Isn't that clever.......

Comma sutra.

I loves me some good animation

More animation hotness. AniBOOM!

Lots of stuff to view here. Especially if you click the movies tab.

Cute stop motion animation

Paper versus paper. Kinda like Spy vs. Spy - but with paper.

Armed and fabulous

Wonderful portraits of regular ol' American families...............

.......... and their guns. And gun tattoos. And dogs. Some of these folks have plenty of guns.

I go to U S and A

Borat................. re-enacted in 30 seconds by bunnies.

Just read it already

Thoughts for 2007.

Sorry if I'm easily amused today....

Oh boy........ I almost peed I laughed so hard at this picture.

Tons more here (in the vein of i'm in ur whatever, doing whatever).

History repeating itself................. again

I was walking through Best Buy the other day and decided to see what was new in the DVD New Releases section. Off to the right was a section dedicated to the infant High Definition DVD Video market. In that section were two sub-sections, one displaying titles recorded to Blu-Ray DVDs and the other recorded to HD-DVDs.

This dual format war is just so reminiscent of the old Beta versus VHS videotapes format and it looks stupid. I really really really hope people don't buy either of these two HD formats until the industry gets their collective asses in order and make one universal format. Yes..... I said asses.

Food is what you want....

"Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."

That's how the article I'm recommending starts out. Then goes on for 12 pages about what really constitutes a healthy diet. Great reading, and complete common sense.

AAAaaaheMM!

I have to say in advance that I mean no harm by making the following observation. Because that's all it is - an observation. I used to think maybe it was just me, but Darlene noticed it before I did.

Oriental folks, especially older folks, seem to have this propensity for raucously clearing their throats in public. And I do mean...... loudly. That's not to say that other people don't clear their throats in public. But I seem to notice Oriental people doing it the most. I don't get it. Is it just more noticeable when they do it? Or are they committing this act more often? Is it some sort of non-verbal signal that we are not attuned to? Can anyone shed any light on this?

It's about time.......

It took more than 2 years, but I guess Eddie finally listened to my request. Mr. Roth is back in Van Halen.

My latest motivation poster

Picture by wakalani

Out with the old.........

Matthew Baldwin at Defective Yeti has begun the cliche renewal project. The idea is to take tired old cliches and modernize them into a fresh, new cliche. So - I gave it a try:

Old: Drunk as a sailor New: Drunk as a Gibson
Old: A rose by any other name is still a rose New: Prince by any other name is still Prince
Old: Land of milk and honey New: Land of Macs and iPods
Old: Make like the wind and blow out of here New: Yo, we atta he'e
Old: Couldn't punch your way out of a wet paper bag New: Would get hurt by your own Wii (pronounced wee)
Old: It takes one to know one New: Whatever
Old: Fox guarding the henhouse New: The Donald guiding the debutantes
Old: All over that like a fat kid on a smartie New: All over that like a Hung on Idol
Old: Low man on the totem pole New: Amoeba on the food chain
Old: First come, first served New: You snooze, you lose
Old: You can pick your friends,you can pick your nose but you can't pick your friends nose New: It's more fun to play with your own Wii (pronounced wee)

Now you try..................

Chinook effect

Now this is what I'm talking about. While the rest of our country is blanketed in snow, the chinook winds coming across the Rockies have melted our snow away.

Yes, I am a weather geek.

Maybe I'm in the wrong business?

Sorry, I'm on a roll.......... here's another idea of mine.

Big cans

Pearls before swine. Just go read it.

Thanks for the tip Bernie.....

Another tee design idea

Whatchu think?

Milestone

Yesterday marked the 20th anniversary of the day Darlene and I met. If you believe in fate, you'll love this story.

We met at a party. Darlene was invited by the hostess, but couldn't find a babysitter and decided at the last minute to bring Lee-Anne along and put her to sleep in a bedroom at the house. The hostess intended to set Darlene up with a guy boarding at their house (someone I worked with). He was (as Darlene describes) an Aqua Velva reeking, gold chain wearing, shirt unbuttoned to the belly button slob. I wasn't much in the mood to go to this party either, but went at the last minute. Hours went by before I even paid much attention to Darlene, prompting the best ice breaker line I've ever gotten from another woman in my life - "Are you gay?"

