Doing A Quiz: Part ????

For the first time in a long while, i’m going to be participating in The Captain’s Quiz ran by my friend Paul. I’m not even looking at the questions beforehand, so this will be a surprise for all of us.

THE 10 QUESTIONS

1. You are going camping at a campground for four days and three nights. Does this excite you, or fill you with dread? Explain.

Absolutely fills me with dread. The level of dread depends on a few things–are we in a tent? If so, HIGH level of dread, I do not like being in places that don’t have a proper bathroom and proper door. You don’t know what’s out there! Or you do, and it’s bugs. A trailer or caravan presents less dread but still dread. Camping also presents difficulty food wise–there’s only so many options when camping. What do you even do for four days?? I would however be open to renting a nice trailer and traveling to various national parks and doing activities, because there are activities and new things to see. Or glamping, I could glamp. There’s real beds there.

2. They say that, “Sally sells seashells by the seashore”. How much money do you think Sally makes on a Saturday in July, and do you think her business should be set up elsewhere?

I think Sally would have to have a decent marketing campaign. It also depends how much she is charging per shell, because I can’t imagine she could realistically have much of a markup. How do you make more than like 20 bucks a day? May I refer you to this Super Bowl 2022 commercial starring Zendaya? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0rl8j5631Q&ab_channel=Squarespace

3. The ideal temperature for sleep is approximately 18°C (65°F). What are five tips you have for staying cool while sleeping?

Fan pointed directly at your bed, preferably one that moves. Blinds closed for a least a few hours before sleeping to ensure room didn’t get too hot. Pyjamas made out of lighter fabrics. No socks. Sheets made out of a light cool fabric.

4. In Season 4 of The O.C., Summer Roberts adopts a pet rabbit and names her Pancakes. What animal would you adopt and what breakfast food would you name it after?

A golden retriever named Waffle

5. SummerSlam is an annual professional wrestling event produced by the WWE. Thinking of yourself as a wrestler, provide the following information: your wrestling name, your character traits, your catchphrase, and the name of your most devastating maneuver.

I don’t know much about wrestling but here you go: My wrestling name would be Lucy Limber. She’s a contortionist who ran away from the circus after a devastating betrayal by one of the aerialists, and has turned to wrestling to make ends meet. The catchphrase is “YOU WILL NOT UNDERESTIMATE ME AGAIN!” Most devastating maneuver: Ferocious fan kick.

6. What is a frozen dessert you enjoy eating outside? On a scale of 1-10 (10 being the messiest), how messy is it?

Ice cream! Can range from maybe a 3 when in a cup to a 6 when in a cone. I bite my ice cream so this does speed up eating time and reduce mess.

7. You are standing in an above ground swimming pool and your sunglasses fall to the bottom. How do you retrieve them?

Try to kick them up using my feet.

8. “Walking on Sunshine” is an upbeat song by Katrina And The Waves. What songs would be on your summer playlist?

Funnily enough, I made a playlist earlier this summer! Here is the song list: Indie Rokkers by MGMT, 1979 by the Smashing Pumpkins, Canyon Moon by Harry Styles, Grapejuice by Harry Styles. Sugar Remix by Brockhampton ft Dua Lipa, 3 Nights by Dominic Fike, Cruel Summer by Taylor Swift, Summertime Sadness by Lana Del Rey, Summer of 69 by Bryan Adams, Silk Chiffon by MUNA and Phoebe Bridgers, Kyoto by Phoebe Bridgers, Summer Days by Martin Garrix, Macklemore, and Fall Out Boy, Don’t Kill My Vibe by Sigrid, Temperature by Sean Paul, Cake By The Ocean by DNCE, august by Taylor Swift, Shake It by Metro Station

9. What are the pros and cons of patio dining?

Pros: Get to enjoy the sunshine! Nicer view usually. Just makes it feel summery. Sometimes you get to sit on a bench. Cons: Bugs. It could rain. Seagulls. Construction noises. No chance of a booth.

10. What is a summer job you have had and how long did you remain friends/in-touch with your co-workers after the job ended?

Well Paul who made this quiz, we have been friends since we worked at camp together since like 2014, and there are other people from camp I am still friends with, so there you go.

BONUS QUESTIONS

1. You have entered the food truck business. Tell me about your new venture and your strategy to dominate the market.

Sushi on a stick. It’s sushi, but it is on a stick. The strategy is–no one has done this before, lots of people like sushi, AND it’s easy to carry.

2. You are going on a summer road trip and can take one person with you. It can be absolutely anyone. Tell me about the trip.

This is hard because it has to be someone I could travel well with, who ALSO wouldn’t mind that I don’t drive, who ALSO would be willing to do fun things. I’m going to say my friend Tess because I lived with her last year and I’m used to spending lots of time with her, and she likes driving. It would be to New York City, we would stop by Niagara Falls on the way, and also for Buffalo Wings in buffalo. Also outlet mall shopping.

