Frozen's Olaf... and Joy

I bought the three foot high Olaf stuffed character which is now sitting in my office, and I have to say I smile every time I look up and see him.

Disney's gives us great side characters with which to love. Gus, the mouse, from Cinderella. Mushu, the tiny dragon, from Mulan. Archimedes, the owl, in Sword in the Stone. Timon and Pumbaa, the meercat and warthog, from The Lion King. Stitch, the alien, from Lilo and Sitch. Dory, the fish, from Finding Nemo. Runt and Abby, the pig and mallard, from Chciken Little. Mater, the tow-truck, from Cars. Baymax, the inflatable robot, from Big Hero 6.

And then there are the other brilliant makers of feature animated movies who gave us the Minions from Despicable Me. And Donkey from Shrek. Scrat, the long nosed acorn seeking wee-beastie, in Ice Age. Elliot, the deer, from Open Season.

These are just a few that I love, and I do love them all. They all make me smile. A lot. But I'm putting it out there... I really love Olaf, the snowman, from Frozen.  He is just freakin adorable on every level, and I never get tired of looking up and seeing his silly grin and big eyes looking back at me. Makes me smile every time. Every. Single. Time!

He's like a Viennese polka by Johann Strauss II. Doesn't matter what mood I'm in, these are sure cures to bring me joy and paste a stupid grin on my face.

What does it for ya'll?
 

Knee surgery

So, I'm still pretty UP from getting a book out.... finally. And I appreciate so much everyone who wished me well and/or bought a copy. THANKS

Remember how I had the knee surgery in early December to fix my torn meniscus? I'm still gimpy and in pain all the time, so we're taking the next step. Knee surgery for a partial knee replacement (unless they find something really freaky when they go in and have to do a full replacement). I'll be happy if it fixes the problem though.

So, I have surgery in a few brief weeks - three days in the hospital and then laid up for a month for sure. After that we'll see how gimpy or active I am. So my goal is, once I'm not doped up on pain meds, to be uber productive with my writing. Send the mojo, ya'll!!

Also, should have the next short out about the same time. I'll try to keep up the blog too though there may be a week of nothing - we'll see.

Anywho - that's today's update.
Have a great day and week :)

Petra Cor's first book is now available on Amazon

YAY!!!!!

It took me forever to get here, but it's official. A Mate for the Minotaur by Petra Cor (my pen name for this genre) is finally available on Amazon. It's a short beast-erotic-romance and only 99 cents.

For everyone who was encouraging and had faith in me - THANKS!

Fingers crossed now for some sales :)

Can Cleaning Give You a Cold?

All my forward progress on my office has come to a grinding halt this week as I've spent the last five days sleeping and laying around movie-binging while I felt like death with a cold. I feel human today but still tired. My nose looks like I should be leading Santa's sleigh.

I'm really close on the office and made another dent in the remaining bookshelf in the living room. The tidying project is improving things around here. I'm more motivated to work and feeling good about life - until the cold, I mean. Actually maybe my body is purging toxins as I purge the toxins weighing me down around the house. Body and home getting all simpatico. It's a theory...

So, more when I feel all the way human again. Hope everyone else is doing well in the meantime.

Me, My Office and the Tidying Up book

This story starts with my writing partner and bff, D, who recommended I read this book by Marie Kondo, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing. I read it and have to say even though there are a few things that may not apply or work with an American lifestyle (because it was written by and for those living in Japan), the underlying premise is absolutely life-changing.

So, I've been decluttering and organizing according to that premise - Only keep what brings you joy (and/or use regularly for the practical minded). If you set that as your baseline, it's actually easier and liberating to rid your home of stuff that is just taking up space. I cleared out probably 40% of the clothes in my closet and drawers, 70% of the shoes taking up space, and 30-40% of the books on one massive bookshelf (I still have another bookshelf to go), but wow!  I feel like the weights are lifting off my back and when I look at what I did keep, it's all stuff I love and that brings me joy.

As I'm progressing through the process, I started working the same life-changing magic in my office where I'm supposed to be working/writing. But my brain was as cluttered and messy as my office which was in utter chaos. My office felt like a visual representation of my brain. It's no wonder I wasn't getting anything done.

This week has been all about cleaning up and clearing out my office - making it a joyous place for me to work and be productive surrounded by the things that enhance my productivity. Having now cleared out my filing cabinet and boxes and bags of stuff (we're talking SO much paper for recycling or shredding), there is now room for me to just put stuff away immediately so I keep it clutter free. What a concept! It shouldn't be such a concept, but for me it really was - sometimes, I'm just so bad parting with stuff. Not quite hoarder, but not a foreign concept either. Now, everything has to pass the joy/love measuring stick or it doesn't even come in the house. That's that. And I LOVE IT. :)

Now that you know all of that, you have some idea why I've been a slacker with my blog. But, we'll get this train back on the tracks. Have a great weekend!!

Introducing Petra Cor

I’ve been finishing my mythic creature short stories that will be published under a pen name of Petra Cor. Why use a pen name? So, those style of stories (which are creature/human erotic romance) are not confused with my regular romance that will be under my own name. Obviously , I wouldn’t be blogging about it if I were worried about people knowing that Petra Cor is a pen name I use. Like Nora Roberts writing her Eve Dallas futuristic cop stories under the name of J.D. Robb. We all know they are both Nora Roberts, but the genres are different enough that she probably wanted to avoid confusion for her readers.

Readers can be really loyal beasties and we fear change, so if you write something different than what we’re expecting, we may come at you with pitchforks  and fire reminiscent of the mobs going after Frankenstein’s monster (or maybe that’s just me).  So looking at it from the reader’s perspective, I am using a pen name.  Coming from the writer side, it makes little difference to me.

So, I guess what I’m saying is that coming in the near future will be some Petra Cor (aka me) shorts. Yay! I’m excited that I’m finally being productive and will finally have something published to show for it.

Depression is a terrible thing that robs one of all motivation even for the things that one loves.  So, when one (aka me) finally starts feeling better and finally finds a little motivation and finally is being productive and finally feels as though the cloud smothering your brain has dissipated, then one has to celebrate. So here I am talking about myself in some weird 3^rd person fashion celebrating with you that I’m feeling more human every day. Yay and YAY!!

I’ll let ya’ll know when something is officially out and available for sell. And thank you to everyone who was encouraging or supportive in any way (past, present or future).

Part 2: I Survived the Road Trip

Day 5
We headed toward Las Vegas to visit friends but weren't in a hurry so, we stopped in Holbrook, AZ to check out the WigWam Motel.  The minute we stopped there I knew deep down in my bones that this place had to be at least part of the inspiration for Disney's Cars movie. Seriously! Sitting in front of the hotel was an old tow-truck ... totally 'Mater'.. see what I'm talking about?  Each wigwam was a hotel room and in front of each was a vintage car. It was cool. Didn't stay there - maybe next time. We did stay in Holbrook though. They aren't far from a Petrified Forest, so there were loads of rock shops and such. We got some cool things there. And I got to relax and rest before another day of driving.

Day 6
We headed toward Las Vegas again. On the way, we stopped at the Meteor Crater. It was a little

pricey to enter, but it was worth it. This is fascinating. We watched a short movie on the crater and looked through the museum. We skipped the free tour because it would take an hour, but we walked out and took loads of pictures of it. It's huge! You can see my guy there for some kind of reference. It's a mile across in diameter. At the top edge on the far left of this pic, the first little piece that juts up is actually the size of a house. Huge crater. Any way we were glad we went.

Continuing on, we had, HAD to stop when we saw a sign for The Roadkill Cafe. It's in a little town off the Old Route 66 called Seligman. It was a cute town and we drove up and down a couple times just to see the Americana. The menu was priceless. We both had No-Brake Steak (aka Chicken-fried Steak). I'll add the menu at the bottom in a larger size in case you're interested. The food was good, the waitstaff friendly and on top of things and the ambiance charming.

We got to Vegas and hung out with our friends that night. Got to meet their new baby, Jax. What a cutie-pie. And any of you who know me well know I'm not much into kids, especially babies, but Jax stole my heart. :)

Day 7
Remember the tight calve and swollen leg I mentioned (I hope) from day one?  Well it was still tight and sore and my whole right leg was so swollen up. My left was only a little swollen, but my right looked like I had elephantitus or something.  So, my guy insists I call and make an appointment with my doctor to check it. It's Friday... we have to be home by 4:00pm cuz my guy has a mission critical class he has to be at by six... I know the earliest appointment will be on Monday... and it's already been like this for six days and 3000 miles... but I acquiesce because he's worried (I'm a little worried too - cuz of the blood clot back in December). I call and make an appointment for Monday- as expected - and get busy packing to head home. Ten minutes later they call me back and say I should go to the ER and have an ultrasound on that leg. They say go now, do not leave Las Vegas, do not pass Go or collect $200. I say I will go to the ER. But I think to myself... we don't have time for this here... my guy needs to get back to SLC for said critical class... it's already been this way for a week and I haven't died yet, so what's another 420 miles? So, we get on the road, get home, unload the car in record time, and thirty minutes later my guy heads off to a shower before his class and I head straight to the ER.

