By Tom Lutzenberger eHow Contributing Writer

Grease traps are an integral function of any commercial kitchen that produces significant amounts of food. They are required by local and state food service regulations and prevent municipal plumbing systems from clogging up and failing. However, grease traps are messy systems and contain a number of inherent dangers for both users and the immediate environment.

Why Grease Traps Are Required

1. City plumbing systems early on failed when large amounts of grease and sediment were poured down drains. Grease, fat and oil only stay in liquid form when hot, and when put in contact with cold water the material clumps up into a jelly and sludge form. With enough sediment, the sludge can form a strong enough plug to back up a drain pipe, particularly in cold climates.
   A grease trap is installed within the drain plumbing of a food facility and catches large amounts of grease, oil and fat so they don’t continue down the plumbing system and into the municipal drains.

   General Personal Dangers

2. Given the type of material that needs to be caught, grease traps include a lot of metal parts in their construction, including heavy lids and sharp edges. Grease traps have to be cleaned out on a regular schedule, or they back up and fail. Cleaning employees should always wear thick utility rubber gloves when cleaning. Failure to do so risks gouges and cuts from the internal trap parts. This then exposes the open wound to all the dirty water, grease, rotting food and other material in the trap. Infection from bacteria entering into the wound is very possible.
   

   Handling the Trap Cover

3. Many large capacity grease traps come with large, metal lids which can be very heavy. They usually sit on a rubber gasket so the bad odors of rotting material in the trap don’t escape and stink up the immediate area. Improper removal can damage the gasket.
   Due to the weight, lids can slip and be dropped on feet or on fingers. The weight is enough to cause serious damage.

   Temperature and Spillage

4. Hot grease and cold grease both have their inherent dangers as well. Hot grease will easily burn skin and can be present if the water running through the trap is hot at the time or if the grease had just been used for cooking. Cold grease is very thick, traps hard material, and can easily rip plastic bags when removed. Spilled grease and fat can make an immediate floor area slippery and prone to falls if not immediately cleaned up.
   

   Overflow

5. Spillage and accidental flow outside of the grease trap can happen frequently if the trap is not closed properly after cleaning. This type of situation will immediately cause a health hazard to the surround area and, if seen by a health inspector, will temporarily shut down a restaurant until rectified. Many times the overflow occurs because the re-installation was not done correctly. Regular monitoring of grease traps and keeping a log of the last cleaning service will catch this problem early and/or avoid it.

Grease is a musical set in the 1970s of two teenagers who fall in love over the summer holidays, good girl Sandy and cool guy Danny. But when they unexpectedly find they are at the same high school, will they be able to rekindle their romance as they seem so different there. Sandy becomes friends with the pink ladies but not truly getting in with the group, mean while Danny is top dog of the group T-birds. There’s many laughs along the way but with a very simple and realistic story to follow, and of course the songs. Many of which are well known now, such as “Grease Lighting” and “Summer Loving”. At the end of the film after many hiccups of trying to ‘get together’ both Danny and Sandy end up making sacrifices but finally coming together happily ever after in the end.

Grease is definitely a must see chick flick film. It brings a smile on your face every time you watch it and has definitely got to be one of my favourite films, as you can really get into it and the songs are so catchy. I love the story and the time its set in is amazing with all the bright 70s clothes and seems so fun; it would be nice to see how it would react in today’s society. There’s never a dull moment and I think its movies like this that are always the ones you remember. I’d definitely go and see it again and would recommend it to anyone.

Sabe aquelas cenas de filme que todo mundo para pra ver? Tipo Matthew Broderick cantando ‘Twist And Shout’ em Curtindo a Vida Adoidado? Pois é, eu sou A pessoa empolgada com essas cenas. Hoje fiquei separando minhas favoritas. Tentei ficar em cinco, mas não deu. Peguei sete.

Algumas dessas nem todo mundo conhece, ou então não liga. A maioria delas minha mãe para pra cantar e dançar junto comigo. Momentos constragedores. A ordem de postagem está de acordo com o que eu fui separando, não tem nenhuma ligação necessária com minha preferência.

1. Curtindo a Vida Adoidado (Ferris Bueller’s Day Off) – Twist And Shout

Todo mundo para pra ver essa cena. Todo mundo.

2. O Poderoso Chefão – Parte III (The Godfather – Part III) – Brucia La Terra

Não é minha música favorita do filme. Prefiro o final, com o intermezzo da Cavalleria Rusticana. Mas é uma música linda, ainda assim.

3. Ruas de Fogo (Streets Of Fire) – Tonight Is What It Means To Be Young

Esta cena contém SPOILERS.

Eu culpo meu pai por ter essa quedinha anos 80. Ele tem vários CDs gravados só com músicas que fizeram sucesso, e eu passei a infância ouvindo. Essa é clássica.

4. Dirty Dancing – Time Of My Life

Outra que todo mundo curte. O vídeo que eu tenho favoritado não pode ser incorporado, e eu fiquei com preguiça de procurar outro, então vou deixar só o link.

5. Chicago – Cell Block Tango

É uma das músicas e coreografias mais bem boladas que eu já vi. O lenço branco para a inocente, o refrão repetido para o assassinato duplo. Muito bom.

6. O Casamento do Meu Melhor Amigo (My Best Friend’s Wedding) – Say a Little Prayer

É a cena favorita da minha mãe, e a gente assiste o filme toda vez que passa só por causa dela.

7. Grease – Summer Nights

Clássico dos clássicos! Outra trilha que eu ouvi a vida inteira.

There’s a reason that one of my dogs is not-always fondly called “Barbecue Head.” During fragrant 45-minute outdoor chicken roasts, she routinely used to peer up the air vent on my old Weber grill, hoping for the occasional dollop of sauce that might slide its way down the side of the kettle and land on her tongue.

More often than not, the sauce hit the top of the animal’s head, right above her eyes. And that is why we have always kept a wet towel next to the grill.

Yesterday, we moved into uncharted territory with both of my two dogs, when my blossoming skill at slowly roasting meats in my new barrel drum resulted in a kind of canine insanity.

Trying to get a leg up on a Texas-themed Thanksgiving, I had spent the day feeding Mesquite chunks to a 200-degree barrel full of pork shoulders and beef ribs. The idea was to cook the meat, cool it, freeze it, and painlessly reheat it on the Big Day.

Despite the fact that winter finally has arrived in Southern California, and it was a rather chilly day, both Red Dog and Lola spent it alertly parked on the cold, shaded patio near the smoker.

As the ribs slowly browned, they melted off a phenomenal amount of grease, which trickled down to a release spout where I had not placed a catch-cup, because none of my previous efforts have required this kind of mess-preventing measure.

Shortly before dusk, I emerged from the kitchen for one of my hourly checks on the smoker temperature. There I was greeted by two dogs that looked like someone had poured candle wax on top of and down the sides of their heads.

There was so much cold, congealed fat on their craniums that all I would have had to do to fashion both of them with striking Mohawk hairdos was just start working the fur to the center of their heads with my two hands.

This god-awful mess apparently was created by the two beasts working in tandem, taking turns lapping at the dripping grease, none of which made it to the shelf below the spout on the drum.

