Overheard in the J and L House: A Bunny Edition

Lisa to Jesse: Is this movie too scary for the bunny?

Lisa to Jesse: Olive had better not have any fun while we're gone!

We Ate Here, We Watched This, Bla Bla Bla

I am behind on my blogging. I know. I'm sorry. Lately, I haven't felt like talking/blogging and I've also had some figuring out that I wanted to complete before talking/blogging about it. But the good news is that I'm here to do some updates on what's been going down in the J and L house.

Here we go in no particular order:

• Jesse and I received generous monetary gifts from our parents for Valentines Day which meant we didn't have to go to Moe's or some other non-romantic location to celebrate. We spent the afternoon and evening on Seneca Lake doing some wine tasting at a couple wineries before having dinner at the Bistro at Red Newt Cellars. Red Newt Cellars is one of our favorite local wineries and we've been meaning to get to the Bistro for quite a while. We just haven't had the money. That's why the gifts from our families were so perfect. The Bistro is delightful and right up our alley since they use the finest and freshest local and regional ingredients in their menu. This quote comes from their website:

  The Red Newt Bistro represents the finest in fresh regional cuisine of the Finger Lakes. Every menu is build (sic) with the diner and the farmer in mind. Local ingredients are the main fare, and seasonality is the life blood of every menu.

  Jesse started with the house salad and I had the Tomato Vegetable Soup. For his entree, Jesse ate the Local Free-Range Pork Loin with sweet apple glaze, apple chutney, Parmesan risotto and seasonal vegetables. I had the Local Free-Range Chicken stuffed with prosciutto, provolone, spinach and roasted red pepper sauce with Parmesan risotto and seasonal vegetables. For dessert, Jesse had Chocolate Pate with Cranberry Port Sauce and I had the Maple Walnut Cheesecake. We shared a bottle of Hennepin from Ommegang Brewery in Cooperstown, NY and Jesse had a glass of Red Newt Riesling.
  
• Last weekend, we saw The Reader with Kate Winslet and Ralph Fiennes at the Art Mission & Theatre. It was amazing and I loved it as much as it absolutely broke my heart. Both the film and its five Oscar nominations were controversial because of the film's sensitive subject matter. More on the issue can be found at CNN and a great review of the film can be found at The Stranger. I truly loved it; I almost can't stop thinking about it.
• I have taken a job as a residence counselor at Franziska Racker Centers. It is a non-profit organization that works with developmentally disabled people. I'll be working an awake overnight shift at one of their 17 residential homes. More news as I get it.
  
• I've started parting my hair on the side. I think its cute. Jesse didn't really notice. I'll post a picture sometime soon.
  
• Thursday is my birthday. There will be no pomp like there has been in years past. There will be no sleeping in (I have to get up at 4 am and go to work!) and no birthday massage. Instead, I'm going to visit my besty, Tovah, at the end of this month! I'm really excited about the visit even though I'm sad to forgo my much-needed deep tissue birthday massage. Plus, I haven't worked on my birthday for years. ::huff:: Maybe once I start making the big bucks (compared to what I'm making currently) at my new job, J will let me splurge for a massage.

I think that's most of it. Consider yourself updated.

Jaws and How it Scared Me

Yesterday, I came home from work and I was all, "grumble grumble this," and "grumble grumble that" after a particularly aggravating day. I just wanted to chill out and try to forget about that which ired me.

We've recently canceled cable in an effort to reduce spending so I couldn't just zone out in front of the tube and had to choose a DVD instead.

Hmm... The Office? I do love The Office and have watched all the seasons over and over again. Maybe. Death Proof? I love that, too, but I watched it recently. Stripes? Garden State? Meh.

HEY! Jaws! I've never seen Jaws in its entirety. Great! Great choice!

So, Jaws it is!

Ok. You've seen Jaws. Everyone has seen Jaws except for me, right? Jaws is the 1975 horror film directed by Steven Spielberg and based on the novel by Peter Benchley.

I was laying on the couch watching Jaws. Its good! I liked it. But you know what? It. is. SCARY! Do you know what else? Jaws is rated PG, like kids movies! This movie has blood and severed limbs and I think some viscera. It also has the stalking and subsequent consuming of a child who was enjoying some great beach time fun.

