The Coolest Things of 2007... 60 to 51

Here's the next entry in our 100 Coolest Things of 2007....

#60. The Amazing Race All Stars
Back in the Spring, the pulled together the finest teams from The Amazing Race to... okay, did I say finest? Well, when you have a team that befits the best of the PG-13 nickname, "Team Bats***", plus teams that I nicknamed Eric & The Boob and Gay Miserables, and of course, Rob & Amber who are in a competition with Omarosa for the most reality shows ever, then you have one heck of an entertaining show.

I was rooting hard for Dustin & Kandice, two of my reality show hall of famers, but they only made it to third. Here was what I thought on February 20th:

I still love Dustin & Kandice. I can't tell them apart, but the fact that no one likes them because they are so competitive makes me root for them. I'm also pulling for Uchenna and Joyce, though I'm sure going on a trip around the world is the perfect solution for a troubled marriage due to infertility.

#59. "The Shining" by Stephen King
What a creepy book. I once said that this was the most frightening book I had ever read, and since I shot through several Stephen King books, both ones I'd read and ones I hadn't, I thought it a good time to get The Shining again. And I learned something... this book isn't that scary, or at least as frightening as I remember it. However, the book is about a hundred times better than I remember it being.

Its so easy to get influenced by the Stanley Kubrick version of the book, the one where Jack Nicholson plays the Overlook Hotel caretaker, Jack Torrence. This movie in itself is a great, creepy film, but it does so much gouging of the actual book--from leaving out the hedges to the fate of Dick Halloran to the true meaning of "The Shine"--it is not far removed from being a different film altogether.

At its heart, "The Shining" is a book about a father, Jack, who has been a failure all his life and will give up everything to succeed as caretaker, and his son, Danny, who loves and idolizes his father so much, it almost costs Danny his own life. Both Jack and Danny, and mother Wendy, and Dick Hallorann are so rich in character, its a marvel just to read their stories... and the other character is The Overlook, the sinister hotel high in the Colorado mountains. King writes The Overlook as if it had feelings, as if it had anger, love, emotion, jealousy and so on, because truthfully, it does. It comes alive to manipulate Jack into getting what it wants.

This is where the movie misses out. In the movie, its just a haunted hotel and a crazy man, but in the book, you watch the hotel slowly take over the Torrence family. In my favorite scene in the book, and one of the scariest in any book, the hedges slowly come alive to try and take Danny into the hotel's soul, and they try to take Jack as well.

I rented the mini-series that came out a few years ago, with Steven Weber and Rebecca DeMornay as Jack and Wendy and it... well, it was terrible. It was given a modern day feel, but still tried to use the verbage and language from the 70s, when it was written. It highlighted much more than Kubrick's "The Shining", including key parts like the croquet mallet, the furnace and the hedges, but its just acted so poorly.

Anyway, this was a great book, one that I highly recommend picking up over a weekend. Keep the lights on. Re-watch Kubrick's "The Shining" only after you've finished the book, and steer clear of the mini-series.

#58. MLK Weekend at the Beach
Spending the weekend at the beach is a great thing. Spending the weekend at a friend's house, when it doesn't cost you anything, is a better thing. Having a bunch of good friends with you is the best.

Because The Lovely Steph Leann never gets to see her BFFs, DeLisa, Lesley & Susie, from school, late in '06 we started planning (and yes, I was one of the initial developers of this great idea) to all get together for MLK three-day weekend. There was Suzie & Mike, who owned the house we'd be staying in... there was Lesley & Jason, who lives in Crestview, parents of twins (who stayed with grandparents)... there was DeLisa & Nick, who live here in town, but we never get to see because even when you live in Birmingham, its so big it might as well be another city... and there was Mike, one half of the Mike & Ken guy duo that hung out with them. Mike brought his fiance-now-wife Daphne... or perhaps it was his wife already. I don't remember...

In the back, Mike & Daphne, Jason & Leslie. In the front, there's Nick & DeLisa, me and The Lovely Steph Leann and in the bottom right corner, Susie and Mike.

Anyway, it was a good time. We just hung out, we went shopping the next day at San Destin, we grilled out, watched sports, and just had a good time. Mostly, it was good to see Stephanie reconnect with BFF Suzie, BFF DeLisa, BFF Lesley and BFF Mike. We were going to try to do it again this year, but that didn't work so well...


#57. Tyler Graduates
I've always talked about Tyler, the Sexy Beast of the Clouds in My Coffee Blog, in a great way, cause he's really a good kid. He's my brother in law, The Lovely Steph Leann's youngest brother, and truly fun to be around.

So, naturally, it was a good time when we got to see him graduate, along with my other friends Stephen Hunt, Trey Cartledge and Garrett Cheney... and of course, like last year's graduation with Kourtney Kelley & Kandice Kelley (which ranked #20 on the Coolest Things of 2006), it was a good time to have fun with some of the names.... names like Robert Alan "Case of" Heinke, Elijah "Soy" Chai Ngaruiya, Zack Bedgood and Rizwan Poonwalla (the new Chest Rockwell and Brock Landers), and of course, The Gurley Man and the Priddy Boy.

You can go back and read the entire graduation blog here.

#56. The Lovely Steph Leann's One Liners
Sometimes, perhaps more often than not, Steph Leann is really, really funny. For whatever reason, she waited until this year to start popping off the one liners...

Me, sitting at Purple Onion, listening overhead: Is that Lional Richie I hear? At a Greek restaurant?
Steph Leann: Hey, Lionel Richie is universal.

(you can read the full story here)

Me, watching some show with Elvis on it: Elvis was really a pimp
Steph Leann: Honey... Elvis invented pimp

Me: (I don't remember what I said)
Steph Leann: There are not dust bunnies in my belly button!!!

You get the idea. Funny, funny stuff. (I'm going to regret that last one)

#55. STOMP!
What a great show. We saw it in December with Andy & Kristy Murry, who'd never seen it before (this was my fourth time). It's always great to see it with people who haven't.

Anyway, STOMP! is the percussion show where the cast makes great music with advanced instruments like brooms, dowels, rods, balloons, plastic sacks, newspapers, trash cans, trash can lids, keys and everything else you can imagine. Its a marvelous show that obviously takes a long time to prepare for... totally worth the cost.



You know, what kills me is when I was in 6th grade, I had the chance to join the band. I thought about playing drums, which would have been cool, but I waited, picking up alto sax in 9th grade. But what if I would have started on the drums in 6th grade, then in 8th grade, turn to my fellow drummers, saying "Hey, why don't we get some brooms and such, and make some music? It might be cool." I'd be a freakin' millionaire. I chalk this right under Build-a-Bear in the "why the heck didn't I think of that??" catagory.

I would highly recommend getting Stomp Out Loud on dvd. Its a tv version of the show, lasting about an hour, and there's some stuff in it that you only see on tv.

#54. "Salem's Lot" by Stephen King
Unlike "The Shining", I had never read "Salem's Lot", and unlike "Cell", I didn't know what Salem's Lot was about... well, except for vampires.

Alongside "The Shining", "The Stand" and "It", "Salem's Lot" is considered one of Stephen King's masterpieces. Written in 1975, it tells the story of Jerusalem's Lot, or 'Salem's Lot, Maine, a town that is slowly dying--or, disappearing, rather. Ben Mears, a writer, moves back into town after his wife dies, strikes up a friendship with local doctor Matt Burke and sparks a relationship with old friend Susan Norton.


He's back to write a book on The Marsten House, the local "haunted house" (because every small town has one) that gave him nightmares as a child. Things are not well at The Marsten House, which of course, why would they be--this is, after all, a true horror story.
The build-up is fantastic... you don't even know its a vampire story until at least halfway through the book. The payoff is even better, as lots of people start dying, lots of vampires start attacking and lots of goose bumps start bumping. You can even read the "bookends" of the novel, two short stories that appear in Stephen King's "Night Shift", with "Jerusalem's Lot" set before "Salem's Lot", and "One for the Road" set after.

I've never seen the original movie adaptation, but I will say like "The Shining", steer clear of the Rob Lowe starring made-for-tv adaption. Its just terrible.

#53. Transformers.
We all loved the afternoon cartoon, and some of us remember the guilty pleasure that was and is the mid-80s animated Transformers movie, the one where Optimus Prime not only curses, but dies. So, we were pretty excited when we heard that Michael Bay (the director) and Steven Spielberg (the producer) would be involved in a 2007 update of the great kid toy line.

I'll be honest with you... there's nothing about this movie I didn't like. As in, I liked EVERYTHING about this flick. There's not a throwaway line, there's not a wasted scene, even Bumblebee going from old school VW Bug to a classic Camero didn't bother me like I thought it would. The Year of Shia LaBeouf continues as he's perfectly cast, while Megan Fox lives up to her surname. And of course, you have the Autobots and Decepticons, which every guy--and some girls--were so jazzed about because it took us all back to when we were 8, raging the battle of Cybertron on our front lawn.

The ending battle through the city is phenomenal, as is just about everything about the movie.

#52. Seth Rogan
Wow this guy is funny. Who knew? Althought I saw "Knocked Up" first, I can see where his reputation started to build after "40 Year Old Virgin". And then, in "Superbad", with the crazy 'stache, as a moron cop, he's hilarious too.

I'm so diggin' the Fu stache. I'm trying to convince The Lovely Steph Leann to let me grow on.

I'll end up having to put "Freaks & Geeks" on my Blockbuster Queue, where he started on TV.

#51. Facebook
MySpace used to be the place to go, until they opened up Facebook to the world, instead of just college students and business networks. I know, I know, there are some who wanted to keep it only for college students and businesses, but I, for one, am glad they opened it.

