Two Mini Reviews – Match Point & Shopgirl

Match Point

Synopsis – how to succeed in obsession without really trying.

Rating – oh yeah? oh no. oh well.

I am a sucker for Woody Allen films, particularly the relationship-oriented ones, going back to the “Annie Hall” and “Manhattan” days. There was always something about how his characters related to each other that I found funny and sad at the same time. So I had hopes for this one (by the way, Woody himself is not in this film). But it felt like he took “neurotic 30-somethings in New York” and turned them into ”smug 20-somethings in London”. I understood what he was going for emotionally – the movie, like the main character, felt very flat and mechanical, just going through the motions. Okay, okay, I get it, but I didn’t really end up caring. Scarlett Johansson’s lips upstaged her for the most part. I had called it “Crimes and Misdemeanors meets Fawlty Towers,” but now I think that’s shooting a little too high on both counts.

Shopgirl

Synopsis – girl meets boy who needs change then meets man who won’t change.

Rating – aww, giggle, sniff, ooh

I haven’t been this involved in a film in ages. I watched it twice within 24 hours, and teared up both times. I take issue with the blurbs on the DVD cover, I would call it something much more meaningful than just a “romantic comedy,” although there is humor to be found in some of the situations. It was a beautiful movie to watch, with colors and lighting that help set a tone that runs from melancholy to hopeful and back again. Clare Danes is mesmerizing, Jason Schwartzman is... well, irresistable in a way, and Steve Martin is far from wild and crazy, and is actually a little (to me a lot) sad. Don’t expect a “Steve Martin movie.” And (although I hate saying this), if you liked “Lost in Translation” you will probably like this one. Rent it.

Bargain safari.

Check out my Safari Jacket super-bargain. I don’t know when this happened, but Wal-Mart snuck some cute stylish stuff into their lineup this year. To play on the whole safari trend, I had been looking around for a little jacket. So, there I was in Wal-Mart and snagged this off the clearance rack for $9. It comes in other colors, but I’m diggin’ on the olive. The photo shows the collar down, but it's actually made like a stand-up collar, so that's how I will wear it... the floral under the collar tends to make it look a little too folksy for me. For the money though, I am not complaining!

I would caution against wearing a “head to toe” safari look…you don't want to end up looking like the Crocodile Hunter. I plan to wear this jacket with some cute little summer skirts and tanks, or sleek jeans, possibly white, and camis or more feminine blouses like this one which I also picked up today, only in white (not shown online).

So, once again, on the little trendy items that may or may not be around next year, I recommend going on a bargain safari.

Crock Pot Suggstion – TURKEY BREAST

We do lots and lots of pork and beef roasts, and to be honest we get tired of them. So, I decided to try a turkey breast in the crock pot. Most people say it won't work, but it did for me and here's all there is to it.

Take a mostly-frozen to all-the-way frozen turkey breast, skin and bones on (a 6 lb breast worked well in the size crock pot I had), and put it in the pot skin side up. Salt and pepper the top of the breast. Sprinkle liberally with poultry seasoning. Then drizzle it with a little extra virgin olive oil – I'd say I used around 1/4 to 1/3 of a cup. Set it for 10 hours, put the lid on and go to work. That's right. No water, no soup, nothing but salt, pepper, poultry seasoning and olive oil.

I will admit I sweated it a little, and had a few people tell me I would go home to a dried out piece of meat. But it was juicy, tender and delicious. The broth was unbelievable, and there was quite a bit of it.

It's not a glamorous way to fix a turkey breast, but this will be a standard in my slow-cooking lineup from now on. It tasted wonderful, and there was tons of meat for sandwiches, soups or salads.

Mini Review – A History of Violence

A History of Violence

Synopsis: Small town diner owner isn't what he appears to be. Or, check your guns at the door, boys.

Rating: Ick! Eww! Egad!

Okay, I get it, I get it. But I didn't buy it.

I didn't buy Viggo as the quiet diner owner, I didn't buy his reactions to the bad men showing up, I didn't buy his confession to his wife, I didn't buy his wife's reaction to it, I didn't buy the brother, the gangsters, nothing. I didn't buy any of it. He seemed to me to be a cardboard cut out with a bad haircut. What was thrown in to pass for real emotion was an angry prelude to a horrible, violent sex scene. Ick! I may have been more drawn in and cared whether or not the guy got out of whatever he was into if I bought any of it. As it was I got to the end of the film and realized that the director was the one who got away with murder. Speaking of the violence, there were about 4 scenes that were pretty disgusting. I am not usually a wimp about that, but at one point I was sincerely grossed out. Obviously not for kids.

