Little Bundle of Ploy

As much as the news tells us to hate FairPoint Communications (I use them for both landline and internet and have no complaints /ducking/) I think it's funny that they've started marketing to the nexter generation. As a result Jimmy loves their little Bundle critter campaign.

I know...it's a ploy, a commercial eating his brain...but the FairPoint Bundle embodies Jimmy's love for music and dancing and cuteness!! Why just now he was climbing into the Mummy and Daddy dvds and has asked me to play, you guessed it, The Sound of Music. What a champ!!!!



I love my son's unfettered taste.

My Pledge to Oprah

Today I became pledger number 135,448 to swear allegiance to Oprah's No Phone Zone, which admittedly is a heck of a lot easier when we don't even have cell phones, but boy does it fire me up when I can see in my rearview some ______ steering a missile while being text-distracted behind the most precious cargo known to man.

You know you owe Oprah your loyalty, make your car a No Phone Zone today!

Olympsick

I'm a little sick of the Olympics (bring back Poker After Dark!) and now my little guy has a touch of the flu. =( His mouth-breathing and gurgly struggles to sleep gave me the opportunity to feel like quite the mother; I dug out the Mentholatum ointment for the very first time. Well what do you know, it semi-works.

Other stuff:

Raising insurance premiums for Facebook/Twitter users, in the UK at least.

Finding the right car seat upgrade for a car like ours sucks.

It's Lent Week at Shaw's Supermarket, apparently. Lots of seafood sales, hot cross buns (you're not supposed to get good sweets during lent, I guess) and plastic saint medals from the gumball machine to accompany other collections. Be sure to rush in, only 33 days left of Lent Week.

Tomorrow night, Hubby competes on Team Dead Kennedys vs. Team The Misfits for The Clash of the Titans.

And that's been the past few days around here.

Dennis Quaid Asks "Do You Have Ketchup?"

This kills me every time.

Celebrating February

My camera tries to keep up with Jimmy as my Dad stops in for a Valentine's/Presidents Day visit. Did you know tomorrow is Mardi Gras?! I didn't! 2010 is flying by!

And now the big question....Olympics with Mainers Competing, or The Bachelor Final 3. Olympics with Mainers Competing, or The Bachelor Final 3.... Oh the agony. Now I know why so many folks have Tivo.

Clandestine Valentine

I was excited that Hubby's V-Day gift to me was a good old-fashioned housecleaning while I slaved away at work. I figured I'd be able to come home, celebrate the holiday, take a little Valentine photoshoot with Jimmy, eat lots of rich food, all of it--until I arrived to find that same Valentiney Hub shoving a giant load firewood into the house, announcy-griping that the Toddlrz had spent the prior 11 hours with zero hours napping, and advising off-hook ringing phones that he would "be there in a minute."

Well, then. That's some Valentine's Day. After watching my Valentine rush out the front door for band practice, and watching our romantic woodstove fire eat more of my formerly heart-shaped pupils as I watched my little Valentine Blog Model crushing for me crashing out on me, I wondered 'How Could I V-Win??' Didn't my Valentines realize that it's Olympic Couples Skating tonight???

When I realized...I was probably the only one who wanted to watch Olympic Couples Skating, and that I had a wealth of firewood, a sleeping toddler, and a content hubby who wasn't next to me making all kinds of "comments." In this valentine-vacuumed house. Wow. Happy Valentine's Day to ME!!!

And to you.

Happy Valentine's Day!!

Olympic Meal Dining

As we wait for the opening ceremonies in Vancouver, Jimmy chooses to celebrate with one of his favorite winter-warmy meals: Peanut Butter Oatmeal.



He opts for a somewhat offbeat technique: spoonless.





Notice how he sports the remnants of Blueberry Smoothie on his shirt from cross-training in the Parade of Rations.



Happy Olympics, All!

Go, ..... Sports!

I used to really really hate sports until I started getting harassed with spite and virulence for my devotion for CBS's Big Brother and then realized that Reality TV Season Finales were kinda/really like sports sfinales (or whatever they're called) so I started to embrace the sentiments of following and supporting regional teams, getting all riled up, relaxing in front of the tv, etc. Today was the Super Bowliday so we got some snacks together and watched The Who, and the game/sorta.





