CrUsH ALeRt

I like the Up series so much!! I just finished 21 Up, and Nick (aka Nicholas Hitchon, look him up) has completely surprised me by becoming a crush alert. He's by far the most down-to-earth, attractive--think Andy Samberg but less apey, more thoughtful--member of the group* and then I just read he's a professor at Wisconsin-Madison, which was my #3 choice for grad school--I could have been so close to maybe running into him one day!

PS: wtf is up with John in 21 Up?? He's acting high and it looks like he tweezed his unibrow halfway through. Plus he's always been shady and self-conscious, like he knows he's an a-hole but he thinks it's your problem

*FYI, the Up series are films about a group of British kids at ages 7, 14, 21, 28 --> 49 (most recently) and, I hope, for the rest of their lives. The focus is on class differences and belief systems, but the real fun is just watching them grow and change. Also some of the upper-crust kids are hilariously out of touch with the world. These are awesome documentaries and completely riveting.

NC State Fair

YAY!!! I love the tallest Ferris Wheels. I love the fried dough. And I adore the Village of Yesteryear. What is your favorite part of the Fair?

Gel from Heaven

Do you guys know what this stuff is? Seth Fisher generously brought me back 2 tubes from his trip to France earlier this year, and it's re-fueled an old addiction...an addiction that left me crying, by the side of the road, and 50 pounds heavier, once upon a time.

Just kidding, but it is hard to stop with this stuff once you get started. Picture this: vanilla, chestnuts, sugar, water. In a paste, but there's nothing to it so it looks like a gel. Stir it into your yogurt. Fill a crepe with it! Slather some on a cookie. Eat it from a spoon! Things get out of hand really easily!

I know it's a little early, but if anyone's wondering what to get me for Christmas, they're selling it on Amazon. Shipping is $5.00, so you might as well get 3 or 4 while you're at it. Just saying!

5 Pic Friday

It's time to start thinking about Halloween options.

Prince

Roman Polanski

Indiana Jones

Paul McCartney

Darth Vader

Safety first!

Here is a public service announcement (PSA for short) from me to you: look out for bikes and scooters on the road!!

This morning, I was scootin' along, obeying all the safety rules, when a stoplight turned green--nobody had a left turn arrow--and I scooted across the intersection and 2 separate cars tried to turn left onto me. The first one was an over-hasty minivan (I thought), and after I yelled at her I continued on my path...but the car behind her was already turning left, too! And he slammed on his brakes, stopping short about 3 feet from my left thigh. I yelled at him a little bit and he kept looking up at the light behind me, hoping for a green arrow to magically appear. I'd actually hoped I was in the wrong, so that this situation would be easily avoided next time (that I was in control and could fix it), but no. I was right. Which is scary.

WHAT THE HECK PEOPLE. Look ahead for smaller vehicles. Don't accidentally kill someone just because it's too much trouble to look around!

Ben Keough

It's crazy to me that Elvis has a 20 year-old grandson...and that he "rocks" "guyliner" (Ben, left). At first, I was like, who is his mother?? Obviously Lisa Marie. Even more crazy is how much he resembles Elvis (center). AND the guy that played Elvis in the TV movie Elvis and Me (Dale Midkiff, right).

Car Advertising

Mobile advertisements like this are springing up nationwide. People are willing to become driving advertisements for about $500 a month. Getting that kind of coin for doing little extra work is something I can get behind. But not for any products.

I need something I can believe in, like I learned in those Tony Steward "School of Advertising" advertisements. I need to personally endorse the product/service. Hey, it's a lifestyle, not a mere thing to buy. These are five of the things I would not hesitate to endorse:

M&M's
Cheerios
UNC-Chapel Hill
Tourism Boards for any nation (Can I get a free trip out of it?)
any cinema chain (Movie passes must be part of the deal.)

What would you put on your car? Have you seen these rolling ads in person? What made you laugh/cringe the most?

I hope she's not wanting us to take this seriously.

5 Pic Friday: Olympic Edition

Congratulations Rio de Janeiro, which will host the Olympics in 2016. But...

Where will they hold beach volleyball?

Or sailing?

Will the locals accept soccer?

One thing is clear, they have buildings.

These guys should make a buddy comedy. That's the Brazilian president greeting Obama. You lost Barack, but at least the IOC was ready for change.

Current Events

I get that celebrities can think for themselves, but they better stop being so in my face about it....specifically in regards to the whole Roman Polanski mess. The more names I see signing a petition to free Roman, the more I start losing respect for everyone on the list. Today I find out that Natalie Portman just signed. wtF??? I guess it's hard for me to understand their position because a) I'm not in Hollywood and b) it's hard for me to understand how genius Roman is (he directed a few movies?). There's no denying he has had a rough life, aside from the troubles he's made for himself, but does that entitle him to get out of jail free cards for the rest of his life?

Sidenote - it's interesting that Jack Nicholson hasn't signed or said anything at this point considering it happened at his house.