Watch out…here comes one of my movie reviews!

My husband and some of his friends decided last night that they’d go  see the movie District 9.  Since they were meeting at a theater near Ballantyne it made no sense for us to go to church in South Charlotte…have hubby drive me back home to Northwest Charlotte…and then he drive back to South Charlotte for the movie.  Since I’m not into sci-fi movies so much I decided that I’d go see Julie and Julia.  First, we ate a wonderful lunch at City Tavern, did some browsing at Stonecrest Shopping Center, and then I made my way over to the Regal Cinemas since Julie and Julia started approximately 35 minutes before hubby’s movie.

I was not enthusiastic about this at first, because I don’t like to do movies alone.  I love sharing the movie experience with someone.  I think the last time I saw a movie alone was sometime back the 1990s when I went to see The Hunchback of Notre Dame to kill time while waiting for Eddie as he attended Promise Keepers at the Charlotte Motor Speedway (no women allowed).  I think of movies as social affairs…the more the merrier.

Well, I didn’t have to worry about being alone, because the theater was smack full!  The attendees were mostly women and elderly folks, but I’ve never watched a movie with a more pleasant group of people.  It was much better than a theater full of crying kids, or rowdy teenagers which is what Eddie and I usually experience.  I wasn’t sure how good the movie was going to be, because I’ve read some mixed reviews about it.  One reviewer called it a “total bore” while others said it was “delightfully funny” etc. etc.  I’ve learned to take reviewers’ opinions with a grain of salt, because they are basically paid snobs.  I never liked snobs in school, and I certainly don’t like them now.  They take up valuable space in the world in my opinion.

Anyway, Julie and Julia is based on two true stories…the story of Julia Child and the story of Julie Powell.  Both are passionate about cooking, and both want to write in some capacity. Julia Child first aspires to master French Cooking, and then to write a cookbook on French cuisine (in English…evidently…according to the movie before Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking there were no French cuisine cookbooks written in English).  Julie Powell dislikes her job as a clerk for a government agency, and would like become a writer.  Julie discovers the world of blogging and decides to blog her way through through Julia Child’s cookbook in a year…cooking the recipes and blogging about the experience.  Both have supportive husbands who support them in doing what they love.  Both have been secretarial workers, and both struggle to reach their culinary and literary goals.  One of the many things I liked about the movie was how it stayed true to the facts of  of Julia’s and Julie’s lives.  While there is humor and drama…it was real.  Some of the things you think might happen don’t, but it’s still a very inspiring movie, and makes you want to find and pursue your true passion.  For more on the plot go here.

The acting…OH MY…THE ACTING!

Meryl Streep is one of the best actresses I’ve ever seen.  She is so versatile and totally pours herself into any role.  She can make you fall in love the character if you’re supposed to love them…like in this movie, or she can make you tremble with fear in the presence of the character…e.g. Devil Wears Prada.  She becomes the character, and her portrayal of Julia Child is no different.  You really forget it’s Meryl Streep on the screen.  I think this might possibly be her best role yet, and it’s my opinion that she at least deserves an Oscar nomination for her role if not an out-right Oscar for Best Actress.

Amy Adams is my new favorite young actress.  She plays a great old-fashioned, all-American girl, and reminds me of actresses from the 1940-50’s era.  She does a great job of portraying the 30-year-old office worker who wants more for her life than just answering calls and filling out insurance forms all day.  I found myself having so much in common with her character .

The supporting actors do a wonderful job too.  It’s a very well rounded cast.

While I think I could’ve watched a movie on the biography of Julia Child alone the story of Julie Powell made it relatable to today’s young woman.

To sum it up…I was feeling kind of depressed today over various things, but after I saw Julie and Julia I feel inspired to pursue my passion(s) again.  I think that’s a testament that a feel-good movie has done it’s job.

Here’s the trailer:

Oh, and how did my hubby like District 9?   Well….the adjectives are too colorful to print in my blog.  Let’s just say he gave it 1 out of 5 stars.  I really think he would’ve loved Julie and Julia a whole lot better, because even though he’s a man’s man he really likes a good chick flick….wink, wink.

Bon Apetite!

