Ok you know it as February 29th of the Leap Year but welcome to an extra day anyway. Every 4 years [except on those years which are evenly divisible by 100] we have an extra day to keep the Gregorian calendar in sync with the vernal equinox falling on or close to March 21 - that's what you get for building a yearly calendar which doesn't exactly match the 365.24219 days of a solar year.
Of the many things to do with your extra day this year, maybe you would want to attend the Worldwide Leap Year Birthday Club & Festival in Anthony, TX/NM - The Leap Year Capital of the World! If you go you could wish Ja Rule a happy 8th or Antonio Sabato, Jr. a happy 9th or Tony Robbins a happy 12th or Dennis Farina a happy sweet 16th birthday.
In any case, take this extra day and have fun, relax, enjoy the day and if your up to it, leap over something today!
If you, like me, are a child of the eighties then you remember the original Nintendo Entertainment System [way before the Game Cube or Wii]. Games like Super Mario Brothers, The Legend Of Zelda, ExciteBike, Tecmo Super Bowl, Blades Of Steel, Metroid, Contra Force, and Kung Fu were staples for any NES player back in the day. And now the guys over at nitendo8.com have put many of those old skool titles online to allow us to replay our youth. Thanks guys and now I am off to play some Super Spike V'Ball! KABOOM!!
The March issue of Maxim Magazine includes a review for The Black Crowes latest album, Warpaint, due to drop next week. The Crowes called bullshit on the 2.5 out of 5 star review "since advance CDs were not made available". The magazine issued an apology for the review today stating it was "editorial policy to assign star ratings only to those albums that have been heard in their entirety".
In a related story, Maxim has given Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull 4 out of 5 stars, Led Zeppelin's US tour 4.5 out of 5 stars [and claimed it would have been the best reunion tour if the band relived the famed fish incident on stage], Dan' Brown's untitled 5th book 3 out of 5 stars but also predict it will be a huge seller anyway, and finally have rated the final run of Momma Mia [with the original cast on Broadway] as a perfect 5 star performance.
Who needs to actually see/hear/read something to give an honest review anyway....
On your next trip to Detroit, you might want to sit down for a really, really big hamburger. The 134 pound burger is now the Guinness Book of World Recorder Holder for the largest commecially available burger. For $350, you and some of your closest friends could share a [big] meal. The cost includes fries and soda, but with 134 pounds of beef do you really need fries? Probably not but what is a burger without fries anyway. So stop on by Mallie's Sports Grill and Bar and enjoy!
Sarah Silverman presented Jimmy Kimmel [her boyfriend] this clip on his 5th anniversary show, which aired on January 31st:
This, of course, is part of the long-running joke where Jimmy "bumps" Matt from the show each night because he ran out of time. The video has become an instant classic and with lyrics like "on the bed, on the floor, on a towel by the door, in the tub, in the car, up against the mini-bar" you can see why.
In response, Jimmy presented this video on his post Oscar show yesterday:
Now Jimmy's song is not as good lyrically but with the raw start power of Brad Pitt, Joan Jett, Cameron Diaz, Don Cheadle, Robin Williams, Huey Lewis, Rebecca Romijn, Macy Gray, Pete Wentz, Dominic Monaghan, Joel and Benji Madden, Josh Groban, Christina Applegate, Meat Loaf, Perry Farrell, Lance Bass, Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Harrison Ford this could not only be a bigger viral video than Sarah's, it also shows that many of actors in Hollywood actually do have a sense of humor.
Can't wait for part three to this very important trilogy.
The NTSB released a preliminary report of its investigation into a go! airlines Flight 1002 that left Honolulu at 9:16 a.m. but drifted off course during the 214-mile trip and had to turn back to get to the Hilo airport on February 13. The findings of the report indicate the airplane didn't land at Hilo airport because because the two pilots fell asleep and the plane had flown 15 miles past the Big Island airport before it was turned around and landed safely.
Apparently the two pilots were unable to stay awake for the 49 minutes the entire flight takes. If you subtract the time necessary for properly taking off and climbing to altitude, it's probably more like 40 minutes. I wouldn't but these two in charge or watching your kids while you run out for an errand or two, they might let the kids set the house on fire or run around with sissors all night long.
Luckily nothing happened and hopefully go! and other airlines will institute a no-sleeping-on-the-job policy for pilots otherwise flying may no longer be the safest way to travel anymore.
Advertising Age reported on its web site this week that Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony were negotiating with People [domestic] and OK! [international] magazines to be paid as much as $6 million for exclusive rights to the first photos of their expected twins. I can't believe that having these photo's would be worth so much money to a publisher, especially when digital copies [or released images from the mag's themselves] will hit the net with days of the printing.
For free, you can take a look at this photograph of one of their twin's all grown up and seriously confused on his/her sexuality. Thanks Worth1000 for this photoshoped picture, which apparently is worth a lot more than 1000.
