02/25/04 - Raining Dogs and Cats.

It is freaking pouring right now in Los Angeles. Crazy.

(Oh, and Die Hard 3 was on TV the other day, that's where I got the title. It's also the reason why I've been saying "mellon-farmer" lots lately. It's a TV edit phrase for ... well, something that Sam Jackson's Zeus says often. Get it?)

02/24/04 - 18 cents.

I just read the craziest article today. This mathematician, Jeffery Shallit, says that United States currency is not as efficient as it could be. By using a linear Dipohantine equation (whatever that is) he came up with this: the average transaction produces 4.7 coins in change (not counting 50 cent pieces or dollar coins).

So he says if we dropped the dime and added an 18 cent piece to our currency the average transaction would drop to 3.89 coins.

If we kept the dime and added a 32 cent piece the average transaction would be only 3.46 coins.

Of course, getting rid of pennies and rounding up (or down) to the nearest 5-cent value is the smartest plan - the average transaction would be only 2.7 coins.

But then how would the government keep track of all of our DNA if they didn't have the penny? So that plan'll never work. Oh well.

02/22/04 - Best Week Ever.

So first VHI had "I Love the 70s". Then "I Love the 80s". "I Love the 90s". "I Love the 80s Strikes Back". Former famous personalities, B-list actors, C-list actors, and D-list celebrities give quippy little soundbites about the time period in question. It's a dumb show, but how can you not watch a show that talks about Garbage Pail Kids, Thundercats and all of the other fun from our youth?

This is all fine and good, except these shows are on all of the time. Well, it's not like anyone watches VH1 expecting to see music videos or anything, right? Similarly, today MTV was playing a rerun of last week's Real World / Road Rules Challenge: The Inferno, which isn't a music video, but it was the one where Trishelle gets booted so I had to watch that again. On a commercial I flip down to VH1 to see which decade they're talking about today - but they're discussing last week's news. Apparently it's a new show called "Best Week Ever". And instead of semi-recognizable "celebrities" talking about their youth, it's semi-recognizable "celebrities" talking about ... last week.

There was an Onion article a few years back - "U.S. Dept. of Retro Warns: 'We May Be Running Out of Past'. How the gap of what was cool and when it will be cool again is closing. Somehow, I think this "Best Week Ever" show is the last stage before total retro implosion.

Somehow, I always thought that VH1 would be responsible for the end of the world. Guess I was right.

02/22/04 - Starsky and Hutch

Saw the movie last night. Y'all have to go see it. Unless, of course, you didn't laugh at the trailer. Then you should skip it.

The rest of you, check it out. Awesome.

02/21/04 - Big Red.

Do they even make Big Red gum anymore? Remember how gum used to advertise so much back in the day? The Doublemint Twins, that Big Red jingle, etc? Why don't they anymore? Do they even make Big Red and Doublemint anymore?

02/15/04 - Knowing myself.

It's kind of cool as you get older you become more aware of your habits and traits. I learned a few years ago that I like to cook when I'm stressed. It goes all the way back to college, when I used to make lots of cookies at the weirdest times - 2 am during finals week, right before the big project was due, etc.

So today I started out making this Coconut Curry Chicken Stew that I had at this restaurant Boma at Walt Disney World's Animal Kingdom Lodge. It's this great spicy stew that has potatoes, chicken, curry powder and jalepenos. I found the recipe on the internet, although I'm still tweaking it a bit.

Then tonight during the NBA All-Star half time I made Oatmeal Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies that sadly, sound better than they taste. I mean, they're fine, just a little bland. With those three ingredients, it really should be a pretty kick-ass cookie. But this needs more sweet - maybe if I kick up the vanilla or sugar and butter ...

Either way, I had a busy day in the kitchen today. I won't get into the stresses that I'm having with work and the ladies, but it's enough that I'm going grocery shopping early tomorrow morning, and cooking all day long ...

02/15/04 - There's a Baja Fresh in Faneuil Hall!!!

Okay, this affects all of us in such a good way. But many of you might not know it now.

For those of you on the East Coast, one of the best fast food restaurants in Southern California is Baja Fresh. They serve Mexican food (obviously) and they make a killer burrito.

