Jamie's Hero and Villain of the Week #9

Since it's Friday afternoon and the work week is officially over, it's time to crown this week's hero and villain.  This week's picks feature dashing (and some creepy) men and delicious surprises.  Read on!

Hero of the Week:  Nathan Fillion  

I think it's pretty obvious by this point that I'm a ginormous dork, and as such, I love sci-fi.  I'm particularly addicted to the works of Joss Whedon, because for serious, who doesn't love Buffy and Dr. Horrible?  It was during the last season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer that I was first introduced to Nathan Fillion (he was playing an evil preacher possessed by the First Evil who killed girls; super creepy!).  Of course, then I had to watch Firefly and Serenity, and Capt. Mal Reynolds was an absolutely amazing character.  Fillion went on to star in Waitress, Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog (as Captain Hammer), and is currently starring in Castle.  What I love about this actor is that each character he plays is so distinct; when I'm watching Castle, I never think he sounds like Mal Reynolds or vise versa.  But really the reason that he made the list this week is that I'm watching Firefly on Netflix.  It's a great show, and anyone who hasn't seen it already should.

Villain of the Week:  Monkey bread

Monkey break is so good it's dangerous.  Pieces of dough dipped in cinnamon and sugar, then drowned in a butter-cinnamon-sugar mix and baked to an ooey gooey caramelized perfection was nearly my undoing.  My friend baked some monkey bread for our glitter party this week, and I think I ate half the pan.  It's hard to be a grown-up and eat fruits and vegetables like I'm supposed to when presented with a delightful delicacy named after my favorite animal.  So to strip the amazing monkey bread of the power it has over me, I'm declaring it a villain.  So there!  (P.S. Courtney, you should really take this as a compliment!)

That's all for this week!  Have a great weekend everyone!

You've Got Time and You've Got Pants

Since I've been sick, I've been a little less cheery of late.  I was stressing out over all of things I had to get done and no energy to do any of it.  I was tired and cranky and generally just unpleasant.  Thankfully, Jack came over to put me in my place.

He came to visit me in one of his rare extra-sweet moods.  He ran up to give me a hug as soon as he walked in.  He prattled on about the silly brown monkey in Toy Story 3 (he knows how much I love monkeys) and asked me to come sit with him and watch Mickey's Clubhouse. After several hours of playing and reading books, Jack looked at me with a thoughtful expression as if he were about to impart great wisdom.  He said, "You know what, Aunt Jamie?  You've got time, and you've got pants."  He nodded his head emphatically with tremendous self-satisfaction and repeated his little aphorism a few more times for good measure.  Then he dissolved into giggles and said, "Haha!  I have pants too!"

my philosophical gila

I would never claim to know what is going on in my nephew's head; he's way too creative for me to keep up with.  Still, I can't help but wonder if what he meant to say was something along these lines:  You know what, Aunt Jamie?  You need to snap out of this funk and stop feeling sorry for yourself.  You have everything you need, and you'll get everything done eventually.  Until then, chill the heck out!  It's not like you're living in a cardboard box on the highway."

Yes, Jack does have my attitude.  During lunch, he looked at his mother and said, "What's your damage?"  I was proud; I taught him that phrase as soon as he began talking.  I appreciated the little talking-to he gave me because I think I needed it.  I cheered up significantly after that because I can't let a 4-year-old be smarter than me.  As it is, I think he's going to give me a run for my money in the card writing business when he gets older.  I really need to up my game!