Bond, BPAL, Thanksgiving
Am I the only person in the world who doesn't think that Daniel Craig is hot? He looks ridiculously goofy, with funny little ears that stick out, and a weird round nose, and a bulky too-big ill-proportioned body on top of which his head looks tiny. Nothing hot there except maybe the eyes, which are at least a nice color.
He's a good actor, though, with depth and charisma and all that good stuff. The movie was great; sort of a "Batman Begins" for the Bond franchise. I loved the gritty noir-style intro, and it was a wonderful rare pleasure to see black-and-white on a big screen. I thought the animated credit sequence was beautiful, and I was weirded out/amused/happy to realize that Chris Cornell was singing the song. ("Superunknown" is one of my favorite albums. And I had this cutout photo of him taped to the wall next to my bed for most of my teen years. I forget that he's actually famous in the real world, too.)
Anyway. Casino Royale. It was too long, and the poker sequences got a little boring, and I figured out the twist too soon and got bored waiting for Bond to catch up. But aside from that, it was great. Way darker and more interesting than most Bond films. I liked the female characters, too, who had more depth than you'd expect. Look, actual layered characters! Nifty.
It kept me entertained and mostly happy, so that was good. I'm looking forward to more Daniel Craig Bond movies, even if I do still think he's ugly as sin.
I also should note that anyone who enjoyed this movie/likes Bond in general should pick up a DVD of Sharpe's Eagle ($10.76 at Deep Discount DVD) which has both Daniel Craig (looking slightly hotter on account of being much younger) and Sean Bean (Bond's nemesis/slashy true love in "GoldenEye"). Plus it's also a good movie on its own merits.
I got a ton of BPAL scents last week. Some reviews:
Tweedledee. It's described as kumquat, white pepper, white tea and orange blossom. In the bottle it smells bright and fruity; when I put it on, it smells orangey and fruity and like very light tea, absolutely delicious and sweet but not cloying. I love it. As it dries, the pepper comes out and I love it less, but it's still pretty cool.
Tombstone. This might be my favorite ever. It's described as vanilla, balsam and sassafras layered over Virginia cedar. I immediately smell cedar, vanilla, and mint. As it dries, the mint fades and it becomes a very warm, soothing cedar-vanilla, with a hint of what might be root beer underneath. It's so awesome; cedar and vanilla are clearly two of my favorite scents.
Unfortunately I'm allergic to this one; it burned when I put it on. I love it so much that I'll probably keep wearing it anyway.
Nosferatu. Description says "desiccated herbs and gritty earth brought to life with a swell of robust and sanguineous red wines." I smell a kind of earthy herbal scent, with something green and alive slithering underneath. I don't smell red wine at all; the color association is totally green. I really love this; the description sounds scary, but whatever the "alive" thing underneath is, it's totally bright and awesome. Unfortunately there's also something that reminds me of soap mixed in, which starts to come out more as it dries. That keeps it from being my favorite, but it's still really nice.
The Apothecary. "Tea leaf with three mosses, green grass, a medley of herbal notes, and a drop of ginger and fig." Mostly I smell tea, with a vaguely green herbal undertone. Herbal tea. Very neutral and soothing; not too sweet, not too dark, not too interesting, just kind of relaxing and there. Maybe a good scent for when you're sick and want to relax.
Lick It Again. Description: "a peppermint candy cane with an extra jolt of sugar" Mint. Slightly sweet. Makes my skin feel all tingly and hot/cold, like ... well, like I just poured mint oil all over myself. Strangely the smell isn't that strong and doesn't carry far. I love it, because I love sweet mint, but I think it just makes me smell like toothpaste.
Grog. The description: "Arrr! Avast ye, matey! This be the scent of pirate rum!" Alas, the description is better than the scent. It smells like butterscotch, ultra warm and rich and delicious, except with a kind of plasticy/chemical scent underneath that I don't like at all.
Lady MacBeth. Description: "sweet Bordeaux wine, blood red currant, thyme and wild berries." Alas, like the other red wine scent "Blood Rose," I smell like I spilled sugary grape soda all over myself. Too much grape, too sweet. It's got a kind of berry scent that comes out later, and it's nice really, I mean, who doesn't like grape soda? But I don't want to smell like it all day.
Mata Hari. Description: "five roses with soft jasmine, warmed by vanilla, fig, tonka bean and mahogany, spiced with a drop of coffee bean." I adore this. Immediately I smell rose and jasmine, two of my favorite scents in the world. Nothing else really comes out strongly, but the tone is dark and rich and deep, not light and floral or stuffy as you might expect from rose and jasmine. Actually it reminds me of the hookah bar drujan and I went to in New Orleans; the sweet floral smoke, the chocolate-flavored vodka, the Indian food, the hot belly dancers, and outside the night-blooming flowers. It's lovely; I want a big bottle of this.
Damn, that's a lot of BPAL.
