I decided to get a 2-month free trial membership to Barnes & Noble. Not sure if I'll end up keeping it, but it's not that much--just $25 a year, and I do tend to buy a lot of books as gifts (and a few for myself). My first purchase was A Game of Thrones, the first book of George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire. I ordered it online and just got it today... and it was damaged. If it was something small, I wouldn't care, but the spine of the cover has a slice through it and the first few pages are badly torn. I called the nearest store and had them put one on reserve (they're sold out right now) so I can exchange it there. I'd rather not mail it back 'cause I wouldn't be able read it for at least another week. This way, I can go ahead and start reading it till the store calls me to say they have the book in.
I went and saw Kung Fu Panda 2 at the dollar theater last week. It was good--not as good as the first one, but still a great sequel. It goes into the interesting backstory of the main character, Po, but I wish they had done the same for some of the other characters, as well. For example, I'd really like to know the tale behind Tigress--she's the most "hardcore" of the group, and yet she seems to sympathise with Po when he's frustrated about his past. If they make a third movie (which I think is pretty likely), I really hope they spend time developing the other characters. The animation is basically flawless, though. They used 2-D animation for all the flashback sequences, a nice change of pace, and the prologue and credits are made to resemble Chinese shadow puppetry, which I thought was a nice touch.
For Dad's birthday dinner, we ate at Humble Pie. The Chicago style pizza was amazing, as expected, but the New York style wasn't great. I guess from now on I'll only get the Chicago style there. Besides, if I really want good New York style pizza, I can always go to Little Caesar's, right? ...just kidding. I'd go to Falcone's.
I'm really excited about Colin coming to visit next week. I got to see him for a few hours on Sunday on his way home from QuakeCon in Dallas. He, Mike, and I ate at Ted's (MMMMMM) and then went bowling. I'm really starting to get sick of not being able to see him, but I just have the rest of this week and then he's back in Oklahoma for the rest of the semester.
I'm really glad summer's almost over. I've been working almost every day for the last three months and haven't had much of a social life. My work schedule will change soon, though, giving me at least one day off each week, which should allow me time to visit Tulsa regularly. Aleithia is leaving :( , but Graham will be here for OU Med school, and Heather will be back from London, so hopefully I'll still have people to hang out with. I have gotten to know my coworkers better over the summer, too, so maybe I'll chill with them outside of work more often. Who knows?
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
My arms hurt.
That workout video I tried yesterday must have worked, 'cause I've been pretty sore all day. I think I'll keep it up for a couple weeks 'till I can remember the exercises and then do my own thing from there. I checked out another video from the library today, too. It's a yoga one. I might try that tomorrow.
So this weekend is Oklahoma's tax free weekend--Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. I want to go try out the new Outlet Shoppes at Oklahoma City that's opening Friday, but I don't want to deal with the crowds. I'll probably end up going anyway. I think I'll go by there after work on Friday, to sort of scope it out and make sure I know how to get there. Then on Saturday maybe (maybe) I'll get up early and try to beat some of the rush (I don't work that day). I'm really excited about this outlet mall! I love The Gap, but their prices are usually too high for me, so I always wait till I'm in Dallas to go to the Gap Outlet near there. Now I can go whenever I want 'cause there's one right in town! There are other stores I'm excited about too, like Banana Republic, Jones New York, Bose, and Disney, and the mall will also have an Orange Leaf and a Smash Burger! Woo!
Today I started a 2-month free trial membership to Barnes & Noble. I'm not sure if I'll want to start paying, but I figure I might as well get some discounts for 2 months, especially since I'm gonna start reading George R. R. Martin's series A Song of Ice and Fire. I was originally going to check the books out from the library, but the waiting lists are too damn long. Besides, from what I've heard and from watching the show Game of Thrones, I know I'll love them and want to own them, anyway.
So this weekend is Oklahoma's tax free weekend--Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. I want to go try out the new Outlet Shoppes at Oklahoma City that's opening Friday, but I don't want to deal with the crowds. I'll probably end up going anyway. I think I'll go by there after work on Friday, to sort of scope it out and make sure I know how to get there. Then on Saturday maybe (maybe) I'll get up early and try to beat some of the rush (I don't work that day). I'm really excited about this outlet mall! I love The Gap, but their prices are usually too high for me, so I always wait till I'm in Dallas to go to the Gap Outlet near there. Now I can go whenever I want 'cause there's one right in town! There are other stores I'm excited about too, like Banana Republic, Jones New York, Bose, and Disney, and the mall will also have an Orange Leaf and a Smash Burger! Woo!
