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LOST Alert!!!

Lost moves to Thursdays at 9 p.m. starting Jan. 31.

Mark your calendars NOW.... before you forget!!!!!!

Dan Fogelberg R.I.P.

"Same Old Lang Syne" won't be the same this year.

The U.S. of Reruns

We live in a country with corporations so greedy, that we're watching reruns and reality TV. And could be for a year. Has anyone thought about what this actually means?

Reality Line-Up

Print & save, folks! With the writer's strike still not settled, plan on watching a lot of reality television!! Get your Tivo loaded up!

Project Runway 4 [Bravo, Nov. 14, Wednesdays at 10]
Nimrod Nation [Sundance Channel, Nov. 26, Mondays at 9]
Real Housewives of Orange County [Bravo, Nov. 27, Tuesdays at 10]
Intervention [A&E, Dec. 3, Mondays at 9]
The Girls Next Door [E!, Dec. 9, Sundays at 10]
Snoop Dogg’s Father Hood [E!, Dec. 9, Sundays at 10:30]
Clash of the Choirs [NBC, Dec. 17 to 20 at 8]
The Biggest Loser 5 [NBC, Jan. 1, Tuesdays at 8]
The Apprentice 7 [NBC, Jan. 3, Thursdays at 9]
Dance War: Bruno vs. Carrie Ann [ABC, Jan. 7, Mondays at 8]
Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew [VH1, Jan. 10, Thursdays]
Trading Spaces [TLC, early January]
Make Me a Supermodel [Bravo, January]
American Idol 7 [FOX, Jan. 15, Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 8]
Big Brother 9 [CBS, late Jan./early Feb.] news
Survivor 16 [CBS, early Feb.]
Transamerican Love Story [Logo, February
When Women Rule the World [FOX, March 3, Mondays at 8]
Hell’s Kitchen 4 [FOX, April 1, Tuesdays at 9]

Winter/spring debuts

America’s Next Top Model 10 [The CW]
American Gladiators [NBC]
Randy Jackson Presents America’s Best Dance Crew [MTV]
Beauty and the Geek 4 [The CW]
Baby Borrowers [NBC]
The Bachelor 12 [ABC]
Can You Duet? [CMT]
Farmer Wants a Wife [The CW]
My Dad is Better Than Your Dad [NBC]
Oprah’s Big Give [ABC]
Pussycat Dolls 2: Girlicious [The CW]
Supernanny [ABC]
Wife Swap [ABC]

Paste Names Top 50 Films of 2007

I agree with the ones I've seen (*), but man - I have a lot of catching up to do! How many have you seen, and do you agree? (Oh, and Superbad is way better than Knocked Up.)

1. Juno [Jason Reitman]
2. Once [John Carney]
3. Eastern Promises [David Cronenberg]
4. Away From Her [Sarah Polley]
5. Margot at the Wedding [Noah Baumbach]
*6. Michael Clayton [Tony Gilroy]
7. The Wind That Shakes the Barley [Ken Loach]
*8. No Country for Old Men [Joel and Ethan Coen]
9. The Kite Runner [Marc Forster]
10. Syndromes and a Century [Apichatpong "Joe" Weerasethakul]
11. Ratatouille [Brad Bird]
12. Ten Canoes [Rolf de Heer/Peter Djigirr]
13. Great World of Sound [Craig Zobel]
14. Ghosts of Cité Soleil [Asger Leth/Milos Loncarevic]
15. Offside [Jafar Panahi]
16. My Kid Could Paint That [Amir Bar-Lev]
17. 2 Days in Paris [Julie Delpy]
18. Waitress [Adrienne Shelly]
19. Manufactured Landscapes [Jennifer Baichwal]
20. The King of Kong [Seth Gordon]
21. Sunshine [Danny Boyle]
22. This is England [Shane Meadows]
*23. Knocked Up [Judd Apatow]
24. Hanna Takes the Stairs [Joe Swanberg]
25. Bella [Alejandro Gomez Monteverde]
26. The Darjeeling Limited [Wes Anderson]
*27. Grindhouse [Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez]
28. Paris, Je T'aime [Various Directors]
29. God Grew Tired of Us [Christopher Dillon Quinn]
30. No End in Sight [Charles Ferguson]
31. The Bourne Ultimatum [Paul Greengrass]
32. Hot Fuzz [Edgar Wright]
33. 3:10 to Yuma [James Mangold]
34. Year of the Dog [Mike White]
35. The Simpsons Movie [David Silverman]
*36. Hairspray [Adam Shankman]
37. Sicko [Michael Moore]
38. Rescue Dawn [Werner Herzog]
39. The Short Life of José Antonio Guitierrez [Heidi Specogna]
40. Forever [Heddy Honigmann]
41. Persepolis [Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud]
42. Talk to Me [Kasi Lemmons]
43. Before the Devil Knows You're Dead [Sidney Lumet]
*44. Superbad [Greg Mottola]
*45. Zodiac [David Fincher]
46. The Savages [Tamara Jenkins]
47. Rocket Science [Jeffrey Blitz]
48. The Signal [David Bruckner, Dan Bush, Jacob Gentry]
49. The Lookout [Scott Frank]
50. American Gangster [Ridley Scott]

IFC Awards

It's not even December, and the Independent Spirit Award nominations are out.

BEST FEATURE

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
I'm Not There
Juno
A Mighty Heart
Paranoid Park

BEST DIRECTOR

Todd Haynes
I'm Not There

Tamara Jenkins
The Savages

Jason Reitman
Juno

Julian Schnabel
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Gus Van Sant
Paranoid Park


BEST FEMALE LEAD

Angelina Jolie
A Mighty Heart

Sienna Miller
Interview

Ellen Page
Juno

Parker Posey
Broken English

Tang Wei
Lust, Caution

BEST MALE LEAD

Pedro Castaneda
August Evening

Don Cheadle
Talk To Me

Philip Seymour Hoffman
The Savages

Frank Langella
Starting Out in the Evening

Tony Leung
Lust, Caution

BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE

Cate Blanchett
I'm Not There

Anna Kendrick
Rocket Science

Jennifer Jason Leigh
Margot at the Wedding

Tamara Podemski
Four Sheets to the Wind

Marisa Tomei
Before the Devil Knows You're Dead

BEST SUPPORTING MALE

Chiwetel Ejiofor
Talk To Me

Marcus Carl Franklin
I'm Not There

Kene Holliday
Great World of Sound

Irrfan Khan
The Namesake

Steve Zahn
Rescue Dawn

Paste Names Top 100 Albums of 2007

Two of my favorites of the year are #100 and #1. Funny, huh?

100. Stars – In Our Bedroom After The War
99. The Fiery Furnaces - Widow City
98. Dinosaur Jr. - Beyond
97. Marissa Nadler - Song III: Bird on the Water
96. Arctic Monkeys - Favourite Worst Nightmare
95. The Good, The Bad & The Queen - The Good, The Bad & The Queen
94. Suzanne Vega - Beauty & Crime
93. Lori McKenna - Unglamorous
92. Jesse Sykes – Like, Lust & the Open Halls of the Soul
91. The Fratellis - Costello Music
90. Devendra Banhart - Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon
89. Anat Cohen - Noir
88. Do Make Say Think - You, You're A History In Rust
87. White Rabbits – Fort Nightly
86. Ruthie Foster - The Phenomenal Ruthie Foster
85. Menomena - Friend and Foe
84. Liars - Liars
83. Deerhunter - Cryptograms
82. Dan Deacon - Spiderman of the Rings
81. Art Brut - It's A Bit Complicated
80. Akron/Family - Love Is Simple
79. Deerhoof - Friend Opportunity
78. The New Pornographers - Challengers
77. Jeremy Fisher - Goodbye Blue Monday
76. Okkervil River - The Stage Names
75. Great Lake Swimmers - Ongiara
74. Beirut - The Flying Club Cup
73. Warm In The Wake - American Prehistoric
72. Bettye Lavette - Scene Of The Crime
71. Josh Rouse - Country Mouse City House
70. Ween - La Cucaracha
69. Bat For Lashes - Fur & Gold
68. Office - A Night At The Ritz
67. St. Vincent - Marry Me
66. Apples In Stereo - New Magnetic Wonder
65. Caribou - Andorra
64. Animal Collective - Strawberry Jam
63. Explosions In The Sky - All Of A Sudden I Miss Everyone
62. Joseph Arthur - Let's Just Be
61. Prince - Planet Earth
60. The Broken West - I Can't Go On I'll Go On
59. Imperial Teen - The Hair The TV The Baby & The Band
58. Romantica - America
57. The Clientele - God Save The Clientele
56. Kate Nash - Made of Bricks
55. Sunset Rubdown - Random Spirit Lover
54. Broken Social Scene Presents: Kevin Drew - Spirit If...
53. Fionn Regan - The End Of History
52. Thurston Moore - Trees Outside the Academy
51. The Frames - The Cost
50. Battles - Mirrored
49. Carolina Chocolate Drops - Dona Got A Ramblin’ Mind
48. The Weakerthans - Reunion Tour
47. Linda Thompson - Versatile Heart
46. Justice - †
45. Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings - 100 Days, 100 Nights
44. Norah Jones - Not Too Late
43. The Everybodyfields - Nothing Is Okay
42. Lifesavas - Gutterfly
41. Brandi Carlile - The Story
40. Damien Dempsey - To Hell Or Barbados
39. The Perishers - Victorious
38. Olof Arnalds - Vid Og Vid
37. Eleni Mandell - The Miracle Of Five
36. Joe Henry - Civilians
35. Peter Bjorn & John - Writer's Block
34. Bright Eyes - Cassadaga
33. PJ Harvey - White Chalk
32. Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha
31. Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?
30. Björk - Volta
29. Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
28. Mary Gauthier - Between Daylight and Dark
27. Derek Webb - The Ringing Bell
26. The Shins - Wincing the Night Away
25. Over The Rhine - The Trumpet Child
24. Patty Griffin - Children Running Through
23. Black Lips - Good Bad Not Evil
22. LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver
21. Jens Lekman - Night Falls Over Kortedala
20. Blonde Redhead - 23
19. Ted Leo & the Pharmacists - Living with the Living
18. Miranda Lambert - Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
17. Josh Ritter - The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter
16. Ryan Adams - Easy Tiger
15. Kanye West - Graduation
14. Loney, Dear - Loney, Noir
13. Amy Winehouse - Back to Black
12. Avett Brothers - Emotionalism
11. Radiohead - In Rainbows
10. Iron & Wine - The Shepherd's Dog
09. Band of Horses - Cease to Begin
08. Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank
07. Wilco - Sky Blue Sky
06. M.I.A. - Kala
05. Feist - The Reminder
04. The White Stripes - Icky Thump
03. Bruce Springsteen - Magic
02. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
01. The National - Boxer

I have 45 of them. Got some listening to do, baby!

