Author: theveryspecialblog

It’s the Most Very Special Season of All!

~ theveryspecialblog ~ Leave a comment

9f6778bea1a558c0ac1c5d0dd003b778

There will be marshmallows for toasting and very special episodes filmed in places without any snow. It’s the hap-happiest television season of all!

I’m so, so excited for this year’s very special holiday season! I’ve been rediscovering shows I kind of forgot about but hold a special place in my heart, so I’ll be breaking some of those out this year.

And also, I’m feeling a lot of passion for holiday fashion. And not in an ironic way. Like I’m really considering buying some “ugly” sweaters but not because I think they’re ugly. I’m just in a place in my life where I don’t really give a crap if people think I look lame and I seriously just want to be festive and cozy. So like I may have suddenly aged into a 1980’s grandma, but I’m down with that.

Stay tuned for some holiday episodes from your favorite cheesy TV shows!

NaBloPoMo Reflections, Tips, and Tricks

~ theveryspecialblog ~ Leave a comment

This year I decided that I had made NaBloPoMo way to hard on myself last year. Last year, I valiantly reviewed a Very Special Episode most days and those posts were lengthy. So this year I focused on alternating between long and short posts, which was really great on the nights that I felt wiped out from work and didn’t feel like churning anything out.

And somehow I managed to suck even more at cross-posting to BlogHer than I did last year. So I tried to catch up one night by cross-posting like 4 posts in one fell swoop. This caused them to label me as a spammer and I have since had my account locked. This turned out to be the BEST THING EVER! It turns out that I hate cross-posting. I also hate the design of that website. Somehow I felt obligated to cross-post to “get the most out of NaBloPoMo” and being locked-out of my account released me from the self-imposed chore that I had created. (If this ever happens to you, you can contact the website to have them re-open your account. But I opted to just say goodbye.)

Most of all, this year I remembered that NaBloPoMo is about community. Sure, it’s about giving yourself a challenge. But that challenge wouldn’t be nearly as fun if you weren’t checking out all of the other blogs participating as well. So this year I read more, liked more, and shared more. This made the entire process less-stressful and more fun.

Note to self: You’re going to look back at this post while agonizing over whether or not you should do NaBloPoMo again. And I’m telling you that you probably shouldn’t. But you, future self, are probably reading this and saying, “Yeah, I see what you’re saying, but I want the new badge that says NaBloPoMo 2016.”

DIY Advent Calendar

~ theveryspecialblog ~ 2 Comments

This year I decided to make my own advent calendar. I used this instructable to make mini origami envelopes, which I then filled with fun little tasks or activities. I mixed them all up, so I wouldn’t know which slip of paper ended up in which envelope. (Except for when I knew I’d be out of town this month and I wrote “Have a great time at Disney World” for those specific envelope dates 🙂 )

This was very easy. All you need is:
-Cardstock (for the base of the calendar and for the envelopes as well)
-Slips of paper (for the prompts)
-Tacky Glue (to put it all together)
-A metallic sharpie to write dates on the envelopes

I used Washi Tape to sick this to the back of my front door, but it’s up to you how you want to adhere it and to what surface!

NaBloPloMo Favorites

~ theveryspecialblog ~ 5 Comments

As NaBloPoMo swiftly draws to a close, I’d like to give one more shout-out to awesome posts I read around the blogosphere. All of the posts below are from fellow WordPress bloggers and have the tag “nablopomo.”

Peanut Butter Crepes by Kat’s 9 Lives
As you well know, I am no chef. But I enjoyed reading about these crepes, nonetheless. And if you do look to cook, then you can make them from this recipe!

Riding the Tide: Life Lessons from the Jellies by totallyKelly!
I’m really feeling these life lessons right now. I’ve always thought jellyfish were cool creatures, but now I have a deeper respect for them.

Chicka Chicka Shoe Shoe by Love2Read365
I wish I could read this cool shoe “board book”

Victory by Victory to Charm
I love this microfiction about owning ones first home!

