Birds on a wire

I'm a sucker for birds on a wire and sunsets, so I had to shoot this as I was leaving work yesterday. I love the little loopdey-loop in the middle. :)

How to Spot a Writer at a Party

This post over at Not Your Usual Suspects made me chuckle. From the looks of the comments, I'm not the only anti-social one out there. Phew!

How to Spot a Writer at a Party

Sigh...

http://www.gocomics.com/lio/2011/11/01

This is Halloween! [Video]

Halloween preparations are in full swing at our house. I spent last evening gluing labels on little vials of poison and some bigger jars of sundry witchy/mad scientist/wizard-y things. The night before was filled with debate of what, exactly, ogre snot looks like (and then reconciling that with what I had on hand to create said snot). Strangely, none of our costumes are ready yet - they're all in various stages of "not done yet."

Besides being just plain awesome, this video reminds me that I forgot to decorate much outside! I guess I'll have to work on that tonight...

How are you preparing for Halloween?

This is me :(

I keep telling LilGirl I'm an example of what NOT to do when it comes to math. Thankfully, Hubby is a math whiz, so there's some hope for her.

Math Homework

I love Savage Chickens. It's one of my favorite web comics. Check out the site.

Great class on creating conflict in your writing

I recently took this class and I learned a lot. Cheryl is offering the class again in November. She's a great teacher!

CONFLICT MAKES THE STORY

DATES:  NOVEMBER 1 – 30, 2011

INSTRUCTOR: CHERYL ST.JOHN

REDUCED ENROLLMENT FEE: $20.

(a savings of $10.)

REGISTRATION VIA PAYPAL: http://cheryl-stjohn-workshop.blogspot.com/

REGISTRATION OPEN NOW

 

Only a little over two months left of 2011! Did you accomplish everything you wanted to over the year? Writing improvement challenges? A new story proposal? A finished project? Here’s an opportunity to sharpen your skills and be prepared for those new goals, which are right around the corner.

 

CLASS DESCRIPTION:

No matter what writing topic Cheryl addresses, she hangs the most importance on characters. Conflict is drawn from characters. It’s based on their goals, their backstory and their motivation. It is opposing forces that come from within the characters themselves.

 

Webster’s Dictionary defines conflict as “the opposition of persons or forces that gives rise to the dramatic action in a drama or fiction.” This definition is the essence of fiction, and we need to keep it in mind as we develop characters and plots. If there’s no conflict, there’s no story.

 

Conflict, of course, can be either light or heavy. In a humorous story, the problem may not be life threatening, but it still must be important to the characters. The characters’ motivations must be equally important to them. In suspense, the conflict is often life-threatening. All well-developed plots stem from creative use of conflict, and conflict is what keeps the reader turning pages.

 

In order to understand conflict and how to develop it, we must first understand what conflict is, what conflict is not, and what conflict can be. The elements that make up a story are so closely meshed that at times it becomes difficult to dissect and make a firm delineation between them. In a masterfully developed story, characterization, plotting, and conflict are all intricately entwined.

 

Cheryl will explain opposing goals and how to create conflict that will sustain a story. She’ll give practical advice on:

• Motivating characters
• Creating characters with built-in conflict
• Revealing emotion through conflict
• Internal and external conflict
• Simple and complex conflict

 

More info here.

One of my favorite Halloween books

Or, really, one of my favorite books, period.

I don't know what happened to my copy of Popcorn by Frank Asch (I hope one of my brothers has it) but while I was searching for a replacement copy recently, I came across Frank Asch's site, where he will read the book to you (and your little ones):

Popcorn by Frank Asch

Wait, I need to read this...

"Cultivating a regular daily practice of actually showing up and creating is the only way you will ever progress your talents, your ideas and you ambitions in creating."

