Another iphone saver

I came across Griffin's Armored Survivor case the other day and looked it up online. This case is hard core! Check out the video linked above for an educational, thorough and pretty funny demonstration of how protective the Survivor case really is.

After trying one out I must say that I think I prefer Griffin to Otterbox. The silicone casing of the Griffin case is far less "sticky" than the Otterbox case  - it is easier to slip it in and out of a pocket or phone holder - and it also snaps into place more securely. The same goes for the port covers - Griffin's stay put while the charging port cover on my Otterbox case constantly pried itself opened.

Although I don't use the belt clip, Griffin's is far more practical than the bulky clip that comes with Otterbox's Defender case. The added size to one's iphone appears to be slightly greater with Griffin's case, but the aforementioned lack of "stickiness" of the silicone casing makes that a non-issue for me.

If you watch the video you'll see that Griffin's case will not make your iphone indestructible (you can't run it over with your SUV and expect it to be unmarred), but it will certainly protect it from drops, fits of anger, impromptu hockey matches and other everyday whoopsies.

While certainly worth the $49.99 price tag, Griffin's Armored Survivor cases can be found in many discount stores for at least $15 less. But seriously, even with insurance a replacement iphone is likely to cost you at least $150 so a fabulously protective $50 case pays for itself almost immediately!

Never without my OtterBox

On the recommendation of a friend, I bought an OtterBox defender case for my new iphone back in October of 2011.

I didn't use it long before I found it a little bulky and that it made it difficult to get my phone out of my phone holder or my back pocket.

Therefore, I started using a Body Glove case that was slimmer and appeared to offer good protection. For example, I drove off with my iphone on the hood of my car and after crashing to the asphalt it came away without a single scratch or defect. After that I was convinced that my defender case was not necessary to keep my iphone in pristine condition.

Unfortunately last week my phone fell out of my holder (hip height) and the whole screen cracked from the upper right corner to the lower left corner. There was also a horrible spider-web type cluster of cracks in the upper right corner. On the bright side, my phone still worked and I had insurance on it so I wasn't ever without a phone and I was able to get a replacement quickly (ordered Friday afternoon and received today).

Needless to say, I learned my lesson. I know the screen would've been fine had I been using my OtterBox case so I'll never complain about the bulkiness or lack of sophistication of my OtterBox ever again. 

Another plus about the defender case is that all the buttons and ports are protected by the silicone outer shell. (Charging port, mute button and earphone ports are covered by flaps that can be opened and resealed).  Having unwittingly silenced my phone on numerous occasions when it proved to be quite inconvenient, I find the flaps very handy!

OtterBox defenders are a bit pricey unless you find them on Amazon or in your local Wal-mart (still a little pricey even at Wal-mart) but the expense is well worth it. If you care about your iphone, get an OtterBox!

Favorite pen

This is my new favorite pen! It's a 7 year pen made by Seltzer Goods. Provided I hold on to it that long, it will write 1.7 meters a day for 7 years. I love the way it writes (very smooth) and I really love the "Need Coffee" message since I always need coffee! Lots of other designs are available.

Like they say on the web site, this pen is "Eco-Friendly, Swiss-Made, 7-Year Ink Supply, Lots of Fun." I concur!

If you live in the Raleigh/Chapel Hill/Durham area, you can find these pens at Parker and Otis in downtown Durham.

Farewell House

I'm quite behind on reading my subscription to Entertainment Weekly so I just learned that House MD's 8th season will be its last. I only became a fan via reruns in early 2011 so I'm pretty sad that it will all be over soon.

In fact, I became so obsessed with the show and diagnoses that I found myself trying to diagnose my brother when he fell ill last summer. He responded, "Thanks Dr. House. I'll look in to that." I got a pretty hearty chuckle out of that comment.

Happy notes from Ken Tucker's piece in the February 24th issue of EW:

1. He professed a favoritism for Olivia Wilde's character, Thirteen. I was happy to read that because I also very much like Thirteen and her complicated backstory, while many fans consistently expressed a strong hatred for Wilde and Thirteen. I've missed her in season 8!

