Friday, December 26, 2008

Poor Union Station!

I hadn't been to Union Station in a couple of years. Today, I decided to go there. I had visions of wandering in and out of shops, including the bookstore, the train shop, all of the little artsy shops.

Well, it didn't quite happen that way. Less than half of the shops were full, and the ones that were left were very sad. There are almost no shops on the top level, and only a couple of food places in the food court.

The train shop and bookstore are gone, as are the little specialty stores. I saw a Body Shop, a Dog Shop, a few Cardinals shops, a couple of St. Louis souvenir shops, and a candy shop. Even the mini-golf seemed to be closed.

Union Station is gorgeous, and stil has some great restaurants - Houlihan's, Hard Rock Cafe, etc. The hotel seems to be thriving as well. It all looks like mud without the shops, though.

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Looking for a book club?

Last Monday, I went to the organizational meeting of a great new book club being held at Picasso's Coffee House in Old Town St. Charles. The conversation was stimulating and the people are fabulous. If you're looking for a book club, please drop in!

Meetings are on the third Monday of the month at 7PM. The next meeting is January 19th. For January, we're reading "Cat's Cradle" by Kurt Vonnegut, and for February, it's "The Audacity of Hope," by Barack Obama. Everyone is welcome!

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Missouri History Museum


Missouri History Museum
Originally uploaded by Brian M!
We headed on over to the Missouri History Museum today, where they are having a wonderful exhibit honoring George Washington Carver. If you live in St. Louis, you should definitely stop in and see it.

In addition, there's a great Lindbergh exhibit, which doesn't focus on the actual flight as much as the hoopla surrounding Lindbergh once the flight was successful. It was overwhelming!

There was also a small display honoring Anheuser-Busch, which probably should be put in the basement, at least until the layoffs are over. While I understand that it's a part of our area's history, this rough patch should probably be a little more in the past before we're ready to honor it again.

We stepped into Meriwether's Restaurant at the museum for brunch. The food display was practically an exhibit in itself...and we made quite history of it!

All in all, it was a nice few hours in a great St. Louis Museum. It's right on the Metrolink, so it has very easy access for everyone. I highly recommend putting a visit on your calendar very soon!

Saturday, December 6, 2008

Inside the Actors Studio


1006081855.jpg
Originally uploaded by cZimba
Watching a marathon of "Inside the Actors Studio" with James Lipton. Guests inlcluded Daniel Radcliffe, Alec Baldwin, Dave Chapelle, and James Lipton (being interviewed himself). What a great show, for everyone - not just actors. If you're a speaker, or even just want to get out and live life to the fullest, there's a lot of great stuff here.

Friday, December 5, 2008

Hancock


Hancock Movie Advertising Wall
Originally uploaded by tipacali
"Hancock" had promise, for the first half. The second half really was slow. Too much sad-Charlize-Theron-face. I didn't really care about their plight, I just wanted to see him save more people!

Monday, December 1, 2008

Moon-Jupiter-Venus



This photo was shot over Australia, of the gorgeous moon tonight. We can't see it here -- we're under complete cloud cover. You're not only seeing the moon here, but also Jupiter and Venus. Incredible -- well, for those who aren't encumbered by CLOUDS. This won't happen again for 44 years, when I'm too old to go outside and see it. They look close, but are really 500 million miles apart. All of you with clear skies, get out there and look at it!