Marathon, Royal Wedding, and So Much More!

Where did April go?  Sorry I had every intention of making a blog post sooner, the month just got away from me.  More and more things keep happening to me I am getting very far behind on keep you guys informed!  I just got back from a fabulous weekend in Chicago with Holly, but I am waiting on her to upload pictures, so that post will come later.

So until then, I wanted to make a few quick comments about what I wanted to talk about during my last entry and sadly still haven’t (I blame the accounting job, this was an incredibly busy busy season, no pun intended!)

I wanted to do a full recap on the Oscars, but since that is long gone I will say a few words. 

Best Dressed:  Mila Kunis in a landslide for sure.  Her lilac greek style dress was to die for and I want my own.

Most deserved Oscar:  Colin Firth, not only was he amazing in the King’s Speech, but I have been a fan of his since he was the love interest in Briget Jones’ Diary.  I have always loved Mr. Firth and glad he finally won!

Best Movie:  I was so torn here, while I was glad the King’s Speech won (I mean who didn’t fall in love with that movie?), I have to admit I really enjoyed both Inception and The Social Network possibly a little more.  All in all it was a great Oscar season and I was pretty satisfied with everything I saw.

Now on to the Marathon!!!  One and only important thing to know:  I finished.  Other big thing to know:  It rained THE WHOLE TIME.  I am not kidding.  For you to fully understand we must start from the beginning:

We went up to OKC (me, my roommate Casey, and her boyfriend John) to run in the big race.  I was running the full and John was running the relay with some of his friends.  My mom was also in town for a wedding.  My good friends Sarah and Ryan let us stay at their house for the weekend.  Mom and I had a wedding to go to Saturday night before turning in early in order to get up for the big day.  Now I have run races before, but this was my first marathon.  To prepare, I bought some new running gear at the expo (including a nice “spider belt” to hold water, id, and GU.  In all reality it is actually a glorified fanny pack, but who cares.  It served its intended purpose.

The race began at 6:30 am, so Casey and Ryan were nice enough to take me to the hotel where John and his friends were staying at 5:30am (you always are supposed to show up early for races, that is something I learned the hard way after almost missing the start at one of my first races).  My mom decided to sleep in and said she would see me at mile 6 when I made it by Sarah and Ryan’s house (they live right on the marathon route).  I knew it was supposed to rain (it was only a 30% chance when I went to bed) but when I woke up and walked outside I was excited to see that it was dry outside.  Needless to say, we got in the car and right as Ryan backed out it started to rain.  And we are not talking sprinkling here, we are talking monsoon.  I should have just given up then and there.  But, I made it all the way to the hotel to meet John and his friends and was ready to go.

However, once at the hotel I found John and his fellow relay friends only to learn that the race was delayed by 30 minutes.  The last thing you want to do when you get up early to run a race is have to stand around and wait for the weather to clear up when it clearly isn’t going to.  So we waited and waited and waited.  We then decided to head towards the start line about 15 minutes before the race.  One thing we didn’t realize was how long it would take us to get to the start line with all of the extra hurdles due to the rain. 

Basically here is what happened:  we found the corrals (which are these big fence things that the runners stand in, normally they have several openings for runners to enter, but not in OKC there were only two).  However, we were in the middle of the crowd and couldn’t get to the corral entrance to get in.  Then all of a sudden the announcer starts counting down from 10 and I realize that I am going to miss the start if I don’t do something.  I see other people climbing over the fence and I looked at John and he nodded for me to do it.  So John helps me up and over the fence.  I jumped down onto the ground only to have my ipod cord get stuck on the fence and rip my headphones in half.  This is when John did one of two things that would save my day.  Through the fence he handed me his headphones and just told me to run.  Now that might not seem like a huge deal, but to a runner, having your headphones for the big race is a must.  I would not have been able to race for 4 hours without my Lady Gaga, Britney, and Journey to jam to while I run.  So I grabbed John’s headphones only to also realize that I had cut my finger while hopping over the fence and was bleeding (thankfully because of the rain this didn’t stay a problem for long).  By then end of all of this (which was only about 10 seconds but felt like 10 hours in slow motion) the race started and I crossed the start line:  hand bleeding, with new headphones, in the pouring rain.  Here goes nothing.

 I will try to be brief as possible here.  The first 6 miles were fine.  My friend Aaron ran by me with garbage bags on his shoes and baggy sweat pants on.  Thankfully he saw me because I wouldn’t have recognized him.  He runs too fast for me though so he was quickly in front of me.  At mile 6 we ran through Crown Heights and right by Ryan and Sarah’s house.  My mom, Casey, Sarah, Ryan, and my friend Jenny were all outside holding signs and cheering.  Apparently a couple got married at mile 6, which is something I would never be interested in doing, but good for them.

The next 8 miles or so are a blur.  A lot of people ask me why I like to run.  All I can really say is that it is a great time of reflection for me.  But during a race it is important to remain focused and concentrate on your split times.  My split times were averaging between 8:45 and 9:15 minutes per mile, which is right where I wanted to be.  The key is to not start out too fast because then you won’t be able to finish strong.

I befriended a guy from Austin around mile 11 who gave me a few words of advice including asking me what time I expected to finish in.  By this point, I didn’t care what time I finished in, I just wanted it to be over!  But he told me that at the pace we were going we should finish around 4 hours.  The only good thing about your first marathon:  no matter what you will PR!  Thank the Lord!

At mile 14 we made it past lake Hefner.  Ryan was nice enough to check out the news channels and found this picture.  This is me at about mile 15.  The great thing is that right after this picture was taken the sun came out (don’t get too excited, it was only for about 20 minutes.  But it was the most glorious 20 minutes of the whole day).  If you can't tell I am the girl closest to the lighthouse.

At mile 18 my mom, Sarah, and Ryan were waiting for me again.   That is one of the most rewarding things about running in a race:  getting to see familiar faces along the way.  My mom didn’t really get this before the race, she kept asking me why I wanted her to come.  I told her that she would understand once she was there.  And sure enough she was there with her little umbrella cheering away.  At this checkpoint the funny thing is I was in pain, but needed to stop and eat some of my GU chomps.  For those of you who are non-runners, it is necessary to eat supplements along the way.  Some people do liquid items like regular GU, but I do the GU chomps, which taste like gummy bears, really delicious.  I stopped and chatted with mom, Sarah and Ryan, at the end of my chomps and gave them my cool spider belt (aka fanny pack).  It was necessary to lighten the load for the last 8 miles.

At mile 20 Casey and John were waiting for me.  Now, I have always adored Casey’s boyfriend John.  He is always nothing but nice to me and has really fun parties.  I have really enjoyed getting to know him over the past couple of years.  Today though, he raised the bar.  John was supposed to run the last six miles of the race for the relay.  However, as stated earlier, the beginning of the race was a cluster, to say the least.  What I didn’t realize (because I was hopping the fence) was that the rest of John’s team decided not to run the relay.  John however, stayed to ride back with Casey, and decided to run the last 6 miles with me anyway.

So John picked up the pace and ran with me from mile 20 to mile 26.2.  I was really concerned about hitting the wall, which can happen anywhere from mile 18 – 23.  During my 22 mile training run I hit the wall at about mile 20 ½.  I never really understood what the wall was, until I hit it.  Literally with a mile and a half left in that training run, I couldn’t move one more muscle and had to walk.  So, I was really scared of that happening to me again.  Thankfully it didn’t, and I really think it’s because I had a running buddy the last 6 miles.  And John was such a good sport.  At mile 22 the rain really started coming down harder and there was even lightening and thunder (motivation to run faster I guess).  But luckily my legs weren’t hurting too bad and I was feeling fine, so we ran the last two miles pretty quick.

We came around back to downtown to mile 25 and I knew I was going to be ok.  We turned the corner to the finish line and crossed in 4 hours and 6 minutes.  Below is a couple of pictures of John and I crossing the finish (PS - I am never cute in race action shots.  Some people have the gift of catching the camera at the right moment and smiling...not me....I always look like I am breathing heavy and about to pass out...which is mostly true.  Luckily you can't see my face that well in these).

  

Given the circumstances and the fact that it was my first marathon, I was really pleased with this time.  I would have liked to have broken 4 hours, but maybe that will be for next time.  After crossing the finish line I got my cool space blanket to keep warm and we immediately went into the food tent where I had some of the best Nutter Butter’s ever.  At this point in time I am soaking wet to where I looked like I just took a shower.  So I decided it was time to find my mom and Ryan and Sarah and get home. And fate was on my side.  The second I found mom and we got in the car it started to hail.  I felt really sorry for the marathoners that hadn’t finished the race yet. 

We then celebrated with a huge array of Mexican food at Ted’s and then I drove home.  Note to self:  don’t try to drive more than 30 minutes the day of a marathon.  I was so stiff and uncomfortable the whole drive home.  But, I made it and that’s all that matters.  That is one big thing to check off of my list of things to do before I die.  And turns out I finished in 671^st place (out of about 2,500 runners, so all in all my time wasn’t that bad!)

And I have to thank the 5 or 6 people in the Dallas Running Club that trained with me for the past 4 months.  It is such an accomplishment to train for something for so long and actually finish what you set out to do.  I wasn’t going to let rain stand in my way.  If I can make it through a marathon in those conditions, I can make it through anything.  My friend Kate and I are already planning another marathon to run:  Nashville, April 28, 2012….get excited!

Now on to my next favorite topic in the month of April:  a little thing called the Royal wedding.  Now if you know me you know that I have been obsessed with the Royal wedding since the engagement was announced backing January.  My sister and I both took off of work on Friday, April 29^th to tune in.  We had a little mimosa party and Chris, my sister’s husband, was nice enough to cook us pancakes, bacon, and eggs while we watched Wills and Kate get married.  As you can see below I also had my “All About Kate” magazine; we were ready to go!  That's Amy and Chris' dog Crimson in the background, he was apparently excited too!  

My opinion on the wedding:  All I can say is wow!  I loved everything about this wedding.  From Kate’s hair, dress, tiara, to her lovely family and beautiful sister, to Wills and Harry, and finally all the great hats that everyone wore, it was definitely an event to remember.  Amy and I had so much fun watching the wedding.  We literally didn’t move off of the couch for 6 hours.  It was time well spent. 

I have decided that Kate Middleton might be the person in the world that I am most jealous of at the moment (well her and Carrie Underwood and her sister Pippa).  I mean this chick is absolutely flawless.  She seems to be both beautiful and totally down to earth.  I want to be her best friend.  But until then I will just read about her in all of the magazines and wait for her to visit Texas so I can maybe meet her and put my name in the running on marrying Prince Harry.

Below are some of my favorite pics from the event. 

 Kate and that gorgeous veil and tiara.

 Kate and Wills kiss on the balcony.

Kate’s sister Pippa also looking flawless.  I love that in England it is traditional for the maid of honor to wear white.

And below are some of my favorite hats.  Not sure who the top two ladies are, but Chelsy Davy and Carol Middleton did great on their hat selections.

And I don’t care what anyone says, Princess Beatrice and Eugenie’s hats were the worst ever.  All I can say is ugh!  Not good choices.  Definitely a Glamour Don't in my book.

Ok, just a few more things to talk about before I let you guys go for now.

#1 – Super excited that Ashton Kutcher is set to replace Charlie Sheen on 2 ½ men.  I love Ashton.  And I must admit, that I did go see Charlie Sheen in Dallas a few weeks ago.  The show was bad.  Heidi and I went, and while I am still glad we went because of how good the people watching was, I would not recommend Charlie to continue this jaunt of a tour.  It was unrehearsed and all he did was curse a lot and try to sell his t-shirts and other products.  Again, I shouldn’t have expected anything more, but still – it was not good.  I guess he doesn't always have "tiger blood" running through his veins.  That saying has been a running joke with our friends.  See our sign below John made for a half marathon we ran in March.

#2 – I know most people probably already know of the gel or shellac nails that is all the new craze at all of the nail salons right now.  I must say, I am a fan.  I never get my nails painted because it never stays on.  However, I used a red during my first gel nail experience and I was super impressed.

Here is my manicure on day 1.

And again at day 20.  I mean I only had to take the polish off because the bottom of my nails were growing out so much.  Very impressive, I will never get a regular manicure again.

#3 – While I am not super domestic, I get real excited when I find things that make my life a little easier.  Since I am not married I haven’t registered for wedding gifts and checked out all of the coolest gadgets I am a little behind on great kitchen items.  While I was at Crate and Barrel recently Sarah showed me this apple slicer thing that has turned my life upside down.  You just put the slicer on top of the apple, press down, and it slices it into 8 equal sized pieces.  This may not sound like much, but in the morning when every second is meaningful it is awesome to save time from cutting an apple piece by piece.

It really is the little things in life, isn’t it?

You start out with your apple.

All you do then is put the slicer on top, push down and voila!  You have a perfectly sliced apple.  Perfection!

Let's just say I got really excited the 1st, 2nd, and even 3rd time I used this little contraption.

Ok, that’s all I got for now.  Sorry for the long and random post, but I had to get you guys updated.  Check back soon for a post about my recent trip to Chicago.  It was awesome and I can’t wait to share my little weekend adventure with you.

Until then, Ciao for now!

  

I am Alive!

Hi Friends!  I just wanted to let everyone know that I am alive and will catch up on actual blogging soon.  Busy season is just about over and that means I can resume my normal extra curricular activities again!  Yeah for that...some things to look forward to that I haven't gotten to talk about yet...


-The Oscars (old news now, yes I know, but I will still give my opinion).
-Update on Marathon Training...May 1 is just around the corner.
-My new manicure obsession.
-Some kitchen appliances I recently discovered that are better than sliced bread.
-Charlie Sheen, need I say more?
-The Royal Wedding....date is set and I will be tuning in at 5am on April 29!


Hope everyone is doing well, catch back soon for real updates.


Until then, ciao for now.

Things Getting Me Through Busy Season

Well I am in the middle of busy season and that means getting up early, working into the night, and barely having time to get my laundry done, oh the life of an accountant.  It took me two weeks to watch the Golden Globes!  And if you know me, I normally have it watched and my best dressed list out the next day.  All that being said I haven't had the time to blog.  Until I have time to actually blog about something interesting I thought I would share with you all some things in my life that are currently making me a happy person during this time.


- Visits from dear friends:  over the past month I have had some visits from two of my best friends.  Holly came down for her birthday at the beginning of the month and Sarah came down last weekend to help us celebrate Casey's birthday.  I miss these two friends so much and love when I get to see them.


-Phone calls from dear friends:  I had a great phone call with my big sis in Kappa tonight.  She lives in Denver and it was so great to hear her voice.  I also had a great phone call with my friend Sarah from Ardmore where we are planning a trip to see Backstreet boys and New Kids on the Block....don't be jealous, we are REAL excited.


-My parents:  A couple of weeks ago was my dad's birthday.  I love my dad, he is such a simple man.  Our birthday celebration included my mom driving my dad and I to dinner with us having some Bud Light Roadies....it was perfect.  Mom's birthday is in a few weeks and I am sure we will do something equivalent for hers.


-My coworkers:  Luckily, even though I work long hours I work with great people.  We joke all day long and it makes the work that much more enjoyable.


-Awards season:  Oscar season is in full swing, and I have really enjoyed all the movies this year!  I have a couple more weeks to see as many of the films as possible and I still have a few left (it used to be so much easier when there were only 5 movies, now there are 10 so I have twice as many to try and see).


-The Bachelor (aka Brad Womack Round 2): I mean, what is there not to love....I have to say that Brad is a major tool who talks about his therapist a lot.  But I still love the show and will always watch my favorite Chris Harrison say "Ladies, this is the final rose of the evening...."  It doesn't get old to me.


-My Marathon Training Group:  I have signed up to do the OKC Memorial Marathon May 1.  That being said, I decided to join a running group to keep me motivated.  The group meets on Saturday mornings and has been a lifesaver for me.  Nevermind the fact that I am the youngest person in the group by at least 10 years, and also the only person in the group to never have run a marathon...... minor details!  It is great to get to know people while you run.  I have really enjoyed it.


-Snow Days:  I had a snow day yesterday from work.  It was glorious!  However, it was different than a real snow day.  I have never hated the invention of a laptop more.  So instead of going into the office, I worked from home.  But, it was quite glorious to stay in my pajamas all day and not have to get out in the ice!  That made working 11+ hours much better.


Well guys, that is all I have for now.  Have a great week and hopefully you will see me sometime in the near future!
  

Phil Dunphy

Ok, so as you all know I am an avid Modern Family viewer.  I love the show!  And I especially love Phil Dunphy, the dad of one of the families.  However, I have never really thought of him as an inspiration in fashion.


The other day I was at Target and I saw a cute hoodie that I just had to have.  I love getting deals, especially at Target, and it was on sale.  So I purchased the hoodie (see below left) and brought it home to show Casey.  Guess what the first thing out of her mouth was?  That looks just like the sweater Phil wears in that one episode of Modern Family.  I gasped when I realized that what she was saying was indeed true.  See below:

 It's not an exact replica but it is pretty dang close.  I of course laughed about Casey's joke, put the sweater away and forgot about it.  Well, I wore the sweater this past weekend and we had friends over at our apartment for dinner.  Unfortunately they all watch Modern Family.  I walk in the door and they all asked me about why I had a sweater that looked like Phil's.  It was pretty hilarious.  And then I had to admit that I had bought the sweater AFTER watching the episode.  But I have a strong defense for me wearing a Phil-esque hoodie.


You see, in this particular episode Phil takes his daughter's boyfriend to get ice cream because they had gotten in a fight and he was trying to console him.  He gets up to go to the bathroom and leaves his sweater at the table.  His daughter walks by to see her ex-boyfriend at the table with the sweater and thinks he is cheating on her because "there was a girl's sweater on the table".  


