Up with Geography: Austria

Country Name:
Austria

Capital:
Vienna

Continent:
Europe

Maps:

European continent. Austria outlined in dark
ink and shaded.

A close up of Austria & its neighbors.

Neighbors:

Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Italy

Water borders:

None

Total Area: (added March 2015)
32,386 square miles

Five Largest Cities:

Vienna, Graz, Linz, Salzburg, Innsbruck

Famous Geographical Point:

Danube River

Famous Person:

Franz Schubert, composer

Book Set In/About:

Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke

Pretty much what it says in the title. Rilke wrote this series of letters about life to a young poet by the name of Franz Xaver Kappus.

Movie Set In/About:

"The Counterfeiters (Die Faelscher)" (2007), directed by Stefan Ruzowitzky

Based on a true story, when a famous counterfeiter is captured by the Nazis, he's forced to work for them in order to survive. In the process, he's faced with a moral dilemma: should he do what's right or should he do what's prudent?

Headline of the Day:

"Ex-U.S. Envoy Khalilzad Subject of Money Laundering Probe" in Bloomberg

I sort of hate that the above headline is as much about the U.S. as it is about Austria but I'm sticking with my "first headline that pops up in a Google search" rule.

A-Z Movies, F: "Forbidden Planet"

Recommended by:
Rotten Tomatoes Top 100 List
Note: When I first picked this movie for the project, it was #92 on the list. I looked back at the list a couple of months later and found that it had dropped to #99. I haven’t checked in a few weeks, but chances are it will soon drop out of the Top 100.

Movie Stats:
Released 1956 (USA)
American, in English
Director - Fred M. Wilcox
Stars - Walter Pidgeon, Anne Francis, Leslie Nielsen, Warren Stevens

Plot Summary:
Twenty years after a group of scientists landed on a far-flung planet for research, Commander Adams (Nielsen) and his crew are sent to discover why no one has heard from them again. On the planet, they find only two survivors, Dr. Morbius (Pidgeon) and his beautiful, naive daughter, Altaira (Francis). Soon, all are embroiled in a deadly mystery. Stevens co-stars as Lt. “Doc” Ostrow.

Warnings:
Some very non-graphic violence.

Bad Stuff:
The soundtrack/sound effects can be described as nothing short of ear torture.

The misogyny and it’s accompanying misandry were seriously cringe-inducing. Watching guys attempt to seduce a young woman who has never been in contact with a human being other than her father was uncomfortable at best. Listening to Adams admonish Altaira that she shouldn’t wear a short skirt because men can’t control themselves made me want to throw something at the TV. Infuriating. (I find the implication that men are mindless sex beasts just as offensive as the implication that a woman who isn’t dressed like a nun is “asking for it.”)

The dialogue is bad in that it relies heavily on 1950s colloquialisms. In the 23rd century, will people really still be saying things like “roll out the red carpet”? It seems unlikely. As a writer of both science and fantasy fiction, I understand how hard it is not to fall into modern colloquial speak, but I still found it very jarring.

It was boring.

Good Stuff:
Hey, a science fiction film that actually has science in it. Imagine that!

While the special effects are terrible by today’s standards, I thought they were really good/impressive for the time.

The mystery of it was great. I never guessed what was happening. I had an idea that came close. It wasn’t right, but it was along the right track. When the truth came out, it made sense. It fit. I didn’t think, “Oh, come on!” I thought, “You know what, that’s really cool.” It also made sense for the decade this movie came out in, when the United States had an uneasy relationship with all the new technology it was producing, and when the idea that we would be made to pay for our hubris was prevalent.

The Verdict:
It’s definitely a very 50s movie in both the best sense and the worst sense. I probably would have enjoyed it more if not for the soundtrack. I wasn’t kidding when I implied that I found it physically painful. I also would have been totally fine without the lone female in the movie, who existed only to be leered at and drooled over.  However, you know how much I admire the rare movie that keeps me guessing, and I love a good “man is his own worst enemy” story. I guess I’ll go for the “C” average on this one. 

I give the movie 3.25 stars.

Final Reflections on July & August 2014

You may have noticed that this blog took a three-week hiatus in August. I wish I could tell you that I was off on some fabulous vacation, but the truth is that I fell into a pretty deep depression toward the end of July, one that I am, in many ways, still trying to climb out of. While I was at least able to continue writing creatively, all of my other endeavors fell by the wayside for a while, including this blog.

