Why?

Is this over yet?

Because...no.

Napoleon Dynamite

Have you seen this movie? It came out in 2004 and when I first saw it I *hated* it. It was one of those train-wreck movies that are so bad you can't stop watching it. I didn't know what was happening, or why. It's not that I didn't understand it - it's hardly complex - I just didn't understand why someone would think anyone would care about this mess. So I wrote it off as two hours of my life I'd never get back.

But then a friend whose tastes I usually share and who is a "cinema" buff told me that she loved it. What? Seriously? So, since I respect her opinion, I gave it another shot, this time with an open mind and looking for the ironic humor she swore was I there. And you know what? The second time, I didn't hate it. I kinda got it.

While not my favorite film, or even in my top 50, if I'm flipping channels and it's on I'll stop and watch for a bit. The llama, the interpretive sign-dancing, Napoleon's epic dance at the school assembly - they're funny. I laugh-ish. I can see why a studio picked it up for next to nothing at the Sundance Film Festival and why it has a cult following. It's quirky and irreverent, and it's self-effacingly dumb. There's a certain charm to that.

It's also, at its heart, a "sweet" movie - a story of a friendship between three high school misfits and their families in a town in the middle of nowhere. There's no epic grand finale where they all become fabulous and leave Preston, Idaho. But in their own way they all get their quiet, simple happy endings. Really, what more can anyone ask for than to finish watching a movie and having a smile?

In My Fridge

First of all this is not my refrigerator, but it's close enough. This refrigerator comes from this source.

I went back to the NaBloPoMo prompts for today's post - in fact this prompt was for yesterday, but it sounded fun. The prompt was: "Name five things inside your refrigerator right now and how you feel about them." OK then.

Here are my five items - in my refrigerator this very moment:

Trader Joe's Caramelized Onion Dip - I just bought this today. I've had it before and it is *so good*! I mean, I'm an onion dip fiend, but this onion dip is made from caramelized onions, so it's sweeter and better because, well, caramelized onions! It's low carb, so when I dip low-fat mozzarella cheese sticks, it's diabetic-friendly.

Left Over Plain and Fancy Meat Stew - This is one of my favorite slow-cooker dishes. I got the recipe over 10 years ago from an online forum about the book "Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood" and it's been part of my "rotation" ever since.

Vita Herring in Sour Cream - Love this! It's chunked herring in an onion sour cream sauce. Even though it's sour cream, it's actually kind of sweet. My father used to love this too, so we would share this while we watched movies on the VCR. It's one of the many foods to which my father introduced me.

Heinz Ketchup with Real Jalapeño - This is a new-found delight for me. I have historically not liked jalapeño stuff, but for some reason, I really like this. I use it on all sorts of stuff - scrambled eggs, Cuban tamales, even on hot dogs. It has a kick to it but isn't painful in my mouth like other jalapeño sauces. Yum.

Angry Orchard Elderflower Hard Cider - I love hard cider, but this one, not so much. I don't like beer, so since I discovered hard cider I've been hooked. It works when beer is the natural pairing for food. I like both dry and no so dry ciders, but this one is too flowery. It doesn't pair well with food and isn't tasty enough to drink alone. I bought a six pack months ago and there's one left. I wonder if hard cider goes "skunky" like beer does.

So now, you tell me about what's in your fridge...

Hello, 2006 is calling...

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...they'd like their Blog post back. Because, yes, I'm shameless, I blogged this meme back in 2006 during NaBloPoMo! But my answers will be different. Probably.

So here we go...if anybody's out there and reading this and you want to answer on your Blog, please leave the URL in my comments so I can go snoop!


1. Flip to page 18, paragraph 4 - in the book closest to you right now, what's the first sentence?
" Though their lands currently reside in three provinces of France and four of Spain, Basques have always insisted that they have a country, and they call it Euskadi." 
("Cod" by Mark Kurlansky)

2. If you stretch out your left arm - as far as possible, what are you touching?
The headset for my laptop

3. What's the last program you watched on tv?
Last night's "Fringe" on the DVR

4. Without looking, guess what time it is.
7:30 p.m. Not bad, it' actually 7:19 p.m.

5. Except the computer, what can you hear right now?
The post-game commentary for the Texas A&M vs Alabama football game.

