Month: August 2020

Laundry Area Rehab. The Before

Our top-of-the-line washer has pooped out just a few months after the one-year warranty expired. Maytag has agreed to cover the cost of parts and labor to fix it and the repair man pointed out that maybe moving the washer and dryer back into the closet would be better for the washer.

However, that move would make a problem for the dryer. The reason we moved the unit out of the closet was because it was hard to vent.

There is also the matter of the cats’ litter boxes. If we separate the unit and put the washer in the closet (thus getting rid of that multiple chained hoses situation) and the dryer on the ground in the not-closet, where will the cats’ litter boxes go?

The solution came to me while I was in a half-awake state on Friday morning and I spent a few hours sketching out the plan. We just needed to build a pedestal for the dryer to sit on, but one that was high enough for the cats’ litter boxes to fit under. Luckily, the manufacturer-created pedestals are ridiculously expensive and several people had made their own and put their building process online, so I had some guidance.

On Saturday morning, I went to buy the supplies. That part didn’t go smoothly because though I had measured the Honda Civic to ensure that plywood cut in half would fit into the back seat (it would!) I neglected to measure the opening to the back seat. It was not big enough for the plywood to fit, as I found when I went to load up the car. Thankfully Laurie and Burt have a truck and Matt went to borrow it.

After that, I came home and made this as close to an Ikea project as I could.

You can see my labels and marks. Everything is premeasured and we will tackle this tomorrow. Hopefully we can get the platform built in time to get it ready for when the repair man comes back to install the new parts.

Yes, God, Yes is Amusing, Sweet

Picture of Natalia Dyer in the film Yes, God, Yes

Yes, God, Yes

Directed by Karen Maine
Written by Karen Maine

The review:

One of the hardest things about being a teenage girl is all that sex stuff* and Karen Maine captures one girl’s experience exploring self-pleasure while also balancing what’s being taught at her Catholic school, plus dealing with rumors that have to do with her performing a sex act identified by slang she isn’t familiar with.** While she navigates her own path by mostly trying to stay on her church’s version of the straight and narrow, the rumors spread to the adults in her community and her standing falls. Natalia Dryer is a pro at capturing Alice’s befuddled confusion and growing skepticism in this amusing film.

The verdict: Good

Cost: $6.99 via Redbox On Demand
Where watched: at home

Consider also watching:

Further sentences:

*The Madonna/whore thing is a tough needle to thread, plus add in religious and family expectations, peer group expectations, gossip, cultural markers gleaned from the entertainment world, not to mention the possibility of past or current sexual abuse or assault.
**Maine makes the most of her time period: AOL when chat rooms could turn dirty without warning and search functions were minimal.

Questions:

  • What’s the best way to deal with unfounded rumors?
  • How do you think Alice’s friends shaped her choices?

Favorite IMDB trivia item:

No good trivia, instead a quote from Jezebel.com

There’s a lot of really great coming-of-age films, but they often show painful sex. I wanted to see women exploring their own bodies more. American Pie, The Squid and the Whale—there’s a lot of films that show male masturbation. But I wanted to show the female part of it. I definitely want to find other ways to show women portraying new roles in cinema that feel very familiar to the women we are and that we know—but we’re either afraid to talk about, or men have been afraid to show on screen.

Karen Maine

Other reviews of Yes, God, Yes:

Orange background with text: We pretended each marshmallow was a different mortal sin before burning it. Yours was lust. —Yes, God, Yes. Read the three sentence movie review. 3SMReviews.com

Half the Picture is a Full Portrait of Discrimination

Colorful pictures of eyes with movie reels in them. Text: The women behind the camera. The stories behind the women.

Half the Picture

Directed by Amy Adrion

The review:

The talking heads in this movie are all women* and all are talking about how hard it is to get a job as a director in Hollywood. Various areas of discrimination are covered** as many directors get to talk about what they love about directing and what keeps them from their love. One thing I learned: it’s just as hard to break into directing TV episodes as it is to direct feature films.***

The verdict: Good

Cost: free via DVD from the Multnomah County Library
Where watched: at home

Further sentences:

*Nearly all are directors, but there’s a woman from the Sundance Institute who pops in now and then, plus a few academics and a reporter who notes that she’s written the same article about the lack of women directors nine or ten times.
**Directing is “too hard” for women. What about their families? Crews don’t like to listen to women. Women can’t direct action/horror/war/most things. Male critics tend to not “get” movies made by women. Things made by women aren’t as good as things made by men.
***This was interesting to me because I’ve noticed that most women feature film directors intersperse directing films with directing TV episodes. It turns out that if you haven’t directed TV, the powers that be aren’t convinced you can direct it, even if you’ve directed entire movies.

Questions:

  • What do you think the solution is to get more women behind the camera?
  • Who is your favorite woman director?

