Top 10 List--Favorite iPhone Apps

Words Free

You probably don't recall this, but I already did a List of my top 10 favorite iPhone apps in February 2010, but things change and so have my favorites.  Like before, this only include apps I've download, mostly for free--not apps that came with the phone.

Amazingly, I recently learned my iPhone also works as a telephone.  Here are my current favorite apps:

10.  Qrank -- The daily trivia game.  Invite me to be a friend by searching for bluespongerun.

9.  Angry Birds ($0.99) -- I love killing those pigs!

8.  Pandora -- Lets you hear music similar to songs and music artist you already like.

7. Words Free -- Very similar to Scrabble... I mean VERY.  Invite me to play a game (Mkr20003).

6.  Comcast Guide -- Allows you to remotely record stuff on the DVR.  I love technology!

5.  Gas Buddy -- Helps find the less expensive gas in your area.

4.  Netflix -- I can watch stuff from my Instant Queue on my iPhone.  Awesome!

3.  Twitter -- Follow me at BlueSpongeRun.  I have the occasional interesting twit.

2.  Sportcycle -- DC has a bike sharing program and this app lets you know where the stations are, how many bikes are available, or whether there is a free slot to park a bike I have checked out.

and my #1 Favorite iPhone App is:

Textfree -- Why would anyone pay to text when this little app, which is ad-based, lets you do it for free? The only down-side is that you have to use a new phone number that they provide (for free!).

How to Die In Oregon-Amazing HBO Documentary

How to Die In Oregon is a 2011 HBO Documentary by Peter D. Richardson about dying with dignity.  Shane and I watched it today and we thought it was amazing and very moving.  I wish there was a way to require everyone to sit and watch it.  I believe if that happened, many more people would understand the option that physician-assisted suicide provides.  Perhaps then it would become legal throughout the country, and not just in the states of Oregon and Washington.

The documentary shows the story of several brave individuals with terminal illnesses that choose to end their lives with dignity.  If you do watch this movie and aren't moved, you may not be right in the head.  Shane and I were all but sobbing.

Though it is not a happy subject, this is a fascinating film and I highly recommend it.  You might want to have a box of tissues handy.  It is available On Demand from HBO through June 19.

Friday Night Cocktail-Zest's Jameson Appleseed

Shane's step-sister, Cherri is in town from Connecticut, so we all went out to Zest on 8th Street on DC's Barracks Row.  Tonight, for a cocktail, I ordered the Jameson Appleseed.  It is made with Jameson Whiskey, (gingery) Domaine de Canton, apple cider, and cinnamon.  It was very good, though I think you know I am not crazy about the short cocktail glasses.  I enjoyed it though.

Cherri had a Strawberry Martini.  I don't think she cared that much for it.  I had a taste myself and thought it was not that great.  I was expecting more strawberry flavor.  It seemed kind of bland.  I liked my drink much better.

It was fun getting together with Cherri, and Zest is always delicious!  Cherri had the pork tenderloin, which was out of this world (I had a bite).  I had what I always have, the Roasted Leg of Lamb on grilled flatbread with caramelized onions, crumbled feta, and pomegranate bbq.  It is amazing.  Shane had the grilled New York Strip.

We discovered on our walk to Zest that a new Hello Cupcake has opened on 8th Street just a few doors down.  So we stopped in after dinner and bought some $3 cupcakes.  I got a Triple Coconut.  Shane said the one he got  (Prima Donna-chocolate with strawberry butter cream icing) was very good.  I am waiting a bit before I have mine.  I'm full.

Update: Best cupcake I ever had.  We will be back for more.  Not good news for the diet.

Hell-Larryass Commercial Parody of the Exorcist

I saw this on the I Should Be Laughing blog. I loved it and immediately lifted it. Thanks Bob!  Where do they have minute and half commercials?

Grey Gardens-Broadway Musicals I Regret Missing

We never saw the film, Grey Gardens, until after the Broadway show had already closed.  You have to be familiar with the movie to really appreciate the Broadway show I think.  Don't you think?  Anyway, above is the amazing Christine Ebersole as Little Edie Beale in a clip from the 2007 Tony Awards.  Below is a clip from the documentary the musical is based on showing the actual Edith Beale.  Don't forget to watch the Tony Awards this Sunday night!

"Out In America" Airing On PBS

Premieres on PBS stations in the U.S. Wednesday night, June 8.

New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #291

Heard you guys got clobbered by the Lions last week. 

This is my idea for the New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #291.  Let me know if you have any ideas for a caption too.  

My Top 10 Summer TV Shows to DVR (or Roku)

We rarely watch the 50-inch Panasonic plasma TV without using the DVR so we can speed past those boring commercials.  It is very nice to not have to plan your schedule around what is on TV.  Anytime we’re ready to watch the Panasonic, there is usually something interesting on the DVR.  If not, we also have our Roku to watch Netflix, Hulu Plus, and other stuff.

The following is my list of the Top 10 Shows playing on our Panasonic this summer:  

10. True Blood starts Sunday, June 26, on HBO.  We love this wacky show, though I wish Sooki would drop that boring Bill and see how much more interesting Eric is.

9.  Louie returns starting Thursday, June 23, on FX.  We didn’t watch the first season of this until it was offered on the Netflix Instant Play.  It actually got dropped from availability on Netflix before we were able to watch all the episodes.  I am looking forward to being able to see more of comedian Louis C.K.

8.  The Big C returns Monday, June 27, on Showtime.  We love Laura Linney!  This and Nurse Jackie are the only reasons we have Showtime. Alan Alda and Parker Posey are guest staring in the second season. 

7.  Curb Your Enthusiasm returns to HBO on July 10. Larry David is going to be back in New York City, so how could this not be hell Larry ass?

6.  The Glee Project is on the Oxygen channel starting June 12,  I am sure this will be quite hokey, but what the hay... Twelve contestants compete for a multi-episode guest-star role on Glee.  Judges include Darren Criss (Blaine).

5.  The Susie Orman Show on CNBC.  Are you kidding me girlfriend?  You know you're a homebody (loser?) when this is the highlight of your Saturday night.  There are always new episodes of Suzie on our DVR. 

4. All Creatures Great and Small on Netflix.  We have the first two seasons of this series on DVD, but the rest of the series is available on Netflix.  

3. Bob’s Burgers on Hulu.  We just started watching this series, so we have to catch up on the Hulu.

2. Real Time with Bill Maher on HBO On Demand.  Bill is continuing his current version of Politically Incorrect on cable.  It is usually good for a few laughs.  

1.  Big Brother 13 starts Thursday, July 7.  Don't judge me for watching the horrible people that compete for $500,000 on this train wreck of a show.  I'm sure there will be the usual cast of characters, including at least one token gay that makes all gays look bad.  I still think it would be cool to have a whole house full of gays.  But I doubt that it could get on network television.  

Sarah Palin History Lesson On Paul Revere

Sarah Palin has to be regretting this one.  But Sarah has no shame, so she will just write it off as the media taking a minor slip and making it into a big deal.  Obviously, she has no idea what she is talking about here, but that doesn't stop her from talking.  I think her main mission in life is to make George W. Bush look like a genius.  Bells?

Poor Sarah can't seem to get anything right.  Take a look at this fact-check of a Fox News interview she recently gave where she was awarded "a bushel of Pinocchios."

UPDATE: She has no shame!  She is claiming she was right! What about the bells?

Friday Night Cocktails--DC's Wisdom Lounge

Shane and I went out for a cocktail after work this evening.  We walked down Pennsylvania Avenue in South East DC toward the Potomac Metro stop and had a drink at the Wisdom Lounge.  The actual full name is the Wisdom Lounge & Bluecoat Gin Palace, but I think most people just call it Wisdom.  I had the drink pictured above, the Dragon's Tit.  The description on the menu is the following:

Habanero-infused Sauza Tequila balanced with Pomegranate Juice & Chambord. A nice fiery finish.

