The SHAM-WOW Does it work?

I first saw "Sham-Wow" at a sears outlet store. I had also seen it in a commercial advertised by Billy Mays. At first I was overwhelmed by its use. It soaked up everything. It seemed like a vacuum which left no mess! The "Sham-Wow" sold for $19:95 and came with four "Sham-Wows". I took it home, to try it out. To my disappointment I realized the company had cheated me! It didn’t work. It did not soak 12 times the liquid as they said it would.

I didn’t know why it wasn’t working for me when it worked right before my eyes at the sears. Could they have been using a different "Sham-Wow" for demonstration, or was the one I bought defected?

Why did I buy it? Maybe because the guy told me I wasted twenty dollars a month on paper towels, and for that same twenty dollars I could have eight Sham Wows. These Sham Wows are guaranteed to last ten years! I had wasted my money!

In my opinion I think the company cheat their costumers. They used different advertising techniques to sell their products to make the consumers buy their products. Their product doesn't do what they say it does.

What do you think? Is "Sham Wow" cheating their costumers to make money? Have you ever tried the "Sham-Wow" and did it work for you?

Cake Boss

Life is good it's almost summer time and Buddy is back!

For those of you living under a reality TV rock… I'm talking about Cake Boss on TLC. Buddy Valastro and his whole famigila that own Carlos bakery in Hoboken, New Jersey.

Buddy's the head of the family who employs his cousins and sisters to run the bakery where all the baked goods look awesome as well as cakes for custom orders that are over the top! The bakery is open daily to the public for cakes, cookies and a variety of pastries made by Buddy and his team but the excitement each week on the show is the cake they produce for special customers. Buddy used to make cakes for normal people but now that the show is in its forth season the customers have become more celebrity and the functions they take the cakes to are often star studded special events (even Snooki from the jersey shore ordered a cake for her mothers birthday last season).

Every week there's some kind of drama-will the cake break? Will it topple over while they're transporting it to the party or is there some sort of crisis in the family.

Buddy sounds like he's a few cupcakes short of a dozen but he's really a smart guy. He knows his case and can ice cake faster than I've ever seen(he can seen make those icing roses in record time!)

Buddy's gone a little Hollywood over the last few seasons because his show has done well with lots of views and he's well recognized now all over the U.S. and Canada. Buddy carries on a baking tradition as he learned from his father and will most likely pass it on to his children. I'm sure the bakery is more successful than ever, the family is busy and its worth the watch every week to see what the drama is, what the big cake will be and who it will be for. I intend to tune in every Monday night at 9 to watch and hope you do to!

Have a Great Summer!

Yours in Reality, Sam

The Fashion Industry Wears the Pants (and designs them too)

It's hard to believe apart from designing clothes, shoes, and accessories; the fashion industry can also manipulate and influence the public as well. The fashion industry creates a huge impact in our society, sometimes without us even realizing it. People are fascinated with keeping up with the latest trends and must-have items. Even if it's an ugly fur miniskirt or mustard yellow liquid leggings, fashionistas are bound to conform, no matter how ridiculous the garment may look. But then again, fashion is art, so it may appeal to some and not to others. If the designs weren't associated with fashion houses like Gucci, Prada, or Louis Vuitton, people would view them differently and with a more open mind. The public is also inspired by notable designers such as Karl Lagerfeld, Alexander Wang, and Marc Jacobs. Fashion designers can be seen as iconic to many people interested in pursuing a career in the fashion industry, or who are simply just interested in fashion. Similar to actors or musicians, it's pretty amazing when a designer starts off at design school and later on becomes a style influence for the world.

Personally, I enjoy the designs from Marc Jacobs, Alexander Wang, and Louis Vuitton. Even though these brands are contrasting, in terms of style, they all still appeal to me. Marc Jacobs' designs emit a fun, bold, and quirky essence, while Alexander Wang's work has an effortlessly cool and edgy feel to it.

It's a diverse place out there in the world of fashion and we can quite easily be swept away by it.

Finally! A finale for Celebrity Apprentice!

Donald Trump FINALLY put his own ego aside and crowned Country Singer-John Rich-the new Celebrity Apprentice last Sunday night. Some would call a painstaking process-Donald dragged out several of his seasons shows to an outrageous two hours!! We watched many Board Room scenes go on for sometimes 45 minutes of arguing, defending and accusing. The craziest competition to date, it came down to two very committed, hard working and successful fundraising contenders-Oscar Winning Actress Marley Matlin and country singer John Rich.

This was one of the wackiest of times for long time Apprentice watchers. These celebrities were pitted against each other very week in a variety of tasks to raise money for charity (all good!). Aside from the confrontational personalities, there was always enough go to go around the room twice. Tempers flared ad there was never a dull moment!

The “fun” started right at the beginning with Star Jones who can come off as elitist, controlling and a manipulator of other participants, particularly Lisa Reena who possesses such a threat that Star was out to get her right away. And she did! Star seemed to have Donald’s’ support right from the start, until it came to Ne Ne Leakes…the “housewife from Atlanta.”

Fun for us watchers as sparks flew between Ne Ne and Star, as well as the others who were around including LaToya (I’m famous because I’m a Jackson) Jackson who Ne Ne called “Casper the Ghost” !!

The other wacky one who created lots of drama and chaos was Gary Busey. We’re talking…WAY out there! He seems to have lots of issues when interacting with others due to a brain injury, his communication problems kept the men’s team on edge. Singer Mark McGrath, Survivor show winner, Richard Hatch and rapper Lil Jon as well as asing singer Meat Loaf provided lots o conflicts and hard work for their charities.

Overall this edition of Celebrity Apprentice should have been called “Celebrities Behaving Badly and Raising Money for Charity!”

Donald Trump and his over privileged offspring overshadowed the temperamental, overindulged wacky contestants this time. It was like a train wreck every week…one we knew was going to happen that we just couldn’t take our eyes off of!

I’m happy for John Rich, sad for the second runner up Marley Matlin, thrilled for the charities that will benefit from all the money raised and waiting on the edge of my seat to see what Donald trump and Mark Burnett (producer) will b able to come up with for next season! It will be hard to top this one…Sunday nights will be awfully quiet without the Celebrity Apprentice this summer!

Yours in Reality, Sam.

American Idol Season 10

After 122 million record breaking votes…the 10th season winner of American Idol is………………….Scotty McCreary! The seventeen year old deep voiced country singer beat out sixteen year old Lauren Alaina. Okay! Lets talk about the obvious..these two are like the same age as us! It’s unbelievable that just a short time ago Scotty was working as a bag boy at the local grocery store and going to high school. Like the rest of us, his biggest worry was getting his assignments in on time! The clean cut, religious crooner looks so, “boy next door” it’s almost scary! Now he’s on his way to stardom, or he hopes! We know that American Idol has done a great job of making stars our of many of the contestants over the last 10 seasons, but there have also been the “lost ones” as well… like remember Taylor what’s his name? and Lee DeWyse from last season… haven’t head much from him! I wish Scotty well! Although I am not a country music fan, the fact that he’s the same as us makes me feel like I want him to have a long and successful career! He can sing, though I preferred Lauren’s voice range and vocal ability a little better!

The final show was a shopping two hours of awesome musical talent! It was a good thing there was lots of variety there because two hours of Idol can be a lot to take, but thankfully I really enjoyed it! Beyonce, Lady GaGa, Carrie Underwood, Tim McGraw, Judas Priest pulled out all the stops! It was obviously the Top 11 Idol cast offs have been working hard to be able to participate in the show professionally but at times they looked a bit overdone and hokey! They all seemed to be fighting for the camera time-it was a bit much! They better be ready-their American idol tour starts Friday-today in Las Vegas

So…American Idol is over for another reason! Loved the new judges…JLo ad Steven Tyler though I wasn’t sure at first…

I miss is when it’s not on and cant wait for it come on again next fall! I don’t think ill be buying Scotties latest single but I will be waiting for the drop of Laurens first album…a little Kelly Clarkson, a little Carrie Underwood would be good-what do you think?

Yours in Reality, Sam.

To Infinity and Beyond...

"You've got a friend in me, you've got a friend in me..." Toy Story 3 clearly had a friend at the 83rd Academy Awards. And that friend came in the form of a little gold statue. Without a doubt, Toy Story 3 outshone all the other nominees for the Best Animated Feature Film category. I mean; do you honestly think that a movie about a kid training a dragon could beat this classic Disney film series? Get real.

I think it's pretty amazing how the Toy Story movies managed to be so successful; from the very first film in 1995-all the way to the 2010 last movie in the installment. The really intriguing thing is how-how did it manage to stay at the top?

Well for one thing, the storyline definitely contributed a whole lot to the success of the series. When Toy Story came out in 1995; the concept of toys coming to life excited the general audience. This idea sparked an thought in our minds: what if toys really did come to life as soon as we weren't looking? I mean you never know... Just kidding. (Unless you actually believe that theory, then that's cool too). There wasn't a lot of movies at the time that played around with this idea, so the Toy Story creators reached a whole new level on the imagination scale.

The details in the animation also helped the film franchise gain all its fans. Toy Story was the first full computer-generated animated movie created! All the little details that the movies include really give it style. I've always liked how classic toys; such as the barn animal sound effects wheel, Etch A Sketch, play-doh and monkeys in a barrel; are shown in the flicks. It's pretty cool that the audience is able to spot board games such as Monopoly and Sorry in the movie; you have to admit it's pretty legit.

But the one thing that sets this Disney movie apart from the others is the characters. The characters just have so much depth to them; and that allows the audience to get more attached to the story. As the movies progressed, the audience was able to relate better to the characters. If we all didn't love Buzz Lightyear so much, we probably wouldn't care at the scene where he figures out that he's actually a toy. We would have been like "Ha, the loser can't fly. Big whoop. This movie sucks, when is it over..." Yeah, you guys get the picture. And of course all the characters add their own sense of humor to the story-they're honestly all quite hilarious. Whether it be Rex being silly or Ham making yet another sarcastic remark, it still gets me every time.

So if any of you claim to be too old for a Disney movie; just know that you're never too old for Toy Story. There's always something for everyone; and in our teenage years some of the pop culture references or jokes we didn't get when we were younger now start to make sense. To all the "big kids" out there, I encourage you to give these movies another chance. "...But the thing that makes Woody special, is he'll never give up on you...ever. He'll be there for you, no matter what."

Harry Potter vs. Twilight

It has come down to this question: Are you a pothead or are you a twihard? We are talking about two of the biggest phenomenons here in pop culture history: Harry Potter and Twilight. People today are having difficulty deciding where their loyalties lie. I however, have no trouble choosing my side. Boys and girls, I think we can all agree here that Mr. Potter wins this battle. Twilight fans may beg to differ, but I assure you; after reading this post your views are bound to change. Now before Team Edward decides to bite me (or Team Jacob decides to rip me to shreds), I will admit that I am not completely against the whole Twilight franchise. I mean I've seen the movies and read all the books, but that of course does not make me a fanatic. But then again, that makes it fair game for me to compare the two series...

First off, J.K. Rowling is an exceptional writer, and a much better one than Stephannie Meyer at that, because her books are more rich in detail and much more believable (as far as fantasy goes). Even Stephen King said: "The real difference is that Jo Rowling is a terrific writer and Stephannie Meyer can't write worth a [darn]." Now that's a little harsh, but at the same time completely true in some ways. I don't want to spoil Breaking Dawn (the fourth book in the Twilight series) for anyone who hasn't read it, but the ending is a complete waste of time especially after reading 700 and something pages in order to reach it.

The Harry Potter series is better aimed towards both genders as an audience. There is a good mixture of humour, adventure, mystery, and even sometimes a love story on the side. It is also better than Twilight because there are morals in the story worth following by. I'm talking about: courage, sacrifice, love, good conquers over evil, the power of friendship, and that all heroes have flaws. It is harder for me to find morals in the Twilight series (except love I guess). Another point is that I for one find Twilight quite sexist in terms of the characters because Bella is always the damsel in distress and she is constantly relying on Edward to save her. It is particularly annoying in New Moon when Bella is practically a zombie due to moping her head off just because the so called love of her life leaves the town. On the other hand, Hermione Granger of the Harry Potter series, is a clever young lady who is able to take care of herself without clinging to Harry or Ron every minute of the day. Hermione is a character that girls should look up to, not clingy Bella.

Now let's talk about the film adaptations of the two books and the actual talent involved. I'm not saying the young actors involved in Harry Potter are the Clint Eastwoods and Meryl Streeps of our generation, but they sure are better than the Twilight young actors. The audience was able to grow with them throughout the movies because the characters had so much depth. Although maybe I should cut the Twilight cast some slack; it's not their fault they have to follow a cheesy script. I hate how in the Teen Choice Awards (which isn't even a legitimate awards show in my opinion) Twilight wins a countless number of times just because they have good-looking actors. But then of course Twihards will argue that the Twilight cast is actually made up of talented young actors. Oh really? What are the acting qualities that teenage girls find exceptional in the Twilight saga? Is it Taylor Lautner's forced intense expression, Robert Pattinson's beady eyes, or perhaps Kristen Stewart's constant frowning and lip biting? I didn't think so.

Now I don't mind if you enjoy the Twilight saga because of the plot and characters, but if you prefer the series over Harry Potter just because "they have hotter actors," then that is despicable. Choose what you want to believe after reading this post, but Harry Potter will always be the better series in my mind. Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, vampires and wizards; my work here is done (for now). Mischief Managed.

“The Amazing Race: Unfinished Business 18”

Welcome to Sam’s Reality TV Check


A Fun Reality TV Show for all Ages!

The Amazing Race 2011 Reality TV show is bringing back teams from previous seasons, giving returning teams a second chance to win the Amazing Race One Million dollar grand prize. Contestants are specially selected favorite teams returning from Seasons 12 to 17. The Amazing Race 18 will be a 23-city race that will cover 5 continents and 40,000 mile. The new season of the amazing race is one to watch! This season the show is bringing back those teams who have competed before, but not won.

The competition is fierce!

The first “leg” of the race started in California but quickly moved to Australia where teams were this past week. Each episode includes 2-3 tasks per “leg”, where the teams compete against each other to get to the “rest stop” first. Each team, while competing against each other, complete tasks including; solving puzzles, locating local monuments and partaking in local rituals and customs. Those who get to the rest stop first, are given the privilege of leaving first for the next leg of the race. The team arriving first is rewarded with a vacation or a cash prize. Most of the time, those who complete the “leg” of the race last will be eliminated. Once in awhile there will be a non elimination round where no one gets sent home. However, if you are the last team to arrive in this particular week, and you have been spared elimination, you will have to complete an additional task during the next “leg” of the race.

Each “leg” of the race brings its challenges – “roadblocks”, “fast forwards”, “yields” and “u-turns” making the game more exciting and stressful for all those involved and those of us watching at home!

Watch your favorite team and find out who is getting closer to winning the million dollar cash prize from other competitors on “The Amazing Race: Unfinished Business Season 18” on CTV Sunday night at 8 sharp.

Your Reality TV Blogger – Keeping it Real!
Samantha Stewart

The “Video Game”! Good or Bad?

The Video game has affected many of us on earth. Video gaming is like a hobby, just like reading, fishing, or playing sports, it's a form of entertainment. The problem is that video gaming has imprinted a negative impact in society.

Numerous studies show that people playing video games for a long period of time, especially ones with violent content show the following behaviours:

· Tend to be more aggressive

· Are more prone to confrontation with their teachers

· May engage in fights with their peers

· See a decline in school achievements.

This shows that media had ideological messages. The violence in the game influences the gamer to become more violent and aggressive.

Academic success can be negatively associated to over-all time spent playing video games. Studies have revealed that the more time a kid wastes on playing video games, the poorer is his performance in school.

Playing video games has many health affects, leading health issue is Obesity. The longer one is sitting and playing video games the higher risk of getting obese. Some other health issues include:

· Overuse injuries of the hand

· Obesity

· Muscle and joint problems

· Eyestrain

This shows that media has ideological messages. The violence in the game influences the gamer to become more violent and aggressive. Media also appeals to all five sense, that’s why it’s so addicting. The media use techniques to plead your senses making one play for a longer period of time, which cause drop in academic success and higher the chances for one to be obese .