Hello Very Special Readers! Episode 2 of my podcast is now available. This month we’re talking about 1994’s Trading Mom, also known as The Mommy Market, starring Sissy Spacek and Anna Chlumsky. Want to hear a clip? Check out the video below.
You may remember I covered this movie on this blog way back in 2015. Something a bit different about the podcast is we update the movie for 2023. In this case, that means imagining the moms in the mommy market for 2023–think influencer mom, Lululemon mom, and in the clip below, molecular gastronomy chef mom:
And sometimes we just get silly. Like when Hallie got a 30 second clip of a rap song from the movie stuck in her head but couldn’t remember any of the words…
I should also note that the recording of the podcast, I discovered an error in my original review from 2015. Whoops! I’ve corrected it for the podcast. Can you spot the difference? You can listen here or on Spotify, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, and iHeart Radio.
I know I’ve been sporadically posting for the last few years. The truth is, I just cannot stand the way WordPress is setup now.
Oh how I long for the days of that old school “classic editor”! I can’t tell you how many times I accidentally deleted shit when writing last year’s Summer of Swayze and I kinda just didn’t want to finish it because the formatting process was so cumbersome and unfulfilling. And I don’t feel good about how many projects I’ve deprioritized because it takes too long to make them work on here.
That’s why I’m going to move on over to Substack. I hope you’ll join me! You can either read “The Very Special Blog” directly on Substack or subscribe to receive my newsletter directly to your email. It’s real easy, just head to: https://theveryspecialblog.substack.com/
I’m starting a new series this summer where I will be covering the “Malibu Sands” episodes of Saved by the Bell. In addition to my hot takes on Jesse Spano’s perfect beach waves, you’ll also be receiving a cool homemade ice cream recipe with each episode. (I couldn’t even crack an egg when I started this blog, so if I can make ice cream, then you can too!! As an added bonus my recipes do not require an ice cream machine.)
I’m keeping this blog active because there’s almost eight years worth of content on here! And I’m not ruling out posting on here in the future…but I think it’s time for something new.
Hi. Clearly, I’ve abandoned my posting schedule, whoops. But I had some really good reasons, which I will list below because I don’t want you to think I’ve been ignoring you for no reason:
I was too busy socializing in-person with other vaccinated friends!
I got tired from all the socializing, so instead of rewatching and researching Dirty Dancing, I watched this really delightful movie with Robert DeNiro and Charles Grodin that I thought would be a thriller but actually turned out to be a buddy bounty-hunter/bond jumper movie that even had one of the Fratellis from The Goonies. (Joe Pantoliano, who was also in Risky Business, The Sopranos, and a million other things). Also, Dennis Farina played a mob boss! Anyway, it’s called Midnight Run and I highly recommend it.
I got scared about the Lambda variant because what. the. actual. fuck.
I spent a few days mainlining true crime because that’s evidently what I do when I get anxious. Which to be fair, I am anxious most of the time. But it was really bad this past week (see above regarding Lambda).
I’ve been working on a giant project and my job (which pays me so I have to prioritize it *sigh*).
I finished editing my novel!
I’ve started (thinking about) writing query letters!
Stay tuned for Dirty Dancing in the next few days! I’m drafting!! No more empty promises (I promise)!
In the meantime, please enjoy this clip of El DeBarge on Miami Vice because it has me in a summer mood
I spent so much of my time in the kitchen during 2020 that I enjoy shopping for kitchenware now! I’m obsessed! Here are some things I found on the internet that feel inexplicably important to have in my kitchen:
I’m a bit too old for Blue’s Clues but I really like that a paprika shaker exists in this set because honestly I think we could all use a little more paprika. I really like the idea of having it available on my table in an adorable shaker right next to the salt.
I have no idea when or why I would need this but it feels like a summer must-have for me. Also I’ll point out that the “muglets” appear to be quite small so it seems like they would be best utilized as shot glasses. Proceed with caution.
