A Whale of a Tale

Here’s a link to a rather long but absolutely fascinating NYTimes article by Charles Siebert, about whales and their interactions with humans.  A really great read…

Watching Whales Watching Us

And if you like whale stories, check out this one from the Chronicle in 2005…

Daring Rescue of Whale Off Farrallones

I am an MAN…

Stumbled across a site called You Suck at Craigslist and saw this:

The craigs list – 34

---

Hello. I am an MAN looking for an WOMAN who is LAID BACK. I am 21 years old and I like to WATERSKIING and also to CAMPING. I am a good sense of humor with a fun and tall.

My favorite movies are TITANIC, FRIED GREEN TOMATOES, and [ERROR: MOVIE NOT FOUND], but I’m not into chick flicks.

I like to take my dog, MIFFY in the back seet of my HARLEY-DAVIDSON MOTOR CYCLE. Maybe you would like to ride with us?

My favorite music bands are ABBA, AC//DC, and AIROSMITH.

OK, it’s kinda lame, but certainly not the worst thing to ever appear on Craigslist…  But when re-enacted live, it is truly excellent…

from You Suck at Craigslist vie Joe My God

MADGE ALERT! MADGE ALERT!

New single “Celebrate” being released Jul 28. Preview clip below.  It actually sounds good.  That is all.

via Towleroad

Why, Long-Haired Woman on MUNI?

I boarded the 1-California yesterday afternoon, headed to see my physical therapist, and seated myself in one of the “backwards” facing rows toward the back of the bus – you know, the seats where you face another row of seats?

Oh, the humanity... And note my aggrieved forearm in close proximity to those layer-less tendrils...

At any rate, after a couple of stops, a young woman sat down next to me.  Apparently, she doesn’t care to ride facing backwards (or maybe she was just a freak) – but whatever the reason, rather than sitting in the seat like a normal person and facing backwards, she sat facing to the side.  I’m sure this was quite annoying to all of the passengers in the aisle, either standing or attempting to squeeze past her knees and legs in the aisle.

But what was even more annoying for me personally (and anything related to me personally is of greater import), was that her lank, far-too-long, scraggly, baby-fine hair was set aflutter at the merest hint of a breeze, thus coming into direct and repeated contact with my bare forearm, sending shudders of dread and disgust up and down my spine.  Her hair didn’t seem especially filthy or lice-ridden – but I’m super-grossed out when a stranger’s hairs touch me.  It’s awful…

I was tempted to move into the seat across from me – but then I’d have been sitting next to the typical a-hole male rider of public transit, who has to sit with his legs spread as wide as possible.  Why do they do this?  Is it to prove their virility? “Gee, my junk is so HUGE, I can’t put my legs together!”…  I mean, my junk actually is huge and I manage to sit normally.  Oh, and he was also reading a broadsheet-style newspaper wide open – apparently unfamiliar with the proper folding technique for reading the paper on the bus.

So, given a choice between being tormented by hair-touching or leg- and newspaper-touching, I chose the lesser of the two evils…  But now I know how Odysseus must’ve felt when choosing between Scylla and Charibdis…

Me Gusta Tulio’s

Carnitas burrito - and this is the "baby" size... I guess they mean it's the size of an actual human baby. Mmmm - babies...

Proving once again that you can’t believe everything y0u hear, I decided to pick up lunch at “Tulio’s Southwestern Grill” (yeesh – what moniker), formerly Pancho Villa Tacqueria.  I was leery, as several reliable sources had indicated that the quality had nose-dived.

Well, my experience today was that this is certainly the best burrito within walking distance of my office -  not that the competition is especially stiff (Rubio’s, Pedros and – by far the worst – 360° Burritos…  which, as has been pointed out elsewhere, puts Romaine lettuce in it’s burritos.  I repeat: Romaine lettuce.  Vom.).  But my Tulio’s burrito was quite tasty (maybe not quite as tasty as the old Pancho Villa days…) and whole avocado slices (rather than guacamole) remain an option.

