Oh Brooklyn...

December 14 – Appreciate What’s the one thing you have come to appreciate most in the past year? How do you express gratitude for it?

Let's call appreciating friends and family square. I appreciate them both more and more each year, this one especially, for keeping me sane.

So what have I come to appreciate this year? There's lots but the one that comes to mind right now is how grateful I am for the home I've created in Brooklyn. I never thought I'd be one of those Brooklyn-obsessed that the media (Gawker) derides at every opportunity. But I love living here. I still love our apartment, despite our truly crazy neighbor. It's large and cozy and has hosted some great nights. Watching AFV monkey clips, learning to play blackjack, Fall into Mexico, Pie Party—it's been a busy year at 228 7th Ave.

I'm grateful that I am able to live in this neighborhood. Despite the stereotypes—babies, rich people, strollers, which are all true—walking to and from the train everyday is not a chore, it's a joy. I love that the man that runs the coffee shop downstairs knows us and lets us know he's sad when he hasn't seen us in awhile. He voluntarily helped carry a dresser that I bought up the stairs for me. Plus, he gives Alison a discount on her coffee.

There's a little girl who belongs to the woman who owns the laundromat. She is there every time I go in. She is so confident and eager to talk to everyone. It seems so weird to me that she spends nearly every night of her childhood hanging out with strangers, but she couldn't be happier about it. As soon as I sit down she skips over to chat. Yes, she digs through my purse and can be a menace when all I want to do is read and wait for my laundry. But the other night I was there and she wanted me to read her books to her. At first I was annoyed by the interruption, but looking back, I could appreciate that this little girl is learning from this neighborhood and its residents. She talks to almost everyone that comes into the laundromat. So who am I to be annoyed by what she's come to expect, and deserve, from her community. I read her the books about numbers, asking her to count them for me. It was nice.

Up until a few months ago, we had friends within walking distance. This led to nights of Wii bowling and baseball that were as much fun as any night in a bar. Plus, nights of dancing and drinking at bars where I can walk home after. It was fantastic. Now they've moved to Manhattan, but that period made me love our neighborhood even more.

I appreciate the park, the Brooklyn Flea—my favorite place ever—the rows of streets with beautiful brownstones that have windows I can peek into and admire bookshelves, the restaurants I haven't tried, the shops waiting to be explored. Because as much as I've learned about Brooklyn this past year, there are still many things to be discovered. And that's something to appreciate too.

Epic Janurary

(I'm late, deal)

December 9 – Party Prompt: Party. What social gathering rocked your socks off in 2010? Describe the people, music, food, drink, clothes, shenanigans.

January 2010 is a month that will live in infamy, for in that month there were three nights of fun that dwarfed most of the rest of the year. First was my birthday celebration. I had reserved space at an East Village bar called The Musical Box and Autumn doubted my estimated head count of 25. "No way will 25 people show up," she said. Final count was 28. Victory was mine, as were lots of drinks. Alison made whoopie pies. We ate at Paquitos, which turned into one of the funniest meals I have attended in recent memory. I met the elusive Boston Mike. I played the worst game of pool of my life. I chugged a final, ill-advised beer. i paid a terrible price the next morning. But man, a good start to my 26th year.

Then there was pie party. It was billed as a housewarming, though we'd lived in our apartment since August. This was the mildest of the three events but still a solid effort. At least five pies were made and devoured. It was also the night of the last Conan, so 20 of us crammed in our living room to watch. We played Catchphrase. We danced. But it was really just a precursor to the event that is was truly the best night of 2010 so far, Dean Wilkie's birthday (see photo).

Alison and I started the night at another friend's birthday, Jessi White, which was also a great time. Ice skating and a piano bar. Both fantastic. Then we made the trek back downtown to The Stanton Social where the birthday boy drank for free. The event began normally: A few drinks in the heated garden. but things got real when we heard the downstairs lounge was open. We quickly took over the dimly-lit room and as often does with this group, things got real with a dance party. Not sure if it was the drinks, or a particularly good playlist, but this dance party surpassed all when it migrated out into a transition room where people were waiting in line for the bathroom. Suddenly they were part of the dance party (see photo and note, I only know two of those pictured). When other bar patrons descended the stairs to use the restroom they were greeted by absolute chaos of our own making. I'm not proud of some of the pictures taken that night—very few look good in the midst of pure joy dancing—but I am proud we were able to rope cynical New Yorkers into what has to be the greatest impromptu dance party that bar has ever seen.