Very Special Holiday Shopping List

~ theveryspecialblog ~ Leave a comment

Good Morning, Very Special Readers! I hope you’re not out braving the dangers of Black Friday. If you are, then godspeed and I hope you have protective eyewear. If not, then please stay home and use this handy online shopping guide instead:

For the Movie Buff
These sweet Pulp Fiction talking action figures. $49.99 at Think Geek.
irjm_pulp_fiction_13in_talking_figs

For the Book Lover
Take your loved one back to the magic of the Scholastic Book Fair. Complete with pop-a-point pencil! $16.00 at sweetandlovely.
il_570xn-384813895_2g4y

For the Star Wars Nerd
This R2-TEA2 teapot. Extra-points if your Star Wars fan is also an anglophile. $39.99 at Think Geek.
iqhq_r2-d2_ceramic_teapot_inuse

 

For the Ladies
These bestselling Golden Girls granny panties. $38-$52 from Bullets and Bees.
il_570xn-876235033_fwak

For the Quarter-Life Crisis Sufferer
With this educational game, you can help your loved one practice interviewing for jobs like “fortune cookie writer” and “child actor.” $25.00 at Uncommon Goods.
pic2311804_md

For the Artistic Type
This rainbow pencil set and unicorn holder are sure to wow even the most casual colored-pencil user. This would also be an on-point White Elephant/Yankee Swap gift. $14.99 at Perpetual Kid.
x354-q80For the Gamer
This vintage Nintendo controller has a modern day use as well! It’s an analog clock! $89.99 from crimsonking.
il_570xn-871220190_derm

For the 90’s Kid:
And I do mean kid. This coloring book comes complete with watercolor paint set! $10.83 from Amazon.
6198420480_5a190bb991_b

 

Home Improvement: The Wood, the Bad and the Hungry

~ theveryspecialblog ~ 2 Comments

Even though last I said that Cheers had the best Thanksgiving episode ever, I think this is probably the best Thanksgiving episode ever. And I wasn’t lying last year. I just didn’t know this episode existed. But now I do. And now I think it’s the best.

mv5bnzg1odm0nju0nl5bml5banbnxkftztgwmzg2ntcynte-_v1_

So there’s actually not a lot going on in this episode. Tim is having all of his friends and family over to his house for Thanksgiving, but he choses not to invite this one really annoying guy. But then he sees him at the soup kitchen, where Randy is volunteering. He’s kind of disturbed by the whole event, so he does what any good, stressed human would do. He falls asleep. And this is what he dreams:

As it turns out, this dude isn’t actually down on his luck. He just goes to the soup kitchen because he thinks the soup is tasty and “pays for it” with his “tax dollars.” So really, he’s a total turd. But Tim’s learned from his claymation dreams and decides that even total turds deserve a friendly meal on Thanksgiving.

Very Special Thanksgiving Lesson: “Even the lowliest creature needs a friend.”

Sabrina, the Teenage Witch: Love Means Having to Say You’re Sorry

~ theveryspecialblog ~ 1 Comment

Harvey and Sabrina are on the rocks (she kissed Josh from the coffee shop) so she’s not going to be able to spend Thanksgiving at his house this year. Since they are broken up, Harvey suggests that they return all of the stuff that they’ve accrued from each other over the years.

harvey-from-sabrina-the-teenage-witch

Salem is surprisingly upset about all of this. He sobs while Sabrina combs through her stuff looking for things that belong to Harvey. (He was expecting to be Harvey’s best man at Harvey & Sabrina’s wedding.) When Hilda and Zelda see the awful sad-fest going on in their home, they decide to prepare a Thanksgiving meal (a holiday witches do not celebrate) for Sabrina.

But the next day at school, Dreama (geez, did Sabrina have a different friend literally every school year?) notices that Harvey saved a framed picture of Sabrina and is keeping it in his locker. Meanwhile, Zelda and Hilda are freaking about about having to stuff a turkey. I don’t blame them. It’s horrifying.

tumblr_mcezv1xqiz1r68cafo1_1280

(FYI witches have to prepare Thanksgiving meals by hand, as they are discouraged from celebrating Thanksgiving.) But they find a loophole. They conjure up some pilgrims to cook for them!

sabrina-pilgrims.gif

Sabrina’s decided to try a “forgive and forget” spell to get back with Harvey. But he literally forgets everything–who she is and who he is. So she tries a series of other spells based on cliche phrases. They all backfire horribly.

Having discovered that Hilda and Zelda are witches, the pilgrims tie them up and try to burn them at the stake. But they’re witches, so they quickly get out of that mess. Realizing that they do not have the upper-hand hear, the pilgrims agree to cook dinner in exchange for safe passage home.

tumblr_md7o4clcv11qd2pfqo1_250

Sabrina finally figures out that the best way to fix her relationship with Harvey is to go back and time and stop herself from ever kissing Josh. But when she tries that and she and Harvey still are broken up, her aunts tell her that this means her break-up was “meant to be.”