Normally, these dogs sparkle. They clean themselves like cats, and almost never receive baths, the latter of which always have been provided by a veterinary assistant on those rare occasions when the dogs are boarded for a weekend or so.

Not so this Saturday. With the sun and the air temperature rapidly plunging, my little nuclear family grabbed bottles of Dawn Detergent – it’s what animal experts use to clean oil-slicked birds – and armfuls of garage towels. After snapping on a pair of latex gloves, I began squeezing off the hardened fat, and then scrubbing Lola down while my husband kept her gripped on a leash and used a washcloth to block sensitive ears and eyes from soapy liquid.

My son really had the worst job. For about 45 minutes straight, he had to methodically cross the backyard and march in and out of the kitchen, filling up and delivering warm gallon buckets of water, like “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.”

This story does not end with large damp dogs still smelling of smoke and old mohair sweaters.

Before all of us ran inside to change into dry, warm clothing, my husband suspended a Styrofoam cup below the barbecue barrel, to trap grease that might still be dripping.

A bit later, a friend came by to claim a pork shoulder that I had been promising to him all summer. His timing was superb. An insta-read meat thermometer had just clocked the smallest roast at a perfect 185. As my friend and I discussed the merits of the barbecue sauce I had simmering in the kitchen, I caught a flicker of movement out of the corner of my eye. Red Dog had slithered silently out of the dog door, after which she had gently removed the Styrofoam drip cup with her teeth. As I slowly turned around, I saw her happily begin to lick the grease that had begun to drop onto the shelf below.

 Written Scripturez by Grease

2009 (16 tracks, 1:02:57)

hip-hop/rap

My car smells of fast food grease. I have bags from Steak N’ Shake, McDonald’s, Firehouse Subs, and Bagel King. I have roughly ten water bottles thrown around my car, alongside some empty halloween boxes of milk duds. My car is a mess and I don’t mind it too much. My room isn’t any better. I have a plate with dried up macaroni and cheese that has been in my room for two weeks. I have clothes that have been thrown on my bed straight from the dryer that I’ve been sleeping by for two weeks. The dishes have been sitting in the dishwasher, cleaned and dried for a few days now.

I haven’t bought groceries in over a month. I have yet to dump out and throw away my milk that expired around two weeks ago. I have cream cheese but no bagels. I have jelly but no bread or peanut butter. The only thing I have that can be lumped into one of the food groups is oatmeal, and it isn’t even the healthy kind. My food supply is so low and my lack of motivation to get groceries is gone. I’ve adjusted by eating one to two meals a day, somehow obtaining food via drive-thru or hanging out with friends.

I am only home to sleep , shower, and get things when needed. What is the point of a home if I don’t use it to its full potential. I shouldn’t be spending money to live somewhere, perhaps. I don’t have cable and I feel myself leaning towards removing Internet at the end of the month. I have an Xbox 360, but I am giving it to my brother when I go home. I am trying to rid of all pointless concepts in my life that won’t better me in this world.

live mobile, be free.

1. El Fantasma de la Opera

Productor(es): Andrew Lloyd Webber

Primer estreno: 1986 en Londres.

Precios ganados: 3 “Olivier Awards” (Mejor actuación en un Musical, Musical del año, Mejor Musical) en 1986,7 “Tony Awards” (Mejor Musical, Actor Principal en un Musical, Actriz Protagónica en un Musical, Director, Escenografía, Vestuario, Iluminación) en 1988, 7 “Drama Desk Awards”, 3 “Outer Critic Circle Awards” (Mejor Musical, Mejor Diseño, Mejor Actor) y 4 “Drama Critics Awards” (Mejor Actor, Mejor Escenografía, Mejor Vestuario, Mejor Iluminación).

Producciones: La obra ha sido traducida en varias lenguas y presentada en más de 20 países del mundo, entre ellos México, Brasil, Argentina.

Sinopsis: El fantasma de la Opera es un joven genio de la música, que vive en los subterráneos de la Opera de París. Durante algún tiempo se ha dedicado a horrorizar a los artistas y empresarios del teatro, pero con el cambio de propietarios del lugar todos esperan que la situación cambie. Misteriosamente un telar cae sobre Carlotta , la diva de la compañía y ésta renuncia. Su lugar es ocupado por una bailarina desconocida de nombre Christine, que ha tomado clases de canto con un desconocido a quien llama el Angel de la música e impresiona a todos con su voz. Ahora empieza una compleja trampa de amor entre Christine, el Fantasma, que ella descubre ser su Angel de la música, y Raoul, un viejo enamorado.En la rapresentación final, en la que Christine es la protagonista, el fantasma rapta la joven y se enfrenta sucesivamente con Raoul, que al final logrará escapar con su querida.

Canciones más famosas: Piensa en mi, El espejo, Musica en la oscuridad.

¡Mira aquí un trozo de este Musical!

2. Cats

Productor(es): Andrew Lloyd Webber

Primer estreno: 1981 en West End Theatre (London).

Precios ganados: 2 “Olivier Awards” (Best New Musical y Outstanding Achievement of the Year in Musicals) en 1981; 7 “Tony Awards” (Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, Best Original Score, Best Costume Design, Best Lighting Design, Best Featured Actress(Betty Buckley) y Best Direction) en 1983.

Producciones: Después de su enlace en Englaterra, el musical gana notoriedad en todo el mundo (EE. UU., Hungría, Japón, Australia, Francia, Mexico, Argentina, China, Taiwan, Tailandia, Noruega, Oslo, Suecia, Italia, Brasil).

Sinopsis: La historia contada en CATS se desarrolla en un depósito de chatarra y siempre de noche. Se tiene que decir que este mucical es casi sin trama: solo encontramos a unos gatos que presentan al público los otros gatos. Todos los gatos se llaman “Jellicles” y una vez al año hay el “Jellicle Ball“, que es una noche muy especial por que todos los gatos “Jellicle” se reunen en el depósito y bailan por toda la noche abajo la luna llena. Hay un antagonista en esta historia y es Mcavity, un felino criminal, que ententa derrotar la fiesta de los Jellicle.

Canciones más famosas: Memory.

¡Mira aquí un trozo de este Musical!

3. Les Misérables

Productor(es): Claude-Michel Schoenberg, Alain Boublil

Primer estreno: 1980 en Paris.

Precios ganados: 8 “Tony Awards” (Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, Best Original Score, Best Performance by a Featured Actor/Actress in a Musical, Best Scenic Design, Best Lightning Design, Best Direction) en 1987.

Producciones: La producción original francesa ha sido traducida y representada en Inglaterra, EE. UU. y en Canada. Tuvo un gran éxito en Inglaterra, así que se puede considerar el musical que por más tiempo se haya representado en el teatro de West End.

Sinopsis: Jean Valjean, es un joven francés que tiene que proveer a la hermana y los hijos de ésta. No teniendo mucho dinero y desesperado por su situación, Jean se ve obligado a robar un trozo de pan. Por este crimen se le condena  a 5 años de trabajo forzado en la cárcel de Tolone, pena que será extendida a 14 años por varias tentativas de escapar. En 1815, a la edad de 46 años y después de 19 años de reclusión Jean está liberado de la cárcel. Una vez salido Jean vagabundea por el sur-este de la Francia y con el pasar del tiempo cae en las viejas costrumbres así que comete  otros robos.

