We have to say, it's a breathe of fresh air to see Lauren Cohan all gussied up instead of in post-apocalyptic dirty tank tops for a change. She's a sight for sore eyes either way, but if you'd like to see more of the sexy actress out of her "The Walking Dead" duds and slipped into outfits that are a little more clean and comfortable, this is the gallery for you. Click on for more of the lovely Lauren Cohan.
Lauren was raised Jewish from the time she was five years old, as her family converted when her mother married her stepfather. However, now she claims she is not religious, but still appreciates the tradition, culture, and history.
In the evolution of man, we're just a small step ahead of the monkeys. We still have our ape-like tendencies, though, often displayed as the grossest habits of man. Although we're no longer slinging feces at each other (at least not regularly), we still have a number of bad habits to address, and these guys are the main offenders.
Nail Nibbler
Whether it's fingers or toes, it's bad news either way. Aside from the likely bowel obstruction and janky-looking nails, you'll also be ingesting bacteria from the dirtiest part of your body, studies show. If you're into the possibility of pneumonia, infections and the standard repulsed looks of offended women, chomp away.
Fingernail biting is one of those things that should've gone away with smelling your own farts and drunken penis drawings. Actually, those are still in. If you're biting your toenails, that's a whole new level of disgusting, but with a small degree of impressive flexibility.
Nose Picker
Merely a gateway to the ass scratcher tendencies, snot and boogers were like hidden ice cream and sprinkles for the undeveloped childhood minds. Fast forward a couple decades of no one telling you it's gross to pick, flick and devour and you've got yourself a full-blown case of the nose picker, a dangerously toxic bacteria environment for already disgusting fingernails.
We're not sure who told you your boogers were high in protein, but we assure you, there are far better, more sterile resources for that, even if you enjoy the easy accessibility of your treasure-chest nostrils.
Ass Scratcher
If it isn't our old friend, over-the-pants crotch grabber's older, unemployed brother, the ass scratcher. It's no secret, guys scratch their asses, but so do women, even beautiful yogi women in their shiny stretch pants. Thing is, you don't have to do it so everybody knows you're having an off day where the sun don't play.
Head to the bathroom, trap yourself in a stall and scratch like there's no tomorrow. If you can't control yourself, at least give a polite "excuse me" before heading wrist deep in the danger zone. Not even Kenny Loggins can get himself cleanly out of that jam. Or just find yourself a girl with a weird ass scratching fetish. They exist, I assure you.
Tobacco Spitter
Despite being an acceptable activity of the 1800s, spittoons and tobacco chewing is heavily outdated, in case you were unaware. If you still have a hard time deciphering why women refuse to let you put your tongue in their mouths, we advise again you stop putting that putrid filth under your lip and spitting it into a plastic bottle.
Women are taking a pretty big leap letting guys in who don't chew, so it's pushing boundaries to stick a wad of cancer garbage in your mouth, the same surface used for eating, lovemaking and libations. Quit the chew for good, cowboy; you're not in the West anymore (or even in the MLB).
Seat Down Pisser
We all like to think our aim is clutch, but even Michael Jordan had off days. The truth of the matter when it comes to pissing is no man ever goes without a miss, however brief. Use your feet if you have to, but lift the lid for the ladies' sake and for the reduction of toilet-driven venereal disease.
Men - or anyone for that matter - wouldn't like it much if ladies had their monthly business atop their daily shitting surface. It's a foul thought, but it had to be said. Remember this the next time you're 10 tallboys past the legal limit and try to be a little more considerate, even if your piss is clear as spring waterfalls.
The Interruptor
You've got something important to say all the time, don't you? You probably can't read this entire paragraph without thinking of something to share that's crucial to the world's survival. Here's a thought: shut your lips and listen for once.
The world is filled with the photo-sharing, coked out tendencies of the rudely interrupting know-it-alls but has been seriously lacking in the mindful listeners of the world. If you think everything you say is so important, wait for a moment of silence to fill the space with your nonsense, but silence never hurt either. You may notice people like having you around the quieter you get.
Dinner Table Belcher
In the old days, kids would eat a light portion of mama's homecooking and ask to be excused so they could finish mending the fences and feeding the horses. Nowadays, many folks stuff their faces until they can no longer forcefeed another spoonful and then let out a nice, big belch to let the rest of the table know they're full.
