Bastet

I'm the opposite -- screwball comedies make up a huge percentage of my favorite films from the '30s (and early '40s).

Craftsmanship and materials the likes of which you simply will not find in a new build? I'd so much rather update as necessary, building on a foundation that used best available practices and materials at the time, than deal with something where the starting point was "cut as many corners as will still pass inspection." Depending on how long one intends to stay in a home, it can certainly be a reasonable concern to look at what updates have already been done in an older home vs. those which will fall on the buyer, but "Eek, an old house -- is it held together by string and spit?!" people annoy me.

As compared to the original, it was awful, but that’s honestly not how I go into these things evaluating them (see, e.g. my acceptance of the Steel Magnolias remake on its own merits). On its own? That was still pretty bad. It was so thin and rushed; characters were presented rather than developed. It gave me nothing; it told me these women were lifelong friends with a complicated relationship, but it forgot to ever show me that. I never shed a single tear – and I have my period! About halfway through, I took a break to cook dinner, so it was just background noise for a bit. Nia Long became more of the talent I know her to be after that point, but it was still disappointing. All the conflicting emotions after Hillary gets sick – between Hillary and CC, between Victoria/Tori and CC – were just so anemic; things were too neat. And overall – but especially with the actors playing young Hillary and CC – things felt forced and theatrical (in all the bad ways) rather than natural. The comparison to a community theatre production is accurate, and I just don’t know how it came out that way given the cast and director. That this was a pale imitation of the feature film is one thing, but this was utterly forgettable as a stand-alone TV movie. I do like Menzel’s rendition of Wind Beneath My Wings and Glory of Love, though.

I didn't see the episode, but grey toilets (I'm thinking specifically of the Kohler ice grey) look great in certain color schemed bathrooms - e.g. gray-ish shades of blue - where white would be too stark. It's a beautiful sink color, too (again, in the right context). I wish more refrigerators were available in that shade; it's a nice option when stainless steel is too cold (and finger print-y), but white and black aren't right, either.

I would root for any team in the league other than the Cowboys against the Patriots, so two weeks from now I'll be the biggest Falcons team you've ever seen for a day. I used to like the Steelers, and they're my best friend's favorite team, but I cannot cheer for a team with Big Raping Ben behind center. So while I was rooting for them in theory, just because it's the Patriots, I had the game on as background noise and couldn't get invested. And even if the Pats win the Super Bowl, I'll still have the memory of my G-Men handing them their ass twice, so I'm good.

I didn't realize Allison Anders was directing; now I'm even more willing to give this a chance. But these early posts are not inspiring confidence (I was watching football - fucking Patriots - so now I'm watching the "after party" and will watch the re-airing in ten minutes), making me think maybe I'm going to hate it, when I really want to walk away saying, "Well, that wasn't the original, and there was really no point, but it's fine as its own thing." Yeah, that's the bar I set for these things. No Otto Titsling? And we have to change CC smoking under the boardwalk to street performing without a license?

My best friend moved recently, and we hit up Target to get the essentials - like toilet paper - to hold her over until she got her stuff delivered the next day and did her real shopping. When we got to the toilet paper aisle, neither one of us had any idea what brand to get, as we both use Costco toilet paper. She just wanted a small pack of something to tide her over until she went to Costco, so we decided on a brand (I don't even remember what, now) by ruling out the ones with obnoxious commercials. Cottonelle was the first to go for the "go commando" ad campaign. The Charmin bears were next.

My car doesn't have a back-up camera, but my mom's does. At first, whenever I would drive hers, I was convinced that camera was not accurate, that I was actually closer to things than it looked, and if I relied on it I would run over something. One day, I had it over at my house with some free time on my hands, and I set up an experiment with my rubbish bins (something I wouldn't mind running into at very slow speed) and damn if that thing wasn't completely accurate. (I always trusted the one in their motorhome, so I have no idea why I was so skeptical of this one.) So I don't care about having or not having a back-up camera, but what I hate is a car with limited visibility so that a back-up camera is necessary to properly see. I want to see a lot of windows when I turn my head. A friend got a new car last year, with a back-up camera that has those lines on it. She has no idea what they stand for (the side ones are obvious, but I think there are two lines showing behind the car that she's unsure of - something like that). I said, "Um, read the manual" -- she's had the car a good eight months now and has still never bothered.