I realize this film got good reviews, but this one I can not personally recommend. Go with your gut.

That's my (long) mini-review.

Perfect for the spring trends. And DIRT CHEAP.

This is a must see. I grabbed this in two colors without batting an eye. Of all places, I found this sweater at Wal-Mart. In-store, the price was marked down to $7. Online it's at $6. One note: The sweaters in-store are not a "double V" neckline like the one online, shown here. The fabric content is the same, so the only difference appears to be the V in the back. I would not have a problem with the double V neckline, I have been seeing more of them out for spring.

Either way, I think it's a steal. It reminds me of a cable sweater at J.Crew that sells for a LOT more.

I have a few tricks for shopping at a place like Wal-Mart for clothes.

The first thing is picking the right color(s). When you look at the pictures on the website you may see what I mean. Some of the colors just look a little cheesy. The more classic the color, the more it works. I got natural and white (the web site has what I think is the natural, they call Whipped Cream... the white must be only in stores). Since white and naturals are big this spring, that's a bonus. Black is a basic color, but in these machine-washable cotton blend fabrics, black will fade pretty fast (you'd have the same problem with red). The yellow is a good possibility, because it's a lemony shade that's not too obnoxious. The rest of the colors are probably a pass for me.

My other trick is to wash in cold water and hang or lay flat to dry. I think this keeps a cheap sweater from looking too worn too quickly. That may seem like too much trouble for a cheap sweater, but think of how low your per-wear cost will be if it lasts just that much longer!

The last trick is just to think of it like this: it was $7! It's not a wardrobe "investment." It's a fun little sweater for spring. When it starts looking a little ragged, get rid of it and don't feel bad!

There you go. Something springy and on-trend for CHEAP!!

Mini Review – King Kong

King Kong

Synopsis: Girl meets ape. Ape falls hard.

Rating: Ooh! Ooh-ooh! Ooh!

Okay, I have always been a sucker for big apes. This one will not leave the DVD player for a while. It has everything the 1933 version had (romance, action, dinosaurs, oh my!), and nothing the awful 1976 version had (Jessica Lang... were they serious?). It's a little long, but it's packed with fun.

That's my mini review.

Mini Review – The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe

Synopsis: You can find your destiny in the most unlikely places (like the back of the closet). You just have to believe it's in there.

Rating: Ooh! Ahh!

I didn't want to miss a second, so of course I paused it when I had to, and I wanted to watch it again right away because it's one of those movies where you're sure you can get more out of a second viewing. I will either rent this one again, or end up buying the DVD.

Note: For those with kids, the Witch was genuinely scary, some of the battles were pretty intense and when Lucy cries, it can get pretty upsetting.

That's my mini review.

Cat food that actually works the way they say it will.

If you are a cat owner like me, you know the trauma of "that sound". That revolting sound of your precious feline about to hurl a disgusting hair ball. And then you see it about to happen. She is standing in the middle of your brand new Pottery Barn duvet and there's no time to act. You try herding her onto the easy-to-clean floor but it's too late. Then comes the splat.

I have lived with many cats in my life, and believed that hair balls were just part of the program. And, I suppose they are to some degree. But when premium cat foods came out with claims of reducing hair balls, I tried most all of them. Nothing worked like this stuff.

The claims seem ridiculous. Fewer hair balls AND less litter box odor?! So I tried it and I have been sold on Nutro Natural Choice Complete Care now for five years. I can count on one hand the number of times my cats, George and Mallory, puke hair balls in a year's time. In fact, except for in times of stress, they just do not puke. And Mallory, the older cat was a BIG puker before – she has that thick, dark gray fur that makes really good hair balls. As for litter box odor, I did notice a difference. The poop (sorry about this) is a solid consistency, with very little or no smell at all.

I feed them ONLY the dry food, which also claims to benefit their skin and coat, their digestive tract and their dental health. Bonus. I was concerned about switching up on the varities, but they have all continued working, and the cats seem to like all the flavors. Right now they are on "Indoor weight control."

Nutro is priced more than grocery store brands, but less than the super-premium stuff. The web site offers a store search feature, and a "frequent buyer program". Check it.

George and Mallory and I highly recommend this product.
Publish
(Of course, George and Mallory would recommend mice and rubber bands, but they can't type...)

Update 1/5/07: This food is available at PetSmart. I buy in-store, but it's also available online.

Ahh spring. Stop and smell the sewing machine oil.

This is the time of the year, inevitably, that I get the urge to start sewing. Not that I ever accomplish all my projects, but I love the lure of fabric and thread and patterns. All the shopping sites give me ideas, and there are usually patterns that are similar to the new styles, or that can be adapted to suit you.

