Jamie talks Series Finales

So my sisters are off or about to be off on crazy exciting adventures, but I don't want to talk about that yet.  I think I have my fave five for August ready, but I'll get to that a little into September, you know, for the sake of consistency.  This summer I watched three TV series come to an end, two in "real time" and one on Netflix. There are so many ways the writers can go when a TV show wraps up (assuming the writers are aware they need to finish up).  They can opt for happily ever after with a little room to imagine new adventures, send everyone to heaven, or to jail, blow up the town, or simply fade to black.  Generally you aren't going to please everyone, but that's okay.  Most likely for those who are upset their frustration is more about their favorite show being off the air than anything else.   I just wanted to share a few thoughts on these three finales I watched this summer (with very limited spoilers as Kacey has not seen them):

Eureka: This delightful SyFy channel show finished up with its fifth season mid-summer.  The writers were given the budget to add one last episode to wrap things up after they were told they were being cancelled.  And they did it brilliantly. While giving us one last crisis in the little town of Eureka, they also managed to give the characters we have come to know and love over 5 seasons their own happy ending. Something I love in a finale or final season is when a show can nod its head at its beginnings, and bring things back around to its first season or, in this case, the very first episode.  It shows us how much our characters have grown and provides a little bit of nostalgia.  I hope that SyFy continues to make original programming of this quality and isn't completely lost to cheap gimmicky reality TV.

The Closer: It was probably time for the Closer to say goodbye. However it is one of the most popular cable TV shows and it is hard for a channel to say goodbye to good ratings and the corresponding ad revenue. So TNT spun this cast of characters into a new show, Major Crimes. But before that could happen they had to say goodbye to their fearless leader, Brenda Leigh Johnson, played by the fantastic Kyra Sedgwick.  Her departure was fitting, she got the bad guy and a gift from her team (ding dongs were involved), who over 7 seasons had gone from distrusting co-workers to a family. While I love this cast of characters, I don't have much interest in watching Major Crimes.  They seem to be grasping to hold onto something that is done.

Battlestar Galactica: Yes, I am aware this ended a few years ago.  But I just watched it, so for me, it ended this summer.  Thank you, Netflix.  The series finale of this show was a perfect fit for the series itself. It was intense, emotional, heart-breaking, but ultimately hopeful.  I was slow to get into this show, leaving it to watch other things after the first season.  But when I returned to it a few months ago, I became completely invested in the fates of these characters and their beloved ship.  Throughout most of season two you were sure to find me in tears on the elliptical. And that one part in late season three? You know the one.  I was holding back sobs.  I opted to watch the three part series finale on my couch, so I could cry in peace.  And cry I did.  But even though things weren’t wrapped up with a pretty bow, there was still an overall feeling of hope at the end.   I like that in a show.  Of course I am that person who actually liked the end of Lost too.

Now I’ve moved on to a show I had been avoiding despite Netflix’ constant badgering, Friday Night Lights.  To say I was skeptical would be a gross understatement; however I was hooked within the first 15 minutes of the pilot.  And now instead of sobbing (although there are certainly some tears) at the gym, I find myself cheering for the Dillon Panthers.  I’m not exaggerating.  When Coach Taylor pulled Voodoo at halftime and put in Sarenson, you would think that I was watching a real football game during that second half.  And when they went for two,  well let’s just say I am mentally ready for football season.  Just watch it.  Hopefully the series finale is as good as the pilot, but as you might have noticed, I’m pretty open to however the writers want to end things.  If they weren’t good at what they had been doing, I wouldn’t be so invested in the show in the first place.

Books read: 34

Coming Soon: Sarah writes a treatise on ladder safety.

Kacey Honors the Olympics...

Okay I had this whole plan of finishing this post like a week ago and post it in honor the ending of the Olympics (which I greatly enjoyed watching with all my free time)…however that time has come and gone…as it so often does… but I still am posting this in honor of the Olympics, because the Olympics made me cry… and they are awesome… and sports movies make me cry…and they are also awesome. So in honor of the 2012 Olympics and all great sporting events that bring people together in an outstanding way I present my favorite sports movies. (WARNING: Do not watch more than 3 of these movies at once as massive amounts of sobbing may ensue.)

Mighty Ducks Trilogy: Classic. We loved Pacey before he was Pacey (or Peter).  I don’t really know much about hockey, but because of this movie anytime I watch hockey I wait for someone to do the “Flying V”. 

Remember the Titans: Football bringing a community together to overcome small mindedness.  As you can see from the glossary this is one Jamie and I quote often and have seen many times.  Also there is a little girl who loves football as much as I do and gets almost as crazy as I do while watching.

The Replacements: This is actually Dad’s favorite, but one I find very entertaining. I have to say the sob factor isn’t so high… but the tears may fall because of the laughing. Very funny.
 

Rudy: Who doesn’t love Rudy? Even if you don’t like football, this is a great film about never giving up on a dream. And as Jamie mentioned in her last post, it is the reason people may silently chant “Rudy, Rudy” at the end of the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Hoosiers: Great small town story. Basketball team does the unexpected and coach does not give up his beliefs because of outside pressures. But really I still don’t know a Hoosier is.

The Sandlot: This has to be about the third time we have mentioned The Sandlot on this blog. So watch it already. Rag tag group of kids hanging out playing baseball...awesomeness ensues.

A League of Their Own: This is a family favorite. Baseball is pretty much an Emerson family religion (hence the number of baseball movies chosen) but when you combine baseball with girl power, it pretty becomes the Emerson family motto. And although we say no crying in baseball… there is crying in baseball… just not while on the field.

Field of Dreams: Thought about hard enough, this is really a strange movie. But that’s what makes it great. Voices from the sky, dead people coming out of corn fields and baseball… ending with a simple catch between father and son…what’s not to love?

Bull Durham: Again not so much about the crying as it is about the laughing. But you’ll never look at a meetings at the pitchers’ mound the same way, but you’ll better understand the church of baseball.

