Dear Leader, please watch Vampire Diaries instead!

Matt has suggested I write about President Obama's inclusion of Entourage as one of his favorite TV shows. I'm a little hesitant to make too much of it. I have a feeling he enjoys Entourage as much as his predecessor liked Camus's The Stranger. Perhaps it's Barack's way of appearing in touch with his fellow beer drinkers the way Bush tried to appear to have a thought in his itty bitty brain. But if it is true, I'm hoping he watches the show the way I forced myself to finish Exit Ghost: It's certainly not anyone's best work but it's (morbidly) fascinating to see thinly veiled depictions of someone you know.
I watched Entourage's first season and appreciated it as a male version of Sex and the City. It was doubtful an accurate portrayal of anyone's life before these characters were created to imitate. Now, just as we have far too many women trying to be Carrie Bradshaw, overlooking the obvious misery that would plague such a materialistic and vapid lifestyle, we also have groups of idiot men receiving the validation they need to continue treating women like objects with no threat of consequences of any kind.
Now I know several of my friends will disagree, but think about it. Four grown men living completely dependent on each other, no real female friends, well beyond the age when "bros before ho's" is funny but still treating women like ho's. And yes, girlfriends stick around now and then, but do the relationships ever seem mature? (Confession: I know too much about this show because my husband still watches, even though he knows how f'ing horrible I think it is.) Four man-children living a fantasy that is nowhere near reality. Yes, I know it's a TV show and suspension of disbelief and all that. I watch Heroes. I get it. And I don't think all TV needs to have a positive message - this is not the Land of All Back to School Specials. But come on! These guys are total douchebags!
So... if Obama really does spend his free time watching Entourage, what does that say about him? Probably nothing. Even smart guys like mindless crap once in a while.

Priorities

Things I like right now: The swine flu vaccine, Jemaine Clement in a movie, leaving the house before dawn to get to the gym, catching The Great Pumpkin two nights in a row, finally hearing from a long-lost friend, painfully spicy pumpkin seeds, my huge new couch, pictures of my niece in her Homecoming Queen sash before she's even old enough to worry about finding a date.

Things I don't: Any talk of the World Series, trying to pick out nylons to wear with a blue dress and silver shoes, rain, wrong washing machine parts, rain, my brother's faulty memory, rain.

Trend Pieces Define Me

Surprisingly, the New York Times has not picked up on this yet, but it seems that I and thousands of others are iPhone moms. What does this mean? That we use our phones for email, scheduling, organizing, distracting our ADD-afflicted toddlers, and, yes, as a tool for neglect. Our moms' generation used soap operas to drown out the mundane and/or the whining. We use cool technology.
So how long before the term "iPhone mom" replaces "green" as the new annoying classifier?
On the other hand, I was thinking about what this says about me and my cohort. Not too long ago we had soccer moms. They came to be known as this because they drove minivans or SUVs to take their kids to soccer games. They were defined by what they were doing for their children and advertisers/politicians/Jay Leno were all over it - selling them useless toys, tools, and ideas, and cracking jokes at their child-obsessed expense. That's what makes this iPhone mom thing kind of interesting. We're being defined not by what we do for our kids but for what we do for ourselves - in some ways the family but mostly ourselves - even as we are still being defined as moms. Does this mean we are more selfish than past generations? Or do new national obsessions ultimately lead to new ways of categorizing consumers, and I'm just wasting time giving this one any legitimacy?

Baby Needs a New Pair of Shoes!

If I take Disney up on its offer to refund money used to purchase Baby Einstein DVDs, am I somehow admitting that my son is not a genius? Am I admitting that I was relying on a video to make my son a genius?
On the other hand, this could be the kind of slippery slope that makes me some money!
First, I’d like to sue the writers for Popeye: I have eaten plenty of spinach in my day and still my biceps are small and free of anchor tattoos. I’d also like to sue the creators of Diego and Dora: If Hayden is ever at a South American zoo, I suppose he’ll be able to ask for help before being eaten by a baby jaguar or its mother, but will he know how to ask for the bathroom or say “Do you have a pencil?” or “Which bus will take me to the library?”
What else? I know I’m missing some good opportunities here.

Do I overreact?

So this weekend, I accidently ended up on the Country Music channel on TV just in time to catch Taylor Swift singing "Fifteen" and I caught myself thinking how talented and sweet and modest Miss Swift is and appreciating the message in her song. And then I had a vision of 15-year-old me lying in my room listening to Pearl Jam and Alice in Chains and Nirvana, and I was pretty sure that 15-year-old me would love to kick 32-year-old me's ass. And considering my loss of muscle and coordination over the past 17 years, I should be very scared of 15-year-old me. (Yes, I admit that Donnie Wahlberg had only recently been replaced by Eddie Vedder on my bedroom walls, but remember, Donnie WAS the edgy one. But I digress.)
Then I remembered that I still hadn't listened to the new album from San Francisco indie band Girls sent to me by my dear friend Jagger (may or may not be Mick) and I grabbed my computer for a listen. If you haven't heard them yet, you should. It's a little more atmospheric than my usual tastes, but it's perfect music for waiting around on a Monday morning for a washing machine repair guy. Probably good driving music too.
Other recent discoveries: Bell X1 (courtesy of their 2 Chicago groupies) and Madrugada (courtesy of Matt, who has also recently concluded that he likes Lady Gaga)

Evidence #184 that I'm experiencing brain leakage.

In less than 24 hours, I watched stretches of both Monster Ark on Syfy (love the new spelling) and Marley and Me. Quick, somebody recommend something elitist and highbrow for me to watch!

First Post!

If you're reading this, you're likely one of the oh-so-lucky few invited to join my blog. Yes, it's been a slow afternoon, and yes, I'm craving a little adult interaction, and no, I can't just pick up the phone and call somebody because that would defeat the purpose of this blog!
So here we go...
As we are coming up on a Friday evening, I don't expect many immediate responses, but let's just get this thing started. I'm going to suggest a topic to begin. In the future, please feel free to suggest your own topics, but keep in mind that anyone can read this. So don't post something you wouldn't want attached to your name.
OK, topic numero uno. Do we love or hate Facebook? Do 267 people really like me - enough to want to know what I ate for dinner last night? Is it making me a lazy friend or a better friend? Is it better to comment on a friend's status update or to call her to talk for a few minutes? Discuss.