For Marion Saida

Miss Morocco as Little Egypt in the 1936 film The Great Ziegfeld.

"Because that which fascinates us must be eclebrated" - Saida.

Sigh

Am really struggling with motivation lately.

I am still struggling to find a new job and it is becoming quite stressful and depressing. There is nothing out there unless you are a specialist ie. nurses, accountants etc.

Am trying to keep myself as busy as possible though, otherwise I would be going stir crazy being at home all the time.

Am really loving all my dance classes. Tap, Irish, Jazz, Rock n Roll and belly dancing.

Have also rediscovered my love of penpalling. And I mean proper snail mailing with people all over the world.
Am particularly thrilled to be back in touch with Amanda in Brooklyn who I lost touch with several years ago. And the exciting thing is, I'll get to meet up with her on my upcoming trip! Yay!

So, although things are quite difficult at the moment, I am rather happy. Am seeing a new guy and he is really really nice and very sweet. He cooked me a candlelit dinner the other night :)
He is also not an asshole. Quite an improvement for me, as they seem to be the only ones I ever fall for. Oh, and he has no acting / theatre background, which I have found also contributes greatly to the arrogant, selfish, lying, cheating asshole nature!

Um...other than all that, not much is new with me since the last time I posted......which I realise was a very long time ago. I should really have more posts, being at home all day long, but nothing worth blogging about has happened!
Maybe I should start thinking up random topics to post opinions about.....hmm...

And now, some Friday Fives to pad out this rather lame entry:

1. What would you do right now, if money were not an issue?
Open my fairy shop.

2. What would you do for the next three years, if money were not an issue?
Travel the world.

3. What is bringing you the most joy right now that requires little or no money?
Spending time with a really nice guy who makes me happy.

4. What types of things do you find enjoyable that require no money?
Going to the movies....well I only have three passes left, then it will start costing money!

5. Is there anything you've been meaning to do for a long time, but put off because of money?
Fairy shop.



1. What is your biggest waste of time in your home?
Internet.

2. When at work, what is the activity that you find wastes the most time?
Bubble machine. The kids love it.

3. When getting busy with a date or significant other, what ritual could you do without?
Like "getting busy" getting busy?? Um....I guess, trying to get bunny out of the room...I mean....she IS a rabbit!

4. What is the biggest waste of time on the Internet?
Facebook.

5. What do you do at a restaurant to waste time when waiting for your meal?
Read the drinks menu.



1. If you owned a restaurant, what kind of food would you serve?
Yummy food :p Nah, it would be a real 1950s themed dinner with burgers and cherry cokes and sundaes etc. Served on rollerskates!

2. What is your favorite restaurant and why?
Um....Iguana's nice....they make yummy cocktails and have really nice food.

3. What is your favorite fast food place?
Hell.

4. If you had to choose only one type of food to eat for a year, what would it be?
Um....maybe pizza, coz you can do so many different things with it.

5. What is your favorite cereal?
Lucky Charms, which I haven't actually had since I was in Hawaii.....aged 7!




What activity can you not believe you survived in your childhood?
Ballet. The number of twisted ankles I had oveer those 11 years!

What activity can you not believe kids get away with today?
Nothing. As in actually doing nothing and just sitting in front of the tv / playstation / computer all day long.

If you could be anyone else in the world live or dead, who would you choose to be?
Audrey Hepburn.

A lot of people think they've been in love at 15 or 16 years old, do you think you now look back and think you were a stupid kid or do you believe that you were old enough to know what love is?
Gosh. I wasn't ready even when I was 19/20 as it turned out!

Do you think it is possible to remain in love with someone you once loved, but haven't seen in a year?
Depends on the circumstances I guess. I sometimes feel like I'm still in love with my ex, the one who really broke me 3 years ago. But then I remind myself that everything he did and was was a complete lie and not him at all, so really I am in love with the idea of him that he managed to create.




Do you enjoy reading?
Yes, absolutely.

What is the first book you remember reading?
Probably those Tom and Jane books. "See Tom run. Run, Tom, run."

Who is your favourite author?
Have way too many to choose from....but maybe if I had to chose just one....Nicholas Sparks. Haven't read a single novel of his that I didn't enjoy.