I mean, how else can I keep up with my friends Katy Boo, Leslie Ailsworth, Sam Allison, Amy Anderson, Blair and Matt Andress, Hannah Armstrong, Andrew Atkinson, Bobbi Jo, Shawn Baxley, Lauren Beam, Fish, BCM Brad, Binkley, Curtis Black, My Little Perfect Daughter, Jana Blackwell, Shelby, Katie Bolt, Tyler Bolton, Malinda Nichols, J-Bo, Meredith Brazzell, Wendy Brobst, Crush, Nikki Brown, Mike Brunson, David Bullock, Rob, Jessica & Kathy Compton, Sister Golden Hair, Cara Caillouet, All the Gfeller girls, Shiloh, Chad & Ashley Campbell, Tyler, Michelle Carr, Jamie & Trey Cartledge, All the Long Girls, Big Ben Caver, Karen Chapman, Lacey Chappell, Christi Chastain, Garrett Cheney, Paige Cheney, The Clark Girls, My Little College Freshman, Carol Anne, Marcus Clement, Jason & Andrea, Ty & Donette, Megan Bryan "was almost Dollar" Collins, Jordan Craddock, Jonathan & Amanda Cranston, Steph Crisp, Logan Crook, Shelley Streed, Josh Crosby, Brittany & Chris Croyle, Brooke Culpepper, Cassidy Curles, Jeremy Davis, Tama Davis, Tobi Davis, Wendi Deckermiller, Laura DeGH, Jeff Dickey, Sharon Dobbins, Ellen Donze, Luthor, J-Dotson, Beverly Earman, Liz Beth Earman, Clint Ellis, Adam Ellis, Deena Emaish, Jenn Ersnt, Lindsay Mims, Aaryn Figert, Joanna Finch, Jared Fincher, All the Fine Kids (minus Aaron), Kelly Fisher, Stacey Francis, Susie Franks, Caroline Franks, Wook Fu, Sammi Funk, Chase Garner, Mollie Garrigan, Louie Giglio, Lane Gilmore, Courtney Glicken, Abbey Gore, Emily Lovinggood, Kim Graham, both Zack and Kara Graves, Devan Grayson, Katie Green, Stephen Greer, Little Jaci, Matt Grimes, Tony Griffies, Jordan Grubb, the elder two Guthrie children, Alyssa Guy, Lora Haghighi, Ashton Hale, The Hall, Steph Halpert, Leah Hamel, Kyle Hanson, Anna Banana, Tamara Harper, Sarah Hasha, Philip Hasha, Drew Hataway, Haley's Comet, Jessica Hawbaker, Kelcie & Danielle Hicks, Jeff Herring, Annaka Hindman, Joey Hinson, Jess Hodges, Aleicia Hornsby, Julie Howell, Dan Howard, Whitney Huff, Stephen Hunt, Ink Hwangpo, Rachel & Sarah Jacks, Molly, Jill, Marie & Sybil Johnson, Joy JohnsTon, Megan, Chris and Jeremy Jones, Gabe & Giselle Josef, Stefanie & Stacy Jovanioviahnivhich, Andrew Kallus, Cari Kates, the Entire Kelley Family, Alissa Kelly, Lara Kolmetz, Gretchen Krisher (wait... who? Oh yeah, Gretchie!), Launi Larrabee, All three Latta boys and their women, Manda Laughlin, Kelsie Lawson, Alyssa Lehr, Jon Lenning, Ann Marie, My Little Muffinhead, My Little Muffinhead's bro Brad, Laran Lofton, Ashley Lovell, Deb Lowe, The Mackeys, Mama P, Erin Magonigal, Eazy E, Jonathan and Jennifer Marbutt, Morgan Marks, Paige Martin, Josh Martin, Crystal Martin, Meredith May, Ryan Mays, Chris McCall, Kasey McCarver, Keri McLendon, Jennifer McShea, Big Eddy Mac, Little Eddy Mac, Krista Mac, Jesalyn McCurry, Shannon Megan, Vicki McGee, Courtney McGough, Bradley McGuffey, Jonathan McKenzie, Tommy, Amy & Bruce McLeod, Paul McRae, Chad McRee, Mateo and Cherene, Karina, Steph and Kellen Miller, The Downeaster Alexa, John Milton, Jennifer Mims, Super Dana, Kelly Mize, Amanda Abbott, Drew Morris, Justin Moseley, Porcia, Andy Murry, Mikey Nipp, Katie & Alyce Noland, My Twinkie Adrianne, Trey O'Neal, Angie Mark Pilgrim Osborne, all three Osborne kids, Kelli Parks, Christy & Ricky Parvin, Rick Paschal, Andrea Payton, Leigh Pegg, Tina Pilgrim, Pinky, Bradley Pinkerton, Laura Parker Posey, Kevin Price, Hannah Pruitt, McQ, Rebe Raffini, Dave Ramsey, Jeremiah Rastegar, Matt & Steph Rector, Mary Reed, Alan Renfroe, K-Swiss, Amanda Rials, Ashley Rials, Destiny Richards, Jessica Rogers, Jenny Ross, Heather Rowland, Kevin Sanders, Melinda Schauland, Petey & Jenn, Kasie Secrest, Audrey Senkbeil, Beth Sentell, Shawnifer, Rene Sheppard, LP Sherman (42 Wallaby Way), Brain Sherrell, Christine Shores, Whitney Shores, Shrop, Kristi Simmons, Cindy Skipworth, Tallahassee, Shawn Smallwood, Steve, Justin and Jason Smith, My Little Sister, Rocky, Butters, Savannah Stamps, Beth Stanley, Gweer Stanton, Dave Stephens, Sgt Stone, Paulie Sutton, Kat Switzer, Ginny Temple, Saratara, Katytara, Lolo, Joey Thomason, Julia Thomason, Abby... excuse me, Abigail Thomason, Joey Thornell, Diva Trent, Courtney Trippe, Trinity Tucker, Haley Turnage, Jennifer Mullins Turpin, Amy Valdmanis, Julie Vance, Todd & Brooke Veleber, Luke Vogel, Nick Wade, Jessica Walker, K-Dub, Kyriae Warner, Sarah Warren, Michael Warren, The Wasyluka, Meredith Watkins, My Little Bobblehead, Maisha Watson, Weaver, Derek Weeks, Ashley Wehunt, Kelley Whatley, Erin Whidden, Molly White, Sierra Wiginton, Jordan Willcox, Jessica Williams, Leah Williams, Chase Williams, So Very Kari Wilson, Theresa Wilson, Alisa Worley, Angela Wren, Devon Yarbrough, PauYau! and Claire Young?

It would be impossible, really.

Coming up... the Top 50 Coolest Things of 2007, including Weird Al's Latest video, the war in Disney, Fergalicious and, at last, K-Dub.

The Coolest Things of 2007, #70 to 61

Here's the next ten coolest things of 2007, as ranked by me.

#70. Trinity defeats Millsaps, 28-24
I have no words to describe this, other watch this. I just found an even better quality video, an end zone angle.

Oh, it is fun to note former Alabama coach Mike Dubose coaches Millsap College.

#69. The 2007 College Football Season
What you just saw on #70 was really, according to the whole season, was just a blip on the radar. In one of the most amazing seasons ever, we teams ranked in the top five lose to unranked opponents 13 times, not the least of these being Stanford beating USC and Appy State taking out #5 Michigan. We saw the #1 team go down four times, the most in a season since 1990. We saw the #1 and #2 team lose on the same weekend (USC and Cal) for the first time since 1996. Then we saw it happen again later in the season. We saw no favorite as safe, no underdog without hope, and no game that didn't have the potential to become explosive.


Poor Lloyd. Of course, he did wind up beating my beloved Gators in the Capital One Bowl, Lloyd's final game.

I mentioned it before, kudos to whoever the sports programming director is for the tiny network Versus, formerly the Outdoor Channel. Three weeks in a row I watched a game that, when it was booked, was probably insignificant, but when it aired was monumental.... Colorado beating Oklahoma and Stanford beating USC being two of them.

It added to a crazy, thrilling DFC VIII, in which Drew Morris emerged from the wreckage to become the DFC Champion just a few days ago. And last night, LSU proved once again that the Big 10 sucks, and the SEC rules. Because last night, the Big 10 sucked. And the SEC rules.

Which, in a sidenote, is promising for the future. Four of the six major BCS conferences are not only recommending and favoring a "Plus-One" championship style game, in which the top four teams are ranked in major bowls, and the winners go on to play for the title, but after this season, they are looking at calling it The Football Final Four, and even seeding and re-seeding.

The hold-outs? The Pac 10 and the Big 10, which are so bent on how special their Rose Bowl game is, they are resistant to any change, even though this college football nation and fanbase has evolved beyond caring that the Pac 10 champ and the Big 10 champ meet every single season. Some traditions are only important to those immediately involved, but unfortunately, those immediately involved are the ones who impede the path to a possible playoff, or at least a "plus one" format, which is a precursor to a playoff type atmosphere.

Of course, this season was almost crazy enough to make you forget the need for a playoff.

Almost.

#68. Leading Financial Peace University
Someone early in the spring was goofy enough to ask Stephanie and I to help lead Financial Peace University at Valleydale Church (an sbc fellowship). Its a 13 week Dave Ramsey led course on financial responsibility, and we've been through it already.

As a "table leader", we did just that... lead a table full of couples, four to be exact. As we went through, week by week, Steph and I got to lead the discussions on where people are financially--some were doing great, others not so great, but thats okay, they were all in there to learn how to budget, how to save, how to get out of debt and how to give. With God's blessing and mercy, we've managed to learn how to do all of this, and are finishing up the debt part this spring.

How great it was to hear stories from people at our table, and in the big room, and know we were there just a few years ago, and I felt like we were able to say "hey, look where we are now... you can get here too, I promise."

