I have seen a lot of kvetching with regard to “oh noes, wimmen are victims.” To this I say: our media is a reflection of our society. Women are more often victims of crime (violent and not) and to pretend that would be otherwise with monsters who prey on the weak would ridiculous. Do I love it? No. But should it make you think? Absolutely. In fact, in this particular episode, Sookie WASN’T a victim and Tara was doing her best to fight back in a really really bad situation. Is it perfect? Of course not. On the other hand, show me someone fighting – someone trying – and I’m willing to go along for the ride. None of the women on this show are PASSIVE. That’s what I like about it.

Unrelated, I fucking love Lafayette. I heart Lafayette with the fire of a thousand suns. If the entire show consisted of Lafayette’s cooking in that bar I would still watch.

In other TV news, finally saw the Haven premiere. It could be good or complete crap – I’ll wait my decision on a couple of more episodes.

Tonight is new Closer AND Rizzoli & Isles! I’m inordinately excited about summer crime TV. I didn’t know that R&I was based on a crime novel series until I caught a very brief interview with the author on NPR this afternoon. Something to check out if I dig the series.

Yesterday’s movie marathon included TiMER, which was cute and interesting and I really enjoyed it. I also watched Daniel Tosh do standup (hilarious), Bright Star (Keats bio-pic-ish) which was very good and Suspect Zero which was…better than I expected. A bit predictable but all in all a decent film.

My plan was to go to a book club meeting tonight (The Magicians by Lev Grossman) but unless I’m feeling SERIOUSLY better that won’t happen. The book itself was interesting and borrowed pretty heavily from the Narnia mystique. Imagine if Narnia were a Real place – a place where four bumbling kids don’t manage to do everything more or less right and the inhabitants aren’t all thrilled by their presence. Imagine it had real rules with real consequences. Unfortunately the book relies pretty much on the story of the protag who’s not all that interesting (especially when compared to that original premise) and has a LOT of time devoted to him “growing up” before taking a sharp left back to the original premise (with predictably dire results). It also suffered a bit from dwelling in some minutae of this alternate fairytale-ish world such that I kind of skimmed sections. All told an enjoyable book despite an unlikeable protag.

We watched Capitalism: A Love Story yesterday. Generally speaking I’m not a fan of Michael Moore. His Sicko didn’t accurately represent the experience of MANY Canadians I knew who came over the border to Michigan to get health care they couldn’t in their country. If you want me to take you seriously, you’ve got to point out the good WITH the bad rather than glossing over the bad – which makes me feel like you’re blowing smoke up my ass. I’ve got politicians to do that so I don’t need documentarians.

In point of fact, I think he’d have been better served to make Capitalism BEFORE Sicko. Capitalism is pretty fantastic and does an excellent job of explaining how 1) we don’t actually HAVE capitalism and 2) why we don’t want it. THIS film points out all the things that are currently broken with our system and actually talks about what some people are doing to fight it. THIS is a great film. That doesn’t mean I agree with everything he says. When you’re talking about subprime mortgages, the “subprime” refers to the borrower. Some of the borrowers knew full well that they didn’t have the money to do what they were doing and did it anyhow. I don’t think that’s robbery. I also think that the consumer has to put some consideration into their actions – it’s not like these companies were out FLEECING everyone. You signed a contract – a contract which if you didn’t read, I’ve got limited sympathy.

We also watched The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo on Netflix streaming. My second viewing, Spouse’s first. You know it’s a good film when you’re still riveted after 1) reading the book and 2) having seen it once already. I fucking love Salandar. That is all.

I’m considering making this for lunch/dinner today as I picked up a lovely mango from the store yesterday. It will depend whether or not the local grocer has some fresh mint but I might just compromise.

Today is about more Netflix streaming and more Kindle books. Oh, and quality time with my Neti pot. Fuck. I hate being sick.

Best thoughts and wishes to the Flores family. Vonnie was a ray of sunshine and deserved better.

On the bright side, I got most of the heavy lifting done this week. All that’s left is purging the files and fixing the paperwork. Heh. ALL.

