Whine & Cheese

A New Year's Resolution for 2005?

I don't make New Year's resolutions. I know myself well enough to know that it is a pointless task. However (somehow you knew that was coming, right?!)...a couple of weeks ago (and before yesterday's post where I pretty much waved the white flag on having the killer bod of my dreams), I decided to set a new "fitness" goal...for 2005. So technically NOT a New Year's resolution!

I had grown up watching the NYC marathon every year. I always thought running a marathon was a cool (and yes, crazy) thing. That said, I have never been a "runner" anytime in my life...something that has not changed even after seven months at the gym.

But with the local publicity for the first ever P.F. Chang's Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon the idea of actually doing it crept back into my head... Well not exactly, a less loony half-marathon event is also being offered ...and that really seemed like an attractive alternative for someone like me...completing a 13.1 mile run would still be pretty darn satisfying on a personal level.

In the past couple of weeks, I started to run about a mile on the treadmill and even a couple of times around the neighborhood. The initial attempts were not bad...I survived. This past Sunday, I decided to push myself with a longer run - 2 miles. I was pleased with the 18 minutes it took to complete the loop ... certainly not speedy, but not bad for a newbie. I felt like I was going to barf up a lung afterwards...and ever since my body has been pretty much shouting "what the f*ck?!?"... Monday was a stiff neck, Tuesday was tight calves, and this morning everything moved to the middle with a sore left glute (ok, ass!).

We'll see where this goes... I know "pain" is part of the process and it is probably just something my body needs to work through and get used to...

Happy New Year to All... Best Wishes for 2004!

Let's Get Physical

I went to the gym yesterday and decided to get a "fit test" 6-month re-test... a benchmark for the upcoming year. I think the days of real big improvements are over.

The bad news: My cardio reading was way down from "excellent" to middle-range "good." I blame this partially on temperamental treadmills. I think I could go on five different machines and get five different ratings. Despite believing my biceps were getting bigger and stronger, my bicep strength was down 7% since June and still wallowing in the "fair" range. My flexibility was poor and remains poor with the "sit and reach" test...no real surprise there. My "overall fitness" score was also down 7% since June.

The good news: My body fat dropped .5% since June and remains in the "excellent" range. My skinfold "pinches" showed improvement in the chest, back, triceps, and abs. My "body age" is 4 years younger than my "chronological age."

I thought I had been doing pretty good of late and really expected better numbers. I guess I should just find my pre-gym days "report" and take comfort in that - or that at beginning of this year words/phrases like "body fat," "skinfolds," and "bicep strength" were not even in my vocabulary. Yesterday's results should have motivated me to work harder, but instead I just slunk out of the gym... [sigh!]
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Two more films to add on as "Movie Marathon Weekend" mercifully ends with the return of my other half this evening. One Hour Photo and Monster's Ball...or "hey-look-what-kind-of-acting-I-can-really-do!" from Robin Williams and Halle Berry respectively.

Both were good films and certainly not a waste of time. OHP was just creepy/uncomfortable throughout (as was intended)...it certainly makes one glad to own a digital camera as film developer Williams gets a little too attached to a photo-happy family. MB could not have been more depressing... just let's say the grim reaper visits often. Fine performances from Billy Bob Thorton and Berry... though for Berry, I don't think it was an Oscar-winning (worthy, yes) performance.

I'm "All In"

My latest TV addiction is watching poker. I knew these shows existed, but I never saw the appeal of watching it like a sport. As I have noted here in the past I do like poker, but video poker which I relentlessly playing video poker at the casinos (we won't talk about my disastrous results at the local Indian casino over the weekend -- this despite hitting a $200 royal flush on a nickel machine)...so I guess it was only a matter of time before I gave TV poker viewing a try.

