MamaPop Recommends: Amalah's Picks For June

Hey you! Be sure to submit your own recommendations over at MamaPopTalk!

Recommended Song or Album:
Has Been by William Shatner. It's always a struggle to find music to play during the day that Noah likes and I like and that is not Raffi. But the minute William Shatner came up in the iPod shuffle I knew we'd found a winner. Noah loves his voice and the talky-speak he does, and I just plain friggin' love this album. This is not your mother's weird William Shatner album. This one was produced by Ben Folds and features duets with Aimee Mann, Lemon Jelly, Henry Rollins and an absolutely awesome cover of "Common People" with Joe Jackson. The results are lovely, touching, hilarious and downright fun.

Recommended Book:
I Like You: Entertaining Under the Influence by Amy Sedaris. I bought this as a birthday present for my sister, but made the mistake of reading the introduction before I wrapped it. So I read the whole thing. Obviously, it's funny and wacky and weird, but it's also a DARN USEFUL BOOK about planning parties and menus and etiquette. Tips for overnight guests and instructions for funky hostess gifts, along with hundreds of recipes (including Amy's famous cupcakes) make this book a great reference guide and FABULOUS gift idea for anybody you know who loves to entertain...but not in a Martha Stewart kind of way.

Recommended TV Show:
Top Chef, of course! And the open thread over at MamaPopTalk, which regularly disintegrates in various whacked-out, munchie-fueled ways.

Recommended Movie:
Oh my God, I actually saw a movie this month! In the theater and everything. And it was great. Ocean's Thirteen. The first one remains one of my all-time favorites, and while I was originally REALLY disappointed with the last one, on repeated viewings I've decided that it really wasn't that bad. The third one doesn't need a second chance. It's hilarious and witty and fun. Light and fluffy as spun sugar, for sure, but with all that goddamned HOTNESS of Clooney, Pitt and Damon...my word, you won't even begin to notice the plot holes.

Recommended Webjunk:
So I'm one of those lame "casual gamer" types. You know, the little puzzle click-click-click online games? Diner Dash, Virtual Villagers, Alchemy? They help kill time and decompress and are helping my eyesight decline at a much faster rate than ever before. I only buy games if I REALLY love them -- generally I just bounce from 60 minute demo version to demo version. And while I haven't bought a game from the "hidden object" genre, I'm completely addicted to them. Check out bigfishgames.com to see what I'm talking about. Extremely sophisticated 3D artwork, a zillion things to find hidden in that artwork, interesting minigames between levels and hello! You've just killed an entire afternoon. (The best games right now seem to be Agatha Christie's Death on the Nile and the Travelogue 360 series, but there are literally hundreds of clones that will help suck your time.)

Comments

[Jenny]

Okay, good. I'm glad I'm not the only one addicted to those damn little online games. The puzzle games, the "diner dash" and freakin' "cake mania," and OF COURSE escape the room ones...all add up to a monster time suck. I like the hidden object ones, too, but can't bring myself to pay for one. It all starts to feel very "Highlights" magazine and I can't justify paying $19.95 for an issue.

[Suzy Q]

First you like dresses with pants (ugh). And now, you're recommending a William Shatner album?

What did they do to you in New York, Amy? Are you a pod person now? I'm scared.