Ryno-Vision: Boardwalk Empire, Politics on Facebook, Pumpkin Beer & more...

How do you concentrate when there's so much going on in the world? I can't. But here's 12 things that have come across my brain desk this week...

Always nice to get my band, Me & My Drums, back together.

I love Boardwalk Empire and try to not to say anything bad about it. But here’s something I realized the other day- True Blood has gotten frustrating to watch because they’ve added too many story lines and with each one hour episode, there is roughly 25-35 minutes included that I simply don’t care about. The show was at its best when it was just keeping it simple (i.e. crazy vampire plots & storylines.) Boardwalk is edging dangerously close to this same problem; especially this season. I’ll stick with it, but I won’t be totally surprised when Owen Sleater reveals himself to be some kind of magical leprechaun.

“Pleaseproceed, Governor” is the new “Go eff yourself, San Diego.”

I do enjoy a good Yankees’ loss.

“I have to go pick up Gandhi’s grandson,” I said.
“That’s not something you hear every day,” Erin replied.
“It’s not something I say every day.”

I think that in general, politics don’t really belong on Facebook- although when thinking about it a little more, I guess it’s fine. I just wish there was a filter I could set up that blocked people’s political posts. Facebook as a whole could really benefit from more filters: parents filters, work filters, inside joke filters. But as far as politics go, I ignore most of the things people put up, but one picture stuck out at me and I’m still not sure what it meant. A friend from college posted a picture of the following: Ronald Reagan wielding a chain saw, George Bush hauling brush & Barack Obama awkwardly swinging a pick ax. Are we supposed to vote for the person who landscapes the best? If that were the case, wouldn’t Mitt Romney’s landscaping company have the best case for being President? Wouldn’t Carl Spackler be the new Reagan? I’m confused about this one.

Hardest decision of the week: haunted hayride or haunted walk. I have no idea how you pick one over the other and what your basis would be for doing so.

Best Shows on Television Right Now (in no particular order & determined by yours truly): Homeland, Parks and Recreation, Boardwalk Empire, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and The Office. Yes, The Office. It’s making a comeback in its final season. Biggest difference between this season and last season is that this season I’m laughing because things are funny, not laughing because I feel bad for the show and feel like I should.

Your weekly SAT Analogy- CVS : Rite Aid :: Target : Wal Mart

Local Natives are back, which is great news.

I can’t tell if I’m bad at fantasy football or just unlucky. Either way, I’m not winning, which is unfortunate. Get your shit together Matthew Stafford!

How come the weirdness of Mormonism hasn’t been talked about more during this election? I mean, that shit’s weird.

Pumpkin flavored beer is my favorite non-beer tasting beer.

The Thursday Boom Boom Room: Quick Hits for the start of September.

Batteries and bottled water won’t be a problem the next time a hurricane comes around. Kim and I seem to be all set on that front. However, if Comcast doesn’t put more shows Ondemand, then we’ll have a problem. How do you have the entire season of Game of Thrones available except for the first episode? And really, you’re only going to give us three random episodes of season two of Madmen?

Shouldn’t Dick Cheney be answering questions about war crimes and not about his new book? Either way, he shouldn’t be allowed on TV before noon. Seeing his face is no way to start a day.

I’m pretty certain Rick Perry scares the bejesus out of me. And as far as Michelle Bachman goes- she has already entered the Not Even Funny Anymore Zone, a zone already occupied by George W. Bush’s presidency, steroids in baseball and Sarah Palin.

I still think it will be the Phillies versus the Red Sox in the World Series, but after watching last night’s Sox/Yankees game, I’m very excited for an American League Championship series featuring the two.

Pandora is out, Last FM is in. Grooveshark may be up next.

Since seeing My Morning Jacket last week, they are all I want to listen too. I’ve had to install a temporary ban on them in attempt to prevent myself from over-listening to them. Previous bans have been placed on Rogue Wave, the new Beastie Boys album, Local Natives and Rustic Overtones.

Restaurant Impossible is my new favorite show on TV. It’s amazing on some many levels. I love the devotion and passion of Robert Irvin, as well as his brutal honesty. The last five minutes of the show isn’t even the best part of me. I love the “come to Jesus” moment he seems to have with each restaurant owner at some point of the show and I have mad respect for Tom, his construction virtuoso.

Tucked in polo shirts are bothering me less, but not to the extent that I will wear them once summer is over. They are purely functional. I don’t necessarily feel like less of a tool when I wear one, but I at least feel a little more comfortable.

In the end, I miss flip flops the most.

I’m not sure the US is really in the position to be telling other countries (i.e. Libya) how to run their country.

Television has taught me one thing lately- I need to find some old valuable shit to sell. We watched this show, Buried Treasure, last night, where these two kind of creepy, kind of nice twins drive around in Land Rover and appraise random things people find in their attics and basements. Last night’s episode had them checking out old comic books (not worth as much as the nerdy owner hoped,) a violin (not an original and hence not worth a million dollars, only $300) and the prized possessions of a hoarder with a foul-mouthed daughter (sitting on shit worth almost $150,000.) We took one thing away from the show and that was that someone needs to leave us something that is old and worth money. We looked around the apartment and couldn’t find anything that fit that description and I don’t think I have the patience to go antiquing. Inheriting seems to be our only option.

I can’t wait to get married.

Trying to figure out what you want in life and how to get whatever that is might be the hardest thing I’ve ever had to figure out- even harder than deciding what kind of cereal to buy.

A pitcher should only be in the running for MVP if they flat out carry a team like C.C. Sabathia did a few years ago after being traded to the Brewers. If not, then they a just the Cy Young winner, not the MVP. I’m sorry Justin Verlander. You’ve pitched 200 innings and your team has played almost 1,500. That just doesn’t add up. It pains me to say it, but Curtis Granderson is having a hell of a year. I think the winner will be determined in the second half of September. I also wonder if we are looking at co-Cy Young winners in the National League with Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee splitting the award.

Still have concerns about Burnsy’s Dumpster Fire, my one fantasy team that matters. It’s the thin bench that concerns me. My other two teams, teams I put together just for kicks, look much better. That’s kind of a bummer.

Love the Pats this year, but the Steelers still scare me. I think the Jets will take a step back, the Chargers will be dangerous and the Packers will repeat in the NFC with the Eagles just getting to ten wins. My Superbowl winner? Probably nachos.

Hard to believe MTV can still have Video Music awards considering they don’t show videos anymore.

When the Red Sox inevitably build a statue of Jason Varitek outside of Fenway Park, it should be a hundred feet tall.