MUSINGS, PONDERINGS, RUMINATIONS AND FANCIES

[Bronxgirl48]

Christmas in Connecticut (1945) flapjack flipping and the Irish stew vs Goulash debate.

No disrespect to Irish stew, but I am a paprika lover. "THAT will make it goulash!"

Do you keep your paprika in the fridge? I do. Someone once told me that paprika is the one spice that you should keep in the fridge.

I always keep my paprika in the pantry and never had a problem -- and I live in South Florida!

[Bronxgirl48]

Hey, Angeleno! I lived in San Francisco and Los Angeles for several years in the 1970's, and preferred L.A. over Frisco. More small-town-ish to me, and had a lot of cool mid-century modern architecture which I infinitely like better than S.F.'s Victorian style housing. Great hamburgers, franks, pizza and roast beef sandwiches too.

Interesting here, Bronxie. Don't think I knew you ever resided on the west coast at any time. And, that you're probably in the minority with this opinion, as I'd say the general consensus in these regards and discounting all the bad press San Francisco is getting lately, would be that The City by The Bay is a lot more beautiful and much more a cosmopolitan city than is L.A.

(...aah, but then again you DID say here that you liked more of a small town feel and which I also find an interesting comment, and considering that your formative years took place in THE most cosmopolitan city in this country)

It's interesting though (in hindsight) that the first California city of my choice was San Francisco and that's where I went. Not sure why, perhaps because I (mistakingly) thought it would resemble an American French Riviera. (I also considered Catalina Island but unfortunately never visited) After S.F. I gravitated towards Los Angeles, Hollywood specifically, because that's where most of my horror and science fiction fan compatriots were. It was definitely a more compatible atmosphere. I don't necessarily gravitate towards small towns but instinctively I always felt that L.A was going to be cozy, and it was. And I am always a sucker for mid-century charm.

[Bronxgirl48]

Swithin and Cinemaspeak59, I love METROPOLITAN! Nick especially. "My stepmother is a woman of untrammeled malevolence"

[txfilmfan]

No disrespect to Irish stew, but I am a paprika lover. "THAT will make it goulash!"

Do you keep your paprika in the fridge? I do. Someone once told me that paprika is the one spice that you should keep in the fridge.

I always keep my paprika in the pantry and never had a problem -- and I live in South Florida!

Never heard it should be refrigerated. It's just dried and ground up peppers

[Bronxgirl48]

Right you are, txfilmfan.

[CinemaInternational]

Metropolitan is definitely one of the classiest films of the 1990s with one of the most witty, erudite, and sophisticated scripts of the era. (How it lost the script Oscar to Ghost, I'll never understand. I like Ghost, but this script was much better). It's a pity that Whit Stillman made so few films after it, but all of the other four have been good, and I especially like The Last Days of Disco (1998), which includes a brief little in-joke for fans of Metropolitan.

[Bronxgirl48]

I like THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO too, especially the LADY AND THE TRAMP discussion, lol.

[Swithin]

Do you keep your paprika in the fridge? I do. Someone once told me that paprika is the one spice that you should keep in the fridge.

I always keep my paprika in the pantry and never had a problem -- and I live in South Florida!

Never heard it should be refrigerated. It's just dried and ground up peppers

I don't remember who told me to refrigerate it, but they said it's more prone to bugs than other spices. I just googled it and found there is some discussion about it. Just found this on the McCormick spice website:

"Members of the red pepper family, such as paprika and chili powder, should be refrigerated to help retain color and guard against infestation. This is important especially during the summer months and in particularly hot climates."

And here's another view:

Keep red spices, such as paprika, in the fridge
Staff Writer Erie Times-News

Dear Readers: Take a peek in your spice drawer or spice rack. What do you see? If you see the color red, then you might want to rethink where you should be seeing red. Most of us know to store spices within easy reach of the stove or cooktop. Of course, spices should be kept away from high heat, moisture and bright light.

But did you know that certain spices (a clue here to the color red) should be stored in the refrigerator?

Yep, red spices such as paprika, chili powder and cayenne pepper are best kept in the refrigerator to maintain color and flavor. This is especially true if you don't use a lot and if a bottle lasts you a long time. -- Heloise

[Bronxgirl48]

But as long as I've lived here in humid Boca Raton (twenty years) I have never refrigerated my paprika or other spices. So far, no insects or spoilage.

[Swithin]

But as long as I've lived here in humid Boca Raton (twenty years) I have never refrigerated my paprika or other spices. So far, no insects or spoilage.

Boca Raton is indeed humid! My father lived there. I inherited his apartment, but I don't like hot weather.

[txfilmfan]

I always keep my paprika in the pantry and never had a problem -- and I live in South Florida!

Never heard it should be refrigerated. It's just dried and ground up peppers

I don't remember who told me to refrigerate it, but they said it's more prone to bugs than other spices. I just googled it and found there is some discussion about it. Just found this on the McCormick spice website:

"Members of the red pepper family, such as paprika and chili powder, should be refrigerated to help retain color and guard against infestation. This is important especially during the summer months and in particularly hot climates."

And here's another view:

Keep red spices, such as paprika, in the fridge
Staff Writer Erie Times-News

Dear Readers: Take a peek in your spice drawer or spice rack. What do you see? If you see the color red, then you might want to rethink where you should be seeing red. Most of us know to store spices within easy reach of the stove or cooktop. Of course, spices should be kept away from high heat, moisture and bright light.

