BuzzSugar

Link Time! 5/15

BuzzSugar — Thu, 15 May 2008 13:33:58 PDT

OMG, Cinematical has video of a real-life Wall-E, spotted in L.A.! It may just be the cutest thing you've ever seen.
The L.A. Times' Show Tracker blog warns us that this season's Lost finale looks like a major tearjerker.
Pop Candy points us to an early review of M. Night Shyamalan's upcoming movie The Happening which explains that the movie is terrifying. . .ly awful.
TV Squad has news from the TNT and TBS upfronts, and it looks like a lot more original content.
MTV Movies Blog has exclusive information on the possibility of a live-action Beavis and Butt-head movie and wonders: who should be cast as the Beav and the Butt?
Many thanks to Stereogum for turning us onto the super catchy new Wolf Parade release, "Language City."
Give Me My Remote has hilarious video of Dwight Schrute officially accepting John McCain's vice presidential nomination, through his spokesperson, Rainn Wilson.
Popwatch hobnobbed with the beautiful TV stars attending the EW's upfronts party, including Heroes' Zachary Quinto who said (as a joke?!) that the Star Trek movie in which he plays Spock will "probably skip a theatrical release and 'go straight to DVD.'" Yikes.

You Can Now Read the Diary of President Obama's Ex-Girlfriend

Annie Scudder — Wed, 02 May 2012 11:20:48 PDT

When he was 22, living in New York City, and right out of college, Barack Obama dated Genevieve Cook. The relationship was significant to warrant mention in his memoir Dreams of My Father, but now we can read Genevieve's perspective in Vanity Fair. The magazine's piece, focusing on the now president's first serious relationship, is an adaptation of a new Obama biography by David Maraniss and includes love letters from Barack sent to another girlfriend, Alex McNear, and portions of Genevieve's very detailed diary. The realities of an everyday relationship are discussed, including fights, chores, and sex life.

Genevieve's diary provides details about what it was like to be in a relationship with Barack at the time. On Sundays, he would drink coffee, lounge around, and do the New York Times crossword. She described the scene in her diary:

I open the door, that Barack keeps closed, to his room, and enter into a warm, private space pervaded by a mixture of smells that so strongly speak of his presence, his liveliness, his habits - running sweat, Brut spray deodorant, smoking, eating raisins, sleeping, breathing.

In another entry, she describes her doubts:

The sexual warmth is definitely there - but the rest of it has sharp edges and I’m finding it all unsettling and finding myself wanting to withdraw from it all. I have to admit that I am feeling anger at him for some reason, multi-stranded reasons. His warmth can be deceptive. Tho he speaks sweet words and can be open and trusting, there is also that coolness - and I begin to have an inkling of some things about him that could get to me.

For his part, here's how Barack described the relationship in his autobiography, "You know how you can fall into your own private world? Just two people, hidden and warm. Your own language. Your own customs. That’s how it was." Can you relate to the young love?

Rob Schneider Talks About His Wife as the Real-Life Inspiration For New Sitcom Rob

Shannon Vestal — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 03:00:46 PST

Saturday Night Live alum and frequent Adam Sandler collaborator Rob Schneider is coming to TV with his own series, Rob. The CBS show's title isn't the only thing that's inspired by Schneider: the premise of the midseason show, about the newlywed relationship between Rob and his Mexican-American spouse (played by Claudia Bassols) and her family, is based on Schneider's own relationship with his wife. Schneider hit the Winter TCA along with showrunners and other stars like Cheech Marin to talk about the love story behind the show.

Schneider, whose wife Patricia is from Mexico City, said their home life has inspired the show. "It's like a sitcom at our house," he said, because his wife is so funny, and since her first language is Spanish, there's often humor found in that. She's prone to saying things like "in Spanish I'm much funnier, you have no idea," and "translator off!" meaning she's not going to listen to him anymore at certain times of night.
Schneider recounted his love story with Patricia, highlighting their mutual ethnicities as a factor. "My dad's German," he explained, "they're not touchy feely," but "Mexicans kiss you when you see them and when you leave." He called it a beautiful thing, and when he first met his wife (he was a guest on a show in Mexico that she was producing), and she kissed him to greet him. He said he then begged her to go out with him for weeks, and finally she accepted, flying from Mexico to LA with her mother to meet.
Costar Bassols, who plays Rob's wife on the show, said that she has met Schneider's wife Patricia, but has not taken notes for her performance. "She has that something special that's impossible to imitate," Bassols said, and gushed about how sweet Schneider's relationship with his wife is. "Every time Rob talks about his wife, his face lights up," she said, adding that "their love story inspires this whole story." When she was done, Schneider softly said thank you to her. All together now: Awww.

