Cover via Amazon

Lawrence of Arabia

1962, from television

You should know

For some time, I've been wanting to view the AFI's 100 Greatest Movies of All Time.  It recently occurred to me that, since we have a TiVo, all I have to do is plug the names of the movies in, and every few days a new film will be waiting for me.  Nice.

So?

This movie is a dramatization of part of the life of D. H. Lawrence.  I want to say it was fascinating and full of drama.  Parts of it were.

Basically, Lawrence, a British officer, takes it on himself to work with the local Arab population where he is stationed.  He takes on their dress and some of their habits -- and, of course, their cause -- and becomes a local hero.  The British don’t want to take him seriously, but his unorthodox methods eventually make him the only man for the job when the British and Arabs need to broker agreements.

But, as an epic of its time, the movie was full of panoramic shots of sandy desert dunes or colorful camps.  Lovely cinematography, but in every case, after a minute or two of it, I would get distracted -- and the next thing I know, there’s important dialogue happening that I can barely follow.  So that didn’t help.

Image via Wikipedia

Abundance

By Sena Jeter Naslund, 2006, from the library

You should know

I'm not really into the French Revolution, but I do enjoy compelling biographies and well-written historical fiction from time to time.  This was recommended via Twitter.

So?

This is a novelized version of the life of Marie Antoinette.  I don’t know enough about her historical life to tell you how accurate it is or is not, but it was an engaging read.

The book begins as the Marie is leaving home for the first time to marry the young prince she has never met.  It continues as she adapts to French life in general and the royal court in specific, hears about wars and revolutions abroad and at home, and finally ends at the guillotine.  This is presumably not a spoiler, and if you didn’t know going in how it ends, shame on you.

Much of the book is presented in the form of letters between Marie and her family and confidantes.  This adds some nice outside perspective to a novel that is otherwise told from the protagonist’s point of view.

Rating

A pretty good beach read.
Much of it reads like a period romance novel, but the intrigue gives it a bit more weight.  Obviously, it doesn’t have a happy ending, but it’s light enough overall.

I was chatting with a fellow blogger recently, and mentioned to him that I have a ton of half-written reviews waiting to be finished and posted.  He suggested I just post what I have and finish them as I go.  If this is a good idea, he gets the credit.  If this is a bad idea, he was kidding and it's all on me.  Either way, go check out his blog: The GIN is IN.

Blackbirds

41-19 30th Avenue
Astoria, NY 11103

You should know

Chris and I decided to go for a walk in the new neighborhood late one Sunday night and see what kind of dining establishments were still serving dinner.

One little place had drink specials and wing specials during all football games, and since one was on at that moment, we figured, "Why not?"

So?

So of course Chris was nice and distracted by the game, but I expected that.  He got the wings ("1/2 dozen or one dozen.  Hot, medium, sweet & sour, and honey bbq, and I got a Blackbird's Burger("8-oz. burger served with fresh lettuce, tomato, and onion. Add 50¢ for a topping of your choice: bleu cheese, american, cheddar, mozzarella, sauteed mushrooms, sautéed onions, or bacon.  Add 1 dollar for avocado or goat cheeseburger.")  Of course, the game night menu is not as clear as the online menu as to what does or does not count as an additional topping, so I ended up paying a little more than I expected, but it was still good.  The food was good, but not especially impressive.

To drink, I got a Coney Island Lager ("A hybrid mash up of styles between European brewing traditions. Very unusual malt bill and hops that nod strongly at American craft"), which was nice but not amazing, and Chris got a Franziskaner.

The burger was excellent, and Chris enjoyed their wings, though so many places have wing specials that he won't get them unless he's getting the beer included, as well (which is a feature of their late-night menu).

Since then, we've gone back multiple times, usually when we want a late dinner and everyone else has stopped serving food.

Rating

Check it out if you're in the neighborhood
It's definitely worth stopping by if you're around, but I don't know if I'd go so far as to recommend traveling to get there.