Comparing and contrasting experiences and art is a dangerous game. Whether its books to movies or one dining experience to another. Often, if we wouldn’t have had these great experiences or enjoyed this great art in one format, the subsequent experiences would be more enjoyable because we wouldn’t have those prior experiences to compare and contrast.
Alas, this was the theme of the night for me.
It is safe to say that there is no movie that I looked more forward to in 2009 than The Lovely Bones. About two years ago, Michelle chose the book as her submission to my first book club. The cover art made me slightly worried, at the time, that the book was going to be very girly.
It was not. After reading and being astounded by the depth, complexity and transcendence of the book, I went ahead and read Alice Sebold’s other two works, her memoir, Lucky, and her second novel, The Almost Moon. Alice Sebold fact that makes me immensely happy: she took a short fiction class from Raymond Carver while she was at Syracuse.
When I saw that Peter Jackson would be adapting the novel, I thought it was can’t miss. Michelle, Matt and I went to see the movie at the Marcus Majestic in Brookfield. We’d all read the book and we’ve all seen Jackson’s work.
Unfortunately, for me, the film missed. It never resonated with me, emotionally, the way that Sebold’s novel did. Some critics seemed to bristle at the CGI, which for me was vivid and beautiful. The CGI wasn’t the problem; the problem was that the movie did not provide many moments for us to be emotionally invested with the characters, in my opinion.
The bad guy was great, the acting was, for the most part, good, but the script just seemed to void of emotion. Perhaps the film can get there emotionally for people who never read the book, but it didn’t get there for me.
That is not to say this was a bad movie, it just didn’t live up to is literary predecessor.
With a slight taste of disappointment still in my mouth, me and seven friends went to the Noodles & Co. in Brookfield to enjoy the second free tasting I’ve won. The last one was great so we were all very excited.
I have my favorite dish and hardly ever stray (the Chinese Chop Salad w/braised beef), so it is nice to get a chance to try some different things.
When we arrived they had a table set for us and we started by getting some free fountain drinks. Breanne was the only one in our group to buy a beer, and probably the only one who did so at Noodles all day. Again, we were started with a plate of Noodles’ delicious flat bread and cibatta bread. No potstickers this time though. I showed Breanne how I mix the two sauces on the table, soy and sarachi, to make a delicious sauce for the bread.
Next they began to bring out the food:
- The first round was from the American menu: the Spaghetti and Meatballs and the Mushroom Stroganoff. The Spaghetti dish was workmanlike, the meatballs were okay. I didn’t try the stroganoff because, although I’d asked on the phone for them to put cheese on the side of the dishes and reiterated the request when I arrived, they’d forgotten with one of the first two dishes they brought. (I’m not trying to sound ungrateful here, I realize this was a free meal, just saying).
- The second round was from the Mediterranean menu: the Whole Grain Tuscan Linguine w/ Chicken and the Pesto Cavatapi w/ Chicken. I was familiar w/ the second one because Michelle gets it rather often. The first dish didn’t taste good the instant that it was in your mouth, but was actually pretty delicious after that first taste. The pesto dish was tasty, but unremarkable.
At some point, they brought out another plate of their two varieties of bread out.
- The third round was from the Asian menu: the Pad Thai w/ shrimp and the Japanese Pan Noodles w/ beef. The Pad Thai was very good; unfortunately, all of the shrimp was gone by the time it got to me. The Pan Noodles I’ve had before and enjoy them very much.
- The final round was two dishes we hadn’t gotten that we wanted: I chose the Indonesian Peanut Sautee w/ chicken and let the others pick the Mac ‘n Cheese w/ chicken. Peanut Sautee is another dish that I’ve gotten before and enjoy. Obviously, I didn’t try the other dish.
At the other tasting we did, they told us they’d keep bringing us dishes until we were full. I think there were a few folks around the table who wouldn’t have minded another dish or two. I was pretty full, but they brought out two plates, one with cookies (chocolate chip and snickerdoodle) and the other with Rice Krispie treats.
Furthermore, at the first tasting, they asked us several times if we wanted them to box any dishes for us to take home. We were all too polite that first time to do so, and we weren’t offered this time.
All and all, despite a few disappointing aspects, the experience was still immensely enjoyable.
We returned to my apartment for a while where we watched the Saints destroy the Cards and played some Apples to Apples (which may be one of the best games of all time).
Then we headed to The Nice Ash. This is my favorite Waukesha Bar, and with the recent renovation, it is more spacious and aesthetically pleasing. I was the only one smoking and purchased a Romeo Y Julieta cigar.
Good conversation was had and after a couple hours, we decided to shift venues (at around 1:00 a.m.) to Guinness. Unfortunately, it was closing, so we ended up at Main Street’s worst bar, Donnie Boys & Chubbys. We found a spot in the corner that was suitable, but in the end, we could only stomach having one beer there.
When we returned to my apartment, Michelle, Chris and Scott ordered Toppers. Well, none of them were at all happy with the “Triple Order” that they received, so Michelle called and complained (which was fun to hear as it is somewhat out of character). They told Michelle her next order would be free. We watched SNL from earlier that evening and soon, everyone was full and ready for sleep.
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