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September 1st, 2009
10:40 pm - The Origin Of HMOs
Thanks to Nixon bugging his own office, we can now hear the conversation where he was talked into supporting HMOs.
"All incentives are toward less medical care, because the less care they give them, the more money they make."
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August 30th, 2009
09:53 pm - Spiders
I hate spiders. Slow spiders I'm okay with. Growing up, our basement had occasional daddy long-legs / cellar spider, which look big, but are slow and harmless (and retreat if threatened), so I got used to those. But fast spiders...fast spiders are not cool. But I seem to have a few of these, and I'm not sure which I hate more, these things or centipedes...which look like spiders, except they have hundreds more legs and are even faster. And look so absolutely disgusting, even if they don't technically bite. Spiders startle me, but these things gross me the hell out.
But these spiders I've seen occasionally in my bathroom... Actually, it might just be the same one spider, and it's been too fast for me to properly kill it. According to web searching I've done, the variety of web it keeps making in my bathroom, and its speed, seems to indicate it's a Hobo Spider. Which sounds scary in name, but apparently they aren't actually poisonous (people just get them confused with a brown recluse, which aren't able to live this far north or something). But they still bite. And I don't like biting spiders. Especially ones that I don't even notice until its running at my foot. I got out my trusty bottle of Clorox, but even while spraying it was able to run behind the toilet, where it tried to climb the wall but slipped off from my continuing to drown it in Clorox, and then it seemingly disappeared. It may be dead and just blended in with the brown trim so I can't see it. Or maybe it hid and its still in there, and its the same one I've tried to kill twice now.
Oh, and did I mention I have centipedes? I hate centipedes. I'm so sick of having a basement apartment.
I wonder where I could get some daddy long-legs spiders, which would kill all these things...
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04:55 pm - The Farve Chronicles
I think I forgot to post about this when the news was announced. Yeah, so Brett Farve is officially a member of his formerly rival team, the Minnesota Vikings.
Some store and restaurant owners here in Mankato are a little bitter, because everyone had heard he'd be here at training camp...but then conveniently right before training camp he announces he's going to stay retired...and conveniently right after training camp he announces that he's going to join the Vikings after all. And they were hoping for the additional crowds and business they would've seen for those weeks, and feel like Farve snubbed them.
I don't feel snubbed myself. I have a hard time getting too emotional involving anything having to do with football, and think it's hilarious the absolute HATRED many Packers fans have for Farve right now (and the confused looks of some Packers fans who are also Farve fans, and now find themselves rooting for both teams simultaneously...I'm wondering if their heads are going to explode the first game where both teams play each other?).
And yes, I'm planning to tune in every weekend for the games this season. Which is a new, strange feeling. What's happened to me? Even my mom is planning to tune in, and has invited me to come over and watch the games once the season starts. It's a little unsettling, really.
Also, I've been trying to figure out the best way to use my art skillz to take advantage of the Farve hype. T-shirts with a comic-style Farve image? I wonder if sketch cards of Farve would sell, if the image looked pretty enough? Although, while I know you can use the image of politicians without permission on items, is it different with sports stars? Would there be legal issues in printing a drawing of his face on a shirt or cards?
Oh, and there's totally got to be a market for anti-Farve shirts, right? I'm just having trouble figuring out a fantastic idea or slogan. I've seen this shirts with a red "No '4'" sign, like red "No Smoking" sign, but it looks way cheesy.
It's too bad the announcement didn't happen earlier in the year, when Obama hype was in full swing. I could've done something just hilariously over-the-top cashing-in, like an image of Obama wearing a purple #4 jersey, hehehe.
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August 24th, 2009
11:47 pm - Quentin's Top 20 Movies Since 1992
Quentin Tarantino lists his 20 favorite movies that have come out since he began his directing career.
I think what shocked me the most is when he said "M. Night Shama-lama-ding dong" -- I thought only I said that!
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August 23rd, 2009
12:50 am - Million Dollar Baby In 5 Seconds
This is so completely wrong, and offensive. And I laughed so hard.
I think it's the fact that it not only turned the movie into a satirically offensive joke...but that it simultaneously actually does a good job of summing up the entire movie.
(Warning: don't watch if you haven't already seen Million Dollar Baby...contains spoilers, and the vid won't seem as funny anyways.)
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August 22nd, 2009
09:25 pm - Unable To Resist Cute
A rocker in the making:
Wish I could parallel park like this:
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August 20th, 2009
10:48 am - Oh, Onion New Network...
Advocacy Group Decries PETA's Inhumane Treatment Of Women
"We will not stop until every animal is given more respect than women." ROFL.
The sad part is that this is in reference to an actual PETA ad that NBC refused to show.
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August 19th, 2009
10:43 pm - Barney Frank
I think this guy is now my favorite politician ever:
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August 18th, 2009
01:01 am
I'm hopelessly behind on LJ reading. Have I missed anything important (well, or just cool) these last two weeks?
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12:07 am - Ads
A funny link I came across: what do you do when the advertising for your free online strategy game doesn't seem to be working as well as you'd like? Gradually up the T&A in the ads, until you're eventually just trying to trick people outright into thinking their clicking on an ad for a porn site. I love to play my video games "discreetly."
On a similar note, I've never been one of those people who's disliked the sight of banner ads enough to d/l an ad blocker...but the combination of those "Obey" weight ads and those disgusting teeth ads (that I'm 90% sure are from the same people, and I'm 90% sure these people are either in Nigeria or Ghana) are driving me pretty close to doing so.
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August 16th, 2009
02:03 pm - In An Alternate Universe...
...Paul McCartney was famous for hosting a cooking show.
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August 11th, 2009
01:28 pm - Return To X-Men Legends II
I decided to give X-Men Legends II a try again.
I'm not sure what it is that makes it less fun than the first one. Maybe its because there was a greater variety in scenery, whereas in this one everything looks almost the same from level to level? Granted, dark and gloomy is supposed to be the theme, but what happened to those really impressively-designed areas like The Mansion?
Also, I am so incredibly sick of fighting the Morlocks, and yet I end up having to fight them at some point every other level it seems like, and it gets tiring. Also, the frustration of my inventory consisting of only 20 spaces, when I always end up picking up more than 20 items per mission, and I'm not someone who likes futsing with what to keep and what to drop in the middle of a battle...I like waiting until after I'm back at the mansion or someplace.
But having taken a long enough break, it's not as boring now. For the record, because I was so uninterested in the characters you start out with, I did cheat a little and enter a code to unlock everyone, so that I could assemble the core AoA X-Men to keep me entertained. My team consists of Magneto, Rogue, Storm, and Deadpool filling the role of wise-cracking Morph.
What had me cracking up last night is that I just got to the point in the game where you normally unlock Deadpool, after having to fight him. I think normally when you encounter a character who you already have in play on your team, the AI just ignores it and sticks to the script. But not Deadpool, no. He has to comment on the fact:
"I could swear I know you from somewhere! Did we go to law school together? Wait a minute, now I know where I've seen your face...in my mirror, every morning!"
He then continues to have a conversation with himself for a few minutes, pondering this "philosophical conundrum," before finally getting back to the script.
And that's why I have Deadpool on my team (I'm sure Morph would've done the same thing).
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August 8th, 2009
11:36 pm - The "Ten Year" Curse
Almost from the moment Led Zeppelin broke up, rumors began circulating that Jimmy Page and the band had made a Crossroads-style deal with the devil to gain instant worldwide fame and success...except that it would last for only about ten years, at the end of which everything would start falling apart.
The more likely scenario is that it was merely the "Ten Year" Curse. This is something my brother and I have been discussing, that I can't believe I can't find being talked about anywhere online via Google.
The idea is this: any rock band that makes it big will have only about a ten year window of success from the release of their first album, after which they will either break up, a key band member will die, a key band member will die and the band will break up, or the band will simply run dry of inspiration and forget how to write decent albums.
Of course, you might not even consider this an actual "curse," unless you're the superstitious type who also believes in things like the "Madden Curse," etc. The reality may be that it simply has to do with the fast paced, often indulgent life that comes with being a rock star. But it's kind of interesting how the "Ten Year" Curse or "Ten Year" Rule seems to be the more common scenario rather than the exception.
Examples:
Led Zeppelin released their first album in 1969. In 1979 they released their final studio album. In 1980 John Bonham died, and the band broke up.
The Beatles released their first album in 1963. They didn't even make it a full ten years, breaking up in 1970.
Wings, Paul McCartney's post-Beatles band, likewise only lasted from 1971-1979. In an additional coincidence, The Beatles final released album -- Let It Be -- began life in 1969 as a back-to-our-roots project called Get Back, while Wings final 1979 album was intended to be a back-to-our-roots project he titled Back To The Egg.
Black Sabbath released their first album in 1970, and parted ways with Ozzy in 1979.
Pink Floyd lost their original band leader just one year after their first album. The classic line-up released their first album in 1969, and the band essentially ended after 1979's The Wall, after which we got what were essentially a Roger Waters solo album and two David Gilmour albums under the Pink Floyd name.
Aerosmith released their first album in 1973. Joe Perry split in 1979, and they were never the same. With the help of professional songwriters, they managed to kick-start things again with Permanent Vacation, success which lasted until 1997's Nine Lives. Now once again they have trouble getting a new song played on the radio for more than a week.
Van Halen released their first album in 1978, and they split with David Lee Roth in 1985. Sammy Hagar's first album with the band was in 1986, and they parted ways in 1996. (And let's not even talk about what happened after that.)
Grunge bands didn't fare very well. Nirvana only made it five years. Alice In Chains only released albums during a five year period, but didn't officially break up until Layne Staley's death in 2002, twelve years after their first album. Soundgarden lasted eight years.
Rage Against The Machine also broke up after eight years. Audioslave lasted only five years.
Pearl Jam released their first album in 1991. Though merely my opinion, their last decent album was in 2000. Since then they made a dramatic shift in style, perhaps telling in how most people who really like the albums the more recent albums seem to have a strong dislike for the band's first two albums.
Green Day released their first album in 1990. Their 2000 album Warning is their lowest-selling album since they'd signed to a major label. They've managed to kick-start things again with a shift in style.
The Who released their first album in 1965. They actually just barely managed to make it past the ten year mark; after 1975's The Who By Numbers they took a long hiatus, but got one more album out three years later in 1978. A month later, Keith Moon died.
AC/DC released their first album in 1974. They lost their original lead singer just four years later, and were able to carry on with equal success with a new singer. Normally I'd say that starts the clock over, and yet it was their drummer leaving after nine years in 1983 that coincided with their sudden decline in commercial success. Somehow they managed to kick-start things in the late '80s teaming with the producers of their pre-Highway To Hell albums, and have managed to avoid the "Ten Year" Rule since. Granted, they only release an album every five to eight years now.
Metallica released their first album in 1983, and was a metal band up until Binge & Purge in 1993. After a hiatus, they returned as a hard rock band in 1996 with Load, which ended with the release of St. Anger in 2003. Let's just say 2013 will be interesting.
Megadeth followed a similar path, releasing their first album in 1985, and their last real metal album being Youthanasia in 1994. After a hiatus, they returned as a hard rock (followed by soft rock, followed by hard rock) band from 1997 until 2001. After another hiatus, Mustaine returned the trash metal in 2004 with a completely new line-up. Always a year behind Metallica, 2014/15 would theoretically be interesting.
I could do this all day... ;-)
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10:48 pm - Kate Reviews Ghostbusters Wii / Plus: Metroid Preview
I was over at my dad's house, and it just so happens his step-son had rented Ghostbusters for the Wii and wasn't around at the moment, so I decided to give it a whirl. My thoughts:
- I thought it was cool that you get to choose to as play a male or female rookie. However, I guess this option is only in the Wii and PS2 version...I have a feeling it was added to this version because the Wii is viewed by hard core gamers as being the more girl-friendly system. Unfortunately, it becomes clear pretty quickly that it was a last minute addition, because when they talk about you in front of you, the audio dialogue still refers to you as "he." Awwwwkkwaaaard.
- The cut-scene dialogue is fun, but the cartoonified look of this version is not very eye-pleasing. The levels and cut-scenes are apparently very similar to the 360/PS3 version (they all use the same recorded dialogue, of course), but walking around in cartoony versions of very familiar buildings and seeing cartoony versions of familiar characters just had me wanting to play the 360 version all the more.
- This is *especially* true when walking around the fire station. I so want to see how it looks on the 360. Also, why do they put the car there right in front of you if you aren't allowed to drive it at any point in the game? I want to drive the car. Can I drive the car? I really think they should let me drive the car. It just sits there, taunting me.
- Using the Wii-mote as a blaster is very fun. Having to use your blaster to slam the ghosts into walls is just stupid.
- Unfortunately, the gameplay is so repetitive that I found myself going from "squee, Ghostbusters!" to "am I every going to get out of this damn hotel? And how many times do I have to face off against Stay-Puffed?" after only an hour and a half. I've heard some complain that the game is very short at around 5 hours in length, but I was so bored by the time I finished that mission that I have no desire to play it again (the same feeling I had about X-Men Legends II, a game I own but still have never finished...which is odd, because I was so hooked on the first one that I finished the whole thing in one marathon week, and I loved the Age Of Apocalypse). However: I imagine if I played the 360 version, I'd be so mesmerized by the pretty graphics that I wouldn't really care about having to trap 50 ghosts in one building.
In other gaming news, what do all of you think of the E3 preview for Metroid: Other M? It looks so fun, and yet...I really don't think people should be able to see Samus' face through her helmet at all. It'd be like people suddenly being able to see Master Chief's face through his helmet.
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03:40 pm - Pearl Jam, Le Sigh
Pearl Jam have released the first single from their upcoming album Backspacer. It's called "The Fixer," and is actually even more generic and forgettable than the song new song they performed on Conan. Granted, they frequently seem to pick the wrong songs as singles, with non-single tracks being the ones picked up by rock radio.* But it's looking to me like this is aiming to be their third bad album in a row. (Though I believe people who like Bruce Springsteen have really been enjoying these.)
*Released as A-sides:
- "Oceans"
- "Spin The Black Circle"
- "Who You Are"
- "Off He Goes"
- "Wishlist"
- "Light Years"
- "I Am Mine"
- "Love Boat Captain"
- "World Wide Suicide"
- "The Fixer"
Played on the radio but wasn't an A-side:
- "Black"
- "Yellow Ledbetter"
- "Elderly Woman..."
- "Rearviewmirror"
- "Immortality"
- "Glorified G"
- "Better Man"
- "Do The Evolution"
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August 6th, 2009
08:50 pm - Reality Warping Around You
I haven't seen My Girl since it was in the theater. I remember seeing the movie poster on the wall, and noting how they were very close to the same age as me, but clearly just a few years older. Back when just one year seemed like a big difference in age. I could tell that they were taller than me. Thus the movie is etched in my mind as being about these two people just a bit older than me, though clearly they'd look younger to me now. In my head, it was about two teenagers.
So it kind of weirded me out when I read this article about what the actress is up to now, because there's this picture that says it's from her in My Girl, but she's looks like a 10 year old in it. That couldn't be right...that's not how I remember it at all. Yet, looking up the movie poster, that's exactly how old they were. So bizarre how memory and perception works like that.
Has anything like that ever happened to you?
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12:11 am - How To Hack The Dollhouse
An attentive fan shows you how Alpha hacked the Dollhouse computers:
The confusing thing is that this Wolfram website is actually a real thing, unrelated to the show at all. It's possible their website was found due to a blog post titled "Alpha Is Coming!," referring to their WolframAlpha search tool.
But you know what's funny? Take a look at the sidebar on that page, that says "New To Wolfram/Alpha?" The first bullet point says "enter any date" and gives an example. Click on that example date, and scroll down to the birthdays.
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August 5th, 2009
10:52 pm - Don't Pick Up The Phone
If you're wanting to see the original pilot and "final episode" of Dollhouse, and only want to rent it because you can't afford to buy the set yet, it's disc four that you're looking for. That's the one with all the goodies.
I just got it in from Netflix today. Haven't watched all the deleted scenes on the disc yet, but brief thoughts on the two "new" episodes:
Original Pilot
So much better than the first three episodes. Especially because the bits with Dushku as other imprints was only a montage, so there wasn't enough time to get annoyed by how each one seemed the same. I kinda liked how the montage felt almost like channel surfing, only Dushku seems to be on every channel. Which in reality would be a little unsettling, actually, but...you get what I mean.
The only bummer about the pilot is that Ballard's neighbor across the hall isn't introduced. I'm sure she would've been in the original plan's second episode, but the trouble is that if you try to get someone hooked by having them watch the pilot in place of the first three episodes, they're going to be confused by this character that just came out of nowhere.
Final Episode
Amazing. Starts off a little slow, but just fantastic. The only problem with the episode is that I'm not sure how Joss is going to be able to top this with season two.
I also laughed ( SPOILERS )
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July 30th, 2009
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