Neologism - Making up new meanings for words

Once again, The Washington Post has published the winning submissions to its yearly neologism contest, in which readers are asked to supply alternate meanings for common words.

The winners are:

1. Coffee (n.), the person upon whom one coughs.
2. Flabbergasted (adj.), appalled over how much weight you have gained.
3 . Abdicate (v.), to give up all hope of ever having a flat stomach.
4. Esplanade (v.), to attempt an explanation while drunk.
5. Willy-nilly (adj.), impotent.
6. Negligent (adj.), describes a condition in which you absentmindedly answer the door in your nightgown.
7. Lymph (v.), to walk with a lisp.
8. Gargoyle (n.), olive-flavored mouthwash.
9. Flatulence (n.) emergency vehicle that picks you up after you are run over by a steamroller.
10. Balderdash (n.), a rapidly receding hairline.
11. Testicle (n.), a humorous question on an exam.
12. Rectitude (n.), the formal, dignified bearing adopted by proctologists.
13. Pokemon (n), a Rastafarian proctologist.
14. Oyster (n.), a person who sprinkles his conversation with Yiddishisms.
15. Frisbeetarianism (n.), (back by popular demand): The belief that, when you die, your Soul flies up onto the roof and gets stuck there.
16. Circumvent (n.), an opening in the front of boxer shorts worn by Jewish men.

The Washington Post's Style Invitational also asked readers to take any word from the dictionary, alter it by adding, subtracting, or changing one letter, and supply a new definition.

Here are this year's winners:

1. Bozone (n.): The substance surrounding stupid people that stops bright ideas from penetrating. The bozone layer, unfortunately, shows little sign of breaking down in the near future.
2. Foreploy (v): Any misrepresentation about yourself for the purpose of getting laid.
3. Cashtration (n.): The act of buying a house, which renders the subject financially impotent for an indefinite period.
4. Giraffiti (n): Vandalism spray-painted very, very high.
5. Sarchasm (n): The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the person who doesn't get it.
6. Inoculatte (v): To take coffee intravenously when you are running late.
7. Hipatitis (n): Terminal coolness.
8. Osteopornosis (n): A degenerate disease. (This one got extra credit.)
9. Karmageddon (n): It's like, when everybody is sending off all these really bad vibes, right? And then, like, the Earth explodes and it's like, a serious bummer.
10 Decafalon (n.): The grueling event of getting through the day consuming only things that are good for you.
11. Glibido (v): All talk and no action.
12. Dopeler effect (n): The tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when they come at you rapidly.
13. Arachnoleptic fit (n.): The frantic dance performed just after you've accidentally walked through a spider web.
14. Beelzebug (n.): Satan in the form of a mosquito that gets into your bedroom at three in the morning and cannot be cast out.
15. Caterpallor (n.): The color you turn after finding half a grub in the fruit you're eating.
16. Ignoranus (n): A person who's both stupid and an asshole

Whois Source - Wildcard Domain Search Lookup

Whois Source - Wildcard Domain Search Lookup

Lookup websites instantly. This is a cool and probably dangerous service.

The Canoe Race

A Japanese company and an American company decided to have a canoe race on
the Missouri River. Both teams practiced long and hard to reach their peak
performance before the race. On the big day the Japanese won by a mile.
Afterward, the American team was very discouraged and depressed.
The American company decided the reason for their crushing defeat had to be
found. A Management Team made up of senior executives was formed to
investigate and recommend appropriate action. They discovered that the
Japanese had 8 people rowing and 1 person steering, while the American team
had 8 people steering and one person rowing. The American Management Team
hired a consulting firm to assist in analyzing this data, happily paying
their considerable fee. After six months of hard work, the consulting firm
concluded that too many people were steering the Americans' boat, while not
enough people were rowing.
So the American Team acted: To prevent losing to the Japanese again the
following year, the team's management structure was totally reorganized, to
include 4 steering supervisors, 3 area steering superintendents and 1
assistant superintendent steering manager. They also implemented a new
performance system that would give the 1 person rowing the boat greater
incentive to work harder. It was called the Rowing Team Quality First
Program, with meetings, dinners and free pens for the rower. In an all-out
attempt to further provide empowerment and enrichment's to the rower, new
paddles and medical benefit incentives were promised in exchange for a
victory in the next competition.
The next year the Japanese won by two miles.
Humiliated, the American Management Team laid off the rower for poor
performance, halted development of a new canoe, sold the paddles and
canceled all capital investments for new equipment. The money saved was
distributed to the senior executives as bonuses for a job well done.

Actor Tries To Trademark The N-Word

(Wired) – Damon Wayans has been trying to trademark the "N" word. Wayans wants to dress customers in 14 kinds of attire from tops to bottoms, and use the controversial mark on 'clothing, books, music and general merchandise,' as well as movies, TV and the internet, according to his applications. But, so far, his applications have been unsuccessful.

Tim Curry and Simon Russell Beale on Board for Spamalot in London

NEW YORK (Broadway.com) – Preliminary casting has been announced for the West End production of Spamalot. Tim Curry will reprise the role of King Arthur, which he originated on Broadway. He will stay with the show through January 2007. Current Broadway lead, Simon Russell Beale, will then take over for Curry. The production will also feature Hannah Waddingham as The Lady of the Lake, David Birrell as Patsy, Tom Goodman-Hill as Sir Lancelot and Robert Hands as Sir Robin. The musical is set to begin performances at the Palace Theatre on October 2.

Moira rocks

My sister is in a new Toyota Highlander commercial. Yee effen haw!

There can be only one!

'Spamalot' Addresses an Image Problem

NEW YORK (NY Times) – The Shubert Theater, home to the hit musical "Monty Python's Spamalot," has a new look. Gone from its facade, where it was flanked by images of a rabbit with a bloody mouth and a cow, is the image of a young woman in a low-cut dress, pursing her lips and playing with her hair. It was removed after a model sued, contending that it showed her in a foolish and undignified way without her permission, The Associated Press reported. The show's advertising and marketing agency, Serino Coyne, said in a statement, "After learning that the model objected to having her picture associated with 'Spamalot,' we decided to stop using her image, even though we firmly believe that we can legally use it." Susan Taylor, the employee who released the statement, said she would not comment on the status of the lawsuit, filed last month by Carla Collins. Ms. Collins said in court papers that the photograph was taken nearly two years ago after she finished a photo session in Cape Town.

Jaws Back in Action at Universal Orlando

ORLANDO (AP) – Universal Orlando has reopened its Jaws adventure ride, after using it only occasion-ally since last year. The theme park refurbished the ride before reopening it this month. Since September, park officials had only opened the ride for after-hours events and holiday crowds. The boat ride, which tours visitors through a lagoon infested with seven robotic great white sharks, was popular with guests, said Tom Schroder, a Universal spokesman. The ride is based on the best-selling 1974 novel "Jaws," by Peter Benchley – who died Saturday – and the 1975 blockbuster movie by Steven Spielberg. Universal closed the ride shortly after opening it in 1990 because of mechanical difficulties. It was rebuilt and re-opened in 1993. Outside industry sources estimate Universal may have spent $70 million on original con-struction and overhauling the ride. The Jaws ride will remain open at least through the end of summer, Schroder said.

Number 1 in Billboard

(Billboard) – The top performers on the Album, Singles and Airplay, and Home Video charts as they appear in the current issue of Billboard. Shown are title, artist, and album or video label:

Album Charts
? Billboard 200 – “Curious George” (Soundtrack), Jack Johnson (Brushfire)
? Bluegrass – “Lonely Runs Both Ways,” Alison Krauss + Union Station (Rounder)
? Christian – “Testify,” P.O.D. (Atlantic / Wea)
? Classical – “Opera Recital,” Rolando Villazon (Virgin Classics)
? Classical Crossover – “Amore”, Andrea Bocelli (Sugar)
? Compilations – “2006 Grammy Nominees”, Various Artists (Grammy / Sony BMG)
? Comedy – “You Can’t Fix Stupid,” Ron White (Image)
? Country – “Some Hearts”, Carrie Underwood (Arista)
? Digital – “Curious George” (Soundtrack), Jack Johnson (Brushfire)
? Electronic – “Demon Days”, Gorillaz (Parlophone)
? Gospel – “WOW Gospel 2006,” Various Artists (Verity)
? Heatseekers – “How to Save a Life,” The Fray (Sony / Epic)
? Independent – “You Can’t Fix Stupid,” Ron White (Image)
? Internet – “High School Musical,” TV Soundtrack (Disney)
? Jazz – “It’s Time,” Michael Buble (143 / Reprise)
? Kid Audio – “High School Musical,” TV Soundtrack (Disney)
? Latin – “Barrio Fino : En Directo,” Daddy Yankee (El Cartel / Interscope)
? New Age – “Amarantine,” Enya (Warner Bros. / Reprise)
? Pop Catalog – “Michael Buble,” Michael Buble (143 / Reprise)
? Rap – “On Top of Our Game,” Dem Franchize Boyz (So So Def / Virgin)
? R&B / Hip-Hop – “The Breakthrough”, Mary J. Blige (Geffen)
? Soundtracks – “Curious George” (Soundtrack), Jack Johnson (Brushfire)
? World Music – “Celtic Woman,” Celtic Woman (Manhattan)

