A little side idea...

So I was up late (again) one night and channel surfing. I came across the Food Network. Good stuff. It was some random show, can't quite remember the name. They were cooking some fanciful Italian dish. They had all the freshest ingredients, the best tools, all the bells and whistles. I couldn't help but think, "Who do I know that cooks like that?" The answer: no one.

Now, those of you who know me, know that I am an unfortunate byproduct of a struggling economy (re: unemployed). I was talking to my cousin Kami, who was also in between jobs at the time. We were discussing various things, like how to eat on a budget and we started joking that we should make our own tv show based on how to cook on a small/non-existent budget. Being the creative souls we are, we came up with the idea of "Livin' Po.'"

We still dream about the day when we can produce the show, but with me having all this time on my hands, I decided to do the next best thing: blog about it! So without further ado, I present the fruit of mine and Kamara's demented thought processes, Livin Po, the blogsite. Simply find your best and most inexpensive recipe and share it with those of your ilk. I hope you all enjoy it, because I'm getting bored with making the same thing over and over again! Mazel tov!

Soundtrack for your life

As I was watching the NCAA National Championship "Game," I heard some songs come on before a break or even promoting the game ESPN has the rights to some Papa Roach song that they play EVERY time the cover the game. It got me to thinking, what would my intro song be? Scratch that, could I think of five songs that I would think would fit my life, from beginning to end? I'd like to think I could come up with something. For some reason, while doing this, I think of those "Time-Life" album compilation commercials...without further ado...

1. Childhood: "I heard it through the grapevine" by the California Raisins. I was OBSESSED with these guys. It borders childhood psychosis. I had figurines, posters, I was even one for Halloween (no I don't have pics). Most of my childhood was dominated by these wonderful promotional figures for health by eating fruit.
Note to reader: I split this next section in half due to not only different songs fitting the bill, but to also illustrate the sheer confusion of being a teenager.
2. Teenage Years, Part 1: "Informer" by Snow. Now I know what you're thinking, "How can a song that lasted a year describe your teenage years?" Well, Snow was the very first CD I bought when I was 13 and it supplied me with a dream to become a bigger white rapper than both he and Vanilla Ice COMBINED. Lofty goal, I know.
3. Teenage Years, Part 2: "Jeremy," by Pearl Jam. Soon after my dream of performing an all-white version of "Rapper's Delight" dissipated, I discovered grunge. Hoo-boy. Not only did I feel like Pearl Jam and other grunge bands gave me an outlet for my teenage angst, "Jeremy" made me feel as if I was performing double duty as a social activist against guns in school and as a proponent for non-conformity. Ah, I was such an impressionable youth!
4. The College Years: "Inside Out," by Eve 6. This song was a STAPLE at every college party I attended. Everyone knew the words, every DB trying scam a girl into some action had this song memorized on his guitar, people ate it up. I honestly remember discussing with my buddy Stec at the time who would be more fondly, Pearl Jam or Eve 6. Guess which side I was on...
5. Young Adulthood: "Morning View," by Incubus. I just felt this one deserved an album nomination. I bought this a few years after it came out. It had everything rock, ballads, even a song to satiate my little-known love of the Japanese musical instrument, the sanshin. Since then, I have purchased every album, seen two of their shows, and purchased a concert DVD (which I NEVER do).

Since I can only surmise that as an old codger, and I'll hate loud noises, I can only think that my favorite song will be the "Viva Viagra" song from the commercial for obvious reasons...So there you have it! Next time you have a little down time, search your old albums and memories and see what you can come up with, you might be surprised.

Back from commecial break, cue fade in...rolling!

I watched the Real World Brooklyn finale last night, and you know what? This season had it's petty fights pathetic squabbles, and twists and turns, but as it turns out so does LIFE. MTV actually nailed it with this one. It gave us actual people, not mannequins, that had real issues. Not just the transgender, which was pretty ground-breaking, but with Ryan being thrown back into the fray in Iraq, Chet's being from the Mormon state and his quest to be something big. They weren't wannabe models (except for Scott), looking to hook up with anything that has two legs and a crotch, these were people you would see walking down the street or in a bar. They fought, they made up, they didn't all end up as friends. I've lived in a lot of places with a lot of people and know that's what roommate life is. You don't always walk away thinking "I'm going to keep in touch with that person FOREVER."
It also got me to thinking "When was the last time the 'Real World' was real?" In my opinion, take it or leave it, it was New York. I had the opportunity to visit NY last year and was blown away. Something about that city just brings out everything in humanity. The best, the worst, everything that is human. And it seems that with it's return there, MTV has once again captured what it is to be "real."

Cue open: cut to WS of guy on couch...

So here's the story...first off, get your mind out of the gutter on the title, I only wish. I'm writing this b/c I have this itch that needs scratched. I love to write, but have a hard time figuring out what to write about. I'm not business-savvy, so that's out. I'm not overly comedic, strike two. So I figured everyone says "Write about what you know..." Thanks for that, way to narrow it down. Well as I was sitting there on my couch at 3 in the morning watching the Real World, and thinking about how it would relate to my own life, it came to me. I know TV and I'm always interested in life, not only my own (obviously), but the lives of those I know and care about. So I thought I'd try and relate the two in sometimes obscure, random, obvious, or even hilarious ways. Welcome to "My Life in 27 Inches." After the size of my TV screen...sheesh.