Spooktacular, Spooktacular!!

Good morning ladies and gents, and HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

It's one of my favourite days of the year - when spooks and spirits rise up and roam the earth, when little children giddily don their costumes and trail from door-to-door begging for treats, when scary movies are on practically every channel on TV. Today, I don't have to wear my Mountainview uniform. Today, I get to wear an orange wig, black & orange glasses, black & orange nail polish, an orange boa, and kitty ears. What am I, you ask? I don't really know. I've been told I look like Velma from Scooby Doo wearing kitty ears. I've been told I look like Josie from Josie & the Pussycats. Either way, I don't look like Jill, and that's all I was aiming for!

Now I do have a dilemma today. It's been my tradition for the past few years to watch a scary movie after the trick-or-treaters have all come and gone on Halloween Night. But now I can't decide which movie to watch. Usually I watch a bunch of scary movies around this time of year, but this year, the only one I managed to squeeze in was "Stir of Echoes" on Sunday afternoon, and I ended up falling asleep 10 minutes in. Now, I know I can watch a scary movie anytime, but it just won't have the same appeal to watch one tomorrow night. So this is where you guys come in...Help me choose!

The options are as follows:

Halloween: H20 - It's one of my favourites, with Josh Hartnett starring as Laurie Strode's son John, and he gets to meet his uncle Michael Myers 20 years after he last stalked his mother on Halloween. Right now, this is the flick I'm leaning most towards, mainly because of Josh Hartnett.

Carrie - It never fails to chill me, despite the cheesy 70's horror movie style. Carrie is a character you feel sympathetic for, as she is bullied and teased for her introverted ways, but when she unleashes her horror on her classmates at the prom, she becomes one of the biggest monsters in cinematic history. I watched it last year on All Hallow's Eve, so maybe I should make it tradition?

An American Haunting - I just saw this movie for the first time last year, a few weeks before Halloween, and I loved it. It was an authentic, spine-tingling ghost story with a twist that left my head spinning. I haven't watched it since, so it keeps popping up in my head as an option.

Silence of the Lambs - It's another one that I haven't watched in a long time - in fact, I can't really remember what even happens, other than the standard Hannibal Lecter images that never quite leave your memories. I got it for Luke for his birthday, and I think it's still in the wrapper...Might have to open it tonight!

Idle Hands - It's got some scary moments, but overall, this was a comedy set around Halloween when poor Anton's hand becomes occupied by the devil and all sorts of hijinks ensue. The real reason I'm thinking of watching it is because I might get too scared watching the others, and at least I know I can survive until the end of this one!

Pet Sematary - What would Halloween be without Stephen King? It's my favourite of his horror stories, and the creepy little zombie baby gives me the willies just thinking about him. The only reason I'm leaning against this movie is that I watched it just a few months ago, so perhaps it is too fresh in my memory.

OK - so those are the only choices I can think of right now that I really want to watch. If it were up to you guys, which one would you watch? Or have you any other scary movies that you can recommend that perhaps I might find while channel surfing tonight?

Have a spooktacular day!!

Late, but Loooong

Hey guys!

Well, I didn't get around to Blogging about Survivor or Grey's Anatomy yet, so here it is - sorry it's late!!

We'll start with Survivor: The last time I wrote, things were looking awfully gloomy for my boy James. The tribal shake-up had him out-numbered on a team of dimwits who chose to throw a challenge in order to eliminate either him or Aaron. They decided to toss Aaron, presuming that he had stronger ties to his former tribemates than James did. Apparently, they presumed wrong, because this week, James' old buddies saved his ass BIG TIME!!

Now, the plan didn't come off without a hitch by any means. Concoted by Todd (who is growing on me with every episode - he's kinda like a little gay Tom Cruise. And no, Tom Cruise is not gay...) - the plan had them kidnapping James after winning the Reward Challenge. James would then, in turn, share his secret clue with Todd and Amanda so they could find the hidden Immunity Idol, because Todd had all the previous clues. They would then give James the hidden Immunity Idol, and upon returning to his new tribe, he would purposely help throw the next challenge (not hard, thought James, with that already being the girls' plan). Then he would go to Tribal Council, allow all his teammates to vote him off, and then promptly produce his hidden Immunity Idol. His vote would be for Jamie, thus sending her home, and completing Todd's crafty little plan. Meanwhile, he would also find the other hidden Immunity Idol at his own camp, which he would have to share with Todd and Amanda once the tribes merged, cementing their powerhouse alliance.

