mackymacaspac's Blog
[hour one] Exactly 24 hours ago (well, maybe not exactly since it'll take some time 'til I finish this entry), I received an early morning call from my brother. On his way home from partying with his friends, his car broke down in the middle of the highway. He asked me to go to where he was. So I got into more decent clothing (I was ready to sleep) and drove to where he was. [hour two] I know nothing about cars except that I can drive one.
So we had to look for a mechanic or a towing service (we really should have a phone number of a 24-hr towing company!).[hour three] Finally, we got to a toll exit and they called in a towing service, but the price they were charging us was simply ridonculous (a word I learned from Lost's Rebecca Mader. No, not personally. I heard it from this interview. She's got a weird laugh
)! My brother decided it wasn't worth it and we waited until the car care center of the nearest gas station opened. [hour four] I fetched the mechanic and brought him to my brother's car which was about 500 meters away from the gas station. They said the timing belt snapped. Timing belt!? I didn't even know what that is, let alone that a car had one.
[hour five] The gas station estimated it would cost my brother an arm and a leg to have his car fixed. Since he'd still be able to drive with the other arm and just one leg, my brother didn't mind... *little drum fill after stupid joke*
Anyway, my brod realized he just got that car part replaced less than a year ago, so he called up the ones who fixed it before. He got a great discount (about 5 times less than what the gas station was charging)! [hour six] So instead, (probably as a reward to me on coming to his aid) he treated me (by me, I mean my car) to a tune-up, oil change, and body wash (though after spending more than four hours by the highway, I certainly needed one LOL).STORE MANAGER BIAS
I'm pretty sure this next story has happened to you guys in the past. Or at least, you'd be able to relate to it. I know Monica (from Friends) does!
I recently chanced upon a really awesome pair of shoes in this store that I like. It was the last pair whose size fit perfectly and no other shop/branch had it. I didn't have enough money with me and they didn't accept credit cards, so I asked the store lady if I could reserve it. She said the store had a "first-come, first-served" policy. She went into the back and asked the store manager if they could make an exception for me. It wasn't going to be. OK fine, so I told her I'll just withdraw cash from the ATM and come back for it.
It wasn't long that I came back and found out the pair was already sold!
I later learned from the store lady that as soon as the store manager heard that someone was interested in that last pair, he immediately called his friend and told him about it. Apparently, this store manager's friend also wanted to buy the same thing, but was holding off on the purchase, hoping it would go on sale or something (whatever!). The store manager's friend, who happened to work in the same mall, rushed to the shop and kinda stole the pair of shoes that I wanted.
I'm thinking maybe the store manager even gave the guy a discount! Grrr! What are the chances of that happening!?That last one was meant to be a rhetorical question, but the store lady gave me an answer anyway. She hinted that it has happened before, with a different friend. Ugh! I was too frustrated to listen to the whole story. So there, I'm left with no other choice but to look for another "perfect pair of shoes" or just settle for the next decent pair of shoes I see.
GAVIN DEGRAW
One Tree Hill theme singer/songwriter Gavin DeGraw came out with his self-titled album last May. It's the album that I'm listening to now. The ones highlighted in yellow are my favorites so far. I haven't really listened to the lyrics so I'm basing my choices mostly from the melody. I didn't like the version of "We Belong Together" in this album. I prefer the one used in the Tristan & Isolde soundtrack.
Here... check out his Official YouTube Channel for videos and stuff!
That's all from me today. Thanks for dropping by!
Emmys
So you've probably heard (or read) that this year's Emmy nominees were already announced. If not, huwaaat!? How can you miss it? The home page is screaming Emmys! 
It's most likely the only time that a show I edit will be featured there. Once every year. If you haven't cast your votes yet, stop reading my blog and head on here. But do come back, there's a lot more Emmys Schwemmys in store in this entry.
Ooh! And I'm proud to see my "mad men" John Slattery and Jon Hamm among this year's nominees. Deservedly so. Although I think the two Michaels (C. Hall and Emerson) should win in the Best Actor (Drama) and Best Supporting Actor (Drama) categories respectively, it's just great that the Academy recognized their amazing work last season.
