And The Award Goes To...

  I have to admit that I am not a big movie goer. I am not one of those people who have a countdown, or throw a party for the Oscars. I have nothing against those that do, it is just not my thing. You see, I am just not a huge movie girl. If I go to the theater once a year someone should write it down.  

  I think it is because I read so many books. Every book I read becomes a movie in my head. So if I look at it that way I see thirty or more movies a year! Unfortunately they rarely transform the books that I read into a movie. 

  I admit a few months ago I did see a trailer for a movie that caught my eye. At first it looked like I might take an interest in it. Then, the more times I saw it, I was hooked and could't wait to see the full blown movie. This movie was originally a book, which perks me right up and  gets me even more interested. It's release date was right around Christmas, and like everyone else in the world I had a lot going on. So my thoughts of going to the theater went to the back burner.

  Enter my friend whom I haven't seen in fifteen years, and her husband. They decided to stop in for a couple of days just before Christmas. We went to lunch and decided to catch a movie afterwards. Lo and behold they were just as excited about seeing the same movie, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. One scene in the movie had me squirming and thinking about leaving, but thankfully I held on and stayed the course. I loved it even though the ending wasn't the happily ever after that I crave.

  So I liked it so much that I had to do some research. Who was the lead actress? I was amazed to find that she was from the United States. The accent with which she spoke I thought for sure she was from elsewhere. Well that is one more attribute to how good of an actress she is. Rooney Mara is her name. She amazed me in the movie, and she amazes me off screen too. I have seen many interviews with her and cannot believe how down to earth she is. She is shy and reserved. To me she is a breath of fresh Hollywood air that all too often is stale and suffocating. Rooney is nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role. She is up against some of Hollywood's finest in Meryl Streep and Glenn Close. Oh yeah Viola Davis and Michelle Williams are no slouches either. For sure she is the underdog, but I don't care. 


  I am not a glitz and glam girl. I am a sweats and t-shirt type of girl. I will watch the Oscars from the comfort of my own home. And I will pull for the underdog. I will pull for the book made into a movie. I will pull for the movie that drew me to the theater twice within a month. Yes, that's right. I who never go to the movies went to see Dragon Tattoo twice. Since then I have downloaded the next two novels of the trilogy to my Nook. Those two books played as movies in my head also. Hopefully I won't have to wait very long for them to hit the big screen. Oscar night though I will be eating my popcorn and rooting for Rooney!

Just a note...this was written before the Oscars were shown. 


What say you? Are you an avid movie goer? Do you watch the Oscars? Did you agree with who won?

Afraid of What?

  Dictionary.com defines Fear as a distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc., whether the threat is real or imagined. The feeling or condition of being afraid.

  I grew up with three older brothers who taught me to fear nothing... but them. I was never even really squeamish of many things. Yea, when I was younger I wasn't afraid of much...until one of those said brothers put a snake in the mailbox. He waited patiently until I got off of the school bus then yelled, "Kelly, check the mail!" Imagine my surprise, and first felt fear, when I opened the mailbox and a very angry garden snake hissed at me. I, Kelly Watson, would never be the same. Nightmares of snakes occurred regularly. Especially ones of snakes in my bed. Yes, that was probably one of my first instances when I could honestly say I was afraid of something. Thank you brother, as that fear of snakes has stayed with me throughout my life.


  I think that fear of snakes made me feel like I couldn't have any other fears. If I was afraid of one thing that was enough...right? I was not afraid of deep sea fishing. I was not afraid of flying. Give me the window seat every time. Rides at amusement parks don't scare me. Something happened somewhere along the way though. This was something that crept into my unsuspecting body and reared its ugly head at the most inopportune time.

  This past Christmas I spent time in Savannah, Georgia. I took a day and visited beautiful nearby  Tybee Island. I found the wonderful white sandy beaches. I shopped at quaint  boutiques. I  enjoyed every minute. I then sought out the Tybee Lighthouse. 

  To my surprise I discovered one could climb the one hundred and seventy eight stairs to get to the top of it. I was assured a breathtaking view. I was so excited I jumped at the chance.  My muscles burned as I rapidly climbed the steps as if the view would change if I didn't make it there faster. I made it to the top and stepped outside prepared for the beauty to take my breath away. My breath was taken away alright. I lost all of it as huge suction cups formed on my hands and whole backside. I learned very quickly that I am suddenly afraid of heights. The wind blew my hair into my eyes. I left it there. I had all of the oxygen of the world surrounding me yet I couldn't breathe any in. I did finally get enough gumption to take a couple of pictures.

  I found I couldn't get back to the bottom fast enough. I nearly fell to my knees and kissed the ground! The views were astounding, and I'm glad I did it. Unfortunately now that I know of my new fear I won't be doing anything like that again!