Community

December 7 – Community. Where have you discovered community, online or otherwise, in 2010? What community would you like to join, create or more deeply connect with in 2011?

I missed a day. I'll blame KU Basketball. Especially in light of the fact that my discussion of community will center around KU basketball and to a lesser degree (for me) football.

In a city this large it's tough to make new friends. I will admit that the majority of my close friends are still people who I knew from high school and college. However, the new friends I have made (mostly) have one thing in common: KU. Now, yes, it can be frustrating to just keep meeting people who already know people you know. That's why I've made a concentrated effort to meet people completely outside my social circle (to varied results) but there is still something comforting about the community of KU people in this city.

Ironically, I really fell into this group of people through Nebraska folks, but I've met some very cool people through going to watch KU games at really terrible bars. Admittedly, some are considered actual friends and some are not people I converse with at any other time than at a KU game, but that's OK too.

Last night I was part of this community, but multiplied by a thousand. I went to Madison Square Garden for the KU-Memphis game. The famed arena was filled with KU fans and everyone felt fine to talk to each other as if they'd known them for years. We blatantly eavesdropped on the people behind us, and then inserted ourselves into the conversation. I gave a complete stranger a high five. And yes we did spy celebrity KU fan, Jason Sudekis in the crowd, gladly taking photos and shaking hands with his brethren. It was fantastic. There is this sense of community in those places that makes everyone feel they belong. And they do—all united by a common purpose and passion. Which, when you think about it, is really what a community is all about.

Celebrity Sighting #5

Celebrity Sighted: Michael Imperioli

Location: Tribeca/Chinatown border

Info: Dave and I were returning from an excellent Chinatown feast when he hit me repeatedly on the arm as we were crossing the street. Thinking it was just his normal behavior, I was slow to catch on that he was calling the sighting to my attention. There he was, Christopher Moltisanti from The Sopranos! A show I have recently completed watching and absolutely LOVED.

Notes: He had long hair (for Christopher) and we saw him meet a young lass on the corner, gave her a kiss on the cheek and disappear into the night.

Unwigged and Unplugged: Beacon Theater

An amazing thing happened yesterday. I was completely spontaneous and it all worked out perfectly. Having read that the lead players of Spinal Tap were going to be performing sans costumes and electric instruments, I thought I might like to go but funds for such things are low on my list as of late. However, when the show presented itself again, day of show, for some reason I flew into action. I went to Craigslist, found cheap seats, e-mailed and secured tickets in one hour's time. It couldn't have been easier. So to my joy, that is how I found myself sitting in the incredibly beautiful Beacon Theater for a night of comedy/rock. The trio did songs, all acoustic, from This is Spinal Tap, A Mighty Wind and some choice cuts from Waiting for Guffman.

Highlights:
•An earlier promise of famous faces was doubly paid off when the trio was clearly gearing up to play the classic, "Gimme Some Money"—choice lyrics: "Don't get me wrong. Try getting me right. Your face is OK. But your purse is too tight." Instead of launching into the song themselves, they brought out a guest vocalist in the person of ELVIS COSTELLO. Elvis sang the entire song with gusto as the trio backed him up. The entire theater was shocked and elated.

•As a breather between songs, the trio read verbatim the original censorship notes made when NBC decided to air the film in its entirety for the first time. Sample notes: "The lyrics 'my baby fits me like a flesh tuxedo, I'd like to sink her with my pink torpedo' are unacceptable." "The entire song 'Sex Farm' is unacceptable."

•I feared Stonehenge wouldn't be as wonderful without the mini-Stonehenge and dancing midgets. However, I was proven wrong when on the screen behind the trio, an even smaller mini-Stonehenge was lowered down on a string while two disembodied hands (which I later found out belonged to Jamie Lee Curtis) made two Troll dolls dance around. It was the Spinal Tap equivalent of the dancing manatee. Brilliant!

•I wasn't expecting any songs from Waiting for Guffman since the other two gentlemen weren't involved in that movie, however, I was pleasantly surprised when Christopher Guest and a guest female vocalist sang a touching rendition of "A Penny for Your Thoughts," complete with toe touch at the end.

•I also wasn't expecting to hear my favorite song from A Mighty Wind, "A Kiss at the End of the Rainbow, since it's Eugene Levy's shining moment in the film. However, apparently Michael McKean and his wife wrote the song and so fittingly performed it, complete with kiss at the end.

•The performance of "Big Bottom" was done with just bass and snapping fingers, which is probably how I'd prefer to hear the song from now on.

