Things I Like

Cooler days. Today was only 83 with no humidity and a nice breeze.

The Adjustment Bureau. It was interesting, entertaining, and beautiful. Few movies have ever made New York City look that cool. Plus, the chemistry between Matt Damon and Emily Blunt was totally believable. Best movie we've rented in a long time and easily one of the top three adaptations of a Philip K. Dick story. (Yes, better than Total Recall and Paycheck. Probably not as good as Blade Runner -- although lots more laughs.)

Rachel McAdams. She's usually the best, most-interesting thing in whatever she's in. Admittedly, she was a little outclassed in Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes but she brought a lot of charm to Morning Glory which pretty much would have been a dud without her.

Mowing the lawn. Seriously. We have about an acre and it takes me about an hour and a half to do it all. I listen to This American Life or a playlist on my ipod and just sort of bliss out for a while. Besides just the relative peace of being able to focus entirely on one simple job, there's something really satisfying about the cleanliness and order of the grass when it's all done. I love looking out our back windows at the grass and seeing the lines made by the mower wheels. It's weird but whatever blows your hair back, right?

Imelda May. See for yourself:



She was on the Morning Glory soundtrack and I just dig her funky retro thing. Her album Love Tattoo is really cool and what's interesting about her is that she's Irish. I find it interesting when European singers reinterpret very American sounds -- Brits Duffy, Amy Winehouse, and Adele with the whole 60s girl-group sound and now Imelda May with the slinky 1950s rockabilly thing. I dig it.

Diet Pepsi. I drank a Diet Coke the other day and about spewed. I used to think there was no real difference between the two (that was back when I hardly drank either ever). Now that I am well-acquainted with both, Diet Pepsi is the clear winner. Light, sweet, fizzy, perfect. It is my ultimate summer beverage.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2. Suzy and I caught an afternoon matinee today while the girls stayed with a sitter and I really enjoyed it. It was moving and exciting. The part when Harry's dead loved ones come back to speak to him before he goes into battle was very touching. I had to keep it under control because I didn't want the constantly-cell-phone-checking-teenagers in front of us to be all like, "Why's that old fat guy crying? What a wuss."

Colin Hay. The first album I ever bought wasn't really an album, it was a cassette tape. Yep, Men at Work's Cargo. I bought it with my own money (6.99 I want to say) from a grocery store in American Falls, Idaho. I think I bought it on the strength of their song "Down Under" and the fact that I had cousins from Australia which is where the band originates. I listened to that thing until it was a worn-out mess. Now, all these years later, I come to discover that MAW's lead singer, Colin Hay, has gone on to have a nice solo career and does some really cool acoustic stuff, including a version of the old MAW work classic, "Overkill."



Cucumbers and tomatoes. Slice them up and put them in a bowl with a little Italian dressing -- is there anything better or more summery than that?

Park Foo's first haircut: