Notes from La-la-wood

In case anyone was wondering, yes- it is beautiful in LA. It’s been in the low 70s, perfectly sunny, not humid at all, a nice breeze, the whole deal. Sometimes the great weather makes you realize why people put up with all the annoyances of California and mortgage their whole life to live here. I wouldn’t, but I can see the appeal. Also, this is the first time I’ve been here for work in the summer. Every morning the lobby is full of tour groups wearing their matching shirts or hats, bound for Disneyland of Hollywood while I head off for another day of PowerPoint- but I’m not bitter. Because it’s 103 degrees with 85% humidity at home. Anyway.

So last weekend was pretty fun. Ramya and I pretty much just watched movies, and taste in cinema is one of the many ways we seem to not be so much “compatible” as we are “the same person.” For a quick rundown, we watched:

• Hot Shots! Part Deux- Always a winner. As I said before, I consider this the finest movie of the “Airplane” genre. Back during my freshman year of college when I lived with Brad and didn’t have cable, this was one of the 4 videos in our possession. I can honestly say that I have seen it at least 50 times. That might not seem like much in this great world of hyperbole, but think about it- we watched it at least 2 or 3 times a week that first semester, then it tapered off. Anyway, Ramya’s evaluation was “That was kind of dumb,” which means I did a poor job of explaining the movie beforehand.
• Evan Almighty- I deemed this a rental, but it was playing at the base theatre, and Ramya loves Steve Carrell, so we gave it a shot. Her first comment after the movie was “I’m sorry.” I mean, it was pretty bad. The jokes weren’t funny, and it seemed like the movie had a point, but it didn’t know what it was. Plus, we had some really annoying people around us in the theatre, most notably the woman behind us who had to comment on everything. Lame comments like “Oh no!” and “What now?” All through the movie God (Morgan Freeman in what I’m sure was a contractually obligated role) tells Evan to perform acts of random kindness. Then, at the end when Evan asks why he was supposed to do this all, God tells him “I told you- perform Acts…of Random…Kindness” while writing ARK in the dirt with a stick. That pretty much summed up the film. Ramya and I rolled our eyes at each other while the lady behind us said “Oh! A, R, K!” as though now it all made sense.
• Borat- Everyone loved this movie, and Target had it for $8, so I bought it unseen (which I try not to do, but c’mon- 8 freakin’ dollars). I enjoyed it, but mostly because Sacha Baron Cohen is remarkably quick and funny on his feet. Unfortunately though, I’m not comfortable re-printing any of the funny jokes. But it also had that Tom Green-ish quality of “Let’s laugh at the people who aren’t in on the joke” that always makes me feel awkward by proxy, so if that bothers you, stay away.
• Trekkies- Howard had a roommate that once said “Whenever I’m feeling lame and down on myself, I pop Trekkies in the VCR and think ‘Ah…my life is okay.’” It’s a documentary about people who loves them some Star Trek, and I think it should be a lesson in moderation for us all. They profile several fans who love Star Trek more than I love Transformers, Purdue, Nintendo, GI Joe and cherry bites combined, including a dentist whose entire office is Trek-themed and who requires all his employees to dress up as different characters. My favorite fan was “The Commander,” a woman who created a dork media circus by wearing her Star Trek uniform to court while serving jury duty. Her rationale was “If I was in the Army, I would wear my Army uniform,” and since she was the commander of her local Star Trek chapter, she figured that was pretty much the same thing. Okay, while I don’t agree, I guess I can see her point. If you have adopted a sci-fi television show’s uniform as your own, that’s one thing. But at some point you have to look at the phaser and tricorder on your belt (which she always wears- even when not in uniform) and think “I’m deciding the fate of another human being while wearing not one, but two children’s toys.” Long story short, I definitely recommend the film.
• The Simpson’s Movie- Yes, it was basically a two-hour episode of a show you can watch for free on television. But, it’s still worth seeing, if only as a rental. They did take the opportunity to push it a little further and do things they couldn’t do on the air, but it was basically what you’d expect, including several quotable lines. They managed to work in just about every side character, except (As Ramya pointed out) Apu, who is a total cornerstone (in addition to being Ramya’s favorite- and I’m sure we’ll discuss how a total Indian immigrant stereotype is an Indian girl’s favorite character at length later). If you’re a fan of the show, check it out, but feel free to wait and Netflix it.
• Transformers- We didn't watch this, but I thought of something else. If they have all this advanced technology, why does Bumblebee have to signal the other Transformers with a Batsignal-like Autobot logo projected in the air? Shouldn’t they have a better and more discreet way to do this, like some sort of transponder or GPS? It’s just one more thing that doesn’t add up.

So tomorrow I head for home (on a 6:00 am flight- eewww) where I should remain for about two weeks before heading back out. Ramya informed me that this is restaurant week in DC, which means all the fancy eateries are giving massive discounts. So we have a reservation at Ruth’s Chris at 9:30 tomorrow, which Ramya will tell you is basically my bedtime (and she’s not exaggerating too much)- but to get a three-course steak dinner for $30 I’m totally willing to shift my schedule. Then Saturday we’re planning to do something touristy in DC, but we don’t know what yet. Any suggestions?

Have a great weekend!