My Thoughts on Things

Inception
Was awesome and made more sense than I thought it would, which makes me think I'm missing something. You should see it so you can talk to everyone else about it. It was also very nice in the IMAX theater and I'm still bitter that I missed the first half of the Harry Potter trailer.

2012
Worst. Movie. Ever. Except maybe Dunston Checks In. I don't like "end of world" movies as a genre; the less visual I have on that situation the happier I am. Watching billions of people die is never a good time, especially if it's horribly predictable, trite and ridiculous. If you want to see the best bad movie ever, I recommend Cabin Fever.

Eat Pray Love
I'm Catholic and I love being Catholic and I like Catholic things so I did not expect to like this book because I thought it would be too, for lack of anything more politically correct, "hippie-dippie spiritual". (Which is fine if that's what you believe in, but it's not something I want to read for 300 pages.) But I really really loved this book and can't wait for the movie. I actually related to a lot of her thoughts on God and faith and enjoyed flipping through all my underlined passages when I passed the book on to a friend this weekend. It's nice to know that I'm not the only one whom, in a moment of crisis, God tells to get some sleep.


Arrested Development
My new obsession. I'm trying to get everyone and their brother to watch it because I love it and do not have enough fellow fans in my life. If you love Arrested Development maybe we could start some kind of support group. If you don't love it yet, you can watch all the three seasons on Netflix Instant and you will thank me. IMDB says that there's a movie in pre-production which is both exciting and scary. (Please don't suck. Please don't suck.)

Also, IMDB says that there's a Hangover 2 in pre-production? Also exciting and scary. (Please don't suck. Please don't suck.)

Project Runway
A note to the contestants: You're surprised that you don't have enough time?! NO ONE has enough time!! (Except maybe that guy who did pants, a top and a cape. That was crazy.) That is the point of the show. You are given an impossible task and no time and then you cry for the judges. If I knew I was going on Project Runway, I would do sewing time trials at home and practice making pants from garbage bags. Maybe I should start a new career as coach for future Project Runway contestants.

image: Rob Inh00d

Oh, Don (with a ridiculously large number of parenthetical references)

One of the things that makes my dad so awesome is his willingness to read my book suggestions, even against his better judgement. (Now that I think about it, I don't think I've made him read anything lately. Dad -- Pride and Prejudice. It's time. I'll loan you a copy next visit.)

Dad did not always enjoy my recommendations (maybe why he hasn't read P&P yet...) -- namely The Great Gatsby, Great Expectations and some Faulkner novel that I hadn't even read myself -- often on the basis that there was no hero, just morally ambivalent wanderers. (For more information on moral ambivalence in literature, catch the final of the scene, after the credits, of Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. For real.)

(I just realized Sue Sylvester plays Ricky Bobby's mommy. Awesome.)

Dad needed someone to cheer for, and apparently Nick, Gatsby, Pip, and whoever in the Faulkner novel didn't cut it for him. I personally love Nick, Gatsby and especially Pip, but I can see that they're not your traditional hero, like Richard Gere in Pretty Woman. (Yeah, I don't think Dad would use that analogy. Hmm...they're no Harry Potter. Actually, Dad, after P&P you should read the Harry Potter series. Don't listen to Laura on this. Once again, she's wrong.) 

So fast forward 8-ish years, where after hearing many good things and joining the advertising profession myself, I decide to watch "Mad Men". This was at the start of the third season. I had caught the tail-end of season two, enough to see Don promise to start over with Betty and stop fooling around. But about 30 minutes in to season three, Don's all over a stewardess and they have a conversation about how this is her last chance to hook up before she gets married and Don assures her that she will have plenty of opportunities for infidelity after "I do." (Love this line from NYT article by Ginia Bellafante: If you drew a map of Don’s moral core it would look like a gerrymandered Congressional district with lines drawn in odd and incongruous places.)

This just didn't settle with me. I grew up watching soap operas. I enjoy Grey's Anatomy and Desperate Housewives. While I have much higher standards for myself, I can still enjoy plots where looser morals are displayed. But sometimes "Mad Men" is too much. Just check out the Secrets and Vices section of the "Mad Men" periodic table. Every character is screwing over another character. I grew weary of this and jumped ship mid-season. I finally understood Dad's need for stories to have a hero. Or at least one good guy. Somewhere. Eventually. 

