Pop Eye's Got A Brand New Bag...

...well, sort of.

As you know, if you didn't give up on me during my recent burnout, I've been hinting around about gettin' jiggy with some format changes up in this piece. The thing is, since I do some freelance writing for other entertainment websites, I'm kind of experiencing celeb gossip overload. Not that I'm no longer amused by celebutard antics. Of course I am. I just never wanted this site to get anywhere near Gawker or Perez Hilton (will not link) territory. Mainly because, for that to happen, I'd have to give up sleeping and my day job completely and forget everything I know about PhotoShop, respectively.

Not that The Pop Eye was ever in danger of becoming a full-fledged gossip site. I don't think any of you really come to me to get breaking news, exclusive scoops and real-time updates on Paris Hilton's bowel movements. If you do, you're probably one of those anonymous readers who leave me angry, profanity-laced rants in some language I don't understand. I'm sorry that you misunderstood my mission.

I realize that some of you are, however, very unaware of the pop cultural world around you, and do turn to me for answers to some of your burning questions like, "Who started in last year's Puppy Bowl?" or "Who finished 8th on American Idol's 7th Season?" or "What's Charlie Schlatter up to these days?" or "Who the hell is Charlie Schlatter?" And I will still be here to provide all the useless information you will never need.

I also realize that some of you are just like me. Well, not quite as awesome. Or, in some cases, much more awesome, in which case, eff you. But basically I mean that you're pop culture sponges. You always know what I'm talking about, even if it's nonsense. If I say that my dream is to one day write a Broadway play called Zabka!, you don't look at me like I have three heads; you nod knowingly and offer up casting suggestions. And I will still be here to talk about stupid shit that no one but us cares about.

The thing is, I called this blog The Pop Eye originally because I truly do always have one eye on pop culture...but that means that my other eye is looking at my own life. No, that doesn't mean I'm cross-eyed. (There are many reasons why I'm still single, but that's not one of them.) It just means that I live in both worlds at all times. So, while I may start to talk about more personal stuff on this blog, that personal stuff never comes without a heaping helping of pop culture references—past and present, real and imagined.

Oh, and then there's the music. There will be a lot more music. And, if you're unfamiliar with anything, I expect you to at least try everything I put in front of you. Just a taste. I promise, you'll like more than you don't like. For example, below is one of my favorite songs of the summer. Take a listen. At worst, you'll shut it off after 30 seconds. At best, you'll love it and thank me profusely for bringing it to your attention. And even though I'm not really offering many downloads here anymore (I'm sick of the DMCA taking down my posts), I've been known to share music if asked politely.


"The Sound of Sunshine," Michael Franti & Spearhead

While there will be music sprinkled copiously throughout the blog, I'll probably still keep the regular music feature, Sonic Sunday, as well as some of the other features that you cats seem to dig, like Battle of the Netflix Stars. I think BeckEye's Not-So-Excellent Adventures in Fashion is just begging to be a regular. I will most likely continue recapping that time- and soul-suck, American Idol, because I'm a total whore for the shit-ton of blog traffic it brings. I'll probably keep Eye Boogers around, too, just for those occasional dashes of absurd entertainment news. Not sure what the future of the Forgotten Classic Video and Caption Contest will be. Perhaps I'll leave that up to you. Tell me what your favorite recurring topic is by voting in the poll in the near sidebar. (Edit: Poll has been changed. Apparently, polls powered by Google Friend Connect DO NOT WORK PROPERLY.)