Take the Gun, Leave the Cannoli: Realizing I Should Be Italian

(#17) Watch 25 Classic Movies

Done!

1.   One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
2.   A Streetcar Named Desire
3.   It's a Wonderful Life
4.   Some Like it Hot
5.   The Terminator
6.   Terminator 2: Judgement Day
7.   The Princess Bride
8.   Ben-Hur
9.   Ferris Bueller's Day Off 
10. Sixteen Candles
11. Blade Runner
12. The Natural
13. Chariots of Fire
14. The Graduate
15. Cool Hand Luke
16. Casablanca
17. Enter the Dragon
18. Citizen Kane

19. The Bridges of Madison County

20. Charade

21. Back to the Future

22. Mary Poppins

23. Murder on the Orient Express
24. The Godfather
25. The Godfather Part II

I thought these two would be a fitting way to end my classic movie education.

I have now realized that Leave the gun, take the cannoli is literally a philosophy that I want to live by. And then I realized that in another life I must have been a member of a “family.” Not just because of the cannoli. The cannoli is a metaphor.

The Godfather

First of all, I literally cannot believe this is the same Marlon Brando who was in A Streetcar Named Desire. And then Al Pacino, Robert Duvall, James Caan…impressive.

Other than the cast it is hard to pinpoint exactly what makes this movie so great. It just feels like a great movie from almost the first minute. The characters are complex and compelling. The story is intricate but not too confusing. Everything falls neatly into place without any of those lingering questions…”Wait, how did he know that they were going to be at that restaurant at that time?” etc.

Okay I guess it’s not that hard to pinpoint.

I loved the whole feel of the Italian families. The big wedding. The sacredness of the role of godfather. And no matter what was going on- not limited to murders, drug deals, and betrayal- the family was always sitting down to dinner together. That’s what I like to see. Which brings us back to my new life philosophy. The murders, the “gun,” that was something they could do without. But the sweet delicious cannoli- that is what life is really about. That and I guess family. But mostly cannoli.

I also loved Vito Corleone. What a name. And what a guy. Even though he is kind of a supervillian, he also really believes in fairness. You do him a favor, he does you a favor. You refuse to do him a favor, he makes you an offer you can no longer refuse.

Really the only thing I didn't like about this movie was Michael Corleone's stupid girlfriend Kay. She was way too judgy. I mean she knew what she was getting herself into. Ronnie and I both agree- we miss Apollonia.

The Godfather Part II

Everyone said that Part II was just as worthy of being on the classics list (though Part III definitely was not). At this point Michael Corleone is the Godfather. Obviously nobody can beat the original Don but Michael is interesting for all the ways he is different. A little more emotional, a little less predictable. A little bolder as well.

What I really enjoyed about this movie though was Vito Corleone's origin story. Just as you would suspect of him, Vito saw something that was unfair in the way the town was being run and decided to change it. He became Don to protect the weak and knock down those that became too powerful for his own good.

The rest of the movie though was exactly what I was afraid Part I was going to be like. It was a lot of wheeling and dealing and trickery. I had a hard time keeping track of the players. And add to the confusion the fact that even when Michael Corleone tells you exactly what he is planning to do you can't be sure whether he is lying or not, and the plot becomes a bit hard to follow.

Also, what was that ending about?

I still enjoyed watching the movie and continuing my quest to become Italian. I made a lasagna, for example. Also by the end I was pretty sure I could understand everything they were saying in Italian. Although that could be because I have been practicing my Spanish.

Grains and Greens: Hominy and Rainbow Chard

(#13) Taste 25 Foods I've Never Tasted Before

Done!

1. Pattypan Squash
2. Beets
3. Eel
4.Wahoo
5.Lychee
6.Quinoa
7. Raw Oyster
8. Octopus
9. Duck
10. Daikon
11. Authentic French Food
12. Dragon Fruit
13. Bagel and Lox (/Smoked Salmon)
14. Astronaut Ice Cream
15. Big Mac
16. Steamed Burger
17. Cottage Cheese
18. Crawfish
19. Shrimp & Grits
20. Rice Pudding
21. Pimento Cheese
22. Pork Rinds
23. St. Germain
24. Hominy
25. Rainbow Chard

Finally this item is complete. I plan to continue this culinary adventure in my 26th year, perhaps on a smaller scale (there are only so many foods out there that I haven't tasted, right?)

I definitely recommend trying this to EVERYONE. It makes eating exciting again. Your palate and your bravery will surprise you more than you think possible. And you may just discover some new foods that you love enough to add to your weekly routine. For example, I've already had beets once this week and plan on having them again. And we always keep quinoa in the cabinet.

Hominy is one of those items I learned about while watching the Food Network. It is a corn product that is dried and then rehydrated in a process called nixtamalization which apparently makes it easier to make tortilla dough out of. Who knew?

The process also makes a grain of corn that is mushy and somewhat less desirable as far as eating is concerned. I threw some butter and cheese at it and hoped for the best.

It was edible. The corn taste was very diluted- I'd say it tasted more like pure starch, like a raw potato. The texture was more like a bean than corn.

Next we tried a vegetable we picked up at our beloved summer farmer's market. I love browsing through the local produce and picking out something that I've never had. Today it was rainbow chard.