So while I cannot believe that I unknowingly took fashion advice from Phil Dunphy, I am not ashamed.  I hope this little story brightened your day, as I have been laughing about it all week.  After our friends left, I re-watched the episode immediately, still wearing the sweater of course.


Happy almost weekend everyone!

How To: Recover Chairs

So if you know me, you know that I enjoy a good project.  Thankfully my mom hates doing projects, so during their recent move she asked me to assist her in finding an antique table to use in her breakfast nook area.  So off we went on the lookout for something my mom would like.  I went to McKinney and got a great table at a barn sale hosted by Elaine from the House of Hargrove.  She has a great website that shows all of the antique pieces she has for sale in both McKinney and Frisco.  Love her stuff!  

So we found a great table and chairs, but the cushions were a little dirty and drab looking.  My mom almost didn't want to buy them because of this fact.  However, I convinced her that I could recover them and went about doing so.  Now, if you know my mother, she just wants to snap her fingers and have a project done.  I on the other hand appreciate the thrill of the hunt and the work that goes into making stuff look great, so I was fine with the task given me.

Here is a picture of a chair before the project (the burlap was already on the chairs; I decided to leave it as I thought it was pretty dang cute):

Step 1:  Unscrew the chair seat.  All you need is a screwdriver, but I am sure a drill would go faster.  Unfortunately I didn't have a drill, so we went the old fashion way.

 Step #2:  Lay the seat on top of the fabric you are using.  The fabric I picked out was a red paisley print that I thought would contrast with my mom's kitchen nicely.  You need to leave about an extra inch of fabric on each of the four sides of the cushion.  


(Small Disclaimer:  I did not remove the fabric that was on the cushion already because it was a light fabric.  However, if you were covering a previously dark cushion with a lighter fabric it might be necessary to remove the old fabric.  In this case, you can likely just rip it off or pull it out with a staple remover).

Step #3: Cut your fabric along all four sides of the chair seat.

Step 4:  Fold the cut fabric along the sides of the seat cushion.

Step 5:  Pull the fabric around the corners tightly.  In this case, it works best to fold the fabric like you are wrapping a present.

Step 6:  You need a staple gun for this part.  After you have pulled the fabric tight you just need to secure the fabric in several spots with the staple gun.  You can't have too many staples so just continue to staple until it feels secure on all sides.

A completed seat cushion.

Step 7:  Place completed seat cushion back on the chair (the chair should be flipped upside down).

Step 8:  Screw the seat back into the chair.

 Step 9:  Repeat the above steps for all the chairs you have to do (in this case for me it was five.  We had four chairs for the table and  one for the computer table). 

Finished Product (total time spent recovering:  approximately 2-3 hours).  

I would like to remind you guys that I am by no means a talented or super artistic person.  This was a relatively easy project that I think anyone would be able to do (remember, I am an accountant).  I would like to encourage you to enjoy the thrill of the hunt as much as me next time you see something special that just needs a little tweaking to look great in your home.


And one more thing I must say before I go....how about them Sooners!!  It was great to win a BCS bowl after several losses.  Bob (as well as my beloved Sooners) looked pretty dang good.  


I am going back to work tomorrow for the first time since Christmas.  I am also about to enter into our dreaded "busy" season in which I will see my coworkers more than my friends and family.  Finally, I am also beginning my marathon training tomorrow, so lots to keep up with during the next few months.  But no matter what, I am not going to miss Brad Womack Round 2 that begins tomorrow with the Bachelor premiere.  Until next time, Ciao for now!

2010 - Movie Recap

Hello all!  Let me start off by saying Merry Christmas!  I hope everyone had a great Christmas.  Mine was a wonderful time spent with my family back in Oklahoma.  It consisted of lots of food, lots of presents, lots of family time, and one very difficult 1,000 piece puzzle that my grandmother, aunt, and myself worked in a span of 3 days.  Too addicting, I will not get sucked into an activity like that again!  I also want to wish everyone a Happy New Year!  Hopefully everyone has big plans tonight.  I myself am going to see an 80's cover band with a group of friends; it should be a great time.  


However, I have definitely had some New Year's Eve's that consisted of only junk food and movies (with a little Carson Daly beginning at about 11:30 pm).  If you fall in this category, let me assist you with my top movies of the year you could watch tonight.  Now if you know me, you know that I am a big movie junkie.... I always try to see all of the movies nominated for Best Picture each year.  Seeing as the Oscar's are still a couple of months away I still have some time to get caught up.  Until then, I will give you my opinion on the top movies of 2010.  Ready, set, and go!  (These are in no particular order, likely because if they were Toy Story would possibly be at the top of the list....and that is slightly embarrassing).


