Gushing

I have two wonderful nieces, 11 year old N and 3 year old C. In C's short life, she has suffered several health ailments, which have resulted in her spending a month in the hospital with the superbug and two surgeries. She has routinely been ill her entire life until this past month. The doctors have finally determined she has an immune deficiency involving staphylococcus. She has received injections to help boost her immune system and has developed the antibodies required to fight the disease, which is a huge relief.

Last night I received a phone call from N, who wants to be a writer like her aunt. Her poem had been selected for a contest being held by the America Library of Poetry. She was so excited to be entered in the contest and doesn't care if she wins anything, just that her poem was selected. I didn't want to tell her, I was jealous that they are going to publish her poem in their annual book. Seriously, I am very proud of her.

Continuing the Movie Theme

I am still watching the movies Kay loaned me while I was recuperating.

Let the Right One In A Swedish thriller concerning a child vampire. The ending is worth watching, very Psychoesque.

Father Goose Another great Cary Grant movie. Though older, he's very suave and debonair and the scene when the schoolteacher thinks she's dying of a snake bite is hilarious.

The Awful Truth Another Cary grant movie. Though the storyline revolves around cheating, the dog steals the movie.

Monsieur Verdoux A dark comedy featuring Charlie Chaplin as a serial killer. It was interesting, though I don't particularly care for Chaplin.

The Dress

When it was decided I would have surgery, I had to cancel my birthday bash in Savannah with Michelle and Crystal. I was pretty bummed at the idea of giving up a big party weekend with my girlfriends. Michelle called a few days later to inform me that we couldn't go that long without seeing each other. Since I've moved up north, we have managed to get together every 6 months. Michelle told me she was booking a flight up here to visit. We have planned an amazing weekend, including a girls day with Becky and Erin. We have spa treatments scheduled, shopping planned, and the idea of dancing the night away. We figured we should dress up for the occasion since its not often I get to party with my best friend and my gals. As someone who normally doesn't wear dresses, I had to find something to wear, hence this fabulous dress which I am proud to say was 50% off. I'm so looking forward to spa day!

The List

For those who were fans of the show Friends, you may recall the episode where Ross has his celebrity list. You know, should he ever meet a celebrity on his list, he could sleep with them. The episode was called, "The One with Frank Jr." and it was funny if you've never watched it.

Recently, Becky and I had seen a preview of a Karl Urban movie, in which I insisted we had to go see. Many don't know who he is. Later Becky informed me I had permission if I ever met him, which lead to me pointing out, I would never meet said actor, so it was null and void. But the discussion got me thinking, have you ever had this conversation with your friends? If so, do you mind sharing at least one actor from your list.

Yes, I'm Legal

Indiana has a new law that requires i.d. for all alcoholic purchases. It has been somewhat controversial since people in their 7th or 8th decade are being denied their beverages because they can't produce i.d. Dawne and I went to our regular lunching establishment, which has a bar in the main room. Before I ordered my meal and a Coke, the waitress asked for my i.d. Apparently, you have to be over 21 to be in the establishment thanks to the new law. I know its all rather annoying to others, but I like being carded.

Where Did that Come From?

Certain individuals nagged me while I was home to work on my writing. It wasn't an easy thing to do, what with the medication, my mind being occupied with personal crisis, and feeling like utter ... well, you get the point.

After much love and prompting, I sat down and pounded away whatever popped into my head. Suddenly, I found myself with 10,000+ words and a fear that it was absolute garbage. So I shot a copy to my most trusted reviewer. This is the same reviewer who told me my hero was weak and I lacked conflict in my previous incarnation, so I cringed waiting to hear from her. (Still love you Mich and want to hear your brutal honest opinion.)

The first 10,000 words received the following reaction: I really like it. I read it in about 20 minutes. I like the beginning, where you don't know what is going on or who is the good guy and who is the bad one. I also like the sense of the supernatural, and that it is not stereo-typical supernatural. I don't really have any critiques at this time.

The next 5,000 words resulted in some criticisms, which lead to a phone call defending my work. I'm quite curious what will be said next. All I can do is keep trying. Thanks Mich for pushing me, reading my work, and listening to me.

Jasper

In my review of Eclipse, I mentioned my gals shock at Jackson Rathbone's performance as Jasper. Apparently we aren't the only ones to enjoy this new direction for the actor. Entertainment Weekly has an article titled Most Improved Vampire Actor. Sorry, I found this humorous, plus, I absolutely 100% agree about the drawl. I don't blame the actor, I feel it was the direction given for the character in the previous movies. All I can say is the character/ actor is wonderful in the training/ flashback scene.

Eclipse

My gals (Erin & Becky) and I went opening weekend to see Eclipse and I have to say we were not disappointed. I know, I'm a twi-hard, so of course, I liked the movie, but this isn't necessarily true, especially if you've read my previous reviews of Twilight and New Moon. I went in very afraid. Eclipse is one of my favorite books in the series (2nd to Twilight), so when the lights went down, I was terrified if the movie would live up to the image in my head. Eclipse had far better acting, special effects, and soundtrack than the previous movies, plus I feel they did a great job with every scene.

My five favorite scenes from the movie were:

Sex Talk Any scene with Charlie is great! Billy Burke steals every scene, but this one had me laughing so hard. The uncomfortableness is adorable.

Sex Talk Part 2 When Bella is trying to convince Edward to give her this one human experience and he explains his old fashioned views, which leads to the proposal was so touching.

Final Scene In the books, the opposing magnets is a subtle explanation of Bella being torn in two directions. In the movie, they insure viewers understand Bella's motivations in a more direct fashion, which worked for me.

The Tent Scene My favorite scene of the entire book series and they nailed it. Between Rob Pattinson and Taylor Lautner's acting and the directing, this scene was everything I wanted and was better than the image I envisioned when reading it.

Training It had humor, action, and a shocking revelation...forget Team Edward, Team Jacob, us gals are Team Jasper. Who knew? Jackson Rathbone was commanding when training the vampires and wolves in how to prepare for war. The previous two movies, the directors didn't seem to know what to do with Jasper's intensity, but this scene showed the character to his fullest potential and Rathbone brought him to life with quirky humor and a subtle performance. Plus, even with a bad wig, Jasper in a Confederate uniform was great. The moment between him and Alice just curled my toes.

Now, you may wonder if I stand by my opinion and I have to say after a second viewing (yes, second), I still believe Eclipse is a great movie for any Twilight fan.

Birthday

I had a fabulous birthday dinner with my ladies. Yes, those are candles on the ice cream thanks to Delia, who got the waitress to light them for us. This year was harder than previous years. I can't explain why this one bothered me so much. When I turned 30, I rang it in with cosmos, 31, Disney, and I've been partying ever since. Maybe it has something to do with what all has recently happened. All I know is it was a fabulous birthday dinner.

I opened the latest Lisa Kleypas book Married by Morning and saw the dedication, "Because a good friend is cheaper than therapy," and realized I am blessed with amazing people in my life. Thanks for the wonderful birthday memories.