BILL CLINTON ON HILLARY FOR PRESIDENT

When former President Bill Clinton speaks I pay attention. I like him, his politics, and his amazing mind. Despite his playing around with other women and my sense of what this has done to Hillary Clinton as a woman, I like him.

Clinton, a few days ago, laughed off what former Vice President Dick Cheney's said about Hillary running for president again. During recent interviews promoting his new book "In My Time," Cheney suggested that Hillary Clinton should run for president in 2012, against Obama..

Cheney's remarks, Cheney selling his new book that defends the wrong things Cheney has done, are almost unbearable, but Bill's response was the response of a seasoned wise professional. He said:

"Well, you know, I'm very proud of her, so I'm always gratified whenever anyone says anything nice about her. And I very much agree that she's done a good job," Clinton told Bob Schieffer on CBS's "Face the Nation."

"But I also have a high regard for Vice President Cheney's political skills, and I think one of those great skills is sowing discord among the opposition. So I think he's right that she's done a heck of a job. But she is a member of this administration, and committed to doing it. And I think he, by saying something nice about her in the way that he did, knew that it might cause a little trouble," Clinton continued.

"I don't want to help him succeed in his political strategy. But I admire that he's still out there hitting the ball."

Here’s the video:

IDOLS

You build them up, and make them kings, queens, leaders, label them number one -- great, The Greatest, favorite, the best. You follow them on Facebook, on Twitter, and take in their words, their doings, approve, disapprove. applaud, ennoble and adore them.

Hey, by writing this, I'm doing it -- playing what I call the " fame name" game. Ears and eyes absorbing news alerts, headlines, gossip -- digesting all of it like essential vitamins.

It's energizing, like a pep bill. Events in an Idol's life are YOUR life too.

So who's actually in the Idol fame game right now? (Don't bother linking to the links, if you're busy with your own idols -- look at my links when you're bored.)

Justin Bieber? (wrote about him last June.)

And J lo? She's getting oldish, but J lo's HOT again right now.

Is Simon the honest, mean creator of American Idol one of your idols? Amazing guy, is he going marry Paula Abdul?

What about Michael Jackson? He's still a vibrating, powerful musical entity, like Elvis.

Oh sure, other names are wafting about -- Sarah Palin looks more beautiful than ever. (Thank God she's biding her time about running for president.) Lindsay Lohan's always good for an OH NO, NOT AGAIN!. I can't help hoping Paris Hilton's fading.

Having Googled, I know the who's are mostest biggest celebs for the moment.

1 Lady Gaga (@ladygaga) 12,516,236 followers SORT OF LIKE HER
2 Justin Bieber 11,737,023 followers DON'T LOVE HIM
3 Barack Obama 9,602,976 followers LIKE HIM A LOT.
4 Katy Perry 9,054,420 followers --DONT 'KNOW WHO SHE IS
5 Britney Spears 8,924,496 followers DON'T LOVE HER
6 Kim Kardashian 8,913,646 followers WHICH "KARDASH" IS SHE?
7 Shakira 7,551,084 followers DON'T KNOW HER
8 Taylor Swift13 7,435,705 followers DON'T KNOW HER
9 Ashton Kutcher 7,386,783 followers BIG SELF-PROMOTER
10 Ellen DeGeneres 7,270,099 followers LIKE HER A LOT
11 Oprah Winfrey 6,994,849 followers DON'T LOVE HER
12 Rihanna 6,761,923 followers NOT INTERESTED
13 Selena Gomez 6,758,557 followers DULL CUTE BORE
16 Justin Timberlake 5,622,163 followers LIKE HIM A LOT

Where's Madonna? No new lover? No new adoptions? And Brangelina -- her with her not believable maternal smile? Is Brad getting fat? I wish he'd move out and re-marry Jennifer A who's aging, alas, quickly.

What about FALLEN IDOLS -- Roger Clemens, Kobe B? And Tiger Woods. (I want Tiger to win again!) And SLIPPING idols -- Mariah Carey, Halle Berry, or FORMER idol Mickey Rooney, and the FOREVER idol, Princess Diana?

Yes, I'm naming the names that have grabbed, are still grabbing, and getting YOU reading this post, wondering what Em's going to say next..

I think the idol game is like climbing up an unstable vine -- you're breaking branches, knocking off twigs and buds as you're clutching and holding on -- yep, you're climbing up an imaginary vine like Jack and the Beanstalk.

Beware -- fee, fi, fo, fum -- it's going nowhere -- it's dumb.

FIXING THINGS (video)

If you are planning to move to New York City, bring your tools.

Why? Because when things break down in New York, you can spend hours and hours trying to get help, get what's not working fixed or replaced -- and things do wear out --windows won't open, doors, walls, ceilings, bathrooms develop problems, appliances break down,

John Cullum describes his recent labors around their home, explaining that you need to know how to jerry-rig things. His advice: " Get a book, and make sure you have tools." Aside from the fact that service people in New York cost anywhere between $80 and $150 an hour, it can take weeks to get a fixer, or a broken part replaced.

FONDA FOREVER

Yes she's amazing. Yes, she looks beautiful. Yes, she knows a lot and she shares it.

Her newly done face bothers me. When comedienne, Carol Burnett, one of TV's most brilliant creative performers, had her face fixed, it bothered me.

A familiar face is familiar -- you do more than recognize it. You are traveling along in your life with a face that's like your own face -- changing (okay, maturing), growing older along with you.

Older --the word doesn't bite, but, well, maybe your attitude does.

The Fonda who has made mistakes, survived, reinvented herself, apologized, I admire. She's a doer. The Fonda with the new face declares strongly she is a doer. Though what she's doing now is more or less the same -- promoting her new book, selling her know-how about love, sex, and exercise.

But it isn't the same. With plastic surgery, she's done something major to herself. Announcing it, she's calling attention to herself in a way that's bound to get extra special attention -- her latest very personal revelations are like stripping off her clothes.

Why? Well, maybe Fonda feels that her exercises (which she's touting as refurbished, updated for an older body) are more important than ever. Maybe because her life as a divorced woman, right now, has been wonderfully enhanced by her younger look-- she feels that she's back in the swim -- breast stroking, floating, gracefully paddling along and doing better than women who are 10 years younger.

Is she? Well, here's the show-biz-wise Em's "yes." Jane Fonda is back in the marketplace for lovers, admirers, fans, jobs.

Personally, I don't really want advice from another woman who had surgery to transform herself. -- to me that means what she was before the surgery bothered her, upset her, depressed her. She's fixed lines in her forehead, bags under her eyes, tautened her cheeks, and neck.. She looks good. (She'll look better to me when her face muscles settle in on the new Fonda.)

But her latest aphorism is "It's much more important to be interested than interesting."

And she's making herself more interesting by talking about sex, and obviously she's looking for work -- leading roles, challenging parts that will enhance her career -- yes, mothers, mother-in-laws, grandmothers, but a younger matriarchal strong woman looks better on film. The camera has a cruel, harsh eye. So maybe more roles, better roles, will be coming her way.

So stop. Shut up, stop complaining, Em -- the New Fonda created by Fonda will keep her working in movies and on the stage.

Maybe what's making me uneasy is ... should I, could I, do I need to do what she's done?

Hmmm.