Yes She Can

26 Aug

No, this isn’t a real ad. I just thought it was funny.
http://www.236.com/video/embed2.swf?videoID=1753232069&permalink=/d/?video=1753232069&width=425&height=364&embedCode=http://www.236.com/video/embed.php?v=1753232069&tags=Original+Video&urlPath=/d/?video=&translatorSwf=http://www.236.com/video/xml_translator.swf&xmlURL=http://iacas.adbureau.net/xtserver/site=236.com/aamsz=300x250video/area=video2/frmt=0/frmt=1/frmt=16/lnid=-1/ttID=1753232069/cue=post/cgm=0/RANDOM=0000000000&roll=post&policyFile=http://www.236.com/video/adPolicy.xml&title=+
(Thanks to Jeff Wells for the tip.)

Three’s a Crowd

25 Aug

You can say this (among other things) about Woody Allen as a filmmaker: He sure does know how to give his movies a sense of place.

His latest, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, unfolds in Spain (largely in, yes, Barcelona) and man if it isn’t just the greatest commercial for that city.

A (mostly unnecessary) narrator gives us the film’s basic premise: two best friends, Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson), are spending the summer abroad.

Both have different views about life and love: Vicky is more uptight and methodical (not to mention engaged), and Cristina is more carefree and spontaneous.

Both of their lives are changed when they meet Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem), a painter just out of a troubled marriage (to María Elena, played by Penélope Cruz). Continue reading →

Games Off, Game On!

24 Aug

Before we completely forget about the Olympics, I thought I’d share this article, which may just provide you with another reason to hate Michael Phelps:

Sex and the Olympic City
Tomorrow night thousands of young men and women with the most fit, toned bodies in the world will mingle for the last time before they fly home. What might they get up to? [Read More]

Foodstuffs

24 Aug

Three quick food-related items that didn’t really merit their own posts:

* Nina and I had brunch today at “our spot,” Z Square in my beloved Harvard Square. I tried something there that I’d never had before: the buttermilk pancakes. Let me just say they were some of the best pancakes I’ve had. They were almost like thick crepes, and they were served practically covered with cinnamon and butter. Syrup was almost unnecessary. Yum.

* Part of Nina’s and my afternoon involved hanging out at the Cambridge Carnival, and it was there that we both enjoyed some fried dough. Mmmmmm … there are few things better than some good ole fried dough from a street vendor. I guess now it’s official: it’s summer!

* Since I moved to my condo, I’ve been adjusting to new places and new stores. And no sooner did I move than my new local Shaw’s (on Route 9) closed for renovations. This weekend I branched out from the default Shaw’s on Beacon St. in Brookline to the bigger one in Brighton on Western Ave. and was quite pleased to find what seemed like double the selection. It’s like the Packard’s Corner store, just without the annoying college kids. Hooray!

Songs Sung Blew

24 Aug

(or … Mild August Night)
(or … I Am Letdown, I Said)
(or … Not So Good! Not So Good!)

Since I’d never seen Neil Diamond in concert, I was quite excited to see him Saturday night at Fenway Park.

And sure, I’m not the biggest Neil fan (I own his latest album but still haven’t listened to it), but I do love the classics in his repertoire, and I figured it’d at least be a fun show.

At the very least, it’d be totally cheesy to hear him sing “Sweet Caroline” live in Fenway, and I could totally get into that.

I mean, I’ve seen Barry Manilow live (three times, I believe), so how bad could Neil Diamond really be? Continue reading →

Like the Very First Time

18 Aug

If this November is going to be the first time you vote in an election, then this video’s for you. (If this is not going to be your first time voting in an election, don’t worry — you can watch too.)

http://www.cnn.com/video/savp/evp/?loc=dom&vid=/video/politics/2008/08/17/loftv.daughtry.video.cnn

Method to Their Madness

16 Aug

From its inspired, brilliant first 10 minutes, right on up to the closing credits, you’ll be on the floor laughing yourself silly over Tropic Thunder. This satire of Hollywood pretension, action films, Vietnam War films, method acting, tyrannical studio heads, overzealous agents, Oscar bait, and basically anything related to the art of moviemaking, is just fall-down flat-out funny. No, those trailers at the start of the film — before the credits — aren’t for real movies, but they’re totally dead-on. All the acting — by Ben Stiller (who also cowrote and directed), Jack Black, Matthew McConaughey, Tom Cruise, Nick Nolte, Danny McBride, and especially Robert Downey Jr. — is hysterical. The screenplay is filthy and at times offensive, but always meant in good fun. To ruin any of this movie’s pleasures would be wrong, so I’ll just tell you it’s the funniest movie of the summer and give it an A–. The film’s tagline is Get Some. I agree.

Get on the Bus, Gus

13 Aug

Just a quick kudo to the MBTA and their bus service. I was in my beloved Harvard Square tonight having dinner with Amy, and knew that getting home would involve some strategerie. Used to be that when I lived in Coolidge Corner I could just take the 66 bus and it would go right to Babcock St. Now that I live where no buses go, I needed a new plan. Anyway, long story short, the 86 bus went right to the corner of Comm Ave. and Chestnut Hill Ave., and after a quick two-stop B-line ride, I was home in no time. Seriously, the whole trip took less than a half hour — a fraction of what it would have taken if I had used the subway. So, nice job MBTA. That’s a pretty sweet way to get from home to Harvard Square and vice versa.

But if I can just throw in my two critical cents: Why does there have to be a bus stop on, like, every block? It’s worse than the B line used to be. It’s worse than the 66 bus. Can’t people walk like the people who take the train do? Especially considering all the traffic lights we have to stop at, there’s really no reason the bus has to stop sooooo often. Otherwise, I love taking the bus. Woo hoo!

Breakfast of Champion

12 Aug

I’ll admit it: I’ve come down with an acute case of Olympic Fever. I’m nowhere near obsessed, but I’ve definitely watched more of the games than I ever thought I would. It’s all been pretty exciting. And while I think there’s been waaaaaaaaaaaay too much Michael Phelps coverage already — c’mon, NBC, can’t we have just one Phelps-free day? — my favorite part of the coverage so far was last night when Bob Costas read off what Phelps’ typical breakfast is. I’m not making this up.

“Three sandwiches of fried eggs, cheese, lettuce, tomato, fried onions and mayonnaise, one omelet, a bowl of grits, and three slices of french toast with powdered sugar. Then he washes it down with three chocolate chip pancakes.”


In total, the guy eats between 8,000 and 10,000 calories a day. Wow. And apparently, he has a hard time packing on the pounds, too. I wish I had his problem, and I eat just a fraction of what Phelps does. Amazing. Not only is he an impressive athlete, but he’s also got the best diet in the entire world. He washes it down with three pancakes? It’s official: Michael Phelps is my hero.

Here’s a clip to help me make my point.

Rapping with Bert and Ernie

11 Aug

Some fun for your Monday.

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