herbiehancock

It's the end of another year.  The older I get, the quicker time passes.  Like many others, I am looking back at the past year and looking forward to the next.  I appreciate all the friends I have made through this blog who have shared the year with me, both the good days and the bad. As for everyone, there were days of sadness and difficulty and worry for me this year.  It was very difficult for me to come to terms with my mother's failing health and to have to make the decision to have her placed in a nursing home.  I still struggle with the sadness, frustration, and feelings of guilt that I have because she must live there.  It is not an ideal solution, but it seems to be the best that I can do. I also continue to feel sadness for my coworker, whose twelve year old daughter was diagnosed with a brain tumor this year.  Although two surgeries reduced the size of the tumor, there is no getting around the fact that much of the tumor still remains. ...

Bloody Maria with Shimp The snow is falling today and we're ringing out the old and bringing in the new with this South of the Border Bloody Maria with Shrimp! This recipe makes two tall glasses of goodness!  Seasonings may be adjusted to your taste. Happy New Year!  Enjoy!   24 oz Clamato 1 tsp prepared horseradish 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce 1 T lemon juice 15 dashes hot sauce (Tabasco or your favorite) Freshly ground pepper to taste 3 oz. Tequila Ice cubes 4 cooked, chilled shrimp Shake Clamato, horseradish, Worcestershire, lemon juice, hot sauce, pepper and tequila in a large glass jar with tight-fitting lid.  Fill two tall glasses with ice and divide the mixture between the glasses.  Garnish each drink with two shrimp, celery and lemon slice.

The New Year that is! Today is going to be a great day because: *Dannon's flying home this afternoon! *I found an awesome little dress for ringing in the New Year! *We are not definite on our party plans tonight but it will definitely be with some of my favorite people! *And Dannon and I will finally be having our Christmas gift-swap together! {here are my gifts for D. he hid my gifts in my closet instead of at his house just to torture me!} I'm so inspired by many of your resolutions for the new year. I usually don't do resolutions because I don't like being tied down. :) But I think maybe I'll come up with some good goals to accomplish in the New Year. Hope everyone has a super fun time ending 2009 and starting 2010! See you all next year!

No 39 - The Matrix Director - Andy and Larry Wachowski I remember when I first watched this. On VHS at my friends house. It BLEW ME AWAY. Completely. This film was so different from anything else I'd ever seen. It is difficult to imagine because The Matrix has become such a huge part of our culture, everything has copied it - from computer games to adverts . Yet in 1999, this came completely out of the blue, the shock factor is what has probably put it so high up the list. It struck such a chord with me, I loved everything about it... and for ages we all wanted a phone that slid open - seeing them as the height of cool (oh how fast things have moved on). Amazingly, for a film that made such a shock on its first appearance , you'd have expected it to have dated in the last 10 years and yet, visually it is still as beautiful and vibrant as it was. The phones are bigger and clunkier, the clothes are a bit weird (though I think that comes more out of the director's passion wit...

A 91 year old woman was apparently murdered in her own home here in my little town last week.  It happened just a few short blocks (about a five minute walk) from my home, very close to the park where I love to walk.   The news of this incident has changed my town overnight.  This is the first murder here in more than sixty years. Little information has been released about the case.  There is much that isn't being said. Details are sketchy, and police are not releasing much information at this time for fear of compromising their case. What the police officials here ARE saying is that we should all be vigilant about keeping our homes secured and watching for suspicious vehicles and people in our neighborhood.  We have been told to be extra cautious after dark.  In a town where everyone says hello as they pass you on the sidewalk, whether they know you or not, this advice is hard to take.  It feels as uncomfortable as an ill-fitting suit of clothes....

No 262 - The Virgin Suicides Director - Sofia Coppola Let us continue, in reverse chronological order, with my journey through Sofia Coppola. Continuing the theme of upset young women and with an incredibly dark tale. The film begins - wonderfully setting the tone - with Cecilia, the youngest of the sisters, slashing her wrists and going to hospital.... here she is told by a complete idiot of a doctor that life will only get worse. At least the amazing (and far too brief) cameo of Danny De Vito dressed as professor Robert Winston helps to put things in perspective - 'let your daughters meet other children of their own age' he essentially says. This is the main moral of a very bleak story. You see, the Lisbon girls do not get much of a chance to socialise, and this is not a good thing... I don't know quite what the film is trying to say. It seems to imply that if you are a strict and over zealous christian parent you will probably lead your children to kill themselves. I don...

