Wednesday, April 30, 2008

March Round-Up

Are you kidding me? It's almost May? How is that possible?

Well, let's look back at March, back when the year still seemed fresh.

Movies Seen: Twelve, with none in a theater. None. That's a damn shame right there. I think my favorite was "Enchanted," in that I really enjoyed it; it wasn't a masterpiece, but it was fun. As someone who has an almost visceral reaction to classic Disney movies (I usually start crying the minute the opening credits begin, don't ask me why) there was really no way I wouldn't like it. I just wish it ended about 10 minutes sooner than it did (and the old ladies in the deleted scenes on the DVD's extras summed up my feelings about that ending perfectly, which is probably why they cut that moment out). My least favorite was "Beowulf," unless it was supposed to be a comedy, in which case, it was hilarious.

Books Read: Only two. I finally finished "Stumbling on Happiness," which I really enjoyed when I read it, but promptly forgot most of the insights found in the book the minute I put it down, which tends to be my problem with most of the non-fiction I read. The other was "Adverbs" by Daniel Handler, the guy who writes the Lemony Snicket books. I haven't read a lot of books by people I know (or knew; I knew him during high school) but this one had a lot less of the "I wonder if any of this is based on anyone I know?" kind of thing that his book "The Basic Eight" did. (I basically spent that whole book pondering who he had based all the high schoolers in the story on. Some were incredibly easy since he only changed, like, one letter in their names.) But that aside, I can't say I really enjoyed "Adverbs." It was one of those books that's so focused on being clever, with overlapping characters and a confusing narrative, that it just felt like a chore to read, with no real pay-off for being so difficult.

Fancy Dinners Out: Four. One was another birthday dinner at La Traviata (this one for my dad). Another was a friend's birthday dinner at Perbacco, which was tasty and an all around fun evening, although I think I have come to the conclusion that I just don't like risotto that much. Another was Joe's of Westlake, although that's not really all that fancy; kinda old-school fancy (really old school). And finally I gave Farmer Brown another shot, and two strikes they're out, unfortunately. We stuck to appetizers this time, and they were cold, and bland, and in some cases, not really how they were described on the menu. Food coming out cold is really, really amateurish, and that's happened both times I've been there. It's too bad because they have some interesting cocktails and some incredibly good strawberry rhubarb pie. If I ever do go back, I'm just having a drink and that pie.

Live Shows Seen: None

Shoes Bought: Two pairs. The first was this pair, which were on sale for really cheap, so don't think I'd pay over 40 bucks for those (even though I do think they're super cute). The second pair was a pair of red satin flats by Steve Madden, kind of a combo between a sneaker and a ballet flat. I wore them once and they tore in about five places. I can't find a picture of them anywhere, probably because they are a total embarrassment, and not for sale anymore. So I exchanged them for these, which were the closest thing I could find to a relatively stylish walking shoe. And they really are quite comfy, even if they make my feet stink to high heaven when I wear them without socks...

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

No Fu-Fu-Fu-Fooling

Def Leppard was on "Dancing With the Stars" tonight. Don't ask me.

Monday, April 28, 2008

We Hate Polska/Polska Kielba-a-a-sa...

(Sung to the tune of Barry Manilow's "Copacabana.")

This week's reality TV locals post is now up on SFist!

"Top Chef," you're working on my last nerve...

Sunday, April 27, 2008

It's Garbo's Salary!

This week's Tube Tops is now up on the SFGate Culture Blog!

Here's another tip: Gary Coleman is going to be on "Divorce Court" this Thursday and Friday. The story of his "marriage" just gets better and better!

Thursday, April 24, 2008

The Line-Up



For those without TiVo or TiFauxs, note that "30 Rock" has been moved to a new time, swapping with "Scrubs." So, "30 Rock" is now at 9:30 and "Scubs" is now at 8:30.

Got it?

Good.

Also, there's a new episode of "Lost" tonight as well, and it's also moved times. It's now on at 10pm, which I'm kind of annoyed by. Not because it's late and I'm old and I'll fall asleep (although, who am I kidding, that's bound to happen) but because I've been enjoying the season so much, having to wait until 10 to see a new episode is a bit of torture in my primetime line-up.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

It's Kind of Easy Being Green



Today is Earth Day. We all know the planet is going to hell in a hand basket, and some "green efforts" seem more for the benefit of making us feel better than actually making a difference. But here are three relatively easy things to do that, I hope, can help, especially if everyone does them.

Use recycled toiler paper. I know, some of that recycled stuff is pretty harsh, but some brands have gotten a lot better. I use Green Forest, which is luckily stocked at my corner stores, and my ass feels fine. I really don't understand why all toilet paper isn't at least partially made from recycled paper at this point...

Turn the lights off when you leave a room. There's no reason to have every light in your place turned on all the time. Of course there's added benefit if you get those compact fluorescent bulbs, but I can understand the hesitancy to switch out all bulbs for those: the kind you can find in your standard store shed some pretty harsh rays, all yellow and sickly. Most standard CFLs don't work in three-way lamps, and I know I can't find any mini bulbs for the one lamp in my living room I use the most. But at least switch out a few.