The Moment of Truth

New FOX reality show... sure to spark alotta talk around the watercoolers!

Fox’s version works like this: Before the show is taped, a contestant is given a polygraph test and asked 75 questions. Samples include: “Do you really care about the starving children in Africa?” “Are you sexually attracted to one of your wife’s friends?” “Do fat people repulse you?” and “Do you think you’ll still be with your husband five years from now?” The contestant’s responses are determined to be truthful or untruthful by a certified polygraph examiner, but the contestant is not told the results. Within a couple of days after the test, the contestant appears on the show, where he is again asked 21 of their previous questions before a live audience, including family and friends.

All the player has to do to win, goes the pitch, is tell the truth. If his answer matches what the polygraph says is true, he advances to the next round. The top prize is $500,000. The contestant can stop at any time, but once a question is asked, he must answer.

“Truth” premieres Jan. 23.

Let Me Explain

First off, my apologies to anyone who happens to swing by here on any sort of regular basis. I am been incredibly busy at work and at home. Earlier this year I was juggling two full-times jobs. The madness has continued due to my company investing like $5 million dollars into remodeling and improving one of our stores. Since I am in Marketing, that means I get to work like 80 hours a week. Sometimes more.

I have shows on my Tivo from like August that I have not had time to watch. And my ability to surf the web and come up with interesting nuggets to share.... well that spare time has evaporated from my life.

I'm going on a little vacation soon and once I return, life should return to some sense of normalcy. I say that with much trepidation, because just as soon as I think things will settle down, another major project comes hurtling at me at warp speed.

But with any luck, regular posting will resume very soon. I promise!

Blow My Mind

You MUST watch this: Cheney's Law

I watched it in a random moment of insomnia last night, so I hope to catch it again when I'm a lot more conscious. It completely blew my mind the shit that happened in the days following 9/11. And really, continues to happen. We don't have a President, we have a puppet ran by dictators.

Why Yes, I Am Bi-Platform, Thanks For Asking

Friday my new Mac Pro was installed. It goes quite nicely with my 24" LCD widescreen tv (er, I mean monitor....). I also am running Parallels now and that shows up on yet another LCD screen (a measly 17"). How bizarre to be working in the Mac world minute then hear that little dinging noise, scroll to the left and Pow! instantly a member of the PC world.

Frankly, I'm not at all happy about the whole PC world stuff. I hate it. It stinks. It's clunky and stupid. I cant' find anything. My email is now completely different (Outlook now; previously Entourage).

And to add to my already burgeoning desk, yet ANOTHER 17" monitor and additional keyboard, which represents my old Mac G4.

I swear to god it looks like I'm running a surveillance operation in here!! And, I'm going completely blind in the process. Which monitor to watch? Which mouse to use. Oh wait... now it's Control-P, not Command-P. What the hell system am I using again?

Fuck it. I'm going home.

This Made Me Laugh. Out Loud.

Lifted from Socialite's Life:

This one is falling off quicker than Beyonce on a staircase. Details of Pamela Anderson's quickie marriage to the guy she banged to pay off a gambling debt have emerged. This wedding was an elegant affair down to the lack of rings, and Pam having to get married quick because her next shift at the magic show was starting.

The bride wore a white denim miniskirt and calls the groom "scum," and the wedding cake was made of cardboard. Salomon (who wore a dark suit and a black beanie to the ceremony) is infamous as the co-star of the Paris Hilton sex tape. His reputation is so seedy that Anderson announced their union on her blog: "The Adventures of Scum and Pam Have Begun." Former Daily News gossip Marc Malkin reported for E! that wedding planners had to bring in a fake wedding cake because they were given only one-day's notice. The 40 guests enjoyed pigs in a blanket, macaroni and cheese, and tuna and lobster tacos.


Charming. Who would expect less from a woman with a barbed wire tattoo and a vagina that the whole of mankind is familiar with? I can recall being a little girl and dreaming about my wedding day. A day wherein I would wear a cut-off denim miniskirt and link all my hopes and dreams with the guy whose penis was inside Paris Hilton. Someone release the doves, quick! Pam Anderson stole my destiny!

Add Another Whore To The Reality Fire

It’s official: Rock of Love 2 will also star Bret Michaels, whose break-up with Jes made way for a second season.

How convenient......

He is “ready to give reality TV dating another shot after things fizzled with Rock of Love winner Jes,” VH1 says, adding that the cast will get bigger for the second season, and that its debut won’t be far off: “more girls (20, to be exact), more challenges, more turn-ons and more diabeetus in the second season of Rock of Love, which is coming…well, sooner than you might think!” The show will reportedly debut in early 2008.

Rock Of Love

Yes, I'll admit it. My secret addiction is the Rock of Love. The latest news to hit the streets is that Jes and Bret are no longer an item (what? you're kidding me!). This leaves open the possibility that Mr. Michaels would be available for Rock Of Love 2, which is currently casting.

So Much Wrong With This

From RealityBlurred:

A Bunny Ranch brothel worker and HBO Cathouse star says that Jonny Fairplay was drunk and hitting on women backstage before Danny Bonaduce flipped him onto his face.

As a result of his drinking, Rush and Molloy report, “it’s no wonder that Fairplay … landed on his face when Danny tossed him.” Bunny Ranch worker Brooke Taylor says, “Jonny was drinking heavily backstage. He was trying to make out with me and [fellow Ranch-hand] Bunny Love. He tried to put his hand up my dress. He even tried to lick my toe. All the while, he was talking to me about his pregnant girlfriend. Classy.”

Jon Dalton’s pregnant girlfriend is Top Model 4’s Michelle Deighton.

And They Said We Didn't Have A Mold Problem

This is the office I moved into back in March. No one listened to me when I told them the water leak was causing a mold problem. Today they are finally tearing out the walls. The landlord insisted there wasn't a mold problem. What a fucktard!

Fall TV

Does everyone have their Season Passes lined up? I have Survivor, Dancing With The Stars, The Bachelor (yeah... I'm lame), The Office and Dirty Sexy Money all set to record.

What are YOU looking forward to watching this season?

Dear Santa

I want an iPod Touch. Pretty please? I've been really good all year and my current iPod is like 3 years old and I've taken really good care of it and am happy to pass it along to some unfortunate chump who doens't own one yet.

PLEASE!!!!!!

Vegas Here I Come

Woot! I'm going to Vegas! Can. Not. Wait.

Care to join me?

This Made Me Laugh

And that Train Wreck....

Britney.

Sorry folks. But that chick ain't fat. What the hell are people talking about? First they complain that Nicole Richie has an eating disorder and needs to eat something and then when Britney, who is probably a size 2, comes out and looks a little out of shape, they say she's fat? WTF people????!!!

And, from the sounds of it, things are getting pretty interesting in the Spears-Federline custody case. Frankly, neither of those neandrathals deserve to have custody of those innocent children. It's all very, very sad if you ask me. But it still doesn't stop me from wondering what's gonna happen next.

The Juice

So O.J.'s sittin' in jail. Who would have thunk it? I think we've all been waiting like, oh say.... like 14 years or something, for this dude to sit in jail. For something. Anything. And, it almost sounds like those dudes set him up cuz they tape-recorded it and stuff.

It all makes me wonder what the heck Judge Ito is up to these days.....

Hey Losties!

How cool was it that our very favorite Terry O'Quinn won an Emmy last night?

Pathetic Headline of the Day

Study: T-rex could outrun David Beckham

Excuse me, is it a slow news day? Had you forgotten we have men and women DYING in Iraq?

Christmas Idea

If you were wondering what to get me for Christmas, here's an excellent idea:

Work sucks

So now they're hiring a manager for our department. My boss is going to part-time (honestly I think they are slowly phasing her out because she and the prez don't see eye-to-eye), so they need someone to manage the day-to-day shit and deal with strategic planning and budget crap.

Since they've opened up the application process, does this mean I'm SUPPOSED to apply? Is upper-management expecting a qualified person from within to apply (even if secretly they don't want it unless it's a HELL of a lot more money?)

What to do???????????

A Look Back....

So I'm reading this book about the Roosevelt's and the homefront during the war years. Sometimes I have to sit back and think about how much politics have changed in the relatively short time frame of 67 years.

Did you know that FDR did not declare his intention to seek re-election (for his third term)? He let the voters at the Democratic convention nominate him. He never publicly declared he desired a third term.

Did you know that FDR didn't even BEGIN to campaign until October 28th? Just over a week before the country was to vote on the presidency?

I find the above two items completely and utterly amazing; especially given the fact that nowdays, we have people declaring their presidential intentions 2 YEARS before the public will vote for a president.

Sigh... sometimes I wish life could return to simpler times.

From E! :

Carlton Cuse revealed: We aren't changing any of the format of the show. We are just adding the flash forwards as an element. They have made a radio call to a freighter, and there are people on that freighter, and it might be logical to imagine that that storyline will continue... The situation is going to be very intense this year. Charlie wrote on his hand not Penny's boat , and the message he wrote on his hand was very important. It was really funny because the clip at Comic-Con showed Mr. Friendly saying, 'by the time you see this, I'm gonna be dead, but I am telling you it's a shame because whoever is going to come after the Others is going to be a hell of a lot worse than we ever were.' Damon and I were listening to him and sort of nodding our head going, 'That's pretty prophetic.' With Jin and Sun there is a very dynamic situation at work. She's pregnant... the fate of her child, the fate of their marriage, all those questions Damon and I will get to and more this season. Walt will be back. You will see more of Jacob.

Ahh... Lost... how I love you so...