No 128 - Lost in Translation Director - Sofia Coppola Bill Murray has had this amazing comeback playing the wistful , distant, gloomy comedy. He is playing up to his haggard hound dog look and where once he was all wise cracking and sarcastic, now he is a sombre and sober type of comedy. You see it in Broken Flowers , you see it in Wes Anderson's back catalogue (who is probably responsible for this new direction) and you see it in this film. Bill Murray's incredible charisma and screen presence pulls you through this film. Even though he does spend most of it moping around. Bill Murray is important because Scarlett Johansson isn't the most charismatic character in this film, she does however benefit from the presence of Murray. The scenes they share together show a massive improvement in performance. However, Scarlett Johansson does benefit from the more quiet performances. I will rate her performance in this and in Ghost World other any of the more mainstream perform...

When I told a friend that I was going to be spending Christmas in Wisconsin, he replied with, "That's the most adorable thing I've heard!" And how true that was! I spent Christmas in Oshkosh, one of the most charming little cities I've ever seen, with my grandparents, Dannon, my mom, her 7 brothers and sisters, and more cousins than I can count. It was a blast! { my grandparents' cute house } Christmas Eve we had a little mini Christmas with some gifts {I got this beautiful fox necklace from my mom, and some awesome books from my sister, including The Little Prince Pop-Up book!}. Then on Christmas day all the family came. We put out tables full of food and drinks and pretty much just ate all day long.   There were also games and lots of picture-taking! { my cute mom is on the right, with her twin and another sister } It was a nut house! sometimes you couldn't hear the person you were talking to because there were SO many people stuffed into my grandpare...

I wanted to acknowledge the passing of Dr. Death Steve Williams. He died of throat cancer after a pretty long battle with it and after a 27 year long professional wrestling career that spanned the globe. While I was not a huge fan as a kid due to somewhat lack of exposure for me personally watching in NWA and WWF, (he was bigger in the UWF) I did become a fan of his rough mixed with amateur style later in my tape days viewing matches from his U.S. stuff but particularly his matches in Japan. Another wrestling legend gone way too early.

Oh boy did we have fun in Wisconsin over Christmas. But getting there and coming home were quite exasperating! We left last Wednesday and were going from SF to Vegas to Chicago and finally to Wisconsin. When we got to Vegas we were informed our plane was delayed several hours, and our flight from Chicago to WI was canceled completely, due to "winter weather." When we finally got to Chicago we tried to fly standby, but that didn't work. Then we tried to rent a car because the O'Hare airport was only 3 hours from my grandparents' house. But being 2 days before Christmas there were no cars to be found. The O'Hare airport was insane and it took us hours just to figure out there was nothing that could be done for us. Finally, we gave up and called some of Dannon's family friends. They picked us up and gave us warm beds for the night. By the time I went to sleep, though, I had been awake for 23 hours! Plus my bag had gone on to Wisconsin without me so I had no...

Happy New Year to all my fellow food bloggers.  Here's to many more creative and delicious recipes in 2010! I've seen several bloggers do a round-up of their favorites from 2009.  It's interesting to see what they chose as the their yummiest dishes.  Here's my list: Spinach and 3 Cheese Stuffed Shells Stuffed Portabello Mushrooms Grilled Artichokes with Balsamic Vinegar Homemade Fresh Ricotta Soft Scrambled Eggs with Fresh Ricotta & Chives Homemade Tomato Soup Roasted Grape Tomato, Spinach & Asiago Pasta Chile Rellenos with Salsa

December 28, 2009. Went to see Solomon Kane (Michael J. Bassett, 2009) with Diabolical CBM & her hubbie. Read some of Robert E. Howard's Solomon Kane stories when I was a kid (plus more recently Solomon Kane comics -- and of course I used to be a Conan fan). We had a vaguely good time, since all the clichés we like were there (demons, vampires, damsel in distress, admiring pre-teen looking up at hero, etc.), but the movie is SO BAD. It's really really terrible. One of the worst. What was James Purefoy thinking?

Watching TV: Torchwood , Season Two. Last two episodes today, OMG, what am I gonna do? Barrowmanless, can a man of taste and discernment survive? Well, there's always the records, his voice...

December 27, 2009. Watched DVD: Bus Stop (Joshua Logan, 1956). With RH and my very own Romain Duris double. My zillionth viewing since the 1970s. Never tire of it. Marilyn Monroe is so utterly moving, pseudo Southern accent and all. See the way she walks? Hear the way she talks? The way she switches on the RED stagelight with her high-heeled shoe? Don Murray plays a virgin very convincingly, at age 27. Depending on who you identify with, you can fantasize you're being literallyt swept off your feet by the boyish big butch cowboy, or you're winning the "gal." Any of her movies between 1953 is highly worth it, anyway, especially Billy Wilder's 1959 Some Like It Hot , obviously .

