Monthly Archive for December, 2007

No Country for Old Men

Published
by
Phil
on /2007/December/9/
in movie ratings
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I saw No Country for Old Men yesterday afternoon at a local cineplex. This movie is everything I want in a movie thriller. It has it all. The cinematography is superb. The strong production values and the great photography, combined with the overall feel of the film, give many scenes a sense of beauty and loneliness, and of course, foreboding. The writing is awesome. I have always had a respect for the Coen brothers, but it seems to me this film goes way beyond Fargo. Now I definitely have to read the book, and more from author Cormac McCarthy. And the acting is excellent. From the first moments of the film, with the opening narrative read by Tommy Lee Jones, all through to the end, every single character was wonderfully nuanced and truly believable.

This seems to me to be more than a well-crafted character study of incredible evil. I will have to see it again and read the book to delve into it more. I would recommend this film to anyone who loves intense movies which totally draw you in, to the point you are not even aware of how long the movie is. One note: It is definitely violent, so if that is an issue for you, I would not see it. The depiction of violence against both people and animals is tough to watch, but without it I don’t see how the frightening aspect of evil could be effectively portrayed. Like other Coen brothers films, this is not for the squeamish.

The purpose of this post, and future posts on movies, is not to write a review, or deliver a plot summary. It’s mainly for me to jot down notes for my own records. I want to give a rating, recommend or not recommend it, and convey my initial impressions. That being said, I hereby declare the following for No Country for Old Men:

Rating: ★★★★★

A couple more miles

Published
by
Phil
on /2007/December/8/
in Running
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It’s great to be running. This being the day I would normally try to put in a long run, I decided to go a little bit extra. So I did slightly over five. The hip pain is still there, doggone it, but I have to feed the addiction. My next physical therapy appointment is Monday, so hopefully it will help me make some progress.

There are no such things as trash miles for me. It’s all good. One of the perks about running on a non-work day is I get to start out a little later, when there is light, and I wear my iPod. When I run on a work day, it’s really early and usually totally dark, so I don’t have my iPod with me–all my senses are needed to detect oncoming vehicles in the dark, etc. But today I had no such worry, and I let the tunes rip. Motivatin’.

Another nice thing about these quick runs in the hood is just being able to go out my front door and take off. For some reason, the same old scenery has not bored me. Two loops around the subdivision, including all the cul-de-sacs, gets me a little over five miles, with minor, gentle elevation changes, like so:

Elevation chart for 5-mile run

So, it was good just to get out, run a little, break a sweat, breathe fast, get my heart rate up, think about my life, not think at all, smile at a neighbor walking her dog, appreciate the cool weather, huff and puff, admire the overcast sky, splash through rain puddles, notice the various and sundry Christmas decorations in the yards (including all the deflated blow-up kinds that look rather sad, pitiful and forlorn, which I have a special, weird appreciation for), and overall, feel good to be alive.

Here are the obligatory numbers:

Total Time (h:m:s) 0:48:07 9:29 pace
Moving Time (h:m:s) 0:47:56 9:27 pace
Distance (mi) 5.07  
Moving Speed (mph) 6.3 avg. 8.3 max.
Elevation Gain (ft) +237 / -227  
Temperature (F) 41 F avg. 41 F high
Wind Speed (mph) NE 5.8 avg. NE 5.8 max.

Lunch with total strangers

Published
by
Phil
on /2007/December/8/
in life
. 0 Comments

One of the nice things about working in a busy, downtown metropolitan area is being able to go out and walk to a variety of decent restaurants. One of my favorites is a little deli called Safier. It was a cool, brisk afternoon, and evidently quite a few people had the same lunch idea as I did yesterday. The place was packed, with no open tables, but I ordered anyway, thinking that by the time my food was ready someone would get up and leave.

Well, my order was ready pretty fast, and there was no place open. The waiter there, a really cool guy, said for me to come with him, he would sit me down with a couple of people. I guess in larger cities that happens frequently, you share a table with a stranger, but frankly, here in the “River City,” I have not had that happen too often.

Anyway, I was seated with two very nice women, I think their names were Meredith and Nicole (bad on remembering names but I remember faces). It was like sitting down to eat with old friends. We talked freely about work (they work at Seven Counties Services), life, pets, travel, Christmas plans, etc. It was a wonderful, human experience. Great food, connecting with total strangers. Lunch should always be that good.

Meditative and moving

Published
by
Phil
on /2007/December/6/
in Running
. 0 Comments

This morning I ran again. It was chilly. Motionbased’s weather numbers put it at 24.8 degrees, but my temperature reading was around 21. Either way, it’s chilly but I can’t really call this cold. I remember my brother telling me about his first winter in Edmonton, Canada. He said he left his apartment one morning and he heard a cracking sound near his face. It turned out to be water on his beard left over from his shower, freezing instantly. So, this is not anywhere close to being cold.