They were a little concerned at the ER too cuz my right leg was a full inch and a half bigger than my left. Ultrasound is done. No blood clot - yay! So crisis averted. I know some of ya'll are out there shaking your heads sadly at me and you have every right. It was probably dumb to ignore what could have been a blood clot for a week, but since I didn't die or actually have a blood clot, I'm gonna say  -- No Worries :)

Road trip successfully accomplished, no blood was spilled, no people were heaved out of car at breakneck speeds, no fights occurred, no blood clot was formed and no one died (me or by me). So good job, Clancy!

And now for the promised menu.... so funny!

I Survived our 3500 mile Road-trip

So, back on April 25th, my guy and I left with a friend to help her move to Texas. Loaded the car up with two ferrets, one cat and every spare space in the car filled with friend's belongings. Two days and 1500 miles away from the greater Houston area of Texas.

The first two days were spent driving like madmen to make the 750 miles needed to get friend there in two days, but we did it.

Day 1
It was some seriously intense twelve hour drive days. States covered day one - Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico. Spent the night in Santa Rosa, NM. we ate a local diner that was filled with teenagers in their Prom finery. TOh to be that young again. Or not.... I've decided youth is wasted on the young. But I'm getting old so maybe I'm biased. There was a cactus by the parking lot and only my guy could manage to pretend to back into it and actually do it!  Had to pick cactus spines out of his ass. Bonding at it's finest... lol.

I kind of hosed up my leg by actively driving the entire twelve hours without the sensible use of cruise control. That night my right calf was as hard as brick and my leg was completely swollen (yes - that was the knee I recently had surgery one and the leg that recently had a blood clot). Feel free to shake your head sadly in dismay at my own stupidity. We did try to make frequent stops but could have used more I guess.

Day 2
Anywho... the second day was about the same except I was now using cruise control (thank you car industry). Day two only covered New Mexico and Texas.  We got friend to her destination and unloaded the car. Now my guy and I had more room than needed. Can I just say I had forgotten how humid it is in Houston area. I mean holy-cow, it's like trying to breath underwater. Super happy to leave that behind.

Day 3
All day in Texas. We headed over to San Antonio so my guy could see the Alamo. The grounds there are so pretty. On our way we found this creek that had a great name (see pic). Afterward we cruised on up to Midland to see a friend I haven't seen in twenty years. Good grief! Time flies when your living your life. It was so great to see her and meet her children. That night, it was so cold and windy. I was happy to leave Midland, if not my friend, the next day.

Day 4
We had planned to go to Carlsbad Caverns but changed our minds what with our knees being totally jacked up. So we just went straight to Roswell, New Mexico and stayed the night there. Roswell is such a pretty little town. We spent all our souvenir budget on Alien shirts and stuff :)

Spent several hours in the UFO Museum reading all the stuff and enjoying myself. Last time I went I only had an hour in there and it was not nearly enough. This time I took all the time I wanted and it was great. In case you were wondering, I totally believe! I wish I could stay in Roswell for a week and spend time in their research library upstairs from the museum and study like mad. How awesome would that be? After the museum we ate ate Whataburger (I miss them) and chilled out in the hotel. Our trip back was far more relaxed than the mad dash to Texas. We needed it the rest, so it was nice.

More road-trip on Friday's post.

Crocheting vs Eating

In the evenings when I like to watch TV, I have a tendency to snack (which hints at a smaller quantity than the amount of food I actually consume). I have found however that if I am doing something with my hands then I do not eat. One of my besties suggested masturbation (I just shook my head sadly) which I think is impractical anyway considering the hours I watch TV.

I have however found something to do with those hours that not only keeps me from nibbling (rolling my eyes) but also strengthens my hands and wrist so I am not having any pain when I type all day. 

Crocheting. Yes, crocheting. People who know me well may find this incongruous with their concepts of me, but there it is. I love to crochet. I never learned how to knit. And counted cross-stitch (which is my mom's choice of TV watching hobbies) takes too much attention away from my viewing attention. Crocheting does not. And it really gives my hands and wrists a workout. 

The downside is that now that I've made tons of scarves and hats and other things for friends and family, I'm now searching for projects to work on. The other downside is the dollars spent on yarn. So, I've now decided to take orders and sell some stuff so I can sustain my hobby as well as keep busy. I'm also starting to write some patterns for the stuff I make up from pictures. Sometimes it takes a few times to get it right, but I'm making progress. Thought I'd share some of the latest projects.

The top is a plaid I've made in a load of different colors. I think these are quite pretty. Next is one I based off the Leather Pride Flag. I've made it in two different widths and a variety of lengths.

I've made a bunch of stuffed animal things like My Little Ponies and Teenage
Mutant Ninja Turtles but I've done some other things that are.... I dunno.

A boob coozie that a friend saw in a catalog and requested. This one's bizarre to me, but no judgyness. 

And then there's the daisy for my friend Daisy. I love this one.

In the works are a few more hats. But I'm always looking for more projects to take on so I can continue to not snack. 

BTW - the chip moratorium is going well. Wasn't even craving any until the last week, so that's good. Got another week to go. Hopefully when I am off the moratorium, I won't binge. Hopefully, I can go forward with some normal type of moderation. Mind over matter, that will be my mantra.

What do ya'll do to keep busy?

The Genius in All of Us and The Talent Code

David Shenk wrote this book called The Genius in All of Us.  I recently finished reading it and liked it a lot because it picked up (sort of) where The Talent Code by Daniel Coyle left off.  It gave a more in depth look at how we create what we call genius. So, I liked that.

The Talent Code had loads of cool examples of hot spots of genius and talked some about how they grew there. Genius explains a little more how to accomplish that if you wanted to raise a genius.

The one thing both books speak to is that genius is not entirely in the genes but rather is cultivated through environment (which includes training). Genius talks more about the environment + genes = genius. And Code talks more about the training side of genius. Neither dismiss natural ability, but they both support the idea that genius doesn't just appear. It takes many components to accomplish what looks like genius.

And we aren't just talking brainiacs, we're talking writing, sports, musicians, singers, etc. It's a combination of things, like being raised in an environment that exposes one to that skill, having the support and encouragement to do the training necessary to gain the muscle memory of that skill, and having a passion that gives you the drive necessary to attain that skill almost to the exclusion of everything else.

The thing I like about these books is that we're breaking away from the idea that genius just happens so if you aren't born to be the best 'X' ever, you never will be. But that's bunk, as research is beginning to show. If I want to be the best 'X' ever, I need to practice it like crazy for years on end, practice in a way that enhances my skill, have motivation to do it, and have emotional and physical support in order to do the above.

But that's great news for any average Joe. We don't have to be average. Genius can be ours with enough time and effort. I love that it opens doors for everyone and that we're de-mystifying 'genius'.

Any other books in this area that ya'll can suggest?

Kismet

Over the weekend, I was watching Kismet (1955) with  Howard Keel and Ann Blythe. Mind you I had just watched these two in Rose Marie (made only a year earlier) where they played a romantic part (sort of) with each other. Then the next year they made Kismet and they play father and daughter - so that was a little weird. Could have been worse had I watched in the reverse order, then it would have been way weird.

It's a cute comedy of errors and I love those. Best ever I think is The Importance of being Earnest. Which I totally love! But today we're talking Kismet.

It also has some really great (and memorable) songs in it, like "Stramger in Paradise". The musical is set in a fictional Baghdad in the times of the Arabian Nights. During one of the earlier songs where they're going on about how amazing Baghdad is, it has this whole Las Vegas type jazz to it which totally cracked me up. That was the downside, which I'm still laughing about.

But, on the good side, Kismet  has some gorgeous songs in it and I think I like Howard Keel best in this movie over the rest of his. Not that I don't like him in others, I do. But I liked him, personally, best in this role. And I just was talking about Seven Brides last week which he was also in. And we recently talked about Rose Marie too. Another Howard Keel film. I think they were celebrating Howard Keel on AMC which is why I recently saw so many.

I think they also did a Doris Day celebration so loads of hers as well. Yummy.

 It was a good week for musicals on the AMC channel. And I do love me some musicals. Who's with me?

Consistency and planning ahead and no internet

I know that over the next week I will not have internet connection, so the blogs for next week are being pre-written and scheduled to post. I will not be available to put up a notice on twitter or Facebook though, so if you're interested, here's the link.

