Another Weekend in Philly
Our last visit to Philadelphia wasn’t too long ago but when our friends invited us for Memorial Day weekend, we just couldn’t resist.
We made new friends, reconnected with old friends, ate lunch at Reading Terminal Market, enjoyed libations at Tattooed Moms, shopped around on South Street, ate dinner at The Latest Dish, partied with old people, slept at Le Meridien, ate brunch at The Continental, aaaaaaand made it home without traffic. We did all that, in that order.
We had a blast during our twenty-four hour stay.
How was your Memorial Day weekend?
Side note: Yes, I’m aware that my blog still looks like poo. For some reason, I don’t feel a nagging urgency to fix it due to being a busy bee at work and a sudden warm weather-induced social life. It shall get done, I promise you. In the meantime, please bear with me and my eyesore of a blog.
Men in Black 3
Side note: I know things are looking funky around here. I’m working on it, sort of.
I’m a huge fan of Will Smith. He is a science fiction movie star – Independence Day, Men in Black, I, Robot, and I am Legend. I’ve watched his movies countless times. I also grew up watching the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
While Men in Black has never been my favorite of all his movies, I jumped at the chance to attend a premiere this morning with a small group of students.
A collaboration between the American Museum of Natural History and the Youth Inspired Challenge made it possible for us to watch Men in Black 3. They also gave us the VIP treatment with free popcorn, drinks, and souvenir MIB3 glasses. I was even able to bring Kim and Melody along as chaperones!
The movie was fantastic. I usually steer clear of 3D movies (ever since Beowulf) because my eyes hurt and I can’t see straight for the rest of the night. This movie was shot so clearly that I didn’t experience any optical disorientation. The aliens were imaginative and the storyline kept us in suspense until the very end. Mr. Smith was immaculate as Agent J while James Brolin played a splendid younger Agent K. Kids and adults alike laughed throughout the entire movie. I highly recommend it.
After the movie, we were shuttled to the AMNH to have a Q&A session with the man himself. I sat eight feet away from Will Smith! He wasn’t the only important and accomplished person who spoke to us today – (from left to right) the astrophysicist behind the planetarium’s newest film, Journey to the Stars, discussed astronomy; Chancellor Dennis Walcott said something I don’t remember; and the president of the AMNH welcomed us warmly.
Side note: The tops of the photos show the giant domed screen in the planetarium. Their newest film, “Journey to the Stars” was displayed on the ceiling. Pretty cool, huh?
He is just as good looking, charismatic, intelligent, and witty in person as he is in the films. I never knew he had been accepted to and declined MIT or that his mother is a Carnegie Mellon alumni. His favorite class was math. He even spoke to students about the importance of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) education. I was really impressed that he included this in the promotion of MIB3.
Will Smith was a tough act to follow, but AMNH treated us to their newest film, “Journey to the Stars.” The entire film is displayed on the ceiling, while the audience rests their heads on plush chairs. It was a great experience. I’d recommend it for astronomy enthusiasts of all ages.
What an awesome day.
How was yours?
Accidental Frozen Yogurt
I love frozen yogurt but sometimes it can be just as fattening as ice cream. Plus, my favorite is from Red Mango and the closest one is in downtown Brooklyn.
Yesterday, I made the best frozen yogurt by accident!
My colleague and friend gave me a refrigerator for my classroom. Unbeknownst to me, she left it on the coldest setting. When I opened the fridge this morning, my DNA samples, rooting hormone, and Greek yogurt were all frozen. I turned up the temperature in an attempt to thaw out my yogurt but when I came back an hour later it was still frozen. So I ate it anyway.
You guys, it was so good! I ate the Voskos brand with honey.
This brand of yogurt isn’t even that great so Oikos and Fage will probably be even yummier. You’d have to mix in fruit preserves prior to freezing though.
I don’t know why I never thought of this before – it’s so simple. I used to freeze Yoplait Whips! and they were delightfully crunchy. I haven’t seen these in the grocery store for a long time though. I bet the chocolate mousse flavor would tame many a chocolate craving.
I’m going to keep a few of these frozen from now on.
Have you done this before? Do you think it’s better than ice cream?