These guys help me chase the winter blues away. Love my kitties.
2/9/11
2/7/11
The Super Bowl of Beers
So yesterday may have been the actual Super Bowl, but on Friday night, Nate and I attended what I can only describe as the Super Bowl of MN Beers!
Yes, it was finally the big night of Winterfest and Nate finally getting to enjoy his Christmas present just over a month after the holiday. It was well worth the wait and the money invested, I have to say that much.
We headed over to the MN History Center which may sound like a strange venue for this kind of event, but it was perfect. The doors were scheduled to open at 7:00 and we made it in by 6:45. Parking was free - total plus and the line wasn't so bad that we were still able to wait inside in the lobby.
We were given a stamp on our hand and a booklet listing what breweries were in attendance and what they were offering, plus a map showing where they were and where the food was on each of the three floors. Omar, the founder of Surly Brewing, gave a very short welcome and then opened the doors, we were led inside by bagpipers. We then stopped to grab our commemorative tasting glass (about 2 oz in size) and to drop off our coats. We then beelined for our favorite brewpub in attendance, Barley Johns, because they listed a beer we had never tried before and we wanted to grab it before it was gone.
After that I let Nate lead the way as this was his evening. We went to Surly next and a couple of smaller breweries before decided we needed to get some food in our stomachs. We made our way through the food line and chowed down on white chicken chili, cornbread, cheese and veggies. Very nice spread of food.
We stopped at several other breweries tables, including a couple of new breweries. I paced myself since I agreed to drive us home. I wanted Nate to experience as much as possible. We hit the food line again and then sampled a few more brews and then were ready to head home as it was a quarter to ten and the event was only lasting another 15 minutes.
It was quite loud - as people drank the noise only grew - but it was fun to be amidst other beer lovers. My favorite brews of the evening were a Blackberry porter from Brau Brothers, something called the Pink Eye from the Town Hall Brewery and Surly's Moe's Bender, kind of a coffee/vanilla tasting beer, not surprising since I love vanilla lattes. The other two were more fruity in nature, something else I'm finding I like in beer.
Below are a couple of pictures from the event. I hope we have an opportunity to go again sometime, it was a lot of fun and probably the highlight of our winter so far!
Nate and I - self portrait
I think I have MooJoo's Oatmeal Stout by Brau Brothers here
Nate enjoying some type of IPA I believe
Yes, it was finally the big night of Winterfest and Nate finally getting to enjoy his Christmas present just over a month after the holiday. It was well worth the wait and the money invested, I have to say that much.
We headed over to the MN History Center which may sound like a strange venue for this kind of event, but it was perfect. The doors were scheduled to open at 7:00 and we made it in by 6:45. Parking was free - total plus and the line wasn't so bad that we were still able to wait inside in the lobby.
We were given a stamp on our hand and a booklet listing what breweries were in attendance and what they were offering, plus a map showing where they were and where the food was on each of the three floors. Omar, the founder of Surly Brewing, gave a very short welcome and then opened the doors, we were led inside by bagpipers. We then stopped to grab our commemorative tasting glass (about 2 oz in size) and to drop off our coats. We then beelined for our favorite brewpub in attendance, Barley Johns, because they listed a beer we had never tried before and we wanted to grab it before it was gone.
After that I let Nate lead the way as this was his evening. We went to Surly next and a couple of smaller breweries before decided we needed to get some food in our stomachs. We made our way through the food line and chowed down on white chicken chili, cornbread, cheese and veggies. Very nice spread of food.
We stopped at several other breweries tables, including a couple of new breweries. I paced myself since I agreed to drive us home. I wanted Nate to experience as much as possible. We hit the food line again and then sampled a few more brews and then were ready to head home as it was a quarter to ten and the event was only lasting another 15 minutes.
It was quite loud - as people drank the noise only grew - but it was fun to be amidst other beer lovers. My favorite brews of the evening were a Blackberry porter from Brau Brothers, something called the Pink Eye from the Town Hall Brewery and Surly's Moe's Bender, kind of a coffee/vanilla tasting beer, not surprising since I love vanilla lattes. The other two were more fruity in nature, something else I'm finding I like in beer.
Below are a couple of pictures from the event. I hope we have an opportunity to go again sometime, it was a lot of fun and probably the highlight of our winter so far!
