Saturday, January 31, 2009

Gotta Love the Soaps!!

OHMYGOSH!!!! Poor Kendall is finally out of her coma and awake. In the first five minutes of her miraculous recovery, she is remarkably unchanged. She even had her mascara on! And in those first five minutes, she not only found out that she had a heart transplant but that it came from her dead brother, her best friend is getting married, and her husband fathered her lesbian sister's baby..oh, yeah, she met her sister's girlfriend too.
Now if I ever wake up from a coma, I don't want my family laying all that information on me at one time. Slow and sure would be much much better! I am pretty sure I won't have on any mascara either!
On General Hospital, there is a tragedy taking place involving airborne poison. I won't give the details but suffice to say the show is cleaning house and this is how they chose to do it. Yesterday, it was revealed that the poison got into the board room(filled with a bunch of characters of course) so while the mob boss' daughter covers the vent, her father who is in a wheelchair(which he doesn't need--you'd be surprised how often that happens on soaps!) covers his nose with his jacket. Good luck with that, old man!!
In the meantime, Luke and Laura's daughter, Lulu, hears the news and sees a guy collapse in front of her so she pulls her coat over her nose too!!!!! I nearly fell off the couch laughing. Good luck with that, honey!! Who knew a mob boss and a young girl would have the same instincts for survival(HAHAHA)??
The folks of Llanview are pretty tame compared to this, they only have a trial going on where the sixteen year old Starr is expected to testify against her own evil father, Jessica/Tessica is home from the insane asylum and is unable to bond with her sister she tried to kill and Dorian Lord is faking out becoming "enlightened." Maybe she should try faking the wheelchair thing--it seems to work for the mob boss!

Friday, January 30, 2009

Gotta Love Her

Do you know Erica Kane?? You Don't????? Well, let me tell you about her. First, she is a fictional character. Susan Lucci has played the part for about 35 years or so. Erica in Soap Opera Universe is a global star. Everyone knows her. She has been a model, an actress, a business mogul, a television star and married about umpteen times. Those are her endearing qualities.
We thought she had two daughters but lo! and behold, she suddenly (a couple of years ago) also got a full grown son she didn't know about. SAY WHAT??????? Oh, yes, she had an abortion oh, so many years ago but the EVIL doctor saved the embryo and planted it in his own barren wife and she carried to term and the boy lived!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! His name was Josh and, of course, being raised by an evil genius doctor and having the Kane genes, the kid had quite a few problems the least of which was arrogance and the worst was stealing money(like millions) from his brother in law.
So Erica's daughters were caught in multiple tornadoes in Pine Valley(their hometown where anything can happen) and her Lesbian daughter delivered her own beautiful baby with help from her brother in law. Her sister, Kendall, gets clunked on the head and has been in a coma since the summer. Her husband is the sperm donor for the lesbian sister's baby. Oh, yes, and she doesn't know but she's in a coma so everything is fine.
Okay.... so Josh steals from the coma girl's husband and takes the lesbian's girlfriend hostage and the coma girl's husband shoots him but makes sure to aim for the head so his wife can have her brother's heart. So Erica(yes, I was getting back to her) has to decide whether to pull the plug on Josh. She does. Kendall lives but is still in a coma(I heard she is waking up today).
Erica has been busy since Josh died....planning a funeral you ask?????? Uh, no...........Sitting with her coma daughter.....mmmmmm, wrong again.
She is busy running coma daughter's business and chewing up the scenery there and making everyone's life miserable. She planned a double bridal shower for her Lesbian daughter and her girlfriend and her ex-husband's daughter and managed to invite the girlfriend's mother who hates that she is a lesbian and ends up slapping her at the event....and not to be outdone, she also invites her ex's daughter's mother who has been estranged from her daughter and wreaked havoc the last time she was in town. Oh, and forgot to mention they were coming. Because she was visiting her coma daughter and forgot???? Oh, no...she just failed to mention it. She claims she is trying to "help."
Yesterday, when her Lesbian daughter confronted her about it, she did what every good mother would do...she threw a handful of snow in the girl's face. I do that to my daughter all the time!!!!
(haha) She is also prancing around in little sundresses in the middle of winter and I think she may have had a boob job.
She is why I still watch All My Children and I understand why she's had all those husbands. What's not to love???

