The Evolution of Tyson Ritter

As mentioned in a post a couple of days ago, it's almost my civic duty as an Oklahoman to demonstrate sufficient affection for the All-American Rejects, so I feel no shame in showing them some love yet again...

OK, so I'll admit that I preferred frontman Tyson Ritter back in his significantly less "eccentric" days... the days of Converse and graphic tees... but there's still something irrestible about his new "Glitter Ritter" persona. (And yes, I'll also admit that it might be due, at least in part, to the fact that the name "Glitter Ritter" is just so darn catchy ;)

Whatever it is, there will always be a soft spot in my heart for Tyson...

Summer Concert Bliss

It's that time of year when our favorite artists start joining forces for woefully limited yet undeniably amazing joint concerts. In perusing the web, here are just of few of said pairings that I've come across thus far...


Kris Allen + Green River Ordinance = pretty darn cool...

Tim McGraw + Lady Antebellum = even cooler...

Keith Urban + The Eagles = ridiculously awesome (sure, the Dixie Chicks are thrown into the mix too, but I could honestly care less about them...)

and last, but certainly not least...

John Mayer + Train doing a limited run of concerts in the Southeast = EPIC. Pure Bliss. Best. Thing. EVER!

Of course, the reality of if I'll actually be able to make it to any of these concerts is a different matter, but hey, a girl can dream can't she?

Disney Gets the Thomas Kinkade Treatment

This past Easter, I was delighted to find a copy of the newest animated Disney hit The Princess and the Frog nestled among the other treats awaiting me in my Easter Basket.

Given that the male population in our household had yet to see the movie, I was quick to unwrap it and pop the disc in the player, insistent on rectifying that glaring gap in their Disney viewing history.

As we skipped through the plethora of ads preceding the film, I sifted through the other plethora of ads awaiting me inside the DVD case. Per usual, most of them were useless coupons for some of the lesser-known straight-to-DVD mediocrity that Disney releases between the big Summer and Holiday movie seasons... but one thing did manage to catch my eye...

Thomas Kinkade had done a print based on the end scene from the Princess and the Frog, and believe it or not, it was actually quite stunning. Certainly not worth the hefty Disney/Kinkade price tag ($300+?! I'm more that content to settle for simple using a jpeg of the image as my desktop background, thank you very much...) But, there's no denying the fact that the image is quite lovely, and certainly worth a mention here...

AAR Get the Glee Treatment

So the moment finally arrived, and Glee made its triumphant return to television this evening. The hour of blissful musical goodness didn't disappoint, and the whole episode could probably warrant being called the Best. Thing. EVER. But... there was one aspect of the show which definitely stood out above anything else.

As a good Oklahoma girl, I pretty much feel it's my duty to worship the Stillwater-bred All-American Rejects (and have done so since they first started making waves with "Swing Swing" over 8 years ago...)

So... needless to say I was giddy with excitement when Lea Michelle and the rest of the Glee crew started belting out "Gives You Hell" during tonight's episode.

It probably also goes without saying that I immediately made my way to iTunes to add this newest single to the bevvy of other Glee tunes gracing my iPod. Hopefully this just bodes well for great things to come for the rest of this season...

Less is More: Especially When it Comes to Twilight

This little gem was brought to my attention when I tried to coerce a friend into watching my brand spanking new copy of the New Moon the other day. Her response was that we could save a lot of time and agony, and enjoy the condensed version.

The condensed version?? you may ask. That's right! It's called New Moon in 15 Minutes, and it's pretty darn hilarious. You can read the complete, illustrated!, version here. Odds are, you can probably even finish it in under 15 minutes... ;)

The Vikings Invade Wal-Mart!

Saw this large Keebler promotional display for "How to Train Your Dragon" during a late-night shopping spree at Wal-Mart the other night.

"What does Keebler have to do with dragons??" you might ask... Honestly, your guess is as good as mine... but then again, when did large-scale movie promo tie-ins EVER make much sense?

Still, definitely an impressive sight that livened up my errand-running.

Gleek-ing Out Over the Newest Rolling Stone

Was absolutely giddy when I came across this new "Glee" Issue of Rolling Stone in an airport gift shop! Of course I immediately had to snag a copy,

Ok, so the article itself was a little strange, to say the least, but the photos are absolutely fantastic. (Described by the photographer as an amalgam of Norman Rockwell and a 1940's pinup poster... what a combination!)

So excited for the return of Glee... three days and counting!!

I know what you are...

...downright creepy looking, that's what.

Spotted these guys while browsing in Borders over Easter weekend, and am honestly shocked to see they're already on clearance.

I mean, who WOULDN'T want a semi-nude Twilight action figure ?? ;-)

LOL'ed a little bit when I noticed how Jacob's already 50% off, while Edward's apparently still worth more and only marked down 30%. Chalk that one up as a another victory for Team Edward, I guess.

(And no, I didn't ened up buying one of these figures, despite the sale prices. Thank goodness!)

Kowabunga!

Mad props to someone on campus for maintaining a sense of whimsy and lightheartedness amidst the end-of-semester insanity.

Who knew the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles had relocated to Williamsburg??

I guess Chanello's can expect a significant increase in pizza orders with the "turtles" in town :-)

Not Your Average Easter Egg...

My brother and I had something pretty spectacular awaiting us in our Easter Baskets this year. Sure there were the typical chocolate eggs, and plastic candy-filled eggs... but the best eggs of all were the magical How to Train Your Dragon Hatching "Dragon Eggs!!"