Spoilers:

The [Comic-Con Lost panel] starts off with a clip with Michael Emerson calling the Others a "Rebel Sect."

Also on the clip show "By the time you see this I will be dead," says M.C. Gainey. Voice-over: "The survival of the Island is now at stake." Carlton says Rachel probably won't be on the Island.

Damon and Carlton say don't get too attached to Richard Alpert, because Nestor Carbonell's on CBS' Cane. They announce here that Harold is returning as Michael Dawson, but they tell the questioner they're not talking about how or when he returns.

Carlton says flashbacks and flashforwards are both on the show going forward. "How far forward" and "with whom" are the Q's.

Damon nods furiously [when asked if Jack and Claire will find out they are related].

Damon volunteers this regarding Ben vs. Henry Gale: "They had words."

Carlton, regarding poor crazy Michael, "He took some extreme actions." Michael's story is about the power of the Island to be redemptive. And this won't be a quick pop by Redemption Island; Harold is a series regular. Michael returns early in the fourth season, or so says Damon.

Carlton: "It is our intention to get to Libby's story this year, and we think you will be happy when we finish that." Damon: "There are important things going on in [Danielle's] story, and they have to sync up." They'll do that syncing in this season or next.

Damon: The whole deal with the monster will be definitely answered. Carlton: The monster answer is "not going to be 10 seconds of blank tape."

The promised [Dharma Film] clip is one of the station orientation films, hosted by Marvin Candle under an alias. The footage begins with him getting his makeup done and smoothing down his Dharma labcoat. Bunnies! It's about bunnies! Bunny #15, to be specific. Marvin, who calls himself Dr. Edgar Halifax in this film, identifies it as station six, the Orchid. He says the viewer has probably realized by now that he or she is not working at a mere botanical research unit. He apologizes for making him or her lie to friends and family members about the nature of the work. He mentions something that sounds like "Kasimir effect" and mentions the "unique properties of the Island." Then there's one of Jacob's subliminal messages. It may have been some variation on "as Jacob loves you." Then there's a bunny riot. One of the station's alarms blares, Dr. Halifax/Marvin panics. There's an intercut clip of someone riding a bicycle. The clip is inserted upside-down, and the rider appears to be in the village green of Otherville...And then, amid the chaos (perhaps this is the Incident?), the filmstrip slides off the reel.

Sad Yet Disturbingly Intriguing

Britney Spears' self-arranged photo shoot and tell-all interview with OK! magazine could potentially "kill" her career. According to gossip website TMZ.com, sources claim the singer's behavior during the interview and photo session was "nothing less than a meltdown". During the shoot, the 25-year-old mother-of-two was said to be "completely out of it", and the resulting pictures are "so bad" that publishing them could "kill her career".

The magazine hired two of the best hair and make-up artists in Los Angeles to make Britney look her best, but she refused to let them style her, instead opting for two friends she brought with her to fashion her.

Britney personally called Sara Ivens, the editor-in-chief of the US edition of OK!, last week and said she wanted to do an exclusive interview discussing her divorce from Kevin Federline, her breakdown and her problems with her mother Lynne.

OK! Editor-in-Chief Sarah Ivens said, "OK! Magazine spent a heartbreaking day with Britney Spears and witnessed first-hand an emotional cry for help that will leave you shocked and sad. This week, on newsstands Friday, the truth will be told."

--I need me a copy of that mag!

Disaster In The Making

From Socialite's Life:

Now this is one big, hot mess waiting to happen. And I'd be lying if I didn't say that part of me is so disturbed by the idea of this that I'm secretly dying to watch it. There's a new reality dating series set to hit the U.S. and in the spirit of "Joe Millionaire," the premise is to lead the contestants to believe something very different about the object of their collective affection and then hit them with the truth at the end of the show. Only this time, instead of finding out that Joe isn't rich, it's more along the lines of, "By the way, I have a penis." Originally a UK series, the show was titled, "There's Something about Miriam," and contestants competed in the hopes of dating Miriam, a Mexican 21-year-old model, only to find out in the final episode that Miriam is, in fact, a man. Yikes. Lawyers, on your mark, get set...GO! I have a feeling this is just going to end up a violent, hate-crime filled suing fest with at least one slow-car police chase.

Rick & Steve

This show on Logo is pretty funny. It's about Rick & Steve, who are the happiest gay couple ever. Their friends aren't quite as happy, such as the lesbian couple that goes to Home Depot and fixes things all the time. They are funny because everytime they're driving, they have a pseudo-Melissa Ethridge song playing on the radio called, "I'm a Lesbian." If you've ever been to West Hollywood, you know the "Roses" lady. She is a tiny little Mexican woman who sells roses and advertises her product by calling out, with an incredible rolling rrrrrrr, "rrrrrrrroses???" Anyways, she makes cameo appearances in Rick & Steve, and I think that's great. So this show gets two thumbs up and has been added to TiVo Season Pass.

Advertising

It's a dog eat dog world.

Last week, my client informed us (through Ad Week, not a phone call or meeting) that they were thinking of firing our agency. The technical way to say this is, "We're putting the account into review." So if I haven't been stressed out enough, now I have to spend several months trying to keep this piece of business.

Who cares.

SNL

Maya Rudolph may leave SNL. That would leave, like, two funny people.

Mad Men

This is a new show premiering at 10 on AMC tonight. I work in the ad industry, so I will be sure to watch this.

"It doesn’t take long to get seduced by “Mad Men.”

The arty opening credit sequence sets the mood as cast names whiz by almost too fast to see. A velvet-voiced crooner in the background eases us into a different world--New York in 1960 at the birth of modern advertising.

The camera lingers on leather banquettes and men in sharp suits with short-cropped haircuts. It turns to the bar where an ad man sits drinking, so natty, so hip, so Madison Avenue and so not anywhere else.

It’s a perfect visual memory of an era long gone and much missed.

Then the man, noticing his waiter is smoking Old Gold, calls him over. He's an ad guy. He wants to know why Old Gold, not Lucky Strike. But before the waiter, who is black, can answer, his supervisor appears.

Is there a problem? he asks the advertising man. He tells him the waiter has a bad habit of getting chatty with customers. He apologizes for any affront.

Just like that, the romance is punctured. We’re reminded, in one swift moment, that the very real memory of that time isn’t real at all but as much a construct as the ad campaign the man at the bar is working on.

“Mad Men,” which premieres tonight at 10 on AMC, is good at that. It nails the era's sense of postwar, nuclear-family, can-do optimism, all the while undermining it.

Creator Matthew Weiner, a “Sopranos” veteran, has studied the master -- that would be David Chase -- well.

In “Sopranos,” Chase brilliantly contrasted the ordinariness of Italian family life against the brutality of criminal life.

In “Men,” Weiner flawlessly creates a world that invokes fondest memories of an era, then tests those memories, peeling them back to reveal ugly truths beneath, the ingrained racism, anti-Semitism and sexism that permeated all levels of society during those years."

Inconceiveable!!!!

Hey all you Buttercup fans.... The Princess Bride is 20 years old! I can't believe it!!!
click here and check out the "then and now" of all the major players from the movie.

.....my name is Inigo Montoya.... prepare to die.......

Office Update

NBC announced Monday that the Office's season premiere will be Thursday, Sept. 27 and be an hour long. Actually, the first four episodes will be an hour long. Can't wait!

Game On

On again, off again Van Halen tour is now sounding back on! Billboard is reporting a fall area tour is in the works.

I for one am keeping my fingers crossed. Again.

Makes You Think

By Keith Olbermann

July 4, 2007 | Finally tonight, as promised, a Special Comment on what is, in everything but name, George Bush's pardon of Scooter Libby.

"I didn't vote for him," an American once said, "But he's my president, and I hope he does a good job." That -- on this eve of the Fourth of July -- is the essence of this democracy, in 17 words. And that is what President Bush threw away yesterday in commuting the sentence of Lewis "Scooter" Libby.

The man who said those 17 words -- improbably enough -- was the actor John Wayne. And Wayne, an ultra-conservative, said them when he learned of the hair's-breadth election of John F. Kennedy instead of his personal favorite, Richard Nixon, in 1960.

"I didn't vote for him but he's my president, and I hope he does a good job." The sentiment was doubtlessly expressed earlier. But there is something especially appropriate about hearing it, now, in Wayne's voice: The crisp matter-of-fact acknowledgment that we have survived, even though for nearly two centuries now, our commander in chief has also served, simultaneously, as the head of one political party and often the scourge of all others.

We as citizens must, at some point, ignore a president's partisanship. Not that we may prosper as a nation, not that we may achieve, not that we may lead the world, but merely that we may function.

But just as essential to the 17 words of John Wayne is an implicit trust, a sacred trust: that the president for whom so many did not vote can in turn suspend his political self long enough, and for matters imperative enough, to conduct himself solely for the benefit of the entire republic.

Our generation's willingness to state "We didn't vote for him, but he's our president, and we hope he does a good job" was tested in the crucible of history, and earlier than most.

And in circumstances more tragic and threatening. And we did that with which history tasked us. We enveloped our president in 2001. And those who did not believe he should have been elected -- indeed those who did not believe he had been elected -- willingly lowered their voices and assented to the sacred oath of nonpartisanship. And George W. Bush took our assent, and reconfigured it, and honed it, and shaped it to a razor-sharp point and stabbed this nation in the back with it.

Were there any remaining lingering doubt otherwise, or any remaining lingering hope, it ended yesterday when Mr. Bush commuted the prison sentence of one of his own staffers. Did so even before the appeals process was complete. Did so without as much as a courtesy consultation with the Department of Justice. Did so despite what James Madison -- at the Constitutional Convention -- said about impeaching any president who pardoned or sheltered those who had committed crimes "advised by" that president. Did so without the slightest concern that even the most detached of citizens must look at the chain of events and wonder: To what degree was Mr. Libby told, "Break the law however you wish -- the president will keep you out of prison"?

In that moment, Mr. Bush, you broke that fundamental compact between yourself and the majority of this nation's citizens, the ones who did not cast votes for you.

In that moment, Mr. Bush, you ceased to be the president of the United States. In that moment, Mr. Bush, you became merely the president of a rabid and irresponsible corner of the Republican Party.

