I went Hollywood, baby!

But then I came back to Poughkeepsie. Oh, joy. Oh, bliss.
Spending the past week in La-La Land for work, I've brought home lots of pictures like these and even more memories (including my second trip to Disneyland) with me.

Between the Capitol Records building here, a glimpse of Dodger Stadium and "The Happiest Place on Earth," it was a super trip! (Oh, and the palm trees! Did I mention the palm trees? I love a nice palm tree.) While I didn't meet any stars — unless, of course, you count Mikey & Minnie — I drove past a park where they were filming a scene for "CSI:NY," though I didn't see much, and I took in some of the sights where the celebs hang out.

And now, back to our regularly scheduled blogging...

When you bump into a star...

Spending a late night watching my new "Pinocchio" DVD, which came out last week, I came across a familiar face.

Yes, that was actress/singer Meaghan Jette Martin on the bonus features, singing the Disney classic "When You Wish Upon A Star" in a new music video. That's the same Meaghan Jetter Martin that I (literally) bumped into almost two weeks ago in Albany, when she was the special guest at the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference's women's basketball championship game. The "Camp Rock" co-star was at the game as part of the MAAC/Radio Disney tour, the same tour that brought "Hannah Montana" co-star Moises Arias to Poughkeepsie two weeks before. (The Jonas Brothers starred in "Camp Rock," — I'm sure you know — I interviewed the guys last summer.)

Admittedly, I had no idea who Meaghan was, but the kids in the crowd were excited, and that's what counts.

If nothing else, it was cool to hear a contemporary take on Disney's iconic song. As if they're classic films weren't enough, the bonus features on their DVDs — from making-of featurettes and extra music videos, to games and trivia — are worth the price tag alone. (I'm looking forward to both Disney's "Bolt" and "Lilo & Stitch," coming out on DVD in just a matter of a few short days.)

Meaghan's appearance was the second straight for a Disney star at the MAAC tournament.

At last year's title game, Drew Seeley, the singing voice of "Troy" in the original "High School Musical," made a similar personal appearance, singing a song I actually knew ... even though I didn't know who he was. Meaghan, though, received a bigger crowd reaction, a good note for her as she will reprise her role of "Tess Tyler" in "Camp Rock 2," and she'll also star in "10 Things I Hate About You," a new series based on the 1999 movie starring Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles; the series, with Meaghan playing the part of "Bianca Stratford," will air on the ABC Family network.

Tweet, tweet. Tweet, tweet!

Have you heard about this Twitter thing all the kid are using? Wow! You've got to check this out...

For the uninitiated, Twitter is this cool, free service that lets you send short messages (up to 140 characters) to friends, family ... anyone you want to get them. They can read them on your own Twitter page, on their cell phones or even in the sidebar of a blog like, for example, "Sean's Space." Yup, I just joined Twitter!

Check back here often to see what I'm up to, as I can now post live Twitter updates (on the right sidebar, under the picture of me and the New Kids On The Block) from anywhere! And that's the beauty of Twitter...
This handy, dandy cell phone can now send Twitter updates right to "Sean's Space." If I see something cool at the mall or I'm at a great concert or think of a funny joke I want to share, no matter where I am, I can Twitter it and it'll show up here!

Sure, some people say those who Twitter are mostly egocentric, but everyone from news giant CNN to "Late Night" host Jimmy Fallon (you know we met Jimmy, right?) are sending tweets — that's right, they're called tweets — for all to read. Now, I can add myself to the list.

WTF? (What The Force?)

I had to do a double-take when I stumbled across theses DVDs in a store (the name of which I've redacted here) the other day. That's right: "Episode IV: A New Hope," the 1977 classic film that started the "Star Wars" phenomenon, retails for $14.99 — that's a fair price — but last year's "The Clone Wars," a cartoon movie which has nothing to do with the original trilogy and very little to do with their three prequels, is going for $19.99.

Now, you don't have to be as wise as an 800-year-old Jedi master to figure this one out: That's crazy!