The reasons for this particular depression are many and complex. Two are too personal to discuss on a public blog. Another, much to my chagrin, is related to my feelings about turning 39 in July (I always said I would approach aging with grace and humor, but I find that that was much easier to do when I was in my 20s and early 30s). The final reason is related to my old nemesis, making friends, which always seems so much harder than it should be. Some of the issues I’m dealing with are beyond my control and some are not and it’s all jumbled together in a mess that is difficult to unravel.

What I’ve always hated most about depression is that it prevents you from doing the things that would make you feel better. My mood pretty much always improves when I get out of the house, especially when I’m exploring something new or going someplace I love; when I interact with people, especially if it’s more than just chatting with a barista; when I keep a clean house; and when I get some exercise for both my brain and my body. But when I’m depressed, like most people, I tend to sit on the couch and wallow.

I’ve touted the book Feeling Good by David Burns before, and it is in this book, I believe, that I read that there is no such thing as motivation. Reading that was such a light bulb moment for me. It’s what got me to start writing again. I realized that I’d been waiting around to feel motivated to write and that if I kept doing that, it would never happened. If I wanted to write, I just needed to write. So I did.

It’s the same thing with depression. I believe that I’ve been so much more successful at beating depression in recent years because of this idea about motivation. Instead of waiting around to feel like doing the things that will make me feel better, I make myself do them. There were several days in the last weeks when a conversation like this occurred in my head: “Get up and go do X. You’ll feel better.” “But I don’t feel like doing X.” “Just get up and go do it. Now. Right now. No more sitting here.” And I got up and did it and felt better.

Not that this solved all of my problems or immediately destroyed all of my bad feelings. If you've ever been depressed, though, then you’ll know that every fleeting moment of success or joy takes you one step closer to getting back to your old self. I guess what I’m saying is, I like my chances for continued improvement.

Due to the depression, and due to some financial issues, I haven’t been getting out as much as I should. Or, more accurately, I haven’t been doing much exploring, mostly sticking close to home lately. I’m hoping to get back out into the city in September. I remembered this weekend that there are still a lot of museums I’d like to visit, and I also learned about some other cool places that I want to check out. One great thing about LA is that there’s always certainly a lot to do. 

So there’s your glimpse into the current workings of my inner mind. If you’re stopping by to read, I hope you’ve been having a better time than me. Why don’t you tell me about it?

AIIW: The History of Future Folk

Note: It’s been a long time since I’ve done a review for this project so in case you’ve forgotten what it’s about, here’s the original post.

Movie Stats:

Released 2012 (USA)

American, in English (minor non-translated Spanish)

Directors - John Mitchell & Jeremy Kipp Walker

Stars - Nils d’Aulaire, Jay Klaitz

Plot Summary:

When his home planet, Hondo, is threatened with total destruction by a comet, General Trius (d’Aulaire) sets out across the galaxy to find a suitable new planet to colonize. He’s been given a deadly virus to release on the unsuspecting current inhabitants of the planet, but when he reaches Earth and discovers music for the first time in his life, Trius finds himself unable to go through with the plan. Klaitz co-stars as Kevin, a fellow Hondonian sent to investigate when no one has heard from Trius for several years.

Warnings:

Extremely minor blue language (I think I heard one or two “bad” words); minor, non-graphic violence (fisticuffs mostly).

Bad Stuff:

This is sci fi lite and therefore requires a significant amount of suspension of disbelief, which I don’t necessarily mind. However, there were some real-world scenarios that played out in a way that had me saying, “Life doesn’t work like that!” and therefore took me out of the scene in question. For example, [SPOILER] I’m incapable of believing that, after breaking into an aerospace museum and setting off a nuclear missile, Trius and Kevin would just be allowed to go back to their regular lives, although it made for a likable ending. [SPOILER]

Some of the acting was a little iffy.

Good Stuff:

As a lover of music myself, I absolutely adore the idea that a person’s mind could be swayed by the power of music. Or, if you want to get more esoteric about it, I like the idea that the art we create is the best reflection of who we are, and that people will respond positively to that reflection. The best scenes in the movie were the ones where Trius and Kevin each discovered music.

I’m sure that this film is low budget but it rarely felt like it was. It looked good, the soundtrack was great, and the writing was pretty tight.

It has Dee Snider (as bar owner Larry)! He seemed like he had a blast filming this.

The Verdict:

I brought my “Adventures in Instant Watch” series out of unintentional retirement (I just didn’t have the mental energy to do it while I was also doing the Best Picture project) in order to showcase this film because it’s so delightful. It’s sweet and charming and light-hearted and fun. I’d kind of been having a bad day when I sat down to watch it and it honestly turned my day around. I grinned the whole way through it. Don’t be turned off by the sci fi aspect of it. It’s not “hard” sci fi at all, so it’s not difficult to follow, and it’s set on Earth, so there’s nothing weird about it. It’s also short (slightly less than 1.5 hours), so it’s not much of a time commitment. If you like to watch movies that make you smile, you should give this one a chance.

I give it 4.25 stars.

Neighborhood Walks: To the Coffee Shop and Library

At least once a week, I like to walk to my favorite coffee shop to write. This time, on my way back, I swung by my local library to pick up a few items that I had on hold.

My walk starts with this, which I see across the street every time I walk out my front door. It's a Spanish-language immersion school:

A funny story: when were moving to Santa Monica, our time and resources were limited, so we were forced to rent an apartment while we were still in Texas, based only on the pictures we could see online. After sending in the deposit on our current place, we looked up the neighborhood on google maps. However, the picture was old, so instead of the lovely new blue and yellow building you see above, there was an older, smaller, more traditional-looking school building surrounded by a field and a boarded up house so decrepit that I wouldn't have been surprised to find a few dead bodies inside. After seeing this, I have to admit that I was extremely nervous about the apartment we'd just rented. Imagine my relief when we arrived to discover the above building there instead.

And it's growing! It's been under construction the whole time we've lived here. Also under construction a little farther down the street was some low-income housing, which was completed a couple of months ago. I'm always amused to walk by and see this bike rack being well used:

This is not, by any stretch of the imagination, one of the prettier walks I take, but across a major street and down a few blocks, I did admire this old window frame:

I hope they find this cute little doggie:

Turning north, I see the Santa Monica mountains ahead of me:

It's very difficult to see, and I probably shouldn't be taking pictures through peoples' windows, but I loved that this apartment (condo?) had swordfish on the wall that were visible from the street:

Really cool old iron work:

Crossing over the 10:

The very, very bright pink Lorna Jane building. They sell women's active wear:

I've always felt that the steeple on this church is a little on the small side, relative to the size of the rest of the building. When I think about it, though, I can't recall seeing very many grand steeples here. I wonder if there's some kind of city code about it:

I think it would be impossible for this street to look any more quintessentially Californian:

The Sha'arei Am synagogue assures me that real men cook, or at least they did last Sunday. I wonder if real men cook well though:

And I've arrived at my destination, the 18th Street Coffee House. I love their saloon doors. I will spend a couple of hours here writing:

My tabletop in the coffee shop:

I apologize for the bathroom shot, but it amuses me that, after the note on the very bottom of the sign that says "No Tampons Either," some joker penned in, "Or Armadillos":

On my way back, I passed by this cool topiary:

Then I fell in love with this building. Not only is it a beautiful example of art deco architecture (love), the address is made with amazing tile work (love), AND look at that door (love)! What an awesome building:

They're working on a train that will go from downtown LA to downtown Santa Monica. I believe it's due to be finished next year. Here is one of the stops, currently under construction:

One of LA's idiosyncrasies is that it sort of insists upon itself. I've never lived anywhere else where I've seen so many billboards about movies and TV shows. This one in particular always catches my eye because, if not for my Best Picture project, which forced me to watch "Around the World in Eighty Days," I would have absolutely no idea who Cantinflas was and would therefore be scratching my head over it:

Nice detail on a fence outside a schoolyard:

I'm pretty sure that this surfboard hasn't moved for the last seven months, haha:

I'm very fond of Spanish style homes. I think this one in particular is very cute. I wish I saw more of them than I do in SM because I think they fit really well with the climate here:

I like how daringly green this house is, especially when juxtaposed with the bright red brick fence:

I sort of get what this person was going for, and it even made me chuckle, but I don't think that implying that one is anti-tolerance is really the best way to win an argument:

To the right is another sign that says "Park," which means, as a whole, they say "Virginia Avenue Park," which is my neighborhood park. I couldn't get the other sign in the picture without including random people who I thought would rather not be included in a stranger's picture. My neighborhood library is in this park:

Love it:

This is the area in front of the library, which is sadly sort of ugly, but that's because it's set up to house a fantastic farmer's market every Saturday:

And finally, nearly back home again, I pass by my favorite bougainvillea. Unfortunately, it's not in full bloom right now but it's still looking pretty good:

Round trip, this is an approximately 2.6 mile walk. It's not the prettiest trip, but it allows me to get a little exercise while getting me out of the house & into an environment where I can write without distractions (namely, my cat and dog and the internet and the television).