3. What are some of your favourite summer memories?

Fireworks, hanging out with friends in parks and fields, summer festivals in downtown toronto, going to summer concerts, working at camp, going to see Harry Potter premieres in the summer time.

That’s it, hope everyone has a great day ❤

Movies I watched in 2022 (Part 1)

Chronic fatigue has been kicking my ass lately, so in order to stick my middle finger up at it, here is a list of all the movies I have watched for the first time in 2022 (so far!). All the trailers are linked for viewing convenience.

The Royal Treatment: I watched this with a friend of mine who loves cheesy/fluffy/”bad” movies, so we had an idea of what we were getting into. This movie is about a hairdresser who through a series of mishaps ends up doing the hair and makeup for a prince’s upcoming arranged marriage. Obviously, her and the prince fall in love. This movie was rather predictable and silly, and featured a kind of questionable New York accent from one of the leads, but honestly it was a fun time.

Encanto: I LOVED ENCANTO. If you have somehow been living under a rock for the past six months or so, Encanto is a Disney musical about a Colombian family who all have been gifted magical powers–except for one of the daughters, Maribel. It’s so good and it brought me so much joy and all of the music is so good (especially Surface Pressure and of course, We Don’t Talk About Bruno), and the animation was beautiful and I loved the themes of family and expectations and intergenerational trauma and also magic. Go watch Encanto.

My Perfect Romance: Another movie I watched with my bad movie loving friend! This was significantly worse than The Royal Treatment. A woman designs a dating algorithm called “My Perfect Match” and her and her difficult boss use it to try and find love and end up falling for each other. It certainly is a movie that exists.

Death on the Nile: As someone who loves Agatha Christie–and thoroughly enjoyed the movie that preceded this one, an adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express–I thought I would give this movie a shot. And it was fine! It was very aesthetically pleasing, it was a mystery, it was enjoyable! Not one I would probably rewatch to be honest, and not as good as Murder on the Orient Express, but I have seen worse Agatha Christie adaptations.

West Side Story (2021): The original West Side Story is one of those films I have seen over and over again, so I was hesitant to watch a remake. That said, I genuinely loved this take on the story! The cinematography was beautiful, the choreography was stunning, and all of the performances were very strong. I was especially impressed with Mike Faist who played Riff–he had this magnetic screen presence and this kind of sizzling energy underneath his skin. I still love the original, of course, but this version is amazing in its own right and absolutely worth a watch.

Turning Red: Loved it!!! This Pixar film about a pre-teen girl who discovers her family “curse” of turning into a red panda was just wonderful. I don’t know what made Disney/Pixar go so hard with themes of family and intergenerational trauma this year, but they knocked it out of the park every time. I loved how it was set in Toronto in the 2000s–meaning her pre-teen life felt similar to the one that I lived. The movie is so funny and also features an absolute bop that I still can’t get out of my head! Go watch it! (as an aside, the strangest two criticisms of this movie were 1. it talks about periods which is inappropriate and 2. the preteens in it are “too cringey.” And my responses to those are: 1. periods are a natural part of life and it is NORMAL to talk about them and 2. preteens ARE cringey, literally all of them, stop being weird because they made a female lead you can’t sexualize.)

Dune: I don’t know why it took me so long to get to watching this film, but predictably, I really enjoyed it. It was stunning to look at but on top of that, just a really well done and interesting film, set in an interesting universe. It did lean into pretension sometimes, but not to an extent that it would turn me off watching. Fantastic cast as well, with Timothee Chalamet and Jason Momoa being my personal standouts.

Nightmare Alley: This is probably the most underrated film on this list, even though it was nominated for many Academy Awards. Directed by Guillermo Del Toro (who I LOVE), this movie stars Bradley Cooper as an ambitious carnival worker with a mysterious past who is willing to take major risks to become a success. It’s hard to say more than that without spoiling the film, but believe me when I say it both goes places you don’t expect while also ending the only way it really could end. It’s dark and intense and quiet and beautifully shot. If you have any interest in noir films or Del Toro’s work in general, I would suggest giving it a watch.

Olivia Rodrigo: Driving Home 2 U: Another one I watched with my friend when we were bored, this is a live concert film? Kind of? It follows popstar Olivia Rodrigo as she creates her hit debut album, Sour, alongside live performances of the songs. Nothing groundbreaking but I am a fan of the album so I had a good time.

The Adam Project: This really fun Netflix movie stars Ryan Reynolds as time-traveling pilot who lands in 2022 and ends up teaming up with his 12 year old self in order to save the future. I love time travel and fun action-adventure films so it’s not really a surprise that I enjoyed this. I was impressed by the acting by the kid who played young Adam–and he recently got cast as Percy Jackson in the TV adaptation of the book series, so good for him!! Very fun, a good popcorn watch, did get me teary at one point.

