YEAR IN REVIEW: ZONINO! Award 2009

The 2009 ZONINO! AWARD (which is both invaluable and worthless at the same time) goes to...

Jake Hurwitz and Amir Blumenfeld of Jake & Amir. Their College Humor hosted site and crazy webisodes have amused us for hours on end and turned us into those annoying quote spouting friends you want to muzzle...if you weren't laugh along so hard. It's FTW.

CONGRATULATIONS FOR ALL OF US HERE AT ZONINO!!!

Sergio del Limonar
Mrs. Fitz 1 (and 2)
AmErica
Buzzy
Bee

YEAR IN REVIEW: WEBSITES

This is the eighth in the YEAR IN REVIEW series. Each day we will profile a different topic and choose out top 5 recommendations for the year. The ZONINO-iest, if you will.

1 Get an intelligent dose of smarts from the cutting-edge writers at Racialicious.
2 Learn something today at Listverse.
3 Who knew cakes could be so funny? Cakewrecks, that's who!
4 Feel better about your handy work at There, I Fixed It!
5 Be glad it's not your family at Awkward Family Photos...or is it?

YEAR IN REVIEW: BOOKS

This is the seventh in the YEAR IN REVIEW series. Each day we will profile a different topic and choose out top 5 recommendations for the year. The ZONINO-iest, if you will.

1 You Shall Know Our Velocity by Dave Eggers
2 Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer
3 Tales From the Town of Widows by James Cañon
4 Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri
5 The Gashlycrumb Tinies by Edward Gorey

YEAR IN REVIEW: MOVIE

This is the sixth in the YEAR IN REVIEW series. Each day we will profile a different topic and choose out top 5 recommendations for the year. The ZONINO-iest, if you will.

1 Awards-darling Precious
2 Kathryn Bigelow's award-winning The Hurt Locker
3 French film Entre Les Murs (The Class)
4 Sci-Fi thriller District 9
5 Michael Jackson's last hurrah This Is It

YEAR IN REVIEW: RECIPES

This is the fifth in the YEAR IN REVIEW series. Each day we will profile a different topic and choose out top 5 recommendations for the year. The ZONINO-iest, if you will.

1 Strawberry Spinach Summer Salad
2 Sad Apple Pizza
3 Coconut Banana Bread
4 Chicken Pesto Pizza
5 Fries Cuatro Queso Dos Fritos

YEAR IN REVIEW: WORDS

This is the fourth in the YEAR IN REVIEW series. Each day we will profile a different topic and choose out top 5 recommendations for the year. The ZONINO-iest, if you will.

1 loquacious
2 palpate
3 emporium
4 apoplectic
5 pernicious

ON HOLIDAY

ZONINO! is on holiday for the 24th and 25th of December baking cookies for Santa and then curling up in the fetal position on the couch the day after with a sick stomach after being forced to eat said cookies when he didn't show. Something about not being "good" enough...

MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY BOXING DAY!

YEAR IN REVIEW: EAT OUT

This is the third in the YEAR IN REVIEW series. Each day we will profile a different topic and choose out top 5 recommendations for the year. The ZONINO-iest, if you will.

1 Crifs Dogs in New York City
2 Coast Sushi in Chicago
3 Grand Avenue Cafe in Eau Claire, Wisconsin
4 Burrito Union in Duluth, Minnesota
5 Izzy's Ice Cream in St. Paul, Minnesota

YEAR IN REVIEW: YOUTUBE

This is the second in the YEAR IN REVIEW series. Each day we will profile a different topic and choose out top 5 recommendations for the year. The ZONINO-iest, if you will.

1 "I Got A Feeling" lip-synch video by the communications students at UQAM.
2 The vocal stylings of Garfunkle & Oates.
3 Literal Videos
4 Spontaneous performance of "Do-Re-Mi" in an Antwerp train station.
5 The amazing jump rope team performance.

YEAR IN REVIEW: MUSIC

This is the first in the YEAR IN REVIEW series. Each day we will profile a different topic and choose out top 5 recommendations for the year. The ZONINO-iest, if you will.

MUSIC

1 James Morrison's album Songs For You, Truths For Me
2 Toby Lightman's single "My Sweet Song"
3 Jypsi's single "Mister Officer"
4 Anjulie's self-titled debut album.
5 Sarah Lou Richards 5-song EP Emerald City

MONTHLY REVIEW: December

There won't be any "Blue Christmases" with ZONINO! I know this was a short month with our upcoming "YEAR IN REVIEW" series but that doesn't mean it was any less great!

MUSIC

Shayne Ward left us "Breathless" with his hit single from 2007...it takes awhile to cross the pond, I guess.

Carrie Underwood and the video for lead single from her third studio album, "Cowboy Casanova" had us polishing another award for her in 2010 already.

Another blond bomb-shell, country-folk newcomer Sarah Lou Richards, blew us away with her debut EP Emerald City.

And we "Naturally" fell for the sweet beats and groove of The Scene and Selena Gomez.

MOVIE

Satisfy your musical appetite some more with the biodoc Still Bill, about living legend Bill Withers, when it comes to your town.

BOOK

Need a perfect stocking stuffer for almost any age? The ageless and always amusing The Gashlycrumb Tinies is sure to please for years to come!

WEBSITE

Bored? Try Stumbleupon and see what you discover...

Still bored? Make your DJ dreams come true at daftpunk.

Or maybe you need some last-minute-that-don't-look-like-it gifts. GoJane can help you find the perfect thing!

Check out all the free-ness at Free Documentaries and be the advocate for change no one wants at their holiday gathering!

YOUTUBE

Love to play Minesweeper? So do these guys.

The Muppets have charisma to spare in their web-hit interpretation of Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody

And more creative energy comes from Joshua Allen Harris and his amazing bag statues.

And finally, who doesn't love a good romp on a trampoline? Foxes do!

RECIPE

Wine Cake might not go well with an Avocado Drink and Candy Cane Cookies but separately they're divine!

Happy end of 2009!

RECIPE: Pizza Burger

When I was younger, my father would take my brother and I to visit his old home town. It wasn't the one stop sign, the fact that everyone knew everyone, or that Zuba pants were still in fashion here that mesmerized us though. The town drive-in had one of the most delicious things a 10 year old could ever dream of - the pizza burger!

Now, I haven't had one, let alone the desire to have one, since those glory days of my youth, however upon feasting my eyes on this monstrosity, I might have to change my tune. Just follow the artery-clogging instructions and you'll be on your way to a glorious food-coma in no time!

Sergio del Limónar

YOUTUBE: Trampoline Foxes

It's been a long week with the holidays so close. So, here's a little ZONINO! to get you through this last Friday before the holiday festivities really get going...presenting Foxes on a Trampoline! Enjoy!

Sergio del Limónar

WEBSITE: Free Documentaries

Remember when you saw Supersize Me and didn't eat a fast food hamburger for a week (although you swore it would be "never")? Our how you were convinced that all skeet shooters were one hair pin away from wreaking havoc on you and your family at the mall or school after seeing Bowling For Columbine ?

Documentaries can be fascinating looks into other view points vastly different from our own or giant pieces of propaganda meant to mess with our own moral consciousness. However you want to view them, now you can...for free! FreeDocumentaries has over 100 titles - many blockbuster hits - covering various interest areas. Although most are political or historical in nature the science nerd and travel buff will also be satisfied with the selection available. And for being free, who can complain!?!