Today I started a 2-month free trial membership to Barnes & Noble. I'm not sure if I'll want to start paying, but I figure I might as well get some discounts for 2 months, especially since I'm gonna start reading George R. R. Martin's series A Song of Ice and Fire. I was originally going to check the books out from the library, but the waiting lists are too damn long. Besides, from what I've heard and from watching the show Game of Thrones, I know I'll love them and want to own them, anyway.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Yay for exercise videos that aren't obnoxious!
Yesterday Melissa came to Edmond and we went to see Crazy, Stupid, Love. I loved it! I loved the characters, especially Steve Carrell's and Emma Stone's, and JOSH GROBAN had a small role, too! Ha! I did not expect that. He was really funny! The whole movie was. The climax reminded me of a Shakespeare comedy, the way everything was drawn together with secrets exposed in a flurry of confusion. It's definitely one of the best romantic comedies I've seen in a few years. One thing that makes it so satisfying is the realism of the characters' pain, which the actors all pulled off. Definitely as good as Love Actually (to which it is similar), if not better.
Last week I bought the new downloadable content for Dragon Age II. And I actually finished it the next day. It was quite fun. There were new locations, which was nice, since the main game reuses the same caves and warehouses over and over. And the new plot stuff was interesting, too. I love the Dragon Age writers. I'm ready for them to make another game that has the awesome combat of II with the more extensive plot of Origins. Then I can go back to wiling away the hours sitting at my computer!
Speaking of sitting, I didn't do much of that today! I had planned to get up at 8 this morning to go on a walk before it got too hot, but didn't get out of bed till 11. BUT... I decided to check out a work out video from the library. It's called "Fit in Your Jeans by Friday" with Kim Kardashian and her personal trainer. Lol. I don't care about Kim Kardashian at all, but the description on the back of the case made it seem interesting, so I tried it. I liked the trainer a lot! She was encouraging and helpful without being really annoying and overly energetic. And the background music isn't obnoxious, which is a plus. The video, which focuses on abs and upper body, had some hard bits, but it was mostly pretty easy. I'm gonna see if I'm sore at all tomorrow and if I am, then maybe I'll use some of the stuff in the video to create my own workout routine. I think creating a routine of my own would be good so that I can strengthen what I want to and do exercises I like. Listening to my own music would be nice, too.
I've started drinking tea again the last few days. It's nice. I should really keep it up, 'cause tea is good for you and it's yummy and it relaxes me. It also kinda reminds me of being in Ireland.
Last week I bought the new downloadable content for Dragon Age II. And I actually finished it the next day. It was quite fun. There were new locations, which was nice, since the main game reuses the same caves and warehouses over and over. And the new plot stuff was interesting, too. I love the Dragon Age writers. I'm ready for them to make another game that has the awesome combat of II with the more extensive plot of Origins. Then I can go back to wiling away the hours sitting at my computer!
Speaking of sitting, I didn't do much of that today! I had planned to get up at 8 this morning to go on a walk before it got too hot, but didn't get out of bed till 11. BUT... I decided to check out a work out video from the library. It's called "Fit in Your Jeans by Friday" with Kim Kardashian and her personal trainer. Lol. I don't care about Kim Kardashian at all, but the description on the back of the case made it seem interesting, so I tried it. I liked the trainer a lot! She was encouraging and helpful without being really annoying and overly energetic. And the background music isn't obnoxious, which is a plus. The video, which focuses on abs and upper body, had some hard bits, but it was mostly pretty easy. I'm gonna see if I'm sore at all tomorrow and if I am, then maybe I'll use some of the stuff in the video to create my own workout routine. I think creating a routine of my own would be good so that I can strengthen what I want to and do exercises I like. Listening to my own music would be nice, too.
I've started drinking tea again the last few days. It's nice. I should really keep it up, 'cause tea is good for you and it's yummy and it relaxes me. It also kinda reminds me of being in Ireland.
Monday, August 1, 2011
It's been a pretty busy weekend.
