Burgers, fries and a shake

Magnet #829 - Hamburger

To all those who have served, are serving, or will serve in our armed forces around the world, thank you. Right now, I'm kinda wishing I were home to find that magnet with field of poppies on it to celebrate this Memorial Day.

But, I guess I'll have to make do with this old-fashioned hamburger.

Now all's we need are the fries and shake!

Salisbury city limits

Magnet #828 - Salisbury, NC

Home, sweet, home. Even if I never actually made it to the square, and only to all points east of town - home. Best friend's house. The gas station up by Dunn's Mountain Church Road. Annnnnnd that's pretty much the extent of the less than 24 hours spent here.

But, you know what? Family, friends and good food? Yep, that's pretty much all you need.

Though, I realized why I moved away. Or, rather one of the reasons.

Dang, it's hot as hades up in this town!

Situation well in hand

Magnet #827 - Marines have landed*

Got up this morning at 4, to drive down to North Carolina for a quick visit this Memorial Day Weekend.

We stopped at the National Museum of the Marine Corps along the way, one of my favorite museums. Though I've been there before, I really do want to be able to spend more than a few hours at a time there. Those Marines have a long and storied, and storied, and storied, history.

The great thing about today was that half the crowd at the museum were the Ride to the Wall bikers. Awesome - I not only created my own Fleet Week, but totally found myself in an episode of Sons of Anarchy. It did leave me kinda wondering though, what the ratio is between military service and being in an MC, cuz I'll tell ya'll, there were a ton of boys in various cuts walking through the museum and in the parking lot.

I picked this magnet for today because it's one of my favorite quotes that lines the atrium wall of the museum - plus, it's fitting, since I'm pretty much waiting on my own set of marines to land and get my situation in hand.

*Richard Harding Davis quote

Hollywood and Joy

Magnet #826 - Hollywood Joy

Dudes. I have a whole half of a board devoted to these silly personalized magnets. I mean, discounting the fact that I love magnets with my name on them, I just want to keep collecting these for the cheesiness of it all. I never pass up a chance to pick one up.

So, yeah. A whole half of a board. And I'm thinking shoot, by now, I must have magnetblogged all of them before. Nu-uh. Dudes! I have like a dozen I haven't used! Whoa.

Also? Yay!

Anyway, I wanted to use this for today because tonight, I'm hoping to see Top Gun. I know! I love it, too! But more awesome than just rewatching the movie for the zillionth time?

Watching it on board the Flight Deck of the Intrepid! The Flight Deck! Of the Intrepid! I mean, I shoved off a whole road trip to NC to early morning Saturday, so that I could see Maverick and Goose take to the skies with "Danger Zone" underscoring the ride.

Top Gun was part of my group project for the lone film class I took at Carolina. Basically, we took pivotal scenes from various movies and re-scored them with different tracks. For Top Gun, we took out "Take my Breath Away," and inserted Jimmy Buffett's "Why Don't We Get Drunk and Screw." So funny how the scene takes on a whole different tone based on the score.

Hello. A+!

eta:
Mind you, when the (PG) movie first came out? I was just into my teens, and my parents refused to let me go see it in the theatres. They heard about the French kissing scene.

Uh. Yeah. I was like French what? Heh.

eta2:
Sigh. Looks like work just doesn't seem to want to agree with anyone. Guess I'll be packing (which I need to do anyway) with Maverick and Goose at my place, rather than the Intrepid. And, that's the way the cookie crumbles.

Reading IS cool!

Magnet #824 - Make Reading Cool

Woot! I'm off work today, so I can go to BEA (BookExpo America), and perhaps work on my back-up plan.

What's that plan you ask? I dunno, it depends on how much you like this blog. Heh.

Even though we all know I'm gonna end up on my blackberry on the exhibit floor (if I actually get off this sofa and stop answering emails, because apparently I enjoy playing the martyr), I'm totally gonna roam the BEA booths and see what they have to offer.

And? I'm gonna just wander the floor, rather than plan a course of action to see everything. Gasp! I know! I'm a rebel!

