"Our Family Wedding"-Film review

Actor Michael Vartan excited about wedding plans

Actor Michael Vartan (Monster-In-Law) has thrown himself into planning his upcoming wedding- he's determined to have a say in every detail from picking the bridesmaid dresses to choosing the food.

Actor Michael Vartan has thrown himself into planning his upcoming wedding - he's determined to have a say in every detail from picking the bridesmaid dresses to choosing the food. He proposed to Lauren Skaar earlier this month (Mar 10) and they are preparing to exchange vows next year.

And Vartan, who previously dated his Alias co-star Jennifer Garner, admits he's heavily involved in making sure the big day runs smoothly.

He tells America's OK! magazine, "I feel wonderful! I feel very blessed. I feel like it’s about God damned time I met someone special. I’m excited about throwing an engagement party, I’m excited about choosing the bridesmaid dresses, and what kind of knives and food. "The hardest thing about planning a wedding is where you’re going to seat the people! Who’s going to be seated with who. It’s like playing chess. You can put your family with whoever and they’ll be fine, but then those people in the middle. Are they going to get along?”

Consumer Confidence Flags, Intensifying Economic Fears

Americans' confidence in the economy has suffered a sudden relapse, dimming hopes that they will start spending -- and spurring job growth -- any time soon.

The Consumer Confidence Index figures released Tuesday were much worse than analysts had expected and showed that Americans are morose about the job market and their economic prospects. That bodes ill for the sort of uptick in consumer spending that normally powers economic recovery, and could raise pressure on the Obama administration and Congress to create jobs themselves.

The index fell almost 11 points to 46 in February, down from a revised 56.5 in January and the lowest level since a 40.8 reading in April 2009. It erased three consecutive months of improvement, according to the Conference Board, the research group that releases the monthly index.

Analysts were expecting only a slight decrease to 55. Economists watch the confidence numbers closely because consumer spending accounts for about 70 percent of U.S. economic activity.

Outside of the Great Recession, the index hasn't been this low since December 1974.

"It still feels like a recession" to consumers, said Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board Consumer Research Center.

Confidence has been recovering fitfully since hitting a historic low of 25.3 in February 2009. Many economists believe it will remain well below healthy levels for at least another year or two. A reading above 90 indicates an economy is on solid footing. Above 100 signals strong growth.

Dana Huskey of Chattanooga, Tenn., said she's being very cautious with her spending -- limiting her trips out to eat and her drives around town. The 26-year-old lost her job at Ann Taylor in July and has lined up a job at a yarn store, but it won't open until this summer. Her family has been helping her since then.

"I try not to go out to eat unless I have to," said Huskey. "I got a subscription to the local paper for the weekend edition, to do coupons."

Some economists say Americans won't start to feel better and spend more until they see clear evidence of sizable job growth. In past recessions, however, the employment picture didn't improve dramatically until after a recovery in consumer spending and confidence.

Many economists say business investments and exports can help drive the nascent turnaround in the short term, but a rise in consumer spending is essential to keep it going.

"Without a sustained acceleration in consumption growth, this recovery will eventually fade," said Paul Ashworth, senior U.S. economist at Capital Economics Ltd.

The consumer confidence report put a scare into the stock market, overshadowing retailers' reports that showed stronger holiday profits but also offered cautious sales outlooks. There were also signs that the U.S. housing market is continuing its bumpy recovery: A key index showed home prices rose for the seventh straight month in December.

Executives at discount chain Target Corp. said they expect the recovery to continue -- slowly -- as shoppers grapple with high rates of unemployment and pay down debt.

"I think we're going to see two steps forward, one step back," said Gregg Steinhafel, Target's chairman, president and CEO, in a conference call with investors Tuesday.

The Dow Jones industrials were off 100 points. Interest rates also fell as investors moved money out of stocks and into the safety of Treasury bonds.

The confidence index is based on a sample of 5,000 U.S. households surveyed between Feb. 1 and Feb. 17.

A surprising aspect of the report was that the index's key gauge -- consumers' expectations over the next six months -- took a big hit. The gauge had been on the rise since last October. Consumers' assessment of the current economy slipped to a 27-year low.

Several factors may have aggravated the decline. Heavy snowstorms in many areas of the country may have dampened confidence as they shut down businesses and thwarted job searches. Worries about Greece's national debt hammered the U.S. stock market.

The unemployment picture has become a full-time preoccupation in Congress. The Senate cleared a key hurdle Monday on its way to passing a $15 billion package that includes tax breaks to encourage hiring. Final passage on that measure is scheduled for Wednesday. The measure, however, is likely to boost hiring only modestly.

