So now I have seen both “Truman Capote movies.” And all I have to say is Infamous really did not get enough credit. It may not have had Phillip Seymor Hoffman, but it had far more well known actors in it. And while the gentleman who played Truman Capote isn’t as well known, Toby Jones does an excellent job. To put it succinctly I fell asleep watching Capote. Infamous gives far more insight into the life of Truman Capote. It starts just before the murders have been committed and has little mini-interviews of the “swan” socialites he normally entertained and socialized with on the NY scene. So if you haven’t seen either, or have only seen Capote, I strongly recommend you run out and rent Infamous.
Another from Overheard in NY had me giggling at my computer screen today:
Girl: It’s this way.
Guy: Are you sure?
Girl: I know where all the Jamba Juice is.
Guy: Are.
Girl: What?
Guy: Are. You know where all the Jamba Juice are.
Girl: Is.
Guy: Are! Each franchise is a separate entity!
Girl: Is! They’re all part of single collective!
Guy: Jamba Juice is not the Borg!
Which leads me to work discussions. As most of you know, I am now employed by a large British company. One of the differences between American English and British English is the conjugation of be with collectives. In America we would say: “The team is winning the game.” In the UK they would say “The team are winning the game.” Theoretically I understand why they say that. The team is several people so the ARE winning. We we American’s like to think of a team as one unit, so it wins, rather than they win.
Frito Lay has released a new brand called “Flat Earth.” Their logo is a pig with wings. Their product is different kind of chip. Here’s a link to the graphically heavy website: www.flatearth.com.
So far I’ve tried both their Wild Berry Patch and Garlic and Herb Field. The Wild Berry Patch caught me rather by surprise. It’s very sweet. Tastes just like dried berries. For some reason I was expecting something sweet and salty. Probably because I expect all chips to be salty. But they were not salty at all. At first I wasn’t sure I liked them. Then I tried some more. And the more I sampled, the more I liked them.
I don’t quite feel as positively about the Garlic and Herb. And I can’t quite tell you why. I kind of like them - but then I kind of don’t. I think maybe the taste lingers a little too long. But I think that is a result of the garlic/herb and not he chip itself.
I do really like the texture of the chips. They’re thicker than your average chip. Not nearly as thick as a cracker though….along the lines of wheat thins. Yes - Wheat Thins exactly - that’s about their texture. So I wonder, do you consider wheat thin a chip or a cracker? I always thought of them as crackers. But probably because they’re always in the cracker aisle. And they come in a box instead of a bag. Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve actually seen these Flat Earth “crisps” in either aisle. I’ve only seem them on end caps and special displays. I call them chips because they come in a bag. But the bag refers to them as crisps. And I think from experience crisps are normally categorized closer to crackers than chips.
Packaging these in a potato chip bag will probably work to their advantage though. American’s love chips - we love our bags of chips. Whenever we get together for a cookout we always remember the chips - but no one worries about crackers.
So Kudos to FlatEarth - keep marketing yourselves as an alternative to the fatty greasy potato chips. And keep making those Wild Berry Patch Baked Fruit Crisps. (which btw, I’ve had trouble finding again).
My dad came up from Houston for father’s day weekend. I took him out to dinner to celebrate at Texas de Brazil. He seemed adequately impressed, though obviously not used to eating American sized portions (Texas American no less). He only got 1 of each available meat option (actually only the red meat, he skipped the sausage and chicken options).
This was the first Father’s day I’ve spent with my dad in 22 years. Since Phlome was up north spending fathers’ day with his daughter, it was just me and dear ol’ dad. Lots of long silences. We played some cards, watched a movie, and tried our best to keep conversation going. Problem is, I don’t pay much attention to Politics or the war. I know it’s there, I know I should pay more attention, but I just don’t. We talked about family, and dogs, and travel. He went off a bit on immigration and talked about national ID cards. I’m pretty sure my dad is a Republican. I’m still coming to terms with that.
So besides spending quality time with my dad, I did some house cleaning and suffered through some shoulder pain. I may have over done it on chest and shoulder day w/ the trainer last week. Then to make things worse, I slept wrong on it. So I got some muscle relaxers. Those and the Bed-Gay patches worked wonders. Though I may need them again tonight. Yesterday was abs and back. I think Thursday will b legs again. I hate leg day.
I also got my diploma in the mail. I pretty much decided via lack of action on my part, not to go to my graduation ceremony which is this Saturday. I’m just kinda not feeling the love. The only thing that I really wanted to go there for was the free champagne. And that’s just sad, given that I’m not a huge fan of champagne to begin with. I love having it to celebrate with, it’s all sorts of fun with it’s golden bubbliness. But after 2 glasses, I’m ready for something less fizzy or more potent. Not to mention that time I got sick off of too much champagne at a friends wedding. Champagne hangover is worse than death.
Ok, so eventually I do want to have some sort of celebration. Mom suggested something on the cruise. Sounds like a plan. Perhaps we can pick a night on the cruise to celebrate. I’ll think on that later. For now, I had better get back to work.
So finally got some good news. As you can read on notival.com, Phlome does not have cancer. Yay! In just over 2 months 4 people related to me have visited oncologists. Three have been diagnosed with some form of cancer. Finally, one got away. Yesterday I found out that my grandfather’s (the one with lung cancer, CHF, and lung cancer) youngest brother has a baseball size tumor in his lung, they suspect it’s lung cancer. He’s smoked all his life, so it’s really no surprise.
This weekend my dad will probably come up, and I’ll take him out to dinner for Father’s day. Phlome’ll be up in OK w/ his daughter.
Now it’s time for me to prep for a class I’m helping to instruct that I just found out about yesterday.
I think this weekend went very well. I managed to pull off a surprise party for Phlome thanks to the help of some of our very good friends. Several people had to send their regrets due to unforseen circimstances or other things getting in the way. They were missed, but we soldiered on without them. I almost blew the surprise with some carelessness on my part, and rather annoyed phlome quite a bit in the process. Though I think he’s forgiven me now. Here’s some pics I took w/ the new camera phone (seems we all forgot to bring a real camera.)
Here’s a so-so pic of the cake I got him:
The petite fours from society bakery (as was the cake above). You can kind of tell from this angle that the cake was designed to look lopsided.
The cookies Reptile and I made. That is Mrs. Reptile’s armadillo standing in for the doormouse:
The unbirthday boy himself:
My score on The Greek Mythology Personality Test:
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You are an artist, an aesthete, a sensitive, and someone who has never really let go of that childlike innocence. To you, all of life has a sense of wonder in it, and the story of Orpheus was written about someone just like you.When the Argo passed the island of the Sirens, Orpheus played a song more beautiful than the Sirens to prevent the crew from becoming enticed. When his wife died, he ventured into the underworld to charm Hades but, in his naivete, he looked back becoming trapped there.
You can capture your unique world view and relate it to others with the skill of a master storyteller. Your sensitivity and creativity make you a treasure to the human race, but your thin-skinned nature and innocence can cause you a lot of disenchantment and pain. What’s doubly unfortunate is that, if you try to lose those traits, you never will, and everyone will be able to tell that you’re putting up an artificial shell to prevent yourself from being hurt.
Famous people like you: Hemingway, Shakespeare, Mr. Rogers, Melville, Nick Tosches
Stay clear of: Icarus, Hermes, Atlas
Link: The Greek Mythology Personality Test
(OkCupid Free Online Dating)
Last week I got a letter from Ramon (of Taco Bueno fame). In the letter was a $20 gift card to Taco Bueno. Thank you Bueno, and thank you Ramon!