I came into the situation rookie-rooting for the Saints because I thought it was "the right thing to do" and naturally assumed that my naturally "right thing to do" hubby was on the same team...until I started blabbering about Saintsy stuff that I knew nothing about when I detected some Saints-resistaince. I was shocked; didn't my jazzluvin' quasiblack hubby want Katrina to win(lose)??? He then admitted he was torn, over conferences. Whaaah? That's how much I know, but happy that I'm married to someone who can still surprise me. Go Sports!



And congrats to the New Orleans Saints.

Late Night with Jimmy

No, not late nighting with Jimmy the Son, or even the many late bed-resting pregnancy hours I spent with Jimmy Kimmel Live!, but the actual Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on NBC. I haven't watched much of this show until recently, and completely fell in love with the Fallon version of Jimmy while watching him get Beatley Starr-struck on last night's episode.



I was still gushing about it when my hubby came home from work at 2am, and was surprised to hear about his fondness for Jimmy Fallon's "innocent, childlike charm." He can be kind of hard on comedians and improvisationalists, so it was nice to learn we were on the same side.

It makes me feel bad for NBC, I miss the heydays of Must See TV, when Dateline wasn't a creepy joke, when my rabbit ears were a gleaming vessel of NBC light from the 13-inch tv on the floor of my 300 sf apartment. Now NBC's in the gutter, fourth in the ratings, and it should be after what it did to Conan---but there's still great talent like Tina Fey, Tracy Morgan, the entire production of The Office, Jimmy Fallon, Kristen Wiig, Amy Poehler, etc. As much as I lean ABC these days I still hold up a feather for the ailing peacock.

But Matt Lauer can still GTH.

32 Inches of Inspiration

After accessing my bank account this morning a sigh of dereliefium was enough to wake up everyone in the house, I finally got to read the digits of the first paycheck from my new part-time schedule, they came out better than what I was hoping. (I wasn't sure with all the deductions, whether they'd let me keep my weekend shift differential, etc.) I decided to celebrate with a round of TV-Inspired Items from Whole Foods.

First up was easy:



Earth's Best French Toast Sticks. Featuring every child's favorite licensed red character: Lightning McQueen. I mean Clifford. Um, Muno. Po. Spiderman?

Second item is the bad part, because it forces me to admit that I was watching the very, very redundantly redundant, repetitive repetitive non-loquacious, non-loquacious Ma-har-tha Stew-hew-art...but it was only a brief clip and it was sort of inspirational about:



Quinoa, for breakfast (I'd never thought of it for that!) and it got me thinking about getting this supergrain into the men of the house, using my own personal secret agent: Sugar.

Third, my favorite (and Wally's) Celebratory TV-Inspired Whole Food Item is:



The Chocolate Babka. I had never heard of a chocolate babka before or since one was featured on The Dinner Party episode of Seinfeld. Sometimes I miss the 90s. :::wistfulness:::

And that wraps up my 5-day weekend, back to work tomorrow. My new schedule is working out pretty well, Jimmy couldn't be happier. Whole Paycheck Foods appreciates it too! (I know, cheesy, I've used that strikethru "paycheck" joke before, but just in case...) In the meantime, may the tv be with you.

I Probably Don't Need To Say These 3 Words, But...

I'm with Coco.

Haiti

Ah geez. It's hard to celebrate daily life when so many parts of it are flanked by the Haitian earthquake tragedy.

We were excited to celebrate Christoph Waltz's win:



And the nomination of Jimmy's ne'er-to-be-born sibling's namesake, Daniel Day- Wenzel Lewis.



We also celebrated fellow Southern Mainahs:



Anna Kendrick of Up in the Air and of the high school I hated many times,



and Glenn Close and her labby hubby.

We also luv'd watching Martin Scorsese being honored, and look forward to the OSCARS. =D

Yet, there is still the Haitan tragedy. Maya Angelou said it all: "I did then what I knew how to do. Now that I know better, I do better." Now that we know five dollars helps lives , we know our options.

InGLOUBious BRASSterds

3 nights ago, strudels and cream, I stayed up until 4:35 to watch (well, read) Inglourious Basterds and I don't know why I previously thought it was a Coen Brothers movie because it is an unmistakable Quentin Tarantino roller moaster ride that I can't stop thinking about...and now I am so excited for its 4 nominations in tomorrow night's Golden Globe Awards, I don't know how I'll contain myself if Christoph Waltz is there, winning!!!


