Oscar, we need to talk.

Okay, so I know you’re gold and that bald is beautiful.

But buddy, beauty isn’t skin deep.

I… I saw your show the other night… and… I’m sorry, but I’m underwhelmed.

What happened man? Dude, you’re simply… boring.

You’re ho-hum and are losing interest. I respect you though, and everything you represent. But, dude, I can only bear to hang out with you for four hours for so long. I mean, it hurts to see Jon Stewart come over and rely on making fun of you to be funny.

Come on, maybe next year you could invite Ellen back and you can work towards… breaking out of this funk.

Personally, I gotta hang out with you. I love your opinion on movies… but… people are talking.

Well, I’ll see ya next year man… take care. And please, liven up.

America, this is Nokia, I think you two have met.

America, I know you’re in love with Motorola… but… I think it’s about time to re-evaluate your relationship with Moto.

See, Motorola is that sexy, slim, and statuesque model (the Razr) that everyone was in awe of. Everyone in America fell in love… okay, so maybe the thing was shallow (it broke easily and… didn’t work all too well. Psst, it was kind of slooow), but you loved its slim and sexy figure. Slim… unfortunately, was in.

And now? And now your sexy and slim Razr got some plastic surgery and has become the Razr II. Okay, so it got a bit faster and a bit sturdier and a bit bigger and a… eh. Is anyone really wowed by the Razr on steroids? It’s a nice phone, but… come on America, it’s done.

I know your eyes aren’t looking at the Razr II though. No no, of course not… you’re eyes have fastened on that ‘hot geek.’ She’s young, she’s fresh, she likes to be touched, and she’s intelligent. You met the iPhone.

She was a bit high maintenance at first, but she eventually saw the error of her ways and became a bit more affordable for you. And then you smiled and loved her and touched her all you wanted.

You were happy.

But, do you remember how things used to be? Do you remember that European? Ahh yes, that European. Well, she’s grown up. She’s matured… not that she wasn’t mature… wasn’t grown up… she’s evolved.

Meet Nokia, America. Specifically, the Nokia NSeries. From the new N82 to the N96, the NSeries are a brand of smartphones that can put the iPhone to shame, yeah… to shame. I’m sorry iPhone, I really am. Let’s take possibly the flagship of these European sisters, the N82. It’s a candybar phone, but wow… it’s one helluva candybar. Wonka and Hershey be damned.

3G? Check.

GPS? Check.

5 Megapixel camera? Check.

Nokia’s quality? Check.

Ahh yes, I highly suggest you have a chat with Nokia, America. The more you get to know Nokia, the more Nokia gets to know you. The more popular Nokia gets in America, the better phones American consumers will have to choose from.

Oh, and I know some of you have a… asian fetish. Have you met the ultra sexy, ultra modern, and ultra amazing Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1? You should.

American Idol: The Ride?

It’s not so far-fetched, really. Disney recently announced that at their Disney Hollywood Studios Theme Park, which is weirdly in Florida, will host a new attraction based on American Idol.

Yes, you heard that right. An attraction based on American Idol.

Basically, you’ll be able to enter a day long contest in which they prep you up, coach you a little, dress you up, and send YOU out to sing in public on stage. According to this MSNBC article, judges will be audience members as well. There’ll even be a host too, and don’t worry, it won’t be Ryan Seacrest.

Now, what would be the prize for winning this day long attraction… contest… experience… thing? I dunno what to call it, but the prize would be a ticket thing to jump in front of the line at the auditions for the actual show! How exciting! Right? Err, nevermind.

I’m sure there’ll be plenty of Sanjaya’s performing all day and everyday, but hopefully there’s enough good talent out there to make it worthwhile to pay attention to these ‘performances.’ And please, let there be one judge witty enough to match Simon Cowell. Please?

It’s not a coincidence that Disney and Universal both announced theme parks or attractions based on popular culture, and both in Florida for crying out loud. Anyway, Universal has their little ‘The Wizarding World of Harry Potter,’ complete with a version of Hogsmeade and Hogwart’s Castle. I’m sure both will be very popular when they open, and I’m sure both will be disappointing once people get over the initial ‘wow-ness’ of it all.

Both should be completed end of 2008 or the beginning of 2009. Expect the Harry Potter one to open later than the American Idol one.

Now, when do I get my Lord of the Rings ride?

Uh oh Hillary?

Hillary Clinton will say that she’s winning and leading for the nomination and all that. She’s happy and touting her victories in California, New York, Massachusetts, and New Jersey. On the surface, you might say Clinton is the front runner.

But… wait. Clinton was ahead by about 20 points nationally just a couple months ago. But now? Obama and her are in a basic dead heat, especially since Obama won a whopping 13 states last night. In the delegates both candidates are also in a dead heat.

