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Mamma Mia

Saw the movie, loved it.

Now, as Kate Harding said, if you hate ABBA and or musicals, this will likely make you want to rip your own ears off. So I don’t recommend it for the ABBA haters.

But, although I don’t have ABBA on my heavy play list, I have never been anti-ABBA. There was a lot of twin hate of ABBA and John Travolta going on in my day, so I’m marking myself as profoundly uncouth - but I enjoyed a lot of disco nights in the 90s at the Commodore, and a lot of dancing at the Odd and Celebs. Plus, ABBA was one of the night time music choices on the mixed tape list at the coffee shop.

However, I think I would have liked this movie even if I had hated the music.

This was a romantic comedy. It may therefore have failed the Bechdel test, which requires that the movie:

1.Has at least two women in it,
2. Who talk to each other,
3. About something besides a man.

Which is a surprisingly hard thing to come by.

But it could be said that this particular movie also failed to have two men in it who talk to each other about something besides a woman.

It was how they talked that was earth shaking. So this fails Bechdel, but passes the Arwen test of not being total dickheads.

There was a romantic lead who had wrinkles. She was sexy and fun and vibrant, and very much someone we were meant to identify with. Ditto her quirky female friends.

There was may-december flirtation going, with the man in may.

It was a movie for women to watch and NOT feel like they come up a day late and a dollar short - even though very few of us have Meryl Streep’s figure and bone structure. It was meant for having fun with; nothing serious, just fun, but fun for and with in a way that just isn’t, usually. In a number that made me laugh in amazement, all the women of the village - including the stooped back old fat working woman - swarmed out and shook their bits to “Dancing Queen”, and it wasn’t meant to elicit othering laughter.

I think there’s something changing in the zeitgeist; new things are being said in pop culture.

Count me as “for”.

2008 08 27 Arwen Rants Comments (1) Permalink

If I were craftier, John wouldn’t have any T-Shirts Left.

Look at THESE!

2008 08 26 Arwen Rants Comments (5) Permalink

Oh, hi. Do I have a blog here? Huh.

It’s been a busy summer.

I haven’t seen friends much, and that sucks.

This week and next, I’m trying to shepherd 4 Big Big Big projects out into the world at Co-op. Baby steps, for all of them, but actually hitting targets and getting things out the door feels pretty good.

But: my god mom is coming, and I don’t want to be TOO busy.

Then, to follow up, it’s a three day novel, back to school, my mom’s birthday, and a Mole Hill BBQ.

Yargh!

2008 08 21 Arwen Rants Comments (4) Permalink

WANTED: one whiny white boy

Okay, this Wanted movie really isn’t my favorite. I mean, I’d been prewarned by reviews that suggested somebody had seen Fight Club, *really identified*, and then made it even white boy wankier. And that’s just true. It’s like being trapped inside a 16 year old boy.

But here’s the thing, ignoring that.

What the fuck they do to Jolie’s voice, eh? She sounds like a Chipmunk.

One of her best features is her voice!

2008 08 16 Arwen Rants Comments (3) Permalink

Omnivore’s 100, a meme.

MEME-Y GOODNESS from Rachel. What will you stuff in your face?

The rules:

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment at www.verygoodtaste.co.uk linking to your results.

