Friday, July 16, 2010

The olden days were WEIRD.

My friend Will showed me this video and I was struck by two things while watching it:

1. The olden days were WEIRD

2. I have seen my mother (Nadinski Montbrosis, as she's known on Facebook) do that exact dance that they do at the end...leg to the side, arms swinging, foot bent up toward the sky.


For my dissertation I have read a lot about how the internet is ruining our lives. These people talk about simpler days, before we became addicted to technology. Well, this video is my rebuttal. You cannot watch this it and still claim that modern technology has been a curse on our culture. The RIDICULOUSNESS of those dance moves/attempts at special effects proves just how far we've come. Also, the internet should also be revered for providing us a portal (in this case, a Will Portal) into a time and place to which we shall never, ever, return. On top of that, this is high-quality entertainment. I was DYING the first time I watched it (and the 17 other times as well).

What will we find weird when we look back on it years from now? There are the obvious answers: ugg boots, Ke$sha, Oprah, frappucinos, TV news ... but I bet there's something that is just too "cool" now to predict it ever being seen as weird.

Anyhoo, I am about to go walk along the beach with ol' Rammy Rampog. Gotta love feeling the misty sea air on your face. Gotta gotta love it.

Cheerio,

MmAaRrGgAaRrEeTt

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Reality Bites

Remember that movie? Reality Bites. Was it good? It was good, right?

Also, a Kenmore Junior High yearbook when Char and Francie where there had a picture of the "world" (globe, earth, etc.) on it with a large serrated bite taken out of it and text that said "When reality bites, bite back". Very strange. Does not seem fitting for a yearbook cover.

Anyway, reality literally bit for me yesterday. I went to the dentist- which is a completely different experience over here, let me tell you. They usher you in, you lie down on the chair, they stick a needle in your gum before you have time to be scared, and 15 minutes later your cavity is filled. It makes me wonder what in the world my previous, American dentists have been doing in my mouth for all those hours. I suspect they're just doing a more thorough job.

ANYWAY, I must have looked like a weakling because they did not take their chances in numbing my tooth. They hit me with a novacaine shot that would have killed a small mammel (rabbit, raccoon, toy poodle). It didn't kill me, but it did paralyze half of my face giving me the appearance of a terrible stroke victim.

Check out these pics of me trying to smile! HAHA!

Then, as one does, I wanted to eat leftover pizza. LIKE A FOOL, I just took a huge-arse bite. Immediately I realized I had bitten the side of my lip. Live and learn. It's healed and I'm ok, but it really ruined the leftover-pizza-eating experience.

I've learned that mistakes happen and you just have to learn from them and move on. We're (Andy and I) trying to get this Backstage Edinburgh business up and running. Yesterday I accidently sent the wrong proof of our map/guide to the printers and it set us back some big bones. It was a poopy, POOPY, feeling, but I went to Char's and got some much needed perspective. THEN, I watched Mary's Haiti video and really got some much needed perspective. So proud of my cuz! THEN, I chatted with my Dad who had just uploaded an amazing video to Facebook for the first time which also made me proud.

WARM REGARDS,

Margaret


Sunday, July 11, 2010

VIDEO BLOG: nothing interesting is said.


Love, marg

I've gotta feeling that tonight's gonna be a good good night

Holler,

Tonight is the big night- the 2010 FIFA World Cup final.

Holland v. Spain

Orange v. Red w/some yellow in there

Wooden Clogs v. Espadrilles (?)

Dutch Babies v. Spanish Omelette

Van Gogh v. Picasso

Windmills v. Bullfighting

Phew, that took some googling. Anyway, most people I've spoken to (none of whom are Spanish or Dutch) don't really care who wins tonight. Everyone just wants a good game. Maybe an early Holland goal? Any early goal would set the game in motion. I wouldn't mind seeing a goal scored by the goalie- straight from a goal kick into the back of the net. That would make watching EVERY game of this World Cup worth it for me. I am pretty sure all the English are hoping for a Howard Webb win.

Not to glass-half-empty it, but what the HECKFIRE are we suppose to do after tonight?!? The end of the World Cup doesn't just mean no more football games, it also means we must wave goodbye to:

1. The bombinating, B-flat, drone of vuvuzelas that has been the screensaver of our brains throughout the tournament (at ALL times- not just while watching the games). Won't miss that.

2. AFRICA SINNNNNGING AFRICA SINGGGGING SING SING AFRICA SING SING AFRICA

3. The Guardian World Cup Daily podcast. I will miss it.

4. Paul the Octupus- he'll be calamari by Monday.

Oh well, George Harrison taught us that all things must pass, and so be it. Here's to a great game tonight!

Love,

Margar

P.S. "Bombinate" is a verb that means to make a droning noise. What a fantastic word! Thank you, thesaurus.com.

P.P.S. I understand that calamari is squid, but since there is no name for cooked octopus (other than just "octopus") I just decided to use it anyway.

