tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-362700992024-03-07T01:35:14.095-05:00The Raven's EcritoireCome in and see for yourself....The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.comBlogger106125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-34660030324340479972011-10-24T11:39:00.002-04:002011-10-24T11:40:35.089-04:00Art Show!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0UCt9ENlUGfuZcskWm0YDBgJfccl6Z27q6HdhM7VB0Zg5tDLo45qn0opmxYuWJQVVCva-vbvXqqDuJYESFFxsuwgd_0CnixdKIVq4R39VZSM0eSFfjWLhqsqwnWcYW6k1dBOX/s1600/316766_303766082983681_223551224338501_1339344_1532346191_n.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 317px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0UCt9ENlUGfuZcskWm0YDBgJfccl6Z27q6HdhM7VB0Zg5tDLo45qn0opmxYuWJQVVCva-vbvXqqDuJYESFFxsuwgd_0CnixdKIVq4R39VZSM0eSFfjWLhqsqwnWcYW6k1dBOX/s400/316766_303766082983681_223551224338501_1339344_1532346191_n.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667084010110507522" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpI9116jQyakzl53z5nXGI0BgaVoXNHOBoTh0N1liTIju59gchZPtaSCapIVes3aLTdwOX4HzgP-Rr1czi_0oWAaUO6y9oKKQkNitp0BNUGDuM7Kt7FU9hNnqqUzDevuxqfQsV/s1600/316766_303766082983681_223551224338501_1339344_1532346191_n.jpg">http://ravenseyrie.wordpress.com/2011/10/21/art-show/<br /></a>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-67387139313541203502011-03-26T11:27:00.003-04:002011-03-26T13:40:26.017-04:00R.I.P. Aloha Alcohula, 2002-2011The Aloha Alcohula* was finally laid to rest this month. It is survived by its two hosts, and a bevy of wonderful, funderful regulars who made it the Best Damn Tiki Bar in CT!!<br /><br />Volcano Bern & I would like to thank all of our friends, and family, who came and played in our little Polynesian Pop romper room. As most of you know (especially YOU, jZ!), we spent tons of time scouring flea markets, junk shops and rescuing severed heads bobbing in tropical waters for our collection.<br /><br />(And worry not, Gentle Readers, the Velvis went to a good home....)<br /><br />Some photos of the AA before its sudden passing may be seen here:<br /><br /><div style="width:480px;text-align:right;"><embed src="http://static.pbsrc.com/flash/rss_slideshow.swf" flashvars="rssFeed=http%3A%2F%2Ffeed204.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fbb287%2Fqueenofe%2FRIP%2520Aloha%2520Alcohula%2Ffeed.rss" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="360" width="480"></embed><a href="http://photobucket.com/redirect/album?showShareLB=1" target="_blank"><img src="http://pic.pbsrc.com/share/icons/embed/btn_geturs.gif" style="border:none;" /></a><a href="http://s204.photobucket.com/albums/bb287/queenofe/RIP%20Aloha%20Alcohula/" target="_blank"><img src="http://pic.pbsrc.com/share/icons/embed/btn_viewall.gif" style="border:none;" /></a></div><br /><br />And even, better, a lovely little film by Kate (who was the brilliant brain behind the name) from the very last party at the AA <span style="font-size:85%;">(NSFW, due to some salty language.)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJsyfuAcQEo" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?<wbr>v=WJsyfuAcQEo</a></span><br /><br />-The Queen & Volcano Bern<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">*Best damn tiki bar in CT.....</span>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-41968656655102927362011-01-06T11:27:00.008-05:002011-01-06T11:45:59.809-05:00Hygienic Art 32 - salon des independents<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/TSXxo1IaM2I/AAAAAAAAAWM/iJ-vmUvUTL8/s1600/emailHYG%2B32%2BTar.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 166px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/TSXxo1IaM2I/AAAAAAAAAWM/iJ-vmUvUTL8/s200/emailHYG%2B32%2BTar.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559114998818157410" border="0" /></a>My submissions for the annual Hygienic Art 32 Salon des Independents promo materials -the French Vegas Dancing Lawbstahs piece is currently on the <a href="http://hygienic.org/">Hygienic Gallery</a> and <a href="http://wailingcity.com/">Wailing City</a> websites.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFl-_BMsSLlY1PYUqetFK7ULtertTCYq8xlvWzhFqzBCijju87GXcvyOvGHjE29m-uDm8bB6WlKu2K35o6zS-NzpZ-i10_2V6Oa-_InYOOMGTQMuQGc4tX1wd0QDFZRadhm3ii/s1600/EMAILHygienic32+2011jwRN.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 132px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFl-_BMsSLlY1PYUqetFK7ULtertTCYq8xlvWzhFqzBCijju87GXcvyOvGHjE29m-uDm8bB6WlKu2K35o6zS-NzpZ-i10_2V6Oa-_InYOOMGTQMuQGc4tX1wd0QDFZRadhm3ii/s200/EMAILHygienic32+2011jwRN.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559114741160930226" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzsEjspFy2YUzmegnCTNTeI2WDqsRF0ToyCZMla97K7-ce7mVAGM_Ce1PEXu67vcUJbQNnsyaSv9qgt7xYIrILGDHvtoND44vo5_Vv8vqcG5N7mFGGtW2aOhqjhRFenAxigU9r/s1600/Hygienic+32dancer.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 151px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzsEjspFy2YUzmegnCTNTeI2WDqsRF0ToyCZMla97K7-ce7mVAGM_Ce1PEXu67vcUJbQNnsyaSv9qgt7xYIrILGDHvtoND44vo5_Vv8vqcG5N7mFGGtW2aOhqjhRFenAxigU9r/s200/Hygienic+32dancer.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559114647633202930" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPcHp8wWoFuHAz1VYVuxQl265sZkQiE-mQr0WWeE8lSYxvWeLaZiaSJcV52qaHPBGMBf4p20y21luWoOB8jVLXxWUzlYdl1dPyzE_ROHMfApzZONK25eJ7UK55ZFPg5Vz4P1c8/s1600/EMAILHygienic32+2011jwRN.jpg"><br /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: right;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9h5iu3nfdkMWf2SQiUMdYJPHC_g8Qwz_pgBE7Q0C8FGcyykMlzDGTTP2jqbO5LlCyUruCwxabT4VllKdr_qv17_Ro5JKuXapTJN_gr5g_8hz6MptY5Ek0nVZq7apyy1gVLXlO/s1600/EMAILHygienic32+2011jwRN.jpg"><br /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3OtLvaWph2PT1dg7Sp8NsufFa0z-dIYKW5YsJS12lytIwyQWcpLijzEs_jO_lcsBOCNRR6Evm70TofoNcVlr7eQaviU0cUltAg26j3eiunpmXjePaJ3TRTus200jN_2a_PDtY/s1600/Hygienic+32dancer.jpg"><br /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-6571261650767642162010-10-31T11:48:00.000-04:002010-10-31T11:49:54.443-04:00The Journal of the Women's League of Ale Drinkers is now available!<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">Get a <a href="http://wloaded.blogspot.com/2010/10/wload-1-is-here.html">copy</a> and enjoy some wonderful poetry, music, writing and art from these creative women. And you may even know some of them.....</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); "><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">http://wloaded.blogspot.com/2010/10/wload-1-is-here.html</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); "><br /></span></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-18103784266799527222010-08-02T09:12:00.003-04:002010-08-02T16:16:59.561-04:00Smoking Ant Records!<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">The Smoking Ant records website is now live!</span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">http://www.smokingantrecords.com/</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">This was my first foray into designing the look of web pages: many thanks to Paul Hamilton (Smoking Ant Records Grand Poobah) and Rob Sedgebeer (webmaster - </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.notbbc.co.uk/" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153) !important; text-decoration: none; font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">http://www.notbbc.co.uk/</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"> ) for making this happen!</span></span></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-47900163218106384292010-06-14T15:27:00.040-04:002010-07-14T07:23:51.767-04:00Happy Birthday to me...in NYCThis year we decided some time in the Big Apple was needed! I tend to forget how wonderful and revitalizing spending time in NYC can be.<br /><br />I found a reasonable hotel in midtown (<a href="http://www.radiocityapts.com/">Radio City Apartments</a>) on W49th. It was an older building, but the rooms were immaculate and we were mere steps away from the subway and 10 blocks in either direction yielded plenty of restaurants, bars and theaters. However, next to the large signs for absolutely everything else, we didn't see the hotel sign right away, so we walked around for about an hour with our luggage looking for the hotel, only to find it was right where we had been dropped off....the hallways had some wonderfully sculpted plaster rosettes on the walls, and the building also had some really nice stained glass windows.<div><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 120px; height: 200px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/TB-0G0nGBSI/AAAAAAAAAUY/ntOK190Shcc/s200/NYC+-+Hotel+wall.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485300900455384354" /><br />So, all checked in, we sauntered a few feet past the entrance and had lunch at a small Japanese place - we had rice bowls and Sapporo beer ($3 for 16 oz!) - which were really good. After wandering around for a bit, and finding ourselves in the sheer hell that is Times Square, we headed off to the <a href="http://www.japansociety.org/">Japan Society</a> for the <a href="http://www.kuniyoshiproject.com/">Kuniyoshi</a> exhibit - beautiful mid-19th century woodblock prints that were just stunning to behold. The gallery itself is also incredibly beautiful, in the style of a Japanese garden.</div><div><br />After walking around some more (the common theme throughout this trip), we put on our glad rags and headed off to dinner at the <a href="http://www.redeyegrill.com/index.html">Redeye Grill</a>. This restaurant was recommended by a colleague of mine, and it was absolutely wonderful - great staff and service. The strawberry-shrimp roll was outstanding as was the lump crabcake and Dover sole. Drinks consisted of vodka on the rocks for me, Manhattan for J10X. I understand the banana cream pie is amazing, but we skipped dessert and ended up with a big dish of cotton candy with our coffee.....<br /><br />The it was off to find a quiet bar (not in Times Square- have I mentioned the sheer hellishness of that place? Tourists underfoot everywhere!)) and we were lucky enough to find <a href="http://www.niosrestaurant.com/">Nios</a>, a nicely appointed bar that had a decent jazz quartet (trumpet, bass, drum, guitar) playing and a really good bartender with personality. He was rather liberal with the rum samples, much to Bernie's delight. J10X also had a cocktail made with Lagavulin (The Heroin of Alcohol - tm) floated on top - bizarre, but good - I had the Bruichladdich, which was as fabulous as expected.</div><div><br />We were up bright & early on Friday, and made our way downtown to Union Square, with a quick stop at Sephora and a kick-ass <a href="http://www.newyorkcostumes.com/">costume shop</a> before hitting the <a href="http://www.strandbooks.com/">Strand</a> bookstore. We had never been to the Strand before, but we made quick work of liberating some Taschen volumes (Surfing, Eric Stanton, Japanese graphic design.) I could easily havespent $5K in there just on the graphic design books alone- I did manage to attain Maximum Visual Overload while looking through them. I found a cheap copy of 'Too Tough to Die' - a DVD of tributes to Johnny Ramone- and two *ahem* <span style="font-style: italic;">passionate</span> patrons in the back of the store....who kindly redressed themselves after I stumbled upon their intense love for, um, books.</div><div><br />On our way to St. Mark's Place, we stopped at a fab little bistro called <a href="http://jackbistronyc.com/">Jack</a> and had an excellent lunch at the bar- our drinks were free due to some special thingy, so that was nice. We had the chicken quesadilla and the crabcake sandwich (which had avocado instead of tomato) -both were wonderful. I have to say that the city has a lot of really good restaurants, which is great for foodies like us, but you do spend more than you think you will on food....<br />We hit up <a href="http://www.nycgoth.com/shops/trashnvaudeville/">Trash & Vaudeville</a> at St. Mark's - it sure has gone downhill, almost seeming more like tourist destination than the cool shop it used to be. The lower level had tons of cool shoes and some cool t-shirts, but that's about it. Across the street was <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz/search-and-destroy-new-york">Search & Destroy</a>, which was awesome and more like what TnV used to be - lots of vintage clothes (J10X snagged a nice shirt there), and all sorts of stuff crammed into every corner - sex toys, shoes, studded gear designed and made by one of the adorable Japanese guys working in there, accessories (I snagged a sequined scarf and studded leather ring) and probably more stuff I couldn't even see. We did end up checking out some other used shops, too, but S&D was my fave by far. Plus, their plastic bags had 'fuck you' written on them instead of 'thank you', which delighted me to no end.</div><div><br />Our journey through the East Village continued with a pilgrimage to three tiki bars - Waikiki Wally, Lei and <a href="http://www.ottosshrunkenhead.com/">Otto's Shrunken Head</a>. We walked FOREVER to find Waikiki Wally's, which doesn't exist any longer, except for the tikified door handle - good thing, too, judging by the reviews online. Ditto for Lei. So, off to Otto's we went- and that place is pretty much a dump, and tiny. The bartender was very nice, as was her friend, and they were playing some great music - Buzzcocks, Ian Dury and the like. We were there mid-afternoon, and no bands were scheduled to play over the</div><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 157px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/TB-0ywB_yrI/AAAAAAAAAUg/hTX1N3qaIw0/s200/NYC+-+Ottos+Shrunken+Head.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485301655140289202" /><div> weekend, so we sipped some frosty ones at the bar. J10X got a tiki mug, natch, with his drink. The decor wasn't great, mostly laser prints of velvet paintings, the occasional gold-painted fish, some puffer fish with differently-colored bulbs in them and some antique postcards glued to a wall. The photos make it look a lot nicer than it is, but it's all very faded and tired and definitely not a hardcore tiki joint. From online reviews, I gather it's a hang out for rockabilly/punk/hipster types at night, so we'll definitely go back to check that out.</div><div><br /></div><div><div>After walking for hours, we were delighted to find the subway was a mere 10 minute ride back to the hotel- we got spruced up, then headed to the west side of the Village for the evening. We popped into Bleecker Bob's, which was a total disappointment except for the sweet Johnny Thunders posters. Overpriced vinyl and little to choose from. There were quite a few 'rare live recordings' to be had, but very poorly packaged, so it doesn't give much faith as to the quality of the recordings. We wandered down the streets and found a shop called <a href="http://www.generationrecords.com/">Generation Records</a> which was cool - the basement had used CDs ($7-8 range), 45s and cool t-shirts. This place was well-lit, well-organized, well-stocked and the goods were in decent shape. And the staff were super nice, but then everyone in the city is reasonably pleasant.</div><div><br /></div><div>We stopped for dinner at Indian Raj, and that was a bit weird. The staff were really formal and kinds of tense/uptight. The food was decent, not great, but my vindaloo was beyond edible as it was so freakin' spicy and hot. Ridiculously hot, and I like spicy food. </div><div><br /></div><div>We left there, with a bag of ice strapped to my tongue, and stumbled across to the <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/place?client=safari&rls=en&oe=UTF-8&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=the+lost+world+nyc&fb=1&gl=us&hq=the+lost+world&hnear=New+York,+NY&cid=18198421078549310903">Lost World</a> : this place was everything <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118715/">Big Lebowski</a>, down to the store owner kitted out as The Dude, bathrobe and all - totally fun. And his cat was on a leash, lounging on the sidewalk outside, very mellow as one would expect. BL bobbleheads, t-shirts, other BL merch and some comics. The owner has also <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sailor-Sea-Witch-Preston-McClear/dp/1929084153">written/illustrated children's books</a> so I bought one for my niece and he was kind enough to sign it.</div><div><br /></div><div>We did notice a lot of 20-somethings standing in long lines to get in all the clubs - I guess between NYU expanding and kids from NJ coming into the city to party, this is pretty standard. So, we headed back to Nios for a nightcap, but in 24 hours that place made a sea-change - no cool band, just crap club music, bitchy waitress and not so hot bartender. So, we sucked down our nightcaps and called it a night/morning. Fun fact: you can buy beer at the markets at 1:30 am, much to our delight....</div><div><br /></div><div>Ok, so Saturday we were feeling the effects of walking everywhere, and merely dragged ourselves to a coffee shop breakfast two blocks away and then to the fabulous <a href="http://kingtut.org/">King Tut</a> exhibit. I have a life-long love for the style of art represented in Egypt at that time (18th Dynasty, Amarna style art), so I was absolutely gobsmacked to see items I had only viewed as photos in the past. The exhibit was really well displayed, with some very dramatic lighting, and a fair amount of info was represented. I highly recommend this to anyone even slightly interested in seeing the exhibit. It's also far cheaper than admission to Madame Tussaud's wax museum...</div><div><br /></div><div>Since it was super warm and humid out, we decided to continue by visiting the <a href="http://www.amnh.org/">American Museum of Natural History</a> - a first for both of us. </div><div><br /></div><div>On our way, though, we stopped at Columbus Circle to have lunch at <a href="http://www.bouchonbakery.com/">Cafe Bouchon</a>, which was also recommended my colleague. It's located in a fancy-pants mall at Columbus Circle, but the cafe itself had the best coffee I had ever tried and breath-taking view of Columbus Circle. Then, it was off to the museum!</div><div><br /></div><div>Of course, there was no way we could see everything, but we tried anyway: the Hall of Biodiversity had amazing displays, the most impressive of which was the <a href="http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/hall_tour/spectrum/flash/">Spectrum of Life</a>, which showed the evolution of different species laid out on the walls and soaring to about 12 ft high. The hall of <a href="http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/permanent/ocean/">Ocean Life</a> was also amazing, despite the fact there was science exhibit going on that kind of cramped our viewing of the dioramas. We also hit up the Bird Hall, the Mammal Hall, the Northwest Coast Indian Hall and the Pacific Peoples Hall. The NW Coast Indian Hall had some beautiful and impressive pieces, but was really run-down and dimly lit, with many displays missing lights. The Pacific Peoples Hall was very fresh and new-looking, so there's hope that they'll restore the dingier areas of the museum in time. I think it may take 3-4 more visits to get in the rest of the museum and I don't suggest going on a Saturday.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/TB-46TI8V5I/AAAAAAAAAUw/NqJAakZlfVQ/s1600/Dum-dums.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/TB-46TI8V5I/AAAAAAAAAUw/NqJAakZlfVQ/s200/Dum-dums.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485306182870259602" /></a></div><div>After several hours, we had visual overload, so it was off to clean up and find some dinner. We ended up at the <a href="http://www.oldcastlepub.com/home.html">Oldcastle Pub</a>, which was largely unoccupied except for the large staff of spanish-speaking waiters and bar staff.</div><div><br /></div><div>[I will take some time to mention that NYC, at least within 15 blocks of Times Square in any direction, has more Irish pubs than Boston does, which is saying something.]</div><div><br /></div><div>After dinner we ended up at some random fairly quiet bar with a pleasant, good bartender and a band in the back, so we hung out there until the wee hours.</div><div><br /><div>The next day, Sunday, was our day to bid farewell to the fair city, so we checked out early (and the the hotel hung on to our luggage for us- sweet!) and headed to one of the Brooklyn Diners for breakfast - good food, nice staff and the incomparably entertaining conversation provided by the Noo Yawk cop sitting on the other side of the row of tables divider. This guy did not take a breath the entire 45 minutes he was talking at his companion, who may have actually been able to get a word in edgewise, at one point. The stream of conversation went from.... I dint wanna work there, so I tole 'em to go screw in so many words and just packed up my desk...she's a <i>model </i>so I tole her she could shoot me anytime, honey, heh heh heh.......I got divorced about 15 years ago, still tawk to da kids......so we were talking with that film guy, uh, he's a director, Steven, Steven...yeah, <i>Spiel</i>berg.....so this broad's a photographer but a real hot tamale, so I just lugged her equipment around for a while........yeah, you know, Jim, he's a real gennulmen, his kid, Tom got his ahm blown off in Fahloozhah.......</div><div>It was all I could do to not bust out laughing.</div><div><br /></div><div>We beat feet for the Hell's Kitchen flea market (in the failed attempt to avoid the Puerto Rico Day parade - oy.) We found some small treasures, but the highlight was J10X and I both getting the best massages we had ever had in our lives by some lovely Chinese people who set up an area. So, totally pain-free and relaxed, we attempted to find several other flea markets that unfortunately no longer existed. It's always a crap shoot when your info is a month old!</div><div><br /></div><div>Then, several coffees and many blocks later, we decided to grab our stuff and head out for home, pleasantly tired.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, who's buying my house so's I can move to NYC?</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/TB-6C-DovoI/AAAAAAAAAU4/h1o1mQvKNGU/s1600/NYC.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/TB-6C-DovoI/AAAAAAAAAU4/h1o1mQvKNGU/s200/NYC.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485307431341309570" /></a></div></div></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-88241228815925040212010-03-31T10:56:00.001-04:002010-03-31T10:58:38.130-04:00Meet the new cat...almost the same as the old cat.....<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: small; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); line-height: 14px; ">New family member Ace is on the left, Fang on the right. We think they may have been litter mates as they're the same age and look very similar. We took in Fang about 3 years ago, and Ace just this past week after feeding him for about 6 months....</span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/S7Ni6nR1llI/AAAAAAAAAUQ/fGINKRsg70w/s1600/Ace+%26+Fang1.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 166px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/S7Ni6nR1llI/AAAAAAAAAUQ/fGINKRsg70w/s320/Ace+%26+Fang1.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454812332791535186" /></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: -webkit-xxx-large; line-height: 14px;"><br /></span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;font-size:100%;color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 14px;font-size:11px;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;font-size:100%;color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 14px;font-size:11px;"><br /></span></span></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-83421522288189239632010-03-21T11:08:00.009-04:002010-03-22T08:50:00.258-04:00Prints, Pinheads and PoppadumsJ10X & I checked out two gallery openings last night in New London: 'Blotter' at the MUSE Gallery & 'Mondo Carnie" at the Hygienic.<div><br /></div><div>The '<a href="http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=407511545568&ref=ts">Blotter</a>' show is comprised of fabulous etchings, collaborative monotypes and woodcuts by Christian Dyer & Elisa Schauer. The etchings feature whimsical robots, very simple images that feel like soft-lead pencil drawings: one striking etching is a multi-plate print with the images split between subsequent plates, other etchings had light color washes. The gorgeous monotypes are collaborative pieces created by Christian and Elisha, all in black & white, and the woodcuts were simply spectacular. This is definitely one of the better shows I've seen at Muse - I just don't understand why they take up wall space with display boxes, as it forces them to display many works in odd locations on the walls, too close to the floor, or in too tight spaces.</div><div><br /></div><div>After seeing these beautiful prints, we skipped down the road to Hygienic Art opening of the fantastical '<a href="http://www.norwichbulletin.com/living/x99759490/Hygienic-Gallery-Mondo-Carnie-on-the-dark-side">Mondo Carnie</a>' show. Gorgeous, fun pieces, with 3 of the artists being '<a href="http://galleryfreak.us/">Volonte Morceaux</a>', of Ideat Village painting under 3 different personas. (Oh, and 'Ideat' IS pronounced as 'idiot', as you may have guessed...)</div><div><br /></div><div>Some pieces were very carnie/sideshow/freaks -based, others, by artists such as Lipgloss Crisis and <a href="http://www.looketha.com/creationspage.html">Looketha</a> (my fave) were sumptuous and entrancing. The pieces had plenty of macabre humor and were just jaw-droppingly fantastic. There was an accordion player on Saturday lending some fantastic ambience to the show, as well as a couple of funhouse mirrors to amuse.</div><div><br /></div><div>J10X & I then had some Indian food, and went off to see Alice in Wonderland. Yup- I saw that movie twice this weekend, once in 3-D & once just plain 'ol regular. Not much of a difference, I'm afraid.</div><div><br /></div><div>[Filmmakers: please, oh please, stop making films 'based on' anything that is sci-fi or imaginary written in the 19th century. You always fuck it up. And someone please shoot Helena B-C - she's unbearable.]</div><div><br /></div><div>Alice in Wonderland/ Through the Looking Glass is one of my favorite books, so I really tried to be as open-mnded as possible knowing this move was to take place years after Alice visited Wonderland. I was doing OK up to the point that she enters 'Underland'- it just went awry after that. Being a Disney movie, I was pleasantly surprised Alice had any strength of character, but there were definitely some revoltingly twee moments. The movie looked fabulous, but anyone familiar with the original text may feel cheated.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Rating: 2.5 crowns out of 5, but the crown should be mine, dammit, as I am the best Queen of them all.</i></div><div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-84823147577692572842010-02-09T10:56:00.002-05:002010-02-09T11:37:09.174-05:00Happy Anniversary!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/S3GPGGWb7KI/AAAAAAAAAUE/lyBidHIemrU/s1600-h/Bernietini2.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 186px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/S3GPGGWb7KI/AAAAAAAAAUE/lyBidHIemrU/s320/Bernietini2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436283560159603874" /></a><br />Has it been really 9 years? You're a good man, Johnny 10X....<div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>XOXOX QoE</div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-81375861440074234482010-01-19T22:47:00.006-05:002010-01-19T23:00:00.797-05:00'Seasons & Metaphors' - Peter J. Crowley<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQVIGyEBH62MflKOC2UFxwvk19ZH_OblEa9D7Og7GlD7C6q8-DbIo5mf_H6yLp5YOGRh4HZwntQmtOjH_QLIBkPZvK7iAe8QBlNlQwbCkSDpahwH0fmESRcW9v4_Q_Xd8tkTMq/s1600-h/REbloggerFinal+BLKPJC+2010+Emporium.jpg" style="text-decoration: none;"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 282px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQVIGyEBH62MflKOC2UFxwvk19ZH_OblEa9D7Og7GlD7C6q8-DbIo5mf_H6yLp5YOGRh4HZwntQmtOjH_QLIBkPZvK7iAe8QBlNlQwbCkSDpahwH0fmESRcW9v4_Q_Xd8tkTMq/s400/REbloggerFinal+BLKPJC+2010+Emporium.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5428666589865986866" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><a href="http://www.peterjcrowley.com/">Peter</a> is having an exhibit at the Emporium in Mystic - fabulous photography and good deals on bin prints! What more could you ask for?<div></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-60146206225479784102010-01-19T16:18:00.002-05:002010-01-19T16:20:38.701-05:00Happy Anniversary, Boojums!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/S1Yh4mXbkZI/AAAAAAAAATk/-uh3de7XALE/s1600-h/thesimpsonsraven.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 245px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/S1Yh4mXbkZI/AAAAAAAAATk/-uh3de7XALE/s320/thesimpsonsraven.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5428563657096925586" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center; font-family: georgia;">Open here I flung the shutter, when, with many a flirt and flutter,<br />In there stepped a stately raven of the saintly days of yore.<br />Not the least obeisance made he; not a minute stopped or stayed he;<br />But, with mien of lord or lady, perched above my chamber door -<br />Perched upon a bust of Pallas just above my chamber door -<br /></div><div style="text-align: center; font-family: georgia;"> Perched, and sat, and nothing more.<br /><br /><br />Doh!</div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-21016013174685161852010-01-02T11:11:00.003-05:002010-01-02T11:14:50.883-05:00Hygienic Submission for 2010....The Hygienic's XXXIst 'Salon des Independants' will be running from Jan. 30 - Feb. 13 this year...<br /><div><div><br /></div><div>I submitted this piece for their consideration- no firm word whether or not they will be using it...</div><div><br /></div><div><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 207px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifK3qFgmyC2s0onDVLzZEWqWfryhDngGE9AX_drFRbZjfw-8hSu5dpCaqyNdE-holdXzIqkriAmoemUahqkLnL6OS9oiPh374juI_1DdGSOzqLfjw_ztEi_PJ7G0NhelV-4ZMj/s320/EmailFINALEDIT3rdJPGHyg312009Lobster.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5422176488279384914" /></div></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-69474899814855929892009-12-28T10:38:00.003-05:002009-12-28T12:00:16.031-05:00Movie review: Sherlock Holmes (2009)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SzjRdlbn2JI/AAAAAAAAATU/ap_1qtSzuLU/s1600-h/sherlock-holmes-poster1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 199px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SzjRdlbn2JI/AAAAAAAAATU/ap_1qtSzuLU/s320/sherlock-holmes-poster1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420312457734772882" /></a>It may surprise some of my dear readers that I, as an avid Sherlockian, would deign to see this movie. At first glance (i.e, the trailers), it appeared to be an abomination of the Canon. <div><br /></div><div><i>Note: there may be some spoilers!</i><div><div><br /></div><div>As much as I love Robert Downey, Jr as an actor, in no way does he physically fit any description of Holmes anywhere. Much like Hugh Jackman being a full foot taller than his character, Wolverine, RDJ does not possess the height, physiognomy nor even the eye color of Doyle's detective. Nor did Jude Law's Watson ring entirely true: he had the limp, the moustache and the good looks of Watson, but was taller than Holmes and more slender than out to have been.</div><div><br /></div><div>As for character, the only ones that could be considered true to the original were Watson, the soon-to-be- Mrs. Watson, Mrs. Hudson, Lestrade and Professor Moriarty. Holmes' character was nothing more than the sum of all the known and surmised eccentricities and slovenly about his person; Irene Adler started off strong, but descended into damsel-in-distess/at-the-mercy-of-powerful-men type of rubbishy character. The villain, Lord Blackwood, was not as venal as he could have been, but his wardrobe was fantastic.</div><div><br /></div><div>London is portrayed in all its unglamorous, crowded, filthy, horse-dropping-bedecked street beauty, all in murky browns and greys; 221B is far larger and jam-packed with <i>objets</i>, dark, smoky and somewhat repugnant.</div><div><br /></div><div>There was a feeling that the director did not know what to do with the female characters- while Watson's fiancee had the strength of character her Canonical counterpart had, she was filmed oddly and mysteriously, for no apparent reason. Irene Adler was filmed mostly in headshots, her cheekbones and pouty, mauve-hued lips first and foremost. </div><div><br /></div><div>This movie was incredibly fun as an action/comedy- if viewed as a non-Holmesian piece, it is thoroughly enjoyable. The only impediment to that is having substantial knowledge of the original material- lines are sprinkled here and there from the Canon only serve to highlight the considerable departure from it.</div><div><br /></div><div>There is plenty of action, as can be expected in a Ritchie film. The relationship between Holmes and Watson is well drawn out, but not overburdened; the Holmes/Adler relationship is dutifully sketched - kindred souls with an unfulfilled potential, and some unnecessarily sexy bits tossed in for....well, for no reason at all. The story, filled with the occult and political machinations, moves along and all is revealed, in true Doyle style, at the end.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Rating: 4 crowns out of 5</i></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div> </div><div><br /></div></div></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-12001396501580841142009-12-17T08:23:00.002-05:002009-12-17T08:26:08.208-05:00Happy Birthday, Kate!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYm6XwzhTlqc-b_hyphenhyphen-NkSLYR6zMhRNY1gX_lNX0393NmtBSC6K1WNWOB9cGH0ZeJaySJUagZegkthUUjtvK7sdt_6ru1WXt47smCz-eGf63befVlobi-UG4Z4nLFji5qLD8fZ0/s1600-h/KateCult.jpg" style="text-decoration: none;"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYm6XwzhTlqc-b_hyphenhyphen-NkSLYR6zMhRNY1gX_lNX0393NmtBSC6K1WNWOB9cGH0ZeJaySJUagZegkthUUjtvK7sdt_6ru1WXt47smCz-eGf63befVlobi-UG4Z4nLFji5qLD8fZ0/s320/KateCult.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416195646919181394" /></a>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-31957704998285145442009-12-12T17:52:00.002-05:002009-12-12T19:14:31.546-05:00Restaurant review: Eastern StandardThis past Thursday J10X and I decided to get the fuck outta Dodge and go to Boston and take in some new sights.<div><br /></div><div>We rode the train from the Riverside Station all the way over the river into Cambridge to check out an <a href="http://marketantique.com/cambridg.htm">antiques marke</a>t near a restaurant that was rumored to have a tiki bar.....we ended up spending hours in the antiques place as it was 4 stories high. Lots of item were insanely overpriced (according to the pricing by some vendors, I have a Vanderbilt's fortune in costume jewelry) but we escaped with two tiki mugs and a couple of small Japanese woodblock prints from the early 1900s, all of which were good deals.</div><div><br /></div><div>We then staggered out into the cold and walked a bunch of blocks over to the <a href="http://www.eastcoastgrill.net/">East Coast Grill</a> in Inman Square - well, we finally found it, but it wasn't going to be open until 5:30pm, which was 3 hours away. So, that went on the list as a place to go back to in the near future.</div><div><br /></div><div>We hopped on the T, back over the river, back to Kenmore Square and landed at the <a href="http://www.easternstandardboston.com/">Eastern Standard</a>: gorgeous room and bar, lots of dark wood, and red and brown leather upholstered chairs. Comfy and inviting. We were there in time for the mid-day menu, which was a lot like lunch and reasonably priced. We had a look at the drinks menu, and (score!), they had tropical drinks and are known for creating their own in-house syrups and infusions. The drinks menu is changed from what you see online, but they offer everything. J10X opted for the Zombie, and I, the Metamorphosis. </div><div><br /></div><div>The Zombie was made according to the 1934 recipe and obviously had many hand-made elements in it, not to mention a ton of rum. It was easily as good as any Zombie I sampled at the <a href="http://www.maikai.com/">Mai Kai</a> in Florida, and it was well worth the price as it was served a pint glass. The Metamorphosis was constructed of some sort of Czechoslovakian bitters (Becherovka?), honey and fresh lemon juice - it was both warm and refreshing and really delicious (and after doing a little research, it's also called 'The Millenium' in other places.) It was served up in a martini glass, but also had quite a kick to it. Our lovely waiter, Dave, told J0X that the bartender had 'something special' for him when he finished the Zombie. Well, J10X was still sitting up after the Zombie, and was rewarded with a Cinnamon Planter's Punch: I am not a rum lover by any means, but this was one delicious cocktail. It goes on the list of only 3 drinks that have rum that I would ever consider drinking (the other two being a Derby Daiquiri and a Stormy Weather.) We were definitely pleased to find this place!!</div><div><br /></div><div>We each had a sandwich, and if you get one with roast beast on it, it's piled high. Both were served with delicious fresh pommes frites and were really good.</div><div><br /></div><div>Two drinks packed quite a wallop, so we decided to go and brave the wintry wind outside as the fine folk at the ES wouldn't adopt us and let us move in. The restaurant & bar are attached to a hotel, so some of you may want to keep that in mind. </div><div><br /></div><div>So, we ducked into a book store right next door, don;t remember the name of it, but they had a fine assortment of art books, graphic novels and literature, all very reasonably priced.</div><div><br /></div><div>We then decided to hit up Harvard Square (back on the train, over the dang river again...) and actually did some holiday shopping until we called it quits and headed home.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Rating: The Eastern Standard gets 4.5 stars out of 5, and I would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone.</i></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-78511681280694121872009-11-06T12:44:00.005-05:002009-11-06T12:53:03.684-05:00Fobbing more visuals onto an unsuspecting public....<div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Feast your eyes on my latest endeavors:</div><div><br /></div><div><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 188px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SvRh9deThbI/AAAAAAAAAS4/-2Tp5qWp61I/s320/BisonicsFinalALT1forWEB.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5401049561635718578" /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 162px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SvRhu_PulsI/AAAAAAAAASw/L4CW9kqc6rs/s320/Bison_4FINAL.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5401049313003345602" /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SvRiT7Lt_rI/AAAAAAAAATA/3XNCVeIeXP4/s320/WLoADglassWEB.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5401049947567947442" /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-50598510679363856642009-11-02T10:25:00.010-05:002009-11-05T09:17:54.565-05:00Hallowe'en Roundup and let the Fall/Winter festivities begin!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/Su8BvKXKacI/AAAAAAAAASY/E1U8Laej71M/s1600-h/847858_4.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 180px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/Su8BvKXKacI/AAAAAAAAASY/E1U8Laej71M/s320/847858_4.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5399536387987499458" /></a><br /><div>This year's Hallowe'en weekend started with a pre-Hallowe'en gathering at friend Nat's palatial home in New London for a scary movie viewing, drinks, chat, etc. Our host met us at the door in glorious costume, and several other guests were in costume, too.</div><div><br /><div>Nat's place was aglow with blacklights and fun horror movie/Hallowe'en ephemera - a Bruce Campbell doll was spotted in one corner, posters from the Exorcist and Army of Darkness...lovely atmosphere!</div><div><br /></div><div>The movies that were chillingly served up quickly became MTS3K-esque fodder for us- '<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Sunday_(1960_film)">Black Sunday</a>' (aka 'The Devils' Mask'.) The bat alone was worth the price of admission......one viewer exclaimed '<i>What is that?</i> Half an umbrella?' I'm not so sure what this movie was about- Witches? Vampires? Bad lighting? </div><div><br /></div><div>So, when that was done, we took a break, ate some delightful vittles, drank (I was imbibing Burnett's Sweet Tea vodka- not bad for a flavored vodka, but tasted better when mixed with Honest Tea's Black Assam Iced Tea.)</div><div><br /></div><div>The second movie was most frightening of all: '<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091621/">Never Too Young to Die</a>', starring John Stamos, Vanity and Gene Simmons as an evil hermaphrodite.....in drag......</div><div>The exquisite pain and suffering caused by this move has forced us all to file a class action lawsuit against our host. Where do I start? Stamos finally had a showcase for all his acting range of that one emotion, Vanity....well, she keeps guns in interesting places, has lovely underwear and sure knows how to do yardwork. As for Gene Simmons, he was just cringingly over-the-top. And not a sexy man in drag, either - my eyes actually burned during his song and dance routine. I think he wore Cher's wardrobe discards - the ones she wore when she was feeling 'fat'. This movie was made in 1986, and it incorporated bad imitations of 'Mad Max' "punks", big hair, made-for-TV-movie plot, and one very long, sharp fingernail. I don't want to share too many details as I know all of you, Dear Readers, will want to see it.</div><div>This movie is a glorious train wreck, and yes, if you find a copy, send it my way. </div><div><br /></div><div>So all of this really set the stage for Hallowe'en excitement. On Hallowe'en, J10X & I scrambled around to finish our costumes in anticipation of the Creepshow at the Hygienic Art Park. J10X went as a scarecrow, I a crow. </div><div><br /></div><div>With plans to meet up with <a href="http://wndrkn.blogspot.com/">Miss Wendy</a>, <a href="http://katewombat.blogspot.com/">Kate</a>, Marko, the Boojums & others at the park, we eagerly set off. It was a fabulously blustery night and J10X was in danger of losing all his stalks to the wind. </div><div><br /></div><div>When we arrived at the Park, it was scantily populated. Then we found out one of the bands (one of the <i>good</i> ones) couldn't play! Horrors! Fortunately, the Art Park started filling up with people and their fabulous costumes- although I find it weird that anyone would dress in "80's" costumes, such as Molly Ringwald or preppies. All I think is 'Crap ! High school!' The Boojums were dressed in their finery as was Kate and once the park was full, it looked fantastic!</div><div><br /></div><div>Then the really scary part started- one of the bands played.....a looooong set. Too long. Lots of people left. Then it very briefly rained. The third band, Get Haunted, decided to go play at the Oasis, a place that is too small when I'm not in costume from head to toe! So, we skipped that. which I'm sorry to say, as I heard it was great show. Miss Wendy, Kate, J10x & I went to the Dutch Tavern, where we were the only costumed folk in a room full of sports fans watching the World Series. Until Batman came in for a frosty one. The four of us scored a table and had drinks & chatted- a theme for this Hallowe'en! Then we said our goodbyes and wrote obscenities on Marko's car.</div><div><br /></div><div>Trick or treat...............?</div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: -webkit-xxx-large; white-space: pre;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Georgia, serif;font-size:130%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px; white-space: normal;"><br /></span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" white-space: pre; font-family:Arial, sans-serif;font-size:10px;"><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/dvOvVtE4rgI&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/dvOvVtE4rgI&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></span></div></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-80225884386605997902009-08-30T11:57:00.007-04:002009-08-30T12:40:04.532-04:00Good MusicLast night J10X and I cruised to Rosie's Cantina in Groton to see an awesome show featuring <a href="http://www.myspace.com/brokedownserenade">Brokedown Serenade</a>, <a href="http://www.myspace.com/gethauntedmusic">Get Haunted</a> & <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Paul-Brockett-Roadshow-Band/101009575233?ref=mf">The Paul Brockett Roadshow Band</a>. <div><br /></div><div>Rosie's is a decent joint, but I have issues with the sound system. I did discover the 'sweet spot' to stand is about 10 ft from the stage. A foot further forward or back results in a mind meltingly loud experience.....<br /><div><br /></div><div>I had seen Brokedown Serenade open for the Cobra-Matics, and I felt they were <i>much</i> improved. They were definitely more relaxed on stage, and I think they'll grow even further from this point on. They served up competent, steady rockabilly/blues/rock 'n' roll. Fun fact: BS's bass player used to play in the Lucky Diamonds, a band fronted by The Colonel, who fronts the Cobra-Matics.</div><div><br /></div><div>Next up was Get Haunted, a band I was just champing at the bit to see. Fronted by the ever-magical Joey Royale, his lovely wife Sarah and a Nice Young Man called Kevin. Really basic drums, twangy banjo and intense (dare I say 'punkily hammered out') acoustic guitar and Joey's.....voice, which I have a really hard time describing. It's warm, hoarse, intense, old, shades of Nick Cave, Johnny Cash and Lux Interior. How about 'compelling'? I'll stick with compelling. The songs are dark, haunted, and in their own words 'sticks and stones, Indian bones and a box buried in a mound.' And sartorially, very entertaining: black-rimmed glasses, Mr. Royale's pencil moustache, shirts buttoned up and sporting plantation ties.....Sarah was wearing (from what I could spot) a black bodysuit and some shiny leather-looking stockings. Well, they knocked my socks off, so I will see every damn show they play if I can.</div><div><br /></div><div>And if that wasn't enough, we also were fortunate to see the always- fantastic Paul Brockett Roadshow Band. I cannot say enough great things about this band- they always deliver great songs, always with heart, soul and humor. Paul flung his guitar at the young man from Brokedown Serenade, who whipped out some nice bluesy notes. And a special treat for us in attendance were the spectacular songs done with Joey Royale - it's always awesome to see the PBRB bring people onstage, but this was truly transcedent. 'Magic' is the only word to describe it.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, hats off to all you fabulous musicians for a great night of music!</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, sans-serif, helvetica; font-size: 11px; color: rgb(255, 204, 0); -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 3px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 3px; "><br /></span></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-21494616457666424982009-08-29T11:35:00.006-04:002009-08-29T12:18:02.050-04:00'In Like Flint'- Move Over, James Bond!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SplRbdE9NpI/AAAAAAAAASI/-CqhaGfA0a0/s1600-h/IN+LIKE+FLINT_FLR.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 215px; height: 314px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SplRbdE9NpI/AAAAAAAAASI/-CqhaGfA0a0/s320/IN+LIKE+FLINT_FLR.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5375417162347132562" /></a><div>Beg, borrow or steal this movie!</div><div>This lavish prequel to the Austin Powers series features:<div><ul><li> James Coburn and his Super Secret Spy Moves!</li><li> Yvonne Craig as '<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vM-2UrJi0O0">Natasha</a>'!</li><li> Herb Edelman as the Russian Prime Minister!</li><li> 1967 Push Button Technology!</li><li> A plot so weak that the 'GI Joe' movie had to use it!!</li><li> Battle of the Sexes!</li><li> Free Love!</li><li> Fembots!</li><li> Seriously Fabulous Clothing!</li><li> Underwhelming Fight Scenes!</li><li> Outer Space Effects inspired by Ed Wood!</li></ul></div><div>Oh, just look for yourselves.....<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-fMVbRAf7o">The Trailer</a><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-75231530168893803932009-08-22T14:23:00.003-04:002009-08-22T14:31:38.891-04:00RIP, Slimjim, c1998-2009<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SpA37EqRjRI/AAAAAAAAASA/PxnOdPrZO7o/s1600-h/Slimjim+1.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 231px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SpA37EqRjRI/AAAAAAAAASA/PxnOdPrZO7o/s320/Slimjim+1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372855843455864082" /></a>It's always hard to lose a beloved pet. Slimjim had been with us for almost twelve years.<div><br /></div><div>He was good, sweet, loving member of our family and we had to make the incredibly difficult decision to let him go on to the Great Mouse Hunting Ground in the Sky.<br /><div><br /></div><div>Unfortunately, last year he started having seizures that were becoming more and more frequent and with no apparent physiological cause. He was also losing mobility and we had to take him to the vet today because he couldn't breathe. He was in such distress he was actually meowing - a rare thing for Slimjim. The vet found a huge lump in his throat that showed some damage to the fine bones there and his passageway was so swollen that it was impeding his breathing. After much deliberation, and many, many tears, we felt it would be kinder to let him go rather than traumatize him further with aggressive care. </div><div><br /></div><div>We love you Slimjim - and we miss you terribly.</div></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-31629287653022220382009-07-08T17:34:00.015-04:002009-07-09T13:21:22.449-04:00The 4th, Public Enemies, and Ephemera...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SlYmtDYEiII/AAAAAAAAAR4/LCAhsGDcn78/s1600-h/6a00d8341c9e5b53ef00e55350d3f58833-800pi.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SlYmtDYEiII/AAAAAAAAAR4/LCAhsGDcn78/s320/6a00d8341c9e5b53ef00e55350d3f58833-800pi.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356511362246019202" border="0" /></a><br />(If I wait long enough, I accumulate enough to blog about.....)<br /><br />Last Friday, braving the torrential downpours, J10X & I went to see <a href="http://www.publicenemies.net/">Public Enemies</a>. For those who don't know, it's a movie about John Dillinger's 14-month crime spree. I love gangster movies; I love gangster movies with stylish stars; this had both. And I'm pretty sure I can now predict the men's fall fashion line for 2009.<br />This movie was beautifully shot, some scenes evoking the feel of 1930's newspaper photos and it was a welcome respite from the usual direction of movies of late. The pacing was a little slower than I thought it would be, but it was a relief to <span style="font-style: italic;">see</span> the action, not have it shoved in your face with nearly-undecipherable CGI magic.<br />It's really hard to describe the movie as a whole, and I'm hard put to explain any of the plot devices. There were no decent female roles, not even Dillinger's moll, played by Marie Cotillard, who had more of a 'character' than the other women. Johnny Depp was cool as Dillinger, Christian Bale [The Most Tensest Actor Since Clint Eastwood (tm)] was serviceable as Melvin Purvis, the very intense G-man who was chasing Dillinger, but again, the characters & story were very broad strokes. There was a good deal of sub-plot involving J. Edgar Hoover and the beginnings of the FBI, and Baby-Face Nelson's psychotic self was skin-crawlingly represented as well. Plenty of familiar faces in this movie, most of whom I couldn't name if I had to. This was a really enjoyable movie and beautiful to watch: I recommend it as an afternoon's diversion.<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Rating: 3.5 crowns out of 5, 5 crowns for Johnny Depp 'cuz I'm sweet on him.</span><br /><br />On the 4th, J10X and I were fortunate enough to party down with the Boojums and their Big L'il Bash for the Fourth. It was so glorious outside (finally), good food was to be had, good people to talk to, just a nice, relaxed vibe. Later that night, J10X & I went to Norwich to see the fireworks - it was insane. There wasn't a single place to park, the town was just <span style="font-style: italic;">packed</span> full of people. We managed to get to a spot behind a bank, under some trees, through a culvert and on a grassy knoll and joined an older couple to watch the fabulous fireworks.<br /><br />Sunday was another glorious day, so off we went to the beach! It was a bit chilly on the beach itself, but really nice walking around. Oh, yeah, we scored some more tiki goodness at the flea market as well, this time in the form of ephemera. One piece, which is marginally Polynesian Pop, is a brochure from 1931 on the SS Mauritania and its cruises to South America and islands. That has a big fold out section of the schematic of the ship, too. We also scored a travel booklet from Hawaii and several pamphlets from <a href="http://www.silversprings.com/heritage.html">Silver Springs</a>, ca. 1940s-1950s.<br /><br />So, all-in-all, it was a rare relaxed holiday weekend- yay!The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-14049371023896058852009-06-26T12:21:00.003-04:002009-06-26T12:51:54.877-04:00Uh, How Do Ya Call your Luva Boy....?<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SkT191By_MI/AAAAAAAAARw/WK145C_sP4A/s1600-h/NYDL_LOGO-COLOR.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 317px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SkT191By_MI/AAAAAAAAARw/WK145C_sP4A/s320/NYDL_LOGO-COLOR.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351672699778432194" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Rock 'n' Roll!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Rock 'n' Roll!<br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Rock 'n' Roll!Rock 'n' Roll!Rock 'n' Roll!<br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Rock 'n' Roll!<br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Rock 'n' Roll!<br /></span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Rock 'n' Roll!<br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 24px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Rock 'n' Roll!</span><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 24px;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;">Marko and I witnessed a fantastic, kick-ass, REAL rock and roll show last night at Pearl St. in Northampton - the <a href="http://www.nydolls.org/">NY Dolls</a> came, rocked our world, and left us all in a sweaty, steamy, spent and satisfied pile on the ballroom floor. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The Dolls only have two original members left, David Johansen and Sylvain Sylvain, but the newer members of the band were, in every sense of the word, NY Dolls. This band was classy, stylish, rockin' and the perfect mix of great musicians who are tight, but can let it get loose and not sloppy. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I wasn't overly familiar with the newer material, but it was GREAT live - and there was a nice mix of original Dolls' tunes and the newer songs. Sylvain and Johansen both looked really pleased that the audience really went nuts over the original tunes. That said, most of the audience were obviously long-time fans of the band. They also covered Johnny Thunders' 'Can't Put your Arms Around a Memory' and gave Thunders and Michael Jackson a shout-out, which was cool. Other songs included 'Stranded in the Jungle', 'Pills', 'Jet Boy', 'Trash', 'Mystery Girls', 'Personality Crisis' - they opened with 'Looking for a Kiss', which is arguably my favorite Dolls tune, and it just went uphill after that. And they played for almost 2 solid hours. Johansen's voice was amazingly unchanged, Sylvain's guitar-playing and audience interaction was great and I highly recommend you go NOW and see this band if you can. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">"<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-CI1gg2l6w">Trash</a>, wont pick it up<br />Take them lights away<br />Trash, wont pick it up<br />Dont take your life away<br />Trash, dont try to take my life away...."</span></span></span><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 24px;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div><br /></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-41717849384230563752009-06-15T11:44:00.013-04:002009-06-20T13:04:25.110-04:00Cape Cod- the World's Repository of Fudge, Taffy, Jams & Jellies!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SjaRGfX9jbI/AAAAAAAAARo/qKd30wFT5eY/s1600-h/IMG_7010.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SjaRGfX9jbI/AAAAAAAAARo/qKd30wFT5eY/s320/IMG_7010.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5347621148236287410" /></a><br />For my Birthday Time this year, Jv10X and I decide we'd stay at the Cape for a week- do some biking, kayaking, Provincetown-ing, catch some rays at the beach. We were so psyched because it was pre-tourist-season, so it would be peaceful.<div><br /></div><div>Well, things didn't quite turn out as planned: we were disappointed by the place we stayed in (I felt their website was rather misleading), lots of places were not open because it was pre-season, and it was cold and rainy. So that definitely put the kibosh on whale-watching, kayaking and anything ocean-y at all. If the rental places weren't closed, it was just too damn cold (think 55 degrees and windy and cold rain.)</div><div><br /></div><div>So, as they say, we were given lemons, so we made vodka tonics. The first night, we went to P-town to scope out the scene. As it was late evening, there were very few stores open, but it was really peaceful without too many people around, so we walked all over, making note of the places we wanted to visit over the next week. Provincetown has nice shops, lots of cool galleries, theater....a lot of stuff in a fairly small space. We checked out the <a href="http://www.ptownarmynavy.com/">Marine Specialties</a> shop, and that was quite the diversion! Tons of army/navy surplus from around the world, and just....stuff. Clothes, toys, home goods, pith helmets- you name it! We also stopped at <a href="http://waharmony.com/">Wa</a>, which has a Zen garden and some completely stunningly beautiful <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">objets</span>. </div><div><br /></div><div>The next day, we did manage to get in a fabulous bike ride at the dunes. It was pleasantly cool out and we had gone early enough to avoid the visitors that came later. The landscape was really bizarre- all the scrub pines and sand looked like an alien landscape and you could smell the salt mist roses everywhere. The bike path was really nice, paved, and boy, there were some huge hills to navigate. After the ride, thighs aflame, we checked out the visitor's center and found out that a whale (dead) had been <a href="http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090521/NEWS11/90521041">washed ashore</a> several weeks earlier - they had pictures of a crane picking up the enormous <a href="http://www.capecodtoday.com/blogs/index.php/2009/05/22/finback-whale-washes-ashore-in-provincet?blog=53">tongue</a> off of the beach! It was the Gene Simmons of whales, I believe....</div><div><br /></div><div>After dolling ourselves up to have a nice dinner in honor of my birthday, we went back to P-town earlier than the night before and stopped in at <a href="http://www.idptma.com/">id</a>. So many gorgeous things here, too! I picked up a beautiful, simple vase there and I wish I could have afforded, oh, ALL the jewelry. Not everything they have is online, so keep checking that site as they add to it. We grilled the owner about things to do around town, why wasn't everything open, and where shall we eat? We had decide to go to The Mews, but we wanted some local input. A place called Victor's was recommended to us, they have tapas, so we thought we'd give that a shot and then go to The Mews afterwards to sample as many of their 256 vodkas as we could. Well, after walking the length of P-town twice, we couldn't find it: the next day we realized we were about 10 damn feet from it. (We did the exact same thing the night before trying to locate The Mews- we stopped about 50 ft from it and turned around thinking we had missed it. ) </div><div>So, we went to <a href="http://www.mews.com/">The Mews</a>, and we're SO glad we did! The setting was great (nice, dark, relaxed, ocean view), the staff were fabulous, the food was divine as was the vodka. Hands down, the Tuna Sushi Tempura was the winner out of everything we tried - I could eat that every day of my life. We also tried the crabcakes, which were delicious and the mushroom strudel, which was great, and Jv10X had the skirt steak and scallops, which he really liked. I really recommend this place if you're looking for an elegant, but relaxed, restaurant in P-town. And, look who's also eaten here: <a href="http://www.mews.com/aboutus.asp?ID=3">Bob Mackie, Bozo the Clown and John Waters</a>!</div><div>We were fortunate enough to be sitting next to a table of three women, and one of them was also celebrating her birthday- they were out on the town, and very fun. One of the women created all the stained glass pieces in the restaurant, and she took me to the lower level dining room to show me some really spectacular pieces. </div><div>We tried four vodkas: the Snow Queen from Kazakhstan, which was best chilled, had a nice, mildly sweet taste and light on the tongue; <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 51, 51); -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Youri Dolgoruki from Russi</span>a</span></span>, which was also best chilled, and that had a more astringent, citrusy flavor, also light on the tongue; the always incredible Zubrowka bison grass-flavored vodka (one of my top 3 favorites) and is nice not chilled; and my new favorite, a lovely Ukrainian by the name of Nemiroff Honey- Pepper: I had this 'neat', and I think that's how it should to be served. It smelled strongly of honey, but the honey taste was delicate, not cloying, and it had a little zip to it from the pepper. It was a beautiful gold color and very warming. </div><div>I was hoping that we could have smaller 'tastes' of more vodkas, but they don't have that option. The servings were a good size, so after two, I was feeling no pain. </div><div><br /></div><div>We left and window-shopped all the galleries, which were closed by the time we left the restaurant. One of the <a href="http://aldengallery.com/">exhibits</a> that we kept missing was 'A Dozen Divas' by <a href="http://www.theispot.com/artist/demichiell">Robert de Michiell</a> whose caricatures were quite reminiscent of Robert <a href="http://www.robertrisko.com/samples.htm">Risko</a>. We could at least see these pieces really well through the windows, and they looked glorious. We did manage to see several galleries' shows, but I thought the <a href="http://simiemaryles.com/index.html">Simie Maryle</a>s gallery had the most interesting works- I'm not huge fan of paintings, but I loved <a href="http://simiemaryles.com/munro.html">Roxie Munro</a>'s pieces as well as the glass art of <a href="http://simiemaryles.com/silvia.html">Ian Sylvia</a>, which was far more stunning than in any other pictures in that link. There's a long history of <a href="http://www.paam.org/">art</a> and artists in P-town, but we tended to skip the galleries of the paintings of boats, ocean, bad figurative drawings and the like. </div><div><br /></div><div>The next morning, we woke up to a torrential downpour and when it stopped, we decided to take a walk along the main rails-to-trails bike trail that ran behind our motel. It was paved, really clean and after we had walked for half an hour, the heavens opened back up and drenched us is cold, fat drops of rain. With thunder. So, after getting back to our room and peeling off our soaked garb, we checked the forecast and realized it wasn't the best day for a hours-long bike ride. So, we headed back to P-town, this time during the day, so we could just go to all the place we wanted to visit that were closed the two days before. This was definitely turning into a shopping & eating trip. We checked out <a href="http://www.utilitieshome.com/store.php">Utilities</a>, The Shell Shop, <a href="http://womencrafts.com/">Womencrafts</a>, Stax of Wax (I snagged some comics here and the adorable owner was selling his punk record collection- so much punk! So much vinyl!), Yesterday's Treasures (where Jv10X liberated a funky-ass Coco Joe's ashtray/lighter combo set), got a hair cut by the fabulous Carl Thomas at Salon 54, ate at Wabi Dumpling (delicious! and we tried <a href="http://cocktails.about.com/od/spiritreviews/gr/sake2me_rvw.htm">Sake2Me</a>'s Green Tea Sake that was lightly carbonated- amazingly delicious!), purchased dessert from <a href="http://www.thepurplefeather.com/">The Purple Feather</a> (sold to us by one of the many, gorgeous, flirty, flirty, flirty Bulgarian boys and girls who were working on the Cape for the summer), ate some awesome pizza at George's (with large drinky-poos, nice bartender, and the hilarious realization of how porn-y the closed captioning is for <a href="http://www.andrewzimmern.com/">Andrew Zimmern</a>'s show)....um, then we tried to get into the <a href="http://www.whydah.com/">Whydah Pirate Museum</a>, but it wasn't open, of course - arrrrrgh. So went back to our room.</div><div><br /></div><div>Surprise! The next morning it was pouring rain! We figured it wasn't going to be a good day as we noticed the household across the street was loading its camper up with two of each animal...we had completely 'done' P-town, so we decided to cut our losses and head home. We will definitely go back to Cape Cod, and we understand from the locals that September is the best time to go. We met a lot of really nice people and had a great time wherever we went. </div><div><br /></div><div>And we did not succumb to the pressures of purchasing fudge, taffy, jams, jellies or $2 </div><div>t-shirts....but we have plenty of random pictures <a href="http://s204.photobucket.com/albums/bb287/queenofe/Cape%20Cod%20June%202009/">here</a>.....</div><div><br /></div>The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-7680051001784822022009-06-05T18:43:00.006-04:002009-06-05T19:13:22.421-04:00Movie Reviews: Star Trek & the Matrix SequelsA current theme in my movie theater-going these days is the switcheroo: I show up to watch a movie only to find it's gone and I have to substitute another.<br />Miss Wendy and I went to see 'Wolverine' (yes, that would be the 4th time in a month for me...), but it had gone away and we decided to see Star Trek, which was cool as we both wanted to see it.<br />This movie covers the very beginnings of the careers of Kirk, Spock, Bones, Checkov, Sulu, Uhura, Scotty.....and the Enterprise. Lots of fun effects, but the plot was......disappointing. As in 'We'll fix all the holes in the plot by using time travel to change the future!'-ok, I see this on Dr. Who and it works- came across as lame in this setting. I did like that the characters physically were a nod to the originals and there was some slap-stick type humor that was silly enough to be fun. (Oh, and if 'Bones' looks really familiar, it's because he was in LOTR and Xena....and, believe it or not, Winona Ryder is Spock's mom......)<br />Oddly, the one really distracting element was the bad skin on everyone except Uhura- I mean, c'mon, it's Stardate 2388- don't they have nuclear-strength Clearasil by now and razor blades that give a clean, close shave??<br />For the record, you'll only really like this if you've watched the original TV show fairly regularly. There were plenty of inside jokes and I was able to demonstrate my carefully hidden full-on geekiness to Wendy during the movie. I don't see that it would create many new fans, but it was a treat for old ones.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Rating: 3 crowns out of 5, because I only saw it once - I doubt it'll hold up to repeated viewings.</span><br />Matrix: Reloaded & Matrix: Revolutions- wow, the incredible suckiness of these two movies is almost beyond words. I know I will be lying on my deathbed at some point regretting the 4 hours I wasted watching these movies.<br />Where do I start? First of all, it was basically one big movie that could have been edited down to 2 hours instead of 4. The plot was flogged like a dead horse. And the story went from good vs. evil to a ridiculously heavily christianized version of the same. Both movies were boring, so much so that the fight scenes barely revived one's interest, and it seemed that each scene was shot several times and two takes were kept and inserted...wherever....so you see the same thing over and over and over.....zzzzzzzz.........and any decent acting accomplished by Fishburne and Weaving was completely overran by the ponderous plot and editing.<br />Rating: 0.5 crowns out of 5, the half a point awarded to Trinity's awes<img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 194px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zI5Sk-09mvA/SimmapbstcI/AAAAAAAAARg/b-bSFuW5aVg/s320/poster_carrie_full.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343985409580643778" />ome costumes.The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36270099.post-81801759929395223702009-05-10T16:30:00.003-04:002009-05-10T16:47:02.239-04:00Restaurant Review: The Black SheepJv10X & I popped into the new <a href="http://www.theblacksheepniantic.com/index.html">Black Sheep Irish Pub</a> in Niantic after an extensive tour of the Book Barn: sold some books, bought some books, had the Jim Miller Experience at Book Barn Downtown. (Note: Jim always plays better music than the main Book Barn does.)<br /><br />The Black Sheep is very....pub-y....with nice white walls, brick wall, molded ceiling, burgundy and gold textiles and dark wood with an adult atmosphere. It's roomy and cozy at the same time.<br /><br />I was please to see that they carry some nice beers (and Newcastle, hands down my fave) but I was a little distressed that the menu was largely meat and bivalves - but after all, it is a pub, so what the hell was I thinking? And the staff seemed to be very....nervous...so that was a little strange. But they were nice.<br /><br />I ended up ordering the field greens salad with grilled shrimp, and Jv10X gave a stab at the burger. The salad was huge and really tasty, and Bernie declared his burger to be really good. (I kind of wonder if my salad was so big because they probably don't get a lot of salad-eatin' folk in there, but I'm not complaining!) I definitely would like to stop there again to try an actual dish on their menu- the wild mushroom ravioli look fab as do the crabcakes.The Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01941890139358671232noreply@blogger.com6