2012

I like to keep track of things during the year and two of my major non-cooking hobbies are movies and books – both of which lend themselves to list making.  I keep lists of these things throughout the year so I can see what I’ve seen and read and I figured I’d share those lists here as a Fun Thing To Do at the end of the year.  I know it’s not quite the end of the year, but it’s unlikely that I’ll finish see another movie before the year is over.  If you’re curious about the movies, click the link to read more!  We actually hit our pseudo goal of 100 movies this year!

Movies
I live with a cinephile (Lance) so he and I see quite a few movies during the year.  We’re lucky enough to live near a major metropolitan area so we have access to a great little theater that shows limited releases as well as a great huge theater that shows things in IMAX.  Our local theater has also been updated in the last year so we now have great screens, amazing seats, and even assigned seating! 

We’re still working on our project to watch all of the Best Picture and Best Foreign Picture Oscar nominated movies.  We didn’t make much headway into that due to travel, school, gym, and other life happenings. 

Theater movies in bold are ones that I particularly enjoyed. 

Theater Movies
1    The Darkest Hour
2    Devil Inside
3    Contraband
4    Carnage
5    Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
6    The Iron Lady
7    War Horse
8    Albert Nobbs
9    A Separation
10    Haywire
11    The Grey
12    Underworld Awakening
13    The Woman in Black
14    Man on a Ledge
15    Chronicle
16    Secret World of Arriety
17    Ghost Rider Spirit of Vengeance
18    This Means War
19    Safe House
20    The Lorax
21    Silent House
22    Jeff, Who Lives at Home
23    We Need To Talk About Kevin
24    The Hunger Games IMAX
25    John Carter
26    Salmon Fishing in the Yemen
27    Titanic 3D
28    Wrath of the Titans
29    Cabin in the Woods
30    Lockout
31    Pirates: Band of Misfits
32    The Raven
33    Safe
34    Iron Man
35    Incredible Hulk
36    Iron Man 2
37    Thor 3D
38    Captain America 3D
39    The Avengers 3D
40    The Sound of My Voice
41    Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
42    Men in Black 3 3D
43    The Avengers
44    Battleship
45    Dark Shadows
46    Snow White and the Huntsman
47    Chernobyl Diaries
48    Moonrise Kingdom
49    Prometheus
50    Intouchables
51    Rock of Ages
52    Brave
53    Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter
54    Savages
55    The Amazing Spider-Man
56    The Dark Knight Rises IMAX
57    Total Recall
58    The Dark Knight Rises
59    Bourne Legacy
60    Premium Rush
61    Expendables 2
62    Beasts of the Southern Wild
63    The Possession
64    Lawless
65    ParaNorman
66    Robot and Frank
67    Raiders of the Lost Ark
68    Branded
69    Resident Evil: Retribution
70    Trouble with the Curve
71    House at the End of the Street
72    Perks of Being a Wallflower
73    The Master
74    Looper
75    Dredd
76    Taken 2
77    Pitch Perfect
78    Argo
79    Sinister
80    Cloud Atlas
81    Silent Hill Revelation 3D
82    Wreck-It Ralph
83    The Man with the Iron Fists
84    Flight
85    Lincoln
86    Skyfall
87    Twilight Breaking Dawn Part 2
88    The Sessions
89    Silver Linings Playbook
90    A Royal Affair
91    Anna Karenina
92    Life of Pi
93    Rise of the Guardians
94    Hitchcock
95    Killing Them Softly
96    The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey IMAX 3D HFR
97    Jack Reacher
98    The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
99    Django Unchained
100    Les Miserables

Home Movies
The Haunting
Out of Sight
Children of a Lesser God
The Blair Witch Project
Melancholia
Children of Heaven
Chicago
Warrior
Batman Begins
The Dark Knight
Total Recall
The Running Man
Buried
Watchmen
Lost in Translation
Harakiri
Chocolat
Iron Man
Cabin in the Woods
The Avengers
Screwfly Solution
Incident On and Off a Mountain Road
H.P. Lovecraft’s Dreams in the Witch-House
Dance of the Dead
Jenifer
Chocolate
Homecoming
11/11/11
Black Death
Captain America

I like to keep track of things during the year and two of my major non-cooking hobbies are movies and books – both of which lend themselves to list making.  I keep lists of these things throughout the year so I can see what I’ve seen and read and I figured I’d share those lists here as a Fun Thing To Do at the end of the year.  I know it’s not quite the end of the year, and I might finish another book or two before the year is over, but I’ll just update the list when that happens.  If you’re curious about the books, click the link to read more!

Books
I still love my Kindle (and have since upgraded to a Paperwhite) and I still love using goodreads to track my reading.  (Feel free to add me if you are also a goodreads user!)  I set myself a goal of 100 books this year but, due to movies, travel, the gym, and other life happenings, I didn’t come anywhere close.  I’m hoping I’ll redeem my book count next year. 

I’m still working on my Stephen King project, I’ve read about 32 of his books and have 44 to go.  I’ve also tried to add more non-fiction into my reading habits this year, which is a new thing for me. 

Books I especially enjoyed are in bold.  (It’s so hard to pick favorites.)

1    The Immortalists    by    Kyle Mills
2    The Book    by    M. Clifford
3    Propanda from the desk of: Martin Trust - Director of Historic Homeland Preservation and Restoration    by    M. Clifford
4    Danse Macabre    by    Stephen King
5    The Egg Man    by    Carlton Mellick III
6    Anathem    by    Neal Stephenson
7    Cujo    by    Stephen King
8    The Running Man    by    Stephen King
9    The Gunslinger    by    Stephen King
10    Creepshow    by    Stephen King
11    Different Seasons    by    Stephen King
12    Secret of the Sands    by    Rai Aren
13    Seed    by    Ania Ahlborn
14    Latitude 38    by    Ron Hutchison
15    Christine    by    Stephen King
16    Pet Sematary    by    Stephen King
17    Cycle of the Werewolf    by    Stephen King
18    The Terror Dream: Myth and Misogyny in an Insecure America    by    Susan Faludi
19    Godless for God’s Sake: Nontheism in Contemporary Quakerism    by    David Boulton
20    Lightspeed April 2012    by    various
21    The Wind Through the Keyhole    by    Stephen King
22    Half Past Midnight    by    Jeff Brackett
23    Reunion    by    Jeff Bennington
24    Talking with My Mouth Full: My Life as a Professional Eater    by    Gail Simmons
25    The Imago Sequence and Other Stories    by    Laird Barron
26    The James Beard Foundation’s Best of the Best: A 25th Anniversary Celebration of America’s Outstanding Chefs    by    Kit Wohl
27    The Talisman    by    Stephen King
28    Running Out of Time    by    Margaret Peterson Haddix
29    Thinner    by    Stephen King
30    Skeleton Crew    by    Stephen King
31    It    by    Stephen King
32    The Eyes of the Dragon    by    Stephen King
33    Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking    by    Susan Cain
34    Feed    by    Mira Grant
35    Apocalypse Scenario #683: The Box    by    Mira Grant
36    Deadline    by    Mira Grant
37    Countdown    by    Mira Grant
38    Fed    by    Mira Grant
39    Blackout    by    Mira Grant
40    San Diego 2014: The Last Stand of the California Browncoats     by    Mira Grant
41    Total Recall    by    Philip K. Dick
42    The Drawing of the Three    by    Stephen King
43    Misery    by    Stephen King
44    The Tommyknockers    by    Stephen King
45    Nightmares in the Sky: Gargoyles and Grotesques    by    f-stop Fitzgerald and Stephen King
46    Modernist Cuisine at Home    by    Nathan Myhrvold
47    The Golden Compass    by    Philip Pullman
48    The Subtle Knife    by    Philip Pullman
49    The Amber Spyglass    by    Philip Pullman
50    The House of Doors    by    Brian Lumley
51    Maze of Worlds    by    Brian Lumley
52    The Giver    by    Lois Lowry
53    Gathering Blue    by    Lois Lowry
54    Messenger    by    Lois Lowry
55    Son    by    Lois Lowry
56    The Strain    by    Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan
57    The Fall    by    Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan
58    The Night Eternal    by    Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan
59    The Night Circus    by    Erin Morgenstern
60    The Book of Three    by    Lloyd Alexander
61    The Black Cauldron    by    Lloyd Alexander
62    The Castle of Llyr    by    Lloyd Alexander
63    Taran Wanderer    by    Lloyd Alexander
64    The High King    by    Lloyd Alexander
65    The Foundling and Other Tales of Prydain    by    Lloyd Alexander
66    The Dark Half    by    Stephen King
67    Four Past Midnight    by    Stephen King
68    Becoming Sister Wives: The Story of an Unconventional Marriage    by    Kody Brown et al
69    The Boat    by    Christine Dougherty
70    The Filter Bubble    by    Eli Pariser
71    Redshirts    by    John Scalzi
72    Shadow Show: All-New Stories in Celebration of Ray Bradbury    by    various
73    The Sagan Diary    by    John Scalzi
74    Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said    by    Philip K. Dick
75    A Scanner Darkly    by    Philip K. Dick

I am leaving for Norway today and will be back in early June.  Regular posting will resume the week of June 7th.  Whatever regular is!

It has been 16 days since my last post.  I’m still alive, I promise!  I had back to back weekend events in Indianapolis and Nashville and I had intended to catch up on posts between the two events.  Sadly, our little villa in French Lick, Indiana didn’t have the wifi we were promised it would have, so I was unable to do any blog work. 

I have a large number of recipes to post, quite a few restaurant reviews to share, a few meal plans, and a monthly recipe roundup.  I should also post my tale of woe regarding my attempts at seed starting. 

But first, I’ve got to readjust to being home and get through my substantial non-blog to do list! 

