Paper Towels

I love me some ShamWOW - but they're no paper towels....

Pot Kettle Black

Jay Bennett, former Wilco member, has died at 45. Supposedly, he was found this morning after passing in the night. Autopsy pending, I'm not one to lean on natural causes. This is a sad loss for the Bennett and Wilco families as he passed in the middle of further strife between the 2 camps. The longtime collaborator of frontman Jeff Tweedy left the band during the recording of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot in 2001 amid much ballyhoo shown in the documentary, "I am Trying to Break Your Heart". Some of Wilco's best music had Bennett's hands all over it. Personally, the band hasn't made as good of music since he left. Sorry. I haven't streamed the new one yet (and I hope it's awesome), but Sky Blue Sky and A Ghost is Born were just OK for me. Peaking with Summerteeth and YHF, there was nowhere to go but down. Jay Bennett left and burned out, but I guess that's better than fading away. Go in peace, JB...

"I myself have found a real rival in myself
I am hoping for a re-arrival of my health

It's become so obvious
You are so oblivious to yourself

You're tied in a knot
But I'm not gonna get caught
Calling a pot kettle black
Every song's a comeback
Every moment's a little bit later"

- "Pot Kettle Black"
from Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

Jay and Jeff having a meeting of the minds one last time...

Horses Horses Horses Horses....

I came to terms with something this weekend. I love horse racing. Thank God I don't have a penchant for gambling (speaking of which, did anyone see Charles Barkley nail a spectator in the face 15 ft in front of him with his drive at the golf Pro-Am this week?). I always get fired up for the Kentucky Derby when May rolls around. I look for the Knob Creek or the Woodford Reserve and my nearest mint sprig. I love the build up and then the inevitable race. If NASCAR had no restrictor plates and was only 10 laps, I would be in like Flint. We also celebrate the movie Seabiscuit in this house - heck, it's got The Dude in it. I even tried this year to have a Derby party but couldn't make it happen. You can bet that next year it will come to fruition.Regardless, the Preakness took place on Saturday. As the second leg of the Triple Crown, all eyes were on the Kentucky Derby winner, Mine That Bird. Seeing as Bird was a huge upset win along the lines of Giacomo from years ago, not many were expecting a repeat performance. Even his jockey, Calvin Borel, jumped ship for another horse. He decided to ride Rachel Alexandra, a filly, who didn't even feature in the Derby. Apparently, she's the second coming. Looks like they were right. She took the lead from the 13th position (that's like the 8th lane in track - the furthest from the inside) and never gave it up. At the halfway point, Mine That Bird found himself dead last. Then much like the Derby, he flipped a switch. In the Derby, he went last to 1st squeezing through the eye of the needle on the rail. The other jockeys knew he was coming this time. The rail was shut off. MTB went to the outside and passed every single horse in the last 1/4 only to finish on the heel of Rachel Alexandra. Were this race another 100 yards, the Bird would have won - NO QUESTION. It was a great race. Alexandria became the 1st filly winner in over 80 years. Can't wait for the Belmont Stakes, the longest race of the Triple Crown. The Bird might stretch it out!

Summer Movie Preview (JUNE)

This month finds us in the "salad" part of the meal. June is full of buddy comedies and RomComs for one of my favorite Nashville couples, Blalizabeth (hey, it's better than - Elizablake....this is what you get for being Brangelina for Halloween).

JUNE

1st up is Land of the Lost with Will Ferrell and Eastbound and Down's own Danny McBride. Even with all that potential, it's gonna take a lot to get me in that theater...






Sam Mendes of American Beauty fame pulls off a shocker with a comedy (with John Krasinski? What in the world?). Away We Go is an across the country misadventure of an expecting young couple searching for the perfect place to settle down.





While watching TV last night, we had a little chuckle with the preview for The Hangover. Old School's Todd Phillips is back with a troupe of B-list comedians that I love (Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms, Rob Riggle, Matt Walsh, Rachael Harris etc). Las Vegas bachelor party - GO!





All you My Big Fat Greek whatevers get excited! Nia Vardalos is back with Richard Dreyfuss (huh?) for My Life in Ruins. Get ready to awwwww (or vomit).







Ghostbuster Egon (Harold Ramis) is directing Jack Black and Michael Cera as 2 banished cave men in Year One. Hmmmmmmmm?







Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock star in The Proposal. I wonder what's it's about? I will from here on out affectionately refer to it as Three Weeks Notice....







Rounding out June is Transformers: Revenge of the Sith (wait?). I loved T-formers almost as much as GI Joe (hold your horses, that's July!). Didn't see the 1st one, so it doesn't look good for this one. Sorry, Shia the Beef.

Terror-izing Elmo

Here's one of the residents from Saudi Arabia, my friend Nabil, giving the business to Sesame Street...


Sorry, Nabil. The world needed to see this...

That's me talking in the background (not...)

Flamboyant Futbol Ref - Lost In Translation

ENCORE?

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Day to all you mothers out there!

HAD TO REMOVE THE REST - too controversial!

Summer Movie Preview (MAY)

Whitney just "shushed" me so she could watch a preview of the new Woody Allen flick, Whatever Works, starring the always dry Larry David (what a NYC combo of Allen and David!). So here are some other movies to look forward to (or not) this Summer.

MAY

May is already upon us. And while it is technically not a summer month, it has laid out some decent appetizers. First off, let me say I really can't stand Star Trek. Nevertheless, Whit and I will be seeing JJ Abrams latest with bells on.





X-Men: Wolverine? Nope. Love the men of Xavier, but it's time to hang up the Adamantium, Weapon-X.







If anyone goes to see Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, you are not my friend anymore. It's hard for me to hate McConaughey - the guy who was Wooderson from Dazed & Confused, but I have lost all respect for you, dude (even when you had some redemption with Tropic Thunder- ugh!)





I REALLY don't want to see Angels & Demons. I did not read A&D (it was just way too long guys, and there's too much crap I have to read everyday for Perio). I DID read DaVinci Code. Ron Howard, Tom Hanks and Co. butchered that film. My fear is that I would see A&D and like it only to have to deal with all you "readers" telling me how much it sucked....




May winds down with Terminator: Salvation. No thanks. Even with Christian Bale, nope. I loved T1 and T2, but I could care less about any of this. It can't be good with all the behind the scene problems that riddled this potential buster.





The last is a Mexican Indie that is Swine Flu free. Rudo y Cursi follows 2 brothers aspiring to be professional footballers. The scout comes to town but can only take 1 to Mexico City. Rivalry ensues.

Wilco the Album Cover

Wow! Now, that's an album cover! At least the new cover to their self-titled album (out June 30th) gives them something to laugh at while former guitarist Jay Bennett is suing the pants off Jeff Tweedy for back royalties from Whitney and I's 2nd favorite musical documentary, "I Am Trying To Break Your Heart" (our fav is oddly enough - "Running Down a Dream", the Tom Petty one from 2 years ago - GREAT!).

Regardless, nice marmot!

I'm So Tired...

It's Monday, and I need to go to bed.....the weekend came and went, and I need more...
In 2 weeks, Boston's own, Passion Pit, will release their full length debut, Manners.

Sleepyhead

This song is almost a year old now, but it's the one that put them on the map
AND
it's how I feel today - Sleepy!

Check em out on May 18th all you Animal Collective weirdos!