On Thursday, aunt Nancy came to Edmond on her way down to Abilene. She, my dad, and I went to Old Chicago for dinner (yummy), then went back to my dad's and watched Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 'cause Nancy had it with her and Dad still hadn't seen it. It was a nice, though short, visit.
Then that night, I went to see Cowboys & Aliens at midnight with Aleithia and Christiana. It was fun! The movie was pretty good. I loved the first half, but the last quarter was less impressive. The plot seemed to wrap itself up a little too easily toward the end, but I still liked it. The story is definitely a great western, with western themes, and the sci-fi element added in is a neat touch. Usually, when those two genres are combined, it's the other way around--sci-fi setting and themes with a western motif added (like in Firefly, Cowboy Bebop, or various episodes of Star Trek and Doctor Who).
The acting in Cowboys & Aliens was superb, and how could it not be with a cast including Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde, Sam Rockwell, and Paul Dano? I'm also starting to really like John Favreau as a director. He's racking up quite the list: Elf, Zathura, Iron Man, and now this. I'm glad they kept the campy title for the film, even though the film itself isn't campy at all. It is, after all, based on a comic of the same name. Plus, how much more straightforward can you get? I remember talking with Nancy earlier about how interesting it would be to have Indians & Aliens instead of Cowboys, noting how differently Indians would have reacted to an alien invasion. But, funnily enough, Cowboys & Aliens actually does include Indians (Apaches, specifically) and the film itself notes the difference in reactions. I was really impressed by that! I definitely recommend this film, but I do want to see it again to see if it holds up on a second viewing.
(I slept all afternoon/evening after work on Friday to make up for lost sleep Thursday night.)
Saturday, after work, I went to the Bowling for Rhinos event with other OZS employees at Boulevard Lanes. That was really fun! I hadn't been bowling in a long time, but I actually did fairly well. We were able to squeeze in 3 games, and on my last game I got a 126, which is really good for me! I got around 6 or 7 strikes during the evening and a few spares. It was definitely good practice. My arm was a little sore the next day, too. :P
Sunday was a pretty lazy day, but Dad and I watched 3 episodes of Rescue Me, which I'm borrowing from Colin. I'm really liking this show! It does have more sex in it than I'm usually comfortable with, but the show as a whole is worth it, and those scenes are almost always important to the plot or character development in some way.
Then that night, I went to see Cowboys & Aliens at midnight with Aleithia and Christiana. It was fun! The movie was pretty good. I loved the first half, but the last quarter was less impressive. The plot seemed to wrap itself up a little too easily toward the end, but I still liked it. The story is definitely a great western, with western themes, and the sci-fi element added in is a neat touch. Usually, when those two genres are combined, it's the other way around--sci-fi setting and themes with a western motif added (like in Firefly, Cowboy Bebop, or various episodes of Star Trek and Doctor Who).
The acting in Cowboys & Aliens was superb, and how could it not be with a cast including Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde, Sam Rockwell, and Paul Dano? I'm also starting to really like John Favreau as a director. He's racking up quite the list: Elf, Zathura, Iron Man, and now this. I'm glad they kept the campy title for the film, even though the film itself isn't campy at all. It is, after all, based on a comic of the same name. Plus, how much more straightforward can you get? I remember talking with Nancy earlier about how interesting it would be to have Indians & Aliens instead of Cowboys, noting how differently Indians would have reacted to an alien invasion. But, funnily enough, Cowboys & Aliens actually does include Indians (Apaches, specifically) and the film itself notes the difference in reactions. I was really impressed by that! I definitely recommend this film, but I do want to see it again to see if it holds up on a second viewing.
(I slept all afternoon/evening after work on Friday to make up for lost sleep Thursday night.)
Saturday, after work, I went to the Bowling for Rhinos event with other OZS employees at Boulevard Lanes. That was really fun! I hadn't been bowling in a long time, but I actually did fairly well. We were able to squeeze in 3 games, and on my last game I got a 126, which is really good for me! I got around 6 or 7 strikes during the evening and a few spares. It was definitely good practice. My arm was a little sore the next day, too. :P
Sunday was a pretty lazy day, but Dad and I watched 3 episodes of Rescue Me, which I'm borrowing from Colin. I'm really liking this show! It does have more sex in it than I'm usually comfortable with, but the show as a whole is worth it, and those scenes are almost always important to the plot or character development in some way.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)