Random movie March 31st 2017

Spudguns! I got to the cinema and saw The Goon 2-Last of the Enforcers.  A not so little Canadian film.

movie: Goon 2 the Last of the Enforcers
starring: Jay Baruchel, Seann William Scott
genre: Comedy, Drama, Sports,
year: 2017
format: Cinema

plot: After what looks like a career ending injury, hockey player Doug the Thug, finds himself questioning his current state of unhappiness. After watching his hero in a local fighting competition, he decides to come out of  retirement by learning to be a left handed player instead of a right. Meanwhile, his pregnant wife is feeling more and more ignored unaware Doug's going through this mid-career crisis.

Okay, let me add that the star power in this with Kim Coates (Skinwalkers, Innocent Blood, Red Blooded American Girl, The Club) and  Callum Keith Rennie (Hardcore Logo, Blade 3 Trinity, Due South, Twitch City) alone is worth seeing.

The first film in this series, was very gruesome in the fact it was jam packed front to back with fights. This was not. And I appreciated that fact. There was a big fight scene at the end of the film, that actually had me cringe in my seat. Not because of it's gore factor, but because of some of the points of view on the shots. As someone who's had too many broken bones, I tend to find a scene with broken noses and such; hit too close to home...no pun intended.

This film focuses on the "what do I do now?" aspect of this guy's career. Not just the career of the lead character, but how it sort of ripples out to those around him. As we see him get injured and how his team deals with his replacement, and how it in turn creates opportunities for one of his heroes.

Because this is still in cinemas - I don't know if it only got a Canadian release or not- I'm not going to go too deep into things, because I want to keep away  from any real spoilers.   But I have to say, the arsejacking scenes, had me laughing for awhile. And there are a few penis jokes that are done, but so seemlessly, they don't really knock you out of the moment. The raunch levels are acceptable. Some of the gags could have easily over stepped, but they manage to feel natural.

You do get the feeling that this is wrapping up the lead character's story.  There is possibility for a third installment, with the story focusing on either the character of  LaFlamme or the best friend Patrick. The first movie had introduced the character of LaFlamme having a complicated past, and the best friend Patrick having a career as a hockey journalist.  I can totally see a third film dealing with either of those elements.

Coffee talk March 29th 2017

Spudguns! I just ran in for a moment, not even sure why?  Yeah, it's been one of those days today.  Actually, I'm just working on the next installment of The Nosferatu Adventures; and decided to breathe for a moment. I just asked elsewhere on the internet, about the video situation and if for movie reviews on vid; do you guys want me to go full throttle with a costume or anything?  You happy with the current look of my videos? As low tech as they are, do you my Spudguns! care for the over the top Hallowe'en costumed horror hostess idea, or you cruising with the current sitch?  Leave me a comment either here or on my youtube (channel)

Believe it or not, I'm already trying to get organized for October season. For the "13 Days of Hallowe'en 2017". I do believe last year was not as spiffy as it could have been. So, thought I'd try to get something grand planned early.  Let's see how many of the "days" I manage to do justice to? ...do justice for?...

Leave me a comment, letting me know if you've got any movie recommendations. I'm still sort of looking for some new films to view. 

And with that...coffee break

The Nosferatu Adventures s12 p5

The Nosferatu Adventures
page 305, chapter 305

Out of Time...

"Why is he naked again?" Edric asked as he walked into the kitchen, the large tray of take-away coffees and box of donuts in hand.

"Again?" Ruthven questioned nodding towards Arthur. "Try still." he replied reaching for one of the coffees. "He insists that's the way you lycanthropes are meant to be. All naked all the time."

"Well, if you want to do that, go to the basement or something. Better yet, go to your shed. I had enough naked wolftime when I first met Dagan." he shivered. "Pants!"

"You realize you sound just like her right?" Vlad said from the top of the stairs at a volume only Edric and Arthur could hear.

"You make that sound like it's a bad thing?"

"Who are you talking to?" Ruthven asked leaning a shoulder closer to the dark haired hybrid. Edric just hooked his thumb over his shoulder towards Vlad as he entered the room. "Okay for the record, could you guys not do that cause it's freaking me out."

"Yeah whatever." Edric mumbled into his coffee.

"Is the book safe?" Seward asked as he bounced into the kitchen grabbing two of the sugared donuts.

"Which one?" Edric asked opening and closing a drawer with his hip.

"The leather one." Seward snorted back a giggle.

"I hate you right now. Yes, the black one is with Quentin, and the brown one..."

"I thought it was green?" Vlad said from his spot in the doorway of the kitchen, his arms crossed.

