Did I jinx it?

Marat Safin lost his 2nd round U.S. Open match today, but (my other fav) Robby Ginepri won his. The two of them were on a collision course to meet in the 3rd round, but I'm wondering if I jinxed it because I couldn't bear it happening without being able to be in New York to see it person? Who can say?

All I know is that now the story changes a bit... Gineps next meets the man who beat Marat (Stanislas Wawrinka) and must avenge Marat's loss (at least that's the drama I see unfolding in eye-candyland). Stay tuned...

More Important But...

I know there are more important things in the world, but...

1) Bill and I decided to skip our Friday movie today. We were going to catch-up and see "Death at a Funeral" but decided against it 'cause the reviews for it are just mediocre. And although I love the Bruce Lee classic "Enter the Dragon" and the sport of ping-pong, I'll be skipping the movie spoof "Balls of Fury" too.

2) Jose Luis de Vilallonga, the actor who played Holly Golightly's Brazilian fiancee in "Breakfast at Tiffany's", passed away yesterday.

3) Victoria Beckham will be guest-starring on "Ugly Betty" this Fall. I've been getting into the series this summer since the Season 1 dvd set came out. Posh seems like a perfect match for the show. But, I thought Posh had no Hollywood/acting ambitions? Does a cameo count?

4) In LHK Sporting News:

- James Blake finally won his first ever 5-set match last night against Fabrice Santoro in the 2nd round of the U.S. Open!

- Chelsea have drawn Valencia, FC Schalke 04 and Rosenborg BK in the Group Phase of the UEFA Champions League.

- WHY AM I NOT IN NEW YORK?? Robby Ginepri and Marat Safin are playing their 2nd round U.S. Open matches back to back on the Grandstand today (just torturing me and flaming my sandwich fantasies)!!

- David Beckham sprained his knee in the Galaxy's Wednesday night loss and may be out for SIX WEEKS! This is just unbearable...

Oh Happy Day!

My ultimate tennis beloveds (Robby Ginepri and Marat Safin) both won their first round U.S. Open matches today (each in 3 straight sets too)!!! I'm so happy for them. Dare I continue to dream about their potential 3rd round meeting?

I really believe that they can beat their 2nd round opponents. Marat plays Stanislas Wawrinka, and Robby plays Teimuraz Gabashvili. Yes, you read that right! Fernando Gonzalez lost to Gabashvili in the 1st round, so Gineps doesn't have to face him in this tourney (RG has already lost to Gonzo twice this summer)!

If my Pretties play their 2nd round matches on Friday, they could potentially meet in the 3rd round on Sunday. I already have plans on Sunday, so I won't be able to make it to New York to (potentially) see them play each other live and in person. It probably would be sensory over-load for me anyway. But, I'll look into flights anyway because (YES, you know it) a lady hooligan can dream...

LHK Sporting News

1) Marat Safin plays the ATP's Loverboy, Frank Dancevic, in the first match on Louis Armstrong stadium today at the U.S. Open. Robby Ginepri takes on Olivier Rochus today in the second match on the Grandstand. Matches start at 8am PST on the USA Network. But, if you want to watch these matches in their entirety and you have DirectTV, tune into USA's US Open Interactive Service.

2) Becks is likely to play tonight in the Galaxy's SuperLiga final game against Pachuca. It's a sold out game, but I won't be there. I'll be in my tennis class (boycotting Sweet Cheeks, for tonight at least).

3) Man U's baby-faced assassin, Ole Gunnar Solksjaer, announces his retirement.

4) R.I.P. Antonio Puerta

New Music (&DVD) Tuesday

Here are my picks for this week:
Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals "Lifeline"





And, it's hard to resist Dolly Parton's kitschy new single "Better Get to Livin'"


DVDs:

LHK Sporting News

1) It looks like Robby Ginepri and Marat Safin will be playing their 1st round U.S. Open matches on Wednesday. Gineps has also partnered up with former French Open champ, Gustavo Kuerten, for dubz!

2) Tennis pioneer, Althea Gibson, will be honored tonight at a special opening night ceremony.

3) Chelsea owner, Roman Abramovich, isn't satisfied with just one new Brazilian signing (Juliano Belleti). He's actually after THE BEST Brazilian player, Ronaldinho!

4) Soccer legends, Mia Hamm and Julie Foudy, were inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame yesterday. By the way, the FIFA Women's World Cup China 2007 starts on Sept. 10th! Go USA!

3rd-round DREAM!

I didn't really even want to look past the first round of the U.S. Open and potentially jinx my two favorite players (Marat Safin and Robby Ginepri). But, I couldn't resist a glance ahead when I noticed that both of them are in the same (4th) quarter of the draw. Soooo, if the planets and stars align (in eye-candyland) and if I'm not mistaken, we could potentially see Marat play Gineps in the 3rd round!! In which case, I would seriously consider flying to NYC for a few days to try and catch that match; oh a Lady Hooligan can dream....

P.S. Erwin gave me the heads-up about New York Magazine's coverage of the tennis social scene, and I noticed a little tennis-related blurb on the adorable (and newly engaged; sigh!) Jimmy Fallon.

LHK Sporting News

1) Chelsea takes on Portsmouth today. Go Blues!

2) At the Pilot Pen,

- Svetlana Kuznetsova takes on qualifier Agnes Szavay today in the Women's Final (on CBS at 10am PST). Although Szavay's cinderella run to the finals has been amazing, I have to root for Sveta.

- In an all-American Men's Final, James Blake takes on pal Mardy Fish (on ESPN2 at 4pm PST). It's a win-win for American tennis, but I'm going to root for James.

3) The U.S. Open starts on Monday (Aug. 27th)!

Movie Update

Since Bill is going out of town today, we are skipping our usual Friday morning movie. But, it's not a big deal because there wasn't anything that we were really dying to see. The only movies that somewhat peaked my interest are:

WAR (starring Jet Li and Jason Statham); Jason Statham is HOT (I loved him in "The Transporter"), and my older brother raised me on martial arts movies. So, I wouldn't be opposed to seeing this flick...

THE 11th HOUR (Leo DiCaprio's global warming documentary); Yes, we all need to see this... My buddy, Adam Yauch, e-mailed me (and others on the Beastie Boys newsletter list) to say that "An Inconvenient Truth" was chapter one, and this flick is chapter two.

DEDICATION (starring Billy Crudup and Mandy Moore). Although Mandy Moore sort of annoys me, I have to give her props for forging ahead with an interesting film career. This flick looks quirky and sweet, and Billy Crudup is pretty easy on the eyes. Speaking of eye-candy, it's directed by the foxy Justin Theroux. Another plus: Amy Sedaris has a role in it too.

THE NANNY DIARIES (starring Scarlett Johansson); I actually have no interest in seeing this movie, but I had to mention that the fabulous Laura Linney and the adorable Chris Evans co-star in it.

For Fok's Sake

I'm sorry to swear, but I had a very frustrating soccer experience tonight. I left my house at 5:30pm but NOW realize that I should have left at least an hour earlier. With horrendous traffic, picking a friend up in "nearby" Torrance, and ($20 congested) parking, I didn't get my butt into my Galaxy season ticket seat until 8:05pm!!!

It was a mess! David Beckham DID actually make it back from England to play a full 90-minutes for the Galaxy tonight, but we only saw him play for 45 minutes 'cause we got there just before the second half! Just in time to see Chivas USA score 3 times on the South end of the field (where my seats are). Argh! The Galaxy lost (3-0); Becks had a lackluster performance; and my season ticket story just gets sorrier and sorrier... The only positive tonight: getting out of the Home Depot Center was a relative breeze (thankfully no gridlock in the parking lot). Thanks (for nothing), Universe.

You Gotta Love Amy Sedaris!

Apparently, Amy Sedaris has a new alter ego: Melissa-Mindy Trump Hilton

Also, if you haven't already, you must check out Amy's hilarious (and extremely informative) treatise on entertaining: I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence

The Prize!

It's super-cheezy, and there's a typo on it. But, I FINALLY received my (Spring '07) league-winning tennis trophy! Check it out:

In other LHK sporting news:

- English tennis tiger, Tim Henman, announces his retirement.

- Chelsea finalize the sale of Dutch winger Arjen Robben to Real Madrid.

- Since Robby Ginepri is out of the Pilot Pen, I guess I'll root for James Blake. Speaking of Gineps, he's drawn Belgian, Olivier Rochus, in the first round of the U.S. Open (a far from easy match-up).

- I'll be going to the Galaxy's game against Chivas USA tonight. Let's see if Sweet Cheeks even plays...

LHK Sporting News

1) Today, there are a bunch of yummy international friendly soccer matches taking place:

U.S. vs. Sweden; hottie Freddie Ljungberg won't be playing, but there are other foxy Swedes on his team...
(11:30am PST on FSC)

England vs. Germany; let's see if Sweet Cheeks actually plays...
(12pm PST on Setanta Premium & on same-day delay at 2pm on FSC)

Bosnia vs. Croatia; for some Eastern-European candy..
(3:30pm PST on Setanta)

2) The Pilot Pen will thankfully be televised starting today (on ESPN2 at 11am PST)! I was jonesing for some tennis coverage for the past couple of days. The U.S. Open Series has been spoiling me this summer with live tennis almost every day. I don't look forward to the day when the U.S. Open is over. Oh wait, I'll at least still have soccer until the next televised tennis tourney! Anyway, most of the matches were rained out yesterday, so Robby Ginepri played his second round match today, and unfortunately just lost to Agustin Calleri (4-6, 6-3, 5-7). Gineps just couldn't hold his serve to get to a third-set tie-break; argh!!

3) The referee who awarded Chelsea a penalty kick versus Liverpool on Sunday, Rob Styles, is being penalized. Scandalous!

4) In odd (but kind of funny) golf news, Bill Murray was pulled over in Sweden for allegedly driving a golf cart under the influence.

New Music (&DVD) Tuesday

Here are my picks for this week...

Rilo Kiley "Under the Blacklight"


M.I.A. "Kala"




Beck's new single "Timebomb" is out today too:


Although the movie itself is just decent, the actor who plays Julien in "Broken English" is perfection as the ultimate Frenchie hook-up. As far as "Ugly Betty", I'm just curious to see what all the hype is about...

Selling it!

The L.A. Daily News recently did a series of articles on "the sex appeal of sports." My blog pal, Kenneth, gave me the heads-up about the series and was even interviewed for one of the articles. I read a couple of the articles and realized that they really didn't cover the topic of gals like me (a Lady who likes pretty male athletes). So, I wrote to a couple of the writers, and one of them posted my response on his blog... Just trying to spread the lady hooliganism, playaz!

tennis update

Booo! Both Roger Federer and Justine Henin won today; I was hoping for a couple of upsets.

But, in happier news, the Pilot Pen Tennis Tournament (the last tourney before the U.S. Open) starts today, and Robby Ginepri is currently taking on (and beating) Nicolas Massu. Go Robby! Let's hope he makes it past the first round and way beyond!

I'm happy with a point!

Fox Soccer Report's Bobby McMahon's prediction was correct, as Chelsea drew against Liverpool today (1-1). This was an action-packed game (with plenty of yellow cards), and we were honestly lucky to get away with a point at Anfield. My beloved John Terry was back in action today, and (it pains me to say this but) I wish he could have covered Petr Cech and cleared Fernando Torres' strike. Easier said than done, right? But, speaking of Torres, I'm taking him off of my LHK EPL eye-candy list as his punishment for scoring and stressing me out (like he really cares)...

Okay, in other LHK sporting news:

1) Thankfully, Man City beat Man U today!! So, Chelsea is now 5 points ahead of the Red Devils.

2) Unfortunately, American Brian McBride suffered a knee injury in Fulham's loss to Middlesbrough on Saturday.

3) Speaking of injuries, the gorgeous Swede, Freddie Ljungberg, has pulled out of the upcoming Sweden versus U.S. friendly match with a groin injury. Poor (pretty) baby...

4) James Blake takes on Roger Federer today in the final of the Cincy Masters (on CBS at 1pm PST), and Jelena Jankovic takes on Justine Henin in the final of the Rogers Cup (on ESPN2 at 11am PST).
Go James and Jelena!!

More Important But...

I know there are more important things in the world, but...

1) The Sunset Junction Street Festival starts this morning and goes until tomorrow night. Check it out if you're in that neighborhood 'cause several cool musical acts are scheduled to appear (e.g. Ben Harper, Hot Hot Heat, Blonde Redhead, The Broken West, MORRIS DAY & THE TIME).

2) Apparently, Kylie Minogue will be appearing on Just Jack's upcoming album. You know I like me some Just Jack, and I'm not afraid to admit that I'm a Kylie fan too (she's a dance floor diva and also got a piece of that Frenchie fox Olivier Martinez). Hey now!

3) In LHK sporting news,

- Becks is scheduled to make his first MLS start (there are so many different firsts for him in the U.S.) tonight against the New York Red Bulls (on FSC at 4:30pm PST).

- James Blake made it to the semi-finals of the Cincy Masters and will face Nikolay Davydenko (who took Gineps out in the 2nd round) tonight (on ESPN2 at 5pm PST).

- Chelsea take on Liverpool tomorrow (on FSC at 8am PST)! YOWZA and GO BLUES!

Friday Movie Review

FINALLY! August 17th is here, and I got to see the movie I've been waiting to see all summer: SUPERBAD! I, of course, had very high expectations, so I'm happy to say that Bill and I really enjoyed the movie. It wasn't mind-blowingly hysterical, but it was very funny, with several fall-out-of-your-chair moments.

Both Michael Cera (from "Arrested Development" fame) and Jonah Hill (the F-bomb king) were great, and we're truly looking forward to seeing how their careers develop in the future. Newcomer, Christopher Mintz-Plasse (who plays the nerdy pimp McLovin), was surprisingly good and a big focus of the plot. The cops in the flick (played by Seth Rogen and Bill Hader) were fine, but (agreeing with The NY Times review) their screen-time was "unfortunately overextended." And, not surprisingly, (I'm sad to say) the lady love-interests were not particularly noteworthy. Other fun notes though: the soundtrack was groovy, and there were a few actors in bit parts from past Judd Apatow projects (e.g. Martin Starr from "Freaks and Greeks" and Carla Gallo from "Undeclared"). Speaking of bit parts, the guy who plays "Greg, the soccer player" is listed as Dave Franco, and I'm wondering if he's related to the yummy James Franco??

Anywhoo, go see it! You'll laugh, and you'll like it (PERIOD)!

More Important But...

I know there are more important things in the world, but...

1) David Beckham has indeed been picked to be a part of the England squad that will play Germany in a friendly game on August 22nd in England at Wembley. Sweet Cheeks CLAIMS that he's hopeful that he'll be able to get back to L.A. for the August 23rd Galaxy home game, but why am I doutbful? Hmm...

2) Bill and I attended the first preview of "Welcome to the Moon" last night, and I can now officially recommend it to you. The production is a short and sweet series of 6 one-act plays (about an hour long total without an intermission) by John Patrick Shanley. Our co-faux-boyfriend, Rob, is thankfully featured in the 2nd and 5th plays, and he's delightful (although the 2nd play has some strange direction). Bill and I also appreciated the sparse yet imaginative set, and overall, we thought that the entire company is quite talented. BRAVO!

Okay, now I'm off to see SUPERBAD; can't wait. I'll have a report later.

Los Angeles theater

A must-see production (starting tonight)!


P.S. I haven't actually seen this play yet, but I WILL soon 'cause my friend Rob's in it.

More Important But...

I know there are more important things in the world, but...

1. The adorable Jimmy Fallon just got engaged. Sigh...

2. John Terry has been declared fit to play in the upcoming Sunday EPL clash against Livepool; thank goodness!

3. Once again, I am left trying to decide whom to root for in an ATP tourney after my 2 beloveds (Robby Ginepri and Marat Safin) were "eliminated" (I watch too much ANTM). With all of the Croats and Serbs out of the Cincy Masters tourney too, I guess I'll root for James Blake.

Fall Fashion

The mega September issues of the fashion magazines are on newsstands already, and I've been enjoying checking out all of the fall fashions. I love this time of year; BACK TO SCHOOL! I'm always inspired by the fabrics (especially plaid and houndstooth). And, don't even get me started on all of the new cosmetics and fragrances I want to try...Well, if you must know, here are the fragrances that caught my attention:

L.A.M.B.'s "L"
Elizabeth Arden's "Mediterranean"
Valentino's "Rock 'n Rose"
Dolce & Gabbana's "the one"
Aquolina's "Chocolovers"

I know, I'm such a ridiculous consumer! But hey, if you're a big online shopper, like I am, check out EBATES to earn money back from your online purchases. It's really easy, and it feels like you're getting a bit of a secret discount.

P.S. The XXL issue of Vogue (I bet the term, XXL, just makes Anna Wintour ill) features Bill's lovely girlfriend, Sienna Miller, on the cover, and there are even a few mentions (with pics) of pro tennis playaz in the issue too!

Just My Luck!

I'm a bitter girl for SO MANY reasons. I didn't go to the Galaxy game tonight because it wasn't included in my season ticket package, and I didn't want to miss my tennis class anyway. Then, my class was cancelled OF COURSE, but I still didn't want to give the Galaxy any more $. So, my classmates and I just played some dubz instead.

Well, the universe being the way that it is, David Beckham not only made his FIRST START for the Galaxy, he also wore the captain's armband AND scored his FIRST GOAL. The Galaxy beat DC United 2-0, and I missed ALL OF IT! But, that's JUST MY LUCK! Now, since Becks is back in decent shape, Steve McClaren will probably call him up to play for England, and Sweet Cheeks will miss the upcoming Galaxy games that I actually have tix too.

To quote my old friend, Erik, "Why me??"

Jose Mourinho! Jose Mourinho!

During the first half of the Chelsea vs. Reading game today, I only had two thoughts:

1) I still can't get used to Chelsea's bright yellow away kit, and maybe the players can't either. They seemed to be thrown off by Reading's blue kit and a bit confused on the pitch.

2) (With Reading up 1-0 after thirty minutes gone) PLEASE let's just get to half-time. I know Chelsea's manager, Jose Mourinho, will give the squad a thorough talking-to....

And then, ooh-OOH!, Chelsea came back in the second-half and scored 2 goals right away! We can only wonder what Mourinho (aka "The Special One") told the squad. In any case, it was a delightful (and stressful) game. Chelsea won 2-1 and got the 3 points that count.

P.S. Robby Ginepri's second-round match versus Davydenko started towards the end of the Chelsea game, and it was ACTUALLY televised on ESPN2. I was so torn, so I kept switching back and forth. But then, Chelsea prevailed, and as I about to give Gineps my full attention, his match was OF COURSE suspended due to rain (with Robby down 2-5 in the first set). Anyway, apparently now that the ESPN2 coverage has ended, the rain has subsided in Cincinnati. Gineps is back on court, and I'm following the match on the live online scoreboard. He's just lost the first set 2-6. Don't worry, Robby, you can turn it around in the second set. Sell it!

Go Blues!

Chelsea takes on Reading today (at 12noon PST on FSC), and I'm a bit nervous about it. Reading was the team that, in one game, severely injured both of our goalkeepers last season (of course John Terry then valiantly played in goal at the end of that game). I will CURSE Reading if they even touch one hair on the head of any Chelsea player!

Also, in SWEET CHEEKS news, it looks like David Beckham will actually be playing tonight in the Galaxy's (home) SuperLiga semi-final game against DC United. OF COURSE, this game is NOT a part of my season ticket plan, and I REFUSE to spend any more $ to go see Becks (besides I have my tennis class tonight). It goes without saying that (aside from his exciting debut game against my beloved Chelsea) Becks' debut season with the Galaxy has been very disappointing for me. And, the disappointment will only continue IF Becks is picked to play for England in their international friendly against Germany on August 22nd because I have Galaxy tix for their game against Chivas USA on August 23rd! Damn it; they can all SUCK IT!

Songs I Collect

As some of you may know, I collect songs with the word "lady" in them (see the Go, Lady! Mixes). But, I also appreciate cool songs that contain the words "pretty" and/or "baby". Here are a couple of "pretty baby" songs that I've been digging recently:

"A Message to a Pretty" by The Duke Spirit


"Baby Let Me Hold Your Hand" by The Detroit Cobras


And a couple of my ALL-TIME favorites:
"Pretty Baby" by Blondie

"Don't Worry Baby" by The Beach Boys

Vote for Adam Stein

Hey, a friend of mine asked me to spread the word about his friend Adam Stein, a contestant on the show "On the Lot".

On the Lot airs tonight (Tuesday, 8/14), on FOX, 8 PM (7 central).

Tonight is the LAST VOTE, and one week from today they will announce the winner out of the final three contestants. If you have been voting, keep it up. If you have never voted before, now is your chance to make the ultimate difference. ADAM IS ONE STEP AWAY FROM A TWO-YEAR CONTRACT WITH DREAMWORKS AND SPIELBERG! Please, help make that dream a reality.

On the show, they will announce a toll free number to call for Adam. Calling that number is the easiest way to vote. You can call as many times as possible in that two hour window. Voting will run for the two hours after the show airs in your time zone. When was the last time that you got to make such a big difference in someone's life by hitting redial?

To get you in the mood for voting, check out a one-minute short Adam did earlier in the show.

P.S. In tennis news, Robby Ginepri won his first round match in the Cincy Masters today! Next, he'll face Nikolay Davydenko; hmm...

New Music (&DVD) Tuesday

The yummy Ryan Gosling is the only reason to see the movie Fracture
As far as music, unfortunately I don't think any new music release this week will be able to compete with (the strange phenomenon that is) High School Musical


P.S.
1) MySpace referrals; check out these fab musicians if you get a chance:

A.J. Lambert

Kid Moxie

John Hoskinson

2) R.I.P. Tony Wilson

tennis update

Argh! Marat Safin lost to Nicolas Kiefer in the first round of the Cincy Masters yesterday. Robby Ginepri takes on Jonas Bjorkman today, and knowing my luck, the match probably won't be televised.

Mulder is back!

Well actually, the FOXy David Duchovny is back on TV that is; in the new Showtime series "Californication". The series premiere is tonight at 10:30pm. I'm craving some Diddy Riese cookies and a viewing party...

P.S. 1) HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Johnny B!!

and

2) In tennis news, Novak Djokovic DID amazingly upset Roger Federer yesterday in Montreal! Also, the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters tournament starts today. In the first round, Marat Safin will meet Nicolas Kiefer (yowza!); Robby Ginepri will meet Jonas Bjorkman (Gineps actually has a chance); and wild-card John Isner will meet David Ferrer (who knows?). According to the draw, Gineps could potentially meet Safin in the semi-final! Oh, a Lady Hooligan can dream...

LHK’s Top 5 Hottest Playaz in the EPL

First of all, Chelsea played their first game of the 2007/08 English Premier League season against Birmingham City today, and they WON (3-2)! They also happened to set a record for the most home league matches without defeat (64)! Bravo!! To celebrate, let's talk about some eye-candy:

(listed by Name – EPL Club – Country)

(tied for first)

1. John Terry – Chelsea – England


1. Freddie Ljungberg – West Ham – Sweden

(the rest of my top 5 in no particular order)
Frank Queudrue – Birmingham City – France
Carlo Cudicini – Chelsea - Italy
Niko Kranjcar – Portsmouth – Croatia

(eye-catchers/honorable mentions in no particular order)

Morten Gamst Pedersen - Blackburn - Norway
Harry Kewel - Liverpool - Australia
Carlos Bocanegra – Fulham – U.S.
Tomas Rosicky – Arsenal – Czech Republic
Ashley Cole – Chelsea – England
Lucas Neill – West Ham – Australia
Olof Melberg – Aston Villa – Sweden
Didier Drogba - Chelsea - Ivory Coast
Frank Lampard - Chelsea - England
Alan Smith - Newcastle - England
Richard Hughes - Portsmouth - Scotland
Paul Scharner - Wigan Athletic - Austria
Roque Santa Cruz - Blackburn - Paraguay

(Updated on April 20, 2008)

If I've missed any Pretties, I’ll report about them throughout the season, and please feel free to comment about your picks too. Speaking of which, I know that most people (i.e. mainly my gay male fellow fans) would put Cristiano Ronaldo (from Man U/Portugal) and Michael Owen (Newcastle/England) on this list, but they just don't do it for me (although I'm sure they, like most EPL players, look good shirtless).

Serb it up!

After winning impressive semi-final matches, two Serbian players are in Sunday tennis finals action today.

On the men's side, Novak Djokovic impressively beat Rafa Nadal in straight sets and thwarted the predicted Federer vs. Nadal final match-up in the Rogers Cup. I would love to see Djokovic upset Federer and get his first win against him.

On the women's side, Ana Ivanovic valiantly came back from a set down to beat her country-lady, Jelena Jankovic, en route to the final of the East West Bank Classic versus Russia's Nadia Petrova. I think Ana has a great chance of winning the title.

Let's wish them both luck! The matches will air on ESPN2 starting at noon PST today, with the Ladies' final following the Men's final.

The House of Josephine

Bill, John and I visited our friend Raff today at her sister Josephine's home in Palos Verdes. As I entered the house, I was whisked away to a wonderland of color, figurine collections and surreality. It was fascinating, and I even found a tchotchke that said "Lady" on it. Check out the pics (click on each to enlarge), and then go throw out all of the crap you have in your house:

P.S. I've started a new blog category/label in honor of Jo entitled "Misc."

Soccer & Art Today

1) The new season of the English Premiere League starts TODAY! Chelsea will be in action tomorrow versus Birmingham City, and now that the Dish Network FINALLY added Setanta to their channel line-up, I won't be missing any big EPL games!

2) If you are in the San Francisco area, I'd highly recommend checking out the artist reception tonight for Yumiko Kayukawa and her new show "World Wide Enemy" at The Shooting Gallery. She's one of my favorite artists around!

Movie Update

Bill and I skipped our Friday movie today because we were on the fence about Stardust and had no interest in Rush Hour 3. But, next Friday, we can't wait to see SUPERBAD (starring Jonah Hill and Michael Cera)! I've been so entertained by the various trailers and commercials promoting this movie that I feel like I owe Sony Pictures money just for all of the laughs before even seeing the flick itself. Please don't let me down, Superbad!

I would also like to proclaim my mini-crush on the hilarious Jonah Hill. I've seen him in a handful of movies, and he always cracks me up. He sort of reminds me of Jeff Garlin from "Curb Your Enthusiasm". Speaking of Jeff Garlin, he's written and directed a movie called "I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With". It co-stars some super funny ladies (Bonnie Hunt, Sarah Silverman, and Amy Sedaris), so I will be keeping my eye out for it.

(somewhat of an) Eye-Candy Alert

The ATP's Loverboy, Canadian Frank Dancevic, takes on Rafa Nadal tonight in the quarter-finals of the Rogers Cup. This match should air on ESPN2 at 4:30pm PST today.

UPDATE: Just heard that EPSN2 will air the Andy Roddick versus Novak Djokovic match in place of the above eye-candy match, which is a bit of a bummer. But, it's not that bad of an alternate match-up.

The Real World

After watching every season of the reality show that started it all, THE REAL WORLD, I decided to grow up and finally stop watching it. BUT, last night, I tuned into a repeat of the season premiere and sort of had it on in the background as I read a magazine. This new "cast" seemed to be the most uninteresting and asinine one to date. Although this season was filmed in Sydney, all of the cast members are Americans with not one Australian among them (and none of the guy roommates are cute by the way).

I almost turned it off to finally be free of this stupid show, UNTIL... they introduced the final cast member: Parisa, an Iranian-American Muslim girl from New York. I was intrigued, (as far as I recall) MTV has never cast a Middle-Easterner before. I myself am Iranian-American (from L.A. with Buddhist leanings however), so I could actually understand her English/Farsi when she called home to her Mom to complain about a couple of her mean and inconsiderate roommates.

So now, I'm curious to see how she fares as an ATYPICAL Real World girl roommate (i.e. non-bimbo) among the rest of the idiotic cast. Hopefully, she'll meet a hot Aussie surfer! Go, Lady! I might be hooked again; damn it!

Becks' MLS Debut!

The warm summer rain caressed him as he stripped off his wet shirt, exposing his naked torso. He took a deep breath as he prepared to enter.... THE GAME against DC United in the 72nd minute (after putting on a team jersey of course), FINALLY making his Major League Soccer debut! Yes, that's right David Beckham (whom I like to lovingly call "Sweet Cheeks" as you may have noticed) made yet another dramatic U.S. soccer debut. His first debut as a member of the L.A. Galaxy was against Chelsea in a friendly on June 21st, but tonight he made his first appearance in an official league game in front of a record crowd in DC. Although the Galaxy unfortunately lost the game, the Becks show was very exciting, especially with all of the rain and skin! It's actually kind of surreal to see him playing in the MLS...

Lady(s) Tennis

This afternoon I went to the East West Bank Classic to see Maria Sharapova play against Michaella Krajicek. As if the traffic and sun weren't enough, the long 3-set match itself was SO painful to watch. It was break of serve after break of serve; neither Lady seemed capable of holding their serve. But, MaSha ultimately prevailed (7-6, 6-7, 6-4) only because
a) she won 10 break points to Krajicek's 9

and b) Krajicek had 12 double faults to MaSha's 8!

Exhausting! The almost 3-hour match finally ended at 5pm, and I didn't have the energy to stick around to see Ana Ivanovic versus Lucie Safarova. I also wanted to get out of the stadium before the "FAITH & Family" concert that was scheduled to take place at the tourney tonight. What???

More Important But...

I know there are more important things in the world, but...

1) Now that my belovEDS Robby Ginepri and Marat Safin have made early exits from yet another tennis tournament, I need to figure out whom I shall be rooting for in their absences at the Rogers Cup. Hmm... I guess I'll go with Mario Ancic, Rafa Nadal, Frank Dancevic, and Novak Djokovic.

2) Will Sweet Cheeks Becks, who apparently hates the artificial turf we have in the U.S., make his MLS debut tonight in DC? Who can say?

3) Apparently, Nike hired the Emmy-nominated Rainn Wilson (who plays Dwight Schrute on The Office) to appear in a U.S. Women's National Soccer Team commercial. I can't wait to see it, but I haven't heard much else about it (aside from a blurb on last night's Daily 10 on E!).

4) In CHELSEA FC news:

- Frank Lampard has partnered with the Orange mobile network to launch FRANK TV. (Thanks to Victoria for the heads-up on it.)

- New Peruvian signing, Claudio Pizzaro, aims to be the #1 striker at Chelsea. I love Drogba, but Pizzaro can have his place, as long as WE WIN!

- Despite all of the injuries on the squad, captain John Terry is still aiming to a) get the Premier League title back from Man U and b) win the Champions League too. I'm on board, John! TASTE IT!! Man U and Liverpool can suck it! (Sorry, Laddie McFresh, but not really.)

Live Music Tonight

Check out SAMPSONIC tonight (Aug. 9th) at The Stone (at 8:30pm sharp). 5221 Hollywood Blvd; $10 cover. TAKE IT!

Sexy Boy(s)

I just got out of an erotic fog..I mean I just finished watching the 2nd round (EXTREME EYE-CANDY) Rogers Cup match between my beloved Marat Safin and the Spanish stallion Rafa Nadal. Throughout the whole match the AIR song "Sexy Boy"was playing in my head. I know, I'm crazy. But, this was a delightful match in so many ways:

1) This was THE first meeting between these two hotties.

2) Their styles of play are so different, but equally sexy and exciting.

3) Marat was surprisingly pretty darn focused at first.

4) It was an evening match, so Marat sported a black ensemble, instead of the more recent hyper-yellow day match number (Marat looks good in anything really). Rafa was, as usual, in one of his pirate outfits, which I'm on the fence about. But, I really can't complain since the outfit includes a sleeveless shirt that so wonderfully exposes his guns.

On the other hand, this match was also excruciating to watch because:

1) Marat lost several set points in the first set before they headed into a tie-break, which Rafa then won.

2) I couldn't be there IN PERSON to cheer Marat on or to catch his damaged racket that he tossed into the stands after frustratingly slamming it.

3) Ultimately, Marat lost 6-7, 0-6 (ouch!). I just wish that (for Marat's sake) this eye-candy match could have taken place later in the tournament...

Art & Sport

Artkrush currently has a feature entitled "Sport and Spectacle", which covers a couple of my favorite topics: art and sport. My favorite mentions in the feature are Laurent Perbos' exotic tennis courts and the amazing 2006 film about Zinedine Zidane, "Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait". Unfortunately, it still isn't available in a Region 1 DVD format, but the haunting soundtrack by Mogwaiis an available alternative.

BUD!

Legendary tennis COLOR commentator (and coordinator), Bud Collins, has been hired by ESPN after leaving the NBC team earlier this year. The hooligans and I met him a couple of years ago in Indian Wells, and he's super nice and super craZAY.

P.S. I've been digging this groovy band from New York called TIGERCITY. Give them a listen; I dont' think you'll be disappointed.