Playing with Color and Light: teamLab Borderless Museum, Tokyo Japan

 

One of the places my family wanted to visit in Tokyo was teamLab's Borderless Museum, a digital arts museum in the MORI building, Odaiba Tokyo.  We watched the videos over and over again on their website and YouTube.  Besides being the perfect place to Instagram, cameras and phones everywhere, visiting this museum is such an interesting experience.

There are so many rooms that it's easy to get lost and miss stuff.  This whole experience is a kaleidoscope of colors and changing shapes, lights, sights, sounds.  So many times I found myself hypnotized with wonder.  Getting photos is fun, granted, but the real magic happens when you put the phone down and look around.

 

Borderless is a cool, crazy, unique experience.

   

 

 

 

 

 

 (Photos by Sarah, Robin, Steven, and Ty)

Last Christmas, mini movie review

Rating: B-/C+

Kate's life is mess.  She has one night stands, gets drunk, and avoids visiting home.  She depends on friends for a place to sleep and carries her suitcase everywhere she goes, her life in flux.  The two stable aspects in her life is her love of George Michael and the year round Christmas shop she works.  When Tom enters her life Kate begins to find herself again, regaining the part of her she lost when she was sick.  But is this new love too good to be true?

Last Christmas takes place in London and is named after the Christmas song sung by George Michael.  Don't read too much into the lyrics, or you'll give some of the plot way.  Don't sing it in your head!  Stop it!  Yeah, it's a catchy song that always gets a lot of airplay every season, following you from one store to the next.

These days we live in a sea of Christmas movies.  Hallmark, Hallmark Mysteries, and Lifetime air at a minimum of six new movies every week between the three, starting right before Halloween.  Hallmark Christmas movies is a Holiday staple.  I kinda laughed last year when it was announced that Dr. Who wouldn't have a Christmas episode because they were out of ideas.  Hallmark and Lifetime certainly have no problem with their creativity.

And with Last Christmas we have a holiday film for the big screen.

There are aspects of this movie I like.  Emilia Clarke and Henry Golding have really cute chemistry as love interests.  The Christmas shop is charming, and I seriously want to find one.  The growth of Emilia's character Kate was nicely developed throughout the movie.

What I didn't like was the twist.  I can't talk about it!  I get it, it's different, and in a sea of romantic Christmas movies you've got to be different, but I was left depressed even though this movie's meant to be uplifting.

I'm not going to say you shouldn't see Last Christmas, I'm just saying I would have been happy catching up on all the Christmas movies I have saved up on the DVR.

MPAA: Rated PG-13 for language and sexual content.

Geeking Over Gundams

 Seeing the giant Gundam in Tokyo has been a bucket list item for such a long time.  I wanted to visit back in 2015, but couldn't work it out with all the other things my brother Michael, sister-in-law Krista, and I wanted to do.  With this latest trip my Mom, brother Steven, his boyfriend Ty, and I were already planning on visiting the teamLab Boarderless museum, so we were going to be a short walk to the Gundam.  I'm glad I live in a family of nerds, because they were all excited to check it out.

 Was seeing a full size Gundam statue worth the wait and hype? Yes!!

What a silly question. :P

It was fun. And I totally geeked out.  It's so big!  Apparently there's a store, which I would have loved to see, but we were planning on doing so much that there wasn't time.  But for every anime fan/nerd/geek/whatnot, seeing the giant Gundam in Diver City is totally worth it.

(Photos either by Sarah, Robin, Steven, or Ty.

They all got mixed up while working on a project)

5 Reasons Why Soarin' Over California is the Best Version

Soarin' Over California is my favorite Disney ride, so maybe I'm starting this blog a little biased.  It's so relaxing. Peaceful and fun at the same time.  The rolling movements. The scents. And seeing the scope of California's beauty is an added bonus.

When Soarin' Around the World came out I was excited, hoping for the best, but was ultimately disappointed by the updated ride.  Would Soarin' Over California become a distant memory, a fragmented remembrance of a favorite experience?  Rides come and go at Disneyland. The parks are ever changing.  I still miss the rocket ride that replaced the People Movers, but it was removed over structural problems and whatnot.  That was such a fun ride! And it was always breaking down, adding exuberance to the ride when it did work.  And I miss the People Movers. There's just no winning.

When it was announced Soarin' Over California was coming back last June for a month I was excited, and sad I'd miss it, but glad that there was a chance it could be brought back in the future.  Then it was expanded to July, when I did get to go, and I rode it at least 4 times. (Soarin' Over California ultimately went through August, turning a one month return into three.  That's just how awesome this ride is.  And all the message boards and comment sections online praised this old favorite while bemoaning the new, making me realize I'm not the only one who loves this classic ride.)