Saturday, July 10, 2010

These week's pop-culture recap!

Well, this was certainly amazing:



BUT, even more amazing is the auto-tune remix:


In other news, an English-born octopus named Paul who now resides in Germany has been predicting who's going to win the World Cup games. He has chosen Spain for the final. He was right about Germany's 6 World Cup games thus far, but it should be interesting to see if his powers work for games that the German team are not participating in. If it turns out that Paul truly is psychic, we can finally have an answer to Karl Pilkington's question about Octopie- "do we need 'em"?

In Cristiano Ronaldo news, he had a baby with an unknown gal and has full custody. More importantly, he got mistaken for Jersey Shore's 'The Situation' at a restaurant in New York. HAHAHA!

Lindsay Lohan got sentenced to 90 days in jail! Dino Lohan, her mother, says she is "disappointed with the system". She must be referring to the "system" that punishes those who repeatedly break the law. Officials at the LA County Superior Court are unhappy with the system in a different sense. This New York Times article said the courts in LA are overwhelmed by celebrity offenders. They're dealing with Lohan front and center, but let's not forget Don Johnson, Anna Nicole Smith's doctor, Leif Garret, and Mel Gibson's babymamma. The article describes the chaos that occurs every time Lohan comes and goes from court. In this last hearing, as Lohan exits amid a sea of paparazzi and security, Danny DeVito shows up on the front steps to report for jury duty!

Hmmm, there were some emmy nominations, but I don't really care about that. All I want is for MadMen Season 4 to start immediately. Only 15 days to go!

The US swapped some Russian spies for some US agents. They gave Russia 10 spies back but they only got 4 spies in return. Whaaaaa? Anyway, they will definitely make a movie out of this someday.

Alright, that's all the pop-culture that I can remember for now. I am going to really make it my beeswax to update my blog more. I miss writing. I miss the fame.

As the Irish would say 'Bye buh ba bye bye byebyebyebyebyebye',

Margaret

P.S. Speaking of Irish, I almost forgot the most important pop-culture news of all! My BRO-in-law Bobby is famous! Check it out!


Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Don't hate me because I'm popular

In sixth grade my friends and I would sit in the "middle room" during lunchtime. The middle room was the small rectangular room between our classroom and the classroom next door. It was where the bathrooms were (boys on the left, girls on the right) and also where the large trash bin was kept.

It was glorious.

We'd close the doors, which each had a square of window that allowed for just the right about of privacy and just the right about of snooping, eat our sack lunches (or, in my case, shrimp flavored ramen noodles given to me by Pim, my family's Thai exchange student) and chat about all the important things 12-year-olds have to talk about.

Then, our teacher told us we couldn't eat in there anymore. He said that it made the other kids feel excluded. My defense was "but they aren't our friends". Initially it seems harsh, but upon greater reflection I don't find it too shabby an argument. We weren't actively excluding anyone. I was sitting in the middle room with the people who I had the most in common with, the people that I got along best with, the people who I had fallen into a friendship with. Why would I go sit next to someone who liked Animorph books or cried all the time in P.E.? Nothing against them, but I just wasn't interested in pursuing a friendship there. Groups form naturally- it's not about being "cliquey", it's just part of our organic social instinct. What angered me was the fact that my group of friends was no different than the groups sitting in other areas of the classroom. The other kids had never approached us and asked us to join them. Why were we the ones being punished?

It was this moment that first alerted me to the phenomenon of disliking something that is perceived as "popular". If a once underground band gets any sort of mainstream airplay it will often be accused of "selling out". Along the same line, those who say things like "the Beatles are overrated" are plain and simply kidding themselves. I am skeptical of people who claim to dislike objectively good things, like chocolate and babies. People who throw around the now worn-out and boring line "I hate kids" are so ridiculous that they might belong to a separate category of those who hate something merely because they're selfish downers.

Disliking what's "popular" is the result of two experiences:

1. Genuine dislike (this is rare, but it does happen and it's completely well-founded)
2. Fulfilling ones need to establish individuality and uniqueness through negative means

That said, I never got into Furbys and I don't care much for the Lord of the Rings trilogy. I promise it's not because I want to distinguish myself as a free spirit.

IN OTHER NEWS, the World Cup is going to end next week and we're all going to have to figure out something to do instead. It seems tragic to think of soccerless days, but it's an ever-encroaching reality. Golf is not going to cut it as a replacement. Mad Men Season 4 starts on July 25th, so it's only about a week and a half that must be filled. I suppose I'll try to get some work done during that time.

Siiiiigh, I am going to make some dinner now. It's between a PB&J or scrambled eggs/toast. The first option is easy and the second option is actually still easy but just seems hard compared to the first option. We'll see how I feel when I'm in the kitchen.

Love you,

Marg

P.S. Babies and chocolate are both wonderful things when they are separate entities. HOWEVER, these "baby-shaped chocolates" are just disturbing:


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