TV. last comic standing

one of the shows i love to watch over the summer is 'last comic standing'. its not like most other reality shows, i think, because its actually entertaining to watch! this show doesnt dig too deep into the contestants personal lives, and leaves the fake drama out (for the most part), instead it just lets the comedians do their comedy and lets us enjoy some really funny stand up comedians give it their best shot.

now that the casting call portion of the show is over, its time to get down to business. this past thursday was the first elimination round, and it was a good one! there are a couple comedians who i really enjoy and am pulling for. the funniest in my opinion is a guy named jeff dye. very funny. but, im going out on a limb here, and im going to make a prediction: i think this will be the first time in six seasons that a woman will win the show. and that woman will be iliza shlesinger. she is hysterical. in the first head to head challenge she faced esther ku and a duo called 'gods pottery' and blew them both out of the water. keep an eye on her, i think shes going all the way.

COMEDY. nick swardson

recently i heard a really funny clip from this guy on a mix cd. he had this funny bit about how he has started saying 'party' all the time. it became his response whenever someone would ask him something. 'hey, want to go to the club?' 'party'. diana and i really thought it was hilarious. she didnt know who the comedian was, but i recognized his voice from different movies ive seen him in. i didnt know his name, but i new he was one of the guys who was always hanging around david spade (who i think is hilarious).

we happened to be wandering around target when i noticed that they had his comedy cd. it was only ten bucks, and included his cd and a dvd of some of his comedy central specials. so, we figured we would give it a try.

turns out, hes not really very funny. his 'party' bit is his best. the rest of the cd is quite lame. it even includes a couple 'skits', which is so old school. most of his humor revolves around fart jokes and dirty stuff thats not very funny. i guess i could see this appealing to 13 year old boys, but we were sorely disappointed. there are some funny observations on old people near the end, but five minutes of good jokes are not worth the fifty five minutes it takes to get to it.

NEWSPAPER. main street coffee house

a few years ago i used to live in salt lake city. while i lived there i attended a church that was a bit unusual; it was a church, but also a coffee shop used as an outreach ministry in salt lake city. i really loved it there, and almost all of my fond memories of utah stem from that place. i recently rediscovered an article that ran in the baptist press about the coffee house! it even features a picture of me back when i used to have long hair (dang, i miss that...). here is a quick snippet from the article, and the link to the rest of the article and photos:

SALT LAKE CITY (BP)--It's no secret that there's something about a cup of good coffee that helps people connect -- whether on Sunday morning at church, around a neighbor's kitchen table or over a mocha latte at the nearest Seattle-based coffee emporium.A new church in downtown Salt Lake City has taken the concept one step further. Realizing relational-based ministry can't be confined to a traditional church schedule, the fledgling Summit Church set up the full-service Main Street Coffee House offering varieties of fresh coffee drinks as an avenue for touching lives throughout the week.

TV. the andromeda strain

a couple weeks ago there was a two part mini series on a&e called 'the andromeda strain'. i was quite excited to see this. ive been a big fan of this story for a while, and was eager to see how they would update it.
its based on an old book by michael crichton, the author of 'jurassic park' and 'sphere'. i read the book years ago back when i was in high school and really loved it. i also discovered soon after that there was an old movie based on the book that came out in 1971. the story itself is very technology based, so it is very dated.
the story goes like this: a satellite crashes down in a small utah town and something inside it kills almost everybody in the town. an old man and a baby live, but everyone else exposed to it dies. its up to a group of scientists and military men to try and make sense of it and figure out what should be done. there is a lot of discussion about what the virus is and how we can get rid of it before it effects anyone else. its a very intriguing premise and tensely written. the old movie did a pretty good job of portraying the story and the race to figure out what happened, but a lot of technology and how we look at viruses has changed since the early seventies, so it was certainly time to update the story.
the mini series was pretty good, they did a nice job of keeping all the basic elements but modernizing it to todays scientific and political climate. the story still clips along at a good pace, though the inclusion of a rogue journalist seemed a bit unnecessary. also, they seemed to have dumbed it down from it original level. in the book and old movie there is a real sense of trying to learn what it is and examining all options. it really seemed like the scientists were intelligent people logically working through the situation. on this version they just seem to make crazy jumps in logic and then go with it, and somehow each jump is exactly correct. also, they changed the ending quite a bit, which was a disappointment. one of the great things about crichtons books is that he rarely drops the ball with the ending (steven king could learn a lot from this guy...) but they always seem to change it when they turn it into a film (dont even get me started on how crappy the altered ending was for 'the sphere'...)

