Excitement

Here's my holiday rundown, for those interested....

We had a nice holiday with our family. It was uneventful but filling. Tasty foods seem to have been particularly prevalent in our house recently, with leftovers being heaped on us as we enjoyed tailgating/babysitting/cold-fighting leftovers or a good shared meal with friends or family followed by the other party leaving town. Thus Italian food, Indian food, pizza, chili, ham, and more ham crowded the refrigerator after months of spaciousness. I loved that our holiday dinner with my dad featured ravioli and a green frosted cake (both of which we inherited). I didn't make cookies or candy this year. instead my own contribution to the holiday food haul has been an homage to my recent obsession with Omega-3's and fiber, in the form of a yummy trail mix I made to give as gifts, consisting of nuts, dried fruits, and dark chocolate. Mmm. I think good food makes up for lack of excitement any time, which probably says a lot about me.

We seem to have cemented a new Christmas tradition these past few years where we watch whatever DVD I got, right after David's family eats goose and I eat whatever else is on offer. I think The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou started the trend, or maybe it was Arrested Development. I know last year we watched Amadeus. Repeatedly. This year it was The Color Purple. A much longer standing tradition continued the evening before at my place with the viewing of White Christmas. David and my mom rolled their eyes at my exhilaration over the prospect, but I don't care. I love that movie. I also love Miracle on 34th Street (Natalie Wood is so cute), and It's a Wonderful Life but I missed both this year. At least I saw one holiday movie, that's what matters most. I had no shortage of other holiday media though; David had no fewer than five South Park holiday episodes stacked on Tivo at one point, and we had the holiday specials for The Vicar of Dibley from Netflix. That and the peppermint Peeps we had with hot chocolate meant a quite fun Christmas Eve, I'll tell you. Seriously, aren't you jealous? Actually, the most exciting moment on Christmas came when we nearly got run off the road by a Hummer en route to my mom's. That kind of excitement I can do without. I'll stick with having a marshmallow in my cocoa, thank you.

New Year's Eve is one of those times when we are supposed to manufacture excitement, but I've never been one to follow tradition, more less be associated with excitement. The most fun I can recall having at New Year's in the past 20 years was a dinner party we put on back when we were still in college. It was good fun, but the memory is fading. Not that I've done much to top it. One year in Texas we went to a movie that started at 11, ensuring we'd actually be awake at the New Year. Last year we played Guitar Hero at Tara's, which was quite fun, but not particularly festive. Then there was the millenium year, spent with Tara and friends in a rented house in Lake Tahoe. Sounds good, right? Except that two members of our party (my brother included) had recently been to the emergency room, and two others had medical conditions preventing their participation in much revelry. We watched each New Year around the world take place as we waited for word on the second hospital patient. While I suppose we could have seen our own West Coast midnight as a renewal of sorts, instead I was too tired and sad to care. A few years later we spent another New Year's Eve day in the Tahoe hospital after my brother had a rather spectacular sledding accident. We spent that New Year's packing our stuff for a hasty return drive home. these are my New Year's memories. So is it any wonder that it isn't my favorite holiday?

Tonight I'll probably be watching something on Tivo when the calendar flips, drinking Martinelli's, definitely, and possibly waking David up to let him know he can go to bed. My mother accused me of being quite unexciting, which I can't argue with. I'd rather be happy than exciting, I suppose. For some reason (and I'm sure you are drawing more conclusions about me as I say this), I can't imagine myself as both. C'est la vie.

Happy New Year to you all, whatever you are doing to entertain yourselves tonight.

Gynopower

Okay, these two movies might not seem likely candidates for a women's rights convention, but I am thrilled nonetheless to recommend them as they feature wryly clever, modern, female-centered storylines featuring two good young actresses with nary a boobjob or bleachjob in sight. My version of gynopower, perhaps. :)

Enchanted
I saw this being filmed last summer in New York, creating a commitment to see the finished product regardless of its quality. Thank goodness for me that it's thoroughly delightful. From the silly hyper-Disney animated opening to the song and dance routines and predictable romantic ending, Enchanted is adorable. More specifically, Amy Adams as Giselle is utterly adorable and truly the best reason to see the film (much like she was in Junebug). Enchanted also stars Patrick Dempsey as cynical lawyer Robert, a man who simultaneously helps the out-of-this-world Giselle while trying to instill in his own fairytale-seeking daughter a sense of cold hard reality. James Marsden is funny as a stupidly earnest prince in search of his intended. The lowpoints are a relatively poorly developed evil queen/stepmother, a bit of excessive silliness involving the queen's hapless helper, and a ridiculous dragon showdown atop skyscraper. A better ending to this movie might have brought it near perfection as a family friendly romance. Recommended overall.

