... i've moved! ...

I've moved my blog! Click on the new blog link to find out why! :)

http://lasalzyn.blogspot.com/

... it's official! ...

It is official! I have an iPad. I decided life is too short not to take chances and risks. Hopefully this new tech device is well worth it. So! I am kicking off my new usage of my iPad by writing this blog. I will be able to blog more now that I have an iPad, not just blog about the prescreening I have seen, but also blog from other places and not just from home, even though I am sitting in my bed blogging right now. But it has been a bit of a crazy weekend and I am still trying to wind down from it all! More details and more blogs to come!

... eggplant parmesan so easy and so yummy ...

I love Olive Garden's Eggplant Parmesan! After much thought, "how hard could it be to make eggplant parmesan?!" So I found a recipe online. I managed to find this recipe that does not involve frying the eggplant. I figured pre-baking the eggplant is probably healthier than frying the eggplant. I found this recipe from www.allrecipes.com. It turned out well overall. It especially made the house smell of yummy Italian food. One piece of advice I would recommend for this recipe is to be sure to pick a ripe eggplant. The raw eggplant should have a nice looking skin and be somewhat soft, but not too soft. I think my eggplant was not ripe enough and it added a bit of a woody taste. But it was not terrible. I also read on many other website that it is recommended to slice the eggplant, sprinkle it with sea salt, let set for 1 hour, rinse and dry thoroughly. I believe this is to decrease the "woody" taste of the eggplant. I think I will try this method next time. Enjoy this easy Eggplant Parmesan Recipe! It is yummy. Pair it with some spaghetti and garlic bread. No veggie needed since you already have eggplant, but a green veggie may be nice for looks and to add extra veggies. ENJOY!

Eggplant Parmesan

Ingredients:
1 large eggplant, peeled and thinly sliced
2 eggs, beaten
4 cups Italian seasoned bread crumbs
6 cups spaghetti sauce, divided
1 (16 ounce) package mozzarella cheese, shredded and divided
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1/2 teaspoon dried basil


Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Dip eggplant slices in egg, then in bread crumbs. Place in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake in a preheated oven for 5 minutes on each side.

In a 9x13 inch baking dish spread spaghetti sauce to cover bottom. Place a layer of eggplant slices in the sauce. Sprinkle with mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Repeat with remaining ingredients, ending with the cheeses. Spring basil on top.

Bake in preheated oven for 35 minutes, or until golden brown.

... Clash of the Titans ...

Movie Review

Movie: Clash of the Titans [in 3D]
Rating: 3 stars out of 5 stars
[4 stars out of 5 stars for all of you action sci-fi/mythology movie lovers]

Honestly, when I received a pre-screening ticket for this movie, I was not overly thrilled. It definitely did not rank high on my "must see" movie list. But I figured, free movie, I mind as well go. I was very happy to find out that the pre-screening was in 3D. For those of you that have seen 3D movies and paid for them, they can be quite pricey. I think this movie would have been dull if it was not seen in 3D. So definitely see it in 3D. It is amazing to see how far 3D technology has become! It definitely ranked high on my action movie scale. However, after seeing other 3D movies, I didn't feel like the effects of the 3D were all that great. Lets put it this way, it could have been better with the present technology. For those of you like myself that know nothing or minimum about Greek mythology, this movie is very informative and a reminder of Greek mythology from high school. Very easy plot, especially if you remember Greek mythology. If you like action movies this is a definite must see. I would not recommend this movie as a date movie, unless you both are into this kind of sci-fi. Definitely a friend or guy movie. I would say this is a movie worth going to see now in theaters in 3D versus waiting for it to come out on DVD, unless you plan on purchasing one of those new 3D TVs. Craziness. What's next floating cars?!

... The Last Song ...

Movie Review

Movie: The Last Song
Rating: 3 stars out of 5 stars
[4 stars out of 5 stars for sappiest chick flick love story]

Lets see, where to start with this one. This movie is your typical Nicholas Sparks' book turned movie. Boy meets girl, boy and girl fall in love and of course someone has to die. I don't want to give away too much of this predictable love story, therefore I'm going to keep this blog short. On a side note, I managed to get one of my good guy friends to go with me to this obvious chick flick. He didn't think it was too bad, but I had to laugh out loud literally in the movie theater when the teeny boppers that surrounded us were crying like their dog died. One thing teeny boppers this day in age need to learn is love does not happen the way it is written in books and movies. Hollywood has done a ridiculous good job at portraying the way love DOES NOT happen in this day in age. I guess it could happen like this in a perfect world, but wait ... The world isn't perfect. Maybe this is why you see people getting married older and having kids later in their life. All the girls/ladies in this world are waiting for a love story such as "The Last Song" to happen to them. Clearly, I'm not waiting for that. Life is too short to be waiting for prince charming to sweep me off my feet. One thing I liked about this movie was it was not very long and blah blah blah. I thought it had a nice flow and I was not checking my watch and wondering if this movie would hurry up and end. For all you hopelessly romantics out there, this movie would be a good one for you. But for those of you that are like myself, that are not so keen on the typical love story mirage that is built for us by Hollywood, I would wait for this movie to come out on DVD. Rent it when you are having a girl's night and even then be sure to rent a second movie, just in case this movie is a flop in your girl's night out event.

... Repomen ...

Movie Review

Movie: Repomen
Rating: 4 stars out of 5 stars

First off, let me say if you have a weak stomach as far as seeing blood and guts, this movie is NOT for you. Warning you just in case you didn't figure that out from the previews. In all honesty, I don't have a weak stomach, but I'm not all for the blood and guts, but I will say that this movie was totally awesome. Jude Law always gets a reputation for playing in these sappy love movies of being the lover madly in love with some gorgeous female. Well, he still manages to squeak that into this movie, but I really liked how he plays the bad ass in the beginning of the movie. Who knew that Jude Law could play such a cruel character in a movie. Definite kudos to him for that! Of course though, I will tell you there is a female involved that he is in love with and is trying to save. Does he save her? Is she real or a fiction of his imagination? Well, I guess you will have to go see the movie for yourself to find out! The ending is definitely interesting. Who would have guessed?

This is definitely a movie I would qualify as being worth paying to go see. At first I didn't think the trailer did the movie much justice as I lost interest in seeing the movie, but I really like how it doesn't give a lot of the movie away. That's the way trailers should be! I think that all our minds have gone numb at times and so trailers have been set to tell you what the movie is going to be all about point blank. But then again a movie ticket on Friday and Saturday costs $10, so I can understand wanting to know what you are buying into first. I remember when movies were $6 in high school. But hey! I'm all for the $5 movies during the week or on Sunday at AMC. Want to go?! Call me!

Next pre-screening is The Last Song. I can already tell you it's based off of a Nicholas Sparks book, which in turn I bet that the male lover of the movie will die at the end of the movie. Nicholas Sparks you are WAY too predictable. Write something with a different ending! Stay tuned!

... I want to WIN! ...

I want to win an Apple iPad! I am a graphic designer and I am in love with Apple products. Apple thinks smarter, not harder.

Ok! So here it goes! Print 24 is having a contest to win an Apple iPad. All I have to do is write a short article explaining: "How I would use my Apple iPad" and publish it to my blog. You must be 18+ years of age. Each participant is allowed to participate only once. In addition, the page should exist at least one month and should not be created for this specific competition. Well, as most of you know I have been kind of slacking on my blog, but this is definitely one reason to update my blog as well as a reason for an iPad! So here it goes!

The environment is what sparks everyone's mind and imagination. To me an Apple iPad = expanding creativity and minds and imagination. 20 years ago, when I was age 6, who would have imagined a computer so small that it could be carried with you everywhere you went? Apple iPad has proved that the imaginative is possible. My hopes if I win an Apple iPad is to prove my imaginative thoughts and ideas are possible.

In all my excitement and hopes of winning the Apple iPad from print 24's contest, if I had an iPad how would I use it ... to explore the world [home and away] ... to update friends and family of my life via my blog more often ... to hopefully inspire other bloggers by my thoughts and comments ... to share my hobbies such as music and photography in hopes of learning more about others in the process ... all of this without being tied to a desk and on the go exploring ... imagining ... making the impossible, possible.

Welp! I think that wraps it up for me here! Best of luck to all the other Apple iPad contestants!