Last Weekend for August 3-6: Pop Culture Consumption
Last weekend I consumed a lot of popular culture.
Friday night I saw The Spy Who Dumped Me. Kate McKinnon carried this movie as the crazy best friend of Mila Kunis. She channeled many of her SNL roles as someone who, as one character says, "Is a bit much." The funny parts of this movie were as good as the best parts of the similar Spy. However, unlike that film this movie spun into some really standard action fare, most of which was bleah at best. In short, if you like Kate McKinnon going over the top, you'll probably enjoy this. If you expect it to make sense or be thematically consistent, you are going to be unhappy.
Saturday I ran my errands in the morning and then finished two books in the afternoon. The first was The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks, which I had snagged out of a Little Free Library near my house. The main character is a very disturbing teenager who outlines the three murders he has committed, as well as several other disquieting aspects of his life. There's a virtuosity to the descriptions, but the payoff is ultimately not just lacking, but infuriatingly unimaginative. I can't recommend it.
The second book I finished was much, much better. This is How You Lose Her by Junot Diaz. This book had bubbled around my slush pile for some years, and I'm glad it finally made it to the top. Much like The Namesake (and almost as good), this book follows an immigrant population in America (here, Dominicans) as they struggle to make it. The character Yunior is in most of the stories, ranging from his childhood to his late thirties, and describing his interactions with his brother, his parents and various women. I really enjoyed it, and immediately requested the preceding short story collection by Diaz, Drown, from the library.
On Saturday afternoon I also took the CDs I had purged and attempted to unload them. Of the more than 40 collected, I sold exactly four for a total of $10, which I immediately turned into a copy of the Mark Ronson album Uptown Special, which has been on my list to acquire pretty much since it came out. The album, of course, is where the mega hit Uptown Funk came from, but there are several other standout tracks, notably in my opinion I Can't Lose. It's on constant rotation at my house right now. It doesn't hurt that the Daptone Horns are all over it. Now, I just need to figure out where to unload the other 36 CDs...
Saturday night I took Danita to the Indians game against the Angels. I'd selected that game in my season ticket draft so I could see Mike Trout, but unfortunately he was out with a minor injury. Instead, I got to watch Corey Kluber throw a 98 pitch complete game shut out (aka, a Maddux. Felix Pena had a no hitter through five, but his efforts were in vain as the Tribe drove in some runs in the sixth and that was all they needed.
The game was followed by one of the more impressive fireworks displays I have ever seen; it went on for a very long time and was the first time I recall them firing stuff off from behind the awnings along the third base and right field sides. John picked us up and the three of us had a pleasant evening out at Market Garden Brewing. I ate a scotch egg from the place that inspired me to make them!
Sunday, I vacuumed the house in preparation for a short visit by my parents. Then I did a radio show that was largely based around a giveaway for Dick Dale tickets. The evening was spent reading Career of Evil by JK Rowling as her
J.K. Rowling as Robert Galbraith persona. Although I didn't finish it until Monday so it is technically out of scope for this post, I really enjoyed it and am super excited that a fourth book is coming out next month. Cormoran and Robin are two of my favorite characters.
Friday night I saw The Spy Who Dumped Me. Kate McKinnon carried this movie as the crazy best friend of Mila Kunis. She channeled many of her SNL roles as someone who, as one character says, "Is a bit much." The funny parts of this movie were as good as the best parts of the similar Spy. However, unlike that film this movie spun into some really standard action fare, most of which was bleah at best. In short, if you like Kate McKinnon going over the top, you'll probably enjoy this. If you expect it to make sense or be thematically consistent, you are going to be unhappy.
Saturday I ran my errands in the morning and then finished two books in the afternoon. The first was The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks, which I had snagged out of a Little Free Library near my house. The main character is a very disturbing teenager who outlines the three murders he has committed, as well as several other disquieting aspects of his life. There's a virtuosity to the descriptions, but the payoff is ultimately not just lacking, but infuriatingly unimaginative. I can't recommend it.
The second book I finished was much, much better. This is How You Lose Her by Junot Diaz. This book had bubbled around my slush pile for some years, and I'm glad it finally made it to the top. Much like The Namesake (and almost as good), this book follows an immigrant population in America (here, Dominicans) as they struggle to make it. The character Yunior is in most of the stories, ranging from his childhood to his late thirties, and describing his interactions with his brother, his parents and various women. I really enjoyed it, and immediately requested the preceding short story collection by Diaz, Drown, from the library.
On Saturday afternoon I also took the CDs I had purged and attempted to unload them. Of the more than 40 collected, I sold exactly four for a total of $10, which I immediately turned into a copy of the Mark Ronson album Uptown Special, which has been on my list to acquire pretty much since it came out. The album, of course, is where the mega hit Uptown Funk came from, but there are several other standout tracks, notably in my opinion I Can't Lose. It's on constant rotation at my house right now. It doesn't hurt that the Daptone Horns are all over it. Now, I just need to figure out where to unload the other 36 CDs...
Saturday night I took Danita to the Indians game against the Angels. I'd selected that game in my season ticket draft so I could see Mike Trout, but unfortunately he was out with a minor injury. Instead, I got to watch Corey Kluber throw a 98 pitch complete game shut out (aka, a Maddux. Felix Pena had a no hitter through five, but his efforts were in vain as the Tribe drove in some runs in the sixth and that was all they needed.
The game was followed by one of the more impressive fireworks displays I have ever seen; it went on for a very long time and was the first time I recall them firing stuff off from behind the awnings along the third base and right field sides. John picked us up and the three of us had a pleasant evening out at Market Garden Brewing. I ate a scotch egg from the place that inspired me to make them!
Sunday, I vacuumed the house in preparation for a short visit by my parents. Then I did a radio show that was largely based around a giveaway for Dick Dale tickets. The evening was spent reading Career of Evil by JK Rowling as her
J.K. Rowling as Robert Galbraith persona. Although I didn't finish it until Monday so it is technically out of scope for this post, I really enjoyed it and am super excited that a fourth book is coming out next month. Cormoran and Robin are two of my favorite characters.