I'm a blogger (see the sidebar) but my sister is in medical school. She is actually much smarter than I am but, according to this improbably enjoyable Styles piece on Sunday, I am the one who my mom should be bragging about. You hear that Marcia! ME! Why? "In a culture that prizes risk and outsize reward — where professional heroes are college dropouts with billion-dollar Web sites — some doctors and lawyers feel they have slipped a notch in social status, drifting toward the safe-and-staid realm of dentists and accountants. It’s not just because the professions have changed, but also because the standards of what makes a prestigious career have changed." My sister just delivered an infant! My last post got 13 page views! Who's the winner now!?!?!?
Immigrant-hating/loving CNN goblin Lou Dobbs isn't not pondering entering the 2008 Presidential Elections as an independent. From the WSJ: "Mr. Dobbs says he isn't planning to run. "I haven't got the personality or nature to be a politician," he said in an interview Thursday. But he makes clear he hasn't ruled out the idea. "I cannot say never," he said." Sure you can! Just say it please and stop giving us agita!
As you may or may not have heard, Britney Spears has been having some "sanity issues" of late. Thankfully, on Saturday ">Dr. Phil swooped his hairless head in to Cedars Sinai and rescued the once upon a pop star, securing her release and whisking her away to parts unknown. "Parts unknown" of course only if you have no idea where Palm Desert is. It's 120 miles east of Los Angeles. It used to be a training ground for General Patton's troops! It's the cradle for the stoner rock movement! It's also where Spears was spotted Sunday morning with her Afghani-born (OMG!!) BF Adnan Ghalib. According to abnormally eye-patched Vegas gossip columnist Norm!, "Spears was celebrating her release with a mimosa champagne drink during breakfast at the Daily Grill on El Paseo....During breakfast, she went to the restroom with her champagne flute, while her friend stood outside the door." [Struggling not to make "2 Girls 1 Flute" joke!]
[Photo: Page Six]
American thespian and unrepentant drunk Tracy Morgan continues to be a personal hero. All the shitty Queens shooting articles that Times outer borough Metro reporter Michael Wilson had to write finally paid off when he got to spend a night out with Mr. Morgan at Benihana's and write it up in the high-paying Styles section (as opposed to the penurious word rates of Metro) Best nugget from a long night of Sake bombs? “I’m walking around my family with an ankle bracelet,” he said. “For me, that was rock bottom.” Then he poured sake for my bomb — “It’s bad luck to pour your own,” he said — and plop! Into the beer it dropped, and the night began."More after the jump.
What followed was part stand-up routine and part attempts at seduction. He was coming off a hard year that, besides the bracelet, included accusations from a Florida D.J. that he had groped her. She dropped the complaint and Mr. Morgan was never charged, the police said. But if the stress of 2007 mellowed Mr. Morgan, 39, it didn’t show. He acted the host, ordering for the communal table, keeping the sake bombs dropping and dispensing unsolicited tips to strangers. On child-rearing: “I intimidate them because I walk around buck naked.” To a tourist family: “Walk slow and drink a lot of water.” To someone on a cellphone handed to him by the family: “When you see me on the street, act like you know me.”Later Morgan showed us exactly how one approaches women. Watch out Neil Strauss. The Real Deal is here.
"He zeroed in on a woman in her 20s. “You look like a young Whitney Houston,” he said. “Before Bobby.” And: “You won’t catch me on ‘To Catch a Predator.’ I like grown women.” She would not look up, and he inquired if she, too, would bear his next child, even ordering one to spec: “You know our daughter. Ten pounds, 8 ounces, and she’s going to your house when she starts crying.” He told her: “Why don’t you give me some love? You treat me like Space Ghost.” Finally, she laughed.
Aleksey Vayner first received international publicity as a student at Yale University when he created a marketing peace of himself – a video, titled Impossible is Nothing, where he summed up his view on ‘success’ and showcased some of his athletic pursuits. He received his share of mockery from kids in the bloggosphere, [That's us!] but more notably, was featured in NY Times, interviewed by Yale herald, and appeared on MsNBC News and 20/20.....Aleksey Vayner’s story is one of discipline and perseverance thought the hardships of immigration. The youngest of three siblings, Aleksey is born in Tashkent, Uzbekistan to Ph.D. parents. His father, abusive to the family, indulges in hobbies that included professional rock climbing, Olympic-level swimming, and skiing.
His sister had hepatitis. He was eating trash. Then he got into Yale. And now, apparently he wrote a book called Millionaires' Blueprint to Success: Discover the Secrets of Wealthy elite. It's "comming soon..." but Amazon never heard of it. Anyway! We return to New Haven. It's freshman year. Vayner is on the cusp of failure.
During freshman year he recalls nearly failing introductory macroeconomics because he was up for 3 days developing a high probability derivative strategy based off of the Black-Scholles options pricing model. “It was crazy, I could really create options spreads to hit the wings of the bell, and take profits with an average probability of 96%!” While at Yale University Aleksey picked up ballroom dancing and weight lifting, but maintained his focus on his core sports, and his extracurricular studies of investment management and personal development. By graduation he has competed in ballroom, leg pressed 1650lbs, bench pressed 520lbs, started 3 businesses and a non-profit organization. Aleksey Vayner is a registered investment advisor with Securities and Exchange Commission. He is pending Certified Financial Planner and Certified Financial Analyst certifications. Aleksey is a member of USTA, ISBDF, ADFPF, SCIP, National Association of Public Speakers, and National Writers Association.
So goes Jamie Lynn Spears, so goes the box office.
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This is Daniel Plainview's kind of awards-show season.
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