HAPPY NEW YEAR, DAMMIT!

With a new year, comes new pics. I've added a bunch of pics to the photo album. Over 400 pics!

With a new year also comes lists! Here's the first...

Seven Things I Did in 2006...

Here are seven things in my life that made 2006 such a memorable year for me!

7. THE DISNEY WORLD TRIP
Much has been said about this trip, but in looking over the 300 pics, we still had a hell of a lot of fun. I mean, Expedition Everest...and Islands of Adventure!

6. "PRESS YOUR LUCK" AT GAMESHOW MARATHON
It was fun consulting for this...it was even more fun seeing it come to life. My jaw dropped when I saw the board for the first time. And I was floored when I saw that game played out. The Whammys need to come back to TV!!!!

5. THE FEUDIN' BIRTHDAY PARTY
Another successful game show theme party...accented by the great Feud game board control program and a game show face-off podium, my friend Robb brought over. Throw on top of that an appearance by Henry Polic (who played on a celeb special) and a visit by my mother and grandmother and you've got quite a surreal, yet wonderful experience!

4. WII LAUNCH NIGHT
Ted, Larry, and I had never done the camping out thing before...but this time it felt right. We set up gear outside a Pasadena Target on a cold November night and we scored ourselves a Wii! And we discovered that doing so in 2006 would be quite a feat. It was an exercise in bring the 5-year-olds out of us again and it was an exercise in good customer service and attention. Good on you, Pasadena Target!

3. FUBARAOKE!
On July 31st, 2006, I began going to Rock*Out Karaoke Nights at Fubar and have been going pretty much every night ever since. In the process, I've butchered dozens of songs by artists whom I admire, but more importantly, I've made a lot of great new friends in the process. Here's to more rockin' out in 2007!

2. THE CERAMIC DALMATIANS
One night, my friend Aaron E-mailed me up and said, "Wouldn't it be fun to put together a band that covers nothing but game show music?" I thought he was crazy, but then again, I'm crazy so I said, "sure!" And within a one-month period, we put together The Ceramic Dalmatians. We learned the popular faves like "The Price is Right" and threw a few lesser-known themes for the game show geeks out there like "Super Password." We debuted at the Game Show Congress this year and to hear a whole room clap in unison to the "Card Sharks" theme (CORRECTLY!) was quite an awesome thing to behold...

1. THE REALITY REMIX REALLY AWARDS
This was another one of those instances where we said, "wouldn't it be cool if..." and in this case the "if" was throwing a big reality awards show. This was a reality fan's DREAM come true. It became bigger than any of us expected at "Reality Remix" or Fox Reality. It got so crowded, we had to start turning people away!

And really (pun intended), where else could you see a "Laffalympics" amalgam of reality celebs such as this? The sight of Ron Jeremy just feet away from "Project Runway's" Andrae is one I'll never forget!

And now for another list...

Seven Things That Made 2006 So Great

A list of things in the pop culture world that made 2006 a really cool year...

7. SNL: SEASON 1 ON DVD
It was so great to see these shows in their mostly uncut state...The in-show Polaroid ads were priceless. I hope that this leads to more full-season sets. And I HOPE it leads to the infamous SNL '80 season.

6. JENNIFER HUDSON IN "DREAMGIRLS"
And I am telling you...this is a performance that lived up to the hype. When I saw "Dreamgirls" at the Arclight a couple of weeks ago, you could feel the anticipation building up to her big number.

And when it hit...it was like everybody was gripping their seats. People were cheering at the beginning, in the middle and at the end of the performance. Jaws were dropping. I was like, "oh...my...god..." Truly a musical performance that will stand the test of time.

5. MYSPACE
At first, I passed Myspace off as a Friendster copycat, but it has come into its own. It's been the source of much procrastination, but more imporantly it's become quite a useful tool. I've been able to connect with friends from my past and also with new people whom I had just met at a party or gathering. It's been even more useful in discovering new music. One of my favorite songs of the year was a cover of "Hey Princess" that I found out courtesy of Johan Bergqvist's page. And it's because of Myspace that I found out about an artist I'm REALLY looking forward to hearing in 2007...Mika.

And while you're on Myspace...check out my friend Alan's band Ten Minute Turns...and the music page for my friend Shawn Snyder.

4. YOUTUBE
My other big source of procrastination. Youtube has unleashed some past demons of my pop culture psyche. If it wasn't "look him up on Myspace" this year, it was "see if it's on Youtube." And a lot of the time it was! It was a great site for finding stuff I had only "heard" or "read" about in the past like Jennifer Holiday's stunning Tony Awards performance and Elton John's video for "Ego." It also has been a source of videos I never knew existed like Jim Steinman's "Dance in My Pants." I've even dabbled in posting a few videos of my own with the recent "Music Bickering" series I did with my friend Sam.

3. GOOD WINS OUT ON REALITY THIS YEAR
This has been a good year for good guys winning on reality TV. There was BJ and Tyler on "The Amazing Race" (ok, I'm a little biased on that one). But twice this year, there have been "final fours" consisting of people who all deserved to be there.

First, there was "So You Think You Can Dance." In a season that topped the great first season, the final four consisted of every body whom I had been rooting for that summer. You wanted to see everybody one...and that final two was PERFECT. Benji's reaction to winning is still one of my favorite reality moments of the year.

And second, there was "Survivor: Cook Islands." As much I was a fan of JP's, I really liked the final four this year. Again, the final showdown was great...Ozzy vs. Yul. One of the toughest ones to pick a fave on because they were both so good. Here's hoping next year's batch of reality is just as good.

2. SCISSOR SISTERS
They proved they weren't a one-album wonder! As I had mentioned before, "Ta-Dah," is the best CD I heard this year. They avoided the sophmore slump with a solid set of songs from top to bottom and a great bunch of songs on the bonus disc in the deluxe version.

On top of that, they did a great concert in September in spite of a very odd venue. The band has sealed themselves a spot in my all-time favorites list.

1. NINTENDO WII
For years, I had been disenchanted by video games. They became too complicated and the focus was on big sprawling epics with a lot of hustle and muscle. It seemed like the era of the game which you could pick up quickly and play for a little bit had gone by the wayside.

Then came the peculiarly named Wii. At first, I laughed at the name thinking that Nintendo had finally lost its mind. But after I saw the reports of the E3 booth, I became intrigued and you could say obsessed. I had to have one...I camped out for one and boy was it worth it.

Wii, you've made me love video games again. It's like that feeling you had when you had your friends over to play the NES. The best part is giving the Wiimote to somebody who has never played it before and better yet, somebody who isn't a "gamer." 99% of the time they are HOOKED and want to play again. Nintendo achieved what they set out to do...Wii really has great crossover ability.

Is the Wii's unique controller a fad or a gimmick? Who knows? The key thing is that video games are bringing people together again thanks to the Wii. And for that, it is one of the things I've loved about 2006.

And finally...

Seven Things I'm Looking Forward To in 2007

7. SPIDER-MAN 3
Tobey Maguire AND Topher Grace?!? I'm in!

6. XANADU: THE BROADWAY MUSICAL
Yeah, I may need to book a flight to New York soon...

5. TURNING 30
I'm actually looking forward to this...I'm really looking forward to seeing what my friends are putting together for my party. Yes, I've relinquished the party-organizing duties to my friends for the big 3-0. * bites nails *

4. NEW REALITY SHOWS IN JANUARY
The first couple of weeks in January are going to make my DVR explode. Just look at what's coming up..."You're the One That I Want," "The Surreal Life Fame Games," "I Love New York," "Beauty and the Geek 3," "The Apprentice L.A."...I mean, really now...I won't be getting out of the house any time soon.

3. THE AMAZING RACE ALL-STARS
It's my favorite reality show and it's the one that I've been wanting to see an "all-star" version of for quite a while.

2. WII GAMES
Wii Play...Mario Party...Wario Ware...It looks like the Wii's going to hold up quite well. Let's just hope that Mario Kart is also on the horizon!

1. MIKA
I heard a preview of this singer-songwriter's stuff through his Myspace profile. Grace Kelly is FANTASTIC. The last time I had a similar reaction to the one I had when listening to Mika for the first time was when I heard Scissor Sisters for the first time. It's like Freddie Mercury, Rufus Wainwright, and Jake Shears had an illegitimate love child...I can't wait to hear the album. Go to his official website. NOW!

And that's the big 2006/2007 post. Happy New Year to all, and here's hoping to share more great stuff with you in the coming year!