Savvy Tip: Create a Yearly Bucket List

SavvySugar — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 03:25:30 PST

Bucket lists are a great way to set goals and daydream about grand plans, but it's easy to feel overwhelmed by everything you hope to see and accomplish in your lifetime. To make your bucket list more manageable, divide it into parts and give it a yearly spin: "12 Things to Do in 2012." Choose one item to tackle each month and be realistic with your picks, setting aside the loftier ideas for a separate "someday" list.

Committing to just one item a month is reasonable enough, and when one fresh experience leaves you reenergized, you'll feel inspired to continue with the rest of your list. Not sure where to start? Here are 10 fun and doable bucket list ideas:

Go to a museum in your city that you've never visited.
Volunteer for a cause that means something to you.
Visit a restaurant or attempt an intimidating recipe you'd usually avoid.
Go all out and host the dinner party or birthday bash you've always imagined.
Run a challenging race that requires regular training.
Save $100 a week for four weeks and put the money toward a dream vacation.
Do the thing you're always talking about but have been too scared to try.
Take a beauty or fashion risk.
Sign up for a class - fitness, language, etc. - that interests you.
Spend a month focusing on your space and decorate in a way that inspires you.

What's on your bucket list? Share your ideas in the comments below!

Sprout Home Inspiration of the Week: White Bouquets

Stylelist Home — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 12:30:41 PST

I'm excited to present a post from one of my favorite sites, Stylelist Home.

One thing that I find beautiful about Winter is the calm that comes over me when I look at the fresh white snow blanketing the city, so regal, pure, and somewhat innocent. It changes the color palette of the world around you for a couple of months, which is bound to affect how you see things. Just like the seasonal weather change, my floral cravings can change accordingly. I get excited when an opportunity presents itself to create floral for a Winter wedding or a holiday arrangement where the juxtaposition of Winter whites can be explored and manipulated. I do not see it as a limited palette but instead a of study of form and texture with tonal contrast. You do not need an abundance of color to make a statement, sometimes less (color) is more. When you are creating your own floral piece or need to verbalize to a florist about what you are looking for, know that there are various shades of white. Remember the last time you painted something "white" and you were in awe of how many options there were for white? Some color chips might be completely void of pigment, but most have a hint of color, which can point to any direction in the color wheel. Selecting floral for your white bouquet can be a lot like selecting from those white paint chips. Keep in mind these hue differences when setting the tone for your arrangement.
Keep reading for more tips and gorgeous images of white bouquets!

Staying Safe While You Cycle and Sightsee

Leta Shy — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 10:21:34 PDT

San Francisco, my fair foggy city, is pro-cycling, but when I travel I'm always awed by bike-sharing programs that are popping up in cities like Paris, London, Miami, and many others around the world. The concept is simple: pay a few dollars (and swipe your credit card as deposit) and you can easily hop on one of thousands of bikes stationed throughout a city and ride for as long as you like. When you're done, you simply return your bike at any station with a free dock. Recently while on vacation in London, I was reminded of how great the bike-sharing programs are for tourists. London's bike-sharing stations, for example, are located at all the major tourist spots and the check-out kiosks don't require an account to sign up and have easy-to-follow instructions, so I jumped at the chance to experience a biker's view of the city.

Hopping on a bike and touring a city may seem like the perfect way to take in the sights, but if you're a casual cyclist like me, a little prep before claiming your two wheels can go a long way in keeping you safe (not to mention keeping you from annoying pedestrians and motorists). Read on for a few tips that helped me stay safe during my impromptu bike ride.

How to Enjoy a Hot Summer Fling

Annie Scudder — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 02:00:16 PDT

Forget romantic couples getaways. With its long days, hot nights, and opportunities to take time off for an adventure, Summer might be the best season to be single. Whether you plan to plop on a beach with your best girlfriends, explore a European city with your sister, or even have a full-on family vacation scheduled with the whole clan, there's always hope for a steamy Summer romance. Relaxed and free from everyday stress, you'll be open to letting fate run its course as you get to know someone you never would have met in your normal life. And without the pressure to determine the relationship, you can keep things light and fun. Below you'll find six tips to help you make the most of a Summer vacation fling.

Test out the local delicacies. If you're headed to the south of France or a beach town in Spain, take a Summer fling as a chance to practice your foreign language skills between make-out sessions. Even if you're staying stateside, hooking up with the local in your vacation destination will give you an inside experience a tourist could never have.
Find friends with benefits. While on a vacation with your girlfriends, find a group of guys you can all hang out with. Even if there isn't a love connection with everyone in the gang, it will make your romantic adventure more fun for everyone and might spark lifelong friendships, or at least some Facebook friendships.
Go outside your comfort zone. Do you refuse to date bartenders in your own city? Maybe you have a strict six-foot height requirement for your potential mates. Ditch your long list of dating rules and regulations while you're on vacation, since the relationship has an expiration date anyway. You'll probably realize how silly they were and never go back to them!
Keep your priorities straight. Finding someone to hold hands with on the beach or cuddle with back at the hotel should not be the purpose of any single girl's vacation. You'll want to have quality time with your friends, family, or whomever you traveled with in the first place. If you do meet a special someone, keep in mind he was a complete stranger mere days ago.
Stay realistic. You might think your Summer fling is handsome, funny, smart, and sexy, but that doesn't mean you're meant to be together forever. Think of it like the TV show The Bachelorette - sure it's easy to fall in love in paradise when you're not faced with any of life's real challenges, but once you get back to the real world you might realize there were a lot more details you needed to know about this person. Remembering that should help you keep some perspective and manage your expectations postvacay.
Be safe. This goes without saying, but if you end up having sex, be sure to use a condom. If you're going to a remote resort or don't plan on having access to a car or store, pack some ahead of time just in case!