Now, go watch "Supermarket Secrets" and swear you'll visit your local farmer's market more...until next week.

Sergio del Limónar

YOUTUBE: Joshua Allen Harris Street Art

See that trash laying in a crinkled heap by the curb? Quick! Look again! It's a giant monster come to life! Joshua Allen Harris is one of the creative young artists creating and embracing the spirit of what art is all about - making a person stop and think.

Harris's art is very public and uses nothing more than tape and several plastic garbage or grocery bags. Borrowing from air vents meant to circulate New York City's subway system, his creation lay in pile idly over a vent like nothing more than a piece of discarded refuse only to spring up, filling with air, to become a polar bear, loch ness monster, or giraffe!

Before you have time to grab you camera to snap a quick photograph, it tumbles like an autumn leaf back to the pavement, waiting for the next subway gust to bring it to life.

Sergio del Limónar

WEBSITE: The Daft Punks

Want to be the next DJ rocking the turntable in Miami or Ibiza? Do you have what it takes to make a club jump and grind until breakfast? ...or are you just at work bored to tears?

Regardless of your motivation, check out dothedaft and with just a keyboard and some speakers you can be cranking out your own mix in no time. Play with the rhythm, pitch, and backing beats to create a truly unique dance track, your boss will come be-boppin' out of the office in glow-sticks. To fire you. Better put on the headphones...

Sergio del Limónar

BOOK: The Gashlycrumb Tinies

I randomly stumbled upon the book The Gashlycrumb Tinies in the lobby of a hotel I was recently staying at. A children's book that can easily be enjoyed my adults of all ages for its dark humor and bizarrely creative illustrations, this alphabet book goes through 26 pages of children and their tragic life-ending events.

For example, author and artist Edward Gorey, tells us that "K is for Kate who was struck with an ax." And in rhyming fashion, we later discover that "L is for Leo who swallowed some tacks."
This book, while not for all children, would be a perfect stocking stuffer, white elephant gift, or conversation piece for your coffee table.

Sergio del Limonar

MUSIC: "Naturally"

When I look into my crystal disco ball to see what songs I will be requesting to rock out to this next month to obsession, it will be "Naturally" by Selena Gomez and The Scene. The first time I heard this song I was in love with it's pulsing beat and nauseatingly cheery lyrics. Then I found out it was by Disney-darling Selena Gomez and I became nauseated.

But, truth be damned, a good song is a good song and Disney pre-fab singers can't all be bad, can they? At least this one wasn't in High School Musical...

Buzzy

WEBSITE: GoJane

I love the holidays! The lights, the food, the music, the spirit...I just can't get enough! The one thing I have a love/hate relationship with is my social events calendar. I love getting together with family, friends, and colleagues for this party, or that dinner, or some snappy cocktail hour as much as the next gal, but I find that I'm running out of things to wear!

Now, I don't need a closet full of new outfits, just something to make them look new and different. A friend turned me on to GOJane, a clothing and accessories online store with amazing deals. This is also a prime spot to pick up all those stocking stuffers for your girlfriends!

Just in time for the four New Years bashes you've got to make an appearance at, right?!?

Buzzy

WEBSITE: Stumbleupon.com

Ladies and gentleman, the latest in office (and life in general) procrastination has just found it's way to my desktop. I'm pleased to introduce you to StumbleUpon, a website that allows you to check off your interests (anything from animals and arts to oddities and online games, photography and psychology to science and self improvement). I like to check off every box they offer, to get the broadest range of fun. Once your preferred boxes are checked off, you can start "stumbling" across the interwebs. The site generates one random website after another (just keep clicking the flashy looking Stumble! button) for your general enjoyment. This site is a great time passer for those days at the office that just seem to be moving backwards, and also, a delightful conversation starter. It has actually helped me with some of my Christmas shopping this year by directing me to the "cool Christmas gifts" site, full of pages and pages of different and interesting gift ideas for that impossible to shop for someone in your life. Start stumbling!

Mrs. Fitzsimmons 2

MUSIC: Emerald City EP

If you haven't checked out Connecticut native and current Nashville resident Sarah Lou Richards' recently released five song EP "Emerald City", you are behind the curve my friend! Go to iTunes immediately!

Taking inspiration from artists as diverse as mainstream acts like the Dixie Chicks, Miranda Lambert, and Bonnie Raitt to alternative singer-songwriters Ryan Adams, Patty Griffin, Keri Noble, and David Wilcox, Richards has crafted a debut cache of self-penned tunes that show of her talent not only as a vocalist but also as lyricist.

Supported on the guitar by step-brother Ryan Van Arkel, and recorded at Aim For Zero Studios in Waterloo, Iowa, Richards shines on the heartbreaking "Time To Go" and "Space." Also taking center stage is the motivational "Milemarker 1" which chronicles the daily struggles and triumphs of the independent artist.

Rounding out the disc are the tell-off anthem "He Wears Womens' Jeans" and soul-exposing "Made Her Stay."

This is just the start for this rising star. Be the first of your friends to get your ears tuned to this raw young and honest singer.

Sergio del Limonar

MUSIC: "Cowboy Casanova"

Carrie Underwood is a genius. The first single, "Cowboy Casanova," from her third studio album,Play On, is a catchy country-pop confection typical of Underwood's previously released and wildly popular hits. This song becomes ZONINO!-worthy, however, because of it's video.

The song, a man-bashing anthem about a guy who uses and loses women like it's going out of style, will appeal to Underwood's female fan base without a problem. In the video, Underwood tries like an Oklahoma tumble weed catching a good breeze to appeal to the guys. Placing the video in the brothels of either the wild west or the French Quarter of New Olreans and sporting classy yet sexy period costumes inspired by the 1920's and '30's, Underwood and her troupe of fellow dancers choreograph their way through the catchy tune, all the while this said "casanova" lurks about in the shadows.

Bravo, Carrie! Looks like a great start to another year of well deserved awards for you!

Sergio del Limonar

RECIPE: Candy Cane Cookies

When I was little my Great Aunt Ida-Lynne would make those ever-present Christmas dessert-platter staples, the Candy Cane Cookie. I remember caring more if my Great Aunt would serve the cookies or not and if there would be enough of them (amidst the choco-coco balls, powdery Russian tea cakes, and red & green sprinkled sugar cookies) to go around between all the dinner guests almost more than I anticipated opening presents!

Well, I haven't had a Candy Cane Cookie as good as my Great Aunt used to make them. My grandmother's were good but, bless her heart, not the same. The closest I've come myself is from that master chef, Betty Crocker. It's a lot of work, but if you get good, you can live eternally in the minds of those you love as the one who made the best Candy Cane Cookies EVER. Not a bad way to be remembered!

Buzzy

MUSIC: "Breathless"

I almost hate myself for liking this song so much. I normally despise super sappy lyrics, falsetto-voiced male vocalists, and blue-eyed soul slow ballads, so together I would imagine my head exploding. Maybe it's the cute guy singing the song. Could I be that shallow?

Shayne Ward, the winner of the second season of Britain's American Idol-like show, X-Factor, sings this schmaltzy love song, "Breathless," off his 2007 album by the same name, with such honesty and sincerity that you want to believe every word he says. Even lyrics like "...if we had babies they would look like you," which would normally leave me in hacking fits on the floor, seem genuine.

