Journal Entry for Friday, Dec 30th

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo – The Book Once you start this debut thriller--the first in a trilogy from the late Stieg Larsson, it is a serious page-turner. Mikael Blomkvist, a once-respected financial journalist that is freshly sentenced to jail for libeling a shady businessman, watches his professional life rapidly crumble around him. Just as his prospects appear bleak he is presented an unexpected offer to resurrect his name by an old-school titan of Swedish industry. The catch is that he must first spend a year researching a mysterious disappearance that has remained unsolved for nearly four decades. With no other options, he accepts and eventually enlists the help of Lisbeth Salander, a multipierced and tattooed Lisbeth Salander, an investigator who is a vulnerable superhacker. A misunderstood genius with a dark past and cache of authority issues, there is at least one constant: you really don't want to mess with the girl with the dragon tattoo. One of the fastest reads I’ve had in years. Loved it! I give it 5-Stars.

Journal Entry for Wednesday, Dec 28th

Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol Today was movie day!. This movie was just what we expected, another loud, intense, fast paced action movie with nearly impossible physical acts. However, the mission itself was not just another mission. The IMF is shut down when it becomes implicated in a global terrorist bombing plot that blows up the kremlin in Red Square. Ghost Protocol is initiated and Ethan Hunt and his rogue new team must go undercover to clear the name of the organization. With no help, no contact, and “off the grid”, they travel the world doing what they do best, taking out the ‘bad guys’. Granted the plot line and dialogue are thin and the action toys over the top, but isn’t that what it’s suppose to be. Needless to say, it was right up our alley. We liked it and give it 4-Stars.

Journal Entry for Saturday, Dec 17th

The Descendants Today we decided to go to the South Point Casino and take in a movie before heading over to the “M” to use Connie’s free slot play. Based upon a favorable rating from our neighbors, we chose The Descendants, staring George Clooney. It is about the sometimes humorous, sometimes tragic journey of Matt King, an indifferent husband and father of two girls, who is forced to re-examine his past and embrace his future when his wife suffers a boating accident off of Waikiki. The event leads to a rapprochement with his young daughters while Matt wrestles with a decision to sell the family's land handed down from Hawaiian royalty and missionaries. We found this to be a very emotionally complex film. As movies go, I thought it moved just a little slow at times, however, that is probably what made it seem so real and down to earth. I must admit that I really enjoy George Clooney’s ability to portray humor and emotion in vary realistic terms. We both thought his performance was very 'human'. Some have classified it as the most well-rounded and emotionally raw performance of his distinguished career. We both really enjoyed and give it a strong Four Stars.

Journal Entry for Tuesday, Dec 13th

The Litigators by John Grisham I just finished The Litigators by John Grisham and enjoyed it immensely. It’s about two lawyers at a firm called Finley & Figg — a two-bit operation always in search of their big break. Mostly  ambulance chasers looking for the next great car wreck, they also specialize in quickie divorces and DUIs. In partnership together for more than twenty years, Oscar Finley and Wally Figg bicker like the ‘Odd Couple’, yet somehow continue to scratch out a half-decent living from their seedy office in southwest Chicago. All of a sudden their routine is changed when David Zinc, a young but already burned-out attorney, walks away from his fast-track career at a fancy downtown firm, goes on a serious bender, and finds himself literally at the doorstep of their ‘boutique’ firm. With their new associate on board, F&F feels they are ready to tackle a really big case.  When Varrick Labs, a giant pharmaceutical company with annual sales of $25 billion, comes under attack after several patients taking their extremely popular drug, Krayoxx, the number one cholesterol reducer for the dangerously overweight, sufferer heart attacks, Wally smells money.  A little online research confirms Wally’s suspicions - a huge plaintiffs’ firm in Florida is putting together a class action suit against Varrick, and all Finley & Figg have to do is find a handful of people who have had heart attacks while taking Krayoxx, convince them to become clients, join the class action, and ride along to fame and fortune. With any luck, they won’t even have to enter a courtroom! Before you know it, everything goes south, in more ways than you can count. I Thought this well written story was extremely intriguing and couldn’t wait to get back to it each time after I had to put it down. Unlike the last book I read, which dragged on for nearly two months, I finished this book within nearly a week. Certainly one of the best books I’ve read this year. I give it 5-Stars.

Journal Entry for Saturday, Dec 10th

The Christmas Spirit (Click picture to Enlarge) Today we joined our downstairs neighbors and frequented two of our favorite spots for getting in touch with the Christmas spirit. Our first stop was at the Bellagio’s Conservatory & Botanical Garden. It’s winter time again and the Bellagio continues to impress with this year’s ‘golden’ Christmas tree. The collage on the left was created using a dozen of the pictures of took of the exhibit. This years' spectacular centerpiece is a 42-foot tall Shasta Fir Christmas tree that is decorated with more that 1,700 gold ornaments and 13,500 lights. The exhibit also includes 34 penguins that skate around the display and a trio of topiary polar bears that are made of over 35,000 white carnations. As it never disappoints, we try to make this a traditional stop every December. Click here for info and to view more pictures plus a 55-picture slideshow ... Holiday Spirit. A Toast - Happy Holidays After this stop we drove to Lake Las Vegas to take in their tree lined streets. Each establishment had a fully decorated tree outside its front door as well as lights on light posts and patio rails. There was also a huge outside Christmas tree as well as several indoor trees at the Casino. After an hour of ‘strolling’ the streets of the quaint Italian village, we went inside and topped off the evening with the dinner special at Harry’s, a 6ox filet mignon with a steamed Maine lobster tail, and fresh asparagus accompanied by a nice bottle of Pinot Noir.