2009

[click an image for link to source]

An all too brief and incomplete recap of what served to
entertain, inform, and occupy my time in 2009.

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Christmas 2009 Dessert Preview

Almost-Raw Honey Cheesecake Bars with Cranberry Topping
[Featured in the November/ December 2009 issue of Vegetarian Times]

The only cooked ingredient in this creamy treat is a homemade cranberry topping. For a fully raw dessert, you can omit the topping and serve the bars plain, or garnish them with berries or sliced fresh fruit.

3 cups raw cashews, divided
1 cup frozen cranberries
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbs. raw, unfiltered honey, divided
1/4 cup apple juice
1/4 cup raw coconut oil, softened, plus extra for greasing baking dish
1 cup raw walnuts
1/4 cup raisins
1 cup raw macadamia nuts
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. salt

1. Cover 2 cups cashews with cold water, and soak 3 hours, or overnight.
2. Simmer cranberries, 2 Tbs. honey, and apple juice in saucepan over medium-low heat 10 to 12 minutes, or until cranberries pop. Cool 15 minutes. Pulse in blender or food processor until sauce is thick and smooth. Cool completely.
3. Grease bottom and sides of 8-inch-square glass baking dish with coconut oil. Process walnuts, raisins, and remaining 1 cup cashews in food processor, until mixture begins to stick together. Press into prepared dish, and chill 30 minutes, or overnight.
4. Drain soaked cashews. Puree cashews, macadamia nuts, lemon juice, remaining 1/4 cup coconut oil, remaining 1/4 cup honey, vanilla extract, salt, and 3 Tbs. water in food processor 5 minutes, or until smooth and creamy. Spoon cashew mixture over crust. Spread cranberry mixture over top. Cut through cheesecake with small knife to swirl. Freeze cheesecake 1 hour before serving. Thaw 5 minutes, then slice into 16 bars.

(Per Bar: 308 calories; 6 grams protein; 25 grams total fat, 7 grams saturated fat; 20 grams carbohydrates; 0 milligrams cholesterol; 77 milligrams sodium; 2 grams fiber; 10 grams sugar.)
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Happy Thanksgiving

Be thankful...for homemade pumpkin pie.

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Marriage Equality No Longer a Matter of "If"

It's now a matter of "when." And that is precisely why, even in the face of California's Prop 8, Maine's Prop 1, and all other similarly intolerant state referenda, there is cause for optimism in the pursuit of equal marriage rights in America.
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Happy Halloween

Let's go Yankees!

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"He can sneeze on his own time!"

I've always said the media meme of Biden as a bumbling gaffe machine is a bit overblown, and it seems the hilarious Onion News Network agrees.

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Let the Sunshine In

A photo and video montage I put together of the National Equality March and subsequent rally held Sunday, October 11th, 2009 in Washington, D.C.

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Equality Across America

See you there.

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Is the Media's Excessive Use of Interrogatively Framed Headlines a Bad Reporting Habit?

Yes, yes it is. Not only does it contribute to the fallacy that every issue can/should be framed as a debate of two equal sides, but it serves as a media loophole for reporting on unsubstantiated topics not worthy of declarative coverage.
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I Don't Want To Say Goodbye For The Summer

It's beyond official: the 2009 summer movie season is over. Comparatively speaking, I'd say the 2009 season was good (not great), with a few gems surrounded by a largely mediocre slate of movies. Here's a recap of my tweet-size thoughts and grades for the movies I managed to see this summer:

* Inglourious Basterds ~ "Tarantino at his finest." [A]

* Star Trek ~ "J.J. Abrams does it again." [A]

* The Hangover ~ "Very funny...and novel unfolding of story." [A-]

* (500) Days of Summer ~ "Gordon-Levitt and Deschanel well cast." [B+]

* Bruno ~ "A solid follow-up to Borat." [B]

* Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince ~ "Mostly a bridge to final films." [B]

* Away We Go ~ "Dialogue tends to overexplain." [B-]

* Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen ~ "Overly complicated story." [C+]

* Angels & Demons ~ "Significantly deviates from book, to detriment of movie." [C]

(Plus, a list of summer movies I'd still like to see: Up, District 9, Food, Inc., Public Enemies, Funny People, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Terminator Salvation, Whatever Works, Julie & Julia.)

