Comparing my E-book Readers: Kindle 3G vs Nook Simple Touch with Glowlight

About a....well a while ago...i had the opportunity to play with a Kindle 3G for a "few months". A few months obviously turned into over a year.

Originally, i was supposed to only have it in order to learn how it works and then use what i learned to train my mom/sister. Except she didn't ask for it back, didn't think about it. I kept telling her, if you want it back i'll give it to you and she just kept saying "oh no no. You keep borrowing it. You're enjoying it."

Well, not to long ago, i was reminded that it wasn't actually mine. And mom started hinting about how nice it would be given her shoulder surgery to not have to try and lift heavy books. So i started researching to get my own e-book reading device. Cause once you go ebook, regular books just seem cumbersome and unappealing.

So i started looking around, playing with the available models whenever i saw them on display, and comparing them back and forth. 

Things i loved about the Kindle

• E-ink, ebooks, storage capacity, were all new to me so i loved them
• The ability to download straight from a store (as well as not directly from the store)
• Insane battery life for a month!
• The ability to read multiple books at once and have my spot saved in each of them
• Font and size changing options, orientation options

Things i didn't like about the Kindle

• The keyboard was useless for me and ended up being more trouble than it was worth. 
• The buttons on the side....That's where you're most likely to pick it up so who thought of putting the buttons there?! You're dumb.
• The creepy obnoxious screen savers. (I ended up having to hack the silly thing to get my own pictures on there. Amazon, that was one STUPID choice...can't you tell from 99% of all media devices from phones to laptop covers that people love to customize their wallpapers?)
• The list only format. I'm a visual person, and cover art is mostly how i remember books. So i would have loved an alternate view. 
• No built in light. I loved my DIY cover, but all the light options were very annoying and clunky, OR i would have to pay 50$ to get one that was reasonable. Either way, no. So i developed what Boyfriend Jon joking refers to as my "various reading light options".

I'm sure there were other things, but I got used to using the Kindle. It was my friend. But to be honest, i had little to no brand loyalty. I was just enjoying being able to carry many books at once anywhere to read almost anytime.

That is...until my new 

Nook Simple Touch with GLOWLIGHT! 

I can't believe it took this long for these competing companies to come up with a built in light. I don't know about the rest of the world, but most of my reading takes place just before i go to sleep. 

So i got not only every thing that i love about the Kindle....but each of the things i didn't like above...were taken care of by the Nook development team. Congrats to you guys for building a Ebook device that appeals to more than one kind of reader. 

I now have

• A touch screen with touch and swipe page turns (no keyboard or directional needed)
• One button for home, and just needs to be held down to turn on the glowlight.
• Cover Art thumbnail lists (or just lists if i wanted)
• Screen saver folders that don't need to be hacked in order to upload my pictures, and it's easy to turn off theirs.
• Built in wireless
• An awesome invention of the Glowlight...which i expect will become an industry standard very soon. 
• it's also great that they didn't have to sacrifice the battery life too much in order to achieve this technology. I should still get about a months worth of battery even if all i did was read at night.
• An online bookstore that's equal to Amazon's for the normal reader. 

This is a great device. And while it wasn't free...the 139 price tag was well worth it. Considering i would have paid that additional money to get one of those covers with a built in light....yeah, definetly worth the money in my opinion. 

Again, i don't have a strict adherence to brand loyalty, but rather go for the best fit for me. 

I read mostly at night, normal novels, not comics or articles, and i take these camping with me away from outlets. I didn't want a tablet...i have a perfectly good computer for that, and i have no intention of writing a report on this device. 

So for ME, the Nook was a much better choice. And the Kindle will find a happy home with my mother, i'm sure. 

And i can make the Halo over-shield sound effect every time i turn the glowlight on now. Cause i'm a dork like that. :)

NaNo 2011 - Day 14

I have really got to get more stern with myself over the subject of NaNo and the subject of sleep. Staying up until after midnight on a night when i need to be up at six is not a good idea. I know this very well from previous years when i have stumbled into work and done everything possible to not let my head droop onto my desk where i will surely fall into a deep snoring slumber.

