The Eastern States 20 Miler covers a course which starts in Kittery Maine and ends in Salisbury Massachusetts. Running a race of this length at the end of March, you are truly at the mercy of New England weather. On our drive to Maine on Friday we went from rain here in Massachusetts through a slush storm in New Hampshire to a full on snow storm in Freeport, Maine [5+ inches]. On Saturday as we walked around Portsmouth New Hampshire we enjoyed a blustery 30 degree day with 30+ MPH winds. So when I awoke to a mid 40's day with a mild sea breeze, I couldn't have been happier. The course wound through Portsmouth until we reached route 1A and followed that for the bulk of the run until we entered Massachusetts and reached the finish line. I thought it was a great course and well organized and would highly recommend it for those who want to challenge the distance, run through 3 states in one race, or anyone prepping for the Boston Marathon. Now if my sun/wind burned face would look less sun/wind burned I'd be happier this morning.
Damn you Philippine-American voters! Actually I think Ramiele has a great voice just not the personality or song selection skills to be the next American Idol. At the same time we lost Chikezie Eze [could have gone by the nickname The Big Eze] just before country week with Dolly Parton. I thought he had been doing much better but I guess not good enough. And Jason, last night was a wake up call - your looks and locks will only get you so far so you better pick it up next week or you might end up in the bottom 1 very soon.
Up next week is country and I am looking forward to seeing Kristy get into her comfort zone, Brooke to get back behind an instrument and David Cook find yet another way to make a known song cool and relevant.
The Melting Pot is a cook-it-yourself-at-your-private-table fondue restaurant. Last night we had dinner at the Framingham, MA location and what a feast it was! Beginning with their extensive wine list, we selected a bottle of Zonin Prosecco Brut which I hoped would complement everything to come. As for dinner, it started with a Caesar Salad for him and a California Salad for the lady. For the main course I chose the Land & Sea dinner [a collection of New York strip, marinated breast of chicken and white shrimp] and the wife elected to go with the French Quarter [Cajun-seasoned shrimp, filet mignon, breast of chicken and Andouille sausage]. We cooked our meat and vegetables in the Mojo Style Caribbean-seasoned bouillon [with distinctive flavors of fresh garlic with a citrus flair]. To finish off the meal we went with the Bailey’s® Irish Cream Dream chocolate fondue with strawberries, bananas, cheesecake, tasty marshmallows, pound cake and brownies.
With there swanky decor and semi-private tables, The Melting Pot is a great place for a quite dinner out where you can not only enjoy great food, but also enjoy the experience of cooking it too.
MP3 or not has a simple exersize to test your listening ability. Can you hear the difference? I could after several listens and the difference was very subtle. Of course that's with my little ear bud headphones. Listening to these clips over some high end speakers via a home theater you might notice the difference more easily. Still a fun exercise.
The word on the street is that everyone favorite car dwelling American Idol wanna be Josiah Leming has been signed to landed a major-label record deal with Warner Brothers Records. I am surprised it took this long for a record label to snap him up, given his current level of fame and free publicity he got from all that air time in the early stages of Idol this season. While we wait for his major label debut, enjoy this short clip of Josiah at L.A.'s Hotel Cafe on March 7:
It wasn't terrible but Briney's character could have been done by any actress and left very little to the overall story. Sarah Chalke, on the other hand, was great as Ted's "folliculaphobic" dermatologist with a 8 year old daughter. [Note not much of a stretch from her current day job as attending physician Elliot Reid on Scrubs but still sweet and funny as ever]. Hopefully she will return in the future but not as The Mother, of course - we still need a few more seasons before we get to her.
On tonight's episode of How I Met Your Mother, Britney Spears guest stars as a receptionist in a dermatologist's office [named Abby] who becomes "smitten" with our hero Ted. This could be a series killing mistake but given HIMYM's track record with guest stars I am expecting it be still be good, plus tonight will also feature another guest star in Sarah Chalke [of Scrubs fame] as Stella the actual dermatologist and eye of Ted's affection. In preparation for tonight's much-hyped episode, let's take a look back at the notable guest stars for the series:
Bob Saget as the voice of 2030 Ted. He is telling his daughter and son the story of how he met their mother, i.e. the premise of the entire show.
Megan Mullally as the voice of Barney's Mother. She is seen [from the waist down] in Barney's childhood flashbacks, including the one about his "father".
Bob Barker as Himself. This is the person Barney thinks is his father which lead to a great Price Is Right centric episode. Note Bob is not Barney's father [as far as we know].
Wayne Brady as James Stinson. Wayne as ultra-alpha-male Barney's gay,suit waring black brother is priceless casting.
Danica McKellar as Trudy. Ted's one night stand of The Wonder Years fame inspires Ted to act not think. She also returns with a friend.
Busy Philipps as Rachel. Rachel is Trudy's Kappa Epsilon Gamma sorority sister and they suggest a threesome with Ted, which he can't go through with.
Mandy Moore as Amy. Amy is a tattooed party girl who Ted dates briefly and I for one think Mandy should get some real ink.
Enrique Iglesias as Gael. Gael is Robin's Argentina lover whom all the ladies swoon over - even without his mole.
John Cho as Jeff Coatsworth. Slick and tempting possible employer for our newest New York lawyer, Marshall.
Alessandra Ambrosio, Selita Ebanks, Miranda Kerr, Adriana Lima, Marisa Miller and especially Heidi Klum as themselves. The Victoria's Secret models were all part of a dream night gone wrong for Braney "Suit Up" Stinson.
So far the casting folks over at HIMYM have been right on so for now, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt but it better be good because the show is currently on the bubble for next season and if this episode is a mess it could be on the outs for their current fan base starting tonight.
The PhotoShopped blog sole purpose is to highlight bad PhotoShopping. The comments on the Spiderman 2/Ms. Fantastic Poster, Kata Dobo's cool tile job and the attack of the clones for Diario Sportivo AS are classic. But this post takes the cake [so far]:
The predictions from yesterday were, ummm, not good. I only had 1 of the bottom 3 but on the bright side I correct that it would be an all female Bottom Of The Barrel. If this trend continues, we might see a situation where Brooke White or Carly Smithson is in the top 4 with 3 men.
We also learned from last night that one bad week can be the end of the road for Idol hopefuls. Amanda and Carly were not great this week and neither seemed to on the bubble but after last night Amanda is gone and Carly got a wake up call. Just a reminder that America is fickle and they will turn on you in an instant.
Next week instead of the iTunes 100, which had been planned for this week before they shoehorned in a second Beatles week, the contestants will be performing songs from the year they were born - a range of dates from to 1978 to 1990 [with the bulk of contestants in the 1983 to 1984 range]. With that in mind here are a few suggestions:
David Archuleta [1990] | Nothing Compares 2 U - Sinead O'Connor Jason Castro [1987] | With Or Without You - U2 Chikezie [1985] | The Power of Love - Huey Lewis & the News David Cook [1982] | Jack And Diane - John Cougar Kristy Lee Cook [1984] | Girls Just Wanna Have Fun - Cyndi Lauper Michael Johns [1978] | Do Ya Think I'm Sexy? - Rod Stewart Ramiele Malubay [1987] | Didn't We Almost Have It All - Whitney Houston Syesha Mercado [1987] | I Wanna Dance With Somebody - Whitney Houston Carly Smithson [1983] | Radio Free Europe - REM Brooke White [1983] | Every Breath You Take - The Police
Until next week, I'm going Back in the US, Back in the US, Back in the oh wait, just going back to work.
Ryan called this week The Beatles [not the Lennon/McCartney songbook] so will we hear something actually not written by the prolific duo? Let's see...
Amanda Overmyer | Back In The U.S.S.R.
Our resident rocker goes for another classic rock track. Unfortunately Amanda was drowned out by the band and showed almost no melody on the vocal bridge. Her vocals sound pretty much like every other song she has done so far. Paula predicts Amanda will "continue to go up"? I'm not so sure.
Kristy Lee Cook | You've Got To Hide Your Love Away
Singing a song she had never heard before? Risky. Started really good but fell a little flat on the chorus and once the band joined in. It might have been better to run the whole song completely stripped down. Finished strong and was much better than last week [and apparently looked gorgeous - thanks Paula].
David Archuleta | The Long And Winding Road
Welcome back to the show David. He returned to his bread and butter with a tight ballad. David gave us a very melodic performance but I am wondering if he can actually win it all win a whole season of sugary and cute ballads? Not sure but maybe if he continues his "master class" he can.
