Jude's Thursday Dish

It was a really exciting weekend watching the Olympics! Especially with the glorious golds from Michael Phelps! I got a little burned out, so I took a break and after 3 days, I got caught up on my pop culture fix. Let's get to it!


1. Come on, Darryl! Didn't you learn anything from the episode "Drug Testing"? Here's a refresher to keep you out of trouble...and jail.


Dwight: Do you know what this is? [slides a photo of marijuana to Phyllis]
Phyllis: It's marijuana.
Dwight: How do you know that?
Phyllis: It's labelled.

Michael: This year, more people will use cocaine than will read a book to their children.
Stanley: Where did you get these facts?
Michael: Are they scaring you, or are they not?
Stanley: They are not.

Dwight: Let's go over some symptoms of marijuana use, shall we? You tell me who this sounds like. Slow moving. Inattentive. Dull. Constantly snacking. Shows a lack of motivation.
Kevin: Hey!

Creed: [when asked to ID a photo of marijuana] That is Northern Lights, cannabis indica.
Dwight: [sighs with disappointment] No. It's marijuana.



2. Great cover, bad timing. I am VERY bugged with the WB for pushing back "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" to Summer 09! That's my favorite Potter book and I've been waiting on pins and needles. I've read a lot of different theories. One was that the WB was trying to put some distance between Daniel Radcliffe's nudey run in Broadway's "Equus." But that doesn't make much sense since he already did that in London while filming the other films. The theory I buy is that they made a fortune on "The Dark Knight" and they're trying to spread the wealth into the new 09 fiscal year. Plus, we're going to see a real shortage of great movies next summer thanks to spring's writer's strike. So very bad news for me, but good news for all you "Twilight" fans out there who are getting their movie bumped up a few weeks and taking Harry's spot.

3. In better "Office" news, this is the BEST casting news I've heard in a long time. Two of my favorite actors, from two of my favorite shows (YYYY "The Office" and "30 Rock") are doing a movie together. Tina Fey and Steve Carrell have been cast as a married couple in the upcoming film "Date Night." It's supposed to be a real, grounded comedy about trying to keep that spark alive. It won't be out until 2010 since they have to film during the NBC hiatus. Coming up a little closer is the movie "This Side of Truth", a film by the original Michael Scott (I mean David Brent), the star and creator of the British "Office" who is SO hilarious: Ricky Gervais. It also stars Miss Fey and has a killer cast. Can't wait!

4. Last week, I lamented how I'm Off-The-R's and wouldn't be seeing "Tropic Thunder" until I could Clear Play it. I had this dream that I went to it anyway and I even imagined what it was like down to picturing what Tom Cruise looked like in his bald head and pot belly. I only got to watch 10 minutes of it when hundreds of people who read my blog (ha! more like the 1/2 dozen who read it) started yelling at me, throwing popcorn and treats, and calling me a hypocrite for going back on my resolution. They ran me out of the theater! It was an early morning dream, so I woke up kind of freaked out and more resolved to stay away from R's. But with a little distance from my dream, I have to ask...what were all of you doing there anyway?

5. Finally, I have to comment on the John Mayer and Jennifer Aniston break-up. John Mayer is a mimbo. He's a serial dater and kind of smarmy anyway. I tried to Google all the celebs he's dated and there's too many alleged girlfriends to even list. Yet, I'm not sure I feel sorry for Jennifer Aniston. She comes off desperate. I know there's a lot of loyal Rachel fans and I'm one of them, but she just seems to make the lamest choices in guys. And it can't help they are all celebrities. It probably doesn't help that the papz just won't leave her alone and all the tabloids make her seem really pathetic. Julia Roberts went through that phase (hello, Lyle Lovett!), then she married a normal guy. Jennifer Aniston needs to do the same, settle down with Joe Regular, go away for a year, then resurface with her fabulous self and some accessory babies!

That's it for this week!

Princess Kate Marie

Last week, Katie and her friend, Abby, attended Princess Camp. Yes, there really is a princess camp. One of my clients, Salt Lake Dance Center, puts on weeklong camps for 3 hours a day. The themes are always princess related. Last year, Katie attended a Belle Camp. This one was Pick Your Own Princess. Katie was Jasmine the first half and Tinkerbell the second. Hey, she's a princess... she can do whatever she wants.