Brilliant, right??

Well...Things didn't quite go as planned. First of all, while James was gone, the giggling girls decided it was in their best interests to not lose the next challenge after Frosti refused to make eye contact and Sherea wouldn't talk to PG-13 at the Reward Challenge. Fearing their former allies had been swayed to the other side, the girls decided to fight back. The Immunity Challenge also wasn't an easy one for James to throw - an eating competition involving "Chinese delights". And we're not talking Chicken Balls and Egg Rolls here. They had to face off over chicken hearts, eel, chicken fetuses, rotten eggs, and stuff like that. James was baffled when he realized his tribemates were actually trying to win, and were quite handily putting the boots to the other team. James and Todd exchanged several pained glances as they realized their master plan was unraveling before their eyes.

But perhaps the most poignant moment of the challenge was when James went up against Denise over the under-developed baby chicks (beaks, claws, and feather included). She knew he was supposed to throw the challenge, and he tried desperately to do so, spitting pieces out and forcing himself to gag. But Denise just couldn't eat them. She tried and tried and couldn't get it down. Seeing her struggle like that was too much for James, and finally he quietly said, "I got it," and jammed the rest of the baby chick in his mouth, downing it with ease. Their plan had gone completely belly-up, and not even he could save it.

Fortunately, all was not lost entirely. James had the Idol and didn't need it, but things were still OK at the other tribe. While Frosti had accidentally become a part of the alliance with Todd, Amanda, Denise, and Courtney when he witnessed them finding the hidden Immunity Idol, they still had Sherea and Jean-Robert to target for elimination. Concensus was to get Sherea out, until Courtney reared her ugly head and demanded that Jean-Robert go. Things were a little up in the air until she got to Tribal Council and pissed off everyone, especially Todd, and they went back to their original plan of getting rid of the outsider Sherea. Thank God. Finally, something went RIGHT in this episode!! Not that I'm a big Jean-Robert fan, but that's my chosen tribe, so they had to get rid of one of their new members ahead of him!

Coming up this week: Looks like James misses the boat on finding the other hidden Immunity, Courtney and Todd fall out completely, and it looks like we're gonna merge! Yee haw for James for SURVIVING!!!

Now, I've already rambled long enough and no one cares about Grey's, but last week was one of my most favourite episodes ever. But forget about everyone and everything but this:

Alex. And Ava. YES!!!

The long-awaited reunion finally happened! Last season, he rescued her during the ferry disaster, they became close while she was hospitalized with a crushed face and amnesia, and then, when she got her face & memory back and her husband came to get her, she begged Alex to give her a reason to stay with him, and he told her she should go back to her husband.

Then, Alex realized he needed her and went back to get her, but she was already gone. *Poof* Just like that.

I've been hoping and praying for Ava's return this season, and when Alex pulled back the curtain to see her waiting for him in the pit...Well, my heart melted. They spent the episode re-igniting their flame, tangled together in the on-call room, where all the sexy rendez-vous' go down at Seattle Grace. Then Alex got called away when his old intern Norman had a massive stroke. And at the end of the show, Alex went back to talk to Ava, and she was already gone again, leaving her shirt so he could remember her smell.

So once again, I'm at loose ends with Alex and Ava, wondering what's going to happen. God, I hope they bring her on full-time. Alex deserves a real relationship. Alex deserves love. And Ava's the girl for him.

Keeping on the topic of Alex - I've realized from watching my DVD's and current episodes that his uniform when he's not in uniform is a sexy black wife-beater. Yum. I love it.

OK - so the recaps are late, but they're long, so that's gotta count for something, right?

See y'all tomorrow for a real, genuine Halloween Blog!!

Sens WIN!! / Survivor SUCKS!!

I missed the first period of the hockey game last night; hence, I missed Wade Redden's second goal of the season, which he scored on the powerplay less than a minute into the game vs. Montreal last night. Apparently it was a bit of a blooper goal, and nothing I should really be all that proud of. But hell, Wade Redden scored a goal, and that's good enough for me! YAY WADE!!!!

