I'll admit it... I've been keepin' up with the Kardashians

Now don't judge me - the show is pretty entertaining! I initially thought the show would revolve around just Kim so I avoided the show at first. I figured it would be like the Paris and Nicole show and I thought they were completely obnoxious. Ok, fine, Nicole did make me laugh every now and then.

Anyway... the Kardashians show is very different. It's cute because it's all about the family. I always enjoy those type of shows because I like to see them in their "real" element, away from all the celebrity stuff. Other good ones: Family Jewels (Gene Simmons), Hogan Knows Best, Run's House, and of course, the original - The Osbournes.

In the show, we actually see more of Kim's sisters, Khloe and Kourtney. They're kind of like Paris and Nicole with the antics they pull. Example - bringing in a homeless man to clean up in their parents bathroom and then dressing him up in their step-dad's clothes.

But my favorite episode is when they focused on their brother, Rob (who seems like a total sweetie) and his relationship with a Cheetah girl! I love them Cheetah Girls so I totally approve and they're very cute together - however getting a tattoo of her full name after three months of dating... eeeyikes!!!

Oh, and guess who their step dad is - Bruce flippin' Jenner! That's another funny part of the show... poor Bruce is so out of place with these crazies.

There are two more kids - Kendall and Kylie. They are the youngins and are the kids of Bruce and Kris Jenner. The other four (Kim, Khloe, Kourtney, and Rob) are the kids of Robert Kardashian, i.e. OJ's lawyer. There are some touching moments about him as you can see that the kids are still struggling with the death of their dad.

Anyway, check it out on E! I don't know when it's on but I just added it to my DVR. They've made the cut. :)

Just give up

This just cracks me up.

I've officially become my mom

... because I caught myself taking notes while watching Suze Orman.

Suze is strictly a DVR show for me. But every now and then I'll pull up an episode in the hopes I'll pick up a new thing or two. Also, the show sort of has a Ricki Lake/Jerry Springer factor for me... that is, you hear these people talk about their really screwed up financial situations, and you think, "Boy, I'm glad I'm not him!"

Anyway, on this episode, Suze had a guest from MorningStar who recommended her top five mutual funds for retirement accounts. Turns out I didn't need to furiously take notes, because they posted them online here.

Happy investing!


P.S. Congratulate me - I finally finished my taxes!!! This year was particularly painful because I unloaded some ESPP shares for the first time. Entering the line by line item for 12 different lots of stocks was making my head go dizzy!

People are evil

At least that's what I learned when I watched the season finale of The Gauntlet last week. Did anyone else happen to catch it? Poor Eric... he's the big guy on the Veterans team. That guy was never going to make it far on the final challenge. First of all, it looked like a crazy hot day in Mexico. Second, the challenge kicked off with a half mile swim to shore. OK, that would pretty much knock me out. Anyway, each team then had to chain themselves to each other and go for a run and do a series of challenges.

Eric was dying once he got out of the water. He could barely put his shoes on. Honestly, from this point on, he looked like he could pass out at any second. Real wobbly and stuff. His teammates just barked at him the whole way. When getting ready for the run, they decided to put him at the end of the chain so they could, and I quote, "drag him".

And that's pretty much what they did and it made me sick. This poor guy is dying, but he's being dragged by a chain around his waist by eight people who are all yelling at him. San Diego Brad was the only one that cared about his health and spoke up for him.

Somehow, they do manage to drag him for a bit until eventually he keels over and um, is flat out on the ground struggling to breathe! His teammates' reaction? "He cost us $30K!" Ugh... so evil. OK, I should clarify - it was really that Ev chick that came across as pure evil with all the whining about the money. But they all looked like a**holes, in my opinion.

On a random note... I was at the gym last night (I KNOW! Crazy, right?) and as I was flipping through the channels while on the elliptical, I saw a commercial for the season finale of Celebrity Apprentice.

That show is still on? News to me...

In Treatment...

... is wicked addicting. So I'm glad this season is ending soon. At least I think it's ending, anyway.

When I first saw the commercials for this show, I thought, "Oh boy - that looks super boring." If you're not familiar with the show, here's the deal:

"In Treatment" is an HBO series starring Gabriel Byrne as a therapist named Paul treating a variety of patients. It's a half hour show that airs every day Monday through Friday. And every episode represents the therapy session between Paul and one of his patients. I usually catch the Wed-Fri shows. Wednesday is Sophie - a pre-teen competitive gymnast who has issues with her dad. Thursday is Jake (aka Knox Overstreet) and Amy (aka Natasha from "Bridget Jones' Diary" or McDreamy's sister) - a couple who is considering divorce. And on Friday, the tables are reversed because Paul then meets with his own therapist, Gina (Dianne Wiest).

Monday and Tuesday is Blair Underwood and Melissa George (not sure which is which) but I never seem to catch those. I know the Melissa George one must be juicy because she plays Laura who develops a thing for Paul and Paul in turn thinks he might be falling for her but he's married with kids plus the whole doctor/patient thing and stuff. The Laura drama usually spills into Paul's Friday session with Gina.

Anyway, it's actually a pretty good series that just sucks you in. I guess I like it because I'm a nosy person and I enjoy prying into people's personal lives. Even if they aren't real. :)

Plus, I've got about five different HBO channels (and now, IN DEMAND - woot woot!) so it seems like there is always an episode on. I actually don't even know what time the shows regularly appear.

