This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of 20th Century Fox. All opinions are 100% mine.
The highly anticipated comedy “Date Night” opens this friday, April 9th. Two of the biggest stars of must-see comedy thursday pair up in what looks to be this spring’s bona fide big-screen smash. Steve Carell and Tina Fey portray your typical suburban married couple deeply entrenched in the day to day routine. They impulsively take another couple’s table reservation at a trendy restaurant one night and that’s when their troubles begin. They’re mistaken to be the ones who stole some information from a mobster and are then chased after by some no-good henchmen.
I’m a huge fan of both Carell and Fey and it’s great to see them work together in this project. There’s some good buzz surrounding the flick and early reviews say the pair have great chemistry together. The neat thing that I’ve heard about the movie is that it has a positive take on the couple’s marriage. Yes, the couple is in a rut and may appear bored with their lives but screenwriter Josh Klausner made it a point to show their marriage in a good light. In fact, he has been quoted in saying that the movie is “a love letter to marriage.” With so many crude and obnoxious comedies topping the box office, it’s actually refreshing that “Date Night” has some heart to it.
The Date Night Movie was helmed by director Shawn Levy who has had a string of hit movies including “Night at the Museum” and “Cheaper by the Dozen”. The movie also features a great supporting cast including Ray Liotta, James Franco and Mila Kunis. It opens this weekend so be sure to grab your spouse and make it a date night. I know I will!
This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Alvin and the Chipmunks. All opinions are 100% mine.
My six year old is currently obsessed with the new Alvin and the Chipmunks DVD – “The Squeakquel”. After purchasing the double DVD pack last week, the movie has been playing in my playroom DVD player practically non-stop. no lie. Initially, I wasn’t really that interested in watching the flick but after seeing how much my son was enjoying it, I had to see for myself what the fuss was all about. And I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by the Chipmunks movie. The Squeakquel is quite entertaining with tons of music and hilarious antics by the lovable Chipmunks. Plus the movie features the addition of “the Chipettes” voiced by none other than Amy Poehler, Anna Faris and Christina Applegate. It’s fun to see a new generation of kids enjoying characters that we all grew up with. I personally remember owning the “Chipmunks Punk” album when I was little. How could anyone resist Alvin, Theodore and Simon singing songs like “My Sharona”?? I know I couldn’t. And now, the Chipmunks are at it again, performing tracks like “We Are Family”, “Shake Your Groove Thing” and “Single Ladies”. Speaking of which, the “The Squeak Along” bonus disc is a must have. Come on, you know you want to singalong to Beyonce’s “Single Ladies”! don’t deny it! It’s great family fun and the DVD two pack as well as the Blu-Ray versions are available at a store near you so be sure to buy it now!! Your kids will love ya for it.
And if your kids are like mine, they’d definitely enjoy More Munk Mayhem over at FoxFamilyFlicks.com. There are neat little games, activities and videos featuring the Chipmunks. I also want to mention MunkYourself.com which allows your kids to customize their own version of the Chipmunks with different clothes, hairdos and accessories. fun stuff!
This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Foodmix. All opinions are 100% mine.
A few weeks ago I stumbled upon an online coupon for a brand of cooking wine called Holland House. It wasn’t a brand I was familiar with but I thought I’d try the classic burgundy cooking wine for my spaghetti sauce. I don’t know if most of you add wine to your sauces but in my opinion, adding a bit of wine brings out the flavors in the sauce. And unlike the usual table wines, Holland House wine is made specifically for cooking and has a shelf life of approximately six months. The added salt in the cooking wine prolongs the stability of it but you have to keep the extra salt in mind when using it in your recipes. I’ve also used the Holland House wine for my signature spicy grilled pork dish. The key to the dish is the marinade which is a mixture of red cooking wine, soy sauce, garlic, ginger and molasses. The grilled pork turned out great the other day and Holland House did the job in enhancing the flavors in the dish.
I just checked out some of the recipes featured on the Holland House website and there’s a glazed ham recipe that I want to try this coming weekend. It looks pretty straight forward and the sherry-orange dijon sauce looks intriguing.
I recently had to purchase a pair of eyeglasses for my son who’s currently in middle school. He noticed that he couldn’t see the blackboard that well when seated at the back of some of his classes. Without much thought, I took him to the lenscrafters at the mall. But honestly, I regretted it once I got the bill. It’s not like my son needs those “high-index” glasses (to reduce the thickness of the lenses) but we still got stuck with a nearly $300 bill. yikes! I’m definitely not going back there again. Especially now that I’ve seen this recent article by the Brooklyn Liberal Examiner. The writer recommends purchasing your next pair of eyeglasses online via a site called Zenni Optical. Zenni cuts out the expense of the middleman and retail outlets and sells direct to the consumer. And by running their business this way, Zenni is able to offer high quality lenses and frames at low prices. If only I knew about them before purchasing my son’s glasses!