This is the second time I've had this drink and I like it.  But, I realize it may not be everyone's cup of tea. It reminds me of the candy, Hot Tamales.  It has a fiery start, middle, and finish.  It is not a dull cocktail.  I love the spicy flavor. 

Shane had the Pears of Wisdom (pictured below).  He has had it several times before.  I tasted his also, but it seemed a bit blander tonight after the Dragon's Tit.  There was a different bartender tonight, so the taste was not the same as we remember.  Here is its description:

Elegant & sophisticated Pear Vodka & Cognac combo with Elderflower imported from England.

Shane sips his Pears of Wisdom

Mitt Declares for President-What Does He Believe?

Mitt Romney declared his intention to run for the Presidency of the United States of America today.  Mitt is a Mormon, but what does that really mean?  I must admit that I think the beliefs of most religions is a bit bonkers, but if this cartoon accurately depicts what Mormons really believe... well it just seems a bit absurd.  I find it amazing that people actually believe this stuff.  That being said, I think the Osmonds are very entertaining.

Does Anyone Believe Congressman Weiner?

I've been a very bad boy. 

Democratic New York Congressman Anthony Weiner has been all over the news lately.  Have you noticed?  He claims someone "hacked" his Twitter account and sent a photo of the crotch of a man in his underwear (that may or may not be Congressman Weiner) to a college woman in Seattle.  He insists it was someone's idea of a joke--a hoax.  They posted a picture of Weiner's weiner.   Get it?

The trouble is that Weiner's story makes no sense.  He accuses someone of committing a crime, but he doesn't want to bother the police to investigate.  Hacking a Twitter account, according to him is just a harmless prank.  When asked if the photo is of him, he claims photos can be distorted and he can't be certain.  He won't say it is not him.  It only gets worse from there.

 Watch his interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer from today.  It is a hot mess. Weiner really should stop talking about it.  It isn't getting better.  My guess is Mrs. Weiner can tell who it is or who it isn't.  Here's a link to the famous shot.

UPDATE:  It was Weiner's weiner.  Big surprise.

We've Had an Addition to Our Household

My niece, Nicole, has joined our household on a part-time basis for the summer.  She just finished off her junior year in Mass Communications at Towson University (just like Uncle Mark) and is starting an internship for a radio public relations firm at the National Press Club Building in Washington, DC.  She will be working Wednesdays through Fridays, so will be staying with us for three nights a week.  She comes down on the train from northern Maryland on Tuesday evenings and takes the train back after work on Friday.

On her first night in DC, we took her out to our favorite Indian restaurant on 8th Street (SE).  She had not had Indian food before, but seemed to like what we suggested, chicken tikka makhani.  Shane and I both had the chicken boti.  The photo above is from our family vacation to Europe 2 years ago.  This was in London, obviously, as you can see from the eye in the background.

New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #290

I appreciate you coming here for this emergency IMF meeting. 

This is my idea for the New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #290.  Let me know if you have any ideas for a caption too.  

The Trouble with Puddles

The objects de art are the "Puddles" Shane bought at a shop near The Glass Museum while on a business trip to Tacoma, Wash.  He thought they would be cool and modern looking on an end table in our Florida house.  However, as you can see, they look like two different colored eyes on the the end table.  The flat, oblong pieces of glass called "Puddles" were about $60 each and Shane quickly realized they were not exactly as great as he thought they would be.  He claims he got caught up in the excitement of the Glass Museum.  At any rate, we now have very expensive soap dishes in our bathrooms.  

They do look kind of cool in the bathroom.  

A Great Beach Day

This isn''t actually a photo I took today, but I was looking through the the photos on my computer and I noticed that Shane wore the same shirt and hat today as that day in 2010.  I'm not sure what beach that is, but today we went to Sanibel and Captiva Islands.

