wisteria

Who else is excited about tonight's finals of the National Spelling Bee? Not only am I a huge spelling/grammar nerd, but I run my school's Bee. (Alas, our winners did not advance past the district.) I love that it's broadcast on ESPN -- with the finals on ABC tonight at 8pm -- because of how it celebrates all us spelling nerds and turns their intelligence into an event. Ah, but this years there is CONTROVERSY! This afternoon's 6th round began with twenty-five competitors. Thirteen of the first nineteen were knocked out, leaving only ten students on stage -- six of whom hadn't yet spelled their words. The judges announced that the Bee would be suspended until tonight's broadcast, which would begin in the middle of that round. The reasoning: ABC needed at least ten spellers in order to provide a potential two hours of coverage. Granted, it's technically fair because those remaining six spellers will still need to finish the round to advance. But they'll also have several hours of rest and studying that the previous thirteen did not. Since the spellers are organized in their state's alphabetical order, this meant that those from states after New York have the advantage over those like my homegirl from Atlanta, who was knocked out in that same round by "poilu". This blog has a good rundown of all the drama and spelling geekery.

And today's 30 Days of TV question: ( Collapse )

I saw this screenbug while watching AD reruns on IFC tonight: "What lessons has Arrested Development taught you?"

Let's see...
-- It is possible to be both an analyst and a therapist.
-- Cousins being into each other is a tricky gray area.
-- You shouldn't show your knobs in an upscale steak restaurant.
-- "Annyong" means "hello" in Korean, and Judy Garland songs can be quite useful in prison.
-- There's no "I" in Teamocil.
-- You don't fire Crazy.
-- "Afternoon Delight" is inappropriate for family karaoke night.
-- Be careful not to commit some light treason.
-- Tear-away stripper pants can be useful.
-- Dismemberment by seal will wreck your self-esteem.
-- Never let your uncle make your student body president campaign video.
-- One-armed men are a great way to teach your son a lesson.

(Damn you, Hulu, for not having my all-time favorite scene -- the original one with J. Walter Weatherman and "That's why you always leave a note." But hey, I could watch AD clips all day long. This is the most fun I've had with an LJ post in ages!)

While I'm pleased for the U.S. bobsled team's success, the coverage is very distracting. Every time the announcers say "Steve Holcomb", I hear "STEVE HOLT!"

Also: Virtue/Moir's exhibition program is totally The Cutting Edge. I'll admit that I just couldn't get into them during the competition, but I kinda love the hell out of them for this routine.

Otherwise, I'm lethargic and very easily distracted and playing way too much Spider Solitaire and obviously having a hard time coming up with things to say in these daily posts! So, I'll throw together a linkspam:

-- The Norwegian Alpine Ski Team Performs "Beat It". In full ski gear. Surrounded by beautiful mountains. Yes, it is as hilarious and awesome as it sounds. And the French team challenges them to a "Thriller" dance-off.
-- To complete the wacky video trifecta: Stephen Colbert presents the U.S. Curling Team's new theme song.
-- The Times has an investigative report about the skating kiss-and-cry area.
-- io9 interviews the creator of TV Tropes, which is indeed a huge timesuck.
-- The WaPo has an interesting explanation of why Toyota's president is named Toyoda. (It involves Japanese characters.)
-- Another reason why I love the magazine Mental Floss: "How do I hypnotize a chicken?"
-- The Guardian interviewed writers for a list of ten rules for writing fiction. I am quite guilty of #3 on Leonard's list.

I hate eye exams, especially when they force you to choose which is better: the first or the second. At least my prescription hasn't changed, and the clinician gave me a free trial pair of contacts because I'm on my last couple and am going out of town next week. In honor of today's annual checkup, I bring you gratuitous Arrested Development. (Psst... Steve Holt! at 4:05.)

Against my better judgment, I'll admit that this made me laugh aloud (even if the last line is ... unfortunate.)



Seeing Sarah Alexander there reminded me of how great Coupling was. Pity that the NBC version was so awful, because I adored the original. Here's my favorite scene: Jeff and his wooden leg.

And now I am watching I Survived a Japanese Game Show. It's kinda stupid but it also makes me laugh, and it looks so pretty in HD. I have low standards for summer TV.

1. Queso, my cat, has a vet appointment at 4:00. Unfortunately, our current thunderstorms have him hiding under the bed. I just called the vet, who said I wasn't the first to call today with that issue. She told me to bring him in anyway if he crawls out by 5:00, and that I should try some kitty treats. No dice. Guess I'll just keep waiting and cajoling. Maybe they'll let me reschedule for tomorrow. I *love* thunderstorms, but I don't much like driving in them.

