Weekly Sidebar Update! Now every third week?

Wow, it's been three weeks since my last Sidebar Update? So much for keeping it weekly. Hell, I actually thought I was only a week behind. Where'd that extra week come from?

Anyhoo. This week's Object of My Affection is Christina Aguilera. Say what you will about her, she sure cleans up nice. And even when she ain't so clean -- that can still be pretty nice. Remember when there used to be kind of a contest between who was hotter, Christina or Britney Spears? Christina's photos in the new GQ prove once again: holy mother of crap, did Christina win that battle! Poor Britney. Poor crass repugnant white trash skanky Federline-enabling baby-endangering Britney.

Under Reading is Stephen King's Cell. That book was up on the sidebar once before, when I was giving previews of books I'd be reading once I finally finished Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell. Well, I did finish it, and it was the best book I've read in a long, long time. So worth the time expenditure. Endlessly clever, funny, and exciting, with tremendous, fully-formed characters, strikingly vivid imagery, and a wonderful use of the formal language of 19th century English literature. I loved every page. As for this King book: eh. It's not as bad as some other books from King's late period have been, but it's not great, either. It feels like a rehashing of works from his early career, from the telepathy of Carrie or The Dead Zone or Firestarter to the apocalyptic themes of The Stand. Good action, which kicks in almost instantly, but the characters, which are usually his strong point, are fairly lame and sketchy, and saddled with King's typical dialogue quirks, which are growing staler with every book. At least it's a quick read.

I'm planning on re-Watching Deadwood season 1 on DVD over the next few days, followed with season 2, which will be released on Tuesday, in preparation for the 3rd season, beginning on HBO June 11. This is the best show currently on TV. And believe me, I watch every single show on TV, so I'd know. If you haven't gotten into it yet, do yourself a favor and rent the DVDs ASAP. And I'm Hating reports that this may be Deadwood's last season. I thought it had at least four years worth of life in it, maybe five. If true, it's a crime. HBO, come to your senses! Get this show renewed for another year!!

I've been Listening to Ben Folds' Rockin' the Suburbs. I've had the album for months, and it's taken this long to grow on me. When I first heard it, I was disappointed that it wasn't as funny and upbeat as some of the Ben Folds Five music, but now that I'm giving it a second chance, I'm appreciating its greater lyrical depths, and enjoying the music, which, though much more lowkey than the previous stuff, still has its hooks. Some damn depressing songs in there, I'll tell you what.

Lyric of the Week is from Tom Petty's "The Apartment Song." It pretty much describes my current living situation. Man, I need to move into a house. And I'm looking to do that in the near future, by the end of the summer at the latest. Wish me luck.

I've retired the Wit & Wisdom of Dwight and/or Barney feature for the summer TV hiatus. When the new season starts in the Fall, I'll see if I want to return one or the other to the sidebar, or if I want to do something else entirely.

And that's it! Let's see if I can stick to the update schedule next weekend. I make no guarantees.