Number Seven

Today I watched Winter's Bone, the seventh of ten Oscar picks.  It was a 'WTF' kind of movie.  It's not that I didn't like it, just that I'd probably never watch it again.  To be completely honest, I'm not sure I totally understood it.  Anyway, seven down, three to go!

Number Six

Just finished my sixth Oscar movie - The Social Network. 

I was a little disappointed.  After hearing SO many great things, I found the movie a little boring.  I guess that's what happens every time.  The most popular movies never seem to live up to the expectations I create in my head.  That being said, it's not a 'bad' movie, just not really that exciting.

Oh and P.S.

I'm back at a "Type 3.5"

My life is back to perfect.  :)

Balls to you!

If you haven't seen the viral video of Liza Minnelli saying, "Balls to you," you must go and watch it right now.  I don't know how many times I've seen it.  Over 100, for sure.  It makes me smile every time.  It only takes two seconds (literally) so go and watch it now!  Here's the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2tUHWw3WLQ&feature=related

So, "Balls to you" has become a catch phrase in the Casa de Sloan.  Whenever someone is bothering one of us, our response is, "balls to you!"  And we don't just say it...no no no, we have the have the buggy eyeballs and the bopping head to go with it (please refer to the video).

Sean - "Joe!  Did you eat the last banana?  I was saving it for my lunch!"

Joe - "Balls to you"

...and we all break out in laughter.

Ally - "Sean, you need to drive me to the mall."

Sean - "Balls to you"

...and we all break out in laughter.

See the theme?  Anyway, next time someone bugs you, just say "Balls to you."  Even if they don't get it, everyone will bust a gut laughing.

Happy belated Robbie Burns Day!

I was unable to blog this week, due to work (boo!), but here's to Robbie Burns!!  Hope all my Scottish friends had a great night!  (Do I have any Scottish friends?.....hmmmm...)

Happy Robbie Burns!!

It's all about Oscar!!

Oscar nominations are out!  Yes, the Oscars - the Academy Awards - the one award show I love watching every year.  I don't know what it is that draws me in every year?  Maybe the glitz and glamor?  The Hollywood dream?  Who knows...

The one thing I do know, is that I make it a goal to watch all the best picture nominations before the big show.  AND...I never end up accomplishing that goal.

So, I ask myself, will this be the year?  Will this be the year I see all the best picture nominations before Oscar comes to town?  Well let's get down to this years picks:

Oh...and by the way, they pick 10 movies now...not only 5.  Here we go...

1.  Black Swan - Seen it!  Yes, that's one.  The movie was...well weird, but good!  A very dark, psychological thriller.  On a side note, I think Natalie Portman has a great shot for the best actress win. 

2.  The Fighter  - Seen it!  Two for two!  And can I just say, this was probably the best movie I've seen all year.  It was funny, inspirational, and had heart.  Christian Bale is my pick for best supporting actor.

3.  Inception - Seen it!  Wowza!  Three in a row!  Let's keep going!  This movie was AWESOME!!  I actually bought it.  Christopher Nolan is one of my favourite directors.  I'm pretty sure this movie will win all the special effects awards.

4.  The Kids Are All Right - Haven't seen it...yet.  Well, the streak had to end somewhere.  I've heard this movie is pretty funny and that the acting is first class.  I can't wait to see it!

5.  The King's Speech - Seen it!  Four out of Five!  Awesome!  This movie was surprisingly funny.  Colin Firth is the one to beat in the best actor category.

6.  127 Hours - Haven't seen it.  This movie looks insane.  On my 'to see' list for sure!

7.  The Social Network - Haven't seen it.  I know!  How could I not have seen this movie?  It's the movie that defines our generation.  It's our Breakfast Club.  Our Clerks.  Our Dazed and Confused.  Anyway, I'll be watching this movie FOR SURE...and ASAP.  Will this movie win best picture?  We'll have to wait and see.

8.  Toy Story 3 - Seen it.  Not only have I seen this movie, it's also the only movie on the list that made me cry.  haha.  It always makes me happy to see an animated film in the best picture category.  It was awesome!

9.  True Grit - Haven't seen it.  I am planning on watching it this weekend though.  I've heard nothing but great things. 

10.  Winter's Bone - Haven't seen it.  Haven't heard of it.

Well, there you have it - The 2011 Academy Award best picture nominees.  Five out of ten.  Not bad!  I have a month to watch five movies.  Can I do it?  I think I can!!

You'd be dead!

So, I went to pick up my little cousin from school today.  As I waited for her to come outside, I noticed three little boys playing in the snow.  Here's how their conversation went:

Boy 1: "You can't pick up the snow!  You'll get in trouble!"