After unwrapping the eggs from endless layers of plastic, you drop it in a bowl of warm water and it starts to hiss and fizz just like Alka-Seltzer. Moments later, your brand-new, "mystery dragon" is revealed.

Neither of our dragons ended up being as ridiculously adorable as "Toothless" in the movie- but they're still pretty nifty, especially since you can mix and match parts until you get a sort of "Franken-dragon" creation.

My new little red dragon is currently remains nameless. Any suggestions?

Matthew Morrison with a Ukulele? Enough Said.

So the Glee Cast performed at the Annual Easter Egg Roll at the White House yesterday, and man, oh, man do I wish I could've been there!

Oh well- guess I'll just have to settle for the Youtube version, which includes fan favorite "Somebody to Love," as well as Mark Salling (Puck) doing "Sweet Caroline," and Matthew Morrison playing "Somewhere over the Rainbow" on a ukulele!!

Best.Thing. EVER! And proof that the upcoming live tour is going to be ridiculously awesome... especially if they make sure all the mics work!

Honoring a Legend

So pretty much everything that Turner Classic Movies does could qualify as the Best. Thing EVER! But they are currently doing something that really caught my eye!

This month, TCM is paying tribute to a Hollywood legend by hosting a special George Stevens Spotlight.

Every Monday in April they will screen a classic Stevens film including a couple of my personal favorites: Giant (James Dean as a cowboy!) and A Place in the Sun (Montgomery Clift being Montgomery Clift... aka just plain adorable) The full schedule can be seen on their website.

Sounds delightful-- now if only our dorm room cable service included TCM... Oh well, guess I'll just have to have my own personal screening of Giant in honor of the occasion. Can't say no to James Dean in a cowboy hat!

An Easter Tradition...

The Cadbury Clucking Bunny has always been an iconic element of Easter-time in my mind. In fact, to this day, one of the coolest Easter basket goodies I ever received was a plush version of this little guy, complete with custom "clucking" noises!

The bunny was sadly absent from t.v. this Easter season (or maybe I just wasn't watching enough t.v. to see him, not sure which...) he it seemed like he definitely deserved a shout-out.

Were you missing the bunny this year as well? If so, you can relive some of his classic ads from her past courtesy of Youtube by clicking here!

The Nicholas Sparks Formula

Saw The Last Song this weekend. It was cute, predictable, and basically everything you might expect from a Nicholas Sparks tale. Nothing particularly exciting- definitely not worthy of "Best. Thing. EVER!" status.

What does deserve a shout-out is the "10 Life Lessons Learned from Nicholas Sparks Movies" list which was published by Moviefone this past weekend. The list definitely hits the nail on the head, poking fun at some of the more repetitive aspects of his cinematic romances.

Items on the list include:
1) Falling in love only happens at the beach
2) Real men have seaside hobbies
3) It takes a village for love to work
4) Writing letters trumps texting
5) Kisses make women docile
6) Resort-town locals mean trouble
7) Parents know best (especially dads)
8) Distance makes the heart grow fonder
9) Nature and the arts are aphrodisiacs
10) The people we love tend to die

The list goes on to cite specific example from each Sparks film adaptation- including The Last Song. The commentary is pretty funny, and can be viewed HERE.

Kanye would be so proud...

"Yo... other colleges out there. I'm really happy for you, and I'ma let you finish. But William & Mary had the best acceptance packet of all time. OF ALL TIME."

That's right- my little bro just got his William & Mary acceptance packet, and I must say that it's gotten a lot snazzier from when I got mine a few years back.

Rather than some anecdote from one of our fathers, it's got a Jon Stewart quote plastered on the inside cover. Along with all the basic info about registration, fees, housing, etc - it's also got a nifty little tab titled "You're Cool" complete with a pair of Kanye-esque shutter shades.

Props to the WM Admissions Office for avoiding excessive TWAMPy-ness when attempting to lure prospective students here. They grow accustomed to the "eccentricities" of the WM student body soon enough- but for now they can envision a campus full of shutter shade-clad Kanye Clones waiting to welcome them with open arms ;-)

Oh how I wish this was an April Fool's joke...

So... a few years back, when I was all engrossed in the fervor of the new Phantom of the Opera movie, I ended up reading a ridiculous spin-off novel called The Phantom of Manhattan... **Spoiler Alert**

The basic plot was that Christine was lured to New York to give a series of Coney Island, only to learn that the entire scheme was orchestrated by none other than the Phantom, who'd apparently given up on Paris and decided to go nurse his broken heart in the USA. Along the way, Christine learns that her husband Raoul is impotent, and their now-adolescent son was actually fathered by the Phantom.

Sound ridiculous? Well I thought so- but apparently Andrew Lloyd Webber didn't.

Fast forward to 2010, and I'm on an airplane reading a Delta in-flight magazine that mentions an upcoming sequel to the Phantom of the Opera which is actually based upon the absurd Phantom of Manhattan plotline?! I can't believe it. I'm convinced that it has to be a joke, but a little "Googling" proves me wrong.

Love Never Dies, the sequel to The Phantom of the Opera has indeed hit the London stage, and is due to arrive in New York City in the near future. Who knows? Maybe the show will defy all expectations and be a smash hit as beautiful and spellbinding as its predecessor. Maybe it will turn out to be the Best. Thing. EVER. (I doubt it!) But for now- it sure is cause for a good laugh if nothing else.