Nora Nora Nora.....

Now that I am done with the Twilight series I have started a Nora Roberts one. The Sign of 7 Trilogy. The first book is called Blood Brothers. I'm only about 1/3 of the way into it, and I must say, it's freaking me out. Nora went all "devils and demons" on me. It's like reading The Amityville Horror all over again. Ugh...Last night I was so freaked out that I had to put the book down, turn on the back deck lights so that I could see everything outside, get on the computer and play games with Glynis & Berry until midnight just to forget about it. OK, maybe it's not that scary of a book, but when she writes about the demon hanging around outside a 2nd floor window with it's face plastered to it looking in with it's evil grin and it's tongue flicking in and out, well that just freaks me out! But I will read it, and I will buy the other 2 books in the series, as soon as I find them. And I will read those too. I just need to get past the need to look outside into the dark. It's Amityville Horror. I never got over that book. Ever! I can not look outside into the dark without thinking that I'm going to see two red eyes looking back at me. Or waking up at 3:33am always freaks me out. LOL! I can be such a baby!

Defiance

Yesterday mom and I went to the movies and saw Defiance. It is a movie about 4 Jewish brothers during WWII who save over a 1,000 Jews by hiding them in the forests of Eastern Poland (now Belarus). And it has Daniel Craig, so you get to watch his beautiful blue eyes for over 2 hours! I love going to movies that are fact based. You learn so much about historical events. I always end up going home and jumping on the computer to google someone, something, some event. Or I go to my favorite site, Wikipedia. I know I have said all of this before.....
OK....I have to divert here. I'm so pissed off! ARGH!!!!! I am at work, that is why the blog is so late today. We have a problem with a woman who used to work here. She retired before I even started here, which was 4 years ago. She keeps coming here wanting to visit with people. Everyone feels sorry for her because she has an ass for a husband (i have been told this), and she seems to have dementia or something. All she wants to do is visit with people. Shes lonely and it doesn't seem like she has anyone to talk to. For over 3 years now she has been stopping by when she goes out for a walk. This was not a big deal when she started, but after 3 years of this, no one wants to talk to her anymore. It's the same conversations over and over. She asks me my name every time she comes in. She says the same thing about being retired, and how it is so hard, and how she remembers people coming in here to visit and she really misses all her old friends. Every time she comes in. Now her visits have increased. She has come by 4 times this week. It is just too much now. We have tried telling her to go up to the Library which is right across the street. Or to go up to the seniors center which is a block or 2 away. She is not even old. I don't even think she is barely over 60 if even that. But today she pissed me off. We decided it would be best to stop her outside and tell her that from now on she needed to call and set an appt if she wanted to visit with someone. I have been stopping her at the front desk since last summer when we started getting complaints about her wandering around the office. So I stopped her outside and said that I was very sorry but from now on she needed to call and set an appointment to visit with someone. I explained that people are here working and that this was the fourth time she was here this week and it was disruptive. She acted like she always does, and I explained that she could not come in. Then she said that she would just go in and stand for a few minutes. I said no, you can not come in. I told her she could walk up to the Library if she needed to take a break before walking back home. I said goodbye and went inside the building. Get this! She started walking around to the back of the building! So I told Karen that maybe she was going to the Library. So I went around back and she tried to come in the back door!!!!! I could not believe it! She saw me standing at the top of the stairs and she smiled and I shook my head at her. She opened the door and said "Oh the back door is unlocked." I went down and stopped her and said "That is not funny. I very nicely explained to you that you could not come in anymore without an appointment. I do not appreciate you coming around back and trying to get in. That is not funny at all." I told her she needed to leave. I was so pissed. She is not as forgetful and stupid as people think she is. I can not believe she had the nerve to try and sneak in the back door!
Deeeeep breath.....exhale....I need my Liquid Mind Balance CD really bad right now....
So to get back to what I started to talk about, google Tuvia Bielski and read up on what they did to save Jews during WWII and how they had their camp set up in the forest. It's very interesting and so brave of all of them to do what they did to save themselves and each other.

Time to Relax......

Last Thursday I had my monthly massage. My massage therapist played a CD that was so relaxing that afterwards I asked her what she had played. It was Liquid Mind III Balance. I loved it, so I bought it online. There is quite a few of these done by Chuck Wild. I could not find anything on youtube from Balance, but I found one from Liquid mind VIII Sleep. It is the first video posted. The second video is only a minute or so, but I loved the kaleidoscope effect.
So sit back, take a deep cleaning breath, exhale......and relax......

It's really not a big deal.....

I was sitting here at work and my cell phone rang. I was thinking "What the hell?" And then I thought....Oh it must be Glynis. We had been texted back and forth. Yes...I know I'm at work and should not be texted on my cell phone...So shut up! Anyway....I answered the phone and it was the recept for my dentist. I have an appt on Friday morning for my 6 month cleaning. I told her OK...and then it dawned on me...I work on Fridays now. Crap. I told her I forgot that I work Fridays so I will have to reschedule. She always gets so tweaked when I have to do that. It's really not a big deal. Just get out the little book and tell me when I can come. She just gets so frustrated. The first appt she gave me was at 2:00 in the afternoon. I hate appts then. Right in the middle of the day. I like my appts in the morning. Especially the dentist. I do not like to eat before I go. I have this fear of the hygienists flicking something out from between my teeth that I had just eaten. Grosses me out. So I always make them in the morning and then eat when I'm done. Is anyone else like that?
Or am I just weird?
OK....never mind.
You don't have to answer that.....

Saying Goodbye.....

I just got back from seeing The Wrestler. It was a really good movie. Makes you think. But isn't that what a movie is suppose to do? Some. Some are just pure entertainment. Some are there to laugh at. Some to marvel at. This one made me think. Think about life in general. Why is it that some people can't let go of the past? They hold on to things that have no real purpose anymore. Like...80's music. Just kidding. The movies soundtrack was full of it. No, things like a being the most popular in school. Or not being the most popular in school. School is over. So is that. But some people never get over that whole "high school" mentality. Wanting to be popular. Just be yourself. This movie was about a guy who could not give up his popularity. It was pathetically sad. There is a scene where he goes to an autograph session with others like him. Guys still trying to hold onto that thin thread to their past. Here is the main character sitting there in pain, and another guy is sitting there with a piss bag poking out from under his pant leg. No one needed to say a word in that scene. Just looking at them spoke volumes. But they just could not say goodbye to it. Sad indeed.
Another thing about the movie that made me think was the relationship, or lack of relationship he had with his daughter. He was not a father to her when she was growing up, and still could not be there when she was grown. Today a friend is saying goodbye to her father. Last year another friend said goodbye to hers. I said goodbye to mine long ago. Don't get me wrong here, the man is still alive, but my "father" is gone. He left years ago. Left to live a life that I wouldn't want to be any part of now. I tried, we all tried, but the man just did not want to have anything to do with us. We think it had something to do with how we all made him feel old. God forbid the man should **gasp** age. He did not want to be a grandfather. He was too young for that. So he went out and bought a candy apple red Corvette. Started wearing western attire and cowboy boots. Started doing drugs. It was pathetic. He was living the life of fast cars and fast women. Got a couple of them pregnant. Married a couple of them. Divorced all of them. And then took off with his tail between his legs. Do I care if I ever hear from him again? Nope. The man who shares my fathers name is not my dad. My dad was the man who let me swing on his bicep muscle when I was 5. My dad was the man who drove the pop truck that we could hear all the way down the road when he would come home for lunch, open it up and let us grab a bottle of pop right out it. My dad was the man who could whistle so loud that we could hear it almost a mile away, knowing it was time to come home for dinner.
I miss that man.
That man has been gone for years.
I said goodbye to that man, my father, years ago.
I miss that man.
But I don't want to know the man he is now.......

Rethinking my choices....

I'm getting more and more confused about the Oscar race this year. I was set on my picks, and now I just don't know. I really did not think Slumdog Millionaire was going to win, but now it has won the Golden Globe and the SAG Award. I still think Kate Winslet will win best actress for The Reader. She has won twice for that role in supporting. Weird how she was nominated for supporting when she clearly was a main part of the movie. I was surprised to see Meryl Streep win the SAG last night. I love Meryl, but I didn't think she was going to win it. If my paper has their Oscar contest again, I may have to rethink my picks.....
I think today will be quiet.
Fine with me.
I'm kinda sleepy today anyway.
Did not want to crawl out of bed.
And....the sun is blazing today. Just the sun. Not the temp. It's 25* outside. Brrrrrr......
I find it amusing that yesterday I woke up to snow, and today there is not a sign of it.
If I didn't have the pictures, you would never know!

Old Man Winter......

First off...Donna, I'm so very sorry about your father passing. I know these past several weeks have been so trying and downright frustrating for you. I'm not going to say that it's over, because now you are going to be grieving for him, but it will be a different set of emotions. I know this is nothing new to you, for you have lost a brother like I have. But I am aware that it will be conflicting emotions because of the relationship you had with him. I love you and I am here for you if need to talk....
_________________________________

Old Man Winter showed up here again. We woke up to about 1-2" of snow. It's beautiful. Not enough to cause any driving problems, but enough to coat everything in that beautiful fluffy white snow. I'm going to gave to send Bonnie and Glynis messages to see if they have snow this morning too.
I have taken a couple pictures to share.
Today Mr BarbWa and I are going to go to a movie. It will either be Frost/Nixon or Paul Blart:Mall Cop. He always gets to pick when we see a movie. I go so often and he rarely sees a movie in a theater. So I let him. I figure if I do, then maybe we can go to the movies together more often. Doesn't work, but it's getting better! I think the last movie he saw in the theater was Burn After Reading. His other choices last year were National Treasure 2, Hancock and Tropic Thunder. So as you can see, the possibility of Frost/Nixon is very exciting to me!

Living Will

Well. I'm getting up there in age. I'm getting so close to....45.....oiy....Just kidd'n. I just feel lucky to be here. A friend at work shared this with me yesterday. Thought I would pass it along. It's good for a giggle!

LIVING WILL

I__________, being of sound mind and body, do not wish to be kept alive indefinitely by artificial means.
Under no circumstances should my fate be put in the hands of pinhead politicians who could not pass ninth grade biology if their lives depended on it, or lawyers/doctors interested in simply running up the bills.
If a reasonable amount of time passes and I fail to ask for at least one of the following:
Glass of Wine
Chocolate
Sex
Margarita
Cold Beer
Chocolate
Fried Chicken
Gravy
Sex
Mexican Food
Chocolate
French Fries
Chocolate
Pizza
Sex
Cake
Italian Food
Chocolate

It should be presumed that I won't ever get better. When such a determination is reached, I hereby instruct my appointed person and attending physicians to pull the plug, reel in the tubes, let the "fat lady sing", and call it a day!

I know some of us have had a very trying January. I hope this can at least make you smile.
~Barb~

Just HAVE to watch Movies

**Updated. See below**

I was going to blog something else this morning, but Renee Eve changed my mind. She mentioned in a comment on yesterdays blog how she has to watch Grease and Urban Cowboy when they come on. I love those movies! I'm the same way with those two and more. Others that I have seen dozens of times are Beautiful Girls, Sleeping with the Enemy, Practical Magic, Pride and Prejudice (Keira Knightly version), Becoming Jane (even though it is fairly new I have seen it a lot!), Gone With the Wind, Ten Commandments, Sound of Music and Willy Wonka (the original, not the crappy new one). I could sit and watch all of those movies back to back to back! A whole weekend movie marathon!
I don't know what it is about movies that draw me to them. I think sometimes it is the soundtrack. Just look at Grease and Urban Cowboy for instance. What fantastic sound tracks. I love the music in Beautiful Girls too. Practical Magic has Stevie Nicks. Stevie Nicks! And you can't go wrong with Julie Andrews. Willy Wonka is just so much fun. And of course with the others, well they are period movies. I love period movies. The costumes, the way they speak. I love that. I think I was born a couple hundred years too late!
But then again, maybe I did live through those times and that is why I am so drawn to it. But that is a whole other blog!
So we know what movies Renee Eve HAS to watch. What about you???

______________________________________

Going to get a little political....
WASHINGTON – A Saudi militant who was released from Guantanamo Bay after six years of confinement is now a top figure in the Yemeni branch of al-Qaida, a U.S. counterterrorism official confirmed Friday.
Said Ali al-Shihri was released in 2007 to the Saudi government for rehabilitation. He re-emerged this week, identified by a militant-leaning Web site as a top deputy in "al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula," a Yemeni offshoot of the terror group headed by Osama bin Laden.
The Yemeni branch has been implicated in several attacks on the U.S. Embassy in Yemen's capital Sana.

Do they think we are stupid? Of course something like this is going to come out right after President Obama has signed a paper for the closure of Guantanamo Bay. He has said, if I am not mistaken, that there will be investigations into all detainees to look into either releasing them, or moving them to another facility for a real trial. Why are they trying to make it look like terrorists are being "released" from Guantanamo. And for the record.....the guy was released under one President Bush....see above date of 2007.

Oscar Noms!

This morning they announced the nominations for the Oscars. I had no idea this was happening this morning. I have not been watching TV this week, so I missed that it was today. So here are the nominees. I will put a little red * next to who I think will win. Maybe some commentary too!

OSCAR NOMINATIONS:

Performance by an actor in a leading role
Richard Jenkins in “The Visitor” (Overture Films)
Frank Langella in “Frost/Nixon” (Universal)
Sean Penn in “Milk” (Focus Features)
Brad Pitt in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.)
*Mickey Rourke in “The Wrestler” (Fox Searchlight)
(THIS IS A TOSS UP BETWEEN ROURKE AND PENN. PENN HAS ONE SO I'M GOING WITH ROURKE. IT'S A RAW AND VERY REAL PERFORMANCE)

Performance by an actor in a supporting role
Josh Brolin in “Milk” (Focus Features)
Robert Downey Jr. in “Tropic Thunder” (DreamWorks, Distributed by DreamWorks/Paramount)
Philip Seymour Hoffman in “Doubt” (Miramax)
*Heath Ledger in “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.)
Michael Shannon in “Revolutionary Road” (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage)
(COULD GO TO HOFFMAN, BUT AGAIN, HE HAS ONE, AND WELL....)

Performance by an actress in a leading role
Anne Hathaway in “Rachel Getting Married” (Sony Pictures Classics)
Angelina Jolie in “Changeling” (Universal)
Melissa Leo in “Frozen River” (Sony Pictures Classics)
Meryl Streep in “Doubt” (Miramax)
*Kate Winslet in “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company)
(KATE HAS TO WIN THIS ONE. SHE WAS FANTASTIC IN THIS MOVIE)

Performance by an actress in a supporting role
Amy Adams in “Doubt” (Miramax)
Penélope Cruz in “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” (The Weinstein Company)
*Viola Davis in “Doubt” (Miramax)
Taraji P. Henson in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.)
Marisa Tomei in “The Wrestler” (Fox Searchlight)
(OK. THIS IS THE HARDEST ONE. ALL OF THESE WOMEN COULD WIN. SO I'M GOING WITH MY FAV)

Best animated feature film of the year
“Bolt” (Walt Disney), Chris Williams and Byron Howard
“Kung Fu Panda” (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount), John Stevenson and Mark Osborne
*“WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Andrew Stanton

Achievement in art direction
“Changeling” (Universal), Art Direction: James J. Murakami, Set Decoration: Gary Fettis
*“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Art Direction: Donald Graham Burt, Set Decoration: Victor J. Zolfo
“The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Art Direction: Nathan Crowley, Set Decoration: Peter Lando
“The Duchess” (Paramount Vantage, Pathé and BBC Films), Art Direction: Michael Carlin, Set Decoration: Rebecca Alleway
“Revolutionary Road” (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage), Art Direction: Kristi Zea, Set Decoration: Debra Schutt

Achievement in cinematography
“Changeling” (Universal), Tom Stern
*“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Claudio Miranda
“The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Wally Pfister
“The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Chris Menges and Roger Deakins
“Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Anthony Dod Mantle

Achievement in costume design
“Australia” (20th Century Fox), Catherine Martin
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Jacqueline West
*“The Duchess” (Paramount Vantage, Pathé and BBC Films), Michael O’Connor
“Milk” (Focus Features), Danny Glicker
“Revolutionary Road” (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage), Albert Wolsky

Achievement in directing
*“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), David Fincher
“Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Ron Howard
“Milk” (Focus Features), Gus Van Sant
“The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Stephen Daldry
“Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Danny Boyle

Best documentary feature
“The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)” (Cinema Guild), A Pandinlao Films Production, Ellen Kuras and Thavisouk Phrasavath
*“Encounters at the End of the World” (THINKFilm and Image Entertainment), A Creative Differences Production, Werner Herzog and Henry Kaiser
“The Garden” A Black Valley Films Production, Scott Hamilton Kennedy
“Man on Wire” (Magnolia Pictures), A Wall to Wall Production, James Marsh and Simon Chinn
“Trouble the Water” (Zeitgeist Films), An Elsewhere Films Production, Tia Lessin and Carl Deal
(I'M GOING WITH THE BEAUTY OF ANTARCTICA INSTEAD OF THE SADNESS OF HURRICANE KATRINA. BUT TROUBLE THE WATER COULD ALSO WIN)

Best documentary short subject
“The Conscience of Nhem En” A Farallon Films Production, Steven Okazaki
“The Final Inch” A Vermilion Films Production, Irene Taylor Brodsky and Tom Grant
“Smile Pinki” A Principe Production, Megan Mylan
*“The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306” A Rock Paper Scissors Production, Adam Pertofsky and Margaret Hyde

Achievement in film editing
*“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall
“The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Lee Smith
“Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Mike Hill and Dan Hanley
“Milk” (Focus Features), Elliot Graham
“Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Chris Dickens

Best foreign language film of the year
“The Baader Meinhof Complex” A Constantin Film Production, Germany
“The Class” (Sony Pictures Classics), A Haut et Court Production, France
“Departures” (Regent Releasing), A Departures Film Partners Production, Japan
“Revanche” (Janus Films), A Prisma Film/Fernseh Production, Austria
*“Waltz with Bashir” (Sony Pictures Classics), A Bridgit Folman Film Gang Production, Israel

Achievement in makeup
*“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Greg Cannom
“The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), John Caglione, Jr. and Conor O’Sullivan
“Hellboy II: The Golden Army” (Universal), Mike Elizalde and Thom Floutz

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Alexandre Desplat
“Defiance” (Paramount Vantage), James Newton Howard
“Milk” (Focus Features), Danny Elfman
*“Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), A.R. Rahman
“WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Thomas Newman

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)
*“Down to Earth” from “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman, Lyric by Peter Gabriel
“Jai Ho” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music by A.R. Rahman, Lyric by Gulzar
“O Saya” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music and Lyric by A.R. Rahman and Maya Arulpragasam
(WTH??? WHERE IS SPRINGSTEENS SONG FROM THE WRESTLER???)

