Woman Sentenced to Prison for Raping Man

A first in Norway. Apparently, he awoke and found the woman performing oral sex on him as he was sleeping on the couch.

Seriously? I'd slap this guy if I ever ran into him on the street. She should get a medal, not be on her way to jail.

[All Headline News]

The 99 Most Desirable Women of 2006

According to AskMen.com. While I agree with their top pick (and #4), some of these ladies are fairly unknown.

[Top 99 Women 2006]

Video: from Saddam Hussein's Execution

This isn't the entire video, just the preparation leading up to the actual hanging. Hell, even we aren't that ghoulish.

[Video: from Saddam Hussein's Execution]

Which Superhero Are You?

Better than the Flash, I suppose....

Your results:
You are Batman

Batman 75% Hulk 65% Spider-Man 60% Catwoman 60% Superman 60% Supergirl 55% The Flash 45% Robin 37% Wonder Woman 35% Green Lantern 35% Iron Man 35%

You are dark, love gadgets and have vowed to help the innocent not suffer the pain you have endured.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Quiz

Military Hand Signals

Ever wonder about those strange hand signals military forces make in movies? Well, this site has a few of them for our review. Hilarious!

[Unconventional Airsoft - Hand Signals]

Personality Type Test

The BBC has some very interesting psychology tests on their website. The test results indicate I am a Resolver, even though I think of myself as more of a Strategist. Maybe I'm a Strategic Resolver?

I usually think these tests are silly, but this one seems to be pretty accurate, depending on how truthful you are with yourself while taking the test.

[BBC Personality Test]

Do You Have a Male or Female Brain?

Take this test by the BBC and see if you have a masculine or feminine brain.

[BBC - Sex I.D.]

Website: Sharpcast

Found this website via a clip left by Funana on Clipmarks. Upload all your photos, back them up, sync them between computers, edit them, share albums with friends and family.

5 GB of free space.

This could be the Flickr killer. I uploaded my entire My Pics folder (with all pics in their original size) and still have more than 75% available space. According to Funana's clip: "The instant you drag your photos into Sharpcast Desktop Organizer, it begins to back them up. And if you make changes to your photos and albums, all your changes are backed up as you work. This happens automatically. And you can always choose whether you want to backup your photos at a compressed size or at their original resolution." Supposedly, this will backup images in albums you have shared with others as well.

About the only negative thing I've noticed about this service is a lack of ability to tag my pics. But considering this site is really for backing up and syncing photos between computers and the web, I suppose I don't really need that feature.

[Sharpcast]

Game: Viva Pinata (Xbox 360)

The most overlooked game of 2006?

[Viva Pinata review on GameSetWatch]

Video: Christmas Tree Jump

Most excellent. Hopefully this will start a new tradition. In fact, maybe it should be mandatory for a tree to be tackled to the ground after every holiday.

European Geography Quiz

Test your knowledge of Old World Geography. I got a 69% on the first try. Not bad for someone who's never even been to Europe.

[European Geography]

Video: Beatboxing Orchestra

That strange place "Where Beatboxing and Classical music meet."

2006: The Year We Make Contact?

Disclosure Project - Steven M. Greer - SETI Makes Alien Contact WT?!?

Game: Left Behind (PC)

I'm not really interested in Left Behind: Eternal Forces.

I never read the books. I heard they were dreadful, and I have an English degree, so I've read many of the classics. I simply have no patience for bad writing of any kind. And I prefer my games smothered in sinful, outrageous, craziness. So I don't think Left Behind is the game for me.

But they have a decent review over on Ars Technica, if you're interested. Apparently, the game is just okay.

Now I'll sit back and watch, perplexed while this earns more money than any other game in history.

[Left Behind Review on Ars Technica]

Video: Timberlake + SNL = Hilarity (NSFW)

Via: VideoSift
My Dick in A Box

The Baby Jesus Gets Kidnapped

I just love these stories, where an unsuspecting owner loses some odd lawn ornament, only to find it weeks or months later with pics of where its gone on vacation.
<--- Visiting the Rip Van Winkle Bridge.

