Totally Tublar*: TVs January 8, 2015 or 1955?

Ever been walking down the promenade of a suburban strip mall, 

looking in shop windows, and realizing...

something

doesn't quite

seem right?

But the more you realize you are near a government capital, 

the less you want to investigate ...

because ... it might be a front for something?

No?

Just me?

Because apparently I am NOT the only one who realized that the displays never changed, the shop never seemed to have people going in, and everyone (Dad) was afraid to investigate the entire time they were in DC?

~ photos via iTouch January 8, 2015

And other have noticed the "frozen in time" displays ... for years.

Kensington Television Service 10309 Kensington Parkway, Kensington, MD, 

but it actually DOES do business, according to Yelp and Angie's List.

via yelp reviews

Yes, Kids .. TVs used to look like this...

*totally tubular

this phrase, which has been here since...forever, is used to mean something's cool. like rad, this was used by nerds in the 70s, but is coming back as a 'punk' thing...surfers said it too. 

man, that wave was totally tubular!!! 

In this case referring to 

television tube

n

1. (Electronics) a cathode-ray tube designed for the reproduction of television pictures. Sometimes shortened to: tube Also called: picture tube

back when tvs looked like boxes and not screens

Noun

1.

television tube - a cathode-ray tube in a television receiver; translates the received signal into a picture on a luminescent screen kinescope, picture tube cathode-ray tube, CRT - a vacuum tube in which a hot cathode emits a beam of electrons that pass through a high voltage anode and are focused or deflected before hitting a phosphorescent screen color television tube, color tube, color TV tube, colour television tube, colour tube, colour TV tube - a television tube that displays images in full color boob tube, goggle box, idiot box, television receiver, television set, telly, tv set, tv, television - an electronic device that receives television signals and displays them on a screen; "the British call a tv set a telly"

 

Photo of the Day: 3 Things I Love About This

Photo credit: @usanetwork via twitter

May 17, 2012
@usanetwork:
Here's @TimDeKay & Matt Bomer doing TalkStoop at the ‪#USAUpfront‬. pic.twitter.com/qqRLrYzV

There are three things I love about this photo. Two are fairly obvious, and one reveals a bit too much about what kind of girl I am, so we'll just let you fill in the blanks on your own.

Somebody's Watching Me ... Watch U(SA)

With apologies to Matt Bomer.
I admire all of your body ... of work.
(Please, people. This is a family site, and he is a family man and a gentleman.)

Most of the time when I'm running around the Upper West Side, I'm doing my own thing, running my errands, heading hither, thither, and yon, minding my business ... as a typical chill New Yorker.

Then something happens and you have to react/document. There was the time in the Post Office when I stopped someone from getting harassed by a pervert -- but that's another post on another blog.

Then there was the evening when I left late, and had to leave from a different exit than my usual. I came around the corner and saw a flurry of activity in front of a neighboring business. Now, things happen in the area all the time. I work for a destination of note in and of itself, not to mention it is part of an arts complex. "We've" seen presidential motorcades, Fashion Week, festivals, film shoots, and film premieres, to name a few, but this one was different.

A cable upfront from the channel I watch all the dang time! USA

I swear, if the cable company looked at the percentage of time my t.v. was on, and to what channel it was tuned, it'd be primarily the character-driven programs and NCIS rerun-heavy USA Network. I didn't want to be too much of a dork, so out my iTouch came (to be "checking for cell coverage" you see) and snapped these on the run. The daylight photos are at one time of the day, and the night shots are from the evening after the upfront.

My boss is pretty lenient on things, but I didn't think I could take a two hour lunch to sit out on the street and watch the red-carpet arrivals. Like with most other major NYC events in recent years, most recently the Shuttle Enterprise "fly-overs," I watched it happen via the Internet, specifically via Twitter feeds.

Actually, it was probably better that way. It was hot and crowded--two of my least favorite things about NYC. And on my screaming scale of measure of what I could hear up in my office, on a scale of 0 to "Holy Cow, it's a Harry Potter Premiere, two-days of rabid fans screaming for hours," it was only about a 2. If you didn't have press creds, you wouldn't have gotten close to the talent, and since I don't wear stilettos, I probably wouldn't have been able to see anybody, I mean, anything. This way of ogling is much better for all concerned. No fear of sudden-onset-stupid-fan ness, no hyperventilating hysteria, more ability to be silly and not embarrass the actors or self, unless.... you happen to mention something to a friend .... more on that in a minute.

Regarding this large poster of Matt Bomer seen throughout, I apologize again to the tech crew person who probably had to clean it off again the night before the event. I may or may not have impulsively "splatted" myself all over it in an embrace, leaving a face print/drool. Also, it truly doesn't do him justice. Why not have it be black and white and blue to show off those baby blues? WHY!?

There was a reenactment of my "splat" the next night when it was all over, which unfortunately? fortunately? was captured by my friend Cynthia.

Whoops, now I'm dizzy from all the silliness.

So, um. Yeah. That happened.

I'm Auntie Nettie and I'm an Anglophile!

Somewhere across the seas, in a far away land,
there surely must be a run on peach blossoms...for romance is in the air.The candied almonds are lain out in dishes for the guests,
and ginger-haired groomsmen are calming last minute nerves
with wafers or some chocolate.
The man who would be king is about to marry his college sweetheart.
If you have a marriage half as strong or long as your grandparents',
you'll be doing well.
With best wishes to the royal newlyweds and Long live the Queen!

Oh yes, I'm watching .. every single bit, even if the coverage is "canned."

Vintage tins courtesy of Cabot's Taffys in Provincetown, MA, c. October 2010

Cool Cousins in the Media

So, I don't usually use this forum to proselytize so much, but I'm making an exception. Because this time it's about family, and when it come to family, you tend to want to brag.

Meet my cousin Josh. (Actually my mother's first cousin's son Josh. So, that makes him my cousin, once removed, or something like that. WHATEVS. He's family.)

My cousin Josh seems to be cooler than most of the whole extended family tree put together. Josh is a skateboarder and photographer, and one of the real people selected to put a face on Mormons in a new public relations campaign.

Ironically, although Josh and I both live and work in and near New York, we've never actually met. How sad is that? He's too cool for me anyway, so it's just as well.

Go here to learn more about my cousin Josh Maready, his/our faith, and to get more information about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, aka Mormons.

NieNie on Oprah

and today I will be watching her on Oprah!

For news, go here, here, and here!

For someone I've never met, I'm ridiculously proud of her and her entire family ... she done us good.

An open letter to TLC

Dear TLC,

I am hereby boycotting your entire channel. You used to be a quality source of information and entertainment. I used to spend entire nights and weekends solely tuned to your program lineup. (Well, before you fired Paige anyway. Since then it’s been hit or miss.) I would still occasionally stop on by to visit with Stacy and Clinton, the Roloffs, and to see the antics of the various large families. Not anymore.

I am appalled that, despite misgivings last season from one father on a certain show, (you know which one I’m talking about), you have chosen to renew the program. As the events of the summer unfolded, and are still continuing to unfold in the media, I am even more appalled that the program has not been pulled off the air … FOR THE SAKE OF THE CHILDREN.

These are impressionable young children, NOT actors, who have been thrust into the limelight. Over the last few seasons, the editing and footage aired has made it clear, to me, at least, that at least the older set of children have issues. The younger set of multiples is approaching the age when they will be entering public school, if they haven’t already. Before the mess that is now embroiling their parents became public, that factor should have been considered as well. Now they all have to deal with fame, paparazzi, stress between their parents, isolation, and an endless time period of speculation from their peers and the public.

For the sake of those children, I have imposed my own blackout of all coverage of this mess. I turn the channel when the “news” brings it up. I don’t read articles about it. This will be my only statement about it. If only I could, I would get others to join me in boycotting the program and watching your channel. Even more importantly, I would start a campaign to boycott the purchasing of products from any and all advertisers on the program and your channel.

When you bring back a real quality Learning Channel, TLC, perhaps I might visit you again.

But until then, Shame on you.

Sincerely,

Auntie Nettie

Grateful List 2/28-3/19

I haven’t forgotten to be grateful, but I’ve been so grateful to be busy and to be very gainfully employed that I haven’t had time to write about it.

Therefore, in no particular order, I am grateful for:

~ The arrival of three samples of Emergen-C in my mailbox on a day that I began to be sick;

~ Leftovers from board meetings that served as lunch and dinner, as well as for my colleagues who baked the treats which were my breakfasts for about two weeks. (Hey, I know I say this everytime, but I LOVE LEFTOVERS. I hate grocery shopping and I get sick of my own frozen lunches after a while.);

~ My father for finally connecting my DVD player and introducing me to this 21st century technology. Thanks Pop. Now I can whip up blankies, get carpal tunnel, and finally see all those movies I missed. Also, blooper reels? LOVE them!;

~ Speaking of 21st century technology, I am sooooooo grateful for streaming on-line media from the major networks that allows me to watch most of my primetime shows from the comfort of my desk. Watching six hours of t.v. during the day makes my monotonous database cleaning projects go ever so much faster and allows me to go to concerts at night and away for weekends;

~ I’m also grateful for friends that visit me in NYC, let me catch up on the news, and offer free concert tickets. Not only do I get to socialize, but I’m learning about little known works – pieces where you can guffaw at “punny” lyics, ogle Nathan Gunn, and get a big nerdy kick out of seeing Terrence Mann, who I’ve loved since I first saw him as “Bob” in a very obscure SciFi show.

~ I’m grateful that spring is almost here and that I’ll be away with a bunch of girl friends when it rolls in. We’ll be celebrating birthdays, checking off more items from the list of 1,000 Places to Visit Before You Die, catching up, commiserating, and chortling with glee! I promise pictures and news to follow.

~ Finally, I'm grateful that it's almost Friday, so I can leave early for the weekend wonderment.

Battlestar's Back!

Who's the Final Cylon?
What happened to Earth?
What happened to Starbuck?
What is the truth of the opera house?
Will Lee wear another towel?

What the frak is going on?

We'll find out all these answers and more, starting tonight at 10:00 p.m. when the final 10 episodes of Battlestar Galactica start airing on Scifi. I can't frakkin' wait.

Battlestar Galactica as covered today in The New York Times.

Battlestar Galactica website

Don't Mock the Pro/Con List!*

Thanks to a combination of suppressed immunity, exhaustion, commuting, and an office-mate who's been sick for the last three weeks, I finally succumbed to some germ warfare and was/am ill. I stayed home from work the last two days and had too much time to contemplate the state of being home sick.

In honor of Rory*, here's my Pro/Con list, or what I can remember from my semi-delusional drug-enhanced state.

Pro:

• Sleeping in;
• HGTV;
• Morning naps;
• Repeats of Gilmore Girls on ABC Family;
• Staying in jammies or sweats all day;
• Food Network;
• Long hot showers;
• The Create Channel;
• Afternoon naps;
• No deadlines;
• No one in laundry room;
• Watching free stuff via cable provider;
• Evening naps;
• Being home to talk on phone when old friend calls instead of at 1 of 4 jobs;
• Drug highs.

Con:

• Being sick;
• Daytime t.v. on major broadcast channels (How many “Judge” shows do we need anyway? Oh, and 4 hours of the Today show? Why?!);
• Stuffy head;
• Endlessly repeating commercial blocks on every channel;
• Being sick;
• Neighbor who plays #%(@*) electric bass and acoustic guitar at all hours of the day and night … Hello? 1 a.m. is NOT the time to be playing your guitar, nor is 8 a.m.! For that matter, just STOP PLAYING ALTOGETHER!;
• Sinus headaches;
• Neighbor who can’t shut his door without shaking entire apartment building;
• Wracking coughs;
• Neighbor who can’t walk across apartment without shaking entire apartment building – and who lets his dog run back and forth across the apartment and chase things;
• Brain oozing out of ear after three days of sleeping, drugs, and television;
• Diet Coke withdrawal headaches;
• Claustrophobia after staying in studio apartment for 72 hours straight.
  

*Rory, Gilmore Girls, Season 6, Episode 17 "I'm OK, You're OK"

How to make Battlestar Galatica fans’ heads explode

One of Jim's classic pranks on Dwight from the 10/9/08 episode of The Office.

The dialogue is so priceless, I had to give the transcription:

Jim: Did you see Battlestar Galactica last night?

Andy: No. Is it any good?

Jim: No, it's really so-so. Like, it's all crazy monsters and stuff, like Klingons and Wookiees and all that. But -- sorry, you wanted to add something, Dwight?

[A pained Dwight turns away.]

Andy: Is it anything like the original Battlestar Galactica?

Jim: It's weird -- it's practically a shot-for-shot remake.

Andy: Interesting.

Jim: Yeah. The story's kind of bland. It's about a guy named Dumbledore Calrissian, and he needs to return the ring back to Mordor.

Andy: That doesn't sound right ...

You think?!!!!
(The sound you hear is a KABOOM!!!)

It's a Good Thing

I was surfing The New York Times today (instead of working ... of course) and stumbled across this August 10th article about my "favorite" person, Martha Stewart.

"On Sept. 16, Fine Living will unveil a new original comedy series built around a provocative premise: mocking Ms. Stewart. For a half hour, two hosts will critique — in “candid and often acerbic” language, according to the channel — old clips from her 1990s cooking and craft show. Fine Living ... calls the series “Whatever, Martha!”

There's probably been a college drinking game along these lines for years and I just didn't know about it (there's one for almost anything). This is PRICELESS.

Mystery Science Theater 3000 and mocking Martha Stewart?! GENIUS
Why didn't someone -- besides Martha -- jump on this bandwagon sooner?

My Cablevision package doesn't carry Fine Living. That's NOT a good thing.

Random Comment and Best Wishes

"Those bastards! I hate them!! They SUCK!!"

This is my my friend Jenn's response to the cancellation of at least five of her favorite shows, most of them on what she's nicknaming the American Bastards Channel and the Co-Bastards Syndicate.

Now, to understand why this is so funny, you must understand. Jenn is a very polite, calm, even tempered, reserved, ladylike, "quiet and bookish," delightful person who rarely gets riled, and barely swears, even though she has had to put up with me since we met in 6th grade. I don't know whether to be shocked and appalled, worried about my influence, or say YOU GO GIRL!

Good luck today Jenn. Feel better soon.