I'm "berry" intrigued by this

Speaking of being a fan of a particular singer, for example...

I've never tried this beverage, and I always stand there with a quizzical look on my face: It's put out by the Jones Soda Co., and it's called Strawberry Manilow, an obvious homage to the best singer of this or any other generation, Mr. Barry Manilow. Now, over the years, I've spent hundreds of dollars, if not more, for tickets to the 10 (count 'em, 10!) Barry Manilow concerts I've seen in four states. Still, I'm not willing to plunk down a buck or two for the soda named after my fav singer. I've never been a fan of strawberry-flavored beverages (I can't even fathom chugging that Quik strawberry milk), let alone blackberry or raspberry, so I'm pretty sure I'll never be trying this stuff.

I'll still enjoy Barry's music, including his upcoming CD, but this soda ... not so much.

It's finally "Coming Home" to my home

Everybody's a fan of someone — an actor, a singer, an athlete — and everyone's got a story about freaking out as a result of our fan-dom. Here's mine...

See this? This is the new "Coming Home" DVD from my favorite group of all-time, New Kids On The Block. The New Kids tweeted about the DVD (with special, limited-edition bonuses) going on sale last Wednesday and the website taking advance orders crashed. All day! Now, I'd thought I was one of the lucky ones who was able to order: I'd created an online account early, submitted my payment but never received any confirmation — not an e-mail, not on the Web site — nor the link to the download of the guys' new, unreleased song. So, freaking out, I proceeded to call the company marketing the DVD and taking orders several times over a span of several days, worrying Am I in the system to get the bonuses? and Should I cancel my order and buy another to be assured I'll get the bonuses? only to be reassured by customer service reps on the other end of the line.

Turns out, they were right: My fears were for naught.

Less than two days after my final frantic phone call, I got a confirmation for my order, making my Christmas a little less hectic.

Now you can stuff a Sith

A giver by nature, I love this time of year. Come Christmastime, I'm a shopping machine.

So I couldn't help but find these "Star Wars"-themed bears from Build-A-Bear Workshop some of the most adorable presents waiting to end up under the Christmas tree. Admittedly, the "Star Wars" geek in me shined through, too, when I saw them. (For more info on these bears and more, click here.) I mean, c'mon! They're cute lil' bears, filled with fluff, complete with amazing "Star Wars" costumes ... who could want more? (Yeah, being a giver by nature, I've created a few bears at the Workshop in my time. I'm a fan of that place.) If nothing else, they'd make a great way to get young kids (like, really young kids) into the 32-year-old pop culture phenomenon known as "Star Wars." Start with a bear, move on to action figures and then work up the actual movies ... starting with the original 1977 "A New Hope," of course.

But, what's that you say? You're not a big fan of the Dark Side? Not a problem.

The good folks at the Workshop also have Jedi customes for your favorite bear. Honestly, I've always found the lure of Darth Vader and the Dark Side much more appealing than the likes of Obi-Wan Kenobi here — maybe it's because of the awesome red lightsabers, as opposed to the blue or green lightsabers ... I don't know — but to each his own. Luckily, the people at the Workshop have both sides covered, no matter who eventually wins the battle for ultimate supremacy of the galaxy!

Saving big bucks "Step By Step"

I collect autographed memorabilia. I like to save money on autographed memorabilia. The New Kids On The Block are my favorite group of all-time. Where am I going with this?

Well, take a look at this: It's an authentic platinum record of the New Kids' break-through 1998 release, "Hangin' Tough." It commemorates the guys selling 1 million+ copies of the album. It's comes framed and signed by all five of the New Kids (that's Danny Wood, Donnie Wahlberg, Jonathan Knight, Joe McIntyre and Jordan Knight), and is limited to just 100. You can buy it (or a similar signed platinum record of the guys' self-titled, 1986 album) by clicking here. The price: $625.

Don't get me wrong, if I had the discretionary income, I'd cough up the dough. But ... I don't have to!
That's because I've already got all five of the New Kids' autographs on this 8x10 photo the guys signed for me when I met the group back in May '08. And here's the best part: I got the autographs for free when I met the New Kids!

And ... other than a signed baseball with all five New Kids' autographs that's been listed on eBay for $247.49 (originally $449.00), I can't even find another item online with each of the guys signatures, which makes my free autographed picture (which is now framed and hanging in my living room) even more valuable in my book!

This certainly is cheesy

No matter how hard you might try, there's no escaping "Hannah Montana!"

Now, in the past, I've written about finding Hannah in the cereal aisle and also in the refridgerated section of my local grocery store, but this one blew me away: Yes, that is "Hannah Montana"-branded macarconi and cheese! While the scrumptuous stuff doesn't come in the shape of Hannah's/Miley's face, it does come in the shape of a microphone (which Hannah uses to belt our her hits), a musical note (duh!), a guitar (which she strums on occasion) and a star ('cause ... well, c'mon! It's Hannah!). At first, I thought it this was a version of my beloved Kraft Macaroni and Cheese, but nope — the Disney folks are now delving into the mac-and-cheese biz! And apparently (I get this info from reading the front of the box here), it's a good source of iron and contains no preservatives.

Oh, but it gets even better than that...

As if eating "Hannah"-themed mac-and-cheese wasn't enough, if you flip the box over, you can cut out a collectible "Hannah Montana" trading card. Clip 'em! Save 'em! Trade 'em with your friends! Add 'em to the collection of "Hannah Montana" merchandise you already have! (Of course, it's probably a wise idea to cut out the card after you eat the mac-and-cheese, so neither the "mac" nor the "cheese" spills out.) Makes ya wanna boil up some water, grab a wooden spoon and start making some mac-and-cheese, doesn't it?!

Hootie — the Blowfish + me

This is either the worst or most hilarious photo I've ever taken, depending on your point of view. I opt for hilarity! Yes, that's me and former Hootie and the Blowfish frontman Darius Rucker after his show here at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center in Poughkeepsie. And the picture is the result of my GF doing her best with the red-eye reduction feature I'd inadvertently turned on.

Still, it's a unique memento from a fun night out, where we heard some of my favorite songs from college mixed in with some of the songs that made Darius the CMA's New Artist of the Year just a few weeks earlier.

Now, avid readers of the "Space" here might remember I've got a few rules about listening to country music, but for the exception of two or three songs, I didn't really feel like we were at a country show. Instead, it was just like listening to "Hootie" (and, c'mon, who didn't just call Darius "Hootie" back in the day?!) singing some cool songs. It was the same voice doing some new songs, many of the ones that drew a pretty diverse crowd with fans of all ages ... some of them even wore cowboy hats, there weren't as many cowboys hats as at last year's Gretchen Wilson show here. (For the record, I did not wear a cowboy hat.)

Even though we'd only heard a few of his country hits, we weren't disappointed, as Darius sang a few of the tunes that made him famous some 15 years ago.
Now, I'm not old, but I felt it when, in the days leading up to the show, I'd learned two people I know — one a sophomore in college, the other a senior in high school — had never heard of Hootie and the Blowfish, let alone their hits like "Hold My Hand," "Let Her Cry" and "Only Wanna Be With You," all of which Darius played and all of which we loved.

As you can see from the ticket he signed for me (not to mention that amazingly horrible/hilarious picture he posed for), Darius was extremely fan friendly. Toward the end of his final encore — he played "Purple Rain" by Prince by the way ... how cool is that?! — the guy even traded his mic for a Sharpie to sign autographs for fans in the front row. A good friend of Tiger Woods' and an avid golfer himself, Darius finished his show by taking off the Tiger Woods hat he wore all show long, signing it and tossing it into the crowd in my direction; sadly, being a Tiger Woods fan, I wasn't lucky enough to catch it. But don't worry about me; it's all good.

'Cause nobody snagged a better picture with Darius than me after the show!

New Kids do "The Right Stuff" for tots

Since I'm mentioning the New Kids On The Block's recent charitable acitivities, here's another:
My favorite group of all-time are holding a one-night-only show at Boston's House of Blues to raise money and collect toys for Toys for Tots. The $60 tickets for the event sold out in 2 minutes when they went on sale.

Sadly, work commitments preclude me from going, though I'm sure fans will post video of the show online shortly after.

That being said, don't think I've forgotten about the tots! Toys for Tots has long been one of my favorite charities: "The tots need toys," as I often say, and it's important for all kids to have a happy holiday. You can click here for more information on the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation.