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Sick and Tired

First on the agenda, I am so sick of those green presidents in the Turbotax ads!! They are the most sickly looking bunch and I get a tummy ache just looking at them. I mean really! They couldn't come up with something more clever than living money??? Er, living dead presidents money?? Anyway, I can't take it much longer. Thank goodness that the tax season is shorter than the election season!!! I would not be able to handle it! I think Ben Franklin is the worst. I don't know if it's the double chin or what but he's the one I hate the most. And don't worry I know Ben wasn't a president.
It even took me a while to get why they were green. I thought they were statues come to life at first. OH,Brother, Susan!!
The other ad I am so tired of is the Arby's ad for their "Patty melts." I hate to break it to them but those sandwiches are not patty melts. A patty melt HAS A PATTY IN IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What part of that concept is a challenge for the folks at Arby's? They could call those sandwiches melts if they want--that would be fine. But unless it has a hamburger in it....Not a patty melt.
If the folks at Arby's are this dense, I'm not too sure I want to eat at their restaurant. If they define a patty melt with no patty what is the stuff they call Roast Beef?????? Or a Milkshake??
Good grief, the thoughts are boggling my mind and turning my stomach. Kind of creepy, isn't it?
You know how the ads can drive me crazy and these are only the two most recent of many. I never had one that involved food before. I hope I don't have too many more.
On a completely different topic, I don't have a broken toe. I had a discussion with an expert..not a doctor, someone who broke their toe about ten times and found out it is probably only sprained. It doesn't even hurt and it isn't really just hanging there anymore. Someone thought I should let everyone know so there you go!!

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Darn It!!!!

I missed the SAG Awards because I was watching the most ridiculous made for tv movie--THE LAST TEMPLAR. Really, it was the most stupid thing and we watched it for two nights. Here is an example of its stupidity. Mira Sorvino(whatever possessed her) and Jennifer Garner's ex(Scott Foley) are in the middle of the Turkish desert. It was the middle of nowhere with nothing in sight but a volcano and a bunch of hills. No houses, nothing. So they make love under the stars and the Priest who is on their trail is on one of those hills with binoculars WATCHING THEM MAKE LOVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! His little helper was there too. He looked too. REALLY??? In the middle of the night in the middle of the desert?? And they watched??????
I always like to watch things about the Templars. I think they are interesting and all their stories I have read are very exciting fiction. This was just a romantic novel type story with the Templars thrown in. It had sassy dialogue from a feisty heroine(Mira, how could you?) and a man who fell for her in about twelve seconds(Really, Scott!) Hence, I missed the SAG Awards.
But have no fear, I checked out the photos of the gowns and I am ready to throw my two cents in.
By far I thought Kira Sedgewick looked the best. I am a sucker for black and white together. She looked lovely. I just like her anyway--she reminds me of a friend of mine. Too bad she had to have her picture taken with her husband, Kevin Bacon. HE looked downright scary!
Angelina And Kate Winslet chose dark blue. Angelina looked like a drapery panel and I thought Kate looked squeezed in. Not my favorites, but they both got best dressed.
One couple that really looked like royalty was Diane Lane and her husband, the Brolin boy. She looked exquisite in red and he looked pretty good too. I still think his father is better looking but I am a sucker for a man with silver hair.
Taye Diggs and his wife, Idina Menzel looked really nice too. Not quite royal but well dressed. She needs to smile more--it transforms her.
Tarija Hanson(Benjamin Button's mom) looked spectacular. She is batting a thousand with her dresses so far.
Two girls I don't really recognize looked great too. Viola Davis was in yellow and Julie Benz was in short black taffeta. I thought they both looked really nice.
Christina Applegate got a best dressed nod but I think they just feel sorry for her recent illness. I thought she looked too drapey.
Speaking of drapey, America(the girl, not the country) needs major help. She had on a Greek goddess like dress in grey with black nylon net stuff on it. One of the things was a fluff ball right at the top of the bodice and believe me about a half hour after the pictures were taken she was probably discreetly itching her poor chest. I know that from experience as my Halloween costume in third grade had black nylon net fluff balls on it. It was a princess dress, not a goddess dress, America!! Black Nylon net is for Princesses!!!
Speaking of grey, Jenna Fischer from THE OFFICE looked terrible again. Has the girl never heard of color????????????????? She is too pale of a girl to wear grey.
But my favorite of them all was Marissa Tomei. She looked ridiculous and wasn't wearing any makeup that I could see. She even made Mickey Rourke look good!
Don't worry I won't miss the Oscars. That will be something and luckily America and Jenna will stay at home!

Monday, January 26, 2009

Wonderment

Our human body is an amazing thing! I have a swollen eye and the regular Dr. couldn't figure out what it was so I went to an opthomologist this afternoon. He came in , listened, and in about thirty seconds was able to tell me what the problem was.
Here is the amazing part--did you know that in your lower eyelid you have 40-60 glands??????? I had no clue and I even remember labelling that eye chart and all its parts in school. I guess it was just a side view but still!!! They are of course microscopic and when one gets a little germ in it-YIKES!!!! It gets real big( in relative terms) swells your eyelid up and generally is a pain!
It got me thinking about all the stuff my body is doing right now without any reminders or thoughts from me. My fingers are typing, my blood is flowing, my heart is pumping, my cells are degenerating and regenerating. WOWEE!!!!!
I guess that should be enough for me to take good care of this machine I call my body. I know I talk about diets and being a little bit fat, but I think I owe this old thing a favor and it's going to be better exercising and eating and sometimes I might even spoil it a little with a massage!!
Our bodies are amazing things and I am done taking it for granted!!