You know, honestly, this one is just a little wall decor to spruce up the place. I’ve been told my walls are too sterile and I’m trying to be more accepting of feedback now that I’m in my thirties.
I don’t know if it’s the cute little crank or the Toy Story Theme, but this is another item that I find myself undeniably drawn to even though it is rather expensive and I only eat popcorn twice a year because inevitably one kernel will get stuck somewhere in my teeth and it will take me an entire six months to work up the courage to try popcorn again.
My take on this would be to freeze some lemonade and use it to cool off when things get sweltering in July. However — I have read the reviews and there does seem to be some indication that these also work for cake pops.
This is so incredibly disturbing to look at, so I need it. Absolutely one of the funniest moments on the show. And who doesn’t love a little horror with their breakfast?
Do you ever have a moment where you think you’re experience the Mandela Effect but it turns out to be REAL…so yeah I guess that’s actually the opposite of a Mandela Effect.
Anyway, I had a vague memory of being a wee child watching this show on the little TV set in my parents bedroom which like lol idk why my parents were letting a toddler watch a teen show (btw shout out to my mom who is reading this post)! But for years all I could remember is that there was a teen angel who wore a leather jacket and would travel down from heaven to help kids on earth. That is…only if it was real and I didn’t totally fabricate the memory…which it turns out I did not so that’s a win for my cognitive functioning!
I’m also convinced that the other reason I remembered this for oh – I don’t know – a few decades is that Jason Priestly is literally so beautiful my brain encoded his face like a work of art. Just like I cannot remember the first time I saw a picture of the Mona Lisa, I also cannot remember the first time I saw Jason Priestly’s face. And for those of you who are like WOW come on that’s a little heavy handed, please bear in mind that it is my journalistic duty to paint an accurate portrait of the millennial generation’s zeitgeist and I am just reporting the facts!
As it turns out, this show was so incredibly hard to find because it wasn’t a real show. Similarly to how the original Mickey Mouse Club aired short serial shows like “The Hardy Boys,” The All-New Mickey Mouse Club (the one with Britney, Christina, Ryan, Keri, Justin, JC et al) aired “Teen Angel.”
Here is an adorable behind the scenes clip featuring a pre-90210 priestly. (Evidently, Jennie Garth joined him in the sequel serial “Teen Angel Returns” so that’s cute too.)
Also, sorry I’ve been a little MIA. I’ve been busy socializing indoors in-person for the first time in a century and you can too if you get your vaccine!! (Please, please do. I got mine and it made me sleepy, sleepy for a couple of days but nothing too bad and I’m soooooo excited to be inoculated. Woohoo!!)
Oh and also, while you’re living your best roaring 20’s life and you’re maybe not in front of the computer so much, here’s a friendly reminder that we’re fully mobile friendly over here at The VSB and I will miss you all if you don’t continue to read this shit and leave me comments. THANK YOU!! — The MGMT.
Do you love the saving for retirement? Do you love Cheers? You do?! You love both!! Great. I have a very special “lost episode” for you.
At the top of this episode, or should I say mini-episode (because it clocks in at less than twelve minutes long), Cliff announces that he will be taking a trip to Tahiti by using his savings bonds.
Sam says he’s thinking of buying some savings bonds as well, but Diana poo-poos this and says they offer poor returns. But fun fact, this episode was commissioned by the U.S. Treasury, so for once Cliff gets to be right. Even better, you get to hear Norm actually talk about accounting and sound like he’s good at his job instead of just someone who sits at a bar when he’s supposed to be working.
When Carla and Coach admit that they don’t have many savings, Sam decides to start a payroll savings plan for the bar BECAUSE IT IS NOT THAT HARD TO BE A FAIR AND EQUITABLE EMPLOYER. This short film should be required management training!!!!