I'm finally home after a very fun vacation in Wisconsin {with absolutely no computers}, and a very LONG and frustrating travel experience. More on all that later. I hope everyone had a super fun Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or whatever other holiday you keep! And can you believe it? Only a couple more days until the new year!

With the last few days of this week bringing another year to a close, my thoughts turn to the new year and wondering what it will bring.  It is a new beginning, and with a new beginning, it seems appropriate to reflect on the old and make plans for the future. I generally don't make new year's resolutions. However, I do like to stop and take the time to think about events of the past year and pay attention to where I am in my life.  It seems like a good time to re-examine my goals and refocus on them.  I also like to take a look at my priorities and perhaps rearrange them as needed. I think I'd like to put being kind at the very top of my list of  priorities.  I have known many kind people in my life, and I admire their ability to treat others well.  I think it is admirable to be able to be kind to everyone---even to those who have not exhibited kindness themselves.  After all, it is fairly easy to return kindness for kindness.  It is much more di...

No 195 - It's a Wonderful Life Director - Frank Capra This is a film I've been meaning to watch for years. However I keep missing it at Christmas, and it is a film so ingrained into the season that it seems strange watching it when it isn't Christmas. So finally I got round to watching it (in original black and white rather than new and coloured in). I was surprised by two things: Firstly this is a REALLY long film, running in at over two hours. Secondly, the first 90 minutes has nothing really to do with Clarence and what is typically known as the story of 'It's a Wonderful Life'. Instead we begin with some people praying for George Bailey (the always wonderful Jimmy Stewart) and (in my personal favourite moment) angels, represented by stars, having a little chat about what they should do to answer all these prayers. So, in order for Clarence the angel to know how to save George Bailey, we must know his story. This is the majority of the film, the life of Geo...

Though we became No. 1 in tests, we realized we anyway don’t play enough number of tests. So BCCI again pulled strings, revised schedules and packed more cricket to keep everyone happy! We won the ones against mediocre opponents – against Sri Lanka, New Zealand and West Indies. However, when a half-decent side visited us for a seven match series, we gave up in the sixth match. To call that Australian outfit a second-string side is actually according that team a fair amount of respect! When it came to the world stage, we failed to make the cut. We never do well when we begin as favorites whether it’s the WorldTwenty20 or ICC Champions Trophy. We made batting pitches that put Sri Lankan curators to shame. Our selectors treated yet another senior cricketer with no respect. And yet again Rahul Dravid, from the non-striker’s end , saw all the big names fail with the Indian score at 32-4 on the first day of a test match. And yet again, he maintained composure and replied with a 177! Virendra...

No 286 - L'Avventura Director - Michelangelo Antonioni This film won the Cannes Jury prize in 1960 so I was expecting something unfeasibly glamorous and incredulously cool. I was not expecting something as weird as this which would anger me to the degree that this film did. It starts with a very familiar and almost cliched set up. Now, I haven't done any research at all on this film, so for all I know it may be the first ever film which begins with a bunch of couples taking a yacht to a remote island for a weekend. That has now become fairly standard fare for films where SOMETHING GOES WRONG. We follow Anna who is in a long distance relationship with Sandro and who is grumpy and a bit weird. She is finally going to meet up with him on this yacht and so brings along a motley crew of friends and hangers on. Amongst which is Anna's best friend Claudia, the most important of the rest of the group. They share a lot in common in that they're all quite rich and successful a...

Watched TV: Saw Horton Hears a Who! (Jimmy Hayward, 2008). Excellent cartoon with the voices of Jim Carrey and Steve Carell. A bit of La Fontaine, of bit of Swift, a political / philosophical fable, really. Plus very amusing and perfectly adequate for very young kids.

Well, another week has passed with not a creature stirring on the ol' blogaroo here. Real life and some annoying internet issues kept me from watching and reviewing more wrasslin films during the week of Xmas - i'm gonna back date a couple entries though to cheat. Shhhh... it'll be our little secret. Not wanting to miss the holiday, I am veering slightly off the path to review a fantastic little film in the spirit of the holiday... It's not really a wrestling film, but I really could not pass this up: Original Title : Santa with Muscles Year : 1996 Director : John Murlowski Writer : Jonathan Bond , Fred Mata , Dorrie Krum Raymond IMDb : http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0117550/ Genre : Comedy synopsis: An evil millionaire (Hulk Hogan) gets amnesia and then belives that he is Santa Claus. How can you not automatically be into a movie after reading that synopsis? After losing valuable minutes of life thanks to one single Romantic Comedy shitburger, it's so good to know tha...