13TH ANNUAL SCREEN ACTORS GUILD AWARDS® NOMINATIONS

I love this time of year because its time for my three favorite awards shows: The SAG Awards, The Golden Globes, and The Oscars. I almost always thrown a party for the Oscars and I generally do a pretty good job of predicting the winners. The first set of nominations (SAG) have been made and I am excited to follow the news and the buzz about the nominees in anticipation of the Oscars in a couple of months. I think that the SAG Awards are a better indicator of who will win at the Oscars than the Golden Globes are. Sometime in the near future I will blog about my predictions for the Oscars. I am getting so excited.......!

13TH ANNUAL SCREEN ACTORS GUILD AWARDS® NOMINATIONS

THEATRICAL MOTION PICTURES

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
Leonardo DiCaprio / BLOOD DIAMOND – Archer - Warner Bros. Pictures
Ryan Gosling / HALF NELSON – Dan Dunne - THINKFilm
Peter O’Toole / VENUS – Maurice - Miramax Films
Will Smith / THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS – Chris Gardner - Sony Pictures
Forest Whitaker / THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND – Idi Amin - Fox Searchlight Pictures

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
Penelope Cruz / VOLVER – Raimunda - Sony Pictures Classics
Judi Dench / NOTES ON A SCANDAL – Barbara Covett - Fox Searchlight Pictures
Helen Mirren / THE QUEEN – The Queen - Miramax Films.
Meryl Streep / THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA – Miranda Priestly - 20th Century Fox
Kate Winslet / LITTLE CHILDREN – Sarah Pierce - New Line Cinema

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
Alan Arkin / LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE – Grandpa Fox Searchlight Pictures
Leonardo DiCaprio / THE DEPARTED – Billy Warner Bros. Pictures
Jackie Earle Haley / LITTLE CHILDREN – Ronnie J. McGorvey New Line Cinema
Djimon Hounsou / BLOOD DIAMOND – Solomon Warner Bros. Pictures
Eddie Murphy / DREAMGIRLS – James “Thunder” Early Paramount Pictures

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
Adriana Barraza / BABEL – Amelia - Paramount Vantage
Cate Blanchett / NOTES ON A SCANDAL – Sheba Hart - Fox Searchlight Pictures
Abigail Breslin / LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE – Olive - Fox Searchlight Pictures
Jennifer Hudson / DREAMGIRLS – Effie White - Paramount Pictures
Rinko Kikuchi / BABEL – Chieko - Paramount Vantage

Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture

BABEL - Paramount Vantage
Adriana Barraza - Amelia
Cate Blanchett - Susan
Gael García Bernal - Santiago
Rinko Kikuchi - Chieko
Brad Pitt - Richard
Kôji Yakusho - Yasujiro

BOBBY - The Weinstein Company
Harry Belafonte - Nelson
Joy Bryant - Patricia
Nick Cannon - Dwayne
Emilio Estevez - Tim Fallon
Laurence Fishburne - Edward Robinson
Brian Geraghty - Cooper
Heather Graham - Angela
Anthony Hopkins - John Casey
Helen Hunt - Samantha
Joshua Jackson - Wade
David Krumholtz - Phil
Ashton Kutcher - Fisher
Shia LaBoeuf - Jimmy
Lindsay Lohan - Diane
William H. Macy - Paul
Svetlana Metkina - Lenka Janacek
Demi Moore - Virginia Fallon
Freddy Rodriguez - José
Martin Sheen - Jack
Christian Slater - Timmons
Sharon Stone - Miriam
Jacob Vargas - Miguel
Mary Elizabeth Winstead - Susan Taylor
Elijah Wood - William

THE DEPARTED - Warner Bros. Pictures
Anthony Anderson - Brown
Alec Baldwin - Ellerby
Matt Damon - Colin
Leonardo DiCaprio - Billy
Vera Farmiga - Madolyn
Jack Nicholson - Costello
Martin Sheen - Queenan
Mark Wahlberg - Dignam
Ray Winstone - Mr. French

