tomb raider

i guess it’s nice to see a female running around and kicking ass in typical action-hero style for a change, even if she is still wearing revealing clothing.

sugar cookies

getting in the holiday spirit. (from the joy of cooking)

the two towers

i read (listened to) this, at some point. i just forgot to write about it.

elf

a nice little holiday treat. i thought it was quite funny, but then, i generally think will ferrell’s pretty funny, which is a feeling i know is not universally held.

the most wonderful time of the year, almost, apparently

the holiday season is itching to start, which is to say that every commercial venue around the country is waiting to pounce like a cougar come friday. of course, they’re doing their best to sneak it in early (see my last post about b&n), but for the most part, friday is when it all begins.

i had to scrape the car again this morning. i have been informed that it is possible to park my car in the underground garage via ill-gotten means: stepping on the weight sensitive cord just inside the person-sized-garage-door opens the vehicle-sized-garage-door, circumventing the magnetic card system; regardless, i choose to park outside, on account of honesty, stoicism, or habit (i am not entirely sure which). i have complained to several people about how cold it was a few days ago, but seeing how as many of these people are from minnesota, where it was colder and snowier, i have been casting seeds on the rocks. on the bright side, though it is dark when i go home at night, at least it’s light when i drive to work in the morning. with the encroaching darkness i will have nowhere to turn but to the brightly lit commerical outlets.

thanksgiving this year is just me and lea. we are taking a bow to brian shaul and having steak for the main meal. mmm, red meat. it should be awesome. on the one hand, it is a bit sad that i am to be spending my first thanksgiving away from my immediate family; on the other hand, i am sure the time with lea will be wonderful. i am still spending christmas in northfield, so if any of you who read this will be there over that particular holiday weekend, give me a ring.

raising arizona

age of iron

what makes a coetzee novel beautiful? is it the simple, uncluttered plot, that almost insidiously takes hold? is it the protagonists, who are so thoroughly flawed? or is it simply the writing, simple and austere? (disclaimer: i’ve only read this and disgrace, so when i say “a coetzee novel,” that’s what i mean.)

the two towers

extended edition = extra footage! more from the books, more that i missed the first time around. granted, this movie is still a fair sight different than the books, but, hey, it’s an adaptation. it’s not like reading the books aloud would make a very good movie. all in all, a good deal.

that darn car

oh, the civic. about a week and a half ago, the front left tire started leaking air at a prodigious and unfortunate rate, and the muffler decided it didn’t like itself, and enacted a bit of self change. so, for a week and a half, i’ve been driving around in a noisy, slightly lopsided car.

given the option of replacing the tire or fixing it, i chose to replace it. i spent the time my tires were being changed out wandering around circuit city (i purchased a $2 copy of abe’s oddysee), and enjoying the fine cuisine of happy wok. a bit later, after the car had been fetched and a bit more of supper consumed, i drove over to the barnes and noble. they didn’t have exactly what i was looking for, but i found a $3 copy of a book i wanted to read. i was going to sit down and enjoy my book with a nice cup of coffee (er, decaf? or maybe tea, given the hour), but they were piping this awful christmas music through the air, and it drove me straight out of the store.

and home again i rest. as an update, the new computer is very nice, thank you very much, but the re-reading of ender’s game has put me on to a bit of a reading kick, i think.

ender’s game

i have recently been persuaded that i will be less of a human being if i do not read jane eyre. in response, i was to choose a book that i felt the eyre-proponent should read, that she would not have, otherwise. this was my choice. i picked up a copy this weekend at barnes and noble, and, perusing the first chapter again, got pulled in and read it straight through. i first read this book when i was younger; i have read it many times since, and it probably qualifies as my favorite book. certainly, it has held that position in the past. this is wonderful sci-fi. though the writing seems at times a bit too pitched to younger readers, there is still a good message in it. and it’s fun, very fun, to read.