interview — MomStart

Inside Cars 2 Owen Wilson & Eddie Izzard Spies, Hot Cars and Pixar

June 26, 2011 By Momstart 2 Comments

During my stay in LA with Disney discovering Cars 2 I had the opportunity to interview Owen Wilson and Eddie Izzard along with 21 other bloggers. I’ve always thought of Owen Wilson as being a very famous actor, but never really thought about what it would be like to meet him, and Eddie Izzard, well I’d never heard of him before. I feel like since we don’t have cable anymore, it’s like living under a rock. The only news stream I get is either from my husband or from twitter.

Having no expectations at all helped quite a bit. Many of the moms felt like Owen Wilson was showing signs that he had somewhere better to be. I thought he just looked tired and maybe he was a mommy blogger virgin you know. Of course he is a famous actor and should be used to all kinds of crazy out of this world media exploits right?

Cars 2 came out Friday and Owen Wilson (Lightening McQueen) took a smaller role this time allowing Mater most of the spotlight. Some of the moms wondered if Owen felt slightly jealous of having a smaller role and that’s why he had the shy laid back attitude during the interview. I can’t imagine living the life of a star, it’s just too much smiling for me. Anyways, you’re probably wondering what Owen had to say to us right?

He talked about working as a Parking Valet and a huge perk was getting to drive really fancy cars. He spoke about boarding school and I’m really not sure what the point of that was, and we also chatted about the grossest thing he’s ever eaten. You know, in Cars 2, Mater eats a HUGE helping of Wasabi. The worst thing he’s ever eaten was a Vegemite. He said, “Yeah it was the foulest tasting stuff ….. I couldn’t even swallow.”

We then asked both Eddie Izzard and Owen Wilson What was your favorite scene in the movie. For Owen it was when Mater had the bomb on him. “when we were doing the stuff there is this scene where you know I’m telling uh you know uh– you know Mater is trying– we’re saying, “You’re the bomb.” Uh you know that, that– I thought that was a really funny sequence to do. Uh no, no you’re the bomb.”

Have you ever wondered what it’s like for an actor to be a voice verses being in a live action film?

For Owen, “I’d say for me it’s actually easier because you don’t have the distractions of wardrobe hair and makeup. And you know everybody is kind of around. And it’s a harder leap ta’ kind of get into your imagination than for me where it’s just– you’re just kind of in your head at the microphone and you just ….it’s more like a little kid when you’re just kind of playing you know make believe. Uh, uh so for me it’s, it’s, it’s easier actually.” he likes being a voice actor. Eddie on the other hand prefers the live action. He said, “I think it’s more difficult.…. There is a certain thing about the way you are, the movement. The, the attitude, what– even what you’re wearing. How, how you’re looking. I just shaved my head for a part. You know that certainly changes your feel. But if you haven’t got that you’ve just have the voice. It is harder. You have to give what you can and then they go and animate.

Eddie was quite excited to be working on a spy film. “I mean the spies, everyone wants to be a spy,” so he was a little disappointed to find out that his character didn’t get any action. Owen found it pretty exciting and noted that it should appeal to kids saying, “Yeah I think that there’s something about you know spying you know that really appeals to kids. I know like growing up you know we always wanted you know binoculars or you know these– there was something that supposedly you could do with like Dixie riddle cups where you could heat or could create like you know anything that was like kind of secret or you know spying on people.”

I was most curious on knowing what it’s like to work at Pixar. Both of them had different stories on how much they liked Pixar’s offices and both commented on John Lasseter’s clothing choices. We all know he likes to wear custom made Hawaiian shirts.

Just in case you’re like me and have no idea who Eddie Izzard is, he plays Sir Miles Axlerod in Cars 2, is well known for being a comedian earning a Laurence Olivier Award nomination for outstanding achievement and has received a British comedy Award for tip stand-up comedian.

Oh and his favorite car choice is “Aston Martin DB5.” He said, “If they made one like the Thunderbird…..A new Thunderbird that was based on the old 60’s model……But if they did the Aston Martin DB5 like the James Bond one”

Oh and did this post seem a little random, you should see the interview transcript. The whole conversation was RANDOM.

Photos and trip expenses were provided to me on behalf of Disney.

Filed Under: interview Tagged With: Cars 2, Eddie Izzard, Eddie Izzard Fan Club, fan club, interview, Owen Wilson, Owen Wilson Fan Club, Pixar

Inside Cars 2 Emily Mortimer is As Glamorous as Holley Shiftwell

June 24, 2011 By Momstart 3 Comments

Emily Mortimer was born in Finsbury Park, London studied at Lincoln College, Oxford where she performed in several plays before becoming an actress. When she read the role for Holley Shiftwell, she thought her time at Pixar would last a month, boy was she surprised when it ended up taking two years to finish the role Holley Shiftwell.

