Crush of the Week: Joey Lauren Adams

This week's Crush is actress Joey Lauren Adams. She was on "Today" yesterday talking with Al Roker about some charity work and, boy, does she still have it.



Memories of the '90s came flooding back. She's the sole reason why I have a fetish for women wearing nothing but hockey jerseys. (And I love her singing in that flick.)

Requiem for the King of Pop

R.I.P. Michael Jackson, 1958-2009.



To quote Dave Chappelle: "He made Thriller. *Thriller*."

(I prefer to remember him as above rather than the total walking freak show that he became.)

Bunzilla vs. Cubilcetron

Yesterday morning I was greeted by this chocolate-devouring anime rabbit propped up against my computer monitor. It wasn't my birthday. And it wasn't Easter. So...why?

Just because. My friend - who also moonlights as a part-time game diva at Gamestop - took the cardboard promo piece from her store and figured it said something about me. She and her co-workers refer to it as "Bunzilla." Or more accurately "Bunzirra!"

I didn't trash it as I was thinking of replacing my '08-'09 UR Basketball poster anyway. I swear, my cube's turning into a Spencer's Gifts franchise (though it pales in comparison to my aforementioned friend's workspace).

Requiem for the ultimate sidekick

R.I.P. Ed McMahon, 1923-2009.



I can hear St. Peter now: "Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeere's Ed! Hey-oooooo!"

My Summer of Britcoms: a bloody prelude

Thanks for all of your suggestions, folks. I've done some very basic research - this article helped - and decided to spend the summer taking in the following shows, depending on availability (*ahem* torrents).

In no particular order:

• "Spaced"


• "No Heroics"


• "Garth Marenghi's Darkplace"


• "Saxondale"


• "Peep Show"


• "Black Books"


• "The Mighty Boosh"


• "The Worst Week of My Life"

Hopefully, I'll get to all of those over the next couple of months. As I finish a series, I'll let you guys know what I think. Midway through this summer I plan on cleansing my Britcom palate with "Dead Set" (a zombie outbreak in the "Big Brother" house!). And then, possibly, I'll extend this little project in the autumn and tackle some of the classic, pre-aughts shows that were recommended.

Now, where can I get a good scone and a Pimm's Cup around here?

Song to close out the weekend: "So Human" by Lady Sovereign

I worked a little on my Summer Mix CD this weekend and, unfortunately, this song had to be cut in favor of another one. Sov's Cure reworking is one of the only bright spots on Jigsaw (which is pretty much rubbish and not half as fun as her debut).

Best. Viral ad. Ever?

The makers of the Nazi zombie film Dead Snow commissioned this viral marketing campaign to promote the Norwegian DVD (and concurrent US theatrical release). Curiously, the above video doesn't feature any Nazis, zombies, or even snow. Just a bunch of not-safe-for-work hot chicks jiggling to an inane Europop song. Genius.

For the record, I was intent on checking out this movie well before I saw this video. It did not affect my opinion. At all.

My summer gaming: worldwide domination, Homer say "D'oh!," smashing stuff, and zombies

So when I got my Xbox 360 I had these grandiose plans of not getting too far ahead of myself in buying games. Then recently Gamestop had a "Buy 2 Used Games Get 1 Free" sale and, well, I got too far ahead of myself. But what I bought should last me throughout the summer.

Civilization Revolution: The first evening that I popped this in I ended up staying up until 5 am playing it. But I won my campaign! Worldwide domination is pretty damn intoxicating.

The Simpsons Game: The critics were right in that (so far) this is the funniest episode of "The Simpsons" in years.

The Incredible Hulk: Sometimes a dude's just got to smash stuff, you know?

Plants vs. Zombies: This is an ingeniously simple PC game that's almost as much of a time vampire as Peggle. Evenings have been lost playing this, my friends.

Those should keep me busy until Beatles: Rock Band and Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 come out in September (two games of a very rare species: ones that I won't have a problem paying full price for).

Crush of the Week: Carrie Prejean

This week's Crush is former Miss California Carrie Prejean.



Let's all put aside our differences, practice some tolerance, and appreciate the hot.

I have found internet nirvana.

Explosions and boobs (keep on refreshing). That's pretty much why the internet was invented, isn't it?

Note: It's safe for work, unless your workplace frowns upon pictures of stuff getting blowed up and disembodied clothed breasts on par with anything out of the Sears catalog. And if they do, I feel sorry for you.

My Summer Reading List: cars and zombies

Last week my summer reading arrived from Amazon:

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith I've never read any of Austen's stuff before. Why? It's severely lacking in zombie content. Luckily, that oversight has been rectified.

