LAURA AND PRESTON ARE NO LONGER IN CONTENTION TO WIN THE GREATEST AMERICAN DOG ON CBS. IN A SHOCKING TWIST, TRAVIS STOOD UP FOR BETH JOY AND BELLA STARLET IN FRONT OF THE JUDGES, AND LAURA'S FATE WAS SEALED. BUT IS THAT HOW IT REALLY HAPPENED? DID LAURA STAND ALONE? IS J.D. REALLY A SUPER INTENSE TRAINER? WOULDN'T IT BE A BETTER SHOW IF AMERICA DECIDED, INSTEAD OF THOSE SNOOTY JUDGES? CLICK THE PIC TO HEAR OUR CONVERSATION!
STEVE LUKATHER FOUND SUCCESS AS A FOUNDING MEMBER OF THE BAND, TOTO. NOW, HE'S STRIKING OUT ON HIS OWN WITH A SOLO CD CALLED EVER CHANGING TIMES AND A SOLO TOUR. HE CHATS ABOUT HIS MUSIC, HIS LIFE, HIS SON AND WHY THEY'LL NEVER DO A REALITY TV SHOW.
My friend Jay and I have conversations about music all the time. I find that on my own time, I listen to either music that is current or new OR one of my favorites from the early 90s. I really like stuff from the "Alternative" genre. I have been having fun giving the boy old CDs from my 90s collection, like Better Than Ezra, Matthew Sweet, Live and Oasis. He has a pretty good ear for picking out the tunes on his guitar too! This is one of my favorites from BTE!!
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Poll: My Favorite Summer Scripted Series...
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Poll: Free Day at the Zoo
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Daune Robinson
On my iPod:
My husband is Frank, my sons are Frank James and Reece, my dog is Boo (a keeshond), my cats are Clio, Puella and Sabrina. We live on the west side. I wish we could travel more, but Reece is a baby, and my husband doesn't really like flying. In my dream world, I'd have an RV and hit every National Park in the USA.
I love sports. I am passionate about the Syracuse Orange and all the Cleveland teams. I grew up following the Bears, Blackhawks and Cubs, and there hasn't been a conflict of interest yet. I still love them, and they still let me down every year.
I enjoy music, movies and TV. At the moment, my favorite shows are Friday Night Lights, Supernatural, Life and Lost. Movie favorites include: The Princess Bride, Braveheart and Desk Set.
I'm Reading: I am in full on Stephen King mode right now. It started with Duma Key, which was fantastic. In listening to some of his interviews and podcasts, I learned that everyone went crazy over Lisey's Story. Some say it might be his best book ever. Well, I'll just have to see about that. I'm not sure why I wasn't that jazzed to start it, when it came out. I was thinking it would end up like a Rose Madder or Gerald's Game. Maybe it was the cover? And, I'm continuing to listen to audiobooks, unabridged, while I work out. It's very cool.
I'm still reading The Picture of Dorian Gray, getting that sent to me via email in installments. I got quite a few books for Christmas. At this moment, I can't believe how many books I have started. I've been a one book start to finish gal until recently. Wonder if I'll ever finish any of them? But, I am enjoying them all. The Looming Tower is so interesting. And, Wonderful Tonight is great light reading, while I'm putting the baby to bed. I still haven't picked up The Road by Cormac McCarthy again. It's so brutal! But, I want to finish it, and I will.
Please Support: The Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation and The Colon Cancer Alliance. Both my parents died from colon cancer. A few years ago, I participated in a 40 mile walk over two days for the effort. People don’t like to talk about it, but it’s important. Please get yourself checked, if you're over 35.
Click here to tell me what songs from the '70s that you want to hear!
"Anyone stepping to me you'll get burned, 'Cause I got lyrics and you ain't got none..."
