Christmas is my favorite holiday. I always have a hard time waiting to put my decorations up, so this year - knowing that we don’t generally get a lot of snow until early in the new year I said I’d put my decorations up by Thanksgiving, or the first snow. Well, it snowed last Saturday. Of course, it was only flurries and nothing stuck but the second I realized white stuff was falling from the sky I was in my shed digging out the Christmas tree.

I had most of my stuff set up before Aralyn got up, and then she helped me put ornaments on.

Nobody make fun of my movie poster. I have others up too, so it’s not just some random occurrence. I’m also not sure if that makes it any better.

By the way, I totally can’t wait for the new Wordpress.

Optical4Less offers pretty sweet deals on glasses, I really like these for only $29:

Last time I bought glasses (the plastic ones, from Wal-mart) I ended up paying $300+ for them. The last time before that, I think my parents spent closer to $400 for bifocals for me. Obviously I can’t afford to drop that much cash on reading-only glasses, so I’m really considering trying this service out. It would definately be nice to have an updated pair, the only pair I have is too strong for me. My epilepsy makes my vision vary, and I bought those when I was still suffering from seizures. Knowing that I could just run into Wal-mart and getting an updated prescription for $40 and then buy my glasses online might actually motivate me to do something about it.

My mom had $20 in BestBuy Rewards that were expiring on the 8th, so we decided to pre-order Aralyn the Kung Fu Panda DVD. Said DVD was on sale for pre-order, like $15.99 or something like that. Well apparently you have to use all $20 on actual merchandise. You can’t just use part of it, or put some towards shipping. So I spent about an hour searching for something on BestBuy that was around $4. Not an easy feat, let me tell you. Impossible I’d say, heck a pack of four AA batteries was like $7 or something ridiculous like that. Finally I had the bright idea to order the the movie for Blu-ray, which was a deal at $22. Got it yesterday, watched it with Aralyn on my PS3 (absolutely great movie, it was funny and adorable and we both loved it). She wanted to watch it again right away, so as I’m about to send her to lay down and let her watch it in her room as she went to bed when it finally dawned on me.

You can’t play Blu-ray on regular DVD players.

Epic fail on my part. The worst part is that it should have clicked before I even ordered the stupid thing. My mom mentioned the fact that I don’t have an HDTV, so why would I want the Blu-ray? That right there should have sent off the signal that “Hey stupid, you only happen to have a Blu-ray player in the first place because it came with the PS3. DO NOT PASS GO”.

Oh well, I think I might give it to my brother for Christmas and buy Aralyn the DVD.

Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the present.

$7.49 domain names

If you’re in need a of new domain, click the link for me and I’ll give you an e-cookie and a big virtual hug.

I’ve watched all the clips, trailers, read the interviews, checked out the stills and have come to the conclusion that they are totally missing the whole point of this book. It’s been ramped up sexually, and the story has been mangled into something that doesn’t look anything like Twilight. I’ve got a few reasons to back this up but I’m going to put this under a cut, so not to spoil anyone who hasn’t read the books…

The casting:

Robert Pattinson said that he tried to “bring himself” to the role of Edward. I’ve watched him in interviews - he’s an egotistical jerk who thinks he’s God’s gift. Not exactly Edward material. So far Edward has been portrayed as a wimp who cowers in trees and tries, unsuccessfully, to portray everything through his eyes. Mostly he just looks constipated.

Kristin Stewart has the basic look to be Bella, but her monotone, sarcastic voice makes me want to throw something at her. I’ve seen a couple of other movies that she’s in, and she acts and speaks the same in all of them. The ability to read lines does not an actress make. Next, please!

Alice and Jasper - Alice is supposed to be small, doll-like with a short, choppy style haircut from her time as a human in an asylum. The actress is wearing a wig anyway, but they still managed to not get it right. Jasper is supposed to be a tall and muscular , with a deep baritone voice. The actor? He’s barely taller than the actress playing Alice, looks like he’s never touched a barbell and has an average man’s voice. Jasper also happens to be one of my most favorite characters, so I’m really pissed they got him so wrong.