2. He described the show at its best as a vivid portrait of a complex friendship. I love House and Wilson as best friends. Having had some complex friendships myself, it is always nice to realize that sometimes friends hurt each other - all the while loving each other - and that's just life. Your most faithful friends will always love you for who you truly are.

I'll miss you House! I'll deeply miss the presentation of crazy medical cases and your insanely awesome sense of humor for a long, long time! Hope there is a new role in the works for Hugh Laurie very soon.

One Day - on film

I read One Day last September and was so absorbed in the story but just never got around to making the trip to the theater to see the film. Bad reviews didn't help to push me in that direction, and I almost never go to the movies anyway, but I'm happy to say that my dear friend Jenni invited me over to watch it tonight.

Perhaps the nay-sayers didn't read the book, didn't identify with Emma or Dexter, or maybe just couldn't get passed the bad fashion and odd frame of Jim Sturgess, but I really enjoyed the movie. Just like the book, it brought up memories from my past - both happy and tragically sad - but being reminded of those times are what makes me the person I am so bring it on.

Anne Hathaway's English accent was quite charming and I've never seen Patricia Clarkson in a role I didn't like so those are two definite pluses. On the negative side I didn't find Jim Sturgess remotely likable, but I suppose that is fitting since I didn't really feel a great deal of empathy for Dexter's character when I read the book. He's really a cad to tell you the truth.

My most favorite parts of the book (the ones that made me laugh my ass off) were not presented well on film, but the story for the most part was very true to the novel. I'm now looking forward to seeing Like Crazy which I know will require some kleenex (One Day did not - at least for me).

One Day. Twenty Years. Two People.

I'd been wanting to read this book since I read about it in Entertainment Weekly a couple of years ago, but I didn't get around to reserving it from my local library until a few weeks ago. Just in time for the movie right?

In my perpetual state of procrastination I found myself on Monday evening at page 60 with less than 48 hours to finish the book, and I'm glad that's how it turned out. I'm sure I would've loved the book all the same, but reading almost the entire thing in two sessions made it all the more enjoyable. Given that the story takes place on July 15th every year between 1988 and 2007, I think it might've been less emotionally profound had I spent days rather than minutes/seconds between the connected years.

From the back of the book, "It's 1988 and Dexter Mayhew and Emma Morley have only just met. But after only one day together, they cannot stop thinking about one another. Over twenty years, snapshots of that relationship are revealed on the same day - July 15th - of each year. Dex and Em face squabbles and fights, hopes and missed opportunities, laughter and tears. And as the true meaning of this one crucial day is revealed, they must come to grips with the nature of love and life itself."

The book took turns I was fully not expecting, but that I very much welcomed. I laughed out loud (so much so that onlookers at the gym made me explain what I was reading); I was shocked and inspired; and I found myself reminiscing about friends and loves from my past.

Emma and Dexter seem quite real. As characters in a story they are deftly developed. I was completely absorbed.

One Day makes the heart leap with anticipation, vibrate with laughter and completely stop in heartbreak.

Here's to hoping the movie directors/producers didn't completely eff up a great story.

U.S. of Tara cancelled and maybe a sign

I started watching U.S. of Tara out of convenience. I had a temporary free subscription to Showtime so I watched. Not only did I find that I liked the show, but I grew jealous of the tight relationship between the teenaged brother and sister in the show. They genuinely loved - and LIKED- each other.

I was over half-way through the 3rd season before I realized there wouldn't be a 4th. My ridiculous affinity of Kate and Marshall's tight siblinghood was sealed by their recollection/singing of the following:

"Lemondade. Crunchy ice. Sip it once. Sip it twice.

Lemonade. Crunchy ice. Make it once. Make it twice.

Touch the ground, turn around,

Kick your boyfriend out of town...now freeze!"



It's television, and they were very cute together. Unfortunately real-life siblings don't always truly love each other.

Dead Reckoning

I was disappointed after reading Harris' last Sookie book, "Dead in the Family," but I was pleasantly surprised by "Dead Reckoning."

The previous book was so far removed from the core story that I grew tired of the "new" plot that I didn't give a crap about. "Reckoning" returned to the Sookie tales I love and felt far truer to the story at hand.

