Sunday Sunset #31

Book finished: Bachelor Girl; A Beautiful Mess Photo Idea Book; Winnie the Pooh; Cotillion

Reading: Storm Glass by Maria Snyder

On the Nightstand: Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift; The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman; Cape Storm by Rachel Caine

MakingLists: Bloggiesta is right around the corner (next weekend in fact!) and I want to take part while I still have some free time.  I've made a huge list of blog related tasks (mostly back-end stuff).  Among those tasks: reformatting and adding pictures to many previous posts.  When we switched hosts, some of older posts went all wonky.  I really want to get those fixed.  Plus, I've got some tagging issues to resolve and templates to make.  Currently my task list is sitting at 12 items, but it could grow longer before the even starts.

Around the house: We have the travel system put together, but the crib is still sitting in the box in the middle of the dining area.  Have to convince J to put that together soon if only for my anxiety...

On the Job: After almost an entire pay period with no work, this week I finally had tasks to finish and get paid for.  I'm doing well budgeting my limited income, but am hoping to work more in the next month to make a cushion before the baby comes.  I'd like to keep paying for the groceries and finish paying off one of student loans before the paychecks dry up... Hopefully I don't get too frustrated at the ridiculousness and just quit early.

From the kitchen: Tried another random Rachael Ray recipe.  J and I both agreed that it needed more spice even though I put in more than the recipe called for.  I feel like many of her recipes are just too bland as is.  I should remember that by now.  I think it's time to try some that aren't Rachael Ray.  Maybe some random saved recipes in my bookmark history.  And definitely something sweet baked in the oven.  I'm thinking coffee cake!

On the Web: I started reading a personal blog from one of the other October mamas to be and it's a bit scary how close many of our pregnancy experiences are.  I definitely put her in my blogroll so I can see pics of her little girl when she's born.  Currently our due dates are one day apart.

Crafting: Absolutely nothing this week.  Boo!  I spent a lot of time reading and working.  My goal is to get back to scrapbooking the family album this week.  I wanted to be completely caught up by October.  For that to happen, I need to get moving.  I've neglected the boys' albums for the time being.  If I can get the family album done, then I'm in a much better place to transition to Project Life in October.  Fingers crossed!  Maybe I should block out time on my calendar for scrapbooking.  That might be a better way of reminding myself to make time for it!

Watching: Kitchen Nightmares S1 and S2 (while I work); ST:TNG S6; ST:DS9 S1; Suits (OMG so good!); random movies for September's Month of Movies.  Nothing too exciting as I've been focusing more on reading than watching television or movies, but some good shows.

Pregnancy Update: I'll be doing a more in depth post for my 36 weeks on Tuesday.  In short, much of the same.  Just waiting really.  Although I'm pretty sure I felt some Braxton Hicks' contractions Friday night.  Very weird feeling!  But they went away quickly enough.

From Nature: Fairly consistent 75-80 degree temperatures this past week.  After hearing about the horrible storms throughout the midwest (my hometown had many flooded roads), I am extra grateful for the always gorgeous weather here.  I can still enjoy a swim in the pool and a walk to the coffeehouse without any hassle.  Also loving the consistent temperatures.  In my hometown the temperature dropped 40 degrees from one day to the next last week.  No thank you!  I do not miss that at all.

Shopping Scores: A Beautiful Mess just released a designed Project Life kit that was way too adorable not to snap up.  I already have a kit for PL (Seaform Edition), but I figure most of the colors from both kits work well together.  I'll just have a ton of inserts to choose from.  The kit should arrive on Wednesday.  Can't wait to open it up and look at all the pretty.

Project: Still prepping the house for baby's arrival.  I still want to get some of the closets cleaned out and the rest of the nursery in place (crib, mobile, wall decor).  We will see...

