Cell Phones (2 out of 5 cupcakes)

I was on a flight to Arizona to visit my grandparents for Thanksgiving and the following exchange took place between the woman next to me and the stewardess:
Stewardess:  *to everyone* Please put away your electronic devices.
Stewardess:  *a little later* Please put away your cell phone, maam.
Woman:  *on the phone*  I love you honey.  We're taking off soon.
Stewardess: *more firmly* Please put away your cell phone.
Woman:  *angrily* I heard you!  I'm going to put it away!
Stewardess:  Ok, but I asked you three times.
Woman:  *again angrily* We're not taking off untill 7:15!
At this point it is about 7:10 and the stewardess just walked off to finish her preflight job and the woman finally put away her cell phone.  This whole drama was precipitated because a woman NEEDED to communicate to her loved one that she was on the plane and about to take off.  That's it.  And when told that she needed to knock it off, she got really defensive.  It was like when the police were trying to take away my crack and I bit the police to try to get it back because I NEED it.   (JOKING)

Don't get me wrong, I think cell phones are awesome.  I can reach people from anywhere (except my own apartment, which is in a dead zone), I will never get lost because of the GPS, and I don't even need a real deck of cards to play solitare.  I can check my email or my bank account from anywhere!  How amazing is that?  Pretty darn amazing, I say!   But I can live without it. I remember a time not too long ago when cell phone didn't even exist.  We had to wait till we got home to use the phone.  We had to use paper maps and actually go to a building and talk to people to manage our money.  We survived, didn't we?  We were happy, weren't we?  We weren't plugged in 24/7 and when we left work, we actually left work.  The advent of cellphones ruined all of that and people got addicted.  My students and friends constantly have cellphones in their hands and have a hard time focusing on what is around them because of what is on the little screen.  Conversations are disjointed, driving is unsafe, and tempers flare.  Have you ever tried to disengage someone from thier cellphone in order to talk face to face with them?  It's like taking a steak away from a lion.

Diana James, a consumer behavior expert who has done cell phone use surveys, says, "The paradox of the phone is that it gives independence but it also creates dependence."(1)  Scientists have found that getting a call or text produces a positive reinforcement cycle in the brain.  Whenever that beep goes off when you have a text, your brain releases chemicals that make you feel good.  It's like gambling. (2)  That text might contain something postive and exciting, so you feel compelled to check your phone and respond.  If that particular text wasn't too great, the next one might be better.  You just can't miss that chance!  Have you ever forgotten your phone at home?  Can't stop thinking about it?  What are you missing?  How are you going to contact everyone?  What if someone calls and you don't pick up?  Are you going to lose friends and lovers?  Dear God!  The world is going to end!!  Or can you take a second to relax, disconnect, look up, and enjoy the world and people in front you?

And I quote:
(1) http://psychcentral.com/news/2007/02/01/cell-phone-addiction/592.html
(2) http://www.forbes.com/2008/06/15/cellphone-addict-iphone-tech-wireless08-cx_wt0616addict.html

Interesting articles about cell phone addiction:
http://www.apa.org/gradpsych/features/2011/cell-phone-addiction.aspx
http://news.ufl.edu/2007/01/18/cell-addiction/

This comic and video perfectly summarizes how I feel:
(The Oatmeal's love/hate relationship with cell phones) http://theoatmeal.com/comics/smartphone
(Louis C.K.'s rant about technology) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8r1CZTLk-Gk

Hey!  Are you checking this out on your cell phone?

Cirque du Soleil's Totem (4 out of 5 cupcakes)

I love me some Cirque.  These clowns aren't scary.  Animals aren't abused.  And the guys are HOT!  But really, it was fantastic.

It's advertised as "a fascinating journey into the evolution of mankind" and it is just that.  It jumps back and forth through time, showing beautifully choreographed snippets of our history.  I was disappointed that there wasn't really a story to follow:  it was more of a series of short skits.  But those skits were fascinating!

Some highlights were the woman with the amazing abs, the Chinese girls on the unicycles tossing bowls onto their heads, Native American hoop dancing, and the group of Russian looking men who carried tall poles on their shoulders while their friends did tricks off off of them.  My absolute favorite was the couple falling in love on the trapeze.  Their performance was beautifully choreographed and seamlessly executed.  I was totally charmed.  Although I have to say that some moments were a bit racy for small kids.  Many of the players stripped down to their skivies in order to do their stunts after a bit of acting and there were a few instances of subtle lovemaking.  I suppose this is necessary if mankind was to evolve, huh?  I'm not complaining (actually it was great), but it may not be appropriate for some kids.  Everybody will love the hilarious clowns and the beautiful music.  If I haven't convinced you to go yet, I have three words for you:  Rollerskating Native Americans.

I'd like to send a special shout out to all of the people who worked on this thing...it was expertly designed.  You all gotta check out the engineering on that stage...super genius!  Thanks to my best friend for an awesome Christmas gift!!

Hey check this out!

Grimm, 4 out of 5 cupcakes

It's just enough.  Just enough mystery to keep you interested, yet satisfied.  Just enough gore to keep it suspenseful, but not disgusting.  Just enough humor to make me chuckle.  Just enough episodes to make me want to watch the next one.

Grimm is only two episodes in, but has already captured my attention.  It is a fairytale-come-true about a homicide detective who has just found out that he is a Grimm, a family of "things that go bump in the night" killers.  He seems to take up his task with gusto, a little confusion, and a fair amount of chiseled charm.  He is helped and hindered by a whole bunch of beautiful people and beasts, so even if the writing sucked, which it doesn't, it would be pretty to watch.

It also helps that the pretty people/beasts are living in Portland, OR.  The scenery is gorgeous, but it is a little too obvious that they are sometimes working in a studio.  The seams between the people and the CG are not always hidden.  And nothing ruins a chase through a beautiful forest more than knowing it's actually a green screen.

Overall, a great start to another fantasy series.  I am intrigued, but I'm not holding my breath.  So many of these types of shows fall into the old formula:  human gets killed to get viewers interest, another human gets kidnapped, hero runs into a few problems, hijinks ensue, hero saves human just in the nick of time, and everyone lives happily ever after.  Just like in the Grimm's fairy tales, right?  (If you answered yes, you need to go read some of the original Grimm's fairy tales.)  Let's hope the writers don't run out of ideas.

So check this out!  The pilot and episode 1 are currently on Hulu.com.