5 Reasons Why Soarin' Over California is the Best Soarin' Ride

1. Soarin' over California is a celebration of Nature.  Sure, California has many landmarks, and you see the Golden Gate bridge right off the bat, but California has such a vast range of natural wonders.  When the river scene comes on, and it feels like your feet is going to touch the water, it's pure magic.  Throughout the ride you see Oceans, Waterfalls, Mountains, and Deserts. It's all rejuvenating, and it feels like a journey, the sort of things you'd want to soar over.
2. Authenticity! Soarin' Over California feels authentic. They're real scenes. It feels like you're cutting into true moments. Whereas Soarin' Around the World is such a CGI fest it just feels like an interactive movie.
3. Subtle transitions that flow from one scene to the next.  Soarin' Over California just cuts between each scene. No fanfare. No gimmicks. This style of transition adds to the flow and gentleness of the ride.  Around the World transitions with dirt being flown up, kite/bird/plane zooming in and swishing across the screen, flashes of light.  I guess they're trying to make the ride more exciting, but I think it disrupts the flow.
4. Better scents. Around the World does have a nice flower scent, but I'm okay not smelling the grass.  But with Soarin' Over California you have the smell of Pine, the ocean, and the oranges!  I'd love a candle with that orange scent. 
5. No tall buildings in a majority of scenes.  The only way to experience Soarin' Around the World is in the middle section of seats. The curvature of the screen makes the Eiffel Tower and other tall objects bend if you're on the side. It's awkward.  Because Soarin' Over California is more nature focused, the scenes don't have tall objects that get distorted by the screen, therefore making it a better experience for more riders in the theater.

Don't get me wrong, I still like Soarin' Around the World, but it doesn't spark the same joy Soarin' Over California brings.  In my humble opinion it's just a better experience, one I miss every time I visit California Adventure.  And, come on, for a park called "California Adventure" shouldn't Soarin' Over California be a staple? It's the most California part of the park!  Especially since so much of the park is getting rebranded.  It would have been cool if each Soarin' ride was different, highlighting the areas in which each Soarin' ride was based. Soarin' over France. Soarin' over Japan. Soarin' over Florida.  That would be so neat.  And yet there is a California version that's still very much loved, yet it gets brushed aside.

Midway, mini movie review

 

Rating: B+

Even though I've grown up watching World War II documentaries, I don't know much about what happened in the Pacific during this war.  It's a shame, as I have a Great-grandfather who served in the Navy during both World Wars, and my Grandpa R's brother was a POW under the Japanese.  I don't know much about either.  When my Dad was a Marine he served on the USS Midway aircraft cruiser, named to honor the battle. He wanted to fly planes, but bad eyesight is a family thing, so when he was on the Midway he ate in this room where he could listen to the planes land.  One day he had to do something and missed his routine lunch and an airplane crash, spreading fire in the room where he ate.  His life was saved that day, and that's what I think of whenever I hear "Midway."

As for the movie, Midway shows the escalating conflict between the US and Japan, the tensions, attack on Pearl Harbor, and then the subsequent attacks in the Pacific and beyond.  If you know history, you know how this story goes.

So much historical focus is on mainland Europe and England during this time.  Conflict with Germany and Italy. The holocaust. D-Day. The air raids in London and elsewhere.  The Narnia kids getting sent to the countryside (fiction, but still showing an aspect of the times).  Just that part of the war seems so overwhelmingly massive.  Then throw in the Pacific, Japan, China, and then you realize why this really was a World War.  And it's amazing humanity survived.  We forget.

I've read some reviews that says the dialogue is cheesy and whatnot, but I don't mind it.  As tragic as this time was, I still love the outfits.  The music!  The start of swing dance.  It was a time of rationing. Sacrifice. Human vigor and determination.

There's a lot of characters.  People come and go.  It's war.  And there are moving parts everywhere changing, contributing.  Portraying this one aspect of WWII is a huge undertaking, and yet, even with everything going on, it's easy to follow along and get involved with some of the characters.  And what's nice about this movie is that it focuses on so many real people who actually fought and served. 

War is awful, yes, but we shouldn't forget the past. Learn from the mistakes. Grow from the strength of others. Understand. The battle of Midway was only 77 years ago.  It hasn't even been a century!  And yet I wonder what my Great-grandfather and Great-uncle would think of the fact that my siblings and I love visiting Tokyo and are learning Japanese.  They would think it unbelievable!!

We can't forget.

And it was nice that in the showing I attended there were so many ages.  I thought I was going to be the youngest, but there were high-schoolers there as well.  And everyone in the theater was getting into it, holding their breath at times.  And at the end there was some clapping.  I found myself quite emotional and glad to become more fully aware of this time in history.

