Tag Archives: entertainment

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Dunkin’ Donuts Drama

Earlier this week I was sitting in Dunkin’ Donuts, drinking some tea, and trying to get caught up on my homework. It is usually a fairly serene place to pretend like I’m doing what I’m supposed to do. There are few things to distract me from surfing the internet… ummm… I mean answering discussion posts that aren’t really like discussions but more like people trying to prove that they are smarter than everyone else but that doesn’t make me bitter oh no it doesn’t.

This day was different. There was a young lady sitting in the corner working on her homework just like me. Okay, maybe not *just* like me. She didn’t have a computer and was actually using paper and highlighters. Crazy, right? She paused in her pursuit of learning and made a phone call. Here was her LOUD side of the conversation:

“So (insert name here) told me that you were looking for friends with benefits with her. Is that true?”

[pause]

“Well, I didn’t think so. I told her that there is no way that you would do that. I told her that we were engaged and you would never do that to me.”

[pause]

“Don’t get mad at me for asking! I just wanted to make sure. I figured that she was just confused with the old you. Why would I believe her?”

And more along those lines. You could tell that the person on the other end was getting more and more defensive. Finally, she finished the conversation. Then, when she was done, she made another phone call and was talking about how someone had a disease — not sure what it was exactly– and that she would be pissed off if she had it too. There are so many inferences I could have made from the conversation.

Thank goodness I had my back to her, because I would have embarrassed myself. I was uncomfortable but entirely too amused for polite company. I couldn’t help myself. I awkwardly chuckled. I couldn’t believe that she felt that Dunkin’ Donuts was the appropriate place for conversations like that.

It got me thinking, though, about the differences in generations. Very few people who share my age bracket would have done as she did. Most of us would take conversations like those and conduct them in privacy– or at least not loudly. My teenage students have no such compunction. They share entirely too much for my comfort. They share everything on their tumbly-thing, bookface, tweeters, and whatever else social media they use.

(Putting on my grumpy old lady pants) YOU SHOULD HAVE SOME SECRETS! Nobody should ever know that much about you. It’s like not buying the cow because you’re getting the milk for free. Or judging a book by its cover. Or some other cliche that fits better than the ones I came up with. It just isn’t right and it makes other people (me, at least) uncomfortable. (Taking off my grumpy old lady pants)

Or maybe I am wrong. Maybe having everything out there is better than keeping secrets. Maybe full disclosure will help solve the worlds ills.

What do you think?

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Warm Bodies Part 2

So, I feel really unobservant right now. I was doing some research on the Warm Bodies movie. On the IMDB website, there is this wonderful little bit of trivia.

The film is based loosely on “Romeo and Juliet”. “R” = “Romeo”; “Julia” = “Juliet; “Perry” = “Paris”; “M/Marcus” = “Mercutio”; “Nora” = Juliet’s “Nurse” (the character of Nora is also a nurse).

It makes complete and total sense. I can’t believe that I didn’t see it. I shall have to hang my English teacher hat up for the weekend. I am not worthy of it. Before I hang it up in shame, though, this novel might be a way to get my kids who are obsessed with zombies to like Romeo and Juliet more when I teach it in May. Hmmmm…. the wheels are turning already.

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Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

Warm BodiesWarm Bodies by Isaac Marion

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I toyed with the idea of reading this book since I saw the trailer for the movie. I knew that it would be an easy read and I didn’t want to spend the kajillion dollars (okay $10, but still!) to buy it– especially when I knew it would only offer a couple of hours of entertainment.

After reading a review by my friend Amy, I decided that I would read it. I took myself to the library and requested it. I waited. And waited. It arrived for me this morning; I picked it up at 9. It took me about two hours to read.

They were two of the best hours I’ve spent with a book in a long time. That really surprised me. I wasn’t really planning on liking it. In fact, I was completely prepared to hate its guts. I figured it would be just another zombie book in a long line of zombie books.

This one had heart. R, the narrator, is one of the most fully fleshed out (har-dee-har-har) zombies ever written. Because the book is written in first person, we are allowed inside of R’s head and follow his thoughts as he develops through the book. It is this character development that I love. Through his relationships with the Living and the Dead, R becomes whole again. I never thought I’d end up rooting for the zombies.

I am planning on purchasing this book. It is going to stand up to multiple readings. I am sure that there are nuances that I missed the first time around.

View all my reviews

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Obsessions 2012: The Wheaton Family

Welcome to part 2 of my SERIES of posts about my obsessions. If you missed my first post, check here. It’s fabulously interesting (or tedious if you don’t like AFP)!

