Full Speed Ahead!

My father-in-law was right: I just needed to make up my mind that we are moving and then go ahead with it. I'm busy working on an email to my clients (hard job) and trying to figure out what areas I need to get spiffy before we list the house. I'm a big planner, so once I have a plan in my head I'm ready to get to work. Now that I've finally made the decision that moving is what we need to do, I don't want to sit around and think about it. I want to DO.

Negativity Is NOT Helping

I had a link to another blog (won't mention the name) from my own blog, but I removed it today. When I read what she was posting, and all the negativity it was creating regarding President Obama's fiscal plan it really made me angry. I understand that the President's plan has flaws. But people have to realize that something has to be done. Our country is headed even further down the crapper if someone doesn't do something. President Obama has been in office just over a month and he has a hell of a mess to clean up. Sure, it wasn't all the Republicans' fault...just as it wasn't all the Democrats' fault. But at this point it doesn't matter whose fault it is. It's OUR problem now. Everybody needs to stop whining about what the fiscal plan doesn't do right and start thinking about how they're going to help build this country back up!

New Name for My Blog?

Remember when I wrote in a blog entry several months ago that I was NOT moving - "I repeat NOT NOT NOT moving"?

Well, it looks like Tennessee may be our new home. After much discussion, many tears, and quite a few tantrums (and that's just Donald we're talking about) I think we've decided that our family needs to be together in Tennessee. Even if Donald was to retire in a year or so, it would be financially tight living in our house in MN unless I got a full-time real job (which I'm not going to do).

So, if we live in Tennessee, how can I have a blog called Whites in Minnesota? I'll need to add a tag line that says "...the southern version" or "...now with more fiber" or something funny like that. :-)

The move isn't happening right NOW but we are making plans. The realtor is coming next Wednesday to take a look at the house and Nicholas and I will be going down to TN the middle of April to see what kind of place we can find to rent; house, condo, apartment. We'll put off buying anything for a year until we know where we might want to live down there. This will also make it a lot easier to move if we don't have to worry about coming up with money to put down on a house. We'll take a loss on the house up here, but hopefully not too much of a loss. Hopefully.

Oscars 2009: What a Night!

Even though I wasn't feeling well (sore throat and all) I made it through the entire show! With TiVo, I was running behind "live TV" for most of it, but caught up near the end. It ran over by about 35 minutes, but it was worth it! Hugh Jackman did such a great job, he needs to host every year. I knew he'd be good, but MAN was he good. The only thing I recommend is that next year he does it without his shirt on. I mean, come on, it can only make the show even better! ;-)

My picks for this year's top six categories weren't too bad. I got four out of the top six correct (I missed Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress categories) and, overall, I got 16 correct out of all 24 categories! My best ever! The Winners were: Best Supporting Actress - Penelope Cruz; Best Supporting Actor - Heath Ledger; Best Actress - Kate Winslet; Best Actor - Sean Penn; Best Director - Danny Boyle; and Best Movie - Slumdog Millionaire.

Movie critic Roger Ebert only missed one out of the top six (he picked Viola Davis to win for Best Supporting Actress) and movie critic Richard Roeper nailed it right on the head when he made this prediction on the Chicago Sun-Times website:

"Mark my words, or mock my words. "Slumdog Millionaire" will take home eight Oscars, "Benjamin Button" will win a handful of technical awards, Heath Ledger is the biggest lock of the night and Kate Winslet will win for the wrong role in the wrong movie."

Richard Roeper got 21 correct out of all 24 categories! Wow! I'm impressed. Of course, he gets to see every movie, every short, long, medium, and foreign film out there. I'm jealous, really.

The comedy routine by Seth Rogan and James Franco, while sitting on a couch watching clips from some of the comedic films of the year (along with a few serious films which their characters considered to be comedies but weren't) was hysterical! I loved the musical number Hugh did at the beginning, and Anne Hathaway taking part in it was wonderful! They need to do a musical together right now. And, although other bloggers have been quoted as saying it made their "ears bleed," I actually enjoyed the musical number Hugh (along with Beyonce) did about musicals. Maybe the academy will eventually create a category just for musicals! Woo-hoo!

I especially enjoyed the way they presented the top acting categories this year. Instead of showing a scene from each nominee, and having the award presented by the winner of the award (from the opposite sex) from last year; i.e., the Best Actor from last year presenting the Best Actress award this year, etc. - they had five previous winners present the award for this year's winner. Shirley MacLaine's introduction of Anne Hathaway in the Best Actress category was beautiful; something I'm sure Anne Hathaway will treasure even more than being nominated!

The acceptance of Heath Ledger's award by his parents and sister, on behalf of his little girl, Matilda, was very emotional. We all knew he was going to win and we all knew it was going to be emotional. They weren't emotional, but I was!

