Muppets – They’re back

We watched the new Muppet movie with a bit of apprehension.  Writers Jason Segel and Nicolas Stroller were better known for their bathroom humor in films such as Get Him to the Greek and Forgetting Sarah Marshall.  Their version of the Rat pack includes Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd and Judd Apatow.  So you have to wonder how these guys will pull off The Muppets.  However I am not one of those people who mistakenly state that the Muppets are kiddie-fare.  Hensen had quite a sense of humor - watch the first season of Saturday Night Live and you will see.  Even the original Muppet TV show has some subversive humor.  I loved it all.  I have loved everything Hensen and Frank Oz created (even Labrynth).  So, Jason and Nicolas had a hurdle with me.

Jason Segel is a Muppet fanatic and has wanted to do a movie for years.  Having read some of the incarnations over the past few years, I am glad it took a while to get the movie into development.  Everything had to be just right.  Although I had my doubts about his writing, I thought Jason as one of the stars was great.  His character Marshall on How I Met Your Mother is the perfect simpleton and goof-ball.  So we have to problem believing he has a muppet for a brother (Walter).

I was pleasantly surprised – this movie was fabulous.  Amy Adams is the sweet, mechanically-talented grade school teacher who is in love with Segel’s Gary.  They travel to LA for their 10^th dating anniversary.  They bring Walter, Gary’s muppet-obssessed brother with them and they visit the Muppet Studios.  There they discover the studio is in disrepair and a bad guy (Chris Cooper) is about to implement his dastardly scheme.  The rest of the movie is about bringing the Muppets back together and raising the money needed to save their studio.  There is singing, dancing, waka-waka jokes, and a lot of nostalgia.  The songs are often goofy and sometimes bittersweet.  I had a blast.  We all laughed, including my teenage son.  The audience we were with was obvious all having a good time. There are a dozen cameos and several inside jokes which will keep you watching.

Living here in Reno, there are some interesting jokes just for us.  Fozzy Bear is performing in Reno in a bottom-of-the-barrel casino.  His dressing room is the alley behind the casino where you hear gun shots followed by rain (boy, did that bring howls from the audience here).  Then when Fozzy is depressed and says he doesn’t want to go back to Reno there is an unexpected laugh I don’t think the writers planned.  Everyone in our audience had a good sense of humor and there was no offense taken (I think you need to have a certain amount of self-deprecation to survive in Reno).  FYI - the movie makers clearly have not been to Reno (except to get the fabulous shot of our arch).  It was cool though, almost like being in the movie (hee hee).

So, go see this movie.  Those who grew up with the muppets will enjoy the nostalgia and kids today will discover the amazing world of Jim Hensen.  GO!

Once Upon A Time...Maybe

I have been watching ABC's new TV show "Once Upon A Time" with a smidgen of hope and a dash of anticipation.  As a huge fan of Grimm's collection of fairy tales (the real ones not the tamed down versions) I found the premise compelling.  Reminiscent of Brigadoon, there is an enchanted town in Maine filled with story book characters...lost in time and space.  The "fairy tale" story is told in flashbacks to explain the modern-day actions of characters.  There are some familiar names, Snow White, Prince Charming, Wicked Queen, Rumpelstiltskin, Red Riding Hood, Grandma, etc.To avoid spoilers, I won't delve deeper.

I really like the fairy land story - more than the modern tale.  In general the acting, writing, and characters are fine but it's taking too long.  I might have liked the story better as a mini series a la "Tin Man" the SciFi channel produced a few years back.  I am finding myself exasperated by the drag factor.  Still, I plan on giving it some more time to grow on me.  I don't often watch episodic TV any more (primarily documentaries and fun stuff like Mythbusters) so maybe I am just not used to waiting for a plot line to finish.

I do hope it gets better. I still like the premise.