Cool Runnings: Only movie to make the list that is actually about the Olympics. This movie is hysterical… Jamaicans learn to bobsled…based on a true story… and even though it’s funny it will get you in the end with a slow clap... tears, lots of tears.

So what have we learned? Sports movies cool. The Olympics are cool. And crying is cool.

Coming Soon: Sarah writes a rap about Greek Gods to the tune of Fresh Prince of Bel Air.

Jamie Advises: You are that guy, just embrace it

I read a small little blurb recently in an article where Mark-Paul Gosselaar expressed some minor irritation at still being called/referred to as Zack Morris. The little blurb, and I’m sure it was just an off-handed comment, had a quote from Gosselaar basically saying he didn’t understand the continued fascination with Saved by the Bell because it was kind of a ridiculous show with bad writing. Well, duh. I think I’d take it as a compliment if I were him because he transcended the cliche-ness that was SBTB to give us one of the most memorable characters of our formative years. And let’s face it, you weren’t really sure who I was talking about until I got to the Zack Morris part of that first sentence. Don’t get me wrong, I love his new show Franklin & Bash, but (because?) it’s kind of like Zack Morris grew up and became a lawyer named... Franklin? No, wait, he’s Bash and Breckin Meyer is Franklin. I think. It’s a little irrelevant, because when I watch I pretty much just think of them as Zack Morris & Breckin Meyer (who will never be referred to by a character he plays’ name because “Breckin Meyer” is one of the most fun names to say out loud. Say it right now. See??).
I know that Zack is not a real person (even if he did play along on Jimmy Fallon that one time), but there is a lot of pop culture knowledge rolling around in my brain and it’s just easier to refer to him that way. But I want Zack, er, I mean Mark, to know that he’s not alone. Here are some more people that my brain will refuse to acknowledge as anyone other than their most memorable roles:

Ferris Bueller - Matthew Broderick is an immensely talented actor of both stage and screen. And he’s married to Carrie Bradshaw, I mean, Sarah Jessica Parker. But all of that means nothing because John Hughes wrote a little movie in the 80s called Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, and Broderick was cast in the title role for the film, and subsequently the rest of his life. Most of this list comes from TV, which makes a little sense, as you watch them week after week playing the same character. That makes Ferris all the more impressive of a role and a performance.

Mr. Spock - Does anyone not? Even Mr. Nimoy has accepted his fate after a rebellion in his younger days.

Dawson Leary - And really, let’s just drop the last name. James Van Der Beek is always referred to by us as Dawson. I think he understands that and mocks it a little while playing an alternative version of himself on Don’t Trust the B* in Apartments 23. At least from what I understand, I’ve only watched parts of a couple episodes. [Creek related side note: we do refer to Joshua Jackson as Pacey, which I think confuses our dad a little when we’re watching Fringe. Next time maybe he should try a character whose name doesn’t start with P.]

Urkel - Not even being pretty hot can keep us from referring to Jaleel White as Urkel. When Charles Barkley got in trouble (DUI) and it involved drinking wine coolers with White, all I could think was Charles Barkley was drinking wine coolers with Steve Urkel. As if Sir Charles drinking wine coolers wasn’t ridiculous enough, it was with Urkel. Oh boys.

Mikey/Rudy/Samwise - Not many people can pull off multiple iconic characters, but Sean Astin not just anyone. He is one football playing goonie of a hobbit. Like my father, I kind of wanted to shout “Rudy, Rudy..” when Sam was running up that hill to get rid of the ring. I once attended a Democratic fundraiser and glanced over to see that he was a couple people over from me. When relaying the story to others later, I had to change the character name depending on who I was talking to as each character has its own audience. Regardless of who it was, they needed a little more information than “Sean Astin” to know who I was talking about.

Josh Lyman - It might be because Bradley Whitford tends to play characters that are either sleazy (see Billy Madison or Adventures in Babysitting) or a variation on Josh Lyman. And we don’t want to dwell on the sleazy. But I think he should embrace the fact that all West Wing fans will forever call him Josh Lyman, because all West Wing fangirls were a little bit in love with Josh Lyman. We are a nerdy bunch.

Buffy - A few things on this. First off, Sarah Michelle Gellar is a fantastic actress. I thought that pre-Buffy when she was on All My Children as Erica Kane’s horrible daughter Kendall Hart. She was so good on that. I’ll give you a minute to judge me for that sentence. Not only that, but she wasn’t the first person to play Buffy. But SMG’s Buffy is iconic. And because of that, she’s always going to be Buffy. Better to be remembered as a badass vampire slayer than the live action version of Daphne from Scooby Doo. Those movies are terrible.

Uncle Jesse - Sorry John Stamos, I’d like to say the cast of Full House, but it’s kind of just you. And maybe a little bit Aunt Becky. I mean, if Bob Saget’s comedy wasn’t so dirty I’m sure we’d call him Danny. And if the Olsen twins weren’t, well, the Olsen twins, maybe we’d call them Michelle. Or maybe if there had just been one of them? I guess we’ll never know. We do know that Dave Coulier can’t be referred to as Joey. Partly because he hasn’t really done enough post-Full House for us to say hey, it’s Joey. But mostly because if you say hey, it’s Joey, we expect to see Matt Le Blanc. Speaking of which...

The cast of Friends - Sorry guys, 10 years is a long time to be one of the most popular shows on television. No matter if you drop off the face of the planet or become A-listers, you will always be Ross, Rachel, Monica, Chandler, Phoebe & Joey.

Honorable mentions (they need a few more roles so that we can see them and go, hey, it’s [insert character name here]):
Sheldon (Jim Parsons), Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe), Captain Jack (John Barrowman), Abby Scuito (Pauley Perrette)

Coming Soon: Recently we had to pull out the intervention banner for Sarah’s Dawson Creek, um, problem. She didn’t take it well and has left the country.

