Since I'm a multi-tasker, during the meeting, I sifted through more
Otakon Press Relations mail, approved some more press passes, and worked
on a couple press releases that should be going out soon. During breaks
I connected with a lot of people to take care of logistical concerns
for Press Relations.
One of the highlights of the meeting was to meet in person, and actually
hold, the publications head's adorable daughter. She is only a few months
old and extremely photogenic, laughing easily at just about anything.
She also can make a raspberry sound really good and was making a repetitive
raspberry sound after we got her started, which everyone nearby found
entertaining.
At the end of the meeting, a bunch of us were talking about where to
eat. The Godfather, who is head of Guest Relations and my superior,
invited us to join him and a group of people at a Japanese fusion restaurant,
the Rumor
Mill, recommended by The Invisible Man's roommate. By the time we
headed out, there were 16 total people. Fortunately, we'd called ahead.
They gave us an entire section of the second floor. Since the space
was ours, we were free to mingle between tables or even call out a comment
across two tables. Considering the size of our group, the service was
excellent. I've been to many places with large groups and had the servers
be completely overwhelmed, but through a combination of an astute server
and good communication with the kitchen, he kept the food flowing without
anyone feeling overlooked.
Since there are so many great small dishes on the menu, both The Godfather
and our president, Matt the Minion (who acquired his nickname when he
held a lowlier title), ordered several small dishes as their meals.
The Gryphon and I started out by sharing some sweet potato French fries
and duck won tons. For my main course, I had sweet and sour chicken
with rice, and for dessert, The Gryphon and I shared banana won tons.
They were crispy and delicious, with chocolate poured over top. The
coffee ice cream had large chunks of chocolate in it. I wish I could
have eaten a whole bowl!
Everybody seemed to enjoy themselves. The Invisible Man's roommate
was pleased that the group liked the restaurant choice so much. I have
a feeling many of us will be back.
Ellicott City, where the restaurant is held, has interesting historical
buildings, containing little shops. We would have liked to do some window
shopping, but it was too late by the time we were done eating. While
the rest of the group headed back to the hotel to socialize (since many
of them were traveling from afar and staying overnight), The Gryphon
and I drove home to Philly. On the way back, we saw some fantastic heat
lightning, lighting up the sky without noise or rain.
Sunday was a quieter day. We went to breakfast at a diner we hadn't
tried before: the Llanerch
Diner in Havertown. It's a small place that looks very dated inside,
but they offered a number of tempting breakfast items. I ordered an
egg white omelet with lox and onions. It was a bit strange to eat lox
warmed, but I thought it was tasty, nonetheless.
Back home, I worked on more Otakon stuff, while The Gryphon played
his favorite online game, EVE Online. At dinner time, we decided to
check out a Greek festival at a Greek
Orthodox Church, since we'd seen signs about it at the diner. We
had to park a little far away, and then walk back, because they had
the street in front of the church blocked off.
As we neared, we saw carnival booths with prizes such as huge inflatable
dolphins. We could hear traditional music drifting from the stage, and
we were greeted by a friendly woman at the info booth who handed us
a pamphlet and told us there are Greek festivals all over this summer,
if we'd like to attend more.
We were hungry, so we went inside first to order entrees (outside were
mostly booths containing snacks). I ordered the moussaka, which is like
a Greek lasagna, with layered meat and vegetables but without noodles.
It was served with a side salad containing two types of olives, some
green beans, and a vegetable dish. The food was delicious, but I couldn't
finish all of it, and I got a box from the cashier to take about half
of it home.
Then we looked at some art that was for sale by a local painter. His
paintings of Greece were the best, mostly because of his use of vibrant
color. There was also a display of religious icons, but neither of us
was interested enough to look at them up close.
Outside, we stopped at the baked goods booth and ordered one serving
each of baklava. We found two seats in the front, facing the stage,
and enjoyed our dessert while listening to a band playing some traditional
Greek music. I was going to get a little closer and take more pictures,
but the show ended.
A couple groups of dancers performed: children from a Greek school.
Although the program said that the purpose of the festival was to introduce
people to Hellenic culture, the guy who announced the dancers did so
only in Greek! Of course, a majority of the people in attendance probably
understood him.
The first group of dancers seemed to be beginnings. They were more
hesitant and relied heavily on watching two dancers, a boy and a group,
at the head of the line who had more skills.
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The second group of dancers was much more coordinated and seemed more
at ease.
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One thing I noticed about this type of dancing: the dancers themselves
often get a better view than the audience. Since they are revolving
in a circle, facing inward, half of the time, the audience could only
see their backs.
I always love to see folk dancing from different cultures. I wish that
I could have gotten up and joined them. So did a little girl who was
about 2 and kept bouncing around happily and then trying to join the
dancers.
We left after the second group because it was unseasonably cold and
windy. Back home, I caught up on some social networking sites, just
for fun. Of course, I'm behind in all such things, because I've been
prioritizing my work for Otakon. Then we both watching an episode of
Medium I'd recorded on the DVR.
Also this weekend, I watched Mama Mia. I remember that earlier
this year, a male friend of mine confessed that he'd loved the movie
and was surprised by how much he'd liked it. I, too, expected the movie
to be hokey, but while there are some deliberately campy moments, there
is also some great acting. Don't forget: Meryl Streep was nominated
for a Best Supporting Actress award for this movie.
Streep acts not only when she's speaking but also when she's singing.
Unlike the leads of some famous movie musicals of the past, she sang
her own songs, and she did an excellent job.
After watching it once, I watched it with the director's comments and
learned that Streep was as serious about the making of this movie as
she is about a drama. She actually re-recorded one of the songs voluntarily
after seeing the rough cut, saying she could do better. Streep also
made useful suggestions that enriched the film.
Like the paintings we saw at the Greek festival, the colors are extraordinary
in this film, which seamlessly connects the on-location shots with the
studio shots.
In some ways, Mama Mia reminded me of Across the Universe,
since it took songs that had already been written and worked them
into a narrative. I think that's easier with Abba songs than with Beatles
songs, since they tended to write about common human experiences using
very general language, whereas the Beatles would tell stories about
very specific people, rich with detail.
If you love musicals, you will love this film. If you love Abba music,
you will love this film. More than that, if you're looking for a fun
popcorn flick, you will also love this film.
Rating: **** (4 out of 5 stars)
I also watched Frost/Nixon this weekend. It is based on the
series of interviews that British journalist did with former president
Richard Nixon immediately after his resignation, in which he managed
to get him to admit wrongdoing.
The story of the interview is an interesting one, and the film follows
the crew through the process of obtaining, researching and filming the
historic interview. Much of the film has a West Wing quality
to it, showing people working behind the scenes and talking strategy,
all in the interest of helping out the one person who has to get up
publicly and make it work.
The filmmakers paid careful attention to detail in the setting and
the costumes, much of it based on period photographs.
Both Michael Sheen, who plays Frost, and Frank Langella, who plays
Nixon, do an excellent job. Interestingly, the DVD includes an extra
that shows some clips from the actual interview. Nixon, in real life,
was a bit more subdued, but his body language was clear as day. Langella
played up the emotion in order for his portrayal to carry more impact.
The Gryphon like this movie, as well. We both like movies about historical
events, particularly when they contain new information. Seeing the behind-the-scenes
drama unfold was fascinating, I thought.
Any history buff will love this movie. While it does tend to be "talky,"
it should appeal to other viewers, as well, including West Wing lovers,
of course.
Rating: **** (4 out of 5 stars)