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J Sandwich
14. Aloo gobi — I had to look this up on the internet, because I got confused. It’s the cauliflower and potato dish, not the traffic cone orange dessert.
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses - This is a cheese that does not appear to be blue cheese, so I would eat it. Because it’s CHEESE.
17. Black truffle - I just this month had truffle OIL. Does that count?
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns Oh, yum.
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries — There was one summer that my dad tried to derive the majority of his (vegetarian) diet from the wilds of Ontario. We ate cattails and puffballs ( a form of mushroom so delish with garlic butter that I want one right now ) and fiddleheads and flowers and berries.
23. Foie gras - Guh. Fatty organ meats. GAH.
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese - Said my grandfather to the vegetarian child: Oh, it’s cheese. The gagging was immediate.
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas - Didn’t like them, though.
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar - Brandy with a cigar, back in the day of my ex.
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O - The days of E’s Orange and Black Hallowe’en Vodka Shooters. We were so young and … drunk.
39. Gumbo - I was introduced to Okra in Gumbo. Slimy AND hairy!
40. Oxtail - I did grow up in the K-W. At a friend’s wedding reception, there they were.
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal - This is like HOTTEST CURRY KNOWN TO MAN, MELT YOU IN THE FACE food. I’m a spice wuss.
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more — no, but from a $70 bottle. No?
46. Fugu – this is the make your lips numb pufferfish. I’m not hugely marine adventurous. So, no.
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin - John had this. I’ve been warned.
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi - this is that pickley/salty red thing that’s in the middle of rice at White People Challenging Japanese restaurants.
53. Abalone
54. Paneer - It’s CHEESE.
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine - Okay, I know. Canadian, FRENCH-Canadian background, and no poutine. Even though it’s got cheese. I’m not terribly fond of fries, and I *hate* gravy.
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin - This appears to mean the mineral in Kaopectate.
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs (taste like chicken!)
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain - we ate a lot of this while I was growing up at my Dad’s, and I cannot make it taste good in my own kitchen
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini - Just recently, but I was sort of nauseated and not big on the caviar part.
73. Louche absinthe - I’ve had absinthe minus the wormwood, which can hardly be absinthe, right? Asses.
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom Yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant. — What about helping fund friends to do so?
85. Kobe beef - I’ve had things that claim to be Kobe beef in Japanese restaurants, but internet research says that it’s all special grow’d up. So maybe I didn’t.
86. Hare (taste like chicken!)
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse — I am phobic about horses. But if I were starving, I’d eat one.
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft Shell crab
93. Rose harissa — I’m going to go with a strong MAYBE. We got this condiment at the old Ethiopian place that used to be near Topengas that was so INTERESTING and COMPLEX and I have no idea what it was, but the picture looks right.
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano - Did you know my mom makes the best Mole outside of Mexico? You do now.
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster thermidor
98. Polenta - Dirty polenta eating hippies!
99. Jamaican blue mountain coffee- with a real certificate. Every year a small number of pounds of Jamaican blue are grown and a large number are sold. At $75- a pound, the year I had it via our friends at Canterbury (while I was working @ blenz). It really was the perfect coffee.
100. Snake

58/100.

2008 08 15 Arwen Rants Comments (5) Permalink

YIKES!

I got the magazine, today, with m’story in it.

The website still reflects the spring edition: I am in the summer edition. And you know what? I’ve read a lot of authors that say the moment that something gets published, you’re suddenly wishing like mad you could call do-over and do a rewrite.

Mmmm-hmmm. It’s different when in a format that looks like real writing. Sort of embarrassing, really.

A lot of authors also say things like “publication doesn’t really matter” and “you’ll just fret about something else”, and although I now understand that, having a first publication matters to me. It’s a baby step. It means I know subject from predicate, at least. It is a signpost that says there’s a path beyond the trees, if you just keep working at finding it and maybe have a little luck. The path may not lead to Man Booker, but it might lead to competence and more short stories in magazines.

However, in the REAL world, my fussy commas need trimming.

You know what’s cool? I wrote this story inspired by the painting style of a local artist. Storyteller magazine put (pencil) art with the story. The style that inspired me was transmitted through what I wrote and was re-interpreted by a different artist. So, so cool.

As part of this coming September, as I pry my life from my left brain, I am going to re-create this blog to be primarily about writing. Just documenting - the process, the exercises, the business - what it is to take myself seriously.

Whatever happens in terms of my ability to Write Fiction for Money, I am learning something big about paying attention. Regardless of where this journey takes me, I will come out of this working with words and stories and people in some combination, whether as a published author or somewhere else involved in the industry.

That’s most what matters.

2008 08 13 Arwen Rants Comments (9) Permalink

Three day novel contest

I’m doing it this year. I’m looking forward to it, too. Getting the outline done, and I think I’ll be well prepared.

2008 08 11 Arwen Rants Comments (5) Permalink

I broke something. So now we’re at this theme.

And I’ve got to get TinyMCE working again. Ignore me.

Tomorrow I’m going over the border for my yearly birthday road trip. I’m excited.

2008 08 07 Arwen Rants Comments (1) Permalink

Go for the Creepy Cake Bride. Stay for the holy cow.