The Glossary Part 4 (Jamie)

Last night Meryl & I were watching True Blood (we’re only on season 4) and there is a scene where Tara is getting her girlfriend to leave town because vampires are always trying to kill her and Meryl says, I think she just pulled a Harry Potter there (leaving Ginny behind to protect her kind of thing) and I nodded... and then I said, I think she just White Fang’d her. Which reminded me that I needed to get this next glossary entry up. Here are some more things to know if you ever listen to Kacey & I talk:

Maureen – Source: @maureenjohnson. We talk about Maureen a lot. You might think that she’s someone we actually know, one of our friends. And we like to think that she’s our friend, but we don’t actually know her. Maureen Johnson is a hilarious YA author who keeps up one of the best twitter accounts in the brief history of twitter. Seriously, if you’re on twitter and you aren’t following Maureen, you aren’t using twitter properly. How else will you be placed in a jar to learn about the hamsters and the Monday Dragon and the 4 Questions and all the various things she gets on her soapbox to discuss. We will also make references to Wil (Wheaton) and John & Hank (Green). Now you know that we don’t actually know these people.

Pretty much anything from Wayne’s World - My favorite is: “it sucks while its cuts... well it certainly does suck” although “if you’re going to spew, spew into this” probably has more real world applications. But I think it’s important to point out that sometimes we just say these things, even if they don’t seem to apply. All it takes is one word sometimes to set us off into a pop culture spiral and we can pull out almost as many lines from this movie as Clueless. And that is saying something.

We’re Gonna Win! – Source: A League of Their Own. Tom Hanks’ character, Jimmy Dugan, has a moment of clarity while Evelyn’s annoying little kid is taunting the team with “you’re gonna lose, you’re gonna lose.” This is generally noted at a turning point when watching or playing a game, with the same manic energy as Jimmy.

No Crying in Baseball – Source: A League of Their Own - Sometimes there is crying in baseball (we love Joey Cora so we have to say that). And generally whenever we watch this movie, we cry (I mean, come on it’s got baseball and sisters and Tom Hanks, of course we cry). But that doesn’t meant that we don’t often find a way to work this line into conversations. Also, you never know when someone is going to throw out a “there’s Marla Hooch, what a hitter” just because.

C-razy – Source: The Big Bang Theory, specifically Miss Amy Farrah-Fowler. The key here is now Amy says it. Cuh-razy. Whenever we text each other and use the word crazy, it’s assumed that it is being said the way that Amy would say it. It also implies that what we are referring to is really not that crazy, and we’re kind of mocking the lack of craziness.

Woo Girls – Source: How I Met Your Mother. Even if you don’t know this reference, you totally know what a Woo Girl is. You’ve mocked their tight, low-cut outfits at the baseball game (which they spend in the beer garden, not watching the game) or rolled your eyes at them standing in line for a club shrieking with their friends (you were not in line for the club, you were passing by). But what we learned on How I Met Your Mother is that they should be pitied. They don’t have anything else going on in their lives and so they act out in these ridiculous ways and say “woooooo” a lot because they are really sad inside. Generally Kacey & I (who can be quite judgmental) just share a look, shake our heads, and say “Woo Girl” when we see them. But it’s okay Woo Girls, we all have those moments.

We’re Like this (with appropriate hand gesture) – Source: Friends, that crazy hand gesture that helps demonstrate that Chandler & Joey’s brains are in sync. Obvious Kacey & I are often on the same page and so to demonstrate that we usually make a similar hand waving gesture. It also works over a text, all we need to say is “we’re like this” and the gesture is implied. We do this a lot. Frequency wise it’s up there with Dear Tiny Baby Jesus & 90% & NO TIME. Since it’s a Friends reference it is also often used with Sarah.


Books read: 33 (Rocking some more Song of Fire & Ice, I could be on 33 for a while...)

Coming Soon: Sarah writes a proposal for a Dawson’s Creek spinoff - The New Creek, with a slate of fresh young stars, including Suri Cruise as Pacey & Joey’s kid. In the pilot we discover that she might not really be Pacey’s daughter as Joey spent some time doing research for a book on a religious cult and no one knows what all she did to get inside the group.

Glossary Part 3... (by Kacey)

Glossary Part 3! Second post in August! Still no job! Woo!

Here we go..

“Does the term cruel and unusual punishment mean anything to you?” Source: Remember the Titans. The dashing Ryan Gosling, who at the time this film was made was still emerging from his Disney boyish ways, really wants his large, defensive lineman, African-American team member to like the song “Act Naturally” by Buck Owens. This is the response he receives. One uses the statement whenever something is difficult to sit through.

“Bow ties are cool.” Source: The Doctor, and if you have to ask which doctor then you are new. One can also refer to fezzes, as they are also cool. Actually this is best used when someone doesn’t like what you are wearing; just say it is cool, thus making it cool. (Like bows Jamie, bows are cool)

“I totally paused.” Source: Clueless. Jamie and I can actually pretty much quote this whole movie as we have watched it many times. And it made reading Jane Austen’s Emma much more interesting. I often use this when I come to a stop sign and may not come to a full stop. Jamie doesn’t say this as often.

“Exceptionally good finder.” Source: A Very Potter Musical. Okay so confession time. I have actually only watched about ¾ of the first A Very Potter Musical, which in the nerd world is a little sacrilege. However, I know enough to know this is a reference to Hufflepuffs and how they good at finding things (the joke being that is all they are really good for). But since being placed in Hufflepuff on Pottermore I feel my finding skills have greatly increased.

 “Wine and Beer!” Source: RENT, via the song La Vie Boheme. This needs little explanation to when its use is appropriate since people who have never have seen RENT will say “wine and beer,” but said in a chant form is often more appropriate.

“Gobla, Gobla, Humngo!” Source: A Muppet Family Christmas. I’m not even sure if that is spelled correctly…my Swedish Chef isn’t totally fluent. This phrase is said when the Swedish Chef reacts to the size of Big Bird. This phrase usually comes out at Thanksgiving and is used in reference to the size of the turkey… and is not said exclusively by Jamie and myself.

“Challenge accepted!” Source: How I Met Your Mother. Another Barneyism. Often used when no one has actually challenged him to do anything. The phrase is best used when you feel up to a challenge… but it is not necessary for someone say “I challenge you to…”. It’s really more of personal challenge mantra.