A second measure for broader and longer-term assistance was under discussion as well. Such a package could include a full-year extension of unemployment insurance and a 65 percent health insurance subsidy for the unemployed through the federal COBRA program. States could also get direct assistance to help them with their straining Medicaid budget.

The overall economy expanded at an annual rate of 5.7 percent in the fourth quarter, but only about one-fourth of that growth came from consumers. Most of the growth came from companies replenishing low inventories.

For those out of work, the economy's recent improvement has been invisible.

"The jobs aren't coming fast enough," said Jim Fox, who was laid off from a steel mill in Sharon, Pa., last August. "The jobs that I do see pay less than what I was making."

Many economists expect new jobs to be created in coming months. Unemployment fell to 9.7 percent in January from 10 percent in December, and employers shed 20,000 jobs. Economists believe the unemployment rate fell because many unemployed people gave up on their job searches, and worry that it will climb back up by summer as those without jobs start trying again.

Gary Thayer, chief economist at Wells Fargo Advisors, believes big improvements in jobs, confidence and spending will be "marching together."

"This is going to be a year when people are waiting to see what happens rather than assuming the best going forward," he said.

Mysterious Wedding Planner Scarlett Johansson

Scarlett Johansson says planning her low-key 2008 wedding to Ryan Reynolds was like conducting a ''drug deal'' because of all the secrecy surrounding the nuptials.

Scarlett Johansson says planning her wedding to Ryan Reynolds was like conducting a "drug deal".

The actress - who married the 'Adventure land' actor in an intimate ceremony on Vancouver Island, Canada, in September 2008 - admits the pair had to do a lot sneaking around so they could keep their big day private.

During an appearance on the 'Late Show with David Letterman', she joked: "I never thought that I'd be planning my wedding in a dark alley somewhere but it turned out that way. It was really quite secretive and I felt like I was doing a drug deal - without all the fun."

Scarlett, 25, also revealed the small number of guests at the ceremony also included the local wildlife.

She added: "It was a very remote part of Canada. Where we got married there were bears and whales and eagles."

Scarlett has previously admitted marrying 33-year-old Ryan cemented the couple's love and brought them closer together.

She said: "We're enjoying evolving our relationship together. I feel that my life and my work are heading in the right direction.

"Being married is a bit like being part of a tribe."

Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy for http://quarterwedding.blogspot.com/

If you require any more information or have any questions about our privacy policy, please feel free to contact us by email at boim.qua@gmail.com.

At http://quarterwedding.blogspot.com/, the privacy of our visitors is of extreme importance to us. This privacy policy document outlines the types of personal information is received and collected by http://quarterwedding.blogspot.com/ and how it is used.

Log Files
Like many other Web sites, http://quarterwedding.blogspot.com/ makes use of log files. The information inside the log files includes internet protocol ( IP ) addresses, type of browser, Internet Service Provider ( ISP ), date/time stamp, referring/exit pages, and number of clicks to analyze trends, administer the site, track user’s movement around the site, and gather demographic information. IP addresses, and other such information are not linked to any information that is personally identifiable.

Cookies and Web Beacons
http://quarterwedding.blogspot.com/ does use cookies to store information about visitors preferences, record user-specific information on which pages the user access or visit, customize Web page content based on visitors browser type or other information that the visitor sends via their browser.

DoubleClick DART Cookie
.:: Google, as a third party vendor, uses cookies to serve ads on http://quarterwedding.blogspot.com/.
.:: Google's use of the DART cookie enables it to serve ads to users based on their visit to http://quarterwedding.blogspot.com/ and other sites on the Internet.
.:: Users may opt out of the use of the DART cookie by visiting the Google ad and content network privacy policy at the following URL - http://www.google.com/privacy_ads.html

Some of our advertising partners may use cookies and web beacons on our site. Our advertising partners include ....
Google Adsense


These third-party ad servers or ad networks use technology to the advertisements and links that appear on http://quarterwedding.blogspot.com/ send directly to your browsers. They automatically receive your IP address when this occurs. Other technologies ( such as cookies, JavaScript, or Web Beacons ) may also be used by the third-party ad networks to measure the effectiveness of their advertisements and / or to personalize the advertising content that you see.

http://quarterwedding.blogspot.com/ has no access to or control over these cookies that are used by third-party advertisers.

You should consult the respective privacy policies of these third-party ad servers for more detailed information on their practices as well as for instructions about how to opt-out of certain practices. http://quarterwedding.blogspot.com/'s privacy policy does not apply to, and we cannot control the activities of, such other advertisers or web sites.

If you wish to disable cookies, you may do so through your individual browser options. More detailed information about cookie management with specific web browsers can be found at the browsers' respective websites.