St. Charles County Living

Joe Cool says, “Way to go, beagle brother!”

 
Judges must have fallen in love with Uno’s honest, easy-going personality—not
to mention that he’s cute as a button.

Uno has ties to Belleville, IL, just a skip over the river from here. I’m not sure if he was
actually born there or if his owners just live there; but still—it’s worth claiming, “Local beagle makes good.”

I feel sometimes the groomer should get an award instead of the dog. Some of those contestants look like intricate topiaries. How embarrassing that must be for a genuine dog.

In the spirit of last night’s dog show, I rented Best of Show. I think it’s a hilarious movie (for those who like mockumentory comedies like The Office).

And since an essential, though most unappreciated, canine trait is barking:
Let’s hear it for Uno! Owwwooooof!

Posted by admin at 04:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Enjoyed the Polar Bear Plunge Saturday at the Lake Saint Louis Community Association. It’s the first time we’ve gone and we couldn’t believe the turnout. We parked about three blocks away.

We were thinking that a whole bunch of people would run into the lake and run back out and then it would be over. But they had about 30 teams, each taking a turn running in and out of the water.

It made sense then. The water guard and emergency crews would only need to keep track of a few heads at a time instead of a large crowd splashing around.

Though they only got in and out very quickly, many did dive to make sure they were all-the-way wet.

The costumes were creative. We saw: a penguin, Alvin & the chipmunks, Fred Flintstone and Barney, a hockey player, cupid, a kilted man, Superman and Batman to name just a few.

I guess the water was clean enough to get into? Maybe they didn’t lick any lake water off their lips? Ewww.

I was glad when they finished. It was getting a bit chilly. 

Posted by admin at 03:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I am a 10-year resident of a St. Charles County suburb. I am intrigued by hyper-local movements, citizen journalism, new urbanism (not sure if it’s working, though), voluntary simplicity, hospitality and homesteading.

Some of my favorite authors are: Helen and Scott Nearing, James Howard Kunstler, Garrison Keillor and Erma Bombeck.

I love reading place blogs to find out what’s going on in other towns. Our community is unique, too; we just have to look beyond those crazy big boxes.

Interests:
Buying local
Greening the suburbs
Frugal living
Peak oil
The Slow Movement
Domestic pursuits
Baking
Writing
Marriage and parenting
Acoustic guitar
Marching bands
All kinds of art

Posted by admin at 02:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I hope most employers were understanding this morning when workers didn’t show up or were late for work. When the snow-clearers actually plead with people to stay home, you know there’s a driving situation on the roads.

I felt sorry for the parents who secured tickets to the Hannah Montana movie for an early morning show time. Some showings were as early as 8:30 a.m. I can just hear the conversations between mother and daughter…”C’mon Mom, the roads are fine.” And the mom responds with, “I’m not risking our lives to see Hannah Montana. I don’t care if we did pay $40 for the tickets.”

I called to see if one certain cinema had any tickets left for the movie or if they were all sold out. The worker was talking to someone else as she picked up the phone. I heard her say, “I need a cigarette like nobody’s business.”

Yeah, I’m glad to have escaped that Hannah Montana scene. BTW, there are tickets left, but the times available this weekend all seem to be for later at night.

I watched Charlie Rose last night and saw a bit of his interview with artist/film-maker Julian Schnabel. His relatively-new film, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, seems good.

It’s based on a true story about a 43-year-old fashion magazine editor, Jean-Dominique Bauby, who has it all, but then suffers a stroke. He’s almost completely paralyzed and only able to communicate by blinking his left eye. He then blinks out a manuscript for a book containing descriptions of his locked-in syndrome, but then later tells stories from his imagination. The real-life Bauby passed away just days after finishing the book. Schnabel won best director at Cannes for this film.

Julian Schnabel wore a suit coat on Charlie Rose’s show. That’s not unusual. However, he did not try to hide the fact he had on his pajamas underneath. That’s admirable, in an irreverent kind of way.

The movie is rated PG-13 for nudity, sexual content and some language.
The running time is 1 hour and 52 minutes.

Look for The Diving Bell and the Butterfly at this venue:

AMC Theatres
12657 Olive Boulevard
Creve Coeur, MO 63141
314-542-4AMC

Posted by admin at 03:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)