Hockey back on in KC?

It's hard to put too much credence in reports like this, but it sounds like there may be another chance for a hockey team to move into the Sprint Center, which opens later this year.

According to the report, a smoky backroom deal during Penguin-gate last year guaranteed a hockey team to William Del Biaggio and AEG’s Tim Leiweke if they backed off of their pursuit of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

According to the report:

…sources said the league, which didn't want to lose a value market in Pittsburgh, asked the Kansas City investors to back off their chase of the Penguins while indicating to the group it would be next in line for an NHL franchise.

It is believed the commissioner and Leiweke, who was in England yesterday, had an informal arrangement that would have delivered the Predators to Del Biaggio and Kansas City had Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie not stepped in with a richer offer and plans to move the team to Hamilton. Del Biaggio has an agreement with AEG to own and operate an NHL team in the Sprint Center.

The (Canada) National Post previously reported that Balsillie’s deal to by the Predators for $238 million was dead and that Del Biaggio is now on deck for the franchise.

Like I said, it’s hard to get excited just yet. It’s a long way from Nashville to KC. But with this kind of thing it’s sometimes easier to have faith in backroom deals.

tagged: hockey, Kansas City, Pittsburgh Penguins, Sprint Center, Nashville Predators, sports, NHL

Friday Blogthing: American Reality

You remember the album cover to the Grateful Dead's American Beauty? The art is such that you can read the word "Beauty" as "Reality" (I've also heard that you can read the word "American" as "Alternate" but I've never been able to see it.)

Anyway, that has nothing to do with today's blogthing.

You've Been a Little Ruined by American Culture

Whether you live in the US or not, deep down you're a little American. And there's nothing wrong with loving American culture, but it may have negative effects on your life. Slow down and enjoy what you have. Reconnect with life's simple pleasures. You don't need to be in a consumerist rat race. Life's too short to overwork yourself!

Has American Culture Ruined You?

tagged: American, culture, Grateful Dead, American Beauty, blog, quiz, survey

Movie Mini Review: The Station Agent

Title: The Station Agent

Cast: Peter Dinklage, Bobby Cannavale, Patricia Clarkson

Plot summary:
Finbar McBride, a railroad enthusiast living in New Jersey, inherits a remote train depot when his best friend and business associate dies. A confirmed loner, Finbar isn't prepared for the small-town friendliness of rural Newfoundland, New Jersey.

My thoughts:

The story is seemingly simple.

A life of being constantly mocked because of his dwarfism has left Fin to prefer solitude to the derisive laughter other people. He takes solace in his passion for trains, a hobby that allows him to keep his social circle small.

So when his only friend dies and leaves him an abandoned train depot in remote Newfoundland, New Jersey, Fin looks forward to an early retirement alone with his hobby.

When he arrives in his new home, he is unprepared for the overt friendliness he encounters. Despite his repeated hints that he prefers to be left alone, extroverted hot dog vendor Joe Oramas perseveres in his overtures for friendship. Before long the two are sharing lunches together in the parking lot of Fin's train depot.

Fin also meets flighty artist Olivia Harris after she nearly runs him down in her SUV. Twice.

Through a series of simple interactions, the three become fast friends. They come to care about each other deeply and even to depend upon each other.

Joe, who can't stand to be alone, depends on the others for companionship. ("Hey listen, if you guys do something later, can I join you?" "We're not gonna do something." "No, I know, but if you do, can I join you?" "We're not gonna do something later." "Okay, but, if you do?" "Okay...")

Fin, who has had very few true friends, learns that not everyone is out to make fun of him, that friendship is possible and that being a friend to others increase his self-worth.

Olivia, who battles depression due to past tragedy, relies on them both to help her come to grips with her loss.

There's no huge, dramatic climax. Sure, we see the characters go through some strife. All friendships do. But they end up better friends and as a viewer I ended up wanting to be their friends too.

There's no coincidence that the name of the town is Newfoundland. Fin finds himself in a new world where he values more than the mere loneliness and solitude that he thought he wanted.

The characters are compelling and believable. The acting is superb, sincere and understated. The writing is real and strong and at times poetic. The entire film is a study in restraint, and it is better for it.