Nate and I - self portrait 
I think I have MooJoo's Oatmeal Stout by Brau Brothers here
Nate enjoying some type of IPA I believe
2/3/11
New sight
Spectacles. I have had a few different ones over the years:
Age 15
Age 15
Age 28I have needed corrective lenses of some form for about twenty years or so now. Maybe even longer than that, but it was the summer between my 5th and 6th grade years that my parents finally realized (and I admitted too) that I should probably see an eye doctor when I had to sit right up by the TV in order to play my Nintendo games. And sure enough, we found out that yes, I definitely needed glasses.
It didn't bother me, in fact, growing up I used to think it was cool when my friends ended up getting glasses and actually used to secretly hope I might need them too. Yeah, strange kid right? Not worried about being teased or anything.
Of course, a few short years later when boys and makeup entered my world I got a little more vein and decided to go for contact lenses. I stuck with them a pretty long time too, giving it up after moving on campus my junior year of college due to pretty much just being tired of dealing with them and having to lug stuff back and forth from my parents house to campus.
And then I went back to them once again after I had my first real job, because I did enjoy not having to deal with glasses, especially in working with kids. I had them through my wedding and even into the first couple of years we were married and then gave up on them once again when Nate was out of work and I couldn't justify the expense of them any longer. So it's been back to glasses ever since mid 2008.
So now you're probably wondering, where am I going with this? Well I had to build suspense see, because I am excited to announce that I have made the major decision to have Lasik Eye Surgery. No joke.
I have thought about it often in the past but kind of cast it off because I figured, it's pretty spendy, I don't need to spend that kind of money. Nate actually thought about it more seriously than I did at one point and even had a consultation about eight years ago. At that time, he was definitely not a candidate though, so neither of us gave much thought to it again.
Flash forward to the last few months and it turns out, Nate's IT firm provides support for a brand new eye clinic that specializes in Lasik. And it also turns out they are offering a discount to the employees of Nate's work and their spouses. So he and I talked a bit about it and decided, couldn't hurt for me to get the consultation done and just see what we could find out.
Turns out I'm a perfect candidate. After walking through all the specifics with the awesome staff at the clinic I decided that yes, I want to do this. So, in a couple of weeks I'll go in for a relatively short procedure, and will be able to see that very same day. Without glasses. Or lenses. Just out of the eyes I was born with for the first time in over twenty years. I am so excited. More to come after the surgery so stay tuned!
2/1/11
Generosity
I used to be a pretty big fan of the show "ER" when it was on television. And one of the most memorable moments for me was the episode in which the character of Dr. Mark Greene dies from a brain tumor - he has a very touching conversation with his pre-teen daughter in his final moments, saying he wanted to impart some sort of wisdom on her and couldn't figure out the perfect thing and then realized what it was. He says "Generosity. Be generous. Generous with your time. Generous with your love. Generous with the life you have."
Generosity. Seems simple doesn't it? Yet, how many of us can say we are generous with our time, love and life? I know it's something I could work harder on.
Right before Christmas I was witness to something extremely generous - I wanted to get Nate tickets to an event called Winterfest - it's put on by the MN Craft Brewers association and it's a pretty big deal, all sorts of local craft breweries will be there, you get a meal and a chance to sample their best brews. So, I decided this would be a fantastic Christmas present for my homebrewing husband. One problem. Tickets to this event sell out fast because they only sell about 700. And even though I was on the website right when they went on sale, somehow, I could not get through.
I found out that the tickets sold out in five minutes. Maybe even less. They started showing up on Craigslist right away for double their value, even triple in some cases. I love Nate very much, but I didn't want to spend THAT much more on his Christmas present. I had resigned myself to come up with something else. And then something happened.
I had friends who did manage to get tickets. And when they heard I did not they said "You know what? We'll sell you our tickets at face value. None of our friends were able to get tickets so it would just be the two of us and we figured, Nate would appreciate this more because he brews beer and will get a lot of value out of going and trying out the different beers." I asked them more than once if they were sure and they said yes and that if I didn't want them they'd probably just put them up on Craigslist anyway. So, I thought about it and took them up on their very generous offer. And Nate's reaction on Christmas morning was priceless. I can't thank them enough for being so kind.
In another instance, I recently had a Partylite party through a good friend and was recounting to her about the first time I had a Partylite party with a different consultant, I ended up in "candle hell" because the orders were all goofed up from the warehouse and I had spent a great deal of time on the phone with my consultant straightening them all out (and the consultant did help a good deal on that - this is not dissing her). Anyway, we laughed a bit about that and then my friend said "well tell you what, when your orders show up this time, I'll come over and help you sort them. And I'll even help you deliver some of the orders if you'd like." Now of course, this is a dear friend and I know if I had just asked, she'd have done that anyway - but the fact that she offered I think is a very generous thing. It's not anything I expected and I appreciate it so much.
I could count many other things I am witness to that are gifts of generosity - both sets of our parents treating us to dinners out, coffee on Saturdays, my sister-in-law making me a scarf, all the things my dad does helping us with the house, my big "brother" treating me to a manicure in honor of no longer picking my fingers. The list actually could go on for awhile the more I really think about it.
Sometimes it is hard to see the good in humanity. But looking back over some of these things - sure some are simple - but just fact that I can find many examples of times people have been generous to me, shows that indeed, there is good in the world. I am amazingly blessed by all of these wonderful people and the generous things they do/have done for me. I am inspired by them.
Have you been witness to generosity in your world?
Be generous. I can dig it.
Generosity. Seems simple doesn't it? Yet, how many of us can say we are generous with our time, love and life? I know it's something I could work harder on.
Right before Christmas I was witness to something extremely generous - I wanted to get Nate tickets to an event called Winterfest - it's put on by the MN Craft Brewers association and it's a pretty big deal, all sorts of local craft breweries will be there, you get a meal and a chance to sample their best brews. So, I decided this would be a fantastic Christmas present for my homebrewing husband. One problem. Tickets to this event sell out fast because they only sell about 700. And even though I was on the website right when they went on sale, somehow, I could not get through.
I found out that the tickets sold out in five minutes. Maybe even less. They started showing up on Craigslist right away for double their value, even triple in some cases. I love Nate very much, but I didn't want to spend THAT much more on his Christmas present. I had resigned myself to come up with something else. And then something happened.
I had friends who did manage to get tickets. And when they heard I did not they said "You know what? We'll sell you our tickets at face value. None of our friends were able to get tickets so it would just be the two of us and we figured, Nate would appreciate this more because he brews beer and will get a lot of value out of going and trying out the different beers." I asked them more than once if they were sure and they said yes and that if I didn't want them they'd probably just put them up on Craigslist anyway. So, I thought about it and took them up on their very generous offer. And Nate's reaction on Christmas morning was priceless. I can't thank them enough for being so kind.
In another instance, I recently had a Partylite party through a good friend and was recounting to her about the first time I had a Partylite party with a different consultant, I ended up in "candle hell" because the orders were all goofed up from the warehouse and I had spent a great deal of time on the phone with my consultant straightening them all out (and the consultant did help a good deal on that - this is not dissing her). Anyway, we laughed a bit about that and then my friend said "well tell you what, when your orders show up this time, I'll come over and help you sort them. And I'll even help you deliver some of the orders if you'd like." Now of course, this is a dear friend and I know if I had just asked, she'd have done that anyway - but the fact that she offered I think is a very generous thing. It's not anything I expected and I appreciate it so much.
I could count many other things I am witness to that are gifts of generosity - both sets of our parents treating us to dinners out, coffee on Saturdays, my sister-in-law making me a scarf, all the things my dad does helping us with the house, my big "brother" treating me to a manicure in honor of no longer picking my fingers. The list actually could go on for awhile the more I really think about it.
Sometimes it is hard to see the good in humanity. But looking back over some of these things - sure some are simple - but just fact that I can find many examples of times people have been generous to me, shows that indeed, there is good in the world. I am amazingly blessed by all of these wonderful people and the generous things they do/have done for me. I am inspired by them.
Have you been witness to generosity in your world?
Be generous. I can dig it.
1/27/11
Winter bucket list
And just like that January is almost over.
It hasn't even been a busy month! In fact, we have had more time to relax this month than we have in quite some time. So I'm not sure how time flew by so fast.
I have been complaining a LOT about winter and winter weather. And of course, now that I realize that really, we're getting closer to spring - I realize that there are some things I'd still like to do before the winter is over.