Everything, Everywhere, All At Once: I cannot say enough positive things about this movie. It was beautiful. It was utterly original and wonderfully weird and funny and heartbreaking and had so many brilliant messages of hope and finding meaning and joy all wrapped in this fantastical plot. You never knew what was coming but getting there always felt right. Every single performance was a standout in some way. If you haven’t watched this movie–watch this movie. I have not stopped thinking about it since I saw it.

Doctor Strange: Multiverse of Madness: Yeah I’m back on my Marvel grind! The original Doctor Strange was not my number one Marvel movie, even though I like him a lot as a character, but I personally think this one surpassed it’s predecessor. It leaned more into campiness and “multiversal madness” and utilized more horror elements which I personally really enjoyed. There were some great cameos I will not spoil and some damn cool sequences. I thought it was a lot of fun and actually ended up watching it twice in theatres.

Thor: Love and Thunder: And another one! This movie was also a really fun time. I love Thor in general and have loved everything I have seen by Taika Waititi, so it’s not a surprise I enjoyed this one. Christian Bale was a standout as the villain, Gorr the God Butcher–say what you will about that man, but he can act. The movie was really funny (there some running gags I genuinely cackled at every single time) and had a lot of fun sequences, and I genuinely love all of the Thor and Thor adjacent characters! A fantastic addition to the Thor line-up.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife: Watched this on a whim yesterday and really enjoyed it!! This film is a direct sequel to the 80s Ghostbusters films, and it helps to be somewhat familiar with those before you watch. It focuses on a mom and two kids who go to a small town after the death of her estranged father to settle his affairs–and it turns out he was one of the original Ghostbusters. Cue drama and also ghostly shenanigans. It was really fun and I liked all the young kid actors a lot. I don’t tend to like oure horror ghosts, but these kinds of ghosts suit me just fine. You’ll like it if you have enjoyed literally any Ghostbusters movie.

do you believe in death of the author?

Like many millennials, I grew up loving Harry Potter. I read the first three books when I was 8 years old, and pre-ordered every single one after that so I would get it on the day it was released. I watched all of the movies multiple times in theatres. I went to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter twice. I had games and clothing items and cards and all of the extra books. And beyond all of the material things–I bonded with friends and family over Harry Potter. I felt a connection to characters. I cried at the books and movies. Harry Potter meant a lot to me growing up, from childhood all through to university. When the play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child premiered in 2016/2017, I knew that whenever it eventually came to Toronto, I would go and see it.

And then, of course, JK Rowling revealed herself to be a massive, appalling TERF.

For those who don’t know, a TERF is a “trans exclusionary radical feminist,” although it feels wrong to even humour the idea they are actually feminists in any way. Under the pretence of “protecting women,” they disrespect, oppress, or downright harrass and hate on Trans people. They see trans women as “invading women’s spaces,” see trans men as confused women “becoming one of their oppressors.” There are different levels of TERFS of course–some will claim they love and support trans women but just want to differentiate them from cis women (always in a way that keeps down trans women, of course), while others will be more forthright in their transphobia. There’s a lot more to it than this, but the prevalence of these kind of voices is a serious problem. It was horrible for me to learn that JK Rowling, someone with money and influence (and less importantly, someone whose writing I loved so much), was spreading this rhetoric that not only goes against what I believe in, but that I find actively hateful and harmful.

Harry Potter fans have had different reactions to this overall. Some–unfortunately–agree with JKR. Some have renounced the series entirely, giving away books and DVDs and merch. Others haven’t dropped the whole thing, but refuse to buy anything new that could give her money. Other fans have decided to pretend she never wrote the series. Others now insist the books were always bad.

So where do I stand? I don’t personally agree with the “actually thr books were always bad” stance on things. For one–I don’t think they were. I still enjoy them. But also, I think it’s dangerous to perpetuate the idea that people with terrible opinions–or even downright terrible people in general!–must also be ugly and untalented and failures. Because that simply is not true, and associating talent with goodness, or beauty with goodness, or all of the above, feels like a dangerous slope to slide down.

I watched the Harry Potter reunion on HBO Max in January. mainly because JK Rowling wasn’t involved. I cried my eyes out seeing the movie cast come together and talk about what the movies had meant to them. Despite everything, Harry Potter meant a lot to me as well. These characters meant a lot to me, these actors meant a lot to me. I felt like I wanted to go back and read all these stories for the first time, to experience it without everything that came after it.

