Shrek the Turd... Er, I Mean, Third

Not much to say about this turd installment in the Shrek franchise. Loved Mike Myers in So I Married an Axe Murderer and in the first Shrek, but this latest iteration is tired.

Or, as we say in German, "schrecklich."*

Okay, wait. I'll admit, I enjoyed the scenes with Fiona and her sidekicks--Snow White, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and the double-crosser Rapunzel. And Julie Andrews as her Queen Mother was also good.

Oh yeah, and the switcheroo between Antonio Banderos as Puss in Boots and Eddie Murphy as Donkey was pretty funny.

Other than that, blah. If you're intent on seeing this film, either see it as a matinee or wait for DVD.

Meanwhile, I can't wait to see Ratatouille!


* German for 'horrible.'

Yo Ho, Yo Ho, A Pirate's Life for Me...

Finally! The third installment in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise opened yesterday and I went with my siblings to see At World's End. I've decided not to say a lot about the film, except to say this: if you liked the first two, go see this one. And don't forget to stay through the credits. You won't regret it.

Out of five stars, I give this one four.

NASCAR Meets Bollywood

Or, you could also title this one "Rum Pa Pum Pum." Seriously, though...

My sister, Janeen, celebrates her birthday on April 28. This year, she decided, in lieu of gifts and a party, she'd invite a bunch of friends to see the Yash Raj Bollywood flick Ta Ra Rum Pum. I was invited, as well, despite the fact that I always end up renaming these movies in a manner that is just shy of mocking.

Simply put, Ta Ra Rum Pum is a big budget film that pairs one of America's hottest pasttimes with India's biggest industry. NASCAR meets Bollywood in this film and, for three hours, it is both poignant and hilarious.

TRRP is the story of Rajveer Singh (RV, for short) who dreams of being a race car driver. He meets Radhika, an accomplished pianist and intellect, and falls head over heels in love. He also meets Harry, the manager of a racing teams called the Speeding Saddles. Harry recruits RV to be the team's driver and RV convinces Radhika to marry him. They live a life of celebrity and big dreams until the day RV is in a horrible crash on the track where he first started racing. He ends up out of commission, broke, forced out of his home in the Hamptons, and living in the slums of New York City where he works as a taxi driver.

The movie chronicles RV and his family's struggle to overcome their financial woes and his psychological trauma and once again triumph. It's a fun movie with a good message about making the best of a bad situation.

Being a Bollywood flick, it's obviously long (3+ hours) and includes several musical pieces, including a Mary Poppins-type scene in New York City's Disney store where the family dances and sings with a family of animated bears, but all in all, it's a good movie. Frankly, it's better than Talladega Nights and, unlike Talladega Nights, I didn't feel like I'd lost three hours out of my life I'd never get back. If you're up for a Bollywood film and you want something the entire family can watch, see this one.

P.S. Did you know that 40 percent of NASCAR's fan base are women? I learned that today on CBS Sunday Morning. Who knew?!

Das Leben Der Anderen

This weekend, I went to Rehoboth for a little R&R and some early birthday celebrating. It's always nice to get away from D.C. for a few days and enjoy the sound of the ocean.

While I was in Delaware, I went to the multiplex in town and saw this year's Oscar winner for Best Foreign Film, Das Leben Der Anderen (The Lives of Others.)

Set in the former German Democratic Republic, it follows the work of Gerd Wiesler, a Stasi (State Secret Police) agent, and his survellience of a renowned playwright and his actress girlfriend. Wiesler finds himself compelled to watch them for reasons he soon realizes are fabricated and wrong. The result is an otherwise cold and methodical agent who suddenly develops a streak of morality and risks his career to protect people he is sworn to destroy.

The movie is a bit on the long side and can seem like it's never going to end. But, be patient. What you will discover is a cinematic jem and a morality tale that ends perfectly. This is a film that will stay with you for a long time. If you see no other foreign film this year, at least see this one. It is brilliant! Or, as we say in German, "Ausgezeichnet!"

Can't Write... Must Sleep...

Like so many movie lovers last night, I stayed up and watched ALL.FOUR.AND.A.HALF.HOURS of the Oscars. And boy, am I paying for it tonight.

Getting up and going to work this morning was really hard. All the rest and relaxation I'd given myself on Saturday and most of Sunday was ruined by sitting through the Oscars until 12:30 a.m.!

