July 2016: Watched, Read, Loved

Gosh I’m glad it’s August! I am over the cold in Johannesburg. For reals man. July was a pretty decent month. I got to see my bestie, and even though the circumstances weren’t that great, I am grateful that I at least got to spend some quality time with her.

Personally I think my eyes finally cleared with a few people in my life – there is a certain level of selfishness I can’t tolerate, and this person finally reached it. I should have cut ties ages ago, but when I bond to someone, you really have to nuke me out of it. Well, I’ve been nuked.

Hmm, what else? I’ve had a couple of hectic weekends and it reflected on my scarcity on my blog, which always happens and always frustrates me. I’m going to do my very best to post more often, as it makes me super happy.

And here’s a rundown of what I’ve been watching and reading. Enjoy, and tell me below what you’ve been up to 🙂

Watched:

At home:

Proposa

The Proposal

I saw this film before I opened this blog, and I have always thought that it was an okay film. I actually really enjoyed this so much when I watched it again. Queen Sandra Bullock and a very young and adorable Ryan Reynolds certainly make an interesting couple onscreen, and I thought the dialogue and hysteria was spot on and funny in the film.

Wedding planner

The Wedding Planner

Oh, Maththew McConaughey has a few gems under his belt before he started being all badass in things like True Detective and that other horsey movie that everyone liked. This is a boogy, definitely, and it was silly enough that I got quite annoyed. There were a few pros, which I will mention when I review the film soon, but let it be noted that Jennifer Lopez is a fantastic singer (for her genre) but acting should never be part of her repertoire.

 Valentines day

Valentine’s Day

VD worked well, and it is surprising because the film is packed with actors and actresses, and that rarely works. Mostly it is just a situational feel good film, but there is nothing wrong with that!

 Runaway_Bride

Runaway Bride

I’m on such a Gary Marshall/Julia Roberts run, it is not even funny. They do seem to be a dream team, because when they get together there always seems to be some romantic comedy as a result that is actually enjoyable to watch. Between this and Pretty Woman I enjoyed Pretty Woman much more, but I definitely liked this.

Skyfall

I already reviewed here, and if you haven’t read it yet, rest assured that I really liked this Bond film. It’s my second favorite after Casino Royale, and I must say, I am really surprised how much I’ve enjoyed all these films.

 Ugly truth

The Ugly Truth

It’s really ugly, and it’s really bad. The awful dialogue results in awful acting, I’m not really blaming our leads here at all, it’s just a shit film with crap writing and is as believable as anything Donald Trump says.

 27dresses

27 Dresses

JAMES MARSDEN. You have no idea the amount of hilarity this man causes in my family. I really like him, but his dress sense in this film was absolutely awful. Like, AWFUL. It is also a depressing movie – I will shoot myself before I’m a bridesmaid 27 times, it’s just not right or fair. I love our girl Katherine Heigl in here, and thought there were pretty good moments between the rapid romances and problems being solved easily.

In Cinema:

The Legend of Tarzan:

Tarzanposter

I reviewed this one here. It’s man candy season in this film. I’m not gonna lie. However, it isn’t nearly as bad as the trolls want you to believe, and I am still calling it the most pleasant surprise of 2016.

Series:

VDS4

Vampire Diaries Season 4

I finally switched it back on! It was a time issue, not because I’m struggling to watch it. It is still quite a solid show, but there are a few dips, something that probably can’t be helped when you travel this far into a show. I’ll post all the reviews once I’m done watching, then I can do them consecutively across a couple of weeks : )

Books read:

The Obsession – LOVED this!

Honest Illusions – It was okay – review here

Currently reading:

I’m actually in the middle of way too many books! I am reading Twilight again (the shame, I know) and I am definitely enjoying it more than Blood Bound (Rachel Vincent). I can promise you, when I get through this book, the review will be up here in no time and it will be a bad one – this book is so stupid. It is taking me ages to get through it, a damn shame because it is supposed to be a quick read.

So there it is – I am way behind on everything in life at the moment, but at least I got to do see and read some great material! What have you been up to?

5 Things Friday Valentines Edition: 5 Romantic movies that won’t make you puke because it’s so lame

5 things friday pic

Happy Friday! Sooo… you might have noticed that it’s Valentine’s day by the cheesy things currently running around on Twitter, Facebook and every damn where.

The different opinions on Valentines day:

I hate it because I’m single;

I couldn’t care less because I’m single;

I really don’t do it either way;

I love it because I’m in a relationship and I get to get things;

Oh shit I have to spend money because I’m in a relationship.

Either way, if you like it – Happy Valentine’s day. I’m not the hugest fan (either way) because love should be celebrated all the time. But because I’m such a nice person, I compiled a list of movies totally not cringe worthy for you to watch today. Enjoy!

Crazy, Stupid Love

It’s funny, without mush and has Ryan Gosling in it. It is something for all the ages – there is teens, young adults and older adults in. I really enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone.

CRAZY STUPID LOVE_COMBO BD (1000250398).indd

Letters to Juliet

Except for the ending where Charles completely loses his brain, I really enjoyed this too.

Letters to Juliet

10 Things I hate about you

10+Things+I+Hate+About+You

Silver linings playbook

It’s a movie about difficult people falling in love. Which is awesome because most people are messed up about something.

