And for the Julia Child part of the story - I think anyone will find an inspirational and lovely little piece. But the modern day story left me unsatisfied, despite some smart moments and the immensely adorable boyfriend played by Chris Messina. (there’s a slight chance you’ll remember him from Vicky Christina Barcelona)

Julie and Julia is 2 stories side by side - the story of Julia Child and her ascent to bringing french cuisine to the common housewife, and Julie - who spent her 20s writing a half-written novel no one wanted to publish before spending her days talking to 9/11 asthma victims from a cubicle.

You’ll be awfully surprised, as I was, to find out that Julia Child didn’t marry until she was almost 40 years old (she blames her height - so do I JULIA! So…do…I…). Since she couldn’t have children, she follows her husband (the adorable - and much more heterosexual-esque than his last role - Stanley Tucci) on a government job to Paris. There, she forces her way into a prestigious French Cooking School and ends up spending 8 years (yes 8 YEARS) working on the cookbook that would subsequently make her famous. (The trick was to convert all the metric stuff! MATH People…MATH!)

Before seeing this movie, I was inundated with media adulation for Meryl Streep. I love Meryl, but all the accolades were downright annoying. Isn’t it about Julia Child? By the end of the movie, however, I was concluding that Meryl Streep was perhaps a better Julia Child than Julia Child. She’s bubbly, funny, and heartfelt and when she cries YOU cry.

Julie’s story - written from the book by Julie Powell - Julie and Julia - echoes the themes of Julia’s story. What is life without finding your passion? How can you take matters into your own hands? There’s never a bad time to brown meat in a creusset - add carrots, onions and red wine and slop up all the juices with a huge chunk of crusty buttered bread. But Julie’s character cries over a small kitchen, breaks down over a jilting dinner guest and screams at her adorable boyfriend for no reason. Her minor anxieties took precedent over what could have been a truly remarkable story. And because her story doesn’t reach far enough into the depths of mid-life despair, it falls flat despite some great eyebrow crinkling by Amy Adams.

The movie is definitely a go-see. But if you miss it at the theater - you won’t be crying over spilt milk.

We’re left thinking about how all the problems in your life can be solved with a good man and a great stew. No matter how hard we try to escape that little nugget - it always comes back true.

We all feel hopeless sometimes, Julie. The smart ones eat anyway.

For a great Julia Child Lover’s food blog - visit - http://figmentspot.blogspot.com/

I’m going to read Julia Child’s Memoir - My Life In Paris

Yoga Classes Online by Channon:

So, I’m what you might call…a lazy yoggie.
I try to eat healthy stuff - but there’s tons of weird frozen stuff in my fridge. I have a gym membership to Crunch - which offers great yoga classes - but I make it there once a week. I even have a roommate that could get me motivated to go to yoga classes about 2 blocks from my house, but I always watch her leave the house while I’ve sat my butt on the couch.

For me, yoga online is the perfect solution. It’s in the comfort of my own room. I can stop the play whenever I want to hold a position or just quit the class (cause I’m….yes….THAT lazy). I can put on whatever music I want, wear what I want, and stretch as much or as little as I want to. No pressure.

I have one recommendation and that is: If you are a first time yoga student - you must go to a few regular old classes first. A yoga teacher can help you put yourself in the correct positioning so that

#1 - You don’t hurt yourself and

#2 - Your muscles are actually working (it’s deceptively easy to “pretend” yoga. If you don’t feel a burn while doing 5 sun-salutations - you’re not breathing and you’re not in the correct positions)

YOGA Learning Center.COM

This is a pay site and costs $20 for 3 months.

Pros - They use videos that you can download as their classes. So, you have a wide variety to choose from.

Cons - The video quality is rather poor and their selection is reminiscent of that old lady that used to do yoga on PBS in her paisley jammies.

Yoga Today.com

This site is FREE! They make money off of a short 20 second add that plays in the beginning.

Pros - Lots of levels and classes to choose from. And the setting is out in Montana - you’ll feel like you’re there too. (and not in your very messy room.)

Cons - Less variety, but still lots of classes! You have nothing to lose! See the rest of the article for more laughing videos and articles.

Check out our feature next month- Yoga Monsters; the Musical!

Kidding…kidding…it’ll probably be something on entertainment

Well this is not very scientific and definitely not very journalistic, but in my opinion it falls under the category of “plain old good news”: people are dieting less and eating more!

According to this New York Times article, eating good, healthy and tasty food is becoming acceptable again! Since there is not much proof that eating low-fat, and sugar-substitute filled products help people keep the weight off, it seems that the general public is embracing the idea of cooking with natural ingredients (apparently this is also because prepared food is expensive).

The other interesting thing about this article is it gave me a reason to like Rachael Ray. Ray believes that cookbooks should not come with calorie information. As someone who was recently shocked by going to Chevy’s and finding out that even ordering an appetizer required going over my recommended daily caloric intake, I fully support Ray’s decision to omit that information from her cookbooks. I also think that calorie information should not be listed next to hot-dog and beer vendors at baseball stadiums. That is just plain wrong.

An article on MSNBC puts forward a claim that our favorite crime dramas make us more willing to lay down money for goods. Its an interesting theory. In today’s society many of us seem to use purchases as a “pick me up” or sweet snacks as indulgences and rewards for a rough day at work. But are we really so influenced by the images on TV that it makes us run for the store or fridge.

“We found that when people think about the fact that they’re going to die someday — not now, but someday — they want to consume more of everything,” says Naomi Mandel, co-author of the study

While the study explores the theory and takes Television itself out of the equation I can’t help but feel a little bit like they are putting the cart before the horse. Like my avid defense of Diet soda ( I <3 Diet Pepsi) in the face of those accusations that “Diet Soda makes you fat” I always contend that “No if you are Fat you are more likely to drink Diet soda!”. I feel theories like this while grounded in reality tend to look at things in a vacuum that does not exist in reality.

One if you are a Crime time TV fan you end up watching tons of commercials meant to get you to buy things. I’d like to see this study examine fans of the Sopranos and The Wire shows which are just as graphic (if not More so) but have no advertising running in the show.

Also if you think about the average couch potato, aren’t you more likely to go snack if you are watching a marathon of your favorite show, where its CSI; Miami or Extreme Home Make Over? I’d love further examination of this theory in regards to other types of shows. Does America’s Next Top Model make you want to buy make up, or become bulimic? What happens when you watch too many Seinfeld reruns?

“Consumers, especially those with a lower self-esteem, may be more susceptible to overconsumption when confronted with images of death during the news or their favorite crime scene investigation shows,” Mandel concludes in her study. “

I do believe that this is somehow true. That when faced with mortality and death our society doesn’t really have an outlet to express concerns and fears for these things, so we do as we have been trained “consume, and you will feel better” There is comfort in food, new shoes, new sheets, new cell phone, and new 46 inch Plasma HDTV* which will make your favorite crime dramas even MORE Graphic!!

*Santa, that last one is on my list

The rest of the article is linked here

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26513442/

This is a subsite of Still Good News dedicated to all the little things in life we love to write and read about. Check back for recipes, tips, and food articles. There’s still good living out there.

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