"Eat the Cake, Please, People."

I have been wracking my brain this evening trying to think of something to say about travel. After all, this is Travel Tuesday, and since I didn't follow through on Movie Monday, I wanted to at least get Tuesday right. But here I am rather late in the evening, and I have no travel pointers to speak of. 

I am, however, about 26.5 hours away from 2009, and so I was also thinking about topics we could touch on to celebrate the end of 2008. Yeah. No clue on that one, either.

As luck would have it, though, I just flipped on the TV and "Ace of Cakes" is on the Food Network. I don't know if you watch the show, but it's a "reality" show which focuses on a cake decorating shop in Baltimore. I used to live in Baltimore, and I love watching the show for the glimpses of Baltimore and its surroundings as much as I enjoy watching the cakes get made. 

Well, just after I turned it on, I heard Mary Alice (the office ringmaster) commenting on some people who were unwilling to cut into their three-foot-tall cupola cake. Mary Alice's response was "It's a cake. Eat the cake, please, people. Just eat the cake."

So... Here are my thoughts on all of this:

1) Travel Tuesday: If you want a slightly-skewed (but fun) view of Baltimore, check out "Ace of Cakes." If you want a view of Charm City Cakes while on a trip to Baltimore, head for Remington Avenue in Hampden (it's a Baltimore neighborhood) and look for the building which is always featured on the show--but don't expect to drop in and hang out with anyone from the show, since this is their place of work. 

2) Reflections on 2008/2009: I've spent a lot of this year searching for a new job. But I've also spent time doing some fairly serious gardening. And taking the time to travel. And enjoying friends and family. And writing these blog posts. And trying to figure out what is really important to me (in life, in work, in a meal, and just in general). And, well, I'm kind of hoping that next year I not only make a resolution or two, but I also find some resolution to a few of my "situations."

No matter what, I hope to take Mary Alice's words to heart (even though she may not have meant them to be taken to heart). I hope to remember, above all, to "Eat the Cake" and not just ogle it from a distance. 

(And if it also happens to be a white cake with buttercream frosting, well, that would just be the... ummm... the icing on the... well... you know.)

A Milestone, Hurrah!

It has come to my attention that I have now passed the 100-posting point. In fact, the post you're currently reading is post number 102 which I have added to this blog. How cool is that?

Thanks to all of my "regular" readers, to any of you who just drop by from time-to-time, and--especially--to those who not only read these posts, but also take the time to let me know that you do. 

I only wish I were feeling better and could appropriately celebrate this century mark. Maybe post a bunch of pictures of the  Minnesota Zoo's sea otters from last week (they're coming, I promise!). Or a recipe or two from the Holiday baking I've done. Or at least find something intriguingly new to say about John Barrowman. Instead, I'm sitting here typing while watching a kaleidoscope of television programs as I reach the end of my energy for the day. 

Yes, Christopher and I continue to battle our "common" colds. Although, the further we go along, the more I realize how much of a misnomer that is. After all, the two of us have almost entirely different symptoms, yet if we walked into a doctor's office we'd both be told we simply have colds. My one foray outside the house today was for orange juice, apple cider (good either cold or hot) and bread. So we're stocked up on Vitamin C and cough drops and can make either sandwiches or toast. 

I'm really hoping that New Year's Eve holds more than OJ and toast, but for the current milepost, I'm going to raise a glass of the orange stuff, crunch a buttered crust, hum a chorus or two of "Auld Lang Syne" and head for bed. 

See you soon in posting 103!

Sunday Sickday

I'm frustrated to say that we seem to have caught colds, here in Minnesota. Christopher has been fighting off something for a while, and as of the beginning of last week I started a gradual downhill slide, too. Yesterday we both kind of looked at each other and shrugged, realizing the inevitable was due to arrive. 

Thus, it was no surprise to either of us that we spent all of today in our pajamas, leaving the couch only long enough to find some sustenance and do a little laundry. 

On a better note, we played host to my parents again last night. They were back in town after flying out to LA for Christmas, and since their flight didn't get in until after dark, yesterday, they stayed over and drove home today. Seeing them before and after their time in LA was a great way to kind of book-end the Christmas festivities with their visits. I hadn't expected it, but it was actually a little strange to look outside today and not see their car sitting on the street...

So now that Christmas is pretty much officially over, Christopher and I just have to figure out how to get up enough energy to stay up until midnight on Wednesday night. Oh. Heck. Who am I kidding? I'm just hoping to work my stamina up to being able to stay awake until 9:30 by then.

You "Otter" Try It

Having the day off, Christopher and I went to the Minnesota Zoo yesterday (avoiding the zoo-like shopping, for the most part), and watched the Sea Otters frolic in the 30-degree weather. It was great. One of those moments of zen that you really really really hope for this time of year, but seldom get to experience. 

We stood in front of the enclosure and watched the otters zoom through the water, leaving trails of bubbles. We watched one of them curl up in a ball (or... well... a donut shape), and spin vertically in the water. And--our favorite--we watched one go back and forth right up against the glass, on his back and kind of waving out at us. 

For a while we weren't cold, we weren't stressed out by work or family, and we didn't care that we've both eaten too many cookies in the past few weeks. Instead, we just watched them. And it made us happy. 

So you know what we did?

We waved back. 

The Calm Before the After...

We are currently spending a very nicely relaxed evening at home after the festivities of the past 36 hours. 

We also, I must say, have had a very nice past 36 hours--Christmas Eve and Christmas were both quite enjoyable. We had what I would consider was a just-right mix of family and alone time, complete with sitting at home last night in front of the Christmas tree and the (TV-broadcast) yule log. 