Yesterday, I went to watch the play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in the theatre, the first thing I have done in years that would actually “give JKR money.” I justified it to myself using a version of “death of the author:” these stories have been in the world so long that they no longer only belong to JK Rowling, other than in the monetary sense, they belong to the fans, to the people who have lived with them and grown up with them for decades now. And I’m one of them. I wasn’t going to see a theatrical sequel to JK Rowling’s Harry Potter, I was going to see a theatrical sequel to MY Harry Potter.

Not everyone will agree with my approach or decision, I know that. And maybe the way I feel will change over time. I did wonder, fleetingly, before the show started, how many people in the room agreed with JK’s opinions, and how many didn’t know, and how many didn’t care. Then the show began, and I let myself get swept up in it. It was almost easy to do so–it felt a bit like watching a live-action fan fiction onstage, which was fun. It was a bit of a strange show, but overall an enjoyable experience.

I know this isn’t the first time a creator will do something or say something that makes enjoying their works complicated. I in this moment am wearing a Buffy The Vampire Slayer t-shirt, even though show creator Joss Whedon is, according to many people, a piece of shit. I still love the show–just like I still love Angel, and Firefly, and Dollhouse, and Dr Horrible’s Singalong Blog, and The Avengers movie, and most things that he has created. Sometimes I’m able to separate the creator from these works easily. Sometimes, I feel guilty about it. And I’m not sure what to do wih that. Maybe it’s easier to enjoy them because these are all shows and movies that are over now, and I have already had my enjoyment of and experience with them. Maybe that’s what makes it harder to distance myself. Maybe both.

I know these are feelings that will change and shift over time. I know I’ll probably be hypocritical sometimes–completely renouncing some works of art while being fine with others. Maybe I’ll come write about those too, when it happens.

If you have an opinion on any of this–feel free to share. If not, thanks for letting me ramble.

Procrastination

I’ve had “write a new blog post” in the reminders on my phone for a full month now.

It’s not the only reminder that’s been lingering there awhile. It lives amongst such tasks as “renew passport” and “book hotel for friend’s wedding.” It’s not that I don’t want to do these things or that I don’t have to do these things. But somehow I find myself just…not doing the things.

I can’t fully explain WHY I don’t do these things right away. Sometimes I just forget about them until inconvenient times–I can’t count how many times I have remembered something I need to do or buy when in the shower or while falling asleep. Sometimes it’s because it’s something that will take a long time or will be complicated and I either don’t have the time or the patience to do it. Sometimes it’s some other reason.

I also couldn’t tell you why today, of all days, I finally sat down at my computer, opened up a new tab, and wrote this post. Maybe the winds were blowing the right way? Maybe I was well hydrated? Maybe I just felt like being productive? Whatever it was, my brain decided, “enough is enough! We are done procrastinating!”

Well, with this task anyway. I’ll let you know when that passport gets done.

Hello

um.

Hi.

My resolution for the year was to write more frequently. Clearly, I have not been doing well at that.

I also wanted to be better at keeping up with the blogs of people I follow, because I think everyone is so interesting and talented! I also did not do well at that.

I don’t have much of an explanation really. I’ve struggled a LOT with focus in the past few weeks especially though. I don’t know why, but it’s been happening in every aspect of my life, not just this one.

However, I have promised myself (who is probably the most important person to promise) to do better, because that’s something I want to do! I have made a list of topics that built up that I want to write about, hoping that will keep me motivated.

So anyway hi, bear with me, this is a notice I will do better.

Movies I watched in 2021: The final part (part 6)

In 2021, I decided to keep track of every movie I watched for the very first time. This means I didn’t include rewatches of Love, Actually, or Mean Girls, or Into The Spiderverse, just movies I had never watched before. With the year now over, this is the final group of films I watched this year (the pervious part is RIGHT HERE)

The Princess Switch 3: Romancing The Star: Sometimes, you just have to watch a not very good Netflix holiday movie. This film is the third in a series starring Vanessa Hudgens as a baker who learns that a princess in another country (Vanessa Hudgens) looks exactly like her, and they take the opportunity to switch lives. In the sequel, we also meet the princess’s bad girl cousin (Vanessa Hudgens) who also looks exactly like them. In this third film, the three band together to retrieve a prized artefact from thieves. Hijinks ensue. I wouldn’t call this movie good. But was it entertaining? Yes. Did I have a fun time? Yes. Was it a fun way to spend two hours? Yes.

tick…tick…boom!: Now this was what I would call a good movie. No, this is what I would call a FANTASTIC movie. This movie is based on the autobiographical musical by playwright Jonathan Larson, best known for writing the famous musical RENT! It stars Andrew Garfield as Jonathan, a broke composer and playwright living in NYC in 1990 fighting to finish the musical he has been working on for years and get it seen. It also stars Alexandra Shipp, Vanessa Hudgens, Joshua Henry, and Robin de Jesus in supporting roles. I absolutely loved the film, from the music (especially 30/90, please listen if you are anywhere around 30), to the staging, to the story, to the fabulous performances (if Andrew Garfield doesn’t get a nomination for this I will SUE). If you have any interest in musicals at all, watch this. One of my faves of the year for sure.

