cleaning out the inbox

Some cool stuff I’ve been given the last couple weeks that I don’t really have room for anywhere else, so I’ll spout it here:

–Starting tomorrow, the Sycamore Grille is 100% smoke free. I’ll be honest, that kinda ticks me off. But I am fully aware there’s a huge part of the population that appreciates this, and since the state will be passing a no smoking law within the next two years, there’s no harm in starting now. And I’d much rather be told by a business owner rather than a government that I can’t smoke somewhere. That’s the Grille and the Deer Head in DWG that are both smoke-free now.

–There’s a battle of the bands over at J.T. Lambert Intermediate School tonight at 6 p.m. I got word of this too late to get it in Sharp.

–Very soon, I’m gonna be working on a story about the change in the businesses in downtown Stroudsburg. Within the last year, we’ve seen 2 day spas, a Starbucks, a revamped Marita’s, a skate shop, a better, new location for Main Street Jukebox and the latest editions, a tattoo shop and a cigar store. Don’t look now, but downtown Stroudsburg is starting to resemble a place you might like to spend some time.

–I got to talk to comedian Jim Norton yesterday for the cover story for next week’s Sharp, because he’s coming to Poconuts Comedy Club at the Pocono Brewing Company next Friday and Saturday. That’s easily the biggest comedian they’ve had there. Norton was a really funny guy, and didn’t hold a thing back. I can’t even print most of what he said.

However, I’m putting this out to you, the readers. Would you like to see an extended, uncensored version of the interview online? There’s no way I can put it in Sharp, but on sharpmag.com, I may be able to give a full version you’d have to read to believe. Leave a comment or email me at msadowski@sharpmag.com if you have an opinion.

Now on to important matters, like TV and movies:

–What a dreary weekend at the box office we’re in for. Jessica Alba continues to cement her status as the worst actress in Hollywood with another stinker, Awake, this time dragging Anakin Skywalker down with her. Or is it the other way around? The holiday season starts cooking next weekend with Golden Compass. Also, I’m hoping Juno comes around here too, it releases Wednesday.

–Tuesday’s episode of nip/tuck was Christian at his absolute best. This is the Christian we love, not the snively little emotionally detached weenie who cries when he prays with a nun he gave a breast reduction to. And yes, you just read the last sentence. But this week’s Christian, the one who warned the show’s resident tart Eden, “You don’t want to play this game with me. You’ll get hurt.” Then he follows through on that promise when the 18-year-old learned from the master. He willingly gave her drugs as a blackmail payoff, to which Eden thinks she wins.

But Christian pulls the rug out from under her, giving her mother the info that her daughter is on drugs. That is the Christian we all know and love, folks.

And this new Sean is growing on me. It may have taken awhile, but the scene where he and Kate — or “The Sh!tter,” as Christian calls her — let loose with all the honesty they were feeling was brilliant. It’s times like these when I remember why I’m such a big nip/tuck fan, not the times during season 3 where I almost tuned out.

–It’s now official — 30 Rock is the funniest show on TV. No show for me right now has more laughs than this one, despite the fact that I’d still watch Earl if I had to make the choice. But Tina Fey is bordering on genius status, and if more people don’t start watching this show, I might lose even more faith in humanity.

–Speaking of Earl, who didn’t see this coming? Craig T. Nelson as the warden in Earl’s prison has been a riot, but he’s also shown that first and foremost, he’s scared of his governor wife. So of course he was gonna try to keep Earl in prison longer. Here’s how it probably shakes out: Earl finds out, remedies the situation and ends up being hired by the prison, since he spent his last money on the prom in this week’s episode. I just know I feel sorry for poor Earl.