Ok, maybe you still give Clinton the edge and possibly the momentum for blunting Obama’s comeback. I mean, she did win California and New York. She also won by double digits in both.

Thing is… she just donated $5 million to her own campaign. Obama just got $32 million in the month of January alone. There’s still a long way to go and one candidate clearly has more money than the other at this point.

Not only is she potentially running out of money, but now MSNBC reported that Hillary’s staff is working for FREE. Yes, free. That’s not good, as you might imagine. Politico.com reports that sources close to Obama say he’s on pace for $30 million in February.

Uh oh Hillary?

But you gotta wonder. Hillary was favored by so much just a couple weeks ago, and now they’re even. She could’ve went for the jugular, but now she’ll have to slowly grind it out. This reminds me of a sporting event or a game or a match or whatever you term it. The underdog is hanging around and hanging around and is being allowed to hang around by the favorites.

Obama is taking advantage of his opportunities and Clinton isn’t.

And now we’re entering the fourth quarter of the conference finals with a tie.

Who’s gonna make it to the championship?

Initial reactions to Super Tuesday.

It’s safe to say that Sen. McCain has wrapped up the Republican nomination. With Romney and Huckabee dueling it out over second place McCain continues to garner states and keep his front runner status. As we continue with the states I’m sure McCain will continue to take states despite not being amazingly popular with conservatives.

However, there might be a problem with him during the General Election. He failed to get any of the southern states. Huckabee essentially sweeped those while Romney took a lot of the northern states, including Alaska.

On the Democrat side, it’s essentially a tie. Though, it’s an impressive tie for Obama. He was way back in the polls a month ago and now he’s neck and neck with Clinton and won more states than her.

It’s been a long and exciting Super Tuesday, but tomorrow morning we’ll get on the delegate counts.

Just a side note: My condolences to the families and friends of the victims of the tornados in the south. Hopefully they can get aid as soon as possible.

The Patriots… lost?

First it was slow. The Giants just getting 20 yards in about a minute. The clock was winding down. The Patriots were getting to Eli. He was throwing incomplete passes, he was running around, he was getting sacked. They were losing.

After the Patriots convinced everyone that they were going to win when Brady did what Brady does best: show-up when it matters. Brady lead the Patriots on an almost perfect 80 yard TD drive. After being beaten, sacked, and pressured by the Giants all day long. Brady did it. He put the Pats in position to win. And then?

Little Eli Manning. The ‘other’ Manning… earned his Cadillac.

It was third and five. The Patriots blitzed Adalius Thomas, who was hounding LT David Diehl all throughout the fourth quarter, came in with Richard Seymour on Manning. Both players had their hands on Peyton’s little brother. Had it been Peyton, he might have went down. But, Eli isn’t Peyton. Eli is Eli. Eli fought off both players and avoided the sack. He scrambled off to his right and looked downfield.

David Tyree was open, but Rodney Harrison was right behind him and could probably make a play on the ball if thrown. Eli tossed it up. He had nothing to lose. There was always 4th and 5.

It wouldn’t come to that, however. As David Tyree, who had caught the Giants first TD which was also his first of the season, leaped into the air and caught the ball. Harrison was on him. Harrison clearly touched the ball when it was in the hands of Tyree, but it didn’t matter. Tyree used his helmet to keep possession of the ball and came down with it.

And with that, down came the chances of the Patriots winning their fourth Super Bowl. Eli Manning them completed a pass to Steve Smith on the sideline, where Asante ‘Get Paid’ Samuel reigns, to get another first down.

With an all out blitz, Patriots corner Ellis Hobbs, who had previously limited Plaxico Burress to 1 catch, was left on an island with Burress. Burress took advantage and made a fantastic move and flew by Hobbs to catch an easy touchdown and give the Giants the lead with 39 seconds left.

The Patriots still had time outs, and they had Tom Brady. But the Giants, had something different: resiliency. Yes, the word they all talked about in the opening video of the Super Bowl. The Patriots had a word too, it was team work. Although, the teams were only allowed one word each. A shame, because the Giants also had the words ‘intensity’ and ‘drive.’ They wanted it more and they held out Brady and the all-time scoring offense on that last drive.

They became champions in the ultimate underdog story.

Hollywood often makes sports movies because they are good stories.

Last night was an epic.

Super Bowl XLII Breakdown

Tomorrow, the New England Patriots and New York Giants square off in Arizona in Super Bowl XLII for all the marbles. The Patriots going for a perfect season and the Giants looking to shock the world.

Now, I understand that the Giants are a ‘hot’ team, having won 10 road games in a row. That’s not easy and is very admirable. Thing is, the team on the other sideline has won 18 games in a row.