Friday 08-29-2008 1:05am ET
Holiday weekend! Awesome!! I hope you have a lot of fun stuff planned. There are fairs and shows and festivals and tastes going on all weekend, so be sure you check the events page to get some great ideas of things to do. I know for sure that I'll either be at a cross country meet or the farmer's market in the morning tomorrow, then watching the Syracuse football game in the afternoon. Not sure what the rest of the weekend holds, aside from some work. Then, Monday morning, look for me, if you're up, on the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon. It's an amazing event, every year, and your donations do so much good for so many local families. If you're not in too much pain, financially, please make a pledge! But, if I was going to the movies, I'd have to give serious consideration to Traitor. Don Cheadle stars as a former Special Ops guy who is being investigated by Guy Pierce for an international conspiracy. Jeff Daniels is also in it, so that's about a perfect cast. Traitor is rated PG-13 for intense violent sequences, thematic material and brief language. Babylon A.D. is a sci fi thriller. I haven't heard much about it, maybe I'm not watching the types of shows where they're promoting it. Vin Diesel stars as a veteran who's become a mercenary, and he takes on the job of escorting a woman from Russia to the US. Turns out she's carrying some alien, and a cult group wants to harvest it to create some sort of god. Yikes. At least Vin is doing what he's good at. It should do well this weekend. Sort of an updated Conan the Barbarian. Babylon A.D. is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, language and some sexuality. Are you ready for another spoof movie? It's Disaster Movie, but I see characters from many more films than just Disasters, like a Juno take off and all the comic book characters. Over the course of an evening, a group of twenty somethings are bombarded with all sorts of natural and supernatural occurences. Disaster Movie is rated PG-13 for crude and sexual content throughout, language, drug references, and comic violence. Remember Revenge of the Nerds? That's what they're shooting for with College. Drake Bell stars in this college is crazy sort of movie. A couple of girls do a college visit and are treated to all kinds of shenanigans. College is rated R for pervasive crude and sexual content, nudity, language, and drug and alcohol abuse. Pop culture note: Kevin Covais, from American Idol a few seasons back, remember Chicken Little?, stars as one of the nerds! More crazy school hijinx and irreverent humor in Hamlet 2. A failed actor turned high school drama teacher tries to inspire his Tucson, AZ students by producing a politically and socially incorrect sequel to the famous Shakespeare play. I think it's Steve Coogan in the starring turn. Hamlet 2 is rated R for language, including sexual references, brief nudity and some drug content. But Daune, you say, Mamma Mia! has been out for months! Why are you featuring it in the new movies section of your blog?? I say the Mamma Mia! producers have come up with an ingenious way to give their beautiful musical legs. They're now releasing into theaters again, but this time, there are words at the bottom of the screen. It's a Mamma Mia! Sing A Long!!! Seriously, check your local listings. It's happening, my friends. Mamma Mia! is rated PG-13 for some sex related comments. And, I can almost guarantee you will sing better than Pierce Brosnan!!! So go! Feel good about yourself!!! The cool thing about independent films is they take you to places you don't expect or don't even know they exist, but they're totally believable, because the people are so unique. I've heard good things about Frozen River. It takes place a few days before Christmas and involves a little known border crossing on a Mohawk Indian Reservation between upstate New York and Quebec. Melissa Leo is an actress you will recognize, but you've never seen her starring in anything before, and you'll wonder why, after you see movie and are in awe of her acting skills. Frozen River is rated R for some language. Tell No One is a 2006 French film now out here in limited release. It is supposed to be fantastic. It's about a pediatrician whose wife is murdered. He was the prime suspect in the case. Now, it's 8 years later, he still misses her. There's a cop who still thinks he killed her. And then... he gets an EMAIL from her. Hohoho! French people star, along with Kristin Scott Thomas, remember her from The English Patient? Where's she been? Tell No One is Not Rated. We went right from the Olympic Games into the Politic Games. This is the first year I can remember making the conventions appointment viewing. I plan to watch all of next week too. Just a couple of things that I took away from the Democratic National Convention... Man, the Obama campaign was bowing to the Clintons. I've never heard an also-ran mentioned so much. Weird. I've never been impressed with Senator Rodham Clinton's speechmaking, but she obviously worked on her speech for this week, and it was fantastic. She came off as much more warm than usual. My friend Lynn and I decided that Sam Seaborn must have written it. And, you can't help but notice that little Chelsea has blossomed into a beautiful young woman. Barack Obama's kids are cute and seem so real, not like Stepford children. Joe Biden seems like an amazing guy. And, I loved how surprised his Mom was when he started talking about her. She was adorable. I knew a lot of Moms like that, when I was growing up. Aside from learning more about Senator Biden, the thing I really took away from the proceedings this week is an admiration for Dennis Kucinich. He's really something else. He got the crappiest time of anyone to speak. When he starts to speak, there's no one there, no one is listening, and by the end, everyone's with him and cheering. It's quite endearing. I love his enthusiasm and passion. Obviously, don't watch the video, if you aren't down with the democrats and can't handle someone spouting an opposing viewpoint. I just really enjoy the way different people take on this kind of situation.
"The things that we're afraid of are gonna show us, What we're made of in the end..."
Thursday 08-28-2008 12:32am ET
Here we go, Brownies, here we go!! I'm excited to go to tonight's game, even though it's just pre-season. Truth be told, I'm a Bears fan, first and foremost. I love the Browns, but I've been a Bears fan since birth, so I'm looking forward to checking out my teams tonight. I have much higher hopes for the Browns than I do for the Bears this year!
I'm hoping you will do me a favor. When you go online to vote for Slider to be inducted into the Mascot Hall of Fame, will you also take a few minutes to cast a vote in the Collegiate balloting, and vote for Otto the Orange? He's very deserving, he's a lot of fun, has a great personality, and I think he should be the next college mascot to win the Golden Silly String Award! Brutus Buckeye was inducted last year. You can click here to vote.
If you're going through Olympics withdrawal, Kleenex has the perfect remedy. They've produced a documentary called Let It Out, with interviews from your favorite Olympians past. As we've experienced the last few weeks, watching these athletes lay it all out on the line for love of sport and country can take you through the full range of emotions. You laugh. You cry. You get mad. You cheer. Let It Out is a lot of fun and brings back powerful memories. Check it out by clicking here.