The rest of the episode is pretty dry. I’m so sorry to say that because if Cheers cannot make retirement planning interesting to me, then I’m probably doomed to work until I literally drop dead because I won’t have grasped the key fundamentals necessary to create my nest egg. Anyway, maybe you’ll get something more out of it than I did.
2020 has been nothing if not bizarre. So let’s round-out the year with a look back the moments when your favorite tv shows got well, weird.
So in case you’re like — hey, hey wait as second what is a bizzaro episode anyway? It’s anytime a show breaks from form or tone in such a remarkable way that the episode gives regular viewers an uncanny feeling. As Pop Culture Crime says of one dark episode of I Love Lucy, “I felt like I was in the midst of a weird fever dream.” If that’s the vibe you’re getting from a show you regularly watch (unless that show is Twin Peaks) then chances are — you’re viewing a bizarro episode!
Stay tuned this week for an in-depth look at bizarre episodes of The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Miami Vice, and Murder, She Wrote.
Let’s not mince words. We’re swiftly moving into winter, the days are short, and the quarantine is long. I’m comforting myself with the emotional weighted-blanket that it several seasons of Grey’s Anatomy. (I started watching for the first time in August! Wow, what a ride! It’s a soap opera! I didn’t realize! Now I’m addicted! But that isn’t the point of this post!)
Anyway, the point is that 2020 is weird. And sometimes when you’re binge watching, you also need a task to help with the crippling anxiety. We are utilitarian people and we need to feel handy!
As a small child, people tried to encourage me to do puzzles to help with my motor skills or cognitive reasoning or whatever and yet, for DECADES, I have felt that puzzles are unequivocally boring. However, many fellow humans have told me that they’ve found puzzles satisfying during COVID times. So idk, maybe I’ll give them another shot. (But probably not.)
In the event that I decide to give puzzles another go, I did some research on potentially cool ones. I’ve decided to share that research with you in case you do not have the same lifelong hatred of puzzles that I seem to have buried deep, deep within my soul.
Also I wrote a post several years ago about novelty television board games. So if you’re anti-puzzle like me but you love board games (also like me), then might I recommend checking that out for inspiration?
Blockbuster Clueless Poster VHS puzzle available for $10.43 at Hot Topic
1000 PIECE PUZZLES
The Golden Girls “I Heart Miami” available for $14.99 at Target
Friends Milkshake Puzzle available for $19.95 at the WB Shop
Die Hard Nakatomi Plaza available for $29.99 from Target
“The Color of Fun” Crayola puzzle available for $19.95 at The Paper Store
I know the last one doesn’t fit the theme. But doesn’t a box of crayons just make you feel safe?
You know what though, the more I think about it…the more I’m like…that Golden Girls “Stay Golden” puzzle is super cute, so maybe I will order that one. I finally came around to cooking in quarantine, so truly anything is possible.
2020 is once again kicking us while we’re down! Netflix announced yesterday that GLOW is canceled. As many of you may know, the show had begun filming its fourth season when shooting shutdown due to the pandemic. And it appears that the pandemic has now ended the shows run for good. I don’t even production teams (especially those with larger casts) for struggling to navigate this unprecedented landscape. My first instinct, of course, is to wallow in sorrow forever. But I’ve decided to share a list of coping strategies instead:
3. Re-Design their fabulous costumes with the fan-made coloring book. If you’ve ever wanted the opportunity to lend your artistic-hand to some of GLOW’s most famous spandex attire, now’s your chance with this super cute coloring book from Department of Awesome on Etsy.
4. Organize your friends to send a can of Summer’s Eve to Netflix, demanding they fund a special series finale when this is all over. When promoting the shows first season a few years ago, Betty Gilpin mentioned that a can of Summer’s Eve appeared on set as a joke until they all realized how intimate the wrestling scenes were and people started actually using it. I’m not endorsing this product — that’s between you and your gyno — but it definitely seems like a way to get Netflix’s attention! Here’s a list of other fan campaigns for inspiration. If you have a better idea, let me know in the comments!
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