"It's brown." Edric replied not looking at him.

"I distinctly remember it being green." the older banshee said holding up his left hand. "Nosferatu carried that thing everywhere with her for over a year when we were together."

"Well, your eyes are colour blind bud, because it's brown." the sandy-blonde hybrid retorted as he now turned his torso towards the ex-husband.

"Guys! I hate to break up this little Angel -Spike moment, but can we get on with it? Really? What does it matter what colour the leather on that old thing was? It's not here, it's safe if you did what you were suppose to." Seward blurted out. The normally hyperactiveness of the youngest member of the group was gone. Leaving in it's place a tone that let everyone know it was time to be more than serious. Ruthven raised an eyebrow at his younger cousin half expecting him to start fumbling in his pockets for his glasses, just the same way their grandfather used to; whenever he was angry. "Did you do what Vlad suggested?"

"Yes. I took The Seer's spellbook out to..."  Seward covered Edric's mouth with his hand not letting him finish his sentence. The hybrid was tempted to bite him, but thought better of it given the situation with Arthur.

"Dude, don't say it out loud. We have no idea what kind of powers The Seer has anymore, or any kind of idea with this new threat. What we calling him?"

"Sorcerer. Edmund Gaerwn. The Seer's family can be traced back to him. I read all about it in Nosferatu's book." Vlad remarked, starting to fill them in on the history of The Seer and his doppelganger.

"So, this spellbook, the one The Seer has...er had...the one we just did what we did with. It's only part of a bigger book?" Arthur asked as he left his seat on the floor of the living room, magick misting a pair of long pants that looked more like ballet tights than actual pants. He held his hands nearly two feet apart vertically, then added another foot, so that his one palm was under his nose and the other near his waist. "The one we just got rid of was like a stack of phone books to begin with. You're saying when you add it to the one Quentin has..."

"They are still only parts of it. There are at lest two if not more parts out there somewhere." Vlad added.

"Uh guys, who's that?" Ruthven asked peeking out the kitchen window. Everyone gathered around the little back window, the laced curtain pushed up to expose a man standing in the middle of the backyard. He had raggedly cut off shorts, a leather jacket and a plaid shirt tied around his waist, his hands in his pockets; in an overly casual way. His head tilted to the side allowing his curly hair to fall over one eye. Turning, he smiled towards the group.   A look passed between Edric, Vlad and Arthur. "What?" Ruthven asked getting nervous.

"He has no scent." Edric replied sniffing wildly at the window.

"Which means what?" panic had begun to pinch at Ruthven's throat.

"Either he's a ghost, or...a god." Vlad replied allowing his own voice to drop to a whisper.

"Please be a ghost." the dark haired human said wiping the back of his neck.


Tune in again for another installment of the Nosferatu Adventures starring your heroine...me(straight up story. Dude, I've been writing this for nearly 5 years, and I'm so not going through the whole story to try to remember what colour I originally made The Seer's grandmother's book so...it's a green-brown mix now)
 

What that movie Inspired me to do (Shaun of the Dead)

It's that time again, my lovely Spudguns! for another recipe inspired by a movie. And once again, I'm joining Heather from All Roads Lead to the Kitchen, for her zombie recipes.  But first the movie...

Movie: Shaun of the Dead
starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost
genre: Comedy,
year: 2004
format: DVD

plot: When a zombie outbreak happens leaving half of London, members of the walking undead, two buddies Shaun and Ed, hatch a plan to save their loved ones - Shaun's mom and girlfriend- and hide out in the safest place they can think of; the bar down the street. Their only problem is getting there safely with a pack of mindless flesh eating zombies in the way.

This is the first movie of the Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy (Hot Fuzz and World's End rounding it out) where each film featured a flavour of the brand's ice cream.

The big theme here is taking responsibility and letting go of the past. We see a scene early on, where the two are fighting off a zombie by throwing their record collection at it and just arguing over which records to use. Which is the lighter side of this. A more serious side of the theme comes about midway in the movie when we see Shaun's parents get bitten and he's got to make the choice of trying to save them (his mother hides her bite for awhile, afraid and nearly ashamed of it not wanting to upset him. Much like a patient who knows they are dying not wanting to tell their child) or help them to end their suffering.
This gets repeated later with the character of Ed; who throughout the film, is the metaphor (and sometimes literal) element everyone says is holding Shaun back from being a grown up.

