The Host

Today I took Mom with me to go see "The Host." I didn't really have any expectations for it. I wasn't all that interested in it until I saw the trailer. As you may remember, I slogged my way through the book.

But now I'd like to give it another try.

Because I liked this movie.

I had misgivings about Saorise as Melanie when I first heard about it, because she seemed a little young, but she's the right age for this role. Diane is really good as the seemingly nice Seeker, and she plays the villain well near the end.

The story wasn't too hard to follow, and the filmmakers handled Melanie and Wanderer's conversations well.

I guess the aliens really liked Ikea. And chrome cars. And white.

Aspects I really liked were the cave sets and desert scenery. The aliens, in their basic form, are actually really pretty. The special effects were decent, and the closing credits were pretty. (Well, they were.) The ending sets the stage for a sequel, which there may be; at least in novel form, for right now.  Mom liked it, too.

PS: tried the Raising Caine's restaurant today. Another pleasant surprise.

Breaking Dawn 2 Midnight Release

As I write this, it's been about a week that Breaking Dawn pt. 2 has been on DVD.  I went to the midnight release party at Walmart.  It was nice.  They gave us cake, and the freebie was a set of mini posters from the previous films. Very nice... One of the nicest promo gifts.  In fact, I tweeted it, mentioning Walmart, and someone replied back.  I had my Breaking Dawn shirt and accessories. Yes, I fan-girl hard.

(Hey, I like blue.  What can I say?)

They also showed behind-the-scenes segments from the DVD. 

Mom was with me, and she snagged another set of posters for me. (she bought an extra DVD!)  She thought I could use them in my scrapbook, but I think I'll frame them in a collage frame.  In fact, I have a bunch of posters that need frames badly.  Sigh.  

I watched the DVD the next evening, and of course, it was good. I also preordered the Target DVD (it came with a fabric poster, and bonus features), and it arrived a few days later. 

So.... will this be my last "Twilight" post?  Maybe not.  But let me close it out with this: 

Thanks to the actors, filmmakers, and especially Stephenie, for giving us the chance to dream about forever.

Oscars and the frosting in the Cake

Mom and I watched the Oscars Sunday night. Wasn't that invested in the nominees this year as I have been others.  Although, it did make me interested in a few of the films, like Argo and Silver Linings Playbook.  I was glad that Jennifer Lawrence won the Oscar for Best Actress. Ben Affleck gave the sweetest acceptance speech that included a thank-you to his wife.  Awww...

Was glad to hear that the host isn't planning to host next year.  Good.

So.... One of the snacks I made was a "pre-packaged" whoopie pie, well, pies. It was a Pilsbury mix- make the cake, spoon onto the cookie sheet, bake, then frost and assemble.  They turned out pretty good.  Next time I think I'd use canned frosting instead.  It would be thicker.

Look What I Found

I was at Target the other day, and look what I found...

They come in packages of two, and the other notebook has the mockingjay logo on it.

I was also surprised to find these... and they were only 99 cents. :)

They only had them for New Moon and Eclipse (also found a couple packs from Hunger Games.)

And.... I got a nice deal on this from ebay...

If You Don't Read the Book...

Right now I'm reading "World War Z", a collection of fictional interviews with people after a worldwide zombie apocalypse. It's really good. So much so that I'd recommend it right now to a friend.

I've also got "Warm Bodies" lined up, ready to go. The trailer looks really cute. I know it's not going to be a "serious" zombie movie, and that's fine with me. Sort of like "Twilight" + "Walking Dead." (Speaking of WD, that's what's on the Netflix right now.)

(...I'm not really a zombie fan. But then again, I'm not really a vampire fan, either....)

Back to WWZ... I first saw the trailer sometime in the fall or so, and it looked pretty decent. Then I saw that it was a book, and I picked up said book about a week ago. However... The more I'm reading WWZ, the more I get the sinking feeling that the film isn't going to be like "Contagion."

Mom said it best: it'll be fine if you don't read the book first....

Happy New Year

Yes, I'm still here.  December was just a busy month in general.

(Wasn't that the most boring apocalypse ever?  Wonder if the ancient Mayans could be retroactively sued for... Uh, never mind. False advertising? Kidding.)

Seriously, I had a good Christmas.  It was quiet-- but very breezy.  Mom and I loved our tree; we finally dismantled it the other day.  We got a lot of usage from it.

I got some Twilight-related items, including the throw from Hot Topic with the trio.  Even the wrapping paper, strangely enough, had that "Twi" pattern.

Even though there won't be any more Twilight movies in the foreseeable future (who knows who'll try to reanimate it, ha ha. Get it?), there's a bunch of good stuff coming out this year.  First off... "Warm Bodies," which actually looks really funny. A seriously gentler, romanticized version of "Walking Dead." I know it looks like a Twilight rip off, but I don't care.  In May, we get the last Sookie Stackhouse novel ever. I'm curious to see how it ends, and looking forward to it.  And in November we get the sequel to Hunger Games: "Catching Fire."

A little bit of Twilight News... We're getting an extended version of Breaking Dawn pt. 1 in March!  Still no official news of BD2's DVD.  *Grrr*

I made those Energy Bites that have been floating around on Pinterest and the Internet.  They're actually pretty good.

Back for Seconds: More Breaking Dawn

About a week later I took my mom to go see Breaking Dawn pt. 2.  She really enjoyed it; and, of course was thrown by the twist.  I cried at the end, and, frankly, so did she.  I asked her why.  She said, "Because it's over."  I'm the bigger Twihard in the household!

Got the tree up this week.  It's really nice; a live one.  The first live one I've had since... Ever. It's been a seriously long time. Kind of nice, though, not to have to straighten out all those branches.

Those lights are in my room.

(Hey, who put that ornament on there? ;-) )