Ego! Ego! Ego!: Linkage Archives
February 26, 2008
What teachers makeThis slam poem is a beautiful explanation of why teachers are so important and why how much they are paid is irrelevant to what they make. Talor Mali rules.
It's an inspiring vid. Kudos to my Dad for sending it to me.
February 05, 2008
WOO!Defeating Assholery, One Sexist Idiot At a Time. Freak Magnet lays the SMACK DOWN!
Stories like this make me happy. I hope I will have the courage to stand up to large drunken men if they ever behave like this to me or my friends.
January 30, 2008
Doing goodTwo opportunities to do good:
The Berkeley Humane Society's Emergency Medical Fund featured pet at the moment is a puppy named Uber. She was left in their drop box at 7 weeks old with a broken and infected jaw. They fixed that, but then discovered one of her legs is growing wrong and needs major surgery to fix. The surgery will cost $4000! So they're fundraising for that as well as trying to find her a home. If you can spare a couple dollars for her surgery it will make a big difference. And if you know anybody who'd be willing to take in a dog with some medical needs (her jaw and leg may need more medical attention as she ages), please put them in touch with the folks at Berkeley Humane Society.
My cousin is in training before being deployed to Afghanistan with his National Guard battalion and is doing a lot of reading in his downtime. Getting books through the base is not a terribly speedy process, so he's running low on reading material. If you've got any books you would like to donate to him and his fellow soldiers, you can give them to me and I'll send them along. I've already taken down the books I was listing through Frugal Reader and will be sending him a few at a time over the next several months.
January 10, 2008
What I've been reading latelyNew Yorker piece on Giulianni makes me loathe him even more than I did already. Ditto this An Oral History of Rudy Giuliani's Temper.
In a piece from Hilary Clinton's Senate bid a while back, Sars lays out why she hates Clinton. Sars says now that she hates Clinton less than she used to, but still doesn't like her. I also don't like Clinton, and I think the piece sums up well what those of us who want to like her but just don't are talking about.
...and Bring Back the Red-Blooded Bitch is a great article on bitches. Good stuff.
October 18, 2007
Animal hoardingWords fail me, so I direct you to Naamah's explanation. I donated. Wish I could donate more.
September 19, 2007
Avast, ye landlubbers!How to Talk Like A Pirate! Via Peter.
As usual, I failed to remember Talk Like A Pirate Day. Sigh.
July 27, 2007
Photos!I've posted a bunch of photos lately!
Photos from the 2007 All-Star Game in SF.
I also did a library tour, starting with the above photo.
There are new pix of the cats up, too.July 19, 2007
Brain Weasal Stomping DayThis is an awesome idea. Ganked from Graydancer. It has LJ-speak in it, but I think the basic message comes through: people are feeling down and bleah lately, so let's do something about it!
Wow - what is it in the air lately? Post after filtered post about how everyone is feeling alone, disconnected, unwanted. It's not like this is one or two people - it's like a rash all over my friends list the past few days. Male, female, betwixt, undecided, unconcerned...it seems to be an equal opportunity Brain Weasel.Clearly, something needs to be done. I think we need to have a Brain Weasel Stomping Day.
The problem, as I've noted before, is "it's easier to see the Weasels when they're eating someone else's brain." So this is my call to my friends list, and to your friends list, and beyond. This Friday, make an effort to squish someone's Brain Weasel.
Have a crush on someone? Post a flirty comment in their journal. Admire someone's skills? Post a comment about it. Just think a person is nifty? This Friday is the time to tell them. Doesn't matter if the post your commenting to doesn't have much to do with your comment. Just post those good thoughts. Trust me. People will appreciate it.
Do this for everyone - not just those you suspect are feeling down (After all, you might not be on their Brain Weasel filter). Take a few minutes and help launch people into the weekend with a smile. And...who knows? Maybe sharing how others make you happy will make you a bit more cheerful in return.
Yes yes yes! What is Snape?What Is Snape?, by Orson Scott Card, is a fantastic essay, and a must-read for anybody who can't understand why I love Snape and alternately despise and dislike James Potter. (In fact, it reminded me of perfectly good reasons to despise and dislike Sirius Black.)
I'm pretty sure he's wrong about LotR being written as a sequel to The Hobbit, though. I am under the impression that LotR was in the works long before the Hobbit was written, and although it seems like a sequel because of when it was published and some story elements, it wasn't originally planned as one. But I could be wrong. I'm no Tolkien scholar.