 “90%” Source: I can’t remember where this came from, but it is made in reference to cows. Actually usually starts when Jamie and I are driving around and we pass by a field with cows. I start by saying… “Hey Jamie did you know that 90%...” I usually don’t have to finish before Jamie rolls her eyes. It’s from my favorite joke that states “Did you know that 90% percent of all cow are outstanding in their field.” Now all one of us has to say is “90%” whenever cows are discussed.

Coming Soon: After watching Dawson's Creek for two days straight Sarah writes a letter to Joey Potter warning her to stay away from Scientology.

Jamie's Fave Five for July (a couple days late)

Well hello! I have been watching the newly released trailer for Doctor Who series 7, on repeat and then laughing at how it has already taken over my tumblr feed. It's got Amy and Rory and River and Daleks and Weeping Angels and dinosaurs on a spaceship and wizards (when I say wizards, I mean people who were on Harry Potter), and the Doctor, of course, because it is his show. I'm getting off track, this isn't even what I am planning to write about, but did I mention dinosaurs on a spaceship??!? I think we all know what is going at the top of the list of the August fave five. But it's not time for that yet, so back to the topic at hand. Without further dinosaur delay, my fave five for July:

1) Macklemore & Ryan Lewis - Same Love - Oh, these boys. First they do a song about Dave Neihaus that makes me tear up (that’s a lie, it makes me sob), and now they have this beautiful song in support of equal marriage. And in case that isn't enough, the proceeds from the song are going to support Yes on R-74. We're gonna win this one in November and it's gonna be totally awesome.

2) Written by a Kid - The newest Geek & Sundry (reminder: Geek & Sundry is Felicia Day's YouTube channel where they also have things like the Flog, which is where my inspiration for doing a fave five came from) is absolutely adorable. Each week a cute little kid tells a story and as they are telling it, guest directors create/animate/act out the story. Simple and so much fun.  Also, Joss Whedon was in the first one. 

3)  Comicon coverage – So I didn’t go to Comicon.  Obviously, or there would have been an epic post.  So I had to live vicariously through those on Twitter and Hypable and various other websites who were able to go and attend the Firefly reunion panel (sigh) and the Doctor Who panel (sigh again) and the Nerdist panel with John Barrowman when he showed the audience his superhero underwear (sigh doesn't cover it).  Let’s pause to appreciate that for a moment.  Okay, now that we’re all on the topic of John Barrowman (the one and only Captain Jack Harkness from Doctor Who & Torchwood), his Twitter feed is my other new favorite thing.  Periodically he will post a link to a live video feed from his phone.  It’s pretty much always adorable whether he’s talking Comicon or the Olympics. 

4)  A Very Potter Senior Year – Okay, so this isn't exactly on the internet yet, but it was announced that the much anticipated (at least by the Harry Potter loving internet nerd community of awesome) third Harry Potter musical from the very talented TeamStarkid would be “performed” at this year’s Leaky Con (a Harry Potter and general fandom convention).  I use quotes because technically they are doing a table reading of the script, but complete with songs and given the comedic talents of these folks, I’m sure some crazy antics.  Whatever it ends up being, I am sure it will not fail to entertain and those of us not attending this convention will just wallow in our envy, hoping that someday it is released onto the internet.  Can you wallow in envy?  Is that a thing? Oh well.

5) The Oatmeal - Specifically on how to suck at your religion.  I mean, the Oatmeal is full of fantastically awesome things, but someone linked to this specific little gem and I found it to be pretty awesome. 

Books read: 33 (Having trouble deciding what to read next, but while I’m waiting for my library books to come in, I think I’ll go with more Game of Thrones before finishing up Libba Bray’s Gemma Doyle trilogy)

Coming Soon: Sarah suggests what superhero underwear might be appropriate for the cast of Dawson’s Creek. 

Glossary Part 2- (by Kacey)

I suck… here I had all these ambitions to write more blogs this summer… but alas I only wrote 1 entry in July making my summer grand total 4. You’d think I’d have some excuse like I’ve been really busy… but… um …no…unless it’s possible to be busy being lazy.

I mean I do stuff… lots of job searching still…helped plan an 80th surprise party of my Grandpa…spent some time at the beach… read a few books (well like 3)… did some berry picking… watched some baseball. But I can do better… I know it. (I’ve got some stuff in the works actually… so stick around for that...and the glossary will continue as well)

So as Jamie’s last entry noted we’ve started a glossary of phrases. If you spend more than an hour with us you’re probably going to hear us say something from the glossary… especially if we’re together. So here is the second part… in no particular order.

Glossary Part 2:

“Go on, get out of here, get” Source: The New Girl, via Schmidt. Also knowing as “White Fanging.” Schmidt wants to break up Cece and decides the best method is to yell at her like what happens in White Fang…. I guess. I’ve actually never read White Fang, but now I know that what to do when I want someone to leave and don’t want them to feel bad about leaving.

“Pivot!” Source: Friends. Ross is trying to move a couch and yells this it hopes of getting the couch up the stairs. This phrase is best used whenever moving something, predominantly when trying to fit furniture through small spaces.

“Moo Point” Source: Friends. Yes another Friends reference. This is a Joey phrase he says instead of say “moot point.” However in his defense he does follow it up with sound logic explaining that it’s like a cow’s opinion; it doesn’t matter. I particularly like to use this around mom as she knows the reference and it always makes her giggle (she loves Joey).

“Pants! Pants! Pants!” Source: How I Met Your Mother. Barney wants so bad for Marshall to tell the pants story and he eventually starts chanting “pants”. Ultimately the story proves to be only half as funny as Barney has built it up to be. The chant is really only invoked when “pants” are somehow part of a conversation and one suddenly feels the need to insert the reference or confuse people.

“You all want a victory!?” Source: Remember the Titans. Classic sports movie. Referenced whenever one wants to win a game, particularly when on a team and the team needs pumping up.

