The New Normal starring Andrew Rannells, Justin Bartha, Jayson Blair (AKA no one).
Justin Bartha is recognisable from the Hangover movies as well as National Treasure with Nicholas Cage. Cast as the Grandmother is Ellen Barkin, however she is not listed in the TV listing...as I get a few minutes into this show I can understand why she would not want to be credited for it...
Premise: These days, families come in all forms - single dads, double moms, sperm donors, egg donors, one-night-stand donors... It's 2012 and anything goes. Bryan (Andrew Rannells) and David (Justin Bartha, "The Hangover") are a Los Angeles couple, and they have it all. Well, almost. With successful careers and a committed, loving partnership, there is one thing that this couple is missing: a baby. And just when they think the stars will never align, enter Goldie (Georgia King, "One Day"), an extraordinary young woman with a checkered past. A Midwestern waitress and single mother looking to escape her dead-end life and small-minded grandmother (Ellen Barkin), Goldie decides to change everything and move to L.A. with her precocious eight-year-old daughter. Desperate and broke - but also fertile - Goldie quickly becomes the guys' surrogate and quite possibly the girl of their dreams.
First impression: Not funny and not interesting...I would have settled for one or the other.
Cast: The acting is over the top from all cast members other than Justin Bartha who is actually quite boring and forgettable. Shania - the daughter - is written as an odd, almost schizophrenic character who no one seems to notice is in desperate need of a Psych consult...This is definitely a case of writing gone awry...
overall feel: I feel like if they had drawn this as a cartoon rather than cast it as live action it may have been a great launch on YTV...but as an adult comedy? I am insulted that someone thinks that this is going to pass for TV in a time when there are far too many well written options.
prediction: You won't see more than 6 episodes...
rating (1=low, 10=high): I give this a 2 out of ten.
Saturday, 15 September 2012
Wednesday, 22 August 2012
Thursday, 16 August 2012
Go On - The Review
So, the shows have started! First up: Go On starring Matt Perry.
Premise: An irreverent yet charming sportscaster who, after a loss, finds solace from members of his mandatory group therapy sessions. This has the possibility of being a setting that could be over the top to start with.
Cast: Matt Perry is "Chandler...-ish" but still manages to create a new and likable persona while keeping all the sarcasm and wit that we came to enjoy from his character in Friends. Around him, the supporting cast, both from the office and his therapy group are quirky and interesting while not being to the point of distraction. Each has their time and place for a humorous moment without overshadowing each other or themselves by being too over the top to be believable.
overall feel: Interesting, engaging, believable and funny. I rarely PVR comedies more than the first episode but this one has me hooked after one episode. Love it and like it. Go On has the perfect fit of fun and emotion.
prediction: If the writing remains this strong I see this show lasting all of this season for sure.
rating (1=low, 10=high): I give this an 8 out of ten
Thursday, 31 May 2012
Really Bell?
So I get a registered letter in the mail yesterday, it's from Bell Canada. This letter states "Great news! we have introduced newer TV receiver models that will provide you with an even wider selection of channels as they become available. The newer model will replace your current Bell TV HD9200 receiver, which will soon no longer work. The best news is that you are getting this receiver at no cost to you" ...and the worst news is that my old PVR will soon no longer work? How is that great news?
When I signed up for a dual HD PVR when I opened my account with Bell I did so because you boasted that I could record and keep over 180 hours of movies and TV shows...and now I will lose all of those because you have upgraded your software?
I called Bell to confirm the information in this letter and to see if there was some way to move all the movies and the last 2 months of my favourite TV shows from the old PVR (which will apparently "soon no longer work") to the new PVR...and the answer is NO. So I ask how long before this stops working and she says that because I called in I am am now on the list to have this replaced in the next 7-10 days.
I would hazard to guess that there are currently 20 movies on the PVR as well as 20 episodes of How I Met your Mother, 15 episodes of The Office and at least 9 episodes of Grimm...quick math, can I watch about 70 hours of programming in the next 7 - 10 days? Ok, arguably it COULD be done, but not without losing my job and probably my sanity.
So I ask if I can put off this "transition" and she says that I can't, because I called in. I spend the next ten minutes trying to convince her to forget that I called in and will now spend the next half hour trying to figure out how I will watch 70 hours of programming as fast as humanly possible...
If any of this messes with my girls night Bachelorette viewing I will be pissed!
When I signed up for a dual HD PVR when I opened my account with Bell I did so because you boasted that I could record and keep over 180 hours of movies and TV shows...and now I will lose all of those because you have upgraded your software?
I called Bell to confirm the information in this letter and to see if there was some way to move all the movies and the last 2 months of my favourite TV shows from the old PVR (which will apparently "soon no longer work") to the new PVR...and the answer is NO. So I ask how long before this stops working and she says that because I called in I am am now on the list to have this replaced in the next 7-10 days.
