10K Race and Cherry Blossoms

Before the race

This weekend we went down to Richmond because Jason was running in his first 10k (Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10K). We drove down on Friday after work and school. Doris came with us but she ended up driving on her own. (We tried to get her to ride with us but she wanted to drive on her own.) It was a sad, sad, day for Doris. She couldn't get into the HOV lane and spent hours miserable on the highway. We met her 1/2 way down, about an hour away in Fredricksburg VA at the Red Robin. We got down there about 1.5 hours earlier and entertained ourselves at the Target and Five Below store (Aidan really, really wanted a basketball--who knew?!?). We had dinner and Doris' stress level went down by a thousand points. I rode with her the rest of the way and we got into Richmond at about 9:45pm. Marc and Cindy were waiting for us and they were so kind to put us all up and show us a super good time!

Jason getting ready to give five to Uncle Marc

Marc and Jason ran the race and their supporters (us!) were trying to catch them near the finish. Marc finished in 49 minutes and 19 seconds and Jason finished in (an amazing!) 59 minutes and 18 seconds! Marc came in 2,901 place and Jason came in 9,999 place. On the face of it one might think that is not so good but there were...wait for it, wait for it...41,314 registered participants!! We saw Jason about 200 yards from the finish line and when we saw him he was looking really good! He was running, and fast, and he had a smile on his face!!! He did amazing. Afterwards, he and Marck took a nap (as did Leo...to be fair he did get up really early) and Jason's knee was really aching. Today (Monday) he said it was feeling good. He even went to the gym today.

After the race

Later in the afternoon Cindy, Doris and I went to Careytown and shopped a little and when it started to rain we finished the shopping and went to Cafe Caturra for wine (great bottle of Italian Pinot Grigio) and snacks (breads and spreads). It was such a nice, nice weekend.

Right now is Cherry Blossom season so at work I took a nice little walk down to the tidal basin to see the beautiful, beautiful cherry blossoms. My new office is just about 5-7 minute walk from the basin. It's wonderful. In the second photo, you can also see how crowded the tidal basin is!

Favorite article of clothing

I am getting ready for bed. I undertook my usual ritual of walking in the door after getting home from work, heading upstairs to change out of my work clothes and putting on my comfy clothes, usually my pajamas. So I look into my closet and my go to shirt is an OLD, OLD shirt. It is a nursing shirt from when I had Leo! I know! It is totally OLD. I love it. It is black, loose but not long, light weight, three quarters sleeve and it is the softest cotton I have ever felt. I don't know why I love it more than any other shirt that I own but I wish I could keep it forever. I CAN NOT keep it forever. It is so much better than an old t-shirt. I have never really had a favorite old t-shirt.

What is your favorite article of clothing? The article of clothing that you wish would last forever. That you could wear every day if could?

I'm upstairs sitting on our bed. Leo is sleeping, snoring actually. He feel asleep at about 6:50pm. Jason is downstairs playing Wii FIFA Soccer with Aidan and he is losing. Aidan just ran upstairs saying he beat Daddy.

Shutter Island

Check out Jason's newest movie review of Shutter Island (see link above)

Oscars

And the winner is...the Hurt Locker. Only one person guessed it correctly and to be honest I think it was Jason. Surprise, surprise! Go Jason! Why do we live in DC? We should in live in LA and we should be living off Jason's skills.

The "Family" Blog

It’s been hinted/told to me that the family blog has become Amy’s blog again. I’ve been told that with the boys giving quotes for Amy to use in some of the blogs, they are actually contributing more than I am. So I have been asked/bullied into contributing material to the blog again.

So without further ado, let me present to you my current and ongoing contribution to the Holma-Ritualo Blog is…the pictures. Nearly every picture on the blog from day one was taken by me. So if you think about it, I’m usually contributing 2-3 items for every one post that Amy does. Just think how boring this blog would be if it wasn’t for all of my hard work. Sure, Amy’s words paint a pretty vivid picture of what was going on or what the boys look like now, but it’s my images that really give this blog some, shall we say, pizzazz. So, sit back, read the blog regularly and enjoy all of my hard work.

I’ve just been told/berated by a certain someone who was reading over my shoulder that my taking pictures that she then has to download to the computer before uploading them to the blog and then edit them to fit into the text, doesn’t constitute “contributing” to the family blog. So after serious consideration/deciding what would be the next easiest thing to do, I’ve decided to start doing movie reviews again.

It’s been awhile since I last did a review so I’m going to start fresh. I’m moving all of the previous reviews from the left hand column and adding them to the end of this post so they will be available to read if you missed them the first time. The new reviews will now be posted in the left hand column starting with the most recent movie I’ve seen, Youth in Revolt.


Recount

An HBO movie about the legal battles that took place in Florida during the 2000 Presidential election that help determine the winner.