Two things to keep in mind when purchasing glasses online. It’ll definitely take longer to get your glasses. According to the Examiner article, the manufacturing lab is located in China so the turnaround time seems to take a couple weeks. They also require the PD (pupilary distance) number which isn’t usually written out on the average prescription. It’s something to remember to ask for the next time you see your eye doctor. But even so, I’d have to say the huge savings in cost is definitely worth the hassle.
Here’s a preview of a funny commercial that’ll be shown during the Super Bowl this year. It’s a vacation rental commercial featuring the official Vacation Rental.org mascot/superhero, UNITARD. The video does a good job in reminding viewers that hotels aren’t the only game in town during family vacations. Why limit yourself to a cramped hotel room when you can stay at a roomy vacation home or condo? And it’s as simple as a click of a mouse by using the vacation rental website. And just think, by renting a spacious vacation home on your next family outing, you’ll not only make your whole family happy but good ol’ UNITARD as well.
As major corporations continue to shed jobs, many folks have found themselves unemployed and feeling powerless. For most people, their identity and self-worth were intricately linked together with their careers. And once the job is removed from the picture, they are utterly lost. Interestingly enough, many have found Allison Maslan’s brand new book Blast Off! helpful in getting one’s own personal and professional life back on track. Maslan is a renowned life/business strategist that wants to help inspire others to take charge of their lives during these troubled times. In her book Blast Off! Maslan shares her secrets of success and provides her readers the tools needed to reach their own life goals. I find this book very timely and inspirational and I look forward to applying her techniques to my own future endeavors.
The new book was released on January 19th and is currently available on Amazon as well as Barnes and Noble, Borders and other fine bookstores across the nation. It normally retails for $24 but Amazon has it on sale right now so be sure to add it to your shopping cart today! Don’t let the state of the economy get you down. Empower yourself and make your dreams a reality.
This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Tony’s Pizza. All opinions are 100% mine.
I recently received some coupons from Tony’s Pizza for me to try their new Crispy Crust style frozen pizzas. Since pizzas and our household go together hand in hand, I had no problem going out to the local grocery store to seek these out. I was pleasantly surprised to find that these pizzas were priced around $1.50 at our supermarket but you have to take into account that these are “individual sizes” and not one of those super-sized pizzas. But even so, I thought it was a pretty good deal.
I brought home three varieties of the Crispy Crust style pizzas – the Supreme, Pepperoni and cheese. It took around 12 to 15 minutes to heat up in the oven and yes indeed the crust was crispy and not spongy like some other brands. My kids were the official taste testers on this occasion and the pepperoni was the unanimous pick of the three. They thought the supreme had “too many vegetables” on it and they felt the cheese was too plain. From what I tried, I thought the Supreme was the tastiest of the bunch but had to agree with them about the Cheese pizza being too bland.
Anyway, I have FIVE extra Tony’s Pizza coupons that I’d like to giveaway to one lucky RetroBlog reader. Each coupon is good for one free Tony’s Crispy Crust Brand Pizza. All you have to do is post a comment here to let me know you’re interested in the Tony’s Pizza drawing. You can get an EXTRA entry in the drawing by following me on Twitter but be sure to post here to let me know that you did so. I’ll gather all the entries and draw a winner at random on February 10th, 2010. And while you’re at it, why not enter for a chance to win a $500 Tech Prize Pack from Tony’s Pizza. The contest is currently being held on several different blogs. Here’s more info on the tech prize along with links to all the participating blogs. good luck!
This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Coldwell Banker. All opinions are 100% mine.
I recently had a chat with a younger colleague of mine who has been house hunting for the last few weeks. He’s a first time home buyer and wants to take advantage of the 2010 Homebuyer Tax Credits that are being offered as part of stimulus package the Obama administration put into place last year. The deadline is fast approaching so my friend is scrambling to find just the right place. Apparently, as long as you have a contract by April 30th and close on the house by June 30th, it’ll qualify you for a tax credit of up to $8,000. It’s definitely a great time to buy especially with the low interest rates and the decline in home prices. According to news reports, the tax credit has successfully fueled a surge in existing home sales the last few months which is a good sign for our economy. I wasn’t aware of this but during our conversation, my colleague mentioned that there’s even a tax credit for existing homeowners seeking to “move up”. It applies to homeowners that have lived in their current home for 5 of the past 8 years and are in the process of purchasing another home. This particular tax credit can go up to $6,500 and the same deadlines apply as the first time home buyers tax credit. Income limits to qualify have increased to $125,000 for singles and $225,000 for married couples. I’ve been in my current house for approximately six years so I’d would qualify for the new tax credits except for the fact that I’m not ready to move on up to a bigger home just yet. There’s no indication that these incentives will be around next year so be sure to take advantage of them while you still can.
This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Eye-Fi. All opinions are 100% mine.
Like most people, I’ve amassed a number of digital cameras over the years. I still have an old Sony digicam that has been with me for what seems like forever. Even though it’s a bit outdated, it’s small and easy to carry around while on the go. And I also have a newer Kodak super zoom which takes great photos but is a bit bulkier and not as convenient to lug around everywhere. And then my 12 year old son has his own digital camera which he’s constantly using to capture candid photos of the family. He seems to have a knack for capturing the weirdest expressions on my face for some odd reason. go figure.
The obvious drawback of having so many cameras around the house is trying to keep track of all the different USB cables. As most of you know, camera manufacturers require specialized USB connectors for their own brand of cameras. So unfortunately you can’t just use a “universal” USB cable for all the different devices. Why can’t these companies keep things simple and agree to a standard USB connector? I don’t know the reason behind all the different connectors but what I DO know is that I always end up misplacing these cables at some point.
Having to keep around all these tangly cables just to upload photos to the computer is a big hassle. And like most folks, I tend to put off inconvenient tasks like this and I eventually end up with a massive amount of photos stored on a SD card that I have to sort through and organize which compounds the whole ordeal even more.
That’s why I love the new Eye-Fi wireless SD card. It works just like a normal SD card that you’d place in a camera but it also features built-in Wi-Fi capabilities that allows for it to automatically upload photos off the card and onto your computer. Once you configure the settings with the included software and USB card reader, the Eye-Fi card will transfer all your photos and organize them into date-based folders. You can also set up Eye-Fi to upload to your favorite social networking sites like Flickr and Facebook.
It’s simple, fast and easy. Plus, there’s no longer the need to search through desk drawers and closets for those elusive USB cables. The new Eye-Fi card is definitely a must-have for any digicam user. Just think how easy it’ll be to update Facebook now with something like Eye-Fi in your camera!
This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Heineken. All opinions are 100% mine.
When out bar-hopping with the guys it’s sometimes tough keeping alcohol consumption within reasonable limits. Who wants to be the “Debbie Downer” of the group while everyone’s in celebratory mode, right? No one wants to ruin anyone’s buzz but we need to realize that if we care about our friends, we need to take some responsibility here. We all know what can happen when excessive drinking is mixed with driving. But how do you bring up this sensitive issue during the evening’s conversation? Well, why not with an iPhone app? Heineken has come up with a fun little iPhone application called the Breathalyzer. Just start up the app and then get your friend to blow into the iPhone. The app will then characterize the person in question with one of seven profiles including “The Crier”, “The Sleeper”, “The Groper” and “The Stumbler”. Of course, it’s not a REAL breathalyzer but it’s definitely an effective conversation starter and helps remind everyone to provide transporation for those in no-condition to drive home.
You can Download the Heineken Breathalyzer iPhone app for free at the iTunes store. And to learn more, head on over to the The Heineken Know The Signs website. I think it’s great that Heineken is making an effort to be a more social responsible beer brand and the added humor in the app helps the message go down a bit easier.
Speaking of which, the “The Squeak Along” bonus disc is a must have. Come on, you know you want to singalong to Beyonce’s “Single Ladies”! don’t deny it! It’s great family fun and the DVD two pack as well as the Blu-Ray versions are available at a store near you so be sure to 
A few weeks ago I stumbled upon an 
When out bar-hopping with the guys it’s sometimes tough keeping alcohol consumption within reasonable limits. Who wants to be the “Debbie Downer” of the group while everyone’s in celebratory mode, right? No one wants to ruin anyone’s buzz but we need to realize that if we care about our friends, we need to take some responsibility here. We all know what can happen when excessive drinking is mixed with driving. But how do you bring up this sensitive issue during the evening’s conversation? Well, why not with an iPhone app? Heineken has come up with a fun little iPhone application called the Breathalyzer. Just start up the app and then get your friend to blow into the iPhone. The app will then characterize the person in question with one of seven profiles including “The Crier”, “The Sleeper”, “The Groper” and “The Stumbler”. Of course, it’s not a REAL breathalyzer but it’s definitely an effective conversation starter and helps remind everyone to provide transporation for those in no-condition to drive home.