I thought Ellen Degeneres did a great job, but whoever the director and producer for the Oscars were, they should get a Razzie this year. Could the montages have been any longer? And did we need five interpretive dances?

Still, the Oscars did have some good moments. Most notably, the awards that went to Alan Arkin, Ari Sandel, Al Gore & Co., Jennifer Hudson, Melissa Etheridge, and Helen Mirren. I still don't understand why Scorsese won for The Departed. I've seen that movie and I just didn't get it, nor did I see its Oscar worthiness. Of course, I'm probably the only person in America who didn't get it.

And, as much I can't stand Brad Pitt, I realized it was probably a mistake not to see Babel while it was in theaters. Thankfully, I have Netflix and will soon be remedying that.

I loved Ari Sandel's and Helen Mirren's acceptance speeches. And I thought the best presenters of the night were Jayden Christopher Syre Smith and Abigail Breslin.

I was glad to hear the Oscar have "gone green," but it might have been nice to hear more about what they'd done, the energy that was saved, and reductions in carbon emissions rather than the gratuitous plug it ended up being for the Natural Resources Defense Council. And speaking of NRDC, their website wasn't helpful in providing any cool tidbits or sound bites either. Come on guys! If you're gonna go green, provide some data that will make it interesting to lay folks so they'll think more than just "woo hoo" about your announcement. Give it some meaning and context.

Oh, and P.S., somebody please, please, please make Jerry Seinfeld go away. He wasn't even funny. (Which just proves my point that he's an idiot and not at all funny. Of course, I'm in the minority on this, I know that. I know the vast majority of Americans think he's the funniest thing since Bozo the Clown. Really, though, he's just a bozo.)

There's my Oscar wrap-up. And now, it may only be 9:30 p.m. here, but I'm off to bed.

Graphic illustration copyright: The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences.

Just Trim a Little Off the Top, Please, and Throw It In the BIN

Every once in a while, when I'm looking for something from the simple life, I visit Farm Girl Fare to see what the latest is with Cary, the Sheep. Looking at entries from the last few days, it's all been about sheering. Which then made me think of this Pixar gem titled Boundin'.

Here, for your viewing enjoyment, is a jackalope and a shorn sheep.

Copyright: Pixar Animation Studios.

World Famous in Poland Oatmeal

I’m sure you’re wondering, “What? World Famous in Poland Oatmeal?! What’s that?”

It’s two things: a reference to a line in a Mel Brooks’ movie and a recipe for oatmeal unlike any oatmeal you’ve ever eaten before.

But first, Mel Brooks. “World famous in Poland” is a line from his movie To Be Or Not To Be. If you haven’t seen this one, it ranks in the top three of all of Brooks’ films. The three being, in no particular order, Young Frankenstein, Blazing Saddles, and TBONTB.

If you can name the scene and the actor who says the line, "But he's world famous in Poland," I'll personally make you my "World Famous in Poland Oatmeal."

As for the oatmeal, what I’m about to share is nothing short of divine and is a family recipe that is unlike anything you’ve ever eaten in a hot breakfast cereal. If you’re like 99% of the population, you probably grew up eating oatmeal that was a variation on either watery and soupy or thick and tacky. You probably could have used it as wallpaper paste and never known the difference. It was generally “Quick Oats” or "Instant" you were eating and it likely stuck to your ribs. Which is a shame, really. Your oatmeal experience could have been so different—and is about to be—if you’d made it like I’m about to show you. (You can click on all the pictures to enlarge them and see more detail.)

Ingredients: Quaker Old Fashioned Oats, Raisins, Butter, Sugar, Cinnamon.
Tools: One sauce or quart pan, a strainer, a stove, and a proper sense of timing.

First, go to the cereal aisle in your favorite grocery store and buy a container of Quaker OLD FASHIONED OATS (see above.) Do not buy “Quick” or “Instant” oats. They are the reason oatmeal is so ghastly and 19th century. (And don’t even get me started on those awful insta-packs with all their artificial flavor iterations. Eeewwww. Ick. Plechy, as my sister would say.) In addition to the old fashioned oats, you will also need raisins, butter, sugar, and cinnamon.

Sauce pan with raisins and a 1/2 teaspoon of salt.

Second, fill a quart sized pan 2/3 full with water. Add a teaspoon of salt. If you’d like raisins in your oatmeal, add them now. Bring the water with the raisins to a swift boil.

