ADVENTURES IN THAI FOOD: Trader Joe's Edition

DSC04089

People who’ve been reading this blog may know that I’m sort of a sucker for the Trader Joe’s food display. Without fail, I come home from that place with one or two items I never even dreamed of purchasing, and this past Tuesday was no exception. For some reason, my eye caught a benign jar of “Thai Green Curry Simmer Sauce,” and within seconds I was eagerly stuffing it into my plastic basket. I don’t know why, really. Maybe it’s because I’ve been on a little Thai kick recently. Maybe it’s because I’m a huge fan of curry. Or maybe it’s just because I was hungry and impressionable. I don’t know. Whatever the reason, the promise of quick and simple Thai food emanating from my very own kitchen was too exciting for me to resist, and so I purchased the seductive little jar and brought it home for what would hopefully be a culinary trip to the depths of Bankok. A few photos after the jump…

Continue reading “ADVENTURES IN THAI FOOD: Trader Joe's Edition”

Look Out, Kim! He's Gonna Put You In A Cougar Trap!

elisha-bum

Last night, as Elisha Cuthbert was exiting venerable Beverly Hills eatery Mr. Chow’s, a guy fell over and gashed his head. The plucky 24 star was ever so kind to help him up, but that didn’t stop her and her positively DISMAYED friend from sharing a joint look of shock, confusion, and repulsion. And really, isn’t that all we want from a paparazzi photo? Kinda my favorite pic of the week right now.
Via Socialite’s Life

NPR Provides Twangiest Moment of 2008

npr

When it comes to Southern drawls, twangs, and everything in between, it’s hard to top Sheila Kennedy from Big Brother 9. However, leave it to NPR’s All Things Considered, champion of the rural human interest story, to dig up quite simply the twangiest dialect this side of Tammy Wynette. In fact, it’s so twangy that it’s hard not to think that we’re listening to some sort of flaming back-country dandy farce.
But we’re not. No, the verging-on-cartoony voice comes from Gary Linderman, a resident of Picher, Oklahoma. He believes his town is still worth living in, despite the “mountains” of toxic lead that litter the horizon and the hazardous underground mines that threaten to collapse at any minute. Making things worse, a recent tornado devastated over a hundred homes in the town, leaving most of Picher in utter ruin. The situation is so bad, the government is paying people to simply move out. But that won’t be happening anytime soon, not if Gary Linderman has anything to say about it. Hearing his town pride in the face of tornados, sinkholes, and poisonous waste is hilariously amazing. I’m shocked the anchor is able to get through the entire interview without laughing. I know I can’t, especially after Gary first says “tayowwwwn” and “sawftbaaawwwwls.” Classic.
The full, twangy interview (replete with several charmingly yokel observations) can be found here (Click on the “Listen Now” link once you reach the page). It’s worth it.

Christmas Comes Early: The Housewives Return For One More Triumphant Hour

Picture-19

It’s official: The Real Housewives of New York City has to be one of the best reality shows of the year. Even last night’s glorious, welcomed, and hodgepodge clip show with no narrative structure proved more fascinating and enthralling than most anything else for the past two months (or at least since Housewives wrapped up its first season). Then again, I think I wouldn’t be alone in saying that I could watch unedited dailies of these women and still be thoroughly amused.
There were so many wonderfully awkward moments in last night’s show: the continued awfulness of Ramona, who remains shamelessly gauche in her lack of self-awareness; the tacky yet oddly lovable material desires of Jill Zarin, who still knows how to lay the smackdown on her rivals; the confused outlook of Countess LuAnn’s son, who regrettably thinks the Statue of Liberty stands for friendship, not, you know, liberty; the further adventures of François McCord, whose reign of terror extended to an unassuming art class with an exasperated teacher; and of course the ever tragic state of Bethenny’s biological clock, whose loud ticking can only be drowned out by a hefty glass of white wine.
Yes, it was all amazing and jaw-dropping, but sadly, Bravo hasn’t posted any pics from the episode. Dammit. Well, what better time to go back and post the long overdue reunion photocap? Pics after the jump…

Continue reading “Christmas Comes Early: The Housewives Return For One More Triumphant Hour”

EATING IN LA: The Waffle Edition

DSC04070

When it comes to late night dining, Los Angeles has its fare share of offerings; although, truth be told, we could always use more. I can only go to my after-hours haunts so many times before ennui kicks in. That why I’d been so excited to try The Waffle, one of the latest entries in the LA pseudo-diner circuit. The 22-hour restaurant opened earlier this year, and already, it has stirred up quite the controversy in the food-blogging community. Some people love the kitchen’s wide variety of dishes; others feel its overrated. There’s been backlash, and there’s been backlash on the backlash — so as you can imagine, I really didn’t know what to expect when I wandered into the restaurant with my friends, J-Unit and IndianJones, this past weekend.
I’ll sum it up in one clear, unfortunate word: overpriced.

Continue reading “EATING IN LA: The Waffle Edition”

So Who Else Saw 'Indiana Jones?'

indianajones3

If you’re a red-blooded Amurican, chances are you devoted a few hours this weekend to Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, and chances are that you also emerged from it with a strong opinion. About three-quarters of the people I spoke with felt the movie was disappointing, and everyone else was more in my camp: eh, it was fun.
My thoughts after the jump…

Continue reading “So Who Else Saw 'Indiana Jones?'”

Just As Fun As Regular Beer Pong, But Without The Fun!

And now a moment of inevitability: a video game version of beer pong, creatively titled Beer Pong, is coming to the Wii. I must say I’m quite intrigued, but equally doubtful. Look, if there are two things in this world that I love, it’s beer pong and Wii. But together? Seems kind of dubious. After all, isn’t half the fun of beer pong… the beer? Yes, throwing balls at cups can be enjoyable, but without booze, it might get tiresome after ten minutes.
Then again, I guess it is possible to drink and play Wii Beer Pong at the same time. The only difference is that you won’t have to go chasing after the ball every two seconds. Hmmm… this might not be so bad after all.
Of course, we Dartmouth kids have a whole different (cough, better, cough) conception of beer pong. One that involves paddles and highly involved rules. But that’s a discussion for another time and place…

Thanks for the Memories, Reality Remix

DSC04045

Today marks the final episode of Reality Remix, the Fox Reality staple that helped launched the network. As some of you may or may not know, I used to be a writer on the show, and then after selling TVgasm, I left to blog full-time. Still, that didn’t keep me far from my old Burbank haunts as the good people at Reality Remix kept me in the fam, inviting me back to babble away about reality TV on many of their “Weekend Round Tables” — an opportunity which not only helped me develop on-air skills, but also let me meet some of my favorite stars in the genre.
Anyway, the show wrapped up production on its last two episodes yesterday, and to celebrate its run, a small barbecue was had on the set. The promise of reality stars and free food was entirely too intoxicating for me to resist. Oh, and I GUESS seeing all my former co-workers too (rolling eyes). A few pics from the morning after the jump.

Continue reading “Thanks for the Memories, Reality Remix”

AJMAN!

When I was in Europe a few weeks ago, there was one commercial that played over and over and over again on CNN International, and thankfully, I just found it on YouTube. It’s a bombastic spot intended to lure investors to the emirate of Ajman, but instead, it just kind of plays out like light cult indoctrination, especially when the enthusiastic narrator announces, “The power of belief paves the way for achievement!” All that’s missing are some John Woo doves. Nevertheless, the commercial in its entirety is above, and if you’re fascinated by life in the UAE, check out my friend’s blog here.