Too Bad I Scooped Ya, Primetime

Dr. Randy Frost, whose own office is spotless. (c) jcs 2006

I was watching Primetime and its series on medical mysteries the other night and a familiar face popped on screen — Dr. Randy Frost, who I interviewed a couple of months ago on the issue of hoarding.

The topic is intriguing to say the least. We’ve all heard of ‘those’ houses … packed to overflowing with papers, clothes, or even pets. But the disorder of hoarding apparently goes even further than that. Once thought to be a type of OCD, now many experts like Frost think it’s more complicated, relating to many other disorders such as ADD, depression, or anxiety. What’s more, taking all of a hoarder’s stuff away from them — like when a house is condemned due to its contents — can do much more harm than good and even make the problem worse.

Makes you take HGTV and its many clutter-clearing shows all the more seriously, eh?

Published: Monday, 22 January 2007

Aqua Teen Hunger Force Pisses off Deval Patrick

…it’s about to go down as one of the most ill-conceived marketing campaigns of the century. Adult Swim has effectively paralyzed the city of Boston today, by affixing strange packages (actually magnetic lights) to bridges and underpasses to promote Aqua Teen Hunger Force – that bizarre cartoon with floating fast food serving as the protagonists.

The Bostonist has a particularly hilarious account of the melee, which shut down roads and the T for hours and put new Governor Deval Patrick’s panties in a twist (and rightfully so, says Writerjax). My friend Writer-Andi was stuck on the train on her way to her daughter’s daycare, and is still at this point sending me intermittent IMs that just say ‘ugggggh!’

Hilarious in retrospect, of course. Note to Turner Broadcasting – even a mooninite looks like a terrorist these days, especially when attached to a freakin’ bridge. Keep your billboards big and conspicuous!

Published: Tuesday, 30 January 2007