At camp, they do crafts, stories, games and LOTS of dancing. They do free dancing and practice a dance and song to perform for the parents at the end of camp. This year they danced and sang to "How Does She Know" from "Enchanted."

** Side note: I think they should have Princess Camps for moms! There could be manis & pedis, spa treatments, shopping days, make-overs and just hanging out to watch chick flicks. There'd have to be a home study program, so when you got home, your family had to continue the princess treatment. No cleaning, no cooking, no washing! That is SO Cinderella before the wedding!

You should check out Salt Lake Dance Center if you've got a little princess at home. They also do princess Saturdays during the school year and I've heard they even have some overnighters. I really like the people there and I think they've got some unique programs: http://www.saltlakedance.com/

Sometimes Sharing Sucks

I'm very frustrated this morning. John took our cool camera to a work retreat in Sundance. I've got photos I want to upload and blog about. I'm taking Katie and Leslie's kids to Boondock's this afternoon and I won't be able to take pictures (which is really the only thing I enjoy about going to places like that). These are the times that I really wish some stuff was my own.

My life is totally communal. Katie has picked through the jewelry I don't wear, John is always complaining that he can't use "my" laptop and even the dog jumps into my dirty clothes and snuggles up for a nap. Of course, it's not one-sided. I wear Katie's hair stuff when I'm cleaning and I will throw on John's Boston Red Sox crocs when I can't find mine. As for Bailey, well...no one wants his stuff, so I guess he gets off scot-free.

I think it's funny that we force little kids to share their toys. I worked as a teacher for a program called Mom's Morning Out for 2 - 3 year olds while Katie attended preschool at the other end of the building. We were constantly trying to teach the kids to share with each other. One time, a wise little boy said to me, "Why do I have to share? I don't even like him."

We spend our growing-up years having to give everything away and our adult years trying to get everything back. I can't even begin to tell you how many DVDs I've lent out that I'm still trying to track down. My poor parents have books and costumes that I know they'll never see again. My mom lent out the score to a musical she wrote that someone never returned! But then again, that was kind of a dumb move on her part...sorry, Mom!

Yeah, this is an ornery post. I'm sure I'll feel better once I get my... I mean, "OUR" camera back.

Butchered Lyrics

***Mea Culpa: I've been teased that my posts are too long, so I apologize. I guess it's the writer in me; I have a hard time keeping things short. I guess if long posts really bug, you don't have to read them, right?***

Anyway, I digress. Do you butcher song lyrics? I do it all the time and even when I'm corrected, somehow I still sing the messed up version in my head. I was reminded of this today when Jennie and I were talking about how Katie wouldn't sing "l, m, n, o, p" for "The Alphabet Song", but would sing "uga, buga, p." Very cute for a little kid, not so much for an adult.

For The Cure's "Just Like Heaven." I sing "Show me, show me, show me how do you that trick -- the one that makes me scream she's sick." Months ago, Jimmy pointed it out that I've been singing it wrong for 20 years(!) and the lyric is actually "...'show me how do you that trick, the one that makes me scream' she said." Even though Jimmy corrected me, I'm still singing it my way.

I also thought John Mayer's song "No such thing" had the lyrics, "There's no such thing as a wiggle worm" instead of "...no such thing as a real world." At least The Cure mess-up kind of made sense.

This one is awesome. When John was young, he always thought Neil Diamond's "Forever in Blue Jeans" was actually "Reverend in Blue Jeans." That makes me Y him even more!

Another favorite is when Jennie thought the lyrics to Diamond Rio's "Norma Jean Riley" wasn't "Norma Jean Riley's going to notice me", but the completely non-sensical, "cama neiner neiner put your eyes on me!" Now, I know that sounds totally absurd, but my brother, Brad, started the "camaneiner" name to use instead of calling someone a swear word. It caught on and turned into neiner bucket head, which has evolved into bucket head (as I call Bailey) or neiner (as I call everybody). So I guess it kind of makes sense, in a totally random way. I still love to tease her about it (and she, in turn, mocks me about the wiggle worm).

I found this website with a bunch of misheard lyrics. http://www.kissthisguy.com/funny.php One I really liked was from Alanis Morrissette's "You Oughta Know."

Misheard Lyric
It's not fair to deny me of the cross-eyed bear that you gave to me...