Sam, having met Jenny (since he hit on her), and thus knowing Leo is married to an age-appropriate woman rather than a trophy wife, thinks Leo's daughter is in elementary school? No. That is why, even setting aside the inherent lunacy of Mallory - who lives near the District and spends time with Leo - never having run into Sam during one of these visits during their entire first year in office, never mind the equal improbability of people who are in each others' back pockets during a campaign never having mentioned family to the point Sam knew the very basics of Leo's life, I cannot fanwank that story line into anything other than crap. It makes for a funny scene - although, even then, we must set aside the improbability of a political operative with a campaign and a year in office under his belt telling who he thinks is a random school teacher (who can run to the press) that he slept with a prostitute - but it's so utterly unbelievable I can't get past it.

This is an episode where I really miss having blogs from the judges. I know we see only a small percentage of Judges' Table questioning and deliberations, which go on for hours and get quite detailed, and the judges don't see the footage of the rest until they screen the episode -- which has led to "had I but known" rumination in the past. So I'd really love some insight into how they chose which of the challenge's two inveterate assholes would go out. Because based on the food presented and the bits of Judges' Table we saw, it probably should have been John. But the one judge told Katsuji it seems clear he was only out for himself, not the team, so - even without seeing the kitchen shenanigans beyond what Tom and the guest judges walked in on and without seeing Katsuji's odious Stew Room antics - that was obvious to the judges. How much did they know? I'm just glad Katsuji is gone, and wish only that John had somehow been sent packing along with him. But I am curious about the judges' deliberations under the circumstances.

Pre-scheduled coincidence, or nice burn by Animal Planet -- the old episode on right before the new one was the one where Melfi was adopted. I appreciate Tia's "one thing at a time" approach with Puppy's owners, but I'm really disappointed if that vet truly didn't even broach the subject of "Would you like him neutered while he's under?" with the owners. I remember Spot's owners, and really liked them. Sad that it seemed to be a Carrie Fisher/Debbie Reynolds situation with them passing away, and that there was no one else in the family/friends circle to take him, but hopefully he'll be making people happy as a therapy dog soon. Because of Space Camp, "Jinx" is on my mental list of potential cat names, even though I usually use human names, so I was rooting for him. I thought they were going to go with the younger dog, so I was happy. The adoption fee is $200. Any trip you see on the show is covered by production, not VRC. Their normal (off-camera) procedure for non-local home checks/adoptions is not to make a trip for one dog, but to group them together, one trip to one area with several dogs. They used to have out-of-town adopters pick up the tab (split among the group) for the travel costs, but so many adopters balked at the total cost that now they eat it in order to adopt out more dogs; they take in approximately 60 per month and adopt out 30-40 per month on average, so they're always in an uphill battle to find homes.

Do the words "fuck" and "you" appear in it? Congratulations, and good luck. If it all comes together, I highly recommend taking as much time off between jobs as you can afford.

He didn't get quite that explicit, but he pretty much stated that as his strategy. I'm glad you posted that, because I meant to ask last night who it was who told Katsuji now was not the time when he was doing his evil little routine on Emily when they got back home after last episode's elimination, but forgot. So, another example of Katsuji out-assholing John Fricking Tesar. Katsuji's restaurant is good; nothing special or worth making a trip for, but a tasty lunch when I happen to be in the area. After this, though, there's no way I'd give him another dime of my money.

I generally watch the late airing at 11:00, and last night I fell asleep somewhere in the middle, I think. That was a crazy head wound, and she said it came from having her head smashed into the ground? It looked like someone took a hatchet to her. I cannot imagine the force with which she hit the ground. Because some asshole john can't part with $20? My heart broke for that woman.

I would want my own room, so I wouldn't be comfortable with the set-up, period, but sharing a bed with my mom wouldn't per se bother me. We've done it while visiting relatives. I don't want to routinely share a bed with anyone (other than my cat). But if I had to, my mom is pretty far down the list of "Oh, please, no" people, and certainly not inherently uncomfortable or yucky; it's my mom. And I can't imagine sleeping in a twin bed regularly, either; I went from my crib to (my own) double bed, and I've rarely slept in a twin elsewhere, but when I did, I hated it. I also hate sharing a bed, so which is worse -- having my own twin but sharing a room, or having a larger bed (is theirs really a double and not a queen?) but still sharing a room? I'd hate both, because, good lord, my own space and privacy, please. But how much I'd hate sharing a bed/room with someone would depend on how they slept, not who they were to me.

