LOLbush

From the Guardian.

America. Fuck yeah!

That look of contempt is perfect.

For the ladies. And some men.

This pic led to a damned amusing comment thread over at Jezebel.

Oh yeah

Another collection of bad album covers.

Shit, I own a couple Manowar albums. I'll have to dig them up.


That is so not gay.


I'm confused.


I want to party with these folks.



Any art critics in the house? Seriously, what the motheruck? What does this mean?


Stunned.


OK, the picture's pretty bad. Love the album title.


I'll cue this up right after I Get Wet. Par-tay!

Fuck

Satchmo - 1997-2008

I'm sitting here welling up over a complete stranger's dead damned dog.

And fuck again.

And again.

Condolences, Tbogg.

The coolest thing in the history of things

The pictures and videos at this post are fantastic! Follow the link to the BBC site too.

Beautiful.

Honey-do

The project I tackled this weekend was replacing the last of the old yellowing outlets with white ones to match all the other updated rooms. Eight plugs and two switches. What could go wrong? I've only done dozens and dozens of them in my lifetime. White to white, black to black. No problems.

Turn off circuit breakers.
Replace 10 items.
Turn on breaker #1. Erica yells down the stairs, OK!!! Good. One room works.
Turn on breaker #2. BZZZZZZZZZT! Sparks fly out of the control box. Um, that's not good. Off again. On again, no sparks. Also, no "OK!!!!!"

Go upstairs, check out the work I did on that circuit, six plugs and one switch. Bust out the multimeter, no juice anywhere. Well, the problem is in the box, and that's something I won't fuck with. Wait until Monday, I guess. No major inconvenience. Erica can always bring her laptop downstairs.

A little while later, I hear a giggle in the kitchen. Erica has crossed "replace outlets" off the list. She has also added "call electrician."

Thanks, babe. I love you too. Wiseass.

As it turns out, it wasn't my fault. My wiring was fine, the breaker was just old and crapped out. Great. $95 for 20 minutes of work. Oh well. I can't sell this place fast enough.

Nice inning there, jackasses

Hey, good thing we traded away a decent reliever for a washed-up catcher.

Angels 7th inning:
2 solo homers, Yankees give up a 3-1 lead.

Angels 8th inning:
homer (1)
double
single (2)
error
double (3, 4)
single
single (5)
wild pitch (6)
single (7)

Yup, that's 7 runs in, and no outs yet.

Good thing I have to take a shower and go downtown to drink, so I don't have to watch the rest of this shit.

Duuuuuude

"An inquest into the death of Welsh gym owner Gerald Mellin has found the businessman decapitated himself in his Aston Martin DB7 after an argument with his estranged wife. According to the court, Mellin tied one end of a rope to a tree, climbed into his DB7 and wrapped the other end around his neck. Mellin then jammed the pedal down on the $173,000 car, driving into a busy main road, forcing other drivers to watch his horrific death. Police found his headless body still in the driving seat and his head on the back seat."

Still workin', still shufflin'

Settled in for some hard-core Word work this morning. Need to knock off at least 300 pages today, and I've done 109 this morning so far.

Let's see here. Dial up the "Kick Ass" playlist...

Arctic Monkeys - Do Me a Favour
I said do me a favour and ask if you need some help
She said do me a favour and stop flattering yourself
To break apart these ties that bind
Perhaps 'fuck off' might be too kind
Perhaps 'fuck off' might be too kind

Johnny Cash - Sam Hall
Great, and funny, country murder ballad

Against Me! - Stop!

Shakira - Ojos Así
I'm getting a tingly sensation in my groinal ara.

Ramones - The KKK Took My Baby Away

REM - Losing My Religion

Primus - Tommy The Cat
What an amazing collection of musicians. I listened to this three times just for the drums.

Rush - Animate
What an amazing collection of musicians. I listened to this two times just for the drums.

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy - I Like It
Oh yeah, baby, it's the butt-in-the-office-chair boogie!

Jethro Tull - My God
People what have you done
locked Him in His golden cage.
Made Him bend to your religion
Him resurrected from the grave.
He is the god of nothing
if that's all that you can see.
You are the god of everything
He's inside you and me.
So lean upon Him gently
and don't call on Him to save you
from your social graces
and the sins you used to waive.
The bloody Church of England
in chains of history
requests your earthly presence at
the vicarage for tea.
And the graven image you-know-who
with His plastic crucifix
he's got him fixed
confuses me as to who and where and why
as to how he gets his kicks.
Confessing to the endless sin
the endless whining sounds.
You'll be praying till next Thursday to
all the gods that you can count.

Biting anti-organized-religion commentary, and a ridiculous flute solo. We're all winners here.

Rush - Before And After
These guys were called Zeppelin wannabes when this came out, and the accusation isn't without its merits. This heavy groove case in point. Still, good is good. And this song is good, 30+ years later. Rutsey was a good drummer too. No Peart, of course, but solid. Quite a debut album.

Mötley Crüe - Kickstart my Heart
Woah, yeah, baby!
One of 4 Crüe songs I like. Though that stupid "we're still kicking ass" interlude kind of ruins it for me.

~~~~~

Work on the computer, killer tunes through the stereo, and women's beach volleyball on the TV. Woah, yeah, great asses and skin cancer!

~~~~~

Queensrÿche - Queen of the Reich
Mr. Halford, meet Mr. Tate. And are you pretty much destined to be a drummer when your last name is Rockenfeld?

Scissor Sisters - Take Your Mother
Gonna take your mama out all night
Yeah we'll show her what it's all about
We'll get her jacked up on some cheap champagne
We'll let the good times all roll out

These guys kick so much ass it's not even funny. I can't believe how much I like a disco-rock band. It shouldn't be possible. And yet here they are. A genre-buster. A couple weeks ago, I noticed a concert of their on TV on one of the HD channels, so I DVRed it. What a show. That's when I realized why I liked them. The core - drums, guitar, bass - is really a rock band. It's the keyboards and the crazy gold-lamé-wearing dude and chick singers that give it the dance-disco touch. Addictive as all hell.

Zagoraios - O Votanikos
My second-favorite Rembetiko (rebel music). A mish-mash of Greek and Turkish and various Greek mountain dialects, I don't know half of what he's saying. But I get the point.

Rilo Kiley - Silver Lining
Nice little tune. Maybe shouldn't be on the "kick ass" list. Still, good band.

Raconteurs - Steady As She Goes

Maroon 5 - Wake Up Call
Adam Levine can sing. Unfortunately, 90% of what he sings is tripe. But each of their two albums has one song I really like. And they're both angry.

Phish - Bouncing 'Round the Romm (live)
Here comes the office-chair-boogie again!

Beau Jocque and the Zydeco Hi-Rollers - Just One Kiss
The ultimate booze-soaked party music. Zydeco with a touch of rock, and off-the charts danceability for white guys with only three moves. When I was in N'awlins, he was on the road out of town. I swore I would see him live one day. A month later he died. Fuck.

Against Me! - Up The Cuts
These guys rule.

Jeff Buckley - Last Goodbye
A great breakup song, with that strange combo of depressing/uplifting. It sounds so pretty, but all the while the lyrics just kill you... He died too young, just like his father

Kings of Leon - Day Old Blues
Girls are gonna like the way I toss my hair
Boys are gonna hate the way I seem
dayol' dayol' dayol', dayol' dayol' dayol', dayol' dayol' dayol' buh-LOOOO-whoooz

Meat Loaf - Bat Out Of Hell
Torn and twisted at the foot of a burning bike

[Scene: Delta Phi kitchen, circa 1991. People discussing how many times they've seen certain bands live. Of course, the dominant band is the Dead.]
Angelos: I've seen the Dead 4 times, and Jerry twice. Now that I think of it, I've seen Meat Loaf 6 times.
Others: Look at Angelos with some combination of amusement and amazement.
Angelos: I guess that makes me a Meathead.
[end Scene]

Arctic Moneys - The Bad Thing
Do the bad thing
Take off your wedding ring
It won't make it any easier
It might make it worse

How many over-hyped bands not only live up to the hype, but exceed it? I can't fucking think of anyone other than these guys and Kings of Leon.

Iron Maiden - Duellists
Oh yeah. What an amazing piece of music. Smith and Murray are so head-and-shoulders above any other metal guitar tandems, they need a rear-view mirror with a zoom feature. (How's that for a mixed methaphor?!) Nicko and Steve drive the bus, Dave and Adrian go off. They're in each others brains man!

Jethro Tull - Locomotive Breath
A classic.

Blues Brothers - Flip Flop and Fly
I don't care if I die

Arctic Monkeys - Teddy Picker
She saw it and she grabbed it and it wasn't what it seemed
The kids all dream of making it, whatever that means

and

Assuming that all things are equal,
Who'd want to be men of the people
When there's people like you?

Iron Maiden - Murders in the Rue Morgue
When your chief lyricists are a literature major and a history major, you wind up with a lot of cool songs. Literate metal. What a concept.

Kings of Leon - On Call
I'm gon' brawl, so be there
One for all, I'll be there
And when they fall, to pieces
Lord you know, I'll be there laughing

Stevie Ray Vaughan - Come On (Part III)
One of my favorite album solos. Groovy song and all, but for me it's all about the lead break.

Johnny Cash - Man In Black
Well, you wonder why I always dress in black,
Why you never see bright colors on my back,
And why does my appearance seem to have a somber tone.
Well, there's a reason for the things that I have on.

I wear the black for the poor and the beaten down,
Livin' in the hopeless, hungry side of town,
I wear it for the prisoner who has long paid for his crime,
But is there because he's a victim of the times.

I wear the black for those who never read,
Or listened to the words that Jesus said,
About the road to happiness through love and charity,
Why, you'd think He's talking straight to you and me.

Well, we're doin' mighty fine, I do suppose,
In our streak of lightnin' cars and fancy clothes,
But just so we're reminded of the ones who are held back,
Up front there ought 'a be a Man In Black.

I wear it for the sick and lonely old,
For the reckless ones whose bad trip left them cold,
I wear the black in mournin' for the lives that could have been,
Each week we lose a hundred fine young men.