Real Lyric
It's not fair to deny me of the cross I bear that you gave to me...

So, just curious...what lyrics do you butcher?

Jude's Thursday Dish: Olympic Edition

I've been out of the loop this week, because in my freetime all I've been doing is watching Olympics. I'm loving it, but I'm also exhausted. I've been going to bed WAY too late (bless and curse you, TIVO!). So, this week's Dish is going to be an Olympic Edition.




1. 11 career gold medals! Best Olympian Ever!!! He's a rock star. Who would he be the equivalent in the Pop Culture world? Stevie Wonder won 28 Grammys. U2 has won 22 Grammys. Michael Jackson won 11 in one night. Clint Eastwood has 4 Oscars. James L. Brooks has won 19 Emmys. I like to think of Michael Phelps as the Bono of the Olympics. I Y them both oh so much!


2. One more reason I REALLY hate Sean John -PuffDaddy-P.Diddy-Diddy-Puffy-Coombs. In US Weekly, he was asked, "What sport would you medal in?" and answered with this oh-so-class reply: http://www.usmagazine.com/diddy-i-could-be-a-sex-olympian

3. The NBC promos for the fall season are interesting. YYY seeing the promos for shows I already watch like "The Office" and "30 Rock". John and I watched season 1 of "Heroes", but got too busy for season 2. Those promos are really tempting me to start it up again. Yet, there are shows in their line-up that you couldn't pay me to watch. I tuned into that "Lipstick Jungle" for 2 episodes last year and it was so pretentious, so NOT "Sex and the City" (in sensibility & charm), that I've sworn never to watch it again. And is "ER" really on its 90th season? Honestly! But returning shows aside, what I find interesting is how much time and money they devote in promoting their new shows. Most likely, only 1 or 2 will stay on the air, but most of those will go to the MIA Network. I really don't see the Christian Slater show lasting. I am really excited for "Kath & Kim". It's another import like "The Office" based on a sitcom from Australia. It's got two actors I totally Y: Molly Shannon and John Michael Higgins. I definitely hope that one lasts.

4. I've been Off-the-R's since May 07 (insert: patting myself on the back). There are times though that I just want to throw that resolution out the window and make a new rebellious one: to watch every R I've missed since then! Okay, I just got a little possessed...excuse me. What's killing me right now is that I REALLY want to see "Tropic Thunder." They keep showing the promos during the Olympics and it's everywhere on the Internet. I mean, look at that poster? I absolutely Y Robert Downey, Jr. and to see him playing a white guy playing a black man just makes me giggle. And it's got Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Matthew McCogahoganee, and even Tom Cruise, who I hate -- but I hear he steals the show. Oh well. Thank heaven for Clear Play. I'll watch the watered-down version in about 8 months.

5. Number 5 is usually my random one, so this really doesn't have anything to do with the Olympics, except a plan for what I'm going to do when it's done. I'm convinced and when school starts and the Olympics are over, I'm starting "Twilight." Now, I can swoon over Edward like every other female over the age of 13.

That's it for this week!

Olympic Fever!

We're all about the Olympics at our house. I can't remember the last time I really watched the Summer Olympics; we're always gone or doing stuff in August. Fortunately, our August is very lowkey this year, which means we've got plenty of time to sit around the house with Olympic Fever. We started off with a Chinese themed-party on Friday night at Jen & Brandon's house (sis & bro-in-law). They had the house all decorated and we ate a ton of Chinese food while we watched the Opening Ceremonies. It was a great way to start everything off (thanks Jen and Ba Ba).

Things I Y:
- All the shots and stories about China! I've been to Beijing, so that makes it even all the more cool.
- The Opening Ceremonies were fantastic! Loved the LED screen on the ground and the drummers. It was huge and spectacular, just how it should be.


- How cool is it that George Bush has been at the events? And, he's buddies with the beach volleyball gals, being the first acting president to visit an Olympic women's volleyball venue. I also Y this picture. I guess Misty May told the Pres he could slap her butt. He considered it, but declined and just playfully patted her lower back. I too am TOTALLY that confident when I wear a bikini in front of important people!
- How one moment you can be so down about an Olympic moment (Katie Hoff losing the gold in swimming by 7/100 of a second), and it can completely turn around and make you ecstatic (the men's relay beating the smug French by 8/100 of a second -- that was freaking awesome!)
- The Olympic music; I get all choked up!
- That I thought Kerry Walsh's bandages were a cool Chinese tattoo.
- When underdogs win -- Yed when Pak Tae Hwan won the 1st gold swimming medal ever for Korea after being disqualified in Athens after jumping in the pool too early. Great comeback! And I love it more since he's Korean.


