Battlestar Rhapsody

Lot of effort went into this one - Battlestar Rhapsody.

I'm on a Mac

Watching this, I feel better for owning a Mac.

WANT!

Adidas have just put out a Star Wars range of sneakers.

Garfield without Garfield book

I'm amazed.

Dan Walsh, the genius behind Garfield Without Garfield, has a book out.

Rather than getting sued by Garfield creator Jim Davis, Walsh's nihilistic interpretations of the comic strip were enthusiastically supported, and the two have collaborated in producing a book. It places the original strips opposite their edited counterparts, showing all their dark psychological glory.

Wow. Sarcastic mashups on the interwebs CAN result in book deals.

Turkey VS Ham: Outcome

To report back on the outcome of Turkey VS Ham, I am sad to say we did not reach a verdict - it was a draw.

Seen here as they co-habitat the oven, the ham was dressed in an orange marmalade, brown sugar and mustard glaze, while the turkey received a thyme butter marinade with onion, bacon and mushroom stuffing and a butter muslin wrap.

Accompanying this was a zucchini pickle salad, a garden green salad, roast potato and sweet potato, homemade bread, stuffed mushrooms and blanched beans.

Since we had one vote for the turkey, one for ham, one for beans, one for mushrooms and Steve and I weren't allowed to vote, I declare the battle a draw.

Next time Steve, next time...

Comic goodness for birthday!

OMG!
Check out my birthday pressie from the wonderful Lefa - my very own personalised First Dog on the Moon strip.
So. Hot. Right. Now.
I am such a good looking meerkat.

Richard Scarry cannibal pigs

Merlin Mann has been collecting images of pigs who love eating meat, especially pork, from the classic children’s books by Richard Scarry.

Although many of the animals in Richard Scarry’s books have an unusual interest in meat, no creature is more intrigued by the exploitation and consumption of his own species than the smiling and good-natured pig.

Self mutilation and eventual cannibalism for commercial profit is something to aspire to, children!

via Laughing Squid

A Very Darkness Christmas

Christmas just got awesomer.

via Clem Bastow

It's the end of the world

This is how I feel whenever I watch the news.

WANT!

Itazura Coin Bank Super-Cute Automated Kitty/Puppy Steals Money from a Fish Plate!
Buy it here. NOW NOW NOW! BUY BUY BUY!

Abstraction

I disagree. xkcd is at best, a demigod. Maru is the one being worshipped here.

Zoom, enhance, enhance, enhance

I fucking hate it when they 'enhance' images on TV shows.

Just sayin'.

via Kottke

I.D. will be no more

OMG! Devastating news (that I've only just caught up, but is now several days old)!

I.D. Magazine will soon be no more. The publishers announced on 15th Dec that after 55 years of continuous production, they would be closing the mag down. Apparently I.D. had not turned a profit in seven years and was beset by competition from shelter magazines and mainstream glossies, which have been aggressively adding design coverage, owing to rising interest in design among mainstream audiences.

While it is very sad to see the death of any fine publication, it does, in a way, point to the need for a total overhaul and recognition of a changing industry. I don't read magazines anymore - I don't have the time. I rely on RSS feeds, news wires, blogs, social networks and other instant, cloud-sourced means of information. I don't read physical newspapers, I read them online, or utilise computerised search and filter systems to gain the information I need. My job is deeply embedded in the world of communications and news, so if a specialist like myself no longer needs the print medium, it's time to recognise a new form of media dissemination.

The somewhat stupid conversation surrounding Murdoch's threats to paywall his entire media empire, including blocking out Google, is going in the exact opposite direction to the market forces. Information can no longer be controlled, as the controllers of past generations no longer hold the keys. The cringe-worthy term of 'citizen journalist' is becoming more relevant every single day - people are realising that whereas journalism was initially perceived as a trained profession, it is nothing more than a decent grasp of grammar, the ability to research and a good subeditor. Yes, there is value in charging for the content, in order to pay the professional for their services, but sooner or later that very 'profession' is going to become obsolete.

It's high time we as a culture recognised that information cannot be owned. Our education systems should encourage the idea that any one person can be a creator, consumer, producer and critic. It's only by ensuring that level of equality that we can have a truly unbiased worldwide media industry.

But I'm sad to see I.D. go.

What English sounds like to a non-English speaker

An Italian singer wrote this song with gibberish to sound like English. If you've ever wondered what other people think Americans sound like, this is it.

Universe. Big.

I love feeling this small.