But then they run into each other in the hallway and Sabrina apologizes for bumping into Harvey. And then they end up apologizing to each other for like hours about everything that went wrong in their relationship.

Very Special Thanksgiving Lesson: In case you didn’t notice, this “apologizing” thing is what Harvey and Sabrina needed to do in the first place.

The Brady Bunch: The Un-Underground Movie

~ theveryspecialblog ~ 3 Comments

Greg is making a movie about the Pilgrims for his history class. Pretty soon all of the adults in his house take over writing the screenplay. Greg’s pretty pissed about it and I guess fails to see that he’s getting away with not doing his homework and also not getting in trouble.

brady_bunch_thanksgiving_dancing_1970

It’s only a matter of time before the entire production is out of Greg’s hand. Carol wants to dress all of the girls in color because of the color film, even though Greg insists that pilgrims only wore black and white. All of his sisters demand the same part and say they won’t be in the movie unless they’re cast as the lead “Priscilla.” Bobby and Peter are pissed that they’re forced to play pilgrims, when they would much rather play racially stereotyped braves.

cbs_brady_bunch_030_content_cian_420101_1928_1280x720_340145219712_423348_640x360

Greg kind of freaks out but like in a really Brady-fashion. And his awesome parents are completely understanding. They’re not even mad that he got mad because they realize they were being jerks. This concludes our instructional video on how to have a healthy fight with your family.

bradybunch_pilgrims

Also, Greg casts Jan as the lead just like he always wanted to. (Ha, Marcia.) Then Mike has to explain to Peter and Bobby that the pilgrims stole all of the Indians land and you can tell he feels a little awkward about it. It’s 1970 now so things are about to start getting really guilty for the white folks.

hqdefault1

Anyway, they finally get the movie done and Greg puts everything in slow-motion. So it’s basically a pantomime. And it’s basically the greatest film ever made, as far as I’m concerned. Like Florence Henderson really missed her calling at a 1920’s dramatic actress.

Very Special Thanksgiving Lesson: Don’t boss your kid around, but do let him boss the rest of the family around.

WKRP in Cincinnati: Turkeys Away

~ theveryspecialblog ~ 4 Comments

mv5bodyxnjkzntq4ml5bml5banbnxkftztywndyzmti2-_v1_sx640_sy720_Mr. Carlson, WKRP’s station manager, has been bugging everyone around the station because he’s looking to be “more involved.” There’s nothing more annoying than an insecure boss–well except maybe an insecure boss with a Thanksgiving project.

Mr. Carlson keeps all of the details very hush hush, so all that the station team knows is that the project has something to do with giving away a bunch of turkeys. News anchor, Les Nessman, calls this “the greatest Turkey event in Thanksgiving Day history.”

Soon a helicopter appears over head and Les Nessman assumes that is is looking for a place to land. But then something falls out of the back of the helicopter. And what follows is a Turkey Hindenburg-esque Disaster:


Oh and the humane society is pretty pissed.

Very Special Thanksgiving Lesson: Some turkeys actually can fly. But not usually the plump ones we eat for Thanksgiving. And probably not any turkeys that are dropped over a parking lot by a radio station’s helicopter.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Thanksgiving

~ theveryspecialblog ~ 1 Comment

I know we Americans tend to skip this holiday more and more each year, but this year in particular it kind of took me by surprise–the holiday skipping, that is.

On my drive to work Friday, my radio station played it’s usual morning variety. But when I drove home, a mere 9 hours later, it was ALL Christmas music. It was like someone flipped the switch somewhere in middle of the day and whoops, it’s Christmastime!

My boyfriend tried to explain that the shocking jump from Halloween to Christmas these days is all about decorations. I insisted, “I LOVE THANKSGIVING DECORATIONS!” And he said, “You do? Really? What Thanksgiving decorations do you love?” And I said “I love GOURDS!”

But the truth is, there are no gourds decorating my home. And all I can offer you in the hopes of remembering this time of thanks and giving is a memorial to episodes from the past. Here is this year’s lineup:

WKRP in Cincinnati: Turkey’s Away
The Brady Bunch: The Un-Underground Movie
Sabrina, the Teenage Witch: Love Means Having to Say You’re Sorry
Home Improvement: The Wood, the Bad and the Hungry

b946f25ed199cd62c96ec15a698e1641