If I had seen it as a kid (the movie is PG, remember) I think I would be terrified of the ocean. So, I'm really glad I didn't see it when I was a kid.

image via Wikipedia

Lars and the Real Girl

Read about Lars and the Real Girl here. Jesse says my film commentaries are weird and random so I'll tell you that I thought this movie was pretty weird but mostly cute.

image via Rotten Tomatoes

The X-Files: I Want to Believe

Caution: Contains a Somewhat Inconsequential Spoiler

Tonight, Jess and I saw The X-Files: I Want to Believe. I'll start by saying that, despite my deep love of the series, I wasn't excited about the movie at all until we were sitting in the theatre and we heard the first few notes of the theme music, at which point, I grinned and experienced some anticipatory exhilaration.

The bad news is that the critics' consensus was pretty bleak and their complaints mirrored some of mine: the film had grossly trite and cheesy moments; Amanda Peet is annoyingly milquetoast; the film feels just like a slow, too-long tv episode. Oh, and, Chris Carter? A dick joke? Seriously? Chris, if that's what you want to do now, fine; but hook up with Judd Apatow or someone else who does dick joke movies. Sheesh.

The good news is that despite all those complaints, I took some serious pleasure in the nostalgia provided by my old friends, Scully and Mulder. Mulder (David Duchovny) is totally sexy with his full beard and Scully (Gillian Anderson) is more beautiful than I've seen her. The pair is cute-ish as a romantic couple (that's what we wanted all those years, right?); Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) makes an appearance and he and Scully get Mulder out of a pinch. Additionally, despite the slowness inherent in making what amounts to an hour-long episode of The X-Files long enough to be feature-film length, the story is relatively decent. I thing it deserves a strong B-.

Oh, and if you're not watching David Duchovny in Californication, what are you waiting for?


image via Rotten Tomatoes

What a Great [Dark] Knight

Tonight, Jesse and I saw The Dark Knight with our friends Brenda and Kyle. I don't need to tell you about it; you can read about it here, here and here. I will tell you that it was great; intense, stunning, dark, lonely. I'll also tell you that you should absolutely see it. Its creepy like I've never seen before and Heath Ledger was terrifying and mesmerizing.

Thanks, Heath; I loved it. RIP.

image via Intellectual Intercourse

Hard Candy

Tonight, Jesse and I watched Hard Candy, a 2005 independent film starring Patrick Wilson and Ellen Page. Its a very disconcerting, awkward story of a sophisticated and charming 14-year-old girl, Hayley (Page), and a sexy, savvy 32-year-old photographer and sexual predator, Jeff (Wilson), who meets her on the inkernet. When they meet at a local coffee shop, they flirt and he buys her a tee shirt before they head back to his place for some music and screwdrivers. Yikes!

I loved Ellen Page in Juno and her charisma is pretty palpable in this film, as well. The story is pretty crazy, absolutely fantastic, but its interesting to see Page in such a diverse roll. Additionally, it includes someone who dies in an unusual or untimely way, one of my idiosyncratic predilections.

Mikus+Jesse+Lisa=A Great 8 Days Part 2

Thursday, July 3. I started the day with a job interview then returned to the apartment to collect J & M. Jesse took the day off and we were driving a little out of town to Chenango Valley State Park. Although its so close to us, we have never gone to check it out and I am glad we finally got around it. The park was really pretty and seemed fairly expansive. We got a trail map from the park office and chose the one that is about two miles long and takes you around the lake. There were a number of trails listed and they were all rated for difficulty. According to our map, the trail we chose was rated as difficult although the three of us breezed through it. The only difficulty about it was that it was somewhat rough with roots, rocks, logs and some wet spots. Basically, though, it was an easy 2 miles. There was some rain at the end so we didn't wrap up the afternoon with a swim.

After we left the park, we made a couple sundry stops before heading home. Dinner plans involved the charcoal grill and, since I had abandoned my "no lighter fluid. It tastes hideous!" standpoint, we went from cold charcoal to dinner in a snap. The omnis ate steak and Mikus ate another meal of tofu brats. We had a giant spinach salad on the side. I suggested an after dinner walk to kill some time before we went to Philip and Emily's for a visit. We had a brisk walk to the park across the street. At some point, the rain came and before we knew it, we were all soaked. I love a walk in the rain so I was perfectly content to splash about. We made it back to our place for a change and then relocated to Philip and Emily's for some Apples to Apples, my favoritest, favoritest game. Yay. What a good day. Mikus and my nighttime activity was Persepolis, one of my new favorite discoveries.
From IMDB:

In 1970s Iran, Marjane 'Marji' Statrapi watches events through her young eyes and her idealistic family of a long dream being fulfilled of the hated Shah's defeat in the Iranian Revolution of 1979. However as Marji grows up, she witnesses first hand how the new Iran, now ruled by Islamic fundamentalists, has become a repressive tyranny on its own. With Marji dangerously refusing to remain silent at this injustice, her parents send her abroad to Vienna to study for a better life. However, this change proves an equally difficult trial with the young woman finding herself in a different culture loaded with abrasive characters and profound disappointments that deeply trouble her. Even when she returns home, Marji finds that both she and homeland have changed too much and the young woman and her loving family must decide where she truly belongs.

The movie is great. Mikus and I both liked it so much. Now you go watch it, too.

Friday, July 4. Jesse, Mikus, Philip, Emily, Tiffany and I loaded into the Godell van for a day of food and wine along Seneca and Cayuga Lakes. I'll report our stops in list form:

• Red Newt Cellars, one of my favorites.
  
• Hazlitt Vineyards 1852, another favorite of mine.
  
• Rasta Ranch Vineyards. I didn't like this place at all and I don't think I was alone. The wine was mediocre at best and there were so many dead bugs around. WTF?
  
• Penguin Bay Winery and Champagne House
  
• Wagner Vineyards, Brewery and Ginny Lee Restaurant for lunch. The boys and I tasted the brews while Emily and Tiffany wandered about the gift shop.
  
• Montezuma Winery
  
• Cobblestone Farm Winery

• Lake Shore Winery
• Thirsty Owl Wine Company

At this point, I think we were all getting pretty tired and restless. We were on our way into Ithaca and we stopped at the overlook at Taughannock Falls State Park.
Dinner was at Viva! Cantina. The food was delicious as always and we kept the booze coming. I was happy to bump into my dear friend, David. It was a long day for everyone, Mikus especially, who did all the driving. He was totally amazing and generous with his time and really patient with his van-full of winos. Mikus and I took another long late-night walk. We were cooped up all day and I know I was happy to get the exercise. The night was really cool and clear; a great night to watch the stars.

Saturday, July 5. The day started with some prep for our dinner picnic: vegan pesto pasta salad, cucumber salad, sandwiches, watermelon, chips and salsa, wine and beer. After packing the Subaru for the day's adventure, we began our trip to the Ithaca Farmer's Market at Steamboat Landing. I haven't been to the Market in years, unfortunately, but I have always had fond memories. I'm really at a point in my life where I am trying to make an effort to buy organic and local products and I love being surrounded by a community with the same ideas. We got there around noon so the early morning congestion had dissipated. We all had terrific food and got some produce to add to our picnic. We didn't stay for too long but it was really fun and relaxing. I know Jess and I will head back soon. We planned to spend the rest of the day at Taughannock Falls State Park. Jess and Mikus hiked the Rim Trail and I laid in the sun to finish my Douglas Coupland book. They were gone for a couple of hours. When they returned, it was nearing the time for Li'l Anne and Hot Cayenne to take the stage for the first of 8 weekly concerts in the park. From their website:

Take half a dozen groovemasters, add a spicy blend of rock 'n'roll, blues and funk to the up-tempo Zydeco beat, and presto, you've got a dance groove that just won't quit.

They were really talented and fun. I loved being in the sun, listening to music and watching the crowd enjoy themselves.

Sunday, July 6. When I got up, Mikus was all packed up and ready to leave. To go home. To stop staying with us. It was totally abrupt. I was going to make pancakes for breakfast and was formulating what I thought may have been his last dinner with us. We had loose plans for Sunday (The Farm Sanctuary and perhaps Watkins Glen State Park) and Monday (Filmore Glen State Park) and I was surprised by his impromptu change of plans. It made me sad that he was leaving. I feel like we had really great, playful adventures and spent many hours talking and laughing together and I was disappointed that he was leaving so quickly. I'm trying not to be upset about it his impetuous departure. I really like that he goes where the breeze takes him so I can't also be hurt by the same thing that I like about him.

I think his Mikus' visit was really good for me and I'm so happy he came. Our time together made me nostalgic for the days in high school and afterwards when I was surrounded by similarly spontaneous and impulsive people. I am left feeling energized. I am hoping to squish a couple adventures of my own into my precious few remaining days of unencumbered bliss.