Ebullient, passionate, dedicated to her quest, Chef Julia Child changed the face of American cooking. Her cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, was a culinary bridge between two continents. Julie & Julia is a story of spirit, ambition, and a tangle of emotions. I love all the elements of this flick. Food and writing, I’m home! A Francophile, I adored the classic French architecture and café society backdrop. If you are a somewhat refined man or aspiring chef, you will appreciate Julie & Julia. If you are a chic, get ready to archive this latest ‘chic flick’ alongside Nora Ephron’s other great productions. In fact, it’s getting to the point if I see Ephron on the credits I know it’s a winner.
Meryl Streep…is there no end to this woman’s talent? Streep disappears from view with her perfect characterization of Julia Child. I see an Academy Award nomination on the horizon. Stanley Tucci keeps in step with Streep with his outstanding performance of Julia’s husband and most loyal supporter. Newcomer, Amy Adams showcases her actor range superbly… utterly charming and worthy company with Streep and Tucci.
Amy’s character, modern day Julie sets out on a quest to cook every recipe, 524, in Julia Child’s cookbook and blog it day by day for a year. The two eras play symbiotically like bread and butter. And speaking of butter…both Julia Child and her husband lived into their nineties…perhaps there is something to be said for beurre (butter) after all. Or maybe it is just that she was one of the fortunate that found and followed her passion… doing what she loved in life, a key ingredient in the recipe for longevity.
Hats off to producers for a movie almost free of offensive and unnecessary expletives. Tucci uses the ‘f’ word once. That one word threw the ratings on this movie into a different category making it not viewable to a certain age group. (lost revenue) Tucci could have said, “Forget them!” or any number of alternatives without losing impact. It was a relief not to hear God’s name taken in vain.
Julie & Julia satisfies but stock up on popcorn…watching all that delicious food being prepared makes you hungry!
August 13, 2009
Perseid Meteor Shower Falls Short in 2009
Plunk down in the open desert like a neon jellyfish tendrils spreading into the pitch, Las Vegas, Nevada is well known for its bright lights, big name stars and glam shows …but once a year a different kind of show can be seen just outside of town. The vast open space and dark skies of the desert provides the perfect platform for viewing the Perseid Meteor Shower. Over the years I have seen this show from a boat anchored at Echo Bay, sitting on a sunroof in the Valley of Fire, a hilltop in Sandy Valley, from the hood of a BMW up at Mt. Charleston, a Jeep bed in Pahrump and more. Sometimes it was a struggle to work around clouds and moonlight that diffused viewing, but always I was rewarded for my efforts.
2009 promised to be a banner showing. Web sites such as www.space.com and www.nasa.com promised up to 90 meteors per hour on peak viewing night August 12. For those of you that have never seen a meteor shower imagine a sky full of falling stars. It is the ultimate ooh and ah injection!
This year I was joined by a fellow California transplant and two visiting Chicagoans. We stuffed the trunk of the car with folding chairs, blankets, pillows and water and headed to the Valley of Fire about 30 minutes north of Las Vegas heading toward Utah. By 2:30 a.m., we were spread out facing north and slightly east, the direction designated for best viewing. There were a few cloud clusters, but plenty of open space. The clouds actually helped cover the quarter moon. We anxiously awaited our first meteor.
In the 4 hours, we saw only 20 moderate meteors collectively and maybe one long tail meteor in the bunch. Needless to say, it was pretty disappointing. It is possible we went out at the wrong time but generally, pre-dawn is the best viewing time. Not in 2009.
Some might say it was a complete waste of time and sleep, but even without the meteors there is nothing like laying back in the open space of the desert. The air temp was just right in the high 70’s, the silence relaxes every fiber of your being and there is nothing like being in the company of good friends…getting to know each other on new levels, reminiscing, laughing and just sitting side by side silently sharing the experience.
My dear friend Ron had never seen a meteor shower and I had hoped to bring him out to see it but sadly he passed away just a couple weeks prior. My friend Terese pointed out that Ron was seeing it all from a different view and that he was even closer to it than us. In that moment, we were all united in our hearts as we thought of Ron. He is home with God the creator of all the majesty of the universe. Somehow it all made sense. There are parts of space we get to view regularly and parts that show up now and then to amaze us but there is a place that remains ever elusive, waiting for our arrival. No space craft will take us there and yet we are all destined to go. As I sat next to my long time friend Terese and my two new friends, Ron’s sister and brother, Judy and Jim, looking up , I realized that there is a different kind of space, a space in the heart where friends become family. The Perseids may have fallen short but good friends go the distance.
2009 promised to be a banner showing. Web sites such as www.space.com and www.nasa.com promised up to 90 meteors per hour on peak viewing night August 12. For those of you that have never seen a meteor shower imagine a sky full of falling stars. It is the ultimate ooh and ah injection!
This year I was joined by a fellow California transplant and two visiting Chicagoans. We stuffed the trunk of the car with folding chairs, blankets, pillows and water and headed to the Valley of Fire about 30 minutes north of Las Vegas heading toward Utah. By 2:30 a.m., we were spread out facing north and slightly east, the direction designated for best viewing. There were a few cloud clusters, but plenty of open space. The clouds actually helped cover the quarter moon. We anxiously awaited our first meteor.
In the 4 hours, we saw only 20 moderate meteors collectively and maybe one long tail meteor in the bunch. Needless to say, it was pretty disappointing. It is possible we went out at the wrong time but generally, pre-dawn is the best viewing time. Not in 2009.
Some might say it was a complete waste of time and sleep, but even without the meteors there is nothing like laying back in the open space of the desert. The air temp was just right in the high 70’s, the silence relaxes every fiber of your being and there is nothing like being in the company of good friends…getting to know each other on new levels, reminiscing, laughing and just sitting side by side silently sharing the experience.
My dear friend Ron had never seen a meteor shower and I had hoped to bring him out to see it but sadly he passed away just a couple weeks prior. My friend Terese pointed out that Ron was seeing it all from a different view and that he was even closer to it than us. In that moment, we were all united in our hearts as we thought of Ron. He is home with God the creator of all the majesty of the universe. Somehow it all made sense. There are parts of space we get to view regularly and parts that show up now and then to amaze us but there is a place that remains ever elusive, waiting for our arrival. No space craft will take us there and yet we are all destined to go. As I sat next to my long time friend Terese and my two new friends, Ron’s sister and brother, Judy and Jim, looking up , I realized that there is a different kind of space, a space in the heart where friends become family. The Perseids may have fallen short but good friends go the distance.
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