With any luck, we'll get to lead again this summer... and if you haven't taken this course, then you are welcome to come through it. We invite you to do so.

#67. Adam Corolla on The Sports Guy Podcast
Every week, you can hear Bill Simmons, aka The Sports Guy, on iTunes, talking it up with sports figures, celebrities, or sometimes, just his buddies like Diehard Yankees Fan Jacko (who TSG called every week during the baseball season to ask "Are you worried about the Yankees yet?"), and his buddy Cousin Sal, who did NFL lines with him every week.

The Sports Guy used to work as a writer on The Jimmy Kimmel Show, and he would collaborate with Adam Corolla. Both Kimmel and Corolla used to work together on The Man Show. So, anyway, Corolla is on The Sports Guy Podcast this one particular show this past September, and he has some movie ideas...

Imagine the US Olympic Team, all sports, is practicing in Colorado and suddenly, terrorists take over. Well, what are these olympians to do? Except, the terrorists didn't anticipate the marathoner escaping, and running to get help, which is approximately 26.2 miles away. The bombs are rigged to go off in 2 hours, 5 minutes and 17 seconds... which would set a new Olympic record. They didn't anticipate the pole vaulter getting out of the large room they are trapped in, because the window is about fifteen feet up. They didn't anticipate their cameras, set 100 meters apart, switching angles every 9.8 seconds... which means for every Olympian to help escape, they set a new record. The title? "Rings of Honor", and the 2 "O's" in "honor" are the two rings in the Olympic Ring logo. Another title Deathcathalon.

The other one? The story of Rush Blitzer (the best possible football name ever), the best long snapper in NFL history, who is disgraced because he gets dazed in a play (and of course, you get the slow motion, foggy visual, where everyone's voices are unintelligible and slow), and long snaps the ball so hard it kills the flanker (his helmet explodes from impact). Living in the mountains in a cabin, drinking hard, full beard, a hound dog, he's approached by the coach from his old NFL team. After being suspended from the NFL for two years, Rush says he's not sure, then you see the montage where he's lost his touch, he loses the ball, the fumbles, he snaps it too high and knocks an airplane out of the sky, that kind of thing.

Suddenly, the mob appears and tells him that he must throw the upcoming playoff game, or they'll kill his 15 year old daughter (who's really 26 in real life with full curves) and doesn't know what Rush Blitzer did. So the mobster guy tells her, while Rush is handcuffed, trying to get out, then the mobster guy does that super creepy guy thing where he runs his hand backwards on his cheek, and though the daughter hates her dad, Rush Blitzer, the whole time, she suddenly pops up and says "My father is a great man!"

So, in the Super Bowl, his team down by 2 with :01 left on the clock, ready to kick the winning field goal, Rush Blitzer must decide... as he looks between his legs ready to snap the ball, does he fumble the snap on purpose, fix the game, take the loss and save his daughters life, or does he long snap it like he knows he can, win the game, but cost his daughter's life? No, instead, Rush Blitzer, with an :18 hang time on his snap, fires it hard into the stands and drills it into the mobster's temple, killing him.

The title? "Snapper: The Rush Blitzer Story". Can't beat that, really. One of the funniest things I've ever heard... you can hear the entire podcast for free on iTunes.

#66. "Cosy in the Rocket" by Psapp.
Psapp is this English band, sort of electronica, that is sometime credited with inventing "toytronica", which is music through use of regular instruments as well as toy guitars, toy flutes and other sound making children's things. Pronounced "Puh Sap", they are known for using humor in their concerts, sometimes tossing stuffed, hand made cats into the audience. Anyway, it was this year that I discovered "Cosy in the Rocket".

Don't know this song? One listen and you will, or you will if you watch Grey's Anatomy. If you want to hear it, you can click here to see a Grey's Anatomy montage set to the song--there are a dozen of them, all kinda the same, none really that great, but at least you can hear the song.

#65. The Golden Compass Bombs.
Ha!

"Hey, let's spend $180 million dollars on a movie based on an atheist-authored book that is based on the premise that God is the enemy, and that in the end of the book, God dies! I mean, we'll leave some of that stuff out, but the Christians in this country are too stupid to make the connection, so we'll get Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig and make a ton of money!"

At the time of this writing, The Golden Compass has cleared $65 million. And its been out for a while, so its not as if this will be making $100 million more in the near future. I wrote about this right before it came out, and I also told Stephanie before it came out "That movie is going to bomb".

This isn't like The Da Vinci Code, where the Catholics protested and honestly, the Christians in this country didnt care, mostly because the movie was terrible, this is about Christ-followers in this country refusing to let their children see a movie that is a slap in the face to all that their faith hold dear, and about a Hollywood society that doesn't understand why Passion of the Christ made over $300 million, why Narnia was such a monster success, why Lord of the Rings was so huge, but doesn't get it when it comes to anti-God and anti-Jesus. Because Hollywood is anti-God, so must the rest of the nation, right?

Again I say, Ha!!

#64. The Blake Lewis Beatbox
This is what I wrote on May 1st, 2007:

Blake Lewis, whom Ashley [Spell] just told me was amazing via text, is up next. He's going to be doing "You Give Love a Bad Name", which is huge, because that's one of those much beloved 80s songs that you don't mess around with, like "Pour Some Sugar On Me" or "Hungry Like the Wolf". Its immortal, really. And... apparently, he's going to be amazing in that he's doing a different interpretation on it, or "rolling the dice" as Jon Bon Jovi says to him.

Okay since the tape is in the other room, I watched the whole thing just now. Wow. Holy crap. Blake Lewis may not be the best singer on the show, and he may not, nay, probably won't win American Idol. But he is hands down, bar none absolutely the best performer on this show, and is the best that has been on it in a long, long time.

So he comes out, does a voice and physical imitation of a coin going in a jukebox, you hear the crackle of the "record" playing, and he launches into it... and the beatbox, for the first time in weeks, almost as if he were afraid to use it before, is in full effect. He sings great, beats great, then has a beatbox/percussion battle with the solo drummer right next to him for about 16 beats. That was amazing. THAT was not just someone singing well... that was a PERFORMANCE.

With good reason, all three judges liked it... all commented on the fact it was a huge risk (it was) and it paid off (it did). In fact, I might go watch it again.

I just watched it again, and that just cemented it as one of my favorite Idol performances of all time... along with George Huff's "Take Me to the Pilot", Amy Adams "Sin Wagon" and Ruben's "Kiss and Say Goodbye".

Read the whole blog from that night right here.

#63. Factor 7 Reunited (and it feels so good)
So, it was excited to see one of our favorite bands get back together... you know, like a reunion tour, some new tunes, mostly old stuff. Again, drawing on a previous blog, here's what I said in April of 2007:

So one of Birmingham's best kept secrets makes it's triumphant return on Saturday night. It's Factor 7, looking slightly different than they did when they played the first DeuceFest back in 2000. It's the final stop before they hit East Asia, on their first world tour, carrying rock and roll and God's love to all.


A blurry shot of Factor 7 in one of their small venue concerts. Its great when a band, used to selling out 20,000 seat arenas, will play in a small room for a session.

Original guitarist David Mark Osborne has gone on, gotten married, and is currently helping to produce and write new material for Chris Daughtry's next album (slated for release in 2008). Its great how they convinced Brad Latta to come back from a moderately successful solo career (two albums later, of course--the first, self-titled album was obviously a trial run, but the second, "No Stone Unturned" was really, really good. The riffs on track 4, "Below My Mind" are out of this stinkin' world) and rejoin his brother Matt, and also their buddy Drew Morris.

You may remember Drew Morris, or at least his name, as he's been touring with All American Rejects, mostly as a "fill-in" guitarist, and sometimes as their opening act when they play small venues. He's also appeared next to Jason Mraz on some of those Vh1 "Best Week Ever" and "I Love the (fill in decade)" shows.

The new faces include Ashley Spell, a local rocker who's style and attitude have been described as "Fiona Apple mixed with classic Joan Jett", and is ready to hit the big time (personally, I think she'll stay with the band just long enough for her solo career to take off, a la Gwen Stefani...)

Meredith Watkins, fresh off of Broadway, also adds some female viewpoints to the group. I say Broadway, though I guess it's really just touring with Rent and Aida, but she did do a few bit roles in some Kevin Spacey play. Her Broadway cd, "Starlight" is also really good... not a fan of her take on "On My Own" but I do like her on "Over the Moon"... but thats just me.

Finally, turning Factor 7 into the 6 that now comprise the group is Scott Latta, younger brother to both Brad and Matt. He's a senior at the Univerity of Alabama, and has recently finished a book called "We Got 12 (Coaches): Why Stallings Was Right, Shula Was Wrong and Every Mistake In Between", discussing the turbulant Dubose/Fran/Price/Shula/Saban saga, one of the most troubling period in Alabama history. Oh yeah, he also plays guitar. He's actually dating Jessikuh Smisson... you know, the Italian model chick? Yeah, struggled to think of her too, cause they all kind of look alike.

Anyway, I got to see Factor 7 do a small jam session in a small arena right outside of the Verizon Amphitheater here in Birmingham. All I can say is, welcome back, Factor 7.

You can read this and get video links and such on the original blog.

FYI, the update: They did play to sold out arenas overseas, and the band reunion didn't last long, with Brad Latta embarking on a southeast tour to promote his latest album, Drew Morris going on to appear in Vh1's "I Love New York 3" (he didn't win, but he should be glad), Meredith is now appearing in Broadway's "Wick'd", Ashley is actually working on her first solo album while also singing lead in another group, The Rick Astley Overload, and Scott and Matt are doing shows together, currently opening for Paramore. David Mark avoided comment on this story. When I talked to Scott, inquiring about a full fledged US tour, he said, "We've discussed it, but it might be a while... our next album is called 'Japanese Democracy', and we've gotten several tracks for it, but there's not any release date in sight'".