Circumcision Increasingly Up For Debate

Annie Scudder — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 11:45:30 PDT

These days it seems like circumcision is the new abortion, at least if you compare the heated rhetoric surrounding the debate. Russell Crowe angered some fans after he took to his Twitter feed this week to call circumcision "barbaric and stupid." While Eli Roth, the Jewish director of Russell's new film, says it was just a joking exchange between friends, the reaction to the tweets offers more evidence that circumcision is a hot button issue.

Russell tweeted: "Who are you to correct nature? Is it real that GOD requires a donation of foreskin? Babies are perfect." He also wrote to Eli Roth, "I love my Jewish friends, I love the apples and the honey and the funny little hats but stop cutting yr babies @eliroth." He has since apologized for any distress he caused and said he was very sorry if his tweets were seen as "mocking the rituals and traditions of others." And Eli Roth has subsequently said that he and Russell were just teasing each other.

Joke or not, the Oscar winner isn't the only one to use harsh language against the practice. In San Francisco, one anticircumcision advocate has successfully put a measure on the ballot that would ban the practice, which he calls "genital mutilation," within the city limits. Anyone who violates the law would face a $1,000 fine and up to one year in jail.

Parents have to weigh various factors when deciding whether to go forward with circumcision, and in fact, the rate has dropped in the US to only 32 percent of baby boys. But as one San Francisco rabbi says, taking away that choice from parents "threatens a liberal society; it's so dictatorial; it's so over the top." Do you agree?

HTML Tutorials For Coding Noobs

Kelly Schwarze — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 07:16:01 PDT

It's never too early to get the littlest one in your life acquainted with the language of the Web. No, this isn't a lesson on writing within a prescribed amount of characters rather the basics of HTML coding.

With the colorful HTML code and symbols of the book HTML For Babies, geeks in training will be able to properly format blog entries on their most recent play date to the zoo without help from mom and dad! The $9 book is the first of a three-volume set a New York City web designer created for his own child. Look out for a CSS volume soon for the baby who breezes through the basics.

Lonely Planet: The Most Surprising (and Often Neglected) US Cities

Guest Writer — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 03:05:11 PDT

Editor’s note: Summer travel is heating up! The following guest post was written by Robert Reid, the US travel editor for Lonely Planet. He will be guest blogging on Savvy for the Summer, helping you find some great ideas of how to get your vacation on this travel season.

Some cities in the US will always be prime-time tourist attractions. The New Yorks, the LAs, the Vegases, the San Franciscos. And they justify their fame. For the penultimate article of Lonely Planet’s 15 Weekends of Summer season, I’d like to pay a nod to five of the most surprising US cities – ones that are sometimes zipped through and given less time as we blaze trails elsewhere. And if you want a free mini-guide to NOLA, we’re giving one away on the Lonely Planet website.

Pittsburgh

No city has improved more in the past 15 or 20 years that Pennsylvania’s burg with the "h." Steel town doesn’t quite describe what you find in this walkable downtown area of golden bridges, with funicular trains going up the Allegheny mountains and a serious investment in art. There are sculptures across downtown, but the best museums are across Andy Warhol Bridge where you can see the Warhol Museum, huge rotating fish on sticks outside the Children’s Museum and the avant-garde Mattress Factory, built from, um, an old mattress factory.

North of downtown, the Strip District is lined with eateries and bars; big for breakfast is the timeless Deluca’s. Frank Lloyd Wright’s famous Fallingwater is near Ohiopyle, a 90-minute drive southwest.

Denver

Long dismissed as just the gateway to the mountains – yes, the mountains! – Denver has never made a better case for sticking around a couple days. They’re easily filled by a visit to the superb collection of Western art at the avant-garde Denver Art Museum. Catch a show at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre and spend lazy hours in the historic LoDo district, which is filled with good restaurants and bars (Denver takes beer very seriously; the governor rose to fame based on his microbrew credentials). Stay at the Brown Palace Hotel, one of the country’s great historic hotels.

And, yeah, there’s always the mountains.

Read on for more surprising US cities.