I love her because she's trash

Marjory the Trash Heap has excellent taste in frames.  You know somebody threw those out with the rest of her and Marjory was all, "PERFECT!"

Also, I have realized I post a lot about Muppets.  Here, there, on facebook, pinterest, everywhere.  

Beatles meet Muppets

Saw this the other day and have been in love ever since.

Muppet Love

Over the past few weeks there have been numerous articles online about The Muppets and their creator, Jim Henson. As a huge Muppets and Henson fan, this makes me super excited, with each article or blog post reminding me why I have so much love for Henson and his merry, furry band of puppets. One thing in particular that I have enjoyed is all the photos of Henson at work. Here are a few of my favorites.

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Fraggle Rock is one of my all-time favorites shows. I was so in love with the Fraggles, I wanted to be one. Red, to be exact. Oh, how I longed for a Fraggle tail and Fraggle pigtails, and Fraggle pebbles and Fraggle everything, basically. So naturally I love this photo of Henson with The Fraggles. Let the music play...

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One thing that I love about The Muppets is how real they are, and not just because they reside in the physical realm, unlike say, a CGI Nemo or Buzz Lightyear. Their lively personalities make it to forget they are essentially felt puppets, and this is a testament to the talent of the puppeteers and artists behind them. What I love about this picture is that Bert and Ernie feel separate from their puppeteers and yet still extensions of them. And I forgot how physical puppeteering could be! Frank Oz, Jim, and the other puppeteer are all arms and squished together, so much so that the third guy is (hilariously) right in Henson's armpit. That's dedication.

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There's something about this photo that feels very intimate, as if the viewer is sneaking a peak at a quiet moment between Bert and Jim. What is Bert telling Jim that has his undivided attention? Could it be about the elegance of the pigeon? But just as you're contemplating the conversation, you remember Bert is a Muppet, and the image becomes an intimate glimpse of the artist engrossed with his work. And I just love the composition of this photo: the black and white, the full profile view of Henson with his legs pulled up and Bert on his arm, how the lighting creates an outline or a merge suggestion of Bert and Henson, the framing from the window behind them. Really beautiful.

Mustachioed Kisses

So thanks to Wally's comments about Ron Swanson flavored mustachioed kisses, I've been pondering celebrity mustaches all day. I have to admit that as much as Ron Swanson is the epitome of masculinity, the thought of the mustachioed kisses of Swanson terrify me. That and the word mustachioed makes me think of pistachios, which I like, but when I think about pistachios in a mustache, I get grossed out.

For no apparent reason whatsoever, my brain, since a very early age, has been wired see a mustache and run. I automatically think Mustache=Chester.

A fun story, I worked for a few years at a place where the comptroller, who I saw frequently, had a big, thick graying mustache. He also carried a giant, janitor-sized ring of keys attached to his belt, making every step jingle. The office where I worked was down a long, tiled, damp, poorly-lit hallway and as he would make his way to the office, I could hear his footsteps, and the jingle of his keys echo down the hall. It was truly more terrifying than any horror movie. And when he emerged with his bushy, graying mustache, I would have to suppress the urge to grab the fire extinguisher from the wall and use it as a weapon.

To be fair, the man was as nice as could be; but, mustaches have always freaked me out, even on people I know and love. (I'm thinking of an ex-boyfriend and his 70s porn-star 'stache phase that everyone thought was so awesome. *shudders* Not everyone, in fact very few people, can pull off a mustache. For example, Brad Pitt, commonly thought to be the sexiest man alive, rapidly becomes not so sexy:



Or Orlando Bloom, who attempts to pull off a Pitt-style copy cat, even down the the scarf:


Clearly, these are very unsuccessful 'staches. Or maybe it's the scarves.

On the other hand, my favorite celebrity mustaches:

Tom Selleck as Magnum, P.I.(if a scarf is necessary to a successful mustache, Selleck's chest hair could easily assume scarf duty):


Seriously, who can resist the dark, thick waves of hair (on the head or the chest!) combined with those gorgeous eyes? Not me.

Nick Offerman as Ron Swanson:


I think the picture says it all.

Jim Henson and Frank Oz as The Swedish Chef:


The bow-tie is a clever switch on the scarf.

And...

...

...

(don't judge) ...

Alex Trebek (circa 1990)!


Why the internet had a picture of a shirtless Trebek, I do not know. But note how his mustache just takes center stage in that picture instead of trying to compliment Trebek's trademark Jeopardy! suits.

Oscar the Grouch Wins Best Dressed at Daytime Emmys

True to his rotten diva self, Oscar the Grouch showed up on the Daytime Emmy red carpet with dapper puppeteer Carroll Spinney carrying him in a stylish muppet satchel that complimented his double-breasted tuxedo. The satchel was a fun, event appropriate twist on his signature aluminium trash can style. When asked who he was wearing, Mr. Grouch replied, "It's a piece of trash that was thrown into my can. Now SCRAM!"