Book of Randomness

I’m sure many of you have heard the story about Elena Desserich, the 6 year old girl who lost her battle to Brain Cancer. Her incredible story centers around the 135 notes that she left behind for her parents to find around the house. Please read the story from From MSNBC.com/Today Show, and consider purchasing the book that her parents have released including all of the notes. The profits from the book will be going to research.

Such a great story!

It really makes you question how we can all be so selfish sometimes, and a 6 year who knew she was dying could spend the end of her life trying to help her parents cope? We could all learn a little something…

One of 135 Notes:

The Book:

You can also read more about Notes Left Behind and Elena Desserich from their website NotesLeftBehind.com

My FAVORITE book EVER! Ok maybe it is my favorite possession….? I guess that could be stretching it, but this book is definitely WAY up there.

So what is it you may ask?

Freakin’ Fabulous by Clinton Kelly. I feel hesitant to share this with everyone because, well if I share, then you may become more fabulous than I am… oh well. The more fabulous people the better!

Everyone has seen the TLC show What Not to Wear on at least one occasion (and if you haven’t, you must be living under a rock). Clinton is half of the hosting duo, Clinton and Stacy. Clinton is also touring the country’s Macy’s stores for Make Over America (sadly I was not chosen ) He is undoubtedly funny on the show, and it translates perfectly into his book. He had me laughing cover to cover.

Freakin’ Fabulous is like my new life bible. I have only had the chance to read it all the way through once, but I frequently refer back to it. I actually began to annoy my friends and family by saying… “Clinton says….” or “According to Clinton…” I even had my DAD quoting the book!! Weird.

By the first few pages of the book you will wish Clinton was your best friend!

Freakin’ Fabulous is the book that you need if you want to know “How to Dress, Speak, Behave, Eat, Drink, Entertain, Decorate, and Generally Be Better than Everyone Else” according to its sub-title!

Highlights of the book… according to moi!

• Dress: Includes everything you need to know from accessories, to tailoring, dressing for certain occasions and a page of very ugly shoes (clearly the DON’T page)
• Speak: Definitely the section I need to read again… and AGAIN. The proper use for words. My greatest accomplishment so far has been taking the “s” off of the end of anyway! The pretty pictures and doodles help my learning… what can I say, I’m a visual person!
• Behave: Don’t butter the entire roll!! Holding wine glasses, eating oysters, texting with company and even a section on “bodily functions.” This section is definitely a must read. Did you know you should never bring your own food item to a party unless requested? I did not know that one, but you can ruin the theme/atmosphere.
• Eat: Four recipes you should MEMORIZE, cutting onions and other great recipes.
• Drink: I was laughing from the first page of this section as Clinton says, “Gin has made me do a lot of stupid things, but I forgive it.” Obviously there are drink recipes in the section, but my part is the section on wine; descriptions, how to serve, how to order and which wine pairs best with your food.
• Entertain: Plan for 1 bottle of wine per person!! Now that sounds like a party! Covers food to serve, music, booting people at the end of the night and making the potty smell nice! The “Mac and Cheese with Bacon” looks and sounds delicious… although it reminds me of the overeating experience I had at Yardhouse.
• Decorate: I cannot wait until I have my own house to be able to do all of this!! Room by room tricks, organization (“Kill the Clutter”), and fresh flowers. Never include baby’s breath or ferns IN an arrangement! Clinton suggests using Flowerbud.com for flowers.

  The book is full of color and information. Clinton has done an amazing job with this book balancing entertainment and information. I suggest it to EVERYONE. Give it to your girlfriends for their birthday or as a bachelorette party gift.

  You don’t NEED a reason, just get the book for crying out loud!! You will thank me later!

My FAVORITE book EVER! Ok maybe it is my favorite possession….? I guess that could be stretching it, but this book is definitely WAY up there.

So what is it you may ask?

