Sunday, January 24, 2010

Ohh Bobby...



In New York City's war on crime, the worst criminal offenders are pursued by the detectives of the Major Case Squad. These are their stories…

This is the story of Leydi and Bobby Goren…


In my first post, I promised a post about my huge crush on Vincent D’Onofrio. Many of you know that know me well, might have heard me express my adoration for Vincent (we are on a first name basis) or have heard the story about the time I saw him on the corner of University Place and 9th Street.


Every time I tell people I have a crush on him, they look at me with this weird look on their face, like I just told them I like animal porn (which I don’t, just in case you were wondering). Their first question is really?? Why is it so hard to fathom? Vincent is hot!!


I remember the first time, I saw Law & Order: Criminal Intent and met Detective Robert (Bobby) Goren. My crush started out slowly, he seemed to know everything about everything! He knows about science, literature, psychopaths, world cultures, sign language, poetry, this guy can be a college professor! But here he is beating the bad guys at their own game, all with a library card! Come on, how can you possibly not be drooling at the mouth?


As my crush grew, I watched more and more episodes of CI and was disappointed when NBC moved the show to the USA Network. Cable prime-time, where shows with a cult following, but not too much of a wide appeal go to live. I feel the episodes have gotten better since they have been on USA, better story lines and more interesting twists. As the show has progressed, Bobby has put on a little weight and his hair has grayed a little. It’s OK Bobby, I still love you!!!


So on Sunday nights, you can catch a Bobby marathon on Bravo, while I get a little bummed when it’s a Det. Mike Logan (Chris Noth, better known as Mr. Big) centered episode. They also give re-runs on WE and Channel 9, so I can get a Bobby fix practically anytime I want. For me it’s especially thrilling when I start an episode of Criminal Intent and its one I have never seen before, I am like a kid on the last day of school, grinning for all its worth :)


So for those of you who have not heard the Leydi and Vincent D’Onofrio’s story, here goes...

It was a warm autumn day.

I am at the Chase bank on the corner of University Place and 9th Street as I am taking money out of the ATM, I hear one girl say to her friend “look it’s that guy from Law & Order” as I hear this, I could not get out of there fast enough, I thought it was Sam Waterston (D.A. Jack McCoy - Law & Order) or Christopher Meloni (Det. Elliot Stabler -Law & Order: SVU, who is also pretty hot) but to my delightful surprise it was Vincent!!!

I crossed the street, he was eating a bag of nuts of some kind, waiting for the walk signal (like a good citizen) and I go up to him and say “OMG its Vincent D’Onofrio” and he smiles and says “Hi”!

The light changes, he crosses the street and I start walking to my office (I was on an errand for my student worker job) and I want to kick myself for telling Vincent that he is Vincent!!! I couldn’t say something like, I am your biggest fan or I love your show? Nooooooooo, I make a complete ass of myself.

So Vincent, if one day you read this and on the off-chance that you remember the clumsy college kid with posters in hand, that was me! And I just want to say I am your biggest fan and I love your show!!


Here is a clip of one of my favorite Bobby Goren moments. Enjoy :)


Thursday, January 21, 2010

Fist Pump


Ohhhh the Jersey Shore... My latest guilty pleasure. It’s like watching a train wreck in slow motion, but I am kind of sad it’s over. Will there be a Jersey Shore 2?? With all the popularity of this season, I see no reason why MTV would not capitalize on it.

At first, I did not understand what all the hype was about and then I saw the first two episodes back to back and I was hooked!

So here is my personal opinion on all the Jersey Shore characters:

Angelina - Who travels with their clothes in black garbage bags? The so called Kim Kardashian of Staten Island only last a couple of episodes. She was too good to go to work at the T-shirt shop after getting into a fight with her married boyfriend that she had only dated for a couple of months. You don't go to work; you cannot stay at the house, so poof, Angelina you are gone...

Pauly D - Guido with a capital G! Blow-dried and gelled hair, tanned and back tattoos of Cadillac logos with the Italian flag colors. His hair looks so stiff it could possibly withstand a bullet. Pauly D did not create much drama on the show, but there was definite sexual tension between him and J-Woww.

Vinny - The only guy that does not tan, gel his hair or workout. A self-proclaimed mama's boy who loves to fist pump. He has to have an eyebrow problem, most of his facial expressions involve that they move up and down drastically in some way. I could just never understand those sweaty armpits, totally disgusting.

Snooki - Ohh lord, what can I say? I want to like Snooki, she's so small and desperate looking. She looks like a hairy yorkie. I just felt sorry for her most of the time. Especially after she got punched out by that gym teacher. She tried so hard to be liked by the guys in the clubs, but never would get a guy to call her back or sleep with her. If you cannot get laid at the Jersey Shore, they way this group was partying, there is definitely a problem. And what the hell is up with the "bahhhhhhhhh" she always utters after she feels sorry for herself?

Sammi "The Sweetheart" - "The sweetest bitch you will ever meet" That is her opening line. She wears hair clips that are pretty scary looking and does not go anywhere without a pair of booty shorts. She first holds hands with Mike, then makes out with him, realizes he's not her type and makes out with Ronnie the same night and likes him better. Her and Ronnie fight constantly and apparently has a "Fred Flinstone" big toe.

Ronnie - The Rocky Balboa of the show. He knocked out a couple of random people that were starting fights with him. He has a really bad temper but has a soft spot for Sammi. He promised he would not fall in love at the shore, which proved not to be the case. Will the relationship last? Probably not. These two squabble so much over the silliest thing, I doubt they will last past this summer.

J-Woww - My favorite Jersey Shore cast member. I don't know, I guess it because from the beginning she states who she is and rarely deviates from it. Those huge boobs are distracting and she dresses like a stripper in the champagne room out in public, ohh and she will rip a guy’s head off after she has sex with him. What great qualities :)

The Situation - And finally the character you love to hate. I am still trying to figure out if this is how Mike acts in real life or if this was all for the show. If he is for real, what girl would honestly look at him for more than two seconds? He is so obnoxious, back-stabbing and totally full of himself. The way he tried to hook-up with Sammi even though he knew she was with Ronnie was pathetic. He will definitely have his own reality TV career. He should be called "The Personality".

This show is obviously an exaggeration of Guido and Guidette party lives. There has been a lot of backlash from the Italian-American community regarding the portrayal of Italians on the show. The cast members say they do not represent all of Italian-Americans; they are just having a good time at the shore.

Well it was a good time watching this hot mess!!

Are you ready for "Snookin for Love" ???

Monday, January 18, 2010

Do you dare to dream?



"I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." - Excerpt from I Have A Dream Speech - August 28, 1963. Washington, D.C.








We should all have dreams that are as noble as this.  We should be able to dream those idealistic dreams even if the world around us sometimes proves us otherwise.  We should also be able to freely live out those dreams even if others oppose you. 

Forty-six years after Dr. King delivered the speech that almost every American (I hope) knows some of the important lines to, I still want to believe that what he preached will one day be reached in this country.  For all to be treated as equals, not on paper but through actions.  In this great country of ours that is a microcosm of the world, millions have come willingly or unwillingly, but in the end the dream is the same, to be free and to be treated as an equal. 

My own immigrant experience is not very different from others that have come to the United States looking for a better life.  My parents may not have fully understood at the time Dr. King's speech or how it would affect them, but I can assure you that they dreamed the same thing.  My brother and I dream the same dream and hopefully his children and my future children will still dream the same dream. 

If we begin to take the idea of equality for granted, then what was the point?  What was the point of so many risking their livelihoods to protest, what was the point in my parents bringing me to this country?

Like a true idealist, I still dream...

I have a dream that one day I will live in a world in which conformity will not beat out the creation of new ideas...

I have a dream that one day the color of my skin, the accent in my voice and the curls in my hair will not be factors in judging my character...

I have a dream that one day we can all really live in peace and love...

I sound like a hippie :) but... 

Do you dare to dream?  As you ponder this question, I leave you with this final quote from Dr. King.

"Man is man because he is free to operate within the framework of his destiny. He is free to deliberate, to make decisions, and to choose between alternatives. He is distinguished from animals by his freedom to do evil or to do good and to walk the high road of beauty or tread the low road of ugly degeneracy" - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., The Measures of Man, 1959.