Have a great week everyone!

Besties and Good Friends (Exposing Clancy's soft underbelly...lol)

I recently had coffee (or hot chocolate cuz I don't drink coffee) with a newish friend. He's been suffering through some mental and physical health issues and I could relate having recently been depressed and going through a lot of physical stuff with my ever-deteriorating body. So there we were chatting away for a few hours and at one point he said he didn't have any friends. That struck me as so sad. When I said I was his friend anyone really only needs one good one...he teared up. It was a really profound moment for me.

I'm very fortunate in that I have a lot of friends. Long time friends (20+ years) and some from my youth that I'm still in contact with. I have a circle of five who I know would drop everything to help me in any way they could and another twenty or so that I could still pretty consistently ask for help if I needed. And these are not blood family, although I have five or six people there that I can count on as well. My besties, hardcore friends and even a lot of good friends are my chosen family and I know who I can depend on and for what. That is a huge blessing. And I do not take lightly.

I'm always saying that to have good friends, you have to be a good friend. I think I am a good friend and that is why I am so fortunate in my friendships. They know they can count on me as much as I can count on them and it's a loyalty that is sacred to me.

I was at an event yesterday that was chock full of my BDSM chosen family and it was a loving, supportive, mutually respectful group celebrating our peers and their accomplishments. It was hours of hugs and conversations and toasts and laughter and tears and just everything wonderful because we were together in celebration. I would wish this kind of love and support for everyone.

Last month I was with five of my writer friends for a weekend and that too was wonderful and supportive and fun and inspiring. So, yeah, I am a truly blessed individual when it comes to this.

So, as this very sweet and sad man was opening up to me, I felt very deeply the value of friendship and chosen family. Very deeply that he was now a part of that and I told him I was a hard friend to get rid of because I don't have to be in regular contact to maintain my friendships. That I could talk to them once a year, but when we did talk, it was as though we saw each other yesterday.

To all my friends, I love you and appreciate the role you play in my life.

Any of you who are also blessed with a friend or friends, don't forget to treasure them.

The Royals

The Royals is a new show on the E! Channel. It's about the royal family of England - King, Queen and kids - except it's a fictional family. I've been watching it since it started a month or so ago. I think the acting is good, the cast appealing and the setting gorgeous. I like it and will continue to watch

But (and it's a big BUT), every time I'm watching it, I find myself questioning if any of it is possible in real life. It's like the bastard child if 'Biography' married 'Girls/Guys Gone Wild'. Below are questions I find myself pondering while watching (if you haven't seen - Spoiler Alert).

Could the Prince (and next in line to the throne) just jet off for the weekend with only one bodyguard? Aren't royal itineraries pretty full and stringent? Could the princess really be a drugged up, drunk party-girl all the time? Would the royal children and cousins really be this self-destructive in their liberal use of drugs, alcohol and sex?

Could the queen (played by a gorgeous Elizabeth Hurley) really have a lover on the side and be fooling around with him in the palace without getting caught? Not to mention the freedom of their personal body guards to sleep with guardees (namely the queen and princess). Could the king really sneak out to go on walks through London without a body guard and no one recognizing him?

Could the king's brother really use sex and sexual intimidation to bribe/blackmail/bully men, women, servants and other nobles, etc...? He's like a modern day Marquis de Sade. And he has two daughters (who bear a vague resemblance to Prince Edwards daughters, Beatrice and Eugenie) except they are idiots (seriously... just dumb as a box of rocks) as well as drugged up like their cousins, the princess (and less so, the prince).

It's all just so tabloid, outlandish and self-loathing that it's hard to imagine the real royal family like this. Maybe I'm naive. I dunno. But I would hate to think of Prince William or Harry ever behaving this badly. But if I suspend my rational brain and just dive in  to it as a soap opera set in the palace, then it's interesting (not sure that's the right word). Maybe enjoyable in a very window-peeping, voyeuristic way. I'm interested in others' thought here.

I know it's the times, but still...

I like a lot of old movies. Silent, B&W, whatever. I just like a lot of the older films. Despite that, there are things that bug me. I get that it's a reflection of the times that either they were made or the period the film is set in. I think I had a mini rant about this a while back when I was talking about the opera, Madame Butterfly. Even knowing that, intellectually, there are things that bug me emotionally.

Like.... movies where the men make decisions for the women because the women have no say so of their own. Grrrrr.  I was just watching an old 1950 musical, Rose Marie, with Howard Keel. Ann Blythe is living in the woods and getting along fine, but because her dad asked a friend Canadian Mountie to look after her, said Mountie (Keel) just goes and snatches her up and takes her back to town to be taken care of. He doesn't care that she doesn't want to go, he's a man and there ya go. Then when she acclimates to living with the Mounties, the boss Mountie arrives and says she can't stay, but he has a woman friend who will take her in and make her into a lady instead of the tomboy she is. Again, none of the manly men care what she wants, they just dictate her life for her. Grrrrr.

Or what about the times when people were publicly hung or flogged or tortured or whatever as punishment for some crime. I don't really have problems with that so much as the fact that it's attended by everyone including the kids. Really? Kids need to see this? I'm sure there's some really great reason like it's a learning experience so they don't go into crime because this is their future if they do. But really? Little kids need to watch public torture and executions?

All I can say is, I'm glad I don't live in either of those times. So, let's celebrate the progress we've made even if there is always more to make. That's all.

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

I never get tired of seeing the musical Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Never. I own the DVD and have probably watched it a hundred times, so you'd think when I come across it on TV that I wouldn't succumb, but you'd be wrong. Here I am watching it again and happy to do so.

I love me some musicals, loads of them. But really, this may be my all time favorite (or at least tied with the 1945 version of State Fair).

Warning: Spoiler alert!

When Millie turns all the rough necks into catch-worthy gents... love it! When they're all at the barn raising and it erupts into a dance-fight between the brothers and the town men for the girls affections... love it!  When the brothers are mourning not having the girls with them and sing about being 'lonely hound dogs' and use saws and axes as part of the instrumentation for the song... love, love, love it!!! When the dads show up to rescue the girls and hear Millie's baby crying and they ask the girls whose it is so they can force that couple to marry and every single girls claims it so all of them get to marry all the brothers... love it!  The music, the cast, the dancing, the colors, just everything about this movie brings me joy.

If you like musicals and haven't seen it, you're missing out (in my humble opinion).

Allergies Blow: A Spring Rant!

So, the spring is supposed to be this great time of rebirth and newness. Beauty and sunshine after a long winter. It is all those things, BUT it also blows. Blows bad!!

Every spring all the nice things of spring are shrouded in a misery that lasts six to eight weeks called my spring allergies. Itchy eyes, itchy tongue, itchy ears and I can't breath through my nose. Eating and drinking take on a whole new challenge when I'm trying to breath and eat, breath and drink, breath period through my mouth which then is perpetually dried out as an extra fun bonus. So, Spring sucks and sucks bad. I'm burning through a box of Kleenex a day. Who knew one head could produce this much crap to blow out?!

What was a cold then became a cold and allergy and is now just my allergy. Grrrrrrr. So, even though I'm over the cold, I feel like crap and will probably continue to do so until some time toward the end of May. Joy.

And the worst part? The absolute worst part... is I'm taking a cocktail of medicine to keep it down to the thoroughly obnoxious state it is currently in now. Were it not, I'd be loads worse (hard to imagine). So yay for Spring. Not!

Rant over. We'll return with our previously scheduled program on Wednesday. :)

Still sick.... grrrrr

Still sick and now I'm not sure how much is cold/flu and how much is my annual spring allergies. Seeing the doctor today. Fingers crossed!

A final (maybe) update on DWTS

So, Monday nights DWTS show had a lot of the men taking off their shirts (thank you whoever got that to happen!). So, Robert Herjavec is a hottie! It's so official. He is just charming in every cell. And sexy. Can we say - holy-moly sexy!! The smile, the eyes, the hair, the body... oh yeah, the body (Don't judge. I am that shallow.) And of course the smarts and the charm. Very sexy indeed.

Still feeling a little sick still from my cold - so  a short post. Just so you know I'm not dead yet. :)

I'm sick, but I'll be back

So, I have a cold and I have no energy.  I'll be back with a new post as soon as I feel better. Stay tuned. :)

The Potato Chip Moratorium

Recently, I have been binging on potato chips and dip (cheese dip, onion dip, no dip). Binging is a nice word for what I've been doing. Anywho, I finished off some last week and just felt sick. Not sick, like I'm a bad person, but sick like - wow, I am eating way to much of this. It needs to stop.

