"Encounter"
by Elyn W. Marsh (A Student Contributor)

I never would have expected him, but there he was...

That doesn't seem right, does it? But I love the "let's go round up bad guys" vibe of Willy Nelson and Toby Keith's "Beer for My Horses" and the stubborn "I'm gonna be me no matter what anyone says" feel of "Rehab." Nobody has EVER told me I need to go to rehab, but there is still something very compelling about that freeing declaration at the beginning of the song:
They tried to make me go to rehab, I said, "No, no, no"

Mama Mia – so insanely fun! The actors look like they are having such a great time that the joy turns out to be contagious. It's a star-studded cast, too. Meryl Streep and Pierce Brosnan are especially delightful. One caveat: this movie is not for people who don't like musicals. (You know it's a musical, right?) But for everyone else, it's so fun and hum-able.

Secondhand Lions – You can't go wrong with a pair of heavy-hitters like Robert Duvall and Michael Caine. But even the smaller roles in this movie are peopled with celebrities like Kyra Sedgwick and the now-famous-from-"Heroes" Adrian Pasdar, who plays a really brave and tenacious salesman. Plus the "Sixth Sense" kid, Haley Joel Osment, is great as the shy nephew who gets left with his wacky uncles for the summer.

Juno – Wow. I finally get what all the Oscar fuss was about. The girl who plays Juno is fantastic. (Her name is Ellen Page.) The movie also boasts stellar performances from two of my favorite actresses: Allison Janney and Jennifer Garner. But what really stands out is the writing. Can it really be true that this was Diablo Cody's first screenplay? Talk about being brilliant right out of the gate! Wow. Just...wow. I am completely jealous of her talent.

I even saw a documentary: Expelled. It's a fascinating and disturbing look at the backlash against Intelligent Design.

Happy New Year, everyone!

That stood out in stark contrast to the way John is portrayed in the current Terminator television series "The Sarah Connor Chronicles." The series' teenage John Connor shows no such great-leader potential. Instead, teenage John comes off as selfish, whiny and rebellious. Nothing about him--except maybe his proficiency with computers--leads me to think he will grow into the leader of the resistance. And that bugs me every time I watch the show.

I can't even nap during the day. Saturday I was so exhausted from not sleeping the night before that twice I lay down to take a nap and twice sleep eluded me.

I guess it's a good thing that I don't usually have to wake up at a set time in the morning. 'Cause these days I can barely drag myself out of bed by 8 a.m. I hate that because it always makes me feel like I am starting my day way behind.

I spent most of December in my beloved hometown Washington, DC, visiting family and friends and the local sites that I miss the most.

I arrived at National to the feel of cold air and the tempting smell of Five Guys. (It's a miracle I managed to get out of the airport without a little cheeseburger and a bag of fries.)

My trip to DC was just one highlight after another. Besides visiting loved ones, I made time for ....

Breakfast at La Madeleine. Yum. An egg, bacon, and cheese on croissant so delicious that I have blogged about it before. This time the croissant was a little soggy and falling apart. In the past, it seems that the cook took the extra step of lightly toasting the croissant so it can hold up to the weight of the eggs and such. But not this time. I guess the cook was a little off his game, maybe due to the holidays looming. Still, it was very, very delish and you can't beat La Mad for awesome ambience. (And free wireless internet!).

The Nutcracker at the Kennedy Center. How's that for a traditional holiday outing?! It was a very well done production. But I had missed dinner, so by the second act all I could think about was how hungry I was. Bummer.

Two lunches with friends:
one at Mike's in Springfield because our traditional spot, Bennigan's, was no more and thus we had to choose a new place.

and one at an Indian place on Capitol Hill, which just reminded me why I like the other Indian place better. Both have great food, but one has snooty, annoyed service and the other has friendly service. It's worth a little longer walk from the Metro to not have the waiter give me a hard time about not ordering an entrée. I like to order samosas (an appetizer), onion kulcha (bread) and raita (a yogurt and cucumber dip). But that's never enough for this place. So annoying. Next time, I'm going to the nice Indian place.

Kicking around the National Harbor with Mom. So cool. The shops and fancy hotels were impressive (although lunch at one of the fancy restaurants was disappointing.). The coolest part was visiting my favorite sculpture in its new location. Here are some of the pictures I took of The Awakening. The sculpture is too big to get into one frame at street level.

And...
Taking the Metro and walking around DC, stopping by my favorite familiar places like the Lansburgh, Penn Quarter, Teaism, and Eastern Market. I even dropped in on the new theatre in the neighborhood: Sidney Harman Hall. It's gorgeous.

All in all it was a wonderful trip. And as usual I was torn about leaving. It's tough to have a hometown in one place and a home in another. It's like I'm always leaving home to go home, and vice versa. But I got home in time for Christmas, and I guess that was the point. So, now I'm sitting in my perfect house, looking out at the amazing view, and waiting for Granddaughter Lily to come over for a visit. Which reminds me, here are a couple of my favorite recent pictures of Lily:

So cute.

Here's hoping all my loved ones near and far have happy holidays and a happy new year.

"Santa Is My Homeboy"
by Rachel V. Olivier

Bud's been sentenced to community service, but it's his son's birthday as well as Christmas. What's a ghost to do?

Kich's gaming group is a little unusual. He's a troll, but he doesn't mind playing with an elf and dwarf too. Species isn't something he has to worry about when playing Office Politics, anyway—everyone's human in that game. But then his group leader finds a new game, called Real Life. That's when the trouble starts.

To pass the test, she must face her fear...but how can she feel fear when she is in control?

"Punishments from God"

Two outsiders discover the solution to a problem can sometimes take on a life of its own.

"Salamander"

by Robert Borski

Hotter, please!

"Demons Without, Demon Within"
by Scott M. Sandridge

Sometimes history isn't what it appears to be.

You may remember Scott's previous stories in DKA and The Sword Review:
Fang of the Serpent
Marian's Test
The Oathkeeper Destiny
The Price of Freedom
Treecutter
War Child
The Lost Freehold
The Souldrinker

"Winter Fantasy"
by Anne Stokes

May the light of the Christmas season brighten your world!

I enjoy the show, but I've noticed an odd side effect: watching "The West Wing" makes me feel like I need to do better. Seriously, not only does the extremely high quality of Aaron Sorkin's writing remind me what a total hack I am in comparison. But watching President Bartlett and his staff go about their days makes me feel like a stupid slacker who really ought to get off my lazy butt and do something important with my life.

The show inspires me to step up my game and do something worthwhile.

As President Bartlett says in one episode: "Break's over."