•They took some time between songs to share two of their favorite fan-made music videos to Spinal Tap songs. Here is my favorite:


•The evening ended on a high note with "Old Joe's Place," reminding me how much I enjoy A Might Wind and must rewatch it as soon as possible.

•Overall, I was really impressed with how talented the men were as musicians. Christopher Guest can play guitar as well as anyone I've seen. And although they are all in they're 60s, they played for two hours including two encores. That's more than I've seen much younger musicians do.

Lowlight:
The definition of douche that was sitting a row ahead of us. Not only were they clearly wasted and talking over the music so loud that the girl next to us loudly (and rightly) called them douches, when the trio was introducing the song "Corn Wine," the douche felt it appropriate to yell out "Cornhole!" Not amused. Thankfully, they stumbled out (or were kicked out) shortly after this incident.

Celebrity Sighting #5

Celebrity Sighted: Jason Sudeikis

Location: The Village Pourhouse, East Village

Info: I was at the Pourhouse, one of two official KU alumni bars, to watch the slaughtering of Mizzou when my good friend Chris Raine pointed out Mr. Smiling Joe Biden watching the game in the other room. As a known KU alum, it was not surprising to see him there, but exciting nonetheless. Raine said that Will Forte from SNL was with him, but I did not spy him.

Notes: He was sporting a fine beard and was wearing (proudly) a navy Kansas sweatshirt.

Best of 2008: Theater/Shows

Broadway/Off-Broadway
Equus
Originally billed just as Harry Potter naked, live on stage, I actually really enjoyed the actual play. Daniel Radcliffe has definitely (ahem) matured as an actor and it was really exciting to see him in something so completely removed from Harry. Richard Griffiths was incredible and I liked the story way more than I thought I would. Money WELL spent.

The Seagull
Starring Peter Sarsgaard and Kristin Scott Thomas, this was another great chance to see amazing actors live on stage. An ensemble piece that deals with love, family, etc, it also starred MacKenzie Crook, better known as Gareth from the British Office or the pirate with the wooden eye in Pirates of the Caribbean. He was the one that most impressed me.

Shakespeare in the Park: Hamlet
My feelings on this have already been chronicled here.

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
As have my feelings on this one.

Comedy
Asssscat (Thanks Dan)
I saw two performance of this Upright Citizens Brigade show, originally created by SNL's Amy Poehler. The first one was far funnier than the second one, mostly because Rob Riggle formerly of The Daily Show was in attendance and he could make me laugh just standing there. However, it did introduce me to my favorite new addition to SNL before he made it there: Bobby Moynihan

Stella
Although a big fan of Wet Hot American Summer I hadn't seen much Stella before this show. Until my good friend Dan had me watch some over Thanksgiving break, which I was thankful for. It was all solid, especially when Paul Rudd showed up to "stand in" for David Wain while he went to the bathroom. Hey, Paul . . . Shawnee Mission West!

Late Night With Conan O'Brien
This was a fun one, mostly because we thought it would be kind of lame since the guest was Martin Short, but he turned out to be very funny. One thing to complain was the people in charge of the line. We were directed to the wrong one and ended up way in the back. This upset me, not so much the rest of my party. Conan, however, was his usual charming and funny self. Don't go to L.A., they'll ruin you!

Other
Times Talks: Sarah Jessica Parker
See here.

Times Talks: Ellen Page, Amy Ryan and Jason Reitman
Ditto.

Who said New York City smells bad?

I Heart NYC

I know it's been awhile and I have some drafts in the works but this was too amazing not to share.

So Autumn and I were leaving the movies (Role Models, pretty funny. Worth seeing) and we were walking on Broadway uptown toward the train. It was a normal Sunday afternoon, about 4:30, still light outside. So we're walking down the street and walking in the opposite direction is a man in his late thirties or forties with a bushy red beard. Sounds standard enough, right?

Until my eyes traveled upward and saw that the man was walking (at a perfectly normal pace) while a cat perched calmly on his head. Not a kitten, a full grown cat. It looked a lot like this, the cat was even the same color, in fact, this may be the same guy, just a few years ago:


I love this city!

Seagulls love pizza

I work by the water, which I usually forget about until the wind coming off it is cold enough to kill a man.

However, it is not uncommon to see seagulls lazily floating by on the breeze. I was walking to get lunch one day and I saw a seagull diving toward the street. I slowed to observe his keen plan and saw him make a clean landing right at the curb.

