Oscars Rundown

Look at this guy! After five nominations he finally got it. He should really have two, but stupid Kevbo Costner made a movie about wolves and Native Americans that beat "Goodfellas." (Yeah. Remember that? Even as an 11 year old I was outraged. Not that I hold grudges.)


Anyhoo...The Oscars went long (go figure), so I had plenty of time to take copious notes. Between awesome bites of Chex-only mix (thanks, Emily!) and me cursing my brother and throwing my ballot around (sorry, Martin) I had these thoughts:

1. Ellen sported a Partridge Family-esque maroon velvet number. I have NO idea what was up with that. All she needed was a ruffled cravat.
   
2. Alan Arkin told Eddie Murphy to kiss his *bleep*. Well, Arkin's too classy a 73 year old to say it, but it was all in his eyes.
3. Jennifer Hudson has breasts. She proved it during the "Dreamgirls" medley.
4. Jack Nicholson looks like Daddy Warbucks when he's bald.
5. What happened to Katie Holmes' face (right)???
6. I love Will Ferrell. What's better than him pandering around the stage on his lonesome? A duet with Jack Black. What's even better than that? John C. O'Reilly (sic) making it a trio. Go watch it before the Man rips it off the YouTube. I mean, they rhymed Nader and Spader. Sweet.
   
7. "Pan's Labyrinth" was robbed. Nuff said.
8. If I had to hear thanks to Al Gore one more time...
9. Andrew managed to get 13 out of 24 categories correct. Whatever, sea pig.
10. Helen Mirren gave the most rehearsed acceptance speech ever. Yeah, I knew you'd win, too, but you didn't have to show it. ("Ladies and gentlemen, I now present you with the Queen." Really? That's lame.)
11. And Martin summed it all up when I asked him his thoughts on the really big show: "It was dull." Yeah, pretty much. If I didn't have peeps around I probably would have flicked, too.
    

Band of the Day

It's raining. It's sleeting. It's icing. It's gross outside. So the perfect place for me is inside...with the Band of the Day!The Band of the Day at BingBongBoom is none other than our favorite, Pearl Jam. (Isn't that picture from Kendra delicious? Listen to Eddie when he speaks to you!) We here at BBB have been faithful Pearl Jam followers since 1991, and they are truly like a close friend. They're great company on days like this, and they are also great driving music. Our goal today is to run through the Pearl Jam catalog of studio albums in reverse. Right now "Parachutes" plays from the other room as I type. With the insane amount of work I have to do today, it shouldn't be a problem to see this goal come to fruition.

I don't know where to start with Pearl Jam. What can you say about this band that refuses to go away (thank goodness for that)? Any words I try to come up with will sound trite. Reviewers don't like it when they vear off their own beaten path, saying "Pearl Jam" was a welcome return to their oldest cuts on albums like "Ten" and "Vs." But all I can say is I've enjoyed everything they've produced. I admit that some of the tracks on "Vitalogy" were a little hard for me to swallow ("Aye Davanita" and "Hey Foxymophandlemama, That's Me"), but their diversity and experimentation are things that allow bands to expand, grow, and become stronger musicians. Even though some of the experimental cuts aren't my favorite, I appreciate what they allow Pearl Jam to do.

All I have to say is this: If you thought Pearl Jam was a mere "grunge/Seattle band," you couldn't have been more wrong in your minimalization of this amazing quintet. They grow stronger with each passing album. And, if you are someone who appreciates music and haven't checked out "Riot Act" or "Pearl Jam" then shame on you. Almost time for "Riot Act," so I will leave you to ruminate on my mediocre words about my favoritist band ever. And get those last two CD's!

Get Your Red Carpet Ready!

The countdown begins! Less than 48 hours until the Oscars. I'm so excitable! The annual McFarlane-Pickell Oscar party, officially endorsed by BingBongBoom, will be the hottest ticket in Champaign on Sunday night. Not to be outdone by the Chicago Oscar Party that will benefit the Gene Siskel Foundation (at $150-$15,000/plate), there will be official Food Network entrees prepared at the McFarlane-Pickell party (although not prepared by the FN stars).

I'm reading the trades and keeping notes, listening closely to Ebert (but never Roeper), praying for Marty Scorsese to win, and hedging our bets by picking him to lose. Although strong in the past, I'm almost positive my heart will take over my rational mind this year (i.e., I'm afraid I'll end up choosing Marky Mark, Abigail Breslin, and the aforementioned director to win instead of who will actually have a chance). Here's the best news: click this link to get your own Oscar ballot to print out at home. We don't have to make our own this year! If you need any more info, history, or pictures from the Oscars go to the official website.

I can't wait to see Ellen! I will admit, though, she has big Jon Stewart shoes to fill. I wonder if Colbert will do another voting skit? Yeah, probably not.

