Hunk of the day

Magnet #851 - SoapNet Hunk

Ok. So here's my last SoapNet swag magnet! And the silly people at ABC are closing down the network in a couple of years, so who knows if I'll get any other SN swag again!

It's kinda fitting that I use this one as my last one, methinks. I mean, what else do you see more of on SoapNet than on any one network, but hunks.

And, it's such a weird word, because honestly, I'd rather blog on a magnet that said cuteboy or hotboy. "Hunk" is just more of a visceral, I want to jump his bones, word, rather than "cuteboy/hotboy," the more look from far away but don't touch (unless he touches first, obvi) word.

Lord. Did I just blog that out loud? So much for those Bible verses my cabbie gave me this morning at 6:30. Heh.

Also fitting that I use this magnet for today, given that it was our full day of running around with Erik Estrada with the Healthy Sight Patrol, for our client Transitions Optical.

I've magnetblogged about him before, so I won't go into it, except to show you these pictures, but each time we work together, I'm amazed at three things.

First, how nice and engaging the guy is. He seriously knows how to put on a show, and talk to everyone - from the littlest guy (a little toddler out in Brooklyn) to the oldest senior with her walker, who walks right up to him and smacks his forearm for not aging like she did. Heh.

Second, how the crowd, of pretty much every demographic, responds to him. Not only the gals, but the guys. Not only young, but the old. And, not only the US, but everywhere. Today, we were approached by folks from Brazil, Argentina, Russia, Japan, China, Ivory Coast, Spain, United Kingdom, France. Apparently, Ponch is global, baby!

Third, how even after all these years, Ponch is apparently timeless, too. The guy never ages. No. Seriously. He needs to figure out how to bottle that stuff.

Yep. You can't help but like the guy.

Plus, who can't like a guy who totally went and told my weatherman crush that I want to marry him. Then, when I finally get to talk to my weatherman crush...all's he can talk about is how awesome Erik Estrada is.

Oiy.

eta:
An amusing thing. I just went to look up HUNK quotes. Hahahaah.

Blue skies and best friends

Magnet #845 - Pier

Needed something that was pretty to pick me up after another wonderful day here at Martyr Kingdom. And this swag magnet from Corbis - despite its subject matter - is pretty.

Check it, it's where the blue of the sky meets the green of the earth. I love when I see that in nature. It's beautiful, and makes you think Earth's totally the best planet in the solar system!

Plus, dudes. It's totally the pier where the LOST submarine was docked. Or, for those of you in the know, it could totally be the pier where Jake Cutter lands Cutter's Goose on Tales of the Gold Monkey.

Wait. What? You haven't heard about my love for Tales of the Gold Monkey? (The follow-up to that magnetpost is that I have a couple of very, very special Direct Messages that my inner sixth grader is so very fangurly squeeeee-ish about.)

Anyway, ya'll know I hate the beach, it's like my idea of not fun. Ya'll know that despite my best attempts, I'm afraid I'm going to end up there a little over a week from now.

But, you know what? If it happens, I'll do it, because that BFF Babymoon's meant for the two of us to spend time together, these last months before she pops that kid out. And, I'll put up with it, because I've known the girl for almost 30 years.

Thirty years. Shoot. That's insane. I remember she and I giggling over knowing each other 10 years. And 18 years. And 20 years. And 25 years. I can't wait to see what she says when I say, dude. 30.

Whoa. Too bad we both can't drink on this trip!

NOTE: This magnetpost brought to you by the fact that the New York Times posted the single-silliest article I've read in a long, long while - the death of the Best Friend relationship, and how schools are trying to encourage kids to have more friendships and not have one single BFF, and how sleepaway camps are hiring "friendship coaches" to help kids have more friends.

Seriously? What kind of liberal, overcoddling, overmeddling child-rearing crap is that?

Baby, it's cold outside

Magnet #719 - SoapNet Cold

Oh, it's not that cold, but how could I let Snowmaggeddon 2010 go by without using this magnet?

Seriously, I can't believe how much people are all freaking out over this snow here in NYC. It isn't that bad.

Well, I guess, til I try to go to work tomorrow. And even then, it still probably won't be that bad.

Sheesh.

I will say it is wreaking havoc over work schedules around here, folks from the burbs having to work from home, or dragging their kids around, or businesses closing because people can't get in.

I'm kinda torn. For as much as I really, really, really want a snow day, we don't have time for it at work. But, I love coming in on snow days, because seriously, I get so much more work done when others aren't around. I'm betting it's partially because I'm way more productive in sweatshirts and jeans.

On the other hand, it does bug the crap out of me when people use it as an excuse. Oh, I'm not coming in today, because I don't want to be in the weather. Oh, I can't get into work, because of the weather.

Which holds true, if you're far away and relying on trains, planes and automobiles.

But, seriously, if you live nine blocks away from work?

I think you should be getting your ass out into that cold. Heh.

The George who stares at goats

Magnet #624 - SoapNet's Sexy

Apparently, you can do what you will, but there are just some people out there that you cannot make look ugly. George Clooney is one of those men.