Die Brassenglöben von Österreich

And if you're one of the people who run the gamut of semi-care to really-care, best of luck to your favorite nominations:

THE 67TH ANNUAL GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS NOMINATIONS
HOLLYWOOD FOREIGN PRESS ASSOCIATION
2010 GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS
FOR THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2009
NOMINATIONS PRESS RELEASE
1. BEST MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
a. AVATAR
Lightstorm Entertainment; Twentieth Century Fox
b. THE HURT LOCKER
Voltage Pictures; Summit Entertainment
c. INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS
The Weinstein Company/Universal Pictures/A Band Apart/Zehnte Babelsberg GmbH Production; The
Weinstein Company/Universal Pictures
d. PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE
A Lee Daniels Entertainment / Smokewood Entertainment Group Production;
Lionsgate
e. UP IN THE AIR
Paramount Pictures; Paramount Pictures
2. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE –
DRAMA
a. EMILY BLUNT
THE YOUNG VICTORIA
b. SANDRA BULLOCK
THE BLIND SIDE
c. HELEN MIRREN
THE LAST STATION
d. CAREY MULLIGAN
AN EDUCATION
e. GABOUREY SIDIBE
PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE
3. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
a. JEFF BRIDGES
CRAZY HEART
b. GEORGE CLOONEY
UP IN THE AIR
c. COLIN FIRTH
A SINGLE MAN
d. MORGAN FREEMAN
INVICTUS
e. TOBEY MAGUIRE
BROTHERS
4. BEST MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL
a. (500) DAYS OF SUMMER
Watermark Pictures; Fox Searchlight Pictures
b. THE HANGOVER
Warner Bros. Pictures; Warner Bros. Pictures
c. IT’S COMPLICATED
Relativity Media, Scott Rudin Productions; Universal Pictures
d. JULIE & JULIA
Columbia Pictures; Sony Pictures Releasing
e. NINE
The Weinstein Company/Relativity Media/Lucamar Productions/Marc Platt Productions; The
Weinstein Company
5. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE –
COMEDY OR MUSICAL
a. SANDRA BULLOCK
THE PROPOSAL
b. MARION COTILLARD
NINE
c. JULIA ROBERTS
DUPLICITY
d. MERYL STREEP
IT’S COMPLICATED
e. MERYL STREEP
JULIE & JULIA
6. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE –
COMEDY OR MUSICAL
a. MATT DAMON
THE INFORMANT!
b. DANIEL DAY-LEWIS
NINE
c. ROBERT DOWNEY JR
SHERLOCK HOLMES
d. JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT
(500) DAYS OF SUMMER
e. MICHAEL STUHLBARG
A SERIOUS MAN
7. BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
a. CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS
Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation; Sony Pictures Releasing
b. CORALINE
Laika, Inc.; Focus Features
c. FANTASTIC MR. FOX
American Empirical Picture; Twentieth Century Fox
d. THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG
Walt Disney Pictures/Walt Disney Animation Studios; Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
e. UP
Walt Disney Pictures/PIXAR Animation Studios; Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
8. BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
a. BAARIA (ITALY)
Medusa Film; Summit Entertainment
b. BROKEN EMBRACES (SPAIN)
El Deseo SA; Sony Pictures Classics
c. THE MAID (CHILE)
(LA NANA)
Forastero; Elephant Eye Films
d. A PROPHET (UN PROPHETE) (FRANCE)
Chic Films/Page 114/Why Not Productions; Sony Pictures Classics
e. THE WHITE RIBBON (GERMANY)
(DAS WEISSE BAND – EINE DEUTSCHE KINDERGESCHICHTE)
X Filme Creative Pool/Les Films Du Losange/Lucky Red/Wega Film; Sony Pictures Classics
9. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A
MOTION PICTURE
a. PENÉLOPE CRUZ
NINE
b. VERA FARMIGA
UP IN THE AIR
c. ANNA KENDRICK