Please share your thoughts about this year's Oscars, if you stayed up late enough to catch it all or if you were bored and went to sleep early, and let me know if there's anything from the awards that you found especially entertaining, touching, or simply weird. If you'd like to watch some behind-the-scenes footage from the Oscars, check out their website. And forgive me if my post today seems a bit scattered and poorly put together ,but I'm lucky to actually be awake and thinking even this clearly this morning! In fact, I've edited this post twice since first publishing it this morning...See you next year!

Mice: It's All-Out War!

Today I got in my car, opened up the console that sits between the two front seats to get my sunglasses, and found crumbs on my sunglasses case. Hmmm, what do you think those crumbs were from. Yep, the mice are back. They/he/she/it had ripped into my snack bar and eaten half of it, leaving crumbs and packaging and stuff all over. After calling my husband - who is in Tennessee until the 28th - and then dropping off a friend at the doctor, I went to Home Depot. It's war, people. I bought a two-pack of Black & Decker Electronic Pest Repellers, a package of "Real Kill" Mouse Killer Place Packs that have poisonous (yes, poison!) tidbits that these fellers will eat and then go home to die, and a box of moth balls. Moth balls, so I've been told, should keep the mice from making nests in the area where the moth balls are. The electronic pest repellers emit a high pitched sound that is supposed to "drive out" mice and other pests, and the poison...well, you know what that will do.

I really love animals and I'm all for animals being free and enjoying life...but not in my car! I've had it. For the last seven months, I've let my husband catch one mouse (sometimes two) at a time and then drive them to the local park to set them free. Up until now, he'd caught at least 12 in his "live trap" and driven them to the park. Well, now that Donald is out of town for two-three weeks at a time, I am not driving these mice to the park! If the electronic pest repellers and the moth balls don't get them to leave, then they'd better get their affairs in order because they will be going to the great big cheese wheel in Heaven. Do I make myself clear??!!

TV Made Me What I Am Today

My sister bought me a bumper sticker once that said "TV Made Me What I Am Today" and that is soooooo true. I just took the "80's Sitcom" quiz on Facebook and got 100%. Now, should I be proud of that? It's really sort of sad, isn't it...weren't there other, more exciting, important things to be doing than watching all that TV? Of course, in therapy everything is my mother's fault. After all, wasn't it she (and probably even more than that my dad since mom worked nights) who allowed me to sit and be mesmerized by the TV every night? Meanwhile, if my husband - who was born before they even had TV - took the quiz, he'd probably score a 0%. But if he took a quiz on 80's porn...he might get a high score. (I'm not joking.)

I Like Chicken...and Turkey...and...

Well, so much for being Vegetarian...not for me. :-)

Check out my entry on Melissa's Veggie Blog and take a look at the recipes I've posted so far!

The Strib is now bird cage lining

Okay, Paul Douglas will be fine. He's very successful in his weather-related businesses and life in general. But I will be canceling our subscription to the Star Tribune. Not only did WCCO let Paul Douglas go last spring but now the Strib is replacing Paul Douglas' weather forecast with the WCCO weather team starting tomorrow! The Strib is near bankruptcy and I guess this is their way of generating more income by partnering with a TV station. Well, the few issues I have lying around will now be donated for use in the bottom of a bird cage. Eventually I'll forgive the Strib. Or maybe not - I still haven't forgiven WCCO for their stupidity.

My New Blog About Veggies!

I like bloggin' so much, I've started another one! Check out my new blog "Melissa's Veggie Blog" and read about my journey to eat and live healthier! I am working on getting some recipes posted, so don't be surprised if you visit and there's nothing to read yet!

My Oscar Predictions

Since I've only had my blog for a few months, this is my "1st Annual Oscar Predictions" blog entry. I reviewed the winners from two previous awards ceremonies this year ~ The Golden Globe Awards (GG) and the Screen Actors Guild Awards (SAG) ~ and then based my picks on a simple technique: Drawing names from a hat. Just kidding. I have no idea who will win, but I thought it would be fun to pretend that people care what I think. Sort of like a Richard Roeper or Roger Ebert. Only much prettier. :-)

Actor in a Leading Role
The Nominees: Richard Jenkins (The Visitor), Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon), Sean Penn (Milk), Brad Pitt (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), and Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler). Sean Penn won the SAG award and Mickey Rourke won the GG for best performance by an actor in a motion picture drama. Since he started off the year being the favorite but did not win either the SAG or GG award, so I'm going out on a limb here and picking Frank Langella.

The GG awards recognize actors from not only dramas but musicals and comedies as well. I will only be using the winners from the "drama" category, unless a winner for a musical or comedy is also nominated for the Oscar. Got it? Good. Let's continue...