Sunday, January 25, 2009

I Got Nothin' Today

I was really busy yesterday. We are cleaning up my husband's office and it is a giant job as he is a packrat(sorry, honey, it's true) and I'm a tosser(sorry, honey, that's true too). We have been trying for years to get it done and I always got disgusted and threw up my hands and walked away. Well, not this time. We are buying organizing bins and we are really going at it. I'll bet the neighbors think we're moving by the amounts of trash we've had recently!! It makes me feel good to know we can work on a big project like this and have a difference of opinion of how it should go and we haven't killed each other in the process!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Poor Obama has been having trouble in his office already too. Not that he is a packrat(if he is he hasn't had time for it to show up) but he wants certain things done his way and the Republican party members are in disagreement. He has to do some cajoling and convincing and frankly, doesn't even know if his ideas will work. The only thing any of us knows is that the old ways weren't working!! Killing his adversaries is out of the question for him too!!!!!!!
We were watching the Today show yesterday and they had on animals that need to be adopted and cared for before they are "put down" which is just an acronym for killed!! They even could be adopted for free. I've really been wanting a dog lately. In spite of the fact that he or she would want to be walked every day and they are kind of stinky(especially in the breath department) and they can't be left alone for a couple days like a kitty, I still want one. Maybe I will get a dog when I am too old to go anywhere! Probably I just don't like the idea of an animal getting killed for no reason!
Enough about killing!!!! Really, Sue, what is up with you this morning?? Think happy thoughts! Think about clean offices and cute puppies and a New Beginning. Yes, YOU CAN!!

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Get a Grip!!

I just heard that there has been complaining about the President and his wife being too affectionate. OHMYGOSH!!! Are you kidding me?? It was wonderful to see these two happy young people enjoying themselves on a triumphant and probably equally stressful day.
Do those people really prefer the standoffish behaviors of the Bushes and the Clintons? I for one am enjoying the fact that the Obamas act like a couple. She teases him and shares it with the rest of us. He looks at her and glows. What in the world is wrong with that?? They weren't exactly french kissing or anything--now that you could criticize.
If you preferred watching Laura Bush cringe next to her husband or Hillary act as if hers didn't even exist, then that is your problem. Leave the new President and his wife alone.
People are also criticizing the way Michelle Obama dressed. For crying out loud, what is the problem? She wore conservative clothes made by mostly American designers. What more do you want?? At least she wore something besides a two piece suit or a pants suit!!
I guess when you are a public figure you don't even get a one day grace period before people start to criticize. But remember Camelot?? Couldn't these people have a little time for their Camelot before we start dogging every step and every turn in their personal lives?
Come on, everyone, let's give the Obama family a break.

Toe Be or Not Toe Be

I broke my toe on Tuesday morning. I was minding my own business..getting ready to join my sister for our first Inaugural Shopping Trip...walking through the utility room to put on my shoe boots which I left strategically next to the back door for minimum utility room mess. And full throttle, bang!!!!..I walked right into the ironing board and my toe next to the baby toe met with the metal base of the ironing board and YOWCH!!!!!!!
I am a brave little soldier( or a consummate shopper if you will). I slipped my shoe on and carried on as if nothing had happened. I felt fine--good even until about 4 pm and I noticed my toe felt a little achy.
You know you never pay any attention to your toe..unless you are painting your toenails..but I had to take a look and son of a gun, it was pretty red and kinda tucked behind the other toe to its right..Hmmmm. I was sure it was fine..no problem.
I slept soundly and when I woke up, I felt a slight pounding in my toe but I took my sweet time looking at it. Just before I stepped into the shower I took another look. HMMMM, now it is purple and red and ooh, what are those blackish purple lines across it. It still looks like it's kind of hanging on to its neighbor for all its worth. Must be broken. Oh well, I got dressed and went to work.
When I got home I changed into slippers and it kind of hurts but I thought it is ok. By the time my husband took a look at it last night it was all purple with those lines. So I think I can say officially that it is broken. It doesn't hurt all that much especially when I wear a shoe but my husband thought we should tape it....so he gave it a shot last night.
I have never laughed so hard in my life. It took him forever and he had this big roll of tape that was about 3'' wide and my poor toe is only about an inch and a half. It is swollen too so he didn't want to wrap it too tight. Well, I was laughing so much that my foot kept bouncing around so the wrap job was not too good plus it was too tight and when he loosened it the toe just fell back to where it had been in the first place. I finally told him just to take it off and I will have a weird toe for the rest of my life. I don't really mind.
And now I have to give myself a new pedicure because all that tape pulled the polish off my toenail!! What a couple of days!

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

The Day After the Big Day

Well, it was quite a day yesterday. President Obama haltingly got through his oath of office and the rest was a breeze!! I loved Itzak Perleman and YoYo Ma. They played my favorite song, Simple Gifts.
The Obamas looked very presidential and the little girls looked very sweet. That little Sasha is a corker--she has bounce to the ounce. Melea seems more regal but after all she is ten years old!
I like that the Obamas know when to let the kids leave. No little girl should have to sit through hours of a parade with no balloons and no singing or dancing.
The Bidens looked very nice too. I don't know why but I just love something about him. She is continuing to teach--I wonder what that will be like?? Will the Secret Service sit outside the door or in the room? Will all the kids' families have to be screened or something?
And what about the poor Secret Service man who has to go to school with Sasha. She's only seven so she's like in the first or second grade...oh, well, maybe he'll learn something.
I loved seeing Dick Cheney leaving!! Didn't he look more like THE PENGUIN than ever?? Something about the way he held that cane over his lap in the wheelchair. I bet it really made him mad that he was stuck in that thing.
The Bush family made a nice exit and I even heard that George told Obama not to call on him as he was"stepping down from the stage." I never liked the man's politics but he seemed like a good dad and a nice man. Not sad to see him go either.
How about his old man in that hat????? What a riot!
And poor Teddy Kennedy. What a place to have a seizure. I'm sure he would hate that it happened in public..at least, it wasn't on television for all the world to see or I'm sure we would have seen it a million times already.
Aretha Franklin sure can wear a hat , can't she??? Oh, she can sing too.
I saw a little bit of one of the balls and I thought that Michelle had on a beautiful gown. They always looked so relaxed as a couple! It's nice.
I'm sure I will hear more today but so far it's been a real nice clambake!!

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

The Big Day

Right now , the President elect is having coffee (or possibly tea) with President Bush. He has been to church already. I haven't seen him but I saw Al Roker and he was shivering in his boots. The temperature in DC today is only going to be 30. For heaven's sake, Mr. Obama, WEAR A COAT!!!!


Ohmygosh, Michelle brought Laura a gift. How sweet is that??

Monday, January 19, 2009

A Presidential Presentation

Yesterday I watched the Inaugural Spectacular on HBO. On my new big screen TV....but I dont want to get off topic. The spectacular was......well, spectacular! I sat and sobbed and got choked up through the whole thing. I did miss the first half an hour but that is probably a good thing as I would have been a dishrag by the end of the whole two hours!!
The first one that got me was Josh Groban and Heather Headley singing "My Country Tis of Thee." That got me started getting choked up. They were great together and she was just looking so joyful!! It might have been because she was so happy that she could wear a winter coat with A BELT and still looked gorgeous. I am not talking about any belt, like a trench coat belt..no, indeedy this was a big leather belt that cinched the waist and if any mere mortal tried it, they would look like two sausages tied together! Oh, he looked nice too, except for that hair of his. I just don't care for that.
The next person to impress me was Will. I. Am. He rapped about being all one big family of Americans and that was real nice. His name fascinated me though. Do you think his real name is William?? Do you think he thought of those periods all by himself? Or do you think his name is just Will?? and he added the I AM kinda like Sam I Am from Green Eggs and Ham? I would love to find out. I remember when LL Cool J said he got his name from something he wrote as a young kid. "Ladies Love Cool James." I always thought that was so cute! Anyway, Will.I.Am, you should not wear hats, my dear boy. Your hair must be too big. I never saw you before yesterday but take my word for it.
I am not a country music fan. I like some of it and I know some of the big names but still not a fan. I especially disliked Garth Brooks as I thought he was kinda scary with that second persona stuff....I never even really heard him sing until this event....HE WAS FABULOUS!!! Maybe marriage to that cute Trisha Yearwood straightened him out. He sang some old classics like "Shout" and was backed up by an enthusiastic young choir. I even wanted to raise my hands up in the air...oh wait, I did.
Bruce Springsteen and some other man I didn't know dragged poor old Pete Seeger out onto the stage to lead "This Land is Your Land." I learned that back in elementary school. I doubt that anybody under the age of 40 ever heard the song before but Pete was going to supply the words..except his mike didn't work. Add to that that he is about a million years old and it was pretty pitiful. Being a true professional, Pete continued on. Note to Will.I.Am.....Pete Seeger knows how to wear a hat..even if it is a weird one!
I admire Bono. He does wonderful humanitarian work. I love most of his music. I just can't stand him! Maybe it is the affectation he has of always wearing some weird kind of glasses. Maybe it is his giant ego. Maybe it is his dyed red hair. I don't know but I just didn't enjoy his performance in any way.
For the grand finale, Beyonce Knowles sang "America, the Beautiful." She is beautiful and did a spectacular job. She was backed up by the whole cast and it was very moving. Why is it those patriotic songs always get to me? Even the military procession of flags got me all choked up.
Well, it was real nice that they had such a program for Obama but in fairness don't you think George Bush deserves one too? I have it all planned.
First, NSync could sing "BYE BYE BYE", (sorry, Justin will not be there, he has a previous commitment), then Rosie's Broadway kids will sing "So Long, Farewell" from The Sound of Music, followed by a Beatles' Tribute band singing "You Say Goodbye and I say Hello." Following them will be the entire cast singing "Kiss Him Goodbye" by Steam...You know it Nananana,nananana, Hey hey goodbye!" I could go on but you know what I mean so... "Goodbye To You"!!

Sunday, January 18, 2009

HUGE NEWS

WE GOT A BIG TV!!! It is really only(only????) 37" but in our family room there is only about 5 and a half feet between the couch and the television. SO it is BIG!!!!! It is LCD DTV1020 something or other blah blah blah. We got a Bluray DVD player to go with it.
The picture is so clear that you can see the cracks in people's lips. Poor Charles Osgood needs Blistex or Chapstick or something. The picture is sharp and the people seem real--I guess in a sense they are, but you know what I mean. If it was me, I would never want to see myself that big or that clearly. I hardly look in the mirror any more! It must be tough being a television or movie personality.
I am kind of excited to see my soaps in all their glory. I wonder if any of them need Chapstick?? Some of them are getting a little long in the tooth. Remember when the movie stars used to be shot using a "soft" lens?? They would look all dewy and perfect. Maybe that will come back into style. I sure would be begging for it if I were on television.
We'll get to see the inauguration on the big screen now. Oh boy, I hope the President elect doesn't have any pimples or anything. It is bound to show up! He probably had a facial anyway in anticipation of the big screen.
Just think of those poor teenagers who appear on television. There will be a huge run on that acne product Jessica Simpson always advertises. Thinking of that ad, hope I don't see that any time soon. It will be grosser than ever!
One bonus is I never have to wear my glasses to watch television again. Everyone is hard to miss!! Now I won't run around as often looking for them either. Hmmm I'm beginning to like that tv!!

Saturday, January 17, 2009

Today is Your Birthday

It is my husband's birthday today and I am looking forward to our day. First, we will go out to breakfast per his request and then off to the DMV for his registration. I don't mind going there as there is a fun store next door to snoop around in while he takes care of business. Then we will be off to shop for a new flat screen tv.
Flat screen TV's are all the rage now, I know but I just don't get it. TV is TV to me. As long as there is a picture and decent sound, I don't care about anything else. I sure don't care how big the picture is. 52" is not an upgrade to me, it is just silly. But that's the difference between men and women I guess.
As husbands go, mine is pretty good. I love him and he loves me, even after all this time. I met him about 30 years ago--right after his birthday. He sure was a looker and I was hooked from the get go. He agreed with everything I said so we had lots in common--until I found out that under the circumstances( a very loud bar) he couldn't hear a word I said so just agreed to be agreeable. Silly me-- I even thought he liked Barbra Streisand!!
Anyway, we have survived our ups and downs through the years and raised our kids to be two healthy, fine adults. I get really annoyed with him and once in a while, he really hurts my feelings but most of the time we get along just fine. Even though we don't have that much in common--he likes scifi, I like classic movies--we each try to at least tolerate the other's wishes. I watch scifi and he watches old movies with me! He even likes some of them...and I dread to admit it in print, I love some of the scifi!!
Husbands can be really irritating sometimes. Every woman I know has complained about her husband's bad little habits at least once. I bet no husband ever says, "Oh, my wife she's so irritating..she always puts the toilet seat down!" But just ask a woman who has lost her husband and I bet she wouldn't mind the toilet seat being up just to have that old annoyer around again!
Anyway, this is my birthday wish for you, husband. Live long and prosper!!

Friday, January 16, 2009

A Starr by Any Other Name

I haven't talked about my soaps for a long time so today I just have to! I know I talked a lot about John McBain before( see John McBain/John McCain) but that man has been a non-stop talker since he hooked up with his new squeeze, Blair. Their relationship is very, shall we say, complicated and I won't explain here. But fair warning to Blair, John's girlfriends always end up sad, dumped ...or dead. Anyway, they started out as just friends and now they are more than that. Blair is a grown up too --she has kids, with Todd Manning, the resident bad guy who recently had John's last girlfriend who was suffering from amnesia holed up in his house while everyone else thought she was dead. Even her son, Cole. He just happens to be the boyfriend of Todd and Blair's daughter, Starr.
Starr is really the only one in all of Llanview who has one iota of sense. She did make a "tiny" mistake and became pregnant but she handled that in a mature way, making arrangements for the child to be adopted and she even made a little video for the child's 16th birthday to explain her decision.
Anyway, everyone thinks that the baby died but she didn't she was just switched at birth with a dead baby by her cousin with DID...that's multiple personality disorder if you don't know. The kid has handled that situation with grace and dignity. She projects the proper amount of sadness and determination to get on with her life.
Starr was really on her game today. She has a new teacher who just happens to be the son of her obstetrician who killed herself because she thought she had been neglectgful in Starr's baby's case. (It is a soap, after all)
Starr has told this young man that she doesn't blame his mom and that she was a good person and she knows how he feels and he shouldn't blame himself and as she is giving the poor guy a little sympathy hug, enter Cole who is now taking pills to cope with the return of his mom and the death of his baby.
Cole goes off on the teacher and blames his mother for his child's death,etc,etc while also accusing him of coming on to Starr, who is appalled and tells Cole that he should have some sympathy for the poor guy for aforementioned reasons.
She said that everyone makes mistakes and nobody's grief is more important or significant than any one elses.
When they return to the hallway Starr figures out Cole has taken something and she lets him have it and at the end of the day, of course, she is caught with the pills in her hand and she will probably take the fall.
This kid is 16 years old!!! I'm telling you she should grow up to rule the world. When she is an adult, she will be able to run every big business on the show and that includes two newspapers, a magazine, and some kind of giant conglomerate called B.E. I admire this kid so much. She is my new hero.
The actress has been on the show since she was a little girl(probably 5 or so) and she has grown to be a wonderful, natural actress. I don't know if she ever reads blogs, but I hope she reads this one. Keep up the good work, kid and don't let the writers screw up your character. You really are a shining Starr!!

Thursday, January 15, 2009

I KNEW IT!

Remember how I said you never know who's listening? Well, I was right. Yesterday I was about as low as I could get and had to complain about the grey days we have here in Northeast Ohio. Well, the MAN UPSTAIRS must have heard me because today the sun is shining it's sunspots off!
When I woke up this morning, the sun was shining and I tried to hurry and get dressed so I could get outside and do my errands while it was still sunny. By the time I was dressed, the sky was starting to fill with clouds and I thought to myself, "That figures."
But as I travelled around the area, the sun kept appearing and then it stayed out. It is now almost 1pm and the sun is still out in all its glory.
I keep standing by the window and staring out. I can't believe it. I feel like a cat moving into a patch of sunshine to rest. I won't do any resting though. There is too much to do.
It is so beautiful outside. The trees are still wearing their robes of white and my little lamps still look like little soldiers. The shadows of the trees are crisscrossed over the blanket of white that is my front yard. The snow is even glittering a little. It is a picture postcard kind of day.
I would go out and stay out except for one thing. ........ It is only 4 degrees not counting the windchill factor.
Oh well, you can't have everything!!

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Gloom and Doom

The one thing about living in Northeast Ohio that really stinks is the gray sky. I don't mind the snow as long as I don't have to drive in it.
If you looked out my window right now, you would see a picture postcard of winter except for one thing--the sky is metal grey. A gentle snowfall is coming down and the trees are capped with snowy white hats and so are my outdoor path lights. They look like little soldiers standing in a row. That alone should make me smile but instead I just feel droopy.
Once in a while the sun teases us and comes out for a short while but then it disappears for days at a time. To say it is depressing is an understatement.
I never knew how important Vitamin D was to our health and recently read that unless you live in Yuma, AZ, the sunniest town in the USA, you are probably Vitamin D deprived. Nice to know, huh?
Vitamin D deprivation has some symptoms:

1. low energy--I have it
2. fatigue- Yep
3. signs of depression- of course
4. mood swings--oh, yeah
5. sleep irregularities- no wonder I am always yawning!
and ....
6. Rickets!!!!!!! I'm pretty sure I don't have that!
So, 5 out of 6 of the symptoms. I am running out as soon as it stops snowing to buy a Vitamin D supplement. What, it's supposed to snow for the next three days?? Well, I better drink my milk and take COD LIVER OIL( just kidding).
They used to give kids Cod liver oil to prevent rickets. It is the highest source of Vitamin D beside the sun. Not on your life!! Even if I had rickets, I would be hard pressed to do Cod liver oil.
I tried fish oil capsules once on the Dr.'s recommendation and I smelled like a salmon! So no way am I ever doing anything like that again.
When it is sunny I will run outside and stay there for the 15 minutes in the morning and the 15 minutes in the afternoon that is suggested to stay healthy. In the mean time I will just be a crabby, sleepy, tired and depressed Northeast Ohioan. I'll have plenty of company.

Monday, January 12, 2009

All That Glitters Is Not Gold

I saw most of the Golden Globes and all of the Red Carpet preview last night. First of all, could they get any lamer hosts for the red carpet?? Nancy O'Dell is an automaton, Tikki didn't know what to ask and that Brook Burke is as dumb as a post!!(although she had a stunning dress and I hear she can dance) And what was with everyone interviewing Aaron Eckhart??? Who cares about him?? Nancy O'Dell had an opportunity to interview Steven Spielberg but she chose to stand in front of him and talk to the others near him.

I always get a large charge out of the dresses. I love watching these gals get all dressed up. The men not so much. They all look pretty much alike with the exception of Peter Gabriel and MICKEY ROURKE!!!! What is up with that guy? Has he never heard of a comb?? I thought I really hated him until he started talking about his dogs and got all misty. Awww, that was sweet. Who knew?

Anyway, I thought Sandra Bullock was the most beautiful of all last night. I loved her dress, her hair and she was kind of cute up there. I loved Eva Mendes' dress but hated how she blew off Colin Farrell's costar in typical pretty girl/not so good looking guy style. What a bi-otch!
Salma Hayek looked lovely but she was a little gushy--not unlike Kate Winslet who is very talented but quite the drama queen if you ask me.
Some girl I never heard of Isla Fisher looked really nice too. There were a lot of young actors and actresses there that I had no idea who they were. I recognize the Jonas brothers and that's about it. I got my first glimpse of the Gossip Girl...whatever.

Now, I thought that Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher looked beautiful. Yep, both of them but her in particular. She must have the best genes on the planet. Lawrence Fishburne and his wife, Gina Torres( I had no idea they were married. I loved her in Serenity.) also looked like royalty.
Now, some couples did not fare so well. Did you check out Sting and his wife, Trudi?? Ohmygosh, I didn't even recognize him with brown hair and a beard!!!!!!!!!!!! Not the Sting I know and love. Also, Angelina Jolie looked like the Corpse Bride to me--very white and way too thin. Brad of course looked good but I'm not crazy about his mustache. I heard they snubbed Ryan Seacrest--whatta shock!!
Some of these Hollywood hotties need to get better dressing advice. Did you check out Renee Zelweiger?? That was gawdawful ugly!! I hate to break it to her you could still see her nude bra. Marissa Tomei did the skirt and blouse thing which I never think translates very well to evening wear although she could have sat with costar Mickey Rourke to look better. Then there were the women of The Office...ohmygosh, they were really bad. Jenna Fisher was wearing a gown made from drapery material and in the pics I saw looked less than happy. The little blonde who is named Angela Kinsey looked a little better in purple but not much. Then the older redhead named Kate Fleming had on a "little black dress" but it didn't look so little and she looked like she would rather have been wearing jeans and a tee shirt.
And last but least my favorite ugly dress was worn by JLo. Ohmygosh, isn't she a mommy now?? Someday her kids are going to see that picture and be SO EMBARRASSED!!!!!!! She needs to cover up quick!!
Who helps these people get ready?? Who tells them that these ugly clothes look beautiful?? Why do the stars believe them?? They need to seek advice from someone who will tell them the truth. I'd be the first to volunteer. Just email me your pic and I will give you a thumbs up or a thumbs down. No charge.

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Like I Said, You Never Know

You never know who is going to pop up in your life. I tell my kids that all the time. One of my famous sayings is you never know what's around the corner. When I was a young woman I thought my life was going to be a sad, sad song. One year after crying to my friends about my aloneness, I was married and had a baby on the way.
You never know what opportunities are going to come along either. Just before I retired I appeared on a local television show to talk about teaching. My sister taped it and took it to school with her to show her colleagues. The principal hired me for a job the very next year.
You never know what good fortune may come your way. In these difficult financial times, I am so grateful that both my kids and my husband have good stable jobs. They easily could have been laid off if they had chosen a different career path.
You never know when you are going to need each other. If times continue to worsen, my kids know they can come home and we will circle the wagons and survive whatever difficulties lie ahead.
You never know who is listening. It might be the MAN UPSTAIRS or it might be your best friend or it might be your young nephew. You just never know!

Friday, January 9, 2009

You Never Know

You never know who might be listening. Apparently, the powers that be listened to my blog and the commercial that I hated the most has now been modified. The women with the migraines who were carrying around their heads now rip a picture of their head off and hold that. Much less disconcerting!!
So, listen up powers that be, I have a few more suggestions for you.
1. Lose those giraffe head commercials. A big giraffe head and neck with a real human body is so distracting I don't even know what the commercials are for!
2. Don't make the Geiko Gekko wear a suit. He is right and he is only a CG figure...there is no word for it.
3. Get that giant teddy bear head off that woman or pick a woman who looks better with it off rather than on. Her hairdo is so ugly!!
4.Quit telling me to sell all my old silver and jewelry. If I have to, I have to, but I don't need you pushing at me to do something I may regret...especially if the silver or jewelry had any sentimental value.
5. Make that woman who "feels" the Kleenex go and buy her own box instead of stealing the dry cleaner's stash. I mean, really...what is she teaching her kids??
6. Speaking of kids would someone please tell that Joanna kid in the peanut butter ad that it is a sandwich not a samwich?????
7. And lastly, for goodness sakes, take those outdoor bathtubs out of the E.D. ads. Sitting in a cold bathtub on a chilly evening is not going to lead to romance, trust me. Did you never watch Jerry Seinfeld?? George in the pool?????? Ring a bell??????? Same idea. Let them sit on two chairs by a fireplace..that could lead to romance!!
8. Locally, would you car and floor salesmen quit using your children to sell your stuff? They are not talented and you are just leading them on by letting them perform in your ads. One exception--the Mentor Mitsubishi kids. You can keep them but rerun them--soon, they will be too old to be cute and they will join those other kids that can't act.
Oh, I feel so much better now. I can face the ads today with a fresh perspective and an eagle eye for other flaws they need to obliterate.

Sunday, January 4, 2009

Addiction

Let me start by saying I have empathy for those who are addicted to food, drugs or alcohol. Maybe I even get the sex thing. But an addiction like I have is pretty harmless, more or less.
Let me explain.
For my birthday last month, my husbband got me an MP3 player and put some of my albums on it for me. I really love it--I listen to music as I clean house and sometimes even when I read. The only drawback is that it makes it a little harder to hear the phone but I don't really mind that. I don't wear it 24/7 so they can call back, right? It is just a fun little thing that makes some mundane tasks go faster. I had it no where full so for Christmas my son got me a subscription for Napster.
OHMYGOSH!! He came over yesterday to help me learn how to use it and to find songs I like. Well, let me tell you, I thought I would have some fun downloading some songs and one thing led to another and before I knew it our dinner guests were due in 5 minutes!! Thanks goodness, I was dressed and my husband had turned on the oven for me.
To be honest, I could be on it forever. You download one song and there is a list of other artists you might enjoy so you go there and then you suddenly remember another song that you like and so on to infinity!!
Now I am embarassed to say I spent an inordinate amount of time looking for a song that doesn't exist. I never know the name of the songs and hardly ever the artists so my son was a big help. He is able to interpret my cryptic descriptions. He and his sister have been well trained over the years starting with the scrubbing brush song. I still don't know the artist or the title but the beginning rift sounds like a scrub brush to me and they figured it out. Ever since, they are good at figuring out my descriptions.
I didn't know I had such eclectic taste and my son was surprised that I liked some of the same groups he does. Of course, we never talked about it before because I didn't know the names of the songs or the artists. Makes it pretty hard to discuss it.
I listen to the radio in the car but that isn't enough to have a good repetoire and you can't exactly pull over and write down the songs as you hear them... could you imagine if people did that?? There would be somebody in every parking lot scribbling away so they wouldn't forget a particular song. It would take me forever to get where I was going if I did that.
I picked oldies and new songs and love songs and sad songs and happy songs. I picked Frank Sinatra and Finger 11. I didn't even know that Finger 11 existed!!
I picked artists of every variety and I can still keep going. I worked on it for about an hour and now I am making myself stop by typing this entry to my blog. It is kind of hard to forget about it because my playlist is playing as I type.
I haven't really entered any Motown yet and I have some other oldies I would like to find. I have no jazz downloaded yet unless you count Peggy Lee (I don't). I have to stop thinking about it. That little cat icon cannot tempt me to the dark side.
Did you ever see that little icon? It is so cute a little kitty wearing earphones. It is cute and all you have to do is click it and all the music in the world is available to you to download to your computer. Oh Joy!!
Wait, I think my husband is calling me. He wants me to help him with some chore or another. What honey?? What did you say?? I can't hear you over my playlist! Hmmmm, this may come in handier than I thought!

Saturday, January 3, 2009

New Year, Same Old Me

It is time to reflect on the choices we have made in the past year and the choices we want to make in the future. Many are considering diets, quitting smoking, giving up carbs, swearing less, being on time, or being a better friend.
I have made resolutions for almost my whole life and guess what?? This year I'm not making any. Instead I am setting monthly goals and I am writing them down and checking them off as I go along. Now if I keep up at my normal pace, I will do this through February and then I won't do it anymore. I would say that I am determined to do it but then it does sound like a resolution and I am not doing that anymore. I have goals to avoid carbs for two weeks, limit carbs for two more weeks, exercise at the Y three times a week and do Yoga twice a week through the month of January.
I bought a little notebook and have made the little calendar to check off each goal each day. It is real cute. I really like the notebook too. It is a pretty little thing so I am hoping it will inspire me to use it even if I don't really feel like it. If nothing else, I can use it to make grocery lists later.
It is easy to make goals and resolutions when you feel fine. I have a terrible head cold or allergy thing going on and I only want donuts and fluffy slippers. I don't care that my tummy isn't flat and that I haven't emailed everyone I should for the last week. The television sounds too loud and I can't bend over without my nose running and my head aching. I slept practically sitting up on the couch last night so I plan to spend most of the day in bed!!
I think I'm pretty much ok most of the time, that everyone has flaws that maybe they should change, and that no matter how much I diet I will end up looking pretty much the same. So I also think that isn't so bad.