TV. colbert report

i watch the colbert report often. its absolutely hysterical! i love colberts persona as a right wing pundit. the reason i bring up this show is because steven recently had a guest on who had some interesting and insightful things to say. colbert always plays it for laughs, but i was intrigued by what his guest, george will, had to say: "the difference between conservatives and liberals comes down to the basics of freedom and equality. republicans favor freedom and are willing to accept certain inequalities for a free market, democrats favor equality of outcome and are willing to sacrifice certain freedoms for that end."

TV. attack of the show

recently on 'attack of the show' they had a special kevin versus olivia week. the week was filled with fun little games that they played against each other. the played rock paper scissors, ran a maze, raced on rascal scooters, and did tons of other stuff. another part of the week was a bunch of different themes an challenges they had to accomplish. one of the days they did the whole show blindfolded, which would be really tough, considering they usually do the whole show reading from the teleprompter.

one of the shows they did the whole time in fat suits! they often make fun of fat people on the show, and figured that this was their way of apologizing. the great thing was that the fat suits looked really good! with full suits and face make up they looked quite believable. who ever did the make up did an amazing job!

usually they are so skinny, so to see them in the full fat suit and all was quite funny. they played it up the whole show and tried to do break dancing on the floor and everything. these sorts of funny bits are why i still love this show!

(be sure to check out other 'poke it with a stick' contents here!)

TV. cancelled shows

each year they present new shows and do their best to try and hook us on the show. i already watch too much tv, but still, sometimes they get me. but what i am finding out more and more each year is that my viewing habits are quite a bit different than the rest of america. each week i see the top twenty rated shows, and i always find, with rare exception, that i dont watch any of them!

each fall (and now winter) they try and hook me in with their new shows and im sick of it. im not sick of the new shows, thats the problem. i fall for it and watch a couple episodes and get hooked, just like they wanted me to, but then i find that each year all the new shows i started watching get cancelled! argh! the networks have recently started to announce their new schedules for the fall, and i find that so many of the shows left off the list are the ones that i love the most. oh, cruel fate, what have i done to deserve this?

here is a list of the shows i fell for that wont be returning:

carpoolers. i am especially sad to see this one go. they say some shows are unique and need to be given a two episode try, like arrested development or the office. well, this show was one that needed a full season try. at first i didnt care for it and was going to delete it off of my tivo, but then it suddenly started to click and i realized i loved the interplay of the four leads and their life and work together. it was created and written by some of the guys from 'kids in the hall', so if you are familiar with that show you will understand that this show was a little strange at times. jerry oconnell was hilarious, as well as the other guys, especially marmaduke.

cavemen. this show had a lot of bad buzz when it was on, but i actually thought it was a little bit funny. the actual situations the characters got into were lame, but the premise of stereotyping cavemen as a lower class of people really good. it could have really dug into social issues, but too often just reverted to lame sex jokes. too bad, but i wont really miss this one that much.

notes from the underbelly. argh! this show was really fun. it was a pretty basic premise, that of a married couple getting ready for the birth of their first child. the woman who played the lead is really hot, so that made it a lot easier to watch... the best part was the single friends of the main couple- maybe they should build a show around those two instead. hmm...

new amsterdam. this one is about an immortal who has lived for hundreds of years and is now a detective living in new york, kinda like a csi: highlander. in full disclosure, i must admit that ive never actually seen this show. it is one that i saw commericals for and thought was a great premise and was looking forward to seeing it, so i tivoed all eight episodes. there still on there now, but knowing its cancelled i will probably not waste my time and instead just delete them. shoot, i was looking forward to watching them this summer.

back to you. i was never much of a 'fraiser' fan or an 'everybody loves raymond' fan, but for some reason this looked like fun- and it is! the show was hilarious, the writing was witty, the actors were great, and it had a lot of promise to grow into something classic. and really, it had fred willard as a weather man, how could it go wrong?!?

scrubs. this one is a bit different because its not really being cancelled. well, it is being cancelled by nbc, but its being picked up by abc for one last season. so, im not really mad at all about this one, im actually happy because nbc was planning on just killing it. thank you abc!