Yet every year, i end up growing bags under my eyes and yawning through a meeting or two. Really, by now i should know better. And still, that didn't stop me from hitting the snooze button three times more than i should have...sleeping in an additional half hour this morning. Too late to grab a shower (thank god for dry shampoo) too late to put together a new outfit (thank god for cardigans) and too late to arrive on time (mostly because i almost forgot my badge).

But i'm here. Working away as my mind feels like it's filled with fuzz.

Three pieces of good news.

1) I decided to take a break at lunch and re-read what i have done so far in my story. It started out to just be a reminder, but I ended up listening to my voice as an author. I had been thinking that my story beginning was 14k words of pure crap. But in reality, it wasn't half bad. It's drawn out and there's very little to keep anyone reading, but the writing is good and my characters are talking a great deal more than normal. So thus far, it's just a slow start story. Which is better than i had expected from myself. I know we're all our worst critics. But it feels about 10x as molasses like when it takes you a day to get through each chapter.

2) I found my Kindle! it was hiding in the couch cushion. this is a good thing because over the weekend, i wasn't very inclined to write as i should have been and i was able to pick up the Hunger Games that i had just barely started before NaNo. Normally, i intensely dislike first person narrative books. But this one has genuinely captivated me. I like the setting and the character is believable. I'm always a sucker for a female who's a survivor. Although the story line is extremely similar to Battle Royale (Koushun Takami) which was written about 5 years earlier...it's still good in its own way. But then again, i adore the Avatar movie even though is basically Dances With Wolves.

3) On Sunday the 13th, i celebrated my 2 year anniversary with Boyfriend Jon. True to our normal form, we hung out with a friend, played some board games, went out for a good meal, wandered around the scary Walmart, then went home and went right back to writing. We lead such extravagant lives.
As for reaching the two year mark, all i can say is that it doesn't feel like it. Most of the time i still feel like we're in the giddy, silly, blissful stage usually seen around the three to six month stage of a relationship. I love this man and don't know what i'd do without him.

When left unattended....

Boyfriend Jon was gone all weekend with his family, leaving me to my own devices which may or may not have been a good idea. Turns out my life is totally boring without him around.

Friday, i went to see my college buddy's brand new, just got the keys condo....of which they had already tore out the carpet and tile. They were laying in snap together fake wood flooring and my girlfriend was trying to use a floor filler on the very much destroyed chip-crete floor next to the entryway. Upon suggesting that she use floor leveler for that much area, we realized all of the chip-crete was a loss thanks to the jackhammer when the tile was removed. I mean, we were moving it around with our hands it was soo loose and cracked. So i drove her to Lowes and made sure she got the right stuff. Because of the 3 hour cure time, we decided to do some demolition instead so she handed me a hammer and we got to work. 

Her dad was impressed with my knowledge of home repair. I think originally he thought i would be useless because he tried to explain to me how to paint with a roller. (eye roll) Thankfully, we never ended up getting around to painting and i was able to keep my mouth shut from "oh please there's easier ways to do that." Eventually, through helping out with just about every problem he was having to teaching my girlfriend tricks to working with his tools...we found a respect for each other, craftsmen to craftswoman. We even got to talking about how to go about doing the crown molding and running a water line for a fridge with an ice maker.  

But by 5pm, i was dead tired from taking Boyfriend Jon to the airport at O-dark-thirty. So i went home.....ish. I stopped by target with an idea to cheer Boyfriend Jon up when he got home. I bought a black shirt, some iron on white letters and some red and glow in the dark shirt paint. I made my self a I (heart) My Geek tshirt to pick him up from the airport in...and then because it's me... i made it glow in the dark too. :D

I spent all day Saturday, doing laundry, doing the shirt project, cleaning and topped it off with making myself my favorite dinner. Let me just say...the shirt turned out AWESOME.

It only took me most of a day, but Big Bang Theory Season 4 was another winner. Didn't see some of those jokes coming and i like the addition of Amy Farafowler to the cast. But it was so SHORT! i felt like very little happened this season and the obligatory "cliff hanger" for the season was less than thrilling.
Also...TEAM LENARD AND PENNY!

What can i say? I root for the underdog.

