Panera and a Movie (review)!

My BFF, Jude, asked if I wanted to go see the movie "Extremely Loud Incredibly Close."  I had seen the previews for this movie and it looked really, really sad. Anything with 9/11 in the theme, breaks my heart.  It was a movie I did want to see, eventually. And if I was going to see it, I would only be comfortable watching it with a select few.  Well, I agreed to go on this emotional roller coaster with her...

But first --- there must be lunch! It had to be a quick fix, because of time constraints. Panera seemed the perfect match, since not only is it tasty, it's fast! The only bad thing about the "local" Panera is that it is crayyyy-zeeeee busy most of the time.

I made a plan to show up early and secure a table. Since, I got done shopping a teense bit earlier than anticipated, I decided to have "first" lunch.  I was smart enough to register my Panera card and to my delight I got a FREE large coffee.Whoohoo! I was going to order that anyway. Andddd I ordered a cranberry/orange muffin to go with it.

The muffin was delicious with a little dab of butter. 

After a bit, I ordered "second" lunch. Cream of chicken and rice soup and a half sandwich. I ordered an Italian combo for me.  Also delicious!

After eating lunch we zipped over to the movie theater. Running almost red lights, all the way!  We bought our tickets and headed into the theater. There were only two other people there. We got to sit wherever we wanted, in those super comfy, recliner seats! YIPPEE!!

Then after 10 minutes of previews, the movie commenced. It should be noted that I like most of the movies that  feature Tom Hanks or Sandra Bullock. But both of them in the same movie!?! It's gotta be good, right?!?    Well, I wasn't disappointed. Someone told Jude to bring tissues. I had an ample supply from my previous movie event. But at that movie, "The Vow," I only used one tissue. This was to actually blow my nose because of a health condition called a cold... You can read my previous blog about that one.  I divvied up the tissues I had available, just in case.

Let me just say the tissues were definitely needed! The movie was really good and really awful all at the same time.  All of the hoopla about the young lead actor, Thomas Horn, who plays the son Oskar, were well  warranted. For a 14 year old, Jeopardy whiz, he has some serious acting chops!  Of course, like I mentioned before, having Tom and Sandra in the same movie, doesn't hurt either.

Sooooooo.... If you want to have your heart kicked around for 2+ hours this is the movie for you!  I personally like these kind of flicks. It was right up my alley!  I am very glad Jude asked me to go with her, otherwise, I woulda missed it.....  We both agreed that it was exhausting to watch and a nap seemed like a great idea. But, alas, no rest for the weary.  Once I got home, there were some dinner expectations. Rest assured I will get a good night's sleep tonight!

Till next time....