What's Creepy About This Picture? More Miscellany

PIC OF DAY

The one at the bottom is not real

Puppy Bowl Astounding Success

So I sat down on SuperBowl Sunday and while awaiting the big game I did as I've done for many years prior. I tuned into Animal Planet and watched Puppy Bowl. And as I sat and watched the cute puppies playing some kind of doggie football in a mock "stadium" I thought to myself that I must be the only boobaloob in America watching this.

The following day I chanced to have an appointment with my Cardio guy and as his assistant hooked me up attaching electrodes to my body for an EKG she asked me if I enjoyed the Super Bowl or perhaps I watched the Puppy Bowl instead?

I may have sent the EKG needle bouncing as I gave a hearty laugh and admitted that I did, indeed, watch the Animal Planet's Puppy Bowl. I told the PA how I thought I was the only one in America that watched this thing but she shushed me with an "oh no".

"My friends all watch it," she said, putting an electrode on a most embarrassing personal part of my body that had me wondering why on earth a heart reading is required from there for God's sake. "You know that all the puppies they have on the show are from shelters and are up for adoption?"

I did not know this as I told the PA but I did comment how I thought it was a bit ill-thought to name one puppy "Fumble", poor guy, but Fumble did okay.

A few days later I get this email from some PR firm or another as is my wont as a widely read by two or three people Blogger and writer of all things media:

(Silver Spring, MD) – On Super Bowl Sunday, PUPPY BOWL VIII had its own huge score-- the most puppy touchdowns ever-- while off the field drawing in 8.7 million unique total viewers across the entire 12-hour marathon. In addition, Animalplanet.com recorded a major victory, hauling in its single highest day of traffic ever with 5.5 million page views and 1.4 million videos streamed. Adding to Animal Planet’s trophy case, PUPPY BOWL VIII ranked #1 for social television in cable this past Sunday.

Animal Planet altered its game plan this year, adding more features to the already impressive sports spectacular. As a result, PUPPY BOWL VIII delivered an average 1.6 million P2+ viewers for its 3-5 PM ET/PT premiere and a record high 680,000 P2+ viewers across the day. The most pivotal performance was turned in by rookie addition @meepthebird, Animal Planet’s tweeting correspondent, who grabbed 21,000 followers in just one day and received countless marriage proposals. Joining Meep as first timers in the 12-hour pooch-tacular was the Piggy Pep Squad who “hammed” it up on the sidelines and new referee Dan Schachner who graced the gridiron to call puppy penalties.

I am very pleasantly surprised at this news, as much to know that I'm not a solitary nut who sits and smiles for hours at videos of puppies playing. And to their credit, Animal Planet does a helluva job presenting this gem of a television idea. They have cheerleading piggies, a genuine referee who calls actual touchdowns and this year they had a halftime show featuring, what else? Kittens!

As if my pleasure weren't enough that this cute show has grown into a national phenomena, it would seem that things get really serious. For there's been a national dispute as to the named Puppy Bowl MVP, that perhaps there was some cheating afoot?

Over at SBNation, one pot-stirrer is fanning the flames of scandal: Was Aberdeen the shepherd mix robbed of the MVP honor? As fans know, Aberdeen played his heart out, scoring four touchdowns in quick succession in the third quarter, making him the obvious choice for the game’s Most Valuable Player. His waggily tail and bright eyes put him in the running for fan favorite, too. Yet at the end of the game, Aberdeen didn’t take the laurels. Fumble did. Who? That’s exactly what fans want to know. Fumble, a scamp of a chihuahua mix only scored two touchdowns in the match, both during the first two quarters. While he made some great defensive moves, his actions on the field were far from the memorable contributions of Aberdeen.

It just don't get any more legitimate than a real scandal. For the record, Fumble should have won the MVP if, for no other reason, because of the stigma that his name will do to his self-esteem.

Academy Awards Coming Up Soon

Sunday night 2/26/12 and we have a roster of the nominees. This Blog shall, of course, cover the fashion aspect with interesting and intriguing categories, as is our wont.

Some categories and the nominees:

Performance by an actor in a leading role
============================================
Demián Bichir in “A Better Life” (Summit Entertainment)
George Clooney in “The Descendants” (Fox Searchlight)
Jean Dujardin in “The Artist” (The Weinstein Company)
Gary Oldman in “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” (Focus Features)
Brad Pitt in “Moneyball” (Sony Pictures Releasing)

Performance by an actor in a supporting role
============================================
Kenneth Branagh in “My Week with Marilyn” (The Weinstein Company)
Jonah Hill in “Moneyball” (Sony Pictures Releasing)
Nick Nolte in “Warrior” (Lionsgate)
Christopher Plummer in “Beginners” (Focus Features)
Max von Sydow in “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” (Warner Bros.)

Performance by an actress in a leading role
============================================
Glenn Close in “Albert Nobbs” (Roadside Attractions)
Viola Davis in “The Help” (Touchstone)
Rooney Mara in “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” (Sony Pictures Releasing)
Meryl Streep in “The Iron Lady” (The Weinstein Company)
Michelle Williams in “My Week with Marilyn” (The Weinstein Company)

Performance by an actress in a supporting role
============================================
Bérénice Bejo in “The Artist” (The Weinstein Company)
Jessica Chastain in “The Help” (Touchstone)
Melissa McCarthy in “Bridesmaids” (Universal)
Janet McTeer in “Albert Nobbs” (Roadside Attractions)
Octavia Spencer in “The Help” (Touchstone)

Best animated feature film of the year
============================================
“A Cat in Paris” (GKIDS) Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli
“Chico & Rita” (GKIDS) Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal
“Kung Fu Panda 2” (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount) Jennifer Yuh Nelson
“Puss in Boots” (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount) Chris Miller
“Rango” (Paramount) Gore Verbinski

Best motion picture of the year
=================================================
“The Artist” (The Weinstein Company) A La Petite Reine/Studio 37/La Classe Américaine/JD Prod/France3 Cinéma/Jouror Productions/uFilm Production, Thomas Langmann, Producer
“The Descendants” (Fox Searchlight) An Ad Hominem Enterprises Production, Jim Burke, Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor, Producers
“Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” (Warner Bros.) A Warner Bros. Pictures Production, Scott Rudin, Producer
“The Help” (Touchstone) A DreamWorks Pictures Production, Brunson Green, Chris Columbus and Michael Barnathan, Producers
“Hugo” (Paramount) A Paramount Pictures and GK Films Production, Graham King and Martin Scorsese, Producers
“Midnight in Paris” (Sony Pictures Classics) A Pontchartrain Production, Letty Aronson and Stephen Tenenbaum, Producers
“Moneyball” (Sony Pictures Releasing) A Columbia Pictures Production, Michael De Luca, Rachael Horovitz and Brad Pitt, Producers
“The Tree of Life” (Fox Searchlight) A River Road Entertainment Production, Nominees to be determined
“War Horse” (Touchstone) A DreamWorks Pictures Production, Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, Producers

Need Help With This Picture

Well I do have a problem with depth perception.

But if I squint eyes and stare at those clever pictures that have spotted ponies grazing in front of snow-covered mountains, or screaming skeletons incorporated into a forest copse of limbs that form a face with leafy foliage outlining eye sockets.

Allegedly the picture blow has something very "creepy" in it..

I came upon it in a Facebook post by a "friend". I've looked at it now for a couple of weeks. I ask yon reader to either email me or you may even put what it is I am supposed to see as a comment to this post but I warn readers that such a comment might be considered, a bit absurdly, as a "spoiler".

All I see in this picture is a harmless parlor type sitting area and if anything creepy is in it , it eludes mine eyeballs.

Interesting Web Site

I received a whole bunch of links to this web site in my Ebox recently. If you click on the link you will be taken to a site called "JukeCity" and on this particular link you will be connected to a jukebox featuring hits of the 1990's. The email full of links that passed through my Ebox had years from the forties through to today.

If you want to access the hit records of another year, change the date in the link to the year that you want.



Several days ago as I left a meeting at our church, I desperately gave myself a personal TSA pat down. I was looking for my keys. They were not in my pockets. A quick search in the meeting room revealed nothing.

Suddenly I realized, I must have left them in the car. Frantically, I headed for the parking lot. My wife, Diane, has scolded me many times for leaving the keys in the ignition. My theory is the ignition is the best place not to lose them. Her theory is that the car will be stolen. As I burst through the doors of the church, I came to a terrifying conclusion. Her theory was right. The parking lot was empty.


I immediately call the police. I gave them my location, confessed that I had left my keys in the car, and that it had been stolen. Then I made the most difficult call of all, “Honey,” I stammered. I always call her “honey” in times like these. “I left my keys in the car, and it has been stolen.”

There was a period of silence. I thought the call had been dropped, but then I heard Diane’s voice. “Ken” she barked, “I dropped you off!” Now it was my time to be silent. Embarrassed, I said, “Well, come and get me.” Diane retorted, “I will, as soon as I convince this policeman I have not stolen your car!”