Driving Like Crazy: Thirty Years of Vehicular Hell-Bending by P.J. O'Rourke One of my favorite columnists/pundits/humorists puts the politics aside (mostly) and collects his writing about cars.

Breathers: A Zombie's Lament by S.G. Browne No love is purer than zombie love. Maybe after I read this I'll finally get inspired to write that zombierotica novel that's been kicking around my noggin.

I've really slacked off in my reading lately (thanks, Xbox 360!), but I think these three books should get me back into the swing of things and keep me occupied for a while. After I'm done with them, I'll probably try to put a dent in my immense reading pile by reading some older tomes: Donald Miller's Searching for God Knows What, Stephen Ambrose's Band of Brothers, Rob Bell's Velvet Elvis, William F. Buckley's God & Man at Yale, or Iain Gately's Tobacco.

Then again, I'm tempted to work my way through some epic books whose length seem a bit daunting: Atlas Shrugged, The Stand, or The Count of Monte Cristo (which I've already read the first 1/4th of).

R.I.F.!

Crush of the Week: Bryce Dallas Howard

This week's Crush is actress Bryce Dallas Howard. Most recently she was a non-entity in Terminator Salvation.



Who knew that Opie had such fine genes?

Quick movie reviews

Terminator: Salvation: If you don't think too much about the plot holes, unnecessary characters, questionable motivations, and other nonsense*, this was a fun action flick. McG's palette of browns and grays really nailed the Judgment Day landscape. Honestly, I think my favorite part of the movie was the sound design. The various tones, buzzes, and beeps of the different terminators were pretty cool.

Star Trek: As I mentioned earlier, I've never seen a full episode or movie of this series before, but I had a freakin' BLAST watching this! It's definitely the highlight of the summer movie season thus far. They really made the movie newbie-friendly. The only real criticism that I have is that Simon Pegg doesn't appear until the last act. Also, apparently Diora Baird must've gotten cut out of the film.

WALL-E: So I finally got around to seeing this. It was cute, the animation was stunning, but I just didn't fall in love with it like seemingly everyone else on the planet did. *shrug*

*To see what could have been, read this and this. Maybe not the best choices, but pretty ballsy.

Song to get you through the weekend: "I Like Being Left Alone" by Robbie Fulks

I think I have a new theme song.

More Britcom suggestions, por favor.

Within the past week I've devoured every episode of "The IT Crowd"* (thanks to some of your glowing recommendations). That show is hilarious! I never thought I'd fall for another convential three camera, laugh track-enabled sitcom with a "wacky neighbor" type character (face it: Moss is an English Kramer) ever again, but I did. Whodathunkit?

I'm currently working my way through "Spaced" again. When the US DVD set was initially released I breezed through the first season series pretty quickly, but then got sidetracked by something or another and never got around to the watching the second series. It's been so long since then that I'm just going to run through both series straight through.

So where should I go from there? What comedies from across the pond are absolutely fabulous? And don't say "Ab Fab," because I don't find that show funny at all. Come on, people. The summer TV wasteland is rearing its ugly head and I'm dire need of some quality programming to get me through the next few months.

Much like my brother, armed with a Netflix account, devoted last summer to Westerns, I'm proclaiming this my Summer of Britcoms. Cheerio! Crisps! Walkabout!

*Which makes me curious about the aborted US version. If anyone could point me to where I could obtain a copy, I'd be mighty appreciative.

Song to close out the weekend: "The Book of Love" by Peter Gabriel

Well, "Scrubs" is gone (at least in its current iteration) and the finale was both funny and touching, as per usual for this show. And as always, the music used in the episode was perfect. In this case it was Peter Gabriel's version of the Magnetic Fields' "The Book of Love."* I had no idea that he had covered it, so hearing it was a great surprise.

I love the original, but I think Gabriel - a favorite of mine since I was a wee lad - makes the song his own. It's even knocked off "The Luckiest" as my future wedding song. Sorry Future Wife, you have no say in this matter.

*See the scene here.

Micah World Top 25

Here they are, the top 25 songs burning up my iPod (as of 5.21.09):