So similar to my "Summer Bucket List" I bring you my "Bucket list - winter edition"
1. Attend the Winterfest beer festival from MN Craft Brewers association (more to come on this, we actually do have tickets and will be attending next week, this is Nate's Christmas present I talked about last month)
2. Go to Omnifest at the Science Museum. We're still members through March - we have no excuse to have not done this yet or to not do it at all - we can go for free.
3. Go sledding. Seriously.
4. Visit the new Polar Bear at the Como Zoo - yes he'll be there in warmer weather too, but I know he'll be more active when it's cold.
5. Eat at Donatelli's - ok, this might sound stupid, but this is one of the few restaurants that we won't eat at much in warmer weather. It's that baked yummy heavy Italian food and I just want to make sure we get there before it no longer sounds good! We haven't been since Halloween - kind of rare for us. Eating out less will do that I guess.
6. Go see the ice sculptures at the Winter Carnival - don't often do this one, but kind of want to this year maybe.
7. Check out some more MN Wineries (yeah I can do this year round really, but my wine supply is next to nothing right now) .
8. Make a french silk pie for Nate (I know, what does this have to do with winter? Nothing but I am thinking of doing this for V-day).
9. Watch at least a couple of the Oscar nominated movies before the Oscars - so far I've seen Inception. That's it.
10. Watch the Super Bowl. Don't really care who's playing, but I have to watch it every year and eat unhealthy snacky food and drink beer. It's fun.
There you go. So maybe it's a dorkier list than my Summer one was, but I also think these goals are slightly more obtainable! We'll see how it goes. I'm trying to stay positive and embrace winter instead of complain all the time!
*Singing* You've got to accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative, latch on to the affirmative, don't mess with Mr. In between....
It hasn't even been a busy month! In fact, we have had more time to relax this month than we have in quite some time. So I'm not sure how time flew by so fast.
I have been complaining a LOT about winter and winter weather. And of course, now that I realize that really, we're getting closer to spring - I realize that there are some things I'd still like to do before the winter is over.
So similar to my "Summer Bucket List" I bring you my "Bucket list - winter edition"
1. Attend the Winterfest beer festival from MN Craft Brewers association (more to come on this, we actually do have tickets and will be attending next week, this is Nate's Christmas present I talked about last month)
2. Go to Omnifest at the Science Museum. We're still members through March - we have no excuse to have not done this yet or to not do it at all - we can go for free.
3. Go sledding. Seriously.
4. Visit the new Polar Bear at the Como Zoo - yes he'll be there in warmer weather too, but I know he'll be more active when it's cold.
5. Eat at Donatelli's - ok, this might sound stupid, but this is one of the few restaurants that we won't eat at much in warmer weather. It's that baked yummy heavy Italian food and I just want to make sure we get there before it no longer sounds good! We haven't been since Halloween - kind of rare for us. Eating out less will do that I guess.
6. Go see the ice sculptures at the Winter Carnival - don't often do this one, but kind of want to this year maybe.
7. Check out some more MN Wineries (yeah I can do this year round really, but my wine supply is next to nothing right now) .
8. Make a french silk pie for Nate (I know, what does this have to do with winter? Nothing but I am thinking of doing this for V-day).
9. Watch at least a couple of the Oscar nominated movies before the Oscars - so far I've seen Inception. That's it.
10. Watch the Super Bowl. Don't really care who's playing, but I have to watch it every year and eat unhealthy snacky food and drink beer. It's fun.
There you go. So maybe it's a dorkier list than my Summer one was, but I also think these goals are slightly more obtainable! We'll see how it goes. I'm trying to stay positive and embrace winter instead of complain all the time!
*Singing* You've got to accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative, latch on to the affirmative, don't mess with Mr. In between....
1/25/11
Something to ponder
Even though we don't have children yet, Nate and I enjoy watching the NBC show "Parenthood." (Well ok, I probably enjoy it just a tad bit more than he does, but he does watch every episode with me so I give him credit for that!) I think it is a very well done show that has so many levels - family dynamics, communication, drama, joy. Many real life issues that families deal with.