Emmett and Rosalie. Emmett is supposed to be a very large, strong, and menacing character, with dark curly hair. Sure the actors got some muscle, but he’s got a buzzcut. Rosalie is supposed to be the most beautiful creature you’ve ever seen, and the actress (who has also been in two of the directors other films) is pretty in her own right but no Rosalie. Obviously she was cast based on who she knew, not whether she was right for the part.

Carlisle and Esme - I’m happy with them, they are pretty close to the books descriptions. I really can’t say anything bad about the casting of those two, or of the nomadic vampires. Congratulations Twilight crew, you got the minor characters right.

JACOB - I love the character of Jacob. Seriously, I’m Switzerland. But I can’t stand the stupid kid playing him. He has weaseled his way into every aspect of this film so far, and every bit of marketing, and every appearance, and he’s not even much of a character until a couple hundred pages into the second book. A little peeve of mine, Jacob is supposed to wear his hair in a ponytail for I think all of his minimal references in Twilight. It’s a big deal to Bella when she finally see’s his hair down. I haven’t seen him with his hair pulled back in any of the trailers or stills. How could they overlook that?

Has anyone working on this movie even read the book?

Now obviously casting actors who are supposed to be inhumanly beautiful and graceful, with inhuman voices and bell laughs is impossible, but it’s like they threw the parts to the first actors to walk in the door.

More little things that bother me, in bullet form:

• The clip of Edward and Bella making out when she’s in her underwear? What, are you freaking kidding me? What happened to her old sweatpants? What happened to their virtue? What the hell happened to Edwards rules? She can barely put her arms around him without him stopping from fear of losing control (ie: killing her), but all of a sudden he can handle dry humping?
• The nomad vampires are getting a backstory? Stephenie Meyer knew what she was doing when she didn’t introduce the dangerous vamps until they became a threat. This is a love story, not a horror movie, and the vampires are supposed to be excellent at avoiding detection. You’re telling me that these vampires forgot and left their meals to be discovered by authorities?
• Back to Edward cowering in a tree - “our family is not like others” or something along those lines. Dude looks like he’s about to pee his pants. I was fully expecting it to cut to Bella putting her arms around him and telling him that everything’s going to be ok.
• Then there’s the meadow scene - there’s a shot in the trailer where Edward and Bella are lying in the meadow. Edwards got like three shirts and a jacket on. Your telling me that with CG technology and some shimmer dust you couldn’t make him sparkle? Oh wait, that’s right. Robert Pattinson couldn’t be bothered to lose his gut and tone up a bit so that they didn’t ruin this loved by all scene.
• Speaking of the meadow, it’s as they are coming out of the forest that they have their first - very hestitant (yanno, cause he’s trying not to KILL her) - kiss. Not so in the movie. In the movie they’re either in her room or in the Port Angelas diner, I can’t tell.
• When Bella almost gets crushed by Tyler’s van in the begining, Edward sticks around - he doesn’t jump over her truck and run away.
• She tells him she thinks he’s a vampire in the car on the way back from Port Angeles, not in the meadow. By the way, in the trailer when they jumpcut to her mouth when she says vampire? S-T-U-P-I-D.

I’ve read these books more times than I can keep track. I lost count somewhere around 10, that’s at least 10, per book, but definitely more. You are fully allowed to call me obsessed.

I can’t read Harry Potter without envisioning the movies. It’s fine in that instance, because the casting was great. The characters themselves aren’t so grounded in fantasy as the Twilight vampires are, rather it’s the abilities of the HP characters that are fantasy. I don’t want to lose the fantasy of Twilight. I’d be more willing to if everything that I’ve seen so far was pointing to the fact that they only loosely based the movie on the book, and took so many liberties with it.