Seriously, I'm like a kid in a candy store at BEA, for a couple of reasons:

• First, because any trade show, is a good trade show.
• Second, fun swag.
• Third, free books. Though, this shouldn't count, since more often than not, I never end up reading them, I pass them along.
• Fourth, it's fun to see the Pomegranate stuff. Yes. You know I love them. One whole booth of well-designed heaven.
  
• Fifth, it's nice to visit the publishing world, and wonder if I should go back, and then determine that I'm too fulfilled by my marketing/advertising life to ever think seriously about going back. Insert sarcasm here, though, remember we learned last year that publishing and marketing/advertising are basically the same thing!
  

Anyway, I picked up this pin/magnet at last year's BEA - Ripple Reader is a kids eBook/eReader resource. Aside from the pretty colors and fun characters, I just love the simplicity of their mission statement.

Reading is cool!

S*#lmates, not so much

Magnet #824 - Dawson Leery

Would you believe that it was either this magnet, or using my last SoapNet swag magnet with the word HUNK on it?

Hunk. Just the very word makes me think Hunk Golden, or Sixteen Candles bohunk, or even that Preppy guidebook they pubbed in the 80s. Does anyone remember that pink plaid book?

Anyway, I know I'm being silly. But I needed something to giggle myself out of my moody broodiness and woefulness.

So I settle for Dawson Leery, because first, NCISGretchen has a new job on Rizzoli & Isles, and because Mercy was canceled, and because, well, just because.

It's here where I'll confess something surprising.

I totally rooted for Dawson and Joey.

No. I did. I can admit it.

I was Dawson/Joey all the way. All the way, up until Dawson read her journal. When he did that, I knew they'd never, ever be happy. No matter how cute they were.

After that? Hellooooo, Team Pacey.

eta:
And now I'm sad, because I just found out that Anne Sweeney's shutting down SoapNet. But after that HUNK magnet, I'll have no more SoapNet swag magnets!

Won't someone please think of the magnets!!!!

World of women

Magnet #823 - New York City Skyline

I heart NY. I've said it before. I'm saying it again. I just do. I wouldn't trade it for any other city in the world. Well, maybe London, but really, if I lived there, I'd just be visiting here.

So tonight, some friends and I went to an advance screening of Sex and the City 2, with a Q&A session with Michael Patrick King, the writer/director/producer of the movie, hosted by the American Museum of the Moving Image. (If you haven't been out to Astoria to visit, it's definitely a worthwhile trip to the outerboroughs.)

I've never been like a huge fan of the show, I mean, I liked it, saw every episode, and did the NYC tour, and I even wept at the movie (in the theatre, no less)...but I've never been one of the true-fans. Still, watching this movie was like hanging out with old friends - a fun two and half hours. The storylines were pretty good - I got teary when I was supposed to (and even when I wasn't), and I laughed when I was supposed to (and even when I wasn't).

But production-wise? In a word: lush. The movie, the locations, the costumes, the sets - all gorgeous and beautifully shot. It went big, and it was unapologetic about it. And that's what we love about this show, and our four friends.

The session with King was fantastic. I've never seen any interviews with him before, but he was the most charming, personable guy ever. He made a good movie and wrote a good script, and he knew it. In some odd way, he gets women, and he clearly understands this SATC phenomena that he's been a part of. During the last movie, he'd discovered a world of women, he said, after getting lost in his sea of nouns, trying to explain what made him expand the story beyond New York to Abu Dhabi.

Speaking of, the movie wasn't perfect - I totally had my issues with the Americans being typical Americans in foreign countries. There was a part of me that cringed when I saw the fearsome foursome running around in Abu Dhabi. I also don't buy into King's argument that because Samantha would be outrageous in Bergdorf's, it's ok that she was totally outrageous in Abu Dhabi - the implication being that we all just have to forgive her because...she's Samantha.

But, given that she is just being Samantha, I can pretty much dismiss it, and move on. Plus, I was provided enough distraction with the cool architecture/set design and the hot boys (in the form of Aidan, Smith, rugby boys, but also Max Ryan, my new old guy crush). So thanks for that!

Will everyone like it? Eh, who cares, it's still going to make a ton of glitter at the box office.

It's true - if you aren't on board by the time Manhattan turns into diamonds, leave the theatre. It's not for everyone, and as Michael Patrick King says, it doesn't have to be.