February 22, 2011

Tuesday Tunes

Thank god for the ipod, right? Now, I'm not one of those people who keeps up with all the new music trends (in fact, when watching The Grammy's I basically felt like I had aged 25 years and was so lost in all those new trendy tunes--Esperanza Spalding? who?) but I do like to listen when I'm on the train.

I like to drown people out as they sniffle from Times Square to Soho (get a tissue! here--have mine!) and music is a really good way to do that for me.

I tend to listen to the same tracks over and over and over--rarely varying from my favorite albums of the month. Music comes in waves for me--I'll get really tired of the same old stuff and go on a hunt for something new and then listen to that for three months straight.

Here is a peak of my favorites for the past few months (I usually get my inspiration for new music from blogs--so if you are sick of your music maybe this will help!)





February 21, 2011

O's: Inception

Soo--Oscar week is upon us and lets just say that I haven't quite completed the whole task yet! I'm getting there! Do I want to see True Grit? No I don't. Will I see it? I'm not sure yet, I still have some time.

Over the weekend James and I watched 'Inception'. Now let met say this, it is really hard to get two people together who don't live together to watch a movie. There are so many other great things to be doing together out and about in the world rather than staying home to watch a movie but sometimes, at least for me, that is all I feel like doing.

So, we watched Inception. Thankfully he was here with me so I could pause and ask some questions that went something like, "Now, explain to me the last 30 minutes we watched?" and "Okay, so which dream are we in and how in the hell did we get here?"--it is a complicated flick!

That being said, it is an interesting idea with a superstar cast.

That being said, I fell asleep with 30 minutes to go in the movie.

That being said, it is entertaining (mostly) but definitely requires undivided attention, something that I apparently wasn't ready to give.

February 20, 2011

O's: The Kids Are All Right

I think I posted about this movie way back in the summer? when James and I went to see it--but I loved this flick. Annette Benning is one of my favorite actresses of all time (The American President is basically my fav movie ever--go rent it) and she was excellent in this film too.

It is a modern take on marriage, intimacy, love and life. I really enjoyed the relationships that were created throughout--making it a believable interpretation of how things can get messy but love can prevail.



I could probably watch this movie a few more times (which says a lot for me considering I hate watching most movies twice) and hope you all get to see it.

Again, since it didn't have as much BUZZ as Black Swan or The King's Speech I don't think it would win for Best Picture but it most certainly deserves to stand amongst the other nominees.

February 17, 2011

Quote


via Design Crush

February 16, 2011

Ran, Running, Will Run

So--I've been running. I've been running in the park, in the gym, in Queens and in place. I've been running a lot and I still don't love it. I like it MUCH better than I ever have. Do I love to run? No. Would I consider myself to be a great runner? No. Am I better than when I started? Yes, most definitely.

For me, running is hard. I don't naturally have endurance so I really have to work for each and every minute. The only way I can gain that endurance is through running more and nothing gets you to run MORE than signing up for a race. So, with the inspirational help from Jen I signed up for a race and hit the pavement.

We ran this race last weekend and it felt pretty good. I wasn't dead at the end and I felt a little bit like I belonged. We weren't the last ones to cross the finish line, not that time is something I'm keeping very much track of, and I didn't want to quit running altogether when we were done.



Jen and I are planning a 10K in the spring and I'm kind of excited. Signing up for something makes the hard work feel worth it and lets face it, puts the pressure on. I really didn't think that running was something I could ever claim as something I enjoy but I'm thinking that if I keep this up it might just happen.

February 13, 2011

O's: Toy Story 3

What's not to love about Toy Story? I was totally nostalgic watching this movie, as it reminded me of babysitting for this family back at home. When TS1 was really popular, we used to watch and play with Woody and Buzz--this was back when they only had one little boy. Now, that little boy is all grown up and he has two brothers who love these Toy Story movies so much--and so do I.

Toy Story 3 was epically cute and basically just confirms what we already know: growing up is hard!

I loved finding out who all the voices of the toys are--I totally forgot Joan Cusack was the role of 'Jessie' (there is nothing not to love about Joan Cusack!)

