Sometimes, Melissa runs her legs. Sometimes, she runs her mouth.

Month: December 2011

Totally awesome videos 2011 edition

Over the course of the year, I, and you, see a lot of videos. Some of them are “okay” and some of them are just freaking awesome. This is for those.

It doesn’t snow that much in Arkansas and as a result, the state pretty much shuts down when it does. It snowed at the University of Arkansas. Some bored dudes made lip dub of Katy Perry’s Firework. Apparently, the need for shirtless barely legal males dancing around in the snow is high and this thing caught on like wildfire. It even got the attention of Katy Perry herself. It got the attention of national magazines and Katy Perry, herself. It currently has over 1,433,914 views. I think that says it all.

Jessie Miskelley, Damien Echols, and Jason Baldwin, otherwise known as the “West Memphis 3,” were released from prison after accepting a deal involving an Alford plea. As a native Arkansan who watched this unfold while I was in college, I never thought they would see freedom. I am still stunned by it, frankly. It’s not a perfect ending but it is an ending just the same.

Okay most of the time, I want to stab my eyes out when people post videos of children doing silly things. This one, instigated by Jimmy Kimmel, is epic. Jimmy Kimmel asked parents to tell their children that they ate all of their Halloween Candy. Hilarity, and tons of crying, ensues. Also, the phrase “YOU SNEAKY MOM” is a permanent part of my vocabulary.

If MTV went back to its roots and showed tons of videos instead of reality programming involving teen moms, KeSha would be a multigazillionaire. This is the music video for “Blow” Yeah the song is a fun little dance number but OH man. This video is over the top fun snarky deliciousness: Unicorns that bleed rainbows, James van der Beek, Meunster “the lactose liquid gold,” James Van der Beek’s head mounted like a deer (come on Dawson’s Creek fans who endured his Joey whining for six years, you know you want to see this). yeah you want it. “We’re pretty and sick. We’re young and we’re bored.” Let the crazy out kiddos. Let it out.

This one is old but I just saw it this year. Cat video bombs for the win.

Sometimes a video isn’t necessarily awesome for its content but it’s awesome to remind the rest of us that there is injustice in the world. The UC Davis pepper spray incident.

Holidailies 2011

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

I am not going to lie. Ever since I saw the trailer for this particular movie, I have been waiting to see this movie.

Yes this trailer.

I devoured the first two books about a month before the final book came out and read the final one pretty much around the time it went on sale. I haven’t read them since. Yes, I have sweet the entire Swedish trilogy released about two years ago. As a result, I didn’t go into this movie completely blind or without some expectations.

I was afraid that Hollywood was going to fetishize the violence towards women in this movie and turn it into torture porn. Considering that Fincher is also responsible for the movie Se7en, this concern isn’t hysterical. The original title of the book in Sweden (it is a Swedish book that was translated to English) is, when translated to English, “Men who Hate Women” and it is very clear that the violence towards female characters in the book is not something to be glorified. This is a hard line to do when the basis of your movie is entertainment. It’s not as stark as it was in the Swedish movies and there are fancy tricks with camera angles but Fincher managed to not over do it.

Okay, this is Rooney Mara’s movie. She managed to get the slightness of Lisbeth Salander as well as the “weirdness.” Lisbeth Salander may or may not have Asperger’s. She managed to capture the “offness” while still conveying emotion at the appropriate times. She managed to be weird when needed and fierce when also needed. The viewer needs to believe that she can be crazy violent when pushed too far and Mara managed it.

The opening credits are a slick music video utilizing animation and Trent Reznor and Karen O’s cover of the Immigrant Song. It’s an over the top visual extravaganza that only a Hollywood film can pull off.

The movie manages to follow the book fairly closely although there is a big change in plot point at the very, very end. Both the Swedish version as well as this version manage to gloss over the fact that women keep throwing themselves at Blomkvist, streamlining the plot point with Blomkvist only being involved with Salander and the editor of the magazine.

I liked it. Go see it.

Proof that I am a nerd

I bought this book for fun. I am not a grad student. I am not a psychologist by trade. I am not a literature professor or English teacher. I just bought this book because it sounded cool. Okay I was a psychology major in undergrad but that was YEARS AGO!

TOTAL NERD!

Holidailies 2011

Is the “C” in Christmas for “creepy”? Melissa says yes!

Don’t get me wrong. I love a little HO HO HO as much as the next gal but some of the decorations and traditions surrounding Christmas are just plain creepy.

For example, this is a picture of the baby Jesus in our town’s nativity scene.

baby Jesus in the nativity scene on the town square.

What the hell? The hair? Those outstretched arms. The seams! Is baby Jesus a blow up doll?

Oh and it doesn’t match the three wise men or Mary or anything else either.

the nativity scene on the town square

So I am not sure. Did someone in days of yore steal the baby Jesus that matched the wise men and other “figures” and this was the cheap ghetto creepy ass replacement? I do not know. I just know that I have had nightmares about that thing.

Other things that have the potential for nightmares, ELF ON THE SHELF! The backstory, the Elf on the Shelf is Santa’s spy sitting in the house watching the children to know if they have been naughty or nice. there’s nothing creepy about Stalking at all, even if it is cute little elves.

AnD LOOK AT IT! That’s a “I will burn your house down while you sleep” expression if I ever saw one.

Source: flickr.com via Jaime on Pinterest

*shudder*

Holidailies 2011

Obligatory introduction

Yes I am doing Holidailies AGAIN! Strangely enough, I haven’t been blogging on a regular basis for quite a while so this should be crazy interesting.

I am Melissa. I live in Arkansas. I write on here. I run a lot. I eat a lot. I practice law. I practice piano.

I am currently hating that Red Solo Cup song. I have even gone so far as to compare it to Herpes. it’s never going to completely go away. dammitall. I’m eagerly awaiting the release of the Fincher version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I am all over the Trent Reznor remake of the Immigrant song. The last movie I saw was the Muppets.

yeah this is all trivia but I will be writing later. I need my sleep.

Holidailies 2011

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