From Theorist To Artist: Why You Need A Lot Less “How To” And More “Just Do” | A Big Creative Yes

Yes, this is me. Just one more article...one more grid to fill out...one more sticky note to put on the board...one more...Hey, where'd my time go???

via @thecreativepenn

The Stanford speech + LilGirl's tribute to Steve Jobs

Of course, this will be played over and over in the next few days, but it's a great speech and you'll only hear snippets on the TV news. Here's the whole thing:

 

Last night, when we first heard the news (via Twitter) we then turned to TWiT and watched their Tribute And Remembrance Of Steve Jobs, which was sort of a techie wake. It's worth watching - more heartfelt and in-depth than mainstream media's coverage, I think.

LilGirl didn't act interested and disappeared into my office where she seemed to be digging through the craft drawers whenever I checked on her. But after she had gone to bed, I found this on the kitchen table:

From Random

Sometimes she finds the best way to express her emotions is by creating things. In this case, that's superbly fitting.

Talk like a pirate, walk like a pirate...rap like a pirate?

I heard these guys for the first time on this week's NSFW (which isn't really "Not Suitable for Work" except that you might get in trouble for laughing too hard).

Cluck! Er, I mean, Arrr!!!

It's Talk Like a Pirate Day and the Savage Chickens never let me down:

Lots more here: Pirate Cartoons | Savage Chickens - Cartoons on Sticky Notes by Doug Savage

(Yes, I had to sneak Star Wars in)

Awww, isn't that sweet...wait...what?

When I look at photographer Trey Ratcliff's blog, I usually skip to the photo at the bottom, then go back up and read the stuff at the top which explains the photo, thus my initial reaction to this photo was "Ooooh, that's just the most perfect old French cottage!"

Click through for full size

Then I read the photo description. Of course it's "the most perfect old French cottage," that's what it was painstakingly designed to be: It's part of the “Hameau de la Reine," Marie Antoinette's own sort of Disney-fied version of a French hamlet. I'd heard of it, but had never seen a picture before.

Anyway, it's still a nice photo, so here ya go.

Tiny House in France

Ghostbusters is coming back to theaters

I'm actually kind of excited about this. It's not a reboot, and as far as I know it's not having 3D added, it's THE MOVIE in all its unadulterated unaltered-ness (yes, I'm looking at you, George Lucas). WooHoo! (So maybe "kind of excited" is an understatement. Sosueme.)

‘Ghostbusters’ to Get Theatrical Rerelease (via /Flim)

Movie Night: Your Highness

We watched Your Highness last weekend. I had pretty low expectations for this movie, and even those weren't met. I love screwball comedy, but when it seems to have been written by a bunch of horny 14-year-old boys, that just doesn't cut it. Done right, this could have been something like the Spaceballs of the sword-and-sorcery genre, but it was just a bunch of  bad accents, puerile jokes and sexism hung on a flimsy plot.

Normally, if I don't like a movie, I can still see where someone would enjoy if they were "into that sort of thing" like war movies, horror movies, or whatever other genre I don't usually go for. I can usually pull some redeeming value from even the worst movies, or at least come away with a "well, they tried, it just didn't work" sort of attitude. But with Your Highness, I really just want those 102 minutes of my life back. I really can't recommend that anyone rent it.

I wrote this review on Sunday, but let it sit for a few days to see if I still felt this way before publishing it. Yep, still do, even though I think said review has a "You kids get off my lawn" feeling. Maybe I'm just getting old, but man, I was really disappointed in this movie.

Following weather events with a Twitter list

Hurricane Irene, August 26, 2011
by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

I've been curating a list on Twitter for weather events for some time, but it just occurred to me today that I should make it public (I usually make my lists private by default) and let others know it's there. It's been great for following the progress of Hurricane Irene without having to be glued to the TV (or even the computer, since I can check the list using my smartphone).

The list is by no means exhaustive and it's constantly growing. I've tried to throw in nationally known meteorologists (from the networks, for example), some government agencies, and some storm chasers. I add more as I come across accounts which are relevant.

The few locally-based accounts I included are mostly focused on eastern Nebraska. This is really all the list was when I began, but I started adding accounts with broader coverage after the tornado in Joplin, MO this summer.

