What I love! | Peaches Prattlings

{June 20, 2013} What a day!

What a day!

I started work as usual, early. It was a full day of work, a few customer calls, documentation, then at 3:30, I was done! I love saying that, even though I’ve worked a full 8-9 hour day, I get off at 3pm, I feel like I’m playing hookie!

I believe I have mentioned that I’m ready to get back to exercising, running soon, well, today was the first day. I put on my running gear (I wore the shirt from the Epilepsy 5k I did with DCM’s company the first weekend I was here), and headed out. I explored the neighborhood across the way (I was wondering where people were going on that path as they pass by the apartment). I did about 2.5 miles at the hottest part of the day, but it wasn’t bad! I think it was about 84 and very hot in the sun, but… I humidity, so it wasn’t hard to breath.

Since I get up at 6:45 and start work at 7, I don’t run in the morning like I used to, so I am going to have to change my pattern and run in the afternoon. I can’t wait to be comfortable running in Colorado then go do a race back in Atlanta!

After my walk, I changed and went to the pool. For those of you keeping track…I kept the bikini bottoms and wore an old bathing tank on top (the other tops are going back). It was nice, I spent about an hour there before I had to change to walk to the supermarket to meet DCM so we cold shop for what we were having for dinner. I love that!

So..in addition to my busy day, I caught up with some friends and family…I had a great talk with TS, caught up with JS, left a message for BG, talked to MM, while I was in the pool..(his house went on the market two weeks ago and he got an offer within 24 hours, soooo happy for him! Maybe I need to rub his head for good luck!), I talked to dad, GES, LD and EJS, who had a great time at the baseball game yesterday and is excited to start summer camp on Monday! I only missed MG, she had just gotten up from a nap, didn’t want an part of that!

I might be talked out…yeah right, we’re talking about me here! Wonder who I’ll talk to tomorrow! Maybe it’s you!

{June 18, 2013} A great dinner tonight

Tonight, I made a yummy dinner!

One of the things I’ve really enjoyed being here is DCM and I cooking together, we’ve only been out to eat a few times, most nights we go to the grocery store, pick up what we need for dinner and cool dinner together.

I was in the mood to cook and I thought a home made pizza would be nice. I went to Safeway, one of the major grocery stores in Colorado, they have a really nice fresh produce section and a large selection of healthier options.

So, for dinner, I got a flatbread, layered on sauce and shredded mozzarella, added some ground up sausage and green olives to half (that’s DCM’s staple for pizza) mini yellow and red peppers and spinache on my half (I made it perfectly so the meat and sausage didn’t touch my side!) and added some more cheese to the top and baked at 375 for about 15 minutes, well, I just kept looking to see when everything was melted. Lets just say it was Y U M M Y!

Then…while the pizza was baking, I whipped up a carrot cake, even had some cream cheese frosting, it was really yummy, came out wonderfully lopsided, but who cares? You cover it with frosting and who can tell? (The secret for frosting a cake is to let the cake cool completely, better even in the fridge so the cake is firm, easier for the frosting to spread and stick, the frosting has to be warm, so it’s easily spreadable).

Lets just say dinner was easy to make and delish and inexpensive, a great combination!

{June 16, 2013} Are movies getting too long?

That is the question I have been wondering lately.

The reason I have been wondering is that I can’t always make it through a movie without almost floating out the door when it’s over. Movies used to be about 1.5 hours, now they’re 2, 2.5, 3 even, is it always necessary? Don’t get me wrong, there are some movies that are that long and I have sat through, riveted to the screen, but there are some I have to ask, is it too much.

An average bottle of water at the movies is about 20 ounces, they also have larger, 33 ounce bottles. When DCM and I go to the movies, I end up getting the larger bottle, it’s about .50 more and as I drink as much water as I can get, works for me. In the past, I could drink that much water, no problem, but lately, I’ve found myself squirming in my seat not far from the end and I don’t think it’s necessarily my bladder.

And when I say, is the really long movie time necessary…last night we went to see Man Of Steel, as you know and during the final fight scene, I couldn’t take it anymore, I ran out and ran to the bathroom (they really need to have a bathroom on the side we were on!) and when I got back, they were still fighting, that should tell you something. (It doesn’t take me long, but I had to run back to the theater!). Some of the scenes they add to the end of movies seems to be a bit overkill. Don’t shoot me, like I said, there are some movies it works, but very rarely.

I love movies and I will never stop going, no matter what, but I think some things need to be taken into consideration when they are thought up and brought to life.

(I don’t want to start having to wear depends to go to the movies!)

{June 15, 2013} Man of Steel

Tonight DCM and I saw Man of Steel.

There was good and less than good, not bad, just less than good. I’m a big kid in case you didn’t notice, as evident by my love of all the marvel movies, Muppet movies, animated movies and I love super hero movies. And when it comes to remakes, I’m very skeptical.

I didn’t see Superman Returns, 2006, didn’t want to, I’m a purist, I am a Christopher Reeves fan, even George Reeves, Superman on TV back in the 50’s.

Henry Cavill was pretty good as Kal-El/Clark Kent/Superman, that’s a lot of pressure for one person! How is it that no one doesn’t know he’s Superman? He had a lot of chest hair, ick and how did he shave his face? Nothing can cut the man of steel! I liked the new costume, what a bright smile! but very disappointed in one serious thing…where was the Superman curl? That was one of the things that made him super and super cute!

Amy Adams was Lois Lane, she was kind of a bad a$$, the “epitome of the do or die female”
she said “I’m only at peace when I’m wearing a flak jacket”! I really liked her character, she knew when to back off and when she could help.

Russell Crowe played Jor-El, Kal-El’s father. He was strong, intelligent, doting and a fighter. You see him from time to time in the movie.

There were some great supporting cast members.
Diane Lane and Kevin Costner played Clark’s parents, both very good, kind, caring, understanding and supportive. Laurence Fishburn was the editor of The Daily Planet, Perry White, he was firm, understanding, tried to be tough. Christopher Melonie was Colonel Hardy, turned out to be a really good guy.

One of the cool things about the movie is that there was some a lot of back story which helped fill in some blanks, explain a few things. And the technology, wicked cool!

All I all, I enjoyed the movie, it was a little too long, there was a fight scene towards the end that probably didn’t need to be as long, but it didn’t detract too much from the movie. If you’re thinking about seeing it, I say go for it!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0770828/?ref_=sr_1

{June 13, 2013} What’s your number?

I watched “What’s Your Number?” And I liked it.

I missed the first 5 minutes or so, when the main character loses her job, not a spoiler alert. The story is about Ally Darling, isn’t that a great name? Her sister is Daisy Darling, too…those names are…yeah, darling.

Daisy is getting married and Ally is beginning to question her life, where it’s going, who is she going to meet and shouldn’t she be at that stage, settling down? She has found an article talking about the number of people you sleep with and what the average is.

During a drunken binge, with friends, she decides she is a) not going to sleep with anyone else, and when she does, that’s who she’s going to marry and b)she is going to track down the men that she dated, maybe one of them is the one, the one that got away. One of the inspirations is her sister, who is marrying the boy she dated in high school.

She has a neighbor, 6B, as she refers to him, Chris Evans to me (Captain America to you) agrees to help her track down the guys in return for letting him hide out in her apartment on occasion.

The movie is charming and fun and predictable at times, sad at times, but overall a good time.

I’ve told you about Chris Evans, charming, cute, sweet, a cad at times, but all around decent guy. Anna Feris is Ally and she is funny, sweet, goofy and just when you think she’s going to do something stupid or bad, sometimes an “I Love Lucy” moment, she pulls through. She is a great big sister and takes charge when she needs to. Normally, I find Anna Feris to be annoying, well most of the characters she plays. I loved her in The House Bunny! http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0852713/?ref_=sr_1

Ari Graynor plays Daisy, Ally’s younger sister. I loved her in Whip It and she was such a different character in Nick & Nora’s Infinite Playlist. In this movie, I changed my opinion from the start, I thought she was going to be uptight, but she was a great sister, sweet, supportive and a little space, as she was getting married, but always there for her sister.

