50 Cent and Taco Bell settled a lawsuit filed by the rapper, after the fast-food chain used his name in a commercial to promote tacos on their value menu.

The rapper sued Taco Bell for $1 million dollars in damages over a June 2008 promotion that offered 50 Cent $10,000 to change his name to 79 Cent, 89 Cent or 99 Cent for one day.

50 sued the fast-food chain for using his name and likeness without expressed permission and for making him the “star of a nationwide campaign” without his permission.

Both parties reached a confidential settlement yesterday (November 23) according to lawyers for the rapper.

50 Cent predicted he would emerge victorious in the court battle in a statement to AllHipHop.com in late June of 2008.

“When my legal team is finished with them, Taco Bell is going to have a new corporate slogan: ‘We messed with the bull and got the horns,” the rapper said in a statement.

I thought about it.
Then I took a moment and thought a little more about it.
Finally I decided.

Why even show a commercial when the only reason is to comment on what a waste of a good song it is.
Thusly I will not be showing you the completely bland Taco Bell gordita ad. Instead here is the song in its entirety.

“One More Time” – Joe Jackson:

I’ve never been a fan of Joe Jackson, but I have always liked the song. And while I’m not against using songs in commercials (quite the opposite actually, it’s a great way to bring new music to people who are generally only inclined to listen to what’s on the radio) I feel like it’s a misappropriation of the song. A spinning gordita, with Joe Jackson playing in the background, is that really the best you could come up with Taco Bell?

Oh well, ranting over.
Let’s look at some more things I’m thankful for.

4. That most of the 70’s music stayed in the 70’s
5. The name Farthingay
6. That no matter how jaded each succeeding generation becomes as they grows up, children will never stop enjoying sugar cubes.

More to follow tomorrow.

50 Cent and big time fast food chain, Taco Bell, have come to a financial settlement from a lawsuit in 2008.  The legal disagreement started when Taco Bell had used 50 Cent’s name in one of their commercials.  While specifics of the suit have not been disclosed by either party, both parties have claimed that a settlement has been reached, and the lawsuit will come to a halt:

“Taco Bell, a Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) company has settled a lawsuit filed by rapper 50 Cent. The suit accuses Taco Bell of using a likeness of the rapper, whose real name is Curtis Jackson, in commercials to promote their new value menu. Results of the settlement are confidential, “but both parties are satisfied,” said Jackson’s lawyer, Peter Raymond.

Jackson had sought $1 million in damages. Yum! Brands wasn’t named in the suit. The case was Jackson v. Taco Bell Corp., 08-cv-6545, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York.”

This is not the only lawsuit Fifty is dealing with as he currently still has a case pending against Hip-Hop website Worldstarhiphop.com.

I guess if you aren’t vitamin water, then you better keep 50’s name out your mouth!

I decided that since that I’ve been a vegetarian for approximately 2 weeks now I’ll compile a little list of things that have made this possible.

I could not have made it this far without:
Crunchy peanut butter! This paired with some 12 grain bread has been my lunch practically everyday.
Panera’s Baked 4 Cheese Egg Soufflé. I had one of these this morning. Seriously it is one of the best things I’ve ever consumed. I could eat another one right now. Typing this is making me hungry.
Taco Bell’s Bean Burritos and Crispy Potato Soft Tacos. The bean burritos are good and they fill you up but they have absolutely nothing on Crispy Potato Soft Tacos. Nothing. Typing this is making me even more hungry. Even if you’re not a vegetarian I encourage you to try one of these. THEY ARE AWESOME!
Morningstar Farms’ Meal Starter Chik’n Strips. Delicious. Felt like I was eating real chicken
Morningstar Farms’ Veggie burgers. Even before i became a vegetarian these were a staple in our home. I love them and I’m going to eat some this afternoon. Yum.
All Morningstar Farms products. Next time you’re at the grocery store be sure to check out their stuff.
Cheese pizza! Never knew how good cheese pizza could be until it was the only kind of pizza my husband could eat.

Comments are enabled. Let me know what vegetarian meals/things you love! If it is something you make yourself please attach the recipe

Also if you look to the picture at the right —->
I’m sad to say I’ve never tried their Spicy Black Bean Burger. If you have let me know if its good.

Well, it’s Saturday and I have to admit that my morning this morning was pretty care-free.  Although, I had put pressure on myself to get some things done.  I got up around ten o’clock this morning.  I haven’t been able to do that in ages and I have to admit that it was rather nice to be able to sleep in a little bit.  Heather, unfortunately, had to take off around seven o’clock this morning for a bus run that she was doing with the Boys’ basketball team for Chenango Valley.  I went downstairs and got right to work on my main project for the day.  I wanted to get all of the music videos from my classroom processed and off of my laptop so that I could clear the hard drive on the laptop.  It’s kind of scary how much space those videos take up.  So, I spent my entire morning in the basement trying to finish those up.  I watched all sorts of TV shows including “The Clone Wars” again and mostly “Flip This House” on A&E.  Around noon, Heather called me and told me she would be home soon.  She said she wanted to go to Wal Mart and wanted to know if I wanted to go with her.

I wanted to go because I needed some things to continue working on my clone trooper helmet with.  So, Heather got home around one o’clock and we took off for Vestal.  We did our shopping at Wal Mart and got some things Heather needed for around the house and I even got a new hot glue gun (since I broke the one I had at the last event).  It’s a pretty cool glue gun.  We also got some odds and ends and I got some sandpaper for my purposes.  We got done shopping and headed over to “Taco Bell” for lunch and then headed over to our “Best Buy” to check out the new store.  I have to admit that it’s nice to have a tech store to take over for the loss of “Circuit City” that left almost six months ago now.  We browsed the store for a little bit and then came home which got us home around three o’clock.  We got home and I went downstairs and started working on the clone helmet some more.  In between working on that I decided to watch the Penn State game.  It was pretty much a runaway from the beginning.

