...can't think of anything witty for a title...

Well, I made it. 26 years on this planet, and what have I got to show for it? I'll tell you what, a lot of really great people in my life. We had a little swarray Saturday night that went really well. From what I can tell, most people had a good time. The night started off really slow, but before I knew it, the whole thing was in full-swing and I was feelin' no pain. I discovered that I am now able to drink tequila again w/o disposing of it instantly. I was introduced to a fantastic concoction called a Green Varmint. Take one shot of tequila, followed by one shot of pickle juice. Sounds gross, but went really well together. Try it. We had a bartender for the evening (Kandis) who I think did a phenomenal job. I'm not sure if anyone was able to stump her. I'm pretty sure that my Beer Pong partner (Rob) and I won 3 games in a row. Something inevitably caught my attention and distracted me from playing anymore for the evening. At one point a neighbor from across the street and a few houses down had to intervene and tell me that we were all being too loud and that if we kept it up she'd call the po-lice...so everything was moved inside and the garage door was shut. Sorry neighbors.

The rest of the evening was spent indoors mingling with the other partygoers, snacking on some food, and enjoying more tasty beverages. It seems that at some point people began leaving. I hope that I was able to thank everyone for coming, but as it stands, I cannot necessarily remember saying 'goodbye' to everyone. We had much fewer people crash at the house than I was anticipating, I'm hoping they all had responsible drivers. As of writing this, it has been a few days since the event, I have not heard of anyone having any trouble arriving home.

Sunday was spent lounging around the house not accomplishing much of anything, we attempted to clean up a bit, but I slept most of the day. Thanks to everyone who came for allowing me to have a great time. I think this was one of the best house-parties we've thrown so far.



And now, movies you should see...

Day Zero

Starring: Elijah Wood, Chris Klein, Jon Bernthal, Ginnifer Goodwin & Ally Sheedy

The movie is set in an alternate modern day in which The Draft has been reinstated. As the movie opens three friends are each recieving and reading their draft letters. They all have 30 days to report for duty. The film spans those 30 days following each of them as they wrap up their affairs.

Jon Berthal's character, Dixon is a young guy with little going on in his life. He drives a cab, drinks beer, and gets into a fight. Of the group, he is the only one who is looking forward to serving his country. Much of his time is spent arguing with his friends that what they are being asked to do is right and for the good of the country. Early on, he meets a girl and quickly falls in love. By the end of his 30 days he begins to question if he is truly ready to go to war.

Elijah Wood's character Aaron, spends his time working on his novel, while attending psychiatry sessions with an uninterested Psychiatrist played by Ally Sheedy. Aaron spends most of his time throughout the film worrying about what people will think of him and how weak he is. After receiving his letter he devotes his 30 days to attempting to get into shape while accomplishing a set of goals such as go skydiving, get a tattoo, and sleep with a prostitute. His arch takes him from being a geeky and shy novelist to pushing himself into situations to test his resolve. Ultimately he pushes himself too far when 'day zero' arrives.

Chris Klein plays George, a well-off young lawyer spends his entire 30 days trying to find a way of getting out of his obligation. He becomes more desparate and willing to try anything to avoid serving. He and Dixon spend much of the film in opposition of eachother, resulting in the breakdown of their friendship. Dixon and George have opposite character archs. One feels it is his duty, the other, that his life is too 'on track' to be interupted. In the end, these two come to terms with eachothers point of view, as well as what to do when when 'day zero' comes.

The movie is entirely performance driven. There is not much action or comedy. The dialogue feels completely real and natural. I think this movie is a great representation of how people would be divided while dealing with a draft.

until next time...