I've also added some earthquake-related accounts. I didn't feel like making a separate list when I only had a couple accounts for those and there's quite a bit of overlap in reportage. (On a side note, did you know that you can Google "earthquake" and Google will put a list of the most recent earthquakes at the top of the search results? It's handy.)

The great thing about Twitter lists is that you don't have to be following the accounts you put in there, so if you don't want a lot of extra noise in your main Twitter stream, but you want to be able to check on what's going on with a certain subject, you can throw the relevant accounts in a list and then check it from time to time. You also don't have to have a Twitter account at all to view the list, just follow the link.

Announcing: Mary's Ramble Annex

I've been a bit frustrated lately. I've had this mental argument with myself going on for some time about what to do with links I want to share, but don't necessarily want to write an entire post about. I sometimes share those on Twitter, sometimes on Facebook, sometimes I just hit "Share" in Google Reader which puts them on a public page at my Google Profile, as well as posting them to Google Buzz (where I never seem to go anymore, sadly) and the list of those ends up on the "Recently Read" page here (which will probably go away soon). None of these options are very satisfying, though. I'm basically just handing the links off to someone else to handle. They are shared in someone else's format, difficult-to-impossible to edit, and difficult to find again later. 

I've often thought about just sharing the links on Mary's Ramble, but there are nights I want to share EVERYTHING I see, and I really don't want to fill up someone's RSS feed, Twitter stream, or Facebook wall with a ton of trivial stuff. That's not what I feel like people have signed up for when they follow this blog. I'd like to keep MR, as much as possible, for the times when I have something of my own to share.

I've often thought about starting a Tumblr blog (or something from a similar service), but every time I almost set one up, I decided it really wasn't what I wanted. 

At last, I decided to create Mary's Ramble Annex. That way, if you're not interested in the five things I read when I couldn't sleep last night, you don't have to be annoyed by it in the feed from the main blog. But if you are interested, you can click through once in awhile, or subscribe, or whatever, knowing that it's likely to be high-volume and low-commentary.

We'll see how it works, or if it works. 

Yep, it's been one of those weeks

Click through for the larger version: The Brads - Twitter Week in Review

Meanwhile, I've been buried in a hurricane of paperwork since school started. I don't think I filled out this many forms for college, and LilGirl is only in 6th grade! I've had more homework this week than she has...

Yo Ho, Yo Ho, A Pirate's Bike For Me!

If only I could afford this...

If only I knew how to ride...

When we stopped in Deadwood, we checked out the old slime plant - doesn't that sound like a great spot for a Scooby Doo mystery? It used to even look like a quintessential Scooby Doo bad guy hideout, but now it's been renovated and just opened as the Deadwood Mountain Grand. When we were wandering around inside, we found the artists' colony, and in true Black Hills fashion, much of the art had to do with motorcycles. In fact, some of the art was on motorcycles. This one made me squeal like a little girl:

The Pirateglide by True Kustom

If you have any trouble viewing the slideshow here, click through to see it on Flickr.

It wasn't until I was editing these photos that the irony struck me of finding a bike in Deadwood with Ian McShane on it...or is that more dorky than I want to sound?

(Just in case you're confused now: Ian McShane, who played Blackbeard in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, also played Al Swearengen in the HBO series Deadwood)

Even the gnomes are bikers this time of year

We just had a great vacation in the Black Hills, visiting family (cuddling the new nephew!), playing tourists, and checking out the motorcycles which were EVERYWHERE for the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. I've got lots of fun stuff to post about, but I'm crawling into bed early so I thought I'd just post this little teaser for now.

From Random

I saw this pair in the window at Prairie Edge, one of my favorite stores in Rapid City. I'm not usually a big fan of gnomes, and these were on the large side (3-feet plus, I think) but I'd definitely love to put this pair in my yard.

