A lot happens in four months

Well, it's been quite a while since my last post. A lot of things have happened.

My aunt Janet passed away Oct. 30. She had a cardiac arrest on Oct. 22 and was without oxygen for 15 minutes. She was in the hospital from the 22nd to the 30th. They took her off the ventilator on the 29th and she passed away the 30th. On the evening of the 21st we had a family party for mine and my father's birthdays (his was the 14th, mine the 23rd). Luckily, I got a good picture of her that night. We're still struggling to deal with it. She was more like a mother than an aunt.

On November 7th Josh Groban's new album "Awake" hit stores. It's pretty good. Some of the songs are a little different from what we're used to hearing, but most of them are very good.

School is stressing me out. It's getting close to the end of the semester, so, of course, everything is due. It's difficult, but I keep telling myself "just a few more weeks, then you can have a nervous breakdown. Just a few more weeks..." I've registered for next semester, which will be the lowest number of credits I've ever taken in a regular semester: only 9. But that doesn't mean the classes will be easy or the workload smaller. Then in May, Jessica and I will graduate, and our brother will graduate from high school. Then what? Who knows? I haven't decided yet....

The earliest known recordings Judy Garland made, before she was famous, which were thought to be lost, have surfaced and are up for auction. Hopefully, whoever wins them will be able to figure out who has rights to them and will get them put on an album for the public. I know a lot of people, including myself, who would love to hear it, much less have a copy! Here's the link to Bonhams site with the information. The estimated price is $30,000 to $40,000!! http://www.bonhams.com Just type Judy Garland in the search bar. It will be the second lot listed.

June Allyson Died Saturday at 88.

http://movies.msn.com/movies/article.aspx?news=227039&GT1=7701

June Allyson died Satuday at age 88. She was one of my favorite actresses. She was most famous in the 1940s. She was the girl-next-door that everyone loved. She often starred with Van Johnson, Robert Walker and James Stewart. I wrote a post about her already, so check there for some great films.

Happy 84th Birthday Judy Garland!

Today would have been Judy Garland's 84th birthday.

Anyone who knows me well knows that she is my favorite person. Most people know her as Dorothy Gale in the Wizard of Oz. Unfortunately many people don't know about her other films and how wonderful an actress and singer she really was.

My favorite Judy Garland film is For Me and My Gal (1942). That was also Gene Kelly's first film. She saw him in Pal Joey on stage and wanted him for a co-star. His role, Harry Palmer, was similar to his role in Pal Joey. Harry is a heel, but he is redeemed by the end through his love for Jo Hayden (Judy's character). The film takes place during World War I. Jo is in a Vaudeville act with Jimmy Metcalf (played by the great George Murphy) and some other friends. I was going to give a really indepth summary of the plot, but it was getting really, really long so I cut it out. It's just an awesome movie. Trust me!

The United States Postal Service had a ceremony today for a new 39 cent stamp. You can find out more on the USPS website: http://www.usps.com/communications/news/stamps/2005/sr05_054.htm

The Judy Garland Database(http://www.jgdb.com/) and the Judy Room (http://www.thejudyroom.com/index.html) are two awesome websites about Judy. They have everything you could ever want!

I was going to make this a really long post, but I've decided I will just write another one later.

The Chronicles of Narnia

So, I finally saw this. Well, sort of. I was watching it at my parents house, but I missed the first half hour because I couldn't hear it. The rest of the film was great. It has been years since I read the book, but from what I can remember, they did a great job with it. Bravo! I hope the next one is as good as the first.

Which Judy Garland character are you?

Hannah Brown (Easter Parade, 1948) - You are kind of insecure about yourself and sometimes you think other girls are better than you, but that's NOT true. You believe in Luck and hard work. You are different, you're authentic and original, you don't have to be somebody else to shine because you're awesome, you just need to be a little more confident, sometimes people don't realize how cool you are until you take off the mask you're wearing. Be Happy

http://quizilla.com/users/garlandgal/quizzes/Which%20Judy%20Garland%20Character%20are%20you?/

OR

You are Dorothy Gale From Kansas. Yes you are the beloved little girl from the Wizard of Oz! You're sweet and caring to your friends, you're a good person, liked by everyone but your imagination!

http://www.quizilla.com/users/Muff69/quizzes/What%20Judy%20Garland%20Character%20Are%20you?

OR

You are miss Nellie Kelly!You love the people closest to you and always want to be happy. You're often the life of the party and you bring life to everyone you touch.

http://www.quizilla.com/users/GarlandGrl/quizzes/Which%20Garland%20Character%20Are%20You%3F

Jack Jones

Jack Jones is coming to TBPAC!!! February 2, 2007. WOOHOO!!! I can't wait. I am definitely going to go!

Wedding

It's been a while since I posted. Oops!
My oldest sister got married March 18, 2006. She and her husband got married at our church. It was a nice wedding. She had three bridesmaids and one matron of honor (all three sisters) and he had two groomsmen (his two brothers) and one best man (his best friend). Great stuff. It was a really long day though.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chronicles of Narnia

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: I can't even express how much I loved this movie! It is definiytely the best one so far. I can't wait to see what they do with the next book! I cried and laughed and felt so much more with this movie than the previous ones. You can really see a difference in the acting of the main characters in this film compared to the others. I really don't have much more to say about this one, other than it was great! I want to see it again. :)

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe: I can't wait to see this! It looks like it's going to be awesome!! I have all the books, but I'm not sure I've read them all. I suppose I should read through them again.... Anyway, it looks like it's going to be great and I can't wait. That is all. :)

Pride & Prejudice

I saw this movie the day after Thanksgiving. It was great! True to the book and what I think Jane Austen was trying to express. Anyone who plans on seeing this movie should read the book first, but I understand that a lot of people can't get through a Jane Austen book. This version of the book put to film is probably the best so far. I've seen the 1940 version with Laurence Olivier and Greer Garson, which was good if you haven't read the book. It was great to the standards of the 1940s. It was the first version I had ever seen and I thought it was good. Good cast, good script and funny in all the right places. I have also seen the BBC TV version, which was good too. Many Janeites have said that is their favorite version. I guess Colin Firth was okay as Mr. Darcy, but I just didn't get the right feeling for him. Jennifer Ehle was good as Lizzie and it is prbably the most thorough version. I really enjoyed the new film though. It could have been longer, but they covered all the main points. Keira Knightly was really great as Lizzie. I thought she was just right. Matthew MacFadyen was wonderful as Mr. Darcy. Perfect! He expressed just what I pictured Darcy to feel. Wonderful! The rest of the cast was great too! Bingley and Jane were too cute! Caroline, Wickham and Lady Catherine were perfectly terrible! They were great for those parts! Just a wonderful movie that I think everyone should see!

It's been a while!

Since my last post, I turned 21. Nothing much has changed, I didn't go out partying and drinking like most people do. The nuts. The semester is almost over. It's exam week. I got a B+ in Oceanography. WOOHOO! I really didn't care about that class. The others I was worried about. I'm in the process of moving oput of my parents house with my sister. Moving very slowly though. Hopefully we'll be in before Christmas....we'll see. I'm almost done with my Christmas shopping. WOOHOO #2!! Thanksgiving was good. The family got along pretty well. Hmm.....I guess that's it.