Boy 2: "I'm allowed to pick up snow because I'm older than you.  I'm five and a quarter!"

Boy 1: "Well...I'm five in three quarters!"

Boy 3: "Yeah, well, I'm five and a hundred quarters!"

Boy 1: "That's impossible.  If you were five and a hundred quarters, you'd be dead!"

At that point, I started laughing out loud - I couldn't help it.  Some kids are SO funny!

A record in the making!

Alright, pop quiz...

What is my favourite thing to talk about?

Give up?

If you said, "poop," then you're exactly right!

So, after wings and beer night, I had my usual diarrhea.  No surprise there.  Anyway, the diarrhea hasn't gone away!  It's been three days now.  I hate it!  But it makes me laugh every time I get "the urge."  So, after using the facilities today - I clean myself up, run into my sister's room, and shout, "That's poop number five.  At this pace, I'm breaking all Egypt records!"

Turns out she was on a 5 way phone call with a bunch of her friends.  haha.  They ALL heard.

They were on speaker phone and I hear one say, "Was that your dad?"

LOL...yes...yes it was, children.

So, if you could please direct your attention to the chart below:

This week I've been sitting at a type 5 stool.  Not the most comfortable, and definitely not the cleanest.  Egypt was a type 7, so at least that's the 'good' news.

I think my favourite BM is a type 3.  Hopefully I'm there by Sunday.  I'll keep you posted.

Now, if you could please direct your attention to the next diagram

Now, I have NO idea what's going on in this chart, but isn't the little police poop cute??

Blue Monday

Today is 'officially' the most depressing day of the year.  That's right - Blue Monday, the 3rd Monday in January.  Why is it so depressing for people?  There are a few reasons.

a) The weather sucks
b) Christmas bills are due
c) Failed New Year's resolutions

Now today I had a 'blah' day.  Was it depressing?  No, not really - just not very exciting.  Do I meet any of the above criteria?  Well, not really.  I'd like to think the weather sucked, because it's so cold out, but it's was actually really sunny (and a very nice winter day). 

Anyway, hopefully tomorrow is better (and I hope nobody I know had a Blue Monday).

Top Ten Reasons to go to the London Wine and Food Show

What does lavender flavoured salad dressing, garlic toasted flax seeds, and sundried tomato hummus have in common?  If you guessed things I bought at the London Wine and Food Show, you're right!

Tami and I went on the weekend and it was fantastic!  So delicious and so much fun!  Here are the top ten reasons to go:  

10.  You get to drink.  A lot.  Favourites included the apricot beer and the icecream shot (complete with mini cone and whipped cream).
9.  You get to eat.  A lot.  Favourites included the butter chicken and the honey waffles.  OMG...my mouth is watering right now.
8.  You get to watch a high end fashion show.  I felt like I should have been on Fashion Television!  I wanted to get up on stage and strut my stuff.
7.  You get to go to a cheese seminar and learn/ taste tons of different cheeses.  ...and then leave crack sweat on your seat as you get up.  haha.  I blame the sick black devil blue cheese (or whatever the hell it is).
6.  You get to meet an ultra gay South African that learns that this is your first W. and F.S. and gives you super full drinks at half price.  He was SO funny (and SO flamboyant...lol)
5.  Free Stuff!  Yes...it's all about the knives, the samples, the tote bags, the pens, the pads of paper, the magnets, etc
4.  Diane.  Our new friend and guide to all the free stuff.  She made my night.  No...actually...my life.
3.  You get to visit the casino for a surprise gift.  Our gift - a glass cube picture thingy.
2.  Spilling drinks all over yourself.  Not once.  Not twice.  But thrice. Damn red wine.  haha
1.  People watching.  Yes, it was fantastic.

Will I be going back next year?  Absolutely!

This is funny!

So, I'm eating lunch.  What am I having, you ask?  I'm eating a mini meat pie with a tea.  My dad walks into the room, sees this and asks if I'm a 70 year old woman.

Too funny.

It's true.  Now off to finish my crochet scarf.  (lol...JUST KIDDING about the scarf...just so we're all clear!  haha)

I'm an addict

Yes, it's true.  I'm an addict. 

I'm addicted to green tea with honey.  I made the switch from coffee about two weeks ago.  I can't get enough!  Mmmmm...so good.  My mouth is literally watering right now as I type this.  Anyway, the other night, I went and had a coffee - it may as well could have been tar.  It was so bitter and so....*gross*.  And I used to love it so much!  I do miss the smell of a hot cup of coffee, but the green tea is SOOOOOO good.

That is all.