So, I wrote it in  my journal to my counselor. And I told my guy. Now, I'm telling ya'll. This way I know I'm accountable. No more chips until after May 1. No exceptions. I'm determined to break the cycle. It's on my calendar - that's how serious I am.

Six weeks, no chips.

Then last night, I had a dream I was eating potato chips and I felt really bad about it. Weird, right? I feel like the chips have a little too much influence if I'm dreaming about them. Just made me more determined. "Take that chips! Your Machiavelli plan back-fired."

My gummy bear addiction may need to be addressed next, but moderation in all things - even moratoriums. I can hear my gummy bears crying, "That's crazy talk, Clancy! Come back from the ledge." It's okay gummy bears, I'm not doing anything drastic. Yet. (Maybe never  - my heart is kind of on board with the gummy bears. Just saying.)

Anyone else having food issues?

More DWTS update and Into the Woods

So, last night I watched the second night of Dancing with the Stars and wow, wow, wow. I am totally crushing on Robert Herjavec, Michael Sam and Noah Galloway. And maybe a little on Riker Lynch. AND I was uber - UBER - disappointed that RedFoo is gone. I like him so much and wanted to see him continue. So, that sucked. Everyone was dancing great, btw.

But, and this is a big but, I felt real bad for Charlotte McKinney. I do not understand why people have to be so damn cruel - like others don't have feelings. She received loads of cyber-bullying hate-crap on various social media sites which I think is just shit. She's a sweet girl who can not help that she has the body she has and does not deserve that kind of abuse. It takes so little to be nice, so why do people think that it's ok to act like that, to treat others like that? I just don't get it. I know I'm preaching to the choir, cuz I'm certain that my peeps are not like that at all. :)

Now, on to Into the Woods. It was released yesterday and I couldn't wait to rush out and buy it. And then I was hard pressed to not watch it that afternoon and instead wait till my guy got home to watch with him, but somehow I had that restraint (applause please). And then I watched it and OMG!!! So good. So very, very good.

No spoilers, so don't fret if you haven't seen it yet.

First off, it actually made me cry at one point toward the end (it involves Emily Blunt) - you'll know the scene when you see it. I hate crying, but any movie that can sneak up on me and get me to tears is pretty damn good. Just saying. I'm not that kind of gooey. My nearest and dearest can attest to that.

Second, Chris Pine as Prince Charming? Oh thank you movie gods that made that match in heaven. He is so totally delicious, it's criminal. Best line ever, "I was raised to be charming, not sincere." Seriously, best line ever! A vapid prince - I love it.

My only regret is that there isn't more of Johnny Depp as the Wolf.

The music, the cast (incredible cast - too many to name), the story, the incredible weaving together of classic story tales. It was all so amazing. I will be watching this several more times in the very near future. Several more times. Very, very near future. Just saying.

An update on DWTS

Now that the season premier has happened and I've 'met' the stars, I'll update my thoughts.

Surprise standout was the millionaire Shark Tank guy, Robert Herjavek!  What a cutie - he was charming, fun, entertaining and a good dancer. Rooting for him to go far... maybe Kym can get that car.

Another surprise was Riker Lynch. Allison described him as 'rough around the edges' and that is for sure. But he's also a good dancer and charming in his own youthful way.

Noah Galloway was amazeballs! Strong (mentally and physically), wicked cute, and just wow - inspirational. Rooting for him in a big way.

Patti LaBelle was grace personified in both her personality and her dancing.

Nastia Luikin was as expected. She'll be good. Not sure if she's someone I want to root for yet though. No warm fuzzies for her, yet - except that she's with Derek.

Charlotte McKinney - I hope her dancing improves because she seems like a real sweetheart.

RedFoo - Love him!  He is infectious with personality and will enjoy watching him for a long while.

Michael Sam was another really good dancer. I'm thrilled he's on the show and I'll be watching for him come September too!  Can we say a big hell yeah for equality for all, please and thank you!!

Willow Shields surprised me. She was very mature for her age and a pretty good dancer to boot. So, go Willow.

Rumer Willis was a stellar dancer and I think she'll go a long ways (she may be this season's Alfonso Ribeiro). It was way cool seeing her mom, dad and siblings in the audience.

Suzanne Somers was another that is so sweet I hope her dancing improves so she can stay a while. And holy moly does she look good. Sixty-eight?  I think sexy-eight is more like it.

Chris Soules was a charmer. I don't watch the Bachelor/ette shows so I didn't know him from Adam, but he seems like a nice guy. And his dancing was pretty good. I'm enjoying his presence.

That's all of them...So far, no one is irritating me and that always makes for a nicer season. My favs at the moment for the finale are Robert Herjavec, Michael Sam and Rumer Willis. We'll see how my predictions do.

The Odd Couple & The Last Man on Earth

The Last Man on Earth. I'm not sure about this one.

I think Will Forte is perfect for the last man on earth cuz he has enough endearingness to him personally to make me like him despite some unattractive traits he has. On one hand, I'm with him - stop signs and parking spaces mean nothing if you're the only vehicle around. On the other hand - if you don't take the time (and all you have is time) to take care of yourself on a basic level, like personal grooming and some modicum of cleanliness to your living space, then yes, you will become despondent and depressed. So, there are definitely things I like and don't like about Phil as a character.

Let's talk about Carol. Carol is the last woman on earth and though Kristen Schaal is good in the role, she is also playing a bad stereotype of a hen-pecking, anal-retentive, control freak of a wife-type. Not flattering, but not the actresses fault (this would be on the writers). I agree a woman would probably bother to stay more clean, personally and with her surroundings, than Phil is managing. And yes, it is kind of funny that she chooses to be a grammar-cop, but that she feels the need to 'fix' Phil and act as though she is in charge and the last word in what is right or wrong is less funny and more bad stereo-typing. It just sort of hit a wrong note with me.

I'll probably give it couple more episodes before I decide yay or nay.

Now, The Odd Couple I really liked, Mathew Perry is a perfect sports slob Oscar Madison and Thomas Lennon could not be more perfect as the over-the-top annoying clean freak, Felix Unger. I always loved this show - the old TV show with Jack Klugman and Tony Randall, and the movies with Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon. It's just a brilliant concept that Neil Simon gave us in his original play that spurred on these renditions.

Matthew Perry has played both sides of this if you think back to the neurotic Chandler Bing from Friends. I like him as a thoughtless, shallow slob hiding his heart of gold. And Thomas Lennon... OMG... he is priceless as Felix. So funny and sweet and vulnerable and irritating and ... well you get the idea. Perfect casting.

The supporting cast with Dave Foley, Wendell Pierce, Yvette Nicole Brown, Leslie Bibb, and Lindsay Sloane is a perfect blend of funny.

Anyway - I think this is a good modern version of a timeless story and it will only get better as everyone settles into their groove.

CSI: Cyber

Next up, CSI: Cyber. I've had this one on my radar for months and months. It was announced with the CBS's Fall line-up (I think) and then we had to wait forever for it to start. But I'm glad it's arrived finally. It was worth the wait.

I realize that none of the CSI, NCIS, or alphabet soup shows are factual in the time and attention they give cases, but I love them anyway. Let's just get that out of the way. They entertain me and I love the science of what they are doing.

This newest installment to the CSI franchise is about cyber crimes, so anything that involves electronics, basically. Not only do we get cool crimes and awesome science, we get hackers! Love, L-O-V-E, love me some geeky hackers (think Hackers, War Games, Live Free or Die Hard, Sneakers, or TRON just to name a few... there are so many. Just gave myself  some geeky warm fuzzies thinking about them all.). So, yeah.... , we have hackers and crime solving goodness all rolled up in one.

Patricia Arquette. Under-rated and under-appreciated to my mind. She did just win the Best Supporting Actress Oscar, which is awesome,but I'm thrilled I'm going to see her more regularly. Can I just say, I love her teeth and mouth. I'm not sure what it is about them, but it's sexy. And her eyes. Mesmerizing. And she's great. She really is. She's got a crazy awesome talented family and she is truly a fine actress. In this show, she leads a hacker team who save the day. I love that. And that's how Garcia came to work for the BAU in Criminal Minds. It's just a great concept.

Though I may not know loads about techy stuff, I love watching people who do.

The supporting cast is also great. They have Peter MacNicol, James Van Der Beek, and some people were going to get to know well - Charley Koontz, Hayley Kioko and Shad Moss.

Enjoying the ride. Thank you, CBS.

Battle Creek

This is going to be a TV week. Four new shows.

First up, Battle Creek. I've been jazzed to watch Battle Creek for a couple months. CBS has been pimping it for quite a while and I'm glad cuz maybe that will mean they'll keep it around for a while. Why, you ask? Let me tell you. :)

The cast. Josh Duhamel has been around for a while now and what's not to love. He's tall and handsome and a good actor and yummy and he kicked ass all over the Decepticons in the Transformer movies and he was completely endearing as a RomCom lead in Life as We Know It. All around good stuff.

