New Year's Eve- Tasty Food, A Wintry Walk & A Man with True Grit

On the eve of the new year I enjoyed some hearty bread with orange marmalade and a great cup of Irish Breakfast tea; a great way to start the day!

In the afternoon I went to Caumsett State Park in Lloyd Harbor with my dad so we could stretch our legs a bit. It was a beautiful and surprisingly mild day. I started out with a bunch of layers but before we had left our car in the parking lot I had taken a couple layers off. It was very relaxing to walk around and feel the cool air on my face, look for animal tracks in the snow, and as is always the case when I return to the island, see people I know. I love deciduous forests in the wintertime when there is snow; their bare branches contrast starkly with the sky and the snow. It is easy scenery for beautiful photographs.

This state park was originally a huge estate purchased in the early 1920's by Marshall Field III, an investment banker with family money. The land had been called Caumsett by the Matinecock Indians, which means, place by a sharp rock.

Later that night I went with my family to see True Grit. I love western films and I love the Coen brothers so I had high expectations for their newest film but I ended up being a bit disappointed. Jeff Bridges' character was great and so was Matt Damon's but the pace of the story and how it was presented just didn't really do it for me.

2010 had a bunch of great movies though, the ones I would especially recommend are:
-Green Zone
-The Millenium Trilogy films (I saw the first two, which are great- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl Who Played with Fire- but am holding off on seeing the third film, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, until I am done with the book).
-Black Swan (incredibly terrifying and disturbing but undeniably brilliant)
-Robin Hood
-Inception
-Shutter Island

Leonardo DiCaprio has always been a great actor but I feel like he just keeps getting better. I know a film with him in it will be good, just like I know one with Nicholas Cage in it is going to be terrible!


More information:
Caumsett State Park
http://nysparks.state.ny.us/parks/23/details.aspx

Marshall Field III
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshall_Field_III