Restless Natives

Kendra's informed me that the natives have been getting restless. There has been many sick days here at BingBongBoom. After an eventful trip to the Windy City last weekend to see Body Worlds, I suffered major stomach flu. Ick! Then there was a FULL week of school: field trip and parent teacher conferences included. The week's gone so quickly that I can't believe our last post was over a week ago!

There's a nightly three-way battle on my TV now: Keatons vs. Seavers vs. Young Superman. My wonderful cousin, the same that informed me of the raging natives, supplied me with seasons 3 and 4 of "Smallville," so now I'm on a daily tear through them. Plus, this week saw the release of the first season of "Family Ties." Add the new addition of "Growing Pains" to Nick at Nite's line-up and there's barely room for new episodes of "24," "LOST," and "The Jim Halpert Show." What I'm saying is this:

TV IS TAKING OVER MY LIFE!!! But you know what? I love it! It's perhaps my guiltiest pleasure!

One thing the TV didn't provide for us this week was the final Illini homegame of the season. (OK, Jacob, I'm sorry for what is about to transpire...) Wednesday saw the final halftime performance of Chief Illiniwek. It's been 81 years of the Chief at the U of I, and I have to admit I was sad to miss his final dance. (I was at home taking care of my husband, who received my flu two days later.) If you want to read about the last halftime dance click here.

And now you know why I haven't posted in so long: BORING times.

Valentine's Day 2007

With 12 inches of snow in the 'Paign, this is what you can do to celebrate the loviest day of the year:

1. Sleep in until 10:30.
2. Read the Dark Tower series (The Wastelands if you're me) for an hour (cause nothing says Valentime's like Stephen King); then snooze for another 30 minutes.
3. Take a leisurely shower, towel off while watching Paula Deen, and appreciatively adore your husband while he shovels for over an hour.
4. Skip off to Chili's for a romantic, fun lunch and have a Puddy look-alike, who keeps calling you "my friends," wait on you. Because he was so friendly, and you are now friends (he said so remember?), tip him an extra 50 cents. (It's the friendly thing to do.)
5. Run to the best store they don't have in D.C., Meijer, and get some provisions to make super rich and romantic brownies (seriously, click on the link and try the recipe--it's EASY!). This step is especially important if you have a super nice honey, like me, who spent another hour shoveling our back deck.
   
6. After making the brownies and a pot of RayRay broccoli soup, have a sit down for an episode of David Tennant Dr. Who (not to be confused with Christopher Eccleston Dr. Who).
7. Finally, snuggle in for a new episode of LOST to be followed by a Season 2 episode of Smallville.

Remember to keep your favorite loved one with you the whole time, and your Valentine's Day, while seemingly ordinary, will be extrememly out of the ordinary and wonderful! :)

Oh. My. Gosh.

Martin doesn't even know what he just did. Or maybe he did, and it was his Valentime's present to me. He showed me the Insight Digital On-Demand menu. I had no idea what was waiting for me at the end of our channels!

I can watch Rachael Ray whenever I want now! In fact, there is a full selection and wide variety of FN shows I can watch on Channel 99, and they're all free. Of course I can still pick pay-per-view, but that would be silly. Here's the kicker: we've had this capability since we signed on with Insight LAST MARCH. I am such a dolt. But now I'm an excited dolt! I'll have to peruse this new finding tomorrow when there's no school.

Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention: Unit 4 cancelled school for a THIRD day. This hasn't happened since the 1986 strike when I was in first grade. I was giddy the first day, a bit excited today, but now I'm salty. I'll be especially mental on June 4 when we're still in school. :(

The Shins

Kendra, Alyssa, and I spent Sunday night with the Shins. While some people are unhappy with the surge in popularity these indie darlings have had (still love you, Jared), I still love them. I can understand if you're a bit sick of "the Garden State song," but I strongly encourage you to check out their newest release, "Wincing the Night Away." It's beautiful.

The concert was ace: great music, chilled out band, and relaxed audience. It was especially wonderful because once the band started the sexist, misogynistic 17 year old boys behind us shut up. According to them all of the chicks in the front row were ugly (for which I apologized to Martin for since he ended up with one of them), and all Asian guys are named Percy (they were upset when the Asian photographer didn't answer to this name). Apart from their witty banter, the best part was discovering a new Marty (left). Marty Crandall was hilarious: jumping around the stage like a little kid, plucking his bass, and wearing some sweet velcro shoes. He's almost as cool as Marty McFly.

Anyhoo...if you want to view more of Kendra's wonderful front row photos, click here. And, if you want to check out the new Shins album at amazon, click this.

Robbie=Sicky

BingBongBoom!'s favorite pop star, Robbie Williams, has entered into an LA rehab clinic for addiction to prescription drugs. Well, Elvis is one of his favorites, so I hope he doesn't follow in all of his footsteps. We've had email notices from faithful followers, Kendra and Tina to notify us of this breaking news, but Martin found the news first on the up-to-the-second BBC news site.

