Just Go to Bed

Why do I find it so hard to go to bed sometimes? I'm tired, I'd love to sleep, yet I keep refreshing Twitter, hoping to see a reason to procrastinate. Even if I'm thwarted, I make my usual round of my usual sites, hoping for something. Why is that?

Maybe I think if I don't go to sleep, the new day doesn't have to come. But there's nothing really unpleasant in the new day, at least not tomorrow. I mean, I do have to work a long shift tomorrow, but that's not terrible. I'm not trying to avoid it, at least not actively. Why do I want to put off the day?

Maybe I don't want to start another day of not having the things in my life that I want. (Being in a long distance relationship, and having severe marriage and baby fever will do that to a person.) I'm tired of days passing without my life settling down, without settling in for the long haul.

Is that why I can't sleep? You'd think it would be the opposite; that I would want to sleep, make the days come faster and pass faster, so that the days when I finally get to settle into a steady life happen faster. Yet when it comes down to it, it seems that I put off sleeping as long as possible. I sometimes don't want the new day to come, with its reminders that my life is okay, and though I'm happy, I'm not in the place I want to be, with the person I want to be with.

It's a weird conundrum, and it certainly doesn't happen all the time. You can tell it's happening right now, because I'm writing this blog post and not going to bed. It's been one of those days, and I think I'm afraid it'll be another one of those days tomorrow.

Bloglovin'?

<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/8928417/?claim=udzsru65thp">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>


I am really, really, terribly bad at keeping up with blogs that I actually like reading! I had shied away from an RSS feed because I really didn't know what it did, and I have little to no patience for figuring out what it did. I still am not entirely sure, although I plan on getting a thorough tutorial at some point soon. (Because I should really figure all that out!)

But then, Kayley Hyde (@kayleyhyde) mentioned Bloglovin' on Twitter. I decided to check it out, and I actually LIKE IT! I can keep track of blogs, and though I'm still getting used to it and sifting it out, I do like that they're just all there in a row so I can read them (or not read them, as the case may be) and actually see updates.

Mostly just using this because I want to see what claiming your blog does, but still, it's exciting to discover new things, and after the Twitter chat I participated in tonight (check out @socapott, or the hashtag, #socapott, to see what was discussed, it was super fun!), I feel more technologically advanced. (Even though I am really, really, REALLY not.) So yup. Liking Bloglovin' so far, though; clean layout, simple, which is all I need!

I promise (mostly myself, because I have no idea what kind of audience this has) that I will do a REAL blog post soon.

Relationship Prison?

I recently read an article from Thought Catalog entitled "Why Being Single Is Completely Awesome." I thought, going in, that it would maybe be an affirmation of why you don't need another person to complete you. Maybe it'd help some people feel better - and that's damn true - you don't need someone else to live your life, and you definitely shouldn't always be on the path of looking for another relationship. You can either let it happen or just take some time for yourself.

It certainly seemed to start out like that. I really liked this sentence: "Being single doesn't necessarily disregard the importance of companionship and love." That's great, because being single doesn't mean you're an unwanted, bitter spinster (also mentioned in the opening of the piece). It doesn't mean that finding love is no longer important; to me, being single just means that you're in your own place for the moment, and being in love might even be something you're not looking for right now. And that is fine, and even good; being single SHOULD be completely awesome! Again, I liked this: "...but they also know that being in a relationship is not the end-all-be-all of your awesomeness." That's a great message, because sometimes, that's how relationships are treated, that you can only be happy, only be your best person, in a relationship. That's not true at all, and it's great to get the opposite message to that out there.

So why am I writing about this? And why is this titled Relationship Prison? Because the author's five kind of justifications or reasons really, really bothered me. It made bad, abusive relationships to be the norm; that was the message that jumped out at me while reading.

I have been in a relationship for almost three years, but I was also single for a long time before this relationship, and these descriptions of relationships were never what I thought of when thinking of being in a relationship. And now that I'm in a committed relationship, it is definitely not what I think of my relationship being; because I'm happy.

The first reason - well, that made some sense. You can be enamoured of people, and go on dates, and maybe find that next great love, and you're single so you're not  blocked from going on those dates and finding those other people. Sure. There's that. (At least it's not advocating cheating.)

But the next ones? I could find nothing good. This sentence: "You don't have to check in with someone if you want to travel or spend an exorbitant amount of money..." That's not okay. Addressing the first part: if you have any relationships, friendships, family ties, etc, you're going to have to check in with SOMEONE if you're going to travel. And there shouldn't be a rule in your relationship that the two of you must ALWAYS travel together. That doesn't make any sense. It makes it sound like you're kept under lock and key, having to check with your partner if it's okay for you to do something, and that's a bad relationship. The second part, about the money - if the money you're spending is coming out of your personal bank account, where you earn the money you receive, it shouldn't be up to your partner to say you can't spend money. That's a bad relationship. As long as the money isn't coming out of a joint account for the two of you, and as long as you pay your share of the bills (mortgage, rent, Internet bill, whatever), it should always be your decision to spend too much money on something. This sounds like a very controlling relationship, not to be able to do those things. I can see where their intent with this was, but in the end, all the things mentioned here, including not being able to see your family on holidays (it's called split time between families - my parents did it and still do it with our separate sides of the family!), just sound like a bad relationship that you don't want to be in.

