Smurfing The Smurfs Get Smurfed...

"It's your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man!"

Smurf means whatever you want it to mean.

"It was a dark and stormy night..."

Watching the giant floats get inflated in preparation for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on the evening prior to Thanksgiving, has been a NYC tradition since 1927. The energizer bunny and Ronald McDonald have absolutely nothing to do with Thanksgiving of course. Have parades always been comprised of corporate propaganda and attempts to further instill consumerism into our minds? Ugh. It's depressing. I go to a lot of parades, but I'm not sure why because I think I might really hate them.  And Spidey, well, he looks cool being held down by nets and sandbags amidst the trees, but he doesn't inspire a sense of gratitude in me. 

And smurfs just creep me out. I think it's because when I was a little girl growing up in Houston, there were stories about an evil gang called The Smurfs that were supposedly killing people all over the city. Everyone at Andy Anderson Elementary school was terrified, including myself. It was not until twenty years later that I discovered, through the magic of the internet, that the stories were grand embellishments, based on a much less exciting story of a few kids getting arrested for stealing. The tale had grown larger and larger as it was passed around. I was blown away to learn that these stories made it to elementary and middle schools all over Houston, and that the hysteria reached such epic proportions that Newsweek published an article about it all. I know this sounds hilarious now, but when you're seven years old, nothing is far from being possible. And it was Houston, after all. It was so strange to read so many other people's memories of this online, so many of them recounting my exact memories. Though I remembered it clearly, and had thought about it over the years (always triggered by the appearance of the blue cartoon characters) I never, for some strange reason, imagined anyone else would remember it. But it sounded like some people were downright traumatized about it all- that's what a big deal it was. 

I actually have an awesome idea for a badass Thanksgiving parade that would play out like a story, an allegorical tale if you will. It would be much more theatrical and avante-garde, and it would definitely be more relevant, historically speaking. I think the traditional corporate floats would even make an appearance towards the end of my story. I would need a sizable budget. But I actually have that worked out. Seriously. And I would demand that the streets be lined with stadium seating so that people could view my production in a manner befitting it, obviously. That might be more difficult to pull off.

Snoopy is the only character here that has any relation to the holiday as the Peanuts' Thanksgiving specials are beloved by everyone.

I've got the moves like Linus. I've got the moves like Linus. I've got the moooooooves like Linus. Which peanut's dance moves most closely resembles your own?  

"Now it all started two Thanksgivings ago, was on - two years ago on
Thanksgiving, when my friend and I went up to visit Alice at the
restaurant, but Alice doesn't live in the restaurant, she lives in the
church nearby the restaurant, in the bell-tower, with her husband Ray and
Fasha the dog. And livin' in the bell tower like that, they got a lot of
room downstairs where the pews used to be in.  Havin' all that room,
seein' as how they took out all the pews, they decided that they didn't
have to take out their garbage for a long time." --Arlo Guthrie, Alice's Restaurant

Fake News Is The Best News...

The taping I attended. Can you hear me laughing?:

Season 7 Show 147

And because I'm in love with Jack White (If he was from NY he'd be on every post, but because he's not I have to fit him in where I can), and because I am adamantly opposed to Catholicism yet adore this Catholic duo:

 

