Jacob, manager of an orphanage in India, must go to Denmark to procure more money, and, as it turns out, have some secrets revealed to him. I liked tracking how my judgement and loyalties shifted the more I learned. Contains a lot of close-ups of sad/upset people, but captured in a very open and loving way.
Cost: free from library
Where watched: at home
poster from:http://www.impawards.com/intl/denmark/2006/efter_brylluppet.html
(I love the Danish name: Efter Brylluppet)
This contained all the elements of what we’ve come to expect from Marvel films, plus some Christopher Nolan-style Inception things. It’s also a good reminder that one should not be distracted by things while driving. All the big-name actors gave good performances, and it didn’t drag, for such a long movie.
Cost: $7.25
Where watched: Century Theaters Clackamas Town Square. (First time at this theater! Really liked it! It’s very far away, though.)
poster from: http://www.impawards.com/2016/doctor_strange.html
We’ve made it to “E” in our Z-A quest to play all our games. This brings us to Eggs and Empires, a game I enjoy because it’s quick to learn, has a strategy, and also isn’t called Exit Empires, like I originally thought when Matt was first talking about it.
In this game, you play cards attempting to capture “good” eggs, and avoiding “bad” eggs. I killed Matt in this contest, making this one of my few wins in this project.
First, there was the phone. Until 2013, I was a landline-only person. I loved my phone number, so much so that when I moved from downtown, I called the phone company and told them, “I’m moving and I want to keep my phone number.” Thankfully, rules had relaxed and it came with me when Matt and I moved in together, and then followed us to the Orange Door.
In 2013, I bought my first cell phone*, skipping over all other incarnations and jumping in at the smartphone period. I was surprised at how much I liked it. So this was why everyone was always staring at them. One thing I didn’t like? My cell phone number. It started with 971, for one thing. Who wants that stupid area code? I didn’t actually want to talk on my cell phone, so I kept the landline, and my awesome phone number.
Just this year, I learned you can keep your landline number and have it ported to your cell phone company. I would not have to give up my beloved phone number! It happened that I was due for a new phone, so instead of upgrading and transferring my cell number to my new phone, I instead transferred my landline number to my new phone. It was easy!**
Now we are not paying the monthly bill for a landline AND I have my favorite phone number. All is well.
I realize that cool phone numbers are more-or-less moot. Once the number gets programmed into someone’s phone they never look at it again. But I know how cool my phone number is. It’s mathematically correct! So I’m happy.
*Note that this is not cell phone, version 1, it’s cell phone version 2.
**Porting the number was easy, dealing with the fallout from the landline people was not. We lost internet for a few days, which wasn’t fun, and turned out to have not been necessary.
Interesting perspective on the bank robber movie, with good performances by all.* I was interested in the inclusion of causal racism in the film and feel like there’s a whole discussion to have there, that no one is having. Overall, a tense journey with a few surprises.**
Cost: $3.00
Where watched: Laurelhurst with S. North
*There are great bit parts also, played by a bunch of fun-to-watch people. Katy Mixon (as Jenny Ann, the waitress who didn’t want to give up her tips) was my favorite, though Margaret Bowman as the T-Bone waitress was also fun.
**Also an example of a movie where people on both sides of the gun debate could point to and say, “See! That’s why we should/shouldn’t have open carry laws!”
poster from: http://www.impawards.com/2016/hell_or_high_water.html
Still high off La La Land, I requested this from the library, just to get more of the Stone/Gosling vibe, which was still delightful. This second viewing highlighted the excellent acting by Jonah Bobo, who manages to channel love-struck teen without overdoing it. I still love how the pieces of this movie come together into something hilariously magical; the ending fumbles into predictability, but I just pretend it doesn’t exist.
Cost: free from library
Where watched: at home
http://www.impawards.com/2011/crazy_stupid_love_ver2.html
I really dislike the original poster, so we’re going with Stone/Gosling
There was a moment of fear that the church in the next block was being deconstructed. It turned out they were just replacing the siding. Phew.
But look what was under the siding! I love it so much! I also love the diagonal boards which would now all be plywood. Ah, when lumber was king, and there were so many trees we would never cut them all down. 
They left the sign there when they put on the new siding. Someone else down the line will get to discover this relic from the past.
Interchange at a Christmas Karaoke Party:
My friend: Hey! We should sing the rape-y song!