MoM #15: Everything You Want (Love Surreal)

Title: Everything You Want (Love Surreal)

Year Released/Rating: 2005

Starring: Shiri Appleby, Nick Zano, Alexandra Holden

Directed By: Ryan Little

Written By: Steven A. Lee, Kevin Lawrence King, Natalie Prado

Genre: Comedy, Romance

Star Rating:  3/5 stars

Where I Got It: Netflix

Summary: It was at a very young age that Abby found herself experimenting with the gift of art while she practically grew up with her aunt while her parents would travel the world without her. Years later she's living with her friend and co-worker Jessica and has the perfect boyfriend, Sy, who doesn't mind seeing romantic comedies, posing for her artwork, and playing in the snow. But suddenly Abby begins tutoring Jessica's cousin, Quinn, about the world of art and while doing so finds herself torn between what real love is. Can she choose between the perfect boyfriend of her dreams and the fun-loving boy from her humanities class? Written by cestlavie03

Review: 

About halfway through the movie, I realized that I have seen this before...  Show's just how memorable a movie it is.  That said, it's a run of the mill made for tv romantic comedy.  The characters are fairly likable.  The plotline is fairly predictable.  That's just about it...  Nothing really else too explain.

Best Bits: 

• [in an art gallery] Quinn Andrews: It looks like spaghetti.  Abby Morrison: Well maybe to you, but I happen to see something else.  Quinn Andrews: Fettucini, I got it.
• Quinn Andrews: [while playing pong - the first primitive video game] Just quick question man, when are you gunna get a new game?  Calvin Dillwaller: They made new games?
• Sy: If he breaks your heart... I'll ...  Abby Morrison: What are you gunna do huh? Are you gunna like stab him with some imaginary sword?
• Quinn Andrews: Cal, the light.  Calvin Dillwaller: Quinn, the pants.  Quinn Andrews: What?  Calvin Dillwaller: I thought we were playing word association!  Quinn Andrews: No! Just shut off the light!

MoM #14: Super Cyclone

Title: Super Cyclone

Year Released/Rating: 2012

Starring: Ming-Na, Nicholas Turturro, Andy Clemence

Directed By: Liz Adams

Written By: Liz Adams

Genre: Action, Scifi

Star Rating:  1/5 stars

Where I Got It: Netflix

Summary: An oil rig accidentally drills into an underwater volcano, unleashing an unstoppable tornado! Indeed, the tornado gets so powerful that it picks up Navy cutters like tinker toys. Then it makes the sky rain oil, then fire. And somehow the oil rig does not get scooped up like Wizard of Oz... somehow. Additionally, the big tornado seems to hover in just one spot for almost the whole movie! Don't ask too many science questions. You won't get answers as to how the sky can catch on fire. You won't get answers about ships weighing hundreds of tons can get catapulted into the air. You won't get answers as to what nanotubes have to with bad weather. And you certainly won't get answers as to how an 18" drill bit can create... a Super Cyclone!

Review: 

Another ridiculous Asylum disaster movie.  The continuity errors in the first 10 minutes alone had me rolling with laughter.  This is just so incredibly unbelievable.  Somehow a drilling platform creates a super tornado somehow connected with a volcano.  Yeah right!  Notice that the summary is longer than my review.  Basically this is horrid.  Just an small example of the ridiculous: Repeatedly we are told there is a severe storm present, yet shots of the actors show them in clear sunny weather with well defined shadows. Last note: I remember when Ming-Na was on ER and could actually act.  What the hell happened?

TYT Readathon Update #2

Pages Read: 159 (Winnie the Pooh) + 240 (A Beautiful Mess Photo Idea Book) +  482 (Cotillion)

Total Pages Read: 1481

Total Books Read: 5

Comments: Winnie the Pooh is a small volume, but still super enjoyable.  Love the ideas I got from A Beautiful Mess Photo Idea Book.  And I read an interesting Jane Austen-esque Regency romance.

Cotillion by Georgette Heyer

Title: Cotillion

Author: Georgette Heyer

Genre: Regency Fiction

Pages: 482

Rating:  3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Jane Austen; Mount TBR; Dusty Bookshelf

How I Got It: I own it

A sham betrothal isn't the only thing that gets Kitty and Freddy into trouble, but it's definitely the beginning ..

A most unusual hero Freddy is immensely rich, of course, and not bad-looking, but he's mild-mannered, a bit hapless-not anything like his virile, handsome, rakish cousin Jack ...

A heroine in a difficult situation Young Kitty Charing stands to inherit a vast fortune from her irascible and eccentric guardian-provided she marries one of his great-nephews ...

A sham betrothal No sooner does Kitty arrive in London then the race for her hand begins, but between confirmed rakes and bumbling affections, Kitty needs a daring scheme ...

I've read that Georgette Heyer is the successor to Jane Austen herself.  So I thought i would give her another chance (previously read The Black Moth), but I am a bit disappointed.  That isn't to say that Heyer is a bad writer.  I think overall the books is well written and interesting.  It's just not Jane Austen to me.  Heyer doesn't have the wit or the social awareness of Austen.  I predicted the plot line, but that's not the main problem.  I could predict Austen's plot lines before I got 30 pages into her novels.  The issue is that unlike Austen, Heyer's characters are caricatures to me.  I just can't seem to get behind any of them.  They seem so one dimensional.  I want to be surprised or at least enchanted with the main characters.  Yet, I felt none of that here.  Overall, many people may love this book, it just wasn't for me.

MoM #13: Midnight in Paris

Title: Midnight in Paris

Year Released/Rating: 2011 PG-13

Starring: Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Kathy Bates, Marion Cotillard

Directed By: Woody Allen

Written By: Woody Allen

Genre: Comedy, Fantasy, Romance

Star Rating:  5/5 stars

Where I Got It: Library Loan

Trivia:

• Director Woody Allen attempted to shoot the film in Paris in 2006, but abandoned the project as it was too expensive. In this version, the lead would have been played by David Krumholtz .
• Woody Allen stayed at the Hotel Le Bristol during filming - the same hotel where characters Inez and Gil stay.
• Carla Bruni, who plays the tour guide at the Rodin Museum, was also the First Lady of France at the time of filming (she has been married to then-President of France Nicholas Sarkozy since February 2008).
• When Zelda Fitzgerald suggests to Gil that they leave the party and go to Bricktop's, she is referring to Chez Bricktop, the famous Paris nightclub run by Ada Bricktop Smith. Ada Smith appeared as herself in Woody Allen's Zelig as one of the modern-day "witnesses".
• Hemingway and Gil visit Gertrude Stein, who is arguing with Picasso. In the background there is a portrait of her on the wall, painted by Picasso in 1906.
• The painting of Adriana is actually called "La Baigneuse" (The Bather) and was painted in 1928.
• 'Tom Hiddleston' received a letter from Woody Allen, along with 15 pages of the script, offering him the role of F. Scott Fitzgerald. "It was three sentences long," Hiddleston told Entertainment Weekly. "Dear Tom, I'm making a movie in Paris this summer. I attached some pages. I'd love for you to play the role of Scott." Hiddleston now has the letter framed and hanging up in his home office.
• The movie's key art incorporates Vincent van Gogh's famous painting "Starry Night." Interestingly, the character of van Gogh does not appear in the film, though he could well have done so in the "Belle Epoque" sequence.

Summary: While on a trip to Paris with his fiancée's family, a nostalgic screenwriter finds himself mysteriously going back to the 1920s every day at midnight.

Review: 

I think I have found my new favorite Woody Allen movie.  There's a mood to this movie that drew me in from the first shot.  I love the shots of everyone walking around Paris.  I love the colorization.  I love the softness.  Once I got through the sheer gorgeousness of the movie, I love each and every one of the characters.  So many huge figures of the past.  So many interesting twists to those characters and the present day ones.  I even liked Inez.  I know she's supposed to the bitch, but she's still very real.  Oftentimes the bitch character is a stereotype.  I didn't find that.  I loved Marion Cotillard's character of Adriana.  She was everything I can imagine a muse being.  It's only with Gil that we see her a real person.  Loved it!  And Kathy Bates as Gertrude Stein is perfect casting!  I love this movie.  I love the bit of fantasy done in a very realistic way.  And the dialogue is everything that I expect from a Woody Allen movie.  I loved this one so much!

Best Bits: 

• Gil: Yes, but you're a surrealist! I'm a normal guy!
• Adriana: That Paris exists and anyone could choose to live anywhere else in the world will always be a mystery to me.
• Gil: That was Djuna Barnes? No wonder she wanted to lead.
• Gil: You're very kind, but I wouldn't call my babbling poetic. Although I was on a pretty good roll there.
• Gertrude Stein: You have a clear and lovely voice. Don't be such a defeatist.
• Man Ray: A man in love with a woman from a different era. I see a photograph!  Luis Buñuel: I see a film!  Gil: I see insurmountable problem!  Salvador Dalí: I see rhinoceros!
• Gertrude Stein: The artist's job is not to succumb to despair but to find an antidote for the emptiness of existence.

FF #30: Inspired by the 1950s

I saw this dress on Polyvore and it just screamed 1950s to me.  There's something about the color and the beadwork that reminds of prom dresses of the era.  Of course, this one is a bit short to truly fit into the decade.  I decided to pair the dress with some classic yet modern silver accessories.  I especially love that cuff!

Dorothy Perkins embellished dress

dorothyperkins.com

Gianvito Rossi leather slip on shoes

$620 - harveynichols.com

Lucky Brand zebra jewelry

zappos.com

Silver jewellery

$29 - oliverbonas.com

MoM #12: Rapture-Palooza

Title: Rapture-Palooza

Year Released/Rating: 2013 R

Starring: Anna Kendrick, John Francis Daley, Craig Robinson

Directed By: Paul Middleditch

Written By: Chris Matheson

Genre: Comedy

Star Rating:  5/5 stars

Where I Got It: On the server

Summary: Two teens battle their way through a religious apocalypse on a mission to defeat the Antichrist.

Review: 

This is one of the those amazingly funny black comedies that most people would find offensive.  But I found it absolutely hilarious.  The love the ambivalent attitude of almost all of the characters.  To them the rapture is just another event.  They attempt to muddle through the new world order.  Lindsey's brother is my absolute favorite.  He's friends with the wraiths, smokes pot, and overall loves the effects of the rapture. Definitely not for everyone, but J and I loved it.

Best Bits: 

• Mr. House: There's no good reason to blow up Chicago. Except for the food, the weather and the people.
• Mr. House: You know, if you asked my opinion, the guy's gotten a bad rap.  Ben House: He's the antichrist, Dad.

MoM #11: Les Miserables

Title: Les Miserables

Year Released/Rating: 2012 PG-13

Starring: Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, Russell Crowe, Amanda Seyfried

Directed By: Tom Hooper

Written By: William Nicholson, Alain Boubill, Claude-Michel Schonberg, Herbert Kretzmer, Victor Hugo

Genre: Musical Drama

Star Rating:  5/5 stars

Where I Got It: Library Loan

Trivia: 

• Typically, the soundtrack for a movie musical is recorded several months in advance and the actors mime to playback during filming. However, on this film, every single song was recorded live on set to capture the spontaneity of the performances. Everyone involved, from Hugh Jackman to Russell Crowe to producer Cameron Mackintosh, have praised this approach as it allowed them to concentrate on their acting as opposed to lip-syncing properly. They have also praised director Tom Hooper for attempting this on such a scale; something no director has ever done before.
• Eddie Redmayne said that Tom Hooper shot the "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" scene about 15 times in a row.
• The large, crumbling elephant statue that features prominently during several scenes in the movie was both a real statue in Paris (between 1813 and 1846) and a focus of vivid description by Victor Hugo in his novel Les Misérables. Known as "The Elephant of the Bastille," Napoleon originally intended the statue to be a bronze monument to his military achievements at the former site of the Bastille, but the design was only ever rendered in plaster and wood; by the time of its demolition in 1846, the statue had become a haven for vermin and was significantly degraded structurally. In the novel, Hugo describes it as an ugly, dilapidated, widely despised public eyesore.
• Due to the physical demands of daily singing, none of the cast was allowed alcohol.Russell Crowe and Amanda Seyfried both admitted it was a challenge to not be able to drink, and Crowe bought Seyfried a bottle of whiskey as a present after filming wrapped.
• During the "Master Of The House" song (at around 49 minutes), you can see the Thenandiers stealing someone's bags. They traded it for a basket with a baby. That baby is actually Gavroche, the Thenandiers' abandoned child. It is not stated in the musical but it is in the book. In an interview with director Tom Hooper, he stated it was a clue to see if someone knew who actually that baby was.

Summary: In 19th-century France, Jean Valjean, who for decades has been hunted by the ruthless policeman Javert after he breaks parole, agrees to care for factory worker Fantine's daughter, Cosette. The fateful decision changes their lives forever.

Review: 

I didn't see it in the theaters, but I snapped it up when it appeared at the library.  I do love me some good Broadway musicals.  I've never been a huge fan of Les Miserables, but it's not one of the ones I detest.  It has an epic quality that I didn't think would translate to movie.  Yet, Hooper does a good job with the quiet moments and the large moments.  I think the second half works much better than the first half.  The first half it a bit stilted with so much time passing and so many different characters in different places.  Overall, I really did love it.

Best Bits: 

• Jean Valjean: To love another person is to see the face of God.
• Marius: Do I care if I should die now she goes across the sea? Life without Cosette means nothing at all... Would you weep, Cosette, should Marius fall. Will you weep, Cosette, for me?
• Jean Valjean: Who am I?  Marius: You're Jean Valjean...
• Marius: Oh, my friends! My friends, don't ask me what your sacrifice was for! Empty chairs at empty tables, where my friends shall sing no more.
• Gavroche: This is the land I fought for liberty, now when we fight, we fight for bread... here is the thing about equality, everyone's equal when they're dead.

Quote Wednesday -- Boynton

Research tells us that fourteen out of any ten individuals like chocolate. -- Sandra Boynton

Another one of my loves in addition to tea and coffee.  I love some good bitter chocolate.  We just picked up some great Venezuelan chocolate from a SF shop.  Yum yum.

A Beautiful Mess Photo Idea Book by Elsie Larson and Emma Chapman

Title: A Beautiful Mess Photo Idea Book

Author: Elsie Larson, Emma Chapman

Publisher: Potter Style 2013

Genre: Photography How-to

Pages: 240

Rating:  4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Nerdy -- How to; Bingo -- 4 2013 releases

How I Got It: Library Loan

Whether it’s of your sister’s smile, your morning coffee, or your new puppy, photos are a way to connect on Facebook and Instagram, keep a visual diary of our lives, and create momentos for future generations. Elsie Larson and Emma Chapman, creators of the mega-popular DIY style blog A Beautiful Mess, are in love with photographing everyday life. Here, they share that love with 95 all-new tips and photo challenges that will inspire you to style and snap better photos and then transform them into simple yet stunning projects and gifts.

I've followed the blog A Beautiful Mess for awhile now. I read about their book publication, but didn't seek out the finished project.  And then while perusing the new books section at the library, I spied it.  Flipping through, I was treated to gorgeous photographs.  When I started actually reading the tips, I found some great and easy ways to create beautiful photographs.  I may not follow every one of their tips, but I got some great ideas about how to classy up my pictures.  Plus they include some great little DIY projects using your photographs.  Very fresh.  Very fun.  Very useful.

MoM #10: Men in Black 3

Title: Men in Black 3

Year Released/Rating: 2012 PG-13

Starring: Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin

Directed By: Barry Sonnenfeld

Written By: Ethan Cohen, Lowell Cunningham

Genre: Action, Comedy, Scifi

Star Rating:  3/5 stars

Where I Got It: Library Loan

Trivia:

• This is Will Smith's first film in 3.5 years, since the release of Seven Pounds in December 2008. This is the longest he has gone without appearing in a movie since his film career started in 1993.
• The number CRM-114 makes two appearances in this movie in the form of text that appears on the outside wall of the Lunar Max prison (seen after Boris breaks out) and the ID for the bunker on the beach at Cape Canaveral. These numbers are a nod to director Stanley Kubrick, who used this number in his movie Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb.
• The zip line escape system shown at the Apollo launch pad really did exist. It was installed for the Apollo program and enhanced for the Space Shuttle program. In some pre-launch emergency scenarios, the crew would have ridden steel cages down the zip lines to explosion-proof bunkers. Astronauts practiced using the system as part of their training, but it was never used in an actual emergency.
• The white weird looking 'alien' fish which can be seen in the Chinese restaurant's kitchen scene is in fact an actual fish, Psychrolutes marcidus (or blobfish)
• Frank the Pug does not appear in this film, but his picture is seen in two places: J's apartment, and a carnival poster at Coney Island (seen when J is pulled over).

