Wireless and free

We FINALLY got our wireless router hooked up. Now I can blog from the living room. Woo hoo.

The food turned out great. We had it for lunch and dinner. Yummy.

I meant to put up a link here to the funniest video I've seen in a long time. It was an AP report about this guy in....ummm...maybe Indiana who, as a protest, paid his property tax bill in coins and dollar bills. Good for you pal. The Treasurer's office was hacked off. The guy wheeled the money in on a wagon. I should have done that the other day. We had to get new tags for our van. This cost is based on the weight of your vehicle. The price goes up every 2,000 lbs. Apparently, our van weighs 4003 lbs. So for 3 extra pounds, we paid $30 more for our tags. I asked the lady if she would lower it if I promised to take out my spare tire. What a rip off. Maybe next year I'll pay it in pennies.

We watched a really good movie last night called "Fracture." It stars Anthony Hopkins and Ryan Gosling. We all liked it a lot. It's a detective/thriller/lawyer thing. I give it....3 stars. It's one I would definitely watch again and might even buy.

Tonsil update and AFI

Dylan came through his tonsil surgery just fine. He's recuperating at his grandma's house (I don't blame him - I'd rather have her as a nurse than me!!). I'm sure he's going to be very sick of Jello and Popsicles very soon.

The American Film Institute has come up with an updated best 100 movies of all time. My comments are first, my husbands are in italics.

