Shell has closed one of their local gas stations but I still love that big canopy.
I used Topaz Impressions to process this photo.
Ricki and the Flash with Meryl Streep, Michelle Obama and George W. Bush
Sunday Heather and I went to see a great movie, Ricki and the Flash with Meryl Streep, Rick Springfield, and Kevin Kline. First lets watch the trailer.
Meryl Streep plays Ricki, a sixty something rock and roller lead singer of an obscure but well loved band that plays in obscure bars in the Los Angeles area. The band plays classic rock covers and every once in a while a more contemporary song. So Ricki one day gets a call from her ex husband Pete, played by Kevin Kline doing his very best George W. Bush channeling, saying that their grown daughter, Sharon is in crisis because her no good husband, Max has left her for another woman.
So Ricki, has to scrape up some cash to fly from LA back to Indianapolis. She has seen Pete for some time and is astonished by how rich he is and how huge the house is. This is when we first see Sharon, played by Streep’s real life daughter Mamie Gummer. Gummer plays a psycho scary daughter perfectly, she almost steals the show especially in the early scenes.
Anywho, Ricki and her daughter start to get along and then Ricki and her ex, Pete almost start to get really along (if you know what I mean) but then in swoops Michelle Obama. I mean Pete’s present wife Maureen played by Audra McDonald who has been checking on her dad out of state, who pulls out the old “I’ve been your kids mama since you left Pete and went off to LA to be a rock star” card and basically hip chucks Ricki clear back to the scuzzy bars of LA. I loved it.
And then, as I can tell I’m a little long winded, the magic happens, and Michelle Obama, I mean Mareen decides to let Ricki back into the family via a family wedding. Ricki shows up and sings some songs and gets everybody feeling like family again. Almost as good as a Coca Cola commercial. Although it kept playing with my head when George Bush and Michelle Obama were holding hands.
Streep is a heck of a singer and sang many of the tunes and even played a little guitar. The songs are the real star of the movie. Here is a complete listing of the songs played. I’d go see the movie again just because of the music.
This is a great movie. Everybody pretty much keeps their clothes on and the language is not too bad. I give this puppy four stars out of four.
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Our World Tuesday – Pond
Late afternoon last Wednesday on Tulsa’s Turkey Mountain at a small pond. I just love running the trails there. Once I get more than a quarter mile from the parking lot I have the whole park to myself. One thing about the area is that there is not a whole lot of money budgeted for maintenance. We depend on volunteers to show up and do everything from clear downed limbs from trails and pick up trash. But if a tree falls over into a pond. So be it! It is part of the wildness that we love about it.
Linking with Our World Tuesday
Scavenger Hunt Sunday – On my Soap Box Edition
1. Starts with S
The Snake River goes over some falls in the town of Idaho Falls, Idaho where my father lives.
2. Leading Lines
I am not sure what “Leading Lines” pertains to but here is some lines created by shadows on the pedestrian bridge over the Arkansas River here in Tulsa.
3. Powerful
This is Public Service Company of Oklahoma’s Tulsa Power Station on the banks of the Arkansas River. It used to be powerful and is now used, I think, as standby power in case that one of the newer, bigger power plants goes off-line for some reason.
4. Frozen
I have to admit that I didn’t take this photo myself.
This is a big compressor station, about 20,000 horsepower, in western Oklahoma compressing raw wellhead natural gas from the Cana Woodford Shale formation for use in fueling electric generation plants, industry, and home heating from Oklahoma to the upper midwest. If it all went for residential use this one compressor station moves enough gas to meet the needs of 467,000 households. Hydraulic fracturing for natural gas is not done for the fun of it. It produces a useful product. You know how to stop fracking? Turn your lights off, your heat off, and your hot water heater, and don’t drive or fly anywhere and don’t buy anything that has plastic in it. If everybody does that, oil and natural gas producers won’t fracture wells any longer. I’ll get off my soap box with the final statement that I fully support regulatory requirements necessary to ensure water and air quality and protect wildlife and prevent earthquakes.
