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Archive for the ‘Thursday’s Top Ten’ Category

TOP TEN Most Romantic Movies EVER!!!

Posted in From My Point of View - Personal commentary on Movies and Books, Thursday's Top Ten, tagged , , , , , , , on February 10, 2011| 6 Comments »

Cropped screenshot of Clark Gable from the tra...

Image via Wikipedia

February is all about LOVE so what better time to recap some of the BEST and ROMANTIC movies made.  And why not, with the Oscars around the corner. Whether it’s boy-meets-girl, boy-meets-boy or ogre-meets-princess, it’s always ALL ABOUT LOVE. This is the 1st of 3 Thursday’s Top Ten list to be devoted to the Best of Romantic Movies... The lists are in chronological order. …by the way, anyone having a party???

  1. Gone With The Wind (1939) How many of us swooned over Clark Gable in the role of Rhett Butler; his portrayal of a rich, handsome and best of all “a bad boy” had the ladies in the theaters sighing and crying as he swept Scarlett up in his arms and carried her up the stairs.
  2. Casablanca (1942) Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall brought the chemistry of their off-screen romance to their chemistry-infused but not-to-be love affair of the movie.  The lines,  “Of all the gin joints in town, why did you come here”? and “Here’s looking at you kid”  entered our lexicon 70 years ago and are still with us.  All that and set in an exotic (to Americans) land and in the midst of a war.  We’ve all had what we sure was a “meant to be” love affair – how many of you married that person?
  3. An Affair To Remember (1957) Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr…you almost don’t have to say anything else.  His voice, his looks, his manners and a shipboard romance to boot, charmed Terry McKay and every other woman since.  An unfulfilled love affair between soul-mates.  Do NOT see the remake, none of the above applies.
  4. Breakfast At Tiffany’s (1961) Who could imagine that a novella by Truman Capote (of all people) would become the must-see movie for young women all over the country and often a pre-requisite at fashionable bridal showers! George Peppard as the sensitive writer and Audrey Hepburn as the fragile soul hiding behind the party-girl exterior.
  5. Dr. Zhivago (1965) What could be more romantic than a doomed love affair played out against the back-drop of a  Revolution and a Russian one at that.  Omar Sharif and Julie Christie carry on in the midst of the beautiful and bleak Russian countryside and all the while our hearts and minds are humming along to Lara’s Theme, the movie’s signature song (and for me, my wedding song in 1968).
  6. The Sound Of Music (1965) On the eve of a world war, a former nun and a widower with kids – now there’s an unlikely but winning combination for romance and a true story too!  Christopher Plummer and Julie Andrews sing their way through love and who among us doesn’t know “…do a dear, re a spot of  golden sun…”.  As for me (again) my first date with my future husband was going to see this movie in Hartford, CT.
  7. Bonnie And Clyde (1967) With a tagline, “They’re young, …they’re in love, …and they kill people”, this offbeat romance shocked audiences with more graphic violence than had been seen before in a mainstream movie.  Ahh, but Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty were so gorgeous you had to love them and feel a pang or two over their ill-fated romance and doomed lives.
  8. Love Story (1970)You may not want to admit it but this saccharin and yet another unlikely and doomed romance won our hearts and the phrase, “Love means never having to say you’re sorry” lives on.  Preppy Ryan O’Neil and beautiful Ali MacGraw were perfectly cast in this “class”ic tale of lovers from both sides of the tracks.
  9. The Way We Were (1973) Along the same lines as #8, our 9th pick throws a very preppy writer, Robert Redford ooooohhhh, and a sassy left-wing activist, Barbra Streisand together.  Opposites attract but they probably shouldn’t live together and this was a case of principles overriding love – how sad in a way.  I wanted to see them together just because – although I knew she was way too smart for him and in the long run their love would have died a long and painful death.
  10. Grease (1978) It’s so easy to romanticize an era when you are at least 20 years beyond it and so the 50’s seemed like a fun time especially when greaser John Travolta met up with exchange student, Olivia Newton-John.  Based on a hit Broadway musical, the movie was a smash hit and surpassed The Sound of Music as the highest grossing musical of its day.

