The Sunday Salon -- Stuff I Watched

I hope everyone enjoyed their long weekend or if you didn't have one your weekend in general!

One of the unfortunate side effects of stress for me is that I feel like I can't read. so I have read like, maybe one page since last weekend :/

This doesn't extend to watching things, though, maybe because it's easier to multi-task and watch something, I don't know. But I did finish the first season of Six Feet Under this week. I've only managed to watch the first couple of episodes of the second season, but I will say that I like it better than the first season so far. The first season started to drag for me but I think by the second season some of the story lines were wrapped up and new ones were introduced. And I felt like I started connecting to the characters more. Ana recently said she thinks the show is literary and I can kind of agree with that based on my experience so far--kind of like how a good book might drag at first, but suddenly you realize you are invested in the fates of the characters. Additionally, I think the second season is using the deaths better to reflect on the thematic material of the episode, there were times in the first season I felt like the fact that someone died was incidental to anything else. But so far in the second season I think they are working that aspect in to the plot and what's going on in everyone's lives much much better.

One of the things I love about reading and watching TV is when someone says something and it's like the first time you have ever heard that idea expressed in just that way and I kind of had that experience on the show when Brenda was talking about her old boyfriend and his wife and said something like, "they are complete in a way I will never be." I totally got what she meant by that or at least by looking at people and seeing they have something you do not and wondering about that thing. And in her story so far, she's exploring all these career/self-improvement options to fix this thing inside which is interesting enough. (and believe me, so far the answer is not Nate which is nice, but who knows if that lasts) Brenda is kind of an interesting and odd character.

Anyway in the first season I guess the most compelling or interesting story line to me was David coming out and coming to terms with being gay. I think using the church in this story was interesting to me, not so much because of the slightly villainous role his church was given (sometimes I think we reduce people to certain beliefs they hold and forget that a person is always more than that.) but because of how real it felt. It was kind of poignant and sad how much he wanted his life to be one thing, how much the church meant to him in one regard, and then reality. And I think this is the experience for a lot of evangelical gay people (I think in this who they are Episcopalian though? They talked about the big divide in the church and that's one church that did have a huge split) and reminds me that I need to finish reading Stranger at the Gate. But I also like that not everyone is okay with it, that his mother is awkward and trying to figure it out and that Rico was kind of an ass about it.

I also find David and Nate's relationship as brothers interesting to watch, the way Nate came around to deciding to stay with the family business, and the way their relationship has repaired. They complement each other perfectly in running the business! The whole, Kroner is going to buy them out storyline I'm bored of all already but I blame The Good Wife for fatigue of this kind of story line! (btw Ana I know you said Nate was your least favorite character and I want to know why? because Rico is mine, lol)

So basically I'm glad I'm finally watching. I'll probably have more thoughts as I continue to watch that I'll dump on you all!

I also watched a couple of movies over Thanksgiving weekend, Brave and People Like Us and I liked them both. I liked People Like Us (even though, like, the whole story was in the trailer) because it was about a brother and sister relationship primarily. I don't know I can recognize that objectively it's a bad film, but I still kind of liked it.

I was pretty spoiled for the whole of Brave, but I still enjoyed it. Again, I think it didn't quite have the Pixar magic of say Toy Story 3, but it was a nice story, very pretty, and made me cry a little. :)

Other than that, I really hope to see Anna Karenina next weekend! And I'll be spending my week reading The Final Martyrs and I really hope you join me! :)