There is a lot of foreshadowing, with Shaun constantly bumping into people in the first few minutes and saying "next time I see you, you're dead". Which of course is the running joke, as everyone then becomes zombies. This is also shown by how everyone around him for the first few minutes of the film are so bored, you would think their lack of energy had already turned them.

I loved the fact this movie is overly ambitious in pointing out how everyone seems to lack any real ambition. It's the curse of the slacker generation X (sadly my own generation) Everyone just seems to have settled into the idea that they either shouldn't bother trying for anything real, or that they don't really deserve anything more than the bit they do have.
I also love the nods to the zombie franchises such as Evil Dead (he's working in a "mart" just like the character of Ash) and the most unassuming anti-hero becomes the smartest guy in the room. I also dug the fact they sort of predicted the zombie craze by the last scene in the film. Having a "zombie tv culture".

And the BBC geek in me was laughing out loud with the appearance of most the cast members from Black Books and Sherlock showing up in the one scene, when they meet up with the second group of survivors.  Dylan Moran already being one of Shaun's crew as David.

Notes: beer, chips, cookies, butter, fish, bottled water, fruit (there is a fruit stand in one shot) pizza, orange juice, toast, jam, tea, milk, apple snapps (mentioned) canned food and sauces, pickles (both in jars in the store scene and his nicname) pasta, pop, meat pies (mentioned) squab, eggs, spices, bloody mary (mentioned) lemons, ice cream, onions, oatmeal, deer, cake, honey, burgers, sandwiches (mentioned) peanuts

Okay, so I took my inspiration this time from few things. 1- the bar and 2- the line "you got a little red on you".  There is a running joke through the movie where Shaun near the beginning gets ink on his shirt and someone points it out, then as the movie progresses, he gets more and more blood on him. So, I decided to make "You've got some red on you" sauce and "zombie skins".






Ingredients for "skins":

Wonton wrappers,
salt,
dried rosemary,

Separate the wrappers, sprinkle salt and rosemary on both sides, place into oven for 20 minutes at 350 degrees

Or, deep fry, in which case you would sprinkle salt and rosemary after they've been fried but still hot



Ingredients for sauce:

diced red pepper,
diced onion,
hot sauce,
tomato paste

Mix all together,

So simple it hurts right...well if you'd like to see me expand on this review by about 10minutes and watch me making a fool out of myself while I fight with the wonton wrappers, then you can click the two videos below.

The Nosferatu Adventures s12 p4

The Nosferatu Adventures 
page 304, chapter 304

Out of Time...

Landin was staring into the coolness of his towel as he continued to dry his hair. The feel of the hallway rug under his bare feet the only bit of security he'd felt in the last few hours. Grounding him enough to allow the bleached blonde a moment to breathe.  That was until the hairs on the back of his neck stood electrified, his pulse beating so rapid he could swear a drum solo was being played under the floor. Moving from the second floor bathroom towards his grandfather's bedroom, the middle Van Helsing cousin found himself choked for air as a powerful hand grabbed him from behind, covering his mouth. He couldn't have screamed if he'd tried. The assailant had him in a death grip, their right arm constricting Landin's upper body. The worst was feeling his neck and shoulder being torn into, the pain blinding enough to drop Landin to his knees.  As he lay then limp on the floor, in what he was sure was a pool of his own blood, he spotted the hidden panel in the closet open. Spotted the broken lid of the coffin.

The pain should have felt worse. The damage his body took should have killed him. But when Landin woke, he found himself bandaged up, in his own bed, a needle in his arm and an series of tubes leading from it to a half used iv bag propped up on pillows beside him.

"Dude!" Seward's voice cracked the silence. "How you feel? You need anything? Water? Can you talk? Ice cream? I've got fudge ripple downstairs...I think if they haven't eaten it all. Or I can get you something else..."
Landin ignored his younger cousin, instead turning to grab the iv bag, holding it to his chest like a rag doll. "Yeah okay, I'm going to go downstairs and get you pudding. Which I'll have to go to the store for first cause we don't have any. Butterscotch or banana? Ruthven likes banana your butterscotch." Seward held up his one hand as he took a half step out the bedroom door. "Just please don't die on me while I'm gone cause...just don't die okay." he nearly ran through the house.