This is bananas…

While I’m quite fond of banana flavored items (banana cream pie, bananas foster, banana bread, roasted banana ice cream from Bi-Rite Creamery), I’m not a huge fan of eating bananas (well, except in the figurative sense).  That being said, I wish I did eat bananas with frequency, just so I could follow this fascinating instruction video on opening a banana like a monkey – it is highly efficient and a huge improvement over traditional human methods of banana peeling.  Chris (both a literal and figurative banana eater) tested the process as demonstrated and it worked like a charm.  You’re welcome…

from Lifehacker

Chez moi le samedi après-midi…

Just playing with my new toy…  and got some pretty cool shots.  Amazing what good equipment can do…

My favorite and most cooperative model.

Of course, I’m actually wondering whether or not I should start a separate blog for photos.  I’ll leave it you, dear readers…

Shutter-buggery…

So, following in the tradition of my father and grandfather, I have taken up SLR photography.  It’s the perfect hobby – lots of technical knowledge required and a virtually unlimited supply of expensive equipment…  I have no idea what I’m doing (what exactly is depth-of-field?  And the only aperture settings I know about aren’t on a camera – if you get my drift…).  Nonetheless, I squeezed off a couple of good shots right out of the box – and I’ll be taking a photography class come September.

Oh, and I promise to start blogging again on a regular basis.  Since I was mown down by a speeding Mazda my unfortunate bicycle accident, there’s been little to report – other than “Discharge from wound seems to be lessening”; “Rash in armpit”; and “Ow.”  But I feel as close to normal as I have in sometime and the physical therapy I just started (with the very-hunky-but-stubbornly-clothed therapist) should have me back in shape by the time we head to NYC in August.  Anyhoo, enjoy the photos…  There’ll be plenty more…

Snap!

Purr...

The few… The proud… The overly-dramatic rescuers…

I can’t stop laughing at this…

from FAIL Blog

This just never gets old…

The runner-up was Hugh G. Rection…

from failblog.org

R.I.P. Mollie Sugden

Mollie Sugden – who portrayed Mrs. Slocombe on “Are You Being Served? – has died at age 86.  May she and her pussy rest in peace…

from joemygod

YouTube, for the win…

And the “Mail” button is pretty genius too…

from Gizmodo

Exhibit A: Carnivores Have Superior Sense of Humor

from passive-aggressive notes

Has anyone seen my raincoat..?

I am sooo going to see this awesomely ridiculous (or ridiculously awesome?) movie…

Why, People Who Work in My Office?

I’m taking antibiotics in an attempt to quell the flesh-eating bacteria that has invaded the soft tissue surrounding the incision on my elbow.  And, in an attempt to ward off any unpleasantness said antibiotics may wreak upon my bowels (sorry for the over-share), I’m trying to eat yogurt once or twice a day.

So after lunch today, I head to the office kitchen to retrieve my yogurt – and I find this:

Someone has spilled milk all over the fridge, including an ivory shower for my sad little yogurt.  And then this person just went on his or her merry way, leaving it for someone else to discover.  Of course, it’s just a little spilled milk- it’s not like it will rot and stink up the whole fridge or soak other people’s lunches…

I always wonder about what these people are like at home – do they actually live in squalor, wallowing in their own filth, the floors knee-deep in empty fast food containers, dirty underwear and half-eaten bags of Funyuns?  Or are they sort of normal when at home and inconsiderate slobs when at the office?  It’s a puzzlement.

Could I just squeeze by you? I need to climb up onto my soapbox…

A friend on Facebook recently updated her status to indicate she was flirting with vegetarianism.  And she got lots of responses, mostly reasonable (along the lines of “I did it and feel great – and lost 10 lbs!”) and some a little snarky (”Guess we won’t be having you over for dinner’) – but all pretty light…  Save for this:

alot (sic) happens to the meat before it hits the stores/restaurants…that whole process grosses me out…i think if you meet your meat and know your farmer it’s another story but 99.99% of what people eat has been tortured and slimmed by a disgusting industrial system…not to mention the chemicals used to fatten them up…

it’s easy to eat salads and veggies out and most people don’t feel bad if you don’t make a big deal out of it…I find more and more people are saying no to meat.

Now, I have no issues with choosing vegetarianism or veganism – they probably are healthier (well, to be honest, I have some doubts about veganism – seems a bit extreme and just a tad culty…  And, with a few notable exceptions, the vegans I’ve met don’t seem to be paragons of healthfulness… But I digress…).   I am not, however, a fan of proselytizing (except my own of course, since I’m right – duh).  But, you know, whatever – it’s Facebook, who cares, right?

At any rate, I had just recently happened to read a quote from Anthony Bourdain, who described vegetarianism as “like going to the Louvre and only looking at the color blue.” Amusant, non? So I added this to the Facebook conversation.  To which the proselytizer responded:

veggies have way more colors than meat The Louvre is over-rated, too. Been there numerous times.

Really?  That’s your comeback?  The Louvre is over-rated?  And the coup de grâce – “been there numerous times.” You know because she’s such a very sophisticated jet-setter (though she missed a golden opportunity to further show off her sophistication – she should’ve written “colours”) – so much so that she finds the Louvre just a big bore…

And, really, who could argue with that?  Vermeer? Played out…  Da Vinci? Dilettante…  Rembrandt?  Derivative…  Michelangelo? Yawn…  And don’t get me started on those tiresome Etruscans.  Yes, the Louvre is just one hack artist after another…  Plus, after you’ve been there a couple of times, you’ve really seen absolutely everything there is to possibly see, what with it being so provincial and the collection so tiny.

But what chaps my hide even more is the sanctimonious, holier-than-thou-because-I-don’t-eat-meat perspective.  Yes, factory farming of animals is not good – I do what I can to purchase meat from retailers who support more humane methods of raising animals for food; and I have the good fortune to be able to afford this choice.  But I don’t hear any concerns from vegetarian-a-rella about working conditions or wages for the farm workers picking all that kale and zucchini she’s piously eating.  And what about dairy cows?  They don’t exactly lead the life of Reilly – but I’m guessing she doesn’t eschew cheese or lattes…

Clearly, this whole little tempest got under my skin.  I guess the point I’m trying to make is, cut it out with the preaching.  None of us are perfect – and we all choose to do different things in an attempt to better ourselves and the world we live in.  Sanctimony doesn’t help on either count…

The future is here…

The transition to digital TV has finally happened.  In an effort to be servicey, here’s a handy chart from Gizmodo for anyone (*cough*Mom*cough-cough*) who ran into any difficulties with their over-the-air channels.

from Gizmodo

Hey, who are those four guys riding horses..? And is that brimstone I smell?

All things considered, the imagery in this commercial could’ve been much worse.  Though I suppose my own nightmarish visions of operating this device are far more horrifying than anything they could actually show…

And does this really enhance the experience?  I’d think the introduction of special tools into this process would only complicate matters.

from The Awl

Day starting off nicely – seriously.

Bumped into a friend on my way to work this morning and stopped to catch up a bit.  I knew she’d just moved, so I inquired as to where her new place is – and it’s on Beaver Street!  Now it’s pretty hard to beat simply living on Beaver St. (not only because of the name, but it’s actually quite a charming little tree-lined street).  But she is not simply living at any old place on Beaver – she’s at 8 Beaver!  And she’s a lesbian! Talk about kismet…

Not to mention that fact that anytime we ever walk down that street, I always say when we pass # 8, “Gee, I hope some lesbian lives there…”  And now I know that one does!

Maybe someday my own dream will come true and I’ll move to 4 Uranus.  Oh, Uranus Street…  We’d pass it all the time as kids, with my mom behind the wheel of her ‘72 Ford Torino and without fail we’d all start screaming, “Drive up Uranus! Drive up Uranus!”  Good times…

Anyhoo, then I got to work.  And what do I find in the kitchen, as I go in to toast my 7-grain-and-flax-seed bread?  Two giant cartons of Krispy Kreme donuts.

So, yes, this day is looking pretty darn good so far.  Now if only Sprint would call me and tell me that my new Palm Pre is finally in stock and ready for pickup…

Happy Birthday, Darlin’…

According to Dlisted, it was Gina Gershon’s birthday yesterday – and, honestly, how could I not post this picture of her in the role of a lifetime?

“Do you like brown rice and vegetables?”

from Dlisted