Customer Service

http://hire-a-killer.com/index.html

the fattest cat

http://www.wimp.com/fattest/

My hero

http://www.canada.com/news/oddities/story.html?id=9b186db2-a8ea-42b8-9594-ddcaf9764029

A real-life zombie game!!!

http://www.alldumb.com/item/11984/

This is one of the weirdest things I've ever seen (I wonder if it's true?). Check out this guy who is tricked into believing there's a real zombie attack going on. VERY creepy! I also suspect this type of thing would be considered highly unethical and probably actionable, (if not outright illegal, the word "kidnapping" comes to mind). It would have been much safer for the developers to try it out on me. They wouldn't need the mind control tricks, as I work in Crystal City and KNOW FOR A FACT that I am already surrounded by zombies.

a very nice resource for those of us accessing sites on the web

http://www.pookmail.com/

I, for one, am tired of having to register at every dirt-bag newspaper site on earth, just to view a single article of note.

The Cutting Edge of nazi Science

All right, this is pretty weird. The article detailing with this is at: http://www.bild.t-online.de/BTO/news/2005/05/28/hitler__se__x__puppen/hitler__se__x__puppen.html

You can get a translation of it at babelfish, here: http://babelfish.altavista.com/

Forget about the atomic bomb, the jet fighter, the long range uboat, etc. I just know that THIS is where Germany's main R&D efforts were directed.

Mad scientist experiments on the web! Alert Igor!

http://www.conceptlab.com/frog/

neat Halloween site

http://www.halloweenmonsterlist.info/

Hundreds of links dealing with all sorts of special effects and decorations for the home haunter. Mega cool!

Strawberry Fields Aren't Forever...

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=8652597&src=eDialog/GetContent

Virginia Renaissance Faire

http://www.varf.org/

Learn a trade!

http://www.jameszoppe.com/ajatrain.htm

How would you do in a Zombie Attack?

http://www.okcupid.com/tests/take?testid=5349989821747660792

Achy Breaky Mythos

http://www.slangdesign.com/rppr/

a weblog devoted to Lovecraft studies

http://lovecraftstudies.blogspot.com/

Happy Birthday Mel Blanc!!!

THE voice of cartoons. Essential. (And a wonderful foil for Jack Benny too!)

http://www.toonopedia.com/blanc.htm

http://povonline.com/cols/COL133.htm

Sartre's inspiration:

http://www.fugly.com/media/download.php?cat=IMAGES&id=8438&sort=&order=&rating=&per_page=

the inflatable toilet

http://www.indipod.com/

The Shining City On The Hill

http://www.stuffonmycat.com/

Yes, I remember. It was almost twenty years ago. Word was that there was something called the Internet. We'd all buy computers, they'd all be connected, and a new era for humanity would be created. Science, scholarship, the arts, all would be enhanced, expanded and inspired by this new technology that would revolutionize humanity, ushering in an era of enlightenment only dreamed of before.
Or....you could be perusing Weirdness and clicking on the above link... (I think I know where the real future of humanity lies...)

The Banned Flintstones Ad..

http://www.wimp.com/flinstones/

I remember this ad....

bathroom moments

http://www.angelsoft.com/bathroommoments/clips.html

Some of these are cute...

so much for the stodgy banker image...

http://www.davesdaily.com/out.php?id=6231&url=http://www.nbc10.com/news/4539132/detail.html

the cutting edge of defense attorneys

http://www.canoe.ca/NewsStand/WinnipegSun/News/2005/05/28/1060423-sun.html

cooking with computers...

http://www.highschoolhumor.com/hsh/friedegg/

A wonderfully dark & sinister camera ad

http://www.alldumb.com/item/11964/

Godchecker

http://www.godchecker.com/

To Serve Man...

http://www.eathufu.com/home.asp

I always liked the film, Village of the Damned...

http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2005240262,00.html

Happy Birthday Patrick Henry!

http://www.redhill.org/

http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/related/henry.htm

A flawed man, (aren't we all), but one of our finest patriots.

a little late....

http://www.mysterynet.com/hammett/

Happy Birthday, Dashiell Hammett!!! One of America's greatest writers!
a wonderfully visual writer. You don't need any screenwriters, advisors, editors, or "punch-up" writers to put Dashiell's works on the big screen - just hist Humprhey Borgart or William Powell and Myrna Loy to read what he wrote and you've got a perfect picture. The guy created Nick & Nora (THE model of a perfect marriage), AND Sam Spade, (THE perfect model of a hero). Someday, I gotta write about the Maltese Falcon; it's a much more important movie than is generally recognized - and it's all from Hammett's writings.

Dracula Tour in July!

http://www.dractour.com/

Memorial Day

http://members.aol.com/usregistry/allwars.htm

A pretty somber day, or at least I think it should be. The best place to hang out locally is probably the Falls Church parade, (thanks to Rick & Susan for cluing me into this). It may well be one of the last vestiges of small town Americana left in the region. It is a touching example of people remembering the sacrifice of others and celebrating what it has provided us. High school bands, local pols, childrens' clubs and Shriners in funny cars - Falls Church has it all. It's small, it's corny, and it's moving. (Anyone who doesn't understand this last statement need not bother going - the parade will be meaningless to you).
D.C. celebrates in a different way - Rolling Thunder. I suppose it's churlish of me, but this thing irritates me more and more with each passing year. Every May, a half million people from the hinterland converge on us, convinced that traffic around here just isn't bad enough yet. Whole sections of the region are blocked off, (creating massive traffic jams), so that all these guys can publicly demonstrate their mid-life crises by parading around on Harleys which they needlessly rev at a rate of once every 3 seconds. Each is apparently required by law to display a patch, flag, bumper sticker, or tattoo about the non-existent POW/MIA "issue". I've read extensively about the arguments for still held POWS in Viet Nam, and the reasoning I've seen would embarrass a palmist or tarot card reader with their "evidence", "witnesses", and logic flow. I will leave to psychologists as to why people need to believe in this, and insist on promoting it by buying into biker culture, (What, were all these supposed POWs cyclists? Didn't anyone drive Chevys or a Rambler?). At any rate, thanks for the gridlock and the pointless mythology, guys; now please, go back to the barcaloungers and leave me with my parade of real people.

An English Dictionary In Limerick Form

http://www.oedilf.com/db/Lim.php

I can hardly wait till they get to Nantucket!

back from C'ville

We just got back from a nice visit to Charlottesville, (Thanks for a wonderful time, Carol!). Linda and I have now been down there about four times in the last five or six years, and each time we seem to enjoy the town more and more. Like so many large college towns, the downtown area is quite neat, they've blocked it off to traffic, making it totally pedestrian friendly. The cool thing is that the shops and eateries there are virtually all locally owned. There are no chains or franchises. Half a dozen used book stores and an equal number of craft shops featuring local artisans make it unique and interesting. The county supports at least one brewpub and several wineries, (essentials to modern living). It's really starting to grow on us. Very cool place.

neat site devoted to historical cryptography

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3926

This may be old news to some of you, but I just discovered this site. There's some fascinating articles here.

Death By Marshmallow...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050526/ap_on_re_us/marshmallow_death

We must put an end to the terror of Chubby Bunny...

buy a British bug!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/4578965.stm

Spooky Day!

Happy Birthday to Vincent Price AND Christopher Lee!!!

http://www.christopherleeweb.com/

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/ghlong/

1974- Did we ever get out of there? A few weird memories

I was listening to an oldies station on Radio365 this afternoon and Wings’ “Band On The Run” came on. It's never been my favorite McCartney song, (I'll probably always leave that to that cacophonous power pop mess - Jet), but it is a pleasant enough tune, and it does remind me of times gone for 31 years. It came out about this time of year and stayed throughout the summer. I've always believed the summer of '74 was a weird one, perhaps the strangest year of my life. And I've never really figured out why I feel that way - perhaps that IS the reason! It just seemed to be one of random and strange events. It might be because I’d just turned 18, or perhaps due to finishing my first year of college, or getting my first real job (janitor and later a bellhop at the local Holiday Inn). But it just felt weird, even in retrospect. It was a hot summer, as usual, filled with very bad wine and very good friends. There was still a lot of hanging out with the old neighborhood gang – the last time that would occur. A lot of the people I’d known my whole life, and the rest going back for many years: Edmund, Bruce, Millie, Ron, Rick, Walter, and Cliff. There were parties at a friend of Rick’s named Paul, at his parent’s townhouse in Old Town that were so smoke filled that I’m surprised they didn’t set off alarms at Alexandria’s fire stations. I guarantee you that there wasn’t a living canary within miles after one of those bacchanals. And the wine! A cheap chemical stew so foul that it’s a wonder that subsequent blood tests haven’t resulted in the EPA declaring me a Superfund site.
And strange women – someone named “Boston” who appeared to be 20 months along in her pregnancy. And then there was Alice. I’m sorry, I won’t repeat the stories involving her. I’ve embarrassed some of you enough about those episodes… As for the rest, let decorum be maintained…
There were constant excursions to 14th Street. For those of you too young to remember, or out in the hinterland, this was the center of, shall we say - hedonistic excess, in the District. Ron loved to go, and of course the rest of us would follow. That and the strip joints on upper Wisconsin sure provided an 18 year old with an education. And that’s where we dip back to Band On The Run. That and ZZ Top’s LaGrange were the two big songs always seeming to play on the strip joints’ sound systems. Whenever I hear them, I still think back to hostile barmaids serving incredibly overpriced and watered down beer as we sat trying not to gape, (well, at least I tried to remain demure…). Then one night, some asshole decided it would be cute to give one of the girls a whistle to blow along occasionally to the music while dancing (a whistle like a policeman might use). The first time it happened I nearly dove under the table! I wasn’t looking at the girl (see, I told you I was demure), and suddenly I heard this damn whistle go off and my mind immediately raced back to every police raid scene I’d ever seen in the movies! It can ruin a mood, I’ll tell you. I’ve hated whistles to this day.
At any rate, being able to hang out at such landmarks as Clancy’s, This Is It, Good Guys and the other rat traps I found to be quite valuable. At 18 I became a grizzled veteran of the whole sordid scene, it held no mystery to me, and I also learned early on that I didn’t really like it. Over the years, I was able to turn down many invitations to partake of that world without feeling shy or embarrassed – been there, done that, bought the t-shirt.
And there were good stories too. One night Edmund befriended some drunken Black thug who had a gang he wanted us to join. The initiation consisted of us allowing them to beat the shit out of us beforehand. Edmund agreed to meet him at the appointed place and time, and we left the bar in a mode of travel that preceded and excelled Stealth technology by several years. The location is one I vowed never to venture near to up to this day.
Another time Ron had actually managed to hook up with one of the dancers at a joint called the Fireplace (I’m told it’s a gay bar now – wheels keep on turnin’…). At any rate, we were all sitting together there, and I guess Ron got up to go to the bathroom, leaving me to make small talk with her. Deciding that a conversation on Chaucer, the I Ching, or geopolitics would probably not be productive, I decided on a simpler approach: “So, you work here?” I still remember with great amusement her response. She tilted her head ever so slightly back, with her chin elevated in a position of achievement, and with a flash of pride in her eyes declared in a perfect New Jersey accent – “Oh yea, I’m a PROFFESSIONAL!” “You’re parents must be very proud”, I muttered into my beer…
There were other little twists going on too. I mention them not because they’re particularly interesting or important, but because any retelling of that era would be incomplete without them. Frosted schooners at Lums on Route 7, with a juke box that Ron could inject a quarter into just the right way to get it to play free songs (shades of Fonzie!). There were also a series of lights on 7 that Ron had timed perfectly so that he could race towards the Red and pass through just as it turned green. (I should point out at this time that Ron was one of the funniest people I’ve ever met. He could take on a situation or a person, and with a glance, a raising of the eye brow, or a low uttered exclamation, “yo”, he’d have us in stitches. It is impossible for me to think of him without a smile. I sincerely believe that given a right turn here and there, he’d be hailed as a comedic genius today in pop culture).
And there were our beloved cars – the Dustpan, the Starship, the Yo Mobile and of course, Cliff’s Corvair of Death! Plus the other hangouts we’d frequent – the Electric Circus down on Route 1 (a pinball joint with the worst pizza of all time), Gunchers, the Warehouse, the Aeroplane and the Exchange were all regular stops. (The Exchange merits its own story some time. The bartender was Ed Raskind, an old high school teacher to Cliff, Edmund and myself and a legend at both T.C. Williams as well as the D.C. bar scene. Listen to Billy Joel’s song, “Piano Man” – THAT was the Exchange.). I’ve forgotten a lot of details about these places. Hell, it’s a credit to my brain’s fortitude that I remember ‘em at all.
Looming over all of this was Jack In The Box. A grease fueled Mecca for all of us untermencsh. I’ve written about its glory in past missives and will not repeat myself here. Suffice to say, it’s a raggedy Olympus to those “Spirits In The Night” who were hanging out in ’74.
Hmmm, as I look over this gentle little jaunt down memory lane, I see references to doper parties, strip joints, bars, pinball parlors, and Jack In The Box. Not exactly the coming of age story of a young Mennonite in the 1890’s… But looking back, it seems to me that there was a sort of innocence about the whole thing, (which may say more about me than some would care to know). What can I say, it’s a weird compilation of events, and that was the summer of ’74…

I'm Cured!

http://chrisnolan.ca/photos_loc/blog/00000155/fukitol_new.jpg

a neat article (& film) of a master mentalist

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/05/25/60II/main697740.shtml

I've always loved this type of stage magic!

a plug...

http://www.mustardmuseum.com/

If you love mustard, you gotta deal with the Mt. Horeb Mustard Museum. Linda and I went there last summer and it was impressive. EVERY mustard you can think of is there - for sale. We must of brought back three dozen styles. Check 'em out if you're seriously into mustard.

very cool video collection site

http://www.ifilm.com/viralvideo?ifilmid=2671154

(Thanks for the link, Chris!)

the sandwich from Hell

http://www.sitepalace.com/derian/

the cutting edge of road closures

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050524/NEWS01/50524006/1075

Okay, here's my big question - what does this report mean when it says the bomb squad used a robot to "disable" the device?

see the effects of a nuke on D.C.

http://www.fas.org/main/content.jsp?formAction=297&contentId=367

A fascinating little bit of dire information. (You might need to download a Java plugin to view this correctly).

OMG!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4574439.stm

Forget about the murder rap that Phil Spector is facing! WHAT THE HELL IS UP WITH HIS HAIR?!?!? Jesus Christ! Is this what happened to The Average White Band when they reached retirement age? God's Blood - IT'S AWFUL! Hell, I'd put him in jail just so I wouldn't have to look at that ridiculous mess. It's all I can do to keep my hands from grabbing pencils and jamming them into my eyes so that I never have to look at it again! Those follicles, oh God, those awful follicles!!!!

Happy Birthday, Mr. Zimmerman...

http://www.bobdylan.com/index.html

Star Wars meets the Darwin Awards!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/1/hi/england/beds/bucks/herts/4575291.stm

a new Halloween site

http://iscare.com/

Looks like it's got a slow start, hopefully it'll get more interesting...

It's just like Burger King: Have It Yahweh!

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/5/prweb243327.php

UPDATE! UPDATE! UPDATE!

HE DID IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=44503

Very cool use of technology to view/decipher ancient writings

http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,67605,00.html?tw=wn_story_mailer

RIP Thurl Ravenscroft

http://members.aol.com/bejacob/thurl.htm

Besides having one of the coolest names, ever, Ravenscroft is most known for being the voice of Tony the Tiger. But I'll always love him for being the singer of one of my fave songs - You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch! A very cool voice!

Whatever Happened To Speedy Gonzalez?

http://www.wimp.com/speedy/

It ain't here...

http://www.softlab.ece.ntua.gr/~sivann/pub/swf/may02-smilepop

Vampirism, Presented from a pharmaceutical company pov...

http://www.boingboing.net/2005/05/22/vampirism_presentati.html

At Last! Scientists have discovered the most important part of my body!

http://health.discovery.com/news/healthscout/article.jsp?aid=525874#

I would calculate mine makes up about 85% of my body mass...

Ha! Geek Fantasies!

http://geekfantasies.com/

See beautiful bikini clad babes roll D&D dice! (Thanks for the link, John!)

My Kind Of Home Decorating!

http://www.thekcrachannel.com/news/4512146/detail.html

The Cuttine Edge of Archaeology!

http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=4576521

Di Lives!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=349529&in_page_id=1770

If I remember my horror movies correctly, one of this woman's hands will now try to strangle her...

very cool pool shots

http://www.alldumb.com/item/11857/

some very neat computer art

http://imagesavant.com/

the jellyfish from hell

http://eatliver.com/i.php?n=337

I know nohting about jellyfish, and have no idea if this is a fake photo, or not. But it is spooky...

robots imitate human speech

http://dsc.discovery.com/news/briefs/20050516/robotspeech.html?msn=dsc_news

For decades, people have speculated about the possibility of robot "companions". I've always been skeptical of such musings, but that skepticism is beginning to crack. There seems so much research going on that will lead to such a development, the next 50 years could be frightening, (Bladerunner, anyone?)

Happy Anniversary to Bogey & Bacall!!!

Oh, and me and Linda!!!

traffic

It started out simply enough, Linda and I were going to drive over to the Falls Church Farmer's Market this morning. The drive started easily enough, there was barely any traffic through Annandale and we even managed to avoid waiting the traditional 40 days and 40 nights at the traffic light at Route 50. I was starting to think that this would be one of those extraordinary D.C. moments when you actually get to a destination without hassle or need of a multi-generational space ark, (at least guaranteeing that your descendants might make landfall). But the gods are cruel, comrades. They love nothing more than to lull you into a false sense of security and bliss, only to spring their little cruelties when you are most vulnerable. Just as we entered Falls Church proper, almost within sight of our destination, the trap was sprung - all of Annandale Road was closed due to some gas leak/water main collapse/tsunami/leprosy outbreak/whatever. We had to turn around, hitting the dread light at Route 50 AGAIN, (we were NOT lucky this time), and cross up to the feared Seven Corners - DURING A SATURDAY! I've written about the sheer Hell that this is before, and will not do so again. The memories are too painful, the emotional scars still raw; and besides, there might be children reading this.
We finally got past that Maze of Death, and were able to reenter Falls Church. Of course, the township's polizei watch Route 7 like hawks - keeping everyone within their insane speed limit. The citizenry there believes that man was not meant to travel faster than Continental Drift, lest one fall off the back of the Great Turtle that supports our earth. So, we spent several centuries crawling the last mile and a half, and finally, I am overjoyed to say, made it to the Market.
The trip back was equally challenging, as the late hour guaranteed an exponential increase in the traffic. But we made it back using tactics finely honed from watching Vanishing Point and Bullitt. I'm not proud of some of the things I did, and the nightmares still haunt me, but we got home, and that's all that matters.
I only bring up this little drama to lament the changes in our area. I used to actually enjoy driving around here. One could generally plan a trip from Point A to Point B and feel reasonably sure as to how long it would take to do it. Those days are long gone. To travel around here now, one must calculate the time it would take in a normal universe and then quintuple it. And you can't just climb into your car and drive, you must have the radio tuned to the traffic reports at all times, listening to every delay and hiccup within 50 miles, for each one can cause a backup stretching across the whole region. You'll need a map to locate detours and backroads to avoid each problem as well as 6 months of food and water. When we go out, Linda is stooped over the radio with a map, listening to each warning and constantly plotting our countermoves - it's like a scene out of a World War II submarine movie, with the captain and sonar engineer hovering around the screen looking for a way around the sub nets and destroyers.
It will only get worse, of course. the feds have already decided that too many Defense Department offices were close to Metro stops, and they will now be moved into the suburbs, forcing millions to schlep across Fairfax in their cars, creating a transportation sclerosis that will simply cause the entire mess to grind to a total halt. The pitiful thing is that someday I'll be looking back on today's disaster, and thinking that THESE were the good times. We are doomed.

very weird WWII trivia

I always heartily recommend Fortean Times magazine (www.forteantimes.com), to anyone who's interested in anomalous and weird phenomena (UFOs, cryptozoology, conspiracy theory, etc.). The current issue (#197) just came out and has a fascinating article about an Englishman named Geoffrey Pyke. He was one of those eccentric geniuses that seem to populate Britain so heavily. The article goes into his theories and inventions, the most interesting of which was the construction of huge ships out of ice - including aircraft carriers! The British bought into it and the early tests appear to have been very successful! Only the speed of Allied success prevented the program from reaching its full fruition! Fascinating stuff, and I've never heard of him before. Check it out.

Kolchak News

KOLCHAK: The NIGHT STALKER -
Coming this fall on ABC!THE NIGHT STALKER will premiere on Thursday evening at 9PM on ABC this fall.Premise: There are things in the dark, things adults deny but children are right to fear. When a pregnant woman is snatched from her home, the shocked citizens of L.A. believe it's an act of domestic violence. But crime reporter Carl Kolchak suspects that the truth is far more complicated. That's because 18 months ago Kolchak's wife was killed in a bizarre fashion and he has been the FBI's No. 1 suspect ever since. Kolchak's determination to find the truth behind his wife's mysterious murder has led him to investigate other crimes that seem to have some kind of supernatural component. But he's trying to piece together a puzzle that keeps changing shape. Who or what is committing these crimes? How are they all related? And why do some victims end up with a strange red mark on their hands in the shape of a snake? With sidekick Perri Reed, a sexy if skeptical fellow reporter in tow, Kolchak will go to any lengths to answer these questions. But when he does discover the truth -- will anyone believe him?

Show Background: Frank Spotnitz and Daniel Sackheim are the executive producers.Current Cast:Stuart Townsend as Carl KolchakGabrielle Union as Perri ReedEric Jungmann as Jain McManusCotter Smith as Tony Vincenzo

New Night Gaunt Plush!

http://www.entertainmentearth.com/prodinfo.asp?number=TYV12509

The Wedding Ring

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=5583445720

For True Gamesmen...

http://www.trollandtoad.com/pd1637917.html?associateid=42_14

nice H.R. Giger resource

http://www.littlegiger.com/

neat ice sculptures

http://www.icecarver.co.uk/

(including a rather obscene vodka luge...)

Yoda's blog

http://masterjediyoda.blogspot.com/

a web "museum" of old electronic music toys

http://www.miniorgan.com/

neat old time radio site

http://www.radiolovers.com/pages/allshows.html

Nihilist Gum!

http://www.mcphee.com/amusements/current/11505.html

Dance Like a White Guy!

http://www.alldumb.com/item/11831/

the cutting edge of perverse Star Wars merchandising...

http://shop.starwars.com/catalog/product.xml?product_id=2698;category_id=332;pcid1=;pcid2=

neat article about technology and its future influence on humanity

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/15/AR2005051501092.html?referrer=emailarticle

Kudzu!

http://www.jjanthony.com/kudzu/houses.html

I believe Tales From The Crypt had a horror story about this...

the kitten cannon

http://www.wimp.com/cannon/

I'm going to Hell...

Rebel Without A Leash

http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_1397607.html

an interesting site

http://www.serpentswall.com/

This is a woman who lives in the Ukraine and is sort of an amateur military archaeologist. It's an interesting site devoted to one of the bloodier provinces of Europe.

crow raises a cat

http://www.wimp.com/sitter/

Could It Be... SATAN?!?

http://www.talkbackwards.com/

THE Cutting Edge of True Gamesmen!

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7857016/

Free At Last! Free At Last!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/scotus_wine_shipments

UPS can just set up a conveyer belt direct to Blau Manor...

the hottest chili sauce

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/2/hi/americas/4530739.stm

the cutting edge of long term investment

http://www.timetravelfund.com/

Kolamity Kontained - Kops Kapture Krispy Kreme Karjacking Kriminal!

http://www.davesdaily.com/out.php?id=5760&url=http://wcco.com/topstories/local_story_133164532.html#update2

when turtles attack!

http://www.alldumb.com/item/11807/

Interesting article about the economics of rock'n'roll

http://slate.msn.com/id/2118607/nav/ais/nav/ais/

The long & winding road...

The Let it Be album was released 35 years ago on this date. I've written about it before. I still think that "Two Of Us" is one of their best tunes. Anyone who has been in a long term relationship (say, 10+ years), should listen to it and tell me it doesn't strike home.

This is SOOOOO COOL!!!!!!

http://www.storewars.org/flash/index.html

STORE WARS!

They should of shot him down...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/13/AR2005051301570.html

..if for no other reason than to prevent him from polluting the gene pool further. It defies belief that anyone not strung out on crack could have done this. And the newest excuse just makes things even more suspicious. Saying that you think you're over Camp David rather than heading in a beeline towards the Capitol is the biggest, most steamy, pile of shit I've ever heard! The idea that you'd mistake Thurmont Maryland, (population, oh, about 3), with D.C. (population, oh, 3+ million), is so over the top, I can't believe the authorities are buying it for a nanosecond. I'd love to ask this clown what he thought he was seeing as he flew over tens of miles of solid urban and suburban development. And what about all the landmarks that are easily seen from great distances, especially from the air? Did he think the Capitol building was the new Stop'n'Shop at Catoctin? Was the fucking Washington Monument supposed to be the petting zoo on Route 15??? This guy didn't come from an airport - he came from a meth lab. If this moron is telling the truth, he's too stupid to live. There is just NO way!

A terrible idea

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/14/education/14library.html?ex=1116734400&en=67e002e6784c2056&ei=5070

I love books! And I hate reading anything lengthy on a computer screen. This is just pathetic and lazy on the part of students and those librarians.

new Robert Bloch collection out...

http://www.subterraneanpress.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=SP&Product_Code=bloch5

New Plush Cthulhu Beasties!

Cthulhu: Gug Plush - Now Available!One of the most popular of the Cthulhu monsters, this 12" long Gug Plush was designed by the fervid imagination of Ron Spencer, based on the description by HP Lovecraft himself. "The eyes jutted two inches from each side, shaded by bony protuberances overgrown with coarse hairs. But the head was chiefly terrible because of the mouth. That mouth had great yellow fangs and ran from the top to the bottom of the head, opening vertically instead of horizontally." First time ever released. Limited production. Plush SRP: $29.95Cthulhu: Gug Plush can be ordered from Entertainment Earth.

Cthulhu: Moon Beast Plush - Now Available!The Moon Beasts are slippery white toad-like beings whose only sensory organs are pinkish tentacles protruding from their snouts. Designed by Ron Spencer, this 13-inch tall and 12-inch wide "corpse like" plush is a servant of Nyarlathotep who can serve your evil purposes as well! Price: $29.99. Cthulhu: Moon Beast Plush can be ordered from Entertainment Earth.

Cool! Halloween is getting closer!

http://www.hauntersgathering.com/

This is a gathering of amateur "home haunters", getting together to trade tips and ideas. Wish I could be there...

Unspeakable Vault (of Doom)

http://www.macguff.fr/goomi/unspeakable/home.html

Cthulhu comics...

What Friday The 13th Character Are You?

http://quizilla.com/users/f13films/quizzes/What%20Friday%20the%2013th%20Character%20Are%20You%3F

Happy Friday The 13th!!!

the cutting edge of pool accessories

http://www.ahleman.com/Props/MrMarbles3.html

new Cthulhu game

http://www.lulu.com/content/113758

D. C. For Dummies!

http://www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/DummiesTitle/productCd-0764576712.html?src_id=db_new

I now that some of you feel that the title is redundant...

new robot advance (kinda)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4538547.stm

I reject the idea that this is "reproduction", but it's still an interesting stepping stone for robotics.

The Healthy Human Flesh Alternative!

http://www.thedartmouth.com/article.php?aid=2005051201020

I feel better already!

Bad Weather

Bad Weather.. (Thanks for the pic, Rob!).

Parking in Old Town Alexandria just gets more and more challenging... 

The cutting edge of First Aid... 

I believe this is located beside my old high school. Go Titans!

The Other Other White Meat... 

The Paxil commercial

http://slowsong.com/modules/wfchannel/index.php?pagenum=29

Isn't This How "Planet Of The Apes" started?

http://www.thisislondon.com/til/jsp/modules/Article/print.jsp?itemId=18573425

Halloween Hysteria Hits Heartland!!!!

http://www.wbay.com/Global/story.asp?S=3320841&nav=51s7Zdoh

All right, I've got a question. Exactly how out of control could things possible be in Appleton Wisconsin that the National Guard feels a need to mobilize every Halloween? We aren't talking about some Boschian nightmare in the north woods. It's just Wisconsin, right? A car window soaped, a house tp'd, an outhouse tipped over, etc., right? And yet the citizens apparently live in wretched fear of the apocalypse. Madison has its yearly riot, but they have thousands of drunk students - and it's still treated as a policing matter. And heaven knows that Detroit's infamous Devil's Night is cause for serious alarm; but these apparently pale to insignificance compared to the rapine and slaughter the beleaguered citizens of Appleton must endure. Cowering in there homes and barns while rampaging bands of....what? Cows? Animated cheddar cheese? Cut members of the Green Bay Packers?...Run riot and fill the streets with blood and slaughter. And now, with the transfer of the National Guard to the relative safety of Baghdad, Appleton is left defenseless and alone to face the coming Dark Times of Ruin. It can only be worse in Sheboygan.

new centrifugul weapon

http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn7365

The Moulin Huge

http://www.wimp.com/moulin/

WMD

http://www.davesdaily.com/out.php?id=5608&url=http://www.nbc4.tv/irresistible/4471899/detail.html

Underground Eskimo Radio

http://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2005/04/she_be_she_stri.html

VERY cool sand sculptures

http://www.hedonistica.com/sand_sculpture/

cooling your computer off in vegetable oil

I have no idea about the validity of this. I await comments from those of you who are much more techy than me.

http://www.markusleonhardt.de/en/oelrechner.html

http://www.hackaday.com/entry/1234000287041976/

Anti-Gravity device!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,3604,1481009,00.html

Manhole Cover Art

http://www.manhole.ca/index.php

an aid to my stalking efforts...

http://www.zabasearch.com/

(Thanks for the link, Marty & Jimmy!)