Summary: Agent J travels in time to M.I.B.'s early days in 1969 to stop an alien from assassinating his friend Agent K and changing history.

Review: 

Not really an amazing movie, but fairly entertaining.  I always like the combination of Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones.  Unfortunately, we don't get much of them together in this movie. Josh Brolin does a decent job of imitating Jones' K, but I just didn't completely buy it.  Plus, Boris the Animal is too much of a cartoony villain.  Not sinister in the least.  Okay for a free rental, but not worth actually paying for.

Best Bits: 

• [from trailer]  Agent J: All right, pay attention... [neuralyzes a crowd] Okay. You know how you kids won the goldfish in that little baggy at the school fair, and you didn't want that nasty thing in your house so you flushed it down the toilet? Well, this's what happened...  [points to an alien fish towed away]
• Andy Warhol: Dammit K, trying to blow my cover?  Agent J: Whoa, Andy Warhol's one of US?  Andy Warhol: Who's the dumbass?  Agent J: You know, I'd have no problem pimp-slapping the shiznit out of Andy Warhol.
• Griffin: The bitterest truth is better than the sweetest lie.
• [the crew of Apollo 11 are watching the fight between on the launch tower between the agents and bad guys]  Buzz Aldrin: If we report this, they're going to scrub the launch.  Neil Armstrong: [Passively] I didn't see anything.
• Agent J: You know, we been doing some pretty smart stuff over the past day or so, how about we do something stupid? Let's go get some pie!
• Agent K: Do you know the most destructive force in the universe?  Agent J: Sugar?  Agent K: Regret.

Winnie-The-Pooh by A.A. Milne

Title: Winnie-the-Pooh (Winnie-the-Pooh #1)

Author: A.A. Milne

Genre: Children's Classics

Pages: 159

Rating:  4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Classics -- Animal; Ebook; Bingo -- 3 rereads

How I Got It: iPad read

For nearly seventy years, readers have been delighted by the adventures of Christopher Robin and his lovable friends.  Paired with the perfectly suited drawings of Ernest H.  Shepard, A.A. Milne's classic story continues to captivate children of all ages.

A children's classic.  I don't remember all the violence from the Pooh stories, but maybe my memory is tainted by the Disney movies.  However, I am still a fan of the collection of stories.  These are perfect little stories to read to children before bedtime.  You better believe that I will be reading these stories to Arthur after he is born.  Definitely a classic for a reason.

TYT Readathon Update #1

Pages Read: 306 (Gale Force) + 294 (Bachelor Girl)

Total Pages Read: 600

Total Books Read: 2

Comments: Knocked off another Weather Wardens book.  Only two to go for the series.  And I started reading and finished an interesting nonfiction book.  I'd say great progress for the first few days...  Now what should I read next?

Bachelor Girl by Betsy Israel

Title: Bachelor Girl: 100 Years of Breaking the Rules -- a Social History of Living Single

Author: Betsy Israel

Publisher: Perennial 2002

Genre: Nonfiction -- Women's Studies; Cultural Studies

Pages: 294

Rating:  5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Nerdy Nonfiction -- Cultural Affairs; Mount TBR; Dusty Bookshelf; Nonfiction Adventure

How I Got It: I own it!

Drawing extensively on primary sources, including private journals, newspaper stories, magazine articles, advertisements, films, and other materials from popular media, Israel paints remarkably vivid portraits of single women -- and the way they were perceived -- throughout the decades. From the nineteenth-century spinsters, of New England to the Bowery girls of New York City, from the 1920s flappers to the 1940s working women of the war years and the career girls of the 1950s and 1960s, single women have fought to find and feel comfortable in that room of their own. One need only look at Bridget Jones and the Sex and the City gang to see that single women still maintain an uneasy relationship with the rest of society -- and yet they radiate an aura of glamour and mystery in popular culture.