[Baby Jesus Tours New York]

Video: John Claude Gets *ahem* Embarrassed (NSFW)

On TV, no less. This is just rich.

Video: Discover Foie Gras

I'm no vegetarian, and I have to confess I've often wondered how foie gras tastes. I doubt I'll be eating it anytime soon. But I wonder if there's some way to produce it that is more humane?

Warning: You might find this video disturbing.

Website: Wiikitty

Okay, so now things are getting entirely out of control. Those kooky Wii users have resorted to animal humiliation in their foul attempts at humor. Some of these pics are hard to look at.

[Wiikitty]

Website: Pickandwatch.com

So, since I recommended TV Links yesterday, I have to give props to yet another streaming TV site I just discovered today. Unlike TV Links, which seems to focus on animé and cartoons a bit much for my adult tastes, Pickandwatch is a full-fledged TV Portal that's all about movies, TV, and links to other media sites. Watching tv has never been so easy. I even downgraded our cable service, seeing as how it's easier to find stuff online than it is on Comcast's goofy, greedy, gluttonous On Demand service.

NOTE: Eeeks, I didn't see that tab to adult sites. Best not let the kiddies on this one....

[Pickandwatch.com]

Video: Chronologically Confused about Movie and Video Game Sequels (NSFW)

Hilarious. And oh so very true.

Wii Users Out of Control

I think the new Wii controller is an astonishingly great innovation. Finally, a game that demands more than simple hand dexterity.

From my understanding, some people are getting a bit carried away with that slippery remote and tossing it through pane-glass windows, smashing up their plasma TV's, and even smacking little children in the face. I need to get one of these quick!

I wonder why they didn't bother putting non-skid rubber on the outside of the controller? Next generation, maybe? Seems like a pretty silly oversight, considering people are swinging these things around so recklessly, with sweaty hands no less.

You've Been X-ed!!!

Okay, so Jamie Kennedy annoys me. Something about his facial expressions just seem wrong. His voice is snarky, he resembles an aardvark, and ... well, he acts just like that one irritating dude in your high school chemistry class.

Yet, whenever I come across his show, JKX: The Jamie Kennedy Experiment, I'm transfixed. Not by him, but by the elaborate schemes the show thinks up to trick people.

In one episode, the victim, a guy who speaks Japanese fluently, was lured to a sushi restaurant by friends. The owner, played by Jamie, was a bumbling, LA, sissyfied, fussbucket. His wife, a Japanese woman, was having an affair with one of the sushi preps (played by the same guy who plays Hiro on Heroes, incidentally), and openly oversharing embarrassing tidbits (in Japanese, of course) about her husband. The victim, thinking he was the only one who understood their exchange, was then put on the spot to clue the owner in. Not only was it a cruel trick, but it also tested the ethics of the victim.

See, what bothers me about The Jamie Kennedy Experiment is his power to embarrass you, severely, for the rest of your life. And something unnerves me about that power being in the hands of Jamie Kennedy and his bunch of clever pranksters.

This show is more complex and probing than a show like, say Punk'd, which essentially does the same thing for a younger target audience. Working in the tradition of Candid Camera and really stretching the boundaries seem to be Jamie's order of the day. Unfortunately, like a wrecked train, I can't take my eyes off the show whenever I come across it!

Sifted: 7/10

Website: TV Links

This is the best website I've come across in, oh, all year. Get caught up on all your favorite shows.

What I wonder is: why can't our cable company offer us this same service? After all, we already pay upwards of $50/month. One would think being able to watch anything in the lineup would be a great add-on. And no, On Demand just doesn't cover it.

Okay, so the legality of this site is questionable, so who knows how long it'll stay up, but at least you don't really need to download anything. It plays right on the website's player. Too cool.