Some have categorized this film as a comedy, but it really defies categorization. It has funny moments, but it's not really a comedy. It's poignant without being cheesy or moralistic. It's definitely one you should see.

My final rating: Definitely see it again AND buy the DVD.

Favorite quote:
"You said you weren't going to talk to me if I sat here, Joe. "

tagged: movie, The Station Agent, film, culture, Finbar, review, friendship

3 A.M. Poll: Who wants and iPhone?

It's only a matter of hours before the much ballyhooed and very sexy iPhone goes on sale and Apple stores around the country.

Already there are losers people camping out to be the first on their block to invest nearly $2,000 to be the first to have the coolest gadget since The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

I'm interested to know if you'll be one of the proud (but broke) owners of this gadget geek status symbol.


tagged: poll, vote, iphone, gadget, Apple

Oh hell, everyone else is doing it

This rating was determined based on the presence of the following words:

* shit (3x)
* porn (2x)
* strangle (1x)

Well sheesh, that just makes me sound creepy.

tagged: movie, rating, R, blog, meme

Eight Random Things About meme

I got tagged by Spyder the other day to disclose eight random things about myself, so this is my attempt.

The trouble I had is that random things aren't necessarily very exciting or interesting. I mean, the random stuff that happens to me is mostly "I walked down the street" or "Somebody held the door for me today." You know, boring shit.

So I've tried to edit out the most boring stuff from the list below, which I guess violates the definition of "random." But then I thought, is anything really random anyway? I mean in the grand scheme of things? Don't our best scientific minds believe that all matter and energy behave in certain ways and that if we could account for all of the variables we would be able to predict that behavior?

Aw hell, my head is really starting to hurt. Here's the list:

1. I've been using the same computer keyboard at work for the last six years. It's a little dirty but well broken-in, like a pair of comfortable old sneakers.
   
2. About seven years ago I tripped over a stack of lava rocks while helping a friend rebuild his house. It tore off the top several layers of skin on my lower left calf. I still have scars.
   
3. When I was in gradeschool, my best friend and I killed a chicken with a BB gun. We thought it was so funny to shoot it in the ass and watch it jump and run around like a... well, like a chicken with its head cut off. I think it must have finally died of a heart attack, because a BB couldn't actually kill a chicken. Could it?
   
4. I've got a major headache right now. We're talking migraine. I guess karma is a bitch.
   
5. I was once a member of the Liberal news media. Literally. I worked for a news outlet in Liberal, KS.
   
6. I've never seen a dead human body that wasn't in a box.
   
7. I used to wear a tie to work all the time. Now? Not so much. Not sure why because I'm generally pro-tie.
8. The worst thing I've ever had thrown at me: A cat.
   
9. To me, it seems inconsistent for someone to be in favor of the death penalty but against abortions (and vice versa for that matter).
   

Okay, you're it: Shea in Wichita, Sassywho, Nightmare, Faith and Joel

tagged: tag, meme, blog, blogger, random

YouTube Tuesday: Some days

I'm having one of those weeks where it seems like everything is an uphill battle.

Kind of like this guy...


tagged: movies, YouTube, video, comedy, Shaun Micallef, drunk, humor

Random photo III: Remembering Paris, 2001

I like this one because it's a perspective on the Eiffel Tower that you don't often see.



As always, your critiques are appreciated.

tagged: Paris, France, Europe, Eiffel Tower, photo, photography

Memo to BBC World: Thanks for nothing

Earlier this month, BBC World launched a billboard campaign heralding their arrival in America.

Some have called the interactive billboards innovative. The billboards feature a text message response number that allows viewers to vote between two interpretations of a news item. Here are the samples (click to embiggen).
So the audience can "vote" via text message on the characterizations that are presented. This kind of audience participation is what some consider "innovative" (though so-called reality TV shows like American Idol have been doing this for at least five years).

The problem I have with the campaign is that, as if we weren't doing a fine job of it ourselves the BBC is now contributing to the dumbing down and polarization of the American public.

These ads encourage people to think in absolutes. Illegal aliens, for example, are either "criminals" or "citizens." There's no middle ground.

I'm pretty sure this falls into the realm of the logical fallacy of the complex question. They presuppose a set of circumstances that haven't necessarily been proven or accepted.