1. "I'm Walking This Road Because You Stole My Car (Don't Go)" - Fascinoma
2. "Chinese" - Lily Allen
3. "Going Back/Going Home" - Butch Walker
4. "Passing Afternoon" - Iron & Wine
5. "Yardwork in November" - Actual Tigers
6. "Librarian" - My Morning Jacket
7. "God & Suicide" - Blitzen Trapper
8. "Everybody Knows You Cried Last Night" - The Fratellis
9. "Top of the Bottom" - John Wesley Harding
10. "Cuba" - Jude
11. "Where Is My Mind?" - The Pixies
12. "Waters of March (Aquas de Marco)" - Anya Marina
13. "Fists Up" - The Blow
14. "The Girl" - City and Colour
15. "All Green" - Clem Snide
16. "Sellout" - Emmet Swimming
17. "Survival Car" - Fountains of Wayne
18. "Maneater" - Hall & Oates
19. "The Temptation of Adam" - Josh Ritter
20. "Dosvedanya Mio Bombino" - Pink Martini
21. "Sucked Out" - Superdrag
22. "(Nothing But) Flowers" - Talking Heads
23. "Chewing Gum" - Annie
24. "Song Without a Chorus" - Butch Walker
25. "Heaven" - Club 8

There are lots of shake-ups up in the top spots since the last chart, mostly due to me playing the crap out of the songs on my Spring Mix.

It's clobberin' time!

Okay, now you can say I have a problem. But after reading some Mighty Muggs sites (yes, there are some out there), it seems that the line's future is uncertain. So I figured that I'd better grab ol' Ben Grimm before he's lost to the ages...or, at least, high ebay prices.

The Thing joins the rest of my Cubicle Avengers (The Hulk, Indiana Jones, Captain America, Ghost Rider, and the Punisher) in keeping my Post-It Notes and pens safe from "wandering away".

Crush of the Week: Ellie Kemper

This week's Crush is actress Ellie Kemper, who plays the new receptionist Erin on "The Office." Here's hoping she's still on the show next season.



She's no Pam, but she's a cutie.

30 rock tumbler

Tonight's season finale of "30 Rock": "Kidney Now!"

As Jack begins to build a relationship with his biological father, Milton’s health hangs in the balance. Despite Liz’s relationship track record, she draws public attention as a relationship expert after a talk show appearance. Meanwhile, Tracy’s high school invites him to speak at graduation and Kenneth must help him overcome embarrassing memories from his high school experience.

Discuss.

Office chatter

Tonight's season finale (and 100th episode) of "The Office": "Company Picnic"

It's the annual Dunder Mifflin company picnic and Michael and Holly are reunited, and Michael has some big plans for her. Meanwhile, the office competes in the picnic's volleyball tournament.

Discuss.

Bonus Crush of the Week: Eliza Coupe

This week's Bonus Crush is actress Eliza Coupe, who played the chubby-chasing intern Denise "Jo"/"Dude-Chick" Mahoney on the now late (maybe?), great sitcom "Scrubs."



As funny as she was on "Scrubs," I think her best work was on the episode of "Flight of the Conchords" where she date raped Bret.

Crush of the Week: Diora Baird

This week's Crush is actress Diora Baird, who plays a green alien babe in this weekend's Star Trek reboot. My money is on Capt. Kirk sexing her up.



Now, I know this violates my self-imposed rule of not duplicating Crushes, but the last time she was honored here she was part of a group. Considering that she's one of my all-time favorites (at least, aesthetically speaking), I feel that she deserves her own post.

Micah World Summer Movie Preview

Summer. There is much that I despise about this dreadful season, but there are always several perennial things that I look forward to when the temperatures start to rise: listening to perfect pop songs, seeing women in skimpy clothes, grilling out giant slabs of tasty animal carcasses, drinking Red Stripe beer, napping to televised baseball games on the weekends, wearing flip-flops as my primary footwear, and going to see most of the blockbuster movies.

The loud, candy-coated Summer Movie Season started even earlier this year, with the just-okay X-Men Origins: Wolverine kicking things off last weekend. It was a fun yet middling beginning to my film-a-weekend habit that'll become a seasonal fixture until September. Armed with a dog-eared copy of Entertainment Weekly and PopMatters' own summer movie preview, I noted the movies that I anticipate the most over the next few months. Now, I'm under no illusion that I'll see all of them right away, if at all (heck, I still have yet to see WALL-E), as ticket prices are ridiculous* and my entertainment budget can be stretched only so far. I'll likely put some of these on the backburner as word of mouth and reviews come in and the money set aside for booze and meat swells, to the detriment of other areas in my budget. (Sorry, personal hygiene.)

But, in a perfect world, I'd see all of these on opening night this summer (in order of release):

Star Trek (May 8): I am by no means a Trekkie. I've never seen a full episode or movie in the series. So what, besides the promise of 'splosions aplenty, will get my butt in the seat for this installment? Simon Pegg as Scotty and Diora Baird as a sexy green alien babe. 'Nuff said.

Angels & Demons (May 15): I didn't think The Da Vinci Code was all that bad - well, aside from Tom Hanks' terrible 'do - and my favorite conspiracy theory is the Illuminati (not that I believe it; it's just fun to think about), so I'm down. Plus, Ewan McGregor's the man.

Terminator Salvation (May 22): The Terminator franchise is so ingrained in my formative moviegoing years that I'm pretty much obligated to catch this latest outing, even though my feelings a mixed about it. Pro: it stars Christian "Oh, gooooood for you" Bale. Con: It is directed by McG.

Up (May 29): Hearing about the plot, I wasn't sold on Pixar's latest. But after seeing the trailer, I'm really looking forward to this.

Drag Me to Hell (May 29): Sam Raimi returns to the horror realm. But I'm a wuss, so I'll likely watch this on DVD…on a Saturday afternoon…and with all of the lights on in the house.

Land of the Lost (June 5): After "Eastbound & Down," Pineapple Express, and Tropic Thunder, I'm an unabashed Danny McBride fan, so I'll give this a go.

The Hangover (June 5): It's got three of my faves (Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, and Bradley Cooper), is directed by the guy behind Old School and Road Trip, and is about a missing groom in Las Vegas. I think this is my most anticipated comedy this summer.

Away We Go (June 5): This latest comedy from Sam "The suburbs are evil!" Mendes sounds iffy, but I'm curious to see "The Office's" Jim in a beard.

Dead Snow (June 12): Two words: Nazi zombies.

Moon (June 12): Sam Rockwell as a man adrift and alone in space sounds very interesting.

Year One (June 19): Jack Black and Michael Cera stumble through the Old Testament. Mmmmmm...sacrilious.

Whatever Works (June 19): Woody Allen? Not a fan. But I do like Larry David a lot.

Public Enemies (July 3): Solely because of the bank robbery scene in Heat, I have full faith in director Michael Mann to pull off this John Dillinger biopic. The fact that Johnny Depp and Christian Bale are in it is just icing on the cake.

Brüno (July 10): I thought Borat was a hoot, so why not?

Funny People (July 31): The latest movie directed by Judd Apatow looks like it will be heavier on the drama than his previous efforts. After catching Reign Over Me again this week, I think Adam Sandler will be up for the task.

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (August 7): I should know better, after 2007's terrible Transformers flick, but I still have a morbid curiosity about live action films based on toys that I played with as a kid.

District 9 (August 14): A Peter Jackson-produced "realistic" portrayal of aliens being sectioned off in South Africa? Cool! I just hope "documentary style" doesn't mean "motion sickness-inducing shaky cam."

Inglorious Bastards (August 21): I'll believe that Quentin Tarantino's long-in-the-works film - about a group of Jewish soldiers laying the smack down on a bunch of Nazis - actually exists when I see the opening credits roll.

The Boat That Rocked (August 28): This tale about 1960s seabound English pirate radio has Philip Seymour Hoffman and Bill Nighy, and a good pedigree (the same writer/director of Notting Hill and Love, Actually), but what really puts this over the top for me is the inclusion of Nick Frost.

And please, for the love of Pete, brush up on your movie theater etiquette before catching a flick this summer (if you need it).

*Luckily, concession prices don't even enter into the equation. Thanks, Dollar Tree and cargo shorts!

My "Scrubs" blog post

Tonight's series finale* of "Scrubs": "My Finale"

J.D. is planning on leaving Sacred Heart but before he goes there are a few things that he wants to do including; getting a hug from Dr. Cox, and learning the Janitor's real name. Elliot is ready for the next step in her and J.D.'s relationship and she begins moving her furniture into J.D.'s apartment.

Discuss.

*Or maybe not, though I think continuing without Zach Braff (and other main cast members) and Bill Lawerence would not be a good idea. Shades of "AfterMASH", anyone?

Requiem for Captain Chaos

R.I.P. Dom DeLuise, 1933-2009.



They don't make 'em like him anymore.

"Treasure bath!" (or, if you prefer, "Sounds like steam escaping.")

My Spring Mix 2009

Spring: a time of rebirth, renewal, and another mix tape from me!

It appears that imeem is now limiting it's songs to 30 seconds each, so I decided to move on to playlist.com. (You can check out some of my other seasonal mixes here, here, and here.)

Unfortunately, I couldn't find all of the songs that I put on the CD on playlist.com. The following (with YouTube links, when available) are the missing songs:

John Wesley Harding - "Top of the Bottom"
Butch Walker - "Going Back/Going Home"
Sondre Lerche - "Human Hands"
Delta Spirit - "Tomorrow Goes Away"
Flight of the Conchords - "Carol Brown"
Anya Marina - "Waters of March (Aguas de Marco)"
Fascinoma - "I'm Walking This Road Because You Stole My Car (Don't Go)"
Harrod & Funck - "Moment Before the Last"
Jude - "Cuba"
John Prine - "Day Is Done"
Tim Easton - "I Would Have Married You"

Enjoy!

Barely legal (again)

Well, in the state of Virginia's eyes, my car is street legal once again. See, waaaaay back in September 2007 my car failed its state inspection due to a degrading serpentine belt, blown signal bulb, and a slight trickle of oil coming from one of the rear struts. I got the first two taken care of, but decided not to shell out the $500+ to fix the last violation just then. So I waited. And waited. And waited. It got to the point that, aside from going to and from work and other necessary trips, I'd only drive my car under the protective cloak of darkness. I was a scofflaw; the kind of guy that makes his way the only way he knows how (which, incidentally, is just a little bit more than law enforcement permits).

After two tickets for not having an inspection sticker and $202 in fines, I decided to finally take care of my problem. Thanks to a tip from some friends, I took my Jetta to a particular shop that is very, uh, lenient with their evaluations. I took my car in, expecting the worst since my tires are very worn and the suspension's shot, but it passed nonetheless! Today I am legal once more. Au revoir, my days of driving in fear. And police, I'm no longer an easy revenue generator. Sorry.

Tonight I'm celebrating the occasion with a bottle of mead and a healthy does of Jack Bauer. I'm just hoping that my finally making nice with Johnny Law won't diminish my "bad boy" status with the ladies.

Quick movie reviews

X-Men Origins: Wolverine: The summer movie season kicked off with Wolverine and his own feature is exactly how I anticipated it to be: not great, not terrible, just an enjoyable flick. Sure, the dialogue isn't too hot and some of the CGI is iffy (most notably Wolvie's claws in some parts), but the casting is on spot. Hugh Jackman gives it the ol' mutant try again, Liev Schreiber makes for a menacing Sabretooth, and MW Official Co-Man Crush* Ryan Reynolds is perfect in the Deadpool role. I just wish he was in it more. I'll spare y'all the "that's not how it was in the comics" bitchin' that's de rigueur for comic book adaptions, though. This movie serves as a satisfying appetizer for likely better summer spectacles to come.

Punisher: War Zone: A brutal, unrelenting carnival of mayhem. I'm not always in the mood for this type of movie, but when I do get that itch, Frank Castle will be there to scratch me. And then blow my freakin' head off with a rocket launcher. (For an entertaining read, check out Patton Oswalt's blog post where he includes this in the "Is This Happening?" Movie Club).

*He shares the title with Paul Rudd.

Song to get you through the weekend: "Seven Nation Army" by the Oak Ridge Boys

Do I really need to write up a justification for posting this song? I didn't think so*.

*If I did, it'd be something about throwing a bone to race fans this weekend.

The first 100 days of braaaaaaaaaains

Quite coincidentally, my Zombie Obama t-shirt arrived from TeeFury yesterday. Now that's a shirt I can believe in.

Warning: For the sake of your eternal soul, don't look directly into his eyes

This weekend, I had a thought that no one else in human history has ever had: "I'm in the mood to watch Ghost Rider." This was at 1:30 am on Sunday. Needless to say, after getting a little sleep, the rest of the day was just as unproductive.

But while doing my grocery shopping that night, I was still on a Nic Cage so-bad-it's-good performance high (as well as feeling a bit nostalgic for my "Ghost Rider" comic collecting youth) and bought another defender for my cubicle. Good ol' Johnny Blaze joins the Hulk, Indiana Jones, Captain America, and the Punisher in keeping watch over my office supplies while I'm away from my desk. Now if you try to steal a Post-It note, you go to Hell. Guilty!

Requiem for Dorothy Zbornak

R.I.P. Bea Arthur, 1922-2009.



She may be more remembered for "Maude," but she'll always be a Golden Girl to me. Thank you for being a friend.

And her unfortunate passing gives me an excuse to post a link to this video. Soylent green is made of horse urine!

Song to get you through the weekend: "Gimme Sympathy" by Metric

It's been a while since I last obsessed over an album, but Metric's latest offering Fantasies has pretty much consumed my music listening this week. It's got just about everything that I look for in an album to spend the summer with: a female singer with a nice voice, huge hooks, (mostly) upbeat tempos, and synths aplenty. I'm going to have to delve into their back catalog and soon.

I wonder how many takes it took before they nailed this video (or maybe there was some editing trickery going on to make it seem like it was filmed in one take a la Hitchcock's Rope). Check out the hectic "making of" here.

The band is offering a free download of an acoustic version of the album opener "Help I'm Alive" on their website. Get it. NOW!

Duckpin bowling and world music and hipsters! Oh my!

This weekend I went to a bowling alley to see some live music. What a country! Smack dab in the middle of the duckpin bowling lanes at Plaza Bowl is a stage that played host to World Fest on Saturday.

Playing when I got there was the piano/cello and drums duo of Lauren Kendall and Blake Methena. I dug their stuff, especially their cover of Tool's "Sober." But instead of straight-up appreciating their music, I was still dwelling on the novelty of the venue and reciting Jim Gaffigan's bit about bowling in my head.

Next up was the only band on the bill that I knew, Bio Ritmo Despite owning one of their older albums and having lived in Richmond (and the surrounding areas) for most of my life, I had never seen them live before and they did not disappoint. Loves me some salsa. Watching them begged the questions: Do they play weddings? And is there a woman out there who'd like to marry me?

After them Chicha Libre took the stage and played their brand of psychedelic surf cumbia. Their take on Love's "Alone Again Or" was great. I'm going to have to check out their stuff sometime.

Last up was Dengue Fever, who played an odd but winning combination of 60s surf rock and Cambodian pop. Yeah, I know, but it worked! As my brother said, any band that has a hot little Asian woman fronting it is great. In this case it wasn't just his usual Yellow Fever talking.

As for Plaza Bowl itself, it is one of the most unique concert venues that I've ever been to. Blinking lights flank each lane and there are black lights aplenty above. It must be a bit odd for bands to have their music mix with the sound of pins being knocked over. The staff seemed to be evenly divided between those that you'd expect to see working at a bowling alley and your standard issue hipster. And if the world music wouldn't bring the hipster contingent out, the PBR on tap definitely would. Luckily, because of my beard and appropriately ironic t-shirt, I was able to walk amongst them unnoticed.

All in all, it was a very fun night that exposed me to some new music. What more could you ask for?

A special note to the Hipster Goddess that works there: kudos to you and your cleavage-enhancing ensemble. Wanna marry me? I think I can get Bio Ritmo to play our reception.

Hey, I actually like that Sixpence None the Richer song!

Inspiration has been lacking here since vacation, but I need to post something this week. How about "Shittiest Mixtape Boombox Blast" - a classic funny video by Aziz Ansari, lately of the promising "Parks and Recreation" (and the hilarious sketch comedy show "Human Giant")?

Song to close out the weekend: "Sand In My Shoes" by Dido

Dido |MTV Music

Spring Break is over. I've got sand in my shoes serving as a cruel reminder that it's time to go back to work, bills, paying attention to current events, early bedtimes, 6:30 am clock radio alarms, 6 hours of unwatched television programs on my hard drive, and 2 days, 5 hours, 34 minutes, and 7 seconds worth of unlistened to podcasts on my iPod.

Consider me beach bummed.

Good day, sunshine

I'm on spring break in the Outer Banks and the wifi signal here's not the hottest. Rather than bore you with mundane posts all week long (I've rediscovered my love of peanut butter and honey sammiches! I'm reading Angels & Demons! I've watched barely any TV this week! Dad came down with a fever!), I'll just take this time to give myself and you, dear readers, a little breather.

But if something really cool happens I'll document it. Hopefully said coolness occurs between naps.

Peggle is the new Snood.

And Snood previously replaced crack cocaine as our nation's most addictive drug. But Peggle is like crack on...crack.

I downloaded the full version of the game for my Xbox 360 on a Saturday night. Then I stayed up until 4 am playing it. The other evening I started playing it and before I knew it an hour and 45 minutes flew by.

But I can quit anytime. I swear. I'm not the one with a problem. YOU'RE the one with a problem.

Song to close out the weekend: "Carol Brown" by Flight of the Conchords

I've had plenty of distractions lately, but I'm determined to finish up my Spring Mix CD before I head out to the beach next week. Currently I have about 2 hours of songs selected, which I need to narrow down to under 80 minutes. Likely to make the cut: "Carol Brown" by Flight of the Conchords.

I also chose to post this particular song because now there's a Conchords (and Kenny Powers)-sized hole in my Sunday nights. *sigh*

30 rock tumbler

Tonight's new episode of "30 Rock": "Apollo, Apollo"

With Jack's 50th birthday looming, he sets out to achieve his childhood dreams.

Discuss.

Office chatter

Tonight's new episode of "The Office": "Two Weeks"

Michael's relationship with the new vice president becomes increasingly tense, as Michael finds an excuse to goof off even more than usual. Meanwhile, Pam faces the challenge of a new copier and Kelly develops a crush.

Discuss.

So long, productivity, sleep, reading, exercise, hygiene, bathing, and blogging

That's right. As I alluded to earlier, I've got an Xbox 360 now (or, as I like to call it, my Rock Band Machine) and it's consuming pretty much all of my non-working waking hours.



