It has intrigue and romance... oh and sex and lies.  Lifetime's Sex and Lies in Sin City is based on the book Murder in Sin City by Jeff German.  I'm not familiar with this story but find myself intrigued by the description.

From MyLifetime.com,

In the long, colorful history of Las Vegas crime, one case stands out: the shocking true story of the tumultuous, tortured romance of beauty-queen-turned-stripper Sandy Murphy and reckless casino mogul Ted Binion. At first, it seemed like the kind of story Las Vegas was invented for: she was a beauty from the wrong side of the tracks, he was one of the most eligible bachelors in town, and together they found true love. But every Vegas tale has a dark side, and soon reports of drugs, guns, cash, and mobsters begin to soil this storybook affair. When Ted Binion turns up dead of an overdose, all fingers immediately point to Sandy, the beneficiary of his millions.

Cast and Characters,

Mena Suvari - Sandy Murphy, a stripper who becomes accused of murdering her billionaire boyfriend.

Matthew Modine - Ted Binion, a drug addicted casino heir who falls prey to his stripper girlfriend.

Marcia Gay Harden - Ted Binion's sister, who is desperate to convince the police that her brother was murdered.

Johnathon Scaech - Rick Tabish, Sandy Murphy's lover and Ted Binion's confidante, who may be responsible for Binion's death.

You can check out the true story behind Sex and Lies in Sin City and get the ebook Murder in Sin City. 

I'm looking forward to this movie because I'm a fan of Mena Suvari and Marcia Gay Harden and it sounds like a good way to spend a Saturday night.  So tune in tonight to the Lifetime channel at 9:00 p.m. EST.

Waiter Rant is the name of the book by Steve Dublanica, a.k.a. The Waiter.  The books is an account of what is really cooking in restaurants.  This morning, July 31, 2008, The Waiter appeared on the Today Show.

The thing that bothers me about this book and Steve Dublanica's publicity touring on the talk shows, is how they say 'be nice to your waiters' or 'leave good tips', because if you don't they are going to do bad (perhaps nasty) things to your food.

He says, "that if a customer is rude or talks on their cell phone the waiter or waitress doing something to a customer's food is justified."  I'm sorry but even though talking on a cell phone is one of my pet peeves, it by no means justifies a waiter spitting on my food or whatever that waiter decides he wants to do for revenge.

He says he even passed gas near a customer's table.  He also claims that he never spit in a customer's food...for some reason I don't believe him. 

Okay here is MY rant:  What happened to 'customers are always right' and 'the customer comes first' and 'service with a smile'?  We go to a restaurant spend our hard earned money on a meal ( which is getting higher and higher ) and leave at least a 15% tip (personally we leave a tip even when the service has been poor).

Now I by no means suggest that 'we' should be rude and disrespectful to waiters and waitresses.  The have a tough job!  But I remember when businesses catered to the consumer.  So when did things change?  Now we the customer not only pay for the goods and services we receive but have to cater to the businesses.  The role seems to have been reversed.  The consumers are paying their salaries, right?

You can go to the Today Show web site and read an excerpt from his book.

I have never been anything but polite to waiters and waitress, and have experienced poor service on many occasions.  And I'm sure that they (waiters)do experience rude customers from time to time...but are the days of 'the customers always right' gone?  I would love to hear what you think on this subject.  I hope to hear from you!

On July 28, 1866 Beatrix Potter was born.  She was an illustrator, mycologist, and conservationist, but she will always be best known as the writer of the Peter Rabbit books.

The Tale of Peter Rabbit, which she illustrated herself, was published in 1902. It was an instant success and was followed by a series of books.  I loved the Peter Rabbit books as a child and love even more reading them to my son (and him reading them to me).

You can get The Tale of Peter Rabbit as well as the Peter Rabbit collection if you don't already have them.

Thank you Beatrix Potter for writing Peter Rabbit and sharing it with the world.  And...Happy Birthday!

Ladies, would like to train your husbands or significant others to be neater and pick up after themselves?

Well, now there is a book by a woman who studies and writes about animal training and she had a great idea to apply what she learned from training animals to her husband.  The book is "What Shamu Taught Me About Life, Love and Marriage."  "She tries to cure him of some irritating habits (driving too fast, leaving stinky laundry piles on the rug), and she claims to have had some success", according to this red Orbit article, "Let's Hear It for the Boys for a Change".  Which is a great article, by the way. 

The article explores the double standard of how women would be outraged if this were a book by a man on how to train their wives.  If a man said that he wanted to train his wife to talk less or shop less by using animal techniques, I doubt that we women would be very happy about it.

Another thing it mentions is how we have become a nation of political correctness, in as much as we are not tolerant of racial jokes or slurs, fat jokes, ethnic jokes, ect. but it is okay to bash men.

I must admit I have been guilty of a little men bashing in my time; but then I had a son.  Now I see things differently and realize that it is a double standard that shouldn't be accepted. 

Besides, I'm surrounded by males that are kind, respectful, caring and thoughtful to me and all the women in their lives.  Okay, maybe they don't always pick up after themselves...but that's a small price to pay for the influence these wonderful men/boys have in my life.

If you still like to man bash or feel your husband is so messy it's intolerable, you can get the book here.  If you have read the book or if you feel the same way I do about men bashing, chime in.  We would love to hear from you!  Enjoy life!!!

When I hear about all the 'child stars' that have alcohol or drug problems or just can't seem to handle all the limelight and do outlandish things for attention, I feel sad and disgusted at the same time.  So when I hear about Kirk Cameron, from "Growing Pains" fame, it makes me feel good.  I know there are many more 'child stars' that do good things and grow up "normal", we just don't hear about them as much as we do the Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohans and Paris Hiltons. 

Kirk Cameron has written a book, "Still Growing", an intimate autobiography, in which Kirk opens up about his early years, his rocket to stardom, his life-changing encounter with Jesus and the hard choices he made along the way to live in the "Way of the Master". Fans will get an up-close and personal look at what drives the former teen-magazine heartthrob and find out how God and family became the secrets behind his celebrated smile. In his own words, Kirk shares how he is still growing even through the triumphs and temptations of his Hollywood career.

He was an atheist who found God and never let Hollywood or "fame" deter him from his faith.  You can read a great article by Matthew DeBord from the Los Angeles Times here. 

It is nice to read that Cameron was able to find his way to Christianity without having to hit rock bottom first and be able to stand up for his beliefs in Hollywood.  'Still Growing' is on my book list to read this week.  I hope you get a chance to read the book.  If you have already read it, please let us know what you thought of it.  Hope to hear from you!  Enjoy life!!