DREAMGIRLS - Paramount Pictures
Hinton Battle - Wayne
Jamie Foxx - Curtis Taylor, Jr.
Danny Glover - Marty Madison
Jennifer Hudson - Effie White
Beyoncé Knowles - Deena Jones
Sharon Leal - Michelle Morris
Eddie Murphy - James “Thunder” Early
Keith Robinson - C.C. White
Anika Noni Rose - Lorrell Robinson

LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE - Fox Searchlight Pictures
Alan Arkin - Grandpa
Abigail Breslin - Olive
Steve Carell - Frank
Toni Collette - Sheryl
Paul Dano - Dwayne
Greg Kinnear - Richard

Full listing of all nominees can be found at: http://www.sagawards.org/PR_070104.htm

Dead Birds in Downtown Austin?!

What the heck is going on in Texas? It's one thing when New Yorkers complain of a stench in downtown Manhattan but it's another thing entirely when Austin wildlife starts dying of unnatural causes. Even though the following article says that the birds didn't die from something in the air my guess is that they were poisoned somehow. And that is a very un-Austin thing to do.

Austin is the most earth-friendly town in Texas and its certainly one of the most environmentally conscious cities in the U.S. Austinites love plants, animals, recycling, clean water, and clean air. It seems very odd that more than 60 birds would meet such an untimely end in a city that loves living things as much as this one does. Maybe I will take time away from my investigation of the drum playing idiot in my neighborhood (see 1/7/07 post) to investigate the demise of these birds. Or maybe not.

Full story available: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16524779/

Downtown Austin shut down after bird deaths

Preliminary tests show no dangerous chemicals in area

AUSTIN, Texas - Police shut down 10 blocks of businesses in the heart of downtown early Monday after dozens of birds were found dead in the streets, but officials said preliminary tests showed no dangerous chemicals in the air.

As many as 60 dead pigeons, sparrows and grackles were found overnight along Congress Avenue, a main route through downtown. No human injuries or illnesses were reported.

Hope's Favorite Movies of All Time

Like my fabulous friend Liz, I love movies but only the types of movies that fit within...well, the type of movies I like. The best way to describe those types of movies are "light" movies--this does not mean that I don't like a good drama or a twisted independent film, when I say "light" I mean "well-lit." I also tend to gravitate toward movies that are set in a pretty place where the characters are wearing pretty clothing. I do not, under any circumstances want to see a movie in which body parts are severed, a person is electrocuted or an eyeball is pulled from a skull. I can handle movies that are not necessarily happy at the beginning and in the middle but I prefer them to be happy in the end.

Unlike my fabulous friend Liz, I do not like to go to theaters to see movies and I don't have cable TV. Fortunately, I live a half block from a Blockbuster so I can get my movie fix that way. I find actually going to a theater to see a movie to be too big of a commitment for me. I don't like the idea of being forced to sit in a theater with hundreds of other people (who occasionally smell) for hours, not knowing when the movie will end (i.e., when I can go to the restroom). I prefer to view movies in the comfort of my own home, where I control the volume, the odors in the air and the pause button on the remote control.

Below is a list of my favorite movies of all time that I can think of today, not in any particular order. Now that I think about it, out of all of the movies listed below, I have only seen one in a theater.

1. Working Girl
2. Surviving Picasso
3. Immortal Beloved
4. When Harry Met Sally
5. Best in Show
6. Secretary
7. Any Jane Austen book made into a movie
8. Age of Innocence
9. 50 First Dates
10. Red Violin
11. St. Elmo's Fire
12. Thomas Crown Affair (Pierce Brosnan version)
13. Oceans 11 (George Clooney version)
14. Titanic (the first half--Winslet/Di Caprio version)

The Punk Who Plays the Drums in His Garage Down the Street from My House

My husband and I live on a relatively quiet street all things considered. There seem to be a lot of families with kids who live on our street and our neighbors tend to keep to themselves. We moved in about a year and a half ago and we have only met a handful of our neighbors which, I suppose, is fine with us. We live a pretty quiet life and keep to ourselves too so it works out OK.