Now that we have gotten our first listen to each of the top 12 during 60's week, which is only slightly better than Disco week, here are my top 3 guys and girls [in alphabetical order] this year:
Even if AI is getting bigger ratings than expected wit the writers strike [although I'm sure any show would take the 29 million viewers they are currently drawing] one thing is for sure - this season should be as good or even better than the season 5 top 12.
On November 27, 2007 The Food Network announced that it would be canceling the Emeril Live show on December 11, 2007 and with his stock failing who is there to pick him back up but multi-media mogul, Martha Stewart. Brilliantly Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. has purchased the rights to the Emeril Lagasse franchise of cookbooks, television shows and kitchen products for $45 million in cash and $5 million in stock but passed on Emeril's Homebase, which includes Lagasse's 11 restaurants and corporate office. Stewart is continuing to build her own brand name by adding Emeril to her stable without entering the restaurant business, which she has very little experience. Adding a multi-million dollar "Emeril Empire" to the existing MSOL is, well, a good thing.
81-year-old Fidel Castro, who has not been seen in public since his July 2006 surgery, announced he will not accept another term as president - ending the communist revolutionary's 49 years in power. Even though Castro is stepping down, does this mean it's time for change in Cuba? First we have to see who is elected to replace him. His brother Raul has been temporarily in power since July of 2006 and is favored as Fidel's replacement. The other major player is current Vice-President Carlos Lage Davila. What is clear that in either man Cuba is not going to see to the communist regime currently leading the country, at least not in the short term.
To Fidel's credit, over the past 40+ years he has built an educational system that boasted some of the highest rates of education and literacy in the Americas and a national health system which has [along with Canada] the lowest infant mortality rates in Americas. On the flipside, Castro has been widely criticize for the numerous human rights abuses and Marxist-Leninist political beliefs.
Let's hope, at a bare minimum, the US and Cuba can come to an agreement on Cuban Cigars. I know their has been a trade embargo in place since 1996, but couldn't we just get some cigars? I already know the risks of smoking and wouldn't mind to put those Cuban smokes against the rest of the world. Smoke 'em if you got 'em, that's what I say.
Doc's Sports Bar in Milford, MA has applied for a special permit to feature adult entertainment at the restaurant. The application does not specify what kind of "adult entertainment" the owners are planning to add [or replace] to it's existing business however it is generally assumed that this application is to convert the sport's bar into a full on strip gentleman's club.
While there is no specific area designated for adult entertainment in town, the three districts in the bylaw [highway commercial, highway industrial, and highway and neighborhood industrial] that allow for adult entertainment each have a few different locations throughout town. The property is currently 80% in a highway and neighborhood industrial district and the rest is in a highway industrial zone. "Every community has to provide a limited area for adult entertainment," an interpretation of the courts, said Town Counsel Gerald Moody. "If the applicant (for the special permit) can meet all the conditions, they can conduct adult entertainment."
The ironic thing about this building, is when it was being erected, mean constructed, I thought it was going to be an adult club because not too many businesses are built with no windows and a large parking lot. I'm pretty sure this will never get approved in town because of growing resident resistance and the many, many buricratic steps needed to get it approved by the town.
And you would think with all the great sports teams we have had in the greater Boston area lately, a bar like this would flourish. I guess it takes more than just winning teams to make a restaurant and bar successful.
Now that the writers strike is over, here are 10 Plot lines that need immediate attention:
Chuck - When does Yvonne Strahovski's character [who has been previously shown in just a bra and panties, several sleek nightgowns and the now famous Wienerlicious outfit] have to go undercover as a full on stripper? And next on the stage...
How I met Your Mother: When will Barney get slap number 4 of his five-slap punishment? Whenever it is, it will make us fans - wait for it - slap-happy!
Law and Order: Will Fred Thompson reprise his role as Arthur Branch now that his Presidential run is over and will this be the last year of the L&O mother ship? dun DUN.
Lost: How Walt has grown like 10" in the last 30 days on the island and how long will it be before he looks like Jules Winnfield from Pulp Fiction? Describe what the Smoke Monster looks like!
Medium: Will Allison and Joe find real jobs again so we can get back to the crime solving dreams? I miss the good old fashion police work that is the core of the show from the beginning.
My Name Is Earl: What is the full back-story for Darnell "Witness Protection Program/college graduate at the age 14, speaks several languages" Turner? Maybe Earl should put that on his list.
Reaper: When are we going to learn of other portal to Hell beyond Gladys and the DMV? Best Buy, AT&T Phone Service Center or AOL could use the product placement [and some might consider them hell on earth].
Scrubs: Is Nurse Shirley related to may-god-rest-her-soul Nurse Laverne and what is in store for the series finally? Please finish the show on the air and not on DVD!!!
