Now that Lost is on hiatus until 2010, I need a reason to watch television. A show that will pique my interest and really pull me in. Let’s see…how about The Bachelorette? Will Jillian find true love? Probably, at least until she changes her mind on After the Final Rose. Maybe Jon and Kate plus 8? Are they getting a divorce? What about those kids? Would my hair look good in “the Kate”? I could give I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! a try. Is Speidi being tortured in the Costa Rican jungle? Let’s hope so. Let’s be real — these shows are completely mind-numbing. They may be cute, but they just aren’t enough. Recently, though, I found two new reality-like shows that I’m not sure people are watching. And they might be worth a look. [Read more →]

Tags: television by Nancy DeGregorio
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You should eat Wild Alaskan salmon for three reasons: 1.It is arguably the best tasting salmon in the world. 2. It is packed full of nutrients like omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants. 3. It is an ecologically responsible choice. In fact, the Alaskan wild salmon industry is a model for sustainable seafood practices all over the world. This month, Alaskan King salmon is at its peak. The King salmon is the most highly prized variety of wild salmon. It has a vibrant flavor and color and it is highly nutritious. I recommend purchasing Wild Alaskan King Salmon at the following locations until the end of the season (about 4 more weeks);  

[Read more →]

Tags: easy weeknight dinners, recipes & food by Jessica Alfreds
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It has been a long time since a book made me want to shout out loud and dance around the room, but this book did. When it came time for the final battle, and a certain character stepped up and introduced himself, I literally howled with joy and pumped my fist in the air. I read a lot of books, but it has been ages since any ending has made me so damned happy. [Read more →]

Tags: books & writing, Lisa Reads by Lisa Hura
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Now that was a first… no cocktails. No party. A monumental moment in Bachelorette history. Here’s how we got to that point:

First, the one on one with Kiptyn. I thought there was some real chemistry there. I could’ve done without the kayak ”race” but when they got to the market and back to the apartment, they were cute. However I also kept thinking, he’s so much cuter than her. I know, I’m mean. Before he could walk out on her for receiving the worst kiss of his life, Jillian wisely gave him the rose… on to the group date. [Read more →]

Tags: television by Lauren LaBumbard
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“Constantine Toncz, 39, had been speeding several times down the neighborhood street Sunday night. The speed limit in the residential area is 25 mph.” When Sabrina Stanek, the mother of two small children, came out to ask Toncz to slow down, he rammed her with his truck, killing her. Constantine Toncz should be killed this week.

Some nut has been throwing acid off of the top of tall buildings in Hong Kong. [Read more →]

Tags: on the law, people who should be killed this week by Scott Stein
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Earlier this year, I received an email from fellow WFTC contributor Olga Gardner Galvin suggesting that I consider doing a column about “Only connect,” the epigram attached to E.M. Forster’s novel Howards End. I wrote back that I thought it was a good idea, but I would first have to reacquaint myself with Forster’s novel. Shortly thereafter I downloaded Howards End onto my Kindle, where it remained unread until a few days ago.

Unfortunately, now that this reacquaintance has taken place, I am not at all certain I understand the epigram any better than I did before. [Read more →]

Tags: books & writing, that's what he said, by Frank Wilson by Frank Wilson
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Looks like summer’s schedule will be the norm… reality-heavy (some of the best reality shows invented) with some scripted shows sprinkled in:

Monday

The Bachelorette — The season has been disappointing so far. I loved Jillian when she was chasing after Jason last season, but now I find her a bit annoying. The same thing happened when Deanna was the bachelorette, so I’m not surprised. She seems like a good girl, so I hope she ends up happy… and let’s hope it’s not with that psychopath, David. I can’t wait to watch her diss him tonight. [Read more →]

Tags: television by Lauren LaBumbard
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I dislike the term “genre fiction.” It’s pejorative, and is used to make a value judgment on works of art for their content, rather than their execution. There’s a reason why we don’t think of Poe as a genre writer of horror or detective fiction. Though others might disagree, I don’t think of Tolkein’s “Trilogy” (when I was a teenager we referred to it only as the “the Trilogy” and never as The Lord of the Rings) as fantasy genre fiction or Stanislav Lem’s Solaris as science fiction genre fiction, or Stephen King’s The Shining as horror genre fiction. Now, there is some value in having a term to differentiate between works of high quality and works written less well and according to a formula, but “genre fiction” seems ill suited to that. “Pulp fiction” (shorn of its Tarantinoness) would perhaps be more helpful.