Christmas in the Heartland: And we are back to not good holiday movies! This TV movie tells the story of two teenage girls who meet on a flight, both to stay with grandparents they have never met. For some reason that is still unclear to me, they decide to switch places and pretend to be each other for the holiday. They soon realize that keeping up this ruse may be harder than they thought, especially when they find themselves competing in the same holiday pageant. I’m aware this sounds deeply absurd just as a concept. That’s because it is. Unlike in The Parent Trap, there’s no reason or logic behind them switching. They just don’t feel like meeting their grandparents (despite both of them longing for more time with family) and decide this seems like a great plan?? This movie is two hours long and me and my roommate kept watching it mostly because we had no idea where this was going to go. It did go some unexpected places, but I don’t know if that was a good thing.

Spider-man: No Way Home: I’m a big Spider-man fan, so this is one of the movies I was most excited for this year, and it did not disappoint in the slightest. It picks up exactly where Far From Home leaves off, and follows Peter trying to deal with his identity being exposed and the impact it has on himself and those around him. When he goes to see Doctor Strange to ask for help, their actions have repercussions they could not have expected. I can’t say much about this film without spoiling, but know I loved it and it was amazing and bittersweet and funny and satisfying in so many ways and I want to go watch it again thank you.

Xanadu: I’m home for Christmas, and ended up watching this 1980 movie with my parents when we found it playing on one of the movie networks. I cannot explain the experience that is watching Xanadu. It’s less of a movie and more a series of dance and musical numbers loosely connected by scenes that kind of sort of make up a plot. It features the very feathery haired Michael Beck as a struggling artist who bumps into and becomes infatuated with a woman called Kira (played by the wonderful Olivia Newton John) who is actually one of the Greek muses. Gene Kelly is also there as an old man that the lead character randomly befriends, who has a dream of opening a dance club? There’s a lot of roller skating involved. I don’t even know.

Don’t Look Up: I’ve watched a lot of disaster flicks in my time, and can honestly say I have never watched one quite like this one. It stars Leonardo Dicaprio as a professor and Jennifer Lawrence as one of his grad students who discover that there is a massive asteroid on a collision course with earth, set to hit in a world-ending event in six months. They find themselves meeting resistance when they tell the president (Meryl Streep) about their discovery. This movie is what I would call a dark comedy or a dark satire. It makes you laugh and can be utterly absurd, but in a way that hits at reality and at real situations. It can also be meaningful and poignant and twist ideas you had about disaster movie tropes or the situation in the film on its head. It features an all-star cast–including standouts like Mark Rylance and Jonah Hill–who all give perfectly pitched performances. I really enjoyed it, but I don’t know if it’s for everyone. If you have any interest in disaster movies, I would give it a try.

And that’s it! Just some quick numbers as its the final post:

Total movies watched: 34

Movies I watched that were released in 2021: 19

Number Animated: 4

Number Watched in Theatres: 3

Number of Musicals: 4

Number of Superhero Films: 7

Number that made me cry: 5

Rolling into 2022

My friend Paul has nominated me to share my goals for 2022. As one of my goals for 2022 is to be a more consistent blogger, I felt this was the perfect place to start (a bit early).

The Rules

• Thank the person who nominated you. (Thanks Paul! I needed a prompt to write, I’ll be honest)
• Write your own goals for next year.
• Write how you’re going to achieve these goals. (can’t promise anything for this one)
• Tag at least five blogger friends.
• This last one is optional, but in 365 days, write a post about whether or not you’ve been successful.

1. Blog More Consistently

I got a new job in August, and thus writing fell by the wayside. I didn’t want to share a lot about my job here for privacy reasons, and I think I used that as an excuse to not write more regularly. In truth, I think I spent too much time getting in my own way. I’d think I had nothing to write about, or that I had too much to write about and didn’t know where to start, or that no one would care about what I wrote about, or that I didn’t know how to write about what I wanted to write about. And I think I was being too hard on myself. My next posts will be easy to write–rounding up movies watched in 2021, talking about some books I read recently, some other round ups–but after that I want to make a concerted effort to write more frequently and not get as stuck in my own head.