- The swimming cube -- it's so funky and futuristic, and I Y they call it the Cube!
- NBC's human interest stories about the Olympians. Choked up again!
- The Home Depot commercial where they show how many Olympians work there.
- The Oreo commercial with the Caucasian girl on one train and the Chinese girl on the other, copying the other eat an Oreo.



- YYY Michael Phelps. 'Nuff said.
- The Americans swept the fencing and won all 3 medals, but even better, each of the girls go to ivy league schools, are super smart (one's leaving early to go to law school), and cute! Yeah, fencing!
- The commercials for NBC's upcoming Fall season (more on that in Thursday's blog).


Things that bug
- Commentators assuming they know how the Olympians feel ("She is sick with worry about winning right now"). I only want them to comment on the actual event, not trying to fill time with psychobabble.
- I've watched probably 10 hours of Olympics this weekend and seen only 6 awards ceremonies.
- Speaking of that, I HATE the ceremony stand. John says it looks like they are at a convention or tradeshow. It's so un-fabulous!
- The camera was always on George Bush doing unflattering things in the Opening Ceremonies: yawning, looking at his watch, raising his arm to reveal sweaty armpits.
- The AT&T Olympic soundtrack is annoying and so is the music they play in the background at events. Do we really want to hear "Sweet Child of Mine" at the Olympics?
- The time difference really jips us on seeing all the events.
- That it took me 3 days to figure out I could hide the results on my MSN home page, so I'm not spoiled on who's won everytime I log unto my computer.
- The Redeem Team - gag! I know other countries use professionals to play basketball, but ours are SO overpaid already and they just don't seem as invested to be there as the other athletes. There's just not much at stake. Plus, they kept showing the NBA players walking into the stadium during Opening Ceremonies. I can see them anytime...show me the career Olympians!
- Those "cheerleaders" in white during the Opening Ceremonies. The athletes walked in and they were bouncing up and down. Very distracting. That didn't last long, about 15 minutes in, they all looked ready to keel over from heat and exhaustion.
- This doesn't bug, but it made me so sad when I heard that the men's volleyball coach's father and mother-in-law were attacked doing some siteseeing. The father-in-law was stabbed and killed, and the mother-in-law was seriously injured. Then the killer jumped to his death off a tower. That's just devastating.
- That annoying John McSame commercial about Obama being a celebrity. Obama's isn't great either, but at least it's not a "hater" commercial. I just don't want to be reminded there's an election going on while I'm watching the Olympics. I want to feel all warm and fuzzy, patriotic and the world is united!!! :)
- That McDonald's commercial where actors are posing as Olympians and they are talking about going for the....southwestern chicken sandwich.
- Katie is totally getting into the Olympics (which is great), but she's been such a pill about going to bed. Last night, she kept getting up and coming in to see what was happening. But to her defense, we were screaming at the top of our lungs when the men won the 4 x 100 Freestyle Relay. There was no way she was sleeping through that.

Visitor's Night at Girls Camp

Last night, Jimmy, John and I went up to the Heber Girls Camp for Visitor's Night. What an amazing place! For more pictures, visit our YW ward blog: http://byyw.blogspot.com

Jude's Thursday Dish: Your Weekly Serving of Pop Culture Scoop

1. Okay, I did it. I saw "The Dark Knight" (and yes, here's another twisted poster from the marketing campaign). Here's how I can best describe my experience. It's like going on a terrifying roller coaster. You know it should be entertaining, but you're too freaked out to enjoy it. I was jumpy the whole time. It was an excellent movie, but I wouldn't describe it as dark. It was disturbing. It took me days to recover. Yes, I'm really that big of a baby.

Great acting (the accolades going to Heath Ledger are not overhyped), but I wasn't as crazy about Christian Bale's Batman this time around. He didn't have a lot of story and his growly Batman voice just seemed over the top. Very distracting. My personal favorite was Aaron Eckhart (who went to BYU with Leslie - how strange is that?). His Harvey Dent was spectacular and disturbing on so many levels. So, do I recommend it? Yes, but if you're faint-hearted like me, be warned!

