I know, I'm behind the times, but something troubles me. Lately Pixar seems to be taking itself and its films rather seriously. Not a "hotter and sexier" or "bloodier and gorier" seriously, more of a "we're too important to make fun of ourselves anymore" seriously. I miss the days when they would poke fun at themselves and the subject matter, as well as the medium they were working in, the days when they had outtakes at the end of the film, animated from actors flubbing a line, something funny someone did during the production, or just something they made up for a laugh. Their movies used to be comedies with drama and now they're dramas with bits of comedy, which is all well and good but not exactly what I expect from a company who's logo is an adorable desk lamp acting like a doofus. This also isn't to say that I don't like their movies anymore, quite the contrary, but with Disney attempting the "back to the basics" approach with fairy tales and a strong emphasis on characterization I feel it would be nice for Pixar to try the same idea and find the humor in what they do again.

I found an apartment! I got very lucky and passed a place on my way to work that's about ten minutes walk away from my Dollar General. On my break I went to talk to the landlord and as it turns out he's one of out semi-regular customers! He's happy to rent me the place for $610 a month but that's not the best part. That $610 includes everything (heat, electric, water, sewer, trash) but that's not the best part. It has a fully-furnished kitchen and included air conditioner but that's not the best part. I can take Daisy with me but that's not the best part. He's going to talk to the former tenants to see if they want to leave their couches if they don't want them (they're a newlywed couple who just built a house) but that's not the best part. The best part is that I can be in there by the first of the month. I'm heading down tomorrow to cut the guy a check.

It seems I need to find a new place to live soon. Not because I caused damage to the house or because I am behind on my rent, or even because I had a particularly bad fight with my mom. No, I have to move out because I didn't mow the lawn with a broken mower (which I called in a favor to have it fixed so I COULD mow it today) but because I ate my lunch before mom could get home and MAKE me lunch, used all the shake and bake bags (but not all the shake and bake) making a previous meal for the both of us, and because as she was venting about all this I had the audacity to leave because I had to go to work early to cover shifts that others called off. Now mom is apparently working off another list of my transgressions (of which I am not privy to), but these are the straws that broke the camel's back. I have no idea how much longer I can expect to stay here, but however long it may be is garunteed to be not good times.

I know I haven't written anything in a while, so it's time for a much-needed update.

So after years of not really caring about or wanting anything resembling a relationship my loneliness and romanticism got the better of me and I joined a dating site. Specifically I joined Soul Geek which bills itself as a dating site for geeks by geeks (but aren't they all?). I started messaging anyone who looked interesting, starting with good ol' PA and working out from there, but never really expecting any sort of of reply (that's not self-deprecation, it's simply pragmatism). I even purposely chose the least-flattering picture legally allowed of myself for my profile pic because, let's face it, I'm no David Tennant. For a long time I just sort of stopped checking the site. There was no one new I was interested in and no one was responding to my charmingly geeky messages.

Then it happened. I had a new message.

( Click for pics and more! )

This is one of the most heartwarming and heartbreaking movies I've seen in my entire life. It tells the story of the 1914 Christmas Truce that took place in the no-man's land between the French, German, and Scottish trenches during the Christmas holiday in World War I. Very little of the film is actually in English, since two-thirds of the characters are French and German so you'll either need to speak three languages or rely on subtitles for much of the film but that doesn't detract from the experience, it adds to it.
The movie does a great job of showing the futility and horror of war, the opposing ideologies of kings and politicians are paid for in the blood of men that would otherwise be friends. The major players are the French commander, son of a well-known Major General who uses his influence and position to keep his son out of the most dangerous situations while trying to manipulate his career so he comes out of the war a hero, a drafted German opera singer (disgusted by the comfort his superiors and their sons live in while others are dying in the trenches) and his reluctantly by-the-book commander and a Scottish priest and medic who prefers the company of the men on the front line (many of them from his parish) than the (relative) safety and ease of the back lines.

These forces all come to a head on the fateful Christmas Eve, tensions are high as each side has been informed that the other will most likely plan an attack and while the French, Scottish, and German soldiers do have minor festivities planned their hearts are not in it as they all wait for the others to fire the first shot. Instead of gunfire, the sound of singing is heard from the Scottish and German trenches, which leads to a hesitant back-and-forth of "Silent Night" and "Adeste Fideles" as the troops slowly start to wander out of the trenches and into the devastated landscape in between. Eventually the commanders agree to a cease-fire for the holiday and a mass is held (in Latin so all can understand), afterward small gifts of chocolate, wine, and coffee are exchanged as well as photos of wives and loved-ones as the soldiers regard each other with hesitant but genuine respect and camaraderie. Burial services are held for the dead and are attended by all three sides of the conflict and even friendly football (soccer) games are held.

But just as it did in real life the peace would not last. The hire-ups are not pleased the the enemy becoming friendly with each other and order the troops back to the trenches to continue killing each other, an order that is outright ignored for some time. The film ends when the men are all shipped away from each other and troops are placed into heavy rotations to keep them from ever becoming familiar with each other ever again. but no matter what the bond formed cannot be broken , and even to this day those who have survived still regard each other fondly and try to maintain contact with each other.

This is one of those movies that helps to restore what little faith is left in humanity, it's a barely fictionalized story that is shot and framed flawlessly and when the singing starts roughly halfway through you WILL start crying, even if you weren't before, and you won't care who sees, it's THAT beautiful. Watch this film this Christmas, and every Christmas after, just to remind you what the season really is about. Peace on earth, goodwill toward men.