I'm becoming quite the drummer. On the easy level, at least.

As much as I'm getting engrossed in digital wonderment, I've vowed not to fall into the cycle I was in during my PS2 days: buy a game, play it a little, buy another game, play it a little, ad ininitum.

I don't plan on purchasing any more games until I exhaust what I've already got in my modest library*: LEGO Indiana Jones, Rock Band 1 & 2, Viva Piñata, Beautiful Katamri, Dead Rising, Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, and Kung Fu Panda.

For future reference, though, what are some of the better games out there? Keep in mind that first person shooters make me physically ill and I suck at racing games. And what last gen Xbox games did I miss out on during my PS2 myopia? (I intend on diving into Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic at some point).

Also, I'm on Xbox Live. I don't plan on doing much online gaming since my free Gold membership expires in a couple of weeks and I don't have any real multiplayer games, but I'll still be your virtual buddy. Just let me know what your "gamer tag" (or whatever the heck it's called) is. When the season rolls around, I'm sure I'll be getting a college football game and will be up for some virtual bouts then.

Man, this is a geeky post.

*Downloadable Rock Band songs excluded. The game comes pre-loaded with only so many Boston and Weezer songs, you know.

Flight manifest

Tonight's season (and most likely series) finale of "The Flight of the Conchords": "Evicted"

Unable to pay off their back rent, Bret and Jemaine move in with Mel and Doug; Murray looks to cash in on a stage play about the Conchords' travails.

Discuss.

Crush of the Week: Katy Mixon

This week's Crush is actress Katy Mixon, who plays April "Big Cannons" Buchanon on the hilarious "Eastbound & Down". Loves me a southern belle.



The first season wraps up this Sunday. I sure hope Kenny Powers crushes it.

30 rock tumbler

Tonight's new episode of "30 Rock": "The Bubble"

Liz learns that Drew's charm has led to him getting a lot of special treatment. Jack attempts to renegotiate Tracy's contract and Jenna gets a new hairstyle to try to capture the public's attention.

Discuss.

Office chatter

Tonight's new episode of "The Office": "New Boss"

Michael has big plans for his 15th anniversary party at Dunder Mifflin, but is in for a shock when the new, no-nonsense Vice President has some ideas of his own. Meanwhile, Jim's prank on Dwight has some unexpected results.

Discuss.

My hero

While the public's love affair with Watchmen is fading - big time* - I'm still pretty geeked out over the film. So much so that I've decided to become a superhero, with a little help from the Hero Factory.

Once I created my superhero, the site dubbed me "The Talented Karate Ninja," but that's just silly. I see my hero being something more along the lines of "The Platonic Friend." What are my super powers? Behold:

• Cloak of Non-Threatening (affects women AND their boyfriends)


• Mad Listening Skillz


• Super Respectfulness


• Keen Mixtape Prowess


• Infinite Sweetness


• Extreme Misplaced Feelings


• Dark Brooding (out of public eye)

Now if you'll excuse me, I must patrol the streets.

*For you nerds who haven't seen it yet, please heed übergeek Patton Oswalt's words.

"I need me gold!"

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Yes, it's the one day out of the year where we're all free to get out our seats and jump around. Go out and have fun. Just remember to take it easy.

Me? I've got twelve eleven bottles of the Champagne of Beers waiting for me tonight. Also, James Brown's "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine - Pt 1" should be available for download for "Rock Band" today, so I'll probably get my funk on with that.

And this seems like an apropos time to post this old, yet new-to-the-blog clip:



I love the amateur sketch. And I've long held the belief that leprechauns are merely crackheads who got ahold of the wrong stuff.

Beware the Ides of March

Sorry I've slacked off a bit here for the last week or so. See, a new bundle of joy has entered my life and it's quite the time vampire. Also, the jackbooted thugs at work are cracking down on personal internet use, so I'm only online about 1/8 of the time I previously was on any given workday. But I'll try to get back on track shortly.

30 rock tumbler

Tonight's new episode of "30 Rock": "The Funcooker"

Liz has to leave Jack and the rest of the TGS cast and crew unmanaged when she has to do jury duty.

Discuss.

Office chatter

Tonight's new episode of "The Office": "Golden Ticket"

Michael causes a huge problem in the office when he comes up with the idea to put "golden tickets" into packages of paper for clients to redeem for discounts. Andy, Jim and Pam give Kevin differing advice on wooing a woman.

Discuss.

