I love Dave

As the Joaquin Phoenix cluster-f**k comes to an end, the actor (whose hoax was some indictment of the media, celebrity and "consumers") appeared on Dave Letterman to explain.

Definitely watch this through to the end, when Dave gets in the last dig!



In case you haven't seen his appearance on Late Night in "character," you can watch the train wreck here.

Rent it or see it?

I've fallen out of the habit of going to the movies for everything I want to see, and only make time for films that I've been dying to see or that must be seen on a big screen (such as Inception or Casablanca).

Other films I'm interested in I put in my Netflix queue, which I now realize may take me several years to get through. At least it's cheaper (in theory) and it's a way for me to keep a list of the films (and TV shows) I'm interested in checking out at some point.

I have been strangely drawn to two new comedies lately, though. I have to admit, I'm a sucker for mass marketing when the ads involve Will Farrell. Maybe these aren't as good as they seem, so they'll go on my queue but I could probably be coaxed into the theater to see at least one of them...

So bad it's good

OK, confession time. I've totally become a fan of some really trashy TV.

I thought I would share some of my favorite shows with you hoping you give them a try and get corrupted along with me. Here goes!

First up: Hitting Rock Bottom During Bar Exam Studying with You're Cut Off

This show was an hour-long train wreck that made you want to puke most of the time. Take a gaggle of spoiled rich bitches, cut them off from their benefactors (who are either their parents or spouses), make them live and work together in a tract home in the San Fernando Valley, and let the chips fall where they may. Most of the show involved bad hair extensions, tiaras, and bitching about housework.

On one episode they were forced to go camping and I have to admit, I would not have acted any better than any of those girls. I'm sure I would have handled it pretty much the same - bitch about the experience nonstop, get drunk, pass out, and leave the next morning.

Bonus: One "character" on the show posts YouTube videos responding to the episodes after they aired. Here's a classic example:



All the episodes are available here.


Next Up: The old brilliant bad-for-you standby, Big Brother!!

When my parents told me several years ago that they watched this show I completely judged them, rolled my eyes, and concluded that by watching this trash, they were contributing to the downfall of our society.

Then, after spending a summer at my parents' house during season 7, the infamous "Big Brother All-Stars" season, I completely, totally, fell head over heels in love with the awfulness that is this show.

Go ahead and judge me, I will defend my love for this show until the end of time, even considering the fact that it is on THREE TIMES EACH WEEK and I TiVo the mother-effer.

You know what draws me in? I'm fascinated by how the stupidest people ever assembled can actually be so conniving. The drama is excellent and they end up surprising me with their strategery each season. I should note that I only watch the broadcast episodes; I do not subscribe the the 24/7 internet video feed..... yet.




And then: Keeping it a little Klassier with Top Chef and Project Runway!

Are these shows considered trashy? They are truly the high-end of the reality show crapfest, right?!

Top Chef is in D.C. this year and despite the corny tie-ins to the city (e.g., a "Cold War" challenge requiring chef-testants to create a winning cold dish), I love this show. Chefs are drinkers, full of drama, and full of passion, and they love food. These are people you (for the most part) would want to hang out with!

The huge downside is not knowing what the eff their dishes taste like, but in some cases that's OK. I'm not exactly curious about eating duck balls.



Project Runway is surely the flamingly glamourous drag queen of reality TV, no? Love, love, love it. I've always said, we could all use a Tim Gunn in our lives.

Is there any need to justify my love of this show? Absolutely not. If you haven't seen it, please climb out from under your rock and check it out immediately. It's brilliant.

The Ultimate "B Movie"

Every five years it seems there is someone commemorating Jaws, which hit theaters in 1975. It factors into my life in a weird way - my mom went into labor after seeing it at the drive-in with my dad!

Here's a trailer for a new documentary about the making of the film:

Blog Re-vamp

I'm mixing it up a little on this ole bloggy-blog.

I had spent considerable space here discussing law school and some of the good and bad experiences that came along with it, and I've decided to cleanse the blog of all of that and focus instead on life outside the school/work setting.

I want to find more time for fun with friends and family, so I hope to have more stories about that and less (or nothing) about the trials and tribulations of school, work, or bar studying! Life is too short and we spend too much time at work to write about it on our free time, no?

I hope to start things off sometime this weekend with a post about dinner & drinks with friends at Carlsbad Tavern in Scottsdale. Yum!

Mad Men is disappointing...

SPOILERS BELOW

The first two seasons of Mad Men were great; mysteries, inappropriate comments, drinking like fish throughout the workday - fabulous.

But now, as we near the end of the 3rd season, it's unclear what the point is anymore. We get it: suburban life is stifling and the Mad Men early-60s society is on the brink of dramatic change (possibly?). Don Draper is a mean, womanizing bastard who occasionally cuts someone down in a funny way. He's hot; we get it.

