Wednesday 29 July 2015

"WHAT'S EATING GILBERT GRaPE?" movie review


 My top three reasons for wanting to watch this movie were, (1) Johnny Depp (2) Leonardo DiCaprio, and (3) young Johnny Depp.

It was received positively by both audiences and critics alike, and though the description on the back of the DVD sounds like a cheap summer novel, it really wasn't that bad.

DVD back:

"Living in Endora is like dancing to no music. Gilbert Grape (Depp) should know. Aside from a secret affair with a housewife (Mary Steenburgen), Gilbert spends his days stocking shelves at a grocery store, caring for his mentally handicapped brother (DiCaprio), and holding together a large family headed by Mama, a former beauty queen whose weight tops 500 pounds. But just when Gilbert thinks nothing will ever change, a pretty stranger (Juliette Lewis) arrives on the scene, capturing Gilbert's heart and inspiring him to make a break."

It sounds incredibly cheesy and just plain "Whaaaaat?" But I actually liked the movie, it had quite a few sad/heartbreaking scenes, a few awkward scenes (to tell the truth I don't think I would have liked the movie all that much if not for Johnny Depp as Gilbert Grape)


The Praying Mantis part.... random to say the least. As you might have guessed by now there are a couple of suggestive scenes, nothing revealing I found it incredibly  awkward more than anything else. The movie has some scenes that don't really have anything to do with anything (let me rephrase that) this movie has something different, it's not predictable but it's not your typical twist and turn movie either, its just like real life I suppose, and that's what I like about this, it's a different kind of story than any other film I have ever watched. 

Characters;

Johnny Depp: Gilbert Grape
Leonardo DiCaprio: Arnie Grape
Juliette Lewis: Becky
Darlene Cates: Bonnie Grape
Mary Steenburgen; Betty Carver
Laura Harrington: Amy Grape
Mary Kate Schellhardt: Ellen Grape
Kevin Tighe: Ken Carver
John C. Reilly: Tucker
Crispin Glover: Bobby McBurney
Penelope Branning: Becky's Grandma

 Gilbert Grape was (obviously) my favorite character, though he did have moments where he acted like a jerk. (Even if you do feel sorry for him). Becky was my second favorite character, I feel like she and I are very alike, she is not this smooth talking socialite (like most girls are in movies) she is somewhat random, is herself and she likes the sky too! I also liked that she was nice and sweet but not sickeningly so. (She did have awful short hair) I really don't like it at all, on the other hand Johnny Depp looked rather nice in longer hair. 

And DiCaprio's acting in this film has often been praised, and I concur, it is superb! Arnie has some sort of autism (I think) and DiCaprio really pulled it off, unless you knew of him you would never guess that he is actually healthy and normal in real life. 

I definitely recommend that you give this movie a try!

Tuesday 28 July 2015

Screechy Strings

My actual title was going to be "Things I've learned so far since taking Violin lessons" but that was way too descriptive and boring. (But now you know what my post is about:) I've only had two lessons, going on three and I dearly apologise to my teacher Mrs G for my screechy strings so far. (P.S get ready for a stream of pinterest pictures)


       1) You have to hold everything a certain way (my fingers refuse) my wrist refuses too...


                                                       2) A shoulder pad is a must have


             3) Rosin shatters like glass if dropped (I was told that, I have not tested this a don't plan to)
\

                                 4) The violin is the most beautiful instrument I have ever seen


5) Its the most horrible sounding when played by beginners instrument (my poor neighbors and the people on the sidewalk walking by and cringing)


6) Your fingers after practice


7) I get that, don't touch my horse hair!


8) You appreciate people like Lindsey Stirling 10x as much, how does she do that?!!


9) Bows are seen as a separate instrument (I wrinkled my forehead too)


10) "Place your fingers on the frog" has a different meaning now


11) You keep your fingernails short (really short)



And have lots of fun!






Monday 27 July 2015

Oldies Sitcoms Review, Continued

So I finally found a bit of time to keep going, I know I said "stay tuned" last time and I really didn't mean to put you through this 20 day torture (or maybe you're busy too and didn't even notice:) But anywho lets get right into it.