And so we wait.

#63a. Scott Latta
Out of all the cool people in the original Factor 7, perhaps the one that has emerged into the coolest of the four is Scotty Latta. The youngest of the Latta brothers, he's a talented actor, musician, and we have kind of the same humor. And since I read his blog, The Rammer Jammer Blog (the blog that ended up #11 on the coolest things of 2006, the highest ranking blog ever on a Top 100 Coolest list), he reads mine. Good guy. Former WalkAbout student. Of course.


If you think I only added a 63A to be able to post this picture of Les Miles... uh, Scott Latta, you'd be right (yes, yes, that's not my joke, its Scott's. But that's why he got a 63A, the first sub-ranking in the history of this Top 100)

#62. Colbie Caillat's "Coco"
I love this album. I've always been a fan of girls with guitars, and it seems like this was just recorded with a chick, sitting on a stool, playing her guitar and singing her songs. Everyone knows "Bubbly" and its "...starts in my toes, makes me crinkle my nose, wherever you go, I always know..." sweet lyrics, but the whole album is just a gem.

She's... 23, I think and I can see her becoming the female John Mayer in the fugure, with a dusky voice and guiding father, Ken Caillat (who helped produce Fleetwood Mac's "Rumours", which is one of the top three best selling albums... ever).

You can hear some of her stuff on the above link, which is the Amazon.com listing, or here on her MySpace page and the video to "Bubbly".

#61. Whataburger!
First had Whataburger! back in 2003, in Fort Walton Beach. Spent some time in the San Destin location a year or two later. Then, magically, one appeared in Alabaster, which caused me to make random trips down there to have lunch. Not many, mind you, because gas prices suck. But sometimes.

Then, they put one on 119. Ah... redemption. I love me some Whataburger!, and I don't know why. I'm not even sure they are all that good, to be honest, but just something about that place draws me in, calling me... "Dave... Dave... eat here! You'll say 'What a burger!'". So I eat there. I mean, what a burger!

Coming up...
One whacked out trailer... Team Bats*** reappears... The Lovely Steph Leann admires Lionel Richie... and Kdub

The Coolest Things of 2007... #80 to 71

We continue our countdown, all the way to the coolest thing about 2007!

#80. Hannah Pruitt. She's a former stage manager techie actress chick from Auburn, who now attends Valleydale Church (an sbc fellowship) with her husband John. She's in KidStuf now, as Sam, and is a whole lotta fun to be around. Hannah is one of those people I can't help but get along with, just cause we have a lot in common, she's really silly and loves Jesus.


This is one of those shots that Hannah would probably not want posted, but oh well.

#79. Seeing Jenny Ross. One day, I'm working the drive thru at Starbucks. A voice comes on and orders a Caramel Frappuccino. A few minutes later, in the window is a lovely brunette that I hadn't seen in about, oh, eight years. Jenny Ross, from Elba, Alabama (or was it Enterprise?). I made her pull up and meet me outside, to which we gave each other a big 'ol hug. We were buddies back in the BCM, and seeing her that day practically made my entire week. I haven't seen her since (even though she swears she comes by sometime), so I'll just hold dear that one afternoon.

#78. The Patriots Go 16-0. Newly crowned MVP of the NFL Tom Brady has led the New England Patriots to a perfect, undefeated regular season, the first since 1972's Miami Dolphins did it. They went 14-0 that year, several years before the NFL adopted a 16 game regular season. The Dolphins, of course, went on to 17-0, winning the Super Bowl, while the Patriots play host to the Jacksonville Jaguars next weekend. Am I rooting for the Pats to win it all, and be 19-0? Heck yeah... very few times in life do you get to see such a sports milestone, and considering we're still talking about the '72 Dolphins perfect season 35 years later, we'll be talking about the Pats perfect season for at least that long... and we can say we saw the Super Bowl when it happened.

#77. The Amnesty Bill Gets Defeated. If I get into it, I'll get upset. Just know that this bill, pushed forward by Republicans and Democrats alike would have given amnesty--they didn't call it that, but that's exactly what it was--to millions of illegal aliens in this country. And it went down in flames because there was such a public outcry against it, as there should have been. Sometimes we can make a difference.

#76. Celeb TV. "Happening now on Celeb TV...". When I fire up the podcast on my iPod, or on my computer on iTunes, a small screen pops up with either Danni Boatwright (former Survivor winner) or Kelly Zink hosting, giving me the lowdown on such important information like Britney's latest fiasco, or Paris' latest runaround, or Beyonce's losing four pounds or (this just in!!!) K-Fed getting full custody! Seriously, watching this two minute daily podcast is like watching four hours of E! tv, only much less Seacrest. Of course, Celeb TV doesn't have Debbie Matenopoulos, so I do have to watch E! sometimes...

#75. "The Way I Am" by Ingrid Michaelson. "If you were falling, then I would catch you. You need a light? I'd find a match. Cause I-I-I-I love the way you say 'good morning'. And you-ou-ou-ou take me the way I am."

Out of nowhere, Ingrid Michaelson comes out with this tender, fun, guitar pluckin' song... not quite a ballad, not quite a rock song, but just a fun song. Not only to give to someone, but to sing. She's already had a number of songs on "Grey's Anatomy", and you can hear this song in particular in an Old Navy ad, a JC Penney ad and for a Chevy Equinox. Two points for the use of "rogaine" in the song... that might be a first.

#74. CarTalk on iTunes. I love Car Talk. Seriously, it might be one of my top five radio programs, like, ever ever. Tom and Ray Magliozzi, better known as Click & Clack, the Tappet Brothers, take calls on car problems and give out advice. But its more than that--they take questions not only about car problems, but marriage problems caused by cars, disputes between friends and family, and sometimes, just the strange (including cars that quack, smoke coming from the dashboard and seats that's shock you--but only if the driver is driving the car). However, to say that Car Talk itself is a 2007 discovery, thereby making it one of the coolest things about the year would be a lie.

I was excited when early in the year, iTunes posted "The Car Talk Call of the Week", a five to seven minute segment featuring the best, funniest call from that week's show. I had gone onto the CarTalk website previously to see if I could download the show... and I could... for $3.95 per show. That's four bucks. That's like, $50 per year. I love the show, but not enough to pay $4 bucks per week to hear it. So, I managed along with the call of the week...

So imagine my delight and enjoyment when I discovered, on iTunes, the entire Car Talk show was available over the summer. I quickly added it to my podcast queue, and started listening... and I haven't missed a show in at least six months.

#73. The Robot Chicken Star Wars Special. Wow this was funny. For the unbeknownst to become beknownst, Robot Chicken is a animated show on The Cartoon Network's late night, more adult oriented cartoons, title "Adult Swim". Its this crude, stop motion animation filled with sketches, made by using action figures like Star Wars, GI Joe, Barbies and so on. And its hilarious. Sometimes crude, but its funny.

One of the creators is Seth Green, actor and well known to his fans as being an avid collector of action figures... especially Star Wars. And this year, they did the official Robot Chicken Star Wars Special.

Included... a light saber standoff between Dubya and Abe Lincoln, a dancing Lobot, and a great conversation with Luke and Vader in Empire Strikes Back, where Luke says "you mean to tell me the force is some chemical crap in my blood?"

#72. Samantha Brown. When those Champion Window commercials would come on, I would always watch with intrigue, thinking "you know, that woman is kinda pretty. Not hot, but kinda hot. I mean, she's not Steph Leann, but really who is, but still... I kinda like that chick."

One day I'm flipping through cable, and stumble upon the Travel Channel, and lo and behold, its the Champion Window chick! Samantha Brown is her name, and she's taken me on a tour of South American, Central America and now Europe, all while enjoying the local fare, the sights, the sounds, the beer and the nightlife.


Here's a snapshot of Sam in the Honduras. Oh, she's the one on the left.

Not sure why I'm fascinated so much by Sam, but somehow I am. She's like my own Colin Firth. You can even get highlights from her shows on iTunes in a podcast.

And recently, we saw a show that had Samantha Brown in Disney World for the holidays, which means it had to be filmed either during, or not too long after we were there. I think I would have passed out had I met Sam, to which Steph would just leave me there out of irritation.

#71. "Cell" by Stephen King. One of his newer novels, perhaps in the last three or four released, its a simple story about a worldwide "pulse" that hits every single cell phone at the same time, and everyone on a cell phone has their brains affected to the point where they become mind numbed, flesh desiring zombie type creatures.

Opening up in Boston, we meet our unaffected protagonist, Clayton Riddell, who soon after joins forces with Tom McCourt and then 15 year old Alice Maxwell, not only surviving, but attempting to make it back to Maine--for Clay, its to find his son Johnny, for Tom and Alice, its a matter of not having anywhere else to go.

The mind numbed flesh desiring zombie type creatures, called "phoners", as our heroes have to battle them along the way, finding a few surprises and meeting a few more people--and meeting more tragedy (one of which actually upset me) as they go along.

I loved this book, because it was true King updated for a computer aged, cell phone using world. If something happened to every person on a cell phone at one given moment, what would happen? This story gives you a possible answer. Its a thick book, but you can get it now at most bookstores on the bargain table, anywhere from five to ten bucks. And who wouldn't be scared of a villain called The Raggedy Man? That's creepy.

Coming up... The wildest play in college football, Brandi Carlisle tells us a "story" and... Kdub.

The 100 Coolest Things of 2007... 90 to 81

Continuing the Top 100 Coolest Things About 2007, according to Dave. Cause its my blog.

