Appropriate for today

Signage

I adore this big whale cut out from SlippinSouthern.  They have some fantastic arrow ones as well.

Possibilities

Sum is a slim little collection of short stories about afterlives.  Really short - usually two pages.  It's a gorgeous explanation of different explanations of possible afterlives - some beautiful, some ironic, some incredibly poignant.  It was a wonderful little book to dip in and out of.

Also - how many books have cover blurbs by both Phillip Pullman and Brian Greene?

Exploring

The last few weekends have been lovely.  And we've been doing our best to get out and enjoy them.

For our anniversary, we tromped all over Old Man's Cave (maybe a 6 mile hike through the center bit and then all around the outer trail.)  I hurt for days!

Yesterday, we made it to Moonville.  It's an old train tunnel and former village. The tunnel was amazing and the woods were unbelievably pretty.

Made me laugh

My name?

Found

We currently have a plastic stand for our dogs' food.  It gets super grimy and has loads of chew marks all over it.  I hate it.  This stand may be just what I was looking for.

If we have to

Love her voice.

The summer

Lovely dream

The Night Circus has gotten a shit ton of hype.  Generally, I'm not susceptible, but the subject matter grabbed me.  A circus that suddenly appears in a small town?  One that opens only at dusk and closes at dawn?  Sold!

And the book is good.  It may not be the most excellent thing you've read ever.  But it definitely is a great place to spend some time.  The circus itself was my favorite character - so full of wonder.  I loved the variety of tents that were described and could totally spend more time in them in my dreams.  The story was good too - although I thought that the ending was a bit rushed.  Still, it was a lovely dream of a read.  8/10.

Resilience

Marwencol is such a fantastic documentary.  The subject matter is fascinating and the director lets the story unroll with no artifice.  It follows a man suffering from a brain injury who builds an elaborate miniature WWII town full of characters and stories.  I was completely entranced.  It's a story of resilience and art in the face of tragedy.

Choose

On the excellent podcast Filmspotting, they brought up the question - Who would you rather hang out with - the guys from The Hangover or the people from Cedar Rapids?  They were so spot on when they declared that the characters in Cedar Rapids are the ones you would rather know.  It totally has the cringe-worthy humor that you'd expect but its also really sweet.  Made me smile.  5/10.

You were always better

Keri Noble's song Pages of my Letters hits me in a vulnerable spot.

All conversation

Melvin Goes to Dinner is one of those films that's all conversations.....something I appreciate.  It throws together old friends and chance meetings at one long dinner.  They discuss all matter of subjects and while doing so much is revealed.  5/10.

You know how I feel

Manners and grudges

I finally got around to watching part two of The Forsyte Saga.  Loved it!  Possibly even more than the first one.  It mostly follows the second generation but doesn't leave off the stories from the original Forsytes.  It's all romance and betrayal and manners and grudges.  I wish that I'd watched it a bit closer to seeing the first - some characters required an awful lot of refresher.  Still, very enjoyable.  7/10.

Tragic

October Country is a documentary that follows a family who are entrenched in generational poverty.  It's heart wrenching  - particularly the awareness of Desi, the maybe-11 year old daughter.  It's a sad sad reality for a lot of folks.  6/10.

Winter is coming

So want!

Off the list

I've been meaning to read The Scarlet Pimpernel for forever.  I even put it on my 101 list.  So I finally bit the bullet and reserved it from the library.  Honestly, I was hoping for Count of Monte Cristo amazingness (because that book is fricking amazing).

Instead, the pimpernel provided a lot too much Romance and way too little adventure.  And I love a good romanctic novel, but this was all pining and woe-is-me'ing and desperation and making me want to kick the heroine.  At least I know now, and it's crossed off my list.  Love crossing stuff off the list!  3/10.

No hope

Please Look After Mom sounded good enough.  A Korean novel following a family that has lost their mother in a train station.  The story follows the grown children while they search for her and reevaluate their relationship with their mother.  A look into Korean life?  A family drama? A mystery?  I had hopes!

I ended up feeling so manipulated by the end of the book.  Instead of profoundness or at least a satisfying point, the novel copped out.  So aggravating!  3/10.

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