The Office: Can Michael get back to work now that he is post deposition/Meredith collision? I say he gets pulled in many new directions in the episodes to come. That's what she said.
The Big Bang Theory: Will geeky Leonard get a chance to, ummm test the Big Bang Theory, on the hot but not so bright neighbor Penny? Maybe not, I mean it is just a Theory after all.
With the release of Thriller 25 today, we begin to reminisce about THE album of the 20th century and probably THE album ever. Although the original album was released on November 30, 1982 so we are about a half year too early, but I digress. Most people know Thriller is the best selling album of all time in the US having sold more than 27 million copies but did you know that it has sold more than 104 million copies worldwide, is one of only three albums to remain in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 for a full year [80 consecutive weeks], first of three albums to have seven Billboard Hot 100 top-ten singles and the only album to date to be the best-seller of two years (1983-1984) in the USA? Damn!
Now for the strangest thing about Thriller - the artists. Sure you have Jackson himself and the legendary Quincy Jones producing but what about the musicians and other vocalist? Starting with big guns you have Eddie Van Halen supplying the ear drenching guitar work on Beat It, Paul McCartney singing along with Jackson on The Girl Is Mine and the ever eerie Vincent Price on the albums title track with his rap/voice over. Let's not forget Jackson's sisters Janet and LaToya adding backing vocals to P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing), which was co-written by James Ingram [who also provided additional keyboards to the track]. And then there were these guys:
Steve Lukather on the Guitar David Paich playing the piano Greg Phillinganes adding Synthesizer and Programming Jeff Porcaro banging the drums
Who are they? Well these guys are 2/3rd's of the band Toto. Yup that Toto, who had a few hits in the mid 80's including Rosanna, Africa, Hold The Line, I'll Supply The Love, I Won't Hold You Back, and I'll Be Over You. When you give Thriller a listen 25 years later, can you hear the Toto coming through? I know I can and will not be able to hear The Girl Is Mine, Human Nature or P.Y.T. without thinking of a girl named Rosanna down in Africa.
There have been many who have commented that Uxbridge, Mass resident Daniel Snay should not be allowed to collect his $10 million dollar prize he won on a scratch ticket purchased last January because he is a level 3 sex offender. Now I by no means do not condone his past criminal activities and for the most part believe that those who sever their time have paid their debt however I have two complaints about this overall story.
1. If the public at large believes he should not be free, then let's change the punishment laws. Otherwise, he is a free man to play [and win] the lottery. Or petition the Lottery Commission to change the laws about who can purchase tickets. As of today, anyone - including non-US citizens - can purchase and win the lottery. After all the money is created by those who play so anyone who plays should be able to win. I can see it now, I would like a scratch ticket. Can I see you drivers license sir? We are going to run a background check before we give you a mega ball ticket.
2. Now that Mr. Snay has won and it has been revealed he is a level 3 offender, who is not registered as required by law, the state of Massachusetts and Connecticut are looking into his failure to reregister in each state. Does it take winning the lottery for our state agencies to track know se offenders? Sure the system requires offenders to register but shouldn't their be some checks and balances in place as well? For example, Mr. Snay has been an employee of Certified Sales Inc, in Mendon, MA for the past 40 years so it's not like the IRS didn't know where he worked. Shouldn't the system require him to fill out a census like document each year [like I do for my very own town] to inform the state where his is living?
Hopefully this story will be a wake up call to the state agencies that oversee this process to rethink how it works instead of just "requiring" these convicted criminals to remember to keep the state informed of their whereabouts.
Sorry I have been "out of pocket" here for the past week. I have been busy at home making sure my wife doesn't try to hard to use her recently severed transverse carpal ligament while she is home healing. The good news is her hand is feeling better and with each day there is more movement and strength and less things she can't do. The bad news, at the end of day 1 she was already bored with sitting around reading books/magazines and watching movies. With one week down and 2 more to go, I think she'll make it and have a full recovery just in time to make use of our new kitchen!
With Romney announcing his departure from the 08 Presidential race, it looks like John McCain will be the republicans guy this fall. As for the democrats, Obama and Clinton will battle it out over the next month or so. One thing is for sure, I don't think the country will elect another republican [given the general displeasure with our current administration] in November so this election may truly be won in the primary and not on election day.
After a 24 state super primary, we still seem pretty split on who should be the candidates for this year's presidential election. On the republican side, McCain and Romney are battling it out but McCain now has a pretty good lead on Romeny and with Huckabee staying in and pulling many of the conservative votes from him, it may just be McCain’s race to lose now. On the other side, is where it gets really interesting. After 43 states have votes, Clinton and Obama are only separated by 5 delegate votes [630 to 625, respectively]. With 22 states left to vote, it's as if these two have made the playoffs and a new race has just begun. The keys to securing the democratic nomination lye in the Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia held of 2/12 and Ohio, Texas and Pennsylvania primaries which are due in March and April. Let the final push begin.