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I have a confession to make. I have become a celebri-stalker. Wil Wheaton has been one of my favorites since I was in high school, drooling over Wesley Crusher in ST: TNG. I had the posters. I wanted to be his girlfriend. You know… typical fangirl-crushing going on there. When I joined twitter, I found him through The Bloggess who I found through… well, I can’t remember. Anyway, I immediately followed him and started fangirl-crushing on his twitter feed. His twitter feed led me to his blog(s), podcasts, and books.

That is when I realized how many layers he has. And the fact that he’s effing brilliant. And funny. And empowered by his manly geekiness. I couldn’t believe it, but my crush grew and grew (kind of like the Grinch’s heart).

I never realized that he was hated as Wesley Crusher and that he used to get death threats. To me, Wesley was a symbol of hope for people who didn’t quite fit in. He was incredibly intelligent but also very young and naive. I felt like I was Wesley (except not quite as smart, because, well… WESLEY CRUSHER- SUPERSTAR). It made me sad to think that a person who I admired was despised so much.

Thing is, Mr. Wheaton could have reacted badly to this. If I were in his place, I probably would have. So much hatred winging my way would have caused a collapse of astronomical proportions. Instead, he grew and got stronger.

They should win the cutest couple EVAH award.

They should win the cutest
couple EVAH award.

He also got married.

Happily, wonderfully, married to an absolutely wonderful woman who I was so incredibly ready to hate with the passion of a thousand dying suns. I just couldn’t.

Anne Wheaton is an amazing person in her own right. She’s hilarious and honest and smart and beautiful (inside and out). Check out her VandalEyes mission. Never have I wanted to carry around googly eyes everywhere I go as much as I do now.

To make it even better, they have a delightful menagerie of rescued cats and dogs. They are part of the family and both Mr. and Mrs. Wheaton take copious pictures and share them with their followers. Rarely a day goes by when I don’t get an awesome feeling from the cuteness of their family.

Following/stalking the Wheaton family guarantees that I will have something to look forward to on those days that I just need to get out of the sads.

To the Wheaton Family– Wil, Anne, Ryan (their son, who is awesome as well), Luna, Marlowe, Seamus, Riley, and Watson– I must give a thousand thanks for all of the joy and distraction you’ve given me this year. I can’t wait to see what happens next year.

Also, a final word from Mr. Wheaton:

Wil sez:Don't be a dick.

Wil sez:
Don’t be a dick.

Click it!! DOOO EEETTT. Buy me one while you are at it. I like the blue one.

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Obsessions 2012: Amanda F*cking Palmer and the GTO

Everywhere I look, I see end of the year lists/countdowns/reflections. I’ve decided to jump on that bandwagon and ride it for a bit. What better way than to write about my obsessions for the year? Let me tell you, there have been so many because, well, it is what I do. Here goes, in no particular order whatsoever.*

*okay. I thought it would be all one post. It’s not. Apparently I obsessed much more than I thought I did. Welcome to my SERIES of posts about my obsessions.

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Amanda Palmer and the Grand Theft Orchestra

amanda-palmer-and-the-grand-theft-orchestra

Amanda Palmer and the Grand Theft Orchestra

I love Amanda Palmer (AFP) and have done so since she was half of the Dresden Dolls. She is feisty and says the things in her music that I wish I could say. When I first started using Twitter, she is the first person I started following. I knew that she would have something to say that would make me think. Little did I know where following her would take me this year.

One thing that I admire about AFP is the fact that she loves her fans. Loves them. She understands that she would be nowhere without them. When she decided to crowd source her latest album through kickstarter (click here if you want to see the magic unfold), I watched and waited. I so desperately wanted to be in on the awesome. My brain was obsessing in two ways:

  • I wanted desperately to be involved.
  • I didn’t want to spend the money because, well, money.

Believe me, these two things fought and fought in my mind. It was like a huge smack down going on in my skull. One morning, I woke up, fired up ye olde laptop, and backed her project before my mind woke up properly.

It was amazing. I became a part of something big. For me this was a big thing. I’ve felt an outsider for as long as I can remember, as I am sure many people have. This was something I belonged to. The Theatre is Evil album is one that I had a hand in making. I felt powerful because of it. That doesn’t happen much for me.

This power transformed itself into bravery. I woke up early on the day that they were pre-selling tickets to the concert in Phoenix. I waited, hand hovering over the enter key, to get a chance to see the album that I helped make be performed live. LIVE! I was one of the first ones in. The tickets sold out in 20 minutes and I was fast/strong/good enough to get some for hubs and I. I have to admit that I cried a bit.