Starting this post with Gilligan's Island. If you know even a little something about this it is very stupid, but also entertaining (And I'll tell you why later).

The story is about 7 very different characters who are stranded on an island and have to learn to get along.

You see they started out on a tropic port (Hawaii) aboard a tiny ship (The Minnow) for a three hour tour (aaaa threeeeee hourrrrrr tourrrr!!!)
The weather started getting rough and the tiny ship was tossed and if they had not all been brave they surely would have been lost (The Minnow would be lost!). They ran aground on some uncharted isle with Gilligan, the Skipper too, the millionaire (and his wife) the movie star, the professor and Mary-Annnnnnnn! Here on on Gilligan's Isleeeeeeeeee! (I couldn't resist!)

The reason this is so stupid is because the Isle may be uncharted but a new person stumbles on to the island and the castaways every second episode, (Seriously!!!) The professor can make cures for just about every malady, they have the nicest bamboo huts any castaway ever had, they sure took a lot of different clothes along on their 3 hour trip (they took a lot of stuff along for a 3 hour trip in general. Well the women and the millionaire change their clothes, the others wear the same thing for years (never rips) they also have a small radio (they conveniently tune in at the right time, its disgusting how the radio is like a quick google search to them) they obviously get a clear radio signal (so why is this island so remote and uncharted?) Of course the professor invented a way to recharge the battery of the radio, and they have a flintstone-style bamboo car (But obviously a simple raft is a bit more complex to make).

Lets see, there is Gilligan (red shirt as always) he gets into trouble and ,lots of messes and is an all around klutz. The Skipper (blue shirt, always) Calls Gilligan "Little Buddy" one minute and slaps him with his cap the next. The millionaire Thurston Howell III cares only for money is a bit of a crumagand but he is my favorite character. His Wife Mrs. Thurston Howell III ("Lovey" to her husband) is pretty dumb period. The professor (green shirt) well you already know about him, they just call him "Professor". The movie star "Ginger Grant" (Ginger hair) is mostly dumb, star struck and somewhat flirty. I Like Mary Ann, she is a Kansas farm girl with a little more sense and ability then the rest but still has her dumb moments.

Moving on! You have probably at least heard of the Brady Bunch (after all, what sitcom is more iconic?) Its the story of a lovely lady... okay, okay I won't do that again. Anyways, its the story of a woman named Carol who has three daughters (Marcia, Jan and Cindy) Carol marries widower Mike Brady who has three sons (Greg, Peter and Bobby) Mike is an architect. They also have a live-in housekeeper named Alice, who is hilarious. I'm going to leave this description short, basically they learn to live together get along and grow up. And I just loved every episode! I hope you go to your library, get it and start watching because it really is a loveable show. They are funny, its entertaining and you can just identify with the everyday situations they have (you'll love every minute). (plus Peter grows up to be pretty good looking in the last season *koff koff*)




Next up, The Partridge Family! I have only watched one season but I quite like it. Its the story of a family band, Widowed mother, Shirley, and her kids Keith, Laurie, Danny, Chris and Tracy. The younger two don't have a big screen presence on the show. Keith and Laurie are in High school and you cannot overlook precocious red headed Danny (he is one of those kids who always have "Ideas". And they have a manager, Reuben Kincaid who is pretty much part of the family. Reuben is played by Dave Madden (Who played Bernard Walton in the long-time- still-running radio drama "Adventures in Odyssey") The characters are somewhat similar, so thats pretty cool. The show features the family on tour and at their home in fictional "San Pueblo" in California, and every episode has at least one concert/performance and their pretty good too. The show is entertaining and I would definitely recommend that you try it.

Thats it for these sitcom segments (for now) I am a few episodes into a new sitcom "The Jeffersons", all I can say is that with all the insults thrown at each other, how is this not a show about a dysfunctional couple? (George and Louise "Weezy" Jefferson) It is entertaining though.

And now I thought I'dd just post the theme songs as well since I like all of them.



Gilligan's Island
         

The Brady Bunch (Final season)


The Partridge Family


The Jeffersons

   

Thursday 16 July 2015

Oldies Sitcom reviews

I know I should really post more often.... but you are going to have to wait until August for that, I am soooo busy this month:). And I know everyone is saying that, but I never was this busy before that I can remember.... oh here I go rambling again!