TV. the indiana primary

last week we here in indiana had a presidential primary for hillary and obama. it was an important primary, but for some reason one of the polling counties took forever to get their results in. it just so happened that that county, lake county, is the very one i live in! oh what fun! for much of the night on tuesday there were news people questioning why my county hadnt turned in results yet, some of them even questioning if there was some wrong doing going on. the highlight to me though, was the mention my county got the next day on the daily show!

GAMES. back on the horse

a while ago i was really obsessed with playing mario galaxy, which i had gotten for christmas this past year. i was eager to play it once i got home from christmas break. i had already put almost 30 hours into it, and was loving it greatly. i brought the wii home and then it happened: the wii broke. nooooo!!! well, let me clarify, it didnt actually break, it still ran quite smoothly. the only problem was that it would not eject the disc that was in it, wii sports. i made the foolish mistake of traveling with it while a game was still inside the system. oops.

for the past two months i have been periodically turning on the wii and pushing eject to no avail. but, with the grace of God, it ejected the disc yesterday! hurrah!!! so last night i finally got to play mario galaxy again- the first time since january 2! and it was glorious...

TV. mad men

after reading so many great review of this amc channel original show, and after it, and its leading man, both won golden globes, i figured i should check it out. over the past several weeks amc has been rebroadcasting the episodes in their original order, so i tivoed them. this past weekend i had a little extra time, so i took the plunge and watched the first three episodes.

first a little background: the show is set in the 1950s and follows the a handful of employees of a new york ad firm. it shows the life and working work of the 'big city' back when women were suppossed to have a roast and a drink ready for their husbands the moment they arrived home from work.

its cool to see the period recreated so perfectly- the offices look perfectly like the retro-futuristic look of the 'modern' 50s, all the cars are huge and wing tiped, and all the men drink like fish and smoke like a chimney. seeing all the characters smoke non stop is such a stark difference from how things are today that its very strange to see. also, its quite jarring to see all these men so openly harass and look down on the women in the office, and show little respect for the wives at home. im sure the rolls are exaggerated, but its still quite strange to see.

so far the storyline has been interesting, watching all the different men deal with the pressures of the job, and trying to deal with their emotions in such a restictive setting. these men arent allowed to show any emotion other than confidence. the ways they deal with whats going on often is the cause of their problems, and often leads to relationships becoming even more distant.

the story is engaging and the perspective on the time period is interesting. it seems they have gained a new viewer.

TV. craigs a citizen!

after a couple years of him joking about it, craig ferguson finally became an american citizen! hes always had jokes like 'i better be careful what i say, they could deport me!' and just a few months ago he challenged everyone to ask their local mayor to accept him as an honorary citizen. he finally took the test, and he passed! last week they showed him at a mass meeting being sworn in, and now he is a full fledged citizen, he can vote and everything!

as a way of celebrating him now being an american, he had on a really cool scottish band called the wicked tinkers. its a cool band made up of guys playing drums, bagpipes, digeridoos, and other strange and fun instruments. they have been on the show once before, they performed on the show as a tribute to his father soon after he passed away. it was really a very moving episode, to be honest. but this time they were there to celebrate! and boy, did they. craig even loosened his tie, grabbed a drum, and joined in! they actually played two songs, and it was a riot! it was fun to see craig genuinely excited and loving it- it was very contagous!

TOYS. hellboy figure

ive been a hellboy fan since about 2001 and have been collecting anything related to him for almost as long. i have half a dozen or more figures, some from the comic, others from the movie. i have all the trade paperbacks of the comics, and the three disc version of the movie, i even have the hardcover 'art of hellboy' book. but recently i came across the coolest hellboy thing ive ever seen: its an 18 inch figure of hellboy. the detail is positively amazing! he has a leather coat, with real working snaps, actual pockets, detailed trinkets hanging from his belt, and even an amazing looking 'samaritan' gun. even the box art is amazing. here are a few more pics of it. its so awesome...

