No Like Boom

I decided not to go to the annual Hyack Festival Anvil Salute this year. Just didn't feel like leaving the house.

But that didn't mean that we missed out.

This was shortly after the first boom:



Doesn't really translate well in this crappy YouTube video, but the dog was vibrating so hard, it felt like I had stuffed a quarter up her butt. </magic fingers>

It also took a few takes to get it right. Apparently I shouldn't try to talk before I've finished my first coffee:



Ehhhh, whatever. Think I'll keep my day job.

Exterminate, Exterminate!

[Ben Golub's Photos]

I enjoy an incinerated marshmallow as much as the next person. But I'm not a huge fan of Peeps. I can handle a few, and they sure are darn cute. But they basically are sugar, coated with sugar, with a side of sugar. A little goes a long way.

However, they sure do make a pretty microwave show.

Let the destruction begin.

A few peeps:


Or the entire box:


Happy Easter everyone!

Addendum: Would you like to see a peep show?

A Quinn Martin Production

I was having a discussion about old television shows with a friend the other day, and we came to the conclusion that ol' Quinn must have thought his entire audience was illiterate.

Proof:


Produced by Quinn Martin for Desilu.


Chikka bow, chikka bow bow.


Confession. I loved this theme music when I was a kid.


My Mom loved this show.


My God, he couldn't even leave them there foreeners alone. The narrator's voice is completely wrong.

See this is why I don't watch as much tv as I did when I was a kid. No-one will read the credits to me.

I would also like to make it perfectly clear that all these shows were aired years and years before I was born. My grandparents told me about them. Really.

More theme music fun here & here. Warning: the second link will cause retinal bleeding.

Pickles!

In the past I have posted some odd, odd, odd, things that people are willing to spend money to get. There just doesn't seem to be any limits to people combining really odd ideas with a marketing plan.

I, however, have never actually seen the above products in person. Not so for today's intriguing entry.

Introducing Bob's Pickle Pops



This was a gift from my brother who ordered them online. I have a feeling there isn't going to be any middle ground for this one. It's either going to be fantastic or disgusting. I'll let y'all know.

Apparently they are quite popular:



Anyone out there ever try them?

...But We Call it Home

I just love this ad. Beautiful scenery, inspiring message & famous BC stars:



BC stars?

The ad features Michael J. Fox, Ryan Reynolds, Eric McCormack, Kim Cattrall, Steve Nash, and Sarah McLachlan.

Fox, Cattrall & McCormack all have American citizenship, and except for McLachlan, none of them live full time in BC.

I'm ok with that. Hell, you go where the work is.

But then please don't call it "home"

The sad thing is that I know why they were used. This ad is meant to attract people from outside BC. And frankly, how many celebs do we have living in the province that would be recognized outside of it?

If my readers (both of you) can up with a few good examples, I be happily proven wrong. And those example can't be a band you really like, or an actor you think did a great job last year on that CBC documentary. I talking about names that would be recognized in South Carolina or Gdansk.

So go ahead, and please prove me an idiot.

Oh, and By the way - It's a Government of BC video

Happy, Happy,

2010.

My best wishes for a wonderful year to all (both of you) my readers.

Ho, Ho, Ho &

Merry Chrismas!



I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday with family, friends and loads of good eats.

A Century In Video - 1924

The MGM lion understood in 1924 that there was no point in roaring. Who's going to hear it?



Except for the roar, the logo hasn't actually changed much over the years:



Leo the MGM lion actually started out in 1917 as the mascot for the predecessor company Goldwyn Pictures.

Here he is in 1923 the year before Goldwyn Pictures, Metro Pictures and Louis B. Mayer Pictures merged. I'm not sure if it's a half yawn or half assed snarl in this clip:



The lion logo has been parodied many times, mostly by MTM Enterprises:

The Mary Tyler Moore Show



Remington Steele



Newhart



St. Elswhere



And the depressing end credits for the last episode:

Is This the Real Life? Is This Just Fantasy?

