If You’re Feeling Sinister…

"Frick, boyfriend has learned to say any outfit I try on looks like Mad Men. Now I’ll never be able..."

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 16:02:19 -0500

“Frick, boyfriend has learned to say any outfit I try on looks like Mad Men. Now I’ll never be able to objectively analyze clothes again.”

- @_mattie

WoW Raid I have absolutely no idea what is going on in this...

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 22:22:00 -0500

WoW Raid

I have absolutely no idea what is going on in this video but it made me lol hard. “Oh shit we’re all dead!”

Just watched it again for the fourth time and I’m still going wtf lol wtf lol.

(via @mantia)

The wilderness must be explored! Caw, caw! RAWR! Russell is...

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:59:05 -0500

The wilderness must be explored! Caw, caw! RAWR!

Russell is beyond adorable. Pixar can do no wrong.

Terrorists: 1; Fat, Stupid Americans: 0

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:46:06 -0500

Terrorists: 1; Fat, Stupid Americans: 0:

Yaran Noti for Details:

It’s not news that America’s youth are too obese, too dumb, and too delinquent to dream big. Since kids are now developing type 2 diabetes while still in preschool and almost a third of fourth-graders can’t even read, hopes of NASA, the NBA, or the presidency are likely to be dashed. But there’s always the Army. Whoops, maybe not. According to the latest numbers, not only are 75 percent of 17-to-24-year-olds unfit for careers in nuclear fission, they’re also unfit for military service. Either they are dropouts, are overweight, can’t pass the entrance exam, or have a criminal record. 75 percent. This is the U.S. Army we’re talking about—they’ve taken neo-Nazis and gang members, so what’s a fat guy or two? Too fat for one airplane seat or too dumb for Harvard? Fine. Too fat or dumb for Uncle Sam? That’s just disgraceful. Natural selection is breathing down our necks.

Emphasis mine. Just… wow. I love this country!

On music and life

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:10:00 -0500

According to my Last.fm profile, I have 45,020 recorded plays since July 23, 2005. My actual number of plays, though, will probably be around 48,000 partly because of flaky iPod scrobbling support in earlier versions of iSproggler and partly because I have been known to just forget to have it on and scrobbling—whoops. But I digress.

According to the ever-useful Wolfram Alpha, July 23, 2005 to November 4, 2009 is a period of 1,566 days, or 37,583 hours. And according to iTSfv, the average length of a track in my library is 3:49.

45,020 plays × 3m49s ÷ 60 hrs ÷ 37,583 hrs = 0.09284

I spent an average of a little over 9% of every day for the past three and a half years listening to music. Factor out the time when I’m sleeping and I’m spending close to 15% of my waking hours just listening to music. In other words, a little over two hours every single day. Wow.

Volkswagen GTI

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 20:37:00 -0500

I just saw a Volkswagen GTI with license plates that read “BADWABIT”. Made me laugh. (Because the GTI is the turbocharged version of the Volkswagen Golf Mk5, which was marketed in the United States as the Rabbit, but has now been reverted back to Golf. You got all that?)

On a related note, the ad campaign for the 2007 GTI—handled by the awesome ad agency Crispin Porter + Bogusky—was ridiculously memorable. An evil, black demon doll known as “Fast” growls at the driver in a deep, menacing basso to not let his girlfriend get in because “he’d rather not carry around that extra weight” in one ad spot. Another has “Fast” growling at someone deciding between pick-up or delivery in the pouring rain, declaring that delivery is for the weak. The rest of the spots are just as hilarious.

“Make friends with your Fast.”

My So-Called Life – ‘In Dreams Begins Responsibilities’ This...

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 11:00:00 -0500

My So-Called Life – ‘In Dreams Begins Responsibilities’

This heartbreaking final scene of My So-Called Life is probably one of the best teen drama moments ever. Devon Gummersall plays Brian Krakow to perfection as a geeky and socially awkward teen secretly in love with a girl who’s too infatuated with another boy to notice. Angela Chase—played by the wonderful Claire Danes—never looks at her neighbor and long-time family friend the way she looked at Jordan Catalano, a handsome, popular, and rebellious slacker who is failing high school—played by the excellent Jared Leto—until she realizes the beautifully profound and thoughtful love letter Jordan had given her was actually written by Brian.

My So-Called Life is one of the rare network television shows that tackled difficult real-life issues in its episodes without pandering to viewers’ likes and dislikes, but unfortunately at the expense of mass appeal and marketability. It is the best and most realistic teen drama I have ever seen, and its short televised run only serves to highlight how moronic and hopelessly stupid most American television viewers are. If you haven’t yet watched this incredible show, I highly recommend checking it out on Hulu.

Cute. Happy Halloween, everyone.

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 01:40:36 -0400

Cute. Happy Halloween, everyone.

Last night’s Halloween episode of The Office wasn’t as great as...

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 19:27:53 -0400

Last night’s Halloween episode of The Office wasn’t as great as ‘The Lover’, but it still made me laugh.

Creed: “I vant to sell your blood…”
Ryan: “That’s really not the trend of vampires right now.”

"Procrastibate — To avoid doing an undesirable activity by masturbating."

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:58:31 -0400

“Procrastibate — To avoid doing an undesirable activity by masturbating.”

- The Brocyclopedia

Your Mother and I Will Enjoy a Lovely Night Without You

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:54:33 -0400

Your Mother and I Will Enjoy a Lovely Night Without You:

McSweeney’s at its very finest. Just… wow.

Mad Men – “The Gypsy and the Hobo” Review

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:19:23 -0400

Mad Men – “The Gypsy and the Hobo” Review:

Alan Sepinwall’s review of possibly the best hour of television ever. What blows my mind is that this isn’t even the season finale! And as so many others have been saying, if Jon Hamm doesn’t win an Emmy for this episode, there is no justice in this world.

Don Draper: “Bets, I can explain.”
Betty Draper: “I know you can. You’re a very gifted storyteller.”

"Caffeine makes me a different person."

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:36:51 -0400

“Caffeine makes me a different person.”

- The “Trinity Killer”, Dexter

This episode was fantastic.

The New Yorker – “Unmasked” by Chris Ware Sublime. (via Daring...

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 21:22:01 -0400

The New Yorker – “Unmasked” by Chris Ware

Sublime. (via Daring Fireball)

"(+61): She has 2500 facebook friends. I probably should have used a condom."

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 13:06:19 -0400

“(+61): She has 2500 facebook friends. I probably should have used a condom.”

- texts from last night

My So-Called Life

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 19:20:00 -0400

Recently I’ve started watching My So-Called Life on Hulu after an enthusiastic recommendation from Kottke. This short-lived teen drama was on the air for only one season in 1994 before ABC axed the show for low ratings, but not before it attracted a small but loyal and dedicated fanbase who continue to run a popular unofficial fan site fifteen years after the show had been canceled.

The show was also a darling of critics, who praised the show for its authentic and nuanced depiction of high school and its sensitive portrayals of difficult topics of the time, including child abuse, homophobia, teenage alcoholism, homelessness, adultery, school violence, same-sex parenting, censorship, and drug use. 1994 was a time before networks catered to the youth and teen market as is routinely done nowadays, and ABC hardly knew how to market such a difficult show.

I was never particularly a fan of Claire Danes—she was completely forgettable in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines and I haven’t yet watched Romeo + Juliet—but I used to listen to The Ataris a lot and on their ‘Looking Forward to Failure’ EP there is a song titled “My So Called Life”, in which Kris Roe proclaims his love for her ever since seeing her on My So-Called Life. That, plus the fact that the show is currently available on Hulu in its entirety led me to give it a try. And boy, am I glad I did.

And probably not a moment too soon, as there has been word that Hulu will officially start charging for content in 2010.

"If I had a heart, it might be breaking right now."

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 16:17:00 -0400

“If I had a heart, it might be breaking right now.”

- Dexter Morgan, Dexter

The Microsoft Store It looks exactly like how you would imagine...

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 18:27:24 -0400

The Microsoft Store

It looks exactly like how you would imagine a Microsoft retail store to look. That is to say, exactly like an Apple Store. And I mean exactly—so much so, in fact, that it’s downright creepy.

Moral of story: suit up.

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 13:35:00 -0400

Moral of story: suit up.

Monsters, Inc. – Sweded I haven’t yet watched Be Kind Rewind...

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 19:00:07 -0400

Monsters, Inc. – Sweded

I haven’t yet watched Be Kind Rewind but this Monsters, Inc. swede is just too adorable.