6. When was the last time you were outside and what did you do?
Today, we went to an outdoor mall and walked around for a bit - it's a beautiful day in Miami.

7. What are you wearing?
A loose Mexican dress thing I wear around the house

8. Did you dream last night? If you did, what about?
If I dream, I rarely remember it

9. When was the last time you laughed?
Today while watching Fox News, they're all twitterpated about losing the election.

10. What's on the walls, in the room you're in right now?
Several paintings

11. Have you seen anything strange lately?
A 40+ "biker chick" wearing a bright orange and black tigerprint bandana

12. What do you think about this meme?
I like it - not the usual questions

13. What's the last film you saw?
"Argo". It was great!

14. If you became a multimillionaire, what would you do with the money?
Pay off our mortgage, give money to family and friends, ensure the kids in the family have a trust set up, set up a swcholarship at a local university so that every year a student can get a full four year ride, buy a house and travel

15. Tell us something about yourself that most people don't know.
When I first registered to vote - another life time ago - I registered as a Republican

16. If you could change one *superficial* thing in this world - not involving politics - what would it be?
I'd air condition everything

17. Do you like dancing?
Sometimes - I have to be in the mood

18. George Bush?
Who?

19. What do you want your children's names to be, girl/boy?
If I had had children and it was completely up to me I would name a girl Sofia and a boy Daniel

20. Would you ever consider living abroad?
Not for extended periods

21. What do you want God to tell you, when you come to heaven?
There are several people waiting for you right over here...

So...I only repeated a few answers. DON'T JUDGE ME!!! :)
 

Death

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Not the cheeriest of subjects I know, but it's on my mind. 

Death sucks. Not necessarily for the dead person, I like to think they go to a better place, so they're good. But for those left behind...it sucks.  In the last 6 months I've had two friends die - both in very different circumstances.

The first died after a long, difficult bout with Cancer. In the space of two years we saw this terrible disease slowly take him away, both literally and figuratively. It was horrible. He'd go through the chemo and radiation sometimes one or the other sometimes both  and they'd say the treatment had gone well, he'd start to feel betterish - then, the damned thing came back only in a different place, so now another area was under attack. This happened a couple of times until all the doctors and specialists and anyone who had an opinion said "that's all...there's nothing more we can do".

At that point, you'd think there'd be a modicum of relief, after so much suffering, so many letdowns, he'd finally be at peace. But there wasn't. Although everyone knew it was coming, he wasn't ready to die, his wife and 16 year old daughter weren't ready for him to die, his parents and family weren't ready for him to die, and we - his friends weren't ready for him to die. He was 49. One of my best friends is now a widow. I can't wrap my head around that.

The second friend was an on-line friend via Second Life (SL). We never met in person, I never even knew his "real life" name until I read the obituary - and yet, we were very close, and he was one of my oldest SL friends. He died suddenly. A couple of weeks ago he disappeared, he didn't log on to SL, he didn't Plurk, he was just gone. Several from  our online community tried to contact him via different means, but due to the nature of online communities in general, and SL in particular, those means were limited. Because he lived in Cape Cod, MA, when Hurricane/Superstorm Sandy threatened the area our concern grew. One person who knew his real name Googled him just to see what came up - and the first thing she saw was his obituary! He had died a few days before of what the obit describes as a "sudden illness". He was 68, we're assuming it was a heart attack.

The impact was staggering and reverberated through the community as everyone was stunned. I was a mess. If you've never been involved in an on-line only friendship or relationship it is probably impossible to understand how close and attached you can become to people you'll probably never meet in person. Someone likened it to pen-pal relationships of years gone by. I think that's a good comparison.

The very different deaths of two very different men were both very difficult for me to process. It brings up the question: What's easier for survivors - their loved one dying suddenly or having time to prepare for their deaths? Having experienced both so close together, I don't know the answer.

You are missed Victor and Trebor.