It must be the holiday season if I'm feeling this ooey-gooey...

Buzzy

YOUTUBE: The Muppets' Bohemian Rhapsody

I have no idea where this awesomeness came from, what it was originally made for (surely not YouTube), or who was behind it, but it's definitely worthy of a ZONINO!

Combining the oft-imitated but always glorious campy Queen anthem, "Bohemian Rhapsody," everyone's beloved Muppets reinterpret the original video with their own signature style. Tell me Animal playing the drums doesn't make you smile? And Beaker? You can never have too much of the little guy!

After this, I might be ready to watch some holiday-inspired "A Muppet Christmas Carol" again.

Buzzy

RECIPE: Avocado Drink

I love avocados. I've made ordering decisions at restaurants based solely on whether a dish had the creamy green fruit in it or not. If you have any similar type of feeling, please do not crinkle your nose in disgust over the thought of this recipe before you try it. For avocado-lovers, this is an incredible addition to the already myriad uses of the fruit.

Ingredients:

2 avocadoes (4 if you are using the Mexican variety)
1/2 cup of honey
1 L of milk
1 orange
ice

What to do:

1) In a blender combine the avocados with the orange.
2) Once thoroughly blended, add the milk, honey, and ice.
3) Blend again.
4) Serve immediately so that it remains cold. Warm avocado is gross. Even I won't eat that.

Sergio del Limonar

YOUTUBE: Minesweeper

As a kid I used to get an unhealthy amount of anxiety playing video games. Dual mode on the James Bond inspired "GoldenEye" gave me veritable heart attacks and "Mario Cart" wasn't much better. Basically any game with a timing aspect stresses me out to the extreme.

If I play any type of electronic game, I prefer to keep it to Solitaire or Pinball on my computer at work. Even the fairly tame Minesweeper is out of the question, although I have tried my hand at it enough in the past to be convinced victory is more or less a combination of luck and if the PC likes you rather than skill.

Either way, this (oldie but goodie) video from College Humor is classic. Poking fun at Hollywood's attempts to make cinematic versions of video games, they have come up with a mock-trailer for "Minesweeper: The Movie".

Satirizing such a simple game might seem difficult but tie it into the obvious war-flick genre and the melodramatic possibilities are ripe. In the discussing strategy, the situational "8 Box" comes up, to which the response is "8...God help us all."

I just wish playing these games was as much fun as watching this video!

Sergio del Limonar

MOVIE: Still Bill

One of my favorite songs of all time is Bill Wither's "Grandma's Hands." If the name sounds familiar, you've surely heard "Ain't No Sunshine" and "Lean On Me." Will Smith even sampled a good portion of Withers's "Just The Two Of Us" back in 1998. But herein lies the problem. This talented musician and songwriter has somehow gone under appreciated in the minds of a vast majority of the music-listening pubic.

Hopefully, not for long. The documentary Still Bill, about the life, past and current, of 1970's singer-songwriter Bill Withers looks at the cultural phenomenon that is his tragic disappearance from the public consciousness.

In the trailer, Withers himself says that often times people don't believe them when he tells them who he is. This looks like an amazing documentary of the life on an incredible talent in the musical landscape of soul music and I can not wait to see it!

Sergio del Limonar

TV: d-CON ads

Sometimes the old adage of less being more is true. I am currently obsessed with the new set of advertisements by d-CON, makers of the snapping glue-filled mouse traps. It has been rumored that I cheer when they come on.

Whoever said you need to have millions of dollars for a successful ad campaign?

Sergio del Limonar

RECIPE: Wine Cake

Wine Cake. "If you serve this once, my friend Oneida says, "it will become 'Whine Cake' because everyone will be whining if you don't make it every time." This actually isn't her joke, but her mother's. Even with this tempered warning, however, Oni didn't learned and exposed more of us to its deliciousness over Thanksgiving.

I'm just here to pass on the same sage advice in hopes that you too do not follow it.

Ingredients:
1 box of yellow cake mix
2 small boxes of Jell-O vanilla pudding
1 cup oil
5 large eggs
3/4 cup sherry wine
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup sherry wine (yes, again)

What to do:

1) Preheat oven to 350

2) Take the first five ingredients and mix them together.

3) Bake in a greased bundt (I love that word) pan for ~50 minutes.

4) Time to glaze: Without popping the cake out, poke the exposed part (the bottom) with a fork. Pour the glaze over the holes until it soaks inside.

5) Wait until the glaze soaks in. Then, pop the cake out of the pan onto a serving dish

6) Repeat poking the rest of the cake, but for the top. Also repeat the glazing process.

7) Cool.

8) (Optional) If you want to have a thicker glaze on top, add more sugar to the glaze and pour some more on after the cake cools.

Buzzy

MONTHLY REVIEW: November

MUSIC

Portuguese-speaking Canadian Nelly Furtado flexes her Spanish muscles with Mi Plan.

Country singer Miranda Lambert has a Revolution with her third studio album (I know that was lame, deal with it.)

Need a sure-fire CD to put on repeat? Check out Canadian Ainsley McNeaney!

The music video for Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance" rocks! Have you seen it yet?

So does Jay-Z's newest studio album, The Blueprint 3. HOVA!

We pimped out Anjulie last month but her single "Heat" is still rockin' our socks off!

Brit Ronan Keating's cover of Sugarland's "Stay" is worth checking out!

MOVIE

Pay tribute to the King Of Pop by seeing This Is It and realize why he deserved the title.

Laugh it up with Babs in this oldie but goodie, What's Up Doc?

BOOK

Need a little non-fiction in your life? Check out any of Mary Roach's fantastically entertaining and interesting books, including "Stiff," "Bonk," and "Spook."

Hooray! Cakewrecks is now a book!

Pop-culture best-seller Go Ask Alice is new again, 40 years later.

WEB

Need something of substance to go with all your web-fluff? Check out the postings from the intelligent Racialicious.

Then head on over to highIDEAS and soak up some humorous sugary trash.

Advanced NFL Stats might give you an edge in your football pool this weekend. I mean, you couldn't do worse, could you?

Make Your Own Ringtone of yourself winning that pool and use it when your losing friends call.

Be a smartie pants with the English language with the Etymology Dictionary.

Find topical humor pictures at Pundit Kitchen to send to your friends instead of the standard fart jokes and bad luck forwards they're always sending you.

RECIPE

For breakfast, start out with this delicious Indian Potato Salad with Cilantro Omelete. Head over to Hell's Kitchen for lunch and finish the day off with a scruptious Pumpkin Pudding.

ON HOLIDAY

ZONINO! is on holiday being thankful and such until Monday. Happy Turkey Day!

YOUTUBE: Turkey Lady

ZONINO! will be on vacation for the next couple days to give thanks to the things in life that are ZONINO! So, in the meantime, enjoy this Gloria Gaynor-inspired Thanksgiving Day tribute brought to you by the Turkey Lady herself.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Sergio del Limonar

BOOK: Go Ask Alice

The diary-book, Go Ask Alice, is by no means a literary masterpiece. It is really no more than the rambling thought of an average teenage girl in the late 1960's. The only difference is this girl got messed up in the drugs of the era and wrote about it in detail.

