Made of Win Monday: Movies That TRULY Make You LOL

We throw around the slang "LOL" a lot these days. If we were using it true to form, half the world would be obnoxiously laughing at any given moment. But, of course, usually when we use it, we're exaggerating. It just means we found something funny, maybe it made us smile. Most of us aren't truly laughing out loud eighty times a day. They may lock us up if that were the case.

So it's always a treat when something really brings forth a good old-fashioned honest laugh. If you laugh so hard, you cry--even better. And one of the best places to get those kinds of real laughs is by going to the movies. Unfortunately, movies can be hit or miss, so finding one that really brings on the funny is always made of win.

This weekend hubs and I saw This Means War and, though I had to suspend disbelief dramatically for some parts, I really ended up enjoying the movie. AND I LOLed more than once. I actually had to use a napkin to blot my eyes because I started to tear up. And it reminded me how long it had been since I'd really laughed in a movie.

So when you find those movies, appreciate them. They're sometimes hard to come by.  Here are some other movies I can remember that made me laugh hard in the theatre.

 

Nine Months - The first time I saw this, the trip to the hospital and the birth scene sent me into one of those laughing fits where I started to gasp for breath.

 

40 Year Old Virgin - I still want to yell out "Kelly Clarkson!" at random times because of this movie.

 

Wayne's World - A classic. I mean, if you didn't laugh the first time you saw the Bohemian Rhapsody scene, you might be dead inside. : )

 

Bridesmaids - The scene in the bridal shop...come on. That's just pure comic genius there.

The Hangover - Too many scenes to pick just one.

Sixteen Candles - Admittedly, I didn't see this one in the theatre, but it never fails to make me laugh.

So I'm interested to hear, what movies have made you really, truly laugh? Which old ones do you go to when you need a pick-me-up?

Made of Win Monday: The Concert Rush

Photo by Incase (click pic for link)So hubs and I have an addiction. For most couples, a romantic evening would entail a nice quiet dinner and maybe a movie out. Now, I can appreciate that kind of night like anyone else. But my ideal romantic evening is heading out to a crowded, dark place and screaming at strangers with thousands of our newest friends. In other words, a concert. : )

(If you want to see who I've seen live, I've made a Pinterest board. I realized as I was putting it together that I think I may be nearing 100 concerts. No, I don't have a problem, not at all. *cough*) 

I was introduced to concerts at a pretty young age. My parents have always been music lovers and started taking me along when I was about ten. I also dragged them to a few New Kids on the Block concerts before that. : ) But as soon as I started going, I was hooked.

There's something about that rush of shared excitement. How often do you get to be somewhere with thousands of people who are all happy and having fun at the same time? In a world where we exist amongst so much day to day grumpiness, it's a huge rush to be in the middle of all that positive energy, singing your favorite songs with others who love them as much as you do.

That rush is made of pure win, y'all.

So are you a concert person? What's the best concert you've ever been to? The worse? Who is on your bucket list of bands/singers you want to see? 

Made of Win Monday: Local Dive Restaurants

It's time for Made of Win Monday, where I feature simple things that rock. 

I love to eat and consider myself a bit of a foodie, so one of my favorite things to do is go out to eat at a restaurant. But much of the time, the most obvious choices are the big name corporate restaurants that are ubiquitous in every decent sized city in America. And sure, the food at many of those places can be good--in that generic, this-taste-the-same-at-all-300-of-our-locations kind of way. But it also is usually kind of...soulless.

I grew up in New Orleans, arguably one of the best food cities in the country. And I can tell you that the tastiest eats in town are always at the dives. You walk in and the place looks like it hasn't been updated in three decades. On the tables, rolls of paper towels and two kinds of hot sauce (Crystal and Tabasco) and not much else. The people? They'll call you baby or cher (pronounced "sha" for you non-Cajuns) and treat you like you're long lost family. Then they'll serve you food so good, it'll knock you right off that picnic bench they're using for chairs. It's amazing. 

Want the best shrimp po-boy in New Orleans? You can find it at Danny and Clyde's which is...a gas station. Yep. Get your tank and belly filled at the same time. Oh, and the shrimp are fresh from the Gulf and that French bread is fresh baked. Cost? 4.99 I still dream of those sandwiches. Texas, I love you for your Mexican food, but damn you don't know what to do with shrimp.

And though New Orleans is always doing its own thing, every city around the world has its own gems. Those little hole in the wall restaurants that serve real food made from recipes handed down through generations. No pretensions. No apologies. Just damn good food.

Hubs and I found one this weekend in our neck of the woods. This place looked like even its better days had seen better days, but oh my did they have a Chicago-style Italian beef sandwich that made me want to weep. I'm hungry just thinking about it. But it's totally a place you would pass a thousand times and never think to go in. It's in a questionable area (what real estate agents would call a "transitional neighborhood") and is tucked away in the corner where you barely can see a sign. But the people were super nice and the food was awesome.

So next time you want to go out and eat, try looking past the bright neon signs of the big restaurants and look for the places that have been around a while. If they've been there long enough to look that dive-y, there's probably a reason.

So how about you? Do you have any dives in your town that serve five-star food? What's the best thing you ever ate at at dive?

**Also, just FYI, I'm giving away a copy of CRASH INTO YOU today over at the Bandit Creek blog. I'm also talking about my big secret. ;) Would love if you stopped by.**

Made of Win Monday: Shows That Bring You Back

Image by Brian Gurralo (click pic for link)

Welcome to the very first Made of Win Monday. This day is going to be reserved for simple things that are awesome because sometimes it's easy to forget to appreciate the little things.

Now, I'm a sentimental person by nature. I hold on to way too much, and I love things that drag me back to good memories. Music would be the obvious one, but another thing that does this for me is watching old TV shows. If I'm feeling out of sorts or down, nothing can cheer me up quicker than pulling out old episodes of a show that flips that sentimental switch inside me.

And those are also the shows that I tend to buy box sets of on DVD. So what are my shows?

To bring me back to high school...

My So-Called Life

Dude, I was DEVASTATED when this show was cancelled after one season. I actually wrote a letter to the network. I think that may have been my first act of "activism" in my life, lol. Beyond the fact that Jared Leto was the hottest thing I'd ever seen on TV, the show spoke to me in a way nothing else did at the time. (I was 15 when the show aired.) I've since heard that it would've been renewed but Claire Danes didn't want to do another season. (Claire, you wound me.) But anytime I want to be brought back to my innocent, angsty teenage years, I break out My So-Called Life.

College

Dawson's Creek

This show started during my first year of college. I remember me and my college roommates gathering around the TV on Dawson's Creek night eating french bread pizza (about as gourmet as our cooking got back then.) This show had everything I could want--angst, love triangles, romance, and teenagers who used big words like I did. I own all the seasons on DVD and every few years I break them out and go all the way from season 1 through 6. It makes me all warm and fuzzy just thinking about Joey and Pacey. Hmm, maybe I'm due for some reruns again.

The Show I Grew Up With

Friends

Ah, Friends. This show was on from the time I was 14 until I was 24. That's a huge portion of my formative years and part of me feels like this show is part of my DNA. Quotes still come to my head on a regular basis. (Does "I didn't get a cat" mean anything to you? Here's my fave scene of all time.) I also had the Rachel haircut (bad decision) and one of those huge coffee mugs even though I didn't drink coffee. Maybe I should seek therapy. I do resemble Chandler a bit too much I fear. But I have the box set of this one too. It's like balm for my soul.

All right, so those are my shows that can bring me back in time. What are yours? Do you have any shows you just HAD to own so you can access them anytime you want?