Girl Scout Cookies

OMG, yesterday I ate half a box of Tagalongs. I'm not kidding. It's a wonder I didn't polish off the entire box. Have you ever had those? They're like crack. There should be a warning on the box.
I'll be eating celery today.

Opera is Such Silly Stuff

Here's a really odd thing: I went to the opera two weeks in a row. Not something I ordinarily do but my lovely friend Joyce asked me to join her because her daughter, who she usually goes with, was out of town. So the first opera we saw was The Damnation of Faust.
Oh my god. Just from the name I could tell there wasn't a prayer I'd enjoy it but I hate to be negative so off I went. It was very bizarre. Very spare sets, current-day dress, and a huge cast, all the women dressed the same, all the men dressed the same (some symbolism going on there that just flew right over my head). Well, Joyce thought it was bizarre too. I mean, take a look at the picture. It's worth a thousand words.
The next one was The Marriage of Figaro and Joyce promised that would be better.
Well, it was but...oh my god, it was almost FOUR HOURS long. Jesus. I was about to cry near the end of that. Not with emotion about what was going on on stage but because I wanted desperately to run screaming from the place. Nothing should last for four hours. Nothing. The only thing I want to do for four hours straight is sleep.
What I learned about opera is that it's actually pretty silly. The stories are goofy. In Figaro Dr. Bartolo is trying to marry Figaro off to Marcellina even tho Figaro's engaged to Susanna (who the Count is trying to sleep with) and it turns out that Marcellina is actually Figaro's mother and Dr. Bartolo is actually his father but somehow they didn't know that. Now I ask you...is this silly stuff or what?
I think my opera days are over. At least I hope so.

And the Oscar Goes To...

Whew, boring show. So I'm counting on the clothes to provide some interest but even that's not living up to expectations. It's all strapless with pleating and ruffles this year. So far (still at least an hour to go) Penelope Cruz gets the Oscar for best dress - gorgeous, burgandy gown with a diagonally pleated bodice and full, flowy skirt. She looked spectacular. Worst dress so far?
Sarah Jessica Parker, the fashion diva, in a hideous yellow satin mu-mu. Why would she wear such a shapeless dress when she has such a great figure? Shockingly ugly and unflattering.

My Picks for Oscar Night

I love the Academy Awards. Over the years I've watched them at parties or at other peoples' houses with one or two friends, but my favorite way to watch them is at home, by myself. That way there are no distractions and I won't miss any of the gowns or the speeches and I can get on the computer if I get bored.
Here are my picks for the major awards but you should know I've missed one or two of the films (I hate when that happens) and a couple of the performances. So here are my picks with some limitations:
Best Actor:
George Clooney because he's a subtle actor whose face (besides being gorgeous) shows the character's emotion more than his words, and because he's a really fine actor. He probably won't win but I'm rooting for him. (The only performance I didn't see in this category was Jeremy Renner's.)
Best Actress:
I don't feel really stronly about this category. I didn't see The Last Station so I can't speak about Helen Mirren's performance but there's not a standout among the other nominees in my opinion. So I'm going to pick Sandra Bullock because she was good in the role and it's a different role for her. Not high praise, I know.
Best Supporting Actress:
Even tho I didn't see Nine I'm picking Penelope Cruz because she's one of the best actors of our day. Mo'Nique is the favorite, I know, and I liked her performance but didn't love it.
Best Supporting Actor:
Christoph Waltz. Fabulous performance, and actually the only other performance I saw in the category was Matt Damon who was good but not Academy Award-good.
Best Picture:
Inglourious Basterds because I thought it was a perfect film and Quentin Tarantino for Best Director for the same reason. I think he's a genius (crazy, but a genius).

Book Review - Noah's Compass (5 of 5 stars)

I loved Anne Tyler's new book Noah's Compass.

CLICK HERE to read my review on Amazon.com.

August: Osage County ****

If you think your family is dysfunctional go see this play - your family will look like the Waltons.
August: Osage County  is a complex story about complicated people. The writing is magnificent although Bill and I agreed it could have been cut by at least half an hour. It's nearly three hours with two intermissions. But still, it's wonderful. There are some great, memorable lines, "You never know when you might need a kidney," being one of them, but you'll have to see the play to understand that.
The performances are admirable, especially Shannon Cochran who plays the daughter Barbara. Estelle Parsons plays the matriarch, tho, and I have to say I didn't like her performance very much. I think she overdoes the part. But then I never did like her.
This show is part of the Broadway in Chicago series this year, playing for only two weeks at the Cadillac Palace Theatre. It's worth a look if you can manage it and, surprisingly, there were many empty seats at Friday night's performance. It originally played at Setppenwolf in 2007, then went on to Broadway and won a Pulitzer for Drama in 2008. A great piece of Chicago theatre.
I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

When Did That Happen?

When did 'AH midge' (homage) become 'oh MAHJ'?
When did 'JAG waar' (Jaguar) become 'JAG u waar'?
When did 'nitch' (niche) become 'neesh'?
When did 'dope' become an adjective? i.e. "That's dope," meaning cool.
Stupid.
(Am I just acting like a cranky old lady?)