XIII | TRAILER TUESDAY | XIII

The Art of the Steal (9/11/2013):

This movie was already released, but I hadn’t come across the trailer until last week. It looks to be a Canadian release, so I’m uncertain just when it may show in theaters in the States. I like a good majority of the cast, especially Kurt Russell. Something about that Jay Baruchel guy weirds me out, though. He is so scrawny. That aside, however, I think this looks like a good movie. Nothing really original, but may prove to be entertaining. I’d even chance a theater viewing.

Big Ass Spider (10/18/13):

I couldn’t help but post this. I really like Greg Grunberg (of Alias and Heroes) and I recognized his likeness on the poster before looking up the cast. This looks like an over-the-top, campy movie that you aren’t meant to take seriously and one that even pokes fun at itself. It reminds me of Eight Legged Freaks, which I haven’t seen yet because honestly spiders creep me out! At least this movie only focuses on one Godzilla-sized spider? This is definitely one I will be waiting to see via RB/NF.

Diana (11/1/13):

The first of two movies featuring Naomi Watts. While I’ve never been to drawn to her, I am curious how she does in this role. I know very little about Princess Diana, aside from her tragic final moments, so at first I assumed this was entirely fiction. It is also nice to see Naveen Andrews in a substantial part outside of LOST. As it is, most reviews seem to be fairly negative. Another RB/NF title for me.

A Case of You (11/6/13):

Oddly this movie has conflicting release dates. Supposedly it was released (or was supposed to be) in April 2013. I’m assuming it was pushed out, because the trailer is new. Either way, Justin Long was once in the limelight, but has since drifted to the sidelines. He’s been in a handful of movies recently, but none of them have garnished much attention. This looks like a decently cute, romantic comedy, but I fear it will be cliche. Nothing I’d rush out to see right away. Some of the content within the trailer resonated with me, though, and once it’s out of theaters I wouldn't mind checking it out.

Sunlight Jr. (11/15/13):

Another drama featuring both Naomi Watts and Matt Dillon. There is also the added bonus of Norman Reedus! The performances seem solid across the board and I would definitely like to check it out. Again, once its released on Redbox/Netflix.

Need for Speed (3/14/14):

Finally an entry I’m really excited for! I’ve never really played the Need for Speed video game franchise, but this movie looks badass. Sure, the trailer may just be really well done, but it sells me. Seeing Aaron Paul in the lead role is also exciting. Being a fan of the The Fast and the Furious movies, I’ve already seen people draw comparisons and claim that this rips those off. I think Need for Speed will be different, and the fact is the games were out long before The Fast and the Furious movies. Should be some great cars, racing, and action! I’m highly anticipating this movie and will definitely be seeing it upon release.

Did any of the highlighted movie trailers interest you? Any thoughts about Diane? Ever play any of the Need for Speed games? How do you think the movie adaptation will be?

XVII | 10 THINGS OF THANKFUL | XVII

This should get in a bit earlier than my previous forays into the TToT blog hop, but it is honestly the one closest to the point of never being published. It’s just been that emotional of a week, and as I reached the end of the week my enthusiasm for writing in the blog hop had dwindled substantially.

The week started off with my grandmother going into the clinic, for what was believed backup issues, which then lead to her having to be admitted into the hospital. There, they found she was exhibiting an irregular heartbeat and had to have some extensive testing done. I didn’t find out about what was going on, though, until Thursday. She hadn’t called me, though I know she brought various phone numbers with her, my father hadn’t called me, and all my calls to her were met with endless ringing (she is old-school, so no voicemail for her…). Finally, Thursday I was able to reach my father who updated me as to what exactly happened and that evening when she got home she called to talk. She tries not to call my cell phone being I get in trouble for personal use time and have been charged by my company for minutes, but it would have been nice to have been given a heads up. A voicemail, if nothing else…

So when that stressful incident cleared up another, of a more personal nature, reared it’s ugly head. At this point I was in full “Fuck It” mode. Eventually that was hashed out and things hit a mediocre sense of norm. What I was left with, though, was a strong desire to take a break from blogging. I’ve been falling almost two weeks behind on posts anyhow (and that is just TToT posts), and thought a fresh start after some time away would help.

Then I was on the fence. but leaning towards doing the post, even coaxing my girlfriend — who also has been feeling down — to do the same, citing it as the best time to participate. This morning, however, I decided I wouldn’t be a part of the blog hop and/or post any of my blog series this week, and quite possibly the week or two after.

When I hopped onto Facebook this afternoon, my decision flopped yet again after seeing a drawing my friend (and ex co-worker) — who long ago moved to the UK — randomly made for me and posted on my wall. We don’t talk very often, I’d say once every few weeks and that is being generous, so I didn’t take his drawing (and the message on it) as coincidence. It appeared I was being told to buck up and get to it. I will share the picture on Wednesday, but until then let’s see if I can’t crank out a list of Thankfulness and some trailers before then, shall we?

1. I’m Thankful the doctor at the clinic was able to determine there was more going on with my grandma’s health than just having a terrible bout of backup.

2. For my father being able to bring her in and spend hours at the hospital while she underwent testing that first night. I have no actual proof he did this and that he didn’t just leave right away (nor will I ask…), but I want to believe he waited around until discovering she would be admitted overnight. I’d imagine, though, with how many hours of testing that needed to be done, that was determined pretty quickly into the evening.

3. Finally getting in touch with someone to update me on WTF was going on with my grandmother…

4. Despite finding an irregular heartbeat, it seems that the incident was not life-threatening. At least this is what she told me. She was in the hospital for three days, which to me would suggest it was of some importance she be kept in a monitored state.

5. Crooks. My cat has been extra lovey this week and it seems he was able to sense I could use the additional comfort.

   How Crooks views himself in the mirror...

6. I am Thankful for my girlfriend and how supportive — and also cuddly — she has been throughout the week when visiting.

7. The talks my girlfriend and I have had recently. Some about what we are feeling at any given moment, and others about the possibilities of what is to come in the future. I generally avoid talking too much about the future, I’m pretty bad at visualizing it, making it hard to discuss.

8. My girlfriend keeping me calm when anxiety-bound upon discovering the Papa Murphy’s pizza I bought was too big for my oven. After a handful of ideas being tossed around, we opted to fold the edge of the pizza in and cut an inch or so off of their Bake-and-Serve pizza tray.

9. I’m Thankful that, so far, our pizza experiment hasn’t gone completely haywire… I’m freaking starving!

10. Writing. Even though I was (am?) dead set on taking a break from blogging, I was inspired to write up some rough drafts of future entries. Part of the break would be to actually focus on the type of posts I’ve neglected for months now. Those of a more personal nature — sans blog hops and blog series. One post turned into two and ideas for a few more have come to light. They are rough around the edges, but should flesh out easily enough. So even if I do end up taking a momentary leave of absence from the Blogosphere, it will be with the intention of working on pieces I feel I have sidestepped for far too long.

Feel free to leave your Thankful List in the comments below, if you aren’t participating directly with the blog hop!