The problem of course is that very few questions are as black and white. Framing questions the way BBC World has in the above campaign strips the nuance out of the national discussion.

If we're not careful, we'll end up with half the country thinking one way and half the country thinking the opposite way. I know none of us want that. Right?

tagged: BBC World, billboard, advertising, iraq, illegal immigration

Headlines: The toughest SOB in the nation

I've tangled with some tough customers before.

I've gone toe-to-toe with the occasional hornet's nest in the kid's swing set. I've fended off the aggressive licking and butt sniffing or our friend's overgrown Weimaraner. I've chased off the elusive urban raccoon. And regular readers are familiar with my complete destruction of the harmless Steatoda triangulosa.

Hell, I've even ventured into Westport after dark before.

So yeah, I considered myself a pretty tough dude. But then I read about Florida senior resident Dale Rippy, a veritable latter-day Daniel Boone.

Dale Rippy says he was acting on instinct when a rabid 25-pound bobcat attacked him on his porch in this central Florida suburb.

My instinct would be to get the fuck off the porch. Maybe barricade myself inside the house by piling up couches, chairs and other furniture by the door, cartoon-style. But not Dale "The Ripper" Rippy:

Rippy, 62, endured the bobcat's slashes and bites until it clawed into a position where he could grab it by the throat.

Then he strangled it.

That's right. Strangled it. The rabid freakin' bobcat! With his BARE HANDS!

Rippy said it was clear the crazed bobcat had to be stopped.

"I was bleeding everyplace," the Vietnam veteran said of the May 30 attack. "If that cat had attacked a child, it would've been really bad. It wouldn't have quit."

Tests showed the dead bobcat was rabid. Rippy was treated for exposure to rabies, and several bites and cuts.

Authorities praised Rippy for clear thinking under pressure.

"We give this guy a lot of credit for what he did," said Pasco County Animal Control Manager Denise Hilton. "The man was definitely using his head when he did that. If he let the cat go, we could have had more victims."

I don't know how long Rippy has left on this earth. Clearly as a veteran of Vietnam, he's been through "some shit" as they say.

But I can tell you, based on this story, that I would rather have one 62-year-old, tough-as-nails geezer like Rippy at my back with the shit hits the fan than a hundred crying, overly sensitive, overly coddled, whining emo boy hipsters.

tagged: headlines, news, rabid bobcat, Dale Rippy, Florida, strangle, wildlife

Friday Blogthing: Would you like cheese with that

This is peculiar. I've always preferred red wines (particularly Italians) to white, though I have had some excellent chardonnays.

You Are Chardonnay

Fresh, spirited, and classic - you have many facets to your personality. You can be sweet and light. Or deep and complex. You have a little bit of something to offer everyone... no wonder you're so popular. Approachable and never smug, you are easy to get to know (and love!). Deep down you are: Dependable and modest Your partying style: Understated and polite Your company is enjoyed best with: Cold or wild meat

What Kind of Wine Are You?

tagged: wine, blog, quiz, survey, chardonnay, alcohol

3A.M. Poll: What is your favorite finger?

This one is pretty straightforward. It may seem trivial, but this is a very important issue I can assure you.



tagged: poll, vote, finger, thumb, pinky

YouTube Tuesday: John feels pretty

Politicians can be so vain... and funny.



tagged: movies, YouTube, video, John Edwards, vanity, hair, West Side Story, humor

YouTube Tuesday supplemental: It's finally here!

This is about the funniest thing on TV since that chick on the Newly Wed Game "made whoopie" in the rear.



tagged: movies, YouTube, video, Star Wars, Palpatine, Robot Chicken, humor

The happy Moore on

I knew I should have deleted Letterman.

When I saw that Michael Moore was a guest and he was going to talk about his new "documentary" Sicko, I knew I should have deleted that episode from the DVR and watched a Southpark rerun.

But, I ignored my better judgment just to get a glimpse of the night's Top 10 List. The result of course, is that Moore's hypocritical babbling got my blood up to rant level.