The next part was depressing to me; that the person you're with could always wake up and leave you, and when you're single, you don't have to worry about that. It's a little sad, and if you're single, no, you don't have to worry about that. But it could happen with friends, too. And if you're sincerely worried, every day, that your partner is going to wake up and leave, that's not good. You're not in a good place if you're sincerely worried about that, every day. What REALLY bothered me about this, however, was the way they made it sound. "There will always be struggles, and you have to realise that being completely invested in another person without anything or anybody else in your life is dangerous because that person could leave you one day - and what would you be left with?" You're in a bad relationship if that is how your relationship works! If you have no other friends, and you don't go out unless you're together, and if you'd have nothing, a la Bella Swan in NEW MOON, if the person left? That's a bad relationship! (No one on Earth can pretend that Bella and Edward were not in a co-dependent, abusive relationship. Not the best thing to aspire to, and saying you'd be left with nothing if the other left - that's what TWILIGHT was ABOUT.)

The next reason given bothered me, because you can be independent in a relationship. You don't have to be married/in a relationship to be happy, to function, to be independent, go to school, work for yourself, whatever. That didn't make sense to me; it seemed to be saying if you're in a relationship, you must rely on someone else to help make every single decision; and if you're single, you can do what you want. If you're in a relationship, you should always have the option to do what you want; you should, of course, communicate your decisions and ideas to your partner, but you shouldn't be hobbled just because you're in a relationship and can no longer make any decisions. That's a bad relationship.

The last reason perhaps bothered me the most. "You can do what you want on the weekends." Again, I'm sorry, why can't you do what you want on the weekends anyway? Yes, in a relationship, you  may have some commitments, family and otherwise; but even if you're single, you're going to have those commitments sometimes. Being in a relationship does NOT mean you can't watch Netflix by yourself, or that you can't hang out with your best friend all the time. It mentioned that you don't have to shave; again, it's a bad relationship if you can't choose to do something. If I didn't feel like shaving my legs, my partner would not force me to do it because he preferred it. I can see what they MEAN; I don't like a big, bushy beard because it scratches my face when we kiss, but if he wanted to keep it, I wouldn't say, "We're in a relationship, you have to listen to me, I won't let you do that." You're adults in this relationship, presumably; continue to make your own decisions! And if you are referring to your partner as the "old ball-and-chain" - you are in a bad relationship.

You shouldn't feel like that about someone you profess to love! If you want to refer to them like that, and you feel like you're being controlled, and they don't let you do what you want or make your own decisions, you should get out. Your relationship should not be a prison. (Which is EXACTLY what ball-and-chain refers to. Imprisonment.) I know that is all easier said than done, but I mainly didn't think it was fair of this piece to make it sound like if you get in a relationship, that's how it's going to be, when happy, stable relationships do not have either partner treated in ANY of these ways. If it's so, you MAY be in a bad relationship. I also know people who spend their time together, and they're fine, but they can go off by themselves if they want to, as well.

I just felt this article did not depict relationships fairly, accurately, and seemed to be promoting singledom by disparaging relationships. Maybe I took it too seriously. But this is my blog, my opinion, and it really bothered me. So I decided to write about it. I may not be Laci Green, qualified to discuss relationships so deeply, but I do have common sense and what I consider to be a good heart, so I think that can qualify me.

The Thought Catalog article

As an addition, check out Laci's newest Sex+, about relationships!

International Women's Day...and Jane Fonda

As seems to happen with this blog a lot, I'm diving into writing this post with no real plan, hoping I'll figure it out along the way. That could go either way, but I figure, it's my blog and I started this so I could get better about posting my opinions where people could see them. Sure, they may be unpopular or too mainstream to some, but they're my opinions, and I'm trying to learn not to compromise my true feelings.

Today is (apparently, I'm really bad at keeping myself informed of these things) International Women's Day. (I'll get to how I actually feel about days like this later.) It's probably a good idea to have started reading Jane Fonda's memoir, My Life So Far.

I'll admit this flat out: I've always known who Jane Fonda was, but I only ever really knew the name and, later, that she was the daughter of Henry Fonda. Also that she used to do fitness videos. For a long time, the only thing I'd really seen her in was Monster-in-Law. (Not the greatest thing to know her for, although she was still great, despite that movie being absolutely ridiculous. And not in a good way.) Now, it's not that I've seen her in  anything else - so no, I haven't started working out with her, either - but it's more that I've been listening to her, interviews and just what she has to say. Now I've begun reading her autobiography, and I can't stop reading it. (Seriously, it was hard to tear myself away to do this blog post!)