“Totes Cray-Cray.” Source: Kind of Unknown because I think it’s a thing young people say, but we started using it because of Lydia who is featured on the Lizzie Bennett Diaries and she says it regularly. (She also not has her own Vlog- so funny). It’s commonly used it a mocking tone, as we are not teenage girls and sound rather ridiculous saying it.

“Rrrreally Fun” Source: That 70’s Show. Kelso says this. Hyde then reminds him that last time Kelso said this they had to get his stomach pumped…so of course Hyde is game. Kelso then rides a canoe down a hill. The best time to use this is coming up when a really fun idea… obviously.

Coming Soon: Sarah discusses the Olympic opening ceremonies and draws parallels to Danny Boyle's movies. (My favorite part is where she discusses Trainspotting and the Queen parachuting with James Bond)

Glossary of Terms - Part 1 (Jamie starts)

Apparently Kacey & I speak our own language.  It generally consists of a plethora of quotes and references to our various pop culture obsessions.  Or something that started as mocking ("winning" or "totes") just takes on a life of its own, no matter how much we wish it would stop.  Some of these are familiar to a wide audience and some are quite random and obscure.  We thought that we would attempt to share with you all the sources of some of the things you are likely to hear if talking with us, or more likely when listening to us talk to each other.  This is part 1 of... well, many.

"Cause it would hurt a lot Warren” Source: Empire Records, Lucas says this to Warren (the obnoxious little shoplifter) in response to Warren asking why Joe didn’t shove the CDs up his ass.  This is always said in a fairly condescending tone, just like Lucas says a lot of things.  It is not always said in reference to something hurting (although usually), sometimes it’s just randomly said.

“Legendary” Source:The one and only Barney Stinson (How I Met Your Mother, on the off chance that you’re new here).  Generally said in the more popular format: it’s going to be legend… wait for it… I hope you’re not lactose intolerant because the next word is… dairy.  Legendary.

“Dear tiny baby Jesus” Source: Talledega Nights, spoken by the always amusing Will Ferrell.  While we are all big fans of Mr. Ferrell and find him to be hilarious, he’s not someone who usually motivates us to write up blog columns.  He is, however often quoted.  In addition to this little gem from Talladega Nights (which is often followed by comments of preferring to think of Jesus as a ninja), “I’m kind of a big deal” is quite popular (generally used by and in reference to Sarah, who is kind of a big deal), although like the above noted legendary, not particularly obscure.

“NO TIME!” Source:That 70s Show, in one of our favorite episodes of this show, the parents eat an entire pan of Hyde’s “special brownies.” This results in them having the munchies and this line is spoken when they are searching the fridge for food and find some hot dogs.  Kitty says she’ll start boiling the water, to which Red responds adamantly, “NO TIME.” It never fails to make me laugh, and we use this phrase with the appropriate intonations whenever we are pressed for time.  Or whenever it seems funny to act like we are pressed for time.

“Lawyered” Source: Another How I Met Your Mother gem, this time from everyone’s favorite lawyer, Marshall Erickson.  We are obviously not lawyers, but this is definitely used whenever we are able to logically argue our point.

“You get a _____, and you get a ____, everybody gets a ____” Source: Oprah, duh.  Were you born under a rock?  Remember when she gave away all those cars and she freaked out as much as everyone else, and then later it was a bit of a fiasco because of taxes and such? Regardless, it is still a memorable moment.  Arguably the most memorable in the history of the Oprah show… well, there was that one with the couch jumping, but we don’t talk about that one because it scares Kacey.

“Jesus is okay with it, but don't tell dad” Source: Sheldon Cooper, and not just Sheldon Cooper, but Sheldon on drugs.  Wolowitz drugs Sheldon when he is staying over (counting Catwomen and X-men) and returns him to Leonard.  Sheldon is supposed to be keeping a secret from Leonard for Penny, but he isn’t very good at it.  When Leonard presses Sheldon for the secret, the first one that comes to his drug-addled mind is: “Mom smokes in the car, Jesus is okay with it, but don’t tell dad.” His second secret is the equally hilarious “I’m Batman!” which we also say all the time.

“BAM, said the lady” Source: This is either a Nathan Fillionism or a Castleism, but since I am not sure, let’s just give them both credit, since Nathan plays Castle.  (With apologies to the writers if they came up with it).  Bonus points for using this in a conversation when Mom is the lady being referenced.

“Really smart” Source: Another Big Bang Theory moment, this time it’s Penny who provides the quotable line.  Sheldon teaches Leonard football so that he can fit in with Penny’s friends, however when practiced it doesn’t go so well and Penny’s football loving friends think Leonard is a little bit special.  He leaves just before halftime and Penny notes: “so… that’s my boyfriend, he’s… really smart”  We use this phrase, mimicking her tone when someone’s actions have not been particularly intelligent.

More to come...

Books read: 33

Coming Soon:  Sarah is taking a brief hiatus to study this glossary in an attempt to better understand Kacey & Jamie's conversations. At least that's what she told us, she's probably just watching Dawson's Creek on Netflix.

Jamie's Emmy Nod Highlights

While most of the west coast slept, the nominations for this year’s Emmys (which take place September 23^rd) were announced this morning.  I have some initial reactions for you.  Of course.

Modern Family domination – Proving that they are truly a brilliant ensemble; all 6 of the principal adult actors on Modern Family are nominated in the supporting actor in a comedy series categories.  You can talk all you want about Mad Men & American Horror Story racking up 17 nominations each, but that is the real story to me.  No lead actors and everyone gets recognized.  Well, except the scene stealing younger cast members.  I would argue they deserve to be there as much as the adults, but regardless I love seeing this intelligent and hilarious show get recognition through its talented cast. (Even though I don’t watch it regularly, shhh… don’t tell or they’ll take away my TV card)

Supporting Actor – I am elated to see Max Greenfield here for the New Girl.  I love this show and Schmidt has definitely developed into one of the funniest characters on TV.   I am disappointed that yet again, Nick Offerman (Parks & Rec’s Ron Swanson) was overlooked.  I have noted my love for the adorable Adam Scott (Ben Wyatt on Parks & Rec), and I would knock on doors for Leslie Knope, but that show is made by Offerman’s brilliantly hilarious, steak eating, secret saxophone playing, government hating, government bureaucrat.  He’s amazing.  Also notably left off was Neil Patrick Harris. I feel like he could have fit in there somewhere amongst all those Modern Family guys, because I just want NPH to win all the awards. 