The picture is from 1988.

Chibougamau!

Great White North II - Episode 3 is in the can (video.ca link). Honestly, it's not our best work (my opinion), but I hope you find it entertaining nonetheless. In this episode, the hosers give a geography lesson on Canadian capitols.

Maybe next year.....

I didn't get enough votes to be officially nominated for the 2007 Bloggies.

[sigh]

Oh well, it was a long shot. Thanks to anyone and everyone who voted for me. Every one of my readers is special to me and I'd buy you all a donut if I knew where you lived..........

Battle of the Bands

Cute Pixar video - One Man Band.

Busted

Here's a neat resource - every Mythbuster's myth listed on one page. You just hover your mouse pointer over each block to see a title pop up.

BNL speak out about DRM

CBC has a great show on TV these days that is essentially Canada's answer to the Jay Lenos and David Lettermans of the US late night TV scene - The Hour. Here's a clip from that show where two members of the band Barenaked Ladies (Steve Page and Ed Robertson), appeared and explained their position on DRM.

Seems to require Windows Media Player 11.

The cost per mile is outstanding

Interesting mass transit proposal that makes use of decommissioned aircraft fuselages and incorporates some green technology. It looks promising - the cost per mile estimates are fantastic. Maybe they could use some of that saved money to hire someone to change the title code in their HTML to something other than 'untitled document' (if they want to be taken seriously).

If you have no idea what I'm talking about - forget web design as a career.

I especially love how Diebold are covering their tracks

Diebold electronic voting machines have been the subject of serious scrutiny for a long time - with legitimate reasons. But this story just takes the whole situation into the absurd....

I could suddenly go for a Big Mac..............

Someone seems to have discovered subliminal advertising by McDonald's on the Food Network. Is this for real? Should we be surprised? Film at 11 now - on YouTube (naturally).

File under: Will it matter one month from now?

It's the one million masterpiece viewer. You are one in a million - literally. Just browsing these digital creations could keep a person busy for minutes. Ignore the stars, hearts, peace symbols, stick figures and eyes and you might have 210,000 masterpieces left.

Damn. My sarcasm is biting today. All kidding aside - there are some unique creations here.

Wow, that's pre.................. ZZZzzzzzzzzzzz

This ocean critters flash game is entertaining for about 5 seconds, but i could see kids (or those easily amused) getting a real kick out of it for its simplicity.

That's not to say I have anything against those whom are easily amused. Being as how I fall into that category. From time to time.

Idea for a new t-shirt

I like it! (my idea)

You like?

Electricity storage revolution?

If what this Texas company claims is true, it could revolutionize the efficiency and ability to quickly recharge electric or hybrid car batteries (super-capacitors - whatever you want to call them).

Spongebob smelly pants

Got any grossly dirty sponges lying around the house that you can't stand anymore? Then throw them out and buy new ones. Or..... if you feel really adventurous, soak them well in water (that's the most important part), and nuke them in the microwave for 2 or more minutes to kill 99% of the smelly bacteria in the sponge.

Disclaimer: I will not be held responsible if you try this with a dry sponge, which will likely ignite and replace bacteria stink with smoke stink. Also, don't come crying to me when your microwave smells like stinky sponge for the next week. I'm just sayin' it can be done........ I'm not sayin' it's a good idea......

Additional disclaimer: if your kids start screaming "you're killing Spongebob!", you're on your own.

I feel sorry for George... but not too sorry....

And not a moment too soon, I present to you - the parody video by James Adomian of the 2007 State of the Union address............

The mock Cheney character in the back along with the mock Nancy Pelosi character is funny to watch in the background. But the Senators Clinton and Obama steal the show at the end.

Travel oddities

If you're planning any road trips in the US, the Roadside America site has some interesting offbeat tourist attractions. You'll find giant Paul Bunyan statues, bomber aircraft at gas stations, a Pez museum, the world's largest egg and the world's largest frying pan (though not in the same place)

People with email issues

Amusing Enlightening article about folks with issues regarding email. Sample:

Nicolle could not tolerate seeing those unread e-mails in bold type in the Inbox, and the minute she heard the telltale "ping" on her computer that signalled a new message she would stop whatever she was doing to read it.