Singles & Airplay
? The Hot 100 – “Check on It,” Beyonce feat. Slim Thug (Sony Urban Music / Columbia)
? Adult Contemporary – “You & Me,” Lifehouse (Geffen)
? Adult Top 40 – “Photograph,” Nickelback (Roadrunner)
? Christian – “This Man,” Jeremy Camp (Bec Recordings)
? Christian Adult Contemporary – “This Man,” Jeremy Camp (Bec Recordings)
? Country – “Jesus Take the Wheel,” Carrie Underwood (Arista)
? Dance / Club Play – “Rhythm Intoxication,” Rosabel (Tommy Boy)
? Dance / Radio Airplay – “Sorry,” Madonna (Warner Bros.)
? Gospel – “Looking for You,” Kirk Franklin (Gospo Centric)
? Hot Digital Songs – “You’re Beautiful”, James Blunt (Atlantic / Custard)
? Hot Latin Songs – “Rompe,” Daddy Yankee (Interscope)
? Pop 100 – “Check on It,” Beyonce feat. Slim Thug (Sony Urban Music / Columbia)
? Pop 100 Airplay – “Check on It,” Beyonce feat. Slim Thug (Sony Urban Music / Columbia)
? R&B / Hip-Hop – “Be Without You,” Mary J. Blige (Geffen / Interscope)
? Rap – “Grillz,” Nelly feat. Paul Wall, Ali & Gipp (Derrty / Fo’ Reel)
? Ring Tones – “Grillz,” Nelly feat. Paul Wall, Ali & Gipp (Derrty / Fo’ Reel)
? Rock / Mainstream Rock Tracks – “Animals,” Nickelback (Roadrunner)
? Rock / Modern Rock Tracks – “Wasteland,” 10 Years (Universal)
? Videoclips – “Check on It (Pink Panther),” Beyonce feat. Slim Thug (Columbia)


Video Charts

? Video Sales – “Legs of Steel 2000” (Warner Home Video)
? Video Rentals – “Flightplan” (Touchstone Home Video)
? DVD Sales – “Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride” (Warner Home Video)
? Kid Video – “Elmo’s World : Reach for the Sky” (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment)
? Video Game Rentals – PS2 : “Need for Speed : Most Wanted” (Electronic Arts)
? Music Video – “Gaither Homecoming : Live From Toronto” (Gaither Music Video)

Blogworthy softball team names

Red Headed Step Kids
Empty Pitchers
Bottom of the Fifth
VOTE FOR PEDRO
Mixed Nuts
Ball Slappers
Kiss my Ashcroft
The Mr. Furley Experience
Scared Hitless
Drunk as Hit
High and Tight
Sigourney Beaver
The Fluffers
These aren't my Balls
Balls Deep
Free Bases

Daily Dose of Excel - 2005 - March , 16

Daily Dose of Excel - 2005 March , 16: "I can't tell Steve to write in VB6 today. You're one Windows Update away from code that fails. You can write in .Net, but there's risk there. If Microsoft can throw away VB6 code assets so easily, what are you going to do in 10 years when .Net is old news? Are you going to rewrite your tens of thousands of lines of code in MS's flavor of the day?
Here's your choices as I see them.
Write in .Net and understand the risks. Resign yourself to rewriting your code every 10 years, and if you don't have to, then it's a bonus.
Write in C++. Microsoft writes its stuff in C++ and you'll notice that C++ hasn't gone anywhere. They know how to protect their code assets. So long as your language is the same as theirs, you'll be fine.
Write in Visual FoxPro. I don't know the whole story behind this, but from what I gather MS was going to dump VFP. Someone(s) made the right stink to the right people and it came back. There seems to be some freakish cult of VFP programmers and that's one program that doesn't seem to be going away.
Dump MS. I've heard of VB6 programmers moving to Delphi, Sun's Java and REALBasic. "

Rolling Stones Decry Super Bowl Censorship

(AP) – Nobody turns off the microphone on Mick Jagger without a fight. Censorship of their songs during the Super Bowl halftime show was "absolutely ridiculous and completely unnecessary," the Rolling Stones said through a spokeswoman on Tuesday. The NFL, which produced the show seen on ABC Sunday night, silenced Jagger's microphone during sexually suggestive passages of two of the three songs the band performed before an audience of 90 million television viewers. The football league, still nervous over the Janet Jackson wardrobe malfunction two years ago at the Super Bowl, has said it wanted to ensure family entertainment at the game. "The band was aware of our plan to simply lower Mick's mike at the appropriate moments," said Brian McCarthy, NFL spokesman. "It was discussed with the group last week prior to the Super Bowl." He declined further comment on the Stones' statement.

Fucking unbelievable. Why even bother? The Simpsons had it dead on when they had Ned Flanders do their SuperBowl halftime show and the world revolted.

Try to entertain everyone and you entertain no one.

DIC Entertainment & Warren Buffett Create ‘Secret Millionaire's Club'

This looks cool.

BURBANK, Calif. (PRNewswire) – DIC Entertainment and legendary investor Warren Buffett have joined forces to create an all-new, direct-to-DVD animated series, "The Secret Millionaire's Club," which will promote financial literacy to kids. "The Secret Millionaire's Club," currently in production, will consist of 13 titles with the first two titles scheduled for release in Fall 2006. The series, featuring the words, voice and likeness of Mr. Buffett, will focus on financial lessons utilizing kid-relatable characters and real world situations, as well as entertaining adventures. "The Secret Millionaire's Club," will be released by a major home entertainment distributor and will be available for worldwide distribution. An unscrupulous developer buying up properties in Omaha is foreclosing on the rundown local Youth Center. Its last four members are cleaning out the attic when they find a box of old sports memorabilia-including, among other rare and valuable items. They put everything up for bid on an online auction service -- and make millions. After they pay off the mortgage on the center, the "secret millionaires" ask local celebrity Warren Buffett for advice on how to invest the money. With Warren's help, the four kids meet secretly to decide what local companies and businesses to invest in. Each week, Warren guides them to discovering new aspects of his investment philosophy, by using the Socratic Method to help them put his rules into practice, and helps them learn sound financial management skills -- like avoiding debt. At the same time, the kids become involved in adventures as they deal with dishonest owners, corrupt accountants, security guards, corporate raiders, crooked politicians, and, of course, the unscrupulous developer.

Ride May Klonk After All

ORLANDO (Orlando Sentinel) – And it klonked. And it bonked. And it jerked. And it berked. And it bopped them about. But the thing really worked! Except at Universal Orlando's Islands of Adventure. There, a children's monorail inspired by the Dr. Seuss rhyme that klonks, bonks, jerks and berks, never worked in its nearly seven years in the park. But that may be about to change. The ride, perched 15 feet above ground in Seuss Landing, may open later this year, though with a revised design and possibly a new name. Universal Orlando officials don't talk publicly about what happened to Sylvester McMonkey McBean's Very Unusual Driving Machines ride, an attraction that has sat unused since Islands of Adventure opened in 1999. During that time, millions of visitors have walked past the ride's closed building and under the long ribbons of monorail that pass over walkways, skirt the lake and circle the Caro-Seuss-el and the If I Ran The Zoo attractions. Occasionally from 1999 to 2003, signs went up out front declaring that it would open soon. But those signs came down, and the ride never opened, while critics complained that the park did not have enough rides for small children. Meanwhile, the park added two other children's rides from scratch, Flying Unicorn and Storm Force Accelatron. Now another sign has gone up, "Coming Summer 2006." And Universal lately has been talking to employees about helping open the ride, which was inspired by Seuss's The Sneetches and Other Stories book. Universal still is not ready to talk much about the ride publicly, except to say that its time is near. "We open new attractions when we're convinced they meet our obsessively high standards for creativity, overall guest experience and safety. We're not going to compromise on any of those things," spokesman Tom Schroder said. "It's true there have been some challenges with this attraction in more than one area – but this experience is now exactly where we want it to be and we look forward to watching our guests enjoy it." Past problems reportedly included concerns over how the ride might be evacuated if mechanical problems caused it to stop while riders were aloft all over Seuss Landing, said Steven Smith, a former Universal employee and now operations manager at Baker Leisure Group, an Orlando-based theme park consulting firm. Smith said Universal also reportedly has changed the ride's design, though he said he did not know details. Originally the ride would have featured individual cars moving along the track. Riders would have had some control over the speed, so they could bump one another, much as with cars at Walt Disney World's Tomorrowland Indy Speedway. The McBean name also might change, Smith said. Meanwhile, the "Coming Summer 2006" sign and the violet and teal rails meandering overhead in Seuss Landing are catching customers' attention. "I can't wait," said Tina Milam of Tupelo, Miss., who was at Islands of Adventure recently with her two daughters and said she would be back. "It looks adorable."

About 90.7 Million Watched Super Bowl

NEW YORK (AP) – An estimated 90.7 million people watched the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Seattle Seahawks Sunday, the largest Super Bowl audience since the Steelers last played in the title game in 1996. The audience was 5 percent bigger than the 86.1 million people who watched the New England Patriots beat the Philadelphia Eagles last year, according to preliminary estimates from Nielsen Media Research. ABC also scored solid ratings for an episode of "Grey's Anatomy" following the game. The Steelers beat the Seahawks 21-10, but the game wasn't really decided until the final five minutes or so, which kept the audience glued to the set, said Larry Hyams, ABC research executive. "The Super Bowl obviously is a national event and people are going to tune in regardless of whether the teams have national appeal," Hyams said. "It's up to the game to hold the audience." The Super Bowl is traditionally the biggest television event of the year. The Academy Awards, jokingly called the Super Bowl for women, often comes in second; last year, 41.5 million people saw the Oscars. Pittsburgh had the largest Super Bowl rating of any media market, with a 57.1, Nielsen said. Seattle followed directly behind with a 55. A total of 141.4 million people watched at least some part of the game, Nielsen said. The 90.7 million figured represented the game's average audience at any given moment. The "Grey's Anatomy" episode after the game was seen by 38.1 million people, Nielsen said. That's 15 million more than has ever watched a single episode of the medical soap. It was the most-watched entertainment program of the season so far — even beating "American Idol."

From the Superficial...

Brad Pitt is a chameleon

59 Things a Man Should Never Do Past 30

From Esquire Magazine -

Coin his own nickname.
Use a wallet that is fastened with Velcro.
Rank his friends in order of best, second best, and so on.
Hacky sack.
Name his penis his name plus junior.
Hang art with tape.
Hang The Scream, unless he stole it from the Munch museum in Oslo.
Ask a policeman, "You ever shoot anybody with that thing?"
Ask a woman, "Hey, you got a license for that ass?"
Skip.
Take a camera to a nude beach.
Let his father do his taxes.
Tap on the glass.
Shout out a response to "Are you ready to rock?"
Use the word collated on his résumé.
Hold a weekly house meeting with roommates.
Name pets after Middle Earth characters.
Jokingly flash gang signs while posing for wedding photos.
Give shout-outs.
Use numbers in place of words or locations, such as "the 411" for information, or "the 313" for Detroit.
Hug amusement-park characters.
Wear Disney-themed neckties.
Wake up to a morning zoo.
Compare the trajectory of his life with those of the characters in Billy Joel's "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant."
Request extra sprinkles.
Air drum.
Choose 69 as his jersey number.
Eat Oreo cookies in stages.
Volunteer to be a magician's assistant.
Sleep on a bare mattress.
End a conversation with "later skater."
Hold his lighter up at a concert.
Publicly greet friends by shouting, "What's up, you whore?"
Wear Converse All Stars with a tuxedo.
Propose via stadium Jumbotron.
Decide anything based on the ruminations of Howard Stern.
Call "shotgun" before getting in a car.
Dispute someone else's call of "shotgun."
Whine.
Mist up during Aerosmith's "Dream On."
Purchase fireworks.
Google the word vagina.
Ride a pony
Sport an ironic mustache
Hit 13 against a 6.
Organize a party bus.
Say "two points" every time he throws something in the trash.
Buy a novelty postcard in another country of topless women on a beach and write, "Wish you were here" on it.
Keg stands.
Purchase home-brewing paraphernalia.
The John Travolta point-to-the-ceiling-point-to-the-floor dance move; also that one from Pulp Fiction.
Put less than ten dollars' worth of gas in the tank.
Keep a minuscule amount of marijuana extremely well hidden.
Read The Fountainhead.
Watch the Pink Floyd laser light show at a planetarium.
Refer to his girlfriend's breasts as "the twins."
Refer to his girlfriend's breast as "the twins."
Whippits.
Say goodbye to anyone by tapping his chest and even so much as whispering, "Peace out."

Ultima 3 t-shirt - Good stuff

This is a cool shirt. The opening credits from the classic adventure game, Ultima 3. I spent far too many hours in the 80's battling this game.

"These Guys are Doomed"

I've been on vacation

'Family Guy's' Stewie Hosting Web Talk Show

LAS VEGAS (Hollywood Reporter) – Heeeeere's Stewie! The tyrannical tyke in the Fox animated series "Family Guy" will be the virtual host of a talk show being developed strictly for the Internet later this year. Stewie's show will be based on familyguy.com and other News Corp.-owned Web properties catering to the young demographics that have embraced the Fox series. Fox Interactive Media president Ross Levinsohn said that the idea for the show has been embraced on Madison Avenue by potential advertis-ers. He does not expect the program to cannibalize viewing for the Fox series or other "Family" brand extensions like DVD. Stewie wouldn't be the first animated character to get his own talk show; that distinc-tion belongs to "Space Ghost Coast to Coast," which aired on Cartoon Network.

I played 56 games of Yahtzee on a plane

These are the results. I'm too lazy to fix the HTML formatting of my Excel export.

Score Yahtzees Bonus
229 0 0
206 0 0
361 2 0
263 1 0
147 0 0
220 0 0
179 0 0
216 0 0
367 2 0
254 0 0
205 1 0
229 0 0
248 0 1
341 2 0
192 0 0
355 0 0
141 0 0
213 0 0
191 0 0
251 0 1
194 0 0
201 0 1
249 1 1
181 1 0
239 0 1
274 1 0
209 0 0
269 1 1
170 1 0
200 0 0
402 2 1
383 2 1
273 0 1
257 1 0
205 1 0
258 1 0
136 0 0
254 1 0
298 1 1
151 0 0
213 0 1
156 0 0
314 1 1
241 1 0
216 0 0
260 0 1
380 2 1
256 0 1
261 1 0
213 0 0
241 1 0
193 0 0
251 1 0
216 0 1
241.15 0.54 0.30
241.1481
Yahtzee avg 279.3478 Bonus avg 278.25
Yahtzee and bonus avg 327.8571

This just in: Electro! has uninspired alter-ego name

Maxwell Dillon is such a short-sighted name. My electric supervillain's alter-ego will be a much more appropriate "Faraday Cage"

ABC's Reasons for Axing "Emily"

(E! OnLine) – ABC has its reasons why not to continue production on Heather Graham's new sitcom. Despite the network's massive promotional effort behind Emily's Reasons Why Not, just 6.2 million viewers tuned in for the Jan. 9 debut of the female-friendly series. Based on its audience's apparent lack of interest in Emily, the Alphabet net elected to preempt the second episode of the sitcom with a rerun of the season premiere of The Bachelor Monday night. Though Graham and friends were slated to return to the lineup next Monday, the network shut down production on the show Friday, following the taping of the sixth episode and a decision by ABC to reduce its original order. Depending on how the Parisian exploits of this season's Bachelor fare with viewers, there's a good chance ABC may decide to pull the plug on Emily for good. "It is a shame," Gavin Polone, the show's executive producer, told Daily Variety. "A lot of people were working really hard and the show kept improving. Sony spent a huge amount of money and were very supportive. I can't fault ABC, though: they promoted it like crazy and when the audience stays away, in this supercompetitive environment, quick decisions are made. That's the television business."

It's funny, but Heather Graham's appearance on Letterman a few weeks ago was so horrible I thought Dave was going to retire when it was over. He was clearly bored out of his mind, and Heather's idea of what made an interesting late night anecdote was like listening to a third grader talk about a mud pie he made earlier that day. Bottom line, this move doesn't surpriseme at all, and I didn't even know when the show was airing (er..aired..one time..ever).

Kickass history posters

"Welcome to HistoryShots. We create history-related informational graphics that tell stories about subjects, time periods and events. Our purpose is to inform and entertain you with intense content embedded in an elegant design.
"

This is a very cool site.

HumorFeed Picks Top Ten Satire News Stories of 2005

Press release: January 17, 2005
With 2005 fading fast in the rear view mirror, many publications have taken stock of the year by tallying the top ten movies, books, or style trends. Thanks to HumorFeed.com's first annual Satire News Competition, the world can now add a list of "top ten internet satire news articles" to that roster, and by month's end will have a "top three" as well.
HumorFeed is a selective, cooperative association of satire news and parody websites formed in 2003. As of today it consists of nearly sixty member sites from the US, UK, and Canada. Over the past two weeks, its members have been working to nominate the top ten stories from over 3,500 headlines listed on HumorFeed during 2005.
"HumorFeed's a unique group because of the involvement of its members," said E.F. Watley, administrator of the site. "People really gave this process a great deal of consideration and I think the result is a list of terrific stories."
The best ten stories, according to HumorFeed, are as follows (in alphabetical order, by website):

• Avant News: President Bush Paints Self Into Corner
• BBspot: Microsoft's Antispyware Tool Removes Internet Explorer
• Brainsnap:Christian Fundamentalists Suspected of Terrorist Bombings
• BSNews: President Bush Sells Louisiana Back to the French
• Confusion Road: Terri Schiavo Dies; Congress Orders Feeding Tube Reinserted
• Department of Social Scrutiny: Government Responds to Charles and Camilla's Wedding with ID Card Follow-up
• The Fake News: One Hot White Chick Injured in Tsunami Disaster
• John Fanzine: Scientists Discover Most Boring Substance Ever
• Opinions You Should Have: Existence of Poor People A Surprise, Says Bush
• Studio 8 Entertainment: Popeless World Plunges Into Chaos

In the final stage of the competition, a panel of five independent judges will select the top three stories from these ten finalists. The judges bring to bear an unprecedented collection of expertise in both journalism and satire; they include senior writer John Markoff from the New York Times, correspondent Eric Weiner from National Public Radio, and Robert Zelnick, chairman of the Journalism department at Boston University. Balancing out the serious side of the panel are Andrew Marlatt, former webmaster of the legendary SatireWire.com and nationally syndicated humor columnist Madeleine Kane.
"We wanted perspective from the "legitimate" journalism community as well as from qualified experts in humor," said Watley. "HumorFeed's hallmark is the quality of its membership; we wanted a competition which could provide a uniquely professional judging process."
The top three winners will be announced on February 1. '

For more information contact E.F. Watley, editor@watleyreview.com

Excuses software

excuse, originally uploaded by yojayy.

Mostly non-sensical, but I got this one on my third try.

Emo

Urban dicitonary keeps me hip like the kids these days. This example made me laugh.

2. Emo link send redefine 2838 up, 705 down

Punk music on estrogen. Often acoustic guitar with soft, high male vocals that dwell exessively on the singer's feelings, especially melancholy remembrances of past relationships/mistakes in life. A form of music that diverged from punk in the '80s, the name "emo" is derived from the emotive style of the lyrics and music. This genre has lately been marketed heavily by the music industry to teenagers with bands such as Dashboard Confessional and Taking Back Sunday, and has seen much commercial and mainstream success. The music has also spawned a subculture which conforms to certain conventions in dress such as tight sweatshirts, tight band T-shirts and horn-rim glasses. Adherents profess to exessively melancholy temperments. Males that adhere to the emo subculture are sometimes confused with metrosexuals; indeed the line between the two is somwhat blurred, though both groups claim to be intouch with their emotional side. The ephemeral and hackneyed nature of emo songwriting suggests that its audience will be restricted largely to teenagers. the genre suffers from a lack of credibility outside the aforementioned demographic group, much like current Nu Metal bands.

girlfriend: C'mon, lets have sex.
boyfriend: I'm too sad to have sex.
girlfriend: I'm sad too; lets have sex and cry.
boyfriend: I'm already crying.

Source: Pureblarney, Jul 30, 2004

Chupcabra at Cryptomundo

Has the mysterious Chupacabras returned to Entre Rios?

The strange deaths of deer in a hunting preserve in the department of Uruguay has become a source of concern to local residents. These are female specimens that turned up mutilated and whose gentalia and reproductive organs were removed.

During recent days at the La Medalla Milagrosa ranch, located some 50 km from Concepción del Uruguay, near the banks of the Uruguay River, the events became a source of great concern among locals and left authorities mystified.

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Train derailment

View from the air 1, originally uploaded by Lampy.

D'oh.

railway to heaven ;)

railway to heaven ;), originally uploaded by Michael_CH.

From Flickr.

GeekStuff4U.com - Sushi Memory Disk Otoro

$228.98!!!!!!!!! for 1GB. I think it comes with its own sushi chef at that price.

You know what else I need?

I need some slick web software that will allow me to post a lengthy survey and record the results in a database to be fed back to the website immediately, perhaps in a ticker tape style, so users can see how they rank with other users in the questionnaire. I'd also like to be able to offer iron designs of the persons rank, along with a rating system.

Headphones for microphones?

You know what I need? A muffler for my microphone. I have headphones, which make it possible to play games, listen to music, etc.. at any desired volume without bothering my family, but what about my microphone. I can't take advantage of the radio contact that is so necessary in games like Counter-Strike because talking is not an option late at night. What I need is an invention that cancels my voice from anywhere except straight into the microphone, like the Smokeless ashtray. How can I make my voice one-directional, aside from wearing some sort of acoustic helmet?

I know that directional sound is around the corner, but I'd like to play online right now, so if you are working on this invention, hurry up. My family is sleeping in the next room.

If you have invented this amazing machine, please comment immediately and send me one, for free. If you could pay the postage, too, that would be great. If not, I understand. At least post a link where I can get one myself, with little effort.

THE BIG PICTURE

Close-up on what went right, wrong
Patrick GoldsteinThe Big PictureJanuary 10, 2006

Studio
Grade
Warner Bros.
A
20th Century Fox
A-
Disney
B
DreamWorks
B-
Universal
C
New Line
C
Paramount
C-
Miramax
D+
Sony
D
There was a golden age in Hollywood. And then there's today, when domestic box office is down for the third straight year and consumer spending on home video has dropped for the first time in a quarter of a century. Everyone has a theory about what's gone wrong. But for me, it wasn't the movies themselves — there were more than enough good ones to go around. It was time.

Toys R Us Will Close, Convert 87 Stores

(AP) – Toys R Us Inc., the retailer acquired by three buyout firms, will close 75 stores this spring and eliminate 3,000 jobs after reporting a wider third-quarter loss. The retailer will also convert 12 other locations into the Babies R Us format. The changes will result in $155 million in pretax restructuring expenses, the company said Monday. It did not list stores targeted for closure or conversion. The store closings are the first since the company was bought for $6.6 billion by a group including Vornado Realty Trust.

Please let them convert the one by my house!!! There's only ONE (1) Babies R US in the entire city of Orlando.

Howard 100

So, I got my Sirius satellite radio turned on Sunday night just in time for Howard's first show. Very exciting all around, mostly because I've wanted satellite radio ever since I borrowed a friend's for my drive from NYC to Orlando last spring. I have the REPLAY receiver, so I can pause and rewind up to 44 minutes of the current station that is currently tuned. This allows me to skip the unbelievable ads that have infiltrated Howard's show. I know that if it continues past this year, I will be hitting the road back to my MP3 player, unless I can find a way to go to work 44 minutes later every day.

Personally, I feel betrayed. It's not so much the ads, but the shameless plugging when he tries to masquerade as though he's truly interested in GOLDEN****.COM by slipping it into the conversations. It's painful to watch the selling out. At least BREAK for MUCH SHORTER commercials. I gotta go.

Even more sneaky: They mentioned that Howard had something like 450,000 callers yesterday. Is that because when you are put on hold, you get to listen to the show for free? If that is the case, nice loophole.

MobyGames - Moira Squier

This chick rocks!

MobyGames Auto-Generated Summary *:
Moira Squier was credited on a game as early as 2002 and as recently as 2004. His/Her career probably spans more years than those displayed since these dates are based on the credits documented in MobyGames (which are incomplete). Moira Squier has been credited with the roles Production, Support, Quality Assurance and Other. Moira Squier has been credited on games developed by the following companies: Griptonite Games, Electronic Arts Inc., Eurocom Entertainment Software, Electronic Arts UK, Warthog Plc, KnowWonder Digital Mediaworks and Qube Software Limited. This does not imply employment by these companies. Games Credited
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), Electronic Arts Inc.Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), Electronic Arts Inc.Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2003), Electronic Arts Inc.Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup (2003), Electronic Arts Inc.Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Electronic Arts Inc.LEGO Creator: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Electronic Arts Inc.*Information displayed about people is derived from the information in MobyGames. Since there are thousands of games still not documented in MobyGames, it should be assumed that the information displayed here is not 100% complete.

Dick Vermeil’s wife tells him to stop crying all the time like a pussy

Faced with spending more time with her husband now that he has retired from coaching, Dick Vermeil’s wife, Carol, implored her husband today to “stop acting like a pansy” and “quite all the f—king crying already.”“Dick is a good person and I love him,” said Carol, “but I married a man, not some pathetic, crying, little girl. I can’t spend all day around this sad, whimpering, testosterone-free, shell of a man. He needs to put a cork in the water works or I’m going to leave and find myself a man who hasn’t had his testicles removed.”Vermeil said he was surprised to hear his wife’s opinion.“I never knew how much my crying hurt her,” Vermeil said, “and, and … it, it … it really cuts me to the core,” he added, bursting into tears.

Wal-Mart Apologizes for Racist Software Glitch

Wal-Mart's attempt to mimic Amazon, NetFlix, and Blockbuster by providing an automated system that recommends movies based on the types of DVDs its customers previously ordered came to a crashing halt Thursday after blogs spread the word that the Planet of the Apes DVD was linked to "Similar Items" that included DVDs about Martin Luther King, Dorothy Dandridge, Jack Johnson and Tina Turner -- all notable African Americans. "We are heartsick that this happened and are currently doing everything possible to correct the problem," Wal-Mart spokeswoman Mona Williams said in a statement. "We were horrified to discover that some hurtful and offensive combinations are being mapped together. ... We are deeply sorry that this happened." The company gave no explanation for how the software program managed to select only films about African-Americans for the recommendations.

Spacey 'Outed'

Hollywood superstar Kevin Spacey has been named on a list of famous gays and lesbians being used to educate students in British schools. The actor, who has never discussed his sexuality despite rumors he is gay, is named alongside Oscar Wilde, Tennessee Williams and Irish TV presenter Graham Norton on documents offered to UK schools by the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender group, which is part funded by the government. Organizer Paul Patrick says, "We double check our material carefully but Mr. Spacey's name got through. I don't know how; it will be withdrawn. It should not have happened and we apologize."

Scientists aim for lab-grown meat

An international research team has proposed new techniques that may lead to the mass production of meat reared not on the farm, but in the laboratory.

Developments in tissue engineering mean that cells taken from animals could be grown directly into meat in a laboratory, the researchers say.

Scientists believe the technology already exists to directly grow processed meat like a chicken nugget.

The technology could benefit both humans and the environment.

"With a single cell, you could theoretically produce the world's annual meat supply. And you could do it in a way that's better for the environment and human health.

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This is cool.

I wanna run...I want to hide...

bono edge, originally uploaded by yojayy.

'Watchmen' on Duty at Warner Bros.

(Hollywood Reporter) – “Watchmen," the seminal DC Comics limited series created by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, has found a home at Warner Bros. Pictures. The project has landed at the studio with original producers Larry Gordon and Lloyd Levin – but not with screenwriter David Hayter and director Paul Greengrass, who were with the project when it was let go from Paramount in June. The develop-ment of the movie has turned out to be almost as epic as the story the comic tells. Hollywood had for years been trying to bring the 1986 comic book series to the big screen. Joel Silver brought the project, which remains the only wholly owned DC Comics property to have ever left the fold, to Larry Gordon when the latter was based at Fox, where Terry Gilliam was developing a Sam Hamm-penned script back in 1989. "Watchmen" first landed at a studio in 2001, when it was set up at Universal with Hayter on board to adapt and Gordon, who holds the rights, producing.


I can only hope that this movie gets better treatment than Fantastic 4. What a disaster that was.

Lunacore Photoshop Tutorial - Beautify a Face (part 1/7)

This tutorial will show you how to beautify a face. The corrections that we're going to do will make the face look different, but at the same time we avoid to make the results look unnatural. Of course, the face we're going to work on is not going to look the same when we're done, but we will only make necessary and subtle changes. We will fix skin, remove blemishes and wrinkles, whiten and fix teeth, fix hair, fix eyebrows, increase definition in the eyes and crop and sharpen the image in the final steps.

Malawi road

Malawi road, originally uploaded by Koffiemetkoek.

From flickr.com

20051210 Kimmel Center, Philadelphia, PA 055

20051210 Kimmel Center, Philadelphia, PA 055, originally uploaded by gakout.

From flickr.com

Ron Jon Gets Go-Ahead

PORT CANAVERAL (Florida Today) – Although they expressed reservations about the project, Canaveral Port Authority commissioners voted unanimously Thursday to begin negotiating with Ron Jon Surf Shop to build a theme-park-like hotel and resort at the port. The commissioners said they are opposed to giving Ron Jon control of Jetty Park – a campground, fishing spot and beach at the port's shipping entrance on the Atlantic Ocean. "It's important to point out that not everybody agrees with their proposal in its entirety," said Commissioner Ralph Kennedy. The hotel and resort – called Ron Jon World – would be built on a 26-acre Port Authority site on the Banana River, but Ron Jon wants to shuttle visitors to Jetty Park as an extra attraction. At an estimated cost of $147 million, the Ron Jon World proposal calls for a 400-room hotel with a high-rise tower and a five-story wing, a 20,000-square-foot conference center, a 72,000-square-foot store, a water and surf park, an exhibition hall, and an 1,800-car parking garage, among other features. The complex is projected to draw 700,000 visitors or more a year, with $135 million a year in direct spending.

• The commissioners and others said they would like to see a larger conference center than the 20,000-square-foot facility that Ron Jon has proposed at the Banana River site.
• In addition, Commissioner Chairman Ray Sharkey expressed concerns about the design of the proposed resort's surfboard-shaped hotel on the river – calling it a "200-foot monument to Ron Jon." He said it would look like "a big billboard," and suggested the company "tone down" the design, and get a major hotel company involved in the project.
• Port Authority Chief Executive Officer Stan Payne said the authority will approach the negotiations with Ron Jon from the standpoint that "I would like the port to operate Jetty Park, and have Ron Jon enhance our operation of Jetty Park."
• Ron Jon President Ed Moriarty responded that Jetty Park "is not going to be a Ron Jon park." He said the company would like to see the park's landscaping and campground facilities upgraded, as well as no longer charging admission at the park. In addition, Moriarty said the company found that a conference center larger than 20,000 square feet would not be "economically viable," although enlarging it some time in the future might be possible.

Cocoa Beach-based Ron Jon has been a major player in Brevard County's tourism industry for years, with its flagship store in Cocoa Beach. However, the Cocoa Beach store would close and a larger Ron Jon store would be part of the port resort at the port. In voting to pursue Ron Jon's plan, commissioners accepted the recommendation of Port Authority administrators, who selected Ron Jon over a competing proposal by Merritt Island-based Sheraton Group. Sheraton proposed a 370-room hotel with some units for extended stays, a 60,000-square-foot convention center, and an aquatic facility for sea life, among other features.

Dear Britney - What Happened?

Showcasing thesuperficial.com's comments

15. Posted by Horatio on December 12, 2005 12:33 PM
I agree that Sean Penn's defense of Jude Law was both totally pathetic and totally awesome. And by totally awesome I mean totally pathetic. The bastard has no sense of humor. Example: he was not amused when I tried to steal his coke the other day.

How Bob Iger Saved Network TV

Here is an excerpt from Mark Cuban's weblog. I say follow the money, and if he is spending his time here, then maybe we should too.

On the ITunes Store, you can buy the latest episode to Lost and some other shows the day after they air on Network TV. in this case ABC, for $1.99. Sounds simple and reasonable. Not anything earth shattering right ?

Content has been available for download for years and years. That content could be played on any number of devices, from computers to DVD players to PDAs. Being able to playback a video from the new Video Ipod just like you can play a song from a current IPod, certainly is not a technical marvel.

It is a business marvel. Bob Iger has gone contrary to what every current and previous TV network head has and would have done had Bob not turned the industry on its head with his announcement with Apple yesterday. Bob Iger has saved Network TV.

How ?

By completely changing the economic model.

...

Best Action Figure Ever?

Exactly why he comes with an AK-47, he only knows.

Scenic Views

scenic views, originally uploaded by yojayy.

This is the best way to sell a townhome for $260,990

Top 100 Nightclubs and Bars Selected by Nightclub & Bar Magazine

OXFORD, Miss. (PRNewswire) – Oxford Publishing Inc., publisher of national trade magazine Nightclub & Bar, has named its Editors' Top 100 bars and clubs in the United States, which will be honored in a spe-cial presentation at the Nightclub & Bar/Beverage Retailer Beverage and Food Convention & Trade Show ("The Show") in Las Vegas, held March 5-8, 2006. Nightclubs and bars from all over the United States were chosen based on a number of criteria, including annual revenues, marketing and advertising effec-tiveness, promotional expertise, uniqueness to market, food and beverage programs and much more. The following bars and clubs, listed in alphabetical order, made the Editors' Top 100. The city designated in parentheses for each is the city in which it is located, or, if the concept has multiple locations, the city of its first location.


1. 115 Bourbon Street Pub (Chicago)
2. 32 Degrees (Philadelphia)
3. AJ's (Destin, FL)
4. Ampersand (New Orleans)
5. Ava Lounge (New York)
6. Aria (Boston)
7. Avalon and Spider Club (LA)
8. Beach Bar at the W Hotel (San Diego)
9. B.E.D. (Miami)
10. Billy Bob's Texas (Fort Worth, TX)
11. Blue Martini (Ft. Lauderdale, FL)
12. Cabo Wabo Cantina (Lake Tahoe)
13. Caramel Bar and Lounge (Las Vegas)
14. Carlos & Charlie's (Lake Travis, TX)
15. Carousel Bar (New Orleans)
16. Casbah (Atlantic City, NJ)
17. Chilkoot Charlies's (Anchorage)
18. Club Chameleon (Las Vegas)
19. Club Deep (Miami)
20. Coyote Ugly (New York)
21. Crobar (New York)
22. Dave & Buster's (Dallas)
23. Denim (Philadelphia)
24. Dream (Washington, DC)
25. e4 (Scottsdale, AZ)
26. Eight 75 (Biloxi, MS)
27. Elements, the Lounge (Sea Bright, NJ)
28. Eleven50 (Atlanta)
29. ESPN Zone (Baltimore)
30. Elysium (Detroit)
31. Excalibur (Chicago)
32. Fado Irish Pub (Atlanta)
33. First Avenue (Minneapolis)
34. Flatiron Lounge (New York)
35. Ivan Kane's Forty Deuce (Hollywood / Vegas)
36. Fox Sports Grill (Scottsdale, AZ)
37. Vicci (Austin, Texas)
38. Galapagos (Brooklyn, NY)
39. ghostbar (Las Vegas)
40. Green Parrot (Key West, FL)
41. Good Hurt (Los Angeles)
42. Ground Zero Blues Club (Clarksdale, MS)
43. House of Blues (New Orleans)
44. ICE (Las Vegas)
45. Jillian's (Dallas)
46. Jimmy'z At The Forge (Miami)
47. Kahunaville (Wilmington, DE)
48. Key Club (Hollywood, CA)
49. Le Passage (Chicago)
50. Light (Las Vegas)
51. Long Street (Columbus, OH)
52. Lotus (New York)
53. Mango's Tropical Cafe (Miami)
54. Marquee (New York)
55. Medusa (Seattle)
56. Mercy Wine Bar (Addison, TX)
57. Midnight Rodeo (San Antonio)
58. Mickey's Hangover (Scottsdale, AZ)
59. Mynt (Miami)
60. Mie N Yu (Washington, DC)
61. Nikki Beach (Miami)
62. Ocean Club (Honolulu)
63. Pangea/The Gryphon (Hollywood, FL)
64. Pat O'Brien's (New Orleans)
65. Prey (Los Angeles)
66. Pure (Las Vegas)
67. Pin-Up Bowl (St. Louis, MO)
68. Purple Moon (Flint, MI)
69. Rain in the Desert (Las Vegas)
70. Remote Lounge (New York)
71. Rise (Denver)
72. RockStar (soon to be renamed) (Destin, FL)
73. rumjungle (Las Vegas)
74. Senses (Memphis)
75. Sharkeez (Huntington Beach, CA)
76. Shelter (Los Angeles)
77. Sherlock's Baker Street Pub (Houston)
78. Six (Scottsdale, AZ)
79. Sloppy Joe's (Key West)
80. Studio 54 (Las Vegas)
81. Tabu Ultra Lounge (Las Vegas)
82. The Abbey (West Hollywood, CA)
83. the bosco (Ferndale, MI)
84. The Crocodile Cafe (Seattle)
85. The Dresden Room (Los Angeles)
86. The Funky Buddha Lounge (Chicago)
87. The Greene Turtle (Ocean City, MD)
88. The Library Bar & Grill (Tempe, AZ)
89. The New Crown & Anchor (Provincetown, MA)
90. The Ranch (Midland, Texas)
91. The Viper Room (Los Angeles)
92. Tipitina's (New Orleans)
93. Tobacco Road (Miami)
94. Tongue & Groove (Atlanta)
95. Tootsie's Orchid Lounge (Nashville)
96. Top of the Mark (San Francisco)
97. Vine Street Lounge (Los Angeles)
98. Whiskey Blue (Los Angeles)
99. World Bar (New York)
100. XYZ (Los Angeles)

Rubik's Professor

I got one of these yesterday from a friend for Christmas. Wow is it hard.

Riders have gone

Riders have gone, originally uploaded by Maxresolution.

This is a cool photo from flickr.com.

Our Lady

Our Lady, originally uploaded by dbgp.

Skagit County Tulip Festival (Washington State, USA)

Skagit County Tulip Festival (Washington State, USA), originally uploaded by threefourfive.

Biff-Bang Stamps

(NY Times) – Batman, Superman and other DC Comics characters will be featured on commemorative stamps from the United States Postal Service next year. The series of 20 stamps, which will be issued next summer, will salute 10 costumed heroes. Half the stamps will feature portraits of the characters, including Aquaman, Hawkman and Wonder Woman. The other 10 are to showcase classic and modern comic book covers, the post office announced. Other commemorative stamps scheduled for next year include "Favorite Children's Books Animals," "Art of Disney: Romance" and "Baseball Sluggers."

Why?

Man charged with hiding body of lottery winner's granddaughter

I've highlighted in red everything you need to know about this story.


WINFIELD, West Virginia (AP) -- The body of a Powerball jackpot winner's 17-year-old granddaughter was hidden under a van for weeks after she died of a drug overdose, police said.

The teen's boyfriend, Brandon Crosier, 19, was charged Thursday with unlawful disposal of a body and with two unrelated felony drug charges.

Brandi Bragg died December 5, 2004, of a drug overdose in the home of Steve Crosier, Brandon Crosier's father. Her death came two years after her grandfather, Jack Whittaker, won nearly $315 million in the Powerball lottery -- the largest single jackpot in history.

Brandon Crosier found Bragg dead, then wrapped her in a tarp and blanket, took her body outside and hid it under a broken-down van in his family's front yard, state police said.

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Downloading for Dollars

(Slate) – Once upon a time, the movie business was about making movies. Nowadays, it is about creating intellectual property that can be licensed in a raft of different markets. The Hollywood studios still make movies, of course, but by 2005, only 14.2 percent of their revenues came from movie ticket sales, while 85.8 percent came from licensing or selling their products for use in the home. Until 2005, the studio's principal access to the home market came through pay TV, free television, video rentals, and DVD sales. But now, with products such as Apple's video iPod and TiVo-type digital recorders becoming widely avail-able, Hollywood is inching toward an even more lucrative way of exploiting the home market.

? Disney's ABC network has already made a deal with Apple that will allow iPod users to download and watch shows, such as Desperate Housewives, for $1.99 an episode. The company has also been talking to Comcast about a similar pay-per-view arrangement for Comcast's 23 million cable sub-scribers.
? CBS, which is still controlled by Sumner Redstone, and NBC, a subsidiary of NBC Universal, have announced plans to release their programs for 99 cents a viewing whenever a customer wants to see them, through linkups with cable and satellite providers.
? Meanwhile, the satellite giant DirecTV, which Rupert Murdoch controls, is in the process of equipping its 12 million subscribers with TiVo-like digital video recorders that have extra storage capacity for eight hours or so of programming.
? Fox, which Murdoch also owns, can then download its shows onto an encoded section of subscribers' hard disks, which they can pay to view.

This downloading strategy is particularly appealing to the broadcast networks. Under long-standing FCC regulations, they have the right to negotiate with cable operators about carrying their programming. But, the broadcast networks rarely receive cash payment – instead they are compensated with such things as free ad time. Cable networks, such as ESPN, who are under no such mandate, get paid a hefty "carriage fee" for allowing cable operators to show their programs. A cost of 99 cents a pop is hardly trivial when multiplied by an audience of 23 million subscribers. The studios stand to gain even more from a huge au-dience willing to pay to download movies from their libraries. Unlike DVDs, which require manufacturing, warehousing, distribution, and disposing of returns, it costs almost nothing to download a movie or car-toon. Indeed, all the costs of transmission would be born by the cable operator (or a site like the Apple Music Store), whose cut would be less, under present arrangements, than retailers get on DVDs. The real issue for the Hollywood studios is how they can dig into this potential gold mine without undermining their existing revenue streams. Since the 1980s, the studios have managed their revenue by employing a sys-tem of "windows" to release their products to different markets. First, movies play in theaters, then, six months later, the video window opens, followed by the opening of the pay TV and then free television window. With the possibility of costlessly providing millions of downloads to consumers of both their older and new films, the studio heads are openly discussing radically revamping the window system. Holly-wood's downloading option, by whatever device it may be realized, is just one more part of the transfor-mation of movies from a big- to a small-screen experience and from a theatrical to a home – or even mo-bile – product.

'A Charlie Brown Christmas' Leads TV Pack

LOS ANGELES (USA Today) – Good grief, network executives said when they first saw Charles Schulz's A Charlie Brown Christmas. "They thought it was too slow," executive producer Lee Mendelson recalls being told by the powers-that-were at CBS in 1965. But the special was an instant hit with critics and au-diences. Forty years later, its ruminations on the spirit of Christmas, backed by a lilting jazz score by Vince Guaraldi, remain fresh and affecting. A Charlie Brown Christmas airs 8 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 6, on ABC. It's paired with Charlie Brown Christmas Tales, based on Schulz's work and featuring each of the Peanuts characters, including Snoopy, in individual vignettes. Among the other old favorites and new-comers marking the holiday season (all times ET, check local listings for PBS programs):

Animation
? Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, 8 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30, CBS. A shy reindeer battles the Abominable Snowmonster and finds that his vibrantly colored nose makes him a hero, not a misfit, when Santa Claus needs a guiding light.
? The Happy Elf, 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 2, NBC. Harry Connick lends his voice and original songs to the story of Eubie the elf, who must rescue the unhappy town of Bluesville.
? Santa Claus is Comin' to Town, 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 2, ABC. Fred Astaire was the narrator for this 1970 tale about how Kris Kringle (Mickey Rooney) overcomes a ban on toys in his native Sombertown and ends up becoming Santa Claus.
? I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown! 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 9, ABC. Rerun, younger brother of Linus and Lucy, gets more than he bargained for when Snoopy the beagle invites his brother, Spike, for a visit.
? Rugrats Chanukah Special, 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 17, Nickelodeon. Grandpa Boris and his old rival, Shlomo, perform in a play about the holiday's meaning and, with the help of the babies, find a way to reconcile.
? Frosty the Snowman, 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 17, CBS. Jimmy Durante narrated the tale of the brave snowman pursued by evil Professor Hinkle on a mission to rescue the North Pole. Followed at 8:30 p.m. by Frosty Returns, narrated by Jonathan Winters.
? A Rugrats Kwanzaa, 8:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 26, Nickelodeon. When Aunt T. arrives to celebrate the Kwanzaa holiday with the Carmichaels, little Susie learns what it means to honor "the legacy of our great people."
? Arthur's Perfect Christmas, 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 24, PBS. Elwood City is abuzz with plans for the perfect holiday, whether Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanzaa, but everything doesn't go as planned for Arthur, D.W. and their family and friends.
? Chanukah Stories, airing on PBS stations in December (check local listings). Two children's books, The Tie Man's Miracle and Moishe's Miracle, were adapted for this special, featuring Jami Gertz and Bob Saget.

Movies
? Holiday Inn, 8 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 4, AMC. Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire star as two showmen whose New England country inn, open only on national holidays, becomes a success.
? Recipe for a Perfect Christmas, 9 p.m., Monday, Dec. 5, Lifetime Television. Bobby Cannavale, Christine Baranski and Carly Pope star in a romantic comedy about a fledgling food critic whose scheme involving her mom and a restaurant owner doesn't go according to plan.
? It's a Wonderful Life, 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 10, and 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 24, NBC. Frank Capra's classic 1946 fantasy about troubled George Bailey (James Stewart) and his enlightening an-gel,Clarence (Henry Travers).
? Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas, 8:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 10, ABC. Jim Carrey stars as the unpopular Grinch in the film based on the Dr. Seuss book.
? The Santa Clause, 8 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 15, ABC. Tim Allen stars as a man who becomes the unwilling successor to Santa Claus and has to quickly learn the ropes.
? National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, 8 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 18, NBC. Life on the road isn't easy for Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) and family, but at least his Christmas bonus is coming.
? Christmas Lights, 9 p.m. Friday, Dec. 23, BBC America. Two lifelong friends – and rivals – become locked in a holiday house decoration contest that gets out of control and ultimately forces them to re-flect on what really counts.
? I'll Be Home for Christmas, 9 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 24, ABC. College student Jake (Jonathan Taylor Thomas) is on a homeward holiday trek, determined to win back his girlfriend and get a '57 Porsche, to boot.
? Finding John Christmas, 9 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 25, CBS. Valerie Bertinelli, Peter Falk, David Cubitt and William Russ star in the tale of a woman whose search for her long-missing brother brings her together with a newspaper photographer and a helpful angel.

Stocking Stuffers
? Christmas in Rockefeller Center, 8 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30, NBC. A celebration of the lighting of the famous New York tree, with music by Rod Stewart, Sheryl Crow, Carrie Underwood, Brian Wil-son, the Brian Setzer Orchestra and Earth, Wind & Fire.
? Entertainment Weekly's Best Holiday Movies, 10:15 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 4, AMC. Actor French Stewart hosts this rundown of yuletide movie favorites.
? Creative Juice for the Holidays, 10 p.m. Monday, Dec. 5, DIY Network. Hosts Cathie Filian and Steve Piacenza demonstrate affordable holiday craft projects, including turning foam snowballs into snowmen and tomato wire cages into Christmas trees.
? The White House Christmas 2005, 8 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 7, HGTV. The special, with host Gail O'Neill, takes viewers into the holiday planning process for the White House and includes first lady Laura Bush's discussion of her choice for this year's theme.
? Christmas in Washington, 8 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 14, TNT. Rascal Flatts, Carrie Underwood and Ciara will perform at the annual event attended by the president, first lady and other prominent Wash-ingtonians. Phil McGraw (Dr. Phil ) and his wife, Robin, are the hosts.
? LA Holiday Celebration, 10 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 15, PBS. A multicultural program of music and dance with performers of African, Asian, European, Middle Eastern and Hispanic backgrounds mark-ing the season. Elayne Boosler hosts.
? A Home for the Holidays, 8 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 21, CBS. George Lopez and Jamie Lee Curtis are among those featured in this annual effort to spotlight the issue of adoption.
? Renee Fleming: Sacred Songs and Carols, 8 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 21, PBS. In this Great Per-formances program recorded at Germany's Mainz Cathedral, the opera singer is backed by an or-chestra and full choir.
? Christmas with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, 9 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 21, and 9 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 24, PBS. Audra McDonald and Peter Graves take part in a concert that includes African-American spirituals and contemporary favorites.
? A St. Olaf Christmas in Norway, 10 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 21, PBS. The choir of St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn., joins with a Norwegian girls' choir and mezzo Randi Stene in a program taped at Tronheim's Nidaros Cathedral.
? Christmas at Belmont, 9 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 22, and Sunday, Dec. 25, PBS (check local listings). Country singer Josh Turner, a Belmont University alumnus, is set to perform at the school's annual concert Hall, as are students, faculty and the Nashville Children's Choir.
? Walt Disney World Christmas Day Parade, 10 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 25, ABC. Regis Philbin and Kelly Ripa host the 22nd annual telecast of the resort's parade, with guests including Vanessa Williams, Julie Andrews, Tiger Woods, Fantasia and Hayden Christensen.
? Live from Lincoln Center, 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31, PBS. The New York Philharmonic presents its annual New Year's Eve gala, featuring a program of Italian opera with soprano Angela Gheorghiu.
? Tournament of Roses Parade, 11 a.m. Monday, Jan. 2, NBC. The 117th edition of the Pasadena parade includes performances by LeAnn Rimes, Toni Braxton and magician Lance Burton, along with the flower-bedecked floats, parade royalty and many horses.

Auld Lang Syne
? New Year's Eve with Carson Daly, 11:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31, NBC. Daly rings in 2006 from New York City's Times Square.
? Dick Clark's Primetime New Year's Rockin' Eve 2006, 10 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31, ABC. Ryan Seacrest joins Clark in hosting the celebration in Times Square.
? New Year's Eve Live, 11 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31, Fox. Regis Philbin is the host for these Times Square festivities, including music, celebrities and a look back at the events of 2005.

WATCHMEN was one of my favorite comics

Watchmen is a dark, cynical story of a group of ex-superheroes drawn into a complex web of deception and conspiracy after one of their former colleagues is murdered. Events that occur in the present (or near future) are interspersed with flashbacks to the past that paint these “heroes” in a quite negative light. The comic, a self-contained 12-issue series by Alan Moore and David Gibbons, was one of the seminal comics of the 1980s reinvention of the superhero genre and is widely regarded as one of the best comic stories of all time.

As early as 1989, plans were being made to bring the Watchmen to the big screen, with Terry Gilliam directing. However, this attempt got no further than the script stage and it was in and out of development hell for a decade after that.

The problem is that, unlike Batman, Spider-Man and the X-Men; to make a film of Watchmen involves adapting the story told in the comic itself. For other comic franchises, scriptwriters have the luxury of picking and choosing characters, themes and plots from several hundreds of issues. They are then free to create their own story using these elements but without the need to adapt a specific issue or issues.

The Watchmen movie will be an adaptation of an existing 12-issue story. It is a long, complex story, told simultaneously in two different time periods, with a fairly large central cast, featuring adult themes. As many people who have tried to get the movie made have found out, it will be very difficult to adapt and very expensive to make. This difficulty is compounded by the fact that the darker, more cerebral and more noirish take on superheroics will struggle to get a PG-13 rating and the Watchmen themselves lack the name recognition of guys like Spiderman and Batman.

David Hayter will be responsible for the difficult job of adapting the comics, something with which he at least has some experience, as he was a writer on both of the X-Men films. Currently, Hayter’s biggest claim to fame is being one of the most recognizable voices in video games, such as the voice of Snake in the popular Metal Gear Solid games and the guy who informs us that “It’s in the game” at the beginning of every EA Sports release.

Despite all these obstacles and potential pitfalls the quality of the source material is not in question and there is the potential for a good film at the end of it all. Assuming all goes according to plan, Watchmen is rumoured to start shooting in Prague later in 2004. As a huge fan of Alan Moore, I can only hope this adaptation fares better than previous Moore adaptations From Hell and League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (both also filmed in Prague), which were both considered commercial and critical failures. (Ash Wakeman/BOP)

April 21, 2004
In an interview with Ain't It Cool News, screenwriter David Hayter said that Pi/Requiem for a Dream director Darren Aronofsky will be helming this project. (Kim Hollis/BOP)

June 6, 2005
The studio put the project in turnaround, meaning that it will not be made unless another studio happens to pick up the rights. (Kim Hollis/BOP)

Children Wait By the Phone for Santa to Call

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (PRNewswire) – After decades of long lines with crabby children at a crowded mall, parents are finally being offered an alternative to the traditional visit with Santa Claus. Christmas websites like SantaSpeaking.com are offering parents and children a much needed, more convenient, Santa experience – live, highly personalized, phone calls from the big man himself. Children can chat away with Santa in the comfort of their own home, and be delighted by all of the details that Santa knows about them – information the parent provides when they order online. Santa now actually knows if they have been naughty or nice, right down to the details. The phone calls from Santa may be proving to become the new Santa tradition globally as the International Council of Shopping Centers reports that from 2001 to 2003, children visiting Santa at the mall fell 41%. And with the rising popularity of the Internet over the last decade, children are searching for Santa online throughout the holiday season, beginning in early October.

Bubble or not, high home prices can hurt 5/5/2005

By Sue Kirchhoff, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — Pamela Harness has never seen the market this hot.

This house in a Baltimore suburb sold for $230,000 in 1987; $665,000 in 2005.
By Tim Dillon, USA TODAY

The Phoenix-area real estate agent's clients include a couple who made a $150,000 profit by reselling a house they held for just six months, an investor who paid more than $300,000 for a home he plans to put back on the market by year's end, and buyers facing months-long waiting lists at area home builders — if they can even get on a list. (Related graphic: Housing prices increase across the USA)

"The market here is just absolutely nuts," says Harness at West USA Realty in Chandler, Ariz. "I get investors calling; they want to buy a home. I tell them they're a day late and a dollar short at this point."

This was supposed to be the year the housing sector, which has expanded at a record-setting pace since 1998 (except in 2000), started to cool. Instead, existing-home prices rose in March at the fastest pace in two decades, and new-home sales hit another peak in the first three months of the year.

The strong housing sector has buoyed the economy and local governments, through construction payrolls, increased property tax revenue and consumer spending tied to high home equity.

But it also has economic downsides. High prices are keeping buyers out of the market, making it harder for firms to attract workers in pricey markets and breeding high consumer debt and speculative buying.

Many economists warn a major swath of the market is at risk of a price correction.

"Home buyers appear to be irrationally exuberant," Jan Hatzius, economist at Goldman Sachs, said in an April report to clients, recalling Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan's comment about stock market investors in the 1990s. Hatzius identified frenzied coastal markets, such as Los Angeles, New York, Boston, Washington, Miami and San Francisco, as especially hot.

Prices double in California

Nationally, home prices have jumped an average 50% in the past five years, doubling in California and rising about 80% in Nevada and Hawaii, according to the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO).

In an April USA TODAY poll of 55 top economists, three-fourths called housing overheated, though they differed on whether they expect a gradual cool-down or a sharp drop in sales and prices. Forecasts for a soft landing expect robust job creation to offset the negative effects of the Federal Reserve's interest-rate increases.

Those forecasts were buoyed Friday, when the government's April jobs report showed stronger-than-expected job creation. But other recent data show a somewhat softer economy than forecast, with wages lagging behind inflation.

A few economists warn of a national housing bubble, but most say local housing and job markets vary so much that a countrywide downturn is unlikely. But price reductions in big urban markets could have a broad effect on the economy. That is why there is plenty of concern about signs of speculative buying: the fact that prices are rising faster than rents, when the two usually move more closely in tandem, and price inflation that can't be justified by low rates or supply.

For their part, industry officials are irritated by "sky is falling" predictions. Home builders say the current, elevated level of about 2 million housing starts a year is not enough to meet higher-than-predicted household growth, fueled by immigration. Supply is tight in some areas because it can now take years to get developments approved by zoning authorities.

Further, affluent baby boomers, rather than selling homes as they near retirement, are buying second houses. Investment homes were nearly a quarter of all purchases in 2004, and vacation homes were an additional 13%, says the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

Joel Rassman, chief financial officer of luxury home builder Toll Bros., a publicly traded firm based in Pennsylvania, reviews the finances of recent customers every few months to gauge how well the company could weather altered economic conditions, such as an interest-rate surge. At last check, his average buyer could pay at least 38% more.

"I still have so many people overqualified, I should be able to sell houses as long as I've got housing in the right location," Rassman says.