Or at least I thought I understood. I couldn't help but wonder what was going on back at America's favorite ad agency. And I do have a soft spot for Peggy. And those dresses. And I often dream of a simpler time when you can drink bourbon mid-day and be totally classy and normal. See how I fit right in:

So Sunday night I rushed to get ready and curl up with Zoey for the start of the new season. And it was delightful. Don might hire a prostitute on Thanksgiving, but he is still a. total hottie and b. really good at telling clients off. And the Peggy and Pete storyline was funny. Did I mention my soft spot for Peggy?

In fictional worlds maybe I can get by without a hero after all. Afterall, I'll always have Mr. Darcy. And Richard Gere. And Harry Potter.  

Best. Idol. Performance. Ever.

I'm ridiculously obsessed with Lee and Crystal singing Falling Slowly on Idol last night. They're my favorites this season and I already loved the song, but really. I can't stop listening to this. Amazing.


And while you're watching YouTube videos. I love this too. But in a different way.

My Favorite TV Show. Ever. Which You Should Know.

I think I've been giving people the wrong impression. It seems the people I've met in the past 4-5 years don't know what my favorite television show is, and this bothers me. (Have I talked about it much here? I dunno.) (Also, "dunno" is recognized by spell check? I think this saddens me. It's okay to use in coversational writing, but should not be legitimized by spell check recognition.)

This probably doesn't seem like a big deal, but it used to be one of those things that when you met me, it would come up in the first five minutes of conversation. It was one of "my things". You couldn't really qualify as a true acquaintance of mine without knowing my favorite TV show and my favorite book (Hello, Pride and Prejudice!) because that's how often it came up.

Since the show has tragically been off the air since 2004 (And oh did I weep and weep. I still can't watch the last few episodes without sobbing ridiculously.), and the show's events dropped from my regular conversation, people have started to assume that Grey's Anatomy or Glee or Gilmore Girls holds the distinction of "Favorite TV Show". But nothing can come between me and Friends. (Although Modern Family might come the closest. It's too soon to tell.)

Me with my big purchase of the trip. | Spring Break March 2006

I started watching Friends in the seventh grade during its third season. During high school, when I approached my academics with a not-entirely-healthy fervency, the only thing I would take a study break for was Friends. In college, it provided free therapy (I'm surprised the disc with "The One Where Monica and Richard are Friends" still works. If you're having boyfriend issues though, that helps 90% of the time.) and was an important staple of my no-hangover bedtime routine (A glass of water and an episode of Friends before bed makes for a happy morning.).

Sadly though, other than a stray episode here and there, I haven't watched Friends in a long time. Too long. This is probably why everyone thinks Glee is my favorite TV show, because I've watching about 20 times more Glee in the past year than Friends. To remedy this imbalance, last weekend I popped in season one and have been enjoying it while I cook and clean around the apartment. I've already made it to season two, which is kick-you-in-the-crotch-spit-on-your-neck-fantastic. ;)

Oh Friends, I've missed you.

Hello Again

I've been a bit MIA lately. A combination of being both lazy and busy, some writer's block and allergy/sinus misery.

For the past two nights I have come home from work and directly plopped down on the couch to watch TV until an early bedtime. This has made me realize that I think I need more time to let myself do nothing, even when I can breathe through my nose.

Last night was the first night I've been able to watch a whole episode of American Idol since the real competition has started. Didi was my favorite, but I also voted for Crystal and Lacey. Oh Idol, I have missed you.




image: ilovememphis

2009 Nice List

After yesterday's Naughty List, it's time for the Nice List.




1. Glee
I don't think I could love this show more without someone needing to get a restraining order. (That would be you, Mr. Shue.)

2. Peppermint Mocha CoffeeMate
One of my favorite things about Christmas is the excessive amount of peppermint-flavored things. Of recent discovery is peppermint mocha coffee creamer. Joy!

3. Kentucky Basketball
3a. John Wall
3b. Coach Cal
3c. Patrick Patterson
Nothing makes the season brighter than a 10-0 start, especially after playing UNC, UConn and IU. There's a lot of problems in the world, but with UK in the Top 10, I can sleep with the peace of knowing that something is very right. ;)


4. The Hangover
A great movie or the greatest movie? Either way, it comes out on DVD today and is the perfect last-minute gift for me if you're looking. If not, I'll probably be at Target December 26 with my Christmas money.