Since 1998, the American Museum of Natural History and the Hayden Planetarium have engaged in the three-dimensional mapping of the Universe. This cosmic cartography brings a new perspective to our place in the Universe and will redefine your sense of home.

Reading stereotypes

Love this one - stereotyping readers by their favourite author

Charles Dickens
Ninth graders who think they’re going to be authors someday but end up in marketing.

Edgar Allan Poe
Men who live in their mother’s basements. Or goth seventh graders.

Dan Brown
People who used to get lost in supermarkets when they were kids.

George Orwell
Conspiracy theorists (too easy).

Aldous Huxley
People who are bigger conspiracy theorists than Orwell fans.

Harper Lee
People who have read only one book in their life and it was To Kill A Mockingbird (and it was their assigned reading in the ninth grade).

Full list here

Eco board game

How is this a fail? Seems pretty self-explanatory and honest to me.

via FailBlog

The scrag effect

This is exactly how I feel whenever I look at a picture of Amy Winehouse.

Please Simplify

This is fun - Please Simplify is an experiment in reduction. What is still recognisable when you remove vowels from popular logos?

Ernie Awards

Wow. I had no idea there were that many awesome awards available throughout the world.

I particularly can't believe I've never heard of the Ernie Awards before.

An Australian Award, the "Ernies" are awarded to individuals and companies who make sexist remarks or do something sexist. It is named after former Australian Workers Union secretary Ernie Ecob, who was known for his sexist remarks. One of his best-known remarks was "Women aren't welcome in the shearing sheds. They're only after the sex," which is why there is a sheep on top of the Gold Ernie. 400 women attend a dinner each year and the remark that receives the loudest booing from the audience is deemed the winner. Past winners include these gems:

• 1996: Magistrate Ron Gething, Magistrates Court of Western Australia: (upon finding a man not guilty of stalking a woman for seven years), “I don't think he was intimidating her, he was just being persistent. He was like a little puppy dog wagging its tail.”
• 2005: Sheikh Feiz Mohammad, Islamic cleric: “A victim of rape every minute somewhere in the world. Why? No one to blame but herself. She displayed her beauty to the entire world…strapless, backless, sleeveless, nothing but satanic skirts, slit skirts, translucent blouses, miniskirts, tight jeans…to tease men and appeal to their carnal nature.”
• 2003: Stellar Call Centre: for docking the pay of a pregnant woman for taking too many toilet breaks.
  

Of course, I do remember this event, and I'm glad someone awarded it the 2009 Ernie Award. Pastor Danny Nalliah blamed the Black Saturday bushfires on Victoria's abortion laws. His exactly words were:

"God's conditional protection has been removed from the nation of Australia, in particular Victoria, for approving the slaughter of innocent children in the womb."

Noice.

WANT!

Skynet Google t-shirt from Busted Tees

Best kids bedroom ever

Can't sleep - MUTHERFUCKING GIANT DINOSAUR WILL EAT ME!

via Geekologie

Back to the Future predictions

It's only six years til 2015, and there is an important question that needs to be answered - what did Back to the Future Part II get right, and what did it get wrong in predicting our future? My personal favourite? Slamball - win!

Westpac explains things with pretty pictures and shiny lights

Are you fucking kidding me?!?! This is what passes for customer communication practice in one of Australia's biggest banks? A condescending, patronising, simplistic explanation for why banks need to rape their customers of fees the second the Reserve Bank puts up their rates?

If this video was intended to incite people to riot and burn down Westpac branches, mission accomplished.

via Mumbrella

We Got That B-Roll!

Now I know where all that late night TV shopping footage comes from - We Got That B-Roll!

You know the sad thing is, there actually are companies that specialise in this shit.

via BoingBoing

Hamburger perfection on TV

I know this happens in the advertising world, but it's still morbidly fascinating to watch. Everyone seen that one where they secrete tampons soaked in boiling water to make the food steam? I think it's creepier to think about all the pins, styrofoam and toothpicks that hold up the Big Mac.

via Magma

New York Street Advertising Takeover

These people are my new heroes.

via Laughing Squid

Veggie patch 2009

The summer crop of veggies is coming along quite nicely this year, helped along by some great Melbourne rains in the past few weeks.

First up there's the tomato plants - organic varieties bought from CERES. There's one normal sized tomato and a cherry, but they've sorta melded together to become one giant plant. Sweet.

Next is a variety of different tomato plants, grown from seed. There are College Challenger, Yellow Stuffing, Prosperity and something else I can't remember.