And then there's Dean Winters. Who else completely loved - LOVED - him as Mayhem in the Allstate commercials? Brilliant! He's got a long list of roles, more in TV than movies, but still, I'm thrilled the man is finally getting some well-deserved focus as a lead (besides Mayhem) and not just as one in an ensemble cast or in secondary and tertiary roles. He's yummy too... actually even more yummy than the delicious Josh Duhamel, but I like rougher than prettier. Just saying. And there is a character in the show, Holly (played by Aubrey Dollar), who agrees with me.

Also, I love it when we get unconventional settings. Anyone can do New York or Los Angeles, but Battle Creek, Michigan? Yes! That's what I'm talking about.

It's a cop-buddy show. Love cop shows and buddy journeys. These two have a grudging respect for each other despite the vast differences between their styles. It's almost Oscar and Felix with badges.

The supporting cast has Kal Penn, Grapevine and Liza Lapira and more.... I like the entire cast.

Anywho, I really like the show and am looking forward to more.

Austin Powers and Mike Myers

I think Mike Myers is all kinds of genius. I do. Wayne Cambell. Shrek. His stints on SNL. His Canadian sports commentator in Mystery, Alaska.  Playing his character's father in So I Married An Ax Murderer. And of course, Austin Powers. Definitely Austin Powers.  

After seeing Kingsmen: The Secret Service which I felt was a nice blend of Austin Powers and James Bond, I had to get me an Austin fix. I'm sad to announce that my significant other had not seen any Austin Powers, but he enjoyed it immensely. I'm still working on his film and television education. He had many deprived years for which I am trying to compensate.

Anywho, we came straight home from the Kingsmen and watched the first Austin Power's movie., Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery. And though I'm not such a fan of the second film, Goldmember, we did get Mini-Me and Nigel Powers out of it, so that's a plus. On the flip side, I'm not a big fan of Beyonce and Fat Bastard was kind of gross.

Standouts:
- Mimi Rogers is so pretty. I love her mouth. I dunno what else to say about that.
- The naked moments with strategic prop placement. So funny and well done.
- Scott Evil. Could Seth Green be any cuter than as Scott Evil? I don't think so. In the first movie, when he and Dr. Evil are in father/son counseling? OMG, fuuny!
- The incredible casts across all three films.
- Hooray for Dr.Evil and Mini Me. Cuz you cannot get enough Dr. Evil. Truly. He cracks me up all the time and then to have Verne Troyer's mini version. Love it!
- The Fembots with their nipple guns.... LMAO.
- That Austin is able to short circuit the fembots with his sex appeal... LMFAO.

Big Hero 6

Hopefully the comic book purists won't burn me in effigy for this, but I scanned some background on the Marvel comic series of Big Hero 6 and I'm glad they morphed it into the animated feature film it became (and won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature). And maybe I'm totally out in left field (not unheard of at all) and the movie did the comic books credit - I really have no clue.

What I do know is that I thought the movie was wicked cute and Baymax is the sweetest darn robot out there. Although in a quick tangent, Chappie the robot in the movie Chappie may come close -but I may not be able to see that one for a while because it looks like a serious tear jerker. And movies that take creatures out of their element or create something unique and then crucify said unique thing for being what it is (King Kong, the Jurassic Park dinosaur they bring to Los Angeles, Johnny five in Short Circuit, Ceasar in Rise of the Planet of the Apes for a few). It just puts my panties in a real twist we when punish others for our own stupidity. Tangent (rant) over.

So Baymax.... seriously.... the voice, the behaviors, the care. So. Freaking. Cute!

The whole story was a good one. Heartfelt, had a message, features regular people becoming super heroes. Just all around cute and better than I had expected. I think this one is under-rated and under-appreciated. So, unless you're like my mom who finds anything animated anathema, do yourself a favor and give this one  watch.

Dancing with the Stars

The new season of Dancing with the Stars starts in a week on March 16th. Woohoo!!

In anticipation, I am re-watching the last season. See, I save all the shows on my DVR a season at a time and then re-watch before the new season starts and delete them then. But, I always have at least some DWTS on my DVR so I never have to be without. Smart, huh? When I'm re-watching, I don't watch the whole show, since I've seen it all, I just re-watch the dances.

Tangent - I really wish they would just sell the seasons on disc so I could buy them all. But no. For whatever reason that I am not privy to, DWTS and So You Think You Can Dance, do not put the shows on DVD or Blue-ray or whatever. This makes me exceptionally sad as there are so many dances I could just watch over and over. Anywho, the point is I save a season and watch the dances again just before the next season starts which is where I am at now.

The pros. Always happy when Derek is dancing. He's my hands down favorite and I think he is just the most creative choreographer (although Mark Ballas's Mario Brother's freestyle was incredible). Other pro's I like a lot that will be dancing this season  include... well,  all of them except I'm still trying to warm up to Allison and Keo.

The Stars (or at least the ones I have feelings about).
Noah Calloway (soldier). Love soldiers, what they represent, the service they've done for our country - just everything. And JR Martinez (soldier) won when he was on and Noah is dealing with an amputee challenge, but Amy Purdy showed just how little that slowed her down cuz she came in 2nd for her season.

Patti LaBelle (singer) - I suspect she will be gracious and lovely to watch as her spirit comes across that way.

Nastia Luikin (gymnast) - the last time a gymnast, Shawn Johnson, partnered with Derek Hough, they won. So, she has some potential from the starting gate.

RedFoo - I am super jazzed to watch him. He's guest judged before and I love LMFAO. I think Emma Slater should have a good time with him.

Michael Sam (NFL player) and first openly gay NFL player. So yay for him. Coming out for anyone is hard enough and when it's in the public eye and in a sport like football - uber not easy. So, for courage and living authentic, I'll be rooting for this guy!

Willow Shields (actress) - I like the Hunger Game movies as much as the next person, but I always found Prim, Katniss's little sister, a bit annoying, but that is not Willow's fault. So, I'm keeping an open mind.

Suzanne Somers (actress) - another one like Patti LaBelle for me.

Rumer Willis (actress) - We shall see. I liked her in The House Bunny, so keeping an open mind.

Overall, just excited for a new season of cool ass dancing.

Steve Buscemi

Okay, Steve Buscemi has a really, really, really long list of acting credits. Loads more than I knew. But I sometimes think he is one of those sadly underrated actors who shuffles into the background and we may not remember but we always notice. He's a favorite of mine and now I have a really long list of things to try and see just for their Buscemi-ness.

His look is certainly so distinctive that you can't fail to recognize him when you see him. The eyes. the teeth. The hairline. The looks.... all singular. He can be so dry, so sarcastic, so funny, so creepy, so irreverent, so... you name it. He's just crazy talented.

Highlights for me (feel free to add your own in the comments):
Tangent - listing these movies makes me want to go watch them all over again! Not enough hours in the day for my addictions... sigh.

Reservoir Dogs - Great film, impressive cast, directed by Quentin Tarantino. Funny and dark and violent. And so easy to love. This is a classic must see film. Just saying.

Fargo - More dark comedy. He's just a natural fit. His manic competent/incompetent thing works. There is so much right about the wrongness of this film. And it's another steller cast.

Con Air - For me, he was at his most creepy in this film. He's absolutely mesmerizing and unpredictable. Chilling! And surrounded by another great cast.

Armageddon - I recently talked about this one. But again, he's so funny as Rockhound.

Monsters, Inc - Even his voice is singular. Randall is a slippery suck up and who better to voice him than Buscemi. Seriously. And an all-star cast of voices. Are we seeing a trend?

The Incredible Burt Wonderstone - OMG, this one is just cheesy great fun. And another awesome cast. Buscemi, Steve Carell and Jim Carrey make magician-ing look good. Not Criss Angel good, More like a car wreck you can't take your eyes off - good. (Possibly a very bad metaphor - my apologies). But so good.

Final words, Steve Buscemi is great talent, a singular individual (which is redundant, I know but he is singular in his singularity - just go with it), and versatile. So very, very versatile. Now I have a ton of Buscemi-ness to catch up on.

"Kingsmen: The Secret Service"

Hello?! This was G-R-E-A-T!!!

This is what an old fashioned fun spy movie should be. It's somewhere between the silliness of Austin Powers and the seriousness of James Bond. Perfect balance of action, drama, comedy, cool gadgets and smart-dressed people.

Colin Firth is so good as a dashing action hero. Taron Egerton, who plays his protege, was terrific too. My friend and I pondered if he wouldn't have been a better Christian Grey than the one they cast. I dunno. Anyway, you've also got Michael Caine, Mark Strong and Jack Davenport. I couldn't figure out who the Professor was at the beginning, but he looked so familiar.... It was Mark Hamilton! Cool!