I had no idea she worked with young girls and boys, in order to make sure they truly understand the ideas of sex and their bodies. I'm delighted to find that out, as I think work of that order is extremely important, particularly when there's so much that can be romanticized or sexualized to an extreme (such as porn or even people's treatment of fictional characters and famous actors/actresses), and young women and men can be learning the wrong thing. Jane Fonda is coming from a place of pain; there was a lot that happened to her as she was growing up. She was put in uncomfortable positions, and she didn't understand what happened to her body, and with the home life she had, there was no one to take her hand and soothe her through it, and explain it properly. This is really affecting to me, and to hear that she works with young women and men is amazing.

One of the greatest parts of the book (so far, I'm nowhere near finished yet, and I'm sure she'll continue to talk about some things that I deeply relate to as the book progresses!) is when she writes freely about the problems she's had sexually and physically, and with her vagina. (Hopefully you can continue to read this post after that - the vagina being such a taboo topic in today's world is such a problem, that she, and Laci Green particularly, are being great about addressing and keeping it matter of fact!) She freely says her vagina was a pain in the ass, which is awesome, because hey, sometimes they are! But what was more affecting about the problems she was writing about was that she had no one to tell her what was wrong, or to even ASK her what was wrong, as by these points, her mother had begun trips to medical centres and was having her own deep seated problems. (One of the most intense things was when she said she was glad she hadn't had her period, because that would mean she was a woman, and she didn't want to be a woman, didn't want to end up like her mother. When she finally got her period, and her stepmother, with the best of intentions, said "Now you're a woman!" she wrote one of the most affecting things I've ever read: "I don't want to be a woman. Women are destroyed." That will stay with me forever.)

One of my favourite parts is when she's talking about how versatile our vaginas are, and what they can do. She really addresses the fact that we are other, and no one ever wants to talk about how, let's face it and take a page out of Laci Green's book here, magical vaginas are! (Seriously. Think about it.) I'll share this quote here, which I love.

"While some of you are probably wishing that was one epiphany I hadn't had, it's important for women and girls to be able to talk about the most complex parts of themselves. It can represent an important owning of ourselves. Vaginas are, after all, very talented and versatile. They can stretch, shrink, give birth, feel and give pleasure. In 2001, just before coming briefly out of retirement to perform in The Vagina Monologues at Madison Square Garden, I said to Barbara Walters on 20/20, "If penises could do half of  what vaginas can do, there'd be postage stamps honoring them and a twelve-foot-tall bronze statue of a penis in the Rotunda of our nation's Capitol." Instead, because vaginas belong to the other gender, they have been raped, pried, cut, sewn up, objectified and generally denigrated down through the centuries - the sorts of things one does to (apparent) objects of fear that men have so often needed to dominate."

This also really resonated with me. It's an old argument, that if men had to deal with the shit we have to deal with, everything would be a much bigger  deal (both good and bad), but I just liked how she communicated it here. It is SO important for girls and women to be aware of what vaginas can do and how versatile and essential they are. It is an important owning of ourselves, and they're so complex. (Jane writes of examining her vagina with a mirror, which is something Laci Green also encourages, and that really brings back the whole idea of complexity! So much going on.) Maybe the guys I know will get up in arms over this - or they won't read this - and I'm not, by any stretch, trying to say that all guys hate vaginas, but no one can deny they are a taboo subject. (When Laci Green was on Dr. Phil to speak about slut shaming, they bleeped her saying vagina but didn't bleep anyone who said ass or anything else that could be deemed offensive.)

I mostly just wanted to talk about how I'm developing more admiration and a connection with Jane Fonda's writing, but it is International Women's Day. I guess now is a good time to talk about how this kind of irks me, in the same way that Valentine's Day irks me. You only have to tell me you love me, and shower me with material affection, for one day, and then you're off the hook the rest of the year, because that's the only day that matters! When, really, I believe in showing love (and I try to show love, but no one is perfect, of course, and sometimes it's hard) every day that you can. It's the same here. Oh, here you go, girls, you get one day where everyone remembers you are people, and we'll spread it all over the Internet, but tomorrow, everything goes back to normal, and we'll remember you're still not paid the same wages as men and that your rights as people are still being contested all over the world in terms of legislation. (Although I was excited about the Violence Against Women Act that Obama signed the other day. We can make small steps forward, I'm not discounting that.) Just the fact that someone, somewhere, decided there needed to be one special day for women, where everyone could pat them on the head and say, "Good job for being a woman!", makes me mad. (Same with Valentine's Day. "Good job for being in a relationship.") We'll remember you for one day, and watch women-centric things and read women-centric things for you today, but we won't continue to do so later on!