Anyway: good stuff. And I agree completely that if Rowling has a big reveal and shows Snape to have been a bad guy all along it will lack artistic integrity in the extreme (or, as I usually say it, show that she really is a shitty writer after all). Good stuff.
July 13, 2007
Various and SundryI'm too busy/tired/scattered for a good update, but I have several things in my browser I've been meaning to blog about, so here you go.
Meet the Joneses is an interactive comedy. Fans can work on scripts and stuff, apparently. Crazy.
Does Being a Feminist Mean Voting for Hillary? - Courtney Martin lays out her indecision regarding the woman who may well be the first viable female presidential candidate. Personally, I think being a feminist means judging Hillary on her merits, not her gender, so I will not be voting for her in the primaries. I can't stand the woman anymore.
Dreams - an XKCD strip about thinking twice before posting on the intarwebs because a future employer might read it. Made me say "RIGHT ON!"
Fireworks Above, Trouble Below - it never occurred to me that fireworks, which I love, might be a nasty environmental hazard. Man. Now I don't know what to do.
Online Journal or Blog? - Mortaine's post is spot-on about the difference.
Nerdcore News on YouTube! OMG!
Okay, I'm Finally Sold - Rick lays out the last straw for him and why he is finally ready to ITMFA
July 09, 2007
New reviews upRatatouille, which was wonderful, and This Film is not yet Rated, which filled me with righteous anger.
July 05, 2007
Very interestingThe Loudness War. Or, how CDs are being ruined by idiot music producers who think everything needs to be OMG LOUD!!!!! Short, to the point, and very well-done. (Requires sound)
June 26, 2007
Whoa. Fundamentalist Christian spanking porn?Check out the post Christian Spanking Porn on Blowfish (may be NSFW since it's got mentions of teh pr0n, omg. Links from that page may also be NSFW. Surf at your own discretion). Boggles the mind, it does.
My verdict: creepy as all get out. Sure, it's nice to think that even fundies are kinky. It's nice to see by-women-for-women porn. But yanno, that doesn't outweigh the whole "this is all consensual, wink wink" stuff, or the fact that they wanna force their kink (and religion) on everyone because it's "God's will."
Oh, Lord, protect me from your followers.
June 20, 2007
Library!I've been working on cataloging my library on here on LibraryThing. I'm almost halfway done - I've got 437 books in the database. Rawk. Considering that for some reason my barcode scanner can't read about half the barcodes properly, I think I'm making good progress.
I'll be putting up a proper lending library page at some point, but I figured I'd announce it now: if you see a book in my LibraryThing catalog that you want to borrow, let me know! I'm willing to ship my books to you, even (Media Mail, so it takes a while, but it's cheap), provided you'll ship 'em back when you're done. You just have to promise to take good care of the book while it's in your hands and to ship it safely back to me if you're a shipping borrower.
See, I feel kinda bad about having so many books (over 1100!), since I'm so anti-consumerism in other areas of my life. But at the same time, I love my books and can't imagine getting rid of them. So I figure loaning them out is a good compromise.
I'm adding new books periodically, and will post here when they're all in the database, but head over now if you like and see what all I've got! (note: books I own but have not yet read are not in the database because they're not up for loan. It'll be too complicated if I start loaning out the ones I haven't read yet!)
June 18, 2007
Another announcementI keep forgetting to say that I've updated the booklog with a ton of books, starting here. D'oh.
June 15, 2007
Censorship!My buddy Earthdog recently posted an interesting thing about the whole Flickr censorship fooforah.
His point, in short, is that folks bitching about Flickr "censoring" them should put their money where their mouth is and donate to organizations that fight REAL censorship (yanno, the kind where they throw you in jail or kill you for printing the wrong things). I think he has a great point and plan on donating my "one-off charity" budget for this month to one of the orgs he suggests. Mind you, that's not much (I only have a spare $5/mo for one-offs, and there's no rollover from past months at the moment, as it's a new budget). But still.
And I'm not even in the debate, which I think is kind of stupid!
So, if you're all upset about the whole situation, please go read Earthdog's post. I think he makes a good case for putting your money where your mouth is.
June 12, 2007
Washington’s Farewell Address Translated into Everyday SpeechGo read. Seriously. I tagged it in my del.icio.us, but it bears repeating. So. Go read it.
I think Washington was wrong when he said you can only trust someone's oath if they're religious (I know a number of atheists I trust a damn sight more than some religious folks I can think of), but everything else is spot on.
May 17, 2007
Head of nail, meet hammer.Graydancer hits the nail on the head by rephrasing a neat quote so it reads:
If you aren't satisfied with your life, change it. If you won't change it, put up with it. Whatever you do, if you're going to talk about it, at least do it in a way that will entertain us.Amen to that, say I.April 26, 2007
Holy scalable vectors, Batman!Antwon is the man.
Quoth I, I can't put proper highway shields on the map for the wedding because I need scalable vectors to do that and I am not willing to make them myself.
Quoth he, How about these? And these? And these? Will they work?
Quoth I, Holy shit, they will!
February 23, 2007
Argh!Noooo! another awesome webcomic has sucked me into its archives! Damn you, Questionable Content! *shakes fists*
Whoever turned me on to this comic should be glad my memory is shit. If I could remember who it was, I would shake my fists at them too.
Edit: I botched the link, sorry. Try it now!
February 22, 2007
Made of awesomeMovie Military Madness! A list of things movies get wrong, by Sargon the Terrible. Awesome stuff.
Warning: one of the icons in the comments is probably NSFW as it features boobies. You have been warned.
February 15, 2007
PIMP!Junglemonkee's post on Valentine's Day is fucking brilliant.
Seriously.
Go read.
GO!
I know, I usually just del.icio.us everything, but this deserves extra pimpage.
February 13, 2007
VanityRich always takes the best photos of me. Some are silly, some are flattering, but they're all awesome.
February 08, 2007
how much time do you spend on money?
February 01, 2007
SpiffyRamit Sethri at IWillTeachYouToBeRich.com has a nifty series of photo posts which I totally dig. Check 'em out!
January 29, 2007
LET MORTAL KOMBAT BEGIN!My aunt is possibly the coolest medieval dance teacher ever. Check out this vid clip from one of her recent classes.
January 25, 2007
Quick noteI am posting links of interest to my del.icio.us nearly every day. If you're wondering what I'm reading, that's the place to check it out. I've even sorted stuff by tags and whatnot. Yay.
January 06, 2007
I am not a financial advisor, but... Issue 1First, a disclaimer: I AM NOT A FINANCIAL ADVISOR. IF YOU ARE BROKE OR LOOKING FOR INVESTMENT ADVICE, SEEK ADVICE FROM SOMEONE WHO IS, ETC ETC ETC!
Anyway.
Man. Money is a bitch. Seriously. But there is a certain sort of pride one gets from being on top of things which can't really be gotten any other way.
As some of my readers may know, I have a lot of debt. When I graduated college, I owed $80k and change to various financial institutions for paying my way. Goddamn private schools.
Well, I have recently lined all my debts up (car loan, credit cards, remaining student debt) and I am now only $70k and change in the hole. Not bad, considering that I finished school only 6 years ago and for all but the last year or so was living paycheck to paycheck.
I attribute this to a number of strategies, largely developed through long discussions with Antwon (who has hella financial acumen. Seriously. He was making wise money decisions when he was like six or something).
File under: I am not a ____, but..., Linkage
Posted at 05:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (10) | TrackBack (0)December 19, 2006
Ze Frank, with Studying TipsThese are actually really good tips. Seriously. Check it out. Ze is awesome anyway and if you're not watching you should be.
December 13, 2006
CF woot-eryOff the Mommy Track - a great article by a childfree gal about her child-bearing friends. I have to say, I agree with what she's saying 110%.
I am deeply grateful that so far none of my friends have turned into scary Hyde-Mommy hybrids. Hell, only one of them has even started down the having-a-kid path (and she promises not to make me hold it or babysit it, so yay). But I often ponder what will happen when my best gal friends start breeding and it makes me fret a little. Heck, I'm a little nervous that when my favorite male cousin's baby arrives he will suddenly be unable to talk about anything but the kid. Yikes.
Anyway. This article rocks.
EDITED TO ADD: There's a very interesting discussion on this topic going on over here at Feministe. I'm actually one of the posters, which is fun, even though I disagree with the main point being made there at the moment, which is that "breeder" and "crotchdropping" and other similar CF vulgarities are by their nature misogynist. I'm finding it awesome having a discussion with people I disagree with that isn't getting nasty. It probably helps that the people arguing with me are folks I really respect and excellent writers.
I strongly suspect that neither I nor they will be persueded to alter our respective stances, but the discussion is really making me think, which I like.
Text pasted below for the linkphobic.
December 07, 2006
Kittahs!I love cats.
I love silly photos.
Thus, silly photos of cats are super awesome.
Silly photos of cats with captions: even better.
Thus, I present to you, a collection of links to silly photos of cats, with captions:
Awesome.
December 01, 2006
Links found courtesy of Mr. GaimanThese were all found in various entries on Neil Gaiman's Journal. If you don't read it, you are SO missing out!
- Jack Chick parody: Cthulhu
- Jack Chick Parody: Fantastic Four
- Awesome weird video - made in stop motion! yay!
OMFGAn alarm clock which wakes you with birdsong and gentle messages voiced by Stephen Fry. Now if only they would make one for women... (this one addresses you as "sir.")
November 17, 2006
HorrifyingThis video is awful UCLA security guys tasered a student a bunch of times while other students were yelling for them to stop and demanding their ID numbers. The student wasn't even fighting back (though he was mouthing off quite a bit). Someone recorded it with their cell phone's camera, which was smart. (Warning, the vid is pretty disturbing.)
There's an article about it here. The UCLA Chancellor has a statement about the incident which is pretty weak, imho. "Stand up or you'll get tased again" is pretty clearly excessive use of force. This guy was on the ground from the shock of being tased and either couldn't or wouldn't stand up, so they tased him repeatedly. There were half a dozen rentacops there, they could have carried him out, but they tased him over and over instead. In fact, one of the officers threatened to use the taser on a student who was demanding his badge number, saying they would "get tased too." Disgraceful.
UCLA's security and administration should be ashamed. Kudos to the students who protested and especially to the one who recorded it (though the camerawork is pretty bad the audio is clear and utterly frightening).
More articles:
NBC11
MSNBC
CBS
Another from CBS - apparently the tasered student is going to sue. Go for it, man!I'm glad to see major news networks picking this up.
November 01, 2006
Jonathan Coulton rules.Check out Jonathan Coulton's music, which is geekariffic and awesome. I've been listening for about an hour now (I downloaded all his free songs, and shelled out a buck for Re: Your Brains, which is amply worth it).
Faves so far:
Re: Your Brains
Flickr
First of MayOctober 27, 2006
PodcastsI was chatting with a pal about podcasts yesterday. I have the 'casts I listen to linked in my blogroll, but nowhere do I talk about what I like about each of 'em. I also appear not to ever have blogged about the podcatcher I use, Juice.
October 26, 2006
AWESOMEWatch the video Dove | Evolution. Has sound but doesn't require it.
It's a time lapse movie of a billboard being produced, from the model's makeup and hair to the photo retouching. It's seriously unnerving. Reminds me of The Art of Retouching.
October 23, 2006
BrilliantKnowledge vs. Belief: a brilliant piece of writing in one of the communities I read. I've copied it below for posterity, because I really don't want to lose it.
October 05, 2006
Link RoundupDamn. Once again, my "blog this" bookmark folder is freakin' huge. So, here we go!
NewsTools
- Good Maternal Behavior Is Linked to the Genes of a Father - experiments on mice show that a gene girl mice inherit from their fathers determines their ability to be good mothers. Interesting.
- Reuters U.S. homework outsourced as "e-tutoring" grows - interesting article for folks in education.
- Wired: Smart Girls Need Smart Porn - a great review of Violet Blue's book The Smart Girls' Guide to Porn
Misc. Coolness
- Tasting Notes Generator - at last, a quick and easy way to get a bunch of things to say when wine tasting. Memorize and bust out with something cool-sounding the next time you are offered a glass of wine.
- The Random Cocktail Generator - Just input a few characteristics (what kind of cocktail you have in mind, how complex you want it, etc) and it gives you a recipe! Awesome.
- Snapmania - an online photo editor/manager dingus. Pretty nifty, though I haven't looked into it much.
Articles/Essays/Anecdotes
- Bartleby.com explains the subjunctive - everything you need to know about the subjunctive! Rock!
- The Hasselhoffian Recursion! AUGH MY EYES! Not quite up to goatse levels of horror, but still scary.
- Blood, Blade, and Thruster - a mag for sci-fi/fantasy satire! Awesome!
- Relix.com - Guitar string bracelets! Awesome.
- Special Agent Joe - cutest bomb dog ever.
- Papercut - lovely paper cutting artwork!
- Diary of a Freak Magnet: Sweater Girl - AWESOME response to sexual harrassment.
- Why The Venture Brothers is so awesome (via Antwon)
- Hope is still at the bottom of a box - fascinating essay by Naamah about her relationship to boxes, and why she paints them.
- Tangled Web - a fascinating essay about lying.
- Stories from the Front Lines - an essay about what it was like for one woman in a conservative California town in the Central Valley to work as an escort at a health clinic which provided abortions. She quit when a "pro-lifer" picked her up off her feet and threw her into a brick wall -- while she was five months pregnant. Scary, sobering stuff.
- Mommy bloggers and the hating of them - great essay about... just what the title says. Good stuff.
Brilliance.From The Quotable Neil Gaiman:
“Maddy: Dad. I need to know the truth. Are you famous?
Me: No. Not really.
Maddy: But there are people who know who you are, aren't there?
Me: Well, yes.
Maddy: And they think you're famous?
Me: Some of them do, I suppose, yes. Why?
Maddy: Well, you see, I've been looking at people a lot recently. People in cars. And sometimes I think that maybe they're movie stars or people I've seen on the TV. And I thought to myself, "Don't be silly. People on the TV wouldn't just be driving about." But then I thought about you. I mean there are people who'd see you, and go "He wouldn't just be driving about" and you are. So I think probably they are movie stars after all.”
– Neil Gaiman [Quoting Maddy Gaiman] 09/20/02That's absolutely brilliant, and fits in with something Nick Lea said to me when I met him at an X-Files convention.
Nick: So, how are you?
Me: Um, honestly, a bit nervous.
Nick: Why? We're just people.Awesome. Famous people really are just people. I suppose some of them let the fame go to their head and become asshats, or get freaked out by the fame and hide, but the cool ones are just folks. Awesome.
October 02, 2006
White and NerdyWeird Al proves yet again that he is White and Nerdy - yay for a big artist shoutin' out the nerdcore love.
(via joiedelivre.)
Also, miniupdate: feeling much much much better, thanks for all the well wishes! I am about 95% back to "normal" (hee) now, so yay!
September 08, 2006
WhoaWhoa. Mystic Atheism.
My mind, she is blown.
MiscellaneaDamn you, Emusic! I was doing so well getting on with my music sorting project, but now I've gone and downloaded nearly a hundred more songs from you! ARGH!!!! *headdesk*
Albums downloaded today:
- PJ Harvy, Dry
- Burning Brides, Leave No Ashes
- Brain Donor, Brain Donor
- Clannad, Dulaman
- Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Fetish
- John Lee Hooker, Boom Boom
- Mediaeval Baebes, The Rose
- The Coup, Party Music
So now I have more music, yay, but at the same time I am a lot further from finishing the damn sorting project - which I really want to have done asap so I can have all the newly sorted music on my Neuros when I fly out for Annie's wedding next week (NEXT WEEK OMGWTF HOW DID IT GET TO BE THAT SOON AUGH!).
*sigh*
Oh, well. If all else fails, I'll use some half-assed hack to finish. Like labelling all the ones I haven't sorted yet as "uncategorized" or something. Yeah.
File under: Geekiness, Linkage, Pure Ego!
Posted at 12:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)September 06, 2006
Childfree awesomenessCheck out Mike Rowe's reply to a rather personal question. It's brilliant. He sums it all up with a great short answer:
Here’s my answer. My reasoning for not having kids is due to the fact that I’m selfish. And if I ever change my mind and decide to have a family, my reasoning will be the same.Perfect. He's honest without being a dick, and explains his reasoning without being condemning of parents. Good on him. I should start watching his show.
September 01, 2006
On a more cheerful noteThis music video is awesome. (requires sound, obviously) Who knew Badly Drawn Boy was so warm and fuzzy?
Family Guy: The Best of Stewie Griffin. I adore Stewie. He is so awesome.
Another awesome music video - vikings fighting each other with heavy metal guitar and a marching band! \m/ f'n metal.
Stop-motion videos of old games (I've probably blogged this before, but it is awesome)
One for the English Majors in my readership: Wasteland Limericks
A new take on Flashdance (graphic). Heee!
...and to cleanse your palate: The Hasselhoffian Recursion!!!!!!! (AUGH MY EYES!)
August 21, 2006
Legal excitementMy pal Conrad is an attorney in Las Vegas. Check out this interview about his latest case (click the link under "Build your own Newscast"). He is the guy with the shaved head who's Dean's attorney. This case is getting a lot of publicity, and I hope it'll be good for him!
August 17, 2006
HellfireYeowza. This sequence is why I love Frollo so much. Tony Jay, who voiced him, was amazing. Sadly, Jay has passed away. Blessings to him, wherever he is now. He was a talented man.
August 15, 2006
Awesome, fabulous womenI think I should start a fanclub for 50-something (or older!) female bloggers who kick ass. So far I have found two:
Marn, who gardens on a scale that involves backhoes and bulldozers and lifts weights like there's no tomorrow (she can do chin-ups! By herself! And only a few years ago she was all out of shape! Holy crap!)
Liz, who bodybuilds, loves Zydeco, is amazingly culturally aware, and is currently working to kick the ass of Brenda, a nasty tumor that is partially blocking the vein that lets blood down out of her head and neck.
I admire both these women immensely for a zillion reasons, chief amongst which is that they blog so honestly and articulately about their lives. They are living proof that being a woman over the age of 30 is not a sentence to futility and fainting spells. They are ass-kickers! And yet they are human. They cry. They have moments of doubt. They are afraid of things. And they share that too! Which is really powerful, because it helps me believe that in spite of my own moments when I cry or doubt myself or am afraid, maybe I can kick ass as much as they do.
Many profound thanks, Marn and Liz! You gals rule.
July 10, 2006
Dear Internet:You are entirely too full of awesomeness for me to blog properly. It's not fair. My "Stuff to blog" bookmarks folder is constantly overflowing, dammit.
Don't ever stop.
Poetry:
- This Limerick about Anne Coulter is pretty funny.
- The Norton Anthology of Weasels is utterly awesome, and I was even able to get some of them. :)
Stuff that made me go YAY!:
- This LJ entry has the best response to the nurse who asks "...and when was your last period?" at the doctor's office. Awesome.
- Women Wage war on Weenie Waggers. Title says it all, really. Awesome.
- Best comeback ever to being called "sweetheart" by a stranger.
- You can read full entry, but this is the pertinent part:
"You used to do that too y'know, when you were a small child." my mother told me as we walked back to her place. "Yeah," I replied "But you told me to knock it off, strangers didn't have to do it for you. That's the difference between a parent and a breeder. "Parent" is a verb."So true, so true. "Parent is a verb" is a slogan I'd love to see on bumperstickers everywhere.
Cuteness:
- The Daily Kitten No explanation needed here, I think.
- Kittenwar.com Or here. Yay kittens!
Cool Photos:
- Topographic Oddities is an awesome collection of aerial photographs.
- I've always been fascinated by hands, and this Flickr set has some wonderful shots.
General Hilarity:
- Knitting for Psychos - I want patterns for some of these!
- The MsScribe Story is a fascinating (in a trainwreck sort of way) writeup of a huge kerfluffle in the Harry Potter fandom some time ago. It's amazing the lengths to which people will go sometimes.
- Time Breakdown of Modern Web Design is brilliant.
- If you haven't read The Credit Card Prank, you should - it's not only funny, but will make you call your credit card companies the instant you so much as think your card might be lost.
- This song is funny: "Al Gore" by Monkeybowl
- William Shatner pays tribute to George Lucas - words fail me. It's hilarious.
- Bush Pilot is a video from a German comedy program that is just hilarious. It's like something off the Daily Show, but with subtitles.
- Where the Hell is Matt? is a crazy site about this guy who travelled the world and videotaped himself dancing everywhere, then spliced the vids together. It's pretty cool. Weird, but cool.
June 29, 2006
Wow.Holy cow. I just watched Jon Stewart's response to the 9/11 attacks on YouTube. It's here. Blows me away. I didn't get back into the Daily Show until after this aired, so I missed it. I'm glad we have YouTube so I could see it now.
June 28, 2006
Ogdred Weary font back online!The Ogdred Weary font, which I use extensively in my blog, is once again up and functional. So, those of you who are interested, go get it!
Take that, Cosmo.I looked through Glenn Feron's portfolio again today. Man, is it good for one's self-esteem. He lets you see glamor shots both before and after retouching. If you haven't seen it before, go look. And even if you have seen it before, it's worth another glance.
June 20, 2006
Link RoundupA link roundup for ya!
- One for the philosophers in my readership (or at least the tech-savvy ones): Descartes 2.0
- Proof that Merlin Mann is insane... and awesome. Insanely awesome?
- Best rejection letter response ever. I totally love YouTube for stuff like this.
- Like mashups (aka bootlegs; where you take two different songs and smash them together to make a new song)? Check out BootieSF
- A new law for online discourse: Tubman's Law. Brilliant.
- Reader's Prayer. I want to get this done in calligraphy to hang in my library.
- The late, great Cancer, Baby takes on Mood Ooglers, those horrible people who will tell you things like "smile, it can't be that bad!" even though they don't know you or know why you have your current expression on your face. Read the comments as well for more good stories of harshing on Mood Ooglers.
- For those who know both the theater scene and something about religious ritual, I present: The Theater Ritual. Brilliant stuff.
- Battlestar Galactisimpsons. Words fail me.
- Take "Super Mario Bros." and cross it with the Burly Brawl from "The Matrix Reloaded" and you get.... Super Mario Reloaded. My brain hurts. But in a good way.
- Gettin' political: Lt. Ehren Watada is refusing to deploy to Iraq, citing a soldier's duty to refuse to participate in a nillegal war of aggression. Rawk.
- A meditation on the purpose of Flickr. Good stuff, and some great pix.
- Apparently, flaming someone in an online chat room counts as libel! Trolls beware!
- Wonderful quote from Mark Twain about writing.
- 10 Things Teenage Writers Should Know About Writing by the awesome John Scalzi.
- A funny take on the common CF slur "crotchfruit". Heeee.
Concert!Hey, peeps!
Check it out: San Jose Metaphysical Bookshop is having a concert! It's a fundraiser to help them with the expenses of moving out of their current location and into a new one.
I am mightily peeved I can't go - one of the owners called me last night to tell me there will be a ton of vendors and performers there and it sounds like a blast.
The one thing that almost makes up for it is that if enough people who buy tickets mention my name, I will get a bigass gift certificate to the shop. Rawk! So! Go on my behalf! Have a great time! But be sure to mention me by name when you buy the tix, either over the phone or on the online form. I want that gift certificate, darnit! Plus, they're a fantastic shop and a great community resource and they need this fundraiser to go well.
June 08, 2006
Read thisThis entry over at OPL is really good. So good, in fact, that I have nothing to add except "Right on!" So thanks, Nate, for taking the words out of my mouth (off my keyboard?).
Although unlike Nate I don't have contest deadlines coming up because I am so friggin' busy I never write fiction anymore. I think about it constantly, of course - in fact, I had a recent epiphany about the novel I'm plotting which I think will make it both easier to write and more interesting. I love that. I should get my shit together and write more fiction, dammit.
June 07, 2006
InspirationThis post found through Carnival of Feminists gave me some food for thought. Her main point: "feminists should believe in female beauty." The tricky bit, of course, (which she leaves out) is that it should be our beauty, not what mainstream culture considers beautiful. I think we feminist women should all work on looking good to ourselves. Nevermind the rest of the world. As I have read on several feminist blogs lately, it's none of my business what other people think of me. But it is my business what I think of me. Imagine if we feminists went to the effort to make ourselves look beautiful to ourselves, so that when we caught a glimpse of ourselves in the mirrored surface of a window it made us stand up straighter? Imagine the aura we would project. That's power.
It's hard, of course, to separate society's beauty standards from our own - that takes some real work. But taking care of our bodies, keeping them in good health and avoiding fashion mags like the plague is a good start. I know some women who do this already, which is very cool. But some of us (like me, for example) need a little work.
Feminist men can do something about this too: believe in female beauty, real female beauty - not the stick-thin, plastic crap the media is selling. Appreciate the beauty inherent in all women if you don't already. (Most of the guys I know are better at this than most women would give them credit for. But then, the guys I know are by and large awesome.)
Sounds like a revolution to me.
May 25, 2006
Whoa.This clip makes me wonder if I should start watching Boston Legal. It's the closing arguments from a recent ep, with a fantastic, impassioned speech by James Spader. Huzzah.
Here's a transcript, in case you can't listen to it at work.
After the prosecution's arguments, Spader's character gets up and says:
