I never removed Insults Unpunished from my blogroll because I assumed that Robert Prather would be back eventually. Turns out that I was right. Cool.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 09:56 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I'm struggling to come up with anything useful to blog about today, so I've decided to go with the eye candy instead. Click on the extended entry to see more. more...

Posted by: Physics Geek at 12:47 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Science Fiction Weekly has an interview with Joss Whedon and the cast. Pretty cool stuff. Excerpt:

In the film you answer question that the series raised, like the Reavers and River. Were those the answers we were going to get if the TV show had lived?

Whedon: Very little has changed for the movie. Obviously, things were dropped, and ... most importantly, things were distilled into a fine two-hour liqueur instead of a more watered-down longer version. ... That was where I was going with the idea of River and her secret and the Reavers and theirs and how it all connected. I had planned to get there in a couple of years instead of a couple of hours. But apart from ... not being able to service all the subplots with all those different people, that is exactly where I was going with it. ... That was the easy part of structuring it and pitching it. This is where this series was building to, and I think if you took this as a separate story, it is an epic story and it has a great deal of meaning for today.
...
How much did you guys have to practice or work out to get back into the characters and get back into the mind space you were in?

Baccarin: Well, I had a lot of sex.

Torres: God bless you.

Baccarin: I had to say it. It had to be [said]. There's the whore thing. Now it's done and over with.
...
Are you all signed for another movie or two more?

Baccarin: Two more.

Torres: Two more.

Fillion: You are? This is awkward.

There's a whole lot more. Go check it, if you're so inclined.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 10:50 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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And idea whose time has come

Check out this page. The information contained therein will make you weep. With joy. Thanks to Neal Boortz for the link.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 01:16 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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The cast of Serenity have signed on for at least two sequels, assuming that the first movie does well at the box office.

And now some crappy news: I was almost giddy when I heard that bloggers would be given press credentials for a pre-release screening of Serenity. Until, of course, I remembered that the class I'm teaching this fall starts THE SAME EFFING NIGHT!!!

Does that sound bitter? If not, I didn't say it right.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 12:57 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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This is pretty clever, although I think it took more effort to avoid work than to actually do it.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 09:02 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Glenn Reynolds? 100

Of course, you can replace "assorted assholes" with Andrew Sullivan. Excerpt:

Okay, I take it back. The dumbest statement of the week comes from Andrew Sullivan, who doesn't seem to get the difference between "today" and "yesterday" in a post from this morning criticizing something I quoted last night, but which he attributes to "today" as, I guess, evidence of my obliviousness to this morning's terror bombing in Iraq.

Sorry Andrew, but I'm not capable of precognition. On the other hand, I can read a clock. Jeez. I confess that I don't understand why Sullivan is so desirous of scoring cheap points at my expense these days, but this is pretty lame. As Jeff Goldstein put it in a different context: "Andrew Sullivan is completing his transformation into a Kos Diarist."

If you're familiar with the Puppy Blender's understated tone, you'd recognize that this is a whopper of a bitchslap, and quite deserved, too.

It's a bummer, too. Sully was the first blog that I read regularly. That is, until he went yip-yip-yip, barking at the moon, batshit insance.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 08:40 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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Yes, it's "show me the boobies!" day again, better known as Harvey's birthday. Well, I did supply some nice images last year, as well as a little dessert this year, but I'm no piker. Harvey wants boobies, he's gonna get 'em.

Just so no one gets fired by accidentally opening some NSFW images, I'm putting everything in the extended entry. more...

Posted by: Physics Geek at 01:20 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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Think that you're pretty good at know what's an Urban Legend and what's real? Take this quiz and find out. No fair using Google, A9, or any other search engine.

For the record, I missed two.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 01:24 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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That's the only explanantion that I can find for this.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 03:12 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Bob Denver has passed away. Bummer.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 04:26 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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To no one's surprise, it's from Bill Whittle. Excerpt:

Because to say we are responsible for the terrorists in the world is a way to say we can control this wolf. If we believe we made him, then that means we control him. We can unmake him. Such a worldview appeals to the left, because it gives them Godlike Mental Powers. All we have to do is act differently and he will go away. It’s complete moral cowardice, of course – but it’s understandable cowardice. It’s denial, because if all the sins are ours then all we must do is repent and the wolf will go away.

But thatÂ’s not what the wolf says. The wolf is not interested in what we do. He does not spare little lambs because they rub up against his leg and make cooing sounds. The wolf wants to swallow us whole. He wants the fight. He wants the war and the conflict. And he will keep on huffing and puffing until one of three things happen: We show him our throat, for him to rip out; or we convert to Islam and become part of his Caliphate; or we head out into the forest with a shotgun and blow his fucking head off.

I made my decision by about 8:00 eastern on September 11th, 2001. I have never regretted it.

It takes courage to fight oncoming storms. Courage.

Courage isnÂ’t free. It is taught, taught by certain tribes who have been around enough and seen enough incoming storms to know what one looks like. And I think the people of this nation, and those of New Orleans, specifically, desire and deserve some fundamental lessons in courage.

