Conversations and My Take on Doughnuts

This might be the most random week of blogging and for that I apologize; but, then again, maybe you enjoy it, what do I know? Today I thought I would post a couple of conversations I had recently which I thought were kind of funny - maybe you will too.

This first one took place the Sunday before New Year's Eve in the parking lot of Wal-Mart in Hampton Cove. We were driving separate vehicles, but arrived at the same time:

My dad: I've failed as a parent
Me: Why do you say that?
My dad: Because I just watched you drive through this parking lot.
Me: Well, you taught me how to drive.
My dad: Exactly

This conversation took place at work this week while I was chatting with my friend David about the advancements in technology over the past few years:

Me: My first cell phone was a bag phone.
David: What's a bag phone?
Clearly, I am getting older.

On a completely random and unrelated note, Mr. Donut in Hampton Cove has closed. It actually closed a while ago, but I neglected to mention it, probably because it was so devastating. If you would observe a moment of silence for what was the best doughnut shop in Madison County.... Thank you.

In other doughnut related news, Dunkin' Donuts opened close to my house at the end of November. I have only been once. I went on a Friday night after a football game with my dad and brother and the place was packed. We got inside and not long after they locked the doors because they close at 10:00. By the time we got to the counter, the selection was slim to none and we were basically stuck with some glazed doughnuts that had probably been sitting there all day - they were stale and tasteless. I think my dad went back another time; but they hit up Krispy Kreme this past weekend so I guess they are back to the old faithful. Krispy Kreme just isn't as tasty after eating Mr. Donut, at least to me any way - not that I was a regular Krispy Kreme eater before Mr. Donut came to town. So, that's my take on doughnuts in Madison County. Maybe another gem like Mr. Donut will pop up soon, but I'm not going to hold my breath.

The 2012 Parker Football Bowl Challenge

I haven't mentioned anything about our annual Football Bowl Challenge this year. I had planned to mention it at the end of last year along with about 40 other things; but, alas, time got away from me and I never wrote about it. The Parker Bowl Challenge is perhaps one of my favorite things about football season. I look forward to filling out my picks and turning them in before the bowl season starts and then tallying the records after each game.

You may recall that I won the Parker Football Bowl Challenge last year and was able to proudly and prominently display the trophy for a year at my house. I handed the trophy over to the family patriarch (my dad) on December 13 before the beginning of bowl season on December 15. Everyone turned their picks in by December 14 and we waited day-by-day with baited breath to see who would win. I had a the worst start of anyone and was 3-3 after the first six games - even my mother was ahead of me! Eventually I went ahead of my mother and then went on a six game winning streak to come from behind and tie my dad for the lead. My dad updated the chart about mid-way through the bowl games and had highlighted in green games where we all had the same pick; but, I found a couple of mistakes in that green highlighting and pointed them out and was then asked, "Are you trying to win?" Absolutely!

Then, my brother, in a weird pick, chose Northwestern over Mississippi State and it was a three-way tie for first place between me my dad and Justin, all with a record of 13-11. Since we had all picked Alabama to win the National Championship, the bowl challenge came down to the next to the last bowl game of the season on January 06 when Arkansas State faced Kent State in the GoDaddy.com Bowl down in Mobile. My dad picked Arkansas State and Justin and I had Kent State. If Arkansas State won then my dad would win and if Kent State won, then it would come down to the tiebreaker which was picking the score of the National Championship game.

Well, Arkansas State won and so did my dad. He has officially been crowned the 2012 Parker Bowl Challenge Champion and for the first time since we've had a trophy (this is the third year I think) he gets to proudly and prominently display the trophy in the spot of his choosing. This is also the first year the challenge has come down to the wire; usually there is a clear winner with about five or six games to go. The final standings are as follows:

Champion: Steve with a record of 23-12
Runners Up: Justin and Natasha, each with a record of 22-13
Last, but not least: Deb with a record of 17-18

Photos From My Phone - January 2013 Edition

I let Sunday get by without blogging one word and I've almost let Monday get away from me as well. I am stuck in a meeting at work, but remembered I have some photos on my phone that I took for various reasons and have not shared with you. So, I've downloaded them and will share them with you today so that you won't call me a total slacker when it comes to blogging.

 Here's a shot of The Tide's backside on the day I picked her up after having surgery on her ACL. Her backside was shaved and completely hair free. Most of it has grown back but you can still tell where it was shaved for her procedure.

 Here's an up close photo of The Tide's stitches from her ACL surgery. Surprisingly she did not try to pull them out. I guess after four surgeries, she realized that pulling out stitches isn't such a good idea.

 This photo is a bit blurry but is a photo of Justin from the semi-final playoff game at Madison Academy. When I blogged about us going to the game I completely forgot to mention that he and I went out onto the field for the spirit line so we could give the players a high five or a fist bump as they ran on the field. As you can probably imagine, this gave me a good laugh.

I made some caramel corn over Christmas break. I think my dad ate about 75% of it. 