I’m sorry New York, but the Patriots will win this game.

In the week 17 match-up the Patriots 38 – 35 in comeback fashion and many cite that game as a reason why the Giants could stand a chance.

Well, it could easily be why they don’t stand a chance.

1) Giants rookie runningback Ahmad Bradshaw was absent in that game, but so were New England starting offensive linemen Nick Kazcur and Stephen Neal, along with blocking tightend Kyle Brady. Now, with half their blocking specialist (K. Brady is often called a ‘third tackle’ because of his superior blocking ability) missing the game you’d think the Giants vaunted pass rush would tear up Brady. Nope, sorry. In fact, they only sacked him one time… and he torched them by going 32/42 for 356 yards and 2 TDs. In comparison, Eli went 22/32 for 251 yards, 4 TDs, and an interception. He hasn’t thrown an interception since that game.

2) It’s not a home game. Ok, so the Giants went 2 -6 at home this season, but homefield advantage is still a plus. On top of this, it’s in a dome. Warm weather. Remember what the Patriots looked like back when the weather was warm? Yeah, they were even more unstoppable. There won’t be wind and snow to throw off the deep passing game this time.

3) The Giants secondary relies on the pressure of their front four. They pressure their quarterback into mistakes. You might look at the poor play, at least by New England’s standards, against San Diego and Jacksonville… but realize that the defensive backfield of the Jags and Bolts are great, physical corners that have the size and ability to take on Moss, Welker, and Stallworth. Aaron Ross, Jason Webster, and co. aren’t that good.

4) The Giants special teams won’t register a touchdown. In the week 17 matchup Giants returnman Hixon took one to the house. It was the only kickoff for a touchdown the Giants had all season. And the only one the Patriots have allowed all season.

5) Last year the Colts had the hottest running game in the playoffs and it carried them to the podium where they were handed the Lombardi trophy. Patriots RB Laurence Maroney is the leading rusher in the playoffs this year, and not against chumps either. The Jags and Chargers both have pretty good run defenses, which makes Maroney’s accomplishment even greater. If the Pats struggle in the passing game, they will have no problem running with Maroney.

The Giants have had a great season, but the Patriots are something special this year. Not only that, but the AFC is just far superior to the NFC. If it had been the Chargers (with injured Gates, Rivers, and LT) I’d still pick them over the Giants. I’d pick the Colts over the Giants. I’d pick even the Jaguars over the Giants.

Patriots win. 42 – 24

Obama v. Clinton

Last night we finally got to see Obama and Clinton go at it alone one on one, and well… they were pretty nice to each other. They both played it safe and didn’t go after each other too hard, but there were some things that stood out.

When asked how she could be an agent for change if the country has been headed by a Clinton or Bush for the past twenty plus years she responded with a non-answer. To her credit it was an entertaining non-answer, but a non-answer nonetheless. In case you didn’t catch it, she said something to the effect of: ‘a Clinton had to clean up after the first Bush and maybe it’s time for another Clinton to clean up after a Bush.’

I found it funny that both candidates talked about the rich not needing tax cuts and such things when some of Hollywood’s biggest players were in the audience.

I do believe that Obama is the better candidate of the two, if you had to choose one. He clobbered her when talking about the Iraq war and she did well talking about her health car plan… but… it just doesn’t make sense to me. Let’s see, she wants to mandate health care so that if you can’t afford it you’ll be slapped (most likely gently) with a penalty if you do not have it. So, she’s telling me that I have to worry about finding a way to afford health care if I don’t have enough money to sign up cause I might get hit with a penalty.

Obama’s plan just makes more sense. Lower prices so everyone can get it. I mean, who doesn’t want health care? Is there really anyone who doesn’t want health care and wants to struggle when a medical emergency comes there way? I don’t think so. Look at consumer products. At $600 both the iPhone and PS3 didn’t sell amazingly well, and when the prices dropped to $400 people bought it in droves.

Super Tuesday will be interesting though, and it’s coming up fast.

Now for some other musings:

Microsoft wants to buy Yahoo! and create some actual competition for Google. Yahoo’s stocks have fallen and well, this just seems to good to be true. It would definitely raise questions for Microsoft about buying too much and having too much power and all that, but I’m curious to see what a Yahoo MSN would be like… or Yahoo Live or whatever they want to call it.

Motorola has been struggling for a while now. You can only be carried by the Razr for so long. Silly Motorola, it’s time to hit the drawing board and think of some new phones and designs that don’t milk the Razr. Nokia is clearly the leader of the world but needs to do more in America. They could possibly open up new Nokia Stores and advertise those sweet N series phones they have. The new one, the N 82, is more feature-packed that even the iPhone.