Bitchin' About: Rude Shoppers

On Sunday, John and I went to the outlet mall in San Marcos. I bought things (a dress, some polka dot shorts) so it was fun but man did it seem to be a lot more trouble than it was worth. There were rude shoppers everywhere! EVERYWHERE!

There are many different kind of rude shoppers, but they all get on my nerves. Mainly because I can't understand how they don't see what they're doing is rude. There are certain common courtesies that should be followed when out in public; things like holding the door open for the person behind you, walking on the right side of the sidewalk, etc.

I'm talking to you- Yeah, you! You, Lazy Shopper who drops something on the floor and can't be bothered to pick it up. What? Is it too heavy for you? Should you not be lifting heavy things? I can't imagine that the see-through shirt you picked up in a size two-sizes-too-small is that heavy. But hey! Maybe you know something I don't. Like how after it's been on the floor for hours, trampled by other rude, lazy people the price goes up because it then becomes vintage. Or you can put it in the cleaning aisle as a Designer Label Swiffer.

I'm also talking to the Stop-Shoppers. You know who they are. They are the people who cannot do two things at once: like talk on the phone and walk, or think and walk. They get a call on their cellphone and suddenly walking and talking becomes too complicated so they STOP! dead. Right there. Right wherever they were when the phone rang. Usually the phone rings and they pick it up in the worst places imaginable - like in front of the only door into and out of the store. Or in front of the dressing rooms. But hey, Stop Shopper, don't worry. I stopped just as quickly as you did so that I wouldn't step on your Achilles heel (no matter how much I wanted to). Oh no, I have nothing to do. I absolutely love waiting behind you while you continue to discuss the pros and cons of Subway vs Jason's Deli. Oh, the people behind me? No, no, they have nowhere to be either. Our world stops turning when yours does; don't worry, we have all day.

Lastly, I'm talking to the Worn Out Parent Shoppers. I know that you have been dragging your children around all day because they need new clothes for school and yet they don't seem to fit into any reasonable size. I know that they want every toy in every window and you have no money to buy it all. I understand that they think shopping is the most boring thing in the world and so after a while you let them do whatever they want. I'm sorry, but that is just not acceptable. I hate seeing kids playing with toys still in packages that are now torn or worn out. I'm not sure if you're aware but after a toy breaks that store cannot sell it anymore. If I ran a store, I'd make you pay for it, pointing to a sign that says "You Break, You Buy" because that saying goes for more than just overly expensive crystal plates. The toy, now broken, cannot be sold. It's more than rude to just let you kids have free reign over the place. I seriously doubt you'd let them act that way at a friend's house so why do you let them act that way in public? And yes, I completely understand that they are children and they don't know any better, but guess what, you are older than them. You are their parents and therefore if you see it happening it should be up to you to tell them that it's not their toy to play with.

John's Birthday Week

Last Wednesday John turned the big 2-5. He's sooooo old now. I like to give gifts in themes; this year's birthday theme was Superman.

I made this. Apparently his head is too big. Lesson Learned: Don't give art to an artist. 

Because his birthday fell in the middle of the week we didn't do anything big then, but instead waited until Friday night to party with friends.

So even though we were waiting until Friday, on Wednesday we went to Revolution Room/Leon Bar. They just got a new (at least new to us) outdoor patio deck. There they had a singer/songwriter doing originals and covers.

There we bought some tasty, amazing, delicious dry rub wings from Wayne's Wings food truck. I had never had them before but oh my glob they were amazing. We drank some beer, pondered over the fact that we're always awkward in public, then went home.

Thursday night we had planned on going to Tucker's because we heard that they play jazz sometimes but it was dead by the time I got out of work. Instead we drove through downtown and stopped at some murals where I took street art pictures.

Friday night John invited his friends over. Even though our apartment is tiny it was a lot of fun. Even though parties (especially ones in small spaces) can freak me out I didn't feel that since all of John's friends are awesome.

Saturday we were supposed to go to the beach but our plans fell through. Which to be honest wasn't too bad as I woke up Saturday completely late and hungover. After waking we went to get some barbacoa, watched some Breaking Bad making sure to leave the curtains closed and the lights off. At night we went ended up going to see Turbo.

Sunday started off slow and lazy. Then, after some new-found energy we went to the San Marcos outlets to go shopping. I love shopping! I bought a dress and some polka dot shorts. (I am crazy obsessed with polka dots). John got some stuff too so it ended up being a fun, productive day. For dinner we ended up at his cousins who made him wear this awesome hat.

Turbo

Turbo (2013)
Directed by: David Soren
Written by: Darren Lemke, Robert D Siegel, David Soren
With the Voices of: Ryan Reynolds, Paul Giamatti, Michael Pena



This weekend John and I went to see the new DreamWorks movie: Turbo.

The animated movie centers around a snail named Theo, nickname Turbo, whose dream is to race in the Indy 500. Turbo loves speed, racing, and the idea of being able to leave his job at the Tomato Plant and experience adventure.

I love kid movies and I thought Turbo was pretty cute. The concept of dreaming big is nothing new to movies, nor is the way Turbo finally gets to live his dreams, but it wasn't any less entertaining. You want Turbo to be different and come out on top. I think children and adults can appreciate the movie.