And can I just say that Samuel L Jackson and Sofia Boutella were the greatest villain and henchman team ever.  Seriously... ever. Jackson in his color coordinated ball cap and clothes and the lisp. Loved the lisp. And he can't stand blood. So freaking funny. And Boutella as his number one with her slice and dice prosthetic legs. OMG. Loved it all.

Some SPOILERS BELOW....

When Firth says, "Manners Maketh Man" and then kicks ass all over a group of punks. YES!! And when Egerton does the same at the end. Oh, hell yes! Best movie quote in quite a while.

And when the princess of Sweden (I think it was Sweden) says Egerton can have sex with in the asshole if he saves the world, I just about snorted up soda thru my nose.

Just see it. I'm gonna see it again and then buy it and then see it a few more times. Count on it.

American Sniper

Last week, the man who killed Chris Kyle and his friend Chad Littlefield was convicted of murder.  And though I’m glad there is some kind of justice for these two families, I want to talk about the movie that brought Chris Kyle’s life to the front of our collective minds. I haven’t read the book and I haven’t read a lot of the news stuff either, but I did see the movie. I saw his widow at the Oscars talking about the movie too.

It is not an easy thing to take another’s life so it is a rare few who are courageous enough to bear that burden for the sake of protecting our own. Chris Kyle seems to have been a rare man indeed.

Bradley Cooper played Chris Kyle brilliantly. I knew going in to the movie that I was likely to cry (and we know how I feel about that) but I wanted to see this story, this honor being paid to the real Chris Kyle, his story and his family. So, I sat transfixed watching a man do what he felt honor-bound to do despite his own mental well-being and the possible loss of his own life, and his wife and child. He was clear on what he felt he had to do and he did it unflinchingly over and over again.

The movie showed well how his struggles, his grace, his patriotism and his courage.

So, I made it thru the entire movie without a tear although it was a gut wrenching watch and then the end credits started to roll where they began showing the clips of the real Chris Kyle, his family, the people lining the streets to honor the motorcade to his funeral, the stadium full of people paying tribute to a real American Hero… I lost it. Then the tears flowed freely. And they were deserved. What a loss.

Here’s to Chris Kyle and his family!

My personal thoughts on the 50 Shades movie

So, some friends knew I was going to see this movie, and asked if I would give them my thoughts after. Here they are as I gave them to my friends. 

The positives:

- Dakota Johnson was believable as Anastasia. She was shy and innocent and vulnerable and confused (as she should have been with the lack of credible information given her).

- As far as I got into the book, the movie is better because I found the book so boring it was unreadable.I may have gotten as far as the coffee shop in the book. Could have been 20 pages or 80 I have no recollection except that it felt interminable. So I stopped. I have no idea from that point on how close the movie follows the book. Maybe somebody will tell me who has experienced both.

- I suppose the sexy, fun parts where she is enjoying what he's doing are fair enough. Yes, that is what BDSM can be - good, sexy fun times that include various other sensations (except she really doesn't 'get' what is happening to her, so for me she is still giving consent where she doesn't have enough knowledge to make an informed decision - see more points on this below).

- He does give her safewords.

The negatives:

- I didn't believe Jamie Dornan as Christian Grey at all. He had no power about him. Never smiling and being impatient with everyone does not a powerful person make. 

- I didn't feel the chemistry between Anna and Christian. 

- And he wasn't likable. Anna's roommate isn't likable either. Her mother blows off her graduation and isn't sympathetic either. So, it kind of makes me think Anna is a little too stupid to live. 

- A D/s (Dominant/submissive) relationship is based on an exchange of power and he gave her absolutely no knowledge of the joys of that from which to make an informed decision. Just bossing someone around does not a dominant make. And just letting someone boss you around does not a submissive make.

- He acted like a newbie playing Dom. He didn't bother to explain terminology, toys, tools, the energy exchange, nothing to her. He just said here, read my contract that says I get to do this and you have to do that and that's all you need to know. Bullshit. She had no reason to trust him and he gave her none at any point in the journey by actually taking care of her mentally - like explaining shit to her. You can't buy trust. And your only real currency is your reputation (aka trust). He might be a rich man in the vanilla world, but were he in any reputable BDSM community, he would be bankrupt.

- If he really wanted her to research BDSM and submission, he would have supplied her with some direction of good websites vs inaccurate ones and maybe given her some books to read by reputable authors. He wouldn't have just given her a computer and said Google submissive, so all she really got was a lot of pictures of women in restraints and so forth. 

- She acted like it was a game from beginning to end and he acted like it was all serious and business-like. If he was as smart as EL James wanted us to believe, then she would have made Christian slow down and explain why it wasn't a game so at least both characters were on the same page. 

- I found it incredibly cowardly that he told her about his youth when she was obviously asleep and couldn't hear it.

- I hate the fact that the kinky person here is also the emotionally distant, broken, abused person. That he learned BDSM when he was age 15 from an older lady pisses me off because it carries implication that people in this lifestyle are all either fucked up emotionally or pedophiles. We don't have one good example of someone in the lifestyle owning what they like as a positive example of a healthy person who simply enjoys giving or receiving intense stimulation. 

- In my experience, if you are going to punish your submissive for breaking a rule or bad behavior, you wouldn't use toys/tools to do it. The basic premise is that you don't create negative connotations and connections with things that are supposed to give pleasure.  Examples: My submissive does the dishes. If I punish him by making him do the dishes on command, then now he isn't making a positive connection with the dishes as a task he does as a service to me, he is seeing them as something bad. OR if he likes being flogged or whipped then if I punish him by flogging or whipping him, I'm taking away the joy of that. These should be rewards, not punishments. If I really want to punish him, then I'd give him some inane task like pushing a foam peanut around the edge of a coffee table with his nose or something equally inane and not fun. That's a punishment that isn't tainting the good stuff. SO, when Christian spanks her as a punishment, I thought well, that's stupid. If you want her to enjoy spanking, well you just fucked that up mister! His leaving, was more of a punishment. But he's now connected the spanking, his leaving and punishment together and that's how she's likely to remember those things in the future.

- And BDSM relationships are fun and loving and that he acted as though it isn't. We do what we do because it feels good to us. It brings us joy. That she doesn't ever get to touch him or sleep with him were just him being a fucked up individual, not indicative of him being into BDSM. He is completely right when he says he of fifty shades of fucked up. Thanks again, EL James, for putting out more stupid stereotypes that make my community and lifestyle look bad. 

- Any reputable top would not just wail on their bottom like he does with the belt towards the end. They would warm them up first, they would care that she isn't enjoying this. A heavy bottom might like that kind of thing, but why would you just beat on someone new like that when they really don't even understand enough to knowledgeably consent? 

- He never explains what she is consenting to emotionally, only physically. So, that's a great way to break your bottom. Good job, Christian. And thanks again, Ms James, for making us look like a lot of assholes.

Overall, the movie irritates me for the inaccuracies of the spirituality and connection that people can share doing what we do. It's like having enough knowledge and lingo to make it look good, but underneath, it's so wrong as to be dangerous.

In my humble opinion.

Flashback Friday: Armageddon

Flashback Friday…..Which may or may not be a regular thing. We’ll see.

I turned on the TV the other day and Armageddon was playing. Solidly more than half way thru  cuz they were already on the moon and starting to lose faith because the second team was lost and the first team was running out of supplies to accomplish the drilling task, but I still had to stop and watch it to the end. Cuz there are movies that are so much fun or so engrossing that you can’t not watch .

Bruce Willis, Ben Affleck, Billy Bob Thorton, Liv Tyler, Steve Buscemi, Will Patton, Owen Wilson, William Fichtner, Michael Clarke Duncan, Peter Stormare… wha??? Yes, this is a freaking stellar cast. And a fun, funny, action, adventure that partially takes place on an asteroid in space. What is NOT to love about that?

There’s the romance between Affleck and Tyler. The parental – child over-protectiveness/rebellion of Willis and Tyler. The crazy dysfunction of Buscemi who goes into debt partying because he’s certain they’re not coming back from this mission. The heartbreak of an MIA father who doesn’t know how to undo the lack of relationship his has with his little boy and ex-wife.  The poignancy of Willis and Affleck who have a father-son relationship but struggle to admit it. The patriotism of everyone because they’re trying to save the world from a big-ass asteroid even though they may die for their efforts.  The excitement of will they/won’t they succeed.

Good grief. There is so much to love about this movie. If you haven’t watched it in a while…. Grab some popcorn and your sweetie, curl up on the couch and enjoy a summer blockbuster. You’re welcome.