He was obscured from my view for the briefest of moments and then he emerged victorious—complete with a full size slice of pizza, and like any true New Yorker, the slice was folded in half. His prey captured, he flew off into the murky mist of lower Manhattan. Chuckling softly and inspired, I made my way to get some pizza of my own. I love this city! (and pizza)

McCarren Park Pool

We ventured out to the capital of hipsterdom to see a free show at the famed McCarren Park Pool. Alison, Cichelli and I left, in what we thought was plenty of time. When we got to Williamsburg, we found our way to McCarren Park. We started our trek to find the end of the line. Probably about a half hour later we found it. It stretched for at least 10 blocks. Two and half hours later, and one quasi-severe thunderstorm later, we still were not even close to the front of the line.

Nick and his friend Hyeku had met us and waited with us for a little while longer. At this point, the band we really wanted to see (The Ting Tings) were already well into their set. Cold, wet and frustrated, we decided to just go to the front of the line and just listen. We made our way up there and then Hyeku got feisty. She worked some magic, told a little white lie, and poof! We got inside for the end of The Ting Tings, of which I enjoyed immensely.

The venue was really cool. I was never clear if the "pool" in McCarren Park Pool was an actual pool and it turned it was. "Was" being the operative word. The concert was literally in the basin of a HUGE pool. It was big enough to hold a solid concert pit of people, along with a dodgeball game and a slip and slide. We grabbed a seat on backside, upon the fence that encircled the pool, so we had a great vantage point form which to judge the concertgoers. And we did.

We are funny.

Later on I found out that this is the last summer for concerts at the pool. They are closing it and turning it back into an actual pool, so I'm really glad we made the journey when we did. Even if the rain, the crowd and ineptitude all threatened to ruin it for us.

Karaoke Cruise

For Carolyn's bug 24th birthday, she decided to whisk us away on a cruise around Manhattan isle. But not just any cruise, no, this cruise came with conditions. Karaoke!

So it was with much excitement that I arrived at South Street Seaport for my inaugural cruise around the harbor. I've been on the Staten Island Ferry and also the Liberty Island Ferry, but I'd never been on an aimless cruise and I was thrilled at the prospect of getting the water because often in Manhattan, you forget you are indeed on an island, surrounded by water.

The cruise was made extra cool by the happenstance of the appearance of four waterfalls that are currently falling in the East River as part of a huge public art project. So not only was I seeing my city, glowing in the night, I was passing under the Brooklyn bridge to the sight of this:

Amazing! It was so cool to see this up close where you could actually hear the power of the water falling. Or I could have if there hadn't been some serious karaoke action going on back on the boat. Highlights from the night's selections include "Zombie" by The Cranberries, "It's Raining Men" by I believe Geri Halliwell, chosen ironically by Carolyn's roommate Jessie and "I Want to Dance With Somebody" by Whitney Houston, chosen I'm pretty sure unironically by members of our small party but did, in fact, get everyone except Barry to dance.

Anyway, as the night progressed, some of us escaped to the roof of the boat, where we were treated to a fabulous view of lower Manhattan as well as Midtown West and the Statue of Liberty. Seeing the city from afar at night made me fall in love all over again. It's nice to step back and remember why I had longed to live here for so long and it still surreal to realize that I do indeed live in this amazing place. Considering my state of mind, especially that evening, it's comforting to know that I made the right decision in coming here. It's where I belong, and I love (almost) every second of being here. It's weird that something that something so mundane as a boat ride can make you fall in love once again.

Celebrity Sighting #3

Celebrity Sighted: Connor Paolo, aka Eric van der Woodson from Gossip Girl

Location: AMC/Lowes Lincoln Square, 68th and Broadway

Info: I was hankering for an early movie so I went to get my ticket early. As I got to the theater, I saw him and two other girls in front of me. I didn't recognize him at first, and was just annoyed that they were in my way. He stopped and kissed one of the girls on the cheek as a goodbye and that was when I recognized him. At first I wasn't sure it was him but after I got my ticket, I saw him standing in line and his identity in my head was confirmed.

Notes: He's probably about my height.

Cat On A Hot Tin Roof

To start, Cat On A Hot Tin Roof is not a comedy. Alison and I thought this was a well-known fact. Yes, there are elements of comedy in Tennessee Williams' iconic play but mostly it's about unhappiness in love and unhappiness in old age.

Someone should have told the audience that surrounded us for this production of the play.