What frightens you? Were your fears brought on by someone else? Do you have fears that came on later in life? 

We Created a Monster!

  No, I don't mean a created in the basement type of monster. I really don't mean a genetically mutated form of human either. This is not the next Frankenstein. I don't have the science genes in me to accomplish that! I am talking about being a part of a bigger experiment gone awry. (I am writing this in the most loving sense, of course!) I am talking of turning my perfectly beautiful, sensible, talkative mother into a texting junkie.

    I live about six hundred and fifty miles from my mother and family. Her and I are very close, and we talked almost every night of the week. Notice how the word talked is past tense? Yea, that is because it was before she got a cell phone. It was before she learned how to text. Slowly but steadily her world, and the rest of the family's, conformed to mom learning the new rave, texting. In that time she eased all of us into what became her new form of communication.

                                                   

  You see, I am not a spring chicken. My mom is in her sixties (no that is not her!). I think we were all impressed with her abilities to figure out what LOL, and ROFL meant. Recently I had a conversation with my twenty something niece and she told me my mom, her grandmother, gave her a whatever text. She told a co worker, "My grandmother just texted  me whatever!" The co worker then questioned, "You're grandmother texts?" This next example might give you a better indication. I got a new cell phone in October. Since then my mother has sent me 2,248 texts. My closest friends and I have texted 543 and 536 times. 

  

  Yes the texts have increased as the phone calls are diminishing. There are times when this is totally unacceptable, but I seem to play along instead of picking up the phone myself. Last night she was having a problem with her Nook e-reader. Instead of calling she texted me with the problem she was having. I went along and texted her instructions on how to fix it. This alone involved 23 texts back and forth, when a simple phone call probably would have fixed it in a matter of seconds. I think she's pulling me into her texting dysfunction!

  I love my mother and hope you all got a laugh out of this. I did not mean it any other way. This is just another example of my family dysfunction! Oh yeah, I will tell her about this blog after it is published! Then, hopefully, I won't have to grovel for forgiveness...but if I do I'm prepared!

                                    

Does your mom and dad text? Do you text your kids, or grandchildren? If so, do you do it as much as my mom?     

I Am...

  Although some consider all of February to be a celebration of romance, I stop my celebrating on February fifteenth. Why?  Don't get me wrong I am a hopeless romantic, but I am also something else. Irish! We all know what holiday is next, right?

  My name is Kelly. I have red hair and blue eyes. I care for a spot o tea every day, and at times I really fancy me a Guinness! Although my family says there is more to me than Irish I tend to doubt them ;) They  do not know how badly I yearn to visit my homeland. It is a burning inside of me. I picture myself walking the Irish countryside after a nice rain. I picture myself on the Cliffs of Moher, taking in the majestic beauty of the landscape. I picture myself in a tiny Irish pub, having that aforementioned Guinness, and talking with the locals. I picture pretty colored houses, and sheep dotting the hillsides. I picture musicians young and old singing fabled Irish tales. I picture stone circles in the middle of a pasture. Ah yes, I am Irish!

  One thing I will tell you about me is that I am very stubborn. Once I have my mind set on something I usually will not stop until I get it. Right now my mind is on two things... writing, and Ireland! Outside of my family and friends these are my two loves. 

  I recently finished writing my first novel, and now I am going through the motions with that, opening myself up to a whole new world. I since have been working on a short story for competition, and have another novel started. It may never be in the cards that I get published, but I cannot, and will not give up. That's the Irish in me again. *G*. Hey, you never know maybe one day I will be writing a novel in Ireland! 

  Until then I will continue to tell my family that, "I am 100% Irish, I don't know what the rest of you are!" And I will continue writing and working towards my dreams. Hopefully somewhere along the way I may run into one of these...

So folks, that is it. I am Irish. I am a writer. 

I am also wondering...

What are you? What interests you? What are your dreams?

My Valentine Gift to You (For the Girls!)

All of the hoopla of the big day today got me wondering. Did you get what you wanted for Valentine's Day? Do you have that special love that can't be denied? Do you have this?

<<---------

This is the love that we all search for, right? This is the love  that no one or thing can pry apart. This is the love that will last an eternity. 

I'm sure that is what all girls dream of. I can safely presume that we all want a happily ever after with our own thought of who Mr. Right is, right? 




Well, what if there's some who can't have that? What if there are some who don't have it at this minute? On this romantic day, that saddens me...So I thought maybe I could help ease the pain a little bit. If only for a couple of minutes!  

So.....Happy Valentine's Day

ENJOY!

Did it help?

Where's the Romance?