We moved to Austin from Chicago and compared to the almost constant noise of a big city (sirens, loud car stereos, screaming drunks, demented raving) our neighborhood is downright sleepy. With kids living on the block there is a certain amount of noise when school lets out and when the kids are playing in the street. But, in general, our neighborhood is pretty quiet with one notable exception: the teenage punk with the drum set.

About 5 houses down the block from us lives a kid who apparently aspires to be the next Tommy Lee. The first time I heard this kid and his no-talent band mates making noise was in the summer. I was in the backyard in the early evening hours serenely enjoying a glass of wine and a Jack Reacher novel. I assumed at the time that the practice session that I was unfortunate enough to witness was a one-time occurrence. I mean, it’s a quiet street and I would think that the other residents on this street would object to obscenely loud noises. But I was wrong.

Over the past several months I have heard this kid “playing” the drums on his own or in the company of his fellow aspiring musicians at least once a week. They are not improving their skills with practice that is for sure. I have been tempted to walk down the street and complain to him and/or his parents. But I have not done so yet because I had hoped that someone else, maybe someone who lives next door to this kid for instance, would complain. My husband and I don’t really know the lay of the land politically in our neighborhood so we would rather not introduce ourselves as “The Complainers”. As far as I can tell no one else has talked to the family about the crazy-loud practice sessions. The question is: why?

We have a homeowner’s association (HOA) so a logical step would be to write to them about the little pest. As newcomers to the neighborhood we wonder if there is something we don’t know about this kid and his family that protects him from neighbor’s complaints and police intervention. Is his mom the President of the HOA? Is his dad “connected” if you know what I mean? Maybe they are in the witness protection program and are allowed to do whatever they want as long as they show up to testify?

I don’t know what the deal is with this kid yet but I am starting an investigation as soon as possible. I plan to quiz the neighbors I have met about this situation. The only problem is that I don’t feel that I know any of my neighbors well enough to go knock on a door and ask, “Hey, have you complained about the stupid punk with the drums yet?” No, I am going to have to wait until I see a neighbor on the street and then I will have to strike up a conversation about the weather or something and then work in a question about the kid with the drums.

What about this kid’s parents? Don’t the drums bother them? Don’t they care that their kid is bothering their neighbors? Believe me I am going to get to the bottom of this. I hope that once I figure out what to do about this situation that I don’t become known as the cranky neighbor that everyone hates because they complain all the time. But I really want that kid to quit playing the drums in our neighborhood. The saga continues……

Top 10 Things Hope Can See From Her Office Window

As many of you may know, I am an attorney and work in a high-rise office building in downtown Chicago. I spend an average of twelve hours a day in my office and a significant amount of that time gazing out my office window. Don't get me wrong, I don't spend 12 consecutive hours a day staring out my office window, I tend to incorporate the gazing into my other activities. For example, if I am talking on the phone with you, chances are, I am also looking out my office window or, when I type on my computer, I often glance, if only for a few seconds, out the window. I am certainly not saying that there are not times that I don't "stare" out my window, such as the time when a man in a wheel chair tried to cross the Chicago River on a tightrope (as my fabulous friend Liz would say, "I am not making this one up") or, when there was a low-flying helicopter hovering disturbingly close to my building. For the most part, however, my looks out my window, albeit frequent, are fleeting. As I am sure you are finding this topic as fascinating as I do, I thought I would share with you the top 10 things I can see outside my window.

10. Chicago River-It is only about 2 inches if I hold up my fingers and measure but it is a water view!

9.Small Boat on the Chicago River-On my 2 inch scale noted above, the boat is about 1/4th of an inch long.

8. Chicago Sun-Times Building-This is where I look when I forget whether "Sun-Times" is one word, two words or is hyphenated. Because of my view, I will never misspell "Sun-Times" again...well, unless it is really foggy and I can't see the name on the building.

