Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Secret Secret I've Got A Secret


Shhhhhhhh, It's a secret
By nature Greek girls like myself are not very good secret keepers because we like to talk too much.  I never really mastered the art of not revealing a secret. My mom would warn me to "keep my trap shut." That would only last about 10 minutes. Then out of the blue my trap would fly open and I would blurt out what ever I wasn't suppose to blab about.
So imagine now when I have a big fat Greek secret that I don't want others to know about, I have a hard time trusting others because I know how hard it is for me to keep my own trap shut. Most of the times I can't even tell my sisters my secrets because they are Greek and I might as well just rent a billboard and let the whole world know about my secret. Keep in mind my sisters aren't bad girls, they are just Greek girls.
When my manager Mr. Bricks called me last night and asked me what my blog was going to be about today it turned into total muckery:
Mr. Bricks:  So what is the topic of your blog tomorrow?
Me: It's a secret
Mr. Bricks: Why can't you tell me?
Me: Why can't I tell you what?
Mr. Bricks: What your blog is about tomorrow
Me: I just told you Mr. Bricks
Mr. Bricks: No, you said it was a secret
Me: That's right. It's a secret
Mr. Bricks: So you won't tell tell me?
Me:  I just did.
Mr. Bricks: No, you keep telling me it's a secret
Me:  Yes, that's because my blog topic is a secret
Mr. Bricks:  What don't you trust me? I'm not Greek. I'll keep my trap shut
Me: Mr. Bricks I told you it's a secret
Mr. Bricks: That's messed up Ava. You should just tell me
Me: (Frustrated) So Mr. Bricks, what do you think my Blog is about today?
Mr. Bricks: I don't know it's a secret
Me: That's what I have been trying to tell you
Mr. Bricks: Huh? What?  Oh never mind, I will never understand you Greek girl
Me: Shut your pie hole Mr. Bricks
Well my secret is still safe for now!
Blessings,
Ava
xox

Monday, May 30, 2011

What Is Memorial Day




Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service.


The video is my song called "I Carry You With Me" Please watch and share on this very special day honoring our fallen heros


Blessings,


Ava


xox

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Who Has the Most Likes On Facebook





                      My facebook Music Page. Have you liked it yet? If not click here

There is no doubt that social networking has revolutionized the way most of us live. I know that is true, otherwise blogging like this would be like the old dust bowl days days before the early part of 2003. That's when the world was introduced to the two most popular blogging sites, WordPress and Blogger. Back in the old days people wrote the crap that was in their noggin into a little book with a lock and key so no one else would see it.

But now, the more people who read the crap from your noggin, the more popular you can become. You can even get a TV deal based on how many people like the stuff that oozes out of your noggin. Not bad. Yes, by blogging and using social networking sites the entire world can now see how popular almost anything is, even a particular type of cookie like an Oreo.

Did you ever wonder how the Facebook page for your band, store, club or favorite cookie stacks up against the millions and millions of other pages on Facebook? Well, there's an app for that! Click here.

As of today May 29th, 2011 here are what pages the 500 million Facebook users "like" the most.


NameLikes
1. Texas Hold'em Poker43,676,389
2. Facebook42,797,272
3. Eminem37,888,938
4. Lady Gaga35,904,305
5. YouTube35,617,068
6. Rihanna34,849,368
7. Family Guy31,548,567
8. Shakira31,092,469
9. Linkin Park28,818,334
10. Coca-Cola28,358,949
11. Justin Bieber28,238,580
12. South Park28,034,168
13. The Simpsons27,993,457
14. Cristiano Ronaldo27,135,092
15. Katy Perry26,198,799
16. Bob Marley25,660,294
17. Lil Wayne25,377,278
18. Vin Diesel24,820,088
19. Megan Fox24,736,967
20. Harry Potter24,692,235
21. Disney24,423,067
22. AKON23,625,179
23. Music22,719,345
24. MTV22,686,123
25. SpongeBob SquarePants22,628,977
26. Starbucks22,467,997
27. Twilight22,177,948
28. House22,029,440
29. Beyoncé21,910,851
30. The Twilight Saga21,591,493
31. Taylor Swift21,532,346
32. Barack Obama21,059,384
33. Adam Sandler20,963,922
34. Toy Story20,845,820
35. Dr. House20,536,764
36. Avril Lavigne20,247,445
37. Oreo20,159,905
38. Selena Gomez20,071,562
39. David Guetta19,729,666
40. Two and a Half Men19,648,344





Ok, looks like if I ever want to be as popular as an Oreo Cookie (#37) on Facebook, I have some real work to do.

Blessings,

Ava

xox

Saturday, May 28, 2011

There's No Need To Fear Underdog Is Here



Do you remember the good old days of classic cartoons like Underdog? Well it is your lucky day! Today's Ava the Diva cartoon is a throwback to classic cartoons as Ava the Diva meets Underdog. I hope you enjoy!
Blessings,
Ava
xox

Friday, May 27, 2011

I See Greedy People


  Photo Credit: Claire Shannon                
Have you ever wondered why some people are so greedy and others are so kind that they would give you the shirt off of their back? I did. So I decided to do some not so scientific research on the subject by spending about 10  minutes on the interweb and I have come to the scientific conclusion that there is a tiny little switch hardwired into our noggins that sometimes gets tripped and sometimes does not get tripped. It's really that simple, no rocket scientist degree needed.
My not so scientific interweb research led me me from the ultra greedy Bernie Madoff who bilked investors out of $18  billion dollars to the world's greatest philanthropists Bill & Melinda Gates who so far have given away more than $24.81 billion since the inception of their Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
I did not need to do research to realize that just because someone is willing to give you the shirt off their back means that they are doing a good thing. I can think specifically of my manager Mr. Bricks. I do not think we want him even considering to give the shirt off his large framed (read: big boned) body to anyone, especially in the presence of impressionable little kids. Just the "hairy back" factor is one reason we must always try and keep Mr. Bricks and other similarly sized individuals from being too generous with their clothing.
Then you have the other side of the aisle where some people are so greedy that they are willing to go to Costco every Friday night for their free samples instead of stimulating the local economy by actually spending money for appetizers at the Regal Beagle or their local neighborhood bar and grill. That's just wrong...but I must admit I do usually try and sneak back for three or four tastes whenever they are sampling Zone bars. Yummo.
Here are my two favorite quotes on Greed
A singer starts by having his instrument as a gift from God... When you have been given something in a moment of grace, it is sacrilegious to be greedy.  - Marian Anderson
Don't let the opinions of the average man sway you. Dream, and he thinks you're crazy. Succeed, and he thinks you're lucky. Acquire wealth, and he thinks you're greedy. Pay no attention. He simply doesn't understand. - Robert G. Allen
Blessings,
Ava
xox

Thursday, May 26, 2011

The Devil Wears Prada, The Greek Girl Wears Sneakers



Prada's Spring and Summer Collection
I think I want to marry the weatherman. I am back in New York and as we approach a holiday weekend it appears that the weather will be just perfect for some alone time with my sneakers.


Now that's what I am talking about. Not too hot, not too cold, just perfect for some beautiful running throughout America's greatest city and to check out some of the newest fashions!

If I want to head to Prada's flagship store I need to point my sneakers to 575 Broadway  (at Prince) in SoHo.  I won't be able to miss it because not every retail store has a Rem Koolhaas' designed 23,000 square foot $40 million dollar building! Nice.
When I am done in SoHo I can take a quick jog up near Central Park to 841 Madison Avenue and check out that Prada store. Yah, that's what I think I will do even if I have to cheat a little and hail a cab.
But all running and no shopping is not fun, so I will make sure to stop when I am in Midtown Manhattan and check out the Prada stores located at 45 East 57th Street, 724 5th Ave and the one located at 611 5th Avenue. I hear they have some really nice boots...Not that I wanna make my sneakers jealous, but  a Greek Girl needs her boots too - just sayin'
That's what my weekend is shaping up to be like. We all will be celebrating differently. Many of you will have cook outs and barbecues, and while I am out running and shopping Mr. Bricks will no doubt be eating McRibs, ordering Dominos Pizza and cheering on his favorite driver Danica Patrick while watching the Indy 500 and then watching NASCAR's Coca-Cola 600.  So how will you be spending your upcoming Memorial Day Weekend? No matter what you do, I hope you enjoy it!
Blessings,
Ava
xox

