I am in the process of migrating the posts I wish to keep over to Wordpress, and once that job is completed, I will be deleting my LJ Account.  I find that I fall months behind in reading posts, and by the time I do check in, any thoughts I might have to share are woefully out of date.  It's not fair to those who have taken the time to write entries, and it's time for me to admit that my plate is too full to be able to enjoy the meal. 

My Wordpress blog is not searchable on Google, thanks to harassment I have received from various corners (I even had the pleasure of reading that one person wished that I were dead because I expressed my opinion on a public site).  However, those of you who read my posts regularly may follow me at http://silentsgirl.wordpress.com/, where my book reviews, rants, raves and general musings will continue (right now I'm in the heart of a 30 day reading meme, which is great fun for me to write, and hopefully fun to read). 

If you're interested, click on the link and subscribe, because once I've migrated the posts from here, I'll be deleting my account and even this reminder will be gone.  Some of you are FB friends, some know me from various lists or private life, and others I was only privileged to know here at LJ.  While I am sorry that my time at LJ is coming to an end, I do realize that the time to move on has arrived.  Blessings to everyone. 

I had an excellent year for film-viewing.  Interestingly, given that I'm a classic movie buff, most of the films that I saw this year for the first time, and that I loved to a ridiculous degree, do not fit the "classic" category in terms of age. In some cases I am fairly confident that they will be considered classics at some point in the future.  I did a *lot* of reading, and those film-related books that stood out are listed here to show where the movie-watching time went.

This year I saw (only including films I saw for the first time):  

In BOLD are films I loved
Stricken out are films that disappointed me

( 2009 Film Viewing )
The Standouts by a Country Mile Were:

Easy Virtue
Craig's Wife
The Black Book
Mamma Mia
WALL-E and
Milk

The films that disappointed were:

Diary of a Lost Girl
Le Roi du Champs Elysees (1932)
Devotion (1946)
Runaway Bride (1931)
Trauma and
the inexcusably awful Accidental Husband

A movie I'm told I enjoyed but have absolutely no recollection of seeing:

Million Dollar Legs (1932)

My Favorite Film-Related Reads of 2009:

Memo from David O Selznick, Edited by Rudy Behlmer
Kay Francis: I Can't Wait to be Forgotten, by Scott O'Brien
Vanity Will Get You Somewhere, by Joseph Cotten
On Cukor, by Gavin Lambert

Books I would have enjoyed if they were more tightly edited/more objective:

Showman: The Life of David O. Selznick, by David Thomson
D.W. Griffith, by Richard Schickel
Marlene Dietrich, by Steven Bach

Disappointments:

The Best Film Ever Made, by Pauline Kael
Marilyn Monroe, by Barbara Leaming
All About All About Eve, by Sam Staggs

Today I will curl up with my needlework, while I watch Tallulah Bankhead in Faithless and Jack Benny in The Horn Blows at Midnight - I have high hopes for a good start to 2010.  

December was a quiet month for reading, for two reasons.  Firstly, I got stuck with a long, long book that I was loath to set aside (because I had gotten so far into) it, and secondly, because I rediscovered counted cross stitch and I've been doing a lot of that.  I read three books in the whole month of December.  The third book took twenty days to get through and, in the end, it was NOT worth it. 

Books read in 75 Book Challenge (106); Books Read in Chunkster Challenge (which ended November 15, 2009) (23). Pages Read in Challenge (37,913)

And so, on with the reviews. Enjoy!

( Three Book Reviews )

Schindler's List and Schindler's Legacy were excellent reads - London: The Novel was a disappointment.  2009 was an amazing year for reading overall, and I will be doing an annual sum-up later on.  I will be participating in several "challenges" in 2010 (hardly challenging - they're just more fun ways for me to be anal) and I'll be posting about those, too. 

CR: Still Woman Enough, by Loretta Lynn

x-posted at various places

On one of my needlework groups, every Tuesday is designated as "UFO Tuesday," wherein we take out one Unfinished Object (a project that hasn't been worked on in so long that it's effectively been set aside) and work on it for the day.  Today was my first day taking part, and it was great fun.  I've had a little kitty sitting in my undone projects for years, looking like this:

( Tabby Cat - Only Begun )
I have no idea why I set it down.  It's not a demanding piece and the kitty looks a lot like Spike did when he was little.  At the end of my first UFO Tuesday, he now looks like this:
( Tabby Cat - Dec 29, 2009 )

It's really stitching up fast, and it's a lot of fun to work on.  I'm thinking that maybe one or two more "UFO Tuesdays" and I'll be able to add another finish to my list of victories. 

