The Secret To Having A “Mary” Christmas

Itsnotta Scroogeman!

Itsnotta Scroogeman!
Monday Night Football Trivia was in full effect last night, and I learned that there were more U.S. soldiers in the Korean War vs. the Vietnam War, Turkey was not only a part of the Ottoman Empire and Iran was not only Persia (they were both a part of Mesopotamia), and prior to “Titanic,” the highest grossing Best Picture winner was “Forrest Gump.”
While the competition occurred (we were in third place before the last question, but we wagered all of our points on “Gone With the Wind” on guess-which-question), these were some of the topics of discussion:

We talked about how their midnight madness sales could be called “nocturnal emissions” and that the idea for the event “came to them at night.” This was the least crass example – trust me.
In case you’ve been living under a rock or in a coma (which in the cases of you really being a hermit or a recently awakened patient, then I’m sorry about the sarcasm), next March may or may not be the month that “Watchmen” gets marched out (see what I did there with the, um, doubling months thing).
There’s still a lawsuit pending between Fox and Warner Bros. over the rights to the story, but little did I know how much this affected me. All night I dreamt about this movie. My brain tried to convince me it was going to be crappy, too. I saw images of the film being projected on screen as though it were still a comic book graphic novel.
It was comparable to this:

(from DarthsandDroids.com)
Or even worse, the first “Hulk” flick.
What follows at the bottom of the post is the most recent preview for “Watchmen.” It can’t be bad, can it? Like “Sin City 2” “Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow 2” “The Spirit” level bad?
All I’m saying is Fox better not fuck this up for me… I don’t know if I can take more nights of tossing and turning and seeing the Comedian so sad (he’s the guy with the moustache at the start of the preview). The kicker is Fox doesn’t even want shared profits – they don’t want it released! Fox owes me for cancelling many-a-splendid shows, such as “Arrested Development,” “Firefly,” “Futurama,” “The Tick,” and “Profit.”
They sure as hell better not cancel “Watchmen.”

There’s two ways to get to my office, and I choose the way that has three doors to open vs. two. You would think I’d choose the lesser of two infectious evils, but the path to more doors (must resist “Lord of the Rings” reference here… too late) consists of these precious humdingers:

If you think about how many disgusting hands that have touched these things… it gives me the gee-willikers (now I’m prohibition era comic strip talking). I’d still rather use one finger to open the second doorknob, than use my entire hand on the first.
Last night while playing “Call of Duty 4,” I was leaning over the ventilation, um, vent at my friend’s house. My hair was blowing , but I was so into the game, I didn’t notice it until my friends started singing the Isley Brothers’ “Who’s That Lady” like in that old shampoo commercial.
This is not the shampoo commercial, but it does beg the song’s titular question:
While driving home, I passed the local hookah spot and saw a truck with no headlights on. I wanted to flash my headlights to let them know, but I wondered if that old urban legend was still in effect. You know the one: gangbangers drive around with their lights off, targeting anyone who flashes them. This made me think of that crappy movie “Urban Legend,” and how it opened with Natasha Gregson Wagner singing Bonnie Tyler’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart.” Except I think her legend was about the guy hiding in the backseat.
Here’s not a clip from that movie, but something much better (viva la apes!):
I also heard this song by Matt Nathanson, and it made me wonder if his lyrics at the 2:04 mark are in reference to this post:

How about Pasta La Feasta's instead?
About a month ago, when I realized I had become a drive-thru regular at Taco Bell, I created a post that gave a few ideas to entrepreneurs for new restaurant chains (Kabob Stop, Dim Sum Gong, Pierogi To Go, and Taka Sushi).
After having some time to think, and after getting sick of my same old options (Wendy’s, KFC, Arby’s, the aforementioned Bell, Culver’s, Burger King, Quizno’s, Jimmy Johns, Potbelly, Qdoba, National Coney Island, Kerby Coney Island, CiCi’s, A&W, Mickey D’s, and Hungry Howies), I’m really craving a change.
They tried putting in a Del Taco nearby my work (ugh) and the nearest Sonic is still a good 40 miles away.
What I think is missing (besides the places I created) is a fast food Italian cuisine. Fazoli’s was the closest thing we had to that, and although it wasn’t the absolute greatest, it worked. Too bad they shut ’em all down in Michigan.
If anyone wants to take me up on my ideas, go for the Polish one first. I probably won’t eat at the other places anyway.
2008 was a tough year for everyone. It was especially tough on the “malternative” nation. A few months back, MillerCoors announcing they were canning Zima (no, not taking out of bottles and putting into aluminum… they’re scrapping it altogether).
The plan was to push Sparks in its place, but assholes across America had other ideas (from AP):
MillerCoors agreed to remove caffeine, taurine, guarana and ginseng from Sparks and not produce caffeinated alcohol beverages in the future…in a deal with 13 states and the city of San Francisco, who had contended the drink targeted young drinkers.
The company must also eliminate all references in advertising to caffeinated formulations and not promote Sparks as a mixer for caffeinated drinks. It will remove the plus and minus symbols — which evoke a battery — found on the blue and orange cans for the product. The company also agrees not to use batteries, rockets, lightning bolts, or the terms “powered by” or “ignite” in marketing the new formulation.
The MillerCoors settlement… includes the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Connecticut, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, New Mexico, Ohio and Oklahoma and the city attorney of San Francisco.
“It’s a devil’s brew of a product because it combines caffeine with alcohol,” (Steve Gardner, litigation director for public advocacy group the Center for Science in the Public Interest) said.
If Sparks is the devil’s brew, what are Jaeger Bombs? Rum and Cokes? Hell, what’s a Long Island Iced Latte? (Okay, that last one doesn’t exist, but I’d try it.)
All of this is like a version of “Field of Dreams.” In that movie, “If you build it, they will come.” In this situation, it’s “If you change the formula, they’ll just find something else.” Stupid.
I believe Carles of Hipster Runoff puts it best:
Sparks was more than just a drink. It was truly a BRAND. It was more than ‘just another product.’ When I think of Sparks, I think of a lifestyle. I think of good times. I can honestly not think of another beverage with a brand stronger than SPARKS. After a night of Sparks, I could not fall asleep. My heart felt like it wanted to burst of out my chest. My tongue would be orange the next day. Another memory of the previous night–I would look in the mirror, stick out my tongue and smile…
Save one can. Hide it somewhere–this is now your forbidden fruit. In the next few years, something will go wrong or you will feel down. Treat yourself to the sweet nectar that is Sparks…
Honestly. I would give anything for one more SPARKS vomit.
You have until January 10th to get the old-school Sparks.

