That's Just a Little Bit More than the Law'll Allow?

Apparently, one can secure oneself a hefty, 100K salary for one year as the Vice President, CMT Dukes of Hazzard Institute. "How does one attain such a goal?" you ask.

Years of schooling? Nope.

Alumni status (didn't my dad attend the Dukes Institute?)? Wrong again.

Hours of study and hard work? Well, kinda.
All you have to do is watch hours upon hours of the Dukes of Hazzard TV show. It also wouldn't hurt to learn the theme song . . .

Check out the above link (the title) for details.

Big Doins' on ABC Wednesday night

So, if you (like me) watch Lost each week, last night provided (at least) one interesting development.

Warning!! Spoiler ahead!! During Jin's flashback, when he first visits the Energy Minister's house to "deliver the message" the minister tells him not to do it in front of his daughter.

The camera then shows the daughter watching TV and WHO is on the TV?!!!

Thanks to eagle-eyed Raisinette and Spec, who pointed this out during lunch, it shows the DUDE himself--Hurley getting into a car! I verified this tonight when I rewound the tape from last night's episode and still framed the scene. There are Japanese characters across the screen that I can't read, but they probably say something like "Dude . . .what's up?"

So, what is up? Is he (as Tegan immediately suggested), a sumo? I doubt it, since he is not heavy enough for that. But what else could it be? Does it have something to do with his real name?

In other news . . . the Rimbaldi subplot is back on Alias and me likey!

I have always liked the absurdity of the Rimbaldi prophesy stuff and now it is back in the newly revamped Alias. We can only hope Sydney and the gang have to construct a elaborate Rube Goldberg machine out of paper that emits a single word--Dude!

Snippets of Oscar coverage, via "Entertainment Weekly"

On Jamie Foxx's portrayal of Ray Charles, from another anonymous actor, followed by his thoughts on Cate Blanchett's portrayal of K. Hepburn in The Aviator:
"[Foxx's] Ray was an imitation. To get an Academy Award, you have to create it all yourself."
"I forgot about her imitation after a while and I started watching this character and her sadness, whereas Ray was a strict imitation."

More on imitation from an anonymous producer:
"At first, I thought she was imitating and mimicking Katharine Hepburn, but then she manages to make her a fully realized, three-dimensional character."

One more view, from a screenwriter:
"The question is, is it an impersonation or a good acting role [for Blanchett's performance]? So then you say to yourself, Why is Jamie Foxx likely going to win for impersonating Ray Charles? I feel like Blanchett is imitating someone who is already known on screen and therefore it doesn't have value, whereas Foxx is imitating a musician so you buy it more."

Fast Food paraphenaglia

You know, I doubt that anyone cares about this, but I have a bad habit of reading advertisements, cereal boxes, whatever . . . so, when we ate our fish sandwich dinners last night after spending too much time at work and picking our kids up later than we should have . . . well, I read the many "hip" paragraphs on the wrappers, whatever of the Burger King meal.

So, sue me.

Have it your way . . . part i: The bag

In case of over-excitement.
Getting hot fresh food is exciting. But for some it can be too much to handle, leading to heavy breathing, lightheadedness and in a few cases, fainting. If you feel you're getting much too excited here's what to do: quickly remove the contents of this bag. Hold it up to your mouth. And slowly breathe in and out. Once you've calmed down, put down the bag, finish your meal and try concentrating on other things like slow-flowing streams or sleeping kittens.

Have it your way . . . part ii: The fries

Right to fries,
You have the right to dip these fries in ketchup or mustard or a vanilla shake if that turns you on. You have the right to stuff them in your sandwich or stack them like the boyhood home of Abraham Lincoln. You have the right to have these fries your way, even if that means eating them like a normal human being.

Have it your way . . . part iii: The wrapper (in which several items are discussed)

(iiia) BK Big Fish
While it's true the BK BIG FISH is one of the biggest fish sandwiches around, nothing says you can't exaggerate it an inch or two when you talk about it to your friends. It'll be our little secret. [Don't worry BK. Guys know all about exaggerating a few inches amongst friends.]

(iiib) ORIGINAL Chicken Sandwich
You know what they say. Originals order originals. And you're proof. They broke the mold when they made you, didn't they? Oh yeah.

(iiic) ENORMOUS Omelet Sandwich
Call the office and tell 'em you might be late. Seems there's a big 'ol breakfast sandwich staring you in the face and you've got business of your own to tend to. You'll get there when you get there. With a very contented smile on your face.

(iiid) The manifesto
They say you are what you eat. They're wrong. You are no chicken. you know how you want it and you're bold enough to make sure you get it your way. That's why you're here, isn't it?

HAVE IT YOUR WAY. You have the right to have it your way. The right to a sandwich just how you want it. The right to start your own sandwich etiquette school. The right to have your own one-man sandwich eating contest. The right to raise this wrapper above your head as a sign that you are a king.

Have it your way . . . part iv: The cup

Maybe you want a lot of ice. Maybe you want no ice. Maybe you want your top securely fastened, or maybe you want to go topless. Hmmm? Maybe you want to mix COKE and SPRITE? Maybe you want to let your cup runneth over (we wish you wouldn't). Whatever you do, make sure to have things your way.

Do You Feel Holy, Punk?

David Edelstein has got no use for Neo the Demon Slayer. (If you don't believe me, then click on the linked title and read the review for yourself.)

Some good points that Edelstein points out . . . well, ConstantiNeo hangs out in a bowling alley. And apparently there is some interesting Swedish guy, but I don't think he is known as "Big Swede."

Other than that? I believe he uses the words "borderline incoherent" and also prominently uses an attack on dwarfs to further "belittle" the movie.

My take, since I am blogging on this? Well, I don't know, cause I haven't seen (nor plan to see) the movie. What WAS the last movie I saw? Sadly, it was Stepford Wives on DVD. (It was as bad as you expect it to be.)

I haven't even had time to watch the awesome "Mad About You" DVD collection that I bought as a joint Valentine's present for Tegan. So far we have only watched the first episode, the pilot. If I am not careful, I will rekindle the my love for Helen Hunt.

Super Ads?

Prior to last year . . . and for the decade prior to that, this week was one of great anticipation for people like me.

There were many news stories, discussions, speculations . . . about the Super Bowl? NO! About the Super Bowl ADS.

For ad-lovin' media freaks like me, this was IT . . . the Super Bowl of advertising. All the best ads were created, dynamic ones, creative ones, flat out weird ones. But they were ads that you deconstructed during the game's inevitable third-quarter lull as one team took over. They were the ads you talked about the next day at work. They were exciting.

But when the dot-com bubble burst, a lot of that advertising hubris disappeared along with it. (Where are you now Pets.com Sock Puppet?) And lately, the football game has actually been engaging and gripping into the fourth quarter and EVEN down to the last minute.

So far, I have seen no media coverage or speculation this week about advertising that we might see on Sunday. And that makes me a little bit sad.