Thoughts on the Girl With The Dragon Tattoo remake (Dec 2011)

When i was still in high school, and drawing people constantly, I dreamed of becoming a forensic sketch artist. I started studying what makes faces look the way they do. How just a slight raise in the arch of an eyebrow can change a person from looking sweet to haughty. How mouths that naturally downturn make people seem unhappy when actually just relaxed. And how people who have the crease between their eyebrows look angry even when their minds are just far away.

None of that dream was ever meant to be, but i still notice those details especially when comparing people.

I just watched the trailer for the American remake of the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo starring Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara.

Even despite a dramatic and harsh haircut and dye job...i just don't buy her as a misanthrope, cold and calculated hacker. I just don't. Some people's faces are naturally gentler and less edgy...and hers is one of them. They can put all the dark and overly dramatic makeup on her they want, but it's still a softer person inside than the character Lisbeth Salandar is described as.

Even if you take away all the makeup and get them with similar expressions....Rooney Mara seems softer and more sweet where Noomi (star of the Swedish films) has a more edgy, harder look. Personally i think it's in the tilt of the eyebrows. Noomi's tilt in towards her nose, where Rooney's are start higher and further out. Just that makes the difference for me.








Now...if Boyfriend Jon would finish reading the books so we can watch the movies and then i can talk about them without inadvertently spoiling them.....GRRRR....i could go off for several pages about what i liked, didn't like, and what they left out of the movies that a) would have made a lot more sense and b) were HUGE parts of the storyline and character development that they just completely omitted!

Going to work to relax

Normally, weekends are reserved for resting. However i spent the entire weekend (except for the evenings watching movies with Boyfriend Jon while he rubbed my aching feet) working like a nutcase.

Friday, i spent putting the second coat on the end/coffee tables which really look good, and making the cuts for the stilts for the bed. It was slow but progressive. I had to keep reminding myself that i have the knowledge and skills to do the stilts without my dad. That waiting was not an option and that my methods were the right way to do this project. It's silly, but when you've spent over 20 years doing every single project with your dad by your side...it's difficult to maintain confidence when doing a completely new project. Especially in the early stages when there's so much planning, and measuring and figuring out how much wood to cut that you can get easily confused. But I stuck with it and churned out the cuts. Afterwards, I went over to Jon's and fell asleep early.

Saturday, i mitered all the edges (cut them at a 45 degree angle) and glued them up. Dad has always told me never to use the air gun alone, but since no one was around and it was only noon on Saturday, i couldn't let the rest of the day go to waste. I got lucky on three separate occasions where the nail decided to bend dramatically and shoot out of the board where it wasn't supposed to.....right next to my fingers. It was unnerving to say the least, but i steeled myself and pushed through. By dinner time, they were done and i had filled the holes with wood putty. I left around 7 after putting a third and final coat on the tops of my end tables which looked spectacular.

That night, Boyfriend Jon and I snuggled up to watch the 1980 version of Flash Gorden, a super super cheesy space opera with music by Queen and starring Topol (the father from Fiddler on the Roof), Timothy Dalton (Did a few of the Bond Movies) and a couple others who were big before i was alive. Jon hadn't seen it before and i had grown up with it. But it was hilarious to see just how cheesy it got in some places. Things you don't really remember as a kid now have more dual-meaning and more hand-over-the-mouth understanding. If you haven't seen it before, it's worth at least one watch. It's so bad that it's good.

Sunday, I spent working with my sister, helping her put up molding in her living room and entry area. When we were done, we were high fiving and bragging about how even dad couldn't have done a better job on some of the non-45 degree angles we had figured out by ourselves. Then i got some brown paint for the bed frame and went to attach the paneling to the back of the headboard. My sister joined me shortly there-after to help with the painting of the stilts and the frame. I worked until 7:30 that night before my feet and back were loudly protesting.

Boyfriend Jon took sweetness to a new level, specially making me some pot stickers and serving me while i sat at his table, kind of glazed over and covered in sawdust and paint flecks. He then put on a movie called "The Air Up There" with Kevin Bacon as a Basketball scout who goes to Africa to find a giant he saw by accident but has major promise as an NBA star. But the kid won't leave because of his tribe, so Kevin's character Jimmy...starts trying to influence him to leave by doing everything the way the natives do. As you may have guessed....hilarity ensues.

