July Round-Up

July?

July!!

Movies Seen: Eleven, with one in a theater. That one was a second viewing of "Wall-e," and I didn't cry as much this second time, but I did cry a little, and felt the movie held up quite well to a second viewing. The best of the DVDs was "Control," the biopic about Joy Division singer Ian Curtis. I'm not a huge Joy Division fan--I really love some of their songs, but think others just sound like Curtis is doing a bad Jim Morrison impersonation. So, I didn't know a lot about the band going into the movie, but based on the footage of the band I've seen, I think Sam Riley did a really amazing job as Ian Curtis, capturing his voice and herky jerky movements perfectly. Most of the concert scenes in the film feature the actors in the band and Riley performing the songs themselves, and it's impressive. The movie itself doesn't really bring anything new to the rock star bio genre, but the performances help it rise above the mediocre. (If you want a less depressing look at the Manchester music scene, then "24 Hour Party People" is the movie for you.)

As for the worst movies, I'd say "The Mist" would have to fill that spot, just because it was such a disappointment. It's not a bad movie, really, but it just doesn't measure up to expectations, and the ending truly pissed me off...

Books Read: None! For shame! Well, I should qualify that by saying I didn't finish any books, but I did start three. But when I went on vacation to Palm Springs, I brought a book, and about a dozen magazines that had been piling up. I ended up reading all the magazines and not cracking that book a once. So, I kind of read the equivalent of at least one book in Vanity Fair and Esquire articles...

Fancy Dinners Out: Three. Two were in Palm Springs. The first was at a place called The Falls, and their claim to fame is serving cocktails with bits of dry ice in the drinks, so they smoke. I'm not sure if this is technically toxic, but who cares, it looks cool! Unfortunately, we went in there because they had mac and cheese on the menu, but after we ordered we were informed that they were out of it. Even though the place was practically empty. Doh! But we satisfied our mac and cheese cravings the next night at dinner at Citron in the Viceroy. It was fab. In fact, I had such faith in the restaurant that I ordered gazpacho. I don't normally like soup, let alone cold soup, but something told me this one would be an exception, and it was. It came with a seared scallop on top (love!) and a side of garlic toast for dippin'. It was awesome, even if they forgot to put the scallop on top and had to bring it out on a separate plate. Oh, and the mac and cheese was pretty good, too.

The third was only mildly fancy, at Hyde Street Seafood House. It was tasty, but they don't have a full bar, so no matter how it good it was, it would have been better with a cocktail or two.

Live Shows Seen: None. But I went on vacation, and there was plenty of entertainment to be found in just staring at the palm trees, the scary tans, and fake boobs that were around the pool on a daily basis.

Shoes Bought: None. But I made up for that in August, don't worry.

And a final postscript: On July 31st, this blog turned four years old. I'm not sure why, but it slipped my mind at the time, and I didn't give it a celebratory post, so I figured I'd mention it here. How time does fly...