A well made film about a somewhat complicated and possibly boring story. There were two things in particular the film makers did that I liked. The first thing was the way they combined actual news footage with the actors to tell the story. The second thing was the way the movie was shot. It was shot using a lot of hand held cameras which gave it a documentary feel. Combined with the news footage and the quality acting, it made if feel very real.

That said, I still wouldn’t recommend this movie. Even with the current change in administration it’s still a little too fresh in our memories to relive this period of political history. And if you were a Bush supporter, you won’t be real happy with the portrayal of your political party. The Republicans weren’t necessarily vilified but there was a definite bias.

So unless you’re a Nadar supporter or just enjoy that feeling of anger building up in your gut, I’d stay away from this one.



Slumdog Millionaire

Slumdog Millionaire is the story of Jamal, an orphan from the slums of Mumbai, who is accused of cheating when he is nearing the top prize of India’s version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. It’s with flashbacks during the police’s interrogation that you see how Jamal’s life history provided him with the answers to these nearly impossible questions.

Slumdog Millionaire is winning or being nominated for virtually every movie award out there this year. It just recently won the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture – Drama, and was nominated for Best Picture by the Academy Awards. I can honestly say that I agree with them. I’m sure this is making all the film critics out there breathe easy knowing that I feel they made the right decision. But anyway, this is a great movie. You really care about the characters. You feel like cheering for Jamal’s triumphs and shuddering at the horrors he goes through. It’s very well done from the direction to the acting.

It’s a great film but I can’t imagine India’s tourism board is all that happy with it. I’ve always felt that India is one of those countries I’d never want to travel to, and this film only validates those feelings. It feels like you could actually get hepatitis just by watching this movie.

If you’re a germaphobe I’d recommend staying away from Slumdog Millionaire, but if you’re up to date on your tetanus shots and want to see a good film, go see it.



Caddyshack

This isn’t a new movie. It’s a movie everyone has seen and usually loves and considers a comedy classic. Over the years I’ve seen bits and pieces of it but I’ve never seen the entire thing from beginning to end. So when I saw the DVD at the library I had to get it. I had to see what all the fuss was about.

As I said before, a lot of people consider Caddyshack to be a classic, one of the funniest movies ever. I think the people that feel that way are probably people who saw it for the first time around the time it came out (1980). Comedies are like that. I don’t think they hold up as well 20,30 years down the road for a first time viewing. I think for someone who saw it when it was new and loved it, could still love it and think it was funny today. That’s because it reminds them of the first time they saw it. When, “Did someone step on a duck” was new and funny. I had heard that line so many times by so many different people that when I heard Rodney Dangerfield say it it seemed more like Dangerfield doing an impression of my dad than the other way around.

I’m glad I saw it but if I was in the mood to watch something funny and was looking for something to see, Caddyshack wouldn’t ever cross my mind. In case you’re wondering, I would go for something like 40 Year Old Virgin, SuperBad, Role Models or anything by Kevin Smith

Dad's Night Off

It's not much but we try to give Jason "time off" as much as possible so that he can have some piece and quite or do something he wants to do. He "works" constantly and rarely gets down time. Most of the time his "time off" usually consists of getting to go to the movies alone. I think he enjoys it because he loves the movies. He gets a "movie night" every couple of weeks or so--it's not enough but we try. Occassionaly he gets a little more, thanks to Doris.

A week ago this past Friday, Aidan, Leo and I spent the night at Doris' house so that Jason could have a night of rest. He gets to do whatever he wants, watch movies in peace, play Fifa Wii, watch TV or go to the movies. The best part of the whole evening is that he gets to sleep (really sleep) for one whole evening.

The boys love Doris' house so it is a lot of fun for them. We played games, had dinner and watched Disney Pixar's "Up" in bed and the next morning we made pancakes. We had a lot of fun and really appreciate Doris being so generous and kind to us.

Father's Day

Happy Father's Day Pa, Opa, and Grandpa Russ! We hope you have a super special day!

Leo is sick with a fever so we are not doing too much today but Aidan would like to make breakfast for Jason and he gave him the gift he made for him at school. He made a card that looks like a tie and a pencil holder made from a can that he wrapped with green yarn. Jason is also going to Hogwarts tonight for a Magic show. Actually, it is a lecture by some well known Magic guy.

Love and miss you all,
Amy, Jason, Aidan, and Leo

On Saturday, we spent the day at Doris' house. We brought lunch over, went to her swimming pool for a couple of hours, played a couple of games of Uno, did a puzzle, Leo took a nap, and then we ate dinner and played with her new video Flip camera.

We had so much fun. This is one of videos we took starring Aidan and Jason Holma with Doris as the Director.

We Have a New Champ!