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

When Good Things Happen To Bad Singers


Is Justin Bieber a WGTHTBS?
Have you ever heard music on the radio and wondered what the heck was that? Well that is a clear-cut case of When Good Things Happen To Bad Singers (WGTHTBS). It seems that they are coming out of the music industry wood work these days. It is an epidemic that is becoming worse than the recent strain of the Bird Flu. At least with the Bird Flu you could get a shot in your butt and become immune, but with WGTHTBS- not so much.
Hey, as a Blonde Greek girl who loves sneaker shopping 24/7 I don't begrudge these people because it is all about the Benjamins! And if you can get someone to pay you a lot of money for not being good at something, and you're not in politics, then more power to you! Art is art, right?
The first case of WGTHTBS that ever entered my Greek noggin was when I heard the Ricky Martin cover song She Bang by William Hung from American Idol in 2004. Although William Hung had no formal training and lacked talent, but because of his American Idol exposure he was offered a $25,000 advance on a record deal from Koch Entertainment in 2004, and eventually released three albums on that label in 2004 and 2005. The albums mainly consisted of covers of pop and rock songs, including "She Bangs." You mean they were all cover songs and there were no original songs, I am shocked!!
That's not all folks, there is a whole bunch of other really great things that have happened to this bad singer. Here is a list of them from my pals at wikipedia Hung has appeared in commercials for the search engine Ask.com, the Game Show Network (spoofing Freddy Mercury and singing an off-key "We Are the Champions"), as well as the mobile phone service provider Cingular Wireless. He also appeared to sing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" in May 2004 at the Rogers Centre for the Toronto Blue Jays.
Hung performing in 2006
His first movie, a low-budget Hong Kong period comedy called Where is Mama's Boy (2004), was released in January 2005. Hung played a good-natured village kid who sells Chinese pancakes to pay his mother's medical bills. His character gets discovered as a singer, and helps a woman protect her business from her jealous, conniving elder sister. In the film, Hung played opposite veteran Hong Kong actress Nancy Sit and parodied his own American Idol performance with the song "Siu Beng" (Cantonese) ("Chinese Pancake"), an allusion to his American Idol audition song, "She Bangs." Despite solid financial backing and the involvement of Nancy Sit, the film was a box office flop.
Hung was the subject of a documentary called William Hung: Hangin' with Hung, a ninety minute film recounting his sudden rise to fame. Hung appeared as himself in a February 2006 episode of the television series Arrested Development titled "Fakin' It", acting as the front-man of a band, "William Hung and his Hung Jury", the house band for a fictional courtroom-themed show Mock Trial with J. Reinhold.  Hung has appeared in an episode of the MTV Show, Celebrity Deathmatch, where he battles Ricky Martin (who performed the original "She Bangs".) He has also appeared in Airline in which he missed his flight, then sang his infamous song once again for the cameras.[2]
Hung has also been portrayed as a Chinese fairy in the Fairly OddParents movie, Fairy Idol. The fairy also sang horribly, but sang the Fairly OddParents theme song instead. Hung also made a cameo appearance on an episode of George Lopez, auditioning as a wedding singer."

Rebecca Black
Then there is the more recent WGTHTBS case study of Rebecca Black's Friday. With my Greek eyes I instantly saw a WGTHTBS in the making, I just had no idea how far she would go. As of May 23, 2011 Rebecca Black has received more than 147 million views of Friday on YouTube. That's impressive even for a WGTHTBS.

