Concerning Hobbits

My love of The Lord of The Rings is well known in these parts, but really my love goes beyond that trilogy to all things set in Tolkien's Middle Earth.  I may have mentioned this before, but I cried a ridiculous amount when I first finished reading Return of The King, but that is nothing compared to how much I cried when I finished read the appendices to that book – it was like a close family member had died, and I couldn't be consoled.  After that, I only wanted more and so I braved The Silmarillion.

I mention this because sometimes I feel like I'm not the right person to recommend things to people.  I don't like things; I FUCKING LOVE THINGS. For example, I recommend show "Elementary" to some people, but as I'm already a huge fan of anything Sherlock Holmes, plus a sucker for procedural dramas, and I love both Lucy Liu and Jonny Lee Miller, was there any way I wasn't going to at least like it?  And since I am the perfect audience, I'm not sure if other people will enjoy it like I do.  It's much the same with The Hobbit. I love the universe so much, it would have been very hard to make something that I didn't enjoy.  And I have always trusted Peter Jackson's decisions with these adaptations, so please keep that in mind when reading...

As anyone who has read both The Hobbit and The Lord of The Rings knows, much of what happens "off screen" in The Hobbit is retconed during the "The Counsel of Elrond" chapter (which is like a million pages long in Fellowship) and in the appendices of The Lord of The Rings – Ganalf explains where he was for a quarter of the book, Thorin's back story and name are explained, nameless characters and places get proper names, etc.  So, that's what Peter Jackson has done – he's taking the information we find out later and filled in the blanks.  And if anyone was wondering, like I was when I first heard, how this could be 3 movies, well there's your answer.

A final thought before I cut for spoilers:  I initially wanted to see The Hobbit in standard, old school 2D.  Fiancé was skeptical of the HFR, I don't like 3D, and last time we saw a 3D IMAX film (Promethus), I had to run out of the theater violently ill with a migraine.  However, we accidentally bought tickets to the 3D IMAX version (or "IMAX" since it wasn't on a larger screen).  Unlike other 3D movies I've seen, I did not get sick, or even get a headache.  I felt immersed, not hit over the head with in-your-face gags.  Most reviews I've read so far are complaining about the frame rate, NOT the film itself.  And that's a bummer because I think those things should be looked at independently...

Alright, now on to the spoilery review, in list format because it really is just a jumble of thoughts...

Awesome August : Day 21

Have you ever had one of those dreams that is so realistic and awful that even then you wake up, you feel weird for the rest of the morning?  Especially if that dream involves someone you love and someone you have to interact with.  That was me today... So, to counteract the yucky feeling, I ended up doing things that I love.

The Queen and I went to a morning showing of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2 since she hadn't seen it yet.  The theater was surprisingly packed for a Sunday morning nearly over 2 months after the release.  And since I hadn't seen it since the midnight premier (which was fun but very loud), I was able to pick up lines of dialogue that I missed the first time (since we were all laughing or cheering or crying), like this one:

I've always loved the way the films have portrayed Seamus.  I thought that he was kinda shafted after about book 5 and he was always a fun character.  This scene just proves it.  But I digress...

Then I ended the night by seeing Cowboys & Aliens with Boyfriend and his dad.  I feel like that whole movie is the set up for a joke like, "James Bond and Han Solo walk into a saloon..."  But I actually enjoyed it way more than I thought I would.  I should probably mention that leading up to the film's release, every time I saw the trailer in a theater I looked around to make sure I wasn't hallucinating and that the film really existed.

All in all the movies and the company cured me of my bad dreams. :)

Awesome August : Day 6

Today I went to see Captain America with my Dad, my Stepmom, Bear, and Boyfriend.  It's crazy, but I swear I haven't been to the cinema with my Dad since we saw Blues Brothers 2000!  My Dad is always amusing when we are out and about: today, when getting the movie tickets, he told the guy he needed tickets for "four adults that act like children."

I really enjoyed Captain America.  I loved the aesthetic of the film – it was visually beautiful and it wasn't too campy or overly patriotic. And I loved the references to all of the other films leading up to The Avengers (especially the quick glimpse of my new crush, Loki, after the credits).

If the film had a fault, however, it was not enough Stanley Tucci.  Of course, I generally think that one cannot have too much Stanley Tucci... And this is probably just me, but I felt like half of Hugo Weaving's lines were just the same ones he said during The Counsel of Elrond in The Fellowship of the Ring, except with a German accent and a World War II twist.  Oh, I totally thought that Dr. Arnim Zola looked like Lionel Twain from Murder By Death (is that too obscure of a reference?), then I found out that Toby Jones actually played Truman Capote...

All in all it was a good movie with good company.  Happy Saturday!

The Fellowship of The Ring

Tuesday night, Boyfriend, some friends, and I went to see The Fellowship of The Ring extended edition in theaters – a special event to coincide with the extended Blu-ray release.  I think I have mentioned my love of The Lord of The Rings before, but Fellowship is hands down my favourite movie in the trilogy.  If my calculations are correct, last night marks the 9th time I have seen it in theaters (the 10th will be this fall when we see the film with a live orchestra playing the score!).

via fathomevents.com

Before the film the regular pre-movie trivia was replaced with LoTR trivia (a bit spoilery if you ask me, though, as Boyfriend pointed out, you probably didn't go to a special showing of the extended cut if you haven't seen/read the trilogy to begin with. He has a point.) and there was an introduction by Peter Jackson.  The theater was packed!

During the three and a half hours of awesomeness the I did the following:

• Point out my favourite facial expressions (notably the little Hobbit girl when Bilbo is telling the Troll story; Legolas after they exit Moria)
• Wave my hands around during exciting bits (read: all of the movie)
• Point out my favourite pieces of the score (The Bridge of Khazad-dûm)
• Lean over to tell Boyfriend some trivia he already knew ("Did you know that the scenes at Weathertop were the first scenes Viggo shot because he was not the first person cast for that part?")
• Lean to the other side to tell the friend the same trivia and in the hope he didn't already know ("Did you know that the scenes at Weathertop were the first scenes Viggo shot because he was not the first person cast for that part?")
• Recite lines in a dramatic whisper ("The trees are strong, my lord. Their roots go deep." "Rip them all down.")
• Count how many lines Orlando Bloom has (around ten, I think)
• Laugh at things that are now funny because of memes ("One does not simply walk into Mordor...")
• Cry at all the sad bits (the breaking of the Fellowship; "I'm glad you're with me, Sam.")

Yes, my friends, watching The Fellowship of the Ring with me is quite an experience. 


Also, despite my love for movie theater treats, I figured the effects of my 6 mile run that morning would hit hard somewhere around the Council of Elrond if I didn't get some proper food in me before the movie.  Boyfriend was nice enough to pick us up a gluten free Tony's Special from Tony & Alba's.  It was meaty and messy and, as you can see, I loved it.

photo by Nicole – instagram'd my me

Congrats! You're a dick.

So, I've been trying this new thing when anyone acts like a complete D-Bag in traffic.

It's well documented that I might have some slight road-rage – or it would be documented if this blog was older, but I'm sure my oral biography will be chalk full of references to incoherent yelling and gesticulating while driving (unless my mom somehow reads this, in which case, I don't do any of that).

One of the best compliments I've ever gotten was from my friend maRk, who said he wanted me to teach his daughter to drive because I drive aggressively, but he is never scared to be in my car.  Others would disagree.  I know Bear is not always a fan of my vehicular stylings, but then again, she no longer has a clock in her car and tends to just zen out when driving.  Not my speed (pun intended), but I appreciate her mellow style.

I've also been told that I drive "like a dude," which, I think, is also a compliment.  I feel very comfortable behind the wheel in most situations, possibly because one of the first times I ever drove, it was in a Suburban pulling a horse trailer on a dirt road so narrow that was one-way for the first half of the hour and one-way in the other direction for the second half.  And I feel like I am generally safe, even if I do tend to drive little fast.  I just have my own style, I think, and I am bothered when people interfere with my style.

You know that part of Highway 17 that comes down from Santa Cruz and hits San Jose becoming 880? And then 880 turns and starts heading North along the East side of the Bay? Well, there is this moment, right past Milpitas, where you are no longer in the South Bay, but in the East Bay, and suddenly everyone drives like a complete A-Hole.  This is a proven scientific fact, by the way.  And this isn't the only place.  There are pockets all over, like the Bermuda Triangle of traffic, that cause people to lose any ability they had to operate a motor vehicle in a socially acceptable way.

Because that's the thing – it's not that people are suddenly becoming unlawful (usually) in their driving.  They just lose any respect for their fellow motorist.  They try to exit the freeway from the far left lane feet before their exit in stop and go traffic; they turn in front of you and then stop inexplicably; they come half way out into the street to see if it's clear. . . the list goes on.

Now, the Meg with the little bit of road rage usually wants to scream when drivers act like that.  I want to gesture rudly at them and say something like: "Your Father Was a Hamster! And Your Mother Smells of Elderberries!"  But that was the old Meg (and taunting French guards).

So, yeah, the new Meg has a plan.  Whenever a total dickbag cuts me off, I've been giving them an ironic thumbs-up.  Like, "Way to go, Guy. You're a total jerk!" or "Awesome, Dude.  You just almost ran me off the road. Rad!"

I know what you're thinking.  Because the accompanying sarcastic remarks are in my head, it might come off like I'm congratulating them for their douchebaggery.  Well, thumbs-up to you, too.

Also, in my head, my thumbs-upping is like that awesome scene in Easy A where Emma Stone's character, Olive, suddenly finds herself friends with Amanda Bynes' character, Marianne, and she has no idea what's going on, so she just keeps thumbs-upping.  I love it.

If you see me doing this at you, congrats! You're a dick.

Do you do anything to prevent yourself from flipping out at someone?  Are you going to try my ironic thumbs-up move?  If you do, let me know how it works for you.  I'm stoked on it, but I suspect that's just me.

Paddy's Day Shoes

About 5 years ago I was shopping with Bear.  This, as some of you may know, can lead to awesome (read "sometimes disastrous") purchases of things that we may not really need.  Most recently, we both bought Betsy Johnson dresses with Pterodactyls on them.  Did we need these? No.  Was it a fashion imperative that we buy them? Oh, yes. There were Pterodactyls on them!

Anyway, 5 years ago we wandered into the shoe department at Nordstroms and I was immediately taken with these amazing green heels.  I rolled up my jeans and I strutted all around the shoe department.  Bear had located the same pair in blue and was also trying them on, which is just shows how awesome we thought they were because Bear almost never wears heels.

"I must have these!" I informed the shoe guardian.

So, I bought these amazing shoes and decided that I should wear them to my College graduation, you know, as a justification for buying them.  Only, I quickly realized that a) the heels were way too high for me to walk into the graduation stadium with out falling because b) there is no ankle support!  I ended up wearing flip-flops and then sitting at my Graduation lunch wearing the heels so I didn't have to walk much.  Fantastic.  Another useless purchase…

Except that they haven't just stayed in the box collecting dust.  I have worn these shoes at least 5 times – I wear them each year on Paddy's Day!  I remember the first time I wore them for this occasion because my friend Siobhan and I went to every grocery store and liquor store in the Monterey area looking for Smithwicks… needless to say, they weren't the best shoe of choice for a park, run into the store, run around the isles, and run back to the car kind of mission.  At least this year, with my desk job, I should be fine…

Also, in honor of St. Patrick's Day, I decided to make treats for the office (like I need an excuse) and I was excited to try out this recipe, albeit slightly modified to be GREEN!  Judging by the fact that I don't typically like brownies and yet I tried to eat my weight in the batter, I would say these were a success.  My only fear was that they might end up looking moldy… Instead my co-workers asked me if I had any "special" ingredients in them!

And then tonight, I will probably kick back with my favorite Irish beer, the aforementioned Smithwicks (pronounced without the W), and watch either Darby O'Gill and the Little People and/or Father Ted.  And possibly eat some greenish food of some sort.  My shoes will be sitting on the floor next to me, looking pretty.

Not sure how to celebrate?  Want some recommendations on my favorite Irish/Irish inspired media? Check out these gems! Note:  If you're not familiar with the accent, you may want to conceder turning on subtitles for some of these. . .

• The Boondock Saints (1999) :  I can't believe I forgot to add this to the list – this is one of my favourite Irish inspired films.  A uniquely told story of two Irish emigrant brothers who become vigilantes after a rowdy St. Patrick's Day.  Fun drinking game: drink every time they use the F-word.
  
  
  
  

• The Commitments (1991) : One of my all time favorite movies about a group of Working class Dubliners (Northsiders) who form a Soul group.  Amazing music, fun story, generally considered one of the best Irish films ever.
  
  
  
  
  
  

• Darby O'Gill and the Little People (1959) : A Disney production based off of a collection of Leprechaun stories about Darby O'Gill catching King Brian, King of the Leprechauns.  This staple of my childhood features a ton of Irish folk lore and creatures, plus a young (and singing!) Sean Connery.
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Father Ted (1995) : A Graham Linehan (IT Crowd) sitcom about 3 Irish Priests who live on  Craggy Island, isolated off the coast of Ireland.  Very funny and absurd, and though you don't need to be Irish or Catholic to find it funny, being so adds a whole new dimension. 
  
  
  
  
   
• Intermission (2003) : A love story/crime caper set in modern Dublin involving a breakup, a bank robbery, and a ton of Brown Sauce.  As a drawing point, it stars Cillian Murphy and Colin Farrell.  Oh, and Colm Meaney – he's in everything (including my flight from Dublin to LA once)!
  
  
  
   
• Once (2006) : I'm sure you've heard of at least this one.  A musical of sorts played out in modern Dublin.  Very low budget but beautiful music and nearly perfect. Fun fact: Glen Hansard was also in The Commitments.
  
  
  
  
• The Quiet Man (1952) : If you've never seen or heard of this, you may be surprised to find a movie featureing John Wayne on this list.  He plays an Irish-American who returns to Ireland to reclaim his family's farm.  Known for it's famously long fight scene, it's a classic that I grew up watching with my Grandparents.
  
  
  
  

Hope you check some of these out. . .
Do you have any St. Patrick's Day traditions?  Any movies that are a must watch for you?

Communism is Just a Red Herring

One time, Boyfriend and I were playing Clue and I said, "It was Sergeant Pepper in the Yellow Submarine with the Revolver." His response was to tell the 3rd player in the game that that was why he loves me. Swoon.

I love the game Clue and I love the 1985 movie staring Tim Curry, Christopher Lloyd, Madeline Kahan, Eline Brennan, and many other talented people. And I have always, always wanted to have a Clue party...

Oh my god, you guys. I have wanted to have one of these for a long time. No, we didn't play Clue and, no, it wasn't a murder mystery party (tho I still want to have one of those at some point complete with costumes and plot and everything). But I did send out invitations and gave everyone a character and we all dressed up.

My team at work over the past year has reduced down to 7 amazing people who accept my craziness and agreed to all show up in costumes to a team dinner – It was probably easier to convince them since I was moving on to a new job 2 weeks later. We mostly based the costumes on the movie and everyone spent a good deal of time trying to line-drop quotes into random conversation. Also, instead of murder weapons I made everyone character cupcakes and then distributed them in these cute gift boxes.

I apologize for the bad pic but there is NO lighting in my dining room :(

Some day, I'll have a much larger scale party of this type with everyone assigned to teams. Or maybe I'll run Bay to Breakers carrying giant Styrofoam weapons? Or maybe I'll rent out an old building and just have flat out murder mystery party. I love all sorts of themed and costume parties, and thought this was a small one, it's defiantly been one of my favourites!

left to right: Prof. Plum, Ms. Scarlett, Wodsworth/Mr. Body, Mrs. Whie, Mr. Green, Mrs. Peacock, Col. Mustard. My friends are the best!

That's a Boy's Movie.

I have theories about things.

Sometimes these theories make other people confused or angry. Example: mango flavoring is "white trash".

Sometimes these theories threaten my "indie" credibility. Example: the guitar riff in the bridge of "Here Comes Your Man" by Pixies is inspired by the guitar bridge from "Maggie May" by Rod Stewart.

Certain movies, no matter how widely loved, are, at their essence, boy's movies.

Let's break these down, shall we?

I know that my feeling about mango flavoring comes from my time as a server at Chili's in a small town serving mango iced tea and mango margaritas. I also know that I would never have even thought about "Here Comes Your Man" and "Maggie May" at the same time except that I heard both songs back to back on the radio (on different stations, of course). And probably, my love of Mash-Ups helped that a little bit. Also, I'm pretty sure that I don't have "indie" cred to lose...

But the things about movies being BOY's movies... well, that seems to make people react in all sorts of ways. I suspect the reason for such varied reactions is because I never proclaim that movies like "Rambo" or "Heat" or "Terminator" or, especially, "Porky's" are boy's movies, the same way "Sixteen Candles" or "Dirty Dancing" or "She's All That" are girl's movies. I feel like that's kind of implied and isn't the point I'm trying to make. Obviously these a movies are created fora specific demographic.

My theory is this: "Toy Story" is a boy's movie.

"Toy Story 3" came out this year, and I don't know about your friends, but basically every guy that I know when bananas over this release. Boyfriend was surprised when I confessed that I didn't remember a thing about "Toy Story 2" and promptly sat me down to watch the first two films. (I think that I had created some imaginary plot that had never happened and THAT was my vague memory of "Toy Story 2").

I'm not saying that no girls liked these films. I'm sure they did. But whenever I talk to a guy about these movies, you can see what a profound mark these movies left on their childhood. That's just not something that you hear from girls typically. Sure, they like the movie, but it wasn't life altering.

People get outraged when they hear this for some reason. I'm not sure why. It's a buddy movie that happen to feature toys. Toys that are not only boys, but boy's toys: a cowboy and a spaceman. These toys that are also owned by a boy. To me, it's obvious why this speaks to boys more than girls.

Discuss.