Freakin’ Fabulous by Clinton Kelly. I feel hesitant to share this with everyone because, well if I share, then you may become more fabulous than I am… oh well. The more fabulous people the better!

Everyone has seen the TLC show What Not to Wear on at least one occasion (and if you haven’t, you must be living under a rock). Clinton is half of the hosting duo, Clinton and Stacy. Clinton is also touring the country’s Macy’s stores for Make Over America (sadly I was not chosen ) He is undoubtedly funny on the show, and it translates perfectly into his book. He had me laughing cover to cover.

Freakin’ Fabulous is like my new life bible. I have only had the chance to read it all the way through once, but I frequently refer back to it. I actually began to annoy my friends and family by saying… “Clinton says….” or “According to Clinton…” I even had my DAD quoting the book!! Weird.

By the first few pages of the book you will wish Clinton was your best friend!

Freakin’ Fabulous is the book that you need if you want to know “How to Dress, Speak, Behave, Eat, Drink, Entertain, Decorate, and Generally Be Better than Everyone Else” according to its sub-title!

Highlights of the book… according to moi!

• Dress: Includes everything you need to know from accessories, to tailoring, dressing for certain occasions and a page of very ugly shoes (clearly the DON’T page)
• Speak: Definitely the section I need to read again… and AGAIN. The proper use for words. My greatest accomplishment so far has been taking the “s” off of the end of anyway! The pretty pictures and doodles help my learning… what can I say, I’m a visual person!
• Behave: Don’t butter the entire roll!! Holding wine glasses, eating oysters, texting with company and even a section on “bodily functions.” This section is definitely a must read. Did you know you should never bring your own food item to a party unless requested? I did not know that one, but you can ruin the theme/atmosphere.
• Eat: Four recipes you should MEMORIZE, cutting onions and other great recipes.
• Drink: I was laughing from the first page of this section as Clinton says, “Gin has made me do a lot of stupid things, but I forgive it.” Obviously there are drink recipes in the section, but my part is the section on wine; descriptions, how to serve, how to order and which wine pairs best with your food.
• Entertain: Plan for 1 bottle of wine per person!! Now that sounds like a party! Covers food to serve, music, booting people at the end of the night and making the potty smell nice! The “Mac and Cheese with Bacon” looks and sounds delicious… although it reminds me of the overeating experience I had at Yardhouse.
• Decorate: I cannot wait until I have my own house to be able to do all of this!! Room by room tricks, organization (“Kill the Clutter”), and fresh flowers. Never include baby’s breath or ferns IN an arrangement! Clinton suggests using Flowerbud.com for flowers.

  The book is full of color and information. Clinton has done an amazing job with this book balancing entertainment and information. I suggest it to EVERYONE. Give it to your girlfriends for their birthday or as a bachelorette party gift.

  You don’t NEED a reason, just get the book for crying out loud!! You will thank me later!

I’m not exactly sure what I expected when my friends took me to see the movie “9″. All I knew is several people were interested in seeing in. It was also a successful short movie (short as in 11 minutes and never should have been more) I never even took the time to watch the trailer…

And now I find myself asking…. why?!?! Why did I NOT watch the trailer?

It happened. It’s over. I wasted $10.50 on a weird pointless movie.

I will now try to walk the fine line between telling you why not to see it, and trying not to “ruin” it IF you decide to see it.

Review

Keep in mind this is a “consumer review” and not a “critic review” so this will not be a technical movie guru p.o.v. I am no expert, just someone who (usually) enjoys going to movies.

The question here is: Is “9″ worth seeing?
The answer: I don’t think so.

“9″ is a movie about a puppet named 9 who comes to life in a post apocolyptic world. All of the humans have been killed and the surroundings have been destroyed. 9 quickly discovers the only other “living” things are other puppets created by the scientist (all named 1-8) and the “machines,” who ironically were also created by the scientist.

The movie becomes a fight between the puppets and the machines. The main machine is somehow smart enough to create other machines… who knows what is up with that?