The extraordinary thing about this piece of work, published in 1971, is not only the candor and emotion the anonymous author exhibits, but the remorse she feels toward her family, friends, and herself. It's difficult to read at times, especially as she relapses. Sometimes this seems to occur suddenly as we are only privy to her diary entries which are often times sporadic and even lacking dates at times.

Although the authenticity of the book - whether it was an actual diary or really a work of fiction - is still up for debate. Regardless, the ideas in the various entries and the roller coaster of emotions the girl goes through are enough to influence another generation to stay off drugs.

Sergio del Limonar

EAT OUT: Hell's Kitchen

As their website says, "We just crank out damn good food." Truer words have never been spoken. This is not a restaurant for fluffy pretentious food. This is place to eat food you can recognize on your plate but be blown away by its flavor.

Hell's Kitchen, found in Minneapolis (80 South 9th St.) and Duluth (310 Lake Ave S.), Minnesota, is a foodie's dream. The food is traditional and plentiful, free of frills and trends, but exploding with taste, probably because everything is made from scratch. Each restaurant has its own menu, which you can check out online before visiting so your salivary glands can start getting ready early.

My favorites so far are the Portobello Mushroom "Burger" and the Mac & Cheese. The Sweet Potato Fries on the appetizer menu are incredible as is the "Breakfast All Day" menu.

As an added incentive, come on Sundays for Brunch (10am - 1pm) and hear live Gospel Music performed while you each. (In Duluth the music is recorded.) This is a popular event, however, so be sure to make reservations.

Sergio del Limonar

WEB: Pundit Kitchen

You know those LOLcatz with the sickenly adorable pictures of felines in compromising positions with horribly misspelled captions attempting to be cute?

Well, how about doing it with people? How about doing it with people who have voluntarily put themselves in the spotlight, like our elected officials? I can't tell you the number of times I've wondered what some story editors at my local city's newspaper would like to put under the picture of world leader so-and-so shaking hands with his majesty this-and-that.

Wonder no more! Pundit Kitchen takes nationally run photographs from various news services and attaches (mostly) humorous captions to them. Like this one of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad.



Buzzy

CALENDAR: Cats Let Nothing Darken Their Roar

Mrs. Fitzsimmons 2, who is also still on maternity leave, sent me a link to a sight hawking calendars with weird phrases on them, such as the title of this post. Well, it turns out that each of the titles on this attractively, and slightly retro, designed calendar, spell out the name of the month within the phrase itself.

Even the name of the calendar, spells out "calendar." Go to Cats Let Nothing Darken Their Roar and click the link for "The Calendar" on the left side to see the rest of the months with their bizarre and poetic phrasings.

If you like what you see, each calendar runs between $32 to $60 depending on the size. A time keeper and a conversation piece all in one? What more could you ask for?!?


Sergio del Limonar

MUSIC: "Stay" cover

One of my all-time favorite country songs of all time is the beautifully tragic and powerful "Stay" written by Jennifer Nettles and performed by her band Sugarland. The song is sung from the point of view of "the other woman" in a cheating relationship, begging the man to stay with her instead of going back to his wife. It is sad and heartbreaking and, in the end, the mistress gets up the strength to get back on her feet and walk away, effectively telling her lover to stay where he is.

I heard recently that a cover of the song was being released by British ex-boybander Ronan Keating. Keating clearly is a fan of country music as he has recorded the bluegrass staple "When You Say Nothing At All" as well as dueted with LeAnn Rimes on the moving "Last Thing On My Mind."

Keating's version of "Stay," off his recently released Winter Songs, while not quite capturing the angst and quivering sadness that only Nettles could muster, is still a decent effort. The song is ambiguous enough that, with a few noun changes, easily suits a male's perspective just as well as the original does a female's. ZONINO! to covering a great song well!

WEB: Etymology Dictionary

Did you know that the word "knuckle" comes from the late 14 century and is derived from the Germanic word "knokel" meaning "finger joint"?

Or how about that the word "pimp" most likely came from from the modern French word "pimper" meaning "to dress elegantly" and was first used in its current context in 1607?

The website, Online Etymology Dictionary is a treasure trove* of information for both the know it all, the Trivial Pursuit junky, and those of us who are just curious from time to time. The next time someone asks, "I wonder where that word comes from?" you can tell them!

Sergio del Limonar

*The word "treasure" is derived from the the old French word "tresor" of the same meaning and was first used in the mid-12th century. The expression "treasure trove" was first used in 1888.

MUSIC: "Heat"

I know I already labeled her self-titled debut album a ZONINO! worthy record but I just have to throw another Anjulie song on your must-download list. It really is criminal that it was left off the last post entirely; I must have been so overwhelmed by the fantasticness of the Anjulie experience that I passed out while this track was playing. That is the only explanation.

"The Heat" is potentially my all-time favorite song on the entire album. The funky chorus is infectious and I wouldn't mind if it repeated a few more times. Singing of the feeling you get during that infatuation stage of new-love, Anjulie confesses:

I got the heat, see the red in my cheeks,
It's suffocating me, got the hot hot heat
She got the heat from her head to her feet,
She tried to shake it, shake it, shake it
She just can't beat the
Here comes the heat like a fire in me,
Burning up through my blood, got the hot hot heat
He got the heat and he put it on me,
Like a spell from the devil, now I just can't beat the heat

In the opening verse she kicks off with "I got a loss of appetite, I'm so tired, I can't sleep, can't dream, wake up every night." Now who hasn't been there before?

Sergio del Limonar

RECIPE: Pumpkin Pudding

I love pumpkin-flavored anything and I think it a crime that the deliciousness is really only freshly available only two tiny months out of the year, if that. So, take the pumpkin off your front stoop (take your neighbor's too) and fix yourself a nice fall treat!

ingredients:

• 2 cups milk
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup pureed pumpkin
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin-pie spice

what to do:

1) Combine the milk, sugar, and cornstarch in a large saucepan.
2) Bring them to a boil, stirring constantly for 3 minutes.
3) Beat the eggs with a whisk in a large bowl.
4) Add half the hot milk mixture (from #1) to the beaten egg bowl.
5) Pour the milk-egg mixture back into the saucepan.
6) Cook it over medium heat for another 3 minutes, or until its thick, stirring constantly.
7) Turn off the heat and stir in pumpkin, salt, and pumpkin-pie spice.
8) Let it cool and the chill in the refrigerator until it's time to eat.

The best thing about this is that its pretty low in fat and it's healthy too!

Buzzy

WEB: Make Your Own Ringtone

This is amazing and I'm surprised no one thought of it sooner. Or maybe they did and I haven't learned about it yet. Either way, now you can basically annoy everyone at the restaurant, library, bus stop, and office with a tune they can't even get!

Make Your Own Ringtone, allows you to do just that. Think you're an amazing singer and want everyone to know with out even opening your mouth? Record your voice to your computer using almost any format (mp3, wma, or ogg) and then follow the steps on the main page. Record your mom screaming up the stairs for you to "get your ass outta bed or God help you..." and assign it to her number; she;s special enough for her own ring, right?

The best part, aside from the fact that it's easy to use, is that the service is free! So what are you waiting for? Sneak a recording of your boyfriend/girlfriend snoring a way tonight and get to work!