There were some stereotypes that I think some politically correct, uptight adults may find annoying. The movie takes place in California so you have a cast of Hispanics who like tacos, a Vietnamese woman who does nails and all the snails Turbo meets to race can easily be distinguished by their very obvious stereotypical dialects.

Did it bother me? Not really. Could they have made complicated, dimensional characters rather than resort to the same old? Definitely. But for kids they won't notice and I think it's better to show them that there are more types of people out there, especially those they can relate to. It actually was nice to see a successful Hispanic who wasn't mowing lawns or cleaning house...even if they were selling tacos.

I give Turbo a 3 out of 5 popcorn.

San Antonio Street Art

The other night John and I ended up downtown. Our plans didn't pan out but I did get some really awesome pictures of some downtown street art.

Howdy Ya'll: Misconceptions about Living in Texas

I've traveled a bit around the US and Mexico. My family and I would go on vacation various places around the United States. It was fun to get to see all the sights and the way other people lived, even if we weren't that far away.

I've lived in Texas, practically my entire life. I lived in Salt Lake City, Utah one year as a freshman in college. It was my first experience to how much other people didn't travel and just what exactly that meant when it came to common misconceptions about Texas.

When people heard I was from Texas, eyes would widen and they'd ask, what to me, were really ridiculous questions. "Do you own a horse?" "How big is your ranch?" "Do you own cows?"

In the beginning I laughed thinking they were kidding but the more people asked, the more I realized they were serious. A lot of these people thought I owned a ten-gallon hat, always wore cowboy boots and rode a horse to school.

Eventually I came up with, what I thought was a pretty clever response. When they asked me something about my horse I'd ask how many moms they had.

Some got the joke and laughed with me while others took it personally, angrily yelling at me that "not everyone lived that way." I'd calmly tell them that it was same case in Texas. Yes, we have people who own ranches (a lot of people but only because Texas itself is so huge) but that I lived in a city, didn't own a pair of cowboy boots and hated horses.

But we do have a lot of these. 

Texas is a huge state. There is a lot of open area which means that a lot of people do in fact own ranches, wear hats (it's damn hot out here), and ride horses for whatever reason. But there is a lot of Texas that doesn't.

We have Austin: the so-called music capital of the world. It holds our capital in the center of town and it has 6th Street where all livers go to die.

We have Dallas/Fort Worth; so densely populated that two different cities are now hyphenated.

There's Houston with its humidity. Galveston, Corpus Christi, San Antonio, Lubbock, the list goes on and on.

Via

I know that there are stereotypes for each and every state around. If you live somewhere other than Texas what is yours mostly stereotyped for?

Bitchin' About - Truck Nuts

Truck Nuts.

They are (fake) testicles you hang from your truck. For reasons unknown.

They come in metallic.

They come in neon.

Some look like steel.

And others declare not only your love for genitalia but for the US of A.



I hate truck nuts. I'm not prude; I just don't understand the concept.


Are you trying to tell me that your truck is a penis? Wouldn't the testicles need to be bigger to be anatomically correct?

Is the truck a metaphor for your penis? Like, you have a huge, metal, fast-riding penis?

If it is supposed to be penis...why are you driving one? Why can't you just be happy driving a truck?

I'm all for decorating your car as you see fit. There are tons of bumper stickers, window decals and personalized license plates. Those items I understand. You're telling the world a little bit about yourself. Like you're the mother of an honor student.

Or that you have tons of children.

But truck nuts? Truck nuts?

Actually that last one is pretty clever.

Inglorious Basterds

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Inglorious Basterds (2009)
Directed by: Quentin Tarantino
Edited by: Sally Menke
Written by: Quentin Tarantino
Starring: Christoph Waltz, Melanie Laurent, Brad Pitt



To date, this is my favorite Tarantino movie. I fell in love with that opening scene, a scene that at once awes and captures your attention. The scene is beautifully shot and please, please, please if you haven't seen this movie yet do not watch it on your grandmother's old tube TV. This movie deserves the best quality you can afford to view it in. This scene, one of the best opening scenes in a movie, pulls you in and Tarantino makes sure you stay there until the very end. The movie never slows, never leaves you wondering what time it is, or when it's going to end. Like Tarantino's other movies, Basterds is over the top, hilarious, and just a bit uncomfortable for some.

Like most of Tarantino's movies there are several main characters: Aldo Raine (Pitt), Shoshanna (Laurent), and Col. Hans Landa (Waltz).

We are first introduced to Col. Landa as he arrives on a dairy farm to ask the farmer (Denis Menochet) some questions about a Jewish family that had been living in the area. The tension in the air even as Landa drinks a glass of milk, doesn't really register at first but it's there; it's building. You're just watching the movie, wondering what is happening. But then, you feel that something is not quite right. Landa talks with the farmer, asks him questions, even smokes his pipe; nothing at all vicious or suspicious. But then you learn his nickname: "The Jew Hunter" and the wheels start turning, slowly, about what he may be doing there. Waltz's acting is absolutely amazing. This scene alone would have won him the Oscar (in my opinion). He never drops his friendly demeanor but you can hear the pride in his voice about his nickname and how he describes his ability to think like a Jew. His ability to be both charming and silkily malicious is a testament to his acting ability.