#90. Wendi Deckermiller. She was my friend at Troy State back in the day, and she's my friend now. She frequently comments on the blog, and has taken some great photographs as part of her hobby. Bottom line is, she's just cool. Hence, the 90th coolest of 2007.

#89. "Barack the Magic Negro". Before I'm branded as the biggest racist you know, let's get one thing clear... it was David Ehrenstein, a columnist for the LA Times, who called Barack Obama "The Magic Negro". Then, its was Sen. Joe Biden (D-MD) who said Obama was "...the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy...". So what did my boy Rush Limbaugh do? He called up comedian Paul Shanklin, who, impersonating Reverend Al Sharpton, sang a little ditty called "Barack the Magic Negro", to the tune of "Puff the Magic Dragon".

And its one of the funniest things I've ever heard... of course, what's even funnier is that the media, and especially "unbiased" sites like The Daily Kos and Media Matters went nuts, calling Rush every racist name in the book, but never mentioning Ehrenstein (the source) or even Biden (who's comments I would have been totally offended at).

If you know anything about Al Sharpton, the fact that its Al Sharpton singing, plus the fact he's using a bullhorn is absolutely hysterical. Here's a video from You Tube which is equally as funny.

And for all you Democrats who think this is racist, then tell you what... you back off Condi Rice, especially with those "brown sugar" cartoons, (ladies & gentlemen, your tolerant, compassionate, fighting for equality and the poor Democrats in action!) and I won't laugh at Barack the Magic Negro.

#88. "What If?" by Robert Cowley. So what would have happened if Hitler refrained from attacking Russia, saving his army and instead took the Middle East and captured the oil? What would have happened if D-Day had failed? What would have happened in the Civil War if the plans that Robert E. Lee lost, plans that were found by the Union and used to decimate the Confederacy, weren't lost? These and several other questions are asked in this book, and to answer them, historians such as Stephen Ambrose and David McCollough use speculation to give you a present now that could be, resulting from a past that could have gone differently. I personally love to play the "what if?" game, and this book was absolutely fascinating.

My favorite of the bunch is "Unlikely Victory: 13 Ways the Americans Could Have Lost the Revolution", which really paints a picture that truly the Americans didn't win the war, so much as the English bungled it up from the start, and one of more than a dozen things could have gone differently and we might all be speaking the Queen's English, driving on the other side of the road and July 4th wouldn't be as busy at Disney World. Good stuff.

#87. Solitairy. Its a stupid show on Fox Reality, a channel I don't even get amongst the 200 that I do. I only know about it from the free episode that got me hooked... nine contestants are each placed in a solitairy room, and throughout a series of obstacles, challenges, lack of sleep, lack of any good food, and so on, they begin to drop out one by one. The narrator is a chick named Val, who sounds just feminine enough to be a woman, yet still sounds like a robot. She talks to the contestants, pits them against each other and really tortures them--well, by the Democrats version of torture. I'm sure all 9 could be put in Club Gitmo, with their 3 or 4 square meals per day, work out rooms, religious freedoms and supplies and... oh, here I go again.

Anyway, the hilarious part is the winner gets... $50,000. Not a million, like Survivor. Not up to a million like Deal or No Deal. Not $500K or so, like Amazing Race. No, 50K. All this for fifty thousand, of which after taxes, you'll be looking at about $27,000, which is still a lot of money, but not really. The show is funny, and I enjoyed it. Looking forward to season three.

#86. Classic videos on iTunes. So, I'm flipping though the iTunes video section one day, and was startled... I found Vanilla Ice's "Ice Ice Baby", AND Wilson Phillips' "Hold On" on the same day, and all this was even after I had downloaded "Hazard" by Richard Marx (the sheriff did it! the sheriff killed Mary, I'm certain!!). All the links, by the way, are to the You Tube videos, which I highly recommend.

However, the coup de gras has to be "Don't Make Me Wait for Love", by Kenny G, from the album Duotones. Just the fact it starts out with a big fro'd Kenny getting out bed, shirtless, in long pajama pants to walk out on the beach porch at sunrise, then to see his silhouette with a saxophone.... high, high, high comedy. What's worse is that this is a rare Kenny G tune where there is a vocalist (Lenny Williams) and you NEVER see him in the video. This might be the best purchase under $4 I've ever made... well, except when I bought Smooth Love Jams of the 90s for $3.99 used. (and I know none of you think I'm kidding... and you'd be right)

FYI, I found this image online. However, I totally have the tape, and remember jamming (okay, can you use the word jamming when talking about Kenny G?) to it while traveling to Enterprise or Dothan in high school.

Anyway, I expect all of you to watch this, then report back to me.

And while we're at it, heck, here's a link to my favorite video of ever all time.... my favorite for so many reasons, not the least of which includes Keanu answering "Have you ever been in love?" with "If I was, I didn't know it..." (if this ever makes it on iTunes, I'd be hard pressed not to put it in the Top 10 Coolest of that Year)

#85. Drive. So, I see ads for this show all during January and February. Something about a man who's family is kidnapped, and the only way to get them back is to win this cross country race. But lo and behold, each and every participant has their own story, and each are forced to win the race to win back what they lost. Its gripping, its exciting, its interesting and... Fox canceled it after only a few episodes. Of course. This show had the potential to be a Top 50 Coolest... but I never got to see what happened. Because they never finished the story. Because either Fox wants "Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?" to succeed, America wants to watch such shows instead of great programming like "Drive", or both. Sigh.

#84. "The Reminder" by Feist. Yes, yes, she's the chick who sings "1-2-3-4, tell me that you love me more" from the Apple Nano commercials, which gives you a clip of the superb video. It was shot all in one take, if you can believe that. Anyway, Leslie Feist is a Canadian singer who's third album, "The Reminder" has been boosted by that very commercial. But beyond "1-2-3-4", the whole album is a gem, and truly is what I was hoping KT Tunstall's album, "Eye to the Telescope" would have been last year. Favorite track? "Brandy Alexander", right now... its fun, its classy, its talented. You can get this cd at Best Buy for like, ten bucks. Go for it.

#83. Manda Laughlin. One of my kids from WalkAbout, back in the day, who's grown up to be this beautiful young lady, graduating and heading off to college, and ya know, I think we might just be friends beyond "you used to be my student". Do you know Amanda? You're better for it.


Ya know, it was hard finding a picture of Amanda by herself... I had to flip through her Facebook photos--and yes, I realize that might be a little creepy. Anyway, I thought this was a good shot, though I didn't take it... had I've taken it, it wouldn't have been as light as it is, cause I have the cool camera and all and... wait... where was I?.

#82. Boise State over Oklahoma. In possibly one of the best games I've ever seen, and I only say the second half, little Boise State from the WAC Conference took on big bad Oklahoma, from the Big XII, and was, like, a 422 point underdog. And one game, an overtime and a play called "Statue of Liberty", and the Broncos come out 43-42 winners (plus one of the main guys--something Johnson--proposed to the freakin' head cheerleader after the game). This is why I love college football.

#81. Todd on Survivor. Let's face it... the Survivor in the spring of 2007 was really boring. Really boring. I keep watching though, knowing that the time for Survivor is limited, perhaps one or two more seasons left... but this past season, Survivor China, was fantastic. And mostly, it falls on the shoulders of a little gay Mormon named Todd Herzog. He'd been watching Survivor since he was 14, and at the Reunion Show, he laid out for the world everything--he had a game plan, he knew who to bring in, who to betray, who to align himself with, who to get voted off, who to get to vote off who he was getting voted off, who to shift blame to, who to lie to, and it was hilarious. This kid had it down to a tee. And he's a million dollars richer.

Coming up: The stink called The Golden Compass, a movie so bad its Superbad and... Kdub

The 100 Coolest Things of 2007... 100 to 91

Here's the Intro...

#100... Michelle Carr. She's a lifelong missionary, and leads a blessed, faith filled life that most--including myself--could only dream of. My friend Michelle has one of those kind of lives that, when God calls her home, Jesus will say, simply, "Well done, my good and faithful servant. Well done." And that makes her cool in any year.

#99. "The Myth of You and Me" by Leah Stewart. Yeah, its kind of a chick book, or at least, a book about friendship. But its sweet. Its the story of a lifelong friendship, one involving Cameron and Sonia, and its a friendship that has its ups and downs... notably a devastating betrayal by one and a refusal to forgive by the other. I found myself enthralled in the book, a short one that was knocked out in two days, and was happy after I finished it. Then I went and set something on fire just to feel manly.

#98. Tony Dungy. He's the coach of the Indianapolis Colts, who won the Super Bowl. It was his players in Tampa Bay that Chucky won the Super Bowl with back several years ago (2002?) and finally, Dungy took Peyton & the Colts to this years championship. However, its not what he did, it's how he observed it. The hype was all about how Dungy, and Lovie Smith, coach of the Chicago Bears and the Colt's opponent, were the first two black coaches to face off in a Super Bowl... and after the game was over, here's what Dungy had to say about that:

“I’m proud to be representing African-American coaches… to be the first African-American to win this…But again, more than anything, Lovie Smith and I are not only the first two African-Americans, but Christian coaches, showing that you can win doing it the Lord’s way, we’re more proud of that.”


You can read more, and see videos too, at this website I found.

#97. The Air Supply Infomercial. Flipping channels late at night, I stumbled upon the guys from Air Supply. Yeah, that one, the crooners of what I think is the pinnacle of Soft Rock Cheese, "Making Love Out of Nothing At All". Anyway, there they are, hocking the greatest soft rock in history, 11 CDs, 168 songs, and a low examination fee of only $9.95! (You can order here, if I just sold you... personally, I don't know how they got into Paula Maddox's LP collection, but hey...). But its so bad, its so corny, its so filled with cliche and bad music, you can't turn away. Its like... a wreck on tv. You're glued. Its the only infomercial I think I've ever (conscience) watched twice. Wanna see it? I know you do... here is a sample on You Tube, complete with a Gino Vannelli sighting.

#96. Katharine McPhee. That's right. I've still got McPheever. And after a lame season of American Idol, and the flop that is Taylor Hicks national career & autobiography, Katharine still shines. Her album is actually pretty good, with some catchy pop tunes (I mean, don't expect to hear "Singer-Songwriter" used often, this isn't Carole King) and her videos are fun too. Plus, she's in my Top 10 Hottest Chicks of 2007 Not Named Steph Leann or Ashley Judd.

You give me McPheever... McPheever when you hold me tight... McPheever! McPheever in the morning, McPheever all through the night

#95. "Surf's Up". I didn't expect to like this movie, and to be honest with you, the only reason I even saw it was the fact it was the free movie attached to the double feature at the Argo Drive In, when we went to see "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer". And you know what? "Surf's Up" was better than FF:RofSS. It was fun. And funny. And well done. Perhaps its just the Year of the LaBeouf, as the great voices included Shia, Jeff Bridges, Zooey Deschanel and a hysterical turn from Jon Heder as Chicken Joe. Some of it is filmed in "documentary style", which is fun since its an animated film about the Penguin Surfing Championships. Check it out. You'll notice that "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer", though fun, didn't make the 100 Coolest Things of 2007 list, while "Surf's Up" did.

#94. NYCJenni. She was #31 last year, and still makes the list, albeit at #94. Why did she slip? We just haven't talked that much in the latter half of the year, but I still had to include her because we did talk. NYCJenni, one of my favorite blog characters, still has a great shot of making it back in the Top 50 in 2008.


#93. Amy Adams. I didn't rank her higher only because, though I noticed her in "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby", I didn't really pay attention to her until "Enchanted". Now, I've got "Junebug" and "Cruel Intentions 2" on my Blockbuster queue to check out her other works. I look forward to being fascinated with her for about two more months before I move on.


#92. "Love Song" by Sara Bareilles. Clever pop song by newcomer Bareilles, all about a girl who's trying to write a song about her man, but since she's been wronged, she's not going to write him a love song... and ends up writing him a long song. Isn't it ironic... don't you think? Fun song, good beat, snappy little tune. I dig it.

#91. "Knocked Up". Its raw and raunchy, much like the new Hollywood Gang of Seth Rogan, Judd Apatow, Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann and the like are making their movies. And somehow, it works. Starring Rogan and Katherine Heigl (who was in the Top Ten Hottest Chicks of 2007 Not Named Steph Leann or Ashley Judd until I found out she was a smoker, and that ruined it for me), its a family friendly comedy about two people who get way wasted and have a one night stand--for a dork like Ben Stone (Rogan), it would take alcohol to get someone like Alison (Heigl) to sleep with him. And lo and behold, she ends up pregnant.

I'll be honest with you.... this movie was hysterical. Even the Lovely Steph Leann liked it, though she gave her famous "...but I don't want that movie in my house". (see also: Superbad, American Pie 1 thru 3, The Phantom Menace--no one blames her on the last one)

I really like the fact she doesn't consider abortion, and what really makes this movie is the entire ensemble cast, including Leslie Mann, Jonah Hill (who went on to star in "Superbad") and the funny, funny, FUNNY Paul Rudd.

Coming up... The singer of that 1-2-3-4 Apple song... a canceled Fox show... the hottest travel host ever... and K-Dub

The 100 Coolest Things About 2007 (Intro)

What do the Coney Island Cyclone and my iPod have in common? They were both selected as the coolest things about 2005 and 2006, respectively, in my annual countdown of the previous year.

What's the definition of "cool"? Well, since its my list, its my definition. And I define "cool" as... well, something I really like. Something I am proud of, or something I enjoy, or something that makes me happy.

What you might notice is that there are somethings on this list that appeared last year, which means their coolness factor continued into this year, or some things on this list, certain movies, or albums, or songs, aren't even from 2007--but this is the year I discovered them, so this is the year they count.

This is the final year of a three year moratorium on anything related to the Deuce, which means my former roommated Mikey, Tom Johnson, Shawnifer Sharpinous, Wook-Fu, Tommy Mac, Rev'rn Ty or anyone else that lived there won't be eligible to make this list until the 2008 list.

You also won't see The Lovely Steph Leann on this list, because let's face it, she's truly the coolest (and hottest) chick I know, and you'll see very little related to God and what's He's done, because this list would end up being The 94 Coolest Things that God Did This Year and Six Other Things That Were Cool Too, and that's a different list...

So... in the next day or so, we'll start the list. Until then, you can enjoy the previous lists, The 100 Coolest Things of 2005 Part One and 2005 Part Two and the 100 Coolest Things of 2006.

December Moments

December promise you have unto me... December whispers of treachery... December clouds are now covering me... December songs no longer I sing... "December" by Collective Soul

No reason for the song lyrics, just thought it would fit being December and all. Don't know of any tunes for January, or that have January in them... since I havent blogged for real in a while, I thought I would just throw out some randomness to end the year.

Sitting here at the Campbell's home, the parents of the lovely Steph Leann, having eaten all weekend, whether it be ham or turkey, or strawberry pretzel casserole, or green bean casserole, or sweet potato cassorole or whatever, probably gaining about four pounds... such is Christmas.

Currently, Alabama is barely holding on against Colorado in the Indepen... excuse me, the Petro Sun Independence Bowl. You have to think that the announcers get so irritated now that they can't just say "Independence Bowl", because I'm sure its in the contract that Petro Sun gets a mention everytime the bowl is said aloud.

Of course, I guess its better than being a commentator of The San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl. I wish I could make that up.

Its important to remember, though, that we can never have a college playoff in Division I... um, the Football Bowl Subdivision... because we must protect the integrity of the bowl system, like the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl, or the Konica Minolta Gator Bowl or the Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl... or my favorite, the Brut Sun Bowl. I will now go punch myself in the face.

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I just heard the announcer say "You know, you hear people clamoring for a playoff in the college game, but today in the NFL, they dealt with 'do we sit starters?' and 'do we play hard or rest our guys?', plus there were several games today that were throwaway games... do we really want this in college football?"

The answer? Absolutely. There is no reason why you can't have a playoff bracket in college, and that guy should be kicked in the nads just for saying such a stupid argument. We know its about money, and honestly, the only reason that the playoff isn't being considered is the PAC 10 thinks their Rose Bowl is so special, they don't want to disrupt the tradition. And thats stupid too. Absolutely stupid. I'll stop before I get angry.

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My nephew Benjamin got Transformers for Christmas. I remember when I was younger, 6 or 7 or 8, and I got a few Transformers for Christmas, and they had like, maybe four or five motions. You can roll the car, and as you're in motion, do the quick five movements and you can keep going with the Transformer, your war against those pesky Decepticons continues.


You think its easy going from an ambulance to this? As I was doing it, four pieces fell off. No, I'm not kidding.

Now? It has an instruction sheet that looks like a floor plan, and it plays out like an algebriac formula. I've tried to transform three of these things this weekend, and was successful only once. I imagine you keep rolling with your ambulance, and suddenly, the action stops for twenty minutes while you figure out how to make him a robot. You need more than better instructions, you need a sedative and a room.

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Some of my favorite Christmas specials include "The Grinch that Stole Christmas", "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer", and of course, the "A Charlie Brown Christmas", which truly is not only the best Christmas special, but by far the best Charlie Brown special.

Not only did CBS hate it originally, one of the execs actually said "You can't read the Bible on network TV!" For some fun reading material, here's the full story.

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Here's a list of Fifty Nerdy Things to Do Before You Die. Let's see... 48, 42 and 7 is all I got. Though I could have done #31 while at Downtown Disney. I'm serious. Next time, I'm doing it.

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My Christmas haul this year? I got the latest in the Complete Peanuts series, which I am excited about. I have probably mentioned this before, but its a book series which is printing, in chronological order, every Peanuts strip Charles Schulz ever drew. Each book contains 2 years, starting with 1955-56. I think there is supposed to be around 27 or 28 books in the series, with one coming out in the spring and the fall of every year. I've managed to get them from the beginning, and I'll pick up the new one in April when it comes out.

Also obtained, Transformers on dvd, Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix on dvd, some iTunes money, a great A Christmas Story ornament from Steph, a series that I think I'd like to start collecting every year, and Stephen King's "It", in hardcover. They don't make it in trade paperback, so I got the big monster book.

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In the last week, I've been able to see "National Treasure: Book of Secrets", "I Am Legend" and "No Country for Old Men"

"I Am Legend" is good. Its not great, but its good. Will Smith does a great job of carrying the film, a la Tom Hanks in "Castaway", and its in a film that not many could carry. What gets me is the zombie things. I don't know what else could have been done, but when it goes from a creepy, isolation film to a zombie film, it loses something. The book, written by Richard Matheson, is supposed to be far superior, and reading the plot line on Wikipedia, it sounds like it. But still, it is a good film.

"National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets" was also not great, but just good. However, I wanted this movie to be better. It is, at its heart, a re-hash of the first film, and suffers from the Jurassic Park complex. Let me explain... Jurassic Park, like the first National Treasure, was original, with lots of "wow" and "that was awesome!" moments. The concept was original, the plot was entertaining, and its one you really could just jump into at any time. When Jurassic Park 2 came out, it wasn't as good. It was like, "Okay, you've shown me dinosaurs, so give me something else", only to be given more dinosaurs.


Anytime your movie is just "eh", you can throw in a hot chick and make it better. Of course, she's no Amy Adams, my nominee for the Hottest Chick of 2007 Not Named Stephanie or Ashley Judd.