(see below)

But first things first, the cast was worth the big bucks we ended up paying. Terrence Howard as Brick, James Earl Jones as Big Daddy (Darth Vader!), Phylicia Rashad (mom from The Cosby Show!) and Anika Noni Rose (one of the Dreamgirls, the one that sleeps with Eddie Murphy), make up the principals of the novelty of an all-black cast for this Southern plantation drama. So I dutifully spent my hard-earned money for the chance to see such a cast in my favorite Williams play. 

Despite the disappointing audience, I still enjoyed the production. Maggie was especially good. James Earl Jones played Big Daddy as a bit of a creepy old pervert, but it was funny and he was in The Sandlot so I was satisfied. 

(Angry Alison Peterson chimes in)

I like to think I have a pretty good sense of humor. In fact, if we're being honest, I'll laugh at almost anything. 

Arrested Development? Always.

A sketch on the modern-day S.N.L.? Usually.

A deteriorating marriage? Alcoholism? A man struggling with homosexual feelings? A diagnosis of a terminal condition? Lies upon lies, upon lies? Never. 

And this, unbelievably, is where I differ from the rest of the Broadway audience for Cat On A Hot Tin Roof. Call me crazy, but I've always thought that this play's traditional reputation as a drama was warranted. And yet, for most of my fellow theatergoers, it had "uproariously funny" written all over it. Am I exaggerating? Probably. But the laughter was frequent and baffling. Through shouting matches, through serial confessions, through three acts. While I was hoping people might catch on to the seriousness of the subject material, it never happened. Brick, everyone's favorite tortured soul, finds the world's mendacity unbearable tot he point that it drives him to drink incessantly. It drove the people of the Broadhurst Theater, however to hysterics. For the record: When Brick clumsily tries to hurt Maggie, so enraged that he stumbles past the pain of his broken ankle, that is not an elaborate pratfall. No, that is hatred. It is serious; it is passionate. It does not require a laugh track. 

The performances were fine, despite the fact--as Lindsey pointed out--some of the lines were (inexplicably) played for laughs. Don't insult my intelligence, Broadway. When I spend money to see some Southern-fried drama, I want friction, tension and anger. Much like the anger that consumed me for nearly three hours, making this one of my least enjoyable theater experiences. 

Shakespeare in the Park: Hamlet

What an undertaking it is to get tickets to Shakespeare in the Park. Last year, I enlisted my visitor Kim to try and get us tickets, but we underestimated the Bard's New York fan base and were denied entry. So this year, Alison was taking no chances and I decided it was now or never.

So Alison and I woke at 8:00 on a Sunday morning, tired but determined. Our slightly late partner in crime was Autumn and we hunkered down for four hours of waiting in line just to get the damn tickets. It wasn't so bad until it started pouring down rain. Did Alison and bring an umbrella? Ha! That would have been smart. Luckily Autumn had come prepared with an umbrella, not to mention a towel for us to sit on, and not just any towel, a MTV Room Raiders towel. So we all huddled under the one tiny umbrella, wet and shaking. We finally made it through the rain and got tickets so it was worth it.

We returned to the Delacorte and found a beautiful evening for Shakespeare. The production's marquee names included Lauren Ambrose (Six Feet Under, Can't Hardly Wait) as Ophelia, Sam Waterson (Law and Order) as Polonius and Margret Colin (Gossip Girl, Independence Day!) as the Queen. The production used strange 19th century, mostly military dress and the set was constructed to look like a great hull on a ship, which doubled as a kind of prison. Denmark = Prison, in case you've forgotten your Hamlet. I thought the actor ( Michael Stuhlbarg) that played Hamlet was really good. Committed to his mania, which is how I prefer my Hamlets, he spit out each line with contempt. However, semi-raping the queen was, I felt, unnecessary.

Ambrose is his equal as Ophelia loses her mind (and her hair!). Waterson is a perfect putting old fool, going so far as to convince Alison that he flubbed a line, but according to the New York Times, that was just a calculated lapse meant to showcase Polonius' ridiculousness. The Times went on to call it the "one breathtakingly poignant moment" in the entire production. Hmm, I thought he just flubbed his line, but what do I know?

As my first Shakespeare in the Park experience ended, I realized a play like Hamlet doesn't really serve the surroundings of Central Park. Give me A Midsummer Night's Dream or a Romeo and Juliet (which they did last year) to play off the park's beauty. Hell even Twelfth Night would have been better in an outdoor setting. Hamlet just feels too stuffy for the setting, but overall Shakespeare in the Park deserves its reputation as an iconic New York experience.