My current wallpaper

I've started posting whenever I change my desktop wallpaper, mostly so I have a searchable record of what I used when, but also to share the wallpapers I find (and occasionally photos I've taken myself which turned out really well).

This was taken by Trey Ratcliff of Stuck in Customs. Click through to the post about this photo to see a much larger version and then explore the rest of his site - it's inspiring!

The cause of my dogs' excitement/drama this morning

"OOH, IT JUMPS! WHATISIT? WHATISITWHATISIT?"

I wish I was at Comic-Con...playing with Legos

Geek Heaven, aka Comic-Con, is going on right now. Even though there are so many other amazing things to see and do there, I think no other picture has made me wish I was there more than this one:

I'd be all "Yeah, yeah, you go see the True Blood panel or the Star Wars stuff or The Guild signing or all the other stuff, I'll just stay here with the LEGOS!"

photo via GeekMom: San Diego Comic-Con Day One: Star Wars Legos, Ewok Attack!

Friday Fun: Augmented Reality Cinema

I've got my money in hand for when this app comes out...someday. This would be soooo cooool:


Video Link

Website: Augmented Reality Cinema

Crepes for Bastille Day...Yum!

My first crepe!

Today is Bastille Day and GeekMom celebrated by making crepes and posting her recipe on her blog. I read the post and decided that I the Non-Cook (note the capital letters - I mean business) would make crepes for dinner.

Occasionally I get delusions of cooking abilities (especially when I've been reading My Life in France by Julia Child, which I have been lately) and hubby gladly steps aside to let me try my hand (especially on a hot July weeknight).

Later on: These are folded right, but not as browned
(still yummy, though)

Did I mention I've never made crepes before? But I can do pancakes and omelettes, and crepes seem like a cross between the two, so they weren't that different.

They didn't turn out too bad for a first try. I think the best sign was when Hubby and LilGirl both asked for more.

I'll definitely be trying these again. I'm thinking of trying the Nutella and banana ones next time. :)

Badgers Badgers Badgers Badgers...for 10 HOURS!!!

YouTube now allows 10-hour videos. Whatever they intended that for, in practice it seems to mean we'll have lots of stuff like this!



(Hopefully there's a link to mental help at the end of the video)

Original video (much shorter!) is here.

As if I didn't love my Gmail enough...

It just saved me from that embarrassing moment when you realize you forgot to attach the document that was the whole point of sending the email.

I think I turned this on when it first showed up in labs years ago (It "graduated" to everyone's Gmail last year), and I don't think I've needed it until now, but I'm glad it was there when I finally did.

Some Monday cuteness

by Attila Lábodi  

I came across this photo today in the featured photos in Picasa Web Albums (soon to be Google Photos) and had to share. Enjoy! :)

Field of Dreams 2

This is funny! Make sure you watch all the way to the end for a special cameo. :)

Field of Dreams 2: NFL Lockout with Taylor Lautner from Taylor Lautner

It's in the detials

Reality Check Comic Strip, June 21, 2011 on GoComics.com

Ever have one of those typos? I like to think I'm detail-oriented, but I feel like saying so is asking for the cosmic banana peel to trip me up.

Funnily, it does remind me of the sign my daughter made years ago to protest our nightly spelling practice.

It said: "No spling"

Obviously, she didn't get out of practice that night.

This just landed in my yard! #alienattack #irony

I kid you not!

So weird after this morning's post.

What to do if aliens attack today...hey, it could happen!

Happy Fourth of July!

I wanted to post a video of fireworks today, but what I shot came out pretty lame, and what I could find on the internet didn't impress me enough to post, so I decided to go another way. After all, one of my very favorite alien movies is Independence Day (see what I did there?)

So here ya go. Enjoy, and I hope you learn something you can use, too. :)


Video Link

Stay safe tonight, whether you're shooting fireworks or fighting aliens...or both.

UPDATE: This just landed in my yard!

A video game for Jane Austen?

Love it!

via we are large, people

Angry Birds covered by Pomplamoose...cute!

