Weekend recap.
I had a lovely, relaxing weekend. It was much needed.
The party at Sky's went quite well on New Year's Eve. It was just a bunch of friends hanging out, no tension or drama needed. I drank quite a bit of wine, fell off the couch at one point (!), and got a lovely massage from Bridget. Stress has thrown my back out of whack lately, and I really need to look into getting rolfed, because my posture has actually began to change. This is not of the good. At any rate, we played board games and ogled pretty girls and had a champagne toast. All was right with the world, and all things considered, the hangover was pretty minimal.
Sunday at my place, Anna, Ashley, Rac, & Tessy (Sky's mom) all showed up to help whip my sorry space into shape. I love my friends so much, because there's no way I could have gotten even a little sliver of that done by myself. Ashley and Rac worked on the walls and trim in the shared room, while Anna and I kicked ass on the walls and Anna painted the ceiling in 20 minutes, flat. Tessy worked on the windowsill, which is now painted a vivid metallic silver over the rustic, old wood. The colors are pale blue, periwinkle purple, jeweltone purple, and silver-- not at all my signature harvest colors, but I can work in a blue-red if I wish, and it's good to try something new. It might break me out of this rut. I have pictures, and when my internet goes up next week, I'll be sure to post them. I'm very, very pleased. I still have to do touch-ups and paint a few more accents, but all in all, the bulk of the work is done, and now I can begin to unpack. Glory hallelujah.
We went out for sushi at Mr. Chen's afterwards. We all marveled at Tessy's passionate relationship with her wasabi, and I ate way, way too much food. I prefer Olive & Sesame's sushi, but I have to say that Mr. Chen's was at least more colorful, if a tad too moist. There's an Edo Sushi up the road, too, which I want to try the next time I have some cashflow (read: next month).
Monday morning, Sky and I got up, went grocery shopping, and I fixed a nice brunch. I'm terrible in the kitchen, honestly, but at least I can do eggs well. Bacon, though, I cannot attest to, since I love veggie bacon the most. We went to Annapolis to see Brokeback Mountain with Heather. It should be noted that Heather wins at Christmas presents. What did she get me? A Rain of Fire Wesley action figure. I've still yet to figure out if I can make him vibrate. I did, however, do Wesley impressions, but that's mostly because I'm a dork.
Boy, oh boy, am I glad that I read the novella before seeing the movie. If I hadn't, Jack's death would have turned me into a bawling mess. The movie was pretty good. I'm not sure I'd hail it the movie of the year, but it was extremely character-driven, and the acting was fantastic. Jake Gyllenhaal played all of the nuances of Jack Twist, as Annie Proulx wrote him. However, Heath Ledger owned Ennis Del Mar. I could not believe the depth he brought, because the only thing I'd ever seen was Heath Ledger the heartthrob hero. I was very, very impressed. Michelle Williams was also wonderful.
The plot pacing was slow, but then again, I understand it. It reflects the pace of life in the West, and the slow passage of time between Jack & Ennis's meetings. Also, it was an Ang Lee movie-- vast scenescapes and slow pacing are to be expected. The screenwriters added a lot of plot that was not in the novella. While this ordinarily would have really irritated me, in this case, I understand, because the novella was not long enough to give textual support for a two-and-a-half hour movie. Everything added (basically, much of the middle of the movie) worked thematically and deepened the character study of Ennis. I was okay with it, and thought that the additions strengthened the film.
Nitpicks: the music was off. I love scoring in a movie, but hearing the same short theme over and over got boring real fast. Also, while they did age Heath Ledger some, I would have liked to seen him aged a little bit more, because he and Alma Jr. looked a little too close in age to be father and daughter.
Favorite parts: The first time Jack and Ennis meet again after the summer on Brokeback. I'm going to quote Heather (
evergleam83) word-for-word on why, because she hits the nail on the head:
But the way Ennis hugged Jack right in that moment, the way he dropped all pretenses, the way he intiated contact because he couldn't stand for a second longer to not be touching Jack; the way he was happy for the first time in four years, for one of the only times in his life, I think that's the moment where the movie broke me. Because I knew and they probably knew somewhere too, that it wasn't going to end well for either of them, and just watching them embrace with a sense of hopefulness and foreboding at the same time, well, that was my favorite part.
I also love how Alma sees, and Michelle Williams' reaction could not have been more perfect.
I loved Jack's big macho moment at Thanksgiving, and Lurlene's reaction. Jack spent so much of the movie being disdained and passed over because he just didn't fit in, and it was good to see him take a stand. Plus, the pornstache!
My other favorite moment was the very end, when Ennis goes to see Jack's folks. The father, to me, seemed to know exactly what happened on Brokeback-- his word choice, his mannerisms, his judgement. It all fits. The mother, though, looked at Ennis with such mystery in her eyes. She loved her son very much, even if she couldn't fulfil his wishes because of her husband. Her kindness towards Ennis was incredibly touching-- the way her glassy eyes almost filled with tears as he left was so perfect.
All in all, I can't wait to buy the DVD, because I really, really want to hear the commentary, both from actor and director standpoints. It's such a contemplative piece. All in all, I liked how it was a love story and a character piece, not a film that tried to deliver on a particular political agenda. Neither Ennis nor Jack were spotless heroes, they were just people. People who just happened to be both in love and in a very difficult situation. It dealt with relationships on a purely human level, and that made it even more effective.
Also, the theater was so packed that we sat in the second row. My neck was killing me by the end, but I was happy to see that the movie attracted so many people.
And today, back at work. I re-adjusted my budget, and now I'm working on lots of data entry to get the office caught up for 2006. The joys, right? At least I look nice-- I'm test-driving MAC's Idol Eyes, which actually looks nice on me. It brings out the blue in my eyes.
Tonight, I have plans to start putting all of my clothes away, and then start setting up my bookshelves. Tomorrow night, I'll haul a desk up from the basement, then set up my computer. I need two small rugs to cover pre-existing stains, but those can wait until my next paycheck. In a week or so, I should be fully settled in.
The party at Sky's went quite well on New Year's Eve. It was just a bunch of friends hanging out, no tension or drama needed. I drank quite a bit of wine, fell off the couch at one point (!), and got a lovely massage from Bridget. Stress has thrown my back out of whack lately, and I really need to look into getting rolfed, because my posture has actually began to change. This is not of the good. At any rate, we played board games and ogled pretty girls and had a champagne toast. All was right with the world, and all things considered, the hangover was pretty minimal.
Sunday at my place, Anna, Ashley, Rac, & Tessy (Sky's mom) all showed up to help whip my sorry space into shape. I love my friends so much, because there's no way I could have gotten even a little sliver of that done by myself. Ashley and Rac worked on the walls and trim in the shared room, while Anna and I kicked ass on the walls and Anna painted the ceiling in 20 minutes, flat. Tessy worked on the windowsill, which is now painted a vivid metallic silver over the rustic, old wood. The colors are pale blue, periwinkle purple, jeweltone purple, and silver-- not at all my signature harvest colors, but I can work in a blue-red if I wish, and it's good to try something new. It might break me out of this rut. I have pictures, and when my internet goes up next week, I'll be sure to post them. I'm very, very pleased. I still have to do touch-ups and paint a few more accents, but all in all, the bulk of the work is done, and now I can begin to unpack. Glory hallelujah.
We went out for sushi at Mr. Chen's afterwards. We all marveled at Tessy's passionate relationship with her wasabi, and I ate way, way too much food. I prefer Olive & Sesame's sushi, but I have to say that Mr. Chen's was at least more colorful, if a tad too moist. There's an Edo Sushi up the road, too, which I want to try the next time I have some cashflow (read: next month).
Monday morning, Sky and I got up, went grocery shopping, and I fixed a nice brunch. I'm terrible in the kitchen, honestly, but at least I can do eggs well. Bacon, though, I cannot attest to, since I love veggie bacon the most. We went to Annapolis to see Brokeback Mountain with Heather. It should be noted that Heather wins at Christmas presents. What did she get me? A Rain of Fire Wesley action figure. I've still yet to figure out if I can make him vibrate. I did, however, do Wesley impressions, but that's mostly because I'm a dork.
Boy, oh boy, am I glad that I read the novella before seeing the movie. If I hadn't, Jack's death would have turned me into a bawling mess. The movie was pretty good. I'm not sure I'd hail it the movie of the year, but it was extremely character-driven, and the acting was fantastic. Jake Gyllenhaal played all of the nuances of Jack Twist, as Annie Proulx wrote him. However, Heath Ledger owned Ennis Del Mar. I could not believe the depth he brought, because the only thing I'd ever seen was Heath Ledger the heartthrob hero. I was very, very impressed. Michelle Williams was also wonderful.
The plot pacing was slow, but then again, I understand it. It reflects the pace of life in the West, and the slow passage of time between Jack & Ennis's meetings. Also, it was an Ang Lee movie-- vast scenescapes and slow pacing are to be expected. The screenwriters added a lot of plot that was not in the novella. While this ordinarily would have really irritated me, in this case, I understand, because the novella was not long enough to give textual support for a two-and-a-half hour movie. Everything added (basically, much of the middle of the movie) worked thematically and deepened the character study of Ennis. I was okay with it, and thought that the additions strengthened the film.
Nitpicks: the music was off. I love scoring in a movie, but hearing the same short theme over and over got boring real fast. Also, while they did age Heath Ledger some, I would have liked to seen him aged a little bit more, because he and Alma Jr. looked a little too close in age to be father and daughter.
Favorite parts: The first time Jack and Ennis meet again after the summer on Brokeback. I'm going to quote Heather (
evergleam83) word-for-word on why, because she hits the nail on the head:But the way Ennis hugged Jack right in that moment, the way he dropped all pretenses, the way he intiated contact because he couldn't stand for a second longer to not be touching Jack; the way he was happy for the first time in four years, for one of the only times in his life, I think that's the moment where the movie broke me. Because I knew and they probably knew somewhere too, that it wasn't going to end well for either of them, and just watching them embrace with a sense of hopefulness and foreboding at the same time, well, that was my favorite part.
I also love how Alma sees, and Michelle Williams' reaction could not have been more perfect.
I loved Jack's big macho moment at Thanksgiving, and Lurlene's reaction. Jack spent so much of the movie being disdained and passed over because he just didn't fit in, and it was good to see him take a stand. Plus, the pornstache!
My other favorite moment was the very end, when Ennis goes to see Jack's folks. The father, to me, seemed to know exactly what happened on Brokeback-- his word choice, his mannerisms, his judgement. It all fits. The mother, though, looked at Ennis with such mystery in her eyes. She loved her son very much, even if she couldn't fulfil his wishes because of her husband. Her kindness towards Ennis was incredibly touching-- the way her glassy eyes almost filled with tears as he left was so perfect.
All in all, I can't wait to buy the DVD, because I really, really want to hear the commentary, both from actor and director standpoints. It's such a contemplative piece. All in all, I liked how it was a love story and a character piece, not a film that tried to deliver on a particular political agenda. Neither Ennis nor Jack were spotless heroes, they were just people. People who just happened to be both in love and in a very difficult situation. It dealt with relationships on a purely human level, and that made it even more effective.
Also, the theater was so packed that we sat in the second row. My neck was killing me by the end, but I was happy to see that the movie attracted so many people.
And today, back at work. I re-adjusted my budget, and now I'm working on lots of data entry to get the office caught up for 2006. The joys, right? At least I look nice-- I'm test-driving MAC's Idol Eyes, which actually looks nice on me. It brings out the blue in my eyes.
Tonight, I have plans to start putting all of my clothes away, and then start setting up my bookshelves. Tomorrow night, I'll haul a desk up from the basement, then set up my computer. I need two small rugs to cover pre-existing stains, but those can wait until my next paycheck. In a week or so, I should be fully settled in.