Belching, in case you weren't aware, sullies the appetites and moods of those around you. Although a belch can be a real comic relief in times of group disress, it's usually just farting out of your mouth into someone else's face, and remember, sometimes belches can be worse than farts.
Public Masturbator
One step further than the mid-conversation over-the-pants ball scratcher is the public masturbator, a man with no shame left to his name. Clearly, this is not a common symptom of man, but it does rear its ugly, purple head every once in awhile.
We're only mentioning it because if you're a habitual ball scratcher with little worry for your surroundings, you're just a few steps from heading into the deep end, pal. Every compulsive public masturbator has to start somewhere.
Last Beer Drinker
Depends on your definition of "gross," but many men would agree that taking the last beer from one of your friends is the worst thing a guy can do to another guy, friend or enemy. Even sleeping with his wife and getting the guy's kids to call you Daddy would be better than scooping up the last of the cold and frosties from the Friday night fridge. How dare you call yourself a man!
Dog Poop Denier
The sun might not shine on a dog's butt everyday, but that thing is still going to make a mess, rain or shine. A flourishing epidemic of catastrophic proportions, this is not just a problem of man so much as mankind. Men, women, children and terrorists are all letting their dogs run amok with their plastic-free poop lifestyle.
For the grocers of the supermarket force, a plastic free lifestyle is a progressive forward thinking shift, but for the guy with the 80-pound pitbull that's firing off logs like he's Abe Lincoln, there are little baggies made just for you, some scented for your precious fingers. If you're too big of a wuss to pick up your dog's shit - part of the deal of dog owners - you shouldn't have one in the first place. Pull your weight and get you and your dog's shit together.
Chivalry Absentee
There's nothing grosser to a woman than a man without any manners. Besides an abundance of testosterone and an overwhelming need to be right all the time, manners are really the only things we have left. Holding the doors for strangers, walking ladies to their door - without just the intention of bashing genitals - after a night out and calling instead of texting, these are just a few of the things we forget to do in our sick, sad little wireless world.
"Every passing moment is another chance to turn it all around." Or at least not slam a door in some poor old lady's old, wrinkly face.
Cheater Cheater Pumpkin Eater
All will agree that cheating is one of the grossest things any person can do, except on homework and tests; those are meant to be cheated on. We're talking about the lying, deceiving technique of getting your way all the time and keeping your better half in the dark.
If you're going to be a scoundrel, come clean and be a scoundrel all you like, but don't string along a nice gal who's under the impression you're a stand-up guy when you're not. Looking, thinking and occasionally doodling is okay; it's basic human nature. Everybody wants to diddle Ryan Gosling, right? No, just me? Oh, okay. Well, doodle away but don't diddle the maid unless you can afford the divorce.
"The Expendables" franchise prides itself on having an abundance of action stars in each film. They've added more each time and the upcoming third installment is no exception with rumors of Jackie Chan, Milla Jovovich, Mel Gibson, and Wesley Snipes joining the already boisterous cast.
While the idea of adding more stars to each film is a great selling point now, eventually they're going to run out of big names and will be forced to dig a little deeper.
We may not know who is going to be added to the next few films, but according to an inside source, we have been given access to the cast list for the already announced "The Expendables 17." Be warned, they had to do quite a bit of digging for this one.
The Limo Driver from "Die Hard"
The Arm Wrestling Referee from "Over the Top"
The Deer That Arnold Fed at the Beginning of "Commando"
Dynamo from "The Running Man"
The Storm Trooper That Didn't Realize How Low the Ceiling Was and Knocked His Helmet Off Walking Through the Doorway
Ray Finkle from "Ace Ventura"
Chris O'Donnell in His Terrible Robin Costume
A Guy Whose Uncle Went to Junior High School with Charles Bronson
Justin Long
Former Congressman Anthony Weiner is running for mayor of New York City, and despite a proven inability to keep his little Anthony in his pants he's doing fairly well in the polls.
In the event Weiner is the winner, he'd be joining a rich international tradition of elected officials whose illegal, insane, or incompetent activities have been no barrier to serving their constituents. Check out these ten examples of democracy gone wild.
JON GNARR
Stand-up comedian Jon Gnarr Kristinsson formed Iceland's Best Party in 2009 on a platform of open corruption, free towels, and the construction of a new Disneyland at Reykjavik's airport.