This is about 2 tbsp of butter (or 3 pats),
3 heaping tablespoons of white granulated sugar,
and 1/2 teaspoon of Saigon cinnamon.

Meanwhile, as you’re waiting for the water to boil, get out a deep cereal bowl—if you’re making a single serving, or a mixing bowl—if you’re making enough for you and family or friends. For a single serving, put 1 – 2 tablespoons of butter, 2 – 3 heaping tablespoons of sugar, and a 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon in the bowl. For multiple servings, double, triple, or quadruple those amounts (in other words, one fixing of ingredients per person.)

This is not quite 2 cups of oatmeal.

Once the water is boiling, scoop out two handfuls of oatmeal per person (not quite 2 cups) and dump it into the boiling water.

This is immediately after I poured the oats in the water with the raisins.
I then stir it around four or five times to make sure all the oats have equal cooking opportunity!

Let the oatmeal cook for about 15 seconds (but not more than 20 seconds) and remove from heat. Pour into a strainer to remove all of the excess water.

This is what it will look like when you've drained all of the water off.
You're really on your way to yummy now!

The oatmeal should look dry and loose, but will be cooked basically al dente thereby still retaining its firmness and not going mushy. If you cook it more than 20 seconds, you run the risk of it starting to feather and mush.

The finished product!

Transfer the oatmeal to your bowl with the butter, sugar, and cinnamon, and stir. You should get a silky, syrupy consistency and the smell of butter, sugar, and cinnamon should make you swoon. If you want milk with your oatmeal, add your desired amount.

If you look closely at the 3 o'clock position in this picture,
you'll see a little pool of syrup--
the result of the butter, sugar, and cinnamon
melting in the heat of the oats and raisins.
This is what makes this oatmeal especially divine.
Yum, yum, yum!

The perfect meal on a cold winter's morning/afternoon/evening... Eat up and eat hearty!



A note about the raisins: if you like raisins and you want them in your oatmeal, boil them with the water. This will melt the naturally occurring sugars in the raisins and make them plump, juicy, and sweet. (This is also a good tip to know when making oatmeal cookies. Believe you me, it will make a world of difference.) If you don't care for raisins--no way, no how--omit them. I haven't tried other dried fruits in this, though I imagine you could.

Another note about serving oatmeal this way: you’re probably feeling a little dubious and doubtful. You probably hate oatmeal and have nothing but psychologically scarring memories of your grandmother’s oatmeal. This is not, I repeat, NOT your grandmother’s oatmeal. I’ve converted many a friend to oatmeal using this recipe. I promise, it’s really, really good or I’ll give you your money back on your container of Quaker Old Fashioned Oats.

A special thanks to my brother, Phillip, for lending me his camera, without which this illustrated cooking lesson would not have been possible.

Photo copyrights: Janet M Kincaid

Remakes

We all have television shows we remember watching as kids. Some of our favorite shows have been reinvented and packaged over and over again through the years. For example, I Love Lucy becomes Mad About You or The Honeymooners becomes Everybody Loves Raymond or Happy Days becomes either Friends or That 70s Show. Some t.v. shows have been resurrected and blown onto the silver screen. Star Trek, Charlie’s Angels, Miami Vice, Dukes of Hazzard, and Superman are just a few. As technology and special effects have improved, the ability to move from black and white to color, from minimal effects to visual spectacles has also increased.

Having noted all that, here’s what I’m wondering: Why has no one made a television show or a movie that revives that campy wonder of the 1970s, The Six Million Dollar Man?

I loved that show. Okay, so admittedly, the acting was crappy and the story lines were equally awful, but the use of technology was what fascinated me.

And with today’s technology, especially advances in orthotics and prosthetics, a show like that would not only be fun, but would have an element of believability. On top of that, given the fact that so many of our Iraq veterans have suffered debilitating injuries to arms and legs, a show like that would call attention to the advances in treatment and technology for these brave men and women.

What television shows do you wish they’d remake either as a new series or as a movie? What shows do you wish they’d just left alone and never revived or shot to the silver screen?

Day 30: Ruswa or Ada?

Today's blog features a guest writer, my sister. I asked her to write up a piece about the 1981 and 2006 Indian film adaptations of Mirza Muhammad Hadi's Umrao Jaan. Without further ado, DC Rush Hour is pleased to bring you Ruswa or Ada? by Janeen Kincaid.


