« July 2005 | Main | September 2005 »
I find it a little odd that after a lifetime of never seeing the word Bildungsroman, that I've run across it three times in two days, and the folks who used it throw it off like everyone should know it already.
Seriously. You ever use the word Bildungsroman?
After only seven months, I've finally got around to activating the Pop Blog. I'll be concentrating all my pop culture goodies over there now. So if you want to read about all my movie news, television rants and other such nonsense, it's all over there. I'll be tweaking the design and elements and such over the next while, so expect some oddities.
8-Track Mind will remain the catch-all for everything else. Technology goodies, cat stories, pictures, etc.
The McCarthy/Red Scare era is the aspect of American history that fascinates and horrifies me the most. Good Night, And Good Luck is the story of Edward R. Murrow, possibly the most renowned broacast journalist ever, and his fight against that monsterous time.
The original inventors of the Lava Lamp have a new toy. The site won't let me link directly, so go here and click on 'Space Projector' in the upper right quadrant.
Trippy!
My company seems to be a haven for celebrity look-a-likes. There's the manager who resembles a husky Denis Leary, the graphic designer who looks hauntingly similar to Ellen Degeneres and, of course, William Hung.
Now they've hired a fellow who looks just like Ethan Embry with a bleached blonde goatee. I think they're all slumming it.
A little retouching can be a good thing.
Ooh... Online gratification.
Here's the new trailer for Doom with clips of the first-person perspective I mentioned before. Including the chainsaw! Hee!
An exciting post about nothing! It's like Seinfeld, only just text. And not very funny.
Enjoy!
A pic from the ever-wonderful Panda Cam!
Here's the other clip making the rounds R_Tam_Session_1_Excerpt.mov (link goes straight to the video).
Have you been touched by his Noodly Appendage?
Looks like Joss Whedon is doing a little viral marketing for Serenity. Reportedly, this video was 'found' on a file sharing service. Watch for more as they turn up.
Cutest. Thing. Ever.
I was trying desperately to ignore the semi-drunk babbler on the train into work today. Okay, telling you the time doesn't make you my friend and informing you that yes, this train goes downtown (like all trains in this city do) doesn't make me want to hear your life story.
And then he said, "Are you afraid to die?"
Pause.
"What?"
"Dying. Does it frighten you?"
Yeah. That's exactly the conversation I want to have with a drunk homeless guy.
This one is for Lacy. A recipe for Amaretto-spiked Chocolate Mousse that is entirely Vegan. No dairy!
Christmas is coming, you know. Time to think about getting your loved one (me) a membership to the Bacon-Of-The-Month Club!
There's another silly LiveJournal quiz posted over at my LJ site.
You are a Leo, the star of the Zodiac. Your fun,
confident, enthusiastic, warm, powerfull,
generous, creative, loyal, charismatic,
sensitive, and a natural born leader! Of all
the animals in the world you are most like a
lion! You are noble, royal, and as brave as
alion and every once and a while you
"roar" to show everyone your strength
and pride!
-Your lucky colors are orange and gold, the colors
of the sun
-your metal, is gold, but not any gold PURE gold!!
-your precious stone is a bloodred ruby
-you day of the week is sunday, get it SUNday
-the planet you are ruled by is the sun, which is
not really a planet but a star, just like you
-your element is fire
-the parts of the body that you rule are you back,
spine and HEART
-your true love ,matchs are a your own leo, an
aries, sagitterius, libra, or a gemini
What is Your TRUE Astrology Sign? (for guys and girls with incredibly detailed answers and incredible pictures+READ MEMO PLEASE)
brought to you by Quizilla
Not only is the Durabook N15RI shock-proofed, it has a spill-resistant keyboard.
Kid safe!
Not sure what I think about this. A couple guys who quit their jobs and tried to drive across America on a Segway, and filming a documentary about the whole thing. Doesn't seem that gripping.
Yup. It's a 14 karat gold toothpick.
The only cool thing about the upcoming video game-to-movie Doom is that I hear there will be a long first-person perspective scene, where it will be just like the original game.
I don't know if it's just the cool heist music, but the trailer for Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang makes the movie look like a lot of fun.
My security program gives little security headlines when I turn my computer on in popup balloons. Today it showed this:
I just hope it's with cream cheese.
What?!? Why didn't anyone tell me that there are new Greg The Bunny short films showing on IFC?!?
Looking for a house that's more than just some walls and a roof and have $21 million for sale? Elm Court is the former summer home of the Vanderbilts and was used for the negotiations that led to the League of Nations and the Treaty of Versailles.
Even more so, it has a library with 17 bays of bookshelves. Woo!
So I stayed home from work this morning to help Dad put a new radiator into the car (Thanks Ralf for suggesting we do it ourselves -- saved us 300 bucks). We thought it'd take only a couple hours but around one o'clock Lisa popped into the garage and mentioned I was a little extra late for work.
(Only got into the office around 3. Technically I'd have to work until 11 to work off the time. Sigh.)
Dad was still finishing up when I left, but he called to say it's running fine. Yay!
I tell you, it's like engines aren't actually designed to be worked on. I mean seriously, why have a metal bolt tucked in where you only have about an inch of movement for the wrench? My hands will never be the same.
Still, I feel all manly and shit, having actually worked with my hands for a change. On an engine no less.