One of those books held over from my days as a Women's Studies major.  I always meant to get to the this tome, especially since it dealt with women in U.S. History (my concentration).  Upon finally reading it years later, I can still say that it held my interest.  While some of Israel's "current" references to Sex and the City and Allie McBeal seem very dated in 2013, the meat of the book is a timeless study of the concept of single women in history.  Israel goes era by era to give the reader a clear picture of how our attitudes toward single women have and have not changed.  Being single is still something of a deformity (just ask any single women of 25 how many times they get asked "when are you getting married?") and yet it is such an integral section of society.  I especially loved reading about the various famous examples Israel sprinkles throughout.  For example, Florence Nightingale is a fascinating example of a women with aspirations caught by her familial obligations and expectations.  A very readable look at a complex societal issue.

Top Ten Tuesday -- Movies Wanted

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish.Each week we will post a new Top Ten list complete with one of our bloggers’ answers. Everyone is welcome to join.  If you can’t come up with ten, don’t worry about it—post as many as you can!

I struggle with this topic.  There are many books I would love to see come to life, but there's always that little bit of me that fears for the results.  I've seen too many great books become bad bad movies (looking at you The Golden Compass).  In a perfect world, I think these books would make great movies:

1. Locke and Key comic series -- A very dark and demented horror story.  I love the characters in this series.  It could be very spooky!
2. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn -- An awesome psychological thriller.  My only concern would be how they set up the main characters.  Both are twisted, but the audience shouldn't figure that out until halfway through the movie.
3. Sarah Addison Allen's books -- Not picky on this one.  Choose any of her books, they would make great romantic movies.  I'm thinking in the vein of Practical Magic or Hope Floats.
4. The Magicians by Lev Grossman -- Would never get made because it would have to be rated R and people would complain that it was a ripoff of Narnia.  But I would watch it in a heartbeat.
5. Sunshine by Robin McKinley -- To break the reliance on the cuddly sparkly vampires.  Con is none of those things and yet this story is just beautiful.
6. Looking Glass Wars series by Frank Beddol -- Love, love, love this retelling of Alice in Wonderland.  I think it would make a fun, yet dark adventure tale.
7. Blades of the Rose series by Zoe Archer -- These would make some great adventure movies.  Pretty generic, but the locations would be gorgeous.
8. Parasol Protectorate series by Gail Carriger -- How awesome would this movie be?  I absolutely love the characters in this series.
9. Blue Bloods series by Melissa de la Cruz -- Maybe not a movie, but a CW series a la The Vampire Diaries.
10. The Affinity Bride by George Mann -- Great steampunk detective adventure.  Would love to see the world created on screen.

Name Change

Some of you may have noticed that I changed the name of my blog. Well, I thought it was time.  Back when I was on Wordpress my blog name was Wading Through the Ocean of Life.  When we made the switch to self-hosting, J secured the url msbuff.com.  Makes sense.  It's my name.  That's what I was known as when I was teaching.  But the more I've been thinking about it, Ms. Buff just doesn't fit.  It's not that descriptive.  It doesn't really have any memorable quality to it.  I wanted something that reflected the state of my life and this blog.  So I decided to go back to my old blog name: Wading Through the Ocean of Life. The name actually comes from the title of a creative writing piece from college.  In it, three generations of women attempt to find their place and identity.  The piece itself isn't that great, but the title seemed absolutely perfect to describe the idea.  So I used it for my personal blog.  As the years have gone on (almost 3!), I've come to appreciate the idea more and more.  Every day I wade through the ocean of life.  Sometimes it's calm and clear.  Sometimes it's rough and stormy.  But if I just keep wading things are bound to change and I can encounter something different.

We the impending arrival of my third child and big changes for the family, I feel like going back to my original blog name makes so much more sense.  In the coming months I want to start including more life posts.  I will still be reading and reviewing books, participating in readathons, and generally loving books.  But there's so much more to my life than just books.  So except much more coming.  And some adorable pictures of babies and family related activities.

