Oh Christmas! What a wonderful time of year! It's a time of giving, a time of caring, and a time of getting together with family and friends. Like many of you, my favorite part about Christmas is the music- the sweet wonderful music, the carols, and the fantastic holiday mix on my Ipod. From Nat King Cole to Josh Groban to Sarah Brightman to Boys II Men, my favorite part about Christmas was the music that accompanied me wherever I went. Thanks to my Ipod, Christmas was all around.

Of course, this world is filled with many different kinds of people, who have very different reasons for enjoying the holiday season. Some may love the falling snow, the gingerbread lattes at Starbucks, or simply the sappy holiday films on Hallmark. But unfortunately, there are others who enjoy Christmas for a very different reason. Tis the season for stealing! Yes, you heard me correctly, stealing.

At Christmas, we let our guards down. We get so swept up in the holiday merriment that we forget where we are, making us prime targets for "Christmas thieves." A simple dinner with family and friends can turn into a tragic affair, with treasured objects gone missing. Poof. Gone. Never to be seen again.

I unfortunately was the victim in this case. My Ipod, which I've had for over three years, with thousands of dollars worth of music uploaded to it, disappears from my bag. Whoever swiped it however, let's call him "Bad Santa," was feeling a bit giving on this particular day because he left my earphones. How thoughtful.

Well, "Bad Santa," if you are reading this, I would really appreciate my Ipod back. I am not a materialistic person. If you had taken my money, I wouldn't be blogging right now. But you took my MUSIC man!! I'm a musician! You might as well rip my heart out!

I would really like it back, so if you have any sort of heart at all, please return my I-Pod unharmed. If you send an anonymous e-mail to: jennifer.logue@gmail.com, I'll give you a PO Box to send it to.

Thanks.

I walked into a special screening of Precious not knowing what to expect. A quick glance at the press release told me it was a movie about a 16 yr old girl living in Harlem, who is physically, sexually, and emotionally abused by her parents. It also told me that it starred Mariah Carey and Lenny Kravitz. For whatever reason, I unconsciously wrote it off. Maybe it was because I was one of the 10 people who saw Glitter. Maybe it was because I wasn’t expecting to connect with a movie that explored such horrifying subject matter.

Boy was I wrong. While Precious: based on the novel Push by Sapphire, is incredibly sad and heartbreaking, it is also incredibly hopeful and uplifting. Precious’ life is a living hell. Being morbidly obese and illiterate and without a drop of self-esteem, her inner prison is only matched by her toxic home life. Her father impregnates her twice, her mother abuses her in ways that leave viewers both stunned and disgusted, and there seems to be no way out until Precious is forced to enroll in an alternative school.

This is where the more hopeful elements of the movie come to light. Under the guidance of Ms. Rain, a compassionate and energetic teacher, Precious finds her voice; letter by letter, word by word. These classroom scenes provide a breath of fresh air and a family- like bond is quickly formed between Precious, her classmates, and her Ms. Rain.

Other hopeful elements lie in the strength of Precious’ character. Despite being severely deprived of parental love, she herself is still capable of love. She is tough but not bitter, broken but not beyond repair. Once her second child Abdul is born, she is determined to shower him with love and give him the best life she can. Precious never loses her good heart, and her resilient spirit is what makes her such a compelling character, even when the world stands in her way.

There is no doubt in my mind that Precious will sweep the Award shows this year. The acting is truly impressive, especially from such a diverse cast of first- time actors, comedians, and pop stars. Even Mariah was incredible. I wouldn’t be surprised if she received a few nominations for her role Ms. Weiss, the homely, worn- out, welfare caseworker. She’s barely recognizable, make-up free and sporting awkward looking facial hair.  On top of her shocking physical transformation however, is her emotional transformation. She executes the subtleties of the character brilliantly, and adds just the right touch of a Jewish accent to bring it all home.  

For more on Precious and my Interviews with a few of the film's stars, check out the link below:
http://www.stylemusictv.com/video/video.html?data=xml/data_1.xml&flvID=180

I know this is a bit of an obvious observation...however...I have always been a proponet of flying economy, even internationally, because...well for one I'm a musician and I need to budget...but also because the economy stinks right now. So I'm all about flying coach...

Well- I got lucky today! Got hooked up with first class last minute- a treat from my dad!!

Window seat and everything!! It was killer...

I didn't think there would be much of a difference in the 8 hour flight between the two classes...

Before I thought, "sowhat if you have more legroom...you're still breathing the same old stale airplane air for 8 hours.."I would surely feel the same getting off the plane in first class as I would if I had traveled coach....

WRONG!!!

I felt amazing getting off the plane today! I was actually able to sleep since I was able to stretch out...

The food is soooo much better and the alcohol flows endlessly! (dude- salmon, bacon wrapped shrimp, polenta, a greek salad appetizer- and flourless! chocolate cake...)

I was totally conked out, lulled to sleep by my full stomach, bottomless glass of tempranillo wine and my John Mayer Feist mix...

I was a happy camper...not even the turbulence could get me down

and now I am in Amsterdam...where I plan to be quite "chilled out" as well...

ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

life rox