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Thursday’s TOP TEN – BEST Picture Nominees

Posted in From My Point of View - Personal commentary on Movies and Books, Thursday's Top Ten, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on February 4, 2011| Leave a Comment »

BEST?  BEST?? – Oh what have we come to?  To what depths of mediocrity have we sunk?  TEN!!!  There haven’t been 10 BEST MOVIE possibilities since the 70’s and even then, not all in one year!!!  WHY? WHAT FOR?  What’s this all about?  politics? lobbyists for the producers? $$$???

  1. INCEPTION:  I already reviewed this movie way back when it was released.  I think it belongs in the list of nominees if only for its bizarro concept.  It was confusing at times and you didn’t know what was the dream-like altered state of mind and what was real.  MMMmm who knew INCEPTION’s fantasy versus reality would only be the beginning of a movie season filled with UN-reality!  See prior blog INCEPTION-What’s All the Twitter About? .
  2. THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT: Warmly received at Sundance , Ms. Cholodenko’s third feature has the same narrative motor as Laurel Canyon and High Art – sexual attraction! The first two were obliquely personal but this one draws more directly on Ms. Cholodenko’s life.  She co-wrote the movie with Stuart Blumberg, who interestingly enough had been a sperm donor in his youth – “art imitating life”??
  3. THE FIGHTER: David Russell’s Best Picture nominated film is NOT another Rocky or Cinderella Man.  It is the true life story of Mickey Ward,  a welterweight boxer from Lowell, Massachusetts.  Most movies about athletic conquest lend themselves to the dramatic side of cinema but The Fighter is more like a dark comedy about the delusions and realities of fame, fortune and success in America. Definitely “a contender”.
  4. SOCIAL NETWORK: Another film I previously reviewed, see prior blog, The Social Network .  You know,  this was a very entertaining movie.  In this day and age who under the age of _____ wouldn’t want a peek into the founder of Facebook’s life.  I know I was interested and I am most surely a woman of a certain age.  Facebook is everywhere and that buzz alone could usher it into first place.   I love the movie and the story and I love Jesse Eisenberg but Best Picture?  It was my understanding that the Best Movie winner should really be a BEST movie, not just a popular one.
  5. BLACK SWAN: Even the director  says the movie is weird!  A dark fantasy about a ballerina whose pursuit of perfection takes her to the edge of madness, death and perfectly choreographed oblivion.  The louder the score, the more intense the craziness – definitely the love-it hate-it movie of the year.
  6. THE KING’S SPEECH: It’s a good film, it doesn’t take you as far as it should, that’s my main problem with it.  The performances are brilliant and convincing and that alone may be enough to win the big prize.  Read my review in a prior blog post. The King’s Speech or Rather the Lack Thereof.
  7. TRUE GRIT: Joel and Ethan Coen; that says A LOT.  Let’s face it – they wouldn’t have made it if they didn’t think they could do it differently and maybe better.  Casting is great, the story is great, and as far as the acting; Hailee Steinfeld makes an impressive debut, Matt Damon didn’t get the nod for his part and Jeff Bridges, while always a favorite, might have taken this role over the top sometimes.  It’s in the top four as far as I’m concerned.
  8. TOY STORY 3: The third installment of what has become the Toy Story Trilogy, spaced out over 15 years.  Pixar is genius and in this movie, many more technological innovations are at play (no pun intended).  The movie is warm, touching and sweet yet it’s about plastic and polyester doo dads, stamped and molded.  There’s the genius; about our consumer economy, the ups and downs of our materialistic way of life as told through the eyes and mouths of the commodities themselves.  Genius YES, Best Picture NO.
  9. 127 HOURS: Between a rock and a hard place was never so true.  I only watched this movie because it was nominated, I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to handle it. I love watching movies and ALWAYS get caught up in the story, I NEVER remember “it’s only a movie”, although Peter does remind me sometimes when I am freaking out in my seat over some horror. Sooooo after covering my eyes during the big scene, my take on the film is this:  If I didn’t know it was a true story, I would find it hard to believe. Aron Ralston was a warrior, a young man in incredibly great shape and of a strong mind. Note that I didn’t say sound mind.  I found Danny Boyle‘s split and triplex screens a little overdone and although I understood why he kept shooting this inside of the water bottle, I think we could have gotten the message with less footage.  James Franco performed the equivalent of several Shakespearean soliloquies.  I wonder if it is harder to act alone? This is not a BEST Picture but Franco is very very good and although I don’t think he can beat out Colin Firth, you never know…..
  10. WINTER’S BONE: I wish I had been able to see this movie before I wrote this blog but as life would have it, I didn’t-Thursday came and I wanted to put the TEN nominated films in my Thursday’s Top Ten and sooooooo I will try to catch before we get into Oscar countdown and my predictions.

    11. Between a rock and a hard place, James Franco, Danny Boyle

    Good but not Best

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Thursday’s Top 10 ++ Adult Truths

Posted in BY THE WAY, Thursday's Top Ten, tagged , , , , , on January 20, 2011| 3 Comments »

The official Miller Lite logo

Miller Lite Beer

There’s a bonus in this week’s Top 10 – actually 24 to be exact!  These are very funny, I enjoyed them and wanted to share with you.  As often is the case, some of my best and funniest posts either come from or are inspired by my friend, Gail.

Adult Truths

1. I think part of a best friend’s job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.

2. Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you’re wrong.

3. I totally take back all those times I didn’t want to nap when I was younger.

4. There is great need for a sarcasm font.

5. How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

6. Was learning cursive really necessary?

7. Map Quest really needs to start their directions on # 5. I’m pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.

8. Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.

9. I can’t remember the last time I wasn’t at least kind of tired.

10. Bad decisions make good stories.

11. You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you know you just aren’t going to do anything productive for the rest of the day.

12. Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after BluRay? I don’t want to have to restart my collection…again.

13. I’m always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten-page technical report that I swear I did not make any changes to.

14. I keep some people’s phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.

15. I think the freezer deserves a light as well.

16. I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lite than Kay.

17. I wish Google Maps had an “Avoid Ghetto” routing option.

18. I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.

19. How many times is it appropriate to say “What?” before you just nod and smile because you still didn’t hear or understand a word they said?

20. I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars team up to prevent a jerk from cutting in the front. Stay strong, brothers & sisters!

21. Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty, and you can wear them forever.

22. Sometimes I’ll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.

23. Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket, finding their cell phone, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey — but I’d bet everyone can find and push the snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time, every time.

24. The first testicular guard, the “Cup,” was used in Hockey in 1874 and the first helmet was used in 1974. That means it only took 100 years for men to realize that their brain is also important.

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Thursday’s Top Ten – We used to call it “Pot”

Posted in BY THE WAY, Thursday's Top Ten, tagged , , , , , , , , , on January 14, 2011| 4 Comments »

And they call it weed.

We used to call it Mary Jane and they call it dope.

We used to call it reefer and they call it smoke.

We used to call it Maui Wowie and they call it Superman.

We used to call it Blue Heaven and they call it Blue Dream.

We used to call it Jamaican Gold and they call it spliff.

We used to call it Texas Tea and they call it herb.

We used to call it Ganga and they call it hemp.

We used to call it a joint and they call it a dubby.

We used to call it loco weed and they call it orange cough.

And generation after generation has, does and will call it grass!

marijuana,mary jane, weed, grass, pot, cannabis

What do you call it?

Soooo, tonight as we got ready to go to the movies and as an enhancement to the viewing of The King’s Speech, we thought just a couple of drags and it would be like the old days…. I mean WHO didn’t go to see 2001 Space Odyssey stoned out of their minds or as we liked to think – totally into our minds.  Well as you know (or may not) grass just isn’t what it used to be!

Those were the days… when sitting around someone’s living room passing a joint around, first one, then another, and drinking a little, munching a lot, talking a lot and maintaining a serene high was a pleasant way to spend an evening.  Nowadays, if you tried to do that, in less than  30 minutes you’d be in the ER hallucinating to the point where you might even end up in Bellevue.  This new “stuff ” is really strong; if I ever got stoned on something this strong years ago I ‘d be sure it had been laced with PCP.

Two good drags later and in no time we were in the no-time- time-warp.  First there was a request from Joel for a scarf and/or a hat – like I didn’t tell him it was friggin freezin here before he left San Diego!  He wants a hat with ear flaps but maybe a scarf will do.  Now when he says scarf, he is conjuring up something long, soft and capable of wrapping around your neck and knotting.  My husband being from a whole other generation (or generations!), his scarves are shorter, woolier and meant to be worn inside a coat laying over the lapels of a jacket;  you can see where the gap is going….

Soon every scarf and hat were laid out on the piano like a habadashery banquet.  Ear muffs couldn’t be located, I think they’re at the Shore.  What about gloves?  Well it is the coldest night of the year.  Just about the time when all the necessary accessories had been accumulated, Peter leaning casually against the door frame states. “I don’t think it’s practical to go to the movies anymore, I mean it’s not in the cards”.  WHAT are you saying? The time warp widens and uncontrollable laughter ensues.  I mean he already bought the ticket, for God’s sake and now he just didn’t think he could make it up the street and into the theater and certainly not sit there for any great length of time.  So much for The King’ s Speech!!!

Believe it or not, I still made dinner although there are parts of it that seemed to cook themselves, lol.  Needless to say, everything tasted soooo good and we ate everything on the plate, quell surpriz!!  And of course this most definitely seemed like a dessert night;  but alas not a cookie in the house!  Ah ha, lucky us, this is New York City and whatever you want whenever you want it, you can get it.   Mmmmm good…ice cream sundaes feel like the thing to have.  After much deliberation, Joel and I decide on coffee ice cream sundaes with fudge sauce, wet walnuts and whipped cream and make it light on the cream since we know it’s not whipped but rather aerosoled! Actually we didn’t have a lot of choices since the only close ice cream place is pricey and it was too cold to go up a block or two to Ben & Jerry’s , so it was to be the coffee shop for our dessert. Joel returned with the ice cream sundaes and just what do you do when you’re still high and before you is a mass of ice cream, nuts, whipped cream and a cherry?  You melt peanut butter and pour it on top and then you are in heaven and if you’re lucky like we are tonight, TCM is showing I Love You Alice B. Toklas.


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Thursday’s Top Ten-Movie Mistakes in 2010

Posted in Thursday's Top Ten, tagged , , , , , , on January 6, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Image via Wikipedia

Did you happen to notice this????

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I

After the meeting at the start of the film, Lord Voldemort‘s wand switches hands between shots after he takes it out.

Sex and the City 2

The day Carries arrives in New York: June 11, 1986 was Wednesday not a Tuesday.

The A Team (2010)

They are present at Frankfurt, Germany. But with a closer look,  you see a Cathedral on the right side.  The Cathedral and the Central station is located in Cologne, Germanay. They are about 22km apart.

Burke and Hare

The Royal Lyceum Theater referenced in the film, did not exist in 1828 as it was not built until 1883.

The Expendables

Towards the end of the movie, when Steve Austin is on fire during the fight, you can see it is a stunt man wearing a burn suit for a split second.

Letters to Juiliet

In the scene where Juliet is seen walking out of the New Yorker building, her shirt is tucked in in the first shot, untucked in the second shot and in the third is tucked in again.

Paranormal Activity 2

During the last night Martine is working for the Rey family, she is shown saying prayers in the kitchen and the family room.  During that time, the kitchen camera shot shows spices, knives and a chopping board on the counter, but in the next kitchen shot, everything is replaced by a fruit bowl.

Robin Hood

On the cliff top before the battle on the beach, you are treated to a lovely if fleeting glimpse of the 12th Century wind farm turbines.

The Twilight Saga – Eclipse

In the last scene where Edward and Bella are sitting in the sunny field, Edward is not sparkling.

Dear John

John’s staff sergeant military shoulder epaulet markings become upside down in the scene when he and Savannah are having dinner at her house when he comes to see her after his dad died.  In a later shot, shortly after, they are correct.

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Thursday’s Top Ten Things To Do When You’re Snowed In!

Posted in BY THE WAY, Ha-P 2 B in OG, Smooth or Crunchy, Thursday's Top Ten, tagged , , , , , on December 31, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Current title card

Image via Wikipedia

The Blizzard of 2010 arrived as predicted (so we can’t say we didn’t know it was coming) and in less than 3 hours our world was blanketed in a white powdery mantle.  Oh it looked so pretty coming down in big flakes.  And I noticed how quickly it was accumulating and decided to chronicle the snow storm – see previous blogs beginning with: Chronicle of a Snow Storm  .

Taking pictures from the front door or the back door only took a few moments so uh now, what do I do?  The photos in the Chronicle blogs tell the story of how white your world can be when 28″ – 30″ of snow fall in 24 hours but what was going on inside the house.  Well when you are house-bound for four days, you gotta do something!!  It was definitely easier for me than my husband, basically because I always do more things AND I have my computer.

  1. Playing on my computer has to be number one because I was on it a LOT every day;  I played  Scrabble with my Facebook friends, checked email, wrote blogs, cruised through Ebay and read other blogs.
  2. Nothing like daylight and the reflection of bright snow to show you where all the finger prints on doors and drawers are.  I spent some of each of the four days with Simple Green in one hand and paper towels in the other.
  3. Paid a lot of bills online.  Actually wrote out a couple of checks but couldn’t mail them!
  4. Because I was sleeping later and really had no where to go, I made breakfast for my husband. Yeah, really, bacon and eggs and coffee and an English muffin.
  5. Watched Dr. Phil and Judge Judy every afternoon – love them both!
  6. Ate Christmas dinner left-overs.  We had dinners of soup, stuffed shells, salad and broccoli. And dessert every night!!!
  7. Started to put away some of the Christmas decorations;  I would have done much more except that we couldn’t get to the garage to retrieve the bins.  But I did get to the back of the closet and organize a couple of boxes.
  8. Wrapped each piece of the Christmas china and packed in the one bin I had in the house.
  9. Knitted – I am way behind on a project, a gift for my new granddaughter, Francesca.
  10. Cut up the newspapers I needed for another little project.  Couldn’t seem to get beyond that part though.

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Ten Worst Christmas Movies!!!

Posted in BY THE WAY, From My Point of View - Personal commentary on Movies and Books, Thursday's Top Ten, tagged , , , on December 23, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Ho ho ho lookee here!  Even Santa  has had some bad scenes – Christmas movie bombs.  Do you agree? Got any you want to add?  Pre-screening advice – drink a lot of eggnog!

worstxmas-banner

Editor’s Note: In honor of the 2008 Christmas Holiday, we’ve decided to resurrect the following article — our Ten Worst Christmas Movies of All-Time list, which was written during Christmas 2007. Oddly enough, the following choices still hold up today.

Just as Hollywood launched us into the summer movie season with Spider-Man 3 in early May, they’ve jumped the gun on the Christmas season with Fred Claus. However, this wasn’t as heartwarming as the umpteen radio stations playing Christmas music before Thanksgiving, ‘cause Fred Claus really sucked ass.

So that got us thinking… What other Christmas movies suck ass? For every It’s a Wonderful Life, there’s gotta be a crapstorm of a film to balance it out. So we looked at the holiday movies over the years, and we came up with our list. To make the list, the film had to either be about Christmas (or Santa Claus) or have Christmas an integral part of the plot. (It can’t be like Gremlins, which did suck ass, but really was just set during Christmastime rather than being about the holiday.)

Flame on!

10. Santa Claus Conquers the Martians (1964)

worstxmas-10

With a title like this, it’s almost too easy. And while you most likely have seen this one during the good old Mystery-Science Theater 3000 days, you can still catch it on video and even aired by one of the Turner networks in December. It features a wino Santa and Martians so crappy they put Plan 9 from Outer Space to shame. Oh, and it’s got Pia Zadora in it, too!

9. The Nativity Story (2006)

worstxmas-9

We can just imagine the pitch meeting in Hollywood. Some lunkhead producer yelled, “The Passion of the Christ made more than $300 million! What else can we mine from the Bible?” So they cast the 15-year-old Keisha Castle-Hughes, who got herself pregnant for the film’s release (which really pissed off the Pope). Here’s a hint… she wasn’t carrying the baby Jesus.

8. Fred Claus (2007)

worstxmas-8

Vince Vaughn and Paul Giamatti were cobbled by the family-oriented bent of this film. It just goes to prove that Vince Vaughn just ain’t funny if you don’t let him swear (or if he is wearing a dress and killing people).

7. Miracle on 34th Street (1994)

worstxmas-7

Who the hell had the brilliant idea of remaking this indelible classic… again? The cast was lame, and the climactic courtroom scene was ruined with an unnecessary rewrite. In the 60th anniversary DVD of the original, Maureen O’Hara giggles at the fact that every remake of this film has bombed. You go, Mo!

6. The Santa Clause 2 (2002)

worstxmas-6

Yeah, we know this is a cash cow for Disney, but that doesn’t make it any good. The first film was okay, but this one was lame. Even worse, the moronic director did the entire DVD commentary as if he got permission to shoot in the North Pole with the real Santa and his elves. I guess he didn’t realize that second graders don’t listen to DVD commentaries.

5. Christmas with the Kranks (2004)

worstxmas-5

Hey look! Another Tim Allen movie has made the list! Written by legal novelist John Grisham, this awkward holiday comedy showed that even a bestselling author can inspire crap.

4. Deck the Halls (2006)

worstxmas-4

Why does Matthew Broderick keep getting cast in movies? He hasn’t done a live-action film worth a bucket of snot since Election. And how could Danny DeVito sign on for this stinker? He must have needed rent money. A war of holiday lights turns into wacky family comedy… so much so, you’ll want to throw up.

3. Black Christmas (2006)

worstxmas-3

After the Weinstein Company’s dismal release of Wolf Creek on Christmas Day 2005, they tried to repeat their mistake with a horror movie remake in 2006… and they were successful in failing. Maybe they should have had some of the young hotties in the cast (e.g., Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Lacey Chabert or Michelle Trachtenberg) do a gratuitous nude scene.

2. The Santa Clause 3 (2006)

worstxmas-2

It’s Tim Allen again, dishing out more holiday pain. But this time, he’s joined by the show-tune loving Martin Short as Jack Frost. Arguably a better premise than #2, the movie melts down in the end with the cheesiest ending since V: The Final Battle.

1. Surviving Christmas (2004)

worstxmas-1

Nothing says Christmas in October like James Gandolfini in a Santa hat. ‘Nuff said.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Jingle All the Way (1996) – We thought this would be a shoe-in, considering what a joke people remember it to be. But watch it with your kids, and you might agree it doesn’t even belong on this list.

The Preacher’s Wife (1996) – Okay, we admit it… neither Fat Guy actually has seen this film. We just figured that since it had Whitney Houston in it, it must suck ass.

For more lists, banter and random shenanigans, visit Fat Guys at the Movies.

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Thursday’s Top Ten Movie Quotes – Woody Allen’s Annie Hall

Posted in From My Point of View - Personal commentary on Movies and Books, Thursday's Top Ten, tagged , , , , , on December 16, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Cover of "Annie Hall"

Cover of Annie Hall

It’s Thursday’s Top Ten and then some.  A couple of days ago I watched Annie Hall (again!), one of,  if not the best of Woody Allen‘s movies.   Pure genius!  I was so taken with the dialogue that I started to jot some of what I thought were spectacular lines and thought these quotes would make a great Thursday’s Top Ten blog.