And, I wear it for the thousands who have died,
Believen' that the Lord was on their side,
I wear it for another hundred thousand who have died,
Believen' that we all were on their side.

Well, there's things that never will be right I know,
And things need changin' everywhere you go,
But 'til we start to make a move to make a few things right,
You'll never see me wear a suit of white.

Ah, I'd love to wear a rainbow every day,
And tell the world that everything's OK,
But I'll try to carry off a little darkness on my back,
'Till things are brighter, I'm the Man In Black.


Wow. Just wow. This song was relased 37 years ago. And nothing's fucking changed.

Johnny Cash is always will be my hero.

And on that note, I've got to get out of the basement, away from this computer, and go out and see some sun. Then I have to work on the house a bit, and tonight, we're going out even if it's just for a couple drinks on Broadway.

I've been locked up in the basement too long. The wife and I have been like roommates the last couple weeks. She's on the couch watching TV, I'm at the computer.

274 pages down so far today.

I'll knock more off later, after Erica goes to bed.

In which Victoria Beckham is pretty cool

Allure: How do you feel about fat people? Is there an ick factor?
VB: That’s an awful question. People have to be healthy. Some people can’t help being thin; some people can’t help being fat. People can’t help the way they look. I don’t like it when people are mean about me, so I’m not going to be mean about anybody else.


You go.

Some other choice quotes here.

Welcome to China: Please Ignore the Communism

Well said

From Steve Greenberg.

Welcome to Bush America

Man tries to vote.

Man has proper ID for voting, as dictated by the laws of his state.

Man gets arrested.

Where were we?

Oh, yeah. Working like a fucking dog again. Office by day, working at home until 1 or 2 or 3 in the morning every night.

Hence the radio silence.

~~~~~

Let's start a shuffle while I spew.

Kings of Leon - Holy Roller Novocaine (Youth and Young Manhood)
In my KoL top 5. Filthy, filthy groove. Come on baby, you and me, let's get together and do the nasty. Ah, but "Lord's gonna get us back." The band consists of the three brothers and the cousin Followill. They come from a long line of Pentacostal preachers, and grew up steeped in deep-South religion. This conflict of the rock-n-roll life with their upbringing comes up quite often in their lyrics.

Judas Priest - Diamonds and Rust (Unleashed in the East)
What fucking power he had. This album is stupendous because of Halford alone.

Stevie Wonder - Superstition
Stevie Wonder's a musical genius!!!!! There aren't many booty shakers above this on the all-time list of booty shakers.

Black Crowes - Hard to Handle (Shake your Moneymaker)
Yesaroun'
I haven't heard this in 3+ years, I'd guess. Holds up pretty nicely all these years later.

Talking Heads - Slippery People (Stop Making Sense)
One of the all time great bands. I fuckin' love David Byrne. A freaky, freaky genius. And what a concert this was. Seriously, if you've never watched this movie, do yourself the favor. Beautifully conceptualized and filmed. This is my favorite song from it.

Franklin Micare Trio - Coconut Woman
This is the band that played our wedding. Their two albums are just so good. Amazing what you can find locally, if you look. I remember when he had just moved into the area, and played Rolls for the first time, just him and his guitar. At the end of the night, I turned to Tom, the bartender/owner, and said "you'd better make this fucking guy a regular." "Way ahead of you," he said. He wins the Metroland "best jazz vocalist" year in and year out, and puts on one HELL of a bar show.

Jimmy Eat World - The Middle (Bleed American)
Awesome. Killer hooky chorus, uplifting message, solid groove.

Robert Plant - Big Love (Manic Nirvana)
Filthy. Filthy. Filthy. Plant put out some kick-ass material post Zeppelin. Page, not so much. Remember Coverdale/Page? What a steaming pile of shit that was. Could he have picked a worse Plant-wannabe-poseur? I think not. Also, nice way to admit you got nuttin'.

Jerry Lee Lewis - Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On
Shake it baby, shake it.

Ramones - Rockaway Beach
OK, who wrote the best 2-minute songs? These guys, or Buddy Holly? That's a tough call.

Public Enemy - Can't Truss It (Apocalypse '91 - The Enemy Strike Black)
All right all right
Bass in your face
Not an eight track
Gettin' it good to the wood
So the people
Give you some a dat
Reactin' to the fax
That I kick and it stick
And it stay around
Pointin' to the joint put the Buddha down
Goin' goin' gettin' to the roots
Ain't givin' it up
So turn me loose
But then again I got a story
That's harder than the hardcore
Cost of the holocaust
I'm talkin' 'bout the one still goin' on
I know
Where I'm from, not dum diddie dum
From the base motherland
The place of the drum
Invaded by the wack diddie wack
Fooled the black, left us faded
King and chief probably had a big beef
Because of dat now I grit my teeth
So here's a song to the strong
'Bout a shake of a snake
And the smile went along wit dat
Can't truss it

'nuff said.

Damn those guys were good.

Scorpions - Blackout
This song is so fucking rude, but I don't care. It sounds too good to get all high and mighty about it.

I miss my Matthias Jabs striped pants.


Except mine were black and white. They were quite the sensation at Delta Phi parties. Seriously, I was just goofing around, but the ladies always had to flirt and comment. Those pants got me some.

Apostolos Nikolaidis - Panta me glyko hassisi
Wine, women, song, and good black hash. What else do you need, really?

Zagoraios - Pou Pas Memeti
Hey, it's like Two for Tuesday, Hellenic style! Another kick-ass groove. If I had to pick a favorite genre of music, it would probably be Greek "rebel" music.

Pearl Jam - Green Disease (Riot Act)
It's a disease, and they're all green
It emanates from their being
A satiation with occupation

And like weeds with big leaves
Stealing light from what's beneath
Where they have more
Still they take more

A top-5 PJ song for me. And just unbelievable live.

Ramones - Teenage Lobotomy
Now I guess I'll have to tell'em
That I ain't got no cerebellum

White Stripes - Seven Nation Army (Live Under Blackpool Lights)
This is another mind-blowing concert DVD. Watching him make all that wonderful noise with one strangely-tuned guitar and a couple pedals is crazy. Crazy good.

Limbo Maniacs - Butt Funkin'
Some random band I got from Toast. The whole album is too much to take in one dose, but this is really good shuffle stuff. Great grooves. The lyrics, well... you can surmise the maturity level from the title of this song.

Arctic Monkeys - 505 (Favourite Worst Nightmare)
A great way to close an album out. Builds slowly, a little organ, a little guitar, some rhythm section, and finish cathartically. Yes!

Bruce Springsteen - Radio Nowhere (Magic)
Yeah, this puppy holds up.

Weezer - Dope Nose (some untitled album with a color)
Hey! Another great 2-minute song band. It's the anti-Metallica competition.

Clapton and a zillion others - While My Guitar Gently Weeps (Concert for George)
Very well done tribute concert.

The Hold Steady - Stuck Between Stations (Boys and Girls in America)
An all-timer. In my top-20 songs ever, fer sure.

Gogol Bordello - 60 Revolutions (Underdog World Strike)
Where posers and models with guitars
Boogie to the shit for beats
I make a better rock revolution
Alone with my dick!

Another top-20 song. These immigrant punks kick some ass.

Kaiser Chiefs - I Predict A Riot (Employment)
Rockin', hooky, groovy, with an eminently shoutable chorus.

Masters of Reality - She Got Me (when she got her dress on) (Sunrise on the Sufferbus)
What an amazing one-off project this was. Ginger Baker hooked up with a couple buddies and put together quite a collection of tunes. This one right here is positively dangerous if you're driving. I literally put my cruise control on when this song comes up.

