The Krays: Movie Review

This is one of the best movies I've seen in a long time. I've wanted to see if for years, but hadn't gotten around to it. And yes, I admit that the only reason I wanted to see if was because the Kemp Brothers star in it and yes, I am a huge Spandau Ballet Fan.

Anyhoo, turns out this is a really excellent movie. It's really well done. Well acted, well cut, well directed, and at times, a slight bit arty, but not to the point that detracts from the story telling. It's just really good. And yes, there are parts that are hard to watch for the sadistic brutality of what is happening, but still, worth watching.

If you like gangster movies, this is a good one. Very compelling.

Fablehaven - Book Review

I just finished reading Fablehaven by Brandon Mull and really enjoyed it. I picked it up on impulse at my local library. I didn't have much time to browse because my 6 yr old son was with me.

Anyway, it's a teen oriented book (characters are teenagers), but by the end I was totally into what was going on. I liked the world Mull created. It's simple, but nice and dramatic at points. I'm actually interested in getting his next book in the series, though I'm not sure my library has it (will have to check).

Anyway, it was a quick easy read. Not too deep, but definitely satisfying and just what I needed after the slog that was 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea

I actually love the litter box now!

We are cat people. And as all cat people know, the litter box is a pain in the patootie.  Well, not anymore. I really can't say enough about how much I love the new Breeze Litter Box by Tidy Cat . I've sung it's praises to complete strangers in the market and encouraged my friends with cats to transition to it. It's wonderful.

I've owned cats my entire life. And the worst part about them is cleaning the litter box. No one wants to do it. It's stinky and smelly and even though we all know we are supposed to clean it a couple of times a day, no one does. I think all cat owners agree - we do put it off. And then, there's the fact of litter tracking.  It doesn't matter where you put it, you end up with bits of litter all over your house. With Breeze, there is no litter tracking.

Here's what I like about it.  It's easy to use. My cats love it (no transition problems at all). In fact it became their favorite litter box and they stopped using the other one entirely. There is no pee to scoop up. It drains down into a pee pad beneath - which you just toss into the trash (don't even have to touch it).  The "litter" is actually little clay pellets.  And when the cat poops, they don't cover it. So, yes, it does stink, but that's good because it encourages you to scoop the poop immediately and toss it into the toilet for flushing!  Which, lets face it, I don't know anyone who actually flushes flush-able cat litter.

Anyway, yeah - super clean. No nasty smells. No avoiding the litter box because it's nasty and you don't want to deal with it. And NO litter tracking.  Yes, it does cost a bit more then regular boxes, but after about 6 months of using one, I can say, I would never go back to old fashioned litter ever again.

The litter itself is good for one month. And each bag of litter is exactly what you need. So no over or under-filling at all. The pads are good for about a week each (unless your cat is a super pee'er), so one bag should last you a month.

At the end of the month, since you are tossing all the litter out, you simply clean out the box, squirt it down with disinfectant and then put it all back together again.  It is so easy to maintain it's actually a joy to maintain and so you end up maintaining it like you are supposed to, which - is nothing short of a miracle when you are talking about litter boxes.  If you have a cat - do yourself a favor and get yourself one.

Freakin Awesome!!!

I've just seen The Mummy Tomb of the Dragon Emperor for my 3rd time in as many days. My son, who is six, is currently in love with this movie.  I have to agree. It's friggin AWESOME!  There are Yetis.  Awesome, kick ass yetis. The big battle is between terra cotta warriors and a bunch of zombies. The zombies are the good guys. And it's awesome! There is nothing not to like about this movie.

Extra special bonus, my son has been completely obsessed with Emperor Chin for about 1/2 a year now and with the great wall and with the Terra Cotta Warriors. And so, putting that all together into a mummy movie?  He's in heaven.  And yes, he is aware that the real emperor probably wasn't mummified and wasn't turned into Terra Cotta, he just loves the idea of it.  Oh - and did I forget to mention that the evil emperor guy has super powers?  Yeah - he can control the elements. As far as evil bad guys go - he rocks.

Spoiler alert - The Yak, yacks. It's funny. Trust me.

The Introduction was the best part of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

I did enjoy this book and I'm glad I read it but ... the introduction by Ray Bradbury was the best part of this book. If you are going to get a copy to read - get this one - specifically for the introduction. As for the book itself, well, the action parts and story line are great. The problem is that Verne seems to have felt that he needed to include every single bit of background research he did into the book. He didn't seem to waste anything he had found in in his research.. He goes on for several pages listing the types of fish that can be found in a particular area. Whenever we come across a sunken ship we are treated to several pages of the history of the ship and the ships that preceded it into whatever cove we are in along with who actually made it back to make the report. Some of this stuff is interesting, but mostly, it's unnecessary filler. I found myself skipping over the taxonomic lessons and skipping to the actual story line.

The story line is great. Totally enjoyed it. Spoiler - they get attacked by 10 giant squids, not one. They also get trapped under the ice at the south pole and have lots of other adventures you don't see in the movies. All in all a worthwhile read, but it is a bit tedious because about half of the book is devoting to listing fish and their attributes (this one had a spotted tail with a blue underbelly, the next one had rings and a white belly and on and on and on.)

Do I recommend it? Well ... yeah - good story, better then what they show in the movies, you just need to gloss over the endless filler.

Raisels - where have you been all my life?

I was at Walmart today. Don't give me grief - I refuse to feel guilty about it. I can buy locally grown chicken there for half of what I can buy brand name chickens at a supermarket. Anyway, I was in the dried fruit section when I saw a package of Raisels sour orange.  I was drawn to it. I wanted it. Still, it could be horrid. Should I try it?  Then I realized they also had sour watermelon.  I must try these!!!!

So I asked an old man walking past his preference - orange, obviously.  Got it, brought it home, fell in love.


Here's what this stuff is like. It's a raisin dusted with natural orange flavor and sugar.  It's tastes like you are eating a sour orange candy gummy, except, your actually eating an raisin. It's simply delish! Ingredients are actually quite good. Not as good as a plain old raisin, but way better then sour candy. Raisels Sour Orange contain  Golden raisins, sugar, natural flavor, citric acid, ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and sulfur dioxide (standard for all dried fruit).  Not bad.

So, if you are  fan of sour candy, but would actually like to be eating something somewhat healthy - check these out.  I am so totally getting the sour watermelon next time I am at the store.