With Utmost Care...

A friend sent me a couple of pics via email.

These captions are too die for...

Was this deliberate?

How to be a Domestic Goddess... and steer away from the regular spaghetti

 

I've uhmmed several times when my friends ask why I rarely eat the usual spaghetti served in parties, especially the ones served in children parties that I forcefully if not humbly decline and go for the chicken lollipops instead. Though there's nothing wrong with the sweetened Filipino version of the spaghetti there's a part of me that harbors craving to more gastronomical pasta experience.

 

Rustic and simple to make, less fuss on ingredients since most are available in every cupboard or if not accessible to purchase in local supermarkets. My version of Spaghetti Aglio Olio e Peperoncino is a work of moments and easily appreciated by foodies and commoners alike.

 

The ingredient lowdown:

 

1. Pasta (Of course)

2. Garlic infused oil, or go for chopped garlic bits

3. Dried chili flakes, or just pull out one live red chili

4. Parsley, if you like

 

Cook the pasta until it becomes al dente, which is defined as cooked but still has that starchy bite. Note to collect a cupful of the pasta water will be used later as an added magic touch to the dish. On a separate pot, gently pour 3-4 tablespoonfuls of garlic infused oil. If you don't have that go for regular oil and flicker but chopped bits of garlic and release their sweet edge until they turn into a bronzed state in which you do have the option to remove it or add to the dish, the reason I use garlic infused oil is obvious, no chopping and mincing, its all in the infused oil.

 

Then add in the dried chili flakes. The dried ones still has their fiery bite and turns out to be less the edge I want, but palatable. If you are looking for some intensity during the rainy days turn up the spicy edge then go for a freshly chopped chili like a tablespoonful of some and slowly wither them in the garlic blessed oil. Then drain the pasta and convey them to the pot containing the lovely sweet smelling lubricant making sure every strand of the pasta is covered, add the cupful of pasta water to add provide the oily sauce more lubricant. This particular recipe requires the pasta to be swimming in its spicy pool of pleasure. Add the parsley if you have.

It's True: Fox Confirms Paula Departure

Fox, FremantleMedia and 19 Entertainment have officialy confirmed Paula Abdul's departure from American Idol and released the following statement:

"Paula Abdul has been an important part of the American Idol family over the last eight seasons, and we are saddened that she has decided not to return to the show. While Paula will not be continuing with us, she's a tremendous talent and we wish her the best."

We love how they make it sound like they had nothing to do with her leaving, when we all know if they had paid up, she'd still be on the show.

But the question remains, if Paula really worth that much money?

Sources say Abdul asked for about $20 million to continue with the show. She even rejected a 30% raise which would have given her an eight-figure multi-year deal.

Whatever the amount was, we're betting it still wasn't as much as Ryan Seacrest's raise, which is probably why she declined.

So now we're stuck with boring Kara DioGuardi.

DioGuardi better loosen up or develop an alcohol problem a personality, because she's just too dull to fill the shoes of our beloved Abdrool.

Now what will Paula do?

Paula Abdul leaving American Idol [James Hibbard's The Live Feed]

First Look At Jake's Prince Of Persia!!!!

Jake Gyllenhaal looks super hawt as Prince Dastan in Jerry Bruckheimer's new film, Prince of Persia: Sands of Time, due out next spring.

Resident Evil Shirt Feasts On The Flesh Of The Living [Comic-con]

The rule is this: convention t-shirts are awful, cheap things you see stuffed in swag bags then only again seen on large men at LAN parties. The exception to that rule is this Capcom shirt for Comic-Con.

To be given away free to advertise Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, it appears at first glance to be part of "the rule"; a rubbish black t-shirt doing nothing but blandly advertising a video game. But there's a trick.

Boo! Nice touch, Capcom.

Man Dies In Chocolate Tank

CAMDEN, N.J. - Police said a 29-year-old man died Wednesday morning after falling into a tank full of chocolate at a Camden business.

Police were called to a warehouse and manufacturing facility on the 700 block of North 36th Street around 10:45 a.m. Wednesday for a report of a man who had fallen into hot chocolate.

According to authorities, the man was working at Lyons and Sons, which leases space to Cocoa Services. That company takes raw chocolate and melts it down to send out to other companies who use chocolate.

Police said the man was standing over the vat of chocolate and was dumping the chunks of chocolate in when he fell in. At least three people turned the emergency shut off, but it was too late because one of the paddles had apparently knocked him out. The chocolate was 120 degrees.

The man had been in the melting pot for about 10 minutes by the time crews arrived. He was declared dead shortly after 11 a.m.

The turnout gear of firefighters at the scene was covered with chocolate, as were the clothes of an obviously distraught co-worker who was being consoled by an EMT.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has been called in to investigate, Fox 29's Robin Taylor reported from the scene.

Man Dies In Chocolate Tank [Fox News]

Angelina Jolie Reportedly Furious Over Megan Fox In Tomb Raider Movie

You may know Megan Fox for her starring role as "Stars-and-Stripes Bikini Kid Dancing Under Waterfall" in Bad Boys 2, or her work as the non-robotic female lead  in the Transformers movies (I think she's credited as "Lip-Gloss-Chick-Who-Poses-On-Motorcycle"). But soon, you may see Fox taking on the role of everyone's favorite 1990s video game heroine, Tomb Raider lead Lara Croft. This casting decision makes me very, very happy. But according to reports, it makes Angelina Jolie very, very pissed.

The next Tomb Raider film is said to focus on Lara Croft's younger years, and Angelina Jolie, 34, is apparently getting a too haggard (by Hollywood standards) to play a young Lara, so Megan (23) has reportedly been tapped for the role. According to an unnamed source quoted by Britain's The Sun tabloid:

"Angie was intent on reprising her role. She feels it's something she helped define and feels robbed that it looks likely to be handed to someone who she considers less capable than her."

And:

 "Angie isn't a fan of the Transformers films and believes Megan won't do the Lara Croft character justice. She's also annoyed because she thinks Megan copies everything from her, from her tattoos to her style."

So the gloves are off and the claws are out!

Leaving aside the issue of whether playing Lara Croft takes some amazing reserve of acting talent, I have a great way to settle the issue: Lingerie pillow-fight. At some douchebag's house. Of course I would document this battle for the internet, and thus it would be part of my job, and my boyfriends won't get mad and gay gamers wouldn't mind seeing.

So which chick is the best Lara Croft? Jolie, Fox, or is there another person who should take the part?

Battle of the Babes... Angelina Jolie and Megan Fox [The Sun UK]

'Hitman' Film Sequel Moves Forward

It has been announced that a sequel to the 2007 video game film, Hitman will move forward. According to IESB, up and coming writer, Kyle Ward (Kane and Lynch, Fiasco Heights) has been brought in by Fox to pen the script to Agent 47's second big screen epic. It is likely that the film will be part of a cross-promotional vehicle for the Hitman franchise as a whole, as Hitman 5 (working title) is expected to hit stores for the 360, PS3, and PC sometime at the end of 2010. (Although seeing as they just hired the writer, that seems likely to be pushed back in 2011.)

Excited? Meh? Personally, I found Hitman to be somewhat entertaining, not terrible, anyway. A sequel is certainly not something that was on a personal wishlist. However, it featured some decent action sequences and Timothy Olyphant pulled off the role competently. Besides the scene where Olyphant smacks around Lost's Henry Ian Cusick (Call Penny now, biatchhh!), the most memorable parts of the film had to be Olga Kurylenko's "sort of" star-making role as a scorned and abused call-girl who accompanies Agent 47 on his quest (for what, I forget.) The image of her sprawled naked on a bed after getting wasted and making a drunken attempt to seduce Agent 47 is one that any guy probably won't forget for a long time. (I don't know what that says about the rest of the film if she was the most memorable part, but...she was.)

I'm sure this will be met with a knee-jerk reaction of "What? WHY would they make a sequel to this inane game film?" Well, the answer is quite simple: nearly $100 million. (Foreign and Domestic Gross.) Hello sequel.

Hitman sequel gets a new writer [IESB.net]

USA Today ROTF coverage with Image of Combined Prime and Jetfire

In an article that documents the filming sequences of the climactic battle of Transformers Revenge of the Fallen, USA Today managed to capture the essence of the film Director Michael Bay's handling of the cast and crew and the way the crew reacted and complied with him.



From calling Josh Duhamal a *bleeping* pansy, to telling a pizza delivery guy to "Get those *bleeping* pizzas the *bleep* out of here!!!", we get a good look at the intensity and focus of the filming of the action film.

Check out the article by clicking here. [USA Today]

Harold Ramis "Glad" He Turned Down Super Mario Bros. Movie

With classic comedies like Caddyshack, Groundhog Day and Analyze This, Harold Ramis has an impressive film director resume — which was almost tarnished by that disastrous Super Mario Bros. flick.

"(Producer) Roland Joffe wanted me to direct the Super Mario Bros. movie," says Ramis. "I took the meeting because I loved the game... I'm glad I said no."

Others who escaped the Super Mario Bros. cinematic train wreck include Danny DeVito, who turned down the role of Mario, and Kevin Costner, who passed on playing King Koopa.

Bob Hoskins accepted the role of Mario and later called the experience "a fucking nightmare". Dennis Hopper ultimately took the role of Koopa, recently saying that he did the picture so his son could have shoes. Nobody needs shoes that bad.

Ramis glad he passed on `Super Mario Bros.' film [AP via Game|Life]

A Very Costly Kiss: Senior Denied Diploma

For teens, there is no greater joy than graduating high school. Shaking off the shackles of education and claiming that hard-fought diploma is truly an epic day. Unfortunately, for several students at Bonny Eagle High School in Maine, their natural exuberance has led to some surprisingly serious problems.

On Friday night, when the senior class was waiting to graduate, excitement began to grow. Students bounced a large inflatable rubber duck. The noise level rose. And then came "the kiss." When called, one student walked on stage to receive his diploma and blew a kiss to his family. The school administrator, clearly not the sentimental sort, sent the student back to his seat ... sans diploma.

The seemingly harsh punishment has sent the Web all aflutter. Searches on "student denied diploma" and "bonny eagle high school" are both through the roof. Additionally, blogs and news papers are chiming in with opinions on whether or not the administration overreacted. The student's mother has given interviews and is quite upset at her son's treatment. According to an article from Fox News the outraged mother said, "A bow, a kiss to your mom is not misbehavior."

But the administrators feel they were just enforcing the rules that students agreed to. At a meeting following the debacle, school superintendent Suzanne Lukas said that "if a student doesn't adhere to the expectations, then the consequences are clearly spelled out."

This isn't the first time that rambunctious (dare we say "fun"?) behavior affected a graduation ceremony at Bonny Eagle. "Four years ago we had some issues with silly string and beach balls," said Lukas.

Source

Remembering Final Fantasy VIII

PopMatters recently posted an extremely in-depth look back at Final Fantasy VIII, exploring the themes, emotions, and insight into human behavior that make one of the most neglected entries in the franchise great.

Final Fantasy VIII was light-years ahead of VII both graphically and in terms of complexity, and perhaps that's the reason the game is one of the most underappreciated games in the Final Fantasy line. I must confess, that before reading Jack Patrick Rodgers' write-up, I considered it one of the weakest entries myself, citing IX as the sweet-spot for PlayStation-era roleplaying games. Now I've got an itch to play through the title once again with a keener eye on the underlying themes, thanks to insightful observations like these:

At one point, Squall's party reaches the site of a recent battle, and one of his traveling companions casually drops a bombshell on everyone else: they're all orphans of the previous world war and grew up at the same orphanage, but their memories of their time together have been erased by the Guardian Forces. The childhood friends that Squall can only dimly recall are in fact his new companions for this mission.

It's a terrific, resonant metaphor: the experience of warfare stole their childhood innocence and is slowly turning them into soldiers who have no purpose except the next battle. More than that, it's a commentary on how the responsibilities and pressures of adulthood can cause us to forget who we once were. Anyone who has ever rediscovered a childhood memento and found old memories flooding back can sympathize with characters who are amazed at how much they've forgotten.

It's a fascinating read, highlighting moments such as the Laguna visions, which while at first strange turn out to be the efforts of a son trying to come to terms with his absent father, or Squall's calling out of Seifer as a bully when the other students are trying to remember him fondly upon news of his apparent execution.

It may not do much to change Final Fantasy VIII's low level of regard amongst fans, but "Remembering the Orphan" will definitely have some looking at the game in a completely new light.

Remembering the Orphan: Final Fantasy VIII [PopMatters]

New 'Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen' Photos Arrive!

I just received a bunch of new photos from “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” from MTV's Splash Page, and since I’m pretty sure there’s no need to introduce my favorite giant robots to all of you out there, let’s get straight to the images, shall we?

Yup, that’s ol’ Optimus Prime himself in the above image. Head over to our “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” gallery for a Devastator-sized heap of photos from the much-anticipated sequel to Michael Bay’s 2007 blockbuster. The first dozen or so were added in the last 24 hours, so take your time and enjoy the mechanized scenery.