My friend, The Ex (her nickname; not someone I used to make mix tapes for), has a great blog which I have bookmarked and read every day. She is damn funny, and I appreciate both her writing style and her anal-retentive attention to spelling and grammar. Have I mentioned that we don’t actually know each other? We are virtual blog buddies. It’s fun.

I’ve been thinking about her site because I want to make improvements to this one. I am openly jealous about the amount of comments she receives for almost every single post. Granted, she writes and shares more frequently than I do. But obviously her following is dedicated. And chatty. Mine consists of frequent lingerers with responses from only a select few (which make my day every time). Don’t get me wrong, I am also grateful for those who do return often, the fairly decent number of daily hits, and my beloved 14 subscribers!

So, taking a page from her, I have some questions for my readers and for fellow bloggers:

• Am I covering pop culture topics that you’re interested in? If not, suggestions?
  
• Did you know that you don’t have to give your real or full name when you leave comments? Are you more likely to do so knowing that it can be done anonymously?
• How do you build upon readership and encourage comments?
• Do you prefer reading shorter, more frequent blog entries or lengthier, more detailed posts every other day or so?
  
• What are your favorite blogs, and why? Please feel free to plug your bookmarks here!
  

Frankly, I am just as curious to find out why you disagree with something I’ve written as I am to find out we are on the same page. Seriously.

- Jo

I totally support the writers on strike, but the Access Hollywood Golden Globes announcement show and Dateline special preceding it were PAINFUL. I know, I should have just logged on earlier in the evening to see the names of the winners. But I am a pop culture sponge, and apparently a glutton for punishment. I can’t stand Billy Bush (and not just because he’s related to our president; he cut in front of me in the security line at the Vegas airport two years ago – for the record, he’s smallish and nobody else recognized him), and in my opinion NBC mishandled the entire evening. I’m sure they had to rush to piece it all together when it was announced that the official awards show was canceled, but they would have been better off just having the list of names scroll on screen with no human involvement.

BEST PICTURE, DRAMA: Atonement (woah, WTF?!)
BEST ACTRESS, DRAMA: Julie Christie – Away From Her (need to Netflix)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Cate Blanchett – I’m Not There (does she ever suck? no.)
BEST ACTOR, DRAMA: Daniel Day-Lewis – There Will Be Blood * (does he ever suck? no.)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Javier Bardem – No Country For Old Men (must be that hair)
BEST PICTURE, COMEDY OR MUSICAL: Sweeney Todd (fine, but it should have been Juno)
BEST ACTRESS, COMEDY OR MUSICAL: Marion Cotillard – La Vie en Rose (shoe-in for Oscar nod)
BEST ACTOR, COMEDY OR MUSICAL: Johnny Depp – Sweeney Todd * (duh)
BEST ANIMATED FILM: Ratatouille (Pixar is golden)
BEST DIRECTOR: Julian Schnabel – The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (no surprise from foreign press)
BEST SCREENPLAY: Ethan and Joel Coen – No Country For Old Men (love them)

BEST TV DRAMA: Mad Men (no. way.)
BEST ACTRESS, TV DRAMA: Glenn Close – Damages * (YES!)
BEST ACTOR, TV DRAMA: Jon Hamm – Mad Men (now that’s a surprise)
BEST TV COMEDY: Extras (smart, but not 30 Rock funny)
BEST ACTRESS, TV COMEDY: Tina Fey – 30 Rock (sweet!)
BEST ACTOR, TV COMEDY: David Duchovny – Californication (shut up. this isn’t even a comedy!)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS, TV SERIES: Samantha Morton – Longford (miniseries should be different category; not fair)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR, TV SERIES: Jeremy Piven – Entourage (again? Danson owned this, should have won)

I will be VERY bummed if the Oscars are also canceled, but as a huge film & TV fan, I stand strong in my unwaivering support for the scribes who are responsible for what I watch on the big and small screens.

In totally unrelated matters, my ears have been congested and clogged for days, and my hearing has reached senior citizen lows. Do any of you have suggestions for remedies besides decongestants? The usually reliable Sudafed has been absolutely useless.

Have a nice week!

I was attempting to write a profound essay about the pregnancy film trilogy (Juno, Knocked Up, Waitress), but I have a horrible cold in my sinuses and am not capable of doing much more than this.

Next
week I will probably look back at these choices and laugh, but for the
time being and with a cloudy head, they make perfect sense to me. Care to disagree with any of my choices or post your own?

Have a great weekend. If you need me, I’ll be swathed in blankets with a cup of English Breakfast tea and a Breathe-Right across my nose. Hot!

Before I begin, I have to mention that this particular entry marks a major milestone in the history of JOpinionated. This is my 300th blog post, which is kind of remarkable given that I’ve only been doing this for just over two years and it is done solely as a hobby (after work and on weekends). I’ve been averaging about 5,000 hits per month since last year, which I am thrilled about even though that number is small potatoes compared to most blogs. The most popular entry by far was this one, when actor Jim Beaver responded to my letter to Deadwood creator David Milch (10,000 total hits on that entry alone since it was posted last August)! His response to my blog was even mentioned in USA Today’s Pop Candy column, and that entry also garnered the most comments I’ve ever received.

There was no way I was going to tune into the pre-taped People’s Choice Awards last night, especially because poor Queen Latifah had to deliver the good news to an empty room without an audience. Frankly, those particular honors don’t mean anything in the big picture; they simply represent a popularity contest and carry little weight come Oscar time, so I won’t bother listing the winners.

For comprehensive coverage, visit The Envelope, which is the Los Angeles Times awards insider.

It has been far too long since I’ve written about Writer’s Strike. Obviously there are more informative places for you to receive such news, but I like keeping my readers posted and I am asked about the status of the strike every day.

Would you like to know how many new episodes of your shows have yet to air? Check out TVGuide.com’s Strike Chart.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off in search of some preventative cold meds. Good evening.