And this is too important a time, Sir, to have a commander in chief who puts party over nation. This has been, of course, the gathering legacy of this administration. Few of its decisions have escaped the stain of politics. The extraordinary Karl Rove has spoken of "a permanent Republican majority," as if such a thing -- or a permanent Democratic majority -- is not antithetical to that upon which rests our country, our history, our revolution, our freedoms.

Yet our democracy has survived shrewder men than Karl Rove. And it has survived the frequent stain of politics upon the fabric of government. But this administration, with ever-increasing insistence and almost theocratic zealotry, has turned that stain into a massive oil spill.

The protection of the environment is turned over to those of one political party who will financially benefit from the rape of the environment.

The protections of the Constitution are turned over to those of one political party who believe those protections unnecessary and extravagant and quaint.

The enforcement of the laws is turned over to those of one political party who will swear beforehand that they will not enforce those laws.

The choice between war and peace is turned over to those of one political party who stand to gain vast wealth by ensuring that there is never peace, but only war.

And now, when just one cooked book gets corrected by an honest auditor, when just one trampling of the inherent and inviolable fairness of government is rejected by an impartial judge, when just one wild-eyed partisan is stopped by the figure of blind justice, this president decides that he, and not the law, must prevail.

I accuse you, Mr. Bush, of lying this country into war. I accuse you of fabricating in the minds of your own people a false implied link between Saddam Hussein and 9/11. I accuse you of firing the generals who told you that the plans for Iraq were disastrously insufficient. I accuse you of causing in Iraq the needless deaths of 3,586 of our brothers and sons, and sisters and daughters, and friends and neighbors. I accuse you of subverting the Constitution, not in some misguided but sincerely motivated struggle to combat terrorists, but to stifle dissent. I accuse you of fomenting fear among your own people, of creating the very terror you claim to have fought. I accuse you of exploiting that unreasoning fear, the natural fear of your own people who just want to live their lives in peace, as a political tool to slander your critics and libel your opponents. I accuse you of handing part of this republic over to a vice president who is without conscience and letting him run roughshod over it. And I accuse you now, Mr. Bush, of giving, through that vice president, carte blanche to Mr. Libby to help defame Ambassador Joseph Wilson by any means necessary, to lie to grand juries and special counsel and before a court, in order to protect the mechanisms and particulars of that defamation with your guarantee that Libby would never see prison and, in so doing, as Ambassador Wilson himself phrased it here last night, of becoming an accessory to the obstruction of justice.

When President Nixon ordered the firing of the Watergate special prosecutor Archibald Cox during the infamous "Saturday Night Massacre" on October 20th, 1973, Cox initially responded tersely, and ominously. "Whether ours shall be a government of laws and not of men is now for Congress and, ultimately, the American people."

President Nixon did not understand how he had crystallized the issue of Watergate for the American people. It had been about the obscure meaning behind an attempt to break in to a rival party's headquarters, and the labyrinthine effort to cover up that break-in and the related crimes. And in one night, Nixon transformed it. Watergate -- instantaneously -- became a simpler issue: a president overruling the inexorable march of the law, insisting -- in a way that resonated viscerally with millions who had not previously understood -- that he was the law.

Not the Constitution. Not the Congress. Not the courts. Just him. Just, Mr. Bush, as you did, yesterday.

The twists and turns of Plamegate, of your precise and intricate lies that sent us into this bottomless pit of Iraq; your lies upon the lies to discredit Joe Wilson; your lies upon the lies upon the lies to throw the sand at the "referee" of prosecutor Fitzgerald's analogy, these are complex and often painful to follow and too much, perhaps, for the average citizen. But when other citizens render a verdict against your man, Mr. Bush, and then you spit in the faces of those jurors and that judge and the judges who were yet to hear the appeal, the average citizen understands that, Sir. It's the fixed ballgame and the rigged casino and the prearranged lottery all rolled into one, and it stinks. And they know it.

Nixon's mistake, the last and most fatal of them, the firing of Archibald Cox, was enough to cost him the presidency. And in the end, even Richard Nixon could say he could not put this nation through an impeachment. It was far too late for it to matter then, but as the decades unfold, that single final gesture of nonpartisanship, of acknowledged responsibility not to self, not to party, not to "base," but to country, echoes loudly into history.

Even Richard Nixon knew it was time to resign. Would that you could say that, Mr. Bush. And that you could say it for Mr. Cheney. You both crossed the Rubicon yesterday. Which one of you chose the route no longer matters. Which is the ventriloquist, and which the dummy, is irrelevant. But that you have twisted the machinery of government into nothing more than a tawdry machine of politics is the only fact that remains relevant.

It is nearly July Fourth, Mr. Bush, the commemoration of the moment we Americans decided that rather than live under a king who made up the laws, or erased them, or ignored them -- or commuted the sentences of those rightly convicted under them -- we would force our independence and regain our sacred freedoms.

We of this time -- and our leaders in Congress, of both parties -- must now live up to those standards which echo through our history. Pressure, negotiate, impeach: get you, Mr. Bush, and Mr. Cheney, two men who are now perilous to our democracy, away from its helm.

And for you, Mr. Bush, and for Mr. Cheney, there is a lesser task. You need merely achieve a very low threshold indeed. Display just that iota of patriotism which Richard Nixon showed on August 9th, 1974.

Resign.

And give us someone -- anyone -- about whom all of us might yet be able to quote John Wayne, and say, "I didn't vote for him, but he's my president, and I hope he does a good job."

Lucha Vavoooooom!

If you ever get a chance to go to Lucha Vavoooom, take it. It is like WWE on acid. Strippers, Mexican masked wrestling, dirty sanchez-es, lots and lots of alcohol. I was in the third row and saw plenty of ass (mostly male), a little cock (mostly female?), and almost got run over by midgets that were thrown in the audience. GO!

The Decemberists and Andrew Bird and Band of Horses!

At the Hollywood Bowl tomorrow, and I just got my tickets! Woo!

So....

Without sounding like a Debbie Downer, I just went 16 days straight at work. It was like that documentary from the 80s about the Olympics called "16 Days of Glory." Except it wasn't the Olympics. And it wasn't Glorious.

My job is exciting - who can complain about working for an advertising agency with a videogaming client? - but man, I'm beat. It's been hard to publish any posts.

I am trying to start a band. I found a chick that plays drums and I think that would be cool. Anyone in LA want to join?

Zap A Dog

Remember when you were a kid and your dad had that crazy gizmo that electrocuted your hot dogs instead of cooking them the normal way?

I was one of those unfortunate children whose father bought one of those crazy gizmo's and was forced to consume the most heinous hot dogs ever known to mankind. After electocuting them, they would have these black burnt ends that tasted disgusting. Somehow I still managed to find the whole thing fascinating. Oh, and the part of about the nasty smell. That would be correct.

For those wishing to experience that childhood memory, I bring you the following link Evil Mad Scientist

Fast & Cheap

Trouble getting onto the AllOfMP3 website? Try this instead.

If you were already a member of AllOfMP3, just type in your username and password onto their new site and PRESTO! let the downloading begin!

Blows My Mind

Bush is beyond belief, folks. He just commuted the jail sentence for Scooter Libby. Wow. I'm speechless. Thankfully, these folks aren't:

Harry Reid:
"The President's decision to commute Mr. Libby's sentence is disgraceful. Libby's conviction was the one faint glimmer of accountability for White House efforts to manipulate intelligence and silence critics of the Iraq War. Now, even that small bit of justice has been undone. Judge Walton correctly determined that Libby deserved to be imprisoned for lying about a matter of national security. The Constitution gives President Bush the power to commute sentences, but history will judge him harshly for using that power to benefit his own Vice President's Chief of Staff who was convicted of such a serious violation of law."

Pelosi:
"The President’s commutation of Scooter Libby’s prison sentence does not serve justice, condones criminal conduct, and is a betrayal of trust of the American people. The President said he would hold accountable anyone involved in the Valerie Plame leak case. By his action today, the President shows his word is not to be believed. He has abandoned all sense of fairness when it comes to justice, he has failed to uphold the rule of law, and he has failed to hold his Administration accountable."

Amb. Joe Wilson (whose wife is the outed CIA agent):
"From my viewpoint, the president has stepped in to short circuit the rule of law and the system of justice in our country. In so doing, he has acknowledged Mr. Libby's guilt for, among other things, obstruction of justice, which by definition is covering up for somebody in a crime. By commuting his sentence, he has brought himself and his office into reasonable suspicion of participation in an obstruction of justice. The commutation of (Libby's) sentence in and of itself is participation in obstruction of justice."

John Edwards:
"Only a president clinically incapable of understanding that mistakes have consequences could take the action he did today. President Bush has just sent exactly the wrong signal to the country and the world. In George Bush's America, it is apparently okay to misuse intelligence for political gain, mislead prosecutors and lie to the FBI. George Bush and his cronies think they are above the law and the rest of us live with the consequences. The cause of equal justice in America took a serious blow today."

Obama:
"This decision to commute the sentence of a man who compromised our national security cements the legacy of an Administration characterized by a politics of cynicism and division, one that has consistently placed itself and its ideology above the law. This is exactly the kind of politics we must change so we can begin restoring the American people’s faith in a government that puts the country’s progress ahead of the bitter partisanship of recent years."

Hillary:
"Today's decision is yet another example that this Administration simply considers itself above the law. This case arose from the Administration's politicization of national security intelligence and its efforts to punish those who spoke out against its policies. Four years into the Iraq war, Americans are still living with the consequences of this White House's efforts to quell dissent. This commutation sends the clear signal that in this Administration, cronyism and ideology trump competence and justice."

Mini Earth

This is just way cool!

From Gizmodo:
For those of you who haven't heard of The World, it's an enormous project going on in Dubai. Where they will construct islands, that as a whole will resemble the different parts of our planet.

And today they announced that the design of their first continent is complete. The official name of the area is OQYANA (what?), however you and I would know it better as Australasia. It will be composed of 20 islands spanning 1.8m square feet, and will be the closest to Dubai's mainland, giving it the best views and easiest access to the real world.

We seem to say this every time Dubai announces a crazy engineering endeavor, but as soon as we're done learning Arabic we are so moving there. It's like they ask the coolest 5-year-old what kind of buildings they like, and then build them.

