50 Books Challenge 2013 Update - January

A slow start, only three books, but I have full confidence that will get better in the upcoming months.

# 1. Eon by Alison Goodman (Eon # 1) - 3/ 5
# 2. Life of Pi by Yann Martel - 5/ 5
# 3. Dracula by Bram Stoker - 5/ 5

Average: 4,7

Favorite of the Month: Life of Pi by Yann Martel

So here's next month's theme:

I already have some great books in mind and some on my shelve to read. I didn't do this theme last year, although I wanted to. Now I'm doing it!! I'll keep you updated.

Top 5 Thursday: Quentin Tarantino Movies

I listed my favorite characters from Quentin Tarantino movies before, now it’s time for his movies. I saw “Django Unchained” last week and I realized again how fantastic Tarantino is as a director. He is my favorite, no doubt about that. Here are my favorite movies.

5. Inglourious Bastards
Something different but with typical Tarantino trademarks. Liked the multiple storylines and how they all cross. And what a great discovery, Christoph Waltz!!

4. Kill Bill Vol. 1
Who would have thought that Lucy Liu could play such a convincing scary and bad girl? My favorite scene is the one where the Bride meets up with Vernita Green in the kitchen.

3. Pulp Fiction
This is a cult hit for all of us who grew up in the 90’s (born in the 80’s). So many memorable and classic lines come from this movie.

2. Reservoir Dogs
Fantastic film. Even though the movie takes place in one location, at least most part of the film, it’s so good. Great characters, amazing plot and dialogue.

1. Kill Bill Vol. 2
Most people wouldn’t agree with me, I know at least one who wouldn’t, but I love this movie. This is my favorite, without a doubt. This movie is so good and, love the character development, the dialogues, opening monologue and the characters.

They almost made the top 5: Django Unchained

50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 3: Dracula by Bram Stoker

Title: Dracula
Author: Bram Stoker
Story: Jonathan Harker, a young London solicitor travels to Transylvania to help a rich nobleman, Count Dracula, purchase an estate in England. Dracula is planning to immigrate to England, and wants Harker to help him hammer out all the legal details. Harker is at first impressed by Dracula's suave politeness, but is soon creeped out by the Count's uncanny ability to communicate with wolves and by the lack of servants in the Count's huge castle. Soon after, Harker realizes that he's a prisoner in the castle.
Start: january 22nd 2013
End: january 30th 2013
Comment: I have waited to read this book much too long. But I think it was better not to start reading this horror novel after I just moved in to my new appartement. It's a scary book indeed. The book is written like a journal, Jonathan Harker's journal to be exact. He describes everything he sees and experiences with count Dracula. I liked the fact that it didn't start slow and we got to the point pretty quickly. We met the count in the beginning of the book and, like Harker, you're first charmed by him. Soon it gets creepier and eventually even terrifying. I learned to read vampire books, because I wasn't very fond of them at first. But a book like "Dracula" is how this genre should be. And how I loved Bram Stoker's writing style. Such beautiful use of words and sentences. Perfect for this novel. He's also very descriptive, I always like that. Especially in a book like this. That makes it even more scary. I highly enjoyed "Dracula", but I had to put it away once in a while. It really got on my nerves. This is a very good horror novel.
Rating: 5/ 5

Oscar Predictions 2013

I'm going to predict the winners for this years Oscars again. Again a though year, but I'm pretty sure about the leading actor and supporting actress. The rest was just guessing. I have no idea! I'm super excited about Seth MacFarlane hosting by the way. Here is my list of who should and would win.

