NSP Review- Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World

Last night, Nicole and I ventured off to Fort Wayne to look at crafty wedding items, eat dinner, and see a movie. That movie was Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World. This happened to be the completely wrong choice for Nicole, since she was suffering from having slept only 2 hours the previous night, and wasn’t feeling very well either. Bad fiance moment on my part, for sure, and general tip: don’t take a suffering girlfriend to a movie with extremely loud music, explosions, and lots of pretty flashing lights that may or may not induce seizures. Also called common sense, which I lack.

As for me, here’s the short version of the review:

If you’re under the age of 30, the movie is pure awesome exploding into the movie atmosphere like an awesome comet, and should be viewed immediately.

If you’re between the ages of 30 and 45, it’s a fun movie with a sweet romantic story wrapped up in a huge, video game related metaphor. The movie is loud, flashy, and chaotic, but it’s also genuinely funny and worth seeing.

If you’re over 45, don’t bother unless you actually liked the previews. It’s a movie targeted toward a particular generation raised with insane postmodernism, and it is probably going to go over the heads of anyone who doesn’t have at least a minimal knowledge of what is Final Fantasy or Zelda.

Disney World- Optimistically Pessimistic

Recently lots and lots of news has popped up about Walt Disney World. Most of the stories are tales of the amazing spate of new attractions and additions at nearly all of the different parks. Examples include a new Monsters Inc. roller coaster at Hollywood Studios, a new country and renovated pavilions at Epcot, and new developments at the Magic Kingdom’s Fantasyland expansion.

The latter story is based on actual interviews with Disney executives and while there are little details, at least present real information. In contrast, the other stories are equally vague with no real sourcing, based on rumors and “rumblings.” This means it must be a slow news week, since these kinds of rumors have fun rampant on the internet for years upon years.

Nixon Segretti Productions- A Manifesto

There are two turkeys in this photo that received pardons. Photo from The Commons on Flickr.

One of my favorite movies of all time is 'Dirty Rotten Scoundrels'. The tail of two con men competing for dominance on the French Riviera, its a movie that combines beautiful locations, great writing, and two brilliant actors (Michael Caine and Steve Martin) at the top of their game. Another reason I love the movie is that I can relate to Michael Caine’s character so well. I mean, other than the whole conning people out of huge sums of money bit.

Michael Caine plays a sophisticated, classy gentleman who bilks money out of the greedy and stupid, and utilizes it to fund public gardens, museums, and other preservations of art and culture. One quote in particular strikes especially true: “Freddy, as a younger man, I was a sculptor, a painter, and a musician. There was just one problem: I wasn't very good. As a matter of fact, I was dreadful. I finally came to the frustrating conclusion that I had taste and style, but not talent.”

Opening Pandora's Box, Volume III- NSP Radio

From The Commons on Flickr. Most awesome photo and hat, ever.

It’s been a week of Pandora Radio listening, and I have held true to my goal. Even though I’ve reached for iTunes many times wanting to hear a specific song, I have focused my listening completely on Pandora. Which really, really sucks when you want to listen to some pure background music but have to hear some blaring Guns and Roses track for the millionth time in your life instead.

As noted in my last installment, Pandora focused almost completely on indie rockers for the first 10 songs, with some classic ultra-soft rock thrown in for good measure. The only songs that picked up the tempo much were screechy alternative kids trying to sing, but failing miserably. The station was turning out alright, but I wasn’t exactly impressed so far.

The Mighty Boosh Makes My Day Bright

Today's blog post was short because I was busy producing the physical catalog for our latest auction. I manage to put them together in record time, but it pretty much wrecks any creative juices I have for a good period of time. When I feel tired and drained, I just need something silly to lift me back up again. Lately, that thing has been The Mighty Boosh.

It's a thoroughly bizarre British television show that makes little to no sense, even if it does have a plot line every episode. It's also apparently airing on Adult Swim now, though I prefer it in its original, unedited form. The series follows Vince and Howard, two lifelong friends of completely different outlooks on life, that somehow manage to continually encounter surreal, psychedelic adventures and not die in the process, all while never learning anything from it.

Sometimes the humor is downright twisted, but other moments are just pure, simple pleasure, like the "crimp" (short, A Capella song) above. Now I just need to find a bouncy castle to celebrate another project's (near) completion.

-------------Gabe

The Heat Goes On

From the Commons on Flickr.

Nicole and I have received many different responses to our plans to move to Florida. While most everyone is supportive, we still receive some advice and information that’s meant to make us consider our choice more closely. One of the top things we hear out of everything is “You know, it gets really hot in Florida.”

On the surface is a true statement, though one that’s bleedingly obvious. I’ve been to Florida in the summer, and I have experienced the heat. Yes, it was hot, and I did sweat a lot. However, this statement of hotitude also implies something else, that Florida is so much hotter than Indiana. Bull chips.

The Art of Screaming Seagulls- A Winona Lake Evening

Yesterday, Nicole and I made one of our ventures off to nearby Winona Lake. This may seem odd, since we currently live in an apartment across the street from a lake. The big difference is that while our lake is packed with houses and has no real beach to speak of, Winona Lake has a nice beach, a canal filled with turtles and fish to watch, and an entire artist’s colony known as the Village at Winona. As mentioned before, it’s one of the few places I’ll truly miss when we move to Florida.

The Village at Winona has a whole collection of random stores and restaurants packed into a few blocks. There's a barber (who happened to be on vacation, apparently).