Poison

I think I got food poisoning this weekend, though not the kind that makes you hurl. The other kind. What was unusual was that Friday night after putting the kids to bed, I started watching the movie Half-Nelson and started shivering uncontrollably as if in sympathetic reaction to Ryan Gosling's drug addict character. I went to bed and it took fifteen minutes to get warm enough to stop shaking. No fun. My butt is pretty sore at this point, but then, that's like almost every other weekend--HIYO!

The latest WIRED mag has a nice, expensive acetate cover with a corporate-attired Jenna (The Office) Fischer, and then when you flip the acetate she is ostensibly naked and holding a large sign over the goods with the article copy on it, about the "radical transparency" trend sweeping corporate America, or somesuch. It surely is not sweeping the insurance industry, I can tell you that, but then, everyone moves around so much and takes stuff with them (ideas, secrets, actual form templates) that it's fairly transparent anyway.

Speaking of The Office, I like Rainn Wilson, but on talk shows he's just a little too confident and showbizzy. Although he's great on the show and it's a big hit for NBC, he hasn't proven he has any more appeal yet outside of the show than, say, a post-Cheers John Ratzenberger.

Which reminds me of something else: EW recently had an article on Will Ferrell and how the success of Blades of Glory cemented his status as one of the most bankable comedic actors, which a) I think was pretty well established already, despite a few duds. I mean, yeah, Kicking & Screaming was probably a disappointment, but I don't think anyone thought his presence in Melinda & Melinda would elevate box office much beyond what a Woody Allen movie usually makes. And Talladega Nights was already a big hit. Seems like just an excuse for an article. Oh, and b) the sidebar about the other big comedic hitters like Eddie Murphy and Ben Stiller listed their greatest comedic box office successes as Shrek and Madagascar, which just doesn't seem right. Are those really comedies? I mean, there are some laughs, but aren't they Kids films? And though they both did their jobs nicely, it's not like Murphy and Stiller really carried those movies. They're not really star-driven. That's like saying Robin Williams is still a playa because Happy Feet did well.

Got my taxes done today, at H & R Block. I never paid for tax prep before, because my former wife is an accountant and always took care of it, and even though we've been divorced a couple years, she did them last year as well, probably out of a last remnant of guilt. Just kid...oh, never mind. Actually, I'm tentatively grateful to her for filling out a form so that I can claim my son, she my daughter, making me head of household and eligible for a better deduction, and for providing me with the paperwork for the kids' school and daycare expenses. My only qualification for the gratitude is I got dinged last year for claiming my son ineligibly, which I think had something to do with her, but whatever. Water under the bridge, and I'm getting a nice refund this year.

Son had a good baseball game yesterday. He did pout a couple times, after lining out to second and later being forced out at third, but I tried to tell him there's nothing he can do about that. He did get three hits, and most impressively, made a diving, full extension catch in right field, which netted him the game ball from the coaches. Every player on the team will eventually get a game ball, but they try to make each one game-appropriate. We were pretty proud of him, and also relieved, as he takes it too seriously and would harp on his perceived mistakes for at least the rest of the night.

Back to Half-Nelson--good so far but had to put it aside as I really wanted something more upbeat.

SNL was pretty good. I liked the goofiness of The Prince Show, though throwing Amy Poehler's Nancy Grace in there was uninspired, as was a second dose of The Dakota Fanning Show, virtually beat-for-beat the same as the first time. I know, I know, that's how SNL has always worked, but still, most of the time I'd prefer something new that wasn't as funny. The cast has grown on me, especially the crazy Eddie Munster-looking guy. Will Forte seems the most expendable. I liked the sketch where Maya Rudolph had a thing for host Shia LeBoeuf a lot, up to the end. She needs more chances to shine. Avril Lavigne is pretty lousy. I loved the digital short--I think Samberg is a genius at matching music with material. I need to know what that song is.

I seem to have a weird cold spot on my back right now, which probably isn't good.