Ah, December. The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas is busy for most people. People worrying about sending holiday cards, decorating their homes, shopping for loved ones, attending holiday/end of year parties. We don’t do any of that, except sending a holiday card or two (still need to do that!) and maybe the odd party here or there. We haven’t decorated for the holidays in AGES and we don’t buy gifts for the holidays. I do miss wrapping gifts but I don’t miss the hassle of the hustle and bustle of shopping. The holidays are a low-key thing for us but I don’t really mind. The best time of this year is the music but even though I’ve been playing my holiday tunes at work since after Thanksgiving break, it feels more an obligation to the season than anything else.
The hubby’s holiday work party is always a highlight for December. Last year’s didn’t happen, of course, so it was nice to get together this year. Skipolini’s in Oakley is a super lovely spot and the dinner was upstairs. Such a pretty view inside and outside (I should have taken pictures of the outside, darn it!).
I never got warm enough to take off my coat, which is fine because it feels like a dress sometimes but with pockets! I had a good time chatting, eating, and stealing a blanket during the white elephant. (Blankets are my weakness?) Best part was we Uber’d to and from so we didn’t have to worry about how much we drank (I had two glasses of wine but probably could have driven home). If you go to a holiday party, hire a car or stay close by and be safe, my lovelies!
MUSIC
West Side Story (soundtrack) – I’ve been listening to the soundtrack to the 2021 movie West Side Story and it’s so beautiful. It’s true to the music but refreshed in a good way and I am rather in love with it. I love the soundtrack so much that I’m almost afraid to watch the movie on the chance that it spoils my love for the soundtrack (which probably won’t happen but I still worry). I’m probably going to watch the movie sometime. Hopefully it’s still in the theatre during Winter Break so I can watch it, as I’ll be off and I am determined to watch a couple of movies while I’m off. If you love West Side Story, you’ll love the new soundtrack. So beautiful.
FANGIRL MUSINGS
It’s weird when I realize that I follow someone on social media for reasons I cannot remember. This happened with Simon Kasssianides– I still don’t know why I started following him but I do know that I started following him in 2015. It’s weird not being able to trace the moment when or why someone caught my eye enough for me to follow. So it goes with Marco Dapper aka Distraction Crush. According to Instagram, I started following him in 2015, which is when I started following Sam Hunt, Tyler Rich, Simon Kassianides, and who knows who else! What the heck happened in 2015 that made me follow these fellas? (Well, I know why I started following Sam…) Marco is an actor, model, and artist. I had never seen him act (until very recently) but I’m sure I’ve seen some of his modeling (you can find him in the store for mens hair color). At this point, I suppose I follow him for his art. The interesting fact about him is that he was born in Hayward and grew up in the Bay Area. Well, I find the fact interesting as one who also grew up in the Bay Area.
So I call Marco my Distraction Crush because I thought he was a crush during a lull between main crushes. I thought my next big crush was Ben Barnes but apparently he’s sharing the fangirl light with Marco. Maybe it’s just because Marco was my Muse for my latest National Novel Writing Month story that he’s still on my radar. But why was he my Muse? I was all set for a story where Ben plays the main fella but I was just not feeling it enough to spend a whole month on that story. Oh well.
As I’m wont to do, I thought I’d watch some of Marco’s work. Thank goodness (maybe?) for Tubi! A few of his movies can be found there and I started with the horror movie, Like a Bat Outta Hell. What can I say about that movie? Well, Marco was decent in it. He did what he could with the material. Other than him and one of the other actors who was also mostly decent in it, the movie was rather horrible. The other two main (?) characters were utter crap and it felt like a combination of bad acting and terrible writing. I never like to say such things about movies that I know took hard work but this movie almost made no sense. And the ending? It was just limp and frustrating. What was the whole purpose? Did I miss something because I zoned out, determined not to continue watching if his character died and then surprised that his character didn’t die and I ended up watching the whole movie? Goodness me.
His debut movie, for which he was credited as “and introducing Marco Dapper,” is Eating Out: Sloppy Seconds. It can also be found on Tubi. I read the synopsis on the movie and it sounded like something I wouldn’t want to watch but it also seemed interesting. I started the movie and realized in just a few minutes that I wouldn’t be able to actually watch it like the horror flick. I decided to just forward to Marco’s scenes and I got to his first scene and YOWSA. Maybe I’ll finish watching the movie but at this writing, I have not. I think I need to be in a certain mood for that kind of movie.
Seriously, the things I do as a fangirl…
MOVIES & TV
8-Bit Christmas (HBO Max) – I had my attention half on this movie. I adore Neil Patrick Harris and he was cute in it as the father telling the story. It was a cute movie but I kept getting those A Christmas Story/The Sandlot vibes and in my head, I was comparing a bit to those movies. I love those two movies so I should have loved this movie but I think I might need to watch it again to figure out what I might like about it. It is cute and funny and heartwarming.
Clifford the Big Red Dog (Paramount+/theatres) – We watched this at home and I liked it! I have a love for Clifford because he’s the one childhood story I remember reading and loving. Of course, having Jack Whitehall in this movie is a big plus, even though the American accent on him just sounds so weird and a bit wrong. He was adorable in it though and Darby Camp was just the right amount of spunky without being too precious. Definitely a kiddie movie and if you have kids, give it a watch. It’s cute!
Hawkeye (Disney+) – I am enjoying the latest Disney+/MCU entry. Of course, one of my favorite things is that Alecs Paunovic is one of the Tracksuit Mafia. Yah! They’re a funny bunch. I like how the show is giving us more background on Clint Barton/Hawkeye and I’m digging Hailee Steinfeld as Kate Bishop.
CSI: Vegas – Is this show getting a second season? I thought it was well done and did a decent job bridging the original series to this latest incarnation. The cases of the week seemed to fare better than the arcing storyline, imo, but the season’s long storyline had its moments. I hope it gets another season so that we can see more of the new cast.
I’ve been walking during my lunch breaks and it’s a great way to break up the work day. I head out to City Park and take pictures, sit a while, then walk back to the office. The days have been brisk and cold and dry but that’s ending as we actually have some rain in the forecast this upcoming week. Whenever I walk to the park, during my lunch time, it’s also during school hours and I always wonder about the teenagers I see hanging about at the park when I *know* they should be in class. They don’t all look like seniors who might be off from school already. I have my earbuds in, listening to music, so I never hear them as I pass them. I make sure not to look at them when I’m wearing work gear because I don’t want them to think I care that they’re out there. But why are they out there? Why aren’t they in school?
And that’s the rundown on the week. Stay safe, stay dry and warm, be kind. Yes, let’s end it on that…