I was a
little awkward in junior high and high school and I am positive my awkward
phase lasted way longer than everybody else’s. I always considered myself
pretty normal. I wasn’t ever super popular but I had quite a few friends in school.
If you asked my dad he’d probably describe me as one of the nerds nerds. I was
one of the smart ones in school. I took some honors classes in junior high and
a few AP classes during high school, and got really good grades. I was involved
in orchestra also which was a blast. It was fun, I loved the music, and I met
some of my best friends through orchestra.
I believe this is 9th Grade
Prom
Senior Picture
Graduation
2. What were your favorite
past times?
Music
lessons and orchestra were a huge part of my life. I loved my English classes
and really loved reading. My friends and I would hang out all of the time
listening to music, playing night games in the park, hosting murder mystery
parties, and making movies. We thought our movies were so great, but looking
back they were so awful. I’ll have to do a separate post about that later.
3. What songs were you
obsessed with?
I was a
true Backstreet Boys fan. My sister got to go to their concert ages ago and I
was so jealous. I loved listening to Garth Brooks and the Dixie Chicks and
anything by Kelly Clarkson. I remember her winning American Idol as I was going
into 9th grade. I loved
Christina Aguilera (Beautiful), Jesse McCartney (Beautiful Soul), Vanessa
Carlton (A thousand Miles) and Daniel Powter Bad Day.
4. What fashion statement
do you look back on and cringe?
There was
year or two in junior high where I would go to school in my bib overalls. Talk
about embarrassing.
5. Who was your celeb
crush?
This is a
really hard question. I never got really crazy about the crushes until later,
but there is one I remember. Everybody always said that Nick Carter was the
cutest Backstreet Boy. I disagree. It was Brian all the way.
6. What were your favorite
tv shows/movies?
Oh my goodness!
Too many to even list.
Movies
First I have to say Harry Potter. Harry Potter was my Childhood! Other movies I loved were 13 going
on 30, the Italian Job, the Devil Wears Prada, Chicago, The Wedding
Planner, Kate and Leopold, Legally Blonde, Miss Congeniality, Zoolander, and
Oceans Eleven. Wow that was a lot.
So I have been using Itunes forever and have spent a small fortune buying music from the online store. I guess I really have been living in the stone age because I have just recently discovered podcasts and how interesting they can be. I have discovered 2 podcasts that I really love, and will continue to follow. (it doesn’t hurt that you can subscribe and download them for free either ha ha. The first podcast I want to introduce you to is called The Golden Briefcase. This podcast is all about movies. If you hadn’t noticed my unhealthy fascination with film already, this is right up my alley.
I have the most recent 3 episodes on my Ipod. One episode is called a break down/ On this episode of The Golden Briefcase Tim & Jeremy are joined by Silas Lesnick of ComingSoon for a spoiler-filled discussion about Chris Nolan's 2010 mind-bending dream action-thriller Inception, starring Leo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy, Joe Gordon-Levitt, Ellen Page and Ken Watanabe. The main purpose of Breakdown episodes is to to ponder, discuss and challenge the films that we feel often need more than just a simple review. We breakdown the film to discuss plots and theories in order to better understand the director's vision and hopefully challenge our listeners at home to re-evaluate the way they watch cinema. The episode last week was entitled The Plague of recent reboots. On this week's episode of The Golden Briefcase, Tim & Jeremy are joined by Jeff Bayer of the Movie B.S. with Bayer and Snider podcast to discuss their latest Picks of the Week, new DVD & Blu-Ray releases, trailers for Paranormal Activity 4, Kathryn Bigelow's Zero Dark Thirty and Killing Them Softly and much more. The main topic of the night was a discussion on Hollywood's continuous reboot frenzy, in honor of Bourne Legacy hitting theaters. The guys talk about some of the great films that have been rebooted and also name some bad examples. They also go over properties or genres that they think could do with a reboot . The episode that just got posted tonight is entitled The Sly Vs. Arnold Sylvester Stallone vs. Arnold Schwarzenegger, in honor of The Expendables 2hitting theaters this weekend. The guys go over each of the stars' careers and decided who comes out on top as the ultimate action hero. I am excited to listen. The Second Podcast I have really found interesting is This American Life.
