Twilight Schmilight

Good grief! It seems that EVERYWHERE I go there are posters, t-shirts, cardboard cutouts and advertisements for the Twilight Saga! Just on Saturday we drove 70 miles to go to the nearest mall, only to be accosted by images of pale faced vampires in every store.

Now to be honest, I have read the first book, part of the second and have seen the movie Twilight, but really ... I didn't think it all was worthy of all of the fuss. The storyline is admittedly interesting, but the writing is quite juvenile in my opinion. And not to mention whiny. No joke, for four and a half pages the main character drones on and on about feeling numb one minute and then feeling an aching around her broken heart. Blah, blah ... nightmares and screaming ... blah, blah ... excruciating memories ... yack, yack ... the cold rain mixing with fresh tears ... yada, yada, yada. Yeah, a bit of a downer to read and it has left me with nothing to like about the sniveling Bella Swan.

So I have to ask myself, is this series of stories just the latest phenomenon to hit pop culture? Or will the fascination with teenaged vampires and werewolves endure?

I have read blogs where knitters knit a pair of "Bella mittens" and take them on a Northwest tour of Forks and Port Angeles, photographing said mittens in front of the high school where scenes from the movie were filmed. Cardboard cutouts of the characters from the movies keep getting stolen from Nordstrom stores. I have even seen that there is a CW television show about ... what else, teenaged vampires. When will this madness end?

Well, I guess I must think back to the late 80s when New Kids On The Block saturated the airwaves and decorated bedroom walls all over the country. That lasted a good four or five years, right? Sigh.

(Of course, if I were asked if I plan to see the new movie New Moon, I would have to say yes. But only after it came out on DVD! 'Cause I'm not standing in line for a $15 ticket to see this, uh film, but I confess that my interest is mildly piqued. Mildly.)

Blog Fodder

There are so many interesting (to me, anyway) and funny things to write about, it's hard to narrow it down to only a few.

Here is the first Blog Fodder of the year:

Mmmmm, Giada!

My son, who will be two years old in March has a crush on Giada de Laurentiis from the Food Network. There have been at least three occasions where if her show is on, his eyes will be glued to the television! I am not entirely sure if he is fascinated by the food she is making or he's just looking at her because she is so pretty, but it makes me a little nervous that my son is already developing crushes on girls. It makes me even more nervous that he is an expert at flirting ... I can't take him anywhere without him charming the ladies!

Airing Out My Subway

You know how Subway Sandwich Shops advertise as being a healthy alternative to fast food and that you can lose weight on the Subway diet? Well it's true, you can lose weight by going into one of their shops and you don't even have to order a thing because ... IT STINKS! I don't know what it is exactly that I am smelling when I go into a Subway, but it isn't the smell of freshly baked bread. The other day my family stopped into a shop to get some dinner when we were traveling and the smell is almost unbearable. To make matters worse, my hair and my clothes smelled like it the entire way home. I am airing out my sweater right now!

Four-Eyed Princess

How do you get a four year-old to wear her glasses? Make a pair for her favorite doll of course! For Christmas we got our daughter an Aurora Sleeping Beauty doll that sings, and she goes everywhere our daughter does. We have been having some trouble with trying to get our girl to wear her glasses because kids have been telling her they like her better without them. Thanks, that is so helpful! Anyway, my husband in his great brilliance fashioned a pair of wire glasses for Aurora and that has done the trick so far. Now there are two four-eyed princesses in our house.

Oh, The Things They Say

My daughter recently informed me that she is the boss of her Aurora doll. In fact, the exact quote is "I'm the boss of my baby. Yeah, sometimes she does bad things. I have to keep my eye on her!"

The last day of December I was talking to my daughter about it being the last day of the year and that the next day would be the first day of January and of 2009. I then asked her if she knew what the 4th (my birthday) was and what was special about it. She replied with great excitement and jumping up and down "Barack Obama!? The new president of the world?" Uh, okay! She was about 16 days off for his inauguration, but I was impressed by her knowledge of current events.

First Lady Fashion

This election was an event for the history books - Barack Obama will be our 44th President and America's 1st black President. Whether you voted for him or not, and whether you are jazzed about his win or not, you have to admit that this election broke barriers and changed America forever.

Last night as I watched the coverage I was swept up with emotion. I thought that McCain gave an excellent speech that was respectful and gracious; and as Obama gave his victory speech I was struck by his eloquence and determination. But what really got a reaction out of me was something that is near and dear to my heart. An issue that I will look at closely for the next four years: The First Lady's wardrobe.

The Obama family was a vision in black and red on Election Day.

The first thing I said when I saw Mrs. Obama's dress was "why is she dressed up like a black widow spider?" I thought that perhaps this dress looks better up close. I thought maybe she is trying to be fashion forward and modern. But unfortunately this dress came across as looking a bit, for lack of a better word, predatory. It turns out I wasn't the only one who thought so.