********************


On November 5, 2006, you may have seen a post on this blog titled Coochie Coochie Coo. This was Janet’s post about humoring me and going with me to see Muzaffir Ali’s 1981 motion picture Umrao Jaan, starring Rekha in the lead role, at the Freer Gallery of Art.

A few weeks later, Janet once again humored me by going to see J.P. Dutta’s 2006 version of Umrao Jaan starring two of my favorite Indian actors: Aishwarya Rai as Umrao Jaan and Abhishek Bachchan as Nawab Sultan. After the movie, I asked Janet what she thought and she said, “I liked both for different reasons. But I’ll tell you what, you write up a review of the two movies and I'll post it on my blog.”

As you can see, that was exactly one month ago; I have been telling her on almost a daily basis that I was working on the entry. Truth be told, I have been procrastinating this entry for several reasons. First, I am not a movie critic. Second, I do not have a whole lot of respect for movie critics; I believe that 99% of the time they completely miss the mark. And, third, I think I watch movies from a different perspective than most people. Perhaps I will be proven wrong today.

I believe that the best actors/actresses are the ones who identify strongly with the characters they choose to play. I believe that a part of who the actor/actress is in their private life comes through in the parts they play. There is no exception in my mind with the two actresses that have played the part of Umrao Jaan. Do not misinterpret my meaning, though: I would never say that Rehka (Umrao Jaan, 1981; photo above) or Aishwarya Rai (Umrao Jaan, 2006) are courtesans, because they are not. But they both understand the constant search for happiness and recognition Umrao Jaan went through.

In an article in Rediff, journalist Suhash K. Jha quoted the following about an interview that he was granted with Rehka in September 2001:

“I don’t think anyone knows the real Rekha. Not even Rekha herself. There’s this constant exploration of the ‘real Rekha’ that goes on between the actress and her hand-chosen journalist friends. Too bad I’m not one of them.

“The one interview that I did with her was, according to her, a failure. ‘He didn’t understand me,’ she told a mutual friend later.’

“Now I realize what she meant. To Rekha, her mask is both a protecting shield and a tragic face of stardom. She wants it on, but she also wants it peeled off, so she would feel like herself again.”

This is exactly what Rekha captured in her portrayal of Umrao Jaan as Muzaffir Ali interpreted the story. Umrao started out as the kidnapped child Ameeran sold to a Kotha(1) by her kidnappers. Being too young to understand the full impact of what has happened to her, Ameeran becomes accustomed to her surroundings and the luxury that is placed in her grasp and faithfully works toward the goal of being a successful courtesan. She never completely forgets Ameeran while being trained to be Umrao Jaan, the courtesan of Lucknow. Umrao gained the title Jaan as soon as she lost her virginity to her first paying customer. Umrao Jaan was a mask placed on Ameeran.

Throughout her life as a courtesan, all Umrao Jaan wanted was to be loved and cared for by one man. She held onto the dreams of the girl Ameeran, while facing her world as Umrao Jaan. In my mind, only a person who understands what it means to wear a mask that hides the real self could portray the same type of character on screen. Rekha learned early in her career to put on a mask to protect her real self from the harsh realities of life in the movie industry.

I loved Rekha’s portrayal of Umrao Jaan; it was raw and full of emotion. She captures the essence of lost innocence—a lose caused by the selfish choices of others. All you have to do is watch the last song sequence in this movie to see how powerful her performance is. As she dances and sings the song Yeh Kya Jagah Hain, (loosely translated “what is this place, friends?”), she is questioning her existence both as Ameeran and Umrao Jaan, but more importantly as a woman in 19th Century India. To see the strength and beauty of Rekha’s performance, you must watch the film. You can find the movie on Netflix.

I don’t know if I have adequately described Rekha’s performance, but I enjoyed the experience so much that I purchased a copy of the movie on DVD as soon as I could. Janet can tell you that there are very few movies in my collection that I do not like, but even fewer that I list under the category of “must watch.” This one makes it into that category.

Happiness plays hide-n-seek with me.
I don’t know who’s hiding, and who’s seeking,
But we’re old friends…

—Aishwarya Rai about herself (August 2002)

If anyone could play the part of a woman searching for happiness it is Aishwarya Rai (photo at left.) She fits into the J.P. Dutta interpretation of Umrao Jaan, because she lives two lives: her public life and her private life.