2. Workout more consistently (even when its hard)

I love working out, I love being active and I always feel BETTER when I do it. And yet, because I work irregular hours and have to take my own initiative, I struggle to keep up a workout schedule consistently when I am not taking scheduled classes. It was easier to be consistent when the weather was nicer–if I didn’t feel like doing yoga or fitness workouts, for example, I could go for a nice long walk exploring nearby parks or to the botanical garden, and I always felt good afterwards. But as the weather got colder and greyer, I felt less and less motivation. I’ve also had some health problems flaring up and kicking my ass recently, and that lowered my motivation even more. As I live in Toronto–where cold weather is guaranteed for at LEAST the next two months– I want to make a point of getting into a consistent rhythm even before it warms up. I’m not one of those people who is going to get up every single day at 6 to work out with the sun, but if I can guarantee at least two days every week, I think it will be good for me.

3. Have plans for after this job

The job I am in is a contract position which finishes in June. It is likely I will have the option to renew my contract for the 2022/2023 school year, but I have yet to decide if that is an opportunity I want to take. The problem is, I don’t know what else I want to do! And I want to actively work at figuring that out. It’s something I didn’t think much about during the first few months of this job, since I wanted to focus on the job itself, but it is time to start. If I return for another school year, I want it to be because it’s the right thing for me and what I really want, and not just because I don’t know what else to do. I want to make an effort to make lists about what I love about this job, what fulfills me, what I definitely want from the next few years of my life, what I definitely don’t want, and then take action based on conclusions I come to from there. This is maybe more of a goal for the first half of 2022 specifically, but that counts.

4. Spend more time with people I care about

We are currently in another wave of COVID-19 cases here in Toronto, but once that settles down, I want to make more of an effort to reach out to people to spend time together. I find between work and the global pandemic, it’s so easy to try and make plans and never get around to them, or to make excuses to not spend time together. But I love my family, and I love (and miss) my friends, and life is short. I am committed to actually making this happen this year.

I nominate:

Is it cheating to say whoever wants to do it, can do it?? I just don’t know who has been nominated already! So if you see this, and you haven’t been nominated yet, consider yourself hereby nominated.

Doing A Quiz: Part 5

Since I was the previous champion, I feel compelled, yet again, to participate in the quiz run by my friend Paul. Let’s see if I can do just as well.

THE 10 QUESTIONS

1. The Fab Five were a group of all-freshmen starters for the 1991 Michigan men’s basketball team. What is something you immediately excelled at?

Reading. My parents read to me when I was a child and I picked up reading by myself very early on.

2. One Direction was a boy band that eventually went in five directions. If you were in a five person band, would you be the first one to leave? Why or why not?

I like to think I am a very loyal person and I like having a sense of community and belonging so no, absolutely not.

3. Five Alive is a line of various fruit juice blends. Create a new drink and include any number (other than five) in its name. Tell me about the new drink.

A drink called “Mix’n Six” and every different flavour is a mix of 6 different fruits and/or vegetables!

4. In the mid-2000s, WWE Superstar John Cena had a weekly segment on WWE.com called, “Five Questions With The Champ” where he answered fan questions. If you were to send a celebrity five questions, who would it be and what would you ask?

John Cena: What was it like getting into acting? What do you eat on a regular basis? Who is your favourite other wrestler who later got into acting? What made you decide to participate in that Scooby-doo Cartoon? Would you ever do DWTS or would it be kind of awkward now?

5. The San Francisco 49ers have won five Super Bowls, with their last one coming in 1995. What is something from 1995 that you wish we still had and/or did in 2021?

Regularly buying physical copies of movies and CD’s. I know it is still doable and you can, it is much harder to find machines to play them on.

6. When you type, “Where are the” into Google, what is the fifth autocomplete option?

“Where are the Canary islands?”

7. The TV show, Breaking Bad, had five seasons. What is your favourite TV show and how many seasons does it have?

I don’t know how to decide on my favourite show!! This feels like unfair pressure to put on me. I will choose the most recent addition to my pantheon of favourite shows, which is Dark, and that’s three seasons.

8. The PlayStation 5 has experienced supply issues due to a chip shortage. What are your top five potato chip flavours?

Sour Cream and Onion, Regular, Sour Cream and Cheddar (Ruffles specifically), Sea Salt, All Dressed

9. “Remember, remember, the 5th of November” is a line from the movie, V for Vendetta. What do you remember about November 5, 2021?

I was working that day and we ordered the biggest McDonald’s order I have ever seen in my life. Like to the point one of the security guards at work saw us go down to pick up the order and said seeing that much McDonald’s was actively turning him off McDonald’s.

10. How would you explain the “high five” hand gesture to someone who doesn’t know what it is?

Joining the palms together as a sign of joy, support, or agreement.

BONUS QUESTIONS

1. If you could be five-years-old for the next 24 hours, what would you do?

Go to one of those activity places full of bouncy castles and bouncy obstacle courses! I used to LOVE those and it’s not really acceptable to go as an adult unless you actively have a small child. So I would spend many hours at that, and then go to a restaurant and order a kids meal. And spend the rest of the time napping and playing with toys.

