Nostalgia Crush: Lindsay Lohan Circa 2004

The second installment of Celebrity Crush Album, by my awesome guest blogger, Maggie.

I know much has been written about her partying and her leggings and her dysfunctional family, but if you'll humor me, I'd like to go back to a simpler time and relish in the wonder that was 2004-era Lindsay Lohan.

My crush developed sometime between "Freaky Friday" and "Mean Girls." Here was a girl who was really beautiful, but not traditionally so: first off, she was a ginger kid, and second, she had a really awesome body that didn't fit the Hollywood waif model. She had a raspy voice and a great pop song called "Ultimate" that I played in my dorm room as wake-up music. To my former roommate, Aebra: I am so so sorry. (Aha's "Take On Me" was also in heavy rotation).

As with all my celebrity crushes, it was important that I head to the internet as soon as humanly possible. It became clear that Lindsay was not the sharpest tool in the shed when I checked out her website, "LL Rocks." She made up for infrequent updates by filling her entries with exclamation points and hearts and "LOL"s. It's like her parents didn't let her use emoticons at home, so she needed an outlet for winking faces. I was hoping to link to the site, but in the last month it's been refurbished as "Lohan House" which is less pink and more terrifying. Head over there at your own risk.

Anyway, five glorious years ago, any doubts caused by her blog were swept away when "Mean Girls" rolled around. Somehow, despite everything, Lindsay Lohan is an extremely talented actor. Give her some good material and she's golden. "Mean Girls" played up all of Lohan's strengths, showcased her beauty, and is a total comedy classic, thanks to great performances and Tina Fey's writing. So I leave you with a clip that is pretty funny, but also sort of hot. I hope this brought you back to happier times and that you're not too Lindsay-ed out. I'm also sorry I laughed at you that time you got diarrhea at Barnes & Noble.

Reappropriate This 2.0

I'm well over 100 posts in now at good ol' Reappropriate This, and I figured it was time to spice things up (in case my small but true band of readers were tiring of hearing mostly about Sprout). Luckily, my pal Maggie was ready and willing to step in as a guest blogger and provide us with an exciting new monthly (or as long as we stay organized) feature: Celebrity Crush Album. Enjoy her first entry, "My Faux-Bollywood Crush."

[A quick introduction: On March 10th, 2008, I was visiting my parents in the 'burbs and bored out of my gourd. So I sat on our couch and created a Celebrity Crush Album on Facebook, filled to the brim with unrequited love. Some picks were predictable, some were quirky, and I didn't expect too many people to care. However, a fair amount of friends and acquaintances got a kick out of it. Soon the album was filled with their comments, which ranged from agreeable ("stunningly handsome") to oppositional ("I think she's weird-lookin'"). I am honored to have a monthly guest posting on Reappropriate This! My imaginary love life is your reading pleasure.]

A recent celebrity crush of mine is Dev Patel, star of the film Slumdog Millionaire. This comes as a surprise even to me, because I did not like Slumdog Millionaire. I saw it with my mother, who laughed and cried and gasped throughout the whole thing, and generally made me feel as though I have a heart of stone. "Pricelessly original," said the reviews."A buoyant hymn to life!" Even after it won Best Picture I kept my opinion to myself, mostly because I want people to think I have a soul.


But in spite of everything, I have to say I was completely won over by Dev Patel, who played Jamal Malik. This character's got a heart of gold. He is a true mensch (you don't have to be Jewish!) and there's something really attractive about that. Call it Michael Bluth Syndrome or Kevin Arnold Condition but sometimes nice guys finish first in my book. Especially if they're cute in a non-traditional way. Director Danny Boyle chose Patel for this very reason, saying "I wanted a guy who didn't look like a potential hero; I wanted him to earn that in the film."

It also doesn't hurt that he can dance up a storm. My favorite part of the movie was the end credits, which included awesome choreography, music, and titles/graphics. I've probably watched that dance sequence fifteen million times on YouTube. So, due to your character's gumption, your genuine acting talent, your dancing skills, and your hipster physique: Dev Patel, you are my Celebrity Crush of the Month. Congratulations!