~~~~~

Spent last weekend in Boston, playing at my friend Tom's golf club at the annual 3-day Member-Guest Tournament.

We sucked balls. We couldn't catch a break Friday and Saturday, and the guys we played were catching all of them. We started the weekend 0 for 5. That's record futility for us. Sunday came around, and it was spoiler time. We won both of our matches, and I shot a pretty damned good 83. We slid up from the basement to 4th place of 6, so at least we won't be hearing about it for the whole next year.

Tried to hook up with oddjob. He suggested the place. We showed up at 7:45, grabbed some bar space for us and stools for the girls. I proceeded to walk around the whole establishment and the outside seating area, looking for the guy "about 6' tall, with thinning brown hair and glasses... wearing a blue short-sleeved shirt and black pants." I did this 5 times over the next hour. Nine o'clock and a $90 tab later, we left.

He was outside the whole time. How does this happen?

~~~~~

My company makes the big move next week, into some phenomenal new digs. The building used to be the largest knitting mill in the world, until a big fire. It's been sitting around all decrepit for years, because the textile industry is non-existent in the US. OK, pretty much all industry is gone. We've got the entire second and third floors of a fully-restored factory building. We're talking straight out of an HGTV show. Exposed brick and ventilation ducts, the whole 9 yards. I'll post pictures. Oh, and I get an office! Semi-private, but I actually prefer that. The better to oversee my minions. {rubs hands together and grins evil grin}

~~~~~

OK, that drum routine during the opening ceremony was outstanding.

It freaked Erica out. Gave her visions of Hitler-esque marches or something. Can't say I disagree with her, but still, awesome.

I, for one, welcome our Chinese drumming overlords. They own us already, they just haven't moved in yet.

~~~~~

This is too silly

Craig Ferguson has been going nuts on the "fork in the garbage disposal" dance for a couple weeks now.



(that one starts at 1:50)

More fun with charts and graphs

This is a great LOLblog.

This one took me a second...

Olympics

I've suddenly taken an interest in synchronized swimming.

Hot faux-lez Brazilian twins? Sign me the fuck up!

Wheeeeee!

OK, where do I buy one of these? And I need a fat guy too, for maximum oomph.

You were born to be a shredder

Flight of the Bumblebee at world-record speed.

File under "Duh"

If you "...increase the number of teenagers eligible to receive family planning services through Medicaid you get fewer teen pregnancies."

Facts and science do indeed have a liberal bias.

The Tennessee church shootings

Shakesville regular "bekitty" was in the church when it happened.

How she managed to put this post together, I'll never know.

More on hypermiling

Yup.

Now, not a chance I'll be doing 60, but my 10-mph slowdown from 78-80 to 68-70, and using cruise control, has been worth 2.5 to 3 gallons a week. That's real money.

Emmereffing a-holes

You work for us, you fucks!

You dangled your participle!

Bill Cowher teaches a community college lit class.

Go forth and shop!

My brother has put up a web store at Etsy to sell some jewelry separately from the wholesale stuff he puts in jewelry stores.

Here's his web store.

Here's a catalog of his silver and gold stuff. That's not complete, as he's added other designs since we last updated the site. That's the stuff that he has in jewelry stores in AZ, NY, ME, NH, LA, and a few other places.

If something there interests you, let me know. Also, he does a good amount of custom orders for clients.

How apropos

"Memphis Police Director Larry Godwin and the city of Memphis have filed a lawsuit to learn who operates a blog harshly critical of Godwin and his department."

Just life in Bush America.

How 'bout that name, though!

Yay!

CT scan of my brain showed nothing.*

I figured as much. Four consecutive weeks of 4-5 hours of sleep per night, no real respite from insane workloads from the office and a lot of physical labor at home were the likely culprit of the headaches. Complete and utter exhaustion.

Sometimes I forget that I'm pushing 39. My body clock thinks it's 29. Hell, my cock thinks it's 19.** I need to make sleep more of a priority. (Says the dumbass posting at 2:50 am.)

Not going into the office Monday and Tuesday was a really smart decision though, I must say. I still got a lot accomplished - I always put in honest workdays from home. I like that environment; nice and quiet, just me huddled in my cave, dressed really warm, typesetting some random Albanian and Russian documents. Log into the office e-mail, check out the latest emergency, log out. Deliver files as needed. Take a catnap. Pop some prescription-grade Tylenol with codeine. Another nap. Back to work.

Honestly, I think I accomplished more in 5-6 hours of work at home each day than I usually do during 9 hours at the office. Between Outlook and Messenger going off every minute, and the phone ringing, and the people coming up to my desk with this problem or this question, even my multitasking abilities get taxed. At home, I just tuned out the world and worked. And didn't lose sick days.



*Ba-dum-dum
**HEY-oh!

I laminated this meme

Tracy busts out the Top 5 Free Pass question!

I haven't thought about this in a while...

First, the ground rules:
1) Looks are great and all, but really, there will be 15,000 women on a beach in California tomorrow that I would find physically "hotter" than anyone on this list. But that doesn't matter for this list. Not that the women below are unattractive or anything, but I need to have read an interview, or seen her on a talk show, something that lets me know that there's a brain behind the the looks, and an actual talent beyond reading lines in a script (for example).

I've seen too many flavor-of-the-minute actors and actresses on Letterman that can't carry a conversation past the amusing anecdote (covered in the pre-interview, of course) they've tried to memorize.

"So, {actress}, what have you been doing during your show's hiatus? Did you go anywhere?"
"Why, funny you mention that, Dave. I just spent 2 weeks in Scotland, and boy did this funny thing happen to me..."

You can see Letterman fidgeting with his blue card wondering when the damned commercial break is coming.

2) I've always been drawn to older women. Intelligent, experienced, a knowing twinkle in the eye. I dated 2-3 years older than me way more often than I dated 2-3 years younger. I married that way too.

Anyway, here goes.


Shakira - OK, of course I go and violate rule 2 right away, but this in the only one on this list younger than me. Intelligent, talented, funny, ass and legs from the gods. And Ojos Así is one of the greatest songs of all time.

Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll (Arabic: شاكِرة ايسابل مبرك ريبول ) (born: February 2, 1977), known simply as Shakira, is Colombian singer-songwriter, musician, record producer, dancer and philanthropist who has been a major figure in the pop music scene of Latin America since the mid-1990s. She is a native Spanish speaker and also speaks fluent English, Portuguese, Italian, and some Arabic. ... According to the United World Chart, Shakira is as of 2008 the 4th most successful artist so far for the last decade, in terms of single sales. She is also the only artist to have two songs in the top ten of the most successful singles since 1999

Seriously. How do you top that?












Tina Fey - First woman head writer for SNL. Wickedly brutal humor which really shone through when she started doing Weekend Update, instead of just writing behind the scenes. The mysterious scar. The horribly bad Greek middle name. The nerd chic thing she rocks. Oh yeah.



