Wipeout: The Only Reality Show I Want To Go On

I’ve thought about reality shows that I would consider if I had to make a choice. Real World? Only if they’re going someplace fun, like Paris. Plus I’m probably too old & smart to qualify for their show. Big Brother? No. They have cameras in way too many locations throughout the house. And, you can never take your mike off. Plus, I’m not thrilled with the aspect of being away from home for a long period of time, which makes Wipeout perfect. You dedicate about a day to it & you either win 50k or you don’t.

Have you seen this show yet? It’s hilarious! The commentators make fun of the guests and the guests are completely clueless as to what they’re up against. I think that I may lose my sense of humor about the situation if it were I being punched, thrown & bounced, but it still looks fun.

Sequels That We Don’t Need

Terminator, Star Trek, Girls Just Want to Have Fun, Footloose, The Karate Kid. These are all movies that were great at some point & some Hollywood suit decided that they needed a sequel or to be re-made. Well, recently Winona Ryder did an interview stating that there’s been a sequel in the works for Heathers for a while.

As much as I like Winona (see post below), I pray that this sequel doesn’t see the light of the day. I just don’t think that there are any teen or early twenties actresses that can come close to pulling off the snarky angst-ridden & dark humor that’s in the movie. Who would they cast? Kristen Stewart? Hilary Duff? Lindsey Lohan? Miley Cyrus? Some Gossip Girl cast member? Am I alone in this?

Do You Remember Her?

In case you don’t recognize her due to the makeup or care, it’s Winona Ryder. I saw her in Star Trek a few week ago & was very surprised. I had started to think that Winona had retired from movie making. Winona is way too talented and attractive to be playing someone’s mom in a role that was essentially just a cameo. Not that long ago, she exhibited a lot of promise with roles in Heathers, Edward Scissorhands, Age of Innocence, etc. Winona was the original “Wino”, back when Amy Winehouse was busy trying to figure out how to put crack into her pipe.

So, I couldn’t help but wonder why Winona hasn’t been in many movies in the last decade. Was her breakup with Hollywood leading men like Johnny Depp & Matt Damon too much to bear? Her former-BFF Gwyneth stealing Shakespeare in Love script didn’t drag her down, did it? The shoplifting incident? Nah. As far as Hollywood morals go, that was the equivalent of going to church & brunch with your grandma on Sunday.

Whatever the reason for her absence, here’s to hoping that her return to the big screen in Star Trek is a sign that Winona is here to stay.

It must be tough trying to stay relevant.

Just when you thought that Sarah Palin would have the dignity to quietly go down in history as an answer to some pop culture or trivial pursuit question such as “who was the biggest joke in 2008?” or “what person did the Republican party think that they could put on their presidential ticket to combat the Obama storm?” ; Sarah Palin emerges from the Alaskan tundra to create a non-scandal over an inappropriate, misunderstood joke. Which is ironic, considering her entire political career could be summed up with the same description.

As you’ve surely heard, Sarah Palin is quite miffed about a joke that David Letterman made about her younger daughter, Willow-my-momma-showed-me how-to-use-some-spit-on-my baby-brthaer's-cowlick-Palin. Even though Letterman insists that the joke was aimed at Bristol-never-listened-to-the-abstinence-speech Palin, her oldest daughter. Last week, Letterman clarified his joke & apologized. Palin declined the opportunity to accept the apology & to go on his show to get the apology in person because, why not?

People are finally talking about her again so she wants to drag this out as long as possible. This week Letterman apologized again (albeit more sincerely according to some people) & Palin finally accepted it.

Whew! We can all breath a sigh of relief now! I was seriously worried about World War III happening if things didn’t straighten out ASAP with these two. I could totally see Palin giving Letterman the “Russia treatment” or better yet, pulling some backstage, back-stabbing pageant treatment. Shoo-shoo, Letterman!

Now, is it moose hunting season yet?

KGB – Worst name for a business EVER

Have you seen commercials for this company called KGB (Knowledge Generation Bureau)? They’re supposed to be kind of like a 411 information system for cell phone users. I get that they purposely chose this name for shock value, I just question to what extent that they want to shock people. The first time that I saw a commercial, I just thought that it was done in very bad taste. The commercials usually show people rushing around dressed in black on a mission to get information. On the website, it even asks if one has what it takes to be a special agent, which to me just reinforces the idea that some genius thought that their approach would be hilarious & edgy.

One generally doesn’t conjure up funny images or thoughts when you think of the KGB in the traditional sense. I think of spying, work camps, Siberia, lack of privacy, etc. I’m surprised that in this day and age, there isn’t some Survivors of the KGB or Children/Grandchildren of KGB victims group or something that’s opposed to this blatant *wink, wink* disregard to actual victims of the KGB. If you’ve ever seen the movie The Lives of Others, it gives you a real sense of what having your life spied upon is truly like.

Touch of Pride

I’m proud of myself ‘cause I completely finished my previous shower gel, Neutrogena’s Rainbath Deep Moisture before moving on to a new shower gel, Nivea’s Touch of Harmony. I don’t think that I’ve ever done that before! Usually, I get tired of the scent by the time it gets down to the bottom of the package or I get tired of shaking the gel once it gets down to the bottom of the package. Then, I’ll go out shopping, something new will strike my fancy & I’ll wind up buying that.