Long story short, here is how I felt during the movie.

The first 15-20 mins seemed to have no point. I found myself wondering if they were ever going to develop a story line. When it FINALLY came, I was pretty dissapointed. About 45 minutes into the movie I started thinking… this can’t be it, there HAS to be more. But there really wasn’t. There were a few shining moments where there were some exciting fights between the machines and puppets. A few sad moments when some of the puppets became “trapped” inside the main machine. The end was just as boring as the beginning. At that point I was still thinking there should have been more, but still, nothing!!

There was very little talking in the movie, and on the rare occasion when there was, it was little more than a “no 9 don’t do it.” Talking becomes VERY important in a movie when you are already bored with it…

The description of the movie says, “They must take the offensive if they are to survive, and they must discover why the machines want to destroy them in the first place. As they’ll soon come to learn, the very future of civilization may depend on them.”

I’m not sure there is ever a “reason” why the machines want to destroy them… More importantly, the future of civilization??

***SPOILER***

There are only 4 puppets left at the end of the movie, and as far as I know, puppets do not have reproductive organs… let alone ones that can produce humans. So how exactly is the world supposed to have a future…?? Yeah, I didn’t think that worked either.

The animation is good, and there are times when you can feel for the puppets. Overall, for a Tim Burton (one of four producers) movie, it was undeveloped and dissapointing.

When I asked my friends what they thought of the movie vs. what they expected, they thought it was grossly misrepresented in the trailer.

Final Thought
It seemed as if the creators were more interested in creating a movie that would be able to open on 9.9.09.

I’m not exactly sure what I expected when my friends took me to see the movie “9″. All I knew is several people were interested in seeing in. It was also a successful short movie (short as in 11 minutes and never should have been more) I never even took the time to watch the trailer…

And now I find myself asking…. why?!?! Why did I NOT watch the trailer?

It happened. It’s over. I wasted $10.50 on a weird pointless movie.

I will now try to walk the fine line between telling you why not to see it, and trying not to “ruin” it IF you decide to see it.

Review

Keep in mind this is a “consumer review” and not a “critic review” so this will not be a technical movie guru p.o.v. I am no expert, just someone who (usually) enjoys going to movies.

The question here is: Is “9″ worth seeing?
The answer: I don’t think so.

“9″ is a movie about a puppet named 9 who comes to life in a post apocolyptic world. All of the humans have been killed and the surroundings have been destroyed. 9 quickly discovers the only other “living” things are other puppets created by the scientist (all named 1-8) and the “machines,” who ironically were also created by the scientist.

The movie becomes a fight between the puppets and the machines. The main machine is somehow smart enough to create other machines… who knows what is up with that?

Long story short, here is how I felt during the movie.

The first 15-20 mins seemed to have no point. I found myself wondering if they were ever going to develop a story line. When it FINALLY came, I was pretty dissapointed. About 45 minutes into the movie I started thinking… this can’t be it, there HAS to be more. But there really wasn’t. There were a few shining moments where there were some exciting fights between the machines and puppets. A few sad moments when some of the puppets became “trapped” inside the main machine. The end was just as boring as the beginning. At that point I was still thinking there should have been more, but still, nothing!!

There was very little talking in the movie, and on the rare occasion when there was, it was little more than a “no 9 don’t do it.” Talking becomes VERY important in a movie when you are already bored with it…

The description of the movie says, “They must take the offensive if they are to survive, and they must discover why the machines want to destroy them in the first place. As they’ll soon come to learn, the very future of civilization may depend on them.”

I’m not sure there is ever a “reason” why the machines want to destroy them… More importantly, the future of civilization??

***SPOILER***

There are only 4 puppets left at the end of the movie, and as far as I know, puppets do not have reproductive organs… let alone ones that can produce humans. So how exactly is the world supposed to have a future…?? Yeah, I didn’t think that worked either.

