Love, Love, Love. All you need is love.

As I have mentioned here and in many a facebook post and tweet, love. actually. is. all. around. I may be a wee (that one's for you Enrique Burnham) bit cynical sometimes, but I am still a lover of love and fan of the rom-com. Let me rephrase. I am a fan of the rom-com that strays from the ubiquitous story line. Recently, Love and Other Drugs successfully strayed. I was completely enamored by Jake Gyllenhall and Anne Hathaway in this film. They nailed their roles as Maggie and Jamie with captivating performances that made the characters believable, their feelings raw, their tribulations real. I left the theater wanting to be as alluring and free-spirited as Maggie and possess the can'tlivewithoutyou kind of love and sexual chemistry she had with Jamie. The script, performances and golden globe noms aside, the eye candy alone was enough for me. Jake Gyllenhall is a smokeshow. I've always enjoyed the following quote from Sex & the City, "I just want to feel the weight of a man on top of me!" Well, Carrie, I just want to feel the weight of Jake Gyllenhall on top of me. Tay Swift is just too sweet and innocent for that sexy, sexy man. Here I go... veering off topic.

My all time favorite holiday movie is Love Actually. That will come as no surprise to those who know me. That being said, you can understand my frustration and disappointment when I went to grab it from the shelf this week only to find it was absent from my collection. I watch this movie AT LEAST once a year. Pretty sure I saw it twice in the theater. It is one of those fabulous feel good flicks that never gets old. When it came out on DVD, Burdy and I would snuggle in her big cozy bed at DZ and soak in the holiday love in between blasting Mariah's "All I want for Christmas is you." Speaking of which, if that song lights your fire, you have to check out the last scene of Love Actually.

Today I got to thinking about these two favorite movies of mine and began to ponder other goodies with the word "love" in the title. I surveyed my fb friends and questioned a few followers on twit. With their help and my ultimate evaluation, I have compiled a list of my top five "Love" movies.

1. Love actually

2. Love and other drugs

3. P.S. I love you

Tear jerker from start to finish. Saw it in the theater with Kitty Cat and Art Smart. We did not stop sniffling, yet there was something different and amazingly romantic about this sad love story. Gerard Butler and Denny Duquette (I don't know his real name) helped. Definitely one I can watch again and again.

4. Love and basketball

This one was popular with Shell Belle and I the year we lived together. Pretty sure she owned it on VHS. That scene when he sneaks into her bedroom is unforgettable. Ahh young love with the boy next door. Omar Epps, that chocolate lover, is also easy on the eyes.

5. Shakespeare in Love

Classic love story set in the time of the man who wrote classic love stories. Gwyneth killed it and took home an Oscar as William's love interest.

I'm sure there are more movies to be mentioned, but I must cut this short to watch Love Actually with my sister, who so graciously purchased it for us to watch tonight. I shall leave you with the opening quote...

“Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge - they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaky feeling you'll find that love actually is all around.”

We are lucky. Aren't we lucky?

I don't know if it's the holiday season, the slight decrease in my stress level, or just me, but lately I have been feeling uber blessed. Blessed to be a girl who can count on many people in her life to be there- to share a glass of wine, a laugh, a few tears, et cetera. Not everyone can be so lucky. Nostalgia has been the theme of the week. It started on Friday night while spending time with a certain family that have welcomed me in over the years. As I sat on the couch with the woman who does and has it all, I marveled at the many small special moments she shares with her husband and three beautiful, brilliant little girls that I have come to love so dearly. They have such an undeniable hunger for life and contagious holiday spirit. The eldest girl and I recently practiced reciting an old favorite poem of mine from Shel Silverstein's Where the Sidewalk Ends. I am a sucker for sappy children's books and poetry.

I continued my Friday evening by meeting DJ Slumpbuster and DWD at the Brick to celebrate 30 years of business. They thanked their loyal customers with 1980's nachos prices. DWD was in his glory. These boys (and all my boys) make me feel lucky too. Genuine friendships with members of the opposite sex are hard to come by and should to be treasured. I'm going on four or five years with the dumps in my life but it feels like eternity. I don't know what I would do without them.

Speaking of nostalgia and male friends, I am currently teaching in the elementary school that I attended as a fifth grader. It is pretty wild, especially given the fact that my fifth grade teacher is still working there. For whatever reason, today she and I happened to be the only two in the teacher's room at lunch and we took a walk down memory lane. She raved about what a wonderful student I was and what a great bunch of kids I had in my class. She even went on to mention that back in 95 she was convinced I would grow up to be a writer (crossing my fingers that this might still happen). We then got to chatting about the brainy AA, also a student in that fabulous fifth grade class. How lucky am I to share a special bond with a guy I have known since the pre-pubescent days of my youth? I feel closer to him now that ever. His sincere, frequent compliments never cease to make me smile. I am eager to spend time with him on Christmas Eve at Tray Day's, quite possibly one of my favorite nights of the year.

Now on to my women. The fantastically flawed, strong, independent, inspirational women that I am lucky to know and love, near and far. While I would love to write a personal blurb about them, I just haven't the time or space here to do the whole lot justice. You know who you are, and I thank you for being in my life.

Perhaps the most blogspiration for this post came to me Saturday night while celebrating Shell Belle's 26th year of living on this Earth. It also marked the seventh time we have celebrated her birthday... the first time occurred in the room we shared together in our sorority house, complete with boys, bitches and plenty of underage boozing. Novel Girl, Tuna and Starry Eyes all came to the ocean state to make this spectacular reunion a success. What amazes me is that no matter how much time goes by without speaking, we all seem to get right back into the groove when we we're together, as if no time has passed since the days of all living under one roof. The night consisted of plenty of alcohol, inappropriate table talk, reminiscing, dougieing and self-reflection. The next morning consisted of plenty of laughs, raspy voices, homefries and goodbyes. But it is only goodbye for now, because as we have grown older, our friendships have grown stronger and we have made a more conscious effort to stay in touch and get together more frequently. I have to say... I don't hate it.

Tis the season.

Novel Girl knows me well. She knows what knocks me out, what entertains me, what makes me smile. That being said, she graciously posted this video on my wall this morning. It incorporates a few things that I love: music, the holiday spirit, and a certain male appendage... I will let you you watch and listen yourselves.

I love the holidays. They are filled with family, friends, special traditions, food and booze in excess. The annual holiday party at DWD's on Friday night kicked off the season with a wild bang... looking forward to decorating the tree and the annual viewing of Love Actually very soon... it always gets me in the spirit. "To me, you are perfect." Tis the season kids, enjoy this most wonderful time of the year!!

For my favorite Jews, I don't want to exclude you. Happy last night of Hanukkah...hope you all rocked your eight crazy nights!