Q – The star of this very successful tv show has NO IDEA why anyone watches it. In a recent interview, he admitted “my show is awful”. What’s the TV show?

A – The Jerry Springer Show

Can you believe that show is still on the air? 18 seasons now, but 2009-2010 MIGHT be it’s last (let’s hope!)

According to a recent online survey, “The Jerry Springer Show” isn’t the worst show on tv, though. That “honor” belongs to “According To Jim”. Check out the list below. What do YOU think the worst show on tv is?

According to Jim
The Jerry Springer Show
American Idol
The Real World
The Bachelor
WWE Raw
CSI Miami
Survivor
Saturday Night Live
The Simpsons
Power Rangers
Larry King Live
Cops

John Mayer shared his thoughts on Michael Jackson with Time Magazine and despite my on-going feud w/ John Mayer, I have to say it’s very insightful and touching. He sums up what I have been thinking…..perfectly. Here you go:

People don’t get upset when they talk about Michael Jackson dying; they get upset when they talk about how much a part of their life he was. I mean, what are the ’80s? A Rubik’s Cube, 3-D glasses and Michael Jackson. And that’s the giant cornerstone that’s gone. He’s one of the few crossover artists that would make even the most radical white supremacists say, “Well, he’s not black — he’s Michael Jackson.” He’s not black, he’s Barack Obama. He’s not black, he’s Jimi Hendrix. He’s not black, he’s Tiger Woods.

As a musician, the man was one of the purest substances ever in music. But it’s frustrating, and somewhat pointless, to ever try and figure out how Michael Jackson arrived at an album like Thriller and how you could arrive at something like it. It’s impossible. I mean, it’s one of those things you actually don’t want to bring up to musicians. They don’t want to remember that that kind of greatness is achievable because it skews the bell curve completely.

Michael Jackson proves, in a really sort of perverse way, that maybe we’re not as offended by behavior as we are entranced by music. And think about that. Think about what level of quality you must have to attain to have somebody say, “I know that you’re accused of having molested children, but I can’t hate you for that as much as I love you for your music.” I’m not saying that’s right or wrong; I’m saying that it’s fascinating. That somebody could be that great. That somebody could have that much of a marriage with your emotions just through music.

There’s just one Michael Jackson now. We don’t have to reconcile the Michael Jackson we love with another Michael Jackson. In a way, he has returned to pristine condition in death. We can be free now for the rest of our lives to love the Michael Jackson we used to love

Whew….what a busy weekend! There is something about the sunshine that makes me try to fit about a week’s worth of activities into the weekend!

Friday night….we took advantage of the sunshine and went for a long bike ride! My quads are still feeling it, but it was totally worth it! Afterwards, we relaxed and I read some more of “Shanghai Girls” by Lisa See. It was really hard to put this one down and I can’t wait to finish it! This book is set in Shanghai, where these two sisters lead a very priviledged life, until their dad (who has a gambling addiction), sells them as brides….on top of that, the Japanese invade. They barely escape Shanghai with their lives and begin a new live in Los Angeles with their arranged marriage husbands. Live in L.A. kind of sucks for them, as their father-in-law treats them like slaves and second class citizens….but they have each other….and a plan….Love this book!

Saturday- Got up to pull weeds in the garden….once again, my quads are not loving that action, but the garden looks lice and I think we are going to have tomatoes very soon! Yay! After we got cleaned up, we went to the Best Of Oregon Food & Wine Festival….Great food and wine! Plus, we enjoyed a nice, long chat with Rich, the winemaker at Viento. Rich has us convinced that we need to visit Hood River soon. We followed that up with dinner (and crazy old Mexican sci fi movies) @ Trebol. Yummy! I recommend the halibut w/ plantains!

Sunday – I have been wanting to see “Confessions Of A Shopaholic” for a while and it’s finally out on DVD, so I popped that in and we all watched while enjoying some low fat ice cream sandwiches. The movie is really cute and the soundtrack is great. Isla Fischer plays Rebecca Bloomwood, who grows up with frugal parents and thinks that she can shop her way into the cool kids crowd. She ends up with 12 credit cards and a nasty shopping addiction. When she gets laid off from her gardening magazine job, she is willing to take whatever job she can get…which happens to be for a money magazine, where she gives money management advice, depsite the mess her finances are in. She spends a lot of the movie ducking debt collectors and responsibility before a crisis she can’t avoid (and a very public humiliation) force her to realize that money cannot buy happiness and the best investment a person can make is in relationships with people we care about. It won’t win any Oscars, but it is a cute movie with great clothes and an even better message! I had a chance a while ago to interview Joan Cusack (who plays Rebecca Bloomwood’s mom) about the movie. You can check that out below!

 http://blogs.1051thebuzz.com/files/2009/…

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Lisa Marie hasn’t had a lot to say about her ex-husband, Michael Jackson….although she did talk about him a bit in the interview I did with her in 2002. She said then that theirs was indeed, a real relationship. She repeats that in this posting from her Myspace blog. She also says he predicted his death….and that she feels horrible that she couldn’t save him…..sad!

From Lisa Marie’s Myspace blog:

He Knew. Years ago Michael and I were having a deep conversation about life in general.  I can’t recall the exact subject matter but he may have been questioning me about the circumstances of my Fathers Death. At some point he paused, he stared at me very intensely and he stated with an almost calm certainty, “I am afraid that I am going to end up like him, the way he did.” I promptly tried to deter him from the idea, at which point he just shrugged his shoulders and nodded almost matter of fact as if to let me know, he knew what he knew and that was kind of that. 14 years later   I am sitting here watching on the news an ambulance leaves the driveway of his home, the big gates, the crowds outside the gates, the coverage, the crowds outside the hospital, the Cause of death and what may have led up to it and the memory of this conversation hit me, as did the unstoppable tears. A predicted ending by him, by loved ones and by me, but what I didn’t predict was how much it was going to hurt when it finally happened. The person I failed to help is being transferred right now to the LA County Coroners office for his Autopsy. All of my indifference and detachment that I worked so hard to achieve over the years has just gone into the bowels of hell and right now I am gutted. I am going to say now what I have never said before because I want the truth out there for once. Our relationship was not “a sham” as is being reported in the press. It was an unusual relationship yes, where two unusual people who did not live or know a “Normal life” found a connection, perhaps with some suspect timing on his part. Nonetheless, I do believe he loved me as much as he could love anyone and I loved him very much. I wanted to “save him” I wanted to save him from the inevitable which is what has just happened. His family and his loved ones also wanted to save him from this as well but didn’t know how and this was 14 years ago. We all worried that this would be the outcome then. At that time, In trying to save him, I almost lost myself. He was an incredibly dynamic force and power that was not to be underestimated. When he used it for something good, It was the best and when he used it for something bad, It was really, REALLY bad. Mediocrity was not a concept that would even for a second enter Michael Jackson’s being or actions.  I became very ill and emotionally/ spiritually exhausted in my quest to save him from certain self-destructive behavior and from the awful vampires and leeches he would always manage to magnetize around him. I was in over my head while trying. I had my children to care for, I had to make a decision. The hardest decision I have ever had to make, which was to walk away and let his fate have him, even though I desperately loved him and tried to stop or reverse it somehow. After the Divorce, I spent a few years obsessing about him and what I could have done different, in regret. Then I spent some angry years at the whole situation. At some point, I truly became Indifferent, until now. As I sit here overwhelmed with sadness, reflection and confusion at what was my biggest failure to date, watching on the news almost play by play The exact Scenario I saw happen on August 16th, 1977 happening again right now with Michael (A sight I never wanted to see again) just as he predicted, I am truly, truly gutted. Any ill experience or words I have felt towards him in the past has just died inside of me along with him. He was an amazing person and I am lucky to have gotten as close to him as I did and to have had the many experiences and years that we had together. I desperately hope that he can be relieved from his pain, pressure and turmoil now. He deserves to be free from all of that and I hope he is in a better place or will be.  I also hope that anyone else who feels they have failed to help him can be set free because he hopefully finally is.    The World is in shock but somehow he knew exactly how his fate would be played out some day more than anyone else knew, and he was right.     I really needed to say this right now, thanks for listening. ~LMP

If you think about it….it’s fitting that many of the tributes to Michael Jackson that are popping up everywhere are unusual…even a little odd…somehow, I think MJ would have loved these bizarre displays of affection. He was, after all, someone who certainly knew how to capture attention in unusual ways.