We're not looking forward to the possible freezing precip (drizzle or rain or snow or a combo) tomorrow, but we've had two great weather days--including glorious sunshine on the snow while driving around today. And we can run any necessary errands on Saturday.

So I leave you to yourselves for the evening. Christopher and I are going to have a few more cookies and head for bed. 

Ahhh... Merry Christmas!

An Entertaining Dilemma

Sorry. That's not meant as "funny," it's meant as a dilemma one has when entertaining guests.

Let's start with part one: You and a co-host decide to have a very small gathering of friends over for, say, Groundhog Day. You both sit down with your lists of friends and go through it and pare down whom to invite. This is either done as an "additive" process or a "subtractive" one, depending on how you think about it. For our case, let's say it was done in the "additive" sense. 

So the two of you start by inviting the people who first pop into your mind. You make your lists of those people, and see how many you end up with. Say you're hoping to have about 15 people in attendance, so you start with your initial list of 5 or 6 people and then begin adding in until you get to 15 or 20 (figuring that a few people will have to decline, since so many people have plans around Groundhog Day). You do your best to choose people who will mix well with the initial 5 or 6, and you keep adding in. Although you have to make some hard choices, eventually, the two of you get your combined list to around 18 people, after adding and moving people around. 

So you have your Groundhog Day party, and it's a very nice turnout. Of course, it's the beginning of February, so the weather may have kept some people away. Even so, you get between 15 and 20 people--just what you wanted. You all enjoy a nice evening of Groundhog Day favorites, and you don't even end up with a ton of dishes at the end of the night. All good, right?

Still with me? Okay, we've made it through part one... Now, on to part two:

A few days later, you find yourself at a friend's Groundhog Day party. Unfortunately, this friend wasn't on the list of people you invited to your party, because you seldom see her and although you like her and her boyfriend, you can't imagine that they would have wanted to come. After all you really only see each other at parties thrown by mutual friends. In other words, you're simply "friends-in-law"--and as with most in-laws, you just don't hang out together on your own.

So, there you are at your friend-in-law's party, and she's very happy to see you. She and her boyfriend have welcomed you with hugs and are making sure you're taken care of and comfortable. You've brought a hostess gift, and it was well-received. 

It's going very well, and you're having a nice time, when suddenly someone who WAS at your Groundhog Day party makes a comment about said party. Of course, this was an off-hand remark, so you hope against hope that possibly your host (who wasn't invited) didn't hear the question. But, alas, she perks up and says "When was that?" And your former guest turns and says "At the Groundhog Day party they threw last weekend." This, of course, is answered by silence... and a strangely palpable combo of feelings of querulousness and odd Groundhog Day guilt. Luckily, this is eventually followed by hostly offerings of more wine and cake. 

Ah... The dilemma of entertaining around Groundhog Day. Isn't it fun?

Movie Monday - "Australia"

Last week, while my folks were here, we took the opportunity to head out to a late-afternoon matinee of "Australia."

I'm sure you've heard of it. It's the epic movie starring Aussies Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman and directed by (Aussie) Baz Luhrmann. Even more Aussie than all of them is Brandon Walters, who steals the show as the Aboriginal "half-caste" child who narrates the film.

I had seen trailers for it way back when, in which Kidman was telling a small child the tale of "The Wizard of Oz" and it was being equated to the history of Australia. Since then, I've seen the trailers where the movie looks like a Western with a Romantic Comedy thrown in. Needless to say, I had no idea what to expect when the lights dimmed.

Oh. I should mention a few things: 1) We were the only three people in the theater; 2) The movie is 2h45m long; 3) We had purchased the "Pop and Popcorn" combos as our dinners for the night. Why is this all important? Because it's much easier to go into an almost-three-hour movie when you're comfortable. Since we figured we wouldn't annoy anyone if we got up to use the bathroom mid-movie (and then had to talk to the person next to us to get caught up), it was much easier to settle in.

And settle in we did. When the movie was over, we all admitted that it didn't seem like it had been three hours. But... I get ahead of myself.

The story revolves around an upper-crust Englishwoman (Kidman) who goes to straighten out her husband in Northern Australia. On her arrival, she is greeted by The Drover (Jackman), a working-class cattle driver. When they reach the ranch, she finds out that her husband has been found murdered, their ranch is without water, and the entire place is being run by the staff--all non-white and terrified by a local major land-owner.

The movie begins with the ranch and the murder mystery. Then it becomes a cattle drive western. Next it becomes a story of power struggles and land rustling. Finally it wraps around into a wartime adventure film. 

I know it sounds like it should be four separate movies. And it could easily have been choppy or... well... lumpy, at the least. But it's not. Somehow the movie seamlessly flows from one area to the next. Although I admit that I wasn't thrilled with the war movie at the end, I should fully disclose that I'm just not a war movie watcher. And, even with that extra component, I still found myself coming to the end of the film wanting to see it again so I could pick up the small points.

I feel like I'm leaving so much out. There are small characters throughout who make all the difference--the bartender in Darwin, the ranch staff, The Drover's team, the "bad guys"--all make this movie more interesting moment to moment. 

There is amazing music in the movie. There are great vistas and scenery which at once makes you want to go visit, and terrifies you. And, oh, yeah, there is Hugh Jackman looking absolutely amazing (I saw him say in an interview that he loved the role because it was the first time in ages that he got to use his own accent). 

I fully intend to drop "Australia" into my Netflix queue for when it comes out. I'm really looking forward to seeing it again and catching more of the nuances in the spectacle.

Does Nicole Kidman's forehead ever move? I don't think so. Is this a movie which is big enough for you to forget that Nicole Kidman's forehead doesn't move? Definitely. 

Go see it. Now. It's the perfect 3-hour break from all the Holiday family time.