And for most of the movie...Boyfriend Jon rubbed my aching feet.
I. Am. So. Unbelievably. Lucky. <3

Damn you Fox!

When i start watching a show on Netflix instant, the only thing i really look at is the rating and the description. I don't look to see how long it runs or how many episodes it has...i just watch it.

I was extremely frustrated when Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles ended on a cliff hanger. Eager for more, I went and looked up when the next season would be out. Except i couldn't find it anywhere. I started Google-ing and lo and behold FOX has struck down yet another awesome sci-fi series.

Between Firefly, Dark Angel and now T:SCC......I have solidified an extreme hatred of FOX.

That and at this point, i think that any sci-fi writer or producer should avoid FOX like the fricken plague.

It's too bad; i was really enjoying the show. Once i got over the "Summer Glau, while an awesome actress, can't weigh more than 100 pounds!" and there she was, taking on guys that were three times her size and kicking ass. I forced myself to just go with it and began to get into the story arcs. I wondered what her place was in the future with John Connor, if Sarah would survive, if they could stop Judgement day or if it was inevitable...and they could only delay it. It was an intriguing plot.

But there's no more of it. Damn.

I did like the made up story ending that one of the threads featured and i'll just make do with this so i can have some closure:

 John connects with Alison and his Uncle BAG in the future. They find Danny Dyson, being held captive by Skynet to help Skynet build and maintain their computers and equipment. Dyson gives our team the answers they need to destroy Skynet in the past. 

With the help of Dyson, John, Alison, BAG and Cameron/John Henry access the Skynet time machine, but at the cost of Dyson's life (mirrors his dad's demise).
Once back in 2007, they reconnect with Sarah, 'Catherine Weaver', and Agent Ellis. Together, they destroy whatever the McGuffin that is Skynet is, but both BAG and Cameron/John Henry die in the process.
John has a touching moment with Cameron/John Henry before it's destroyed. Judgment Day (and the god-awful Terminator 4 movie) are averted. 'Catherine Weaver' turns to liquid metal, and slinks away to the bottom of the ocean, to await a time in the future when humans are ready to use technology like her without destrying ourselves.
Ellis provides new identities for John, Alison and Sarah to live out peaceful lives.
In a voice over epilogue, John remarks about how he and Allison are married with a son, and how his mother died of cancer several years after 2007, but that she lived long enough to see a future without Judgment Day come to pass. 

Anyway, i couldn't fall asleep last night and the subject of time travel began to bother me.  I began to wonder which direction i would choose to go; forward or backward.

If you had a time machine, would you first jump forward or backward?

Forward in time

Back in time

Free poll maker

Personally, I think i would rather go forward. Mostly so that i didn't inadvertently cut myself out of existence. And naturally that brought on the theories about alternate realities, and if i wrote myself out of existence, would i be there in the first place to go back.....

Perhaps you can see why i only got about three hours of sleep last night and eventually did dream about Doc from Back to the Future....cause if he says it, it must be real, right?!

Now i'm running solely on coffee.

Warm season hair removal - Results Take 2

There were enough results last time I tried Sugar Waxing for me to decide to try again. I was certain that the problems i ran into were due to the mixture not being reduced enough. Here are my second set of results.

 This time, i cooked the mixture until it was the color of molasses and let it cool in wide shallow bowls. Even at room temperature, i had difficulty separating a gumball size amount. But warming it in the microwave for 10 seconds helped. I tried using gloves but they just got torn up so i wouldn't bother with those again.

But the Sugaring Paste....WORKED! i was so surprised. The only way this could be better would be if i could bend like a cat or if it didn't hurt. The most painful area ended up being my ankles and i had difficulty doing the back of my legs, but it was still about 90% effective. The pain was very bearable. Less painful than snapping yourself with a rubber band (average strength). I personally feel the pain level was worth the results.

I used about 1/3rd of the mixture, and took off the hair from the tops of my knees to my ankles. I can tell there are some areas where the hair seems to have broken off and not pulled out but those are relatively minimal and it's probably areas where i had trouble getting a good flick angle.

The biggest difference between this and shaving is that it took me almost two hours to do my lower legs. I imagine that this will get easier and faster over time, but still, it was time consuming. However, five days later, when i would normally have to shave again, i'm still shorts or skirt ready.

