Never Want To Say....

I was looking at TV Land's website last night. The site where they have pictures and bios of all the current executives of TV Land. I realized that TV Land is owned by Viacom. I didn't realize the scope of Viacom's cable empire. Many of the current TV Land execs have quite the resumes. Many of these people were responsible for the quality programming on networks such as Spike TV, the WB network and NBC. If you dislike the new reality shows such as "High School Reunion" and "The Cougar", just realize that some of the people behind these shows were involved in reality shows that were shown on networks such as the WB network and Spike TV. So, if you are lamenting the current state of programming on TV Land like I am, just know where TV Land is getting their executives from. The thing is, when a network talks about the successful tv shows of the past that their current executives have been involved with and you remember the shows they mention as failures, you know what brilliant minds you are dealing with. Moving onto the subject of sports...The Detroit Pistons season was a disappointment that began with the trading of Chauncey Billups and ended with a sweep at the hands of the Cleveland Cavaliers. They were a hard team to watch this season. Many discussions are taking place right now as to who will be back with Detroit next season and who will be gone. Don't be surprised if Tayshaun Prince is traded. He seems to have hit a wall. The Pistons hoped that he would be an offensive threat this year. For half a season, he delivered. However, he then became very inconsistent. His offense was non-existent versus Cleveland, not to mention how Lebron James destroyed the Pistons. I believe Tayshaun was defending Lebron during the series. While I like Tayshaun, it's not gonna be a surprise to me if he gets traded. He might still have some trade value left in him.

New Pics & More

As expected, they called me this morning and wanted me to go back to work on Friday. I countered with a request to just take a vacation day on Friday. So, I had to stop by work today to fill out a vacation form. I drove around today to various spots along Lake Michigan and I took a few new pics. The Tulip Festival starts here next week. So, they have started setting up the bleachers for the parades. The food vendors are setting up as well. Elephant ears etc... I somehow tweaked my back this morning after getting out of the shower. I need George Jefferson to come over here and walk on it.

Baby I'm A Fool.

Some Funny Quotes To Make You Laugh.

"If God Dropped acid, would he see people?" - Steven Wright

"I remember when the candle shop burned down. Everyone stood around singing 'Happy Birthday'." - Steven Wright

"I used to work in a fire hydrant factory. You couldn't park anywhere near the place." - Steven Wright

"I think foosball is a combination of soccer and shish kabobs." - Mitch Hedberg

"I'm against picketing, but I don't know how to show it." - Mitch Hedberg

"My belt holds my pants up, but the belt loops hold my belt up. I don't know what's really happening down there. Who's the real hero?" - Mitch Hedberg

"I told my psychiatrist that everyone hates me. He said I was being ridiculous- everyone hasn't met me yet." - Rodney Dangerfield

"I worked in a pet store and people asked me how big I would get." - Rodney Dangerfield

"What a kid I got, I told him about the birds and the bees and he told me about the butcher and my wife." - Rodney Dangerfield

"The main reason Santa is so jolly is because he knows where all the bad girls live." - George Carlin

"The main reason I talk to myself is that I'm the only one who's answers I accept." - George Carlin

"I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman, "Where's the self-help section?" She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose." - George Carlin

My One And Only Thrill.

Every once in awhile, I get caught up on an artist. Usually, the artist's music become the soundtrack for my life at that time. Right now, it seems that the music of Melody Gardot has become my life's soundtrack. I posted her video for "Baby I'm A Fool" a few posts ago. Her latest album "My One And Only Thrill" was recently released in the UK and Japan and it will be released here on Tuesday. She has released three songs off her new album on iTunes. "Who Will Comfort Me", "Baby I'm A Fool", and "If The Stars Were Mine". If those songs are any indication, her album is going to be a monster! I have linked her UK site as well as her MySpace page. If you love the Jazz/Vocal music genre, you will enjoy Melody Gardot.

Thinking Out Loud.

I made a little post here about people I could do without. A lot of that is based upon the barrage of television commercials and television infomercials I see on a daily basis. It's funny how you can see the same commercials over and over again. You end up wanting to gouge your eyes out. You think to yourself, "Who thinks this commercial is funny anway?" And then, you visit YouTube and you notice that the very commercial that gives you nausea has been posted by someone on the site. Usually with the description "This is the hilarious new commercial from..." I can only shake my head. In other areas of my mind, there is a line from the U2 song "Get On Your Boots" where Bono says "I don't wanna talk about wars between nations....not right now." I think I understand what he means by that. Some people are so focused upon talking about all of the bad things in this world right now. There is no place for humor in most of these discussions that are going on. It gets old quickly arguing about who is right and who is wrong. Humor is my only defense for all the things that are thrown at me. Humor mixed with a little sarcasm is the only thing that has been keeping me going lately. I had a woman tell me not too long ago about how much she hated her job. How she complained about it on a daily basis. She said that she felt guilty about that, because she knew there were so many people out there who don't have jobs right now. This past Sunday, the 12 year-old daughter of my cousin Greg died. She had been battling a brain tumor. Her obituary was posted in the paper yesterday. Here is an excerpt from it: "Jenna loved doing hair, writing stories, playing soccer and climbing trees. Jenna had a special way with small children and babies and they all loved her..." She was a 12 year-old girl who loved doing all the things that your average 12 year-old kid loves to do. 12 years-old is way too young to be gone from this Earth.

Hockeytown 2009.

The 2009 NHL Playoffs have started. The Red Wings have a 2-0 series lead on the Columbus Blue Jackets. Things got chippy last night toward the end of the game. It's funny how the NHL warned teams about "sending messages" when the score in games got out of control, yet Columbus took 9 penalties in the 3rd period last night. I guess, if you can't beat 'em, try to beat 'em up. The Red Wings goalie Chris Osgood has just about the toughest job outside of being President of the United States. Why do I say that? Because everything Osgood does is scrutinized. Everyone seems to doubt his abilities at times, well, everyone but Osgood. It's such a nice feeling to hear the Detroit fans chanting "Ozzie! Ozzie! Ozzie!" during last night's game. My current favorite Red Wing Jiri Hudler has scored a goal in each of the first two games of the series. "Happy Hudler" as he is nick-named, is also a favorite of the Red Wings color commentator Mickey Redmond. Mickey is one of Hudler's biggest supporters. Pavel Datsyuk is also one of my favorite Red Wings. Mitch Albom had a nice interview with Datsyuk in the Thursday edition of the Detroit Free Press. After reading it, I found myself to like Datsyuk even more than I already do. In other playtoff related news, the Red Wings playoff slogan this year is "The Beard is Back". At first, I thought it was kind of lame. But, I have decided to join the festivities and embrace "The Playoff Beard". The Red Wings have urged fans to grow beards in support of the team. They are having a "Beard-A-Thon". Just type that in a search engine and you will learn all about it. Anyway, here a few pics to show how I am supporting the Red Wings this playoff year.

"The Top 10 Persons I Could Do Without"

#10. "The Cougar" on TV Land.
# 9. The two women in the Meijer ad who bump chests with each other.
# 8. The "I Love You" guy in the Arby's ad.
# 7. Those guys in the Flomax ads.
# 6. The guy in the BK "Burger Shots" ad.
# 5. The guys in those Little Caesars ads.
# 4. The Shamwow! guy.
# 3. Jim Nance
# 2. The Bud Light "drinkability" guy.
# 1. The Free Credit Report.Com annoying singing guy.

Baby I'm A Fool.

All These Things.

I recently purchased the CD/DVD combo "Chris Botti in Boston". If you don't know who Chris Botti is, he's a trumpet player. He's been around for awhile. He gained mainstream popularity after touring with Sting almost 10 years ago. I first became a fan of his in 2003 when I bought his "A Thousand Kisses Deep" cd. That cd included a great cover of the song "The Look of Love". I started following Harry Connick, Jr. in 1994. Chris Botti expanded my musical interests. Not only into jazz, but into music of the romantic style. Other artists I have become a fan of over the last few years include Michael Buble, Jamie Cullum as well as classic artists such as Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Tony Bennett, Nat King Cole etc...There is a relatively new jazz artist out there named Melody Gardot. My best friend bought me her cd a few months ago. I had never heard of her. I asked him if he had heard of her or possibly heard some of her music before. The answer was, "No. I just liked her album cover." My friend has a weakness for women who wear glasses. Anyway, Melody has new album coming out in a few weeks. I read a very nice story on her MySpace page last night. It was a story about how she spent her Valentine's Day. Very inspiring. I also learned last night something that I did not know. She was disabled for life after being hit by a car while riding her bicycle 5 years ago. Through this tragic accident, she and others became aware of her musical ability. This new found talent figured prominently in her recovery. Anyway, after all that I read last night, I cannot do anything but hope that people start to take more notice of her.

Virtual Insanity!

Times are hard right now. It seems as if the whole country has gone crazy lately. I am saddened by all that is going on. I remember feeling a sense of sadness when Clinton was President and Columbine happened. Then Bush took over and we had the World Trade Center attacks. I think there was a sense of relief when Obama took over. People thought this country was going to be headed in the right direction. However, less than 3 months into Obama's presidency, chaos seems to be the state the country is in. Is it Obama's fault? Definitely not. I work in an industry where many people have lost their jobs, including friends of mine. I don't understand why people feel the need to take their anger out on the world. You are not alone in feeling the way you do. I read recently that many people have turned to psychiatrists and therapists in an effort to help them cope with life as it is now. All this senseless violence is just adding to the sadness in our world. As I sat at lunch today, I looked at families and couples. Mothers and Fathers having lunch with their children. Couples having lunch together. I see hope in the world when I see parents and their small children together. It's just seeing the closeness and love that makes me feel better. As for couples, we all need somebody to love. That's what this life should be about. To those who have lost their jobs right now and feel that this world is unfair, there are many people who can sympathize with you. But, if you take a gun and kill a handful of people before turning that gun on yourself because you are angry at this world, no one will sympathize with you. As Marvin Gaye once said, "Only love can conquer hate."

"So Fine" On The Remix Tip!