Best Motion Picture of the Year
Should Win: "Lincoln"
Would Win: "Argo"

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Should Win: Daniel Day-Lewis for "Lincoln"
Would Win: Daniel Day-Lewis for "Lincoln"

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Should Win: Naomi Watts for "The Impossible"
Would Win: Jessica Chastain for "Zero Dark Thirty"

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Should Win: Christoph Waltz for "Django Unchained"
Would Win: Tommy Lee Jones for "Lincoln"

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Should Win: Amy Adams for "The Master"
Would Win: Anne Hathaway for "Les Miserables"

Best Achievement in Directing
Should Win: Steven Spielberg for "Lincoln"
Would Win: Steven Spielberg for "Lincoln"

Weekly Photo Challenge 2013 - Theme # 4: Time

It's about time. Time is important. It goes fast when you want it to slow down and it goes slow when you want it to go faster.

You surrounded by time. A wall clock, watch, alarmclock, your computer, oven, it's everywhere. Here is the photo that I made.

Movie Trailer Sunday (70)

This weeks trailers are about a group executing cvert attacks, an attack at the white house, a singer-songwriter, a fancyful world and a teenage girl trying to deal with her parents.

The East
Description: Sarah Moss (Brit Marling) is a brilliant operative for an elite private intelligence firm whose top objective is to ruthlessly protect the interests of their A-list corporate clientele. She is assigned to go undercover to infiltrate an anarchist collective known for executing covert attacks upon major corporations. Living amongst them in an effort to get closer to their members, Sarah finds herself unexpectedly torn between two worlds as she starts to fall in love with the group's charismatic leader, finding her life and her priorities irrevocably changed.
Director: Zal Batmanglij
Starring: Brit Marling,Alexander Skarsgård, Ellen Page, Julia Ormond, Patricia Clarkson
Trailer: Trailer "The East"

Olympus Has Fallen
Description: When the White House (Secret Service Code: "Olympus") is captured by a terrorist mastermind and the President is kidnapped, disgraced former Presidential guard Mike Banning (Gerard Butler) finds himself trapped within the building. As our national security team scrambles to respond, they are forced to rely on Banning's inside knowledge to help retake the White House, save the President, and avert an even bigger disaster.
Director: Antoine Fuqua
Starring: Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, Morgan Freeman, Angela Bassett, Dylan McDermott, Ashley Judd, Melissa Leo
Trailer: Trailer "Olympus Has Fallen"

Inside Llewyn Davis
Description: A singer-songwriter navigates New York's folk music scene during the 1960s.
Director: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
Starring: Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, Justin Timberlake, John Goodman, Garrett Hedlund
Trailer: Trailer "Inside Llewyn Davis"
Comment: Always love a good Coen brothers movie.

Mood Indigo
Description: In a world where you can travel around on a pink cloud or literally be swept off an ice-skating rink into a hole, Colin, a wealthy young man and inventor of the cocktail-mixing piano, wants to fall in love. With the help of his cook Nicolas and best friend Chick, he meets Chloe, the incarnation of a Duke Ellington tune. But soon after their wedding, Chloe falls ill. She has a water lily growing in her chest. Ruined by medical expenses, Colin resorts to increasingly desperate methods to save his beloved's life
Director: Michel Gondry
Starring: Audrey Tautou, Romain Duris, Omar Sy, Gad Elmaleh, Philippe Torreton, Charlotte le Bon
Trailer: Trailer "Mod Indigo"
Comment: A French movie with Audrey Tatou, loving it already!

The Playroom
Description: Set in the suburbs during the 1970s, the story unfolds like a dream wrapped around a family drama, one in which all members of the Cantwell family struggle to find their way in a rapidly changing world. Maggie (Olivia Harris) is a vulnerable yet tempestuous teenager who acts as big sister and surrogate mother to her three younger siblings. Upstairs in the attic she tells them fantastical stories, but only to mask what is happening downstairs. As her hard-drinking parents, Martin and Donna (John Hawkes and Molly Parker), entertain guests, Maggie grapples with their flawed choices and is thrust into a world she might not be ready for.
Director: Julia Dyer
Starring: John Hawkes, Molly Parker, Olivia Harris, Jonathan Brooks, Cody Linley
Trailer: Trailer "The Playroom"

In My Mailbox (81)

Only one postcard this week. It's been a while since that happened. But it was a fantastic one, from my own country. From Vlissingen, the Netherlands I got this very adorable bunny postcard. Lovely....