I would hazard to guess that there are currently 20 movies on the PVR as well as 20 episodes of How I Met your Mother, 15 episodes of The Office and at least 9 episodes of Grimm...quick math, can I watch about 70 hours of programming in the next 7 - 10 days? Ok, arguably it COULD be done, but not without losing my job and probably my sanity.
So I ask if I can put off this "transition" and she says that I can't, because I called in. I spend the next ten minutes trying to convince her to forget that I called in and will now spend the next half hour trying to figure out how I will watch 70 hours of programming as fast as humanly possible...
If any of this messes with my girls night Bachelorette viewing I will be pissed!
Monday, 28 May 2012
Nutrilawn...why you should NOT bother
Father's day is almost upon us, so I started thinking of what kind of gift I could give my husband that will let him know that I appreciate him and all the hard work that he does around the house. I want to somehow acknowledge that I know he has a lot on his plate and still gets so much done for the family. I tried to think about what I could take off his plate, how I could lighten his load and give him the well deserved gift of more free time!
One of the many things on his "to do" list this year is the front lawn... more weeds than actual lawn, I should maybe refer to it as our front "area" as the word lawn is really no longer a descriptive word that can be associated with what we have in front of our house.
I do a quick Google search on "dandelions and Ottawa", the first company that pops up is Nutrilawn. This is great, I have heard of them and they even have a little video about their dandelion service which includes not only getting rid of weeds but also fertilising the grass in between the weeds. (I think we may have about 12 blades of grass in total). I figured that if they could get rid of the weeds, I could take care of throwing down some top soil and seeds
Last summer I spent hours upon hours with a borrowed weed extractor call THE CLAW which seemed to have the magic ability to create calluses on both hands while doubling the amount of weeds that grew back the next day. I was definitely not going that route again this year.
So I call Nutrilawn and they are more than happy to get me set up on their appointment books, they have a great deal if you pay in advance and agree to continue their service for next year as well. So I go ahead and sign up and I am told that they will come to my house within 7-10 days depending on weather as their product does not work in the rain - this was May 3rd.
They arrive for the first service on May 10th before anyone is out of bed and leave a flyer about what they have done and the care that we need to provide in the mean time between treatments. Explaining that once the weeds have disappeared I can go ahead with the top soil and seeding. Although I did notice that some of the weeds had been affected almost immediately, there are still a great deal of them going strong so I call them that day to find out when the next treatment date is set for. They set up the next visit for the 17th of May. So far so good.
The 17th of May comes and goes without a visit. I give them a couple of days leeway and then call them on the 25th of May. They indicate that they "have no record" of providing me with that date and tell me that in fact they try NOT to provide clients with dates for upcoming service appointments (now I see why)...and then they proceed to give me a date for my upcoming service appointment. REALLY?
They tell me that they will treat my lawn again on the 26th of May (so the following day) and that they will be there in the morning because we are the third lawn of the day to be done. The 26th happens to be the same day that I was planning a garage sale and when I tell them this they indicate it's not a problem because their treatments are not toxic and if I can just avoid putting my sale items on the lawn they can still come in and do the treatment. Perfect.
The 26th comes and goes without a visit...REALLY?
This morning I call them and get greeted by "Hello Nutrilawn how can I help you?" to which I reply "well after 2 missed visits, you can help me by giving me back my money and cancelling my contract.". The gentleman on the phone tells me that he will check my file to see what happened. He comes back and indicates that "the team went to your house to do the treatment and found that there were too many items on your back yard to be able to provide the treatment so they left". The issues with this are:
1. There is nothing on my back lawn
2. They were supposed to be providing service on the front lawn ONLY
3. I was sitting in my driveway from 7am to 3pm having a garage sale so unless they came in an unmarked car and/or they sent invisible workers...they never showed up.
Now I am angry...I go on to tell him that whoever provided that report to him "is 100% full of shit". At which point he indicates that I would have my money refunded and that my contract would indeed be cancelled.
Wow Nutrilawn...really? do you know there are approximately 60 other lawn companies in the Ottawa area alone that would gladly take my business? This is the service that you offer, it's what you do...and you can't even come to our house and at least spray water on our lawn??? Come on, I wouldn't know the difference, but to not even show up? REALLY?
One of the many things on his "to do" list this year is the front lawn... more weeds than actual lawn, I should maybe refer to it as our front "area" as the word lawn is really no longer a descriptive word that can be associated with what we have in front of our house.
I do a quick Google search on "dandelions and Ottawa", the first company that pops up is Nutrilawn. This is great, I have heard of them and they even have a little video about their dandelion service which includes not only getting rid of weeds but also fertilising the grass in between the weeds. (I think we may have about 12 blades of grass in total). I figured that if they could get rid of the weeds, I could take care of throwing down some top soil and seeds
Last summer I spent hours upon hours with a borrowed weed extractor call THE CLAW which seemed to have the magic ability to create calluses on both hands while doubling the amount of weeds that grew back the next day. I was definitely not going that route again this year.
So I call Nutrilawn and they are more than happy to get me set up on their appointment books, they have a great deal if you pay in advance and agree to continue their service for next year as well. So I go ahead and sign up and I am told that they will come to my house within 7-10 days depending on weather as their product does not work in the rain - this was May 3rd.
They arrive for the first service on May 10th before anyone is out of bed and leave a flyer about what they have done and the care that we need to provide in the mean time between treatments. Explaining that once the weeds have disappeared I can go ahead with the top soil and seeding. Although I did notice that some of the weeds had been affected almost immediately, there are still a great deal of them going strong so I call them that day to find out when the next treatment date is set for. They set up the next visit for the 17th of May. So far so good.
The 17th of May comes and goes without a visit. I give them a couple of days leeway and then call them on the 25th of May. They indicate that they "have no record" of providing me with that date and tell me that in fact they try NOT to provide clients with dates for upcoming service appointments (now I see why)...and then they proceed to give me a date for my upcoming service appointment. REALLY?
They tell me that they will treat my lawn again on the 26th of May (so the following day) and that they will be there in the morning because we are the third lawn of the day to be done. The 26th happens to be the same day that I was planning a garage sale and when I tell them this they indicate it's not a problem because their treatments are not toxic and if I can just avoid putting my sale items on the lawn they can still come in and do the treatment. Perfect.
The 26th comes and goes without a visit...REALLY?
This morning I call them and get greeted by "Hello Nutrilawn how can I help you?" to which I reply "well after 2 missed visits, you can help me by giving me back my money and cancelling my contract.". The gentleman on the phone tells me that he will check my file to see what happened. He comes back and indicates that "the team went to your house to do the treatment and found that there were too many items on your back yard to be able to provide the treatment so they left". The issues with this are:
1. There is nothing on my back lawn
2. They were supposed to be providing service on the front lawn ONLY
3. I was sitting in my driveway from 7am to 3pm having a garage sale so unless they came in an unmarked car and/or they sent invisible workers...they never showed up.
Now I am angry...I go on to tell him that whoever provided that report to him "is 100% full of shit". At which point he indicates that I would have my money refunded and that my contract would indeed be cancelled.
Wow Nutrilawn...really? do you know there are approximately 60 other lawn companies in the Ottawa area alone that would gladly take my business? This is the service that you offer, it's what you do...and you can't even come to our house and at least spray water on our lawn??? Come on, I wouldn't know the difference, but to not even show up? REALLY?
Wednesday, 19 October 2011
Ideal Protein - follow up
So...it's been a while since I "graduated" from Ideal protein. I started at 131 pounds and I am currently 115 pounds.
I wanted to update these posts because I know that for myself I have tried so many diets that were quick results but they didn't last. This is the thinnest I have been since I was about 20 and I am no longer dieting, but I am maintaining the weight loss.
Ideal protein works under the premise of resetting your metabolism and teaching your body to only make as much insulin as it needs to breakdown what you bring in. I truly feel like I am living in a new body. Not only in shape, but in reaction to foods. When I was hungry before this diet, I used to get jittery and sweaty and I needed to eat the first thing that I saw, which was usually something horrible for me, a muffin, cookie, etc. Now don't get me wrong, I still get hungry, and I still love cookies...but now I don't get that horrible weak feeling when I am hungry, I just feel hungry, which I can normally appease with a glass of water until I can make myself a nutritious snack. Overall the word I would use to describe myself now is: healthy.
I still monitor what I eat and I am logging it all into Livestrong (http://www.Livestrong.com) so that I can see what it is that I am putting in my body. Livestrong gives a great breakdown of each food and it's calories, protein, carbs, fats etc. I can't ever decide to live a life with no junk food, or no carbs. Here are the general rules I now live by:
and most importantly: I CHEAT ON ALL THESE RULES ONCE IN A WHILE ...and I don't feel bad about it. You can be disciplined 90% of the time, but you still have to enjoy those foods that you know are not good for you. The key? knowing that they aren't good for you, it means you will have smaller portions and you won't eat them every day.
For me, Ideal Protein has been the best diet and lifestyle change that I have discovered, but I look forward to hearing about your experiences and successes as well.
For Ideal Protein and me...I think this is my last Blog, we will check this off as a success!