The animation is good, and there are times when you can feel for the puppets. Overall, for a Tim Burton (one of four producers) movie, it was undeveloped and dissapointing.

When I asked my friends what they thought of the movie vs. what they expected, they thought it was grossly misrepresented in the trailer.

Final Thought
It seemed as if the creators were more interested in creating a movie that would be able to open on 9.9.09.

Second Fave Find Friday!! YAY!

Have you ever struggled with diets? Tried everyone in the book and yet somehow you are still yo-yoing? Well, here is your life saver!!!

I have mentioned it in the past, but Hungry Girl has been my lifesaver for about a year now. When my family started on our fitness kick last year, our trainer told us we weren’t allowed to eat: dairy, grains, sugary fruits, etc. Now those things right there, are my life!! Needless to say, I was a little bummed. We tried it for a couple months, but no one can eat like that forever. ( I literally craved McDonald’s for a month after, weird right?)

Sooo…. HUNGRY GIRL!!! The greatest way to continue eating the foods you love without adding the inches to your waist. Better yet, LOSE some of those inches!!

Lisa Lillen, the creator, is NOT a nutritionist, she is a self proclaimed foodologist who has spent the time and research trying to find good tasting and healthy food items. Lisa develops these recipes based on her idea that “food is [her] passion and it has been [her] lifelong obsession.”

Hungry Girl now has two books out, Hungry Girl, and Hungry Girl 200 under 200. Both are great. They are full of more ideas than you can possibly imagine. Comfort foods, cocktails, desserts, breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and you name it. There is even a section on typical party foods.

The basic concept behind all of the recipes is that you take a regular dish and just exchange a few ingredients for smarter choices… all while maintaining the delicious flavor!!

If you don’t want to jump right into buying the books, you also have the option to sign up for the daily newsletter which gives you some recipes and healthy grocery store finds. The pink links will take you to where you can buy the books!

Hungry Girl: Recipes and Survival Strategies for Guilt-Free Eating in the Real World

The website is also a fountain of information and well designed!

There are sections called top ATE. For example, the top ATE: holiday favorites, long lasting snacks, and summer beverages.

The most useful top ATE is the one on calorie saving swaps. Hungry Girl uses simple substitutes like using the liquid egg substitute rather than a traditional egg. My own swaps that I ALWAYS stick to: turkey instead of ground beef, whole grain pasta (and all breads) instead of white, and olive oil spray instead of olive oil.

It is because of this mentality that you can cut out tons of calories without having to try to hard, or even worse, STARVE!!!

Hungry Girl: 200 Under 200: 200 Recipes Under 200 Calories

My only complaint with the Hungry Girl books is that they suggest using a product called Shirataki Tofu Noodles… I tried them once, and found I’m not such a fan. They are quite slimey and have an odd consistency… but go ahead and try them. If not, just substitute with whole wheat pasta.

Good luck!! Sign up for the newsletter at Hungry Girl, and buy the books!! Trust me, it will be worth it!

I forgot to mention they also have a fun little game called Whack-a-Snack!

One of THE oddest things I have ever seen. Funny and sad at the same time.

Hint #1 you have too much free time on your hands!!

Scared? Yeah… me too.

This past week, I somehow received all of my magazine subscriptions in a matter of two days… Between that “wake up call” and my lovely budget crunching mode that I’m in, it made me wonder, when did I get all of these magazines?

I like many girls my age went through the various magazine stages. From Highlights as a little kid, to Seventeen when I hit 13, to my current obsessions.

I now receive: Women’s Health, Shape, Glamour, and People Style Watch.

While this may not seem like “a lot,” when you routinely run out of time to look at all of them, and you eventually throw them all out anyway, you realized what a waste. Plus, it is not very “green!”

My Women’s Health and People Style Watch are more expensive than your traditional $12 subscription price. But I suppose they balance out with the great $12 for two years I paid for Shape!! YAY!

