Sunday, August 31, 2008

David, David, David

Mulder used to spend his time watching porn on his couch. He didn't even have a bed until that one dude stole his body and bought a waterbed. The couch was all he needed.

Eventually David Duchovney went on to star in Californication, a show about a writer suffering writer's block and sexual addiction.

Entertainment Tonight has reported that David has checked into rehab for sexual addiction.

What does this mean? Does it mean he's been subsumed by his characters? Or is this perhaps a publicity stunt for season two of Californication?

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Saturday, August 30, 2008

Babylon A.D. director displeased

Here's an article from Variety about Babylon A.D., the film version that was released this weekend.

Interesting quote number one:

In an interview with AMCtv.com, Kassovitz called the sci-fi thriller "pure violence and stupidity," with parts of the film resembling "a bad episode of '24.' "


And two:

Production on "Babylon A.D." was delayed three weeks for personal reasons involving Kassovitz. And Fox, like the overseas distribs, have been annoyed that the director failed to meet many of his press obligations and has instead retreated to a Caribbean island.


I think we all have days where we wish we could retreat to a Caribbean Island, especially when work isn't going the way we wished.

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Friday, August 29, 2008

It's the weekend

So relax and take it easy.


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Thursday, August 28, 2008

An analysis of Vista

http://www.overcompensating.com/posts/20080827.html

Be sure to check out the simile in the rant. Sounds spot on to me. Everyone I know that has Vista hates it and wishes they could get rid of it.

School is back in session for everyone but Chris. He starts next week. My twin penpals start on Sept 11, an inauspicious day for New York City dwellers you would think. They just got back from a trip to the Grand Canyon, which was very nice.

We've seen some strange ads while looking for a new place for Chris to live for his last year at school. One said no straights or gays. What does that leave exactly?

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Wednesday, August 27, 2008

The next car I'm going to get



I've been wanting a Mini for a long time but I just saw this on Top Gear and I think I'd like it. http://www.bugatti.com/en/veyron-16.4.html

You can see a video if you click that link. James May drove this vehicle at 407 kilometers per hour and said it felt quite safe and comfortable. I don't want to go that fast, although it's nice to know you could, if say zombie hordes on motorcycles were chasing you. I like the look of the car both inside and out. It's gorgeous in a weird way, combining a futuristic and a retro look. Quite lovely.

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Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Have you made your Labor Day plans yet?

Here is an event you won't want to miss.

The Coon Dog Cemetery Labor Day Celebration, complete with liar's contest. This event takes place in the Coon Dog Cemetery, which appears to be the last resting place for the most beloved coon dogs. According to this site:

To qualify for burial in this unique cemetery, where more than 185 coon dogs have been laid to rest, it has been said that three requirements must be met:

- The owner must claim their pet is an authentic coon dog.

- A witness must declare the deceased is a coon dog.

- A member of the local coonhunters' organization must be allowed to view the coon hound and declare it as such.



The idea of having to look at a dead dog and decide if it's an authentic coon hound is quite creepy to me, but to each their own.

P.S. you can view some of the coon hound's grave markers at that last link.

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Monday, August 25, 2008

Cam's reading list

Cam has been on a reading rampage as he zips through the last few days of summer vacation. He has read:

Books two through four of the Fairy Wars series

No Country for Old Men

The Road (both by the same author)

Two books by Will Shetterly, Never Never and Elsewhere.

Now he's reading Connie Willis' Dooms Day.

I think he's read more than that because whenever I look for a book he's got it. I'm going to have to make a library run soon. I might get him Emma Bull's Territory, my very favorite book of last year.

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Sunday, August 24, 2008

What the hell is going on in this picture?


My pen pal in New York sent this image to me today. I'm flummoxed. Who is the small child? Who owns the feet behind him? Are those tame rats? They look wild to me, and quite large, which would make them city rats like you see in Baltimore or New York. If they're wild why is the owner of the feet letting the tiny child so near them? What is the vat full of?

The worst idea that ran through my head is that someone is making cheese. Rat cheese. Barftastic.

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Saturday, August 23, 2008

Michael Phelps Returns To His Tank At Sea World

Here's a hilarious piece from the Onion about local swimming sensation Michael Phelps and what happens after the Olympics are over.

Bowman says one stunt called the "Flying Medal" will begin with Phelps' 14 gold medals being suspended above the water. Phelps will then enter the stadium butterfly-stroking at full speed, coursing along the surface, and with every breach of the water, placing his head through the hoop of one medal after another. If Phelps is wearing all 14 medals at the end of the stunt, Bowman said, the swimmer will be rewarded with a whole pizza and a pound of cooked enriched pasta.


And

Spectators are not only enthralled with Phelps' exploits in the water, but his abnormally large torso, unusually small lower body, double-jointed ankles, gargantuan eating habits, the slurring, almost human methods of vocalization he uses to communicate, and his odd-looking goggle-covered face, all of which combine to make him the most unusual sight in all of Florida.


Well worth reading.

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Thursday, August 21, 2008

This guy is scary

http://mrtesticles.com/

Check him out. I'm curious as to what the audition procedure for the mascot was. It could have been hilarious, could have been scary, could have been embarrassing or a combination of all three.

The Adopt a Bollock program looks terrifying. Who wants a giant bollock for Christmas? I'm going on record now to say not I.

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Wednesday, August 20, 2008

You should totally go to this


More info found here: http://www.cbldf.org/pr/archives/000367.shtml

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Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Weirdest spam headline yet

I've gotten some odd subject lines for spam in the past, for instance "A dick so long you'll step on it" something that sounds like a bug not a feature to me, but this one takes the cake.

Britney sues vagina for divorce

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Monday, August 18, 2008

Julius Caesar epilepsy cause

I've been watching Rome, the series on HBO, interspersed with the Olympics. It's a good mix, an ancient Greek tradition brought into the modern world and the history of Rome presented to the modern world. I'm never clear on how much of what you see in these types of shows are based on facts so I was interested to find this piece on Julius Caesar's epilepsy and what may have caused it.

The proper medical or surgical treatment would then be instituted. A reconstruction of the clinical history of Julius Caesar (100-44 B.C.) has been attempted from available information from literature. Although a definite conclusion obviously cannot be made, a differential diagnosis provided with a tentative hypothesis is presented. The patient had late onset of seizures in the last two years of his life, headaches, personality changes.


Golly, seizures, possible brain tumor, assassination, by his friends no less; the poor man had it rough.

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Sunday, August 17, 2008

The Dark Knight No Longer Number One

After five weeks the Dark Knight is no longer in the number one spot. That position has been taken by Tropic Thunder, the Ben Stiller directed picture about the action stars who get caught up in a real war. It took in 26 million for the weekend while the Dark Knight grossed 16.8.

So far The Dark Knight has grossed 471.5 million in total in the domestic market. I can only imagine who much it will take in all together, counting foreign box office and eventual DVD sales.

The Star Wars film came in third for the weekend with 15.5 million. The film is actually the first three episodes of an animated television show. I read that the first 100 episodes have already been completed, which is rather ambitious to say the least.

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Saturday, August 16, 2008

Best Olympic Moment

Usain Bolt winning the 100 m Men's sprint. He was almost too much fun and so confident, relaxing before the race was even over when he realized he had won. Then his celebrating on the track, taking his shoes off, that was fun also. He put the word game back into the Olympic Games.

I can't wait for the 200 meters.

Congrats to Michael Phelps for meeting his Olympic goal and bringing home gold in every event he's entered. I particularly liked how he thanked the rest of the team when he did the team events. Good for him.

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Complaining about the Olympics

This blog from Variety Asia seems particularly whiny to me and apparently quite a few of the commentors also. It's called Anger Grows Over Opening Ceremony Trickery and complains about lip synching and CGI. Really? That's trickery? That's not part of the normal entertainment world? So maybe you don't really expect CGI or lip synching in a live event but I wouldn't call it "trickery." I still think the opening ceremonies were incredible, one of the most amazing things I've ever seen. I'm completely happy with them, despite the headache all the flashing lights gave me.

Here's the most ridiculous part of the blog entry, the finishing paragraph.

Chinese websites have China leading the medals table because it has won more golds than the U.S., even though the U.S. has won more medals overall.


See, to me that's just whining through and through and it makes the author look petty.

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This is for YOU!

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Friday, August 15, 2008

Writing like Mad

Would you like to write for Mad Magazine? Or are you an artist? Mad Magazine is accepting unsolicited submissions.


HOW TO SUBMIT MATERIAL

Send us a paragraph or two explaining the premise of your article, with three or four examples of how you would carry it through. Be sure to include art notes describing the visual content of each example. Rough sketches are welcomed but not necessary. Be neat and to the point. No hand-written submissions.


Visit the website for more guidelines, for both artists and writers. http://www.dccomics.com/mad/?action=submissions

Just remember you're writing for today's Mad Magazine, not the one you read when you were ten. Unless of course you're eleven now, then go ahead and write for that Mad.

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Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Taking a turn down the wrong road

http://picturesforsadchildren.com/index.php?comicID=173

I for one welcome our new pigeon overlords.

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Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Otakon

Cullen and some of his friends were at Otakon this past weekend. He had a great time and told me about a t shirt he liked that reads:

I do not kill with my gun. He who kills with his gun has forgotten the face of his father. I kill with bullets. Lots and lots of bullets.


I'm sure Roland would be proud. Hopefully not so proud that he throws a hawk in the face of the wearer of the shirt...

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Monday, August 11, 2008

Edwin A. Salt is transgendered

Variety reports that Tom Cruise is out and Angelina Jolie is in as the lead of a film formerly known as Edwin A. Salt, a thriller by Philip Noyce. Given the box office success of Kung Fu Panda and Wanted it's not surprising that a studio agrees she can carry a thriller.

If given the choice between watching Tom Cruise or Angelina Jolie perform I'll have to pick Ms. Jolie every time.

In other news I'm really enjoying watching Team China compete in the men's gymnastics. These men are an astonishing combination of power and grace.

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Sunday, August 10, 2008

Great news from Business Week

Here's a really interesting article from Business Week about a drug in development for Alzheimer's. It's based on a century old malaria drug and is a new approach that doesn't focus on amyloid, instead looking at a protein called Tau (which shouldn't be confused with Tao.) The research is very encouraging. Yay!

TauRx Therapeutics, a private company based in Singapore, just reported that its drug Rember reduced mental decline by 81% over 12 months in a small phase II trial. The results have yet to be published and need to be confirmed by a larger trial. But so far, Rember has outperformed high-profile Alzheimer's drugs made by far larger companies. And it works by going after a completely different target.

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Saturday, August 09, 2008

Stripping swimmers!

I was watching the men's 400 m freestyle just now and Jensen won the heat with a new American record, which is very nice for him. While he was talking to the reporter afterwards he started taking his swimsuit off, pulling it down past his shoulders. I'm guessing he stopped once his arms were free but who knows. Maybe he wanted the interview to be over or maybe he was just tired and not really thinking. Either way it was kind of amusing and endearing.

The beach vollyball with the USA vs Latvia was terrific. Latvia played an awesome game and the players were lots of fun to watch. Go Latvia!

The opening ceremonies were incredible. I loved all the costumes and the enormous sweep of the historical portion especially. I've read a lot of fiction that takes place in China in centuries gone by and I've read about vast entertainments that I had to imagine. Watching last night was like seeing all that come to life. Just amazing.

Unfortunately all the flashing lights exacerbated my neurological symptoms and I've been sick all day. I threw up before I even got out of bed this morning and the rest of the day has been pretty much the same. I gave up on getting anything done and have been watching the Games and reading a The Dragon of Despair. Hopefully I'll be feeling better by tomorrow.

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Friday, August 08, 2008

Pwned by Olympic coverage

I had a lot of trouble with my column this week. I wrote a few hundred words about Gone Baby Gone but ran out of steam when I realized I didn't want to include spoilers, which makes explaining why it doesn't work really hard.

Then I started an Olympic column and wrote most of that, only to realize last night that the opening ceremonies, which took up about half the column, would be over by the time the column went out in our newsletter. So I ripped it apart and wrote something new, after my bedtime, half asleep, and was extremely disasitified with the results.

Then I finally get the NBC site to work (I had to use IE) and find out that the ceremonies were on twelve hours late so I should have just left my column alone. Sigh.

My goal for these Olympics is to see more of the Equestrian than just the horses crashing on the cross country portion of eventing so I spent half an hour looking through TV listings on Comcast and finally figured out that dressage will on tomorrow morning at 6:30 am, online instead of on my tv. So I can't record it and I surely won't be up that early. Pwned.

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Thursday, August 07, 2008

More Wikipedia weirdness

I was looking at the Wikipedia entry for Michelangelo's David today and I'm baffled. There's a part about an attack on the sculpture:

in 1991 a postmodern artist attacked the statue with a hammer in an act of art intervention[6], in the process damaging the toes of the left foot before being restrained.


Then the footnote says:

^ "a man the police described as deranged broke part of a toe with a hammer, saying a 16th-century Venetian painter's model ordered him to do so." Cowell, Alan. "Michelangelo's David Is Damaged". New York Times, 1991-09-15. Retrieved on 2008-05-23.
The Times says the person who mutilated the statue was "deranged" and says he did it because someone who has been dead for four hundred years told him to do it. So we have a few choices. The man was deranged as the article states. He was possessed by the spirit of the long dead model. He was psychic and had a weak will and carried out the orders of the deranged or jealous long dead model.

Nowhere in that list of possibilities do we have an "art intervention." Why then does the Wikipedia entry say that's what it was? I don't get it.

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Wednesday, August 06, 2008

I love this car


I'm a sucker for this shade of orange anyway. The car looks weirdly like a bug, not a VW bug, just some crazy alien insect.

It's one of the cars Barrett-Jackson Auction Company will be selling in October at their Las Vegas sale. If anyone is thinking of getting me an early Christmas present it's number 768, a custom convertible street rod, Ford 1936.

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Tuesday, August 05, 2008

Agh Blogger is about to go down!


So very quickly, these athletes from the Athens Olympics look amazing. So long and so lean and strong! They look super fast.

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Monday, August 04, 2008

Children's Hospital DC

I took Cam down to Children's today for his procedure. Directions c-. We went a couple of miles out of our way and had to ask two different people for directions. The one whose wife worked at Children's directed us, but even he said to go to North Capital and look for the signs.

Patient care - A+. They were very concerned about not hurting Cam any more than they had to. They even gave him a lidocain patch for the IV site so he wouldn't feel it going in. That's service. They let me know what was going on through everything and at one point a surgeon who was operating on another boy came out to reassure the parents that everything was okay because he had been gone for about an hour longer than anticipated.

Surgeon - Cam's surgeon is terrific, knowledgeable, kind, caring, everything you could ask for in a doctor, esp in a profession that's famous for its cold fishes.

The worst part was the smell. The hospital smells terrible, particularly the front entrance. It smells like every bum in the city took a piss and a dump and nobody bothered to clean up. Or like someone was storing every filthy diaper from the entire hospital in an invisible bin. It was awful. I gagged. The rest of the hospital smelled much better, not exactly good but better.

So now we wait for the biopsy. Didn't we just go through this with Cullen?

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Sunday, August 03, 2008

Come on along and listen to

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Saturday, August 02, 2008

I'm in ur ships stealing ur d00ds

I was talking to my ten year old pen pal today, via instant message, and she was asking me what I thought life would be like if nobody had signed the constitution. From there we went to the Revolutionary War and then the War of 1812, with which she was unfamiliar.

I told her we had to fight the British again because they were stealing our sailors. That they were taking our guys and saying they were British navy guys who had deserted. This is of course a simplification but good enough for our conversation, which also ranged around and covered some o the works of Louisa May Alcott.

If she were older I might have directed her to Harry Turtledove's Disunuited States for a look at possible futures for an America that never signed the constitution. But I think she's a little young for a book I thought was pretty grim. Maybe in another five years or so.

I also had a talk with her brother who went to see Peter Frampton. I saw Frampton when I was sixteen or so, an age that seems very far away. Funnily enough I'm sure 16 also seems far away to my pen pal, but in the other direction.

Cam is having a procedure done this week, to see if the gastric reflux he's had since he was an infant has given him any permanent damage. They've got us scheduled to be there at 6:45 in DC, which is about 90 minutes away for me if I take the metro. I wish there was a shuttle like there is for the airport. That would be awesome. He's still on Alaska time so getting him up at five am is going to be insane. Getting me up may be even more insane.

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Friday, August 01, 2008

My spam has taken a strange turn

My spam of late has been kind of weird. It's all dramatic headlines designed to get me to click into the links inside, which could mean it's viruses I suppose. Here is a random sampling from this past week.

Brave Suicide Bomber Survives Blast

Bush approves death penalty for soldier

Boy thrown outside window in school

Courtney Love Vows To Wear Clothes

Teachers students how to find G-spot

Unknown person stabs Christian Bale

Obama swears to get even

Wii Fit sets used to train US troops

6-year-old skips school to visit strip club

Angelina Jolie Pregnancy.it Was All A Hoax!

Stupid woman buys iPhone for 5000

New National Anthem Proposed By Bush

Scientists Create Prosthetic Brain

Arnold Says im Gay Too!

Cure for Aids officially announced

Oprah Winfrey Enters Race For The White House As Barack Obamas Running Mate.

British Penny Actually Worth More Than One Dollar.


Some of them are funny. But mostly they're perplexing. Why now? Why only to certain accounts? I've got no idea.

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