MoM #9: State and Main

Title: State and Main

Year Released/Rating: 2000 R

Starring: Philip Seymour Hoffman, William H. Macy, Rebecca Pidgeon

Directed By: David Mamet

Written By: David Mamet

Genre: Comedy, Drama

Star Rating:  5/5 stars

Where I Got It: We own it

Trivia:

• The Waterford Huskies logo is a replica of the University of Connecticut Huskies logo. 
• The movie, set in Vermont, was shot primarily in a seaside town in Massachusetts. 
• The script page visible in the scene where Ann slaps Joes finger, is an actual script from this film itself, revealing dialogue from the scene where the mayor invites Marty to the dinner party.

Summary: A movie crew invades a small town whose residents are all too ready to give up their values for showbiz glitz.

Review: 

Somehow I have never seen this movie.  J was appalled and had to buy it from Amazon so we could watch it. This movie really hinges on all the little lines.  I just love them!  The cast of quirky characters reminds me of a Christopher Guest film.  I love the ins and outs of the characters' stories.  It's just a fun little comedy/drama with great storytelling.

Best Bits: 

• Walt Price: It's not a lie. It's a gift for fiction.
• Joseph Turner White: How do I do a film called "The Old Mill" when I don't have an old mill?  Ann Black: Well, first you've got to change the title.
• Marty Rossen: I'm going to rip your heart out, then I'm going to piss on your lungs through the hole in your chest! And the best to Marian...
• Joseph Turner White: What's an associate producer credit?  Bill Smith: It's what you give to your secretary instead of a raise.
• Bob Barrenger: I know my lines.  Walt Price: You do?  Bob Barrenger: I just don't know what order they come in.
• [after emerging from an upside-down station wagon he has just crashed]  Bob Barrenger: So, that happened.
• Walt Price: Marty, we got a new town. It's uh... Where are we?  Bill Smith: Waterford, Vermont.  Walt Price: Waterford, Vermont. Where is it? THAT'S where it is.

Gale Force by Rachel Caine

Title: Gale Force (Weather Wardens #7)

Author: Rachel Caine

Publisher: Roc 2008

Genre: Paranormal

Pages: 306

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Mount TBR; Seriously Series; Dusty Bookshelf

How I Got It: I own it

Weather Warden Joanne Baldwin is on vacation when her Djinn lover, David, asks Joanne to marry him. She’s thrilled to say yes, even if some others may be less than happy about it.

Unfortunately, Joanne’s pre-marital bliss is ended by a devastating earthquake in Florida. And she can’t ask David and his kind for assistance. Because the cause of the quake is unlike anything Joanne has ever encountered—and a power even the Djinn cannot perceive.

Hmmm...  I feel like the series is losing a bit of steam, but I'm determined to finish it this close to the end.  Only two more books to go.  I still love Jo and David, but their constant being in the middle of these huge catastrophes is starting to take its toll.  Maybe it's because the timeline for the entire series is so short.  Or maybe it's because each threat is crazier than the last.  For whatever reason, I just want, no need some closure to this whole idea.  I still enjoyed the book.  It had the same well drawn out action sequences.  We still got snarky comments from Jo.  The book still had all the fun side characters (Kevin, Cherise, Ashan, Venna).  I just think we need to start wrapping some of this up now.

Weather Wardens:

1. Ill Wind
2. Heat Stroke
3. Chill Factor
4. Windfall
5. Fire Storm
6. Thin Air
7. Gale Force
8. Cape Storm
9. Total Eclipse

Music Monday -- 101 Faves Jams Edition

As part of my ongoing Day Zero Project, I've made a list of my favorite 101 songs of all time.  To help cut down on the possibilities, I took songs only from my iTunes account.  Each edition will include ~5 songs with a theme.  Enjoy!

Dave Matthews Band "Two Step"

O.A.R. "Patiently" 

The Avett Brothers "Love and Hate"

Dave Matthews "Grey Street"

Bonus with Tim Reynolds