It started innocently enough watching Bravo's latest hit show Celebrity Poker Showdown. It was fun watching the celebs (especially the all West Wing episode) play the game... No Limit Texas Hold'em. Then, I decided to see how the real pros play -- so I TiVo'd an episode of the Travel Channel's World Poker Tour. Now this was some serious and entertaining play... with a few bloop-bloops of the TiVo I set a Season Pass...and ended up with 8 hours worth of WPT episodes during their day-after Christmas marathon. While I admit to some WPT fatigue, now that I am "caught up" I am pretty sure I will keep watching.

I don't think I could every play it for real. Heck, I have never even played poker socially. First, I am still a little shaky in understanding the betting (ante/call/raise) aspect. Next, I am fairly intimidated by any casino table games. I have played blackjack on rare occasions, but could not imagine playing against a group of people. Finally, I don't think I could muster up any kind of "poker face" -- it is clear while watching these poker shows that the game is largely a psychological battle.

I am not a good liar. Heck, even hen Todd called in from his post-holiday trip he knew within 5 seconds that something was wrong. Going waaaay off topic, had another household dog fight over food bowl possessiveness on Friday night... with my calf being chomped into while trying to break it up. I'll live... but if anyone has doggie advice go here for the full story.

"Angels" Final Thoughts/Taking a Spin on "Mulholland Drive"

I never did give my final thoughts about Angels in America. Many posts back I
expressed my fairly conservative praise for the first half of the HBO production, but the second half revived my belief that it is one of the great works of my lifetime.

There is a lot going on and I think it took watching the second half to help me mentally clean up some of the perceived messiness of the first half. Despite the depressing subject matter, "Perestroika" turns Kushner's piece into a story about hope, survival, and living (with a little good vs. evil thrown in...Prior surviving, Roy dying). One of the themes (motif?) that really struck in the movie version was that of finding help in unexpected places: Mormon mom Hannah Pitt with Prior, Belize's tough love approach to the dying Roy, Roy's unused AZT stash to help others, Louis helping Joe come out. I could go on (though probably not very eloquently), but overall this is a very rich and challenging piece...deserving of much of the praise it has received. I am glad I did not end up being disappointed.

However, I think I had such strong memories of the seeing it on stage since it was one of the rare occasions I felt the sense of the local gay community. Needless to say, the "family" is a big supporter of the theater anywhere you go...but here in relative surburbia, you feel like very visible minority. Two guys at the theater draw very different conclusions than the same two guys at a baseball game (to be "Seinfeld-ian," not that there is anything wrong with that). The theater seats here are mostly filled with groups of women, wives dragging husbands along for payback for all the sporting events offered in this town, or families (for those Disney productions). So when Angels hit town 5-6 years ago, it was very empowering to sit with a full audience of what had to be 70%+ gay males.

I think that is why watching the movie version in my living room carried the burden of extra expectations... nothing HBO or Mike Nichols or the actors could do could replicate that experience. That is why I think the stage is such a vibrant and irreplaceable vehicle...raw and unedited acting (or singing) combined with the instant, spontaneous, and constant gauge of an audience.

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Movie mania continued last night with Mulholland Drive -- what a total mind f*ck!! But I guess I should have known that since it was "Written and Directed By David Lynch." I was keeping an open mind trying to piece together this movie... eventually this would all come together and make sense, I said to myself...ok, this is weird, very weird but keep going with it. Then about two hours in (and with 20-30 minutes left), Lynch completely turns over the apple cart...my mind is spinning, trying to mentally stay above water with the new "reality"...but before that could totally happen for me it was the dark screen and closing credits! What the f*ck?!

I immediately rushed to my computer for assistance. Sure enough I found some amateur (but expertly presented) help about the film. In minutes, my impressions of the film went from thinking it was an incomprehensible mess to simply a masterful work. I am pretty disappointed in myself that I needed what amounts to the "Cliff Notes" to get it...at one point in my life I thought myself to be a pretty good film connoisseur (was pretty close to getting a film minor in college...for all that would have been worth). I probably should have been more patient and let my mind process what I had just seen...but in this age of instant gratification, the Internet was a too tempting a source.