The only way you can translate a book to film well is if you have a cast and crew who is as passionate about the book as the fans are. Peter Jackson and Lord of the Rings comes to mind. He was a super fan, and it shows. Those movies were absolutely excellent.

Harry Potter, while they leave some things out due to time constraints, stay true to the books. JK Rowling is brilliant for retaining control over the screenplays, and I wish Stephenie Meyer had done the same thing.

So there you have it, those are my reasons why I will be staying home on November 21. I just wanted to get it all out because it has been pissing me off more and more by the day.

By the way, while I may not be throwing my money away for the stupid movie, I did buy the soundtrack and am quite pleased with it. Except (go figure) for Bella’s Lullabye, which - from someone who can’t play piano -  was remarkably intermediate. I could spend a hour on it and figure out how to play the piano part myself. Yet another piece of the Twilight universe that was just chucked out the window.

I’m not going to spend the next four (or eight) years whining about the President, and I’m not going to complain about the election. I’m also not going to believe in things that aren’t true, and I’m going to try my best to not be nervous about things that may happen, or be scared of our country being tested.

I’m going to support our new President, even though he wasn’t my first (or second) pick. I want this man to change our country, for the better, and I want to look back and be able to say that Obama carried us through this tough time in our country. I want to believe that he simply misspoke when he said he wanted to “spread the wealth”, and that he won’t pull us so far to the left that we won’t recognize our country anymore as his record suggests. I really, really want to get behind this man, and I hope he really means it when he says that we are a united country. I am so sick of the division of people, the selfish nature that says if the government doesn’t do exactly what I want I’m not going to support it anymore.

I am, however going to blame Gov. Palin for the loss. I’m also disgusted at the media (and people) for proving that while racism may finally be on it’s way out, Clinton and Palin proved that sexism is still very much alive and well.

A part of me is also glad that I don’t have to watch a brave and honorable man ripped apart for the next term, and I don’t have to listen to people complain incessantly that the election was stolen. That is the best news to me.

Today, I’m putting aside the fact that my side lost (twice this election cycle, actually, Clinton and McCain) and celebrating our first black President. What a giant leap for our country, and I am so happy for all of you who fought for this. Job well done.

Tomorrow, I’m back to not caring about politics. Hah. This election season has exhausted me!

Puh-lease.

Any election is important, and while this one might actually be more important than the others, it’s more important that people take the steps to inform themselves about the candidates than to go out and blindly cast a vote because you like what someone says. The saddest part is knowing that the amount of people who are going to be voting without knowing what their voting for is going to be higher than ever. Certainly not everyone is foolish enough to vote blindly, but there certainly are plenty who are. I just wish things like this weren’t going on:

Whatever. I also would like to say that I know there are people voting for McCain who are voting against Obama for terrible, unfounded reasons, and I don’t think they have any business at the polls either.

Unfortunately, whoever gets in tomorrow will have done so with the support of a largely ignorant America.

A little boy goes to his dad and asks, “What is Politics?”

Dad says, “Well son, let me try to explain it this way: I am the head of the family, so call me The President. Your mother is the administrator of the money, so we call her the Government. We are here to take care of your needs, so we will call you the People. The nanny, we will consider her the Working Class. And your baby brother, we will call him the Future. Now think about that and see if it makes sense.”

So the little boy goes off to bed thinking about what Dad has said.

Later that night, he hears his baby brother crying, so he gets up to check on him. He finds that the baby has severely soiled his diaper.

So the little boy goes to his parents’ room and finds his mother asleep. Not wanting to wake her, he goes to the nanny’s room finding the door locked, he peeks in the keyhole and sees his father in bed with the nanny. He gives up and goes back to bed.

The next morning, the little boy says to his father, “Dad, I think I understand the concept of politics now.”

The father says, “Good, son, tell me in your own words what you think politics is all about.”

The little boy replies, “The President is screwing the Working Class while the Government is sound asleep. The People are being ignored and the Future is in deep shit.“

Current Mood:  giggly