In which I graciously accept an award.

Teri at The Narcissist’s Blog nominated me for the Versatile Blogger Award.

Thank you, Teri! I’ve only recently started reading your blog, but I admire your candor. It’s refreshing to read a blog that isn’t afraid to tackle the tough (but fun!) topics of dating and casual sex. I’m not nearly as brave here on my own blog, so I have great respect for women who are willing to put it all out there.

Being a “Versatile Blogger” comes with rules. I’ve included them at the bottom of this post, should you decide to play along. I honestly don’t know if I even follow 15 blogs, but I will give it my best shot!

Nominate 15 Seven Blogs

• KellyVision: Kelly is one of my favorite people and I consider her a good friend (even though we don’t spend nearly enough time together). We met through our Vox blogs. Her blog is dedicated to the tremendous amount of books, TV, movies and pop culture she devours each year. “Things I’m Obsessed With” is my favorite regular feature.
• Dispatches from The Tome Zone: Tom is one of the oddest people I know. This is a compliment. I have the distinguished honor of being the first comment on his first blog at Vox. Lately, his blog seems to be about movies. But really, you never know what you’re going to find over there!
• Stevil: I enjoy Steve’s blog a lot. I know he’s a fellow Vox refugee, but I don’t think we interacted much there. Many of my blog friends are Steve’s blog friends and I just kept leaving (annoying?) comments until he finally noticed me. Ha! And now he has the dubious distinction of being my most frequent commentator and a founding member of our Album Club.
• javajanie: I love Janie. She is awesome. That’s all you need to know.
• Gingersister’s Blog: Bekki is a very cool chick. She’s spiritual, literate and witty. She’s also resourceful! If I found myself in a spot of trouble, I would definitely seek her advice.
• Rubber Hose: I’m sure the illustrious and talented Upyernoz could care less about blog awards, but I’ve been (sporadically, I admit) reading his blog since my TypePad days. Arabic brought us together.
• Lost in Singledom: I don’t remember how I stumbled upon Melanie’s blog, but it’s well-written and entertaining. And I’m certain her Mr. Right is just around the next corner.

Seven 15 Things About Me

• I was born in the Year of the Dragon.
• Red is my favorite color.
• I am obsessed with owls.
• I have been to Africa, but have never been to South America.
• My passport is expired.
• I’m 35 and live with my parents.
• I have one (rockstar) son.
• I was unemployed for 13 months before finding my current job, which I’ve held for over two years and counting. Yay, me!
• I love Twitter. I tweet. A lot.
• I have questionable taste in music, jewelry and quite often, men.
• I am the sole member of my team’s Sunshine Committee. I guess that makes me the Chairperson?
• I have about seven blogs. That’s crazy. If you’re not even sure how many blogs you have? You definitely have too many.
• Batman is my favorite superhero, although I consider myself much more of a Marvel fangirl.
• There is never enough time to read all the books or see all the movies I want.
• I couldn’t come up with 15 blogs to recommend, but I can talk about myself endlessly, so I switched the requirements. Sorry!

The Rules

If you are nominated, you’ve been awarded the Versatile Blogger award. [That's all it takes to win! Man, I know Rooney Mara wishes the Oscars worked this way! - J.]

•  Thank the person who gave you this award. That’s common courtesy.
•  Include a link to their blog. That’s also common courtesy — if you can figure out how to do it.
•  Next, select 15 blogs/bloggers that you’ve recently discovered or follow regularly. ( I would add, pick blogs or bloggers that are excellent!)
•  Nominate those 15 bloggers for the Versatile Blogger Award — you might include a link to this site.
•  Finally, tell the person who nominated you 7 things about yourself.

Movie Monday: The Artist

I saw The Artist at The Charles Theater during a Sunday matinée. The place was packed and the credits rolled to applause from the audience, myself included. Peopled clapped. At a movie. How many times have you had that happen? It hasn’t happened that often to me.

I’m completely convinced The Artist is going to take home the Best Picture Academy Award. I still haven’t seen The Tree of Life of The Descendants, so maybe I’m not the most qualified to judge. But…

I love this film.

Yes, the plot is a little predictable. There wasn’t a single moment that I didn’t see coming. And making a silent movie about the era of silent films could (and should) be called a gimmick.

But none of that matters.

Best Actor? You bet!

Director Michel Hazanavicius sweeps you up in his vision and you’re just along for the very enjoyable ride. Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo are a delight to watch on screen. The dog is adorable. The music is amazing. The editing and cinematography are perfect.

It all just works.

Dujardin is definitely a star. He made me laugh and he damn near made me cry. All without saying a word. Bejo has a beauty and freshness that only black-and-white film can do justice. It’s a cliché, but a true one, to say she lights up the screen. However, all the actors, no matter how small the role, bring their A-game.

This movie is a love letter to Hollywood and it includes many of the character actors that make Hollywood great. If you love film and TV the way I love film and TV, you’ll spend the entire time recognizing people such as John Goodman, James Cromwell, Missi Pyle, Beth Grant, Joel Murray and Malcolm McDowell. [NB: Sorry, Penelope Ann Miller. I didn't recognize you. IMDb had to clue me in.]

I dare you to go see this film and leave the theater without a smile on your face.

Klondike Derby: I Survive!

I adore my son. And I would do almost anything for him. But this adoration at times does get sorely tested. For instance, when I am faced with spending 8 hours outdoors on a winter day in January. I would be hard pressed to think of something that sounds less fun than the Klondike Derby. But Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts have participated in these things for five decades now. Who am I to judge?

Suffice to say, I was not looking forward to our participation in yesterday’s countywide Klondike Derby, but my son was over the moon excited. That means I got up at an insanely early hour on a Saturday to bundle up and head outside. If you’re lucky enough to have no idea what a Klondike Derby is, it goes something like this:

1. Decide to freeze.
2. Get a bunch of different Packs together.
3. Each Pack sets up a different station where Cub Scouts get a chance to demonstrate various scouting skills and teamwork.
4. Rotate to different stations throughout the day, earning beads along the way.
5. Freeze the entire time.

To some folks, this is a recipe for a good time. To me, it sounded like a full-day of torture. But thanks to unseasonably mild temperatures and my son’s bliss, I ended up having a pretty good time, too. I never would have believed I could enjoy myself, but I ended up doing just that.

My son’s den learned how to make an emergency stretcher. They only dropped the “victim” a handful of times. He wasn’t injured when he started, but seemed a little dazed afterward.

Being outside means portable toilets. Not the best part of the day. Although they were in rather good condition, considering.

The human foosball station proved very popular. My son was the goalie.

And who doesn’t love slingshots?

The hot chocolate was a necessity and fortunately, also abundant.

It was a good day. But man, we were tired at the end. We had to take multiple breaks (like the one below) on the way back to the car.