Museum of Pop Culture

The Museum of Pop Culture has long been on my Seattle to-do list. I finally got the opportunity to visit last March, while Dan was attending a work conference. 

The Frank O. Gehry designed building is an eye-catcher, beckoning visitors to take a closer look. It's fun, uniquely shape with gorgeous iridescent glass. How could you not want to see what's inside?

Tickets were a little speedy (look at me, using my PNW lingo!) at twenty-eight dollars. I didn't realize it at the time, but if you book online, you can save two dollars. It literally pays to plan. 

I did find the admission to be well-worth it for a museum that pays homage to all things pop-culture. The collection of movie props and costumes is amazing and the entire museum is immersive. It's very cool. It far exceeded all of my expectations.

I took the advice of the woman working at the info booth and headed to the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame. Among many amazing things, they had Harrison Ford's leather jacket and hat from the Indiana Jones films. I went back to check this out more than once. I'm a huge Indiana Jones fan and it was so cool to see it in person. Also memorable were props from the original Planet of the Apes and Blade Runner. 

I didn't take pictures inside the museum. Photography is allowed, but I had a negative impression early in my visit. I noticed that everyone was queueing up to take a snap of the displays, usually selfies with the object, but that they were not taking the time to really look at the item. It was like a quick grab for pictures. It turned me off. I knew that I would be blogging about my visit, but I figured rather than worrying about taking pictures, I would just enjoy my time. In turn, I highly recommend that you visit the Museum of Pop Culture and leave your phone off. Just soak it all in and take the memories.

The Museum of Pop Culture was hosting a special exhibition- Nirvana: Taking Punk to the Masses. 

Like many of my generation, I was a huge Nirvana fan in high school. I can remember hearing about Kurt Cobain's suicide and wearing my Nirvana tee-shirt ( Nevermind album cover) to play rehearsal the next day, a Saturday in eleventh grade. In a strange "this is the most LA thing that has probably ever happened to me" kind of way, I took an online poetry classes with Francis Bean Cobain a few years ago. Surreal.

Anyhow, the Nirvana: Taking Punk to the Masses was a small exhibit chronically their career. It included a bunch of memorabilia, included personal photos, primarily donated by band member Krist Novoselic. I enjoyed it, especially learning about the beginnings of the band. The highlight was observing as a French woman, about my age, explained Nirvana to her toddler. She was speaking in French, but I kept hearing the band members names as she pointed to items on display. 

Another temporary music exhibit was devoted to Jimi Hendrix - Wild Blue Angel: Hendrix Abroad, 1966-1970. I know that Hendrix is an icon, but I'm only somewhat familiar with his music. I enjoyed learning about his career and seeing some of his outrageous costumes.

Next, I headed to Fantasy: Worlds of Myth and Magic. This whole area was heavily themed to look like a castle and even had a dragon. My favorite part was seeing costumes from The Princess Bride, including Buttercup's dress. Among other things, the exhibit has items from The Wizard of Oz, Harry Potter, and The Lord of the Rings. 

I love horror films, but I found it difficult to work up my courage to visit a temporary exhibit called Scared to Death. I walked in the front entrance alone and down a blood-splattered staircase with a sculpture comprised of Jason masks peering down at me. The lighting was dim and there was atmospheric sounds. At the bottom of the staircase, I spotted a warning sign. The exhibit was warned to be immersive and that scared me off. I was afraid that there might be scareactors in costume or other startle elements. I cannot handle being startled, so I bailed.

I went to the massive Star Trek exhibit, which was not scary! I've not watched many episodes of any of the Star Trek series, so much of this was lost on me. Although, I did recognize iconic things, like the Tribbles and it was cool to see the original flight deck. If you're a trekkie, this is a must see. It was two floors. much bigger than any other exhibit in the museum.

Infinite Worlds of Science Fiction has an amazing collection of props from just about every major Sci-Fi franchise that you can imagine. I loved the hover boards from Back to the Future and the robots from the Terminator Franchise. The even had props from my favorite sci-fi comedy, Mars Attacks. I think this was probably the most popular exhibit in the entire museum.

I lucked out. As I entered the Infinite Worlds of Science Fiction, I noticed that there was a quick passage to the horror section. I could peek in and I saw that the room was crowded and it didn't appear to have any startle elements. I tentatively walked inside.

I'm so glad that I didn't miss out. There were elements that might freak people out, such as walking through a maze of body bags. However, nothing jumpy. As with the other themed rooms, they had props from all of the famous horror films- except Saw, which as a Saw fan, left me feeling disappointed. Speaking of Saws, not "Saw", they did have a prop saw from Eli Roth's  Hostel.  The most grotesque props were a bunch of zombie heads from The Walking Dead, which were floating in a giant water tank.