[WARNING: Do not go to this site if you have not seen the film or do want to see it]
Mulholland Drive: A Visual Analysis was an incredibly effective deconstruction of the film. While I am sure there are dozen more interpretations, this one cleared away the cobwebs and got the mental light-bulbs popping very quickly.

I am sure I will give Mulholland a second viewing with my new knowledge in hand. This is a movie that does not spoon-feed you every little piece of information and has a staying power beyond yesterday's newspaper. Most films these days don't do that...heck, 80% (90%?) of the time the trailers give away the entire the film.

While I like the breezy romantic comedy as much as the next guy (or should I say "gal"?), I think I should certainly make more of an effort to track down films that make me think...or at least make me need to race to the Internet to learn more.

Movie Reviews

One of my plans to counteract boredom over these next few days was to catch up on some movies. Yesterday afternoon I met up with one of my few in-town friends who I had not seen in awhile to catch a movie in the theater (something I also had not done in awhile)... and around 9:30p (still twiddling my thumbs) watched one of the many movies I had TiVo'd in anticipation of my weekend ennui (fancy word, huh?!). So anyway, here are my thoughts:

Something's Gotta Give - A pretty cute movie of finding love (or sex) after 50. Basically, Diane Keaton is playing "Diane Keaton" and Jack Nicholson is playing "Jack Nicholson." I don't know if writer/director Nancy Meyers wrote these roles specifically for these two actors, but in the end both parts were surely customized to play into the leads' strengths (or comfort zone). Props to both of them for not shying away from some gratuitous nudity! I think we have Kathy Bates from last year's About Schmidt to thank (or not) if this becomes a trend for the older actor sect.

I was kind of hoping for the non-predictable ending (who Keaton's character would end up with...Nicholson or Keanu Reeves...is this really a decision?!)...but this is a mainstream Hollywood film, so I guess I should have known there would be no surprises. Plenty of good laughs along the way. Amanda Peet's (playing Keaton's daughter) had the most distracting eyebrows that I have seen in some time...I could not focus on anything else while she was on screen. And it was great to see the always delightful Frances McDormand (playing Keaton's sister) who did a great job in a pretty small role.
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Wet Hot American Summer - Now I really wasn't expecting a good movie here...but this was truly awful (I even feel asleep during for the last 20 minutes). I thought it might be a fun spin on the 1980s with a handful of B-actors that I do enjoy... Janeane Garofalo, Frasier's David Hyde Pierce, SNL's Molly Shannon and Amy Poehler, Michael Ian Black (I don't watch NBC's Ed, but get a kick out of Black's commentary on VH-1 70s/80s flashback shows), Chris Meloni, and Paul Ruud (best known now as Phoebe's fiancee Mike on Friends).

I am glad smell-o-vision does not exist, because this one would have stunk up the
place. The only redeeming aspects were a few scenes of Ruud wearing nothing but
cut-offs. Ruud tends to chub out at times, but he was looking pretty darn fine in this one.

Post-Holiday Blues

Experiencing the post-holiday letdown...I am sure I was not alone in feeling pretty "wound out" by yesterday. So much effort for what ends up benig such a small period of time.

I am also experiencing some people/pet withdrawal. Less than 24 hours ago, the house was buzzing with 4 people and 5 animals...and now it is down to 1 person (me) and 4 animals...and it is going to remain that way for a bit. So the next 5 days or so will probably be filled with too much internet, tv, and sleeping and probably not too much eating (I am not good at feeding just myself) and general lack of productivity.

Overall, Christmas was a success. Good food and gifts. My tally included: CDs (Bette Midler and "best of" compilations from Bruce Springsteen & Sheryl Crowe, mini/portable TV, Calvin Klein cologne, two buildings for my burgeoning Christmas village, two cookbooks, and Calphalon cookware. Not bad, huh?!