It came as a surprise to everyone (particularly Gnarr) when the Best Party won six of the fifteen seats on the Reykjavik city council and Gnarr was elected mayor, a development believed to be a backlash against Iceland's 2008 financial crisis.
Gnarr has proven to be a popular mayor, despite his tendency to appear in public dressed as a Jedi knight, Santa Claus, or a woman. However, he and his party have toned down the jokier aspects of their platform (although Gnarr stated that he would not enter into a coalition government with anybody who hadn't watched HBO's "The Wire").
SHEILA JACKSON-LEE
Sheila Jackson-Lee has represented Texas' 18th district for eighteen straight years. During this time, however, her biggest accomplishment seems to have been making her staff's work environment so profoundly unpleasant and stressful that at least one staffer has had to quit for medical reasons.
Jackson-Lee has been investigated for claims that she's bullied low-level government employees into serving as gofers and chauffeurs (illegal under Federal law). And she frequently demands luxury treatment such as private limousines, telling one aide "I am a queen, and I deserve to be treated like a queen."
Her actual legislative career is marked by long, obnoxious speeches in support of failed amendments that Congresspeople of either party tend to skip.
TED STEVENS
It is the solemn duty of any Alaskan politician to siphon as much money from the lesser forty-nine states as is practically possible, and by that standard Ted Stevens was among the No Official Nickname State's greatest leaders.
Stevens was a master of the earmark, a controversial policy allowing direct federal funding of special projects that the senator used to fund a 398-million-dollar bridge to an island of fifty people off the coast of Ketchikan.
A similar project to finance an airport to serve the tiny town of Akutan (and more importantly a seafood processing plant owned by one of Stevens' campaign contributors) later came under the investigation of a federal grand jury.
But Ted came closest to jail for failing to report nearly $250,000 worth of gifts from oil pipeline constructor VECO. His 2008 trial ended in a guilty conviction that Stevens refused to accept despite calls to step down from fellow Republicans like John McCain and fellow Alaskans like Sarah Palin, and for a while one of the Senate's longest-serving members was also a convicted felon.
The conviction was later voided by the Justice Department, but not before Stevens lost a close race to Democrat Mark Begich.
Stevens remains a controversial but generally popular figure in Alaska today and his name graces Anchorage's international airport, a somewhat ironic recognition given that the former politician died in a plane crash in 2010.
KWAME KILPATRICK
The past few years have not been kind for the city of Detroit, which recently became the first major American city to file for bankruptcy. Motor City's economic situation didn't see much improvement during the reign of mayor Kwame Kilpatrick.
This wasn't entirely due to Kilpatrick's habit of using municipal funds to buy cars for his family, but it certainly didn't help. Not content with the usual mayoral vices like corruption and graft, Kilpatrick threw a wild party at his official mansion just months after his election.
The party was unfortunately cut short by the arrival of his wife and her objection to all the strippers currently on the mayor's lap.
Despite a concerted campaign to tie up as many loose ends from the party as possible (a campaign greatly aided when one of the strippers was shot to death by a gun that just happened to be the same model carried by the Detroit Police Department) details of misconduct and misbehavior kept cropping up.
Kilpatrick finally faced the music in 2008, resigning after being charged with ten different felonies ranging from perjury to assaulting a police officer. The following five years have seen more and more charges stack up against the former mayor.
While the slippery pol has evaded many of his earlier sentences, the most recent federal convictions for mail fraud and racketeering may finally land him behind bars for a long time.
BUDDY CIANCI
Vincent Albert Cianci Jr. was and remains one of Rhode Island's most popular political figures, having never lost an election in his career as mayor of Providence. Instead, Cianci found new and exciting ways to be removed from office, having to resign in 1984 after pleading no contest to assaulting a man he claimed was having an affair with his wife.
Ironically, he wouldn't have needed to do so if he hadn't championed a law that banned convicted criminals from holding municipal office. After seven years as a talk radio host, Cianci took another successful shot at the mayor's office, presiding over a campaign of urban revitalization so successful that he ran for reelection in 1998 unopposed.
It seemed like nothing could stop the charismatic Italian, but the very next year the FBI carried out a search warrant on City Hall as part of "Operation Plunder Dome."
Cianci laughed off the ridiculously-named investigation until 2001, when video evidence of one of his top aides taking a bribe surfaced and Buddy found himself sentenced to four years in prison.
Cianci's time behind bars seems to have mellowed the master politician, and while he is no longer prohibited from running for office he seems to be content with his legacy as it is, forever immortalized as the namesake of Family Guy's "Buddy Cianci Junior High."
MARION BARRY
If you read a history of Marion Barry that somehow ended at 1978, you would come away with an impression of a fearless civil rights crusader, a tireless supporter of education reform, and a man so dedicated to serving his city he was nearly killed when a rogue sect of the Nation of Islam took the DC City Council hostage.
From then on, his record could be charitably described as "spotty." He presided over record levels of unemployment, homicide, and the beginning of Washington's crack epidemic.
DC's crack problem apparently concerned Barry so much that he took a personal interest in the matter, and after a six-year FBI investigation he was caught on camera lighting up with an old flame.
Sentenced to six months in prison, Barry understandably decided against running for re-election... for a while, being re-elected to city council shortly after his time behind bars. Only two years later Barry won the 1994 mayoral election under the slogan "He May Not Be Perfect, But He's Perfect For DC."
Barry's political career continues today as a member of the city council, but the noble tradition of the crack-smoking mayor is currently being carried on by Toronto mayor Rob Ford, who in every other way is Marion Barry's exact opposite-for one thing, Ford hasn't been caught yet.
JIM TRAFICANT
James A. Traficant Jr. found his fame and devoted following as the Sheriff of Ohio's Mahoning County. He made national headlines by refusing to carry out foreclosures on homeowners who had recently been laid off by the collapsing steel industry.
At around the same time, Traficant was brought up on racketeering charges and chose to represent himself, claiming that his documented acceptance of bribes was part of an undercover investigation.
Amazingly, Traficant won, becoming the first and only person to successfully defend himself in a RICO investigation, and he ran with that success to a position in Congress, beginning a long strange chapter of American political history.
As a Congressman, Traficant typically showed up for work in bizarre disco-era leisure suits and tended to conclude his speeches with the phrase "Beam me up, Mr. Speaker!" as a uniquely weird way of expressing his disgust with modern American politics.
Futuristic teleportation technology wasn't able to save Traficant from a federal corruption probe in 2002 that ended with him serving seven years in prison. Stone walls apparently do not a prison make, however (even when they are the actual stone walls of a federal prison), and in 2002 Jim made the bold decision to run for re-election from behind bars, earning an amazing 15% of the vote.
Today, Jim Traficant is a free man who lends his support to causes ranging from the Tea Party to the anti-chemtrail movement, and even today refuses to admit to wearing that horrible toupee.
STUBBS THE CAT
One of America's longest-serving mayors, Stubbs the Cat was first elected mayor of Talkeetna, Alaska in July of 1997 at the unprecedented age of three months and has ran unopposed in every election since.
The ginger tabby prefers a "hands-off" style of government necessitated by his lack of hands, an approach that combined with the tourist appeal of having an adorable kitty cat as mayor is believed to be responsible for Talkeetna's economic boom.
Naysayers often claim that Talkeetna, being a town of barely 800 citizens, doesn't actually require a mayor or any sort of city government, but this can be understood as part of the American media's longstanding bias in favor of calicoes.
TIRIRICA
Brazil is well-known for its weird and festive elections. Last year, at least five candidates for office ran under the name "Batman". But Francisco "Tiririca" Silva made history when he received the second-highest number of votes for any politician in Brazilian history despite being a professional clown.
Tiririca, whose nickname translates as "grumpy," ran on slogans like "It can't get any worse, vote Tiririca!" which ruffled a lot of feathers in the Brazilian government but resonated with a voting public that viewed existing politicians as corrupt and untrustworthy.
Even a late-breaking scandal where a national magazine accused Silva of being illiterate (and not without some fairly convincing evidence) was enough to slow down the clown.
After just barely passing a basic literacy test, he now represents the state of Sao Paulo in Brazil's Federal Congress, where he supports public education, cultural projects, and (naturally) the needs of circus performers.
EVERY US PRESIDENT EVER ELECTED
Pick any American president at random and you'll be able to find someone, somewhere, who can explain exactly why he was the worst person in the world.
George Washington? Far from having wooden teeth, he had several of his slaves sell him some of their choppers for shillings on the dollar. FDR? A reckless big-government socialist determined to plunge an unwilling country into a horrific war. William Henry Harrison? What kind of idiot stands out in the rain for two hours?
Many POTUSes (potusi?) had weird habits as well, such as John Quincy Adams' skinnydipping and LBJ's tendency to whip his junk out at Cabinet meetings. While none of our presidents were actual clowns, comedians, or cats, ours is the only country that can boast a leader who once shared film credit with a chimpanzee.
Most likely every elected official has at least one person who will call them the worst of all time, but unless you're writing facile internet trivia articles, a more careful review of the facts is necessary before arriving at any snap judgments.
Your first drink can lead to a variety of outcomes, the most common of which is a second drink. The rest of your night depends on your alcohol of choice and, of course, how dirty you're willing to get.
If you've been paying attention to the NFL preseason at all, you have undoubtedly noticed the staggering amount of season-ending injuries that have been suffered by significant players throughout the league. Big names like Jeremy Maclin and Dennis Pitta went down early, and recently the same has happened to the likes of Dustin Keller, Kevin Kolb and DuJuan Harris. So that got us wondering, is this preseason injury epidemic really that much worse this year than previous seasons? The answer is yes, and rather convincingly.
In the above infographic, we have included all season-ending injuries that occurred in the NFL preseason since 2009 to players who were expected to make their team's 53-man roster. All injuries that happened during practice, team mini-camps or actual preseason games were included. All players who suffered injuries missed the entire upcoming season, with one exception: Austin Collie did play in one game in 2012 following preseason concussion issues, but had to leave after one catch due to the same complications. For 2013, we have included all players expected to miss the entire season, so that excludes guys like Michael Crabtree who may return.
As you can see, the 2013 NFL preseason has been incredibly harsh. Not only is the number of season-ending injuries more than double any other year, but the list of "big name" players affected is long and there is still one preseason game left. We are hoping the number 17 does not go up any higher, but judging by the way things have been going, we are not optimistic.
Right now you're doing the same exact thing as this baby. Lucky for you, your day is about to get just a little more exciting thanks to this awesome collection of funny photos.
Enjoy them but also be sure to give us a like on Facebook, so you will never be as bored as this baby ever again.
Ayla Stapleton is an Australian/Dutch model who currently resides in Sydney. As you will see in this photo shoot, she is also a health and fitness addict, not afraid to hit the gym. Although Ayla is only 23 years old, she has several years of modeling experience already and has been featured in publications like Zoo Weekly, Autobabes and Performance Garage Magazine. She is also an emerging actress. Click ahead for more photos of sultry Ayla Stapleton working it out.
Ayla Stapleton is an Australian/Dutch model who currently resides in Sydney. As you will see in this photo shoot, she is also a health and fitness addict, not afraid to hit the gym. Although Ayla is only 23 years old, she has several years of modeling experience already and has been featured in publications like Zoo Weekly, Autobabes and Performance Garage Magazine. She is also an emerging actress. Click ahead for more photos of sultry Ayla Stapleton working it out.
Ayla Stapleton is an Australian/Dutch model who currently resides in Sydney. As you will see in this photo shoot, she is also a health and fitness addict, not afraid to hit the gym. Although Ayla is only 23 years old, she has several years of modeling experience already and has been featured in publications like Zoo Weekly, Autobabes and Performance Garage Magazine. She is also an emerging actress. Click ahead for more photos of sultry Ayla Stapleton working it out.
Ayla Stapleton is an Australian/Dutch model who currently resides in Sydney. As you will see in this photo shoot, she is also a health and fitness addict, not afraid to hit the gym. Although Ayla is only 23 years old, she has several years of modeling experience already and has been featured in publications like Zoo Weekly, Autobabes and Performance Garage Magazine. She is also an emerging actress. Click ahead for more photos of sultry Ayla Stapleton working it out.
Ayla Stapleton is an Australian/Dutch model who currently resides in Sydney. As you will see in this photo shoot, she is also a health and fitness addict, not afraid to hit the gym. Although Ayla is only 23 years old, she has several years of modeling experience already and has been featured in publications like Zoo Weekly, Autobabes and Performance Garage Magazine. She is also an emerging actress. Click ahead for more photos of sultry Ayla Stapleton working it out.
If you are looking for intoxicating adventure, there's one fun option that should be at the top of your consideration list. There are these places called "wineries," which make a good buzz the wonderful by-product of a worthwhile trip into the history, process and tastings of its great locally-made wines. For every wine lover without a sense of smell and direction looking for the best wineries around, here's an almanac for you.
