Life On Replay

But NOT real life, thank heavens...

Someone who's heard me sing along to the radio got me a present - a 'Sims 3' game, with a bonus package consisting of the essence of singer Katy Perry.

(and I said)...Wait..What?



I had to laugh; this 'Showtime' edition lets you create a mini-you and have him/her blunder through a KP style career track that starts you out busking on the street for coins and may let you into 'superstardom'.

But if your mini-you doesn't succeed?..
...there's infinite do-overs, whew!

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Definitely a more certain outcome than the lives of the characters in Ken Griswold's award-winning novel 'Replay' - where a few select people must randomly re-live portions of their past lives.

I re-read it recently, and their choices make it painfully clear that decisions must be made, and that you can't avoid all of life's uncertainties.

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Here's a few bits of one guy's Sims lives:

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As for me?...
I've yet to unwrap my Katy Perry simlife.

Maybe I'm not ready for all those colorful choices?

For TT's 'Life Uncertainties' day
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Hunger Games Aussie Review

Found this Australian gal's spoiler-free review.
First thing she says is that the movie is 'amazing'...
She saw 'Hunger Games' last night, 24hr ahead of U.S. release.

Watch her self-video as she walks home @ 2am:

She says its just 'amazing'
'faithful adaptation w/o being beholden to the book'
'Jennifer Lawrence was sublime'
'Thought Josh brought the spirit of Peeta'
'Its got pace and tightness'
'good even for people who've already read the book'

So, according to her 'The Hunger Games' will be a hit.

But the most unique thing about her experience to me was the small theatre she was in. The theater provided champagne on little numbered tables? And those table dots with numbers (D1, D2) indicate that they had assigned seating in this cozy little cinema.

Personally, I wouldn't care what film I was seeing if I got to see it in large comfy seats with a glass of champagne in my hand...




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Escaping the Costa Concordia

Teen films as family escapes the ship.

This 5 minute amateur video chronicles their evacuation, from the moment they felt the crash during the magic show, until they reached the emergency shelter on shore.

The kid added explanations (in text windows) so you know what's going on during each individual video clip. Interesting raw footage, and well worth a look.



Imagine getting in a lifeboat like that, and then just when you think you're rescued, it tips so badly that you have to go back onto a sinking ship. And try to fathom what was like, climbing down the side of that giant boat in the dark!

Scary, nightmare scary...

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One Fish Two Fish Red Fish OMG FISH

A five foot flying fish, actually.

Ever want a 5 ft remote-controlled helium-filled flying fish? The video below shows a family that owns both the Shark and the Clown Fish 'Air Swimmer' models:



They fly both of them throughout the house.
And in the city. Just watch it. Awesome.

So awesome that I got my own 'Nemo' on Monday.

The box it came in is surprisingly small;
it fit into a regular priority mail box.

Now to find a helium source so mine can fly.
And hopefully I'll avoid the ceiling fan.
You know how fish hate ceiling fans.

And BTW, thanks Mrsupole for
our great new TT topic: 'FISH'
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Watching Letters Fly By

A quick post about fonts and flicks...

You see common Kinetic Typography when movie credits zip by as you sit in a darkened theater. btw, Its much more difficult to add floating notes during the film itself, like those sliding rules in 'Zombieland'. (a fun movie, if you can stand gooey gore.)

Below is a narration enhanced with active letters.



A person named Chris did the kinetic typograph above,
using the villian's speech from 'V for Vendetta';
a movie w/ Hugo Weaving & Natalie Portman, kinda
'Black Swan meets the bad guy from The Matrix'...

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This next flight of word & letter fancy is


called 'X versus O', by

Reminds me of those Sesame Street bits, but for adults.


* Hope you've enjoyed these very moving letters... ;-)

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for TT's 'letter' day
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Make A Sparkler

Here are two simple 4-item recipes:

1. For this fireworks sparkler you need:

Potassium Nitrate - 6 parts
Granular Magnesium - 4 parts
Charcoal - 1 part
and a starch or sugar 'binder'

Mix, and coat a wire or stick.

This guy uses -marshmallows- for his binder.



Or, if that sounds too messy...

2. You can mix up a Bond Street Sparkler.

blackberry puree,
St.Germain elderflower liqueur
Fresh Mint
and a quality Champagne...