Drool-Worthy

RIP Sopranos

Cut to black.  Thoughts?

This Is Sweet!

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Hustler magazine is looking for some scandalous sex in Washington again -- and willing to pay for it.

"Have you had a sexual encounter with a current member of the United States Congress or a high-ranking government official?" read a full-page advertisement taken out by Larry Flynt's pornographic magazine in Sunday's Washington Post.

It offered $1 million for documented evidence of illicit intimate relations with a congressman, senator or other prominent officeholder. A toll-free number and e-mail address were provided.

Flynt's target this time, if he has one, was not immediately known.



---could it be Cheney??????

New Browser

Anyone using FireFox out there? I just downloaded it and am giving it a try. Would love your opinions!

Say What?

A stage musical about Tammy Faye Bakker is in the works.

Eight Months.

EIGHT freakin' months.

No one's gonna figure it out, so now we have to wait eight months. But damn, that was a good one. I would say one of the best cliffhangers ever. (And that includes the similar Alias cliffhanger when it fast-forwarded two years into Sydney's life. My guess is the Lost cliffhanger will turn out different.)

NOOOOOOOO!!!!

Full House Alert.

Mary-Kate Olsen is joining one of my favorite shows, so I don't know how to react. She will play Tara, a Christian girl living in the Majestic community, and who becomes a love interested to Silas.  She'll be in 10 episodes out of the 15-episode season.

Holy Shit, Kids!!!

Click herefor the EW recap.

Iraq and my Elected Representatives

I called all mine today to tell them NOT to vote for the Iraq funding bill unless it contains a date for withdrawal. I told them they work for us, not President Bush, and we want out of Iraq.

It felt good to make the calls! The people who answered the phones were nice and said they were taking notes. Also, it was tough to get through. The lines were busy.

Summer Reality Round-Up

I'm totally looking forward to Hell's Kitchen!

On the Lot [FOX, May 22 and 24 at 9; then Mondays at 9 and Tuesdays at 8]
The Academy [FOX Reality, May 24, Thursdays at 8]
The Next Best Thing [ABC, May 30, Wednesdays at 8]
Reunited: The Real World Las Vegas [MTV, May 30, Wednesdays at 10]
So You Think You Can Dance [FOX, May 24, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 8]
The Simple Life 5 [E!, Monday, May 28, Sundays at 10]
America’s Got Talent [NBC, May 29 at 9, Tuesdays at 8]
Pirate Master [CBS, May 31, Thursdays at 8]
Hell’s Kitchen 3 [FOX, June 4, Mondays at 9]
Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List [Bravo, June 5, Tuesdays at 10]
American Inventor 2 [ABC, June 6, Wednesdays at 9]
Top Chef 3 [Bravo, June 6, Wednesdays at 10]
Last Comic Standing 5 [NBC, June 13, Wednesdays at 9]
Age of Love [NBC, June 18, Mondays at 10]
Design Star 2 [HGTV, July 22 at 10, Sundays at 9]
Who Wants to be a Superhero 2 [SciFi, July 25, Wednesdays at 9]
Big Brother 8 [CBS, probably July]
Hey Paula [Bravo, summer]

So Long, Terry.

Terry Ryan, author of The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio, has died. Read her obits here and here

10 Greatest Completely Insane TV Shows Of All Time

10. Homeboys In Outer Space (UPN, ‘96-’97)
9. Herman’s Head (FOX, ‘91-’94)
8. Small Wonder (Syndicated, ‘85-’89)
7. Mork & Mindy (ABC, ‘78-’82) (hey, I watched this!)
6. Dinosaurs (ABC, ‘91-’94)
5. Out of This World (Syndicated, ‘87-’91)
4. Cop Rock (ABC, ‘90-’90)
3. Mr. Ed (CBS, ‘61-’66)
2. Alf (NBC, ‘86-’90)
1. Manimal (NBC, ‘83-’83

To read in more detail, head on over to Best Week Ever

Lost Recap

Better late than never.... here's the EW Recap

Fun & Stealthy!

his little universal remote is the newest (secret) weapon in the Ninja's arsenal and we assure you in the right hands it can be used to quickly assassinate dangerously annoying TV shows. Simply point the Ninja Remote at the intended target (a television set) and press the mute button for a few seconds - once the TV mutes the remote is now ready to assume full control of its victim. Innocent bystanders will be frozen with fear (or very animated with anger) as the volume and channel change magically in front of their eyes, seemingly controlled by some mysterious force.
T

Did you hear the one about Dick Cheney?

He's supposedly on the "DC Madam" list that ABC was all over until they suddenly dropped the story. Wonkette has the best reaction:

"There, are you people happy now? Didn’t think so. Do you know why we’re underwhelmed by this rumor? Because even if it’s a fact, which it probably is, there’s no way it would have any impact on Cheney’s “career.” This is a draft-dodging half-human war criminal with a pregnant lesbian daughter who tells senators to fuck themselves and shoots his own friends in the face. Ordering an outcall hooker is positively innocent compared to the well-known things Cheney does every day."

My Name Is Earl

Season finale is tonight.

It's Spring.... Time for the Celebrities to Come Outside

Seriously, I've seen like 84 celebrities this past week. Matthew McConaughey was in Venice Beach, and boy does he look greasy. I saw Paris Hilton, Simon Rex and Cameron Diaz at Coachella. (By the way, Simon, I've seen you naked on the internets.) I saw Dwight's arch nemesis from The Office (Ed Helms) on my street getting food. I'm sure there's more, but I just can't think of them.

Anyways, it's like spring and the celebrity eggs are hatching.

Sicko

Michael Moore's next documentary, SICKO, will be released on June 29th. Cool. You may have heard about his last movie, Fahrenheit 9/11.

Entourage Works It

There will be an entire week between seasons. You heard that correctly. The next season of Entourage begins two weeks after this season ends. Interesting and good.

Top Chef

Top Chef Miami premieres on Bravo June 13!!!

Interesting

I don't watch Law & Order, so I don't care except this is an interesting deal. Two of the three L&O shows are likely to be cancelled by NBC. But that doesn't mean you won't see new episodes, since TNT is probably going to pick at least one of them up. Shows don't jump networks very often, especially from broadcast to cable, so this is one to watch.

Dirrrty

Surprise! FX renewed Dirt. I hate that show. They also renewed The Riches. I hate that show, too. Guess I won't be watching a lot of FX next year.

Lost 3.20 Preview

Episode 3.20: The Man Behind the Curtain (Ben-centric)
Airdate: May 9, 2007

The Man Behind the Curtain is a Wizard of Oz reference and is pointing to the question of who really is in charge of the Others. We will learn more about Jacob next week.

François Chau, who plays Dr. Marvin Candle, revealed in interview: "Yes, Marvin Candle is on the island [in episode 20]. Without giving too much away, I can only say that I have yet to have the chance to work with some of the other characters."

Ben begrudgingly begins to introduce Locke to the secrets of the island, beginning with the mysterious Jacob. Meanwhile, Juliet's secret goes public.

Ben has been in love. We will get a "sense" of it in 2 weeks.

We will see Dharma before the purge and we might see how they repelled the smoke monster with the sonic fence.

I hear we're going to meet Ben's mommy and daddy. We will get much more info about Ben's origins and the origins of the island.

Someone you wouldn't expect to see wearing a Dharma suit will appear in episode 20. There will be a big, epic, shocking scene. We will see more Dharma vans. Roger wasn't the only workman.

More info on the DeDroots soon.

It looks like you'll get more action on Hurley's... van. Producers are currently casting for a "Roger," a working-class janitor in his early forties who is bitter about his place in life but has higher aspirations. The notice says of the character, "He has troubled and complex relationship with his son; he finds himself caught up in a mysterious situation beyond his imaginings; and the actor must not be claustrophobic." Pretty sure this is the skeleton — "Roger Work Man"—from Hurley's episode.

We'll see the Dharma van again, it will have a flashback of sorts and see how it came to be in the jungle. We will also see another Volkswagen product on the island.

Yawn....

Eric & Danielle won the Amazing Race. Boring!!!

End Is In Sight

LOS ANGELES, California (Hollywood Reporter) -- ABC has set an end date for "Lost."

The Emmy-winning adventure series will run for 48 more episodes over three seasons. Each season will consist of 16 episodes, which will air uninterrupted.

"Lost" executive producers/showrunners Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, who have been vocal about setting up an endgame for the show, have signed on to stay for the remainder of the series' run. Their separate new eight-figure deals with "Lost" producer ABC TV Studio include their services on the show as well as multiyear development pacts set to kick in when "Lost" bows out during the 2009-10 season.

"Due to the unique nature of 'Lost,' we knew it would require an end date to keep the integrity and strength of the show consistent throughout and to give the audience the payoff they deserve," ABC Entertainment president Stephen McPherson said. Lindelof said having the end point in sight was "incredibly liberating. Like we've been running a marathon and we actually know where the finish line is for the first time." Lindelof and Cuse said they've had "a road map for the series with all the major mythological milestones and the ending in place" for awhile.

"What we didn't know was how long we had to play the story out," Cuse said. "By defining the endpoint we can now really map out the rest of the series in confidence."

There will be some puzzle play, too. "We sort of view 'Lost' as a mosaic," Cuse said. "Now there are only 48 more tiles that go into that mosaic, and we're figuring out, along with all the other writers, exactly where they all go."

In January, Lindelof and Cuse said that they envisioned the endpoint for "Lost" around episode 100. The agreement with ABC will bring the total number of episodes to 120.

Breakfast Is On Me!

Cool new keyboard waffle maker!!

Scrubs

It may not get renewed.... by NBC. Word is that ABC is going to pick it up!!!

Gilmore Girls

Buh-bye. I'm not going to miss you, but every girl in their 20s that I know will.

MIKA

I'm falling in love with this guy's music. Think Rufus Wainwright channeling Freddie Mercury.

Lost Recap 3.19

Whoa buddy!!! Was that an episode or was that an episode?????

Click here to read the EW recap.

MTV Movie Awards

Sorry, Oscar. MTV does a better job.