The Incredible Hulk

Oh man. Any casting of Edward Norton is enough to sell me. See, I am easy in some respects. So what very little interest I had in ANOTHER Hulk movie was increased twofold when I saw Mr. Norton in the trailer.

So Alison and I swallowed our pride and attended a screening on opening weekend. Much to our surprise, it was better than expected. Norton only look mildly bored, Liv Tyler does her pouty best and William Hurt has never been more commanding in front of a green screen pretending to look at big green monster.

A few things did bother me. Mostly the inconsistency of the Hulk's scale. He seems much larger in some scenes than others. Can't all the money they spend on special effects afford someone to check consistency? Apparently not. Also, there is a scene that takes place on the famous 125th St in Harlem, right outside the Apollo Theater. Now this location, is right down the street from my apartment. Plus, we were in a theater of flesh and blood New Yorkers, most of which definitely know this location. And yet, as the scene unfolds, it becomes painfully obvious that they didn't actually film in that location. There was way too much neon for that particular portion of the city. Upsetting. Again, don't movies like this have enough money to pump in a little change into the local economy by actually filming in Harlem. Then perhaps I could have snuck over and checked Edward out.

Overall, the movie was fun. Not approaching the brilliance of Iron Man, except SPOILER! when he makes an appearance toward the end. But honestly, I'd watch Edward Norton in anything. I think my love for Death to Smoochy proved that long ago.

Times Center: Sarah Jessica Parker

Jacky and I jumped at the chance to see Sarah Jessica Parker at the TimesCenter pre-Sex and the City The Movie's release. It was kind of a career retrospective and it was cool to see her up close. (See photo).

Jacky and I met at the Times building and I walked up to see that Jacky had secured us the very first spot in line. Note: We were definitely on the younger spectrum of the crowd and all were jealous of our amazing spot in line.

When the doors opened we struggled inwardly about if we should sit in the front row or not. We decided against it and went for the fourth. When she entered, she looked exactly the same as on T.V. Really short and cute as a button. Throughout the talk, which it must be said was conducted by a much better interviewer than the last Times Talk I went to, I was struck by how genuine and humble she was. She talked about her start on Broadway (she was Annie!), where all she has lived in New York, the show and then the film. She spilled Carrie's job in the film and watched some clips.

All in all, $30 well spent.

On the bus

Cichelli and I were on the bus today and we had a driver that thought he was quite the entertainer. After I entered, he inquired why I hadn't brought him a milkshake, since I was enjoying one myself, and I casually chuckled and scurried to find a seat. But he was just getting started.

As the bus made it's journey up Amsterdam, he decided it was time for fun and games. He got on the speaker and asked the passengers to yell out all the body parts that had three letters.

Naturally, this started innocent enough. "Eye, lip, ear, toe!" The passengers yelled out.

Then some wise guy in front had to go there. "Ass!" Hilarity ensued.

As if this wasn't enough, the driver had one more joke up his sleeve. As he was driving he said, "Ok, get ready, I'm going to teach all of you that are standing the first step of the merengue."

He then slammed on the brakes, thrusting all who were standing forward in a seemingly choreographed "dance move," and he chuckled to himself and drove on into the night.

Sex and the City

Ok, I've been working on this one because I wanted to make sure I did it justice. So I actually saw the movie twice to make sure I didn't miss anything and that my first impressions were correct. They were.

Let me preface this with the admission that I adore Sex and the City. Yes, it often induces eye-rolling with its writing/computer-generated butterfly, but on the whole it is funny and touching and . . . er . . . fabulous. I also happened across the filming of the movie last September, while my parents and sister was in town. They were filming a scene with Sarah Jessica Parker—that I would later find out was cut from the film, but included in all the trailers—outside of Pastis in the Meatpacking District. So it was with no small amount of excitement that Autumn and I went to an 11:30 showing on opening day. (See below for funny observations of the throngs of women we observed at the theater)

So the film . . . SPOILERS FOLLOW

First things first, the plot catches up with our four main ladies four years after the finale where Mr. Big finally told Carrie she was the one, Charlotte got news of the successful adoption of a Chinese daughter, Miranda learned to love and live in Brooklyn and Samantha and Smith had sex.

Not much has changed except Samantha has followed Smith to L.A. to manage his career/have sex. Big and Carrie are happy and moving in together, Steve and Miranda are having marriage trouble and Charlotte and Harry are the picture of pure happiness. As I'm sure you've all heard, if not seen, Big freaks out over the wedding and leaves Carrie pretty much at the altar. What follows is a surprisingly raw look at what happens when an adult gets her heart broken. No changing of her relationship status on Facebook, Carrie is a true grown up. She breaks down and completely disappears from Big's periphery.

