grasp this concept when I'm literally melting outside myself.
P.S. Season 1 of Deadwood down. Seasons 2-3 to go.
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| Sunday, June 8th, 2008
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11:57 pm - I heart Grill Baskets
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Tonight, I had my first adventuring with grilling. I burnt my index finger a little, but other than that, I came out relatively unscathed.
I cut up pieces of onion, red bell pepper, squash, then defrosted frozen shrimp, and cherry tomatoes. I just filled the grill basket with it, and then it spent about 15 minutes on the grill (with me checking every 5 and stirring). And OMG it was AWESOME. Particularly the shrimp. This may be my new thing!
Yum.
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| Saturday, June 7th, 2008
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9:35 pm - Ask me what time it is ...
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I had a very LOW credit card bill this month, which is awesome. Despite my big purchase of contacts. So I splurged on something I've been wanting for about 8 months now. A new watch! Here it is, and it is SO GORGEOUS:
The thing I wanted most was a calendar date. I'm sick of being at the grocery and never knowing what date to write on my check. The guy at the counter was funny and showed me a watch with a day-of-the-week dial. But I laughed and said, "I don't think I'm at that point yet!"
I also sent my other beloved Fossil watch to be refurbished, which is why I wanted a new watch. Quite exciting. And it's heavy!
YAY!!!
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| Monday, June 2nd, 2008
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12:58 pm - No originality
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I have been super excited about the movies lately, but I just read this about upcoming movie sequels. I'm all about the Shrek 5 and The Brazillian Job but another Starship Troopers film? Huh? And I couldn't really care less about Ghost Rider. Is there no originality anymore?
Also, the way they've been turning television shows into movies, I wouldn't be surprised if a Cosby Show: The Movie or Golden Girls: The Movie comes to a theater near us. GAG! I do like Steve Carrell who is staring in the movie version of Get Smart, but I doubt I'll see it. It's the principle! Think of something new for pete's sake!
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| Sunday, May 25th, 2008
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2:31 pm - As luck would have it ...
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We went to the Bright Leaf Drive-In for a double feature: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and Iron Man.
This drive-in opened on 1955, and it's one of only four drive-in's in North Carolina. Obviously, it's always been in Mt. Airy for the almost 10 years my family and I have been coming up to the cabin, but for some reason, I have never actually gone to it. And it was ... SO MUCH FUN. The weather was just awesome.
It costs about $6 per person. You can pay $5 to have a pass for bringing in your own food (which we didn't do). We went in two cars: my little Scion and my parents' MINI, and because we were small cars, we get to be up front. Actually, there were about 6 other MINI Coopers there in our row too. This helped when we left too, because we could just line up in the lane to leave and let people in, not have to wait for someone to let us in.
Also, the concessions weren't terribly expensive, which is refreshing. But they did have orders of five deep fried Oreos. Disgusting! But apparently they have "World Famous Hotdogs," and they can order Pizza Hut pizza, too. At midnight, you could buy a whole pizza for $8.
The only semi-sad thing was that it doesn't start until 9pm. So that means we watched a double feature and didn't get home until about 2AM. Crazy! But it was such goodness. I've already called Pae to tell her, yeah, we are doing this when she and I venture up here this summer.
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| Thursday, May 22nd, 2008
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4:26 pm - Hello from Fancy Gap, VA!
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I'm here in glorious 60s-ish sunny, cloudless weather in the Appalachian mountains. It's absolutely gorgeous, and I'm pleased to say that I'll be here until Tuesday! As for work, I've gotten most everything necessary for May done, so I can definitely enjoy my time here.
Last night, I finished reading ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) libba_bray's Rebel Angels which was, to be frank, dessert reading. It's a little odd, but a lot of Victorian fun. Makes me think of Anne of Avonlea or something like that. So I do recommend it, and I'll try to read the third one this weekend (so Mom can take this series on her trip).
Today, I filled my car with expensive gas -- and I saw an ambulance filling with gas. I know they run on fuel too, but for some reason, I've never been at the gas station the same time as an ambulance. Or a fire truck for that matter. Hmm, interesting.
I believe we may be going to see Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull tonight, and I am PUMPED about this. Last weekend, I had an Indiana Jones marathon with some friends and was reminded how much I love these movies. In fact, I'm wearing my Indy shirt right now like a total geek. But it makes me laugh.
Will probably post again this weekend! Later!
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| Thursday, May 15th, 2008
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3:35 pm - Swell Season
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"I really liked it!"
-- says a giggling Mom, after seeing Iron Man last night, the same lady who appreciates movies like Love's Unending Joy and Dreamer
So Iron Man was a success. I had Danny's BBQ last night (which I may have to have again tonight) and then saw the movie. Beforehand, we called my middle brother, and he assured us the movie was really good. And afterwards, we called him again to joke, "We want our money back." He totally fell for it! Haha.
Today's non-work agenda is to go to the grocery, take Gunthar to the parents' house and pick up Gypsy (the GPS device), then meet Erin for dinner. Then she and I will make our way down to see The Swell Season, which is the Czech/Irish duo from the film Once. Their names are Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova. I am quite excited about this, as I totally love them. And I'm sure it will bring back memories of Ireland, of folks saying "tanks" and all.
As far as work goes, I do have to get on the Cardio bandwagon. But I've given myself a wee bit of a break so far. I will be all about this tonight! I also need to submit my PO for Las Vegas for approval. That will be my last trip of the year though. Hooray!
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| Wednesday, May 14th, 2008
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1:00 pm - A bunch of nothin'
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Clinique -- Love their makeup, but I think they're secretly part of the underworld. As in, they count me as part of their "club" and send me offers weekly. (Don't get me started on Bonus Times.) Usually, I can obstain. But this week, they were offering Free Shipping and a Free Sample of my choice. Not only that, but I got two additional samples for sleuthing for coupon codes on the web. So, I bought two things, and got three samples free. I absolutely love the samples because they lighten my load when I go on work trips. So ... *sigh* ... Clinique. Why do you do this to me?
But things seem to even out as we approach the summer. I *hate* hot weather, and thus I *hate* warm weather clothes. Whereas I might be frequenting Eddie Bauer to load up on their pretty sweaters, I can now grumble about how their clothes are boring. I do like their flip-flops though! So my clothes expenses greatly drop around this time of year.
I've got my last work hurdle to do this week, and then I'll have to get cracking on Cardio (ugh). But at least I can give myself a slight bit of a break. I'm going tonight to see Iron Man. I also need to hit the grocery store.
Tomorrow I get to see the actor/musicians from Once! Woo! I'm excited!
Then on Friday, I'll have a co-worker over for lunch, and she can show me fun computer tricks that she uses. And then I'm going to see Chronicles of Narnia in a late matinee form (to avoid the teeny boppers).
But YAY, things to look forward to!
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| Tuesday, May 6th, 2008
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4:13 pm - Booooo work
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Okay, so I have a lot of work to do. But I'm easing the stress blow with a recent purchase -- Season 1 of 4400, which I have heard is REALLY good. All I had to hear was that Summer of Firefly is in it (although maybe only Season 2), and I was on my way. The best part is Season 1 was a whopping $14. It's looking really good so far.
P.S. The teaser trailer for Twilight is out, and yes, it looks REALLY good to me. Cedric Diggory is kinda hot.
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| Monday, May 5th, 2008
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9:23 pm - All sorts of dumb phone chores
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I was on the phone ALL day.
First of all, I had a few outstanding tasks for KB Homes including a slow leak in a sprinkler system and a minor crack that needs to be repaired in the garage. Also, I think the painters may have broken my light fixture in the bathroom, but I have an electrician coming to straighten my switch plates on Wednesday, so I'll ask her about that. It's just, ugh. When will this end?
Secondly, I have a problem with my Atenolol prescription. My new doctor at the family practice apparently got confused and wrote my 90-day prescription for once a day, when I actually take this twice a day. So I need a new prescription. I also need a 30 day prescription to get me by, while they resubmit the prescription to TelDrug. WHAT a pain!
Then I have an issue over at the condo. They corrected the security keypad, but apparently I didn't get keyed in. So I made a second call over to the maintenance number. Finally, she called me back. So this should be taken care of in the next few days -- fingers crossed.
Finally, I called Time Warner ... about five times. The reason I called is my bill jumped about $30/month more. That would be $360 more a year. WTF?? I realize I've now had Time Warner for a year, and my year promotion has come to a close. But I wanted to know if there was something they could do for me. So I called under the auspices that my company reimburses me for my phone and Internet, but I don't want to tell them I need extra money and possibly be told that I need to change services. The poor guy I FINALLY got ahold of (in the "Retention Department") explained that the $30 jump was JUST for the TV cable. And I said, "Listen, $30 extra a month is a lot of money for me." He kept reiterating that oh, you're getting a great deal! Your company is paying for 2/3rds of your bundle, so you're getting a steal. But that's my COMPANY, not the oh-so-great discount of Time Warner. Finally, I got them to give me some sort of two year contract promotion where miraculously, my bill would lose the $30 they're trying to get me from me now. And then the second year, I would go up only $5 extra. But even that's a $25/month discount. Yeah, why wouldn't I?
Oh, and I FINALLY got them to fix my name. What a miracle! I've been "Susan" since 2006, despite my continuous efforts to change that. But I think I'm finally successful.
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| Sunday, May 4th, 2008
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12:44 am - House = CLEAN
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So the folks at KB Homes visited my house at 8:30am on Thursday and around 9:00am on Friday. They corrected a bunch of things, from nail pops to repainting the bathrooms to fixing the counter and uncreaking some creaky stairs. The re-dry walling in particular was a bummer because the painting guys sand-papered it before painting, as they're supposed to do, and that spread a film of dust everywhere. Another problem was that I decided to leave the windows open -- all over the house -- to get the smell out and invited in a layer of pollen everywhere.
So today, I restored order. I dusted every possible surface. I vacuumed downstairs (Dad did up the stairs and the second floor later on). I scrubbed my shower to get off little droplets of paint. I mopped the downstairs and my bathrooms/laundry room to rid myself of the grainy dust that the vacuum didn't pick up. I reorganized and cleaned my medicine cabinets. I cleaned my bathroom and spritzed the guest bathroom. I made headway with the laundry. Ugh. So this took almost every possible moment of my day today. At the end of it, I was very shvetty, so I took a shower.
Almost directly afterward, the 'rents showed up with dinner supplies. So I got crackin' on making pasta and biscuits. We had dinner, and then I helped Mom clean up, and then we watched my Red Box Rental, Charlie Wilson's War, and recent purchase, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee. Both were ... depressing but somehow enjoyable.
But wow. Nice clean house. I've still got a bit of laundry going on, but that shouldn't be too bad. I may change my sheets tomorrow, but we'll see. But right now, I'm exhausted. So I'm going to bed. Night!
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| Wednesday, April 30th, 2008
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12:09 pm - Glad to be home
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I am quite happy to be home. Yesterday, I spent the day online on the couch, working-slash-catching up with my TV shows. Today, I'm up in the office. And I got the desk organized, which always makes me happy. Things must be in their place -- which is probably why I'm going to hate the next few days.
Tomorrow and Friday, KB Homes is coming to correct things, like squeaky floors and repainting my bathrooms with an egg shell paint. That's nice and all, but this means I have to take things off the walls. To get to nail pops, I have to pull furniture from the walls even. My parents have promised to help me get this all in order and also to return it back to its normal state. But it's the chaos I can't stand.
About the trip -- I packed a lot into it: Emily's play, visiting the brother and his family, touring the big houses of Newport, the Sam Clemens/Harriet Beecher Stowe houses, the Hershey Chocolate World, etc. You can check out the pictures here. Be forewarned: I took a lot of the dogs and my nieces, but that's for a Christmas project purpose!
By the way, I now have over 1000 public photos. Yeeeeah.
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| Sunday, April 27th, 2008
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5:34 pm - Checking in from Winchester, VA
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I'm not home yet. I was supposed to arrive home today, but we decided to take 3 days to drive home, rather than make the 2 day push we did to reach Rhode Island. And the bonus is that we saw Sam Clemens's house yesterday and Hershey's Chocolate World today.
I'll make the big post about the trip later on, but I think it's hilarious that we stayed overnight (free) in a Walmart parking lot last night. I said, "It's like camping in a food court." We had Cracker Barrel for bother dinner and breakfast! And I got to explore the Walmart and pick up some Clearance PJs, because I'm getting tired of the ones I've been wearing. AND we weren't the only ones there. Probably 10 campers and several trucks were parked in a cluster with us last night.
All I can think is: "You know you're a redneck when you boondock in a Walmart parking lot." Ha-ha!
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| Monday, April 21st, 2008
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5:29 pm - Harpers Ferry update: Rained out
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Despite Hapers Ferry being a neat little town and this campground being so awesome -- we decided not to be tourists. It's just depressing. The rain comes and goes in absolute waves.
One good thing is I got the worky taken care of, and now I'm free to enjoy my vacation! We're leaving bright and early tomorrow morning for Rhode Island. Mom and I took much appreciated showers inside the camper, so we should be good to throw clothes on and hit the road.
Ugh, I'm tired and headachey from the weather. BOO rain.
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| Sunday, April 20th, 2008
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9:20 pm - Hello from Harpers Ferry KOA!
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I'm on the Internet in very beautiful, very rainy Harpers Ferry KOA. As in, I'm inside the airstream on free WiFi. And I am spoiled! My dad says that campgrounds are now judged based on their Internet accessibility, and I think ... Yeah, it's a good thing.
Yesterday, we went to my cousin Emily's play at ECU, and it was great! I really like anything with those big Roman helms. (Although I suppose it's really Trojan) On the way over, I saw an AZKABAN horse paddock. I let me tell you I nearly lost it. I was dead from laughter. "Where do you board your horse?" "Oh, in Azkaban." GAHHHH! I wonder if these Greenvillians even know the reference. Also, we saw a random life-size giraffe statue not too far away, and I joked than an escaped wizard stupefied it. Yes, I'm a geek. But it was so funny.
Today the traffic was sort of yucky. My brother always leaves at 4am to avoid it, and it was a little irksome around the Richmond, VA area. But you know what? It evened out, and it wasn't bad AT ALL around DC itself. So it's all about having some patience. At one point, traffic slowed down so that people could read the traffic message boards. Um ... highlarious.
I'm easily amused, what can I say?
YAY Internet! I can take care of CCA in the morning, no problem. And then it's off for some more rainy adventures -- this time seeing Anteitam and Harpers Ferry.
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| Friday, April 4th, 2008
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4:50 pm - Novel workin' and soup eatin'
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Is there anything better than tomato soup, when one is really in the mood for it? MMM mmm good!
I'm perfecting my short synopsis and trying to get my wordcount down in Book 1 to 120K. I have approximately 4,391 to go.
P.S. I'm rewatching Lord of the Rings, and I am digging it on my home theater system. This is the first time Gunthar's been disturbed by all the loud noises! :-)
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