Es aquí que Jean se da cuenta que había errado muchas vezes y que ahora era el tiempo para cambiar vida. Por esto Jean muda en un otro pueblo, esconde su pasado y se presenta como  Monsieur Madeleine. En este pueblo Jean encuentra una mujer que está en punto de muerte y le pide de encontrar su hija Cosette, que había sido alejada de ella. Jean mantiene su promesa: encuentra a la joven y cuando descubre las condiciones en las que ella tiene que vivir, decide raptarla para ir a vivir en Paris. En seguida Cosette se enamora de un joven liberal, Marius, con el cual empieza una platónica pero intensa relación amorosa.

Hemos llegado al año 1832 cuando en París se desarrolla una revolución estudiantil. Marius decide de participar a la revolución, convencido que no podrá estar junto a Cosette. Cuando Jean descubre las intenciones de Marius, corre en su ayuda y le salva de la muerte. Marius y Cosette se casan y asistirán algunos años más tarde a la muerte del viejo Jean.

Canciones más famosas: I dreamed a dream.

¡Mira aquí un trozo de este Musical!

4. A Chorus Line

Productor(es): Joseph Papp (1974-1990) y John Breglio (desde 2006 en adelante)

Primer estreno: 1974 en Broadway (EE. UU.)

Precios ganados: 9 “Tony Awards” y el “Pulitzer Prize for Drama” en 1976, London Evening Standard “Best Musical Award” y 5 “L.A. Drama Critics Awards” en 1977, 2 “Tony Awards” en 2006 por mejor “Musical Revival”.

Producciones: en todos los EEUU y en Australia (Sydney), el estreno se interrumpe entre 1990 y 2006.

Sinopsis: El reparto para una nueva producción teatral de Broadway está casi al completo. Sólo quedan 17 bailarines para escoger. Por ellos esta es la única posibilidad de lograr lo por lo que han trabajado por todas sus vidas y por hacer lo que siempre habían soñado.
Pero antes de decidir quien tomar, el productor les pregunta hablar de ellos mismos. Él quiere saber algo más que sólo el nombre, la edad, la ciudad de donde son. Quiere saber algo personal, algo que ha caracterizado sus vidas.
Así uno a uno los bailarines se presentan y hablan sobre ellos mismos, compartiendo con nosotros sus experiencias de vida.

Canciones más famosas: One, I hope I get it.

¡Mira aquí un trozo de este Musical!

5. La Bella y la Bestia

Productor(es): Linda Woolverton

Primer estreno: 1994 en Broadway.

Precios ganados: 1 “Tony Award” (Best Costume Design).

Producciones: El musical ha sido producido en muchas lenguas y se han hecho diferentes Tours por toda Europa.

Sinopsis: Bella es una joven soñadora que vive en un pueblo con su padre Maurice, un inventor al que muchos consideran un viejo loco . Un día Maurice marcha a una feria de inventores, pero se pierde en el camino y acaba prisionero en un extraño castillo. Bella, preocupada al ver que el caballo de su padre regresa sin él, sale en su busca y al llegar al castillo descubre que su señor es una horrible bestia, pero aún así decide intercambiarse con su padre para salvarlo. Allí conoce a unos objetos que poseen vida entre ellos un reloj, un candelabro, una tetera y una graciosa tacita. Ellos quieren hacer sentir a bella en su propio hogar aunque la bestia la trate con maldad, porque quieren romper el hechizo de la rosa, dentro de toda esa aventura se descubre el amor que se tienen la bella y la bestia. Y luego de una jugada del destino Bella es encerrada con su padre en su cabaña por Gastón, un Malvado que no acepta que una mujer lo rechace. De allí parte al castillo de la bestia con el pueblo enfurecido decidido a matarla. Pero Bella y a su padre pueden liberarse y se van inmediatamente a ayudar a la Bestia. Más adelante se libra una batalla entre Gastón y La Bestia, batalla que gana la Bestia, este victorioso se reúne con Bella,se besan y rompen el hechizo en el que vivían los seres del castillo.

Canciones más famosas: Belle, Be our guest, Beauty and the Beast.

¡Mira aquí un trozo de este Musical!

6. El rey León

Productor(es): Walt Disney Theatrical.

Primer estreno: 1997 en Minnesota (EE. UU.).

Precios ganados: 6 “Tony Awards” (Best Musical, Best Scenic Design for a Musical, Best Costume Design for a Musical, Best Lighting Design of a Musical, Best Choreography, Best Direction of a Musical) en 1997, 8 “Drama Desk Award” (Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical, Outstanding Choreography, Outstanding Direction of a Musical, Outstanding Set Design of a Musical, Outstanding Costume Design, Outstanding Lighting Design, Outstanding Sound Design, Outstanding Puppet Design) y el “Theatre World Award” en 1998.

Producciones: Después del estreno en Broadway, el musical viene producido en Englaterra, Japón, Canada, Alemania, Australia, Corea del Sur, Francia, Sur Africa, Singapore y es conocido en todo el mundo por su escenificación espectacular.

Sinopsis: Simba, un pequeño león, es el próximo rey de la selva, pero un accidente adelanta todo esto, ya que su padre muere al salvarlo de una estampida de animales. Simba, se siente culpable por la muerte de su padre y se aleja de la manada, dejando el trono al malvado león hermano del rey muerto.

Canciones más famosas: Hakuna Matata, El ciclo de la vida, Can You Feel the Love Tonight.

¡Mira aquí un trozo de este Musical!

7. Grease

Productor(es): Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey

Primer estreno: 1972 en Broadway (EE. UU.)

Precios ganados: “Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Choreography” y el “Drama Desk Award for Most Promising Costume Design” en 1972; “Theatre World Award” en 1994.

Producciones: Hay producciones de este Musical en todo el mundo: en 2008 llegó incluso a China.

Sinopsis: Estamos en el año 1959 en la “Rydell High School”, en la que encontramos a un grupo de jovenes, que están viviendo en pleno su adolescencia. Enmedio de todos estos jovenes, está Sandy Dumbrowski, que está nueva en la “Rydell High School”. Después de poco se descubre que Sandy y el líderazgo de la gang de los “Burger Palace Boys”, Danny Zuko, han tenido una breve romanza en el verano antes.
Mientras Sandy cuenta a sus nuevas amigas más los fuertes sentimientos que tiene por Danny, este enfatiza más la fuerte atracción fisíca de su relación. En continuación los jovenes tienen que enfrentar los tipicos problemas adolescenciales: amor, amistades, violencia entre las gangs y también el embarazo de una de las amigas.
Al final, Sandy y Danny superan todas las diferencias y los problemas entre ellos y se enamoran.

Canciones más famosas: Summer Nights, Greased Lightning, We go together, You better shape up.

¡Mira aquí un trozo de este Musical!

8. Mamma mia!

Productor(es): Catherine Johnson

Primer estreno: 1999 en West End Theater (London)

Precios ganados: 1 “Olivier Award” (Best Supporting Performance In A Musical) en 2000, 2 “Drama Desk Awards” (Outstanding Actress in a Musical, Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical) y el “Theatre World Award” en 2002.

Producciones: Este Musical ha obtenido un gran éxito y se han organizado Tours en casi todos los paises del mundo: Canada, EE. UU., Australia, España, México, Países Bajos…

Sinopsis: Estamos en el año 1999, en la preciosa isla griega de Kalokair, donde encontramos al hotel Villa Donna, que regentan Donna, su hija Sophie y su prometido Sky.

A punto de casarse, Sophie, una chica inglesa de 20 años, descubre el viejo diario de su madre y encuentra descripciones de varias citas íntimas con tres hombres: Sam, Bill y Harry. Sophie cree que uno de esos hombres es su padre, y les envía una invitación a cada uno a su boda sin decírselo a su madre.

El día antes de la boda, la madre de Sophie, Donna, comienza a recibir a los invitados en su hotel. Las primeras en llegar son sus dos mejores amigas: Tanya, una mujer rica y tres veces divorciada, y Rosie, una mujer soltera a la que le gusta divertirse.Al ver sus tres exnovios en su hotel, Donna se sorprende mucho y confiesa a sus amigas que los tres posibles padres de Sophie están en el hotel, pero que realmente no sabe cual de ellos es su verdadero padre.

Sophie esperaba que reconocería a su padre en el momento en que lo viera, pero ahora esta más confundida que nunca. Así durante la despedida de soltera Sophie decide que debe hablar con cada uno de los tres hombres por separado. De estas conversaciones sale que los tres creen de ser su padre.

El día de la boda, Donna, después de haber descubierto que todavía está enamorada de Sam, confiesa a Sophie que su padre está en la isla, pero no sabe cuál es de los tres. Sophie, atónita, reconoce que ella les invitó. Los tres dicen que están encantados de ser los padres de la chica. Sophie tiene otra sorpresa reservada para Sky y le dice que será mejor que retrasen la boda y recorran el mundo como siempre habían querido hacer. Al parecer, de nada servirán los preparativos de la boda, hasta que Sam se acerca con la última sorpresa: le pide a Donna que se case con él y ella acepta. Al final, Sam y Donna están casados, y Sophie y Sky realizan un viaje alrededor del mundo.

Canciones más famosas: este musical está basado en las canciones de ABBA como “Honey, Honey“, “Dancing Queen“, “Mamma mia“, “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!“

¡Mira aquí un trozo de este Musical!

Got bored today and decided I was going to go through my parents old vinyl collection.
Only problem was that I didn’t know where they’ve put them.
I went through all the shit in our attic and didn’t find them,
so I headed out in our garage and found them in the attic there.
Unfortunately there’s a ladder to the attic so getting these boxes
down from there AND then get them up the stairs to my room
was a giant pain in the ass:

But it was worth it!
I found a lot of my old favorites I used to listen to as a kid,
like the soundtrack to Grease, Macken and a bunch of old Tintin stories.
I also found the Swedish soccer anthem from 1990(I think).
I can honestly say that I still know all the words to that song,
mostly because it was After Shave that sang the song
and I’m a huge fan of them.

Ate so much grease over the weekend, now I’m sick.  Fried eggs, sausage and beignets for breakfast.  Night before, chicken and dumplings (I made the dumplings because I couldn’t even look at the chicken) and for dessert blueberry milkshakes.  What I’m looking to say is, at my dad’s, I eat very well– and then back here I pay for it.

Sick as hell.  Had no problem waking up at six am because my stomach’s trying to make the rest of me miserable.  As is my cat, spent all night chewing on my feet.  Owwie.

I’ve been some kind of idiot lately– in a clumsy sort of way, I’ve been running into everything.  I’m completely covered in bruises, some that I don’t even remember how I got.   Lost my usually enormous appetite, I think from memories of all of the good food I had over the weekend.

I would kill to have some of my dad’s leftovers.  Yummers.

School.  Ew.  No thanks.  I really don’t want to go, but recently I’ve been missing a lot, and I do kind of want to go to the recruitment concert, because we get to stand around a group of little people and blow music at their faces.

Ah, well, y’know what is no one really says, but probably should because it’s generally good advice:

“The lower you fall, the higher you’ll fly.”

Thanks Chuck Palahniuk.

Some rather similar Chuck Palahniuk quotes for you:

“Maybe we have to break everything to make something better out of ourselves.”

“Only through destroying myself can I discover the greater power of my spirit.”

“The only way to find true happiness is to risk being completely cut open.”

Every year, as the winter weather descends and the nights get longer and colder, I give into a particular urge: the urge to hibernate. I’ll be honest, once it drops below 50 degrees, I lose the motivation to go to the theater to get my musical fix. While others are out enjoying the icy chill and having snowball fights, I like to settle down with my Snuggie, a hot cup of cocoa and a great movie. And I wouldn’t be The Broadway Bostonian if I didn’t partake in a good movie musical occasionally. Movie musicals, like their theatrical counterparts, can be very hit or miss. So I’ve compiled a list of my Top Ten Favorite Movie Musicals. They might not be flawless, but they are perfect for a snowy night in on the couch with some takeout and a nice warm blanket.

#10 – Dr. Horrible’s Sing-A-Long Blog

With a running time of around 45 minutes, Dr. Horrible is really more of a study break musical than feature film. Like most of its fans, I found out about Dr. Horrible when it was released, in three parts via the web, during the summer of 2006. I watched the first segment, a 15-minute clip, the night it came out and eagerly awaited the release of the second and third parts. Despite its short length, creator Joss Whedon accomplishes in 45 minutes what directors of movie musicals fail to do in two hours: he develops characters that you root for and care about. For all of its witty one-liners, Dr. Horrible is just as heart-warming as it is hilarious.

For fans of: Neil Patrick Harris, Freeze Rays and Frozen Yogurt.

#9 – Reefer Madness

No, that title is not a typo. Reefer Madness is a cautionary satire, based on the 1938 propaganda film of the same name. It’s every bit as bizarre and outlandish as its name implies, which just makes me love it more. The movie boasts an infectiously fun score and some of the best casting I’ve ever seen in a movie musical, including Alan Cumming as the Narrator, B-movie star Christian Campbell as Jimmy, SNL star and former Wicked cast member Ana Gastayer as Mae and the utterly adorable Kristen Bell as Mary Sunshine.

For fans of: TV Show, “Weeds”, Mass Hysteria and “Special Brownies”

#8 – Grease

You know you’ve seen it a zillion times, you probably even own it on DVD but you still watch it every time it comes on TV (I do.) Grease is one of those classic movie musicals that defines an era. Danny and Sandy are cultural icons in the vein of Mickey and Minnie, Lucy and Desi, and Carrie and Mr. Big. Grease is the epitome of a good movie musical – it’s fun and frivolous and certainly worth watching if you happen to come across it on ABC Family (not that I have…cough…)

For fans of: the hand jive, pink hair, leather jackets, and good old-fashioned nostalgia

#7 – Rocky Horror Picture Show

Rocky Horror is perhaps one of the strangest movie musicals ever made, but I love it. Having seen the stage show and the insane amount of audience participation that occurs during it, I’m always tempted to yell at the tv whenever I watch it at home, which usually makes me feel like a crazy person. Insanity aside, without Rocky Horror the world would never know the joy of the Time Warp.

For fans of: gold lamé undies and sweet transvestites.