Mini-series/Movie vs. Series – This year I am finding the mini-series vs. series thing to be a little strange. Sherlock, American Horror Story, & Luther are all in the mini-series/movie category, even though they all have had or are going to have multiple seasons/series.  I guess I don’t really understand how that works.  It’s not like they are just picking on the British shows because of their strange schedules (and because they call their seasons “series), since Downton Abbey is sitting in the drama series category, and as noted, American Horror Story is not.  That said, I am convinced the 17 nominations pretty much means that this award will go to American Horror Story instead of my favorite, Sherlock, but that’s okay because…

Benedict Cumberbatch – The man with the greatest name in the history of names is totally going to walk away with the award in his category.  Kacey & Meryl assure me that Luther is fabulous, and I am a big fan of Stringer Bell, I mean, Idris Elba (I mean, how could you not be?) but I’m putting my money on Cumberbatch all the way.  I bet I could actually put my money on him in Vegas.  But I probably won’t, the odds would probably not result in a very big payoff.

Drama, Drama, Drama – Have you seen the drama category?  The subtitle should be: 6 examples of how TV is kicking film’s ass in the game of quality.  I don’t even watch most of these, but their reputation precedes them.  I think this is easily the most anticipated category of the night; any one of these shows could walk off with the award. 

Big Bang Theory – I would be remiss to not mention my favorite show, as the Big Bang Theory was nominated for best comedy and the incomparable Jim Parsons (well, maybe I would compare him to one Mr. Cumberbatch, but no one else) is up again for his role as the, well, also incomparable Sheldon Cooper.  However, mostly, I am super excited to see Mayim Bialk (Amy Farrah Fowler on the Big Bang Theory) up for best supporting actress.   I really think the addition of Amy & Bernadette as regular characters has pumped new life into the show, which continues to be funny week in and week out.  It’s a great blend of allowing the characters to evolve and change, but not losing what made it so brilliant in the first place.  Also, if she wins, I hope she gets a shiny new tiara (to be honest though, I kind of hope it goes to the late Kathryn Joosten, how can you not want Mrs. Landingham to win?).

The rest – Apparently, I need to see Game Change.  And American Horror Story.  I wasn’t sure about it, and I am sure that I will need to watch it when it’s light outside, but let’s consider it officially “on the list.”  Supporting actor in a drama is a tough category.  I’m partial to the gentlemen from Downton Abbey or Tyrion (partially because Peter Dinklage is amazing and partially because he is my favorite character in the books), but I know that the Breaking Bad guys are highly regarded.  Plus I think that John Noble should be on there for Fringe, but the Emmys are a little slow with the sci-fi love.  And when I say “slow” I mean, they pretty much ignore it.  I don’t understand how you could ignore Walter. 

Looking forward to watching who wins in September, but of course I’ll be changing the channel when they get to the “reality” awards.

Books read: 32 (finally finished a Storm of Swords, but I’m still ahead of pace and working on the Dovekeepers for book club)

Coming soon:  Sarah reviews The Dark Knight Rises with a particular focus on the character of Bain. Oh, I’m sorry, it’s not a liberal conspiracy against Mitt Romney and the character is Bane?  Well, I’m sure that her piece will still be riveting. We hope that you can respect her opinion so that we don’t have to turn off the comments like Rotten Tomatoes.  We’re confident our readers are more mature.

Kacey and Jamie Go On a Road Trip…

First thing to know… which I think Jamie has mentioned… she doesn’t drive. So when we go on a road trip I do all of the driving. Jamie does make an excellent navigator/DJ/reader-of-signs. A few years ago we drove as far as Florida. This last weekend wasn’t quiet as epic…but still highly entertaining.

We went to Forks, WA, home of vampires, werewolves and helpless teenage girls.

Wait… don’t judge. We went to primarily watch 10-12 year olds play in a girls’ fastpitch tournament. The location was just a bonus…because even though Jamie and I have read all the Twilight books we would never travel there because of it. Instead we find an appropriate excuse like a fastpitch tournament and then go there.

Mom and Dad went too. Sarah was MIA… mentioning something about Settlers of Catan tournament.

David the Gnome (the “G” is silent) went as well.

This is David leaving Seattle on the Ferry… because cutting across Puget Sound on a boat is much quicker than driving around the Sound to get out to the Olympic Peninsula. (This also where Jamie would say “where we’re going we don’t need roads”. A statement she made multiple times throughout the weekend since the Peninsula lacks for roads. The truth is, we do need roads because our flying Delorean is still a work in progress.)

We arrived in Forks, WA which is…how do I say this nicely… not much to look at. If you blink, you might miss it (but not because there are angel statues everywhere). However, there is Twilight paraphernalia everywhere. It was noted that in the Thriftway you can stand in one place and reach Chocolate, Toms (the shoes) and Twilight things without moving. What more could you need?

Our first stop was to drive out to La Push to see the ocean. We had to drive over the Vampire/Werewolf treaty line to get there and- no joke- there is a giant sign “No Vampires, Treaty Line.”

I laughed so hard I missed the turn.

However we did find the beautiful beach and David much enjoyed the stop...

...until I buried him.

  

The second day was filled with fastpitch watching, but we did take a break to drive out to the other beach that I missed the turn to the previous day due to the laughing.

We attempted to fly a kite…

(small red dot in sand is kite.)

On Sunday we  drove home, but not without a few stops. We (including mom and dad) had a little adventure out to Cape Flattery which is the most western point in the continuous 48 states (obviously Hawaii and Alaska are further west). There was hiking involved and signs about cougar sightings. We later realized the sign was from last year, but first mom did demonstrate for us what to if we saw a cougar (there were noises and waving of arms). Ultimately we made it- one more thing to check off the bucket list.