From the very beginning, Mr. Dutta has spoken of his interpretation in terms of how Ameeran lives her life. Dutta’s movie is seen from the perspective of Ameeran remembering her family and life in Faizabad prior to her kidnapping. Even remembering her life, Ameeran is just a child who does not understand that she could have obtained her freedom from the life of a prostitute by running away from the Kotha. Instead she says, “I was born unlucky. The buffetings of fate and chance left me stranded in a wilderness. There was no way out except the path of evil.”(2) Umrao Jaan was a public figure and Ameeran was a private figure; throughout all of it, Umrao Jaan longed for the life that Ameeran would have had had she not been kidnapped.

In this version of Umrao Jaan, the public figure Umrao falls in love through the heart of the private figure Ameeran. She gives her whole heart to the man she loves, with a pure hope that she will find lifelong happiness. Umrao actually knew from the beginning that her love was doomed. She once told Nawab Sultan: “after everything, you will remain a Nawab. And me, even after being faithful…will always remain a courtesan.”(3) Unfortunately, Ameeran learns that love will betray the most loyal hearts. She finds herself left alone and broken hearted because her soul mate listened to the lies of another concerning the public figure Umrao. Her soul mate ignored the knowledge he had of the private Ameeran, that she was faithful and loyal. Although he professed his love for her, deep down Nawab Sultan had allowed the name Umrao Jaan to overshadow the beauty and grace of Ameeran, who loved him with her whole heart.

This version of Umrao Jaan was quite powerful. Aishwarya Rai gave a performance full of rich layers of emotion, which are not necessarily seen with one viewing of the movie. Once again, as soon as the movie was available on DVD I purchased a copy. It currently resides on the shelf next to the 1981 version of the movie within the category “must see.”

If you decide to watch these movies, I would make one suggestion: Do not compare them to each other as they are two different interpretations. And above all, do not compare the performances of the actresses; it would be an insult to their individual talents and performance styles.

I understand better now why Mirza Muhammad Hadi took the pen name Ruswa, and gave Umrao the poetess the pen name Ada. Perhaps Mirza Muhammad Hadi, as a man, recognized that it was a disgrace (Ruswa) to sell a woman into the flesh trade for she is after all someone’s daughter. But even he recognized that Umrao Jaan endeavored to live her life with grace, poise, and dignity (Ada) after having her heart completely broken by the men who came into and left her life.

I enjoyed both films for this reason alone: Rekha and Aishwarya Rai are both women who live their lives with grace, poise, and dignity—and infuse the characters that they play on screen with the same qualities. They have both shown women the world over that girls and women have the power to choose freedom over oppression at the hands of others.

1. A Kotha was a ‘high class’ brothel in 19th century Lucknow, India. The Kotha’s of this time were known for courtesans who were highly educated and quite talented in the art form of the Ghazal a form of Urdu poetry. The royal families sent their sons to the Kotha’s as part of their formal education.
2. Ruswa, Mirza Muhammad Hadi, The Courtesan of Lucknow: Umrao Jan Ada. Translated by Khushwant Singh, Orient Paperbacks, 2007.
3. Umrao Jaan, J.P. Dutta, Director. Distributed by Adlabs Films Limited, 2006.

Day 12 (Part 3): Weird Tags and Other Dangling Participles

Oh, man. I've been tagged by the Gunfighter. Well, here goes nothing....

Six Weird Things About Janet M. Kincaid (a.k.a. DC Rush Hour):

1. I like to buy sheets. It's true. When I moved, though, I had to jettison some of my sheet sets because I had too many and some were getting lonelier than others from misuse.

2. I tend to anthropomorphize things that shouldn't be. Like the aforementioned sheets. Or all the little critters that inhabit the tree outside my office window. There's Bert and Roscoe, the dueling squirrels and Percy the Possum and Bart the Bat and Waldorf the Woodpecker and... Well, I'm sure you get the picture. Oddly enough, though, I haven't named any of the many feral cats that wander through my yard and alley. They're all just named "Damn Cats!"

3. I listen to Christmas music. In July. A lot.

4. I have a thing about manners and using your inside voice when you're in public spaces and indoors. That's weird because a lot of folks in today's cell-phone obsessed, fuck-you world don't give a damn about common courtesy and decorum.

5. I love James Bond movies. Most of my friends--especially my feminist friends--don't understand this one. I don't understand it either. It just is.

