30 Years of Adam: 1993

Adam Reisinger, the creator of AdamReisinger.com, turns 30 on May 17, 2010. As part of the countdown to his 30th birthday, AdamReisinger.com looks back on the major events in the world on May 17th each year since 1980.

The stakes weren't as high. The shot wasn't as dramatic. The game wasn't as memorable. But on May 17, 1993, Michael Jordan stuck it to the Cleveland Cavaliers again, hitting "The Shot II" over Gerald Wilkins, eliminating the Cavs from the playoffs and sending the Bulls on to the conference finals, where they'd eventually beat the Knicks, then the Suns to win their third consecutive NBA title.

Unlike in '89, Jordan's legacy as a clutch player was already secure by the time hit hit The Shot II in '93. And the Bulls were up 3-0 in that series, so even if he missed, it wasn't like they were going home. Hell, if he missed, the Bulls wouldn't have even lost right there, since the game was tied. So you can see why The Shot II isn't nearly as big a deal as The Shot (you know, the one that has been in every Jordan and NBA commercial since '89).

I may be a Cavs fan now, but in '93 I was definitely a Jordan fan, and this was the second consecutive year he had a memorable game on my birthday. Meanwhile, the Mets were busy getting shelled by the Pirates, falling further into the NL East cellar (yes, even behind the expansion Marlins). That '93 Mets team -- the one with Bobby Bonilla -- was just an atrocity.

IHOP Escalates Horrifying Food Wars

A few weeks ago, KFC took its chicken-as-the-bun Double Down sandwich national, sparking a debate over just how far was too far in the world of fast food. However, apparently IHOP saw the Double Down and thought "how can we bring that same batshit insanity to breakfast?"

The answer? The new Pancake Stackers:

Yeah, it's a layer of cheesecake in between two pancakes, with fruit topping and whipped cream. Amazingly, this abomination of breakfast isn't served alone. It comes as part of a whole meal, with eggs, bacon and other breakfasty goodness.

Why I Choose Distracted Driving

I drive distracted in many ways. Applying lipstick has never been one of them.

From what I can tell from my Twitter feed, there's some kind of big push today to join Oprah's No Phone Zone Pledge and make your car a "no phone zone" where you don't call, text, tweet or do anything else that would contribute to distracted driving.

Sorry, but I can't get on board with this.

Look, the whole "no phone zone" thing sure seems like a nice idea, but a phone is far from the only distraction while driving. Take a look at that picture above. If that girl wasn't talking on the phone, she'd still end up taking her eyes off the road to check her lipstick. Before I started tweeting while driving, I would still use my phone to change iTunes playlists, check sports scores, or even get directions.

30 Years of Adam: 1992

Adam Reisinger, the creator of AdamReisinger.com, turns 30 on May 17, 2010. As part of the countdown to his 30th birthday, AdamReisinger.com looks back on the major events in the world on May 17th each year since 1980.

I can't be certain that I watched basketball on my 12th birthday, but I probably did. There were two great Eastern Conference Semifinals Game 7s.

In Cleveland, the Cavaliers defeated the Celtics 122-104 in what turned out to be Larry Bird's final NBA game. Bird played 33 minutes and scored 12 points on 6-of-9 shooting. All five Cavaliers starters scored in double figures, led by Brad Daugherty's 28 points. He also had 9 rebounds and 6 assists. Hell, Larry Nance (15 points, 9 rebounds, 8 assists) almost had a triple-double too.

Meanwhile, in the other series, Michael Jordan did his MJ thing, putting up 42 points to lead the Bulls to a 110-81 victory over the Knicks. I may be a LeBron/Cavs guy now, but 12-year-old me was totally an MJ fan, so I was probably pretty happy with the day's results, and the eventual playoff results which saw the Bulls beat the Blazers in the NBA Finals.

The Mets fan in me couldn't have been happy, though. New York lost 6-3 to the Dodgers (seriously, the Mets played the Dodgers a LOT on my birthday back in the day), with Anthony Young losing his third consecutive decision, after starting the season 2-0. Who knew then that he'd end up losing 27 straight, and not winning again until July 28, 1993?

I AM IRON PEZ!

At this time next week, I'll probably be standing in line somewhere to see "Iron Man 2", and I'm crazy excited about it. I've got Iron Man on the brain, which is why when I saw this tonight at the supermarket, I had to buy it:


Yeah, that's an Iron Man Pez dispenser. They actually had a whole display of Marvel characters, but Iron Man was the only one I wanted. I used to have a Pez collection displayed in my kitchen -- including a full set of "Star Wars" characters -- but those are all in boxes now. Iron Man isn't going in a box anytime soon. He's awesome, even if he is classic comic Iron Man and not cool new movie/modern Iron Man.

Also, I was a little disappointed about the actual included Pez. With Iron Man, shouldn't it be strawberry and lemon, not strawberry and grape? That seems like a missed opportunity. Still Iron Pez fucking rules. The unpackaged picture is after the jump.

30 Years of Adam: 1991

Adam Reisinger, the creator of AdamReisinger.com, turns 30 on May 17, 2010. As part of the countdown to his 30th birthday, AdamReisinger.com looks back on the major events in the world on May 17th each year since 1980.

Again, no idea what I did for my 11th birthday, but I do remember that I was just a month away from "graduating" from the 5th grade. I have no idea, but our town made a big deal out of going from elementary school to middle school. Somewhere in my parents' attic, there's probably still a Whiting Lane Class of '91 T-shirt. Insane, right?

Less insane were the NBA playoffs in 1991, where on May 17th, the Pistons eliminated the Celtics, moving on to the conference finals as they tried to 3-peat as NBA champs. However, they eventually got swept by the Bulls, who won their first championship later that summer. The NHL playoffs were also close to wrapping up, with the Penguins beating the North Stars 4-1 to even the Stanley Cup Final at 1-1. They'd go on to win the series, earning former Hartford Whalers star Ron Francis his first Stanley Cup championship. I still hate that trade.

Somehow the Mets actually won on May 17, 1991, beating the Dodgers 4-2. Frank Viola improved to 5-1 on the season with the win, and the Mets pulled to within a game and a half of the division-leading Pirates.

Notable May 17, 1991 births:
- actor Dan Curtis Lee
- actress Samantha Browne-Walters

30 Years of Adam: 1990

Adam Reisinger, the creator of AdamReisinger.com, turns 30 on May 17, 2010. As part of the countdown to his 30th birthday, AdamReisinger.com looks back on the major events in the world on May 17th each year since 1980.

Well, here we are, all the way up to 1990. I'm pretty sure this is the year we went to a New Britain Red Sox game for my birthday, but I can't be sure of that (I pretty much suck at remembering my birthday, which might explain why, for the most part, I don't really enjoy celebrating on the 17th).

While I was busy watching minor league baseball (I think), Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev met with Lithuanian prime minister Kazimiera Prunskiene for the first time since Lithuania declared its independence from the Soviet Union. In Soviet Russia, Lithuania leaves you!

In the NBA playoffs, the San Antonio Spurs beat the Portland Trail Blazers 112-97 to force a decisive Game 7 in their Western Conference Semifinal series. Portland eventually won the series and went on to reach the NBA Finals, where they lost to the Pistons in 5 games.

