JLooney.com

So Megan and I went over to my mom’s last night, presumably for my nephew’s birthday party. My idiot brother Brian told me the wrong day, so it was just mom and dad chillin’ by the fire on a Sunday night.

Megan and I started chatting with mom and dad, and (as happens from time to time in my conversations) the subject turned to food. I asked my dad if he’d had a chance to try one of the amazing Chicago Red Hots served up over at Johnnie Beef’s? Dad replies that he hasn’t, and suggests that we go get one. Incidentally, if you haven’t had one, you really should – they’re all kinds of tasty, and they even have a Utah Dog. So Megan and I head off into the snow storm to get hot dogs.

Guess what? Johhnie beefs is closed on Sunday.

So we call in an order to Chili’s. It’s not a hot dog, but Chili’s is good, right?

Well, we pick up the order, get back to mom and dad’s, and you can probably guess what happened from my artwork above. Yep, Chili’s managed to get 1 out of our 4 orders right.

I mean, I pretty much EXPECT Taco Bell to screw up my order. Hell, these days I just pull up to the window and say “hey, I got twenty bucks. Put some stuff in a bag and I’ll come around and pick it up.” I mean, it doesn’t really matter what I order, they just put what they want in the bag anyway, so why not be honest about it?

But I didn’t expect it from Chili’s. I honestly can’t recollect an order they have ever screwed up for me.

I suppose it turned out ok, I mean we all ate what was there. I just hate when restaurants screw my order up.

So it’s time again for the Academy Awards, and this years nominees were announced yesterday. No big surprises on who was nominated (although I’m dissapointed and bugged – more on that later), but I was a little baffled by some of the obvious exclusions. 

Clint Eastwood received no recognition for Gran Torino, Dev Patel from Slumdog Millionaire was in my opinion noticeably absent from the Best Actor category, and The Dark Knight got hosed, missing out on expected Best Picture and Best Director nominations.

The thing that bothers me about the list is that Benjamin Button received 13 nominations. Best Actor? You know I esteem Brad Pitt pretty highly, but this is far from his best work. Best Picture? I can name a dozen films more deserving. Best Director? Again, by no means David Fincher’s best work and there are several directors I would have chosen over him this year. Art Direction? Nah. Cinematography? Nope. Editing? C’mon… Best Makeup? Yeah, now you’re getting warmer.

It just feels like the Academy is letting the Oscars turn into a farcical exhibition of *non, nod wink, wink* “winners” like every other awards show, rather than a genuine recognition of talent and accomplishment.

Anyway, here’s the list with my picks for winner in bold.

Best Picture

‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’

‘Frost/Nixon’

‘Milk’

‘The Reader’

‘Slumdog Millionaire’

Best Actor

Richard Jenkins ‘The Visitor’

Brad Pitt ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’

Frank Langella ‘Frost/Nixon’

Sean Penn ‘Milk’

Mickey Rourke ‘The Wrestler‘

Best Actress

Anne Hathaway ‘Rachel Getting Married’

Melissa Leo ‘Frozen River’

Meryl Streep ‘Doubt’

Angelina Jolie ‘Changeling’

Kate Winslet ‘The Reader’

Best Supporting Actor

Josh Brolin ‘Milk’

Robert Downey Jr. ‘Tropic Thunder’

Philip Seymour Hoffman ‘Doubt’

Heath Ledger ‘The Dark Knight’

Michael Shannon ‘Revolutionary Road’

Best Supporting Actress

Amy Adams ‘Doubt’

Penelope Cruz ‘Vicky Cristina Barcelona’

Viola Davis ‘Doubt’

Taraji P. Henson ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’

Best Director

David Fincher ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’

Ron Howard ‘Frost/Nixon’

Gus Van Sant ‘Milk’

Stephen Daldry ‘The Reader’

Danny Boyle ‘Slumdog Millionaire’

Best Animated Feature Film

‘Bolt’

‘Kung Fu Panda’

‘Wall-E’

Best Adapted Screenplay

‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’

‘Doubt’

‘Frost/Nixon’

‘The Reader’

‘Slumdog Millionaire’

Best Original Screenplay

‘Frozen River’

‘Happy-Go-Lucky’

‘In Bruges’

‘Milk’

‘Wall-E’

Ryan Seacrest is stupid, and we’ve all pretty much assumed that since the first season of American Idol. He really secured his place as the dumbest person alive last night on the season premier by trying to high-five a blind kid. What makes this such a brilliant illustration of his stupidity is that he knew the kid was blind, and this wasn’t just an innocent mistake. And what really makes me laugh is the moment he realizes what an idiot he is, and decides to reach down and touch the kid’s hand awkwardly while telling the kid what a moron he just was for trying to high-five him.

Check it out:

For those of you old enough to remember, The Muppet Show was a family show from years gone by that showcased celebrities and other talent amidst the backdrop of Jim Henson’s genius. 

If you ever watched The Muppet Show or Sesame Street and thought how dorky some of the characters looked, here’s your chance to make your own muppet, brought to you by F.A.O. Schwartz.

http://www.fao.com/catalog/factories/muppets.jsp

How many of you have ever been to one of those Payday Loan places? 

I have, and it’s not good. Even the energy and feeling you get when you walk in is pretty grim.

I took out a payday loan a few years back – nothing major, $600 was all. We were going to Disneyland and I didn’t get paid until the day we got back, so it was just a means to get a small advance. The 391% Annual Interest rate didn’t bother me because it was only for a week and a half – no big deal.

When we got back, of course other things came up, and I only paid some of the loan back. My next payday again left me unable to pay all the bills and pay off the loan, so I paid the minimum again. To make a long story short, by the time I had the loan paid off, I’d paid the lender back nearly $5,000 for a $600 loan, and my story is not unique.

I’ve known several people that every payday means a trip to the Payday Loan place to pay the interest and extend the loan, never even having a prayer of paying anything towards the principle and paying off the loan. In my opinion, it’s a predatory business that caters to the people least able to survive financially.

In May of this year, Ohio passed H.B. 545, capping the annual percentage rate at 28%, extending the repayment period to 31 days instead of 14 and making the maximum loan amount $500, down from $800. 

I’m generally not a fan of government oversight and/or regulation, but I also beleive that in some instances regulation is necessary. Utah may want to consider something along these lines.