The Dreaded Christmas Letter

Well, today ended up being a busier than expected "work" day...so little time to do an "original" blog -- so I guess it is time to do the "cop-out" and post the annual Christmas letter that went out to my friends/family this year. I even mention blogging!

First off though, Happy Holidays to everyone who stumbled onto this blog. For those of you who have become regular readers, a big thanks! Your words, comments, etc. (even those anonymous hits) have been encouraging for what started out to be my own little personal experiment. I have enjoyed working things out or just having some fun recounting the daily goings-on in my life....my own "living history" (not just you Hillary R. Clinton!) down in print.

I will be around for the holiday...after spending tomorrow and Christmas Day with my extended family I will be solo for a few days...so I am sure I will turn to Blogger as a diversion.

So without further ado... The Christmas Letter!

Ed’s 2003 Yule Blog

The hot trend this year is blogging – folks keeping what amounts to personal diaries on the World Wide Web. So, I offer the original “blog” – the annual holiday newsletter!

Mid-Life Crisis Hits? – In May, I joined a health club. I do not know exactly why. Was it now or never to finally get into shape? Or was it that the new 3+ acre club a mile away looked pretty cool? Whatever the reason/motivation, it ended up being a smart move. Six months later, I am probably in the best shape of my life. I lost a good deal of body fat (just because you are thin, does not mean you that you don’t have fat!), while gaining desirable “lean mass” (that means “muscle” in gym-speak). Don’t worry, I won’t be turning up on the cover of a fitness magazine any time soon.

The Circle of Life – Had some sad times over the summer, as my first cat Maggie passed away. It was a quick decline with what was thought to be some form of cancer. I adopted Mags back in 1990, very shortly after my arrival here in Arizona, so she there with me during some major life changes. Later in the summer, Maggie’s “successor” joined the household…a very sprite and bouncy grey tabby kitten named Lola. It did not take long for Lola to make friends with my elder feline Marius and work things out with the dogs, Mindy and Toby.

Viva Las Vegas – The big trip this year was an extended weekend in Sin City. Saw a bunch of great shows: Cirque de Soleil’s very risqué “Zumanity,” the Gospel Brunch at the House of Blues, and the hottest ticket in town – Celine Dion’s “A New Day.” Made the trip by car for the first time ever…so got to ride right across the impressive Hoover Dam. Best yet, I won about $600!

Other Stuff – Entertainment is still chewing up a lot of the “disposable” income. Had another full season of AZ Diamondbacks baseball games… a bunch of concerts (The Dixie Chicks, Annie Lennox, and next Shania Twain)… still going to the theater (“The Full Monty,” “The Producers,” “Mamma Mia!”). If you watch TV and use your VCR – go out and get a TiVo recorder now, it was the “How did I ever live without it?” product purchase of the year!

Have a great holiday season and best wishes for 2004!

Shania Past, Hillary Future

Had a good time at the Shania Twain concert on Friday night. Shania definitely wins the "Miss Congeniality" award -- starting the show off wearing an AZ Diamondbacks jersey and finishing off w/ a Phoenix Coyotes jersey (she apparently wears hometown sport jerseys in each city), raising money for a local children's charity, and shaking hands and signing autographs as she circled her "in-the-round" stage. In a moment that would make any mother proud, she always said "thank you" (even mid-song) when gifts were handed to her from the crowd. None of her wildly sexy trademark outfits were on display, Shania instead opted for "girl-next-door" simplicity.

The show however did little to dispel any thoughts that Shania is a "studio" artist - in other words, her vocals get a lot of help in the recording process. She is certainly a competent singer - I just don't think she would get very far in say an American Idol-type competition. But nevertheless, I respect artists the most who sing, write, and play their own music (though Shania did not pick up a guitar on Friday -- and with a 9-member band I guess there was little reason to).