Wall.......HUH! What is it good for.......?

5 albums of pictures on walls. Well, they're not all walls, but you can blame the person who created the albums. Don't shoot me - I'm just the messenger........

May be NSFW.

Bend it like Boeing

How far will a Boeing 777's wing bend?

Good thing the trailer didn't ruin the movie

I remember when the first Star Wars movie came out. I was 16 years old. Some family from New Jersey had come to visit and we went to see it at the local drive-in (a 5 screen drive-in!). It really was a great movie, especially for its time. Of course, not everyone who went thought so. But I digress.

I don't ever remember seeing the trailer for the movie, just the movie itself. If you're like me, you can enjoy the trailer now - on YouTube. Is it just me, or does the trailer make it look like a B movie?

I don't know which is worse - the Thallium or the pepper

I had to get one of those Thallium Stress tests done today. That meant no caffeine since Saturday night and no food or drink at all since bedtime yesterday.

My appointment lasted most of the day, so I never got cleared to eat anything until about 3pm. By the time I got home, showered, etc., I decided I wanted a nice steak. We went to Earl's. I was really looking forward to dinner.

Unfortunately, the chefs (and I do use that term very loosely) at Earl's had a thing for black pepper. Everything was coated with the stuff - the steak, the green beans......... Oh my freaking God people - can we stop now with the damned pepper on everything? If I had taken the time to scrape the pepper off my meal, I'm sure I would have had a pile big enough to fill one of my pepper shakers at home.

They do say criminals are dumb

Warning to all thieves:

Stealing a GPS device may not be a good idea........

Yeah.

Good pictures are crucial if you want to sell

Bad Real Estate Photos - even comes with narration.

I believe this is done by a realtor in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Deadly driving

A woman and her daughter were hit by an 18 year old driving a BMW last Thursday in Calgary. The 6 year old daughter has died and mother is in critical condition.

Crosswalks in this city are very dangerous. Both while driving and as a pedestrian I have witnessed many instances of drivers either not seeing, or not caring to stop at a crosswalk where pedestrians are waiting to cross, or have already begun crossing. I find many crosswalks are difficult to see, with signage or even the crossing itself blocked by parked vehicles. I also find myself getting tricked by pedestrians who are on the sidewalk at a crosswalk, so one assumes that they are preparing to cross - but they are not. Which of course, leads to the punishment of horn abuse (at the very least) from impatient drivers behind me for having stopped.

Crosswalks have to be made more visible. Roads already suffer from sign pollution and it gets more and more difficult to see important signs. Crosswalk signs in Calgary are white - this does not strike me as a wise colour to choose to represent an important safety announcement. If it's necessary to put lights at each one - so be it. But even the roads need better markings. A pair of thin white lines crossing the road is not enough. We need those big, wide ladder stripes across the road. Pedestrians also need to be taught to indicate their intentions like they do in Toronto. In Toronto, pedestrians indicate their intent to cross by holding their hand out in front of them like a railroad barrier. It doesn't sound like much, but it's very effective and quite noticeable.

I understand Calgary's initiative to fine people more money ($115) for not stopping at crosswalks, but without enforcement, the measure is mostly meaningless. But the question remains - what is going to happen to this 18 year old girl who hit the pair of pedestrians, killing one (so far). Does she deserve to go to jail? I think jail is a bit harsh - it was an accident after all and there's no telling yet what caused the girl not to see the mother and child as they were crossing. Was she on her cell phone? Was she distracted by something? I think the cause, once it's discovered, can be related to poor driving skills. But didn't this person pass a driver's test? So what's the problem?

Darlene and I were discussing this today and we agreed that people need to come to terms with the consequences of driving in a manner that puts others' lives at risk. It's difficult decision, but I think attitudes might change if the penalty were severe. I think anyone who drives in a manner leading to someone's (unintentional) death, they should lose their license for 10 years - maybe more. If they are caught driving without a license after such a suspension, they would go to jail for the duration of their suspension.

What do you think?

Where is it - edition 13 - do you feel lucky?

OK geo-hounds, it's time for the next round of "where is it?".

The rules are simple for those of you just joining us - name the city. No bigger picture this time.

I do hope it lasts

The new show Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip is suffering from low viewership and may be in jeopardy. I hope it survives, this would make 2 great shows lost due to viewer apathy (Smith being the first). I was especially rooting for it as a great new vehicle for Canadian Matthew Perry.

Welcome to a world where quantity trumps quality - yeah, I know - that's how it works. It doesn't mean I have to like it.

I think they're Canadian....

Newly found site with great comedic potential: Things My Boyfriend Says.

Excerpt:
On learning that we were out of toilet paper:

"How long until we start using the placemats and pillowcases and crawling along the carpet like dogs with worms?"

Simply breathtaking

I guess the Comet McNaught is visible to the residents of the southern hemisphere. Based on the pictures I've seen so far, it looks like a magnificent sight. I hope we get a comet like that in our hemisphere some day.

Say no to stretch mode

Wide screen TVs are all the rage now. Naturally, they are the perfect television for viewing wide screen (16:9) movies and premium (High Definition) television content.

What I find so curious is that many folks who own a wide screen TV insist on viewing regular (4:3) broadcast content in stretch mode, rather than have to look at those two black bars on the sides of the screen. This really distorts the picture and makes people look wide.

One of the things in life that used to really annoy me the most was having to listen to an unanswered telephone or alarm. Now having to watch normal TV in stretch mode is coming in a close second.

How not to drive on an icy street

This is supposedly a home video of cars crashing around like curling rocks on an icy street in Portland Oregon. Made me cringe.

Back by popular demand....

As promised, episode 2 of The Great White North II is in the can. You can view it on YouTube....... or you can view it on Video.ca. In episode 2, the hosers explain the sport of curling.

I got a message from the folks at dailypixel.ca and they loved our first episode so much, they want to host all of our videos on video.ca, which specializes in Canadian content. Today, I noticed our first episode is on the front feature page! You may even see the hosers introduce a contest or two on video.ca. A big thanks to James for giving us some publicity.

Don't worry - we won't let success go to our heads, eh.

Free edumacation

I am constantly amazed at the breadth of actual valuable material available on the internets for free. For example, at the Elite Skills web site, autodidacts (there's the word for the day) can find a treasure trove of online courses and webcasts. I was particularly impressed with the selections on the left side of the page - video webcasts from courses at Berkeley no less! How cool is that?

All they do is laugh.................. and so do I

A good friend of mine shared this little find on YouTube yesterday. Darlene could here me "laugh like a little boy" as she described it. Do a search for purple and brown and watch the little animated clips that result. I especially howled at the Bubble Gum episode. The fact that the characters communicate so much without words is fascinating to me, especially in light of what I'm learning in acting class. I guess this would really broaden their appeal around the world too.

Sometimes music from commercials is quite good

The first time I heard this music was in a TV commercial – I don’t even remember the product, but the song won me over instantly. This first taste motivated me to find out who these guys were. They are the Dandy Warhols, from one of my favourite cities - Portland, Oregon.

I’m a sucker for a tune with an irresistible hook and Bohemian Like You has it. As I took a closer look at this band, I saw that their work is quite varied. The album Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia, is their best in my books. Aside from the Bohemian tune that I stumbled upon first, the opening track - Godless, just makes the hairs my neck stand up. Another track of theirs I like is You Were the Last High, from the album Welcome to the Monkey House. Tell me if it doesn’t sound a little like a David Bowie’s Ashes to Ashes….

I haven't decided if I like their latest albums Odditorium or Warlords, but some songs, such as Down Like Disco and Easy have great potential. Dandy? Oh yes.

Let Google calculate your joke's "funniness"

Think you have a funny joke? Maybe you can make Google laugh......

I submitted the joke: What do you call cheese that isn't yours? Nacho cheese.

Google gave the joke a funniness percentage of 85.4626% while rating the joke's popularity at: 4.958 (where 7=super popular, 1=not popular)

Photo by Ben McLeod