Sunday, December 25, 2005

Grow Ornament

Merry Christmas! It looks like Eyemaze gave us all a surprise gift: A new Christmas-themed Grow puzzle. It's a little bit easier, so give it a try!

Tags: , ,

Wednesday, December 21, 2005

The benefit of law

Roper: So now you'd give the Devil benefit of law!

More: Yes. What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the Devil?

Roper: I'd cut down every law in England to do that!

More: Oh? And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned round on you - where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country's planted thick with laws from coast to coast - man's laws, not God's - and if you cut them down - and you're just the man to do it - d'you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I'd give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake.

-from Robert Bolt's "A Man for All Seasons".

Tags: , , ,

Tuesday, December 20, 2005

Give me liberty or give me death.

If anything shows how far republicans have turned against the original values of this country, it's this exchange:

John Cornyn, R-TX: "None of your civil liberties matter much after you’re dead."
Russ Feingold, D-WI: "
Give me liberty or give me death."

Tags: , , , , , ,

Saturday, December 17, 2005

King George

In today's White House Radio address, King George W. Bush admits to authorizing domestic spying without a warrant. Actually, he's bragging about it. Thank goodness as king he doesn't have to worry about the fourth amendment and the rest of that stupid, liberal, unpatriotic constitution.

P.S. Saying that your actions are "consistent with U.S. law and the Constitution" doesn't mean they really are. And for those playing the George W. Bush radio address drinking game, you've got 21 mentions of "terror" and 9 mentions of "9/11" to down after this speech. Cheers!

Tags: , , ,

God, shmod--I want my animatronic monkey head!

Is it passé to make fun of items in the Sharper Image catalog? Don't answer that, because I've found the best item they've ever carried: The animatronic "Alive" Chimpanzee So Real, It's Unreal!

Make sure you watch the video. And if you stil haven't gotten me a Christmas gift yet, well, what better way to celebrate the holiday than to buy me a creepy screetching robotic monkey head?

(As much as I'm making fun of this, there's honestly a part of me that thinks this is awesome. I just wouldn't let it into my apartment.)

Tags: , , , , ,

Friday, December 16, 2005

Relaunch of Futurama?

Sweet llamas of the Bahamas--this article from the Sydney Morning Herald makes it sound like the rumors of Futurama's return could be correct!
Nearly four years after it was cancelled, the popularity of Futurama on DVD could breathe life back into the animated television series. On the subject of a rumoured resurrection, creator Matt Groening, best known for his other animated hit, The Simpsons, says, intriguingly: "You never know."
It's still just a rumor, but the article makes it sound like very promising rumor. I've whined about the cancellation of Futurama before, but this makes me very happy. Thanks, Australia!

Tags: , ,

Thursday, December 15, 2005

Child's Play charity final ship date is approaching!


If you're thinking of giving to Child's Play, you've got to put your Amazon orders in ASAP, or they won't arrive in time. The wishlist for the hospital closest to me, the San Diego Children's Hospital, is looking a little anemic; go give 'em some love.

Tags: , , ,

Average beauty

A lunchtime discussion on average faces and the perception of beauty led me to "Beautycheck", a website which thoroughly examines the psychology of what makes a face beautiful.

Several things surprised me: contrary to what I had heard, "average" faces aren't more beautiful--if you average unbeautiful faces together, the resulting face still isn't perceived as beautiful. Also, symmetry isn't all that important to the perception of beauty, either.

However, the skin-smoothing effects of averaging DO increase the perception of beauty. For a moment, I thought I had a brilliant idea for a new product--until I realized that I had just re-invented "makeup".

Tags: , , ,

Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Samorost 2

Samorost2, a cute flash puzzle game with gorgeous Monty Python style animation. Polokonzerva!

Tags: , , ,

Sunday, December 11, 2005

Skip the chocolate chip cookie accessories

I just placed an order at drugstore.com. As I checked out, the suggested list of "related item" pointed me to "Newman's Own Organics Champion Chip Cookies." But after looking at the accessories available for this item, I think I may have to pass. (See the screenshot in case the site changes.)

Tags: ,

The Jones Soda Holiday Pack soda tasting.


Happy because we're done.
Originally uploaded by IvyMike.
I brought an infamous Jones Soda Holiday Pack to work for a Friday "Fear Factor" style party, and I made sure to get some photos.

Some of the flavors weren't as bad as you might think: Turkey and Gravy, for example, is quite palatable. But Wild Herb Stuffing is very, very salty, which is very, very bad. And Brussel Sprouts soda has a putrid-meat aroma that made my very soul shudder in revulsion. (I suspect it must contain traces of cadaverine and putrescine, because there's something so fundamentally wrong about the aroma.)

Tags: ,

Friday, December 09, 2005

Scared of Santa

There's something wrong with me: I find this photo gallery of children terrified of Santa Claus way too funny.

Tags: , , , ,

Wednesday, December 07, 2005

Bratty kids are now supernatural indigo children.

Bratty kid? Nope, it's easier to claim that they're 'indigo':
Indigo advocates believe that many children born after 1975 possess an Indigo-color aura around them and unique almost supernatural traits. To the rest of the world, these kids may appear to be unruly and their parents may have gone overboard in the coddling of their children. Indigo kids bristle at authority and have little patience. Their advocates say they act like royalty and have no guilt. Simple acts, like waiting in lines, drive them crazy. Their parents are sure they can see the future and talk to angels.
There's more in the Wikipedia entry for Indigo Children.

Someone needs to tell Arthur C. Clarke that the new agers are ripping off the last third of "Childhood's End."

Tags: , , ,

Monday, December 05, 2005

My Very Political Roomba

What can I say? I have a very political vacuum cleaner.

Tags: ,

Make Trouble

"In the 1980s the CIA produced a small illustrated booklet in both spanish and english designed to destabilise the nicaraguan government and economic system."

I particularly like the comment on this page.

Tags: ,