Anyways I went to my library a few weeks ago and they had a display of old shows and sitcoms like "Leave it to Beaver" "I love Lucy" and "The Jeffersons" (of course I took home half the rack!) Our family has always loved watching old sitcoms (mostly on winter evenings) but I like to watch a few before bedtime by myself.

So today I just want to give you a short review (probably not too short knowing me...) of every oldies sitcom I have watched so far.

First off,



The Cosby show revolves around the well off African-american family, The Huxtables and their five children as they deal with school, friends, peer pressure, dating and all the stuff families go through on a daily basis. The Children are Sondra, Denise, Theo, Vanessa and Rudy. The show lasted for eight seasons (and I watched every episode:) Adding in more cast members wonderfully!

The story takes place in New York city

Cliff and Claire are the Parents. He is an obstetrician, and Claire is a lawyer.

Sondra is in university at the start of the show, she eventually marries her boyfriend Alvin and they have twins, a girl Winnie, and a boy. Nelson.

Denise is finishing high school at the start of the show, she goes on to college but drops out and takes a trip to Africa to find out what she wants to do with her life. She returns a couple of seasons later and shocks her parents when she arrives on their doorstep, Married to a Naval officer and stepmother to his three year old daughter, Olivia. Denise finally figures out what she wants to be and returns to college as well as traveling with her husband Martin. Olivia is mostly left with her grandparents and becomes a main character in the family. (and she's the cutest:)

Theo is 14 at the start of the show, he likes basketball music and loathes school. He often gets in trouble, doesn't keep his promises but is really just a normal kid. He grows into a fine young man, goes on to college, loves working with children and finds out that he has Dyslexia (which is why he struggled with school) he learns to overcome this disability and the show ends with Theo graduating from college.

Vanessa is the somewhat annoying and somewhat bossy kid of the family, she is always fighting with Rudy and sometimes Denise. She is in middle school at the start of the show, she goes on through highschool and is in college in the last season, she is briefly engaged to the maintenance man on her campus, he is "Knocking on thirty" (so about 10 years older than her) her relationship with him seems uncertain but is never explained before the show ends.

Rudy is the youngest and about 5 years old at the start of the show, she is the sweet little girl who does some strange things like calling other countries when playing with the telephone and packing herself a tuna fish sandwich as a school lunch.... two weeks before school starts. Rudy is in junior high in the last season and started dating.

Pam Tucker is introduced in the 6th season and becomes a main character. She is Claire's cousin who was living with a single mom in California, when her mother took sick and was unable to care for Pam, she was sent to live with her cousin's family in New York. Pam is in senior year of high school, at first she tries to test the Huxtables curfew rules by sneaking out to parties at night, but she soon comes to respect the Huxtables and adjust.  

Other characters not mentioned above:

-Russell and Anna Huxtable (Cliff's parents)
-Kenny a.k.a "Bud"(one of Rudy's friends who likes her later)
-Charmaine (Pam's best friend)
Lance (Charmaine's boyfriend)
-Walter "Cockroach" (Theo's best high school friend)
-Justine (Theo's longtime girlfriend)
-Dabnis Brickey (Vanessa's fiancee)
-Kara (Vanessa's friend who can talk faster than a whip)
-Janet (Vanessa's friend)
-Peter and Kim (Two of Rudy's friends)
-Stanley (Rudy's first boyfriend)
-Robert (Vanessa's boyfriend)
Jeffry Engels (The Huxtables neighbor) 

There are more but those are the main recurring characters.



I think I am going to have to do this in parts (seeing how long I write descriptions)

So that was part 1, stay tuned!