2. How many five-letter words can you type in two minutes? Do it, but don’t share the words with me. Your answer to this question will only be the number of words.

36

3. Tell me the story behind the fifth photo in your phone (or camera, computer, photo album).

Alas it’s nothing particularly interesting ! It’s a picture of my outfit on that day (October 23 2017) and I’m pretty sure I posted it on instagram with a caption like “It was a bad day but at least my outfit is cute” because I had got caught in the rain that day and missed a bus etc.

Movies I watched in 2021 (Part 5)

I meant to write this installment of this post…months ago. The last one I did was all the way back in July 2021. The reason I put it off so long was simple–I wasn’t watching movies at as fast a rate. I started a new job, I was catching up on shows, etc etc etc.

Since it’s November, I considered just leaving it until the end of the year. But given I’ve watched three movies in the past week or so, and will probably watch more when I get into the holidays, I’m doing it now. As always, trailers are linked!

Gunpowder Milkshake: This Netflix movie starred Karen Gillan (who I love, and was the main reason I watched this movie), Lena Headey, Michelle Yeoh, Angela Bassett, and Carla Gugino. The lead character Sam (Karen Gillan) was raised by the crime syndicate her mom worked for after her mom abandoned her, turning into an elite assassin. When a hit job goes wrong, she finds herself returning to the “library” and group of female assassins her who were her mom’s associates in order to protect a young girl as well as herself. This movie was really fun, considering the subject matter. It was campy, it was action packed, it had comedy and drama, it had epic fight scenes. It was so so cool to see a movie like this that was female led, especially since so many of the women were “older” for a female action star. If this sounds like your kind of thing, go for it, it’s a fun time.

Black Widow: I wrote about this being the first movie I had seen in theatres since COVID started back in August! I stand by my quick review at the time: loved it, would die for Yelena Belova, fuck the patriarchy. There are scenes in that movie I was thinking about for a long time after the movie ended. If you’re a Marvel fan, I’m sure you’ve already seen this.

Awakening the Zodiac: I’ll be honest, I barely remember this one, which probably isn’t a glowing review. This movie stars Shane West and Leslie Bibb as a couple who discover the film reels of a serial killer (the zodiac killer) and decide to try and capture him themselves in order to get a monetary reward. If you like serial killers and mediocre thrillers it’s a decent way to spend an hour and forty minutes, but I can’t say it stood out for me weeks later.

Cinderella (2021): If you’re like me, you might have seen the trailer for this movie and thought, “Why do we need another Cinderella? Is this one contributing anything new?” I watched it and am still not sure of the answer. It stars pop singer Camila Cabello as the lead role–she does a pretty good job (although I don’t think her voice suited the main “I want” song written for her, oddly enough) and the movie feels a bit like it’s meant to be a star vehicle for her. The movie isn’t terrible, but it’s not particularly great either. There’s some funny moments–James Acaster as a mouse/footman was fun to see–and some fun musical numbers. There’s also some deeply confusing song choices in this jukebox musical, and some very very clunky messaging. I’ll note that I’m definitely not this film’s intended audience, and this is almost definitely some 8 year old girl’s favourite movie right now, so I can’t drag it that hard.

Definitely, Maybe: Released in 2008, this is one of those rom coms I meant to watch and never got around to. It stars Ryan Reynolds as a divorced father who tells his daughter (played by Abigail Breslin) the love story of him and her mother–without telling her which of the three women he talks about in the story are her mom. It’s funny and cute and heartwarming and I’m really glad I finally watched. If you’re a fan of rom coms, I would definitely recommend.

Eternals: The second Marvel movie on this list!! This is another one I watched in theatres, and I was so excited to have done so. It’s got grand special effects, beautiful cinematic shots, and beautiful people, so it’s absolutely worth a theatre watch. I really enjoyed it, and how it was a slight shift from the typical Marvel formula. It still had the comedic moments and the action sequences and it’s still set in the same universe, but it has a darker tone, grander cinematography (they actually filmed much of it in real locations, which actually isn’t super common in the MCU), and a really interesting way of rolling out the story and characters. I can see so many ways in which this movie will impact the MCU going forward, and where these characters and storylines go from here (including those credits scenes, if you have seen it you get me) but also enjoyed it as a film on its own).

Love Hard: This Netflix romcom is about a woman (Nina Dobrev) who meets what she thinks is the perfect guy on a dating app. She flies to Long Island to surprise him only to discover she had been catfished by a man (Jimmy O’Yang) who was using the pictures of one of his more conventionally attractive friends (Darren Barnett). To make it up to her, he agrees to set her up with the guy whose pictures he used. Hijinks ensue. If you have ever seen a rom com you can probably guess where it went from here, but it’s a pretty cute and funny ride. You have to be kind of careful with a plot like this, but I think they did a pretty good job of balancing it and not letting anyone get off that easily. A nice Christmas themed rom com watch if you’re okay with awkwardness.