I wanted to update these posts because I know that for myself I have tried so many diets that were quick results but they didn't last. This is the thinnest I have been since I was about 20 and I am no longer dieting, but I am maintaining the weight loss.
Ideal protein works under the premise of resetting your metabolism and teaching your body to only make as much insulin as it needs to breakdown what you bring in. I truly feel like I am living in a new body. Not only in shape, but in reaction to foods. When I was hungry before this diet, I used to get jittery and sweaty and I needed to eat the first thing that I saw, which was usually something horrible for me, a muffin, cookie, etc. Now don't get me wrong, I still get hungry, and I still love cookies...but now I don't get that horrible weak feeling when I am hungry, I just feel hungry, which I can normally appease with a glass of water until I can make myself a nutritious snack. Overall the word I would use to describe myself now is: healthy.
I still monitor what I eat and I am logging it all into Livestrong (http://www.Livestrong.com) so that I can see what it is that I am putting in my body. Livestrong gives a great breakdown of each food and it's calories, protein, carbs, fats etc. I can't ever decide to live a life with no junk food, or no carbs. Here are the general rules I now live by:
- I only have carbs twice a day (if that) and I try not to have them after lunch.
- I eat a large meal at breakfast, a regular meal at lunch and a small dinner
- Dinner is usually meat and veggies ONLY
- I don't snack after dinner
- snacks are usually fruit, veggies or low fat yogurt
and most importantly: I CHEAT ON ALL THESE RULES ONCE IN A WHILE ...and I don't feel bad about it. You can be disciplined 90% of the time, but you still have to enjoy those foods that you know are not good for you. The key? knowing that they aren't good for you, it means you will have smaller portions and you won't eat them every day.
For me, Ideal Protein has been the best diet and lifestyle change that I have discovered, but I look forward to hearing about your experiences and successes as well.
For Ideal Protein and me...I think this is my last Blog, we will check this off as a success!
Monday, 3 October 2011
September 30th, Ideal Protein graduation day
Friday was my last day of dieting! I went to my Ideal Protein location to get final wieght and measurement. I had moved into phase three 2 weeks before and I was curious to see what that would mean in my results. In phase three you eat breakfast, lunch and dinner and have 1 Ideal Protein snack a day.
Breakfast includes a carb, a fat and a protein. I have been having shredded wheat with 1% milk and a fruit. Lunch and dinner is still a protein and an approved veggie.
When you start phase three you are done losing weight and in fact you should be prepared to put on 3 pounds of glycogen reserve from eating carbs again. knowing that, I wanted to be at 117 before I started phase three so I could end up at my goal wight of 120 when the diet was complete.
Shoes off, sweater off, I step on the machine to view my results.......It turned out I had no put on three pounds, in fact I WAS DOWN ANOTHER POUND! ...and as my measurements went on, it turned out I had lost another .75 inches. YAY!
So, for 48 days of dieting the total was 15 pounds and 17 inches lost. I am eating normally and maintaining my weight. I could not be happier.
In phase four, the maintain, (or life) phase - you should maintain a healthy eating style and keep fit and active. Carbs are allowed twice a day, but should not be combined with a fat (so don't put sour cream on that baked potato) and cheat days are MANDATORY. Cheat days are days where you eat what you want and you don't feel guilty, I am definitely on board with that!
So I will keep you posted on any big changes or exciting news, but in the mean time I welcome your questions and comments, AND ...I guess I need to think of a new blog topic while I enjoy my yummy pasta for lunch!.
Breakfast includes a carb, a fat and a protein. I have been having shredded wheat with 1% milk and a fruit. Lunch and dinner is still a protein and an approved veggie.
When you start phase three you are done losing weight and in fact you should be prepared to put on 3 pounds of glycogen reserve from eating carbs again. knowing that, I wanted to be at 117 before I started phase three so I could end up at my goal wight of 120 when the diet was complete.
Shoes off, sweater off, I step on the machine to view my results.......It turned out I had no put on three pounds, in fact I WAS DOWN ANOTHER POUND! ...and as my measurements went on, it turned out I had lost another .75 inches. YAY!
So, for 48 days of dieting the total was 15 pounds and 17 inches lost. I am eating normally and maintaining my weight. I could not be happier.
In phase four, the maintain, (or life) phase - you should maintain a healthy eating style and keep fit and active. Carbs are allowed twice a day, but should not be combined with a fat (so don't put sour cream on that baked potato) and cheat days are MANDATORY. Cheat days are days where you eat what you want and you don't feel guilty, I am definitely on board with that!
So I will keep you posted on any big changes or exciting news, but in the mean time I welcome your questions and comments, AND ...I guess I need to think of a new blog topic while I enjoy my yummy pasta for lunch!.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)