I was so thrilled with the results, that i decided i would give my armpits a go also. For any guys reading this: I know it's not sexy to admit that women have armpit hair, but we do and I hate it! If it were cheap to get the hair follicles zapped to never grow back, it'd probably be the first patch of hair to go.

I originally thought the ankles were the worst. Nope, the pits are. This is an area where i doubted if the pain would be worth the results. Yes, there is a past tense on that doubt. In all the years I've been shaving...i have never had pits this smooth. You know those commercials where they say "Raise your hand if you're Sure" I'm that confident. Even five days later...i still have perfect armpits.

Overall, it's a viable means of being summer wear ready. I haven't decided if i'm going to give up my razor for good, but i will be doing so for summer at least.

I also think this is more of a two person operation because pulling it off yourself is tricky and takes some nerve. Also, some areas....well, most ladies haven't mastered contortionist moves. Having a friend to help would have been nice.

Warm season hair removal - Results Take 1

In my previous post, I promised that i would try out a form of hair removal called Body Sugaring and test it out then report the results back for you. I did this test on my leg only. I have no data for underarm, lip, chin, arm or bikini areas.

Here's my results:

Not impressed

Ease of making at home batch:

• Recipe said about a half hour, It took me over 45 mins.
• Mixture became the consistency of  thick honey when cooled to room temperature (this, i found out later was not thick enough)
• It became the "right" consistency when put in the fridge for an hour. 
• Most likely, the problems with this area were due to errors in the cooking time because of ME, not because this technique is flawed. 

Ease of application/removal technique:

Mixed feelings

• Corn starch was helpful
• Initially, it just smeared and didn't remove anything
• After cooled, it did apply properly but warmed up in my hand absurdly quickly. I got a couple "good" flicks before it was useless
• Running my leg under cold water and using gloves did not increase pliability time and it became a sticky gooey mess after just a couple minutes
• Trim nails down before, I bent a couple backwards trying to get the stuff out of the bowl. Ow!
• Flicking worked, sort of. It's a technique that definitely needs practice. 
• I was only able to do a part of my right leg, not the whole leg before I gave up. This became horribly time consuming. 

Pain level equivalence:

It's Pretty Good

• Inner and outer calf - like pulling off a strong band-aid
• Shin and ankle area - like pulling off duct tape (i know cause i tried it to get a pain control point)
• I said "Ahhh!" and "Ooooh!" rather than "OMG OW OW OW"s
• It's not unbearable, but i'm not sure i would want to do this as a regular thing.

It's Pretty Good

Percentage of hair removed in area where applied:

• First time:
• Approximatively 85%
• Second time
• Approximatively 95%

"Wrap Around" method for (single or stubborn hairs):

• Verdict: Effective 95% of time

Awesome!

Residual Cleanup/ After Care:

• I loved that it was able to be cleaned up with a shower
• I put Aloe Vera on my leg afterward as recommended.
• The rest of the afternoon, my leg felt warm like i had a mild sunburn on it. The next day, i didn't feel any discomfort. 
• No irritated hair follicles, no bloody follicles, no scabs on the skin, no tenderness, no red bumps.
• One amusing effect: my leg became SHINY. I was able to see the light from the TV reflecting off my shin and i could tell where i had sugared and where i hadn't. 

OVERALL:

Would I recommend Body Sugaring?

• Yes, I would. However:
• Probably not as an at home method initially. I am planning on visiting a salon that specializes in this technique in May to see how they do it, and how they cope with some of the problems i ran into. 
• I will also re-try to make a DIY batch and cook it more and see if that makes a difference. But that's gonna have to wait for a couple weeks, cause i couldn't stand my legs being that hairy anymore and shaved the un-sugared areas. 

Will I be giving up my razor?

• Unless i can get the DIY method to work as it shows in the videos, i will NOT be giving up my razor for general maintenance. 
• But i'm not giving up on this technique. I was impressed at the amount of hairs that disappeared (when the mixture was working as it should have) and i liked the after results. Also, the pain was not unbearable. 
• I'll keep you informed of how well it grows back in and how soon.
• This is a very viable option for short term upkeep. 
• like just for summer when leg showing off is at its peak
• or vacations to warm places so i don't have to carry a razor or other maintenance items. 