Best Movie
» "300"
» "Blades of Glory"
» "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan"
» "Little Miss Sunshine"
» "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest"

Best Performance
» Gerard Butler, "300"
» Johnny Depp, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest"
» Keira Knightley, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest"
» Jennifer Hudson, "Dreamgirls"
» Beyoncé Knowles, "Dreamgirls"
» Will Smith, "The Pursuit of Happyness"

Breakthrough Performance
» Emily Blunt, "The Devil Wears Prada"
» Abigail Breslin, "Little Miss Sunshine"
» Lena Headey, "300"
» Columbus Short, "Stomp the Yard"
» Jaden Smith, "The Pursuit of Happyness"
» Justin Timberlake, "Alpha Dog"

Best Comedic Performance
» Emily Blunt, "The Devil Wears Prada"
» Sacha Baron Cohen, "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan"
» Will Ferrell, "Blades of Glory"
» Adam Sandler, "Click"
» Ben Stiller, "Night at the Museum"

Best Kiss
» Cameron Diaz & Jude Law, "The Holiday"
» Will Ferrell & Sacha Baron Cohen, "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby"
» Columbus Short & Meagan Good, "Stomp The Yard"
» Mark Wahlberg & Elizabeth Banks, "Invincible"
» Marlon Wayans & Brittany Daniel, "Little Man"

Best Villain
» Tobin Bell, "Saw III"
» Jack Nicholson, "The Departed"
» Bill Nighy, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest"
» Rodrigo Santoro, "300"
» Meryl Streep, "The Devil Wears Prada"

Best Fight
» Jack Black & Héctor Jiménez vs. Los Duendes (Wrestling Match), "Nacho Libre"
» Gerard Butler vs. "The Uber Immortal" (The Spartan/Persian Battle), "300"
» Sacha Baron Cohen vs. Ken Davitian (Naked Wrestle Fight), "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan"
» Will Ferrell vs. Jon Heder (Ice Rink Fight), "Blades of Glory"
» Uma Thurman vs. Anna Faris (Super Girl Fight), "My Super Ex-Girlfriend"

Best Summer Movie You Haven't Seen Yet
» "Evan Almighty" (June 22)
» "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer" (June 15)
» "Hairspray" (July 20)
» "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" (July 13)
» "Rush Hour 3" (August 10)
» "Transformers" (July 4)

mtvU Best Filmmaker On Campus
» Robert Dastoli, "Southwestern Orange County vs. The Flying Saucers"(University of Central Florida)
» Maria Gigante, "Girls Room" (Columbia College, Chicago)
» Josh Greenbaum, "Border Patrol" (University of Southern California)
» Alexander Poe, "Please Forget I Exist" (Columbia University)
» Andrew Shipsides, "Bottleneck" (Savannah College of Art & Design)

Before they were on Lost

Check it out HERE.

Blur to Reunite

Based on The Good, The Bad & The Queen, this sounds like a great idea.

Lost Theory

I found an interesting theory about Juliet on PopCandy's Lost message board. Makes sense to me.

3. okgirl_ok wrote:

Wait, I've been thinking about this. let's not sell Juliet short on her deception abilities. She totally lied to Sun about the father. Why wouldn't she? She left a message to Ben that said the same news she'd given Sun, but if that was true, she's not getting off that island, baby. She'd want to tell Sun the same thing so her story would be able to corroborate. BUT, if she found out that Sun got pregnant OFF the island and LIED about it, then her experience about Claire would tell her- since the baby survived - she can settle her deal with Ben and get her butt gone. She's just making it look like she's fixing the problem and setting herself up to "Save" Sun from the island's conception-death problem.

Forger those others and that they still won't be able to get pregnant, she's every woman for herself. Plus the double bonus of getting to make Sun very happy about Jun being the father.

Why would Juliet say anything other than that Sun got pregnant on the island? She needs to prove that hero factor to everyone - otherwise, she's stuck there, baby.

Coachella Weekend

I'll start off by saying that I am exhausted. I battled 180,000 people, 115 degree temperatures, dust blowing in the wind, congested traffic (LA to Palm Springs in... six hours??? What?). But it was all worth it for one reason... The Music.

Friday didn't turn out quite as I'd hoped. Instead of getting there at 4pm, we got there at 8pm. It was enough time to catch Interpol (I barely remember), Brazilian Girls (fun as hell!) and Bjork (shoot-me-in-the-head boring). The highlight for me was being messed up out of my mind and falling on top of two enormous bodyguard-sized men watching Interpol as I navigated to Brazilian Girls. I fell on top of their heads and landed on their backpack. In my non-sober state, I thought I had fallen on top of their baby. I seriously thought I killed a baby.

Afterwards, went to the GQ Lounge and then called every fast food joint in the Greater Palm Springs area at 4am until we found a Jack in the Box.

Saturday. Still didn't make it to the show as early as we'd hoped, but that's probably good because it was like going to a concert on Planet Mercury. It was fucking hot! Marc had a little "episode" and we spent an hour or two in the ATT Air Conditioned Tent. Sweet relief. Besides that, we saw some incredible acts.

We saw a few minutes of Sparklehorse. They had an anemic crowd, which kind of sucks. Everyone looked like they'd smoked too much pot and were barely there.

Peter Bjorn and John - Due to Marc's "sode," we only caught a song from a faraway tent, but they are fun pop for sure. Love that whistling song!

New Pornographers - Great musicians, their original music really translates well to a live setting. Only problem: They talk too much. And they are not comedians. Stick with the music.

LCD Soundsystem - They were fun in one of the tents, but we only watched 2 songs since we had to go check out...

Gotan Project - They mix tango and electronica, and it was close to perfection. Get this CD now.

Kings of Leon and Travis put in good shows, but neither band really "does it" for me.

Chili Peppers, just what you'd expect. I think I saw the same concert in college.

The Good, the Bad and the Queen - I love Damon from Blur and Gorillaz, but this was just kind of a deressing, buzz kill.

THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE NIGHT: ARCADE FIRE. This will go down as a legendary performance (think U2 at Live Aid). Their first notes caused a frenzy in the crowd, eventally swallowing up the whole of Coachella. This is electric, mood-altering music. Brilliant.

Ended the night, once again, at the GQ Lounge. They served drinks until 4am!!

Sunday. Another good day, and it felt like we were back on Earth as the temperatures fell to a cool 98 degrees.

The Roots - kind of loud. Lily Allen - Totally cute pop. Amos Lee - good singer/songwriter. Nothing revolutionary but enetertaining (think Gaven DeGraw).

Jose Gonzales. Love him. Second time I've seen him. So mellow, but what a voice.

Willie Nelson - I bet I remember as much of this show as Willie did. It was his birthday.

Damien Rice - This was the show of the night. If he recreated his albums in a live setting, it would be good but mellow. Luckily, this boy ROCKS out live. The crowd went wild, so it's too bad he only got to play for 30 minutes. I will be seeing him again. Brilliant.

RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE. I literally thought I was going to die. The crowd went nuts. Supposedly the largest crowd in Coachella history (180,000 they say?). It was a historic event, and I hope these guys get together for real.

That was it! Now to bed.

Escape Goat

The Office. That show just cracks me up. And Jim imitating Dwight? Was that the best or what?

Lost 3.18 Recap

Click Here to read the EW Recap

Lost Spoilers & Episode Titles

Whoo boy, we've got spoilers!! Read on, Losties.... read on.....

Episode 3.18: D.O.C. (Jin/Sun-centric)
Airdate: April 25, 2007

Damon and Carlton made a point to mention that the father of Sun's baby could be Jin, Jae Lee, or a mystery person. Apparently, some people thought Jae Lee was murdered. Penny sent the parachutist. Damon and Carlton do not refer to her as Naomi.Naomi will be explained further in "D.O.C." More of Juliet's motives will be shown in "D.O.C."

The initials in the title stand for "date of conception."

Episode 3.19: The Brig (Locke-centric)
Airdate: May 2, 2007

Episode 3.20: The Man Behind the Curtain (Ben-centric)
Airdate: May 9, 2007

Ben begrudgingly begins to introduce Locke to the secrets of the island, beginning with the mysterious Jacob. Meanwhile, Juliet's secret goes public. Guest starring are M.C. Gainey as Mr. Friendly/Tom, Tania Raymonde as Alex, Andrew Divoff as Mikhail, Nestor Carbonell as Richard Alpert, Marsha Thomason as Naomi, Sterling Beaumon as young Ben, Jon Gries as Roger Linus, Carrie Preston as Emily, Doug Hutchison as Horace, Samantha Mathis as Olivia and Madeline Carroll as Annie.

Ben has been in love. We will get a "sense" of it in 2 weeks.

We will see Dharma before the purge and we might see how they repelled the smoke monster with the sonic fence.

We're going to meet Ben's mommy and daddy. We will get much more info about Ben's origins and the origins of the island.

Someone you wouldn't expect to see wearing a Dharma suit will appear in episode 20. There will be a big, epic, shocking scene. We will see more Dharma vans. Roger wasn't the only workman.

More info on the DeDroots soon.

Episode 3.21: Greatest Hits (fka "Truth about Lying") (Charlie-centric)
Airdate: May 16, 2007

While Jack devises a plan to do away with “The Others” once and for all, Sayid uncovers a flaw in “The Others’” system that could lead to everyone’s rescue. But it requires Charlie to take on a dangerous task that may make Desmond’s premonition come true.

Episodes 3.22 and 3.23: Through the Looking Glass (Jack-centric, two-hour season finale)
Airdate: May 23, 2007 from 9 to 11 p.m.

Joss Stone

Have I mentioned how much I love her new album? Definitely worth downloading!!! And, speaking of Ms. Stone... she'll be performing on Dancing With the Stars Tuesday evening. That should be Tivo-worthy!

On My Playlist

Lots of new music the last week!!

New albums by.... Bright Eyes, Arctic Monkeys, Nine Inch Nails, Wilco, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club), Travis, Maximo Park, Rufus Wainwright

So far, loving Bright Eyes, BRMC and Maximo Park! Haven't got to the rest yet.

Go Crow!

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Karl Rove's debate with singer Sheryl Crow and producer Laurie David about global warming heated the atmosphere at a black-tie Washington dinner.