1. "Citizen Kane" (1941) - "Rosebud." It's ok. I'd never pick this as number 1. Agreed.
2. "The Godfather" (1972) This is a boy movie - I've never really cared for it. I don't like most gangster films.
3. "Casablanca" (1942) Great film - loved it. I wouldn't have this in my top 10.
4. "Raging Bull" (1980) Another boy movie. Like this one.
5. "Singin' in the Rain" (1952) A musical!! *shudder* Not a big musical fan.
6. "Gone With the Wind" (1939) Fantastic - love it, love the book. Well - yeah!
7. "Lawrence of Arabia" (1962) Fell asleep during this one - and I love O'Toole. Only saw it once, don't remember much about it - except the camel.
8. "Schindler's List" (1993) Amazing film - I cry every time. Very powerful film.
9. "Vertigo" (1958) Fantastic - what a thriller should be. All these so-called thriller directors should watch more Hitchcock films.
10. "The Wizard of Oz" (1939) I always found this kind creepy - flying monkeys! Everyone should watch this - I like it.
11. "City Lights" (1931) Haven't seen it. Never heard of it.
12. "The Searchers" (1956) Haven't seen it. Ditto.
13. "Star Wars" (1977) Love this movie - was obsessed with it as a girl. The first film I ever saw in the theater - love it to this day.
14. "Psycho" (1960) Creepy - not a favorite. Take it or leave it.
15. "2001: A Space Odyssey" (1968) Phenomenal - wish I could see it on a big screen. This would be in my top 10.
16. "Sunset Boulevard" (1950) Haven't seen it. Ditto.
17. "The Graduate" (1967) One of my favorites - but kind of campy. Good film, but not one of my favorites.
18. "The General" (1927) Haven't seen it. Ditto.
19. "On the Waterfront" (1954) Not a Brando fan. One of the few Brando films I like.
20. "It's a Wonderful Life" (1946) Have never seen this from start to finish - but I've probably seen the whole thing in bits and pieces. I like it. Love Jimmy Stewart. This is a Christmas standard - and that's what made me sick of it.
21. "Chinatown" (1974) Bleh. Not a Nicholson fan.
22. "Some Like It Hot" (1959) Funny. One of my hubby's favorites. She's right.
23. "The Grapes of Wrath" (1940) Didn't like it or the book (and I love Steinbeck). Haven't seen it.
24. "E.T. -- The Extra-Terrestrial" (1982) Not a favorite of mine. Too sappy for me.
25. "To Kill a Mockingbird" (1962) Out of these 100, this would probably be my #1. Fantastic book and movie. Wouldn't be my number one, but is a really good film.
26. "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" (1939) Okay. Ditto.
27. "High Noon" (1952) Haven't seen it. Good film.
28. "All About Eve" (1950) Haven't seen it. Ditto.
29. "Double Indemnity" (1944) Okay. Haven't seen it.
30. "Apocalypse Now" (1979) Yuck. Two hours of yawn and then he chops a guy's head off. Wow. (Duvall as a crazy guy is okay)
31. "The Maltese Falcon" (1941) Haven't seen it. Really good film.
32. "The Godfather, Part II" (1974) Boy movie. Bleh.
33. "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" (1975) Can't even come close to how good the book is. Doesn't do anything for me.
34. "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" (1937) A classic. I played a dwarf in a play - this was too traumatic to make me like the movie. I was Sneezy.
35. "Annie Hall" (1977) Yuck. Big deal.
36. "The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957) This would be in my top 10. Ditto.
37. "The Best Years of Our Lives" (1946) Haven't seen it. Ditto.
38. "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre" (1948) Haven't seen it. Ditto.
39. "Dr. Strangelove" (1964) I like this one. This would be in my top 10.
40. "The Sound of Music" (1965) One of the maybe 6 musicals I like. Ditto.
41. "King Kong" (1933) Not a favorite. I like this one.
42. "Bonnie and Clyde" (1967) Didn't like it. Bores the hell out of me.
43. "Midnight Cowboy" (1969) Okay. Ditto.
44. "The Philadelphia Story" (1940) Haven't seen it. Ditto.
45. "Shane" (1953) This would be a good movie if it weren't for that annoying kid whining "Shane, Shane." Ditto.
46. "It Happened One Night" (1934) Haven't seen it. Ditto.
47. "A Streetcar Named Desire" (1951) Brando - no. Nah.
48. "Rear Window" (1954) Great movie. Ditto.
49. "Intolerance" (1916)Haven't seen it. Ditto.
50. "Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" (2001) I just can't get into these movies. I don't get the point. This is one of the best trilogies I've seen.
51. "West Side Story" (1961) Musical! Bleh. Gangsters dancing? No.
52. "Taxi Driver" (1976) Yuck. I think this is pretty good.
53. "The Deer Hunter" (1978) Okay. Ditto.
54. "MASH" (1970) Yuck. You have to be into that era - I don't get it.
55. "North by Northwest" (1959) Amazing. Ditto.
56. "Jaws" (1975) Scary - great movie. "We're gonna need a bigger boat." Great line. Not great, but really good.
57. "Rocky" (1976) Bleh. I like the 1st one.
58. "The Gold Rush" (1925) Haven't seen it. Ditto.
59. "Nashville" (1975)Haven't seen it. Ditto.
60. "Duck Soup" (1933)Haven't seen it. Ditto.
61. "Sullivan's Travels" (1941)Haven't seen it. Ditto.
62. "American Graffiti" (1973)Didn't like it. Again - you have to be part of the era I think.
63. "Cabaret" (1972) Okay. Nah.
64. "Network" (1976) Love this one. Another great line - you know the one! Awesome.
65. "The African Queen" (1951) Fantastic - loved it. I like this one.
66. "Raiders of the Lost Ark" (1981) Great movie. Ditto.
67. "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" (1966) Haven't seen it. Ditto.
68. "Unforgiven" (1992) Booooooooooooooooooooooooooring. What is so great about this movie????!!!??!???!??!??!!!
69. "Tootsie" (1982) Fantastic. Really good.
70. "A Clockwork Orange" (1971) Wonderful. So creepy that it's in my top 10.
71. "Saving Private Ryan" (1998) Didn't like this one that much - hubby loves it. She said it already.
72. "The Shawshank Redemption" (1994) Fabulous. Ditto.
73. "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" (1969) Okay. Ditto.
74. "The Silence of the Lambs" (1991) Great. Here's a guy who DID pay attention to Hitchcock.
75. "In the Heat of the Night" (1967) Fantastic - amazing acting. Doesn't thrill me.
76. "Forrest Gump" (1994) Okay. Ditto.
77. "All the President's Men" (1976) Okay. Ditto.
78. "Modern Times" (1936)Haven't seen it. Ditto.
79. "The Wild Bunch" (1969)Haven't seen it. I think it's funny how Monty Python's take on this movie is about as bloody as the real movie.
80. "The Apartment" (1960)Haven't seen it. Ditto.
81. "Spartacus" (1960) Cheesy. Brilliant when made, but cheesy now.
82. "Sunrise" (1927)Haven't seen it. Ditto.
83. "Titanic" (1997)Cheesy - but good. Ditto.
84. "Easy Rider" (1969) Overrated. I don't get it.
85. "A Night at the Opera" (1935)Haven't seen it. Ditto.
86. "Platoon" (1986) Yuck. Okay for me on this one.
87. "12 Angry Men" (1957) Fantastic. Ditto.
88. "Bringing Up Baby" (1938) Haven't seen it. Funny. "Where's my intercostal clavical?" Funny.
89. "The Sixth Sense" (1999) Amazing. Ditto.
90. "Swing Time" (1936)Haven't seen it. Ditto.
91. "Sophie's Choice" (1982) Haven't seen it and didn't really like the book. Haven't seen it.
92. "Goodfellas" (1990) Boy movie - but I like this one. Not a fan.
93. "The French Connection" (1971) Good. One of the best car chases ever filmed.
94. "Pulp Fiction" (1994) Great. Ditto.
95. "The Last Picture Show" (1971)Haven't seen it. Ditto.
96. "Do the Right Thing" (1989)Bleh. One of the few Spike Lee films I like.
97. "Blade Runner" (1982) Bleeeeeeeeeeeeh. My husband loves this and I just don't get it. I think it's dark and boring and weird. And I think Harrison Ford ***IS*** a replicant. Yeah - I like this. She's so wrong. We're getting a divorce now.
98. "Yankee Doodle Dandy" (1942) Okay for a musical. I get that song stuck in my head all the time. James Cagney singing - come on....he's a gangster.
99. "Toy Story" (1995) Okay for a cartoon. It's a good film.
100. "Ben-Hur" (1959) Okay. Charleton Heston is one of the greatest actor's ever. (said very sarcastically in a hilarious Charleton Heston voice.)