There is one a scene that really sums it up. When the girls go on Carrie's honeymoon with her, she manages to escape to the bathroom for some solitude. In the scene, she takes off her overlarge sunglasses, washes her face and just looks at herself in the mirror. What we see is a woman completely destroyed, wearing no make-up, no designers, no armor. Moments like that are when the film is at it's most affecting. When all the fluff is on mute and we just get to see these characters be human. Another one comes right after Big has told Carrie he just left the wedding. The pass each other on the street and Carrie jumps out of the car to hit him with her bouquet (Ridiculous? Cliché? Yes.) Big starts to give her a swan song of he just freaked out for a minute and he's ready now and Charlotte bursts in with an outraged and teary "No!" as she whisks Carrie away from him.

There are other moments like this but really these are just illustrative of a simple fact: My friends would do that for me and I would that for my friends. That is why women love this show, and I'm guessing why most loved the movie, although I'll admit now, that I'm not in that category.

One thing that didn't do it for me was the sheer amount of attention paid to consumerism. The whole Vogue photo shoot was unnecessary, especially considering the voice over that cooed the names of the designers. Yes, the show did it's share of lusting after designer clothes/shoes, but perhaps because it was confined to a mention or two in a half hour of television, it never bothered me much. This was overt and ridiculous.

Otherwise the entire plot felt forced to me. Sure, a comment on what happens after you find love is refreshing for a romantic comedy. If the film had actually explored that notion via Carrie, it may have been more successful. What happens after Carrie finds love? She loses it for the majority of the movie only to forgive it the moment her eyes meet her beloved. I understand the importance of forgiveness and I'm by no means suggesting that she shouldn't have forgiven Big, but come on, how about keeping up the adult veneer of this movie and have an actual conversation about what happened? Speaking of, what did happen? We're expected to believe that Miranda's one throwaway comment was enough to push Big over the edge? Maybe I give him too much credit but he had made Carrie happy for four years since the end of the show. Big had changed at the end of the series. I think he's probably learned what not to do in regards to her. I didn't buy the whole leaving and then "what am i doing? moment" It felt lazy.

As for the rest of the girls, anyone who watched the show shouldn't believe that the character of Steve would cheat on Miranda. After everything she's put him through up to now, he cheats? Without ever trying the counseling thing beforehand, hell talking about it. I thought we were all adults here? But I see why it happened, Carrie and Miranda needed to learn to forgive together. Oh happy day, lets make out on the Brooklyn bridge. (Note, I did tear up at this part. I can be a cynic and a romantic all in one. I'm complex.)

I liked the story of Charlotte having everything she ever wanted and wondering why it happened to her and not her friends. I think the scene where she freaks out about running was really good. Of course she's scared something bad is going to happen! But you can't live life scared of actual life happening Charlotte, so keep on running. Also, didn't anyone else want the baby to be named Shayla? Don't know what I mean? Re-watch season 1.

As for Samantha, she was the most lazily written. I understand the "life revolving around the man" part and that was a good way to start, but turning Smith into an over-tanned, smarmy asshole is something that no one who watched the show should accept. This man shaved his head for her in one of the most romantic gestures I've seen on T.V. He would never act like he does in the movie, no matter how many "pounds" Samantha put on. But one of our couples had to suffer for this film being made, and Samantha made the ultimate sacrifice and went back to being a stereotype of a sex-obsessed character. All her character's growth from the series was unnecessary, I guess.

So I've been pretty negative. But let's reiterate that I've already seen it twice. So with any of my squabbles, did I still enjoy myself? Yes, of course. But I can't help feel that they may have tampered too much with an already fabulous thing. (However, I totally fell for the proposal with the shoe. I am ashamed.)

Notes on the movie-going crowd.
•I didn't witness this exchange but the way it was told to me coupled with the fact that I did sit next to these girls still makes it valid.

Autumn and I arrived semi-early to get in line so we didn't have to sit in the front row. There was a line formed already so we took a seat. I went to the bathroom and missed this exchange. There was a group of three or four girls behind us who apparently didn't really like one of the girls they were with. Autumn heard them complain about her when she left to get a drink. I don't blame them because she seemed obnoxious when I saw her and she was wearing a weird Sgt. Pepper band jacket completely unironically. So Autumn was eavesdropping and heard them talking about the fact that every girl there was really dressed up. Dresses, heels, nails done, the works. (Autumn and I noted this too, as we were in jeans, T-shirts and flip flops). Keep in mind, we were waiting for the 11:30 p.m. show.

