Wise Words: Laurie Keller of "Cougar Town"

Just because Laurie Keller's lipstick shade lets people on the moon know she's tacky doesn't mean she's not wise. On this week's episode of Cougar Town ("Money Becomes King"), Ms. Keller lets Trav (and us) in on a few of her life philosophies.

From episode 309, "Money Becomes King".

1. Don't get hammered at brunch.

2. You gotta shake it til you make it. (Though it turns out this one is only really good for dance-offs or cocktails.)

From episode 309, "Money Becomes King".

3. Nothing ever works out unless you are in 100%.


Oh, and don't forget:

4. Never fight short-haired bitches.

From episode 309, "Money Becomes King".

Thanks for the wisdom, Laurie. Now, can we get a Krazy Kake?

Helmet Party! from "Cougar Town"

Helmet party!

Travis wearing a helmet is one of my favorite storylines from season 3 of "Cougar Town", mostly because it's the writers' revenge against Dan Byrd for not cutting his hair. That's kind of amazing. And since Travis looks goofy and feels insecure, in true sweet cul-de-sac crew style the rest of the gang had a Helmet Party, where they all made Trav feel better by donning their own helmets.

Photo from Vulture.com.



This is a fun and simple party idea for you and your friends (especially if your friends are easygoing and obedient). The concept is simple: everyone wears their own helmet! The wackier the better. This is fun because people can use the helmet idea to express their own style or personality. For instance, Jules and Bobby wear big safe parent-approved helmets, whereas Ellie shows off a riding helmet (can't you just see her with a crop in her hand?) and Laurie wears an Amelia Earhart style cap. (Just make sure you make clear to your guests the difference between hats and helmets: hats are just hats, but helmets are weird and amusing, as well as protective!) Yakkay has some cute helmets if you're in the market for something fun and wearable.

You can even get a small door prize (a bottle of wine, a gift certificate... for a bottle of wine) to give out to the person voted Best Helmet at the party.

Ready, set, raise hell(met)!

"Cougar Town" vocab lesson: "graysonship"

"graysonship"; noun:

• a relationship with an emotionless robot (or closed-off partner).

Origin: Jules Cobb, portrayed by Courteney Cox, in "Cougar Town" episode 201, "All Mixed Up" (written by Bill Lawrence & Kevin Biegel).

Screen cap credit: JerkDoubleBitch.

Jules comes up with the term "graysonship" to describe her relationship with Grayson. Grayson is emotionally closed off and, therefore, somewhat robotic.



Grayson [doing the robot, with a robotic voice]: I don't like to feel things.
Jules: No he doesn't.

Use it in a sentence: "My boyfriend never opens up; this is a total graysonship."

Movie Mashup

Game: Movie Mashup
Origin: "Cougar Town", episode 201, written by Bill Lawrence & Kevin Biegel.

Photo credit: Yawgurt.com.

This is a really fun game to play with friends. On "Cougar Town" they call it a drinking game ("cause we drink while we play"), but it doesn't have to be. It would be especially great to play on long car trips, when you need to fill the time with something fun.

So how do you play? It's simple. You pick two movie titles that share a word (i.e. one ends with the word and the other starts with it). Then you describe what the plot of that movie would be, and your friends/the other players guess the title. Here are a few examples from our friends in "Cougar Town":

A crime-solving greyhound deals with racism in Brooklyn... Scooby Do(o) the Right Thing
A fat lasagna-loving cat plays baseball with his dead dad... Garfield of Dreams
Al Gore does a PowerPoint presentation on Madonna's naked body... An Inconvenient Truth or Dare

I love coming up with these mashups. I even tweaked it a little and did TV mashups for my Emmys party!

Hit me with your best mashup ideas... leave 'em in the comments and I'll feature a few of my favorites!

Penny Can

Game: Penny Can
Show: "Cougar Town" (ABC)

Penny Can is a game created by Bobby Cobb on "Cougar Town". The basics are very simple: players throw pennies into a can from at least 10 feet away. Sounds a little snoozy, no? But if you give it a shot (pun 100% intended; it's how I roll), I promise you'll get hooked, just like our favorite Cul-de-sac Crew.

Since the game's inception, the gang has developed some additional funtimey rules.

• When a player gets a penny in the can, all players yell "penny can" in a high-pitched singsongy tone. If a player sinks a penny while the can is moving, players sing "moving target penny can".
• If your penny goes in the can but bounces out, it's time for a 'Stache Attack! That means another player gets to draw a mustache on your face. (If you're already mustachioed, you may get a Crazy Brow.)
• If a "rim shot" occurs, the other players flick your ears. (Ouch!)
• If your penny spins, you become the meat in a "face sandwich" with two other players until the penny stops.
• If you sink three pennies in a row, you do the robot and say "penny can" in your most robotic voice.

Adaptations of the game include Ultimate Penny Can and Truth or Penny Can. It's also very easy to turn into a drinking game. (You miss you drink; another player gets a penny can and everyone else drinks.)

So how do you bring Penny Can into your life?

Step 1: obtain a penny can. I was lucky enough to have one delivered to me in the mail (for free!) because my friend and I called 1-855-Penny-Can and spoke to Nellie, one of the show's writers. A stroke of good luck, and the Penny Can is glorious in person! The Penny Can is occasionally on sale here for $19.95, but if it's out of stock just grab an old paint can or coffee can to use. If you're feeling creative you can add a label as in the photo above, or personalize it for you and your friends.

Step 2: get some friends together. Penny Can is most fun with at least 3 or 4 competitors. Ideal occasions? A backyard barbecue, a night at the beach, or after everyone's had a tall glass of wine, beer, or cream soda. I personally brought mine to a work barbecue:

... and good times were had by all.