This American Life is a weekly public radio show produced by Chicago Public Media, distributed by Public Radio International, and has won all of the major broadcasting awards. It is also often the most popular podcast in the country, with around 700,000 people downloading each week. Each week there is a theme that is usually presented in different acts. Each act consists of first person stories and fictional pieces that are touching, funny, and surprising. The content varies widely which is what makes this show so entertaining. You get stories about baby-sitting, the collapse of the housing market, summer camp, Special Education and people with disabilities. They even did a show about 2 girls who were switched at birth. I highly recommend these two podcasts if you are looking for something to listen to while you commute to work. Do you have a podcast you follow regularly?
As promised, here is a second update on my favorite subject
for the week. Movie News!!!
First a scene from one of my favorite movies. Better off Dead.
Now for the more interesting
news of the week that I first saw trending on Yahoo.
Robert Pattinson set to play Lawrence of
Arabia
Some interesting casting news
courtesy ofVarietytoday. Werner Herzog is developing a new independent
project calledQueen of the Desert, about English writer Gertrude Bell, who is
already set to be played byNaomi Watts. While the film will focus on Gertrude Bell's
life "as a writer, archaeologist, explorer, cartographer and political
attache for the British Empire", one of her good friends was Thomas Edward
Lawrence, orT.E. Lawrence, the author who
wroteLawrence of Arabia and
whom that story is based. Herzog has now castRobert Pattinson to
play Lawrence in the film.Read more here!
'Hunger
Games' Writer Billy Ray Hired to Script Scorsese's 'Sinatra'
This year saw The
Hunger Games hit the big screen with quite a powerful splash to the
tune of over$684 million worldwide. Much of that bank can likely be
attributed to the popularity of Suzanne Collins' young adult novels on which
the film franchise is based, but director Gary Ross pulled off a solid
adaptation that gave audiences confidence. However, Ross also had a great script
to work with fromState of Play and Breach screenwriter Billy Ray, and the screenwriter has
just landed a huge gig forMartin
Scorsese as Deadline reports he will write the director's Sinatra biopic which has been
gestating for a few years now. Continue Reading here.
'Snow White
and the Huntsman' Sequel Getting Rid of Kristen Stewart?
Before Snow White and the Huntsman even
hit theaters, Universal was already moving
quickly to get a sequel off the ground with filmmaker Rupert Sanders back in the
director's chair. It had been assumed that both Kristen Stewart and Chris Hemsworth would return for the film, but in the wake of
the recent publicized affair between Stewart and Sanders, the actress is not
being asked back for the sequel. Meanwhile, it sounds like Sanders will come
back, but the film is being reconceived as a spin-off that will follow
Hemsworth's huntsman character. But that means there's a change behind the
scenes happening. If you care to read more, click here.
Keira
Knightley Scores Female Lead in Branagh's 'Jack Ryan' Movie
WhileKenneth Branaghisboth
directing and playing the villainin
the new still untitledJack Ryanprequel
for Paramount, he's just found a leading lady who, like him, shares a penchant
for period pieces and dramatic performances.THRreports thatKeira Knightleyis ready to step out of her flowery
corsets and into modern attire to play the wife of Chris Pine's Jack Ryan in
the new movie, beating out actresses like "Lost" star Evangeline
Lilly andLike Crazystar Felicity Jones for the coveted
role. This will be the first big franchise she'll be in sincePirates,
and naturally there's talk she could reprise the role in up to three films. Jump here to read more.
Guillermo Del
Toro Says 'The Haunted Mansion' is Still Happening
Guillermo del Toro's version of The Haunted Mansion hasn't
come to pass yet. Back in 2010, it was announced that the Pacific Rim director
would bewriting and
producing a revamped take on the ride (ignoring the Eddie Murphy movie completely),
but we haven't heard anything about it in quite some time. Thankfully, Del Toro
recently spoke with Collider and offered a few updates on the film's
progress, including some speculation about who could end up directing it. Read
on here!
Hailee
Steinfeld Feels the 'Dead of Winter' for New Suspense Thriller
Those of you who have
seen the Coen Brothers' adaptation of True Grit - which, I
hope, is all of you - know that Hailee
Steinfeld is undoubtedly a star on the rise. Though the 2010
western is the only film we've actually seen her in so far, she has Romeo
& Juliet, the highly
anticipated Ender's Game, and the rom-com Why
We Broke Up coming soon, so she's been sticking mostly to
adaptations in her short career so far. According to Variety,
Steinfeld has signed on for a lead role in a Black List thriller called Dead of Winter, written by
newcomer Sarah Conradt with
music video helmer Anthony Mandlerdirecting. Read more about it here.
