and one more thing

Doubt hits theatres today! Because of intense wedding planning it may be another couple weeks until I see it, however the performances in this film have universally been lauded and I hope it has a great opening weekend. Doubt is tied with Frost/Nixon and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (two other movies whose release I am excitedly anticipating) for the most Golden Globe nominations.

All this in an effort to think about something else besides the wedding, which - as it is only 9 days away - dominates almost every waking moment.

Harry, the bunny, now joins the ranks of Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, and the Olsen twins - he is featured in a blog! Melissa is the mother of Madeleine and Emily whom I babysit. Here blog is adorable and hilarious.

Things I have learned about rabbits in the month that we have had Harry: Bunnies have similar personalities to cats - they love attention, but otherwise just like to be left alone in "their" house (well, in our case, apartment). It's funny how Harry clearly thinks that this is his apartment now and he just allows us to hang out here. Don't get me wrong, he's really sweet. Pets are just a trip. Bunnies also have the curiosity and the friskiness that kittens have. We keep the bedroom door closed (Jay is v. allergic to cats and we were initially afraid that he might be allergic to rabbits, so we wanted to keep the bedroom bunny-free until we were sure) and so Harry understands that he isn't allowed in there. But if we ever leave the door in there he hops right in and starts exploring. BUT when we go in there after him he immediately hops out with this attitude of "it wasn't me. I didn't do it."

For anyone who plans on getting married, adopting a bunny a month before the wedding is great for stress relief. It's hard not to be in a good mood with a sweet bunny hopping around the apartment.

“The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud.”

Today I watched the Lifetime biopic on Coco Chanel. I have always had an enormous amount of respect for Chanel. She changed the fundamental concept of fashion, she encouraged woman to dress for comfort and for themselves, she sat at the head of a fashion empire, and she had incredible vision and gumption. While I found the biopic interesting and well made (not your typical Lifetime movie), I was upset by how much the movie focused on her love affair with "Boy" Capel. Yes, the story goes that he was the great love of her life and that his death was the most upsetting event of her life. However, this was not a woman to be ruled by anyone, particularly not a man. She lived by her own terms and encouraged other woman to do the same. It seems to me sometimes that movies have trouble representing a female character without needing a love story to dominate her life. I think her true love was her work and she was not only good, but successful at it. Isn't that enough?

I has a bunny

On Thursday, Jay and I adopted a bunny from the Virginia Beach SPCA. His name was Harry Potter. We call him Harry. He is not only the cutest thing on 4 legs, but also very sweet. He's 6 years old, so he's a full grown adult. Jay and I are learning a lot about bunnies - what their habits, their diets, their likes and dislikes.

Moments after we brought him home, he sat beneath the leaves of our peace lily and would not budge. He still likes to sit there and nap.

President-Elect Obama appoints advisers

Since our nation made history a little over a week ago, electing Senator Barack Obama the first African American President in US history, I have been diligently watching as he and Vice President-Elect Joe Biden appoint their staff.

My favorite appointment so far: "Klain was also chief of staff to Vice President Al Gore, but he's no stranger to Vice President-elect Joe Biden, having served as chief counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee when Biden was the committee chairman.

Klain also served as general counsel of Gore's 2000 Florida recount effort and was portrayed by actor Kevin Spacey in an HBO movie about the event."

I spent all of Recount rooting for his character and am so pleased that he has a position at the head of Biden's staff.

Pie Crust Fiasco of '08

So a couple days ago it was 1am and I couldn't sleep (I blame the nap I took in the afternoon). Around midnight I had the brilliant (?) idea to make key lime pie (complete with homemade pie crust as I don't have a pre-made graham cracker crust available). Whodathunk that midnight isn't the best time to learn how to make pie crust? (see attached picture of a rather pathetic looking crust) See as how I've never baked a pie crust before, I'm going to buy frozen pie crust and work my way up from there.

I demand a recount!

Swem Library bought a copy of the movie Recount. It's part of my job to review movies before they get put on the shelf, so I picked up Recount this morning before putting it on the shelf and started watching it during my desk shift.

I was unaware of how little I actually know/knew about the 2000 election. Having lived through it (I was 15 at the time), I would have said that I remember the way events unfolded. Having watched the first half of the movie - assuming that the movie is factual accurate, which is my understanding - I clearly was too young to really grasp some of the smaller details of the event.

Some things I have learned:

I did not realize or perhaps I just don't remember that Gore had called Dubya on the night of the 2000 election to concede AND THEN HAD TO CALL HIM BACK TO UN-CONCEDE. That is $*(#@& incredible. I can't imagine a more awkward phone call to make. All politics aside, I feel so sorry for both of them during that exchange. If I were Al Gore, I don't even know how I would get out those words. As George W. Bush, I would be pissed - "you can't un-concede!"

I did not realize that Florida's Secretary of State, Katherine Harris, had such a large roll in the recount. She's ... well ... If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all, right?

I would highly recommend that everyone check out Recount. From what I've read, the creators put a lot of work into the story and strived for as much historical accuracy as possible. According to IMDB, writer Danny Strong made it his goal to interview the real-life counterpart of at least one character appearing in each scene. In most cases, he actually ended up interviewing every character. He achieved his goal in all but one case: because Katherine Harris declined any interviews, the scene where she stands alone looking out over the crowd of protesters outside her office was entirely imagined.

Here's hoping that every vote counts in 2008. Regardless of who wins, I will be most comforted by the knowledge that the winner was elected in a free and fair election.

a post worthy of a month's absence

Having attended the Beastie Boys' Get out the Vote concert last night in Richmond (greatest concert ... EVER), I have naturally spent the day on their website clicking on every link imaginable.

Imagine my surprise to find a link on their website for The Pie of the Month Club!!!! What a great combination (Beastie Boys + pie = happiness).

Religious Ideology or Rule of Law?

With John McCain and Sarah Palin calling for an overturn of Roe v. Wade, one retired Bishop takes a stance.

1st Presidential Debate

I had seriously considered blogging a running commentary to tonight's debate. Turns out, I don't have that many comments. It's pretty much the same comment continually - "ughhhhhhhh." I wish that Senator Obama would step up his game and that Senator McCain would stop saying such frustrating things.

However, I do appreciate Jim Lehrer's presence tonight. He is a great debate moderator.

I never watch Letterman

This was sent to me by a co-worker. I'm tired of all the trash-talking and the double-speak and the house of cards. Is the election here yet? Can this all just be over, already?

"Today" show comes to Williamsburg

from W&M News:

"William and Mary students, faculty, staff and alumni will get a taste of national television Wednesday when NBC’s “Today ” show broadcasts live from Williamsburg.

The popular morning show will be just steps from campus when co-host Matt Lauer broadcasts from Colonial Williamsburg’s reconstructed Colonial Capital at the eastern end of Duke of Gloucester Street. Lauer will be joined by TV personality Al Roker, who will engage the spectators along DoG Street, including an expected contingent of William and Mary faithful.

Friends and parents can tune into NBC affiliates from 7-9 a.m. to perhaps catch a glimpse of hundreds of members of the Tribe family proudly sporting the green and gold.

The broadcast is coming to Virginia as part of the "Today" show’s coverage of the upcoming presidential election. Virginia has been tagged as one of several battleground states in the campaign.

If you are planning on attending the broadcast, spectators are encouraged to arrive early."

Oh, I'll be there (getting up at 4am, grumble grumble grumble). Pictures of my signs to come :)

like a Rolling Stone

I do not usually read Rolling Stone, but I had read the issue criticized in this letter to the editor. Dang ...

It's the end of an era, kids ...

I haven't watched MTV's TRL since middle school (but I watched it A LOT in middle school). So it is with just a tiny bit of sadness that I report that TRL is going off the air in November.

Just to be clear, it's sad that I'm getting so old and shows that I assumed in middle school would always be around are no longer going to be around. It's really not that sad that TRL is going off the air.

PS. did you know that Carson Daly (of MTV VJ and TRL "fame") has his own late night talk show. WEIRD!!! Who thought that was a good idea??

Pie #2

For my second pie, I chose my v. favorite: pumpkin. Technically, it's still baking. But a friend came over to help me bake (she's baked a lot of pies in her day), so with her standing by to prevent me from accidentally putting the filling for 2 pies into a single pie crust, I am fairly confident that this won't be a disaster.

I hope to soon have a pie pan, which will mean that I can start making my own crust. And I already have an idea for the first pie recipe I want to create. What more does a girl with a dream of opening her own pie shoppe need?

trailer time

So too many of my posts have been about politics, time for my favorite new movie trailers: Nights and Weekends, Nothing Like the Holidays, Milk, and The Secrets

In the Seventh Year by Roger Cohen

This is v. sad indeed.

I guess my first question in response to the TV Newser article, Has the Media Been Unfair to Sarah Palin?, is has the media been fair to any of the candidates?

I've also been reading this Newser article, Beating the Press, about McCain's rejection of the major news networks that helped him cultivate his image as a maverick in Congress.

It seems to me that in the past 8 years the *quote* liberal *unquote* media has gotten more and more conservative. I know that others would disagree. I think regardless of the label you would give, the argument remains that the press - particularly the 3 major cable news networks (Fox, CNN, and MSNBC) are filled with biased reporting. I will concede that their bias changes depending on the PICK ONE: anchor/reporter/event/month/day/hour/direction-in-which-the-wind-blows. Whichever way you think the media bias leans, it seems apparent to me that we have come a long way from Tom Brokaw's trusted reporting on NBC Nightly News.

The fact that the word "swiftboating" even exists calls the motives of cable news networks into question. I often wonder if certain individuals within the Fox, CNN, and MSNBC hierarchy believe they are reporting on the election or determining the outcome of the election.

I applaud MSNBC's decision to remove Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews from election coverage. At least it confirms that they are trying to remove bias and opinion from their political coverage. It remains to be seen how successful they are.

mmmmm pie!

I just baked the first pie that I've ever baked in my life (key lime, made with key lime juice bought during my week in Key Wets this Summer). And now (partially inspired by my first pie and partially inspired by the movie The Waitress) I want to learn to bake more types of pies. I could always just go on to foodnetwork.com and look for recipes, but I thought it would be smarter to ask the people that I know if they have good recipes for pies (dessert of non-dessert). So, I've started asking around to find out who has pie recipes (first stop: Mom). I also had to commandeer a pie pan from my mother (because when I got into the kitchen to make a pie crust I realized that I did not own a pie pan). I'm still sort of intimidated to by pie-baking, so I thought if I had a recipe that I knew someone else was able to successfully make it'd be a good place to start ...

But speaking of The Waitress, maybe I'll just throw all my other career aspirations out the window and open my own pie shoppe. I already have one friend committed to working with me in our little pie shoppe. Now I just need to learn to make pie!

Al Gore Facts

I found this old joke from Daily Kos in my bookmarks and had to share ... Enjoy!

the intimacy revolution

I am a committed reader of the PostSecret blog every Sunday afternoon. This Sunday, I followed a link to the myspace blog about PostSecret and found a post by the authors of Not Quite What I was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure. Rachel Fershleiser, one of the two authors said this about projects like hers and PostSecret,

"So many of the recent projects we admire - Found Magazine, Mortified, To-Do List —involve sharing the mundanities of your everyday life with perfect strangers, and elevating them to art in the process. Call it the intimacy revolution, the democratization of media, the user-generated age, or anything else—Frank Warren is one of its true heroes. We're just proud to be a part of making sure every individual is heard and valued."

I love that idea that these projects are part of an intimacy revolution. I'm generally a fan of the democratization of media, because there is a lot of crap being produced in the name of making money right now. Youtube is one of the more successful forces of change in the media. However, these projects like PostSecret and Not Quite What I was Planning and Learning to Love You More (a book which I just checked out from the library) are part of the intimacy revolution ... I'm going to be thinking about this more today, because I really like this concept.

Scarborough vs. Shuster

I love it when the news becomes the news. And by love, I mean loathe ...

Mark Warner for President '08

So, for those of you that don't know, I was a huge fan of Mark Warner for President '08. But then he broke my heart with this announcement. It is some consolation that at the very least he is going to be the next Senator to represent Virginia.

Imagine my excitement when I found out that he would be giving the keynote address at this years Democratic National Convention!!!

... I should probably interrupt myself and mention that the DNC is my Olympics. Allow me to explain - my coworker, Kevin, watched every night of the Olympics. He stayed up late to watch the Olympics and he watched a live feed of the events during the day. He was completely distracted by the Olympics. When he wasn't watching the Olympics, he was reading news about the Olympics. The DNC is my Olympics ...

I signed up for Mark Warner's "Convention Diary" (I'm a nerd, I know, I know), but it meant that I got to see an advance copy of his speech. This speech (aside from being awesome) was so Virginian! I'm not sure if it plays as well in the other 49 states, but talking about Thomas Jefferson really works in Virginia. I thought Mark Warner's speech was intelligent, funny, critical of the current administration while still full of his usual anti-partisan rhetoric, hopeful for the future, and accurate!

I have not been very excited about this Presidential election. I've know who I would vote for from the beginning, but I haven't found either candidate particularly compelling. I have been extremely annoyed with the media this year - I think they have not only done a HORRIBLE job of covering the campaigns, but I think they've manipulated the tone of this campaign into something very disheartening.

But Mark Warner's speech was so uplifting! I am fired up for this election in a way that I wasn't before. So, in lieu of Mark Warner for President '08, I'm thinking ... Mark Warner for President '16?


My favorite part of the speech:
"People always ask me, "What's your biggest criticism of President Bush?" I'm sure you all have your own. Here's mine: It's not just the policy differences. It's the fact that this president never tapped into our greatest resources - the character and resolve of the American people. He never asked us to step up.

Think about it: After September 11, if there was a call from the President to get us off foreign oil, to stop funding the very terrorists who had just attacked us, every American would have said, "How can I do my part?" This administration failed to believe in what we can achieve as a nation, when all of us work together."

What a drag!

Bravo's Project Runway, Season 5, Episode 4 had the designers creating outfits for drag queens (they brought back Season 4's Chris March to help the designers)!! \o/ Oh, the excitement ....

While I disagree with the design they chose for the winner (shout out to Terri whose samurai outfit was definitely the best!), I loved this challenge. So creative and, more important, so much fun!!!

Who knows what the future holds for Project Runway, but I am glad to know that they are working hard to make this season great!

W.

So excited by the trailer of the new Oliver Stone movie, W.

Other favorite trailers of the moment: Watchmen, Twilight, Happy-Go-Lucky, and (hides face in embarassment) HSM3.

I don't have anything to add, the article pretty much says it all ...

Reclaiming the morality of abortion and the overdue change to the Democratic platform.

Tropic Thunder

I saw the new Ben Stiller/Jack Black/Robert Downey Jr comedy/action/adventure/war movie, Tropic Thunder on Wednesday night. Personally, I thought it was hilarious!! I haven't laughed that hard in a Ben Stiller movie since Zoolander. After the movie, my fiance and I spent the night debating whether Tropic Thunder was the greatest spoof movie of all time.

However, despite the brilliance of Stiller's hollywood satire (no part of the film industry is safe from Stiller's harsh portrayal), Tim Shriver, chairman of the Special Olympics, is in the process of organizing a nationwide boycott of the film.

Tim Shriver claims that what I thought was some of the funniest dialogue in the movie amounts to little more than hate speech. New York Times reviewer, Manohla Dargis (with whom I rarely agree), accuses Tropic Thunder for being primarily anti-semitic.

Political satire is one of the - if not the - most highly protected form of speech (as protected by the 1st Amendment). People have to be able to challenge and mock institutions of power. To attempt to silence political satire is un-American.

Note: for the history of parody & satire + the 1st Amendment, check out: http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/Speech/arts/topic.aspx?topic=parody_satire

Satire will by its very nature upset and offend many people. You don't have to like the movie, but it makes a powerful statement about the absurdity of the film industry. Appreciate it for what it is ...

senior prank '86-style

Best Senior Prank EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (ok, so I'm probably biased, because this prank was pulled off at my high school)

On April 1 of their senior year, the Class of 1986 ran nine hoses all night long to turn the Pit (aka the Forum) at Norfolk Academy into a giant swimming pool. Dozens of students spent the night on campus, and a good time was had by all - but the highlight was unmistakeably when Patti "Bat" Masterson (teacher and administrator) joined the class for an early morning swim.