Readers will learn more about Sookie's Fae legacy, as well as her family history and also get some insight into Sookie's future - the not boring one - that may or may not include both Eric and Bill.

"Reckoning" is Harris' 11th Sookie book. If HBO's True Blood really follows the book trail then Anna Paquin has a SUPER long future playing a blonde back-country girl. I'll keep watching for as long as Alan Ball creates. After all, he is the mastermind behind my most favorite show of all time! (Six Feet Under).

And it goes without saying that after following for this long, I couldn't really abandon Harris either. I'm sure I'll read about Sookie until her story ends.

Back Into the Wild

I just got around to reading my July issue of Outside magazine tonight, and I was elated to see that it contained a follow-up to Christopher McCandless's epic story first published in 1996.

"Back to the Wild" was recently released via Amazon, and features the photographs and writings of Christopher McCandless during his last years (as Alexander Supertramp).


Outside reports that in March, those closest to McCandless visited the last place he lived - a derelict Fairbanks City Transit system bus - to pay their respects before releasing the last pieces of his life he left behind.

I read the original story and I saw the movie. I both identify with and disagree with McCandless's choices. I've never been able to come completely to terms with what he did - I can't argue against or in support of it. What I can admire is the courage of a boy who set himself on a course with more drive than most could imagine to summon in a lifetime.

I think Chris was on the brink of living an extraordinary life, but his ambition and narrow focus prevented him from surviving.

Sean Penn and Emile Hirsch told his story beautifully in Into the Wild - a movie I think everyone should see!

House addict

I've been aware of House, MD since it premiered in late 2004, but I think the show's timeslot always conflicted with other shows on my watch list. After all, I only subscribed to dvr service in 2009, so I seriously used to be a slave to scheduling.

I don't recall for certain what recently turned me on to setting my dvr to record reruns of House on USA and Sleuth, but I am now a full-fledged addict. I love every show. It's so much less "soapy" than shows like Grey's Anatomy or ER. One can easily view episodes of House completely out of sequence, and remain intrigued by the case at hand. There are ongoing relationships that minimally drive the plot from episode to episode, and are therefore subtle enough that I haven't been lost after viewing episodes from season one followed by episodes from season five with almost no backstory provided.

Honestly I don't think all series should strive to attain the same seamless storyline, but for House it is the perfect formula. Even more individuated than episodes from the X-files, House has the ability to draw in viewers at any stage of any season.

Of course others may completely disagree with my "diagnosis" of this show, but the reruns I've been recording are in no particular order, yet I've lost nothing from the stories of the regulars (doctors) or the patients. In my opinion it is a great show - one that has proven to be compelling for more than 7 seasons now.

Renewed for an 8th season, I can only hope that House will live on!

I love Tommy Gavin

Ever since I started watching "Rescue Me" on FX I've been drawn to Denis Leary. As far as my "type" goes, he only has height on his side. Nevertheless, I just love Tommy Gavin. Maybe it is his youthful appearance. I mean really - how many 54 year olds truly have a full head of blonde hair?

I'm pretty sure I've never met an adult who truly has "blonde" hair that doesn't need an extra dose of blonde dye to keep it on the lighter side. (There's clearly a significant amount of denial floating around the heads of "blondes" these days).

When I brought up my attraction to Leary to a co-worker, her response was, "yes, he is disgusting." That was not my offered attitude or opinion and still isn't no matter what anyone else thinks. There's just something about his personality that makes me love him - or at least want to befriend him.

I'm sure I'll never meet Leary, so I'll remain an admirer and I'll still think he's hot in a very whacked out way.

Reading that the series finale of "Rescue Me" is scheduled to air the week of September 11th is a bit disappointing, because even those of us who STINK at math can figure that the time table adds up to less than 10 episodes for the final season. Hello? Angel season 5 cut-off anyone? Let's hope that's not what is in the works.

Welcome back Sookie Stackhouse!

I don't have HBO, but Kerry & Robert save True Blood for me on their DVR. There was a free HBO preview prior to tonight's season 4 premiere (episodes 1 & 2 from season 3) and I was so excited that one of my favorite scenes is from episode 2.