Best motion picture of the year
*“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), A Kennedy/Marshall Production, Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall and Ceán Chaffin, Producers
“Frost/Nixon” (Universal), A Universal Pictures, Imagine Entertainment and Working Title Production, Brian Grazer, Ron Howard and Eric Fellner, Producers
“Milk” (Focus Features), A Groundswell and Jinks/Cohen Company Production, Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen, Producers
“The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), A Mirage Enterprises and Neunte Babelsberg Film GmbH Production, Nominees to be determined
“Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), A Celador Films Production, Christian Colson, Producer
(I'M GOING WITH BENJAMIN BUTTON. JUST BECAUSE. IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL FILM. I WAS NOT AS FOND OF SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE. I LOVED THE READER. BUT I DON'T THINK IT WILL WIN. GOING WITH BB)

Best animated short film
“La Maison en Petits Cubes” A Robot Communications Production, Kunio Kato
“Lavatory - Lovestory” A Melnitsa Animation Studio and CTB Film Company Production, Konstantin Bronzit
*“Oktapodi” (Talantis Films), A Gobelins, L’école de l’image Production, Emud Mokhberi and Thierry Marchand
“Presto” (Walt Disney), A Pixar Animation Studios Production, Doug Sweetland
“This Way Up” A Nexus Production, Alan Smith and Adam Foulkes
(I'M GOING WITH OKTAPODI BECAUSE IT SOUNDS HILARIOUS! Two Octopi fight for their lives with a stubborn restaurant cook in a comical escape through the streets of a small Greek village)

Best live action short film
“Auf der Strecke (On the Line)” (Hamburg Shortfilmagency), An Academy of Media Arts Cologne Production, Reto Caffi
“Manon on the Asphalt” (La Luna Productions), A La Luna Production, Elizabeth Marre and Olivier Pont
“New Boy” (Network Ireland Television), A Zanzibar Films Production, Steph Green and Tamara Anghie
“The Pig” An M & M Production, Tivi Magnusson and Dorte Høgh
*“Spielzeugland (Toyland)” A Mephisto Film Production, Jochen Alexander Freydank

Achievement in sound editing
*“The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Richard King
“Iron Man” (Paramount and Marvel Entertainment), Frank Eulner and Christopher Boyes
“Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Tom Sayers
“WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Ben Burtt and Matthew Wood
“Wanted” (Universal), Wylie Stateman

Achievement in sound mixing
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Mark Weingarten
“The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo and Ed Novick
*“Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke and Resul Pookutty
“WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Tom Myers, Michael Semanick and Ben Burtt
“Wanted” (Universal), Chris Jenkins, Frank A. Montaño and Petr Forejt

Achievement in visual effects
*“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton and Craig Barron
“The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Tim Webber and Paul Franklin
“Iron Man” (Paramount and Marvel Entertainment), John Nelson, Ben Snow, Dan Sudick and Shane Mahan
(THE THINGS THEY DID WITH BRAD PITT WERE AMAZING)

Adapted screenplay
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Screenplay by Eric Roth, Screen story by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord
“Doubt” (Miramax), Written by John Patrick Shanley
“Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Screenplay by Peter Morgan
“The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Screenplay by David Hare
*“Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Screenplay by Simon Beaufoy

Original screenplay
“Frozen River” (Sony Pictures Classics), Written by Courtney Hunt
“Happy-Go-Lucky” (Miramax), Written by Mike Leigh
“In Bruges” (Focus Features), Written by Martin McDonagh
*“Milk” (Focus Features), Written by Dustin Lance Black
“WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Screenplay by Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon, Original story by Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter

_______________________________

There you go. My picks for the Oscars. I think the hardest one is Supporting Actress. WOW. I think that may be the toughest one in years. They were all so fantastic. I'm usually wrong in my picks for sound, editing and stuff like that. But I usually do pretty good with the main ones. Last year my only miss was lead actress. I went with Julie Christie. Marion Cotillard won for La Vie en Rose. A very good movie by the way if you have not seen it.

I Don't Care to Know....

When did it become our right to know about peoples sex lives? Just because someone is a public figure, do we have the right to know what they are doing behind closed doors? I really don't care, and I'm tired of hearing about it. I don't understand why the media has to continue to report that so and so is doing so and so. This week in Portland they are talking about their new mayor. During the campaign he was asked if it was true that he had an affair with an 18 year old who used to be an intern. He said no. Mistake buddy. Don't lie. Just say "It's none of your damn business!" Well... say it correctly with a phrase like..."My personal life is no ones business. It is private, and I intend to keep it that way."
Now the media is all a buzz about Portland's openly gay mayor lying about a tryst he had with an 18 year old. Who cares? Does this news affect the way this man is going to run the City of Portland? No. I'm so tired of the press reporting this nonsense. Can we please just go back to reporting...the news.

Yes Donna....Today is a New Day!

"Barb: I hope today is easier for you.

We all have one wonderful thing to be thankful for today. It's GOODBYE Bush and HELLO OBAMA! I'm so excited!" Donna

Yes Donna....It's a new day for all of us. Even for those who do not like our new President. They will reap the rewards the same as we who voted for him. Change is here. We all have better times to look forward to. We all need to be patient. We all need to do our part. We all will be better off. We all can put the last eight years behind us. Yes...We can move forward.

Yes Donna...Today is easier for me. Today I have hope renewed. Today I will feel.

Just. Feel.

Rick.......

Ugh......

I really am going to have to try hard to get through today without crying. It has now been 11 years since my brother Rick was killed. 11 years. That is so hard for me to comprehend. It still seems like yesterday. What makes it even harder this year is that it falls on Martin Luther King Day. Rick was killed on this Holiday. This is the first time since his death that the dates have come together. It's odd to me that it took 11 years for MLK Day to fall on the 19th. At least this time I will not have to think about it twice in a week. I always have a hard time getting through the Holiday, and then have to get through the 19th too. Actually the whole month of January is always hard on me. I had been doing better this year until last week when I realized that MLK Day was falling on the 19th. I said something to Robert last night and he said he knew. He gave me a look that melted my heart a little. He knew it would be hard for me today. He drives me nuts sometimes, but I love him.

I wonder if the hurt will ever go away. I don't think it will. I just don't see how my mother can do it. I think I would have curled up and died. Or I would be in a mental ward somewhere. She said once that she has four other children to be strong for. Breaks my heart that she feels that way. But as a mother you do what you have to do. I think she must grieve in private. Just before the 10th Anniversary last year, I was with mom and my sister Terri. We were driving and something was said about Rick being gone now almost 10 years. Mom was shocked. She did not think it had been that long. She thought it had only been about 5 years. We had to explain to her that it had been almost 10. It makes me wonder if to her it still just happened. I wonder if she has the same problems at night that I do? Does she hear someone knocking on her door in the middle of night, like I hear someone ringing the doorbell? Does she still remember the clothes that she had on when she went to the hospital to say goodbye, the same as I remember the clothes I was wearing when I went to my sisters Debbie's to tell her that Rick had been shot? Does she remember it all as vividly as I do? I really hope not. It breaks my heart to think that my mother could still be in so much pain. I don't want her to forget him, but I would feel better knowing that she forgets the circumstances. Is that selfish of me? I don't want to hurt for mom, so I hope that she does not remember it all? It's all so confusing. The pain that I feel....is it pain really? It's this empty feeling in my chest. This feeling in my head of confusion and not wanting to think. This feeling in my face and my jaw. Like a tightness that won't go away. I feel like I am always on the brink of tears, but I hold them back. Having to shake my head just to compose myself. Does my mother feel like this every day? I don't want to think that. I could not get through an afternoon with her if I knew that she felt like this every day.

It would break my heart into a million pieces......

I'm Feel'n Crafty

Arts & Crafts Day! Arts & Crafts Day!
You would think I would be sick of cards and scrapbooks after all the time I spent on them before Christmas. But you know, there is someone everyone month who I have to make Birthday cards for. I think I have about 3 or 4 more for this month, and then I want to get started or do all of February. I'm going to wait until my friend Sandy comes over first to get started. I can't ever seem to find the right time to get together with Beth anymore. We just can't seem to get a day where we can hook up. We used to meet the first Saturday of every month, but since we bought the trailer that does not work. We just need to get the days picked and stick to it. I usually end up spending one of my weekdays off or a Sunday making them. Beth is busy on Sundays. We'll figure something out.
I am almost done with New Moon. Just have a few more pages to read. I want to get it done before Sandy comes over.
Thanks for stopping by yesterday Adri and Dreama! I hope you and everyone else who stops by today has a very wonderful Sunday!
Hugs...
~Barb~

There's a New Moon

I started the second book in the Twilight series. I finished the Nora Roberts book I was reading last night. So this morning I started New Moon. So far so good. When Katie came over on Thursday she brought me the entire Twilight series and another Stephenie Meyer book to read. I am now on my 3rd book in less than 2 weeks. I do this a lot. I read a bazillion books all at once, and then I don't read for two years. I'm going to try to get out of that habit. This is one of the things I want to work on this year. Reading more. So I am. At least I am not like my mother. She reads 3 books all at the same time. She has a book at home, one at work and then starts a third when she is almost done with one. She hates the feeling of being done with a book, so she never is!
I have been pretty successful at some of my other changes. Some still need work. I feel pretty good about having been able to cut something out of my life a lot easier than I thought it was going to be. I surprised myself. I made the decision, removed it from my life, and feel so much better. It is something that I do want to keep private though. We all have our things that we do that we find a little embarrassing to share. I was obsessed with something, and now it is gone. No more obsession! Now if I can just get obsessed with exercise and cleaning everything would be fantastic!

Random 25

I did this on Facebook this morning. I thought, hmmmmmm, I will just repost this to the blog! What a cheater! LOL!
Have a great day!
~Barb~
**a little note after the 25 facts**

25 or so Things About MeRules: Once you’ve been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it’s because I want to know more about you.
***If you have read this here on the blog, consider yourself tagged!***

01. I write a blog. Come by and read it and leave a comment! http://barbarainwa.blogspot.com/
02. I can not stand it when I am nice to someone on the phone at work and they bite my head off over something that has nothing to do with me. Hey dude, I'm just the chick who answers the phone. (this just happened can you tell?)
03. I love kitties.
04. And on that note.....one of my goals in life is to hug a lion. Can anyone help me accomplish this goal???
05. My kids mean the world to me.
06. After 25 years of marriage, arguements, sometimes thinking I just can't stand him even though I know that not to be true, he still makes my heart race.
07. I need to lose weight.
08. I need to exercise more.
09. I love to scrapbook and make cards.
10. I wish I could play the piano.
11. I work in a haunted house with an active ghost named Mary.
12. I love to get away. Anywhere...camping, the beach, the mountains, Hawaii, Europe. Take me anywhere.....
13. I am trying to be a better photographer.
14. I love the smell of fresh cut grass and fresh bark.
15. I can not stand the sound of shoveling rocks. It's worse than fingernails down a chalkboard.
16. I do not like it when people have lost a loved one or friend to violence and they go on TV over and over and over. It makes them look like they are using their horrible situation for attention. I speak from experience on this. I know everyone has their own way of dealing with grief, but to go on TV is just wrong to me.
17. When I'm giving out a phone number, I almost always say "zero" and not "O". ie: 3-6-zero for 360
18. I enjoy bird watching, and want to go to Costa Rica and see all of the beautiful tropical birds down there.
19. I have pretty good handwriting.
20. I want to paint, but I don't have the courage.
21. I have a weird knack for being able to name random actors in movies. People will call me on the phone and say "Who is that guy who played in that movie about....." I almost always know.
22. The smell of dairy farms makes me gag.
23. I blush easily.
24. I have never broken a bone.
25. I won our newspapers Oscars contest last year, and I'm hoping to repeat that this year! LOL!
_______________________________________
Katie, mom and I went to see The Reader yesterday. I loved it. A very powerful movie. Kate Winslet was fantastic. I felt a little pervy seeing that young man in full frontal nudity though. Mostly because I was sitting between my mother and my daughter. After the movie I commented to them about it. Mom said she heard that they had to wait until he was 18 to film those scenes. Katie said she thought he was 19 now. Well gee, that just made it all better... Anyway, the movie was really good. I liked it a lot more than Slumdog Millionaire. There was a lot of unspoken things though. It made you have to think about why they made the decisions that they did. Why did she keep quiet, why did he. I don't want to spoil things for anyone who still wants to see it. If you have seen it, or after you see it, let me know so that we can discuss.

Commitment

"Commitment is a line you cross. It is the difference between wishing and doing." unknown

I do a lot of wishing. Like right now. I'm wishing that I could commit more. I am able to commit to a lot of things. All the things that I hate, like smoking. You would never see me light one up. Ever. But can I commit to not eating chocolate. Nope. I like chocolate. In fact, I love it. I think I should just marry chocolate. Can I commit to exercising everyday? Nope. I try. Just not hard enough. I can't get myself to "commit" to it. To stick with it. I always have something else that I want or need to do. Right now I could be on the eliptical machine, but nope. I'm here writing that I should be on the eliptical machine. And I'm running out of time to be able to exercise this morning. It's already 10:30 and I need to shower before Katie gets here. And we need to leave here by 11:30. Not looking good. I will try to squeeze it in after we get home from the movie. Yep. I can commit to going to a movie and spending the day out, but can't commit to staying home and doing stuff like laundry and exercise.
Gee...I wish I could commit more......

Idol Makers

American Idol started last night. I really like the new judge, Kara DioGuardi. She's feisty, but still nice. And a little more coherent than Paula! Just kidding. I love Paula. She cracks me up. I was laughing so hard last night at some of the "contestants". You know that some of them are there just to get on TV. Some, well, I think some really are delusional and just don't have a grasp on reality. There was that one guy who, I don't even know how to describe what he was doing. But it was not singing. It was scary. He kinda freaked me out a little. If I was making a movie and needed someone to play a psycho, he would be my first call. Wow, that was harsh. But the guy really creeped me out. I also think the black man who was singing really really lower-than-Barry-White-low, was faking it. He couldn't even breathe as he was trying to sing. So my thinking is that he was forcing the low voice and when you do that you can't take in a breath at the same time. Try it. Does not work. At least I can't do it.
Now....as for 'Bikini Girl"...what a bitch. I did not like her at all. I thought she was a horrible singer. I thought she was terribly rude to Kara. Kara has a beautiful singing voice, and this chick had the nerve to say she didn't sing any better than her. WTH???? I'm hoping that in Hollywood she gets swallowed up by all of the good singers, and is eliminated in the first round of cuts. I can't stand it when girls think they can sing like Mariah Carey or Christina Aguilera and they are not even close to hitting one of their notes. Granted her butt is better than Mariah's, but until she can learn to sing out of it, she needs to go!
So far I do not have a favorite. I need to hear more of their singing before I pick one. And I need to learn more about them as a person. If I don't like their personality, then I usually stop liking their singing. Like David A last year. I didn't care for him after the first couple shows. He came across as way to "prepared" and nothing seemed natural about him at all. He got on my nerves. Towards the end of the season I just couldn't stand to hear him at all. Bleck.
When I have a favorite, or when I find someone really interesting that I am going to keep an eye on, I will let you know!

One Down...Many more to go.....

I can check off another movie from my Oscar contenders list. I saw Slumdog Millionaire today. It was good, but I have say, not my favorite so far this year. I liked Benjamin Button, Vicky Christina Barcelona and Doubt better. Bryan didn't like Doubt, but I did. There are still so many movies I need to see. Thursday will be The Reader now. I was going to see that today, but decided that mom would not want to see Slumdog. And thanks to Bryan, I can not wait to see The Wrestler. It looks really good.
This is it for today. I've had a long day and just need to relax. That and my brain doesn't want to function. Came out of the movie with a horrible headache.....

I'm in a Reading Stage.....

I go through stages when it comes to reading. I can go years without picking up a book, and then I read 12 in a row. I'm in a reading stage now. I think it has been 2 years since I read last. I have about 6 Nora Roberts books that I have bought, and have yet to read. They have been sitting there on the end table taunting me. I even took 2 to Europe thinking I would read them on the plane or on the bus. That was a mistake. It just ended up being extra weight I had to carry around. I was close to dumping them in a hotel room because I was tired of trying to figure out where to put them, but I just couldn't. They were Nora Roberts and I was not going to part with them, paperback or not! I still need to read them, but I will.

I started out reading Twilight. It was really good. I wanted to see the movie, but Katie forbid me from seeing it until I read the book. I have now read it, so now I can go see it! I wanted to start right away on the second book, but Katie is out of town playing in the snow of Whistler, so I will have to wait. I went to the store yesterday to try and find it in paperback, but she said it is only a hardcover book. I hate reading hardcover books. They are hard to hold and it hurts my left hand trying too. But I really want to read it, so when she gets back she will bring it over. I will figure out a way of setting the book on the arm of my big cushy chair and see if I can do it without having to hold it. Either way, I have to read it! Until then, I am going to go ahead and read a Nora Roberts. I chose The MacGregor Brides to start with. Should have lots of s-e-x in it! heh heh.....

Ooof....

We had a little catastrophe yesterday.
Katie's Timmy came over to help take down the outside Christmas lights and help Robert get the boxes back up into the attic. I was in the house when I heard a huge crash. I figured they dropped a box when they were passing them to each other. I have always been the "passer" in years past, and I have never dropped a box! So I went to go investigate the damage, to see what they broke. I opened the garage door and looked out to see 2 legs dangling from the ceiling! Boy that was a shock! Tim was struggling to keep from falling through to the garage and Robert was stuck where he was because of the ladder and the boxes. So Tim let out a huge ooof noise and then a primal yell and pulled himself back up into the attic. If he had fallen all the way through he would have either hit the truck snow tires stacked there, bounced off of them into the boxes, or went into the tires, which would have been horrible. I'm positive he would have broken a bone somewhere on his body. As it is, I'm worried that he has tweaked his back or something. I kept asking him the rest of the day, but he swears he is OK. But I also think he was moving a little slowly when he left hours later and had to bend over to pick something up. Katie is in Whistler, so she can't be my eyes until Wednesday. I feel horrible thinking he may have hurt himself helping us. Robert didn't want to go up there when he is finally getting his back to feeling normal. I asked Tim what had happened. He said that he was walking on the wood planks up there, and he stepped on one and it snapped in half causing him to fall onto the sheet rock and that broke as soon as his weight hit it causing him to fall through the ceiling. Robert is going to take out all of the planks now and replace them with large sheets of plywood. That stuff has been up there for over 18 years. I guess it's time to replace it.
I just hope Tim is OK. The ceiling can be fixed.....

I Thought the Sun Rose in Your Eyes.....

First Time Ever I Saw Your Face

The first time ever I saw your face
I thought the sun rose in your eyes
And the moon and stars were the gifts you gave
To the dark and the empty skies, my love,
To the dark and the empty skies.

The first time ever I kissed your mouth
And felt your heart beat close to mine
Like the trembling heart of a captive bird
That was there at my command, my love
That was there at my command.

And the first time ever I lay with you
I felt your heart so close to mine
And I knew our joy would fill the earth
And last till the end of time my love
It would last till the end of time my love

The first time ever I saw your face, your face,
your face, your face


Such a beautiful song.....

Romance from the 70's

When I went to bed last night, hubby had been watching a James Bond movie that was now over. He was sound asleep and I ended up watching what had come on after the movie. An infomercial plugging the Time Life Romance songs from the 70's. I was transfixed. I could not turn the darn thing off. Song after song would play a line and I would be transported back to my bedroom at my childhood home, laying in bed in the dark listening to these songs. I loved that music. It made me feel so good to listen to them. I wanted more, but Tony Orlando teased me with only one line. I have had Roberta Flack singing in my head all morning..."The first time....ever I saw your face..." So beautiful. And Helen Reddy, Anne Murray, Leo Sayer! Do you remember Leo Sayer? Kenny Rogers singing "She believes in Me..." Another great one...Jennifer Warnes "Right Time of the Night" or Janis Ian "At Seventeen". How about "Please Come to Boston" by Dave Loggins?
I really would love to buy this set, but it's ridiculously priced. At least I think it is. 10 CD's for $149.95 w/free shipping, and a free bonus CD! The regular set ends up being just over $1 per song, but who wants to put out $150 bucks for CD's??? I want too. But I wont.....
I took off the feedjit. I really enjoyed seeing where people came from who stopped by to read the blog, but I had a really nasty virus on my computer, so I took off all applications that could have spyware attached to it. Bummed me out because I liked seeing that people from all over the world stopped by. I'm not sure about Facebook now either. My computer guy told me to google "Facebook spyware" and read up on the applications that people use there. I only found info on one of them, but it makes me wonder how many have spyware and viruses attached to them. Scares me now....Why do people have to mess with ordinary peoples computers? I just don't get it. We were talking about it here at work and have come to the conclusion that it is all supported by the people who make computers and software so that you have to continue to buy products. Makes sense to us!

A Little Procrastination Can Go A Long Way

I still have Christmas up. It's the 8th of January and I'm still wanting to plug in the lights and enjoy the Christmas tree. Hubby came home the other night and was embarrassed that the house lights were still on and no one else in the neighborhood had theirs up any more. So he unplugged them. So sad. I have made the commitment to take down the tree this weekend. I get so used to having it in here. When it's gone, it makes the house seem so empty. But it needs to be done. So I will do it.
I'm worried about Glynis. I have not heard from her since yesterday afternoon. She posted scary pictures on Facebook of the river behind her house. It was getting so close and the heavy rains had not even hit yet. I have not heard from her since. I don't want to bother her by calling. But maybe I should just to check on her.....
Mom and I will be spending the day together. We have not done anything for a long time. I think we only went to one movie in December. I was busy and so was she. So today we will go to lunch and then to see Valkyrie. Not looking forward to 2 hours of Tom Cruise playing a German with an American accent, but we both want to see it because of it being a WWII movie. So we will go. And suffer a little.....
I am going to call G. I have to know that she is alright......

I'm a Hottie.....

That's me alright. Hot. Sizzle'n hot! **touches ass......sssssssss......** I have been having hot flashes regularly for a couple days now. I have had them before, but not very often at all. A couple days ago they started up, and they are different. Before when I would get a hot flash it would be triggered by stress or embarrassment and they were usually centered around my head. My head would just get scorching hot. Now they are more centered and I get an all over feeling of being in an overheated room. It makes me feel kinda light headed and sweaty. TMI???? I just don't know how else to describe it. Have you ever almost passed out where you break out in a sweat? It's like that. Weird. At least I think these are hot flashes. OK....now I'm having one again. My face is getting all hot. So are my arms, shoulders, chest. It just kind of moves down my body. Ugh....me no likey......
I am going to have to research these. I know I can take flax seed and that helps. I need to find out more about making them more tolerable....Any suggestions????

Chipper :-D

Good Morning! I'm in a chipper mood. I had been avoiding weighing myself since Christmas because of all of the goodies that I stuffed myself with. I did not gain anything! How did that happen???? I know I was careful not to just eat all day long. But still, I made come bad choices with food. And I did not exercise at all except for a few Wii games of bowling and baseball. I'm thinking it was the stress. I put so much stress on myself at Christmas. That and the fact that I spent days and days at the table working on the scrapbooks. Not much eating going on when I was doing that. So I feel good this morning....except for my neck and back pain from the fall Sunday. But chipper none the less!

Leave Them Alone Already......

