Out...ALREADY?

Do you believe this? Just one week of training and he's already wimping out.

The actor played Big Pussy on TV.

There's a joke in here somewhere.
It's just too easy.

Isn't This a Hoot?

You have to admit: it's pretty funny when you hire someone famous to be your spokesperson and they're allergic to your product!

Read on...

Oscar Hangover...And A Letter To the Winners

Anyone who knows me well knows that in my house last night, the only thing that could possibly be on TV was the Oscars. At this time of year, we eat, drink, sleep and breathe Oscars. All day long. All the time.

But this has been quite a different Oscars season for me. I never had an obsession so strong to get in the way of my Oscar viewing as I did during 2006 and the first part of this year. And that would be golf. When the Oscar nominees were announced back on January 23, my husband and I had only seen four movies released in 2006 for the entire year. Gulp. That is so unlike us. Usually every weekend or every other weekend had been spent at a matinee.

But not since learning golf. Now, we were on a golf course at least every other week. It is the rule and not the exception in our schedule. But I must say that I absolutely love the sport and look forward to it every single time we prepare to play. I must truly be a golf lover because even when I stink which is quite often, I still have a great time and cannot wait to play again.

So when the Oscar nominations were named, well, we had our work cut out for us. Thirty nominations to see...in just a month. This was our final weekend and we did sneak in two more movies at the end of the week. Overall, we managed to see 13 of the 16 movies with key nominations (or 26 of the 30 big nominees). That's not too bad... and we certainly do plan to see the rest of them when they hit HBO or pay-per-view.

So as the ultimate movie lover and Oscar fanatic, I send along my comments about the big winners from Sunday's night's big event. And as a tribute to an evening of pomp and circumstance, I will address the winners directly. (Because I know that they're reading this blog right now. I'm just sure of it...)

Director and Movie:
To Martin Scorsese (and The Departed) -
I was thrilled to see you win for Best Director and The Departed as Best Picture. And I never EVER thought I'd be writing that. I've always loved your enthsiasm and love for movies and clearly you are a class act through and through and one of the nicest guys in the industry. But I didn't think Raging Bull or Taxi Driver were great movies, though I will admit that Goodfellas and Aviator completely won me over. But I had never been so taken by one of your movies until The Departed. It was a total surprise to me how enthralled I was with the storyline and characters. Fascinating stuff and you deserve every accolade, heap of praise and glittery trinket bestowed upon you.

Supporting Actress:
To Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls -
I liked you during American Idol, but your performance in Dreamgirls didn't knock me out as Cate Blanchette in Notes on a Scandal or Rinko Kikuchi in Babel. You looked beautiful as you accepted your award and you knocked them dead during your performance last night. But I think thanking American Idol on TV would have been a really classy move and I was disappointed that you forgot what captured those producers' attention in the first place.

Supporting Actor:
To Adam Arkin, Little Miss Sunshine -
Well, for me, the good news was that Eddie Murphy DIDN'T win because I didn't feel he should have been nominated. You were funny in the movie and there was a sweet touch to your performance in your scenes with co-star Abigail Breslin. But I'm sorry - you just didn't move me as Dijmon Hounsou in Blood Diamond did. He was the real best supporting actor in my book. Sorry.

Lead Actress:
To Helen Mirren, The Queen -
I have absolutely no problem with your winning last night. You are an exquisite actress and charming as a personality. You completely won me over in the movie that you truly were the Queen herself. I may have in my own faux Oscars selected Judi Dench my favorite lead actress performance, but it was a close race for me and I would have been content with either one of you winning. Dame Helen, you looked terrific at the ceremony, were graceful and gracious as I'd expect you to be and deserve every ounce of the Golden Boy.


Lead Actor:
To Forrest Whitaker, Last King of Scotland -
Occasionally, it happens that a person I really like and want to root for, wins - even when they may not have been my choice as the year's best. This is one of those such years. I really like Philip Seymour Hoffman but I didn't like his performance last year. I didn't begrudge him for winning but was disappointed that Joaquin Phoenix in Walk the Line didn't win instead. I thoroughly enjoyed Jamie Foxx in Ray a few years ago but completely felt that Don Cheadle in Hotel Rwanda or Leonardo DiCaprio in The Avaiator were more deserving. Forrest, I thought you did a very good job in Last King of Scotland, but I felt that your co-star James McGorvey was just as good, if not better and he was completely overlooked in all of the contests. To me, it is often harder to portray someone unknown and build a real, breathing being onscreen than to portray someone we all know in some way or another. I was happy for you and I know how appreciative and humbled you were from last night's win, but I wasn't rooting for you. Sorry.

Every year, I am swept up in the mania that is my own little Oscar Run. I find joy in movies that I would otherwise never have taken the time to see and sometimes, disappointment in critically acclaimed giants that do nothing to amaze me. It's a fun, adventurous trek and I always look forward to it. But when it is all over, I am always longing for something more.

This year, a lot of really good, genuine people won - and even if I wasn't always rooting for them, it was nice to see the kudos welcomed with open arms, appreciation and some sincerity.

And finally...
To most valuable player:
Ellen, our fabulous host for the evening -
Please don't believe all that you read. I think if the producers had simply spent less time on goofy crap like shadow dancers and sound effect choirs, viewers might have gotten more of a chance to be truly entertained by your laid-back, refreshing style and humor.

Denver Takes Another Hit

I don't know what's more fateful. Being a Playboy Playmate of the Year.

Or a Denver Bronco.

Geez.

Trumped by the Trop

Would someone please tell me how the Devil Rays got anyone to show up at the Trop when a real baseball fan looking for information about their Fan Fest event for the past month didn't hear a damn word about it?