Thank you all for your patience, I look forward to getting back into the swing of things over the next few days.  I also look forward to my lack of travel between now and May!

As an aside, if you like tea, this tea kettle thing is amazing.

Many months ago my parents gave us the generous gift of a week in a Marriott timeshare.  We perused our options and decided to go with Marriott’s Manor Club at Ford’s Colony.  We picked it for a number of reasons but, mainly, because it was close enough to home that we could drive and, if there was an emergency with our then-elderly dog, we’d be able to get back home quickly.  Lance opted to stay home and hold down the fort so Art and I had a vacation just the two of us.  I tried to keep notes about what we did on trip so that I’d be able to make a recap post.

Friday
We arrived on Friday and, after getting all checked in, we unpacked and investigated our fantastic suite.  The most fantastic part of the suite was the gas fireplace.  We had the living room over 80*F a few times and had to open the patio door to be able to sleep!  It was very warm and cozy.  In warmer weather, we could have used the patio for breakfasting, but it wasn’t quite nice enough outside for that. 

We headed out to Pierce’s for dinner and then spent time in the evening discussing our plans for the week.  We hadn’t made any plans prior to the trip, so we sort of played it by ear based on the weather forecast. 

Saturday
Since it was the first day of our vacation, we slept in a bit.  Always important when you’re on holiday!  Then we headed over to the concierge to flesh out some of our plans and we scheduled massages for Monday, the day that it was supposed to rain. 

We headed went to Food for Thought on the way to spending our day in Colonial Williamsburg.  The weather was absolutely gorgeous, sunny and in the 60s, but there weren’t many tourists there due to the time of the year.  As a result, not only was it great weather for walking around, but we had many of the tradespeople to ourselves.  We chatted with the cooper, the cabinetmaker, and many others.  We were there for the entire day up until dinner, which we had at Fat Canary.  On the way back to base camp, we stopped by Trader Joes for some breakfast supplies. 

Sunday
The weather was still gorgeous on Sunday, so we ventured back to Colonial Williamsburg for another day.  The way the schedule works is that not all of the shops are open every day, so you definitely need to spend more than one day in the town if you want to see everything.  We stopped by the Williamsburg Inn for breakfast and Chowning’s for lunch.  Our favorite tradesperson was the joiner, we chatted with them for at least an hour.  We also got to stop by the bakery and talk with a few of the street “performers.“  After leaving the town for the day, we found our way to Bangkok Garden for dinner.  In the evening we relaxed with some Mythbusters and board games.  We had a goal of one board game a night, but ended up with only three. 

Monday
We had a breakfast of eggs and toast in the suite and then, in trying to make dinner reservations, we found out that Blue Talon was closed for the entire week.  This let us go to Nawab instead, so we weren’t upset at all.  It was a rainy, gross day, so this was the day we spent at the spa getting massages.  Apparently you’re supposed to do this every three months… but we’re lucky if we get them every three years.  It’s always nice to spoil yourself if you have the option.  After a relaxing day at base camp, we had our amazing dinner at Nawab. 

Tuesday
We had breakfast in our room again before heading over to Colonial Williamsburg.  We wandered around a bit, but our main goal was the shopping district.  We bought a ridiculous number of nuts at the Peanut Shop.  I’m embarrassed to say what all we got, since I’m pretty sure we got nuts for the next few years.  Very crazy, the place is amazing and you can taste test everything.  We went to The Cheese Shop to pick up our sandwiches and cheese plate for lunch and then it was back to the suite for board games before dinner at Giuseppe’s.  This was a very mellow and relaxing day.  We were feeling mellow as our vacation was winding down. 

Wednesday
On our last full day of vacation we had breakfast in the room before heading over to Jamestown Settlement and Historic Jamestown.  The former is run by the Department of Education and the latter is run by the National Park Service.  Both were interesting in their own way, but I was most impressed by the Archaerarium at Historic Jamestowne.  It has some very fascinating artifacts and I was impressed by the facial reconstruction information.  We picked up lunch at the Dale House Café and headed back to the base camp for our first game of Arkham Horror.  It’s a great game that I think will take a bit of getting the hang of but, once we do, I predict many enjoyable times to come.  (We also tried Tsuro and Hive during the week.  Both are also good games.)  We tore ourselves away long enough to go to Second St for dinner.  In the dark, in the rain. 

Thursday
Sadly we had to head home on Thursday since I had to be in Orlando for an event on Friday.  We had breakfast in the room, finishing off our eggs and toast, before packing up and getting on the road. 

This was truly a great trip.  Art and I had a lovely time together, ate lots of clementines, and enjoyed ourselves immensely.  I’m glad I got to introduce Art to Colonial Williamsburg, a place I’d visited many times in my youth but that he had never seen.  I totally understand why my parents go here every January for a long weekend vacation.  I’d love to go back at some point in the future.  I’m grateful that our trip was as unplanned as it was and that Art let me go crazy with the restaurant research and choosing. 

A++, would visit again.