With "National Treasure: Book of Secrets", you think "okay, you've shown me innovative clues and historical plotlines, now give me something else", only to be given more clues and historical plotlines. Diane Kruger does add to it, mostly because she's smokin' hot, and the appearance of Ed Harris is kind of cool too. (For a really good Nic Cage/Ed Harris duo, check out "The Rock") However, the more I think about NT:BoS, the more I don't know that I'll like it if I watch it again. Unlike...

"No Country for Old Men", which was absolutely amazing. Featuring Josh Brolin, Tommy Lee Jones and Javier Bardem, it is, on the surface, a drug-deal-gone-wrong chase movie. But at its heart, its interesting, its fascinating, and its rough. Javier Bardem is a creep on the level of Anthony Hopkins in Silence of the Lambs, not just killing, but killing based on principal. Truly, the star of the movie is Tommy Lee Jones. He's an old school sheriff, and the entire movie, you can tell it just pains him to know what the world is coming to, even though the movie is set in the early 80s. I'd like to see it again, just to catch anything I missed. Is it great? I think so, but you need to call it. I can't call it for you. It wouldn't be fair.

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So, remember KITT? Because the owner was murdered, you can now buy the original car to help satisfy his debts. That's almost creepy.

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Starbucks tends to get busy around this time of year. Our store's manager, Meredith, left two weeks ago for 12 weeks of maternity leave, leaving me the keys and the reins to the whole shebang. Right during Christmas... but hey, bring it on. I can handle it.

Of course, it would help if our customers were smarter sometimes. I mean, if its Sunday, and Christmas Day is Tuesday, please don't get upset if you come in and we don't have gift card holders. This year, the little holder that you put the card in is a cute, red little mitten. But when you load up almost $18,000 in gift cards in a week, like we did, you tend to run out. Its really not my fault if you wait until the last minute to get one, so please don't get mad at me. Be creative. It doesn't destroy the pleasure of the gift card if you don't put it in a little red mitten.

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Had a lady come to the drive thru, one that comes through a lot. She's a little odd. Okay, a lot odd, but still...

Anyway, she pulls up to the window, parks her car, gets out and rambles on about how her window is broken. She then pulls out almost her whole purse onto the drive thru plane to find the $3.48 to pay for her drink, not to mention during a rush.

She gets her beverage, she rolls away, we roll our eyes, and the next lady pulls up. I hand her her drink, and say "Sorry about that wait. The customer before you was taking her time", and the lady looks at me and says "Oh my gosh... I was watching her from behind here in the line, and that lady is freakin' crazy!!"

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Of course, I'll take crazy people over customers who... order an iced green tea, and ask for it to be blended. In the blender. Have you ever blended ice water? The same thing. You have to dip it out with a frakkin' spoon. And typically, the lady orders it during our busiest times.

Another lady likes to order a venti iced latte... and have it blended. We just make the drink, then toss it in the blender. Not as annoying as the green iced tea blended, but still... its annoying.

Then again, I really can't stand people who work the system to save 20 cents. Like, ordering a grande americano, in a venti cup, and please just fill the rest up with milk. Um... thats not a grande americano. That's a 3 shot venti americano with 1/4 milk. But, to save 20 cents, you're going to order incorrectly. Cheapo.

The worst are what we call ghetto lattes. That's when you order three or four shots over ice, but ask for the cup to be filled up with ice. Then you take your drink to the condiment bar, and use our milk we set out for coffee, empty the container to fill up your cup with milk, and get a venti iced americano for the price of a triple espresso. This is wrong, people. Don't do it. This is called cheating. I'm going to get fired one day for calling people on it. Kinda irritates me.

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Speaking of "breaking out of prison", if it worked for Andy Dufresne....

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For some light reading, here's an analysis of what went wrong with Howard the Duck. I know you were wondering, and for Mikey Nipp, it has lots of pictures.

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It's the end of the year, and of course, there are tons of lists out there... the best of 2007, and the worst of 2007, covering books, movies, music, theater, websites, people, sports, teams, whatever, so on and so forth. Coming up in January of 2007... the THIRD annual Coolest Things About the Year list. That's right, I've been doing it for three years now. Amongst contenders to make this 2007 list include: Paula Maddox, The Purple Onion, PhilharMagic, Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix movie, Rush Limbaugh's smackdown on Sen. Harry Reid, Colbie Caillat, Grey's Anatomy, Nikki Brown and even more.

Working on it now.

My Disney Vacation, Q to U

My Disney Vacation, A to E
My Disney Vacation, F to L
My Disney Vacation, M to P

Q is for Queue Lines
Sometimes, all you can do is stand in line, Fast Pass or no. Cause they don't make Fast Passes for every ride, you don't have Fast Passes for characters (see B for Beast), and, well, like any theme park, you are in a forced community for a period of time ranging from 15 minutes to over a hour. The longer you wait, the more you get to know those around you.

Typically, at most theme parks, be it Six Flags or Alabama Adventures, you make jokes about how long the wait is, or what condition the rides are in, or how the day is going in the park. At Disney, you open up much more. You talk about where you're from. You talk about how long you've been here. You talk about things you've done, things you've seen, and give pointers to other people.

It was in a queue line that I learned about the pin books at Guest Relations (see P for Pin Trading), it was in a queue line that we passed on wisdom about some of the events and happenings, it was a in queue line (for Beast, no less) that we met a lovely couple who was taking their young daughter to Disney World for the first time... and on the Peter Pan ride, she lost her digital camera, which contained hundreds of pictures, including the one of her kid's face when she entered the Magic Kingdom for the first time. Poor woman. We saw her the next day at MGM, and she said she'd given up hope for the most part.

R is for Rides
My favorite rides, in no particular order...
Mickey's PhilharMagic (Magic Kingdom)... a 3D show that sees Donald putting on Mickey's Fantasia hat. Suddenly, the magic goes awry, as Donald is catapulted into different Disney moments, including Ariel's grotto, Aladdin and Jasmine's magic carpet ride, and Simba's "Just Can't Wait to Be King" animal parade. I thought this was so freakin' fun, and ended up on it twice.


PhilharMagic is nothing but sheer 3D fun

Everest (Animal Kingdom)... we've covered this one already
The Tower of Terror (MGM)... the whole atmosphere is part of what makes this great. Everything from the line, to the lobby, to the elevator to the ride itself... even Cast Members get into the act. And instead of dropping just once, twice or three times, the ride dropped FIVE times. We thought it was anomoly, but the second time we rode it, it did it again. Awesome.
Mission: Space. (Epcot)... this ride rocks my world. Its a centerfuge, and any ride that not only provides vomit bags on the ride, but has cots laid out as you're exiting to lay down on is a ride that I want to be on.
Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin (TomorrowLand)... Who doesn't love the Buzz ride? You get it, you fire at aliens, you rack up points, its all brightly colored, its a hoot. Steph and I have ridden it about five times over two trips. I've beaten her once. Its a terrible thing.
Some of Steph's favorite rides? Pretty much the same, thought she does love Festival of the Lion King (MGM), and Peter Pan's Flight (Magic Kingdom).

And, of course, we both loved...

S is for Soarin'
We'd heard about this ride all over the place, from queue lines to websites to idle Disney chatter... we had to go on Soarin'. So, on Wednesday, the family headed to the parks for Epcot day, our bus driver informed us (which was kind of hit and miss with the bus drivers... we met some that talked and gave good park info the whole time, we met others who didn't say a word other than 'thankyouforusingdisneytransportationpleasegatheryourbelongings andchildrenandwatch...", usually just like that) that Soarin' was currently the most popular ride in Epcot, and that we needed to get Fast Passes early. Upon hearing that, we made our plan to do just that--get Fast Passes for Soarin', whatever that ride was. I honestly didn't have a clue what the ride was all about, only that it was based on a ride hugely popular in California.

The ride queue is just packed, completely. Fast Passes are for an hour or so later, but the ride currently has only a 15 or 20 minute wait--probably because its 8 in the morning, and the part has been open for about 2 minutes. Located in The Lands, it's around the corner from Living Off the Land, (which I refused to go on, for fear that they would end up saying something about erosion and man-made global warming, and it would ruin my day), we all filed into the long hallway, and quick enough, we were in the lobby part of the ride, where you get ready to "board".


The Lovely Steph Leann, right before we went Soarin'

We were told to make sure we got in the front row, so when I asked the Cast Member for that spot for our group of 8, we stepped aside, waited another five minutes, and then went into the ride. As I walked in, the path was between seats, three rows on each side, all facing a huge IMAX-like screen. We walked to the front row, and strapped in. I couldn't even see the top of the screen without craning my neck painfully. It was a big, blue screen, one that you'd love to watch football on.

The room darkened, the canopy came down slightly, and suddenly, without warning, we were lifted high into the air. Remember, this is in a big dome like room, and I have no clue how high we are. The screen came alive, and all of a sudden, its like we're hang-gliding. We're soaring over panoramic views of the Rocky Mountains, over the ocean, over orange groves (to which you could smell citrus), through the woods (to which you could smell pine), and the seats are slightly moving. You truly feel like you are flying.

The music is set perfectly, and its easy to get lost to the point where you are lifting your feet up everytime you fly over a low branch, or duck quickly when the guy on the golf coarse "below" hits a shot that flies right by you. The ride lasted about three minutes, but its one that you don't want to end. It's the perfect ride to go on first, as it makes your day. It just sets you up to be happy... magical even. And in the land of the Magic Kingdom, isn't that the point?

T is for Tyler
When I'm writing my final blog at age 88, or at least dictating it to my great-great granddaughter Glory, I'll probably consider Tyler Campbell to be on my list as one of the 100 Coolest Things About Dave's Life. He's just a cool guy.

Tyler comes into town on Wednesday night, and hangs with the family on Thursday. On Friday and Saturday, he and Papa Ron are headed to Universal Studios theme park, and to Universal Islands of Adventure, but while he's in the Magic Kingdom, he's having a ball. Whats fun about Tyler is that he's not "too cool to ride the kiddy rides", and he was actually pretty giddy about riding Peter Pan's flight and It's a Small World.

Even after a day at Universal, he commented, "It makes you appreciate Disney." We got several pictures with Tyler and characters, and it was fun to hang with him during dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern. Minnie Mouse loved her some Tyler that night.

One of my favorite moments of the trip was when we rode Big Thunder Railroad. Steph and I were in the front, with Tyler and nephew Benjamin right behind us. I held up my camera, faced it back, and snapped about 15 pictures. And really only one turned out... but its this one:



...of which I'm very proud of.

U is for Unlimited Refills
The first day at the All Star Movies Resort food court, we had breakfast. And during breakfast, we used one of our Disney Dining Plan meals, a counter service. And with that counter service, we got a breakfast entree, and two beverages, like a chocolate milk for now and a water for later. Or, you could get two waters for later... if you splurged on The Cup.

For $13.49, you could purchase this 20 ounce handled mug, and you'd get free refills for... well, I say for your visit, but I just thought, who's to say I can't take the cup back when we go again in 2008? I figured with regular prices it would take 12 refills to make the cup worth it. With Disney prices, it would take about 7. I refilled 11 times that week.


My new mug

Remember, we're leaving early (where I got at least 5 or 6 refills heading out), and coming in really late (where I only got a few as we walked back in--I can't drink Sprite right before bed), so I didn't get all the refills... though I possibly could have. When the Lovely Steph Leann and I had dinner at The Polynesian Resort on Saturday night, I discovered they were selling the same cups. I love this stupid cup. It's kinda ugly, its clunky, but besides the essentials (money, camera, pins), it was truly the only thing I carried with me all week.

Finally... the end of Disney A to Z... coming soon

My Disney Vacation, M to P

My Disney Vacation, A to F
My Disney Vacation, G to L

M is for Mater
As in, Tow Mater, and Lightnin McQueen. We saw they were taking character pictures on Monday, our first day in Disney-MGM Studios. The line was long, but we thought, "Hey, get in line, maybe we'll get lucky". Unfortunately, there was a Cast Member at the end of the line, telling us they closed the line... and we didn't even see Mater or Lightnin'.

So, when we went back on Saturday to MGM, we planned our day around the heroes from Cars. We saw on the Times Guide, the little slip of paper updated daily to tell you when shows will be performed, where characters will be at what time, and any other fun events around the parks, that Cars would be on the Streets of America around 330ish, so we showed up around 245 to find a few people already there. The PhotoPass people (the park photographers that take your picture in front of various Disney monuments, ie the castle, Spaceship: Earth, other scenic locales, and hand you a PhotoPass card that allows you to go online and view and buy your pics) were there taking pictures of the San Francisco backdrop.

We had our picture taken, then helped form the Cars line with three or four other families. By 320, ten minutes before the Cars appeared, the line was around the corner, and barriers had been put up to prevent people from just hopping/skipping the line and the line was probably closed. The Cast Members were great, as they were like Nazis in keeping the line in order. They informed the audience that anyone could come up to the barriers to take pictures, but only those in line could go closer, and get with the characters.



And then, we heard the roar of the engines as Lightnin' McQueen and Mater appeared, rolling slowly around the corner. Steph and I were like little kids, giggling at the sight of the two, and marveling at how cool they really looked. And they looked cool. Naturally, they didn't have the mobility and movement that animation lends them, but their eyes moved back and forth, and Mater's engine rocked back and forth. It was absolutely cool.

The other fun thing to watch was how people were walking up randomly, and even trying to merge into the opening of the barriers, where people who had waited patiently for 45 minutes were going to get in to get pictures. One guy walked up, kid next to him, and hollered back to someone, "Hey, those Cars cars are here! Come on!", and then he actually tried to step in front of me. I simply said, "Hey man, the line is right here, and starts waaaay back." He turned around, frowned at me, and stepped back.



So, finally, we got up and go to get our pictures. Add them to the collection of cool photographs we have from the week.

N is for No Sleep
That's the truth. In an average week, I probably get... I dunno, 45 hours of sleep. I figure an average of 6 hours per night, maybe one night I only get 4 1/2, another night I sleep late and get 8 or 9, but I figure 42 to 45 hours. This week, I think I got about 30.

O is for Overeating
Holy crap, there was so much food. When you go on your weeklong Disney vacation, you'll want to do the Disney Dining Plan. It gives you a certain amount of "counter service" (walk up, order food, get it and sit down), "snack" (usually yogurt, fruit, ice cream, something you can eat while you go) and "table service" (a sit down meal, typically with a server) meals. As a rule, I've found that the character meals are table services.


The Campbell clan after finishing Thanksgiving at Liberty Tree Tavern in the Magic Kingdom

My favorite meals include:
**The Cinderella Storybook Dinner at the Grand Floridian's 1900 Park Fare Restaurant, starring a very toothy Cinderella, Prince Charming and Lady Tremaine. Buffet style, it featured a fantastic prime rib, and Steph Leann's much heralded strawberry soup.
**Planet Hollywood, in Downtown Disney. Good stuff. We ate their our first night in the area, and I had a big, fat mushroom & swiss cheese burger.
**The Yak & Yeti, in Animal Kingdom, which you'll read about later.
**And my favorite, Le Cellier, in EPCOT's Canada Showcase, which you've already read about

P is for Pin Trading
Oh, how we love the pins. Here's the story... Disney has always had pins for sale and trade. In DisneyLand, in California, they started trading them as a hobby, but when it hit Walt Disney World in Orlando, it took off full force.


Our pin board, after the trip. I would say our collection was probably 70% overturned.

You typically have to start by obtaining a lanyard and some pins for trade, usually by buying them. Ours was given to us as part of our honeymoon package in 2004. You wear the lanyards, and when you see other people with pins on, wearing the lanyards gives you the right to ask about their pins. If you want, you can offer a trade. Perhaps they are trying to complete a set of pins that you happen to have one of, one that you'll know you'll never get a set of, but they have a great Goofy pin that you like. Offer the trade. Sometimes they'll take it, sometimes they won't.

Cast members wear two types of lanyards. The first, a blue lanyard, means that you can trade for whatever they have, provided they don't already have the one you are trading. This is an excellent way to pick up rare pins, pins for sets and such. The second, a green lanyard, means that they only trade with kids. However, sometimes you'll find a Cast Member who will trade no matter what... as long as you are nice about it. Sometimes not, though. I found a great Frozone pin that was on a green lanyard, and she wouldn't trade.


The "Topiary" pins Stephanie was collecting. She got the entire collection this week.

A great little story.... we were just outside of Buzz Lightyear, and a Cast Member had a green lanyard, with a "safety pin". The Safety Pin Series is a 12 or 13 pin set featuring Timon and Pumbaa, doing the safety rules, like "keep your paws behind the yellow line" and "don't sit on the rail" and such. Anyway, this guy had one that Steph Leann, who has been collecting them since 2004, didn't have. I ask the guy if he would be willing to trade with a "kid at heart", and he said it was only for kids. Now, my other option is to ask Madeleine, 10, to come in and trade for it, though that seems kinda low. I figure I'm just going to tell Steph about it, and let her figure it out.

Ruth, Steph's mom, announces very loudly, "Well, why don't you get Madeleine to come in and get it?!?" I sigh, and the Cast Member perks up, suddenly on alert. I walk outside where Madeleine and some of the family is. I don't know if I told her, or Ruth told her or whatever, but Madeleine disappears, and a few minutes later, the Cast Member comes out with the Safety Pin, and a couple of 1 Million Dreams Tinkerbell Pins, asking me if I could give this to "the little girl who came in looking for the pin." Then he gives me this look of disgust, like I'm the scum of the Earth, for a pin that I didn't want, Steph gets the pin, Madeleine gets the special Tinkerbell pin and I get an angry Cast Member. Them's the breaks.


Somehow, I managed to get Tinkerbell pins, and somehow, I managed to find them cool. And yes, I'm totally straight. Everyone, including Cast Members, asked me about the one in the upper left corner, cause its hard to find.

Some pin trading tips... its okay to buy pin sets to break up and trade. Steph Leann and I did that several times. However, pay attention to what's on lanyards. The "baby mickey" pins were all the rage in sets, and I bought one of those sets, only to find myself in a situation where I wanted a pin from a Cast Member, but he had all the "baby mickey" pins I had, so I had to give him another one.

Also, in each park, go to Guest Relations and ask for the Pin Book. They don't advertise it, but it's a big book behind the counter featuring pins that sometimes are hard to find. You are allowed to trade up to 2 pins per person.

"Hidden Mickey's" are the new thing. "Cast Lanyard Pins" pins are pins you can't buy, given only to Cast Members for trading. The story goes that people were complaining because it was hard to find Cast Lanyard Pins, which is stupid because The Lovely Steph Leann and I both have tons of them, so a year or two ago, they released Hidden Mickey pins, to help people find Cast Exclusives. You can buy a few Hidden Mickey's, but its only one pin in a set, like the Monorail Hidden Mickey Pin--you can purchase one. You have to find the other 7.

Personally, I could care less about Hidden Mickey's. I like Hercules pins, Incredible pins and somehow, I've managed to collect a bunch of Tinkerbell pins.

Its can be an expensive hobby, but its tons of fun. In every picture you'll see of The Lovely Steph Leann and I, you'll see our lanyards, and from one picture to the next, our pins change.

Coming Soon... S is for Soarin', U is for Unlimited Refills... and Why Disney is Better than Six Flags