Viva Las Vegas--A Walk Down Memory Lane

Circle back to a more innocent time 62 years ago to 1964. I was graduating high school and getting ready for college. What were you doing? The world was pretty much at peace...and some fun movies were being made. I saw one of those fun movies today and I thoroughly enjoyed it. And, as an added bonus there was NO swearing and no bedroom scenes. Like I said, it was a simpler time. The movie was Viva Las Vegas.

When the movie was made Vegas was a gambling town in the desert, but it was not the destination it is today. There was no Sphere, no major sports teams, no high rise casinos and Howdy Partner still greeted you when you came into town. That's the setting -- and it's fun to compare 1964 Vegas with 2026 Vegas--they are 2 different towns. Part of the year, I live near Vegas, and it does not look at all like the Vegas in the movie. It's hard to imagine how much Vegas has changed. In the 60s it was a relatively small town...and that's not Vegas today. 

It's a typical love story of boy meets girl--boy does something stupid and loses girl--boy realizes he did something stupid and tries to make up with the girl--and after a few more curves and wrinkles--they get married in the end. A love story is fun...and the stars are Elvis Presley and Ann-Margeret at their best. Elvis sings and Ann-Margaret dances. The music is good ol' rock and roll. If you are like me, you will remember the music. It's a fun walk down memory lane where the sky is blue and ending is happy.

Yes, I know this is not reality. I even knew it when I first saw the movie as a 16 year old kid. It was fun then, and it was still fun. Unlike 2001: A Space Odyssey, the movie still worked as it's a basic love story and I don't think they ever go out of style. SO...if you want to take a walk down memory lane, see a skinny Elvis and a gorgeous Ann-Margaret, record it the next time it comes on Turner Classic Movies. Remember, we're all in this together.

It's Independence Day

Happy 250th Birthday America.

Thank you!

From a Proud American!

2001: (Not a Good) Space Odyssey

Early this morning I DVRd "2001: A Space Odyssey" on Turner Classic Movies. We saw it tonight. The movie was made in 1968. Back then, I saw it with my boyfriend, now husband. I think we liked the movie...but after seeing it tonight, I don't know why. I thought it would be fun to see this "classic" movie again. I was wrong.

The movie has a very slow pace. There's no action at all. There's hardly any dialogue to explain what is happening. The story is up to interpretation and no one seems to agree on the true meaning of the "monoliths" or the "space baby" at the end...even the author was not clear about their meanings. The movie won an Academy Award for Special Effects, which were pretty good for 1968 but do not make it in 2026. It's a man's world up in space, with women doing ancillary roles such as serving meals, greeting visitors and looking decorative in short pink outfits with cute Kennedy-esque pill box hats. 

Some of the scenes do not pass the test of time. There's the hint of technology to come with a "face time" phone call; a tablet-like device; a computer chess game. The characters walk around the space craft with Velcro shoes that keep them attached to the floor. Space walks are un-tethered to a space craft and the space suits look like they have vacuum cleaner hoses for sleeves. The frosting on the cake is the long psychedelic light and sound show that was supposed to be "cool" back in the day, but seems completely useless now. A good part is the musical score which includes the Blue Danube Waltz among other pieces of classical music.

Anyway, with slow pacing, a poor story line, and strange special effects, the movie does not "work" anymore. It was interesting to see, but I won't make that mistake again. If you want to see how "futuristic" 2001 looked back in 1968, go for it, but I'm warning you... Remember, we're all in this together.

A "Paint Your Wagon" Day

It's a cold dreary day (and if the weather guessers are right, a few more cold/wet days are coming). This morning, I went to the campground to visit my brother ... and the campground was quiet. There were only 2 folks at the pickleball courts which are always crowded and soon they walked away. The parking lot by the laundry was empty. The campground store was deserted. The golf course was uninhabited. Dogs are not being walked! In fact no one was taking a morning walk. Needless to say, the pool was empty too. It's a cold dreary day. Everyone was in their RV staying out of the cold and dank.

The day reminded me of a scene in the 1969 movie "Paint Your Wagon" where the wagons are circled up to protect everyone from the wind, rain and snow. As the scene progresses, the song "They Call the Wind Mariah" fills the air. Today the campground reflected that song. 

We are not getting any wind, but we are getting cold and wet weather. The "wagons" are circled up and any minute now, I'm waiting for someone to burst into song (as they do in musicals). Click here if you want to hear the song that kind of describes today in the Rocky Mountains. 

Baby It's Cold Outside

Summer officially arrived on June 22 and today is June 27 and I'm going to report that winter has arrived. It's cold outside. The weather is doing "funny things" right now as there's a heat dome over the Midwest...so they are having unusually hot weather -- The Rocky Mountains are in the "shadow" of that heat dome and we are getting unusually cold weather. Today it reached 51 degrees.

The storm we had was bad. The trees were swaying; the thunder was clapping; and the lightening was flashing...and then it started hail--thankfully, the hail became rain which pounded down with great fury. No snow at 6300 feet...but the mountain tops might be snowy. I've not been outside to take a look at them...it's too cold.

Relaxing on the porch does not happen in the cold. Listening to a book on the porch does not happen in the cold...nor does rock painting. Lunch and dinner on the porch don't happen either. In fact, when it cold, no one really wants to go outside. I did not see the fawns playing around either...it was too cold for them too. I'm guessing their mama was happy as she could keep a closer look on her two lively bambis. I did see one deer laying on the ground which I thought was strange as the ground was wet, but it might have been better than the forest floor. I don't know.

I don't know how much longer the "heat dome" is going to stay over the Midwest, but the weather guessers are thinking a few days. That means we have a few more days of cold, wet weather too. As I've been told many times, you never know what the weather will be like in the Rockies...and that's the truth. Remember, we're in this together.