We want to know....where is:

Giant?
Dr. Zhivago?
The Last Emporer?
Empire of the Sun?
Planet of the Apes? (This is Jeff's question - NOT MINE.)

Also, I wish there were more movies from when I was alive.

By the way, the links take you Roger Ebert's "Great Movies" reviews.

Apocalypto

Now I feel bad for making fun of this movie. I just watched it and really liked it. Whether or not you like Mel Gibson, this is a great film. Of course there is a ton of criticism about portraying the Mayans as "savage." Well they were kind of. As were the Romans, the Crusades, etc. I don't think Mel is trying to say that savageness is ALL the Mayans were about. It's a wonderful story - thrilling, beautifully filmed, engrossing, etc. I've also seen some criticism about the historical inaccuracies in the film. It's a good thing I don't get my history from films, huh? I didn't EXPECT it to be a documentary - it's a movie. If you want the "real" history go buy a book or something.

Had a really nice weekend with the folks. So good to get out of town and just relax for a few days.

The Queen

Watched a fantastic movie today called "The Queen." It's stars Helen Mirren (who won the Best Actress Oscar - deservedly) as Queen Elizabeth II. The movie tells the story of the week that Princess Diana died. The acting in the movie is just amazing. You really start believing that you're watching the real people involved. The story itself is just mesmerizing. It's so interesting to see how there was such a clash between the traditional Queen and modern Prime Minister. At first the Queen seems so cold and distant - it's so obvious that the Royal Family disliked Diana. But her primary struggle is so internal. She wants to stick by the old traditions and protocols, but the situation demanded something different. The whole concept of a monarchy and royalty seems so strange when you're from this country. The whole family seems so stiff and formal - almost trapped by their traditions. But you also do get the feeling that the Queen cares for her family (especially her grandsons) and her country. It's difficult to fault her behavior when she really knows no other way to behave. At one point she says something like, "Country first, self second." She truly believes this and has LIVED it her entire life. Not many people can say that. This is a movie that I am going to buy. I highly recommend it.

P.S. Prince Phillip comes off looking like a class A jerk. I did some reading about him and he does seem woefully out of touch and snooty. He weirdly insists on taking Diana's sons hunting every day. Maybe it's a British thing, but I can't imagine taking children hunting when their mother just died. What strange, strange lives these people lead.

Guest Blogging - Sioux Lady

Below is a piece written by Sioux Lady. Anyone who wants to "guest blog" on here - just let me know. Being the control freak that I am, I will OF COURSE vet the piece first, but what the heck - it is MY blog! Enjoy.

A PERFECT DIAL “M” FOR MURDER

The similarities and differences between Alfred Hitchcock’s 1954 “Dial M for Murder” and Andrew Davis’s 1998 remake “A Perfect Murder” tell us more about cultural changes that have occurred in the last 44 years than they do about the movie-making skills of either.

They movies have the same plot line. A money-desperate husband plots the murder of his beautiful, elegant, heiress wife who he knows has taken a lover and will leave him. He hires/blackmails someone else to do the “wet work.” He leaves her apartment key in a hidden place and shows the killer how that will guarantee his easy access. The killer is to make the killing look like a robbery gone wrong. The husband arranges to be surrounded by others miles from home while the deed is being done, but calls home at just the right time to place his wife in the “kill zone.” The husband hears the murder attempt taking place over the open line. However, the wife kills the killer. The husband makes a key blunder which eventually proves he is guilty of conspiracy to commit murder.

