Overrated, Part Two

Remember this post? Since I wrote it I have thought of some more stuff that everyone loves for reasons that I don't understand. And I thought that I would share that list with all of you:


OK, so Jack’s tunes aren’t cringe worthy or anything (unless you count Bubbly Toes and that one where he gets all sappy about newscasters), but to me they’re just kind of blah. Every time I listen to his music I’m thinking “dude, I get it. You’re from Hawaii and you want everyone to mellow out. Can you sing about something a little more interesting now?” I guess what I’m trying to say is this: if guitar-strumming troubadours were ice cream flavors, Jack Johnson would be vanilla and Mason Jennings, Matt Costa, and Brett Dennen would be the chocolate, strawberry, and praline pecan of the bunch. And I have always claimed that life is too short to eat plain vanilla ice cream.

Pat’s Barbecue
I really want to like this place, mostly because I have heard it talked up by no less than Guy Fieri, but the meal I ate there was decidedly sub-par. The ribs were tough and chewy, the baked beans tasted of pure vinegar, and even the coleslaw was off. It was a weekday night so maybe Pat’s was not playing their A-game, but I think I will stick with Joe Morley’s next time the carnivore in me demands some attention.

Sex and the City


This show is pretty and all, but I have a really hard time understanding why so many women are obsessed with it, seeing as all the characters drive me absolutely crazy. If the modern single woman is indeed as one-dimensional, shallow, and self-indulgent as these four, then I say give me the homely spinsters of yesteryear. I would recommend watching it on mute so you can still see all the fun clothes and New York hot spots but avoid listening to the drivel that spills out of everyone’s mouths.

Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s move on to the stuff that really is as cool as people claim it is:

TOMS shoes

Since my style can usually be described as anywhere between “casual” and “homeless chic” (I wore birkenstocks in my engagement pictures), these shoes are a godsend: comfortable, stylish, and essentially slippers elevated to shoe status. There is a reason that everyone and their dog is wearing them these days. Plus for every pair of shoes you buy, TOMS donates a pair to a child in need. All the more reason to add these and these to my collection.

Food, Inc.
You’ve probably heard about this movie from at least five people you know and read about it on many a blog. And if you still haven’t seen it you really should. This documentary, although a bit melodramatic at times, is a really comprehensive look at the food industry in America. In a sense, it completes the project that films like Supersize Me and books like Fast Food Nation started. Even if it doesn’t convince you to eat less meat or buy organic, I think it’s still empowering to know where your food comes from. And for those of you that have seen this and are interested in learning more, I would recommend reading Michael Pollan’s books. His In Defense of Food is what got me interested in this topic in the first place.

Glee
Sometimes the cheesiness of this show makes me want to bury my face in the couch cushions, yet I can’t help but love it. The awesome musical numbers, coupled with over-the-top characters and crazy plotlines, make for quite the feel-good hour of television. And can we all just agree that Sue Sylvester is one of the greatest TV characters ever created? See below if you need convincing:







I rest my case.