à nord, sud, de l'est à l'oest

During the last big snow storm Beth and I managed to get out of the house. We wanted to go see a movie and were headed to the Ritz but realized en route that they were closed. Weak. It always amazes me that AT&T has such a good signal down in the subway.  Instead of the eastbound transfer to the El we made the westbound transfer and headed for the Bridge in West Philly. When we got off the train everything along 40th St. was closed. We crossed Chestnut and all the Indian and Thai places were also closed. My heart was sinking.  I was cold, hungry and was not looking forward to going back home empty handed.

Then we saw people going in and out of Fresh Grocer and we noticed that Marathon Grill was open. I looked down Walnut St. to see that Capo Giro was still open! (I will destroy some gelato regardless of the weather.)  The Bridge was open but the only movie either of us wanted to see was Avatar. We missed the previous one by 30 minutes and the next one didn't start for 2 hours.  I made a quick phone call over to Local 44  and the guy said, "yeah, kitchen is open. we're on our regular schedule."

That was my first visit there. I was pleasantly surprised because, for some reason, I was thinking that their menu wasn't very veg. friendly.  I had a great stew and Beth got the veggie spring rolls and a veggie burger. I don't like to drink too much before a movie (especially a long one like Avatar) because then I have to get up 3 or 4 times to go to the bathroom. I also didn't want to watch a 3-D movie with a buzz. I went with a Yard's Brawler and followed it up with a PBC Joe Porter.  Overall the decor and vibe of the place reminded of the Royal Tavern . On the other hand it felt open and airy. The high ceilings and big windows of Local 44 take away the "big hallway" feeling I get at Royal Tavern.  It's a cool place deserving of the hype.

Avatar was a good movie deserving of the hype.  That was the first time in at least 15 years that I've seen a 3-D movie. I think it made for a better experience overall but after the first 90 minutes of the film it became harder and harder not to notice the large, heavy and uncomfortable 3-D glasses perched on my nose. The special effects were superb. I normally notice when it's used right away. The lines between what was shot live and what is CGI are so blurred with the characters that you don't notice when it's used anyplace else in the movie.

I had heard a lot of talk about the anti-imperialist narrative of the story.  I felt like it alternated between hitting you over the head with anti-imperialism and hitting you over the head with anti-industrialisation. But I also noticed that throughout there was a much more subtle narrative (intended or not) that had a far stronger message about environment, economy, family, community and the notion of nations and states.  After sitting on the idea for a few days I've come to think that a lot of big budget productions are like that so they'll have that mass market, black/white,  good vs. bad,  Hollywood appeal.  So the dudes who want to see a shot-em-up, action/adventure film get what they want and the people who are looking for a movie with a message get what they want.

It was an adventurous day. We went out at 2 pm, while it was still snowing, and didn't get home 'til after 9 when all was quiet and unplowed.

The next morning we got up early and had brunch at Green Eggs. Most of their savory side had meat as a major or minor ingredient and didn't want to mess with "can you hold the sausage ?" for a first meal so I just ordered the stuffed french toast. Holy Crap! Stuffed with ricotta and blueberry and friggin' delicious. Beth had the equally delicious pancakes topped with blueberries, strawberries and creme anglaise. We got there before 11 so we were seated right away. It seemed like a bit of a wait before someone came to the table but once we ordered we were served relatively quickly and otherwise had attentive but unobtrusive service.