This weekend is the perfect opportunity for you to see an excellent film that you probably missed when it was in theaters. In fact, chances are, you don't even know anything about it. Redbelt might strike you as the latest chop socky movie filled with violence and bad overdubs, but I assure you, it's brilliant. It's strange to think of David Mamet working in this arena, but he wrote and directed the movie, which is about a man who is a martial arts expert working in the film industry. When times get tough, he's forced to consider fighting in a competition, which he abhors. Chiwetel Ejiofor plays Mike Terry, and he's fantastic, as always. Another movie you could pick up this weekend, if you're in the political frame of mind especially, is Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden. This is a documentary by Morgan Spurlock, of Supersize Me fame. He heads to the Middle East to talk about the War on Terror with Arabic people. This is what he does well, trying to show you the other side of things, so if you have an opinion, at least you're informed about it. Sometimes, though, I have a problem with how much he inserts himself into the story. The other big movie out on DVD this week is What Happens in Vegas. I'm sure you saw the ads. Cameron Diaz and Ashton Kutcher play two crazy kids who get drunk and get married in Las Vegas. Then, before they can undo the damage, one of them hits the jackpot. They fight over who will get the money and are forced to stay married, mayhem ensues. They're charismatic enough actors, I just don't like this kind of mean spirited relationship movie, myself.
This is also a great time to catch up on shows you'd like to watch when the new season begins in a week or two. Some people might want to watch Heroes, Season Two, just to try to remember or figure out all the crazy things that were going on last season. There's also an alternate ending to the season, which I think would be very interesting, but I'd be sad if it was better than the one we got to see. Also out this week: One Tree Hill, Season Five, NCIS, Season Five, The Shield, Season Six, and Entourage, Season Four.
SPOILERS: Last night, on Project Runway, once again I was struck by how fantastic ALL the designs were. This is really a tough season. Everyone has a distinct point of view. They're all competent. A couple of finished seams or small fixes, and the bottom three could have been "in," easily. As soon as I saw that Laura was filling in for Neeeena Gaaaaahcia, I knew it was going to be all about construction, because that was her thing. Her clothes were always impeccable. I didn't have a problem with Keith going, because he was whiny and crabby and couldn't take the criticism from the judges. Although, I would have sent the Leathah Lady home, because I liked the little take on Keith's dress. Their skirts were basically the same. Actually, no, I would have sent Blayne home, because that seatbelt dress had no form and did not take any risks or creativity. But, I think he tickles Tim. Holla at your boy, Tim! And, on America's Greatest Dog, I was very sad, because my favorite pair went home. I love Bill, and I think he's a fantastic trainer. It was a tough challenge. They all did a fantastic job. I don't know who should have gone home instead, based on challenge results. I think Teresa and Leroy are the weakest. The final should come down to Laurie and Andrew and JD and Galaxy, which would be a classic battle between types of training. JD uses a more aggressive and domineering approach, Laurie is all about treats and positive reinforcement. I was cheering for those doggies though! It was a good show!
Finally, have you been getting any of the Freebies you've sent away for?? I got some shampoo over the weekend and the popcorn cakes. The baby didn't like them, but I thought they were good! Today, for a limited time through Walmart, you can sign up to get Cascade Complete All in 1 Action Pacs. I heard that, and I logged in immediately. Then, I was elated to see that you also get a sample of those Mr. Clean Eraser things? Those are magic!!! Sign up here. I hope you're able to get signed up!
"I think of all the education that I've missed..."
Tuesday 08-26-2008 11:18pm ET
Hah. After the last two weeks, I wanted to just put a sign here that said, "Recovering from the Olympics, be back Wednesday!" Whew. What a great couple of weeks of smashed world records, competition, heartfelt stories and surprises. I am ready to go to Vancouver for the Winter Games in 2010!!!
I heard at least five people yesterday say they were late because they were behind a school bus. Okay people, it happens every year. Get with the program!! And, I would like to thank those of you who joined in the prayers for my son to pass his driving test last week. He did! And so, this week, the baby and I get to sleep in a bit, instead of getting up early to drive the boy to school. And, we are both better for it. I should mention, however, that on his first day yesterday, I had to get up and start his car, as he said it would not turn over. And, he did lock his keys in with the engine running for 45 minutes yesterday (old car). *sigh* It's still good. And, I'm hoping the baby's transition to the 3-4 year old class goes well. He does seem a bit nervous about it, but he is definitely ready, developmentally. It's a big week.
Not such a big weekend, at the box office. I think a lot of people are holding off on going out, because of back to school. Plus, let's be honest, we all just don't have the disposable income we had even a year ago. But, Tropic Thunder is holding strong in the top slot. I am theorizing that it was the guys' turn to pick this week. The House Bunny opened in second place. Death Race opened in third. The Dark Knight is still raking in the cash. And, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, despite abyssmal reviews, has the geek factor and more legs than I expected. Tomorrow, look on this page for details on what new DVDs are out this week.
© 2008