MPAA: Rated PG-13 for sequences of war violence and related images, language and smoking.

Capturing Moments in Time

 

This picture is of the last trip my Grandma and Grandpa took to California a couple years ago.  It was spontaneous.  Unplanned, and with the way my Grandpa's health was deteriorating we knew it was his last chance.  He passed away last year.  My Grandma is my last grandparent still alive, and I make sure to visit her a minimum of once a week.

My Grandpa left my Grandma when my Mom was 13, so after his second wife, my Grandma R, died and Grandpa moved up here to Utah to live with us, it was interesting watching my Grandma and Grandpa interact.  My Grandma is a prime example of forgiveness and service. Everyday she drove here and took him out to lunch, something most people would never do, and yet she did.

These last few weeks I've been buried, literally, in memories.  Going through pictures. Organizing them. Searching old hard drives and computers. It's been a monumental task I'm only halfway through.

And while searching I stumbled upon a gem: a short little audio clip of my Grandma and Grandpa talking while I sat in the front of the car, waiting for my Mom who ran into a store, sharing an experience they had before they were married.

Grandma: One Sunday afternoon Grandpa had just baled the hay on our farm, and so I went out to drive the truck and Paul climbed up on the hay, or on the truck, and there was a bale loader on the side of the truck where you'd pick up the hay bale, and the bale of hay would go up the loader, and then the guy on the truck would take them off and stack them on the truck.  Well, I think it got up a couple/three bales high, and the bale of hay, I don't know what happened, but the bale of hay was going up the loader, and all of a sudden this little guy... *laughs*

Me: Grandpa?

Grandma: Grandpa, Grandpa Paul fell off the top of the truck, hit the bale of hay, and bounced onto the ground. The hay broke his fall. And Dad, Grandpa E, come running over to the truck, and ran up to where Paul was, and when he saw that Paul was okay he started to laugh.

Me: How far did Grandpa fall?

Grandma: Off the top of the hay...

Grandpa: I was up about four or five tiers.

Grandma: No, we never filled it that, I don't think it was ever, made the bale, I don't know.

Grandpa: I was stacking the hay and the truck bumps.

Grandma: Anyway, He got up and he says, "I'm going to go into the house and get a drink of water."

Grandpa: And you never saw me again.

Me: That was his excuse to get out of it?

Grandpa: *laughing* Never saw him again! I think that was the last time, and he accused me of making him fall, but I think he just lost his footing.

Grandpa: She went over a rock, see...

Grandma: No, I didn't.

Grandpa: And the truck went Wuwuwuwu and around bang bang bang!

Grandpa: No I didn't. It only went Wuwuwuwu when you fell off. *laughs*

Me: Was this in Riverside?

Grandma: Yeah, it was Arlington then, but then they incorporated it into Riverside.  That was our little farm that we had there.

Me: Was this when you were just married?

Grandma: No, it was before we were married.

Me: Before you were married.

Grandma: Yeah, he used to come out all the time.  If he wasn't on the base doing something, he was on the farm. And he and your Uncle Harry, or your Mom's uncle Harry, your uncle Harry too, he used to sit out on the bales of hay with Harry's pellet gun and shoot the roosters in the behind.

Grandpa: We did not.

Grandma: Yes, you did.  Because one Sunday Mom decided to kill the big ol' rooster and have him for Sunday dinner.

Grandpa: Full of bullets. *laughs* Full of pellets.

Grandpa: *laughing* it was full of pellets, the rear end. It was full of pellets!

(Then Grandpa's cell rang, and my Mom got back into the car.)

A moment captured! And listening to it brings all the feels.

A while back I thought I lost a bunch of audio files I'd recorded, other interviews and my Grandma Stuff's funeral, other stories, etc, and I was heartbroken over it.  Felt it for days. But then a couple weeks ago I found the files in a place it shouldn't have been, that I swear I checked a few times.

Getting all this stuff sorted, combed through, saved, etc, is going to take a bit of time.  I'm the family historian!  Self appointed title, really.  I guess being single with no family of my own allows me the time, but it's sad, too, recording other peoples stories with their family (technically my family, too), feeling like I'm losing time.  Well, it is what it is, and I'm glad I'm able to do it, and had the foresight to record what I've recorded.  Just wish I'd done more!!  I've got a lot of work with this. I want to put a book together for my family with stories and pictures. I need to interview my Grandma more, get more stories. And I need to start recording my parents as well.  My nieces and nephew are interested in family history, and they love the photo books I put together.  They fall asleep reading them some nights!  I know they'll appreciate all this work one day. I'm doing it for them.

Until next time, don't put off talking to a loved one. And if someone in your family shares a story, write it down!  One day you'll be glad you did.