the best of 2006

every show, network, magazine, etc. come up with a best-of around this time of year. why not me?

here's a list of my faves. not that you asked.....

best new store
without a doubt: red hook, brooklyn's fairway
this a grocery shoppers dream. they offer everything from organic vitamins to whole beef tenderloins to english specialties (spotted dick, anyone?) to junior's cheesecake. and everything in between.


best network
abc
despite still being angry that they moved grey's anatomy to thursdays, abc is the best network this year. period. not only are they home to lost, desperate housewives and the aforementioned gray's, they replay the shows you love the following day for free on their website, they listen to their viewers (hello lost-aholics....isn't it great that we have two mini seasons within which there are no repeats this season?) and they have also dedicated tuesday and friday evenings to holiday shows for the kids. they are really gilding my lily by replaying charlie brown christmas this coming sunday.


best show you're not watching
gilmore girls
and you ought to be ashamed of yourself for not watching it. the pilot for this show was underwritten by the family friendly programming forum, the first television show to ever reach the air with the help of this organization. the writing is brilliant. the cast superb. this will probably be the last season, too. start watching it now, kick yourself for not watching it sooner next year.


best movie you've never even heard of
the prize winner of defiance, ohio
based on a true story of a 50's/60's era housewife who becomes a professional jingle writer/sweepstakes player who endures her louse-of-a-husband's drinking. charming. the book was written by the prizewinner's daughter. now on video/dvd.


best news story of the year...quite possibly the decade
hands down: the death of alexander litvinenko from polonium-210 poisoning
it is sad and a bit disturbing but really, its got all the ingredients for a great story: espionage, international crime, drama, finger pointing, murder, intrigue, ex-wives, sofas and political heads of state. jerry bruckheimer, are you paying attention?


best new toy of the year
wii
forget tmx elmo. move over playstation 3. the toy i secretly covet yet don't really want (i'm like, complex, ya dig?) is nintendo's wii, the interactive video game that gets you up and moving.


best switcheroo/failure
katie left today to fill the vacancy at cbs's evening news, which allowed meredith vieira to leave the view which allowed rosie to stage a comeback and it is all failing miserably. which i love.


best movie
cars
kids movies are really all i see these days so this is really the one area i am not at all qualified to judge. but cars was great and it appeals to both my kids and me.


best justice
borat v. frat boys
have you see borat? besides bathroom humor, there was a scene in which borat hitches a ride with frat boys who are drunk and go on a tirade that make michael richards and mel gibson look good. seems the frat boys were ok with making racist and misogynistic comments when they thought it would only be shown abroad. now that their fellow citizens see them for the bigoted jerks they are, they are suing. but a judge has refused the removal of the scene from the dvd. it'll be on shelves before you know it so you can see for yourself.


coolest justice
da vinci code
in the uk, justice smith ruled the idea for the da vinci code was not stolen and did so in a 71 page ruling in which was embedded a secret code for his ruling ("the smithy code").

best example of being overexposed
rachel ray
need i say more?

best things to eat and drink
they're not new but i found out about some interesting things this year that you should try:

white rabbit candies
imported chinese taffy-like milk confections that are addictive (and hard on your teeth. if you lose a filling don't say i didn't warn you.) note: when you click the link above, make sure to click on the rabbit icon. it'll bring you to page which has the chinese-to-english translation of these delectable things, along with the fact that they are "hot in the USA and you can buy them at walgmart"
joy
half green, half black tea available only at christmas time from starbucks
pimm's cup
gin drink with fruit and soda. delish on a summer afternoon.

best "best of"
craigslist
especially 17 May 2006, 6 Jun 2006 and 19 Sep 2006

happy new year!