One of those that no one wanted

I do not do top ten lists for movies because, if for no other reason, I never feel like I see enough movies in one year to make a quality judgement.  Well, screw you bitches, I've seen like 100 movies in the last 2 days and this year, I am ready (that and with the end of the world happening next year, I wanted to at least get one of these things down).  So, here we go.
I'm starting with Drive because I saw it more than any other movie this year.  I still do not know if I can truly pinpoint why I had to view it over and over again.  My first viewing in the theater, I really like the first 20 minutes, the music became too much as the movie went along, and I while I really liked the way Ryan Gosling played the character, I still felt it just wasn't a perfect fit.  In the end, I took away that the opening was probably going to be hard to be topped this year, the violence fit perfectly where it wasn't expected, and Ron Pearlman has the biggest freaking head that has ever existed outside of a dinosaur.  Being that it was slow first eight months of the year and I needed a movie to go see a week later, I went back to watch Drive again.  This time, it all feel into place.  The music made sense.  I rode the wave.  Ryan Gosling hit almost all of the notes of a seventies Nicholson Italian film.  Ron Pearlman's head was still just as scary.  The move did work (all except shoving my favorite person from Mad Men in the film for no reason at all other than to advertise her and show her boobs on the big screen) and I was hooked.  I may have even watched it a few times from home acquiring a version that may or may not of been of an illegal nature.  Who knows for sure.
Next, lets go with Girl with a Dragon Tattoo.  Wow, this was a piece of work from the best director working.  This one is fresh on my mind so that may skew my view of everything that happened but again, wow.  I was titillated.  I was terrified.  I was enthralled.  The pace was perfect for my ADD impatience (I say this because Tinker Tailor Solider Spy was a really quality movie that I am sure I will watch again and really like but seeing it after Dragon Tattoo just made it feel old and slow) and I felt like the action stayed active through the whole two and a half hours.  The lead actress, Rooney Mara, is on my top five list now.  As long as she is exactly like the girl from the movie.  I need help hacking some things.
Contagion was another offering from one of the best directors working today, Steven Soderbergh.  The main character of this flick was not a person but instead a disease that is poised to take us all out.  This movie might make more of an impact than twenty documentaries about the subject as this one has a story that is fun to follow but not 1000 chickens in one coop depressing.  That is, of course, just as long as you ignore then number of dead that the disease doles out by the end of the movie.  I'll never shake hands with a cook ever again (though to be fair, if I shake enough Waffle House cook hands, I should be immune from almost anything).  
I just saw Margin Call recently.  I remember on release I saw Kevin Spacey and corruption and thought for sure he was the jackass scumbag at the top that he has played (usually pretty well) a dozen or so times.  I ignored it but Redbox and positive review from some random place inspired me to pick it up and I was completely surprised.  Spacey is on the side of the "good guys" for once.  His company has made a fatal error in accounting that is set to take down half the system and Spacey is one of the few guys arguing for falling on the sword to protect the greater good.  Best surprise from a movie that I thought would be a disappointment all year.  
And before we get to the grand finale, let's lighting round some of the other top scorers of the year.  Mission Impossible was a solid B+ and gave everything you would want from a MI movie with no one (no one meaning a bad female actress that looks really hot) took anything off the table to hurt the movie.  Cowboys and Aliens was another big budget surprise.  First eighty percent was a very solid effort.  Never felt the need to walk out.  Transformers 3 had the best trailer of the year as the moon landing became a search for robot life out there (along with the worst attempt at a title Dark Side of Moon.  No the due to copyright infringement against those old LSD heads.  Urgh lazy Hollywood).  Meloncholia kept Lars's streak of making me sick watching his films in the theater going.  Thor mixed comic book action with cheesy interaction which is the best way to make a comic book movie in my opinion.  I have forgotten about ten times now that Super 8 was released this year.  Really good but if I have to hear one more person say it is ET again well....fine I liked it but it is ET.  Moving on.  Fast Five was eh.  Stop using The Rock to make me go watch a movie.  I can't help myself.  The Rum Diary should have come out two years ago though, I still do not know what they spend their budget on.   Source Code should get a nod but I haven't seen the first 3 minutes of the movie yet due to my stoner time being off when I went to the theater.  I still think it was pretty spectacular and could warrant some high marks but for some reason, it didn't last on me.  Kind of like Moon.  
Wow, did not think I was getting out of the last paragraph but finally I have.  Nothing before this had an order for their appearance on this list.  I only put an order on the best movie of the year and that  goes to Blue Valentine.  I saw this movie at one of the best theaters (new) in the world, the Archlight in LA so maybe that helped sear the movie into my mind.  Certainly, personal things happening around the time could play a part as well but honestly, I just think both Michelle Williams and again Ryan Gosling stole the show.  Their portrayal of love gained and lost was near picture perfect.  I felt heart warmed and heart broken.  Both parts equally.  When Ryan Gosling plays his guitar and sings while Michelle Williams dances is the iconic movie moment of the year for me.  It just hurts so much thinking about it now.  This is not an uplifting movie which also means it is right up my alley.  I loved this movie and probably will never watch it again.  Just like Love Liza.  At least until I want to feel like jumping off a building.