2. I'm having a bit more success with my attempts to readjust my daily schedule for the workweek. Going to bed an hour earlier each night hasn't been a problem... so far. As I've said many times, I tend to get really bad insomnia, and I'm hoping this plan will help with that. Today I got up early (for me) and hit Target and Office Max to use my school supplies giftcard (thank you, GA taxpayers! ;) Unfortunately, the sales and general quality of the merchandise have been uninspiring thus far. Stationery designers don't seem to realize that really cute/fun school supplies are the best way to get us excited about something that is NOT much fun.

3. I also rewatched the series finale of Arrested Development. Aww, even better than I'd remembered. When I lose interest in a show I've previously loved, I'm DONE. Absolutely no desire to watch it ever again. That's been true of all my previous fandoms, and I'm sure it'll happen with BSG. But I really can watch AD over and over. :)

4. A minor peeve: when bloggers talk to their readers via nicknames, like we're all part of their little fanclub. This seems to happen most often on blogs with "Pop" in the name, like PopWatch or Pop Candy. An example from EW's recap of Project Runway: "I ask you, TV Watchers: What would we do without our Gunn power?" Why not just say, "Readers"?

5. Hmm. Arj Barker (Dave from Conchords) is starting a 4-night gig at a local comedy club. I have absolutely no problem going to movies or concerts by myself, but there's something weird and uncomfortable about being alone at a comedy club.

6. A few links while I attempt to get Queso out from under the bed:
-- Stephen Colbert apologizes to Canton, GA. Sort of.
-- "Love You Long Time": Funny phrase or racial slur?
-- 7 links for people who really miss the workplace and Lunchtime quiz: controversial Disney movies.
-- A librarian's rant about which books are "appropriate".
-- Homeland Security at Comic-Con.
-- And one that really spoke to me: Is there a laziness gene?

queenofthorns made this awesome BSG/Arrested Development crossover icon. Lee Adama and J. Walter Weatherman! I can't embed the actual clip because of the Flash problems, but "Pier Pressure" is my most favoritest AD episode ("If someone had left a note, this innocent man would still have his arm!!!") God, I miss that show.

I'm not really a fan of crossovers. They usually make me roll my eyes. But a few years ago, a friend challenged me to write BSG/AD, so I came up with "A Colonial Army of One". I have to admit that I'm really proud of that one, just because I somehow managed to get everyone to sound in-character. Plus, it was just fun to write. We need more BSG humor fic, darnit. (I also wrote Galactica/Who, but that wasn't very successful.)

Then I told QoT that people should write more whacked-out BSG crossovers. How about Lee Adama takes a young Matt Saracen under his wing as the two of them bond over absent fathers, the pressures of leadership, and how to stay so damn hot under the influence of all that emo? Or maybe a to-the-death faceoff between Saul Tigh and John Locke? Maybe Laura Roslin schooling Liz Lemon on the finer points of looking fabulous in glasses while kicking ass?

Since I'm all about the levity today... what's the most delightfully crack-tastic crossover fic you've ever read? Which two show universes would be hilarious if combined?

Just got home from seeing Juno -- and on the correct night! Didn't fall madly in love, but it's a cute movie. Mostly, it makes me want to pull out my Arrested Development DVDs.* I did score a cute promo t-shirt that's like the HS shirt Michael Cera's character wears; however, it's a medium, and my cleavage is ... not a medium. (A curse, not a blessing.) Perhaps one of my friends will like it.

* While at Publix last night, I saw this tall, gorgeous model-type talking on her cellphone, and she mentioned "Bob Loblaw". I sort of hovered around her near the deli counter, because I'm not used to overhearing random AD-related discussion by model types. Sure enough, a few minutes later she laughed and told the person on the phone, "... played by Scott Baio!" Excellent. And hee! I just found my AD/BSG crossover fic.

Y'know, I'm fairly zen about LJ's new adult content restrictions. ( Collapse )

My bookmarks list overfloweth, so here's another linkspam:

-- From the major newsmagazines: Why A Christmas Story has become America's favorite yuletide movie, and is photography dead?
-- NY Times: On the lack of social mobility in reality television. Also, their TV blog asks what went wrong with Bionic Woman?
-- Mo Ryan on the Psych Christmas special, and what they have in common with Jeeves & Wooster.
-- Fans of The Wire: You can watch three short prequel videos at Amazon.
-- Vulture has two short but funny spoilery bits on Monday's Heroes.
-- Now you need a receipt to return things to Target. No more giving 'em your credit card. Drat.
-- Via Pop Candy: The "Last Christmas" Blog, dedicated to listing every cover of that Wham! song. Since I saw this link, I've had that damn song going through my head.