Even with his ridiculous and frankly unnecessary mustache in Men Who Stare at Goats, he's still sexy.

Even when you put him in 80s hair and make him dance, he's still sexy.

Even when you put him in sandy desert wear or cargo pants and a ballcap, he's still sexy.

Even when you bloodshot his eyes, tape his nose, and basically beat the bejeepers out of him, he's still sexy.

The man can't help it.

But even I know that sexy can't be the whole movie. Or, rather, any of it. Clearly, him being sexy was not the point of the movie.

Although, I am a little hard pressed to figure out what the whole point of the movie was. Sure, it was funny at times (especially with the meta Jedi stuff, though the joke started to get old), and Grant "OMG, who's that guy parking in George Clooney's parking spot, s it him? Is it him?" Heslov's direction was pretty good (even with the time jumps) and Ewan McGregor's American accent was ok (though it wasn't consistent between the acting and his very modulated VO), and Jeff Bridges seems to relish his hippie role (doesn't he always?) and Kevin Spacey was amusingly sadistic (isn't he always?). And the soundtrack's pretty good, too.

But at some point, I was kinda waiting for the story to get to a point. So much so, that when it did come to a turning point, I almost missed it.

Also, it's unfortunate, and they're gonna get dinged somewhere, I'm sure, but there's about a three-minute scene that literally stopped my heart and took me directly out of the movie, and it almost didn't get me back.

No, not when the goat dropped dead. You'll know it when you see it, and I would bet that had this movie been a later release, they might have excised that scene altogether, I think, in the wake of last week's horrific events at Fort Hood. Just bad timing, is all.

Oh, well. I said yesterday he's got two more movies to go this year. Don't get me wrong - the movie's an okay way to spend 90 minutes. I'll admit that I probably would not have gone to see it sans Clooney, but then again, I'm not the demo. Not really sure who is the demo, and I definitely couldn't tell by the theatre audience, either.

Still. As I said. It's an okay way to spend 90 minutes, if only for the buddy-buddy show Clooney and Ewan.

Hmmm. On another note, I'm almost done with these SoapNet swag magnets that my friend got me. That's sad making.

Hello, luvah

Magnet #555 - SoapNet's Love

So in complete opposites to my last SoapNet swag magnet for Punk, here's one on Love.

I finally understand Carrie Bradshaw's love of a good shoe.

Despite all the Imelda Marcos jokes that can be made about Filipinos, I'm most certainly not a shoehorse. I'm generally the basic inexpensive brown, black and blue - in heels and casualwear - and I'm a pretty happy camper. Every once in a while, I find a shoe that I fall in love with, and its usually something printed or embroidered with pretty colors.

But yesterday, I found the perfect shoe - comfy, despite its height, and I could walk across the slick poured concrete floor at Fossil, without busting my behind. In two colors, gorgeous black and brown - styled very 40s, with an art-deco'ish (even almost Frank Lloyd Wright-esque) 3.5-inch-heel.

Frankly, the heel is what sold me, because it's just so well designed.

Love.

Then, I went to go look up a picture of the shoe - a picture which totally doesn't do it justice, but I draw the line at taking a picture of my shoes. It's funny and fitting, and somehow Fossil, that their site says my shoe is part of their Vintage Sole collection, and the page header is "It's all about the architecture" and the blurb is all about the lovely design and attention to detail.

Oh, Fossil. How I love you. And especially your outlet store at outlet prices.

eta:
Yes, that's right. I just blogged about a shoe. I had a whole long and frankly lovely post about love in my head this morning, not to mention a good two weddings and another friend's baby due later this year to blog about love. And I still chose the love of a good shoe.

Dang. They better still be wonderful after the first day I wear them!

Fishy thoughts

Magnet #384 - Contemplate

Yep. Another swag magnet - still not sure which stockhouse this came from.

Do you suppose fish get dizzy watching clothes swirl around in the washer/dryer? Also, is that fish checking out that chick's bum?

And, how did I not convince anyone that we need Transitions or Transitions Championship magnets? How could this be? (Oh! Maybe I'll snag a couple of the swirl stickers and make them magnets. Hah. Score.)

Oiy. This always happens. An early morning flight, and I can't sleep. I get all contemplative and my head can't turn off. It's not nerves.

I'm fairly sure that it's the can of Coke I had with dinner. Argh.

I was packing (I'm always a late packer. I'll pack until the second the car gets here, cuz it's what I do.). Then I was dropping stuff to DVD, so that I can bring it with me. Then I was working. Then I was sewing. (What?)

And now, I'm sitting here blogging. Only because my eyes, though twitchy, aren't remotely sleepy. Stupid Coke! It's ok, because my coworkers already down in Tampa are working, too. So. There.

I thought I'd talk about that time I woke up late and almost missed my flight. But no way, no how do I want to put that karma out there.

Jeepers. Excuse me, while I go walk backward in the bathroom 3 times.

They sell pens there, don't they?

Magnet #288 - Polka Dots

Yeah, I'll pretty much buy anything if it's shiny and has pretty colors. This one was part of a set from Staples.