Next we meet the Basterds for whom the movie is named. They are a group of mostly Jewish-Americans (with an ex-SS guard) who are not interested in the rules of war but rather the scalps of Nazis. Aldo Raine is the Lieutenant of the group who delivers some pretty funny lines with his Southern twang accent. Their scenes are violent but goes to show that they are not out to take prisoners or offer exchanges; they are trying to cause pain and kill as many Nazis as they can.

Finally, we meet Shoshanna who once had a run in with Landa but is now living in German occupied France where she owns a movie theater. A famous, German hero sees her fixing the marquee and ends up falling for her. He persuades Goebbels and other very important Germans to screen a new movie at her theater to impress her. Though she is disgusted with him, and all German Nazis in general, she decides to let them screen their movie as she makes a plan of her own.

The plots between all three of the characters intersect with many other characters to culminate in a pretty crazy but totally Tarantino-esque fashion.

I know there are people who dislike Tarantino but I think that his movies are just proof that he is a great director and writer. He is able to get the very best from his actors and make use of music, sound, set, and editing extremely well. He understands movies on a level that only a nerd who watches them forever could. I envy his ability to mix genres and still make the movie not only cohesive but interesting without being distracting.

I give this movie 5 out of 5 popcorn.

The Talented Mr. Ripley

I absolutely LOVE this poster. Via

The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)
Directed by: Anthony Minghella
Edited by: Walter Murch
Written by: Patricia Highsmith (novel) & Anthony Minghella (screenplay)
Starring: Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, Philip Seymour-Hoffman, Cate Blanchett



I went into this movie having no idea what it was about. John had finished watching it a few days before and after hearing the music I decided to watch the whole thing.

The first thing that drew me into this movie where the opening credits.

They reminded me of the opening credits to Hitchcock's Psycho.

The first image we see is Tom Ripley (Matt Damon) but we do not see him in his entirety. We are shown slices of his face, each adding onto the next, until finally we get the whole profile. This introduction sets up the whole tone & premise of the movie.

Tom Ripley is a piano tuner who borrows a Princeton jacket to play the piano at a party. He meets a man, Herbert Greenleaf (James Rebhorn) who thinks that Ripley went to Princeton and knows his son Dickie Greenleaf (Jude Law) from school. Ripley pretends to know his son and so when Herbert asks Ripley to go to Italy to bring back his son from his partying and shenanigans, Ripley agrees seeing the challenge as an adventure.

When Ripley arrives in Italy he stakes out Dickie and his girlfriend Marge (Gwyenth Paltrow) in order to learn things about him. He has to convince Dickie that they know each other from Princeton (though never having attended) and also be similar to him so that he can get close to him and become friends.

Nothing says stalker like a pair of binoculars. 

The movie plays out like a thriller though in the beginning you're not too sure why. Sure, he doesn't really know Dickie but at least he gets to go to Italy, who wouldn't jump on that opportunity? As the movie plays on though, we start to see that maybe Ripley's pretending isn't all in good fun and we're soon asking how far he will go to pretend to be someone he isn't.

I don't want to give too much away, because then what's the point of watching? Plus, I hate reading reviews that tell me everything before I get there.

The movie, even at a little over two hours, will keep you riveted with the gorgeous Italian scenery and the acting of Damon as a believably confused, introverted, talented Tom Ripley. Plus if you love Jude Law you'll get to see his hairy torso in little swimming shorts.

The characters are believable people, very well written and developed, the directing is great, and the editing is by my favorite editor so I'm probably bias but it's great too. This movie plays out as a more linear film so the editing isn't anything crazy but those opening credits alone just make me love Murch even more. The movie was nominated for five Oscars: Actor in a Supporting Role, Art/Set Direction, Costume, Original Score, and Screenplay.

I give this movie 4 out of 5 Popcorn.

Introducing Silverscreenin': Movie Reviews

I've mentioned before that I was at first, an English major and then a film major. I should, in theory be great at writing movie reviews. Haha. Don't be so naive. I am not a great movie reviewer. My reviews tend to be very basic and short.

"Aww Iron Man was great!"
"What did you like about it?"
"Duh! Robert Downey Jr. of course."

I mean, really. I hope to look that good when I'm older. But I'm not sure my beard will grow in that evenly. Via

Kidding. Sort of. Though my infatuation with RDJ is now probably starting to border on "creepy" I loved the first Iron Man movie greatly. But I have a hard time pinpointing what it is about a movie that I love. I used to be okay at writing papers in my film classes but I haven't taken one of those in ages.

So, in keeping with my new "quit bitching" mantra I'm going to try to write reviews about the movies and TV shows I see, because then I won't feel so bad about watching eight of them in a day.

And by writing reviews semi-regularly I'm hoping to get better at them. But I guess you can be the judge of that.

My first review will be: The Talented Mr. Ripley. You can be on the lookout for that one tomorrow.

Look for my reviews under the Silverscreenin' tab.