The Super bowl not only means a big game but also big advertising. Although I was not blown away by any one single ad this year, I did like some of this year's ads. Here are my top 7:
7. FedEX's Carrier Pigeons - Good idea, but the really big ones that can pick up your car can be dangerous.
6. SoBe's Thriller - Any time you reuse the classic dance steps in an ad, it works. Plus animated lizards eating animated bugs never goes out of style, just ask the Budweiser frogs.
5. Bud Light's Fire Breathing Bud Light - The ability to breath fire is no longer available in Bud Light. The endless refreshment however remains.
4. Cars.com's Ring of Fire - What's plan B? Plan B is Glondor in a stone circle death match of course [don't forget the ring of fire.]
3. NFL's Chester Pitts and his Oboe - Mr. Pitts looks like a gentle giant, unless your are an opposing defensive lineman. Keep livin' the dream Chester!
2. Pepsi's Justine Timerberlake - Adam Samberg in a wig + soccer player pulling off his shoe + JT vs the mailbox + plasma TV to the head = good fun.
1. Bud Light's Jackie Moon - Ron Burgundy as a Semi Pro basketball player. By far the most quote-able ad this year - Refreshes the pallet and the loins or Bud Light, Suck one!
Ahhh Super bowl Ad's. They do refresh the pallet [and the loins].
For a game that probably has the most scouting, planning and preparation it sometimes comes down to chance and luck. The Patriots went 18 and 0 leading up to yesterday's big game and were within 35 seconds of their Pursuit of Perfection but they were unable to stop the Giants in their final drive. Sure we will criticize Belichick and team for now kicking a 49-yard field goal in the third-quarter but what about the two missed interceptions in the last Giant Drive? How about the turnover's that lead to zero points? Or what about the just under thrown bomb to Moss in the Patriots last drive? They had chances but were not able to capitalize on most of them.
When some first said "That's he way the ball bounces" must have been looking at the oblong shape of a football.
Training for a marathon during the winter presents challenges about when you can run out doors. Last night, decided to run up and down the street on work on after work. It's fairly flat, very wide for a two lane road and fairly well lit. As I left the drive way to my office and headed down the street, I saw a car pulled over to the side with it's blinker on. I didn't give him much thought as I ran past except to notice a dog in the backseat. After one complete down and back I was going to run past the parked car. It was still parked in the exact same spot and I passed it again and didn't really give it another thought other than he was lost or something. About half way to the end of the street, I noticed a car on my side matching my running speed. I looked to my right and saw the car I had run past twice with it's window open. Since I was listening to my MP3 player, I could hear what the driver was saying. I pulled my headphones and asked if the guy needed something.
He asked "Did you my car on purpose?" Later I thought to myself, yes I'm out here running at night by myself with my headphones on and thought it would be fun to hit someone's car while they sat in the front seat with a dog in the back - of course I didn't hit your car on purpose.
I replied "I didn't hit your car." He said "Yes you did. You hit my window with your elbow." I think I would have noticed that and was thinking that maybe his dog had moved or something when I went by.
I said "If I did, I am sorry. Have a good night." and I returned to running. As I began to move again the car again matched my speed and continued to move closer so I stopped and went behind him to the other side of the street. I don't think this was intentional just a older driver not being very careful with his car.
As I got to the end of the street, the car had already turned around and was heading back but I noticed he wasn't moving and the window was still open. So, from a good distance, I again asked if there was anything he needed.
He replied "I'm not trying to scare you." This actually did take me back. He continued "I'm waiting for a delivery, that's why I am parked on the side of the road, so I am not trying to scare you." I replied "Umm, ok. Have a good night then." I ran by him one more time and by time I turned around on my loop, he was gone. Hopefully the UPS guys didn't have to get asked if he bumped his car when he dropped off the package.
If you, like me, are a child of the eighties then you remember the original Nintendo Entertainment System [way before the Game Cube or Wii]. Games like Super Mario Brothers, The Legend Of Zelda, ExciteBike, Tecmo Super Bowl, Blades Of Steel, Metroid, Contra Force, and Kung Fu were staples for any NES player back in the day. And now the guys over at 
On November 27, 2007 The Food Network announced that it would be canceling the Emeril Live show on December 11, 2007 and with his stock failing who is there to pick him back up but multi-media mogul, Martha Stewart. Brilliantly Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. has purchased the rights to the Emeril Lagasse franchise of cookbooks, television shows and kitchen products for $45 million in cash and $5 million in stock but passed on Emeril's Homebase, which includes Lagasse's 11 restaurants and corporate office. Stewart is continuing to build her own brand name by adding Emeril to her stable without entering the restaurant business, which she has very little experience. Adding a multi-million dollar "Emeril Empire" to the existing MSOL is, well, a good thing.
