Ant-Man and the Wasp (spoiler alert, of course)

If you follow the  Marvel Universe series of movies, you are no doubt familiar with Ant-Man.  The character was introduced to the Marvel movies in 2015's Ant-Man, and made an appearance in 2016's Captain America:Civil War, in which he fought on the side of the (traitorous) Captain America. 

Ant-Man and the Wasp is set two years after Civil War and shortly before The Avengers:Infinity War.  Our hero Scott is under house arrest, forced to wear an ankle monitor, as atonement for his participation in the Civil War.  Dr. Pym and Hope are fugitives, on the run because they supplied Scott with the Ant-Man suit.  That is, until Scott receives a message from Pym's wife, Janet Van Dyne, who has been trapped in the Quantum Realm for 30 years. 

What follows is a lighthearted action movie, lots of chase sequences and fight sequences and gentle humor:  Scott doing karaoke to the theme from The Partridge Family; a giant ant wearing Scott's ankle monitor and playing the drums; cars and buildings shrinking and growing back to normal size; Luis babbling on and on about Scott and hope after being given truth serum; and Stan Lee's cameo, of course.

And then....the post credit scene.

After such a lighthearted romp, we get....

Ant-Man has ventured into the Quantum Realm to retrieve quantum particles.  Pym, Hope and Janet are about to bring him back to normal size when...the Thanos snap (Infinity War) occurs.  Pym, Hope and Janet are all turned to dust, and Ant-Man is stranded in the Quantum Realm. 

So much for lighthearted action/adventure. 

But oh how much more does it make me anxious for the next Avengers movie.

#skywatchfriday -- Walkway Over the Hudson

We recently visited friends who live in Poughkeepsie, NY.  and they told us about this wonderful state park called Walkway Over the Hudson.

This was once a railroad bridge, but after a fire destroyed the tracks in the 1970's, the bridge remained unused and in a state of disrepair for many years.  Now it's a pedestrian walkway.  I'm told that from the parking lot on the Duchess County side to the parking lot in Ulster County is about a 2 mile walk; we stopped mid-span and turned around. 

Looking south you get incredible views of the Mid-Hudson Bridge.

  Look north towards Albany and you get a lovely view as well.

The plaques tell the story.

The bridge, the views, the walk -- it was a great afternoon.




#skywatchfriday

Hawaiian Kitchen

Want something a little different for take-out?  Try Hawaiian.  Yes, Hawaiian.

Hawaiian Kitchen is a storefront fast food place in the King Kullen shopping center.  There are a handful of tables, most of the business is take-out, and yes, they deliver.  Staff is very friendly and efficient.

The menu includes beef, ribs, chicken, and seafood.  Entrees are grilled, barbecued or fried, and are served with rice, vegetable and macaroni salad.

We ordered two appetizers.  "Crispy shrimp" were perfectly fried, not greasy, and were served with a mildly spicy dipping sauce.  Fried calamari was tender, and served with the same sauce.

Our entrees included grilled beef and grilled shrimp.  The beef was tender and flavorful, but I thought the grilled shrimp was a bit bland.  I will probably try the barbecued shrimp next time.

The macaroni salad was a bit of a disappointment, but that's because it was warm and runny, a result of being served in the same container as the entree; next time I will ask that it be packed in a separate container, so that it stays properly chilled.


The rice was served with a spicy sweet sauce, served on the side. so you can add as much or as little as you like.  I really enjoyed the flavor of the sauce.

I wasn't brave enough to try the Spam musubi - rice topped with Spam and wrapped in seaweed.

Overall I enjoyed the meal.  Definitely worth a repeat visit.

Wednesday HodgePodge

 

If it's Wednesday, it's time for Joyce and the HodgePodge.



1. I feel most energized when I _______________________.

It depends.

But one of the things I know about myself ...I do my best writing when I am responding to something that has made me angry or upset.  In the early days of my career, my supervisor loved it when we'd get some  document from our adversaries that could only be referred to as bullsh...er, malarkey...and I'd have to write a response.  Some of my best legal briefs were written after I'd uttered the words: "I cannot believe he had the nerve to put this in writing!"

2. Where were you ten years ago?

Hmmm....2008...Jen  graduated from high school and started her freshman year of college.  Becca finished her sophomore year of high school and was starting to come into her own.  Drew and I had ceased hostilities and agreed to be friends again, though I couldn't imagine at that time how things would evolve.    My father was still alive, and my parents were actively enjoying their retirement years.

It was also a scary time.  Remember, that was the year the big recession started.  And my employer was one of the companies that the government had to bail out,  I had over $3,000 worth of company stock which became virtually worthless overnight; thanks to a reverse stock split, I now hold exactly two shares of stock in that company, and I periodically get $.64 dividend checks.  It's not fun when your teenage daughter tells you: "Mom, you can't read the headline on the cover of the Daily News..."  Or when Michael Moore shows up at your company's headquarters asking for money.   I'm just grateful I didn't lose my job.