Caught in a landslide. No escape from reality

Well this is an escape from reality.

Love the Muppets? (yes!)

Love - or at least like - Queen (yes!)

Well don't say I never give you anything.

Enjoy

Weed

Well that title grabbed your attention, didn't it?

Sorry, wrong kind of weed.

My context here is the weeding of a library collection. Libraries are buildings with finite space. And to make room for the new, we need to weed out the old.

Each library has it's own set of weeding criteria defined by the library collection, mandate and user group. But one thing most libraries (in theory) agree on is that obsolete material must go.

(OK, I'm over simplifying things here, but I'm hardly writing a policy and procedure manual. If you want the details on weeding policy, get a diploma, or a degree.)

Weeding the collection isn't always easy, and it's also very time consuming. So this chore sometimes get pushed to the bottom of the to-do list. The end result is that we often have material on our shelves that really shouldn't be there.

From this collection of crap archive material sprung forth Awful Library Books. A wonderful witty site dedicated to user submitted books lurking in library collections.

And it's gone Hollywood.

The proprietors of this great site, Mary and Holly, appeared recently on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

Share and enjoy:



Here are the specific posts of the books discussed in the show:

• What's Wrong with my Snake


• Jewish Chess Masters on Stamps


• Do-It-Yourself Coffins: For Pets and People


• Dee Snider’s Teenage Survival Guide


• Knitting with Dog Hair


• Gary Coleman: Medical Miracle


• A Passion for Donkeys

Full disclosure: I checked the Vancouver Public Library catalogue for each of these items.

Alas, we have two:

• Do-It-Yourself Coffins: For Pets and People


• Knitting with Dog Hair

29% failure rate. That's not too bad, is it?

Don't. Fall. Asleep!

For completely incomprehensible reasons Michael Bay has remade A Nightmare on Elm Street.

The original 1984 version scared the shit out of me. But somehow I can't picture this 'new' Freddy Krueger having much of an effect on me. I mean for crying out loud - this is Freddy?



OK, he's a bit older now:



And they do give him a bit of makeup:



But still...

And to all you kids out there who don't know what I'm rambling about. Jackie Earle Haley was originally famous for a amazingly popular 1976 film: The Bad News Bears.

Sweet dreams...

Miniature Fun

I love Disneyland, and I love tilt-shift (Particularly in this context).

How could I not love this?



This was created completely with tilt-shift still photos. No video involved.

More cool tilt-shift examples here. Create your own here.

Cheers from a Disney dork

Yay! It's Caturday. Mwahhhh

[chrisinplymouth's Photos]

Tomorrow there will be no cats on the internet. None. Zilch. Nada.

Urlesque has decreed that 09/09/09 will be a cat free day. Here is part of their statement:

"After getting inspired by our friends at Asylum, Urlesque is organizing a web-wide ban on cat-related coverage on 9.9.09 -- A Day Without Cats on the Internet. Why only one day? Well let's be honest, that's probably only as long as we'll last before a hilarious video comes crashing into our inbox. But for one day, we will abstain... for you... for the cats."

Click here for more.

A number of other sites are participating including Cute Overload and I Has a Hotdog (Well duh!).

I Can Has Cheezburger? however, is protesting:



Are you ready?



Urlesque has promised to spend tomorrow blogging about another animal. It polled its readers as to what animal to cover. And the results are:

Chickens! 8%



Goats! 13%



Horses! 10%



Rabbits! 16%



Rodents! 13%



Turtles! 14%



And the top vote.

Other! 26%



Yes it's a repost. So sue me.

I think I'll spend tomorrow cuddling my little dog.

Library Cuts are Not Healthy for Children & Other Living Things

Addendum:
The funding results are here

---

Please consider these scenarios

1. It's 9:00pm and you're working on a paper. You need one more source and it has to be from a peer reviewed journal.
   
   What to do.
   
