He's on his way! NORAD tracked Santa lifting off from the North Pole! Yippee!

I hope I get a pony.

Remember folks, you read it here first.

woofiegrrl is geeking about her new iPod and how she's going to pimp it out. I'm trying to do laundry which involves going from my Fortress of Solitude on the second floor down into the Mines of Moria (sorry about the mixed metaphor) every so often to fiddle with the washer and dryer. I've also got an online Christmas music radio station playing on my computer upstairs (WPOC -- yes it's country. If my daughter can listen to Michael J, then I can listen to Faith Hill and George Strait.) But I can't hear the online music when I go downstairs. Hmmmm. Combine all that in what's left of my brain these days and here's what you get:

An mp3 player that can pick up Internet radio stations via WiFi. Hell, might as well add HD radio too, while we're at it.

I'm sure Steve Jobs will be adding that in the next version of the iPod ... right after he adds an FM tuner.

Yeah, right.

Hey everybody! Go check out my self-portrait at Mr. Picassohead.

Honest, it looks just like me.

No wonder I can't get a date....

Halloween is almost here ....

Want some candy?

Bwahahahahaha...=koff, koff, gasp= Damn. Gotta work on that evil laugh.

I don't mind where you come from,
as long as you come to me.
But I don't like illusions I can't see
them clearly.
I don't care though I wouldn't dare
to fix the twist in you.
You've shown me eventually what you'll do.
I don't mind.
I don't care.
As long as you're here.



This video tells the story of "Juan Mann" (not his real name, from what I can tell) who started a campaign in Sydney to give out hugs. He ended up being banned from giving out hugs in a public place and had to start collecting signatures in order to be allowed to start again.

Yes, this appears to be true. I found an article about him in the Sydney Morning Herald and I found a discussion thread started by his fiance on a Star Wars fan site (O_o ?!) that seems to validate the story.

In any event, I've watched this video more times than I can count since I discovered it yesterday and I love it! I want to make a bunch of signs, grab a couple of friends and go down to the Inner Harbor or maybe the Washington Mall! This is how the world should be!

Jeff is a cat — a big orange cat that lives in California. Jeff has a blog ... actually, the people that Jeff allows to hang around him have a blog for him to chronicle his hobby — killing things. (Hey! He's a cat!)

What Jeff Killed

Disclaimer: These are detailed pictures ... very detailed pictures. It's like watching Godzilla devour Tokyo, if Godzilla were big, orange and furry and Tokyo squeaked, kicked, fell silent and then crunched up tastily. Do NOT view right after lunch. You have been warned. (The Home, About and Gallery pages are OK, though.)

Or you could just go to MyCatHatesYou dot com. That's safe — relatively speaking ....

You are a Rockhopper penguin! Other penguins see you as being loud, noisy, and feisty! By nature you are very curious and outgoing, but you may have a quick temper. You are provoked very easily and will attack if you get too aggravated. Most overlook this flaw because you are just so darned cute!

What kind of penguin are you?

(OK. So I'm not really much like a Rockhopper penguin. Let's just say I'm working on nurturing my "Inner Rockhopper"!)

Hooray! It's time for the winner of the Bulwer-Lytton fiction contest to take his place among the other luminaries of bad writing. Please welcome the 2006 winner:

Detective Bart Lasiter was in his office studying the light from his one small window falling on his super burrito when the door swung open to reveal a woman whose body said you've had your last burrito for a while, whose face said angels did exist, and whose eyes said she could make you dig your own grave and lick the shovel clean.

Jim Guigli
Carmichael, CA

For the runners-up, go to The Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest web site, which looks exactly like a web site designed by English majors should. =grin=

Does anyone remember this besides me? Or is this just a measure of how freakin' long I've been online? =sigh=

I always liked mine with kittens and eyeballs. Mmmmm! Tasty!

This had to involve beer. It just had to.

Watch 15,000 bottle rockets fired off in under 1 min at The Vulcan Project!

What's star_odyssey? Find out for yourself!

Well, it seemed like a good idea when it started, but Amazon's Mechanical Turk has been reduced to this. Someone paid $0.02 each for online "workers" to draw sheep facing left. The results are at http://www.thesheepmarket.com/. Mostly, they're bad drawings of ... well ... sheep-like-objects facing left. (Usually -- 6267 is facing right.)

Except for number 3507:



Don't get it? ( Here's a hint: )

Well, it looks like LJ got "my" background back. Of course, now everything else is in the wrong place! With any luck, by the time anybody reads this, frank will have eaten the offending code and everything will look normal (more or less).

"My background's back and but there is still trouble
(Hey-la-day-la my background's back)"

Never Get Out of Bed Again

Ever been camping and had to get up in the middle of the night to face the icy cold air? Those days are over now, with the Selk'bag - a sleeping bag system which looks like a giant full body uni-garment. Inside or outdoors, the Selk'bag gives the body maximum mobility and comfort. Fully lined and insulated but not bulky, you can stand without any trouble, walk, cross your arms and legs, and when you get tired, just tuck and roll. Could also come in handy in long ticket lines.

yoinked from CThings.

Ummm ... I just had a thought ...

Does that thing have a fly?

Damn.

p.s. El sitio de Selk'bag está en español. I think.

Found at CThings

Well, we didn't see this one coming. Call it a cathartic, city-wide attempt at conflict resolution: Pillow Fight Club stages giant, free public pillow fights in major cities around the world. Hundreds of people turn up with pillows and good-naturedly clobber one-another. You can release your pent-up aggression at the next Pillow Fight on Feb. 14 (Valentine's Day) in San Francisco (6pm at Justin Herman Plaza, Market & Embarcadero).But there are rules: 1) tell everyone you know about Pillow Fight, 2) Wait for the Ferry Building clock to Strike 6pm, 3) Don't hit anyone without a pillow, and 4) Don't hit anyone with a camera. We're guessing it'll be a great place to meet bitter singles.

Response from Tom Piwowar (tjp@tjpa.com) to COMPUTERGUYS-L:

You have not seen much of me on the List in recent weeks because I have been taking care of affairs for my sick Mother. This has severely limited my regular activities. Now with one hand tied behind my back I seem to have gotten ambushed.

Since Caryn Mathes, General Manager of WAMU, has chosen to make this announcement I think I owe you some explanation. However I will limit what I write in the hope that the impasse can still be resolved.

The announcement you read is a unilateral action by WAMU. Something like the unions call a "lockout." I would have continued to do the show under the previously existing conditions for a long, long time.

The problems at issue are not about money. WAMU wants me to sign an agreement. My objections to signing are essentially ethical. The agreement is full of poison pills that I think would threaten the integrity of the program. I think it is totally inappropriate. I won't sign, so they won't let me do the show.

Thank you for your concern and all the nice things you wrote. I would appreciate if you would go back to your previous posts and forward a copy directly to Caryn Mathes at cmathes@wamu.org so that she can see the reaction of the community. Thanks again for your support. Maybe all is not lost. Keep writing!

Tom

I thought that WAMU had taken care of its management issues. Obviously not.

The Computer Guys is a radio call in show WAMU. Or at least it used to be. I got this on The Computer Guys email list tonight:

Regrettably, I must report that contract negotiations between WAMU American University and Tom Piwowar -- one half of the duo "The Computer Guys", a long-running feature of The Kojo Nnamdi Show -- have broken down.

Effective January 31, 2006, Mr. Piwowar will no longer be a part of "The Computer Guys" segment.

We are grateful for Tom's 15-year commitment to "The Computer Guys" segment as "The Mac Guy," and we thank him.

"Computer Guy" John Gilroy will continue to appear on the first Tuesday of every month and WAMU is assessing various options for maintaining "The Computer Guys" segment as a vital part of The Kojo Nnamdi Show's Tech Tuesday lineup.

Caryn G. Mathes
General Manager, WAMU

Tech Tuesday, Tuesdays at Noon on The Kojo Nnamdi Show

Unfortunately, John Gilroy is a horse's-ass. All he does is giggle uncontrollably at his own lame jokes and puns and give advice that is either overly simplistic — leaving out important details — or way over the heads of the caller. Tom Piwowar — ostensibly the Mac guy — gave much better advice about Windows machines than John Gilroy ever did.

=sigh=

As seen in Slate: The Diarrhea Pill
How to lose weight through "anal leakage."
By William Saletan
Updated Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2006, at 9:02 AM ET

An FDA panel voted to allow over-the-counter sales of a fat-blocking pill.
Good news: The drug, orlistat (marketed as Alli), stops your intestines from absorbing one-fourth of the fat you eat. Bad news: 1) To lose weight, you still have to eat less and exercise. 2) If you stop taking the pill, the weight comes back. 3) The pill also blocks absorption of fat-soluble vitamins. 4) Guess what your intestines do with the fat they're no longer absorbing? "Fecal incontinence, gas and oily discharge that spotted the undergarments of trial participants." FDA panel chairman's question to executives: "Have you considered placing a warning on the box, 'Don't take this product while wearing your new La Perla underwear?'" Rebuttal: You'll lose even more weight, because the prospect of "anal leakage" will kill your interest in ice cream.

(For the full text of this Human Nature column, click here.)

'When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said, in a rather scornful tone,' it means just what I choose it to mean, neither more nor less.'

Found in Merriam-Webster's Open Dictionary:

cognitive displaysia (noun) : the feeling you have
before you even leave the house that you are going to forget something
and not remember it until you're on the highway

Submitted by: Anonymous on Jul. 19, 2005 15:05

phonecrastinate (verb) : : to put off answering the phone until caller ID displays the incoming name and number

Submitted by: Anonymous on Jul. 19, 2005 15:05

Now I've seen it all ... I hope!

THE ORIGINAL DENIM BRAND KICKS OFF THE NEXT REVOLUTION IN DIGITAL MUSIC STORAGE

The Levi’s® Brand Launches First iPod Compatible Jeans Worldwide

SAN FRANCISCO (January 10, 2006) –The Levi’s® brand, the denim authority, is launching a wearable technology revolution with the introduction of new Levi’s® RedWire™ DLX Jeans available worldwide in fall 2006.

Here's some of the "features" of what I shall refer to from now on as iPants:

• Easy Pocket Storage -- Wow! What a great innovation! Pockets! But not just any pockets. Oh, no. This is a magic pocket with a docking cradle built in. At least, until the first time you run the iPants through the wash. With your iPod still plugged in. Then the magic goes away. Just like your money did.



• “Hip” Controls -- New pickup line! "Hey baby! I got a joystick in my iPants! Wanna come play with it?"



• Handy Wire Retractor -- I hate it when my wire doesn't retract into my iPants right. Especially if I've got somebody else playing with my joystick. Don't you?

Unfortunately, no photo of the iPants were available at press time. Talk about vapor ware ... or should I say "vapor wear"!

(Read rest of press release)