The Countdown

Only 56 days until Disney Land.  I don't care what anyone else says...DL is the happiest place on earth.  In the past 10 years I have been lucky enough to go 3 times...2001, 2007, and 2009.  In 2001 I was able to get a sweet deal because no one was travelling after 9-11.  In 2007 and 2009 I saved up and did extra side work to pay for the trips.  This year we saved and saved...I wasn't sure we would make it (I had yet another pay cut and could not work as much after hours due to my health).  But we cut back (a lot) and put every penny aside. Whoo hoo the trip is booked and I am overjoyed.  The boys like DL but not nearly the obsession of mine. Hee hee. I expect this to be our last DL trip for awhile.  William is more important and that boy is going to college!!

I am Number Four...NOT

We rented this sci-fi story based on a novel of the same name.  Aliens hiding on earth, running from an evil oppressor seemed right up our alley.  Alex Pettyfer plays John Smith, a young alien hiding with his guardian (Timothy Olyphant) from Mogadorians - a species who are violent like Klingons and obsessive like Borg (except they seek annihilation not assimilation).  Dianna Aragon plays the John's love interest Sarah; Callan McAuliffe is the geeky buddy Sam.  Teresa Palmer rounds out the cast as Number 6 (another alien).


I wanted to like this movie.  The story itself is fine, some of the dialogue is stilted and over-the-top obvious.  The dramatic pauses between the characters and also within the action are way too long.  Something which could have been accomplished in a glance in stretched out to an awkward moment.  Half of this film could have ended on the cutting room floor and been a much better piece.    I would expected more from director D. J. Caruso.


I liked Alex's John - although he brooded just a tad too much (maybe he should of watched James Dean in A Rebel Without a Cause for some hints on just the right amount).  I couldn't see what John saw in Sarah and Sam's character was a stereotype and should have been developed more (especially since he becomes so crucial).  The Mulder-wannabe is so much more than comic relief.  The character I really enjoyed was Number 6.  She is not on the screen much but has the most to say (figuratively as she barely speaks).  Plus, she really kicks butt!  The ending battle is by far the best part of the movie.


There is so much potential and but not enough is delivered.  I don't recommend this movie.

Broken Silence

So I haven't written anything in a while.  It's that horrid combination of tired and busy.  My health issues and it's medications certainly make "crazy-Vicky" a tad less hyper.  The asthma affected my voice, making it hard to sing and even talk.  Ironically, it seemed to affect even my hands and my ability to write my words.  It truly silenced me.  Hard to believe for I am rarely silent.

Silent no more :)

Good night, sweet prince

Today we lost the king of innovations, Steve Jobs.  Some of us are old enough to remember when he and Steve Wozniak built the first Apple in a garage.  I knew who Jobs and Wozniak were long before I used their products.  In the late 80’s – thanks to my now husband Russ - I entered the world of MUG – Mac User Group.  When we married, we had an Apple II GS.  Actually we still have it…along with the dot matrix printer...and a box of software (and everything in their original boxes). Russ and I worked on the Honolulu MUG magazine – learned desk top publishing on a Mac.  We have a box of “Lisa” stuff (die-hards will know what I mean).  We also have a bit of a shrine to the two Steve’s.  Although forced to also use PCs, we always have a couple of Macs floating around.  No, we don’t have iPhone or iPads, but that has much more to do with funds and dislike of providers.  Regardless, we have drunk the kool-aid and we are Apple fans.

Some of you may remember the fight between Jobs and John Sculley in 1985.  The power struggle led to Jobs resignation.  As sad as that day was, without it we would not have Pixar.  How many of you knew Steve Jobs is the creative genius behind one of the most innovative animation studios?   So we can thank him for the Toy Story and Cars movies.

Apple naturally suffered with one inadequate CEO after another until 1997 when Jobs again helmed his company.  In the last 13 years, Apple has again returned to the front of innovation and become the undisputed leader of technology.  This time Steve seemed to delegate better.  As it became clear a few years ago that he was ill, Jobs has hand-picked successors lined up and found other like him to continue the creative stream Apple had renewed.  His slow decline broke the hearts of millions.  Even if Apple lives on…it will never be the same.

You have given this world much in your short 56 years.   So Steve, rest in peace.  

one woman's thoughts

I use this blog to discuss entertaining issues and prefer to avoid the hard topics.  I prefer to not discuss anything sad or negative.  I have a wonderful therapist with whom I share the traumas of my life so I need not burden others.  Still, I wish to share my thoughts on this day.