Anyway, I love this new shower gel. It smells great, lathers really well (without a pouf) & really does make my skin feel softer. I wanted to try their Touch of Radiance for the fragrance, but it’s advertised as having “a touch of sparkle”. I’ve tried a lotion that was similar & there were sparkles all over my clothes. Considering I’m an adult, the idea of having glittery sparkles all over just makes me feel like a 12 yr. old. So, as soon as I’m done with this one, (and I have a long way to go considering I have to tear through 16.9 oz.) I may move onto another fragrance, maybe Touch of Happiness?

Lashes Blasted? Meh.

So, I finally tried Cover Girl’s Lash Blast mascara. Based on the recommendation of a co-worker’s sister, I thought that it would be worth a try to see if it could beat out my trusty Maybelline Great Lash. However, when I went to buy it I saw that it costs more than Maybelline & was just too expensive for something that may or may not live up to its claims. Besides, whenever I think of Cover Girl, I think of “my first makeup” – you know, the brand that you were loyal to when you were first learning how to apply & wear makeup at like, 12 or something.
Anyway, ACME had a buy 1, get 1 free sale last week (which I thought was finally a good deal) & I took the plunge. Verdict? Meh. It’s not awful, nor is it better than my Maybelline standby. Basically, if it’s on sale again, I’d buy it. But, I certainly won’t go out of my way to buy it since it didn’t make a tremendous difference or improvement over my regular mascara.

Do You Remember This Jackass?

Here's a sickeningly-sweet article that both satirizes and annoys about the country's second famous baby daddy, Levi Johnston.

Where’s My Oatmeal?

For about 2 years now, I’ve been eating Quaker Oats Simple Harvest Oatmeal. It’s supposed to be all-natural, but what matters to me is that it’s delicious. It costs more than Quaker Oats’ regular oatmeal, but I became loyal & hooked to the brand because every box contained $1 off coupon for your next purchase.

However, lately, I’ve noticed that the coupons began to disappear inside the boxes and the products have disappeared from the shelves. There were accompanying granola bars by the same name, but I haven’t seen those, either on the shelves at the grocery store. I’ve been to 2 or 3 different ACMEs and a Genaurdis. Quaker Oats’ website still advertises Simple Harvest, so I’m assuming it’s still a product that they make.

This week I’m finally giving their traditional flavors a try, but I’m not pleased. 1) The new flavor has about 30 - 40 additional calories that the all-natural one didn’t have and 2) the flavor just doesn’t taste the same. I’m so miffed about this that I may have to take it straight to the top & get Mr. Quaker Oats on the phone to explain this.

Surprise, surprise. Nia Vardalos’ New Movie Is About (what else)…Greece.

So, it’s been a while since we’ve seen Nia Vardalos on the big screen. Just in case you don’t remember her, Nia burrowed her way into America’s hearts about 5 years ago with her indie-flick that became a huge hit, My Big Fat Greek Wedding. It was about a plain Jane girl that has a quirky Greek family, meets her dreamboat, falls in love, lives happily ever after, blah, blah, blah. The movie even spawned a tv show. The show subsequently was canned after the nostalgia for the movie wore off. Since then, I don’t think that Nia’s been in much of anything. Now comes along this movie. I imagine that it’s going to be the same formulaic rom-com dialogue with the only saving grace being the beautiful scenery of Greece.

Adventures in Suburbia, Part III: The Inefficiency of Direct Mail Marketing

In the two years that I’ve owned my home, I’ve received about half a dozen direct mail pieces and about 3 voicemails regarding homes for sale. What’s the problem with this? Well, as it turns out, these homes were in my neighborhood & in one recent instance, only 4 houses down from mine! This new home is actually an example of one that was sent to me the other day. It’s around the corner from my house.

If I were in the market for a new home, wouldn’t I seek out a realtor & listings? Isn’t it awfully presumptuous to think that not only am I in the market for a new home, but I want one right down the street (or around the corner) from where I currently live!?! If anything, these mailers are making me aware of how much money I can get for my own home when I eventually put it on the market.

I’m curious as to just how successful this method has been. And, if it hasn’t been very successful, could some marketing person in a real estate office figure it out and stop sending these materials?

Blind Vice - Hayden Panettiere?

Ted Casablanca at E!Online posted his weekly Blind Vice. I'm guessing that this may be our very own pint-sized cheerleader hero, Hayden Panettiere. What do you think?

For The ‘80s Music Fans….

Depeche Mode not only has a new album coming out, but also an upcoming tour. They’ll be at the Borgata in AC on August 1st, however; the ticket price is a little steep ($125/person for general admission) so I think that I’ll have to enjoy this comeback via my Ipod.

For The Real Housewives of NJ Fans…

For fans of this show, we all suspect that each of the housewives or their spouses are involved in some shady business. So far, Danielle has been the only one called out on it. Here’s some confirmation that she definitely has a shady past and foreshadowing for Tuesday's episode.