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The Website Is Down

The Website Is Down is making the rounds and is worth a watch if you appreciate the dynamic between nerdy tech guy and ignorant sales guy. Be forewarned about the NSFW language but it's pretty hilarious little trial and tribulation. The best part is the Remote Desktop to the sales guy computer... so stick around for that.

Various Links

Some links for you to partake in:

• What Makes An Awesome Rock Song? Nashville Scene is taking a survey and your answers will be conveyed to the band playing the Nashville Cream 2nd Anniversary party.. where they will attempt to play said awesome rock song.
• Milk Jug Gets A Makeover and apparently people aren't into it? It's better for the dairies, better for delivering fresher product and easier to store yet people still aren't into it.
• Bon Iver on ABC News - 1) good to hear the story of the record if you have not already and 2) hilarious to see the differences between the ABC correspondent (Dan Harris) and Mr. Iver (Justin Vernon).

Image Fulgurator

Some things should not be made. The Image Fulgurator is a clever device that combines a camera, a projector and some custom circuity to trigger the blasting of an image when someone elses flash is detected. The basic concept being that right when you take a picture of something, the Fulgurator goes off at the same time and projects its own image on to whatever you're taking a photo of. Hilarious right? Graffiti artists could use this to add their own messages to areas that would be hidden until a photo was taken of it. Which is exactly what you see happening here.

So it sounds clever and innocent enough until you consider the possibility that corporations might make their own version of this and start broadcasting their logo on to landmarks right when you're taking a pic. I can't wait to have a batch of photos watermarked with a Pepsi logo next time I go out of town.

Ask Yourself This Question

Is Google Making Us Stupid?

Answer: Yes. That is, if your definition of 'stupid' is being unable to concentrate on a single article or book for more than a few page scrolls.

Ironically, this article is incredibly long and I stopped reading it halfway through once they started talking about Nietzsche and his typewriter. Though it is hilarious that the author can so easily prove his point about reading styles changing just by posting a long article.

Via Blankenship.

Animals Worth Perusing

I've posted about Berkley Illustration before but it didn't get the proper love it deserves. It's probably still not getting enough attention. Well Dressed Animals, his Etsy Shop, his Flickr stream and anything else you can find need to be visually consumed. I mean, look at this Snow Owl or Smoking Panda - I don't care how hardened your heart is, you must appreciate those on some level. I know I shouldn't love it but I can't resist the Foe Paws t-shirt design, RAWR (and the GRRR! is nice too). I can't possibly imagine anyone wearing this Troublemaker Tee but the image of Spike throwing down is pretty hilarious. In vaguely related news, Monsieur T released their Spring 08 line recently.. not a ton of stuff I love this time around but I appreciate the Still Digging and Cigarette Lungs designs.

You've Been Left Behind...

I wanted to write up a hilariously snarky post about You've Been Left Behind but the fact that it even exists and that they may actually be making some money is so depressing that I can't bring myself to find the wit. They offer a "post-Rapture" service that allows you to communicate with your loved ones once the Earth has been annihilated and only the heathens are left behind. Sure it makes for a great movie starring Kirk Cameron but once it turns into a subscription based website it's crossing the line of exploitation.

Modern Amazement

If I could make this stuff up I'd be a millionare:

• Japanese Hooter Pudding - pretty much entirely non work safe and inappropriate but incredibly awesome at the same time.
• Family lives with corpse for 2 months - why? Because they were told the body would return from the dead by the local Bishop.
• Hedonism Judge - made the baliff rub her feet and cover her with blankets for naps. Hilarious.
• Top Ten Angry On-Camera Meltdowns - this should be reserved as a Friday video but it's too good to wait on.

Movie Roundup: My Winnipeg

While it didn't overtake the slot for my favorite of his work I did thoroughly enjoy the screening of Guy Maddin's latest My Winnipeg; a fictionalized depiction of Maddin's growing up in the Manitoba town. His visual style is so unique to see these days that even if the film wasn't hilarious and a treat to watch you'd be engaged none-the-less.

I think IFC is planning on putting this out sometime this summer and I recommend catching up on his previous works between now and then for a full appreciation of what you're seeing. Start here.

Movie Roundup: Sita Sings The Blues

I was fortunate enough to catch a screening of Sita Sings the Blues last week and it's just sinking in now how fantastic it was. Basically it's an animated retelling of the Indian Ramayana (think: The Odyssey) through a multitude of animation styles and 1920's jazz. That description sounds pretentious but it's the farthest thing from it. The narration was hilarious, the quality of animation never faltered no matter what the style and the songs were the most incredible fit - astonishing that a jazz song from the 1920's would match exactly with a story from ~500 BC.

Apparently the film is a bit controversial in India because the powers that be don't like that a white woman is giving her take on one of their sacred tales (understandable) but I'm guessing they haven't actually seen it.

Watch trailer and then check out this clip depicting The Battle of Lanka.

Six Weird Videos I Found - April 25th, 2008

* Do yourself a favor and be sure to watch the whole thing. Via Jason.

** You only need to watch about 40 seconds of this to get the full brunt of the disturbing nature... via Jessica.

*** It's quite possible that this one is super old but I managed to not see it until now. It is quite hilarious, to me.

This American Life

I like This American Life and look forward to the next season of the TV series. That being said, I can see how some would view their anecdotal takes on blue collar America as a bit demeaning or exploitative at times. Right in line with that thinking enter Kasper Hauser "This American Life" Parody: Episode 1. The faux Ira Glass announcer sounds exactly like the real thing and that the stories are hilarious. Too bad Episode 2 doesn't seem to play at all because I'm sure it's a real gem.