As for now, I’m enjoying a nice cold beer, awaiting some company and contemplating which book I’ll be reading next.

As a public service announcement: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is out on DVD. If you’ve been on the fence, rent it.

I’m out of town doing training and – as a result -a bit closer to Aspen than usual. While on break yesterday I was flipping through the local rag and noticed that The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was playing at the Isis. Now this film has been on my ‘want to see’ list since before we went in Seattle. On the west coast I looked longingly at showtimes. Did the same thing in the midwest. Time crunches and family time take priority over films, alas, especially when I’m the only one who wants to see the film. That’s not to say Spouse wouldn’t have joined me but it’s not the same as making a movie outing for something we BOTH really want to see.

After I got off work this afternoon I headed up (down, actually. Or wait- both. Uphill, headed south.) to Aspen and got my tix. Despite TWO idiots having their phone go off during the film (and DUDE. I didn’t even know that shit STILL HAPPENED anymore.) it was as gripping as the book. It’s an excellent adaptation and I’m going on the record to say I fucking LOVE the chick who played Salander.

So. If you’re down for a great film, I give it two thumbs up. If you hate subtitles however, it’s not for you. If you aren’t sure you’ll like the books, check this out. If you like this film, you’ll love the books.

Normally I’d just put my earbuds in while I cruise the highway but 1) my Zune is still on its way back from the Zune hospital 2) mini workout-player is in Spouse’s truck and 3) so are the earbuds. All of this means I am FUCKED for a 2 hour drive. Except…

My CR-V has a six disc cd changer. I’ve had a few random discs in there for a while and by random I mean Juliana Hatfield, Mary J. Blige, Kate Nash eclectic (see above re: earbuds). At the last minute, I remembered that I still own some actual physical CDs – I KNOW – so I grabbed some faves. Here was my soundtrack for the drive to the Springs:

1. Patty Griffin, Living with Ghosts

This album remains in my top 5 of all time. Spare and gorgeous, not to mention awesome to sing along with.

2. Sarah Harmer, You Were Here

Smart lyrics, catchy beats – also fun for singalong.

3. Beastie Boys, Ill Communication

I remember when this album came out and there was NOTHING on the radio that sounded like it. It was the first glimpse of the “real” Beasties and their Sabotage video became legendary. ‘Cause you can’t, you won’t and you don’t stop.

4. Chris Isaak, Heart Shaped World

10th grade A.P. English trip to Toronto. I bought the tape and did my damndest to wear it out. Apparently I did the same with this disc because fully two songs won’t play anymore. Boo. Still love EVERY single tune.

5. Joan Osborne, Relish

One of my favorite albums ever and possibly in my top five Debut Albums. What if God was One of Us is still a good song but my fave without question is Right Hand Man. That song made me a fan for life.

6. Van Morrison, Moondance

Sentimental favorite. Someone asked me what my favorite song was a week or so ago – I’ve got a ton of faves but my favorite love song probably EVER is Into the Mystic.

So those are the discs I cranked through on the drive down. The way back has a whole other handful of discs.

I’ve been reading so there will, actually, be an update to the book list but I’m not sure it’ll get done today. On top of that, I may make the drive to Aspen tomorrow to FINALLY get to see The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.  I’m inordinately excited about the film and it’s totally worth the trip.

So the awesome news is that I now have lots of random yoga workouts to go through and help with some motivation.

Not so awesome, Spouse is sick. He’s actually been sick for several days and doesn’t seem to be getting much better. As a result I’m trapped on the couch watching what is possibly one of the top five worst movies of all time: Land of the Lost. My only explanation is that he’s sick and a bit delusional and that’s what is making this steaming pile of shit entertaining. To him.

Meanwhile, I’ve got TWO DAYS OFF IN A ROW. If I didn’t have a metric asston of stuff to do, it would almost feel like a weekend!

How about this: I’m watching I Hate Valentine’s Day and I think maybe the only thing Nia Vardalos has changed since My Big Fat Greek Wedding is her eyebrows. Alas, it’s not a change for the good. I find these eyebrows or the makeup or something about it to be weirdly distracting.