  1. “I‘m comparatively normal for a guy raised in Brooklyn.” – Alvie
  2. ” I love being reduced to a cultural stereotype.” – Annie
  3. ” You speak shellfish” – Alvie
  4. ” …If anyone had ever told me I would be taking out a girl who used the phrase, ‘La di dah’ …”. – Alvie
  5. ” The country makes me nervous, you get crickets and the screens with dead moths behind them…” – Alvie
  6. ” The rest of the country thinks of  New Yorkers as a bunch of left -wing Communist Jewish homosexuals;  personally I think of us that way sometimes.” – Alvie
  7. ” …my mother locked herself in the bathroom and overdosed on Mah Jongg tiles”. -Alvie
  8. ” Don’t knock masturbation, it’s having sex with someone I love”. – Alvie
  9. “…my feet haven’t touched pavement since I landed in L.A.” – Alivie
  10. “…penis envy? I’m one of the few men who suffer from it”. – Alivie
  11. “…the only cultural advantage is right turn on red”. – Alvie
  12. ” I forgot my montra” – ?
  13. “… it’s like living in munchkin land”. – Alvie

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Thursday’s Top Ten – Tis the Season for Christmas Songs

Posted in Thursday's Top Ten, tagged , , , , on December 9, 2010| 7 Comments »

Happy Xmas (War Is Over)

Image via Wikipedia

This was sent to me by my friend Gail and it is so apropos for the season, I thought well why not post in my blog? And so here it is – T’is the season to enjoy holiday music BUT really how many times do you want to hear The Chipmunk Song? This is so interesting with the background and origin of the songs.

Stacy Conradt

q10

I’ve finally decided it’s OK to listen to Christmas songs. Stores have been playing them since Halloween (I so don’t miss that about working retail), but I’ve banned them in my car until recently. I think that goes for Quick 10 posts too – it’s finally late enough in the season that I feel OK about sharing a few Christmas song facts. Pour yourself a cup of eggnog and enjoy!

1. “Santa Baby” was co-written by Joan Javits, the niece of Jacob Javits, a Republican Senator from New York.
2. “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day” is based on the poem “Christmas Bells” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
3. John Lennon and Yoko Ono may have written the lyrics for “Happy Xmas (War is Over),” but the melody was taken from an old folk song about a racehorse called “Stewball.”
4. “Do You Hear What I Hear” was actually a protest song of sorts. Written in 1962, the lyrics encouraged peace in the midst of the Cuban Missile Crisis.
5. “Silver Bells” was called “Tinkle Bells” until co-composer Jay Livingston’s wife pointed out to him that “tinkle” is commonly used as slang for “pee.” It was quickly changed to “Silver.” Another interesting tidbit: Livingston and his writing partner, Ray Evans, were also responsible for “Que Sera Sera” and the theme songs to Bonanza and Mr. Ed.
6. When Irving Berlin wrote “White Christmas” in his head, he said to his secretary, “Grab your pen and take down this song. I just wrote the best song I’ve ever written — heck, I just wrote the best song that anybody’s ever written!”

7. In “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” the fifth gift of “five golden rings” doesn’t mean jewelry – it refers to ring-necked birds such as the pheasant. The meaning has gotten a little skewed over the years. Also, it wasn’t originally “four calling birds,” it was “four colly birds,” which is a rather old-fashioned term for a blackbird.
8. The song “Christmas Why Can’t I Find You,” later restyled as “Where Are You Christmas” by Faith Hill, was first sung by Taylor Momsen as Cindy Lou Who (pictured) in the 2000 version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Yeah, THAT Taylor Momsen. Interestingly, Mariah Carey wrote the song but wasn’t allowed to sing it because of a contract issue with her ex, Tommy Mottola.
9. Aimee Mann’s “Christmastime” written by Michael Penn, Sean Penn’s brother.

10. The Chipmunks’ “The Chipmunk Song” has hit the Billboard Hot 100 over and over, most recently in 2007, when it was rereleased with the new Alvin and the Chipmunks movie. You know the one, but here it is just in case you don’t have a song wedged in your head right now. And here’s the 2007 one, which I kind of hate.

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Thursday’s Top Ten – Buildings Shaped Like What They Sell

Posted in Thursday's Top Ten, tagged , on November 26, 2010| 3 Comments »

This article below is a wonderful Top Ten list so I  thought I would appropriate it for my Thursday blog and the visuals are so much better than anything I have.
Ethan Trex 

10 Buildings Shaped Like What They Sell
by Ethan Trex – November 16, 2010 – 6:20 PM

Looking for a good way to advertise your business? Why not shape your headquarters like what you sell or offer? It’s worked out pretty well for these businesses and groups.

