Silverhill's Lair

This journal is now defunct.

My web site is www.silverhillcreative.com

Blog: silverhillcreative.blogspot.com
Twitter: @SilverhillHats
Instagram: @SilverhillCreative
Facebook: Silverhill Creative Millinery

I'll leave old entries up, I suppose ... though in many ways I am a different person now than when I wrote them.

A bit late, but...

I did this meme after 2004, after 2005, after 2006, after 2007, 2008 and 2009. Asking the same questions each year is a good way to show how my life has changed — or hasn't.

( Collapse )

For those movies I first saw in 2009 (not necessarily related to release date):

Guilty Pleasures of the Year:
Valentino: The Last Emperor and The September Issue ... for being that brand of documentary that isn't really educational, more like reality TV in film form. But so entertaining and wonderful to look at.

Funniest Movie of the Year:
I was surprised by this. Easy Virtue. Very funny, but I guess it means I was lacking in good comedies in 2009.

Most Unintentionally Funny Movie of the Year:
I expected 2012 to win this, but the actual winner is ... Knowing. Hilarious!

Most Impressive Acting:
Anne Hathaway in Rachel Getting Married. Not necessarily the best acting I saw all year. But she won me over, where before I thought she was an overrated celebrity who couldn't really act. She did a good job.

The What's-Next? Award (those I can't wait to see more from):
Michael Sheen (because I love him in everything, Frost/Nixon included).

Zoe Saldana (because I've loved her since Center Stage, and Star Trek made me an even bigger fan).

Pixar (because they are unparalleled artists and everything they do is brilliant)

Most Brilliant Comedian:
Bob Peterson (of Pixar). As a writer and a voice actor. He's unfailingly funny.

(If this were for TV, Jane Lynch would win without question.)

Biggest Disappointments (movies I was expecting to like more than I did):
I know I'm very much in the minority: Where the Wild Things Are A seminal book from my childhood, and I found the movie boring and annoying. Great visuals. Too much whiny arguing.

Best Surprise (movies I was expecting to like less than I did and which ended up blowing me away):
Man on Wire. Amazing.
Star Trek. When I can't contain my glee and halfway through turn to Adam to exclaim how awesome the movie is, yeah, it's good.

Most Forgettable Movie
The Hours I watched the whole thing, but I don't really remember anything more about it than I knew after seeing the trailer.

Genre Award
Since I saw only one heist movie this year (Duplicity), this is going award the best documentary. I saw five this year! ... Man on Wire by a long shot! The others were still good, though.

Most Overrated Award
Where the Wild Things Are

Sexiest On-Screen Moment
I know there were some decidedly sexy moments in several of the movies I saw (including Benjamin Button, The Duchess, etc.) ... but since I can't remember them, they aren't eligible.

Winner by default: the kiss between Spock and Uhura in Star Trek.

( Collapse )

My goals for 2010:

Figure out what I'm going to do with my life. (In other words, get out of the limbo with regard to pursuing my dream. I need to either go for it or officially move on.)

Spin fire again.

Play the role of Catherine in Proof (also, in part, because a self-produced show would be my only chance of actually doing a show in 2010 if I'm still in my current job)

Do more creative things. Write, paint, etc.

Get out of debt.

Here are the books I read and movies I saw in 2009. This list does not include books I reread or movies I re-watched (only first-time readings/viewings). It also does not include books/movies I did not finish, books I'm in the process of reading now, children's books, etc. (As you can see, I sometimes forgot to keep track of everything, so there might be some missing.)

* = my favorites from the year in each category.

Books:
Coraline
The Tipping Point
A Breath of Snow and Ashes
Outliers
American Gods*
Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim
Plum Spooky*
Julie and Julia
The Time Traveler's Wife
How I Became a Best-Selling Novelist
(some missing?)
The Mallorean*
Inside Job
An Echo in the Bone

Movies:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Fido
Frost/Nixon*
The Duchess
Coraline
The Reader
Out of Africa*
Bottle Shock
Man on Wire*
His Girl Friday
The Hours
An Inconvenient Truth
Appaloosa
Happy-Go-Lucky
Rachel Getting Married
Duplicity
Iris
Sunshine Cleaning
Into the Wild
Julie and Julia
(some missing?)
Star Trek*
Penelope
Up*
Every Little Step
Easy Virtue
Defiance
Public Enemies
(some missing?)
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
(some missing?)
Taking Woodstock
Knowing
Valentino: The Last Emperor
(some missing?)
The September Issue
Where the Wild Things Are
2012
Pirate Radio
(some missing?)
Invictus
Sherlock Holmes
Up in the Air
(500) Days of Summer

I did this meme after 2004, after 2005, after 2006, after 2007 and after 2008. Asking the same questions each year is a good way to show how my life has changed — or hasn't.

( Collapse )

I was thinking about all the different careers I've wanted to try, what I want to "be when I grow up." There have been a lot of them! And these are just the things I wanted to do professionally (not just as a hobby).

Here they are (as many as I can remember), in roughly chronological order:

( Collapse )

Adam and I watched Death at a Funeral again last night. Aside from being a very funny movie, it also has a female character who's willing to stand up for herself.

Her dad hates her boyfriend. If this were a typical Hollywood female, she would:
a) sneak around behind her father's back, or
b) concoct an elaborate plot designed to change her father's mind and make him appreciate the boyfriend, or
c) break it off with the boyfriend because she just can't disappoint her father like that.

Instead, she tells her father that she loves her boyfriend and is not going to apologize for it. She unwaveringly says dad had better get used to it because she's with her boyfriend to stay. The one time she tells a lie, she does it for the right reasons. And she tells it simply and confidently — instead of the wibbling, overly complicated lies told by typical Hollywood females.

It's most noticeable in romantic comedies, though these qualities appear in other genres as well. Why are women in Hollywood movies such pushovers? She'll be a doctor, lawyer, CEO. She's a strong, intelligent woman. Oh, but she's also nice, which means she'll never say no.

Hollywood
SISTER-or-BFF: I need you to babysit for me on Saturday night.
FEMALE STAR: (freakishly unwilling to say she has a date) I can't. I have a ... dentist appointment.
SISTER-or-BFF: On Saturday?
FEMALE STAR: Yeah...
SISTER-or-BFF: At 8 p.m.?
FEMALE STAR: Um, yes?
SISTER-or-BFF: Well, I'm sure they can reschedule you. I really need you to do this.
FEMALE STAR: ... Okay.
SISTER-or-BFF: Thanks! I knew I could dump on you at the last minute. Byeee!
(later)
FEMALE STAR: (on phone to Male Star) Remember how we had an elegant, intimate, adult dinner planned for Saturday night? How would you feel about spaghettios with a precocious, adorable 4-year-old and a wiser-than-her-years 8-year-old? I can promise lots of wacky high jinks and food-related mishaps that will ironically bring us closer together.

Reality
SISTER-or-BFF: Would you possibly be available to babysit my kids on Saturday night?
REAL WOMAN: You know I'd love to, but I actually have a date on Saturday night!
SISTER-or-BFF: Ooh, congratulations! I guess now I'll have to face the real-world dilemma of either hiring a babysitter or taking care of my kids myself.

That's not to say that real women can never be pushovers or that real women are cold-hearted and always say no. But c'mon, is a woman who's willing to stand up for herself that hard to write?

The somewhat-recent 27 Dresses was filled with the main character hiding her true feelings and gamely doing whatever anybody asked her to do. Ironically, though, it was a less egregious example because they did treat it as a bit of a character flaw.

What I can't understand is what they did in a post-Sorkin episode of The West Wing. Donna doesn't have a place to stay, so she arranges to stay at CJ's. Immediately after they make this arrangement, Josh tells Donna she should stay with him and Danny says he wants CJ to spend the night at his place. These are both previously established strong, modern, independent women! But instead of taking the easy, logical step of telling the truth to the other woman, they choose to suffer in silence.

I read a story about Susan Egan, the original Belle on Broadway, back when Beauty and the Beast was opening on Broadway. For the scene where Belle runs away and is attacked by wolves, she told the writers she didn't think Belle would go back on her word so casually, she must have been really terrified to be compelled to run away. So the writers changed it for her!

That's the kind of thing we should see more of!

I've reached the official goal of $500 — but my real goal is to reach $1,000!!!!

You can donate securely online at: www.aac.org/goto/Kristin-Silverman (Or contact me if you need info on how to donate via cash or check.)

All donations will be matched by my employer, making your contribution double.

To those of you who've already donated, thank you!

People who know me know that I don't like exercise. And, unlike some members of my family, I have not run multiple marathons for leukemia. I haven't done a bike ride, a run, a walk, a jump rope or even a hopscotch for charity.

... But I'm doing one now!

On June 7, I'll be doing the AIDS Walk in Boston with two others from my store. We will be walking as part of Team M.A.C. This is a great cause, and I'm very excited about participating. It's a 10K walk with a suggested fundraising goal of $500.

My official goal is currently $500, though I'd love to raise even more.

Okay, wait. I'll be perfectly honest. I really, really want to raise even more. I'm not generally a competitive person. But I do have a rare competitive streak that comes out from time to time, and it's pretty fiery when it shows up. One M.A.C. participant from another New England store always passes $1,000, and has already raised over $700! Yeah, I'd like to beat that. Or at least out-fundraise as many others as I can. It's my selfish plan for a selfless cause.

No amount is too small! If you don't know me well, maybe you might still want to donate $5.

Also, my company (M.A.C.) will match all donations dollar-for-dollar, so your contribution is effectively double!

Please sponsor me by giving whatever you can.

You can donate online here.

Thank you!