A-Z Movies, E: "Enter the Dragon"

Recommended by:
Dan (husband)

Movie Stats:
Released 1973 (Hong Kong)
Hong Kongian & American, in English
Director - Robert Clouse
Stars - Bruce Lee, Kien Shih, John Saxon, Jim Kelly

Plot Summary:
Supreme fighter and Shaolin monk Lee (Lee) enters a fight tournament on a remote island in order to infiltrate the operation of Han (Shih), a former Shaolin monk who has gone rogue. Saxon and Kelly co-star respectively as Roper and Williams, two other fighters in the tournament who befriend Lee.

Warnings:
Violence; minor blue language, although there’s at least one racial epithet; implied sexy times; drug use; and brief female nudity (breast and butt only).

Bad Stuff:
The sound effects are terrible. For example, every single punch sounds the same. The very 70s soundtrack is pretty terrible too.

My husband tells me that it was Bruce Lee’s “schtick,” but I’m just not down with the weird facial expressions he makes when he’s fighting. I don’t think I was supposed to be laughing through half the movie and yet I was. There’s one scene where he basically stomps a guy to death but his facial expression reads more along the lines of “I’m trying really hard to drop a deuce.” How am I not supposed to laugh at that?

There are a few too many things that happen not because they make any real-world sense but because they look cool. Like, who has a hall of mirrors in their house? No one, that’s who, but a fight in a hall of mirrors looks cool, so we have a scene like that in the movie.

Good Stuff:
The above having been said, the fight scene in the hall of mirrors was really cool. So were many of the other fight scenes. Bruce Lee had impressively fast reflexes. He’s one of the few fighters I’ve watched take on multiple people at once and found it believable. I’m absolutely sold on the idea that he could kick ten asses at once and hardly break a sweat while doing it.

I like that the movie included non-traditional fighters. For example, I look at John Saxon and to me he doesn’t look like a guy who could karate kick somebody. This is the only Bruce Lee movie I’ve seen, but from what I gather (my husband is a big Lee fan & so has told me about him at length) Lee felt that martial arts were for everybody. He would teach anybody, regardless of race or color. So I like that this is reflected in the films that he made.

This movie is pretty no-frills. There is no extra, drawn-out drama to make it more “interesting.” For example, [SPOILER] Lee finds out that a particular one of Han’s henchmen, Oharra (Robert Wall), caused his sister’s death so the first opportunity he has to kill him, he does so without dramatics or monologuing. [SPOILER] It was refreshing. I felt like the characters were mature and focused in a way that a lot of movie characters aren’t.

The Verdict:
It was fairly entertaining. I appreciate that this isn’t a “wire-fu” film (wire-fu is one of the reasons I hate “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” so much). It’s straight-up martial arts, and that’s something I enjoy. However, it suffers from a severe case of 70s cheez-whiz, and that’s incredibly difficult for me to ignore. I’m going to have to go with a middle ground rating on this one.

I give it 3.5 stars.


Bonus Story: Many years ago, I went through a Jackie Chan film phase. Ever since, I’ve been trying to figure out the name of one of these movies, which included a scene in an old timey roller skating rink. I now believe that it must be “The Big Brawl,” which was directed by “Enter The Dragon”’s very own Robert Clouse. I may have to see if I can find a copy, although the internet reliably informs me that it’s a crappy film. Bonus Fact: Jackie Chan has a brief scene in "Enter the Dragon" as one of the henchmen getting an ass kicking from Lee.

Toys My Dog Destroys: Happy Lion

I tried something a little different this time. Way back on June 16, I gave a toy to Major that I’m calling Little Piggy. Here’s a pic of her:

Major busted out her squeaker and most of her stuffing within about three weeks. Despite the fact that she still had quite a bit of stuffing, Major lost interest in her. That’s when I decided to give him Happy Lion, on July 17, without throwing away Little Piggy:

I thought I’d see if he’d play with both toys or if he would prefer one over the other. He definitely preferred the new toy, even after he tore a hole in him on July 26:

The next day, July 27, Major got out most of the stuffing and the squeaker:

Surrounded by Happy Lion's innards. I didn't want
him in the picture but he wouldn't move.

I kept him around regardless. Although Happy Lion now had less stuffing than Little Piggy, Major still preferred him. He played with Little Piggy only infrequently. I kept both toys around until August 20, when I threw Happy Lion away and gave Major a new toy. Here’s Happy Lion before he went in the trash:

Flattened.

Sort of looks like road kill.

I purchased Happy Lion at a major pet store retailer for $3.00. He lasted approximately one month.