So last year we found out the Wendy's Corp bought Baja Fresh. All of a sudden there's this big upswing in opening new stores throughout Southern California. Cool for us.

Then Mike goes back to Jersey for the holidays, and sees one there. Cool for Jersey.

Now I found out there's one in Boston!! Cool for Beantown!

So next time you're shopping in ol' Quincy Market, check this out:

Baja Fresh
1 Faneuil Hall Market Pl
Boston, MA 02109
617-557-5111

02/14/04 - Happy VD

I won't even get into my lovelife right now, it's too sad and depressing. If you have a sweetheart today, just be happy and hug them.

02/13/04 - Happy Friday the 13th

Okay, all of that "happy camper" crap I was spewing yesterday? Forget it. Yet again, Josh loses.

Happy 13th.

02/12/04 - The OC Returns!

Again, not quite the beat-down I was hoping for, but the OC is back and laying all sorts of storylines down. Luke and Julie Cooper?! Seth and Summer?!

The best part wasn't the show, though. It's this whole other thing that's going on in my life right now - can't tell you much, but I'm a happy camper, yo!

02/10/04 - Hot or Not?

I'm still trying to figure out if that Rachel Ray from the Food Network is cute or annoying. I know I have an opinion of her, but I don't know what it is. Sometimes she's just too bubbly and perky for me, yet I constantly find myself watching her show. It's like a love/hate relationship, or something ...

02/08/04 - "Great, Grand, Wonderful"

Last night "Airheads" was on Comedy Central. I noticed something really weird in it. You know how Chris Farley plays a bit part as a cop in the movie? Well, at one point he says the line, "Great, grand, wonderful" all sarcastic-like.

That's damn-near the same line Farley says in "Billy Madison" as the busdriver.

Weird.

02/07/04 - More Damn Dirty Apes

The other night "Beneath the Planet of the Apes" was on TV. Now, I'm a big fan of the original "Planet of the Apes" - I remember seeing it when I was little and thinking it was the creepiest thing ever. Like when they stuff and mount Taylor's one friend - the black guy, right? That was so disturbing when I was little. Disturbing ... yet intriguing ...

I've never really cared for the other films in the series, though. What's the one when they're all running through Century City? I thought that looked pretty bogus as a kid. Then I moved to Los Angeles and actually went to Century City ... weird. Of course, my favorite movie/reality moment was when I went over to my ex-girlfriend's aunt and uncle's house in Northridge. As we drove up the hill, I looked around and thought, "Dang, these trees look familiar ... you know, they look just like the trees in ... well kind of like ... E.T. ... huh."

And the road itself - the way that it was frighteningly wide (it's like, eight lanes, and there were NO OTHER CARS ON IT) and the slope and direction of the road - it all yelled "E.T."

So anyway we get to their house, and they mention how "E.T." was filmed in their neighborhood. Odd.

Where was I? Oh, "Beneath the Planet of the Apes". So the movie opens with Taylor seeing the Statue of Liberty, "God damn you, God damn you all to hell" ... etc, etc. Then there's a montage of Taylor and Nova on horseback meandering through the desert. And then really bad special effects of fire and lightening and Taylor disappears.

It actually was quite gripping of an opening.

The rest of the movie ... well, it's just too trippy for words. Let's just say that the filmmakers in 1970 were really against war and the atomic bomb. There's this whole thing about praying to a nuclear missile, and mind-control, and imperialistic monkeys ... you really just have to see this movie. It's not good ... but just ... trippy.

02/03/04 - That's my line

So I was going to totally pimp my friend Mike's weblog today, and then I read it. He references me in it (I'm the one who told him to write a book - pretty much so he'd just shut up and stop telling me about his life, though) and then he goes on to steal my line! I've always said that I am going to be the straight David Sedaris!!!

I've been saying that since I stole it from my cousin years ago!

(But at least she made it up about me...)

02/01/04 - Go Pats!

How about that!

Of course, it's just my luck that all anyone can talk about is Janet's boob. My team won! Go team! Who cares about some crusty old child-molester's sister's tit?!?

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