1. The Longaberger Company, Newark, OH

Longaberger is known for its handcrafted maple baskets, so its headquarters are obviously shaped like a giant basket. Not just any old basket, though. It’s a Longaberger Medium Market Basket that’s been blown up to 160 times its normal size. The basket includes a seven-story atrium, heated handles that prevent ice formation, and two 725-pound gold leaf Longaberger tags. Want to take a look the next time you’re in Ohio? Longaberger has visiting hours!

2. Twistee Treat Ice Cream

Between 1983 and the mid-1990s, Twistee Treat opened 90 or so ice cream shops around the country, and each one is shaped like a delicious cone of soft-serve vanilla. Want your own towering cone? A completely stocked one in Zephyrhills, Florida, is on the market for a mere $475,000. Or, if you’re on a budget but good with tools, the same listing also offers “A Separate Dismantled Ice Cream Cone Building” at the bargain price of $40,000.

3. Kansas City Public Library’s Parking Garage

Parking garages are usually eyesores, but this one’s beautiful. The garage for Kansas City’s Library is cleverly concealed behind what look like the bindings of 22 giant books. What’s really terrific is that local residents got to help pick what books would get the nod for 25-foot renderings on the side of the garage. Some of the tiles that made the cut: Catch-22, Invisible Man, The Lord of the Rings, Silent Spring, and Charlotte’s Web.

4. House of Free Creativity, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan


Kansas City doesn’t have a monopoly on book-shaped buildings, though. Turkmenistan cut the ribbon on this open book in 2006 as part of an effort to create a comfortable environment for journalists. Of course, “free creativity” may be a bit of a stretch. The journalists in question all work for Turkmenistan’s state-run press, and the country had no foreign or private media and very little open Internet access when the building opened during the reign of the late dictator Saparmurat Niyazov.

5. The Hood Milk Bottle

This one’s a Boston institution. In 1933, Arthur Gagnon wanted to open an ice cream stand in nearby Taunton, and he designed his new business to look like a giant milk bottle. After several changes in ownership (and a sail from Quincy to Boston proper), the structure is now known as the Hood Milk Bottle and resides at the Children’s Museum. It’s 40 feet tall and could hold 58,000 gallons of milk.

6. United Equipment Company, Turlock, CA

United sells and rents heavy equipment like compactors and excavators, so it’s only natural that the company’s headquarters building is shaped like a two-story yellow bulldozer. The bulldozer building, which opened in 1976, is “using” its redwood treads and giant blade to move a pile of boulders. [Image courtesy of the Flickr user Nevada Tumbleweed.]

7. The Phoenix Financial Center, Phoenix, AZ

Financial services made early use of massive punch-card-driven computers, and the Phoenix Financial Center looks as if it’s offering an odd tribute to this antiquated technology. The entire building has narrow slits for windows and looks like an oversized punch card. According to Phoenix’s municipal government, though, the resemblance was purely accidental; the narrow windows are there to minimize the effects of the hot desert sun on the building’s air conditioning bills. Nevertheless, local residents still refer to it as “the Punchcard Building.” [Image courtesy of Flickr user mcbrennan.]

8, 9 and 10. And the Rest!

Furnitureland South’s 85-Foot Tall Highboy is more statue-attached-to-building than building itself, but the North Carolina landmark is still worth a mention. As is BMW’s Four Cylinder building in Munich, which architect Karl Schwanzer designed to stand out next to the eye-catching Olympic buildings in the area. And while Japan’s Banna Park Birdwatch isn’t an egg store, we just couldn’t leave it out. Birdwatchers on Ishigaki Island can view their avian friends from the comfort of an enormous egg. Visitors can even climb up to the top-level of the egg to get some fresh air and a view from the broken tip of the shell.
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These certainly aren’t the only buildings shaped like what they sell. Have you seen any examples in your travels?

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