Singing the national anthem in NYC

On the show selling yogurt

This is the taping I attended: Episode #17006

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love free activities. After years of watching The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, it was pretty awesome being in the studios and watching the taping of the shows- for free! Both of the shows began with a comedian who warmed up the audience with irreverent humor. Then Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert came out and answered questions from the audience. For this part, Colbert came out as himself and not as his character, which was cool. I must admit that I thought the Colbert taping was more fun. It might just be because I got to sit in the front row, and because I got a high-five from "the greatest living American" Stephen Colbert who was running around the studio with the enthusiasm of a five year old. I had to sit in the back row for The Daily Show taping, which really wasn't a big deal since the studio is so small, but it was trumped by the front row Colbert experience. Colbert was wild and energetic, while Stewart was very reserved.  They were both hilarious, and I think that while Stewart was very serious in a more obvious manner, Colbert was also very serious in his kookiness, in the way that you hear comedians are generally incredibly serious about their comedy. It was fascinating to see their differing approaches to filming.  After the Q&A session, Stewart jumped into the show. He was a total pro, going through the taping without a single mistake, without any second takes, without any breaks except the commercial breaks- during which his desk was immediately swarmed by writers and producers going over what appeared to be hundreds of pages of notes in the short time span. His process was quick, no nonsense. It was impressive. His guest was Calvin Trillon, a writer whom I wasn't aware of before the taping. but he seemed like an interesting guy. Colbert's process was a bit different. He screwed up a few times and needed several takes, especially during one of his long rants where he just couldn't get the words out properly. That was more enjoyable to watch, really, because it was hilarious and endearing. And there were more breaks in between segments. He did a funny skit where he 'maced' himself (and then poured yogurt all over his face) as a response to the pepper-spraying incidents during Occupy Wall Street and the report by the idiots at Faux News describing pepper spray as a food product. As he needed to get cleaned up, there was a longer break after that. His guest was Chris Matthews, who seemed very happy, very smiley. I'm not really a fan of Matthews' style but, surprisingly, he gave off good vibes. He was promoting his book about JFK, and he made certain to get in his signature "HA!" at the very end when Colbert asked him if he thought Newt Gingrich would be the next JFK. It was a good one.

While I was waiting in line outside The Daily Show studios with 200 other people, I saw Giancarlo Esposito walk by. Three days prior I had watched Gus Fring get his face blown off concluding an amazingly dramatic story arc of one of the best tv characters ever, so it was surreal to then just see him in front of me. He's a diminutive man, but he has an intensity to him. And he also looked pretty smooth in his black fedora. In my starstruck state all I could think to say was, "Hi Giancarlo!" in the absolute dorkiest way possible. Ugh. He turned and smiled and said hello back. None of the other 200 people in line recognized him; they just stood there witnessing the awkwardness. Breaking Bad is a great show and I highly recommend it, but I do think the writers have issues writing for the female characters. All of the male characters, leads and supporting, are amazing, yet the two female characters both come off as stupid and annoying. I hope next season the writers put some effort into making them as complex and as interesting as their male cohorts. Agree/disagree?

What are your favorite Colbert Report and/or Daily Show moments? And what is your favorite Jack White song? I am still recovering from the White Stripes breakup *tear*:(

"So Charlene, I'm so over you / So say so long/ If I wasn't over you/ Why would I write this song?/ Think about it/ No more carrying a torch/ I'm blowing out the flame/ But if you need to reach me/ My E-mail's still the same/ It's Stephen@Charleneforever.com" --Stephen Colbert, Charlene II (I'm Over You)

White Horses Still In Bed...

 

The first snow I experienced in NYC fell on a random day in November. As it took me three times longer than usual to walk to the subway, I had plenty of time to think about how I should invest in a good pair of snow boots. I was walking like an old lady, trying desperately not to slip, as I am known to do. I had a few close calls, but managed to keep my ass from hitting the snow covered pavement. New Yorkers were up in arms, saying to each other, "Can you believe this? It's barely November!" I smiled to myself. I'm in New York City!

Woody Allen's work will be appearing all over this blog, for obvious reasons. Manhattan is one of his best films, and it is unique in that it is one of only a few of his that are shot in winter, and therefore feature snow! Manhattan covered in snow was made for the silver screen. The opening montage is so beautiful, with shots of the Manhattan skyline and locales around the city, in black and white giving it a romantic quality. - so beautiful! Woody Allen plays a character named Isaac Davis who is writing a novel about his love for NYC. And here I am writing a blog about my love for NYC! I dreamt about living in Manhattan for so many years. As he says, I romanticized it, having seen so many films, heard so many songs, and read so many books where this great city is often a character.  After soaking it all in for so long, the city was so familiar once I got here. It's like I had always been here. It is now home, and I think it's probably where I belong.

"Is this on?/ I am so too/ I can take you there/ But I don't know how to get there/ I can take you there/ But I don't know where to go"   --Snow Patrol, NYC