All in all, this was an interesting experiment. The ladies at work are all abuzz about this new method and several of them are going to try it in a spa and see if that works better. Also, i'd like to see if underarms works well too. 

Honorable mention goes to Boyfriend Jon for his willingness to hold my hand for the first rip, withhold his laughter to a reasonable level, and run back and forth between me and the kitchen to get me things because my hands were sticky.

He also approves the results, but he thinks this is just a little too crazy for him to use personally. 

Trying classic games again

I forgot to mention how Kings Quest 6 is going.

I've noticed some interesting story arcs that when you think about them with a more mature, worldly, literal mind...are a little disturbing.

Early in the game, you see a woman who get's yelled at by her mistress for lolly gagging. she has a distinct Cinderella feel about her.

On the Isle of the Beast, there is a man with a curse on him so that he has the face of a beast until a maiden decides to stay with him of his own free will. Since Prince Alexander is not a maiden (let's hope) he also gets cursed. You only have a short time to break the spell before Alexander becomes a beast as well.

So to put an end to this, get more items to complete your quest and complete the game, you are tasked with going back to the maiden and asking her to go live with the beast of her own free will with NO guarantee that he's not just a beast who will eat her, and just his word that there is a curse. For all you know of this land, he could be lying!

Thankfully the story ends with him turning into a handsome prince (SNORT!)

She then decides that a good way to thank Prince Alexander would be to give him her servants clothes. Aha! she knows his secret that he's a cross dresser! wait.....

Then Alexander has to got the the Isle of Wonder where he's taken by the druids and roasted over the fire. Thankfully, his kettle with a magic rain spell saves him, but not before he thought he was really in trouble. Look at his eyes:

Anyway, i'm in the final stages of rescuing Princess Cassima. At least she's not as helpless as i thought she was, she has plans to rescue herself with a small knife....if only she could get a hand on one.

It's still bringing back happy waves of nostalgia.

Hodge Podge of Happenings

Today I'm at the point where I've become so tired, that i'm actually wide awake. Most of my alertness, i'm convinced, comes from this massive headache which has a firm grip on not one but both of my temples.

My lack of sleep comes from a late night talk (good kind) with Boyfriend Jon as well as the start of a cold which had me producing very unladylike snores which kept waking me up. I ended up banishing myself to the couch so as to not interfere with his slumber. If not for the headache taking hold almost as soon as i opened my eyes, i might just still be there.

No, I haven't gotten around to taking pictures of the corset back and for this I apologize. I know what it's like to be following a how to and not have any results pictures. Between celebrating the official end to Boyfriend Jon's soft diet after his surgery, Wallet thief/Molly-proofing my apartment, and doing the normal prep for the work week; i haven't even taken the dress out of my back seat.

Our celebration included going to see "The King's Speech" to see what all the fuss was about since it's the predicted front-runner for the Oscars. We had already watched the other contender "Black Swan" and had mixed feelings when leaving.

I had gone into "The King's Speech" dreading a similar story to My Fair Lady. I was instead surprised to see the marble scene poked fun at by Helena Bonham Carter who handled her character flawlessly. The wife of a man plagued by his inadequacies trying to gently find a solution while helping to fend off ridicule. Colin Firth played the king's frustration, humiliation and embarrassment so palatability, that I couldn't help but root for him. Though i don't typically call him a favorite actor, he undoubtedly was an excellent choice to play the King.

My one grip was that I completely did not feel Geoffrey Rush 's character as an aspiring actor was either poignant or plausible. I felt like it had been thrown in there as something to fill the void of the character's time outside of helping the king. Though to be honest, i can't think of a better option. All other aspects of his character were magnificent. I have said before that sometimes it takes stronger emotions like anger and indignation to overcome hurdles and this was the epitome of that. The time Lionel spent with the King was excellently orchestrated by the writer. Everything from the diagnosis as being not biological to their unfolding trust and friendship was a wonderful journey. I understand why it is the forefront for Best Picture of the year.