I knew there was a reason I meant to take a different way home

I inched past Memorial Park as the masses descended for tonight's concert.

When farmers play Farmville...

via GoComics

Personally, I just tell myself I'm playing a game called Interlibrary Loan...it's really exciting. Really. Trust me.

Furniture for my (small) dream house

I lurve this furniture. I'd love to put one of those Murphy beds in the guest room, and my daughter likes the desk/bed combos (although she currently has a loft bed with a desk underneath, so she's already half-way there). I think the coffee-table-to-dining-table is extra-special cool. :)



Video Link

My current wallpaper

I have a hard time remembering what I've used as wallpaper before, so I'm going to try to remember to post here when I change it (which is every month or so...I get bored staring at the same old thing). This way I'll have a nice searchable record of past wallpapers.



Shot last week at the Henry Doorly Zoo aquarium.

Anemonemonemones :) | Flickr - Photo Sharing! - It's CC licensed (Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike), so feel free to use it, too, if you like it.

Toe socks & flip-flops

Today was "crazy sock day" but LilGirl still wanted to wear flip-flops...

Flickr Find: Get back in your book!

Set on Flickr

We'll remember this when she wants her license

We took LilGirl and one of her friends to Sempeck's for go-carts and laser tag on Saturday. This was her first time driving the go-cart by herself, and it didn't go so well. She crashed in the first turn (steering seems to be beyond her whether it's on a bike, a scooter or a go-cart, apparently) and drove like a little old lady most of the rest of the time.

Eventually she picked up some speed, but in the final turn she crashed into the barricade so hard about a third of the go-cart was on the wrong side of the barricade. LilGirl had to walk to the finish and it took the attendants almost five minutes to get the go-cart unstuck.

It's too bad the pictures came out so blurry (apparently shooting at a distance in low light is the thing that's beyond me) but you get an idea from the picture above.

Somehow, I don't think she'll be the next Danica Patrick, though she might have a future in the demolition derby. ;)

These make me want my own mailbox

Geek Mailbox

Sometimes I think the utilitarianism of the suburban bank of mailboxes mid-block leaves a lot to be desired, especially when I see creative mailboxes like these: The Most Geeky Mailboxes Ever.

via @Etsy

Time for stargazing at your desk

Here's an awesome video of the Milky Way as seen from the plains of South Dakota. If you've spent your whole life in the city, you don't know what you're missing when it comes to stargazing in the middle of nowhere. This will give you an idea. Watch it in HD, fullscreen, in a dark room if you can.


Plains Milky Way from Randy Halverson on Vimeo.

If you're curious, click through to Vimeo, where Randy Halverson gives some details on how he shot the video.

New Blog: Creativity for Happy Endings

My friend *lizzie starr has started a new blog on creativity...

Creativity for Happy Endings

"How will this blog present creativity? Hopefully in a fun and delightful way. I'm gonna start out with a creative alphabet--words and concepts to define, describe and encourage creativity in all of us. And, no, just because I'm an author, it doesn't mean that's the only kind of creativity we'll talk about. I'll have guest bloggers with their own creative outlooks. I'll ask questions and… if you have questions, don't hesitate to ask! If I don't have a clue, we'll find the answers together. (If you build it, he will come.)" 

*lizzie is a great cheerleader who helps keep our local group of writers motivated. Check out the new blog and cheer her on!

Check out Christina Dodd's private stone circle

Author Christina Dodd has a STONE CIRCLE in her backyard. I'm so jealous! 

Check out her Facebook fan page for photos & the story behind it. 

Happy Solstice!

Can't see today's lunar eclipse? YouTube's got you covered!

Info here: YouTube Blog: Watch the lunar eclipse from anywhere

Amanda Huginkiss sighting at Seekerville

Paparazzi photo of Amanda Huginkiss

Fabulously infamous author of over 3000 romance novels, Amanda Huginkiss recently took time out of her busy schedule to interview my friend Sherri Shackelford for Seekerville!!