I love summer…I really do…I think more now than I did when I was a kid. That kinda stinks in a way, because now I don’t have two months to play outside and do all the summery things I want to do. I spend most of my summer days sitting in a work cubicle instead of out in the fresh air and sunshine, but I do try and find the time in the evening or on the weekends just to savor the season.

When I was younger Summer was a magical time. While my mother didn’t entertain me and my brother every single day…we were country kids and could entertain ourselves just fine thank-you-very-much…she ensured that we had lots of summer days full of good clean family fun.

In our hometown there were two major industries Olin (which later changed it’s name to Ecusta) and DuPont. My dad worked for DuPont. Back then I didn’t think too much about the fact that the DuPont plant sat right smack dab in the middle thousands of acres of private forest with trails, two rivers, waterfalls, camping, a lake, and a whole farm for the employees to enjoy. It was a normal thing for me. The company also threw a picnic every summer which was something akin to a county fair, and it was all free to the employees and their immediate families. I cannot tell you how much cotton candy, snow cones, and hamburgers I ate on the picnic day while still having the constitution to ride the scrambler without puking.

As a kid I didn’t realize that most companies didn’t offer these amenities to their employees and how blessed we really were. Olin/Ecusta had a smaller version of what DuPont had, and it was called Camp Straus (which is now an upscale residential development called Straus Park). That’s where my husband’s family hung out in the summers, because his parents worked for Ecusta. They always had a huge 4th of July picnic which most of the county attended, because nearly everyone in the county was a friend or family member of someone who worked at Ecusta.

During the Summer we would spend two or three days at Lake D.E.R.A. (Dupont Employees Recreational Area), and it was just about the most fun a kid could have…especially when they added the paddleboats! My mom would pack us a picnic lunch, and we would stay at the lake until my dad got off work at 4:30, and he would stop by to see what we were up to. Sometimes we’d go to the lake later in the afternoon and have a picnic supper so dad could enjoy the lake for a while after putting in a hard day’s work as an industrial mechanic. Come to think of it…it must have been pretty tortuous for the employees working days at the plant to look out the front door and see their kids living up at the lake, but again, I think they were mostly grateful that they worked for such a generous employer. Folks who were fortunate enough to get a job at DuPont hardly ever quit because the pay was so good, and the benefits very generous. Same went for Ecusta.

Those definitely were the days! As the years rolled by American companies started getting more and more foreign competition. With subsequent off-shoring of manufacturing the massive perks we had slowly slipped away as I entered my teen years. Now, both industries have left the area. They have torn down the DuPont plant and are now in the process of tearing down the Ecusta plant to make way for a large retail/residential center.

DuPont actually sold most of their land to the state, and it is now DuPont State Forest. If you’re ever in the Brevard, North Carolina area you should visit it, and you can experience most of what I did in the summertimes of my youth. Lake D.E.R.A. is still there but sits unaccessible to the public at this time, and no longer hosts giggling kids and happy campers. The docks are falling in, and it is actually a sad portrait of what has happened to American Industry and the American Economy. I think the state has future plans to open it back up, but right now the lake is quarantined due to EPA monitoring to be sure the demolition of the plant did not cause longterm contamination of the lake.

Anyway, I said all that to say that I did envision such summers for my children. I dreamed of taking them to the lake and doing all the fun summer things my parents did with with me. This did not happen for me as I’m not a mother, and instead of living in a wonderful mountain town I live in the hectic city. However, I still face summer with child-like excitement and awe. I visit my hometown often, and other areas which literally scream “It’s summer. Come and enjoy me!” When I can’t do those things I go outside to my backyard around dusk and savor the feel of Summer. I listen to the cicadas and watch the sunset…even though these sounds are mixed with street noise and planes passing overhead.

So take some time to savor Summer…even if you wish you had little ones to do summer things with…try being a kid yourself. I’ve made a concerted effort to do that this summer, and it’s the best gift I could’ve given myself.

I got this in an e-mail tonight, and I just had to share….It’s kind of long but loaded with laughs.  I have to admit I’ve forwarded a few of these gems myself over the years…

I just want to thank all of you for your educational e-mails over the past year. I am totally screwed up now and have little chance of recovery.

I no longer open a public bathroom door

without using a paper towel.

I no longer have lemon slices in my ice water at a restaurant

without worrying about the bacteria on the lemon peel.