The Mets were off on the 17th, probably a good thing since they were already below .500 and 5.5 games back of the Pirates in the NL East. This was pretty much how Mets baseball went for the '90s, after a pretty good run in the mid-to-late '80s.

Notable May 17, 1990 births:
- Australian actress Stephany Avila

"Romantically Challenged" Reaction: Meh

I really want to like "Romantically Challenged", Alyssa Milano's new sitcom on ABC. I've loved Alyssa since the "Who's the Boss" days and adored her in Charmed, and when I first heard about "Romantically Challenged", I was just happy she would be back on TV. However, through two episodes of the show, I've got mixed feelings.

First, let's hit on the good things. I was worried that "Romantically Challenged" was going to be the kind of show that tried to convince me that woman as attractive as Alyssa Milano has trouble getting dates, but that's not it at all. She plays a divorced mom who's also a lawyer and jumping back in the dating pool after finding out her ex-husband is getting married. Somehow, that's actually worse. It's like they spun the wheel of Sitcom Character cliches a few times and came up with that.

Then the show surrounded Milano with a series of one-dimensional sidekick characters. I know it's hard to provide much character development in 44 minutes (the total of the two episodes that have aired so far), but the characters shouldn't feel so much like they came from paint-by-numbers guide on how to write a sitcom. There's the dirty talking sister who's kind of a freak in bed but has an inappropriate job (elementary school teacher), the sensative guy who just hasn't found the right woman yet (and will probably end up with the main character in the end) and his best friend, an overgrown man-child who is a sex-crazed moocher, but also a really good friend in the end.

Desktop Girl of the Week: Erica Durance

I keep watching "Smallville" on a weekly basis even though it's awful. I started watching a few years back from James Marsters (aka Spike from "Buffy the Vampire Slayer") and I've kept watching even as the plots get dumber and dumber (a quick aside here: in this past episode, a key plot point was Lois punching Clark to cause a scene so she could grab someone's cell phone. When she punched Clark -- a.k.a. Superman -- shouldn't her hand have shattered into a million pieces? Yeah, that didn't happen. WTF?!) for one reason: Erica Durance.

Is Durance the image in my head when I think of "Lois Lane"? Not even close. Is she the image in my head when I think of "amazingly hot Canadian chicks on shitty TV shows". Absolutely. There's no denying Durance is a hottie, and the creators of "Smallville" know it, because it seems like half the plots on the show revolve around putting her in the skimpiest outfits possible. It seems like in the "Smallville" universe, Lois Lane's idea of investigative journalism is going undercover as a stripper, because it happens every 3 or 4 episodes.

30 Years of Adam: 1989

Adam Reisinger, the creator of AdamReisinger.com, turns 30 on May 17, 2010. As part of the countdown to his 30th birthday, AdamReisinger.com looks back on the major events in the world on May 17th each year since 1980.

I've never been to China, and I'm not planning on going (I'm not saying I'm never going, it's just not in my plans), but on my 9th birthday, China was at the forefront of the news, thanks to hunger strikers in Beijing, protesting the communist government. More than 1 millions demonstrators marched in Tiananmen Square, just a couple weeks before the June 4th Incident that resulted in the deaths of between 400 to 800 people.

Here in North America, the Stanley Cup Final was an all-Canada affair, with the Montreal Canadiens evening their series against the Calgary Flames at one game apiece. The Flames went on to win the series in six games. I remember me and my buddy Phil choosing up sides in the Western Conference Finals, with him backing the Blackhawks and me backing the Flames, so I was happy that Calgary won it all (21 years later I couldn't care less about the Flames or hockey in general).

On May 17, 1989, the Mets lost 4-3 to the hated Dodgers (I was still bitter about '88 back then, and, honestly, I'm still bitter about it now). They still led the NL East by a game over the Cubs, but that wouldn't last.

Notable May 17, 1989 births:
- Canadian ice dancer Tessa Virtue

Jersey Monday: LeBron James

I know I've already done a LeBron James jersey monday, but in case you haven't noticed, that LeBron guy is pretty good.

Yesterday, the Cavs rocked their standard road wine jerseys (pictured here) in Chicago and LeBron put on a show. He finished with 37 points, 12 rebounds, 11 assists and had multiple highlight reel plays.

I prefer when the Cavs wear their wine road jerseys on the road as opposed to any of their other jerseys. The navy isn't bad, but their colors are WINE and gold, not NAVY and gold. The CavFantatic jerseys just look strange, and the 80s throwbacks, while cool-looking, get a little too close to "Knicks" territory for my tastes. Plus, the Cavs are now 15-4 this season when rocking the wine, which is pretty damn good.

Personally, I can't remember whether this or my white LeBron jersey was the first Cavs LeBron jersey I bought (I know both came after my gold SVSM jersey, which I got while LeBron was still in high school), but I know this is my favorite to wear of my four Cavs LeBron jerseys. It's probably my most worn LeBron jersey, though the 2007 All-Star Game jersey (a swingman version) is pretty close.

Another thing I prefer about this jersey is it's a mesh. The current Cavs authentics are a solid fabric (as seen in my Shaquille O'Neal navy alternate), which is great for display, and probably even for wearing on the court, but kind of annoying to wear when you're layering up like I do when I wear a basketball jersey.

Jersey Monday will continue every Monday until I run out of jerseys to spotlight. And since I’ve got more than 150 of them, that could be awhile.

Cigarette Least of Problems in Happy Meal

Look, I'm a fat dude, so I shouldn't really be lecturing anyone on their choice of foods, but when I read this story about a mother finding an unsmoked cigarette in her one-year-old's McDonald's Happy Meal, I had to chime in.

Yeah, the cigarette is bad, no doubt, and could have definitely caused some health problems if the baby had stuck it in its mouth (and, from what I know of babies, they'll put pretty much anything in their mouths), but you know what else can cause health problems for a one-year-old? A fucking Happy Meal.

I'd say "this is why our whole country is fat" but this apparently happened in England. Look, British people, don't follow our slippery slope (it's slippery because it's covered in bacon grease). You're better than this. You've got your cool upper crust accents and you call soccer "football" even though our football is way better.

You see that picture up there. That's a Happy Meal after it's been left out for a year. It barely looks any different from a "fresh" Happy Meal. So under no circumstances should you be giving that to your kid, especially if you want to avoid health problems for him. Leave the horrible horrible foods to me, and let the next generation grow up slightly more healthy. Please.

30 Years of Adam: 1988

Adam Reisinger, the creator of AdamReisinger.com, turns 30 on May 17, 2010. As part of the countdown to his 30th birthday, AdamReisinger.com looks back on the major events in the world on May 17th each year since 1980.

1988 was an election year, and on May 17, polls showed that Massachusetts governor Michael Dukakis led vice president George Bush by a 49-39 margin, a significant change from a month earlier. Obviously that trend continued and Dukakis went on to serve two successful terms as President before giving way to Tennessee senator Al Gore (or, none of that happened and Bush was elected in '88, then lost in '92).

The Western Conference Finals were in full swing on the 17th. Michael Cooper made a shot with 7 seconds left to give the Lakers a 111-109 win over the Jazz, as they took a 3-2 series lead. John Stockton led the Jazz with a playoff-record-tying 24 assists.

The Mets had a good day on May 17, 1988. David Cone pitched a gem, shutting out the Padres over seven innings with 12 strikeouts. Keith Hernandez drove in a run with a single in the 8th, giving the Mets a 1-0 win. They were in first place at the close of play, with a 3-game lead over the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Notable May 17, 1988 births:
- actress Nikki Reed

This Week in Buffy History: April 25-May 1

April 25
1969 - Gina Torres born (played Jasmine in Angel Season 4)
2000 - Episode 4.18 “Where the Wild Things Are” airs on The WB
2000 - Angel Episode 4.18 “Five by Five” airs on The WB

April 26
1978 - Ivana Milicevic born (played Sam Finn in Episode 6.15 “As You Were”)

April 28
1973 - Elisabeth Rohm born (played Kate Lockley on Angel)
1997 - Episode 1.8 “I Robot, You Jane” airs on The WB
1998 - Episode 2.19 “I Only Have Eyes For You” airs on The WB
2004 - Angel Episode 5.19 “Time Bomb” airs on The WB

April 29
2002 - Angel Episode 3.19 “The Price” airs on The WB
2003 - Episode 7.19 “Empty Places” airs on UPN

April 30
2002 - Episode 6.18 “Entropy” airs on UPN
2003 - Angel Episode 4.21 “Peace Out” airs on The WB

May 1
1972 - Bailey Chase born (played Graham Miller)
1972 - Julie Benz born (played Darla)
2001 - Episode 5.19 “Tough Love” airs on The WB
2001 - Angel Episode 2.19 “Belonging” airs on The WB

30 Years of Adam: 1987

Adam Reisinger, the creator of AdamReisinger.com, turns 30 on May 17, 2010. As part of the countdown to his 30th birthday, AdamReisinger.com looks back on the major events in the world on May 17th each year since 1980.

Slight change of plans for 1987. Rather than look at the headlines from May 17 of that year -- in case you're wondering the top story was about a missile attack in Iraq that hit a U.S. frigate, killing at least 3 people and leaving 30 unaccounted for -- I want to share a personal memory.

This didn't happen on my birthday, and quite frankly I can't remember my 7th birthday at all, but 1987 was the year I attended my first game at Shea Stadium. That came later that summer, on July 19. It was a day game against the Cincinnati Reds, one that included a 58-minute rain delay in the 11th inning. My dad stuck it out with me and we moved closer to the field once play resumed. After it did, Darryl Strawberry drew a walk, and Kevin McReynolds followed it with a bases loaded single, giving the Mets a 6-5 win. My favorite player, Keith Hernandez, went 3-for-5 with an RBI. Howard Johnson homered in the 6th inning, and all was well.

I wasn't really a Mets fan, or even a baseball fan, before 1986, but that game in 1987 solidified my fandom for life.

30 Years of Adam: 1986

Adam Reisinger, the creator of AdamReisinger.com, turns 30 on May 17, 2010. As part of the countdown to his 30th birthday, AdamReisinger.com looks back on the major events in the world on May 17th each year since 1980.

As Adam turned 6, he celebrated his birthday in Connecticut for the first time. But there was no celebrating in the Middle East, as war was on the verge of breaking out in Syria and an Afghan jet was downed in Pakistan. But that was TOTALLY the last time there were any problems in that region... really.

In the 112th Preakness Stakes, Snow Chief easily defeated Kentucky Derby winner Ferdinand, avenging a 19-length loss in the Derby. The Celtics were just as dominant in the NBA, winning 111-107 over the Bucks to take a 3-0 series lead in the Eastern Conference Finals, en route to their 16th NBA title. Who knew then that it would be another 22 years before they'd add to that total.

Despite a 6-2 loss to the Dodgers, the Mets held a 3-game lead over the Expos in the NL East and had the best record in baseball. The Mets would go on to win the World Series that year, and have been waiting even longer than the Celtics to add to their title collection, making nearly-30-year-old Adam as bitter as six-year-old Adam was happy.

Notable May 17, 1986 birthdays:
- "actor" Tahj Mowry
- football player Keenan Lewis

Friday Five - LeBrons in My Rotation

Pictured above are my new Zoom LeBron VII PS editions, which I received from Nike.com yesterday and wore for the first time today. They're awesome. They're also the fifth pair of LeBrons in my regular sneaker rotation, and, since today is Friday, that makes a perfect topic for my Friday Five.

1. Air Zoom Generation, 2003-04

These were the very first LeBrons, and they weren't even technically LeBrons, since they didn't have his name in the official shoe name. But these were his first Nikes, made specifically for him, and PooZ and I both bought them the day they came out in 2003. I remember walking down to Foot Locker on my lunch break to get them, then showing them off to the two co-workers I had that even cared about sneakers. Then I proceeded to beat the shit out of them for the next two years. They're practically falling apart now, but I still wear them once in awhile.

2. Zoom LeBron V SVSM Edition, 2007-08

The Zoom LeBron V SVSM Birthday Pack was released in late 2007 (to coincide with LeBron's 23rd birthday) but I didn't see them in person until February of 2008 when I made a trip to Cleveland. They were sold out at the Cavs team store at The Q, but fortunately they were available to Nike Club members through Nike.com. I ordered them as soon as I got back to my hotel and have managed to keep them in pretty good shape. People always comment how they look like golf shoes (with the green suede and the white strap creating a spat effect) but I still love them.

30 Years of Adam: 1985

Adam Reisinger, the creator of AdamReisinger.com, turns 30 on May 17, 2010. As part of the countdown to his 30th birthday, AdamReisinger.com looks back on the major events in the world on May 17th each year since 1980.

I don't fly much. I just don't like it. And I'm sure I wasn't flying on my 5th birthday, when the Air Line Pilots Association went on strike, forcing United to cancel almost 90% of its flights on May 17, 1985. The strike lasted 29 days, so air travel was pretty much screwed up for an entire month (and it's not like when the strike ended, everything was back to normal).

In the NBA, the Lakers beat the Nuggets 136-118, taking a 2-1 series lead in the Western Conference Finals. It marked the third consecutive game in the series in which the winning team scored at least 136 points. The Lakers averaged 132.4 PPG in the five-game series.

The Mets won via a 12th-inning walk-off single by Gary Carter, in a game that probably went way past Adam's bedtime. Ron Darling gave up just 2 earned in 9 innings, but wasn't around to get the decision. The win lifted the Mets a game and a half ahead of the Cubs for the Division lead, though eventually both teams would be passed by the Cardinals.

Notable May 17, 1985 birthdays:
- football player Matt Ryan
- Dancing With the Stars's Derek Hough

Tonight's Viewing Plan

As I've written before, Thursday nights tend to be hell on my DVR. Tonight is no exception, with new episodes of FlashForward, Bones and The Vampire Diaries at 8, followed by a new Fringe at 9. Making it even more crowded, there are two new episodes of 30 Rock, which would be fine if they were at 9 and 9:30. But no, they're at 8:30 and 9:30, which means I have to bump something from the DVR during the 8:00 hour (or, I should say something else, since I already have to bump Bones to make room for FlashForward and The Vampire Diaries).

On top of all this, there are two major sporting events I want to keep an eye on tonight. The Cavaliers face the Bulls in Game 3 of their first round series, starting at 7 on TNT. I will definitely be watching every second of that, though I'll be watching in SD so I can keep recording two things on the DVR (I've discovered that my U-Verse DVR lets me record two HD streams while also watching a live SD stream, so that's nice). Then, at 7:30, the 2010 NFL Draft starts up, which means the Redskins should be making their pick (4th overall) right as all my shows are starting at 8.

So what's the plan? Well, I think it'll go something like this:

30 Years of Adam: 1984

Adam Reisinger, the creator of AdamReisinger.com, turns 30 on May 17, 2010. As part of the countdown to his 30th birthday, AdamReisinger.com looks back on the major events in the world on May 17th each year since 1980.

"Huge U.S. Bail-Out Aids Bank"

No, that's not a headline from a year ago. That was the big news on Adam's 4th birthday, as the government approved a $7.5 Billion load to Continental Illinois. At the time, it was the most massive government-assisted bank bailout in U.S. history. And remember folks, this was with a Republican president in office. No one called Reagan a socialist. Not even four-year-old Adam. He didn't even know the definition of "socialist" (though, to be fair, most of the people who use that word today don't know the definition either).

OK, enough politics. In the world of sports, the Oilers exacted a measure of revenge for their May 17, 1983 defeat, beating the Islanders 7-2 on May 17, 1984 to move to within one win of the Stanley Cup. In the NBA, the Celtics beat the Bucks 125-110, taking a 2-0 series lead in the Eastern Conference Finals. About a month later, they'd go on to win their 15th NBA title.

The Mets closed the day on Adam's 4th birthday tied for first in the NL East with the Cubs. Obviously Chicago would win the division in the end, but the Mets had to enjoy their day off. You know who didn't enjoy May 17, 1984? Jim Palmer, who was released by the Orioles. Just five days earlier, he'd been shelled in what turned out to be the final appearance of his MLB career.

Notable May 17, 1984 birthdays:
- soccer player Christian Bolanos

Lost: "The Last Recruit" Reaction

I don't have it in me to recap every single detail of these last few episodes of "Lost", because I really want to sit back and enjoy them on the whole. So instead of a full recap, I'll just give some quick reactions to what happened on last night's episode, another classic in this great season.

- The scene with Jack and Flocke in the jungle, with Jack asking questions and Flocke giving answers, was very well done. On some level, all the answers we got were things we already knew, but on a larger scale I feel like that scene was the creators' way of speaking to the audience, and telling us to trust what we already believe.

- The Jin/Sun reunion was as emotional as I expected it to be, no more, no less. It would have been nice if Sun would have had a little more time to tell Jin about their child before they got interrupted by Widmore's people, but that'll come soon enough, I'm sure.

- Speaking of Jin and Sun's child, we saw that the baby Sun is carrying in the flash-sideways universe is OK, despite Sun being shot in the stomach in her previous LA-verse appearance. Oh, also, Sun is OK, and not dead. She was, however, brought to the same hospital as paralyzed/run-over Locke at the same time, and started to freak out when she saw him being wheeled in next to her. Safe to say she "saw something" much in the same way Charlie, Desmond, Hurley, etc. already have.

30 Years of Adam: 1983

Adam Reisinger, the creator of AdamReisinger.com, turns 30 on May 17, 2010. As part of the countdown to his 30th birthday, AdamReisinger.com looks back on the major events in the world on May 17th each year since 1980.

27 years ago, Adam was just a happy three-year-old, oblivious to things like "taxes" and "budgets". Well, Ronald Regan wasn't, and he was threatening to veto any bill that would increase taxes over the next two fiscal years. It was the central matter of his 17th formal news conference, held, coincidentally enough, on May 17, 1983. That same day, Lebanon, Israel and the U.S. signed a joint agreement on Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, which totally solved everything the Middle East forever (except, you know, not at all).

The Islanders once again dominated sports news on Adam's birthday (it's a good thing Adam was too young to know what hockey was, otherwise he might have become an Islanders fan, and that would just be tragic). They clinched their fourth consecutive Stanley Cup, beating the Oilers 4-2 to earn a 4-0 series sweep.

Thanks to the pitching of aging vet Tom Seaver and the hitting of phenom Darryl Strawberry, the Mets gave young Adam a happy 3rd birthday, beating the Padres 6-4. However, they were still 12-20 on the season, tied for last in the NL East (and tied for 2nd-worst in all of baseball).

Notable May 17, 1983 birthdays:
- basketball player Channing Frye
- deceased football player Chris Henry
- baseball player Jeremy Sowers

Desktop Girl of the Week: Morena Baccarin

I really want "V" to be good. I enjoyed the pilot, and kept watching even as the news of possible cancellation swirled about, particularly during the long hiatus. The first three episodes back from the break have been disappointing, and I see no evidence that that's going to change. So why do I keep putting up with the show if I'm not liking it? Two words: Morena Baccarin.

Morena, who is probably best known for her role as companion Inara Serra on "Firefly" (and the movie version "Serenity") is further proof that women from Brazil are 432% hotter than their American counterparts. She was pretty much an unknown when she was cast in "Firefly", but quickly made the role stand out.

After the untimely cancellation of "Firefly", Morena moved on to a role on the even shorter-lived series "Still Life", which produced a few episodes but never actually aired on U.S. television. She reprised her role as Inara in "Serenity", and did a three-episode guest spot on "The O.C.", which, I swear, I've never seen.

30 Years of Adam: 1982

Adam Reisinger, the creator of AdamReisinger.com, turns 30 on May 17, 2010. As part of the countdown to his 30th birthday, AdamReisinger.com looks back on the major events in the world on May 17th each year since 1980.

Adam was only two years old on May 17, 1982, so he doesn't remember Louise Fletcher speaking at the commencement ceremonies at what was then Gallaudet College, but his parents probably do. Fletcher, like Adam, is a child of deaf adults, and during her commencement speech, she criticized government cutbacks in funding for programs to support the deaf. 28 years later, she appeared in two episodes of "Heroes", which is sadly what Adam knows her for (oh, yeah, and that whole "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" movie thing...).

The Stanley Cup Final had wrapped up a day before Adam's 2nd birthday, and because the Lakers took care of business in the Western Conference Finals, there was no NBA action on the 17th either.

The Mets were one of six NL teams in action on May 17, 1982, and not shockingly, they lost. The 7-2 loss to the Reds dropped New York to 19-17 and 3 games back of the Cardinals, which was actually the best position they'd been in on Adam's birthday in his short life.

Notable May 17, 1982 births:
- basketball player Tony Parker
- football player Matt Cassel

"Buffy" for a Good Cause: Two Months to Slay-A-Thon 2010

I'm not generally a "cause" person. I support a handful of charitable organizations, but I don't do a lot of fund raising for them, because I tend to believe that people should do what they want with their money, particularly when it comes to charity. When you donate to a charity, it should be because you both believe in the cause at hand and enjoy the donation/fund-raising process.

For me, the event that does this the best is "Slay-a-Thon". It's a "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" themed fund-raiser for the Make-A-Wish foundation held annually in Chicago. I love what Make-A-Wish does, because life isn't just about surviving, it's about living. I remember sitting at Slay-A-Thon '06 and hearing the Make-A-Wish beneficiary from the previous year talk about her wish. It was truly amazing -- I don't want to call it life-changing, but it was eye-opening, showing me how one day and one experience could really make a person's life better, especially after all that girl had been through.

The event itself features a bunch of "Buffy"/"Angel"/Whedon-verse fans watching episodes of Joss Whedon shows all day long -- think of it like a marathon for people who'd much rather watch TV than run 26.2 miles. There are other events interspersed between the episodes, including a silent auction, a live auction and trivia games. There's also a sing-along for "Once More, With Feeling" and in recent years "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog".

So, here's where you come in. Obviously, I'm going to be attending Slay-A-Thon '10 on June 19, and unlike when I went in 2006, I'm going to try to get people to donate (note: I donated myself in '06, and bought plenty in the auctions, so it's not like I was a deadbeat attendee). I'm not asking for much. Whatever you can spare would be helpful. My personal donation will probably be $500, and I'm hoping my blog readers/Twitter followers/Facebook friends can combine to match that.

If you know me personally and see me on a daily (or even infrequent) basis, you can donate via cash or check. If you can't get the money to me personally for my June trip to Chicago, you can still donate via PayPal. Just click the PayPal button below. On the PayPal site, enter in your donation amount and then log-in. Before you finish the process, you'll see an "Add special instructions to merchant" link under the "Make A Wish Donation" description. Click on that and type in my name -- "Adam Reisinger" -- so the organizers know which attendee you're helping. Hell, if you wanna donate and don't want to put in my name, that's fine too, because you'd still be helping a good cause. But if you do support me, drop me an e-mail, so I can track you on my donations sheet.

For more step-by-step PayPal donation instructions, follow these directions from the Slay-A-Thon organizers. Also, be sure to check out my pictures from Slay-A-Thon '06, and always stay unapologetically awesome.

30 Years of Adam: 1981

Adam Reisinger, the creator of AdamReisinger.com, turns 30 on May 17, 2010. As part of the countdown to his 30th birthday, AdamReisinger.com looks back on the major events in the world on May 17th each year since 1980.

While Adam may have been in the DC area for his first birthday -- May 17, 1981 -- President Ronald Reagan was not. He was giving the commencement speech at the University of Notre Dame, marking the first time he'd traveled outside the nation's capital since the failed assassination attempt six weeks earlier (no truth to the rumor that he just gave the "win one for the Gipper" speech and walked off to the Notre Dame fight song). Also, Pope John Paul II left his bed for the first time since he'd been wounded in an assassination attempt, so all in all it was a good day for old guys who didn't get killed.

In sports, the Islanders took a 3-0 series lead over the North Stars in the Stanley Cup Final. It was the second consecutive year New York had won a Cup Final game on May 17, and they'd clinch their second consecutive Cup a few days later.

The Mets suffered a 6-1 loss to the Dodgers on May 17, 1981, despite out-hitting L.A. 12-9. They finished the day 8-22, 12 games back of the NL East-leading Cardinals, and just 3 games up on the Cubs for the worst record in baseball. So, pretty much like this year, only worse somehow.

This Week in Buffy History: April 18-24

April 18
1976 - Kevin O. Rankin born (played Donny Maclay on Episode 5.06 “Family”)

April 20
1971 - Brody Hutzler born (played Landok in season 2 of Angel)

April 21
2004 - Angel Episode 5.18 “Origin” airs on The WB

April 22
2002 - Angel Episode 3.18 “Double or Nothing” airs on The WB

April 23
2003 - Angel Episode 4.20 “Sacrifice” airs on The WB

April 24
1975 - Thad Luckinbill born (played R.J. Brooks in Episode 7.06 “Him”)
1977 - Eric Balfour born (played Jesse in Season 1)
1985 - Courtnee Draper born (played Annabelle in Episode 7.10 “Bring on the Night”)
2001 - Episode 5.18 “Intervention” airs on The WB
2001 - Angel Episode 2.18 “Dead End” airs on The WB

30 Years of Adam: 1980

Adam Reisinger, the creator of AdamReisinger.com, turns 30 on May 17, 2010. As part of the countdown to his 30th birthday, AdamReisinger.com looks back on the major events in the world on May 17th each year since 1980.

Adam was born on May 17, 1980, but for some reason, that wasn't the lead story in the papers the next day. No, the big news on that day, in both the Washington Post and the New York Times, was about Cuban protests regarding the treatment of refugees involved in the Mariel boatlift. Sadly, my knowledge of this historical event is limited to the opening crawl from "Scarface" (thus the picture above).

In the world of sports, there was controversy regarding Codex's May 17 victory in the Preakness over Kentucky Derby winner Genuine Risk. ABC's cameras appeared to show Codex's jockey, Angel Cordero, whipping Genuine Risk in the face, which would be grounds for disqualification. However, the Preakness stewards said they saw no such violation.

The Mets were rained out on May 17, 1980, and stood in last place in the NL East at the end of the day.

Other May 17, 1980 births:

- singer Dallas Taylor

- actress Nicole DuPort

- hockey player Martin Cibak

- basketball player Jerome Beasley

2010 NBA Finals Prediction

Last year, there was a team that was slightly under the radar, but was very good, record-wise. This team played very well against the best team in its conference, and swept the season series from the best team in the other conference. People dismissed their regular-season success, but they ended up reaching the NBA Finals, before losing in 5 to a team they swept in the regular season.

A year ago, that team was the Orlando Magic. The team that meets that same description this year -- minus the 60-win season -- is the Denver Nuggets. And the team they swept in the regular season, the team they'll lose to in 5 in the NBA Finals, is the Cleveland Cavaliers.

It seems everyone involved with the NBA wants a Kobe-LeBron finals, but I'd be much more interested in seeing a Carmelo-LeBron series, especially after the way they two went at each other this season in their two meetings.

So why do I think the Cavs would win this eventual series in 5 games? Because Denver has no answer for Shaquille O'Neal. Yes, Shaq isn't the Shaq of old (he's really just Old Shaq), but he can still cause problems for a guy like Nene.

So there you have it, my official Finals prediction: Cavaliers over Nuggets in 5 games. Check back in two months to see just how wrong I was.

NBA Western Conference Playoff Predictions

OK, with the East out of the way, it's time to move on to the West, where there seems to be more potential for upsets.

FIRST ROUND
1 Lakers def. 8 Thunder, 4-2
Kevin Durant is gonna do some special things in this series, but it won't be enough to overcome the defending champs.

2 Mavericks def. 7 Spurs, 4-2
For some reason, this is the matchup the Spurs wanted in the first round. If San Antonio is completely healthy, they can give the Mavs a run for their money. But George Hill is already hurt, and I'm not sure how much Parker and Duncan have left in the tank (at least for a this-year perspective for Parker).

3 Suns def. 6 Blazers, 4-1
Portland has done some amazing things with its slapped-together lineup this year, but this is where it ends. Phoenix is playing great right now.

4 Nuggets def. 5 Jazz, 4-3
I might have been tempted to pick Utah in this series, but with Andrei Kirilenko is out for two weeks, and he's a key part of their success. Denver's had its own issues of late, but the Nuggets are pretty good.

SECOND ROUND
4 Nuggets def. 1 Lakers, 4-3
LA just hasn't been as good as they were last year, and Andrew Bynum's health is still a question mark. What's not a question is Derek Fisher -- everyone just knows he's all washed up. Chauncy Billups is too good of a point guard not to take advantage of that.

3 Suns def. 2 Mavericks, 4-2
Steve Nash is having another resurgent season, and he's gonna make Mark Cuban pay for not re-signing him a few years back.

CONFERENCE FINALS
4 Nuggets def. 3 Suns, 4-3
Accuscore shows this potential series as pretty much a toss-up, so that's why I have it going 7. As for why I picked the Nuggets? Well, look back at my East post and then check out that potential Finals matchup. Oh, and check back in about an hour for my NBA Finals prediction.

NBA Eastern Conference Playoff Predictions

The NBA playoffs start today at 3:00 with Cavs-Bulls, which means its about time for me to make my annual playoff predictions. A couple years ago, I did pretty well. Last year, not so much.

So let's take a shot at this in 2010, and yes, I'm going to let my personal biases in.

FIRST ROUND
1 Cavaliers def. 8 Bulls, 4-0
Yes, the teams split their two meetings this year, but one of Chicago's wins was in the early part of the season, when the Cavs were feeling themselves out, and another was during the LeBron sit-a-thon. Chicago has taken a step back this season, and is not the same team that took the Celtics to 7 last year.

2 Magic def. 7 Bobcats, 4-1
Charlotte is good, and probably would have given the Cavs fits, but the Bobcats don't match up well with Orlando.

3 Hawks def. 6 Bucks, 4-1
This series would have been much more interesting if Andrew Bogut was healthy. But he's out for the season, which means Atlanta should cruise into the second round.

4 Celtics def. 5 Heat, 4-2
I just saw the Celtics play a couple weeks ago, and I came away less than impressed. However, I don't think the Heat can pull off the upset, mostly because they aren't really that good. Outside of Dwyane Wade, they don't have another player they can count on night in and night out.

SECOND ROUND
1 Cavaliers def. 4 Celtics, 4-2
I reserve the right to downwardly adjust the number of games the Celtics will win in this series based on how they play in the first round.

2 Magic def. 3 Hawks, 4-1
Orlando is playing really well right now, and took 3 of the 4 meetings with the Hawks this year. The one game Atlanta won was on a buzzer beater, while the three Orlando won were blowouts. That's not a formula for playoff success.

CONFERENCE FINALS
1 Cavaliers def. 2 Magic, 4-3
This is the series the Cavaliers have been waiting all season for, and this time the outcome will be different. I'm not even convinced it will go to 7, but I've been impressed by Orlando this year, and I think the Magic are better than people are giving them credit for.

So, that's the East. Coming later today: the West, then my NBA Finals prediction

Happy Birthday Sarah Michelle Gellar!

I can't believe I almost let this entire day go by without wishing Sarah Michelle Gellar -- a.k.a. Buffy Summers, a.k.a. my future wife -- a happy birthday.

Gellar, who is actually married to Freddie Prinze Jr. and not to me, was born on April 14, 1977. She started being awesome shortly thereafter. She remains one smoking hot 33-year-old

Most people know Gellar from her seven-season run on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", but that's not all she's done, not by a long-shot. So here's a primer on some of her best non-"Buffy" roles that you may want to watch on Gellar Day:

Lost: Everybody Loves Hugo Recap/Reaction

Before I get to this episode, let me just say that I love Hurley. He's such a fun character and he's always brought something of the fan's voice to the show. So I was very excited to see his flash-sideways episode, even if it may have derailed some of the momentum from the last couple of weeks. Fortunately, the episode was not only good on its own, but moved things forwards as well.

The episode opened in the LA-verse, with a voice-over from Dr. Chang (Miles's dad, and the host of many a Dharma training video), introducing a life retrospective of Hugo Reyes in the LA-verse. Apparently Hurley wasn't lying about being the luckiest man on the planet in this universe, where he owns Mr. Cluck's which has led him to all sorts of great things. The scene played out like the award scene from "Iron Man", expect Hugo was actually on hand to receive his "man of the year" award. At the end of the scene, Hurley and his mom are outside, and Mrs. Reyes is trying to set Hurley up on a date. Apparently for all his luck, Hurley hasn't been lucky in love.

SMASH CUT too... The Island, where Hurley is standing over Libby's grave. While this was nice, I feel like we could have made the connection of opposite Hurley fates on our own. Hurley was talking to Libby's grave, lamenting the fact that for all the dead people he's seen, Libby hasn't been one of them. Ilana comes over and tells Hurley that they're all going up to the Black Rock to get dynamite, and asks about the grave. Hurley fills her in on the sad story about their planned picnic and how she was murdered, and looks up and sees... her murderer! It's Michael, in this scene we all saw in the promos. "I'm here to stop you from getting everyone killed," Michael tells Hurley. Cue "LOST" title screen.

On the flip side of the break, Hurley's still in stunned silence. He doesn't trust Michael's ghost. Michael tells him "people are going to die and it's going to be your fault." Again, this harkens back to Hurley's past, with the collapsed dock and the people who died. Hurley blamed himself, so obviously when Michael says that, Hurley starts taking him seriously. Jack comes over and gets Hurley, and now we're back to the LA-verse.

A disinterested Hurley is snacking on bottomless chips at "Spanish Johnnys" (a Chili's-esque restaurant) when his blind date shows up. And it's Libby! It's fumbling awkward love at first sight. And she's not the blind date, she just spotted him at the restaurant. And not only that, but she believes she and Hurley are connected. She takes his hands and looks in his eyes.

You don't remember me, do you?

Well now, that's a twist.

Joss Whedon + Avengers = Good Happy Fun Times?

The news crossed today that our master, Joss Whedon, has been chosen by the brilliant folks at Marvel to direct "The Avengers", which is slated to grace theaters with its awesomeness in the summer of 2012 (assuming the Mayans haven't come back from the dead to kill us all by then).

Given the combination of two incredibly amazing things that I love, this has the potential to be the greatest movie in the history of moving pictures.

It also has the potential to be an abject disaster.

Let me explain.

First, the positives. "The Avengers" isn't coming out of nowhere in 2012. Marvel will have released two Iron Man movies, plus a Captain America movie and a Thor movie. So far, all we've seen of those is "Iron Man", which was incredible. If "Captain America" and "Thor" are even close to that level, then there's no reason "The Avengers" shouldn't succeed.

Desktop Girl of the Week: Amber Benson

I realized upon meeting her this past weekend that somehow, in my six years of making "Desktop Girl of the Week" selections on and off, I'd never picked Amber Benson. That changes now.

Amber has been acting since 1993, but it wasn't until she was cast as Tara on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" that she became something of a household name. Fan reaction to Tara wasn't exactly positive at first, since Willow's lesbian relationship was seen as something of a ratings stunt and Tara was blamed for breaking up Willow and Oz, who everyone loved as a couple.

Still, Amber played the role admirably and became a fan favorite, eventually being promoted to regular cast member in Season Six's "Seeing Red." Unfortunately, that was also the same episode in which her character died (damn you, Joss!).

Since the end of "Buffy", Amber's had a series of smaller roles in movies and television, including a memorable appearance as the vampire Lenore in a 2006 episode of "Supernatural". She's also found her own creative voice, writing a trio of books with former Buffy comic writer Christopher Golden. In 2007, she released the first of her Calliope Reaper-Jones novels, "Death's Daughter", about... well, Death's daughter. The second book in the series, "Cat's Claw" came out about six weeks ago.

