Buyers Guide To E-Readers

Thinking of getting an Amazon Kindle, or Sony Reader, but don't know much about any of the new E-Readers? Check out Business Week's Buyers Guide to E Readers. It should help answer a lot of your questions. And at the same time probably make you more confused about which is the right choice!

Time To Get Lost!

Just saw this article on the final season of LOST. Sounds like the finale will be just as controversial as the Soprano's ending. And I think it's hilarious how the President moved his State of the Nation address so as not to compete with LOST. Ah, the power of a shirtless Sawyer and sweaty Kate!

Westie Update

Here's an update on something I've said little about on air, at least for the past three months. Our quest to become dog owners should be complete sometime in early March. We will be adopting one of the pups seen in the photo below. It's been a long process, with a lot of ups and downs, that's why I have been so unusually quiet about it. We had some special challenges to overcome (allergies) and after getting help from the SPCA and Gina Browning, we found the right breeder, and right mommy and daddy dogs, Parker and Lilly. After the pups are 8 weeks old, we will be able to visit and pick out our pooch. We will have a choice between two, as there are two other parties ahead of us.

We have some ideas for names, but nothing concrete as we aren't sure what sex we will be adopting. Keep listening to find out what we decide...we might even be asking you for help!

Digital Makeovers

Check out this NY Daily News photo piece on how celebs get Digital Makeovers to look better in print ads and magazine covers. Be ready for extra collarbones, no collarbones, missing legs, extra legs, fused legs, and missing hips.

Conan To Bolt NBC?

Tons of NBC late night rumors! Here's a good NYPOST article on some things you may not think about as an outsider. Like moving your entire family out West, only to have the rug pulled out from under you. Yes, most of us would do it for a guaranteed 12-18 Million dollar deal (depending on the numbers being kicked around). But Conan is really getting screwed by the network when he has done nothing wrong. NBC should have just canned Leno, and admit they messed up. Would have been cleaner, and not quite as nasty.

Money Magazine...The Bottom Line

While searching for a neat end-of-year topic that would serve as a springboard into 2010, I came across the Jan/Feb issue of Money Magazine, and it's end-page "Bottom Line" article by Pat Regnier titled "The Internet Ruined My Life." It's a quick three minute read, that will give you some huge information on reclaiming your life that is so dominated by technology.

I had hoped to post a link to the article, however it is not even up on their website yet (a good reason to subscribe to any magazine...you often get info days before it is posted on the web, or sometimes is never posted at all.) So I will just give you a portion of his opening paragraph:

"Recently the number of options for wasting time on my computer reached a critical mass of craziness. E-mail. Blogs. Social networks. Podcasts. E-books. When work got stressful, it was all too easy to click over to Facebook. I found myself blowing deadlines and growing irritable and jumpy."

If that sounds like you (and I'm sure it does), I urge you to pick up the Jan/Feb issue of Money Magazine, and read the article. It will give you the drive to clean up your techno-life in 2010.
If you can't find it, or don't wanna fork out the bucks to buy it (shame on the material hijacker) keep checking back, and I'll link you to this outstanding article when it's possible.

Did you download one of the top Christmas songs?

Check out the list according to itunes here.

I recently had a listener ask me for a list of non-traditional Christmas albums, kind of on the cool, sexy, almost offbeat side of the holidays. The first two I would recommend are CHRISTMAS COCKTAILS Vol 1 and 2, part of the Ultra Lounge series from Capitol Records. After that check out these albums:

Christmas With The Rat Pack (Capitol)

Brian Setzer Orchestra Boogie Woogie Christmas (Surfdog)

Lorrie Morgan Merry Christmas Form London (BMG)

Tony Bennett A Swingin' Christmas (Columbia)

Frank Sinatra The Christmas Collection (Capitol)

Tony Bennett The Christmas Album "Snowfall" (Capitol)

Got any other suggestions? Send a comment!

Christmas With The Starz Bunnies

Check out the Starz Bunnies versions of A Christmas Story, Christmas Vacation, and even Twilight here. Warning...you will instantly get hooked and waste a good hour surfing this page!

I spent a few minutes this morning ruminating on the recent list of Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame inductees. With every year that certain acts get passed over, and others get admitted, I lose more faith in the process. The Rock and Roll Museum is awesome. The Hall Of Fame...truly incomplete.

Inducting a band because they are iconic for a genre or era, vs what they mean to people, vs number of hits, vs their musicianship, is always going to be a tough call. But Jimmy Cliff and The Stooges before KISS or Alice Cooper? C'mon. Check out the roster of Hall Of Fame inductees, and you'll see at least a handful of artists that KISS and Alice should have been in long before. Also check out this piece for some slightly slanted background on this years nominees.

I'm now going to put on DOUBLE PLATINUM and crank it loud so they can hear it in Cleveland!

Smallest Apartment in NYC

Would you pay $150,000 to live with your spouse in something the size of a jail cell?

Check out this NY Post article on New York City's smallest apartment.

Christmas Portrait...The Real Story

While doing song research for the morning show, I stumbled up Richard Carpenter's official web page regarding album production. Check out his thoughts on Christmas Portrait, one of the great holiday albums of all time. He feels it should have been Karen's album, with him not getting an artist credit, and explains why with some brutal honesty. Check out the musician credits at the bottom of the page. Niagara Falls' Tommy Tedesco is one of the guitarists, and Elvis' long time drummer Ronnie Tutt also plays. It's a pretty cool read.

The Standardized-test Smackdown

Remember taking SAT's and ACT's? Your kids may be taking them this month. These test are big business and both parties are looking for more market share. Caught in the middle: the test takers. Check out this FORTUNE MAGAZINE article on the business of high school testing. One new thing for this fall: If you do poorly you can hide results from universities!

The city is recovering from last night's Springsteen show at HSBC Arena. Possibly "The last one...for awhile," as Bruce has put it. If you were there, you are probably drained and can't wait for your head to hit the pillow tonight. Reviews of the show are rolling in, from Jeff Miers article in the Buffalo News to this cool review straight from Jersey.

Jersey...hey, where else would you to talk Bruce!

So you're watching TV and a commercial comes on with an incredible song as its musical background. Or you're heavy into an episode of the Vampire Diaries, and they use a song in a scene that you can't get out of your mind. But what song was it?

For the answers, check out What Is That Song.net. From songs you hear on the radio to those used on TV shows and commercials, this incredible website has a listing of every song used in media.

Full disclosure: Skip Isley, the guy that created this website, is a former co-worker of mine from my days in Ocean City, Maryland in the early '80s. Awesome job, Skip! Glad to see we are both gainfully employed doing what we like to do!

Shakira is on the cover of Rolling Stone.

Check out this feature in the New York Post that shows her changing look aver the past decade.

Amazing 3D Chalk Creations

Check out these 20 or so sidewalk drawings. You'll stare at them forever trying to figure out how they did it...and what parts of the picture are drawn vs real.

Incredible Halloween Animal Costumes

While I'm not the biggest fan of dressing up pets for occasions, the pics on this NBC TODAY SHOW site are hilarious. Be prepared...you'll want to click through all 7 pages!

Windows 7 Upgrade?

Should you upgrade from Vista to Windows 7? This AP piece as run in today's Buffalo News will help you make a decision.

Springsteen A Month Away

Bruce in Buffalo is just one month away! If you've checked out any of the setlists from this tour, you can tell he is going out with a bang. I can't wait to see what is in store for us on November 22nd. Check out this video from Backstreets.com, Bruce's cover of The Clash's London Calling!
You'll have to scroll about 1/2 way down the page. The sound is awesome, even for the internet. If you can understand any of the garbled words Steven sings, you are a better person than I!

Airline Fee Chart

By now most everyone knows that if you book a flight for $180 including taxes, it will probably end up costing you over $210 by the time you reach your destination. The reason? Airline fees for everything from bags to pilllows. To make you better aware of what you'll really pay, the folks at FareCompare.com have published a great listing of airline fees, easy to read, easy to use! Click here to check it out!

7 ft Long Dog!!!

So you think your pet is giving you trouble? How about a dog that can drink out of the sink...without hopping up to do it! Check out this MSNBC article on what may be the world's tallest living dog.

Amazing Whale Watch Pics



This morning we were living vicariously through the travels of our Producer Nikki Gawel. She just returned from a trip to New England, and came back with amazing pics of a whale watch cruise. Check these out! Click on the pic and blow them up for an even more incredible look.






For more pics, just ask her to be your Facebook friend!

Letterman Fallout

Friday morning we talked about the ramifications of David Letterman's bombshell extortion announcement. One of the things that came to light as we went through the morning, is that the timing of the happenings is more than paramount.

As of this morning, none of the timing, and little of the extorter, was known. But as you can read in these NY newspaper reports, much of this happened before Dave was married, and before he had a child. To some, it may not make it any better, but the timing is important. Also, the guy who is extorting Dave seems to be a real louse. Catch up on the all the dirt at the following links, and don't to forget to catch the Top Ten List weekday mornings at 7:20 on STAR 102.5!

NY DAILY NEWS report

More from the DAILY NEWS

NY POST story

Forgiven By Fans?

Top Ten Reasons Letterman Came Clean

Paying Off Your Mortgage

I've gotten some nice comments regarding some of the business and financial articles we've posted. Thanks! Feedback is much appreciated. Here's a good Q & A based on something we all hope to obtain...total ownership of a property. Find out what should happen when you pay off your mortgage in this MarketWatch article.

Stylecaster

So my wife keeps getting these wacky STYLECASTER e-mails. They come in the morning, provide weather (not as good as I do on-air), some celebrity news, and a daily new look at fashions and shopping. It really is pretty neat. I imagine women reading it the way men read the sports page. My wife does tell me that you may need a special invite to join. She found hers in a magazine a few months ago. Some secret code...but probably not as important as knowing sports statistics. Just my opinion. But it won't even let me download a pic to help illustrate this paragraph. So it must be super secret!

Click here for stylecaster And drive your husband crazy with daily e-mails!

Fixing Up Ford

This article from Fortune magazine is a GREAT business read, even if you don't know who Alan Mulally is, and don't care about the inner workings of Ford. I love the way Alan conducts meetings, and the story of how people were afraid to speak up when things were wrong. Anyone having, or hoping to have, a professional career, will find good guidance.

New Realities of Buying A Home

Had a listener call the show the other morning, Racquelle from Buffalo, saying she was listening on her first morning in her new home. Congrats to her on attaining the American dream!

On that note, here is an AP article published on MSNBC on the new realities of home buying. Good reading for all!

Head In A Maze Pt 2

I posted last week how the folks at Roessler's in Arcade created a corn maze in the shape of my head. Here's the finished product. They truly are the Michaelangelo's of corn mazes. Click on the pic for a bigger view.

Website I Can't Give The Title Of

Please check out this website. It's hilarious. Funny little stories of things gone wrong.
I'll probably talk about it on the show at some point, but really don't think I can give the title of it. You'll know why. Just a little too rough for us.

Spider-Man Meets Mickey?

Huge news today with Disney buying Marvel Comics and over 4,000 characters including Spider-Man, X-Men, and Iron Man. What does it all mean? Will Universal Studio have to close some attractions immediately? Probably not. But it seems no one really knows. Check out the following articles and forums for more:

Newsbroke Budget Travel CNN Money

Newsarama (good article on theme parks)

WESH Orlando Theme Park News

Head In A Maze

I thought it was a joke when I was first told of this, but it is true. The fine folks at Ressler's Corn Maze in Arcade have decided to design one of their mazes in the shape of my head. The creators at Ressler's are amazing designers. Check out how they incorporated the Star logo last year and get directions to the maze by clicking here.

Feel The Buffalove!

You've seen many of these items in stores, but there is a whole new line of Buffalo Love T-shirts and Hoodies. Check them out here.

O'Reilly vs Olbermann

Here's a great NY TIMES article on the feud and truce between Fox's Bill O'Reilly and MSNBC's Keith Olbermann. Almost as soon as this article came out, Olbermann came back from vacation and did a scathing piece on O'Reilly, pretty much putting any long term peace on the back burner.

My opinion? Glad you asked. Last time I looked, back during election season, FOX held a HUGE viewer margin over MSNBC. That is the reason why FOX, at first, never acknowledged the Olbermann attacks. One of the most basic broadcast and business tenets is to be aware of, but never recognize, stations or groups that are behind you in the ratings. You are beating them, so there is no reason to draw attention to them. Fox did the right thing to ignore. As the weaker of the two, MSNBC is doing the correct thing by attacking. But I must say, Keith Olbermann's obsession with FOX is bordering on spinning out of control (pun on O'Reilly's NO SPIN ZONE unintended) and can be ponderous to watch more than a few times a month.

Both O'Reilly and Olbermann are great broadcasters and very smart, creative people. You don't get to where they are without being so. The No Spin Zone, to me anyway, is a much easier show to watch, less agenda driven (though all shows in the genre have agenda's), and much less preachy.

Olbermann's show is much tougher for me to watch, but I can't exactly tell you why. Much of it is because of Keith himself. I think I get tired of hearing about everything being bad in America. The Worst Person In The World segment too often becomes a stage for Olbermann to take a shot at other broadcasters, instead of him being a speaker for the mood of the country. Keith is a gifted and creative writer. His tribute to his mom after her passing was a great television moment. He just has so much anger, I'm afraid it will get the best of him and put him in a situation where he has to walk away, much like he did at ESPN TV, ESPN Radio, FOX SPORTS, and a few other jobs. His book THE BIG SHOW, co written with Dan Patrick, is a MUST READ for any would-be broadcaster. But Keith's attitude, that of a cranky 80 yr old who knows he can't change the world, is just too tough me me to take. It bleeds into everything he does. Too bad. I love his passion, but can't take how the message is delivered more than once a week at best.

Cheapest, Meanest Airline

Check out this NY Times article on Ryanair, the British airline that is so no frills they may start charging to use the on plane bathroom. I probably wouldn't fly them, but do appreciate their honesty and originality. I think I could be cranky enough to work for them. Would you fly them? Leave a comment below.

Twitterpated Part 2

A few weeks ago I posted a link to an article showing why Twitter is viable and will be around a long time. A month later, I read this article from Wall Street Journal's MarketWatch that blows some of the previous theories out of the water. Check it out, then go back to my earlier post on the matter, and let me know if you think Twitter is here to stay.

Wedding Entrance Dance

Here's the link to the Wedding Entrance Video everyone is talking about.

More on the event here and here

Kings Of Leon

I've been spending some time with Kings Of Leon's Only_By_The_Night. While I'm not a big fan of the production of the disc...very hazily and overly compressed, (I like a crisp bright sound...think any Jet album), the bass absolutely is punishing. I don't know what they did during the mix, but even at low levels my rearview mirror vibrates like crazy with the bass line. On some songs, you can almost feel it in your chest as if you were at a concert.

While Only_By_The_Night isn't necessarily my cup of tea, a few of the songs strike me as being very Springsteen-like in construction and power. Especially cut 8, "I Want You." A slightly brighter mix and it would be fit well in Bruce's Darkness era.

Kings of Leon are a fringe act for female leaning adult/rock pop station like ours, but if you get a chance, give the album a listen. And if you like it PAY FOR IT. BUY IT IN A STORE, NOT DOWNLOAD IT FOR FREE. Not to support the record industry, but to support your favorite band. Other than that, it's just stealing. Really.

Boston North End Market Tour

The highlight of our Boston getaway was taking a market tour of the Italian North End. My wife set this up after she had seen it online and on The Food Network. Oh My Gosh...this tour is unbelievable...the ONLY way to truly see the North End. The tour was hosted by a former chef, and while you don't go in restaurants and try food, you do go into markets and learn to shop and cook like a true Italian. After taking this tour, I will never shop for or think of food the same way again.

Just a few of the things we learned:

• It's better to cook with a male than female eggplant, and how to tell the difference.
• Why there is truly no such thing as Italian bread.
• In Northern Italy, cooking is very butter and lard heavy. As you head further south Olive Oil (Arabic and Greek influences) becomes the norm
• Why in Italy it is proper to drink cheaper wine at lunch and dilute it with water (this drives the French crazy!).
• How to tell if a store bought item is truly from Italy (it should have a DOP marking on the label)
• The Balsamic Vinegar we buy in stores locally is, well, crap. Very little vinegar in it at all. Producers use brown sugar and assorted things to make it taste like Balsamic Vinegar, which truly only comes from the Modena area of Italy. We saw a 4 ounce bottle that went for $125...got to taste a drop. Wow...what a difference!
• Why out of the 80 or so North End restaurants, about 60 are Italian-American, and handful are true Italian.
• Why the most popular pastry shop in the North End (Mike's) has the worst pastries. Nothing but a food tourist trap

It matters not if you are into cooking...if you are addicted to the Travel or Food channels, this tour is for you!

Some web sites to get you there:

http://www.foodtoursofboston.com/

http://www.salumeriaitaliana.com/ (One of the best true Italian markets in Boston. They ship everywhere! Click around this site...tons of recipes here as well.)

http://www.vcirace.com/ #1 Italian Wine Shop in U.S.

http://www.northendboston.com/

The pics are photos I took along the way. Click on them and blow them up to get the full North Boston feel.

Boston Travel Hints

Just back from a quick and fun 2 and 1/2 day Boston getaway. I'm always wondering how much to post about vacations as having someone go on and on about what a great time they had can be pretty boring, much like watching someones vacation movies at a house party. But I do want to give travel hints on this trip, especially since a trip to Boston is almost the quintessential historic family getaway. A couple quickies:

For all it cost, and as long as it took, The Big Dig may be the biggest improvement to a northeastern city since the Inner Harbor of Baltimore. It has transformed Boston from what used to be a rusty dirty loud exhaust choked walking city into a beautiful walking city . You can walk walk the Greenway from the North End all the way to Chinatown. Another result is incredible access to Logan airport. I kid you not, the ride from our hotel in Charlestown to the Airport was faster than from Tonawanda to the Buffalo airport. What used to be an hour ride in Boston in now just 20 minutes tops. And because there is now an airport only access road from the now underground central artery, the time allotment doesn't go up much even w rush hour traffic. Here's the difference:
















Hint #2: Our hotel, the nearly new Residence Inn by Marriott in Charlestown (found by my wife on Tripadvisor.com) was incredible and perfect for families with kids of walking age. The rooms are huge (all suites), the price is about 30% cheaper than staying in the city, but you are RIGHT THERE in just a short walk over the Charlestown bridge with incredible city views from all rooms (see pics). Located right next door is the North Station T, which has trains connecting to everywhere.


The Residence Inn is also cost saving because each morning they put out a HUGE buffet breakfast, absolutely free. And it's not just sausage, bacon and greasy food (though that's all I tend to eat), but healthy cereals and fruits as well. It probably saves a family of 5 about $50 a day.
For close by dinners there are a bunch of pubs and eateries in Charlestown within a 5 minute walk. Think places like JP Bullfeathers and the old Jimmy Mac's. If you can walk an extra quarter mile a day, we highly recommend this hotel!

Soda VS Pop

You can tell where someone is from by what they call it: soda, pop, Coke, Pepsi, tonic.

And someone has actually done a survey on it! Check out the amazing pop vs soda map here. And definitely scroll down to see the conclusion!

10 Things Rental Car Companies Won't Say

It's vacation time, and many times that means getting a rental car for some portion of your trip. From personal experience, I've found that researching and getting the best car rental rate is often tougher than getting cheap airfare. This article from SMART MONEY confirms most of what I have found out. Hidden surprise: Check out item #5...a very close friend of ours (and yours) is quoted!!!

Fortune Magazine's Mid Year Dumb Business Moves

KFC, The Yankees, GM, Madoff, and even Barack O'Bama are on the list for bad business moves.
Check it out here and see if you agree.

More Rabbit Problems Pt 2


A week ago I posted the story and pics of baby rabbits setting up shop in my front yard and landscaping. As of today, it looks like they are ready to leave! I came home Wednesday, looked in the nest, and saw a couple of eyes, this time with hair on the head and body, staring back at me (pics 1 and 2). Today, the baby bunnies were out and taking their first steps when I came home. I probably scared the you know what out of them. But hey, they decided to set up right next to where I park the car! Enjoy the pics and video!


Three rabbits in the nest, one staring back. Now about 10 days old.


Bunnies have turned their backs..all three together. You can see two of them pretty well.

Bunny takes his first steps...

...and tries to hide from the camera, and the crazy man taking the pics.
There are two rabbits back to back (check the rear legs on left)

Twitterpated!!

Sorry Thumpber, but Twitterpated has a whole new meaning. By now you've probably created an account and started following some users. You may have even sent a few tweets out into the world, but you still don't get it, and you're ready to dismiss Twitter for good. Here's a great article from Marketwatch's Amy Hoak on why Twitter is the real deal, especially for businesses.

More Rabbit Problems For Rob

Saturday morning I'm doing some weeding in the front yard, and I see a bunch of bunny fur under one of our box woods. Looking closer, I pull back some of the fur, which was mixed with a little grass that had been pulled out of what is now a 6 inch round bare patch on my lawn, to see three new born baby bunnies. These rabbits must be less than three days old, as it was 3 days ago that I noticed the bare patch on the lawn looking like a mini crop circle.

I immediately called Gina Browning at the SPCA. Her advice? Leave them. They will be up and around in three weeks. And in return for using my lawn as an incubator, next Spring they will eat everything I plant! Check out the pics...and click on them for bigger views. Animal nature is pretty amazing. We will no doubt be talking about this on our SPCA segment Wednesday morning at 8:40.

Little bunny legs poking out


This pics looks like something out of ALIEN

Looks like a baby pig here

more sleeping bunny-to-be's

While doing some research for the morning show (Yes, we actually do plan out some of what we do!), I came across a pretty neat website dedicated to TV ratings, the business side of what's happening with your favorite shows, etc. Check out James Hibbard's The Live Feed here.

Boss' New Drummer

With Max Weinberg following Conan to L.A., Bruce Springsteen has had to get a new drummer...Max's son Jay! Read about it here, and check out the photo below. Jay almost has the same look Garry Tallent, Bruce's bassist, had in the early 70's on the back cover of The Wild, The Innocent, and The E Street Shuffle!

Fodors Best Family Beaches

Fodors has just published their list of Best Family Beaches for the East Coast. I've been lucky enought to visit a few of these (York in Maine, Cape May in Jersey, and just South of Clearwater in Florida), and still feel that my family favorite of Ocean City, Maryland, with it's wide almost California like beaches, could easily be ranked ahead of at least two of them. OC has changed over the years though, becoming more of a concrete 8 line Coastal Highway jungle...too much traffic. Check out the rankings, and let me know of your favorites that didn't make the list!

MAN'S RULES

You may have heard us talking on air about MAN'S RULES, a collection of rules designed to make men and women better understand each other. Some of my favorites:

-Whenever possible, please say whatever you have to say during commercials

-If you ask a question that you don't want to hear the answer to, expect an answer that you don't want to hear

- If it itches, it will be scratched. We do that.

See the hilarious list here.

And please pass it on to your friends so all men can be better understood!

Mom's Overture

We've gotten a lot of inquiries about the Mom's Overture we featured during Friday's Mother Of All Breakfast's broadcast. It's actually audio we copped from a performance by comedienne Anita Renfro. Check it out here.

There are numerous versions of her performing this song on the web, all slightly different. So if this isn't what you need...as always...GOOGLE IT!

Coastal Living is one of my favorite magazines...always puts me in a great mood! It's perfect read for everyone from Buffalo homeowners who dream about owning a beach home, to those who just want to bring some Summer into an area that is only in hot weather a few months a year.

I usually want to post about 5 articles from each issue, but instead I thought I'd just give you the magazine link here and let you check it out. If you like it, I really recommend subscribing. It's so full of decorating ideas/recipes/travel suggestions that you'll hang onto each issue long after it's been read...almost like a reference magazine!

Happy Summer

Fingerstix

This morning we had a blast with Mark Krurnowski and Tony Miranda in studio chatting about their roles in creating some of the pieces of music you'll see and hear in "What Goes Up," the new Hilary Duff/Molly Shannon movie. In case you missed it, you can catch the interview on our podcasting page.

One thing we never got to cover, but I did want to mention here, was Tony's new drumming invention...Fingerstix. Simply amazing. From 5 year old's with a kids drum set, to professional musicians, these are going to be a hit. I don't know if drums have been affected by technology nearly to the extent of guitars, (those drum pads born in the 80's don't count)...but I have the feeling Fingerstix are something special. Check out the demo of Tony playing on the right side of the page. Hot!!!!

Oh and check out Tony's bio. Playing with Tom Jones and Madonna. Not too bad for a guy from Alden.

Dust Off That Vinyl, And Make Room For Some New LP's

Old school record fans will love this posting from the NY POST via All Access Music Group. Sorry I had to post the whole thing here...it's password protected. If they wanna sue me over free publicity on my blog...go ahead.

NY Post: Best Buy Is Giving Vinyl A Spin

The consumer-electronics giant, the nation's third-largest music seller behind APPLE's iTUNES and WAL-MART, is considering devoting eight square feet of merchandising space to vinyl, or enough for just under 200 albums, after testing the idea in 100 of its stores around the country," writes PETER LAURIA in THE NEW YORK POST."Vinyl is less than 5% of BEST BUY's music sales, but the format is growing as CD sales shrink. Vinyl sales grew 15% in 2007 and 89% in '08, making the 1.9 million albums purchased last year the most since 1991.And this year is shaping up even better, with 670,000 albums sold by mid-APRIL. By contrast, CD sales have fallen at a roughly 20% clip the last few years. "

To be sure, vinyl's growth, even combined with digital sales, can't make up for CDs' decline. But it shows consumers haven't abandoned the physical format. "And the fact that a retailer of BEST BUY's size is willing to expand vinyl offerings is an incremental positive for a beleaguered industry. A typical BEST BUY store features about 16 to 20 square feet of music merchandise and displays 8,000 CDs.

Seinfeld Season 8

While doing research on Chelsey Noble for our STAR OF THE DAY contest, I stumbled across her playing Danielle in the Seinfeld "English Patient" episode. While looking over the entire Season 8, I hypothesized that it may be the strongest season of a sitcom ever.

Out of 22 episodes, I believe at least 12 are "world class-can't turn the TV off even though I've seen it 20 times-will still be funny in 20 years" classics. Check out the season here and see what you think. Feel free to shoot me a comment.

Yes...I know it's Wikipedia. But in this case, using it as a reference is OK!

Lindsay Lohan For E-Harmony

You can't say Lindsay Lohan doesn't have a sense of humor. Check out her bogus and incredibly funny E-Harmony commercial here.

Denver resident remodels the wrong condo

Jonathan Kyte of Denver bought a condo and spent thousands remodeling it, only to find out he never owned it. Instead, he owns the deeds to the "dump" next door. Watch Video Report. If the correct video does not load, simply enter "Denver resident remodels wrong condo" in the search field.

From The Wall Street Journal.

On Thursday's show we had the audio of Billy Bob Thornton and The Boxmasters appearing on CBC radio. We called it the radio version of what Joaquin Phoenix pulled on Letterman, and it's darn close.

Unhappy that host (and former vocalist for Moxy Fruvous) Jian Ghomeshi started out by mentioning his acting exploits, Billy Bob got stupid and decide to freeze out the interviewer. If you thought it was brutal when we played the audio highlights, wait till you see the looks the other band members give and the facial exchanges between the host and Billy Bob in this video of the interview .

Kudos to Jian for keeping it together at a time when many would've kicked Billy out of the studio and moved on to something else.