I was then called upstairs for a dinner of leftovers and I had some leftovers Tahoes plate and then went back downstairs and continued processing music videos and then played “Call of Duty 4″ online with my PS3 until it was time to watch “Law and Order SVU” and then Heather and I watched that and then went to bed.

Okay, so let’s talk about Part 2 of Chapter 18 of “Star Wars – Medstar I:  Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel” by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry……Chapter 18 (Part 2):  Den Dhur sat in the chow hall happy with the fact that he would get cold, hard revenge on Filba the Hutt.  He had found that one thing that the Hutt would not want seen on the evening holonet.  He had found that vengance was now the perfect spice for his food.  No, the food was bland and it had to be local food because soldiers had little room on their transports for the extra luxuries of good food to eat.  Instead, they ate local food or ate RRs – Ready Rations.  They weren’t exactly anything to write home about and that’s why Republic cooks demanded foragers go out the minute a troop transport landed.  Den had been on assignments where the only edible food around were RRs and everyone got thin rather fast.  Luckily, Drongar was full of enough vegetation and animal life that the eating in the chow hall was better than most planets.  He knew anytime he ate something prepared by the military he was eating at his own risk.  Although today, even an RR would taste good since a good story helps to satisfy his appetite to do his job. He looked up and saw Zan going through the line and waved him over.  They talked about Zan’s meal of wrigglers and Zan said that it wasn’t as good as eating at the Manarai on Coruscant.  Dhur was surprised he was able to eat at such a swank establishment and Zan said he came from a family that was fairly well off.  Zan offered him a bite and Den declined as he wondered how a rich man’s son, with a talent as a musicia, would end up in the military……

“Following Five” is a series of posts which chronicle how lame, boring, and simple minded a person I am.  It’s also cool because reading what people were doing and thinking at specific times is a little voyeuristic.

8:45 pm: Demolition Man is on ion.  I, of course, am tuned in.  I’d be out but I partied the last few nights, and am a weakling.

8:47 pm: I can’t believe that not only is Sandra Bullock old and married to Jesse James, but Wesley Snipes is a criminal.  He’s probably also a decent fighter with all the action flicks he’s done and with his being black and all, so he’s really like Simon Phoenix.  Ha.

8:56 pm: Old movies make future technology look incredibly lame, when it’s anything but.

9:05 pm: Benjamin Bratt was awesome on Law & Order, aka Dick Wolf’s billion dollar turnkey operation.

9:19 pm: I should probably grab my phone from the other room when it rings, or bring it in here, but I’m an extremely lazy dude.

9:23 pm: It’s too long until SNL is on, because I am bored.  Joseph Gordon-Levitt is probably going to do wonderfully.  He was killer in Mysterious Skin, though the sheer amount of gay in Gregg Araki’s arsenal was staggering and disorienting.

9:42 pm: I just ate some really dank watermelon.  I now want to gorge myself on watermelon to the point of vomiting.  I know it’s not healthy, but it tastes so good I can’t help but want to destroy my health.

9:50 pm: I want to live in a world where the finest restaurant is Taco Bell, because then their food wouldn’t make me run for the border toilet.

10:02 pm: “Ahhh, that’s betta!”

10:10 pm: The Cream of Tank Girl is such an awesome book.  Alan Martin and Jamie Hewlett are too cool.  Martin’s work with Ashley Wood is amazing, too.

10:23 pm: There is no way to verify it, but I’m betting that a few of my Hollywood crushes are sitting on the toilet right now.  Kinda hot, depending on if it’s #1 or #2 they’re doing.

10:43 pm: A friend of mine just told me her bank account is frozen.  LOL what a maroon!  PS: I should have said your name and you should give me money for not.

11:02 pm: Jon Reep is weird.  He’s moderately funny, has decent delivery, but the hick angle doesn’t make sense to me.

11:11 pm: I just kissed a clock and made a wish.  I’m clearly a sane, rational person.

11:30 pm: Nasim Pedrad is a delicious little thing.  Call me, girl.  I’ll make all your fantasies come true be the greatest letdown of your life.

/the live blog

I tried to make this an every day thing, I really did. Until I didn’t.

Well, these are supposed to be confessions, so confession – daily things aren’t really my forté (except work – when I have it – when I’m on time and reliable). I can’t even remember to take my allergy medicine on a daily basis. So, I’m back to say I’m trying. Also, I’m moving. So, the stress of that on top of looking for a job, not to mention the fact that my move is on deadline because my parents are coming next week…not the point. Anyway…

I found a place that I LOVE at the 11th Hour last weekend. I signed the lease on Tuesday and got my keys, planning to celebrate that night, then start packing and maybe taking one or two loads over to the new place before really getting into everything on Friday. I’d already enlisted two burly guys to come help me on Saturday with the last load (all my furniture), so I thought I’d be able to take a leisurely pace with it all. I should really stop trusting my best laid plans. I’m so easily distracted.

In the honor of every good celebration (even ones you’re having for yourself), I picked up a bottle of vodka on the way home from the signing of the lease. Like every bad celebration (especially those you have for yourself, alone), I drank the whole bottle. Now, I could argue that said bottle was consumed over 8 hours, but that’s a pretty lame line of reasoning.

I also picked up a blackjack taco, double-decker taco, volcano nachos and a volcano burrito (to munch on over those 8 hours). I hadn’t yet had the burrito, but I had my (soon-to-be-ex) roomie pick me up another blackjack taco and crunchy taco on her way home from work. Those, plus the burrito were consumed before the night was out.