Then we took a little different route home. I claimed it was to drive along the water and add to our sightseeing, but it was really to avoid driving past Lake Crescent again. Lake Crescent is a beautiful lake, in a serene mountain setting. It is 12 miles long and most people would enjoy the drive along the lake. However, if you are my sister the lake is just long enough that you begin over think the length of it. Pretty soon you are concerned we are stuck in an infinite time loop and that we are doomed to drive the lake forever. She says this out loud to me… in a joking manner. But pretty soon I hear her say “I haven’t seen those houses yet… those houses are new.” Needless to say we made it past the lake, but I thought it was best we didn’t drive past it on the way home.

Plus our alternative route led us past Rosie (the fish with legs).

All-in-all our trip was survived. We met no vampires or werewolves, well at least not to our knowledge. The vampires would have been hiding from the little bit of sun that we saw (it’s true the sun does not shine there often) and the werewolves were only in human form. Plus, there were no helpless teenage girls as far as I could see. All the young girls I saw had bats in their hands and were cheering enthusiastically about hitting things and striking people out. Not really the Bella Swan types.

Coming Soon: Sarah discusses her rigorous Settlers of Catan training and her ultimate goal for taking part in a tournament.

Jamie's June Fave Five

We can’t stop now, we are on a roll!  Kacey got a post up on Saturday AND we went to see Les Miserables at the 5th Ave. Which was brilliant, for the fourth time.  I think it’s my favorite, and I don’t say that lightly.  I love musical theatre in general, and I have a number of favorites (Rent, Hairspray, Wicked, Spring Awakening, Avenue Q, etc). But I think that Les Mis may top even RENT.  And that is saying something for someone who will be seeing RENT for the seventh time in August.

But anyhow, another month has come and gone so it’s time for another internet fave five.  Here’s what I loved in June (and, okay, the first couple days of July).

1)        No White Noise: Buffy Re-Watch – I have not been participating in the Buffy re-watch that this blog is doing, for a couple reasons.  1) The “live” re-watch is Monday nights, which interferes with Eureka and 2) I just did a full Buffy re-watch a few months ago.  That said, the hilarious recaps from a first time watcher (see what I did there) are inspiring me to want to catch up, or at least join in.  Reading someone’s initial reactions to one of my all-time favorite shows, complete with hilarious screen shots/captions is priceless.  Even if you don’t join the re-watch (or first time watch), I recommend reading their recaps, which generally get posted on Tuesdays. ,

2)        Nerds Fixing Internet Errors – Back to the Future – Speaking of screen shots, if you were anywhere on the internet on June27th, you probably saw the screenshot of dates from Back to the Future?  It was posted around with people making comments that we were supposed to be in the future and where the hell were our hover boards.  Generally this is a valid question (along with jet packs, I mean, why don’t I have a jet pack yet??) However, the true nerds and BTTF fans spoke up to note that this was just a little photo shop and we really have another 3 and a half years until we should panic about the lack of hover boards.  The true date from Back to the Future 2 where they travel to the future to check out Marty & Jennifer’s less than awesome future is October 2015.  I just loved how quickly the internet nerd community policed itself, because we certainly wouldn’t want to put too much pressure on ourselves if we are not living up to the promises of the future from a 1980s time travel comedy.  An iconic film, yes… but a film nonetheless.

3)        Top Ten Sherlock Quotes – I read a lot on the website Hypable (which I mention on here a lot) because instead of being an entertainment site that is obsessed with the details of the TomKat divorce of who is getting the first pictures of the newest oddly named celebrity baby, it focuses on the kind of nerdy fan stuff that I really care about.  Whether it’s leaking spoilers or casting news for my favorite show or a highly anticipated film, or starting a lively debate over the best TV theme songs of all time, Hypable never fails to keep me coming back for more.  Multiple times a day usually.  This little piece on the top ten quotes from the brilliant BBC Sherlock series was one of my favorites.  Not only did the author pick out some of my favorite Sherlock quotes, but they also used the word plethora in the opening paragraph.  Bonus points for that.

4)      Paul & Storm - Write Like the Wind - Now, I am only halfway through book 3 of the amazing Song of Fire & Ice series, but I'm fairly confident that I will catch up before George gets another book done.  So I'd just like to say that I totally support this plea (which, for those who have not read/watched Game of Thrones, is totally spoiler free) from Paul & Storm that he get on it with writing more books.  They posted this fabulous song on the brilliant Geek & Sundry YouTube channel. 

5)        Lego Settlers of Catan – Well, let’s just make this post as nerdy as possible and round off my fave five with this link that a friend sent to me of this awesome lego version of the game board/pieces.  I didn’t learn to play this game until a few months ago, and now I’m not certain where it has been all my life.  Not only that, but I left the game with my parents and apparently my mother is a little obsessed.  We might have to make an intervention banner. 

Books Read: 31 (Only a few hundred pages left, but A Storm of Swords is so good… and intense… and emotionally devastating.  I might have been cursing George R.R. Martin in a manner I typically reserve for Joss Whedon after a particularly upsetting character death)

Coming Soon: Sarah analyzes what will need to happen for us to get to a future where we don’t need roads.

Kacey's Summer Music Part 2…

Jamie- you are on a role. So much said in such a short amount of time. Well I've got another one! (Personal best- 3 blogs within 1 week, I guess being unemployed and totally unsure what is coming in the fall for me has its perks- more free time for blogging!)

Summer update: Spent one evening playing four games of Settlers of Catan with my parents. I went berry picking. Practiced the ukulele (it's coming along). And I finished one book and then I laid in a hammock and started another.

Can't wait to see what week two has in store for me!

Inspired by my summer movie list I created another music mix. This is a list that I would consider “family friendly.”  Not in the Disney “family friendly” way but meaning it will be played this summer while hanging out with my family and is less modern than the last mix.