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Nine

As in "this film is going to be nominated for at least nine Oscars."

Let's evaluate the profound degree to which Nine has "Academy Award nominee" written all over it: producing by the Weinstein Company; directing by Rob Marshall; lead actor Daniel Day Lewis...I really could stop here, and yet...lead and supporting actresses Nicole Kidman, Judi Dench, Sophia Loren, Marion Cotillard, Penelope Cruz; screenplay writing (partially) by the late Anthony Minghella; adaptation of a successful musical; attractive story elements ("a tortured director," foreign setting, etc.). On the flip side, Kate Hudson and Stacy "Fergie" Ferguson will also be appearing in the film, however (not knowing the details of the plot) I can only assume their characters are minor and/or will die a horrible death...at least I hope so.

[UPDATE: As pointed out in the comments by the Oscar guru himself, Mr. Cooper, it turns out that the 1963 autobiographical film 8 1/2 by Federico Fellini, which served as the inspiration for the musical Nine, was itself a five-time nominee and two-time winner of the 1964 Academy Awards, including a win for Best Foreign Language Film. Case closed.]
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BREAKING NEWS: Twitter Has Flown The Coop

It is being reported that Twitter has been down for hours now due to "a denial of service attack" on the site. Equally alarming is the disappearance of the magnanimous Fail Whale, last seen being curiously airlifted from the sea by a flock of rope-wielding orange birds (pictured above). Investigators confirm the unidentified birds to be the primary suspects in the Twitter site attack.
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The Flavor Veridict Is In

The new Rita's Swedish Fish Italian Ice is amazing! As expected, it tastes exactly like the packaged Original Swedish Fish (which, as you can see in the photo above, Rita's was brilliantly handing out along with orders of the new flavor). I never thought I'd have the fortitude to voluntarily abandon the greatness that is Rita's Fudge Brownie Cream Ice, and yet abandon it I did.

And now for the bad news. All of the advertising for the new Swedish Fish flavor notes that it is "For a limited time only." Apparently Rita's giveth and Rita's taketh away, but hopefully we'll have at least until Rita's seasonal closing time in early Fall before this glorious creation departs.
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President Pullman Always Says It Best

Happy Independence Day!

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Sanford and Sun

The following is a comment I made to my wife yesterday during our discussion of South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford and his mysterious disappearance:

"I think Sanford is doing one of two things: either he's visiting with his mistress or he's taking a seedy trip to Mexico."

WOW! I'd say I hit that nail nearly dead center! The mention of Mexico was meant to reflect the general idea that Sanford was on some strange, clandestine getaway to South America, so the fact that the country involved was actually Argentina is largely of secondary importance. As I just expressed to @mlshapiro, I think I may be like the precogs from Minority Report, except my abilities only apply to grandiose political scandals.

Thus, I will now use these political precognitive powers to register a new comment: the GOP will continue to wander through the political wilderness for a long, long time.
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Yes, I Can Hear You Now!

'Broadcasters promise plan to
quiet TV ads by September'

The money quote: "The FCC has been investigating loud ads since the 1960s..."

That's right, the government investigation into loud television commercials is approaching the half-century mark. Wow.
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Obama: "I Will Never Be The Same After Denny's"

Obama Drastically Scales Back Goals For America After Visiting Denny's

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Ideas Worth Spreading

My wife showed me this video a couple years back and it's never quite left my mind. The speaker is Sir Ken Robinson, a "creativity expert," addressing an audience of educators at the Technology, Entertainment, Design (TED) 2006 conference. He's like a British Michael Scott (which I guess is technically David Brent), except Robinson is actually quite funny and intelligent. Basically, forget the whole character comparison with The Office and just watch the video.

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Top Ten Most Anticipated Movies of the 2009 Summer Movie Season

Graduate school has finally come to an end, and summer is just around the corner. Thus, the time to return to the movie theater is upon us!