Next up is a lone lettuce, which seeded itself from last year's crop without any assistance.

Then there are a whole bunch of capsicum plants. I've never grown capsicum, and I suspect they're going to turn out small, shrivelled and eaten by birds. Awesome.

Here is the bergamot plant - it's survived past everything else in the garden, probably because I don't know what to use it for. Smells good though.

The purple sage plant, which was slowly dying in a little pot until I plonked it in here. Seems to be going well. Buggered if I know what you use sage for.

Snow peas! These little bastards rock. Especially when they climb all over the awesome little teepees I made for them.

Likewise with the home-made teepees, but these are climbing beans. Some bastard caterpillars ate them when they were young, but I showed them. Yeah - I carefully picked them off and put them elsewhere in the garden! That'll teach em. I'm tough.

Broccoli. Last time I grew broccoli I was too nervous about cutting them, then they suddenly flowered and the whole thing was inedible. Not doing that twice.

This is my mental parsley bush. It's huge, especially considering I grew it from sick tube stock. However, it's currently flowering so there is next to no leaves on it. Bloody annoying, but good throughout the rest of the year.

Nestled in the corner is some oregano and catmint. The oregano seems to have survived through the winter, and the catmint is just because I like the smell. When I had a cat, none of them cared about catmint. Now I have two dogs - irony.

And these are the seed punnets yet to get to planting stage. Still a few tomatoes, some cabbage, celery, the spinach is nearly ready for the garden bed, carrots and some more snow peas.

Also inhabiting the veggie patch are the lavender plants to attract bees to pollinate, the lemon tree and the tangelo tree. I still want to grow pumpkin, potato, olives, grapes, chickpeas and artichoke, but I might need a bit more room for them. Next time, gadget, next time.

WANT!

Behold! The Mobius Bagel!

Sculptor and mathematician George Hart explains how.

Turkey VS Ham

Oooh I'm so good. In the spirit of all those truly awesome kickboxing posters I once had to create in a former job, I have now created a true masterpiece. In preparation for the epic battle of Turkey VS Ham, this poster invite clearly says it all.

Who will reign supreme? Steve with his painstakingly glazed ham? Or Tim with his giant roast turkey? This is the meat battle of the century that will once and for all give us a clear winner - is it native American fowl or smartest animal with hooves!?!? BRING IT ON!!!

I've blurred the details, coz you're not all invited. Those of you that are - be prepared for a meat overload. Never thought you'd be hearing that from a vegetarian, did you!?

The apple juice of Star Trek

I'm assuming the point of this was to make up dialogue based on their lip movements. Whatever the basis was, I like it.

Causes of death

That's just great - highest causes of deaths? It's either self-inflicted depression-triggered suicide, or fate-cleansing-the-planet-of-human-infestation cancer. Either way, we're screwed.

Dragon Age gay sex scene

Awesome! Dragon Age: Origins features a section where your character can get down in the hay with another male character, if you so choose.

Grey Warden: "Can you join me in my tent?"
Zevran: "I specialize in assassination."
Grey Warden: "I bet you're good at a lot of things."
Zevran: "Mmmm, that's quite an offer, especially coming from another man – if we are both speaking of the same thing."
Grey Warden: "I suspect we are."

Aside from how boring and nondescript the foreplay is, it's nice to see a game developer treat the subject of homosexuality with such normality. The sex scenes aren't pornographic, they are suggestive and sensual, whilst at the same time making it very clear what is happening. It's just a normal part of life - if your character is attracted to another character, you have the option of acting upon that urge.

Sure, putting it beside a fireplace in the woods is a little too Brokeback Mountain, but it's gotta be a first for a computer game.

via BuzzFeed

NYC DESTROY!

Best movie ever - just lots and lots of clips of NYC being destroyed. Sweet. One question though, which movie are the giant flame-fronts from?

The evolution of the Hipster

Wendy's joins the vomit train

Joining the illustrious ranks of the Windows 7 Whopper, the Super Scooby Burger, the McGangBang or the Double Down - the Triple Baconator from Wendy's.

Wow. Those squares of meat look so much better with all that bacon slammed in between. And the tagline 'Climb Mt Bacon' is sure to have everyone convinced that the challenge has been set - only real men can handle THIS burger. Raaar!!!

via Reddit

Law & Order: Gotham

Ok Go new vid

OK Go have a new music video out.

Carrying on from their homemade YouTube sensation of 'Here It Goes Again', this new clip is simple, fun and seemingly made in-house again. I like it.

via Kottke