What is your favourite book?
Gone With the Wind.

What is the last book you read and the first you'll read next?
I just finished "Plenty More Fish in The CBD - A Guy's Guide for Hooking the Right Girl and Keeping Her". Very funny and full of good advice for Kiwi guys. Next...will probably get stuck back into Les Miserables which I started the other night.



Ear worms are those annoying little songs that get stuck in your head. Sometimes they are the last song you hear on the radio before you go into the office, sometimes they just randomly pop in.

What is a common ear worm that you get?
Usually something from a musical. Most commonly that musical is Wicked.

How long do they last?
Thankfully not that long.

What do you do to get rid of them?
I have to finish the entire song.

What is the worse ear worm you've ever had?
Um....The Song That Doesn't End.

Do you get some guilty pleasure in passing the ear worm along?
Hehe...YES!

The Oscars - my picks

Ok, just so Rialto is now closed, doesn't mean I am going to ignore the traditional Oscar picks game.
Here are my choices for who will win and who I think should win:


BEST PICTURE
*"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
* "Frost/Nixon"
* "Milk"
* "The Reader"
* "Slumdog Millionaire"

DIRECTOR
* Danny Boyle, "Slumdog Millionaire"
* Stephen Daldry, "The Reader"
* David Fincher, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
* Ron Howard, "Frost/Nixon"
* Gus Van Sant, "Milk"

ACTOR
* Richard Jenkins, "The Visitor"
* Frank Langella, "Frost/Nixon"
* Sean Penn, "Milk"
* Brad Pitt, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
* Mickey Rourke, "The Wrestler"

ACTRESS
* Anne Hathaway, "Rachel Getting Married"
* Angelina Jolie, "Changeling"
* Melissa Leo, "Frozen River"
* Meryl Streep, "Doubt"
* Kate Winslet, "The Reader"

SUPPORTING ACTOR
* Josh Brolin, "Milk"
* Robert Downey Jr., "Tropic Thunder"
* Philip Seymour Hoffman, "Doubt"
* Heath Ledger, "The Dark Knight"
* Michael Shannon, "Revolutionary Road"

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
* Amy Adams, "Doubt"
* Penélope Cruz, "Vicky Cristina Barcelona"
* Viola Davis, "Doubt"
* Taraji P. Henson, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
* Marisa Tomei, "The Wrestler"

"ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
* Dustin Lance Black, "Milk"
* Courtney Hunt, "Frozen River"
* Mike Leigh, "Happy-Go-Lucky"
* Martin McDonagh, "In Bruges"
* Andrew Stanton and Jim Reardon; original story by Stanton and Pete Docter, "Wall-E

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
* Simon Beaufoy, "Slumdog Millionaire"
* David Hare, "The Reader"
* Peter Morgan, "Frost/Nixon"
* John Patrick Shanley, "Doubt"
* Eric Roth, Robin Swicord, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"

ANIMATED FILM
* "Bolt"
* "Kung Fu Panda"
* "Wall-E"

ART DIRECTION
* "Changeling," James J. Murakami, Gary Fettis
* "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Donald Graham Burt, Victor J. Zolfo
* "The Dark Knight," Nathan Crowley, Peter Lando
* "The Duchess," Michael Carlin, Rebecca Alleway
* "Revolutionary Road," Kristi Zea, Debra Schutt

CINEMATOGRAPHY
* "Changeling," Tom Stern
* "Slumdog Millionaire," Anthony Dod Mantle
* "The Reader," Chris Menges, Roger Deakins
* "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Claudio Miranda
* "The Dark Knight," Wally Pfister

COSTUME DESIGN
* "Australia," Catherine Martin
* "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Jacqueline West
* "The Duchess," Michael O'Connor
* "Milk," Danny Glicker
* "Revolutionary Road," Albert Wolsky

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
* "The Betrayal" (Nerakhoon)
* "Encounters at the End of the World"
* "The Garden"
* "Man on Wire"
* "Trouble the Water"

DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
* "The Conscience of Nhem En"
* "The Final Inch"
* "Smile Pinki"
* "The Witness: From the Balcony of Room 306"

