Candy Candy Candy oh!
No idea if this is supposed to be funny. It must’ve occurred after the news and the 1st song by the musical guest because I’m not laughing and neither is the audience.
50/50
While my reaction to 50/50 wasn’t about my father’s passing in the past, it was about my own future. It had me dwelling on my own health status. Even before, I was apprehensive about seeing this movie. I know I don’t like to think about my health because it scares me.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt is confronted with his mortality in the form of cancer. It frightens everyone around him. His girlfriend can’t handle it and bails from the relationship. His best friend, Seth Rogen, can’t handle it, but sticks with him through thick and thin. He even gets him laid although the scene is as sexy as blue balls. All’s said and done it is his family who handles it well. His mother already dealing with dementia in his dad is solid as a rock. Eventually, he turns to her for the strength to battle and you know she is there.
The movie is standard Hollywood uplifting fight story. Lots of the story beats you’ll already know – the girlfriend and best buddy being just one of them. I wondered though if we were going to get the happy ending or the sad. I don’t want to spoil it, but you won’t be crying at the end.
Then there is the Anna Kendrick problem, or rather, patient-doctor problem. I don’t know, but rather feeling good about this couple, I was a little creeped out. They had to make her young to make it seem as it was above her station to know that perhaps having feelings for your patient is too much. It was perhaps misguided even though the story line of a blossoming relationship added a touch of warmth.
But the take away for me in this movie is that death is there. It will kill you without regard to how healthy you are. Young. Old. It don’t matter. We will all eventually pay the ferryman. And this was the most horrific aspect of the movie. Death is near. I can not get away.
3 of 5 stars.
Spinach Mushroom Tortilla
Since I had plenty of spinach and mushroom left over from the spinach mushroom barley soup, I figured to throw the leftovers into another Spanish Tortilla.
I tried a couple of different things this time around.
This time I also fried the potatoes with the spinach and mushrooms before throwing everything together in the pan. I was hoping that this would make the potatoes tastier, but since I didn’t put enough salt, they still ended up being bland. I wonder what types of spices to use to make the potatoes tastier. Or maybe I should be using another potato? These are white potatoes. Would the others taste any better?
I also arranged the potatoes better in the pan. The presentation after flipping it out looks more appetizing.
I should’ve left the temperature the same from last time (325F) but increased it to 375. It came out overcooked as you can tell from the color of the egg.
One day I will find a more flavorful combination for my tortilla.
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via ThinkProgress » Yglesias by Matthew Yglesias on 10/13/11
Prior to the Carter administration, the Civil Aeronautics Board basically set airfares throughout the country. This sharply diminished price competition and induced airlines to compete on the basis of offering high-quality service. Then came deregulation, and both prices and quality fell sharply. It turns out that what tourists really want is to get where they’re going, and what firms want is to pay less money to send their workers around the world. Glen Whitman cites the decline of the young attractive flight attendant as an example of this dynamic in action, but I think Megan McArdle is right to say that anti-discrimination laws and union protections are the bigger story here. One way to look at this kind of issue is just to look at long-haul first class service. Even though it turns out that most travelers prefer cheaper flights to better flights, that’s not a universal preference and airlines do offer the option of paying more money for better service. People flying first class generally get much nicer seats, better food, shorter lines, and more attention from flight attendants, but they’re subject to the same labor market regulations, contract provisions, and norms as everyone else.
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Fresh Mornin’ Do
One of the craziest things I do while commuting in the morning is that whenever traffic forces me to stomp the brakes, I take a look into my rear view mirror. I do it to watch the driver behind me either rear end me or swerve to miss.
This morning the traffic in the commute was cruising along at the standard 70 MPH. It was also bumper to bumper although I leave a car space in front. This leaves me susceptible to some wanker sneaking into that space.
I was watching this fellow make his way through traffic until he was behind me. He made me nervous.
We go under an overpass and seconds later I am hearing the sound of tires squealing. It was from the tractor trailer on my right hitting his brakes. The sound staccato.
I look up ahead. Cars are slowing down fast. I press firmly on the brakes closing the gap between me and the car ahead. That’s when I look up into my rear view mirror. I try to catch a glimpse of the idiot behind me. He’s swerving a bit to my right. Then he’s swerving to my left and he’s diving to my left. I don’t even look to the cars I am going to hit. I watch the idiot end up on the shoulder akimbo to my car.
Crazy. We just missed each other. It was because of another rear end.
I need to stop peaking at cars behind me.
Link of the Day [10.11.11]
Punter! Just because you finally got a computer doesn't necessary means you've joined the digital age.This opinion piece about Steve Job's legacy by a "journalist" is one of the most ill informed things I read all year. This "journalist" doesn't realize the contributions that Apple had give to the computer age. Let's see, the original Apple I computer is one of the first computers manufactured for regular consumers. Then you have the Macintosh which ushered in the GUI. Next, you have iPhone that changed the idea of what a mass market computing device is. Finally, the iPad which is where computers are going to go in the near future. This is just from the computer age, which is what we're living in today. Technology you see today has been advanced through Apple driven by Steve Jobs.And I'm only addressing Job's impact on technology. He's very influential in design and in business practices. Plus, he did own a little movie production studio called Pixar. Ever heard of it? What a git this Robert Samuelson is.http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-partisan/post/the-legacy-of-steve-jobs/2011/03/04/gIQAAhqfaL_blog.html?hpid=z3
Spinach Barley Mushroom Soup Result
Probably needs more salt… but I really like the barley…
Spinach Mushroom Barley Soup
I’m working on my kitchen skills or as normal people would say – I’m learning to cook. It’s a way to keep my sodium intake down to keep my blood pressure lower (not low as it will never be low again unless I work hard at it). I’m cooking the eponymous soup of the title from a recipe from The Big Book of Soups & Stews by Maryan Vollstedt.
I like barley and wanted to cook something with it. If you think of a barley soup, you usually think of Beef Barley Soup. Yet, I’m looking for something vegetarian, so that’s why I’m leaving out the meat.
Last week, I made the vegetable stock. It’s just a simple stewing of your normal stock vegetables: celery, leeks, onions, peppers, turnip. Plus some herbs in bay leaf and thyme. Black pepper but no salt also added. This stock has been frozen in the freezer for a week now and it will be the basis for the soup.
Now, I’m not gonna rehash the recipe here. I will put my cooking notes down so as to help me become better around the kitchen.
First of all learning kitchen skills one of the hardest things is measurement. The recipe called for a half cup of chopped red peppers. I had a big pepper and chopped it, but what is half a cup from this. It’s the same with the mushrooms: one pound. What does this look like? I went by sight, but since I am a novice, I have no idea what these measurements looks like. They seem like I have too much.
Second, it takes longer than you think to prep the ingredients when you’re a novice. I chopped the vegetables, but forgot about defrosting the spinach and the stock. I was left standing around with the vegetables simmering in the pot while it took a while for the stock to be melted.
Third, knife skills. I can’t for the life of me dice or chop vegetables. They end up irregular sizes. Are the carrots too big? Are the mushrooms? In due time I’ll know, but right now with my skills, the vegetables are too big.
So this is my adventure this morning. I’ll let you know how it tastes.
UPDATE: Fourth, grains soak up water. I had put in half a cup of barley. The recipe originally called for a third of a cup. This looked meek. So I upped the measurement. After half an hour of simmering, the barley has soaked up tons of the stock. Rather than a soup, it looks like a stew.
The Ides of March
I’m kind of sick of politics right this moment, so I guess that catching the morning showing of The Ides of March somewhat trying. It also doesn’t help when you can’t figure out the central conflict of the movie. Plus, going in they sold it as a political thriller; yes there was some of that, but it was mostly a character drama — what will Ryan Gosling learn? Speaking of who, this guys in every movie right now, hunh?
Anytime Evan Rachel Wood is in a movie watch out. She plays dangerous very well because she looks so innocent. You know it would come down to her getting into trouble with a capital T. Just pick up the phone.
The overall theme of the movie is that politics is dirty and will make even those with high minded ideas change their tune. I know. That’s why I’ve been sick of politics lately.
3 of 5 stars