For a simply fun July, I might make both.

For TT's 'simple' day
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The Hazards of Being Beautiful

A new giant cat may become extinct before most humans know they exist...


Here's 22 seconds of its first ever footage:



This is the Sundaland Clouded Leopard,
filmed in Sumatra for the first time.

This cat was filmed using a camera trap in Berbak Nat'l Park. Can you imagine being the first person to watch it? You're expecting yet another day of wild pigs, and then suddenly there it is!

...But then you'd realize that as soon as you report its existence, others will come to hunt it either for fur or 'conservation'. Having seen the disaster the Chinese wrought upon their pandas, I've lost faith in the programs that drag animals out of their natural habitat.

And we all know if it looked like a warthog it'd be left in peace.
I hope its future isn't as cloudy as its pretty pelt.

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fyi: found a 3 min slideshow of clouded leopard info:



*And sadly, just as the video says, it is true that many female leopards in captivity were killed by males. Just because the 'scientists' never bothered to study those leopard mating habits in the wild, before putting random leopards together. Shameful.

for TT's 'cloud' day
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The Owl and the Pussycat

aka Gebra the owl, and Fum the cat



They don't have a pea-green boat, but they do have fun:



As you can see from the video, they did dance...

Whether they dined on mince & quince, who knows?
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Zoom Zoom Zoom

Electric unicycle with a stabilizer !



SoloWheel is balanced by a gyroscope, and its supposed to be easy to ride, like a Segway. I love riding on a Segway, and this works the same way - Solowheel accelerates when you lean forward and slows down when you lean back:



Going downhill the battery recharges, so you can go up to 12 mph, and get more than two hours on a charge.

I have e-unicycle envy... I want one.

Anyone have a spare $1800 I can borrow?

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What Screams May Come

'To sleep, perchance to dream.'

Or not. Depending on whether you've seen this curmudgeon-ly cute (Oscar nom'd) short, based on The Brothers Grimm's tale.

Granny Grimm's 'Sleeping Beauty'


*Forgot to warn you not to view at bedtime.

Oops. Sleep tight.

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For TT's 'Sleep' day... btw, here's Granny on Twitter
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Dogs Vs Cats

The real difference between cats and dogs?
Its in their TV viewing, of course.

Dogs watch Animal Planet...

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Cats watch the news...

Which one is smarter? Well...

thats still up for debate... but at least the cat ran away.

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For TT's 'tv' day
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Fresh Take on Old Spice

I have a confession.
I mute all TV ads, even for shows & products that I like.

But rules were made to be broken, and
for these Old Spice ads I made an exception:

*first 12 secs appear normal...


Quick visual tricks and nonsense? = worth viewing.

Now here's
'Behind the Scenes' as they film a new one

... all in *one* take: (in the first minute)



If they go to that much trouble, I'll pay attention.
Even if I have no idea what that 'spice' smells like.

Now, a non-Spice, but still fun: NY Fest winner, 40 sec

All for fun, & TT's Spice day.
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The Holy Grail of Silly

Because, what's sillier than 'Spamalot'?

(Perhaps a special edition can of SPAM-alot?)

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My favorite song from the show:


Diva's Lament _{{CardinalFang.net}}

What ever happened to my part?
It was exciting at the start.
Now we're halfway through Act 2
And I've had nothing yet to do.
I've been offstage for far too long
It's ages since I had a song.
This is one unhappy Diva
The producer's have deceived her.
There is nothing I can sing from my heart.
Whatever happened to My Part?


I am sick of my career
Always stuck in second gear
Up to here, with frustration and with fear.
I've no Grammy, no rewards,
I've no Tony Awards*,
I'm constantly replaced by Britney Spears.
Britney Spears!


Whatever happened to My Show?
I was a hit, now I don't know.
I'm with a bunch of British Knights,
Prancing 'round in woolly tights.
I might as well go to the Pub
They've been out searching for a shrub
Out shopping for a bush
Well they can kiss my Tush!
It seems to me they've really lost the plot


Whatever Happened to My…
I'll Call my Agent, Dammit!
Whatever Happened to My…
Not Yours! Not Yours!
But... My... Pa-art !


*btw, Sara Ramirez actually -did- win the Tony! :)

For our TT's 'Silly' day
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Party Animals

A wet T-shirt* contest.

