All Roads Lead To Rantville

Now Playing: The Bravery - Hot Pursuit

I finally saw a play, & one that wasn't being produced by my high school at that - Hamlet by the Soulpepper Theatre at the Harbourfront Centre. It was awesome, really - the acting was note-perfect; intriguing, rivetting and immensely entertaining. The only weak link, if there was one, was the actress playing Ophelia, Patricia Fagan - and it wasn't so much that she was bad as the fact she seemed noticeably less intense than the other actors. Still, it was a hugely edifying experience, and it did afford me the opportunity to swan about the house and proclaim my immense cultured-ness -

Me: Look! I'm all cultured-like!
Family: Sadly, you didn't get all gramatical-like at the same time.

Oh, and the fencing was soooo cool, I was totally fan-girling. :D

So, rerun-hell has mostly ended & we have been granted fresh episodes of all the TV I'm woefully addicted to - so far House, CSI, ER. Let me just say that "Bros before hos, man!" is ample proof that the secret to a great line is not in the writing, but in the delivery.

Anyway, the thing about medical dramas and science-oriented shows that really bugs me is the exposition. You know, when two doctors discuss and explain the patient's condition in easy-to-understand terms for all the laymen watching? Granted, it's necessary, but it's just so clunky! I mean, here are two science professionals who should know all these details, so why are they even talking about it? I mean, every time I watch one of these shows, the exposition jars me out of the moment. *mutter grumble mutter* Anyhow, while I'm on the subject of TV-peeves, I may as well take the opportunity to bitch about how bloody annoying laugh-tracks on sitcoms are. I mean, it's like the show is telling you, "okay honey, this is the part where you're supposed to laugh - just in case you didn't notice how funny that line was." Okay, you know what? I'm not laughing cause your show ain't funny, jackasses!

So yeah, the problem with laugh-tracks is that they're incredibly patronizing, and there is nothing that annoys me more than people who patronize me, or tell me what I should or should not be doing, or talk down to me. I mean, it's the ultimate sign of lack of respect, isn't it? Gah. You know what? I respect other people, for the most part, and people who don't accord me the same respect - y'all can just fuck off.

Whoa. I have no idea where that rant came from, but I'm feeling a lot better now. Ze steam, she has left ze building!

Oh, and Hem is back! Again! :D

Off now. Ta!

More Pointless Blabbering for the Masses

Now Playing: Erik Satie - 1st Gnossienne

After the quizfest that was my last post, I think I've got the quiz bug out of my system. On to more pointless blabbering for the masses!

In the aftermath of the beef-in-black-bean-sauce debacle, I decided I had to get back in the culinary game, so I enlisted the help of Thangam Philip's Modern Cookery, Volume 2. Now, this is probably the oldest cookbook we have - it's tattered and falling apart, the instructions are no-nonsense & text-only, but the recipes work! My first attempt was a pork curry - took forever to prepare, but turned out alright. It got me to thinking - Indian Cooking is really dependent on women having nothing better to do. I mean, the pork curry took me around three hours from start to finish - what with frying, blending and simmering - and this is today, when we have electric blenders and ready-ground spices, as opposed to when you had to grind the spices yourself using a heavy grindstone. Anyway, my latest effort, Chicken Rogini is my masterpiece - it's chicken in a creamy yogurt and cashew sauce. Deeelicious!

New TV show with potential: Prison Break. The first hour was a bit annoying - "watch Wentworth Miller and his steely glare!" - but as the second hour progressed, and it turned out that jail is a bit much for even Michael "anticipate-every-contigency" Scofield to handle - well, I'll be watching from now on. It doesn't hurt that Wentworth Miller is really easy on the eyes.

Finally saw Paheli & I loved it (except for the gratuitous CGI). It's photographed beautifully, and Shah Rukh Khan and Rani Mukherjee are awesome together (plus SRK in a moustache? teehee!). Also saw Dus. The less said about that one, the better. I mean, it has Abhishek Bachchan and Zayed Khan (who can't act, but he's easy on the eyes) but the sheer implausibility of the plot and the emphasis of style over substance ruin a movie that could have been pretty darn awesome.

Sanjay Dutt and Abhishek Bachchan in Dus (Indian anti-terrorism agents never take off their holsters, not even at the office,and yet, the lines of their suits aren't ruined.)

Zayed Khan in Dus (he doesn't take off the shades even when he's defusing a bomb and he emotes like he's stoned, but hey, he's cute!)

That's it for me - ciao, people!