Why Are You Yelling?

Poetry Post: In Common

2009-08-04T09:35:00.006-04:00

Posting has been sporadic lately, especially since I was home last week for some family stuff. As an apology (or, more likely, a punishment), I've decided to finally implement my plan for a monthly (bi-monthly) poetry post. This could get awkward.I haven't really been writing (or reading) a lot of poetry lately, for one reason or another. But! Since I do plan on going back to school at some point

Moon Reviewed

2009-07-21T10:16:00.012-04:00

It would have behooved me to write my review of Moon yesterday, since it was the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11 landing on the moon, but. Well. I wrote about government cheese so I think that that's enough of a memorandum. Despite the seeming impossibility of this request, spoilers are at an absolute minimum since it's a very spoiler-able movie. Though, as you saw yesterday, I was happy to provide

Government Cheese

2009-07-20T13:54:00.002-04:00

Anne had brunch with an old co-worker yesterday, and while talking, her friend told her all about the greatness of food stamps. "Linda probably qualifies," she said; Anne was excited to let me know (because that's how Anne is). "Yeah, I know. I've just never looked into it. I don't have kids and I don't really need it so I'd feel bad." But then I was reading this blog today and found a post in

Tidings From Sam Rockwell

2009-07-20T13:01:00.007-04:00

Oh hey, you're still here. So am I. Listen, reviews of Away We Go and Moon are coming up in the next couple of days, as well as a post about government aid (because, why not?). In anticipation of the upcoming review, here's a picture courtesy of Gemma featuring Sam Rockwell's hotness. In the meantime, after you're done checking out Rockwell's hotness, watch the preview for An Education.An

Eat Less And Exercise More, You Idiot

2009-07-16T11:19:00.009-04:00

Hey, guys. What I'm about to say is going to be annoying, but if I don't address it, I might punch someone in the face. I don't want that, you don't want that (you very much want that). Can you even punch the internet in the face? Anyway, it's sort of amazing to me that you can take the most liberal, "accepting" bunch of people and bring up the obesity epidemic with them, and all this hate comes

Album of the Week: Maxwell, BLACKsummers'night

2009-07-10T16:20:00.000-04:00

After a seven-year hiatus, Maxwell has landed in a precarious position. When you're credited with revolutionizing modern soul music, what do you do next?On BLACKsummers'night, the first in a trilogy of albums to be released over the next three years, Maxwell goes for a decidedly stripped-down sound. While the album is awash in clamoring drums, funked-up drums, and horn flourishes, it's a far cry

Flanacko's Diary: Part 1

2009-07-06T18:05:00.008-04:00

Hey guys, remember me? Me neither. The thing is, I started this internship last week and also planned a 4th of July party so I didn't have time to "blog." (I'm not sure why I put that in quotes.) And, as you know, Shawn has officially quit the blog so I've brought on a mystery guest blogger to hold you guys over (insatiable, you are!) until I get used to, you know, having a normal adult schedule

Smith Street Fair

2009-06-28T17:32:00.014-04:00

Today, Eric, Anne, and I went to the Smith Street Fair in Carroll Gardens, a scaled-down version of the Atlantic Antic. After my coverage of that fair, I made sure to get as many pictures of the food we ate as possible. We originally wanted to go to catch the Stinkfest '09 cheese-eating contest, but by the time we had walked around (and eaten our weight in festival food), we weren't prepared to

Bunnies, Clouds, And Thoughts

2009-06-23T22:46:00.016-04:00

The last time Anne and I went to see the roses at the Botanic Gardens was a graveyard disaster, so I decided to check back this year to see the roses in bloom. As I've mentioned, Tuesdays are free, so I roamed around by myself and explored. Since I was alone, I took some more pictures of things I found pretty and went to parts I haven't been to before. It always feels a little weird to be doing

Why Do We Hate Kate Gosselin?

2009-06-23T13:38:00.007-04:00

[I'm using the patronizing we here. I do not hate Kate Gosselin, but you monsters seem to.] In honor of my last post, I feel the need to sound off on something that absolutely everyone is sick of at this point because that's what I do. I don't want to get into the media drama or the divorce or the ethics related to kids on reality TV, but I do want to discuss the 99% hate for Kate Gosselin. I've

All-Over-The-Place Rambling About Smart Girls

2009-06-22T16:12:00.007-04:00

I know that Amy Poehler's "Smart Girls at the Party" web-series has been featured on quite a few feminist websites (and even in my "To Make Your Life Better" section), but I just have to talk about it (and what it means) some more in case you guys haven't seen it. I know it sounds silly but watching each episode makes me absolutely giddy, especially when the theme song/dance party comes on with

How-Not-To Video

2009-06-22T13:38:00.015-04:00

If you're like me, you watch a lot of Food Network and other food-related programming (again--food porn). I realize that a lot of people go into making the food on cooking shows look amazing, but I still like to believe that we can do a lot of stuff shown on those programs at home. If you have some sense and a little bit of ability, anyway. While searching for a little recipe help today, I became

Don't Rain On My [Mermaid] Parade

2009-06-22T09:53:00.020-04:00

We went to the Mermaid Parade in Coney Island for the third year, and the weather was miserable. The good thing is that the crowd was affected enough that we got a good spot in front of the judges' table. The bad thing is that the parade seemed to have a smaller turn-out this year. But we can blame the economy for that instead because that's the cool thing to do right now. It poured for about an

A Year of Fail

2009-06-17T20:05:00.004-04:00

In true Linda/Shawn tradition, I'm late to chime in. But in keeping with the spirit of Linda's post, I wanted to share my thoughts on our "blogiversary." (Also, that is the absolute worst word ever, and I'm going to have Linda euthanized for coining it.) It's been a hilarious and challenging year. I had maintained my own blog for years before, and it's a very different experience working with

We've Wasted A Year Of Your Life: Let's Celebrate!