All said and done, the movie was excellent. There are even twists and turns that you won't notice until it is pointed out. But the best part of this movie is that it will make you laugh at the sheer ridiculousness that begins to work. Even though I am lucky to be rather good at public speaking, I will evermore hear one of the lines running through my head when I do get stuck: "Fuck!Fuck!Fuck!Bugger!Fuck!"

A movie I actually felt like writing about

First off, just for fun, i shall tell you how i came by this movie:
It was sitting on my parent's coffee table by way of my uncle, a man with neanderthalic ideas about women and their roles compared to men. When asking my dad if i could borrow the movie the response i received (at 22 and not living at home anymore) was "No, it's too risque!"
I looked at him, kind of stunned that he would think that i couldn't handle it and shrugged and said..."Ok, I'll rent it then". To which he seemed to come to some form of sense and said, "oh ok, just go ahead and borrow it."

The movie:
.45
starring Milla Jovokovich. More commonly recognized for her roles in the Resident Evil movies as the sexy nearly nude gun slinging humanity-detached agent, Alice.
In this movie, she's a sexy, gun happy, cussing, street dealer accomplice. Oh, and basically, nothing is left to the imagination anymore about her body. Definitely a risque movie and not one to watch if that bothers you. Also don't watch if you can't stomach vivid domestic abuse horrifically detailed out by characters that fit the roles phenomenally. Though i will admit it was a bit of a shock to see tough "Alice" turn into screaming, trembling "Kat"
Big Al, her....boyfriend/boss/antagonist....is quite a character played by Angus Macfadyen
of Braveheart fame. I believed every dialogue, every facial expression, every gesture; that he was that character.
And the ending left me guessing. They give you 4 possible people that did it, and then eliminate 2 of them and after that, if you know anything about street mentality, you can guess who it is.
The movie was riveting, the kind like a train wreck that you can't pull your eyes off of because it's so disturbing.
Don't get me wrong. I don't like watching subjects as awful as this and i had to keep reminding myself in the back of my head that it was a movie. But i did wonder if sometimes Milla had to stop the shot because it seemed too real.
One thing that did bother me about the movie itself was the extent of cussing. It's the same as Scarface. I can't watch it for very long because the word "F U C K" is inserted every third word and it detracts from the dialogue. Not to mention they mumble and make it hard to figure out what they're saying so while you're trying to figure out what they're saying then realize they're just cussing, i sit back and try to catch up feeling like i wasted the effort to figure it out.

Overall, it was a different movie experience from recent movies I've watched. To be honest...i recommend you watch it. I was surprised just how riveting it was.

Filled with massive quick updates and thus is long

I know...lame, no posts in a week? how have you ever survived ~snirk~

Random updates:
Met a cute technician that came to fix our machines at work. Get this, his birthday is a week and a half after mine. Might possibly be hanging out with him at some point...possibly not. I'm not discounting it yet though we seem incapable of having compatable schedules. And he seems more like the kind that likes thinner, prettier, more helpless kind of women. We'll see though. There's apparently been a hint of flirting on both sides acording to Mark, aka, Mr. Nosey matchmaker. :P

I'm 22. My birthday was wednesday...dinner with the family was less than perfect but my friends totally made up for it the following saturday even thought we didn't end up going bowling. Colin even came all the way in from Ebyss which was very much appreciated even though he did have an alterior motive of retrieving his pillow. Also, Kenny, Josh, Grace, Katie and her boyfriend Jeremy, whom i had not met previously (he was quite interesting, suprisingly articulate and had quite the develish side. A good person to know all in all, i thought) were able to come and add to the fun.

At the bowling alley, (we went, just didn't actually bowl) I bought one of those toys that comes out in a ball and you have not idea what you got until you somehow manage to smash open those infuriatingly indestructable little plastic balls. I was hoping for one of the light up flashy ones, and instead i get this necklace with "Happy birthday" on it....talk about wierd!!!!

We went to Gameworks in Seattle instead. had lots of fun messing with Grace who got a little tipsy. Ok, rather tipsy. Played a lot of games, intimidated an annoying jerk that blocked the line by trading off between two people. So i went and stood within inches of his back. Just enough to where i wasn't touching him, but close enough to make anyone uncomfortable. He left after that.

Paid my first round of car insurance, rent, and car payment but need to get the car payment turned around so it is also on the 25th like everything else.

