that's also truuuue

In Bulgaria, the same six lottery numbers were drawn twice in a row.

The numbers were:

4, 15, 23, 24, 35, and 42.

Emphasis mine.

One wonders: What are the odds?

But you already know what I'm going to say:

Do not mistake coincidence for fate.

Sandra Lee recut

2009-07-21T14:14:00.000-07:00

This is pretty funny.

youtube video

2009-07-20T18:21:00.000-07:00

I can't remember how I found this.

auto tune the news vol. 6

2009-07-13T17:50:00.000-07:00

Because.

meltdown by rob thomas

2009-07-13T11:37:00.000-07:00

Average video turns awesome.

more LOST

2009-07-02T12:07:00.000-07:00

LOST season 6 will be one episode longer than previously announced.

YAHOO!

(imgs)

bass

2009-06-30T23:23:00.000-07:00

short, great bass video

CUBE

2009-06-24T08:11:00.000-07:00

I recommend CUBE.

auto-tune the news

2009-06-22T22:06:00.000-07:00

I have yet to see auto-tune used for something better than this.

triumph triumph

2009-06-22T16:29:00.000-07:00

part 1:

part 2:

nip/tuck spinoffs

2009-06-20T12:34:00.000-07:00

I caught up on part two of Nip/Tuck's fifth season. The relationships still evolve like those in a soap opera - every time I think they've exhausted every ridiculous possibility, I'm invariably surprised again. Some of the episodes from this portion have been pretty impressive, though, recalling the design of the show's golden years that engendered its palpable empathy.

Still, Nip/Tuck wouldn't be Nip/Tuck without some obligatory sensationalism, and the hit-or-miss inclusion of "contemporary issues" sparked further investigation. Here are two that reminded me of stuff worth sharing.

Number one: Objectum sexuality. People who love objects instead of other people.

This is Erika Eiffel, a woman who "married" the Eiffel Tower. Dietz told me a few weeks ago about a documentary he'd seen featuring a world-class archer who was in love with her bow, but broke up with her bow (Lance) and married the Eiffel Tower. I found these chunks of it on youtube, albeit peppered with peanut-gallery annotations.

Number two: Cryonics. Not an entirely new idea, but it seemed like Nip/Tuck did a pretty good job portraying its specious econoscientific status.

The dubiety in the episode reminded me of an broadcast of This American Life I heard a couple of months ago. If you have 45 minutes to kill, it's absolutely worth a listen. The episode is about half-assed apologies, but the central story focuses on a guy named Bob Nelson of the Cryonics Society of California and his involvement with cryonics around the 1970s. The story devolves into a bizarre, heartbreaking, disturbing mess.

http://thislife.org/Radio_Episode.aspx?episode=354

Skip the boring first portion, but after the cryonics story, keep listening to the last section for a nice relief. It's about a famous poem (and homages to it), "This Is Just to Say" by William Carlos Williams, that's rooted semi-apology. And it makes me hungry for plums.

(img, img, img, img)

it makes me wanna fart

2009-06-11T16:45:00.000-07:00

Great article from College Humor:

10 Fictional Camps You Do Not Want To Send Your Kids To

I love that they included this one:

From The Addams Family Values
This camp's screening process is questionable at best. When the Addams children apply to enroll in your summer camp, and it looks like they really don't want to be there, chances are you should let them leave. With a lifestyle that seems at least mostly detached from reality, there is a good chance that forcing them to remain at Camp Chippewa will cause illogically timed Thanksgiving pageants to be ruined and children to be physically threatened.

Children locked up and tortured: 3

People rotisseried: 2Another scary camp:

Add it to the list.

a Tedeschi that I AM related to

2009-06-02T14:49:00.000-07:00

My Great Aunt Jane:

Short article. Pretty awesome.

silk surprise

2009-05-29T07:42:00.000-07:00

I wish the article said how long it took for this to happen.
(via)

a trend.

2009-05-20T08:49:00.000-07:00

23 years ago, an amateur fossil hunter discovered something in a fossil pit near Whocares, Germany. For reasons unknown (my guess is he's a jerk), he kept it a secret until three years ago when he decided he wanted some money (probably bet against the Steelers). He sold the object via a third party to a Norwegian paleontologist for an undisclosed, less-than-one-million-dollars amount. The object was kept a secret so it could be studied closely.

Until yesterday.

The object:

Darwinius masillae, or "Ida."

The Internet:

crapping its pants.

Seems like guy-with-line-through-the-o-in-his-name wanted to earn back some of that undisclosed, less-than-one-million-dollars amount, because the scientific paper on Ida was released in tandem with an enormous publicity campaign including a jazzy website and some ridiculous quotes. Hurum says,
"It is the scientific equivalent of the Holy Grail. This fossil will probably be the one that will be pictured in all textbooks for the next 100 years."He also compared the future museum display to the Mona Lisa (which, of course, it will remain for the next 100 years). Even the guy who narrates Planet Earth needs a change of underwear.

Point: This is a great discovery. The hyperbolic reaction just needs some abating.

That said, I look forward to learning more about my great Aunt Ida

and the continued webwide reaction to her discovery.

great graph

2009-05-18T09:50:00.000-07:00

Graph about topic trends:

It will also hold true for trending discussions of trending topics.
(via)

the world must know

2009-05-07T09:02:00.000-07:00

The other night, while we were waiting for LOST, Phelps mentioned a new NBC show called Community that was to star Chevy Chase.

Curious about Chase's recent activity, I ordered Phelps to connect his computer to my skull to find out his last TV or movie appearance of note that I remembered. We determined that technology would not yet allow such an action, so he used IMDb. 1997's Vegas Vacation was the winner, but we ended up not caring about that once the following sequence of ludicrous discovery was initialized.

Chase is starring in an upcoming (?) 2009 film called Not Another Not Another Movie. The ridiculous title and its spoof-movie-spoof implications seized our full attention.

The IMDb summary:In this non- stop hilarious ride we follow a struggling Movie Studio that is willing to do anything to make a buck even if it means ruining its reputation, and running the Movie Industry into the ground. This film has everything that an audience wants from a LAUGH OUT LOUD COMEDY by taking a no-holds barred attack on the Spoof Genre from Blockbuster Action movies to Dramas and Documentaries to Popular Television shows. --Written by David MurphyI clicked David Murphy's name to see if he had written any other summaries. No dice.

Returning to the IMDb page, we noticed that the film also stars Vinnie Jones, Michael Madsden, and Burt "Cop and a Half" Reynolds.

Additionally, we noticed that the movie was directed by a one David Murphy. I didn't recognize any of his other titles, but I did recognize his name from 30 seconds earlier when I read the IMDb plot summary.

Quick sidebar: Here is the plot summary for his most recent movie, No Bad Days:

Set in the exotic terrain of the Yucatan Peninsula, NO BAD DAYS is an action/adventure film that manifests all the qualities that make for an entertaining and captivating film. The fast-pace style makes for a surprise at every turn, while the charisma and chemistry of the main characters create a romantic subplot. [etc. etc.]
-- Written by Instinct ProductionsGuess what production company made No Bad Days.

Back to the more important, possibly most-important-of-all-time movie. We traveled to its official website. Just go there--it's all gold. Make sure to check the "in the news" section.

The movie is about the creation of a spoof movie that spoofs spoof movies. Reynolds plays the actor playing the director in the movie in the movie, and his character is none too pleased about starring in a shoddy spoof spoof.

Later that night, we found the trailer.

I am concerned that Not Another Not Another Movie will be terrible. I was excited about Pauly Shore is Dead, and we all know how that turned out. I wouldn't expect much from a movie like this, either. Regardless, the sky-high concept and ingenious marketing approach is enough to warrant a try, if only so I can be in on the joke.

The only release date the internet has to offer is "2009." We may have already missed it. If not, I hope there's a midnight premiere planned. Because I'll be there.

great movie lines

2009-05-06T13:58:00.000-07:00

not bad.

CLEVELAND

2009-05-04T07:06:00.001-07:00

nuke the phones

2009-05-03T06:43:00.000-07:00

Man microwaves cell phone.

zen lunatics

2009-04-24T12:53:00.000-07:00

bike race

2009-04-24T11:21:00.000-07:00

benjamin linus slam poetry

2009-04-22T13:01:00.000-07:00

Thank you Charles!

via pie heaven

the mark inside

2009-04-22T08:39:00.000-07:00

I finally watched Naked Lunch with commentary by David C-berg and Peter "Robocop" Weller... it was beautifully revealing, if incredibly dense. If you don't know the movie, it's about a writer/exterminator who becomes addicted to insecticide and, after he shoots his wife and his typewriter turns into a beetle, starts descending a bottomless, hallucinatory hole, seeking bizarre replacement fixes to vindicate his behavior.

I haven't read the book yet--the movie itself is only loosely based on it, while the rest is taken either from Burroughs's life and other work or Cronenberg's own brain. I'm fascinated by anything Burroughs I've encountered thus far--even his idiosyncratic voice, which Cronenberg describes as "metallic, nasal, Midwestern twang."

Two examples:

Recently featured on boing boing, an animation by some guy using a Burroughs audio clip:

And the striking opening to season 6 of The Sopranos. I could watch this over and over again.

screenwriting lemonadier whines about film industry

2009-04-22T06:20:00.000-07:00

A wiseass writer in Hollywood is selling lemonade to finance his probably terrible film. (He's also using the above photo that he found on the internet to market his concoction.)

Not since Hollis Frampton's Lemon have filmmaking and the yellowest citrus cooperated with such harmony.

is everything more awesome in slow motion?

2009-04-21T13:57:00.000-07:00

This video got such an enthusiastic response from Twitter fanatic Ram Calley on facebook that I decided to post it here.
Graphic Content Advisory Warning

seriously, not youtube

2009-04-18T07:51:00.000-07:00

Sick of youtube?

For a refreshing alternative, visit notyoutube.com.

A wolf loves pork.

2009-04-16T06:05:00.000-07:00

Amazing. Watch it all.

just in case

2009-04-15T16:40:00.000-07:00

The place has other shirts, too.

the tone matrix

2009-04-15T13:18:00.000-07:00

Coolest thing on the entire internet:

Tone Matrix

appy polly loggies

2009-04-14T07:34:00.001-07:00

Love to continue updating, but I need to practice now.

nice package

2009-04-14T07:30:00.000-07:00

What is this?

Why, it's one of 20 Unusual and Creative Packaging Designs, of course.

RC & co. sing ABC

2009-04-08T11:04:00.000-07:00

ithacurban

2009-04-08T09:40:00.000-07:00

I was perusing the job section of Ithaca's craigslist page and found an ad recruiting staff for an Urban Outfitters that's to open in Ithaca this summer. As I understand, the only UOs in New York State are either buried in the city or in the Galleria Mall in Buffalo. I had never been to one before last month at the Mall of America in Minnesota - I liked it very much. I even took a picture.

I did some searching to confirm the craigslist ad and found an article from the Cornell Daily Sun.

So it's true. But two things in that article caught my eye:
Allie Strauss ’11 agreed. “I think nothing better has ever happened in Ithaca,” she said.and
“The reason I liked Yale so much is because there was an Urban Outfitters right in town,” Brooke Flohr ’12 said. “Now I have no regrets left about coming to Cornell.”Either Cornell students are becoming exponentially more insane, or the CDS staff doesn't care if their articles are stuffed with just-say-anything filler quotes. Anyway, I bought a shot glass ice cube mold and a square of grass. The clothes are expensive there.

wall decoration for anti-dentites

2009-04-07T18:02:00.000-07:00

Charles, buy this poster.

There's a reference key and everything.
(via)

good video

2009-04-07T16:22:00.000-07:00

eggs perfecto

2009-04-07T15:41:00.000-07:00

Adam, try this.

(yt)
(via)

I don't think I know what crème fraîche is, but it looks good.

Also, if you're as tired of not being able to eat the colored part of an easter egg as I am, try this.

(via)

U2 can make a deal

2009-04-07T05:43:00.001-07:00

Found in the away message of DC shutterbug pal Sanjay:

Hiroshi Sugimoto’s No Cash Deal With U2

When I first saw the headline, I thought it meant U2 was trying to use the photo with no compensation. Not so, but I'll get to that. Then I saw the part about
“I said, ‘Are you sure? If you use it you won’t be able to put anything on top of it, not even the U2 name,” the artist remembered.and I recalled what the cover looked like:

Actually, the equals sign is just on the plastic wrapper, not the real "cover." (Why would they do that?)

Also, the U2-haters at Pitchfork were quick to the punch earlier this year in sort-of accusing U2 of copying someone else's idea.

The point is, instead of monetary payment, Sugimoto gets to use a U2 song in a project for whatever he wants. Cool idea.

Here is said song, a grab-bag sample of U2's histrionic mediocrity.

img

my 4/1

2009-04-01T13:05:00.000-07:00

Last night, per Anne's suggestion, I bought a 72-pack of party balloons from Wal-Mart. I was going to put them in Caitlin's car, because she hates balloons, but I had to abort that plan at around 1 in the morning... after I'd blown them all up (Hansen helped) and stuffed them into my own car, including in the trunk.

This morning, I drove to Caitlin's house when she was at work. It was locked.

I drove around some more, trying to think of who else I could surprise. I even stopped at the swim house and walked around inside; nobody was home, save one person who was using the shower. I figured it'd've been too weird if he walked out of the bathroom and saw me parading around his house with handfuls of balloons.

I was ready to admit an ironic defeat... my car was filled with balloons

and it was probably going to stay that way. Happy April Fools' Day, me.

Then I got a message a half-hour before Caitlin was supposed to return--it was her roommate, telling me I could come and execute the prank. Now or never, I thought, and sprang into action.

10 minutes later,

and
.
I know it doesn't look like that many. They were supposed to go in her car.

About 20 minutes after I left, I got this message:

"I want you to know i cut open each one individually so they wouldn't pop. Because you know i am terrified of balloons and its not funny. Payback."

Yeah, well, it could be worse:

While I'm at it, some more balloon-related content.

(the original danny deckchair. I reviewed a play based on this guy at Syracuse last month)

youtube classic:

the illustrious don hertzfeldt:

a link, because Discovery on YouTube does not allow embedding, to the ever popular slow-mo water balloon to the face:

[here you can pretend there's a link to one of the innumerable youtube videos of scantily clad women blowing up large balloons until they pop]

and some excellent balloon related games:
Bloons
Bloons Tower Defense 3

finally, one more documentation from Caitlin's roommate.

"Before"

"After"

4/1

2009-04-01T11:30:00.000-07:00

rule of the internet - good websites will do something funny on april 1

youtube has a new format, explained here

wikipedia is featuring the Musem of Bad Art and says that
... a team of archaeologists discovered a fossilized Han Solo in the rocks of Chinagoogle has introduced gmail autopilot
(probably nobody remembers this)

the pirate bay has partnered with warner brothers

maddox, who has altered his website thrice previously, didn't do anything because he has jury dury.

college humor has pretended to be taken over by axe, which should not count as a prank

I don't think pitchfork did anything, but they really liked trent reznor's prank

that covers all I can think of offhand.. if you need more, I suppose you can go here.

also, in unrelated news, LOSTpedia says that in a "shockingly quiet press release yesterday," it's been announced that M. Night Shymalan will direct the series finale. that probably means Jack has been dead this whole time, which I KEEP TELLING EVERYONE

update on what I did today forthcoming

culture barometer

2009-03-27T06:50:00.000-07:00

Search for something, anything. See where and when people are conducting that same search.
Examples:

Pennsylvania is the state that most often searches for "cheesesteak."

There's a spike in LOST searches right around the premiere and the finale every year.

Infinite possibility!

more daft punk

2009-03-12T22:23:00.000-07:00

Idaft: a straightforward website toy for daft punk fans

widened colum

2009-03-12T09:54:00.000-07:00

Thanks to John Deere Mom, my main column is 240 pixels wider.

VCR hackery

2009-03-12T09:32:00.000-07:00

Adam loves this video.

(yt)

dusty foot philosopher

2009-03-12T08:49:00.000-07:00

I heard piece on the radio about a Somali-Canadian rapper named K'naan.
I like his style. The content could use some development (90% of it seems to recurrently lament Somalian street life) - but his delivery and his voice are what hook me. He's got a pretty interesting story, too - he taught himself how to rap, imitating American artists he admired, before he learned English. I like the song "Dreamer" from his new album, Troubadour, the fourth one down at his website. You can download the song "Somalia" for free at his myspace page.
img

dwarfed punk

2009-03-11T21:18:00.001-07:00

Nicely done.

sturgeon faces

2009-03-11T20:57:00.000-07:00

Bad comparison... good website. Check it out before it finishes making the rounds and flitters into obsolescence.

img

wiki

2009-03-04T09:59:00.000-08:00

I went on a wikipedia rampage the other night that led me somewhere worth mentioning. I didn't save any of it, so I'll have to do it from memory.

It all started when I was playing Guitar Hero. I finally beat "Hot for Teacher" on expert in World Tour.
I was so happy I decided to go online.

I looked up "Hot for Teacher" in Google and found its Wikipedia page.
That led me to the article about the album that the song is from,
where I learned that
1984 peaked at #2 on the Billboard Magazine album charts (#1 at the time was Thriller, which featured an Eddie Van Halen guitar solo on "Beat It," which Roth had criticized[1]) and contained future hits "Jump", "Panama", "I'll Wait", and "Hot for Teacher".So I clicked on the link for Thriller
and went right to the page for Michael Jackson. Look, there he is!
Incidentally, this picture was taken in 1984. Anyway, I promise this is going somewhere. From the lede of the MJ article:
In the early 1980s, he became a dominant figure in popular music and the first African-American entertainer to amass a strong crossover following on MTV."Crossover" was linked. So I clicked on it. Interesting article, though it could use some work. Third graf:In practice crossover frequently results from the appearance of the music in question in a film soundtrack. For instance, Sacred Harp music experienced a spurt of crossover popularity as a result of its appearance in the 2003 film Cold Mountain, and bluegrass music experienced a revival due to the reception of 2000's O Brother, Where Art Thou?. Even atonal music, which tends to be less popular among classical enthusiasts, has a kind of crossover niche, since it is widely used in film and television scores "to depict an approaching menace," as noted by Charles Rosen[citation needed]Okay, here we go. That Sacred Harp thing they mention does not mean harp music that is religiously pointed; it's actually... wait, what the hell is it?
Well, it's a type of choral Shape Note music, something to do with solfège, but I know when Wikipedia offers me more to bite off than I can chew. The good stuff is in the Sacred Harp article. I can't quote the entire thing, but for example:
Sacred Harp singers view their tradition as a participatory one, not a passive one. Those who gather for a singing sing for themselves and for each other, and not for an audience...

...The leader, being equidistant from all sections, in principle hears the best sound. The often intense sonic experience of standing in the center of the square is considered one of the perquisites of leading, and sometimes a guest will be invited as a courtesy to stand next to the leader during a song.

The music itself is also meant to be participatory. Most forms of choral composition place the melody on the top (treble) line, where it can be best heard by an audience, with the other parts written so as not to obscure the melody. In contrast, Sacred Harp composers have aimed to make each musical part singable and interesting in its own right, thus giving every singer in the group an absorbing task.That's all. Kind of makes me want to rent Cold Mountain, but why bother when everything I want is...yes, I know you're thinking the same thing.

image

FAIL FAIL

2009-03-04T07:54:00.000-08:00

Someone is a genius. At failsticker.com, you can buy rolls of stickers that say "FAIL" just like on photos on the internet. Here's an example from their "user-submitted photos":
Hilarious. It says FAIL on the toilet. The site is fairly young, so I imagine someone just went around their house and stuck a sticker somewhere in each room, but I really hope this goes nowhere. I'm all for internet jokes--but they should stay where they came from. I accept that in the future, every time someone drops a plate of food at a restaurant there will be someone (probably someone young and hip) pridefully smirking for their being the first to offer a spoken "FAIL" ... but I don't have to like it.

swimsuits part 2

2009-03-04T06:52:00.000-08:00

Here's what they said at the FINA meeting:
Based on FINA's proposals and contributions discussed at the meeting, the FINA Bureau at its meeting on March 12-14, 2009 in Dubai (UAE) will consider amendments which include:
• DESIGN: The swimsuit shall not cover the neck and shall not extend past the shoulders nor past the ankles;
• MATERIAL:
o The material used shall have a maximum thickness of 1mm;
o When used, the material shall follow the body shape;
o The application of different materials shall not create air trapping effects;
• BUOYANCY: The swimsuit shall not have a buoyancy effect of more than 1 Newton (100gr);
• CONSTRUCTION: Any system providing external stimulation or influence of any form (e.g. pain reduction, chemical/medical substance release, electro-stimulation) is prohibited;
• CUSTOMISATION: All swimsuits of an approved model must be constructed in an identical fashion with no variation/modification for individual swimmers from the samples submitted for approval;
• USE: The swimmer can only wear one swimsuit at a time;
• CONTROL: FINA will establish its own independent control/testing programme. Scientific testing will be conducted by a team led by Prof. Jan-Anders Manson, from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL) and Laboratory of Polymer and Composite Technology;
• APPROVAL: Swimwear manufacturers will be able to make submissions for approval of swimsuits until March 31, 2009. I like that they bring up customization - I think that's directly where things were headed next. And no "air trapping effects" probably means no more Blue Seventy. One other thing, though: There's no mention of availability, which they said would be a topic they'd cover at the meeting last month. Lack of availability from distributors and even manufacturers, let alone the astronomical cost, was probably the main cause for concern this year.

so-called technical swimsuits

2009-03-02T06:59:00.000-08:00

Well, now that most conferences' championship meets are over, the NCAA has released a memorandum categorically explicating their position on so-called so-called technical swimsuits.
A snip:
Since the NCAA does not currently have the capability to test swimsuits, and since there seemingly is no discernible justification for treating any one technical suit differently from any other for purposes of use at intercollegiate competition, the committees have decided to permit all technical swimsuits for all 2009 NCAA swimming and diving championships.Okay. That is a steaming pile of nothing. Their logic says that since they can't test the suits, there is no reason to even consider disallowing any of them. They actually held a committee/staff teleconference to make this hollow, unspecific, see-no-evil "decision."
You could argue that it's FINA's fault for largely ignoring the enormous proliferation of sport-changing competition wear, but the NCAA can't just claim helplessness and pin responsibility on the higher-ups. If FINA isn't doing anything, the NCAA should take some initiative. It's fine that the suits are allowed at nationals this year - no reason to change mid-season. And I don't think the suits should be banned, necessarily - not my decision to make. But between now and next winter, I think it's reasonable to expect both FINA and the NCAA to explain a little further about what exactly is allowed and what isn't. As precisely as they explain the rules about, oh, I don't know, maybe something trivial, like the manufacturer's logo on those suits?
We also would like to take this opportunity to remind the membership that, per NCAA Bylaw 12.5.4, “a student-athlete’s institution’s official uniform (including numbered racing bibs and warm-ups) and all other items of apparel (e.g., socks, head bands, T-shirts, wrist bands, visors or hats, swim caps and towels) shall bear only a single manufacturer’s or distributor’s normal label or trademark (regardless of the visibility of the label or trademark), not to exceed 2¼ square inches in area (rectangle, square, parallelogram) including any additional material (e.g., patch) surrounding the normal trademark or logo.” As we prepare for the championships, it is important that everyone is in compliance with this bylaw and it is the individual participants’ and institutions’ ultimate responsibility to adhere to the bylaw. Division I institutions are reminded also to review NCAA Bylaw 31.1.7 pertaining to bench personnel. A violation of these bylaws will result in a report being sent to NCAA Enforcement.
Yes! Just like that! A detailed and no-nonsense description of the rules, and it's for something that nobody actually cares about! Hold as many teleconferences as it takes, NCAA - if it means an actual decision, we can wait.

UPDATE: I poked around FINA's site and found this. It's not bad. I'll be watching for what happens at the Bureau meeting in Dubai this month.

crazy ass goose

2009-02-20T05:22:00.001-08:00

paul steps with left foot

2009-02-20T05:21:00.000-08:00

I will probably be one of these tourists one day.

a-choo / raisins

2009-02-17T11:14:00.000-08:00

Steve from The Sneeze, easily one of my favorite blogs, has been updating regularly after a long and painful break. Highlights:

What I Did On My Christmas Vacation
Over the next two days in NY, his ankle got swollen and red and he started running a fever. Obviously I was getting concerned because, basically, I had a lot of fun stuff planned with my friends.Raisins 2008
Every year for the past three years, Steve has given his son raisins for Christmas (don't worry, it's not his only gift) and documented the reaction.

A good video his friend's friend made (the first friend is one of the guys from Mythbusters) that I will embed:

(A link for high quality version.)

busty knockout

2009-02-09T08:22:00.001-08:00

As anyone would, I reacted to Sarah's story with an tinge of skepticism... but it's true: Beware the Ugandan Motorboat. What is a motorboat, you ask?
The shakedown: A buxom woman applies chloroform to her chest and goes to a bar. She chats up a man, takes him to a secluded place and offers to let him perform a motorboat. The man passes out and she collects his wallet. It's almost too easy.

broken picture telephone

2009-02-08T18:31:00.001-08:00

Anne's perennial favorite drinking game has a name... and a website.

Looks like it's been getting a lot of (deserved) traffic lately, so it might be loading slowly. It's still excellent... and addicting.

bale posted

2009-02-06T20:27:00.000-08:00

By now you've probably seen or heard this:

But here's what I'll bet you didn't know. I wanted to find out who the Welsh prima donna was hissy fitting at, so I looked up the DP for Terminator Salvation. His name is Shane Hurlburt and he grew up in Ithaca, New York--though he didn't go to IC or Cornell. Fascinating.

terse review

2009-02-05T15:57:00.000-08:00

I watched Vantage Point on Netflix Instant viewer.
Verdict: Terrible.
Don't see this. If you're at all intrigued by the premise, if you're the biggest LOST fan in the world, or if you think the trailer couldn't possibly advertise anything less than a great popcorn action flick, don't see this. Do see it if you're looking for an example of the absolute swill that some studios are willing to finance. There's a a protagonist who accomplishes jack shit thanks to a flock of other unsympathetic temp leads, a tepid rewinding gimmick too bland to detail, and more uninspired twists than I could keep track of. Why anyone would even mention this garbage in the same sentence as Rashomon is beyond me.

But man... what a great trailer. "Stop! REWIND THAT."
Even won an award.

hot dog

2009-02-04T09:58:00.001-08:00

Here is a hot dog that Anne cooked when she was camping once. Then she put it on an apple to aid in presentation:
When she awoke the next morning, someone had eaten it, but apparently not before it won first prize in a competition for funny-looking fruit-paired hot dogs.

road lines

2009-02-04T09:31:00.000-08:00

How long are the yellow lines on a road?
Take a guess. Then look at the answer.
(Photo of street art by Bansky)

drive cake

2009-02-04T09:11:00.000-08:00

Probably the most hilarious thing that you or I will see today:

A cake place frosted the image OF a USB jump drive on a cake instead of the image IN the USB jump drive. Gold!

theatre review

2009-02-03T07:40:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago I saw and reviewed "I Become a Guitar," a lovely new play about a boy who wants to be a guitar starring as his father the guy who thanks Jerry's dermatologist girlfriend for saving him from skin cancer in "The Slicer," one of my favorite Seinfeld episodes.
Seriously, though, there was a little tear-welling going on at the end of this one -- the Kitchen Theatre's streak of great material is still running. I just signed on to see a bunch more, so that'll be fun.

obvious advice is obvious

2009-02-03T07:00:00.000-08:00

Do not eat these

while you're at your computer. There will be little white pellets stuck under my B, K, and W until I've smashed the keys hard enough to pulverize the sugar.

Also, you probably shouldn't let one of these near your computer, either.

Sucker looks like he could do some damage.

name change

2009-02-03T06:19:00.000-08:00

That filthy, despicable varmint Charles Swaz has changed his website's address. This is it:

http://thecuisinart.com/

It looks much better, actually. Pears are a nice touch. Maybe I should try wordpress.

ball gymnastics

2009-02-02T20:46:00.000-08:00

Found in away message:

High quality in link.

Stockton Borealis gets a blog

2009-02-02T09:41:00.000-08:00

The illustrious, elusive, and multitalented Charles Swaz has launched a website for writing. Here it is:

The CuisinArt

First order of business (after the skyrocket in popularity following this post) should be sending a cease and desist letter to the annoyingly similarly named kitchen appliance company.

super bowl funny guy

2009-02-02T09:38:00.000-08:00

J-Walk gets silly from time to time. Yesterday he live-blogged the Super Bowl.

2:10 pm - The two teams playing in this game are The Pittsburgh Cardinals and the Arizona Steelers. They are equally matched, and both teams won the same number of games this season: 67.

angioplasty staduim

2009-02-02T09:16:00.000-08:00

Didn't get around to it yesterday, but I still wanted to post this:

You're looking at an early step in the creation of a monumental, edible (monumedible?) snacking arena:
"The twinkie is nature's brick."

An additional link found on the (very funny) holy taco front page:
10 Very Good Reasons Why You Should Grow a Giant Beard

cutting plastic

2009-01-28T07:29:00.001-08:00

Don't you hate buying something and having to risk life and limb just to open the darn thing? Well, you're in luck!

You might want to buy one before you buy one, though:

star wars retold

2009-01-18T15:41:00.000-08:00

Also found at neatorama, a funny star wars video:

Star Wars: Retold (by someone who hasn't seen it) from Joe Nicolosi on Vimeo.

I bet it's the Joe Nicolosi who went to IC. I saw some of his animations at screenings and it seems like his style. Cool. Bonus point for the Wilhelm Scream when Lando gets speared.

lunchbreak hallucination

2009-01-13T17:50:00.000-08:00

Anne mentioned this, and then I saw it on neatorama. This is your brain on ping pong balls:

piano player video

2009-01-13T17:19:00.001-08:00

This girl is pretty good,

for a person with only two fingers on each hand.

buffalo snorkeling

2009-01-10T04:02:00.000-08:00

Sister sent me this picture in an e-mail forward. It had the caption "Snorkeling in Buffalo, NY / Alcohol may have been involved"

Thanks, Jess.

minimalism

2009-01-09T17:13:00.000-08:00

Cool minimalism:

A bench.