The Sens blew a 3-1 lead, letting the Habs back in it with 2 powerplay goals. After Kovalev scored to tie it, I was a little on edge - but not for long. 24 seconds later, Jason Spezza scored his first of the season, and all was right in my world again.

It was Randy Robitaille's first game as a Sen after clearing waivers the day before, but I have to admit, I didn't really notice him. What I did notice was rookie Nick Foligno scoring his first NHL goal (assisted by none other than Wade Redden) - and his celebratory leap afterwards in tribute to his dad, Mike, who used to pounce off the ice like a jackrabbit when he played in the NHL back in the day. Between periods, they asked Nicky-Fo (Steve Warne started the nickname on TGOR, and I like it) if he would continue the trend for every goal he scores in the future, and he replied that it was a one-shot deal - a salute to his father that will not be repeated again.

I'm not going to talk about the soft goal that Martin Gerber allowed to get the Habs on the board in the first period; nor am I going to wonder if his less-than-stellar game had anything to do with Ray Emery being back on the bench and putting pressure on Gerber again to perform. I'd rather not have a goaltending controversy, and the media are flogging the damn thing to death. If you want to read about that, check out the Sun or the Citizen, I'm sure they'll have plenty of coverage.

Now, I was able to catch Survivor last night following the game. I haven't done a recap for you since my initial thoughts after Episode 1 - since then, we've said good-bye to Ashley the wrestler, Leslie the Christian Radio DJ, and Dave the annoying ex-model.

Last night's episode was what I like to call "The Survivor Episode from HELL". The nitwit brains behind the operation decided it would be fun to have the two tribes swap two players, with the opposite tribe choosing the two strongest players in their eyes to join them.

Up to this point, my favourite tribe has been the tribe with the two hot men: Aaron, the HOTT surf instrutor, and James, the HOTT, buff, sexy, delicious gravedigger. Yes, ladies...that's HOTT with two t's. We're talkin' Colby Donadson HOTT here.

So naturally, the weaklings over at the other camp chose to take Aaron and James from the other tribe. They're complete idiots, of course, and didn't realize that they would have to give up two of their members in return. They were clicking their heels over the idea that the numbers would now swing in their favour 7-5. Apparently, it never crossed their minds that the other tribe would get the same note that they did. The other tribe chose to take from them Frosti, whom I still can't take seriously, and Sherea.

A fair trade? I think not.

Things just went from bad to worse when PG-13 and Jamie put their heads together and decided that if they wanted to keep the numbers in their original tribe's favour, they'd need to get rid of James and Aaron pronto, which would mean purposely attempting to throw challenges. That's not an easy task with James and Aaron on your side, but they managed to do it anyways. It was painful to watch them giggle and laugh throughout the challenge as the purposely put puzzle pieces in the wrong spots. I wanted to slap Jamie across the face when she chucked one part of the puzzle way off in the tall grass. It was even more difficult to watch James trying to figure it out afterwards and scolding the girls for their silly behaviour. It didn't seem to dawn on him or Aaron that they had purposely lost the challenge.

I was grasping at hope when Erik found out that his girls had thrown the competition, and I saw his expression darken with disapproval. However, despite the fact that he thought it was wrong to lose on purpose, he chose to stick with his tribe and vote out one of the "new guys". One of the HOTT guys. ARGHHHHH!!

James asked them to send him home, because he didn't want to continue playing the game with people who tried to lose. However, the girls figured that Aaron had stronger ties with his old tribe than James, so they sent him packing instead. Either way, I knew the elimination was going to suck. To see those two stupid bitches sitting there with stupid smiles on their faces, so pleased with themselves, while two of the strongest players in Survivor history were on the block, made me want to vomit. Even Probst looked disgusted with this sickening turn of events.

So unless James can work a miracle next week, the girls will be trying to throw the challenge again to get rid of him. I'm hoping between now and then, he & Erik can bond and form a secret alliance to try and overthrow the girls' stupid plan.

Otherwise, I may forever remember this ridiculous Survivor twist as the most horrible twist ever!!!!

Have a great weekend, everyone, and for those of you who are on the Car Rally tomorrow - see you along the trail!!

Scary? Nah...So Let's Try Funny!!

OK guys, I've got to apologize for yesterday's Blog. I was being lazy. I wanted to write a Blog, but I had Blog Block. So I took the easy way out, found a "scary story", and copy-and-pasted it onto my Blog, then pawned it off as my attempt at getting into the Halloween Spirit.

It was weak, man. I know it.

First of all, I ended up wasting a whole pile of time skimming allegedly spooky tales on Halloween websites. I could've written my own horror novel in the time it took me to surf through these long-winded, boring stories that all struck me as being mildly disturbing, but nothing quite like the bone-chilling literature I had hoped to provide.

Finally, I came upon the old urban legend of "The Hook". I recognized the title, the story was short enough, so I slapped it into my Blog, with a little header telling y'all that it was one of my favourites. OK, so maybe it was ... when I was seven. I re-read it this morning, and while I do realize it's a classic "scary story", it's really nothing compared to the blood-n-guts horror we're all used to. It wasn't spine-tingling. It wasn't chilling. It wasn't gruesome. And it definitely wasn't blood-curdling.

So I promise, in the next few weeks, when I get Blog Block again and decide to search for another scary story to share with you - well, I'll make sure the next time that it's at least a little bit freaky.

In the meantime, if you want a few good laughs, check out the following link:

http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Mitch_Hedberg

If you've ever been watching Just For Laughs on the Comedy Network and you've seen this long-haired guy who stands with his head down and fires off the most hilarious one-liners you've ever heard ... Well, that's Mitch Hedberg. Mitch is my comedic discovery of the week. I've seen him perform a few times, but last Friday night, I chatted with a guy who's a big Hedberg fan. He told me to look him up, buy his CD's, and truly appreciate all that is Mitch Hedberg.

The dude is a riot. Even just reading his jokes crack me up. However, my Internet research also revealed that he passed away from a drug overdose in '05. His widow is Canadian comedian Lynn Shawcroft, and she continues to Blog daily about her memories of Mitch and the laughs he brought to the world. Kinda makes my discovery a little bittersweet.

Anyways - I'm now telling you guys to look him up. It'll be worth your while.

At least, more worth your while than reading that lame story I left for you yesterday...

Gettin' in the Halloween Spirit

With Halloween quickly approaching, I'm in a bit of a "spooky" mood. Last year, I did a "Top Scary Movies" Blog, so I'm kind of out of ideas for Halloween-themed Blogs this year. Therefore, I have decided to share some of my favourite scary stories with you guys! Look for a few each week from now until Halloween.

Today, I'm starting with an old stand-by...One that never fails to send a shiver down my spine!

The Hook (retold by S. E. Schlosser)

The reports had been on the radio all day, though she hadn't paid much attention to them. Some crazy man had escaped from the state asylum. They were calling him the Hook Man since he had lost his right arm and had it replaced with a hook. He was a killer, and everyone in the region was warned to keep watch and report anything suspicious. But this didn't interest her. She was more worried about what to wear on her date.

After several consultation calls with friends, she chose a blue outfit in the very latest style and was ready and waiting on the porch when her boyfriend came to pick her up in his car. They went to a drive-in movie with another couple, then dropped them off and went parking in the local lover's lane. The blue outfit was a hit, and she cuddled close to her boyfriend as they kissed to the sound of romantic music on the radio.

Then the announcer came on and repeated the warning she had heard that afternoon. An insane killer with a hook in place of his right hand was loose in the area. Suddenly, the dark, moonless night didn't seem so romantic to her. The lover's lane was secluded and off the beaten track. A perfect spot for a deranged mad-man to lurk, she thought, pushing her amorous boyfriend away.

"Maybe we should get out of here," she said. "That Hook Man sounds dangerous."

"Awe, c'mon babe, it's nothing," her boyfriend said, trying to get in another kiss. She pushed him away again.

"No, really. We're all alone out here. I'm scared," she said.

They argued for a moment. Then the car shook a bit, as if something…or someone…had touched it. She gave a shriek and said: "Get us out of here now!"

