The Days are Just Packed! III of II -- the bullet post

Some loose ends to tie up:

• I love London, but it's just so vast compared to Denver (or any city I've visited). At this point in my life I've spent almost an entire month there and still feel like I haven't seen half of what it has to offer. Jeff and his family are thinking of coming to America next year sometime and I feel like I have to start planning NOW how to entertain them in Denver, because there's just no comparison. I mean, most of the city shuts down at 10 p.m.!

• Londoners have absolutely no sense of personal space, I noticed almost immediately. They're used to being surrounded by lots of people all the time. I am not. I feel I adapted pretty quickly (riding the tube everywhere helped), but I'm really a small-town country girl at heart and I need to breathe; Denver is really as "big city" as I can handle on a full-time basis. Though I did admire the convenience and efficiency of public transportation in London. Denver still has a ways to go in that department unfortunately.

• Here's one picture I forgot to post:
  
  
  
  
  
  Daddy's Little Girl
  
  
  
  
  Roxana was the sweetest little girl when she was happy and smiling. But like with most 2-year-olds, when she reached her full fury, I wanted to be several continents away. I decided that the worst 10 seconds in the world are those between a child's first tantrum cry, and the second one while they're taking a really, really big breath. Fortunately this didn't happen very often. As with most children, it took her a day or two to warm up to me, and thereafter she couldn't get enough. I worried about traumatizing her with my departure, but Jeff assured me within 12 hours she would erase me from her memory completely.

• One thing I forgot to mention was the delay in my plane taking off from London. After a half hour of waiting at the gate, the pilot announced that a passenger had "gone missing" and they had to remove their luggage from the plane as a security precaution. Don't know what that was all about, but I'm thankful the Brits were on top of it.
  

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As much as I loved England, I missed sleeping in my own bed, and I missed especially my internet. I arrived home to discover all these things had been released in my absence. I leave for a few days....

• Marilyn Manson: Eat Me, Drink Me -- I know Marilyn's not very popular in my circles, but I still keep buying his stuff. I loved Mechanical Animals (where Marilyn first discovered melody) and keep hoping for a return to that. In this CD I finally got it. The catchy melodies of Animals style combined with Tim Skold's industrial guitar riffs work well, and it sounds like Tim also talked Marilyn into venturing into the world of guitar solos for the first time. Throw in Marilyn's growling vocals and this was love at first listen for me.

• Linkin Park: Minutes to Midnight -- Another band most of my friends will probably be appalled to know I listen to. I can't help it. Chester sounds like the lovechild of a Backstreet Boy and Trent Reznor. A very angry boy band, if you will. I haven't listened to this all the way through yet, but I'll bet some fans will be disgusted by it. It sounds softer than previous albums, with lots of whining about the war and the terrible price paid by the poor who have few options other than to enlist. Like these guys know anything about it.

• South Park Season Ten -- Most of the episodes in this season are kind of hit or miss (for instance, when Oprah's minge and asshole not only talk (in male British accents, no less), but take hostages in hopes that she'll stop working so hard and play with them once in awhile. Seems like Matt and Trey can afford fancier designer drugs with all their fame. Don't even get me started on the Al Gore "Manbearpig" episode). But this season includes the World of Warcraft episode, which is absolutely brilliant and worth the purchase price alone. Even funnier than when the boys become anime ninjas!

• Last but absolutely not least, Serenity 2-Disc Collector's Edition -- Whatwhatwhat???!!?!!?!? How did THIS slip under my radar? (especially considering I've been shopping for Firefly stuff for weeks??) The website gives no indication of how gorgeous the packaging of this disc is. The front of the case is a plastic panel with just River, and the case beneath has Mal and the ship. The back of the box has a classy monochromatic holographic picture of some of the characters in action poses. This version thoughtfully includes all the features from the previous release (if the industry MUST double dip, I prefer they do it this way so I don't have to keep multiple copies of one movie on my shelf). And Joss and Nathan Fillion should do commentary for every movie ever made. That's all I'll say about that.

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Finally, a movie review. lizzieloudotcom asked if I planned to endure Perfume: Story of a Murderer in the name of my Rickman love, and I did. ( ::Here's what I thought:: )

In summary, the movie is gorgeous to look at, the story is enthralling and the acting is superb (even the non-Rickman actors), until that stupid orgy scene at the end makes it all unravel. I didn't like it enough to buy it, but certainly enough to copy it. 3 out of 5