you're so magic

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2:
I am not a Potter fan. I think I finished the first book (or maybe not - cannot remember honestly) and never made it to the second and beyond. I found all the movies to be inferior to the LOTR series (duh), and most of the times couldn't figure out what the heck was going on. Deathly Hallows Part 1 was to me the worst of the lot and bored me silly. Yet, somehow I like these kids and I like the success of the books and the movies and JK Rowling. I like to live in a world where a book series about a boy wizard can capture the mass imagination; it's way better than a world where obnoxious robots and an even more obnoxious Shia Labeouf rule. I like the way these kids grew up, and they all seem to be fine young adults who haven't been destroyed by Hollywood. I predict great things for Emma Watson in particularly. So all this brings me to the finale Deathly Hallows Part 2. It is definitely more engaging and satisfying than Part 1, and is probably the best of the whole series. Harry, Ron, and Hermione have to find and destroy the Horcruxes and then finally face off with Voldemort himself. Along the way, people die, and people grow up, fall in love, face their fears and their fates. Just like real life. The pacing is perfect, and the special effects are...well, magical. And the actors are all like old friends now; they inhabit their roles so comfortably you don't even question them. When it all ends, you do feel as if you are departing from good friends whom you wish the very best for. B+

you're so sweet

Yes Please from Creme Brulee Cart:
I was initially beyond excited at the food truck craze that is happening in San Francisco. I love eating on the street, better yet if the food is on a stick. But then with the more trucks I sampled, the more disappointed I became. Street food should be as street food is in Asia - cheap, unpretentious, unfussy, but mouth-watering and satisfying. San Francisco food trucks generally offer up small portions at restaurant prices. If I have to spend $10 for half a meal, why not just go to a sit-down place? Especially Asian food trucks - come on! But then every once in a while, something restores my faith. On Friday after lunch I saw via Twitter that the Creme Brulee truck was in front of City Hall, so I walked over, stood in line and ordered myself a Yes Please, which is a creme brulee concoction of nutella and strawberries. I ended up eating it as a mid-afternoon snack. And holy moly - YES PLEASE indeed!!! Nutella and strawberries go together like Fred and Ginger - it was kind of like a little magic under a sugar layer. I honestly was sad when I finished it off. It most definitely left me wanting to hunt down the next appearance of the Creme Brulee truck. No, at $4 a pop - it's not Asia cheap, but it's totally worth it. A

Cha Cha from Eggettes:
Cha Cha is a red bean dessert soup with taro, tapioca and a bunch of other stuff in it. Eggettes' Cha Cha is delicious - loaded with ingredients and just sweet enough. They give you a little container of evaporated milk to mix in. By the way, the eggettes and drinks (I like the fruit freezes and the lychee hot milk tea) are also quite wonderful here. A-

you're so mutant

X-Men First Class:
It's my favorite movie of the summer so far. I liked it even more than Thor (which was super fun) and Super 8 (super nostalgic). It's an origin story, of how the X-Men came to be, set against the backdrop of the Cuban Missile Crisis. James McAvoy (as young Professor X) and Michael Fassbender (as young Magneto) are first class actors and have extraordinary charisma and chemistry together. My only complaint is January Jones as Emma Frost - brrr, can her acting be any more...frozen? Too bad this has been the lowest grossing X-Men movie so far. I would love to see more of James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender together. Bryan Singer, who produced, had said that Professor X and Magneto are the Martin Luther King and Malcolm X of comic mythology. I think that's a very appropriate and interesting analogy. A-

you're so granola

Inaugural post in which I rate some sampling from this July 4 weekend:



Tyson Anytizers Boneless Chicken Bites (Buffalo Wing Sauce):
Doesn't taste like real chicken breast meat - the texture is like processed chicken. The buffalo wing sauce has strong kick to it. When prepared by microwave, the chicken bites are somewhat soggy tasting. C


Annie's Organic Berry Berry Granola Bars:
Bland to the extreme. Comes in a box of seven, but each bar is really small. Got it on sale from Target for $2.49 (regular price is $3.69). I guess this will do at work in the middle of the afternoon. C-



Quaker Chewy Smash Bar (Pretzel Berry):
Better than Annie's. The pretzel and the chocolate chunks save the day. The size is slightly bigger than Annie's. Comes in box of eight for $2.58 at Target. B-



Trader Joe's Potato Trio Potato Chips:
I like these since they are unsalted. It's a blend of thick cut Red Bliss, Blue and Yukon Gold potato chips. B+