[TV Links]

TV: Dexter (SHOW)

Dexter easily qualifies as one of my favorite new shows this year. The story of a serial killer who works in Miami Homicide as a Blood Spatter Specialist. The concept is so very meta--about a serial killer who kills murderers. You'll find yourself feeling a bit disturbed the first few times you find yourself rooting for him to actually kill someone.

Sifted: 10/10

The first season just ended, which means there will be a DVD coming shortly so everyone can get caught up. If you can't wait, however, here's a hook up where you can watch the whole season. Don't say I never gave you anything.

[TV Links - Dexter]

Game: Reaktor

A very addictive, Tetris-like game. Spin and match up 3 colors by clicking on them with your mouse. Just when you think you have the hang of it, they throw in another color!
[Reaktor]

One of Those Music List Thingys

I'm not a fan of the end-of-year lists that seem to bombard us every Christmas season. I'm still miffed about that "Best 100 Movies of the Century" list put out back in 1999.

But I'm also a fan of free stuff. Hence my conundrum.

Here is a list of The Top 100 Tracks of 2006 (Pitchfork). Even if I don't agree with what's on their list, there is no better way to discover new music and even download a few freebies!

Amazing Paper Art

Is it just me, or is origami making a big comeback?

The pics on this site are amazing.

[Framed A4 Papercut]

Hidden Message on American Clothing

A funny little message on American clothing sold in France.

Video: What Black Men Think PSA

Bush Loves 'em Bald

These pics are most excellent. [George W. Bush's Fondness for Bald Heads]

A Classic!

---

Video: Spit Art

---

Kind of ephemeral and pointless....

Website: OpenDNS

We have been having some very perplexing problems with our broadband internet connection lately. The pages would load, but images seemed to be stuck or lagging. It wasn't a severe delay, just long enough to make you cringe. I called Comcast (my ISP) twice! Each time they told me all I could do was re-cycle the cable modem by restarting it. That would sometimes work (but usually not). I insisted it was something else, that maybe the modem itself was on the fritz. I asked them to check my settings, but they basically told me I was crazy and that my connection was fine.

I even resorted to buying a new NIC card, thinking maybe my onboard NIC was outdated.

By chance, I happened to come across OpenDNS today and they have saved Comcast from my wrath. OpenDNS is a free DNS service that's lightning fast and much more secure than Comcast's crappy service. They provide additional security by blocking Phishing sites, they correct typos in the URL address (so you don't end up going to the wrong site by accident), and did I mention they have a major presence in Seattle? So they're really fast.

I switched immediately and now my connection is literally flying faster than I've seen in months. No more glitches when looking at YouTube videos. No more image lags.

Oh, thank you, OpenDNS. Now I won't have to take my cable modem in to Comcast and argue with them to give me another one. If only there was another Broadband provider in the area ... we would have switched a long time ago.

[OpenDNS]

The Shower Project (Not Safe For Work)

Guy showers with 100 women who think he's gay. Hilarity Ensues. No nudity on site, but probably not safe for work. [The Shower Project]

Canucks Find Cure for Diabetes!

... in mice. Regardless, this is really good news for us sugar addicts. Why do I get the impression we'll never see this cure developed for people? The drug industry stands to lose a lot of scratch if diabetes is cured overnight.

[Diabetes Breakthrough]

Website: Portland Maps

Portland Maps is a secret little map site that works with your copy of Google Earth to show you really cool information about Portland, like:

• Property Information
• Crime
• Earthquake Hazard Data
• Zoning
• Urban Renewal Areas
• Elevation Data
• Home Buyer Opportunity Areas
  

You need Google Earth to be able to see these maps. To get it, go here: [Google Earth]. System Requirements might be a little high if your computer is old. It runs on most machines. Best if you have a video card and high-speed connection.

[Portland Maps]

Designer Rubik's Cubes

Greyscale Rubik's Cubes. So nice. According to this website, I can get one for about ... 2100 ... something or others.

[Muji]

Wicked Black Russian Squirrels Kill Dog

I'm sorry. I can't resist linking to this bizarre news story.