Treat it like any other green- remove the stems and chop up the leaves. Saute them until they are just wilted in olive oil, maybe a little garlic. This time I included them in this scallop recipe I found on Pinterest.

The scallops were great. The chard not so much.

I didn't care for the intense bitterness that it had- like arugula. Nor did I care for the texture which was like spinach or like the very green end of the lettuce- only chewier. Of course I ate it because it is green and therefore a superfood. But I think in the future I will stick to kale.

A Spoonful of Sugar Helps You Solve A Murder Case

(#17) Watch 25 Classic Movies

1.   One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
2.   A Streetcar Named Desire
3.   It's a Wonderful Life
4.   Some Like it Hot
5.   The Terminator
6.   Terminator 2: Judgement Day
7.   The Princess Bride
8.   Ben-Hur
9.   Ferris Bueller's Day Off 
10. Sixteen Candles
11. Blade Runner
12. The Natural
13. Chariots of Fire
14. The Graduate
15. Cool Hand Luke
16. Casablanca
17. Enter the Dragon
18. Citizen Kane

19. The Bridges of Madison County

20. Charade

21. Back to the Future

22. Mary Poppins

23. Murder on the Orient Express

Mary Poppins:

After about 8 movies in a week, my exhausted brain was relieved to watch a move made for children. However I was outraged that instead of the usual 90-minute Disney time frame, this movie like all the others was over two hours long. 

I adored this movie. Of course. I loved Julie Andrews and that Mary was much more sassy than I imagined her being. Dick Van Dyke was incredible as Bert- so energetic and lively, not to mention a great dancer. 

And can we talk about the special effects for a second? I mean this was 1964! How did they do some of these things?

I also thought the interaction between the live characters and the cartoons was very seamless. But then again it is Disney so we should expect the best. 

Probably the most memorable thing about this movie though is the message. "A spoonful of sugar" is all about taking your situation in life and making the best out of it. I mean Bert is practically homeless and he is somehow still cheerful. It's a good lesson for all of us. 

Murder on the Orient Express: 

I guess this movie has the opposite theme of Mary Poppins: if you don't like what someone does to you, don't swallow it- murder them. 

I didn't expect to like this movie, for the same reason that Ronnie is currently watching the new Sherlock Holmes and I'm not really paying attention. I don't watch movies to try and figure out mysteries. I watch movies to enjoy them. 

However Murder on the Orient Express was much easier to follow than expected. Though the "clues" were presented to us throughout the movie and maybe some people could have picked up on it, they were also repeated again at the end as Detective Poirot is figuring them out. 

Another thing I don't enjoy in movies like this is that there are too many characters. However the characters all had fairly distinct identities and I was able to tell most of them apart.

I hate to write any more and spoil the ending- since the ending is the most important part in this kind of movie. So I won't. All I'll say is that if mystery is your thing, I'd imagine this is as good as it gets.

A Thousand Splendid Suns

(#2) Read 25 books

1. Room by Emma Donohue

2. Tender is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald

3. Dreams from My Father by Barack Obama

4. A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

5. A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin

6. A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin

7. A Feast for Crows by George R. R. Martin

8. A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving

9. The Shack by William Young

10.The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides

11. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

12. Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

13. Skippy Dies by Paul Murray

14. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

15. Wicked by Gregory Maguire

16. The War of Art by Steven Pressfield

17. Bossypants by Tina Fey

18. Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood

19. The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

20. Watership Down by Richard Adams

21. The Alchemist by Paul Coelho

22. The Hours by Michael Cunningham

23. Eats, Shoots, & Leaves by Lynne Truss
24. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

I can't remember the last time- if ever- that reading a book literally took my breath away. I was breathless as I turned the pages, my heart pounded as my eyes scanned each word, and I was stuck in the story long after I closed the book. 

It is probably one of the most enlightening and beautiful stories I have ever read, and I would recommend it wholeheartedly but with one caveat- it is also one of the saddest stories I have ever read. 

A Thousand Splendid Suns follows the story of two women in Kabul, Afghanistan- Mariam and Laila. Mariam has a tragic childhood in a small town outside of Kabul and moves to the city when her father marries her off to the shoemaker Rasheed. Rasheed is crude and strict, and when Mariam is unable to give him a child their marriage quickly falls apart. 

A few houses down from Mariam and Rasheed, a young girl named Laila lives with her parents. Laila is best friends with a young man in the neighborhood named Tariq, and eventually romantic feelings develop between them. But war comes to Kabul and Tariq's family flees. When tragedy strikes Laila's family, she finds herself living with Mariam and Rasheed, and an unlikely friendship develops. 

It is around this time that the Taliban comes to power in Afghanistan. At first it seems like they might actually improve the situation- the war, the lack of jobs, and the drought have left Kabul in shambles. But things only become worse, especially for Mariam and Laila as the Taliban strips them of their rights and leaves them helpless against the violent and controlling Rasheed. 

Nothing can prepare you for the situation that these women live in. I'm sure there must be people in the world who have gone through worse but I honestly can't imagine it. It is easy to forget that the people most affected by extremist groups like the Taliban are those closest to them, such as innocent citizens of Afghanistan.

I promise you this story will give you a whole new perspective. And a greater appreciation of life in America- especially as a woman.