Silver linings playbook

The Notebook

Easily known as the movie that makes all people cry, the movie where everyone realized how hot Ryan Gosling is and the best Nicholas Sparks book to movie adaption, this is a favorite for everyone.

notebook

What’s your favorites?

Thoughts 2.1

How can you work at a company for years and still not know the door code? The sound of the door ringing in our office drives me NUTS I tell you.

PS: Gliding to a door on your leisurely pace will certainly cause the door to close again. No, I am not opening it for you. You have your own feet.

Still thoroughly enjoying my car. All that freedom just for me.

#100DaysofHappy

I’ve been eyeing this challenge for a bit – it is so upbeat and happy and positive. A work colleague and I will now be trying this out – for a 100 days you record something that makes you happy.

Check out their website here:

http://100happydays.com/

I will be posting about my 100 Days in batches – I really don’t think you want to read 100 separate posts about it! 🙂

12 February 2014: 1st day of Happy

New Girl

New Girl

I put this show on yesterday and it is awesome! I laughed so hard.

Manners

Please and thank-you. The two phrases you learn from childhood. How do you FORGET something that has been ingrained since you were young? Quick Question: Who wouldn’t help a person who asks nicely and who would help someone who is rude?

What I want to say to the Waterkloof Four:

Boys,

You think you’ve won. You think you’re very smart and funny and free. You are not. You think you are rich. I hope one day you make the distinction between having rich parents and actually being rich through your own blood, sweat and tears. You look like a bunch of pretty hipsters on their way to a JB concert. This couldn’t be further from the truth. You are all murderers. You preyed on the most vulnerable form of human being – a poor homeless man whose life was already horrible. You represent what is bad in this country – continued racism (from both sides), disrespect for the law and a dismissive attitude towards the lives of others. I am ashamed that you are part of my ethnic origins and I am ashamed that you are South-Africans. I hope one day you realise what you have done and have true remorse.

Flappy Bird

Flappy Bird

WTF world. It is so addictive it is crazy. Makes absolutely no sense in its addictiveness because it is possibly some of the worst graphics I’ve seen in ages. I downloaded it (to my eternal regret) and now rue the day I heard about it. The creator of Flappy bird, Nguyen Ha Dong, has since taken it down from all App stores for now apparent reason but I have it on my phone already so BOOM.Instead of saying that it ruined your life claim responsibility for how rich it made you.

BTW: My score stands at 33. What is yours?

The Mentalist Season 5

I am astounded that the producers of the Mentalist managed another season without revealing Red John. Season five is one of the best seasons of the series. I really enjoyed it and more specifically because they had plenty more Red John information in there than previously.

Vampire Academy

VA is being released this week in South-Africa and I am so there. Go watch it!

Books

Reading the 89th book of the book challenge – Key of Knowledge by Nora Roberts. Very entertaining.

Quote

“When I am silent, I have thunder hidden inside” Rumi

How cool a quote is that?

Valentine’s Day

Currently feeling that it is a stupid money making scheme. May be because I am single. Not discounting that fact.

valentines

Valentine’s Day crapathon.

I am so sad. This year so far is not living up to the excitement I had to finally finish the disaster of year I had in 2012.

Yesterday was Valentine’s Day. (I suspect everyone knows this, since you either need to be blind, deaf, and have no social contact with the world to not know this). I suspected it to be terrible, for numerous reasons. And it was

Valentine’s Day will always be a testimony to my bad judgement.

Yesterday, a year ago, I started dating a man who was so completely wrong for me, because I was bored, and bowed to pressure from our friend group. I shouldn’t have done it, since I never admired him, and now I will always face V-day with the reminder that I allowed someone like that into my life, and let him fester himself into a core group I thought unshakable. Yes, I obviously still have a lot of anger towards myself and him, but I am in a much better place about it than I was.

Driving license test

I am renowned for stressing my ass off. Yesterday, I was supposed to do my driving test. My dad helped me wonderfully, and I was somewhat confident upon arrival at the test centre. Just when I started my pre-trip inspection, the instructor failed me on my brake lights that didn’t work – lights that had worked half an hour earlier. I do not know what made the brake lights to fail, either someone put a voodoo spell on me, or I have incredibly bad karma, or I really am bad luck Brian. I didn’t even get to test.

Vampire diaries season 4 sucks.

Enough said about that. 

Oscar Pistorius and Reeva Steenkamp

South-Africa suffered another incredibly sad shock yesterday. When I saw on my twitter feed that our golden boy, Oscar Pistorius, had been arrested for the murder of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, I refused to believe it. I went onto a reputable news agency’s website, and there it was. Reeva was shot in the early morning on the 14th of Feb, by the Paralympian wonder boy. At first, rumours started that he thought her an intruder. Then, after SAPS confirmed the rumours false, it came to light that there had been domestic disturbance calls from their neighbours to Pistorius’s home that night.

It is heart-breaking. SA already has such a bad rep across the world. Recently the spotlight in this country has been on the atrocious sexual and domestic violence that dominates in South-Africa. We as citizens of this country lost another hero. I do not know any South-African that wasn’t shaken by the news.

So all in all, it was a terrible day. I am in serious need of some happy today.