If you’ve got $25,000 burning a whole in your pocket—and frankly, who doesn’t in this economy—I’ve got the perfect way for you to spend it. No, not by giving it to me, though that would be cool too. You should put in a bid on eBay to win a dinner for five with Sarah and Todd Palin. The auction will start next Tuesday, and bidding will begin at $25K. The proceeds from the auction will go to Ride 2 Recovery, a charity for wounded veterans. If you bid, just hope that Sarah and Todd stay together long enough to make it to your swinging soiree.

If the thought of having dinner with the Palins makes you want to scream, perhaps you’d prefer to bid $7,500 on a lunch with Karl Rove? Anyone? [CNN]

The Vanity Fair “Me and Mrs. Palin” article by Levi Johnston—which he appears to not have “written” so much as dictated to the editors—is the juiciest, gooeyiest, gossipiest smear I’ve ever sunk my teeth into. Did you know Sarah Palin wanted her and the First Dude to secretly adopt Bristol and Levi’s baby, Tripp, so no one would know her teen daughter had been pregnant?!?! Or that Cindy McCain offered to let Bristol and Levi marry at the White House if McCain won?!?! Allegedly.

But beneath all the gossip that supports the theory that, yes, these chuckleheads and their hunting gear are just as ridic as we’ve always thought they were, Levi (and the Vanity Fair editors who approved his piece) tells another story: Sarah Palin is a bad mother and wife. As much as I dislike the Alaskan ex-governor’s character as a politician, that particular story is not one that’s fair to tell.

We’ve never heard of this website AlaskaReport.com, so when they posted on Saturday that Sarah and Todd Palin were on the train bound for Divorceville, we didn’t know what to think. The site claimed that marriage issues were what led Sarah to make her abrupt exit as governor, and that Alaska’s first couple barely spoke before or after Sarah’s resignation speech last weekend. They also claimed that a Palin staffer confirmed the couple was dunzo, and that Sarah had stopped wearing her wedding ring. Oh, and that Sarah had bought some land in Montana, where she’s considering moving with the kids. [Alaska Report]

It took less than a few hours for the Palin camp to chime in. A spokesman posted a message on Sarah’s Facebook account saying, “Yet again, some so-called journalists have decided to make up a story. There is no truth to the recent ‘story’ (and story is the correct term for this type of fiction) that the Palins are divorcing,” read the post. “The Palins remain married [and] committed to each other and their family.” [New York Daily News]

Bristol Palin appeared on “The Today Show” and “Good Morning America” today because it’s the National Day to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, and Palin has signed on to be a national spokeswoman for the Candie’s Foundation. We watched the interviews, and they were equally awkward. On “Today,” Bristol appeared with baby Tripp and her father, Todd. Mostly, she talked about how much work being a mother is, and how it’s a full-time job. While she didn’t practice abstinence, she wants other young women to know how hard it is to be a mother. As for Levi Johnston, Bristol said she wasn’t on “Today” to talk about her personal life, but after an uncomfortable silence and some questioning by Matt Lauer, she said Levi is a part of Tripp’s life, although she wouldn’t say to what extent. The interview unraveled at the end when Todd said, “Sharing Bristol’s experience with other teenagers, the mistake she had here over a year ago, if she could prevent one teenager from getting pregnant, that would be great.” Oops. Todd called Tripp a mistake. 

Actually, Todd seemed less media-savvy than Bristol, which might be why he didn’t accompany Bristol for her “Good Morning America” interview. In addition to doing a one-on-one interview with Chris Cuomo, she appeared with Neil Cole from the Candie’s Foundation. “Just because you’re wearing high-heeled sexy shoes doesn’t mean you should have a baby,” he said. Oooh. Compelling.

Halloween is fun and all, but it can also be expensive, especially since you’ll probably only wear your costume once. So we put together Palin family costumes that can be shopped from your own closet, a thrift store or from the websites we’ve suggested. The trick is to make sure you can reuse certain items, that way the costume is cost-effective and you’ll have a treat for later.

Because Barack Obama and John McCain are stuck in suits most of the time, the only chance we have to see their style is in the accessories. Now, we think some of the lapel pins that the candidates and their wives have been wearing are a little much—we’re in a recession, people, you shouldn’t be wearing so many diamonds, even if they are fake! Michelle Obama has completely nailed her accessories. Sarah Palin, on the other hand, has gone overboard.

The Governor of Alaska and Republican VP hopeful, Sarah Palin, has more drama in her life than the new 90210.  So before Lifetime makes her biopic, we decided to cast this lady’s dramatic life story in the hopes that someday they’ll finally script her personal plight that we’ve all come to know TMI about.  So who would star in this juicy little made-for-TV movie?  Here’s how we at The Frisky would do it!  Now we just have to wait for it to be produced and run in perpetuity next to infomercials for face creams and slicer/dicers…..

Sarah Palin: NRA-supporter Sarah Michelle Gellar is a sharp shooter who grew up around guns….although that’s sorta scary when you realize she was raised in New York City.  Needless to say, Gellar’s gotta be a tough broad who is made for TV and now TV movies. Even though SMG is 13 years Palin’s junior, you know they always cast adult women way younger—that’s the Hollywood magic.  Plus, Buffy’s gone brunette and if you’d slip a pair of wire frame glasses on her, they’d look like sisters.

Thanks to Hurricane Gustav, the Republican National Convention’s “will it or won’t it happen” debate, and Sarah Palin, the media didn’t get much of a holiday this Labor Day, did they? The latter—Sarah Palin, the Governor from Alaska chosen to be Senator John McCain’s running mate—was an especially hot topic this weekend as news broke nearly every hour it seemed with some new revelation. Having spent the weekend absorbing every ounce of coverage on Palin, I woke up this morning with the clear hunch that Palin may end up dropping out of the VP spot this week—but not wanting to rush to judgment, I decided to weigh the various pros and cons of her leaving the race. Place your bets in the comments!