Buzzy

MUSIC: The Blueprint 3

A couple months ago I Zonino!-ed the single "We Run This Town" from Jay-Z's newest album, The Blueprint 3. I finally got around to purchasing it (because I love me some H.O.V.) and it is definitely one of his best to date.

The aforementioned single is fabulous but I'm hoping to hear his collaboration with Alicia Keys, "Empire State Of Mind," on the radio soon. Keys belts out the chorus with abandon, "Now you're in New York, concrete jungle where dreams are made of, there's nothing you can't do!" while Jay-Z raps about Gotham itself.

Other highlights that you should download now are "On To The Next One" with Swizz Beatz, "Already Home" with Kid Cudi, and the retro-sampled "Forever Young" featuring British R&B singer, Mr. Hudson.

Most of the tracks are produced by Kanye West, who, despite probably being a huge jack-ass in real life, is a genius in the studio. Timbaland steps in twice as well, as do The Neptunes in a song featuring Pharrell.

If you're a Jay-Z fan, you will definitely appreciate his rhymes and classic flow style on this album. If you're new to the scene, this is a great introduction to why Jay-Z is the best.

Buzzy

MUSIC: "Bad Romance" video

Lady Gaga pretty much owns the world right now. At the dance-pop world. I think Madonna gave it to her. And after seeing the amazing video for her newest single, "Bad Romance", I completely and totally fall to my knees at her bedazzled throne.

In this hyper-stylized video, Gaga is awash in a bath house of white (Bath Haus of Gaga to be specific) after being kidnapped by supermodels and sold to some sort of mafia to work as a sex-slave. Bad romance, indeed. While I realize the concept sounds pretty brutal and cruel towards womens' rights, I was strangely empowered by the interpretation.

My favorite images are of Gaga in her gold dress with her pet great dane and when she completely incinerates a John, leaving only a skeleton on a ash-covered and charred bed.

While the song is not my favorite single from the Lady herself, coupled with the video it definitely becomes greater!

Buzzy

WEB: Advanced NFL Stats

It's about that time of the NFL season where the armchair quarterbacks are starting to re-evaluate their participation in their current pools or make voodoo dolls of their now-dismal fantasy league picks. Is it too late to salvage the season? Should you just concede defeat, save some face, and flip to whatever Sunday afternoon movie from the '80's is playing on the other channels?

No! Check out Advanced NFL Stats, a non-NFL affiliated website, run by football enthusiasts, just like you!

The most useful aspect of the site is self-selected win-probability graphs which you can generate by choosing the year - all the way back to 2000 - and team. Weekly rankings and round-ups are published with humor and possibly just a twinge of bias on occasion. Regardless, they are helpful to those who are suffering in their current office pools.

The site also contains occasional articles which, while not always helpful for your gaming, can provide you with interesting insight into little known aspects of the sport (the Buccaneer's "Raheem Morris is an Optimistic Guy") or different perspectives (the run - pass balance study or irrational play calling).

Definitely bookmark this site, at least until January.

Sergio del Limonar

WORD: Pogrom

I'm reading a fantastic book by Michael Chabon at the moment that will no doubt become a ZONINO! one day. Chabon is a genius with words and wordplay so I expect to find several gems of the etymologic sort whilst enjoying this novel.

Today I came across the noun "pogrom" which I had never encountered before. It means, according to the American Heritage Dictionary, "an organized, often officially encouraged, massacre or persecution of a minority group." The entry goes on to state that it most often refers to the persecution of Jewish peoples.

Unlike most of the other WORD entries, this is not one I would try to insert into my daily ramblings, but I feel its a word one should have shoved in the back drawer of one's brain for when smarty-pants writers like Chabon throw it out, you can keep pace.

Sergio del Limonar

BOOK: Cake Wrecks

Hooray! or should I say...ZONINO! We put website Cake Wrecks on our blog back in July and now it's a best selling book!

Congrats to author and creator Jen Yates!

Sergio del Limonar

MUSIC: Ainsley McNeaney

The last time I bought an album that worked for most any occasion (singalong, work, play, cleaning) was Sarah McLaughlan's Surfacing. In 1997. So, I'm a little picky. The next time was when I bought Ainsley McNeaney's True Story Orchestra (2008). McNeaney is a singing, songwriting, arranging, producing, phenomenon. True Story Orchestra is her first album as artist and first release as producer. However, the sophisticated orchestration (think butterscotch light mixed with just a little bit of peeling white paint from a seaside house and brassy silver buttons) belies her classical background. A classical percussionist - she graduated from the University of Toronto's Music program in sticks and mallets - the twelve songs on this album feature banjos, marimba, tambourine, trombones and a string section. This strong instrumental variety successfully teases strands of jazz, cabaret, swing and circus through the pop pieces.

For anyone who has always played nice, done their best, and found they can't recognize themselves for the role they've played, McNeaney asks, "Who did you kill to secure all that moon in your eyes?" in her song, "This Girl". It is a liberating call for the removal of restrictive masks and authentic soul-searching. The anthemic "Closer" opens with solo banjo and develops into a full-fledged, open-throated, windows-down car belting song about the fears behind, and acceptance of, taking risks in life. When you're done, you've already whirled yourself around the dancefloor and you can wait until tomorrow: you've "got the next day to find [your] way home." Finally, another highlight, reminiscent of Sarah McLaughlan's "Adia" and Rufus Wainwright's "Natasha", the glowing "Marianne" falls solidly in the songwriting tradition of song as witness. All three posit the song as the songwriter's best way to support a friend on a self-destructive track.

McNeaney is clearly a musician and not your everyday singer-songwriter. I hope for more refinement in her lyrics in the future, but ultimately McNeaney's voice, its roars, cries and calls in the dark elevate the album to a must-have.

Listen here and if you like it, it is $9.99 on iTunes, or available on ainsleymcneaney.com .

Bee

RECIPE: Indian Potato Salad with Cilantro Omelet

Back when all our forests were enchanted and the hippies had just arrived in Ithaca, the Moosewood collective was formed. I come from good hippie stock, despite my father having missed the bus to the march on Washington, and my best friend Julia went through several hippie incarnations in high school. Through that time the Moosewood collective's cookbooks followed them all because of their emphasis on yummy vegetarian cooking.

In my case, the hippie gene and the social environment did not a good hippie make. Until Moosewood's Simple Suppers cookbook. This is hippie vegetarian cooking that is good for the planet but also, actually, delicious. My favourite recipe is truly a simple supper, and the potato salad makes delicious leftovers. Better yet, it's ready in 30 minutes. If you like the recipe, buy their book. It was worth every penny.

Indian Potato Salad

4 c. cubed potatoes
3 T. olive oil
2 t. whole cumin seeds
1 1/2 t. salt
1 1/2 t. garam masala Indian spice
2 or 3 scallions, sliced
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro

Cilantro Omelet

4 eggs
1 T. olive oil
1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
salt

plain yogurt (optional)


Directions:

To cook the potatoes, bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Lower the potatoes into the hot water and cook until tender but not falling apart, about 5 minutes after the water returns to a boil. While the potatoes cook, warm the oil in a saucepan on medium heat. Sizzle the cumin seeds for a few seconds and then stir in the salt, garam masala and a dash of cayenne if desired. Remove from the heat. Drain the cooked potatoes and place them in a bowl. Pour the hot seasoned oil over the potatoes and add the scallions, bell pepper and cilantro. Stir gently and set aside.