On the eve of Earth Day, Crow and "Inconvenient Truth" producer David walked over to the presidential adviser's table at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner Saturday night at the Washington Hilton. Their differences on global warming quickly bubbled over, the Washington Post reported Sunday. "I am floored by what I just experienced with Karl Rove," David said later. "I went over to him and said, I urge you to take a new look at global warming. He went zero to 100 with me. ... I've never had anyone be so rude." Rove said: "She came over to insult me and she succeeded." As the debate intensified, Crow tried to calm things down but was drawn into the debate with Rove instead.

"You work for me," she told Rove, according to the Post column "The Reliable Source." "No," was his response. "I work for the American people." Heather Lylis, a spokeswoman for Crow and David's global warming tour, said Sunday that Crow's response for Rove was: "Yes, and I'm an American citizen

Celeb Sighting

Are you ready? Because this is a good one.

Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin. Oh yeah! They were like 2 feet away from me waiting for a table at Katsuyah, a sushi joint in Brentwood. She looked great in black with long blond hair. He looked scruffy and indescrete in a hoodie.

Brotherly Love

EW Recap:

For me, Desmond's groan said it all. It came at the climax of last night's outing of Lost, prior to the awful choice the episode had been building toward: Should the time-scrambled Scot sacrifice Charlie's life for a chance at being reunited with Penelope, or should he put the Hobbity rocker's life and well-being ahead of his own self-interest and once again save him from predestined death? It was a damnable dilemma, and it gave rise to an existential growl congested with resignation, fury, self-loathing, and more. It spoke of being stuck between courage and cowardice, desire and duty, free will and fate — the clutch of tricky themes upon which Catch-22 was built. It also spoke on behalf of an episode heavy-laden with deep thoughts and ominous subtext encoded in Biblical and literary citations, comic book references, and perhaps the most provocative hidden clue in the show's history. It's enough to make your brain explode — or implode, as is the case on Lost. And it puts me in a catch-22 jackpot of my own: How far should I take this? Too far, and I risk generating unintended rancor toward a show that invites enough frustration as it is. Not far enough, and I risk not giving the show the engagement it deserves. What to do? What to freakin' do?

To be clear, this was one very amusing episode of Lost — that is, once you got past the opening sequence, in which Charlie tripped one of Rousseau's traps, took an arrow through the neck, gurgled up some blood and died in Desmond's arms while Hurley and Jin looked on in shell-shocked horror. I was totally taken aback by the violence but quickly recovered and realized that surely it must be a dream, which was sorta true — it was actually one of Desmond's precognitive flashes of the future, one that included glimpses of a blinking red beacon in the night sky, Jin (and then Hurley) pulling up a cable from the sand, and, most provocatively, a pair of legs dangling from a tree. Desmond's heart skipped — could this be Penelope, descending from the sky and bringing hope of rescue? Thus motivated to make sure that his vision would become a reality, Desmond began to round up all the participants that this scene needed. ''You been eating those mushrooms Jack warned us about?'' quipped Hurley when Desmond came to recruit him. Then the lumpy Lotto winner cottoned to the sitch: ''This is future crap, isn't it?''

It sure was. But the execution was far from shoddy. ''Catch 22'' did a fine job at capturing the experience of Desmond's flashes and clearly telling the audience how they worked. The former Hatchman explained that it was like ''a jigsaw puzzle, only I don't have all the pieces.'' Up until now, Desmond has been leveraging his inside knowledge of the infinite to frustrate Fate's obsessive interest in planting Charlie in Boone Hill. But this time, Desmond believed that saving the ex-junkie's hide would come at a price too precious to pay, namely a possible reunion with Penelope; apparently, if you alter one piece in this jigsaw picture, you risk changing the picture on the box. Hence, Desmond's double bind. Yeah, I know: kinda contrived — unless, of course, Desmond has good reason to believe Penelope would come looking for him. To wit: What if, in the new timeline that has been created by Desmond's quantum leap earlier this season, he jotted down as much of his Island experience as he could remember and arranged to have it sent to Penelope prior to embarking on his sailboat race?

Illogical or otherwise, I decided to roll with it, and so did Hurley, Jin, and Charlie, although none of them were hip to the awful twist involved in questing to find this newcomer from the sky. En route to Charlie's date with destiny, a fine time was had by all. We saw this fab four whistling the famous tune from The Bridge on the River Kwai, sharing ghosts stories around the campfire, debating who's faster, Superman or the Flash — comic gold. Desmond's vision began clicking into place, the necessary events falling like dominos. They found the Cable, the super-size power line extending from an underwater sonar system to the now-destroyed Dharma station the Flame. And after a helicopter crashed into the ocean, they saw the red beacon, falling from the sky. Penelope's here, thought Desmond. In the jungle, a backpack was found containing clue fodder for theorists: a satellite phone with a seemingly of-the-moment menu (but it's 2004 in the Lostverse, not 2007 — right?); a copy of Joseph Heller's novel Catch-22, the darkly comic anti-war novel that coined the titular phrase — except that the book was in Portuguese (connection: the guys in the last scene of last season, scanning for electro magnetic anomalies for Penelope — they were speaking Portuguese); and inside the book, a copy of the picture snapped of Desmond and Penelope prior to their breakup (but only one copy of that picture is supposed to exist, and Desmond has it — right?).

And then, the moment of decision arrived. Charlie tripped the wire, Rousseau's trap activated, and Desmond issued his agonizing groan: ''Arrrghhh — Charlie! Duck!'' And with that, Desmond...leapt at Charlie, knocked him down, saved his life, and according to Desmond's personal Theory of Relativity, the future shuffled its cards anew and recast the parachutist they soon found hanging from a tree — a young woman named Naomi, according to the press notes provided by ABC. She wasn't Penelope, but since she did mumble Desmond's name; maybe she works for Penelope and has been searching for him. Perhaps she'll regain consciousness and tell us more. (And having already seen next week's episode, I can tell you that she will. And that what she has to say is pretty...well, deadly.)

Why did Desmond ultimately choose Charlie over Penelope? Some illumination was provided by the flashback. Going into this episode, there was rampant speculation that we would learn about Desmond's days in the Scottish army. Instead, we got a story about Desmond's days at a wine-making monastery. Yup: It seems that prior to meeting Penelope, Desmond wanted to be a monk. He believed he had been given ''a calling.'' Reason to be dubious Number One: He received said calling after he woke up from a night of heavy drinking, in the middle of the street, with Brother Campbell standing above him. Reason to be dubious Number Two: Conveniently, said calling came one week prior to the day he was supposed to marry his then-girlfriend of six years, Ruth.

The early flashback scenes echoed with resonances to Lost episodes past. When Ruth accused Desmond of cold feet, I recalled how Jack struggled with jitters in the days before his wedding to Sarah. When Brother Campbell commended Desmond on completing his vow of silence as part of his monastery initiation, I recalled that Locke had a sentence of silence that was part of his reconnection process with the Island. And when Brother Campbell told Desmond that he was ''one of us,'' of course, I thought of last week's Juliet episode, entitled ''One of Us.'' All this in the wake of the most recent Desmond episode, in which his bid to get a respectable job with Penelope's father mirrored the almost-forgotten season 1 episode in which a smack-addled, post-Driveshaft Charlie tried to go straight by working for his girlfriend's Dad. Weird how this one character mirrors and twins a broad swath of others, from Jack to Locke to Charlie. Worth a future Doc Jensen theory, perhaps.

It's clear from the flashbacks that from an early age, Desmond has been driven by a desire for belonging and validation. At the same time, he also suffers from a profound case of ''I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For''-itus. I'd love to know in a future episode what role Desmond's early life played in the formation of this personality; in his last episode, we were told he was left to raise his bothers after the death of his father. What happened there? (And why do I have a hunch that the Lost-cited book The Brothers Karamazov — about four brothers and a dead dad — might have something to do with it?). Whatever the cause of his restlessness, Desmond seems chronically incapable of staying engaged, on mission, committed, for a prolonged period of time before something in him breaks down and spurs him elsewhere, usually into the bottom of a bottle. The lesson that Brother Campbell believed he needed to learn was the value of personal sacrifice, a lesson which the Liam Neeson sound-alike illustrated for Desmond by citing the famous Biblical story in which God asked Abraham to kill his son Isaac as an offering. Abraham was torn, but was willing to do it — and at the last second, got a deus ex machina reprieve from the Lord himself. Talk about mirroring and symmetry: You can find this Biblical catch-22 in...Genesis, chapter 22.

In the end, Desmond couldn't cut it as a monk. The God/Abraham story bugged him, and besides, he had serious doubts about his own character. And so it was that he got himself fired from the monastery/winery after being caught sampling the product. But Brother Campbell saw the bigger picture, too; he told Desmond that he was surely being called to something, but it definitely wasn't monkhood. Of course, we were left to question Brother Campbell's own character thanks to a blink-and-you-miss-it Easter egg of monumental significance. There, on Campbell's desk, was a picture of him and the woman we know as Ms. Hawking — the creepy antique-store lady with the ouroboros pin (a snake chasing its own tail) who, in the last Desmond ep, seemed to know all about his life, past, present, and Island future. What's the connection between the two? Has Desmond's life been orchestrated and manipulated from the very beginning? What was Campbell's true agenda for bringing Desmond into the monastic fold — to simply impress upon him a lesson about sacrificing his self-interest for the sake of other people, the greater good, or the higher power...

...or was it to facilitate his meet-cute introduction to none other than Penelope Widmore? Turned out that her father is/was a rather generous customer/supporter of the winery/monastery. Which begs the question: How much does Papa Widmore really know about Desmond? Is there some ''Secret Order of the Ouroboros'' at work, shaping the destiny of the world?

Speaking of snakes, I suppose we should talk about Sawyer and Kate playing beach blanket bingo, which I'm sure pleased all the SawKat 'shippers out there. It was exactly the kind of reconnection the con man has been aching for since the Hydra Station hanky-panky — especially after eyeballing Kate in her thong, a rousing sight which led to the hilarious request for some ''afternoon delight,'' and even more hilarious, his offer of making a mix tape to get it. However, Sawyer would eventually learn that Kate's late-night booty call might not have been all about him; earlier that evening, she had flirted with Jack to no avail, her oatmeal spoon seduction apparently not enough to entice the good doctor away from Juliet. This revelation put Sawyer in a double bind of his own: At what price nooky? Does Kate really dig him — or is he merely a consolation prize? And does he really want to know? In the end, he risked rejection and asked her to make sure she knows her own heart, and made his own feelings perfectly clear by giving her the next best thing to a mix tape he could find (or steal) on the beach: Bernard's copy of Phil Collins' greatest hits. (Bernard! He lives!)