ARGGHHHHH!

Oh My Gosh

Is it true?

Will we really have to hire Bruce Willis to save the day?

My Little Chickadee

Sometimes, we take things for granted.

Green grass.
Blue skies.
Two-legged birdies.

But no more...read on and meet my new little freaky, feathered friend.

Oscar Run --- The Latest

Okay, anyone who knows the Kuhn household knows we take our movies very seriously. That's why every room in our home has at least one favorite movie's poster on the wall - appropriately themed, of course. We take our Oscars even MORE seriously.

This year, we got a late start on our Oscar Run, which consists of seeing all 30 top nominations before the Oscars, making our own three sets of picks - who we think will win, who we WANT to win and who has no chance in hell of winning. In addition, we make up our own lists of nominees and pick our own winners, all before that Sunday evening extravaganza. Well, this year, we were a little behind when the nominees were named that fateful Tuesday morning. We hadn't seen one of the 16 movies comprising those big 30 nominations. Yikes. We knew we had quite a task ahead of us. But we wouldn't let that get in the way. And since then - just 3 1/2 weeks later - we've already knocked off quite a few.

Let's see...

• We've seen 4 Best Actor nominees (Dicaprio in Blood Diamond, Gosling in Half-Nelson, Whitaker in Last King of Scotland and Smith in Pursuit of Happyness) and right now, I'm rooting for Smith. It doesn't look probable we'll make it to O'Toole in Venus, but you never know...
  
• We've seen 4 Best Actress nominees (Mirren in The Queen, Dench in Notes on a Scandal, Winslet in Little Children and Streep in Devil Wears Prada) and we have no intention of seeking out Volver to catch Penelope Cruz -sorry, but no way, Jose. I guess I thought Mirren or Dench were the best but I really don't care about this category this year.
  
• We've seen 4 Supporting Actor nominees (Housou in Blood Diamond, Arkin in Little Miss Sunshine, Murphy in Dreamgirls and Haley in Little Children) We will definitely be seeing Wahlberg in The Departed this next week so I want to refrain for making a pick just yet - I think he's a great actor and it may just be him who takes the prize in my book.
  
• We've seen 3 Supporting Actress nominees (Hudson in Dreamgirls, Breslin in Little Miss Sunshine and Blanchette in Notes on a Scandal) and we'll be seeing Babel this next week which will be the remaining two supporting actress nominees, so the verdict is still out.
  
• We've seen 2 Best Director nominees (United 93 and The Queen) but we'll be seeing The Departed and Babel for sure this next week. We may or may not get to see Letters from Iwo Jima before Oscar night.
  
• And finally, we've seen 2 Best Picture nominees (Little Miss Sunshine and The Queen) and will be weighing in on Babel and The Departed this week - and again, are not sure if we'll get to see Letters before Sunday night.

So, that's how the tally board is looking. I predict when all is said and done that Peter O'Toole and Penelope Cruz will be the lone leftovers and that we'll make it to Clint's Japanese epic, but we'll just have to see...

The Oscar Run continues...

Aliens Live Among Us

Brittany.

Phone Home.

Sweet Fix Savior!

I am always looking for ways to feel like I'm cheating on this weight loss deal without actually doing so. And I finally found something that fits the bill.

For any of my buddies checking out the site who've also made a commitment to change their eating this year, you've just got to check these out.

Quaker Mini-Delights
Chocolate Drizzle Mini-Multigrain Cakes

A serving is a bag and it's only 90 calories and 3.5g total fat (3.5g saturated, 0g trans fat) - low sodium (85mg) - cholesterol (0mg), total carbs (14g), dietary fiber (1), sugars (6g), Protein (1g) --- 2% iron, helpful for veggies like me.

They're mostly whole grain wheat flour, yellow corn, brown rice four, etc. And they're light and delicious...

If you're desperate for something sweet like me, you might enjoy these little goodies! :)

Hang in there!

Grammys Get It Right

Now, I will admit. I didn't watch the Grammys tonight, I haven't really understood contemporary music for a long time, barring a few exceptions (John Mayer, KT Tunstall, John Legend, etc.) but I couldn't have been happier to hear the big news tonight.

Dixie Chicks took five tonight at the Grammys!

Best Country Album (HA! Take that, rebel flag-flying America!)

Best Country Duo or Group (HA! Take that, you small-minded, wacko listeners too consumed with politics and flag-waving to acknowledge good music when they hear it, even in your own favorite genre).

Best Record and Song of the Year (HA! Take that radio stations too scared to play good music because of those damn wacko listeners described above)

And finally, Best Album --- regardless of genre (HA! MTV may make millions featuring artists like Timberlake and Beyonce and Blige, but take genre out of it. This is a phenonmenal album, much like their last few albums, that surpasses the scope or dimension of any of these current "hot" artists.

And it's refreshing that not only was good music recognized, but a very important message was sent tonight - to music fans, the industry and the Prez.

Congratulations, Dixie Chicks! And much deserved...

Maybe I'm just strange, but this is fun...

Have you dressed a Taco Bell packet lately?

Yeah, I know how that sounds, but it's too cool. I went out to this site seeking nutritional information (and got it), but boy, did I find a whole lot more.


Click here to try it for yourself.

Enjoy!

Cheese, Anyone?

This is the most bizarre site I've seen in years. Who knew there was a place on the World Wide Web that I could watch cheese age? Yep, that's right. Cheese age. And if you're lucky, you'll see someone come along and move the cheese. Wow...

Click here to check out CheddarVision for yourself!