Emily Mortimer feels that her life is much less glamorous than Holly’s. “I normally do parts where I never get to wear Mascara or you know, or have a Blow dryer on my hair and um, and — and I just look far from glamorous. So I don’t think I will ever look as good as I do as Holley Shiftwell. And I’m not normally this sort of, you know, together empowered Spy Car type. In fact, my friends will make me run for a bus just to give themselves a good laugh so I’ll totally mal-coordinated really in real life.” Sitting across from Emily, I find that hard to believe. She is a beautiful woman with grace and humor.

Playing a strong role like Holley Shiftwell has changed her view on future roles. Emily said her son, “thinks of me as this sort of hopeless sort of dappy thing and I play that part a little bit” and now she is thinking about playing stronger female characters because Emily isn’t dappy at all. She also has a 1 year old daughter now and will be considering how she wants to be looked up to by her daughter. “I think it is more important to me to think, kind of think about that more, you know, and what it is I’m doing every time I’m sort of pretending to be a hopeless dippy Female and — and of course I’m not.”

Emily truly showed me how strong she is when she was discussing how as an actor you really have to put yourself out there. “We’ve been talking a lot about that being, putting — putting yourself in unfamiliar situations being such a part of our lives as performers, and we spend half our lives feeling that way, as most people do. I mean, I think anyone that’s kind of trying to live a life and — and experience things and do things and challenge themselves as — is often feeling inadequate and like they don’t quite know what they’re doing. And — and um, and that’s a very familiar feelings as an Actor. You know, Performer.”

The best part of Cars 2 for Emily Mortimer was when her son was watching it and saw Holley get wings and fly off to help Mater. “he turned to me and he went, Mom, you’re amazing! And I, and that was just like, Oh my God, you can’t! That’s the, you know, it was just so great. And he’s not usually that impressed by me. So it was really cool.” Be sure to watch Cars 2 and see how Emily Mortimer made Holley Shiftwell so glamorous.

Disney provided the photos and paid for my travel and expenses.

Filed Under: interview Tagged With: Cars 2, Emily Mortimer, Emily Mortimer Fan Club, Holly Shiftwell, interview, Pixar, Pixar fan club

Mothers Deserve a Break to Stay Cool Calm and Collected Teresa Mauer Interview

May 8, 2011 By Momstart 1 Comment

Last week I had the opportunity to interview Teresa Mauer. Teresa is mother to Minnesota Twins’ All-Star catcher Joe Mauer. She has a long history with sports. Starting in high school, she showed her passion for baseball by trying out for her high school baseball team, which was a boys’ only team. After marrying her husband Jake, Teresa had three boys and she became the baseball mom. Throughout their youth, Teresa was their baseball coach. Even today, she plays a role in Joe’s baseball career; however, rather than being out on the field with him, she supports him off the field by managing his fan page. Teresa currently resides in St. Paul, Minneapolis with her husband. This busy mommy knows the importance of taking care of herself and even has some do it yourself ideas to pampering.

The interview took place on Thursday and I didn’t even have time to catch my breath so (ironic don’t you think since the topic of the interview is all about moms finding the time to RELAX) I had to send my questions over e-mail, and I received the answers back for everyone to hear. Thursday was really a busy day for me because I had to get a lot of errands done in between taking Zoe to school and picking her up. Then Friday, I actually did get a relaxing day and having just one relaxing day made me feel like I took the whole week off. It was an amazing day and I feel very appreciated. My hope for everyone is that for Mother’s Day, you all get a well deserved break. I’m always a better mommy when I take a little time out for myself.

Here are my interview questions:

Sometimes it feels like I don’t have enough time to do simple things like take a shower or go potty by myself. How am I supposed to find time to pamper myself?

Why is it so important for moms to take time out of their schedules for themselves?

Do you find that taking time out for yourself helps you to be a better mom?

What are some easy ways to pamper myself?

Finally what would be your top three tips for busy moms?

Listen to Teresa Mauer’s advice.

I loved listening to her. She gave great advice, like eating chocolate. Now that’s advice I can get behind. If you take anything away from this interview, let it be that it’s very important to take 5 minutes out for yourself every day, and don’t sweat the small stuff. (advice I’ve heard before!)

This interview opportunity is sponsored by Head & Shoulders, I will receive product samples in exchange for sharing this information with you.

Filed Under: personal Tagged With: head & shoulders, interview, Joe Mauer, Teresa Mauer

Interview: Organizing Your Office and Taxes with Farnoosh Torabi and Office Depot

February 1, 2011 By Momstart 4 Comments

Organizing is something that I have failed in since well forever. I clean and organize the house and then we go and get the mail and it gets laid on the counter again and well the disaster just starts over again. It seems that I’m not alone. A recent survey from Office Depot found that out of more than 1000 office employees, 93% said they feel being organized improves their performance, even though 81% admitted to keeping a disorganized workspace. I’m in the 81% for sure. My home office is practically none-existent because I’m so unorganized. The survey also found that 49% said they clean up clutter a few times a month or less. Again, that describes me! What should you keep organized? And how does being organized all year round help you out during tax season?