To make the omelet, whisk the eggs in a small bowl until frothy. Heat the oil in a skillet on medium heat. Pour the eggs into the skillet. When the bottom is set, sprinkle on the cilantro and a little salt and fold the omelet in half. Cook covered until the eggs are set and the bottom is browned. Slice into wedges.

Bee

BOOK: Mary Roach

I would love to hang out with author Mary Roach. Reason numero uno? She is the queen of inside jokes. I feel that, if she is in conversation, anything like her writing style, we would be the obnoxious people at a dinner party who keep laughing and, when someone inquires as to the joke and we tell them, they don't get it because they weren't there twenty minutes ago. Or last week. Or the last dinner gathering.

That's the way I feel when I reading a Mary Roach book. Sly, insanely clever, and perfectly timed, as a reader you often feel you are right along side Roach, as she investigates various bizarre and seldom researched topics, when she leans over and whispers something inappropriate in your ear.

I recently finished Roach's second book, Spook, about scientific investigations into the supernatural. I was introduced to her through her spectacular first piece, Stiff, about what happens to human cadavers after family members bid their farewells, and Bonk, about the science of sex.

Each of these books takes Roach on a tour of studies near and far, to fully funded by legitimate organizations and not-so-much experiments, meeting all types of investigators - scientific to just curious, all in the goal of getting to the bottom of often ignored or misunderstood corners of science. Writing intelligently, but also for the layman, Roach does a phenomenal job of making the method of science accessible and interesting to everyone. Have a I mentioned she's funny?

Sergio del Limonar

WEB: highIDEAS

When I was in middle school, somewhere in between my indoctrination of D.A.R.E. and my strong desire to have Lifetime movie-like rite of passage teenage rebellion, I remember my older college-aged sister coming home from a night out with friends high as a kite. The girl was walking on clouds giving off giggling gas. Had we weighed her, I often imagined a couple houseflies could have alighted on the scale and caused it to double.

The game for my younger brother and I was to ask her as many ridiculous questions in the presence of our (quite naive) parents just to see what she'd say. Her reasoning for why her peas were more wrinkly than ours (they weren't actually) at the dinner table was a hilarious tale of placement in the pot they had been cooking in and how peas fight with each other - grow little pea arms and fists and everything - to maneuver and swim to the top of the bubbling mass.

The forum website highIDEAS brings back so many of those memories for me. In it, contributors add their thoughts about any number of topics that they came up while hanging out with Mary Jane. One writer noticed that the word OK "looks like a sideways person" while another wants Morgan Freeman as the voice for his GPS.

One of my favorites is from a guy who wants for his Grand Theft Auto video game to include "side stories" for all his victims in the game. "Did they lose their job because they were late?" seems like a legitimate question to me!

Buzzy

MOVIE: What's Up Doc?

Time for an unlikely blast from the past. Now, I feel that in the spirit of honesty I need to state that right off the bat that Barbra Streisand is in the movie. Pleasedon'trunawaysheonlysingsonceandthesceneisnotthatimportantsoyoucanskipitifyouwant!

Still there? Good.

The 1972 film, What's Up, Doc?, is slapstick comedy at it's most intelligent. The genre is pretty much dead, and for good reason, but with this movie, we see why it had its charm.

Directed by Peter Bogdanovich and also starring Ryan O'Neal as a nervous and awkward "musicologist," Dr. Howard Bannister, with a bag full of his precious igneous rocks, the story becomes a who knows what, has what, heard who say what to whom, switcheroo. Streisand's Judy, who looks surprisingly like a young Jennifer Aniston, plays a woman who has been in and out of many colleges for short attempts at many degrees.

One mishap turns in to another which rolls into a third until the entire cast is wrapped up in one messy ball of wax. A scene at musicologist's banquet in which Judy, against Howard's wishes, posses as his fiance in an attempt to win him a $20,000 grant is especially humorous. A turn of events that results in a fire in a hotel room will also cause you to laugh out loud.

With all it's got going against it - Streisand, slap-stick, 70's chic styling - this movie is bound to become a favorite...if you can find it.

Sergio del Limonar

MUSIC: Revolution

Miranda Lambert has created a brand for herself. She's like one of those tiny lap dogs; cute from a distance but when you walk by the front yard it'll tear your ankles apart. Packaged inside this tiny blond body with a forearm tattoo of two crossed pistols with dove wings is a feisty powerhouse you get a feeling you don't want to upset.

Lambert's newest release, Revolution, continues on her crusade to live life on her terms and take no prisoners. Like a later-day Tanya Tucker, Lambert sings of heartbreak and revenge like go together as naturally as peanut butter and jelly. On the tracks "White Liar" and "Sin for a Sin" she confronts a lover what he did or did not do, respectively, with canine-like severity. "Only Prettier" is another tune with biting lyrics, only this time they're aimed squarely at the floozy girl at the bar and her friends.

Lambert is a little softer on this album than on her last and even some of her harsher songs come with a sly wink, as if to say, "I'll slap you around a bit, but it's only because I love you" like an older sister would. Some of the more tender moments come from standout songs, "Love Song" and "The House That Built Me." In the later, Lambert revisits her childhood home and asks the current owner if she can come in and look around. In it she pleads, "if I could just come in I swear I'll leave, won't take nothing but a memory."

Packed with 15 songs, not a one of them filler, this is a great album for fans of Lambert's previous efforts as well as anyone who wants to jump on the Miranda bandwagon.

Sergio del Limonar

MOVIE: This Is It

Fact: Michael Jackson is the King of Pop.

Say what you want about his personal life, financial or legal problems, and anything related to "Wacko Jacko," but the man's music is untouchable and no one can do it like he can.

Need proof? Head to the nearest theater immediately and see the behind-the-scenes documentary of Jackson's not-to-be final concert extravaganza, This Is It. Composed of rough shots from several rehearsal performances in London, the film documents the spectacle of the show and reveals the Michael Jackson few people got to see.

Soft-spoken but dogmatic, Jackson is clearly a perfectionist. Stopping numbers to tell the keyboardist to pause possibly a nanosecond more on a certain beat or changing the spacing of certain dancers all for the sake of his "vision." Most artists don't (or can't) put this much authenticity and effort into their final performances as Michael Jackson puts into his rehearsals.

Directed by Kenny Ortega, the man behind the High School Musical franchise as well as the film Newsies, the film allows the viewer to be a silent observer to something that came so close but never was. Ortega, a friend of Jackson's was the director of the actual concert, by the same name, that the film is based upon. It only seems fitting that he allow the word a chance to see that magic that only a handful got to experience firsthand.

Even at 50 years old, Jackson is dancing like his 20-something year old back-up dancers, and singing like he did on his first album in 1979, "Off the Wall." Ortega does a masterful job, with little narration, of bringing the performer in Jackson to life from behind the scenes and stage fog and flashing lights.

To fully appreciate Michael Jackson - the artist, the King of Pop - one needs to see This Is It.

Sergio del Limonar

MUSIC: Mi Plan

Since Canadian singer songwriter, Nelly Furtado, burst on to the international music scene in 2000 with her infectious single "I'm Like A Bird," she has been a force in the industry. Constantly changing and refreshing her style, Furtado never seems to stay in one musical moment too long.