The next day, I was stuck in a full-blown, sick-as-a-dog, top 5 worst hangovers I’ve ever experienced. And that’s saying something (read: I’ve had a lot of hangovers). I felt like I had a really bad case of the flu. I couldn’t keep anything down – not even water. I didn’t pack, and I could hardly move. So much for my super-successful moving Wednesday. When Man vs. Food came on, I nearly started losing the nothing in my stomach, but managed to make it through (because it’s a great show).

I still felt really shaky Thursday, and had to lie down after each 30 mins of physical activity. Mainly because I have a LOT of books. Scads. Hoards! I’m practically a library. And dammit, they are HARD to move. OR to motivate oneself to move. But, by gum, I moved my books into boxes, and packed quite a few other things throughout the day, after a breakfast of chicken noodle soup.

Pop culture trivia is one of my favorite things about Thursdays, so I had to shower and break for that too. I took one meager load over to the new place, but was still pleased with the amount of work I’d accomplished, because most of my stuff was in boxes ready for transport. At trivia, I took a big risk and ordered the spicy boneless buffalo wings, but everything turned out okay.

I felt sore, but otherwise fine when I awoke today. After a hangover like I’d had, that’s the best feeling in the world…well, one of the best. I had to lug all my book boxes downstairs first thing, and broke for lunch when that was accomplished. A Simply Asia Spring Vegetable Rice Noodle bowl. I put in a dash of soy and more than a dash of red pepper flakes, and it was wonderful.

After the first load, I knew I needed to take a break for at least an hour, since I was so physically drained. I treated myself to Jimmy John’s – two Italian Nightclubs (just like the Vito, but with more MEAT(!) and mayo) – for lunch and dinner. I ate and lay down for an hour channel surfing, then packed and took over load #2. When that was complete, I immediately packed the car with #3 because I wanted to get home in time for Ghost Adventures (love that show!!). I was successful!

I doctored both sandwiches with mustard (again, what kind of a self-respecting sub shop doesn’t offer yellow mustard as a condiment?!), cream cheese and was caught by a moment of inspiration that forced me to add Trader Joe’s olive tapenade. It was unbelievably tasty!

Anyway, that is why I haven’t written. I may not write again until next week, when I’ll have access to the Internet again. Bon appétit for now…

Students at the University of Florida are working to help farmworkers battle for fair wages and basic human rights.

By Kristen Abdullah and Richard Blake
November 16, 2009

Migrant worker Jorge Rodriguez plays the “quijada,” in Immokalee, Fla. Farmworkers celebrated the recent decision by Taco Bell to accede to the demands of local tomato pickers, who led a four-year boycott against the restaurant chain, and pay a penny more for each pound of Florida tomatoes. (AP Photo/Alan Diaz)

As we made the four-hour journey south to tomato-town Immokalee, Fla., we ran through the itinerary for the long weekend to come and familiarized ourselves with the 40-plus pages of reading material that we were supposed to have completed three weeks before. The thick packet of literature included stories like “Immokalee family sentenced for slavery,” “Apartheid in America,” and “A more-complete definition of ‘sustainable.’” By the time we arrived in the desolate town, just after midnight, we felt confident in our school-child ability to recite the labor history of this town and felt briefed on the ultimate reason for our visit.

After becoming fed up with the impoverished condition that enslaved them, migrant workers started a grassroots organization called the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) in 1993. Consisting mostly of people from Mexico, Guatemala, and Haiti, these workers had already experienced both verbal and physical abuses since their arrival in the United States. Most of them could remember a time when, back in their own countries, they survived as subsistence farmers—selling crops and living off corn, squash, beans, and, most important, their own autonomy. They weren’t rich, but they were dignified.

But after the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was established among the United States, Canada, and Mexico, these small-time farmers could not compete with subsidized crops from the States. Before, Mexico was a major wheat exporter. Now, Mexico only exports cheap labor.

“I think of myself as a son of NAFTA,” CIW staff member Lucas Benitez says. Poverty and exploitation forced these people north, where they hoped conditions would improve. But in Immokalee, the reality was much different.

As we pulled up to the CIW headquarters, a man who we had previously only known through e-mails warmly greeted us. He was Marc Rodriguez, the national coordinator of the Student/Farmworker Alliance (SFA), and he directed us to our sleeping quarters—the Immokalee Non-Profit Housing children’s care center, about two miles away. Finally settling down among baby toys and children’s books in Spanish, it dawned on us that we had barely scratched the surface of this town.

ENCUENTRO

The next morning, about 150 people convened in an old church for the official start of the fifth annual CIW/SFA Encuentro, which means “the meeting.” These people gather to discuss campaign strategy for the upcoming year, bringing together students and activists from across the United States with the like-minded goal of working in solidarity to bring positive change to the lives of migrant farmworkers in Immokalee. After an introduction to the SFA, Benitez and several other members of the CIW filled in a few more gaps in our knowledge of the coalition’s history.

In 1995, the CIW held its first major action. After Pacific Tomato Growers threatened to cut workers’ pay from the minimum wage $4.25 an hour to $3.85 an hour, more than 3,000 farmworkers went on strike for one week without compensation, including nearby citrus workers acting in solidarity, and built alliances with local church groups, schools, and universities. The pressure was so great that the company announced it would instead increase the hourly wage to $5.25.

Unfortunately, not all growers were as responsive as Pacific Tomato Growers. In fact, after this first event, it became frustratingly difficult to convince growers to yield to the CIW’s demands of a wage increase of one penny more per pound of tomatoes and to follow a human rights code of conduct.

So the coalition began to research every link in the food supply chain and noticed a striking trend. No matter the players, the line of succession was always the same—the food suppliers pull all the strings from the top; the growers act as the strings being pulled; and the farmworkers dangle like marionettes at the bottom.