Blythe Danner played their mother, a woman who is very proper, very wealthy and although she loves her daughters and wants the best for them, she thinks marrying (wealthy,good social standing) well is what will make them happy.

Ed Begley Jr plays their dad, a small role, but an important one. The parents don’t get along, if one is going to be at the wedding, the other won’t go…fun, huh?

There were a few other actors that I knew in small supporting roles and it was fun to se them.

All in all, a fun and charming movie, I recommend it highly. Yes, it’s a chick flick and I’m a chick, so therefore, a good fit, but fun even for the guys out there, promise!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0770703/

{June 13, 2013} Guest stars

Isn’t it interesting who guest stars where?

You’re watching your favorite show and occasionally they have guest stats and you’re like “woah, wow, is that?” Tonight we were watching an episode of Warehouse 13 and Lindsay Wagner appeared on the screen! I can’t remember the last thing I had seen her in, it may have been a movie on Lifetime!

I was watching the Muppet Movie this weekend and thinking about guest stars and shows that were popular for them. The shows that came to mind, and interestingly enough, from the late 70s/early 80s: The Muppet Show, The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, Star Trek, The A-Team, The Fall Guy.
There are others that you could add, but those are the ones that stick out in my mind the most.

This even lapped over into their movies. Think about the famous people in The Muppet Movies, all of them! It was a who’s who of Hollywood! I was first introduced to Alice Cooper, Carol Burnett, John Denver, Beverly Sills…on the Muppet Show, it seemed to be a right of passage, like being on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, it meant you made it!

There aren’t many shows like that left, that people are clamoring to get on,but it’s always fun to spot them, especially when you might not be able to remember their name, but you remember their character.

Makes me nostalgic, how about you? Charro..”hoochie coochie”…Tattoo, “Da plane boss..da plane!”

{June 11, 2013} Dark Shadows

Watched the movie, Dark Shadows and I was (we were) pleasantly surprised.

When we saw the previews, we were on the fence, it’s Tim Burton and that in and of itself says a lot. I’ve seen a lot of Tim Burton movies and I’ve liked some and fallen asleep during others. The Nightmare Before Christmas is one of my all time favorite movies, while on the other hand, I fell asleep shortly into The Corpse Bride.

If you’ve ever seen some of his artwork, you’ll realize just how twisted he can be, it’s quite interesting. That being said, we wanted to see Dark Shadows, just never did and then it was out of the theaters. I don’t even remember it being at the $2 theater, lucky us, it’s on TV!

Dark Shadows was created in the style of the old TV and radio shows, very cool in that respect. It starts off in the 1800s, I think, and when Barnabas Collins is awakened it’s 1972, so the costumes, hairstyles, cars, the music, all terrific…pay phones, awesome!

I didn’t know all the actors, but Johnny Depp was great as Barnabas Collins, the vampire, who awakens in a time not his own, it was interesting to watch his reaction to everything new. Helena Bonham Carter, as weird as ever, I think she’s typecast, what do you think? She is involved with Tim Burton, so I don’t think there’s a movie he’s done she hasn’t been in.

Jackie Earle Harley was great as the drunk butler, the name may not be familiar, but his face is and when I say Moocher from Breaking Away and Kelly Leak from The Bad News Bears, ah, oh yeah. The last major player was Michelle Pfeiffer, she was great, still looks fantastic and played her part so well.

Rounding out the cast, with minor roles was Christopher Lee, who you see for a moment and Alice Cooper, yes, I said Alice Cooper! Who, by the way, looked exactly the same, and by that, I mean, he never seems to age. And, a bit of trivia…the first time I saw Alice Cooper, The Muppet Show in 1978!

There were parts to the movie that you looked sideways and said “huh?” or “really?” or “ewe!” Other times you laughed, you were shocked, “they really went there?”. There was action, romance, violence, apologetic vampires, bad witches, family secrets, hidden abilities, unrequited love, money, family bickering, murder, but always, at the heart of it all, a love story. Awe.

Bottom line, we liked it and would watch it again, there I said it. We liked it.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1077368/?ref_=sr_1

{June 10, 2013} A voice from the past…catching up

Today I talked to someone I haven’t spoken to in a long time.

My cousin, JFS, is my mom’s first cousin; their moms were sisters; my mom was born on her 20th birthday; she was very close to both my mother and grandmother; my name isn’t in the bible, so I chose her name for my Hebrew name.

I have great memories growing up and spending time with JFS. I enjoyed when she would come to NYC to spend time with us, either at our house on Staten Island, or at my grandmother’s in Brooklyn. Other times, we would go to her house in Allentown, PA and as I got older, I’d go to spend the weekend with her on my own, we have a common weakness for Wheat Thins! It was at her house, I saw The Breakfast Club.

She’s a good cook, taught me how to make eggplant parmigiana, an amazing baker,
mandel breit, http://www2.indystar.com/recipes/view/2623 and most special was hamantashen, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamantash (I’ll post her recipe when Purim comes again next year) and for years, even though I had the recipe, I would still call her the week before to get the recipe, it was our thing.

We used to talk on a regular basis, but the past few years, not as much. We would trade emails and most recently on Facebook, and as I post pictures, she is reminded very much of my mom, see..I told you I look just like her!

We’ve tried to connect a few times, but schedules being what they are, it’s been tough to get together. Well, today, our schedules gelled and we made contact and for about an hour, we caught up on what we’ve been doing, families, grandkids (tee hee hee), traveling, where we are going next.

It was nice to catch up, I hope we can do it again soon.

{June 7, 2013} Fast & Furious 6 and previews

Tonight we went to see Fast & Furious 6. I liked it!

I’ve only seen one Fast & Furious movie before this, number 5 (I almost typed, the last one!). I liked it, even though I was promised that Vin Diesel and The Rock would take off their shirts and fight, that did not happen.

There was action, adventure, gun play, shoot outs, things blowing up, choppers, airplanes, tanks, bad dialog, some bad acting, no intrigue, but as always, there was some beautiful cars and some damn fine driving! Wait, I think I sense a theme! The theme/message of the movie? The code they live by…Family.

So, I already told you about The Rock, beefy and fit as ever and ginormous, then there was Vin Diesel, calculated and in charge. Paul Walker was Brian, sweet and charming, but a serious badass when push came to shove or he was pushed or shoved! Ludicrous is the hacker and a brain,
Tyrese Gibson can drive, but is not the brightest bulb in the pack! Sung Kang makes me think of SDL and Michelle Rodriguez, I believe is typecast, as a strong, tough, smart mouth, take no crap type of woman, someone you would want in your corner for a fight.

I will say this, there was a chick fight and it was good, an honest to goodness fight, not a “girl fight”. There were some stunts that you’re thinking, “really? They went there? They did that?” I wondered who some of this dialog was written for, DCM said a 16 year old boy, good point!

I will say, if you drink a one liter bottle of water, just when the action gets heavy, you’re going to have to go, and there was a lot left to the movie. There were a few deaths of the good guys, very sad, just so you know, they don’t happen until close to the end.

All in all, a good action flick, don’t expect Oscar winning material, but if you want car chases, cool cars, fights and action, this is a good choice.

Not a spoiler alert, but… You must stay after the final scene, before the credits, very important!

