Photo gallery for Super Bowl Sunday

Oh, sorry. You are not allowed to use the term "Super Bowl" without paying for the use of it. SUPER BOWL. SUPER BOWL. SUPER BOWL. Ha! Here are just some photos from today, Super Bowl Sunday. I found out that the black-backed gull has a partner. The moon was out already even the sun went down. Probably couldn't wait for the Super Bowl to start.

The end of the vegan experiment…or is it?

The much anticipated numbers are in. I have finished my three-month vegan diet experiment to see if I could lower my cholesterol numbers by changing to a plant-based diet. I would be lying if I said that it has been easy.
I also confess, I did “cheat” a handful of times. (Once at a French restaurant with a heavenly cheese omelet) and sometimes I made up my own “loosey goosey” guidelines like eating Italian bread or dipping some eggplant in egg batter before frying. (Hey! It was just for a second!) Occasionally I treated myself to a cup of tea with milk and sugar. I was reminded of that scene in “Harold and Maude” when Maude coaxes Harold into trying wine for the first time by saying “Don’t worry. It’s organic!” I can rationalize almost anything.
Going out to eat when you are a vegan can make you a real pain in the butt. “Do they serve quinoa?” Or going to a friend’s house for dinner. “No, this head of lettuce is just fine. Well, how could you have known that chicken is considered meat?” I wish I had a dollar for every time I scrapped the cheese off a slice of pizza and then cried.
On the positive side, I do have more energy; I have rediscovered my joy of cooking; and I lost weight (12 lbs.). It gets easier with time and feels much less like deprivation than it does a lifestyle. So I am going to continue doing the best I can with this new way of eating, without becoming too obsessed with the “rules.” I think a small indulgence into the world of dairy products once in a while won’t kill me and as for that cupcake I am going to eat on my birthday…Don’t worry. It’s organic!
So here are the results:
Before
Cholesterol-209
LDL-143
HDL-54
After
Cholesterol-197
LDL-120
HDL-54

Let's streamline reality shows!

Everyone agrees there are too many reality shows, right? Of course we do. So I have come up with the perfect solution. Just as government must streamline and consolidate, so must reality shows. Here are my brilliant, cost saving ideas.
Jersey Shore and Hoarders: Buried Alive-Let those Jersey brats be forced to move in with a super hoarder. For those of you who don't watch the hoarding shows, Hoarders: Buried Alive are the ULTIMATE hoarders, while just plain Hoarders showcases the "run-of-the mill" hoarders. Put all those kids in a hoarder's house and let them clean up instead of going out all night drinking. Imagine Snooki's reaction when a hoarder says, "I want to keep that half empty can of Cheez Whiz because I really think I will be using it someday." It will totally eliminate the therapist from the show, which is just as well because I think they slow things down worrying about the hoarder's feelings and all.
Celebrity Wife Swap and Ice Road Truckers-Truckers who draw the short straw will be forced to spend 12 hours in their cab driving up an icy mountain road next to Gary Busey and Flava Flav. It doesn't involve the wives, but that's the beauty of it. They are off the hook. There will undoubtedly be a horrible accident, which only makes for great reality TV with half the budget.
The Voice and Cake Boss-Contestants have to sing, then eat a baked good. Could be a cupcake. Could be a wedding cake with that awful fondant icing. Judges will have to figure that out...blindfolded!

What annoyed Opinion Lady last year

Oh, where to begin. So many things annoyed Opinion Lady last year. Probably the number one thing on my list would be that no one listens to me! I could save people billions of dollars and help them avoid costly, embarrassing mistakes or bad career moves if they would consult me first.
Kim Kardashian-I would have told her, “Don’t do it. You are a materialistic empty soul who cares more about lip gloss and shoes than character. People will rebel if you hurt that poor guy, what’s-his-name.”
Demi Moore- I would have told her, “You have been blessed to have been with Ashton Kutcher this long. You knew that eventually, he would have to leave! He will always remember you fondly. Get him out of the house before he thinks about dating one of your kids. Ashton, you should have left before you cheated. Have some class.
Gwyneth Paltrow-You should have called me in 2010, when you decided to make the country music film and then do a concert tour. Let me give it to you straight, Gwen, you are gorgeous, talented, have money, an Academy Award, you were on Glee AND you are married to Chris Martin. ENOUGH. How much of the pie do you want? Save a little for the rest of us, damn it. Maybe WE want to sing country music, or have a food show where we go frolicking through Spain. No one likes a piggy pig who takes too much. Either give me Chris Martin and take your country music and Spanish food, or give something up. You need a dose of “real.” This is what I get paid for. (Or wish I did)
That Royal Wedding-The bride never called me (but should have!)because I would have declared the wedding dress BORING! I felt like the kid in the story "The Emperor has No Clothes." No one else wanted to say it. The dress was "Yawn." AND I declare the wedding "one of the best nap times I had last year."
Opinion Lady doesn’t want to end on a sour note. Many things did not annoy me. Glee; Anderson Cooper; Ellen; The Twilight movie; and Brian Greene’s Nova specials to name just a few. However, I am still annoyed that Oprah is gone.

