Happy Thanksgiving, My Friend!

“Gobble gobble!”

It’s Thanksgiving here today in the U.S., and Tabs, El Hub and I will be celebrating with a small festive Thanksgiving feast featuring large quantities of turkey! crab!

Yes, crab (we’re trying something different).

But we’ve got some of the traditional fixin’s too, like we’ve got stuffing, cranberry sauce, green beans, pecan pie, mashed potatoes (and gravy, of course, purr Tabs)…

I can’t take credit for everything. I did make the potatoes, some corn and prepped the crab (like that’s hard), but some of our local eateries also helped, which is code for, “Some of it came from Whole Foods and Costco.” The plan for the day is to stay in my jammies as long as humanly possible, watch football (go Niners!), relax and start eating at noon, hopefully wrapping up the eating portion of the activities around 5:30, at which point I will most likely pass out.

Thank you, as always, for keeping me company and for putting up with my product review bizarreness (WOW! Bizarreness is actually a word?). Stay warm and have a wonderful day. Talk to you soon.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

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11/11 Happy Pepero Day!

11/11 Pepero Day is coming on November 11th. It is a day when friends give each other chocolate biscuit sticks called pepero. This year they have come out with some fancy ones like tiramisu and white cookie. Read more about Pepero here. http://www.seouleats.com/happy-pepero-day-everyone/

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Happy Birthday, 'Forrest Gump'!

Nineteen years ago today, on July 6, 1994, one of the great American epics was released. "Forrest Gump" became a staple of movie culture, producing one of the most indelible title characters of all time. Tom Hanks went on to win his second consecutive Oscar for the performance, and "Gump" has seen been catalogued in Americana via countless television re-airings, a themed chain restaurant and a coveted spot in the United States National Film Registry.

Based on the 1986 novel by William Groom, "Gump" held the No. 1 spot at the box office for a whopping 10 consecutive weeks, becoming the fourth highest-grossing film of all time after earning $677.4 million worldwide. It currently holds on to the No. 60 spot on the list.

The movie has since become a dividing point in American pop culture. Despite its historical stature, many critics and even some fans have lambasted the film's immense adoration. Some feel it's a saccharine melodrama that is far inferior to "Pulp Fiction," its chief competition for that year's Best Picture Oscar.

Still, at No. 71 on AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies countdown, the movie is an undeniable piece of pop culture history, even if not all audiences find it as sweet as a "box of chocolates." Join us in recalling the "Forrest Gump" premiere and the movie's many accolades in the slideshow below.

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LOS ANGELES, CA - MARCH 27: Director Robert Zemeckis (L) holds the Oscar he won as best director for the film "Forrest Gump" as he poses with Steven Spielberg, who presented the award to Zemeckis at the 67th annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles on March 27, 1995. "Forrest Gump" won six Oscars, including best picture, best actor and best director.

BEVERLY HILLS, UNITED STATES: Academy Awards nominees for Best Actors John Travolta (L) for "Pulp Fiction" and Tom Hanks (R) for "Forrest Gump" stand with each others wives Rita Wilson (2nd L) and Kelley Preston (2nd R) gather at the Academy Awards luncheon on March 14 at the Beverly Hills Hilton. The 67th Academy Awards were held on March 27.

UNIVERSAL CITY, UNITED STATES: Cast members from the movie "Forrest Gump" pose with the award they won during the 21st Annual People's Choice Awards at Universal City Studios on March 5, 1995. From left are Mykelti Williamson, Gary Sinise and Tom Hanks. Hanks won as best actor in a drama, and the film itself won as best drama and best movie.

BEVERLY HILLS, UNITED STATES: Academy Awards nominee for the best achievement in directing Robert Zemeckis (R) for "Forrest Gump" stands with his wife Maryellen in front of an Oscar statue during the Academy Awards luncheon on March 14, 1995, at the Beverly Hills Hilton.

UNIVERSAL CITY, UNITED STATES: Tom Hanks holds his award for outstanding performance, male actor in a leading role for his part in the movie "Forrest Gump" during the inaugural Screen Actors Guild Awards on Feb. 25, 1995, in Los Angeles. Hanks, who is the favorite for best actor at the Academy Awards in March, also holds his first Screen Actors Guild card he got when on the television show "Bosom Buddies."

BEVERLY HILLS, UNITED STATES: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Arthur Hiller (L) and actress Angela Bassett announce Beverly Hills the nominations for Best Picture for the 67th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 14, 1995: 'Forrest Gump' (Paramount) 'Four Weddings and a Funeral' (Gramercy Pictures) 'Pulp Fiction' (Miramax) 'Quiz Show' (Buena Vista) 'The Shawshank Redemption' (Columbia)

HOLLYWOOD - JUNE 23: Actress Robin Wright and actor Sean Penn attend the "Forrest Gump" Hollywood premiere on June 23, 1994, at the Paramount Pictures Studios in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Ron Galella, Ltd./WireImage)

HOLLYWOOD - JUNE 23: Actor Tom Hanks, actress Sally Field and director Robert Zemeckis attend the "Forrest Gump" Hollywood premiere on June 23, 1994, at the Paramount Studios. (Photo by Ron Galella, Ltd./WireImage)

Sally Field arrives at the "Forrest Gump" Los Angeles premiere at Paramount Studios in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Ron Galella/WireImage)