Mommy, I want one!
After having bee trapped in my home for the last sixty hours (57.5 of which were probably spent on the couch) due to a snow storm, I finally ventured out last night. Grant it, my car got stuck in the driveway, but I still managed to head out to one of my old dives.
While there, my friend, Jay, and I watched football highlights and waxed poetic about the old days in the joint. We talked about whether the Lions would fail us and actually win a game. And we laughed at the amateurs playing in a televised poker tournament (one woman named Ellen had no poker face, but she was kicking aces!)
On the ride back to the neighborhood, a conversation came up about Under Armour. Don’t know how, but it proabably had to do with insulated clothing in the cold. He brought up how they have cold weather lines and hot weather lines. I wondered if I should invest in the hot weather line when I play soccer, yada yada. The part that made me laugh was when Jay described the technology they use.
“Wicket,” I thought he said first.
“Like the Ewok?” I asked.
“Wicked,” he repeated.
“Like the porn company?” I wondered.
We didn’t get to me mishearing Wiccan, and I think we decided on Wicket (I can’t find anything about this on their site or Wiki page), but it reminded me of one of my all time favorite comedy scenes in a movie. It’s from “Roxanne.”
It’s subtle – sure. But I love misheard-based humor. Here’s the lyrics for a song I wrote when I had a band named Monkey Spank Monkey Do that eventually became oddcookie. (This sight was thatclose to having the original band name, but I was afraid of what type of people might visit). We never did much as a band anyway. Sorry I’m not attaching the music. Whatever you make up in your head will probably be better anyway.
Simianuff
That day that you told me
You didn’t want to see me
Anymore I just didn’t know
I wanted to ask you why
You didn’t even start to cry
Up and out you gave this reply:
You never simianuff, you never simianuff, you never simianuff
After that I had went on home
My mind so far it had been blown
Away by your rationale
I wanted to ask what you
Meant by saying “simianuff”
But I didn’t want to piss you off
So in turn I became primate
And bought myself a monkey suit
Bananas and “Tree Climbing Monthly”
I hope I’m simian enough, I hope I’m simian enough, I hope I’m simian enough
I started hanging around you
Quite often literally
Being my new simian self
You acted like I was
Insane, was what you called me
I only did what I was told
So you said, “I’ll see you around”
Mumbled something under your breath
I haven’t ever seen you since
You never see me enough, you never see me enough, you never see me enough
You’re never seein’ me enough, you never simian enough, you never simianuff…
Oh fuck…
(P.S. I must also have a fascination with monkeys.)
Aaah, “Scrubs.” You are the middle child between “E.R.” (the secondone with George Clooney, not the first… look it up) and the highly comedic, though at most times unintentional, “Grey’s Anatomy,” and you’re still the best at what you do. (I picked Michael Crichton’s show as a reference point because it was an issue when “Scrubs” premiered. People wondered why they would need two shows about interns. Ask CBS what they think about crime scene investigators… and for that matter, what NBC thinks about blending cop procedural and court cases.)
Mixing pathos and humor so well for seven seasons, like a fine chef or bottle-flipping bartender (more Bryan Brown than Tom Cruise), you finally started getting some respect once you hit that magical 100th episode (that’s when shows can get syndicated). NBC had been dicking you around for years, and when the seventh season was up for grabs, ABC – your owner – was ready to take over. Having little else going on over at NBC, they used up the short season (due to the writer’s strike), and then hung you out to dry. You’ll get to finish your magnificent run on ABC starting in January, but that’s not what this post is about.
It’s all about the music, baby. No other show utilizes the music to advance the story quite like “Scrubs.” Check out the integration of Colin Hay’s Overkill (formerly of Men at Work). What upsets me is that they’ve only released one CD for sale after the first season (after the fifth season they did a collection only available on iTunes… 14 songs to cover four seasons), but i want more.
“Grey’s Anatomy” gets three CD’s, but they push their music, not quite like “Smallville” did at the end of its early episodes, but there still is a hey, check out this quirky new artist quality about it. Hence them releasing three CD’s. “Scrubs” just lets it be, and maybe that’s why I prefer music from them. It’s between the show and the audience – there is no marketing department forcing the producers’ hands. So when season six ends on Say Anything’s Alive with the Glory of Love, I should just accept it as the way it is and be happy.
What? There’s a torrent full of “Scrubs” music? Never mind.
Yesterday, I had a snow day. Yes, adults can have them to… when they’re lazy.
Michigan had a huge snow fall, so all I did was sit on my couch all day, laptop in, um, lap, reading and milling about. I almost forget to eat about midday, and when I stood up from the couch, my legs weren’t ready to work and I’ll fell back again. They were sleeping… I guess they were just being lazy and took a snow day too.
Anyhardsalamisandwich, I finally ate a hard salami sandwich and returned to the couch for the rest of the eve. At a very late hour (10:30ish if I recall), I opted for some cake (see below). Not too long after, I brushed my chompers and opted for bed. (Did you know that I brush my teeth with a hair brush? I goes much quicker. Ha! No, I don’t. I fooled you. But I do use a swatch of human hair.)
In my slumber, I had a mess of messed-up dreams. Here’s the snippets I recall:
INGREDIENTS: Pepperidge Farm Fudge Stripe 3-Layer Cake that was best if used by December 10th, which was the third item I tried to eat in the last two days that was expired. The others were a plastic box of lettuce and a bag of grilled chicken (I planned to make chicken and salad when I bought them two weeks ago). Oddly, the lettuce smelled like ass although it didn’t look rotten (for being a week overdue), and although the bag o’ chicken expanded like it had botulism or something, it did not smell, so I ate it. (In case you didn’t know, I you buy a bag of any food and it expands, that means bacteria is growing inside… it’s some report I saw… I think…)
Back to the chicken for a second – since I wasn’t in doubt (although I was, but it was minor), I didn’t throw it out. I put it in the mickyfor two minutes, and since I had no idea what to eat it with since I had no lettuce, I threw shredded mozzarella on it and Italian dressing anyway.
Now back to that cake – even though it doesn’t say so (check the pic below), I’m beginning to wonder if it was actually devil’s food cake.

Too rich for my boiling blood... in hell!