2009-06-17T00:29:00.005-04:00

Here ye, here ye, devoted readers! [Echooo, echooo.]Today is our one year blogiversary. (Don't worry, Shawn: two weeks have passed so I can finally bring up how our blog is doing.) I know times have been tough around here; I've been unemployed/useless and Shawn has been a little too busy (cool) to regularly post. I'd still like to take this time to celebrate a year of [un]cooperative,

The New York Aquarium

2009-06-16T13:34:00.004-04:00

As I mentioned in a previous post, the New York Aquarium has suggested admission tickets on Fridays between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. so if you happen to be hanging out in Coney Island/Brighton Beach for the day, it's a fun end to the afternoon. After the jump, I'll take you on a picture tour (picture tour=pictures haphazardly placed in no particular order). If the pictures aren't enough to convince you

"Aww...He Loves Her" --5:13

2009-06-16T12:10:00.008-04:00

I'm usually not susceptible to viral marketing (that doesn't pertain to movies) because, after all, it's about selling a product and I'm pretty straight with the products I use/enjoy right now. And I don't use tampons anyway (I know, I'm sorry--I'm just trying to make a point), but this Tampax campaign is sort of brilliant. There's a website and blog set up about a 16-year-old boy who wakes up

The Hangover Reviewed (Somewhat Angrily)

2009-06-12T14:13:00.010-04:00

I've been keeping an eye out for The Hangover since March. I love Ed Helms. I love Zack Galifianakis (so much so that I didn't even have to check how to spell his name). I love Bradley Cooper. I love Mike Tyson. (What?) Win-win-win-awkward win, right? I don't want to spoil the post by giving my coveted rating so soon, but I only give this movie a 70 out of 100. Why did you make me do that, The

Up "Reviewed"

2009-06-08T14:03:00.009-04:00

Are you ready for another more-or-less plotless (and purposely spoiler-less) review? This weekend, I saw the new Disney Pixar animated feature Up (which I keep typing as UP and should therefore be officially changed) about an old man and his Wilderness Adventurer (read: boy scout) friend floating a house to South America with balloons. It only gets better from there.If you're going to see this

Album of the Week: Chrisette Michele, Epiphany

2009-06-04T13:06:00.007-04:00

The shortcomings of Chrisette Michele's pleasant debut album I Am (which I reviewed here) can best be divined through listening to her far-superior sophomore offering, Epiphany. While her jazz-inflected phrasing is still present, Chrisette settles into a more consistent and modern groove, delivering a cohesive, and as a whole, more enjoyable album.While Chrisette largely wrote her first album,

The First Abortion Provider Killed In A Decade

2009-05-31T14:19:00.014-04:00

So far, I've read two news items this afternoon that have completely ruined my day. I have nothing of substance to say about them--I just want to sound off and commiserate if possible. That truck has one thing right--shame on America.Dr. George Tiller, an abortion provider, was shot and killed this morning ON HIS WAY INTO CHURCH. Despite having been previously harassed and shot at, he still

I Hope You Find This As Interesting As I Do...

2009-05-27T13:56:00.004-04:00

Because it's a little long, despite my realization that "blog attention span" usually tops out at four paragraphs. But ANYWAY: Have you ever thought about something so much in one way that a completely obvious point eludes you? And then you have a sudden epiphany? That happened to me when I was reading an article about one man's many reasons gay marriage is the worst. I'm sure what I'm about to

Any Means Necessary

2009-05-22T14:21:00.007-04:00

After a friend guessed the range of our "decent reader base" to be ">8, <15," Shawn and I discussed some extreme methods for attracting new readers. (If you happen to be a meth addict that has happened upon our site, please get help AFTER leaving a comment in the comments section. It's only fair.)Linda: My first comment on Videogum about gay incest was a big hit! I think this could be good

Whoops, Wrong Desert

2009-05-21T20:25:00.019-04:00

I went to Coney Island today to hang out on the beach, and learned that I should actually be at home preparing for a terrorist shore invasion. There were four helicopters on the beach, police controlling the crowd standing on the boardwalk taking pictures, and way too many men in fatigues for me to feel comfortable. Can't they do this stuff in the dead of the night, like in those Navy Seals ads?

Really Unimportant Star Trek "Review"

2009-05-20T10:54:00.013-04:00

[There are absolutely no spoilers in this post, you big baby.] When I walked into the theater, I signed an invisible contract that said, if I enjoy the movie, I then have to sit through every last episode of Star Trek. And that contract was written up by my dad, the Star Trek Expert/Temporary Contract-Writing Lawyer. But this is not going to be a nerd review. I am not nerd-qualified. Despite