I used to go to concerts when I was younger. I went to every 311 concert that I had enough money to attend. If there was a band in a club, I was there. Even thought I was uncomfortable, the music was all that mattered. I was music; music was me. As I got older, my OCD/anxiety grabbed hold and grew stronger. Music was still important to me, but not enough for me to brave the crowds. Choosing to go to this concert was a huge step for me.

It was one of the best experiences of my life. It was a small venue with about 300 other people. Aside from a couple of drunks at the bar, the other concert goers were lovely.  I can’t really describe how it made me feel. Anyone who has ever gone to an AFP concert knows exactly what I am talking about.

One of the bonuses of going to the concert was finding new music. Jherek Bischoff, a member of the GTO, is a wonderful composer. He was the opening act and I was entranced by the beauty of his music. The Simple Pleasure, headed by GTO member Chad Raines, was the perfect mix that got me dancing and laughing. The band’s enthusiasm and joy was intoxicating.

I left that night lighter than I’ve felt in years.

I wanted to leave you with a AFP and the GTO video. I’m not going to post the one that I really want to because it is definitely NSFW. Click on the AFP Video Page and check out “Want it Back.” There is nudity, but it is a beautiful video and a beautiful song.

This is another of my favorite tracks off of the album. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

One more– this is not from the band but from AFP herself. It is the song that I go to when I need an uplift.

Thanks for stopping by! There is more to come. =)

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Merida: A New Princess?

My daughter and I went to see the movie Brave on its opening day. The first time I saw the trailer, I’ve wanted to see this movie. Even more than I want to see Magic Mike! Inorite? Whodathunk? There’s not even a hawt guy in it (Oh no! I seemed to have slipped into teen-speak right there. Ops. I must be missing my little rapscallions. Apologies, dear non-judgemental readers.). My daughter wanted to see it even more than I did. She would ask to see it every time she saw the movie trailer. We went. We loved it. We wanted to see it again. The girl usually tells me about all of her favorite parts of movies that we see. She essentially retold the entire movie. It was good. If you haven’t seen it, you should.

However, that is not the point of this post.

I started doing some research after the movie to see what others thought of it. I was shocked at some of the responses I found. Many blog posts and articles that had a feminist slant bashed the movie. Here I was, thinking that Merida was a fabulous alternative to the typical swoon-and-wait-for-rescue princess. She takes matters into her own hands. She’s brave, strong, and determined. Merida can take be victorious when faced with danger and stands up for what she believes in. In essence, I loved her and was excited when my daughter began to emulate her.

Apparently I had it all wrong. There are so many things wrong with Merida.

  • She’s a princess (gasp)!
    • Some of the writers hated the fact that she was a princess. (They suggested that she be a serving girl or a toaster or something. A frikken’ toaster! I don’t know about you, but I’ve never really been able to relate to inanimate objects, no matter how likable they are.) *Warning: Nerdiness approaching* At the time that the movie is set, the only women who had any leisure time were those of noble birth. She would have to be a princess in order to have enough spare time to have an adventure.
  • Merida wears dresses.
    • Once again, time-appropriate clothing. A serving girl would have had to wear a dress as well. Not sure about the toaster, though.
  • Her hair is too unrealistic.
    • Ummm… so is Lady Gaga’s but she is still seen as a strong woman. Plus… animated. Duh.
  • She does “boy” things and they are celebrated.
    • Their concept of boy things is shooting a bow and riding a horse. This seems anti-feminist if you ask me. I know plenty of women who are masters at archery and are expert equestrians. Why are these boy activities?
  • She has a simple problem and all she does is have to fix it.
    • If you’ve seen the movie, you know that the conflict in it is anything but simple. Character development occurs in both major female characters. I guess it isn’t conflict enough unless you have to beat down “the man.”
  • There are men in the movie.
    • Okay, maybe this comment wasn’t said outright, but still. I get so tired of some feminists being anti-men. Men are essential to life. Literally and figuratively. I would not be the strong woman I am today without the influence of some of the men in my life. Yes, there are some men who are jerk-faces. Guess what? Some women are jerk-faces as well. Get over the man-hate, please. It ruins my love everyone vibe.

Part of my frustration is that this is a movie in which a young girl stands up for herself and solves her problems with a little help. Isn’t this how we want our daughters to behave? Why in the world should this movie aimed at children be expected to change the world for women everywhere? Let them be children for a while. I was allowed to do so and I turned out okay.