When your Nutella can be poured like maple syrup, your house may be a smidge on the warm side.

If you live in Seattle, you're up to your sweaty neck in conversation and collective kvetching about the heat. There's no question that it's hot. Yesterday broke the all-time record for a daytime high (dating back to and through 1891). That's for any day on the calendar. The prior record was an even 100, reached twice before. Yesterday was officially 103. Today it might also be 101 or thereabouts. Nighttime low highs have also been broken - the record for any day had been 69, yesterday's overnight low was 71. Our neighborhood even had its power go out last night at 9:30 until sometime between 1 and 2am for heat-related reasons. That's never happened to us here before. But for all the general discomfort and unwelcome moments of cranky people popping up with a cliched lament or two, it just ain't all that bad. I had a shirtless guy filling up his tank at the same time as I was this morning strike up a conversation about the weather after telling me he liked my hat. When has something that surprisingly pleasant last happened to anyone in an urban setting? Weather, after all, is the safest conversational avenue. And nothing gets people chattin' quite like extreme weather.

I believe the key to even-tempered survival is some degree of prior exposure to heat. Summers in Wisconsin would get swelteringly hot on those rare occasions - usually in direct inverse duration to those January way-below-zero cold snaps. But for this level of still, stifling heat I look to the period we lived in Dallas (Sarah for 4 years, me for two). Dallas can be ridiculously hot, while even the smallest store or office has the AC set for near 60. Where I worked, everyone had a "work sweater" waiting for them at their desk. When the difference between inside and outside is close to 50 degrees, your body is constantly confused. Which is partly why I think Dubya was so flummoxed by the English language...but that's a different topic for another time. The summer I moved to Big D, the entire month of July had daytime highs over 100 except for the 4th when an hour worth of light rain in the morning held the afternoon high at 99. I remember on July 11th walking across acres of blazing parking lot outside of a hideous, huge Fry's electronics superstore where the outside temp on their sign at just after noon was 111. If ever there was a moment when I considered hopping a freight train headed toward Canada or beyond, that was it. But it passed. Eventually. As will this sticky departure from the norm in the Great Northwest. Although, the planet is still screwed so...

Hope your own trip to Home Depot is for appliances that are fully stocked and priced to move. Rock on.

Please stop me before I see something starring a poorly animated creature, such as Katherine Heigl

We're heading back to Seattle tomorrow after a full, fun week. Maya seemed to enjoy her mornings spent at sea exploration camp through the Museum of Natural History, and all the attention from family otherwise. And on my side of the ledger, I have three more movie reviews to add. I saw a grand total of six flicks in the theatre over the week, which was a grand indulgence. With that said...

My favorite movie of the summer thus far was "Moon" - a very small, very well-conceived gem that is entirely Sam Rockwell's baby. Without giving anything away, the central conceit of Sam's time on the Moon becomes apparent less than halfway into the film. From there on out, it's an even more clever thriller. The director, Duncan Jones (the real life son of David Bowie), makes $5 million look cooler than a dozen sweaty Megan Foxes dry humping another dozen bewitched or besotted Daniel Radcliffes. My rating - B-plus. Check it out, although it should be coming soon on video.

My concession to Sarah for some of crap I drag her to was my reciprocity in seeing "The Proposal". Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock could read a bundle of Sarah Palin speeches and still get a few natural laughs. Which is about what they were asked to do here. Betty White is still alive, apparently, so she also got some pity laughs. But unless you're trying to pay off a similar debt to the one you love or are looking for barely two hours worth of air conditioning relief, I'd say wait for the rental. My rating - a C-plus. I padded the rating when I realized how much Ryan Reynolds and I look like twins with our shirts off.

"Public Enemies" was the last movie on my list of try-to-sees, and I'm not entirely sad that I did so. I generally love Johnnie Depp and Michael Mann films have always been action eye candy. This movie is shot beautifully, and the clothes look good enough to spread on a cracker. The problem is the soul. Or, rather, the complete lack thereof. They even completely wasted the actual location of a famous shootout with the FBI in northern Wisconsin (the Little Bohemia near Manitowish Waters) that I'd drive by with my parents every time we went to visit my Grandma in the town of Hurley, just a bit farther north to the border with the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. In short, all style, glorious style. Bupkis on the real substance. My rating - B-minus. See it in a dollar theatre or wait for a rental.

So endeth my reviewing. I hope I've given you inspiration to spend more time reading this summer. Rock on.

Looking beyond Harry Potter and the Half Interested Global Audience

Another quick movie review - the latest Harry Potter movie is about as much fun as waiting for a car wash to finish its cycle. Including a wax. And some other layers of fluff that are forgotten within a few days of regular life. I've given up on this series, even though we've got two more movies to go. All those actors need to move on and pick up the pieces of their lost childhood. Emma Watson is the only young actor that makes me at least pay attention and quit looking at my watch. And she's sane enough to move on and start college at Brown in the fall. Overall, see it if you're a huge fan of the books. Then, don't discuss it in public because you're uncool and people don't like you. Maybe that's a bit harsh. Oh well. My rating - C-minus.

