Name 5 character deaths that surprised or shocked you. I had to think about it because sometimes I was spoiled on plot twists so these were the ones I came up with.

I added an extra one because it was pretty shocking as a child.

1. Doyle on Angel.
2. Catherine Chandler on Beauty and the Beast
3. Gary dying on Thirtysomething.
4. Christopher Lorenzo on Silk Stalkings.
5. The beheading of Richie by Duncan MacLeod in Highlander or Methos being beheaded by Duncan MacLeod in the alternate universe.
6. Mr. Hooper on Sesame Street. The actor playing him died suddenly and they acknowledged his passing by teaching kids and Big Bird a lesson on death. I was 9 at the time and I remember being sad that he wouldn’t get to talk to Big Bird anymore.

What isthe difference between a SATA hard drive and a solid state drive? Is one better than the other? I need to buy a new laptop so I’m trying to decide between components on two laptops - the Dell Inspiron 13” and the Dell XPS M1330. I like Dell so I'm sticking with them and want a lighter laptop to travel with.

So people any ideas?

It’s a world gone mad in Albany. Republicans take control of NY Senate. Ok, this is when I wish I knew more about our laws on getting rid of these kinds of Senators. What the hell? They’re supposed to be Democrats and were put into office by constituents who expected them to support their point of view. And now they’ve switched sides? They’re supporting the GOP. Well, great. Goodbye any chance of gay people getting married in this state or anything that helps the underrepresented. Espada is now the Senate President? Gee, wonder how he got that job!!! The other asshat Senator has been indicated on felony charges. Why is he still there?

Good god, it’s like some people were hit with the stupid stick repeatedly. This is just appalling. If you’re going to be Republican, then switch your damn party and let your constituents be represented by the party they voted for, but this…it’s ridiculous. Not to mention, why the hell wasn’t Mr. Felony forced to resign? Politics in NY is getting insane.

OH.MY.GOD. BBC2 is producing a film version of the RSC production of HAMLET starring all the original cast including DAVID TENNANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

YES!!!! SQUEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

::::::cartwheels across the room::::

I've been praying like crazy this would happen after vampgaia and I missed him in December. WAHOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

For more info, go here. This is *so* great.

Obama has nominated federal appeals judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court, making her possibly the first Hispanic justice. She's an interesting choice. I can't wait to see the arguments against her from the Republicans.

You can read the full story here: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/27/us/politics/27court.html?ref=global-home

On Sunday, bethbethbeth, fuja and I went to see Mary Poppins on Broadway. This excursion was due in part to our vow to go out and experience Broadway more often as it is available to us. It was also their delightful way of humoring me and my desire to be 12 years old. Who doesn’t want to sing along to "Chim-Chim-Cher-ee," "A Spoonful of Sugar,"  "Let's Go Fly a Kite" or “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious”?

First if you are ever plan on attending this production, be aware that this is not the saccharine Disney movie version (which to be completely honest I loved) but an amalgamation of the film with the darker book. While I did enjoy the show as the musical numbers were fantastic as were the costumes and sets, I did think some things were off and I’m not sure if I’d take a child to see it.

I mean in this version sometimes Mary is the sweet, kind nanny taking Jane and Michael for an adventure in the park or dances with them on the London rooftops (although that’s one hell of a case for child endangerment) but at other times she’s downright vicious. I mean what kind of nanny tortures her charges for mistreating their toys? Plus, for half the show, she had a frozen look on her face that resembled more a psychopath or a Stepford wife than a woman you’d leave your kids with.  

Oh, and Mr. Banks isn’t a typical Victorian man, passionate about order and discipline who leaves the raising of his children to others,  but someone who was emotionally, mentally and mostly likely physically abused by his former nanny, Miss Andrews, the holy terror! And his wife isn’t fighting for women’s suffrage but to be accepted into polite society and throw tea parties. Erm….then why the hell do you need a nanny?

One of the things they didn’t change was the lovable, wise-cracking chimney sweep Bert. The actor playing him was brilliant. His physicality, his timing and his joy in being Bert just came through in every one of his scenes. I mean the man tap dances upside down at one point!

The finale is cool as Mary Poppins makes her exit by actually flying out and up into the audience reaching the highest level of the theater. Being the twisted gal that I am, I thought a. what if the house lights come up and she’s still dangling there? And b. it must suck to be her as she has to now be untangled from the wires and race down several flights of stairs to make her curtain call. *g*

That being said, we had a great time. I still think that maybe Mary in this production wasn't really magical but that she was slipping those kids something in that bottle of medicine. A spoonful of sugar or a strong hallucinogenic drug? I'm telling you, she looked like a Stepford Nanny! J

They were filming today in Cardiff and apparently, there are some very cool guest stars for David's final episodes. Click on the link below to see pictures from today's filming.

DOCTOR WHO SPOILERS

I have to say SQUEE!!!!

One of the lovely things of not going to school at night, is that once again, I am watching TV that is currently on the air, as opposed to re-runs or my DVDs. Not to say, I do not love, love, love my Doctor Who DVDs and the lovely David Tennant, because I so do. I make a point of watching at least one episode every week. I just wished I hadn’t missed out when they first came out, but alas my nights were TV free. But like everything else, I'm now catching up with a vengence.

Life on Mars

Case in point, I missed the original British run of Life on Mars with John Simms, although once I saw him as the Master on Doctor Who, I went and watched his show. Brilliant. The show and John Simms were just brilliant. And while the US version is different, I really do love Life on Mars with Jason O'Mara.

Not surprisingly though, it got cancelled. I do miss the 80’s and early 90’s  in regards to how shows that needed to find an audience were given a chance to do so. Otherwise, lots of shows back then would have been axed. At least, with this show, they gave them the chance to show all their episodes and to do a finale so people aren’t left hanging. Still, blows though. Jason O’Mara is very good and I hope someone snatches him up and tosses him into another show.

Ashes to Ashes

This is the sequel to the British series, Life on Mars. At first, I was like, well it’s just a repeat of what happened to Sam. But it’s actually pretty good. I’m loving Gene’s softer side, ok still a ball buster and he’ll still crack your head open with his car door, but he’s mellowed a little. Sam’s fate has me confused and pissed if there isn’t a bigger story behind it. DI Alex Drake is a pretty interesting character on her own. She’s playing with the big boys in  1981 and holding her own, even if she has the crappiest 80’s hair and shoulder-padded wardrobe. Keeley Hawes matches the other actors in her scenes and has integrated herself pretty well, which had to be hard because Sam(John Simms) was just such a great fit to those guys. They’re showing series 1 on BBC-America right now and I hope they get a second series.

LOST

Well, I gave up watching when I couldn’t keep up with it. You miss one episode you have a chance of catching up, you miss a season well, hell, you are so screwed. Thus, this was my summer of catch-up so I could be ready for this season. Mother of god, there has been a crapload of things going on. Half the time, I’m still not sure who I should be rooting for. And as for last night’s episode. Holy shit!!! It’s a world gone mad. And if watching all my time travel shows has taught me anything, you can’t do what Said did and not have some serious ramifications in the ripple of time.  Big time bad stuff coming.  I  mean, did Said, just never find the time to catch an old episode of Star Trek? Any of the Back to the Future movies? The information is out there. I bet Hurley would have known better. Still, I love that I’m sitting there yelling at my tv screen. Oh, it’s like the old days, when I realized Buffy was actually going to boff Spike in a collapsing building.  Good times. *g*

Bones

This show just gets better and better. I love the chemistry between Booth and Bones. Sure, there’s some sexual tension but what I love is their very real friendship. And while, I’d probably puke my guts out in real life if I was in front of the corpses they work on, I find it all fascinating to watch. This show is one I’ll probably end up getting on DVD because the cases are just as cool to watch unfold as the relationships in the Smithsonian lab.

Family Guy, Robot Chicken & the Simpsons

What can I say? I have a twisted sense of humor and the first two keep feeding it.  Sometimes, it’s so wrong but you can’t help what makes you laugh. As for the Simpsons, I’ve watched since they first appeared on the Tracy Ullman show and I’ve never stopped watching. They are classic, they are funny and never a bad episode.

Sign up for a day with James including an exclusive acting "Marstersclass" on Saturday, May 2, at The Drill Hall in London.

James will be taking to the stage to offer people a rare opportunity to see how he tackles acting roles and gets under the skin of a character as part of a day and evening that also includes a concert, Q&A sessions, personalised autographs, photos and much more.

The masterclass will see him join forces with Torchwood co-star Gareth David-Lloyd to offer a behind-the-scenes peek into the world of acting followed by a question and answer session about stage, TV and film work.

Tickets go on sale at 16:00 on Friday, February 27.

Full information about the event and tickets.

I'm watching because I do love award shows. I was worried about Hugh Jackman (not because he can't do it, anyone who saw him on Broadway knows he can rock the house) but because the writing for the host can go so wrong. But god love him, he committed to that opening number. And he looks hot!!! Plus, come on, he sat on Frank Langella's lap. Hee!

Supporting Actress, Penelope Cruz: You know, I don't alway love her acting but she does have a knack for playing comedy and well, yay for being the first Spanish actress to getting the Oscar. I did like her speech.

**This thing about playing music even while the presenters speak is annoying.
**Tina Fey and Steve Martin funny!!! 

Best Original Screenplay: "Milk", Dustin Lance Black Very emotional speech
Best Adapted Screenplay: "Slumdog Millionaire",by Simon Beaufoy  He seemed a bit confused.
Best Animated Feature: "Wall-E", Andrew Stanton  I haven't seen it but lots of people told me it was pretty good. Why do they keep cutting to Angelina and Brad? Yes, Jennifer Aniston is presenting. Ooooooooooo!! Grow up.
Best Animated Short Film: "La Maison en Petits Cubes", Kunio Kato. He was funny. Come on, Mr. Roboto! That is gold!
Best Art Direction: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" Cool.
Best Costumes: "The Duchess", Michael O'Connor  Movie was bleech for me, but those were some slamming outfits. 
Best Make Up: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button", Greg Cannom 

**Ben Stiller mocking Joaquin Phoenix!!! ROFLMAO!!!! I mean who doesn't think he's gone batshit crazy?

**Hee, the musical number was cool. The whole time I was thinking this sounds like Baz Lurhman and I was right.
Best Supporting Actor:
Heath Ledger as the Joker in The Dark Knight I am so glad. He was brilliant in this and heartbreaking in Brokeback Mountain and Monster Ball.