Yay, its nearly Valentine's Day! Aw, the most romantic holiday. The give a girl chocolate, or a mushy card day. The give a girl some rose's day. BLAH, BLAH, BLAH. Don't get me wrong, those things are nice, but come on! Can we be more creative? Can we have a piece of our romantic partner, and not just the traditional ho-hum?

Don't think for one minute I don't like getting presents, I love receiving gifts. I especially love the unexpected ones. A hug from behind with, "I Love You," whispered in your ear, that's romantic. To me, that is a great present. Any present from the heart sets itself apart from a bought one.

A present from the heart...

 Write something even though you don't think you're creative.

  Sing something even though you can't hold a tune.

  Cook something even though you're not sure how to turn on the oven...just don't burn the house down!

  Put on a slow song, grab your partner, and just dance...slowly.

You see, I am a hopeless romantic. I am the sucker for a great love story. I stood and cheered Julia Roberts at the end of Pretty Woman, and I cried like a baby at the end of Titanic. Yea, I crave a happily ever after ending. That is one reason I started reading Romance novels. Don't judge me! There are many different types of romance novels, but they all have one thing in common...a happy ending. There are too many real life stories that don't have a happy ending, and when I read, I read to escape reality. I need a happy ending.

So if you are incapable of the giving of yourself go ahead and buy the same ole present, or buy a romance novel. I suggest Robyn Carr, Jill Shalvis, or Kristan Higgins. They are very capable of restoring the romance!

Am I in the minority in the gift receiving mind-set? Do you want glam gifts, or is something created by your loved one just as special? What's the best Valentine's gift you have received?


P.S.   Tune in for a special blog tomorrow. It will be a Valentine's Day blog like you've never seen!

Okay, I give up!

I am celebrating today. Why? I have added another item to my 'Give it up' list. Now I have to admit that most things in my life I want there, so my list is not too long. The items that I have succeeded at giving up are pretty big. In fact HUGE (at least I think!).


Item #1: Sugar
Or at least most of it. Believe me when I tell you I used to be the queen of sugar. For fun in high school I used to open up sugar packs and down them like one would a shot of whiskey. Anything with many sugars Kelly needed many of. Chocolate? Yum. I love chocolate. Soft drinks? Yep, I loved them too. Two or more spoonfuls of sugar in coffee made it all the better. I most likely took in fifty to sixty grams of sugar on a bad day, near one hundred on a good day. I guess you get the picture as to how much sugar played a role in my diet. Not.Any.More. Two years ago I decided to give up almost all sugars. I gave up chocolate, cookies, candy and soft drinks:( I have narrowed my sugar consumption down to between ten to twenty grams per day, which is probably what a normal person ingests. 


Item #2: Cigarettes
I don't know why I even started. I was athletic. I used to get all over my grandmother's case for smoking. I hated how the house smelled after she visited. I hated how my clothes smelled when I got home from Bingo with her. Yet I was just dumb enough one day to say, "Huh, let me try one." Not my finest idea ever. That came years later when I said, "Let's quit smoking." This coming July 4th will mark two years since I gave up smoking. Yay for me and everyone else who has given it up.


Pretty good so far, huh? Well, why not one more....A huge one.


Item added today: Walmart 
I have had it with you Walmart. I got pulled into your world years ago when you had items that were actually made in the USA. I got pulled in by the lower prices. I felt myself getting sucked into the one stop shopping world. Do you know what? I am pulling myself out, starting today. I have had enough. There are numerous examples that I could give as to why, but I think you all probably have an instance when Walmart wronged you. I hope no one takes offense to me giving it up, or for shopping there in the first place;) I may sometimes have to pay more, and do more creative shopping, but it will be worth it. My blood pressure will thank me!


By the way, what have you given up? Was it easier than you thought, or did you give back in? Come on. I won't judge!

Winter? Really??

    I saw daffodils growing in a ditch on my way from home from work the other day. It was January 28. I have to admit that mother nature has spoiled me this winter. If you can call it winter. Here in North Carolina we have had it pretty good. Many of our days have been in the fifties and sixties.
    I grew up in Western New York, near Buffalo, where winters consist of not when you will get snow, but how much snow you will get at once. A dusting was usually pretty good, consisting of only an inch or so. Two to four inches in one snowfall is probably normal. Of course there are the times when mother nature dumps seven feet in twenty four hours. Many in  WNY hold their breath until Lake Erie freezes over. I don't know if that will happen this year. They have had a mild winter also.
    I posted this pic of Hot Lips Salvia for those of you who have a case of winteritis, or cabin fever, or if you are just itching to get outside. Maybe it will help! I still think we will pay for this nice weather sooner or later. If winter has you down just think, Spring starts March 20.

How has your winter been? Do you miss it? What do you do to pass the time if you are snowed in? Do you think we will pay for the mild winter we have had so far?