Bright Star and Weekend Travels

Hope everyone enjoyed their weekend. I certainly did. Friday night I went to see Bright Star with some girlfriends. It's the film about Romantic poet John Keats. There's no way Mark would have gone to see that one with me. When he asked me who John Keats was, I told him he was sort of an 18th century literary Hank Williams. Well, they both were brilliant wordsmiths who died tragically while still in their 20s, right? Anyway, I had high hopes for the movie, and while I don't mean to bash it, I must say I was a wee bit disappointed. It was, of course, really sad, but that's almost like going to see Titanic and then complaining that it was sad. If you know the story, you know it's not going to end well, so I was prepared for that. But, the movie was sooooo slow. One film critic called it "restrained," which I suppose means "boring for long stretches with the occasional burst of interest." Also, I didn't find any of the main characters very likable, even Mr. Keats himself! But, since my mama taught me that if you can't say anything good, don't say anything at all, I will say that, in terms of sheer cinematography, it was one of the most beautiful films I've seen of late. It was full of such exquisite imagery, I almost wanted to pause certain frames, take a picture, and hang it on the wall.

Saturday, we drove up to Boone (about two hours north of us) to visit Mark's folks. The autumn leaves are at their peak in the High Country, and it was a gorgeous drive. We spent the night with Kate's Grandbob and Mimi and then came home Sunday afternoon, where we spent the rest of the afternoon taking a short hike and then settling in for an Andy Griffith marathon.

Really a lovely weekend. And yours?