Give the gift of sun flares

One of my favorite websites is SpaceWeather.com
It gives you updates on very cool phenomenon, like meteor showers, eclipses and auroras. I really like the descriptions of one of their “gift sets” this year.
Aurora Special
6 months of space weather alerts.
This is for aurora-lovers. We'll call when things are exploding on the sun and when auroras are about to appear over your home town.
US$30 in the USA, Canada & Mexico

This could truly be the gift that keeps on giving all year. Imagine your phone rings while you are at work. It's a great excuse to leave early. "I have to go. Things are exploding on the sun. You know the traffic always get really bad when that happens."
I sure beats fruit of the month.

Use your imagination

Hello to my Smithtown Bay Blog followers. I have some bad news. My camera broke and so it is off somewhere in Illinois being repaired. (No doubt having a grain of sand removed from the lens at a cost of $89, but that is the price of doing business here in a sandy paradise.) So you will have to use your imagination tonight. Today I was down at the beach for sunrise to meditate. Do you know when you have your eyes closed, sometimes the water and waves can sound like the traffic off a major highway? What is Mother Nature trying to tell us? Despite the similarity in sound, I am glad when I open my eyes I see the water and not a bunch of cars! The sky was gray and overcast today. It was pretty wavy and not a kayaking day. I shared my breakfast with some seagulls. They always make me laugh. I swear I will be coming back as a gull in my next life. They just look like they have so much FUN! A little plane flew over and I waved and it actually waved back with a dip of its wings. I found some bones in the sand over by the dunes. They are big! Could be a deer, of course, but nonetheless, I am bringing them into the medical school on Monday to see if they are human. How cool is that to be able to bring bones to work and have someone there who can probably tell you what the deal is. I like working with smart doctors! The photo is an old one. Like a rerun.

What I Wore, and why I don't care

My favorite section of the New York Times is the Style section on Sundays. I know. How pathetic of me. The Style section! Me, of so little style! My style would be rated a C- at best, but have you ever read the “What I Wore” column? This makes Opinion Lady spread her wings and write a sarcastic retort to that drivel.
A few weeks ago the “What I Wore” focused on actress Archie Panjabi, who plays Kalinda Sharma on “The Good Wife.” Here is what Archie wore on a Saturday, no less!
Saturday-“Started the day with a latté at home in my oat-colored Hanro pajamas. Curled up reading the news online and watching the film “Downfall,” which accounts Hilter’s final days. After the heavy film, I set out to pick up a gift for a friend’s holiday party. I threw on a midnight A.P.C. cape, DSquared2 ivory silk crepe blouse and Vince charcoal corduroy pants tucked into Stuart Weitzman black knee-high boots. I carried my taupe Celine tote that I invested in earlier this year. I never hesitate when I find something as beautiful as that.”
Opinion Lady’s Saturday-Started my day with a home brewed Dunkin Donuts coffee in my midnight-blue sweat pants that are so old and torn that the tag is illegible. Could be Versace! Could be K-Mart! Who knows? Before leaving the house I always check that they don’t have a rip in the crotch. I don’t curl up, so I sat in a chair and read a real newspaper-Newsday. I didn’t have time to watch a movie. Between sips of coffee and reading the news, I cleaned my bathroom and did some laundry. Time for my Saturday errands, so I threw on my knock-off Ugg boots, put my silk-crepe Costco puff jacket and decided that no one would really notice if I was braless under all that down. I went off to the post office, dry cleaner, Wal-Mart, Trader Joe’s, the wine store and the gas station. I carried my vinyl knock-off pocket book which I bought for $20 somewhere down at Canal Street. Does the exact address it matter? The point is I never hesitate when I find a fake pocketbook as adequate as that on Canal Street.
Oh, for enough time in my life to actually care. Basically, my rule of fashion is this: If I don’t look fat in it, I like it. You can paste your name on my ass for all I care, as long as I don’t look fat.