Would You Like Pot with That?
May 16th, 2007
According to WMAQ in Chicago, a McDonalds employee accidentally gave a child a Happy Meal with pot and a lighter in it. I can’t think of a stupider place to hide your pot than a Happy Meal but if you can, feel free to let me know.
In other news, if you’re thinking about peeing on your old Playstation 2, you should unplug it before you do so or you’ll end up like this guy.
Sphere: Related ContentThe Best of the Worst
May 16th, 2007
The Today Show and Zagat (apparently pronounced “Zuh-GAT” although the battle rages on) have come out with the Zagat/Today Show Fast-Food Survey which chronicles the best of the worst fast food and chain restaurants out there. In the category of Top Food, Wendy’s gets the prize trailed by Subway. In fact, Wendy’s has top honors in three out of the four categories. Now, if only they could stop calling things “biggie” I might be more inclined to go there (not really) but to me “biggie” is the equivalent of “Rooty Tooty Fresh and Fruity” in the breakfast world. In other words, I’m not saying it so I’m not ordering it.
Sphere: Related ContentMy 15 Seconds of Internet Fame
May 15th, 2007
Last week I went to the NCTA convention in Las Vegas for work. The show got off to a violent start with the a bomb exploding in the Luxor parking lot and the head of HBO’s arrest for hitting his girlfriend (a very stupid thing to do the eve of a cable show let alone at all). Anyway, I stayed at Mandalay Bay (where the convention was held) which is a great hotel. They have a swimming pool that creates its own waves and their own sandy beach. While I was there, I also had my shot of 15 seconds of Internet fame when I met the guy from Justin.tv, a site that broadcasts this guy’s life live 24/7. So, of course I was on the site for the 5 or so minutes he talked with us. I don’t want to post a link to the video here but for those who know me personally, email me and I’ll send you the archive information to look it up.
This week it’s back to work in LA.
Sphere: Related ContentUnited States is Next to Last When it Comes to Believing Evolution
May 4th, 2007
According to National Geographic, the United States ranks next to last (second only to Turkey) in believing “human beings, as we know them, developed from earlier species of animals.” Even more scary is the finding that over the past 20 years, the population of the United States has grown more uncertain about evolution’s validity.
Poor Darwin 
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The Easy Bullshit Button
April 30th, 2007
Forget the Staples Easy Button. This Bullshit Button is much more useful. You never know when you’ll have to call shenanigans so don’t leave home without it. There aren’t any customer reviews (at least not at the time I’m writing this) so who knows how effective it is. If the amount of times I call shenanigans in a day is any indication though, it sure will come in handy. All I need now is a “don’t bother me, I’m working” button and I’m set.
When Selling Your Car, Knowing the Name of the Person You’re Selling It to Might Be Helpful
April 26th, 2007
The car I drive isn’t registered to me. It’s a long story which I don’t want to go into right now but recently I’ve decided I should probably get the title transfered over to me so I started researching how to do that. Luckily, the California Department of Motor Vehicles Web site is full of useful information, especially this nugget from their FAQ:
Q: What if I cannot remember the name of the person to whom I sold or transferred the vehicle?
A: You may put “unknown” in the new buyer’s name and address fields
Other than Tony Soprano, who sells a car and doesn’t know the name of the person the car was sold to or forgets his/her name four days after the sale (by law, the seller is required to notify the DMV of the sale within 4 days)?
Sphere: Related ContentHiding Under a Rock
April 25th, 2007
Since last Monday, I’ve largely been avoiding the mainstream media, especially coverage of the “Virginia Tech Massacre.” Sure, I know the horrible things that happened that day and how a deranged gunman killed 32 people and injured 29 but beyond that, I don’t see much value in knowing the gruesome details of the day’s events. What possible good could come from knowing minute details of the killings or watching interviews with the family and friends of those who were lost? In my opinion, those stories only bring heartache and depression.
This country has an odd way of coping with unexplainable loss. Last week’s American Idol controversy was ridiculous. I don’t watch the show but caught a glimpse of some of the highlights and try as I might, was unable to avoid hearing about the Simon Cowell’s infamous rolling of his eyes. Why anyone cares what that self serving creature does is beyond me but how ludicrous is it that a show like American Idol took time out of the show several times during the episode to express sorrow about the events at Virginia Tech. What family, student, or friends of the victims would be watching American Idol the day after the killings? After tragedy, it’s become hip in Hollywood to express faux sympathy and sorrow. Live show after live show awkwardly threw in an “our hearts are with you, now let’s get on with superficiality.”
Of course the American Idol controversy was short lived. NBC News’ airing of the killer’s video and photos quelled that controversy and started a new one. Should NBC News have aired that video? I believe that as a news organization, NBC News should do whatever NBC News wants. I believe the airing of the video and photographs had extremely questionable news value but in an industry driven by ratings, NBC News clearly wanted to take advantage of the moment and grab some viewers. And, it worked. People often decry ratings, blaming them for all the problems in our society, but when you think about it, what’s more democratic than ratings? Ratings are based on what people are watching. NBC News’ airing of that footage (and the subsequent rise in their ratings) only demonstrates that people were willing to watch the footage. As a result of the ratings boost, given the chance, I bet they (and others) would do it again in a heartbeat. We need to blame ourselves for watching when companies say and air things we don’t agree with. Had people tuned out (like I did), NBC News would not have been rewarded for their actions.
All in all, I think last week’s attempt at avoiding anything but the bare details of the Virginia Tech tragedy proved that it’s all but impossible not to one way or another get swept up in the news cycle of these events. The real tragedy here is that at the end of the day, after all the coverage and money spent on this event, nothing will be learned. Preventing incidents like these aren’t solved by 24 hour news coverage detailing gruesome details of the killings but rather examinations of our society, our interest in violence and sensationalism, and our treatment of the mentally disturbed.
Sphere: Related ContentRelaunch
April 22nd, 2007
After almost half a year of no activity, I’ve decided to redesign and relaunch this puppy in my latest attempt at self publishing. Previous attempts were short lived but I’m hoping this time around I’ll find the time to actually write down the wacky thoughts that pop into my head. You can help by lending encouragement (or criticism) by leaving comments which will be turned on by default until some spammer decides to hijack my site for nefarious purposes. For simplicity sake, I’ve decided not to carry over my previous postings to the new blog but if you’re curious, you can access it via the Internet Archive Wayback Machine.
Well, this post is fairly boring and hopefully not a sign of things to come but it’s meant to be more administrative than anything else. Welcome to the blog, please come back often 
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