Had to take a screen shot of this.

Here's a list of some recent pop culture crap, that were at one time awesome and quirky, but are now COMPLETELY PLAYED OUT:


- Bacon: Yes, bacon makes everything better (I'm a vegetarian and yet, I still agree to this statement)--however THROWING PICTURES OF BACON ONTO EVERY SINGLE THING YOU CAN THINK OF MAKES EVERYTHING WORSE. You are not creative for putting bacon on a band-aid, on a website, on a BUSINESS CARD. Gross. OVER IT.


- Mustaches: Once quirky and distinguished, mustaches have now made me roll my eyes and groan. Oh wow. You have an awkward mustache--HOW ORIGINAL! We get it--mustaches are (generally) creepy and rapey-looking. Hardy har har har. Enough. Any guy with a decent amount of testosterone can grow one. You are NOT special or hilarious (Brad, I'm talking to you here).


- Vampires: This has gotten so completely out of hand I don't even know where to start. I always thought vampires were super cool - what an awesome, unique subculture of weirdos! But with friggin Twilight, now EVERYTHING is about vampires. Movies, books, EVERYTHING. Too bad garlic and stakes won't make this whole vampire craze disappear...


End rant.

I was on the phone briefly with my friend Danny (who lives in Hawaii) yesterday afternoon and he had this wonderful little gem of a soundbite-


Danny: I don't mean to sound like a victim - I'm not Nancy Kerrigan - but it's really hard to meet new people on a F**KING ISLAND!


You get no pity points from me, Danny because - oh wait - YOU LIVE IN HAWAII!

Someone sends you an email.

The subject line: This is SOOOOOOO hilarious!

The link they include? “Chocolate Rainnnnnnnnn.”

Oh, man. COME ON!

This happens to me fairly frequently. Good meaning colleagues, friends and family members discovering pop culture gems that were all sparkly and hilarious the first 12 times you saw them. And just when you think something has officially died (ahem, “Dick in a Box”), someone jumps on the bandwagon a little too late and can’t wait to share their perceived “new discovery” with the world…again…

What do you do?

My first instinct is always to eye roll and send back a sassy reply. “Yeah, this was pretty funny the first four times I saw it, which was, by the way, about 6 months ago.”

But I guess that’s kind of harsh for the corporate world. After all, if this person is a colleague, it’s probably not the best career move to mock their tardiness to the party-ness (Real Housewives of Atlanta reference) just for trying to share something funny or ridiculous.

So, here’s a quick rundown of how to handle these small, awkward interactions, if a colleague/parent/business associate sends you something OLD*:

1. Share your honest opinion about the link. The person is looking for a reaction from you—whether it’s disgust or laughter (usually they’re looking for praise or a nice, juicy LOL!). If the link/joke has lost its luster for you, remember back to when you originally saw it and share THAT genuine emotion with them.

2. Thank the person, sincerely. Don’t be a jerk. I know, I know—you probably want to thank them in an ungracious, sarcastic tone. But try to resist the urge. Thank them for thinking of you and passing on something they thought you would enjoy.

3. Depending on the person, jab at them subtly for being behind the curve. This step is a little bit sticky because it really depends on who sent it to you and how old the link is. If your Mom sent you “Charlie Bit Me,” don’t mock her. She’s your Mom for goodness sakes!

Hope that helps!

*Note: if the person sending you one of these dusty, old jokes/links is your BFF or just an RF (Regular Friend, ha, I made that up!) feel free to belittle and humiliate them. My personal favorite is just to Reply All “OLD!” That’ll make them think twice before spontaneously clicking "Send" again.

My friend forwarded me this link a few days ago and my jaw pretty much fell on the concrete floor. The first question that came to mind—ARE THEY FOR REAL?

Apparently, Facebook is planning on launching memorial profiles for deceased users. In my experience, it’s a bit awkward when someone dies and his/her Facebook profile continues existing. There’s something creepy about it. It happened once when I was in college—a student died crossing a busy highway next to my alma mater, The University of Miami. There were protests for the next few days near that highway, begging the county to put in another stoplight and crosswalk combo near campus. But what made it so awkward, was that her Facebook profile was still alive and kicking. People were still writing on her wall and her smiley, outgoing profile pic still blankly stared back at you.

It was weird.

I have mixed feelings about creating memorial profiles for deceased Facebook users. The slightly judgmental, uptight part of me thinks this whole thing is not only bizarre—it’s also immensely disrespectful. Saying you care for someone by taking four seconds to create a free Facebook account for a lost loved one is almost offensive. Of all the ways to show reverence for a lost loved one (i.e. creating foundations, raising money, having memorial services), you REALLY chose to create a Facebook profile? It hardly reflects the intensity of losing a loved one.

But then I thought about it a bit longer.

Maybe, just maybe—despite its inherent creepiness—this is a good idea. Facebook is a public forum and perhaps offering ALL loved ones of the deceased a place to share and mourn together is actually healthy. Long distance friends and relatives could offer sympathies and still feel included in the mourning process. Also, the profile would always exist, so even after a bit of time has passed, joint friends could still reminisce about their shared friend. On top of that, Facebook could then remove the deceased’s personal profile, removing personal information that could no longer be deleted or updated, thus letting the departed user rest in cyber-peace too.

So what does everyone think? Is this whole thing ridiculously offensive or reassuringly thoughtful? Would you want someone to post a Memorial Profile of you?

EMBED-Werewolf Bar Mitzvah Full Video - Watch more free videos

In honor of Halloween tomorrow, I present you with one of my favorite things ever.

Oh 30 Rock, why are you the most hilarious show in all the land?



Other cool stuff that caught my eye this week:


Magazines and newspapers dying...not really funny :(


Really great article about the "New Jews" (P.S. Why have I never heard of the magazine Heeb before??? I need to subscribe to that like NOW!)


I'm totally late to this party, but I JUST discovered this website and it's so so happy!


Sad but true New Yorker cover...


Shameless plug: Check out the DCADDYs website!!! I'm so stoked :)

The HZDG blog, which I will be head-writer for, is launching on Monday! I'll post a link to that once it's alive and kicking!