I ended with an exhibit about indie video games. This did not hold my interest and I walked through it in five minutes. If you're a gamer, you'd probably love it. It was filled with different stations where you could play the games, mostly games I've never heard of.

The Museum of Pop Culture has a few common areas with cool elements. There is a multi-story sculpture comprised of guitars and a lounge area with an enormous screen where they play music videos. Speaking of music, there is an interactive exhibit where you can play different instruments and create. I'm not at all musically inclined, so I skipped this one.

I visited the museum on a Tuesday morning and it was absolutely packed with both school groups and tourists. Make sure to arrive when they open and plan your visit. Within the first hour of opening, the crowds were making it difficult to enjoy.

The Museum of Pop Culture should definitely be high on your list of things to-do in Seattle. It's in a great location; right next to the Space Needle and Chihuly Gardens. You can easily do all three attractions in a single day.

I'll end with this fun sign for the museum.

Book Review- Apricot Irving's The Gospel of Trees

Thank you to Simon & Schuster for providing me with a copy of Apricot Irving's memoir, The Gospel of Trees, in exchange for an honest review.

PLOT- Apricot Irving was in elementary school during the 1980's, when her parents accepted a missionary trip to the island of Haiti. She spent a majority of her childhood living in Haiti, with occasional trips back to the United States. Irving's memoir is about finding a sense of belonging, both as an American being raised in Haiti, and of trying to connect with her father, who is temperamental and who often pushes aside the needs of his family in efforts to help his adopted country. 

LIKE- The whole time I was reading The Gospel of Trees, I kept thinking about how Irving, who is just a few years older than me, was living such a dramatically different childhood than my own. Prior to moving to Haiti when Irving was six, her parents lived a simple life in the Coachella Valley, which is only a few hours from where I was raised in Glendale. Her mother dreamed of moving to a farm in Oregon, but was committed to raising a family with Irving's father, who wanted to make a go at farming near his family in Southern California. The missionary opportunity in Haiti came due to her father's agriculture expertise, as he was able to help the struggling island with farming and forestry.

Living in Haiti was a complex situation. It's impossible to not have a place where you've made your home, especially one where Irving spent a majority of her childhood, not leave an imprint on your soul. Haiti is a very special place to Irving. It is a very special place to many of the missionary families who decided to move there, many making a life-long commitment. However, the missionaries are not always welcome. It's very complicated.

Haiti is a poverty stricken country, that has a history of trauma. It was a former colony of both Spain and France, winning its independence through a bloody revolt. It was occupied by American forces during the WW1, who stayed for twenty years. Haiti has struggled for both its independence and to figure out its own government. It certainly doesn't help that it has been ravished by natural disasters. With all of this, it is very contentious when missionary families, mostly white missionary families, try to help. Beyond race, there is also an obvious class issue. The missionary families may be giving up a lot of comforts while in Haiti and they may be considered poor (as was Irving's family) back in America, but when compared to most of the Haitians, they are very well-off. Simply living in the missionary homes gives them comforts and safety that the Haitians do not have. Also, they can always leave. Irving does a solid job of explaining Haiti's history and way it impacted the island.

Irving struggles with the poverty she witnesses and the realization that she is privileged. She feels an enormous sense of guilt, even from a young age, over this realization. Haiti is very much her home, but she also knows that she is an outsider. Her Haiti is not the same Haiti of the Haitians. 

Irving's father is a complex and difficult man. He has high expectations for his daughters that are difficult to meet and it seems that his expectations are amplified, when he is in Haiti, a place with so much need. They live in close proximity to an orphanage and her father takes a shine to an infant named Ti Marcel. Ti Marcel is a miracle baby, rebounding from near death. Ti Marcel becomes part of Irving's household and the attention that her father gives to the infant creates a lot of jealousy in Irving. Ti Marcel will later be taken in by her own family members and moved far away. Irving's father orchestrates visits to see Ti Marcel as she grows up, visits that are filled with tension and awkwardness. Even Irving's mother felt jealous towards the attention her husband paid toward Ti Marcel. For her part, Ti Marcel does not remember the family that took care of her as an infant and the visits from this white missionary family are strange. Ti Marcel made a huge impact on the dynamics of Irving's family, but she does not really understand it.

On a personal note, I visited Haiti in 2008, while on a Royal Caribbean cruise. RC has a private beach on the island, which they bring cruisers for day trips. It's is the most pristine and gorgeous beach that I've ever visited. It's paradise. It's also mostly isolated from the rest of the island and the Haitians. Really, we could have been anywhere and it didn't feel like we were on Haiti.

