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