Easter

Today is Easter, a day as Catholics we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus after 40 days of Lent where we pray, fast, and repent our sins from the previous year. If I look back and reflect the past 40 days leading up to Easter I can say that it was probably the best Lent I have ever had. Now I know my Grandmothers and even my Mother would scold me for saying that I have had a "fun" Lent but I am a Senior in College and just to give you a little inside scoop on my life here is what has happened in the past 40 days....

Ash Wednesday- went to Ash Wednesday Mass at Gonzaga's Chapel. Beautiful service. Later in the day bought two of my guy friends Sports Illustrated Swim Suit Edition Magazines at Barnes and Noble after the weekend prior saying I would (thanks vodka sodas). Ps- I bought them with my ashes still on my forehead

First weekend of Lent- One of my best friends Dad visited. The weekend was filled with good friends, good conversation, good beer, and great plans for a graduation party. I believe Gonzaga played BYU this weekend as well... Go Zags

Week leading up to Vegas... the school week leading up to Vegas I had many emotions and thoughts spewing threw my head, the BIGGEST and most important was "Sarah DO NOT LOOSE ANYTHING IN VEGAS" I am prone to loosing things and boy did I not want this to happen in Sin City. As my group of friends and 300 other Gonzaga Seniors prepared for Vegas I participated in more girly activities than I had all year, getting nails done, hair done, even got a spray tan. Wow. I immediately had to turn on Sports Center after doing all of those things.

Vegas.... flying into Vegas my heart was beating so fast with excitement and adrenaline... my best friend next to me blared "Cant Tell Me Nothing" by Kanye West as we landed, this was going to be a great four days. The next four days were filled with laughing, cheering, giggling, dancing, drinking, and most importantly the WCC Tournament. The four days were filled with memories that I will never forget with people I love and cherish. Most importantly I came home with all of my belongings (I think)

Week Post Vegas.... Flying home from Las Vegas I was on a flight with Fr. Spitzer. Later laid in my bed unable to move for 24 hours. Mid terms and papers filled my calendar as I struggled to finish them like a JV 2 team against Varsity in the fourth quarter.

Spring Break.... R&R all week. Just what the Dr. ordered. Along with high intensity work out classes with my mother and a self prescribed detox I spent my Spring Break at home in Portland exploring old favorites of mine and walking around my beloved city. I was able to reflect on Lent in this time period and what I was trying to do "more" and "give up" in these 40 days. Spring Break was also spent applying to jobs and perfecting my resume... still need a job.

Weeks after Spring Break.... these weeks did not seem real. It was spent with some of my best friends laughing as always and reminiscing of the great four years we have spent together. One Saturday my friend and I got in a bike accident early in the morning (I was in a "ho down cowgirl" outfit from the night before and she was in a fur vest) which luckily we walked away with only bruises and cuts but that lead into one of the greatest days ever. Ps- this bike accident was in front of 3 firemen.
This Saturday was spent biking, watching the Senior 5K run, playing a volleyball game, playing football, dancing, laughing, Jack and Dans, and celebrating a great friends birthday. It was one of the best 24 hours. It started out as just a Saturday in college but I will look back and remember that Saturday for all the things I did and all the people I was with.

Easter Vigil.... Went to my Grandmothers retirement community for an Easter Vigil service. This was probably the most hilarious Mass I have ever been to. My Dad and I were scolded by some Nuns thus were asked to do the offertory.

As I look back and reflect upon Lent and the past 40 days I can say that it has been the best 40 days in my college experience. One of the things that I wanted to do in this Lenten time period was to live every day to the fullest, because you never know when or if it is going to be your last day. I can say that I lived up to this promise, in a very unconventional way.

Happy Easter!

Call Me Maybe

Hey I just met you, and this is crazy, but heres my number, call me maybe?

Call me Maybe by Carly Rae Jepson if probably the catchiest tune I have heard since Justin Bieber's Baby. All over Gonzaga's campus this weekend girls were blasting this song at parties and at the bar and before you knew it every person was singing along willingly or not. Now the lyrics and songwriting are worse than a Paris Hilton song something about the tune and the chorus sung over and over again immediately puts you in a great mood. We all can relate to meeting someone or seeing someone and wanting to give them your number just for the slight chance they'll call. Ms. Jepson voiced what all of us feel, "before you came into my life I missed you so bad, I missed you so so bad."