Jodie Foster - Intelligent, talented, strong. And OMFG that jaw and those eyes. It's ridiculous how beautiful she is.



Maura Tierny - The sad eyes just suck me in. The protector instinct kicks in, I think. She was a fucking riot in News Radio. Lisa Miller was one of the greatest sitcom characters ever, and that show was chock full of them. I've crushed on her ever since. She's probably the most private of all these people, but every interview with her I've read has been interesting. Also, TJ's wife used to play Barbies with her when they were kids in Boston. I don't know what that has to do with anything. Maybe they played doctor too...



Holly Hunter - Great smile, great voice, great actress, funny. What did David Strathairn say in The Firm? "I love your crooked little mouth." Yeah.


Honorable mentions: Sarah Silverman, Gwyneth, Uma, Sandra Bullock, Amanda Peet, Kelly Ripa


Here are more: Toast, Mike, Chris, Maurinsky, Tart

Why flying sucks

Very interesting insider view.

So I've got that going for me, which is nice

I went to the doctor today, trying to find a cause for some nasty headaches.

The assistant takes me back to the room, and we make idle chit-chat while she takes my BP and all that stuff. I made a couple aneurysm jokes, but also seriously added that I know of two people around my age who almost died, and one who did, from brain aneurysms they thought were "just headaches."

She agreed, might as well check it out.

"Do you have kids?" she asks.

"No."

"Well, you're still valuable," she said, unconvincingly.


W. T. F?

And more

“Of the women veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan who have walked into a VA facility, 15 percent have screened positive for military sexual trauma, The Associated Press has learned. That means they indicated that while on active duty they were sexually assaulted, raped, or were sexually harassed, receiving repeated unsolicited verbal or physical contact of a sexual nature.”

Women in the military

Jezebel gives a lot of links to coverage the problems.

Is the military actually waking up? It's be nice to think so, but considering how many stories are out there that the traditional media won't touch (LaVena Johnson for example), I'm not optimistic.

We're the People's Front of Aberystwyth

So, funny story.

Sue Jones-Davies, who played Judith Iscariot in Monthy Python's Life of Brian, has become mayor of the Welsh town of Aberystwyth. A town where the movie was banned upon its release 30 or so years ago.

Three weeks into the job, the first thing she is looking to do is to repeal the mid-Wales town's near 30-year ban on the film. Jones-Davies, a Plaid Cymru councillor, who teaches yoga and drama in the town, said it was time for the matter to be reconsidered. 'I think times have moved on a bit and I can't imagine people would still want it banned, although there may be a few who would,' she said.

Like many towns in Wales in the Seventies, Aberystwyth was dominated by the church and its civic leaders took a dim view of anything that mocked established religion. Aberystwyth was not the only Welsh town to ban the film.

Jones-Davies, who has lived in Aberystwyth for 20 years, was astonished to learn upon becoming mayor that the ban was still in place, but understood that it was a product of its time. 'We used to be a town with many, many chapels - it used to be a town that took religion very seriously,' she said. 'So I can imagine that, at the time, the town's elders weren't very sympathetic to the themes and messages in it.'

Ya think? I'm curious as to what the ban entails. OK, so maybe the little town theater (if there is one) can't play it. But haven't people owned VCRs and DVD players over the years? Were they not allowed to own it? How does that work? I'm sure as poorly as any government ban works. But really, how can you ban something that's available the next town over?

Blog of the times

So, that last post just happened to be at the top of the page at Calculated Risk. I had to link that line, but then I went on to read the last day or two worth of posts, because it's been busy around here.

Wow.

Wachovia cutting out brokers.
"See-through" commercial real estate.
No place is so desirable that it's untouchable. San Diego is hurting.
BofA and Countrywide. Whee.
San Francisco. San Mateo. San Jose. San Screwed.

And the piece of resistance: The Duelling Narratives of Debt. Readthisreadthireadthis.

Bookmark the joint, will ya already?

Quote of the day

"We are all subprime now!"

On Stan "The Man" Musial

JoePoz on one of the greatest players no one remembers.

I remember that All Century thing, and I remember my WTF moment when I realized he didn't make the team by fan vote. The intervention by the MLB-appointed panel was quite welcome.

We're talking one of the greatest 10 hitters of all time, and he couldn't crack the top 10 outfielders?! The lesson is, as always, people are idiots.

One (hundred) beeellion dollars...

Zimbabwe's troubled central bank introduced $100 billion banknotes Saturday in a desperate bid to ease the recurrent cash shortages plaguing the inflation-ravaged economy.

The bills officially come into circulation Monday, although they were on the foreign currency dealers market Saturday.

As high as they are, though, the bills still aren't enough to buy a loaf of bread. They can buy only four oranges.

The new note is equal to just one U.S. dollar.

As Atrios says, Wheeeeeeeee!

Nice job there, sport

Let's play count the mistakes!



More here.

Doubleyoo Tee Eff

I'm dumbfounded by how completely misleading this headline is.



Wow. Really? She must have really been a super-mega-bitch on the set right? Throwing tantrums, demanding big trailers, making crazy catering requests, etc? Fuck, we hate her...





Oh. Um... never mind then.

Hey, whatever gets you clicks, right?

When there weren't any parties, sometimes she'd party with townies

I'm not ready to write a review yet, but I can most definitely give a hearty thumbs-up to The Hold Steady's new album Stay Positive.

