"We Bought A Zoo" and Other Topics

Happy New Year, everyone!

I shall kick off 2012 with a very brief review of our New Year's Eve Date Movie: "We Bought A Zoo", directed by Cameron Crowe and starring Matt Damon and Scarlet Johanssen, both of whom were delightful. Very engaging family movie about a young widower with two kids who, in attempt to start over, quits his job and buys a zoo. Yeah, it's fluffy, you can see what's coming, and it will never win any awards, but you can't not like this movie. We thought it would be a light, enjoyable movie, but we both liked it much more than we expected.

A word about two of the supporting actors. Seven year old Maggie Elizabeth Jones, who plays Damon's daughter, just might be the cutest little girl you've ever seen on a movie screen. Thomas Haden Church plays Damon's brother, and he is very much like the character he played in "Sideways", which means he's quite funny.

Good movie.

*****
We came home and proceeded to watch five episodes from Season Four of "Mad Men." Great show. In fact, soon after I finish this blog entry, we will watch two more episodes, and that will wrap up Season Four for us.

*****
Much is at stake for the Pittsburgh Steelers as they take on the Browns on the lakefront this afternoon while the Bengals take on the Ravens in Cincy. The guess here is that the Steelers will hold serve and beat the Browns while the Bengals will be, well, the Bengals and lose to the Ravens, which means a wild card spot, no bye week, and a road playoff game next week for the Black & Gold. Well, the Steelers made this particular bed in losing both games, particularly the second one, against Baltimore. We shall see what happens.

*****
Two huge events await us in 2012.

It's an Olympic Year. No doubt the Games of London will be marvelous spectacle and great fun to watch. Someone who we currently do not even know exists will no doubt become a breakout star during these games. Whom will it be? Man? Woman? American? Asian? European? Someone from some small third world country? The fun will be in watching it unfold.

It's a Presidential Election Year. As has been my policy from the beginning, The Grandstander shall eschew politics in this space, as I prefer to concentrate on fun stuff and not the bitterness and anger that is so prevalent these days. All I will say now is that I hope that this can proceed as an exercise in an almost sacred right of democratic process as envisioned by the Constitution of the United States. Sadly, I fear that it will be a months long exhibition of ugliness among the various participants, and, in one of the lesser developments of the 21st Century, and avalanche of chain emails that purport to be funny, but are really their own exercise of hatefulness. I don't think this is what Washington, Jefferson, Adams and the rest of the founding Fathers had in mind.

*****
Have you noticed that The Grandstander now has a logo? What took me so long?

*****
All that aside, nothing but cheer, prosperity, good health, and happiness to all Loyal Readers in 2012!