I is for Inspirational...

... Alma and I watched two inspiring movies last weekend, and thoroughly enjoyed them both:

Of the two, 127 Hours was by far the best. Don't get me wrong, Secretariat was a pretty amazing story too. But you just can't beat a man cutting his own arm off to save his life. Unbelievable. I'm not ashamed to admit I was crying right along with James Franco when he finally was free. Also, I think I might have some kind of a thing for Danny Boyle. About a year ago, I mentioned how much I like Slumdog Millionaire, the last movie he directed.

After watching Secretariat, I just had to look up the real footage from the Belmont Stakes that he ran. It's just as incredible as the movie.

F is for Furry Friend...

... There's a small, man-made lake about a block from our apartment, and when it's not raining, I like to take walks around it. Lately, I've seen this little furry guy whenever I go:

I looked him up online, and I'm pretty sure he's a coypu. Apparently, they're not that great for the environment, but I really like watching out for him. He's kinda cute.

Additionally, there are a lot of Canadian geese at the lake right now, down for the winter, and I really, really want to catch one and eat it. But I think that might be illegal.

C is for Celebrate, and for Cataan...

... Alma and I rang in the New Year playing this German gem with some friends until 3 in the morning.

In his usual meticulous way, Alma has found a way to fit all four variations of Settlers of Cataan into one box. We're finally figuring out how to play all four at once. Which makes for some long, though enjoyable, games.

Happy New Year to everyone! 2010 was a hard one for us, but it was still a good growth-inducing, spirit-stretching year.

Here's hoping that 2011 is the best year yet with many good things to come!