tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54395662012-02-16T01:24:47.542-05:00Mime is Money chronicles the stuff that happens to me and the thoughts that pop into my head.Speechlessnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1431100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-13116902983289542382009-03-12T20:24:00.003-04:002009-03-12T21:51:58.927-04:00

A guy on the A train had a red streaked yellow smiley face Watchmen button on the left lapel of his black leather jacket and I wondered what this meant. Is he just saying he's a fan of the movie or book, or is he also saying that he's a fan of The Comedian, the cynical special ops mercenary? If the latter, does this guy think that The Comedian would wear movie company schwag you can get from the

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-90515841797500163242009-03-08T21:53:00.007-04:002009-03-08T22:53:20.527-04:00

***1/2As a whole, I really liked The Watchmen; I thought it captured the feel of the comic book and I got sucked into the film's world just as I did when I read the book. It seems like a panel-for-panel remake, or at least the panels that made it into the movie. And the actors were made up to look exactly like the characters; I almost gasped when I saw Dreiberg (Night Owl II) for the first time.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-84562241813373057292009-02-27T18:39:00.001-05:002009-02-27T18:41:17.851-05:00

sadtrombone.com has just the prescription.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-16543697070259337562009-02-27T17:59:00.002-05:002009-02-27T18:09:56.065-05:00

Kent and I saw Alfie - the one with Michael Caine, not pretty boy Jude Law (who is pretty even in person, and does look rather like Caine) - last week. I found the character, though highly flawed and overwhelmingly sexist, to be quite interesting. He's pretty clueless, which is, I suppose, the only reason why I could find such a character interesting and even a bit sympathetic. That, and the

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-83501467603057112862008-10-31T17:10:00.000-04:002008-10-31T17:12:24.727-04:00

In my back yard as we speak.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-87857248606396386612008-10-04T09:37:00.006-04:002008-10-04T09:51:10.738-04:00

Here's something else I had as a kid: Smurf Colorforms.(Both pictures courtesy of bluebuddies.com.)I was big into the Smurfs. Stuffed Smurf dolls, Smurf food tray, both of which my mom won in Seaside, Smurf Colecovision game (which was pretty lame but I still have the theme song stuck in my head to this day), even a Smurf sleeping bag.I wouldn't buy used Colorforms though, knowing how I would

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-33657776950217945772008-10-04T09:06:00.004-04:002008-10-04T09:41:53.805-04:00

No, I'm not siding with Mr. Pink and suggesting that you never leave a tip for your waiter or waitress, I'm talking about one of the games from my childhood by Ideal:I remember it would descend into Lord of the Flies chaos at the end - we would get tired of the game and throw the little discs at each other.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-18114414522466816822008-09-23T09:09:00.002-04:002008-09-23T09:55:20.047-04:00

The 1908 baseball season, the last time the Cubs won the World Series, was a lulu. The American League had a four-way pennant race: Tigers (featuring Ty Cobb), Cleveland Naps, White Sox, and St. Louis Browns. The Tigers won their pennant on the last possible day of the regular season.The National League had a three-way race: Cubs, Giants, and Pirates (led by Honus Wagner). The Cubs got their

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-5019125725910939232008-09-20T15:33:00.005-04:002008-09-20T15:36:45.911-04:00

From Funny Cat Photos

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-53170948828605108622008-09-13T10:10:00.001-04:002008-09-13T10:12:03.037-04:00

Is it really necessary to have these reporters standing outside in the middle of a hurricane? Does it really add to our understanding or help us in any way? I'm finding it more and more ridiculous every year.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-58258669336207259422008-09-10T20:32:00.002-04:002008-09-10T20:56:55.971-04:00

The violet Dancing Geishas arrived from Park Seeds today. Hmm, I don't remember ordering them. They're not in my garden plan, either. Oh the best laid plans!I think I'll plant them underneath our rose bushes out front.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-25301728351057717872008-09-07T18:03:00.002-04:002008-09-07T18:05:36.847-04:00

Could someone tell the NFL that using Morrissey's "Every Day is Like Sunday" ["every day is cloudy and gray"] is the worst use of a pop song since Phillips used the Beatles' "It's Getting Better All the Time" ["it can't get no worse"]? Not that I don't want Morrissey to make money.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-63475219612886604592008-09-07T17:37:00.002-04:002008-09-07T18:03:29.943-04:00

I spent a marathon session yesterday looking for plants for our garden. We decided that what we have is just too messy for us to maintain and we don't know what the previous owners intended, so we're going to dig some stuff up and plant what we want. I see why people hire garden designers to do the work for them - it took me a long time to find plants suitable for our zone, soil, and the amount

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-26183952390067592292008-08-30T20:06:00.003-04:002008-08-30T20:08:24.883-04:00

Steve and I just stumbled upon Glen Jones's show on NJ classic rock station 105.7. Whoa.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-36262013822796304512008-08-26T17:28:00.004-04:002008-08-26T17:35:30.772-04:00

When I was in college, some of my friends on the school newspaper would use my (maiden) name in songs. They'd sing my name to the tune of the Mission Impossible theme, etc. I told this to another friend of mine, who said they should use "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" by Looking Glass as a song for me instead.Fast forward 10 years and I marry a guy with the last name of Brandi.Not only that, but

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-17394176774148968892008-08-26T17:18:00.002-04:002008-08-26T17:18:57.865-04:00

Watchmen by Alan Moore My review rating: 5 of 5 stars== Sort of a spoiler alert == Lots of intertwining story arcs and themes to sink your teeth into. One I'm currently mulling over is the morality of Rorschach vs. that of Ozymandias. Rorschach thinks what Ozymandias did is criminal and that Ozymandias must be punished for it, but really, is what Ozymandias did so different than what

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-82265054643566119762008-08-26T16:40:00.005-04:002008-08-26T17:05:43.778-04:00

We had some guys install a sprinkler system today. Wow, what a headache. It only took about 3 1/2 hours but there were guys everywhere all at once digging holes and pulling up part of our brick garden borders. I couldn't bear to watch. Shielding my eyes from it didn't save me though as they used a ditch witch to do most of their digging; it was obnoxiously loud and I cringed whenever I heard

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-55353910460836017482008-04-03T19:07:00.003-04:002008-04-03T19:36:58.887-04:00

I saw a headline on Google news saying that the CEO of Bear Stearns said his company would have been saved if the Fed bailed them out sooner.Oh yeah? Well maybe he could have saved his company himself if he put a stop to the hedge fund shell game.Robert Reich on tonight's News Hours with Jim Lehrer pretty much said that it would have been nice if Bear Stearns ponied up some collateral in exchange

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-46349743640995710292008-03-20T21:23:00.004-04:002008-08-24T10:19:39.654-04:00

Steve and I have a garden that goes all the way around our house. It's mostly a border garden and mostly flowers. I wanted some vegetables, so we're going to clear out some of the old plants and make room for tomatoes, peppers, beans, cucumbers, and who knows what else.We're starting from seed, and we don't have wide window ledges, so we needed a grow light. As usual, we procrastinated and didn't

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-34742770401555064292008-03-10T19:07:00.008-04:002008-03-10T19:54:56.371-04:00

I realize now that I like Bob Fosse. When I was a kid, I thought his choreography was weird; when I was a teen and in my twenties, I thought it was dumb, passe, and what Kent calls "Entertainment" (air quotes included). But my mom, sister, and I went to see Chicago this Saturday, and seeing Fosse's work live changed my mind.The moves suit the music (snappy homages to Vaudeville) well and I really

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-13740285895589926612008-02-29T07:56:00.002-05:002008-02-29T15:06:36.796-05:00

Is it any wonder that people are walking away from their homes when they can't afford the payments, what with crooked CEOs and other white collar criminals behaving as bad examples? If the can ruin a company by making risky but legal gambles and still walk away with 10s of millions in a golden parachute, then why can't the average person?http://mobile.nytimes.com/article?a=144609&f=21

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-33820172137283595012008-02-28T12:31:00.001-05:002008-02-28T12:31:36.990-05:00

A couple of the guys at work are going to India for a few weeks to work with our off-shore co-workers. They think they won't be able to get much meat while they're there, so they're ordering a huge amount of bbq for lunch today. For 6 people, they're ordering about 4 pounds of beef, 2 pounds of chicken, and a few sides. I hope they get their work done for the day before their lunch arrives,

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-26310799266290849042008-02-19T12:33:00.001-05:002008-02-19T12:33:02.575-05:00

Celebrating the Semicolon in a Most Unlikely Location

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-53479270064576697222008-02-15T10:55:00.002-05:002008-02-15T11:22:19.198-05:00

Today's Salon has a good review by Laura Miller about Susan Jacoby's book, The Age of American Unreason. The book has some flaws, according to Miller, one of which is that Jacoby doesn't seem to care about why people like unreasonable ways of thinking: The missing factor in Jacoby's formula is just that: In addition to being capable of rationality, we also have to want to be rational.andIt's hard

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-2284453678824264002008-02-11T13:06:00.001-05:002008-02-11T13:06:20.652-05:00

Here's a blurb about a Wired article about Anthology Recordings ("the first all-digital reissues label") from one of my co-workers: http://www.jasonwoodard.com/blog/2008/02/11/DigestingWiredFeb2008.aspxLooks purty good!

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-85078402226118650202008-02-06T19:11:00.000-05:002008-02-06T19:17:09.232-05:00

One of my friends lives in New Zealand and expressed frustration at the media's discrepancies in the delegate totals of each candidate. She included one of her Kiwi friends on the email and he asked, "Who runs the elections in the U.S.?" Quite frankly, I didn't know, so I did some research and here's what I replied:Ok, so each state decides how its voting or caucus process works. Some vote for

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-19829860394748058212008-01-31T19:29:00.000-05:002008-01-31T19:30:28.333-05:00

"I'm not a threat. I'm a promise."

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-30021013697136116442008-01-31T15:51:00.000-05:002008-01-31T15:52:04.121-05:00

...because I'm not allowed to drink at work.The Chocolate Bar

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-79695876290335246912008-01-29T18:59:00.000-05:002008-01-29T19:08:59.886-05:00

I was in a meeting in one of the rooms overlooking the Hudson and Hoboken, as well as a huge Emporio Armani billboard. As I was looking at the billboard, I thought about the pervasive air of wealth and luxe in this area (for those who can and can't afford it but buy into it anyway) and for a second or two, I really felt like I was in a foreign city. It was almost like an hallucination. I've been

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-5017909168881920702007-12-27T14:19:00.000-05:002007-12-27T14:23:17.809-05:00

A site of Christmas photos and greeting cards found in yard sales, trash, etc.:http://squareamerica.com/xm1.htmI've only gone through the homemade photo cards so far - they alone are worth the visit.Here's a site that lists more found photos:http://www.other-peoples-pictures.com/resources.htm#

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-80951457215356037262007-12-13T19:07:00.001-05:002007-12-14T09:09:20.867-05:00

After getting settled onto a train on track 11, Kent and I hear thisannouncement:"Ladies and gentlemen, I've been asked to inform you that this is not the train you think it is. The train you want is on track 12. Please proceed to track 12."

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-66293954516342025912007-12-07T11:58:00.001-05:002007-12-07T11:58:52.109-05:00

Elton John Given Rare Maori Award

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-43732751883639688662007-09-10T14:51:00.001-04:002007-09-10T14:51:13.871-04:00

TV's triumphant overclass Television continues to grow positively filthy with the filthy rich. And where is the middle class? Demeaning itself for money on reality and game shows, of course By Heather Havrilesky So where is the middle class in this equation? In the old days, we'd find them on sitcoms, at the very least. Yet these days, even sitcom characters live sophisticated urban lives in

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-91045580095083477932007-08-30T21:34:00.001-04:002007-08-30T21:34:19.893-04:00

http://blog.nbc.com/CreedThoughts/

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-11966193317240633612007-08-30T08:36:00.001-04:002007-08-30T08:36:03.601-04:00

By Andrew O'Hehir in Salon.  

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-25045510182626416422007-08-10T14:21:00.001-04:002007-08-10T14:21:11.886-04:00

Do the singers in modern musicals really have to over-enunciate when they sing? I just heard a clip of a song in Hairspray and while the song was kinda catchy, the singer over-enunciated to the extent that I just didn't want to listen. That's sort of why I like Jersey Boys - they were pretty true to the original style of The Four Seasons' songs - they didn't "Broadway-ize" them. It was like I was

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-2984402868203497502007-07-20T09:23:00.001-04:002007-07-20T09:23:24.163-04:00

I'm so sick of people who criticize anti-war speech because it fosters enemy propaganda. We're in a war - wouldn't the enemy produce propaganda anyway??? And who the hell cares if they do? It's propaganda ! The Republicans love to dismiss other, non-war related criticism of Republican plans or ideas by Democrats as mere propaganda ( http://www.politicalgateway.com/main/columns/read.html?col=74,

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-48197124986186383942007-07-13T10:08:00.001-04:002007-07-13T10:08:14.800-04:00

I'm working from home today and I set myself up in the dining room because it's right next to the bathroom and kitchen. Also, there's a nice sliding door that looks out onto the backyard with the roses and daisies. Anyway, I was in the middle of updating a piece of online help when I hear this thud and scratching on the sliding door. I looked over and there's this groundhog peering into the house

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-9218734843886925712007-07-12T11:46:00.001-04:002007-07-12T11:46:57.949-04:00

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070712/ap_on_re_us/flight_diverted

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-20755370359219250832007-07-12T08:46:00.000-04:002007-07-13T14:43:17.943-04:00

Imagine the possibilities! You could spend all day discussing the signifiers of each marshmallow sign!http://www.salon.com/comics/boll/2007/07/12/boll/

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-4430512933457575302007-07-08T10:33:00.000-04:002007-07-08T18:30:33.408-04:00

Part one ran today. It's fascinating - Newark was long in decline before the 1967 riots.The push towards the suburbs was codified - the rules of the Federal Housing Authority actually specified that they wouldn't approve mortgages to "crowded neighborhoods" or to "inharmonious racial groups".AlsoBy 1967, Newark believed its property tax rate, $7.75 per $100 of assessed value, was the highest in

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-7631147102122995692007-06-29T09:20:00.000-04:002007-06-29T09:22:12.052-04:00

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-11777408623751756092007-06-19T08:59:00.000-04:002007-06-19T11:15:10.737-04:00

Years ago, Kent, Dieter, and I watched a WFMU chotchke video compilation that included an animated video of the extended version of Autobahn by Kraftwerk. But I think the one video that really stuck with us was the Monks' "Monk Chant".Here's that video:Autobahn was cool and all, but it's kind of hard to forget guys wearing fake monk wigs, playing large tambourines, and banging on kettle drums.The

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-57423918374567119982007-06-07T13:07:00.001-04:002007-06-07T13:07:52.165-04:00

Here's how newspapers can use Google News to their advantage.   Some newspapers were bellyaching about how Google News, which displays a story's headline and it's  lede, kinda steals content from them and, more importantly to the newspaper, gives readers enough information so that they don't click through to the newspaper's website and thus don't feed them ad revenue.   But Google News could be

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-26463879148222635452007-05-30T16:42:00.001-04:002007-05-30T16:49:39.764-04:00

Poppies will make them sleep...Sleep...One of our many roses.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-79631862495036525612007-05-25T16:15:00.001-04:002007-05-25T16:15:53.048-04:00

When the microwave broke at the office, someone wrote a haiku to it to sort of bring it back to life. Others soon added their haikus and eventually we were given a new microwave.   Now the toaster is broken and we're once again envoking the power of haiku to get a new one.   Here's my entry:   What should I do with my raisin bread now that you have foresaken me? 

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-5532848958163980752007-05-21T13:05:00.001-04:002007-05-21T13:05:50.316-04:00

Area Man Somehow Roped Into Arguing Passionately For Green Day.onion_embed {background: rgb(256, 256, 256) !important;border: 4px solid rgb(65, 160, 65);border-width: 4px 0 1px 0;margin: 10px 30px !important;padding: 5px;overflow: hidden !important;zoom: 1;}.onion_embed img {border: 0 !important;}.onion_embed a {display: inline;}.onion_embed a.img {float: left !important;margin: 0 5px 0 0 !

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-72249161069274726222007-05-04T09:07:00.001-04:002007-05-04T10:07:29.858-04:00

On my way to work this morning I noticed a billboard on the Turnpike that just says, "The Algorithm Constantly Finds Jesus". At first I thought it was another evangelical message. Then I saw one near the Lincoln Tunnel that says "The Algorithm Killed Jeeves".Ok, so I was intrigued and Googled it.Turns out, it's a campaign from Ask.com whose mascot used to be Jeeves, that quintessential British

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-61201832737929883842007-05-03T11:44:00.001-04:002007-05-03T11:45:54.204-04:00

Manny Ramirez Asks Red Sox If He Can Work From Home.onion_embed {background: rgb(256, 256, 256) !important;border: 4px solid rgb(65, 160, 65);border-width: 4px 0 1px 0;margin: 10px 30px !important;padding: 5px;overflow: hidden !important;zoom: 1;}.onion_embed img {border: 0 !important;}.onion_embed a {display: inline;}.onion_embed a.img {float: left !important;margin: 0 5px 0 0 !important;width:

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-25356924902818148602007-05-02T16:03:00.001-04:002007-05-02T16:03:05.243-04:00

Beer maker, scientists to create energy"[Prof. Jurg Keller, University of Queensland's wastewater expert] expected the brewery cell would produce 2 kilowatts of power — enough to power a household..." Off the grid, but still drunk with power!

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-64874117298620238122007-04-11T09:46:00.001-04:002007-04-11T09:46:38.836-04:00

White House seeks "czar" to oversee wars: report So, this is like the drug czar, right? Like the guy who fights the War on Drugs only this would be America's War on Wars?   And ain't nobody wants to be the war czar, so maybe we'll escape this one.   The Washington Post quotes Retired Marine Gen. John "Jack" Sheehan, a former top NATO commander, and who is one of the men who rejected the job, "

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-58400849075336681692007-04-04T09:35:00.001-04:002007-04-04T09:35:49.548-04:00

Here's today's Garrison Keillor column in Salon. It pretty much echoes what I feel about walking around Manhattan though I try to avoid Times Square at all costs.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-2528322959275081442007-03-29T14:43:00.001-04:002007-03-29T14:43:16.246-04:00

Viceroy   3 out of 5 Chiclets   On the southwest corner of 18th and 8th Ave.   French-American (pomme frites instead of french fries, but portabello burger) with European laid-backness (they don't rush you to order-eat-leave).

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-85810363019045947382007-03-28T16:04:00.001-04:002007-03-28T16:04:16.198-04:00

Ice cream man! One benefit of working in an office across the street from a school.   I think it's his first day out - I didn't hear him yesterday.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-23375570784807768642007-03-27T22:07:00.000-04:002007-03-27T22:08:46.424-04:00

Yeah, Man!Well, turn it up!

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-28262721210665670392007-03-27T07:09:00.000-04:002007-03-27T22:09:44.958-04:00

On a couple of corners on Route 9, there are older men wearing orange crossing guard vests sitting in folding camp chairs on the corner taking notes. I don't think they're crossing guards because I've never seen them before.Curious...

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-51384652119751232952007-03-23T15:04:00.001-04:002007-03-23T15:04:32.672-04:00

Is not a rat, is a hamster!   Sorry, I'm a pet lover, but I still had to say it.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-78109310018984895512007-03-16T17:31:00.001-04:002007-03-16T20:46:35.354-04:00

I'm currently listening to WFMU'S 20k Windows Media Player stream on my Treo as the bus crawls down the turnpike in the slush. Not bad. It cuts out when I browse to another web page, but I still think this is cool. Don't know how long my battery will last, though...Guess I'd better give them some money as this is pledge week and all.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-69887721641531196342007-03-06T17:30:00.001-05:002007-03-07T20:57:53.799-05:00

I'm one of those jerks with the Crackberries now. Except with a Treo.So what nickname do the have for these? Special T? I can't think of anything good since I'm not part of the drug culture.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-3864392222305483452007-03-04T20:18:00.000-05:002007-03-04T21:33:17.277-05:00

(3 out of 4 chiclets)Kent and I watched Bubba Ho-tep last night: it wasn't exactly what I thought it was but I still liked it a lot.Bruce Campbell plays Elvis, who is alive because he switched places with an Elvis impersonator back in the 70s after he got tired of fame and his soul-sucking friends. The impersonator is the one who died from the drugs and so the king is rotting away forgotten in an

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1619184960092527642007-02-17T21:41:00.001-05:002007-02-17T21:41:43.919-05:00

Today I had another craving for ice cream and decided to pick up some Ben & Jerry's. They come out with crazy new flavors more often so today I picked up Neapolitan Dynamite (half Cherry Garcia and half Chocolate Fudge Brownie, which I guess technically isn't Neapolitan because it has cherries instead of strawberry, although Spumoni has cherries. which used to be sold as a form of Neapolitan

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-55912241107058599572007-02-09T15:37:00.000-05:002007-02-09T15:41:04.300-05:00

Someone in my office broke out his acoustic guitar and is playing a piece that Mike Schank plays in American Movie (though my co-worker is kinda rusty) and it brought a big smile to my face just like Mike brought a smile to Mark Borschardt's face on Thanksgiving. Unlike Mark, I haven't been feeling like there's nothing worth getting out of bed for but you don't have to be a struggling filmmaker

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-23521451937697509042007-02-02T09:47:00.001-05:002007-02-02T09:47:10.909-05:00

What can't bloggers do?   Now they're on the front lines of home security - they figured the Boston Mooninite  LEDs weren't bombs and had been talking about the guerrila marketing campaign for days.   "If Woody had gone straight to the police, none of this would have happened."    

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-30827421056458403482007-01-16T12:52:00.001-05:002007-01-16T12:52:05.748-05:00

I don't know why, but the word cromulent just popped into my head. I looked it up in www.m-w.com but it wasn't there. Hmm.. Is it an archaic word? So I Googled it. Turns out, it was coined on the Simpsons and while it originally wasn't acceptable or authentic, I guess it is now.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-61695073439872717892007-01-11T15:11:00.000-05:002007-01-11T15:13:58.438-05:00

From Google News ~3:10 p.m.:

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-19028178897137219992007-01-11T11:12:00.001-05:002007-01-11T11:12:10.253-05:00

A few years ago when I worked for a major software company, one of the system administrators named a cluster of servers after some Titans, specifically Cronus, Zeus, and Rhea. I sent out an office-wide email correcting him - Zeus wasn't a Titan!   But no one cared...   Where I work now, we're having an email argument about whether to name work teams after figures from the Trojan War. Some

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-32454470282964641422006-12-19T13:29:00.001-05:002006-12-19T13:29:31.577-05:00

Archie comics is getting a facelift.   When I was a kid, I'd buy Archie comics all summer long. I'd read them while chewing Bazooka Joe bubble gum in between jumping waves and building sand castles on the Manasquan beach. The new look is stale and has no character.  

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-90788343910749960092006-12-19T09:42:00.001-05:002006-12-19T09:42:25.744-05:00

I drank my first glass of spiked eggnog this Sunday. It never appealed to me before, but we had an unopened container left over from our party, so I thought I'd give it a try. I don't think I'd like it plain - the rum blended so nicely with the store-bought flavor.   Here's an article by Robert Sietsema discussing the origins of the tasty beverage - engineered and otherwise - in a warm,

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-82492671121355299882006-12-15T12:26:00.000-05:002006-12-15T12:28:30.362-05:00

Parent Mad 6-Year-Old Didn't Like Peanuts Special.onion_embed{ background:rgb(256,256,256)!important;border:4px solid rgb(65,160,65);border-width:4px 0 1px 0;margin:10px 30px!important;padding:5px;overflow:hidden!important;zoom:1;}.onion_embed img{ border:0!important;}.onion_embed a{display:inline;}.onion_embed a.img{ float:left!important;margin:0 5px 0 0!important;width:66px;display:block;

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1163609847105275342006-11-15T11:57:00.000-05:002006-11-15T11:57:27.170-05:00

Someone in my office left a perfectly toasted bialy on top of the toaster oven. It's sitting there looking like it should be in a food magazine photo spread. I must say, I was tempted to steal it.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1163452978103127372006-11-13T16:22:00.000-05:002006-11-13T16:22:58.173-05:00

The ongoing saga of the manatee continues here.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1162478839335145582006-11-02T09:47:00.000-05:002006-11-02T09:47:19.340-05:00

I noticed this morning that there's classical music playing again in the Port Authority. I wonder if this is a seasonal thing. I always thought they played it year-round because whenever I went into the city from my college campus, I swore they always played classical music. But maybe that was just when I visited during the winter holidays. It lends a nice calming effect to the whole enterprise.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1162478738618033112006-11-02T09:45:00.000-05:002006-11-02T09:45:38.670-05:00

Today, George Carlin on my daily George Carlin calendar, asks:   "I wonder when we pick up the telephone, does each of us get his own individual dial tone, or is there just one systemwide, master dial tone that each of us jumps on and off when we need it?"   Sounds like a stupid question, but it intrigues me. Know the answer?    

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1161895448454850152006-10-26T16:42:00.000-04:002006-10-26T16:44:08.463-04:00

Not satisfied with the New York scene, manatee heads to Memphis to try his fortunes in writing country and rockabilly songs.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1161531629919020512006-10-22T11:40:00.000-04:002006-10-22T11:40:30.020-04:00

Broke the curseI finally broke my Beck curse. I saw him at the Loews Theater in Jersey City last night on my third attempt in seeing him.The first attempt was at the Free Tibet show in D.C. He was scheduled to perform on the first day, but a huge thunderstorm passed through and someone in the crowd actually got hit by lightning. They ended the first day early and Beck had to go on to another gig

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1161219538348022272006-10-18T20:58:00.000-04:002006-10-18T20:59:00.213-04:00

Well this morning I was seated near the dueling throat-clearers. I don't know if your throat gets any clearer the louder you clear your throat, but these two seemed to think so. TGFiPods.Then this evening, there was emergency construction on two of the Parkway's local lanes. There was so much traffic on the Turnpike before the exit to the Parkway, and on the Parkway before the Driscoll Bridge,

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1160756299775208772006-10-13T12:18:00.000-04:002006-10-14T15:03:27.010-04:00

And in today's commuter follies:   I missed the 6:54 bus, which is OK because another one comes ten minutes later. Only that one was a little late as the driver had to switch buses because the first one broke down. She told the Old Bridge attendant this in great detail at which point one of my fellow passengers yelled out "let's get going!" Traffic was light and we got into Port Authority by 8:30

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1160755700931797602006-10-13T12:08:00.000-04:002006-10-13T12:08:20.976-04:00

I've come to realize that there's only so much New York irony I can take. Hearing more than five minutes of it makes me want to throw something. It's like hanging out with an unfunny Groucho Marx. He had a sense of humor about himself, which is sorely missing in NY irony.  

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1159209344380629272006-09-25T14:35:00.000-04:002006-09-25T14:35:44.423-04:00

Is Taylor Dayne making a comeback or something? I've heard her two hits every day during the past four days in various places. Friday it was at the Chelsea Salvation Army thrift store. Saturday she was on the radio as we flipped through stations. Sunday it was Home Depot. Today it was in Port Authority. And now she's playing incessantly in my head!

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1158674085198792062006-09-19T09:54:00.000-04:002006-09-19T09:54:45.650-04:00

I've been listening to the Smithsonian's series of podcasts, which is very good, about the American Folkways record label. As I was listening to Pete Seeger lead his audience in singing "If I Had a Hammer," I realized how powerless the person in the song is. He/she has all these wonderful intentions of hammering for justice, ringing in liberty, and singing with his brothers and sisters if only he

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1158348275278399492006-09-15T15:24:00.000-04:002006-09-15T15:24:35.593-04:00

I've lived all my life thinking that the only famous person (of whom I've heard) that was born on December 20 was the actress Irene Dunne and today, courtesy of Wikipedia, I've found that   1957 - Billy Bragg, English singer and songwriter 1957 - Mike Watt, American bassist 1966 - Chris Robinson, American singer ( Black Crowes)   were all born on that day, too.   That's better.  

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1158281358818193862006-09-14T20:49:00.000-04:002006-09-14T20:49:18.876-04:00

I took my MacBook to work with me today so I could finally watch Throne of Blood, which is one of my Netflix picks that's been collecting dust for about 3 months, on the bus to work. Just my luck, today of all days I happened to sit next to a young fella reading his day's Bible study. When I got to the part in the movie when one of the lord's soldiers brings in a big bundle that looks like it

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1158080386493034832006-09-12T12:59:00.000-04:002006-09-12T12:59:46.720-04:00

Right outside of the subway entrance in the Port Authority today were two people in gold star costumes and someone taking a picture with them. It was an ad for Dancing with the Stars! A woman shouted at us to remember to watch it tonight.   I guess it was partially effective because I remember that I saw them but I'm not planning on watching the show. Then again, it could have been a dream as I

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1157679689270023582006-09-07T21:41:00.000-04:002006-09-07T21:41:29.313-04:00

This morning I had an 8 am meeting, which meant that I had to catch the 6:15 express bus into the city. A lot of my fellow meeting-goers might not have been as "inconvenienced" as I was, but they were equally frustrated by the early start time. Luckily, the guy who called the meeting saved the morning by bringing us a dozen donuts from The Donut Pub on West 14th St. They make their donuts often,

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1157116417970370722006-09-01T09:13:00.000-04:002006-09-01T09:19:13.286-04:00

This has got to be the best commentary on the War on Terrortm yet:Send in Jack Bauer! Dad: Honey, where's your teddy bear?3-year-old girl: Oh, the terrorist are hiding him.Overlake HospitalBellevue, WashingtonOverheard by: Nurse says whatvia Overheard in the Office, Aug 31, 2006

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1156864097388338842006-08-29T11:08:00.000-04:002006-08-29T11:08:17.513-04:00

Have you seen those LowerMyBills.com web ads? They usually have bizarre animated GIFs run on a continuous loop that don't seem to have anything to do with mortgage refinancing and debt consolidation. Sometimes it's a bunch of cartoon cheerleaders - one for every state in the union. Sometimes it's a series of photos turned into an animated GIF. Today I saw one of a silhouette of a woman in a long

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1156796072986187122006-08-28T16:14:00.000-04:002006-08-28T16:14:33.033-04:00

I can't have coffee or other caffeinated beverages for a while because of my problems with acid reflux. I'm not supposed to have chocolate either, but I hardly got any sleep last night and I'm crashing. So I bought a caramel Twix from the machine at work to help me out.   Lately I've been getting momentarily upset at the ad on the back for peanut butter Twix, thinking I mistakenly bought a

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1156533003480711612006-08-25T15:10:00.000-04:002006-08-25T15:10:03.690-04:00

Today is pretty foggy and what I imagine to be London-y (I've never been), so I tried the split pea soup at Hale and Hearty Soups in the Chelsea Market . It was indeed hearty and very tasty. I had a small size and a half of a tuna wrap - they completely stuffed me. I think I'll just go with a small soup next time.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1156278912765779562006-08-22T16:35:00.000-04:002006-08-22T16:35:12.830-04:00

I'm ten floors up from the street but I'll be damned if I can't hear the Mr. Softee truck down there now.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1156259899065981232006-08-22T11:18:00.000-04:002006-08-22T11:18:19.136-04:00

I came up with a good name for my MacBook as I drifted off to sleep on the bus to work today: Chiclet!   The MacBook looks like a white chiclet - it's smooth, rectangular, and shiny. And who knows, maybe I'll use my MacBook write a novel that'll be categorized as chick-lit. Not that I love chick-lit, but whatever the publisher decides is out of my hands.   I love it when form follows function.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1155740655131325352006-08-16T11:04:00.000-04:002006-08-16T11:04:15.170-04:00

It is with great sadness that we here at Mime is Money pay our last respects to actor Bruno Kirby, who died Monday from complications related to leukemia.   He had a long career: he was in such early-70s TV shows as Room 222 and the pilot of M.A.S.H.   Most notably for us, he played Rat Pack fan and limo driver, Tommy Pischedda, in This is Spinal Tap. The outtakes on the Spinal Tap DVD of Kirby

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1155696061742281462006-08-15T22:38:00.000-04:002006-08-15T22:41:01.763-04:00

Strange checking out my new MacBook.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1155312327889077132006-08-11T12:05:00.000-04:002006-08-11T12:05:28.096-04:00

Yesterday, I ordered a white MacBook with 1 GHz RAM and an 80 GB hard drive. I can't wait for it to arrive - I feel like an eight-year old waiting for Christmas!   My six-year old Compaq PC is showing its age. I plan on reformatting the hard drive (again!) and installing more memory (if the thing isn't too old for that). I'm only going to use it for personal business- and work business-related

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1154960749715159882006-08-07T10:25:00.000-04:002006-08-07T10:25:49.796-04:00

If he can make it there, he can make it anywhere.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1154637098256117882006-08-03T16:31:00.000-04:002006-08-03T16:31:38.336-04:00

I just finished reading Little Children by Tom Perrotta, who also wrote Election (they made that one into a movie with Reese Witherspoon and Matthew Broderick).   Rather than being about literal little children, the book is really about adults behaving like children on a playground and infatuated, horny teenagers.   Todd, a stay-at-home dad, and Sarah, a stay-at-home mom, have a summer fling:

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1154624321150657792006-08-03T12:58:00.000-04:002006-08-04T11:17:11.733-04:00

I've been watching Cartoon Network's Adult Swim's reruns of Pee Wee's Playhouse (Wikipedia's entry) and it really takes me back to the late 80's/early 90's. I must have seen every episode three or four times because I remember them with great clarity.   I also find it hilarious that it's showing at 11 at night when the kiddies are supposed to be asleep. My sister was watching it at the tender

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1154618515342329452006-08-03T11:21:00.000-04:002006-08-03T11:21:55.390-04:00

Salon is doing a series of book discussions focused on where in the world the book is set. Today's article by Susy Hansen is about the literature of the Jersey Shore. The first book on her list is Frederick Reiken's Lost Legends of New Jersey .   I read this a couple of years ago and found Reiken's discussions of the Shore to be pretty much just an expansion of those "You know you're from the

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1154098981648136762006-07-28T10:13:00.000-04:002006-08-03T13:03:13.346-04:00

I recently took the bus from the Aldrich Road Park and Ride in Howell, NJ to New York Port Authority. When I take a mode of transportation I've never taken before, I like to do a little research about fares, tickets, parking and all that. I couldn't find much on the web about daily parking at the park and ride so I set out in the real world to find out and am sharing my knowledge with you

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1153947382862220912006-07-26T16:56:00.000-04:002006-07-26T16:56:22.896-04:00

I'm reading Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation and while trying to find where the old Francklyn Cottage was in Long Branch, NJ (where President Garfield died; I think Vowell might tell me, but I'm not at that part yet), I found this cool website of old prints chronicling Garfield's death.   Hat tip to Annabelle for bringing up the story a couple of months ago and reminding me to read this

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5439566.post-1153921814048504852006-07-26T09:50:00.000-04:002006-07-26T09:52:57.450-04:00

Audrey Hepburn's black dress from the first scene in Breakfast at Tiffany's is going up for auction. Le sigh.

Speechlessnoreply@blogger.com0