You don't need an electrician if you know what you're doing, and changing an outlet is quite easy, but, yes -- it's stupid to talk only about changing the outlet cover to a better color. Which color works best for the room depends on the color scheme, and your fundamental point remains -- the outlet (or switch) and cover should match, and if they don't, that's even more noticeably ugly than having a matching set that aren't the right shade for the room.

It's not my favorite, but I don't hate it and, more relevantly, the judges seemed pretty universally enamored of it. The little diner commentary we saw was also positive. I hate Katsuji and am glad he went home, but his beef tongue dish is not a reason for that -- and, in fact, if I get down to brass tacks, it's probably the thing that should have saved him over John.

Katsuji is an insufferable asshole, but in the middle of frantic prep is not the time for John to endlessly pontificate on that. So we've got one congenital asshole, another one who's actively working to suppress his own inner asshole -- poor Sheldon, trying to tell them to get over themselves and duke it out later. And way to disrespect the chefs in whose kitchen you are cooking by making such a mess. I was so nervous for Shirley after her team's service, because if the second team pulled it out despite the chaos in the kitchen, she'd be going home -- Emily had one bad dish, but one great one, while Shirley had one bad dish and one okay dish, plus was Executive Chef. I was already rooting against the second team, despite liking Sheldon and Casey, because of Katsuji and John, and really stepped up hoping for them to go down in flames once Shirley was in jeopardy. However. It was still a little uncomfortable to watch them implode like that. Wow. Casey should not have abandoned her post, but when you see your team's kitchen falling apart that spectacularly, it's pretty hard not to -- especially once they're completely backed up on getting your own dish out. I was going to be pissed if she, who made one of the few great dishes - and, per one judge, the only one that fit the restaurant's stated theme - went home, but Katsuji and John were both such fuck-ups, I realized she was in the clear. John and his crappy crab and even worse expediting skills was my reflexive choice to go home, but then I really thought about Katsuji and wanted his ass out - on specifics, and on general principle; good god, he's a snake. I hate him after that stew room performance of his, which is odd for some guy I only know through my TV screen, but he's awful. I could not stand John during his first season; for me to be taking up for him against an even bigger jerk? I'm really a little blown away here. That must have been one hell of a Judges' Table, and deliberation.

The real problems are below the gum line, not on the teeth that you see (but the tartar/redness at the gum line indicates what lurks beneath). If he hasn't had dental care up until now, at his age, he very likely does need a cleaning (which, yes, is done under general anesthesia and thus requires pre-op blood work*); that generally includes an x-ray, and then they'll let you know if he needs any extractions. Poor oral health can cause systemic problems (that bacteria running through the bloodstream to the whole body is not good), so it's important to stay on top of. You can have his teeth looked at again, or get a second opinion, to see if he truly needs it, but for the vet to say they're in bad shape and really need help, it's unlikely s/he was just seeing irritation from crunchy food. I've had cats need extractions, and you never would have known just by looking in their mouths, watching them eat, etc. *Some places offer non-anesthesia cleaning, but that doesn't address the below-gum problems, which are the ones that have the potential to affect overall health, not just the condition of the teeth. For cats with yucky teeth who can't undergo anesthesia, it's a "well, better than nothing" help, but otherwise, it's ineffective.

Chocolate chip cookies (homemade) are my favorite (I don't eat a lot of cookies, so there wasn't much competition, but they're still the hands-down winner), but they must be soft. Crunchy, I'll just walk away; that texture ruins the cookie for me.

I've liked Nia Long since she was Kat on Guiding Light, and I found the Steel Magnolias remake interesting - I won't re-watch it a gazillion times like the original, but I was happy to watch it once - so I'll probably give this a look, too. But if someone remakes Terms of Endearment, that one may be too much for me to handle.

I've used Turbo Tax for many years now and like it (I buy the software at Costco for a good price, and it's really easy to use), but the commercials stink.

I remember the first time I saw one of those weight loss commercials where the "before" was a size 10, and I was horrified (yes, I understand that a size 10 could be overweight depending on the person's frame, but that was not the case with the woman in the commercial). Now we're starting at a size 8, huh? I hate this society.

Thanks for sharing that info; I don't normally watch award shows, but I will definitely tune in for that. 9 to 5 has been one of my favorite movies since it came out, and I've seen it so many times I can recite along verbatim. I love that, on top of making a great movie, they so thoroughly enjoyed working together and stayed friends all these years.

I've seen a picture of a couch with all sorts of stuff piled up on the seat cushions to keep the dog off -- and the dog is sprawled out snoozing on top of the back of the couch. The only thing I don't let my cats sit on is the dining room table, so I have no tips, either.