"Jeeze," her boyfriend said in disgust, but he turned the key and went roaring out of the lover's lane with a screeching of his tires.

They drove home in stony silence, and when they pulled into her driveway, he refused to help her out of the car. He was being so unreasonable, she fumed to herself. She opened the door indignantly and stepped into her driveway with her chin up and her lips set. Whirling around, she slammed the door as hard as she could. And then she screamed.

Her boyfriend leapt out of the car and caught her in his arms. "What is it? What's wrong?" he shouted.

Then he saw it.

A bloody hook hung from the handle of the passenger-side door.

This text taken from: http://www.americanfolklore.net/folktales/tx5.html

Ramble On

G'day everybody!

Well, I don't have a Blog Topic for today, so I'm just gonna ramble. Brace yourselves, that's never pretty...

I'm really looking forward to the weekend. The Car Rally is Saturday, and that's always one of my most favourite days of the year. This year, the theme is Nursery Rhymes, so my team has been trying desperately to come up with a unique nursery rhyme that is...well...not a fairy tale! Do you realize how difficult it can be to differentiate between the two? Three Little Pigs...NOPE! But the Three Little Kittens are. Three Little Bears...NOPE! But the Three Blind Mice are. Oh, and this presents another problem. It would appear than many nursery rhymes revolve in groups of 3. So what are you supposed to do when you're a team of 5? There's no Five Little Kittens, or Five Little Pigs, or Mary Had Five Little Lambs...Tricky, I tell you!

So we finally came up with one, and while I don't want to disclose our stroke of genius, I will say we happened upon it after realizing Ricky bears an uncanny resemblance to a certain fragile egg of Mother Goose lore...

This week will be spent resting up in preparation for the whirlwind adventure that is Car Rally, especially after last weekend was spent steady-on-the-go thanks to Caden's 2nd birthday. I still can't believe the boy is 2 years old. It seems like only yesterday that Chris was calling to tell us he'd arrived. Many times, I find myself wishing he was still a teeny-tiny baby that I could rock and cuddle, but the toddler stage definitely has it's advantages. For one thing, he's way more fun now. He's starting to talk a lot, a real little parrot - however, that sucks when the fam teaches him to say "Awww, Wade!" every 5 seconds while watching hockey. Also, birthdays are more fun now 'cause he's starting to get and appreciate cool toys. Like Tonka trucks and Tickle-Me-Elmo and Bob the Builder stuff. Oh, and the guitar and microphone that Luke, Kristen & I got him. Apparently the mic isn't such a hit with Mom & Dad though...Wonder why?

Now, on to hockey. The NHL schedule has proven to be an odd one for the Sens thus far. After playing 6 games in 11 days to start the year, we're now on a 4-day break, which will end on Thursday when the Habs come to town. The Sens will play again Saturday vs. Florida, and then they'll be off for another entire week. It's very strange. It's like I was thrust into full-blown hockey fan mode, and now there's nothing to satisfy that craving for a hockey high. Looking forward to Thursday's game, though, should be a goody.

OK, so that's all for now! Hope you're all having a great day!!

There Goes the Perfect Season

Alright, so I don't think anybody really expected the Ottawa Senators to go 82-0 this season. But after winning their first 5, things were looking pretty snappy, and I for one thought it was entirely possible that they'd defeat the Carolina Hurricanes and extend their winning streak to 6 last night.

Well, apparently not. But they did give it one big last-ditch effort that almost worked; alas, they dropped the game 5-3, with Eric Staal squashing any glimmer of OT with an empty-net goal in the final minute.

With the score 4-1 in favour of the 'Canes with the minutes winding down in the game, Mike Fisher potted his first of the season. Moments late, Joe Corvo ripped one from the point, and suddenly all of those smarty-pants fans who had already raced to their vehicles looked like a big bunch of schmucks (by sister & brother-in-law included). For a few brief seconds, I was dreaming of that big comeback win that sometimes happens, a sort of miracle that takes place on ice when a team that's down and out dramatically roar back to steal the two points.

But then, Staal scored into the empty net, and time ticked down, and the drama faded, and I just shrugged and went to bed. Sure, it would've been fun to win it in OT or a shoot-out and maintain our sparkling record. But if we're going to have an on-ice miracle, do I really want to have it at the 6-game point of the season?