Actor in a Supporting Role
The Nominees: Josh Brolin (Milk), Robert Downey, Jr. (Tropic Thunder), Philip Seymour Hoffman (Doubt), Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight), and Michael Shannon (Revolutionary Road). Heath Ledger won both the SAG and the GG awards. As much as I love Philip Seymour Hoffman, I think there's no beating Heath Ledger this year. So, my pick is Heath.

Actress in a Leading Role
The Nominees: Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married), Angelina Jolie (Changeling), Melissa Leo (Frozen River), Meryl Streep (Doubt), and Kate Winslet (The Reader). Okay, this is a hard one due to the fact that Kate Winslet won two GG award's: A Supporting Role award for her role in "The Reader" and the Best Actress (Drama) award for her role in "Revolutionary Road." Meryl Streep surprised everyone at the SAG awards by winning the Leading Actress award...so, who to choose? I'm going with Kate Winslet. She should have been nominated for "Revolutionary Road" but I think she'll win for "The Reader" here.

Actress in a Supporting Role
The Nominees: Amy Adams (Doubt), Penélope Cruz (Vicky Cristina Barcelona), Viola Davis (Doubt), Taraji P. Henson (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), and Marisa Tomei (The Wrestler). Kate Winslet won both the GG and SAG awards for her role in "The Reader" but is nominated in the Leading Role category for that part. So, this is such an open field I have no idea. Let's go to my hat, shall we....Okay, my pick is Taraji P. Henson, although it would be fun to see either Amy Adams or Marisa Tomei win.

Best Picture
The Nominees: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Frost/Nixon, Milk, The Reader, Slumdog Millionaire. "Slumdog Millionaire" won the equivalent of this category at both the SAG and GG awards. It's the favorite to win, which makes it kind of a boring pick, but I'm still going with "Slumdog Millionaire" as the winner. Plus the fact that I saw the film and it's truly an amazing piece of work.

Best Director
The Nominees: Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire), Stephen Daldry (The Reader), David Fincher (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Ron Howard (Frost/Nixon), and Sam Mendes (Revolutionary Road). The SAG awards have no category for Best Director (that's why they're the Screen Actors Guild awards, after all). The Golden Globe went to Danny Boyle, as did the Directors Guild of America award. Unless there's a great upset, I can't see anyone winning but Danny Boyle.

There you have it. Now let's hear from the gallery. Who do you think will win? I'd love to see some comments on this. And don't wait until after the awards are over (Sunday, February 22, 2009 LIVE at 8ET/7CT on ABC).

Early Valentine's Date

On Saturday, Donald and I went out on a date! Woo-hoo! Thank you "Grandma Jan" for watching Nicholas for what must have seemed like two whole days! And thanks to Sarah for helping out too!

Donald and I went to see "Slumdog Millionaire" at the new CineMagic Theatre in Burnsville, right behind Burnsville Center mall. Excellent movie and one that will make you realize how lucky we have it here in the States! It is my pick for Best Movie at this year's Oscars...but I'll discuss that in another post.

After the movie, we stopped by Jan's to drop off Nicholas' heart-shaped lollipop I'd forgotten to give him...then it was off to Perron's Sul Lago (simply known as "Sul Lago" to us locals) in Prior Lake for dinner at 5:00 p.m.

Recommended by several people, it was a wonderful dining experience! Lit by candlelight and very romantic, it's definitely a place to go if you want to get away from the noise and hub-bub of the chain restaurants. The meal was slow-paced enough so that we were able to enjoy our appetizers and salad without feeling like we had to rush to make room for our entrée. If you plan on dining there, be sure to set aside about three hours of your time.

Romantic atmosphere at Sul Lago

Our server was Mark and he was worth his weight in gold. I almost gained five pounds just listening to his description of the specials and other choices for the evening. They must practice reciting those because he was flawless! He was very good at checking on how we were doing, but wasn't a constant nag like at some restaurants you go to. When you need a fresh cup of coffee, they don't just stop by and refill your cup; they bring you a new cup filled with fresh, hot coffee and take away the old one. I pity the dishwasher there!

Mark let us take our time in choosing an entrée and he repeated the description of the Cod special for the evening because we were having a hard time deciding.

