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500 Days of Summer.

This was a film I’d been looking forward to seeing with my friend Ellen for months. To the point where she could have set her clock to the weekly e-mails I sent to her along the lines of: “3 more weeks … 2 more weeks … 1 more week ’til we see 500 Days!” It was soo awesome to finally see it with her last weekend, only to discover a film that came in a cardboard box of perfection, wrapped with perfect silver wrapping paper and topped with a silver glittery bow of perfectness. (Yes, I really did love it that much, almost as much as this guy did.) What can I say — to “get” this movie is to “get” me. Ever have a film like that?

3 things (for me) that made it great:

1) The actors. Helllooo Joseph Gordin-Levitt - nice to see you again. What’s it been? 10 years since I crushed on you in 10 Things I Hate About You? Well, the crush is back. On you, on your deep little voice and those cute little cardigans you drape yourself in for this film. And Zooey Deschanel - oh Zooey. You are a girl after my heart with your voice, your throw-back style and the way you make me want to watch you in everything — even cotton commercials. Do you have to live in Hollywood? ‘Cause I really think we could be friends if you didn’t.

2) The music. This is a film built around its soundtrack. It was 15 songs perfect for the occasion for which I had to own immediately upon hearing (I think the last two films I’ve ever done that with were Once and Almost Famous).

3) The way it was shot. Chick flicks are a dime a dozen. But this film is so far beyond the cliched plot of a 27 Dresses (and heck, I own that movie!) The editing was creative, the way the story played out was unique and the fact this was a story that felt true (Joseph and Zooey have CRAZY chemistry) and ended true made it that much more memorable (and dude-friendly ).

If you’re looking for a flick to see — and if this comes your way — DEFINITELY go. It’s the little indie that could! Need more convincing? Check out this trailer:

The Collected Works of T.S. Spivet, a book I just finished by newcomer author Reif Larsen.

I’d had my eye on this one for a few months, having spotted an article in my Vanity Fair about how Larsen (who, I must admit, had me at hello-book-cover-jacket) submitted his debut novel for consideration only to induce a publishers’ war, landing a near 7-figure book deal. Oh yeah, did I mention he’s like, MY AGE?

In a nutshell, the story follows the life of 12-year-old T.S. Spivet, a inquisitive boy on a journey from his family’s Montana ranch to the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. to collect a prestigious award he’s received for his map-making skills. The catch is, the Smithsonian doesn’t know he’s a child and his parents don’t know he’s leaving as T.S. sneaks away to travel to the capital hobo-style by rail car.

The plot is charming and warm (Stephen King describes it as one part Mark Twain, one part Little Miss Sunshine) and there are some true laugh-out loud moments (including an ode to the old game of Oregon Trail that left me doubled over in laughter). The best part of the book? The way Larsen annotated it with T.S.’s work. It’s a book so unique and original, talking about it doesn’t do it justice alone so I had to bring my love for it in pictures to the blog.

If you’re looking for something to read this summer, check it out. And when Oprah makes it a pick for her book club, well, you and I can both say we beat her to it, eh?

Miso soup.

Growing up, I was spoiled with a mother who was a wonderful cook. My childhood was one with few “bologna sandwich” kind of nights because mom could always be counted on to whip up a yummy casserole or meatloaf for the family. But there wasn’t a lot of experimentation in the Koch kitchen. Now that I’m adult, I have fun branching out when it comes to cuisine and exploring aisles of the grocery store that might have made me grimace as a kid (my idea of Chinese food back then was La Choy chop suey with those crunchy canned chow mein noodles on top — ha!).

A while back, my amazing yoga instructor passed off her recipe for miso soup and I knew I wanted to give it a try. And wow… pretty much THE easiest concotion I’ve ever thrown together. Three-fourths cup boiling water, a tablespoon of miso (I bought mine at Meijer but I’d like to branch out and try some from a Japanese market in Indy or online), a handful of scallions and a few chunks of tofu and voila!

For the skeptics: No, it’s not yucky. It tastes a lot like a yummy broth, the kind that would sound good to you on a day you just want to curl up on the couch. No, the tofu isn’t gross either. If you’ve ever experimented with tofu, you know the great thing is that it takes on whatever the dominant taste of your dish is. So in this case, the broth.

For those willing to give it a try: This is a GREAT quick pick-me-up kind of meal (it’s been my lunch for the past week and seriously takes me 5 minutes to make) and it’s LOADED with nutrients. In Japan, about 40 percent of the population eats miso soup for breakfast every morning and those Japanese know a thing or two in the health department. Studies show women who eat soy (which miso is a derivative of) once a week cut their breast cancer risk up to 50 percent. WOW!

And the true culinary test? Nick ate it. So if my husband likes it, well, Internet, that’s saying something.