When the aliens land, and they tell me "please explain your 'rock and roll,'" this is the album I will give them. This is the stuff all the kids are yammering about.

THS are rock and roll. Songs about drugs and alcohol, misfits and losers, rebellion and misspent youth... and those are the happy ones!

I need to figure a couple things out first, but I can't recommend this album enough.

Here's the song from their previous album that made me go out and buy it the day after the broadcast:


And here they are with a new tune, on Letterman Wednesday night.

She must be really good

There's a joke about chrome and trailer hitches in there somewhere.

(h/t Deadspin)

I'm good at math and all...

...but this just blows my mind:

The impact on consumers of the inflation juggernaut is now such that prices of basic goods like bread, when available, go up by 30-40 percent per day.

For example, the price of a loaf of bread on Monday which stood at 60 billion Zimbabwe dollars -- one US dollar at the then black market rate but 400 according to the official exchange -- had risen to 100 billion little more than 24 hours later.

A three-star hotel in the capital has been hiking its room rates by around 300 percent every three days and in the latest round of increases, rates shot up from around four trillion dollars to 10 trillion.



That's not inflation. That's not even money!

This is just ridiculous

I love baseball, and this has been a great game so far, but come the fuck on!

I think it's time to make the All-Star game not count any more. Ties are acceptable too. I think people got their money's worth last night and tonight, don't you?

This just in

Josh Hamilton is a BEAST!

And it continues

Our women soldiers are still under assault from within the ranks.

UPDATE: Unfortunately, this didn't end well. Her husband, a marine, has been charged with her murder. This is ridiculous. Three stories like this just in the past month, and countless others over the last few years. Philip Baron (at Shakes and Waveflux) has also been pushing the LaVena Johnson story for quite a while now, and it's just starting to hit the blogging public's consciousness. How long before the media catches on?

We are goddamned nerds

So, the IT guy and I were debating motherboard brands the other day.

I said: "I'm an ASUS man myself."

And we laughed.

Girl with Hats

Here are the captions we've come up with:

• 33 years and a $400 hat later.
• From Woolworth's to Le Beau Chapeau.
• Foreshadowing...
• You got a problem?
• Take the fucking picture already.
• Yeah, what?
• I'm thirsty.
• :/
  

Your suggestions welcome in comments.We think.

Oh yeah? Watch this!

So, about 5 minutes after I post the picture entry, I go looking for Erica, assuming she'd be on the couch watching HGTV or something. Nope. I wander upstairs, and she's at her computer looking at that very post. Good timing, I guess.

Her three comments?
1 - You're so cute
2 - You look just like your mother
3 - Nice cameltoe

Yeah, that's my wife. Anyway, I figured I should include her in the historical revue.

When we put together the Guest Book for our wedding, we went back and scanned pictures from similar stages in our lives.

Here they be:
Step 1 - Cuteness defined


Step 2 - At your service


Step 3 - I think they made a movie about this


Step 4 - OK, this just isn't fair

HEY! I was doing it for the kids! OK, fine... just my little brother. Still, I had to suppress a lot of teen-aged cool to do that shit.

Step 5 - Big hair and diplomas. Two great tastes that go great together.



Oh, and lest I forget...

Those legs? All mine, baby. Jeebus fuck - ballerina and cheerleader? Who needs a lottery ticket?

Fun with old pictures

Me and Mom, date unknown


Me and Dad, date unknown. Quite likely a few seconds before or after the previous pic.


My second birthday, in Greece. That's my grandmother (paternal) on the left, probably telling me to look at the birdie. (Κοιτα το πουλακι!)


Friends don't let friends drive Massey-Fergusons


Oh, shit, never mind. My grandfather had one of them too.


My father at 23 (1967)


My mother (middle) and her two sisters. Does it get any groovier than this?


Yes. Yes it does. My parents at my cousin's baptism. Holy fuck do I want a green suit right about now.


Who loves ya, baby?
or
Yeah, that collar's popped. Wanna make something of it?


Fast as a shark, leaping out of the dark
He's a killer, he'll rip out your heart

Holy hypermileage Batman!

Hello.

My name is Angelos, and I am a leadfoot. I firmly believe that speed limits are just a suggestion. I think that 75 is a good base speed, and from there it's up to weather and traffic conditions at the moment.

And yet here I am, in the "slow" lane, with the cruise control set to 70. Oh, sure, every now and then I crank it up to 72 to pass one of those really slow fuckers, but in general, I am now a slow-ass-driving motherfucker myself.

Why?

One reason and one reason only - the price of gas. It take me 5 minutes more each day to get to and from work, but I also am saving $12+ per week in gas money.

Funny thing is, it's not just me. EVERYONE is driving like a wuss. Just a year ago I tooled around doing 78-80 just about on every highway, and really had no fear of getting pulled over because half the cars were doing it with me. Now, I get nervous hitting 75 while passing because I'm actually standing out; that's usually the difference between a cop bothering to pull you over or not.

This has been going on for 4-5 months now, and I'm quite curious about the financial ramifications for local municipalities. Seriously, I see a lot more cops sitting in their hiding spots than actually pulling people over. What are they going to do, pull someone over for doing 69? (heh) Traffic tickets are a huge source of income to local governments, because even if you negotiate the original violation down to some lesser charge, there is always the $50 or so flat fee for the court. That income has to have been affected.

I ask my readers: are your eperiences similar?

House for sale

Gallery here.