Quick movie reviews

Watchmen: In a word, I thought this was excellent. But, if you know me, you know where I'm coming from (read: major dorkitude). Granted, even at its long running time it is very densely packed and it helped a lot that I read the source material beforehand; I could easily see how those coming in completely fresh could get a little lost in the plot. This is an extremely faithful adaption, though. Even the changed ending shared the same spirit of the original. Sure, not all of the acting was top notch, but Jackie Earle Haley's Rorschach, Jeffrey Dean Morgan's The Comedian, and Billy Crudup's Dr. Manhattan stood out as the best of the bunch. Director Zack Snyder gets a lot of credit for producing a coherent vision of a book that's long been considered unfilmable. And for the ladies: lots of nekkid, blue dong.

This was the first IMAX movie that I've seen since The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring and I was blown away by the pristine picture and sound. Wow! I don't know if I can go back to watching a regular presentation ever again.

The Heartbreak Kid: I watched this on the recommendation of my brother and, while it wasn't as funny as I had hoped, it was still enjoyable. This doesn't rank up there with the Farrelly brothers' past glories, but it's definitely better than their last several movies. If you like it when Ben Stiller plays Ben Stiller, you'll probably like this one.

Flight manifest

Tonight's new episode of "Flight of the Conchords": "New Zealand Town"

Trying to look cool for a gig at the Grand Opening of New York's one-block New Zealand enclave, the Conchords end up getting hooked on hair gel.

Discuss.

Song to get you through the weekend: "Hungry Like the Wolf" by Duran Duran

I'm an alt rock god. No, really. See, this week I got an Xbox 360 and "Rock Band 2" and it just confirms that fact. Step aside, Paul Westerberg. I'm the new Flannel King.

Prior to this week, I'd been rawking out to the "Guitar Hero" series (on my PS2), but I think I prefer "Rock Band," as it contains many more songs from my genre of choice: 90s alternative. Plus it has Squeeze! And Stephen Colbert!

Since I have little to no coordination, the drums are taking some getting used to. But they're fun to pound away on. As for rocking the mic...well, that's a whole lot tougher than I thought it'd be. I always knew that I was a bad singer. This game has shown me that I'm, in fact, a terrible singer. I completely mangled "Hungry Like the Wolf"* last night. My apologies, Simon Le Bon.

The fact that the Beatles are coming to the game (kinda sorta) is just icing on the cake.

So, who wants to come over, down some PBRs, and jam?

*I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that frequent MW commenter SBN1 is an engaging storyteller and master of hyperbole. During a recounting of one of his many sweaty, drunken encounters he used a line that had me rolling: "I looked like I just stepped out of the 'Hungry Like the Wolf' video." Ha ha!

Bonus Crush of the Week: Michelle Monaghan

This week's Bonus Crush is actress Michelle Monaghan, who starred along this week's Crush in The Heartbreak Kid.



No justification needed. I just think she's really cute.

Crush of the Week: Malin Akerman

This week's Crush is actress Malin Akerman, lately making fanboys slobber by playing the Silk Spectre II in this weekend's Watchmen adaption.



I also recently saw her in The Heartbreak Kid and she held her own against Ben Stiller, especially in the funniest scene of the movie ("Hit me!").

30 rock tumbler

Tonight's new episode of "30 Rock": "Goodbye, My Friend"

Liz tries to adopt the baby of a pregnant teen. Jenna tries to alert the TGS crew that it is her birthday so the crew decide to throw a party for both Jenna and Tracy. Frank goes on a "guy's night out" with Jack and tells Jack about his daddy issues.

Discuss.

Office chatter

Tonight's new episode of "The Office": "Blood Drive"

It's Valentine's Day at the office. Michael meets a mysterious woman at a Valentine's blood drive. Dwight and Kevin pair up with single women at the office "Lonely Hearts Party." Meanwhile Jim and Pam are banished from the office for being too publicly affectionate, and have an awkward lunch with Phyllis and Bob.

Discuss.

Get some perspective, people

So, you think these are dark times? Wrong. These are great times!

Song to close out the weekend: "The Fear" by Lily Allen

Initially, this first single off of potty mouth Lily Allen's It's Not Me, It's You didn't grab me. Neither did the album itself, for that matter. But her new stuff really grew on me after a few listens. Sure, the album doesn't hit the highs of Alright, Still (namely, all of that album's singles), but it has its moments and is a bit more cohesive than its predecessor, due to Allen using only one producer this go around.

Bonus: here's a video of some guy playing drums along to my favorite song off of It's Not Me, It's You ("Chinese").

Flight manifest

Tonight's new episode of "Flight of the Conchords": "Prime Minister"

Foiled by the White House, Murray arranges a presidential meeting for the visiting Prime Minister of New Zealand; a tribute gig ends with Jemaine getting mixed up with an Art Garfunkel fanatic.

Discuss.