Friday 10 July 2015

My Summer

So you have probably noticed that I have been taking a break from blogging (Unintentional) so I thought I'd do a post about what has been keeping me so occupied. (I don't want my blog to be full of posts about my life, its ordinary and I want to entertain you not bore you, but hey, it's my blog and this one post won't hurt you:)


First of all I've been busy with school, (yeah, I've turned into one of those crazy kids who actually do Summer school) Online to be exact, and trust me, a one-semester course crammed into one month is no fun:(


Then we are completely renovating my room!!! (I've been wanting to get that done since we moved into our house... four.... five? years ago) Anyways here is a description of how my room looked like before (I'll do another post about it when it's done) The people who lived in this house before us loved carpets (even in the bathrooms! Ripped that one out first thing) And they loved dark colours (we have been painting the entire house fresher colours over the years)

My old room was dark brown down to the lightswitch! (not kidding) ok here is the list: Dark brown; light switch, outlets, trimming, walls, shelf boards, dresser, vanity, ceiling fan and an ugly dark green carpet. I'm surprised they left the ceiling white in that rathole of a room!

But it's getting better because we are putting in white outlets and a white light switch, we had to put primer on the walls (took two days) but tonight the light blue (Alice blue) coat of paint is on!!! And that with white trimming and white shelf boards! We also gave the ceiling a fresh coat of paint and we will rip out that dark green carpet and put in a creamy colored wooden floor. (oh and new furniture... bye bye black dresser, and buy buy white dresser!... that was cheesy) 


While this is being done I moved into the guest house (used to be one of those barn-shaped sheds, we painted it put up siding and put in electricity, its really for summer only) So thats where I have been spending the night (as close to camping as I ever get, and yes I live in Canada; though it's probably obvious by now my family isn't Canadian:) Half of me is almost lonely back there (usually going to bed with four noisy siblings will do that to you) but the other half of me is shouting "Hallelujah peace and quiet!"

And the radio really killed that one song today... its stuck in my head too (And I don't even like it!) and the mosquitos are bad this year, but the worst is that  fly with a death wish buzzing around my head!... scuse me I have to find a fly swatter....


Hmmm lets see, oh! I also have a pinterest board now! (I am  probably the last teenage girl to finally get one but now I have) Under the name Lissie Kay (It's my pen name, but I just like to use it sometimes) The name was not picked at random either, but I'll let you be curious about that for a bit:)


Wednesday 1 July 2015

Happy Birthday Canada!

It's July first, that means red and white and fireworks! And since I have the privilege to live in this great country, I dedicate this post to Canada.


First, for those of you that don't live here, lets bust some myths!

We do not say "eh" all the time. Sure if you meet some old nearly deaf Canadians... but for the most part the rest of the population can hear fine and probably won't be throwing this into every sentence.

It's not always cold "up here". You know what? Strike that. (goes back and puts line through first sentence) I live in southern Ontario and public school was cancelled a few times due to extreme cold last winter, it snowed once in May, and I will admit I am wearing a sweater right now (it's just a tad chilly) okay,okay it's cold this year... but not every year is like this... I hope... (well every region is different, there are forest fires in saskatchewan today)

The Mounties are not the national police here. In fact I have never met or seen a real mountie (outside of postcards, statues or on tv-rarely) Every region has a police department, in my area they wear black, not red.

And lastly, here is something regarded as a "myth" but I think is true

Canada is teeming with wildlife. Sure a big city isn't full of beavers, you have to go further up north to meet something big like a moose or a bear, but I live in the middle of a town (average sized) and so far I have come across:

-A fox: (whether he had rabies or not is not clear, but I did not stick around to find out)
-A beaver: Right in our backyard too!
-A skunk: He was perhaps 10 feet away, we saw him several times (and you can be sure we ran)
-A racoon: Well the first we didn't actually see , but he raided a garbage can, the second racoon was  swimming along the creek that that runs by our house, he climbed up a tree and looked at me and I  just stood there and looked at him, he was actually kind of cute, those patches around his eyes...
-A turtle: Well two actually, one as big as a dinner plate, the second as big as a turkey platter, the big  one was nasty, it snapped at you
-And of course an assortment of birds, geese, ducks, cranes, squirrels, muskrats (along the creek) and in the country (mostly fields and a bit of wood in my region) you will come across coyotes.


Ok here are some fun facts!

Canada is the second biggest country in the world and is made up of six time zones

Canada has the largest coastline in the world

Canada has more lakes than any other country

Studies show Canada is the second-happiest country in the world

Alberta has a national park larger than Switzerland

Canada is the world's most educated country

We get our milk in bags (at least where I live)


And lastly, I leave you with some pictures






Happy Canada Day!