The Oscars

So, The Oscars were a couple days ago and I thought it was pretty darn good. No awards I thought were out of left field. No dresses that were crazy, crazy ugly, although there were some that I found unattractive or unflattering. No bad jokes, just good solid hosting from Neil Patrick Harris. No bizarre thank you messages, although some were non-thank youish in nature but still tasteful and worth hearing. So, all in all... a good Oscar night.

During the memorial part, there were so many names I'd either forgotten or didn't know we'd lost and so that was sad. As it always is.

I thought the tribute to The Sound of Music was terrific and Lady Gaga never looked prettier and she has a beautiful voice that may sometimes be overlooked when most of what we hear her sing is pop music. Not that I don't love pop music or think you can sing bad there - I don't. Just trying to say (very poorly) that she sang with beauty and grace and did Julie Andrews proud. And seriously, she looked great!

Glory which won Best Song so totally deserved it. It was the only song that got a standing ovation and rightfully so to my mind. I had goosebumps listening to it.

Kudos to Reese Witherspoon for her #askhermore campaign that brought light to the fact that actresses are more than their dresses and encouraged the press to ask them about more than who they were wearing.

Kudos to Patricia Arquette (Best Supporting Actress in Boyhood) who advocated for equal pay for women in her speech.

And finally loads of kudos to Graham Moore (Best Adapted Screenplay - The Imitation Game) who told how he had tried to commit suicide as a youth because he felt different and weird. He encouraged all who feel that way to "stay weird, stay different' because eventually they will find their place in the world like he did. Awesome!

And why the whole night happened - the movies. I thought there were so many great movies this year and they were all represented. I would have found it hard to choose between the movies and the amazing actors who starred in them and all the brains and talent that bring them to life in every other way. And that they were so amazing and so hard to choose between - I say good job, Academy, for making those tough calls.

The Imitation Game and my geeky fan-girl moment of the week

Totally geeky moment. Last week when I wrote about Backstrom, one of the stars (Kristoffer Polaha) favorited and retweeted my tweet which was wicked cool because he played John Galt in the 3^rd Atlas Shrugged movie. And as ya’ll know, Atlas Shrugged is my favorite book of all time. So, that was my geek fan moment of the week. And by the way – if you haven’t yet – really – go watch Backstrom. So good.

Now for today’s topic – The Imitation Game. I have no idea how accurate the movie is as far as giving credit to those due for creating the machine that allowed Britain to break the code of the German’s Enigma machine. No clue at all.

What I do know is how great the film was in my humble opinion. It was even better than that if you ask my guy because he’s British and all the stuff that was taking place in the film was reminiscent of his childhood. The film resonated with him on far more levels than it might for an American. But, I thought it was a really good movie. Benedict Cumberbatch was great (as always) and Keira Knightly did a very good job as well. Actually, it was pretty much a stellar cast from start to finish. I’d name all the actors, but it’s a fair list, so I’ll just suggest you see the film instead.  

It’s about a team of British smarty-pants trying to come up with a way to break the Enigma machine  codes so they can win the war. (And please try to imagine if they’d failed and WWII was lost. Actually, Amazon has one episode of an original series they may greenlight called The Man in the High Castle which is based on a Philip K Dick novel and is an alternate history imagining if the Allied powers had lost WWII. It’s disturbing.) So, anywho, the movie is about the trials, triumphs and relationships of this team as they struggle with the problem and even what direction they should invest their time. Very worth the watch.

And now we’re at the part where I have a SPOILER ALERT.

The thing that struck me most was how hard it must have been for this group of people to know all of Germany’s movements and have to make hard choices about which ones they could or could not stop without giving away the fact that they’d broken the code.

Think about that for a moment. Really. We’re at war and the opposing country thinks their coded messages are all secret-like, but we don’t want them to know we know, so we let them blow up a ship that will kill hundreds or thousands so that we can act as though we just got lucky when we stop them in another attack that will save thousands or more or just a really strategic location. So, daily we have to make the decision of who lives and who dies so that we can end a war sooner than later. Tough stuff.

I don’t know how I would live with that kind of burden and responsibility pressing down on me.  I think it would take incredibly strong people with a big picture view to handle that. Which makes me think of that Jack Nicholson scene in A Few Good Men where he shouts , “You can’t handle the truth!” Could the majority of us handle the truth of what is done in the name of our freedom? Something to think about.

The other thing that stayed with me was how horrible homosexuals were treated back then. How awful that we ever came up with chemical castration – just for being gay. Like slavery, sexism and racism (and more), I find the past a hard pill to swallow sometimes. Hard indeed to take how inhumane we can be to one other.  Cruel and sad.  Just saying.

My Hair and more Game of Thrones

So, I told you about my trip to Nashville. The humidity out there is crazy and kept putting this heinous wave into my hair, so then I got a bug up my butt about hating my current hairstyle, so I came home with that in my head and decided to get it cut.

My usual girl was scheduled for when I went in but then was sick so she wasn't in when I went in but I was hating my hair, so I let someone else cut it. I'm a dumbass.

First, I shouldn't have been hating my hair just cuz humidity was screwing with it. Also, I should have come back when my regular girl was healthy cuz now I'm in permanent hat wearing mode for a few months cuz the non-regular girl hosed it up - Bad (yes... Capital B Bad). It's already been several weeks and it still looks like shit. So, my poor man has to look at me looking like I stuck my finger in a light socket 24/7 and I have to try to figure out how to dress up while wearing a ballcap (I look dumb in any other hat styles - don't go there) at the hand-fasting I'm attending tomorrow. Sigh....

Fortunately, hair grows so I'm not completely crushed by this turn of events but I do have to wait for it to get long enough to let my regular gal fix it. I'm having a wicked bad hair day every day for way too long. Go ahead and laugh... it's ok. I'd be laughing it it were you. :)

And update (SPOILER ALERT on Game of Thrones Season 4):

I started watching season four the minute it arrived. Yes, yes..I'm totally gonna run out of episodes before April. I think I'll go back to Season one and start watching all the bonus feature stuff while I'm waiting. Anywho... I started watching season four and Yay! Joffrey dies a painful death in episode 2. He could have suffered more but at least he's gone.

I had other stuff here but now that I've finished the fourth season, I have to change even that.  The Hound and Arya are a great pair and I love all their scenes, so you can imagine how sad I was with the Hound's death. Arya is turning into a real badass.  Breanne and Jamie are another great pair so I'm glad he sends her off to protect Sansa but I'm sad I won't see them together any more.  But Breanne and Pod work well too. Jamie is definitely redeeming himself and I'm liking him a ton. But he really needs to get over his sister (what a bitch!).

And Bron/Tyrion and Shae/Tyrion are more pairs I like so much so wow was I disappointed in Shae by the end of the season and not feeling so sad at her tragic end or Tywin's. Although I am feeling really bad for Tyrion. But I think I can look forward to a Tyrion/Varys pair to like. And I can't blame Bron, and neither did Tyrion, with his change of events.

And Sansa and Baelish are shaping up to be a strange pair but I can't mourn that crazy-ass Lysa Arryn and I can only hope something happens to her creepy son. Robin.

So I'm sad about some stuff in season four, but overall there were some excellent moments when loads of shitty people got killed most gruesome and there was much cheering from my couch. I think my guy thinks I'm a little blood-thirsty. Could be....

Game of Thrones

So, I was watching Game of Thrones on disc thru Netflix last year and it was slow going and the continuity was a challenge at times but I was hooked none the less. Then, for Christmas that was the only thing on my list. That's it. All of Game of Thrones. 

Season Four should arrive in my mailbox any day now (it released yesterday on Feb 17) so I'm trying to pace myself. But, I'm working my way thru them a tad too fast I'm thinking cuz I'm going to run out of episodes in March and the new season doesn't start until mid April, I think. Did I mention that I just added HBO to my DirecTV for the sole reason of being able to watch Season Five as it rolls out?

I think I may have a bit of addiction going on here. Not that I have a problem with that since I am a self-confessed junkie for TV and movies, but others in my household may be raising their eyebrows at me. Other others are right there with me!

I'm catching so much more this time around. There were whole scenes and episodes I have no memory of at all. This show is so well done that I think I'll catch something new every time I watch it. But, that could be me rationalizing why to watch it more than a few times. I dunno.

Spoiler Alert! There are some comments below that if you aren't caught up, may give you more than you want to know at this point. Beware...

I haven't even seen Season Four - at all.  I can't wait!  I know Joffrey dies. Looking forward to that. I knew about the Red Wedding before I watched Season Three and it didn't slow me down one iota when it actually happened. Anywho. I only learned Joffrey was dead because I was at the SLC Comic Fan Xperience and saw Lena Headey (Cersei) and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jaime), the infamous, incestuous Lannister twins, and there was a question about them having sex right after Joffrey dies (and in the same room with his body?). Anyway... I learned Joffrey dies and I'm good with that. He's an evil little shit. This is why incest is good for no one.

