Where is the "none of the above" option?

Our correspondent in New Mexico just sent us this handy link to USA Today's vote-a-matic. If you're unsure of who you really support, just take this handy short quiz on topics ranging from the Iraq War to gay marriage. Note that there is no question on reproductive rights or on torture. ("Torture of people is a)okay if the person is Middle-Eastern, b)never okay because I hate freedom, c)okay but only if the Middle-Eastern person is wearing a turban, d)not something they should show on TV.")

The tax questions totally skewed my responses. Apparently when you say "scrap it and start over" it automatically adds a bunch of Ron Paul points to your score.

Anyway, have fun.

The emperor's new blocks

Someone at work recently forwarded an email to me from Integrated Play, an organization that helps your workplace with strategic planning, team building, and "culture and change management" through "Lego serious play" workshops. A real steal at a mere $430, methinks.



It's made me start to think that maybe I should come up with some sort of silly putty seminar or an etch-a-sketch workshop. I think there's some real promise there. Charge $500 a head for a half-day, talk about getting buy-in and thinking outside of the box and becoming more nimble... Have existential crisis in six months or so.

Nic the cat

Bad Pussy


This is so much like my cat, it's scary. That paw on the face thing--that's Nic.

You may wonder

What do sparrows and crab lice have in common? (Note that the curator searching for the louse won the biology Ig Nobel four years ago "for his discovery of homosexual necrophilia in mallard ducks.")

Two pop culture questions

Here are my two pop culture questions for the day:

1. Does anyone know when Romero's Diary of the Dead is being released (I know it screened at the Toronto Film Fest, but I just wanna know when can I go see it, y'know, like a normal person.)?

2. What happened to PJ Harvey? Just gave White Chalk a first listen yesterday and...what is up? She's traded in the electric guitars and growly screamy vocals for a piano and a reedy girlish soprano. I figure she must have either gotten clean or fallen in love. Anyone have any insight?

Philly Pic

Real photos by the real photographer on the trip are here.

Oh brave new meme

Okay I just wrote a long post mulling over the reasons for such a silent blog, and then cyberspace ate it. So I am taking that as a sign to a)lighten up and b)get back to work. Some time soon I might post about the 22nd anniversary of me quitting drugs (which was yesterday), my friend Mike dying (which was a little more than 10 days ago), work (which is unrelenting), and my visit to my family (last week). Or I may not post about any of those things.

In the meantime, I leave you with this dystopic movie meme, poached from Annika, because you know I loves me some dystopic movies. The deal is just bold the ones you've seen. (And yes, it is a crime that Westworld is not included.)

1. Metropolis (1927)
2. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
3. Brazil (1985)
4. Wings of Desire (1987)
5. Blade Runner (1982)
6. Children of Men (2006)
7. The Matrix (1999)
8. Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981)
9. Minority Report (2002)
10. Delicatessen (1991)
11. Sleeper (1973)
12. The Trial (1962)
13. Alphaville (1965)
14. Twelve Monkeys (1995)
15. Serenity (2005)
16. Pleasantville (1998)
17. Ghost in the Shell (1995)
18. Battle Royale (2000)
19. RoboCop (1987)
20. Akira (1988)
21. The City of Lost Children (1995)
22. Planet of the Apes (1968)
23. V for Vendetta (2005)
24. Metropolis (2001)
25. Gattaca (1997)
26. Fahrenheit 451 (1966)
27. On The Beach (1959)
28. Mad Max (1979)
29. Total Recall (1990)
30. Dark City (1998)
31. War Of the Worlds (1953)
32. District B13 (2004)
33. They Live (1988)
34. THX 1138 (1971)
35. Escape from New York (1981)
36. A Scanner Darkly (2006)
37. Silent Running (1972)
38. Artificial Intelligence: AI (2001)
39. Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984)
40. A Boy and His Dog (1975)
41. Soylent Green (1973)
42. I Robot (2004)
43. Logan’s Run (1976)
44. Strange Days (1995)
45. Idiocracy (2006)
46. Death Race 2000 (1975)
47. Rollerball (1975)
48. Starship Troopers (1997)
49. One Point O (2004)
50. Equilibrium (2002)