6. I like to wear my Bergsteiger and yodel. Okay, that last one isn't true, but it is weird. And I do own a Bergsteiger Hut complete with pins from every town and province I lived or worked in in Austria.

And now I'm supposed to tag six other people.

Let's see. How about Mary Ellen, Sister Mary Lisa, Dr. Lala, Miss Understood, Holly*, and, and, and... Hm. I guess that's it.

*Holly, who asked me to do the Christmas Meme. Stay tuned for that. It will appear on this blog on or around Christmas Day.

Day 5 (Part 2): Coochie Coochie Coo

This entry is brought to you by The Association of Subcontinent India (ASI; pronounced Aay-See) and The Coalition for the Advancement of Bollywood in the Western Hemispheres (CABWH; pronounced Cah-bee-wah).

Actually, this blog is for my sister, Janeen, who came here this morning thinking perhaps I'd posted something about an epic film she and I saw on Friday at the Freer Gallery, only to discover I hadn't. Funny, funny Neen. Well, here's your blog!

For those who don't know my sister, Janeen, she is one of the most well-rounded and interesting people I know. She's also the most curious person in our family. In her 33 years, Neen has tried a number of the things the rest of us are either too lazy or too sloppy to really get into. She's also tried things others are too busy or too scared to venture.

For example, Janeen was an aquarist for a while. She decided she wanted an aquarium. But not just your typical 10 gallon, eight fish, four fake plants and a pirate ship aquarium. We're talking 80 gallons and 40 gallons, respectively. We're talking lots of reading and talking to experts and researching online. We're talking fresh water fish from Brazil, Africa, and the U.S. We're talking fish with hormones that bred and had a school of more than 200 other little fishes.

Janeen--the one who ended up serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in, of all places, Hong Kong, where she ate things like tripe and cobra soup and fish eyes and things that are precisely why I didn't go to Hong Kong and I ended up in a place like Austria.

Janeen--who is a self-taught driver. She has two speeds: Granny and Luge. It's one or the other. There is no in-between. When you're with her in a car and she's driving, you're either taking your time and toodling or you're hell bent for leather and God help the soul who gets in your way.

And now, her latest thing is all things India and Hindi. Seems a friend put her on to Bollywood movies. (That's the other thing to know about Janeen. She loves movies and she has a DVD collection that is unparelleled. At least, in my universe, anyway. I think she has almost 600 DVDs and it grows daily.) She's currently taking a course in Hindi at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. (In addition to speaking French, Russian, and Cantonese.)

So, on Friday, we went to the Freer Gallery, as I mentioned, to see the Indian classic, Umrao Jaan (1981, directed by Muzaffar Ali.) Set in the 1840s in Lucknow, the story is of a young girl who is kidnapped and carried off to become a courtesan. As with the geisha of Japan, Umrao Jaan is educated and trained in the arts of poetry, music, and dance. She falls in love with an aristocrat but is denied the right to marry him because he must marry his cousin. Umrao Jaan leaves the brothel with someone I can only describe as "The Man in Black" (this movie is like watching a Cowboys and Indians movie, but with real Indians!) He begins to ride off into the sunset with her, only to chased by the local sheriff and his posse and gunned down. Umrao Jaan goes back to her brothel, but when the British arrive in India, she returns to Lucknow, where she is briefly reunited with her mother and banished by her brother.

Bollywood films have a tendency to be rather long and could do with a little editing, but the poetry, song, and dance in this film was quite stunning. Given the age of the film, it was a lot like looking at old issues of National Geographic. There's a new version of the film in theaters now and stars Ashiwarya Rai--one of India's most beautiful and famous Bollywood stars.

If you're living in the D.C. area and you want to see a Bollywood film based on a piece of classic literature, see Umrao Jaan at Loehmann's Plaza in Annandale.

P.S. Janeen: Two words: Casino Royale.

Photos: 1981 poster for Umrao Jaan (top) and 2006 poster for Umrao Jaan (bottom.)

Yo-ho-ho and a Bottle of Rum...

Just saw Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest this past weekend--twice!

What's not to love about Johnny Depp and these movies?

I know they aren't the thought provoking documentaries or independent films I often enjoy and learn from. But still, these movies are just downright fun.

The most astonishing part of this second installment, though, were the credits at the end. Oh my gosh. It took a small town to make this film. I think the credits ran a good five minutes. Ridiculous!