#6 – Dreamgirls

Dreamgirls is the story of a African American girl group trying and their rise to fame in the 1960s. It’s the perfect example of all of the essential elements of a film coming together – the sets, the casting, the directing, the costuming, among other things – to make the book and score (aka the music part of a musical) so much more vivacious. Dreamgirls was a breakthrough moment for star Jennifer Hudson and she won a much deserved Academy Award for the role. Her voice is smooth, warm and undeniably gorgeous and her performance is equal parts heartbreaking and inspiring.

For fans of: Motown, fierce belting and youtube covers of beyonce’s single ladies dance.

#5 – Chicago

I rarely see movies in theaters. It’s not that I don’t enjoy the smell of popcorn or joy of jujubes stuck to the bottom of my shoe, I do love going to movies, but for a broke student it’s just too expensive. I mean a show comes along once in a lifetime, for a few weeks, whereas I can wait for movies to come out on tv or come to cable. Chicago is one of the rare movies I ran out to see opening weekend, back in 2002. And it was so worth the $10 movie ticket. I’ve seen Chicago live, and I have to say, I think the movie is better than the live musical. Unlike the stage musical, which I sometimes thinks exacerbates the limitations of working on a stage, the movie turns Chicago into more of a character study than just a movie. The movie musical is nearly flawless and unveiled the amazing vocal talent of Catherine Zeta-Jones.

For fans of: Jazz, fishnet tights and the cell block tango.

#4 – Cabaret

I have two words for you: LIZA. MINNELLI. Cabaret is an amazing music itself, but Liza’s effortless performance elevates what could be a typical movie musical to a cinematic event. Cabaret, which tells the story, albeit subtly, of Hitler’s rise to power, is definitely not a happy-go-lucky musical. In fact it’s kind of a downer, but it’s thought provoking and truly touching and if I had my way it would be obligatory in every WWII era history class.

For Fans of: LIZA! (enough said.)

#3 – Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

Another career defining film, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes skyrocketed Marilyn Monroe’s career to superstardom. Many people don’t know that Gentlemen Prefer Blondes was a stage musical before it was a movie, and a book before that. Regardless of its origins, it’s definitely a must-see classic moment in film history. As a musical, it is perhaps less effective – it’s not really the standard book-musical, bit nonetheless, the music is catchy, the dialogue is witty and no one can deny that Marilyn was a true star.

For Fans: Diamonds, diamonds, diamonds.

#2 – Wizard of Oz

Another diva-heavy movie, the Wizard of Oz launched Judy Garland’s career (and somewhat by extension, Liza Minelli, her daughter’s). Like a slew of others on this list, Wizard of Oz is a true classic. My favorite memory of the Wizard of Oz comes from my brief stint at summer camp, when I was eight. I played a flying monkey in a production of the show. After our record breaking (for Camp Lohikan) two-day run, the entire cast and crew piled into the gym, and watched the Wizard of Oz three consecutive times. Now, I know I was eight, but I still think that’s a testament to its greatness – it’s just one of those movies you can watch repeatedly and it’s still as awe-inspiring and entertaining as it was the first time.

For fans of: yellow-brick road, flying monkeys, plaid.

#1 – West Side Story

My first exposure to West Side Story was just last year, when I saw the Broadway revival. Before that, I had listened to the music, but I held out on watching the movie. I figured that the experience of seeing it onstage with the original choreography would be worth the wait. Ultimately, I found the current revival a little lackluster. After seeing it, I went home and immediately watched the movie and I was riveted from start to finish. It’s an absolute gem and the performances by its leads, particularly the effervescent Natalie Wood as Maria, are incredible.

For fans of: America, the Jets, the Sharks, Peace.

What movie musicals make your top ten list?

Not sure I agree with this image of the new windows OS.

[Gizmodo]

Dear Readers. I have created this soon to be fabulous blog in order to share my feelings about the msot wonderful world in our universe: Theater and Performing Arts. Wow! Just the name makes you want to get up onto a nice big stage in an oversized auditorium and sing “La Vie Boheme”! If you’re out there, and you are a true thespian, you’ll know how it feels to be pushed aside as having a wothless meaningless passion. People now a days seem to think that theater is just something to be taken lightly, and would rather just sit alone at home and watch a movie. Do they not realize that if Theater never existed, their pressious movies and tv shows would not exist? Theater is the basis of so much of what our culture is today, and if you agree with anything i am writing while in spanish class, I URGE you to follow this blog as you would your favorite bestseller on broadway!

Have you ever felt like you could have just made a TV commercial with your endorsement or comments about a product that you liked?

I find myself doing that all the time when I tell friends about something I have just discovered especially when it is helpful and useful and makes life easier.

(It’s rather a long time since I created a post….I’ve been renovating my kitchen and downstairs powder room.  I’m pleased to say that it’s all done and I’m lovin’ it.)

So why the embarrassment?  Well, it wouldn’t have been so bad if it had just been some unknown painter but it was my brother-in-law who witnessed all of the grease and grime on the top of my cupboards and the objects I had displayed.  Ok, I admit it, I haven’t cleaned up there in about three years….I’m short and I can’t even reach there standing on a ladder.  But….no excuse….just pure disregard for a space I never actually use.

Nothing would touch that grime….my daughter, who is about 5 inches taller than me, got up on the ladder and tried to scrub….household cleaners created little pilly balls of goo, window cleaner did the same, ammonia and water….not any better.

It needed to be cleaned so that the whole area could be painted…clearly, not an easy task.

As a problem solver, I can usually find a way around a difficult situation. Determined, I went to the local Home Depot and scoured the products…carefully reading the labels for something that guaranteed to cut through grease.  I wanted to go Eco friendly but the only product I thought might do the trick was ZEP.  So, about $10 later, I drove home with a little prayer to the kitchen grease god.

Hope

I was absolutely amazed and thrilled!  Just a little spray and the grease just melted.  My brother-in-law used it on the top of the cupboards and the ceiling fan. I used it on the jugs and plates. It worked like a trojan.  We followed the safety instructions, i.e. rubber gloves, well-ventilated area, keep out of eyes, etc. Hard to believe that something, so seemingly inconsequential, could make me feel relieved and happy.

I’m sure my brother-in-law got a little tired of me waxing eloquent about the joys of ZEP.  I am very pleased with the wonderful job he did of painting the walls and cabinets.  The walls are a beautiful, warm Tuscan yellow…the photo doesn’t do it justice.

Wow! All clean and shiny...new countertops, fresh paint, new appliances, and NO Grime!

I don’t know where you can find ZEP where you live but don’t give up if you have a similar situation.  I’m sure there is a product made just for you.

Yes to Zep!