And it was the year I started this blog.  I just went back and re-read my 2008 entries.  I wrote a lot about my kids, our family cats, my commute into NYC, Christmas decorations, and even a bit of politics -- we were all full of hope after the presidential election that year.  How times have changed.


3. July 17th is World Emoji Day. Do you use emojis? Which one's your favorite? Your most used?



I can be sarcastic without saying a word.

4. What song would you put on a wedding DO NOT PLAY list?





5. What deserves less of your attention? More of your attention?


I spend far too much time playing on my iPad...Facebook, Instagram, games like solitaire and Candy Crush, , and far too little time reading books and newspapers.  Less Facebook, more real books, would be beneficial, I think.


6. Insert your own random thought here.

Summer is flying by way too fast. 

All Star Game!

Tonight Major League Baseball will present the annual All Star Game. The most famous names in baseball will be there, including my current favorite, Jacob deGrom (Let's go Mets!). It will be an impressive display meant to entertain and inspire the fans.

Last week Drew and I went to another All Star Game, one on a much smaller scale, but still a lot of fun.

Our Long Island Ducks are part of an independent baseball league, the Atlantic League of Professionall Baseball.  The league is composed of 8 teams, divided into two divisions, Liberty and Freedom.  The Ducks play in the Liberty Division.  This year, the Ducks hosted the league's All Star Game. 



It was a sold-out game, of course.  Capacity crowd, and lots of newcomers to our ballpark -- we actually had to get an usher because someone inadvertently took our seats instead of their own.

The evening started with a Home Run Derby, won by a player named  Deibison Romero.

There was professional entertainment, before the game and between innings.   Bucket Ruckus is the drum act, the Amazing Tyler is the balancing act:



l 

The players and coaches were introduced with great formality.  Freedom first:

And then Liberty:

I cried when Buddy Harrelson made his way onto the field, it's the first time we've seen him all summer.

And then there were the mascots. 



Even a flyover by a pair of helicopters (only caught one of them on camera).




Robbie Rosen sang the national anthem. 

And then it was time to play ball.

The mascots with the Heroes of the Game:

And this guy made his way up to our section.  He's very entertaining.







There was even a mascot race -- first time all summer Quackerjack has won a race.



And a dance-off, too.

Yes, I am easily entertained.

I should, at this point, talk about the 50/50.

The Ducks run a 50/50 raffle at every home game.  A 50/50 is a very simple raffle.  The winning ticket takes home half of the proceeds of the raffle, and the other half goes to the Ducks' charitable foundation.  The more tickets that are sold, the bigger the pot.  We were at a Ducks game on July 7 -- a Saturday night -- and the woman sitting directly behind us won the 50/50, about $700.  At the All Star game a few days later, the people sitting directly in front of us won the 50/50, this time over $1,000.    And should I mention that the people sitting in front of us at the All Star game were sitting in the seats we'd normally buy? 

It was a good game.  Liberty took and early 1-0 lead, then Freedom scored three runs. The game was tied 3-3 going into the bottom of the 9th.  It looked like the game would go into extra innings, and then Liberty won the game on a two-out RBI single.    The MVP was Alfredo Rodriguez, who was responsbile for the RBI's that tied the game as well as for the RBI that won the game for Liberty.

Had a few technical difficulties with the after-game firewaorks.  But they were fun to watch:

OMG

Elvis is alive and being held prisoner in a Chinese fotune cookie factorry.

 

Seriously, I found this fortune in my cookie...

Mortified

So last night we went to the movies.  And afterwards we decided to grab a bite at the diner.

(Long Island is blessed with a plethora of diners.  New Jersey may be the diner capital of the world, but we place a close second.)

So we got to the diner and we’re seated in a booth that had an actual juke box.  Nice selection of music, from Frank Sinatra to Billy Joel to Blackeyed Peas.  And the Yankee game was on the TV.    And the paper placemats had pictures of all the cocktails the bartender could make.  

Drew ordered one of his favorites, eggs Benedict, and a cup of coffee.  I ordered a burger and fries.  And a Diet Coke, of course.

And we ate, and chatted, and drank.

And the waiter asked if I wanted a refill.  

And I said yes.  

And he brought my refill.

And I said “thank you.”

And he put the glass on the table.

And I picked up the glass, to bring it closer so I wouldn’t spill it.

And the glass slipped out of my hand ...

An entire glass of Diet Coke spilled onto the table and the bench.

And my face turned as red as the ketchup on my fries.

I left a very generous tip.