And Since I forgot this new trailer on Monday, here it goes.
You might not have thought
a whale would be man's best friend, but sometimes life surprises you in the
most positive way. A Beluga whale has been praised for saving a drowning
diver's life inChina.
The
26-year-old diver,Yang Yun, believed she was facing certain death when her
legs were paralysed by crippling Arctic temperatures during a free-diving
contest in north-east China.
It happened as competitors took part in a task to sink to the bottom of an
aquarium's 20-foot Arctic pool without breathing equipment and remain there for
as long as possible.
When Yang tried to head for the surface, she
realised that her legs were crippled by cramps. "I began to choke and sank
even lower," she explained. "And I thought that was it for me - I was
dead, until I felt this incredible force under me driving me to the
surface."
That force was a Beluga whale, one of a number inhabiting the pool at Polar
Land in Harbin,China. Incredibly the whale, Mila, had
spotted her difficulties and, using her sensitive dolphin-like nose, guided Yun
safely to the surface.
"Mila noticed the problem before we did," explained an organiser.
"We suddenly saw the girl being pushed to the top of the pool with her leg
in Mila's mouth. She's a sensitive animal who works closely with humans and I
think this girl owes her her life."
The extraordinary, life-saving and life-affirming moment was captured on camera
by a spectator at the competition. Though perhaps we shouldn't be too surprised
by the rescue.
Experts say intelligent Belugas were among the first whales to interact with man
and have facial muscles that allow them to smile.
First up, Into the Woods. It's one of Sondheim's most beloved musicals and up until now the only immortalized version is the live recording of the original Broadway cast, starring Bernadette Peters as the Witch. But Rob Marshall, the Academy Award-nominated director of the film versions of Chicago and Nine, has recently joined forces with Disney with a plan to adapt Into the Woods for the screen. The project will supposedly feature a script and new songs by original writers James Lapine and Stephen Sondheim. Into the Woods is the story of what happens after "happily ever after" for beloved fairy tale characters including Cinderella and Little Red Riding Hood.
Next, Jersey Boys. The 2006 Tony Award winning musical is also headed toward film-ville, as Tony winner and Academy Award nominee John Logan, screenwriter of Hugo, Gladiator, and The Aviator, among many others, has been tapped to write the script. Jersey Boys, which is currentlIny playing at Broadway's August Wilson Theatre, tells the true story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, using the group's hit songs.
Finally, the weirdest one: Adam Shankman, director of the film versions of Hairspray and Rock of Ages and judge on So You Think You Can Dance, will join fellow producers Doug Wick and Lucy Fisher to produce and develop a remake of the 1963 musical Bye Bye Birdie for Columbia Pictures. Bye Bye Birdie was originally a Broadway musical that debuted in 1960. Dick Van Dyke and Ann-Margret headlined a big screen version in 1963. Columbia has been developing an updated version for a number of years, with the story at one point re-imagining the title character as a hip-hop star. Step Up 2director John Chu was once attached as a writer, as was Tina Fey, but this current version doesn't have any writers attached yet.
So is this movie musical resurgence just a phase? Or is this the beginning of a major genre comeback, the magnitude of which hasn't been seen since the days of Fred and Ginger? Only time will tell!
Here's a list of other musicals being adapted for the big screen (between 2013-2014)
A Star is Born (Director Clint Eastwood. Starring Tom Cruise and Beyonce)
Wicked (Director: Stephen Daldry)
Frank or Francis (Starring Steve Carrel, Nicolas Cage, and Jack Black)
Annie (Starring Willow Smith)
The Goree Girls (Starring Jennifer Aniston)
Gypsy (Starring Barbara Streisand)
Little Shop of Horrors (Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt)
Spring Awakening (Starring Leah Michelle)
My Fair Lady (Carey Mulligan)
The Book of Mormon
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
LATEST NEWS
First image of Russell Crowe in Darren Aronofsky's Noah Click here to read the story.
Ron Howard's Rush Gets Release Date, Shares First Image
Ron Howard’s busy filming Rush, a Formula-1 drama starring Chris Hemsworth as English racer James Hunt. The movie documents his heated rivalry with fellow driver Niki Lauda (Dabiel Bruhl). Perhaps thinking it might have an awards contender on its hands, Universal has set a Sept. 20, 2013 release date. Jump here to read more.