5. You!
Is that cheesy? Lame? For real though, thanks for reading, saying nice things in the comments, generally being awesome and contributing to my inflated sense of self-worth. ;) May you all get very nice things from Santa this year.

image: alliet

2009 Naughty List

Last year around the holidays I made a naughty list, which was so fun I thought I'd do it again this year, and follow-up with a nice list tomorrow.


Learn more about Krampus.

1. Jane Austen mash-ups
Okay, yeah, I can laugh at Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. I've flipped through it in the store once and was highly entertained. But now that there's Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters and Emma and the Werewolves (Although this seems to be from a separate person than those who created the previous two.), it has clearly become an attack on my beloved Jane which should stop. Spread the love. Pick on some Bronte sisters. I mean, they already have characters locked in the attic so that would be a good place to start.

2. The United States Government
Since Lee co-signed his friend's mortgage and was on the title for a year, we don't qualify for the $8,000 tax refund for first time home buyers. I know this isn't really the government's fault, but it makes me sad even though I'm not a big fan of government spending in the first place.
Even after they expanded the qualifications, we still don't make the cut since we haven't lived in the same home for five years.
(Yes, I could get a mortgage without Lee but Lee qualifies for the VA loan which is better than the FHA loan.)

3. Ice storms
We lost power for four days. That was not cool, Mother Nature.


4. Cat pee
While I have forgiven Reagan, I can't forget. We still have a long way to go on the road to building back trust.


Note: I just realized that last year's naughty list was titled "2009 Naughty List..." Oops.


5. Jon and Kate Plus Hate
I have a high tolerance for over-publicized celeb fiascoes and miscellaneous celeb non-sense. If I get tired of your crazy life, then you must have already crossed the line 70 miles back. Although, I will admit to the unpopular opinion of siding with Kate.


image: annia316

Three Reasons to Watch Glee

I am so loving Glee. It is awesome and within the first two episodes they have covered three of the greatest songs of all time. Tonight has Josh Groban so I don't know if we'll hit it out of the park again, but if you're not watching this show you really should. (I wish I was getting paid to say this, but I'm not. I'm just very strongly pro-Glee.)

First, there was Rehab. (This is by the opposing school, but it's AWESOME!)



Then there was THE greatest song of all time, Don't Stop Believing.



And then last week, my personal anthem. (Kanye might be a jackass, but he makes some great music.)



I have my fingers crossed for Free Bird this week.

Randomly Found Internet Things

I was at AdRants today, one of my favorite blogs for doing "work research" and found a couple very interesting things.

I was very intrigued by the Tide Total Care commercial and it's promises, only to later by horrifically sticker-shocked when I went to go purchase it at Walmart. One should never be sticker-shocked in Walmart. Apparently though, it's just as good as another type of Tide at half the price, which works as well as the All Small and Mighty I've been using since college. Tide, you have lost my trust; Tim Gunn, never!

I watch The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, so on many levels I feel that I can't judge this. And I respect arranged marriages as a cultural institution as long as everyone's a willing participant and not 12. But arranged marriage realty TV? I'm not surprised it's on Fox and CBS.

Sarcasm + Cooking = Cooking for Assholes. Brilliant. (I don't think this had any relation to AdRants, but was found today.)

Grey's Anatomy Season Breakdown

Season 1: What is this amazing new show!?!
Season 2: Brilliant! Brilliant! Brilliant!
Season 3: Umm...when Denny died I think he took a piece of all that is good with him.
Season 4: Watched only out of habit. Missed a few episodes because I barely cared.
Season 5: Cried like a baby every single week. Not kidding. First it was sad patient stories, now it's Izzie dying stories.

I've started watching Grey's before The Office so I can end my night smiling and not sobbing into husband's shoulder, blubbering pathetic crap.

*sigh* Here's to the simpler times...

Time

Now that I've picked that as a title I can't get that Hootie and the Blowfish song out of my head. Anyways...

I've been thinking lately about time and how I spend it. I've noticed that there are a couple things in my life that I spend much more time doing than I want to or need to, ultimately leaving me without time to do the things I really love. So I have some sans-New Years resolutions.