Florence Foster Jenkins
However the concept of WGTHTBS cashing in and making huge profits is nothing new. Have you ever heard of an opera singer named Florence Foster Jenkins? Me neither, that's my point! This is a name that came from my manager Mr. Bricks' noggin during one of my Skype calls to him asking what's up with all of the WGTHTBS cropping up? That's when Mr. Bricks told me the story about Florence Foster Jenkins who became extremely famous because how bad she was and how oblivious she was to that fact.  From any of her records it is apparent that Jenkins was, "a little pitchy Dawg", had no sense of rhythm and was barely capable of sustaining a note. Her accompanist can be heard on her records making adjustments to compensate for her tempo variations and rhythmic mistakes. Her dubious diction, especially in foreign language songs, was also noteworthy. Nonetheless, she became tremendously popular in her unconventional way. Her audiences apparently loved her for the amusement she provided rather than her musical ability. Critics often described her work in a backhanded way that may have served to pique public curiosity.
Despite her patent lack of ability, Jenkins was firmly convinced of her greatness, but then again aren't all WGTHTBS? She compared herself favorably to other renowned sopranos, and dismissed the laughter which often came from the audience during her performances as coming from her rivals consumed by "professional jealousy." She was aware of her critics, however, saying "People may say I can't sing, but no one can ever say I didn't sing." Jenkins died in 1944.
Let me reiterate that the success that any WGTHTBS has or gets I am very happy for them. As much of a struggle as it has been for me as a singer maybe there is a new category called When Bad Things Happen to Good Singers. I personally would much rather be in the company of WBTHTGS than in the company of WGTHTBS - just sayin'
Blessings,
Ava
xox
NOTE: This is humor. No bad singers were harmed during the writing of this blog.

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

You Know You Are Greek When...


The Greek Girl in Greece
I see where they are finally coming out with the TV show called  My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding here in America. It is already a huge hit in the UK. The English term Gypsy (or Gipsy) originates from the Greek word for Egyptian because it is believed that many Gypsy groups originated from Egypt. In America the word gypsy is commonly used as a reference to a lifestyle or fashion, and not to the ethnicity.
I will be anxious to see if this new series is as an accurate of portrayal of the Gypsies as the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding was for the Greeks.  That movie was spot on. I laugh every time I watch it because it is like watching home movies. Here is a quick test to find out of you are really Greek or not.  
You know you are Greek when....   
  1. You and your siblings are named after one of your grandparents
  2. You have a komboloi in your house right now and know how to work one! ( A strand of worry beads that you flip back and forth)
  3. You have a bottle of OUZO in your house right now (It's an alcoholic beverage)
  4. You have already tasted kourampiedes and melomakarona (Cookies - Yummo)
  5. You can name any or all of the gods on Mount Olympus
  6. Your hands and mouth move even when you sleep
  7. You can't understand how cities in other countries function without periptera (Buildings that have columns out front)
  8. You eat feta and bread daily with your meal
  9. You have more relatives than Donny & Marie Osmond
  10. You make a protomagiatiko stefani on the 1st of May (Colorful flower Wreaths)
  11. You know how to play tavli and play it with your relatives when you gather (Greek Backgammon)
  12. The traffic light turns red, instead of pressing the brakes, you speed through
  13. You think strikes are national holidays
  14. You park on sidewalks and at store entrances
  15.  You have 13 bottles of Olive Oil in your kitchen, "just in case"
  16. You or any family member has been photographed on or near a donkey
  17. You can go and sit in a diner with a cup of coffee for hours on end
  18. You eat lunch at 3:00pm and dinner at 10:00pm
  19. You have ever eaten halva, tsatsiki, and taramosalata (Greek Appetizers)
  20. You have at least one relative named Kostas, Giannis, Maria or Dimitris
Have a Great Greek Day!

Blessings,


Ava
xox