Happy Birthday Sgt Bilko!!!

Phil Silvers was a great comedian. If you haven't done so, you gotta see the film, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum. Watching him (as the sleazy slave procurer, Lycus), and Zero Mostel together is to see the best of Vaudeville. And Sgt. Bilko, (the name he'll be forever associated with) is a TV icon.
http://members.tripod.com/~compmast/silvers/silvers.html

Was it an Ed Wood film?

http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/4850152p-4452836c.html

Current Products In A Vintage Light

http://www.worth1000.com/cache/contest/contestcache.asp?contest_id=5905&display=photoshop#entries

This is so cool! Some really nice pics of high tech/low tech synthesis.

Let Darth provide you with a beautiful lawn! Come to the Dark Side!

http://shop.starwars.com/catalog/product.xml?product_id=1890;category_id=421;pcid1=;pcid2=

Signs of the End Times

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/09/AR2005050901243.html?referrer=emailarticle

I learned to play poker while in seventh grade. The coolest guy in my grade taught me, John Navazio. There was some sort of stupid Xmas pageant going on and we were part of the French class contribution to it. We had to arrive early and didn't perform until late and so had to spend an hour or two sitting around - that's when he started up a friendly little game. I loved it. I still remember that lesson, (and have totally forgotten what we did in the Xmas pageant, I just hope it didn't involve wearing clogs).
Though I've played very little recently, I was in a lot of games through high school and college (a few of you reading this were part of some of those games). They were challenging and thoroughly enjoyable; I still consider poker to be one of the best games ever designed. But clearly, I have been away too long. Let's see, poker now involves listening to new age sludge, eating vitamins and Jesus filling an inside straight. What a crock. One more simple pleasure ruined by morons and drones. Sorry, but I fold.

We're #3! We're #3!!!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/09/AR2005050900408.html?referrer=emailarticle

Oh, I know L.A. has the whole random murder thing going for it right now, but trust me, they won't have that monopoly for long. We're VERY competitive here, and when it comes to road nonsense, we're going all the way!!!

I am now immunized thoroughly

http://news.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/05/09/nwhisky09.xml

update on solar sail spacecraft

http://news.com.com/2061-10786-5700729.html?tag=xtra.ml

This is one of those things that just strikes me as being very cool.

The Jackolantern From Hell!

http://www.livejournal.com/users/magiciansnephew/24975.html

the parrot...

http://www.ugoto.com/videos/go/amazinglysmartparrot

Unbelievable Bicyclist

http://www.alldumb.com/item/11743/

Food Anomalies

http://www.hanttula.com/exhibits/freakyfood/

the mysterious East...

http://www.alldumb.com/item/11729/

Placenta Arts & Crafts

http://www.birthdiaries.com/diary/48vbirth2.htm

Un-fucking-believable...

the site is probably not safe for work, for those who possess a weak stomach, or a sense of propriety...

The Cold War Museum

http://www.coldwar.org/index.html

The Partridge Family Temple

http://www.partridgefamilytemple.com/

I wonder how the Cowsills feel about this? (Pete, aren't they your close personal friends???)

Dare you bid on - The Haunted Barbie Doll?!?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=84642&item=5574623692

for all BIG fans of the Godfather films...

http://www.kropserkel.com/horse_head_pillow.htm

evidence of the End Times

http://www.blackpitchpress.com/celebrityskin/

Spare the Taser & Spoil the Child...

http://www.bratzapper.com/main.html

the real Spiderman

http://www.compfused.com/directlink/81/

A model hydrogen car built!

http://durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=earth&article_path=/earth/earth050505.htm

One neat thing about this article is that it takes place in Cortez Colorado, a town I know quite well, (and have fond memories of). It's not some super-tech community - people can come up with great achievements anywhere, if given half a chance. Very cool.

Be, All That You Can Be...

http://www.skippyslist.com/skippylist.html

a bitter guy

http://www.wimp.com/smooth/

Brilliant Thievery

http://reuters.myway.com/article/20050506/2005-05-06T161821Z_01_L06450162_RTRIDST_0_ODD-ROMANIA-ATM-DC.html

Conan The Road Hog

http://www.davesdaily.com/out.php?id=5492&url=http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=732829

fly airplane

http://www.yumlum.com/fly_airplane/fly_airplane.htm

Join The Insane!

http://www.goneabitnoodles.co.uk/

a new DVD collection of Sid Caesar!!!

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0002TVWZG/ref=ase_tvshowsondvdcom/103-4860477-4077430?v=glance&s=dvd

The guy is a national treasure...

new Cthulhu Mythos zie

http://cthulhu.moonfruit.com/

neat (free!) wargaming resource

http://www.germy.co.uk/25mmbuild.htm

This guy's site provides free paper building designs for military and role playing minatures.

an interesting juxtaposition...

First of all, Happy VE Day! A truly memorable event. It's also the anniversary of the death of one of my heroes, Mordecai Anielewicz*, one of the leaders of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, and the crushing of that movement. A date of great happiness and hope, mixed with equally great despair and defeat. Both events infused with unbelievable courage. I'm always in awe of those guys.






* http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/Anielevich.html

NASA vs Astrologer

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20050506/sc_afp/russiausnasaspace_050506170606

time traveler convention

http://web.mit.edu/adorai/timetraveler/

Vampire Vineyards

http://vampirecom.instaccount.net/index.html

Eeeeewwwwww!!!

http://www.wimp.com/eyes/

a very strange little puzzle/exercise

http://www.aooa.co.uk/THE%20PHONE.swf

Mars Polar Lander mystery solved?

http://skyandtelescope.com/printable/news/article_1512.asp

The Cutting Edge of the Paper Chase

http://story.news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050506/ap_on_fe_st/sex_worker_school

Gonzo Beer - a tribute to Hunter Thompson

http://www.realbeer.com/news/articles/news-002528.php

some neat historical prints

http://www.historyshots.com/store.cfm?s=mydd

Just found this site, the prints on political party evolution look pretty neat.

About some useless information...

'Twas on this date in 1965 that Keith Richards created the guitar riff that evolved into "Satisfaction". Way to go, Keith!

Happy Birthday Bob Seger!

Ain't it funny how the night moves
When you just don't seem to have as much to lose
Strange how the night moves
With autumn closing in...

http://www.segerbob.com/

http://www.segerfile.com/

http://my.execpc.com/~pblock/seger.html

a neat article on chess & madness

http://www.time.com/time/columnist/krauthammer/article/0,9565,1054411,00.html

The Louie Louie Wars, Chapter 749

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=816&e=2&u=/ap/20050505/ap_on_fe_st/no_louie_louie

H.L. Mencken once wrote that he loved living in America because it was so easy to feel superior. There is nothing obscene in the lyrics of this song, (as sung by the Kingsmen*, lo these many decades ago). Oh, I'll grant you that we all thought there was something there. And certainly a whole host of performers and enthusiasts have rushed into the breach and produced new lyrics that could be considered risque, (just as anyone can do with any song - I'm working on Kumbaya...). But the real song is as harmless as a Kingston Trio ballad. And yet here we go again, condemning even an instrumental version! How pathetic!


*I've chosen my words carefully here. The big secret is that the Kingsmen's recording IS obscene - but not in the song lyrics. Check out the background noise sometime. If you get to Blau Manor I'll show you where to listen on the record. Ironically, the very thing all the blue noses were looking for has been there all along - and they missed it!!!

Happy Birthday Michael Palin!!!

http://www.pythonline.com/plugs/palin/index.shtml

the bonfire

http://www.wimp.com/bonfire/

the funeral of Little Oscar...

http://www.thetimesonline.com/articles/2005/04/17/news/lake_county/273ec5a406102bff86256fe5007c89b0.txt

car sound system

http://www.alldumb.com/item/11675/

Hate a website? Destroy It!

http://www.netdisaster.com/

Could She Be - "The One"???

http://katestelnick.com/

NIN combined with Ray Parker Jr.

http://www.nathanchase.com/2005/04/ghost-that-feedsray-parker-jrs.html

Fun Stuff!!!

Happy Birthday Pete Seeger!

The guy is remarkable. I don't think any genre of music has ever had someone so central to it as American Folk Music and Pete Seeger. Member of the first and the most famous Folk singing groups, (the Almanac Singers & the Weavers), many thousands of performances, co-organizer of the Newport Folk Festival (and many more), many dozens of released albums (and on virtually all the major Folk labels), many dozens of songs written - some of which have become major anthems, significant contributor to Folk magazines, archivist, knows everyone, friend of Woody, etc. etc.
One of my happiest moments was hosting an appearance by him at my store. Linda has a photo of me getting some obscure albums signed by him, (Pete was impressed!) - I am beaming. An amazing life.

http://www.harvardsquarelibrary.org/unitarians/seeger.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pete_Seeger

http://www.icebergradio.com/artist/1167/pete_seeger.html

very neat computer graphics

http://www.notsosimpleton.com/2005/

I love it! This is Bosch for the 21st Century!

my typical commute home

http://www.alldumb.com/item/11665/

Happy Birthday Lesley Gore! (one of my faves)

http://www.patswayne.com/lesley/

Hold Your Horses!

Happy Birthday Catherine The Great!

A suprisingly good review/analysis of Godzilla (in the NYT!)

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/01/opinion/01sun3.html?ex=1272600000&en=6034e7d289cddf7b&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

(Thanks for the pic, Tom!)