The night was filled with all of her catchy hit songs. While there is some truth in what the local critic said about them ("Twain's catalog has the musical staying power of a Chinese meal"), they met all the criteria of what makes good pop music. Yes, pop music. This concert rocked and popped - leaving much of Shania's country music roots, in my opinion, floating somewhere in the dust.

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My next "celebrity" run-in will be no other the Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton! Saturday's newspaper informed us the Clinton would be stopping in town on January 5th for a book-signing. And while it is no surprise that our household already owns a copy of Living History, we jumped at the opportunity to purchase a couple of more copies and meet her in-person. We already have our "place in line" reservation -- 173 & 174. Our local independent bookstore must be loving this...with those 170+ books sold in just a couple of hours after the opening on Saturday.

The Clinton office put some serious restrictions on the signing. A maximum of 900 books (this is apparently the number of books "Hill" can whip through in 1.5 hours), no personalization just a signature, 2 book maximum and only books purchased at this store, no other books or memorabilia signed, and no photos. But nevertheless I am pretty excited to have my allotted 6 seconds with the Senator and former First Lady.

For an alternate account of these events, please click here...in one household there are only so many thing to blog about!

Pre-Holiday Weekend

Having trouble staying motivated work-wise... I think everyone is just about ready to "call it in" and just get on with the holiday already...eke out the rest of today and then hang in there on Monday and Tuesday...we can do it!

Weekend plans include the Shania Twain concert tonight and then just finishing up the holiday preparations -- which really isn't all that much. Shopping is all done and and everything is wrapped up...wrapped up very badly mind you. My gift wrapping ability ranges from adequate to horrid...my final gifts were more the latter...from incorrectly measuring how much paper was needed to fully cover the box to ending up with seemingly yards of paper to try and fold up the sides (which I think resemble life-size origami french hens at this point). Oh well, I guess my wrapping is part of the "charm."

Otherwise, just picking up stuff for the holiday meals. For Christmas Eve, a New Mexican feast of posole and carne adovada is on tap. For Christmas Day, it is a roast with various side dishes (in other words, I am still not exactly sure). For desserts, I am planning on cheesecake cookie squares (recipe from Grandma) and apple cake (recipe from Food TV's Rachael Ray)...and maybe some pumpkin oatmeal cookies (recipe from box of pumpkin bread).

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The latest odd searches that lead people to this blog:
"saddam chia pet"
"saddam got run over by a reindeer"
"funniest version of holy night"

I'm All Shook Up

I am currently listening to an early Christmas gift... Elvis Presley's: If Every Day Was Like Christmas. As you may have already read, I am picky about my Christmas music...but I think this one is going to stay in the CD player through the holidays.

I am a very late arrival on the Elvis bandwagon. Growing up he had little, if any, impact on me. There were not any Elvis albums in our family collection (granted there was hardly any music other than my own). Elvis died when I was fairly young. I remember the hysteria surrounding it. But I wondered what all the fuss was about over this fat, has-been, pill-popping, kitschy Las Vegas singer.

These days, I can't get enough of him. I don't when or why the change occurred. Maybe it just took some time for the appreciation to grow... getting past the "fat" Elvis and discovering his rockin', soulful, catchy, and sexy distinctive sound. Elvis was an original...something I think that is sorely lacking in most of today's music. But thousands of peformers owe a "thank you, thank you very much" for his groundbreaking music, style, and mannerisms (where would 90% of today's artists be if they could not swivel their hips on television).

On our recent car trip to Vegas, I burned my own "greatest hits" Elvis CD merging ELV1S 30 #1 Hits (my first Elvis CD/album ever) and its follow-up ELVIS 2nd To None. What a perfect soundtrack for tooling around the city where Elvis is still very much a palpable presence...all we needed was Danny from NBC's "Las Vegas" along for the ride to make things perfect [sigh]...but that is probably better left for another post...or maybe not [evil grin]!

From the CD player to the "Aloha From Hawaii" white-jump-suited ornament hanging on the tree...Elvis happily lives in my house this Christmas.