Michael Johns | A Day In The Life
Michael sounded a bit high pitched on the first section but it got it back together for the remainder of the song. Found him to be a tad boring as a performer. The whole good looking/above average singer will only go so far. And Simon was spot on, that is a very complex song which really can't be compressed that way.
Brooke White | Here Comes The Sun
Ahhh a George Harrison song and it felt like such a prefect fit for Brooke. Psss Mr. Archuleta here comes Brooke. I liked the vocals and thought, again, she connected with the song. Yeah she looked a little uncomfortable without her piano and the dancing was odd but that's ok. Her sunny yellow dress looked good.
David Cook | Day Tripper
Great song choice and the crunchy guitar work was really current. The vocals were great however the full on chorus and voice box work felt, in the words of Simon from 2 season's ago to one Chris Daughtry, a little indulgent. Maybe it is time for him to pull a Jason Castro and get all sensitive on us.
Carly Smithson | Blackbird
Sung in the style of Sarah McLachlan, but not nearly as good. It was a good vocal effort until the last 3rd where she took the song big where it really calls for the steady vocal - again as Sarah did it. I like her range of style she can sing and that could take her a long way [as long as she picks better songs].
Jason Castro | Michelle
MeeShell or is it Michelle? Anyway, for most of the song I felt like Jason was over shadowed by the full band. I really liked his french, which adds a level of difficultly to this song, and the end sounded good. I agree with Randy, which is out of the normal, that Jason looked very disconnected with the song. At least he has a face for tv!
Syesha Mercado | Yesterday
It's about time someone did this song. At least 2 people said last week this was their favorite Beatles song. Unfortunately Syesha took an amazing song and slowed it down [to far] and drew out each word beyond the great guitar notes. For once, I have to totally disagree with the judges and this might be Syesha's last week with us, which is a shame because I really like her.
Chikezie | I've Just Seen A Face
Not sure what happened to Chikezie last week but suddenly he is having a ball on stage and sounding pretty good at the same time. Great arrangement with solid vocals and decent harmonica work, for a guy who never played one before. Hope he makes it to country week to see what he does to an actual country track.
Ramiele Malubay | I Should Have Known Better
Ok, now that's how you play the harmonica Chikezie! I know she wanted to go for an uptempo track but this one felt too big for her. Not sure she could ever sing melodic song like the Beatles did. I will say it finished pretty good and it was somewhat better than last week.
Looking like finalists:
1. David Cook 2. David Archuleta 3. Brooke White
And not so much:
1. Syesha Mercado 2. Kristy Lee Cook 3. Ramiele Malubay
Should Go Home: Ramiele Malubay
Will Go Home: Kristy Lee Cook
Ok your lurkers [and you know who are - Kym & Kim] let's have your comments.
The B-52s new album Funplex, due to be released on March 25, 2008, can be heard in it's entirety on Much Music's First Spin. This is their first original album in sixteen years (since 1992's Good Stuff and when talking about the record's sound, Keith Strickland noted, "It’s loud, sexy rock & roll with the beat pumped up to hot pink." Not sure if I agree with his description but it is at least an interesting way to put it.
I like the driving beats and guitar riff's on songs like Pump, Hot Corner, and Ultraviolet and they might have a new party anthem in Funplex. Not sure of their new sound is as melodic as their past work [like the Cosmic Thing album] but it is definitely worth a listen, especially for those true 52's fans out there.
Hannaford Brothers Company announced yesterday that they have been the victim of a breach of its computer system potentially exposed 4.2 million credit and debit card numbers and has led to about 1,800 fraud cases to date. Currently the company is working with the Secret Service on this investigation. This comes on the heels of last year's theft of up to 100 million customer card numbers from Framingham retailer TJX Companies. Also last year, four men from Southern California received prison sentences after pleading guilty to US charges they stole payment information at checkout counters at Stop & Shop Supermarket Companies stores in Rhode Island.
Is the northeast this wide open for hackers or is it all just a coincidence? I'm not sure but one thing is for certain, when these guys [or girls] are caught, they are doing some serious time in the big house. Go get 'em boys...
