5.31.2006

ASBM, continued

Evidently, someone scratched a tiny, one panel comic on the electrical box at a local bar.



In my defense, they shouldn't put the electric main in the men's bathroom. The comic reads: Meanwhile: Woot!

Also, I need to 'shop out the words to a comic and send it over to the lads at whispered apologies. That Ryan North, always transcending bounderies even as he reinvents them...

5.30.2006

Happy Scared Angry Sleepy


Happy Scared Angry Sleepy
Originally uploaded by nekosoft.
West Plains, MO

Entirely Innocent Gun



Safe for work, but to Google "the term to which this refers" would be a really bad idea at almost any workplace.

Frequent pumping required. Seems as good a time as any to mention two of my very most favorite webcomics: Diesel Sweeties and Overcompensating.

Edit: Yeah, had to change the nomenclature to maintain AdSense.

5.29.2006

Things I've done tonight instead of writing

Drank beer
checked my email 15 times
Watched a sitcom because Alison Hannigan was in it
Watched a sitcom because Charlie Sheen was in it
Took a bath
Read half of the new issue of Wired
Looked at photographs taken with an ice lens
Read zen koans
Logged onto KoL to summon snowcones (can't play turns: not a stat day)
Played Tringo
Restarted Firefox
blogged

5.28.2006

The Daily Comics

I really, really love comics. Bound and printed, newspaper, webcomic, I love 'em all. Here's a small selection of the ones that I read daily via a webcomics aggregator (Comictastic, OSX):

American Elf- James Kochalka's daily sketchbook diary. The first few years have been collected into a massive and fantastic book. Yes, the comic is in this blog's sidebar, but it's that good!

Tom the Dancing Bug - this one's gotten a bit more political in recent years, but always very funny. I used to clip this comic out the the weekly paper and I have a bunch of yellow, decade-old strips floating around somewhere. I needn't have bothered.

PvP - Scott Kurtz gets it. The whole "funny comics" thing. Yep.

Frazz - Someone floated the theory that Jef Mallett is a penname for Bill Waterson and Frazz is Calvin all grown up. I know it's not true, but very much in the same vein as Calvin and Hobbes. Smart and funny, every day.

Daily Dinosaur Comics - Ryan North is a repetitive form ninja. His comic has the same six panels every day, and is always always funny. I've been cracking up continually reading his collected works.

5.27.2006

The Knack

The song "My Sharona" refers to Sharona Alperin, who is currently a successful real estate agent in LA.

Also: Dr. Kevorkian's defense attorney, Geoffrey Fieger, is the brother of Doug Fieger, lead singer of The Knack.

5.26.2006

Pay Me My Money Down

A followup to yesterday's post: Everything old in new again... I'm infatuated with Bruce Springsteen's Pete Seeger project, and Kwaya Na Kisser has a handful of live tracks performed at St Luke's in London on May Ninth.

That's an mp3 blog and the links won't be good forever, so get 'em while you can.

5.25.2006

Look, but do not touch.


P1000778
Originally uploaded by nekosoft.

Part One...


P1000783
Originally uploaded by nekosoft.
of Nick's plan for world domination. It's always good when your pants match your ride.

5.24.2006

My favorite kind of music (At the moment).

In the previous post about irony, the article from The Guardian speaks of art forms in this postmodern world as
...exclusively self-referential - its core implication is that art is used up, so it constantly recycles and quotes itself.

The other day while I was winnowing my mp3 library, I noticed that much of the music that fascinates me right now is... well, pretty weird. A couple dozen versions of Stairway to Heaven and Love Will Tear Us Apart, the last few Kidz Bop albums, Devo 2.0, endless mashups, Duluth Does Dylan (Revisited), the new Paul Anka album and a legion of random videogame covers, both NES interpretations of popular songs and symphonic arrangements of video game music. Nearly everything I've been adding to my collection lately builds directly upon previous work (rather than the indirect way rock music comes from the blues tradition).

Take that, authentic experience. Is it possible that I'm unable to enjoy music that I haven't heard before? Or is it just everything's postmodern already? Maybe I just know what I like. Sure, there's music podcasts and South by Southwest but it still seems like a lot of my taste in music is recursive right now.

5.23.2006

The Opposite of Irony

Is there a word for when something is expected to be ironic, but isn't?

Wikipedia has a thorough entry on irony, but shouldn't an encyclopedia entry regarding irony contain nothing about the subject? After all, that's what everyone's expecting. This is an instance when I would expect something to be ironic and it isn't. Then again, the outcome was the opposite of what I was expecting... the very definition of irony!

I guess the opposite of irony is more irony. That's honestly not how I thought I would end this post.

5.22.2006

Closet Theater - Curtain

I'm pretty sure at this point that the popularity of YouTube has made the existence of Closet Theater unnecessarily, but I couldn't resist a followup to a previous edition:

A fantastic parody of that awesome bouncy-ball Sony advertisement.

5.21.2006

Skyped!