4 bedroom, 2.5 bath. 2400 square feet on main two floor, plus 350 sf finished basement bar (part of full basement).
Wilton, NY 12831

Amenities:
• Immaculate home, move in condition, very desirable family neighborhood on tree-lined street
• Private wooded yard with deck and shed
• Park-like grounds with extensive perennial gardens recommended for Better Homes and Gardens magazine
• Sunken living room with fireplace and sliding glass doors leading to deck
• Custom gourmet eat-in kitchen, plus formal dining room
• Full basement, partially finished with bar, rec room, utility sink, ample storage and workshop
• First floor laundry/mud room with huge pantry and utility sink
• Huge master bedroom; other 3 bedrooms are above-average size also
• Central air and heating with HEPA air filter
• Near McGregor Links Country Club, shopping, the Northway, and the track
• Wine racks in basement
• Master bedroom has walk in closet with ClosetMaid system

Upgrades:
• Brand new garage doors 2008 with transferable warranty
• Brand new master bathroom 2008
• Brand new half-bath with custom-painted cabinet
• Updated guest bath
• Kohler fixtures and accessories in all bathrooms
• New kitchen 2007 with stainless GE Profile appliances, maple Kraftmaid cabinets, granite countertops, Kohler fixtures, built in water filter, and bamboo floors
• New roof 2004, 30 year architectural tiles
• New central air unit 2004
• New floors throughout: carpet, bamboo, or tile
• New mantle and crown molding in living room
• Front door has new Schlage doorknob and custom stained glass; new Schlage egg shaped doorknobs throughout the entire house
• New stone entry path and professionally designed garden
• Every room has been painted with decorator colors and/or finishes
• Updated interior and exterior lighting

Holy mother of bad writing

TBogg has the full story here, and you should read it. Typical waaaaaambulance wingnut, blaming her inability to get a job in academia on liberals, of course.

Here's a sample of her writing:

The red and green feathers shimmered in the sun, and I saw that they were roosters. They looked like the figures lining the gift display of the Café Latte, a place to which I was headed, and I walked there with eyes straight ahead.

I was setting down my heavy bag by a little table in the front when the pink-shirted Harley man passed by on the narrow sidewalk on the other side of the window. He didn’t need to in order to get to the Auto Zone next door. Two layers of glass separated us. Then he disappeared.

I walked to the back. I had already had too much coffee that morning, so I ordered a cinnamon steamer from the boy playing a computer game behind the counter.

...

I pulled out the envelope thick with papers written by cloth-capped boys now likely commandeering Jeeps down Barnett Shoals, the hairs even on their legs glistening in the sun. I sighed at the beginning of the first one that started with, "in today’s society." There was no one to catch it, or my laugh.

I was poised with red pen, the cup of frothy sweet milk to my lips when Harley man passed by on his way back. He had a box marked in black and red in his hand. I thought he might nod, but his look was a reflective stare. The thin mouth was set in a straight line behind the carefully trimmed brown whiskers. The look said nothing. Even when I smiled it did not change.

That's just a whole new reference point for "bad" right there. It may have nothing to do with baseball, but I kind of wish the guys from FJM would take a stab at it anyway.

The magic of sports

Another beauty from JoePoz.

Baseball is truly the best game in the world.

My brother and I screamed so loud that night, in my basement, that we woke up my girlfriend on the second floor.

Then the Yanks did it again the next night, and we were even louder. At least she was awake that time, though.

The most amazing back-to-back nights of baseball I had seen to that point, and I'm not sure it's been topped. And 2001 definitely gets my vote for best World Series ever.

Stunning

Some amazing photography from the California wildfires.

Rawk!

(h/t Free Beer and Hotwings)

Build your own fighter jet!

Now I need to get my hands on:

29,036 pounds of composite, aluminum, titanium, and miscellaneous alloys for the fuselage
1 × Pratt & Whitney F135 afterburning turbofan
1 × Rolls-Royce Lift System (for STOVL model)

and so on...

Freeance and Peance Meme

From Toast.

Are you "proud to be an American"?
No. I don’t go for patriotism very much. Ten years of living elsewhere will do that.

Favorite Founding Father?
Ben Franklin.

Favorite president?
Lincoln. He should have just let the South go rot in hell though.

Biggest "Patriotic Moment"?
Lake Placid, I guess.

Favorite patriotic song?
“America, Fuck Yeah!”

But really, there are no good American patriotic songs. The list of Greek ones is endless. I'm not sure why this is, but I believe it's the American tendency to mistake cheesy for earnest.

Favorite American cuisine?
Soul & Creole

Happiest political moment of your life?
November 1992. Watched the election results at Toast’s place in Troy.

A close second would be November 2006, when NY20 got rid of a ginormohuge GOP scumbag. Long time coming. His downfall was total and complete too. Caught with a mistress, the subsequent split with the wife, a DWI, still under investigation for other doings, even possible connections to DC scandals, including Jack Abramoff. Massive implosion. I fucking love schadenfreude.

Best fireworks display you've ever seen?
Can’t remember if any one in particular stood out. So I guess none did. I've seen some great ones, though.

America's gift to the world?
The idea of America.

Favorite Bill of Rights right?
Numero uno.

Favorite American Holiday?
Thanksgiving.

Favorite D.C. monument?
The Washington Monument and the Pool.

Your dream for America's future?
No Republican presidents ever again.

Happy 4th, everyone

Great moments in misheard lyrics

(h/t Atrios)

Now you know

Toilets flush in E-flat.

In case you were wondering.