Welcome to LIBTYFI.  Here you will find details, miniscule and mammoth, about my conversion to the GreaseLife.  You may be asking yourself, “Self–Why would Adam do such a crazy thing?”  5 simple reasons, my friends:

• Simplicity–Who wouldn’t want a fueling station at home? (side effect:  less temptation to buy an M.T.O.)
• Independence–Provided PennDOT doesn’t squash my idea, my license plate will read:  FU-XON.  ’Nuff said.
• $$$–Gas ain’t gettin’ cheaper, folks.  Editorializing alert #1! While electric cars should be top priority, they’re not.  Even if everyone had one tomorrow, where are we going to get the electricity from?  In an ideal world, we wouldn’t need to burn anything to move us from A to B, but until a cheap and mass-producible solution exists–bring on the grease!
• Carbon Neutral–Am I burning something?  Yes.  But did that something engage in photosynthesis prior to its combustion (recently)?  Also, yes.  I only advocate the use of WVO for transportation, however.  What does that acronym mean?  WASTE Vegetable Oil.  Editorializing alert #2! Using valuable land to grow food for fuel is about as dumb as <<insert favorite dumb-related metaphor here>> (see effects of corn-based ethanol on food prices).  Ideally, we wouldn’t eat deep fried anything, and we’d all be healthier and happier.  But until that happens, there are about 2-3 BILLION gallons of this stuff generated in the U.S. per year.  That’d make a nice dent our carbon footprint, eh?
• IT’S SO COOL!!–When I tell people what I drive I usually get a “Huh?” immediately followed by a “WOW!”  The geek-factor is simply too much to pass up.  But I drive a late model Jetta with all the bells and whistles of a modern car (unlike some Greasers who go the old Benz, or similar, route) to show people you don’t need to make too many sacrifices to do something positive for the planet.  Making these “green” modifications to our lives needs to prove accessible AND easy, or they simply won’t catch.

So, until next time (when I’ll hopefully be able to post pics of me IN the aforementioned late model Jetta),

Grease On,

Adam

it’s been a crazy week for me.. *whew!* gosh… just got the part of Rizzo in the musical movie “Grease”… i don’t like playing as the main villain… but anyway, i’m loving it.. :evillaugh!: haha…. also my loving friend just turned 14 this day.. happy my loves!! i love you guys.. ahaha!! it’s crazy being a third year student.. but it’s fun.. although i thought of giving up because of so much paperworks and such.. novel analysis to be exact.. and ohh by the way, have you guys read a novel entitled ‘Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman’? well it is written by Haruki Murakami.. (a japanese novelist) his works are always tranlated cause they’re so damn good!! try reading it.. it’s fun!!

Onions go in 75% of the meals that I cook on a regular basis.  So at the back of my mind, when I’m in the produce section of a grocery store, I usually have a mental picture of exactly how many onions are currently in the bottom vegetable drawer of the fridge.  Lately that picture has become foggy… and I bought more than were necessary at any given time.  There were two full red-net bags glaring at me through the plastic drawer every time I opened the fridge. 

THEN, last Saturday I decided to buy produce in bulk from Bountiful Baskets, a local co-op where you get fresh fruit and veggies at a local park at 8 a.m….. and you have to bring your empty laundry basket in order to transport them all home.  (Of course I forgot mine!)  It’s $15 and well worth the “ugly wives club” trip early Saturday morning.  Last week there was an Italian focus…. hence…. MORE onions. 

So this morning I announced that I was going to make onion rings for the first time in my life.  The kids are used to off-kilter announcements, so no one really got excited or alarmed.  My daughter did ask, “Why?”   “There are probably 20 onions in the fridge and we need to use them up.”  She proceeded to tell me that she had recently learned about exaggerating and saying-what-you-really-mean in her writing class, and SURELY there weren’t 20 onions in the fridge.  I thought there might actually be 20, so I counted.  She was right.  I exaggerated.  There were only 17.

On with onion ring production.  I sliced.  I cried.  I sliced some more.  I cried some more.  Austin assisted me in making the batter and Larisa stood by while I scooped lard into the electric frying pan.  She was beyond grossed out.  I questioned, “Didn’t you know what FRIED food means?”  But, alas, the lard before her eyes brought fast food to a new and grosser level than ever before. (Good!)

The golden rings of grease were actually quite tasty, but not as good as the ones at Sonic, according to my youngest son.  (Then stop eating them with two hands full!)  I have not deep-fried anything for years…. maybe 10 years.  It is pretty disgusting.  Moving on, my son commented, “They are good, Mom, but they taste like they aren’t good for you.”  Both Rick and I said simultaneously, “You mean the grease on your lips?”  hahahahaha!

I informed that family that I had used fresh onions (a VEGETABLE!) and whole wheat flour and skim milk for the batter…. so they ARE good for you.  They ALL rolled eyes at me… their very own mother!

We’re having French Onion soup for lunch and then grilled onions for dinner.  It makes me feel so healthy and my sinuses are clear!

     When I was traveling on the road over this past weekend, I certainly had my fair share of gas stations, that’s for damn tootin’ sure. Since I seem to have the world’s smallest bladder, I unfortunately had to make many stops along the way.  I tried to be selective when picking a facility to visit, but sometimes when Mother Nature comes a callin’, you just gotta do what you gotta do, even if that means peeing in a filth-ridden shitcube.  

     There are certain gas stations that I try to avoid at any possible cost, no matter how badly I may need to pee.  For example, if I see any sign whatsoever that a filling station serves some sort of fried chicken or the like, I simply cross my legs and keep on driving. There’s nothing I hate more than walking into a place smelling all good and clean and coming out smelling like the bottom of a freaking deep frier.  That crap gets stuck in your clothes, in your hair, and even in your damn skin. I mean, if I’m gonna smell like a big old bucket of KFC, then I’d at least like to have eaten a friggin’ leg or two.  The absolute worst, though, is when you’ve thoroughly checked the building’s exterior to make sure there’s no indication of fried food being served on the inside, only to have your nostrils bitch-slapped by a blast of stale grease when you walk through the doors.  I think there should be a law that requires such places to post a very visible outdoor sign that says, “We smell like ass.”  

     Once I’ve found a joint that finally seems to be acceptable, it’s anyone’s guess what the conditions of the restrooms are actually gonna be. You know you’re in for a nose-holding-pee-as-fast-as-you-possibly-can-and-get-the-hell-out-of-there experience when you walk into a stall and see shit smeared on the wall behind the toilet.  That’s never a good sign of cleanliness.  And you know you’re gonna be skipping the whole soap process when the only thing around is a lathered up bar on the sink that has a long, black hair stuck to it.  And if you’re lucky enough to find a bathroom that does have a dispenser of soap, you often discover that the only thing to dry your hands with is one of those rolling cloth towel contraptions that’s stuck to the wall, in which case you have to just go with the air dry method cause God only knows what’s been rubbed on that cloth.  

     The gas station bathrooms that totally crack me up are the ones that try to disguise their nastiness by hanging some stupid-looking basket of fake greenery above the mirror or by setting a silk bouquet of flowers by the sink or by hanging a watercolor “painting” of the beach on the wall or by setting out a jar of putrid-smelling potpourri. Look fools, you ain’t kidding nobody with those sad little decorations. It’s still glaringly obvious that you need to get some Ty-D-Bowl cleaner up in there and go to freaking town.  Those toilets don’t clean themselves, ya know.

     If at all possible, I usually prefer to stop at a restaurant instead, since their bathrooms tend to be a little more tolerable.  However, those aren’t always a safe bet either.  It really is a total crapshoot (pun intended) when you’re out on the road.  It’s better to just hope for the best and expect the worst cause finding a clean, non-smelling one is like finding a navy blue sock in a drawer full of black ones.

i set out to write today about how eternally annoyed i am by the movie grease.  like… everyone loooves that movie and i just don’t get it.  mainly i hate how it bee-bops around while attempting to sneak in these random heavy themes (unprotected sex and unwanted pregnancy?  i’ve got a great idea – lets sing and dance around).

upon further reflection i realized, however, that grease doesn’t qualify as a ’tish… bd’ but rather a ‘tesh… bd’  (‘things everyone should hate… but don’t').  another day.  another topic.

anywho when i think about grease i’m reminded of something that (and i’ll admit this is totally irrational) annoys me equally as much: the fifties.

first off: any decade that rolls around touting itself as “fabulous” needs to be taken down a notch or two.  and while, sure, in that span of 10 years there were a number of things that were truly great (hey, i’ve got nothing against the polio vaccine) the majority of what the whole of the decade conjures up pretty much bugs.

lets be more specific.

1.  poodle skirts.  are you kidding me with this?  a dog on a skirt?  what are we, five?

2.  sock hops.  this term always bothered me as it seemed way to cutesy for me to handle and it got a million times worse when i googled it and read about its origins.  umm… a gym full of sweaty teens dancing/hopping around in smelly socks?  i’d rather stay home.  thanks.

3.  rock-n-roll songs about how rock-n-roll is totally good times.  examples include: ‘jailhouse rock’, ‘rock around the clock’, ’shake rattle and roll’, ‘rock-in robin’ and ‘jingle bell rock’.  we get it.  you’re fired up you “invented” rock-n-roll.  lets move on.

4.  shiny new automobiles, loud motorcycles and drag racing.  anything that involves motor vehicles and antics i’m not a fan of.  ’nuff said.

5.  the drive-in restaurant.  so hmm… what is one of the top health problems in america today?  whats that?  obesity?  and where did americans begin to learn its okay to devour fast food while being so lazy you don’t even get out of your car?  thanks for the legacy, FIFTIES.

am i totally out of line?  sorta.  but you’ve gotta admit the fifties aren’t as fun and fancy-free as we’re led to believe.  not convinced?  maybe next week i’ll do a fifties-follow-up about rampant consumerism, suburbia and the decline of the public transit system.

go ahead.  dare me.

Travoltas Use Family, Religion and Therapy to Cope With Jett’s Death.

Travoltas Use Family, Religion and Therapy to Cope With Jett’s Death

PRINT | E-MAIL More

The long road to emotional recovery has been a difficult process for the Travolta family after the tragic loss of their son but they are improving.”We’ve been working very hard every day as a family to heal,” said John Travolta in his first interview (with USA Today) since his son Jett’s death. “We partake in spiritual counseling pretty much daily,” said his wife Kelly Preston. Jett Travolta died after a seizure at the family home on Grand Bahama island in January. He was 16.

The family has re-introduced itself to the spotlight in promotion of daughter Ella Bleu’s new movie. ‘Old Dogs,’ a comedy scheduled for release on November 25th, will be her feature-film debut. “We decided it was OK to come out and promote, to introduce her to the world and to give her a beautiful future in film,” said Travolta. “We have our own way of doing it, and it has been helping,” he added.

“It’s a tricky thing. Sometimes, something that’s right for the moment is not right the next day,” said Preston. “Being with people who are important to you, being with people that you love, I think that’s what has primarily helped us the most. Sometimes, being alone, too,” she revealed.

Travolta revealed that coping with his beloved son’s death is a daily struggle. His wife added that the “outpouring of love from, really, worldwide has been extraordinary. It’s been our friends, our family, our church.”

The Jett Travolta Tragedy

Getty Images

13 photos

Kelly Preston, seen here with her late son Jett and daughter Ella, was set to speak in October about dealing with the loss of her 16-year-old boy, but pulled out of the engagement.

(Note: Please disable your pop-up blocker)

http://xml.channel.aol.com/xmlpublisher/fetch.v2.xml?option=expand_relative_urls&dataUrlNodes=uiConfig,feedConfig,entry&id=769332&pid=769331&uts=1257793341

http://www.popeater.com/mm_track/popeater/movies/?s_channel=us.moviespop&s_account=aolnews,aolsvc&omni=1&ke=1

http://cdn.channel.aol.com/cs_feed_v1_6/csfeedwrapper.swf

The Jett Travolta Tragedy

Kelly Preston, seen here with her late son Jett and daughter Ella, was set to speak in October about dealing with the loss of her 16-year-old boy, but pulled out of the engagement.

Getty Images

Getty Images

//

The painful loss has been worsened by a legal case involving a paramedic and Bahamian senator who stand accused of extorting $25 million from the Travoltas with information about Jett’s death. The original case ended in mistrial last month and a retrial has been ordered. Neither Travolta nor Preston gave comment.

Hollywood A-listers have lent the grieving family emotional support. “I just wanted to say I’m sorry, that a lot of people have been thinking about them,” said Denzel Washington. “Above everything else, John is a family man,” he added. Washington and Travolta starred in ‘The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3‘ this summer. “You need your friends a lot in times like that,” John said thankfully.

According to Musicalverse these are the Top10 Musicals for this week.

• Wicked – Book Tickets
• The Lion King – Book Tickets
• Priscilla Queen Of The Desert – Book Tickets
• Avenue Q – Book Tickets
• Dirty Dancing – Book Tickets
• Sister Act – Book Tickets
• Oliver! – Book Tickets
• Grease – Book Tickets
• Les Miserables – Book Tickets
• Blood Brothers – Book Tickets

See full post here

Kerosene Lamp

Kerosene is a kind of oil that is used as a fuel for jet engines and for burning in lamps and in stoves—especially camping equipment—for lighting or cooking.

Most kerosene comes from petroleum, the oil that comes from oil wells.

Petroleum is a mixture of many materials.  Separating petroleum into its many parts is called refining” it.

At an oil refinery, the petroleum is heated until the kerosene part changes into a vapor.  The hot kerosene vapor is drawn off and condensed back into its liquid form.  The kerosene is processed to make it pure.

Other fuels, such as gasoline and diesel oil are refined from petroleum in the same manner as kerosene.

Petroleum also provides oil and greases for machinery lubrication and asphalts for paving highways.

Kerosene is often called “coal oil” because kerosene was first obtained by refining the oil from coal.

Visual source:  bombayharbor

I bummed High School Musical from the library just to see what all the fuss was about, and I still don’t get it. How did From Justin to Kelly fail and this become so popular?

Reasons to shun HSM include:

• There was no actual musical. Instead, the movie should’ve been called High School Musical Tryouts.
• Vanessa Hudgens is squeaky.
• The songs are not even catchy, which is always oh so important to me, and watching V.Hudg and Zac Efron croon to each other while looking soulfully into each other’s eyes made my butt cringe. Awk-ward.
• Why does everyone care so much that Zefron and V.Hudg want to sing in a school production? Am I that out of touch with high school students that I can’t identify with that in the slightest? In that case, thank Jeez. I just couldn’t buy how invested everyone was in those two wanting to pursue another interest. And why were they losing their shit just because some baller liked to bake cookies every now and then? Get some lives! And how could those two let everyone give them shit for it when the basketball team does a choreographed song-and-dance during practice? Ugh, I can’t believe that premise carried the whole plot.
• The Wakefield Factor comes into effect—V.Hudg and Zefron get the lead roles, no one hates them, the basketball team wins, the brainacs win their brain game, and blah blah annoyingness.