Yes, most people will probably say I'm missing the point, but it's something I've been thinking about a lot as the years pass and I grow into myself and decide what I believe. And I believe I really dislike having special days for stuff like this, stuff that should be addressed and talked about every single day, not one day out of the year.

End rant.

Independent Spirit Awards 2013

Sure, the Oscars are over and the Spirit Awards were right before them, but I still wanted to share them. I think these awards are truly where I'd want to be; these films are just a bit different. Awards shows are also just endlessly fascinating for me.
Also it demonstrates my growing frustration with Bradley Cooper not getting enough love, and my excitement that Matthew McConaughey won for Magic Mike.

BEST FEATURE
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Bernie
Keep the Lights On
Moonrise Kingdom
Silver Linings Playbook

BEST DIRECTOR
Wes Anderson (Moonrise Kingdom)
Julia Loktev (The Loneliest Planet)
David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook)
Ira Sachs (Keep the Lights On)
Benh Zeitlin (Beasts of the Southern Wild)

BEST SCREENPLAY
Roman Coppola & Wes Anderson (Moonrise Kingdom)
Zoe Kazan (Ruby Sparks)
Martin McDonagh (Seven Psychopaths)
David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook)
Ira Sachs & Mauricio Zacharias (Keep the Lights On)

BEST FIRST FEATURE
Fill the Void
Gimme the Loot
Safety Not Guaranteed
Sound of My Voice
The Perks of Being a Wallflower

BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY
Rama Burshtein (Fill the Void)
Derek Connolly (Safety Not Guaranteed)
Christopher Ford (Robot & Frank)
Rashida Jones & Will McCormack (Celeste and Jessie Forever)
Jonathan Lisecki (Gayby)

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Yoni Brook (Valley of Saints)
Lol Crawley (Here)
Ben Richardson (Beasts of the Southern Wild)
Roman Vasyanov (End of Watch)
Robert Yeoman (Moonrise Kingdom)

JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD (Originally Best First Feature Under $500,000)
Breakfast with Curtis
Middle of Nowhere
Mosquita y Mari
Starlet
The Color Wheel

BEST FEMALE LEAD
Linda Cardellini (Return)
Emayatzy Corinealdi (Middle of Nowhere)
Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook)
Quvenzhane Wallis (Beasts of the Southern Wild)
Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Smashed)

BEST MALE LEAD
Jack Black (Bernie)
Bradley Cooper (Silver Linings Playbook)
John Hawkes (The Sessions)
Thure Lindhardt (Keep the Lights On)
Matthew McConaughey (Killer Joe)
Wendell Pierce (Four)

BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
Rosemarie DeWitt (Your Sister's Sister)
Ann Dowd (Compliance)
Helen Hunt (The Sessions)
Brit Marling (Sound of My Voice)
Lorraine Toussaint (Middle of Nowhere)

BEST SUPPORTING MALE
Matthew McConaughey (Magic Mike)
David Oyelowo (Middle of Nowhere)
Michael Pena (End of Watch)
Sam Rockwell (Seven Psychopaths)
Bruce Willis (Moonrise Kingdom)

BEST DOCUMENTARY
How to Survive a Plague
Marina Abramovic: The Artist Is Present
The Central Park Five
The Invisible War
The Waiting Room

BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM
Amour (France) MY EDIT: Also, Germany and Austria.
Once Upon a Time in Anatolia (Turkey)
Rust and Bone (France/Belgium)
Sister (Switzerland)
War Witch (Canada)

ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD
Starlet

SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD
David Fenster (Pincus)
Adam Leon (Gimme the Loot)
Rebecca Thomas (Electrick Children)

STELLA ARTOIS TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD
Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel (Leviathan)
Peter Nicks (The Waiting Room)
Jason Tippet & Elizabeth Mims (Only the Young)

PIAGET PRODUCERS AWARD
Mynette Louie
Derrick Tseng
Alicia Van Couvering

JAMESON FIND YOUR AUDIENCE AWARD
Birth Story: Ina May Gaskin and the Farm Midwives
Breakfast with Curtis
History of Future Folk

Ramblings (As Usual) - on Jennifer Lawrence

I ramble a lot. And one of my favourite topics on which to ramble is definitely Jennifer Lawrence. Mostly, my rambling is pretty incoherent, and mainly centers on the "I want to be best friends and hang out with Jennifer Lawrence forever and ever and ever." I'm a big fan. I have been since Hunger Games was announced (yes, I'll admit it, I wasn't entirely familiar with her before Hunger Games, I'M SORRY), and she is Katniss for me, just like Emma Watson is Hermione for me. But I truly fell for her during the multiple interviews of hers that I've watched. (I've really watched a lot. It's almost unhealthy.) She was funny, she said what she was thinking, and she said what I was thinking half the time! I've never been able to relate to an actress in Hollywood in such a deep way. (And then I saw SILVER LININGS and I was done. Brilliant movie, and I might write a blog post about it later talking about how I definitely don't think it's offensive at all, but that's a whole other topic.)