Avoid bottled water as much as you can. Get yourself a Brita pitcher or filter for your tap. I think it's unrealistic to never ever drink bottled water ever again--sometimes you're out, and your aren't carting your own bottle around, and you're thirsty. But buying bottled water in bulk? Probably not the best idea.

Of course you're not going to save the planet by doing any of these things, but you also aren't going to hurt it.

Monday, April 21, 2008

Top Restaurant Purchaser

This week's reality TV locals post, AKA a "Top Chef" recap, is now up on SFist.

Where the hell did my weekend go?

Sunday, April 20, 2008

It's the National Gallery!

This week's Tube Tops is now up on the SFGate Culture Blog!

Speaking of this week, this week's "30 Rock" was pretty damn funny, and painfully familiar in some respects. But for whatever reason, the image of Tracy dancing gleefully to Billy Joel, apropos of nothing, had me laughing the hardest.

Monday, April 14, 2008

BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP CELL PHONE!

This week's reality TV locals post is now up on SFist!

In other news, last night at about 11:15 some guy started yelling outside my building, "HELLO?! I NEED TO GET MY CELL PHONE!.....HELLO? CELL PHONE!" I figured he was yelling to someone he knew who lives on the street side of my building. Wasn't sure why he didn't just ring a buzzer, but then again our front gate light is out, AGAIN, and the buzzers are hard to read in the dark. But then he started ringing buzzers randomly, and I think my new downstairs neighbors buzzed him in. Big mistake. I overheard him telling them, "I need to get my cell phone back. Some girl in this building took it."

The hell?

He then proceeded to go door-to-door in my building, POUNDING on doors and yelling "I need to get my cell phone!" When someone would yell through the door, "You have the wrong apartment!!" or something to that effect, he'd say, "OK. Sorry!" and move to the next apartment. But here's the weird thing: he pounded on what sounded like every door in my building, EXCEPT for mine!

I don't know what scared him away. The sight of me in my kitchen washing dishes in my pajamas, or the completely terrifying Target bag full of old pillows in front of my door. (They're headed for the trash, but I didn't feel like bringing them downstairs, OK?) Whatever it was, he avoided my door like the plague. Which is pretty funny, since I DO have his cell phone.

Sunday, April 13, 2008

It's the Purple Light of a Summer Night In Spain!

This week's Tube Tops is now up on the SFGate Culture Blog!

I don't know about the purple light, but it's certainly as hot as a night in Spain, ain't it? I highly recommend a trip to the beach at sunset. It's a rare thing to be able to walk along Ocean Beach while the sun is going down and not run the risk of frost bite.

Friday, April 11, 2008

Hey, Did I Leave the Iron On?

Earlier today I was staring into space, thinking about ironing (work's a little boring right now), and it reminded me of Brian Regan's bit about ironing boards. Alas, the only clip I could find on YouTube includes some slightly less-funny visual enhancements, so I suggest you click play, and then open another window, and just listen to the audio...

Thursday, April 10, 2008

Please Ignore His Incredible Bulk

I've been avoiding any and all news about the new "Incredible Hulk" movie because, one, I don't care, and two, I think there should be some kind of Hollywood law that you have to wait at least 10 years before you can remake or re-attempt a movie that was a colossal failure. But I stumbled upon the trailer today, and I just can believe that they've given the Hulk incredible pants. AGAIN!

Wednesday, April 09, 2008

Googly Eyes

YouTube removed the link someone posted in my comments, so here's the Hulu version.

Going to go make some dirt eyes now.

Sunday, April 06, 2008

It's Napoleon Brandy!

This week's Tube Tops is now up on the SFGate Culture Blog!

In other news, there was a new SNL last night, hosted by Christopher Walken. Some of it was really good, some of it was really bad. Walken doesn't even try to hide the fact that he's reading cue cards the entire time. Sometimes that's fine, but sometimes it kind of ruins a skit. I thought the funniest sketch was "Indoor Gardening Tips From a Man Who's Very Scared of House Plants," but I can't the find a clip on Hulu or anywhere else, so for now, here's Amy Poehler's Christopher Walken impression from the sketch about a Walken family reunion.

Friday, April 04, 2008

What the Frak

The final season of "Battlestar Galactica" begins tonight at 10pm on the Sci-Fi channel. If you haven't been watching the show, I don't really know what to tell you, but perhaps you can just forgo the three prior seasons, watch the following recap, and then start up with it tonight. I don't recommend it, really, but it's better than not watching at all, right? Because watching the show IS PURE BLISS AND BETTER THAN ANYTHING THE WORLD HAS TO OFFER.

Just kidding. I'm not THAT crazy about the show. But I do like it a hell of a lot.

Also, I totally forgot that Sci-Fi streamed the episode from 1-2 today, for those who can't wait until 10 tonight. I wonder if there was a sudden drop in productivity in every computer and nerd-based business in the country for that hour today...

Here's that recap.