I think it's time Google Reader and I take a break. I don't actually have to read every headline and see every picture that Apartment Therapy posts (although they are exquisite!), yet when I see that there are currently 72 unread items, I feel like I need to clear that out by spending an hour skimming, when really I can just "Mark All As Read" and move on with my life. Just because about once a week the NYTimes will have a feature article I'll really love doesn't necessarily mean I need to spend several hours a day looking and waiting for it.

Also, I am going to adjust my means of procrastination. When I come home from work I tell myself that once I complete [insert evening's chores] I will [watch movie/catch up on DVR/read/call friend/craft something]. But what happens is I procrastinate on the chores by watching TV that I'm indifferent about, playing Solitaire, Facebook stalking or other random crap. I would much rather be reading or movie-watching, but since I have to do the chores before I can do those, I just wind up totally wasting the evening. So from now, I will procrastinate with things I actually want to do. I did this other night when Jane Austen defeated my laundry. It was a great evening.

Drama Drama Drama

Do I have some kind of drama addiction? First, it was The Bachelor, now I'm caught up in all this UK coaching bighotmess. Here's a little diddy for those of us who miss the glory days.




In case you hadn't noticed how my indecisiveness spills over into my blog layout regularly, thoughts on the new design? Is it too bright? When I look at it on my massive work monitor I'm just kind of like Whoa!

Atleast Two of You Care

How am I doing today? Well, I'm not going to lie, it's been tough. I might have sat alone in the dark and cried a little last night. There might be a rant coming soon. I'll make it brief. So some say the problem is that UK isn't aggressive enough, the players aren't "competitive" enough, well WHO THE HELL COMES TO PLAY AT UK THAT ISN'T COMPETITIVE??!?!??!?!?!?!??!?! WE ARE THE FREAKING GREATEST COLLEGE BASKETBALL PROGRAM EVER!!!!!!!!!! YOU'RE IN IT TO WIN IT OR GO HOME!!!!!!!!! DO THEY REALIZE WHAT JERSEY THEY'RE WEARING?!?!??!?! DO THEY REALIZE THAT THEY GET TO CALL THE MOST SACRED PLACE IN AMERICAN SPORTS "HOME"??!?!?!?!?! DO THEY KNOW THAT WE GET TEARS IN OUR EYES JUST SITTING IN RUPP AND LOOKING AT OUR SEVEN BEAUTIFUL BANNERS?!?!?!??!?!?!? DO THEY EVEN CARE?!?!??!?!?!?!?!??

Moving on to things less depressing...

I have friends (approximately two of them) who like my Bachelor updates! It saves them the trouble of being quite so absorbed by the crazy while still being in the know. So if you go to Ellen's website you can see a clip from her interview with Melissa today where Melissa kind of confirms what I said yesterday, and what others have been saying all along. Melissa said that Jason started pulling away shortly after the finale, perhaps because she wasn't his first choice? Apparently, they broke up shortly after and so she knew that they weren't together when going to the After the Rose but she kept asking Jason if she was going to get blindsided by anything and he said no. She had also repeatedly asked him if he had talked to Molly because she had that feeling you get when your significant other might be cheating on you, and he said no. Although Melissa knows he contacted Molly once to "check up on her." Also, Melissa said that the e-mails that have been going around, that I linked to the other day are real. Hmm...very interesting! Jason and Molly are going to be on Ellen tomorrow so I'm looking forward to that.

I'm feeling very high-tech because I'm going to get my hair trimmed tonight and instead of printing out pictures I sent them to my phone via bluetooth. I don't know why but that makes me feel cool. Hopefully the new 'do will make me feel cool too!

Here We Go Again!

I've mentioned before that I've been quite a fan of The Bachelor this season and gotten caught up in all the spoilers, mostly reading Reality Steve and observing the crazies on the show's official discussion board. Last weekish Reality Steve announced all the information he had from his sources and I believe him. I think. I hope there's more and to it and I hope maybe he's twisting it just a little the wrong way. Despite what I knew I watched the finale and train wreck After the Final Rose(s). I know it's a reality show and I know I should keep my expectations for human decency low, and I feel like a naive idiot when I say this, but I'm disappointed.

