Fear and Fluff in Pasadena

Saturday’s mission was simple: Regal in Pasadena. The food part was very much up in the air. We didn’t decide ahead of time like the last couple of weeks — we just figured it out when we got there. I even worried we’d end up somewhere unappealing, which felt like a very real possibility for a minute. Thankfully, that didn’t happen.

First up, the movie: Dust Bunny. Aroura, the main character, and I are both afraid of dust bunnies but for very different reasons. The film follows a young girl who discovers a monster living under her bed and teams up with her reclusive neighbor to kill it. It’s the kind of premise that sounds questionable until it fully commits — and this one commits.

I’m not sure if this was a limited release or just severely under-advertised, but either way, it flew under the radar for sure. Chris came across it by chance — which usually means you’re either about to waste two hours or stumble into something unexpectedly good. This was the latter. A very different kind of movie. John Wick vibes all the way through — consistent pacing, phenomenal cinematography. Everything about it felt deliberate, like it knew exactly what it was doing and refused to second-guess itself — and holy crap, the choreography.

Anyways, here’s the thing about Dust Bunny: it keeps you guessing. The whole time. You think it’s going in one direction, then it hints at something else, and by the end, it’s completely flipped. That’s pretty rare nowadays. Most movies telegraph their moves way too early (some in the trailers themselves). This one didn’t, and that made it worth it. I’d watch it again. I might even consider grabbing it on 4K and adding it to the collection — and I haven’t done that in a long time.

Verdict: definite hit. If you’re into John Wick-style action with thriller and sci-fi energy, it’s for you. Highly recommend.

After the movie, we ended up at Pitfire Pizza. And — phenomenal, as always. After last weekend’s Esco’s adventure — which, let’s be real, did not live up to the hype, or the Google business images, or the reviews, or the posted menu (I digress) — it was really nice going to a legit, proven pizza place (yes, we had been there before, but we needed the reprieve). We kept it simple: just a couple of pizzas. Skipped the garlic knots this time, which felt like the responsible move considering donuts (or doughnuts) were next up on the menu.

Which takes me (or us) to Sidecar Donuts to cap off the night. Not much I can say here — I got two doughnuts. Sidecar is just one of those places where, if you know, you know. If you’re not a foodie or a donuteer, you just don’t know. Or donut know. (I’ll see myself out.)

The rest of the weekend’s been low-key so far — mostly coding and relaxing. Sometimes that’s exactly what you need after a solid Saturday run… especially after a draining week.