Still, if you haven't seen this film or are thinking of not seeing it because some critic in your local paper or the New Yorker or whatever said it was a wash, ignore them and go. It's a bit longish in parts, but the ending makes it totally worth the entire 2 1/2 hour experience.

This 'n That

Last week's meeting of the Great Women's Dinner Group was a fabulous success. Dr. Maureen brought her 4 month old, Maggie, and she was the star of the evening. I discovered that nine people will fit comfortably around my new dining room table. Everyone loved the house and thought it was a wise purchase.

We didn't get in a lot of discussion about To Kill a Mockingbird, which was unfortunate. The food was good, though. I chose to fry chicken and discovered that my new stove doesn't get hot enough to heat the oil to a temperature that will give the chicken the proper scald it needs. I may have to look into getting a gas unit for things like frying.

Next meeting's book is The Professor and the Madman, by Simon Winchester. I think we're going to be out at Dr. Maureen's on the Eastern Shore in Maryland. Stay tuned...

...

Found out yesterday that my cousin's father-in-law died in a motorcycle accident just west of the Caldecott Tunnel (Oakland, California) last week. He was only 57. Michael's wife, Aimee, is a delightful woman. I mourn tonight for her, her four brothers, and their mother as they mourn their loss. Though I only met him two or three times, Ron Claverie was a kind, gentle man.

...

Even though I only hear in one ear--which means I don't hear in stereo--and I'm about three years behind the trend, I've discovered the beauty of Apple's iPod technology. (My thanks to my sister, Janeen, for lending me her iPod for a "test drive".) This puppy makes Sony's original Walkman seem like archaic technology, and it was merely 20 years ago that everyone had one of those.

What astonishes me most is the sound quality that comes out of those rinky-dink little ear buds. And the amount of data you can store on your 'Pod is something else. The iPod I'm borrowing has 10 GB and I've only used up 4.27 GB and counting ( = 1,139 songs, 3.7 days worth of music listening pleasure.)

...

It's an odd thing about job searches. I have days--or, more like moments--where I get really, really psyched about finding a new job. I get online and search Monster and Indeed and CraigsList. I find all kinds of work I know I'm more than qualified for.

Then I sit down to personalize the ol' resume and write a cover letter and I get stalled.

I hadn't realized what a bummer it can be to job search, particularly when you weren't in job search mode and you've been laid off under--how shall I say it?--less than just circumstances. More than that, though, I'm gun shy about working in D.C. again.

Maybe it's a sign I'm supposed to look elsewhere...

Maybe I need to hire a headhunter...

Maybe I just need to freelance for a while and totally avoid coupling work with office politics...

...

I haven't been keeping up on the news lately. That is to say, I don't watch t.v. as much as I used to. And I can't say I miss it that much. The house has cable, but I seem not to watch as frequently as I have in the past.

Could it be because it's summer and summer programming stinks? Or could it be because there's simply nothing on worth channel surfing for?

See, that's the part about t.v. that makes me avoid it. There are some good shows on, but I waste more time channel surfing and less time watching semi-worthwhile t.v. than it's really worth.

Now, I just Netflix everything.

...

So, there you have it. Some random thoughts on Sunday afternoon as I edit tobacoo research and load up my loaner iPod.

Oh, and by the way, happy birthday to my long-lost friend and former pen pal, Gillian Firth Steedman. One of these days I'll get off my sorry ass and look you up again.

Rest in Peace, Peter Jennings

ABC News announced that Peter Jennings, anchor of World News Tonight with Peter Jennings, died of lung cancer last night in New York. He was 67 years old.

I rarely write about celebrities or the deaths of notable people, but I have to say, I was saddened by this news of his untimely passing. Even though we all probably knew it was coming when he announced his battle with cancer back in April, I think many of us hoped against hope that he'd be one of the rare few who would fight it and win.

Jennings had a level of grace and class that neither of his competitors--NBC's Tom Brokaw or CBS' Dan Rather--ever had. He was not only a professional, but a human being. Watching Jennings was comforting, even when the news was bad.

I can almost hear Jennings now...

"Good evening. We begin tonight at the Gates of Heaven. Behind me, Saint Peter holding the Book of Life and a chorus of angels proclaiming 'Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.' I've come to this place to meet with those who precede me and to embark on the next phase in my life journey...."

Thank you for making the news worth listening to and watching. Thank you for reporting the events of our nation and our world in credible, real, human terms. Thank you for making history as history was made.

Rest in peace, Peter Jennings.