Two second movie review:

• Amelie -- Fun, sweet, delightful, quirky. Love this movie. I received probably 4 emails and a few web posts from people who thought the Amelie character reminded them of me. There are some nuances of similarity and while I don't think I'm quite as quirky as she is, I'm not offended. heheeh. I did look a lot like Amelie as a child. Anyway, it's a fabulous movie. There are subtitles, so if that's not your thang, wait until it hits DVD. A

I cut myself on the braille numbers on the elevator up to my apartment. Seriously. It's not a huge gash...more of a serious poke. Wassup with that? It got me thinking about how dangerous those things can be. What if I were to trip and hit my head on those things? I could be mangled....lose a nose or something. Oh, and let's not even talk 'bout how many bacteria are hangin' out on the prongs. Aaaaaaaaaaack. I'm sure they can't be easily cleaned. Wait...I can't feel my finger. I'm going to die!! ;-) Ok, it's not *that* bad, but it's hurting and I just needed to vent. :-)

Two Second, Sobbing Movie review:

• Life as a House -- Ok, I admit it, this one made me cry quite a bit. Maybe it was a hormone thing or maybe it just was good emotional timing, but I was blubbering. I've never actually cried enough at a movie to make a noise, but there it was like a beacon in a dark sea --"uhcha" It was a short "cry noise". I didn't see it coming. I thought I was just doing my quiet movie cry. Butttt noooooo. "uhcha" came out. I liked this movie quite. It struck a lot of sound emotional chords with me. At another time of the month, would it with me? Will it with you? Who knows... It is pretty soundly crafted. There were a few moments when I felt it was very similar to American Beauty, but alas, it wasn't *that* good...nor that dark/sharp. B

Obituary: Percy Ross, flamboyant philanthropist -- Sad to see this guy go. I have a fond memory of being a child of about 8 sitting in a mall at Christmas time and waiting for my mom and sibs. In the balcony above my head a guy (Mr. Ross) said something to make me look up. I don't recall what he said, but then he dropped a $10 bill my way. I remember some other kids near me who had seen what he had done for me and went under the balcony and begged for the money. He dropped a couple of bills but seemed to be disturbed by the begging and he quickly left. I was able to buy a nice gift for my mum & dad and my grandma with the money. (Yeah, what do you expect an 8 year old to buy?? $10 was a lot back then! )

What has always stuck with me from that was that giving freely and without expectation of anything in return was a great thing to do. I remember how amazed and greatful I was, at the time, that someone would just give to another they didn't know without being provoked...and without wanting *anything* in return. It didn't matter if I was needy or not. It was just a gift with no strings attached. Well, he probably required a smile, but nothing more. :-) A great memory.

I tried to continue that feeling last year with the Holiday Hooligans. Where I (and quite a few others) purchased gifts for unknown people around the country through online wishlist registries. What better way to anonymously pass on the gift that Mr. Ross gave to me? The delight of an unexpected gift, freely given. Ahhhh. Holiday Hooligans is happening again this year. I've got the site *almost* ready for prime-time. It should be up by this weekend. http://www.holidayhooligans.com/ I hope you join me again this year.

Two movie reviews, coming up.

• Mulholland Drive -- A titilating, dark, and fascinating movie. No, it didn't always make sense...even at the end, but what it did do was plant so many seeds of interest through gorgeous cinematography, deeply interesting plot vignettes and lost leads that made me continue to ponder the movie long into the following day. That's a pretty amazing feat! So many movies are quickly forgotten or not interesting enough to even garner a second thought. The intention was to be dreamy...snippets of fantasies peppered with dark realities. There are some fabulous lesbian scenes in this one. No, I'm not a lesbian, but damn, those were some great breasts! OH, the "simple audition" scene was pretty hot too. B
• Monsters, Inc. -- What can I say? I looooved this movie. It's sweet. It's clever. It's masterfully crafted (ya gotta see the fur!). It's fantastically funny. If ya hate this movie, I'm gonna think less of you. ;-) If you don't have the urge to say, "Kitty." at the end of the movie, I'm gonna have to wonder what happened to the child in you. Don't be late to the flick either...there's a fun movie short at the beginning that's great too. A

Upcoming movie reviews: Monsters, Inc and Mulholland Drive. Two very different flicks. :-)

I went shopping at the new downtown Target in Minneapolis this past Saturday with Justin. I don't believe that there are any other Targets like this in the country. The stores are typically found in suburbia and further out into the boondocks. What makes this store particularly nice in the wintery white north (not quite wintery or white yet, but it's coming) is that the store has underground heated parking. OH MY GAWD. What a wonderful thing for a fat chick who absolutely hates walking in -30F weather with ice beneath her toes. Or even worse +30F and icy slush under her pins. Not good. And ya know, sometimes ya *have to* go to Target to get the necessities -- shampoo, toilet paper, etc. Now I don't have to sweat the wintery walks to my local Target. It's a good day. ;-)

Financially troubled Sun Country suddenly for sale -- OH NO! Sun Country is the only way for those of us trapped in a hub city for Northwest airlines to get decent fares to other major cities. This is potentially bad news for the Twin Cities. Anyone have a few million to lend me so I can help 'em out? :-)

Darn it! I had to upgrade the "your comments" sections to the new version of "Blogback." Unfortunately, it appears I messed up the conversion. Aaack. It's almost 2am. Will those of you who posted comments in the past forgive me for deleting your words? *pout* It's not censorship...purely just bad techie skills at this late hour.