But did you know that certain spices (a clue here to the color red) should be stored in the refrigerator?

Yep, red spices such as paprika, chili powder and cayenne pepper are best kept in the refrigerator to maintain color and flavor. This is especially true if you don't use a lot and if a bottle lasts you a long time. -- Heloise

Thanks. Interesting. I go through a lot of paprika and chili powder. A bottle of paprika or chili powder lasts maybe 6-8 weeks. Cayenne a lot longer. Never have had a problem keeping it in the pantry, though. Certainly hot here in Dallas and humid about 1/3 of the time (not as bad as Houston, thankfully). But the house stays at 74 to 76 in the summer. Guess it should go in the fridge.

Wonder if that applies to powdered cinnamon? It's reddish.

[Swithin]

Never heard it should be refrigerated. It's just dried and ground up peppers

I don't remember who told me to refrigerate it, but they said it's more prone to bugs than other spices. I just googled it and found there is some discussion about it. Just found this on the McCormick spice website:

"Members of the red pepper family, such as paprika and chili powder, should be refrigerated to help retain color and guard against infestation. This is important especially during the summer months and in particularly hot climates."

And here's another view:

Keep red spices, such as paprika, in the fridge
Staff Writer Erie Times-News

Dear Readers: Take a peek in your spice drawer or spice rack. What do you see? If you see the color red, then you might want to rethink where you should be seeing red. Most of us know to store spices within easy reach of the stove or cooktop. Of course, spices should be kept away from high heat, moisture and bright light.

But did you know that certain spices (a clue here to the color red) should be stored in the refrigerator?

Yep, red spices such as paprika, chili powder and cayenne pepper are best kept in the refrigerator to maintain color and flavor. This is especially true if you don't use a lot and if a bottle lasts you a long time. -- Heloise

Thanks. Interesting. I go through a lot of paprika and chili powder. A bottle of paprika or chili powder lasts maybe 6-8 weeks. Cayenne a lot longer. Never have had a problem keeping it in the pantry, though. Certainly hot here in Dallas and humid about 1/3 of the time (not as bad as Houston, thankfully). But the house stays at 74 to 76 in the summer. Guess it should go in the fridge.

Wonder if that applies to powdered cinnamon? It's reddish.

I do keep unopened paprika in the pantry.

[Detective Jim McLeod]

We screened MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET as our season closer. As ticket taker, I always ask if they have seen the movie before. This was the first time every single attendee had, but all interjected they love the movie & haven't seen it in a "long" time.

The entire room was sucked into the story, many scenes you could hear a pin drop, everyone laughed in the right places. It was communal movie watching at it's BEST.

I never saw Miracle in a theater, but would like to some day. I am glad that the audience enjoyed it.

I once saw Meet Me In St Louis in a theater a few years ago. The younger crowd there did not seem to get it, the places where they laughed the loudest were Margaret O'Brien's crying scenes.

[Fedya]

Modern movie musing. Is it just me or is the modern fall of movies rarely more encapsulated than they were in yesterday's Golden Globes nominations? Barbie, based on the doll, was tied for second place for most nominated film of all time, tied with Cabaret, and just behind the record holder, Nashville. The idea of a film based on a Mattel product being mentioned in the same echelons of the 70s classics makes me shudder.

I'd guess it has more to do with Dick Clark Productions acquiring the Golden Globes.

[HoldenIsHere]

The idea of a film based on a (snipped) product being mentioned in the same echelons of the 70s classics makes me shudder.

Instead, the unthinking sheep flock to whatever keywords are the most highly promoted, despite actual merit.

So why would Hollywood take a chance on a good story, well told? Are there even WRITERS out there who understand how to write a good story that engages a human mind?

Sure, while one has to admit that the idea of a movie based upon a popular toy would seem to be a very thin concept and premise, don't forget here that this film received quite a few glowing reviews upon its release.

Evidently (according to many established critics, as I've yet to watch it myself) it tells a much more layered story than one would at first expect and supposedly is very successful as a satirical take on a number of cultural and societal issues.

Yes, BARBIE is a remarkably subversive satire, especially considering Mattel was one of the producers.
Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach's screenplay is brilliant, skewering commercialism in the context of a mainstream commercially-marketed movie with a brand tie-in no less!
The movie even has a few digs at feminism, as the Kens are the "second class" citizens in Barbie Land.

And, on the subject of Ken, Ryan Gosling's performance deserves all the critical praise it has received. He fully commits to the character when it would have been so easy for a "movie star" at his level of popular appeal to wink at the audience. The scene where he breaks down and cries is comical in the context of the movie, but if viewed in isolation, it would have the same emotional punch as a breakdown cry moment in one of those heavy dramas that usually has people screaming "Oscar-worthy."

It's refreshing to see a comedy (a genre that is historically overlooked by the movie industry when they give out their awards) getting acknowledged for a job well done.
Comedy is actually harder to get right. BARBIE does it in spades, with the laughs often coming at unexpected moments.

MATTEL CEO (screams in terror at sight of pregnant Midge) Midge, gosh. I thought we discontinued her. (catches breath)