Some plot differences: Hitchcock’s movie is set in London; Davis’s in New York. In “Dial M,” the hired killer is an old Oxford schoolmate of the husband who is a complete stranger to the wife. He was a petty thief at school and, using an alias, has become much worse since – mostly bilking lonely women. In “Perfect,” the hired killer, using an alias, is the wife’s lover. He was a juvenile delinquent and has served time in prison as an adult where he developed an innate artistic talent. He, too, has spent his time since bilking lonely widows and is currently wanted for theft of bearer bonds. The wife does not know of his past and is helping to promote his artistic talent. In both cases, the husband uses the threat of exposure and the payment of a lot of money to get the killer to do the deed.

In “Dial M,” the husband finds a letter from the lover to the wife and mails her anonymous blackmail threats. The wife shares these letters with her lover. In “Perfect,” the husband sets detectives on the lover to learn of his past and on his wife to get pictures of her liaisons. The husband also writes a phony blackmail letter, but doesn’t send it. Both husbands contrive to have the killers pick up dropped envelops containing the love letter in “Dial M” and the blackmail letter and pictures in “Perfect” to place their fingerprints thereupon and use this as part of the threat. In both movies, the husband has the killer in the apartment in order to demonstrate how the murder is to be done. In “Perfect,” however, this requires the husband and lover/killer to meet twice; once when the proposition/threat is made at the lover/killer’s apartment and, again, at the husband’s apartment. This is important to the plot because it gives the lover/killer an opportunity to tape record the husband’s killing directions.

The most important plot difference between the two movies is that, in “Dial M,” the wife, after killing the killer, picks up the phone and finds her husband on the line. In a state of shock, she he tells him what happened. He tells her not to touch anything or call the police and rushes home. After sending her to lie down in the bedroom, he re-arranges the evidence to incriminate her. He places the love letter in the dead killer’s pocket, takes the apartment key out of the killer’s pocket and places it back in his wife’s purse, burns in the fireplace the scarf the killer had tried to use to strangle the wife and replaces it with her stockings to make it look like she planted them there after using them to make “strangle” marks on her neck. He is successful in all of this and she is tried, convicted and sentenced to death for the murder of a blackmailer.

In “Perfect,” the husband arrives home before the police. He goes first to “console” his blood-soaked wife and finds the blood trail back to the kitchen where the killer lies dead with a ski-mask on. He only has time to take her apartment key out of the dead man’s pocket and put it back on her key ring and make scratches on the back door faking a forced entry before the police arrive. Imagine his surprise when the ski-mask is removed and the dead man is not the lover, but a complete stranger the lover hired to do the “wet work.”

The cultural differences between the two movies are immense. First, as to violence. In “Dial M,” while we see the killer try to strangle the wife and her use a scissors to stab him in the back – not one drop of blood is shown. The killer falls backwards on to the scissors which drives it in deep enough to kill him. The place where the killer fell is covered by an area rug in later scenes. That is all the violence there is in the whole movie. In “Perfect,” we see the killer try to murder the wife and her use a handy meat thermometer to stab him in the throat. Blood squirts. There is blood smeared everywhere and one great pool of it. This movie has two more violent scenes.

Language. There is not a “hell” or a “damn” in the whole of “Dial M.” “Perfect” is littered with the “f” word among others.

Sex. In “Dial M,” the husband and wife exchange hello and goodbye spousal kisses. The lover barely touches the wife and the only way we know of any sex between them is because the husband tells the killer he followed them once to the lover’s apartment where they were making spaghetti together. Unless “making spaghetti” was some fifties euphemism for going at it hot and heavy, that is as much “sex” as there is. In “Perfect,” torrid bed scenes and passionate embraces between the wife and lover leave nothing to the imagination – darn it!

The most interesting cultural difference, however, is the difference between the role of the men and women in the two movies particularly that of the two detectives and the two leading ladies. (The role of the lover in “Dial M” is not important. He believes his lover to be innocent and, being a writer of mystery novels, realizes what must have happened, but he cannot prove it.) In “Dial M,” the Scotland Yard detective is the hero of the story. Learning of some odd behavior on the part of the husband after the wife’s conviction, he realizes that something “smells.” With further investigation, he figures out what really happened, entraps the husband, saves the hapless, dazed and confused wife from the gallows and delivers her into the arms of her lover.

In “Perfect,” while the detective believes there is something wrong with the scenario that the killer was robbing the apartment when surprised by the wife who he then tries to kill, he has not the least idea of what really happened. It is the wife who figures it out. She is not just a housewife like the fifties “Dial M” wife, but a high-powered – at least tri-lingual – career woman who works as an assistant to a United Nations ambassador. After the attack she had been as hapless, dazed and confused as the “Dial M” wife, but after a time she gets over it, attempts to contact her lover, gets on with her plan to leave her husband and moves out. She is suspicious that he might have been behind the attack and uses her high-level contacts to have his finances investigated. She learns that he is in deep financial trouble. When she confronts her husband, he shows her proof of her lover’s past and his “proof” of her lover’s attempt at blackmail. She accepts it all as factual, apologizes to him and moves back in. The husband kills the lover who attempts to blackmail him with the recording he had made. The lover – who did really love the wife – had sent her a copy of the recording, but the husband intercepts it and puts it in a safe in the apartment.

“Perfect” does not quite make clear what re-arouses the wife’s suspicions, but, becoming so, she figures out the combination to the safe, finds the recording, and locates the key piece of evidence. Instead of calling the police, she taunts the husband into trying to kill her. Once he strikes her and she has proof of his second attempt, she pulls a gun and shoots him dead in self-defense. When the detective arrives he listens to the recording and gazes at the wife in awe. I did, too!

How did “Dial M” end? The detective first clears the wife using the key piece of evidence; then uses it to entrap the husband. The four main characters are now all in the apartment together. The husband makes a half-hearted attempt to flee, but when he finds the exits guarded, he goes to the bar to pour himself a drink. He cordially asks his wife and lover if they would like one. They graciously accept. The camera pans to the detective who takes a comb from his pocket to smooth his “veddy” English moustache as he smiles in smug self-satisfaction. How civilized!

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to figure out which of the movies I prefer.

I hate winter

I'm just going to complain and whine and ramble aimlessly around in this post so feel free to skip it.

This weekend and the last were the ONLY two weekends I had any plans this entire winter. So of course we had blizzards both times. Ugh. Someone come back to this site in mid-June and remind me why I moved to South Dakota. (It's because mid-June in St. Louis is kind of like living on the sun - but with 100% humidity.)

I really have nothing else to say. I've been playing over at MySpace quite a bit. I've also been looking for new templates for this blog. Can't really find anything a) that I like or b) is easy to upload. I think I've been to every blog template site in the known universe. I found one really nice one, but it pushed the columns all the way over to the left side and I didn't like that at all. I'm sure there's a way to fix that problem, but it seems to complicated and not really worth the effort. For those of you who are kind enough to offer free blog templates, can I offer you one suggestion? Please make your sites easier to search. I'm sure there are lots of templates I would love, but I don't want to page through 16,000 thumbnails to find them.

I'm hoping we can get out of town tomorrow. The storm is over, but there is apparently no plan in this ENTIRE STATE for snow removal. This is city is the worst place I've ever seen for the lack of snow removal. We had a decent day where everything was getting slushy and they did nothing. Why not scrape the streets down? Because then later that night it snowed again so we had fresh snow on top of rutted, lumpy, re-frozen slush. It certainly makes driving an adventure. I'm sure it's REALLY awful for my husband - I am not a fun passenger. I'm given to gasps and winces and obnoxious (and obvious) suggestions. The dear, sweet man must go through an enormous amount of self-restraint to not slap me silly.

I just read a news story that there is going to be a TV show made about those cavemen from the Geico commercials. My mom will be so disappointed - she has a really weird love for that little gecko they use in the commercials. I even searched all over the internet for a little figurine of that thing to get her for her birthday. All I could find were stuffed animals and bobble-heads that looked nothing like the commercial character.

We just watched a great movie called "The Dancer Upstairs." It stars the ridiculously hot Javier Bardem and was directed by John Malkovich. It's a story about an honest detective in an unnamed Latin American country who is trying to find a communist terrorist. It's loosely based on the Shining Path movement in Peru. I really love the movie (not just for the terribly sexy Javier). Kind of a slow-paced, introspective film. Beautifully shot. Near the beginning of the movie there is an unexpectedly hilarious quip about cat lovers (spoken by the dreamy Mr. Bardem). The line is made more funny by the fact that it's not a comedy at all. If you can find this movie I highly recommend it.

Wow - I hope no one thinks I'm going to start stalking that actor.

This is the most boring post I've ever done - I apologize!!!

Hello to Hollywood

It's Oscar night. Here are my picks for the major categories. (Because I don't really give a hoot about sound editing and it just makes the show way longer than it needs to be.)
Keep in mind that these are not the ones *I* want to win - these are the ones I think are going to win.

Best Picture - Babel
Best Director - Martin Scorsese (or however it's spelled) for The Departed
Best Actor - Forest Whitaker for The Last Kind of Scotland
Best Actress - Helen Mirren for The Queen
Best Supporting Actor - Eddie Murphy for Dreamgirls
Best Supporting Actress - Jennifer Hudson for Dreamgirls
Best Animated Feature - Cars
Screenplay (Adapted) - Borat
Scrrenplay (Original) - Babel

I could be wrong.

Here's another recipe for a snowy winter day.

Chicken Alfredo With Broccoli

I'm going to do this in sections like I cook it.