We did a jet ski excursion and in the middle of the excursion, while we were as far away from the beach as possible, our guide had us stop. An elderly Haitian man paddled out to us in a canoe. He was rake thin, missing both legs and nearly all of his teeth. Our guide, a local, waited as the man made the rounds to sell inexpensive jewelry and other small crafts. Everyone bought something and it was a very uncomfortable experience. I'm pretty sure that RC did not authorize this aspect of the excursion, as it seemed that they were making all efforts to keep us as isolated from Haiti as possible. The day at the beach was carefully orchestrated. At the time, I knew next to nothing about Haiti. This isn't an excuse, but a fact. Now, I feel really uncomfortable knowing that I was enjoying an amazing, luxurious day at the beach, while extreme poverty was a stones throw away. I can't think of my wonderful vacation memoirs, without wondering at what expense it was to the locals. I can't get the elderly man in the canoe out of my mind. I'm sure that in some respects the tourism helps the local economy and is welcomed, but I'm more thinking that it's wrong to visit a country in such a limited capacity. It's  a facade to keep the tourists happy. Reading The Gospel of Trees has started to breakdown that facade.

DISLIKE- Nothing. Irving's memoir is heartfelt, compelling, and thought-provoking.

RECOMMEND- Yes! The Gospel of Trees is one of the best memoirs that I've read in recent memory. It's a wonderful blend of Irving's experiences with historical information regarding Haiti. I gained deeper insight into the long-term ramifications of colonialism and of the complex issues that Haiti continues to face.  

Movie Review- Peter Rabbit

PLOT- Peter Rabbit ( James Corden) and the other local wildlife are thrilled when old Mr. McGregor (Sam Neill) suddenly passes away. They now have safe access to gorge themselves in McGregor's garden and they quickly take over his former home. The party is short lived, when the new owner of the home, Mr. Thomas McGregor (Domhnall Gleeson), the senior McGregor's nephew, takes up residence in his uncle's home. Like his uncle, the new Mr. McGregor will pull out all of the stops to keep critters from entering his garden.

McGregor's becomes smitten with his next door neighbor, Bea (Rose Byrne) who has a soft spot for wildlife, especially the rabbits. Peter, who has lost his parents, views Bea as a mother figure and he rallies the other animals to start a war against McGregor in the name of saving both their garden and their beloved Bea. 

LIKE- Dan and I had seen the Peter Rabbit trailer for months and every single time, we laughed. We had planned to see it on Valentine's Day, but couldn't make it happen. Luckily, we were able to catch it during our March trip to Washington. I'm happy to report that the trailer did not give away all of the best parts and we were laughing from start to finish. I'm fairly certain that we enjoyed it more than the kids in the audience, although this is certainly a great pick for a family film.

Normally, I don't like slap-stick and Peter Rabbit is filled with slap-stick. However, there is something about slap-stick with woodland creatures that's hilarious. It works because the writing is sharp and none of the action is gratuitous. Corden makes me laugh and he is perfect as Peter. I didn't realize until I saw the credits, but several other stars lend their voices, including Margot Robbie, Sia, and Daisy Ridley. 

I like how they've turned Peter Rabbit author/illustrator Beatrix Potter, into a character. In the film, Bea is a painter and her main subjects are the rabbits. A wonderful and sentimental nod to Peter Rabbit's creator. Bea's paintings are in the same style as Potter's original illustrations and may even be the originals. The film does a great job at blending classic and modern elements. 

The antagonist, the young McGregor, has a sympathetic side. Prior to learning that he has inherited his uncle's home, he learns that he was passed over for a much deserved promotion at Harrod's, where he works in the toy department. Devastated, he has a mental breakdown, quits his job, and moves into the country home that he has inherited. McGregor is the opposite of Peter. Where Peter likes to take risks and live for the moment, McGregor is a planner, he plays it safe. Quitting his job was probably the biggest risk that he has ever taken and clearly out of character. Peter likes to get rewards through risks, while McGregor sees rewards coming from hard work. Rabbit and human aside, these are two very different men. McGregor is certainly the antagonist, but he's also a likable character. The ending comes with both Peter and McGregor coming to terms with their own flaws and working together for the greater good that is the love of Bea.

As a bonus, it's primarily set in England's Lake District, which is a beautiful part of the country. It's a visually pretty film.

DISLIKE- Nothing. I throughly enjoyed Peter Rabbit, it far exceeded my expectations, which were already somewhat high.

RECOMMEND- YES!!! Dan and I have already decided to buy a digital copy of Peter Rabbit when it is released. It will be watched many times in our household. I also recommended it to a friend who has a nine year old daughter. Peter Rabbit is a great family film, one that is enjoyable for both adults and children.