TV. super bowl commercials

i, like many others, watched the super bowl last night. now, im not much of a football fan, but i do enjoy watching every once in a while (and once a year is just about right). the game was fun, it was always close, and for someone who doesnt care who wins, that makes is more enjoyable. mostly though, i watch for the commercials!
here, in no particular order, are my 10 favorite, and my reaction to them:
1. pepsi max- in this one everyone was falling asleep, heads bobbing, while the song 'what is love' played in the background. they become wide awake after taking a sip of pepsi max. kind of funny, but the clincher was when they woke up they kept head bobbing, but this time like the guys from 'night at the roxberry', and then chris katan shows up and is pissed 'aww, come on!' funny!
2. bridgestone tires- a squirrel is in the middle of the road and a car starts coming and he screams, as do all the forrest animals as they watch in terror. the best was a really tiny bug screaming in a really high voice. quite cute.
3. Audi r8- a guy wakes up in his bed and sees a strange dark liquid on his hands, he pulls back his sheets and in his bed is the front end of his jaguar. he screams. a silly take on that 'godfather' scene with the horse head. oh, and the new audi car looks amazing!
4. fed ex- a delivery company uses carrier pigeons instead of other transportation. a guy asks 'how do you ship the big packages?' the camera pulls back to reveal twenty foot pigeons flying around dropping packages and terrorizing the residents of the city. humorous.
5. tide- a guy is being interviewed for a new job, and has a stain on his shirt. the stain starts talking giberish over top of the guy being interviewed. probably my biggest laugh of the night!
6. budweiser- every year they have thier clidsdale horses in a commercial, and this year they show one of them not making the line up and the dalmation telling him hes going to help him train for next year. then we hear 'eye of the tiger' and a rocky-eque training sequence, and the horse getting picked the following year. a smile.
7. iron man- they showed a new preview for the upcoming 'iron man' movie with robert downey jr. now, ever since i saw the first preview a couple months ago i have been giddy as a school girl for this movie! i dont really care for iron man as a comic book character, but for some reason this movie has me geeking out big time! awesome!!!
8. corolla- a guy is put into the car with a sleeping family of badgers and told if he wakes them they will attack him. they they proceed to fire off a cannon near the car. its so quite inside that they dont wake up. then his cell phone rings. oops! kind of funny.
9. sobe life water- a woman starts drinking and all kinds of lizards start dancing. kind of lame, except for the fact that the song playing is michael jacksons 'thriller', and the lizards are doing that cool zombie dance. kudos for the mj nod.
10. amazon.com- justin timberlake gets pulled around to all kinds of crazy places. eventually its shown that a couple girls just downloaded his song and it takes him there. cool effects, but kinda a dumb commercial.

all in all, i would say that the iron man commercial was the best!

TV. golden globes

the golden globes were on last night. usually i get excited for it, i get a bit of a kick out of awards stuff, especially the oscars. but things were a bit different last night than they usually are. due to the writers strike they changed the show alot. they were not able to have any written stuff for the show, and most of the actors and actresses wouldnt have shown up anyway out of solidarity with the writers. so, they were forced to change the show from a fun event with the stars celebrating and drinking too much, into a boring news show where they just announced the nominees and then said who won. boring. it was such a non event that i almost forgot i had even watched it. oh, and they picked some sucky winners. im starting to think that the hollywood foreign press is as lame as everyone says.

this better not happen this year for the oscars, or heads will roll...

GAMES. super mario galaxy

i forgot. im sorry, but i had forgotten. i forgot just how fun video games can really be. i had spent too many nights playing monopoly party on the gamecube, and too many nights playing wii sports. i forgot that a video game can be so immersive and addictively exciting when you really dig into it and let yourself be taken away. im sorry, i wont let it happen again.

for christmas i got super mario galaxy for the wii and figured 'its gotten such good reviews, maybe its worth a try' and boy is it ever! i wasnt much of a fan of the last couple mario games. 'mario 64' didnt do anything for me, and 'mario sunshine' didnt hold my attention, and i think it best if we all just forgot about 'luigis mansion'.

'super mario galaxy' is everything one would hope for in a game. the story is simple, but it leads to such incredible levels and worlds that its so easy to loose yourself in the game.

now, i dont really consider myself a gamer. i am interested in the video game industry and enjoy picking up a controller every now and then, but my attention span for games is usually limited to a half hour. but this one? well, i think over the past four days ive logged in almost 15 hours of game play! the levels are some of the wackiest ive ever seen, the characters are adorable and a blast to control, the enemies are varied and challenging, and the objectives are exciting and interesting. the controls on the wii are some of the most fun and inventive ive ever seen. after about ten seconds it becomes second nature to control that little guy on the screen and jet around on all the different adventures in store. the only draw back from playing so much is the really messed up dreams!

i would talk about it more, but ive got a craving to go play some more! later!