#1 - Inception

I really don't know where to begin in describing this movie.  Actually, I do....  I saw this movie on opening day with a friend at the mall.  The 7pm was sold out so we had to go to the late movie, which started at 9pm.  Well, we decided to get dinner and drinks during the two hour wait that we had.  Big mistake.  We walk into the movie right on time and the only seats left were on the second row.  Second row, action movie, after 2 mojitos....all I have to say is whoah!  There was a lot going on.  Needless to say, thankfully after the previews I was pretty adjusted to our seating arrangement and my buzz was wearing off so I was good to go for all of the craziness that is Inception.  Now, let's discuss why Inception was awesome, because let's face it there are no other words to describe this movie:
1.  Leonardo DiCaprio.  (No further explanation is necessary.  I have loved this guy since before Titanic when he had a recurring role on Growing Pains.  I think he is a phenomenal actor and have loved seeing him in all of the different roles he has played).
2.  Joseph Gordon-Levitt.  (Again, no further explanation is necessary.  I have loved him since his days on 3rd Rock.  He was also amazing in the 1999 movie 10 Things I Hate About You, and how could you not love him in 500 Days of Summer?  It was great to see him in Inception because it was a different kind of role for him.  Normally he is kind of the cute nerdy guy, but did he not look so buff and hot in this movie??  I gladly welcome his grown up look).
3.  Ellen Page.  Love her....Juno was an amazing film and I am happy to see this great actress again.
4.  The Story.  I LOVED the story going on in Inception.  While it was a highly action filled movie about people that get into your dreams, the ultimate story was about Leonardo's character (Cobb) dealing with his wife's death and trying to get back home to see his children.  Centered around all of that of course is the big heist where Cobb and his team are getting into the subconscious  of a businessman and his empire.  Leo's emotion was very raw, Marion Cotilliard played his dead wife perfectly, and as an audience member you felt strong compassion towards his character and the confusion he was going through as he kept seeing his dead wife within all of the dream sequences.  
5.  The Special Effects.  I know I am an easy one to please here, but I think even the most high tech people would admit that the special effects were so good in this movie.  From the explosion scene in Paris, to the dream where Cobb goes through his whole life, to all of the things that happen when the van is flipped upside down, Christopher Nolan got everything down perfectly.  
6.  The Ending.  Now most people will say that the ending was frustrating, but I LOVED it.  In the theater when the top continues to spin and it goes to black everyone gasped and I could tell most were annoyed.  However, I like that it leaves it open to the viewer to decide if it is a Dream or Reality.  Now I have thought about it over and over, and I came to the conclusion that there is evidence to support both him being in a Dream and in Reality at the end.  I personally think he is in Reality as he is not wearing his wedding ring.  I believe the wedding ring is his true totem, while the spinning top is his wife's.  Therefore the fact that it doesn't stop spinning is irrelevant.  However, no one knows who is right....which makes the movie that much more awesome.  I suggest you pick a stance and be prepared to defend it in conversations with friends!


#2 - The Social Network

I think what made the Social Network so great was the fact that the movie was incredibly intriguing and relatable.  Most of my friends and I remember life before Facebook (gasp!).  Yes I know it is hard to conceive of a time before 2004 when Facebook first came out and you had to find out about who people were through friends or real social interaction.  I was a sophomore in college when FB came out and I am not going to lie,  I was a quick a FB junkie.  I do see it as a great way to keep up with college and high school friends, share pictures, see people's interests, (and of course look up people you meet out and about.  I mean you do need to verify that the guy you met at that party isn't really a murderer or rapist, right?).  Anyway, I digress.....back to the movie.


I liked the way the movie was set up.  It went back and forth from present day to the 2003 - 2004 time period when Mark Zuckerberg was at Harvard and asked to help with the social networking project that later would become Facebook.  It was great to see the process it took to get the site up and running.


I also enjoyed the performance by Jesse Eisenberg.  Now I had never heard of this guy before.  But he did a good job playing Mark Zuckerberg.  Not that anyone really knows anything about Mark.  But most of us know that he is allegedly not that social and kind of an outcast.  Oh the irony.  Anyway, Jesse delivered his lines very quick and precise.  He came off as a jerk really, but at the same time you kind of understood why he thought the things he did.  Bravo to the casting director here.


Finally, let's give it up for Justin Timberlake.  I LOVE him.  And I actually think he is talented.  I mean besides singing, he acts, is athletic, has a clothing line, I mean the guy succeeds in everything he does.  And I really think he is a pretty good actor, and he is always hilarious on SNL.  Anyway, I thought he did an amazing job as the Napster guy.  I am not totally sure how fabricated his part in the story was, but I enjoyed seeing JT regardless.