Napa Valley, CA
Might as well get the big girl out of the way with Napa Valley, the first area of wine to come to mind even if you're not close to the west coast. That's probably due to having more than 400 wineries in such a concentrated reason, like a grape-loving alcoholic's heavenly afterlife. One of Napa Valley's most iconic wineries, Chateau Montelena Winery, is of the world class of wine tasting.
With a type of medieval renaissance setting in its stone castle and more than 130 years of history, the Chateau rates above competing wines, especially in the Chardonnays and Cabernets of the world. With a nice selection of aged wines and less snooty of a staff than most uptight wineries, the Chateau will give you a buzz even before you try the wine.
Texas Hill Country, TX
The hill country of Texas is greener and more filled with wine and wildflowers than one might expect. Infact, Texas Hill Country is on its way to being the next Napa Valley. Texas wineries like have gotten themselves a little rep for pulling the southern belt of America's weight when it comes to wine, starting with its Torre Di Pieta winery on the Wildflowers and Wine Trail.
Torre Di Pieta is voted one of the best due to its light crowds and laidback lifestyle compared to manypopular wineries. Located in Fredericksburg, the winery focuses its tours on the fresh bloom of Texas Country with the ease of flowers, unicorns and theoccasional triple rainbow.
Sonoma County, CA
Weighing heavily in comparison to the rest of the world's wineries, Sonoma is another California contender for best spots to get out and about with a glass of wine. For a such big wine country, Sonoma is still rooted in laidback outdoorsy lifestyle, and based on its location - between the coast, forests and valleys of Northern California - Sonoma is afforded a proportionately diverse selection of wine flavors.
The Platypus Wine Tour is noted as one of the best in Sonoma with some of the best rides and guides in the business. Aside from wine country, Sonoma is turning heads towards its hops and wheat with a few tasty treats, like Lagunitas and Russian River breweries while sporting a delicious array of Farmer's Markets. Some might say Sonoma's not second to Napa at all.
Brotherhood Winery, NY
As America's eldest winery dating back to the 1830s, Brotherhood Winery in Washingtonville, New York knows a thing or two about crushing up grapes. With its cool, coveted undergroundcellar tour with more than 200 giant oak barrels, its rich-in-spirit tasting mansion and the eclectic art appreciation it has for local artists, Brotherhood is something of a bar setter for wineries when it comes to authenticity.
With premium New York wines, a number of flavorsome flights on the menu and a Grand Salon that'll throw you back in time as fast as the wine hits your gullet, Brotherhood is premiere for wine excursions on the East Coast.
Willamette Valley, OR
Just above the California sun lays the cool, calm outdoors of Oregon where the woods and wine go together like seas and a ship. Willamette is of the ideal pots of Oregon Wine Country with its openness to both urban and rural life. Located just south of brew master, Portland, while remaining amongst rural settings, wine lovers can enjoy the great outdoors or set up in the city after a nice wine tour in Oregon's outback.
With nine major trails and as many wineries in the local area, places like Salem, Eugene and Dundee are of the most talked about wine stops to see with a number of great tastes in such a close proximity. Before it's over, you'll be climbing the trees for another wine trail of beautiful Oregon.
Ponzi Vineyards, OR
As one of the oldest and most supreme wineries in the state of Oregon with a wine chef (Dick Ponzi) who has been named one of the finest winemakers in the world, particularly in its white wines, it would be unfair for us to give you this list and not include Ponzi Vineyards.
Set up in the Chehalem Mountains of Sherwood, Oregon, you'll be like a drunk Robin Hood of the forest amongst of a modern state-of-the-art winery with both affordable tastings and tours, as well as bocce ball, the official drunk game of wine tasting.
Paso Robles, CA
Set on the central coast midway between San Francisco and Los Angeles, Paso Robles is a flourishing wine country of the past two decades. Saxum Vineyards, in particular, is praised as one of the finest wineries not only in Paso Robles but in California too. With some of the tastiest and hardest-to-find wines of California, Saxum is where you go to get the goods.
If you can catch Harvest Wine Weekend in October, it could be one of the best wine moments of your life in Paso Robles. With healing springs, spas and 170 wineries across California mountain coast, you'd be missing out if you were to stay home on the couch and drink wine from the box. Any other weekend, that'd be fine.
Palisade, CO
If you've been in Colorado long enough, it might be time to take a break from the strenuous activities of the mountain-loving Centennial state and lean back with a few glasses of its fine wine. With two-thirds of the Colorado's vineyards and three-quarters of its wine grapes on hand, Palisade is chief wine processor of rich vino in all the land.
With more than a dozen wineries in Palisade alone, including Hermosa Vineyards, Palisade is a no-brainer for natives and passers-by. Hermosa brings in some of the plumpest grapes from some of the highest grape growing elevations in western Colorado, and it's motives lie in being the best, not the biggest, with unique wine tastes and knowledgeable tour guides, an admirable trait in any wine connoisseur.
Chateau Ste. Michelle, WA
As Washington's oldest and most acclaimed winetasting spot, the Chateau sets outside Woodinville, not far from Seattle, a city well-known for its coffee brewing. Standing tall on both tradition and innovation, the Chateau has made a name for itself by making wine tasting something of a lifestyle rather than breaks between beer cans.
With more than 100 acres and 100 years of history, the old winery has gone from being reliable to sustainable, keeping a green eye on its operations while still serving up some of Washington's finest and moderately priced wine for all the grape guzzlers of the upper northwest. How about a round of applause?
Merryvale Vineyards, CA
Named "Winery of the Year" two years straight by international wine spectators, Merryvale is another Napa Valley winery worth a solo mention for its atmosphere. As the first winery built in Napa since the end of prohibition, there's a lot of history, landscape and beauty to such a place.
For people celebrating weddings, anniversaries or otherwise, Merryvale is toted the best in class and authenticity in all of California. Its celebratory rooms alone look like something out of a fairy tale that you would never read to your children for fear of them finding out your best-kept wine secret someday.
We at Mandatory have been known to create some hard-hitting pieces of journalism. This is not one of those times. This is a gallery of women with completely jacked up eyebrows.
Be sure to check back for updates.
On a positive note, not a lot of people will be looking at your face.
If you're interested in busty babes.
These eyebrows remind me of the final stanza of the famous Robert Frost poem:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I
Took the one less traveled by
And that has made all the difference
Not pictured: The step stool Bruno Mars is standing on to fit in the frame.
Check out or entire gallery of celebrity mugshots.
Robert Downey Jr., in a pre-Iron Man moment.
For more unflattering photos of guys like Deion Sanders, check out or entire gallery of celebrity mugshots.
The Godfather of Soul, James Brown.
Check out or entire gallery of celebrity mugshots.
This is the only time I have ever enjoyed seeing Shia LaBeouf on camera.
It's only Thursday, so you might be sitting there with a pissed off look on your face like this plump cat. We're here to fix that...with another batch of today's most hilarious photos. Click ahead and get happy.
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In her defense, there are MANY bathrooms that I probably should be banned from.
Related: Signs It's a Very Slow News Day
Nailed it.
Check out more crazy men's fashion trends.
You don't want to know what happens if you disobey this sign.
Speaking of signs, check out these hilariously ironic signs.
Eh, close enough.
The end of summer brings good feelings and bad ones, depending on how you feel about school. Hollywood, naturally, likes to cash in on that shared experience with back to school movies. If you're trying to get prepped for the start of another academic year, here are the essential films to get you in the spirit.
Animal House
John Landis's National Lampoon spin-off movie literally changed all the rules for school movies. When Larry Kroger and Kent Dorfman start their first year at Faber College, they find themselves pledging Delta Tau Chi, the most debased frat on campus. The clash between the Delts and Dean Wormer laid the foundation for dozens of anti-authoritarian tales, and the performances (especially John Belushi's legendary role as "Bluto" Blutarsky) are top-notch. Even thirty-five years later, this flick is still transgressive and hilarious. It's one back to school movie that's often imitated, never duplicated.
Peggy Sue Got Married
Francis Ford Coppola's unusual take on the back-to-school film takes its title character way back. Kathleen Turner plays Peggy Sue Bodell, on her way to her 25th high school reunion. When she faints at the event, she finds herself transported back to 1960 and her senior year. The fantasy of getting to go back to high school but still knowing everything we know as adults is a pretty powerful one, and the movie revels in it. It does have a typically weird Nicolas Cage performance, if that helps sell you on it.
Dazed & Confused
It's kind of cheating a little to call Dazed & Confused a "back to school" film, because it takes place on the last day of school, not the first. But Richard Linklater's brilliant evocation of 1970s Texas is so smart, funny and relatable that it needs to make this list. A huge ensemble cast of future stars including Ben Affleck and Matthew McConaughey drink beers, smoke weed and make decisions about their future. The soundtrack is also completely awesome, packed to the gills with classic rock.
Class Of Nuke 'Em High
Now for something a little different. New York film production company Troma is notorious for their B-movies that overflow with sex and violence, and their take on the classic back-to-school movie is something truly unique. Class Of Nuke 'Em High takes place at New Jersey's Tromaville High, which happens to be situated right next door to a nuclear power plant. When radioactive marijuana mutates students, all Hell breaks loose. This wild, cheaply-made gross-out is funny and trashy and will make you happy that your high school wasn't this bad.
To Sir, With Love
Now for something a little more serious but equally awesome. 1967 drama To Sir, With Love stars Sidney Poitier as Mark Thackeray, an unemployed engineer who takes a teaching position at a rough East End of London high school. This is the archetypal "students come to respect their teacher" movie, and there aren't many that tackle the trope better. At first, the roughnecks in Thackeray's class torment him with all kinds of pranks, but gradually he realizes that if he treats them like adults, they'll eventually behave like adults. Oh, sure, he has to kick the crap out of one of them in a boxing match, too, but that's just the cost of doing business.
Heathers
One of the grimmest and funniest high school movies of all time, Michael Lehmann's Heathers skewers the sick popularity games that kids get obsessed with in murderous manner. When Veronica Sawyer is inducted into the clique at the top of the heap, everything looks good for her until J.D, the new kid in school, upsets the applecart. Originally the flick was pitched to Stanley Kubrick, which would have been incredible, but what we got is still an undisputed classic of the genre, with career-making performances from Winona Ryder and Christian Slater.
Friday Night Lights
Sports are an integral part of school life, and no movie has captured the highs and lows of the athletic experience quite like Friday Night Lights. Peter Berg's brilliant 2004 drama follows the Permian Panthers of Odessa, Texas as they struggle their way towards the state championships. If you played anything - varsity or not - in school, this will all seem familiar to you. If you thought jocks were just dumb goons coasting through on their physical abilities, this flick will actually give you sympathy towards them. Even better, it inspired an equally excellent TV series after the fact.
Back To School
Yes, that Back To School. The "adult goes to college late" plot has been used dozens of times, but one of the best is the 1986 Rodney Dangerfield comedy. Dangerfield, a Borscht Belt comedian who flourished in the '80s, plays a multi-millionaire clothing store owner who visits his son at college only to wind up enrolling himself. The resultant hijinks are spectacular, including hiring Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (as himself) to write a literature paper. Everything works out in the end, with father and son bonding over the values of hot girls and higher education.
How High
You knew we'd have to put at least one stoner comedy on this list, and for our money the ultimate combo of wacky weed and school shenanigans is How High, the 2001 flick that first introduced the world to the comedic stylings of rappers Method Man and Redman. When mixing a friend's ashes into the fertilizer for their latest batch of bud gets both guys into Harvard, the stage is set for a clash of cultures that involves truth serums, prehistoric bongs and old-fashioned institutional racism. A sequel has been rumored for almost a decade, but we're not holding our breath.
Stand And Deliver
Based on a true story, this is another "teacher has to get tough" tale that transcends the norm. Edward James Olmos stars as Jaime Escalante, a new teacher at Los Angeles's nail-tough Garfield High School. Unwilling to just sit back and do the absolute minimum, Escalante develops a summer math program to teach pre-calculus, engaging the minds of his students and shocking the world when they pass the brutal AP Calculus exam with flying colors. It's amazing how this movie makes math the most important - and most dramatic - thing in the world.
Fast Times At Ridgemont High
Cameron Crowe's legendary take on high school was written after he went undercover at a San Diego public school to see what the kids of today were up to. What's great about Fast Times At Ridgemont High is the ensemble cast - it's not just one school story, it contains multitudes. From Jeff Spicoli the burned-out surfer to Brad Hamilton and his crappy-ass jobs, every scene is interesting and true to life. Oh, and it has Phoebe Cates's bare breasts coming out of a pool, one of the most iconic sexy scenes in cinema history.
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