-- From Cake WrecksAhhh! Can you imagine?

“Honey, I do.
Now, y’all can eat me.”

New favorite OMG site, Cake Wrecks: which only critiques the professional cake. In two categories:

well-done-but-why?

and

oh-my-god-what-is-that-thing!

2008 08 03 Arwen Rants Comments (4) Permalink

My conversation with SCRABBLE

I wrote to Scrabble, telling them I understood but didn’t agree with what they’d done removing Scrabulous from Facebook. That I recognized their legitimate right to the Scrabble game play intellectual property, but that moving from something that worked (Scrabulous) to something made by EA that isn’t great, looks like selling out the family kitchen in favour of McDonalds.

They wrote back, and then I replied.

Response (MO’R)  07/30/2008 07:26 AM (HASBRO)
Hi Arwen,

We understand your passion for the SCRABBLE brand.  In fact, we have been hard at work creating a variety of great new ways to enjoy SCRABBLE, from the classic board game, to playing in the digital space on the iPod, iPhone, pogo.com online game site, and now, social networking on Facebook.

Some people have asked us why we couldn’t coexist with Scrabulous, and compete head-to-head.  In the toy and game business, we have many legitimate competitors, and we welcome healthy competition as our industry strives to provide the best entertainment value for consumers everywhere.  Scrabulous did not represent legitimate competition.  Scrabulous was an infringement, it was unlawful, and we took the necessary action, similar to what the recording industry did when kids were posting music to illegal sites and allowing their friends to copy the music for free.  

As you know, Hasbro filed suit on July 24 to protect our intellectual property rights.  However, in deference to SCRABBLE fans like you, we waited to take this action until we had an authentic alternative to offer players.  We know that many of you are closely scrutinizing the new SCRABBLE application developed by Electronic Arts.  Please note that this application remains in a beta stage on Facebook, and both EA and Hasbro are monitoring feedback from fans, which will help us as we continue to improve the experience leading up to the official launch scheduled for the first half of August.

In closing, we want you to know that SCRABBLE is a very important game and brand for Hasbro.  We value the passion of our fans, and we promise that we will continue to innovate in providing the best SCRABBLE experiences possible.

Customer (Arwen B)  07/30/2008 11:50 AM
Scrabulous was an infringement, it was unlawful, and we took the necessary action, similar to what the recording industry did when kids were posting music to illegal sites and allowing their friends to copy the music for free.

Really? You want to associate yourself with the RIAA? Really? They’ve got the same fuzzy image that Darth Frikkin’ Vader has, and you’re going there?

And you know, you’re NOT like the RIAA, whose overall point I even agree with, even though they’re acting like a bunch of ham-fisted, stumbling and confused, ossified and creativity locked lawyer-hounds. Who likes the RIAA?

But Hasbro could have made a deal. Deals can always be made. The difference between kids downloading and redistributing music and Scrabulous is that the developers of Scrabulous MADE A THING, it was a GOOD THING, and that thing was their work - they did your “remix” version. This is more like how the Backstreet Boys stole bits from The Police’s Roxanne than it is random teenager downloading Roxanne for redistribution. This is more like Weird Al than standard music piracy. There’s value added.

Yes, they didn’t get your permission. You’re being right rather than being smart, here.

Scrabulous was work that enhanced your product - I got a scrabble branded calendar and bag for christmas last year, can you believe that? Why? I was playing Scrabulous. Scrabulous gave me brand loyalty for Hasbro’s Scrabble, including purchasing a Scrabble board and getting Scrabble items, that I’d never had before. It rebranded you: previous to that you were my GRANDFATHER’S game of choice. I wasn’t going to suggest to my friends - Hey! Let’s play Scrabble!. Right. Scrabulous, though? We’ve been playing that.

Your reply seems  … well, it’s my Grandfather’s reply. It’s not playing to your strengths and getting creative; it’s a defensive strategy that makes you look tired and scared. Which takes you back to unhip.

You may own the idea of wood tiles making words on a board, but there are a lot of word games out there. If the makers of Scrabulous twist the game play just enough to get it out of your IP range, what do you think will happen?
 

2008 07 30 Arwen Rants Comments (2) Permalink