My Current Interest

                   The Oscars are this weekend!   As usual I am excited about the broadcast as I want to see if I am right in my guesses of who the winners will be.   One of my favorite nominees this year is Chiwetel Ejiofor.   He is nominated in the best actor category for his work in 12 Years a Slave .   I have not yet seen 12 Years a Slave so Mr. Ejiofor’s work in it is not why he is one of my favorite nominees.   My excitement for this actor all has to do with a role he performed years ago in a film called Kinky Boots .                   Charlie Price (Joel Edgerton) is out to create his own path in life.   He is moving out of town and leaving the family shoe manufacturing business behind him.   His fiancée, Nicola (Jemima Rooper), is waiting for him in their new apartment an...

                I know I wrote about the 2014 Winter Olympics last week, but it is honestly still what I am paying attention to most.   This is especially true with the figure skating events.   Since these are airing live, I am literally watching for hours a day.   Then at night I watch the replay.   That is a lot of time with figure skating.   I will admit, some days things feel a little long, but I enjoy what I am watching and that is what matters.                      There has been some really exciting skating this Olympics.   Often this comes from people I do not usually see or have never seen before.   As I am able to watch each event live and see everyone who skates, I have been introduced to some really interesting people.   Two in the men’s event come to mind first. ...

                  I am sure I am not alone when I say that right now the Winter Olympics is what I am paying attention to most.   In some ways it is hard not to.   Olympic news is everywhere.   Medal counts, athlete human interest stories, and competition upsets are all talked about on a regular basis.   While I do find all this interesting, especially learning about the athletes, the true excitement lies in watching the events as they play out.   When I say watch, I mean truly watching, as in live.                        NBC does a pretty good job with their nightly broadcasts.   Everything is taped because of the time difference between the U.S. and Russia, but they try to cover as many highlights as possible.   However, the live action I am able to watch dur...

                 There are a lot of classic movies I have never seen.   For some this is by choice.   Others I have slept through.   Then there are those that I just happen to have not watched for one reason or another.   For years I did not think about all the films I have not seen.   With the large amount of movies I have watched throughout my life, it did not seem to be that pressing of an issue.   I knew I should get around to the classics, but there were others to pay attention to first.                 This year something changed.   I have seen the ads for TCM’s 31 Days of Oscar before as they do it every year.   The ads are not really any different as those from the past, but this year they kicked me.   They told me that now is the time to catch up on all those classics I have be...

                     With all the business makeover shows I watch, I am starting to wonder if I want to go anywhere.   It seems as though no one can run a business.   I know this is not true, but it sure feels that way with so many shows taking over businesses and redoing them.   After watching many shows involving salons, restaurants, and bars, I have moved onto hotels with the show Hotel Impossible .   The newest season started the other night.   I was very excited when I started seeing the commercials advertising new episodes.   It is a show I enjoy watching, even if some of the places scare me a bit.                       Anthony Melchiorri is the host of Hotel Impossible .   An hotelier, Anthony goes into struggling hotels and figures out how the...

              Backup singers are often overlooked, if they are thought of at all.   This probably sounds like a terrible thing to say, but it is the truth.   When people go to concerts or listen to albums, how often do they talk about the background vocals?   Quite possibly never.   This is a shame since sometimes the backup singers are better than the lead artists.   Which is why it should not come as a surprise that some backup singers try to move forward and become the lead.   I know at least one has been a contestant on American Idol and I believe there was another on The Voice .   It has been quite awhile since I have watched either show so there may have been far more than one on each.   In any case, it is not easy to move from backup to lead.   This is just one of the things discussed in the documentary 20 Feet from Stardom .        ...

                  Quite awhile ago I wrote about Murder with Peacocks , the first book in The Meg Langslow Mystery Series .   While I enjoyed the book, I will admit I was not sure if I wanted to continue with the ones following.   Some of the characters drove me absolutely crazy and I did not know if I would be able to put up with them.   However, I decided to give the second one a try.   Then the third, and the fourth…I’m sure you can see where this is going.   I have read every book in the entire series up to the most recent one which I am halfway through.   The books do not take me long to read and when I finish one I eagerly await for the next to be released.   Periodically I check the author’s website to see when I can expect the next installment to be published.   Some of the characters still bother me, but I like everything else so much that for the most p...