I can’t use the remote in a hotel room

because I don’t know what the last person was doing while flipping through the adult movie channels.

I can’t sit down on the hotel bedspread

because I can only imagine what has happened on it since it was last washed.

I have trouble shaking hands

with someone who has been driving because the number one pastime while driving alone is picking one’s nose (although cell phone usage may be overtaking the number one spot).

Eating a little snack sends me on a guilt trip

because I can only imagine how many gallons of trans fats I have consumed over the years.

I can’t touch any woman’s purse

for fear she has placed it on the floor of a public bathroom.

I MUST SEND MY SPECIAL THANKS

to whoever sent me the one about poop in the glue on envelopes because I now have to use a wet sponge with every envelope that needs sealing.

ALSO,

now I have to scrub the top of every can I open for the same reason.

I no longer have any savings

because I gave it to a sick girl (Penny Brown) who is about to die in the hospital for the 1,387,258th time.

I no longer have any money at all,

but that will change once I receive the $15,000 that Bill Gates/Microsoft and AOL are sending me for participating in their special e-mail program.

I no longer worry about my soul

because I have 363,214 angels looking out for me.

I no longer eat KFC

because their chickens are actually horrible mutant freaks with no eyes or feathers.

I no longer use cancer-causing deodorants

even though I smell like a water buffalo on a hot day.

THANKS TO ALL OF YOU

I have learned that my prayers only get answered if I forward an e-mail to seven of my friends and make a wish within five minutes.

BECAUSE OF YOUR CONCERN,

I no longer drink Coca Cola because it can remove toilet stains.

I no longer can buy gasoline

without taking someone along to watch the car so a serial killer won’t crawl in my back seat when I’m pumping gas.

I no longer drink Pepsi or Dr. Pepper

since the people who make these products are atheists who refuse to put ‘Under God’ on their cans.

I no longer use Saran Wrap

in the microwave because it causes cancer.

AND THANKS FOR LETTING ME KNOW

I can’t boil a cup of water in the microwave anymore because it will blow up in my face… disfiguring me for life.

I no longer check the coin return on pay phones

because I could be pricked with a needle infected with AIDS.

I no longer go to shopping malls

because someone will drug me with a perfume sample and rob me.

I no longer receive packages from UPS or Fed Ex

since they are actually Al Qaeda in disguise.

I no longer shop at Target

since they are French and don’t support our American troops or the Salvation Army.

I no longer answer the phone

because someone will ask me to dial a number for which I will get a phone bill with calls to Jamaica , Uganda , Singapore , and Uzbekistan .

I no longer buy expensive cookies from Neiman Marcus

since I now have their recipe.

THANKS TO YOU

I can’t use anyone’s toilet but mine because a big brown African spider is lurking under the seat to cause me instant death when it bites my butt.

AND THANKS TO YOUR GREAT ADVICE

I can’t ever pick up $5.00 dropped in the parking lot because it probably was placed there by a sex molester waiting underneath my car to grab my leg.

I can no longer drive my car

because I can’t buy gas from certain gas companies!

I can’t do any gardening

because I’m afraid I’ll get bitten by the brown recluse and my hand will fall off.

If you don’t send this e-mail to at least 144,000 people in the next 70 minutes, a large dove with diarrhea will land on your head at 5:00 p.m. tomorrow afternoon and the fleas from 12 camels will infest your back, causing you to grow a hairy hump. I know this will occur because it actually happened to a friend of my next door neighbor’s ex-mother-in-law’s second husband’s cousin’s beautician . .

Fellow blogging buddy, Heather, posted a list of Christmas traditions…sort of like the Q/A lists you find on MySpace.    I can tell you before I even answer these questions I’m going to get a big fat FAIL, but here I go…

Too funny!  Just had to share.

I just love Veggie Tales:

This is mine and Eddie’s all-time favorite Veggie Tale Song:

Okay, after my heavy post on Wednesday lets lighten it up a little for the weekend shall we?   Entertainment Weekly did a feature on the Top 100 T.V. Shows since 1983.  A group of us here at work decided to come up with our top 25 since it could be done in about 15 minutes while we were taking a break.  Here’s mine.  If you feel led share yours.