I was privileged to meet Ms. Huginkiss a couple times, and let me tell you, she was fab-u-lous!! I'm so glad Sherri got the honor to be interviewed by her!! It must have been an amazing experience!!!

Seekerville: Very Special Guest Interview. Amanda Huginkiss interviews Sherri Shackelford

Did I use enough exclamation points? I don't know...WWAHD? (What would Amanda Huginkiss do?)

A Charm-ing Group!

I know I've mentioned before that I belong to a writers group full of awesome, supportive ladies. It certainly bears repeating.

Rainbow Rowell just did a lovely column about our group which ran in yesterday's Omaha World Herald, focusing on some of the ways we support and encourage each other. One of the more tangible signs of support are our charms. The column features Sherri Shackleford's charm bracelet and talks about how we earn charms (mine isn't nearly as full as Sherri's, which tells me I need to get my rear in gear), but the charms are just one of many ways the group inspires me.

At our meeting this weekend, our "Goals Guru" *lizzie starr handed out these little inspirational cards. I've gone mine planted firmly between my keyboard and monitor where I will see it (Where I NEED to see it):

It's not all just trinkets and feel-good stuff. Our members (and sometimes guest speakers) give programs each month on craft, the business of writing, or critiques and brainstorming help. We discuss issues ranging from  changes the publishing industry is facing to challenges in just getting our "button" the chair.

Sometimes life really does get in the way and I genuinely can't make it to a meeting. But there are often meeting days that I wake up feeling blah, tired, and worn down, and don't really want to leave the house (like any other Saturday morning). I consider not going, for maybe half a second, but I always always make myself make the effort to go, no matter how low I feel, because I know that I will come home inspired, energized and ready to burn up the keyboard. Heartland Writers Group is a drug like no other for me. These ladies get me and they never fail to encourage me.

Check out the World-Herald story, and HWG's blog and website! If you're a writer looking for a supportive group, check us out!

Make music with Google's Les Paul doodle today!

Check out today's Google Doodle in honor of Les Paul's birthday (try it at google.com)

(This is just a screenshot, to play go to google.com)

It looks a little grey and odd and, frankly, dull...until you play with it. Then it gets addicting. It'll even let you record your work using that nifty button at the bottom. Here's what I recorded.

Update: The doodle has its own dedicated home page now.

Today in Random Songs That Pop Into My Head:

I haven't heard this one in years, but like a bolt out of the blue, there it was. Stuck. In. My. Head. Thought I'd share the earworm...

Awesome tiny apartment

My friend Cheryl St.John posted a video on her blog recently about a family of three living in a 350 square foot house. It reminded me of this video I found via PC Weenies a couple weeks ago:



I love the idea of small-space living, and although I doubt I'll ever go to the extremes the people in these videos have, I always find an idea or two I can take away from them to use in my life.

Peonies of Doooom!

A week after I planted my peony plant in 2008, we had a horrible storm here in Omaha which tore the plant up so badly I was sure it would die. 

Luckily, it came back nicely the next spring, but about a day after it opened its single bloom, we had a hailstorm which tore it to shreds again. 

The next year it put out two or three blooms and within a day or two, a storm. Flowers, gone.

This year the plant produced four blooms. They've been opening one by one throughout the past week.

The last one bloomed earlier today...

Batten down the hatches.

She makes it so hard to use the computer

Lap dog 1, Laptop 0

Angry bird?

He looks more "pouty" to me. I'm guessing from all the pinfeathers that he's just out of the nest & not too happy about it. We seem to get a lot of those on our deck. Last week it was a young sparrow of some sort, obviously in an awkward "adolescent" phase.

This looks like a wonderful place to curl up with a book

*sigh*

traditional family room design by los angeles interior designer Susan Jay Design

Via houzz

Superbusyday

I had the day off today. What did I do? Let's see...

• We started off with LilGirl's graduation from 5th grade. I can't believe she'll be in middle school in the fall!
• We went out to lunch because, well, graduation!
• We went to Lowes and bought plants.
• Then to Menards for more plants and some blocks and dirt for the front flower bed.
• We swung through Scooters for a little energy boost (mmmm, blended iced coffee!)
• We built up the flower bed and planted the new plants (geraniums, daisies, a climby plant I can't remember the name of and a yellow rose bush)
• We loaded the two dead TVs (which have been in the garage forever) into hubby's truck and he took them to Best Buy for recycling.
• While he was gone, I cleaned the garage to make room for the dead refrigerator.
• I scrubbed every inch of the dead refrigerator.
• I called my dad with a stupid question on how to unhook the water supply from the dead refrigerator.
• I scrubbed all the shelves and drawers from the dead refrigerator.
• I had a burger from Runza for dinner.
• More scrubbing...
• I showered and now I'm going to bed.

It's a good thing I didn't expect my day off to be relaxing because it reaallly wasn't.

Tomorrow I'm going back to work so I can rest a little.

Twitter throwing a wrench in my workflow?

logo via TEIA MG

Mashable: Twitter Users Get New Email Notification Options

This might put a hitch in the way I use favorites on Twitter. I tend to favorite things in less of an "I like this" and more of a "I want to read this later" manner. I send an RSS feed of my favorites to Google Reader which lets me look at things later on so I don't "lose" them in my twitter stream. I may have to re-think that practice as I don't want to unnecessarily contribute to full inboxes...

Do you use favorites (or any other Twitter features) in an unusual manner? Please share!

logo via TEIA MG

Adam Savage. Faraday Cage. Tesla Coils. Doctor Who Theme. Need I say more?

via @thinkgeek

How good is your gadget history?

There's an extra joke here, though you may need to be of a certain age to catch it. Do you see it?

Update: Scroll down for the answer:






























The schools are both named for an early PDA, the Apple Newton.

Milestone

So, this happened on the way home yesterday:


Photo link


Would have posted earlier, but Blogger was down :(

It's A Book!

I picked up the mail Saturday and discovered my brother & his family had sent me a package. Inside was the most awesome. book. ever: It's A Book by Lane Smith.

Here's the book trailer (containing most of the text...hey, it is a children's book*)


Video link

I found a great post on Lane Smith's blog about the evolution of It's A Book.

*Just a note: Even though it is a children's book, it does have the work jackass in it. I notice they left that out of the video. (Maybe they thought that might hurt sales?) It does add to the hilarity of the last line, in my opinion. But then, the book isn't for my kid, it's for me. Your mileage may vary. :)

The other great tragedy of 1912

Photo by Great Beyond

Most people don't know that back in 1912 Hellman's mayonnaise was manufactured in England. In fact, the "Titanic" was carrying 12,000 jars of the condiment scheduled for delivery in Vera Cruz, Mexico which was to be the next port of call for the great ship after New York City.

Mexicans were crazy about the stuff.

The Mexican people were eagerly awaiting delivery and were disconsolate at the loss. So much so that they declared a national day of mourning which they still observe today.

It is known, of course, as...

Sinko de Mayo

(Yes, it's a groaner)

This joke is all over the internet, but I found this particular telling at Urban Dictionary.

As a woman, I can say I have absolutely no interest in this phone

via This is my next

"We don’t know much about what version of Android this will be running, but our source did tell us that the mockups had shopping comparison and calorie counting apps — you know, because every woman watches the pounds. We also heard that “calming” adjective used to describe the wallpaper. "

You know, because I couldn't add those myself (if I wanted them), or change the wallpaper.

And that's not all, wait until you read about the "charm indicator" (oh, if only that name was a joke): HTC Bliss: a Verizon Android phone for women? 

From the comments: "with any luck, this'll be the dumbest thing I read today"

I can only hope so.

I don't need a "women's phone" just a phone. KTHXBAI 

May the Fourth Be With You! #starwarsday [Video]

This one's apparently been around for awhile, but I just discovered it. Super cute!



Video link