Everything Reality Steve has said that we would be shown was correct. Jason picks Melissa. Breaks up with her for Molly. Molly and Jason happy. Chris gives them the tent. Jill's the next Bachelorette. All of this I can understand. I can sympathize with everyone involved in this. What a bittersweet ending. I'm glad Jason found a nice girl and even though she wasn't my first pick, Molly's seems like a great person.

According to Reality Steve though, there's more to the story than that. It will never be "official," but he has it on good authority from people who wouldn't lie to him and why would he lie to us. (I feel the need to reiterate that when I read my own words I do realize how ridiculously caught up in this I am and how lame it all really is.) He's been blogging about reality shows for seven years. Mostly just recaps and jokes about the season. Why should he start publishing lies now and not just continue on comparing the breasts of the contestants and making fun of the criers? So I'm going to guess that he's right when he says that Jason wanted Molly from about half-way through the taping. ABC wanted a good story so they told him to pick Melissa (who was his #2) and then dump her. Just Jason and the producers knew about this when the finale was taped. Apparently Molly was notified shortly after filming wrapped not to hate Jason too much because he wanted to be with her. Melissa was pretty much left in the dark about this whole thing until she was dumped on national TV. There have also been some e-mails released that someone hacked from Melissa and Jason's accounts that suggest that Melissa knew nothing, or close to nothing. I mean, she knew he was talking to Molly (which he keeps denying) and that their relationship wasn't going great, but was not expecting to be dumped.

I like to think that the producers somehow forced Jason to do this, although I don't know how they could have. Apparently he does get paid for the show, maybe they threw in a douche-bag-bonus to secure Ty's college fund? Clearly if you go on a reality dating show (twice!) you probably have some issues, I mean Mother Theresa wouldn't have chosen this path, but I liked to think that he was a generally decent person. And I would hope that ABC wouldn't stoop so low for ratings. I feel like that's all really naive to say, but did they have to make him dump Melissa on TV? Couldn't they have just announced it at the start of the show and brought them on to talk about it? They could have had Melissa and Molly talk it out! That could've been...amusing? But to make Melissa the fool in all this?

On the other hand, I guess the contestants know what they're setting themselves them up for. Molly got her heart broken on national TV so why should Melissa be spared? I know they do lots of "clever" editing to create characters and a story, I know it's not really really real, but I would hope that they wouldn't be that shady with how it ended this season.

And Jill's going to be The Bachelorette. And I'll probably watch. It's the summer anyway, when nothing else is on TV. And Reality Steve already has some exciting tidbits on it and it doesn't start filming for another two weeks! Here we go again!

By the way, Jason's most recent Jimmy Kimmel interview was priceless!

Katie's Top Headlines 2/17/09

Cheaters never win! A cautionary tale for anyone considering taking on multiple mistresses, especially during a global recession.

I try to keep an open mind about art. I feel that people have a right to make whatever movie or book they want to. However, I have some reservations about Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and, as I just learned, Predators vs. Jane Austen. I would like to note that just because you, Mr. Furnish, might not enjoy Jane Austen, does not mean that she is "done-to-death." There still seem to be plenty of consumers who love and appreciate her work.

When Rainn Wilson isn't acting as my beloved Dwight Shrute, he writes some excellent commentary on religious persecution in Iran.

Apparently surgeons are now tweeting. I'm surprised I haven't already seen this on Grey's Anatomy. Anyways, I think it's a brilliant idea. They say they're doing it to give patients a better idea of what's involved in the surgery, some scientific blah-blah-blah, but as a paranoid loved-one, I like the idea that Twitter could help me receive more frequent updates if someone I loved was being operated on. Twitter births might be fun too.

Guilty Pleasures

Let's start celebrating Valentine's Day a little early by indulging in some guilty pleasures. No, not the cupcakes I brought to work today, but The Bachelor.

I would like to note that some people consider me to be an intelligent person and I like to think that I'm reasonably intelligent myself, but oh the crappy lame things that capture my attention and brain power!

I would also like to note that I had mostly given up on reality dating shows (other than the occasional episode of Flavor of Love). However, my brother-in-law knows one of the bachelors from Deanna's season of The Bachelorette so I watched it out of curiousity to see how he did. By episode two I fell in love with Jason and had to keep watching in hopes that Jason would win Deanna's heart. (I mean really, what kind of crazy picks a poorly-styled snowboarder over Jason?! Clearly Jason's better off without that big hot mess.) When I heard that Jason would be the next Bachelor I had to tune in to keep cheering him on in his pursuit of TV love. I feel that this justifies my watching of the show. It does not justify the amount of time I spend thinking about the show.