Overall the movie left you with lots of questions about what was true and what was not, but I also left wondering more and more about Mark Zuckerberg and what he would think about the movie.  I am sure he isn't pleased with his portrayal, but regardless the movie was entertaining.  The ending was brilliant as well:  the fact that he asked his ex-girlfriend to be friends and at the end is awaiting her response was genius.  Overall, job well-done.


#3 - The Town

While not quite as good as the Departed, the Town is definitely my favorite mob movie since.  I must give a disclaimer here.  While I am a young 20s something girl and I love a good cheesy chick flick, I have a thing for mob action movies.  I love them.  They are fast paced, keep my attention, and normally have pretty good acting, and a surprise at the end. Now on to the movie....bravo to Ben Affleck.  I mean we all know that Ben Affleck is talented (for all Gigli's out there, we all know that he started with the genius screenplay for Good Will Hunting).  I for one have an affection for both of the Affleck boys, and I now think they are both fine directors.  I loved Casey Affleck's directing of Gone Baby Gone, and now I can add Ben to the list for The Town.  


Best things about this movie:  definitely the acting.  From Ben Affleck, to Jon Hamm and Jeremy Renner, the acting was superb.  Although Ben and Jeremy's characters were bad guys, you still wanted to like them.  Ben's character was a good guy at heart while Jeremy's had a reason to be the way he was, and they both portrayed their characters flawlessly.  In the end Jeremy's character was just looking out for "the family" and Ben's was just looking for a way out of bank robbing, period.  And Jon Hamm....if you have read my Emmy blog you know I love Jon Hamm as Don Draper.  Well, I also like him as the lead FBI detetive that is in charge of the mob case in this story.  His frustration with knowing that these guys were responsible for the bank robberies but lacking the evidence needed to convict really made him relatable.


Other notable things about the movie were the awesome car chasing scenes and the whole scene that was filmed at Fenway Park.  How can you not fall in love with Fenway?  I mean I have never been to Boston and and am not a Red Sox fan, yet I was incredibly intrigued with their planned robbery of the cash at Fenway after a weekend game.  That whole concept was really good.  


I also really enjoyed the ending.  Yes lots of people died, and yes Ben's character and the girl don't end up together....but the fact that he hides the money where she will find it and knows that she will do good things with it prove that his character was sincere at heart.  Again, here I was having sympathy for the "bad" guy.  Well played Ben, well played.


#4 - Toy Story 3

OMG... I loved this movie so much.  I have only one thing to say here.....the people at Pixar are pure geniuses....this movie was appealing to everyone.  Little kids liked it because they are young and it is a story geared towards kids with fantastic animation.  Parents like it because it was a good wholesome movie to take the family to.  The age group though that probably helped make this movie one of the biggest movies of the year....I would say that it would have to be people in the 18-30 year old category.  Since I fall right in the middle of this category and watched the movie not in the presence of children I can honestly say that I think our age group was the key for this movie's success.  Let me explain why.


Most of the people my age were in grade school in 1995 when the original movie came out. We fell in love with Woody and Buzz and thought the movie was great.  And yes, we did go see the second one a few years later too, and while I thought it was ok, I didn't really relate to it anymore.  However, over 15 years later here I am at 25 crying during Toy Story 3.  It was so relatable to people our age because Andy has grown up and has to go through his toys.  We all remember doing that and having to get rid of toys that we loved just because we were simply too old to be holding on to them.  It left me feeling nostalgic and remembering some of my favorite toys and how sad I was to give them up when the time came.


And since the story consisted of the toys accidentally being thrown away and them ending up at the day care it was very interesting.  Our old characters were all still there, but then there were tons of new characters, conflicts, and issues arising due to toys that want to rule the day care.  Nothing in Toy Story 3 seemed repetitive of the first two movies.  It was very new and refreshing.


One of my favorite new characters were Barbie and Ken.  So cute!  I for one loved Barbie, so it was fun to see the way they did those two characters.  Very innovative.


And again, I loved the ending with this movie too.  It was sweet that Andy gave his toys to a little girl who would appreciate them, love them, and play with them.  And the fact that he gave her Woody even though he didn't want to was so sweet.  Let's just say by the end of the movie I was ok with the fact that I stayed in on a Friday night and watched it alone.  I also came to the realization that I wouldn't lie and say I watched it while baby-sitting or hanging out with my friends that have kids.  I rented it alone and I am proud of it!  Fantastic movie.


