Friday, May 22, 2009

Dexter Season One: *****



Is it wrong to be in love with a serial killer?
If it is, just lock me up and throw away the key... For I am truly, madly, deeply in love with Dexter.
I know I'm a little behind time on this one. Everyone watching the series on tv is already on season three, but you've got to understand that with my busy life I often end up missing episodes of my favourite shows, and then I lose interest and stop watching altogether. When you have a busy work life, plus the gym every day, a cat to spoil, a home to look after, books to read, projects to sew/crochet AND still need to find some "me time" is impossible to catch every episode when tv land thinks you should. So being able to get the various series on dvd has completely changed my life. No commercial breaks... No waiting one whole week to catch the next development... Pause-ability for loo breaks... Replay-ability for when you want to watch something again... It's great!
So my brother got my into Dexter when I visited last weekend and I'm so hooked. I basically marathoned the entire first season in 3 nights and I've managed to book season 2 and 3 with a friend of mine who's a bit of a collector. I can't wait, honestly!
The series is well written. The casting is good. The blood looks real.
It's.
Intoxicating.
Do yourself a favour and watch from the pilot episode. You won't be disappointed.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Three Quick Reviews

Review One:
And Unfinished Life: ***1/2




If you're an aspiring writer you really want to give this book a read. I can't say that the plot was all that incredible, but the characters were simply amazing. Such depth, detail, honesty and insight! Mark Spragg captures little human moments that we see but don't register or take for granted. There's something cool that happens in your heart when you read a moment like that, recognise it in someone that you know and empathise. Give An Unfinished Life a try. You won't be disappointed.

Review Two:
Confessions of a Shopaholic: Zero Stars




What the fuck was I thinking?
There should be a law against this kind of shit. Movies like this make women dumber by the second. They suck the IQ right out of you through your eyeballs. I was at lest 5 IQ points lighter when I left the theatre. WTF.

Review Three / Contraption Review / "Best of the Internet from Last Week":
The Vinturi Essential Wine Aerator: *****




This little baby allows you to aerate our wine and drink it immediately, instead of having to open the bottle and allow the wine to "breathe" for several hours. On our wine tour in Cape Town last month, the guide advised us that you can actually open your wine in the morning if you're going to be drinking it later that night. I barely have time to remember to pack a healthy lunch, let alone remember to open my wine for that evening. Whatever. ANY contraption that allows you to drink your wine IMMEDIATELY is an winner in my book. Read more here.

HaikuNunu's "Thought Bubbles..."

Monday, May 11, 2009

Completed Projects: Can I get a whoop WHOOP??!!

All my life my mom has teased me about the fact that I start a million projects and never seem to finish. It's not just an accusation. It's a fact really, and the biggest piece of evidence would be a tapestry that I started when I was in primary school. It's still sitting in a plastic bag on top of my wardrobe right now. Half done. Half not done. To be fair, this level of procrastination doesn't come from nowhere. That particular tapestry was started by my mom, when she was pregnant with my brother, Donovan. Don will be 32 this year. The defense rests.
You can therefore imagine my elation when I actually manage to finish a project. You might remember that last year some time I taught myself how to crochet (from the INTERNET, thank you very much) and started a VERY ambitious project of a bed throw. Too big. I should have aimed lower, started smaller and set myself some achievable goals... Right now, the granny square blocks are in a bag at the back of the wardrobe. Not far from the tapestry.
So... I humbly present: Completed Project Number One! The first of its kind in Carmen History, EVER!




It's a baby blanket for little Max my best girl, Maria's, little boy. We didn't know he was going to be a boy until he popped out, so I stuck to neutral colours, buttery cream and chocolate. I'd say it took about 2 months of solid, frantic crocheting. This little baby went with me to the hair salon and even flew to minus 44 in Canada with me.
Completed Project Number 2 is a set of baby blocks for my friend Natalie's little boy, Xavier.




This project took very little time actually. Again, I kept the colours very "baby" rather than gender specific. Natalie also wanted to be surprised and didn't want to know the gender of the baby. I must say that this was a really fun project to do and the 3 little blocks turned out very cute.
And finally (for now), Completed Project Number 3: A sari book cover for my daily scripture book.


The actual cover was just awful and I couldn't bring myself to enjoy my daily meditation when this ugly cover was sitting in my lap. So in a fit of creative energy I cut up an old sari that I had lying around and sewed a cute little cover for my book. This was SO incredibly easy to do and I'm actually thinking of making a few more to hand out as gifts.
I'm getting better with this "completed project" business, as you can see. There's a half crocheted scarf and baby blanket in my crochet basket right now. Not to mention that damned bed throw. I should have just made one GIANT granny square instead of going for a patch-work / quilt type effect. Now I have a million granny squares to block and join. I'll never finish this one. I feel it in my bones...