Oooh! Oooh! I want a Star Trek Communicator phone!
It's time to make your picks!
Here's one for the 'duh' files. Men overcompensate when masculinity threatened.
I've kinda stopped posting quizzes, mostly because they all seem kinda random these days, but this one seems right on...
| The Deviant Geek You answered 78% of the questions as a geek truly would. |
You're a geek and you know it. You've got all sorts of fringe hobbies and socially unacceptable tendencies. Chances are, whenever possible, you hate to be grouped with other people and sometimes go out of your way just to be different. You're smart too. You're more willing to depend on your own So what's it all mean? You may be considered by some to be |
 |
My test tracked 1 variable How you compared to other people your age and gender:
|
| Link: The True Geek Test written by ambientred on Ok Cupid |
I don't normally link to McSweeney's -- once I start, I'll end up linking everything -- but this one particularly amused me.
A Roman Polanski version of Oliver Twist? Interesting...
It might be formulaic, but then it might also be really good. At least the trailer for Proof makes me want to watch it and see.
In honour of the day, I'm updating "What I Saw Today..." a day early, with a good hard look at the number 34.
Forget the table. I want a lamp shaped like a rocket from some 50s serial.
Okay, so you know Lisa works for the company I call 'Amalgamated WeOwnEverything Corp.' and that her union has been on strike for a couple weeks. I mentioned in a What I Saw entry that the company has been giving freebies to the folks who have crossed the picket line. They've also been giving some of these to the managers and non-union folks in the building, likely as thanks for the extra work they've had to put in.
You might also know that I work for a company I shall call the 'KeepItInTheFamily Conglomerate', which is a direct competitor to Amalgamated WeOwnEverything.
So a friend of ours, who is a manager at WeOwnEverything (thus not one of the striking bargaining units), drops by late to my birthday party this weekend. Inside the card he gives me a gift card for a local high-priced eatery. Seems one of the Big Bosses was handing these out at the company.
So a present that came out of the pocket of the Big Boss at WeOwnEverything and was intended for non-union employees and scabs was given by a WeOwnEverything manager to a striking worker and her husband who works for their biggest local competition.
I think the irony is worth more than the gift card itself.
Thanks WeOwnEverything Big Boss!
While there weren't as many people there as I would have liked, I did have a good time this past weekend at my birthday barbeque.
Part of me would have liked a bigger turnout, but frankly the patio was filled and there were lots of laughs and chatter so I was happy.
And I can't really be angry at most of the folks who weren't able to make it. It's like the quality of excuses has gone up in recent years. No longer is it, 'I forgot' or 'I had a previous engagement', but instead it's things like, 'I'm collecting bugs in the wilderness for two weeks as work towards my degree' or 'A distraught friend phoned and I needed to comfort them' or 'I just had a chemo treatment'. Not a single excuse you can waggle your finger at and make a crack about priorities.
Next time I have a gathering I'll be sure to give more than a week and a half notice.
It's like the classic wagonwheel coffee table for a whole new generation.
If you can't afford much, get me a unSound Advice Conversational Companion.
Everything Is Illuminated looks pretty trippy.
Apparently the city is paving on the bridge which gives access to Shawnessy Blvd. from Macleod Trail, and access to our place may get a bit tricky.
But there's a few alternate routes available. Call me or send a note if you need extra help finding the place.
The nearby town of Okotoks awas hit hard by the flooding back in June, and their food bank lost a lot of the food they had stored. So Valley of the Mage, a game store in Okotoks, is holding a board game marathon from Sept. 9 to 11 to help out.
They'll be playing games like Settlers of Catan, Magic the Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh and Twilight Imperium.
For info on how to get involved, call them at 403-938-9997. I'm sure info will appear on their website soon as well.
Forget the fireplace. I want a media engine capable for storing 2.4 Terabytes of data. Woo!
I was feeling kind of down Wednesday -- which is why I didn't post my normal Wednesday entry -- so Lisa, Connie and Colin gave me my birthday present early.
It's a MASSIVE strategic board game called Twilight Imperium: Third Edition. For the gamers of you out there, it's like the space baby of Settlers of Catan, Puerto Rico, Axis & Allies and the computer game Civilization.
So you're competiting to be the dominant race in the galaxy, right? And you do this through trade, space exploration, technological advances, political manouvering and open warfare. It's got a MILLION little pieces and cards and junk.
I LOVE it! I can't wait to actually play the damn thing. We thought we'd try a sample game Wednesday night with three people, but it took me about an hour and a half to read and understand the rules, then another hour just to teach the basics of the game and then it was time for bed.
Ah well. We'll find some time soon. Woo hoo!
Ooh! Anyone coming to the BBQ tomorrow, bring along a deck chair. We don't have that many.
Ooh! A direct vent fireplace that breaks normal water down to serve as fuel and coloring. No exhaust needed as it's just burning hydrogen!
Lacy is planning on bringing by her inflatable hot tub, so if you are coming this Saturday, bring by your bathing suit, should you be so inclined.
Also: we do have a number of pets, so be sure to be prepared if you Are the sort who has allergies.
How about a robot that doesn't just vacuum or clean floors, but also polishes it? I think Roomba has some competition.
Forget the DVD player. I want a steam iron with little legs that extend if I leave it lying flat unattended.
I would very much like to watch DVDs in the bathtub.