HOLLYWOOD - JUNE 23: Actor Tom Hanks and actress Rita Wilson attend the "Forrest Gump" Hollywood premiere on June 23, 1994, at the Paramount Studios in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Ron Galella, Ltd./WireImage)

Eddie Van Halen during "Forrest Gump" Los Angeles Premiere at Paramount Studios in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Ron Galella/WireImage)

Gary Sinese during the "Forrest Gump" Los Angeles premiere at Paramount Studios in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Ron Galella/WireImage)

Sally Field and Tom Hanks during the "Forrest Gump" Los Angeles premiere at Paramount Studios in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Ron Galella/WireImage)

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No More 'Happy Endings'

Well, this sooks. "Happy Endings" is officially over, according to Deadline, with production studio Sony TV giving up on finding a new home for the cult ABC comedy. The cast's options are set to expire this weekend, meaning that their contracts can no longer be renewed under their existing deals.

After ABC canceled the critically-acclaimed but viewer-challenged comedy, Sony attempted to find a new home for "Happy Endings" at USA, with TBS, NBC and Netflix also reportedly in the mix. Sadly, a savior did not appear, despite Sony's previous success at reviving its other bubble shows, "Unforgettable" at CBS and "Drop Dead Diva" at Lifetime.

After publicly supporting "Happy Endings" during its ratings struggles, ABC chief Paul Lee then changed his tune, telling EW, “I do think 'Happy Endings' is absolutely on brand. What we found was it was just too narrow. It was a very hard decisions because, as you know, I love that show and I found it very hard to make that decision. On the same token, I think 'Super Fun Night' and 'Mixology' are broader shows that will bring in a wider audience. So: Hard decision, not happy at all to see it go, but we feel it was on brand and so is ['Super Fun Night'] and 'Mixology.'”

We're totes emosh right now, but instead of mourning, let's focus on the good times and remember all the reasons why this comedy gem was sah ah-mah-zing.

Will you miss "Happy Endings"?

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Paula Deen Fans Are Not Happy

SAVANNAH, Ga. ? Watching Paula Deen's cooking show was a weekend ritual for Marilynne Wilson, who says she's furious at the Food Network for dumping the comfort-food queen after she acknowledged using racial slurs in the past.

"I was shocked. I thought she'd get a fair trial," Wilson, a nurse from Jacksonville, Fla., said Saturday after stopping to buy souvenirs at the gift shop Deen owns next to her Savannah restaurant. "I think the Food Network jumped the gun."

A day after announcing that it's dropping Deen from its roster of celebrity cooks, the cable network was served heaping portions of Southern fried outrage by her fans.

Angry messages piled up Saturday on the network's Facebook page, with many Deen fans threating to change the channel for good. "So good-bye Food Network," one viewer wrote. "I hope you fold like an accordion!!!"

The decision to drop Deen, whose daytime shows have been a Food Network fixture since 2002, came two days after disclosure of a recent court deposition in which Deen was asked under oath if she had ever used the N-word. "Yes, of course," 66-year-old Deen said, though she added, "It's been a very long time."

Deen and her brother are being sued by a former manager of their restaurant who says she was harassed and worked in an environment rife with innuendo and racial slurs.

Wilson's friend Debbie Brown said the Food Network is "basically convicting" Deen. "They should have waited until it goes to court," she said.

Deen issued a videotaped apology Friday in asking fans and critics alike for forgiveness. It had been posted online for about an hour when the Food Network released a terse statement that it "will not renew Paula Deen's contract when it expires at the end of this month." The network refused to comment further.

A representative for Deen did not immediately return a phone call and email message Saturday.

Meanwhile, Deen's critics were making themselves heard online. On Friday night, (hash)PaulaDeenTVShows became a top trending topic on Twitter, with postings that satirized familiar titles. Earlier in the week, they tweeted satirical names for recipes using (hash)PaulasBestDishes.

Deen's legal deposition was conducted last month as part of the 2012 lawsuit filed by Lisa Jackson, who worked at Uncle Bubba's Seafood and Oyster House. The lawsuit drew scant attention from news outlets until Deen was questioned under oath and her remarks became available to the public in a transcript.

On Saturday, the controversy didn't keep customers from The Lady & Sons, the restaurant owned by Deen and her sons in Savannah's downtown historic district.

"If you look at her restaurant here, I don't think it's going to hurt her too much," said Felipe Alexander, an Atlanta trucking company owner, as he waited on the sidewalk for his lunchtime reservation. He also said he didn't blame the Food Network for cutting Deen loose.

"If the network didn't want to be associated with somebody who used that word, it has the right to do that," Alexander said.

The fallout may not end with Food Network. At least two other companies that do business with Deen say they're keeping a close eye on the controversy. Las Vegas-based Caesars Entertainment Corporation, which has Deen's restaurants in some of its casinos, said Friday that it "will continue to monitor the situation." Publisher Ballantine, which has a new Deen book scheduled to roll out this fall, used similar words.

The heat over Deen's remarks hasn't been quite as intense in Savannah, where her success over the past decade has helped raise the coastal Georgia city's profile as a tourist magnet.

The head of Visit Savannah, the city's tourism bureau, weighed in on Deen's plight Saturday on Twitter.

"OK, I'll do it: what (at)Paula-Deen did was wrong," Joe Marinelli, Visit Savannah's president, tweeted. "But she's part of our (at)Savannah family and I'm here to support her."

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