Jennifer Anniston can’t act

Well, that’s not totally accurate. I can’t tell if she’s acting or not. I just can’t get over how gorgeous she is.

That’s so gay!

Just saw a public service announcement on TV where teenage girl chides two other teen girls for using the term “That’s so gay.” Wow. We’re really politically correct these days aren’t we? What else will we be prevented from saying? And how about a psa telling people not to use “Jesus Christ” as a swear word. No, I don’t think the leftists will ever back that one.

Tattooed Detective

That’s how Nick Scott heard “Try to detect it” in Devo’s “Whip it.”

Why Janis?

I’ll tell you why. Because for the past 2 days the music played at my gym has included the SAME bunch of songs, one of which is that “Take a Piece of My Heart” by Janis Joplin. I don’t really like Janis Joplin, but now I’ve got that “now m’now m’now m’now” line going through my head CONSTANTLY! Stop it! I woke up hearing it in my mind. Can’t we outlaw this song/artist?

What is the point?

I just want to know.

Finally saw the Boosh Live!

I went to London in December to see the Mighty Boosh at Wembley Arena. Fantastic night! Lots of Boosh fans dressed as their favorite characters. I’ve even caught some video from that night again on YouTube (look for Boosh, London Dec 15. 2008).

Now, is that not fanaticism? 6000 miles to see a show.

Favorites from the show: Howard Moon (of course), the Hitcher (my favorite character), and Tony Harrison (also my favorite character).

Picked up series three at HMV in Covent Garden, now I must get my DVD player to play region 2 DVDs! At least I have new (to me) Boosh eposides to look forward to.

Also bought the Mighty Book of Boosh (on sale just in time for Christmas). Saw the ad in the tube and HAD to buy it. It’s great! My favorite part: the conversation between Saboo and Tony Harrison on their cell phones. (Blackberry vs. iPhone).

A Flash of Humanity at FedEx

My brother sent me some Angels playoff tickets via FedEx yesterday and I didn’t hear the knock at the door so I had to go to the FedEx office to pick up the package. I wasn’t exactly looking forward to making the extra trip, but I resigned myself to it. It’s interesting, though, where you might find reassurances that we’er all together on this planet. Odd that I found it at FedEx.

When I got to FedEx there were about 20 people milling about. It took me a minute to ascertain that they were all there turning in their door tags and waiting for their packages. I did the same and started waiting. More people showed up and I was pleasantly surprised to see the others who were standing around, let the newcomers know what they needed to do.

There was a young white guy in an Obama shirt looking a bit perplexed. (He stood out, of course, since I’m not voting for Obama.) The black woman next to me told him what he needed to do. I did the same for another woman who was standing around not knowing what to do.

There were younger people, older people, white, black, hispanic, liberal, conservative–a slice of the Los Angeles melting pot.

One guy came in at 6:40pm with a HUGE box. As the FedEx people were scrambling around trying to get all our door tags taken care of, this guy needed to ship something and was told by the manager that the cutoff time of 6:15 had already passed. He was desperate (pleading that he could not wait till tomorrow to ship) and the manager was insistent. The man even offered $20 for them to ignore the cutoff point. Still no luck.

Finally, the mamager said she’d check to see if the truck had left yet. She left for a minute and came back and told the guy, “okay.” She hurriedly grabbed the huge box and transported it into the back to be shipped. The man was VERY relieved and offered the manager a case of her favorite beer. She said she didn’t drink.

Yes, rules are there to be followed, but I was pleasantly surprised at the happy conclusion to the little drama I watched.

We’re all strangers until we meet. But we’re also all human.

I’m glad I missed the FedEx knock on my door.

Wall Street and Ozymandias

Watching TV this week and looking at the facade of Lehman Brothers in New York–that fancy, awe-inspiring electronic screen which would at times show a huge American flag waving–my mind wandered back to high school and Percy Bysse Shelley’s sonnet Ozimadias:

I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: “Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown
And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear:
`My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings:
Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!’
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away.

The hubris of it all! These huge companies–this government–none remember that we are all but human beings. I look at the Lehman Brothers sign and think “Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!” And what will be left of it next week?

Flo, The Progressive Insurance Chick

Interesting how this character has changed since they introduced her a few months ago. At first she was a goofy checkout girl who tells her customer “Wow! I know, I say it louder.” However, as they’ve kept using Flo to sell insurance, she’s changed into more of a down-to-earth, fun, yet knowledgeable character. And in one of the latest where she’s selling the concierge service, she’s approachable, yet serious. I like her and I like seeing her in these commercials. They’re good. Too bad I won’t buy Progressive insurance (political differences with the owner).

Do criminals use turn signals?

I wonder about these things. Say someone just committed a robbery and is leaving the scene of the crime. Does he obey the traffic laws or not? Is it all just part of the criminal mindset? If the greater crime has just been committed, are minor infractions just par for the course?