Winners will be announced on September 21 in a ceremony to be telecast by ABC. Don't forget that there will be a (post-show, I presume) live chat here. So don't miss that one! The countdown begins!
Schwemmys
Now enough with the Emmys and on with the Schwemmys! So what are schwemmys, you ask? For lack of a better description, schwemmys are just a bunch of totally random, unrelated, often nonsensical topics you're not forced to read through, but still end up reading.
Since I just finished watching the first season of Big Love and haven't started watching Bones yet, I found time to check out Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog and see for myself what the fuss was all about. Except for the fact that Neil Patrick Harris and Nathan Fillion were cast in it, I had no idea what to expect. It was amusing, to say the least. Some of the songs were really great, esp. the ones from Act II, which was my favorite of the three. And I was surprised to see Simon Helberg (Howard in The Big Bang Theory) in another odd role. My favorite line: "(showing his forearms) These are not the hammer...(pause) The hammer is my *tut-tut*."
Watching these musical webisodes reminded me of one of Adam Stein's entry in last year's On The Lot -- Dough: The Musical. Go check it out! That man's a genius! Although I think he just placed third in the competition. Here are his other works: Dance Man and Army Guy. I know, totally unrelated. Schemmy!
This weekend, I got to see two movies (Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Mean Girls)... and didn't get to see two other movies (The Dark Knight and Mamma Mia!). No reviews here. I just wanted to see Kristen Bell in a movie (and in a bikini). Kidding! As for Jason Segel, just imagine Marshall (How I Met Your Mother) breaking up with Lily, then turn that story into a movie. Oh, and Mila Kunis was just hot (3x)! It was the second time I saw Mean Girls. I can't believe I forgot all about it. I'd rank it along with 10 Things I Hate About You as one of the best teen movies, post-'80s.
I was supposed to watch Dark Knight with my friends but instead accompanied my brother in buying his new lappy toppy. He got himself a sub-$1000 unit (2GB RAM, 160GB storage, 1.86GHz Dual-Core processor) which was decent enough for home use (browsing, email, and docs). I don't even know if it was a great buy since we really didn't have time to canvas. I brought it home with me to install all the Windows updates and some other apps.
Here is my new TC and other adoptions: Kelli Williams, Natalie Portman, Alona Tal, and Benjamin Bratt. Bratt's show The Cleaner premiered last July 15. Alona Tal played Meg in Veronica Mars and Jo in Supernatural. Natalie Portman is probably the second A-lister I'm editor for (Kate Beckinsale being the first). At least, I think so. She's starring alongside Jake Gyllenhaal and Tobey Maguire in the remake of Brothers (2005). This should be interesting! Kelli Williams appeared on Men in Trees last season.
Speaking of people guides, I made two important updates to my Person Submission Guidelines -- 1) First, Middle, and Last Names should reflect the Credited Name and NOT the Birth Name; 2) Submissions on award nominations will be accepted only after the actual winners are announced. And please be reminded that there is a 15-quote limit to all the guides I maintain. In cases where the guide already has 15 quotes, you may still submit a quote (by replacing an outdated, less-significant one), but please PM me first before you do so.
And for the final schwemmy of the day, for those of you who wish to have a copy of the complete 3-season DVD set of Veronica Mars (or a second one, if you already have one!), the DVDs are on sale over at Amazon.com.
Sheesh, this one got longer than expected. Sorry for that. Thanks for reading! And if you just looked at the pictures, that's OK too! Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
Faith
I got two most welcome developments for my TV.com profile! The first is I got back the F that I lost for my person guide editorship alphabet. I once kept the guides for Francis Ford Coppola and Fred Savage but retired those weeks ago. It took a while for me to find a decent F guide, but just as George Michael says, I gotta have Faith!
(Big) Love
After finishing Criminal Minds last week, I moved on to watching HBO's Big Love. It's a unique drama about a polygamous family in Utah living within the confines of the Mormon faith. The story revolves around Bill Henrickson (played by Bill Paxton), who has three wives with very distinct personalities and seven children all living in one household (although technically, they're living under three roofs).