Me: Oh yeah! That would be fun.
I didn’t have to clarify which rape-y Christmas song she meant. She was talking about “Baby, It’s Cold Outside,” which remains one of my favorite Christmas songs–though it’s not really a Christmas song, it’s about temperature*–despite some lines that are beyond questionable.
I’ve only noticed the discomfort with this song in the past few years, and I take the discomfort as a sign of progress in the slow trudge towards the dis-objectification of women. Though rape has been talked about openly at least since the early 90s, it’s only in the past few years the conversation has shifted from “steps women can take to avoid being raped” to the more proactive “dudes should probably stop raping, and also doing all the stuff that supports other dudes raping.”
One of the reasons I think the questionable lines flew under the radar for so long is that this song is fun to listen to. The woman has the main stage, while the guy burbles along under her sustained phrases. It’s playful, peppy and builds to that great “Baby it’s cooooooolllllllddddd ooooouuuuuttttt sssssiiiiiddddeeeee!” crescendo of an ending. If we, as individuals, are going to be transported into musical picture land and burst into song with someone we find cute and fun, this would be a great duet to burst into.
The other reason it flew under the radar is that unless you take time to listen to the burbling the man is doing, it’s hard to hear what he’s saying. There’s a clear indication that he wants her to stay, but it wasn’t until I was working out signing this as a duet with my friend that I noticed the increasing sketchiness of the gentleman’s entreaties which culminate in “get over that hold out”** which is a phrase that most women hear some form of as they move through life. It’s a phrase never well received, designed to frame a woman’s refusal to do anything as something silly, and so inconveniencing to the clearer-headed, far more intelligent man.
But the dude’s lyrics are quite sketchy. He goes from what could be construed as a concerned stance, “baby it’s cold outside” to all sorts of lines “your eyes are starlight now,” “mind if I move in closer,” “gosh your lips look delicious,” and including one of my favorite male-pressure phrases: “what’s the sense in hurting my pride?”
It doesn’t help that the emergence of GHB, which is used to roofie and rape women, means that women have added “always keep an eye on your drink, and always pour your own drinks” to their ever growing arsenal of tools to avoid rape. Which makes the woman’s question of “what’s in this drink” more worrisome.
In my opinion, to fit into our current culture of consent, the song would be much shorter:
“I really can’t stay”
“But baby, it’s cold outside”
“I’ve got to go ‘way”
“Okay. Can I drive you home?”
~fin~
I’m fine with charting how society has changed through acceptance of song lyrics. I’m even fine with continuing to sing those songs, while also including a footnote as to why the lyrics don’t work today. I’m also fine with people rewriting songs to make them work better for current audiences. Irving Berlin lived long enough to revise some of his more racist lyrics.
Here is an original version with both the man and then the woman saying it’s cold outside:
And here’s an updated version which I enjoy because it keeps the woman’s endless calculations as to whether to stay or go–which are so familiar, even today–while also updating the guy’s role to be more supportive. I do miss the big ending though.
*Though played exclusively during the “holiday season” both this song and “Let it Snow” could be played though February in my town, or longer in some regions of the country.
**Google Play Music transcribes this line as “get over that old out” and I can’t figure out if it’s a bad transcription, or someone’s attempt to redeem the line.
Nerdfighteria is a strange place, where random things pop up. One of them is Pizza John, the origins of which you can learn for yourself by watching this video.
Anyway, Pizza John eventually lead to Pizzamas, which is best described as a 2-week special promotion at dftba records, which is where you can buy all sorts of Nerdfighteria merch.
This year, I was swayed by the Pizzamas package, which came in its own Pizzamas pizza box. I had birthday money and so I spent it.
Aside from the awesome box, I received an apron, t-shirt, pizza cutter and sticky note pad, all with the Pizza John image. 
Is this a great world, or what?
I was very tired and unfortunately drifted in and out through the first half of this movie.* However, by mid-movie I was fully awake and all in. Action was well balanced with drama, and though I figured out what was going to happen before it happened, I enjoyed the journey there.
Cost: $5.10
Where watched: Regal City Center Stadium 12, with Matt.
*Was the movie not good enough to keep me awake? Or was I just that tired?
poster from: http://www.impawards.com/2016/rogue_one_a_star_wars_story_ver5.html