This Narciso Rodriguez Spring 2009 dress was modified for Michelle Obama. Softer colors, or in shades of blue would have been beautiful and not so harsh.

So, while I think this dress was weird, it did peak my interest and I look forward to seeing what she has up her sleeve (no pun intended) for Inauguration Day.

The Red, White and Blue - But Around Here It's Mostly White

This is what it looked like in my neck of the woods on Election Day. Oh, where has Fall gone?

Boy am I glad this day is here - the day when America votes. I may sound very patriotic by this statement - and while I do care about our nation and it's future - I am mostly glad this day is here because now there will be no more annoying political ads. No more opinionated e-mails filling my inbox from people telling me how I should vote. And no more 24 hour news coverage of the election. McCain, Obama, Obama, McCain ... I will be glad when it all dies down.

I live in Oregon and here we mail in (or drop off) our ballots; so I voted days ago. I like the convenience of voting from my own home even though it appears more patriotic to go to the polls and stand in line to vote like most of the country. But what can I say, I like that I don't have to pump my own gas too. It was actually a good thing that I already voted because when I woke up this morning, the town was blanketed with an inch of snow; this would not have been a motivating factor to get me stand to in line outside to vote (although I would have done it if necessary).

This is my front walk ... and what is left of October.

So while the snow is beautiful (and not entirely welcome as I am not yet ready to let go of Fall), I would like to look at it as symbolizing a new beginning for our country. I hope the Lord will give America a clean slate ... and that whomever ends up running this hurting nation will help to make it great again.

Blog Fodder

The Fruits of All Hallow's Eve

We had a fun Halloween this year. The kids' costumes turned out well; we went trick-or-treating with great success in the candy department; and I managed to actually carve a pumpkin or two.

I made little pumpkin houses this year. It was fun gathering the sticks to make the window panes (my daughter helped).

As I was carving the pumpkins I started to feel adventurous and decided to keep the seeds to roast and enjoy as a snack. It was a lot of work separating the seeds from the mushy, orange guts and thoroughly washing them. It was nice to eat them when they were fresh from the oven, but the husks are like eating sawdust. I chose to peel off the husks and just eat the green seed inside which tasted pretty good. Then yesterday I was at the store and saw that I could have just bought the seeds in bulk and saved myself a lot of trouble. Oh well, I am still proud of my efforts!

Free Coffee for Voters

I did it, I voted. I feel a great sense of accomplishment by having done so. And now I will receive a little reward by going into my local Starbucks on November 4th and getting a free tall cup of coffee ... that is if I tell them "I voted". It is all a part of their V2V campaign to get people to have a voice in this election and make your community a better place to live. So, if the satisfaction of knowing you are exercising your rights to vote in this country isn't enough of an incentive, maybe a FREE cup of Starbucks brew is.

Lights Out, Little Cookies

Mother's Cookies is shutting down. That's right, no more pink and white Frosted Animal Cookies, and no more of my personal favorite: Taffy cookies. Now, while I don't buy many cookies from the store, I still feel a great sadness that this American tradition is no more. What do I do now if I want a Taffy cookie? Where do I go? Who do I turn to? Yesterday I was in the grocery store and saw that indeed there were only three types of Mother's Cookies left on the shelf and in very few quantities. Forget the Wall Street bailout, we need to bail out Mother's Cookies! I plan to buy one of the t-shirts shown above. I doubt it will fix the company's bankruptcy problems, but it may the only thing left of those beloved little confections.

Paws Under the Door

My son is so silly. He loves to come into my office when I am working and close the door. He then gets mad that it is closed but he can't open it himself. Today he was grunting and whining so that I would open it and then he erupted in a high pitched giggle. I looked to see what he thought was so funny and saw my cat's paws sticking out from underneath the door. The cat and my son then continued to play, touching each other's "paws" and this provided much entertainment for some time - times like these make me so glad we have all the billions of toys taking up precious real estate in our house.

A Graphic Designer's Approach to Voting

The Vice Presidential debate is tonight and I plan to watch it. I think perhaps that this debate will be more interesting than the Presidential debate because Joe Biden and Sarah Palin are pretty unfamiliar to me. In fact I had never heard of Sarah Palin until the day she was announced as John McCain's pick for VP.

I consider myself to be pretty apolitical, but I do vote - I always vote, it is responsibility I take seriously. But I don't know who I will vote for yet. My values tend to align better with a conservative plan, but I don't always vote republican. I am all for change in the White House, but I don't know which candidate will bring it. So, how do I determine my vote? I feel that Obama conducted himself better during the debate so should I vote for him? I think it is bold of McCain to choose a woman for his running mate so should I vote for him? What do I do? I think I will have to take a graphic designer's approach: who has the best logo and website!

Let's start with McCain/Palin. Their campaign's graphic style has a more formal look and focuses on McCain's military background with the presence of the star and muted colors. Their logo is very balanced and I am impressed that Palin's name has the same boldness and size as McCain's - that shows equality in a visual way. As for their website, it is pretty straight forward but isn't as clean as I would like. The colors muddle together and it looks a bit boring. I do like the celestial feel of the background on the top banner though.