Other reviews of Half the Picture:

Text: I think people have the impression that being a director is like an athletic weightlifting sport, when actually so much of it is about intimacy and connection and things that women are naturally gifted at. I think so many women feel like they need to take on a persona in order to be able to direct…and that’s just not necessary.—Lena Dunham. Half the Picture. Read the three sentence movie review at 3SMReviews.com

I’ll Make My Own Thread Keepers Said the Little Red Hen

I could buy a box with these plastic things to wind my embroidery thread on them, but why would I when I have many plastic lids that cannot be recycled in my town’s recycling system?

(Update from the future. Once I got more than five colors of thread, I totally went and bought that box and discarded these homemade spools.)

SKS Postcard Eureka Map

Sara writes from their new afternoon spot at Septentrio Winery. Because they can sit outdoors, they’ve taken to getting a bottle of wine after going to the farmer’s market.

Sara points out that the store Just My Type has moved around the corner and said she put a star on their old location. But I wonder if the star didn’t make it through the mail?

Into the Forest: Survival and Strength

Picture of Evan Rachel Wood, Callum Rennie, and Ellen Page in the film Into the Forest

Into the Forest

Directed by Patricia Rozema
Written by Patricia Rozema

The review:

Based on the Jean Hegland book that made a big impression on me in the late 90s,* this film highlights how the bond between sisters can be strengthened and tested when the world switches to survival. As distopias go, it’s a low-key one,** though stuff goes down, giving Ellen Page and Evan Rachel Wood a chance to show off their skills. I thought the timing was off, and the movie wrapped up too quickly, but I so rarely get to see two-person films where both persons are women, this felt like a treat.

The verdict: Good

Cost: free via Kanopy, the library’s streaming service.
Where watched: at home

Consider also watching:

Further sentences:

*Mental note I made after reading the book: Make sure to have a library of foraging and survival books on hand. I still haven’t checked off that note.
**Northern California’s lush landscape (played here by British Columbia) keeps everything from feeling hopeless.

Questions:

  • Are you ready to survive in your landscape, should you have to?
  • What’s your favorite two-person film where both persons are women?

Favorite IMDB trivia item:

Ellen Page was inspired to make the film after coming across the book written by Jean Hegland while browsing through a small store in her native Halifax. It was suggested to her by the woman working there and after she read it, she decided to produce a movie-version of the story.

Other reviews of Into the Forest:

Helping Out at a Protest

My friend T is a powerhouse in all ways, and this summer she has been leading family-friendly protests with a few other people. I went down to help out.

This memorial, that honors 216 Black lives taken by racial violence, was powerful.

So many names. Ones I am familiar with, ones I am not.

This person was taking pictures of the protesters. He said he had come to Portland from Minneapolis to capture the protests. Unlike me, he probably doesn’t have many pictures where his lens cover interferes with the image.

And there’s T, being the leader she was born to be.

High School Musical Meets Its Goal

Picture of Corbin Bleu, Monique Coleman, Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Lucas Grabeel in High School Musical

High School Musical

Directed by Kenny Ortega
Written by Peter Barsocchini

The review:

This movie is very good at what it sets out to do which is entertaining children.* As such, it features some perfectly serviceable performances done by a variety of attractive actors playing teenagers, some fun dance sequences, very forgettable songs** and a clear message.*** I found myself wondering if Zac Efron’s one-foot-on-wall lean**** was something he came up with, or was directed to do.

The verdict: Good (at what it sets out to do)

Cost: Disney+ Hulu monthly fee ($12.99)
Where watched: at home. I also sampled the Suite Life Movie to catch Cole Sprouse when he was an actual teenager and Right on Track to see Brie Larson when she was a teenager. I didn’t make it past the fifteen-minute mark for either of those films.

Consider also watching:

Further sentences:

*As I’ve revisited some live-action Disney films I loved in my childhood, I have discovered that they also were very good at entertaining children, and are not the quality film experience I’ve grown to appreciate as an adult.
**Mediocre forgettable is always better than mediocre and catchy.
***We can all work together!
****Which makes me think of 70’s catalog fashion modeled by men.

Questions:

  • How would you evaluate Zac Ephron’s career since High School Musical?
  • What’s your favorite not-really-good-yet-fun movie?

Favorite IMDB trivia item:

The movie was filmed at East High School in Salt Lake City, Utah. Students still use Sharpay’s pink locker.

Also this:
Zac Efron’s singing voice was that of Drew Seeley, who tested for the role of Troy. Seeley sang the entirety of “Get’cha Head in the Game” and the reprise of “What I’ve Been Looking For.” Efron only sings the first four lines of “Start of Something New,” the first sentence of “Breaking Free,” and during the scene on the balcony. The reason for this is because Efron’s natural voice was too low for that of a tenor and the producers wanted a tenor to match the role. Efron did, however, do all of his own singing in the sequels, as all the music in those films had been tailored specifically for his voice.

Other reviews of High School Musical:

Orange background with a white frame. Text: Look, you're a hoops dude. Not a musical singer person. Have you ever seen Michael Crawford on a cereal box?--High School Musical. Read the three sentence movie reivew: 3SMReviews.com