2009 August | Table for Five

Wordless Wednesday- Mrs. Potato Head

August 12, 2009 By Elizabeth

Potato Head Teeth

I’m waiting for my new Mr. Linky code so in the meantime, leave the link to your Wordless Wednesday post in the comments! As always, comments left with keywords instead of real names or blog aliases will be deleted. No exceptions.

Filed Under: Photos, Wordless Wednesday Tagged With: funny, kaitlyn, photo, toys

Buried in Email

August 11, 2009 By Elizabeth

Mail Everyone says, “just write about your life”. Well, that graphic over there? That is my life right now. Okay, so Ryan is helping out more around the house than ever even when he would rather be with his friends, and Nathan is mowing the lawn now for spending money, and Kaitlyn came up to me the other day while I was wearing a shirt that reads “happy mom” (all lowercase on it) and correctly identified all the letters, and that’s what ELSE is going on in my life, but mostly? It’s email.

Those of you who follow me on Twitter or on Facebook know that I’ve been posting a lot recently about trying to achieve this mystical state of being known as “Caught Up.” That I’m trying, so hard, every day, to not just stay on top of the emails but to get through the ones I’ve already opened that need me to do something. But people, I’m losing the fight and I don’t know what to do.

Let’s look at Outlook as of today. Outlook is where I read the emails that come to elizabeth(at)table4five(dot)net, the professional address I use for this blog. As of right now, I have 255 items in my inbox. 39 are unopened messages. So that leaves 216 emails that I opened and did not delete because the messages relate to something I need to do. Like, a review I agreed to write or a giveaway I agreed to host. TWO HUNDRED SIXTEEN.

Clearly, I am way in over my head.

Solutions I’ve considered-

deleting everything and starting fresh. Problem with that- all the people who sent me those emails who will think I dropped off the face of the earth, or will just think I’m unprofessional for never doing their review or giveaway.
Hiring someone else to write the posts. Problem with that- how does someone else write a review for me? If I have to tell someone else what I thought of a product, I might as well write the review!
Hiring someone else to read the emails and categorize them for me. I actually did that with Ryan this past year, when I was just so swamped. I may have to make him an offer he can’t refuse

And before you ask, yes, I do say No. I say No A LOT. Every day, every single day of the week, I get, on average, 150 emails to that table4five(dot)net address. As I’m typing this, notifications are popping up in the bottom right corner of my screen telling me that new emails are arriving. Two more people are wondering when their reviews will post, when their giveaways will start.

If I only posted one thing per day, I would have what, 8 MONTHS worth of posts? There has to be a better solution.

I’m guessing that everyone who runs any kind of home business where they still have young kids in the house is having this same problem. So please, SHARE. Tell me your tips. What would you do if you were me right now? How would you dig yourself out? I’m open to any and all suggestions.

And chocolate. Or ice cream. Or a hot personal assistant. You could send those too

Filed Under: Born to Blog Tagged With: Business, home, organizing, work

You Need This- Dollhouse: Season One on Blu-ray

August 9, 2009 By Elizabeth

This is a review for Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. I was provided a DVD for review, all opinions are mine.

dollhouse-1

When I got the email saying that Dollhouse: Season One was coming out on DVD and Blu-ray and asking if I wanted to request a copy, I practically broke a nail typing my reply. Are you kidding me? Yes yes yes yes yes yes yes PLEASE.

Despite getting off to a rocky start with it’s first few episodes, Dollhouse gives Whedon fans everything they hoped for- actors with pretty faces and excellent acting chops, plenty of butt-kicking action scenes, just enough sexual tension to keep you on the edge of your seat, and of course, ELIZA.

Dollhouse has a dream cast of actors who are each brilliant and together are outstanding as an ensemble. Check out the main cast:

Eliza Dushku (“Buffy”, “Tru Calling”) who is also a producer
Olivia Williams (“The Sixth Sense”) as Adele Dewitt, head of the Dollhouse
Harry Lennix (“24″) as Echo’s handler Boyd Langton
Fran Kranz (“Welcome to the Captain”) as computer/brain programmer Topher Brink
Battlestar Galactica’s Tahmoh Penikett as former FBI Agent Paul Ballard who is determined to find the Dollhouse
Enver Gjokaj (pronounced En-VAIR Jo-kai)(“Eagle Eye”) as “doll” Victor
Dichen Lachman (pronounced Deechen Lockman) (“Aquamarine”) as “doll” Sierra
Amy Acker (“Angel”) as Dr. Claire Saunders
Reed Diamond (“Journeyman”) as Laurence Dominic, assistant to Adele Dewitt
Newcomer Miracle Laurie as Mellie, Agent Ballard’s neighbor

If Dollhouse gets the fan and critic support it deserves, in a few years, this cast will be as well known as the casts of Buffy and Angel were, I guarantee. So, what is the show about? Here’s a synopsis:

From the mind of Joss Whedon, the creator of groundbreaking cult favorites “Buffy The Vampire Slayer” and “Firefly,” “Dollhouse” stars Eliza Dushku (“Buffy The Vampire Slayer,” “Tru Calling”) as Echo, just one member working for an illegal underground organization that implants employees with false memories and skills in order to perform various missions and dangerous tasks.

These “dolls” can become anything that anyone desires; a lover, a fighter, an assassin, even a best friend. Once their assignment is complete, their memories are wiped clean and they are released back into the “Dollhouse” to cohabitate with their fellow colleagues under the watchful eye of those in charge. But Echo is slowly starting to become aware of herself and her surroundings… and one outsider will stop at nothing to bring the entire “Dollhouse” down.

The box set has three discs, all the episodes plus Special Features, which include the Original Unaired Pilot titled “Echo”, a commentary on “Ghost” with Joss Whedon and Eliza Dushku, a commentary on “Man on the Street” with Joss, Deleted Scenes, and a collection of FANTASTIC featurettes: Making Dollhouse, Coming Home, Finding Echo, A Private Engagement, and Designing the Perfect Dollhouse.

This video of Eliza shows her talking about the show with clips, so if you haven’t watched it, there may be spoilers.

SO, now that I’ve poured out my love for the show all over the screen, you want to buy the DVD, right? RIGHT? Because if you liked Buffy or Angel or Firefly or the movie Serenity, you need this to complete your Whedon Collection!

If you click this Amazon box right here, you can buy it and get it shipped right to your door and I’ll earn a few pennies as an Amazon Associate and that’s just good karma

Love Dollhouse? Share your thoughts in the comments but be careful of spoilers for people who haven’t watched it!