5. Daily Task
Meet Bella, Bella is a little sweetheart and she takes her daily naps very seriously.
Linking with Scavenger Hunt Sunday
Trainwreck with Amy Schumer, Bill Hader, and LeBron James
Some of my readers are going to be disappointed in me but last Sunday afternoon after dropping the kid off at his friend’s house Heather and I went to see Trainwreck with Amy Schumer and Bill Hader.
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It was a hoot and it was a little a lot raunchy and it was funny. Schumer wrote it and she had a lot of different takes on things that I thought was original. LeBron James was in as well as a bunch of other big name sports guys. James did very well. I think that he is a natural actor. I had never heard of Amy Schumer before. Apparently she is a comedian. Check out the IMDB site for more information.
The movie turns into a romantic comedy type thing except the roles are reversed. It is Girl gets boy, girl loses boy and girl gets boy back. You know something else as the relationship and movie goes along the raunchiness falls (almost) by the wayside.
So anyway. I liked it and I highly recommend it with the provisio that it does get a little nasty at times. So go for it, if you like.
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Weekend Reflections – Turkey Mountain’s Pepsi Lake
Pepsi Lake on Tulsa’s Turkey Mountain. The bright white objects on the far shore to the left are Pepsi delivery truck chassis’s put on the dam. Why? I have no idea.
I’m linking with Weekend Reflections
Skywatch Friday – West Side of the Tetons (Again)
Okay, I hope that you are not tired of the Teton Mountains from the Idaho side. I apologize but I love the Tetons and they are special so indulge me one last time. This is a shot from the Idaho side. Not quite as spectacular in some ideas but still remarkable.
I used Topaz Restyle to “pop” the picture a little bit.
Linking with Skywatch Friday
Here is a photograph from a few years back of the more standard east side of the Tetons that I took from the area known as Mormon Row.
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Digital Art Meme – Clinton, Oklahomas First United Methodist Church Spaceship
Back during the July 4th holiday we visited family in western Oklahoma. I went for a stroll down main street while there and came across Clinton’s First United Methodist Church. I loved the big old mid century modern building with the humongous canopy. It looked like a space ship to me. I’m just glad that a tornado hasn’t come along and sent that canopy flying like a frisbee into Arkansas.
I decided to use my Topaz Glow program to give it the proper “swoopy” look that a space ship needs. That little splash of color in the leftmost first story window are some canas taht probably look better unswooped.
I am linking with Natures Footsteps Digital Arts Meme
Ruby Tuesday – Steel Buffalo
Driving down a back road in Driggs, Idaho trying to get a better view of the “back side” of the Teton Mountains we came across this field of stylized buffalo.
They were on installed on the grounds of the Teton Arts Council. We didn’t stop and chat, but check out their web site. Do a lot of good things there, including lots of children’s programming. So salud to you Teton Arts Council. I noticed that their logo is the same design as these sculptures. I hope I haven’t violated in any Trademarks. I know that my loyal readers will visit me in the Teton Jail if I did. Please bring quilts. It gets cold in Idaho.
Linking with Ruby Tuesday
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Scavenger Hunt Sunday – to Spots and Beyond
1. Dots
These are fawns at the Wildlife Resource Center in Antlers, Oklahoma. Heather’s father Charles, who is no longer with us, was the driving force behind establishing the center. He loved this deer.
2. Bokeh
Does accidental Bokeh count, this is from a family hike where i was trying to get a family photo and the camera decided it wanted to focus on the bark of a tree instead. I tell you what, these new fangled cameras are smarter than I am. Not that that is saying much.
3. A Game
This is from several years ago when my youngest niece Jillian graduated from college. Her parents held a party and they had games. It was fun!!! Check out this post from way back when to see what happened.
4. Repetitive
I tell what is repetitive is running. I don’t mean that in a bad sort of way. Sometimes when I’m running I marvel that my legs just keep on running without any input from me.
5. My Everyday
Coffee!!! Now that is an everyday thing with me!