Music: The Muppets Do Habanera

Habanera...with a Muppet flavor.

I was in tears.

New Trend: A "Save the Date" on YouTube

Whoa. 2 months. Who missed me?

I don't know Jeff and Erin, but wow...I wish I did! Check out this "save the date" for their wedding.

Thomas Keller Book Signing with Williams Sonoma

Food geek that I am, I was so very excited when I heard that Thomas Keller, food hero, was signing his new book, Ad Hoc at Home, at Williams Sonoma in Santa Monica, CA.

Post news, I realized that MetaBoy was home from school for Veteran's Day. Today. The day of the book signing.

And there goes my glow.

I drove past, and the line was almost too long for me alone, nevermind with monsters in tow.

I'm still thinking of getting the book, even though it won't be signed. I keep reading glowing reviews. To rub salt in the wound, I found a picture of how he signs his books...very artsy!

(Photo from clarakim via Twitter)

If you're looking for Thomas Keller's next William Sonoma event, check out their site. He'll be in doing a lot of flying over the coming month!

Imogen Heap Covers Michael Jackson's Thriller

Imogen Heap, formerly half of the duo Frou Frou, covers Michael Jackson's Thriller. Very moody. Nothing like the original, but very Imogen...if you know what I mean

Refunds on Your Baby Einstein Collection

Did you feel cheated when you found out that your collection of Baby Einstein DVDs weren't educational in the least, even though they were marketed as such? Ya, it's payback time. Literally. Per the NY Times, "the Walt Disney Company is now offering refunds for all those “Baby Einstein” videos that did not make children into geniuses."

If you'd like to take advantage, here's the link:

The Baby Einstein™ DVD Upgrade / Moneyback Guarantee

Best Costume: A working Apple iPhone

This is quite possibly the best. costume. ever.

"Working" Apple iPhone Costumes

Sure, it cost the guys about $2,000 to put together and they each weight about 85 pounds...but how cool are they!?!

Around the Internet

Cheese or Font and Ice Cream or Paint - Some fun, if silly, quizzes.

Marshall's Stiletto Car - I saw this "car" driving around Santa Monica. MetaBoy didn't see it, and he didn't believe I saw a shoe drive by. How do you convince a 3 year old of something ridiculous when he's making up ridiculous stories every day?

Expense A Steak - A shady website where you type in the amount of an expense that you need legitimate receipts for, and you get a PDF of receipts laid out in that exact amount. Don't tell the IRS about this one ;-)

Twirling on Her Toes, Giving Orders - A funny article in the NY Times about a couple who didn't anticipate how their lives would change when 2 of their 3 kids went off to college.

Gov. Schwarzenegger's cute breakfast - I'm guessing he didn't make the smiley face. He doesn't seem like the smiley face making sort of guy.

Cirque du Soleil hits Santa Monica

Here's a fun thing to do in Santa Monica. Cirque du Soleil comes back to the Santa Monica pier 22 years after their humble beginnings to debut their new show, KOOZA. Select tickets are available at a 25% discount, which is a great deal given ticket prices. But as I was searching, I found few discounted tickets are left, so act fast! We'll be going in November with MetaBoy, so we're very excited.

Dancing Fool

It's Friday. Feel good. Dance!

Bird Loves Ray Charles

Around the Internet: Food

Sweet Sue Whole Chicken in a Can - Ew, ew, ew.

Farmers fear pigs may get "swine" flu from people - Counterintuitive. Interesting.

Food maven Ruth Reichl: 'I'm starving!' - Our book club just finished Ruth Reichl's "Garlic and Sapphires." We all liked it as it was a fun, easy read. Her antics were a hoot! Ruth's new book, "Not Becoming My Mother: And Other Things She Taught Me Along the Way," has pushed her back into the spotlight a lot these days. Her current position as the editor-in-chief of the precariously positioned Gourmet magazine only reinforces her need to stay visible.

Ruth Goes Undercover - Mickey Rourke, Amy Winehouse, and Gene Simmons. Silly. All for the love of foodies ;-)

And to round it off...