But add it up, I’m suddenly spending OVER $50 for some paper!! Information I can easily access online!

I know you are thinking, $12, big deal, you are practically robbing the magazine! Turns out, you are actually making them more money simply by taking them up on their “great offer.” Magazines make their money with advertising. They are making mucho dinero on your “savings” because you add to their circulation numbers. Higher circulation=More expensive Ad buys. Personally, I think Ad buys are a little overrated when you think about the “impression” you get with the readers. I mean I skip the ads. I’m sure you skip the ads. That is why we find ourselves surrounded by “advertorials.” You guessed it, they are trying to trick you. Bummer!

By the way, this holiday season when you are checking out all of those nifty gift guides, make sure they are not paid for. Some publications are so strapped for cash that they are actually offering up their gift guides as paid advertisements. It will guide you alright, right to their customers’ products. Not so trustworthy is it?

SO what is my point? Well my point is that I do not need to spend $50 a year on magazines. I’m not sure which ones I will end up giving the boot, but you can be sure some of them will get it! I can go online and try to do my little part of the environment and my pocket!

By the way, did you know that the website, Perez Hilton makes $110,000 A MONTH!!??!! Man I wish I had all of the latest gossip to share!

Holy Hell it is hotttt tonight. It is Saturday night, and you guessed it, I’m home. Still a little sick, but I did make it to a little BBQ get together this afternoon. Now that I’m back home writing this, I’m getting a little sweaty! Ewww. I’m not sure if it is the hot humid weather or if I have a little lingering fever, either way, it blows.

On to happier more helpful things.

The other day I was looking at all of the bookmarks I have, trying to decide which ones I could get rid of… then I realized how much I use mine. So there ya go….

The 10 Bookmarks every modern girl needs:

• 1- Your Bank. Who doesn’t need immediate access to their bank account when they have, let’s say, spent too much??? I am quite familiar with this concept… you may also want to bookmark your credit cards…
• 2- Google. For the always important quick find.
• 3-Blog. To keep all of your people up-to-date. Besides, if you spend at least an hour or more a day on something, do you really want to go searching?
• 4- Twitter. I must say I never thought I would have Twitter bookmarked. Yet, here we are. If you have a blog/website/business, Twitter is the new, ever powerful way to keep in touch with your clients. (I have more on this coming up in a blog, thank you Twitter 101, and yes, there is a class)
• 5- Weather.com. Because every girl needs to know how to dress tomorrow!!
• 6- CrossFit or Gym. For me, it is great to be able to access the W.O.D. (Workout of the Day in CrossFit speak) so that I can get mentally prepared for the workout ahead of me as well as eat correctly so I have the most energy. If you go to a normal gym, you might also want to keep up with the class schedules.
• 7- Facebook. Whether for personal or professional use, Facebook is a clean, easy and straight-forward way to keep in touch with friends and customers.
• 8- IMDb. IMDb is my lifesaver when I have a face that I cannot put a name to or vice-versa. Great for a movie or TV watcher.
• 9- eBay. Whether you are a buyer or seller, having eBay around is very important! It is so much fun just to see what you can find sometimes!
• 10- E-mail. Which ever medium you decide to use, gmail or yahoo, you need it around! Duh!

  So why do you keep searching around for everything??

  There are many other things you might find important to have bookmarked. For example, I have other bookmarks for this blog, my salon (to make quick appointments), the Women’s Health monthly giveway, and a few other.

  The choice is yours, but please…. simplify your life!! Your sanity will thank you!

Ok so I am sick… and I didn’t want you to think I fell off the face of the earth and ditched Book of Randomness. I will return ASAP (hopefully tomorrow) when I can muster up enough energy to devote to a proper entry!!

Please forgive me for the delay!!

In the meantime, please enjoy some of my favorite YouTube videos!!!

• Extreme Sheep Herding
• Bizkit The Sleep Walking Dog
• The Count Song Censored
• Everything’s Amazing, and No One is Happy