Nah...

Meanwhile, my buddies over at Grey's Anatomy had one of their best episodes ever. I laughed, I cried, and I just loved them. Really Old Guy woke up, and antagonized Izzie, or "Blondie" as he called her, for almost the entire episode. One of my highlights - the scene where he tried to die by squeezing his eyes shut and gritting his teeth and holding his breath, while Izzie informed him that he might poop the bed, but he sure wasn't gonna die like that. Unfortunately, and much to Izzie's chagrin, Really Old Guy did end up dying, and I thought it was really sweet of Izzie to gather the gang in his room to remember the times they spent with him during their lunch hours. One of those quirky, bittersweet moments that I love most about Grey's.

Meanwhile, Alex, who has been growing and developing and gradually becoming a more compassionate person and doctor for the past three-plus seasons, took a big step backwards last night. I like Alex for his bad-boy, "I'm an ass and I like it that way" attitude. But he really captured my heart in past scenes when he was carrying Izzie out of her dead fiancé's hospital room, or offering her his coat after she stood outside the hospital one whole day, or helping his Jane Doe pick her new identity, or confessing to Cristina that he misses Rebecca. But every so often, they give Alex another moment where he makes you want to slap him across the face. Last night, after he told an entire elevator full of interns who worship George that he's a repeater and that's why he knows so much, and then snapped at his old intern - well, that's exactly what I wanted to do to Alex. I wanted to slap the smug smile right off his stupid face.

But don't worry, I still love him.

Speaking of George, he's having a rough time. He's in love with Izzie, but he doesn't want to hurt Callie. He's got Izzie chasing him around begging him to end his marriage, and he's got a wife who suspects her marriage is over anyways, but he's torn between them both. I really feel for George. He's in bad situation. Finally, at the end of last night's episode, Callie told him to just say it, and he told her he slept with Izzie. Then fade to black...

God I love this show. I really can't wait to see what happens next!!

Have a great weekend, everyone! :)

We're baaaaaaaack...

The NHL regular season kicked off last night with my beloved Sens facing off against a familiar foe: The Toronto Maple Leafs. I tell ya, there's nothing better to get the competitive juices flowing than sitting down to watch the valiant Red-Black-and-Gold take on the lowly Blue & White!

Now, I actually did miss the first period because I had Karate. When I arrived home, the score was tied at 2. I was a little bewildered. How could we be tied with the Leafs? The Sens have been touted all training camp-long as the Beasts of the East - the team to beat. The Leafs, on the other hand, have been the universal whipping boys of most in the hockey world. Definitely overspending for what they've got, and probably not going to make the playoffs for the third straight year.

Just the way I like it.

So how...how...did we end up tied after 1 period?

Sloppy play, the family told me. Weak defence. Oh, and by the way, Wade Redden got in a fight.

Huh???

I had expectations for my dearest Wade going into this season. I expected him to play his ass off, erase the painful memories of last season, go out and have a career season, and make the Sens want to sign him to a contract extension.

(Which probably won't happen now, especially after they signed Dany Heatley to a 6-year $45 Million extension before last night's opener. That's very good news for Sens fans. But I don't think they can afford Wade after this, even if he takes a "hometown discount". So now I'm bracing myself for the departure of my darling golden boy at some point this year. And it hurts...oh it hurts...)

But back to last night. Of all my expectations for Wade Redden, the fight wasn't really something I was anticipating. But apparently he did go toe-to-toe with this Newbury guy. I didn't see it, so I didn't really believe it.

Until late in the second period, when all of a sudden he was puttin' up the dukes against Bates Battaglia. And he actually landed some good punches! He definitely stood his ground and I was proud of him. Plus, he looked kinda sexy with blood streaming down his face...Very hot.

Two fights. Two fights on opening night. What's up with WADE??

So yeah...The Leafs went ahead 3-2, then Dany Heatley tied it up with the third period winding down. Then Heater scored again in OT to put the icing on the cake. Apparently he decided to throw his own party in honour of his new contract.

I'm hoping the celebration continues tonight, with the Leafs in town for the re-mnatch...

GO SENS GO!!