Ruth Reichl Rips Into Lobsters, Gets Her Dumplings to Go - Ruth eats were way from LA to NYC over the course of a week. Well, it's more like she details all of her meals over the course of a week when she happens to be in both cities. She leads a fun life!

Putumayo’s Sesame Street Playground

Can't travel? Sing along!

Putumayo’s Sesame Street Playground sounds like a fun musical investment. Good for the whole family, and cool way to expose everyone to other languages.

Click through for some videos, too. Good times.

World Animal Day Photos

A friend sent me this link. There are some wonderful pictures of familiar and not so familiar animals. Have a glance.
World Animal Day

AP Photo/John McConnico - A zebra eyes visitors at the zoo in Chisinau, Moldova Sunday Sept. 28, 2008.

Melodramatic Toddler

MetaBoy can be so melodramatic. The whines and the yelps, all because you offered him a spoon full of food instead of allowing him to spoon it himself.

As MetaDaddy said, "he's a drama queen, but he's more of a stage actor than film actor."

So, we're raising ourselves a William Shatner. Score!!

Jack in the Box ad

I've been avoiding a double stroller for various reasons. But this
is what I picture it to be like.

PC as Steve Jobs

PC as Steve Jobs. You might also know PC as John Hodgeman.

Gates & Seinfeld

Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld...guess how they roll.

Well, if you've seen the Microsoft Vista ads, you know they roll in discount shoes. It's such a strange ad, if you ask me. Leather shoes. Churros. Adjusting ones shorts. All just strange. Strange can be amusing, though. But I guess Microsoft didn't think it was amusing enough cuz they're dumping Seinfeld. Perhaps they should have used Larry David instead? This Vista campaign is costing them about $300 million, so I guess they're hoping to get a bit more traction out of it.



Newest ads are meant to attack Apple's Mac vs. PC ads. Let's see how that goes.

Tina Fey as Palin

SNL has a few funny moments every now and then. The Swedish Chef, for example. And Tina Fey has offered me some priceless giggles, including her impression of Sarah Palin this past weekend. I'm not alone in thinking so. And now the real question. Did Palin really dress up as Fey for Halloween back when? If so, it totally explains the glasses.

Cheap Music: Death Cab for Cutie

If you want to try out some good music, how about Death Cab for Cutie? As Liz commented here, their latest album Narrow Stairs is a whopping $5 on Amazon (today through Sunday, only).

Seriously, can you do better than that?

Ya, I don't think so.

Music: Two of a Kind

Sometimes, you feel fooled and tricked for no good reason.

Today's trickery involves music of the indie nature.

A while back, a friend of mine turned me on to The Postal Service. I love their album and listened to it again, and again, and again. MetaDaddy's favorite trick, but not really mine. So this album, Give Up, is a favorite indeed. But they haven't come out with a second, so I've had to settle with nothing new for a while.

My favorite radio station, KCRW, tends to play a great variety of music. I kept hearing this one band and thinking "they came out with a new album!!" only to find out that it wasn't The Postal Service, but some other band called Death Cab for Cutie. So they've grown on me, even though they still confuse the bejeesus out of me.

Get this, my friend just realized that the lead singer in both bands is Ben Gibbard. That's right, the same person...both bands...singing. Ugh!! No wonder I was so frustrated!!!

I'm annoyed, but relieved to know that I'm not crazy or paranoid. Well, not crazy. Well, at least...

Whatever, they tricked me. And I can still claim the pregnancy hormone card, so I deserve an apology!!

I'll be here when you're ready, Ben Gibbard.

Dancing Toddler with the Pink Stroller

Dancing in his high chair. Why? Because of something he heard me playing on You Tube. A rather malicious "friend" sent me a link to a NKOTB video. Don't know the anacronym? You obviously didn't grow up a girl in the late 80s/early 90s.

So, it's bad enough that it played on my computer. I'm embarrassed for myself, and the only other person here was MetaToddler. Which brings me to my point of concern. Whatever about the pink piano, or the pink stroller. How much should I worry when my little boy starts dancing to NKOTB?!?

Here, you try. Play it for your toddler and see what happens. You can blame my evil "friend" for whatever happens ;-)