"Serenity": My Perfect Movie

I'm a bitch. Anyone who knows me knows this. My emotions go up and down like a rollercoaster in an earthquake (I also suck at writing good metaphors). So despite the fact that last week was awesome -- starting with the Cavs game last Sunday, the release of Buffy #34 on Wednesday and Boston Comic-Con on Saturday, by about 4 p.m. yesterday, I just wanted to crawl into a hole somewhere and disappear from the world. Thanks to my fucked up brain chemistry, that feeling continued all the way through Monday (I think sometimes my brain works like the rubber band AI from "NBA Jam"... You know how in that game, if you got really far ahead, your team started to miss shots, while the other team couldn't miss, and the reverse was true if you fell really far behind? Well, I think my brain doesn't like it when I get really happy, so it fucks with me).

By the time I was driving home after work Monday, I just needed a good cry (again, I'm a bitch. Sorry, it's true.). So when I got home, I poured myself a drink (tequila, straight up... I'm not a complete bitch) and popped in my favorite cry movie: "Serenity".

Jersey Monday: Wayne Gretzky

Since the NHL Playoffs are about to get underway, I figure it's probably a good time to spotlight what has to be my "best" hockey jersey, my Wayne Gretzky Oilers throwback. 

I didn't get this jersey until relatively recently (last fall), and I've barely worn it. It's almost too awesome to wear. I remember coming very close to buying it back in '07 when PooZ and I were in New York and they had it available at the NHL Store.  

There's no doubt in my mind that Gretzky is the best hockey player of all-time, and this is the jersey of his to own. I know a lot of people love the black Kings jersey, but Wayne won his Stanley Cups as an Oiler, and the classic oil drop logo (which, of course, you can't see here) is much cooler than the '90s stylized Kings logo.

Like I've said before, I don't own many hockey jerseys and don't anticipate my collection growing anytime soon, but this was a jersey I had to have and one I'm glad is in my collection.

Jersey Monday will continue every Monday until I run out of jerseys to spotlight. And since I’ve got more than 150 of them, that could be awhile.

Meet the Mess

Is April 12 too early to give up on your team's baseball season?

Well, technically no, since I'm pretty sure I gave up on the Mets sometime in December. But after a 2-4 start to the season, with a series loss to the dismal Nationals, I'm ready to call it a year, and we haven't even hit tax day yet.


After last year's debacle -- mostly injury related -- I didn't have high expectations for this season, but it's hard not to look at the roster and see talented players scattered throughout the lineup and think "hey, maybe this team can at least contend for a Wild Card spot."

In many ways, this year's team is like the early '90s Mets teams. Just like it was back then, this team is only a couple years removed from back-to-back second place finishes, and four years removed from an NLCS appearance. They had some young players who were supposed to be pretty good and made a splashy outfield free agent signing (Vince Coleman in '91, Jason Bay in '10). The early '90s teams actually had better pitching, but in both cases, they had a lefty Cy Young winner who they'd acquired in a trade from Minnesota.

Those early '90s Mets teams were among the most detestable in franchise history, thanks in large part to off-the-field troubles. Last year's team was unlikeable mostly because it sucked, and it seems like this year is going to be more of the same. They're not bad guys, like the '90s teams were, and in many cases they're not bad baseball players (well, Mike Jacobs is, and I'm not sure why he's started four of the six games). They're just a bad baseball team.

Will I still go see them at CorporateField later this year? Probably. But will I expect them to win -- either in that specific game, or on a larger scale. Not a chance?

This Week in Buffy History: April 11-17

April 11
1932 - Joel Grey born (played Doc in Season 5)

April 12
1971 - Nicholas Brendon born (played Xander)
1971 - Kelly Donovan born (played Xander double in Season 5)

April 14
1977 - Sarah Michelle Gellar born (played Buffy)
1997 - Episode 1.07 “Angel” airs on The WB
2004 - Angel Episode 5.17 “Underneath” airs on The WB

April 15
2002 - Angel Episode 3.17 “Forgiving” airs on The WB
2003 - Episode 7.18 “Dirty Girls” airs on UPN

April 16
2003 - Angel Episode 4.19 “The Magic Bullet” airs on The WB

April 17
1955 - Kristine Sutherland born (played Joyce Summers)
2001 - Episode 5.17 “Forever” airs on The WB
2001 - Angel Episode 2.17 “Disharmony” airs on The WB

Boston Comic Con Recap

I really like comic book conventions, but I need a better system. When I got home today from Boston Comic Con, I weighed my backpack, in which I'd been carrying my books to get signed.

32 pounds.

Carrying that thing around all day was NOT fun. My legs and back are still pissed at me. The rest of the day was amazing.

As I do with every convention I go to, I made my "hit list" a couple days ago, and pulled all the books from guests attending the show. It was a pretty big pile, because former Buffy and Angel writer Christopher Golden was there, as was Amber Benson, Jim Lee, Joseph Michael Linsner and a bunch of others.

I started off with Linsner's table, because, well, it was right there in front of the door. Also, I really wanted to get him, and Eva Hopkins, to sign the Dark Ivory series. This was the first time I'd seen Linsner since Chicago in '06, when I picked up PooZ's engagement piece, so it was cool to see him again. He had some really incredible original pieces, but my budget for this show was pretty low, so I had to pass.

Review: Buffy #34 - "Twilight, Pt. 3"

Wow, Dark Horse sure was not messing around with that teaser for Issue #34 in the last issue. This was indeed the issue where Buffy and Angel f#@ked. NICE! More than that, it was the issue where writer Brad Meltzer (with some direction from Joss Whedon, I'd assume) filled in some of the back story that's been driving Season 8.

COVER TWO

Once again, the Jeanty cover is an homage, this time to an old Superman cover (which is interesting, because it puts Angel in the Superman position, while Buffy was the one with the Superman-esque powers in the last issue). It's also the one that broke open the floodgates on the spoilers a few months backs. Chen's cover is a beautifully painted Buffy and Angel image, that looks pulled right out of Season 2 or 3. I love both covers, but the Chen one really stands out in this issue.

THE ART STUFF

I know I normally put "the write stuff" first, but I needed to address the art in this issue, because the scenes of Buffy and Angel fucking are pretty graphic. Yes, all the naughty bits are covered up by foreground trees or well-positioned hands and legs, but you can tell exactly what they're doing, and it's pretty hardcore. I had no idea Buffy was into anal.

Apparently this issue caught a lot of people off guard (at least, that's what Scott Allie said on Twitter), and, well, I'd say it's at least PG-13, if not 18+. In the last panel on Page 5, it's pretty clear Angel is sucking Buffy's breast. Page 8 would definitely be featured on the Peter Griffin Side Boob Hour. Angel appears to be going down on Buffy on Page 9. We get Buffy's outer space O-face on Page 20. It's all there, minus nipples and penises, and, yeah... this is pretty much why I could never be an artist (well, that and my complete lack of talent).

Friday Five - Favorite Episodes of "Lost"

Since I made reference to my favorite episodes of "Lost" multiple times in this week's recap, now seems like as good a time as any to revisit my favorite episodes list. This was actually the very first "Fave 5" topic on AdamReisinger.com, way back in 2007, so obviously there have been some changes since then.