Apparently, a large dog was recently attacked by a group of hungry squirrels, who supposedly became annoyed when the dog decided to bark at them. Or maybe it was a drug deal gone bad....

[Black Russian Gangsta Squirrels]

Video: Amateur - Lasse Gjertsen

---

This is one very cool music video done in stop motion. Apparently, the person who made this is not a musician, but a talented video editor. Amazing what the remix culture is producing these days.

It gets really good about 2 1/2 minutes in.

Website: Car Talk

Find a local car mechanic. Leave reviews. [Car Talk's Mechanics Files]

Winterbells

A cute, addictive game. Send your bunny flying as he bounces off bells. Keep him aloft for maximum points. [Winterbells]

Website: Pikipimp

Here's a fun way to mangle mess up your photos. Drag and drop elements like funny hairstyles, thought bubbles, eye glasses, and etcetera. When you're done, copy the code to paste it onto your blog, or download it and send it to friends via email.

---

Here's an example of what I did to Kyra Sedgwick. Endless fun, especially if you're the creepy scrapbooking type. [Pikipimp].

Game: Need For Speed: Carbon (PS2)

EA's latest release in the Need For Speed franchise is an improvement over it's last, befuddled attempt to further its position in the smothered field of Arcade Racing games. The market is glutted with Arcade racers right now, thereby causing the studios to release games that aren't quite ready for prime time. Fortunately, the gameplay in Carbon is adequate enough to make the experience worthwhile.

Gameplay - Just like EA's last release, Need For Speed: Most Wanted, Carbon continues the old routine of trying to make racing mean something. I don't know why they've decided racing games require all the drama of vindication and revenge, but so long as it doesn't hurt the gameplay, I can live with the cheesy plot devices.

Drift racing is back this time around, but it's a real disaster and ruins this game's chances of achieving gaming perfection. The cars are difficult to control and ultimately, this seems like a tacky add-on that should have been scrapped to retain the game's integrity.

Controls have improved since the last release, with 10 options for controller layout. Cars are more responsive and actually drive with the physics one would expect. There are additions to the gameplay that hint at something much grander coming down the pipe with this genre. Something called "Crew" racing seems to be on the minds of the developers at EA, and I think they're really onto something. In Career mode, you now race with a "Wing man" who can assist you in three different styles: by Colliding with competing racers, by Scouting ahead for secret pathways, or by giving you speed boost via Drafting. The Wingman concept is really strong and would allow for some incredible racing via XBox Live, but this is PlayStation 2 I'm reviewing because my Xbox is, sadly, down with the flu, so I don't even know if it's an option for Xbox players.

Career Mode also requires you to choose your favorite style of car from the start, so you can expect to be behind the wheel of a Tuner, an Exotic, or a Muscle Car from the beginning. Not sure if that's such a good idea, since some racers like multiple car types and being locked into one may seem confining. In addition to all these new concepts, racing now involves capturing and defending territories against rival racing teams (racers who also race with a wingman). This requires more strategy than one is accustomed to in a standard racing game, which is very interesting.

As always, you can customize your car to your heart's content, and the new Autosculpt feature gives you even greater control over your artistic bent, allowing you to customize your car in millions of different ways.

Interface & Graphics - The Interface of Carbon is really not too different from the last release. There has been a marked improvement in the ability to jump directly to races via the WorldMap. This saves a lot of time and releases the player from having to deal with the tedium of avoiding cops all the time, as we did in Most Wanted. Graphics seem the same, but for some reason the cars look more realistic, less cartoony. The backgrounds are quite an improvement from Most Wanted. The cut scenes are similar to Most Wanted, with live action which has been altered to resemble animation. However, there are some serious frame rate issues this time around that were not present in the last release. Not sure if the developers were rushed to get this out the door before Christmas, but gameplay can get choppy/glitchy at times. Not sure if this is merely a PS2 problem or if it affects all consoles similarly.

