Day 69: I'm a Monster on the Hill
Jun. 28th, 2023 08:26 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jakebeWe watched "The Flash" yesterday before it left theatres. I don't think it's actually in any danger of being booted early, but the box office has not been promising for it. It's unclear exactly what happened with audiences; even James Gunn and the new DC architects were talking it up, and everyone involved seemed to be lining up behind the movie's troubled star, Ezra Miller. Actually seeing the film, it's hard to pick out the exact thing that made it...just all right. It's followed the late-DC formula of making every movie essentially a team-up, and that honestly works well. Black Adam had a Justice Society that stole the movie from Dwayne Johnson, and this movie really only gets going once the team is together.
Michael Keaton is having a lot of fun as Batman, and Sasha Calle is really good as Supergirl. Neither of them get enough screen time to have an arc though because Miller is pulling double-duty as two different Barries Allen; it feels like the most basic way to externalize an internal conflict. Most of the movie you're just waiting for Barry to catch up to the plot beats so the movie can go back to having fun. Yes, Barry, your perfectionism IS aimed at the wrong things. No, Barry, you *shouldn't* consider time-travel as a "get out of jail free" card that lets you do over any encounter you don't like the ending of.
Still, there are some pretty impressive set-pieces and fun action. I just don't know what lesson DC and Warner Bros. takes from this movie. Did The Flash fail because everyone knew it "didn't count" due to the shuttering of the DCEU? Were people that turned off by...*checks notes*...a year and a half of abuse, grooming, and endangerment headlines from its star? Or is general superhero fatigue hitting DC movies especially hard? Who can say? "Elemental" also tanked at the theatres, though "Across The Spider-Verse" is doing pretty well on its own.
There are so many things going on with the movie business these days, it's hard to say which variable is the one that made the difference.
I'm particularly proud of the Blue Apron dish I made yesterday. It was relatively simple -- salmon in a toasted-pepita pan sauce with sauteed vegetables and garlic rice. But the simple dishes really force you to focus on your technique because there "isn't anywhere to hide". You're not hoping new flavors or a new way to cook saves you; it's all down to how well you prepare basic ingredients. I'm happy with the way everything turned out. The snap peas were still crisp enough to snap, but just cooked enough to be juicy and sweet. The salmon was beautifully browned and cooked a little more well-done than it had to be, but the texture really worked. And the rice was perfectly steamed and well-seasoned.
Seasoning the dish, for me, is the next "growth area" for cooking. I have a tendency to under-season after feedback from the hubby, but I'm getting more comfortable with knowing when and how to apply salt and other seasonings so the flavors in the dish are heightened. I never want to blast a dish with too much salt, but a *little* bit is needed to make things taste the way they should.
I've been absolutely terrible with any of my goals this past week. I'm not entirely sure what happened to stop all of my progress cold -- well, I mean, I do. Marijuana.
Definitely falling into older habits, which isn't great. But the silver lining is that the way forward is clear. I'll spend the time before July hits getting back into better habits so I can start out the month as disciplined as possible.
I think the combination of writing anxiety, constant rejection from job applications, a packed social schedule, and a lack of quality sleep made it a lot more difficult to make good decisions. Once the dominoes started falling, momentum just took care of itself.
It would really help to think of better habits as something less than "all or nothing". I mean, slacking on some things is an inevitability, but it would be great to have a "heightened" floor so I can be at least somewhat productive during these periods of low-focus or activity.
Michael Keaton is having a lot of fun as Batman, and Sasha Calle is really good as Supergirl. Neither of them get enough screen time to have an arc though because Miller is pulling double-duty as two different Barries Allen; it feels like the most basic way to externalize an internal conflict. Most of the movie you're just waiting for Barry to catch up to the plot beats so the movie can go back to having fun. Yes, Barry, your perfectionism IS aimed at the wrong things. No, Barry, you *shouldn't* consider time-travel as a "get out of jail free" card that lets you do over any encounter you don't like the ending of.
Still, there are some pretty impressive set-pieces and fun action. I just don't know what lesson DC and Warner Bros. takes from this movie. Did The Flash fail because everyone knew it "didn't count" due to the shuttering of the DCEU? Were people that turned off by...*checks notes*...a year and a half of abuse, grooming, and endangerment headlines from its star? Or is general superhero fatigue hitting DC movies especially hard? Who can say? "Elemental" also tanked at the theatres, though "Across The Spider-Verse" is doing pretty well on its own.
There are so many things going on with the movie business these days, it's hard to say which variable is the one that made the difference.
I'm particularly proud of the Blue Apron dish I made yesterday. It was relatively simple -- salmon in a toasted-pepita pan sauce with sauteed vegetables and garlic rice. But the simple dishes really force you to focus on your technique because there "isn't anywhere to hide". You're not hoping new flavors or a new way to cook saves you; it's all down to how well you prepare basic ingredients. I'm happy with the way everything turned out. The snap peas were still crisp enough to snap, but just cooked enough to be juicy and sweet. The salmon was beautifully browned and cooked a little more well-done than it had to be, but the texture really worked. And the rice was perfectly steamed and well-seasoned.
Seasoning the dish, for me, is the next "growth area" for cooking. I have a tendency to under-season after feedback from the hubby, but I'm getting more comfortable with knowing when and how to apply salt and other seasonings so the flavors in the dish are heightened. I never want to blast a dish with too much salt, but a *little* bit is needed to make things taste the way they should.
I've been absolutely terrible with any of my goals this past week. I'm not entirely sure what happened to stop all of my progress cold -- well, I mean, I do. Marijuana.
Definitely falling into older habits, which isn't great. But the silver lining is that the way forward is clear. I'll spend the time before July hits getting back into better habits so I can start out the month as disciplined as possible.
I think the combination of writing anxiety, constant rejection from job applications, a packed social schedule, and a lack of quality sleep made it a lot more difficult to make good decisions. Once the dominoes started falling, momentum just took care of itself.
It would really help to think of better habits as something less than "all or nothing". I mean, slacking on some things is an inevitability, but it would be great to have a "heightened" floor so I can be at least somewhat productive during these periods of low-focus or activity.