Oh -- and isn't it interesting about how all this personal stuff from the actors is coming out to keep the publicity rolling? First, the Christian Bale scuffle with his family. Then, Morgan Freeman's car accident. Now, the news of his divorce. And they keep talking about the drug charges and Mary Kate Olsen connection with the Heath Ledger investigation. The movie is about to break the "Titanic" box office record; does it really need any more P.R.?

2. $14 mil. for those Brangelina twins pictures! Wow, to have such fabulous offspring! If you were a celeb would you 1.) sell your babe's pics to the highest bidder and use the money how you see fit (i.e. trust fund, charity, a killer nursery), 2.) protect your babe and not pimp out the photo, but risk having the papz chase you down for a photo op, 3.) pull a Ethan Hawke and just lift your baby up to the papz for a photo, making any future pictures worth $0. I think I'd go the Brangelina route and pimp out the photos. At least that way, I'm in (semi)control.

3. Did you hear that Tim Burton is going to do a 3-D version of "Alice in Wonderland"? And Johnny Depp will either play the Mad Hatter or do the voiceover for the character. I'm a little skeptical since I go back and forth on Burton's "Charlie & the Chocolate Factory." I like the movie, but Johnny Depp bugs in it. Which is saying a lot, because I usually HEART him. I just don't if know I'm ready to have him play another character from children's literature in a weird hat.



4. Instead of the happy hum of my Tivo, my TV armoire has the sound of crickets chirping. I am SO ready for Fall tv to start again. But until then, check out reruns of "Reaper" on the CW. It's REALLY good. John only likes a handful of shows
and this one always makes him laugh out loud. It's on Tuesday nights at 8 p.m. or you can watch full episodes online at cwtv.com.

5. In honor of my dear friend, Matt, a REAL Pop Culture Guru, I'm sending a shout out and ask you to go to his blog. He is trying to get to the 20,0000 visitor mark on his blog for its 1st anniversary. So, for the 4 people who read this, give your support and visit: http://www.themandersonreport.blogspot.com/ (sorry, I can't get the link thing to work, so you'll have to copy and paste).

That's it for this week!

Husband Tag

Another tag, but this one is about John.

1. What is his name? John Brent Hut (not Jonathan, like everyone thinks)
2. Who eats more? Me, sadly
3. Who said, "I love you" first? John
4. Who is taller? Me by about 1/2 inch
5. Who is smarter? Depends on the topic. Book smarts, definitely John.
6. Who is more sensitive? We are both super sensitive, which can be really good... and really bad
7. Who does the laundry? Me, most of the time
8. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Me
9. Who pays the bills? We seem to trade off every year. 2008 is all John.
10. Who cooks more? Me, when I do cook. With two extremely picky eaters in the house, I tend not to cook much.
11. Who is more stubborn? John, but he would say me.
12. Who is the first to admit they are wrong? Me, definitely
13. Who has more siblings? I do. He has 3, I have 6.
14. Who wears the pants in the relationship? We both wear pants, thank you very much.
15. What do you like to do together? Travel, watch movies, go to plays or the symphony, eye shop and pretend we can buy cool things for our house we can't afford.
16. Who eats more sweets? John
17. Guilty Pleasures? Buying tech stuff
18. How did you meet? In highschool through a mutual friend. Then later, we met up again in our stake singles ward.
19. Who asked whom out first? John -- we spent 3 years of "non-dating" because I'd always pay for myself (thanks to Jennie and Jimmy's T. dollars)
20. Who kissed who first? I kissed him. After 3 years, I thought I'd better make a move!
21. Who proposed? It was a mutual decision in the Jordan River Celestial Room.
22. His best features and qualities? His eyes and lashes. Devoted husband and father. His complete acceptance of me. His loyalty, ethics and strength of character.
23. Tag you’re it. Who do you tag? Jennie, Aisha and anyone else who hasn't done this tag yet!

Congratulations, Readers!

My friends, Leslie and Adam Reader, welcomed their first child (Leslie has cute Lauren & Andrew from a previous maariage). I know a lot of my friends and family know Leslie, so I thought you might enjoy seeing the baby. His name is William Adam Morrissey Reader. I haven't seen him in person, but he looks darling.