One Year

It was a year ago, yesterday, when the earth shock in Haiti.  Leaving the country in shambles.

- 316,000 dead

- 300,000 injured

- 1,000,000 homeless

I can't comprehend these numbers in my head.  They're just too large.

The country and its people are still in recovery.  I hope and pray that things get better soon.

 

 

Is this not the most beautiful picture you have ever seen?

New Year

New Year...new design. 

It's still simple (which is what I want), but it's a little less 'boring'.

Cheers to some great blogs for 2011!!

Damn you Auto Correct!!

So, I meant to blog about this a few weeks ago.  It's about the auto correct on the iphone.  Now, I don't have an iphone, just the blackberry for me, but I hear the auto correct feature is frustrating beyond belief.  So frustrating that's actually hilarious in certain circumstances.  AND....they've made a website about it.  YES!

Damnyouautocorrect.com

    You NEED to check it out!  It's beyond funny.  I pee my pants every time I go to it.

For those who don't know what auto correct is, it's what it sounds like.  You're texting someone and the phone will automatically correct certain words for you (whether you like it or not).  If you push 'send' too quickly...well...that's where the funniness begins.

Here are some examples from the best of 2010.  So FUNNY!  Enjoy!

 

OMG...I'm laughing so hard.  I could have posted the entire website on here.  Go check it out if you want a good laugh!

Perspective

So, as you all know, my uncle has cancer.  Today he was told it's germ cell cancer - NOT lung cancer (which is what they thought it was a week ago).  Anyway, germ cell cancer is treatable.  So, this is good news, right? 

It is.

But I feel funny telling people, "Good news!  Rob's cancer is germ cell cancer!" 

When is any cancer 'good news'?  A month ago, before all of this, if our family was told, "Rob has germ cell cancer," we'd all be as devastated as we were last week.  I guess since we thought the worst, now this is 'good news.'  Right?  Perspective - it's a funny thing.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm a glass half full kind of guy, and this is good news - really good news.  Now there's a flicker of light in this dark room and all the darkness in the world cannot extinguish that flicker. 

Thanks to everyone for their kind words and understanding.  Much appreciation and love from my family to you.

Déjà vu

Okay...so who remembers when I forgot to bring clean underwear to the gym?  LOL!  What a question to start a blog!  For those who don't know what I'm talking about, just stop here...haha...or go back and read my blog from about a month ago.  Anyway...here comes the Déjà vu - but way worse!  So, I have a killer workout (yeah it's 2am.  I'm a loser and have nothing better to do, like, um, sleep) and I go to the changeroom and realize that I didn't bring any clean clothes!

So, I take a shower and then I need to get creative.  Well...I guess 'creative' isn't really the word.  Anyway, not only did I wear my pants - commando, I also wore my shoes with no socks (yuck) and my jacket with no shirt (double yuck).  Luckily the changeroom was empty so no one could see the ridiculous of the situation.  I felt like a big tool.  haha.  Oh well.  As I got back home and to my room, I took everything off.  Standing there naked, I said to myself, "I'm going to share this story with the world!"

Enjoy!!  haha

That little imagination candy is my Christmas gift to all of you!

Resolutions were meant to be broken...

Resolutions were meant to be broken...  That's my motto every year - every year, until this year!  That's right folks, this year I'm sticking to it!

So, what will change for 2011?  Well...there's the cliche - eat healthier and exercise more.  We'll see how long that one lasts. 

I've also switched my two cups of coffee to two cups of green tea (which wasn't very difficult, seeing as I like both).  

My biggest new year's resolution, and the one that I'm most excited about it, is that I'd like to travel around the world.  No, not literally, but I want to read books that take me around the world.  Get a feel for different countries and different cultures - and in a sense, 'visit' each place.

There's a woman who did something similar.  Her blog is called Around the World in 80 Books.

http://aroundtheworldin80books.wordpress.com/  (Check it out!)

Anyway, she does all her 'traveling' in one year (last year).  80 books is quite ambitious (especially for me), so I'm going to do a much more condensed version.  Around the World in 24 Books.  That's two books a month - very realistic for someone who rarely picks up a book.

I'm not proud that I don't read very often and that's why I'm taking on this challenge.  That's why I want to change.  That's why this is my new year's resolution.  So, where does my journey begin?    Well...I'm reading Simon & The Oaks - a coming of age story that takes place in Sweden during the time of World War II.  So far, so good.  Once I'm finished, I'll let you know how it was, and where I'll be traveling next.  Boy Voyage!