3 tbsp olive oil - or whatever - drizzle it around the pan - however much that is.
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts - cubed
3 cloves garlic - minced
1/3 cup dry white wine
2 tbs italian seasoning

Heat oil in a medium skillet.
Salt and pepper chicken to taste and brown thoroughly.
Add garlic.
Use wine to deglaze pan.
Add italian seasoning to taste.
Remove from heat and place in large bowl - be sure to get all juices.

1 bag frozen broccoli florets OR
1/2 lb fresh broccoli

Cook broccoli to desired tenderness in microwave or on stove top. I do about 3 minutes, then stir, then three more minutes in the microwave with a splash of water. Add broccoli to bowl with chicken.

***GLUTEN ALERT***

Start a large pot of water boiling for pasta and cook according to package directions.

Magical Alfredo Sauce

1 stick butter
1 pint whipping cream
1 cup Parmesan cheese
1 cup Romano cheese
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
***note*** You will have to adjust the cheese to your taste and texture preferences. I like my Alfredo sauce to be creamy with just a hint of grainy/gritty cheese.

Melt butter in a large, heavy sauce pan over medium heat.
Add cream and allow to heat fully.
Add cheeses A LITTLE AT A TIME, whisking until incorporated fully.
Remove from heat when all chese is melted.

If you add the cheese too fast it will make a big lump at the bottom of the pot with cream on top. You do not want this.

Drain pasta and combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Garnish with your favorite cheese and serve.

One note of warning - this is a delicious recipe, but it does not reheat very well. The butter in the sauce tends to separate if you re-heat in the microwave. A better idea might be to keep the sauce separate and re-heat on the stove for leftovers. Like the strata recipe from a few posts ago, this is very versatile. The magic really is in the Alfredo sauce. You could substitute shrimp for the chicken and really any vegetable for the broccoli. I got the basics of this recipe from my cousin, but I really think adding white wine to whatever meat you use really makes a difference. I experimented with adding the wine to the sauce, but wound up with a big glop of cheese underneath the cream. I think the wine works better with the meat and it does help deglaze the pan nicely. Experiment with the sauce and fine-tune it to your tastes. I know there's A TON of fat in there with the butter and the cream - but what the heck - it's dinner one night - it won't kill you. And if it does, at least you'll die really really well fed!!!

If anyone makes any of my recipes, please tell me how it turned out and what you added/changed to make it even better or to suit your personal tastes.

My hubby and little boy made this snowman yesterday. Too cute.

A Great Big Long Rant

Nothing much in the news over the past couple of days.

I did watch the most interesting documentary today. It's called "This Film Is Not Yet Rated" and it's an expose of the MPAA film rating process. If you like movies and can find this at your local video store (it comes out on Tuesday) I highly recommend it.

So the MPAA is the group that decides what rating a film gets - G, PG, PG-13, R, or NC-17. The whole process is completely secret and no one even knows who the raters are. This group is not a government entity - they are part of the film industry. They would argue that they do not "censor" movies because a filmmaker does not have to accept or use a rating on their film. That's all well and good, but if a filmmaker doesn't accept a rating, or doesn't fight an NC-17 their film will get little distribution, advertising, etc. So no rating or a "bad" rating is effective censorship, if not actual.

The raters are supposed to represent the "average, ordinary parent." Only one of the nine raters has children under the age of 18. There is some evidence that the raters favor studio pictures over independent films. It is very difficult for an independent filmmaker to get any feedback on why their film received a certain rating. A filmmaker can appeal a ruling, and this process is even more shadowy. Rarely is a ruling overturned and there are always two members of the clergy involved in the appeal process.

The raters tend to give harsher ratings to movies with either explicit sex, "aberrant" sex, or even a lot of talk about sex. They do not seem to have much of a problem with gratuitous violence. This is almost the exact opposite of the film rating system in Europe.

The documentary eventually exposes the members of the MPAA who do the ratings as well as the members of the appeals board. Probably the ultimate irony is that the documentary itself received an NC-17 rating. The MPAA says it's because of the clips of other films used in the documentary. The director rejected the rating and his film is literally not rated.

I am a HUGE fan of movies and found this documentary utterly fascinating. I've often found myself puzzled by the ratings that certain films receive and why. One example off the top of my head is "The Day After Tomorrow." This is a silly film about weather - nevermind, it's not even worth going into. But anyway, it's PG-13 for "situations of extreme peril." What the heck is a situation of extreme peril? It seems to me that the little lion cub in the "Lion King" spent a lot of his time in situations of extreme peril - why isn't that one PG-13? Oh but wait - filmmakers who appeal a decision by the MPAA aren't allowed to bring up the ratings that other films get. If they try, they will be cut off by the MPAA lawyer present at the appeal hearing.

So what's the solution? No ratings, government ratings, the same system, a modified system, what? I vote for no ratings. I don't need other people to tell me what's ok for my kids to watch. What may offend one person might be perfectly acceptable to me and vice versa. It is my responsibility as a parent to keep track of what my kids are doing. I know the next argument is - "well what about all those parents that don't keep track of stuff like that for their kids????" Well for one, too bad - I can only worry about my crew. But furthermore, if there is some child out there who has such disinterested parents that that child is watching porn all day long, the kid has FAR bigger problems to face than the effect of a couple of movies.

I know I've gone on about this for way too long. But I'm just so opposed to any kind of intrusion into the decisions private citizens make for themselves or their children. I don't want ANY organization telling me or my kids what movies we can see, books we can read, groups we can associate with, etc. But if there must be a system in place, it doesn't seem to me that the MPAA is going about matters in any kind of fair or reasonable fashion.

Here are some links if you're interested.

This Film Is Not Yet Rated
MPAA
A review of the documentary can be found here.

Return of the mutant deer!

A couple of posts back, I challened Kat to think up a name for a herd of mutant deer. My contribution was a "freak of mutated deer." I think her responses are way better and way funnier:

Basic: a quirk of mutant deer
Culturally dated: The monstrosities formerly known as deer
Generic: a fold of refabricated fauna
Foretelling of doom: a harbinger of hinds
Overly dramatic: a horde of hair-raising harts
Strictly alliterative: a drove of deviant deer
Gross: dinner

I've not seen any amazing news stories in the last couple of days. I did see an amazing new movie out on DVD. It's called "The Illusionist" and stars Edward Norton, Paul Giamatti, Rufus Sewell, and Jessica Biel. Absolutely wonderful romance/mystery. Even if you wind up not being wild about the plot, the acting is superb and the cinematography is just breathtaking. You feel as if you're watching a very old movie in terms of the lighting and mood. Next time I get near Wal-Mart (which is WAY too often), I'm going to buy this one. Four stars.

Speaking of four stars. I need some sort of rating system. Stars are boring. And no, Mom, I'm not going to do the cigarette test. (My mom rates a movie she sees in the theater by how many times she leaves to go smoke - e.g. One smoke is a pretty good movie, four smokes she might as well stayed home). Maybe I'll have my hubby graphic design something up for me.

So Sorry Saturday

Well since all of my readers how now officially registered complaints, I'd better dang well post something new!! But first, let me offer some (lame) explanations:

1) It was the holiday season - how much work did YOU get done?
2) I ended my old job and started a new job - busy busy!
3) My modem freaked out and died and we had to get a new one.
4) Other than people dying (Brown, Ford, Hussein) not a heck of a lot caught my eye.
5) I'm just terrible at this - which I believe I explained a few posts back
6) All of the above.

One really interesting news article did actually catch my eye a couple of days ago. Since one of my readers (MOM) complained about links with no explanation, here's a brief summary. These parents had their severely handicapped daughter's growth stunted to keep her physically small in order to make it easier for them to care for her at home. You'll have to go read this and tell me what you all think. I find myself siding with the parents. It's a difficult question, but I'd love other opinions.

This story about infant car seats really hacked me off. We have spent so much money on these things and they probably weren't any good anyway.

Here's a way to get free instruction from MIT. I can't do basic algebra, but this might be fun for someone. The article raises some interesting thoughts about the future of education.

I love my cats, but this just seems COMPLETELY INSANE!!!! (and slightly unsanitary)

Finally, here's a late picture that I should have posted on Friday.



Oh, by the way - I went to a movie today called "The Holiday." I really liked it. Good, light romantic comedy.

A new reader!!!!

Okay, maybe not. I was all excited because I got an "anonymous" comment. Turns out it was my friend Lynn. *sigh* So the task for my three readers (I'm giggling so hard - three readers - woohoo - I've gone viral) is to get someone else reading this thing. Your mission, should you choose to accept it - no, the heck with that - THIS IS YOUR MISSION! No choice!!

By the way Kat, I still can't get that herd of mutated deer comment out of my head. So I'm thinking that we need to think of name for that. You know - like a murder of crows or gaggle of geese. My pick: a freak of mutated deer. Your turn! :)

On to the news of the day.

Pres. Bush wants to increase the military. GOOD. I know there are lots of people who hate Bush, hate Cheney, and (sorry Mom) hate Rumsfeld, but you know what? WE HAVEN'T BEEN ATTACKED AGAIN. At the end of the day, that's all that matters to me. After eight years of Clinton doing nothing - 9/11 happens. After 9/11 and the Bush administration starts kickin' butt and taking names - WE HAVEN'T BEEN ATTACKED AGAIN. Here's the article.

Here's a stupid criminal story - and maybe an argument for the legalization of drugs?

I absolutely cannot believe this article. A guy cheats on his wife and gets a huge payday???? And I thought the U.S. was bad for frivolous lawsuits. I wonder if John Edwards was on the legal team?

DVDs out today:
Lady In the Water - waste of time, stay away.
My Super Ex-Girlfriend - ditto
The Wicker Man - ditto
Little Miss Sunshine - kinda quirky and weird.
Step Up - not bad if you like dance movies - and you are a 12 year old girl.
Invincible - fantastic. Based on the story of Philadelphia Eagles Vincent Papale. I could have done without the moody/gloomy/dark atmosphere at the beginning, but it picks up. Also, it appears that Philadelphia in 1975 was entirely sepia.

Mom, you will only (maybe) like the last one - don't even bother with any of the others.

And finally this news for all the chubby people (yes, this does include me....why do you think I have only a face photo on here???!!!??). Maybe we'll all be fashion models some day. HAHAHAHAHA! *laughs her way up to the kitchen for some fattening snacks*

Things I found

Here are a couple of interesting articles I read today.

Don't Sit Up Straight!
Drink More Red Wine


I guess I posted these backwards - it's a lot easier to function at a 135 degree angle AFTER you drink the wine! :)

Been on this British film kick. In the past week I've watched Pride & Prejudice (new version and BBC version), Persuasion, Sense & Sensibility, A Room With A View, Four Weddings & A Funeral, and Notting Hill. Obviously, I need to get out more. All really fine films. At the same time, I've been re-reading all my Michael Connelly books. There could be nothing more dissimilar than Michael Connelly and British film, but that's what's captured my attention the past few days. Connelly has a new book out and I wanted to catch up with the characters before I get the new one. (Hopefully for Christmas HINT HINT HINT!!!) For anyone who enjoys the mystery/suspense genre, there is hardly a better writer out there than Connelly. Engaging stories, interesting characters, well written prose - just really good books. Will they be adapted into Merchant/Ivory films starring the greats of British film? No. But enjoyable all the same.

Speaking of film, I just saw the new Superman movie - Superman Returns. The movie bombed with critics and I don't think did all that great at the box office. Personally, I kind of liked it. I do have one HUGE complaint about the movie which I had read about on other blog sites. At one point, one of the characters talks about "truth, justice, and all that stuff." Because God forbid that anyone in Hollywood promote anything about America. For someone who loves this country that phrase REALLY stood out as being offensive and quite childish in terms of how the entertainment industry behaves.

On a more ironic note, I've been reading that Angelina Jolie (who is rumored to be starring as Dagny Taggert in the film version of Atlas Shrugged) is playing Marianne Pearl in a movie called A Mighty Heart. Pearl is the widow of murdered journalist Daniel Pearl and the movie is based on her book about the whole incident. What I find so funny about this whole thing is that apparently some people are unhappy with the casting of Jolie in this role because she is white and Marianne Pearl is mixed race. Funny how you don't hear complaints like that when Denzel Washington is cast in The Pelican Brief in a role that was white in the book. Or Morgan Freeman in The Shawshank Redemption. Hypocrites. I do have to say though that apparently Sheri Belafonte said that she had no problem with Jolie in the role and wouldn't mind Jolie playing her in a movie about her life. So despite my problems with Harry Belafonte, I may be the newest fan of Sheri.

Movie review

Just watched "Mrs. Henderson Presents." Fantastic film. I love Judi Dench. Funny movie, well acted, etc. I give it 3 stars out of 4.

I got a comment about the pronounciation of Anais. It's Ahn-eye-eece.

Wow I hope this isn't lame

So here it is. My first post to my first blog. I really have no idea what this is going to be about or how often I'll update it or if anyone on the planet will read it. I feel like I'm under all this pressure now to be witty and fascinating. But who is, really? I think I'm just going to make random comments on things around me - my life, the news, movies, people (with names changed to protect the innocent or phenomenally stupid), etc. I suppose this won't be the most wildly original thing in the world, but it could be kind of fun.

I just re-watched the film "Henry & June." I have to wonder what Anais Nin could have done with a blog. Maybe nothing. Her unexpurgated diaries weren't published until most of the main characters had died. Is this a good thing? Do we need a bunch of would be diarists (sp?) out here spewing every little thought they have into the void? Do we need to know every thought everyone is having at the minute they have them? Does anyone remember that episode of Gilligan's Island where they ate the sunflower seeds (I think) that allowed them to read each other's minds? That would be bad. I'd hate to give up my spits. Anyway, I'll try not to bore the world with the minutae of my life. I'm just giving this a whirl.