The main focus of these ramblings, tonight, though - I've been seeing a lot of J-Law hate popping up. It's mostly in comments sections of articles about her. It's been about how she doesn't think about what she says, and she says terrible things sometimes. I've just been thinking about that since I saw it and I just wanted to write a ramble about it. (Because I'm not even going to try to pretend that this will be at all in the realm of making sense.)

Yes. I'm a huge fan of Jennifer. I've almost memorised her filmography (that seems to be a thing I do when I'm a fan of someone, for whatever reason), and I watch any interview she's doing and I read any article she's mentioned in. (Well, not any - I prefer to read articles/watch videos of her being her hilarious self or actually talking about great stuff, rather than talking about who she was wearing.) However - just because I am a huge fan, it does not mean I am a fan of absolutely everything that comes out of her mouth. She has said stuff that I definitely do not agree with, and that, yes, has made her look extremely bad. She's usually hilarious, but sometimes, she says stuff that I do not agree with. (The prime example being that whole calling her cat Chaz Bono on Ellen - that was really, really bad and I cringed the entire way through that interview.)

And though I won't defend her for the inappropriate things she's said, I do think that she's said (to reference Silver Linings, in a way, shamelessly) a lot more appropriate things than inappropriate things. She's been funny and just completely humbled by everything. She's also been really smart. If you haven't watched her press conference after winning her Academy Award, you should, because her answer to that first question, where she comments on the stigma of mental illness, is brilliant. Even in describing Katniss, she has mostly been right on target, really great about that character, understanding that character, and commenting on different things she's encountered by playing that character. (Yes, she said that Katniss was essentially a boy hero with a vagina; but in a way, I'm actually interested in that, because isn't she right? Isn't Katniss this supposed person with no real feelings to get in the way, saving the day through violence? That's what she seems to be at first, but she becomes so much more than that, and I think Jennifer's mentioned more on that in other interviews, and taking one comment that wasn't worded in the best way isn't really indicative of how she views that character or strong women in general. Not that I really think Katniss is that strong, either, which is why she's so fascinating and layered to me. See? Rambling.)

I think one of the main problems that people have is that Jennifer does say anything that crosses her mind. (Being her publicist must be absolutely exhausting.) One of my favourite moments with her recently is that the first thing she said to Ryan Seacrest was that she was hungry and did he know if there was food there? Come on, that was GREAT. Everyone else was reserved; Jennifer, I find (and this whole blog post is a personal opinion that you can leave or take), is very much out there, and very relaxed. And I think that's a big part of why she's so looked up to and has captured so many hearts and imaginations. (Meaning people everywhere just want to hang out with her at all times.) She's bumbling, she trips (not even meaning the whole time she fell at the Oscars, she trips all the time anyway), she doesn't speak that well, she gets extremely starstruck and doesn't hide it; in the end, it's like she's a real person. To me, she's more real than any star - I feel like I can get closer to her than any other actress I still look up to. (Obviously, I still don't know her, but it's a nice feeling and it does draw you to anyone, especially celebrities, when you feel like you relate on a deep level to them.)

But one of the main things I find is that she doesn't speak very well on her feet, and I think that's where a lot of her statements that people take offense to come from. Sure, she can be hilarious when she's trying to think on her feet and get something out quickly and coherently - that's where most of her side splitting slip ups have come from - but she can also say something in completely the wrong way. Her filter doesn't seem to be that great, probably stemming from nerves or her brain working too fast - I cannot speak very well on my feet either; people ask me questions, if I don't think them through carefully and speak carefully, I end up with badly worded sentences - and that doesn't help. (Seriously, her poor publicist.) I love her still, but she does say things that do not sound at all good. I'm not trying to say I'm her best friend, of course, and I know she doesn't mean anything she says; she probably does mean what she says. People just aren't used to hearing stuff like that come out of a celebrity's mouth, even though a lot of people (including the one criticizing her) might have said similar things in their life. She's only human and though she can be hilarious, sometimes her words don't come out well, or she says the wrong thing. So the hate that is coming at her (and it's interesting that all this hate is only coming at her now, after she's won an Oscar, and not during all her interviews for Hunger Games or anything - the only backlash I saw was after the Ellen interview) seems quick to judge. She's said some bad things, but I still believe the bad things are far outnumbered by the good things. Maybe you'd say I'm blinded because I'm a fan, and I've got her on a pedestal, but I think she prevents that. She'd fall off a pedestal, just like I would, so if she says something I don't like, I don't pretend I like it. I don't defend her for it. But I don't think it's fair to say she's a horrible person and a horrible role model because she's said a few iffy things, and it's definitely not fair to completely discount the great things she has said, if you'd only look for them.

