pop culture smackdown

Or, clearly SL has been watching too much t.v.

I've been a bit stressed as of late, and consequently have spent most of my free time vegging in front of the television. I realize that there are message boards expressly for this purpose, but frankly I don't care. Here goes.

Typically, I enjoy Project Runway, but I must protest the way the series ended this season. In the first place, Chris deserved to remain in the competition instead of Rami. Don't get me wrong, Rami is very talented and likable, but I find it disheartening that he was given so many chances to demonstrate another skill and style besides his beloved draping technique when others were eliminated for far smaller transgressions. Rami did a draped piece on almost every challenge, the candy and men's apparel challenges being the two examples that come to mind when he didn't do drape. He even did draping during the WWE challenge for pity's sake! But more important than this bias on the part of the judges, the final winner was wrong as well. Again, don't get me wrong, Christian is very talented, but Jillian should have won. Chris was eliminated for his work being too costumey and yet Christian wins with a collection that contains a dress made entirely out of feathers? What? Consistency please!!! Every single piece was an avant garde item. That was not the challenge!

We are all geared up in my family for the annual March madness of NCAA basketball, as are many others. Does it bother anyone else that despite the fact that it is called March madness that the tournament doesn't end until April? What with the pre-season tournaments and the post season these students have been playing since November. Is it any wonder that so many athletes bolt from college to the NBA before finishing their degrees?

The Real Housewives of New York City is hopeless addictive and not nearly as repulsive as the Real Housewives of Orange County. Yes, they both feature hopelessly rich women and their ridiculously opulent lives, but at least in the NYC series they are aware of the fact that they live a rarefied existence. And they all have jobs so they are at least earning some of the money they spend. You wouldn't catch one of these socialites doing a keg stand. That being said, Ramona really should listen to her daughter's fashion advice. That way she would go out looking sexy and classy, as opposed to looking cheap. I don't care if the top is Dolce & Gabbana, it looked like hooker wear.

Apparently, critics have taken Diablo Cody, the woman who penned Juno, to task over the dialogue, claiming that teenagers don't speak like that. Now, I haven't seen the movie, but I have seen enough clips of it to get the idea of how Juno speaks in the film, and I have one thing to say to all of those critics out there. Screw you. Just because the average teenager doesn't talk like that doesn't mean that no teenagers do. And furthermore, no one is ever as witty, or concise, or clever, or articulate as the characters in a movie (with the exception of Dorothy Parker). You flub your line in a film and they cry "cut!" and you do it over. In real life if you muff the delivery that's it. Dialogue in films and t.v. shows has to be better than what you hear at your local coffee shop or grocery store. That's why it is called entertainment. Newsflash here all you critics out there, no one looks like the people in movies either, not even the actors who were in the movie! They have makeup and lighting, and fantastic costuming, and editing to make them look fabulous. And we want them to look fabulous (unless the part calls for something else). So get over yourselves. I think what really bothers them is that someone who worked as a stripper was able to come up with such a great script.

Finally, I came to the realization that if I were a car I would most likely be a Volvo. This thought depresses me. Safe, reliable, dependable. Wonderful things for a car to be, and overall, not bad for a person. But I always thought I had more personality and dash than a Volvo. Not that I think I am a Bugatti or anything, but I had hoped I would be something with more swish in it than a Volvo. This isn't a slam against Volvos or Volvo owners, but in life, when people see you almost solely as being reliable and dependable, they take you for granted. And that really sucks. But perhaps I have just been watching too much Top Gear. Richard Hammond rocks!!!