"Yes, I would advise not dying in the next 24 hours at lest." a voice said from the shadows of the room. Turning his head to the right, Landin jumped sending tendrils of extreme pain through his body. The shadows in the corner began to gather together in the shape of Vlad as he uncrossed his arms, moving a step towards the bed. Grabbing the desk chair the dark haired male sat down mire centimeters from Landin's face. His breath warm against his ear as Vlad leaned closer to him. "Unless you want to become undead as your pop-culture calls someone like me."  carefully with skilled fingers so fast the patient didn't feel it, Vlad unwrapped the wound, tilting his head to the side before re-wrapping it. "My blood cleaned your wound of death. Your cousins they called Matilda, but the Familiar could only do so much. It was either my blood which as long as you stay breathing for a few hours, will heal you, or the wolf's blood, which would have sentenced you to a fate worse than...well who wants to be controlled by the moon every month and all those bad hair days."  his lips curved up in a smile that was meant to ease the moment. Landin hugged the iv bag tighter.  Vlad sat back then in the chair, crossing his arms and legs in a bored attitude. "I took the time to look over the casket. I think..." he raised an eyebrow as he nodded. "...I know who bit you. I've seen those designs before. Back in my time. He was  rumoured to be a great sorcerer." he moved his left hand gesturing in little circles, showing a clear distaste for the idea. Or the man himself? Landin couldn't tell from his point of view. "Had covens devoted to him. To his resurrection."   The bleached blonde could tell by the way Vlad was sitting that he was holding back something. Something personal and something very important; at lest to Vlad anyways. "I'm sure you know why it attacked you? Why it waited in darkness, and didn't once it escaped, just run out and start feeding on the rest of the group. It sensed in you the same thing The Seer had that day. It needed your psychic abilities. Your power. That's the thing with a Sidhe. They become so power hungry." the dark haired vampire laughed then at what he considered to be a joke. "Where the sorcerer is his devotees are never far behind. They are who we need to look out for now. Your vault of toys are not safe. Specially the fragments of the books. They can not be brought together. I can only assume in the last few days, they were? Or at lest part of them where? Otherwise, he wouldn't have been woken up."

Landin processed what was being said, and tried to sit up. He fell back down like a stone before making it to a 30 degree angle. The nausea feeling like a ton of bricks in his throat, his skull becoming a drum solo.

"We've already contacted Quentin and told him to stay where he is with his part of the book fragments. And the magickal items your grandfather had collected, they are being taken by the mutts to a different location. Which I must admit, I'm bit jealous about. Your grandfather had spent his lifetime collecting some important toys. I'm sure the covens will be none too happy when they see some of them." Vlad reached his strong pale fingers over checking the pulse of his patient. "This is taking too long." he answered. "We need to speed up your metabolism." Vlad said grabbing Landin's jaw, forcing him to open his mouth before dragging a nail across his palm, allowing one single drop of his blood to fall on the human's tongue. "Good boy." he patted his check in half mocking. "Now you grow up to be big and strong like uncle Vlad." he laughed "The hybrid is going to need your talents if he is to help me get Nosferatu back. And mark my words human, I will get my wife back!"  Vlad got up from the little desk chair silently putting it back in it's spot as he crossed the length of the room. Landin watched in a cloud of pain and confusion as the other male seemed to hover at the doorway, unsure of something. But the bleached blonde swore he'd heard the vampire mumble under his breath  "And my kingdom." before passing out again.


Tune in again for another installment of the Nosferatu Adventures starring your heroine...me(straight up story. Blood, energy, magick. We've got suckers of all kinds leeching up everyone's life)

Coffee Talk March 17th 2017

Spudguns!  It's a Friday 9am EST where I am. Just thought I'd jam in for a second and say, Sunday might be Tuesday  this week.  If you read me much, you know I tend to post on Sundays most of the time. The week got away from me while working on my youtube channel.

I do however, have a "What that Movie Inspired Me to Do" coming up next Friday the 24th. I'm joining in on another of Heather from All Roads Lead to the Kitchen 's challenges. 

That is literally all I had to say.  Sunday might be pushed to Tuesday and I'll have a big heavy post for Friday next week.

Till later...now coffee

The Nosferatu Adventures s12 p3

The Nosferatu Adventures
page 303, chapter 303

Out of Time

Landin gulped a desperate amount of air, as he wiped his left hand down the front of his shirt. Small streaks of blood and grease staining it as he did. Swearing, he then ran his hand over his mouth without thinking, adding sweat to the mixture.  Edric snarled at his friend, already hunched over the broken iv bag.

"Dude! That was so awesome!" Seward said practically bouncing up and down. "I've never run so fast in my life!" the younger of the Van Helsing cousins remarked, as he dropped the second cooler of iv bags onto the picnic table.