7. One fourth of the Chicago Merchandise Mart-For you non-Chicagoans, this is huge building on the Chicago River that has its own zip code and was recently sold by the Kennedy family. Speaking of Kennedys, one of the Kennedy cousins lives in Chicago and is big on the Chicago social scene but I can't remember his name and it didn't come up when I tried to Google "Kennedy Chicago."

6. The clouds--at first, I was going to say the sky, but then I realized that I can't actually see the sky today or most days in Chicago because it is always gray and overcast.

5. Large white air conditioning unit on the top of the building next to mine--This unit is an unpleasant reminder of the huge air conditioning units that sit on top of my condo, directly over my bed and, in the summer, sound like a low flying helicopter (and I do know what that sounds like, see my intro paragraph above)--they make the walls vibrate, my head vibrate and my cats uneasy. This may be the sole reason to love Chicago in the winter.

4. Pirates of the Caribbean poster in an office in the building next to mine--This poster must be huge, I can even read the words on it, by my measure it is 3 inches tall, compared to the Chicago River, which was 2 inches, but then again, the River is about 3 blocks away and blocked by other buildings.

3. American flag on a flag pole on top of a building--Which reminds me, I think people should be able to burn the flag as an expression of freedom, just wanted to be clear on that so everyone knows where I stand.

2. The Sears Tower--That is, if I press my forehead against the glass and turn my head at a 45 degree angle.

And the number one thing Hope can see from her office window are...

Black spots on the outside of the window--I have no idea what they are or how they got there but they seem there to stay. They look like oily paint splotches and if I stare at them long enough I start seeing faces looking back at me. The last two times the window washers came by, I tried to point them toward the spots but they ignored me. I guess when a man is hanging from a rope 23 floors above the ground trying to balance a bucket of water and a squeegee he is more to think about than my spots.

Stay tuned, coming soon, "Top 10 things Hope can see from her office window AT NIGHT" and "Top 10 things Hope CAN NOT see from her office window."

Liz's Favorite Movies of All Time

I love movies. Well actually I love movies that I call "Liz Movies". A Liz movie has a happy ending and sometimes a happy beginning and middle too. A Liz Movie could be an action movie but it is not an action movie in which there is extreme or disturbing violence, torture scenes, or any kind of violence against animals.

An example of a non-Liz Movie would be "Saving Private Ryan" because, while the movie was critically acclaimed and nominated for several Oscars, the first 20 minutes of the movie was disturbingly violent and pretty depressing. So, with those parameters set, following are my favorite movies of all time as of today. (Who knows...I may go see a movie tomorrow that knocks one of these movies off the list.)

1. Pirates of the Caribbean (1st one)
2. Sahara
3. All James Bond Movies (Octopussy, Goldfinger, and Casino Royale are my top picks)
4. Shrek
5. Casablanca
6. Mission Impossible 1,2,3
7. Lord of the Rings Trilogy
8. Elf
9. Seabiscuit
10. Footloose
11. National Treasure
12. Batman Begins
13. Best in Show
14. A Mighty Wind
15. All Indiana Jones Movies
16. Oceans 11 (the Clooney version)
17. My Big Fat Greek Wedding
18. America's Sweethearts
19. The Departed
20. The Good Shepherd
21. Good Will Hunting
22. Bourne Identity
23. Bourne Supremacy
24. Laura Croft Tomb Raider 1 & 2
25. The Transporter
26. The Italian Job
27. Elizabeth
28. Sixteen Candles
29. The Holiday
30. Vision Quest
31. Without Limits
32. The Breakfast Club
33. A Few Good Men
34. Top Gun
35. The Thomas Crown Affair (the Pierce Brosnan version)

I Love Martinis

I was just reviewing my list of possible blog topics from yesterday and considering which of the thought provoking topics is most blog-worthy today. But then I realized that what I am really most passionate about at the moment is the tasty beverage that I am consuming as I write this post. I am drinking a dry Tito's vodka martini straight up and I love it.

Tito's vodka is made in Austin, Texas, not an area of the world normally associated with premium vodka. http://www.titos-vodka.com/ You have to taste Tito's to believe how good it is. When we moved to Austin two years ago I was strictly a Grey Goose (or maybe Absolute or Kettle One in an emergency) gal. I remember that the first time I tasted Tito's was at a comfort food restaurant called Hoover's here in Austin. I was waiting at the bar for some take out and got to talking to the bartender about vodka. He gave me a taste of Tito's and I was hooked. Tito's has a lovely flavor and smooth finish and I have been drinking Tito's ever since my first taste.

It's smooth, great tasting, and much less expensive than other premium brands. At least in Austin it is. I purchased some Tito's in Chicago and it was pretty much the same price as Stolichnaya or Absolute. If you are hankering for a martini I would recommend that you give Tito's a try. It's delicious and I plan on drinking at least two (well maybe three) of them tonight!

I'm Back Baby!

Looks like Blogger fixed whatever the problem was so now I can post again in my own name. I was feeling quite voice-less and depressed there for awhile. Now I have to think about what I want to write about today. Several ideas come to mind:

1. The punk kid who lives down the street and plays his drums all the time. Hate that kid.
2. My dog Kodiak and his daily freak-out until he gets his walk
3. Top 5 reasons I love going to Fowlers for wings/nachos
4. My fun night meeting other bloggers for dinner at Guerro's last night
5. My top 10 favorite movies of all time. Well at least the ones I can remember today.
6. My favorite character in the Harry Potter movies
7. My top 10 list of hot actors
8. List of reasons that Paris Hilton is a total waste of space
9. This new website that Jonathan showed me called Second Life www.secondlife.com
10. My favorite vacation spots and where I want to vacation in 2007

As you can see I have a lot to think about. Stay tuned to see which riveting topic gets chosen for blogging today. You won't want to miss it. Well, maybe you will if you have other stuff to do today like your laundry or maybe showering.

Liz's Rant: Would it Hurt People to Use Turn Signals?

* I tried to post this last night but something was wrong with Blogger and it wouldn't let me post. It's also not letting me post under my own name right now and I don't know why. Bad bad Blogger. So, obviously, this post refers to events that took place on January 4, 2007.

So, today I was driving all around Austin between meetings, errands, lunch with my fabulous friend Stephanie, and finally to a really fun dinner with "the Band of Bloggers" (that will be a subject for another post). I drove on all kinds of streets today: highways, residential streets, business streets, and not-so-busy streets. My guess is that at least 20 cars which were driving in front of me on the aforementioned streets did not use turn signals before turning.

What is wrong with you people??? I nearly rear-ended at least three cars today. In my opinion the absolute worst turn-signal-offenders are women who are driving huge SUVs while talking on their cell phones. Multi-tasking is not a good thing when you are driving. Not if you want to stay alive that is. I have many more choice words that I could share on this topic but I will refrain for now mainly because Jonathan and I are getting ready to watch tonight's episode of The Office which he Tivo'd for me since I was out to dinner earlier.

And The Winner Is . . .

MOLLY, the lazy escape-artist, shoe-eating, smell-storing and dirt-trapping dog.

During a lunch of deliciously fried seafood, my fabulous friend Liz and I determined (after heated debate and confirmation from our auditor friends at PriceWaterhouseCoopers) that Molly is the winner of the Worst Dog 2006 Trophy.

All nominees were truly deserving; however, Molly's accomplishments stood alone. During her acceptance speech (howl) Molly thank her fabulous Mom, Stephanie, for being a great example bitch and for teaching her how to go as long as possible without having to take a shower. She also acknowledged the other nominees and applauded their efforts, but then stuck her tongue out, panting. Molly thanked her friends (which is strange because she has none, she bites every other dog she meets) by shaking mud and 20-day old sewage watter on them. Molly left the fake stage, wagging her tail while simultaneously farting.