#5 - Ok, I have to admit that I couldn't come up with a number five.  I am assuming that if I was a Harry Potter fan that I would put it here, but since I am not I can't do that.  However, I can concur that Casey loved it and said that it was good, as did most movie critics, so that will be the placeholder for now.  


I also want to disclaim the fact that there are several movies I haven't seen yet that were largely critically acclaimed, including Black Swan, Blue Valentine, The Fighter, and 127 Hours.  I have heard from friends that all of these are good, so their lack of being on my top movie list is only due to the fact that I haven't made the time to see them (I know you are extremely worried...haha!).  Hopefully I will get to see them and by Oscar time can give you my opinion.


If you have taken the time to read of all my random thoughts, I want to wish you a Happy New Year!  And check the blog this weekend, my parents are all moved into their house and we did some craft projects.  If you want to know how to easily recover chairs, you are in for a treat!  Until then, Ciao for now!

Oh baby, it's Christmas time again!

Ok, unfortunately this post is going to be short.  I promise to catch you up on some really good year-end movie reviews (including the Town, the Social Network, and hopefully some other good Oscar contenders), as well as some other good things that have happened to me over the past month, but if I don't go to bed soon I won't be able to make it up for the run that I promised myself I would go on in the morning!


Man, I know that the Christmas time is a busy time of year for everyone, but this year is an extra special busy time for me and the people around me.  My parents have sold and bought a house and are supposed to move within the next week; my dad's high school football team that he coaches is in the state semi-finals on Saturday!!  whoo-hoo, nothing like high school football in December!  As my dad has said, "You really know you are playing a good season if you have to practice on Thanksgiving" ; I also have to travel for work next week, do all of my Christmas shopping, and somehow try to make it to 4 or 5 Christmas parties and still go to the gym somewhat regularly over the next three weeks.  Luckily I have taken 2 weeks off of work, but that doesn't start until December 21.  So until then when I have time to sit and actually write, I wanted to show you how Casey and I decorated for Christmas!  Enjoy, and feel free to share your Christmas decorations as well!

 Here is our tree.  Check out the cute bow.  My sweet sister Amy got a bow-maker (yes, I didn't know those existed either!).  It is the coolest thing ever; it has different templates and you pick your bow style and it then shows you how to fold your ribbon to make your bow.  Absolutely genius!  And I actually wrapped the presents under the tree myself....normally I just go for sacks, but this year I thought I would actually use boxes and wrapping paper; it turned out great besides the fact that I chose wrapping paper with glitter.  There is glitter all over the apartment and it has been at least a week....

Here is our wreath.  I made it in the same way that I made my Fall wreath.  Again all you do is pick out a few different swags, beads, greenery, and ribbon and put it all on a blank wreath.  Don't forget a command hook for the door either!

 Here are our stockings from Crate and Barrel.  I couldn't get the right stocking to stay straight for anything.  Now if only we actually used the fireplace...we don't have gas logs and we are both to lazy to go get real firewood and clean up ash.  We need to get a boy to come over and do it.

 These are some Christmas plates my mom bought me back in college.  I love them, so I always set them out during the holidays.

  Finally, our centerpiece for our coffee table.  I just got this mix of potpourri from Pier 1, it's a combination of greenery, pine cones, christmas ornaments, and some glittery branches.  Very festive!

And three more quick things to mention:  My friend Sarah and all of the girls in her family just returned from NYC!  I was so jealous, I am trying to get my mom to go next year.  Anyway they snapped this cute picture of the Rockefeller Chrirstmas tree.  They also saw Brad Pitt at their hotel bar!  Let's just say that I was soooo incredibly jealous.  I would have been jealous even if he still looked like a grizzly bear and wasn't clean shaven.  Thankfully though our fabulous Brad has turned back into a normal person as of late.  Sarah said he was really cute in person.  How I wish I could have snuck into her suitcase!

And here is a quick pic of my parents new house.  They are hoping to move within the next week or so.  It all depends on the football game this weekend, only in Texas does life revolve this much around football!!

 Finally, a little Boomer Sooner action!  My beloved Sooners just won the last Big 12 Championship there will ever be!  And I got to go to the game, and sit in a suite....it was fabulous.  I got to go with people from work and we had a great time.  I snapped a few pics of the jumbo screen at Cowboys stadium from our suite.

 Below are all of the players and Bob (oh how I love Bob!) after the victory!  Such a great night to be a Sooner!!!

I hope everyone has a great couple of weeks!  Make sure to spread some Christmas cheer to those around you:  do something nice for a stranger, smile at the lady in line with you at the mall, put an extra dollar in the offering plate, anything you can do to remember to treat people with kindness!  Until next time, Ciao for now!