Cat phone.

I rule all.

I finally did it! I finally bought a new phone. This may not seem like a big deal, but technology and I do not get along, and I'm a decidedly old-school kind of person. I like paper books, and typewriters, and darkroom photography, so picking a phone wasn't a decision I could make quickly. I will have this thing till it doesn't work anymore, or till they install chips in our arms that allow us to update facebook and take buzzfeed quizes without cumbersome external devices. And since it has a freaking awesome camera function, I got the Nokia Lumia. It still seems to like me, and it let me take this adorable photo of my fluff bunny, Alice. So watch out, because there are going to be a shitload of cat photos coming your way. 

I also went to two yoga classes. All in all, a very productive day!

December Things

So the Holidays came and went, the New Year did the same, and I suppose it's time I catch up on blog posts. I'm not really sure I ever got fully in the spirit this year, and I'm still not celebrating with my parents till the end of January, so I guess I'm allowed to be really off kilter about the whole thing. I did manage to fit in some fun things, and of course I took pictures!

I went to the Carnegie Museum a couple of times, and since I used to work there, it's always a little like going home. I have to stop myself from going down staff hallways and snooping where I'm not supposed to be anymore. 

Chomp!

Aww, your wittle hands!

Rock illumination.

Should have been a geologist, I love rocks...

I had been trying to get there to see the International exhibit at the Art Museum, so when I found out they were also having a ceremony for the raising of the Tlingit Totem Pole that they had commissioned from artist Tommy Joseph, I had to go. The teensy tiny part of me that's Cherokee responds very strongly to all things Native American. Some day I'll learn more about that part of myself, but till then I'll just look at this awesome carving.

Curtain down.

He's holding a seal with his teeth. 

I always enjoy the International... since it's only held roughly every four years I like to think of it as the Olympics of modern art, just held permanently in Pittsburgh. I'm not much of a modern art girl, I like my things old and pretty, but it's always good for conversation. My thoughts are pretty much exactly in line with this article I read in Vanity Fair about the London Frieze art festival. "Contemporary art isn’t easy. It’s not obvious. You need to be told. This stuff has to be—simply has to be!—better than it looks."  I don't get it most of the time, but it's fun to look. 

I would use this giant cage, but not for my hosiery. 

Characters.

It's like a sideways sci-fi city.

These guns make music. 

These blocks of pressed paper will fall apart through the course of the exhibit. 

Pancreas pain is a real thing.

Since I went during the Holidays, they had Sculpture Hall decorated with trees and lights. It's one of my favorite rooms on a regular day, and this made it magical.

Orange cat in the tree.

Hanging angels.

I really love these. Remind me of 'What Dreams May Come'. 

Childhood tree.

It's just a short walk up the hill to Phipps Conservatory, and how could I pass up their Winter Garden? Especially since they have evening hours to show off all the lights. I love it so much, I even renewed my membership, so expect a whole year of flower photos.

Magically creepy tree.

Cathedral in the background.

Garden room. My favorite.

Christmas cottage.

Dino chase. :)

Winter garden orbs.

Pretty lights.

Hanging presents. 

This tree is fabulous. 

It was raining out the night I went to Phipps, so we happened to have a giant umbrella. And you know I couldn't contain my giddy excitement at all the lights, so naturally it led to me playing Mary Poppins. My dad took this photo. I love it.

Winds in the east, mist coming in. / Like somethin' is brewin' and bout to begin.

Captain Phillips: Reporting for Nachos

The EW Fall Movie Preview already came out, early Oscar buzz is floating gently in the air, and leaves are turning spectacular shades of scarlet: my favorite time of year is officially here! This is the time of year when I start going into movie nerd mode. I talk about directors and their previous works like an obsessive sophomore film student. I say really pretentious things like “That performance was so powerfully understated.” (No, really. It’s happened.)  I start to plan my own movie double feature days so that I can see as many film festival darlings as possible in the (very) limited time they stay in theaters. In short: I go a little crazy.

Essential reading. And I want that coat. 

Wednesday I kicked off Movie-binge 2013-14 properly with advance screening passes to see Captain Phillips, starring Tom Hanks. Based on a true story, with Hanks in the lead, it practically screams “Hey, Oscar! Look over here!”  I seem to be very busy lately, and while I did think the film looked good based on the trailer, it probably would have fallen through the cracks in my schedule if it hadn’t been for the free passes.  So, thank you universe!

Pirate photobomb!

I’ll be honest, I was only vaguely aware of the real life event that inspired this movie. This is entirely my fault, but I rarely watch the news… it usually either depresses me or makes me so angry at the stupidity and hate in the world that I end up yelling “What the hell is wrong with people?!” over and over to my cats. And they never give any useful insight. So for people like me: SPOILER ALERT.

 

First cats on my blog... why did this take so long?!

Captain Phillips saves his crew, and some pirates die. The film did do an excellent job of creating tension, and I don’t think I’ve felt this claustrophobic in a theatre since Titanic. (Lesson here: never go on a boat. Ever.) Hanks is fantastic at playing the extraordinary everyman, and he is very good in this part. At this stage in his career though, it is impossible to disassociate him with his iconic roles. This is in no way meant as an insult, and if anything it’s a testament to his ability to make us care so deeply and for so long about his creations. However, this can create some unintentionally funny moments. Shots of a boat alone in a vast empty sea just make you want to scream “WILSON!!”  So you just end up quietly giggling to yourself, and you know it’s completely inappropriate, but that just makes you laugh harder. Or maybe that was just me…. It probably was. I’m disturbed.

My favorite part of the evening had nothing to do with the move. The bestie came with me, and because adults can eat whatever they want for dinner, we decided to get the biggest tub of popcorn ever. And a coke (of course). As we’re walking up the hallway to the theater, we see all these official looking guys in suits standing around a table, and think “Aw, are they giving us free snacks?!” It looked vaguely brown, and low to the table, so we’re thinking … “Is it nachos? Hot dogs? I hope it’s nachos, because yeah, I’d eat that. With the popcorn. Oh yeah, this is gonna be good.”  But as we get up to the table they do a security check and tell us we can’t bring our phones in, but they can hold them for us. In brown paper bags with a number written on them, like a little techie coat check. And in that moment I think we were both really disappointed that there were no nachos.

This is what happens when you Google 'sad nacho'. 

(Or were there? What’s a phone that isn’t yours? Nacho phone! ….. yeah, it’s midnight, and I know that’s a horrible joke. But this is my blog, and I’m going with it.)