Sent: january 20th 2013
Received: january 22nd 2013
Distance: 171 km (106 miles)
Travel Time: 2 days

Thanks Gerda fot your wonderful postcard!

Top 5 Thursday: Funny Guys

I made a list for funny ladies a long time a go, so it was about time I made one for the guys. So here they are.

5. Adam Sandler
This was my go-to-guy when I needed a laugh. But now his movies are a little bit too silly. But I can still melt when I hear him sing “Grow Old with You” from “The Wedding Singer” or when he pees his pants in “Billy Madison” (I never thought I would say that).

4. Steve Carell
Steve Carell got his fame through “The Office”, which is one of my favorite shows. He is funny because of his goofy, loser-like and nerdy roles. His characters are never the luckiest guys n the planet.

3. Jerry Seinfeld
He had his best days, but I still love watching “Seinfeld”. His jokes are all so logical, he just thought it through.

2. Seth MacFarlane
He’s funny and we hardly ever see him.He’s a man of a thousand voices and I love “Family Guy” and “Ted”. And man did I enjoy him on “SNL”.

1. Will Ferrell
Just looking at him makes me laugh. I don’t know what it is, but it doesn’t matter if the film is good or not, he makes me laugh anyway.

They almost made the top 5: Jeff Dunham, Tim Allen, Eddie Murphy, Jon Cryer, Kevin James, Owen Wilson

Quotables: "Easy A"

When I read the synopsis of “Easy A” I thought it was going to be one of those standard teen comedies, with oversexed teenagers. Well, it wasn’t anything like that. It’s one of my favorites of all-time and it made me love Emma Stone. And she’s the star, with a lot f fantastic quotes. Here are my favorites.

Olive Penderghast: I just thought of the funniest thing. My name is an anagram for "I love".
Anson: What... what's an anagram?
Olive Penderghast: [stares in disbelief for a second before recovering] Look it up big boy.

Brandon: Is there an Olive here?
Rosemary: There's a whole jar of them in the fridge!

Principal Gibbons: This is public school. If I can keep the girls off the pole and the boys off the pipe, I get a bonus.

Dill: The family member of the week gets to pick the movie.
Olive Penderghast: You get family member of the week every week.
Rosemary: And there's a reason for that.
Olive Penderghast: Yeah, you pick family member of the week!
Rosemary: Are you accusing me of nepotism?

Olive Penderghast: Whatever happened to chivalry? Does it only exist in 80's movies? I want John Cusack holding a boombox outside my window. I wanna ride off on a lawnmower with Patrick Dempsey. I want Jake from Sixteen Candles waiting outside the church for me. I want Judd Nelson thrusting his fist into the air because he knows he got me. Just once I want my life to be like an 80's movie, preferably one with a really awesome musical number for no apparent reason. But no, no, John Hughes did not direct my life.

Dill: After we watch "The Bucket List," remember to cross "watch 'The Bucket List'" off our bucket list.

Olive Penderghast: I used to be anonymous, invisible to the opposite sex. If Google Earth were a guy couldn't find me if I was dressed up as a 10-story building.

Woodchuck Todd: Screw all these people, Olive!
Olive Penderghast: Haven't you heard? I already did.

Rosemary: Not to mention how have you been dressing this past few day. No judgement, but you kind of look like stripper.
Olive Penderghast: Mom!
Dill: [to Olive] A high-end stripper, for governors or athletes.

Rhiannon: George is not a sexy name. George is like what you name your teddy bear, not the name you wanna scream out during climax.

Olive Penderghast: Ironically, we were studying "The Scarlet Letter", but isn't that always the way? The books you read in class always seems to have a strong connection with whatever angsty adolescent drama is being recounted. I consider this. Except for "Huckleberry Finn", 'cause I don't know any teenage boys who have ever run away with a big, hulking black guy.

