Caption Contests

One of my guilty pleasures is the "CAPTION THIS" contest on dlisted. Sure, 75% of the time, I'm resisting the urge to gag at whatever new NSFW image Michael K posts for the day, but every once in a while, some real gems shine through. My favorite one of the moment:
I'm always curious about the bizarre circumstances that lead to the moments like that.

Ditto to this one I've been seeing float around for a while. If anyone knows how it came to play, I'd really like to know. I'm assuming it was just some clever photoshop, but if it's legitimate, it's a crack up.

No explanation really needed for this picture. I'm just impressed at whoever managed to get the guy to not only pose like that, but sign off on the picture release. Modeling is weird.

Hiro's Coming Home Today!

Help out the great place that let us adopt him (click below):


Further continuation of the crazy dog-lover theme of today:

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Road to the Doghouse - Puppedential Debate

Barack Obama Interview
John McCain Interview

Sarah Palin Video
Funny Election Video

2008 Moments

How I Met Your Mother is a bit of That 70s Show rehash for me. Basically, a somewhat mainstream sitcom comedy who's horrendous laugh track is overcome by a hilarious, talented cast with great chemistry. (Surprisingly, the fact that 75% of That 70s Show cast turned out to be fame-whoring douchebags still doesn't make me laugh less over old reruns). Anyway, nothing pleases me more to discover EW paying montage to their favorite 2008 moments by utilizing the HIMYM cast.

I'm gonna go home and put my head in the oven

Humorous Assholes and Clever Bitches
Jerk and insult humor can go a long way when it's done well. It's the perfect hybrid of the highest and lowest character denominators - reveling in the muck of nastiness but witnessing it delivered in a high-minded, intellectual manner. Pure entertainment gold. (And if said gold happens to be delivered in Logan Echolls-looking packaging, even the more better. Okay, last prepubescent VM shout out for the rest of the year, I swear.)

So the problem: too many people believe they can do it. The issue arises when people start acting like bitches for the sake of being bitchy because being nice just seems too dull. It no longer becomes about the issue at hand but more just letting everyone within your communication radius know exactly what trivial event of the hour absolutely deserves a verbal beat down because it irritates YOU and it must be known.

And more often than not - the delivery isn't even entertaining, clever, or humorous. Not just on a personal subjective taste level, but more in the smallness of what exactly is so bothersome and the sweeping, VERY non-intellectual assumptions made.

Sure, the line of humorous/offensive is very blurry, but I guess the whole point I'm aiming towards is that not every person is Gregory House and it's become increasingly more common to witness people believing they are, to very unpleasant results. What we get are hyper-critics who deliver mean-spirited, generic insults on unsuspecting individuals, all the while believing they're particularly unique, funny, and interesting for doing so. Basically, reveling in the lowest common-denominator but deluding themselves into thinking that they're in the highest.

Disclaimer time: I've SO done this. Several, several times. Hell, the case can be made that I'm doing it now. I still cringe remembering when I use to think I was so hilar-lar in taking such a strong stance against overweight people because no one else had the guts to be outrageous enough to say the mean comments out loud. My biggest regrets in life aren't about what choices I made or didn't make, but what behavior I allowed myself to not only exhibit, but think more highly of myself for doing so. I can only to look back in hindsight and realize what a huge insecure douchebag I was and hope I have enough foresight that I don't have another ego-trip relapse.

Summary: It's very easy to be mean. It's easy to garner attention and feel validated by being outrageously cruel. It's not easy delivering legitimately clever insults on a regular basis (especially without a team of writers mulling weeks over the perfect opening and rejoinder). And it's especially difficult to be okay enough with yourself to just be nice and expect nothing in return.

Rich 50 is the middle class 38

Fingers crossed for Iron Man II and Batman III

Add Quantum of Solace to my ever-growing list of films that breach the incoherency threshold. It appears that the ongoing trend with follow-ups to critically acclaimed blockbusters is to bloat them with as many astounding action sequences as possible, which typically comes hand-in-hand with a convoluted plot that weakly links all the scenes together, complete with thinly explained superfluous character introductions/removals. I'm all for a revamp of the 007 series, but I find myself longing for the good ol' days of the basic Bond story line: evil man with evil world domination plan --> watch Bond defeat him spectacularly. On an appended note: my strong distaste for rapid edits and shaky camera work still stands.