Summer Music Mix #2

School’s Out by Alice Cooper- Only fitting, right? Also from Dazed and Confused

Tequila by The Champs- Consuming tequila is very much a summer activity. Plus it's in The Sandlot.

Here Comes the Sun by The Beatles- Because living in the Pacific Northwest the sun can be hit and miss in the summer so when it does appear it needs a theme song.

Iko Iko by The Belle Star- Not sure what my motivation was other than this song just says summer.

Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison- A lot of my mixes these days have Van Morrison and this is totally summer worthy.

Summer of 69 by Bryan Adams- It has summer in the title. And I know we all have a summer we could write a song about. With all my ukulele playing this might be my summer for that!

Free Falling by Tom Petty- Great group sing along around the camp fire. Everyone knows the words (or at least the chorus).

Great Balls of Fire by Jerry Lee Lewis- The Stand by Me soundtrack is awesome and this has always been a favorite of mine.

Coconut by Harry Nilsson- It’s almost a requirement to listen to this song sitting in the sun with a drink in hand.

ABC by The Jackson 5- Because I know the girls from Now and Then danced around to this song.

Centerfield by John Fogerty- Summer mix without a song about baseball?! Um, not gonna happen.

Highway to the Danger Zone by Kenny Loggins- This is mostly for my dad… he digs Loggins and I know when it comes on he’ll say “oh, good song.”

Weather is Here by Jimmy Buffett- This song is two-fold: 1- No summer mix is complete without a little Buffett and 2- No family friendly mix for my family is complete without a little Buffett for mom.

Hitchin’ A Ride Vanity Fare- Riding a bike (without a helmet) down some back road with good friends… in 1970s.

Rock and Roll, Hoochi Koo by Rick Derringer- One Dazed and Confused song is not enough.

Green Onions by Booker T and the MG’s- Great Sandlot scene... scrappy poor kids and rich uniformed kids hurling insults at each other all accumulating with “you play ball like a girl!” Which normally I would take offense- but it’s just so funny.

Stand By Me by Ben E. King- Not really an upbeat fun song, but it is the theme song for a great summer movie.

Tiny Dancer by Elton John- Another great sing-along, because all problems can fixed with a sing-along.

Time of My Life by Bill Medley and Jennifer Wanes- Because nobody puts baby in the corner.

Coming Soon: It preparation for her trip to Greece Sarah develops an error proof plan to save the Greek economy involving sacrifices to several Greek Gods and lots of Ouzo.

Jamie Writes to Speaker Boehner

We don't get super political on here a lot, but that's not because we aren't highly opinionated and aware of issues.  So I was listening to NPR this morning, like I do, and heard that the do nothing Congress was planning yet another vote to repeal the health care act in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling yesterday.  And it really pissed me off.  So I wrote a little letter to the Speaker.


Dear Speaker Boehner:
31 times? Seriously?  I get that your majority was voted into office largely thanks to a campaign of fear that centered on the health care bill. I know that you really don't like this bill, although I don't really know why. I mean, it's not perfect, and I would probably have gone another direction (which, man, would have sent you through the roof. If you think the current bill or anything Obama does even flirts with socialism, my health care thoughts would give you nightmares), but compromise is how we get things done. It is, however, an important step in making sure that all Americans have access to health care. You don't think health care should only be accessible to those who can afford its constantly increasing price tag, do you? I didn't think so. I really want to believe there is a person under all that orange. (Sorry, that was a little personal, but I am upset) And I know you don't want to spend more on it than necessary, or at least that is the rhetoric you are always spewing, so let's pretend that's what you mean. Of course this not wanting to waste government money thing is pretty weak when you are continually spending your time (which my tax dollars pay for) voting to repeal the same law over and over, even though nothing has changed.
Did we have an election yesterday that changed the Senate or the Presidency and I missed it? *Checks the internet* Nope. All that happened was the Supreme Court shut down one of your major arguments against this act. And it was led by one of "your" guys. That hurts, doesn't it?  Have a little cry and then let's move on.
I understood your desire to have a symbolic vote with your new majority the first time, even though you knew it couldn't go anywhere. You put it on your lit pieces and go back to your tea parties and say you tried and hope they give you a majority in the Senate and a Romney in the White House (although he could change his mind tomorrow) that will allow you take health care away from people with pre-existing conditions and young adults who need a couple more years because they can't get a job, etc.
Oh! That brings me to my point. Jobs. The economy, it's not so hot. Now, I don't think you can fix it. I mean, even if I had never taken an Econ class and believed that the government had a magic wand they could wave to just make it better, you haven't me given any reason to believe this Congress can get anything accomplished. Was that too harsh? Well, too bad. People are without jobs, losing their homes, and you're wasting time trying to take away their health care. See what I did there? I learned that watching pundits and politicians, many of whom are on your side. That may be exaggerated, but that's not the point. It's a good line and it gets the purpose of this little rant across. We have actual problems, and while I have no confidence in your ability to do anything about them, you could try.  Maybe even prove me wrong. I would appreciate it if you would quit voting on the same thing over and over again and wasting your tax payer funded time. If you can't come up with anything to discuss, just let me know and I'd be happy to give you some ideas. Or even better, ask President Obama. He has a ton of great ideas and I think you could probably even find some common ground if you stopped wasting time trying to make the extreme members of your party happy. The President is far more moderate than anyone but the far left wing will give him credit for (and with them it's more blame than credit), and no matter how many times you say that he's a crazy liberal trying to appeal to a left wing base, it simply isn't true. (I know you're going to say something about gay marriage, but that isn't appealing to a base, that is about accepting reality. Just stop or you're going to look like an even bigger moron than you & your party already do on this issue)
Just stop it with the same bullshit political gestures to appease your whackjob base. You lost this one. You're not going to get it back, and by the time you have the opportunity, people are going to be comfortable with the changes. They are going to like it, rely on it. So move on. Plenty of other issues to work on. That's kind of what we pay you to do.


Thanks for listening.  I feel a little better now.


Jamie



Books read: 31


Coming soon: Sarah writes a top ten list of things Congress could do with the time they have wasted trying to repeal the ACA.