I just want to remind everyone that I don’t make these up, I just point them out. It’s sort of a cultural commentary role.
Dept. of Conglomerate Appreciation
“Bad Girls for a Better Tomorrow”
This is without a doubt my favorite activist group.
The Germans Explain It All
There’s a lot to love about this diagram.
Um, ew.
The labor implications of this are, of course, dire for those who make their living plucking chickens.
So THAT’S where they shop.
Dept. of Caddy’s Big and Tall
I’m a car nut. Sue me. But sometimes, those magazines have really fantastic reviews.
So very, very wrong.
I’m really not sure what I can say about this, except that sometimes ad campaigns blend ideas in scary ways.
Like I Need Another Time Sink
Like I Need Another Time Sink
Lightbulb o Schoolbus?
Help ’em figure out What’s Better.
I told him to let me know when it can make a Manhattan
“ Abor, Two Cold Stroh’s”
If the image was much better, we’d be able to see actual trailers.
This satellite photo clearly shows the path of an F-5 tornado. Scary, but also cool.
Dept. of Excellent Gestating Software
It’s nowhere near done — I’m currently using version 0.2.7 — but Chimera is rapidly becoming my favorite browser on Mac OS X. It’s a true Unix back-end wed to a pure Cocoa front end, and it’s fast. Check it out.
Um, right.
I guess if ice dancing and synchronized swimming are sports, then wife carrying must be, too.
I don’t know; some of these seem reasonable
Skippy has a list.
Dept. of No Surprises
Surely it’s not exactly a shock to discover that evil drugs may not be evil after all, right?
Look!
Pierced Nipples!
Dept. of Bad Neighbors
This chronology pretty much speaks for itself.
It’s Not What You Think
Somebody in the photojournalism camp is having a bit of fun.
Dept. of Crooning Fascism
I’ve just been informed that John Ashcroft will be singing on the Letterman show tonight, Wednesday, April 17.
That is all.
The Rambling Wreck of Georgia Tech
It seems “trying to learn” is now against the rules in Introductory Computer Science at that esteemed Atlanta institution. Way to go, guys.
Dept. of Surprisingly Amusing Sites
These doctors have a pretty good sense of humor about their work. Don’t skip the intro, but once it’s over don’t miss the map. There’s sound.
This one’s for Edgar
Really really cool trees.
Heh.
I remember Pong.
Dept. of Inventive Car Services
You fin’ to raise up and get your limo on? Yeah, you know who to call.
Dept. of Potentially Interesting Developments
A few weeks ago, I heard a story on NPR about a new pre-date ritual beginning to surface in some circles: “ Googling” your date. Put their name and address into Google, and fire away, and all sorts of interesting bits might come up. Not quite a background check and not quite stalking, it seems harmless enough and even a little interesting.
Well, comes now Ex-SO.com, which appears to take the idea several steps further — it’s like Epinions for dating. Interesting, but also a little bit creepy.
That Tim, He’s a Rascal
Some of you may know Tim. He got married on Sunday. I took some pictures. Enjoy.
Um, right.
Well, as it turns out, this whole science thing is just a big goof on the part of the Almighty.
I’d like to take this opportunity to note that not all Christians are freaks. Thanks you.
“Do as I SAY, not as I DO”
This just in: the anti-Unix site authored by Microsoft and Unisys is itself hosted on FreeBSD and Apache.
Dept. of My Friends
My pal Chris Mohney is writing a travel diary for Slate this week. The subject, oddly enough, is Las Vegas. Enjoy. (Longtime readers will recognize Chris from his earlier entry here; rest assured the dolphin recanted, and the ADA was forced to drop the charges.)
A bad week for Hollywood
Actually, I’d say it’s a bad week for everybody. Legends Milton Berle, Dudley Moore, and Billy Wilder all checked out, leaving behind a really amazing body of work. Moore (b. 1935), widely known for comedies like 10, Foul Play, and Arthur, was actually a concert pianist prior to all that. If you’ve never seen the original version of Bedazzled, which he wrote with Peter Cook, it’s well worth your time. He was a bit young to go, I’d say, but he’s been very ill for a long tiime.
