Fierce Friday

Haas Moto Museum and Sculpture Gallery is way awesomely cool.  I'll be posting more in July.
Meanwhile enjoy this fierce sculpture  Through the Wall: Shattered, Plastered, and Stoned by Bobby Haas

http://www.haasmotomuseum.com


Happy Friday!  Break on through to the other side my friends....

Wednesday Wonders

The latest exhibit at the Dallas Museum of Art is  The Power of Gold: Asante Royal Regalia from Ghana.  It features over 200 fantastic pieces of ceremonial furniture, state swords, head gear, and other pieces in the world of gold trade. Wealth in this area began in 1701 and the Asante region reigned with prosperity and sophistication.

The pieces were glorious and some of the short film pieces showed ceremonies. Very interesting. I also got a kick out of some Asante folk wisdom and sayings.

My favorite:  One should never rub bottoms with a porcupine     
(i.e.  Don't get into a fight with someone who can hurt you more. )

Movie Review Madness - Solo

I went into the new Star Wars prequel Solo with no preconceived ideas.  I am not a fanatic and I was fine with a backstory for Han Solo. No -  Alden Ehrenreich does not look like Harrison Ford. He’s his own person and frankly imbues the young Han Solo with the right amount of arrogance and bravado.  Director Ron Howard pulls out a decent ride in the Millennium Falcon (now we know how it became Han’s ship). Solo is a fun entertaining two hours or so with plenty of air battles, bad guys, good guys, and Han as our intergalactic rogue hero.

Here’s a scrappy young man just trying to live, trying to break free from life on his crappy planet. We find out how he does escape, but what happens to Qi’ra (Emilia Clarke) his love? Han hooks up with a band of mercenaries (Woody Harrelson, Thandie Newton) to pull off a heist. Well – drat they collide with Crimson Dawn and that’s not good.  Is he reunited with Qi’ra and under what circumstances? Will she kill him? We learn how he meets Chewbacca (Joonas Suotamo) and begins a lifelong friendship. Who is Lando (a charming Donald Glover)?  How did Han get the Millennium Falcon from him?

There’s a lot of double crosses going on, air battles, air pirates, crazy creatures, and of course evil abounds. Through it all, Ehrenreich is earnest and endearing. Oh he’s slick and has his street smarts. He’s a fantastic pilot with mad skills. He’s still a bit trusting, but is learning. He leans toward being a loner….and yet he’s loyal to Chewbacca. And then there’s Qi’ra – good/evil comes in small packages. With her large eyes and soft accent, Emilia Clarke, pulls off her part with panache. She’s a survivor, that’s for sure.

I came out of Solo thoroughly entertained. Frankly it was better than I expected. Thumbs up for my five dollar investment on a summer Saturday morning. Soar with the Falcon!

Book Review - Red Sparrow

I found Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews intriguing and annoying.  It’s a normal length book but at times I felt I was slogging through the Gulag. Then other times it was fast paced and interesting. I kept reading, skimming, reading because I wanted to know what the heck happens to the girl.

It’s present day Russia and Dominika is recruited to be a “Red Sparrow” – trained seductress, spy, and assigned to American CIA officer Nate Nash. That’s all well and good. I liked her story line and I liked Nate’s . I liked their interactions and what ultimately transpires between them. However, there was a lot of other background material with a lot of Russian names that were damn confusing. Hence, the skims at times.

The writer is a former CIA officer and obviously knows his stuff…maybe too much.  To me, there was almost too much about many of the other horrible Russian agents, and then the annoying cat and mouse games. I am committing sacrilege but it’s like reading John Le Carre (always praised by critics).  I say – Jesus, get on with the story, man……

The cool things about Dominika is she sees in colors –It’s like an extra sensory skill and that helps her cull out trouble and evil from decent and good.  Nate has a purple aura – he’s a “good” guy.

The movie starred Jennifer Lawrence. It got so-so reviews, but after reading the book I’m now curious for it to show up on Netflix. I wonder if they cut out many of the annoying bits and hit the key plot points.  A friend lent me this book, so I got to read it for free.  That’s the best….so if you think you are interested, go find Red Sparrow at your local library.  Da! And a vodka shot for you

Book Review - Explosive Beginnings by Susan Flett Swiderski

Explosive indeed - this book is filled with richly developed characters with plenty of secrets. I read it in one weekend because I wanted to know what the heck was going to happen to these folks. Archie is complicated and I can't say I liked it him, and yet he truly is human with flaws and flashes of redemption. Maddie - saint or sinner? Kids - Scott and Samantha - have a lot of spunk. Often kids get shunted into cliched writing, but not in this book. I can't write more about the plot line because it goes from tiny pops to huge blasts in no time. I've read the author's blog and previous works, appreciating her humorous takes on life. Explosive Beginnings has a deft touch with some funny quips, but it's far deeper as a family saga with mystery, drama, and plenty of life land mines. I highly recommend Explosive Beginnings by Susan Flett Swiderski for a charged weekend of reading.


Available on Amazon

http://www.susan-swiderski.blogspot.com

Movie Review Madness - Ocean's Eight

Ocean’s 8 is a glossy fun goof filled with a great cast, fantastic jewels, nice clothes, a spiffy NYC, the fabulous of the Met, and an awesome larceny.  Sandra Bullock, Debbie Ocean, is out of jail but her life is crime and she had plenty of years to perfect the best heist possible. The Met Gala, a Cartier necklace, starlet Daphne Kluger (Anne Hathaway), and an awesome crew = hi-jinks and a slick plan.

Lou (Cate Blanchett), Rose (Helena Bonham-Carter), Nine-Ball (Rihanna), Constance (Awkwafina), Amita (Mindy Kaling), and Tammy (Sarah Paulson) all bring a skill set – petty crimes, tech guru hacker, street hustling tech support, diamond expert, design, and a swindler. No guys allowed. Well, maybe for part of the fall.

We get some back story. We see the plan pull together. We see a few chances of hiccups, but these ladies are quick on the fix. There’s snappy dialogue, eye popping settings, friendship, and female dynamics. Ocean’s 8 is crooked, breezy, and it’s a joy to watch Sandra Bullock lead a film. They are all good, and Anne Hathaway’s Daphne is annoyingly awesome. You can tell Hathaway had a blast playing her. Summer movie time deserves a chance for the ladies to stretch their legs and pull off a killer heist – no guns needed. No blasting, no death, no destruction. All you need is a blind spot or two – anything is possible.

Father's Day Weekend Wheelin'

 Ray with youngest son Kevin

 clean and tidy and ready to roar

and the results of Father and Son 4-wheeling weekend.   I told Kevin, "Bring your father back in one piece."

Happy Father's Day to all!

 I chatted with my dad. My sister is there doing yard work - weeding, mulching, etc. My brother will join her this afternoon to make my dad's place respectable.
  I'm the lazy far away daughter.  There's one in every family!