Something to add to your "to read" pile

Tina Fey's Bossypants is the funniest book I've read in a while, but Mindy Kaling's (Kelly from The Office) book Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) ran a close second. I would highly recommend it. And if you haven't read Mindy's article "Flick Chicks" that ran The New Yorker--you should. Her take on romantic comedies is spot on. If you're even a casual rom-com watcher you will find yourself nodding your head and muttering, "that is so true!"

I'm getting itchy just looking at it...

Welcome to my nightmare.

A photo of a 1961 Hollywood audition for a black cat via Cup of Jo

Stocking stuffer fit for the, um...Queen

I give you, the Solar Queen. Place her in sunlight and watch Her Majesty wave with a subtle twist of the wrist. This gesture cultivated over centuries is the true mark of royalty. I'm thinking she would be a great addition to my desk at work.

You can buy her at Kikkerland Design. For more awesome stocking stuffer (or white elephant) ideas I also recommend fredflare.com and urbanoutfitters.com.

Holiday gift idea: All my friends are dead.

If you're looking for a stocking stuffer, an under-$10 gift for your office holiday party or a little something for that friend who's hard to buy for, I suggest All my friends are dead by Avery Monson and Jory John.

If you're a dinosaur, all your friends are dead. If you're a pirate, all your friends have scurvy. If you're a tree, all  your friends are end tables. Each page of this clever book showcases the downside of being everything from a clown to a cassette tape to a zombie. It's really a children's book for adults. As one reviewer said, "...it teaches valuable lessons about life while exploring each cartoon character's unique grievance and wide-eyed predicament." From the sock whose only friends have gone missing to the houseplant whose friends are being slowly killed by irresponsible plant owners (like you), this book is all-at-once silly and poignant. All my friends are dead will make you want to call/text/email or write everyone you love.

Revenge is my favorite new show of the season

As I'm sure you know I occasionally enjoy a good nighttime drama (okay, okay...soap), but it's been a while since I've found one I've really liked. This fall season I am loving Revenge (ABC). It is well-written, well-acted and has great twists and turns. I thought Ringer would be the "mysterious" drama I'd love, but Revenge has me hooked. If you haven't checked it out, I highly recommend it. You can get all caught up on Hulu.

Here's a description of the show (thanks, Wikipedia):
Emily Thorne, whose real name is Amanda Clarke, moves back to The Hamptons to take revenge on the people who caused the death of her father David and destroyed her family. When she was a little girl, Amanda's father was arrested on trumped-up terrorism charges, and was tried and convicted for treason. He died in prison. Emily feels her life was destroyed; she ended up in juvenile detention and on her 18th birthday inherited the wealth of the company in which her father invested. She changed her name to Emily Thorne and decided to take revenge on the people responsible for her father's downfall.

Gallery hosts A Tribute To The Best Of Bill Murray's Characters

I love Bill Murray. He is one of my all time favorite actors. So you can imagine how excited I was when I heard that this month Gallery1988 Melrose in LA is hosting a tribute to Bill

called 'Please Post Bills'. It's a collection of over 100 pieces of art (paint, print, sculpture) celebrating the screen legend and his films. From Dr. Peter Venkman in "Ghostbusters" to Herman Blume in "Rushmore," Raleigh St. Clair of "The Royal Tenenbaums," Phil in "Groundhog Day," Bill Murray (according to HuffPost and me) is a character god. You can check out LAist for photos of the actual art seen in the gallery (the show runs through November 26). I hope, I hope to see it before it closes.

Kids Reenact "Keeping Up With The Kardashians" and the "The Hills"

If you're looking for something to crack you up check out all the Kids Reenact videos at Babelgum. There is "Keeping Up With the Kardashians", the "Real Housewives of New Jersey", "The Hills" and "The Jersey Shore" It should probably be considered child abuse, but I still find them hilarious. The kid who plays Scott is spot on. So is the girl playing Teresa Guidice and the girl playing Audrina. Justin Bobby...he he.

Hoth Chic

Let's talk for a minute about Chanel's Fall / Winter '10 Collection, shall we? As a Star Wars nerd I prefer to think of this collection as "Hoth Chic". I was a part-owner of a Chewbacca backpack a few years ago that was much cooler than that backpack. And check out those Yeti booties. I can just hear Robin Leach's voice now, "These elegant Chanel booties are made of fur from the most select abominable snowmen (Wampas for you fellow Star Wars nerds)..." These are ridiculous. The only place I would feel comfortable wearing these boots is on the Matterhorn at Disneyland. Coco Chanel must be rolling over in her grave.

Photos from Style Bubble

I am crushing your head...

Ah, Canadians. Why are you so funny? I totally forgot about the "crushing your head" guy until I ran across these videos today. When I was in college my roommate and I spent a whole day watching a Kids in the Hall marathon on Comedy Central.  For some reason we thought the "crushing your head" skits were soooo funny. It's  funny, but it's not that funny. It does still make me giggle.

New Fall TV

 What fall promos caught your eye this summer? There are many returning shows that I can't wait to see but there aren't many new shows that I am looking forward to. I want to get excited about JJ Abrams new show Undercovers, but I just can't. Here's a few I think have the potential to be good.