Both Wilder and Berle were in their 90s, but even so I think we could have all enjoyed a few more bits from them. Berle (b. 1908), a.k.a. Mr. Television, is one of the reasons that new medium succeeded so well. He was one of the original TV stars, and literally spent his life onscreen — his first credit is from 1914.
Wilder (b. 1906) left an even more significant mark on the world of film. It was Wilder who gave us Double Indemnity (“hey, isn’t that the dad from My Three Sons?”), The Lost Weekend (a film on the horrors of drink even grander than Leaving Las Vegas), Sunset Blvd., Stalag 17, (the original) Sabrina, Some Like It Hot, and The Apartment — and many more. Wilder’s body of work includes several of the AFI’s top 100 American Films. He was nominated for 21 Oscars, and won 7 (including the Thalberg Award). Few can hope to match this kind of cinematic resume.|*|
First Julia, Now This
Lyle Lovett has been trampled by a bull at his family ranch. Doctors say he’s in good condition. No word yet on his hat.
Dept. of Tourism
So I spent the weekend in New York, where I met some interesting people, few of whom may be known to you.
Sure, it’s supposedly illegal and all. . .
Dept. of Pet Management
Announcing Flo Control.
That Eggers Boy, He’s a Bit Quare.
But I love McSweeney’s anyway.
For better or worse, my answer is “247 miles an hour.”
How fast can you spank the monkey?
How can we miss him if he won’t go away?
Now all we need is a big-ass blender and all the rum ever made.
The Larson B ice shelf, an enormous floating extension of Antarctica, has broken up. When I say “enormous,” I mean REALLY REALLY BIG, like 1,250 square miles and 650 feet thick (which is roughly the same as Rhode Island, though right offhand I don’t know how thick Rhode Island is). It’s now basically free-floating icebergs of the absurdly large variety; one is about nine times the size of Singapore.
Coverage at Yahoo and the BBC.
Global warming? What’s that?
And now, for your listening pleasure,
Spamradio. Text-to-speech never sounded so good.
Dept. of Robots
Sony has produced a humanoid robot that walks on two legs, can handle uneven surfaces, and even get up on its own if it falls down. It can also recognize you, and have limited conversations. Not exactly C3P0, but definitely getting there.
Dept. of Dead Lizard Kings
The Jim Morrison Simulatron, brought to you by the good folks at Modern Humorist.
Dept. of Truth in Advertising
Thanks to Madam Kaldi, I think I’ve just found my new brand of toilet paper.
Dept. of Amateur Zoology
Um, okay.
Dept. of Self-Promotion
It’s my birthday.
Dept. of Long-Lost Subjects
National Geographic photographer Steve McCurry took what is widely believed to be the most recognizable photograph ever to appear in that magazine: the haunting portrait of a refugee Afghani girl that appeared on the cover in 1985. It’s the same shot that’s been bandied about lately as the face of worn-torn Afghanistan.
McCurry knew he had something special, but he didn’t have the one additional thing he really wanted: the girl’s name, or how to reach her. He’s made several trips to try and locate her, but with no success — and more than a few false leads — until now.
The girl’s name is Sharbat Gula — though “girl” is wrong, as she’s now married, a mother, and about 30. McCurry has arranged for both a trip to Mecca and the education of her children. National Geographic Explorer will air a special on his search this Friday. Cool.
Dept. of Guidance
NoGators Religion Correspondent Paige P. provides us with this lovely bit of instruction. Have a nice day.
This Just In: The Feds are Jerks
Love her or hate her, most of us know who Ayn Rand was. She left her papers to a friend, who decided to donate all but two pages to the Library of Congress. The two pages in question? The first and last of her manuscript of The Fountainhead. The rest he shipped off to Washington as a gift to the Library. Nice enough, right? Well, the LOC decided it wanted all of the papers — so they sued him. Nice, guys.