Thoughts of me? Hey, I get it. Sometimes I'm up all night, just thinkin' about myself.

The main reason why I have zero desire to read or watch Twilight:
(excerpt review on the main character, Bella Swan, from the Washington Post)
"Edward's habit of constantly pulling her onto his lap or having her ride on his back further emphasize her childlike qualities....the overall effect is a weird infantilization that has repellent overtones to an adult reader and hardly seems like an admirable model to foist upon our daughters (or sons)."

In general, I've never been a big fan of the whole Disney Princess prototype - super repressed damsels in distress pining and obsessing over their prince. I'm even less of a fan that the prince is inadvertently the ultimate symbol of freedom from an environment of pseudo-slavery (i.e. under the sea, life with an evil stepmother, etc.). There's this general pandering fantasy message for females that in order to find happiness, only a man will be the true key to it.

Granted, most Disney movies are based on stories written and taking place during times when women were thought to be the lesser sex, so the general subdued/placated nature of the female leads is technically an accurate representation of the social norms of the culture. Plus, it's not like they're completely lame personality wise - it's just that the romantic plot device is.

Which leads me back to the Twilight series. As a disclaimer, my protestations are extremely unjustified because I've never read the book. Instead, I've read the synopsis, the reviews, and the movie spoiler. That's it. So yes, there's the strong legitimate potential that if I were to actually read the book, I'll quickly become one of the squeeing fans (my older sister included) lined up for hours before the each premiere. Look at what breaking my "no more teen shows" clause did with Veronica Mars.

But I can't wrap my head around a modern heroine who's only goal in life seemingly is to just be with her man. Sure, there are the general subplots of vampire families and werewolves bugging her, but her drive for EVERYTHING is revolving around a man. My internal feminist screams in protest.

But since I didn't read it, that might not actually be the case. Maybe Bella does kick butt in Hermione-like fashion and helps solve problems as opposed to create them in her obsession with Edward. But then again, I come across plot points where Bella goes cliff-diving to hear Edward's voice, nearly drowns, then is rescued by another "beautiful" supernatural male...

I'm just more predisposed to story lines where a guy actually has to WORK for the female's affection and not the other way around. Or even better, when both of them have to overcome their own personality defects to be with each other. I like an even playing field - not one-sided smoopyness. Or even worse: continual maudlin declarations of love to each other as a means to overcome life's obstacles. I don't find that horribly romantic.

In summary: There's been a lot of evidence contrary to my personal taste as incentive to not read the book. If someone wants to present an argument as to why the book is so awesome aside from it's easy readbility and intense popularity, I'll be happy to take a look.

I'm currently in the process of testing a theory that bad days are contagious. Basically, starting from when I got back from work yesterday (after hearing about my co-worker's not-so-great day), things have been sucking - not at any emo-inducing levels, but still not super great. It's just been a bit of a domino effect where little things just don't go as planned, emotionally exacerbated by Thorne's devastatingly adorable flat-eared guilty look when I'm yelling at him for eating the pool table. But then, I also have the theory that a bad day is typically followed by an exceedingly great one because of lowered expectations and emotional countenance. So, there's the potential that I'm going to have an AWESOME weekend.

Happy thoughts (to counter any potential fatalistic ones)
1. I enjoy my smart friends who are secure enough to admit they love stupid things and don't even bother trying to act like they're above it.
2. I'm pleased that I have yet to set foot in the mall for any holiday shopping.
3. I don't have finals.

Take My Money - Waste of Paaaaper

After yesterday's attempt at verbosity, my brain decided it had enough wannabe mental stimulation, so we're back to the lists.

Inventory of Thorne Destruction Thus Far:
1. Four pairs of shoes.
2. The Pool Table cover.
3. Three lawn lights.
4. One remote.
5. Box of band-aids.
6. Two coasters.
7. A pot of soil (inside the house).

I say, all in all, it hasn't been that bad. Plus, how can you resist this face?(for the record, he's hugging the "That's What She Said" cushion)


Interests that people list that aren't very interesting
1. Soccer.
2. Food.
3. Shopping.
4. Their significant other.
5. Drinking.
6. Preference for another race outside their own.
7. Money.
(Feel free to blare the "Hypocrite Alert!" horn any time you want.)

Shows I need to check out
1. Hustle
2. Burn Notice