Movie Review

I can't sleep lately, so I guess I'll blog, since I never have the time or motivation to do so these days.

"Step Up 2" might be the most entertaining movie I've seen in a while. There have been many dance themed pictures that have come to the big screen in the past few years. "Save The Last Dance" comes to mind as one of the first. Step Up 2 is great because it takes place in Baltimore, references a fictitious subway system in the city, has a street dancing group called "The 4-1-0" (a la the area code), and has some of the best dance sequences of any of the genre's movies. Now, I don't claim to be an expert, but I have seen most of them (and some of the documentaries like them), but they really gave the audience what they wanted with this one. I could have watched this movie again if I wasn't trying to get my money's worth this month.

I know I'm late in lauding this movie, which came out last February. What can I say; it just came up in the Netflix. I thought I'd review it as my friend K posts interesting ideas about serious movies on his blog. Me, on the other hand, "Step Up 2" is about as serious a movie as I can watch. It's tough dancing in the streets of Baltimore, trying to fit in at an elite private art school.

Any non-serious movie suggestions are welcome.

Okay, so I sometimes watch movies that aren't targeted to high school girls. "Melinda to Melinda," Woody Allen's choose your own adventure type movie was pretty good. The premise was that with a few simple details about boy meets girl and you could either make it a tragedy or a comedy. He presents both, juxtaposed, with the same woman playing Melinda in both (although I didn't believe it until I saw the credits). I liked the idea of the story (and Will Ferrell as Woody), but I felt as though it came up a little short. There was a little pizazz missing. I know not every movie will be "Annie Hall," but this did have a lot of potential. I did give it four stars on Netflix (as I did for Step Up 2 by the by), so I liked it, but I've seen better. That makes me want to watch more Woody Allen. In college, there was this great video store (yay B'more!) that had a "director's room." In this room, movies were sorted by famous directors, so it was so easy to pick out the next Woody movie. I loved that place. Netflix doesn't hold a candle to Video Americain. Or Donna's while I'm at it.

Who's Got Mettle?

What to do with race medals? This month's Runner's World has the answer. Donate them to Medals4Mettle. You can send them a legacy form with a description of how you got the medal, why you ran the race, and why you're donating it.

They also highlighted some funny technical running tees for the ladies. One says, " McCain: Kicking Butt in my age group," another, "Obama: The Kenyan Advantage," and the last, "08 Obama: Running the Good Race." You can find them here in the shop.

While His Ukulele Gently Weeps

One Jake Shimabukuro was at Newport this year. He was on a side stage so we didn't see his full set, but we did see him solo with Levon Helm. Shortly thereafter, there was a big article in the Sunday Styles section about the rise of the ukulele in recent years. Apparently, people find it easy to pick up...four strings instead of six. Jake was mentioned in the article and the author pointed me to his YouTube videos. They are quite fantastic! I'll include two here: "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" and "Let's Dance." The latter makes me think that the ukulele that's "easy to pick up" is not the one he's playing. He makes that thing sing!

Got You Pegged

This morning, I decided that my life needs more multi-tasking. So, I set off on my long run with my iPod...something I haven't done for months and months (in Nicaragua, I decided running with an iPod was an all-around stupid idea so I got used to running without it). I am setting out to organize my computer files and get rid of things I really don't need. The easiest place to start is with podcasts I've already listened to. The problem is, I've had no time to listen these days. So, my iPod came for a run with three episodes of This American Life.

The first episode, from last week, was called "Got You Pegged." This was exceptionally appropriate, given my post yesterday that touched on the stereotypes of a math teacher. One of my favorite bloggers at The Gourmet Project also touched on this in a recent post. She relates two jokes she has often heard while working in the math world:
1. I asked a friend once if there were a lot of women in his computer science department and he responded, "None identifiable as such."
2. There is this saying in Boston about the college women in the area: "BU to bed, Harvard to wed, MIT to pull a sled."

Oy vey! So, this episode of This American Life was so fun to listen to, given the confluence of this idea of being pegged or stereotyped. There's a story about a woman who, while accompanying her autistic brother, was mistaken for someone who is differently abled. Another story about a young white boy and black man who were pulled over by the police for riding bikes without helmets, but the police try to find fault for something more serious. Finally, I enjoyed the story about a man who has routinely ruined every family vacation. It becomes clear how this might have happened so many times when he says, "Here's the thing about people: I don't really like them. That's why I find racism so curious. There are so many reasons to dislike people, you're going to go with color?" I often feel this way. There are so many other reasons to dislike people...and so many reasons that are totally under their control. I'm more likely to pick a reason that is controllable and dislike someone for that. That's why I have a tough time with kids who don't get their homework done. I just can't understand how they get to that "decision."