Moore has no credibility in my book. The mere fact that he calls his propaganda films "documentaries" is only one reason. I have no intention of seeing his movie (although, you can see it for free here, if the link still works), but based on his remarks during the Letterman interview, it seems to fit the mold of his previous efforts.

(Yes, I am aware that I seem to be commenting about a movie I haven't seen. So to be clear, my comments are strictly about the interview on Letterman and Moore's characterization of his film during this interview.)

The problem is, as with most of his films, Moore starts with a conclusion (i.e., "health care should be paid for by the gubment") and then sets out to find stories and "evidence" to support his conclusion. When Letterman asks him if his movie is just a series of anecdotes critical of the American health care system, he gives this response.

"I spent most of my time traveling to other countries to find out how we could create a better system here.

In every single other western industrialized country it [universal health care] is underwritten by the government. You never have to worry about it costing anything. It's free for everyone."

That's right. Free.

I was just as amazed at this revelation as you are. It seems countries like France and Germany have found ways to compel health care workers to do their jobs without getting paid. Pharmaceutical companies gladly donate all the prescription drugs needed to ensure good health among the populations.

Of course, Moore knows that nothing is "free". He knows that under a national health care system we would end up paying even more taxes to a notoriously inefficient federal system to get, if we're lucky, the same health care we have now.

As if this wasn't enough, Moore further demonstrated his jerkoffitude while relating the story of his trip to Cuba. He pointed out that prisoners detainees at Guantánamo Bay Naval Base received better health care than people who volunteered to help during the World Trade Center recovery.

I thought, why don't we go get a boat, sail into Guantánamo Bay go right up to the naval station and say "I've got these 9-11 rescue workers here would you give them the same care that you're giving the evildoers. And that's what we did.

Moore goes on to state that he was not received well at the Naval base. Really? Ya think? So you sailed into a U.S. Naval base unannounced and you received a cool reception? Dude, given the location and the geopolitical atmosphere of the day, you're lucky they didn't torpedo you're ass first and ask questions later.

Look, the U.S. health care system has serious problems. I suspect very few people have a good understanding what they are. It's not just about who pays for health care. We have to look at why the costs are spiraling, why is insurance so expensive, why are prescription drugs so expensive? There are a myriad other questions that I don't even know about.

For Moore to sell the idea that "you can have it all for free" ignores the fact that the health care system is a system and needs to be addressed as such.

He had an opportunity to look into these issues objectively and pragmatically to make a truly informative documentary. Of course, he'll sell a lot more tickets and make a lot more money by being an inflammatory douche rather than informative.

tagged: Michael Moore, David Letterman, Sicko, policy, health care, Cuba, Guantánamo Bay

The marketing field

Am I crazy, or is this a great idea for KCI?

Passengers landing at Gatwick airport are being greeted by a giant naked pole dancer. The 9,000 sq m (100,000 sq ft) image is painted on grassland under the incoming flight path.

There's so much blank canvas around KCI that this couldn't help but be a money maker.

Couldn't you envision looking out the window during the descent and seeing a giant bottle of Unfiltered Wheat? Maybe a huge Chiefs logo? or a Harrah's Casino banner?

I smell an opportunity here.

tagged: Kansas City, airport, advertising, Chiefs, Boulevard Brewing Co., Unfiltered Wheat, Harrah's Casino, Gatwick,

Friday Blogthing: Arrrr!

This one has been cropping up in a lot of places. It looks like I'm equal parts pirate and superspy.

Capt. Jack Sparrow + James Bond = Awesome Me.

You scored as Captain Jack Sparrow, Roguish,quick-witted, and incredibly lucky, Jack Sparrow is a pirate who sometimes ends up being a hero, against his better judgement. Captain Jack looks out for #1, but he can be counted on (usually) to do the right thing. He has an incredibly persuasive tongue, a mind that borders on genius or insanity, and an incredible talent for getting into trouble and getting out of it. Maybe its brains, maybe its genius, or maybe its just plain luck. Or maybe a mixture of all three. Captain Jack Sparrow 75% James Bond, Agent 007 75% Batman, the Dark Knight 67% Lara Croft 58% The Terminator 58% Maximus 58% William Wallace 58% Indiana Jones 54% Neo, the "One" 50% El Zorro 46% The Amazing Spider-Man 46% Which Action Hero Would You Be? v. 2.0 created with QuizFarm.com

tagged: hero, quiz, Friday, pirate, Jack Sparrow, spy, James Bond

Random photo II

Chinatown lamp, San Francisco


tagged: photo, picture, San Francisco, Chinatown, dragon

Manufacturing concrete news

My Supermodel Wife and I were on our way home with our daughter after a community meeting last night when, on a whim, we decided to stop by Sheridan's Frozen Custard on 75th Street.