The interesting premise drew me to watch the show initially. The first few episodes were a bit slow but understandable since the characters and relationships were being set up. There are several storylines that run along the main plot of having to sustain a polygamous family amidst a society that generally do not condone such practices. I can't say that I'm really hooked but I find it intriguing and entertaining enough to let myself have a go at season two.
And as has become common practice, I adopted guides of the actors appearing on the show. Added to the previously acquired guides of Bill Paxton, Ginnifer Goodwin (Margene, youngest wife of Bill), and Tina Majorino (Heather, bestfriend of Bill's eldest daughter) are Chloe Sevigny (Nicki, second wife of Bill), Daveigh Chase (soon-to-be wife of Bill's rival Roman), Amanda Seyfried (Sarah, eldest child of Bill), and Douglas Smith (Ben, eldest son of Bill).
Birthday Bell's
Also recently, I was assigned trusted for the Kristen Bell guide by pandacharmed (many thanks to you, panda)! By far, this guide is the most prized person guide TC I've ever received. (I mean no disrespect to the greatest UK band ever, U2 and to One Tree Hill star Sophia Bush). The current editor and I have been cleaning up the guide ever since, trying to make the guide more presentable and readable. Easily, it's one of the more popular person guides on the site (if there is even such a thing). She is closing in on 1,500 votes and has one of the "more active" person guide forums on TV.com. Sadly, she has no banner of her own.*hint**hint*
Anyway, just so you know, it's Ms.Bell's 28th birthday today (July 18th)! So go ahead and leave a birthday greeting here. I can't promise she'll be able to read your greetings. No, actually, I'm quite sure she won't be able to. Me, I got her a pony! A pony cake, that is. Where Keith Mars has failed, I have succeeded (partially)! I'm also replacing my avatar for this week, in celebration of Ms. Mars' birthday and my recent trusted spot assignment.
Thanks for dropping by! Enjoy your weekend, everyone!
) I just 'borrowed' my blog title from Anna's (Banannie) entry from some weeks/months(?) back. I think she got it from the Friends episode where Monica and Chandler were supposed to get married in Vegas (if I remember correctly). This'll be longer than usual so please bear with me. Someone Old(er)
I just got back from my big bro's birthday dinner and the fact that I can write a decent blog entry means I'm not hammered or even a bit tipsy!
The only people that drank beer in the party are my brother and his high school friend. All the rest (my cousins, niece, nephew, aunts) just drank soda during dinner and coffee/tea (not the kids) afterwards. For the non-people that drank beer, that would be Bash the Beagle (remember her?). My sis-in-law let her have a shot-glass-full of light beer and the poor dog drank it! I really don't know why she did that, but please don't tell the PETA people. Bash did like the taste after all!I forgot to mention in my previous blog that we're also celebrating my sis-in-law's birthday! Yep, my brother and his wife was born on the same day (except that they're a year apart). And even though it was her birthday, (being the chef that she is) she was still the one who prepared and cooked everything. We had grilled baby back ribs, Caesar's salad, grilled corn, fish and fries, and fetuccini carbonara for dinner and sans rival for dessert. It was like eating at Friday's except there were no uber-enthusiastic servers loudly singing a Happy Birthday song and bringing a free slice of cake!
Aside from their beer-drinking mutt, the highlights of the evening included:
- a 3-piece kids' musical band (my nephew on guitars, my bro's friend's kid on harmonica, and my 2-year-old niece holding the microphone -- either singing into it or biting it as if she had her own harmonica!)
- my sis-in-law showing us her almost-finished wedding album she made herself. Impressive work with the layouts and scrapbooking ideas.
- cousins reminiscing our childhood days over coffee and cake while listening to my brother's '80s music playlist
Aside from my new Johnny Fever level (the show from which can also pass as something old!), I've a got a bunch of new adoptions (first two rows) and TCs (the last row) too.
- Alexa Davalos. Samantha Carlton on Reunion.
- Balthazar Getty. Thomas Walker on Brothers & Sisters.
- Bill Paxton. Bill Henrickson on Big Love.
- Erika Christensen. Mae Anderson on Six Degrees.
