Kardashian Preferences

 

My sister had a baby a few weeks ago, and I stayed with her for a few days. Having a newborn allowed for some TV watching of the best (and most random) kind... The Golden Girls at 1am, Princess Diaries 2, and a Keeping Up with the Kardashians marathon. Watching the Kardashians marathon helped solidify what I have thought for many months now, which is that I have favorite- and least-favorite Kardashians.  I'm not going to take the time to rank order all of them for many reasons, the least of which is that I don't spend that much time thinking about them to know that. But I do have my least favorite and top 3, so here they are:  

Least Favorite:  Kris Jenner.  I can give the woman props for making a whole lot of money for her family. But I also find the whole thing to be slightly disturbing, especially seeing the two youngest girls on TV and out there as they are. She reminds me of Jessica Simpson's dad Joe, and that's not a compliment. She's also all over the place emotionally on the show. (And yes, I get that this all sounds a little hypocritical as I watch the show sometimes.) 

3rd Favorite:  Rob Kardashian. I will say that Khloe and Lamar were both in the running for this coveted spot, but Rob ultimately took it. He manages to let all of the craziness around him roll off his back most of the time. Plus, I liked him on DWTS.

2nd Favorite: Kourtney Kardashian. She seems the most real to me, even with the contrived situations that they have on the show.  She also seems to be the most even keel, and she's not as blunt as Khloe.

Favorite: Scott Disick

Scott is by far my favorite. He is the funniest (we watched when he tries to be Ryan Gosling from The Notebook and I laughed out loud) and will do crazy things and still be likable. He's come a long way from his alcohol days, and I'm glad because for me he makes the show entertaining.

One for the Money--A Bad Movie

I like several Katherine Heigl movies, quite a bit in fact (27 Dresses and Life or Something Like It). One for the Money is not one of those movies. In fact, it is far from it. I saw it many weeks ago, in the theater. Now, I had read reviews that were not favorable and so the only reason that I saw it was because it was at the dollar theater and I had a gift card, which made it free. I was glad that I didn't spend money on it as it falls into a category that fits just that--see on cable only.

What made it so bad?  Katherine was not good in it.  She should have had a New Jersey accent and instead mostly had no accent with a hint of something in and out. The plot wasn't good. It just wasn't well made. Following the movie my friends and I had a discussion of the worst movies that we have ever seen. It didn't make the list but prompted the discussion, which should say something. The bright spot was Sherri Shepherd, who I happen to really like and was funny in it.  In deciding whether I suggest to never watch it or not, she pushed it to the cable movie.

One for the Money:  Cable Movie

My Bachelor and Bachelorette Cycle

I have discovered that I have a little cycle that I go through with The Bachelor and The Bachelorette. It goes something like this:  I watch and enjoy a season of one of the shows (examples:  Andrew Firestone, Andy Baldwin). I then decide to watch one of the next seasons, and sometimes enjoy that. Eventually something happens that is either ridiculously dramatic (the Jason/Molly/Melissa debacle) or that I think is stupid (Jillian choosing Ed over Reid). At that point I will usually say I'm not watching this show anymore. If I haven't gone that far, they put someone in as The Bachelor who helps me choose not to watch (Jake Pavelka or the most recent Bachelor, Ben).  But then the summer happens, and there is no new tv on. If The Bachelor or Bachelorette seem at all likable, I end up watching.  And the cycle begins again.

I'm currently at the summer watching point of the cycle.  Truth be told, I'm kind of enjoying it.   Emily is likable enough and there are at least a few guys that seem datable so it has kept me watching. I do think that it is a little odd how much they show her daughter on the show, and as always there are some very strange guys. But once again, I continue to watch. 

I'm currently rooting for Jef. He's likable. And as a Utahan I'd like to add that it's nice to have someone from Utah on who is not the season's villain. I'll enjoy it until it annoys me and I take another hiatus.

Summer Reading Thus Far

I like most books that I read.  Sometimes I find a book that I can't put down, sometimes one that I finish but would say is "blah", and occasionally find one that due to boredom or content I stop reading. But overall I would say that I enjoy most of them. As a result, I won't be rating books here. I'll point out if one fits into a category other than I liked it, and if I'm talking about a few of them, I'll pick my favorite.

So here's what I've read this past month:

Killing Lincoln by Bill O'Reilly--This was my first Bill O'Reilly book experience. I get that it isn't the typical Bill O'Reilly book.  Regardless, I really liked it. It focused on the two weeks leading up to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and the few days after that. It was nicely written so that I learned a lot and it still kept my attention. He is writing a book called Killing Kennedy and I plan to read that now, too.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly by Jean-Dominique Bauby--This is a book about a man who had a stroke and has something called locked-in syndrome where he was only able to blink his left eye (no talking or anything).  He has since passed away though prior to this wrote the book by blinking his eye. It was beautifully written and somehow managed to be uplifting.

