January 2008
80 posts
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Resolution for 2008: Avoid 'Sardoodledom' →
No. 6 on Merriam-Webster’s Top Ten Words of the Year for 2007.
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Tournament of Roses Parade Transformer Float
American Honda’s ‘Passport to the Future’ changes from pick-up truck to rocket ship in 90 seconds. No indication of ‘Eat Me’ augmentation or ‘Ramming Speed’ settings found anywhere in the schematic. (Image via Los Angeles Times)
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Meet Your Makers →
The Chicago Tribune eschews the typical end-of-the-year roll call of celebrity and luminary deaths for inventors whose creations have had, in some cases, a more profound impact on our lives. Just a sampling: Robert Alder - TV remote control (Co-inventor) Momofuku Ando - Instant ramen and cup noodles Vincent DeDomenico - Rice-a-Roni Arthur Jones - Nautilus exercise machines
December 2007
68 posts
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NFL Wait Till Next Year (And This Time We Mean It)...
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Militants, Bhutto Aides Allege Cover-up →
A real nut-kick to world opinion of your administration, Mr/Gen. Musharraf, when legitimate political opposition parties and the extremists call ‘Bullshit’.
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Lunch of Leftovers Grab Bag: Scalloped Potatoes and Ham, Buffalo Wing Dip, Jamaican Meat Pies, PB&J, your choice of beverage, and Rolaids.
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Bhutto Assassination Severe Blow To U.S. Efforts... →
Pretty sure this wasn’t in the Democracy instruction manual, Mr. President. At least it guarantees you another news cycle of “nucular” sound bites. Peace on Earth? Where…? (via CNN)
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Jazz Piano Legend Oscar Peterson (1925-2007) →
Another giant falls. Night Train was my intro to Peterson’s remarkable talent. A perfect mix of swing and mellow. Even though his trio output with Herb Ellis (guitar) and Ray Brown (bass) is regarded as essential listening, his collaborations with sax great Lester Young and trumpeter Stan Getz are of equal heft. ‘Things Ain’t What They Used To Be’
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Chicago: City of The Fake Vomit →
Oh sure, there’s the picaresque skyline of ground-breaking architecture. And the world-renowned Art Institute. And the cradle of modern American jazz. And the sports franchises (present circumstances excluded). The pizza. The hot dogs. The big shoulders… But there is a swelling of pride in knowing phony rubber puke is the city’s lasting contribution to humanity. (via Chicago...
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Merry Christmas!
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Bulls Fire Coach Skiles →
Huh. I don’t recall his uninspired and lackluster on-court play affecting the Win-Loss Column. Consider this season flushed.
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NFL We're Beating Dead Horses 16
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“You’re a foul one, Mr. Grinch.
You’re a nasty, wasty skunk.
Your...”
– ‘You’re A Mean One, Mr. Grinch’ (from How The Grinch Stole Christmas)
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Grandma, Reindeer, Jingle Bell Bark And Dr.... →
Even with year-round exposure to his novelty tune playlist via a college roommate’s huge, mondo obscuro comedy record catalog, I’ll always associate the good Doctor with the holidays. I can’t deny my inner trailer park; hearing ‘Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer’ crackle over the AM still brings a grin… at least for the first needle drop of the season. After...
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Space Age Era Soviet Christmas Cards →
Translation: ‘Joy To The World. We Will Crush You!’ (via Boing Boing)
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Pantone Color Of The Year For 2008 →
‘A Multifaceted Hue Reflecting the Complexity of the World that Surrounds Us’ That’s a lot of big words for purple.
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“Don’t tase me, bro.”
– Andrew Meyer, University of Florida Student, on September 17 (The Yale Book of Quotations ‘Most Memorable Quote of 2007’)
Sigh of traveler’s relief as it appears all men’s restroom stalls at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport have been ‘Craig-proofed’.
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Shorpy: The 100-Year-Old Photo Blog →
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Cubs Introduce Fukudome →
Some hot stove for a cold night. (via Chicago Tribune)
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NFL We're Sliding Toward The Abyss 15
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YouChoose '08 →
Virtual electioneering in a post-Macaca world.
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Fogelberg No 'Longer' Dan →
(1951-2007) Ed. Note: Gents, get the prostate checked.
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8-Track Mid-Song Fadeout
Lingering fragments of late-70’s, Stereo 8 music memory still eff with my 21st Century listening experience. Shuffled on the iPod today: Molly Hatchet’s ‘Dreams I’ll Never See’. To this day, I anticipate for the fadeout point in the song where it was divided to accommodate the two tracks per four program tape structure. It’s not there anymore, but my brain...
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Watch‘A One Track Lover’ (from Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace) Triggered a piss-shiverish, Sonny Crockett-style, Miami Vice inner-torment-montage flashback.
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“Omit needless words.”
– William Strunk, Jr.
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The A.V. Club: The Worst Band Names Of '07 →
Personal Top 3: Butt Stomach Neil Diamond Phillips Let’s French
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Merry Christmas, Mom: Ustream Links Soldiers With... →
Having them home would be the greatest gift of all. (via C|Net)
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Vampire Energy →
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Art Institute Of Chicago Discloses Gaughin... →
Institute curator feels ‘embarrassed… and chinsed’.
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How To Have A Green Christmas →
‘Eco-friendly strategies for making the holidays healthier for you — and the environment.’ (via WebMD)
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'Talking Jesus' Action Figure Sells Out At WalMart →
Fearing they’d been left behind, panicked shoppers at the discount chain’s retail outlets are reassured additional stock of the surprisingly popular toy shall return in three days. (via The Consumerist)
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Dozo Yoroshiku, Mr. Fukudome! →
Cubs close to signing star Japanese outfielder, pending a physical. Sayonara, Mr. Floyd and Mr. Jones. Update: Cubs sever ties with Mark Prior; won’t offer ‘08 contract. End of an era that never really began.
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SI: Kevin Everett - 'The Road Back' →
An amazing journey in only three months. Miracles do happen. (Images via AP and Sports Illustrated)
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“Tracers work both ways.”
– U.S. Army Ordnance (via Melissa’s forwarded email)
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'Jeopardy's' Trebek Suffers Heart Attack →
I’ll take ‘Speedy Recovery’ for $500, Alex.
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Surrogate Hands Infant Pillow →
I’m sure this thing serves whatever purpose its manufacturer intended. It’s just creepy and kooky, mysterious and spooky. Altogether hooky. (via Boing Boing)
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Virtual WGA Picketers →
Avatars mobilizing in Second Life. (via @writersstrike on Twitter)
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Dicks.com Is Not The URL For Dick's Sporting Goods
Which Mom immediately realized when she noticed the “young ladies at the site were not outfitted in athletic apparel”.
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Pretend To Be A Time Traveler Day →
Damn. It was yesterday. But I can easily remedy that temporal miscalculation by recalibrating my spectra-dimensional dampers. (via Neatorama)