FILM EDITING
* "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Kirk Baxter, Angus Wall
* "The Dark Knight," Lee Smith
* "Frost/Nixon," Daniel P. Hanley, Mike Hill
* "Milk," Elliot Graham
* "Slumdog Millionaire," Chris Dickens

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
* "The Baader-Meinhof Complex" (Germany)
* "The Class" (France)
* "Departures" (Japan)
* "Revanche" (Austria)
* "Waltz With Bashir" (Israel)

MAKEUP
* "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Greg Cannom
* "The Dark Knight," John Caglione Jr., Conor O'Sullivan
* "Hellboy II: The Golden Army," Mike Elizalde, Thom Floutz

ORIGINAL SCORE
* "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Alexandre Desplat
* "Defiance," James Newton Howard
* "Milk," Danny Elfman
* "Slumdog Millionaire," A.R. Rahman
* "Wall-E," Thomas Newman

ORIGINAL SONG
* "Slumdog Millionaire," "Jai Ho"
* "Slumdog Millionaire," "O Saya"
* "Wall-E," "Down to Earth"

ANIMATED SHORT FILM
* "La Maison en Petits Cubes"
* "Lavatory -- Lovestory"
* "Oktapodi"
* "Presto"
* "This Way Up"

LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
* "Auf der Strecke" (On the Line)
* "Manon on the Asphalt"
* "New Boy"
* "The Pig"
* "Spielzeugland" (Toyland)

SOUND EDITING
* "The Dark Knight," Richard King
* "Iron Man," Frank Eulner, Christopher Boyes
* "Slumdog Millionaire" Glenn Freemantle, Tom Sayers
* "Wall-E," Ben Burtt, Matthew Wood
* "Wanted," Wylie Stateman

SOUND MIXING
* "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce, Mark Weingarten
* "The Dark Knight," Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo, Ed Novick
* "Slumdog Millionaire," Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke, Resul Pookutty
* "Wall-E," Tom Myers, Michael Semanick, Ben Burtt
* "Wanted," Chris Jenkins, Frank A. Montaño, Petr Forejt

VISUAL EFFECTS
* "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton, Craig Barron
* "The Dark Knight," Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Tim Webber, Paul Franklin
* "Iron Man," John Nelson, Ben Snow, Dan Sudick, Shane Mahan

It's just for the first time...I feel....wicked.

ACT TWO, Scene 4: A clearing in the Great Gillikin Forest. Night. A campfire.
Elphaba and Fiyero are alone at last...

ELPHABA:
KISS ME TOO FIERCELY
HOLD ME TOO TIGHT
I NEED HELP BELIEVING
YOU'RE WITH ME TONIGHT
MY WILDEST DREAMINGS
COULD NOT FORESEE
LYING BESIDE YOU
WITH YOU WANTING ME
JUST FOR THIS MOMENT
AS LONG AS YOU'RE MINE
I'VE LOST ALL RESISTANCE
AND CROSSED SOME BORDERLINE
AND IF IT TURNS OUT
IT'S OVER TOO FAST
I'LL MAKE EV'RY LAST MOMENT LAST
AS LONG AS YOU'RE MINE…

FIYERO:
MAYBE I'M BRAINLESS
MAYBE I'M WISE
BUT YOU'VE GOT ME SEEING
THROUGH DIFFERENT EYES
SOMEHOW I'VE FALLEN
UNDER YOUR SPELL
AND SOMEHOW I'M FEELING
IT'S "UP" THAT I FELL ...

BOTH:
EVERY MOMENT
AS LONG AS YOU'RE MINE
I'LL WAKE UP MY BODY
AND MAKE UP FOR LOST TIME...

FIYERO:
SAY THERE'S NO FUTURE
FOR US AS A PAIR ...

BOTH:
AND THOUGH I MAY KNOW
I DON'T CARE …
JUST FOR THIS MOMENT
AS LONG AS YOU'RE MINE
COME BE HOW YOU WANT TO AND SEE HOW BRIGHT WE SHINE
BORROW THE MOONLIGHT
UNTIL IT IS THROUGH
AND KNOW I'LL BE HERE HOLDING YOU
AS LONG AS YOU'RE MINE...

Fiyero studies her face.

FIYERO:
What is it?

ELPHABA(beat):
It's just-- for the first time, I feel wicked.