Shang-Chi and The Legend of the Ten Rings: And the last movie of the list is yet another Marvel feature, what a surprise!! I unfortunately wasn’t able to get to the theatres to watch this movie when it was out, so waited patiently until it was released on Disney Plus this past weekend. I LOVED IT. This is another Marvel movie that shifts from the typical Marvel formula, although in a very different way. It’s very much inspired by martial arts films, and characters speak Chinese nearly as much as they do English. The fight scenes were indeed memorable and fantastic, and the film was well acted by everyone involved. I look forward to seeing where they go as well, and love that it’s a Chinese-Canadian man in the starring role!! I honestly think all the marvel movies on this list can be watched without having a ton of familiarity with the MCU. There are some references you will miss, but it’s not too bad.

Doing A Quiz: Part 4

Trying to get back into the swing of blogging things, so thought I would participate in “The Captains Quiz 4“! It’s halloween themed, so feels appropriately festive as well.

THE 10 QUESTIONS

1. Rank your top five favourite Halloween candy and explain your choices.

1. Mini snickers: because snickers are amazing but sometimes it can be a lot to have a whole bar so a mini bite sized version is perfect
2. Mini caramilk: see above
3. Mini kitkat: see above
4. Fuzzy peaches: they’re so delicious and sweet and you don’t always get them so it’s always fun when you do
5. Double Bubble: I’m not saying it’s the best gum in the world BUT it’s tasty enough and feels nostalgic and comes with a cute little comic!

2. In horror films, the victim normally runs upstairs while the killer is chasing them around the house. If you were to write a “what not to do” handbook for future characters in horror films, what would your chapter titles be?

It would be three chapters and they would be “leave your house,” “have back-up,” and “mind your own business”

3. If there was a monster under your bed, what would it look like?

Like Molly the doll from the Big Comfy Couch

4. I Know What You Did Last Summer follows a group of friends who are trying to keep the details of last summer under wraps, while being stalked by a killer with a hook. What is something you did this past summer that you did not share on social media?

I took plenty of naps and shockingly, I did not post about this.

5. If you were to provide a trick instead of a treat, what would your trick be?

I don’t think I’m very good at tricks. Maybe something just cute and harmless, like a skeleton hand coming out of the bowl of candy or something.

6. How long can you wear a Halloween costume before wanting to change into something else? Please provide a specific amount of time.

8-10 hours.

7. What Halloween decoration could we, as a society, do without?

The fake spiderweb stuff, mostly because people go way overboard with it and it rarely even looks that cute.

8. The songs, “Thriller” and “Monster Mash” have really cornered the market on “background-song-for-a-slideshow-of-student’s-Halloween-costumes”. What song was at the top of the Billboard Top 100 list the year you started high school? (You can find this on Google). Did you like the song?

Google tells me “We Belong Together” by Mariah Carey was number one the year I entered high school. I remember HATING that song. I found it so over wrought and so over played and I was just not into it at all. Listening back now, it’s fine and pretty fun to dramatically lip synch to. Was I just in a bad mood that year? I mean I was 13/14, so probably.

9. What is your favourite Halloween-themed movie?

ParaNorman. A fantastic movie!

10. Bobbing for apples is a cliché party game that poses multiple health risks. If you threw a Halloween party, what activities would you provide?

Pin the tail on the black cat, a spooky themed bean bag toss, dancing to the Monster Mash, learning the thriller dance, decorating Halloween themed cookies.

BONUS QUESTIONS

1. Tell me a scary story.

Paul was sitting in his room, reading a book when the doorbell rang. He stopped reading to listen to make sure it was his, and sure enough his doorbell rang again…once more…twice more…and then insistently. He looked towards the door and hesitated, not sure what to do. He had no doorbell.

2. Put two minutes on the clock. Type as much as you can about anything pumpkin related, before time expires.

I’ve never been very good at carving pumpkins. i like the idea of it but it never turns out well. Maybe because my art skills aren’t that strong. But still, when presented with a pumpkin, I will do my very best. I will carve out its organs, reveling in the feeling of them. I’ll painstakingly draw a face that I’m meant to carve, being careful, making neat shapes, even though they always end up a little uneven. And then I pick up my carving knife, and stab as hard as I can through the eyes and mouth and nose of my chosen pumpkin. It’s stress relief.

3. List all the costumes you’ve ever worn for Halloween.

Pumpkin, pink power ranger, snow white, Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, rock star, witch, fantasy witch, goth cheerleader, vampire, spooky doll, black cat, angel, hermione granger, Deryn Sharp from the Leviathan books, 80s pop star, Wednesday Addams

4. Are you a scarecrow or a jack-o’-lantern?

Scarecrow, duh.