   Why not try the library's chat service AskAway? Within minutes a library staffer has show you a great database filled with peer reviewed articles on your topic. Not only that but they helped you find a source that demonstrates how to cite an electronic resources. You're good to go and you get your paper in on time.


2. When you were a kid you read this (you thought*) great science fiction book. Some 30 years later the book creeps into your head. You'd like to read it again, but your library doesn't own it.
   
   What to do.
   
   Turns out your local library has this great service called Interlibrary Loans. If your library doesn't own a book you want, they can find one that does and order it in for you. Usually within a couple of week.


3. You have a great idea for a business, but are not sure that it's a feasible idea. Times are tough and you want the best information possible to help you make your decision
   
   What to do.
   
   The librarian in the Science & Business division points you to many great sources, including some very helpful databases that supply company statistics, entrepreneurial information and articles about your field.

These are just a few of the services provided by BC libraries that are being threatened with massive grant cuts

If this pisses you off as much as it does me (and my colleagues), please visit Stop BC Library Cuts and:

• Learn how these cuts could diminish the fantastic library service we've all come to rely on here in BC.


• Read some of the media coverage.


• And most important: Sign the petition that could help prevent reductions in service.

If you're not in BC, please contact your local library and offer support. Many, many libraries are hurting right now, and it's not a resource that we can afford to lose.

Another thing to keep in mind. Although this post is Vancouver Public Library centric, (because that's where I work), other small BC libraries will be hit much, much harder. A much smaller percentage of VPL's budget comes from grant money than that of the smaller library systems.

Here's the (itsy bitsy) coverage from Global BC this morning:


* or "me thought" as the case may be. Exciting scenario # 2 is an amazing true story.

Total Eclipse of the Lyrics

Back in the mid 80's I was a huge fan of Bonnie Tyler. I went through the angst thing a bit late in life and this song spoke to me in some totally deep and incomprehensible way:



Well I was thrilled when a friend of mine turned me on to this incredible remake. It has all the depth of the original and will speak to your stupid teenage heart:



You're welcome. Actually thank you RC for facebooking this. It made my day.

Oh and full discloser (This was taken about 10 minutes ago)



Yup, still listening to her.

Can We Trade in Our Car...

... for a Chevy?

This ad fills me with great confidence:



Couldn't find the Canadian version on Youtube, but it's almost identical.

If you really want to see it go here and click on "What the New GM is going to look like" video.

Fills me with confidence, oh yes it does.

All I can say is that I'm glad we don't have an American car.

We do own an American work van. But it's ancient and paid for and when it dies, it dies.

Secret: I actually find the seat in our crappy old van more comfortable than in our 2 year old car. But that's because I like to sit with my legs @ a 90 degree angle, and you can't do that in a car.

Bang!

Nothing like blowing up an anvil to start your day.



I go every year. This event is part of the yearly Hyack Festival.

I forgot my camera, but Global BC was kind enough to film it for me.

At the start Archie Miller asks for a show of hands from newbies. Those are the people to watch at the first blast to see how high they jump.

This event is not loved by babies and dogs.

Another amusing side effect: each blast is followed by a chorus of car alarms

Sniff, Snorff, Wheezle...

Been sick as a pig feeling like shite the last few days and not up to posting.

I thought it was just a cold, but maybe not.

I took a do you have swine flu test, and the news isn't good.

Maybe I'll just sit in the sun and read a classic childrens book.

Or prepare for the worst with an educational video.

Also, thanks to those that provided the links. It makes my life so much easier when other people write my posts for me :)

BTW: 15 cases in BC as of today, the most in Canada. We're #1?

Out of Context Theatre

Too busy playing to post....





Sorry!

I wanted to do a scene from Dracula, but 2 characters is the max allowed in Xtranormal.

Feeling a Little Juvenile?

Create a movie!

N.S.F.W due to mildly bad language



Wish they emoted a bit better, but still fun to play with.

It's free (given the quality, it had better be)

Make your own masterpiece @ Xtranormal