Top 10 of 2010...part three

So, I pretty much listen to talk radio or country music, so here are my top ten country songs of 2010:

1.  Mama's Song - Carrie Underwood
2.  Roll With It - Easton Corbin
3.  Anything Like Me - Brad Paisley
4.  Come Back Song - Darius Rucker
5.  A Little More Country Than That - Easton Corbin
6.  The Breath You Take - George Straight
7.  Put You in a Song - Keith Urban
8.  Stuck Like Glue - Sugarland
9.  Hemingway's Whiskey - Kenny Chesney
10.  The Boys of Fall- Kenny Chesney
11.  Turn On The Radio - Reba McEntire
12.  If I Die Young - The Band Perry

Okay...I cheated.  It was really, really hard to get it down to even 12.  So, there, top 12 in 2010.  It's my blog, I can do what I want.  haha

Top 10 of 2010...part two

Here are the top ten places I visited in 2010:

1.  Hoi An, Vietnam (great food, great shopping, great company)
2.  Seattle, Washington (fish market, 1st Starbucks, Seattle Space Needle)
3.  Ha Long Bay, Vietnam  (breathtaking)
4.  Jasper/Banff/Lake Louise, Albert (beautiful, animals, giant mountains, got to walk on a glacier)
5.  Vancouver, British Columbia (Olympic torch, suspension bridges, totem poles)
6.  Ho Chi Ming City, Vietnam  (Crazy, busy, great friends)
7.  Chicago, Illinois (amazing architecture, great food)
8.  Cedar Point, Ohio (roller coaster capital of the world, great company, so much fun!)
9.  Thunder Bay, Ontario (memories, my brother)
10.  Wawa, Ontario (fishing, goose, goomies, great friends)

Top 10 of 2010...part one

Here are the top 10 shows on TV I watched in 2010:

1. The 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.  From Alexandre Bilodeau's first Canadian gold medal on home soil, to the victory of our men's and women's hockey teams.  These games had us laughing and they had us crying.  It let all Canadians get together, throw on the red and white, and sing O Canada as loud as they could.  I'll never forget the weeks where Canada played host to the world.
2.  The 2010 World Cup in South Africa.  Hup Holland Hup!!  We painted the town orange!!  Although we lost in the final game to Spain, it was still a great party on my Grandma's back porch, when the Netherlands came to play.
3.  How I Met Your Mother.  I watched all 5 seasons in about the span of a month.  So funny!
4.  Best Recipes Ever.  Lol.  I needed a cooking show on here...and not to mention, I'm in love with the host. 
5.  Dexter.  Okay, so it's about a serial killer.  Whatever.
6.  Little Mosque on the Prairie.  There's something about the characters on this show that I love.  Not to mention, it's hilarious!
7.  Men With Brooms.  One of my favourite movies is now a TV show!  YES!!
8.  Stargate SG1.  Okay, so this show is a little older, but when you and your brother watch 10 seasons in the span of a few months, it needs to make the list.
9.  America's Next Top Chef.  OBSESSED with this show.  I would dream about for days afterward.  haha 
10.  The Apprentice.  No celebrities this year...yay!  And Ivanka....grrrr....

Happy New Year!!

Just wanted to wish everyone a...

HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!

How did you celebrate the coming of 2011?  Well..I'll tell you what I did. 

A friend of mine was having a get together at his apartment.  Me, having to work the next morning, hemmed and hawed on whether or not to go.  For those who don't know, when I work in morning, it's an early morning...like alarm goes off at 3:45 early.  So, after much thought, I decided - okay, I'll stop by, make an appearance, back at home and in bed by 10.  Not the case.  Six beers later, I'm blowing my Happy New Year horn as Auld Lang Syne is being sung on the TV.  Okay...I really NEED to get home.  So, I leave and I find myself crawling into bed around 1ish.  Awesome...up in less than 3 hours.  As I lie in bed, trying my hardest to fall asleep, I think to myself, "Self, I REALLY need to take a leak."  It can wait till morning.  OH NO it can't!  Up I get and I find myself in the bathroom.  As I'm peeing, I say to myself, "Self, I can really go number two right now."  Well...since I was there anyway.  As I'm melting the porcelain, I say to myself, "Self, I have a KILLER headache."  So, after I'm finished (lol...as if I'm sharing this story), I go and take a few Tylenols.  After the pills, I say to myself, "Self, am I ever hungry!"  So, I made a sandwich.  As I'm reading the newspaper from the day before, I look up at the microwave..."Self, HOLY SH*T, I need to be up in two hours!!"  So, back to bed I went.  haha.  I did wake up on time and I did show up to work on time...however...I was a zombie.  Never again...haha...never again...  The lesson of the story....well...there isn't one.  HAPPY NEW YEAR!!