I mostly felt like just rambling on about her in general, and how I seriously just want to get in my sweatpants and hang out with her and watch movies, but it turned into talking about how she can't speak very well on her feet. What a weird thing. I still love her, and if you don't agree with that, well, that's fine. Lots of people love, say, Seth MacFarlane (although maybe not so many after Sunday; most of those jokes were in pretty poor taste, although not nearly as bad as I was expecting), and I can't stand the man. Everyone's allowed to be a fan of whatever and whoever they want; I just wanted to talk about how I felt about the hate I'm seeing for Jennifer lately, in terms of what she says.

Academy Awards 2013 - The Big One!

All right! The Oscars are almost here - SUNDAY! - and we're almost done with the awards season! (And I will probably stop posting these kinds of posts. Maybe. Or I'll just revert to detailing the Internet awards. Although I will probably also be watching the Canadian Screen Awards on March 3rd, so there's that.) But because this is the big one - I'll update as I watch the ceremony! (I should be good to watch this one - the nice thing about a huge awards show is that more channels have it, and I'm not relying on one Canadian channel that might screw me over. Looking at you, Global.) I also livetweet - @Annoying_Dana.

EDIT: This is tonight!

Now, I do already have a post with the nominees in it, but it also has a long ramble about why I love the Oscars, and I want to keep that, so go check that out (http://danabettyjune.blogspot.ca/2013/01/because-i-have-no-life.html) and meanwhile, this post will be kept just for nominees and updating! (It's my blog, I can do what I want, right?)
Here we go! (Again.)

VISUAL EFFECTS
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton, R. Christopher White
Life of Pi - Bill Westenhofer, Guillaume Rocheron, Erik-Jan De Boer, Donald R. Elliott
Marvel's The Avengers - Janek Sirrs, Jeff White, Guy Williams, Dan Sudick
Prometheus - Richard Stammers, Trevor Wood, Charley Henley, Martin Hill
Snow White and the Huntsman - Cedric Nicolas-Troyan, Philip Brennan, Neil Corbould, Michael Dawson

WRITING: ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Argo - Written by Chris Terrio
Beasts of the Southern Wild - Screenplay by Lucy Alibar & Benh Zeitlin
Life of Pi - Written by David Magee
Lincoln - Written by Tony Kushner
Silver Linings Playbook - Written by David O. Russell

WRITING: ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Amour - Written by Michael Haneke
Django Unchained - Written by Quentin Tarantino
Flight - Written by John Gatins
Moonrise Kingdom - Written by Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola
Zero Dark Thirty - Written by Mark Boal

SHORT FILM: LIVE ACTION
Asad - Bryan Buckley & Mino Jarjoura
Buzkashi Boys - Sam French & Ariel Nasr
Curfew - Shawn Christensen
Death of a Shadow (Dood van een Schaduw) - Tom Van Avermaet & Ellen De Waele
Henry - Yan England

SOUND EDITING
Argo - Erik Aadahl & Ethan Van der Ryn
Django Unchained - Wylie Stateman
Life of Pi - Eugene Gearty & Philip Stockton
Skyfall - Per Hallberg & Karen Baker Landers
Zero Dark Thirty - Paul N.J. Ottosson

SOUND MIXING
Argo - John Reitz, Gregg Rudloff, Jose Antonio Garcia
Les Miserables - Andy Nelson, Mark Paterson, Simon Hayes
Life of Pi - Ron Bartlett, D.M. Hemphill, Drew Kunin
Lincoln - Andy Nelson, Gary Rydstrom, Ronald Judkins
Skyfall - Scott Millan, Greg P. Russell, Stuart Wilson

MUSIC: ORIGINAL SONG
"Before My Time" from CHASING ICE - Music and Lyric by J. Ralph
"Everybody Needs a Best Friend" from TED - Music by Walter Murphy; Lyric by Seth MacFarlane
"Pi's Lullaby" from LIFE OF PI - Music by Mychael Danna; Lyric by Bombay Jayashri
"Skyfall" from SKYFALL - Music and Lyric by Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth
"Suddenly" from LES MISERABLES - Music by Claude-Michel Schoenberg; Lyric by Herbert Kretzmer and Alain Boublil

PRODUCTION DESIGN
Anna Karenina - Sarah Greenwood (Production Design), Katie Spencer (Set Decoration)
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - Dan Hennah (Production Design), Ra Vincent and Simon Bright (Set Decoration)
Les Miserables - Eve Stewart (Production Design), Anna Lynch-Robinson (Set Decoration)
Life of Pi - David Gropeman (Production Design), Anna Pinnock (Set Decoration)
Lincoln - Rick Carter (Production Design), Jim Erickson (Set Decoration)

SHORT FILM: ANIMATED
Adam and Dog - Minkyu Lee
Fresh Guacamole - PES
Head over Heels - Timothy Reckart and Fodhla Cronin O'Reilly
Maggie Simpson in "The Longest Daycare" - David Silverman
Paperman - John Kahrs