After long last, I've finally downloaded Skype, the free-in-the-US-and-Canada solution for voice over IP telephone (aka free long distance over the internet). And until the end of 2006, you can call plain old ordinary telephone numbers via Skype for free. This is great for me, because the places that my cell phone craps out are the places where I have broadband. All I need now is one of those annoying Bluetooth headphones and I can use the telephone wirelessly and cost-free!

5.20.2006

The fight against robots is resumed

After deleting a dozen highly complimentary, yet entirely automated, comments from anonymous users I've been forced to turn comment verification back on. That's the annoying little word that a person has to read and type when posting to verify that they are indeed human. That little word is called a captcha, an acronym for completely automated public Turing test to tell computers and humans apart and is one of many tools in fighting automated spam.

The purpose of this robospam is to drive up the Google PageRank of the linked page, making it appear higher in Google's search listings. But the joke's on them: since this tiny webpage doesn't have any PageRank (no other pages listed in Google link to it) linking from us actually hurts them a small amount. Nevertheless, spam is annoying and thus the need for a captcha.

My favorite captcha (yes, I do have a favorite captcha... you will too) is the KittenAuth project, a anti-robot tool that has the human user select 4 particular cute animals (such as kittens, piglets and even baby hedgehogs) out of a group of 12 cute animals. The project is still being developed, but as soon as it can be integrated it into pikamac.com, I know it will be.

5.19.2006

Easily Suggestible

Oh man, now I'm all hungry for the entire planet earth.

The biggest sandwich in the world is the world.

5.18.2006

Internet outage continues...

Still no internet at my house, but luckily my favorite bar (with the aforeblogged appetizer sampler) has free wireless access and a much better ambiance then Dairy Queen. Also, Dairy Queen doesn't serve beer.

The new laptop is still awesome. Amazon has my model of laptop with a $100 rebate (thanks, DealMac).

5.17.2006

Internet Outage

The DSL modem fried the other night, so I have to do all my interneting from a nearby wifi-enabled Dairy Queen. I sometimes forget how dependent I am on the various internets but I really really really really miss it when it's gone. Luckily, the new computer is still working fine and the battery (which, as I recall, turns out to be another thing that didn't work on the old laptop) is strong and long lasting. I've got the brightness of the screen set all the way down, not to save battery power but because it's way too bright otherwise.

Computer sales secret: customers are attracted to the computers with the brightest screens, so make sure the brightness on the demo models is set to maximum.

5.16.2006

New Computer


Photo 8
Originally uploaded by nekosoft.
This is the first MacBook sold in the state of Missouri. So far it's fantastic. It's 2ghz with a built in iSight camera (which took this picture) and a DVD burner. The screen looks great and the processor is way, way faster than the 550mhz PowerBook G4 it replaces. This baby is loaded with cool features and uses magnets to make sure the parts that were broken on my PowerBook (the latch and power cable) will never break on this unit.

As I'm using it, it also sounds like it is "mooing" slightly, as the fan cycles on and off. It is slightly annoying. Perhaps I'll paint black cow spots on it.

5.15.2006

Flaming Tuba

Awesome!

On Grace

This morning I discovered a four-inch bruise on my ass. The bruise is shaped exactly like the door handle on my girlfriend's truck.
Coincidence? Of course not!

This weekend I was allowed to meet (for the second time) some of the girlfriend's friends. At the close of this rare event, I reached for the door handle, because that's what one does when trying to close a door. Somehow (I'm still not clear on the details), instead of closing the door, I managed to catapult myself out of the cab and onto the newly-planted grass below. I attribute the artful impression (done in blues, purples, and blacks) of the door handle on my posterior to my inability to grasp certain fundamental concepts of physics, gravity, and the laws of motion. As someone once said, "I didn't know it was impossible when I did it."

Could this be the reason the girlfriend doesn't let me hang out with her friends?

5.14.2006

Free Potatoe


Free Potatoe
Originally uploaded by nekosoft.

5.13.2006

Sam and Max are back!

The Sam and Max video game is back in production and looks great!

5.12.2006

Wordy Woes

I appreciate a good glossary.

I do not appreciate creating a glossary. Even a half-assed one.

My desk was covered in dictionaries today. I had three of them open in front of me, plus four more a mere click away on my "other desktop." There are only a few specific words that can be used to define a specific word. And while trying to define that one very specific word, one must chart a course between the sucking whirlpool of complete abstract nonsense and the sharp, pointy rocks of plagiarism.

Ironically, it's the easy words that prove most difficult to define.

Using words to define words seems to be a fairly ineffective way to go about things. Someday, I will create the first Doodle Dictionary. I will follow it with the Compendium of Contextualities.

Two More Turtles


Two More Turtles
Originally uploaded by nekosoft.
Under a bridge held together with old grader blades.

Tecumseh, MO

5.11.2006

What I'm Playing 5/11/06

Biggest news in what I'm playing: I just picked up a cheap PSP. Therefore I fully expect the normal retail price to drop to just about what I paid for mine. Anyway, I'm now just one system short of being able to play any game released in the United States, something I haven't been able to do since... uh... the PSP was originally released. I only have two games for the system thus far, as I haven't been able to find a reliable local source for used games. They are:

(1) Lumines - An awesome, addictive puzzle game. Simple to learn but hypnotic to play. From the creator of Rez and Space Channel 5. And only $20 brand new. If game systems still came with pack-in games, this one ought to be given away to every PSP owner.

(2) Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories - I picked this one up mainly for the homebrew uses, but I played it a little bit. So far I hate it. The game looks great, but the controls are awful. I didn't even realize the PSP had an analog stick until five minutes into the game (I thought it was a speaker). Turns out the PSP is an ergonomic nightmare. If I could plug a plain old PS2 controller in somewhere I'm sure I'd love the game.

Also, I'm still playing and loving Cities, a lighthearted MMORPG. Play a little every day like KoL, but you can see other players as you wander the graphically sparce landscape. Very amusing!

5.10.2006

Panoply!

Here are 925 versions of Monopoly. These would be fun to play: Yemen Monopoly, Gouda Monopoly, Patriot Act Monopoly, Stoner City Monopoly, Mormon Monopoly, and Possum Monopoly. Not yet existing but also probably fun: Monomonopoly (The Monopoly for people who have Mono).

Please note this list does not include non-monopoly knockoffs, such as Caseysopoly.

Cookies

My computer sometimes asks, "Enable cookies?" I say, "Yes, please!" and then wait for someone to appear at my door with a plate full of steaming hot, yummy cookies. Where is the Cookie Enabler? And will my cookies be cold by the time he, she, or it finally finds me?

However, those are not the cookies I came to talk about today.

At lunch today, I recieved an actual cookie (neither steaming nor hot), with this forturne tucked inside:

Beware of cookies bearing fortunes.


Naturally, I didn't eat it.

5.09.2006

Overheard

Person one: Speaking of food, my stepmother might not be able to eat food anymore.

Person two: ...

Person one: That didn't come out as conversationally as I would have hoped.

5.08.2006

Meat, Revisited

I've blogged about Hardee's before (In fact, recent posts have become so self-referential that I may just start blogging about previous blogging, setting up a recursive timeline that would threaten the very nature of reality). It's not that I don't like their food, in fact it's quite tasty and delicious, but the hubris they exhibit in their marketing is spellbinding.

Their latest creation is the Philly Cheesesteak Thickburger. When I saw the commercial for this I assumed it was a regular hamburger with various cheesesteak-related items stacked upon it such as cheese and green peppers and onions. Hmm, sounds good. The actual sandwich is the entire non-bread components of a cheesesteak plopped on top of a normal cheeseburger and then the bun surrounds it in the usual fashion. I'm used to this world of hamburger toppings: barbecue sauce, ranch dressing, perhaps an onion ring. Nothing out of the ordinary. But Hardee's decides that the best topping for a sandwich is another sandwich. A different kind of sandwich.

I'm not sure if that's brilliance or madness.

5.07.2006

Stairway

It took months, but this guy learned how to sing "Stairway to Heaven" backwards. Nifty.

Also, I discovered that the phrase "whose zoo" sounds the same forwards and backwards: a phonetic palindrome, if you will.

(via Boing Boing via Beware of the Blog)

5.06.2006

Secret fact about Free Comic Book Day

Although Free Comic Book Day comes but once a year, your favorite local comic store will probably have free comics long after the day is over. I really dug the Fantagraphics book, because it has a few strips by Michael Kupperman, better known as the Snake and Bacon guy. His newest series is called "Tales Designed to Thrizzle" and promises excellence.

Another secret fact about Free Comic Book Day: it makes one want to buy more comics.

5.05.2006

book sale


booksale
Originally uploaded by nekosoft.
"Book Sale
FRIEND'S
OF THE
LIBRARY"


You think if any organization would have their sign spelled correctly...

5.04.2006

Perhaps the most awesome drawing ever


A Squid Attacking a Firetruck
Originally uploaded by nekosoft.
Giant Squid Attacking Firetruck

Pencil on drywall

2006

5.03.2006

What I'm Playing Quickie: Tetris DS

Maybe I'm getting older, or maybe I'm just not playing video games enough these days, but the actual Tetris mode in the new Tetris DS makes my hands hurt! I think it's probably a matter of growing too reliant on the DS's stylus and touch screen. In any case, Tetris DS's Touch Mode is my fast favorite. This mode has a theme straight out of one of Nintendo's "classic" games: Balloon Fight. Never heard of it? It's a lower-res Joust rip-off. Theme and music aside, the game plays like a great solitary puzzler should: no time limit, freedom of movement and just the right amount of frustration to make it fun. I can see it being the only part of the game that I play for quite some time, and not only because it's the only part that doesn't cause me actual pain.

5.02.2006

Two Turtles


Two Turtles
Originally uploaded by nekosoft.
I think I'm going to register the domain name: picturesofturtles.com


Quick confession: I didn't have my camera when I first saw the turtles in this position and when I grabbed it they were finished. So don't think of this photo as "staged". It's a "reenactment".

5.01.2006

You know you live in an odd town...

You know you live in an odd town when you pay for something with a five dollar bill and the cashier checks it with the counterfeit pen.