The were some great previews we saw!
Red 2, looks fantastic! Bruce Willis, John Malcovich, Helen Mirren, Mary Louise Parker all return, there are some new players: Sir Anthony Hopkins and Catherine Zeta Jones. There is a hit out on Bruce Willis, Helen Mirren is one of the ones contracted to kill him and they used to be on the same team, frivolity ensues! http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1821694/?ref_=sr_1

Did you see Red? (Retired, Extremely Dangerous) I highly recommend it!
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1245526/

Mary Louise Parker is in another movie, R.I.P.D. Rest In Peace Department. Ryan Reynolds and Jeff Bridges play detectives that have passed on and come back to earth to collect the departed who are trying to stay above ground,
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0790736/

The World’s End stars Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Martin Freeman, Paddy Considine, Roseamund Pike, so many other great British actors come together. Five friends reunite after 20 years to reenact their loved pub crawl and it turns out they may be human kinds last hope! Did you see Shawn of the Dead? Hot Fuzz? You’ll recognize some of the face and Simon Pegg is one of the writers. Cannot wait!
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1213663/?ref_=fn_al_tt_4

The Wolverine. Hugh Jackman as Wolverine..need I say more? I don’t think I have to!
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1430132/?ref_=sr_1

Riddick. Another new movie from Vin Diesel, looks good, action packed, maybe a little scary. Did you see Pitch Black? I didn’t, looked a little too creepy, but I did see The Chronicles of Riddick? That I liked, he was an action star, quick wit, sarcastic, smart and funny, what more could you want? And his eyes look cool!
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1411250/?ref_=sr_1

White House Down with Jamie Foxx as the president and Tatum Channing as a cop who helps protect and save the president when the White House is under attack. What I would like to know…does Hollywood have something against the White House? There seem to be an awful lot of movies with the White House under attack. Jamie Foxx is serious and funny and Tatum Channing, well, need I say more?
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2334879/?ref_=sr_1

We saw another preview, I don’t remember, so it must not have sparked an interest in me, sorry.

When I was younger, in college and majoring in Communication Media, one of my dreams was to make previews/trailers for movies, something that showed what the movie was about, but didn’t give it all away like a lot of previews do. I still do sometimes and I still get jazzed when I watch previews, it’s one of our favorite things about going to the movies. The best part…right after the preview and before the movie starts, DCM turns to me and tells me what we’re about to watch, sometimes I actually remember, but nine times out of ten (especially when there are a lot of previews) I can’t remember!

{June 5, 2013} Ice cream…is anything better?

A friend posted on Facebook “Remember the days when an ice cream cone on a hot summer evening was the single bet thing that could happen?”

I think that is a very fair statement.

I used to love ice cream as a kid, chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, didn’t matter, well not mint or pistachio, but I did love ice cream. That hasn’t changed, but as a I got older, I was diagnosed with Lactose Intolerance, that was so difficult! I used to love vanilla milkshakes from Burger King, oh boy!

I started taking lactaid pills and it was ok, but didn’t always help. I’ve tried all different types of ice cream substitutes, almond milk, coconut milk, both good, but still not completely the same. Although, when you put enough stuff on ice cream (syrups, sprinkles) its all good!

Doesn’t an ice cream cone make you feel like a kid again?

I like sugar cones better than cake, never liked cake cones, too spongy. Waffle cones are ok, but sometimes, that is too much ice cream, give me a sugar cone with rainbow sprinkles in the bottom of the cone to catch the ice cream as it melts and I am a happy kid!

Sometimes, a sundae is good, ok, we’ll, just give me maraschino cherries and I’m a happy girl! You can add ice cream or not, I love those things!

My favorite flavor is vanilla and one of the best ice creams is Breyer’s and now…Breyer’s came out with a Lactaid Free Vanilla! Wahoo! How excited was I to find that! (I still take a Lactaid pill most of the time, to be on the safe side)

The point of this post? After yummy leftover lasagna (well, my opinion anyway, DCM too) we each had a bowl of Lactaid Free Breyer’s vanilla, DCM adds milk to his, makes a modified milk shake of sorts.

The perfect ending to a summer day, makes me feel like a kid again! What makes you feel that way?

Email Subscription

What was I thinking?