I was excited by Betty's discovery last week, only for it to go nowhere. There's the hope she'll confront Don, or at least have another tryst in the bathroom of some NYC bar again, but so what?

The episodes this season have been meandering and incomplete, and it seems like the writers/directors/producers are self-consciously trying to create a meditative or contemplative atmosphere in the show that simply falls flat.

The show gets a lot of accolades, but in the third season it is truly about nothing. Aside from the fabulous Joan, who cares about these people? They are all awful. They've completely ruined the Peggy story-arch by having her screw Ducky... that was so pathetic.

I'm hoping for a comeback, but expecting to be disappointed over the next month!

Be wary of white men who co-opt Native traditions

Not all who co-opt traditions, culture, and spirituality are necessarily bad.

Michael Meade is someone I really admire, and I am no New Ager. Meade is a poet and storyteller who weaves together the philosophical and spiritual teachings of many different cultures across the world to help find perspective and meaning in life when (at least in America) it seems that traditions, reflection, perspective, meaning, and purpose are not valued things.

Anyway, my point is, there is a lot to learn from other cultures and perspectives, but it should be done in a respectful manner. There should never be a tragedy like what happened this weekend in Sedona.

This weekend, James Arthur Ray hosted a "Spiritual Warrior" retreat in Sedona. Ray is a motivational speaker affiliated with The Secret (which I think is worth checking out). He has been blessed by Oprah and charges a shit-ton of cash to see him espouse his wisdom and insight. The retreat in Sedona was sold at $9,665.00 per person.

Part of the retreat featured a "sweat lodge purification ceremony." As far as I can tell, the ceremony was not done in conformity with Native traditions, placing participants at great risk. They crammed about 64 people inside a make-shift, tent-like structure that was only about 400 square feet, had them remain in the small space and the heat for several hours.

Two people died and another 19 needed to be treated for burns and other ailments. Here is a news report regarding the incident:



One news report pointed out the problems with the "ceremony":

The ritual in sweat lodges is helpful in restoring balance and changing people's attitudes and self-image, said Joseph Bruchac, author of "The Native American Sweat Lodge: History and Legends."

People have died in sweat lodges in the past. They were either sick tribal elders who voluntarily stayed until they died or people who were in poor health.

"The sweat lodge needs to be respected," Bruchac said. "When you imitate someone's tradition, and you don't know what you are doing, there's a danger of doing something very wrong."

A local resident was interviewed for the same report:

Sedona is an international mecca for New Age beliefs and purportedly the site of numerous "vortexes," or natural energy confluences thought to enhance spirituality and well-being.

Some questioned why there were so many people in the sweat lodge at once.

Jennifer Gentry, a sales associate at Sedona Crystal Vortex in uptown Sedona, said that she has been in several sweat-lodge ceremonies and that they typically are events for four to five people, maybe as many as 10, but never something she has done with strangers.

"In my opinion, it's a sacred ceremony," she said. "You shouldn't sell it, and you shouldn't have that many people in it."

James Arthur Ray has left Arizona and is refusing to discuss the incident with investigators.

He's sending dispatches from his Twitter account, saying he's been in constant prayer and meditation for the lives that have been lost. I guess this is guru speak for "I'm maintaining constant contact with my lawyer."

Hope this makes up for my absence...

So many clips from TDS are worth sharing but this one was the best from last week:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Democratic Super Majority
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Ron Paul Interview

I thought this series of ads was cool. I saw one for the first time this week. There are different versions... here's one:


And, an extended preview for the documentary on the National Parks by Ken Burns. One of my dream jobs would be to practice natural resources law focusing on the protection of our National Parks!

Megan Fox needs to go back to obscurity

This is highly amusing...

Lucky you if you don't know about Megan Fox and Michael Bay. The former is famous for her roles in the heavy-hitting dramas, Transformers and Transformers 2. The latter is the director of such masterpieces.

Well, it turns out that the two of them have had a falling out, and it may or may not be because they screwed. We'll probably never know for sure.

The proverbial shit hit the fan when Fox upped the ante and called Michael Bay "Hitler." At that point, even crew members had to intervene and post a scathing letter on Michael Bay's website.

Some excerpts from the letter (read the whole sordid thing here):

Yes, Megan has great eyes, a tight stomach we spray with glycerin, and an awful silly Marilyn Monroe tattoo plastered on her arm that we cover up to keep the moms happy.

Michael found this shy, inexperienced girl, plucked her out of total obscurity thus giving her the biggest shot of any young actresses' life. He told everyone around to just trust him on his choice. He granted her the starring role in Transformers, a franchise that forever changed her life; she became one of the most googled and oogled women on earth. She was famous! She was the next Angelina Jolie, hooray! Wait a minute, two of us worked with Angelina – second thought – she's no Angelina. You see, Angelia is a professional.

