Category: Comedies

Comedies

Mean Girls

LizLocke4 Comments
Mean Girls
Mean Girls

Halloween is upon us in just a few days, and in the spirit of all things scary I’ve chosen to feature a movie that depicts the scariest thing of all- high school. Forget serial killers, zombies, and ghosts; the real terror of my life has been choosing the right cafeteria table. Additionally, this film’s commentary on women’s Halloween costumes is just priceless- “In the regular world, Halloween is when children dress up in costumes and beg for candy. In Girl World, Halloween is the one night a year when a girl can dress like a total slut and no other girls can say anything about it.” Yep, sounds about right.

Mean Girls is based on the non-fiction book “Queen Bees and Wannabes” by Rosalind Wiseman. The movie tells the story of Cady Heron (played by an unusually fresh-faced Lindsay Lohan), who grew up in Africa with her globetrotting parents, but is now plunked down in an American high school. She makes friends first with the artsy kids (my personal clique-of-choice in high school) but then gets slowly sucked into the world of popular girls (aka The Plastics). This movie is hilarious in its depiction of the social strata, but also chillingly real too. Girls can be VERY mean, and not just the popular ones. In the end the film gets tied up in a nice harmonious little bow, which is a shame because that so very rarely happens in real life. If this were real life, I predict that over summer vacation everyone conveniently forgets to be nice to each other, and the whole system of queen bees and wannabes resets itself.

Because The Plastics make a big deal out of wearing pink (only on Wednesdays!), I think this drink is a perfect fit. It may not be spooky or scary, but it’s DELICIOUS and it totally makes me wish Amy Poehler (aka “the cool mom”) would have mixed me up a batch of these back in the day for an underage cocktail hour. For Mean Girls, I’m serving up the Pink Lady Problem:

1 ¼ oz gin

½ oz lemon juice

½ oz grenadine

1 egg white

Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice cubes. Shake vigorously. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

pink-lady-problem

You may say, isn’t the consumption of raw egg whites in a cocktail dangerous? Perhaps, but in general the alcohol will kill most germs that are in there. I love egg white cocktails, and I’m excited to feature one here. The egg whites add a creaminess that is so different from most drinks, plus it’s a fun excuse to work out your upper arms while you shake it up. So pop in a Toaster Strudel, perhaps slip into your Halloween costume that’s really just “lingerie and some form of animal ears”, mix up some drinks, grab your 3 closest frenemies, and say a prayer of thanks that you only have to experience high school once in your life. Cheers!

Comedies

Baby Boom

LizLockeLeave a comment

Diane-Keaton-in-Baby-Boom-1987

I stumbled onto a copy of one of my favorite 80’s movies the other night. No, not Jaws, not Star Wars, and definitely not Indiana Jones. I’m talking about the Diane Keaton classic Baby Boom. Set in the bustling dot-matrix world of New York finance, this movie features plenty of shoulder pads, Le Corbusier furniture, and that great mystery of male sexiness Sam Shepard. For those who haven’t seen it, Diane Keaton’s character J.C. Wiatt is a high-powered businesswoman in New York City who inherits a baby through some pretty outlandish circumstances. She tries her best to raise the baby and keep the career, but in the end a smarmy 80’s-era James Spader undermines her and she’s forced to leave the rat race behind. She moves to Vermont, where she meets a handsome veterinarian and starts a baby applesauce company. J.C. Wiatt is my personal hero in this movie. She takes a horrible situation (cue the shrieking baby at a business meeting) and turns it into something amazing. If that’s not inspirational, I don’t know what is.

For my cocktail pairing, I’m making a Vermont Appletini. Now, you’re welcome to make a standard Appletini with the neon green mix if that’s your thing, but personally I prefer something a little more refined in flavor. Like a lot of the cocktails I’ll be featuring, this one contains real fruit slices. Because fruit is very healthy for you, even if it’s soaked in alcohol. Right?

vermont-appletini.gif

Vermont Appletini

1 part Orange-flavored Vodka

½ part Diced Apple

½ part Simple Syrup

½ part Lemon Juice

½ part Butterscotch Schnapps*

Pinch of Cinnamon

Fresh apple slices for garnish

In a cocktail shaker, muddle the apple and simple syrup. Add ice and the rest of the ingredients. Shake until cold, and strain into a chilled martini glass. Top with a thin slice of apple and pinch of cinnamon.

This drink is a great accompaniment to the film because it combines the sophistication of the New York cocktail scene with the flavors of a fall night in Vermont. Sip slowly as you marvel at Diane Keaton’s impeccable comedic timing, James Spader’s female golfer haircut, and Sam Shepard’s crooked smile and backwoods accent that shouldn’t be attractive yet somehow are, in a geeky sort of way. In many ways, I think this movie has greatly inspired me in life.  J.C. Wiatt longs for life where she can raise her baby outside of the rat race, while still maintaining a fabulous career. In the end, she makes it happen. Whereas I long to sit around mixing cocktails and watching movies all day, while still doing something that can be called a career. And look at me now, doing just that. Here’s to making applesauce with your life. Cheers!

*Note- you may be asking yourself, why should I buy an entire bottle of Butterscotch Schnapps for this one drink? I promise, you’ll use it again in again. It makes a great mixer during the fall, particularly in apple cider or rum cocktails.