Signpost Up Ahead

Taken from the Toodle 2.0 Convertible somewhere along I-71.

3Don't

These glasses were bedazzled by yours truly!  I can't remember the exact details, but I promised one of the guys in my movie-going group that I would bejewel some glasses for our next 3D movie.  I had to make good on my word when the group made plans to see a movie in XD! Real D 3D.

I wanted to make his manly so I used red and complementary colors.  I decided to make myself a pair using shades of purple and green since I had the glue and jewels out anyway.  We were definitely the most stylish people in the theater.

Black and White

These cupcakes were dessert for Memorial Day.  Both are Perfectly Chocolate Chocolate Cupcakes.  The one on the left has Perfectly Chocolate Chocolate Frosting, and the one on the right has a simple vanilla buttercream frosting (6 T butter, 3 cups powdered sugar, 1 t vanilla, milk to thin it out.)

The cupcake paper on the right is supposed to look like a flower.  I like these type of "fun" liners, but their size tends to be a little bigger than a standard cupcake tin. I made some in my jumbo tin and some in the regular one, which worked well enough.

I make these chocolate/chocolate cupcakes a lot since they are easy and delicious so I was just going to make chocolate/white cupcakes. But, I made two frostings since at least one person in my family prefers chocolate/chocolate to chocolate/white.   

Bunny Cake

Back when I was a kid, we made this cake a lot.  At least it seems like we did.  I don't know if we actually did.  But every year when Easter rolls around and I don't make it, my tia asks me why; like it's a tradition that I'm not upholding.

The cake is made from 2 8-inch round cakes.  One is left intact and the other forms the ears and bow tie.  The cake is Special Birthday (yellow) cake and the frosting is whipped cream.  The face is sprinkled with coconut, but the ears and tie are left plain.  My nephew and tia helped me decorate with silver dragees, jellybeans and a candy carrot.

Promises, Promises

I have a trial subscription to SiriusXM, which I use to listen to very few of the hundreds of stations available. My dial is mostly tuned to 1st Wave, which is their "classic alternative" station. About 1 in 3 songs that I hear on this station are already on my iPod, but occasionally they'll play a song that I almost forgot existed like this great tune:

Weren't the 80's the best time ever?

Oscar Sunday

Here are my choices for the big show tonight. I have $2 riding on these picks! Predictions in BOLD. Once again pressed for time so no witty comments...

BEST ACTOR

Demian Bichir

George Clooney

Jean DuJardin

Gary Oldman

Brad Pitt

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Kenneth Branagh

Jonah Hill

Nick Nolte

Christopher Plummer

Max Von Sydow

BEST ACTRESS

Glenn Close

Viola Davis

Rooney Mary

Meryl Streep

Michelle Williams

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Berenice Bejo

Jessica Chastain

Melissa McCarthy

Janet McTeer

Octavia Spencer

BEST ANIMATED FILM

A Cat in Paris

Chico & Rita

Kung Fu Panda 2

Puss In Boots

Rango

BEST ART DIRECTION

The Artist

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

Hugo

Midnight In Paris

War Horse

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

The Artist

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Hugo

The Tree of Life

War Horse

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Anonymous

The Artist

Hugo

Jane Eyre

W.E.

BEST DIRECTOR

Michel Hazanavicius

Alexander Payne

Martin Scorsese

Woody Allen

Terrence Malick

BEST DOCUMENTARY (FEATURE)

Hell and Back Again

If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front

Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory

Pina

Undefeated

BEST DOCUMENTARY (SHORT SUBJECT)

The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement

God is the Bigger Elvis

Incident in New Baghdad

Saving Face

The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom

BEST FILM EDITING

The Artist

The Descendants

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Hugo

Moneyball

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

Bullhead, Belgium

Footnote, Israel

In Darkness, Poland

Monsieur Lazhar, Canada

A Separation, Iran

BEST MAKEUP

Albert Nobbs

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

The Iron Lady

BEST MUSIC (ORIGINAL SCORE)

The Adventures of Tintin

The Artist

Hugo

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

War Horse

BEST MUSIC (ORIGINAL SONG)

Man or Muppet, THE MUPPETS

Real in Rio, RIO

BEST PICTURE

The Artist

The Descendants

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

The Help

Hugo

Midnight in Paris

Moneyball

The Tree of Life

War Horse

BEST SHORT FILM (ANIMATED)

Dimanche/Sunday

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

La Luna

A Morning Stroll

Wild Life

BEST SHORT FILM (LIVE ACTION)

Pentecost

Raju

The Shore

Time Freak

Tuba Atlantic

BEST SOUND EDITING

Drive

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Hugo

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

War Horse

BEST SOUND MIXING

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Hugo

Moneyball

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

War Horse

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

Hugo

Real Steel

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

BEST WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY)

The Descendants

Hugo

The Ides of March

Moneyball

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

BEST WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY)

The Artist

Bridesmaids

Margin Call

Midnight In Paris

A Separation

Punch Brothers Punch

The Punch Brothers came out with a new album last week. If you aren't familiar with the Punch Brothers, give them a listen below.

"This Is The Song" from Live from the Lower East Side: It's p-Bingo Night! from Punch Brothers on Vimeo.

You might recognize the gorgeous lead singer and mandolin player, Chris Thile, from Nickel Creek or from the recent Goat Rodeo Sessions with Yo Yo Ma. But all of the members of the group are incredible musicians and their albums are like nothing else out there.

There is a tour to support the new album, Who's Feeling Young Now? and I would highly recommend seeing The Punch Brothers live. I saw them on their last tour and was wowed by the music and charmed by their personalities. It was great to hear their own songs played live, but one of the best things about that show was their rendition of The Strokes, Reptillia, which I've posted below.