Books! I finally finished Finch. While I enjoyed the story I loathed the fragments. I will not reread it and I won’t be looking for more of VanderMeer’s work. Also finished The Year of the Flood, Atwood’s latest and I really enjoyed it. In fact, it made me want to reread Oryx and Crake (again) and then YotF right behind it. I didn’t though – I read Silver Borne, the latest Mercy novel from Patricia Briggs. Pretty happy with the whole novel but I think I put more details on my 2010 reading list page.

I’m also in the middle of The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie. Not sure if I just hadn’t heard anything about it but I was expecting something really different. Thus far, engaging protag and interesting story.

Our flights were uneventful. Against what must be the largest number of odds, on each flight I was seated next to someone who was going to be visiting our new hometown in the near future. I really loathe seating process of Southwest. Frankly I don’t see anything wrong with being able to check and and get my seat assignment early, INCLUDING a spot next to my spouse, rather than depending on the kindness of strangers allowing me to sit next to him. Add unnecessary seat-partner anxiety to all the least fun parts of air travel (cattle call loading and unloading) with a dose of ‘whoever gets there first, wins’ and yeah, it’s not my most enjoyable travel. I was also not enamored of the Southwest/Kevin Smith debacle, where they were dicks and he was unjustly thrown off a flight. Those things mean I’m not sure we’ll be flying Southwest again.

Seattle was lovely as are my long-distance friends. Probably I’ll upload some pictures soon and then get on with the whole yoga post.

In order to stave off cutting my hair again, I’ve recolored it (again). Back to a nice shade of auburn which should settle me for a while.

In TV news, last night was I Love You, Man which still cracks me up. It’s funny in no small part because I think the social activities that have traditionally allowed social interaction have shifted over the years, making it harder to find companionship. The idea of “dating” friends is funny but mostly because it’s true. How do you make new friends these days?

We’re pretty excited about our travel plans. Less so about having to pay the government this year. I generally dread tax season and this year was a double-bonus of suck. Feh.

In 2 months, though we’ll be headed back to Michigan for a visit! It’ll be nice to see some old friends and the family.

Tomorrow’s excitement includes laundry, going to the bank, getting dog supplies together for the sitter, making up spare beds, packing clothes and generally wrapping up loose ends.

We watched Sorority Row last night while I worked on our taxes and what was hilarious about it was that our friend J hasn’t seen Scream. Definite bonus points for creative death and dismemberment.

I’ve been on a kick lately – I rewatched The Little Mermaid a couple of weeks ago and then put the soundtrack on my Zune. I remember being at Danielle’s house and singing along with the movie (I swear we knew the whole film by heart) more times than I should ever admit to. We also spent an absurd amount of time watching The New Mickey Mouse Club. Yes, I know.

The music is great – better than the film, really. According to the film, in order to win your man you should seem vacuous and behave somewhat dangerously. Go team GIRLS. Also, Disney gutted the very best parts of the HCA story – the parts that made it REALLY compelling – but whatever. I have two places in my heart – one for the pretty and fun Disney version and the other for Hans Christian Andersen’s truly awesome tale.

Because of this, I rented The Princess and the Frog. I’ve got to say that I like it a lot. I wasn’t really tempted to see Mulan at all (possibly because I thought Pocahontas was TERRIBLE) so Disney is possibly trying to win me back. Or doesn’t care about me at all and will keep churning out their crap because it makes them metric asstons of cold, hard cash. Anyhow, the music in the movie is pretty great as well and for the first time EVER, I’m tempted to check out the “inspired by the movie” cd I saw in the store.

Tonight’s dinner was homemade Green Chili Chorizo in Queso Fundido and it was fantastic. We’re watching Best in Show – a film that despite a hundred viewings NEVER fails to crack me up.

Funny for completely DIFFERENT reasons (and no less entertaining) XXX, which is also on. We’re flipping back and forth because we have the attention spans of labrador retrievers.