Celling Out

I got my first cell phone today. I am officially mobile. It was a scary decision. I'm not good with contracts - especially those that involve technology that I don't fully understand. You would think that a talk-a-lot like me would be all over a cell phone but I have been resisting. But then Cathy got a new one so I was going to adopt her old one. Well, it was revealed while we were shopping for a usage plan for my adopted phone that I could get a new one for free with the same service. So, that's what I did. Now, if I can only figure out how to answer it!

Bio-Blog #9 ... Nicole

I have known Nic for 16 years now - can you believe that. I love the fact that at 30 I have friends that I have known for half my life and they are still around and as amazing as ever! The thing about Nicole is that I don't get to see her very often because whe lives out west. In fact, we recently just got back in touch after two or so years of being in communicato. The best part is that it was like we had never missed a beat. We have lived lives that are opposite in about every conceivable way but she is always there for me with the best and most undertanding wisdom. I love her to pieces.

I am ... happy,a mom, thankful for my blessings
I can ... multitask at a superheros intensity
I love ... the mountains
I will ... retire in the mountains

What is your sign? Leo
Where were you born? Lethbridge, Alberta
Where do you live now? Grande Prairie, Alberta

What has been the best place you've visited in between and why?
Our Holiday to the West Coast. When we went to the Ocean and just watched the tide come in. There is nothing like visiting the Ocean and realizing how insignificant you are in the vastness. And then looking at your children and realizing in the next moment how important you are in the vastness.

What is your favourite:
Movie: Meet Joe Black ( I know, Iknow) or The Sacketts or Spaceballs . Sorry I couldn't decide.
Book: Eragon - Right now. It changes so often . But the one I come back to the most has to be Jane Erye.
TV Show: Rick Mercer report
Drink: Ceaser

Who is your celebrity hottie of choice? Thomas Jane

If you could have lunch with anyone in the world ... who would it be and why?
Gary Larson. From The far side. I want to know if he is crazy or a genius.

How do you know Raye?
Raye moved next door to me in Grade 9. And we have been friends since.

What 3 words would you use to describe Raye?
Strong, impassioned, free-spirit

Do you have your own website? Nope.

Rocking My FanGirl

OK ... can't contain it any longer. I saw INXS in concert tonight. I want to scream - ok did that. I want to dance - ok did that. I want to jump up and down like a crazy fangirl on speed - ok did that as well. I cannot explain the joy of seeing this band in concert. They have been a FAVE band for years and my dream of seeing them perform has been in my mind since 1989. The last time INXS did a big tour it was the fall of 1997 and I missed it. And then, sadly, Hutchence was dead 3 weeks later and INXS was no more. But in the summer of 2005 we got "Rockstar:INXS" on TV and a guilty pleasure became the star-making machine for JD Fortune (a maritime boy no less) and INXS was back.

So tonight there was me and 5 galpals in the nosebleed section of the Metro Centre stands to take in the show. Really, my behaviour was completely front row fan. I almost thought I was going to fall over on the row in front of me. SOOOOOO good. The older songs played much better as they have the history behind them. And although I was never JD's biggest fan on the show - he sells it on stage. The man is in love with being a rockstar. He has gotten to the point where his confidence has become seductive and he works it. He gets almost vulgar (I think his mic stand was adequately molested during the show) and it becomes intoxicating. He is a genuine frontman and although he will never be able to sing "Never Tear Us Apart" like Hutchence, he does the upbeat tracks really well. All told, I couldn't have asked for more. Oh well, maybe they could have sung "Elegantly Wasted" ... but you can't have everything.

Springtime

April Showers bring May Flowers

The darling buds of May are popping all over Halifax. Today was full of warm spring weather and the you could almost see the blossoms exploding and the leaves unfurling. I took a tour downtown and read in the Public Gardens for an hour and I believe the world was definately greener on the walk back! I am a sucker for sprintime flowers because they appear in adundent bouquets on naked tree branches. I am always amazed to see the trees in full-petal before the leaves come in..

But one of the images that will always remind me of HFX springtime is the bright yellow bushes that are EVERYWHERE. They are in yards, on public grounds, in random grassy corners. With no leaves on them they look like living sunshine. So I took the pics above, laying on my back below the boughs of two large bushes in the gardens. The arches of canary blooms make the most wonderful contrast against a cloudless blue sky. That is what spring looks like.

Mission Impossible 3 - movie reivew

MI3 works out about the way I anticipate its box office progressing - a strong start that just falls off from there. After a great opening scene that establishes Philip Seymour Hoffman as the villain (yippee!) - the credits explode in good ole M:I style. I actually got excited during the credits because, like a cat chasing a reflection on the wall, I like shiny, flashy things. Unfortunately, MI3 doesn't keep up the game.

What MI3 does excel at is offering a good team of talent. In fact, the movie may be the best summer example of up-and-comers playing against type with savvy. There is the aforementioned Hoffman who is cannily following his Oscar award with a showy bad guy role. There is Jonathan Rhys-Meyers who is moving away from his fey English characters by bulking up as a seriously hot IMF transportation guy. There is Billy Crudup who is actually playing the straight-man in a mainstream flick. There is Keri Russell who is kicking some serious ass and leaves the film WAY too soon! These are all good things. And they balance Tom Cruise nicely without tipping the scales away from the star. I'll admit to actually liking Cruise's Ethan Hunt character so I'm always game for another mission and don't mind that the supporting cast must take a back seat.