I downloaded this song Friday and have played it over 200 times.

March Sweeps according to a programming nerd

After a long hiatus (again) I have decided to return to my blog as well I need someone or somewhere to divulge my thoughts.

My last and final Spring Break of my academic career was a few weeks back, and now some of my friends were on beaches or sipping Coronas I spent the break as my mom's assistant as well as catching up on my favorite and new favorite shows. March is a slow after sweeps the beginning of March on the networks but provides an open void for cable networks. The entertainment focused networks BRAVO, E!, MTV, and VH1 all premiered shows in the beginning of March. Some like Shah's of Sunset disappoints and makes me want to vomit while others like Million Dollar Listing: NY had my mouth watering. The second thing I love in life after popculture is real estate. I am a real estate junky and had my jaw to the floor during the 44 minute premiere. The three main characters not only provide whit, drama, and good looks (well two out of three) but the apartments and duplex's show cased in the show provide the extra pizzaz.  Million Dollar Listing: NY is one of the best spring premieres for the cable network that continues to bust out entertainment, home, and style focused "docu-series".

Oxygen, a network that has failed in the past few years hopes to see big numbers from their new "docu-series" Brooklyn 11223. The show is focused around two girls who used to be best friends since kindergarten but after a crazy shore night one the other of sleeping with her boyfriend. While watching five minutes of the show I thought I was just watching another dramaticThursday night at Star Bar. The show not only lacks a solid plot line but the fan base will fizzle after episode 3 when we are tired of hearing the argument if Joanie slept with the boyfriend. I turned it off after 10 minutes and don't plan on watching one more second of Brooklyn 11223.

The entertainment focused networks are pumping out shows left and right hoping for a big break with one of their 10 premieres in March and April. With Real Housewives of New Jersey premiering April 22nd on BRAVO the competitive networks have a few more weeks to get some ad sales and big ratings before the Jersey girls win the ratings raise for the long haul.  (This season looks extra juicy)

Call me Albie Manzo -

http://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/real-housewives-of-new-jersey-season-4-teresa-giudice-explodes-2012223

Hip Hop Princess

I haven't blogged in months. It breaks my heart a little inside that I have been neglecting this blog as I get so much joy every time I write and divulge my love and opinions of pop culture.  I can't believe it is already a new year.. yes I know I am 9 days late getting to the Happy New Year text/tweet/blurb but hey it is still January!!!!

 So much has happened in the past few months in pop culture yet at the same time nothing too exciting that I feel has needed my undivided attention. Break ups, make ups, hook ups, new reality shows, 15 minutes of fame have come and gone but not until Baby Blue arrived did anything truly catch my attention.

First and foremost I am overjoyed that Beyonce and Jay-Z finally had their baby, Blue Ivy Carter. I can only imagine how this little girl will be cared for and loved. She truly was born into hip hop royalty.
Slightly jealous of who her godparents are going to be... Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin maybe?

It is so refreshing to see moguls in the entertainment business show so much love and compassion towards each other as well as to continuously succeed in their own careers. I hope Beyonce and Jay-Z stay together and are able to raise their daughter as a family in their magical hip hop kingdom. If you haven't already listened to Jay-Z's newly released song, Glory, just two days after his daughters birth I suggest listening to it. on repeat. It is much more heart felt than many of his songs as he even speaks of an unfortunate miscarriage for Beyonce and how the birth of Blue is the greatest feeling he's ever had. It's hard not to smile while listening to this song.
One can only imagine the outfits Blue Ivy will be sporting in 2012

72 Days of Publicity

  Kim Kardashian filed for divorce from her husband of 72 days Kris Humphries this morning..... this was less shocking to me on my Twitter feed than who I tried to flirt with on Friday night.

  If anyone is surprised by this news you should watch the E! special on their "Fairytale Wedding" The whole wedding, marriage, and "true love" they saw in each other was a scam and total publicity stunt in my eyes. The immature ogar-esque Humphries was easily manipulated into making a few bucks off of the Kardashian Royal Wedding event. Most people didn't even know who this guy, Kris Humphries, was before he made an appearance on Season 6 of Keeping Up as we tilted our heads and asked he is in the NBA why haven't I heard of him?

  The wedding event brought in 10 million viewers, the highest watched show or special for E! As a person who was involved with ratings and scheduling the on a daily basis this summer for E! this was a fantastic accomplishment, but what is an accomplishment if it is unjust or immoral and just for publicity. Ratings = ad sales = $$$ into the Kardashians Hermes handbags.

   I used to love the Kardashians, some may say I am Kardashobsessed. After experience with E! this summer and their lives getting more and more in the public eye and new business ventures that are going more off of their brand and brand equity I have to say I am no longer a fan. I miss the days of watching them work at the Dash store, go out to eat, talk about their relationships. I don't care that you have to go to another photo shoot or that your Bentley is in the shop yet again.

  What used to be a fun show to watch on E! has turned into a momager who will do anything for 10% and her kids just looking to make as much money and get publicity until their relevance diminishes.

   With Kourtney and Kim Take New York premiering in less than a month we will have a chance to see Kim and Kris fighting and their quick marriage quickly go down the tubes. No word yet on if her filing for divorce and his reaction will be on film... Kris released a statement this morning in which he stated he is "bummed"

                 
                       They'll be back together before we know it....

                                              

Outward with the Housewives

    This week was part two of the Real Housewives Reunion and boy did I wish there wasn't even a part one. The combination of the drama, the fake tans, nails, and high pitch voices made me cringe. These women, specifically Teresa Giudice are middle aged and yell and fight like 16 yr. olds.

    As an avid Real Housewives viewer I must say that New Jersey along with New York and Atlanta are going down hill. Bravo built their brand around the franchises but since 2005 when the first season of Orange Country premiered the network has moved upward and onward.
No longer are we seeing the housewives and what they normally
would do on their daily lives or how these women are living the fantasy lifestyle 99% of Americans do not live, instead we are seeing fights at a babies christening, high heels races, and enough leopard and animal print for the Central Park Zoo. New Jersey along with OC, New York, and Atlanta has had many cast changes due to lack of interest in some of the housewives as well as housewives leaving for various reasons. The network brings on new, younger, more hip housewives for different viewers to connect with but, sometimes that fails to bring in viewers ie: Cindy Barshop from New York season 4.

    Beverly Hills Housewives, in the the middle of its second season has a very much different vibe and feel compared to the other franchises. Yes they live in one of the richest areas in the United States and still have drama on the show, but the story lines and fabulous outlandish lives of the housewives draw the viewers in. The two new "friends" of the housewives Brandi and Dana will add quite the one two punch to the season as Brandi calls herself a slut and Dana flaunts around her $25,000 sunglasses. With housewife Taylor Armstrong's estranged husband's suicide days before the premiere they have edited him out from the season although the looming story line of their terrible and rumored abusive marriage is strong through every episode adding some personal ethos for the viewers. 

    With Miami and D.C. canceled, a revamp of the New York Cast, and lack of a strong audience ratings for the New Jersey season one has to wonder are the Housewives headed for cancellation land?

Playing No More

It's the middle of October... a month after network shows premiered for the first time. There have been many hits but many shows have already been cut from the lineup for their poor viewership and lack of followers. Some are surprised and some you have to wonder what was the network thinking in the first place?

   The Playboy Club... when I saw that this show was canceled I did not even flinch. The idea and concept was good, unique, interesting but the show lacks in audience. Being on the Peacock network with a strong Thursday night comedy lineup male viewers do not tune into NBC as often as they may tune into CBS to watch How I met Your Mother and Two and a Half Men.

 The Playboy brand may have ultimately prevented audiences from even sampling what was ultimately a rather tepid period crime drama. It's a soap, which inherently appeals to women. But it's a brand so tied to men. It was doomed from the start. Early on, the idea of building a primetime series around the Playboy brand seemed like a novel plan. After all, E! Entertainment's The Girls Next Door had helped push Playboy and founder Hugh Hefner into the mainstream — and 60 years after the magazine first launched, Playboy now seemed almost quaint and tame.

    The Playboy Club was doomed from the premiere.

The CW premiered a new reality show H8R which was promoted as a "celebrity confrontation show" The host, Mario Lopez creates situation where celebrities surprise, confront and hope to win over their biggest detractors. Or h8rs, in text-message speak. From my perspective this whole concept is just dumb. Whoever was the producer and made the programming decision to put this on air should reevaluate their priorities.... haters are going to hate especially if the biggest celebrity you can get is Scott Disick, Kourtney Kardashian's boyfriend/baby daddy.