Juno
Sweet, edgy, and occasionally dark with a romantic spirit a world away from Enchanted and yet remarkably as innocent in the end. Remarkable because it's a film about 16-year old Juno, who becomes pregnant after having sex with her friend and bandmate (played achingly well by Michael Cera), then decides on her own to deliver the baby into the hands of a couple she found in the Penny Saver. The childless couple, played by Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner, clearly aren't as perfect as they seem, but nothing ever is. Over the course of a school year, Juno deals with, as she tells her caring and obviously lenient father, "things way beyond her maturity level". Again, an adorable movie, even more consistent in quality than Enchanted, and again made fabulous by its female star, Ellen Page. Highly recommended.

Festivus

Today is my half birthday, which might explain why I woke up so cheery this morning (to David's chagrin). Or maybe I'm happy today because the holiday spirit is finally hitting me. Okay, it might be a bit late to mail those holiday cards, and apart from one relatively mass produced holiday present, I've obtained virtually nothing for gift giving. But still, there's a crispness in the air, blinking lights everywhere, and old friends coming to town.

Winter solstice and yuletide greetings to you all! Technically the solstice is tomorrow, but I wanted to give you time to prepare--get the fire ready, get some evergreens into your home, hang the mistletoe, etc. Reading up on various winter solstice and Christmas traditions (whether they are your own or not) can be a nice antidote to the consumerized frenzy that overtakes much of the US after Thanksgiving. After all, the shorter days and ancient celebrations that marked this time of year are the real "reason for the season", so go ahead and embrace those roots. It's something we can all share in, and sharing is nice, right?

Too often people stress out preparing for this holiday break--the travel, the shopping, the family togetherness. That won't go away, so I hope you find time in the day to look for simple pleasures and enjoy them...a nice warm cup of cocoa with marshmallows, the clear ringing of bells, the fluffy trim on Santa's hats, the smell of fresh cut evergreens. Give the gift of your complete presence and a genuine smile. It's environmentally friendly, costs you nothing, and is good for your health. Mmm, I'm officially ready for winter.

(P.S. Above image is one of many fabulous quotable things.)

IPO

NetSuite went public today. Read more about the NetSuite IPO here or here. According to Investopedia, "going public" means:

The process of selling shares that were formerly privately held to new investors for the first time. Otherwise known as an initial public offering (IPO). When a company "goes public," it is the first time the general public has the ability to buy shares.

Alas I did not sit and watch for ticker tape item "N" all day, which I suppose makes me a bad Silicon Valley life partner. David received a bag of "N" goodies, dated today, and he came home feeling his continued employment outlook is strong. The second of these was the better gift, I'd say. :)

Holiday in Handcuffs

Attempting to kickstart the holiday season or just fulfilling a desire to be lazy for one evening and watch something comforting and mindless and cheesy, who knows, but I enjoyed ABC Family's Holiday in Handcuffs this weekend. David might not admit it publicly, but I think he did too. Apparently we weren't alone, as this show broke ABC Family's ratings record. I do love being one of the people. :)

Presidential

Know who you'd like to become the next President? Willing to bet on that? The Washington Post gives you the opportunity to do a blind check of the candidates based on their issue statements with this candidates issues quiz. For each topic (social security, Iraq troop withdrawal, energy, immigration, etc.) you are given the candidates' positions; but you aren't told who said what. You indicate how important the issue is to you when you vote, then you are shown who said it and points are attributed. Pretty cool, huh?

And if that doesn't float your boat, how about spying on your neighbors? Check out who's contributed at least $200 to presidential candidates here or here.