Why does the press feel the need to report a celebrity's loss over and over and over. I feel so badly for the Travolta's, and the press just keeps it going. They reported the loss when it happened, and then they just keep beating the news to death. When you have something to say, then say it. But why do we have to keep hearing the same thing repeated? Let them grieve. They lost their son. And to have to deal with that publicly has to be so overwhelming. Actually it is overwhelming. We had to deal with the press with my brothers death. Hubby had to deal with all of the local newspapers and TV reporters coming to the door. They came to our house because Rick had lived with us for a year. When he moved out, he never changed his drivers license to his apartment address. So everyone thought he still lived there. Here we were, trying to deal with my brother being murdered, and there was a steady stream of reporters ringing the doorbell. I still to this day panic when the doorbell rings. If I'm home alone, I ignore it. OK...not so much "ignore" but hide. I freeze. I don't want to go to the door and see who it is. I know, I should deal with that. I wake up in a panic during the night too because I swear I hear the doorbell ring. Again...I know, I should deal with that. It does not happen all the time, but I do wake up sometimes swearing that the doorbell rang. Some ya-hoo has called us twice recently and woke us up late at night. The first time was at 1:20 AM, the next time was around 2:30 AM. Both times I panicked. The first call was the night that Bryan & Celina had driven back home to Seattle. So I panicked that something had happened to them. But it was a prank call. Thank goodness. The next one they hung up. It's funny how I was relieved to get a prank call. They even used the "F" word!
I don't have a lot of respect for reporters after how we had to deal with them regarding Rick. Robert actually had the reporter from The Oregonian come to the door and want an interview. Robert said that he was sorry but the family was not talking to reporters at this time. The woman had the nerve to tell him that if we did not talk to her that she would just report what she wanted and we would have no say in it. Robert slammed the door in her face. After that every time she wrote something in the paper she spelled my brothers name wrong. What a bitch.
So I do understand what the Travolta's are going through. I wish the press would leave that family alone so that they can grieve their loss. They will talk when they are ready.

Hand Wash or Machine Wash????

I have been productive this morning. **pats self on back** I have a pot of Navy Bean soup on and Chex Mix in the oven. I doubled the batch of Chex Mix, so I will be watching the oven and stirring stuff for the next 2 hours! The cookie sheets that I am using are too big to have 2 side by side in the oven, so I will have to bake them separate. No biggie. Smells fabulous in here too!
As I was cleaning everything up, I started thinking about how my old neighbor used to just put all of her dishes in the dishwasher without rinsing them or anything. Grossed me out. I know a lot of people who do that. They just scrape off the large chunks and put the dishes in the dishwasher and call it good. I can't do that. I don't like it when I go to someones house and they have little pieces of ookie on their glass or dish. I would freak out if I handed a dish to someone at my house and there was something stuck to it. Bleck. **first stir of chex mix over** **sips reheated peppermint mocha** I have always washed my dishes first before putting them in the dishwasher. This habit used to make my neighbor crack up. She said that dishwashers were made to clean everything off of the dishes. But then why is there stuff stuck to some peoples dishes???? **another sip of peppermint mocha** I wash them with dish soap and a sponge and then put them all soapy into the dishwasher. To me, it is the final step to making sure they are clean by heating them and using the stronger Cascade soap. And the heat from the drying makes sure there are no germs hanging around. Am I wrong to think that I need to wash them first before putting them in there? Should I just rinse and throw them in? Am I wasting time by doing this? You know, I said yesterday that I want things to be more simple. This would save time by just putting them in there. My other concern is that the ookie stuff will clog up the dishwasher hoses. I don't want that to happen either. **ahhhh mocha** If you read this, let me know if you pre-wash your dishes. I'm curious as to whether I should change this habit.

K.I.S.S.

**I took this picture in Brienz, Switzerland**

This has been my motto for some years now.....Keep It Simple Stupid. I have been known to way over do or over think things. I have tried to break myself of this for years. I am able to follow this to some extent, but this year I am going to work harder on keeping things simple. One of the agents at work gave me a book of quotes as a Christmas gift. One of the quotes is from a CEO of General Electric. He says..."You can't believe how hard it is for people to be simple, how much they fear being simple. They worry that if they're simple, people will think they're simpleminded. In reality, of course, it's just the reverse." He goes on to say that people have a tendency to think that "more is better" when in fact if you focus on less you can accomplish more. So what they are saying is, if you are focused on the most important few and not the insignificant many, you can be more self-motivated with a clear and uncluttered mind. You need to focus on what matters most.
I will be working on this. I want my life to be more simple starting this year. I am going to focus on the few, and not the many. My brain needs a rest!

Argh.............

OK....That took forever!
I had the hardest time trying to figure out how to save the new background. But I think I finally got it! I don't like how the greeting turned out though. Tonight or this weekend I will change it. It's too hard to do this here at work. Like I should be doing this at work anyway, but there is no one here and I'm bored. The problem is that my screen at work does not show the entire page on some sites, so I have to try to skrink the screen and then I may get the corner of a button to save my work. Blah....what a pain. So I will tweak it later.
I will stop by throughout the day since I'm bored bored bored. If you stop by leave a comment! If there are not comments...well then I will just continue to be bored! ;-)

Have a great day!
~Barb~

Starting 2009 Off Right

What better way to start the New Year than to watch some good ol outdoor hockey! In about half an hour the Blackhawks take on the Red Wings in this years Winter Classic. I'm so glad that the NHL has finally found something worth repeating every year. Looks like I will have to root for the Red Wings, which kills me, but they have my Marion Hossa. **slaps marion on the back of his hand** Bad Marion. You signed with the devil! I have never ever liked the Red Wings, but until Hossa leaves I will have to watch. Last year the game was played in Buffalo, which featured another fav player Paul Gaustad. And then before that it was in Edmonton. Someday I would love to go see this game in person. How fun would that be?! Cold....but fun! The year they played in Edmonton it was so cold the goalies wore stocking caps over their helmets! So funny! ( i would have said tooke but i'm not sure how the canadians spell it!)
We are having a little fondue party to end the game. It starts to early to have it during the game, and also Katie works until 1pm. So when she gets here we will have cheese fondue and then a little later, chocolate fondue! mmmmmmmmmmmmmm......
Wishing all a very Happy 2009!!!!!