A big fan of the "Star Wars" franchise since the beginning, I hold "A New Hope," "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi" sacred, almost priceless. On the other hand, while I was eager to catch the first screening of "Clone Wars" the day it opened, I was disappointed in the first animated film of the saga; as such, it's the lone DVD not in my "Star Wars" collection and I've yet to watch a single episode of the ensuing animated TV series.

All I'm sayin' is, I have a bad feeling about this.

Just call him "Lefty"

I have several mottos I live by, including this one: If it weren't for Old Navy, I'd be naked. From shirts and jeans, to sweaters and even boxers, it's not uncommon for me to be decked from head to toe in Old Navy gear.Whenever I see those seven blue letters on a mall's storefront whenever I'm shopping, I have to stop in, even for just a peek.

So when I saw these mannequins at an Old Navy on a recent excursion, I thought about adding to my collection.

Here's a good look, I thought, perfect for either a night out with my GF, a concert or even a casual work day. I always like to look be in style, and this look was neither too sloppy nor too formal. I could pull this off, I thought as I then moved my attention to the outfit right next to it. (And no, I promise you this entry isn't about fashion. I swear, there's a funny moment coming up soon. Wait for it...) I mean, living in these uncertain economic times, we all have to watch and make sure we get the most for our dollar, right?

Now this outfit ... well, this one would be a little harder for me to pull off.

See, I like the sweater vest and button-down look — in fact, I sometimes sport a similar ensemble, which I also bought at Old Navy — and at first I thought, I like it when I first saw this one. Then I looked a little a little closer and thought, Yeah, I just don't have the arms to pull this one off ... at least not the left arm! See, I like my arms just the way they are; ya know, the same length. I mean, look at this poor mannequin: It's bad enough that he doesn't have a head, but then you add to that the fact his left arm is almost scraping the ground. Talk about wearing a 44 Long — more like a 44 Looooong.

Although, I bet this guy would make a great basketball player.

Who are the people in your neighborhood?

Since I'm in the habit of posting pictures of large vehicles from out of town recently, I thought I'd share this one.I love it when "Sesame Street Live" comes to town every year because they always park their cheery rigs around near the arena. C'mon, doesn't seeing those happy faces make Friday the 13th a little more bearable?

Though I've never been to a "Sesame Street Live" show, maybe this guy has. Nah, then there would be two grouches in the same place. But I digress...

Like most of us, I grew up with Kermit, Big Bird, Mr. Snuffleupagus and the gang. Bert and Ernie taught me how to share (not to mention what a unibrow is), and I learned my numbers from "The Count," whose real name, I just learned, is Count von Count; that's three words within his name. (Three! Ah, ah, ah!). And to top it all off, I even do a mean Grover impression!

I'm even old enough (I feel funny saying I'm "old," especially compared to this guy) to have spent many a Friday night as a youngster watching "The Muppet Show," including my favorite episodes when the stars of "Star Wars" stopped by.

That's what makes my many trips to Walt Disney World even more enjoyable. See, Disney's Hollywood Studios (you might remember it as the Disney-MGM Studios) has a whole section that's Muppet-themed, including "Muppet*Vision 3D," a 3-D movie that stars everyone's favorite Muppets, and which also features some 4-D elements. (Sure, I could tell you about them, but then you wouldn't be surprised the next time you head down to WDW.) Plus, there's a Muppet-themed pizza place and gift shop in the same little area. For anyone who grew up with the Muppets, it's a definite must-see.

So, "Sesame Street" comes to town and (somehow) I relate it to Disney World! It all connects.

New Kids in new places

On a shorter spring spurt of their world tour, my fav group of all-time, the New Kids On The Block, are hitting some of the U.S. cities they didn't reach the first time around last autumn.
My old boss, now an bigwig down in Fort Myers, Fla., just told me his newspaper sent a photographer to last night's concert in his town. (They even spoke to Jordan Knight for a story that ran last week.)

Do my buddy a favor and click here for a photo gallery from last night's Fort Myers show. He'll appreciate it.

Looking to see if Jordan and the rest of the guys are coming to a town near you over the next month? Click here for the rest of the guys' spring slate. And, of course ... you've heard I met the New Kids last spring, right??? (No, seriously! Check it out.)