UP IN THE AIR
d. MO’NIQUE
PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE
e. JULIANNE MOORE
A SINGLE MAN
10. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A
MOTION PICTURE
a. MATT DAMON
INVICTUS
b. WOODY HARRELSON
THE MESSENGER
c. CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER
THE LAST STATION
d. STANLEY TUCCI
THE LOVELY BONES
e. CHRISTOPH WALTZ
INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS
11. BEST DIRECTOR – MOTION PICTURE
a. KATHRYN BIGELOW
THE HURT LOCKER
b. JAMES CAMERON
AVATAR
c. CLINT EASTWOOD
INVICTUS
d. JASON REITMAN
UP IN THE AIR
e. QUENTIN TARANTINO
INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS
12. BEST SCREENPLAY – MOTION PICTURE
a. NEILL BLOMKAMP, TERRI TATCHELL
DISTRICT 9
b. MARK BOAL
THE HURT LOCKER
c. NANCY MEYERS
IT'S COMPLICATED
d. JASON REITMAN, SHELDON TURNER
UP IN THE AIR
e. QUENTIN TARANTINO
INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS
13. BEST ORIGINAL SCORE – MOTION PICTURE
a. MICHAEL GIACCHINO
UP
b. MARVIN HAMLISCH
THE INFORMANT!
c. JAMES HORNER
AVATAR
d. ABEL KORZENIOWSKI
A SINGLE MAN
e. KAREN O, CARTER BURWELL
WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE
14. BEST ORIGINAL SONG – MOTION PICTURE
a. «CINEMA ITALIANO» – NINE
Music & Lyrics by: Maury Yeston
b. «I WANT TO COME HOME» – EVERYBODY'S FINE
Music & Lyrics by: Paul McCartney
c. «I SEE YOU» – AVATAR
Music by: James Horner, Simon Franglen
Lyrics by: James Horner, Simon Franglen, Kuk Harrell
d. «THE WEARY KIND (THEME FROM CRAZY HEART)» – CRAZY HEART
Music & Lyrics by: Ryan Bingham, T Bone Burnett
e. «WINTER» – BROTHERS
Music by: U2
Lyrics by: Bono
15. BEST TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA
a. BIG LOVE (HBO)
Anima Sola Productions and Playtone in association with HBO Entertainment
b. DEXTER (SHOWTIME)
Showtime Presents, John Goldwyn Productions, The Colleton Company, Clyde Phillips Productions
c. HOUSE (FOX)
Universal Media Studios in association with Heel and Toe Films, Shore Z Productions and Bad Hat
Harry
d. MAD MEN (AMC)
AMC
e. TRUE BLOOD (HBO)
Your Face Goes Here Entertainment in association with HBO Entertainment
16. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES –
DRAMA
a. GLENN CLOSE
DAMAGES
b. JANUARY JONES
MAD MEN
c. JULIANNA MARGULIES
THE GOOD WIFE
d. ANNA PAQUIN
TRUE BLOOD
e. KYRA SEDGWICK
THE CLOSER
17. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES –
DRAMA
a. SIMON BAKER
THE MENTALIST
b. MICHAEL C. HALL
DEXTER
c. JON HAMM
MAD MEN
d. HUGH LAURIE
HOUSE
e. BILL PAXTON
BIG LOVE
18. BEST TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY OR MUSICAL
a. 30 ROCK (NBC)
Universal Media Studios in association with Broadway Video and Little Stranger Inc.
b. ENTOURAGE (HBO)
Leverage and Closest to the Hole Productions in association with HBO Entertainment
c. GLEE (FOX)
Twentieth Century Fox Television
d. MODERN FAMILY (ABC)
Twentieth Century Fox Television
e. THE OFFICE (NBC)
Universal Media Studios, Deedle Dee Productions, Reveille LLC
19. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES –
COMEDY OR MUSICAL
a. TONI COLLETTE
UNITED STATES OF TARA
b. COURTENEY COX
COUGAR TOWN
c. EDIE FALCO
NURSE JACKIE
d. TINA FEY
30 ROCK
e. LEA MICHELE
GLEE
20. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES –
COMEDY OR MUSICAL
a. ALEC BALDWIN
30 ROCK
b. STEVE CARELL
THE OFFICE
c. DAVID DUCHOVNY
CALIFORNICATION
d. THOMAS JANE
HUNG
e. MATTHEW MORRISON
GLEE
21. BEST MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
a. GEORGIA O'KEEFFE (LIFETIME TELEVISION)
Sony Pictures Television
b. GREY GARDENS (HBO)
Specialty Films and Locomotive in association with HBO Films
c. INTO THE STORM (HBO)