Sgt. Pepper: Why is everyone so dressed up?
Friend #1: They probably are going out after the movie or they went to dinner before.
Sgt. Pepper: (Disgusted tone) What? There is no way they went to dinner before. No New Yorker goes to dinner before 10:30 p.m.
Friend #1: Uh, I go to dinner at like 8:00 sometimes.
Sgt. Pepper: Ew
Friend #2: Yeah, sometimes I go to dinner at like 6:30.
Sgt. Pepper: Ew.

First of all, "Ew" is not a proper response to anything, let alone a claim that purports you are really cool and don't eat until 10:30. Anyway, the way Autumn said "Ew" in the retelling made me laugh for days.

•I've been to a lot of movies on opening nights. People always get there early, wait/sit in a long line, usually on the floor, and wait for the theater doors to open. Then they usually stay in said line and enter the theater in a civilized way.

Not here. Here, grown women start entering the theater in a civilized way and then decide "oh no, that bitch did not cut in front of me!" And then kick off their heels, disregard all manner of social decorum and run into the theater. We were in awe and scared for our lives.

•Last note: When we got our seats, which were just fine and we didn't even run or push anyone over, we heard a huge pop come from somewhere near us. "Did someone shoot someone?" Autumn logically asked. Then the guy next to me said, in a way-too-excited tone "No, we brought champagne!"

-Fin-

The Swell Season—Radio City Music Hall

Clearly if you've read this blog, you know that I adore the movie Once. So I naturally jumped at the chance to see the movie's stars perform with their band, The Swell Season, at Radio City Music Hall. Alison, who spent $12 on a martini glass that had a pair of rocketette's legs as a stem, and I had pretty swell (tee hee) seats. However, we were late and missed the opener, which was The Interference who happen to join them in the movie and sing the song "Gold." Not to worry, they came back and joined Glen Hansard for that song later in the show. Obviously the concert was fabulous and in the interest of not droning on and on, I'll try and be concise.

Highlights:
The first song was "Say it to Me Now," and Hansard sang it acoustic with no mic. I'm sure the people at the very top in the back couldn't hear him but it's their fault for not having seats as good as ours. When he belts the first line of the chorus, I get goosebumps and my attraction to him grows and grows.

After the first song, when Marketa joined Hansard on stage they seemed quite overwhelmed by their venue. At one point Hansard says the first time they played in New York, they were thrilled to have sold out Pianos, which is a tiny bar/music venue on the Lower East Side that I've been to and loved, so having sold out Radio City was very surreal to them both. Cue cheers!

At one point during the first few songs, Hansard stopped to apologize for his language, blaming it on the fact that his Irish decent makes Irish folk want to fuck up the English language at every opportunity, hence all the cursing. Awesome.

Clearly, I teared up at several points during the show. Most notably during "When Your Mind's Made Up," "Leave" and Oscar winner "Falling Slowly." Also, Hansard kept turning back the piano and giving Marketa loving looks. They are so damn cute, it's almost to the point of being ridiculous.

Hansard did a cover of Van Morrison's Astral Weeks and it was fucking insane. People literally lost their minds at this point.

Marketa brought her sister up on stage to sing a song with her. While it was an incredibly cute gesture, the song they chose to sing was very strange. It was called "Gently Johnny" and it was from the movie Wicker Man. Just . . . weird.

A choice favorite quote referring to the chance they took with the music from Once:
"A couple years ago, we decided to kick our ball as hard as we could, and see how far it would go," Hansard said. "We were hoping it would reach the end of the garden, but we watched it go … across the street, over the next town, into a place we’d never even heard of before. And the great thing about (nights like this) is that it sort of quiets the 1% of you that wishes you could have your ball back."

During one song that included a violin solo, the violinist took the song into an unexpected but amazing place by launching into "Pure Imagination" from the original Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory. Hansard, who looked caught off guard but pleased, rolled with it and sang a bit of the Gene Wilder classic.

They did not one, not two but three encores because they didn't want the night to end and the crowd loved them all. They ended the night with another Van Morrison cover of "Into the Mystic."

Verdict: One of the best nights I've spent in New York. Also, I clearly can't be concise about things that I love so much.

Edit: Alison would like the mention of her glass purchase to reflect the fact that the $12 bought her the glass, which was filled with a strong strawberry daiquiri. She did not spend $12 on the glass alone.