The return of Sarah

Years ago, myself and other Free Press staff would gather at The Fillin' Station Coffeehouse in its old location, about 10 feet to the left of its current location. Every Wednesday morning, we would talk about writing and how we can get better and all that stuff. And every morning, we could count on the lovely Sarah Turbes to be the one to pour our coffee, whip up our lattes and warm up our scones. She was funny, she was sweet, and she made the best damned mochas in town when the mood struck.

No, Sarah didn't die. I realize I've been talking about her in the past tense. Thanks to Facebook, I've been able to keep up with her goings-ons. But a while back, she left the Fillin' and we've barely seen her since. Not that the other Fillin' kids didn't make great coffee, too, but Sarah's always seemed to have a little something extra special.

Well, I have some news, people. I walked into the Fillin' Thursday to order a Lincoln Park for lunch, and there she was! And there she will be Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays until about 11:30 a.m. She's back! So for all of you who have never had a Sarah-made mocha, RUN (don't walk) to the Fillin' and have her whip one up. AmAAAAzing.

Christmas shows not to be missed

Did you see it? I was kind of nerdily excited all day about the Rockefeller Center tree lighting special on NBC Wednesday night. This is, until I saw that "Rudolph" was on CBS at the same time. Under what circumstances would "Rudolph" not win that fight? Maybe if I'd seen it three times already this season. But this was the inaugural viewing of 2009, and it was delightful.

Incidentally, I had a discussion with a friend this morning about the Land of Misfit Toys. All of them have obvious flaws: A Charlie in the box, a toy plane that doesn't fly, a bird that swims, a spotted elephant and a toy train with square wheels on its caboose. However, the red-headed dolly seems to have no flaw at all. We Googled this immediately, and you'll be appalled at what we learned:
"A Dolly for Sue (as she calls herself)" is a seemingly normal girl rag doll with red hair and a red gingham (checkered) dress. Her misfit problem is never explained on the special, but was revealed on NPR's Wait Wait… Don't Tell Me! news quiz show (broadcast December 8, 2007). The show revealed that Rudolph's producer, Arthur Rankin Jr., says Dolly's problem was psychological, caused from being abandoned by her mistress and suffering depression from feeling unloved. -- Wikipedia

Ummm ... psychological? We go from a toy train with square wheels to a doll with deep emotional problems? How strange, indeed.

Anyhow, I thought I would rundown the not-be-missed Christmas programs this year. Here are the times, dates and channels, for your convenience.

The Polar Express, ABCFAM, Dec. 3, 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Frosty's Winter Wonderland, ABCFAM, Dec. 4, 6 p.m.
Twas The Night Before Christmas, ABCFAM, Dec. 7, 6 p.m.
Carrie Underwood: An All-Star Holiday Special, FOX, Dec. 7, 7 p.m.
Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town, ABC, Dec. 7, 7 p.m.
Mickey's Christmas Carol, ABCFAM, Dec. 8, 6 p.m.
Winnie The Pooh And Christmas Too, ABCFAM, Dec. 8, 6:30 p.m.
A Muppets Christmas: Letters To Santa, NBC, Dec. 11, 7 p.m.
It's a Wonderful Life, NBC, Dec. 12, 7 p.m.
Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer, CBS, Dec. 12, 7 p.m.
Jennifer Hudson: I’ll Be Home For Christmas, ABC, Dec. 14, 7 p.m.
Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer And The Island Of Misfit Toys, ABCFAM, Dec. 15, 6 p.m.
Home Alone 2: Lost In New York, ABCFAM, Dec. 15, 7:30 p.m.
Mickey's Christmas Carol, ABCFAM, Dec. 16, 6 p.m.
Winnie The Pooh & Christmas Too, ABCFAM, Dec. 16, 6:30 p.m.
Saturday Night Live Christmas 2009, NBC, Dec. 17, 7 p.m.
Christmas in Connecticut, TCM, Dec. 17, 7 p.m.
Jingle All The Way, ABCFAM, Dec. 17, 9 p.m.
Frosty The Snowman, CBS, Dec. 18, 7 p.m.
Frosty Returns, CBS, Dec. 18, 7:30 p.m.
A Very Brady Christmas, ABCFAM, Dec. 22, noon
Miracle On 34th Street, ABCFAM, Dec. 23, 6:30 p.m.
The Polar Express, ABCFAM, Dec. 23, 9 p.m.
The 11th Annual A Home For The Holidays, CBS Dec. 23, 7:30 p.m.
It's a Wonderful Life, NBC, Dec. 24, 7 p.m.
A Christmas Story Marathon, TBS, Dec. 24, 7 p.m.
Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory, ABCFAM, Dec. 25, noon
Miracle on 34th Street, ABCFAM, Dec. 25, 2:30 p.m.

The battle of the serial killers

Does anyone else out there watch "Dexter"? I'm always surprised when I ask that question and get a blank stare. I do know a couple of people, I guess. But what a great show. You all should be tuning in.

Tonight, as some of you may know, should be a pretty darn good one. Dexter has revealed his murderous nature to his muse this year, a serial killer he calls Trinity. (You see, the guy kills three people in succession using the same pattern: Cuts a girl in a tub, makes a woman jump to her death off a high structure, and then bludgeons a man.) There were witnesses, however, when the real Dexter came out. Trinity's family saw Dexter strangle him with a belt and hold a huge knife over him on the floor. What will he do about the witnesses!? (Dexter's a serial killer, too, but he only kills bad guys. His biggest challenge is making sure no one knows about his little extra-curricular activities.) See, now doesn't this sound like a great show?