What's wrong with this picture? Let me count the ways.

I wonder if I were eight, I would be into this. Watching the finale, I could picture a prepubescent girl fantasizing about how cool her high school days would be. I felt similarly about Grease then. My pet peeves is people who hate Grease, especially if they’ve never seen it. How can anyone do such a thing? Grease is the word, is the word that you heard, it’s got groove, it’s got meaning. I still have fantasies about strutting out of the crowd in a jaw-dropping outfit, then I’ll snuff out my cigarette with my open-toed shoe and purr, “Tell me about, stud.” EEEEEEEEEEEEE!!! Best line ever!

Sandy, rockin' the casbah, just how we like it.

(But let it be said that I totally hate Grease as a play—there’s no character development and everyone is annoying and corny. For some reason, the play’s plot feels pointless while the movie is all about Danny and Sandy—as it should be! More ONJ and J.Travolta, plz!)

I wish all my last days of school ended like this.

Recently Casey and I were discussing satisfactory relationships in movies/books/etc. where the couples had enough drama going on between them to make them interesting, yet no one effed up so unforgivably bad that if they got together, it would be unbelievable. I am happy to report Danny and Sandy are one of those couples. The give-and-take between the two is equal but not so dramatic that they lose who they are.

I’d now like to share with you a piece I wrote a couple years ago for my 10-issue zine, Pure Mourning, which took place before I believed in capitalization, obviously.  Behold:

danny and sandy: my dream couple when i was but a wee child. nowadays, i still think that a little piece of that fantasy lingers in every romantic relationship that i have. sandy and danny let everyone know that it’s okay to fight and have misunderstandings because you know that they’re meant to be together in the end. it’s the passion in their eyes and in their voices that say that no matter how danny treated her at the bonfire or in the drive-in, it’s just gotta happen. there’s no one else that will do. however, let’s look at this relationship from a standpoint that differs from the lovestruck ideals of my young self, shall we? was it really love?

often i ponder whether or not sandy and danny had sex during their time spent at the beach. young, foolish, and in love, it’s possible that when sandy asks “oh, danny…is this the end?” to which he replies “of course not, it’s only the beginning” that he was referring to the beginning of their sexual relationship, and not just the beginning of the movie itself. what better way to say goodbye than taking a roll on a beach during the setting sun? taking into consideration sandy’s personality, though, she is “too pure to be pink.” in fact, sandy’s abstaining from sex could possibly be one of the reasons that danny was so attracted to her: her pureness was different from what he knew when he was home, groping all the girls with a cigarette dangling impishly from his lip. of course, he told his friends that they “made out under the dock”, but how good is danny’s word? throughout the movie, he struggles to find a place to belong. he molds himself to fit the t-bird mold, but that isn’t the real danny zuko, or else he wouldn’t have been at the beach in the first place. is it possible that danny drove to the beach every day, just hoping for a piece of ass? yes, but not likely. he’s looking for more than a cheap lay; otherwise, he would have been content with the girls who wanted to do him in his own town. he would not deliberately search out a challenge if he didn’t have to.

in actuality, deep down danny is probably a lot like sandy but doesn’t want to let this fact on to his friends. he’s thrilled to see her at the bonfire; some could argue that it was simply surprise, but there was genuine happiness in his voice and his questions. he catches himself, though, when he sees his friends watching, and immediately tries to play it cool. the look of disappointment and shame on his face when sandy runs off is enough to assure us that he is not out to hurt her, but rather he is trapped in between what he has always known and what he truly wants.

SANDY! You can't just walk out of a drive-in!

the lack of physicality between sandy and danny is noted by rizzo, who refers to danny as a “creep” for not laying a hand on her (sandy refutes this, insisting he was a “gentleman”). of course, if sandy’s innocence and sweetness is what draws danny to her, then the ending of the movie is quite appalling, as sandy trades in her sandra dee appearance for smokes and sexy red heels. danny also changes as well, no longer wearing a leather jacket but a letterman’s sweater. this is meant to be symbolic of their love: this is the ultimate compromise as once expressed in an o henry tale as the lovers sacrifice each other’s needs for the other. sandy and danny are willing to shun what they knew and fell into in order to make way for happiness with the other person. throughout the whole movie, they were at odds, unwilling to see the other’s way of life, and at the end, they understand, which shows growth and sacrifice and maturation. danny even tells his friends, “come on, guys: you can’t follow a leader all your lives. you know you mean a lot to me, but sandy does, too. i’m going to do anything i can to get her, that’s all.” he shuns his old way of thinking–conformity–in order to get what he wants.

but there is doubt about all these “sacrifices”. first off, why is sandy’s sacrifice to turn “slutty” for danny? and does danny really meet sandy halfway? they change for the other, but as my colleague joeycoombe points out, “they shouldn’t have to if it’s really love.” coombe also doubts if anyone actually grew up, saying “sandy’s transformation is much more a loss of innocence than it is a maturation.” it seems that sometimes a loss of innocence and maturation would come hand-in-hand, as “innocence” always seems to be mixed with naivety. when sandy comes out in a leather jacket and tight pants, she is maturing into her sexual awakening; joeycoombe reminds, “awakening implies not yet being awake.”

might danny be the one to awaken sandy fully? by the end of the movie, it is still in the process. despite all their problems during their senior year, when they fly off in the greased lightning at the end, it is possible that they are headed toward a life of not necessarily sex but maturation and becoming better people. that, however, remains to be seen, once the director rereads the letter i wrote him when i was five and takes into consideration my ideas for possible grease sequels.

joeycoombe: the sequel should have been sandy and danny traveling the united states in a flying car solving mysteries

So that’s what my college education was for! Blah, blah, girl–Danny and Sandy fly off into sky and live happily ever after and them’s just the facts.

I MUST OWN THESE

grease lightning

This shall be my response to all work-related requests made of me today. Consider this fair warning.

H/t to the Keep Calm Gallery.

1.parade of red blinky lights
SE harrison and 39^th
it takes something
as small
and quieta
as this
to make me feel
like i belong

2. i need to find
another way of saying
spilled across sky
for light
for burning sunset
color of maple leaves
how the great sky spectacle
makes everything
more than ok
how the quality of light
pulls people
out from their houses
standing on street corners
mouths parted
eyes lifted

3. work bingo
we list things that might happen
like:

cut
burn
hair found in food
pull dirty six pan from shelf
jesus pamphlet
saxaphone solo
out of agave nectar
toilet seat left up
kid screaming scared by EXTEME AIR dryer
slumdog millionaire soundtrack

then cross them off
when they do
this hilarity
another moment
of salvation
in the land of grease

4. marea guesses my age
ten years younger
than actual age

5. is there a word
the way the moon
casts the hugest round halo
out from itself?
a word for
how i pull over
in wonder
at the intersection
where a street light
has gone out
11:30something pm
it is only me
and this moon
and its halo
and a few trees
and a telephone wire

life is nothing bigger
than a collection of the little things

6. riding across 28^th ave bridge
spanning freeway
rumblesqueal of freight train
below
another pause
to watch
the sound
a fleet of metal horses
rusting in the joints

6.
laurelhurst movie theater sign
aesthetic arrangement
of neon
three colors
great glow
the moment
the light
goes out