Little Things That Count - The Weekly Roundup November 30

Music: Nelly - Just a Dream. Best Nelly song since his 2005 smash hit Over and Over featuring Tim McGraw. Yep. 

Movie/TV Show: Robin Hood with Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett is finally out on DVD in Romania. I got my copy 2 days ago. This is the hardcore Robin Hood movie (as opposed to the romanticized 1991 version with Kevin Costner).


Random thought: I'm already tired of snow. 



Food/Dessert: I have had an inexplicable craving for oranges this week (Not that cravings are necessarily there to be explained). That was the healthy part. This is the not so healthy one: Chocolate Orbit Cake. Just click the link and start drooling!

Pink - "Greatest Hits...So Far!!!" Brief Album Review

I love Pink. She is an amazingly talented singer-songwriter who speaks her mind and stands for what she believes in. She's funny, witty, true to herself and a rocker at heart. Pretty good combination, if you ask me.

"Greatest Hits... So Far!!!" is her first compilation album and it has been released in 3 editions : US, UK and International. The track listings are slightly different for both the CD and the accompanying DVD, but whatever version you choose to buy, it's worth it.

Here is the track listing for the International edition CD: 

1. Get The Party Started
2. There You Go
3. Don't Let Me Get Me
4. Just Like A Pill
5. Family Portrait
6. Trouble
7. Stupid Girls
8. Who Knew
9. U + Ur Hand
10. Dear Mr. President
11. Leave Me Alone (I'm Lonely)
12. So What
13. Sober
14. Please Don't Leave Me
15. Bad Influence
16. Funhouse
17. I Don't Believe You
18. Whataya Want From Me
19. Raise Your Glass
20. F**kin' Perfect
21. Heartbreak Down

Little Things That Count - The Weekly Roundup November 21

Music: Marina and the Diamonds - I Am Not A Robot. Probably one of the most played songs in my house this year. It's addictive, relatable and I keep coming back to it, I think it's because it relaxes me or something :D Nice video too. This girl is interesting, talented (she writes most of her songs) and can really sing. I'd like to hear what she has to offer on her next album. If you want to compare the studio version with a live one, here's her much-praised performance from BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge.

Fact: Marina and the Diamonds is the stage name of Marina Diamandis, a 25-year-old solo artist born in Wales to a Greek father and Welsh mother. "The Diamonds" refers to us, the listeners. She often says: "I am Marina. You are the Diamonds."

P.S. - Don't let these photos fool you, she's actually a much more colorful person, I just happen to like black and white images.

Little Things That Count - The Weekly Roundup November 14

Music : Florence + The Machine - Cosmic Love. How great was this album, right? One year and a half later and it's still relevant. One of the best British exports in the last 10 years, Florence + The Machine, fronted by London-born Florence Welch, are back in the studio working on a new album, which makes me very happy.

Florence is the daughter of a Harvard-educated Professor of Renaissance Studies and Academic Dean of Arts at Queen Mary, University of London (mother) and an advertising executive (father). When she was a teenager, she attended one of her mother's lectures and was deeply impressed. "I aspire to something like that but with music. I hope that my music has some of the big themes - sex, death, love, violence - that will still be part of the human story in 200 years' time", she said years later, in 2010.

Cosmic Love is one of the best tracks from the album and it's one of those songs that is so much better when played at high volume. Just try it. 

"The stars, the moon, they have all been blown out
You left me in the dark
No dawn, no day, I'm always in this twilight
In the shadow of your heart."

Brilliant.

More fashion eye candy: Dior and Marchesa Spring Collections 2011

Christian Dior Spring 2011 RTW

Cool stuff one might find while surfing the net at 3 AM

I'm a night owl, ok? Never been a morning person, never will be, despite my repeated attempts. While surfing the net in the wee hours of the morning the last few weeks, I stumbled upon some cool stuff which I am determined to share with you in this post of utter randomness :D

How about some installations made of books, pencils and little plastic soldiers? Frederico Uribe is highly creative and you can see more of his work, including sculptures and paintings, on his website. 

Fashion Eye Candy - Spring Collections 2011 RTW Gucci and Diane Von Furstenberg

Winter is almost here and I'm in no mood for it, so let's make a quick jump to spring and look at some fashion eye candy. Here are some selected photos from Gucci and DVF spring collections 2011 RTW (RTW = Ready-to-wear).

I know I'm in the minority here, but I must admit I am not really a fan of Frida Giannini. Compared to Tom Ford's bold, edgy, sexy approach, I think that Frida's designs for Gucci often play it too safe to the point of being boring and lacking personality. Gucci's Fall 2010 RTW was a big yawn for me. But her 2011 Spring Collection is definitely an improvement. (On a side note, that's exactly my point. Gucci deserves a designer who delivers constantly, not one who delivers every now and then).

Little Things That Count - The Weekly Roundup November, 7

Music : Pink - F**kin' Perfect. Can't stop listening to it these days...It's one of the new songs on her upcoming Greatest Hits album, alongside the newly released single Raise Your Glass, which already has a video.



Movie/TV Show : Started watching Raising Hope. Dry humor galore. I have only seen 4 episodes, but I like it so far.

Fall/Winter 2010/11 Movie Preview - Part 3

Fair Game is opening this week in the U.S. and it stars Naomi Watts and Sean Penn. The movie is based on the true story of Valerie Plame, former CIA agent and it's been getting good reviews. Trailer here.

Christina Aguilera is making her movie debut in Burlesque, about "a small-town girl who ventures to Los Angeles" and ends up working in a club run by a former dancer, played by Cher. Well, what can I tell you? Pop divas haven't exactly had the best of luck on the silver screen in the recent years and I'm not holding my breath for this film either. Aguilera is a fantastic singer, but from what I've seen in the movie trailer, I'm not convinced about her acting skills. At all. It opens on November 24 in the U.S. and exactly a month later in Romania.

I've never been a Harry Potter fan, so please forgive me if I don't get excited about this one. As far as I'm concerned the first movie was enough. Ok, the first 3 movies. But I know many people out there are waiting for the new one, so of course it gets mentioned here :) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 opens on November 19 in the U.S. You can watch the trailer here. 

The next one has me interested not only because of the cast, but also because early reviews talk about another great role from Nicole Kidman. Aaron Eckhart, Dianne Wiest and Sandra Oh co-star in this movie about a couple whose life changes dramatically after their young son is killed in an accident. Rabbit Hole opens on December 17 (limited release) and here's your trailer.

So...singers want to be actresses and actresses want to be singers. Gwyneth Paltrow is singing country music now. No, seriously. Country Strong stars her, Leighton Meester and an actual country star, Tim Mc Graw. The trailer is here.

The Company Men has a good cast : Tommy Lee Jones, Chris Cooper and Ben Affleck. Now...Ben Affleck wouldn't normally be part of what I would personally call a "good cast", but he's done a pretty good job in The Town, so I'm going to give him some credit here. The movie presents "a year in the life of three men trying to survive a round of corporate downsizing at a major company - and how that affects them, their families, and their communities". Trailer here.

The Dilemma is a movie about "a man who discovers that his best friend's wife is having an affair". It stars Vince Vaughn, Jennifer Connelly, Winona Ryder, Kevin James and Channing Tatum and Queen Latifah. I wasn't very excited, until I heard it was directed by Ron Howard. U.S. opening date is January, 14. You can watch the trailer here.