I have to start with the fact I am weird.  Most of my friends know I am really weird.  One of my “special powers” is empathy.  I have since been defined are part Betazoid (empathic Star Trek TNG alien).  I don’t have normal empathy…like everything else in my life it is overly sensitive and just plain crazy.  I can tell you everything about the day in grade school when a plan went down into the Potomac River.  I can relive the crash and rescue with the images replaying in my mind as if I was there.  I am not psychic… just overly emotional…or nuts. 

The second part of my background is growing up military.  My family business is the military.  So many of us have been or currently are in the armed forces.   I chose another path, but the military is in my blood and I was acutely aware the danger our solders face. I have studied military history, watch the world events, seen the harsh realities beyond our country’s borders.  Long before moving to Hawai’i and visiting the USS Arizona I understood the events at Pearl Harbor and Hickam AFB.  Later, living on Fort Kamehameha, I passed the bullet holes remaining in the buildings every day.  I recall the 1983 Beirut Marine barracks bombing as if it was yesterday.  The 1989 ambush and murder of the Green Beret in the Philippines shook me to my core.  My father was a Ranger and a Green Beret.  I remember my first thought that day…where was my father? 

So I discovered on 9-11 that I was having a slightly different experience from those around me. Ironically I started the day in an unusual manner…watching cartoons.  Normally I have news on while getting ready for work.  I will flip between the locals and nationals catching me up from the night before.  For some reason I was watching cartoons with William, who was 6, and my husband Russel.  When I got into my car, I put on NPR as usual.  After listening for what felt like an eternity I shut off the car and ran back into the house.  I recall yelling to put the news on…I remember the howl inside my head.  I knew immediately it was terrorism – I had read enough intelligence in my days (non-classified) to know.  I also knew how it would end…

Then I realized I had to get to the office… I worked for a studies abroad program.  I do not remember driving but I remember the chaos.  The next several hours was spent fielding calls from frantic parents, while trying to remain calm myself.  Thousands of families wanted their kids home.  I had to explain they were safer staying put…then explaining there was no way home as all air traffic was grounded…listening to them cry while holding in my own agony.  I had friends in New York - I was sending emails to track down everyone I knew.  The TVs all showed the same images.  I felt the war zone atmosphere; I could feel the panic there and here.  All I could do was pray.  Then there was the Pentagon, for me that was even more emotional …I could only see my family, in uniform, in harm’s way.  The loss was unbearable.

The next day, when the immediate shock had waned, when I had heard the stories of my friends and family, as we learned the full extent of the horror…I discovered how many people in this country truly did not know things like this could happen.  Although most in the world of intelligence and terrorism thought an attack on our soil was a “when” not an “if” scenario most Americans were unaware.  Even military families were not always well-informed.  To this day I meet people who think Black Hawk Down was a cool military movie but not a real tragedy.  Today’s generation could not fathom what it meant to be a POW.  Even the USS Cole, blown up only a year earlier, was barely a blip in American news.  For the first time I understood that I was not merely fanatically empathic …I also knew about the evil lurking on our planet.  It was strange watching the rest of this country talk about losing their innocence…about having their core beliefs and sense of security shaken.  Although I felt excruciating pain that day and the year to follow, especially as I have to watch too many family members go to war, I did not have *that* feeling.  I did not have that innocence to lose or a feeling of security within our borders.  Initially I had a kind of strange anger…how could the rest of this country be shocked, how could they not know the danger out there, how dare they not realize we had already been under attack for year…but then I the anger went away.  Thank God they did not know.  I am glad most people were not news-junkies like me, not obsessed with the wars around us, and not conscience of the growing threat.  The fact that, for a short period of time, our people did have innocence - a peace.  Who wouldn’t want that?

Today the pain is still real.  The families who have lost their loved ones that day, God bless you.  To those who survived, God bless you.  To those who have gone to war, God bless you.  To those who have given of their mind, bodies, and lives…God bless you.  To those who continue to live every day, God bless you.  Simply surviving as a country and as a people means they did not win.  As hard as the last 10 years has been, we are a nation of liberty, freedom, strength and love.  Keep it that way.