Yesterday was the 4th new episode since the writers strike ended and even though Jonah Hill was the host and I expected Superbadish humor for the hour and 1o minutes around my favorite segment, Weekend Update, it turned out to be by far the best episode this season. I actually laughed for most of the entire episode and it was the best episode I have scene in sometime. Here is a really good skit where Mr. Hill plays a hyperactive 6 year old with his newly divorced dad:
Plus the ongoing MacGruber skit is "Friggin' Genius":
Part 1
Part 2
And let's not forget Weekend Update's Really!?! with Seth and Amy:
I'm now actually really looking forward to their next new episode on 4/22 with Christopher Walken and Panic at the Disco. Maybe we will see More Cowbell... Just a thought.
No surprises last night in the bottom 3 - David Hernandez, Kristy Lee Cook, Syesha Mercado - and viewers will no longer be subjected to David's singing ways [and the press can now stop printing he used to be a gay stripper]. In an interesting change of plans, Idol had planned to use iTunes top 100 as next week's theme but they have changed their mind and are going with Lennon/McCartney Songbook, Part 2. It will be very interesting to see if those who struggled this week can find a way to put together a better Beatles song for next week and if those who shined can do it again.
Things to ponder until next week:
Will anyone try and use a song from the new Beatles album Love especailly either Drive My Car / The Word / What You're Doing [medley] or Within You Without You / Tomorrow Never Knows, which is a mash up between the two songs.
Would AI allow anyone to cover the song Her Majesty from the Abbey Road Album [it's only 23 seconds and completely a cappella after all]?
Who will sucsessfully add a modern rock edge to another 60's classic and who will fail?
For the first week on the big new stage, AI gave the contestants the Lennon/McCartney songbook to pick from. Most of us would just refer to that as The Beatles but the week did not include all of The Beatles songs because some were not written by Lennon/McCartney. So I take this moment to thank George Harrison for songs like Here Comes the Sun, Taxman and While My Guitar Gently Weeps, which all could have been great choices. Lastly before I get to each Idol, I have one question: What was with Ryan's Hair? In the immortal words of Thomas R. " Tommy" Callahan III - He's got really weird hair.
Syesha Mercado | Got to Get You into My Life
Syesha's take on this song felt like the Beatles meets disco or as Randy called it an Earth, Wind and Fire arrangement. The song gave Syesha a change to show off some wind, I mean vocal talent but it really lacked the fire which would make it a great performance.
Chikezie | She's a Woman
This song choice may have been the best of the night. From the O' Brother Where Art Thou opening to it's up-tempo finish, Chikezie looked like he was having a ball on stage and showed pretty good range. Overall I thought this was not only an awesome cover but it was my favorite song of the night.
Ramiele Malubay | In My Life
Ramiele has been praised for having such a big voice for a small person but last night was just so-so. The vocals were solid and her voice sounded good but I didn't hear the big notes and agree with Paula that this just was a safe song for Ramiele.
Jason Castro | If I Fell
His voice felt whispery and couldn't fully reach the high notes, which might not be his particular style. He also seemed a little off beat to the music but I like Jason and think is he picks songs that fit his style he could go far. Oh and no Paula I did not feel Jason's heart on this song.
Carly Smithson | Come Together
The judges have been praising her voice for a while but this was the song that I felt it really shined. Great song choice and arrangement. This kind of performance could land her in the finals. I actually thought that Amanda was going to pick this song. Maybe her roommate is rubbing off on her a little. PS Ryan stay out of student's rooms.
David Cook | Eleanor Rigby
Started a little shaky in the low voice beginning but came through tight on the chorus [and a little Daughtry-esque] and the second half of the song. I liked that he was sans-guitar and looked a little more frontmanish. At this point, I think David could be the the Idol to beat - both this season and next year when the Idol's albums begin to drop.
Brooke White | Let It Be
Brookes look very comfortable in front of a piano belting out a heart felt rendition of Let It Be. She has a unique voice with a small country twang to it which I like. I would have maybe added more of the band into it earlier bur overall it was good. By the way, I loved the We [heart] Brooke (but miss our nanny) sign!
David Hernandez | I Saw Her Standing There
As he began to sing I actually said "Yikes" out loud. This was by far the worst song choice of the night and David might be better off with a country slant to his songs - not that he might have another chance. He took a fairly simple song and made it into a runny mess of falsetto's which were all over the place. I'll say it again, Yikes.