Last week's episode was thought provoking in a way. One of the characters, Haddie, is dating a guy that her parents do not approve of her seeing. He is older than her and is dealing with adult issues and while he was up front with her parents about all of it, they made their wishes clear, she cannot date him right now. Of course, Haddie refused to listen to them and continued to sneak around behind their backs even after being grounded, culminating in her mother saying "you live in our house, you abide by our rules." Next think you see is Haddie showing up on the doorstep of her grandparents asking to stay there for awhile - and that was the end of the episode.
After we watched it, Nate actually said, "wow, how do you handle that kind of situation?" I started thinking about it and remembered - while it was not to nearly this severe of a degree, I dated a guy my parents didn't approve of before Nate. Yes shocker, there were boys before Nate. Not many mind you, but a couple. And there was one that was very difficult for my parents.
We'll call him "B". It's not that B was a bad person or anything like that. But he was different. My first boyfriend, who we'll call "D" was friendly, outgoing, polite and a bit of a charmer. He'd talk to my dad on the phone for five minutes before I even had a chance to jump on. It was a short lived relationship, but a parent's dream in a first boyfriend. After D and I were finished, I was burned a few more times by some others and so when B started paying attention to me I liked it. He had long hair, he was a musician, he seemed kind of dark and mysterious. And he liked talking to me in class. So I asked him to homecoming. And pretty soon even though it was never "official" we were pretty much together all the time.
He was shy though and quiet and that made my parents kind of nervous. And yes, his appearance was a bit of a turn off for them as well. And I can admit this now, he made me different. Our relationship was complicated and strange and it affected my personality, my daily life. My grades suffered a bit during that time. I wasn't quite "Me".
So now the big question, how did my parents deal with it? Well, simply, they handled it by not really doing anything. They waited it out. Yes, there were some consequences for the grade issues, but they never said to me "you cannot see this boy, you cannot talk to this boy." I'm sure it broke my mother's heart too, but their patience with the situation did pay off. I started seeing the light on my own that this wasn't a good relationship. And again, I don't totally blame B for that, he wasn't ready for things that I was, he was more immature. I made the choice to break it off and get out - and my parents cheered.
Now, had there been more serious issues with this relationship, I am sure they would not have hesitated to step up and do more - but in this situation, it worked for them to leave it be. I wouldn't even know until years later just how hard it actually was for them. Fortunately, it wasn't a long relationship - probably four months at the most, but, it was longer than a few days or couple of weeks, so I give them a great deal of credit for their patience. A couple of months after my split with B was the trip that changed my life in the best possible way when Nate and I got together. And my parents were comfortable with him from the start - he'd been around for years as we'd grown up going to school and church together, they knew his parents and it was all around a much better situation. Maybe that was their reward for their patience with the B situation, you never know.
But getting back to "Parenthood" it does raise an interesting question - how would you handle that situation? And I'd be willing to bet, like me, we have all probably had a relationship that made our parents nervous or maybe made a decision that they were less than happy with at the time - I think it's a right of passage actually (I kid a little here). So looking back, how did your parents deal with it? Would you choose the same approach as them?
Nate and I are years away from dealing with that kind of thing of course since we are still not moving towards having children quite yet, but we could be in that boat someday, so it's interesting to ponder just a bit.
Or maybe I just have too much time on my hands!
Last week's episode was thought provoking in a way. One of the characters, Haddie, is dating a guy that her parents do not approve of her seeing. He is older than her and is dealing with adult issues and while he was up front with her parents about all of it, they made their wishes clear, she cannot date him right now. Of course, Haddie refused to listen to them and continued to sneak around behind their backs even after being grounded, culminating in her mother saying "you live in our house, you abide by our rules." Next think you see is Haddie showing up on the doorstep of her grandparents asking to stay there for awhile - and that was the end of the episode.
After we watched it, Nate actually said, "wow, how do you handle that kind of situation?" I started thinking about it and remembered - while it was not to nearly this severe of a degree, I dated a guy my parents didn't approve of before Nate. Yes shocker, there were boys before Nate. Not many mind you, but a couple. And there was one that was very difficult for my parents.
We'll call him "B". It's not that B was a bad person or anything like that. But he was different. My first boyfriend, who we'll call "D" was friendly, outgoing, polite and a bit of a charmer. He'd talk to my dad on the phone for five minutes before I even had a chance to jump on. It was a short lived relationship, but a parent's dream in a first boyfriend. After D and I were finished, I was burned a few more times by some others and so when B started paying attention to me I liked it. He had long hair, he was a musician, he seemed kind of dark and mysterious. And he liked talking to me in class. So I asked him to homecoming. And pretty soon even though it was never "official" we were pretty much together all the time.
He was shy though and quiet and that made my parents kind of nervous. And yes, his appearance was a bit of a turn off for them as well. And I can admit this now, he made me different. Our relationship was complicated and strange and it affected my personality, my daily life. My grades suffered a bit during that time. I wasn't quite "Me".
So now the big question, how did my parents deal with it? Well, simply, they handled it by not really doing anything. They waited it out. Yes, there were some consequences for the grade issues, but they never said to me "you cannot see this boy, you cannot talk to this boy." I'm sure it broke my mother's heart too, but their patience with the situation did pay off. I started seeing the light on my own that this wasn't a good relationship. And again, I don't totally blame B for that, he wasn't ready for things that I was, he was more immature. I made the choice to break it off and get out - and my parents cheered.
Now, had there been more serious issues with this relationship, I am sure they would not have hesitated to step up and do more - but in this situation, it worked for them to leave it be. I wouldn't even know until years later just how hard it actually was for them. Fortunately, it wasn't a long relationship - probably four months at the most, but, it was longer than a few days or couple of weeks, so I give them a great deal of credit for their patience. A couple of months after my split with B was the trip that changed my life in the best possible way when Nate and I got together. And my parents were comfortable with him from the start - he'd been around for years as we'd grown up going to school and church together, they knew his parents and it was all around a much better situation. Maybe that was their reward for their patience with the B situation, you never know.
But getting back to "Parenthood" it does raise an interesting question - how would you handle that situation? And I'd be willing to bet, like me, we have all probably had a relationship that made our parents nervous or maybe made a decision that they were less than happy with at the time - I think it's a right of passage actually (I kid a little here). So looking back, how did your parents deal with it? Would you choose the same approach as them?
Nate and I are years away from dealing with that kind of thing of course since we are still not moving towards having children quite yet, but we could be in that boat someday, so it's interesting to ponder just a bit.
Or maybe I just have too much time on my hands!
1/20/11
All you never wanted to know about the Muppets
I feel it is my duty as a hardcore Muppet fan to take a few moments for some education.
See, the Muppets are getting thrown back into the spotlight as their big soon to be smash hit movie is being filmed as we speak and I have noticed on Facebook and Twitter and in general that people are talking about them again. Awesome! I also notice though that certain rumors are popping up again that are not true. Not so awesome! I'd let it slide, but when I saw one of the most ridiculous of these rumors on a Facebook status update today, I decided it's time to say something.
So, here is my education for today - things said in recent years about the Muppets that are NOT true. You can find a similar list on Toughpigs.com - a website for Muppet fans who grew up. This was a hot discussion on this site recently and I want to give them the credit.
1. Cookie Monster is no longer Cookie Monster, he is the Veggie Monster
100% false. Yes it's true, Sesame Street had a big "healthy foods" campaign a few years back and included a song called "A Cookie is a sometimes food" but Cookie Monster is STILL the Cookie Monster. I promise. Really. He eats veggies too sometimes and he also eats the plate that they came on. He always has. Nothing has changed.
2. Disney owns everything
Not entirely true. This is a bit of a confusing item. The Sesame Street Muppets are still Muppets - but they belong to Sesame Workshop. Not Disney. The "Classic" Muppets - those that were on the Muppet Show - Fozzie, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, etc. - they belong to Disney. This includes Kermit the Frog. Yep, gray area, because he did used to appear on Sesame Street, but he belongs to Disney and therefore you will not see him on Sesame Street any longer. To FURTHER confuse things, The Jim Henson Company owns the rights to the characters from Fraggle Rock and other more obscure Henson productions such as Labyrinth. And sadly, until these three companies can get along - we will not likely see shows like "A Muppet Family Christmas" that includes all types of Muppets on television.