Tomorrow my parents are coming here and eating with me at Candle 79. It's probably the nicest vegan restaurant in NYC, so here's hoping my dad isn't too nasty about the food. I still can't believe they agreed to come up here and eat vegan with me. I guess it makes sense, though, because they're going on vacation the next day and can't have any leftovers, plus it's not like they have anyone else to have Thanksgiving with. It'll be my first Thanksgiving with family in four or five years. *fingers crossed*
He's a good actor, though, with depth and charisma and all that good stuff. The movie was great; sort of a "Batman Begins" for the Bond franchise. I loved the gritty noir-style intro, and it was a wonderful rare pleasure to see black-and-white on a big screen. I thought the animated credit sequence was beautiful, and I was weirded out/amused/happy to realize that Chris Cornell was singing the song. ("Superunknown" is one of my favorite albums. And I had this cutout photo of him taped to the wall next to my bed for most of my teen years. I forget that he's actually famous in the real world, too.)
Anyway. Casino Royale. It was too long, and the poker sequences got a little boring, and I figured out the twist too soon and got bored waiting for Bond to catch up. But aside from that, it was great. Way darker and more interesting than most Bond films. I liked the female characters, too, who had more depth than you'd expect. Look, actual layered characters! Nifty.
It kept me entertained and mostly happy, so that was good. I'm looking forward to more Daniel Craig Bond movies, even if I do still think he's ugly as sin.
I also should note that anyone who enjoyed this movie/likes Bond in general should pick up a DVD of Sharpe's Eagle ($10.76 at Deep Discount DVD) which has both Daniel Craig (looking slightly hotter on account of being much younger) and Sean Bean (Bond's nemesis/slashy true love in "GoldenEye"). Plus it's also a good movie on its own merits.
I got a ton of BPAL scents last week. Some reviews:
Tweedledee. It's described as kumquat, white pepper, white tea and orange blossom. In the bottle it smells bright and fruity; when I put it on, it smells orangey and fruity and like very light tea, absolutely delicious and sweet but not cloying. I love it. As it dries, the pepper comes out and I love it less, but it's still pretty cool.
Tombstone. This might be my favorite ever. It's described as vanilla, balsam and sassafras layered over Virginia cedar. I immediately smell cedar, vanilla, and mint. As it dries, the mint fades and it becomes a very warm, soothing cedar-vanilla, with a hint of what might be root beer underneath. It's so awesome; cedar and vanilla are clearly two of my favorite scents.
Unfortunately I'm allergic to this one; it burned when I put it on. I love it so much that I'll probably keep wearing it anyway.
Nosferatu. Description says "desiccated herbs and gritty earth brought to life with a swell of robust and sanguineous red wines." I smell a kind of earthy herbal scent, with something green and alive slithering underneath. I don't smell red wine at all; the color association is totally green. I really love this; the description sounds scary, but whatever the "alive" thing underneath is, it's totally bright and awesome. Unfortunately there's also something that reminds me of soap mixed in, which starts to come out more as it dries. That keeps it from being my favorite, but it's still really nice.
The Apothecary. "Tea leaf with three mosses, green grass, a medley of herbal notes, and a drop of ginger and fig." Mostly I smell tea, with a vaguely green herbal undertone. Herbal tea. Very neutral and soothing; not too sweet, not too dark, not too interesting, just kind of relaxing and there. Maybe a good scent for when you're sick and want to relax.
Lick It Again. Description: "a peppermint candy cane with an extra jolt of sugar" Mint. Slightly sweet. Makes my skin feel all tingly and hot/cold, like ... well, like I just poured mint oil all over myself. Strangely the smell isn't that strong and doesn't carry far. I love it, because I love sweet mint, but I think it just makes me smell like toothpaste.
Grog. The description: "Arrr! Avast ye, matey! This be the scent of pirate rum!" Alas, the description is better than the scent. It smells like butterscotch, ultra warm and rich and delicious, except with a kind of plasticy/chemical scent underneath that I don't like at all.
Lady MacBeth. Description: "sweet Bordeaux wine, blood red currant, thyme and wild berries." Alas, like the other red wine scent "Blood Rose," I smell like I spilled sugary grape soda all over myself. Too much grape, too sweet. It's got a kind of berry scent that comes out later, and it's nice really, I mean, who doesn't like grape soda? But I don't want to smell like it all day.
Mata Hari. Description: "five roses with soft jasmine, warmed by vanilla, fig, tonka bean and mahogany, spiced with a drop of coffee bean." I adore this. Immediately I smell rose and jasmine, two of my favorite scents in the world. Nothing else really comes out strongly, but the tone is dark and rich and deep, not light and floral or stuffy as you might expect from rose and jasmine. Actually it reminds me of the hookah bar drujan and I went to in New Orleans; the sweet floral smoke, the chocolate-flavored vodka, the Indian food, the hot belly dancers, and outside the night-blooming flowers. It's lovely; I want a big bottle of this.
Damn, that's a lot of BPAL.
Tomorrow my parents are coming here and eating with me at Candle 79. It's probably the nicest vegan restaurant in NYC, so here's hoping my dad isn't too nasty about the food. I still can't believe they agreed to come up here and eat vegan with me. I guess it makes sense, though, because they're going on vacation the next day and can't have any leftovers, plus it's not like they have anyone else to have Thanksgiving with. It'll be my first Thanksgiving with family in four or five years. *fingers crossed*