I'm going to blame the co-worker who recently showed me the link I've already shared. Several people have over-analyzed the finale previews to determine that Melissa wins (yay!) this season based on her pinky ring and moles. I found this interesting so I began searching the internet to see what other kinds of information might be out there about the finale. As crazy as I (or you) might think I am, it does not compare to the crazy Bachelor fans out there. Some of the craziest existing theories include:

• Molly's pregnant.
• The entire show is being presenting backward?! How does that even happen?!
• He gets back with Deanna, which has been denied by people who "know."

One of my favorite sources is Reality Steve. He has sources who have confirmed the ending to him and now he's giving out some of the most random hints that I don't even try to figure out. Things I have concluded from what I've read is that the shocker isn't who he picks but the how. There's some sort of crazy storyline (a timeline perhaps?) to the final rose ceremony that is completely "new" and "shocking." (We'll see about that.) There's a "real" love story here or something. ABC even needs an additional follow-up show, so now there are two rounds of After The Final Rose.

If you two want to stalk Internet lore about the upcoming Bachelor finale, below are some places I recommend. However, it might be best just to keep your sanity and gear up for a new round of American Idol.

Reality Steve
Reality TV World (They just posted Naomi's interview!)
Bachelor Love
The Bachelor (crazy!) Message Boards
Info on the After the Final Rose x2

Happy Endings

This post contains spoilers for Once, Memoirs of a Geisha and (possibly) this season of The Bachelor. If you don't want to know the endings of this movie, book or reality wonder, perhaps you should stop reading now.

I've always been a fan of happy endings. In fact, I think I have ruined certain novels for myself by letting the lack of a happy ending get in the way of my otherwise positive feelings for the novel (like Portrait of a Lady. Of course, I stayed up until 3 a.m. finishing it for class so I don't really remember what happened and I thought I was smart enough to know better than to expect joy from Henry James, but whatever. The book deserves a re-read.). As I've gotten older I've started to appreciate the bittersweet and/or the miserable endings. I've also realized that books without happy endings tend to earn more respect and we tend to view them as better quality. Think about the GREAT writers: Faulkner, Hemingway, Joyce...not too heavy on the fairy tale endings. The "greater" pieces of Shakespeare are his tragedies. My beloved Jane Austen is often criticized for how happy her books are. (Apparently no one's read Mansfield Park.) "Let other pens dwell on guilt or misery," Austen said. I've been reflecting on if a happy or not-so-happy ending is better since I expierienced one of each the other night and was dissatisfied with both.

First, I watched the movie Once. Once does not necessarily have an unhappy ending, but it leaves many questions unanswered and the sexual tension is not resolved. Girl decides to try to make things work with her husband (Normally I totally support this, but at the start of the movie they were separated and her husband was living in another country and she was so great with the Guy.) and Guy goes to London with the demo they've just finished to try to get signed by a record label and make things work with his cheating ex. Girl and Guy don't even kiss. I was disappointed. Overall though, really cute movie! Top-notch soundtrack.

Then I stayed up past my bedtime finishing Memoirs of a Geisha. Memoirs actually had a very happy ending. The impossible happens and Sayuri gets everything she wants. She spends the whole book going on about how foolish it was of her to hope that the Chairman wanted her and then he does. Sayuri's foolish plan to have Nobu discover her with the General (so he won't want to take her as his mistress so she can still be available if the Chairman ever cares) actually works. Not entirely as planned, but then it works. It was crazy. It was as if Pip had discovered that Miss Havisham was his benefactoress all along and he was destined to be with Stella. I found this all odd and a little lame, but I don't know why. I'm the one who sees no problem with Mr. Darcy arranging Lydia and Wickham's marriage, or Rachel getting off the plane, or the entirety of When Harry Met Sally. I feel very hypocritical for my scepticism about Memoirs but I have always had fairly fickle tastes.

In impending happy endings...
Down to four ladies on The Bachelor and I'm cheering for Melissa. Thanks to an over-zealous viewer, evidence has been revealed that my cheers are rightly placed!