Someone mentioned at the meeting that Sheridan's was giving away free "concretes" if you mentioned that you "love KMBC Channel 9."

Now, "love" isn't a word I would use to describe any TV station, unless it's in the context of "I love to bash Larry Moore." But then again, who am I to scoff at a free frozen custard treat.

Then we pulled into the parking lot at 75th and Metcalf and realized that nothing is free. Check out the picture (from the KMBC website).

At the 75th Street location, the line stretched around the entire building. Sure, you don't have to pay money for the frozen custard, but you'll have to wait on line for an hour. It took us about two seconds to decide we didn't want to pay the price for Sheridan's, and about 10 minutes to drive over the Foo's Fabulous, which is right by our house anyway.

I would rather pay the 12 bucks to treat my family rather than make them stand in line with a bunch of moochers. Actually, that's not fair. I don't begrudge those who wanted a free frozen snack. What I really begrudge is KMBC reporting on this like it was a news story.

Look, I tune in to the local nightly news to get updates on Paris Hilton's jail sentence, the Iranian stance on porn stars and the bayou ban on baggy pants, not this meaningless manufactured tripe about people getting free frozen desserts.

To spend so much time setting up an event and then foisting the reporting on an unsuspecting public smacks of Rathergate.

tagged: news, KMBC, Larry Moore, media, Iran, porn star, Dan Rather

3A.M. Poll: What's your favorite goombah lingo?

This week's poll is an homage to the recent Sopranos series non-finale. If you were a fan of the show (like me) then you already know what these terms mean. If you never watched an episode (gavone!) you can look them up in the Mobspeak glossary.

As always, feel free to add you own candidates in the comments.



tagged: poll, vote, Sopranos, wise guy, slang, mobspeak

YouTube Tuesday: Back to the questions

I don't think there's any child of the '80s who doesn't remember the Back to the Future trilogy with great fondness.

Like the Rubik's Cube, the Super Bowl Shuffle, Valley Girls, Pet Shop Boys and other relics of a bygone era, we get a sense of sweet nostalgia when we think of nutty Marty McFly, the scatterbrained Dr. Emmet Brown an the lovable but misunderstood Biff Tannen.

But as many questions and the trilogy tied up in the final movie, there are still things I want to know: What was Michael J. Fox like? Was that real manure? Well, you get the idea.

Luckily, Tom Wilson (who played the Biff and other Tannens in the series) took time out during a recent tour to set a few things straight.



tagged: movies, YouTube, video, Back to the Future, Tom Wilson, comedy, pop culture, humor, Michael J. Fox

For a smile they can share the night

It was the end of an era.

After eight years of watching Tony Soprano become more and more detestable, after watching him devolve from in insecure villainous letch to a despicable sociopath who cares about nobody - not his wife, kids, friends, sister, uncle - but himself, we were finally going to see him get popped.

After faithfully viewing every uncut episode of what is arguably the defining television program of the decade, we would get to see what we've been waiting for through all the long hiatuses.

We set the DVR (just in case), put the kid to be early and I even made up a Blandwagian Ale for the occasion.
Some of my predictions came true. I predicted that Paulie would turn state's evidence, and I'm not sure sure that didn't happen. I predicted a near-death experience would snap AJ out of his depression (as it did for Tony), although I thought it would be from a shooting rather than his car blowing up.

But I certainly didn't predict that David Chase would lose his stugots when it came to ending the series.

As you already know by now, the final scene built the tension with tight shots of ordinary people inside a diner with the chords of Journey's Don't Stop Believing playing in the background. There was a normal family, a troop of Boy Scouts, just regular people out having dinner. Then the camera would focus malevolently on nefarious looking individuals - a goombah came in alone to sit at the counter, and later a pair of black gangsta-looking fellows.

