Facing the Facts About Facebook

Are you on Facebook? It's a great site for reconnecting with friends and family. It also helps you get to know new acquaintances a lot quicker. On the flip side, perhaps you can relate to some of the less desirable kinds people you encounter on the site.

The Friend Whore: Long lost people you never really had a relationship with request to be your friend, and you never actually communicate with you once you are connected. Let's face it, all they want to do is rack up the number of friends thay have.
The Friend Poacher: This person joins Facebook and then proceeds to link up with almost everyone from your friend list. Even those they may not know too well.
Get a life and your own friends, I say.
The Peanut Gallery: Long lost or fringe friends who suddenly comment on every little thing you do or say. Leave me alone and mind your own business.
Status Martyrs: These are a pet peeve of mine. These are people who change their status with great frequency, often to tell you how tired or how stressed out they are, or that they just got back from the gym. If you are that busy, how do you have time to update your status so much?

Is there anything more annoying?

However, Facebook and the status field are a great example of the power of social networking. Social Networking has become a hot term in the marketing and market research worlds. Like the term "Green", it's almost overused in many cases. But one thing is for sure, it is a huge factor in affecting people's behavior.

Facebook pages have become personal podiums where people can promote their political views, religious beliefs or promote a cause. Sometimes this might turn more people off, but the simple fact is that it's making people more aware... of everything.

The power I saw today on Facebook was from referrals. A friend posted on her status that she was looking for a new digital camera. I have some insight on this topic so I commented on her status and recommended a brand I was happy with, a good camera review site and some advice about how to find a good price.

A little later I checked back and I saw a three or four other people had chimed in with advice and recommendations. It was amazing. My friend's purchase will be influenced by people that a year ago she hardly spoke to or did not even know. And now other people are reading the discussion from the sidelines and are getting product reviews almost by osmosis.

Wow, a built in panel of friends, family and acquaintances that can be instantly tapped into for advice, referrals and opinions. That's powerful.

I wonder what the final effect on her purchase will be. I hope my friend follows up after she buys a camera. I'm curious to see how the suggestions from Facebook affect her purchase, or if the advice steers her in a certain direction. Who knows? Maybe will she see a sale and just buy a camera because of the good price. Or a sales person will convince her of a different brand.
There are so many factors in a purchasing choice, but we can't ignore the weight of a referral on a decision or the significance of a network like the community on Facebook.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go update my status. How does this sound?
"Jack is blogging about Facebook, and is tired, stressed out and needs to hit the gym."

UPDATE 11/9/08- I followed up with my friend and found out that she bought a Canon SD880 IS. Canon was the brand that we all had recommended. She says so far, she I loves it.

Those Were the McDays

I really miss McDonald's.

Books like Fast Food Nation and movies like Super Size Me are exposing the health hazards of these types of restaurants. The big message now is to eat healthier and steer clear of fast food. Too much of this stuff will kill you.

Okay, I get it. I know that Quarter Pounders and hot apple pies will clog my arteries and add chins to my face. But let's face it; McDonald's can be really tasty. Is there anything better than a large fries, fresh out of the bag? I don't think so. (Especially those stray, bonus fries that hide at the bottom of the bag.) Anyway, it's the whole aura of McDonald's that I miss. It wasn't just a meal, it was a destination.

When I was a kid, McDonald's had an alternate universe known as "McDonaldland". I never read Alice in Wonderland, so I couldn't tell you the difference between the Cheshire Cat and the Mad Hatter. However, I can tell you more about McDonaldland than I can about the very state of Connecticut that I live in. McDonaldland was the realm of Ronald McDonald, the Clown Prince of the franchise, but there was so much more to this magical place.

McDonaldland was ruled by a guy named Mayor McCheese. His head was a giant cheeseburger with eyes and a mouth. (I guess in McDonaldland, you are what you eat.) He also had a purple top hat and sash that signified his rank as a public servant. Besides representing the citizens of McDonaldland, he also represented cheeseburgers, and he was not shy about it. You might cringe at the thought of a politician with such overt biases, but I found it refreshing. There were no hidden agendas with The Mayor. You knew where he stood at all times. It was usually next to a table full of cheeseburgers.

The Mayor's right hand man, and enforcer, was a burley dude called Big Mac. Big Mac was a cop, one of McDonaldland's Finest, and he kept the peace. Big Mac was charged with protecting the citizens of The Land from the many dangers under the Golden Arches. His arch nemesis was a vile creature known as The Hamburglar. His true identity hidden behind a black mask, The Hamburglar was always in the shadows, terrorizing the hungry people of The Land by constantly stealing their food. Ever the enigma, the only words we ever heard from this fiend were "Robble, robble, robble." What did it mean? Was it a message, a warning, a threat? Or was his mouth just full of stolen hamburgers?

McDonaldland actually boasted a roster of villains that could rival that of Batman or Dick Tracy. There was Captain Crook, the pirate who loved Fillet of Fish and The Gobblins, whose insatiable appetite for French Fries kept McDonaldland in a constant state of high alert.
They weren't all bad though. There was also a host of friendly characters who inhabited this world, like The Professor, the lovable Grimace and later on, Birdie the Early Bird. (I'll deal with Birdie later.) Each was known for their love of a particular menu item, and as kids, we would rally behind the characters that stood for our favorites. I was always partial to the Grimace, myself.

Unfortunately, like many things in life, McDonaldland eventually lost its' shimmer. Maybe it started when that obnoxious Birdy showed up for breakfast and made us dread the sunrise. (The Early Bird gets the worm, and gets on my nerves. Nobody should be that cheery first thing in the morning.)

Then the Mcflood gates opened; The Gobblins became The Fry Guys and they even softened up the Hamburglar's look to be cuddly rather than sinister. By the time the anthropomorphic Chicken McNuggets showed up, it was all over… or maybe I had just out grown it all.
Now eating at McDonald's is different. It's just another place to grab a quick bite. The colorful characters have been replaced by apathetic servers who constantly screw up your order and charge you a quarter for an extra packet of sweet and sour sauce. It doesn't even taste as good as it used to. Never mind the guilt associated with eating that stuff. It's just not the same anymore.

But sometimes I sure wish I could go back in time and have one more Shamrock Shake in that special place where they always put the "happy" in Happy Meal.

No Niner, No Cry

Sorry. I missed the new 90210 this week, so I have no comments about it.

Baseball playoffs are starting, so we'll have to see how much Niner I actually catch in the next month. It's not looking good.

Have you watched It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia yet? What are you waiting for?

I've been watching that new vampire show on HBO, True Blood. It's okay, but it has not won me over 100% quite yet. But I'm sticking with it for now. Plus, it's back to back with Entourage, which is one of the best shows. So that makes it easy.

I just discovered this show The Unit, which is also on Sunday night. Caught it this past Sunday and thought it was pretty good.

I saw the premiere of Heroes but I missed this week's show. I liked season one, but I think this show may have already peaked. I'll watch it when I can, but how many people dying and coming back to life can I really take? They rely on the same old tricks time after time.

The big news is that the 24 two hour movie airs next month. Stay tuned for more on that.

Gotta go. Tata for now.
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11/8/08 Update: It turns out that I never went back to watching the new 90210. It was just too bad to keep watching. This was the last post on the topic for the time being. - JC

90210- Week 4: Condon-Nation

Another painful night as the new 90210 drifts further away from the original show. We got a healthy dose of Brenda and about a minute of Kelly and that was it. Have we seen the last of Nat?

Tonight’s episode was a rollercoaster ride for Annie. First she gets her big break when Adrianna is kicked out of the school play because she’s “using”. I’m not exactly sure what Adrianna is using, but it sure ain’t good judgment. Since Annie is the only one who knows the lead part, she steps into the spotlight opposite her latest flame, Ty.

I’m not sure what show they were actually putting on, but it looked like a lot like Newsies, judging from the costume that Ty was wearing. But the big news was that there was an after-party at the Roosevelt Hotel that night and Ty had plans to deliver something more than a paper to Annie’s doorstep of love. This had her father very worried. After all, he used to have the same paper route as Ty.

As I said, Annie’s big break happens because Adrianna is all f-ed up fifteen minutes before show time. You see, Adrianna’s got it tough because she has an overbearing mother that pushes her into show business, which in itself is a cruel and thankless industry. Her rough life has pushed her to stealing and substance abuse. So she is the show’s tragic figure… pretty much the new Emily Valentine.

Brenda had sensed the turmoil in Adrianna’s life and tries to help, almost like a Guardian Angel. First she plays a witch in Charmed, now this… it just shows Shannen Doherty’s incredible acting range. She’s like De Niro with nice boobs and uneven eyes. But not even Brenda Walsh can stop Adrianna’s tailspin.

So Brenda, with the help of her stage manager Silver, decides that Adrianna is unfit to perform and they turn to Annie instead. Not the hit Broadway musical; the girl in the chorus. It turns out that just about everyone in the gang is involved with this play. Silver is suddenly the stage manager and Blandon is working the lights. Last week he was too busy for school and lacrosse with his new job at the Peach Pit. Somehow in a week he has found the time to work the lighting for a play that he has never even attended a rehearsal for.

Here’s where things go down hill for Annie. After the play, she asks Blandon if she can have the condom he always carries in his wallet. It’s pretty much a bad luck charm because he’s been carrying it for four years. (He’s supposed to be sixteen years old, so he’s had this rubber since he was twelve.) She is ready to give it up to Ty, but Ethan bumps into her with a bouquet of flowers and discovers the rubber. He’s now the second man, along with Dad, alarmed by the possibility of Annie “Tying” one on at the party.

But a vengeful Adrianna beats Annie to Ty’s hotel room and stages it so that it appears she has stolen the stage from Annie in Ty’s bedroom. Annie leaves in tears, along with the cursed condom. Meanwhile, Silver and Blandon are getting jiggy with it until Blandon realizes that he has no protection because he gave away his lucky prophylactic. But Silver had no intention of letting him explore her mine anyway.

There was also a subplot about Naomi’s MILF mother kicking her cheating husband out and filing for divorce, but not before they have angry parent sex. It was comical.

That’s about it for this week. I don’t know how much more of this show I can take.

Tata for now.

90210- Week 3: You Dropped a Bomb on Me

First of all, I got in late and missed the first few minutes of 90210. Secondly, I kept flicking over to the Red Sox game. Thirdly, I may have had a scotch or three after work. So my head was not really in it tonight.

It hit me tonight that watching the new 90210 is kind of like watching a movie on Cinemax after 11:30 pm. I only really care about a few scenes and the rest is filler. With 90210, it’s all about the old cast. With Cinemax it’s… well, you can figure that out for yourself. Tonight was a perfect example of this. Out of a one hour show, there were pretty much only two or three scenes that I really needed to see.

First was the bomb that Brenda dropped on us about the father of Kelly’s child. I figured they’d milk this one all season until we got a big reveal and a guest appearance during sweeps week. They teased us early in the show tonight, when awkward Ryan asked Brenda about it. We get another vague tidbit about the father traveling the world, helping people. But then, when Kelly is bitching to Brenda about that very conversation, Brenda let’s the cat out of the bag. Kelly is still in love with Dylan. So I guess the little guy is a McKay.

That’s it? That’s the big reveal? I was hoping for a “Luke, I’m your father” like roar, but instead all I got is an “Um, Luke Perry is your father” whimper.

I really hope the kid grows out his sideburns over the next few episodes and starts acting like his dad. Maybe those mobsters who killed his grandfather father will kidnap him and Dylan will have to return to save him from another exploding car… or exploding Big Wheel.

With that big question out of the way, I’m not sure where they go from here. Doe anyone really want to see Kelly with awkward Ryan? Would anyone want to actually date this guy? All he does is ask questions about the status of the relationship. He never stops, kind of like the Energizer Bunny. He’s both awkward and annoying. If he was a battery, he’d be Double A. And that just might be his new nickname.

The other thing of note tonight was Joe E. Tata’s most significant screen time since the start of the new show. Dixon needs money so he applies for and gets a job from Nat at the Peach Pit. If you any doubts about him being Blandon, I rest my case. Alas, times have changed at The Pit and the classic bowling shirt uniform is no more. It’s been replaced by a lame t-shirt. (Who am I kidding? I’ll end up scouring the internet in search of one.)

I wish they had explained the new look of The Peach Pit a bit more like Happy Days did when they remodeled Arnold’s. On Happy Days, Arnold’s is accidentally burnt down by Chachi. Couldn’t the 90210 people come up with a similar scenario? Maybe Brenda accidentally starts a grease fire during an encore performance as Lavern the Waitress?

Speaking of Brenda, Ms. Walsh was busy this week. Somehow, before I tuned in, Grandma Tabitha had ended up in charge of the musical that Annie is starring in, and Brenda is brought in to the rescue. Jessica Walter’s performance made me miss Arrested Development so much. She is wonderful. Her overbearing directing reaches a crescendo when she grabs a mic and starts kicking out the jams on that song we’ve been hearing the group rehearse for the past few weeks. Brenda video tapes the rehearsal and Grandma is able to see what a pain in the ass she’s being. She gracefully steps down and hands the reins over to Brenda.

Meanwhile, Blandon is burning the candle at both ends with school and shifts at The Pit. There are also some sparks between Silver and him. Silver pretty much asks herself out for him, making her worth her weight in gold. Eventually Blandon’s grades start to suffer because of his hours and his father steps in to help him out. I was really hoping Nat would bail him out, like he did when Brandon had the gambling problem.

Some other stuff happened tonight with the other characters, but it’s getting late so it will have to wait.

Okay, I’ll admit it… I gotta go see what’s on Cinemax.

Tata for now.

PS- It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia starts back up on Thursday. It's my favorite show and I highly recommend it.

90210 Week 2: Double Stuff

Tonight was round two of the new 90210. Or I guess round three, since they showed two episodes last week. Thankfully, we only had to deal with one hour tonight. I don’t know if I could handle anymore drama.

As I said last week, I primarily tune in to see what’s going to happen with the old characters, and tonight there was a whole lot of cookie before they finally got to the cream filling that is Kelly Taylor’s drunk mother. No Brenda and no Nat tonight. Oh well. That’s the way the cookie crumbles, I guess.

Calling the rest of this show a cookie is actually a bit inaccurate, because these new characters are pretty hard to swallow. First of all, these supposed sixteen year olds act more like they are in their mid-twenties; hanging out in bars and going to see bands. Meanwhile the parents on the show actually act more like real sixteen year olds; going bowling and eating French fries.

But older actors playing younger characters is a staple on 90210, going back to Dylan McKay and Andrea Zuckerman, so I will let it pass. Hell, if I had realized they were going to cast older people in younger roles, I would have auditioned for the part of Jennie Garth’s four year old son. That kid got to lie in bed between Silver and Kelly. I’d love to be the cream filling in that Oreo.

Speaking of Silver, if you caught the premiere of True Blood, that new vampire show on HBO, did you notice her in the opening scene? She’s the girl in the car that gives her boyfriend a “hand” before they encounter a bloodsucker in a convenience store. (The scene is on You Tube, just look up Jessica Stroup.)

Ironically, the theme of tonight’s show was basically that parents suck. They drink, they cheat and worst of all they force you to go bowling. The Wilson parents announce that their Kansas tradition of family night will continue in Beverly Hills in the form of bowling on a Friday night, much to the chagrin of Mini-Bren and Blandon. (That’s Annie and Dixon; the early-Brenda clone and the black Brandon.)

The rest of the gang end up at the alleys, including Ethan, who now has a thing for Mini-Bren. In the most realistic moment of the show, Ethan checks out her ass while she’s bowling. Let’s face it, that’s pretty much the main reason why guys go bowling with girls. However, Mini-Bren has a date with Clark Kent… I mean Ty. He looks a lot like the dude from Smallville, doesn’t he? Does this make Ethan the Lex Luthor of Beverly Hills? If he shaves his head and starts collecting Kryptonite, this show just may start holding my interest.

Meanwhile, Naomi, the oldest sixteen year old of them all, is denied a trip to Vegas by her father, but is given a new SUV to make up for it. When she decides to thank her father by surprising him with some late night dinner at his office, she finds he’s already got a hot little side dish. This makes Naomi all sad and she goes off crying into the arms of Lex Luthor, because he is super, man.

Throughout the show, Silver keeps trying to find ways to avoid going home. She’s also the only kid who seems to enjoy bowling with strong parental figures. That’s because she has a drunk and abusive mother waiting for her at home. At the end of the night, Dixon spots her sleeping in her car and that leads to the rest of the gang learning of her domestic plight. Now, was it just me, or did the rest of you get a slight OJ Simpson vibe in that scene when Dixon is taking out the trash? Sneaking around in a dark walkway by a gate in Beverly Hills… does Dixon drive a white Bronco?

Once Kelly finds out that her mother Jackie is abusing Silver along with the bottle, she puts her budding romance with awkward Ryan on hold. No time for love, she’s too busy saving Silver, man.

Jackie and Kelly play tug of war with Silver, and finally Jackie kicks Silver out of the house. Now Silver can go live with Kelly. This will hopefully enable the writers to recycle plot lines from Jennie Garth’s last show What I Like About You, where she shared an apartment with her younger sister, Amanda Bynes.

Of course, the moment of truth in the war or the Taylor’s was when Jackie demeans Kelly by bringing up her son and the missing mystery father. We get more clues tonight. He’s a guy from high school that she used to have a thing with. Dylan, Brandon? I don’t know, his hair looks a lot like Steve Sanders’. Personally, I suspect the father is Muntz, Steve’s wacky frat brother. But what do I know?

Next week Brenda is back and Dixon brutally murders Naomi and Ethan. He flees in Naomi’s new white SUV in a low speed chase down the 405 while Silver finds a bloody glove by the pool house and posts a new video blog about it, compromising the blood evidence. Meanwhile, Marcia Clark blows off a date with Mark Fuhrman and hooks up with Judge Ito.

It’s just another night in Beverly Hills.

Tata for now.

90210- Same Zip Code, Empty Mailbox

The great poet Jon Bon Jovi once asked, “Who says you can't go home?”
I’ll tell you who says that Mr. Jovi. I do. You can’t go home again. At least not in Beverly Hills.

Tonight marked the premiere of next generation of 90210 and the first words uttered by any character were those of Dixon Wilson. He said “This sucks.” I’ve got to hand it to Dixon; he called it right off the bat.

Dixon was referring to his family’s move to Beverly Hills from Kansas, but he might as well have been talking about this new show.

Sure, it was entertaining for a while. There were enough references to the old show, as well as the anticipation of cameos to hold my interest for a while. (Best reference, Andrea Zuckerman’s daughter being described as looking thirty.) Then the show just kept going. It seemed like the longest hour of my life… until I realized to my horror that this was a two hour special and I had another 45 minutes to go.

Maybe the problem is really more with me and not the show. This is just another CW teen drama, with the 90210 label slapped on for branding. Name recognition goes a long way in attracting an audience. Just look at all the variations of CSI. The show I really want to see is simply the original 90210 cast eight years later, and not these new, cookie cutter characters. I’m not going to get that, so I’ve got to settle for a few minutes of Kelly, Brenda and Nat sprinkled in around a show that seems to be the inbred love-child of Saved By the Bell and The Hills.

So let’s talk about the old “90210ers” that showed up tonight, since that’s what we all really care about. Kelly Taylor was the most prominent character from the original show, but Jennie Garth was billed as a guest star, so who knows how long she’ll be around. Kelly is now a guidance counselor at West Beverly High. Kelly was, among other things, a coke addict, a rape victim, in a cult and had an eating disorder. She also did very well on Dancing with the Stars, so she’s certainly ready for anything these kids can throw at her.

We last saw Kelly in 2000, at Donna and David Silver’s wedding, where she had reconnected with her soul-mate, Dylan McKay. There’s no sign of Dylan, but we learn that Kelly has a 4 ½ year old son, but we don’t know who the little bastard’s father is. They hint that it could be the spawn of Brandon Walsh, but I’m sure they will be throwing red herrings at us all season before we learn the truth.

Seeing Kelly Taylor made me think of the abrupt, open-ended finale of The Sopranos. We don’t know if Tony was whacked or if he lives. It’s up to our imagination… unless they decide to do a Sopranos movie. If that happens, then we know Tony lived and the power of that ending will be lost. When the original 90210 ended we all assumed that Kelly and Dylan ended up together, but now that’s out the window and Kelly’s story continues. It’s just smooshed into a few spare minutes in-between the new characters’ drama.

Speaking of someone who was just squeezed into the show, my main man Nat made a brief appearance wrestling with a cappuccino machine in the new, fancier Peach Pit. Nat is also on hand for the main event of the evening, the arrival of Brenda Walsh. I have to admit, when I heard Shannen Doherty utter the words “Mega-Burger”, it was the most orgasmic moment of the entire night for me.

Kelly and Brenda hug out their differences and before you know it, Brenda is acting as Kelly’s wingman when she volunteers to baby sit so that Kelly can go on a date with the young and awkward teacher, Ryan Matthews. Maybe he will turn out to be a bad guy and hook her on drugs, try to rape her or maybe just never take her dancing.

As for the new cast we have a girl who could be Mischa Barton’s stunt double as Anne, the lead girl, and her adopted brother Dixon, who happens to be black. (Oh, the plot possibilities. Anyone else getting Jungle Fever?)

Their father is Rob Estes, who I remember from the classic show Silk Stalkings, which was the USA network’s soft porn cop show. As Harry Wilson, he has a much larger role than Brenda and Brandon’s father did in the original. He’s the school principal, so he’s sort of a hybrid of Mike Brady and Mr. Belding.

The other new character of note is the Wilson’s grandmother, who is the wacky Grandpa Munster or Uncle Fester-like figure. She’s played by the woman who was the mother on Arrested Development, and she practically plays the same character, right down to the ever-present drink in her hand.

We also meet "Silver", who is the grown-up baby sister of Kelly and David. She has a web site that makes fun of people at West Beverly. I gotta make me one of those. Silver hints at the drama that is to come from the Taylor-Silver family. As we see in the previews for next week, Kelly’s mom is crashing the party. More original show characters… that’s more like it.

Okay, time to wrap this up, it’s getting late. The original 90210 was a unique and beloved show because it was so corny, predictable, ridiculous and fun. It somehow managed to suck you in and before you knew it, you were hooked. I’m betting this new version will not so much suck you in, as it will simply suck. I guess we’ll have to give it a few more episodes to see if Dixon was right.

Tata for now.