Related: "I'm with the band"

litigious colombians

2009-01-07T15:48:00.000-08:00

This is bullshit: The Colombian Coffee Growers Federation wants to sue a cartoonist for at least $20 million dollars for making a joke about their stupid slogan. The offending strip:

It's called Mother Goose and Grimm by Mike Peters. This was from January 2.

great for watching football on tv

2009-01-03T10:42:00.000-08:00

"What the hell is wrong with me?"
~Sandra Lee's brain once she starts pouring

wrote update

2008-12-27T11:05:00.000-08:00

I updated the other blog - I hadn't since September. Now I'm exhausted. I crossed the 50-article mark, though, so I guess that's pretty cool.

2008 mashup

2008-12-27T06:17:00.000-08:00

DJ Earworm's United State of Pop. I enjoyed this more than any of the songs it contains. Check out the facebook link on his home page for a super high quality video.

almost forgot - here's his mashup from 2007:

Tabula Rasa

2008-12-27T06:16:00.000-08:00

Hello, and hell with catching up on links. I'm starting over.

Earnest

2008-07-29T14:24:00.000-07:00

Look at this guy.

delicious pringles

2008-07-07T20:48:00.001-07:00

This is hilarious. Officially, legally, Pringles are not potatoes.

another airplane

2008-07-07T12:38:00.000-07:00

Bender is learning how to fly this thing.

Bender rules.

from philadelphia

2008-06-20T12:36:00.000-07:00

Check that out:

Airplanes are baffling - look how slow that propeller is moving!

batch

2008-02-10T17:22:00.000-08:00

Some links that have been growing mold, yearning to be shared..

Number one:

HeatEatReview.
Kid Cuisine Deep Sea Adventure Fish Sticks gets zero stars on this frozen-dinner review site. Great idea. I don't often eat frozen dinners, but I condone them.

Next:

Bach's Tocata in Fugue in D Minor.
Found via the Duke. Once you start watching these things, you won't be able to stop.

And finally:

Remembrance of Tacos Past. A nice article about the pleasures of junky Taco Bell food.

That's all.

first post back

2008-01-11T21:06:00.000-08:00

I returned to Ithaca from Puerto Rico. Here's David Lynch.

derren brown

2007-12-26T09:06:00.001-08:00

Cory Doctorow was hypnotized into buying Derren Brown's dvd.

Don't trust this guy.

Check out some of his youtube videos. He's talented at something, but openly admits that he may or may not be full of shit.

finally

2007-12-24T20:46:00.000-08:00

Click here if you're wondering if it's Christmas.

good gift for jayman

2007-12-24T08:35:00.002-08:00

A sweet toaster.

Picture courtesy of Erin.

bills video

2007-12-23T15:35:00.000-08:00

The Bills lost today, but there is still this video.

si inout de

2007-12-20T15:34:00.000-08:00

Here is the taco bell logo... and the taco bell logo inside out! More here.

Know what this reminds me of?

three-article news roundup

2007-12-20T15:10:00.000-08:00

a step forward

a step backward

a (fortunate) sidestep

poached eggs

2007-12-20T10:03:00.000-08:00

I come across this article every few months, and I read it every time.

christmas joke

2007-12-20T05:38:00.000-08:00

J-Walk told me to post this joke (and to credit the source).

A man in Chicago calls his son in New York the day before Christmas and says, "I hate to ruin Christmas this year, but I have to tell you that your mother and I are divorcing; forty-five years of misery is enough."

"Pop, what are you talking about?" the son screams. "We can't stand the sight of each other any longer," the father says. "We're sick of each other, and I'm sick of talking about this, so you call your sister in Atlanta and tell her."

Frantic, the son calls his sister, who explodes on the phone. "Like hell they're getting divorced," she shouts, "I'll take care of this."

She calls Chicago immediately, and screams at her father, "You are NOT getting divorced. Don't do a single thing until I get there. I'm calling my brother back and we'll both be there tomorrow. Until then, don't do a thing, DO YOU HEAR ME?" and hangs up.

The old man hangs up his phone and turns to his wife. "Okay," he says, "they're coming for Christmas and paying their own way."

pitchfork list

2007-12-19T08:15:00.000-08:00

December means Pitchfork's end-of-year lists (including best 50 music videos and worst 20 albums covers). I didn't listen to much new music this year, so I recognize about four albums on the top 50 list. Still, they're fun to read... even though Era Vulgaris is nowhere to be found.

Also, did I discover a coincidence or is the money-wallpaper thing common in rap album covers?

no diamonds

2007-12-18T14:36:00.000-08:00

I knew if I ever made a blog I'd post this link. Judge for yourself:

"Ten Reasons Why You Should Never Accept a Diamond Ring from Anyone, Under Any Circumstances, Even If They Really Want to Give You One"