Occasionally singing in the language of her Portuguese-born parents, Furtado has a also dabbled with some Spanish songs on her past albums. She has also collaborated on several records with Colombian rocker Juanes on his singles "Fotografía" and "Te Busqué." After this introduction to the Spanish-speaking market, the timing seems only right that Furtado puts out her first completely non-English album, Mi Plan.

The first single off the album, "Manos al Aire," finds Furtado listing the reasons she is giving up on a toxic relationship. Other highlights of the album include a beautiful duet with Mexican singer, Alejandro Fernández, "Sueños," and the upbeat titular track with Cuban-Canadian singer Alex Cuba.

Whether you understand the Spanish language or not, this is an incredible album to add to your collection. Great songs, rhythms, and melodies have no language requirements.

Sergio del Limónar

WEB: Racialicious

Diversity.

The word is thrown around a lot. What it means to one might mean something completely different to someone else. The fact is though, that we, the people of this planet, are diverse. We are diverse in appearance, language, beliefs, heritage, culture, music, dance, food, dress, everything! And this diversity is becoming increasingly more, excuse the overuse of the word in this post, diverse as the world becomes a smaller place.

The blog Racialicious is a sort of watchdog group that both celebrates victories for us a human race and calls foul on people, organizations, and events that run aground on these same issues. Intelligently written and researched, each post gives a fascinating and insightful look at different perspectives on the idea of "race."

A recent analysis of the CNN series "Latino in America" was widely criticized by the site for promoting stereotypes and not following through with many promises the program made in it's outset. Another interesting recurring feature on the blog in the discussion of race, racial archetypes, and importance of certain characters on television and in movies.

Whether one agrees with the points of views of the various bloggers, it is a freshing taste of different opinions on topics that I know I often don't think about; I do now. Bookmark this site immediately!

Sergio del Limonar

MONTHLY REVIEW: October

Happy Halloween!!! Tonight might be the scariest night of the year, but the month of October was definitely "spooktacular"!!!

MUSIC

If you didn't listen to us the first time, do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of Canadian Anjulie's self-title debut album now! In the past month we've heard a couple of her song on the radio and in a couple television shows! Next big thing...?

Paramore had us screaming for more after hearing their cover of ZONINO! favorite Kings of Leon's "Use Somebody".

James Hunter's album, The Hard Way, was a rediscovered favorite after a song popped up on a random playlist. If you haven't heard this amazing artist yet, its time to treat yourself.

We can't keep out feet off the pedal after listing to country sibling band Jypsi's latest single "Mister Officer".

Country legend Patty Loveless covers the heartbreaking "Busted" on her most recent studio album with repeat-button results.

Before we leave Nashville, another country band, Little Big Town, caught our ear with their inventive yet faithful version of "Go Tell It On The Mountain", available only online, for the time being.

The incredibly gifted guitar duo of Rodrigo y Gabriela will blow away anyone who even looked at the instrument; it's hard to believe their recordings do not contain any other components!

BOOK

Jhumpa Lahiri's 1999 debut, Interpreter of Maladies, a collection of short stories, had us hanging on every beautiful and effortless description.

You Shall Know Our Velocity, a story of two friends traveling the world and giving away money, by Dave Eggers, will make you want to figuratively do the same.

Colombian author James Cañón's debut novel, Tales From the Town of Widows, sheds light on an ongoing political and societal issue all the while celebrating the human (and feminine) spirit.

Comedic writer David Sedaris once again slays with his latest collection of short true-life stories, When You Are Engulfed In Flames.

MOVIE

The hilarious Julie Delpy wrote, directed, and starred in the quaintly beautiful film 2 Days in Paris, about a relationship on the brink...of something.

And ensemble cast for once doesn't wreck a movie! Watch The Taking of Pelham 123 and see names like Travolta, Washington, Turturro, and Gandolfini play like a team for the excitement of pretty good story!

RECIPE

Serve some greasy Fries Cuatro Queso and spicy Pumpkin Cider at your next fall gathering...Sunday football marathon anyone?!?!

Throw in some apple bites too, or save those for your spooktacular Halloween party!

WEB

You thought it was bad when you bumped your mailbox backing out of the driveway? Check out these wrecks on That Will Buff Out.

In the same vein, There I Fixed It celebrates homemade solutions that give professional repairmen (and women) job security.

Artist Jan Vormann creates the uniquely ingenious "installation" artwork and displays her creations on Dispatchwork.

Still don't have a costume idea for Halloween?!?! There's still time! Check out WTF Costumes for some inspiration.

Sick of the new fall line-up already? Don't have time in your busy schedule to watch a full television show? Check out FilmCow and laugh at these hilariously random animated shorts.

YOUTUBE

Ever wonder why those Disney kids are so squeaky clean and wholesome? The Onion's Today Now "news" program has the answer!

Can a team of preteen and teen girls jumping rope bring an entire arena-full of basketball fans to their feet? You bet they can!

The Black Eyed Peas' summer hit "I Got A Feeling" just got better. Be sure to see what some creative communications majors at UQAM in Montreal were able to pull together in just over two hours.

TV

We got a little nostalgic this month with an Oil of Olay ad from 1989. Remember it?

Elmo and Rosita teach us how to sneeze in this Sesame Street spot in cooperation with the Ad Council.

WORD

After methodically palpating the mind of the serial killer, the psychologist determined his chimeric mind was an emporium of evil.

WORD: chimeric

Potentially appropriate for the season that is upon us, this adjective is used to describe something fanciful or imaginary in nature. Stemming for the monster in Greek mythology, the chimera, shown at right in an drawing by illustrator Tina Ponzetti, which was composed of the parts of many different animals, the word brings to mind a childlike world where anything is possible, perhaps even confusing.

Under the fort he built in the living room using couch cushions and old bed sheets, Mathias created a chimeric world where there was no homework, split-pea soup, or dish-washing chores.

Waking abruptly from his nap during the sales meeting, Leon recalled with a smile the chimeric dream he just had in which his boss was suddenly sucked out the window in freak and tragic accident.

Sergio del Limonar

RECIPE: Apple "Bites"

Having a Halloween party this weekend? Celebrating a grandpa's new set of dentures? Both? Here is the perfect appetizer for your function:

Ingredients:

-apples
-slivered almonds

What to do:

1) core the apples
2) cut the apples into quarters
3) carve out another concentric right-angled wedge to the outer one (just look at the picture)
4) place slivered almonds in the inside of the above cut as if it were a mouth with teeth

Sergio del Limónar

BOOK: When You Are Engulfed In Flames

I love to read but I often find that the time I have for pleasure reading is limited to short intervals, usually less than twenty minutes at a time. This is most likely why I am drawn to short stories. I can digest them in brief moments of leisure and not feel badly if I am not able to pick the book up again for a few days.

Humorist David Sedaris is a genius at composing a short story. He's even better at it when I centers around his own life. All of previous books, ZONINO! worthy in their own right, follow him on adventures as a child in North Carolina with his excentric parents and siblings, in university in Chicago, living in New York City in his twenties, and France as an adult. When You Are Engulfed In Flames is no different.