I love office and/or school supplies. I can spend a good hour just roaming around Staples or Office Max/Depot, and at least half of that time just in the Post-it Center alone. I love the Post-it Centers! They've expanded their range of post-its and flags to make them pretty colors and designs. So, yeah, I'll admit to having a small lunchbox at work to house my Post-it collection. And it cheers me so, dropping cute paper post-it notes on work docs or in packages. Check out this EepyBird Sticky Note Experiment - is one the coolest things I've seen using sticky notes. Awesome.

Also, pretty pens make me happy. I'm a pen stealer - people at work hide their pens when I come visit their desks. I tend to pick them up to write with, and then forget that it's not mine, and I walk away with them.

A client once made fun of me writing with pretty, pretty purple ink, on my pretty, pretty pink paper notebook. What? There's no law against having a sense of fun when you go into those boring business meetings! Of course, this was the same client who, when he came back into his office, caught me going through his pen cup, looking for corporate swag pens to steal. What? They were supercool pens!

And who doesn't love corporate swag! The best gift he ever got me was a branded water bottle, filled to the brim with my favorite branded pens. Loved those. Still got 'em at my desk.

Yep. I just wrote a whole magnetpost on the beauty of office supplies. Shut it. You just read this whole post. And, what's more know you love office supplies, too. Who doesn't?

Pure as the snow under that tire over there

Magnet #161 - SoapNet Pure

<---- The second in my SoapNet swag magnets.

Am I the only person on the planet watching that new ABCFamily series Secret Life of an American Teenager? It's this new family-oriented drama brought to you by Brenda Hampton - the same woman who gave us RevCam and the 7th Heaven bunch.

Secret Life has me puzzled as hell. I can't figure out if I'm offended by the exteme stereotyping in this "Brendavision" show.

At the heart of the show is a 15-year-old all-American teenage girl who got herself knocked up one awkward, misguided night...at Band Camp.

The rest of the show is an extremely contrived community of high school students from all walks of life and religions, an intricately complicated set of parents who have either dated or married or are sleeping with each other, and a soundtrack and sets repurposed from 7th Heaven.

Consider:

The born-again Christian family is the blondest blond family to ever blond. The neurotically perfect cheerleader daughter is sporting a purity ring, which drove her football jock boyfriend into the arms of the resident bad-girl.

The bad-girl who is pretty much the fallen Eve figure, a Latina chick who loves sex and isn't afraid to tell EVERYone, with a promiscuous flight attendant mother who not only leaves her daughter alone frequently, but tells her daughter that the married-to-another boyfriend is being allowed stay at the house while she's away. And, by the way, Brenda, I love the slightly Latin score whenever you pan across her inappropriate-for-school attire as she sways down the hall.

The pregnant girl's family was seemingly perfect, except that the father's sleeping with Latina chick's mom, and has now left to move in with Latina chick.

The foster kid with a heart of gold whose own personal traumas prevent him from connecting with anyone, except for his counselor, who just learned that the kid is about to be a father.

The requisite Catholic best friend can't believe she has a friend who's not only considering an abortion, but whose parents are possibly getting divorced.

The requisite African-American best friend who has quickly become my favorite because she doesn't do anything but advise the pregnant chick to tell her parents.

The pregnant girl refuses to talk about how she's pregnant. WTF? She's 15. And now, her new boyfriend that she's in love with and is in love with her has asked her to marry him. Again, WTF?

The Asian best friends of the stupid boyfriend who are dating each other, but who function as the chorus, a conduit of gossip, and a fount of sexual data.

And on and on the travesty goes.

So why am I watching? Well, for starters, it's summer.

But, really, it's because with each ridiculous word that comes out of the actors' mouths, I wonder just what the hell is Brenda's vision.

SoapNet, wherefore art thou?

Magnet #144 - SoapNet Hot

I love swag. I'm a sucker for anything with a corporate logo on it. No, really. Stop snickering. I can hear you.

I had a friend who used to work at HBO, so she had access to all the coolest swag. But did I ask her for cool HBO stuff when she was there, or when she went travelling to trade shows? Nope. She basically knew which channels to hit up.

And at the time, my favorite little netlet was SoapNet. Oh, I know I was slightly obsessed with the soaps at the time, but more than that, for me, SoapNet was the damn little network that could. They were hot, and were the perfect case study of launching a cable network with a corporate umbrella. They had just celebrated their 5-year anniversary, they had stayed true to their mission, and hadn't yet branched off into their own programming, or those stupid SNM (Sunday Night Movies), or extended their scope to soaps...and celebrities. Ugh.

And they always had the best swag - right down to these fun little magnets (with Hot, Sexy, Liar, etc.) that I'll eventually post here, and supercool wine-glass tags labeled with "Evil Twin" and "Hero."

SoapNet branding was just wonderfully insane - and strong. It kinda still is, with its great commercials and really strong brand presence. But now their programming's gone a little haywire - taking what used to be my go-to-sleep channel to my go-to-sleep channel if Boomerang's not playing something good.

And I gotta tell ya, SoapNet - Boomerang's usually always playing something good late-night. Even when it's Top Cat. Or that damn Thundarr the Barbarian.