Meta Golding Cast as Enobaria in 'The Hunger Games: Catching Fire'
Based on these constant casting updates from The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, it seems that the second story in the trilogy has a much larger scope than the first. Every week or so a new actor or actress signs on for a trip to Panem, and we've got two more names to add to the ever-growing cast list.Meta Golding has taken the role of Enobaria, a previous Hunger Games winner from District 2 who became champion through brutal methods, and Variety reports that Patrick St. Esprit has taken the role of Romulus Thread, the Head Peacekeeper of District 12 who plans to uphold Capitol law amidst a rebellion. Click here for the rest of the story
Warner Bros Pursuing Ben Affleck to Direct a 'Justice League' Movie?
I knew we'd hear something about this sometime soon, but I didn't realize it would be this soon! And this kind of name! Variety is now reporting that Warner Bros has "approached" Ben Affleck to direct their in development Justice League movie, which got kicked into high gear after The Avengers broke box office records. Affleck went from actor to director a few years ago, and is currently finishing up Argo for Warner Bros, where he also made The Town, so they've worked with him quite a bit already. He's not signed on and is "the only candidate who's been sent Will Beall's Justice League script", but he's the first big name to land. Click here to read more about Ben. Jump here to learn more about the movie in general.
Kevin Costner Will Become an Assassin and Also Mentor Jack Ryan
We recently learned that Thor director Kenneth Branagh has secured not only the director's chair for the upcoming Jack Ryan reboot/prequel, but also the role of the film's main villain. But who will mentor the young agent (played by Chris Pine) during his early days at the CIA? If you've read the headline, you likely know the answer: Deadline reports that hot off his performance in "Hatfields & McCoys," Kevin Costner will take the co-lead with Pine in the still-untitled tentpole for Paramount. But that's not all. Costner is also eyeing a lead as a dying assassin in Luc Besson's forthcoming action thriller Three Days to Kill. Read more here.
Jennifer Lawrence Heads to 'The Ends of the Earth' for Period Drama
Ever since her breakout performance in 2010's Winter's Bone, Jennifer Lawrence has been living the best kind of Hollywood dream. She earned an Oscar nomination for her work, and has been in the enviable position of balancing big budget tentpoles (The Hunger Games and X-Men franchises) with medium-sized dramas (the upcoming Silver Linings Playbook) and smaller independent films (Drake Doremus' Like Crazy). Now Lawrence is in talks to star in The Ends of the Earth, which is hailed as an epic love story based on true events, for The Weinstein Company. Will this be her next chance to snag the coveted award? Click here to read more. New Trailers
This week’s Sunday Social is all about one of my favorite
things-Food
1.If you could only eat one thing for the rest of
your life, what would it be?
The correct answer would be
Cereal. I love all kinds and I could eat it for every meal.
2.What's your guilty pleasure/comfort food?
Muddy Buddies Sour Cream and Onion Pringles
Smartfood White Cheddar Popcorn
3.What's the weirdest/craziest thing you've ever
eaten?
I guess Oreos with peanut
butter.
4.What foods do you avoid at all costs?
Sea Food. Okay let me
clarify. I cannot eat Shrimp. The one and only time I tried it I gagged and spit
it right back out. We like to call them cockroaches of the ocean.
5.What meal reminds you of your childhood? Ham Fried Rice. When we were young and my dad cooked dinner, he would make exactly one of two things. Spaghetti or Ham Fried Rice. His ham fried rice was actually really good. He'd use fried chicken instead of ham, celery and other vegetables, and scrambled egg.
6. Share
one of your favorite recipes and the story behind it.
Potato Casserole (also
known as Funeral Potatoes.
5 or 6 Potatoes, cooked with the skin on; cool them and then grate
them
1 cup Sour Cream
1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup
1/3 Cup Chopped Onion
1/4 Cup Melted Butter
1 or 2 Cups Cornflakes mixed with 3 Tbsp butter and put on top of
potato mixture.
Salt and Pepper to Taste
Cook at 350 for 45 minutes Potato Casserole is one of my favorite foods in the world. This is a food we have at almost every family get together. My Grandma will always be in charge of the potatoes for Thanksgiving. Whether it is my mom or my grandma, these potatoes are the best in the world. They never taste the same when somebody else makes them.
Every summer my work has a summer party where all of the
employees can get together. This year we were able to go to Sundance to see 7
Brides for 7 Brothers. Not only did they cover tickets to the show, they paid
for us to attend the barbecue dinner beforehand. My work really is really
generous, so my mom and I were able to go have a fun night out.
The set
The Crowd
They had a dance off before the show started. They little
