http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/Home.aspxWTF - Jason Ward's Blogen-usCopyright 2010, CILQ-FMSat, 31 Jul 2010 15:50:44 GMTThu, 29 Jul 2010 14:42:36 GMT1http://emmisinteractive.comIt's a bold statement, that headline.  But hear me out. I think the 70 year-old author is up to no good.  I know what you're thinking.  She's an acclaimed writer/poet/feminist/environmental activist/award winner (1 for the Booker Prize, 2 for the Governor General's Award) - how could she possibly be out to get us? This August, Balzac's Coffee will be selling a new blend personally selected and approved by the author of Surfacing, Lady Oracle and most recently, The Year of the Flood.  'The Atwood Blend' is made of organic, shade-grown beans from Bolivia and Mexico and certified bird-friendly, according to The Star. That's right.  Bird-friendly. What happens when you give coffee to birds?  I'd bet on this: Sure, the "bird-friendly" thing could mean coffee beans grown in trees that birds can nest in (which is more environmentally sound than the traditional sun-grown coffee, according to the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center ...http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10128177jward@q107.com (Jason Ward)http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10128177Thu, 29 Jul 2010 14:42:36 GMTIn the recipe of rock stardom, there are some very specific ingredients. There's the music.  It's essential. Then there's the life of excess.  Buying stuff you don't need just because you can.  Wearing clothes that look funny but somehow make sense on stage and eventually make you a hip trendsetter. Then, there's the chicks.  Ask almost any rock star and they'll tell you - impressing members of the opposite sex was one of, if not the, main reason for getting into music. Apparently, that wasn't the case for Bon Jovi.  You might have read lately that Jon Bon Jovi wanted some special pictures destroyed.  They're from a 1985 photoshoot for the album 7800° Fahrenheit, where the 22-year-old Mr. BJ himself is in bed with a bunch of topless women (if you want to see one of the shots, go here). The pictures were never used and Jon Bon Jovi wanted ...http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10128176jward@q107.com (Jason Ward)http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10128176Wed, 28 Jul 2010 04:39:15 GMTAnother weekend, another quandary. What are you going to do tonight? Here're a few ideas: When it comes to live music, there aren't a lot of options for the classic rock enthusiast.  The big show in town tonight is the reborn Lilith Fair at the Molson Canadian Amphitheatre, but if that's not to your liking, there's always the AC/DC tribute AB/CD at Rock & Roll Heaven in East York. Continuing through this weekend is the 22nd Annual Beaches International Jazz Festival, as well as the Toronto Burlesque Festival, which holds its Burlesque Ball tonight at the Mod Club. If you're not keen on seeing Christopher Nolan's Inception in theatres, there's also Salt starring Angelina Jolie.  On the DVD shelves, keep your eyes peeled for The Losers, Copout or The Runaways for the rock & roll minded. Just staying in?  Enjoy Decades at 6 followed by Saturday Nights with Alice Cooper ...http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10126803jward@q107.com (Jason Ward)http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10126803Sat, 24 Jul 2010 21:32:58 GMTIf you were tuned in to Q Saturday Afternoon last week, I told you a bit about the latest near-epidemic to hit Toronto in the last few years. Bedbugs. And yes, they actually bite. Joe Fiorito of the Toronto Star has been covering the story for a while, most recently on the presence of the critters at the Toronto Reference Library. They hide in carpets, in baseboards and, of course, in the sheets and mattress of your bed. They're parasites, mostly feeding in the hour before sunrise on the blood of warm-blooded animals. That means YOU. Creeped out?  You should be. Bedbugs were almost wiped out in the spray-happy days of the '40s and '50s but have been making a resurgence in recent years, believed in part due to increased world travel. You can pick them up on vacation and not even know it, until it's too late. They're reddish-brown ...http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10126801jward@q107.com (Jason Ward)http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10126801Sat, 24 Jul 2010 16:07:58 GMTLooks like America's version of The Beatles could "Get Around" one more time. Al Jardine recently told Rolling Stone magazine that he, along with the other original members of the Beach Boys (Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Brian Johnston and even early guitarist David Marks) may reunite in 2011 for a one-off concert to celebrate the band's 50th anniversary. "It’s a big deal," said Jardine. "I don’t know where it will be yet, but it’ll probably be free. Golden Gate Park was mentioned, as was the [National] Mall in Washington, D.C. and the north shore of Chicago by the beach." Meanwhile, Brian Wilson's manager Jean Sievers told the magazine that she doesn't know anything about such a reunion and that Wilson is concentrating all his efforts into the release of the album Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin next month. If the reunion happens, chances are they won't be as energetic as this:...http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10126802jward@q107.com (Jason Ward)http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10126802Thu, 22 Jul 2010 13:22:31 GMTThroughout my time writing the WTF?! blog, I've been proud to bring you stories of deep human stupidity. Politicians?  