One word of caution. Get over the thought that this is a "cheaper" way to get the latest styles. In the end, it's not. By the time you buy a pattern, the fabric, trims and notions, you will have some cash invested in the project. But, saving money not the "reason" I want to sew. It's fun. I have something I created that's unique. And it makes it feel like spring.

So, my first project. Very Easy Very Vogue pattern #8038.

The fabric I bought is a vintage looking tiny blue floral on a white background. I got an equal amount of plain white fabric to line it. The fabric was a dirt cheap cotton I got for like a buck a yard. I prewash all my fabrics, especially the cheap stuff, so I know it's preshrunk.

I am contemplating some grosgrain trim... that would be my "designer touch," possibly around the hem. I saw something similar in J.Crew. We'll see how it goes. My thought is to wear this either with a white tee or tank and flats, or a closer-fitting white cotton blouse and small (not tall) heels.

Get out the sewing machines. It's spring.

Mini Review – Memoirs of a Geisha

Memoirs of a Geisha

Synopsis: When life hands you white makeup and lipstick, make lemonade instead.

On my scale (ooh to ick) this rated an ah...so?

I did pause it every time I had to go to the bathroom, because it was a beautiful movie to watch. I wouldn't have missed much, however. It's been years since I've read the book, but I thought there was more to it than that – so I pulled it off the shelf to put on my "reread this" pile.

And that's my mini review.

A little book that's a big deal.

Here's a great idea for your next bridal shower gift... and while you're at it, get one for yourself, too.

"The Power of a Praying Wife Book of Prayers," by Stormie O'Martian (on the left in the photo). It's a compliation of all the prayers in the main book, on things like your husband's responsibilities, his fianances, his fears, his future, his faith... and a lot more. It has a short prayer, a Bible verse with each one, and a place to jot down your thoughts or specifics about your husband in that area. It's the perfect size to keep in your purse or the car (where I keep mine). I pull it out at stop lights or when I'm stuck in traffic and say a prayer for Bob. This little pocket book is like $7 on Amazon. So it's ideal for a little extra shower gift for someone you know who's getting married. It doesn't matter what church the bride-to-be goes to, either.

My cousin got me "The Power of a Praying Wife," and it changed the way I look at my marriage. It helped me to see that it was God's job to change Bob into the man he is supposed to be, not mine. My job is to pray for him. But the amazing thing is that when I started praying for Bob, not only did things change between us, but I started to change, too. This is a quick read, 30 short chapters, so you can read a chapter a day in just a few minutes.

(By the way, there's a "Power of a Praying Husband" book, too. Bob has the little "Book of Prayers" by the bed, and he prays for me, too... pretty amazing.)

Crock Pot Classics?

Bob had brought home a frozen Banquet Crock Pot Classics dinner a while back, and I finally pulled it out of the freezer for dinner yesterday. He got the "Beef Stew" variety. In the end, it was flavorful, and the meat was actually very tender... probably more tender than the pre-packaged "stew meat" that you can buy in the meat section. The Banquet meat was cut in nice small bite-sized pieces and was very tender. The veggies were good sized chunks, and there was a good meat to veggie ratio. The seasoning was a little salty, but we like salt, so for us it was pretty good. And simple? Can't get any simpler. Basically there is one prep step (to thaw the gravy packet under running water), stir in some water and hit the cook button. Put the 'taters in toward the end and then serve it up. I will probably do that again because it can sit in the freezer until a day when I feel like making dinner a no brainer.

My issues are with my Crock Pot. Bob bought me a gorgeous stainless-looking crock pot for Christmas a couple of years back, but it is the oppposite of a "slow cooker." We call it the "turbo" crock pot because when I put it on 10 hours, it really means 2. The 4 hour setting may as well be 15 minutes. On "warm" the liquid is boiling. So, I had to futz around with the timing and the settings, and in the end my veggies were pretty mushy. I could never put something like a Crock Pot Classics dinner in this thing and leave it all day while I am at work, because I'd get home and find nothing but liquid... even when set on the longest cooking time.

My best guess is that there was and is something defective about the "controller" in mine. I will get another one, but possibly not the stainless kind (if you touch the outside of it while it's on, you could get third degree burns it gets so hot). I have both of the inserts, including the cool divided one, and the carrying case, so I'm not willing to give up on it completely. I am curious if anyone has had a similar issue with their Crock Pot.

The beef stew I will probably do again, but next time I'm using my old 1980s slow cooker so I don't have to baby sit.