The End of Summer and My List

Well, folks, the summer has come to a close. ... For me. I moved back into my dorm yesterday morning, meaning that I survived another 2.5 or so hour drive as a sardine. Seriously. The two huge duffels on wheels and a few other smaller items were squeezed into the trunk. The mini fridge, microwave, TV (which I learned yesterday didn't have an RF remote receiver, so the universal remote my parents picked up was bupkis), egg crate mattress pad, and other small items sat in the back with me and my stuffed backpack. It wasn't the most comfortable drive. But enough of that! I'm all moved in. That's what counts.
At the beginning of the summer, or right around when my classes and finals ended, I decided to make a list of things I wanted to accomplish over the summer. I know ... sounds like an old episode of Arthur. ... That's kinda sorta where I got the idea from. Anyway, I think that I did a good job completing a little over half of the list. Here it is:

1. Watch Food Network and try to make some of the recipes (Good Eats, Ace of Cakes, Barefoot Contessa)
2. Make killer vids
3. Keep up the blog
4. Meet Youtubers
5. Have fun in the city

I essentially completed all but #1. Let's go over #2 - #5.

• While I did make videos, some of them were killer, but I was proud of my work, especially since I made 30 in the month of June. One for every day. It was a bit draining. And I did keep up with most of my videos for my collab channel (3 Awesome Geeks) and my subbing videos on The Nerd Project. And I did throw together 3 huge videos: 1) My DC trip, 2) 789, and 3) Tom Milsom's Central Park show (featuring clips). I have yet to upload the 3 full songs I filmed.
• As for the blog ... I kinda kept up with it. I made 3 or 4 posts over the summer, I'd say. But not as much as I would've liked.
• As for Youtubers, are you kidding me?! I went to 789! It was my first gathering! And I had a blast! In fact, I met Karen Kavett (xperpetualmotion on Youtube) there and I got in touch with her in August and we met up to see Tom Milsom's show at Strawberry Fields, which was also quite fun. And I also got one of her sweet ducktape wallets. I met so many cool people at 789, including a good friend (Geoff- Theboomtube on Youtube), Craig Benzine (WheezyWaiter on Youtube), and a load of others. And at Tom's gig, I met Michael (Mickeleh on Youtube), Monica (of the Short Sisters), John (phampants on Youtube), and Tom himself! Both of those days were two of the best of my summer.
• As for NYC stuff, I was in roughly half a dozen times. They Might Be Giants at the end of May with my friend Ryan (LnkFn12 on Youtube), Coraline the musical in late June with my friends Matt (magusmanders on Youtube) and Erin, 789 with my friend Wes (Shinpachi222 on Youtube), Hair in mid-August with my mom and brother, Tom Milsom's concert in mid-August with Karen, Monica, and John, and brunch with my grandma at this cool restaurant called Vynl.

All in all, I'd have to say that this was one of the best summers I've ever had. And all these events probably made it so. Thanks to everyone who I met at the Youtube events. You guys are the best.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get back into the school mode. Be seeing you.

Capsule Movie Review: Moon, Noise, Pulp Fiction, Julie and Julia, and The Hurt Locker

Duncan Jones's Moon: A fantastic directorial debut from the son of David Bowie, believe it or not. Excellently strong performance from Sam Rockwell. 5/5 stars Rated R for language, sensuality, and violence.

Henry Bean's Noise: An enjoyable flick about using subversion to accomplish your goals, no matter how unusual it is, like disabling car alarms because they're an annoyance. Could've done without the frontal scenes. 3.5/5 stars Rated NR for language and nudity.

Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction: A well-done, but bloody and strongly worded flick about gangsters and the effect they have on modern society. 4/5 stars Rated R for heavy language, violence, and sensuality.

Nora Ephron's Julie and Julia: An enjoyable flick about cooking and the effect of cooking on marriages. Fantastic performance from Meryl Streep, but a mediocre, yet still enjoyable performance from Amy Adams. 4/5 stars Rated PG-13 for language.

Kathryn Bigelow's The Hurt Locker: A very strong and powerful flick about the stresses of being an member of the bomb squad in Iraq. The only detracter ... the shaky cam. 4.5/5 stars Rated R for language and violence.

The Lovely Bones trailer

Well, I've been waiting a while to hear news about The Lovely Bones, since it's been in the works for the past few years and I heard nary a peep about a trailer, except for the announced cast, then the slight changes to the cast. Now, finally, 5 months before the movie is set to be released in the US, we FINALLY have a trailer.



And I'm proud to say that I now officially can't wait to see this film. It's been a few years since I read the novel, so the plot points are a little hazy. Regardless of that, the novel blew me away and from the looks of the trailer, Peter Jackson has done a fantastic job. All I have to do now is see the flick when it's released in December.