It is about an hour and half drive from our house, but we left early for us--around 10:30 a.m. and got to the Mucky Duck on Captiva around noon.  I had the seafood platter and Shane had the BBQ Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp.  I get one of those BBQ Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp in my platter, along with steamed shrimp, fried clams, fried cod, cole slaw, french fries, and some things I don't know what they were, but were delicious.

This photo was also from a previous post.  I didn't take any photos today.

After lunch, we went to Tarpon Beach on Sanibel Island.  It was very hot today, but the beach had a warm breeze going and it was nice under the umbrella.  We each have an umbrella.  When we got warm, we went in the water.  The water is like bath water.  It is warm, which makes us worry a bit about hurricanes.  Hurricane season starts June 1.

After a few hours at the beach, we packed up and headed back.  On the way back, we stopped at what we call the Orange Juice Place.  It is a tourist store that sells oranges, orange juice, and tourist gift stuff.  The two best things about it is the free juice samples--orange, grapefruit, strawberry/orange, and lemonade.  It is worth a stop just for that, but they also sell the best soft-serve ice cream.  We always get the twisted vanilla/orange cone.  Very Yummy!  So much for the diet.

I did run this morning before we left.  I did a little more than 4 miles, but had to walk the last mile, cause the heat was killing me.  I was a big sweaty mess by the time I got back.

Friday Night Cocktail-Classic Rum and Coke

Tonight's Friday Night Cocktail is the classic Rum and Coke, but in this case it is actually the Rum and Caffeine-Free Pepsi.  To make, I just fill an Old Fashioned glass full of ice, pour a shot of Bacardi Gold Rum over the ice, and fill the glass with cola.  Since I don't do caffeine, I use the caffeine-free stuff.

Shane and I enjoyed our cocktails out on the dock behind our house, on the water.  The weather was perfect.  Though it was hot and humid today, a front must have past by, because it was cool and breezy as the sun went down.  Shane, as usual, enjoyed a glass of red wine--Rex-Goliath Cabernet Sauvignon (see below).

Back In Florida for Another Amazing Sunset

I know people that follow my blog regularly are probably sick of me posting shots of the sunset viewed out of the back of our house.  I don't care.  I'm always amazed at how beautiful our view is.  As usual, this photo does not do it justice.  The object in the lower left hand corner, sitting on a coffee table, is a sculpture (silhouetted) of mangroves.  There are actual mangroves on the opposite side of the canal behind our house.  I've included a better photo of the sculpture below.  It is about 10 inches high.  I think the lower part is brass [UPDATE--It's copper], and I'm not sure what the upper part is made from.  Shane got it at an art show in Naples, FL.

Speaking of Shane, he is flying directly to Florida from Tacoma, Washington.  Have I mentioned he was in Tacoma lately?  I have to pick him up from the airport tonight at 10:30 and we are down here through the rest of the holiday weekend.  We came to Florida, because it wasn't hot and humid enough in Washington, DC.

Time To Get Out the Blue Sponge

Today is exactly 10 weeks until a major milestone birthday.  I will be the big five oh.  I don't want to start my second half century looking as pudgy as I do right now.  I want to weigh under 165 pounds.  So, that is my goal.

I weighed myself at the gym today and the total was 183 pounds.  I figure I should be able to drop 18 pounds or more before the big day.

I plan to eat better and run more.  I ran both yesterday and today.  I'm getting back on track.  I'm going to give it the old college try anyway.  However, I still want to be able to enjoy the occasional Friday Night Cocktail.  I'll just run farther those days.  Wish me luck!

Yes, I know this photo is getting old.  It is from the Air Force Marathon in September 2008.

Shane Goes to Tacoma's Glass Museum

Mitch Block guessed where in the world Shane was (Tacoma, Washington), and also suggested while there, he should go visit the Glass Museum.  He added he didn't know of anything else to do there.  Well, that's just what Shane did.  He also heard that it was about the only thing to do in Tacoma.  So he went.

Shane sent me the following photos from his visit.  The first shows the rainy outside of the building and the next two are of the making of a bowl.  He must have been impressed as he said he also bought some glass at a nearby shop.