Filled with fresh stories and misadventures, Sedaris continues to entertain with real-life ridiculous situations and mundane observations of his bizarrely ordinary life. Always using his unique style of story-telling, Sedaris often times begins like a rambling old relative you get stuck sitting with at your family reunion. But you keep listening because you know, if nothing else great uncle old man river with eventually swear or tell you one of your cousin's is adopted; sticking with the aimlessness is always worth it!

One of my favorite vignettes from this collection is a story of how, while on an airplane, Sedaris almost chocked on a throat drop, projecting it with a violent cough into the lap, or more accurately crotch, of his sleeping aisle mate. As Sedaris states in his story, "under normal circumstances" he could have dealt with this awkward situation maturely, the way two adults should. However, before falling asleep the woman sitting next to him had caused a little tiff that the whole plane was privy to. Cue hilarity!

Sedaris's multi-part story, saga really, of how he eventually quit smoking (and drinking and marijuana) is especially humanizing and guffaw-inducing. Reading this book, it is hard not to feel a permanent smile creep across your face. I wonder what people thought of me, the weird smiling guy on the bus, while I was finishing up a quick story on my ride to work?

Sergio del Limónar

WEB: Filmcow

From the ingenious and twisted mind of Jason Steele (I don't know anything about him, but do you like how I made it seem like he was known?) comes FilmCow, an animation studio of sorts that creates short cartoon films starring unicorns, homicidal cats, sad singing ferrets, sexual sock puppets and other disturbingly hilarious creations.

Upon first viewings it may appear that these are the ridiculous ramblings of a couple stoners in their mother's basement with nothing better to do than laugh at their own immature humor. But then you start to laugh. A lot. And, after questioning your own adulthood, you realize that Charlie the unicorn is a work of comedic art, llamas with hats are funny - no matter what murderous acts they may involve themselves with - and Detective Mittens really is a "scary ****ing cat."

The website has a tab where you can view the many films using either QuickTime, YouTube, or download directly to your iPod or iPhone. So really, you have no excuses to watch!

Buzzy

TV: Swine Flu on Sesame Street

It seems like people are starting to drop like flies falling victim to the Swine Flu (A/H1N1 virus). Perhaps offices, health care workers, and school teachers should start a pool at there places of work and the last one to get sick gets a prize!

"Have you seen how frail Edna is looking today. $10 says she's out by next week." I can hear it now!

Until then, keep yourself healthy by following these simple rules set forth by the ever relevant and intelligent muppets on Sesame Street. You know they taught you the difference between "near" and "far" - now they can teach you the proper way to sneeze too!

Sergio del Limonar

MUSIC: Rodrigo y Gabriela

As a beginning guitar player, watching Mexican duo Rodrigo y Gabriela makes me want to make like a rock star, smash my six-string dramatically to the floor, and be done with the whole endeavor. Hailing for Mexico City, Rodrigo Sanchez and Gabriela Quintero have definitely "paid their dues" as artists. Originally part of a failed heavy metal band they formed as teenagers at home and later as street performers in Dublin, Ireland, the two "guitarristas" are making a mark on the international music scene.

Combining styles ranging for folk and flamenco to hard rock and bossa nova, the music produced is like nothing else. Using only two guitars, both musicians take on different but equal roles in manipulating their instruments to create melody and harmony lines, as well as percussion.

My favorite Rodrigo y Gabriela song, "Tamacun," comes off their self-titled debut studio album. (Also included on this same record are covers of Metallica's "Orion" and Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" for metal fans who want a different take on some rock classics. Their most recent album, 11:11 is composed of eleven original songs all in their familiar and outstanding style. Be sure to check out the lightning-fast "Buster Voodoo."

Sergio del Limónar

TV: 1989 Oil of Olay Ad

"Emerson High 1975. You were in my class."

"I was your teacher."

"Miss Fitzhenry?"

"Bugsy....Brown."

Classic lines from back in the old days when you would walk 5 miles to school, uphill both ways, in the snow. Back when you would run to the television to watch a good commercial. Back when Top Gun was hot. In those times, we had good Oil of Olay commercials that catered to feminist and cougar fantasies. Today I share with you my favourite commercial of all time:




Bee

WEB: WTF Costumes

It's about one week before the scariest (or most annoying, depending upon who you are) night of the year, and if you're anything like me, you still have no idea what to dress up as for the big Halloween party you were half-hoping you wouldn't be invited to. What do you do?

Typing in "creative Halloween costumes" into Google never seems to satisfy my dressing-up needs so I am turning to a new source this year. WTF Costumes is a website that displays pictures of, as the subheading states, "a gallery of the best, worst, sexist, funniest and weirdest Halloween costumes on the internet." As promised, these costumes run the gambit - I personally never would have thought to dress as "Jedi Barbie" complete with hot pink hooker-boots.

While some of these options may be a bit out of your creativity time-line (seriously, some of these costumes have been works in progress for what looks like months!), it's quite possible, you might find a pinch of inspiration somewhere here. If not, then just enjoy a good laugh and wonder how all that zombie blood would ever wash out if it got on your couch!

Buzzy

MUSIC: Little Big Town's "Go Tell It On The Mountain" cover

I remember learning the traditional folk song "Go Tell It On The Mountain" in fourth grade when my class was attempting to collectively learn how to play the recorder. I'm not sure how I felt about the song then but I know I despised music class that year solely because of that little resin flute. Nevertheless, I'm reminded of those days every time I hear the song, usually around the holiday season, which, being mid-October, is fully upon us.

Hopefully, after a few listens to country quartet Little Big Town's cover of the tune, my memories will shift and I was involuntarily shiver when it comes on the speaker system next time I'm passing through the mall rotunda. LBT's version, built around the vocals of Karen Fairchild and the strong harmonies of the other band members, throws in just the right amount of drums to make the song rock but not enough tot destroy the natural driving nature of the song.

Recently rereleased as a single on iTunes (the first time was in 2006), I can only hope that this track makes it on an upcoming studio or Christmas album soon!

Sergio del Limónar

WEB: There, I Fixed It

I had a friend in high school whose dad was minor celebrity to us all in that fact that he was one of the authors of a little known humor book about the many uses of duct tape.

I can't help but be reminded of this when I visit the website There, I Fixed It. In the same inspirational vein as our previous post about That Will Buff Out, the website displays visitor submitted photographs of Mr. Fix-it's missteps. Sometimes creative, sometimes dangerous, sometimes bizarre, but always terrible, these repair jobs range from using zip-ties and a wine cork to mend a martini glass to using mailing labels instead of tape to seal a box.

I would be the first person to call a repair service (or find a garbage can) before grabbing the duct tape and attempting to fix anything myself, but even I feel better about my own skills after viewing these pictures!

Sergio del Limonar

WORD: Palpate

This is one of those smartie-pants verbs that everyone should know, be able to use, but never have to in actual conversation. Meaning simply "to touch" but in an examinatory fashion, it would be acceptable to use in medicinal conversation or perhaps when discussing a creepy neighbor or an ex. Use with caution.

Standing before the oranges in the produce section, the elderly woman palpated each fruit as if she were a pubescent teenage boy in the back seat of his car with a girl for the first time.

Clinging to the wall with my back and in the blackest of darkness after the lights went out in the haunted house, I extended my arm and trembling fingers, palpating the pealing and damp surface for some semblance of a light switch.


Sergio del Limónar