"The Pit" is hard to explain if you've never been on the campus of my high school, but it's a sunken concrete structure in the middle of the campus. Lots of events happen around and in the pit. It's one of the things that I loved and continue to love about Norfolk Academy.

I'd heard about this senior prank (everyone at NA has heard about this prank), but I didn't know until today that it had been memorialized for all time on youtube.com. It's priceless to watch the legendary prank in action. Kudos to the class of '86!

Note: my senior prank was that we put 102 (# of people in my class) rubber duckies in a fountain. LAME!

obamaclark.com

From the obamaclark.com blog:

"General Clark currently leads all contenders for the Vice Presidential nomination in a poll on one of the top recommended diaries on Daily Kos with nearly 70 percent of the vote. Jordans11 notes:

Let’s face it.

General Wesley Clark is the only Vice Presidential Candidate with Presidential campaign experience, who has military, foreign policy, diplomatic, and executive experience, with southern roots, appeal to Latinos and Hillary Clinton supporters, an existing national grassroots organization, an Oxford degree in economics, and who will not cause the Democrats to lose a Senate seat or a Governorship with his selection."

a must read ...

An interesting article from a Phoenix newspaper....

I confess to being annoyed to the point of tears by the 2008 Presidential race. The role that the media has played in the political games and goings-on in the past 12 months have made me lament what politics in America has become. It's the media studies student in me that finds myself more and more ambivalent about the differences between John McCain and Barack Obama and more and more angry about the way the news media has distorted politics.

I can hardly listen to what the candidates are saying anymore; it all starts to sound like the teacher from the Peanuts cartoon (wah, wah, wah, wah, wah ...)

BUT, I can't get enough of all the commentary about the news commentary (postmodernism at its best).

I don't agree with the groups who, post-Hillary-Clinton-dropping-out-of-the-race, called for women and minorities to NOT vote for Barack Obama. However, I completely agree with groups who, post-Hillary-Clinton-dropping-out-of-the-race, called for women and minorities to boycott the major news networks. A quick google search turns up a couple of interesting websites to this effect: Women Boycott MSNBC, The Real Spiel, and quite a few others.

Although I'm also seeing a lot of articles about Hillary calling on Bush to boycott the Olympics, which is a whole different story ...

Despite the bad review on EW.com ...

For an explanation of "The Loobenfeld Decay" check out The Big Bang Theory, Season 1, Episode 10. Other episode titles include The Fuzzy Boots Corollary, The Dumpling Paradox, The Hamburger Postulate, and The Pork Chop Indeterminacy.

The Big Bang Theory (TBBT) is a guilty pleasure of mine - not a bad way to spend a half hour on Monday nights (or whenever if you are lucky enough to have TiVo).

I'm sort of appalled by the EW.com review. NOTE: EW Readers gave it a B+ ranking, a big improvement over reviewer Henry Goldblatt's C- ranking. Mr. Goldblatt's characterizes the show as 'lamebrained.'

Here's my confusion: In the Age of Reality TV, how can any television series with original characters and an original narrative be considered 'lamebrained?' EW.com gave the first season of The Hills a B-!!! I'm not here to judge anyone else's guilty pleasure, but why don't we give credit where credit is due???

First - TBBT has a catchy theme song. Theme songs are a dying art and a I appreciate a good one when I hear it. Plus, I like to sing along ...

Second - Since the Stone Age, every TV show has had a token nerd (or dork, sometimes it's a dork and not a nerd). It seems to me that over time the token nerd has gotten less an less nerdy. Television is trying to normalize and socialize The Nerd. TBBT embraces The Nerd and shows her/him for what (s)he really is: awkward. Hilariously awkward!

Third - Darlene and David from Roseanne are reunited as Leslie and Leonard in TBBT. Their relationship ... pricelesss. TV couples should alway mock their TV coupledom in future television series.

allright, I could babble on, but really, I should be watching the season finale of The Mole (there are a lot of guilty pleasures on tv on Monday nights).