You have no idea how much I need this coming weekend. These whole “working” and “commuting” thingies are exhausting.
Meanwhile, some old favorites are learning new tricks:
Last week, Weird Al released a new single to iTunes: “Whatever You Like”, a spoof of… er, “Whatever You Like” by T.I. It marks the first time Al released a spoof while the original song was still #1 on the Billboard charts, and he has noted that the Internet allows his comedy to be more topical. Check it out for a buck.
Meanwhile, the ex-MST3K folks at Rifftrax have somehow merged their riff audio with an episode of the old Bixby/Ferrigno Incredible Hulk hosted by hulu.com. Neat trick! Best of all, it’s free to stream — I assume they get a share of Hulu’s streaming advertising money.
Jonathan Coulton’s tour stops in Phoenix on May 15. That’s a Thursday, so it’ll be a pain to get there between work, the 100-mile drive, the early-ish start time, and the Diamondbacks game going on a half-mile from the venue. But what can I do? It’s Jonathan Coulton. He’s on the Life List.
Speaking of which, so is Nick Cave, who’s playing the Hollywood Bowl in September. That’s the closest he’s come to my part of the world in the last decade I’ve been buying his albums. I’ll have to do that one, too, assuming it isn’t already sold out.
Since I finished Portal last night, this is good timing. In this clip from a Scottish video game award show, Jonathan Coulton performs the song from the reward/credits screen, “Still Alive.”
Shaenon Garrity has raised $1,745 for Match It for Pratchett. Granted, the dollar is so weak that it’s worth about £2.48, but still… that’s impressive.
Comic artist Chip Zdarsky pays the rent by illustrating articles for the National Post, and I really dug this one that accompanied an article about dating. Chip’s original post is here.
Obama’s mama was an interesting person. You know, he already has my vote and financial support, but if he wins the presidency, maybe I’ll read his books, too.
Nine Inch Nails just released Ghosts, a new four-disc, 36-track instrumental behemoth, and Reznor is more or less giving it away. You can grab the first nine tracks on BitTorrent here or at (officially sanctioned!) pirate sites, or download the whole thing at Amazon for a measly five bucks. Wow.
For your Super Duper Tsunami Ballot Bowl Tuesday, here are some links that are entirely unrelated to politics. It’s kept me sane today before I head to Drinking Liberally at Nimbus Brewery:
Speaking of The Baltimore Sun, they created a Google Maps app with every homicide in 2007 marked and color-coded by cause of death. Helpful hint: if you’re in Bodymore, Murdaland, try not to be a black male.
Via my girlfriend Kristie: the current king of my iPod is Ashkon’s R&B spoof “Hot Tubbin’”. The main page is here if you want to sample his other stuff. (I haven’t yet.)
Via Warren Ellis, who is decidedly not my girlfriend: based on this prelude chapter, Dash Shaw’s Bodyworld could be one great webcomic. The comic proper doesn’t begin until January, however.
Publisher’s Weekly interviews Jim Massey. “Little more than a rabid fan-boy?” Really?
This seems like a good idea: Catalog Choice purports to function as a sort of do-not-call list for sales catalogs. “The production and disposal of direct mail alone consumes more energy than 3 million cars.” Of course, most of the direct mail I get is from Democratic campaigns asking for more money, even though I only give online. I wish there was a way to halt that, too.
As you can see, we spent our Saturday night at a They Might Be Giants show. It also happened to be the centerpiece of this fall’s Club Crawl, which combined with the downtown construction made parking a nightmare. If you want to hear the show, it is supposed to be posted to this page, although it’s not there yet.
For your listening pleasure — and mine, once I get a chance to hear them:
BBC Radio 4 is running a radio drama adaptation of Douglas Adams’ Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency, and it’s available online in the US. Episode 1 aired on Wednesday, with five more to follow. I haven’t read the book since high school, so I’ll probably be surprised all over again.
More apocalyptic research, courtesy of NPR. Given enough of these, someone could create a post-apocalyptic story filled with crazy inventive ideas based entirely on real facts and trends.
Giant jellyfish are flooding into the Sea of Japan.
The translucent creatures can grow as large as 6 feet in diameter and weigh 450 lbs. Over the last 5 years, millions have migrated from the coast of China into Japanese waters. Scientists believe they’re floating in on ocean currents warmed by global climate change.
The jellyfish are so heavy they rip the nets of Japanese fishermen and their venom poisons the rest of the catch.
The country’s fishing industry has been devastated. But a Japanese entrepreneur has decided to make lemonade out of these marine lemons.
Kaneo Fukuda calls himself “Jellyfish Fukuda” and he claims to have developed more than 20 products made out of the jellyfish. He’s marketing everything from makeup to mixed drinks. Anyone for a Jellyfish Sour?