A. E. van Vogt’s The Voyage of the Space Beagle, published 70 years ago, is neither genre nor pulp, but one of the most original and influential novels about space and monsters ever written. [Read more →]

Tags: books & writing, now read this! by Christopher Guerin
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Time for me to complain about Brett Favre again. “Will he or won’t he??” For a second straight off-season, we are inundated with constant news coverage of Brett Favre’s every move, thought, and, in this case, surgery. I am not sure when professional football became such a soap opera. I am so tired of hearing speculation about whether or not this old, past-his-prime player will un-retire yet again, that it makes me want to stop watching ESPN. [Read more →]

Tags: sports by Alan Spoll
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Korena Roberts allegedly killed the mother of a newborn baby and tried to pass it off as her own. I have to write “allegedly,” because people are presumed innocent. Even when there is blood in their apartment and the body of the infant’s mother is found in their crawl space. Medics were called to the home because the newborn, who died, was in distress. It’s a disturbing story — officials say that the mother Heather Snively was attacked while still pregnant. “An autopsy will now determine how the baby was delivered, and whether he died before or after birth.” Maybe more disturbing even than the murder is that Roberts had a boyfriend.

Tags: on the law by Scott Stein
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10. On your Chemistry final, you answered every question with “Do I look like a rocket scientist?!”

9. Your nickname is “Glue-Sniffin’ Gus.”

8. On your Civics final, you kept spelling it “Cervix.”

7. Your final paper in Music class was entitled “Why the Jonas Brothers Are the New Mozart”

6. Nobody believes that the pot they found in your locker was planted there as part of a “right-wing conspiracy.”

5. In your high school yearbook, you were voted ‘Most Likely to Be Unable to Distinguish between His Ass and a Hole in the Ground.’

4. You were caught out on the football field, sticking a suppository into a hole in the ground.

3. On your Literature final, you said Moby Dick was an STD.

2. You’ve been in the seventh grade since the Carter Administration.

1. On your essay “How I Plan to Spend My Summer Vacation,” your teacher wrote “Think again.”

Tags: Bob Sullivan's top ten everything, education by Bob Sullivan
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The following idea developed in an old barn used as an Appalachian Trail shelter in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee as, miles from civilization, I lay awake, listening to the obnoxious chatter of a girl on a cell phone:

Much of the world is tamer than it used to be; tamer than it is naturally. Buildings are zoned and coded with automatic doors, enough fire exits for every occupant, and sturdy railings over stairs with run-to-rise ratios established to accommodate even the most clumsy and out-of-shape. People climb stairs like these, into buildings like these, to watch big screens on which actors pretend to dare and risk. They become the hero. They rise and fall on plot waves designed to thrill then [Read more →]

Tags: diatribes, environment & nature by Tyler Samien
2 Comments »

My name is Nancy and I am a size 10. No, not the Hollywood standard size of double-zero. Size ten. And you know what? I don’t care.

It seems like whenever I am in a room with a group of women, the conversation inevitably turns to weight. Every woman complains about how fat she is and how desperate she is to lose weight. It’s usually during this type of conversation that I am biting into a bagel, chock full of (gasp!) carbohydrates. [Read more →]

Tags: diatribes, health & medical by Nancy DeGregorio
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 Yesterday I was shocked to hear reports that legendary actor David Carradine was found dead, hanged from an apparent suicide in his hotel in Bangkok. I immediately felt that things did not add up. Carradine was 72 years old, rich, famous and still working. True, he had spoken of suicide many times in his life, but that had been years ago. Many artistic people go through such turmoil in their life (as do many others), but once 72 years old, it would seem that you had decided to live. I also found it strange that he was in a hotel in Bangkok. If you’re depressed, contemplating ending your life, you’re generally at home, bed ridden, a shut-in, maybe abusing drugs and alcohol. You’re not gallivanting in an international party city, staying at the Swissotel. Something was fishy here, and this morning, with further reports released about his death, it became clear that this was not a suicide, but rather an accident that will cast a shadow over the strange and wonderful career of David Carrradine. [Read more →]

Tags: health & medical, movies by David Alfreds
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This is the opening sequence to the 1962 Orson Welles movie of Franz Kafka’s The Trial. Welles reads the story fragment “Before the Law” over a kind of animation. The movie stars Anthony Perkins (of Psycho fame) as Josef K., who, having done nothing wrong, is arrested one fine morning. I recommend reading the book rather than seeing the movie. But the opening sequence stands on its own.

Tags: books & writing, movies by Scott Stein
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Graduations, weddings, birthdays, mother’s/father’s days, presents for teachers — spring seems to be the same thing as ka-ching at our house.

Here’s this month’s excellent tip to meet your social gifting obligations and still have a few bucks left over for summer:

The Art Photo

What’s their thing? Monopoly™? Karaoke? Ford Rangers? Power Rangers? Did they meet cute at a local bar, or does he dearly love a certain pinball machine? Will she only listen to public radio, or whale songs, or white noise, or Suzy Quattro?

[Read more →]

Tags: advice by Ruby Mac
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At first I thought this “Scared Shrimpless” video might be funny… the irrational fear of a kid. Because really, it’s not like the shrimp is alive; it’s just a little slimy. But the longer I listened to her screams the more I wanted to punch the mother. Lesson learned from this episode of Bad Parenting: First, intentionally scare kid with slimy shellfish, then try to calm her down with five seconds of gentle encouragement, and when that doesn’t work, call her a wuss and continue to torment her with said object. Because that’ll learn her. This mom is a bully.

Tags: family & parenting by Amy Boshnack
4 Comments »

As I watched the news this morning — between segments on the best spray tan for the summer and how angry Republicans are that Obama actually wants to talk to other countries and not just bomb them — I realized something: today is the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre. Here’s a link to my piece in The Chronicle of Higher Education on the legacy of Tiananmen Square. Long story short: China’s government has rewritten history and bribed its people with economic prosperity, to the point of complacency over ‘political matters.’ But they cannot erase history if we do not allow it.

Tags: education, politics & government by Terrence Cheng
1 Comment »

Book five in Sabrina Jeffries’ the School for Heiresses series, Don’t Bargain with the Devil, is the story of Lucinda Seton, a teacher at the finishing school all of the heroines in each novel of the series are in some way connected to, and the famous magician Diego Montalvo. [Read more →]

Tags: books & writing, romancing history by Katie Colvin
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This is the literal video version of Bonnie Tyler’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart.” Replacing the lyrics with a literal description of what’s happening in the video is pretty funny, especially because of how stupid the video is. (Via Ann Althouse at Instapundit.)

Tags: art & entertainment, music by Scott Stein
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If Dick Cheney had his way, Nelson Mandela might still be in prison. This sounds like the sort of wild exaggeration Keith Olbermann-types use to show their opposition to all things Republican. It is not. As a congressman, Cheney voted against a resolution calling for South Africa to free Mandela (who, at the time of the 1985 vote, had been imprisoned for 23 years of his eventual 27 year sentence). Cheney has backed away from some votes over the years — notably, he now says he would support the Head Start program, having rethought his opposition to feeding poor children — but he stands by this one. This is not to say Mandela would definitely be in jail to this day, as Cheney conceded Mandela has “mellowed” in recent times, suggesting that he could have eventually been paroled and perhaps one day even released entirely on his own recognizance.

[Read more →]

Tags: politics & government, terror & war by Sean Cunningham
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When Falls the Coliseum launched exactly one year ago, with our first post appearing on June 3rd, 2008, at 1:32 p.m. We have published more than 700 posts since then, and now have more than 40 contributors. This sort of hard data should impress you.