As Meadow struggles to park her car and the Steve Perry wails "Paying anything to roll the dice just one more time..." the goombah gets up and walks toward Tony, Carmella and AJ, eyeing them with bad intent. At the last minute he turns to walk into the restroom.

The tension is palpable. We're on the edge of our couch cushions just waiting for the universe (or at least Phil Leotardo's crew) to dispense its justice at the muzzle of an untraceable 9 mm Glock.

Then, just as Meadow walks in... the screen goes blank.

What the hell just happened? Did our DVR just malfunction? I frantically begin pushing buttons on the remote to try to diagnose why we lost our picture.

And as the credits begin to roll, I realize that there was no DVR malfunction. We've been had. David Chase sucked us in, got us all excited only to leave me alone and unsatisfied just like Courtney Platte did to me my senior year in high school (different story).

Anyway, I can see Chase's dilemma. There was probably no way he could have written an ending that wouldn't be criticized for the next three weeks. Anything he did would have been a let down, just like when the last Seinfeld episode ran.

But COME ON! You could at least try!

The only explanation, other than Chase's loss of testicular fortitude, is that he wanted to leave the series open for a movie sequel. I guess in that case, Steve Perry would be right: "Oh, the movie never ends It goes on and on and on and on."

tagged: Sopranos, HBO, TV, Journey, David Chase, Steve Perry, pop culture

The Judgment of Paris

XO has a pretty good take on the issue, but so do these guys (mature audiences only please).



tagged: Paris, Hilton, jail, justice, humor, satire

YouTube Tuesday supplemental: It's not TV

Well we all know that The Sopranos is winding down on Sunday, and with the death of Tony there will be one less watchable program on the tele.

But, I'm pretty stoked about a new series featuring Flight of the Conchords, New Zealand's fourth most popular guitar-based digi-bongo acapella-rap-funk-comedy folk duo.

When we saw the promo a couple of weeks ago, I couldn't wait for the show to air. It turns out, I don't have to. HBO has released the first full episode on their website in advance. Here it is embedded for your entertainment.


tagged: HBO, Sopranos, Flight of the Conchords, TV, video, pop culture

Random photo

I shot this pic of our house last week after one of the many rainy nights.


UPDATE: Based on advice from the photographically gifted Gnade, I've adjusted the contrast a little. I think it's an improvement.



UPDATE 2: The aforementioned Bill Gnade graciously sent over his interpretation, converting to black and white and really capturing the highlights of the water droplets. Thanks again, Bill!


tagged: photo, picture, rain, morning, siding

Friday Blogthing: Equal time

I think I took the questions on these quizzes a little too seriously, but I'm okay with the results. I think if there were one more quiz, it would find that I'm about 75% Drunkard.

You Are 12% Democrat

If you have anything in common with the Democrat party, it's by sheer chance. You're a staunch conservative, and nothing is going to change that!

How Democrat Are You?

You Are 16% Republican

If you have anything in common with the Republican party, it's by sheer chance. You're a staunch liberal, and nothing is going to change that!

How Republican Are You?

tagged: quiz, poll, Republican, Democrat, politics

What we pretend to be

Some of Tony's recent posts reminded me of this quote I saw on the AV Club a few months ago when Kurt Vonnegut died...

"We must be careful about what we pretend to be."

In Mother Night, apolitical expatriate American playwright Howard W. Campbell, Jr. refashions himself as a Nazi propagandist in order to pass coded messages on to the U.S. generals and preserve his marriage to a German woman—their "nation of two," as he calls it. But in serving multiple masters, Campbell ends up ruining his life and becoming an unwitting inspiration to bigots. In his 1966 introduction to the paperback edition, Vonnegut underlines Mother Night's moral: "We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be." That lesson springs to mind every time a comedian whose shtick relies on hoaxes and audience-baiting—or a political pundit who traffics in shock and hyperbole—gets hauled in front of the court of public opinion for pushing the act too far. Why can't people just say what they mean?

tagged: Kurt Vonnegut, race, blog, blogging, Tony's Kansas City

The More You Know: Lebanon, Kansas

Here's a fun Kansas fact: The geographic center of the "lower 48" United States is just a couple miles outside of Lebanon, KS.

We visited the village of Lebanon during our road trip last weekend to pick up our yearly supply of beef. For the last few years, (I discussed this in a previous post) we have been buying our own, custom-grown beef.

I just feel better about avoiding the corporate feedlot industry. You know, cutting down on the risk of residual growth hormones and estrogen, antibiotics, mad cow disease and the like. Check out this article and you'll see what I mean.

Plus, at about two bucks a pound, it makes economic sense. And I don't think any illegal aliens will lose their jobs because of little old me.

Anyway we picked up our beef in Lebanon, which I discovered from the picture on the grain elevator is also known for growing wheat and corn dogs.
tagged: Lebanon, Kansas, beef, wheat, corn dogs, mad cow, hormones

3A.M. Poll: What is your most recently seen roadkill?

We spent a lot of time on the road last weekend during a trip to western Kansas.

It gave us a chance to do a little family bonding, part of which was a game we called "Name that Roadkill".

Kansas roads and highways are rife with many different species of roadkill this time of year, and that's the basis for this week's poll. What is the species of roadkill you've seen most recently?

As always, feel free to add an answere into the comments if you don't see an appropriate one in the list above.
tagged: poll, vote, Kansas, roadkill, animals, wildlife

The payoff

We travelled west last weekend and stopped in Chapman, Kansas (home of astronaut Joe Engle) to visit my grandmother and wait out the storm.

The reward, in addition to spending time with family, was this amazing sunset as the storm passed. These pictures don't do it justice.

(click to embiggen)


tagged: Kansas, Chapman, storm, sunset, rain, weather, pictures

Creepy update

This is an update to this post about a recently discovered and evicted tenant of my basement.

As you recall, I snapped this image of the uninvited guest shortly before crushing her in the iron grip of my household totalitarian regime.
In keeping with my own personal modus operandi, I smashed the little bugger first and asked questions later. The question: What manner of spider is this that insists upon nesting in my laundry room?

Thanks to some great comments from people wise in the ways of insects, and thanks also to Google and Wikipedia, I have come to the following conclusion.

The specimen in question was a Steatoda triangulosa, also known as the triangulate cobweb spider (because of the triangular markings on its back, get it?).

Note the similarities in the markings of this specimen presented by the University of Arkansas entomology department:So now I have a dilemma. As Jane noted in the previous post, this spider belongs to a group of spiders commonly known as "false black widows" because they are sometimes mistaken as such. They also tend to share the same kinds of habitats and, Jane suggests, where there are false black widows, the real things tend not to be far behind.

But according to the wikipdia article and a few others I came across, this particular species includes the black widow and other "harmful" beasties on its dinner menu.

The triangulate cobweb spider is known to prey on many other types of arthropods, including ants (including fire ants), other spiders, pillbugs, and ticks. It preys on several other spiders believed to be harmful to humans, including the hobo spider and the brown recluse.

So on the one hand, I don't fancy sharing my home with any bugs. But on the other hand, if this thing is going to keep away the "bad" spiders, maybe it's not so bad.

Better the devil you know than the one you don't, right?

tagged: spiders, spiderman, creepy, arachnid, arachnophobia, false black widow, triangulate cobweb spider, Steatoda triangulosa

YouTube Tuesday: Speaking of Etch-A-Sketch

I never had the patience to do more than my initials or some dopey blocks on the Etch-A-Sketch, but artist George Vlosich has noting better to do than spend 70 to 80 hours etching out these incredibly detailed portraits.



tagged: movies, YouTube, video, Etch-A-Sketch, George Vlosich, art, pop culture

Friday Blogthing: Sketchy

Ah the '80s. A time of great music, relevant television programing, cheap gas and a well-defined and universally hated enemy.

How I long for those halcyon days of yore when life was simple, phones had cords and MTV still played music videos.

What childhood toy from the 80s are you?

You're an Etch-a-Sketch!! You're the creative, artsy type who doesn't need to actually utilize a single muscle group in order to have fun. Doesn't matter though, you're still cool. Take this quiz!

tagged: quiz, meme, game, 80s, 1980s, etch-a-sketch