Wants and Needs

This time of year, one might be tempted to give in to the urges from advertisers that you "NEED" this or that or some other thing. One may find oneself bombarded with catalogues from Sears and Lands End and Bass Pro Shops every time the mailbox is opened. To combat this I shop consistently all year long, so that this time of year is no harder or easier than, say, the middle of March.

But I kid - kind of. It is easy to get caught up in looking around to marvel at all the stuff out there from which to choose. Sometimes, in the grocery store, I get a slight panic attack when I realize just how much food is in there. I remember the stories of foreigners from, say, the old Soviet Union who visited American supermarkets to nearly faint at the sheer amount of fresh food available at all times with no rations or shortages. These tales play through my head as I push my cart around and around and past all the aisles of wares I've never even looked at, let alone eaten. (An aside: I hate the grocery store. This is only one of many reasons why.)

As if this wasn't enough, Christmas piles on the pressure, even though it is often subtle. I'm fairly adept at ignoring most ploys, but sometimes I find myself pulled into a pile of overpriced sweatshirts and actually consider whether to purchase one. Then, I may see a pretty charm bracelet placed ever so conveniently next to this display and think, "Hmm. That would match so nicely." Before you can blink, I've racked up a potential price tag of over one hundred dollars.

Is it the soft Christmas music playing and the warm, homey smells of the small store? Why do I suddenly feel that I simply can not leave without these trinkets? I don't know how to answer this, but I quickly come to my senses and realize these are not necessities - especially at over one hundred dollars. Good golly!

Yes, that red sweatshirt and silver bracelet might be things I want - especially at that moment. But when I return home to find two excited pups and one smiling husband waiting for me, I understand precisely how much those things do not matter.

I do have all the things I need right here. All year 'round.

Impending Holiday Mayhem

It's Mashed Potato Season - aka Thanksgiving and Christmas-time. Time for frantic holiday traveling schedules and overindulgence of food and drink. And I, for one, can't wait! Bring it on!

But, the hidden excitement for me in this time of year lies in the cinema. The quality films are set to debut, and there are more than a few I am anxious to see. Even though the list is mainly high-brow, there are several movies destined for no bigger an award than the MTV movie popcorn man - and I'm not ashamed to admit that. Don't count out a pleasure just because it happens to be guilty!

**The Twilight Saga - New Moon: Okay. Spare me the criticism. I have plenty of problems with Ms. Meyer's books and that could be a series of blog posts itself. But, no one could accuse her of not telling a damn fine story or failing to invent intriguing characters. And I might be the only person on the planet who found the "Twilight" movie somewhat more fascinating than the first book - it could be the stylistic director, Catherine Hardwicke of "Thirteen" fame, or the mystique of Robert Pattinson's oddness. I can't put my finger on it exactly, but it somehow penetrated my subconscious and, thus, I am looking forward to the next installment in a way even I had not anticipated. While I won't be able to muddle through crowds of squealing teens on the first weekend, I will catch it eventually. (FYI: I'm Team Jacob. Big time. How is that even a debate?)

**The Blind Side: My big weakness when it comes to movies? Sports stories. Even better? Football films. This true tale of Michael Oher's life and eventual draft into the NFL could be only mediocre and I guarantee I'll still shed tears. The trailer alone is kind of a weeper. But, the early reviews are that it's quite good and after reading a story about the real adoptive mother, Sandra Bullock's Leigh Ann Tuohy, and how she's such a pistol even Ms. Bullock was intimidated when meeting her, I'm so looking forward to this one. Strangely enough, "serious" movies are often uber-depressing and realistic. We already know this one comes out with a happy ending and so you can look forward to two hours of goodness.

**Precious: Definitely designed to make you squirm and think rather than feel good about yourself, this award season front-runner is high on my short list. Helmed by an unknown youngster, Gabourey Sidibie, and comic Mo'Nique, this is a dark inner-city tale of an abused teenager surrounded by poverty and bleakness. The acting is rumored to be devestating and the melodrama nearly on the brink. Having said that, one can guess my husband is hardly interested, as the trailer alone is way "too real" for him. As for me, I am pretty much frothing at the mouth to get my ticket. It can't get "too real" for me, as evidenced by my love of documentaries and films like "Sherrybaby." And I'm rooting for director Lee Daniels to become only the second African American nominated for Best Director at the Academy Awards. (John Singleton for "Boyz 'n the Hood" in 1991 is the first - and only, at this point. And a bit of trivia for you: Lee Daniels is openly gay, a fact which would make his nomination doubly influential in terms of Oscar history.)

**Invictus: The true story of Nelson Mandela, played by perennial good guy Morgan Freeman, and the inspirational 1995 Rugby World Cup in South Africa, this one is destined to be fantastic. If you don't know the almost too-good-to-be-true tale - which I didn't until the Espy awards this past summer - Nelson Mandela basically united a bloody, torn, damaged nation through rugby. While that is incredibly overly simplistic to the point of being offensive, I think we should all just see this Clint Eastwood movie. (What screams "Oscar" like Clint Eastwood?) To drive home the point - Matt Damon stars as the rugby team captain. Ahhh...what could be better than that?

**Brothers: After seeing the trailer while watching "Public Enemies" I became obsessed with this tale of two brothers, Jake Gyllenhaal and Tobey Maguire, and their war-influenced love triangle with one brother's wife, Natalie Portman. Again, this looks disturbing and dramatic and...awesome. It might not win any awards, but I'll be the judge of whether it wins a spot in my DVD collection. (Early odds indicate yes.)

**Up in the Air: I truly don't know many details about this new George Clooney film. But, knowing it stars George Clooney, what other details do you really need?

And I'll see you at the movies...after the last helping of mashed potatoes, naturally.