Happy Pumpkin Cheesecake Day!

Hello and welcome to this edition of "What have Matty and Sara been up to?"

Movies:
I feel like I have no reviewed many movies recently. But I cant really remember, so if some of these are repeats, sorry.
The Simpsons Movie: Everyone who I have heard talk about this movie has said that same thing. It seems like a long episode from one of there good but not great seasons. We had to see it, we did, there ya go. Do you like the Simpsons? Go see it. If you dont, dont.
Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone: The first of the Harry Potters. It is pretty good, it had a lot to do and it did it. But again, if you like or think you might like Harry Potter, see it, otherwise, dont.
A History of Violence: I liked it. There were scenes I didnt watch but over all, not too gratuitously gory. I would say it is gratuitously violent though. Including a very violent sex scene not for the faint of heart. Viggo Mortensen is pretty hot. I would recommend it to fans of violent dramas or David Cronenberg.
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets: Better than the first. Still though, if you dont like Harry Potter, why see it?
Harry Potter and the Prsioner of Azkaban: Better than the first, starting to diverge a bit from the books (by necessity due to length).
Maxed Out: A pretty good documentary about predatory lending and our obsession with credit. Worth seeing, interesting to note things they warn about vs what is happening.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: Favorite so far. Does what it absolutely needs to do in a decent amount of time, but things were left out that I am curious about how they will be addressed in future movies. If Matty would just finish the next one!
Charlie Wilson's War: Really really good. Highly recommend! Great look at a very interesting and often overlooked peice of history. Speaks volumes about our current foreign policy and military issues. Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts are fantastic.
Rocky Balboa: It is a Rocky movie. Dont really expect more than that. Not as bad as some, not as god as the first.
Cloverfield: Was talked into this for our biweekly Blu-Ray movie night at Dan's. I dont like scary movies so I was against seeing it. But it isnt really a scary movie. It is a monster movie. It was ok. Not outstanding. Better than a lot of monster movies (I am looking at you Godzilla). Worth seeing if you are interested in monster movies. Saw a lot more of the monster than I thought. I refuse to start looking stuff up about it on the internet. So not going there.
Iron Man: Was totally impressed. Seeing it on a big-ass TV on Blu-Ray didnt hurt. Disclaimer: it is a comic book movie. If you thought that Spiderman and Xmen are too hokey and comic booky, you should probably stay away. But it is actually good. Good actors (Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard, Jeff Bridges, Gwyneth Paltrow), pretty good effects (though there were some scenes where the cgi didnt quite match). And Jon Favreau! Who knew? My one problem: Jeff Bridges should stick to good guys. The Dude should not be a bad guy. I was totally humming Iron Man all last night (Matty wasnt happy).

TV:
Heroes, current season: I have missed the last 3 episodes. Which makes Matty happy. But makes me sad, because I thought this season was going pretty good.
The Wire, Season 1: Recently finished this. I am pretty interested to see what happens in later episodes. A bit on the scary side I have to say though. Makes me happy I didnt go to Hopkins.
The Office, current season: Funniest show on TV. Hands down. Enough said.
Rome, Season 2: Wow. I thought the first one was overly expensive, lavish, violent and had a bit too much violent Roman sex. But no, I was wrong. That is season 2. I cant belive all that happened in one season. Worth seeing. I totally see why HBO cant afford another season though.
House, current season: So happy about the end of last episode!

Food:
Cant even really remember. But last night we made "Barbecue chicken salad" from my Southern Heritage cookbook. First whisk together 2 Tbsp cider vinegar, 1 Tbsp sugar, 4 tsp worcestershire (or soy if you are out like us) sauce, 1/2 tsp dry mustard, 1/2 tsp ground black pepper, 1 tsp hot sauce. In a skillet, cook 2 slices bacon until crispy. Remove bacon and all but 1 Tbsp fat from skillet. In bacon fat, saute 1 small onion, chopped and 2 cloves garlic, minced until softened. Add 1 lb chicken breast cut into 1/2 inch x 1 inch strips. Cook until cooked through. Add sauce to pan and 1 cup frozen corn. Cook for 2 minutes. Make salad of lettuce, 1 red bell pepper cut into strips, 1 green bell pepper cut into strips, 2 green onions, chopped and bacon, chopped. Serve chicken mixture over salad.

Other things:
2 weeks ago was me and Matty's 10 year anniversary. We went to Annapolis for the weekend with my parents, godparents and family friends for the International Boat Show. It was a gorgeous weekend and we had a good time at the show, especially with the free Pusser's painkillers in the mugs after hours.

Last week was my Genetics department talk which went really well. Trying to schedule the big thesis committee meeting now.

Sunday Matty and I did the Philly AIDS Walk 15000 people raised $450,000 for the 12K walk or 10K run. We walked :-). It was really chilly though! But a beautiful walk up from the Art Museum to East Falls and back.

Ok, you are kinda up to date. Maybe. Well, that is all I have time for.