Since it’s our birthday, we expect that you’ll buy us something sparkly. And get us an ice cream cake. Don’t disappoint us. Oh, your budget is stretched as it is? Lucky for you, what we really want for our birthday doesn’t cost any money. What we really want is more readers. Thousands more. How about you e-mail a dozen friends and invite them to the party, announce us on Facebook and Twitter, maybe wear one of those sandwich boards with our URL in large print and find a good spot in a crowded intersection. You know, tell lots of people how much fun it is over here. Lie if you must and tell them we’ve got a keg and no cover charge.

Thanks to all our contributors and readers in year one, it’s been great fun so far. Here’s to year two having even more excellent posts and to the many new readers who’ll discover us.

Tags: announcements by Coliseum
1 Comment »

May 23, 2009
I dream I have a new method of subduing a snake. I leave a phone book opened and wait for a snake to slither across its pages. Then, using a long stick, I flip the phone book closed. It doesn’t hurt the snake, but it’s just heavy enough to keep the snake from moving around. I am proud of my innovation. [Read more →]

Tags: Fred's dreams by Fred Siegel
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How can a story capture the moment — just any moment, really — without instantly sounding cliche? Damion Searls’ short story collection (his first published fiction), What We Were Doing and Where We Were Going, has done that with writing that uses restraint and distance. It feels ethereal yet completely relatable. The writing is simple — no charms, not quite all business, but delicately exact. He gives the reader just enough and still we are left wanting more. Maybe that’s been done before. Maybe it’s been done many times before. It works and Searls has found a way to make it modern. [Read more →]

Tags: books & writing by Season Evans
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You would think that a film about a prostitute played by a twenty-one year old porn star (Sasha Grey) who can claim over one hundred and sixty-five porn films would be mildly interesting, or at least contain some racy scenes. You would be wrong on both fronts. I am not sure why the two elderly couples walked out of the theater the night that I saw the film, but I suspect it had more to do with boredom than shock. [Read more →]

Tags: Gail sees a movie, movies by Gail D. Rosen
2 Comments »

If there’s one thing African Americans love it’s having babies out of wedlock, and if there’s one thing they hate it’s marriage. Those are just facts. Luckily for them, as former PA Senator Rick Santorum pointed out Monday on Fox News’ On the Record, they have a wedlocked African American president to act as a role model. One who “says that marriage is cool” and knows how to treat his lady. He cautions Obama, though, against treating her too well, in light of his recent trip to New York. 

[Read more →]

Tags: his & hers, race & culture by Kelly Conaboy
7 Comments »

I decided to write about “Wipeout” (Wednesdays at 8 pm, ABC) because I couldn’t understand why I enjoyed it. I’m not a big laugher, “The Office” and “30 Rock” excepted. So what was it about seeing the human body being twisted and contorted like a rag-doll that made me giggle with delight? 

In retrospect, it shouldn’t be that funny. [Read more →]

Tags: television by Mark Guerin
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I am a recovering Catholic. I attended a Catholic grade school, high school and even a Catholic University for a while. To say that I was not amused would be an understatement. It really didn’t take me very long to realize that there were some glaring inconsistencies in church doctrine. Once I was old enough to start thinking on my own, what I call “The age of reason”, the hypocrisy became much too burdensome. [Read more →]

Tags: movies, religion & philosophy by Larry DeRose
9 Comments »

I love broccoli. Sautéed, roasted, steamed, mashed, broccoli in all its forms is fine with me. This weekend at my local Farmers Market I was giddy to buy the first broccoli of the season, and it seemed like my farmer friend was pretty giddy to be selling it to me. I went home and made a delicious broccoli soup. Filling, nutritious, and so easy to make, what else could you ask for!? [Read more →]

Tags: easy weeknight dinners, recipes & food by Jessica Alfreds
1 Comment »

The Bachelorette

My husband can’t watch this show with me. And it’s not because he can’t stand the idea of 30 men throwing themselves at one chick and humiliating themselves on national television, because he hasn’t had the same problem watching with me in the past (though in his defense, he’s not that interested… like he is in So You Think You Can Dance and The Hills). It’s because he thinks Jillian is the worst kisser. And he’s right. He totally brought it to my attention last night and now I find it horrifying to watch her make out with practically everyone. No wonder Jason didn’t pick her. He was over the sensation of being pecked at. [Read more →]

Tags: television by Lauren LaBumbard
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