Because we are going to need it.

Let me reiterate: Bill Whittle is a national treasure. Go read it all. Now.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 08:54 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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You're going to need all the help you can get. Right now, Divine Intervention is about all that stands between you and the creation of Lake New Orleans.

I go away on vacation for a couple of days, heading to a place where I purposely wouldn't watch television. When I left, Katrina was a TD/ Cat-1 hurricane getting ready to irritate the tip of Florida. When I arrived back home, Katrina had become Camille on steroids, bearing down on the Big Easy. The #3 scenario of the worst disasters this country might face(SF earthquake and terrorist attack on NYC being the others) is about to become a reality. This is likely to be the worst natural disaster this country has ever faced.

Update: Katrina veered east near the last minute and New Orleans, while suffering significant destruction, will survive. This time. Maybe now is a good time to start working on some protective measures.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 09:32 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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I am not sure exactly how it works, but this is amazingly accurate. Read the full description before looking at the picture.

The picture below has 2 identical dolphins in it. It was used in a case study on stress level at St. Mary's Hospital. Look at both dolphins jumping out of the water. The dolphins are identical.

A closely monitored, scientific study of a group revealed that in spite of the fact that the dolphins are identical, a person under stress would find differences in the two dolphins. If there are many differences found between both dolphins, it means that the person is experiencing a great amount of stress.

Look at the photograph in the extended entry and if you find more than one or two differences, you may want to take a vacation.

more...

Posted by: Physics Geek at 03:37 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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Jeff Goldstein put up a poll to determine whether or not he's too profane. Personally, I consider a day without a dick/fart joke to be a waste of time.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 11:43 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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As this story aptly demonstrates, the French are still the best in the world at running away.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 03:38 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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1) When you are sad - I will help get you drunk and plot revenge against the sorry bastard who made you sad.

2) When you are blue - I will try to dislodge whatever is choking you.

3) When you smile - I will know you finally got laid.

4) When you are scared - I will rag on you about it every chance I get.

5) When you are worried - I will tell you horrible stories about how much worse it could be and to quit whining.

6) When you are confused - I will use little words.

7) When you are sick - Stay the hell away from me until you are well again. I don't want whatever you have.

When you fall - I will point and laugh at your clumsy ass.

Remember: A good friend will come and bail you out of jail...but a true friend will be sitting next to you saying, "Damn.... that was fun!"

Posted by: Physics Geek at 03:32 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Boring meetings got you down? Then consider the items found at this site, which are guaranteed to liven things up, possibly to the point where you get arrested. Be aware that I do not advocate the use of the items you'll find at OfficeGuns. Now stop bothering me; I have to go raid the supply cabinet.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 04:43 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Or more to the point, things that currently don't, Kate needs some more contributions to her Fang Fund.

Get well soon, Kate.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 09:31 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I stumbled onto this post by Meryl Yourish and flashed back to an ugly incident that I had with a large spider.

About 10 years ago, I lived in a 50 year old house that had a detached garage. The garage contained a Smithsonian quality vintage refrigerator inside that surprisingly still worked. The 100 or so bottles of beer that I brewed each month had a nice, cold place to live without preventing me from storing perishables. One afternoon, after a long day at work, I walked out to the garage to grab a chilly one. When I placed my hand upon the doorknob, I noticed something sticky, which reflect a bit of sunlight. My eyes moved up until I noticed that I was staring at grayish blob, somewhere between the size of a silver half-dollar and dollar, and about 6 inches from my face. I knew right away that it was a spider(middle of the web and all), but I wasn't certain if it was still alive or was simply a clinging, crumpled legs corpse. So I grabbed a stick and took a swing at the thing. My aim was a bit off, what with my being in shock and all, but I noticed that the form shrunk in on itself a bit. Great; it's alive. So I swung again. Must have gotten a bit closer because the fun began in earnest.

The spider extended its legs ::SPLANG:: and started making for the top of the garage. I hesitated for a split second due to two things:

1) The thing was freaking enormous. It's splayed legs covered an area greater than that of my hands with all fingers fully extended. And

2) The knowledge that another 1/8 of a step would have placed that bad boy squarely on my kisser.

Fear is a great motivator, but so is good beer. If I didn't somehow kill that mutant extra from Kingdom of the Spiders, I would be unable to enter my garage until winter. Being cocooned as an after dinner snack just doesn't appeal to me. Anyway, I swung one last time at the swiftly vanishing creature, applying extra force due to my thirst. The vile beast exploded into pieces, which thankfully landed nowhere near me.

Here's the kicker: my best friend was living in my house at the time. When I mentioned my arachnoid encounter, he replied, "Yeah, that thing was huge. I had to duck really low to get into the garage."

"WTF?! Why didn't you tell me about it? What would you have said if I told you the spider had jumped onto my face?"

"I'd have said, 'Gee, that's too bad'."

Yeah, I love the bastard, too.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 09:12 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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