Monday, October 15, 2007

Events of the past weekend:

1. I finally saw Across the Universe. What I expected to be a cohesive, Beatles-inspired musical was really more of a collage of music video-friendly images played over a love story set in the 60's. Actually, the director seemed to be more in love with the decade than the music, because the Beatles songs were mostly re-worked in ways that made me miss the originals. "Happiness is a Warm Gun" was a standout, as was "A Day in the Life", but the title track and most of the pre-Rubber Soul tunes were really boring. The leads were decent singers, but despite the tears and protests and longings, the songs didn't seem genuine at all. I suppose this happens with covers sometimes, but I already know two versions of "Across the Universe" that beat the hell out of the sappy subway soliloquy Jude belts out towards the end. (Fiona Apple and Rufus Wainwright, duh.) However, songs aside, there were some unexpected surprises, mostly a very welcome Eddie Izzard as Mr. Kite (you can probably guess what number he was in), and a pretty good cameo from Bono as a Ken Kesey-esque writer and drug prophet. Also, Salma Hayek shows up as a hot nurse.

2. I met Andy's extended family. Andy's grandpa's birthday party was on Saturday, so I baked a pie and we headed over to his aunt's house. It was a pretty interesting evening (his aunts remind me SO much of my mom's family--it's a little eerie), but there were a couple awkward moments that evened the score established when I dragged Andy to my mom's 50th birthday, so I really can't complain.

3. Andy and I went to a pumpkin patch. What initially seemed like a good, Halloween-oriented afternoon just further emphasized how much I don't want kids. You couldn't take a step in any direction without kicking a dog or a baby, and because of our lack of either of these tag-alongs, we has nothing to coo at and take pictures of. However, we did come away with two good looking pumpkins.

4. I went to my first book club meeting. Claire (the book club initiator) organized a meeting at Hartford Coffee Co., a super cute coffeeshop by Tower Grove Park, to talk about The Poisonwood Bible. I was a little worried at first, mostly because I read the book over a month ago, but the other two girls I met were friendly and talkative, and the discussion was great. I think the club is going to be a good outlet for me because frankly, no one cares about literature unless they have already read it/want to read it/enjoy books. Most of my English major or book-hungry friends dispersed when I graduated, so the club should fill that void. All in all, it was really fun. Also, I think our next book is going to be What is the What, which I've been wanting to read forever.

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