Rachael's "stoup"-pendous recipe

Don't ask me why, more than two years after we attended a "Rachael Ray" show taping, I just thought of this now, but here goes...

When we were in the audience, Rachael made a "Cacciatore Stoup with Turkey Sausage Meatballs" — a "stoup," she told us, is "thicker than a soup, but not as thick as a stew." When we got home, my GF made it and it was de-lish! (That's a Rachele term, btw.) Anyway ... I stumbled across the recipe and thought I'd share it, 'cause it was some good eating. Just click here for the recipe, and you can be making some food that's definitely yum-o! (And yes, yum-o is another Rachael-ism.)

Picky eater that I am, I just went through the recipe myself and crossed off about half the ingredients that I won't eat, thus making the recipe even simpler!

Fight against cancer just got "Stronger"

Of all the hundreds of compact discs I've amassed since I got my first CD player, this one might rank as my favorite. Yes, that is a new CD hand-signed by Danny Wood, a member of my favorite group of all-time, the New Kids On The Block! I got it directly from Danny's company, with the proceeds going to a great charity.

Just in case you (like my best friend) doubt the authenticity of the autograph, here's the short story behind it:

Here is the regular, unsigned "Stronger: Remember Betty" CD, released earlier this month. Notice it is not signed in silver Sharpie. The CD is a tribute to Danny's mom, Betty (seen on the cover here), who lost her battle with breast cancer a decade ago. The proceeds of the CD benefit Susan G. Komen for the Cure and the work they do to battle the disease. Each of the songs is both an homage to his mom, as well as great therapy for anyone who's lost a loved one. At $15 (plus $3 s/h), it's a great purchase, even unsigned.

But ... Danny was cool enough to sign 300 copies of his new CD and then send this tweet, letting us know we could buy them at no extra cost! Mine arrived in less than a week.

This cause has long been an important one to Danny and the rest of the New Kids as I wrote last year, when the guys sold special tanktops with this logo at their reunion tour with the proceeds again going to the folks at Komen. Additionally, fellow New Kid Donnie Wahlberg recently released his new single, and announced he'd give money from the sales of "I Got It" to the Komen cause.

Lemme tell ya sumthin’, brother...

As I've stated here on "Sean's Space" before, I'm a reformed Hulkamaniac. Used to be. Long time ago. Can't stress that enough.

Sure, I gave up on pro wrestling when I started high school, but I've still got a soft spot for the Hulkster. I remember trainin', sayin' my prayers and eatin' my vitamins, just like Hulk Hogan implored us to do as lil' kids. Add to that to my growing collection of signed books, and you can see why this latest treasure is certainly a prized possession. Yes, that is a hand-signed copy of Hulk's new memoir, "My Life Outside the Ring," which the grappling legend autographed early Tuesday afternoon at a book signing in New York City to celebrate the tome's release.

Sadly, I just missed the end of the Hulkster's actual signing by mere minutes, yet I was still able to walk away from the Barnes & Noble on 5th Avenue with a signed copy!

Rushing several blocks to reach the book superstore, I had one thought in mind: I'm going to meet the Hulkster! This was the same larger-than-life superstar I'd been lucky to see once in person when I used to watch the then-World Wrestling Federation's TV tapings as an elementary school kid in the mid-80s here in Poughkeepsie. And here he was in New York City, the same metropolis where I found myself this very same day! So when I arrived at B&N, hurriedly opened the door and asked the security guard, "Where's the Hulk Hogan book signing?" sounding like (admittedly) such a geek, you can imagine how crestfallen I was when he said, "Oh, you just missed it."

Luckily, I wasn't down for the three count just yet...

Turns out, Hulk was in the back offices at B&N, signing a few extra copies of the book for them to sell after he left. Waiting patiently, I only stood around for about five minutes before a small cart of 20 or so of the Hulkster's books made its way to the cashier counter. Oh, they looked like the very same unsigned books on the shelves — they even ran up for the same price as ones without Hulk's John Hancock — but they had this lil' green sticker affixed to the lower, right-hand corner, telling the world: Yes, Hulk Hogan had indeed signed the title page!

Sure, I'd missed out on meeting Hulk, but I was still as happy as a fifth-grader sitting ringside at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center in 1985.