We know this quite intimately because we've had the tedious experience of working with the dumb-as-a-rock Megan Fox on both Transformers movies.

*****

When facing the press, Megan is the queen of talking trailer trash and posing like a porn star. And yes we've had the unbearable time of watching her try to act on set, and yes, it's very cringe-able. So maybe, being a porn star in the future might be a good career option. But make-up beware, she has a paragraph tattooed to her backside (probably due her rotten childhood) easily another 45 minutes in the chair!

*****

She compared working with Michael, to "working with Hitler". We actually don't think she knows who Hitler is by the way. But we wondered how she doesn't realize what a disgusting, fully uneducated comment this was?

*****

On our first day in Egypt, the Egyptian government wouldn't let us shoot because of a permit problem as the actors got ready in make up at the Four Seasons Hotel. Michael tried to make the best of it; he wanted to take the cast and crew on a private tour of the famous Giza pyramids. God hold us witness, Megan said, "I can't believe Michael is fucking forcing us to go to the fucking pyramids!" I guess this is the "Hitler guy" she is referring to.

So this is the Megan Fox you don't get to see. Maybe she will learn, but we figure if she can sling insults, then she can take them too. Megan really is a thankless, classless, graceless, and shall we say unfriendly bitch.

Scary

You think corporations have too much influence over politics?

Well wait until the U.S. Supreme Court reverses its position on laws restricting the ability of corporations to donate freely to political campaigns and even campaign directly on the behalf of political campaigns.

Your next president, brought to you by ExxonMobil or The Carlyle Group. Gee, I wonder what party/kind of politician they'd support?

RIP John Hughes

WTF is going on with people dropping like flies?!

In loving memory:

Another reason to hate Congress

I don't follow much of the Health Care Reform debacle, mostly because it is difficult to get past propaganda on either side of the issue to actually understand it.

What I do understand is that Obama has given Congress a directive to pass legislation that conforms to certain parameters he's established (what all of them are, I have no idea). Then these parameters are put through the Congressional Clusterfuck Generator to produce legislation that appears to address these parameters, but actually offers a windfall to those companies/industries that were supposed to be "reformed."

Take, for example, the pharmaceutical industry. In this article by the Wall Street Journal (always on the front lines ready to criticize the Democrats), the authors point out how no real "change" is likely to be forthcoming for some of Obama's parameters (namely, cheaper drugs available to Americans). In fact, what's being proposed is the following:

--- No cheaper drugs from Canada
--- No power for the government to negotiate Medicare drug prices
--- Name-brand drugs get 12 years on the market before generics are sold

From the article:

"This is the best year the drug industry has had in decades," said Nancy LeaMond of AARP, the seniors' lobby, which is seeking greater price-cutting on drugs.

***

If Mr. Obama retreats on some drug-industry issues, it might help him land a much bigger prize: a broad health-care bill. "The motivation for the White House and Finance Committee is to take PhRMA and its money out of any possible opposition, and that's really what's driving these agreements, along with the desire to get financing for the bill," said John Rother, another AARP lobbyist, referring to the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America. "Think about who has money enough to cause a problem."

UPDATE: The Associated Press is trying to cut through the bullshit, which helps.

Awesome, awesome, awesome

Let me put it this way

You don't want your A/C to stop working in the middle of July in Arizona. I'm working at home in the midst of it, because no A/C in July with a locked up pet = emergency here. It's been out for about 8 hours now; hopefully fixed soon. They are working on it.

It's 107 outside and Franky is chilling in the bathtub waiting for the heat to subside (poor babes).

One of the Beasties has cancer

... but the prognosis is good:

Random, I know

But this movie is so good. I need to see it again.

Like MST3K - but with song!

Please, sweet baby Jesus, stop the freak show

Anyone else disturbed at this "outpouring of love" over Michael Jackson? He didn't have a face and he was a child molester. I say good riddance.

The insanity is reaching heights no one thought possible (note the guy in drag(?) playing the damsel in distress):



At least the fact that nearly every goddamn TV station is parsing every single aspect of his life 24 hours per day gives me a reason to keep the TV turned off. Mother Eff.

"Change"? "Hope"?

Indefinite detention goes against our fundamental American beliefs. It is shameful that we are continuing to do this even if the threat from these detainees is real.

Our founding fathers supported freedom and liberty - enshrining those values in our Bill of Rights - despite the risk involved in giving people "too much" freedom. As a country I thought we abandoned the Bush era perspective where national security trumped civil liberties?

I'm sure there will be more court battles and Supreme Court decisions, most certainly placing limitations on Obama. Time will tell.

In case you're in da club and have to get those dudes off your jock

Fake engagement rings from Mstaken.com! Hilarious...

Of course, you could go the cheaper route and do what a law school friend does: just tell guys you have genital herpes. Enjoy: