So Happy Together

23 Jan

For all you women out there who just couldn’t relate to Brokeback Mountain, have I got the movie for you. Imagine Me & You tells the story of a woman who, on her wedding day (to a man), makes eye contact with another woman and instantly falls in love. She tries to hold back her feelings, but ultimately, they’re too strong. I’m not kidding. This movie would make an excellent double feature with Brokeback: one is manly and quiet, this one is cutesy and sweet. In Brokeback, Health Ledger speaks in a sometimes undecipherable mumble. In Imagine, nearly all the characters speak in an undecipherable British accent. But this one is a total chick flick. It’s not necessarily a bad movie, and it’s certainly enjoyable, but I just had a hard time with the fact that the florist who was hired for the wedding a) apparently hadn’t met the bride (or anyone in the family) beforehand, b) hadn’t delivered the flowers until that day (seemingly, just minutes before the ceremony), and c) stuck around in her casual clothes to enjoy the festivities. Fine. Big deal. I also thought the best friend was a bit clichéd (he’s that doofus player type who refuses to believe the girl is gay and thinks he can “convert” her). More importantly, I just had a hard time believing the movie’s premise, that this woman, on her wedding day, would see a random other woman, who wasn’t even invited to the ceremony, and just like that not love her husband anymore, and would instead be in love with this woman. I believe in love at first sight, but that is a bit far-fetched. So ultimately, the movie was just eh for me. And as a side note, poor Matthew Goode. First Scarlett Johansson cheats on him in Match Point and now Piper Perabo is in love with another woman. He should never have left Mandy Moore, his costar in Chasing Liberty.

Anyway, I’m giving Imagine Me & You a C+. It opens here in Boston on February 3.

Crude Commute

23 Jan

I realize bad commuting experience postings on a snowy day are a dime a dozen, but I thought I’d post this anyway.

Here’s my beef: I can appreciate why T drivers open the door at every stop to let people on and off when the train is so crowded and people have a hard time getting through. That said, I don’t understand why they do it, especially when the train is packed to the gills and no one is getting off and there’s no room for anyone else to get on.

Today I got on at Coolidge Corner and of course, I had to stuff myself onto the train, securing a small parcel of space at the second door from the front, against the railing on the second stair (of three). Clearly there was no room left for anyone else to get on. However, one stop later, at St. Paul’s Street, the doors opened and some woman, thinking she was funny (I know because she was laughing), got on and stood on the bottom stair. Unfortunately, when the door closed, it felt like she was literally up my ass. (Sorry for the crude imagery. It’s about to get worse.) And she remained there all the way down Beacon Street. At each stop, when the door would close, she got thrust back into me again. (Okay, it’s over now.)

At the St. Mary’s Street stop, someone was getting off, so I got off the train to make room on the stairway. What happened? The woman who had been up my ass quickly took my spot on the stairs, making me have to squeeze to barely get back on. So much for common courtesy.

I wish the MBTA knew how to handle snowy days. No kidding, every time it snows the T service is slower, less frequent, more crowded, more idiotic, and beyond explanation. It’s not like we live in Florida or something where snow would be a freak occurance. This is Boston. It snows every year, multiple times. When will the MBTA ever learn? And when will people learn how to be a bit more sensible on days like today and not be rude to their fellow passengers?

Just a Quick Question

23 Jan

Is there anyone out there who doesn’t know the Metro is free? Why do all the hawkers feel the need to emphasize “free” when they’re giving out papers? “Metro! Free Metro!” I don’t get it.

(Alright, that was two questions. But they’re related.)

The Cleanup Continues

22 Jan

I really like how every day I spend cleaning my apartment is like a day I’ve gone shopping. Last week, after going through my clothes closet, I had all kinds of “new” sweaters and shirts to wear. Tonight, after spending a few hours finally cleaning off my kitchen table, it’s like I have a brand new piece of furniture to eat dinner on.

There was stuff on my table from as far back as February 2005, which had been piled underneath bills, direct mailings, magazines, birthday cards, Rosh Hashannah cards, Hanukkah cards, birth announcements, more bills, 401k statements, magazine subscription renewals … you name it. Suffice it to say, all that old stuff has been thrown away. And sure, I could probably have just lifted it up and thrown it all away in one fell swoop, but I did go through each and every thing that was on the table, just to make sure I didn’t need some of it and to make sure it was safe to put in the trash. I double bagged the garbage bags and everything.

And for good measure, I also went through the stack of mail that I had put in my bedroom (under my bed) last year to make room for my Super Bowl party and hadn’t gone through since. Alls I know is that it’s a good thing companies send “reminders” when you haven’t paid your bills, or else I’d be severely in debt right now. Despite the number of and age of the bills I found today, nearly all of them had been paid already.

So now, after cleaning up my dresser, my two closets, my kitchen table, and my DVD/VHS tape collection, I suppose the next step is to hire a cleaning company. That’ll be this week’s project. I’m looking at MaidPro. Does anyone know anything about them? Of course, before they can come, I need to get the stacks of CDs off the top of my bookshelves and entertainment unit, and the books off my floor. I also want to clean up a little bit under my bed and get rid of some of the pictures and posters that have been there since I moved into my apartment four years ago.

Point is, for a change, I’m actually sticking with something and seeing it through instead of dropping the ball midway. I’m walking the walk, instead of just talking the talk. This bodes well for the rest of the year.

He’s Baaaaaaack

19 Jan

Theo’s back. Woo hoo.

I suppose I’d be more excited if the guy could play center field. Or shortstop. Or first base. Or even left field. At this point in the off-season, with the team in such disarray, the guy can’t do much from the stands.

More news to come next week, but for now, it sounds like my G.M. job is secure. Phew!

Jammed

19 Jan

Adam Gaffin had this on his site a few hours ago, but I thought it was too funny not to post on my blog too. Apparently Boston.com made a bit of a boo-boo earlier today. Good thing I take the T home, or else I might be caught in this traffic jam for a while…


(click on the image if you can’t read the “Traffic Alert”)

People Are Strange

19 Jan

When you’re heading down in the elevator toward the first floor, why do people who get on after you feel the need to press the 1 button, even though it’s clearly already been pushed. The elevator won’t get there any faster, people.

Over 2,000 Served

18 Jan

I’ve now passed the 2,000-visitor mark. That’s not 2,000 individuals, but the number of times someone has come to the site to read what I have to say. When I first started posting to my blog back in August, I didn’t quite know what the site would turn into. Five months later, it’s been a fun outlet for me to write different kinds of stuff, and I thank y’all who’ve come back again and again (and again) for a laugh or two, or to indulge my random side, or to get my opinions on the latest movies or whatever. I look forward to counting the next 2,000 visitors.

Things You Learn in the Student Newspaper

17 Jan

I’ll admit, I’m not the most knowledgeable person when it comes to current affairs — especially those dealing with Washington, D.C. Still, I got a big laugh out of George Clooney’s joke last night at the Golden Globes about how Jack Abramoff‘s parents were cruel for naming him Jack when his last name ended with ‘off.’

I got an even bigger jolt when I flipped through the online edition of my alma mater‘s student newspaper today to learn that Abramoff was not only a fellow alumnus — he’s class of 1981 — but that he was being called “the most wretched alumnus” in the school’s history because in the nearly 25 years since he graduated, he has donated a grand total of $50 to Brandeis, and that was in 2002. I guess that’s pretty wretched (all things considered), though I can think of some worse things he could have done. I mean, at least he gave something. Does that really make him “wretched?” If this is the barometer The Justice is using, then I wonder who the second-most-wretched alumnus is. I know one thing: it’s not me.

What Day Is It?

17 Jan

I suppose it’s not really worth it to have A.J. Jacobs’ The Know-It-All daily calendar sitting on my desk if I’m not going to remember to rip off pages until 4:45 pm.

Then again, considering today’s page told me that “Arales is a flowering plant that emits a fetid odor that attracts flies,” perhaps it’s a good thing I didn’t remember to turn the page until just a little while ago.

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