Will Toy Story 3 win for best picture? Probably not. I feel like it is hard for a Pixar movie to compete against a giant like Black Swan or The King's Speech but it is certainly worth a watch if you have kids or even if you don't!

February 10, 2011

O's: Winter's Bone

So, Winter's Bone. Did you see it? I saw it. It was dark and sad. Was I that thrilled about it? Not really. Why? I don't know!

It could have been that I wasn't paying TOTAL attention to it--but then again if it was super captivating my attention would have been there. I did like it, I just didn't love it.

The best part of the movie is the lead female character played by Jennifer Lawrence. Like I said about Melissa Leo from The Fighter, Jennifer Lawrence is a welcome surprise. She is new to me and was really fabulous. I'm loving all these leading ladies who keep surprising me!



The verdict: check it out but probably won't win for Best Picture!

February 8, 2011

Cold

It is cold today. I didn't think it was this morning--but it is now. My room is freezing so I'm drinking tea in the kitchen with my oven on to warm my toes.

This photo made me smile--what a pretty chick!


photo by Elizabeth Weinberg

xo

February 3, 2011

2011 O's: The Fighter

James makes fun of me because I have this affinity for movies about/in/around/surrounding/anything Massachusetts. I don't know if it is the accents or the familiar territory, but its true. I grew up right outside Boston and can't help myself--I just love those classically Bostonion movies and The Fighter was no exception.




The cast was excellent and I was especially surprised by Melissa Leo, nominated for Best Actress in her role as the mother--I hadn't even heard of her before but thought she was both convincing and entertaining. (Interesting article about her in this weeks NY Magazine which reinforced my newfound love!)




It is most certainly worth seeing--even if you didn't grow up right outside Boston and your dad isn't a die hard Celtics fan with the thickest Boston accent you know.


P.S. You don't have to know or care about boxing to be entertained for the two hour film, which I was weary of before seeing but can attest to the fact that I didn't care about boxing and still don't--but did love The Fighter!

February 2, 2011

Turnley Family Granola


After dating James for a little while, I quickly realized he had an affinity for peanut butter. I also realized he didn't like chocolate, which was almost a deal breaker for me but he was just so cute I couldn't let the fact that he wouldn't touch my chocolate chip cookies get the best of me! So--I've adapted.

James' mom makes an excellent peanut butter granola that he loves (and I do too) so a couple weekends ago I emailed her for the recipe and this is what happened.


Thats my kitchen and its a mess. You might be wondering why there is a big jug of grapefruit juice and whole grain pasta on the counter? Well, that day I also made a baked ziti and enchiladas and chocolate chip cookies and I did it all at once. ha!



Here is my granola and my wooden spoon that I got honey on so it stuck to my hand for the entire time.


Finished product! James said it was good and gave me a tip or two for reaching the full potential next time (to be more like his mooommmmsss) and so I'll take that into consideration for next time.



Results: Very easy and really delicious. Snack on it alone or pour milk over it and eat like cereal!


Peanut Butter Granola
2/3 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1/3 cup honey
4 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats (not "Quick Oats")
In a large saucepan, over medium heat, melt the butter. Then turn off heat and add peanut butter; when melted and smooth, stir in the honey.
Add the oats, one cup at a time; this gets harder with each addition, so use a nice smooth handled spoon for comfort. Add peanuts if using.
Spray a large oval on a cookie sheet
Scrape out the granola onto your cookie sheet about 1 1/4 inches high.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees; then put the granola in and bake for about 9 minutes.
Enjoy!

February 1, 2011

Oscars 2011

Its that time of year again and with the announcements of all the nominations for Best Picture, I am both excited and feeling like woah! get on it! movies!

I've seen some, have avoided others and am dieing to see a few more so the next few weeks should be excellent and stimulating. Like I did last year, I'm going to provide a little commentary about each film and what I thought without ruining any of the stories for those of you who are a little slower on the whole getting to the movies thing.

The nominations for Best Picture this year are:

The Kings Speech
Inception
The Fighter
Toy Story 3
Black Swan
The Kids Are All Right
127 Hours
The Social Network
True Grit
Winter's Bone

I've also seen/plan to see some of the films that star the nominees in both the Best Actress/Actor categories because this is my blog and I'll do what I want.

Movie watching begins now!

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