Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Paris, I want to go to there.



This week we went to Midnight in Paris, the new Woody Allen film. I loved it. Not just because I enjoy many of the actors in the movie (Rachel McAdams, Owen Wilson, Kathy Bates, etc) but because I love reading/thinking about the writers and artists who lived there in the 20s. My favorite book of all time is A Movable Feast. I love the way that Hemingway writes and enjoyed getting to see him. Although he seemed a little too dark and brooding, different than I had imagined him to be. I mean yes he was an alcoholic and depressed a lot of the time but I felt that this portrayal overdid it. I also am now really interested in reading more about the Fitzgeralds. I know they were quite an interesting pair and I want to read more about their wild lives.

This also tied nicely with the book I just finished, The Paris Wife. It was about Hadley Richardson (Hemingway's first wife) and is historical fiction. I devoured this book and could hardly do anything else besides read this book. I love the idea of what life must have been like for her (and other wive's of successful creative types). I also really enjoyed both of the books written in this style about the ladies in Frank Lloyd Wright's life, Loving Frank and The Women: A Novel. I much preferred Loving Frank but enjoyed both. It is a great way to write because you don't have to know all the facts and can make up a cool/interesting story and feelings for the people we know so little about.

These two things have made me very excited for travel in general and made me wish, again, that I could plan a trip to Paris/ time travel to the 20s.

Sunday, June 26, 2011

Author, educator, politician; a legacy to leave behind

I was looking at Wikipedia, for a reason that is too complicated/stupid to tell the whole story (I will tell you that tv's Chuck is a singer and has a duet with Katherine McPhee/had a girlfriend who is an alternative songstress who performed at SXSW), and ended up looking at the page about Beverly Hills High School (made famous on Beverly Hills 90210 and the recent employer of a friend of ours) and was looking at the list of famous alumni. After each person's name there was a descriptor. Some had one or two descriptors but the one I really liked was this one "Max Rafferty, author, educator, politician." I want this listed after my age on my wikipedia page someday. A close second, in my mind, would be to have it say "rapper/actor, basketball player" which is what it says after Lil' Romeo's name. I mean I do play basketball and I like rap music but I don't think it will ever happen for me. And I am 2/3 there, educator check and author (blog I know is pushing it but close enough) check.

Saturday, June 25, 2011

Have you seen...

You know that I am fascinated with the end of days so Robbie, my brother in law showed me this.



A few comments about this video. First of all I really enjoy this song and the video is interesting although I don't really get what exactly is happening during most of it. I hate Chris Brown's blonde hair (and am still mad at him). I love Justin Bieber and his swagger coach is totally worth the money. Seriously, I have a little crush on him.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Get out your dancin' shoes...

and get excited for October.


Warren just showed this to me. (Isn't he the best?) Footloose is happening again. I am so excited about this. The kids still want to dance but this time they get a little freaky and there appears to be some kind of bus fight. Also Dennis Quaid is the dad and Julianne Hough is the preacher's daughter. I can't wait.

Thursday, June 2, 2011

Away we go



I absolutely love the movie Away We Go. It makes leaving everything you love and know to have an adventure seem a little less daunting. The actors in it our spectacular and it was directed by the American Beauty director. I would highly recommend it.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

My All-time favorite television shows

In an effort to keep things light I will follow rant posts with happier/less serious posts. A while ago I wrote about Castle, one of my new favorite shows. It got me thinking about which shows would be on my all time favorite list. Here it is in no particular order:

Weeds


Castle


Ghost Whisperer


Seinfeld


Arrested Development


30 Rock


Honorable Mention Category :
Glee, Parenthood, Parks & Rec, The Hills (I didn't forget where I came from), Veronica Mars