Nationally, an NAR survey shows affordability still in a healthy range. But in a number of cities, soaring prices are pushing not just lower-income workers but middle-class families to the sidelines.

In California, on average, only 18% of the population could afford a median-priced home in March, according to the California Association of Realtors.

That's down 3 percentage points from a year ago. The minimum household income needed for a median-priced home, at $495,400, was $115,910 based on a 5.81% interest rate and 20% down.

In Montgomery County, Md., a suburb of Washington, officials say people making the county median income of $84,446 could still afford median-priced existing town houses and condos but won't be able to in a couple of years if current trends continue. New town houses and existing homes are out of reach.

In Minneapolis, where appreciation is more modest, the non-profit Family Housing Fund says lower-paid employees such as cashiers and child care workers can't afford a typical $189,000 home.

At the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1245 in Walnut Creek, Calif., about 30 miles northeast of San Francisco, housing is on the agenda in coming contract talks. Union officials will press for higher pay in cities with stratospheric prices, such as San Francisco. The plan is controversial with union members who have opposed wage differences based on geography, gender or other factors.

IBEW Communications Director Eric Wolfe says there is no choice because high prices are distorting the local economy. Fewer workers want jobs in expensive cities. Experienced workers with seniority rights are claiming openings in cheaper rural locations. Mass migration from pricey areas to affordable ones, dubbed the "salmon run," creates its own problems.

"Like the plague in the Middle Ages, real-estate-price inflation is being spread by the people who are fleeing it," Wolfe wrote recently about the bargaining stance.

Another telling sign

There is another telling sign of consumer stress: the growing use of alternative financing. Adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs), which carry interest rates that rise in tandem with market rates after a set period, have been setting records and now account for more than a third of recent home lending, even though rates on 30-year fixed loans remain below 6% — lowest in decades.

In the subprime market — higher-priced loans for consumers with impaired credit — more than 80% of purchase loans are adjustable rate. So-called 2/28 products, in which an interest rate is fixed for two years, then can rise annually or semiannually, is the main subprime-purchase loan, according to David Kogut, a senior economist at mortgage giant Fannie Mae.

Based on past experience, ARMs should have only about 20% of market share, Kogut says. The rise in ARMs shows that borrowers are stretching to buy, because ARMs offer lower interest rates, and therefore lower monthly payments, in the early year or years of a mortgage. At the Web site LendingTree, which connects consumers with lenders, about half the customers in the past six to nine months have opted for adjustable-rate, zero-money-down, interest-only or similar mortgages.

"As rates go up higher and as real estate prices continue to firm, people will look at alternatives, and a bigger percentage of consumers will get into these non-traditional loans," says Anthony Hsieh, president of LendingTree.

The risk of waiting

Potential buyers see warning signs of a speculative market but worry they run a bigger risk if they wait and prices jump still higher. "People have been saying for years now, 'The bubble is going to burst.' It hasn't happened, and my friends who bought three years ago have tripled the value of their property," says Bridger McGaw, 30, seeking a Washington, D.C., condo.

McGaw has lost out on several properties, including one in a bidding war that pushed the cost $70,000 over the $319,000 listing.

Phoenix's Harness and Bob Waldron, a real estate agent at Coldwell Banker in Los Angeles, say buyers trying to break into the market are being hurt by speculators snapping up lower-priced homes that have more appreciation potential.

Home builders are trying to tamp down speculative buying by writing contract clauses allowing them to cancel a sale if an owner does not live in a home or to take a share of the profit if a house is quickly resold.

Home prices don't always go up. In Boston, median home prices fell 6% in the early 1990s, and were down 13% in Worcester, Mass. In New Haven, Conn., prices dropped 21% from the late 1980s through the mid-1990s. Since the late 1990s, prices and volume have moved at a heady pace, lately fueled by Fed interest-rate cuts.

Today, a typical existing home costs 3.5 times a median family income, compared with a longstanding 2.7 ratio, according to Goldman Sachs, which says affordability is still not too bad because interest rates are low. But in hot markets on the coasts, price ratios are near peak levels of 1981 and 1989, which were followed by some sharp corrections. The earlier price-ratio peaks occurred when interest rates were at highs, not lows, however. If the price gains continue, affordability could become the worst ever in those pricey areas within the next year, the firm says.

Prices have not been rising uniformly, however. Prices from late 2003 to late 2004 rose 32% in Nevada, 23% in California and 23% in Washington, D.C., but less than 4% in Indiana and Ohio, according to OFHEO.

"It's like a cake when you open (the oven door), and it sinks in the middle and gets burned around the edges. There really is not a housing bubble in the middle of the country," says David Kelly, chief economist of Putnam Investments.

Mary Kuhlmann, a real estate agent at Woods Bros. in Lincoln, Neb., tells sellers it takes 45 to 60 days to move a home. The average price for a new starter home is $165,000 to $199,000.

"In the last four months, our homes probably have been lingering a little longer. We went through a downtime, unusually," she says, adding spring sales are heating up.

But Dean Baker of the Center for Economic and Policy Research says the fact that prices haven't risen as fast in parts of the Midwest and South isn't much cause for solace.

"There is an argument there is no national market. Fine. There are regional markets where prices are sufficiently overvalued. ... They are sufficiently large that it affects the national data," says Baker, adding he thought the real estate bubble would have popped by now.

The slowdown that wasn't

For a time late last year, it looked as though the long-predicted slowdown was arriving. Katherine Race Brin, 29, entered the Washington, D.C., market gingerly in November, but she and her husband, Lawrence, ended up getting the first house they went for.

"Our Realtor was saying all these people were talking about how the bubble may be bursting. ... For our house, in a pretty sought-after area, there was only one other bidder, and we only had to pay 1% above what they were asking," says Katherine Race Brin, adding that the sellers got 35% more than they paid for it two years earlier.

Since the first of the year, the local market has heated up, with prices rising 10% to 15%. A friend of Brin's bid on, but didn't get, a house down the block, which went for $100,000 above the asking price.

Existing-home sales and new-home sales both posted large gains in March, with existing-home prices up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis — the biggest gain since 1980. Interest rates, which briefly rose to about 6% for a 30-year fixed mortgage are back to about 5.75%.

The NAR expects existing-home sales to decline about 1.2% this year and new-home sales to slip 2.5%. Prices are expected to rise 7%.

But most say after years of such predictions, who knows?

"In 2004, the market had an adjustment during the last two quarters," says Waldron, the Los Angeles real estate agent. "Then in January, it started all over again. Boom. It's back into multiple offers."

Ninjas!

Cam'ron gets shot

Rapper Cam'ron was shot and wounded early Sunday morning during a carjacking that went wrong, and was treated at Howard University Hospital. According to his manager, Big Joe, he was stopped at a traffic light around midnight when a man attempted to steal his Lamborghini. When Cam'ron refused to give up the car and tried to drive away, the gunman fired a single shot which went through both of Cam'ron's arms.
'People are foolish if they think I'm going to lose my head and give up anything to anyone just because someone threatens me,' Cam'ron said in a statement. 'I'm doing OK. It takes more than a botched carjacking to keep me down.'
I'm curious as to how the carjacker could be so stupid, though. When a Lamborghini drives by, pretty much everybody within a 100 meter radius is staring at it, so what kind of genius decides that that's the time to make their move and try to steal the damn thing? Maybe these idiots should aim a little lower and go for the Honda Civics parked in an alleyway, leaving the celebrity Lamborghinis to more capable carjackers. Like ninjas. Or really strong monkeys with swords."

'Wallace and Gromit' Props Ruined in Fire

LONDON (AP) – A day of celebration has turned to ashes for Aardman Animations, the English studio that created animated clay movie stars Wallace and Gromit. Aardman said an early morning fire on Monday gutted its warehouse in this western English city, destroying a priceless archive of props, sets and models. Aardman had just learned that "The Curse of the Were-Rabbit," the first full-length adventure for the eccentric inventor and his indomitable dog, had topped the US box office on its opening weekend. The Avon Fire and Rescue service said the roof and three interior walls of the Victorian warehouse collapsed in the blaze, which broke out at about 5:30 a.m. local time. The cause of the fire was being investigated. Sheriff said the warehouse contained sets, props and models from all the company's past productions, from the children's cartoon character "Morph" through the Oscar-winning, anthropomorphic "Creature Comforts" series to the Wallace and Gromit films. Aardman said the sets and props from "Curse of the Were-Rabbit" were not caught in the blaze.

Paparazzi Protection

PI poster

PI poster, originally uploaded by yojayy.

It's official.

Waiting... 10/8/2005

group waiting poster, originally uploaded by yojayy.

We all went and we all laughed.

Waiting... opens 10/7/2005!

Listed at the PI AMC, originally uploaded by yojayy.

Waiting... has finally opened. My line made the final cut. I did not, in fact, name my daughter chlamydia.

Old Mickey & Minnie toy

Accoring to flickr.com, this toy, by Tipp & Co. sold for £11,000

Mickey and Minnie in tinplate, originally uploaded by Christopher Proudlove.

The dark side of faith - Los Angeles Times

He found that the most religious democracies exhibited substantially higher degrees of social dysfunction than societies with larger percentages of atheists and agnostics. Of the nations studied, the U.S. — which has by far the largest percentage of people who take the Bible literally and express absolute belief in God (and the lowest percentage of atheists and agnostics) — also has by far the highest levels of homicide, abortion, teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.
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Arguably, Paul's study invites us to conclude that the most serious threat humanity faces today is religious extremism: nonrational, absolutist belief systems that refuse to tolerate difference and dissent.