"Speak for yourself." the bleached blonde male said coldly as he moved away from not only his younger cousin, but from the two half turned creatures who were both kneeling on the ground devouring the first cooler of blood bags. "That was too close. Way too close man." Landin said shaking his head, running his still blood covered hand over his neck. Closing his eyes, he could feel the hunger flowing off both Edric and Arthur like echoing shock waves. It wasn't the kind of vibrations he had hoped to get from Edric, not to mention, it was more than the psychic could handle. "I'm going to grab a shower." he mumbled walking away from the scene of their crimes.  Edric nodded silently in Landin's direction as he sat back against the leg of the picnic table, his eyes the pure white of the banshee.

"So my eyes never going to do that?" Arthur asked tossing a freshly squeezed blood bag over his shoulder like a used chicken bone. "That white empty socket thing?"

The hybrid snorted licking his lips before grabbing another of the blood bags. "Nope." he pulled his knees up dangling his wrist over his right leg. "You're not special enough. Seriously..." Edric turned then to look at the lycanthrope. "I would give anything to be able to turn completely into a wolf like you can." he said pointing then towards Arthur. "At lest you know where your bloodline comes from. You have a bloodline."  Edric turned looking towards the edge of the backyard. "At the end of the day, I'm on my own." the weight of the blood bag felt good in his hand as he sloshed it back and forth, watching the bubbles gather air near the edges before swaying to the other end. Like a lava lamp he used to have as a kid.

"We'll get her back." Seward said breaking the moment.

"Will we?" Edric asked shrugging. He made a duckbill with his lips before biting the corner of his mouth. "Should we even try?" he stood up brushing the grass and dirt from his jeans. "She knew. Nosferatu knew that at some point..." the sandy-blonde hybrid tossed the iv bag down onto the picnic table next to the half used pile of paper plates; that still held the remains of Arthur's BBQed ribs, as he brought both hands up to his temples. "She saw it coming. That Bacchus was going to arsejack us!" gesturing with his left hand towards the yard he made a sweeping movement. "That's why she broke the sire bond. So that when we were separated, we wouldn't go insane the way Dagan had. Or the way we were those first few days. You know." Edric shook his head tilting it to the side in sudden disbelief. "She saw it all so clearly but I had to be in charge. Had to prove that I knew better than she did. And look where it got me?" he brought both hands then to his chest slapping himself twice.

"Look where it got you." Seward repeated smiling. "She's still your mate isn't she? She's like a god or something. You still get to say your mate is a god. How cool is that...okay not time to look at the bright side yet." he held up his hands in defeat backing up a few steps. "Just saying..."

"Don't you start!" Edric said pointing at his friend.

"Me? You said yourself few hours ago, you couldn't loose her. That you were happy for the first time in a long time because of her. Now you're ready to give up? You, Edric are the single most powerful creature in this known universe; and you are throwing in the towel after one boo-boo? Really?"  Seward replied his humour drained out leaving only his anger.  "I would give anything to have the abilities you two have!"

"Keep it up then!" Edric's voice began to rise, echoing slightly in the yard. "Keep up your attitude and I might just let you have some." he spat in disgust between them. "Power my ass. Yeah, I've got some sweet new skills. Werewolf speed, strength, healing ability. Banshee hearing, sight, immortality. But I've got a lot of damned let downs too! In case you forgot. Stuck at a street corner in the rain if there's a manhole because I can't cross running water, my ears are constantly ringing because everything hurts them, my nose constantly feeling like it's on fire because it's so sensitive. Someone knocks over the salt or the pepper at the dinner table and I'm stuck there counting every last grain of it. Can't wear anything with silver because it'll burn my flesh to ash. Never mind that I can't eat pizza or sausage anymore because the world puts garlic in everything. Roses...who'd ever thought that a flower shop would send mortal fear into me? Huh? And then there's this" he gabbed himself. "The full moon ritual controls you. It controls you unless you're one of the few who does have a mate. A mate that you might not have any say in having?" he shrugged. "This..." he gestured then to the iv bags. "Is the neutrality of it. The blood..." he shrugged again his eyes having turned to the amber-grey of the wolf. "You need this but it's just a drug, an addiction you can control. The one part about this that does not control you completely. You can learn to survive on the smallest amounts as little as possible." he took a step towards Seward. "But if you want a piece of what I've got going on, of what Arthur has coursing through his veins; then by all means. Otherwise, be damned careful what you wish for!"  he looked the young human up and down giving a snort. "You pissing in your pants yet?"

"So you lied about Nosferatu?" Seward's voice was steady but low.

"What?" Edric stretched his chin out towards him tilting his neck a few millimeters.

"I said; so then you lied about Nosferatu? About what you said yesterday in the kitchen. About how you wanted her to admit she wanted you." Seward answered.