*Except there's no shirts, and the only 'T' is on the end of the elephant.

Because its spring, and that means peewee pachyderms in the pool. This week, the keepers at the Houston zoo brought out the new 'baby' pool for their younger elephants. And it was quite a splash hit...


Baylor is over 1100 lbs, tiny Tupelo is only 600.

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Baby Baylor's first pool.
See at :20 where Mom sticks her foot in?
Notice the keepers bribe her (and auntie) with tidbits to keep their big feet (and 10,000lbs) out of his baby pool. But they still end up replacing the pools every few weeks.

Make you want a pool of your own?...
It just makes me want summer, stat! ;-)

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Roomy Book Nook

Meri @ Playing Along posed a question for us.

She asked:

All you true book lovers out there,
Have you transitioned to virtual books?

How could you possibly give up the smell of ink,
the feel of the velvety pages,
the sound of the pages turning,
the heft of the book in your hands...

Meri, here's my answer...

I do like real books, honestly.

But my conversion to digital books began the day I went to my library to borrow this hefty new book that had been recommended to me. The librarian found it, and handed it over. Actually she heaved it my way, since it has over a 1000 pages, weighs more than the dog I was pup-sitting, and it has -no- page numbers or index.

I could only read it* with my bent legs propped up on a very sturdy ottoman. (the furniture type - not a guy - sheesh)

Thus began my search for a lighter way to read...

Got some good info via Cnet: 'Kindle vs Nook vs iPad'

Then Apple annc'd : iPad 2 debuts March 2011 !:


Until I see the new contender, I can't decide. So currently I'm still using my mobile to read eBooks, while waiting to find out which new device will win my heart. Or at least my wallet. I'll keep you posted.

Meanwhile, enjoy the sweet irony of this audio-visual trailer that publisher MacMillan put out recently to promote a 32-page children's book. Its protagonist eschews the digital, prefering the pleasures of reading.
Watch a video of a book about reading a book...

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*That 5 lb tome? Surprised me that it was a graphic novel/comic that was turned into the 'Walking Dead' tv series.
At over $50, $10 a pound, its not worth all that weight.
Happy Reading... or 'Viewing'.

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Playing Along: Theme Thursday: Book
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Mambo Santa Mambo

A new tune for your holiday mix.



Hm. I've never tried tequila eggnog.
Do we have to add the worm?...

Merry Christmas, y'all !

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No Place Like Dome

Watch it cave in -with- actual sound.
... There's snow-where to hide!



Make sure you have the sound on ... }~whump~{ !

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Feeling Better Than This Guy

I'm still on the mend,
but at least my brain is working, unlike this guy:

He loaded a $300 inflatable raft with camping supplies, two burritos, a bag of vitamins, a Bible and a mannequin of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

"This trip was a campaign," Hopper explained. "I wanted to bring more attention to social diseases."

Yup, that's what it says.
Feel free to read that twice, I did.

After 5 days stranded on an island a mile off-shore he finally used his cellphone -doh!- to call for help.

And just in case you were worried,
he also brought along a red tablecloth and some duct tape.
No extra food mind you, but he did have a tablecloth.

Here's the entire article; it can't help but make you feel like a sane genius in comparison.


Still lol-ing about him bringing
that giant Schwarzenegger doll along...

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In Stitches

No 'Art Every Day' this week.
Lazy? Yes, but that's beside the point.
Its because I managed to slice my hand open.

So, until I'm back in the grove,
have a look at the 'SLICE IT' phone app.



My fav app is still 'Trism', but this one isn't bad.
And its easy to do, even with a damaged digit.

(btw, Do they make 'Scribblenauts' for the iPhone?...
because that one can drive ('draw'?) you 'nauts'.)

*see the other's art
via twitter #aedm2010
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Chill Out

'Night Waves', my 'Art Every Day' for day 11 of 30.
Made with the new online program: Flame Painter.

From my first time using this program - I do like the way the hues mix and spread as your hand moves. Its fun to just relax and let the colors flow.

* _{Find other's art via Twitter hashtag: #aedm2010 (or search twitter)}

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Plus a few soothing waves for your day as well:

Nine minutes of waves, trees & breeze.

Since this is also ThemeThursday's 'relax' day. Aren't you envious of the person who got to film the video above? Its chilly here today, so you know I am...

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