This is the wierdest one I have seen so far….I hope it lasted longer than it took to build it!

This is from a vigil in China. I’m not sure wearing something that reminds everyone of Michael’s later, more bizarre life chapters is the best tribute…but…..maybe that is the Michael they loved best.

A bunch of people showed up at UCLA Medical Center yesterday to hold up one glove in tribute. I found this one oddly touching….maybe I’m just a little wierd, too….

If you find any more pics of odd MJ tributes on the web, email me the link! sjstewart@1051thebuzz.com

Don’t celebs die in threes? I hope that is just an old superstition as Michael Jackson is rushed to the hospital today (same day we lost Farrah)

*UPDATE* TMZ is reporting he is dead…at 50…of cardiac arrest….very sad!

Q – If you love BBQ, but NOT the mess, you need to try this new product, which promises all the flavor of a cookout WITHOUT the mess. What is it?

A- Meat flavored water.

I know….GROSS! At first, I thought this had to be a joke, but it is a real product….introducing Meatwater! They have around 30 or so different flavors….from fish-n-chips to escargot….icky! They say the cheesburger flavor is their best-seller. Check out their website for more info on how to get them….really, WHO buys (and drinks) this stuff?

Is this actual audio from the press conference introducing robots with an “emotion” chip?  Listen: 2009-06-25-robots-argue.

To fellow Oregonians,

I am certain you are as pleased as I am that the Attorney General’s office has concluded their investigation regarding Sam Adams and my son, Beau Breedlove. Unfortunately, there are facts or circumstances that I feel need to be told that were not included in any reports.

Foremost, regarding the statement given by my son after the late night interrogation by Mr. Adam’s legal team. At that time, it was discussed the negative implications that could occur if the kissing incidents were revealed. Mr. Adams spoke with my son specifically regarding the kissing incident at City Hall. Mr. Adam’s legal advisors refused to include that information in the statement saying it “wasn’t necessary to the investigation”. My son was naive and trusting. As I see it now, these actions were all part of Mr. Adam’s strategy to discredit my son and deceive the public, in the very beginning.

The Attorney General’s report also stated my son benefited in notoriety and financial gain. I wouldn’t wish this “notoriety” on my worst enemy. The barrage of the media was frightening. The attacks threatened his job to the point he was put on administrative leave, disrupted his neighbors and created daily turmoil for the entire family. As far as my son’s “financial gain”, you’ve got to be joking! Beau does not own any real estate, he rents a small apartment. During this media charade, my son struggled to pay his every day bills. The mere pittance he received from the magazine was necessary at that time, just to make ends meet.

At his first press conference regarding this scandal, Mr Adam’s stated one of his first calls would be to me. That never happened. It’s been over five months and believe me, the conversation wouldn’t be pretty now. At his most recent press conference, Mr Adams stated that he has “learned his lesson” from his poor judgment…….I beg to differ.

My son has always believed that he was not a victim in 2005. But I believe he’s a victim now. Exploited, deceived and betrayed by a friend and a “mentor” (?) for his own political gain. It saddens me that my son’s credibility was the one that was the focal point in the Attorney General’s report. Perhaps the outcome would’ve been different if Mr. Adam’s acknowledged his actions truthfully to the investigators as he did earlier with my son. Apparently, he was aware of the Oregon law allowing people, not under oath, the right to lie and deceive police and investigators. Maybe this law needs to be changed.

Now that we can all get back to our own lives, I hope people remember the shameful insight into the lack of honor, integrity and credibility exercised by Mr. Sam Adams.

Thank you for listening,

Gwen Roseler
Beau Breedlove’s mom