Amanda Overmyer | You Can't Do That
At first I was mesmerized by her stripped pants but I can to when she began to put her trademark southern/blues/rock take on the song. I thought she sounded good and the song was at a good tempo for her style. Although I think her limited range will only take her so far.
Michael Johns | Across the Universe
First let me say I loved the picture of him as a kid in a Vegemite t-shirt. Men at work would be so proud. I liked his straightforward cover of this classic song with a minimalist approach to the arrangement and felt this was his best song since getting to the top 24. He will need to take his next song to another level if he wants to become more of a frontrunner.
Kristy Lee Cook | 8 Days A Week
I liked the whole mega violin thing to start the song but when the rest of the band jumped in I felt the song was going a million miles an hour. Just way too fast. Kristy sounded like she was trying to keep up and at times rushed like she was covering a Jay Z song. Overall, though, I liked her vocals when she slowed down for the chorus. On a side note, the 80's called and they want their jeans back.
David Archuleta | We Can Work It Out
For the first time, David looked completely lost on the stage. He looked so uncomfortable with the song and maybe the bigger venue. Stevie Wonder is a musical genius in all but this was Beatles week, stick to more Beatle-ish covers. And N E V E R forget your lyrics. That is the one unforgivable thing [to me anyway] on American Idol.
I was surprised the judges didn't give him a harder time on that point and if it were only up to me, he would be done because of that alone. But it is not and he will probably stay but this does show he has weaknesses and may not be the Idol to beat.
Cream Of The Crop:
1. Chikezie 2. Carly Smithson 3T. David Cook 3T. Brooke White
Muddling In The Middle:
1. Michael Johns 2. Amanda Overmyer 3. Jason Castro 4. Ramiele Malubay
Bottom Of The Barrel:
1. David Hernandez 2. David Archuleta 3T. Kristy Lee Cook 3T. Syesha Mercado
Should Go Home: David Archuleta
Will Go Home: David Hernandez
Do you have some thoughts on last night's Idol? Please add them into the comments on this post. Now back to work... She loves me yeah, yeah, yeah...
Well maybe not. It was confirmed today that Britney Spears is going to guest star on the March 24th episode of How I Met Your Mother. This is one of my favorite comedies on the air [well sort of on the air] right now and I have a bad feeling about this. Spears has been penned in as a receptionist in a dermatologist's office [named Abby] who becomes "smitten" with our hero Ted.
Here are, in no particular order, are several reasons this could be a problem and might be the episode we look back on and utter the phrase Jumped The Shark:
- The Spears of Madonna/Christina lip-locking fame would have been a good addition, the mental-break-down-in-the-middle-of-such-a-nasty-divorce-that-it-drove-her-to-shave-her-head, not so much.
- Britney could have the mental capacity to be a receptionist but never in the medical field, so I'm not buying it.
- The writers better give her some very good dialog or she'll just look like a dumb blonde from the south, wait she is, oh never mind.
- Spears is 26, Josh Radner is 33. Ummm that doesn't quite fit the overall storyline.
- Blodne Britney not really his type. Brunette Britney maybe. Bald and crazy Britney no F'in way.
- What would NPH do? Drop it like it's hot because of her low rating on the crazy to hotness scale.
Well let's hope that I am wrong and this is a great episode that launches HIMYM to it's rightful place in the top of the weekly TV charts and not into the abyss of canceled shows.
Buster Martin, who went back to work at age 99 as a part time plumber, is planning on running the Londo Marathon on April 13th. If he finishes, he will be the oldest marathoner ever and break the existing record of 95 years old set by Fauja Singh in 2005 in Scotland.
And how does a 101 year old running celibrate finshing a 42 kilometre run? "I'll do what I always do and have a pint and a fag," he said. Martin continues "People ask 'what is my secret?' but I haven't got one. They say fags and booze are bad for you -- but I'm still here, aren't I?"
Yes you are Buster, yes you are. Good Luck next month!
If you ask the folks over at Guinness, the answer would be a resounding yes - make that a Hell Yes. To facilitate a petition for our federal government to consider St. Patrick's day as an official holiday, they have launched a new website called Proposition 317. They are attempting to collect 1 million signatures to present to Congress. As of today they have over 118,000 signatures [including mine] and only 881k more. So go on over and show your support!
What would it look like if you were to blend Catherine Zeta-Jones, Keira Knightly, Angelina Jolie and Charlize Theron together? You would get the beautiful Catheinize Zightly-Jeliens! See how it is done here:
Starting next week, BOTB will bring you a weekly wrap-up of each week's American Idol. Who should stay. Who should go. What happened. What didn't happen. Ect. These weekly posts are being done on behalf of my good friend J who started the American Idol: Morning After blog last year. Please stop by next Wednesday morning for the review of the top 12 and don't be afraid to add your own 2 cents in the comments.
FCC okays nudity on TV [as long as it’s Alyson Hannigan]
I'm sure any person can see the inherent artist value in Alyson Hannigan slowly pealing away layer after layer of clothing until her milky white bosom is in full view, obscured only by a few wisps of her auburn hair.
After 17 years in the league, Brett Favre has retired leaving a large hole in the heart of all those cheese heads in Wisconsin and a small one in football fans everywhere. Favre leaves the game he loves with monstrous career records, some which may never be broken:
So after 17 years, thank you for your heart, body and soul, all of the thrills, chills, spills, and one very memorable role in There is something about Mary. You will be gone but never forgotten.
Last night, Oprah Winfrey and Eckhart Tolle had their first live web event for Tolle's book A New Earth. More than 500,000 students simultaneously logged on to watch Oprah and Eckhart discuss the chapter 1 of the book live, resulting in 242 Gbps of information moving through the Internet. In an email today after the event Harpo Productions, Inc., Move Networks and Limelight Networks say they "recognize that interactive Internet broadcasting to a mass audience is still an emerging medium, and we're proud to have been pioneers in pushing the industry forward."
I give them credit for trying to put together such a large scale web activity and there's one thing for sure, if anyone could get it right over the next 9 weeks it is Oprah Winfrey.
Including a meet and greet with Scarlett Johansson! The winning bidder will receive:
Two tickets to the world premiere of He's Just Not That Into You. The premiere location has not yet been determined but will be in either Los Angeles or New York this July.
Chauffeured car service to the premiere.
Hair and makeup for one by Privé.
A meet and greet with Scarlett Johansson at the premiere.
Actually all proceeds go to Oxfram, so it is for a good cause. Check out Ms. Johansson herself:
The Eastern States 20 Miler covers a course which starts in Kittery Maine and ends in Salisbury Massachusetts. Running a race of this length at the end of March, you are truly at the mercy of New England weather. On our drive to Maine on Friday we went from rain here in Massachusetts through a slush storm in New Hampshire to a full on snow storm in Freeport, Maine [5+ inches]. On Saturday as we walked around Portsmouth New Hampshire we enjoyed a blustery 30 degree day with 30+ MPH winds. So when I awoke to a mid 40's day with a mild sea breeze, I couldn't have been happier. The course wound through Portsmouth until we reached route 1A and followed that for the bulk of the run until we entered Massachusetts and reached the finish line. I thought it was a great course and well organized and would highly recommend it for those who want to challenge the distance, run through 3 states in one race, or anyone prepping for the Boston Marathon. Now if my sun/wind burned face would look less sun/wind burned I'd be happier this morning.
The 
The word on the street is that everyone favorite car dwelling American Idol wanna be 
It wasn't terrible but Briney's character could have been done by any actress and left very little to the overall story. Sarah Chalke, on the other hand, was great as Ted's "folliculaphobic" dermatologist with a 8 year old daughter. [Note not much of a stretch from her current day job as attending physician Elliot Reid on Scrubs but still sweet and funny as ever]. Hopefully she will return in the future but not as The Mother, of course - we still need a few more seasons before we get to her.
Buster Martin, who went back to work at age 99 as a part time plumber, is planning on running the Londo Marathon on April 13th. If he finishes, he will be the oldest marathoner ever and break the existing record of 95 years old set by Fauja Singh in 2005 in Scotland.
If you ask the folks over at Guinness, the answer would be a resounding yes - make that a Hell Yes. To facilitate a petition for our federal government to consider St. Patrick's day as an official holiday, they have launched a new website called 
After 17 years in the league, Brett Favre has retired leaving a large hole in the heart of all those cheese heads in Wisconsin and a small one in football fans everywhere. Favre leaves the game he loves with monstrous career records, some which may never be broken:
