Orange juice, television, and Simon Cowell

Around here there's been a lot of talk about the redesign of the Tropicana cartons, mostly about how it sucks, and makes the formerly quite distinctive cartons look like everything else in the juice aisle. Well, you'll be glad to hear it's been charged a failure and much of the old iconography is coming back to a diary case near you. The ads with cuddling dads, however, are staying—which is awesome.

Anyone else watching United States of Tara? I have to say, one episode of that cheered me up from the gloom that four episodes of BSG put me into. It's a very well done show, great acting, great characters. I've always really liked Toni Collette, and it's nice to see a show that gives John Corbett, playing his usual amazing-husband role, a little more to do. The kids are great, too, and there's Rosemarie DeWitt from Rachel Getting Married, and Patton Oswalt, and Nathan Corddry being his usual awesome self. Diablo Cody is the creator and exec producer, though there isn't a clear through line from Juno to Tara; it's more about a sensibility (sort of like Alan Ball with American Beauty and Six Feet Under.) I definitely recommend!

Simon Cowell was recently quoted saying that when he dies he wants his body cryogenically frozen so that they might bring him back to life in the future, saying that "I would be doing the nation an invaluable service." Pretty typical Cowell stuff, except that he said these things at a dinner with the Prime Minister at Downing Street. Oh Simon, never change.

about lizzie fighting monsters

I was just reminded of zombies (can we be done with them already? Also all non-food uses of the phrase "om nom nom" and possibly even the food related ones, because it isn't a funny phrase and never was, and repetition just makes it worse?) Anyway, news of this zombie Pride and Prejudice seems to be filling my flist with glee, but it fills me with massive DO NOT WANT. True, I don't care about zombies, but it isn't even that; in the past when I've wanted to point to a book that is awesome even if it doesn't have much of a plot, I've pointed to P&P. The squeeing over the zombie P&P implies to me that all things are better with the addition of an adventure plot. And that makes me sad.

It's sort of like the whole "we like women who kick ass" trope. Women who kick ass are great, it's true, but so are women who don't. Which is why, while I'm excited about the Glorious Revolution vid (and think you all should watch it) it was the One Girl Revolution vid that made me cry.

I think scientists and pilots and explorers and warriors are great, but my own heroes are writers and historians and musicians and artists and diplomats and people standing on their own two hands going crazy and mostly people just trying to live in this life and not make so many compromises that they lose themselves. I'm reluctant to say these things, even about the zombie P&P, because I don't want to offend anyone who does prefer those things, and I can't get rid of the second-wave feminist niggling in the back of my mind that says, "but there ARE enough women writers and there AREN'T enough women pilots and so you should care more about THAT!" But you know, this is part of that whole project of saying what I think a little more often, even if no one else agrees.

In similar news, apparently I am not old for liking the Oscars after all: cranky old television critics hated it and wanted Fred Astaire to be there.