I Was Just Kidding

Last October, I reacted to the announcement of a new celebrity talk show moderated by professional angry liberal Lewis Black with this:

They'd have a hard time finding a show I'd be less interested in watching then yet another revival of Politically Incorrect with an angrier, trollier version of Bill Maher. Maybe if Rosie O'Donnell was a regular panel member, but that's about it.

Now comes word of an even worse upcoming crime against humanity:

Funny ladies Rosie O'Donnell (Nip/Tuck) and Fran Drescher (The Nanny) are working together on creating a new "fun, happy, family comedy" for TV. On Rosie's website, Fran and Rosie teamed up on camera to talk -- primarily about Fran's "cancer schmancer" campaign for public awareness -- but at the end, Rosie and Fran revealed a sitcom they are planning in which they'll star together.

Good lord. I just purchased a new subwoofer for my stereo system, and my HDTV purchase is still awaiting just the right deal to come down the road. I'd hate to think what even my modest setup would endure dealing with a Rosie/Fran team-up....

I'm sorry - I can't even continue this post. I'm going to be sick just thinking about it.

A Shiny Apple

Tax time is about the only time I take more than a cursory look at my investments. My advisor calls me more often than I call him, just to see if there is anything I need, which there usually isn't. But when I get the 1099's and have to start plugging stuff into TurboTax, that's when I get to see a few highlights.

Such as AAPL.

My managed accounts sold Apple, Inc. stock six times in 2007. The sales were for $84, $93, $112, $120, $145 and $185, respectively. Not a bad run for Apple.

Those shares were bought back in 2004. The purchase price? $13.52 and $22.41. So the value of those shares only went up sixfold.

Last year wasn't a great year overall for stocks. But AAPL did just fine, thanks.

What Rhymes With Katrina?

Via Libertas, word of yet another anti-war documentary hitting the screens of Austin. The two people who end up seeing this one can extend their pleasure by picking up the 30-song soundtrack with such gems as "No War" by Eddie Vetter, "Yo George" by Tori Amos, and a rap song called "Bushonomics" by .... Cornell West?

Ye gods.

That last one might just be worse than the current gold standard for horrible anti-Bush songs, "Leaving Beruit" by Roger Waters, which features the immortal lyric:

Oh George! Oh George!
That Texas education must have fucked you up when you were very small.

Pretty bad, but I'm willing to bet West can beat it.

Upsell?

I'm not in marketing, but I am in a market. When I'm looking to buy a product, I consider things like functionality, price, appearance, "cool factor", and so on.

I don't usually consider whether there's a woman on the board of directors.

I think diversifying their board will help Apple better reach its vast female audience.

I think I've seen this sentiment expressed elsewhere, and it's just silly. Is increased diversity on the Apple Board of Directors a good thing? Yeah - all other things being equal, it's probably a benefit. A woman just for the sake of having a woman on board isn't a good thing, but clearly Ms. Jung is well-qualified for this kind of position.

But the thought that only a woman can sell to women? About as stupid as voting for Hillary just because she's a woman, or Obama just because he's black, or McCain just because he's a crusty old white guy.

DVD Spending Tab X

Last year's spending tab was $104.98 for 21 movies, which is right at $5.00 per movie. And now to start on the 2008 total:

Got Hellboy 3-DVD Director's Cut Edition for $5.40. Not a bad deal.

So Much For That Idea

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote:

The thought that one of my favorite shows is now in the hands of a guy that thinks the War on Carbon Emissions is somehow more real than the War on Terror doesn't exactly fill me with confidence. There's still a lot of time until next January; maybe Joel Surnow can reassert himself and get this show back on track - the right way.

Now I find that not only is Joel not coming to save the day, he's heading in the other direction. That takes my 24-o-meter from worried down to oh-well-it-was-nice-while-it-lasted. Wonder what I'll watch on Mondays after football next year?

Not My Slice

Had some Mellow Mushroom pizza in our meeting today - didn't really care for it much. Large soggy slices, lots of fairly flavorless cheese, and I didn't really like the sauce.

Still waiting to try in Austin - Hungry Howie's pizza, which I had once at O'Hare Airport and vaguely remember liking.