Artificial Intelligence - The AI in Carbon is leaps and bounds ahead of what was presented in Most Wanted. Cop chases are remarkably realistic from the start and their chase patterns seem much better coordinated and challenging, bordering on belligerent. Rival racers are also more apt to cause frustration early on in the game, which is actually a welcome addition for a racing game of this type.

Sound - As always, the soundtrack in this Need For Speed release is superior to what you will find in most racing games. Whoever is in charge of licensing the music for this deserves a raise. You can always count on a Need For Speed game to have some of the freshest music out there. My only complaint is that I wish there was more than 30 or so songs here. Why not include all that older music you have licensed from earlier releases of the game? After a while, hearing the same collection of songs can get tedious, even when they are great songs. The Sound Effects are first rate, as always. The cars seem to have their own distinctive engine sounds, although, I did not notice much change in sound when changing muffler tips. The voice acting is good, but the new Crew racers can get a bit grating, as they are somewhat repetitive (but also entertaining at times).

Utilities - The mechanics of the game are almost identical to Most Wanted. Being able to jump to races eliminates the tedious need to free roam through the city and that's a good thing, since most of the city is empty until you defeat bosses from recently conquered districts. There is a new card collecting feature, but it's a bit of a mystery that doesn't immediately present itself.

Problems -

• Glitchy frame rate problems.
• Cops are very persistent from the start, bordering on relentless.
• Drift Racing is back, but it's a complete and total disaster. Controlling your car on a sheet of ice would be more fun.
  
• This is not a racing game for beginners or the faint of heart. If you have not played a racing game before, you would be better off starting somewhere else. If you are a fan of the Need For Speed franchise, this is an excellent title to add to your library. Much better than the annoyance that was Most Wanted.
  
• Licensed cars for this release seem really scattered. On the one hand, you have licenses for Porsche and Ferrari, but old staples of the Need For Speed franchise, like the Dodge Neon, are nowhere to be found. There are no SUVs or Pickup Trucks. Want to race your own whip? It's unlikely you'll find it among the roughly 50 cars licensed in this release.

Sifted: 8/10

Website: Writers Dreamtools

Here is a website for Writers that seems invaluable. [Writers Dreamtools]

Blockbuster Gives Free Rentals to Netflix Users

Next time you rip off the address sleeve from your Netflix DVD, save it. You can take it to Blockbuster through Dec. 21st and trade it for a free movie rental. [from Ars Technica]

50 Pieces of Art to See Before You Die

Here's a list of 50 great art pieces from around the world. Too bad I don't live near any of them (save for the thingamajig in Utah). I'm always surprised at the choices people come up with whenever I come across one of these lists. [Your Final 50]

<--- A Painting by Wassily Kandinsky, who was not on the list but is a personal favorite.

TV: Next Top Model: Brittish Invasion

The CW is going to go all BBS on us on Dec. 13th (8-10 PM) and 20th (8-10PM), when they will be showing us the British season of Next Top Model, all scrunched up into two shows. Apparently, gossip mongers are saying the show is superior to the American version, not only because Gwyneth Paltrow says so, but because the girls are actually model-worthy.

(British models don't smile? Heh heh.)

Damn You All To Hell!

Damn someone to eternal damnation in the flames of hell.

[You Are Damned Website].

What's With all the Designer Hoodies?

Sure, trendy clothes are cool, but the designer hoodies are getting a little outrageous already. What ever happened to the standard pullover displaying the typical college Alma Mater?

This Leroy Jenkins pukefest masterpiece is reversible and goes for a mere $220. I thought hoodies were supposed to be cheap?

What's next? Designer socks for $50 a pair? Whatevs.

Paris By Night

A honkin' huge panorama of Paris at night. [Note: It could take a while to load at 1.8 MB]

A Good Day For Muslim Women

Islam Outlaws Female Genital Mutilation

McWhip

Heh heh. Supersized wheels....

Movie: Wassup Rockers (2005)

Directed by Larry Clark of Kids fame. Wassup Rockers is about the misadventures of a rag-tag crew of Latino skateboarders from South-Central Los Angeles who decide to spend a day in Beverly Hills.