The 2009 summer movie season certainly has the potential to be an entertaining one, even given the release of such embarrassments as Dance Flick (a spoof of the movie Save the Last Dance...seriously) and Rob Zombie's H2 (a Halloween movie in August...seriously). Below I offer my personal picks for the top ten most anticipated movies of the 2009 summer season. It's quite an eclectic mix, encompassing many of the typical summer movie genres - science fiction, mystery, animated, documentary, action, romantic comedy, raunchy comedy, fantasy, drama, Tarantino Nazism. Well, maybe they're not all typical. To the list!

1. Star Trek (May 8)
2. Angels & Demons (May 15)
3. Up (May 29)
4. Food, Inc. (June 12)
5. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (June 24)
6. Away We Go (June 25)
7. Bruno (July 10)
8. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (July 15)
9. Julie & Julia (August 7)
10. Inglorious Basterds (August 21)
    

[Plus, a few matinee-worthy selections...X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Terminator Salvation, Year One, Public Enemies, Funny People, Whatever Works.]

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Stop The Bullets. Kill The Gun.

An effective, gasp-inducing ad campaign for an issue of grave concern.
Visit the organization's website here.

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Congratulations NYU Graduates!

In my mind, my master's degree became official on Monday during the NYU Graduate School of Arts & Science graduation ceremony (photos will be posted shortly), but for all those students awaiting the university-wide graduation ceremony at Yankee Stadium today, good luck and congratulations!

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The Adventures of Max the Dog

It's nice how a simple project for a high school advanced video class has become a tribute to my childhood dog, Max. Thanks to a trail of Cheerios, some peanut butter, and a few dozen dog treats, Max was transformed into an amazing actor. As an added bonus, this video serves as a chance to revisit my old house, my old bedroom, my old car, and...well...a younger me.

After some minor editing and enhancement of the original version, I present to you the absurdity that is The Adventures of Max the Dog. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll wonder why the "visual effects" were of such hilariously poor quality. But, most importantly, you'll be treated to a brief glimpse of the greatness that was Max.

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Play Him Off, Keyboard Cat Presents...

Two new video entries into the Play Him Off, Keyboard Cat series, edited by yours truly. Enjoy!

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When FAIL Meets Feline

Anything capable of breaking through my stoic composure while riding a packed NYC-bound commuter train is worthy of note. Earlier today, the Play Him Off, Keyboard Cat sent me into an uncontrollable, tear-streaming laughing fit during one such commute. Below is easily one of the best iterations thus far, featuring the already amazing video of Glen Beck's guest passing out during a live broadcast. The unique editing in of "wait for it...wait for it"-style visuals of the cat is simply classic.

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The First 100 Days

View slideshow here.

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Disney's 'Loris-atouille'

When Pixar gets a hold of this video they will have officially found the subject of their Summer 2014 animated movie.

(By the way, that's two animal video posts in a row. New blog theme? No, just a coincidence, fortunately or unfortunately depending upon your perspective.)
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The Blog Is Back

And so is the squirrel that is desperately trying to live in my home.

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Please Stand By

We are currently experiencing high volumes of master's thesis writing.
Blogging will resume shortly.

We thank you for your patience during this difficult time.

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Pretty, Pretty, Pretty Good

The cast of Seinfeld...appearing together...on Curb Your Enthusiasm...multiple episodes...this fall...on HBO...with Larry David...all of them...together......could you excuse me for a moment?

(OH MY GOD!!! YES, YES, YES!!! BEST NEWS EVER!!! WOOOHOOO!!!)

Ok, I'm back. So, yeah, this will be amazing.

Far too often do I wish away entire chunks of the year over television and movie premieres of the near and distant future, but I'm more than willing to state here and now that I truly cannot wait until this fall, when the prospect of seeing Jerry Seinfeld, Jason Alexander, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Michael Richards, and Larry David on screen together is enough to make me rewatch all eight billion episodes of the Seinfeld DVDs (and 60 episodes of the Curb Your Enthusiasm DVDs) I have tucked away in my spare bedroom closet.
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30 Days

Until my master's thesis is due.

This will either be the greatest academic achievement of my life
or the driving force of my untimely demise. Or both.

To the library!