Now: If I were to stop there, I would have offered you a perfectly serviceable recap of ''Catch 22,'' minus some details here and there. (Don't flame me about Jack's tattoos — I asked the producers about it, and they claim they know nothing about any new arm art on the guy.) In the end, the episode was an intriguing, clever, altogether entertaining outing of Lost that didn't necessarily offer much in the way of answers or offer the same mythic wallop as last week's Juliet episode, but it did provide some revealing insights into Desmond and began to set the stage for the endgame of the season. We need not take it any further.

And yet, we could. We could take it wayyy further. For example:

The Superman/Flash Debate Could this be a clue that foreshadows future events or illuminates past mythology? Since the early '60s, Superman and the Flash have raced each other several times for charity's sake — and to paraphrase Jack's line from last night, ''sooner or later, something always goes wrong.'' In the first race, sinister crime syndicates kidnapped the Flash during the race and replaced him with an impostor. (I'm telling you: Someone — Jack, Locke, Charlie, Desmond, someone — ain't who they currently claim to be on this show. I know it!) In the second race, Superman and the Flash raced to ''the end of the universe,'' only to learn that it was an elaborate trap (''a long con,'' per Lost) staged by super-villains hell-bent on killing the Flash. (Poor Flash! He's like the Charlie of superheroes!) Speaking of the end of the universe...

Rousseau's arrows; Ms. Hawking and her ouroboros; and Desmond's recurring commitment issues There is a notion in mythology and philosophy dating back to ancient Greece and Egypt known as eternal return, or what Friedrich Nietzsche called eternal recurrence. The idea: Time isn't linear, but cyclical (symbolized by the ouroboros), and everything and everyone essentially repeats the dramatic arc of their lives, over and over again, albeit in different ways and in different forms. For example: Desmond's broken relationship with Ruth + Desmond's broken relationship with Penelope + Desmond's catchphrase ''See you in another life, brother!'' = eternal recurrence. But here's where it gets interesting. It seems that recent theories about the birth and inevitable death of the universe allow for the possibility of time travel and various forms of ''eternal returns.'' These are complex ideas — ''Big Crunch,'' ''Time Reversal,'' and other notions advanced by Lost-cited egghead Stephen Hawking — and I'm not even going to try to summarize them. But they all utilize a few core concepts, including what physicists refer to as ''the arrows of time.'' Look 'em up.

The Bridge on the River Kwai and Catch-22 Actually, I have never seen the former, and never read the latter. But did you know that the famous whistling tune from Kwai actually had lyrics back in the day? It's true. Unfortunately, we can't print them, because they're all about...Hitler's testicles. Specifically, how Hitler and all his right-hand men either had only one testicle or no testicles at all. I could apply this to Ben and the Others, but in the name of good taste, let us note that Kwai and Catch-22 both share similar themes concerning the madness of war, and move on to...

The noodle cooker: Ruth and Naomi In ''Catch 22,'' the characters Ruth and Naomi have nothing to do with each other. But in The Bible, they are the stars of the Book of Ruth. Well, it just so happens that the book right before Ruth is the Book of Judges. The very last story in the Book of Judges is the story of a war among the tribes of Israel. The bad guy in this story: the Tribe of Benjamin. The war started over a murder that the other tribes believed needed to be avenged; it ended with the near-obliteration (''The Purge,'' perhaps?) of the Benjaminites. Here's where it gets creepy: In the aftermath, the people of Israel felt badly about wiping out Benjamin's people. So they decided to repopulate his tribe by forcing the women from another city to join the tribe of Benjamin. You know: to make babies and stuff.

What does this foreshadow for Lost? I think it means that war is coming to the beach. Castaways vs. Others. Survival of the species. At long last: Lord of the Flies time, people.

Or, to quote forebodingly from the bard himself, Phil Collins:

I can feel it coming in the air tonight...

Hold on...

Hold on...

Crang!

(That was a menacing guitar sound.)

I have next week off. See you in two.

And PS: Thanks to all for your well wishes for my wife and I. We were/are very moved, very appreciative. Next time we speak, we'll have news for you.

Serious Lost Spoilers!

Juliet is up to no good. There's going to be a Goodwin story in the future, although it's hard to determine if they are joking. Rachel may not have had the cancer come back... Ben's folder may have been a lie, MAY.

Let's just say the end of the season features a showdown between Jack and Locke — a showdown long anticipated and a showdown with an extremely significant outcome for the future of the castaways.

I hear we're going to meet Ben's mommy and daddy. We will get much more info about Ben's origins and the origins of the island

We will see Dharma before the purge and we might see how they repelled the smoke monster with the sonic fence

I'm told there will be at least five deaths on Lost during the month of May

Idol Chatter

Now. Finally! We can get on with the REAL competition.

Jay Watching

So I have this cool new office with a window. The best part so far? Watching a pair of blue jays build a nest! There is also a big fat squirrel who runs around the trees each afternoon. Anyhow, tomorrow I am bringing in some lint from the dryer and some dog fur so the Jays can build a pimped-out nest!!

Lost loses the flashbacks...

for one episode. I wonder if it will just be set in a different time period, like, say, the 70s?

Lost 3.16 Recap

One of the best EW recaps ever!!!!!

Click Here

Pet Food Recall

In all seriousness folks, PLEASE pay attention to what you are feeding your pets. Read the labels, check the websites for updates on recalls and question everything!!!

Thank god I had the presence of mind to NOT feed my cats any Nutro canned food. I had purchased some last week thinking it would be okay since they weren't on the list. However, there was a little voice telling me to NOT feed it to them because other Nutro foods were recalled. THANK GOD I DIDN'T FEED THEM THE CANNED NUTRO FOOD!!!!!! Yesterday that exact food was added to the list.

And, to further piss me off, get this!!!!

So now it looks like we could be moving from a FDA scandal to an SEC investigation scandal. Insider trading is generally not very well received by the SEC. The latest update -- the first to involve its Ontario plant -- comes amid news that the chief financial officer of Menu Foods Income Fund sold nearly half his units in the pet food maker less than three weeks before it announced its massive product recall, according to insider trading reports. Let's hope the SEC is more serious about their work than the FDA, who seem uninterested in protecting consumers and more occupied with providing shelter to big business.

There is something very, very curious about this entire recall and I pray more animals and families do not suffer needless losses because of the greed and ineptness that is going on with these foods!!!!

Guilty Pleasure Bands

According to Rolling Stone:

1. Rush
2. E.L.O.
3. Journey
4. ABBA
5. Chicago
6. Boston
7. Foreigner
8. Bread
9. Bon Jovi
10. New Edition
11. The Monkees
12. Motley Crue
13. STYX
14. Eddie Money
15. Simply Red
16. Kelly Clarkson
17. America
18. Wham
19. R.E.O. Speedwagon
20. Poison
21. Lionel Richie
22. Kansas
23. Air Supply
24. Hall & Oates
25. Britney Spears

There is nothing pleasurable about Britney. And who is Bread??

Lost 3.16 Preview

Episode 3.16: One of Us (Juliet-centric)
Airdate: April 11, 2007

Not only will we find out how Juliet came to the island, but we'll learn why she stuck around and the reason her people gassed her. And unlike some of the show's other "answers," these make perfect sense in the context of the overall narrative. We'll also discover that: Claire's kidnapping didn't exactly go as planned; Juliet carried on an affair with an Other whose name wasn't Ben or Henry; There are real feelings between Sawyer and Kate. I know because there's a moment between the two of 'em that made me go all misty-eyed and sniffly, and that's never happened to me while watching these two before; Sun's fetus has bigger problems than figuring out who its daddy is.

Jack's joyous reunion is cut short when his fellow survivors realize that an Other is accompanying him; a mysterious illness strickens Claire.

On the UK Show "Richard and Judy," Carlton Cuse revealed that the Charlie "problem" would be resolved in episode 16. [Note: It is unknown he was referring to the death premonition or Charlie's attack on Sun.]

Which Entourage Are You?

Go here and take the quiz.

By the way, I'm "smart and sweet, just like Eric—just don't let anyone take advantage of you."

No Way!!!

The Real World: Vegas is reuniting for six episodes!!! Oh My God! This is the best news, and now I can finally tell my story again about seeing Trischelle make out with Andy Dick at a gay bar many years ago.

Pearl Jam Tour

For fun. Not for a record. Maybe I'll finally check out one of the best bands out there.

Human Giant

Ever asked what would be on the worst mix tape ever? Find out on MTV's new show Human Giant. I saw clips at work a few months back and it is hilarious. The best part is the end, when the loser (winner?) is forced to walk around town with a gigantic GHETTO BLASTER playing the worst mix tape of the episode. Yah!

Hike

I went on a hike in Malibu last Friday. Didn't see a soul for four hours, but saw Jake Gyllenhaal on the way down with his pouch and some mysterious girl. Reese?? I couldn't tell.

Grindhouse II

Well, not really. But it bombed (why?) so they are talking about showing each movie separately in some theaters. Nah. Don't do it. The thing works so well together. I'm telling you... it redefines a night out at the movie. This is good shit, kids. Not for mom and dad, but good shit.

Superbad

I saw a preview for this comedy before Grindhouse (it was one of the REAL trailers). I also saw one for I Now Pronounce You Larry & Chuck or whatever it's called. Larry & Chuck looks stupid and no one laughed at the trailer. No one has heard of Superbad, but it looked hilarious! It stars Michael Cera from Arrested Development (seriously, the cast of this show should be in every comedy), and I'm glad to see he's getting work. It opens in the summer, I think, so make sure to get your ticket on Fandango now!

Brothers & Sisters

Anyone watch this? Quite good! I missed Rachel Griffiths. I didn't miss Calista Flockhart. But both are actually really good in this show. I'll watch a few more and make sure it wasn't just a one night stand for me, but I can see myself adding another Season Pass.