The survey indicates that the person’s desk, file cabinet and computer desktop are the three critical elements that need to be organized.

You can assess the mess and focus on three key areas: debt, savings, and your credit:

Gather bills and statements from all three categories and begin arranging them using labels, folders and other organizational tools

A shredder also comes in handy when you want to get rid of dated materials and personal information you no longer need.

Begin looking ahead – make sure your messy desk doesn’t create messy finances, especially when dealing with tax-related paperwork, mortgage or rent statements, car insurance bills, warranties and other important documents

I had the opportunity to submit some questions to Farnoosh Torabi a leading financial expert and she gave me some advice on how to be better organized. These are the questions I asked her:

We have a stacking issues in our house, we stack the mail we stack the papers, how can we get on top of stacking and keep our office clean?

What is the best advice you can give for preparing your taxes, where and when do I start organizing before filing them?

Where do I start when thinking about my finances?

Why does owning a house make such a difference at tax time?

More About Farnoosh Torabi:

Farnoosh Torabi is a personal finance contributor for Credit.com and Moneywatch.com. Her work and advice has been featured in national magazines and newspapers, including Real Simple, Glamour, Marie Clair Money Magazine, The Wall Street Journal and USA Today. The New York Times calls her advice, “perfect practical.”

Filed Under: Announcement Tagged With: Farmoosh Torabi, get organized, interview, Office Depot, organizational ideas, organize taxes, organize your office, tax season

Why Use Natural Dental Products? My Interview with local dentist Dr. Shimanovsky

December 14, 2009 By Momstart 8 Comments

1. Why should someone consider using natural dental products?

Many people have started eating organic food and using natural house cleaning products to cut out the unwanted chemicals and pesticides in their lives, but they don’t realize they are putting chemicals into their mouths two times a day by using regular toothpastes and mouth rinses. Many mainstream products contain alcohol and other harmful chemicals like the foaming agent sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), a common ingredient found in toothpastes, shampoos and detergents. Natural products contain effective ingredients like grapefruit seed extract, menthol and xylitol that cleanse the mouth, while peppermint and sage oils help prevent gingivitis and reduce/prevent plaque.

In our society people like to have white teeth. The hottest trend in natural oral care is undoubtedly the emergence of natural toothpaste that also whitens teeth. These products are sold in stores and online by many natural oral care companies, although The Natural Dentist is what I tend to recommend to my patients. A majority of mainstream teeth whitening products, including toothpastes, mouth rinses and professionally-applied whitening gels, contain hydrogen peroxide. Many patients have reported discomfort in using those products. Hydrogen peroxide can be very harsh on gums, and also cause tooth sensitivity, which is why natural oral care suppliers manufacture their natural toothpaste and natural oral care products without bleach and other harsh ingredients.

2. What are the chemical’s/ingredients that whiten teeth?

The most common chemical used to whiten teeth is hydrogen peroxide. Natural teeth whitening toothpastes use abrasives such as silica to gently remove stains. In addition, The Natural Dentist Pre-Brush Whitening Antigingivitis Rinse uses bamboo powder, a natural silica, to help remove stains and keep teeth white when used before brushing. The bamboo powder sticks to teeth and helps remove stains when brushing. These products effectively clean and whiten teeth often better than other teeth whitening solutions.

3. Are Natural Whiteners safer to use?

Removing surface stains from the teeth is the real key to keeping them white and healthy looking. Most whitening products contain hydrogen peroxide and the concentration of this ingredient determines the efficiency as well as the safety. Natural whiteners are safer to use because they don’t contain any harsh chemicals yet give the consumer wanted results.

My favorite product from The Natural Dentist is the Healthy Teeth and Gums Whitening Toothpaste. In addition to whitening, this toothpaste also contains aloe vera gel and grapefruit seed extract to naturally clean and moisturize my mouth!

4. Are there safe methods to whitening your teeth? I feel like using a UV light is a pretty dangerous way to whiten your teeth, is that true?

Many people have a misconception regarding UV light whitening systems like the Zoom2 Whitening System. Information from the manufacturer indicates the wavelength of the light emitted from the bleaching unit is in the visible, violet light portion of the spectrum, with a small overlap into UVA (which is considered to be the safest type of UV). The company believes that light of this specific wavelength is completely safe for the patient, although in my opinion it really is not very healthy for the teeth.

If you want to bleach your teeth permanently you shouldn’t do it on your own. I recommend you speak with your dentist first so they can suggest something that is best for you. Be careful when blindly choosing products at a drug store because there are many side effects that you may not be aware of.