If you get Showtime, then be sure and catch up On Demand. This season is all on there. And this is one of those shows you can just start watching whatever season and then go back to the first three when you get around to it. I did the same with "Mad Men." This isn't like "Lost," where you need a three-hour tutorial if you've missed even one episode to catch up. I really hate "Lost," by the way, but that's a whole other matter.

The stupid Jacksons

Anyone else not care at all about a Janet performance at the American Music Awards, let alone one that lasted 8 minutes? I hear her brothers are also piggybacking on the death of their brother: A reality TV show about the Jackson 5 touring again. Who in the HELL would go to a show on that tour without Michael? Oh, I'm sorry Tito, did I miss the stampede of middle-aged women knocking down your door? ...No, I didn't.

"New Moon" turned me into a teenage boy

I went to "New Moon" today. I read the books and got hooked, despite putting them down every few seconds to feel really embarassed about how much cheese I was allowing myself to ingest ... and happily so. So I figured I should see this thing through all the way and see the movies.

"New Moon" was definitely a couple of notches better than the first film. Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner are so good at pulling off the schmaltz and making it palatable that I was actually entertained most of the way through. I'm worried, though, about the next movie when Edward becomes a key player again. As Twihards know, Edward isn't a big part of "New Moon" in terms of actually appearing in a lot of the movie. And I'm beginning to wonder if that's why I liked this one more. Robert Pattinson's acting chops are in question here. He's supposed to be brooding and deep but he's coming off as one note and two-dimensional.

As I was watching I was reminded of a review I saw on "At the Movies" on CBS. The two men who actually recommending the film commented that "New Moon" isn't just for teenage girls; it actually turns everyone else INTO a teenage girl while watching. During those particularly grueling scenes -- the ones where Edward is two inches from Bella's face saying things like, "You give me everything I need in this world just by breathing" -- I decided it had an opposite effect on me. I felt more like a teenage boy. Like the one in the lobby afterward shouting, "I just had to sit through two hours of a bunch of dudes with their shirts off. Yuck." Like the books, though, I put my head down and wrinkled my nose in disgust at all the cheese, and I kept going back for more.

P.S. Dakota Fanning was pretty awesome. Scary chick.

And the PR winner is ...

IRINA! I'm sure, I need not remind you that I totally called this. I had a story in last Thursday's paper (not yesterday, but the week before) that said Irina would win, even though we all hate her, and Althea would come in second, and Carol Hannah would be the dark horse who would come in third, barring any sort of miracle.

That's precisely what went down last night. Irina's collection had vision, continuity and an edge. She had an idea that connected the pieces and she carried it out. That's really what the winner has always had: 13 pieces that tell a story that no regular person could ever wear. That's why Uli a couple of seasons ago didn't win: Too simple, and women could actually wear her clothes. That's why Leanne won last season, because her outfits were more like pieces of art than wearable clothing. Little Carol Hannah, who fought the flu to finish her collection, was by far the best designer with color and construction, but she didn't have the "clothes as art" idea down. I'm glad. Something tells me she's going to be a lot more commercially successful doing it her way than Irina's.

So there you have it! I was ecstatic to hear that another season starts up in mid-January already. So as this Project Runway blog comes to a close, a new season is just around the corner.

Auf Wiedersehen!

Are you a wine-y?

If you're a wine-y -- which, obviously, from my usage of that
word, I am not -- then you know the third Thursday of November is upon us.

It's that very special day every year when the new Beaujolais Nouveau wine
is released for sale. And if you're like me -- and responded to that news
with, What in the ... ? -- then I shall share my research with you.

Beaujolais Nouveau is a red wine made from Gamay grapes from the Beaujolais
region of France. Called the most popular vin de primeur, the wine is
fermented for a few weeks annually and released the third Thursday in
November, which has come to be known globally as Beaujolais Day or
Beaujolais Nouveau Day. (Nouveau means new, by the way.)

Vin de primeur refers to the wine being permitted to be sold in the same
year that the grapes are harvested, says local wine representative Joe
Strong of Bellboy Wines. Few producers in France are permitted to make
nouveau wine, according to Strong, or include the word nouveau on their
label.

One minute past midnight today, celebrations around the world exploded into
action, as the bottles were uncorked and enjoyed by many from the small
village of Romaneche-Thorins to the metropolis of Tokyo. Well, it won¹t be
one minute after midnight, but Patrick's on Third in St. Peter will be
taking part in the action once again. The party starts 8 p.m. tonight.
Twenty bucks will get you samples of the two Beaujolais nouveau wines, a
hand-painted souvenir wine glass and appetizers. Bottles of the wine will
also be available for purchase.

Beaujolais nouveau is a purple-pink wine and described as lightweight with
little tannin. The wine can be dominated by flavors of banana and pear. An
added interesting tidbit: All the grapes in the Beaujolais region are picked
by hand.
I'm no wine-y, but I¹m intrigued. Sounds like fun to me!


If you go
What
Beaujolais Nouveau Wine Release Party
When
8 p.m. to 10 p.m. today (11/19) at Patrick's on Third in St. Peter
Tickets
$20 per person
For more information, please call Joe Strong at 351-0575 or Patrick's at
931-9051.