Other Quirky Stuff

OSCAR DINNER

Every year, we watch the Oscars while enjoying a meal inspired by the Best Picture nominees.  For example, we had sushi for Lost in Translation and cowboy campfire beans for Brokeback Mountain –  you get the idea.

Last year, Frost/Nixon and Milk were stumping me until I realized that they were set in the 1970s.  So we had celery sticks stuffed with pimento spread, pigs in a blanket and Tequila Sunrises.

This year, the growth to TEN nominees has challenged us.  But here is tonight’s Oscar Dinner:

Airplane bottles of liquor for Up in the Air.  Obvious.

Prawn Cocktail Exotique for District 9 and for An Education.  “Prawn” is the South African slur for the aliens in District 9.  And a shrimp cocktail would fit into the fancy 1960s dinner out in An Education.

KFC chicken for Precious and The Blind Side.  OK, the fast food chicken in Precious is from a diner, not from KFC,  but it comes in a bucket.

Scrambled Eggs for Avatar.  This references the scene where Jake Scully powers through his breakfast before getting back into his avatar control module.  Plus we didn’t want to dye any food blue.

Fatayer bi Sabanekh for The Hurt Locker.  It’s the Arab version of spanokopita, the spinach and feta turnover.  Had to go Middle Eastern.

Grandma Ethel’s Brisket for A Serious Man.  A Seriously Jewish Brisket.

Haricot Vert for Inglorious Basterds.  It takes place in France, and we needed a vegetable.

Ice cream for Up.  Ours isn’t from Fenton’s Creamery. but, hey, we don’t live in Oakland.

THE MOST FUN OSCAR POOL EVER

Here’s our Oscar Pool. If you’re worried about who’s going to win Best Sound Editing or Best Animated Short, you’re taking this too seriously.

1. Number of winners cut off by music.

2. Number of winners turning the wrong way to leave stage.

3. Number of winners who thank their parents.

4. Number of presenters/winners wearing dresses with very daring cleavage.

5. Number of presenters/winners wearing dresses that expose lower back.

6. Number of gawd-awful ugly dresses (by consensus of those in the room with you).

7. Number of references by Alec Baldwin to his nude scene in It’s Complicated.

8. Number of times that Jack Nicholson is on screen.

Tiebreaker #1: Total Oscars for Avatar.

Tiebreaker #2 (if necessary): Number of minutes the show goes over time.