5. When it comes to children, what is the most important way we can be caring for their teeth?

It’s a good idea to get in the habit of cleaning your baby’s gums even before teeth emerge; there are special baby brushes available at most stores. This way your baby gets used to the procedure and it becomes routine — this might help prevent children from rebelling against brushing their teeth in the future. Once teeth start erupting it is very important to start using a toothbrush with toothpaste. Once they are old enough to spit, they should brush with fluoride toothpaste twice a day to strengthen teeth and protect against acid erosion.

Also, once teeth start erupting do not let your child fall asleep while sucking on a bottle. The fluid from the bottle tends to stay in contact with the teeth, and sugars present in milk, juice and most other drinks will cause cavities.

6. What changes do we need to be looking for as they get older when it comes to dental care?

As children get older parents need to teach them how to use dental floss, which is important for healthy teeth and gums. This establishes good oral hygiene habits that will ensure your child’s dental health for many years to come. Mouthwash is also an important addition to oral care, and kids can use it as soon as they get mature enough not to swallow it.

Adults can lead by their example and make brushing their teeth into a family event where all members thoroughly brush, floss and use mouth rinse. When children grow up caring for their teeth and gums, they will most likely continue to be conscientious into their adult years.

About Inna V. Shimanovsky, DMD

Dr. Shimanovsky graduated from the highly regarded Oregon Health & Science University School of Dentistry in 2000. Since becoming a dentist Dr. Shimanovsky has continuously attended advanced education seminars and hands-on classes to keep abreast of latest developments and techniques in various aspects of dentistry, including a course with the prestigious Aesthetic Advantage Institute of New York. She is currently an active member of American Dental Association, Oregon Dental Association, American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry and International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology (IAOMT). Dr Shimanovsky offers all phases of dental care with special emphasis on cosmetic and reconstructive dentistry; she takes great pride in providing quality oral healthcare in a supportive and pain-free environment. In her spare time, Dr. Shimanovsky enjoys spending time with her husband and two children.

This interview was provided by Mom Start, Aadvanced Dental and The Natural Dentist. We are very thankful that Dr. Shimanovsky took the time to work with us.

Filed Under: interview Tagged With: dental interview, Dr. Shimanovsky, interview, The Natural Dentist

Hosting Food Network Challenge

April 5, 2009 By MomStart 2 Comments

I was able to participate in a phone interview with Keegan and ask him questions about Food Network Challenge and their new mini series Last Cake Standing.

Tonight is the premier of Last Cake Standing. This reality TV series is like some of their other reality tv shows. They are pushing these pastry chefs to their breaking points to see who has what it takes to have the last cake standing. Keegan described the competitors as being tough and that they learned more about themselves than they did about making cakes.

The stress of competing is what gets to most of the competitors. Keegan’s advice is for competitors to come prepared. You may not practice making the exact cake but come with ideas and something simple, because time management is the first thing to go out the window and you have to allow time for something to go wrong because something always will.

He is also the pastry chef I would call on if I could afford him, if I lived in the area he works in and needed a Yoda cake. He said that for him, making cakes has to be interesting to him. He can carve it if it his into it. Otherwise, it’s not something he wants to do.

I asked Keegan what his favorite off set location was and he said selfishly it would be Hawaii, but for the show, Disney World. When you combine, Food Network Challenge to Disney, then magic happens. One of the competitions was for the contestants to be released into the park and finding someone to make a cake for.

There are a few older episodes that are Disney inspired. There was the Disney princess cakes, and the Disney character cakes.

I also wanted to know what his personal greatest disaster was and he was actually kind enough to tell all of us. It was for a restaurant he used to work for and Baked Alaskan was their specialty dessert. Well, he made enough of the frozen part to serve 2000 people and thought his part of the job was over. Well, later he finds out that the freezer he put all of it in was broken so he had to scrounge together people and desserts to serve to 2000 people. The head table was still able to have Baked Alaskan but everyone else got whatever could be found. Luckily, only one person wrote and asked about that Baked Alaskan.

My final question was how he came to be the host. I asked him why he chose to be the host and well he says he didn’t. There used to be a show on Food Network where they covered a national competition and there was no host. So there was a lot of dead sound (crowd noise from the competition) He was one of the competitors there and it just sort of fell on him to start hosting. He became the host as the show changed into Food Network Challenge. (at least this is my understanding of what he said.) It is very hard to participate in an interview when your children are crying in the background (but I LOVE THEM dearly) I also can’t wait for my next invitation to do an interview.

Keegan enjoys hosting the show and working with the judges. The audience constantly wants to know his favorites and he is constantly biting his tongue. He has to say I just like cakes, even if he does have a favorite. Just remember, he does like cakes, he is a pastry chef.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: challenge, Food Network, interview