This house is down the street from where I live and I love it. Big porch, huge back yard, right on the Max line. So why does no one live here? When I moved to this street in 2007 I assumed that the absentee owners were getting ready to put it on the market. The house was painted, it got new windows and a new roof. Someone comes once per week to keep the yard up. I waited for the “for sale” sign to go up, but it never did and the house has remained empty.
Category: All (-ish)
Lost in Translation: Lilacs.
Sure, Lilacs look pretty, but really it’s all about the scent. Which cannot be reproduced here.
Lilacs in bloom is one of my favorite things about spring.
Three sentence movie reviews–All the Real Girls
Every once in awhile I fall in love with a movie as I did with this one. This movie portrays the most real reflection of an early-twenties relationship I have ever seen. As a bonus, it also contains delightful vignettes which have little to do with advancing the story, but are wonderful.
Darn it, I need one more sentence. It’s just a single word: Magic!
Also, don’t you think the phrase “every once in awhile” should have morphed into one German-esque looking word: everyonceinawhile.
I also feel the same about the phrase “this morning”. Let’s remove that space. We say it as one word anyway. “thismorning”
Gone, Baby, Gone. Dennis LeHane
Gone, Baby, Gone by Dennis Lehane
My review
rating: 3 of 5 stars
I get obsessive about some things. I rented the movie Gone, Baby, Gone on a Friday and liked it so much I watched it again on Sunday. I reserved the book from the library and had it by Tuesday. Part of my affection for the movie, it must be told, had to do with Casey Affleck’s Patrick Kenzie, but the other part had to do with how incredibly cool his partner Angie was. The movie didn’t spend a lot of time worrying about her which I find rare as Hollywood seems to exist partly to keep women in their place. But that’s a post for another day.
So I shouldn’t have been surprised when I got the book and Angie is even cooler than she was in the film. Ah, Hollywood, you never let me down. Anyway, good book. Fast-paced, funny with very good character sketches as well as good social commentary. I like Dennis LeHane especially for those last two traits.
Overall the book was solid and I was pleased to find out there are several books with these two characters. I’ll be reading them.
Even less building.
The building is getting smaller and smaller. In the previous post, this was the angle you could see the Zell Brothers sign.
I like how it looks like someone took a bite out of this one.
It’s not too long until there is nothing left.
Three sentence movie reviews–In Bruges
A wholly uneven film. Despite excellent performances from Brendan Gleeson and Ralph Fiennes, as well as lovely views of Bruges, I didn’t like it. Sometimes funny and violence work for me (Fargo) and sometimes they don’t (this film.)
This was my mom’s choice for Mother’s Day. I think she has a crush on Colin Farrell.
Review of Persepolis: Story of Childhood
Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood by Marjane Satrapi
My review
rating: 3 of 5 stars
Graphic novels aren’t really my medium. The boyfriend loves them and reads them all the time, but my habit of skimming doesn’t really lend itself to the graphic novel format. But, having seen and loved the movie, I thought I would read the first part of Satrapi’s story.
It was fine. Like I said, not my medium. I liked the movie better, as it contained all the things that were in the book, but with prettier art.
Three sentence movie reviews–Once
Some movies are like a boat you climb in and lazily float down the river. Like a successful meditation state, they inspire pleasant feelings and enjoyable moments. This is one of those movies and I highly recommend it.
Three sentence movie reviews–Gone, Baby, Gone.
This movie surprised me, and halfway in, I had no idea what direction it was headed. South Boston/Dorchester is beautifully filmed and Casey Affleck is entirely underrated as a leading man. I liked this so much I watched it again two days later.
Most excitingly, the bar at the end of the movie was right around the corner from where I used to live. I used to jog by it all the time. And that, is why South Boston and myself didn’t get along so well. Less time jogging, more time in the bars and they probably would have liked me better.
Review of the Hatbox Baby
The Hatbox Baby by Carrie Brown
My review
rating: 2 of 5 stars
Last month I loved the novel I read by Carrie Brown. This month, I wasn’t as enchanted. The story had some interesting points to it. I enjoyed learning about doctors in the 1930s who attempted to save preemie babies. The one in this novel had to have the infants in his care on display at world fairs and expositions. He used the proceeds to fund his research.
I enjoyed meeting several people involved with the World’s Fair in Chicago. Overall, the plot line was interesting, but nothing gelled. I never grew attached to any of the characters or their stories. I finished it, and that was the end of my relationship with that book.