Also, most of my friends on Facebook and in my stitch groups heard the rather surprising news that I finally finished a project of long duration - Smoky Mountain Cats.  A dear friend gave it to me as a gift back in 1997, and I put the final stitches in it last night at 7:15 pm.  It is 13.25 x 10 inches of solid stitching, and I love it.  It's the first thing I've stitched for myself, other than the little G you see in my icon, since 2002, and the first large project I have completed since 1997.  

Those who don't do needlework may not know that it is customary to do a "happy dance" when you complete a piece.  The foundations were shaking yesterday from the amount of dancing I was doing, let me tell you.  

For the few who haven't already been assaulted by the image of this finish, here it is:

( Smoky Mountain Cats - DONE! )
I plan to get it framed in April, when I'll next have funds for such an operation.  I can't wait to put it up on the wall.  I even have just the spot picked out for it.  

It's been a glorious, wonderful Christmas.  Most of the gifts arrived in time, and they were all loved by us.  The thoughtfulness that went into choosing each gift was very touching.  We also had a delicious holiday meal, thus entrenching the tradition begun last year of making a Christmas meal here at home and relaxing together on a quiet, reflective day.  Here are some photos so that you can share our experience.

( Christmas Pictures - Have a Peek )

Snagged from beautiful stillsparkling, who credits blue_chakra

1. What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before?
I met Mandy Patinkin and Kevin Brownlow.
I enjoyed peanut butter.  

2. Did you keep your New Year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I don't make New Year's resolutions

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
No.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
Yes - I lost two people I loved very much.

5. What countries did you visit?
I visited the US in September/October.

6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
I can't really think of anything I lacked in 2009. 

7. What date from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
I can't think of any specific dates. 

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
I helped an author I adore with his book. 
I won an award for my writing.  

9. What was your biggest failure?
Not keeping up with the house as much as I wanted.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
No

11. What were the best things you bought?
70th Anniversary Gone with the Wind set - wowzer, but that's gorgeous
Two new-to-me Colleen Moore films

12. Whose behaviour merited celebration?
My husband because he weathered his surgery beautifully and with great grace.
Avy because she continues to be beautiful and loving, even as she continues to grow.

13. Whose behaviour appalled you?
I am saddened by the behaviour of some - there's no need to name names.

14. Where did most of your money go?
To the insurance company for the deductible when our house flooded.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
My trip to Jersey to see the Marilyn Monroe Exhibition
Meeting Kevin Brownlow
visiting the States

16. What song(s) will always remind you of 2009?
No idea. 

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder? Happier
ii. thinner or fatter? Thinner.
iii. richer or poorer? Poorer.

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
*Exercise
*Traveling

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Cleaning of flood damage

20. How will you be spending Christmas?
With my husband

21. has gone missing…

22. Did you fall in love in 2009?
No, I remained in love.

23. How many one-night stands?
None.

24. What was your favourite TV program?
The Daily Show

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
Hate only hurts the hater.  There are people I don't like any more, and people who have lost my trust.  They won't know what they've lost, and that's their problem. 

26. What was the best book you read?
The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak

27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Nellie Mackay

28.What did you want and get?
Time to read.

29.What did you want and not get?
A trip to Cinecon. 

30. What was your favourite film of this year?
Wall-E

31. What did you do on your birthday?
Had dinner with my husband.

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
It was a very satisfying year, so I can't think of anything that would have improved it immeasurably. 

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?
"Built for Comfort, not for Speed."

34. What kept you sane?
Reading

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Fancy?  Nobody - that's not really me.  I admired Stephen Fry and Jon Stewart.

36. What political issue stirred you the most?
US Health care reform - I got very tired of the lies told regarding the standard of health care in my beloved adopted country, by people who wouldn't be able to find their own rears with both hands. 

37. Who did you miss?
I always miss my Mum.

38. Who was the best new person you met?
I became much closer to Avy, and I'm grateful. 

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009.
Differentiating yourself from a doormat will cause people who liked standing on you to be annoyed.  Celebrate this - it's a bonus.

40. Most listened to artists
Janet Klein, Audra McDonald, Judy Garland

41. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:

"If you're happy and you know, clap your hands."  

For the first time since I moved here, I decorated a bit for Christmas. We got a little tree (we need to get a bigger one next year - this is just too small for all my trinkets) and I got out my movie ornaments. It feels a bit more like my usual Christmas now that I have out the creche and candles. It's funny how these little things can make one feel more "at peace."

( Photos beneath the Cut )

November was given over to taking care of my husband as he recovered from his hip replacement surgery (he's fine and back at work now). My regular routine was a bit changed, though the change was not unwelcome - having the hubster home, especially once he started to feel like himself again, was a treat.

Please accept my apologies for the awful errors in last month's review post - I have no idea how such an ugly post got through - I must have released it during a bout of insomnia or something. I hope that this one will more accurately reflect my ability to proofread.

Books read in 75 Book Challenge (103); Books Read in Chunkster Challenge (which ended November 15, 2009) (23). Pages Read in Challenge (36,253)

And so, on with the reviews. Enjoy!

( Reviews are Under Here )


My favorite in November was TESTAMENT OF FRIENDSHIP, and other highlights were AFFINITY and TALES OF THE CITY. I was disappointed by Jane Heller and P.D. James.

CR: Schindler's List, by Thomas Keneally

x-posted at various places

Back in the Day: 5 TV Shows You Loved As A Kid

* Looney Tunes
* Happy Days
* Bewitched
* Brady Bunch
* Little House on the Prairie


Who Would Be Your Leading Man/Woman?

* Dr. Sam Beckett (Quantum Leap)
* Captain Archer (Star Trek: Enterprise)
* Chandler Bing (Friends)
* Ricky Ricardo (I Love Lucy)
* B.J. Hunnicutt (M*A*S*H)

Wow: 5 TV Moments You Still Remember (And Probably Won’t Forget)

* The episode after Edith Bunker's death in All in the Family
* The final episode of M*A*S*H
* Love's Labor Lost - when I knew ER was going to be amazing
* The last sequence in the final episode of Six Feet Under
* hearing Peter Jennings say "I don't want to understand them; I want to blow them to hell" regarding the attackers, during his news coverage of the 9/11 attacks


"Tossed Salads and Scrambled Eggs": 5 TV Theme Songs You Know (and Love) By Heart

* I'll Be There For You
* Quantum Leap
* St. Elsewhere
* Homefront
* I Love Lucy (and She Loves Me)

Eh: 5 Shows You Just Can't Get Into

* Two and a Half Men
* American Idol, or any of the "talent" shows for that matter
* Gilmore Girls
* Buffy
* Dexter

The Starting Line-Up: 5 Channels You Go To First When You Sit Down to Watch TV

* Paramount Comedy
* BBC 4
* Bio
* History Channel
* Blighty

This Is An Environment of Welcoming, and You Should Just Get the Hell Out Of Here: 5 TV Characters You Could Do Without

* Billy Chenowith (Six Feet Under)
* Dr. Simon Brenner (ER)
* (can't think of another three - usually if I hate a character, I hate the show)

That’s What She Said: 5 Quotes That Still Resonate

* "The instrument has not been invented that can measure my indifference to that remark.” - Hawkeye Pierce
* "A mistake? Where did you mean to put it, in her purse?" - Rachel Green
* "Will Rogers never met you, did he?" Col. Potter
* "You're demonstrating all the efficiency of a one-legged man at a butt-kicking contest!" - Col. Potter
* "Ever since we said "I Do" there are so many things we don't." - Lucy Ricardo

Gimme More: 5 Shows You Can Never Get Enough Of

* M*A*S*H
* I Love Lucy
* Scrubs
* The Daily Show
* Stephen Colbert

October was a busy month, and I didn't require a lot of demanding reading of myself.  I spent a good deal of time in hospital waiting rooms and on buses, so I didn't want to haul around giant tomes.  Because everything was so "light," I finished ten books during the course of the month, but it was quantity over quality, I'm afraid.  

Books read in 75 Book Challenge (92); Books Read in Chunkster Challenge (21) Pages Read in Challenge (32,406)