Track 7 on Rudebox, "Good Doctor," is all about how to get prescription pills from doctors. It's one of my favorite tracks off the new CD, but maybe it was a cry for help. If you are curious and want to read up, check out one of the links below:

BBC Story
Yahoo! Story

In other news...no school today, no school tomorrow! There's a mean blizzard in the midwest, and whilst I'm happy now, we'll see how happy I am June 1 when we're still in school. This blizzard is wicked. But it makes for good snuggling and movie watching inside! Stay warm and stay indoors if you're round about moi.

Show Me That Smile Again!

This week there is a "Growing Pains" marathon on Nick at Nite! Yippee! Hooray! Check in with the Seavers every night this week at 9/8 p.m. for a slice of good ole 80's family fun. See Tracey Gold pre & post anorexia/bulimia, Jeremy Miller before he was Japan's favorite star a chef-in- training, Principal DeWitt before he was stranded on an island, DiCaps before he was Scorsese's favorite leading man, and Kirk Cameron before he was born again.

The Seavers were one of my favorite 80's families. They actually vie for 3rd place with the Arnolds. Not to steal the Seavers' thunder, but I do want to remind you that my favorite 80's family, the Keatons, will be on DVD next Tuesday! I haven't mentioned my 2nd favorite 80's family, so if you guess it, you'll get extra BingBongBoom points toward your next free reading of BBB.

Now if only Seasons 2-7 of "Growing Pains" would be released on DVD. I flew through Season 1 when it was first released, and I've been waiting for Season 2 for a year. Guess this marathon will have to quinch my thirst for awhile.

Gorgeous

Hitch up your panties and run to see Pan's Labyrinth. It was absolutley beautiful beyond belief. It was horribly sad, but in an inspiring way. You will have no idea what I mean until you see it. Please do yourself a favor, do your heart a favor, and see this extraordinary film.

Chillin' in St. Louis this weekend with my homies. We will be going to see the Shinnzles tonight (that's the Shins to you). They are one of my brother's new arch nemeses, since they are a favorite of Zach Braff, who is completely worthless in Lil Andy's eyes. (His film career is actually quite hilarious to me, since every film he makes is THE SAME [sorry, KK]). I'll be out and checkin' in tomorrow after I get back to the 'Paign. PEACE!

Channel 4 News Team

I have very few pictures on my computer desk here at school, but one of them is the Channel 4 News Team, led by the legendary Ron Burgundy. I like to stare upon their faces every morning, all four reaching out to me, pointing at me, telling me that I'm [one of] the best teacher[s] ever. They tell me I can do it!!! They keep me centered and focused after a vicious D.R. or just get me ready for a new morning when it's so early I feel like I want to roll up and sleep under my desk. Their hair and fashion sense inspire me to take pride in my appearance and always show my best for my fellow teachers--oh, and the little students as well. Their fact-filled news reports remind me to always tell the truth and research my lessons well.

Thank you, Channel 4 News Team. Not just for reporting the news of San Francisco, but for keeping me keepin' on. You make me want to jump for joy!

Best Husband Ever

Thanks to the best husband ever (that's Martin if you haven't figured it out) and his chauffer (Ted B.), I will be enjoying season 2 of "Smallville" today after school. I was very upset on Saturday when I finished season 1 on a cliffhanger and had no season 2 to watch. He got it for me just because (probably because I'd throw a tantrum if I didn't get it quickly). He's the bestest!

*sigh*

No shufflin' this year. At least I got to try out a good Rachael Ray chili recipe (it was yum-o)...And Prince was magnaminous...And Dungy IS a good guy. But I'm still going to go cry on my pillow.

Are You STILL Not Pumped?

Super Bowl Shuffle

Tomorrow

ARE YOU PUMPED???

In Case You Were Under a Rock

Dust off your wizards' hats, iron your cloaks, and skim the scum off the top of your pensieves! Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows will be released on July 21. I can't wait to see what the artwork will look like! While we're on the subject of HP...

Daniel Radcliffe threw away his wand for his more adult role in the BBC series "Extras." Many of you may have already seen this on the online, but if you haven't:

YouTube clip of Radcliffe's grown up proposition
YouTube clip of Radcliffe's surprise for Dame Diana Rigg

He plays quite the ladies man, courting every female he comes across (including the above mentioned Dame Diana). The episode also guest stars Warwick "Willow" Davis. It's an exceptional episode, and quite a fine series from the man who originated the role of the creepy, politically challenged manager in "The Office."

Angel Sarah

Even though it premiered last night, I just got done watching Comedy Central's newest show, "The Sarah Silverman Program." Starring plucky Jewess comedienne, Sarah Silverman, this show delivers a lot of tasteless jokes, ruminations on pubic hair, and a cough syrup hallucination--everything one might expect from a Sarah Silverman premiere. There are also loads of fun surprises I think you just watch for yourself.

She's a doll, that Sarah Silverman! She's the cutest girl Jimmy Kimmel's ever been with, and I think me's brother has a crush on her. ;) Check the show out Thursdays at 10:30/9:30 p.m. To see clips, and find out more about Angel Sarah, click here.