"No!" Edric screwed up his nose his eyebrows touching in disgust. "Shack you didn't listen. All I'm saying is that everything comes with strings. Even when you've checked all the angles and double checked. There's still an invisible spider web thin string holding up the disco ball." he brought his right hand up in a claw like manor. "Nosferatu saw it coming down the line. She knew the pitfalls better then the rest of us and she tried to save everyone from the bad tides of paranoia. She tried to be the white knight and look what happened. She left us like the seven dwarfs holding our balls in one hand and pick-axe in the other. Not because she wanted to, but because that's just what was meant to. Do I want her back? Bet your maltese bippy I do."

"That's a shacking stupid movie." Arthur said from his seat on the edge of the picnic table gnawing on a large pork rib. "An action adventure romantic horror melodramatic comedy. I mean, what isn't now a days?"  he scratched at his neck letting the magick mist dissolve around him as his clothes completely disappeared. "Things would be so different if these two had told me what was going on before the night was over." the blonde sniffed, spitting towards Edric as if challenging him, pointing towards the shed. "If they had told me about the ritual just a few hours sooner...I would have understood what the hell was happening to me and I wouldn't have let them keep me chained up that first night. I would have been the one to claim her!"

"Oooppss." Seward giggled blushing. "Completely forgot that you were dating her first." his good humour had snapped back into place, leaving the dark haired human embarrassed.


Tune in again for another installment of the Nosferatu Adventures starring your heroine...me(straight up story. Yes, the Maltese Bippy is a real movie...)

Food n Flix March 2017

It's that point in things again, where I say Food n Flix is being hosted by  Wendy at A Day in the Life on the Farm;  and the selection this month is  2015 sci-fi drama The Martian.  (based on the novel)

I realized I hadn't taken part in group since last November; so thought it was high time to jump back in.

movie: The Martian
starring: Matt Damon, Jeff Daniels
genre: Sci-fi, Drama,
year: 2015
format: Netflix Canada

plot: When an astronaut is accidentally thought dead and left by his crew on Mars; he wakes up to find he's alone. After tending to his wounds, he figures out a way to send a message back to earth, and begins to turn the deserts of Mars into a workable farmland. Back on Earth, the government begin plans to rescue him, only they find out they are on an extreme deadline, as he's low on supplies after a brutal storm destroys his farm. Finding himself once again struggling for survival, he manages to travel halfway across the planet's surface to meet up with the rescue ship, which takes over a year to complete.

This film is all about survival. It flips back and forth between the isolation on Mars and the chaos on Earth. You never see any of the earth shots where there isn't at lest two people in them. Same goes for the crew after they have left mars. Another sneaky note, is that the earth shots always have food in horrendous amounts. There were a few scenes, where the artwork were even food related, not too mention the junk food that was in mass supply.  All to contrast with the bleakness on mars.

notes: crackers, coffee, mac and cheese, beef goulash, french toast, meatballs and sauce, vegetable soup, stroganoff and noodles, sweet and sour chicken, beef teriyaki, meatloaf, vegetable stew, potatoes, nuts, juice, water, milk powder, cookies, oranges, candy, donuts, jelly beans, pastry, pop, soup, sugar, ketchup, asparagus, Chinese food, beef jerky, cereal, prunes, whiskey, pizza, lemon aid, fruit, salt, pepper, oil, hamburgers,  "broccoli" (the far shot of the potato plants made me think of it) "paprika" (the desert shots made me think of it) "spinach" (dead plants made me think of it) bagels (in a poster) "popcorn" (the water gathering tent made me think of it)

I think the fact they kept showing little things like the salt and pepper and ketchup etc, was an interesting touch. Just sort of driving home how we take things for granted that we never realize we do.

This was one of those movies where there were no bad guys. For once, the "big corporation" was just as much the good guy as the hero himself was. Even though, the emphasis was on how much "the bosses" had (side tables overflowing with chocolate and cookies) and it was very in your face, it was never done from a cruel way. But, an ironic and sort of sad way. 
I also thought the use of the pirate metaphor was brilliant, having the lead character expressing certain things by revealing tidbits of sea-fairing laws.  He literally becomes a space pirate.

I had to really keep my focus on the food for this, because A) the movie was overflowing with it, and B) if I stopped to think about the whole alone isolation issue, I wouldn't have made it through the film. I admit, it had me crying at a couple of points.

In the movie, we see him grab the potatoes that one of his crew members had brought for Thanksgiving dinner. He pretty much survives by growing potatoes. I promised Heather at All Roads Lead to the Kitchen, that I would not make anything with potatoes; without even having seen it yet. I am actually glad she held me to that promise, as it forced me to really jump back into the game.

I decided to take my inspiration from a few other elements in the film.  We see him counting out the freeze-dried rations, as well as planting seedlings. We also see him packing up as much as possible to hike across the unknown desert, his supplies not much more than dehydrated and nearly rotten potatoes.
 

Dehydrated + sun-dried + seedlings + power hiking = granola.  Well, it does in my brain anyway.  

Ingredients

2 packages instant oatmeal
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup raisins
2 cups sunflower seeds
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup peanuts

toast oatmeal, cranberries, raisins, peanuts and sunflower seeds in oven for 40 minutes, stirring a few times, at 300degrees

let cool, then add maple syrup, mixing well.

put in freezer until solid.

Okay, so this is where I admit, they fell apart. The recipe I had, literally said "in freezer until solid enough to hold shape".  I had them in there for over four hours, and they still fell apart in the middle of my taking the photos. I don't know if they just needed more time, or more syrup or if I didn't form them tight enough?  But, they did taste amazing. 

I would suggest, these would make for a better topping on yogurt then trying to have as bars.

Well, that's about all that I've got to offer on the topic this month, don't forget to join us next month when  the group will be looking at  A Touch of Spice, hosted by Culinary Adventures with Camilla.

The Nosferatu Adventures s12 p2

The Nosferatu Adventures
page 302, chapter 302

Out of Time...

Quentin shuffled around the small office, noticing the heavy scent of stale donuts and burnt coffee. The tow truck owner returned from the main area, a clipboard in hand. He was tall, heavy set, with a dark beard and covered in tattoos. The name on the little name tag read Zeddy.

"Help yourself to some coffee, donuts. They were fresh this morning." he gestured first to the little table near the window then towards the clock. "I need you to sign here, here and here." he held out the clipboard not actually indicating any of the spots that needed to be signed. "It will be about two weeks before I can get the parts in."

"I don't have two weeks. I need to be able to get to Saskatoon and then back..."

"Yeah, that's not going to happen before two weeks." Zeddy replied his attention on the little black and white television sitting behind him on the small table. My Gothic Kitchen was on. Quentin's phone buzzed causing him to jump. There was a text from Seward asking if he had any ideas for getting more blood bags, as both Arthur and Edric were showing signs of needing to feed. Quentin replied for them to rob a blood drive. "Right, as if." Zeddy commented under his breath towards the tv set. "Like Karmilla would ever allow herself to be made a member of  Barlow's harem. I mean, how stupid do these guys have to be? Not knowing that Barlow's holding her captive right under their noses? There are five of them..." he gestured towards the tv, a donut in hand. "Six if you count the goth dude." he stuffed the donut into his mouth, dripping crumbs everywhere.

"This today's episode?" Quentin asked moving closer to the tow truck owner.

"Yeah, taped it few hours ago. You hooked on it too? I mean, it's a soap opera and it does get really cheesy but, it beats those reality shows." Zeddy replied sullenly.

"Yeah, um...where is the bad guy holding her captive?" Quentin asked as he started dialing Seward's number again.

"Well technically, I guess it's hell." he pointed to the screen. "This one here, he knows how to find her. He found a map left for him in this old desk drawer. Only, he hasn't told anyone yet about it. Too busy being all broody or something." he shrugged. "That and he just killed a cop. So there's that side plot." he shrugged a second time. "And of course, there's the wizard character. He's been off the show for awhile, doing a movie or getting a nose job or whatever actors do on their time off. But he's back now, playing evil twins. The one twin is trying to kill the goth dude..." Zeddy said scratching at his beard. "The other twin, he's trying to bring his grandmother back from the dead. That's something only Karmilla knows. She figured it out awhile back, but hasn't had the chance to tell anyone. Honestly, I think it is one of the reasons she was kidnapped. This show is doing that all the time. Kidnapping the main chick."

"Huh." Quentin grunted as he moved to the other side of the small office. "Hey, Seward I need you to find a copy of My Gothic Kitchen. Today's episode. In fact, go back..." he turned to look at Zeddy. "When did this storyline start?"

"Uh, two days ago? Yeah, I remember because I was working the morning shift and was able to watch it while I was ironing. I like ironing, very relaxing." he reached for a cookie can on the side of the desk opening it. "Cupcake? Made them myself. Full of iron. Cause you know, you need that, otherwise you're dead tired, totally drained of energy." he grinned pointing to the tv screen again. "Just like a damned vampire."

"I think you should catch up with the episodes from this whole week..." Quentin shook his head declining the food. "The Seer used to write for it right? Well, I think he's trying to send a message. Well he's not called The Seer for nothing now is he?"

"...and what about the astral projection huh?" Zeddy said getting up to get himself a cup of coffee. "Everyone totally forgot that Karmilla had astral projected that one time way back in the beginning of the series. Though that was more a by product of her dying that one time. But still; with her technically being in hell, wouldn't she technically be dead therefore being able to astral project or something?" he sat back down causing the chair to creek as he did.  "It's an old underground bunker." Zeddy said over his shoulder towards Quentin. "Where Barlow has her."

"Yeah I'm still here. No I'm pretty sure...okay fine deal with the iv bags first but...there are four of you figure it out delegate the maps and the blood...I'm renting a car I'll be back by morning."


Meanwhile...
Technically in Hell...

Our heroine paced back and forth, the silver bars of the cage burning her whenever she got too close. Bacchus appeared in the doorway of the room, dressed like he'd just been at a rock concert. As the main act. His pants were black leather, his shirt reminding our heroine of something from every heavy metal video she'd seen growing up, but that was nothing compared to the pounds of silver jewellery that dripped from his ears, neck and hands.

"Here put this on." he said snapping his fingers. A long black trenchcoat materialized in the cage beside her. It was fitted to her shape, obviously tailor made for her.

"So it's come to this has it? Once again, you're treating me like some pet."

"Oh you knew the score." Bacchus said crossing the length of the room, still with the Australian accent. "Loki had first use of you but he screwed it up by letting you remove your soul. Now you're mine." he raised his hands out to his sides tilting back. "For all eternity."

"You said after I defeated The Seer. After I learned a few more spells. So why now? What changed?"  the female banshee asked as she buttoned up the coat.  The sandy haired god roamed around the half empty room, practically dancing in front of the cage.

"You changed." he said simply.

"Everybody changes. It's called life, evolution."

Bacchus brought his left hand up to his mouth his blue eyes becoming cold slits as he glared at her. "You weren't suppose to. You are an immortal creature. Unfeeling, ruthless, brutal."

"Nobody is unfeeling." she replied getting as close to the bars as she dared. "Not even you gods. Cause if you were, you wouldn't be so damned eager to win. Something spooked you. Come on, be honest, tell me. The witch doctor is in, I'm a captive audience." she snarled her hazel eyes flashing to the pure white of the banshee. "What really broke you down? Huh? What really made you speed up your timeline? Revenge?"

"Sacrifice." he nearly spat the word. "Your sacrifice." he slammed his open palm against the cage rattling it. Our heroine gasped as she processed what he meant. "You know, I couldn't understand why at first. You jumping so quickly into that spell. Removing your soul, and half your powers. Then when you didn't even blink at the thought of breaking the sire bond...well." he shrugged throwing his head back eyes closed. "You were greedy and selfish with Dagan, The Seer even. But with Edric...I didn't see that coming. I fully expected it would have been those half breed furballs you mothered to be what ruined you for Loki. But even that didn't register." he tapped his hand to his chest. "In the end, your fledgling was your downfall." he turned walking towards the door. "Get comfy. It's going to be awhile before you're suitable to lead my girls. Until then, I think I'll keep you out of gen-pop. For your own safety. Half my warriors you killed to begin with."  Bacchus left our heroine alone closing the door behind him.


Tune in again for another installment of the Nosferatu Adventures starring your heroine...me(straight up story.  What do you think, do we keep Zeddy?)

Coffee Talk March 3rd 2017

Spudguns!  How's it today?  Got a few things I wanted to run in and talk on.

#1- This would be your official announcement for Night Bleeds April - We are doing the combo of the 1985 book The Vampire Lestat and the 2002 movie version Queen of the Damned.  The deadline for that is the last Sunday of April which is April 30th 2017.
So the rules are simple, - you must have a blog to take part, read the book and watch the movie, blog about what you thought and if it inspires you to bake/cook/craft anything, add that to your blog post. And link to either this post or the day of post on here or even the Night Bleeds page.

#2- As I pointed out the other month, I'd like some input from you guys. I'm still hoping to get some movie recommendations from everyone. I've started doing a few youtube related projects, and am interested in whether you my lovely Spudguns!, would be care to have videos on here?

Okay, that's about it for the moment...I'm going to go to the kitchen make a coffee and maybe dance stupidly to the Rocky Horror Picture Show soundtrack... oh like you never have....