Better Together seems like the most promising of the new crop of sitcoms. It could go either way.





Lost is over and Flash Foward wasn't renewed so I'm in the market for a new insane, mind-bending thrill-ride. We'll see if The Event fills the bill. If not I'll just keep watching Rubicon on AMC.



I like the occasional nighttime soap (see Gossip Girl, 90210, Grey's Anatomy...). I think I'll give Lonestar a chance.



And last but not least, Running Wilde. Felicity Porter and Gob Bluth? Please be good.

New Glee Promo

This Glee promo combines two of my favorite things...New York and,
well, Glee.  Sept. 21 can't come soon enough for this Gleek!

Sister Wives

Man, just when I thought TLC could get any weirder. They have the show with that family that has 18 19 20 kids. They have the show with all those women that didn't know they were pregnant. They have the Gosselins and now the Gosselins 2.0. But now they've really outdone themselves at the channel formally known as The Learning Channel. Coming to a cable channel near you...Sister Wives. This program follows the lives of Cody Brown, his three wives, 13 kids, and newest fianceé as they all prepare for Cody’s fourth wedding. The tagline is "a show that rethinks love, marriage and reality family.” *sigh* Okay Mormons, get ready to dust off that speech about how we no longer practice polygamy, it was outlawed many, many years ago, these people are not of our faith, yada, yada, yada...thanks a lot TLC.

Later...my new favorite celebrity couple

Ugh. I'm over most celebrity couples these days...Brangelina, Aniston and John Mayer her flavor of the week, Clooney and that Italian chick, Speidi, all the reality show morons, etc. But this new celeb coupling brings a big smile to my face--Lauren Graham and Peter Krause. I, of course, love me some Lorelai Gilmore and I have loved Peter since Sports Night.  Here is the link for LG's interview with People. Hmm, what should be their portmanteau nickname, hmm...I hereby christen them... Later.

Ew. Just...ew.

BYU Mint Brownies

Those of you who went to BYU or have ever been to the BYU Creamery are probably familiar with these ah-mazing brownies. I found the recipe on the blog, The Girl Who Ate Everything (a truly fabulous recipe blog), and had to share it.

BYU Mint Brownies
by BYU Dining

1 cup butter
1/2 cup cocoa
2 Tbsp. honey
4 eggs
2 cup white sugar
1 3/4 cup flour
1/2 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

12 oz. chocolate icing (Use your own icing recipe or purchase some chocolate frosting.)

MINT ICING
5 Tbsp. butter
dash of salt
3 Tbsp. milk
1 Tbsp. light corn syrup
2 1/3 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. peppermint extract
1-2 drops green food coloring

1. Melt butter and mix in cocoa. Allow to cool. Add honey, eggs, sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix well. Add nuts. Pour batter into a greased 9-by-13 baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Cool.

2. Prepare mint icing: Soften butter. Add salt, corn syrup, and powdered sugar. Beat until smooth and fluffy. Add mint extract and food coloring. Mix. Add milk gradually until the consistency is a little thinner than cake frosting.

3. Spread mint icing over brownies. Place brownies in the freezer for a short time to stiffen the icing (very important step I realized since I was impatient). Remove from the freezer and carefully add a layer of chocolate icing. We liked ours stored cold in the refrigerator or you can store them at room temperature.

Shout Out Louds - "Show Me Something New"

 I've recently been digging the band the Shout Out Louds. Here's the video for their song "Show Me Something New". I hope you dig it, too! I've been introduced by a lot of great music lately from the blog Black Eiffel. She has Music Mondays and introduces a different band each week. She has great taste (or at least the same taste in music as me) and I have liked almost every band she's recommended. I've also been introduced to some great new bands from the blog Passionista.

Outfit ID

You know how sometimes you'll see a photo of a celebrity with a purse or shoes or occasionally an outift that you really like, but you have no idea who the designer of said shoes, purse or outfit is?  Some smart blogger has come up with a way to capitalize on this very dilemma. They have created a blog called Outfit ID . They post tons of photos daily and list the designer or brand of the items the celeb is wearing. If you find a photo of items you would like identified you can email the blog and they'll figure it out for you. They get back to you very fast and they are very nice. I highly recomment it!

(I really want that purple purse)

Awful. Just awful.

I'll admit it. I like to watch Gossip Girl. If I miss an episode it won't kill me (like it would with, say,  Glee or 30 Rock), but I like it. Leighton Meester, Blair Waldorf on GG, wore this monstrosity to the opening of Fashion Week 2010 in NYC. No wonder Anna Wintour (the inspiration for Miranda Priestly) invited Blake Lively, and not Leighton, to sit by her. Really, you wore this to Fashion Week? Maybe it's time to hire a stylist or fire the one you've got...

Cute Dresses

I came across a Web site that sells cute, modest dresses that are quite affordable. William Riera has some really cute stuff. I'm especially digging the charcoal one.  I haven't bought one yet but it's on my list. Just thought I'd share.

Awesome Birthday Cake

How much do you want this cake pan? If you're like me, the answer is... a lot. This is the Cakewich and it's available on Amazon. What kid wouldn't love a cake that looks like a giant PB&J sandwich? Even, ahem, 30-year-old kids would love their birthday cake to look like this. Just sayin'.