Billy Ocean

so I was reminded of this song today. I hadn't seen the video, it's pretty odd. It starts out sort of usual-cheesy-80s, then goes bizarre. Cartoons?



Also the beginning is pretty funny:

-"Hey you, get into my car!"
-"Who me?"
-"Yes You, get into my car!"

Gee, that sounds like a great idea.

Sparks

so apparently they're getting rid of Sparks. Some attorneys general are suing MillerCoors, which makes it, for a number of stupid reasons. To wit:

Argument: It's marketed to underage people.

This is bogus. Everyone I know who drinks it (me included) is 25 or older. And even if it is marketed to underage people (and how would it be? During Hannah Montana episodes?), you get carded when you buy alcohol anyway! If some kid brought a can of Sparks to the counter and he is able to buy it, it's the liquor store's fault, not MillerCoors. They stopped cigarettes from being advertised, why not stop Sparks?

Argument: People think the caffeine will counteract the alcohol.

Seriously, this is a real argument made by the attorney general of Maryland. Where did this guy go to school, DeVry? Anyone who thinks that is a moron, and that has nothing to do with Sparks. And anyway, why would you drink alcohol if you thought caffeine would counteract it? That makes no sense.

Argument: It's bad for you.

What, and other alcohol is good for you? Beer makes you smart? Jagermeister will help you lift heavy stuff? We know it's bad for you, and we don't care.


If you feel the same way, there's a Facebook group, and you can email the Attorney General of Maryland -- hopefully a reasonable email.

Baby Names

so Aiden and Jayden are the top baby names of 2008? Man, you know our culture is not doing well when Britney Spears' baby inspires that kind of response.

Where is Paddy's Irish Pub?

so I like It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, that TV show on FX. It's pretty hilarious. Something I've been wondering, however, was where their bar, Paddy's Pub, is located - is it a soundstage? Some place in Philly? LA? I dunno. The best I've found so far was a Philadelphia Weekly blog post from 2005 mentioning the show briefly. Turns out they aren't the best predictors:

Rumors were swirling that an FX network TV pilot called It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia was being shot on Ninth Street last weekend, and when we did a little investigation, we discovered the rumors were true. The comedy sounds like a pale Cheers imitation, undoubtedly with bad Philly accents and more stereotypes than an article about cheesesteaks. The plot revolves around a group of friends who own a Philly bar, one of whom reveals he has cancer in the first episode. We can't wait to see where they're going with this one. Then again, maybe we can.

FX=trying OUT a new comedy series is a risky proposition!

Philly=always desperate for OUT-of-towners' approval!

So, 9th Street. And supposedly it's in South Philly. That's all I got. From one of the shows, it looks like there's a parking lot down the street from the bar.

Anyone else have an idea?

Deedie Dowdle

so apparently Auburn University may or may not have fired football coach Tommy Tuberville. I could care less about that. What I do care about is that Auburn's spokesperson is named Deedie Dowdle. That sounds like a cartoon character.

Auburn spokeswoman Deedie Dowdle said Monday the university stands by Jacobs’ statement that Tuberville resigned.

Say it ten times fast, it's fun.

This is just one in a long line of spokespeople with silly names -- Commander Flex Plexico, General S. Taco Gilbert III, and others.

Bat for Lashes

so I haven't posted about music in awhile, but I found this one courtesy my pal's Facebook - it's Bat for Lashes, aka Natasha Khan, an English singer-songwriter, and the song is "What's a Girl to Do?" It's a bit eerie sounding, with thumping bass, horror-movie atmospherics, and what sounds like harpsichords, and there's a bit of strange cutesiness courtesy of Khan's voice. The awesome video matches that tone, but don't let me ruin it, here it is:

..

Bat for Lashes |MTV Music

Here's her Myspace and official site.

Gangsta

so I got this from the Philly Search. Pretty awesome.

The Obamas in Washington

so this is a pretty cool article, it's asking whether the Obamas will go out in Washington more than George W. Bush. It mentions a few spots, like 2 Amy's (which I think is overrated) and Ben's Chili Bowl, and is one of the few articles about D.C. that talks about the city itself rather than just the institutions of government. I hope there are more to come.

Hair and Diamonds

So I saw this video on Facebooks. It's bizarre and kind of gross and funny.


Where Diamonds Come From. from christopher mcmanus on Vimeo.

It's from a blog called Hair and Diamonds, which is exactly what it sounds like.

Obama!

so Obama won! That's amazing. I was in Adams Morgan, DC when they called the election, walking down 18th Street. I heard chanting "5... 4... 3..." coming from the Duplex Diner, so I ran over and saw just as the graphic showing they predicted Obama to be the winner came up. Everybody went nuts at the bar, and my friend and I ran the four blocks to 14th and U Street, where a street party had already been happening. It was pandemonium.

There were hundreds of people all over, in the street, climbing on bus stops, chanting, singing, cheering, hugging strangers, giving high fives, on and on. I hung out in the street and met up with my friend, and we caught most of Obama's victory speech standing in a doorway of a bar on U, then met up with my friends who had been volunteering for Obama in southern Virginia. We went to DC9, which was an awesome atmosphere, and drank some there. Then at last call, about 2:30 am, we went back outside and it was still pandemonium everywhere - people honking, running around with flags, jumping on their cars. It was an amazing scene.

And I made this video from the night.



And I got quoted in this article (second page).

Cindy McCain

so this is pretty funny:


Cindy McCain Claims She's "Just Like Any Other Female Human"

Don't forget to vote

so this is pretty funny. Don't forget to vote and don't let excuses get you, or else this might be you:

Kula Shaker

so I just rediscovered Kula Shaker - remember them? They were a psychedelic British band from the 90s. with some hits over here like "Tattva," "Govinda," and "Hey Dude." The stuff still sounds pretty awesome. And randomly, the lead singer's mom is Hayley Mills from "The Parent Trap."

"Hey Dude"


"Tattva"

(Sounds Beatles-y huh?)

"Govinda"
Link (can't embed it)

"Hush"


"Mystical Machine Gun"

Marxist VP Candidate Ineligible to Serve

so this was kind of a random thing - I saw some posters in the Columbia Heights neighborhood in DC saying something about ending "evil gentrification," and the website listed was votepsl.org. The website is for the Party for Socialism and Liberation, a Marxist political party that's on the presidential ballot in a few states.

I was browsing the site and thought, "huh, the vice presidential candidate, Eugene Puryear, looks really young." His bio says he's a student at Howard University. Maybe he started late or was a grad student, but I couldn't find anything else about his age - his Wikipedia page just said he was born in Charlottesville, VA (until I updated it).

Then I Googled him, found his Facebook page and added him, and it turns out he was born in 1986, and is thus 22 years old. That makes him ineligible to serve as vice president, since you have to be 35 (and fulfill the rest of the requirements to be president). Here's a picture of his Facebook page, since you can't see it unless you're his friend on there.

Of course, this is a moot point, since the PSL will not win the election, but hey, it's interesting.

New Benjy Ferree song

so I'm a fan of Benjy Ferree, a DC musician. His latest album, Come Back To The Five And Dime, Bobby Dee Bobby Dee, is about Bobby Driscoll, a child actor who won an Oscar and was the voice of Peter Pan in the Disney cartoon movie. He was fired soon after for getting acne and growing older, and then developed a drug problem, dying alone at age 31. When found, the police thought he was a homeless person, and he was buried in an unmarked mass grave on New York's Hart Island. Pretty sad and crazy story.

One of the songs is out on the internet, and it's pretty good:



The album comes out February 9, 2009. Here's his Myspace page.

Palin as President

so this is amazing:

palinaspresident.com

The sidewalk to nowhere

so here are McCain supporters lining up to see him speak in Pennsylvania. Another reason why I'm out in Virginia every weekend.

Why I'm volunteering for Barack Obama

so as some folks know, I've been canvassing in Virginia the last few weekends, and I'll be there again this weekend. I'm also going after work today to the new Obama office at 803 Florida Ave NW to see what I can do. Here's why:

For one, I support Obama's policies on the environment, taxes, foreign policy, etc. I worry that McCain's plans are either too similar to Bush's or are just plain harmful. And I also just believe in Obama as a leader. But the other reason is more selfish.

I remember how I felt the last two elections when Bush won - it was a terrible feeling. How could this happen? What's going to happen to the country now? And what could I have done?

That was the main one, and it's why I'm out there on the weekends, skipping fun stuff like wiffleball and sleeping late to go walk around Virginia neighborhoods and talk to voters. And it's not like volunteering is not fun - it's very rewarding and you're making a difference. As you guys know, I'm a little bit on the lazy side, but I didn't want to feel helpless again as the US elected another bad president. I wanted to do all I could to prevent it.

That's why I'm out there, and that's why I hope you all can come with me.

Glasvegas ticket contest

so I'm having a contest to win tickets to see Glasvegas, the new big Scottish buzz band, at my other blog, New Columbia Heights. Check it out! The show is Friday at the Rock and Roll Hotel.

Ecto Cooler

so anybody remember this stuff? I was a fan.

DC Obama office now open!

so there was no DC Obama office for a long time, but now there is. It's at 803 Florida Ave NW, right near the U Street Metro. Folks can come in pretty much any time to do phonebanking, etc. Here's the hours:

M-F 5-9, Sat 11-8, Sun 2-8

DC has no vote in Congress

so this is a pretty great video, it's the full version of a song I posted before.



If you live outside Washington, DC and think it's unfair that 600,000 people in the city don't have a vote in Congress, write your Congressman about it! That's the only way it's going to change, since DC can't do it!

Athletes and DUIs

so I don't understand why athletes get DUIs. It happens all the time - yesterday, for example, to Oakland Raiders defensive end Tommy Kelly.

But look at Kelly. He signed a $50 million dollar deal, and he can't afford to hire somebody to drive him around? I never understand that. Pay your best friend or a relative or something! Give me a break. Either pro athletes are absolute morons (which is very possible) or, for some reason, it suddenly becomes really fun to drive drunk when you become a pro athlete. Maybe the teams should start hiring drivers or taking away pay or something when athletes get caught.

DUH CITY

So I saw this walking by L'Enfant Plaza today. I would suggest a new acronym for this organization.

Unsolicited CD Review: Sunfold, "Toy Tugboats"

so here's another CD I got randomly in the mail. It's kind of noodley/singer-songwritery. I think if you like G. Love and Special Sauce and that kind of semi-hippie jazzy funky loungey rock stuff, you might like them. At times it kind of sounds like Top 40 Alternative type stuff. "Shapeshiftin'" is a countryish stomper, and probably the song I like best. The singer seems like he's trying to sound like a jazz singer, Michael Buble or something. Otherwise, steer clear.

Palin's speech last night

So I watched the Republican convention last night and I got pretty angry. Sarah Palin was just doing the same old Republican tactics - half truths, specious arguments, and flat out b.s.

For example, Obama is going to raise this tax and that tax. Yes, he is - on rich people. He's also cutting taxes on the middle class.

And according to Palin, we're about to win in Iraq but Obama is preventing us from doing so. Oh, really? The militants are about to lay down their arms, the Iraqi government is competent and able to govern the whole country, and we can remove our troops? That's news to me.

Palin also got in a dig at Democrats and San Francisco. You know what? People like San Francisco. They like it because it's beautiful, people are nice, and it's a good place to visit. Some (not all) Republicans hate San Francisco because gay people walk around freely, the city recycles, and they vote Democrat.

The one that makes me the angriest, however, is the constant implication (and sometimes flat out statement) that Obama and the Democrats are anti-America, put the country last, are defeatists, etc etc. As an example of this, Palin cited the fact that Obama made a speech mentioning a bunch of wars the US fought in, but never uttered the word "victory." What a stupid argument. Clearly mentioning World War II without saying "victory" means he is un-American.

I'm so sick of this crap. We have parties because we disagree with one another. Palin, McCain, Bush, Cheney, and some other Republicans seem to believe that if you disagree with them, you hate America. That's bullshit.

I hope that people see through the constant half-truths and nonsense, but you know what? We can't just hope, we have to put some feet on the ground too. We need to make some calls, talk to people, register voters, go to do door, anything. I'm going to volunteer for Obama - iif anybody else is interested, let me know.

New album, video from The Streets

so I'm a fan of The Streets, the English rapper (Mike Skinner) who does interesting beats too. I really liked his first album, Original Pirate Material, and he's coming out with a fourth on October 7 in the US (Sept 15 in the UK), Everything is Borrowed.

Vice Records has an MP3 and video for "The Escapist," although you have to put in an email address. The song sounds like the slower, more thoughtful ones on A Grand Don't Come for Free, but is more interesting musically. The video is good as well, it reminds me of that book The Road by Cormac McCarthy. The other songs on his Myspace page are similar.

Here's the Youtube version, though the one on Vice's webpage is better quality.

DC Demands the Vote

so as you may know, Washington, DC doesn't have a vote in Congress. That's nearly 600,000 people without voting representation. Here's a good go-go song about it:



If you think DC residents like myself should be able to have a say in how their city is governed, then please contact your Congressman and tell them so.

Obama's font

So if anybody's wondering, the Obama campaign is using the Gotham font. I was looking around for it because I like their typeface, and through a quick Google search I discovered it. Good times.

Here's more on it, pretty interesting stuff.

Pizza

So I like pizza.


Domino's Scientists Test Limits Of What Humans Will Eat

Fat guy with gun

So for some reason I find this video hilarious.

Pancakes

So this is pretty funny. It's the pancake song.



Gracias to my pal for the link.

Facebook status

so I think it's crazy when the Facebook feed says somebody is no longer listed as married. What do you do? It's nuts. Maybe they just took off their relationship status and didn't split up. I don't want to ask them, but at the same time... weird.

Football weekend

So on Saturday I went to see the Redskins play the Bills in an exhibition game and tailgates. I took a bunch of photos, here are some.

This dude had a motorized cooler


There was food


These guys came around carrying a keg and chanting "Beer parade! Beer parade!"

I did one.


As did Don, which was rocking, as the guy shows.


Don was excited


Me too


There were a lot of people there


And there was football.


Then we crashed this party when we got home


I lost my phone at some point but got one of these girls' numbers. I don't remember who, I hope she was cute. If you have my phone, please contact me.

Bunch more photos here

Samuel L. Jackson cab driver

So today I had a pretty awesome cab driver.

I was going to work, and as soon as I got in, he yelled "FUCK! It's Friday! They gonna run us over!" or something to that effect about the buses and cars on the street. He had the exact same tone and voice as Samuel L., it was kind of uncanny. It was mostly joking and pretty hilarious, he kept doing it on 16th Street, honking and hollering, sometimes just random stuff: "SOMERSAULTS!", and him and me were laughing it up.

Other than the Samuel L yelling, he was a totally normal guy, talking about what he thought of the meter and stuff. Then when I got work, the fare was $10 so I gave him $12, and he gave me $1 back, saying that's for church, or remember me when you get a drink today. Pretty cool. I like interesting cabbies.

Metronomy - "Radio Ladio"

so this is a pretty cool video by Metronomy, an English electronic music act I found by browsing the Youtube related videos. It's proof that you just need to be creative to make a cool video.



My friend has their album, Pip Paine (Pay the £5000 You Owe), and says it's pretty excellent.

The Onion burns the Nats

so i saw this today, pretty funny. It's one of the Onion's info graphics.

M83 live at KCRW

so M83's Saturdays=Youth is probably my favorite CD of the last year. Here's them (Anthony Gonzalez and co.) playing live on "Morning Becomes Eclectic" at the KCRW radio studios. Good stuff.

Obama - Tim Kaine?

So there's been a lot of rumors about Obama picking Virginia governor Tim Kaine as his running mate. I'm not so enthusiastic about it. Kaine's a good guy and he's from the South, a swing state, etc, but I'm not blown away. He's not that well known of a guy nationally, he's also pretty young, doesn't have foreign policy experience, and just not super inspirational. I'm not sure who would be better - Bill Richardson? Lots of foreign policy experience there. Some governor? Good question. Whoever it is, I hope it's not Hillary. That would be a great example of shooting one's self in the foot. Or one's party.

W.

so, wow. Just wow.



Found this via Famous DC. I wonder if it's going to be a conspiracy type movie, or a more factual one. Either way, I'm there.

Olympics on the BBC

so this is kind of awesome. It's a BBC ad for the Olympics, which somehow involved Damon Albarn of Blur and/or Gorillaz. I am kind of anti-China, but this is cool.

Fundraising

so today I was called by a political campaign, and they asked me to donate. I'd already donated, so I said not now. The girl said, well how about in a month or so? I said sure, and she got my info and said she'd send out a packet then. I said great.

Then five hours later, I got another call from a smarmy sounding guy who said he was doing "quality control" (didn't say for whom) and wanted to confirm my address and that I had said yes to donating. It seemed odd and sketched me out. I asked if he was working for the campaign, and he said "we're doing work for them" or "working with them" or something. It was weird. Maybe I'm easily sketched out (and it was from the same phone number, when I checked back) but why do that? I mean, is there a rash of campaign staffers putting down fake donations? Seems odd to me. I thought maybe it was some kind of weird push-polling or opposition research or something. Probably not the best impression to give if you're trying to get money. Yikes.

The Duke Spirit - Neptune

so this is one of the many free CDs that have been stacking up lately, and I picked it because I've heard of them somewhere and they have a good band name and album cover. It's not exactly a science.

Neptune starts out with solid, straight-ahead guitar rock - the band's singer, Leila Moss, has a big voice and an accent, immediately making me think of The Sounds. However, The Duke Spirit's music isn't dancey and angular like The Sounds, it's got a bigger, more fleshed out sound, and is a little bluesy. The band is English, but Moss's accent is hard to place, sounding almost Scandinavian at times - maybe that's just her gravelly (and appealing) cords and the production, which gives her voice a bit of a warm, 60s feel.

The songs are unique enough to not remind of anything in particular, and they're solid and interesting, with a bit of sinister atmosphere - "Dog Roses" sounds like it could be the soundtrack for a firing squad scene in some black and white movie. The songs whip by at about 3 minutes each, with guitar fuzz and additions like horns and the occasional glockenspiel. "The Ship Was Built to Last" has a bit of a noisy, angry Giant Drag thing going on and later songs like "Lassoo" and "Neptune's Call" remind me a bit of late 90s groups like Lush.

There really isn't a weak track, and while none stick out as singles (maybe "My Sunken Treasure"), it's a very good record. Each time I hear it I pick out a new favorite song, and I have a feeling I'll be listening to it a lot from now on - there's a lot of variety here.

The band's on tour now, but there's no DC show, although they'll be on Leno tomorrow (7/22). Neptune is out now on Shangri-La/Alternative Distribution. Here's their Myspace.

Bird terms

so this is why Wikipedia is amazing. Don't worry, it's a birding term.


And after reading the article, I thought it might be bogus, so I Googled "jizz birding." It really is a real term, and reading about it is hilarious. Highly recommended.

Silicon Valley

so I'm in Mountain View, California right now for a Google Earth conference tomorrow. It's kind of a weird place.

We flew through Phoenix, which is odd - it's all rugged desert mountains and scrub with no houses or buildings to be seen for hours, dried riverbeds and such, then all of a sudden there's a line and suburbia starts. Nothing, then burbs. No transition. And the yards are all brown sand, also odd.

Then San Jose. The airport is a complete dump. I was expecting Silicon Valley, high tech, modern. But nope, it's puke green from the 70s, small and crowded. I'll let you know how Google is tomorrow.

Also, this is my 900th post! Zoinks.

Man Like Me - "Donut"

so this is an amusing little video. It's Man Like Me, an English rap group. Just goes to show you don't need high technology to make a good video - those shoes with wheels in them will work just fine. Do do do do do.



I've written about their song "Oh My Gosh" before. Here's their Myspace.

Canada Day

So yesterday was Canada Day. A bunch of my coworkers are Canadian, so we went to the Canadian Embassy for their celebration. It was pretty cool - free (good) hot dogs and burgers, free poutine, which is French fries, gravy, and cheese curds, and free Canadian beer.

Good beer too, they had the usual Molson and Labatt's, but I got Alexander Keith's IPA from Nova Scotia and something called Kokanee, a light lager.

I feel like people should start celebrating Canada Day like they do Cinco de Mayo. You could drink beer, eat poutine, play the Arcade Fire and Broken Social Scene - it'd be a good time.

Something else I noticed at the embassy were the girls. Canadian girls all either looked like sorority girls, or (the majority) were cute and nice and sweet. I didn't see a single grumpy unattractive girl. Maybe I should move to Montreal or Vancouver.

Darker My Love - "Two Ways Out"

so this is a pretty good video from a band I've never heard of before, Darker My Love. It starts out with ringing, sunny guitars and then goes into early Weezer fuzz and a Pavement/Grandaddy slacker vibe. Good stuff.



The Californians will be in DC on September 22. Here's their Myspace.

(The code changed, the right code is up now.)

Dan Deacon etc at the Black Cat

So I went to see Dan Deacon, Matt & Kim, etc at the Black Cat last night for the F Year Tour. Here's a video.



And here's the DCist review I wrote.

Facebook Ads

so I saw this ad on Facebook. Yeah, that girl is totally a Christian single.

Metal Detector Morons

so probably my biggest pet peeve lately is with metal detectors. People, take the crap out of your pockets before you get to the metal detector!

We have a bunch of detectors at work, and the security guards used to be pretty lackadaisical about checking - folks would beep and they'd just wave them through. Fox 5 did a big expose, some folks got fired and the Protective Services chief was suspended, so now they check more.

But what drives me nuts is the people who wait until they get right up to the front before taking all the crap out of their pockets. Then everybody else is just sitting there, waiting for Joe Moron to take his cell phone, keys, wallet, change, etc etc out of his pocket. Then he forgets to take his Bluetooth cyborg I-look-like-a-doofus earpiece out, so he has to go back through again.

Folks could have done all that 5 minutes ago when they were still in the middle of the line, but they don't, so it results in gridlock in the morning when everybody is waiting to get in. I'm sure people have been through a metal detector at least once in their life before, they shouldn't be shocked by this electrical device and forget how to function. The line was literally out the door the other day; it took ten minutes or so to get from the front door to the elevators.

Plus they still just wave you through if you beep.

Awesome photo by jasoneppink

Buzzerball

So I've been playing this free online basketball manager game called Buzzerball for awhile, it's pretty cool.

You get players and train them, trade them, set your strategy, and so on, and your team plays against other peoples' teams from around the world. It's fun. My team is called the Marion Barries and we're 2-2 in the league so far, but my shooting guard, Devin Reggie, is tearing it up.

It's free, so check it out. You can play against me too.

And if you like soccer, I'm in a similar soccer game called Hattrick. I think Buzzerball is based on Hattrick.

MP3: Albert Hammond Jr. - "GfC"

so Albert Hammond Jr. is a guitarist for The Strokes and also makes pretty good solo stuff - a little bit like his band but less fuzzy and gritty and more classic rock sounding. Here's the MP3 of "GfC," the first single off of his new album ¿Como te Llama?

It's a nice 60's number, starting with a rolling, echoey, sunny guitar, adding in "ooh-oohs" and a hint of rockabilly, then getting noisy. Hammond's voice reminds me a little of Britt Daniel from Spoon, and it's a good, timeless, and well-crafted song that avoids the trends. I'm looking forward to the album, which comes out July 8 on Black Seal Records.

Photo from his Myspace

Writing

So I be writing a lot recently. I reviewed the Republic Tigers' good but a little awkward show at DC9 (they also have a really good new CD) and interviewed Bison Roughbottom of DC band Assrockers. I also wrote the blurb about Fort Reno Park reopening.

Click the links if you want to live.

The Fashion - "Like Knives"

so this is an extremely hipstery jam (after all, the band is called The Fashion) but I like it. The song is called "Like Knives" and they're a Danish band who's been compared to LCD Soundsystem and Head Automatica, according to their Wikipedia. I can see that. Unfortunately I can't embed the video, but here's the link.

Here's their Myspace.

The video is kind of like "Subterranean Homesick Blues".

Disgruntled

so I think the word "disgruntled" is pretty funny. Is anyone actually gruntled? "Man, I am so gruntled about my vacation! It's gonna rule!" I think I am going to start using that to mean excited and happy.

New Site

so as you can tell, I'm fiddling with the design of the blog. It was getting hard to fiddle with and looking kind of old. If you have any thoughts/ideas/concerns/etc let me know.

Troy McClure

so today's Wikipedia featured article is Troy McClure. That's pretty funny. You may remember him from such films as McBain IV: Fatal Discharge and The Contrabulous Fabtraption of Professor Horatio Hufnagel.

Baseball Stadium Names

so I was looking through my old emails and saw that I wrote this in 2004 - it's my suggestions for names for the Nationals' ballpark. It still kind of fits, since the stadium is currently called "Nationals Park." Here's what I wrote back in the day:

Baseball is returning to the District and with it comes a new stadium. And just like your garage band back in middle school, the first thing that stadium will need is a name. Here are a few suggestions for the future owners to consider.

Worldcom Park: It was hip for a few years for dotcom companies to buy the naming rights of stadiums, like the Baltimore Ravens' Psinet Stadium. Psinet, whatever it was, went bust and the stadium was renamed. Worldcom Park honors the D. C. area's important role in the dotcom bubble while providing some funds for the team. (To be renamed MCI Park in three years or when they become solvent, whichever comes first).

Anthony Williams Field: the only major league park with a bowtie-shaped outfield.

Pete Rose Stadium: If Ronald Reagan can fire air traffic controllers and still get an airport named after him, why not a baseball stadium named for famous bettor Charlie Hustle?

Ballpark Franks Ballpark: Hot dog companies have deep pockets that plump when you cook 'em.

city living, DC style! Field: Furthering our beloved motto by showing everyone how much fun industrial areas are.

Walter Johnson Stadium: Named for a famous local high school.

The Ballpark Not in Anacostia: Reminding jittery suburbanites where the stadium actually is (west of the Potomac) while teasing the Texas Rangers, who were the Washington Senators from 1968 to 1971. (Possible alternate: The Ballpark Not In Arlington)

Jumbo Slice Field: If the Real Jumbo Slice, Original Jumbo Slice, and Real Original Jumbo Slice chains pool their money, they may be able to come up with enough to memorialize their contribution to DC cuisine.

"Bitch Set Me Up!" Memorial Stadium: No explanation necessary.

And whatever names our future sports moguls choose, a Peter Angelos Memorial Port-a-John should be included.

Poverty Hollow

so here's where I want to live.

Link

Sounds like a nice place.

Twitter

so I've been using Twitter recently a fair amount. It's kinda neat - sort of like a miniblog/status update thing. If anybody has it, I'm wisemana on there, add me.

John McCain is your jalopy

so this is the funniest political satire I've seen in awhile. It's a website that says "John McCain" followed by old people jokes: he "worries about 'Red China'", "is reading Parade magazine," "had a bowl full of Werther's Original," "sent you 10 dollars for your birthday" etc.

There's also a Hillary one and an Obama one, with Hillary doing bad stuff and Obama doing super nice stuff.

The Chicago Tribune wrote about it.

Shiloh

So I think it's strange that people are named Shiloh. I've known a few folks (mostly girls) named it, and Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie named their kid Shiloh. I guess it has a nice ring to it and it means "peace" in the Bible, but Shiloh was also one of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War. I don't know anybody (aside from a Suicide Girl) named, say, Antietam or Chickamauga or Chancellorsville. What's next? Thermopylae Smith? Dien Bien Phu Jones? Fallujah Henderson?

5 Word Movie Reviews

so my buddy does five word movie reviews. They're pretty funny, check em out.

so I just got a spam email with the funniest subject: "I know what females do on a farm. NEVER leave them there unattended!"

What, pick vegetables? Walk around? Milk cows?

so I used to think the Mates of State were super annoying - that they were a married couple with cutesy, overlapping boy-girl vocals, and a bunch of schizophrenic mini-songs in each song, some of which were good, some of which were annoying - it drove me nuts. But I listened a few more times and they grew on me. They have a new album, Rearrange Us, coming out, and it's streaming on the Myspaces. I like it.

It seems to be more produced than their other records, with more atmosphere and an expanded sound from just the keyboard and drums they used to have. It's less frenetic and more focused - more "mature" I bet I'll see in some reviews. "Rearranger" is a good track, and none of them are duds really. I think I will pick it up. Unfortunately they don't have a DC show, but they'll be in Philly for the Popped! Festival.

so I also want to purchase this item



I first saw it on Drivenbyboredom.com, but watch out, sometimes there are boobs on that site.

so I want to purchase all the items at this store.

so I really like the two new songs by Islands, "Creepers" and "The Arm". They'll be in DC on May 23rd, I'm there.

Islands are a kooky band of Montrealers. They put out fun, enthusiastic music.

so Santogold is the new buzz music person. She's a singer/rapper from Brooklyn via Philly who's been compared to MIA - kinda funky world music-ish hip hop. I think MIA is annoying, but hey. Here's an unreleased Santogold MP3.

Her album came out April 29 and has been getting good reviews. Here's her Myspace.

so this weather forecaster is pretty attractive.

Weather Forecast | Weather Maps | Weather Radar

She's got a bunch of videos. And the sports weather guy is funny, he does the DC forecasts usually also, he's nuts.

UPDATE: Well, the video above used to be of this woman below. Now it's some dude. Whatever. Here's who I was referring to originally:

so this is pretty funny. A Washington Nationals preview using the Wu Tang Clan.



I've never heard of Pete Orr though. Maybe I missed something.

Unsolicited CD Review: El Perro Del Mar

so this was one of the acts I've heard of before getting the CD, though I didn't know much. Despite the name ("the dog of the sea"), El Perro Del Mar is a solo Swedish woman named Sarah Assbring. Pretty funny name.

Anyway, on her album "From the Valley to the Stars," she sings breezy, summery, sometimes silly songs. To keep up the sibiliance, they're sometimes sixties and sometimes slight as well. "You Can't Steal a Gift" sounds a bit like a 50's R&B number and has smiley little keyboard "bwow bwows", while "How Did We Forget" features soft 60's style horns, and "Glory to the World" (check out the mp3) is a nice and slow little ditty.

The songs are quick, most under three minutes, and they're gentle but not quite twee, like "To Give Love." There's a little bit of keyboard, some soft drums, and generally that's about it, plus some atmospherics. I wish there were more songs like "Somebody's Baby," which is almost Sloan-like, quicker and punchier, with insistent but soft drums and nice multilayered vocals. Assbring has a great voice, and they seem better utilized on songs like "Somebody's Baby."

In all, the album is a fun little summer cupcake. I think it'd make a nice soundtrack for lounging in bed on a Sunday morning, or maybe floating in the pool on a nice day. El Perro Del Mar is currently on tour with Lykke Li, another Swede, who I also plan to review.

Here's her Myspace and her Wikipedia.

so this is unreal. Amazing. Terrible. Astounding.



I don't know if the song is a joke , but I feel like this is the end of music. Everything that could possibly be done has been done. I'll probably change my mind in a week.

But anyway, Riskay is a rapper from Bartow, Florida and she was at SXSW, of all places.

Here's her Myspace
And Wikipedia

so... what the hell is this?



Apparently KOB-TV is in Albuquerque. And Darren White is running for Congress.

so I made this

so this principal in Mclean, Virginia, a ritzy suburb of DC, banned the game of tag from her school. How stupid. She called it a game "of intense aggression." Give me a break, it's a game that kids play, and thus some kids win and lose. What's next, banning all sports, video games, and Candyland? How stupid.

Here's the principal's email if you want to comment.

so I just saw "The Adventures of Ford Fairlane," and may I just say it's a forgotten classic. It's Andrew Dice Clay's movie, also starring Priscilla Presley, Gilbert Gottfried, the guy who says "Warriors, come out to play-ay!!" and a host of other legends. It was made in 1990 and stars the Diceman as Ford Fairlane, a rock n roll detective who likes bimbos and fast cars, according to the blurb on my On Demand.

It's terrible. It's even award-winningly terrible, it won three Razzies that year and was nominated for three more. It's by Joel Silver and Renny Harlin, if that means anything.

But it's also really funny in a terrible way. The movie is very 1990, with Tone Loc, hair metal (Vince Neil as a rock singer), sorority girls doing jazzercise, and more. Plus added Wayne Newton and koala bears. I recommend it, especially say, post bars or a lazy night. It causes a lot of "what the hell" responses, as in, this guy was famous? What just happened? A koala bear? But he's actually pretty amusing, in a completely obvious and stereotypical way. It's kinda like Teen Wolf, in that it really shows the cheesy stuff about that time period, but it's not as clever as Teen Wolf.

Unsolicited CD Review #2 : Hello Tokyo - Sell the Stars

so I get a lot of free CDs in the mail. Today's is Hello Tokyo's album "Sell the Stars."

One of my main determinants in whether I listen to a CD is A. is it metal, and B. how's the album cover. I tend to get a lot of metal CDs - if you want them, let me know. As for the album cover, if it looks cheesy or has a lame font, odds are the album will be similarly cheesy or lame. If it looks professional and/or cool, then maybe the band is also professional and/or cool - the odds increase, at least. Maybe that's a dumb way to do things, but I usually get a CD a week or so, and I haven't heard of most of the bands.

As for this CD, Hello Tokyo has a nice album cover, and they play in DC a fair amount,so I assumed they were a DC band. They're actually from Brooklyn, a three-piece power pop group with a female singer. The album is well-produced and all, but it's basically mid-90s style power pop - think Material Issue, the Smithereens, Catatonia, Magnapop, or Matthew Sweet's non-good tracks. The music doesn't really stand out and the singer is a little too over-the-top for me. If you're into that genre of music, check them out. Otherwise, steer clear. But hey, just my opinion.

so this is the greatest video on youtube:

so I saw REM on the Colbert Report today, and I was like "yeah whatever, new album." They said they wanted to play fast and loud, which reminded me of Monster, so I'm listening to that now. And it's pretty damn good. Fuzzy, buzzy, tons of feedback catchy guitar rock numbers. Give it a look if you haven't in awhile.

New job, moving

So as most people reading this blog probably know, I have been going crazy at work for the past few months working on Google software and doing other bitchwork - printing out people's Excel files and such. I had been searching for jobs passively, but after the last few weeks I've been doing it more aggressively, and I'm happy to say I found one - I'll be working in the sports information office at the University of Alaska-Fairbanks. I had hoped to get a similar job in GW's athletic department, with my basketball blogging, but I think this job will be awesome. I've heard great things about Alaska and have been getting tired of DC. I'll hate to move and leave everyone, but I've been in D.C. ten years now and it's time for a change.

My last day in town is April 12th, so hopefully I can see everybody before then. If you want to see more about the university where I'll be working, click here. It's a really beautiful campus.

Ghost Ride the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicle

So this is awesome. Some dudes ghost riding the MRAP in Iraq.

See more funny videos at CollegeHumor

Here's the awesome making-of for the song used in that video, "Ghost Ride the Whip" by Mistah Fab.

so once again, being a scientist must be the easiest job ever. Like this study, which found that young men are not good at reading women.

Really?! Wow! Thanks, science! No one knew that before!

I have noted this kind of thing previously.

so this is what I'm going to make tonight.

I'm going to take photos. We'll see how it turns out.

Keep DC United in DC

so DC United, Washington's great pro soccer team, hasn't yet signed a lease with the city for RFK Stadium. The plans for a new stadium at Poplar Point in DC are also sort of in limbo. I'm pretty worried about this, as I'm a United fan and would hate to see them leave.

The team is a great resource for the city, has a large, diverse, and passionate fan base, and is historically the best team in MLS, it would be a shame for them to leave. Probably one of my fondest sports memories was when David Beckham came to play - RFK Stadium was packed with people and it was a fantastic atmosphere for a sporting event.

I want the city to know that people want to keep the team in the city, so I've been emailing the city council and the mayor. Here's the mayor's contact page and the emails for the at-large councilmembers, as well as Vincent Gray, the council chair, and Jack Evans, chair pro tem/Ward 2, and the members from each ward.

Contact the Mayor page

Vincent Gray's chief of staff: DSlonneger@dccouncil.us
Jack Evans: jackevans@dccouncil.us
Phil Mendelson: pmendelson@dccouncil.us
Carol Schwartz: carol.schwartz@dc.gov
Kwame Brown: tellkwamebrown@gmail.com
David Catania doesn't have a direct email, so click here

And the councilmembers by ward:

Ward 1 - Jim Graham's chief of staff jdetaeye@dccouncil.us
Ward 2 - Jack Evans jackevans@dccouncil.us
Ward 3 - Mary Cheh mcheh@dccouncil.us
Ward 4 - Muriel Bowser mbowser@dccouncil.us
Ward 5 - Harry Thomas hthomas@dccouncil.us
Ward 6 - Tommy Jones - chief of staff callen@dccouncil.us
Ward 7 - Yvette Alexander - click here
Ward 8 - Marion Barry's chief of staff kperry@dccouncil.us

so I remember back in the day when people could study stuff like gender issues and gay issues in college. Then it was LGB issues. Then LGBT. I was browsing on Okcupid a minute ago and somebody said they were interested in "LGBTQQIA" issues. What the hell is that? If your acronym is 8 letters long, you really need to think of a new term. It's like OMGWTFBBQ, but it's a real thing.

Exterminating Government Employees

So this is a sign at my work. I guess I won't be working there for much longer.

so I saw this on TV yesterday and thought it was pretty hilarious.



Dmitri Young rules.

so I think the new hip thing is to leave out vowels in words. For example, there's the hip electronic group MSTRKRFT, there's the online record label RCRDLBL, and so on. I always see "yr" for "your" in emails and press. It's evrywhr.

so my Gmail has the little ads that show up above the page. I just saw this one:

Full Body Waxing in DC - www.qispadc.com - DC Day Spa Full body waxing Waxing for the hoties in Georgetown

Good, I was looking to wax some hoties.

so I decided to do brief CD reviews of discs I get in the mail, I'm going to call them "Unsolicited CD Reviews."

The very first Unsolicited CD Review is "Beautiful Targets" by Hopewell. I'll listen to any band whose name I think is referring to archaeology, so hey.

The songs are big-sounding, high energy, choppy, and keyboard-driven. The latter makes sense as band leader Jason Russo used to play keyboards for Mercury Rev. A lot of the songs start of quiet but get loud and insistent - the instrumentation almost becomes too much at times, like on "Windy Day (Giant Dancers)," where it sounds like Trans-Siberian Orchestra/prog. At other times it sounds like the score from a musical, but done in rock.

Album opener "In Full Bloom", "Monolith," and "Over and Over" are the most interesting to me because they're catchy and busy but don't go as overboard as the rest. The vocals on "All Angels Road" are kind of annoying, and "Bethlehem" sounds a little Teenage Fanclubby, but with somewhat unpleasant vocals. Those vocals are a theme of the album - high but not quite falsetto and a little annoying at times.

I think if you like big, insistent, over-the-top semi-indie rock (later Smashing Pumpkins, for example), Hopewell is for you. Although with this photo, I can't help but like them.

I give "Beautiful Targets" three unsolicited CDs out of five.

so I entered a LOLCat contest. The contest is for a trip to Vegas, they have all these poker themed cat pictures and you add captions. Here's my entries. Click on them to vote. I can't decide if I'm being ironic or not.


More on the online Poker Cats Contest


More on the online Poker Cats Contest

so sometimes it seems like such an easy job to be a scientist. For example, this study: "Next plague likeliest to emerge from poor tropical countries."

No way! You mean the next plague won't come from Geneva or Connecticut or the Yukon Territory? What a shocking development.

so this is pretty funny - an article about sending the New England Patriots Super Bowl Champions shirts to Nicaragua. They maybe didn't used to do this, my buddy picked up a Tennessee Titans Super Bowl Champs shirt, back when they lost to the Rams, at a dollar store in Maryland. It's an awesome shirt. People are like "nice shi... wait a minute."

so it's Valentine's Day. Time for the annual "Valentine's Day is stupid" post. To me, it's a dumb attempt by restaurants and crap salesmen to have people buy crap they wouldn't otherwise buy (chocolates, bears, etc) and buy overpriced meals to tell somebody you love them. Because nothing says love more than forced and expected purchases. And then they try to guilt you in to doing it, if you don't, you don't love that person.

Maybe I'm a grouch, but I'd rather be told that somebody loves me randomly, not on some day when people are supposed to do it. To me it's just another day, but with more balloons on the Metro.

so Wikipedia deleted the Corey Worthington article again and refused to revisit the deletion. I think a lot of the arguments were flawed, personally. Here is the actual last Corey Worthington Wikipedia page with links, sources, etc. The superscript numbers are the actual references from the article, the links go to the Wikipedia pages that were linked. Enjoy.


Corey Worthington (born March 21, 1991¹, and also known as '''Corey Worthington Delaney''' and '''Corey Delaney''') is an Australian, best known for holding a large party that was reported worldwide.

Worthington hosted a party at his family's house in the Narre Warren area of Melbourne on the night of January 12, 2008 while his parents were away on holiday at the Gold Coast.² The party eventually had 500 attendees and there was subsequent vandalism around the neighborhood. Thirty police officers were called in, including a police helicopter and the dog squad.³

The BBC reported that police were attacked with bottles and stones, and that police blamed alcohol consumption on a lack of adult supervision.⁴

After appearances on Australian news programs, such as an A Current Affair interview by Leila McKinnon,⁵ Worthington became an internet phenomenon.

The Sydney Morning Herald called the interview "farcical", that Worthington "comprehensively steam-rolled" McKinnon and that "Within minutes of going online, McKinnon's tabloid TV tut-tutting had backfired, transforming Corey, who was interviewed shirtless with his pierced nipple on show, from naughty schoolboy to international hero."⁵

Some saw his celebrity as symbolic. The International Herald-Tribune wrote an article on Worthington's rise to fame, saying his "rise from obscurity is a modern morality tale, but it is one that reverses traditional values, rewarding disrespect for parents and property with the holy grail of Generation Z endeavors: celebrity" and saying he is "one of the world's most famous teenagers."⁶ A Sydney Morning Herald columnist used Worthington as an example of why "the letter i will define this decade," and joked "Oh hell, let's call it the decade of Corey."⁷ Radar Magazine called him "a legend" ⁸ while other news sources called him "the face of teenage rebellion,"⁹ a "moron,"¹⁰ and a "brat."²

Worthington lives with his mother, Jo Worthington and stepfather Steve Delaney.¹¹ Worthington had left school and was working as a trainee carpenter before the party.¹² He said his "real name" is Corey Worthington, not Delaney as has been reported.¹³

==The party==

Worthington sent out the invitation to his party via text messaging,¹⁴ Myspace and Facebook, reading:¹⁵

Oh yea party at Mine Saturday 12th Jan.
BYO chicks and grog
No knives, rents will cracK it at me

An estimated 500 people came to the party, and Worthington said many were strangers and that he had no part in the ensuing "melee" as the BBC put it.⁴

==After the party==

After the party, Worthington appeared on numerous television programs, and it was reported that his parents may be fined up to A$20,000 for the party.¹⁶ He was unapologetic during the McKinnon interview on ''A Current Affair'', appearing with an open jacket and no shirt, refusing to take off his sunglasses because they were "famous," and responding to the question "What would say to other kids who were thinking of partying when their parents were out of town?" with "Get me to do it for you. Best party ever so far, that's what everybody's been saying."¹⁶

Following the party, the Police Commissioner wrote an open letter asking young people to be aware of the power of SMS and the internet.¹⁷

Since his news appearances, Worthington has hired an agent, Max Markson,² and has gone into party promoting,¹⁸ going on an international DJ tour¹⁹ including stops at British resorts Brighton, Torquay, and Blackpool.²⁰ He has also been "earmarked" to host the Big Brother television series on Network Ten in Australia,¹⁸ signed a deal with Zoo Weekly which could be worth up to A$10,000, has signed a deal to host a party called "Not So Narre"²⁰, and has been offered a deal to run underage clubs.¹⁸ He gave his sunglasses to Zoo Weekly who are holding a contest for them, calling them "most famous item of clothing in Australian history."²¹

He also received the "Best Week Ever" award from the Best Week Ever television show.

Live News in Australia reported Worthington was attacked outside a shopping mall a few days after the party,²² but other news sources are considering that the fight may have been a hoax.²³

A take-off on Worthington has been used in advertisements in Australia as well.²⁴ There have since been Corey Worthington impersonators at parties as well.²⁵

Worthington's notoriety also spawned the creation of Slap Corey, a website game where users can "slap" a picture of Worthington. The site had been accessed nearly a million times as of late January.^{26 27}

==Sources==
*"Corey Worthington Starts to Pocket Riches"
*"Teen brat Corey Worthington just loves the world's attention"
*"Legend, moron or just a naughty boy"
*"Weekend at Corey's: An Idiot's Guide to Fame"

[[Category:Australians]]
[[Category:Living people]]

so Corey Worthington is back on Wikipedia (for the time being, at least, it's nominated for deletion). The Wikipedia ordeal is the subject of a second news article, too.

so a couple days ago I wrote about how I created a Corey Worthington page on Wikipedia. I thought that was pretty cool, it was a funny topic and inexplicable to me that there wasn't already an article for him.

Well, the page was deleted about 6 hours later, which I think is crazy. The kid's all over the news, even now, weeks later. Try doing a Google News search for "corey worthington." (He explains that his name is Worthington, not Delaney, which was in the Wikipedia page, but hey.)

To me, he clearly deserves an article. Wikipedia people are saying he's only notable for one event, which 1. Is dumb, tons of people are only notable for one event, and 2. I would argue he's more famous not for the party but for the appearances on the media and people's reactions to them. Tons of people have parties and get busted, not many become international phenomena because of it - BBC, AP, International Herald Tribune, Best Week Ever, all over Youtube, Facebook groups, a website where you can slap him, and locally, a card for a 9:30 Club dance night which I happened to see today (and which I scanned, at right).

To me it seems like people don't like the kid, so they're trying to get the page erased. That's actually in Wikipedia policy as "arguments to avoid when deleting something". The page was deleted once before pretty soon after the Youtube video came out, and that even spurred news coverage.

Here's the discussion about whether the page should be undeleted or not. I'm "AW".

so my buddy Max got to do the "Cash Crawl" at the last GW basketball game, where you spin around on a bat and then try to grab money off the ground. That's fellow Colonial Hoops blogger Brendan yelling about "the pivot," which was our advice to Max - keep your foot in the middle then pivot around to get all the money. Unfortunately it didn't work too well, Max got a grand total of $22. He also wrote about it at the blog. Pretty funny stuff.

so sometimes I think the TV media is wrong on purpose. The Super Tuesday primaries are a big example, they've been saying for weeks that after today it's all settled, the end. Then lo and behold, it's not! Big story! What happened! And they have a suddenly lot more to talk about. It's happened a bunch of times before, seemingly after every primary. Obama won Iowa! Huge! He's president! He's going to win New Hampshire! No wait, Clinton won New Hampshire! She's back! Etc etc, on and on.

I think they jump to conclusions too quickly so they'll have something for all the talking heads to talk about, then when their conclusion is wrong, they have even more to talk about.

so this is awesome

so here is my proudest moment ever. I just recreated this page: Corey Worthington.

so I really hate it when people microwave their weird fish dishes at work. It always makes the whole office smell like a dead rat.