This campaign sign has a military and almost maritime look to it.

The "I'm for" looks out of place, and the yellow color is a dull.

Whether you like Palin or not, you have to admit this button rocks!

Moving on the Obama/Biden. Their campaign's graphic style is modern and relatable. The colors are vibrant and even fun. The logo with the "O" is clever and I have nothing negative to say about it. I love how the flag looks like rows of crops with a sun rising on the horizon. Obama's name is bigger than Biden and is in white which makes it pop more against the bright blue background. Their website is clean, clear and well organized.

The colors in this sign are perfect. They evoke emotion and pride - the red, white and blue!

I am not a "supporter" of either campaign, but if I was for Obama I would love to wear this pin.

In reviewing the graphic styles of these two campaigns I would have to say that Obama wins! His designer or group of designers are excellent. But, alas I cannot make a reasonable decision based on graphics alone, so I guess I'll have to actually pay attention to the issues and debates. One thing I know is whoever wins, this is will be a very historical event and that to me is exciting.

God Grew Tired of Us

When I watch a movie it is usually for escape, entertainment, or just to see what all of the hype is about. The movies I have seen lately have not been very impressive: Poseidon was ridiculous, 27 Dresses was forgettable, and Balls of Fury was practically unwatchable. However, last night I watched a film that was absolutely gripping, educational and happened to be a National Geographic documentary. God Grew Tired of Us was the best thing I have seen in a very long time.

Can you imagine fleeing through the desert of your war-torn country of Sudan as a young boy, only to end up in a camp for refugees in Kenya? Can you imagine the incredible sense of responsibility you might have if you were chosen to move to America to get a job and learn to be self-sufficient? This 2006 film helps the viewer to learn the struggle, the culture, and the discoveries of the "Lost Boys of Sudan". What was so striking is how the viewer can see America through the eyes of these young men. The first time they experience airline food. The first time they see a redheaded person. Their first trip to a grocery store. It actually made me a little embarrassed by all of the material things we have in this country. There are so many things we take for granted.

These young men value so much. They value their culture, their families (many have had loved ones killed or lost during the war), community, hard work, and their faith in the Lord. They ask why people in America are so unfriendly. They ask what Santa Clause and Christmas trees have to do with the birth of Jesus. They ask why Americans work so much that they don't have time to spend with their families. They are grateful for their jobs flipping burgers at McDonald's or packing gaskets in a factory. It really puts things in perspective.

I realize that I have NO reason to complain about my life. It has truly been good.

In My Humble Opinion ...

I am not an expert on architecture or urban planning in any way. However, I appreciate the beauty of buildings, dwellings, and memorials. So as the 7th anniversary of 9/11 recently passed, I was curious to see what has been going on at Ground Zero and what they are planning for that space.

If you go to www.wtc.com you can see artist renderings and models of the new Freedom Tower that is to be built near where the towers once stood. I have never been to New York City. I have only seen images of the World Trade Center in photographs and videos, before and after it was destroyed; so I don't feel that I have much say in the matter, but I really dislike this design! I don't know how the citizens of New York feel about it or even if they were considered in the final decision - but it is disappointing.

The Freedom Tower and the newly designed World Trade Center. Construction has already begun.

Here is what the new courtyard will look like. It is intended to have a more "park-like" setting.

When I think of New York I think of old fashioned buildings. Iconic structures like the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building. Art Deco, traditional, symmetrical. The Freedom Tower and it's neighboring buildings look really out of place with their futuristic design. The footprints of the towers will be made into reflecting pools and the memorials will be underground and expensive to maintain.

There are people who want the towers rebuilt (with major infrastructural changes of course) and they have built an interesting model. If you go to www.makenynyagain.com you can see more. I think the memorials are more poignant and it would be neat to see the towers rise again. However I admit I would be very reluctant to go up into them - and I feel the same for the Freedom Tower.

This model shows the new Twin Towers. They look very much like the originals but with thicker exterior beams.

The memorials here use some of the facade that has been saved from the original buildings. The curved wall is a memorial designed by a family member of a victim.

I guess the question I have to ask myself is: Is it better to recapture what has been, or move on with something entirely different? I personally lean toward rebuilding the Twin Towers - but it isn't my city and I don't know if it would just be a painful reminder.

I Wish I Had Paid More Attention

I will always remember the events of this day, 7 years ago. In fact there is no way I could ever forget. I will not dwell; I will not rehash what I was doing when I heard the news; I will, however, remember.

One thing I wish I had done was pay more attention. I wish I had paid more attention to current events leading up to that day. I wish I had paid attention to the threat posed by those who hate us and our freedom. I wish I had understood what the World Trade Center was and its iconic significance before it was destroyed. I wish I had been more prepared.

I don't think I could ever understand the true magnitude of what happened that day - I think only our Lord knows that.

But I will remember.