I apologize for the horrific video, but the audio is all you need. Hearing Sookie imitate Bill saying her name is one of my favorite things...

My current crush

My staple network (TNT) recently began airing episodes of CBS's The Mentalist and I immediately found myself completely smitten with Simon Baker. His character, Patrick Jane, is quite honestly one of the most adorable characters I've seen on television in the last several years.
He's smart, charming, witty and very endearing. Every time he flashes a grin I just want to hug him!

All of that doesn't really matter though. The Mentalist is a GREAT show. I highly recommend it, and a show starring such a cutie could not possibly be hard to watch.

Who killed Rosie Larsen?

AMC has put out some great television lately. After The Walking Dead, I couldn't resist setting my DVR to record The Killing. I've been riveted every episode and can't wait for next weekend's finale.



I really think I've got some stuff figured out, but we'll see. The obviously guilty is not so in my mind. I think his sinister behavior has something to do with his wife's death rather than his supposed inner serial killer.

Either way, I'm stoked for Sunday's finale!

Beware sweet, minty balm

I bought a new eos smooth sphere last week - sweet mint. It's probably my favorite flavor thus far, though my inner sun-savvy self knows the lemon sphere is better for my lips as it's the only one that contains SPF.

The sweet mint scent is pretty strong, even when the sphere is closed - which became apparent when I left it unattended on the coffee table the other day. I came downstairs to find Rusty clutching the sphere between his paws, desperately biting at the plastic shell. He looked up at me as if to say, "What?! Do you blame me? It smells so good!" It completely reminded me of my post from May 2nd.

Mr. Rusty is lucky he couldn't breach the plastic orb because I would have been far more upset if he'd eaten my new lip balm!

Life is the most spectacular show on earth

I saw Water for Elephants today with my favorite movie buff, Jen. We both loved the film. LOVED it. Having said that I'm quite confused by the film's low ratings on Rotten Tomatoes and somewhat negative reception from IMDB users.


Sara Gruen's novel, on which the film is based, is by far one of my favorite books of all time; and I feel the script stayed quite true to the novel, at least the most important parts. My biggest surprise was in finding Pattinson's Jacob far more believable than Witherspoon's Marlena. Waltz's portrayal of August was spot on in my opinion, and I must say that as a whole I felt the film was cast well.



There is no question that the star of the movie is Rosie. She exudes charm and ultimately proves to be the most loyal and loving character in the film. I was near tears at least three times and got extreme chills during the film's climax.

The cinematography is impeccable - a true period film that is so well done that the viewer is easily transported back to 1931. The costumes, the language, the ever-looming depression - it is all portrayed in each and every scene.
I can't imagine anyone not enjoying this movie even if they haven't read Gruen's amazing book. Therefore, I find Rotten Tomatoes' ultimate review of the film truly rotten, and perhaps biased and shallow.

Unbearable Lightness

Just as Ellen DeGeneres states in the epilogue of Unbearable Lightness, Portia de Rossi was crazy. She was hands down batty and out of her mind, all the while portraying the epitome of control on TV as Ally McBeal's Nelle Porter.

Portia de Rossi is reportedly 5'7", and when she reached rock bottom she weighed 82 pounds. She reached that rock bottom after approximately fourteen years of starvation, bingeing and purging - with the latter years hovering in complete starvation mode.

Compulsive exercise, reclusive behavior and the severe effects of starvation began to take a toll on her mind, as well as all of her relationships with outsiders which were tenuous at best. She lost all perception of reality and thus retreated into her own deep private hell.

Then she made the reluctant decision to crawl out.

While whiney and overly self-loathing at times, I mostly sympathized with de Rossi as I followed her life of disordered eating. Most of the negative reviews I've read were likely penned by persons who've never been touched by an eating disorder - never had one or loved someone suffering from one. Eating disorders are never simple, and they're most often not taken on consciously.

When I presented a study on the presence of anorexia/bulimia on the internet while at graduate school, I was confronted with a few students who asked me, "But isn't it a choice? You could've just stopped. Seems more like a cry for attention or an act of rebellion."