Yep, they're dumb. Psychic octopi?  The idea is dumb, but the damn thing turned out to be right a lot. Dead sons stuffed and propped up on their favourite motorcycle?  That seems pretty dumb, and sick to boot. Here's a topper for the memorabilia-minded. Leslie Hindman Auctioneers out of Chicago have some very interesting items up for grabs on August 12th for fans of the one and only Elvis Presley. When the man behind "Heartbreak Hotel" and "Suspicious Minds" died on August 16th, 1977, his body was prepared for burial at the Memphis Funeral Home.  The senior embalmer, realizing who he was working on, decided to hold on to a few keepsakes from his time with the King. Namely, the rubber gloves, forceps, lip brushes, a comb and eye liner, needle ...http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10126800jward@q107.com (Jason Ward)http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10126800Wed, 21 Jul 2010 03:34:33 GMTRush!  The Time Machine Tour! 7:30 tonight!  At the Molson Canadian Amphitheatre!  The first of two shows in the city this week (the other at the Air Canada Centre Saturday night at 8)!  The show will include a full live performance of every song on Rush's 1981 masterpiece, Moving Pictures. If you want to know what will likely be played tonight (courtesy of Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles), scroll down! If you're going to the Amphitheatre tonight (or ACC on Saturday), you need to be prepared.  Here are some tips to help you have a good (and injury-free) time attending the show: 1) Wearing a Rush t-shirt is perfect.  Wearing a Dream Theatre t-shirt is acceptable.  Wearing a Hall & Oates t-shirt is sacrilege.  Choose wisely. 2) Women say they like Rush, but don't be surprised if the show is more of a sausage fest.  If you are a woman ...http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10125249jward@q107.com (Jason Ward)http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10125249Sat, 17 Jul 2010 18:12:00 GMTIt's the kind of weekend in Toronto that's chock full of things to distract you from sitting at home.    In front of the air conditioner.    In your underwear. Here are some worthwhile options: When it comes to live music tonight, there's one show stands above the rest.  Rush, at the Air Canada Centre at 8 o'clock (for a preview of the show, click here).  Doors open at 7 and Q's Rock & Roll Circus will be there with prizes for you to win. If that doesn't suit your tastes, there are a few Classic Rock tributes performing in the city.  Crazy Babies take on some of Ozzy Osbourne's greatest at Rock & Roll Heaven in East York.  At the Cameron House, look for the Neil Young'uns, or take in the Stevie Ray Vaughan Experience at the Silver Dollar Room.   There are numerous festivals around Toronto this weekend as well, closing ...http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10125996jward@q107.com (Jason Ward)http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10125996Sat, 17 Jul 2010 16:56:21 GMTSo...you think you're tough stuff, huh? Lift a lot of weights at the gym?  You and everybody else. Fought off a raccoon in your backyard?  Using a broom doesn't count. Trained in the Canadian Military and served overseas?  OK, that is pretty tough. Just like Laura from TV's Little House on the Prairie. OK, more like Melissa Gilbert, the actress who portrayed her. Recently, the 46 year-old wrapped up performing as Ma in the Little House on the Prairie musical.  As you well know with musicals, there's a lot of singing and dancing.  It can be exhausting, but she did it, regardless of the constant nagging pain she felt in her back.  Only when the show wrapped did she see a doctor about it.  Turns out it wasn't just muscle soreness. She had a broken back. "I thought doing a musical at 46 playing a woman in her late 20s, ...http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10125997jward@q107.com (Jason Ward)http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10125997Sat, 17 Jul 2010 16:15:32 GMTAt long last, scientists have confirmed something many of us have known all along. Half-assing it really is the better way. Recent studies released by LiveScience.com (via MSNBC) have explained that while some would think that being a perfectionist (always striving towards the best in achievement and success) would result in good health, research shows that being a perfectionist could actually KILL YOU. Well, a little earlier, anyway. Prem Fry, a professor of psychology at Trinity Western University, assembled a team to examine the relationship between perfectionism and the risk of death.  Those who tested high as perfectionists ran an increased risk of earlier death as compared to volunteers who had low perfectionism scores. How?  Perfectionists can experience high levels anxiety and stress under the pressure of their ambitions, thus risking an early demise. Unless you have a chronic illness like diabetes.  In that case, the perfectionist's ability to stick ...http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10125784jward@q107.com (Jason Ward)http://www.q107.com/Blogs/JasonWard/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10125784Thu, 15 Jul 2010 12:30:03 GMT