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Life Could Be A Dream

It's been announced by Universal Pictures that Gore Verbinski (of Pirates of the Caribbean fame) has been selected to direct a remake of the 1985 classic Clue, which in turn was based on the popular board game from Hasbro.

Annnnd, I'm officially psyched.

Assuming Verbinski updates the material with current references (goodbye communism and singing telegrams, hello terrorism and electronic communication), preserves the tone of the original movie (two parts mystery, one part scary, one part comedy), and selects a quality cast (how about bringing along Johnny Depp, or honoring Tim Curry by bringing him back in the fake Mr. Boddy role?), then I think we're in for a real treat.

Or he can butcher the whole thing. As always, I'll be remaining optimistic.

*If you recognize the significance between the title of this post and the movie Clue, then you, my friend, are a true fan.
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Sunday Night Is Oscar Night

The 2009 Academy Awards have arrived...and so have my predictions!

[UPDATE: 18 out of 24 correct, very pleased. See you next year, Oscars!]

Best Picture
And the Oscar goes to...Slumdog Millionaire.
Don't count out...Milk? Curious Case? Let's face it, Slumdog is a lock.

Best Director
And the Oscar goes to...Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire.
Don't count out...Gus Van Sant for Milk, but again Slumdog is pretty solid here too.

Best Actor
And the Oscar goes to...Mickey Rourke for The Wrestler.
Don't count out...Sean Penn for Milk, in a pretty tight race.

Best Actress
And the Oscar goes to...Kate Winslet for The Reader.
Don't count out...the nomination leader herself, Meryl Streep for Doubt.

Best Supporting Actor
And the Oscar goes to...Heath Ledger for The Dark Knight.
Don't count out...pigs flying, because that's what it would take for Ledger to lose this award.

Best Supporting Actress
And the Oscar goes to...Viola Davis for Doubt.
Don't count out...Penelope Cruz for Vicky Cristina Barcelona, the perceived front-runner.

Best Original Screenplay
And the Oscar goes to...Milk.
Don't count out...Wall-E.

Best Adapted Screenplay
And the Oscar goes to...Slumdog Millionaire.
Don't count out...a deserving Frost/Nixon not winning.

Best Animated Feature Film
And the Oscar goes to...Wall-E.
Don't count out...did I mention that Wall-E is animated gold?

Best Cinematography
And the Oscar goes to...Slumdog Millionaire.
Don't count out...the visuals of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

Best Film Editing
And the Oscar goes to...Slumdog Millionaire.
Don't count out...The Dark Knight.

Best Art Direction
And the Oscar goes to...The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.
Don't count out...The Dark Knight, again.

Best Costume Design
And the Oscar goes to...The Duchess.
Don't count out...The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

Best Makeup
And the Oscar goes to...the old and young of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.
Don't count out...the Joker's face in The Dark Knight.

Best Visual Effects
And the Oscar goes to...The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.
Don't count out...you guessed it, The Dark Knight.

Best Sound Editing
And the Oscar goes to...The Dark Knight.
Don't count out...Wall-E.

Best Sound Mixing
And the Oscar goes to...The Dark Knight.
Don't count out...Wall-E.

Best Original Score
And the Oscar goes to...Slumdog Millionaire.
Don't count out...poor Thomas Newman of Wall-E.

Best Original Song
And the Oscar goes to...'Jai Ho' from Slumdog Millionaire, because you can't get it out of your head.
Don't count out...'Down to Earth' from Wall-E (Newman!).

Best Foreign Language Film
And the Oscar goes to...The Class (France), maybe.
Don't count out... the strong contender Waltz with Bashir (Israel).

Best Documentary Feature Film
And the Oscar goes to...Man on Wire.
Don't count out...Encounters at the End of the World or Trouble the Water.

Best Documentary Short Film
And the Oscar goes to...The Witness.
Don't count out...The Conscience of Nhem En.

Best Animated Short Film
And the Oscar goes to...Presto.
Don't count out...La Maison en Petits Cubes or This Way Up.

Best Live Action Short Film
And the Oscar goes to...Spielzeugland (Toyland).
Don't count out...New Boy or The Pig.
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