Top 5 Daily

15 Albums

2010-09-03T02:05:00.011-05:00

I got involved in this internet meme about picking the 15 albums that will stick with you. I took it to mean not just my favorite albums, but ones which were important to me during certain times in my life and which I have never had any type of shame about liking. These are the ones I still recommend to others and get excited to talk about when I find other fans.

The Bargos Steeler - The 4 Position - from Classic Steve

The Beach Boys - Sloop John B - from Pet Sounds

The Beastie Boys - Car Thief - from Paul's Boutique

Braid - American Typewriter - from The Age of Octeen

Johnny Cash - Orange Blossom Special - from At Fulsom Prison

Miles Davis - Jeru - from The Birth of the Cool

Dexys Midnight Runners - There There My Dear - from Searching for the Young Soul Rebels

Dianogah - Eating Cake - from Battle Champions

Stan Getz & João Gilberto - Doralice - from Gets/Gilberto

Honcho Overload - Molasses - from Pour Another Drink

Men Without Hats - Antarctica - from Rythm of Youth

Pixies - Hey - from Doolittle

Elvis Presley - Hound Dog - from Live at Madison Square Garden

Refused - New Noise - from The Shape of Punk to Come

Tortoise - The Suspension Bridge at Iguazú Falls - from TNT

409 - Walk Don't Run

2009-09-03T23:36:00.000-05:00

408 - Secret Movie

2009-02-20T01:25:00.003-06:00

American Movie, To Catch a Thief, In Bruges or I'm Not There next Tuesday projected by me for your entertainment. Check it out.

407 - Twenty Seconds or So

2009-02-17T23:42:00.001-06:00

406 - Go See a Star War

2009-01-15T23:20:00.001-06:00

405 - Blue Notes

2008-11-27T12:26:00.010-06:00

1. Miles Ahead
I bookmarked this article about Reid Miles, the chief graphic designer for Blue Note Records in the 50s and 60s ages ago. The work this guy did was super influential, defining the blue note style for years to come and spreading out to influence graphic designers of all types.

2. The Message
In my opinion, the archetypical Blue Not album cover featured a black and white photograph overlayed with a solid color. A vertical bar of the same color ran across the image with bold text over it. My next favorite type of cover reversed that formula by expanding the text, making it the main focus of the design with a smaller band of photographic images. There are online archives which allow us to examine decades worth of Blue Note covers. These two design concepts recurr continuously, but never manage to seem cliche or boring.

3. Miles Above
When it comes to the music on these records, though I obviously haven't heard them all and am not really a Jazz expert, my favorite is from the Miles Davis and Milt Jackson Quintet/Sextet. I bought this record at a church sale years ago and listened to it nonstop for months. Eventually I bought it on CD and sold the LP on ebay for peanuts.

404 - Stop Sylvia

2008-11-03T09:42:00.004-06:00

1. Stop Sylvia
It should be noted that the old Stop Sylvia Browne domain name expired while site-administrator, Robert Lancaster, was in the hospital. A suspected domain broker immediately purchased the name and is offering it back for $20,000...

Therefore, the entire site has been moved to stopsylvia.com.

403 - T-shirts

2008-10-04T11:51:00.006-05:00

1. WearScience
Jeremy Kalgreen is an artist, photographer and t-shirt designer.

2. UFO Pyramid
he's been offering these awesome shirts that promote science and poke fun at "creation science".

3. I've Had a Few
His regular t-shirt shop offers some great non-sciencey designs as well.

4. Dark Energy
But it seems like Jeremey must be a true geek cause he keeps coming back to stuff like this.

5. Artsfest
All this t-shirt talk reminds me: If you are in the south Chicago area, you should come tho Governor State University's artfest. There are tons of arty events going on all day. I'll be helping visitors design and print their own shirts.

403 - El Corazon

2008-08-20T02:50:00.003-05:00

El Corazon

402 - with Links!

2008-05-18T22:10:00.002-05:00

1. Ye Gods! Queenie's in Danger
The rampant racism of the 1930s is evident even in short novelty films in which black dogs are represented as rapists.

2. Furie
I don't know anything about Jack Fischer or Matt Furie, but I know what I like and I like robots, monsters and weird animals riding BMX bikes.

3. Post Due
Send a postcard: Get a postcard.

4. Water Schmater
Make bagels and give them to me.

5. Circumference/Area
Did somebody say Pie?

401 - Waste Time

2008-04-27T22:48:00.001-05:00

1. Everybody Panic
Leading a creepy red worm thing around a maze seems easy...but is it?

2. Monoface
759,375 different possible faces.

3. Pandemic
Wipe humanity off the face of the earth.

4. Pictaps
Draw a little character, give him a name, and then watch him dance.

5. Portal
I guess Portal is a pretty popular game. I don't know if this is a close copy of it or not.

400 - Marvel/DC

2008-04-26T20:32:00.004-05:00

1. Marvel/DC After Hours
2. Marvel/DC After Hours
3. Marvel/DC After Hours
4. Marvel/DC After Hours
5. Marvel/DC After Hours
6. Marvel/DC After Hours
7. Marvel/DC After Hours
8. Marvel/DC After Hours
9. Marvel/DC After Hours

399 - Monkey Tuesday

2008-04-08T08:33:00.005-05:00

1. Chimp on a Train
The Japanese are at it again. This time they've let a chimpanzee loose in the city with nothing but enough money for a train ticket and and english bulldog to help him find his way home.

2. Goodness: Its own Reward
Acts of altruism in the monkey kingdom cast doubt on the theory that human morals are handed down from god-on-high.

3. Monkey Picked Tea
Tea is really nothing but hot, dirty water, and it is gross. Now tea lovers can contaminate their perfectly good water with, not just twigs and leaves and dirt, but also with monkey hairs and finger prints.

4. Don't Choose Offices
If you had to pass this sign everyday on your way to work, which way would you choose?

5. Monkey on a Mini-Bike
I'm not even going to bother trying to describe this video. I holds up just fine on its own.

398 - Yearbook

2008-04-05T06:12:00.004-05:00

1. Student Body
Old-Yearbooks.com is a pretty awesome resource. Collectors can use it to find vintage yearbooks for sale. Long lost ffriends can find their old classmates. Researchers can track down geneological information. I just like to look at the old timey pictures.

2. No Commoner Carries Such Weapons, Unless His Appearance, and His Beauty, Are Both Lies.
he school didn't think it would be appropriate to include weaponry in it's yearbook. The kid just wants to promote his involvement in the Society for Creative Anachronism. Like most of these types of news stories, updates are hard to find. Anyone with news on the outcome, please leave a comment.

3. Regrets and Mistakes
English teacher, and yearbook committe councelor, Amy McTague, was forced to make apologies for allowing photographs and stories of underage drinking and illegal drug use to appear in last year's Conifer High School yearbook. At least she didn't fuck any of them.

4. Celebrity Yearbook Photos
Ever wonder what televangelist, fraud and ciminal, Benny Hinn looked like when he was in high school?

5. Girl's School
And as a final bit of self promotion, I made these collages based on vintage yearbook photos. I think they look pretty good. They are available in my etsy shop.

388 - Interview: Erin Tyner

2008-04-02T12:53:00.008-05:00

1. Tell us about yourself and your background
My name is Erin Tyner and I live in Atlanta, Georgia with my husband Chris and our Italian Greyhound named Finn. My background and education is in the social sciences (social work, psychology, criminology). I started taking photos in early 2007 when I got my first camera.

2. What is your work about? What is your process?
My goal with my photos is to tell a story or express an emotion - whether that's through a created scene, a still life or a found object. Sometimes my photos are very spontaneous such as when I'm exploring abandoned places and don't want to stick around long! (Check out the Better Since You Left gallery on my website) When photographing still life or miniatures I just try to make the image match what I see in my head.

3. From where does your inspiration come?
Favorite music and literature, Minimalism, abstract and Surrealist artists, Nature, dioramas, taxidermy, dreams

4. Outside of photography, what are your interests?
I'm a movie junkie, watching multiple movies on the weekend is a guilty pleasure. I always have music playing and love concerts. I'm pretty decent in the kitchen and experiment with new recipes weekly. Of course I like eating (most of) those experiments too! I also enjoy exploring places in and out of town with my husband.

5. Anything else you'd like us to know about?
Visit my website for new photos and updates.

387 - For Your Viewing Pleasure

2008-02-14T00:55:00.003-06:00

1. Weng Weng

2. Weng Weng

3. Weng Weng

4. Weng Weng
5. Wing Weng

386 - Cheapskates

2008-01-01T07:37:00.000-06:00

1. Spare Change
3 quarters, 1 dime, 2 nickels, and 4 pennies are all you need to have exact change anytime you check out at the grocery store. Build an exact change holder to keep them from jingling around in your pocket.

2. Redneck Savings Account
If you do end up with some pocket change, don't bother counting it. Just weigh the coins, take a quick representative sample and let this website give you an estimate of how much money you have. Then spend that money on one of these counting jars.

3. Family Business
Getting your mother to drive you to work is another way to save money.

4. Two Buck Chuck
It turns out that expensive wine tastes just as shitty as the cheap stuff so don't waste your money.

5. Redbox
All you need is this list of codes and a wallet full of credit cards to get as many free movie rentals as you want.

385 - Jacobus

2007-10-28T01:20:00.001-05:00

01. Tuesday

02. Cats

03. The Falcon

04. Boring Day

04. The Monks

384 - Collage

2007-10-20T03:31:00.001-05:00

1. I Should Probably
I'm interrupting this long dry spell (which was meant to be a short reprieve, but that's another story) manly because I'm sick of looking at those freaking furries.

2. Change the Name
But I also wanted to tell you that I really like these small collages I came across on Flickr.

3. Of This Virtually Abandoned
They seem to be a part of some kind of collaborative art project between a person called Marie-Chantale Turgeon and another person called Guylaine.

4. Blog, Since It Is Unlikely To Be
That's really all the info I have for you since I'm too lazy to read Ms. Turgeon's blog, much of which is in French anyway, which I don't read (or speak.)

5. Updated Daily Anymore
Anyway, if the artist happens to see this and wants to leave some comments filling us in on the nature of her work, that would be great. If she wants to send me a collage that would be even better. I think I'm going to start collecting original 6x6 works of art right now.

383 - Furry

2007-08-27T21:45:00.000-05:00

1. Obsession
If you don't know about furries from the numerous 'expose' type reports on them by your local broadcast affiliates or from other sources, good for you. Unfortunately, you probably do know what furries are. Here are some pics for you to tsk/laugh/eye-roll/ogle at. The furry webmaster here is pretty old school with the galleries though.

2. Fur 2.0
Did you know there was a furry 'wiki'? If you can answer yes to the previous question, click here. (Apologies to whomever I stole this photoshopped pic from.)

3. No accounting for taste...
Furry art. You know this stuff would fly off the shelves at those weird storefront shops that seem to only sell/host Magic: The Gathering.

4. Furry love?
You've seen these before. This one's furry heaven.

5. Trigger happy furries
This show seems to have been under-appreciated. You can watch a whole crapload on google video though.

382 - Crazy

2007-08-20T22:51:00.000-05:00

1. Crazy religious
This is awesome. If you don’t believe it, I hope you don’t mind spending eternity in space-hell.

2. Crazy “verbal self-defense”
Why all the feudin’ and a fussin’? This site really goes deep with the crazy, so dig for it.

3. Crazy Ling’s contract hire cars
If I ever visit wherever Ling runs this place, I’m definitely renting a car from her. Who wouldn’t after checking this site out? It’s got something for everyone. Even for people who think Josef Stalin was a “kind and benign world leader.”

4. Crazy science
This is really another religious site but the science is unassailable!

5. Crazy awesome splash
I honestly haven’t been past the first page of this site but I can’t stop playing with it. Maybe you’ll get beyond the rad interface…

381 - Totally Rads

2007-08-06T21:23:00.000-05:00

1. Radioactive Boyscout, indeed.
David Hahn is no longer an Eagle Scout but that hasn't affected his tenacious grip on his scouting glory days. When I first heard of him, I assumed he was a genius. Now, he just seems pathologically focused. Now, maybe he can sew a "Rap Sheet" badge right next to the "Nuclear Energy" one he earned as a kid.

2. Don't play with it...
This story is sad, but you have to wonder about people who would handle a luminescent powder. (Also, history.com's "this day in history" thing is pretty cool.

3. Tingling wrist?
This is not altogether unknown, but it's an interesting tidbit that many people are ignorant of.

4. Tingling ~~Spidey~~ radiation sense?
Now here's a watch that most people don't know about. It could save your life. For real! Think about it.

5. Idiot poisoning.
Here's a 'Darwin Awards' type story. Depending on your sense of humor, it's sad and interesting or funny and interesting. (I didn't link to the original source article because I think 'geeks with guns' is a funny site name.)

380 - Zombie

2007-08-01T00:09:00.000-05:00

1. Zombie Movies
Zombies have become pretty popular in Hollywood in the last few years. Here's a rundown of some of the higher profile upcoming zombie movies. These are all mostly major studio releases, but for the independent film maker, it seems that the zombie film is a no-lose proposition. You'll almost definitely be able to sell your movie as a direct to DVD title, and zombie fans will watch pretty much anything, so it doesn't matter it your movie sucks.

2. Vegetarian Zombies
This is really kind of stupid. I'm not totally sure how a "pun" is defined, but I think this is pretty close, and I'm sure that puns aren't really funny. Still, I did chuckle a little bit under my breath.

3. An Everlasting Covenant
I guess this could be construed as sac religious. Or it might be a critique of organized Christianity. Or it might be a satire of a classic work of art. Or the guy might have jut thought it was a funny idea.

4. Heat Signature.
This video is kind of creepy, but you can tell it isn't real because everyone knows that zombies do not register as warm bodies on infrared cameras.

5. Army-men of the Dead
These might seem kind of cool, but I have to state clearly that I think $15.00 plus shipping is way too expensive for some stupid glow-in-the-dark zombie toys.

379 - Shark Weak

2007-07-30T23:08:00.000-05:00

1. Great White
Is it still shark week? It doesn't really matter because sharks aren't as tough as people think they are. Here's a story about the king of the cartilaginous killing machines getting pwned by a soccer dad.

2. Bronze Whaler
Nothing like being caught by a drunk's bare hands to take the edge off of that tough ~~guy~~ shark image.

3. Thresher
11-year-old girl...'nuff said.

4. Whale
Not just the largest shark, but the largest fish. You'd think these things would eat 10 or 11 humans a day. No, these wimps are practically vegetarians (krill.)

5. Mascot
This one's not contributing to the terrifying image of sharks at all. Quite the contrary. Honestly, a Segway? He may as well be riding a recumbant bicycle.

378 - with Links

2007-07-17T23:54:00.000-05:00

1. The Google Bandits
Some people were making fun of these crooks for trying to disable security cameras by spraying them with WD-40. Admittedly, that is pretty stupid, but when faced with a different safe than the one they had planned on cracking, these guys had the smarts to use the power of google to get into the safe and make off with $12000.

2. Go Vespa Go
After seeing these vintage Vespa commercials, I'm surprised than anyone ever bought one.

3. Pick Axe
The main reason I got such a low score on this guitar/player matching quiz is because I confused the name "Rick Nielson" with "Ricky Nelson."

4. Muffler Man
The Muffler Man section of Roadside America has become super comprehensive. It now includes a list of movies and TV shows which feature these giants, a nice interview with the one-time owner of the fiberglass company which produced them, and a map to track locations. Apparently, Illinois is a prime Muffler Man viewing state.

5. Coupon
No one knows where this coupon originated, but a lot of people have used printouts of it to save money on dvds at Best Buy. Many have reported multiple copies at one time even though it says "do not double" and "one offer per customer" right on it. Others have used it to buy the X-Files sets that are on sale for $19.99 regardless of the standard "not valid with other offers" fine print. I'm going to try using it on the 3rd season of Arrested Development tomorrow.

377 - with Links

2007-07-10T07:01:00.001-05:00

1. All Beef?
After all my accusatiions, Kobayashi decided to show up at Nathan's hot dog eating contest after all. Unfortunately, he faced exactly what I believe he wanted to avoid; Joey Chestnut, who blasted past the record and ate 66 hot dogs. I'm not sure why I can't get behind this guy. I should be supporting the American I guess, but Kobayashi is just so freaking cute that I can't root against him.

2. Films-Within-Films
I've been watching a lot of HBO's Entourage lately, so the first fictional movies I thought of were Head On, Queens Boulevard, Aquaman and Medellín.

3. ESP Envy
With all the poker, dominos, strongman and lumberjack games they show on ESPN these days, I watch it quite a lot more than I ever did before. Now they're adding Rock, Paper, Scissors coverage to make me watch just a little bit more.

4. Barking Mad Bank Robber
What is the best disguise to wear when robbing a bank? I'm not sure, but it turns out that making yourself a tree costume out of leaves and twigs doesn't work that well.

5. Snooze
For years I've been wondering why alarm clock manufacturers set the snooze timer for nine minutes. I never worried about it enough to do the research. Luckily, Mental Floss Magazine did it for me.

376 - Monkey Tuesday

2007-07-03T00:14:00.000-05:00

1. Amok Monkey
A Jewish girl's school in India was invaded by a rampaging monkey running around stealing food from the girls and grabbed onto their clothing, preventing them from fleeing. My favorite quote: "When one girl tried to resist, it slapped her."

2. Monkey Bandits
This headline could be the title of an uproarious direct to video movie. Unfortunately, it is really in reference to a helper monkey that was stolen from a disabled woman by a group of four men in a black SUV.

3. Black Death
Did anyone know that the bubonic plague still existed? Would anyone suspect that it could be passed from squirrels to monkeys? Can you believe it happened in Denver?

4. Prison Break
After escaping from his enclosure, and injuring at least four people, Bokito the gorilla took time out for a leisurely lunch on the terrace of nearby restaurant.

5. Battle of the Sexes
It turns out that silverback gorillas aren't really as tough as you thought they were.

375 - with Links

2007-07-02T22:14:00.000-05:00

1. Tame Foxes
John Lithgow explains how unnatural selection, the act of selectively breeding animals for desirable qualities, can produce unexpected results. The interesting thing is how quickly these changes occur. The research has led a lot of people to question the accepted evolutionary theory of the family dog beginning with the domestication of the wolf. The molecular evidence seems pretty clear that dogs evolved from wolves rather than jackals or coyotes, but I can't find any reference to a similar study done to look for a dog/fox biological connection.

2. Gator Eats Dog
Pet costume designers now have a new standard to shoot for.

3. Phit
Jamming these tetris-esque game pieces together isn't that hard at the beginning, but eventually the pieces get a smaller and smaller while growing in number making it much harder to piece them together properly.

4. Prison Break
An opportunistic panda sees his chance and makes a break for it.

5. Air Car
A little more info on the Aircar, the compresseD air powered vehicle that I reported on in the past. I was interested to hear that it is being marketed in several countries, not just India as I had previously thought.

374 - Psychology

2007-06-29T20:14:00.000-05:00

1. Little Albert

2. Milgram

3. Social Norms

4. Stanford Prison

5. Asch Conformity

373 - with Links!

2007-06-28T01:28:00.000-05:00

1. There Goes an Asshole
It is a well know fact that the only way to get over the trauma of having something stolen from you is to write a song about it. It helps a lot if you have security camera footage to go along with the music.

2. Not My Teacher
Another female teacher had relations with a youngster. This story has a twist, though. The youngster in question was not one of her students. He was the teacher's 13 year old daughter's ex-boyfriend.

3. Invisible
This so called "game" is actually some kind of scientific example of how the human brain and the personal computer can become one.

4. Gigantoraptor
Recently discovered, giant, bird-like dinosaur fossils smashing science's currently held notions of how modern birds may have developed.

5. Abduction
Novelty desk lamps across the country are convincing Americans to petition the government for the release of top secret UFO files.

372 - Contests

2007-06-27T13:27:00.000-05:00

1. Digital
Build a one of a kind clock using this electronics kit from furni and if it is good, it might make it into their next commercial collection.

2. Scratch
You always hear about how winning the lottery is unlucky. In most cases that idea is totally bunk. However, for this girl, winning only $500 actually did cause a couple of problems.

3. Veggie
Win $20 by entering your best, easy to prepare, vegetarian recipe. The deadline is June 30th, only three days from now, so hurry up hippies!

4. Dogs
I think there is something fishy going on with Nathan's Annual Hot Dog Eating Contest. In May, Takeru Kobayashi's record was broken by American Joey Chestnut, who ate 59.5 hot dogs in just 12 minutes. A couple of weeks later, it was reported that Kobayashi would probably be taking a sabbatical due to the death of his mother. Then, we hear that he will not be competing at all due to sudden arthritis of the jaw. Maybe I'm a cynic, but to me, these excuses sound phony.

5. A Moment of Science
Rebecca of Skepchick, in honor of the death of Don Herbert, has posted an interesting youtube challenge. The point is to film yourself doing a Mr. Wizard-esque science experiment and post it for the world to see. P.S. the last frame of the video freezes on a pretty funny face. I've included it for you here.

371 - with Links!

2007-06-26T13:48:00.000-05:00

1. UFO
British airline pilot reports seeing a mile wide unidentified flying object. I don't understand how he could possibly estimate how big this thing was. Unless it was right next to something that he unequivocally knew the size of, then he has no reference to judge scale. In an on camera interview he seems to me to be an unreliable witness. I'm going to guess it was a reflection on the glass of the cockpit window.

2. Three Robbers Shot
Apparently, the best way to get the police to come to you aid is to lie to them boldly. Does anyone in the legal profession know if this would be considered illegal.

3. Monolith
I really like the design of this game. Even still, I only got to about level 15 before I moved on to other things.

4. Micro Housing
I really like the idea of simplified living, but I think these homes, even though they are really cool, go a little bit too far. Also, how can the tiny LoftCube possibly be worth $55,000.

5. Elwood
In the past when I've seen the winner of the annual world's ugliest dog contest, I thought, "Aww come on, he doesn't look that bad." this year I didn't think that at all.

370 - Science!

2007-06-25T14:34:00.000-05:00

1. Dr. Heard
Dr. Heard may have lacked some of the showmanship of a Bill Nye but he amazes nevertheless. Notice that none of the audience members is anywhere near his demonstrations. That's for a good reason.

2. Steve Spangler
It would seem that Steve Spangler's appeal would be broader than appearances on some local affiliate's morning show and the occasional (expensive) gig at a school or museum. I'd watch his show if he had one! Maybe he's doing well enough with his online store that he doesn't need the hassle of producing a weekly program.

3. Robert Krampf
I did this demonstration with my students. The tension in the room as the kids wait for the water balloon to pop is palpable! When there's no big explosion of water and latex, I think the kids are a bit disappointed, but their curiosity is piqued nonetheless.

4. Bill Nye the Sci-Fi Geek
What science day would be complete without Bill Nye...re-enacting one of his favorite scenes from what could be his favorite movie (for all I know.)

5. Unemployed
Where did that carboy (big glass jug) go!?

369 - Japanese

2007-06-24T13:27:00.000-05:00

1. Ha Ha Ha Ha
You can tell these jokes are funny because creepy Japanese children laugh at them.

2. Sushi Express
I believe the footage stops when it does because one of the sushi chefs steals the camera. In related news, a rash of toy train themed restaurants has apparently been popping up around the Chicago area. I haven't been to one yet. But I'm going someday.

3. Stolling Down the Avenue
A girl and her shadow play basketball.. Remember how Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. used to sing a duet of "Me and My Shadow?" There's no way anyone would get away with that today.

4. Sensei Clean
A clean toilet brings good luck. (This message brought to you by the Japanese Bathroom Cleanser Manufacturers Association.)

5. Do Not
Unlike our first link, in which four creepy Japanese girls allowed us to laugh, this video is about exactly the opposite.

368 - Vacation

2007-06-23T13:39:00.001-05:00

Taking another day off. Deal with it.

367 - Music Videos

2007-06-22T02:06:00.000-05:00

1. Peter, Bjorn & John

2. Grandaddy

3. Los Campesinos

4. Trevor Childs

5. M. Ward

366 - Vacation

2007-06-21T01:00:00.000-05:00

I'm taking a break today. Just watch this.

365 - Google Your Brains Out

2007-06-20T02:24:00.000-05:00

1. Masterbating with Banana Peel
At some point during the last year of daily posting, I accidentally misspelled the word "masturbating." This mistake has led a lot of perverts to this site via google searches. This guy, for instance. He might have got his idea from the Showtime series Weeds and decided to find out more about this particular self gratification technique. Coincidentally, I watched the Weeds episode mentioning bananaphilia on the very same day this guy did his search.

2. Nude Animals "Fear Factor"
I'm not even sure why I assume this guy is a pervert. Animals are all naturally nude, right? Actually, looking at clothed animals could be considered more perverted than looking at nude ones. And he used the artistic term "nude" rather than the lowbrow "naked." Plus there isn't really anything prurient about Fear Factor. Still, I'm going with my gut. This guy's a freak.

3. Masterbating under the Influence of Marijuana
I just want to make it clear that my belief that marijuana should be legalized has nothing to do with personal usage. I've never smoked any, so I can't really tell you how it might affect your batting practice.

4. Male Prostitutes at Home Depot
I know you can buy a lot of stuff at Home Depot, but I think this is pushing the limits of even their inventory.

5. Masterbating While Driving
This seems pretty normal. I'm sure most of us have done this so I won't even call this guy a pervert. I'm not sure why you would need to use the internet to find more information about it however. But I'm done judging. I'll just let your mother and George Putnam, outstanding news reporter, do it for me.

364 - with Links!

2007-06-19T19:31:00.000-05:00

1. Who Needs Law School?
Remember about a month ago when I told you about a guy that had his camcorder stolen so he posted the suspected thief's phone number in a youtube video? Remember I suggested that what he did was probably illegal? Yeah. Well, I was right.

2. Speaking of Youtube
Somebody leaked some footage from the new Micheal Bay Transformers movie onto the internet. There's no audio, but seeing the transformations from robots to cars is pretty freaking impressive.

3. Nodes
Another way to waste time at work when you are supposed to be making money for the capitalist pigs.

4. Speaking of Capatalist Pigs
These capitalists are about to be really, really pissed.

5. Google Street Fight
Have you been following the Google Streetview privacy rights issue? In case you don't know, Streetview is a new feature of Google Maps which allows you to zoom in through Google's satellite imagery, to see actual street level photographs of certain metropolitan areas, including pedestrians doing things they might not want posted on the internet. Not only street fights, but also crimes in progress, streetside hanky panky, smoking up, getting a ticket, and other things.

363 - with Links!

2007-06-18T00:19:00.000-05:00

1. Low Riders
When mayor of Delcambre, Louisianna, Carol Broussard, said "It's gotten way out of hand out here," he was absolutely right. Unfortunately, he was arguing for the wrong side of the issue. He was on the side that believes residents should receive penalties of up to six months in jail and a $500 fine for wearing pants which he deems to be "too saggy."

2. Let's Be Friends
"Touching photos of unusual animal friendships."

3. Baby Pac
The world's tiniest pacman is actually pretty playable due the the fact that there is only one ghost-monster. I didn't see any power pellets, however. Maybe they show up in later levels.

4. Prowler at Best
This is shoddy journalism. Should a guy really be called a "burglar" when he didn't steal anything? He just came into your house in order to check out some porn on you high speed internet connection. Oh yeah, he's also naked except for his shoes and socks.

5. You Fool
Despite what you think, and despite the extremely low video quality, Gilbert Gottfried is a really funny guy.

362 - All Request

2007-06-17T01:42:00.000-05:00

1. Creation
I'm sure you already know about the big creationism-masked-as-science museum that opened recently in Kentucky. Did you know they were charging a $20 admission fee? To save you money, two atheists disguised themselves as believers to enter the museum and document a lot of the exhibits for the world to see. For free.

2. Mistress of the Dark
And if that makes you think superstitious beliefs are out of control here in America, that's nothing. They are still killing vampires in Dubai.

3. Aloha
Judging by the number of record albums I've seen at thrift stores and garage sales, there was once a very real interest in Hawaiian guitar in the United States. We don't hear it much anymore, so it might be a nice change of pace to sit back and listen to the dulcid sounds of the Steel Strings.

4. Blur Spray
Before clicking this link, I want you to be aware that this technology does not exist. Someone wrote an article about inventions that they think would be cool and then a lot of other blogs and media outlets reported on it as if they were reality. Neither blurring sprays, nor electronic camera jamming id badges, are real. And, based on my admittedly limited knowledge of how cameras (both film and "electronic") work, I'm pretty sure neither one could ever actually be real.

5. Instant Ice
On the other hand, here's some awesome technology that is real.

361 - All Request

2007-06-16T01:39:00.000-05:00

1. The X-Coaster
A power outage left 12 people hanging upside down on a roller coaster in Arkansas. Thanks to the power of satellites, the internet, Google, and some bloggers from Scotland, you can almost see the exact spot where this occurred.

2. Double Duty
A reader that noticed my obsession with the outbreak of young, hot female teachers accused of inappropriate relationships with their students sent this in. Though these two aren't that hot, there were two of them arrested at the same time. On the same day I received this link, I saw a report on CNN (or whatever) about another unrelated incident. Is there something in the water? I think someone could start a daily blog (if one doesn't exist already) on this subject, these arrests are happening so frequently now.

3. Barrel Meet Scraper
Here's a list of "star" available for "partying" Chingy, Vanilla Ice, Cindy Margolis ie "the internet's most downloaded woman,"Steve-O, Traci Bingham and Ant?

4. Where's Saint George When You Need Him?
The vicious Komodo Dragon really hasn't lived up to its reputation at a killer until earlier this month when it attacked and killed a young Indonesian boy. It is assumed it would have eaten the boy, but a fisherman, "who just happened to be the boy’s uncle." threw rocks at the dragon until it ran away.

5. Toof Decay
After killing countless American dogs and cats, the Chinese are boldly denying rumors that their next target is America's teeth.

360 - Squirrel Wars

2007-06-14T23:58:00.000-05:00

1. One Seriously Pissed Off Squirrel
If you live in Germany, and you are over 70 years old, watch out for rampaging squirrels. The only known defense against one of these vicious rodents is the common crutch.

2. Stars Align
I've been waiting for a good day to tell you about Cute With Chris, a regular, video web series. It's kind of hard to explain what the show is about, but if you like it, there are currently over 125 episodes available for your enjoyment. A recent episode heavily features a squirrel wearing a speedo, so that is why today works out so well

3. Jedi
I have a bad feeling about this.

4. Light Saber Repair
Good concept. Short and sweet. Easy to read in one sitting. That's the way I like it.

5. PKD
I was aiming for some kind of tenuous squirrel/light saber theme for today but it's fallen apart already so I'll just tell you to come by the house tonight and watch these two movies since I forgot to post about it earlier when it might have actually been helpful.

359 - Interview: Amy Boling

2007-06-14T16:38:00.000-05:00

1. Tell Us About Yourself
Name is Amy Boling and I'm married with two dogs. That's not TO two dogs mind you, but to one wonderful human. I live in the dirty sweaty bayouey part of southern Louisiana, and I love it. On etsy I am AmyBoling for artworks and Bellaroo for more craftsy type things. I have an M.F.A. in painting and drawing.

2. What Is Your Work About?
My work is about potential and hope and relationships. Connections. I use lots of shapes over and over like eggs, pods, boats, eyes. Those shapes are similar to seeds, and seeds are these amazing little things that contain everything in the universe.

3. From Where Does Your Inspiration Come?
Lately inspiration has come from my environment and big bad thoughts, which have been inextricably linked for most of us down here the past year and a half. I get ideas from sitting down and getting my surface dirty. I rarely make preliminary sketches, and I have to get rid of that blank white surface in order for anything to happen. So the first thing I do is to put some mark or blob or something down. I know it will get painted over sooner or later, usually right away. I count on painting over lots of things in order for the work to be finished. I cut lots of things out of newspapers. I have piles of tiny newspaper image bits.

4. Outside of Art and Crafts, What Are Your Interests?
I am interested in truly everything. I have seriously wanted to be a hundred different things based on some fascinating book I read or some trip I've taken. Main things that catch my attention right now are all kinds of science, world cultures, history, reading anything, gardening, cooking, sewing, floating on my back, old movies, new movies, and watching bugs, especially ants. I desperately want a dissecting microscope.

5. Anything Else You'd Like Us to Know About?
I have a flickr account with all of my etsy related images on it: And a blog which I neglect called Feeding the Bobbin.

358 - Mr. Wizard

2007-06-13T00:31:00.000-05:00

1. Don Herbert: Dead
You probably know him as Mr. Wizard. After a distinguished stint as a bomber pilot during WW2, Mr. Herbert returned to the states where he worked on educational radio programs for children in the late 1940's. During this time he was working on a concept for a show that would promote the wonder of science on the newish television medium. In 1951, this show idea became Watch Mr. Wizard, a program which was eventually broadcast on over 90 stations across the country and spawned a 50,000 member strong childrens' science club.

2. Mr. Wizard's World
Watch Mr. Wizard's success lasted until its eventual cancellation in the mid 1960's After this Don Herbert began writing science books and making educational films for schools. In 1984 the burgeoning children's cable channel, Nickelodeon, approached Mr. Herbert to produce a new show based on his previous work. This resulted in Mr. Wizard's World, the incarnation probably most familiar to this site's visitors. The Nickelodeon show continued until 1990 and was still shown in reruns as recently a 2000.

3. Sit Down
In 2005, the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences conducted an in-depth interview with Don Herbert. It seems his hearing is pretty much shot at this point, which might explain why his show ended when it did.

4. Sit Down
Still it is pretty interesting to hear about his early days and the multiple shows and other science programs he worked on.

5. Legacy
I'm just going to hope that you have 2 hours to spare so you can watch the whole interview even though, by the end of the interview he seems a bit fed up with the whole thing and even a little bitter about his career. I hope he knew how important he was to generations of young people.

357 - In & Around Nelson, British Columbia

2007-06-12T00:24:00.000-05:00

1. Trail Walls
At one time, the residents of Trail, British Columbia considered its plethora of rock walls an eyesore. Today they take pride in the history of hard work and dedication the walls represent. Walking tours of the walls, led by Eileen Pederson, take place throughout the month of June.

2. Showtime
Tickets are available for a June 15th screening of the Canadian documentary, the Great Granny Revolution, the story of a group of women working hard to quell the AIDS pandemic halfway around the world in Africa. The screening will take place at the Nelson British Columbia United Church. Admission is $7.00.

3. Fishing Forever
The weekend of June 16th and 17th will be a great one for the outdoorpeople of Nelson when the Nelson Rod and Gun Club hosts a pair of fishing extravaganzas at Cottonwood Lake. Saturday from 8:00A.M. to 4:00P.M. has been reserved to give people with disabilities the opportunity to fish and have fun. And Sunday is Annual Family Fishing Day when all family members old and young have a chance to get in a little fishing. No fishing license is required.

4. Summer Arts Journey
Get your art on at the College of the Rockies annual 6 week long series of special summertime art classes. Everything from beginning drawing to woodcarving. Paper mache to digital photography.

5. Mountain Beats
Spend an amazing weekend at Centennial Park on the banks of the Columbia River. Line up includes Mr. Something Something, MythMakers, Guerilla Funk Monsters, Shane Philip, Emaline Delapix, 3rd Eye Tribe, Adham Shaikh ... cool kids stuff in the afternoons, great food, artisans and camping.

356 - One Sentence

2007-06-11T16:00:00.000-05:00

Story #674
I came across onesentence.org, a website "about telling the most interesting or poignant story possible in the least amount of words." All of the stories are user submitted, so as you might imagine, many of them are really lame. Today, I'm going to break format a little bit to give you some that I think are pretty good. If you decide to write a story like this, please let me know.

Story #890
Story #625
Story #706
Story #227

Story #829
Story #406
Story #808
Story #286

Story #285
Story #433
Story #844
Story #730

Story #498
Story #617
Story #361
Story #355

355 - Art Request

2007-06-10T11:28:00.000-05:00

1. Wooden Mirror
It's hard to say exactly what is happening here, but it has something to do with a tiny camera, a computer, a bunch of tilting wooden tiles, and a very bright light.

2. The Wrong Trousers
Mandolin, harp, stand up bass, nerds, Buggles, busking. Check 'em out.

3. Gas Mask
My failing eyesight, combined with small white text on a light grey background, forbids me from telling you what any of Chris Dimino's artwork is about but I know he made a cool shower head out of a gas mask.

4. Action Poetry
Former Poet Laureate, Billy Collins, reads his poetry which is then set in motion by a collection of animators and film makers. My favorite: Forgetfulness.

5. Inkjet
Proof of concept. Making projectable 8mm and 16mm films using a home computer and an inkjet printer. You must be able to get a square paper punch for easily making those socket holes.

354 - All Request

2007-06-09T15:57:00.001-05:00

1. Sensory Overload
20 questions designed to test your senses and explainations of why most people have trouble answering them correctly.

2. White on White
Is Erno Rubik Dead? If he is, I'll bet he's rolling over in his grave.

3. Lionhead
Overdubbed music and sound turn your average youtube video into your average work of art.

4. Cheddar Vision
Over the last 169 days, 18 hours, 51 minutes and eleven seconds, more than 1,409,500 people have watched a block of cheese develop at the West Country Cheesemakers in the South West of England at the time of writing.

5. iCarta iPod Toilet Paper Holder
Listening to your favorite podcast while sitting on the toilet has never been easier.

353 - with Links!

2007-06-08T00:49:00.000-05:00

1. Pamela Low: Dead
After working as a flavorologist on such products as Almond Joy and Mounds, Pamela Low made her mark on the American food industry and on pop culture when, remembering a rice, butter and brown sugar mixture her grandmother made as a child, she invented the flavor the world would come to know as Cap'n Crunch. I don't think she invented vastly more delicious Crunch Berry, though.

2. MIT for Free
Want to get some college smarts without paying for them? Want to have nothing to show for it? The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is offering courses in 35 areas of study, from Aeronautics and Astronautics to Writing and Humanistic Studies, all free for the taking for the benefit of "educators, students, and self-learners around the world."

3. What If I Said "Douchebags?"
Two cool-guys play a song...on one single guitar...at the same time. I know it sounds lame, and it sounds even lamer when you hear that the song that they play is the theme to Beverly Hills 90210, and that the cool-guys are likely frat guys (one of them with his hat on backwards,) and that they are overly cocky about their accomplishment, but it is actually kind of cool.

4. Blueprint
How much time can you waste moving around little ramp, pipes and conveyor belts to get a ball to hit a target. If you play the levels in order, I'm going to predict that you get bored and quit before reaching the second row. That's what I did.

5. WWKIP
Tomorrow, Saturday, June 9th, is World Wide Knit in Public Day. It looks like gatherings of knitters have been organized in pretty much all 50 states as well as many countries across the world. Of course, if you want to , you could just knit while waiting for the bus or whatever. You don't have to attend one of these celebrations. As for me, I haven't even been able to figure out how to crochet properly.

352 - You Put A Spell On Me

2007-06-07T01:08:00.000-05:00

1. Scripps National
Spelling bee fever is sweeping the country. This year's big competition was won by "home-schooled" Evan O'Dorney. Here he is attempting to defend his title against Jimmy Kimmel

2. This is Your Life
So now let's take a look at the most memorable moments from spelling bees of yore, including a badass kid who passes out on stage, and then gets right up and spells his word correctly.

3.Maryalnd
And here, in a single photo, is definitive proof that the 12 and 13 year olds competing in the bee are smarter than the organizers.

4. The E is Not Optional
Not to mention all the Web 2.0 millionaires that haven't even been able to correctly spell their own domain names.

5. You Spelt It Wrong
And finally an easy method for taking advantage of bad spellers in order to get a good deal on used, stolen and/or reconditioned products.

351 - Sigh

2007-06-06T03:16:00.000-05:00

1. Democrats
None of the current Democratic nominees for president, with the exception of Mike Gravel, are honest. They all spend a lot of time spouting rhetoric and never saying anything with any substance. Mike Gravel, from what I can tell, has some legitimate ideas that I agree with (like the legalization of marijuana.) But unfortunately, during these debates, he just loudly chastises the other nominees for their past actions. He comes of as, at best, a curmudgeon (for which which he has the perfect name) or at worst (and possibly most accurately) a nutjob.

2. Republicans
On the Republican side, it is pretty much the same story. They have one guy, Ron Paul, who is willing to state his beliefs without worrying about politics. The difference between Ron Paul and Mike Gravel is the lack of insanity. There are some points that I feel Ron Paul goes too far on, but during these debates, I've agreed with virtually everything he's said, especially the infamous "blowback" exchange he had with Rudy Giuliani who proved himself to be either a moron or a deceitful manipulator, or possible both.

3. Goldwater Loses
Before watching these debates, I had always associated the Republican Party with the Religious Right, assuming the term "conservative" referred primarily to social and moral issues. I had no idea that it originally referred to financial and governmental concerns. The Republican Party was supposed to be about small government, fiscal responsibility, and individual liberty. So what happened? The Libertarians of today, seem more like traditional Republicans than the Republicans themselves do.

4. Cable News
A real problem is our reliance on the news media for information about politics. I'm not a big believer in anti-media conspiracies. I think it is easier to believe in the incompetence of the networks than a plot to keep the public ignorant. But why can't they spend more time informing the public about some of the second tier candidates without coloring the reporting negatively. Ron Paul actually has been getting a bit of mainstream attention due mostly to his online supporters, but virtually every story marginalizes his campaign by claiming his success in the polls is due to "those crazy kids and their computers." Both ABC and CNN, and possibly others, have sunk so low as to remove pro-Paul comments from their online articles, and delete those polls which show him as most popular.

5. Palette Cleanser
When Paul inevitably loses the Republican nomination, I suspect he will parlay his new found popularity into another presidential bid, this time running under the Libertarian party's flag.

That's enough politics for a while. I'll leave you now with something a little lighter. How would you feel about a baby porcupine being bottle fed? How do you feel about unintended advertising for Quicktime Pro?

P.S. I was hoping to have a big celebration when I reached 10.000 page views, but my sitemeter didn't register any for almost 48 hours and that took the wind out of my sails. I'm guessing it was malfunctioning since I've never had a day go by without any visitors before. Anyway, it's right over there in the sidebar, 10,000 plus visitors. Woo-hoo, only took a year to get there.

P.P.S. This post probably took me longer to put together than any other I've ever done. It definitely received the most re-edits after publication. You better freaking LOVE it.

350 - Marvel/DC

2007-06-05T23:42:00.000-05:00

1. Episode One

2. Episode Two

3. Episode Three

4. Episode Four

5. Episode Five

349 - Marvel/DC Continued

2007-06-04T00:47:00.000-05:00

1. Episode Six

2. Episode Seven

3. Episode Eight

4. Episode Nine

5. Episode ten

348 - Pinholes

2007-06-03T00:07:00.000-05:00

1. Pinhole
I've been thinking a lot about pinhole photography lately and came across this incredible photographer on flickr, Imre Becsi, who uses a modified flower pot to make work which reminds me of the paintings of Andrew Wyeth

2. Instamatic My Ass
I'm trying to modify a point and shoot camera so that I can have the convenience of using 35mm film and one hour processing. So far my results haven't been perfect. It is really really hard to make pinhole in aluminum only .19mm in diameter. Figuring out exposure times is a real chore as well.

3. Quaker
In case you don't know, a pinhole camera is a simple image recording device without a lens. Pinhole photographs usually have infinite depth of field and extremely wide angle views. Recent tradition presumes that pinhole cameras should be made in cardboard boxes or oatmeal containers to produce pictures on large format negatives or sheets of photo paper.

4. Resources
If you can get the oatmeal box to work, you might want to move on, experimenting with different containers, learning which hole diameters work best with which focal lengths, and figuring out the concept of reciprocity. Speaking of which, if anyone knows of a good reciprocity chart for different film types and extra long exposures, I'd love to know about it.

5. Wood
Eventually you might build a pretty extravagant camera. Or you could just buy one of these awesome teak box cameras from Zero Image. I'd take the Zero 135.

347 - Creepy Eastern Europeans

2007-06-02T15:14:00.000-05:00

1. Vinni Puh

2. ÁHT Hurka Gyurka

3. Erdekes Kapcsolat

4. Жадный богач

5. Волшебный фонарь

346 - with Links!

2007-06-01T13:29:00.001-05:00

1. The Second Indo-China War
"Do you know what Australia and New Zealand Did in 1971?"
"Of course."
"Withdrew."
Do you think we'd pointlessly invade another country ever again?"
"No, of course not."
"Let's make out."

2. Dog Love
I'm not sure if this is an actual product or some kind of joke website.

3. Tetrissy
How to build a modular bookshelf patterned after Tetris.

4. Pistol Shrimp
The snapping claw of a shrimp is used to propel high speed, high temperature bubbles that knock out its prey. I'm not sure how collapsing bubbles can reach such high temperatures, so any physicists reading this should explain that for me.

5. Pop
In case you don't know how to use your new pop rivet gun, Emhart Technologies has produced a short Flash animation to demonstrate the process.

345 - Over-reaction

2007-05-31T22:52:00.000-05:00

1. Curfew: Enforced
Tasha Scott of New Haven Connecticut, was taught a lesson about sneaking out after curfew when her father, an off duty police officer, mistook her for a prowler as she re-entered the house through a basement window. People talk a lot about the right to shoot an intruder in your home, but I'm pretty sure there has to be a legitimate threat of bodily harm before you are allowed to start firing.

2. Dinner is Served
Carl's Junior and Hardees are suing Jack in the Box over a commercial that they claim is defamatory, even though it never mentions them by name and only suggests, never specifically states, that angus beef is somehow related to beef anus.

3. Funny Money
Who has never seen a two dollar bill? Well apparently Best Buy employees and the Baltimore police, who arrested Mike Bolesta for attempting to pay for his car stereo installation with, what they assumed was, counterfeit currency.

4. Dinner is Served Again
The customer is always right. Remember that the next time a guy wants a bunch of extra chili sauce and you'll hopefully avoid being shot several times in the arm.

5. Deke
I can't even summarize this story so I'll just list some keywords. Attack Dog. Outdoor Slumber. Police Brutality. Fictitious Fugitive. Moped.

344 - Boats and Ships

2007-05-30T02:38:00.000-05:00

1. Treasure Hunt
It should be a happy time for investors in the publicly traded treasure seeking company, Odyssey Marine Exploration. Recently granted exclusive rights and permission to salvage payed off big when these adventures started pulling in what is expected to be the largest recovered shipwreck treasury in history, estimated to be worth somewhere around $500 million.

2. Dinner is Served
A container ship load of provisions destined for Southern Chinese restaurants was found drifting off the coast of China. Where was the crew? Well, it is suspected thatthey abandoned ship to avoid being caught smuggling in their cargo of over 5000 rare and "critically endangered" animals that wealthy Chinese diners love noshing on despite the legal and environmental ramifications.

3. Ghost Ship
Another drifting ship story. This one was a three man yacht found mysteriously with its passengers missing despite the fact that its engines were running, computers were active, and dinner was set on the table ready for eating.

4. Avast
If I had to make a guess, I'd say those yachters were probably taken by real life, modern pirates. I suspect, they were killed and probably dumped overboard near whichever one of these pirate activity areas is closest to Australia.

5. You're the One
I imagine you've heard this story before since the article is nearly 3 years old, but it is still pretty interesting. It's the story of how oceanographers have used rubber bath toys, which were washed off a cargo ship, to track and study wind patterns and ocean currents. See. I told you you heard it before.

343 - with Links!

2007-05-29T17:24:00.000-05:00

1. Charles Nelson Reilly: Dead
It is so awesome that an actor, by sheer power of personality, could become a household name by only appearing in guest starring roles. Charles Nelson Reilly never really had a starring role, in fact, for all his appearances, he was never really a regular cast member on any television show. But his appearances on TV throughout the 60s, 70s and 80s, especially as a celebrity guest on The Match Game have cemented him in pop culture history.

2. Script Frenzy
I'm not sure is two days is enough time to prepare for writing a screenplay, but if you've had an idea for a movie or play that you've been meaning to get down on paper, June 1st is the beginning of a month long writing event that encourages prospective writers to get a 20,000 word script done in only 30 days. They also provide tips on formatting and other writing resources.

3. Air-Car
Reaching 68 mph and a range of 125 miles per fill-up of a compressed air tank, the Air-Car is set to end pollution in India from internal combustion engines.

4. Lemmings
You could easily waste most of your day playing the classic Lemmings game with this Javascript based emulation.

5. Airtistique
Speaking of javascript, these guys mixed up traditional stage magic techniques with some fancy-pants web coding to create an interactive short film that totally screws with your browser windows.

342 - Memories

2007-05-28T19:43:00.000-05:00

1. How to Get Photographic Memory in 40 Days
Here's a few ways that you can supposedly improve your memory. All of them should be taken with a grain of salt, but maybe its worth it to try a few of them out. For instance, I don't really see how looking at a moving watch hand could do anything, but it couldn't hurt to spend 2 minutes a day testing this theory.

2. How to Help Your Memory by Using Your Eyes
Your eyes are attached directly to your brain, so there could be something to this memory improvement technique, but I'm still pretty skeptical.

3. Five Ways to Improve Your Memory
This guy gives five techniques that all seem pretty much generally accepted methods for living healthier. I guess if your body is healthy, your mind might be too. In any event he does provide one specific piece of advice that seems pretty practical; If you have a hard time remembering things, write them down.

4. Magnets May Make the Brain Grow Stronger
Anything associate with magnet therapy sets off my quackery warning bells. Yet research with mice suggests that magnetic stimulation might increase growth of memory centers of the brain. Of course I wouldn't run out and get a Miracle Magnet Helmet® just yet.

5. Memry
After you've complete all these methods of memory improvement, you can test your new brain skills on the classic game of Concentration using images culled from Flickr. I've conveniently populated this game with images of geek girls dressed in Slave Leia costumes.

341 - with Links!

2007-05-27T18:30:00.001-05:00

1. Drive-In
Here it is again; your weekly invitation (which you have been ignoring, by the way) to view a pair of movies under the stars projected onto a 14 foot wide screen hung across a garage door. The weather is getting really nice now, and really, what better things do you have to do on a Friday night?

2. I Forgive You
If you wanted to know why Spider-Man Three sucks, these kids pretty much nail it.

3. So, Uh, What's the 411? Any Updates on the, Uh, the P Situation?
Did you hear about how Jenna Fischer, known mostly for her role on NBC's hit comedy, The Office, (but most beloved by me for her small role in Slither) fell down a steep staircase and broke her freaking back in three places?

4. Non-Value Indicator
Are you considering purchasing some of the so-called Forever Stamps issued by the USPS after the recent postage increase? Think again. Slate explains how the rising cost of stamps has never, and never will, catch up to the rate of inflation.

5. Adventure Time
Do you like cartoons? Pen Ward made one you're sure to enjoy.

340 - Major Tom

2007-05-26T21:21:00.000-05:00

1. Major Tom

2. Major Tom

3. Major Tom

4. Major Tom

5. Major Tom

339 - Days Today

2007-05-25T05:55:00.001-05:00

1. Useful
Today is Towel Day. Fans of Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy are encouraged to carry a towel today in remembrance of his "the humor and insight." (Quotes used because this phrase is taken from the website, not because I'm being sarcastic, like later when I considered putting quotes around the word "actor" when used to describe Mike Myers.)

2. The Force
Today also marks the 30th anniversary of Star Wars. Fans of the classic film franchise have suggested that May 25th become the Universal Day of the Jedi in remembrance of a time that existed after Jawas and the Millennium Falcon but prior to Jar Jar Binks and Midichlorians. And don't try to tell me that Revenge of the Sith was good. You know in your heart of heart that it sucks. Just admit it already.

3. Born
May 25th also marks the birth date of musician Miles Davis, who would have been 81 years old. A lot of people will tell you to listen to Kind of Blue, but I'm recommending this Milt Jackson collaboration.

4. Celebs
A bunch of other "famous" people were born today as well, including, actors, Mike Myers, Cillian Murphy and Ian McKellen; singer, Lauryn Hill; writers Raymond Carver, W.P. Kinsella, Ralph Waldo Emmerson, Robert Ludlum and Poppy Z. Brite; director, actor, puppeteer and voice of Yoda, Frank Oz:; and comics creators, Barry Windsor-Smith and Stan Sakai. I'm sure a lot of other great and nice people were born to day too, But I've probably never heard of most of them.

5. Missing
Today is also National Missing Children's Day so if you've found any kids recently, this is your best opportunity to turn them in.

338 - Zombie

2007-05-24T14:36:00.000-05:00

1. Zombie Land
In attempt to appeal to audiences ranging from zombie fans, to skateboarders, to little kids, to metal heads, Urban Squall has produced an online video game which doesn't really appeal to anyone.

2. Hell's Ground
"An ultra-gory horror yarn of zombies, teens and burqa-wearing, flail-wielding backwoods psychopaths. Burqas?" That's right. It's Pakistan's first horror film.

3. Zombies on a Plane
And then there's this upcoming movie, Flight of the Living Dead, which combines aspects of Dawn of the Dead and Snakes on a Plane. I actually think it looks pretty good. Don't confuse it with Scott Ewen's comic book of the same name.

4. Canadians
But the upcoming zombie movie which has the best chance of making it to your local cineplex is Fido, a comedic social satire wrapped in the trappings of a horror movie.

5. Endless Zombie Rampage
In contrast to Zombie Land, the creators of this game are trying to appeal to only one audience; people who like to shoot things and look at lots of pixelated blood spurts.

337 - with Links!

2007-05-23T00:23:00.000-05:00

1. Back in Black
Here's an interesting story about how a Marvel Comic reader, Randy Schueller, through a contest with a relatively small prize, wrote the basic story which led to the popular black suit which was a main dramtic component of the Spider-man comics for many years and features heavily in the new, blockbuster movie. Schueller doesn't seem very bitter about the situation, but I can't help but feel these are reletively poor business ethics, from a company making millions on stories mainly about the ethics of heroism.

2. Sketch Swap
Use your mouse to create a masterpiece and then send it on for someone else to enjoy. In return, you will recieve a drawing as well. When you see how good the picture you recieve is, you'll be ashamed of the half-assed attempt you made.

3. Kosbees
After his run-in with the lawyers of Bill Cosby because of his Channel 101 series, the House of Cosbys, Jusin Roiland is apparently back at it with his new show on VH1's Acceptable TV. By the way, does anyone watch this show? Admittedly, I don't watch a lot of VH1, but I don't think I've seen a single ad for it anywhere on television.

4. Hand, Hand, Finger, Thumb
A tattoo that is incredibly awesome and yet somewhat repulsive at the same time.

5. Plupon
Add three numbers for a sum in a multiple of ten before too many numbers reach the bottom of your screen, and turn your volume down because the sound effects are high pitched and overly loud.

336 - Movie

2007-05-22T17:29:00.000-05:00

1. Drive-way Drive-in
Your weekly invitation to a night of movies under the stars, on an oil stained slab of slightly tilted concrete.

2. MPAA
1968 brought about the birth of the "voluntary" Hollywood rating system. A few things have changed over the years, NC-17 appeared when the adult film industry finally got a monopoly on the letter X, and you might be surprised to see that PG was original called GP. Of course PG-13 turned up in 1984 to keep 12 year olds from seeing Red Dawn.

3. Melton Pocket Movie Viewer
The fifty-five year old portable media center.

4. Barbarella
Robert Rodriguez has signed on to direct the new Barbarella movie. So Kate Beckinsale is probably out. Carla Gugino or Salma Hayek are good bets right now.

5. Countdown
Running down from one hundred to one with movie clips. How many can you recognize?

335 - with Links!

2007-05-21T23:56:00.000-05:00

1. Termination
One of the most anticipated new television shows coming next season is The Sarah Connor Chronicles, a series placed in James Cameron's Terminator world, about the Young John Connor and his mother. An advance trailer for the show has been released on youtube. Who wants to bet on whether is sucks or not?

2. Hypocrite, They Name is Migden
State Senator Carole Migden, one of the proponents of a new law banning cell phone usage while driving, was involved in a minor fender bender in which she rear-ended another vehicle. The accident was caused because she was, get this, using her cell phone.

3. Celestial Bodies
I tried to get a picture of the moon and Venus similar to this one, but alas, my camera blows.

4. Great Dane
Gibson, the World's Tallest Dog.

5. Overpaid
The dude that bid $10 million on John Schneider's original General Lee can't really afford it. Here's your chance to get in on the action. This time around, Schneider and ebay are demanding that potential bidders register and prove their ability to come up with the cash before bidding. Good luck.

334 - All Request

2007-05-20T02:26:00.000-05:00

1. Technology is Wasted on the Dog
Proving once and for all that dogs are stupid. This one can't even play video games properly.

2. I Can Has Cheezburer?
All your LOL cats collected in one convenient location.

3. Duck and Cover
A game of Duck, Duck, Goose will always go wrong when played by a Petco employee, a Linens-N-Things security team, a shoplifter, his girlfriend, and their pet duck, Peepers.

4. Foxy
What more do you need then a tiny fox playing on a trampoline? How about an inflatable Bucky Ball.

5. Cheater
I always though racing dogs just ran because they wanted to catch that mechanical bunny, but this guy is a real competitor. He totally wants to win and to hell with the rules.

333 - Filthy All Request

2007-05-19T17:18:00.001-05:00

1. Turbo Boost
The UK's most reputable newspaper, The Sun, has found evidence of at least one man that enjoys the romantic company of automobiles.

2. How to Make Love to a Car or Other Vehicle
Things You'll Need:
- Desire in the first place!!!!
- Vehicle you fancy
- Privacy and warm enough space
- Any sheaths that will help
- Appropriate ramps if needed
- Blankets,carpet,cushions for comfort depending on positions
- Imagination

3. Sodomy? Bestiality? Animal Cruelty?
In a miscarriage of justice, a Michigan man faces the possibility of serving a fifteen year prison term even though his offense, having intimate relations with a dead dog, is not officially against the law.

4. Kelly Christine Spaich
And in "Hot for Teacher News" another attractive woman was busted for allegedly seducing one of her sixteen year old students. It seems like 28 is the age when most of these women get involved with these young boys. Any psychologists that want to write some kind of paper on this phenomena are welcome to use that fact as a jumping off point.

5. Whose Butt?
Look at a rear end and try to guess which celebrity to which it belongs. Be aware that the option for Liv Taylor is really supposed to be Liv Tyler.

332 - Wheel of Fortune

2007-05-18T23:50:00.000-05:00

1. E-CLUSI-E NIGHTCLUB
I'm guessing you've seen this already. It's been all over the place. I have to assume that this girl isn't really super stupid. She's probably just nervous about being on the show and then excited about the possibility of getting that $10,000. Still, even if she couldn't get the X or V in exclusive, I'm sure she can certainly protect our American liberties.

2. ALL Y-U CAN EAT TAC- BAR
These people might actually be stupid. It's hard to say. Maybe they just grew up in a place where nobody ever ate tacos. Between the two of them, you'd think they could guess it, though.

3. Can I Have A C?
These people are almost certainly stupid. There is a big board that shows the contestants which letters have already been called so there's really no excuse to make that mistake, especially more than once.

4. -L---S
This guy isn't stupid. I don't know if he's smart. But he is a damn good guesser.

5. ---S-- -R----R -S -R. -R----R -R---
And before you judge all contestants based on just these few, take a look at this woman who knows exactly how to use the category and the helpful punctuation clue to figure out the puzzle with almost no letters.

331 - Googles

2007-05-17T22:30:00.001-05:00

1. Weasel Lawn Ornaments
Another edition of favorite google searches that have brought websurfers to this site.
Are there any weasel lawn ornaments? If there are, why would anyone want to put one in his yard.

2. I Want To Buy A Son of Svengoolie Shirt
Send $20 in cashier's check or money order made out to WCIU-TV along with your name, size preference (L, XL, 2XL) address, and a daytime phone number to:
Svengoolie T-SHIRT c/o WCIU 26 N. Halsted
Chicago, IL 60661

3. Masterbating Ponies
Since I started this site, I've been trying to slip in subtle porn references with the hope to bring in people searching for some decent self-gratification aids. Unfortunately it hasn't really worked except in this one instance, and this guy is some kind of perverted freak.

4. Wind Blows Up Women's Skirts
This guy's probably a bit of a pervert too. I'm afraid he was disappointed, however. I don't remember ever linking to any upskirt photos or videos.

5. Recipe for Making Undetectable Poison
If you have ever done this particular google search, I just want to recommend destroying your hard-drive before murdering your significant other. Actually, to be safe, only do this search from the library or some other public place where the internet traffic cannot be traced back to you.

330 - Gun

2007-05-16T01:30:00.000-05:00

1. Pistol Packin' Preemie
I'm not sure if prohibiting gun ownership is a very good idea, but surely if a ten month old baby can be granted a gun license, then gun ownership laws, specifically the application approval process, certainly need to be rethought.

2. Guns Don't Shoot People
Eighteen year old, Damion Mosher, manages to shoot himself in the stomach with a .223-caliber bullet without the aid of a gun of any type.

3. Super Soaker
Two teen boys quickly caught after holding up a Dollar General store with a squirt gun.

4. Room Raiders
To save face after breaking through a door and ordering a Laura Croft: Tomb Raider stand-up display to lay down her weapons, police arrested the mannequin's owner and held him for over thirteen hours before charging him with a suspected firearms offense.

5.Oh Snap
Office pranksters need this gatling gun that fires over 560 rubber bands per minute.

329 - with Links!

2007-05-15T22:10:00.000-05:00

1. Jerry Falwell: Dead
So no more quotes like these, "Christians, like slaves and soldiers, ask no questions" "If you're not a born-again Christian, you're a failure as a human being" "Textbooks are Soviet propaganda" and "Grown men should not be having sex with prostitutes unless they are married to them."

2. Drive-In
Last weeks drive in was a bit of a bust due to the cold weather and the cold virus. Stop by this coming Friday for Bringing Up Baby and The Philadelphia Story.

3. Ahoy
Bruce Campbell proving his awesome-ness once again in this second installment of his Old Spice commercial series.

4. Op-Ed
We've all seen a lot of optical illusions on the internet. This site collects a huge number of them, makes them interactive, and gives detailed explanations of how and why they work.

5. Tool-Maker
What's the difference, really, between a crow, a raven, a jackdaw, a starling, and any of those other black feathered birds that regular people hate for no apparent reason?

328 - Richard Dawson Rules

2007-05-14T00:12:00.000-05:00

1. Frog/Alligator

2. September

3. Drunk

4. Turkey

5. Appliances/Tires

327 - Nightline Face-Off

2007-05-13T20:21:00.000-05:00

1. Ray and Kirk
So the Nightline debate between Ray Comfort/Kirk Cameron and the Rational Response Squad took place earlier this week and no one seemed to really care. Both sides have claimed victory. In fact, they both might be correct.

2. Brian and Kelly
The Rational Responders clearly won the actual debate. It should be noted that this whole event was suggested by Ray Comfort. On a previous episode of Nightline, Mr. Comfort stated that he could prove the existence of god without the need for faith or reference to the bible.

3. Face-Off
Almost immediately, Ray Comfort loses the debate by references the bible. His only real non-biblical argument is the painting-must-have-a-painter-proof. Of course this argument falls apart when you ask, "If everything must have a creator, then who created god?"

4. Concession
When asked if they would like to respond to this counter argument, Ray and Kirk shrug their shoulders, sigh, and say no. In my mind, this is a concession. If they had not lost the debate before now, then this is certainly the end. When Kirk finally does respond, he begins by using the words "we believe," again defying his side's own edict to avoid using personal belief during the debate.

5. Part One and Part Two
But in the end, Ray and Kirk probably did win. Nightline aired their sermon to millions of people that had previously probably never heard of The Way of the Master. This in itself is a major victory for them. On top of that, the segment which aired on the actual television broadcast seemed to be heavily biased in favor of the theists. They were given considerably more screentime, and Martin Bashir's introduction is, perhaps subconsciously, quite condescending to the rational responders.

326 - with Links!

2007-05-12T19:34:00.000-05:00

1. Scantron
Choosing "C" as the standard answer on a scantron test really isn't always the best idea, especially when the test you are attempting to pass is made exclusively of true or false questions.

2. Controversy
Adult Swim gives you six pilots for new shows to preview. They expect you to vote for your favorite and, presumably, the winner will make it to air. Mysteriously, there are only five choices on the poll. Who is so biased against Lowe Country?

3. Pushies
Don't let anybody push you around.

4. Call Me
Does anyone know the legality of posting someone's personal information on the internet? It can't be legal to publicize someone's phone number, can it? Regardless of the legal question, this guy really, really wants his camera back.

5. Reapers Revived
Rumor has it that MGM has green-lit a new movie based on the long canceled Showtime series Dead Like Me. I think most fans of the show would agree that it was less successful after creator, Bryan Fuller, was removed from the project so unless he is involved in the movie, I have reservations. On top of that, reportedly, Stephen Herek is on board to direct. Unfortunately, his directorial track record (with the notable exception of Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure) is pretty dismal.

325 - with Links!

2007-05-11T18:59:00.000-05:00

1. Free Mooninites
Peter Berdovsky, & Sean Steven, the two "artists" hired to promote the Aqua Teen Hunger Force Movie by hanging up those LED night-lights that caused so much trouble in Boston a few months ago, have finally had all charges against them dropped. Each man spent 80 hours of community service painting a mural in children's hospital and apologized for the panic they supposedly caused. I'm sure the two million bucks that Turner ponied up didn't hurt either.

2. Second Hand
The eCigarette is a new nicotine delivery device which allows "smokers" to get the wanted buzz from smoking without the need for the dangerous tar and smoke accosiated with traditional cigarettes. What is this going to do to all the unconstitutional anti-smoking laws that have been popping up lately?

3. Optimism
Are these glasses half full or are they half empty?

4. Oh Yeah!
Kool-Aid flavored pickles: All the rage in Greenville, Mississippi where it is apparently legal for old women to sell weird food to children out of their kitchens or on their front porches.

5. Be Prepared
The top ten most useful knots with pictures and diagrams on how to tie them.

324 - Telekinesis

2007-05-10T18:12:00.000-05:00

1. Incredible
Through the late seventies, a young man named James Hydrick rose to international fame by using his enormous psychic abilities to move pencils and book pages without physically touching them. By the early eighties he was touted as one of the world's leading psychics when he made an appearance on the popular television show That's Incredible.

2. Defined
In case you don't know, telekinesis or psychokinesis is defined as "the apparent production of motion in objects (as by a spiritualistic medium) without contact or other physical means."

3. Bunk
Hot on the heels of his appearance on That's Incredible, Bob Barker invited Hydrick to be a guest on his variety show That's My Line. Barker was skeptical, so he also invited professional debunker James Randi to be a part of the program. Hydrick performed his page-turning feat successfully but his powers mysteriously failed him when Randi added a simple control to the experiment.

4. Confessions
Shortly after his disastrous appearance on That's My Line, Hydrick revealed to investigative journalist, Dan Korem, that he was not actually psychic but that he had put his years in prison to good use by practicing a technique of blowing currents of air imperceptibly from his mouth to cause light objects to move. The video of his confession can be purchased from International Focus Press.

5. Testy
So, even though there is no actual evidence that psychokinesis has any basis in reality, you might still believe it is real. Here's your chance to see for yourself if you have any psychic powers yourself. This telekinesis test produces a series of random ones and zeros. Probability suggests that average occurrence of either digit should be about equal. By concentrating on one number or the other see if you can influence a statistically improbable amount of that number to appear.

323 - with Links!

2007-05-09T23:34:00.000-05:00

1. Elephant Legs
Mandy Sellars, suffers from Proteus Syndrome, the malady assumed to have affected Joseph Merrick, more popularly known as the Elephant Man. However, Ms. Sellers' affliction seems to be contained only in her legs, which have grown to enormous proportions. She isn't planning to have her legs amputated anytime soon, but seems optimistic about the things she'll be able do when that eventually occurs. Snowboarding, para-gliding , and white water rafting.

2. Do You Really Have to Be in It To Win It?
Chris Ong, the smartest guy that ever worked at a newsstand, put his name on the claim form, and collected approximately $574,000 from a winning lottery ticket that actually belonged to a pair of his customers. To avoid prosecution, he fled Australia and returned to his native Indonesia, where presumably half a million dollars will go a long way.

3. Who Is Going To Clean Up This Mess?
Possibly the world's greatest Rube Goldberg device built from hundreds of items found around the house.

4. 120MPH
I've never really understood how driving a car powered by electricity which is most likely produced in coal or oils burning power plants could be more environmentally friendly than just driving a traditional vehicle. Anyway, if I had a spare $108,000, I'd buy this car in a second.

5. Drastic Actions
If you are planning a murder/suicide, then that is dramatic enough, you really don't need to cut your own head off with a chainsaw.

322 - Conspiracy

2007-05-08T22:13:00.000-05:00

1. It's Die Hard in a Lincoln Continental
Hot on the heels of his uncomfortably drunken performance at a NBA Playoff game, Bruce Willis is trying to enlighten Vanity Fair readers about what really went down in Dealey Plaza in 1963 and how JFK's true killers are "still in power, in some form."

2. Potter Conspiracy
Is it possible that JK Rowling, the supposed author of the incredibly popular Harry Potter series is nothing more than a committee of hired writers churning out chapters under an umbrella pseudonym?

3. Conspiracy House Rock
Media-opoly, carcinogenic nuclear pollution, corporate welfare, pocket politicians, weapons programs, technical difficulties.

4. Where There's Smoke
It is clear that the battery industry is influencing the smoke detector manufacturers in an effort to force expensive, borderline obsolete, non-rechargeable, 9-volt batteries on the consumer.

5. Loose Screw
Customer complaints (and probably the liberal media) have forced Virgin Airlines to reconsider its plans to include the September 11th conspiracy documentary, Loose Change, as a part of its in-flight entertainment program.

321 - with Links!

2007-05-07T17:58:00.000-05:00

1. Nothing
My standard answer, when asked what I want for Christmas, is usually "nothing." And I'm not just trying to be polite, I'd normally rather not receive gifts. Thanks to the producers of this product, I won't really be able to say that anymore.

2. Mystery Hill
A lot of towns seem to have these mysterious hills on which local legend claims your car will roll uphill. Usually, it is some phantom civil war soldiers or children killed on a railroad track that are said to push your car. This guy shows you the truth of why it appears that your car defies gravity.

3. Leave It To Tivo
Modern freeze-frame technology reveals exactly what was contained in the letter Ward received about the Beaver's bad behavior in school.

4. Digital Delay
I don't know shit about Imogen heap, but I know I love this Andrew Bird-esque performance using on the fly looping and absolutely no instruments.

5. Hee-Yah vs Yee-Hah
I also wanted to tell you about John Schneider's original Dukes General Lee and how he sold it for $10 million.

320 - Sunday

2007-05-06T18:25:00.000-05:00

1. This Oughta be Good
Don't forget to watch Kirk Cameron (famous for his role on Growing Pains) and Ray Comfort (famous for suggesting a genetically modified banana proves the existence of god) when they debate the scientific evidence of god with The Rational Response Squad (famous for instigating you-tubers to renounce the holy spirit.) Since none of the participants are actually scientists, I'm sure there will be a lot of incredibly well researched, scientifically valid information presented. Can sarcasm be accurately discerned from the written word without the aid of punctuation based emoticons?

2. Take My Pope...Please
The George Bush anti-terrorism scare tactic has been so successful that even the Pope has started using it. After an Italian stand-up comedian, Andrea Rivera, made a few jokes pointing out what he believes to be hypocrisy in the Roman Catholic Church, the vatican issued a newspaper article in which they called Rivera "dangerous" and claim his routine is "terrorism." The thing that surprises me the most about this story is that Italy has its own stand-up comedians.

3. Toasted and Shredded
The Creation Museum in Kentucky makes a lot of claims that are one hundred percent contrary to everything modern science knows about paleontology. For instance: Dinosaurs and humans frolicked together happily less than six thousand years ago; Noah's flood was real and his arc was filled with baby dinosaurs to maximize its storage space; When Adam and Eve ate an apple, dinosaurs turned carnivorous; Before that T-Rex used his razor sharp, serrated teeth for breaking open the tough husks of delicious coconuts.

4. Republican Repression
Did anyone watch the republican presidential debates last week? It was more boring than the democrats the week before. All the online polls (which we know are not accurate) are claiming Ron Paul came out on top. All the mainstream news shows (which we know are not "fair and balanced") are claiming that victory for either McCain, Giuliani, or Romney. Thankfully, none of the "winners" were among the candidates that raised their hands when asked "Who here doesn't believe in evolution?" that dubious honor goes to Mike Huckabee, Sam Brownback and Tom Tancredo.

5. Holy Water, Holy #@&!!!
It might be serious, and I hope Cardinal Francis George didn't hurt himself too badly, but even he might have to admit the comedic potential of a priest slipping and falling in a puddle of his own holy water. At least it wasn't a banana peel. Perhaps the first rule of public swimming pools should apply to church services as well: No Splashing.

319 - Genre Pictures

2007-05-05T02:46:00.000-05:00

1. Drive-In
Another invite to my outdoor double feature. I'm pushing the boundaries next Friday with The Tenant and Suspiria. I haven't seen either one, but I think they should both be pretty safe, without much nudity or swearing. Probably some gore, though. Anyway, everyone reading this is invited, though I imagine only a couple of people that know me will show up.

2. Grindhousery
Boing Boing beat me to it but I here it is anyway, a collection of mainstream film posters redesigned into the style of genre, and exploitation pictures. It should be noted that six months ago virtually no one knew the term "grindhouse."

3. It Came From the Lab
Scary stories of scientific research straight out of a horror or sci-fi movie. Reviving long dead viruses, human limb regeneration, vicious genetically altered carnivores, the solar shield, and merciless robot soldiers.

4. Sci-Fi Spectacular
This is where I'll be tomorrow, numbing my ass with over 12 straight hours of classic and modern science fiction films at The Music Box Theatre in Chicago. From Metropolis to Starship Troopers.

5. Barbarella
"In the far future, a highly sexual woman is tasked with finding and stopping the evil Duran-Duran. Along the way she encounters various unusual people." If there's one Hollywood star I want to see play that role it is Kate Beckinsale. Unfortunately, she doesn't seem to feel the same way. Plus, look at this awesome photoshopery I did over here.

318 - Colorized

2007-05-04T13:33:00.002-05:00

1. Blindness
See if you can follow what is going on in this card trick video. Don't worry, the secrets are revealed at the end.

2. Whatsits
Upload a photograph and find out its average color as well as ten complimentary colors. This is a very useful tool for building a design based around any image, especially nice for website construction.

3. Color - Match
Photoshop has so much awesome stuff going on that it must be impossible for anyone to know about all of it. I wish I knew about this color match tool a long time ago. It basically forces one photograph to use the color palette of another. James Delaney of Unfocused Brain uses it to make his digital photos look like classical paintings.

4. Red Team
Use both hands to control two different characters. This game is difficult enough, but add in the violent red color scheme and it makes it hard to look at as well. I gave up after level four.

5. Separation
The first commercially available color films, Kodachrome and Exakta, were developed in the 1930s. However, French and Russian photographers were experimenting with color as early as 1872 with startling results.

317 - This American Life

2007-05-03T12:58:00.000-05:00

1. Season Two
I'm not really sure if This American Life translates that well to television. Perhaps the 30 minute format is too short. Regardless, Showtime has put in an order for another six episodes so somebody must really like the show.

2. Watch
If you'd like to watch the episodes they are available for viewing online. If they aren't working anymore, you can illegally download them easily.

3. Listen
The most recently aired This American Life radio shows are being provided as a podcast now, and virtually the entire archive is available for listening online. Again, if you rather download the show illegally, it isn't very hard.

4. Missing
Except, for some reason, the fifth episode of the series is mysteriously missing. Does anyone know why?

5. Upper Middle Class
And finally, The Onion reports on the end of an era.

316 - with Links!

2007-05-02T22:24:00.000-05:00

1. Heil Shrimp
The classic Sea Monkey was created by Harold von Braunhut, a comic book-novelty inventor in the 1950s who also developed X-Ray Spex and The Invisible Goldfish (if you think that is a bowl of water with nothing else in it, you're right.) Von Braunhut also invented a crazy spring loaded weapon. He also was a member of, and major funder of, the Aryan Nation.

2. Samaritan
Canoers desperately racing to save the life of a woman they saw jump off a bride were fined $85 dollars by the police for failing to wear life jackets. The suicide attempt was successful.

3. Evil Twins
Cracked Magazine examines the phenomenon of similarly themed movies and tells you which one is better, even is they both suck.

4. Acrobots
Physics emulators are pretty cool even though playing with them gets boring pretty fast.

5. Instant Ice
Super-cooled liquid, or weird chemicals, or hoax?

315 - Zombie Tuesday

2007-05-01T17:30:00.000-05:00

1. Babylon Fields
CBS has a zombie television series in the works. If this show makes it past the pilot stage and actually airs, this will be, to my knowledge, the only zombie based prime time show in the history of television. A guy that lives down the street from a graveyard got some photos during the pilot shoot.

2. Zombie Escape Plan
"You definitely don't want to get caught without a plan when the zombies come! Where will you hide? What can you do to protect yourself? How can you kill them?"

3. The Last Stand
Despite all the gunfire and zombie carnage, I found playing this game to be oddly relaxing. In fact, I think I fell asleep once or twice.

4. Curmudgeon
George Romero hates modern Hollywood, computer generated graphics and those damn kids with their video games.

5. Danger! 50,000 Zombies!
A pre-Shawn of the Dead zombie special from Nick Frost and Simon Pegg. And I still haven't had a chance to see Hot Fuzz. What's up with the limited theatrical release?

314 - with Links!

2007-04-30T15:09:00.000-05:00

1. Drive-In
Another invitation to those that know me or live near me or want to travel. The double feature on Friday May 4th will be The Day The Earth Stood Still followed by Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey. Hopefully it won't rain out.

2. Love
Intended as an learning aid for prospective heart patients, this interactive 3-D model of the human heart is pretty fun to play around with.

3. Four Inches Tall
Although I can't find any evidence of Garth Brooks recording Tiny Dancer, I did uncover a Tim McGraw album which features a cover of the Elton John classic. Anyway, the point is this: Stop reporting on "the worlds smallest dogs" until they are at least a year old and thereby eligible to be considered fro the title.

4. Fake Cancer/Real Donations
I've always wondered about those donation buckets you sometimes see on the counters of fast food restaurants.

5. Mosquitotone
The world leader in innovative television commercials, KFC, is using weird high pitched subliminal noises supposedly only noticed by teenagers in their new ads. I heard it fine, and I'm no teenager.

313 - Sunday

2007-04-29T15:40:00.000-05:00

1. Purgatory No Longer in Limbo
Through years of careful scientific study, researchers at the vatican have finally determined that Limbo is not real. So much for everyone's favorite theory about what is happening on Lost.

2. Satan Hates Utah
What is a district chairman? And why do crazy people in Utah keep running for public office? At least John Jacob had the decency to blame his problems on the devil prior to being elected.

3. Illustrated Stories From The Bible
Unfortunately, you can't just pick and choose, you have to take the bad with the good. And there's a lot of bad.

4. $525,000
Half a million dollars. That's how much it will cost you to buy a stolen church from a rogue pastor. Start saving now.

5. Pentacle Debacle Ends
I was going to tell you about how the Office of Veteran's Affairs has recently added Wicca to its list of militarily approved religions, then I thought, "Why does the American military need a list of approved religions?" Does anyone remember the first amendment? Anyway, if you die in military service, you can have a pentacle put on your gravestone now.

312 - Drive-in

2007-04-28T16:42:00.000-05:00

1. Intermission

2. Intermission

3. Intermission

4. Intermission

5. Welcome
I'm using today's post to invite invite you to come by tonight for an outdoor drive-in theater experience. I'm hoping to have a double feature each weekend at various locations throughout the summer. If you have a big outdoor area where a white sheet could be hung and want to host the project one Friday or Saturday. Let me know.