The sports world was rocked today when the long standing Wii bowling champ of the Holma/Ritualo household division was defeated. Striker, A.K.A. Amy, was upset in a grueling 10 frame game. Although Striker still holds the record for most strikes in a row (8), she has handed the belt over for high score and most strikes in a game. In what some are describing as a Cinderella story, the young rookie from the mean streets of Renton, Jason, upset the King of the virtual lanes with a nearly perfect game. The pressure of beating Striker’s eight strikes in a row was just too much for Jason to handle. That one little hiccup in the 8 th frame was all that stood in the way of a perfect game.

After the game we had a chance to ask the new champ how it feels to hold the record in the Holma/Ritualo household division. His response was “How the hell does leaving one pin standing which was picked up with a spare drop a 300 game to a 279? Shouldn’t that be 299. Someone show me the math.”.

P.S. Everyone is doing well. This was just the only blog worthy news lately.

It was only a matter of time

Hello everyone. I knew this day would come. The day Amy’s blog about the family would become the family’s blog about the family. It only took a couple of postings for Amy to realize that blogging is fun, and she must share the fun by forcing others to post as well. So when Amy called the family meeting to “ask for volunteers” to help with the blog I wasn’t surprised. What surprised me however, was how quickly Aidan and Leo took a step back. I felt like Cesar standing there with two tiny knives in my back as Amy thanked me and started giving me writing assignments. I don’t know if it was the glassy look in my eyes or the sudden realization of who she was dealing with, but she stopped mid list of writing assignments and said, “how about you just write about the movies you see”. This sounded like the easiest way out of this situation, so here I am.

You’ll notice a new section in the left hand column called “movie reviews by Jason”. That’s where you’ll be able to find my posts. I’ll be writing my thoughts, feelings, and recommendations about the movies I see both in theaters and on DVD.

Long Night

Sorry, these last couple of posts have not been too fun. Last night Leo woke up at about 1:00a.m. crying because he had just thrown up in his bed. It was very sad because he was so tired and he is not used to it. Aidan is the one who throws up. He gets car sick, he throws up when he eats too much, too fast. So we were up off and on all night helping poor little Leo and cleaning throw up off of his sheets, our sheets, his clothes, our clothes and poor little doggy. Doggy has been washed this morning and needs to be washed again. We called the doctor and they said there was a 24 hour bug going around and there was nothing they could really do but they gave us information on what we should do and expect. Leo threw up once this morning but an hour or so later he wanted to eat and he ate a pancake. In fact, Jason had to stop him from eating so much, too fast. I went into work, a little late, and Jason and Leo took it easy and rested most of the day.

Leo seemed to be feeling a lot better when I got home and Aidan was also in a semi-good mood. Jason and Doris went to a movie tonight. I thought Jason could use another night off and Doris was planning to go to the movies by herself. They went to go see Slumdog Millionaire. The boys and I went upstairs. They were watching Garfield and I was changing our bed sheets. After such a night, they really needed to be changed. Aidan went to bed and Leo was laying in our bed watching the movie. While I was trying to help get Aidan to sleep I hear Leo throwing up in our room. Aidan started crying because he didn't want to be alone in his room. It was not good. I got Leo cleaned up and in bed and Aidan was in bed and I stood in the two doorways until they both fell asleep. I came back in our room and changed the sheets for the second time in one hour.

Just as I was sitting in bed typing this post poor little Leo threw up again. This time all over himself and his own bed. It's so sad and he is so tired. He wants to lay down on the bathroom floor. This time I got him changed and now he is sleeping on the floor in our room. He is so cute, sweet and peaceful. Now I am off to clean up his room. We are out of clean sheets. We will be out of clean pillows soon and Leo is running out of clean "friends" (his favorite stuffed animals).

Good Night!

Last night we went to Marcia and Allan's house for dinner. We were celebrating Allan's, Jason's, Sabrina's and Halley's Birthday. The food and the company was amazing. Frank made the most amazing roasted pork leg and these shrimp empanada-like things. Frank is one of the best cooks I know. We all think he should open a restaurant but easier said than done I am sure. I made a carrot salad which was great and a recipe I will definately make again. We also brought sangria for kids which was also a hit among the kids and adults. The adults were even adding wine to their glasses and enjoying it. Leo found Sabrina (soon to be one year) playing in her kitchen cupboard. She was having fun throwing out all of the plastic cups on to the floor. Leo wanted to pick them all up and put them away but everytime Leo would pick them up she would throw them back on the floor. Leo was starting to get angry and he said "This is my job, baby!"

Aidan's contribution to today's blog: We (Aidan and Leo) played a lot with Gracie. We ate cake.

Tomorrow is Jason's birthday (January 12th) but since it is a Monday and I have to go to work we are going to celebrate his birthday today. I have some wrapping to do! Jason requested chicken enchiladas for dinner and Doris is bringing the cake.