So if you have HBO, I recommend. Be nosy like me!

I am fascinated by David Cook

When David Cook began to sing tonight, my first thought was oh no... he's doing the Lionel Richie thing again?

But I really enjoyed his version of Billie Jean. I think his 80's pop-turned-rock interpretations are really amazing - even more creative and enjoyable than the Blake Lewis beatbox stuff that impressed me last year.

I think Chikezie will go home this week. Thoughts anyone?

Thanks Syesha...

... for making me feel like an ancient old fart.

I was half-listening to her intro part and then all of a sudden I hear her say, "I was born in ... blah, blah, blah... on January 2nd, 1987."

1987???

Holy crap, I'm old.

Expanding the Office fanbase!

I recently learned that my sister has never watched "The Office". Outrageous, I know! Turns out that she always wanted to, but didn't want to just jump in the middle. So a few months ago, I loaned my sister my entire DVD collection of "The Office". Yep, my sister was able to discover and enjoy seasons 1 through 3 all together without suffering through those painful "will they or won't they" cliffhangers!

Granted, she has a 9 month old baby (the CUTEST baby in the world, by the way!) so it's not like she can go in audgepodge mode and hibernate for an entire weekend to plow through the DVDs all at once. So it took a couple of months, but she finished them all and she loved them! Yay! We make a good team, I got her hooked on "The Office", she got me hooked on "Jon and Kate plus eight".

I wasn't sure if she would find them funny because the show is kinda quirky plus she's never really been in a stuffy office environment - before full-time momminess, her previous careers included being a social worker and a nursing assistant at a retirement home.

So I busted out laughing when she asked me (with a completely straight face) - "So do offices really have party planning committees???"

Random thought...

Tonight, Jason Castro reminded me a lot of a young John Travolta. You know, from the Grease days.

It's like they read my mind!!!

So thanks to my mom, I've been DVR-ing the Suze Orman show. I caught up on one today and I was thinking, you know, this would be a perfect person to impersonate on SNL. And I'm sitting here watching SNL right now (yes, I'll admit to watching SNL on a Saturday night) and guess what has just popped up??? A Suze Orman sketch!

OK, it just finished. Kristen Wiig did a decent job but I was hoping to see her bust out with a "DENIED! DENIED! You are SOOOOOOOO DENIED!!!" No such luck.

I love seeing how the SNL writers watch the same weird stuff I watch. Amy Poehler's interpretation of Christian "Hot Tranny Mess" Siriano was hilarious.

Maybe there will be a Jon & Kate plus Eight sketch next... :P

Say wha??????

Hello again, everyone! Yes, I've been MIA. Too much traveling and working and not enough sleep.

But anyway, what an amazing episode of Lost tonight! It was another one of those twisty ones, too. Surprising ending, yes, but I'm still a little miffed at the writers for breaking my heart like that. Didn't watch the episode yet? Well, then you better leave now because I want to discuss!

Normally, I don't find the Jin and Sun storylines that interesting, but I really liked the one tonight. We see Sun getting ready to have her baby intercut with scenes of Jin buying a stuffed panda and rushing to get to the hospital. We soon learn - ta da! - that Sun is one of the "Oceanic Six". So of course, I immediately think, cool, now we know Jin and Sun are the last of the Oceanic Six. But then I remember, wait, we already have five - Jack, Kate, Hurley, Sayid, and little baby Aaron. But then maybe the baby doesn't count???

Anyway, cut to Island time. Jin finds out that Sun cheated on him so he gets all mad and won't talk to her. She's scared he's left her. But in the end, Jin has a heart to heart with Rose's husband (can't remember his name) and forgives Sun later and even makes her a nice dinner. It was such a sweet scene! (I even teared a little.) He admits that he was a different man before the crash and that he didn't show her affection and it was that man that drove her to have the affair which is why he forgives her. Then she cries and tells him she loves him, and he loves her, and the baby is really his, and they hug and live happily ever after!

Right?

NO.

Stupid mean writers. Cuz this whole time we're being so happy for the couple and thinking how they made it off the island and are going to have their baby and it was all a big fake-out! Sun had her baby alright - ALONE. I'm still trying to figure out when those Jin scenes were from. I'm guessing before the plane crash since he told the nurse he's only been married for two months. He wasn't bringing the stuffed panda to his wife, he was bringing it to the granddaughter or daughter of some big important client.

ANYWAY - we finally get clued in when we see Sun back at her apartment and Hurley comes to visit her. Hurley gets to meet the little baby girl (so cute! and so little!) and he accompanies Sun to visit Jin *sniff, sniff* at his grave!

Dude, it was so sad. This episode reminded me of the season premiere of Ugly Betty. They showed all these romantic, happy scenes with Hilda and Santos after he was in the store robbery. And then in the final scene, you realized she was in her room all alone in the dark, mourning his death. You cruel TV writers! Playing with my emotions that way!

Anyway, we also got another interesting tidbit. Walt's dad (Michael?) must be Ben's spy on the boat. He actually left the show before I started watching but I had heard rumors his character would return. And it's revealed to Desmond that his nemesis is the owner of the boat as well. Interesting!


Uh-oh, I just made another realization... Sawyer doesn't make it!!!!


(Speaking of Sawyer, I saw the little pop-up ad that mentioned you can get your own Sawyer nickname on abc.com... mine turned out to be Betty. Don't get it.)