I really dislike the NBA

Short and sweet.  I hate the NBA.  I will still watch cause basketball is the greatest sport ever.  I will protest the Christmas day games.  It wont matter to anyone.  I've mastered the art of getting screwed over by everyone.  If I stopped doing such things that screw me, I would have nothing left to do.
Anywho, for the week that was let's start with what the week might be (Touch Me).  The God particle maybe exists or maybe the god particle really is just the step that gets us on to the step after.  I hope no one really thinks that the collider is going to bring the end all be all answers to all universal questions but it is still really fun to try.  If only Waxahachie could have held on to the project a while longer.  Could of been's and almost but not quites. Sounds a lot like someone's life we know.
Crazy Australian scientists (I just assume all Australians are crazy and back track as needed) say that there are large parts of Mars that are habitable (Touch Me).  Yet, this would still rank below another planet (Touch Me).  I mean, we are Americans.  We need our bling.  I'm sure we could find us some low wage workers to go to places beyond to bring us back some shiney things.  
Rats are found to be more empathetic than humans (Touch Me).  I guess this probably comes as no surprise. Suckers don't know how the hierarchy of greed works just yet.  Give them time.  Just a little time.

skin soaked afternoon

Friday afternoon.  Nothing necessary to commemorate.  Drizzle marking the cars in the parking lot.  Some have hunkered down for the foreseeable future.  Enjoying some buffet styled Mexican food and a an assorted amount of tits and ass scattered about the room.  Upon entering, you can see the whole place.  Not a haze of cigarette smoking hanging in the air.  Already, strike number one.

Places like this used to have character.  A stench.  A real air about the joint that things happening in there.  A seedy spot designed to accomplish that feel of dirty rendezvous with the welcoming atmosphere of impending doom.  Not for the faint of heart.   But now…now, it’s just like a Subway sandwich shop.  Corporate friendly with just the right amount of long lips sliding around on the stage. 

My table escort, a beautiful Nubian beauty (a real nice looking girl no matter where her parents come from but we must label everything for easy visualization.  Simplicity covers us all.) finds me a perfect spot up front and in the corner. 

“You look like you would want some privacy,” she says as I scoot my way around to a chair against the wall.  “What do you want to drink?”

“Diet coke.  And what are my options for lunch?”

“You get it when you buy a drink baby.”  She pats me on the shoulder and wanders off. 

Baby.  Honey.  Sugar.  When I was aware, or at least when I paid attention to what someone said to me, these were pet names for women.  Endearing terms usually reserved for pleading; sexual favors or forgiveness.  Now, with women’s rights being as they stand, the terms have turned the tide and now are used from female to male. 