Trying despreatly to figure out how to make this version of the oragami eagle because it's really cool. And so far i'm failing at step 12 out of 60...correction, make that step 15 now.

Have a hair appointment (yeah, it still feels wierd to be saying that after seeing Talona for 3 years now) on Friday. I love my legnth but it definetly needs to be styled better so it doesn't go *poof* on on the bottom. and then i'm happy with being a brunette right now for the simple sake of not having to keep it up as often, but i miss my auburn so i'm going to have her do lighter brown and auburn highlights.

I've gotten a little lazy on Yoga lately, in favor of knitting. The fall season is upon us and i am no longer content with my collection of scarves because their all either red or blue. Thus i'm doing this funky material that's almost like two threads running lenth wise, and in the middle is silk, nothing, silk, nothing. in a black and champaigne color. I have over two feet of it already and it looks really nice. Then i'm going to trim it in a nice soft fuzzy champaign color. I'm also planning on doing this goregous snow white color in a loose stitch with that same champaigne as trim and as pinstriped lines running through it. More neutral of colors so hopefully they'll go with almost anything

I'm watching Kelsey again. So far, she's sick so i'm not so worried about her causing trouble. Still keeping an eye on her though. We're going to go see Eagle Eye tonight. Just to get out of the house and do something. She's really a smart and fun young woman. Just tired of being reined in, a mentality i can understand all too well. Wild-natured women should not have reins much less anyone holding them. I still look at her and think to myself: dear god, that was me five years ago. I think for all of everyone's worrying and all her rebellion, there's a very good chance that when she gets to make descisions for herself, they'll be fairly smart ones and they'll be good ones for her. Right now, a lot of it's the bristling and fluffing the feathers to get people to leave her alone with a mixture of crying out for attention and someone to actually be involved but not controlling. It should be VERY interesting when her sister and mother arrive home on Wednesday. I think she'll go slightly crazy because she'll suddenly have two mother's again trying to control her. Not a position i ever want to be in. Things are going to get rather teritorial rather quickly.

Still trying to work with some ideas for NaNoWriMo (National November Writing Month = writing 50k words in 30 days. It's rather interesting and i think i'll probably enjoy it.) Still struggling with making it a cohesive plot with an actual objective.

That's about it. Later.

WANTED, clothes and movie

Last night, i went out with my three good friends...meeting at a local mall with Grace first while we waited for the guys to show up.
Back story:
Grace is my first boyfriend's new girlfriend. Suprisingly we're a LOT alike down to a few nuances. But we get along great, and i couldn't be happier for said first boyfriend, Josh. They're good for eachother and i now have someone that i can go shopping to Old Navy with that won't take it as a creepy brand name. They have my size clothes that aren't designed for women in their 50's. It's awsome. Well, Grace shops there too (and works, which is where her discount comes in VERY handy, not that i have an alterior motive or anything >.> <.< >.>)
So first, I spent about 78$ (after her discount). To be fair...90% of my wardrobe is black....still. For those that read my last blog and are going "wait...didn't you say you almost never wear all black?"....yes...all black. some black, specifically black with a pair of jeans...is my favorite combo.
But now, after that expensive charge (thank you Grace ^^) i have lots of color for summer! YAY.

Finally the guys showed up and we went to see WANTED.
Wanted was a very good movie overall. I felt like it was jerky. There was one very long running fight scene. It was just a little too perfect, him recieving a gun the second his previous one runs out. ....Right. I would have liked to see him use different kinds of weapons or maybe some interesting martial arts coreography.
And i'm sorry, the lead guy James McAvoy, FAILED. He does not pull off a convincing "angry", "hurt", or "vengeful". his crying was forced, and he definetly was a pussy until the very end of the movie. And i want to know why he was so hell bent on killing his father's murderer when he had never met his father?
Angelina and Morgan Freeman definetly pulled it back together. A similar personality to Mrs. Smith showed up again this time tortured and tormented. A very good mix for Angelina's abilities.
Morgan Freeman was a very good mentor personality. Calm, collected, unflinching, with a sense of humor. I really liked him. He always does a good job.
On a side note: I HAVE TO GET THIS SOUNDTRACK!!!!. I didn't hear one song i didn't like!