 

 I packaged up some caramel corn and left it for the postman. 

My kitchen on Christmas Eve in the midst of cooking. 

 

The top of my Le Creuset Dutch Oven - So beautiful!

 

My dad and my cousin Sydney in their matching Christmas hats. I now have one too - love it and can't wait to wear it next Christmas!

 The Prime Rib my dad cooked for New Year's Eve dinner. Yummy!

Movie Review: The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey

As you probably know, I love, love, love, The Lord of the Rings films and watch them over and over and over again on a very regular basis. So, when I found out there was going to be a film version of The Hobbit I got pretty fired up and when I found out Peter Jackson was directing; well, I may have shed tears of joy. The first trailers for this movie were released in December 2011 and I watched it over and over and over again (are you detecting a pattern here?). I more or less circled the December 14 theatrical release date on my calendar and was so excited to see this film I could hardly stand it - and then I was so stinkin' busy that I never made it to the theater until two weeks later. Yes, folks for the first time in my life I did not go see a Lord of the Rings/Hobbit film on opening night.

I finally did manage to go see The Hobbit last Saturday afternoon. I had planned to see the 11:30 showing but for reasons even I can't remember ended up at the 3:00 showing. I got there about 2:45 and the theater was packed. Clearly, I am not the only person who loves this movie franchise or who waited two weeks after the release to go see it. I found a seat on the side of the theater in a row of two so that I was able to unload my coat, purse, etc. in the seat next to me. I would also like to take this moment to mention the new popcorn bucket they have at Carmike, formerly known as Rave. For $18.50 you get a bucket of popcorn and until December 31, 2013 you can bring the bucket back to the theater and have it filled for $3.50. This ultimately saves me money because instead of spending $6 on popcorn every time I got to the theater I only spend $3.50. It basically pays for itself after seven movies. So, if you aren't planning on seeing seven movies in a year's time, then it might not be a good investment; but, for me, it has worked out wonderfully.

The Hobbit, well, it was every bit as wonderful as I had hoped it would be and more so. the advancements in cinematography in the past 10 years never ceases to amaze me. The picture was absolutely amazing and was shot with more cameras than Lord of the Rings. There was even more detail (hard to believe, but true) and absolutely took my breath away on more than one occasion. I watched Lord of the Rings a few days after seeing The Hobbit and was surprised at how old it looked and that is the first time it has appeared to look old to me.

The acting was just as fantastic as you would expect from this movie franchise. Many of the same people return to their roles (Gandalf, Galadriel, Gollum, and some others that don't start with G) and did a great job reprising the characters we have come to love. The newer cast members were also fantastic and fit the roles of their characters splendidly.

The movie, which runs two hours and 46 minutes, did not seem long to me at all. At one point I looked at my phone just because I was curious as to the time. I figured maybe an hour at the most had passed and was surprised to find that actually two hours had passed. I could not believe it. It felt like I had only been sitting there for about 30 minutes. It could just be because I love these stories so much, I really don't know, but I got sucked into The Hobbit just the same if not more so than I did with Lord of the Rings. I had heard a lot of people mention that it seemed drawn out, but to me, it did not feel that way in the least. In fact, I was kind of sad when it ended and I think a lot of others were as well. The good thing for those of us who love these movies is that there are two more installations of this book coming our way in December of this year and in December of 2014. Of the four movies I saw the week I was on Christmas vacation, The Hobbit was by far my favorite, and my recommendation to you is to definitely go see it before it leaves the big screen. I will more likely than not take in a second showing.

Movie Review: Les Miserables

If you have read this blog for any amount of time or know me personally, then you probably know that one of the things I love most in this world is Les Miserables. I have seen a live performance at least eight times, probably more and will always jump at the opportunity to see it again. I've owned the original Broadway recording since the age of 16 and watch the 25th Anniversary Concert on Blu-Ray more times than should be admitted. So, when I heard that Hollywood was making a movie of my personal favorite musical, well, I was both thrilled and apprehensive.

I wasn't sure it could be properly done on the big screen and I wanted it to be done right. I've actually said (aloud even) that I would love for someone to actually do the musical as a film since, in my humble opinion, all the other film version pale in comparison to the drama and emotion that is portrayed on the stage. The movie opened on Christmas Day to mixed reviews, although everyone has praised Anne Hathaway's performance as Fantine, and rightly so; but, the soundtrack came out days in advance and I listened to a few sample songs and was not impressed. At the same time, I kept in mind that all the songs were shot live and weren't necessarily mixed with a sound board in a concert hall and so I gave the performers the benefit of the doubt and went to see the movie with a (somewhat) open mind. I went to an early afternoon viewing so in a theater that seats almost 500, there were probably 30 people, which was perfect as I did, in fact, turn into a weeping mess.

The movie was very well done, in fact, much better than I anticipated it being. Anne Hathaway, by far, had the best performance of the film. Her portrayal of Fantine will absolutely rip your heart out, and as is the case when I'm watching on the stage, this was also the point in the movie when I started sobbing like a baby. If she doesn't win and Oscar for this performance, then the Academy should just stop handing them out. Hugh Jackman was an okay Jean Valjean; after seeing the movie, I was actually kind of surprised that he was nominated for a Golden Globe as his voice wasn't as strong as I had hoped it would be. To me, Valjean needs to have a very strong voice and his at times seemed weak. As far as the acting of the character, he did a good job there, but the singing could have been stepped up a notch, especially from someone who has performed on the stage before. Of course, my favorite Valjean has always been and will always be Colm Wilkinson who made a surprise performance as the Bishop of Digne. Perhaps you may have already known he was going to be playing this role (my mother tells me he was on the Ellen show), but I had no idea and when he appeared on screen, I literally gasped with delight. To me, that was one of the best parts.

Another surprise to me was Russell Crowe - who knew the man could sing? I sure didn't. Again, he wasn't as booming of a Javert as I would have preferred, but he did a decent job, in fact, a much better job than I would have thought possible. Amanda Seyfried was really fantastic as Cosette. I wasn't sure she would be able to pull it off either, but again, I was quite surprised and thought she did an excellent job. Samantha Barks played Eponine, one of my favorite characters, and was brilliant, as I expected her to be. Barks also sang the role at the 25th Anniversary Concert and performed the role at London's West End so I had no doubt she would be every bit as wonderful as I wanted her to be. Eddie Redmayne did a nice job as Marius and Helena Bonham Carter and Sacha Baron Cohen, were hilarious as the Thenardiers. Another of my favorites was Daniel Huttlestone as Gavroche. I think he was probably the best Gavroche I have ever heard - I loved him and his performance. The rest of the cast did a great job as well. Overall, a really great chorus and supporting characters.

The movie was also visually appealing and really brought the story to life. For people who may have a hard time visualizing stories from the stage, seeing this version of  Les Miserables would be beneficial. I would say, it's a must, but not everyone loves music, or stories about love, revenge, forgiveness, or the French Revolution for that matter. I will say, that to me the movie seemed a bit long, even though it's really no longer that the stage performance. I suppose the only difference is I'm used to an intermission and an opportunity to stop by the restroom and I didn't have that and really needed it (just being honest here). All in all, it was a spectacular rendition of the musical and very well done; however if given the choice between the film and the stage version, I would still choose the stage.

Back to the Grind

It was back to the grind for me today as I went back to work after 11 days off.  I've got to say, though, I was quite ready to get back to a regular routine as I was beginning to get quite bored being at home. We had inventory at work today and will continue it tomorrow which means we spent the day counting widgets in between checking emails and responding to customer requests. All in all, it was a nice first day back and the day went by rather quickly which was also nice.

New Year's Day was nothing to brag about. After staying up til midnight and then driving home and finally getting in bed around 12:30 a.m., I slept in until 8:15 or so which is exceptionally late for me. Then I spent the rest of the day watching football and sleeping and eating. I should probably be ashamed to admit that I did not even bother to shower the whole day. After being lazy and spending most of the day in a deep sleep, the next thing I knew it was early evening and I figured, what was the point. It's not like I was planning on leaving the house. This is what I hate most about New Year's Day - some people probably love the laziness of the day but I find the lack of productivity to be completely annoying. I had grand plans of taking down the Christmas decorations but it rained all day and I didn't want to drag things from the shed to the house and vice versa in the rain. So, the day was completely unproductive and wasted. I also didn't eat any black-eyed peas for the first New Year's Day in I don't know how long - hopefully I'll have a bit of good luck in spite of this mishap.

Our New Year's Eve dinner was a success and was enjoyed by all in attendance, with the exception of my brother who had a bit of a stomach bug. I was pretty pooped by the time midnight rolled around as I had been up since 6:30 and had no nap during the day. Midnight is not an hour I see on a regular basis. After the stroke of 12, The Tide and I hit the road home which always makes me nervous because undoubtedly there are a lot of drunks on the road leaving their respective parties. I did not see the first firework, but heard plenty, especially the ones downtown which when standing in the driveway of my parents' home sounded like bombs over Baghdad.

So far I have no grand plans for the next few days; as luck would have it, the first weekend of the new year will be spent at the funeral home. It sure seems like I spend more and more time there the older I get. I guess that's life's course though. So, if I can't think of much else to write about over the next couple of days I will try my best to put up a movie review or two because some of you might want to visit the theater over the weekend and there are definitely some films out now that you will not want to miss.

Hope your 2013 is off to a roaring start!

My dad and the late Coach Glen Nunley, one of my all time favorites!

Happy New Year 2013!

Happy New Year! Is it just me or does a year ending in 13 seem strange? I once worked with a man who would not leave his home on the 13th of the month because he was superstitious. I'm wondering what he's going to do for this whole year? Will he stay in his house the whole year or will he dare face number 13 in the face? I guess I'll never know.

Here's to hoping 2013 will be a really memorable year for all of us! I certainly hope it brings you all the happiness you good fortune you deserve!