Ah, Spring Break. My favorite part of, uh, spring. Nothing but blissful sloth until Monday morning. I had 5x7 and 8x10 digital prints made of the nephew (heretofore known as "the cutest baby in the history of babies") and set about shopping for frames. No dice! Neither Target nor Cost Plus had anything I liked, and I even swallowed my snobbiness and checked TJ Maxx, to no avail. Might try Pier1 tomorrow. Or maybe I should just wait, since Sis told me that yesterday she had TCBitHoB's photo taken with the Easter Bunny. Cute overload!

Some TV-related links for a slightly-chilly-but-blissfully-slothful Thursday:

-- Saturday night marks the premieres of America's Cutest Puppies and Adventures in Doggie Daycare. I link because everyone seems to love dogs... except me. I'm NOT a dog person (though, to be fair, I don't really like any animals except my cat.) Growing up, my sister's allergies prevented us from having any pets, so dogs have always made me uncomfortable, especially the hyper ones. Even cute puppies make me shrug. Dog lovers, feel free to unfriend me now. ;)

-- Super-sized 30 Rock tonight! With Will Arnett! *squee!* The 30R site has an amusing Celebrity Marry/Boff/Kill web game. Sepinwall wrote a great column about the show. And in honor of my beloved GOB, here's a montage of "I've made a huge mistake."

-- In other AD Alumni News, NBC.com also has a web-only episode of Andy Barker PI. I've been skipping the show, but I had to watch this one just for Amy Sedaris. Oooh.

-- Sepinwall also did a cool post asking for our favorite examples of popular music in TV shows.

-- Yet another new BSG videoblog! This one's awesome, thanks to Callis's impressions, Trucco "passed out on the ground", and Jamie wearing a metaphorical straitjacket.

-- For the flight home, I borrowed several of my sister's issues of Mental_Floss. The site itself is also a very cool read; definitely check out the blog. I really need to just get a subscription already. I also love them for linking to Men Who Knit.

-- Salon has an interesting article written by a nurse, giving her perspective on TV hospitals and especially House.

ETA: How much do I love my subject line?

I am wide awake. Alas. I even took a sleeping pill, but it didn't work. I have to be way the hell up on the other side of the county tomorrow morning for an inservice, which means a 45-minute drive. I do love inservices, though -- at least, when they're focused on curriculum stuff I haven't heard dozens of times before. Yup, I'm a curriculum junkie. But I have to leave in four hours, and I'm completely awake despite taking a sleeping pill. Such is life.

I've been having a moody, "I suck!" week thus far. Gotta love that good ol' hormones/insecurity cocktail, huh? To cheer myself up, I pulled some AD eps up on the TiVo and have decided that "Forget Me Now" is the ultimate cure-all. Analrapist! "What a fun, sexy time for you!" and Maeby/George-Michael! Steve Holt! Franklin! GOB taking roofies because of "I won't forget this... Dad!" Love love love. (Though "Pier Pressure" is still the most sublime half-hour of anything ever. J. Walter Weatherman. Yes.)

Yoga. Again. More specifically, the lack thereof! I bought MegaYoga on siryn99's recommendation, and I just finished about 45 minutes of practice -- can't decide whether it calmed me down enough to sleep or keyed me up enough to just stay up all night. ;) Last week's classes wore me out so much that I didn't feel like going the past two days, but I'm going to attempt tomorrow night's hot class. My goal is to make it through the whole 90-minute session, even if I have to sit out most of it. I've also downloaded some free podcasts off iTunes, including several video ones designed for beginners.

In fandom news... I was thrilled to see that BSG won the popular votes for "Best Drama" and "TWoP Show with Highest Actual Quality" in the Tubeys. Yay! Very cool, since I hadn't expected it to come out ahead in a site-wide vote.

Oh, and speaking of voting: Cynthia McKinney lost her congressional runoff. I *want* to like her in theory, but damn, she lost any chance of that a long time ago.

I know I'm way behind on comments -- sorry! I love receiving them and find it easy to post daily, but the talk-back brings out my shy side sometimes. ;) Will try to get caught up tomorrow. Until then, much love to everyone, and I'm going to try and sleep....