THE BATTLE WITH ARAMARK

This system is apparent within the makeup of UF’s own food supplier, Aramark Corporation.

“We strive to offer clients and customers fresh whole foods that are raised, grown, harvested, and produced locally and in a sustainable manner whenever possible. And we partner with suppliers to increase the availability of such foods,” Aramark states on its website.

However, Aramark is constantly being ridiculed for not living up to its self-mandated standards of ensuring a sustainable supply chain of workers at the ends of its own puppet cabaret: Workers like those in Florida who pick roughly 90 percent of the country’s tomato supply while reaping little, if any, of its profits.

On Martin Luther King Day in 2001, the CIW took a bold step to bring farmworkers a little closer to their suppliers. They officially threatened a nationwide Taco Bell boycott outside of the Mexican fast-food chain in Ft. Myers, Fla. Three months later, they presented a list of demands to Taco Bell: Meet with the CIW and tomato growers to discuss possible solutions to farmworkers’ problems, contribute to an immediate wage increase per pound of tomatoes picked, and join the CIW to draft wage and working conditions standards to be required of all Taco Bell tomato suppliers.

Three years and thousands of protest signs later, Taco Bell folded. The “Boot the Bell” campaign by students and farmworkers was so successful that the victory received Mother Jones’ “Campus Activism Victory of the Year” award.

Taco Bell set the bar, and the rest dropped like flies: McDonald’s, Burger King, and eventually all of Yum Brands (Burger King’s supplier). Whole Foods, Subway, and Bon Appétit also agreed to pay the people who pick their tomatoes one penny more per pound, as well as agreeing to follow a code of conduct for growers and suppliers.

These victories created an astounding precedent, proving that a group of farmworkers with few legal protections could organize, take on huge corporations, and actually see a response to their demands.

MODERN-DAY SLAVERY

Back at the Encuentro, everyone prepared for a walking tour, filling their water bottles and gathering big-brimmed hats and sunglasses. We trudged down the sad, steamy roads of the migrant housing neighborhood, stopping in the shaded areas in front of various points. The first site was a small trailer park stuffed with dinky green trailers with bright “for rent” signs shining through their dusty window panes. Our guides Silvia Perez and Melody Gonzalez explained that the dilapidated trailers—most of them lacking basic amenities like air conditioning and hot water—were owned by tomato growers in the area and rented out to migrants for a going rate of $60 per person per week. The growers have the ability to charge outlandish prices for several reasons, including proximity to pick-up points for work and the lack of a housing market demand by residents other than the workers.

A few blocks away, we stopped across the street of the next site—a house that looked like its inhabitants had been gone for several weeks. Our guides, apprehensive about getting any closer to the house, began to unfold the tale of its history.

Just one year ago, the owner of this house and several others were arrested and charged with modern-day slavery. Gonzalez, in her rustic Spanish accent, explained that about a year and a half ago a large U-haul was nestled in the driveway. The chain lock around the U-haul was not to keep people out, but to keep them in.

In a fashion similar to the years just after the American Civil War, tomato growers were holding immigrants hostage as indentured servants, working to pay off their “debt” to the growers for bringing them to the United States. In essence, the growers were smuggling people from Latin America into the States and then enslaving them—making them work long, stringent hours for little or no pay and charging outlandish prices like $5 to shower outside with a hose and bucket and even more obscene amounts for food and water.

In 2008, one enslaved worker escaped and informed the CIW of his condition. The coalition created uproar, attracting media outlets from across the country and bringing the growers to trial. The tomato farmers were sentenced to 50 years in prison by a federal court for practicing modern-day slavery.

STUDENTS ORGANIZE ON BEHALF OF WORKERS

Now, the CIW is turning its attention back to the penny-per-pound campaign. After the coalition forced so many corporations to come to the table, they were ready for something larger: The overarching food service providers, like Aramark, that organize and manage food courts and dining services on campuses, workplaces, tourist destinations, and even prisons nationwide. This newest campaign, aptly named “Dine with Dignity,” is in full swing across the country, focusing not only on Aramark, but also Sodexo and Compass food service providers, as well as corporate grocers like Publix and Kroger.

Compass has already come to the table.

The University of Florida just renewed a 10-year contract with Aramark in June of while many students were away for the summer, allowing it to pass without protest. But several groups, including the Students for a Democratic Society, The Fine Print, and the newly formed Gainesville SFA are not allowing it to go unnoticed.

Concerned students presented a resolution that strongly urges Aramark representatives at UF to enter into negotiations with the CIW. The resolution did not pass, but this hasn’t killed the campaign. In fact, “Dine with Dignity” is swiftly making its presence known on UF’s campus through fliers, petitions and collaboration with student groups on campus.

Students and community members looking to get involved are asked to send an e-mail to GainesvilleSFA@googlegroups.com, and sign the petition.

Kristen Abdullah and Richard Blake are students at the University of Florida. This article originally appeared in The Fine Print, a publication that is part of the Campus Progress Journalism Network.

Rally days are always fun but the days leading up to them are so stressful.  I was stressed out for the last week because I felt that I was never completely ready for my set.  The fact that it was a solo in the theater meant that everyone in the theater was literally watching me at one time.  The night before the rally, I think I stayed up until like one or two AM cause of homework, talking,  and practicing my set.  My shoulders and legs were sore too and I had no idea why :/

I didn’t go to first period cause I went straight to the theater for the rally.  It felt kind of weird that this was the first time I was in the renaissance rally not for my grades.  I remember watching from the theater seats when I was top ten during my freshmen and sophomore years crunk and all the other performance groups perform on stage, and now I was the one performing up on stage and not in the theater seats.  Now that I think of it, it’s like a reminder of how much I’ve changed/learned and how fast high school’s gone by.

We did about two run-throughs of the rally before people started coming.  I was nervous and stressed before the first rally but as the rallies went on, it got a lot easier to perform.  I did ok in the in the first rally, messed up a little in the second rally, and the third rally was probably my best one.  In between rallies, my friends and I hung out in the women’s dressing room haha.  Throughout the whole day, I kept thinking it was Friday cause rallies are usually on Fridays.

As soon as the rally was over, it was first lunch but since I worked at the blood drive yesterday, I had to make up an apush test It sucks having to take a test right after spending the whole morning out of classes for a rally.  I think I did pretty bad on my test even though I had extra credit.  The last three periods of the day were like any other day except for the occasional compliments and “i saw you at the rally” or whatever.  After school was nice My siblings, friends, and I ended up staying after school until past 5 waiting for rides and it was so dark because the sun had already set.  Everyone else left and around 5:20/5:30ish we walked down to taco bell, got some food, and got picked up there.  I was so tired when I got home and super sore, but the day was fun.

I’m excited for saturday and thanksgiving break.

So last night was an interesting night to say the least. I had a tiny little mishap with my transportation and ended up being stranded for a good 2 hours in a parking lot. By the time my husband got there it was like 7:30ish. Anyway, I was starving. So the hubs and I drive around…. and around… and around…. nothing. When you need to eat on the go being a vegetarian really throws a wrench into things.

Eventually I just went to taco bell and ordered stuff with no meat. Taco Bell actually has a lot of vegetarian friendly things on their menu… at least the Taco Bell here. Jake isn’t really big into TB and he didn’t find anything he wanted. He went next door to Wendy’s and got a baked potato.

So yeah, if you know of any fast food joints that are vegetarian friendly please let me know. However, my husband is hopeful that not eating meat will cut down on our fast food eating. I’m fine with that but when fast food is a must you need somewhere to go!

This handy flowchart from Eating the Road is an ingenious guide for determining which fast food to eat. I’ve only been to San Fran once, but I think all lines should point to In-N-Out burger.

IRVINE, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Taco Bell® continues to Feed the Beat™ for up-and-coming rock acts and announced today the 100 bands that made the 2009 Feed the Beat lineup. Celebrating its fourth year, Feed the Beat provides free food and marketing support to America’s up-and-coming rock acts. This year, touring bands from across the nation, including The All-American Rejects, Boys Like Girls, Forever The Sickest Kids, We The Kings, Atreyu, Owl City, Dr. Dog and more, will receive $500 in Taco Bell Bucks for free Fourthmeal, the late night meal between dinner and breakfast. More than just free food, bands also receive important marketing support for their music.

Music fans will be able to discover each Feed the Beat band on Taco Bell’s Virtual Music Festival Web site (www.feedthebeat.com) which showcases their music and exclusive content created for the site. Once there, fans can listen to bands they know or discover new tunes as they stream music via the Feed the Beat Music Player. If they discover a band they like and want to purchase music, they are directed to the band’s Web site where they can purchase the song.

“Feed the Beat began as a simple way to show how much we love and support independent music, but it’s grown to become a benchmark for how Taco Bell supports bands and artists,” said David Ovens, Chief Marketing Officer, Taco Bell Corp. “Our Feed the Beat bands have been showcased via our partnerships with MTV and ESPN, as we work hard to highlight their talent and music. Whether helping to extend the spotlight on their nominations for Video Music Awards, getting them to play at the VMAs, or creating live concerts and soundtrack opportunities during the X Games, the work never stops in support of our bands. We want to help our 2009 lineup to realize at least the same type of success and hopefully more.”

Taco Bell is proud to congratulate all of the 2009 Feed the Beat bands:

Feed the Beat bands were chosen by a panel of judges based on performance and musicianship, originality and material selection, and overall appeal and personality. Bands also had the opportunity to express their passion for Taco Bell and share stories about eating Fourthmeal while touring.

“I worked at a Taco Bell in Edmond, Okla. for over three years and still eat Taco Bell every week. Even when we’re out of the country, I have friends on army bases who bring me Taco Bell,” said Mike Kennerty, guitarist for The All-American Rejects. “Getting to be a part of the Feed the Beat family is sweet to say the least. Thanks, Taco Bell!”

To get the most up-to-date information and announcements, follow @FeedTheBeat on Twitter or go to the Feed The Beat Facebook page.

Hello, hello, hello!  Or in the words of Ann Curry, “Good morning, good morning, everybody, in the news this morning, good morning.”  Oh what the heck, I’ll just let her say it.

Gets me every time.

So as some of you guessed, my prolonged absence was actually due to a misguided and ill-conceived attempt to grow a mullet like Tom Brady.  Now David Beckham is getting in on the weird mullet act.  Should such a beautiful man get a roadkill haircut?  And again, like Tom Brady and his lady, isn’t David Beckham like, married to Victoria Beckham, aka Posh Spice, aka Skinny McPencil?

It may seem like I’m digressing.  I’m not.  Posh, who likes to be called Victoria, (it’s a compliment, she says… How is your name a compliment, unless your name is Damnyouresexy Jones?) recently said in an interview that she won’t lie–she eats lots of salads.  ”Salad.  I’m not going to lie.  I’m not one of those people that says “Oh, I eat hamburgers.”

And the sick thing is, I’m so glad she said that.  I never thought that she ate anything other than salad, except for maybe the occasional kilo of cocaine (jk, no one can pry the cocaine shipments from Kate Moss’s kung-fu grip), but I’m just glad that she finally publicly said something honest.  This helps take away the stigma from women in this country who DO eat hamburgers (guilty!) that we’re somehow inherently flawed because we can’t seem to look like Victoria Beckham.  I do like Victoria Beckham, because she let her son wear his astronaut suit out in public, because she seems to love her children and her husband, and because she’s not shoveling loads of bull at the average American.  For that, Victoria, (can I call you Vicky?) I am grateful.

Now enough about boring, skinny famous people.  Let’s talk about me!  I have been noticeably absent for the past five or so days.  Honestly I was working like a crazy person trying to get something ready for tomorrow.  Of course, I’ve wanted to blog so badly the whole time that I’m staying up way too late tonight as a trade off, but no matter.  Back in college I’d never go to sleep before 3am.  I was so nocturnal I thought I’d begun to grow a marsupial pouch.  (In reality I was just getting another fat roll on my stomach.  I blame Taco Bell for being open til 2am or later.)

During my absence, I did not let you down, dear readers.  I stayed within my calories and tracked them compulsively.

One thing that I really must work on is eating regularly.  I eat breakfast every day, because as reader Christine mentioned on her blog the other day, eating breakfast kickstarts the metabolism.  Now I’ll be honest.  There’s lots of dietary information out there that I think is total crap, but I’m a big believer in the metabolism.

Thyroid issues aside, I don’t think that some people are born with a fast one or a slow one.  I think we train ourselves into one end of the spectrum.  For instance, in high school I “ran track.”  (Translation: I did shot-put and discus on the condition that I never, ever had to run in practice–a condition to which the coach agreed because I held the county records and he needed the meet points.  Despite the common assumptions, shot-putters are not all Helga and Thor.  It’s all about technique, really.)  My friends were some of the distance runners.  Not surprisingly, they were very, very thin.  In the off season they ran cross-country.  In their spare time, they ran around their neighborhoods.  Meanwhile I was sunning myself in the backyard and biting individual grapes from a bunch I dangled from my hand.

It is my opinion that, (and I am by no means a doctor–I don’t even play one on the internet–so feel free to ignore this non-medical advice), a slow metabolism lives in a body that moves less, and a fast metabolism lives in a body that moves more.

The metabolism is what allows a bear to hibernate for months and wake up thinner but healthy.  His metabolism slows to a crawl and he stores all his fat.  His body works very efficiently on little energy.

That’s the same thing we do when we skip breakfast!  We send the bear into hibernation and our bodies start conserving fuel (FAT) because there’s no new supply.

Think about the first people on this planet.  I’m of the they-were-put-here persuasion, but you might be of the they-evolved-from-sea-monkies persuasion.  Either way, they didn’t have it easy.  They basically walked around (which is why walking is so important to a healthy lifestyle) looking for food, ate when they found it, went hungry when the didn’t.  That’s why our bodies can work much like a bear’s.  We were built for such occasional periods of hunger.  It’s not a flaw that we gain weight, it’s part of the intricate design of the human body.  This was all worked out long before Glen Bell ever dreamed of opening the first Taco Bell.  And even longer before someone realized that a drive thru meant never even having to stand up to get your food.

So the moral of the story is eat your breakfast.  Otherwise you’re just making weight loss harder.

In other news, I have a puncture wound on my right pinkie where the dog bit me when I was trying to take away a pecan tree branch that she wanted to bring inside and chew into sawdust.  I was very concerned about this at first, but then I realized that I’d be really ticked off if someone tried to take away my 7 Layer Burrito, and then I kinda see where she’s coming from.  However, that’s no excuse.  So I’m going to work on enforcing the rules with her more.  It’s been hard because I’ve been so busy, but she’ll be happier if she’s not biting me and getting a subsequent spanking.  The Ranch is a mess too, and the Mothership is coming to visit tomorrow, so I’ve got to get cleaning as soon as asap.  (My best friend used to say that.)

I promise I’ll try to keep updating regularly.  I’m also thinking progress photos once a week.  I know I said that earlier, so now I’m going to make good on it.

Today I ate:

-Breakfast-

Grits –130

1 T. butter –100

-Supper- (chicken soup)

chicken breast –220

1 small russet potato –59

rotini –239

rice–180

water

garlic

Calories remaining: 790 (TOO MANY!)

Should I buy some Nutella for situations like this, when I have almost 800 calories left?  I think I just might…

Oh and by the way, I had my “I feel skinnier” moment this morning!  I’ll tell more tomorrow afternoon or night.

Goodnight!

Have you ever been driving around and couldn’t decide where to stop to fill the belly of the beast? Worry no longer my friend. With this simple to follow flowchart you will never have to decide which to listen to, your brain or your stomach. Now you can save those precious braincells for better decisions…like plaid or argyle…or So You Think You Can Dance or NCIS.

You may also enjoy the What Should I Eat? Cereal Edition (Flowchart).

Where Should I Eat? Fast Food Edition

Welcome to Monday Night Football!!!!  It is Ravens football time, and I am ready!

My boy Ngata is out today due to an ankle sprain, but I will still be showing love wearing 92. (Yuck, my hair looks yellow!  I need to get my hair did ASAP.)

Before MNF I had to get through a day at work…this week is going to be long considering Thanksgiving is just around the corner!

I had a great lunch today.

2 clementines, leftover quinoa, greens and apples (taken from freezer) pita and cheese.  Along with some special sauce that I know GDW would totally appreciate.

I also had my delicious snack but with post shredded wheat squares as my cereal of choice.

Shredded wheat, mixed nuts, chocolate chips and orange cranberries.  Magic.

After work I headed to the gym and did 30min on the elliptical random sprints below 3 bars then I headed to body pump.  I am hoping to to be too sore tomorrow, but that class is crazy hard.  Props again to Erica for teaching it!

Monday night football brought on purple tacos!  Nick really wanted guacamole and we had ripe avocados!

3 purple tacos with lettuce, maters, guac, lettuce salsa and black beans and chicken in taco sauce.

Oh and cheese!

We used some Food Should Taste Good chips to scoop up the extra guac!

Sissy is all ready for kick off!  I am planning a maple pumpkin cake with nutella for dessert!

Go Ravens!

Thank you Taco Bell for renovating our store here in Boulder.  It looks quite nice, like a digitally remastered Disney Movie.  It definitly made me come buy more food.  So congrats on trying to make it the number 1 grossing Taco Bell in the nation again.

Also thank you for making the renovation happen overnight, it was good to see that the crazies here in The People’s Republic of Boulder can’t stop everything that is good.

Cheers,

Petrie

This is a personal perspective, but I wonder how many others are thinking like this.  And, though it may be late to react, if this is something retailers might want to consider in positioning gifts they offer.

First, the mind-set:  I’m still a little shell-shocked from the economy of the past year.  So I’m not buying anybody anything huge at retail this holiday season.  Everybody’s computer still works.  The TV’s have decent pictures.  Everyone has an MP3 player that plays music.  Got an Xbox; don’t really need a Wii.  Combo pool/ping pong/air hockey table will gather dust after a few months use.   Radio-controlled helicopter?  Last one broke after second flight.  Archery set… well, not a great basement activity.

So, this holiday season, I’m shopping retailers for two kinds of things for the people on my list:

Necessities.   Yes, socks (white, black, maybe a fancy pair or two).  And pajamas.  A belt.  Gloves.  Even towels.  Stuff that I know has worn out or worn down and needs to be replaced.  But I’m also adding a gasoline gift card for my college-attending, part-time-working daughter.  And a gift certificate for an oil change at Jiffy Lube (she’ll be less susceptible to them selling her a bunch of unnecessary repairs like they did last time if she only has the value of an oil change).  My son’s headphones are Scotch-taped together, so I’m thinking their replacement fits the necessity category.

Small indulgences.  Gift cards to Caribou coffee, In-‘n-Out Burger, Taco Bell, the local D’Agostino’s pizzeria.  A certificate good for two movie tickets at the local Kerasotes theater (they’re on their own for Goobers and Raisinets).  Another certificate for bowling at the local Brunswick Zone.  Tickets to a Chicago Wolves hockey game.   Another one for Teavana (I have a tea freak on the list).

None of these are “Here’s a gift certificate to Amazon/Best Buy/Target/Macy’s” that suggest I don’t have a clue as to what the people on my list would like.  They are all well-considered for the recipient.

Ok, there won’t be a pony to wake up to.  But with some thoughtful packaging (everything gets its own re-usable box or envelope), I think the people on my list are going to think this was a great holiday.  I just wonder if, when all is said and done, if retailers will be thinking the same thing.

(A standard copy and paste thank you that I sent out to about 20 new fans then promptly got over) Joshua: Thank you for the add. I appreciate it. I hope you like the music. Take care.

Ray: yeah im always a fan of music so whats going on dude?

Joshua: well thats good man. Glad you like it. Shit, you know. This and that, just trying hard to get my stuff out there. No label, so, it’s all on me at the moment. Yourself?

Ray: just calling it a day listening to some dj quick (Quik, by the way. Please excuse the Hip Hop snobbery) sipping on some drank
so yeah how long you been doing your thing with music

Joshua: sounds about right. haha. A few years now, not sure exactly. I seem to have an obstructed view on time. I guess just long enough to not completely and utterly suck, but not long enough to make the gods cum with excitement at a single note played by my sweet fingers. Around in that area….

Ray: (absolutely love the total disregard to my previous ramblings, I mean, I dropped the word “cum”!!!?) tight well hope it goes well
so how was the day dude?

Joshua: you know, another day. taco bell, fantasy football, bought a book, then a movie, argued with the ex-chick, cooked some grub, wasted time, told myself I’m ok with that, realized I’m so not ok with that, and made myself feel guilty for it, then proceeded to do nothing. Overall, not an out of the ordinary day. You?

(As of yet, have not received an answer to the, admittedly very loaded, “You?” question. While this may be understandable, I will never-the-less keep you posted on any retorts)

(Update: So it’s been like an hour since the “You?” question and… nothing. And my mild stalking/over obsession/complete waste of life has seen him online the entire time save for maybe a couple minutes.[probably had to piss I would imagine] Now, (a.) He was so overwhelmed by the amount of information I offered him in response that he, understandably, over looked the three letter question at the end, or, (b.) I have completely alienated another person in my life, in which case I am deeply regretful. “Ray! Please, I’m sorry for my strange come-backings. I will forever keep it robotic and impersonal! Just don’t not respond to me!!?” or (c.) he was just like, “fuckin, to much info my man…. MMMM drank!” All of which are completely possible, but I’ma lean towards (c.)

For lunch I had another homemade pizza. When you live alone, recipes often make more food than you need, so to save money you have to eat the large batch for several days.  I’m doing that with the pizza dough I made the other day.

-Lunch-

pizza dough –472  (a lot, yet still less than a TBell 7 layer burrito.  Alas, the universe is unfair.)

1 c. mozarella –320

1/4 c. pizza sauce –30

1 onion –64

Total for lunch: 886

-Supper-

Lasagna –350

Why was I eating like an Italian today?  Don’t know.  But I’m not sorry because it was so good.

I was thinking today about how I’m going to handle “the holidays.”  By “the holidays,” I mean Thanksgiving and Christmas, of course.  I decided that I’m going to have approximately 5 days of “unrestricted, go insane and eat whatever” food.  Those days will be: Thanksgiving and the day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas, and the day after Christmas.  I will faithfully blog all the days leading up to them, and I may even blog about them, but I don’t won’t be posting about what I eat because I won’t be paying attention.  Some of you might think that this is a bad strategy, but I’m thinking that, while it might set me back a tiny bit, it will be worth it because I know I won’t be going over other days.

On an unrelated note, has anyone noticed Tom Brady’s mullet?  I mean it really is getting ugly.

Ok so that’s not him, but it might as well be.  At first I thought his helmet was just short in the back, but now I think it’s a full blown mullet.  Sort of like Kate Gosslin’s reverse mullet, only forward.  I’m watching the Colts / Patriots game and the mullet is bothering me.  Isn’t he, like, married to Giselle?  Shouldn’t she be telling him that mullets are not so hot?

The world may never know.

I thought I was doing well today. I had a lot of errands to run, and not all of them were unpleasant. I picked up my camera from a friend’s house (I’d left it there on All Hallow’s Eve), and turned down an accepted application to an apartment complex.

I assumed the turn-down was going well, because I got my check back, and everything was civil. However, on my way out of the parking lot, a tow truck screeched to a halt as I was leaving – effectively blocking me in. The driver told me to roll down my window, and he said that he’d been called to tow my specific car. As I’d been there for no more than 15 minutes, I was unsurprisingly pissed off. They had to have called the truck the second I got out of my car. Looking back, I realize the girl in the leasing office was trying to keep me there. Luckily, I got out. I showed the tow operator my agreement of fees, and he was appropriately annoyed. He gave me a number to call to explain the situation, and then sped off (thank God).

However,  the experience left me understandably shaken. I was excited that my decision not to live there had been completely confirmed, seriously pissed off that they had sunk so low, and optimistic about the open house I was on my way to attending.

Luckily (for my already frazzled nerves), the apartment was perfect. I realized I’d already seen this complex when I was searching for apartments over two years ago. Someone snatched the apartment I’d wanted out from under me. But, the current housing market being what it is, they had more than one apartment that fit my parameters. It was the first place I visited that felt like it could be mine.

After the tow incident, this felt like a God-send. I was approved at a place that would work, and I’d just seen a place that would (hopefully) be my new home. Appropriately comforted by the day’s routine, I wanted to reward myself. I stopped by the liquor store and picked up a bottle of Absolut Boston (enriched with black tea and elderflower), then stopped at Taco Bell.

I was on the phone with my Mom as I went through the Drive-Thru, but I put her on mute so she wouldn’t know where I was. That’s because I ordered a Black Jack Taco, Volcano Nachos, Volcano Burrito and a Crunchy Taco. I had a coupon for a free Crunchy Taco (damn you, Taco Bell!), so that was the reason for selecting that restaurant.

I went home dejected. For, even though I was pretty sure I’d found the apartment I’ve been looking for, I’d been hassled by one place, needed to put in a call to the other to cancel, and caved on the drinking and Taco Bell portions of the day.

So I drank, I ate, I called, took a bath (it was FREEZING yesterday), and then felt sorry for myself.

All in all, the day was a wash.

Unlike the Black Market or the Black Plague, black has finally been given a suffix that is tasty and delicious and at an affordable price.

The Black Community and Taco Bell have been quite fond of one another for decades, almost as much as Black People and KFC have been. But KFC never made a “Black Combo Meal” or “Black Chicken Sandwich”, so Taco Bell has now become the premiere fast food establishment within the Black Community for finally acknowledging the Black People that eat there by naming a taco after them.

Walk down the street. Ask a Black Person, any Black Person, if they like the Black Taco. Even if they have never even tried one yet, chances are they will still speak fondly of it. Now it is up to McDonald’s to make a “Black Cheeseburger”, Burger King to make a “Black Whopper”, and Wendy’s to simply make something that actually tastes good.

“He… bribed me to give him a free taco and a Coke” – Roger Goodell, NFL Commissioner

Bengals receiver Chad Ochocinco was fined another $25,000 for a Taco Bell stunt

When it comes to getting monetarily punished for unsportsmanlike conduct in the NFL, the old saying goes like this: “Get penalized once, shame on them. Get penalized twice, shame on you.” But the pundits may have to come up with new words of wisdom for former Oregon State standout Chad Ochocinco.

The fines for Ochocinco continue to accumulate after his latest escapade with the Taco Bell in Cincinnati, Ohio.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said he was appalled that just one day after Ochocinco was fined $20,000 for jokingly offering a referee a dollar bill during a replay challenge against the Baltimore Ravens, that “Chad would have the chutzpah to pull another stunt like this.”

As part of the Comish Vanquish World Hunger Act initiated by former Commissioner Paul Tagliabue in 1994, every week during the season, the current NFL commissioner volunteers his time at a restaurant in one of the cities that holds an NFL franchise.

Goodell chose Cincinnati’s Taco Bell on Montgomery Rd. to be his charitable restaurant for the week. Purely by coincidence, that destination is also Ochocinco’s favorite hot spot for food.

The commissioner took on the role of window server for the day, but that’s when the controversy started.

“He [Ochocinco] came up to the window and bribed me to give him a free taco and a Coke,” a disappointed Goodell said. “He said on the intercom that he would give me three dollars for the items, which put me immediately into shock. I thought a man of his caliber would have enough professionalism to not repeat this bribing act again.

“Going into this, I was not aware that Chad [Ochocinco] visited here frequently. While this did occur off the football field, I had to bring it up with the NFL and it was their decision to follow through with the fining, mainly because it was his second offense.”

Within just one week, Ochocinco has been fined $45,000 for offering four dollars.

“It’s sad that on my day off, when helping for an altruistic cause that these circumstances took place,” Goodell said. “I surely hope this is the last time we hear of any bribes.”

Ochocinco was not available for comment, but his agent said they will fight the ruling and that it was “all a misunderstanding.”

To see some of Chad Ochocinco’s celebrations throughout his career, click on the link below:
Ochocinco Celebrations