I keep thinking about writing something, then find some reason not to (laziness). But I think just the fact that it occurs to me should count for something. Like, if I was really slacking off, I wouldn't even think about posting. Hmmm. Maybe that's flimsy. But at any rate, here are 10 posts I considered writing over the past 2 weeks before doing something else instead:
1. The All Star Trivia Team - I attended trivia night at an Irish pub (no, really). My teammates were a table full of seemingly intelligent 30 somethings. We got destroyed. In this post, I would have presented my roster for an archetypal All-Star Pub Trivia Team.
2. Special Topics In Calamity Physics - The worst book I've ever read/The straw that finally broke my subscription to Entertainment Weekly's back.
3. Wall-E - I am alway, always underwhelmed by Pixar and Pixar-esque movies (the Incredibles might be in my all-time overrated Top 20). Not this time.
4. Summer in DC - Or, I've been bored before, but not like this.
5. Time to Rock - My old friend Jim brought his electric guitar down for the weekend and we proceeded to rock out in my basement like a couple of 16-year-olds. Except for the back, neck and finger pain.
6. DC United - In which I attend my first-ever professional soccer game and come away absolutely fascinated. American hooliganism. Who knew? Nationalism is totally weird. I had no idea we did that here. Also, a bonus discussion in which I compare attending a sporting event at RFK Stadium to shopping at one of New Jersey's few remaining dirt malls.
7. There Goes the Neighborhood - In which my friend Mark and I become the only regular White players at an all-Black tennis complex.
8. One Man Brand - my short documentary is finally finished and the early reviews are good. Next up: festival applications.
9. The Stella Scooter - In which my lifelong obsession with Vespas takes a major hit as I stumble upon a Stella parked in the neighborhood. Will life ever be the same? Perhaps we will find out tomorrow as I visit the dealership!
10. Mosquito Bait - A photo tour of my mosquito-bite ridden legs. Also, we meet the Old Lady At The Gym who enjoys greeting me with, "How are the legs?"
Friday, July 18, 2008
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Don't Believe The (Lack Of) Hype
A rainy Monday evening and I felt like getting out of the house. Took a bus over to the old-school Uptown movie palace for a 7:15 showing of Indiana Jones. I wasn't too excited, had heard nothing but bad things, but I really like seeing big dumb blockbusters at the Uptown—a big giant red room, balcony, only one screen, super loud speakers—and besides, seeing Raiders of the Lost Ark at the movie theater in the Ocean County Mall is one of my Top 3 childhood movie memories of all time, right up there with The Natural (same theater) and that glorious, never to be topped weekend where we saw The Goonies and Back to the Future on successive Saturday and Sunday afternoons. Wow. (Back to the Future is still in my Top 20, if anyone cares.)
So I felt like I owed it to Indy to at least see the new film in a theater. To put myself in the proper perspective, I decided to watch the movie pretending I was 10 years old, i.e., checking my snarky, dismissive adult self at the door. What would it be like to watch this movie as a kid (a kid from the 80s, anyway)? Well, it would be AWESOME!
Maybe Crystal Skull doesn't stack up to the current generation of fantasy blockbusters, but as an old-fashioned thrill ride, I thought it really worked. You've got the iconic lore of Indy himself-the hat, the Ark, the whip, the disconnect between the adventurer and the professor. You've got Russians as bad guys again. You've got motorcycle chases and killer ants. You've got creepy pseudo-historical stuff that makes you want to go back to archeology school. You've got Cate Blanchett sword fighting while standing atop a moving jeep. You've got a greasers vs. squares dustup in a 50s maltshop. You've got Karen Allen re-appearing on-screen as if she just shot her last scene in Raiders 5 minutes ago. You've got aliens. You've got shifty-looking CIA agents and shifty looking KGB agents. You've got Indy as the victim of McCarthyism. You've got double agents. You've got Shia Labouf asking Harrison Ford if he's 80. You've got, above all else, the preposterously awesome Indiana Jones theme music.
Whew. I swear, my ten-year-old self would have worshiped this shit! I'd have been begging my parents to take me to Toys R Us so I could pick up the Mutt action figure with switchblade action and motorcycle. I'd have been dressing my little sister up like an Incan warrior and chasing her up and down the stairs. I'd have been at the library checking out every young adult book I could find on aliens, South America, the Lost City of Gold, the Cold War, the 50s. Man, I'd have been totally freaking out.
As it was, I sat quietly in the theater with a giant goofy smile on my face, actually managing to tap into that sense of wonder that seemed a daily aspect of my childhood but has all but disappeared since. It was so refreshing to take something in without a critical, cynical eye. I think I'll try doing more of it in the future.
So I felt like I owed it to Indy to at least see the new film in a theater. To put myself in the proper perspective, I decided to watch the movie pretending I was 10 years old, i.e., checking my snarky, dismissive adult self at the door. What would it be like to watch this movie as a kid (a kid from the 80s, anyway)? Well, it would be AWESOME!
Maybe Crystal Skull doesn't stack up to the current generation of fantasy blockbusters, but as an old-fashioned thrill ride, I thought it really worked. You've got the iconic lore of Indy himself-the hat, the Ark, the whip, the disconnect between the adventurer and the professor. You've got Russians as bad guys again. You've got motorcycle chases and killer ants. You've got creepy pseudo-historical stuff that makes you want to go back to archeology school. You've got Cate Blanchett sword fighting while standing atop a moving jeep. You've got a greasers vs. squares dustup in a 50s maltshop. You've got Karen Allen re-appearing on-screen as if she just shot her last scene in Raiders 5 minutes ago. You've got aliens. You've got shifty-looking CIA agents and shifty looking KGB agents. You've got Indy as the victim of McCarthyism. You've got double agents. You've got Shia Labouf asking Harrison Ford if he's 80. You've got, above all else, the preposterously awesome Indiana Jones theme music.
Whew. I swear, my ten-year-old self would have worshiped this shit! I'd have been begging my parents to take me to Toys R Us so I could pick up the Mutt action figure with switchblade action and motorcycle. I'd have been dressing my little sister up like an Incan warrior and chasing her up and down the stairs. I'd have been at the library checking out every young adult book I could find on aliens, South America, the Lost City of Gold, the Cold War, the 50s. Man, I'd have been totally freaking out.
As it was, I sat quietly in the theater with a giant goofy smile on my face, actually managing to tap into that sense of wonder that seemed a daily aspect of my childhood but has all but disappeared since. It was so refreshing to take something in without a critical, cynical eye. I think I'll try doing more of it in the future.
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