03.31.2006 | links for 2006-03-31
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Holy crap! The three surviving Replacements just recorded two new tracks for the new Best-Of. More! More! More!
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This is the best Fluxblog post ever written.
03.30.2006 | Pulling Teeth
>> I'm having my wisdom teeth -- theoretically, all four of them -- pulled out tomorrow morning at 9 AM. I'm reeeaaaallly not looking forward to the procedure, or its immediate aftermath, though in the long term I'm very glad to be having it done. However, I'll likely be too busy spitting blood and moaning loudly at everyone within earshot to do anything fun or blog-worthy this weekend, though I do plan to watch a hell of a lot of movies. And who knows, maybe the painkillers will allow me the mental lucidity to get some writing done, though I strongly doubt it.
Gah. I'm not looking forward to subsisting entirely on butterscotch pudding and soup for the next several days. If you've got any suggestions for foods to eat during the recovery period, or just general notes on the experience, leave them in the comments... but DO NOT RECOMMEND APPLESAUCE. I fucking HATE applesauce. It's my sworn Food Enemy, and simply being around it makes me nauseous. So DON'T DO IT OR I'LL MARK YOUR COMMENT AS SPAM.
Gah. I'm not looking forward to subsisting entirely on butterscotch pudding and soup for the next several days. If you've got any suggestions for foods to eat during the recovery period, or just general notes on the experience, leave them in the comments... but DO NOT RECOMMEND APPLESAUCE. I fucking HATE applesauce. It's my sworn Food Enemy, and simply being around it makes me nauseous. So DON'T DO IT OR I'LL MARK YOUR COMMENT AS SPAM.
03.30.2006 | links for 2006-03-30
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A blog dedicated to comic book cover design. Very readable, and I'm reeeeaaally looking forward to that James Jean interview...
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An update on the recording progress of the new Annie album -- Richard X will be in the house. HUZZAH.
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This is a great idea: spray-paint compass directions at the exits to subway stations, to prevent disorientation... on a related note, Greenpoint Ave. is the only station I've seen where the signs are wrong about which direction the exit faces.
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Pesto recipe. I *adore* pesto, but the supermarket kind never satisfies me. I must make this.
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AWESOME -- a collection of the sound-effect title cards flashed across the scene in the 60s BATMAN TV show. Which is a show I do not love, but yes, the sound effects are a seminal bit of pop culture...
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So who wants to buy me a belated birthday present?
03.29.2006 | links for 2006-03-29
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T. Rex takes on the immortal question: Who'd win in a fight, Superman or Batman?
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Hmm, this sounds kinda delicious, though I've never cooked a whole chicken before...
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Aw, fuck. So that's that, then: Mitch Hurwitz is not planning to come back as the showrunner for ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT; therefore, the Showtime deal is dead in the water and the show is effectively over for good. More later...
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List of startup commands for various modes in Mac OS X. I just know I'm gonna want these someday...
03.28.2006 | links for 2006-03-28
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August drew me a birthday squid. Thanks, dude! (Though the odds that I would actually attempt battle with a squid are significantly smaller than the odds that I would simply bow down before it in mindless supplication.)
03.25.2006 | links for 2006-03-25
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Interesting article on Platial, a Google Maps-based location-markup service, and related socially-oriented mapping software.
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Today's delicious, delicious lunch. I really ought to tap the resource that is Ninth Avenue more often.
03.24.2006 | links for 2006-03-24
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They did reshoots on 'Snakes On A Plane' to make it a harder R, and to add the Sam Jackson line that the Internet has clamored for ("I want those mother****ing snakes off this mother****ing plane!")
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The Squid Blog. Don't ask me how I hadn't bookmarked this yet.
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AAAGH AAAGH A NEW ZELDA GAME AND IT'S FOR THE DS. I WANT I WANT I WANT.
03.23.2006 | The Best Gift I Could Ever Receive
>> Today's winner for e-mail of the day (and it's not even 10:30 AM yet) is Jackie:
Happy birthday. I got you this picture:
And yes, it is my birthday, I'm 24 today. Happy birthday to me! (Yeah, I'm shameless.) It's already shaping up to be a more pleasant birthday than most I've had -- my birthdays tend to be underwhelming -- and the real fun doesn't take place until Saturday, when I stuff meat in my face at Peter Luger and sing karaoke until dawn (or until I vomit)...
And I've just learned that I share my birthday with Ric Ocasek, Damon Albarn, and Chaka Khan. I would kill to have a birthday dinner with that crowd someday!
Happy birthday. I got you this picture:
And yes, it is my birthday, I'm 24 today. Happy birthday to me! (Yeah, I'm shameless.) It's already shaping up to be a more pleasant birthday than most I've had -- my birthdays tend to be underwhelming -- and the real fun doesn't take place until Saturday, when I stuff meat in my face at Peter Luger and sing karaoke until dawn (or until I vomit)...
And I've just learned that I share my birthday with Ric Ocasek, Damon Albarn, and Chaka Khan. I would kill to have a birthday dinner with that crowd someday!
03.23.2006 | links for 2006-03-23
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The rise of the "paperback original" as a quality-fiction format. I'm surprised this hasn't happened sooner, as I find hardcovers to be both overpriced and cumbersome... more like this, please!
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Popjustice readers submit AMAZING questions to AMAZING popstar Annie. Funny even if you don't know who she is...
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Stunningly large listing of comic-book characters' religious identities. Don't ask me what this is contributing to the world. (Via LinkMachineGo)
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TWOP poster runs into Jason Bateman, learns that Showtime has offered two 13-episode seasons; series creator Mitch Hurwitz now needs to decide whether or not to take the bait. PLEASE, PLEASE DO!
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Tom Spurgeon, comics critic, provides a list of the 50 best comics of 2005. Lots and lots and lots to read...
03.21.2006 | links for 2006-03-21
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This energy-efficient modern house is *gorgeous.* Oh, to win the lottery.
03.20.2006 | An Album Title Which Popped Into My Head On The Train Today, But Which I Believe Will Sadly Never Come To Pass
>> Kelly Clarkson Sings The Songs Of Stephen Merritt.
03.20.2006 | links for 2006-03-20
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Wow, there are a lot of great words for the @ symbol.
03.17.2006 | links for 2006-03-17
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Wow, I wish this would happen.
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Last night's dinner -- pretty damn good. I like Astoria an awful lot, and if space/price concerns drive me out of Greenpoint, it's becoming my #1 most-likely destination.
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Rather attractive-looking free font-management software. I've been feeling the specific font itch as part of the general redesign itch...
03.16.2006 | links for 2006-03-16
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"How Much Should We Hate Wal-Mart?" A relatively non-frothing-at-the-mouth analysis of Wal-Mart's business practices. Recommended...
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One guy's take on a re-read of the entire Chris Claremont X-MEN run (the first one, anyway).
03.15.2006 | links for 2006-03-15
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Jessica Abel on teaching comics (she's a professor at the expanding SVA comics program). She's my favorite comics artist whose work I've never read. (I almost bought LA PERDIDA last night, though, and next time I splurge, I will.)
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This might be the widget I've waited my whole life for. Oh, how I wish I was on a Mac at work.
03.13.2006 | links for 2006-03-13
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Free fonts! That don't suck!
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A Choose Your Own Adventure starring George Bush as a shameless transvestite. AMAZING.
03.11.2006 | links for 2006-03-11
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"People say 'If I win the lottery I’ll keep my job'... f you. If I’m still writing and my wife wins the lottery, I’ll walk in the middle of the sentence. I love the job, but let’s get real."
03.10.2006 | I Feel Pretty
>> OMG, New York City! Why you gotta be so pretty out today? You know I have to be at work until 6:30! You're so mean to me! God!
Oh, whatever, baby, you know I can't stay mad at you for long.
Yeah, I'm in a good mood right now. I chalk it up to scoring 430 points on Skee-Ball last night at The Mark Bar (with Simon, Dan, Bart, and Alex, who clearly needs a website if he's going to stay competitive in this social circle), but the weather, my recent promotion, and the impending weekend are definitely all contributing factors... still, when you add it all up, it kinda feels like spring is here. So if we get another run of frigid weather, I will cry like a little bitch...
Oh, whatever, baby, you know I can't stay mad at you for long.
Yeah, I'm in a good mood right now. I chalk it up to scoring 430 points on Skee-Ball last night at The Mark Bar (with Simon, Dan, Bart, and Alex, who clearly needs a website if he's going to stay competitive in this social circle), but the weather, my recent promotion, and the impending weekend are definitely all contributing factors... still, when you add it all up, it kinda feels like spring is here. So if we get another run of frigid weather, I will cry like a little bitch...
03.09.2006 | links for 2006-03-09
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This looks really, really hot, and I hope it's not as far from launch as they seem to imply it is. iCal has really never set my world on fire, but I've always wanted a coherent, well-organized calendar...
03.07.2006 | All World Cowboy Romance
>> As has become the custom when I don't write a proper blog entry for a while, here's a disconnected series of bullet points! (Apparently "li" is the official HTML tag of this blog these days...)
- The Oscars, while surprisingly watchable, were pretty much ridiculous. I'm really stunned that Jon Stewart has gotten such mixed reviews, as I thought he was definitely funny and had a lot of class -- sure, the opening monologue was pretty formulaic, but the opening video was hilarious (Steve Martin's kids! Clooney's bedroom eyes!), and Jon just got funnier and funnier as the night went on, even if the room didn't seem to agree (C'mon, that Baldwin gag was killer! Killer!). Big-ups also go to Lily Tomlin and Meryl Streep's amazing introduction to the Altman award, though for the full effect they should've had another three people standing behind them also having a conversation, unmiked. The awards themselves, though... woof. As much I was pulling for Jake Gyllenhall in Supporting Actor, I do think Clooney deserved an award, because when you tally it all up, he did the most great work of anyone in Hollywood this year. In fact, the more that I think of it, the more that I think Good Night, And Good Luck was, in fact, the best picture of the year (and as much as I enjoyed Hoffman's Capote, nobody but nobody impressed me more than David Strathairn as Edward R. Murrow -- he was so good I can't even start to put it into words). But it never had a snowball's chance in Hell with an Academy who actually thinks Crash wasn't unoriginal, uncreative, and deeply ham-fisted. Hurff. I would've nominated The New World for more than its cinematography, as well (which it didn't even win! I refuse to believe Memoirs Of A Geisha deserved all those technical awards). In fact, while I always thought those folks who dismissed the Oscars entirely were just being elitist snobs, I have to admit I'm a lot more attracted to that worldview if Crash is their idea of a Best Picture (same for Million Dollar Baby -- it was better than Crash, but still not the finest picture of that year by a looooong shot)...
And yes, I know it makes me a Bad Gay, but as much as I enjoyed Brokeback Mountain, I can't get too exercised about it losing (except for the fact that it was to fucking Crash). As mentioned above, I thought Jake "I'm Very Hot And Secretly Plan To Marry Chris" Gylenhall should've gotten the Best Supporting Actor nod, and it certainly deserved Best Score and Best Adapted Screenplay, but overall, that movie simply didn't set my brain on fire the way I perhaps would've liked it to. Alas. I'll watch it again on DVD and maybe I'll change my mind.
- How did I go so long without owning any Mission Of Burma albums? I just bought Signals, Calls, And Marches pretty much on impulse today and am not regretting it for even a moment. (I was in the store to pick up Goldfrapp's Supernature, and you all really should do the same -- you picked up "Ooh La La" from iTunes while it was free, right? And now you want "Ride A White Horse" and "Number 1" and "Satin Chic" and "Beautiful" in your lives. Trust me, you do.)
- I'm in a bit of a quandary when it comes to headphones. For the last year-and-change I've been using Shure E2C earbuds, which are crazy in-ear sets that have provided me with wonderful sound quality. In fact, it's so good that "normal" headphones now derange me entirely, both in quality of reproduction and their complete failure to block out ambient noise (listening to music on the subway is now impossible for me without in-ear headphones; I just get too frustrated). The problem is, they're a little flimsy. My first pair fritzed out on the left side within a couple of months of use (to be fair, it was during last February, which was particularly frigid), and when I mailed them in to the company I got a free replacement pair, no questions asked. But here it is a year later, and that replacement pair's suffering from the exact same ailment. I really love these headphones, and $90 (on Amazon) is about as affordable as good-quality in-ear headphones get, but am I a sucker if I buy another pair? Does anyone have experience with semi-affordable (i.e. under $150) high-endish in-ear phones that they could recommend? I have to have that sound isolation, and I have to have good (if not insanely audiophiliac) sound reproduction too. I like the look of the Bang & Olufsen headphones, but they don't look like they isolate particularly well, and I'm hesitant to sink money into something I may not find comfortable or sonically adequate. Right now I'm leaning towards buying another pair of E2Cs, but if anyone else has a better idea, I'm (oh God, wait for it, brace yourselves) all ears...
- This popped into my brain while watching VH1 Classic's thoroughly depressing (I'M SO OLD) Smells Like The '90s: Did anyone actually ever call 1-900-MIX-A-LOT?
03.07.2006 | links for 2006-03-07
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Polished Metal version of Adium. Might want to play with this tonight...
03.06.2006 | links for 2006-03-06
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I. Love. Steak.
03.04.2006 | links for 2006-03-04
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Comparing every stupid haircut to a corresponding DC Comics character. BRILLIANT.
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Spinosaurus is the new champ. JURASSIC PARK III was right!
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I wish I had enough recipes to justify buying this.
03.03.2006 | links for 2006-03-04
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Free FrontRow clone for Macs. I've only played with it a bit, but it looks very cool -- and works with Salling Clicker, the remote-control software I linked earlier...
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Comparing every stupid haircut to a corresponding DC Comics character. BRILLIANT.
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Spinosaurus is the new champ. JURASSIC PARK III was right!
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I wish I had enough recipes to justify buying this.
03.02.2006 | links for 2006-03-03
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God damn it, I wish I'd never clicked this link, because now I desperately want this phone.
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Shake Shack reopens in 18 days. I'm totally going down there on my lunch break some time. (And yes, I stole both of the last two links from A Whole Lotta Nothing.)
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I can use my cell phone to control iTunes, you say? Must play with this.
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