Deep Thoughts & Mindless Minutiae

By the Grace of God...please make him stop.

2007-10-11T15:34:00.000-05:00

I know that I haven't posted on this blog in quite some time, and many of you have emailed me to tell me so. But I just had to share this video that was recently sent to me. Why, you ask? Because it's so O'mazing, and becomes even more O'mazing as it plays on!
Be sure to turn your sound up...WMV vid.
(thanks for sharing Mike!)

The Oscars, The Yawn

2007-02-26T17:07:00.000-06:00

In my opinion this was a fairly boring Academy Awards ceremony. Plus I hadn't seen any of the nominated movies yet (except for Cars and Monster House...hey, I have kids) so my interest was even less vested than normal.

But when Al Gore and Leo DeCaprio got onstage and overly-congratulated each other (I thought Al may publically kiss Leo full on the mouth as he did his wife years ago), I felt like I needed a nap!

But apparently so did Jerry Seinfeld!!!
And this was only 1 hour into the program!

The Oscar choices made no sense to me. Not in the major categories (like I said, I hadn't seen any of the movies), but in the minor categories. For example, how in the hell did Happy Feet win over Cars or Monster House for best animated feature? Is it due to a 'Global Warming Left-Wing Conspiracy'? Hmm...makes you wonder...

I didn't see Happy Feet, nor do I care to, because the thought of dancing and singing penguins just doesn't appeal. But did the director have to dress like a penguin himself? He tried to be cute and cleaver, but just ended up looking silly.

Another movie which I didn't see, Pan's Labyrinth should have won for best musical score. Although I haven't seen the movie yet (but definitely want to...badly), I have listened to the music from the movie's website. In fact, you can listen to the whole soundtrack from their Flash-based player (the controls are in the upper-left of the page). One evening at the computer I set it to play in the background, and fell in love with the movie through its music. It's so haunting and magical, and stuck with me for many days after. If you want to listen to the soundtrack to Pan Labyrinth, you can open this e-card in a new browser window, and all the tracks will play (you can also select the different tracks).

2007-02-13T20:28:00.001-06:00

'9' is an Oscar nominated short by Shane Acker, soon to be adapted to a feature length movie produced by Tim Burton, with the voice work of Christopher Plummer, Martin Landau, Elijah Wood and John C. Reilly. The storyline for the short is about a rag doll creature that fights a monster that has stolen the rest of his people's souls. Although you can view high-quality Quicktime trailers for this short here, unfortunately at this time the only full version is a low-quality Flash version here, but will give you an idea as to how cool this movie may turn out to be. While you're at Shane Acker's site, be sure to check out his Mr. Grenade. And although it gave me a good belly-laugh, I do not suggest you watch his animaion called The Hangnail if you're at all squeemish. Enjoy!

2007-02-13T20:25:00.000-06:00

Krapooya is a delightful animation of what can only be described as a 'nut' that falls from a tree and grows up to realize his full potential. Sure, it's weird and slightly creepy, but it's a well-made animation that's funny to watch. I especially liked the 'dream' sequence! The Quicktime version is here (38Mb) and a DIVX version can be had on the website. I wonder where the name 'Krapooya' came from? It sounds like kiddie potty-mouth talk!

2007-02-13T20:20:00.000-06:00

Here's a YouTube roundup of the Nintendo Super Mario Brothers theme music as played by various musical instruments. Don't miss the A Capella version (scroll down), which also adds a coulple of extra game themes into their performance. A 'must-see'!
Shown: Played by a Balalaika...whatever the hell that is.

2007-02-12T20:50:00.000-06:00

Remember how that bizarre promotion for the Cartoon Networks' Aqua Teen Hunger Force program shut down the city of Boston on Feb. 1st? Sure, the authorities were a bit overly-jumpy about these blinking signs, but in a post-9/11 world can you really blame them? I mean, it's not entirely unlikely that these could have been the work of terrorists wanting to give the finger to America...

And when your done with that video, play the game to Save Boston, complete with a musical score by...Boston (of course) and New England-accented dialog! Freakin' Awesome!!!

Pong, Anyone?

2007-02-12T20:44:00.000-06:00

The making of a homemade Pong wristwatch, with a build log of its creation and videos of the final prototype. This is so cool that if it ever gets mass produced, I'm gonna have to save up my allowance to get me one!

2007-02-12T20:42:00.000-06:00

This Old House's photo gallery of home inspection nightmares. More here and here...and...here. Scary stuff indeed!

2007-02-12T20:41:00.000-06:00

Here's Jared Hess' original short student film that lead the way to the feature film, Napoleon Dynamite. Notice he's not named Napoleon, but Seth. I guess Seth was too cool of a name.

2007-02-02T20:17:00.000-06:00

Elseware is an industrial design firm that takes a somewhat different approach to product design. Their product pages are fun to look through, but below are two of my favorites; The Aquariass and the Rocking Horse toilet. The former states that it "provides real health benefits by raising the knees above the waist, which facilitates a thorough expulsion of waste." Well giddy-up horsey!

2007-02-02T20:16:00.000-06:00

Cirque du Soleil will present a one of a kind performance as part of the opening ceremonies of the Super Bowl. Complete with their take on the Bears and Colts doing battle. This is sure to be better than the silly halftime show with Prince, so make sure you set your Tivo to capture it!

2007-02-02T20:15:00.000-06:00

Here's a sure-fire way to an injury! Let your coworkers strap you to an industrial robot arm and go for the ride of your life...or the last ride of your life.

Although the above video seemed to be an amateurish attempt at the idea, there are actually rides based on this principal, such as this one in the U.K. and another at the Mall of the Emirates in Dubai. But due to the time it takes to process a few riders, it doesn't seem practical enough to hit the big theme parks

2007-02-02T20:11:00.000-06:00

Speaking of Dubai, I would've thought it to be the last place in the world that one could ski, snowboard, or snowtube.

2007-02-02T20:10:00.000-06:00

Get your own R2DT unit to control all of your home entertainment. He's a digital video projector, plays your iPod, hooks up to your video game systems and computer, and moves via a remote control shaped like a Millenium Falcon. All this for a mere $2500 (ouch). But can he put out an electrical fire on your X-Wing? So sorry...you'll have to use the Force.

2007-02-02T20:09:00.000-06:00

Patrick Stewart has a terrific sense of humor about himself!
This was taken from the HBO show Extras, which I have yet to see, but will definitely rent on DVD.

2007-02-02T20:08:00.000-06:00

Some photos are best left without comment...

2007-02-02T20:07:00.000-06:00

"But the one variable they forgot...was love."
Brokeback to the Future
(thanks Andrew)

It's Damn Cold Outside!

2007-02-02T17:15:00.000-06:00

Here in the Chicago suburbs we're getting hit with a cold wave, and although this week was bad enough, it's only going to worsen over the weekend. So while our beloved Chicago Bears play (and win) Superbowl XLI in the warmth of Miami, I'll be coiled under blankets on the Lazyboy!
GO BEARS!!!

2007-02-02T17:12:00.000-06:00

All I could think of this week was the cold weather, which makes me want to just stay inside and hibernate. But if I did have to venture outdoors, I would want a pair of these gloves. What a brilliant idea for keeping your digits warm!

2007-02-02T16:45:00.000-06:00

Here's a very funny commercial for Renault automobiles. If you find yourself in a similar situation this winter, please call AAA first!
(thanks OC)

Un-Bear-lievable

2007-01-31T23:22:00.000-06:00

As I mentioned last week, Chicago is going crazy over the fact that the Chicago Bears are going to the Superbowl this year. And as it was when the 1985 Bear's team went to, and won, the only Superbowl that the Bear's played in, this time the city is showing their pride once again. And going way over the top about it!

At the entrance to the world-renowned Art Institute of Chicago stand two large bronze lion statues, which the city adorned with Chicago Bears helmets in honor of the 1985 team.

So this time around is no exception...well except for the fact that when they went to fit the new helmets onto the statues, the helmets didn't fit. In fact, one of the helmets cracked as they tried to make them fit.

The designers blamed it on the cold, which has been extreme lately, but I believe it to be the design itself. This time around the helmets were custom-made fiberglass and were designed to look like real football helmets. Great for humans, not great for lions. Back in 1986 the helmets were made of inverted Weber grills with welded steel sides. Sure, they didn't look like real helmets of the time, but they fit the statues just fine.

So the designers had to take the helmets back to the shop to enlarge them to fit the statues.

Today (Wednesday) they took the new helmets back to the Art Institute and they fit just fine now! A happy ending, but I hope this isn't an omen...

Additionally, the famous Chicago Picasso sculpture got its own Chicago Bear's makeover.

This city is getting out of control.
GO BEARS!!!

The Next Fashion Trend?

2007-01-26T19:49:00.001-06:00

Colorful stones popping out from beneath a Malaysian girl�s toenails have left doctors baffled. I wonder if they're worth anything? I mean, other than on eBay! This website had the best headline.

2007-01-26T19:49:00.000-06:00

Ever have one of those problems with your car that you can repeat for the mechanic? Here's a solution!

2007-01-26T19:47:00.000-06:00

Here's an interesting and versital design for a sofa (if you can call it that) that's quite out of the ordinary. In fact all the items on this German furniture design website are, well, far out, man. But just looking at this one sofa makes me feel so comfortable, cozy and sleepy....zzzzz

2007-01-26T19:46:00.000-06:00

The perfect table for any bar. But also works as a wonderful breakfast table should the kids get out of control!