- Jay Mohr. Rick Payne on Ghost Whisperer.
- Melissa George. Lauren Reed on Alias.
- Nicki Lynn Aycox. Meg Masters on Supernatural.
- Sarah Jane Morris. Julia Walker on Brothers & Sisters.
- Cobie Smulders. Robin Scherbatsky on HIMYM.
- Danneel Harris. Rachel Gatina on One Tree Hill.
- Kristen Stewart. Tracy Tatro in Into the Wild.
- Sophia Bush. Brooke Davis on One Tree Hill.
Something Bannered
As you can see, I created a new and improved profile banner (this can be my 'something new' too.)! The old one, shown below, has been up for almost 7 months (this can also be my 'something old').
Improvements made:
- All the ended shows that I've completed watching and the returning shows that I plan to watch 'til their last airing are now included in the new banner(s). That's a total of 46 shows, almost double the 25 titles from the old one.
- None of the logos/titles are hidden behind the tabs.
- The logos/titles are bigger and brighter!
- My banner's animated! And the shows are categorized into Drama (my favorite banner -- most colorful and best layout), Comedy (I like how the titles come in all shapes and sizes), and Action/Sci-fi (dark and eerie).
- My new favorite shows (the ones which I finished watching recently) are now included: Veronica Mars, Medium, and Criminal Minds.
Something Blue
Since I can't find my 'something blue', I just decided to tag myself (pathetic, right?
) via Ivy's (xlovedust) latest blog entry (although technically, she only tagged the first 5 people who commented). Anyway, the tagged one is supposed to post a snapshot of his/her desktop on his/her next blog entry. So here's mine:
Yep, I know, I should put up a wallpaper instead of that boring blue screen. I used to do that, some years back (and I also used to replace all the icons/theme with whatever I'm into at that moment). Now, I just want my desktop to be neat and tidy. The three icons are my TV.com folder, my TV shows list, and the Recycle Bin.
All my most-used apps can be opened via QuickLaunch (double-arrow to the left of opened Windows Explorer app). My other files are stored somewhere else. I tag no one! I just needed my 'something blue'.Thanks for reading. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
As promised, here's the second part of the feature for upcoming fall series and cast updates of your favorite returning shows. For the cast updates, Lucas' season 5 girl leaves Tree Hill and a new villain visits the town of Smallville upon the departure of Lex Luthor. Of the upcoming shows, one is a vampire series (Moonlight fans may want to give this show a try!), one tackles interesting issues on sexuality and sexual boundaries, another is the US adaptation of a UK hit series, and the last one is a Joss Whedon creation whose premise is showing a lot of promise!
- Anna Paquin and Lynn Collins on True Blood. Read spoilers and news here.
- Carrie-Anne Moss on Pretty/Handsome. View preview here. Read unfavorable news here.
- Michaela McManus on Law & Order: SVU. Here's what OTH fans have to say about her switching to another show.
- Sam Witwer on Smallville. Read news item here.
- Rachelle LeFevre on Life on Mars (US). View trailer here.
- Olivia Williams on Dollhouse. View trailer here.
Of the ones above, I'd most likely watch Dollhouse and probably Life on Mars. Of course, I'll still be tuning in for Smallville even though I think the show has gone on long enough. I'm just glad Lana is out of the picture.
I'll be visiting my brother this Saturday since he's celebrating his birthday, which is early next week. His friends are also coming over. So it's going to be a weekend of drunkenness, debauchery, and dastardly deeds.
No, I'm just joking! We're just having a quiet dinner and maybe some red wine and a game of poker afterwards.Thanks for dropping by! I hope you all have a great weekend!
- Anna Torv and Mark Valley on Fringe. View trailer here.
- Saffron Burrows on My Own Worst Enemy. See news and spoilers here.
- Enrico Colantoni on Flashpoint. View trailer here.
- Jessica Stroup on 90210. View trailer here.
- Kevin McKidd on Grey's Anatomy. Read news item here.
- Annie Wersching on 24. View promotional video here.
Part Two of this feature will come out anytime this week.
So which pilots are you most likely to check out?Thanks for reading. Have a great week, everyone!