Can I just say how very, very pretty Nikolaj Coster-Waldau is! I mean - wow. And Lena Headey is so pretty and nothing like Cersei. I can imagine it's fun to play someone so mean and calculating though. She said she's a fan of the show and watches it as it's playing so when she gets a script, she first checks to see if she gets killed off and then only reads her parts so she can enjoy seeing the plot unfold with the audience. I thought that was cool.

Now - I'm going to say something that may rile a few people, but stay with me and I'll explain. I have not read the books. I'm not sure I will ever read the books. Calm down, purists. I  love the show so much and I know they are different beasts and diverging some (or more and more) as time goes on. The books' fans may have issues when the show changes things and I'm thinking I may have issues with the books since I'm entrenched in the show. Also, I think I'd rather read the books (if I read them) when I can read them all back to back. I would get frustrated waiting while George R.R. Martin finishes writing the series.

Okay... favorite characters and villains:

The Hound - he's got a great mix of complexity that has good and bad layers. Overall I think he is a great anti-hero, cuz his goodness comes out in very un-heroic ways at times.

Tyrion Lannister - Not just because I think Peter Dinklage is the bomb (and a sexy one at that), but because Tyrion is smart (nothing is sexier than smart) and he's another layered good anti-hero and he's funny too. Like every time he smacks Joffrey down and puts him in his place, I laugh myself silly. He's got heart and depth. And a perfect dose of irreverence.

Brienne of Tarth - What's not to love about a 6'3" Amazonian warrior who is tough as nails and loyal to a fault. Seriously, she is awesome. So awesome in fact that she wins over her prisoner, Jaime, and they form a wary sort of friendship.

Arya Stark - I would have been her as a kid. She's smart, tough, skilled, loyal and honest. She's just all out there and confused by the politics and maneuvering of everyone else. I get her. I like her. I hope her and Gendry hook up. Just saying. ( I like Gendry a lot too.)

Daenerys Targaryen - She's gonna get the gold ring eventually - that's my prognosis. And worthy of it too. Like Jorah says, she's tough and smart but also soft and caring about her people. She'll win the Iron Throne because she's the only one of all the wanna-be kings/queens that would really do the job credit. And she has dragons. Harder to lose with dragons. And wasn't her brother just a weasel-dick? I was so happy when Khal Drogo poured gold on his petulant, dumbass head.

Khal Drogo - I wanted to cry when Khal Drogo died. Not only only was he just the yummiest, sexiest guy on the show but he adored Daenerys and any guy that refers to his lady as 'The Moon of his life' is worth mooning over (haha ... see what I did there... with moon and mooning...lol). And he gets bonus points and gold stars for killing her brother. I laughed out loud when he gave him a gold crown. Really I did.

Lord Varys - He's another one of these great complicated good/bad guys. Not too much of either the good or the bad and totally self-serving (aren't we all, really?) but I do believe him when he says he is on the side of the realm.

I love hating Cersei. I just hate Joffrey. I like Jaime and think he's improved a lot since hanging with Brienne. Sansa is winning me over slowly. Tywin is strong and I respect him. Theon Greyjoy is dickless little crud and I don't feel bad about anything that happens to him. Sam is a cutie-pie. Shae is feisty and a good match for Tyrion.

There's a host of other characters that weren't around long enough for me, but there you are. Anyone ya'll love or love to hate?

Backstrom

Backstrom is a new TV show starring Rainn Wilson. I love this!!!

It's based on a character from a series of books in Sweden by author, Leif GW Persson.  Since I haven't read these books, I will address the Americanized television show that I am crazy about (but that inspires me to find said books and read immediately).

We're only three episodes in but I think Everett Backstrom is a great character, He's an equal opportunity-insulter of everyone. He is overweight, drinks too much, sleeps too little, is crass, offensive, slovenly, and crude. Basically your run-of-the-mill genius jackass who happens to also be a cop... and a really good one at that. He's quirky and Rainn Wilson is so perfect for the role I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't read one of the books and say, "I want to play him!" And then go out and make that happen.

All of the side characters are great too but some standouts for me are his gay roommate who 'gets' Backstrom more than anyone else and sometimes facilitates between Backstrom and the world at large. And his Indian doctor, Dr. Deb, who is a grounding force in Backstrom's life. By being able to pass or not pass Backstrom's medical clearance, Dr Deb has leverage to force Backstrom into working towards being healthier than not. He prescribes that Backstrom get a friend or journal every lie he tells. It's so cool. Totally makes me laugh.

And Backstrom says and does the funniest shit. I find myself just laughing out loud throughout the show. I will pray to whatever TV gods I need to in order to keep this show going.  If irreverent dark humor is your thing, join me in loving this show.

The Hobbit Trilogy

So, The Hobbit. Some more - maybe. I can't remember if I discussed my feelings on The Hobbit parts 1 or 2 so I'll discuss all three now that I've seen them all.

The first one was a train wreck in my opinion. I don't care that there was a fuck-ton of singing in the book. The singing in the movie should have been cut to maybe two snippets (really short snippets)  - like after dinner in Bag End and maybe when they're out camping on their travels. That's it. Two tiny snippets that show their love of music and no more. The singing that they put in the first movie was ridiculous and made the entire film difficult to watch. I really can't view it without fast-forwarding thru all that nonsense. And let's not get me started on the Goblins and that painful half hour of film-making. (It's not a half hour? Really? It felt like an eternity!) It isn't as though they didn't take some license to veer from the written word of Tolkien (one word - Tauriel), so they really could have forgone the painful singing moments. Really. Really, really.

In parts one and two, I'd like to say how much Thorin is an asshat (King Asshat - if you will) and how little the dwarves deserve all the many, many, many, many, many times their asses are saved miraculously by Gandalf and/or Bilbo. Seriously. How many deus ex machina plot devices are we to be subjected to? (Most people only get one, that's it, one miracle-hand-of-god type saving of the plot.) Yes, yes. J.R.R. Tolkien is a genius, yada, yada, yada. Even genius falls down once in a while (or too many times to count) is all I'm saying. And by any fair and just measure, the dwarves would have failed and died en route to the Lonely Mountain. And Smaug would have continued his long-ass dragon nap and Laketown would have continued under the idiotic reign of the Master. And... well you get the idea.

I still liked part two well enough. And part three was even better. The best of the three, in my humble opinion. Thorin eventually redeems himself from the asshattery he wore through the majority of the trilogy. Smaug does what dragons do. Bilbo is the true hero of the day - as is fitting since the title isn't The Dwarves. Costumes and setting and music (not singing) are all excellent as one would expect. Martin Freeman is so good as Bilbo and we already knew how genius Ian McKellan is as Gandalf.

Other notables:
Lee Pace as Thranduil - he's so cold and sexy at the same time. Bad dad, dubious ruler, but yummy yummy elf. Not at all like the wackadoodle he plays in Guardians of the Galaxy.

Aidin Turner as Kili - a dwarf in love with an elf and so hotsy-totsy himself, he gets the elf to love him back. Kili is a heart-throb despite his diminutive size. And Aiden Turner? Well, sign me up! Where I can get more of that? Don't think for one moment that I'm not above binge-watching anything I can find him in on Netflicks. I'm not. I will.

Smaug and Benedict Cumberbatch. I think that says it all. Words aren't needed here are they?

Evangeline Lilly  as Tauriel - Okay - I'm not a purist. I like her addition as a character. I like that she falls for Kili (who wouldn't) and that she's a fighter and tough and loyal and willing to be banished for doing what she knows is right. She's a great character.

Stephen Fry as the Master - so yucky in all the best ways. :)
Orlando Bloom as Legolas - he's still got it but it's hard to notice next to Thranduil and Kili.
Hugo Weaving as Elrond... or anything... yes, please. I have a mad, mad crush on Hugo Weaving.
Manu Bennett (Azog, the lead Orc) - how, HOW? How do they make someone this handsome look that ugly? Congrats to Makeup and costuming.
Luke Evans (Bard) - I believe him. I believe he could save the day and lead that group. Good actor, good guy, good character.
Billy Connelly (Dain) - No way to hide that very singular, very awesome voice.

So, in conclusion, I have to fast forward thru the stupid parts of part one or skip it altogether. Two is mostly good, if you ignore all the times that an eleventh hour miracle saves the dwarves. Smaug is just cool as dragons go. And part three is the best of them and makes up for all the foolishness of the first. Way to end a series. I wish they had just made two films, cut out all the useless crap, tightened up the plot line and not tried to stretch it out so much. But there you are.