This film is so damaged, I don't know where to begin.

First of all, kudos to a Hollywood studio and director for finally realizing Latino people actually exist. It was refreshing to catch a glimpse of such an invisible subculture as Latino skateboarders, and I think Larry Clark was able to once again showcase his uncanny ability to catch kids being themselves.

Unfortunately, that's where the compliments end. Because this film is smothered in racism, cliches, and stupid plot devices to such an extent that the entire film ends up doing more damage to the Latino community than aiding it.

This film doesn't know if it wants to be a documentary, a comedy, or some sort of socially critical drama, and ultimately it succeeds at none of the above. From an academic standpoint, an attempt could be made to view this film as some sort of analogy for Homer's The Odyssey, but that would be a mighty stretch. Because Wassup Rockers really isn't that deep, and granting it such a prestigious subtextual analysis is by far unwarranted. Not to mention, if it was an analogy for The Odyssey, it would be a poorly executed one anyway.

The problems here seem to reside primarily in the plot and the failed character development. Where Kids soared at showing us the seedy underbelly of the New York teen set, mainly by focusing on a few kids at a time, Wassup Rockers fails miserably from the beginning by presenting us with 7+ characters, all of which look and dress similarly. At no time is there any adequate explanation for why so many of these guys live together, or why they dress so oddly, or even why they enjoy skateboarding. We aren't shown their parents, nor is it explained how they managed to afford the equipment for their punk band. None of these guys has a job. They simply exist and we, as viewers, are supposed to somehow just accept it. Fine.

Unfortunately, the plot doesn't really develop from there. The crew decides to go to Beverly Hills one day, out of the blue, seemingly to skate in the High School parking lot. They are pulled over and their car impounded, but they inexplicably decide to continue on their quest by riding two city buses. Once they finally arrive in Beverly Hills, an inordinate amount of time is spent showing the crew doing tricks off a small stairway. It immediately becomes clear that these kids, despite their interest in skateboarding, aren't very good at it. Within minutes, they are set upon by a couple of debutantes who invite the crew back to their house. Of course, the crew gets busted by a bumbling white police officer shortly thereafter. The rest of the movie continues downhill from there. The suspension of disbelief collapses entirely as the film devolves into a stew of racism, homophobia, ageism, sexism, and whatnot.

Unfortunately, the attempt to stretch the boundaries of PC conventions is sadly sophomoric and ultimately comes off feeling strained and disingenuous. Cliches abound. Young black girls are confrontational or want to "braid their hair"; black males are violent, gun-wielding maniacs; homosexuals are foppishly dressed and inexplicably wealthy; whites are illustrated as depressed, unethical, homicidal, exploitative, alcoholic; Latino adults are seemingly all housekeepers, gossips, or just plain poor. In fact, it's difficult to see even one example of a positive adult role model in this film. The brief moments of humor are not enough to carry this movie or make an excuse for the blatantly offensive stereotypes peppered throughout.

I would not recommend this film to anyone. Maybe minority teenagers who are tired of the typical white fare coming out of Hollywood might find this film a little intriguing; anyone else would be better served watching paint dry.

Sifted: 4/10 (for excellent production values, if nothing else. Lighting, cinematography, editing and music were all more than adequate. This film is unusually stylized for being such a disaster, in fact).

Video: Time Lapse Microsoft Paint Drawing

Amazing, what goes into drawing. Microsoft Paint seems to be a little non-compliant. This artist's skills are definitely put to the test.

RollerToaster

Now you can press your hair and have breakfast at the same time! Featured on Engadget.

"What's for breakfast?"

"Not bagels."

Keep Your Pets Off the Furniture

The Sofa Guard is a stupid product that will inevitably result in giving you a heart attack or causing the cops to knock on your door because of neighbor complaints.

Seriously, the dog in this picture doesn't look obedient, he looks sadistic, kind of like he's waiting for the most opportune moment to jump on that couch and scare the bejeezus out of you.