Being a true Pollyanna, it is easy for me to find joy and excitement in the littlest moments of everyday life. Those big top themed containers that I just found scrounging through the clearance section at Target are still giving me a little thrill.
Circus themed products might not do it for everybody, but the rest of this week has been brimming with opportunity to be entertained in simple fun, especially with a day spent marathon viewing the years biggest awards show and jotting down memories in a new favorite journal.
Let's dive in:
The Oscars
The topic of award show hosts is surprisingly brash. No one is ever completely satisfied, so it's no wonder Seth MacFarlane got an overwhelming number of scathing reviews over his Oscar hosting abilities.
He sang, he danced, he beamed his love of the movies, all while performing a mix bag of hysterical bits and telling a few tasteless jokes. Come on! What about this doesn't make for a perfect Oscar host?
Movie fans are always reeling over classy acts like Billy Crystal hosting, but then complain when he does his same old routine. Then, the Academy tries to mix it up by hiring Hathaway and Franco to bring in the young, hip crowd, and what unfolded bridged on disastrous.
MacFarlane was edgy yet channeled Frank Sinatra at the same time, and in doing so bridged the gap between the young and the old, something that no host has been able to achieve. Apparently this still wasn't good enough. Will it ever?
After reading an article from Vanity Fair, it came to my attention that a great number of people are up in arms about the "misogynistic 'We Saw Your Boobs' bit". I'm a feminist as much as anyone, but the song was funny, because it's a joke and it's true.
MacFarlane isn't the first to acknowledge the long joked about pattern in Hollywood involving Oscar nominations and wins following those actresses that undressed in their films (this year's best actress being an exception). This tip of the hat to the already heavily discussed fodder was how I approached the song, which was apparently far less seriously than others.
To me, and other fans have agreed, for the first time in years the entire four hour telecast was entertaining. No sighing in boredom occurred, but mass eye rolling did ensue while watching Zeta Jones lip-sync cabaret for her life.
MacFarlane's near perfect balance of song and dance man meets controversial comedian was evident from the initial classy Astaire and Rogers inspired dance between him, Charlize Theron, and Channing Tatum. [By the way ladies of this world, I sort of get this whole Channing Tatum thing now. Apparently all it took was a little dancing cheek to cheek.] There was also a bonus dance highlighting JGL and Dan Rad.
When he wasn't singing and dancing, MacFarlane also lead a brilliant stint involving the star of The Sound Of Music, Christopher Plummer, as he was announced onto the stage to present an award. Movies were actually highlighted in smart routines, instead of just those same old clip montages.
The only negative is they hid Meryl for far too long. It's not really the Oscars without her, so we all gave a sigh of relief when she was finally released to her public to present Daniel Day Lewis with the greatest living actor award.
This year's Academy Awards was all about pure spectacle and fun, and in a year with not just one run-away movie dominating all the categories, there were tons of surprises. Even after 85 years, the Academy Awards are continually changing.
Best Coast
Try as I might to ignore certain bands, sometimes it finds the way to my years anyway.
Having an obsession with Pandora, it was only a matter of time that the songs from the LA band with the fitting name, Best Coast, would find its way onto my various stations.
Their surf poppy jams are lively and during the winter any music that sounds like sunshine and the beach are a fantastic escape from reality.
Even though they might not become my new favorite band, as I can't help but think of them as "Amateur Rilo Kiley", their tunes are definitely fitting my fancy this week. In fact, Best Coast currently have their own Pandora station in my line-up, a fluke decision that is paying off better than I imagined. Suggested artists have ranged from Crystal Castles to Kevin Spacey performing Bobby Darin standards - now that is my kind of radio station.
Q&A-A-Day
Part of my perfect day would involve asking people incredibly random questions for hours. The tough part is coming up with what questions to ask, and since this might not be other people's idea of fun, I found a little item that does all the work for me.
This Christmas brought me a 365 day journal. Each date in the year has its own page, where it lists a question, and there are spots to answer the same question each year over five years. Some of the questions are the standard "what's your favorite color" type questions, but as the year goes on, there are some I would have never thought of asking anyone.
Forging memories with pictures, words, and experiences are big in my life, and I love the idea that after 5-years this journal will be a tiny time capsule showing change in a really fun way.
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