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Amour - Austria
Kon-Tiki - Norway
No - Chile
A Royal Affair - Denmark
War Witch - Canada

MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
Hitchcock - Howard Berger, Peter Montagna, Martin Samuel
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - Peter Swords King, Rick Findlater and Tami Lane
Les Miserables - Lisa Westcott, Julie Dartnell

MUSIC: ORIGINAL SCORE
Anna Karenina - Dario Marianelli
Argo - Alexandre Desplat
Life of Pi - Mychael Danna
Lincoln - John Williams
Skyfall - Thomas Newman

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
5 Broken Cameras - Emad Burnat, Guy Davidi
The Gatekeepers - Dror Moreh, Philippa Kowarsky, Estelle Fialon
How to Survive a Plague - David France, Howard Gertler
The Invisible War - Kirby Dick, Amy Ziering
Searching for Sugar Man - Malik Bendjelloul, Simon Chinn

DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Inocente - Sean Fine, Andrea Nix Fine
Kings Point - Sari Gilman, Jedd Wider
Mondays at Racine - Cynthia Wade, Robin Honan
Open Heart - Kief Davidson, Cori Shepherd Stern
Redemption - Jon Alpert, Matthew O'Neill

FILM EDITING
Argo - William Goldenberg
Life of Pi - Tim Squyres
Lincoln - Michael Kahn
Silver Linings Playbook - Jay Cassidy, Crispin Struthers
Zero Dark Thirty - Dylan Tichenor, William Goldenberg

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Anna Karenina - Seamus McGarvey
Django Unchained - Robert Richardson
Life of Pi - Claudio Miranda
Lincoln - Janusz Kaminski
Skyfall - Roger Deakins

COSTUME DESIGN
Anna Karenina - Jacqueline Durran
Les Miserables - Paco Delgado
Lincoln - Joanna Johnston
Mirror Mirror - Eiko Ishioka
Snow White and the Hunstman - Colleen Atwood

DIRECTING
Amour - Michael Haneke
Beasts of the Southern Wild - Benh Zeitlin
Life of Pi - Ang Lee
Lincoln - Steven Spielberg
Silver Linings Playbook - David O. Russell

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Alan Arkin - Argo
Robert De Niro - Silver Linings Playbook
Philip Seymour Hoffman - The Master
Tommy Lee Jones - Lincoln
Christoph Waltz - Django Unchained

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Amy Adams - The Master
Sally Field - Lincoln
Anne Hathaway - Les Miserables
Helen Hunt - The Sessions
Jacki Weaver - Silver Linings Playbook

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
Brave - Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman
Frankenweenie - Tim Burton
ParaNorman - Sam Fell, Chris Butler
The Pirates! Band of Misfits - Peter Lord
Wreck-It Ralph - Rich Moore

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty
Jennifer Lawrence - Silver Linings Playbook
Emmanuelle Riva - Amour
Quvenzhane Wallis - Beasts of the Southern Wild
Naomi Watts - The Impossible

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Bradley Cooper - Silver Linings Playbook
Daniel Day-Lewis - Lincoln
Hugh Jackman - Les Miserables
Joaquin Phoenix - The Master
Denzel Washington - Flight

BEST PICTURE
Amour - Margaret Menegoz, Stefan Arndt, Veit Heiduschka, and Michael Katz, Producers
Argo - Grant Heslov, Ben Affleck, and George Clooney, Producers
Beasts of the Southern Wild - Dan Janvey, Josh Penn and Michael Gottwald, Producers
Django Unchained - Stacey Sher, Reginald Hudlin and Pilar Savone, Producers
Les Miserables - Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Debra Hayward and Cameron Mackintosh, Producers
Life of Pi - Gil Netter, Ang Lee and David Womark, Producers
Lincoln - Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, Producers
Silver Linings Playbook - Donna Gigliotti, Bruce Cohen and Jonathan Gordon, Producers
Zero Dark Thirty - Mark Boal, Kathryn Bigelow and Megan Ellison, Producers

2013 BAFTAs

So it was time for another awards round - the BAFTAs! As per usual, I'm sharing the nominees, and the winners are highlighted in blue!