Vicki’s Top 25 T.V. Shows of All Time

1.         Little House on the Prairie

2.         King of Queens

3.         The Simpsons

4.         House

5.         King of the Hill

6.         The Waltons

7.         Star Trek-The Next Generation

8.         24

9.         Everybody Loves Raymond

10.        Friends

11.        Lost

12.        Seinfeld

13.        The A-Team

14.        BJ and Bear (Little girls loved that show—something endearing about a cute guy and a chimp)

15.        The Cosby Show

16.        The Wonder Years

17.        Fresh Prince of Bel-Air

18.        American Idol

19.        I Love Lucy

20.        ER—before they went all uber liberal

21.        Cheers

22.        Flip this House

23.        Sanford and Son

24.        Home Improvement

25.        Thirty-Something (before they got super-whiney)

Well, we’re not exactly going just because it’s hot. We’re going to attend a 40th anniversary celebration for Eddie’s aunt and uncle, but the trip couldn’t have come at a better time, because it’s so hot! We fast forwarded from mild spring weather straight to dog-day, August-style heat. I never appreciated mountain summers until I moved out of the mountains. Summers in the Piedmont can be quite oppressive heat-wise, but usually the terrible heat waits until July. Of course, it’s a trade-off, because the Winters here tend to be milder than in the mountains.

I don’t like the heat though…can’t handle it. To me a 95 to 100-degree day is equal to a severe winter day, because I have to stay in. Last year during the oppressively hot months we did some indoor home improvement…painting and re-doing our floors downstairs…in the A/C!

Anyway, we leave today for a short weekend trip. While it’s not exactly cool in the mountains it’s less hot than here, and every little degree counts when it’s this hot.

My pastor read this poem yesterday at Church. Everyone was on their feet applauding at the end.

JUST A COMMON SOLDIER
(A Soldier Died Today)
by A. Lawrence Vaincourt

He was getting old and paunchy and his hair was falling fast,
And he sat around the Legion, telling stories of the past.
Of a war that he had fought in and the deeds that he had done,
In his exploits with his buddies; they were heroes, every one.

And tho’ sometimes, to his neighbors, his tales became a joke,
All his Legion buddies listened, for they knew whereof he spoke.
But we’ll hear his tales no longer for old Bill has passed away,
And the world’s a little poorer, for a soldier died today.

He will not be mourned by many, just his children and his wife,
For he lived an ordinary and quite uneventful life.
Held a job and raised a family, quietly going his own way,
And the world won’t note his passing, though a soldier died today.

When politicians leave this earth, their bodies lie in state,
While thousands note their passing and proclaim that they were great.
Papers tell their whole life stories, from the time that they were young,
But the passing of a soldier goes unnoticed and unsung.

Is the greatest contribution to the welfare of our land
A guy who breaks his promises and cons his fellow man?
Or the ordinary fellow who, in times of war and strife,
Goes off to serve his Country and offers up his life?

A politician’s stipend and the style in which he lives
Are sometimes disproportionate to the service that he gives.
While the ordinary soldier, who offered up his all,
Is paid off with a medal and perhaps, a pension small.

It’s so easy to forget them for it was so long ago,
That the old Bills of our Country went to battle, but we know
It was not the politicians, with their compromise and ploys,
Who won for us the freedom that our Country now enjoys.

Should you find yourself in danger, with your enemies at hand,
Would you want a politician with his ever-shifting stand?
Or would you prefer a soldier, who has sworn to defend
His home, his kin and Country and would fight until the end?

He was just a common soldier and his ranks are growing thin,
But his presence should remind us we may need his like again.
For when countries are in conflict, then we find the soldier’s part
Is to clean up all the troubles that the politicians start.

If we cannot do him honor while he’s here to hear the praise,
Then at least let’s give him homage at the ending of his days.
Perhaps just a simple headline in a paper that would say,
Our Country is in mourning, for a soldier died today.

© 1987 A. Lawrence Vaincourt

I don’t know if you watched the American Idol finale on Wednesday night or not. I watched parts of it. Honestly, two hours to tell us who the next American Idol was, was a little much, but there were some entertaining moments. I missed this part of the show, because I was doing other stuff Wednesday, but when I saw this video later on YouTube I just roared! Enjoy!