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Escabeche and the Record Store

     Sunday I had lunch at a place called Ki'ikibaa. It was voted Portland's best restaurant of 2023. It's on NE 82nd. There is a small parking lot behind it. The neighborhood it is in is a little sketchy but not too bad. The food is Yucatan Mexican food. It is small. The decor is very colorful. The top half of the walls are red and bottom is yellow. There are lots of tradition Mexican decorations. Shiny metallic streamers are hanging from the ceiling. Possibly left over from Christmas. Loud music is playing. The service is good. It's the kind of place where you order and then find a table. It was busy when I was there so I was lucky to find a table. I got escabeche which is basically a turkey soup. The turkey is shredded and very tender. There is also a hardboiled egg cooked in sausage. It comes with tortillas. It was good. Simple and comforting. I wanted to try something I've never had before. It wasn't the most exciting but still good. I would go back. Later I saw reviews saying they have some of the best burritos. So I would try that next time. If only it wasn't so far away from my house.

Tuesday: Eddie and the Cruisers (1983)

     A TV journalist becomes interested in a rock band from the 60s called Eddie and the Cruisers. The lead singer, Eddie, died under mysterious circumstances. She believes he might still be alive. There are tapes from an unreleased album the band recorded before he died. Finding them might shed light on what happened to him. She tracks down Frank, the song writer for the band, who is now a teacher. He is reluctant to talk to her. Frank doesn't want to think about those days. But his curiosity is peaked. So he tracks down the remaining members of the band. He relives what it was like to be in the band. I thought this movie was alright. More of a B movie. Not as good as I thought it would be.

Friday: The Iron Claw (2023) 

     This is based on a true story. The Von Erich brothers became famous wrestlers in the early 80s. Their father was a former wrestler. He then opened is own arena. The father wanted to win the heavy weight champion belt but never did. So he was going to make sure one of his four sons would win it. Kevin, the second eldest, was on his way to getting a shot at it. Later his brother David joined him in the ring. After not being able to go to the Olympics their brother Kerry also joined them. They had success for a while. But then tragedy strikes. The family continues to have very bad luck. This movie was alright. More intense than I thought it would be. Minor spoiler-not the movie to see if you're trying to avoid death.

Saturday: Frankie & Johnny (1991) 

      Frankie is a waitress at a diner. She has been unlucky in love and is unhappy. A new cook, Johnny, starts at the diner. Johnny is recently out of prison. He is trying to turn his life around. Johnny takes a liking to Frankie. She is resistant to him. She seems to like him but never lets him get to close. When she does let him in she immediately pushes him away again. Johnny is in love and doesn't give up on her. I thought this movie was alright. 

Sunday: High Fidelity (2000)

       Rob owns a record store. He is going through a break up with his girlfriend Laura. He goes back through his top five break ups. Trying to see what went wrong. Rob struggles to make sense of why he and Laura are breaking up. He wonders if he even wants to be with her. Also his store isn't doing well and he is avoiding thinking of the future. This movie was alright.

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