Look Again by Lisa Scottoline--I get ideas of books to read primarily from family and friends, magazines, or browsing in stores including Target. This was on the popular reading for awhile so I read it. It's about a woman who adopts a baby to find out that he was basically the boy on the milk carton. This was a "blah" book for me. I finished it and it was fine but nothing spectacular.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley--I really liked this book. It's about an 11 year old girl who works to solve a mystery to help clear her father in a murder investigation. It was entertaining, sweet, I laughed, and I stayed up reading it to see what happened next.

Ali in Wonderland: and Other Tall Tales by Ali Wentworth--This is a book of stories from Ali Wentworth's life. Her parents were involved in politics, she was on In Living Color and Oprah, she's married to George Stephenopolous. She has interesting stories to tell. And I love George S--and his book--so I enjoyed hearing about things like how they met and their marriage. It was well written and funny. Another like.

So not bad for the start of summer reading. I enjoyed most of them, but if I have to pick a favorite (which I'm making myself do), I pick this one:

It's just a nice little story, unique and well written. People should read it.

Jimmy Fallon and "Call Me Maybe"

i need to say from the start that i love jimmy fallon.
loved him on snl, loved him hosting the emmys, love his show, and (as a red sox fan) loved fever pitch.
he does great stuff on his show about current pop culture stuff. and it's funny.
see the history of rap, whip my hair, charlie sheen winning, and slow jam the news as examples.
here's one of his latest--singing with carly rae jepson.
it's obviously not a review of anything.
just something pop culture to enjoy.

Tony Award Watch: For the Love of Jeremy Jordan

This tony awards are on tomorrow.  I love the Tonys as its the outside-NYC-worlds opportunity to glimpse Broadway in full, and oft times, fantastic performances.  Big name stars have taken to Broadway and break out singers are discovered.  The show is always funny and is being hosted again this year by Neil Patrick Harris. He is the host with the most...an award show host extraorinaire.  But, my favorite Tony host will always be Hugh Jackman and last years 'host off' between the two  (Harris and Jackman) of 'Anything you can do I can do better" was hilariously fun!

This year I feel I have less investment in any of the nominated shows than ever before - Last year was the year of The Book of Mormon (too much to say - not enough hours in the day to tackle this topic).  This year - seems more broad - less specific.  Save one show:  Newsies.  Who doesn't love this Christina Bale classic film?  I love that they made this in to a musical - I would love, love, love to see it.  I can't believe it took them so long.  Jeremy Jordan plays the Christian Bale - lead role from the film and is nominated for a Tony for it.  I'm pulling for him here's why:

1.  His name.  Jeremy Jordan has some amazing namesakes.  A porn star...and a mid-90s pop star that I fondly remember singing 'Right Kind of Love" over the end credits of Beverly Hills, 90210 one season. Love that this Tony nomination has given him the celebrity edge in the most famous Jeremy Jordan competition.

2.  His voice. Perhaps this should be number one.  Love the soundtrack, loved his performances I've seen on talk shows with this Newsies company.

3.  Joyful Noise.  I just watched this stinky, stinkety, stinker this week - not realizing he was in it.  Oh, boy did I hate this movie.  Cloying and intent on ruining some perfectly good pop songs, this movie felt incredibly long and Dolly Partons fitted choir robes were the topic of discussion for most of it.  The one saving grace: Jeremy Jordan.  You would think among Queen Latifah and Dolly Parton, that his vocals and acting performances would not be noteworthy - but they were.  If he can rise about this material and shine - he is a star.

4.  Newsies.  What a great show.  What a great idea to make this into a Broadway musical.  A win for him would mean more positive attention for the show and I'm all for that.

5. Bonnie and Clyde.  He actually starred as Clyde in the Tony nominated Bonnie and Clyde this season as well.  The show closed after only 30 days  - but it was still nominated for 2 awards.  So, he is doubly present in the nods this year.

I just reviewed the nominee list and there are a lot of big names up for Tonys: Audra McDonald, Stockard Channing, Cynthia Nixon, Linda Lavin, Judith Light and Andrew Garfield.  I'm pulling for Andrew Garfield or Christian Borle from Smash to take home their category.

I do so love the production that is the Tonys...and for the love of Jeremy Jordan - I really hope its his year.

MIB 3 aka Josh Brolin is fantasic

I saw Men in Black 3. I enjoyed the other two movies and this one fit right along with the other two.  Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones make for a great pair. Emma Thompson was funny in the 5 minutes she was in it. There were plot holes and other things but overall it was entertaining. A nice, popcorn summer movie.

What stood out is Josh Brolin. He was excellent as a young Tommy Lee Jones. From his voice to mannerisms, it was impressive. The movie seemed to pick up energy once he was on-screen. Don't get me wrong--he was very good in True Grit. And, of course, Goonies. I just never realized how good he really is. It's worth seeing this movie just to see him.

Men in Black 3:  Dollar Movie