Olive Penderghast: That's the beauty of being a girl in high-school: people hear you had sex once and BAM - you're a bimbo.

Rosemary: We're a family of late bloomers - I didn't until I was 14 and nor did Olive.
Chip: Why does that matter - I'm adopted!
Dill: [Freaking out] What! Oh my god! Who told you? Guys we were going to do this at the right time!

Olive Penderghast: [to Brandon as she takes off her panties] Relax. Jesus. What is with you gays? Are you really that repulsed by lady parts? What do you think I have down there? A gnome?

Olive Penderghast: I might even lose my virginity to him. I don't know when will it happen. You know, maybe in five minutes, or tonight, or sixth months from now, or maybe on the night of our wedding. But the really amazing this is, it is nobody's goddamn business.

Weekly Photo Challenge 2013 - Theme # 3: Black & White

Third theme for the photo challenge. I really thought about this theme, but it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be.

I was looking for black and white things in and around the house. But then I thought, why not just take a black and white picture. Edited it with instagram. First photo this challenge I took with my Samsung Galaxy SIII.

50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 2: Life of Pi by Yann Martel

Title: Life of Pi
Author: Yann Martel
Story: Growing up in Pondicherry, India, Piscine Molitor Patel - known as Pi - has a rich life. Bookish by nature, young Pi acquires a broad knowledge of not only the great religious texts but of all literature, and has a great curiosity about how the world works. His family runs the local zoo, and he spends many of his days among goats, hippos, swans, and bears, developing his own theories about the nature of animals and how human nature conforms to it. Pi’s family life is quite happy, even though his brother picks on him and his parents aren’t quite sure how to accept his decision to simultaneously embrace and practise three religions - Christianity, Hinduism, and Islam. But despite the lush and nurturing variety of Pi’s world, there are broad political changes afoot in India, and when Pi is sixteen, his parents decide that the family needs to escape to a better life. Choosing to move to Canada, they close the zoo, pack their belongings, and board a Japanese cargo ship called the Tsimtsum. Travelling with them are many of their animals, bound for zoos in North America. However, they have only just begun their journey when the ship sinks, taking the dreams of the Patel family down with it. Only Pi survives, cast adrift in a lifeboat with the unlikeliest oftravelling companions: a zebra, an orang-utan, a hyena, and a 450-pound Royal Bengal tiger named Richard Parker. Thus begins Pi Patel’s epic, 227-day voyage across the Pacific, and the powerful story of faith and survival at the heart of Life of Pi. Worn and scared, oscillating between hope and despair, Pi is witness to the playing out of the food chain, quite aware of his new position within it. When only the tiger is left of the seafaring menagerie, Pi realizes that his survival depends on his ability to assert his own will, and sets upon a grand and ordered scheme to keep from being Richard Parker’s next meal.
Start: january 10th 2013
End: january 21st 2013
Comment: I heard so many good things about "Life of Pi". I found this book by accident at a bookmarket, for only 1 euro. Lucky me, because it's one of the most extraordinary books I have read. We follow the life of 15-year-old Pi, the son of a zookeeper. He survives a shipwreck. He thinks he's the only survivor but his lifeboat is occupied by a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker, an injured zebra, a hyena, and an orangutan. I know that sounds stupid, but you can't even imagine how amazing the story is. The way the story is told is beautiful, I love Martel's writingstyle. He tells the story so vivdly. Some moments gave me goosebumps, like when he saw the whale. Or the terrible moment where he found his brother. Pi is a loveable character, there is really no way you can dislike this boy. And because there is only one character of real importance,there is enough room for character development and you really get to know Pi. I was so captivated by this book that I felt that I was on that boat with Pi. This is truly amazing, it won me over. "Life of Pi" is such a beautiful book that I can recommened to anyone.
Rating: 5/ 5

Movie Moments: E.T.:The Extra Terrestrial

This movie is absolutely timeless. When I added this movie to the top 5 of Steven Spielberg movies last thursday, I just needed to rewatch it and pick my favorite moments from the film. So here they are.

Moment # 1: Opening
A strange aircraft has landed on our planet, with unearthly creatures. We don’t really get to see what they are, only some fingers and silhouettes. People have discovered them and are trying to chase one of the creatures. When he’s almost at the aircraft, it leaves and one of the creatures is left behind.

Moment # 2: Something in the shed
Elliott is getting pizza and he hears something in the shed. When he throws a ball in the shed, something throws it back. When Elliot returns with back up, there’s nothing there. When they go back inside the house, we see fingers.

Moment # 3: Elliott discovers E.T.
When Elliott is in the bed he decides to check out the shed again. He goes into te cornfield and he sees a strange creature appear. Both are startled and start to screams and run.

Moment # 4: E.T. comes back
No one believes Elliott, but he doesn’t give up. At night, Elliott sleeps outside and the creature returns. Elliott lures him in with candy and we finally meet E.T. Elliot doesn’t know what to do, but E.T. starts mimicking Elliott.

Moment # 5: Gertie meets E.T.
Michael gets home and Elliott wants him to meet E.T. All of a sudden Gertie also walks in and she starts to scream when she sees E.T. Than E.T. also starts to scream.

Moment # 6: E.T. speaks
Gertie comes home from school and watches T.V. There’s a spelling show on and Gertie is repeating the words. E.T. is behind the T.V. and starts to talk.

Moment # 7: E.T. phone home
E.T. made something and tries to tell Elliott, Gertie and Michael what he wants to do with it. Het tells them it’s to phone home.

Moment # 8: Auch
Elliott cuts his finger and E.T. heals it.

Moment # 9: The flying bike
Elliott is trying to get E.T. to the place where he can make his phonecall. When in the woods, Elliott thinks they can’t go any further because it’s to bumpy, but the bike starts to ride itself. E.T. is making it do that and they start to fly.

Moment # 10: “I’ll be right here”
E.T. goes home. Gertie kisses him on the nose, Michael says goodbye and for Elliott it’s the hardest moment. They hug and E.T. tells him: “I’ll be right here” and points to Elliott’s head.

Favorite Moment: Moment # 9: The flying bike

Movie Trailer Sunday (69)

This weeks trailers are about a struggling actor trying to raise his son, A guy named Mud, spring break, retired secret agents and a father trying to get his son to take over the family business.

The End of Love
Description: When the mother of his two-year-old son Isaac suddenly passes away, struggling actor Mark (Mark Webber) is forced to grapple with his ability to grow up. As he kindles a relationship with a young single mother (Shannyn Sossamon), he begins to realize that he can no longer remain in denial about the real-life consequences his choices have on Isaac (Isaac Love).
Director: Mark Webber
Starring: Mark Webber Shannyn Sossamon, Michael Cera, Aubrey Plaza, Amanda Seyfried
Trailer: Trailer "The End of Love"

Mud
Description: Ellis and his friend Neckbone find a man named Mud (Matthew McConaughey) hiding out on an island in the Mississippi. Mud describes fantastic scenarios-he killed a man in Texas and vengeful bounty hunters are coming to get him. He says he is planning to meet and escape with the love of his life, Juniper, who is waiting for him in town. Skeptical but intrigued, Ellis and Neckbone agree to help him. It isn't long until Mud's visions come true and their small town is besieged by a beautiful girl (Reese Witherspon) with a line of bounty hunters in tow.
Director: Jeff Nichols
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Tye Sheridan, Jacob Lofland, Sam Shepard, Michael Shannon, Reese Witherspoon
Trailer: Trailer "Mud"
Comment: I'm not a fan of either Matthew McConaughey or Reese Witherspoon, but I have to admit this looks pretty good.

Spring Breakers
Description: Four sexy college girls plan to fund their spring break getaway by burglarizing a fast food shack. But that's only the beginning... At a motel room rager, fun reaches its legal limit and the girls are arrested and taken to jail. Hungover and clad only in bikinis, the girls appear before a judge but are bailed out unexpectedly by Alien (James Franco), an infamous local thug who takes them under his wing and leads them on the wildest Spring Break trip in history. Rough on the outside but with a soft spot inside, Alien wins over the hearts of the young Spring Breakers, and leads them on a Spring Break they never could have imagined.
Director: Harmony Korine
Starring: James Franco, Selena Gomez, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Benson, Rachel Korine, Heather Morris, Gucci Mane
Trailer: Trailer "Spring Breakers"
Comment: Only because of James, who looks awefull by the way.

Red 2
Description: Retired black-ops CIA agent Frank Moses (Bruce Willis) reunites his unlikely team of elite operatives for a global quest to track down a missing portable nuclear device. To succeed, they'll need to survive an army of relentless assassins, ruthless terrorists and power-crazed government officials, all eager to get their hands on the next-generation weapon. The mission takes Frank and his motley crew to Paris, London and Moscow. Outgunned and outmanned, they have only their cunning wits, their old-school skills, and each other to rely on as they try to save the world-and stay alive in the process.
Director: Dean Parisot
Starring: Bruce Willis, Mary-Louise Parker, Helen Mirren, John Malkovich, Anthony Hpkins, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Brian Cox
Trailer: Trailer "Red 2"

At Any Price
Description: Ambitious Henry Whipple (Dennis Quaid) wants his rebellious son Dean (Zac Efron) to help expand his family's farming empire. However, Dean has his sights set on becoming a professional race car driver. When a high-stakes investigation into their business unfolds, father and son are pushed into an unexpected situation that threatens the family�s entire livelihood.
Director: Ramin Bahrani
Starring: Dennis Quaid, Zac Efron, Kim Dickens, Heather Graham
Trailer: Trailer "At Any Price"

In My Mailbox (80)

Seven officials this week and one private swap. The first amazing postcard came frm Tauchung, Taiwan. It's from Alice in Wonderland. I love everything about this card.The colors are beautiful too.

Sent: january 8th 2013
Received: january 14th 2013
Distance: 9,511 km (5,910 miles)
Travel Time: 6 days

From Torun,Poland I received this viewcard. A bit touristic, but'you have to admit it's a nice view.

Sent: january 9th 2013
Received: january 15th 2013
Distance: 916 km (569 miles)
Travel Time: 6 days

I got this really sweet postcard from Severodvinsk, Russia. I like it because I love dogs and the fall. This is them together, so perfect for me.

Sent: january 4th 2013
Received: january 16th 2013
Distance: 2,451 km (1,523 miles)
Travel Time: 12 days

This card fits the time of the year perfectly. I had just snowed here when I received this pstcard from Hangzhou, China. And isn't the panda cute?

Sent: december 29th 2012
Received: january 16th 2013
Distance: 8,930 km (5,549 miles)
Travel Time: 18 days

From Gatchina, Russia I got this fall card. I think it's a park. The sender wrote me a riddle on it. I like riddles and I guessed it.

Sent: january 7th 2013
Received: january 17th 2013
Distance: 1,776 km (1,104 miles)
Travel Time: 10 days

This Moomin card came from Turku, Finland. What a surprise!

Sent: january 13th 2013
Received: january 18th 2013
Distance: 1,441 km (895 miles)
Travel Time: 5 days

And I just love this concept art from Pixar!!!! It's from Taipei, Taiwan. I love this postcard. It also had a Buzz Lightyear stamp on it.

Sent: january 3rd 2013
Received: january 18th 2013
Distance: 9,469 km (5,884 miles)
Travel Time: 15 days

And a private swap from Guangdong, China. My card had arrived a long time ago, but now I received mine. It's vintage, loving it.

Thanks Jennifer, Marta, Natasha, Alice, Anton, Gitta, Ivy and Guo for your fantastic postcards this week.