Scott Free and Rainmark Films Production in association with the BBC and HBO Films
d. LITTLE DORRIT (PBS)
Masterpiece/BBC Co-production
e. TAKING CHANCE (HBO)
Motion Picture Corporation of America and Civil Dawn Pictures in association with HBO Films
22. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MINI-SERIES OR
MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
a. JOAN ALLEN
GEORGIA O'KEEFFE
b. DREW BARRYMORE
GREY GARDENS
c. JESSICA LANGE
GREY GARDENS
d. ANNA PAQUIN
THE COURAGEOUS HEART OF IRENA SENDLER
e. SIGOURNEY WEAVER
PRAYERS FOR BOBBY
23. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MINI-SERIES OR MOTION
PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
a. KEVIN BACON
TAKING CHANCE
b. KENNETH BRANAGH
WALLANDER: ONE STEP BEHIND
c. CHIWETEL EJIOFOR
ENDGAME
d. BRENDAN GLEESON
INTO THE STORM
e. JEREMY IRONS
GEORGIA O'KEEFFE
24. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A
SERIES, MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
a. JANE ADAMS
HUNG
b. ROSE BYRNE
DAMAGES
c. JANE LYNCH
GLEE
d. JANET McTEER
INTO THE STORM
e. CHLOË SEVIGNY
BIG LOVE
25. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A
SERIES, MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
a. MICHAEL EMERSON
LOST
b. NEIL PATRICK HARRIS
HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER
c. WILLIAM HURT
DAMAGES
d. JOHN LITHGOW
DEXTER
e. JEREMY PIVEN
ENTOURAGE
WINNERS BY MOTION PICTURE DISTRIBUTOR
AND TELEVISION NETWORK
MOTION PICTURE DISTRIBUTOR
The Weinstein Company – 12
Warner Bros. Pictures – 9
Universal Pictures – 8
Paramount Pictures – 7
Sony Pictures Classics – 6
Lionsgate – 5
Twentieth Century Fox – 5
Fox Searchlight Pictures – 4
Sony Pictures Releasing – 4
Summit Entertainment – 4
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures – 4
Focus Features – 2
Relativity Media LLC – 2
Apparition – 1
Elephant Eye Films – 1
Miramax Films – 1
Oscilloscope Laboratories – 1
TELEVISION NETWORK
HBO – 17
FOX – 6
SHOWTIME – 6
NBC – 5
CBS – 4
LIFETIME TELEVISION – 4
ABC – 3
AMC – 3
FX NETWORKS – 3
PBS – 3
TNT – 1
WINNERS BY MOTION PICTURE
AND TELEVISION SERIES OR PROGRAM
MOTION PICTURE
UP IN THE AIR – 6
NINE – 5
AVATAR – 4
INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS – 4
THE HURT LOCKER – 3
INVICTUS – 3
IT’S COMPLICATED – 3
PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE – 3
A SINGLE MAN – 3
(500) DAYS OF SUMMER – 2
BROTHERS – 2
CRAZY HEART – 2
THE INFORMANT! – 2
JULIE & JULIA – 2
THE LAST STATION – 2
UP – 2
BAARIA – 1
THE BLIND SIDE – 1
BROKEN EMBRACES – 1
CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS – 1
CORALINE – 1
DISTRICT 9 – 1
DUPLICITY – 1
AN EDUCATION – 1
EVERYBODY'S FINE – 1
FANTASTIC MR. FOX – 1
THE HANGOVER – 1
THE LOVELY BONES – 1
THE MAID – 1
THE MESSENGER – 1
THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG – 1
A PROPHET – 1
THE PROPOSAL – 1
A SERIOUS MAN – 1
SHERLOCK HOLMES – 1
WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE – 1
THE WHITE RIBBON – 1
THE YOUNG VICTORIA – 1
WINNERS BY MOTION PICTURE
AND TELEVISION SERIES OR PROGRAM
TELEVISION SERIES OR PROGRAM
GLEE – 4
30 ROCK – 3
BIG LOVE – 3
DAMAGES – 3
DEXTER – 3
GEORGIA O'KEEFFE – 3
GREY GARDENS – 3
INTO THE STORM – 3
MAD MEN – 3
ENTOURAGE – 2
HOUSE – 2
HUNG – 2
THE OFFICE – 2
TAKING CHANCE – 2
TRUE BLOOD – 2
CALIFORNICATION – 1
THE CLOSER – 1
COUGAR TOWN – 1
THE COURAGEOUS HEART OF IRENA SENDLER – 1
ENDGAME – 1
THE GOOD WIFE – 1
HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER – 1
LITTLE DORRIT – 1
LOST – 1
THE MENTALIST – 1
MODERN FAMILY – 1
NURSE JACKIE – 1
PRAYERS FOR BOBBY – 1
UNITED STATES OF TARA – 1
WALLANDER: ONE STEP BEHIND – 1

Additional Tina Fey/Alec Baldwin glo-boosterclub section set up in the back. You go Gir--l--uys! G-als!!!

No...., 'You Go Guys' is enough. Nodding with pupils headed northeast.

High On The Hill Was A Lonely Goat Herd...

Happy are they lay dee olay dee lee o
. . . . . . yodeling . . .
Soon the duet will become a trio
Lay ee odl lay ee odl-oo



Oh ja, may I once again praise the superiority of ABC programming, we are presently watching The Sound of Music with millions of others around the country. I discovered this movie last year, previously I'd only had bumpy run-ins with it (Why is this considered a holiday movie??? Why is this so blech nauseating??? Wtf, intermission?? Other bratty etc. comments, blech!) but it clicked for me last year, about a family that stuck together, about boys who were a-ok with wearing lederhosen, the singing, the dancing, the beautiful scenery, the longsleeve wedding gown, the Edelweiss, the dark Nazi üntercürrent, the Family Guy version, the CS callers who mistake my name for "Liesl," the smokin' Captain Von Trapp, the HOUSE...it stuck with me, up through our 2009 Christmas events, and for many more I hope. Many more thanks to ABC for allowing the holiday season to linger past noontime December 25, hope you are still enjoying yours.

A Little Diddy 'Bout Raytch and Diane

During a historic week at American Broadcast Company I couldn't help but notice how many parallels my life shares with, you guessed it, Diane Sawyer. Certain contrasts and comparisons may be observed below:

As ABC celebrated Diane Sawyer's fond adieu to Good Morning America, so begat similar plans for me and my job...but hark, if you look closely at the final row in the chart above, you will notice that as Diane heads for the evening news that I myself am not fully hanging up the headset. I'm finding it hard to completely break up the dysfunctional relationship I have with my job, and we have decided that there are aspects we can still use and abuse about one another. Such as, my job likes that my pulse and breathing capacity and warm body continue to work in a cubicle throughout the weekend, and I like the fact that it writes me checks. SO, I'm staying on for weekends. I'll work two 10-hour days on low-key Sat and Sun and keep many of the benefits. Yaaaay! Sort of the best of both worlds for Diane and Me, as we chart courses for bold new adventures in bold new capacities. Diane Sawyer and I, we are the new frontier, we are so much alike!!! Hiccup!

Decemberian Updatia

Saturday: Das Global Varming Krisis ist Kaput!





Sunday: Never mind hair on your chest, spaghetti will put SPAGHETTI on your chest.



And speaking of chest, hair, and porkloaf on your face: it's Elvis of the flesh!


Some funny images at first, then bla bla bla until 3:00. Watch! Wa-atch!!! (can also be found here.)


Which brings us to right now, Jimmy is totally jamming out to this:



On Channel 8. Could there be a freakier Christmas special?

...




....




...





...


No.

Oversized Ornithophobia

I thought Jimmy would enjoy watching 1978's Christmas Eve on Sesame Street with me, but he Feliz Navidoesn't. I think he's afraid of the beastly old-school Big Bird skating around, he hid behind my chair. I'm afraid what would happen if I showed him this:

Weird Day

This weird day sorta started last night when we got home from Thanksgiving, hubby and I settled into the Beyonce special on ABC, and we were both so moved by it we were crying. Which was a little unexpected, and even more unexpected was the level of bitching I was forced into during the Paul McCartney special that immediately followed I Am Yours.... Sir Paul, why? What happened? Then I went to bed at 11pm to get enough rest for my first ever Black Friday event.

The past few years I've done all my holiday shopping online but now that Jimmy's got a little more personality and would get a clear jolt from certain items, I wanted to make sure I got the right items and the best price on them. I did a lot of research on his "big" present and all signs pointed to the Thomas and Friends Farewell at the Docks Set at Toys R Us, and they also had Hero of the Rails on Black Friday sale for 9.99...when I hate to pay more than 9.99 for dvds and knowing that this one never goes on sale, I figured waking up a little early was worth the savings.



I was so nervous that I was going to oversleep that I got really crap sleep. Jimmy was having a rough night, I think his latest Peanut Butter & Jelly Oatmeal craze has been causing him problems for the past three nights, Toys R Us was opening at 5am, I ended up getting up at 4:53, found a parking space at 5:11 and I got that knife in the gut feeling that you get from staying up all night and also briefly panicked when I saw the checkout marathon for fear that maybe Farewell at the Docks was sold out. (It was not.) The crowds and fluorescent lights made my heart beat all grody, but the checkout line went fast and then I could physically not park at Target and was home by 6am.

Knowing that Jimmy could be up any minute had me too edgy to fall back asleep, and then I spent hours removing the malware that was making my computer crawl (thanks, Hunny) and it was rainy all day and I kept having to re-do the fire and next thing I knew it was dark again. And it's back to work tomorrow, waaaaah, and on top of it all it was Wally's birthday today! He was having moments of shittiness, I don't think he cared much for the Active Pants I got for him, mryeeeeh, it was just one of those screwy days.

With luck, Sunday will feel a little more on-track, Hunny Bunny has a show, you're invited!

Here it comes...

...the list of my Favorite Christmas Movies! I realize it's not even Thanksgiving yet, but Love, Actually begins 5 weeks before Christmas and I always think "shucks, I wish I had the foresight to savor Christmas spirit that early in the season..." and today the calendar said that 5 Weeks Before Christmas was LAST FRIDAY. Well, dang. With a sleeping little guy on the couch, I've decided to give this Rated R movie its 2009 debut. And it's making me feel Christmassy!

So, without further ado,

Smother of One edition of My Favorite Christmas Movies




Bill Nighy, Liam Neeson, Alan Rickman, Hugh Grant, Colin Firth, Billy Bob Thornton....if I need say more, you must run to the nearest phone and dial the digits "Nine One One" because, don't panic, but that faint breeze you're feeling is Jimmy waving bye-bye to your pulse (he's very keen on exits of all kinds, so don't wait. Dial! Everyone else may read on.)



PG humor that makes everyone snork. Bravo, Jon Favreau (and Will Ferrell probably deserves a few points, too.)



Christmas movie brought to us by the guy who made Crumb. Alarmingly kid-unfriendly, and makes us laugh all year long.



I don't typically like old movies, but I like this one. A lot!!!!




Not really a Christmas movie, but keeps its New Year's effervescence throughout the movie, which is fun and festive.



This one's kind of stupid and it has really bad roles for some of my very favorite actors, but the Jude Law of Attraction forces a magnetic pull from my eyes onto the screen. The English cottage is really cute, too.



Cousin Eddie's white v-neck sweater and black dickie turtleneck will always keep this movie on my list.



I love Bill Murray...and Buster Poindexter!



Wuh oh...I am being summonsed, will complete later...! Merry Christmas!

10 Notable Movies

Just a quick post, notes on 10 of my favorite movies

Snatch--Bradpittian fun.

Love, Actually--I watch this one from Thanksgiving to Jan 1, and then it gets reshelved.

24 Hour Party People--Haunting and warm.

Kill Bill Vols. 1 and 2--Gripping, feel-good, scary, educational, funny, everything. Lifelong David Carradine fan now, may he rest in peace.

Election--Flawless movie. This movie has no flaws.

Rosemary's Baby--Roman Polanski will always be a genius in my book. See: Chinatown.

Shrek 2--Hilarious, beautiful, endlessly rewatchable.

Capturing the Friedmans--Jawdropping, the commentary track makes another documentary out of it, and proves that cops can be a bunch of pigs.

The Constant Gardner--Pregnancy, exciting plot, exposes pharmaceutical corruption.

The Business of Being Born--More corruption, the cartoon portion in the middle of the movie happened to Jimmy and me. Go Ricki!

GoodFellas--Favoritest movie ever, best movie ever made.