You can listen to the episode anytime at the This American Life website or you can search for TAL at the iTunes store and if you subscribe today, you'll get the Pegged episode for free (there's a new free episode posted for download every Sunday...or maybe it's Monday).

If You Get My Meaning

Today, I was editing my work e-mail "signature" and I realized that it should include my fax number. As the Athletic Director, for some reason, people need to constantly tell me things via voicemail, fax, USPS and e-mail. Constantly. But, I don't love the word 'fax' as much as I love 'facsimile.' It just sounds like what the machine does (I thought this without knowing the definition). Facsimile is, in fact, from the Latin fac simile, which means "make like." What a great word! Of course, this word existed before the machine. Too bad it was ruined when the fax machine came around.

That makes me think of some story or joke I heard...or maybe just a commentary that asks "who bought the first fax machine?" Like the telephone, who needs it if they are the only one? That seems like Jerry Seinfeld kind of humor.

For some reason, I really like words that say exactly what they mean. Maybe that's because I don't have the knack for words in general. K will ask me..."Do you know what ____ means?" Most of the time, I could get it right in a multiple choice situation, but I can't recite the definition. So, the word "photocopy" is just great. Because that's what it is...a copy that was produced by taking a picture of the document. It might also be that mathematical practical side. I like when things make sense. Although, I am happy to have "punctilious" as part of my vocabulary now. So, I have two personae I guess. I like word that sound like what they mean, but I also like words that have a nuanced definition. I like to tell my students that I'm not fastidious, I'm punctilious...which I think of as fastidious, but in a good way. I have used this word a lot in front my students since I learned it and one of them even said to me (in Nicaragua), "Ms. Dudley, I know you're punctilious..." Awesome!

I will say that I enjoy being a math teacher who can teach my kids something about words and grammar in the mix of all the numbers. I've had too many people say things to me like, "You like to read, why aren't you an English teacher?" or "You write a lot of letters, why aren't you an English teacher?" Oy! I hope that from me (and so many of my colleagues), my students learn that you don't have to be just one thing. You can actually be a person with a diverse set of skills. Or maybe it's just that I'm a big nerd, who likes learning, whatever the subject.

Kudos and To Dos

Okay, so am I the only who was tearing up during Hilary's intro and her speech the other night? She is a phenomenal leader and I was a bit sad that her fight had to end. My kudos are for MSNBC, who is showing the entire DNC live on their website. How is MSNBC doing better with this than regular NBC with the Olympics? I guess MSNBC realizes that screwing the West Coast when it comes to politics is not the way to go.

Barack made it happen tonight! I'm sure everyone is happy that he laid out some details of his campaign and what he will do as president. It got me so excited. I was reminded of a recent conversation I had with my grandmother about the state of the country. I mentioned to her my belief that I am, you are, we (Democrats) are all to blame for George Bush's presidency, especially his second term, when we knew better. Her response is that she was not culpable because she didn't vote for Bush. So, I asked, "How many people did you convince not to vote for Bush?" Personally, I'm not sure I convinced any (maybe one, now that I think about it). So, what to do this time? I don't think it's enough to vote. I always vote and am surrounded by others who vote, so there must be something more to do. I'm trying to figure out just what that is. I don't think I'm the kind to stand out and ask for signatures. So, my first start was to give Obama some money. I know there are people out there who will call and go door-to-door and I support them. But we have two months to make this happen. Eight is enough! So, what should we do? Potentially, so of my readers are not for Obama. But whoever you support, do you believe in them enough to really do something to get them in the White House or the Senate or the town office? I welcome your thoughts on what to do.

From the Mom Files

Mom emailed this today:

But in that 'You can't make this stuff up" category was this piece of MSNBC accidental humor.

As Jimmy and Roslyn Carter were doing their victory lap around the DNC stage they ran a scroll below that announced that Cindy (whaaa?) McCain is heading off to [ nolongerSoviet] Georgia to, I don't know, stare at sad displaced people. Maybe she will bring one home, just like she did in India. Anyway what made this funny was they were playing the song " Georgia on my Mind" as the Carters, looking fabulous, did their victory lap.

Ding Ding Ding!

Those of you who thought, "She doesn't seem like a running skirt person," were right! I am not a running skirt person. Or, I wasn't. I was pissed when a woman in a black skirt and camo dry-fit top passed me effortlessly in a four-mile race last spring and I've pouted about it since. But then, Runners World did half an issue on the things and so I read. Then I researched on the web. Then, I realized that I spent 10 years of my life competing in a skirt (kilt for the first seven) and I loved my field hockey skirt (although I would have felt weird wearing it to practice). Finally, I was sucked in by the cute twins from runningskirts.com to buy one at the San Diego race expo. Actually, I did give it a good 20 minutes of thought while I snacked on free granola and peanut butter.

The report: I love it. It's super comfortable and you can get it with built in undies or spandex. If you're worried about chafing, the spandex might be better, but I think Body Glide is sufficient. My skirt also has two side pockets. I haven't tried running with gel (since I've only worn this on relatively short runs), but I like the placement of the pockets in theory. So, I guess I'm now a running skirt person. Who would've thought?

And yes, I realize that the tone of my posts are a bit more frantic these days. Just a glimpse into the mind of a high school teacher returning to work. Just think about all the things I am thinking but not writing down.

Wicked Smaht

Every so often, I like to ;ut the spotlight on smart people. Reading the New York Times, they are not hard to find. The best is when they are smart and funny. This morning, I enjoyed Christopher Buckley's take on the DNC. Check it out here. I especially hope there are pictures of the prairie-dog drawn carts. You know I get a kick out of those animals, especially when they play poker.

Tough Running

Watching the Olympic Men's Marathon, I couldn't help but feel like I knew what Ryan Hall, Ritz, and Sell were experiencing. A week ago, I was in San Diego, suffering through a half marathon. Thankfully, my pace was intended to be slow and so I didn't end up too much off my goal, but it was pretty brutal nonetheless. Just like Hall and the other runners, I avoided running the tangents, just to catch whatever shade I could (not that I knew exactly where the tangent was, but I actually thought about it this time). And just like them, I made sure I got water at every stop and ran under the water misters. I'm usually one to gut out most of the race and avoid the fray of most water stops, but San Diego was a heat I haven't experienced in a while. This weekend, I figured out what that heat is like...it's like running here, but at noon. Not a time I usually run. Unfortunately, K and I were both disappointed in our race and so we decided to get the heck "out of Dodge." (That's a phrase uttered every other sentence by a CPR instructor I once had.) We hustled back to the hotel and while K showered, I spent more than 10 minutes trying to de-tangle my hair (after lots of tangling after a 10 mile training run with a ponytail, I switched to pony-braid, which was perhaps worse). I remember being a young girl and my dad told me that I should rub my hands around my head when I shampooed. The result was a bird's nest of a hair-d0 (speaking of bird's nests...there's one in the yellow arrow of a stoplight near my house...bird and all). This time, I threatened to cut my hair off in the hotel room. Perhaps that's not really a threat, but if I had scissors... Anyway, the best things about San Diego: I bought a sweet running skirt that I really like, I caught up on the Olympics, and we did a number on the Sunday puzzle since the drive home was epic (and we saw Jon Miller).

This Friday, I went to Outside Lands, which turned out to be a disappointing festival in Golden Gate Park. We saw Steel Pulse, The Dynamites, Manu Chau, Beck, and Radiohead. I would have enjoyed it if: there were less instances of men in skinny jeans and hipsters in general, I didn't end up with a headache from all the pot and cigarette smoke, I could see from 1/4 mile away, and there were less people. It was no Newport, I'll tell you that. Radiohead was the best of the night. They were just "on" and handled the power outages during their set like pros.

As a result of a late Friday, I slept until 10am on Saturday! When was the last time that happened? That's how I found out that noon in the 'Lo is the same as San Diego at 7am. My run this weekend was good, despite the heat. For my 10 mile runs, I run around the Stanford campus and at around miles 4 and 8, there is a water fountain and a bathroom! Both are adjacent to the driving range/golf course, tennis courts, and stables. What a crazy place. In addition to a good long run, I had a great tempo workout mid-week, so I'm over the rough patch that was San Diego. One thing is clear, I am crossing the San Diego marathon off my list unless they start the race at 5am or put the whole course under a retractable roof.

And now for the entertainment portion of my post. Here's a shot of me, sweaty, and braid a flyin'. No wonder it ended up so tangled.