Photo info: FUJIFILM X-T10, 35mm, f/2.8, 1/40 sec, ISO1600 “Coaster” Cedar Park, 2019
こんばんは。How’s it going?
I’ve had this coaster from a Japanese bar on my desk for possibly 20 years now. Of course, the desks have changed as I moved from home to home, but the paper coaster survives. Actually, is the coaster 20+ years old? I can’t be sure… maybe I picked it up on a subsequent trip to Japan. Is it from a watering hole or a karaoke box? I don’t remember, but I guess it’s not too important. I thought that I could easily do some sleuthing to find out, but I think it’s kind of nice to not know where it came from. Even mundane things that remain mysterious are kind of cool.
Lately I’ve been watching videos from NIPPON WANDERING TV. They are high-quality stabilized walking/biking videos around Japan, mainly in Tokyo, which I find super-relaxing, especially because there is no soundtrack other than the sounds of the environment. I like to put one of the videos on the TV and go about my business: cooking, folding laundry, or whatever. It puts me in a good mood. 😊
Please check them out when you have a chance! Here’s one that I particularly like:
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Today’s photo is of my Seiko SNDA chronograph watch and Jinhao shark fountain pen on my graph paper notebook. I applied a Lightroom preset named “Blue” that I created a while ago for an image that I’ve long forgotten. I thought it gave a nice effect.
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/125 sec, ISO6400 “Green Donuts” Cedar Park, 2019
I brought home some donuts from work of Friday, and we’ve been slowly working our way through eating them all. They’re green for St. Patrick’s Day, of course. Tonight we didn’t have corned beef and cabbage… the kids said no thanks, so we had spaghetti instead.
In case you were wondering, the green donuts tasted the same as regular Krispy Kremes. 😊
Photo info: motorola moto g(6), 3.95mm, f/1.8, 1/30 sec, ISO253 “Under the Kotatsu” Cedar Park, 2019
Today was a full day of screentime for me, starting off by joining Koa while he rewatched the excellent Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, and then I caught the ending of the silly G-Force movie. After that, Koa went over to a friend’s house to hang out and I had the big tv all to myself. I watched The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, which is a story I am familiar with since I am also reading the book. The story is a glimpse into lives so different from mine, and heartbreaking, inspirational, and ultimately uplifting. A really good film, and recommended!
After that, I switched gears and watched Ip Man, which is a 2008 Hong Kong martial arts film starring Donnie Yen. The fighting scenes were pretty great, although there wasn’t much to the plot. It’s based on a true story, though, so that added a bit of weight to the film. I’m not sure if it was enough to motivate me to watch the sequels, but who knows?
To conclude my day of screentime, I finished The Lost Temple of Ssis’sythyss (The Dungeoneers Book 3) by Jeffery Russell. I thoroughly enjoyed the previous two Dungeoneers books and the third book did not disappoint! It actually takes place before the other two which was cool because you get to see how some of the main characters from the first books actually meet.
こんばんは。Tonight my two sons and I went to the theater to catch the 9:35 showing of Captain Marvel. I had heard good things about this superhero movie, so I was excited to see it (much like Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse), and I was not disappointed.
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I absolutely loved the movie! It had a great story, interesting characters, and wonderful acting. Plot-wise, I liked the manner in which Captain Marvels’ past unfolds bit by bit and changes her relationship to the other characters. As she learns more about her past, we learn the true nature of those around her, and that drives the story. Funny how you can begin the movie despising the Skrulls, and then that turns around 180 degrees. Their story, of course, has relevance to today’s real-world situations, so that gave me a whole lot to think about.
I liked how the 1995 setting establishes Captain Marvel’s place in the MU before most of the present-day heroes. Since 1995 would put the main characters at about the same age as me, I have a special affinity for them. Plus the setting is Los Angeles, so there’s an extra connection!
It’s always interesting how the movies’ stories intersect with each other and seeing Nick Fury and Agent Coulson as young noobs was really fun. I read that the actors were digitally “de-aged” by 25 years for the movie. It looked great!
Speaking of actors, Brie Larson was excellent in the title role. She was relatable and strong, and once again, I can easily imagine her in the 1995 timeframe. But she also pulls off the transitions from Star Force soldier, to So-Cal native, and to superhero with ease. And what about that mohawk? At first, I thought it was kind of ridiculous, but then I was all, “Yeah”! I also liked the chemistry between Larson and Samuel L. Jackson, but then, Jackson seems to have good chemistry with everyone. 😀
On the flipside, I was surprisingly disappointed with Jude Law‘s acting which seemed formulaic and lacked depth. Maybe it was just the dialog he was given, but I felt like I could predict everything he was going to say and every expression on his face. After each of his scenes or lines, the thought “yeah, that was average” went through my mind. I expected the usually excellent Law to give more color to the character, but that was not the case here.
Although I don’t like the ensemble superhero movies as much as the standalone character films, I’m looking forward to seeing the next Avengers movie. Everyone has their favorite heroes, and Captain Marvel jumped to the top of my list. I’m hoping she kicks some butt in Avengers: End Game!
Here’s a ranking of my favorite superheroes (that I am familiar with). Looking at this list, any character below Black Panther I’d be fine with not making the Thanos cut.