Now, I should never be accused of being current with vernacular any time past 1998 or so but I’ve heard enough around over the years that I can say there has not been anything adequately enough added that would cover what I am talking about.   Let’s try some news ones out.  Ones that are synonymous with the man and the image he reflects to the world.     Stallone.  This one should be effective to use and obvious to define.  Kind of guy that trains in Siberia in the winter and can take care of a kid on the road during arm wrestling season.  Never in drag.  Kind of guy that covers all grounds.  Call a man Stallone and you can follow it up with anything.  Yes will be your answer.

Buscemi.  Boo.  Simm.  E.  Unique name for a unique fellow.  Always close but not quite.  Solid right hand man.  Never the boss but lives life to the fullest.  Even if it means up life in a wood chipper. 

My escort returns with a bucket of such.  Hidden inside is my five dollar can.  Nothing at all wrong with the price system.  As capitalist as it comes.  At least in Dallas there is a reasonable amount of choices whether for a man of some amount of means.  Or the cheap guy on the budget.  Or maybe reasonable.  Who is anyone to judge?  That is my plan for the day.  Get out of the house.  See some flesh that I can leer at without a human resources meeting.  Keep the expenditures low and if that is the play, lunch time is the right time to dance.

Maybe most strip club trips are further along in the evening.  After a reasonable amount of drinks.  Sober lunch just makes the Jersey shore accent of the girl headed my way even more of a reason to keep my cash in my pocket.

“Hey honey.  What have you got going on today?”

“Lunch and a view.”

She smiles.  “So you want to get this started right now?”  Right to the point.

“I just woke up.  I’m going to eat some breakfast first.”  And with that, she is gone.  Nice enough looking girl.  Just when she opens that mouth.  And a lap dance is filled with conversation.  More than the right amount to put a damper on my day.  Nope, just hear for the view and a little bit of Sportscenter.  Got to fill that highlight void sometimes.  Kind of imagine its akin to crack withdrawls.  Probably just about the same.

After locating the lunch buffet I begin to daydream of what I will stop and eat after I leave here.  Nothing against their fajitas and enchiladas but being poor this week has lead to at least three Mexican food type offerings.  I kind of just wanted a burger but that must be on Thursday.  No matter, I’m still awful high so anything is going to feel good going down now.

I munch, watch a girl on the stage to the left of me.  Not what you might call a super model body but that has never bothered me.  I like a girl that has some stretch marks if needed.  Means she cared enough to slim down from depression.  Or child birth.  Both accomplishments would deem me a failure.  As far as I know.  After my first encounter with the lunch level ladies, it seems simplest to stay in my corner and project my own ideas on the dancers.

The girl with pink highlights is working herself through a bachelor’s degree in philosophy.  The waitress standing at the next table over, the one that might be a few years past her strip club expiration date, just likes to help the common folk.  Her left hand can work the stress out of even the top end earners.  I hope so.  Man, she is kind of old.  Just no debating that.

My original escort returns.  Another bucket of drinks. 

“Hey sugar, why don’t you buy me a drink.” 

I pull all the dollar bills left in my pocket.  “Here’s what I got left.  Hang out with me as long as that allows.”

“Did you use your straw?”

I did not.  She places it in a seven dollar can of Red Bull.  Sips on it and smiles.  We small talk.  I spot a Mexican gentleman sitting stage center.  A smooth cowboy hat sitting on his lap.  I want to join that table.  Accompanying one of her stories comes a series of hand motions.  Coming to a halt when she knocks her Red Bull all in her lap.  She pats herself down.  I watch her tight top bounce around.  My luck is with me today.  Usually that would have been me putting a drink in her lap.  She laughs it off and calls a few employee over to gab about it.  My time is up.  I pat Aisha on the hand.  She gives me a hug.

“Come back and see me Matthewwww,” she purrs at me as I walk away.  At least she didn’t call me sweetheart.  It’s not February fake holiday time just yet.