I'm sure there are cases of the aforementioned in eating disorder history, but I strongly believe that those cases are very few and far between.

Of course anyone who knows who Portia de Rossi is knows that she is now married to Ellen DeGeneres. By revealing her true sexuality, I think de Rossi has finally let go of a great deal of her inner-hatred and come to peace with herself and her body.

I've never been a fan or non-fan of Portia de Rossi. I watched Ally McBeal for at least the first three seasons and enjoyed it - mainly because I found Lucy Liu hilarious. I have never judged anyone for their sexual preference. None of those things had anything to do with my enjoyment or lack thereof in reading this book. It's just a powerful story about loss, despair and ultimately triumph.

True Romance

True Romance is definitely one of my favorite movies ever - if not my #1.

Hidden treasures: Brad Pitt as the total pot head and Bronson Pinchot as the biggest douche ever.

My dear boyfriend at the time of my first viewing indulged my love for the movie and the music and bought me the soundtrack. That was so long ago that I don't even know if it was a cd or cassette tape (no 8 tracks here).

I've unfortunately lost the soundtrack he bought me, but I've never forgotten the music! (or the fun we had enjoying the silliness of it).

The death of Dennis Hopper could put a damper on the memories tied to this film, but I choose instead to remember and cherish the talent that he drove into every role he played.

My favorite tune - entirely instrumental and the cutest little ditty I've ever heard. It has always managed to be my "cheer me up" music.

Lips best friend

I was introduced to the EOS smooth sphere by my friend Jen and I cannot thank her enough.

My lips perpetually crack, peel, bleed and generally piss me off no matter what I do - until I started using EOS. I swear it's a heavenly elixir, and the lemon balm with SPF 15 smells just like lemon meringue pie. I could eat it - I don't, but I could.



Sold at Wal-mart for $2.96, this stuff is the best thing you could ever put on your lips.

I prefer the lemon variety hands down over the "summer fruit" variety (those are the two available at my local Wal-mart), but both variations supply the same superb lip-loving benefits.

EOS is often also available at Walgreens, Kroger and CVS.

The Town

I rented this from redbox on Monday night, but the disk wouldn't play after about 40 minutes so I ended up buying it on pay-per-view. Smart choice since Time Warner Cable offers the extended cut (unedited, 2 hrs 30 min) for the same price as the theatrical version.

I really enjoyed this movie - even on an extended time frame. In fact, I found the extra scenes quite helpful in resolving the plot in my mind. I particularly enjoyed revisiting Ben Affleck's "BAHSTAN" accent from Good Will Hunting. I'm sure it's real and that he's just learned to speak differently since. I mean really - most talented actors are able to fake a realistic foreign accent - who's to know which one is real? (Must remove Penelope Cruz from consideration here).

While I have no problem watching 90+ minutes of Affleck on the screen, I feel he has a knack for directing, and it seems this role is where he plans to dig his heels in - at least for now. According to his cast from The Town he's quite good at both acting and directing, so in my opinion his future should be pretty bright.

Jeremy Renner and Blake Lively were fantastic - each depicted a Charlestown local to a tee - down to the accent and attitude. I'm not saying I've ever been to Charlestown, or that I even know anyone from there, but the information available to me confirms that the entire cast did a great job in bringing a genuine sense of the local atmosphere to the screen.

Small gripe: didn't love Rebecca Hall as Claire. I loved the character of Claire (her dedication to charity, tendency towards the lighter side of horrible situations and genuine concern for others in her personal stratosphere), but Hall came off as flat to me. I really wanted to like her, but I just didn't believe that she became Claire in the film. In the end I didn't care about her at all.

So as not to give away anything I'll just say that yes, HER CHARACTER made a gracious gift - but Rebecca Hall did nothing to make that act more powerful had it been given by a nameless Bart on anyone's street corner. I'm sure some might blame the director for that caveat, but her performance as a whole leads me to find fault on her shoulders.

Nevertheless, I found The Town to be a wonderful film - realistic, dramatic and powerful - and carried through by a very talented cast and director.