This time around Ethan has taken himself out of the field and is enjoying engaged bliss with the completely bland Michele Monaghan. I must state here that I don't think a less-thrilling leading lady could have been found for this film. And the fact that she is so unremarkable makes it that much harder to care about Ethan's drive to save/protect her. Considering the first film offered the French mystique of Emmanuelle Beart and the second provided the sultry teasing of Thandie Newton, I am completely gobsmacked that the lifeless Monaghan was chosen as the love of Ethan's life and the mission motivation. I disliked her so much that at pivotal points in the plot I actually found myself saying "kill her - just kill her" more than once - and it would have been a better film if they had.

But MI3 is not really about the actors - it's about the action. And the action is good. Although JJ Abrams over-uses the shaky-cam, the majority of the excitement is well-presented. A helicopter fight in a windmill farm is beautifully constructed. A missile attack on a bridge flings cars in the air and offers generous explosions. These are things for which you watch MI and it is gratifying when they are done well. However, the action loses steam in the final act that the last stand is such a cliche that it may induce cringing. The dispatching of the villain is also swift and unsatisfying and completely unfair to Hoffman's presence.

Overall, MI3 kicks off the summer season with a bang but it is hardly good enough to be the best blockbuster of the summer. And although all the MI elements are present here they just don't ignite with the same heat as the previous installments.

About Time in a Galaxy Far, Far Away

The news came out today that Lucasfilm has finally gotten the message that some of us Star Wars fans actually want the original!! Who would have thought?! So on September 12, the original, unaltered Star Wars trilogy will be released on DVD. Ever since the special editions were released I have been lamenting the useless and distracting "improvements" that Lucas added to the films. I have held off on buying the films on DVD because I have always preferred the theatrical releases. Say goodbye to Greedo shooting first. So long to that useless digital Jabba talking to Han. Saranoya to that inserted Hayden Christensen as the end of Jedi. Hello the REAL Star Wars on DVD. Consider my calendar marked.

Hard Candy - movie review

It's hard to know exactly what to say about Hard Candy. The film blends the controversial topics of chatrooms, pedophilia, torture, and vigilantism - not your typical cocktail for entertainment.

After an introduction of chat dialogue the audience catches up with Hayley and Jeff at their first face-to-face meeting. Immediately the film sets up the uneasy story as the teen Hayley (I swear she doesn't look a day over 12) awkwardly flirts with the 30-something photographer Jeff. The actors are also uneasy in these initial scenes and the action tends to drag with a solid tone never being reached. Then again, perhaps this is the point because a decisive tone would require establishing a hero and a villain and Candy's main thrust appears to be keeping this distinction ambiguous.

Evenutally the characters end up in Jeff's apartment and soon after Hayley takes control of the action. Using a variety of interesting film tactics, director David Slade uses his music video roots to infuse energy into picture that could have been lifeless. Instead, the film explodes with jumpcut action and rotates with stark colour fades. The fact that the digital colourist is listed early in the opening credits is evidence of the visual stylings the film offers. As well, as a two-person show, Candy offers excellent performances. Both Ellen Page and Patrick Wilson give chilling portrayals - not an easy feat considering the subject matter and plot points.

Candy is essentially a "Little Red Riding Hood" tale - an alusion that is direct in Hayley's red hoodie. But Hayley requires no woodsman to come and save her. With a pocketful of drugs, some surgery tools and a fazer she sets out to teach the big, bad wolf a lesson. The challenge in the film is how the viewer's sympathy jumps back and forth between the characters. Hayley's innocent victim is also a steely and disturbed young woman. Jeff's inappropriate slimeball is also a heartsick loner. And as the tension escalates and the stakes are rised the audience is thrown into the dilemma of deciding who is right. Who REALLY is the wolf in this tale?

Sadly, the film fails to secure solid red herrings and relinquishes its power by not taking a truly terrifying stance for either character. In the end, the story falls into pleading preachiness rather than sharp statement and the audience is left to wonder whether there was a point to it all. If the film had the balls to commit to total villainy then its moral questions would have bleed purely from the screen. As it is, Candy is an intriguing, but unsatisfying, diversion.

Lift a Glass

It's been awhile since I posted a blogthing for fun. This past weekend I saw a pub that had its tables outside ready to kick-off the patio season and I thought ... hmmm ... a drink would be nice. So this little trifle is about being true to your drinking self! I hope that many of you will try it and let me know your answers (that's what comments are for people!) I happen to think some of the references about me are downright scary in their accuracy! Cheers!

You Are a Classic Martini

You area sophisticated drinker, who knows that simple quality is over-rated. You're a knowledgeable drunk, but sometimes you're a know-it-all when you're blasted. You should never: Drink and gossip. You tend to forget who's standing right behind you! Your ideal party: Has a real bartender. But no one mixes a better drink than you. Your drinking soulmates: those with a Chocolate Martini personality Your drinking rivals: those with a Margarita Martini personality

What Flavor Martini Are You?

You Are Guinness

You know beer well, and you'll only drink the best beers in the world. Watered down beers disgust you, as do the people who drink them. When you drink, you tend to become a bit of a know it all - especially about subjects you don't know well. But your friends tolerate your drunken ways, because you introduce them to the best beers around.

What's Your Beer Personality?