While perusing the menu, you're provided with fresh bread and an Olive Oil & Balsamic Vinegar dipping oil. We need to learn not to eat so much of that next time...you need to save room for desserts! Our menu choices for the evening looked like this:

Appetizer: Goat Cheese Stuffed Tomatoes

Salad: Don had the Caesar Salad and I had the amazing Baked Goat Cheese & Apple Salad

Entrées: I ordered the Scallops Gnocchi (Seared sea scallops on a bed of Gnocchi in a cream sauce) and Donald ordered the Cod special (pan-seared Cod served on a bed of Parmesan risotto which had been sauteed with bib lettuce and garlic). After we were served our meals, Donald and I switched because I liked his better. Isn't he a gentleman? I had a glass of white wine with my entrée - a Riesling is what I think we settled on, as they have a very extensive wine list

Desserts were another difficult choice, so in the end, we got two and shared. Donald ordered the Pumpkin Bread Pudding and I got my favorite Crème Brûlée. The best Crème Brûlée I've ever had - so I didn't do a lot of sharing! I had trouble eating it all but I made room. It was just too good to leave behind.

We will definitely be going back to Sul Lago again to celebrate a special occasion!

Being Vegetarian

Before Nicholas was conceived in 2002, I was a Vegetarian for one year. When I got pregnant, the taste of all the "veggie" burgers, bacon, and other non-meat products tasted horrendous. (My husband, Donald, would say they tasted horrendous from the beginning!) All my body craved was real meat: roast beef, hamburgers, hot dogs, steaks, bacon, etc. etc. I told myself that, since my body (or was it my baby) was craving those things, I'd eat them. I also told myself that once I had the baby, I'd see if I wanted to go back to my Vegetarian ways or stay an Omnivore. Well, I stayed an Omnivore. Now I am ready to be a Vegetarian again. My sister is a Vegetarian. My friend, Anne, is a Vegetarian. And many others are Vegetarians. I'm not talking Vegan here, people: I love ice cream and cheese too much and I'm not ready to give up my dairy products! I know there are hundreds of reasons to become Vegan as well, but let's deal with one issue at a time.

There are many reasons for being a Vegetarian and it doesn't just involve not eating red meat; however, ever since last summer, during the Dan Patch Days here in Savage, I haven't been able to enjoy eating red meat. I've eaten it, sure, but I haven't been able to enjoy it and I'll tell you why. Actually, I'll show you why:

This isn't the exact cow I met at the petting zoo at Dan Patch Days (I wish I'd taken a picture of her!) but she looks darn close. And once I looked into those big, brown eyes and patted her head, how could I enjoy eating red meat again? I grew up in central New York state, going into cow barns and visiting with cows throughout my life, but there was something about that cow last summer that stuck with me. I think her name was Molly, or it could have been Daisy, I really don't remember....what I do remember is her face. And it stares back at me whenever I eat red meat. More than likely, she was a Jersey dairy cow but that doesn't matter to my mind. In my mind, whenever I try to enjoy a steak or some pot roast, I see her face and that's all that matters.

Below is another sweet little calf I found on the internet. Don't you just want to keep her as a pet?

Anyone out there a Vegetarian? Anyone considering being a Vegetarian? Anyone tried it and decided they liked beef and chicken and bacon too much to be a Vegetarian? I'd like to know what you think! And remember, we're not here to bash omnivores, so keep your comments considerate of others. Thanks!

Gracie's Bad Pet Salon Experience

Without naming names or even giving the location, I must rant about Gracie's bad pet hair salon experience yesterday. She was so depressed and angst-ridden when I picked her up, she couldn't get out of there fast enough. When the "lady" who cut Gracie's hair handed her to me over the gate, she clawed her way up my neck and wouldn't let go! And the lady admitted to me that she'd been calling Gracie "Lucy" the whole time! The poor girl must have been so confused, thinking "Why are these people cutting the hair off my feet, trimming my backside, and calling me 'Lucy'? Doesn't my momma love me no more?" :-(

Gracie doesn't need much of a hair cut - just the hair on her feet and backside mainly, and maybe a little around her ears - but she came out of there looking like she'd been put through the ringer. I will NEVER take her to that place again and I probably will never take her to any other pet salon either. She's been to another pet hair salon (inside PETSmart) and that went pretty well. But, from now on, I will trim her toe hairs and her butt hairs myself and if it looks horrible, then at least she won't be scarred for life!

Good Thing There Are No Cameras In Our House!

Have you seen the media coverage of the "Christian Bale Tirade" out there? Apparently, he went on a tirade LAST JULY against director of photography Shane Hurlbuton on the set of his new movie "Terminator 4,206: Salvation" (really, how many Terminator movies do they need to make, anyway??) and TMZ.com just released it to the media. Come on, TMZ, why wait until almost a year after the incident to release it to the media? In the audio clip, Bale really rips the guy a new ***hole with his ****ing expletives. All I can say is that I think maybe he was just hungry and over-tired (although he has been known to have some anger issues in the past). It has been claimed that movie bosses sent the footage to their insurance company in case Bale didn't finish making the film. Good thing no one ever had audio or video equipment taping during some of my more vocal or physical outbursts!