Music-wise, I'm listening through three new albums. Grizzly Bear's "Veckatimist" is orchestral folk with a beautiful sound, Dirty Projectors's "Bitte Orca" is layered complexity and astonishingly weird new wavey rock, and Phoenix's "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix" is a bunch of really normal seeming French dudes making extremely clever pop sound awfully easy, although it's certainly not. All three albums get a solid B-plus for very different reasons. Check them out if you've got some mad money burning a hole in your pocket.

Hope your own listening habits get a shake-up today. Rock on.

Or maybe it's just that Austria's nowhere near as funny as Kazahkstan

Yet another great week in Santa Barbara that affords me the time to catch up on a backlog of thus far untouched cultural fun mixed in with runs along the beach and tasty summer foods. I'll post a bundle of reviews as the week goes on. But I'll start with a pair of movies.

"Bruno" is "Borat" without the core of sweetness or the surprises that made Sasha Baron Cohen's comedy seem so intensely original. My rating - D-plus. I knew what we were in for, and I went in wanting to find the silver thong amidst a cloud of intentionally bad fashion. Sadly, it ain't there. Save you cash and wait for cable.

"The Hurt Locker" has a more authentic feel than any of the other Iraq War movies that have largely disappointed over the last many years. The setting in both time (2004 going forward) and place (chaotic Baghdad) is spot on. The actors do everything that's asked of them in a tense, brutal storyline centered on a bomb disposal team. But it just doesn't feel like a modern, insightful, off-balance classic. For that designation, I'd go more for "Full Metal Jacket" or to a much lesser degree "Three Kings". My rating - B-minus. I still recommend it strongly as a rental.

Hope your own blast radius has more to do with the outer limits of a backyard barbeque party today. Rock on.

Maya prepped for her first day as a "Sea Squirt" at camp.

Maya prepped for her first day of as a "Sea Squirt" at camp.
Originally uploaded by emaggie

We're in Santa Barbara for a blissed-out week of vacation. Maya's spending her weekday mornings at an ocean exploration camp organized by the Museum of Natural History here. She's a "Sea Squirt" and couldn't have been more psyched this morning to get dipped in sunscreen and dropped at the end of Stearns Wharf to meet up with the other "Sea Squirts". We're actually jealous of what she's getting to do, which is pretty damn cool.

Hope your own explorations involve a lunch on the beach today. Rock on.

Two brand new summertime haircuts.

Two brand new summertime haircuts.
Originally uploaded by emaggie

Eat your heart out, Casey Kasem

The obvious points of interest (Sarah Palin's ridiculous final weeks on the job, the GOP's floundering assault on wise Latina women, Prince Fielder winning the otherwise unimportant Baseball All-Star Home Run Derby, the upcoming 40th anniversary of Apollo 11) seem a bit underwhelming to me. Today is that ultimate test one's own humility - my birthday. And a big one if the Hallmark corporation and its fellow guilt marketers are to be followed. Today I begin my 5th decade on the planet. The big four-oh. To be honest, it feels pretty good.

I like to think this is my George W. Bush moment. At 40, he quit drinking, found religion, got serious about getting new and exciting jobs he was also totally unqualified for, and eventually did everything in his power to bring down the country. But I'm no Dubya. I like to think big. So I'm going to say bring 'em on, make the pie higher, and don't misunderestimate me all in one tortured sentence. Still, for all those historians looking to analyze just what made me so, um, me...I offer a random list of things I love and thank the gawds for having created. In no particular order.

1. Hats, of all shapes, so long as they have a brim.
2. Sparkling water with juice and a touch of lime.
3. Sunglasses that work even on cloudy days.
4. King-sized beds with fresh sheets.
5. Lawnmowers that start on the first pull.
6. Movies in an air-conditioned theatre.
7. Saying "I love you" without a hint of a Fonzie stutter.
8. Throwing a perfect spiral with a freshly pumped-up football.
9. Writing a line that makes someone laugh out loud.
10. WiFi that doesn't require a password.

I hope y'all have a special day. Rock on.

"In my country, it would be rude NOT to look."

When was the last time "Good Morning America" actually broke some news? Check that - when did they last break news WITH some actual wit? Doesn't matter, really. Today I'll give some props for what they did with the alleged booty check by Obama at the G-8. He's clean as the tears of a baby panda. Sarkozy, on the other hand, is a little perv who was probably wearing lifts at this photo op. Enjoy.



Hope you're also looking good from where I'm standing. Rock on.

A cool mountain stream dip on a hot Fourth of July just outside of North Bend, WA.

A cool mountain stream dip on a hot Fourth of July just outside of North Bend, WA.
Originally uploaded by emaggie

Hiking with a friend is always more fun.

Hiking with a friend is always more fun.
Originally uploaded by emaggie

"Dad, this Slip n' Slide should be called The Water Wedgie."

"Dad, this Slip n' Slide should be called The Water Wedgie."
Originally uploaded by emaggie