Harry Potter exhibit/movie, unemployment sucks
Damian and I went to the Harry Potter Exhibit at the science center yesterday. It was pretty cool. It was a timed entry, and when we got in, they chose a member of the group to be sorted. There were about 15-ish people in our group, including 3 children between about 5 and 10. I think everyone wanted one of the kids to be sorted, but they were way too shy. So at Damian's urging, I stepped up.
There were hot glaring lights pointed at me. We had been standing outside in 37ish degree weather only moments before, so my glasses immediately fogged up. All I could see were the lights and the lady doing the sorting. She asked what house I wanted to be in, and I said Ravenclaw maybe, and not to my surprise, the hat sorted me there. Dorky? Yes, but fun!
The rest of the show was cool. They had done it up well. There were movie props and costumes from the actual movies. Alas, no photography was allowed. It was a good show. There was the expected gift shop at the end of the tour. Some of their things were ridiculously expensive. I got a fridge magnet and a cool pen with the Ravenclaw theme, because I like well-made pens.
We went and saw the movie later in the afternoon. Even though we got there with plenty of time to spare, apparently we should have shown up WAY earlier, as we were at almost the end of the line. When we got in, I was really annoyed that the lady directing everyone suggested that only the late-comers would end up in the front row like they "deserved." Apparently "late" means not getting in line at least 1-2 hours before the show, even though the science center has all this cool stuff to look at.
And because the audience was made up primarily of assholes who didn't want to move to fill in empty seats until the last moment, which were then grabbed by others, we ended up in the front row. It was not as bad as I feared it might be, but it was still disorienting and made me dizzy at times and I think it affected my ability to appreciate the movie.
I kind of wanted a word with that usher lady, as she kind of wound me up, but what good would that do? I thought it was unprofessional of her. Maybe they just shouldn't sell any of those seats.
The movie was dark. I knew it was only going to be the first half but... somehow it was disappointing. It didn't have the same energy as the previous movies, and ended just sort of... bleh. Right when Voldemort gets Dumbledore's wand from his grave. If you know the story, you know that is not really a cliffhanger. Something was just... missing. I guess I was never a big fan of the excessive camping in the woods. If a heavy action scene like the bank incident had been in there, I think that would have helped. It just felt a bit unbalanced, because you know all the crazy shit was mostly put off until the last movie.
The Half-Blood Prince was very good, and there was a lot of stuff in it that was new and added interesting elements to the story, such as the attack on the Burrow. I had similar hopes for Part 1, and I am not saying it was bad or anything, but I guess I was never a super fan of all the camping. There were a few humorous moments, although the audience seemed to find them more humorous than I did. Maybe it would have helped if I had not been sitting in the goddamned front row.
Afterward, there was a typical line in front of the women's restroom, and I really had to go. Because Damian and I were in the front row, we were among the last to exit the theater. I found myself at nearly the end of the restroom line. It was all ok until this bitch in front of me told her gaggle of teenage idiot girls to hurry up. Much to my extreme annoyance, four of these larvae who were hanging out way back, talking about stupid teenage shit, barged in front of me. The pretty white girls and their pretty white mom didn't give it a second thought, although their Asian friend looked extremely embarrassed and made a few awkward comments to me.
I hate people. I hate dealing with the public. I hate snotty middle class privileged white girls taking everything they want and ignoring people like me.
So maybe I didn't leave the theater in a great mood. I am wondering if I should go see the movie again in a normal theater.
It looks like my unemployment benefits are only going to be just enough to cover the rent for each month. Not nearly enough to pay anything else. I am wondering what I should do. Fred Meyer, just a few blocks from me, is hiring for the impending strike. Damian says it would be unwise to cross the picket line, as in, they may threaten me or worse. I don't know. I guess it depends on how desperate I get.
There were hot glaring lights pointed at me. We had been standing outside in 37ish degree weather only moments before, so my glasses immediately fogged up. All I could see were the lights and the lady doing the sorting. She asked what house I wanted to be in, and I said Ravenclaw maybe, and not to my surprise, the hat sorted me there. Dorky? Yes, but fun!
The rest of the show was cool. They had done it up well. There were movie props and costumes from the actual movies. Alas, no photography was allowed. It was a good show. There was the expected gift shop at the end of the tour. Some of their things were ridiculously expensive. I got a fridge magnet and a cool pen with the Ravenclaw theme, because I like well-made pens.
We went and saw the movie later in the afternoon. Even though we got there with plenty of time to spare, apparently we should have shown up WAY earlier, as we were at almost the end of the line. When we got in, I was really annoyed that the lady directing everyone suggested that only the late-comers would end up in the front row like they "deserved." Apparently "late" means not getting in line at least 1-2 hours before the show, even though the science center has all this cool stuff to look at.
And because the audience was made up primarily of assholes who didn't want to move to fill in empty seats until the last moment, which were then grabbed by others, we ended up in the front row. It was not as bad as I feared it might be, but it was still disorienting and made me dizzy at times and I think it affected my ability to appreciate the movie.
I kind of wanted a word with that usher lady, as she kind of wound me up, but what good would that do? I thought it was unprofessional of her. Maybe they just shouldn't sell any of those seats.
The movie was dark. I knew it was only going to be the first half but... somehow it was disappointing. It didn't have the same energy as the previous movies, and ended just sort of... bleh. Right when Voldemort gets Dumbledore's wand from his grave. If you know the story, you know that is not really a cliffhanger. Something was just... missing. I guess I was never a big fan of the excessive camping in the woods. If a heavy action scene like the bank incident had been in there, I think that would have helped. It just felt a bit unbalanced, because you know all the crazy shit was mostly put off until the last movie.
The Half-Blood Prince was very good, and there was a lot of stuff in it that was new and added interesting elements to the story, such as the attack on the Burrow. I had similar hopes for Part 1, and I am not saying it was bad or anything, but I guess I was never a super fan of all the camping. There were a few humorous moments, although the audience seemed to find them more humorous than I did. Maybe it would have helped if I had not been sitting in the goddamned front row.
Afterward, there was a typical line in front of the women's restroom, and I really had to go. Because Damian and I were in the front row, we were among the last to exit the theater. I found myself at nearly the end of the restroom line. It was all ok until this bitch in front of me told her gaggle of teenage idiot girls to hurry up. Much to my extreme annoyance, four of these larvae who were hanging out way back, talking about stupid teenage shit, barged in front of me. The pretty white girls and their pretty white mom didn't give it a second thought, although their Asian friend looked extremely embarrassed and made a few awkward comments to me.
I hate people. I hate dealing with the public. I hate snotty middle class privileged white girls taking everything they want and ignoring people like me.
So maybe I didn't leave the theater in a great mood. I am wondering if I should go see the movie again in a normal theater.
It looks like my unemployment benefits are only going to be just enough to cover the rent for each month. Not nearly enough to pay anything else. I am wondering what I should do. Fred Meyer, just a few blocks from me, is hiring for the impending strike. Damian says it would be unwise to cross the picket line, as in, they may threaten me or worse. I don't know. I guess it depends on how desperate I get.