5. Numbers
Season 1, Episode 18
Remember when the numbers - 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42 - were the biggest mystery on the show? What did they mean? Where did they come from? Were they really cursed? Why THOSE numbers? Well, this is where it all started. This is also Hurley's first real episode to shine, and it established him as something more than the guy we saw on the Island.

4. The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham
Season 5, Episode 7
Last season's Locke-centric episode was the stage-setter for getting everyone back to the Island. It also did a great job filling in the gaps between the Oceanic Six's arrival back in the U.S. and the first "flash-forward" episode we saw. But really, it was about Locke's final step as a character, embracing his destiny (in this case, dying) one last time.

iPhone OS 4.0: First Impressions

As you may remember, last week I spelled out my reasons for not getting an iPad yet. Some of them were based on hardware, some just on lack of need, but one of the key issues was that I felt the software wasn't mature enough for the device (that is, it was a modern device running an old operating system). Well, I watched the live updates from the iPhone OS 4.0 media event yesterday then watched the stream last night, and I have to say that Apple seems to have addressed those concerns, specifically in multitasking.

As Steve Jobs spelled out yesterday, there are seven tentpole features in iPhone 4.0. Of these, I don't really care much about three of them:

- iBooks for the iPhone
- Advanced Enterprise features
- iAd

Yes, the iAd mobile advertising platform is very impressive, and is pretty much a direct "fuck you" to Google, but it's much more of a developer thing than an end user thing (though, if developers use it right, in-app advertising shouldn't be as intrusive or as crappy, which is a good thing for end users).

As for the other four tentpole features, let me take a look at them from least important to most:

4. Game Center
Think of this as Apple's version of Xbox Live. You can earn achievements within games and be matched for online games with players of equal skill or even your friends. This is a big step in making the iPhone/iPod touch/iPad a serious competitor to Nintendo (despite Reggie Fils-Aime continuing to stick his fingers in his ears and say "la la la I'm not listening"). Most of the gaming I do on the iPhone right now is of the solo casual variety but a more advanced gaming system could bring more in-depth gaming to the platform, which could draw me in.

iTunes Spring Cleaning

As I mentioned over at Talk Nerdy to Me Lover, as well as on my Twitter feed, I recently purchased a 4 terabyte (that's 4,000 gigabytes, or like... a fuckton of bytes) hard drive for my iTunes Library.

Before I did the massive file copy over to the new drive, I decided to undertake a spring cleaning project on the music portion of my Library -- by far the smallest part, but also the most disorganized. A few years back, I digitized my entire CD library (much like I'm doing with my DVDs now), only I didn't do any filtering. I just dumped EVERYTHING into iTunes. So, if I had two copies of a CD (say, the U.S. edition and the international edition), they both went in. CD singles? In. Bonus discs? In.

Because of that, I ended up with multiple copies of the same song. Not multiple versions. Multiple copies. The same exact song, in my iTunes library, as many as four or five times, all because that song was included on multiple albums (greatest hits CDs were a huge culprit in this clusterfuck). So this past weekend, I went through and deleted all the duplicate copies, manually transferring their play counts over to the copy of the track I left in iTunes. In some cases, this required little to no work. In others -- specifically for my massive Britney Spears library -- I really had to dig into the tracks in iTunes and figure out what was actually identical. In the case of one song ("...baby one more time") I had seven copies of the album version of that track, on seven different discs. For Lady Gaga, I had "The Fame", "The Fame (Special Edition)" and the two-disc version of "The Fame Monster", so there were plenty of tracks that were in there three times. No more.

Series of Tubes: Lost "Happily Ever After" Recap/Reaction

Prior to last night, my favorite episode of "Lost" all-time was probably "The Constant", and my favorite episode this season was "Ab Aeterno". As you may notice, those were both episodes that focused entirely on a non-central character while giving us a lot of answers, at least indirectly.

Last night's episode, "Happily Ever After", now tops both of those lists, and definitely fits the above description.

The episode started on the island, with one of "Lost"'s trademark one-eye shots. This time it was Desmond waking up from his submarine sedation, as Widmore's people prepared him for something. Upon finding out that Widmore has brought him back to the island, Desmond freaks out (understandably so, given his history with that place). While this is going on, Jin heads over to some huge building (no idea where that came from, but we'll let it slide, since we didn't really see much of Hydra Island back in Season 3), where Widmore's people are trying to get some kind of experiment going -- and the bunny in the room should have been a dead giveaway as to what they were trying to do. Their first attempt fails, so one of the guys -- let's call him "Red Shirt" -- goes down to the shed, where there are two huge electromagnets. These things looked like giant versions of the base of Tony Stark's chest plate in "Iron Man", which made sense, since they're both electromagnetic technology. Back in the big building, someone figures out that the reason the experiment didn't work is that some power switch wasn't turned on. He flips it, and Red Shirt gets fried while the monitors blink out, freaking everyone out. They go down to the shed to find Red Shirt's body all crispified, which pisses off Widmore for a second, but he's more concerned about getting the room ready for Desmond.

Of course, Widmore doesn't want to fry Desmond, he wants to repeat the event that caused Desmond's consciousness to shift the first time -- the electromagnetic explosion of the Hatch at the end of Season 2, the result of which was seen in Season 3's "Flashes Before Your Eyes". Widmore is very cryptic about why he's doing this, but, then again, that's to be expected. Jin demands to know what's going on. Widmore goes over the whole "catastrophic electromagnetic event" thing, then says. "I need to know that he can do it again. Or we all die." They turn on the machine and Desmond goes through some kind of Dr. Manhattan-esque phasing and passes out.

Desktop Girl of the Week: Zoe Saldana

I wasn't quite sure about making Zoe Saldana this week's DGOW selection, until I came across this picture. I love the composition of it, and how raw she looks, which is so different from how she normally comes across. It's a really great image, one I wouldn't mind having on my desktop.

As for Saldana herself, well, most people know her for her recent starring roles as Uhura in "Star Trek" and Neytiri in "Avatar" (though she was a CGI'd blue cat-person in that one), but to me she'll always be one of Britney Spears's co-stars in "Crossroads". You thought we forgot about that one, didn't you Zoe? Well, let me assure you, obsessive Britney fans NEVER forget.

Horrible Britney Spears projects aside, Saldana's really had a good movie career. She had a small role in the first "Pirates of the Carribean" movie, played Ashton Kutcher's fiancée with the late Bernie Mac in "Guess Who" and was in the underrated multiple POV thriller "Vantage Point". It wasn't until this past summer that Saldana really became a "star", but the seeds were planted a long time ago.

Series of Tubes: "Chuck Versus the Other Guy" Rapid Reaction

Was Monday night's episode of "Chuck" the best episode ever? No. Was it the best episode of the season? Probably not. But was it the episode we needed when we needed it? Absolutely.

"Chuck Versus the Other Guy" moved the show where it needed to go for long-term success, bringing together all the various storylines that had been introduced in the past few episodes.

Let's break this down character-by-character:

Chuck himself needed to finally pass his test and kill someone to advance to the next level of being a real spy. Chuck's never going to be a stone-cold killer like Casey or Shaw or even Sarah, but he needed to be comfortable handling a gun. The Ring director even called him on it when Sarah and Chuck had him trapped in an elevator, and Chuck was still using a tranq gun. If Chuck doesn't eventually kill someone, then the series is trapped in a loop of repeating character development from the first two-and-a-half seasons.