3. Jim Henson died of AIDS
Nope. He did develop a very fast and deadly form of pneumonia, but it was not AIDS related at all. He also avoided going to the hospital and might have lived had he gotten their sooner. If you watch interviews with some of his former co-workers/Muppeteers they said he always had an air about him that he knew he wasn't long for this Earth, so perhaps he just knew and felt it was time when he did get sick.
4. Ernie and Bert are gay.
Ridiculous. There are people out there who still believe this is true. Seriously, I am still shocked when I hear that people think it's true. They share an apartment together and that is ALL. You ever watch the Odd Couple? They are pretty much a parody of that and nothing else. Sigh.
5. Common mispellings
Ok maybe I'm getting a bit too nitpicky now - but it's Fozzie Bear, not Fozzy Bear and it's Rowlf the Dog, not Rolf or Ralph or anything like that. It made me sad when I saw that Disney World itself had a collectable Rowlf the Dog pin that actually had his name spelled as "Rolf". Really Disney? I'm sure Jim Henson was rolling in his grave on that one.
Those are the five biggest ones I know of. Am I a huge nerd for wanting to my blog readers to know the truth? Yeah. But now you can impress your friends and be like "Hey, Cookie Monster is NOT the Veggie Monster, he does still eat cookies!" Cause I'm sure that's the kind of conversation that comes up at your cocktail parties.
Happy Friday.
See, the Muppets are getting thrown back into the spotlight as their big soon to be smash hit movie is being filmed as we speak and I have noticed on Facebook and Twitter and in general that people are talking about them again. Awesome! I also notice though that certain rumors are popping up again that are not true. Not so awesome! I'd let it slide, but when I saw one of the most ridiculous of these rumors on a Facebook status update today, I decided it's time to say something.
So, here is my education for today - things said in recent years about the Muppets that are NOT true. You can find a similar list on Toughpigs.com - a website for Muppet fans who grew up. This was a hot discussion on this site recently and I want to give them the credit.
1. Cookie Monster is no longer Cookie Monster, he is the Veggie Monster
100% false. Yes it's true, Sesame Street had a big "healthy foods" campaign a few years back and included a song called "A Cookie is a sometimes food" but Cookie Monster is STILL the Cookie Monster. I promise. Really. He eats veggies too sometimes and he also eats the plate that they came on. He always has. Nothing has changed.
2. Disney owns everything
Not entirely true. This is a bit of a confusing item. The Sesame Street Muppets are still Muppets - but they belong to Sesame Workshop. Not Disney. The "Classic" Muppets - those that were on the Muppet Show - Fozzie, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, etc. - they belong to Disney. This includes Kermit the Frog. Yep, gray area, because he did used to appear on Sesame Street, but he belongs to Disney and therefore you will not see him on Sesame Street any longer. To FURTHER confuse things, The Jim Henson Company owns the rights to the characters from Fraggle Rock and other more obscure Henson productions such as Labyrinth. And sadly, until these three companies can get along - we will not likely see shows like "A Muppet Family Christmas" that includes all types of Muppets on television.
3. Jim Henson died of AIDS
Nope. He did develop a very fast and deadly form of pneumonia, but it was not AIDS related at all. He also avoided going to the hospital and might have lived had he gotten their sooner. If you watch interviews with some of his former co-workers/Muppeteers they said he always had an air about him that he knew he wasn't long for this Earth, so perhaps he just knew and felt it was time when he did get sick.
4. Ernie and Bert are gay.
Ridiculous. There are people out there who still believe this is true. Seriously, I am still shocked when I hear that people think it's true. They share an apartment together and that is ALL. You ever watch the Odd Couple? They are pretty much a parody of that and nothing else. Sigh.
5. Common mispellings
Ok maybe I'm getting a bit too nitpicky now - but it's Fozzie Bear, not Fozzy Bear and it's Rowlf the Dog, not Rolf or Ralph or anything like that. It made me sad when I saw that Disney World itself had a collectable Rowlf the Dog pin that actually had his name spelled as "Rolf". Really Disney? I'm sure Jim Henson was rolling in his grave on that one.
Those are the five biggest ones I know of. Am I a huge nerd for wanting to my blog readers to know the truth? Yeah. But now you can impress your friends and be like "Hey, Cookie Monster is NOT the Veggie Monster, he does still eat cookies!" Cause I'm sure that's the kind of conversation that comes up at your cocktail parties.
Happy Friday.
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