Missing Stanford Street

Hello dear readers! So, yesterday concluded my first week in Virginia. I think it is safe to say that I am ready to come home. It is hot and humid here, and I think we all know how I feel about hot and humid (if you don't know, then you don't know me at all, stop reading.)

Okay, a little something about my blog. As many of you know, one of my favorite phrases is "That's what she said!" Clearly a blog of that title would have been fantastic. Alas, that name what not available, so I chose this one. I have to say, the name has grown on me and it takes some of the pressure off of creating a fantastic blog. Now my blog can be merely adequate. Whew!

So, I have run out of things to say (this is harder than it looks... "That's what she said!" Sorry I just had to!) So, in an effort to do something useful I will close with some movie reviews...

I have become quite the motion picture goer and am happy to pass on my useless thoughts to you all.

The Bourne Ultimatum: Two Thumbs Up!! Ok, let me just say it... I loved the movie. I thought it was far better than the second one, but not as good as the first (although I am really not sure if there was a way to even compete with the first). The one complaint I have is that some times the fight scenes were too close up or too fast and you couldn't quite tell what was going on. This was one of my several complaints with the second one, although in Ultimatum it wasn't as noticeable. The other crazy/weird thing is that if you watch the end of the second one, you will see a scene where Bourne leaves the home of the daughter of his first victims. He is clearly injured in that scene. The next thing you see is him in NY talking to Pam (yes, we are on a first name basis), that is when she tells him his real name. Okay, all this to say that the third movie picks up with an injured Bourne right after leaving the daughter of the victims' house but then the Pam phone call doesn't happen until the middle of the third movie. No, I am not on drugs, but I admit that this tripped me out a little. All in all: So worth it to see in the theaters!

No Reservations: One Thumb Up. TOTAL CHICK FLICK. First off, let me just say that the streets are really confusing here in Va. I get lost every time I leave the house. I blame it on the fact that there are five different streets with the same name. Was the movie theater on Fairfax Drive, Fairfax Street, Fairfax Lane, Fairfax Corner (who the hell names a street Something CORNER!), or Fairfax Place. Coming from someone who still isn't sure which is High and which is State Street (you Mainers get this!) you can understand why such things are troubling for me. Ok, all that to say that I did not intend to go see this movie. I was trying to see "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry" (see below), when I ended up at the wrong movie theater. By the time I arrived at the correct theater I was too late. So, I decided to go grab a beer (did you know they can smoke in the bar areas of restaurants here!?!?) and then I saw whatever the next non-animated movie was playing... No Reservations. So, if you are a guy, you are going to hate this movie. It really has no redeeming macho qualities. Having said that, it was the perfect movie for the place I was in at the time. Not a lot of thinking, not a lot of drama, just people needing people, love and comfort. GAG! No, but seriously, it was pretty cute. And a nod to the Little Miss Sunshine actress who did the "I'm so sad my mom just died" tears like a pro. She was very good.

Last and Least:
I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry: One and a half Thumbs Down. The funniest thing about this movie was me attempting to use the video "purchase your own ticket" machine. I walk up to the seemingly idiot proof monitor guaranteeing easy ticket purchases with no line. I touch the screen in the place marked for the English language. Me: 1, Monitor: 0. When would you like to see your selection?: I hit Today. Me: 2, Monitor: 0. Ahhh, the hard part: What movie would you like to see? I begin to scroll through the listings... my movie is not here!! I go through them again... nope, no Chuck and Larry. I break out into a cold sweat imagining I have gone to Fairfax Lane instead of Fairfax Corner again. I press cancel and walk toward the human ticket vendors. I read through the list of movies showing, yup, there it is, I am definitely in the right place. I go back to a different monitor (clearly the first ticket machine was faulty). I go through the first two questions with ease. Now the monitor asks me (in a mocking font): What movie would you like to see? I scroll through the listings, not there. It then occurs to me that they are probably alphabetized, ok, lets start at the "I's." It is not there!! The only thing that is there is some movie I have never heard of "I Now Pron". Clearly a foreign film. Come to find out, "I Now Pron" is short for "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry." Huhh, go figure, I guess the ticket machines aren't idiot proof after all.
So, the movie. Just not that funny. I guess I was expecting more. I rarely feel this way, but toward the end of the movie I actually caught myself thinking that the movie was a waste of money. (This is something I rarely think about concerning movies). See it if you must, but don't say I didn't warn you.

Ok, sorry this was so long! More later!