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
"Argo" - Chris Terrio
"Beasts of the Southern Wild" - Lucy Alibar, Benh Zeitlin
"Life of Pi" - David Magee
"Lincoln" - Tony Kushner
"Silver Linings Playbook" - David O. Russell

MAKEUP AND HAIR
Anna Karenina - Ivana Primorac
Hitchcock - Julie Hewett, Martin Samuel, Howard Berger
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - Peter Swords King, Richard Taylor, Rick Findlater
Les Miserables - Lisa Westcott
Lincoln - Lois Burwell, Kay Georgiou

ANIMATED FILM
Brave
Frankenweenie
ParaNorman

ORIGINAL FILM MUSIC
Argo - Alexandre Desplat
Anna Karenina - Dario Marianelli
Life of Pi - Mychael Danna
Lincoln - John Williams
Skyfall - Thomas Newman

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Anna Karenina - Seamus McGarvey
Les Miserables - Danny Cohen
Life of Pi - Claudio Miranda
Lincoln - Janusz Kaminski
Skyfall - Roger Deakins

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Amour - Michael Heneke
Django Unchained - Quentin Tarantino
The Master - Paul Thomas Anderson
Moonrise Kingdom - Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola
Zero Dark Thirty - Mark Boal

COSTUME DESIGN
Anna Karenina - Jacqueline Durran
Great Expectations - Beatrix Aruna Pasztor
Les Miserables - Paco Delgado
Lincoln - Joanna Johnston
Snow White and the Huntsman - Colleen Atwood

OUTSTANDING BRITISH CONTRIBUTION TO CINEMA
Tessa Ross

DIRECTOR
Ben Affleck - Argo
Michael Haneke - Amour
Quentin Tarantino - Django Unchained
Ang Lee - Life of Pi
Kathryn Bigelow - Zero Dark Thirty

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM
Anna Karenina
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Les Miserables
Seven Psychopaths
Skyfall

DOCUMENTARY
The Imposter
McCullin
Marley
Searching for Sugar Man
West of Memphis

OUTSTANDING DEBUT OF A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER
Bart Layton, Dimitri Doganis - The Imposter
David Morris, Jacqui Morris - McCullin
Dexter Fletcher, Danny King - Wild Bill
James Bobin - The Muppets
Tina Gharavi - I Am Nasrine

EE RISING STAR
Elizabeth Olsen
Andrea Riseborough
Juno Temple
Suraj Sharma
Alicia Vikander

PRODUCTION DESIGN
Anna Karenina - Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer
Les Miserables - Eve Stewart, Anna Lynch-Robinson
Life of Pi - David Gropman, Anna Pinnock
Lincoln - Rick Carter, Jim Erickson
Skyfall - Dennis Gassner, Anna Pinnock

EDITING
Argo - William Goldenberg
Django Unchained - Fred Raskin
Life of Pi - Tim Squyres
Skyfall - Stuart Baird
Zero Dark Thirty - Dylan Tichenor, William Goldenberg

SHORT ANIMATION
Here to Fall - Kris Kelly, Evelyn McGrath
I'm Fine Thanks - Eamonn O'Neill
The Making of Longbird - Will Anderson, Ainslie Henderson

FELLOWSHIP
Sir Alan Parker

SHORT FILM
The Curse
Good Night
Swimmer
Tumult
The Voorman Problem

FILM
Argo
Les Miserables
Life of Pi
Lincoln
Zero Dark Thirty

SOUND
Django Unchained - Mark Ulano, Michael Minkler, Tony Lamberti, Wylie Stateman
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - Tony Johnson, Christopher Boyes, Michael Hedges, Michael Seamnick, Brent Burge, Chris Ward
Les Miserables - Simon Hayes, Andy Nelson, Mark Paterson, Jonathan Allen, Lee Walpole, John Warhurst
Life of Pi - Drew Kunin, Eugene Gearty, Philip Stockton, Ron Bartlett, D.M. Hemphill
Skyfall - Stuart Wilson, Scott Millan, Greg P. Russell, Per Hallberg, Karen Baker Landers

FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
Amour
Headhunters
The Hunt
Rust and Bone
Untouchable

LEADING ACTOR
Ben Affleck - Argo
Bradley Cooper - Silver Linings Playbook
Daniel Day-Lewis - Lincoln
Hugh Jackman - Les Miserables
Joaquin Phoenix - The Master

SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS
The Dark Knight Rises - Paul Franklin, Chris Corbould, Peter Bebb, Andrew Lockley
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton, R. Christopher White
Life of Pi - Bill Westenhofer, Guillaume Rocheron, Erik-Jan De Boer, Donald R. Elliott
Prometheus - Richard Stammers, Charley Henley, Trevor Wood, Paul Butterworth
Marvel Avengers Assemble - Janek Sirrs, Jeff White, Guy Williams, Dan Sudick

LEADING ACTRESS
Emmanuelle Riva - Amour
Helen Mirren - Hitchcock
Jennifer Lawrence - Silver Linings Playbook
Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty
Marion Cotillard - Rust and Bone

SUPPORTING ACTOR
Alan Arkin - Argo
Javier Bardem - Skyfall
Philip Seymour Hoffman - The Master
Tommy Lee Jones - Lincoln
Christoph Waltz - Django Unchained

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams - The Master
Anne Hathaway - Les Miserables
Helen Hunt - The Sessions
Judi Dench - Skyfall
Sally Field - Lincoln