I have come so far in running this year, in a short time. I started out at the end of the summer, huffing and puffing, chugging along, taking frequent and long walk breaks, thinking that my knees were just going to break they hurt so bad. I slowly progressed as I lost weight and improved my cardio output. Finally I felt free. I could really do it! I could run! I felt as if I could just run forever and ever. Visions of all kinds of running scenarios flashed in my head. It was going to take me places I have been wanting to go for awhile. I began to feel good about myself again.

All the while, I knew that running and injury go hand-in-hand. Still, it’s a bit depressing going from around 22 miles a week down to nine. But hey, you know what? Nine miles sounds a whole lot better than no miles to me right now.

Total Time (h:m:s) 0:32:45 10:30 pace
Moving Time (h:m:s) 0:32:46 10:30 pace
Distance (mi ) 3.12  
Moving Speed (mph) 5.7 avg. 7.8 max.
Elevation Gain (ft) +237 / -227  
Temperature (F) 24.8F avg. 24.8F high
Wind Speed (mph) E 4.6 avg. E 4.6 max.

Morning Celebration Run

Published
by
Phil
on /2007/December/4/
in Running
. 1 Comment

Today I celebrated my arrival on the planet 52 years ago by running once more. I had not run in three days. It was a pleasant enough run, given that my hip flexor is still bothering me. I kept it gentle, and I am continuing my exercises and physical therapy. I doubt if I will be able to do the Hangover Classic on Jan. 1 (10 miles), but I sure would like to get better and heal up fast. If getting to where I can run long distances again means that I have to wait to run those distances, though, so be it.

Here are my morning numbers:

Total Time (h:m:s) 0:30:11 10:09 pace
Moving Time (h:m:s) 0:30:11 10:09 pace
Distance (mi ) 2.97  
Moving Speed (mph) 5.9 avg. 7.8 max.
Elevation Gain (ft) +237 / -227  
Temperature (F) 28.4 F avg. 28.4 F high
Wind Speed (mph) WSW 5.8 avg. WSW 5.8 max.

A Christmas Tree, Part 2

Published
by
Phil
on /2007/December/2/
in Uncategorized and photography
. 2 Comments

A Christmas Tree, Part 2, originally uploaded by me.

Well, the tree is trimmed (mostly, anyway). I found the old ornaments, and used all the new ones I bought. I didn’t put the Beach Boys Christmas CD on, but listened to some Christmas music on a music channel. There have been several years that i had no Christmas decorations up whatsoever. This season, it’s actually sort of a comforting feeling.

Once more into the breech

Published
by
Phil
on /2007/December/1/
in Running
. 0 Comments

Today I ran for the first time since Tuesday (five days ago). I saw a Physical Therapist yesterday who examined me, analyzed my running and put me on a stretching program (link to PDF of his recommended stretches here). He also had me do a little bit of Pilates, which I had never done before. While I was doing the Pilates stuff, it didn’t feel like it was working me that much. I am used to breaking a sweat at the Y, and also when I run. I figure if you don’t at least break a sweat, it isn’t worth it. Well, this morning I could definitely feel it. So maybe there is something to it.

Anyway, normally I would do 10 miles on my “long run” day, but he said for me to just do a little, and while I still have pain, it’s tolerable at the moment. While on the run, I could feel some discomfort, but I was not concentrating on it. In fact, I felt elated just to be running again. I grabbed the iPod before I went out the door and put it on shuffle. The song of the run, as hokey as it may sound, was “Dancin’ On The Ceiling.” The sun was out, and I was running again! Oh yeah, baby. For historical and selfish reasons I want to keep track of what I do as I try to heal, so here are my numbers for today:

Total Time (h:m:s) 0:29:55 10:00 pace
Moving Time (h:m:s) 0:29:56 10:00 pace
Distance (mi ) 2.99  
Moving Speed (mph) 6.0 avg. 7.7 max.
Elevation Gain (ft) +237 / -227  
Temperature (F) 32 deg. F avg. 32 deg. F high
Wind Speed (mph) E 5.8 avg. E 5.8 max.

A Christmas Tree

Published
by
Phil
on /2007/December/1/
in Uncategorized and photography
. 0 Comments

A Christmas Tree, originally uploaded by me.

Okay, still learning how to fool around with my camera. And also, trying to learn more about Capture NX. So far I have shot everything using RAW and would like to continue. Anyway, on the spur of the moment, I decided to get a Christmas tree. I always wanted a sheer white tree when I was growing up in the 60s. I haven’t trimmed it yet, but I bought a few ornaments when I got the tree. Plus I have a few old ones in a storage container somewhere. I guess I will fix up some egg nog, fire up the Beach Boys Christmas CD, and Starlight and I will have a merry old time while the ornaments go on. I will post another photo once the tree is fully adorned.