Came across a mantis today in the parking lot at work.

Matthew and Erin and I went to the park for a picnic today and a tiny visitor landed on Erin's shoe for a while. He was kind enough to let me snap a few pictures before he went on his way. Click the photo to zoom in more.

I Am Trying To Break Your Heart

Just finished the Wilco documentary I Am Trying to Break Your Heart. It was on Sundance channel so I TiVo'd it and have to say I thought it was pretty good. Made me wanna go back and listen to Yankee Hotel Foxtrot again. If you're not familiar with Wilco's music, check this out. On their site, you can listen to a few complete live performances and even select the songs within the set. I'm partial to Impossible Germany, Either Way, and Hate It Here from their latest, Sky Blue Sky.

Lovins for Energy Czar

Chris McGowan, writing for the The Huffington Post, suggests Amory Lovins as Energy Czar for either McCain or Obama. Lovins is founder of the Rocky Mountain Institute and is unbelievably smart when it comes to practical solutions to energy problems. Of course, I suggested Al Gore would be a great Secretary of Energy in a previous post, but Lovins may be an even better choice. His non-partisan status is definitely a plus and there's no denying he's got the chops necessary to steer our energy policies in the right direction.

Paintball

Played paintball for the first time with some friends this weekend. We had a blast but I think we all realized we should have done this 10 years ago when we were a bit more nimble and when we had more disposable income. We are old.
(p.s. here's a tip...wear long sleeves)

Classic

Best line from the finale of How I Met Your Mother:
Robin: Oh, I love Springsteen! He's like the American Bryan Adams.

Here's a quick blog post about Tom Waits, one of the artists I most admire. First of all, you need to read this blog post at his record label, Anti. Mr. Waits interviews himself and the results are quite entertaining.

Secondly, he's playing at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta in July and I pray I'll be there to see it. So close, yet so far away.

And lastly, there's a lot of chatter online about the new record from actress Scarlett Johansson. She's teamed up with Dave Sitek from TV on the Radio (a band I like and respect) to make a record consisting almost entirely of Tom Waits covers. A) This seems like a horrible idea. B) I've heard pieces of the record (not the whole thing) and it will take some convincing to persuade me that this is not a horrible idea based on what I've heard. C) The samples that I did hear made me want to stop listening to what I was hearing and go put on original Tom Waits recordings. So, I guess that's a good thing.

This is the first time I've ever seen this and once I get a four-hour block to myself, I'm gonna figure out exactly what it actually means:
Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo.
(Thanks Scott)

I know some folks who just figured out how to spend their economic stimulus check...

Dragon Fire!

If you have eight minutes to spare today, check out this early muppet footage for La Choy Chow Mein. It's great.

Watching some video online of Obama. I said to Matthew "who's that?".
"Bomama...rhymes with momma". Perhaps there's a second poetry major in the Townley family's future?

Thanks Feist

Matthew counted to ten perfectly for the first time yesterday. He doesn't do it correctly every time yet and when he does make a mistake it's often this: He skips seven and eight. Erin and I have a theory that this is due to that ubiquitous Feist song that we've been playing for him in the car. He loves it.

1,2,3,4,5,6, 9 & 10...

I read on her site that she's recently recorded a version of it for Sesame Street. Let's hope Elmo corrects her before the country's run by a generation of children for whom the numbers seven and eight are completely foreign.

Funny

Neil...no the other one

I started listening to the automatically-produced "top 25" playlist on my iPod yesterday and was a little surprised to see a bunch of tracks from Neil Diamond's 12 Songs. I guess I shouldn't be surprised. It's a great record. If you haven't heard it, forget everything you know about Neil Diamond and give it a listen. He's got a new one coming out next tuesday called Home Before Dark. It's also produced by Rick Rubin and I'm anxious to hear it based on the single streaming on his site. It's worth a listen.

A.V. Club

Every now and again, I'll re-discover a website. The Onion's AV Club is one of those sites. Check out the "primer" on Elvis Costello and the article about the wisdom of Kurt Vonnegut as examples of the cool work they're doing over there.

826 Valencia

Just saw a UPS commercial featuring music by...The Postal Service.

This is pretty awesome. You wanna contribute to the Watchmen film?
There's a contest going on asking you to create a tv commercial that looks like it was made in 1985 for Veidt products. The winners may actually be used in the movie. Check it out here.

We saw Forgetting Sarah Marshall this weekend and while it's not for everyone, I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard in the theater. The cast was top-notch, especially Russell Brand, Jack McBrayer, and Mila Kunis (who knew?). I recommend it to those not easily offended by male nudity.

I've seen a lot of odd things online but I can't imagine the time it must have taken to coordinate this one.

The "One Week Only" feature at the new site Pitchfork.tv is now playing the 2004 documentary loudQuietloud about the Pixies reunion and if you're a fan or curious, it's worth a look. But if the "one week only" name is to believed better get over there today.

Muppetmaster

Here's a very interesting tidbit from the NY Times piece on Jason Segel, the amusing co-star of one of my favorite current sitcoms, "How I Met Your Mother" and the new film, "Forgetting Sarah Marshall". By the way, Richard Roeper suggested he'd have to make room on his list of 50 funniest movies for this one so I hope he's right.

And despite his regular appearances on prime-time television, it is only in the prelude to the release of “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” that he has found he can now take meetings with the studios, production companies and casting directors who previously shunned him.

In one such meeting, with Disney, he offhandedly mentioned that he would like to write a new movie for his childhood idols, the Muppets; within days the studio had signed Mr. Segel and Mr. Stoller to write the script.

(“I want to revive them to their previous glory, before they became a novelty act,” Mr. Segel said. “When it wasn’t, like, ‘Muppets Underwater.’ ‘Muppets in the Sahara.’ ‘Muppets on the Moon!’ ”)

Wanna have some fun? Next time you meet someone and invariably the conversation turns toward American Idol, pretend like you have no idea what they're talking about. A few ways to go?
A) Is that a movie?
B) Oh, I LOVE American Chopper!
C) Hmmm...sounds blasphemous.
D) I just watch PBS.

I very nearly cried watching this...
Someone's slowed down a 1999 mac commercial featuring Jeff Goldblum. The Huffington Post referred to it as "drunken hilarity". And I concur.

Battlestar Returns

Battlestar Galactica begins its final season tonight. If you're a fan, I'm sure you already knew that. If you "don't like space", just think of it as a soap opera.

Weary

Ever notice folks sometimes use the word "weary" when they really mean "wary"? The wife and I think we've figured out why. They're taking "wary" and combining it with its synonym, "leery".
Wary + Leery = Weary.
Yup. We're that boring.

Back to the Future

Seems one of my favorites, Elvis Costello, won't offer CDs of his upcoming release, MOMOFUKU and will be releasing vinyl as the only physical format. The LP will be packaged with a code to download a digital copy of the record. I think I'd buy every record this way if they were reasonably priced.
Thanks to Billboard and Wired.

I hesitate to tell you anything

Just watch...


(thanks to VSL for bringing this to my attention)

When I heard the Supreme Court would be reviewing the second amendment (DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA V. HELLER), I wondered if the amendment's odd punctuation would play a role in the decision. I did a quick search and was delighted to see this article in the Times just a few days prior addressing the very subject.

Link to the story at Boing Boing

Jean-noël Lafargue

Eric Clapton's Censored Song List in North Korea by Lionel Beehner

Mickey sent this to me. Very funny. Love the McSweeneys lists.

If you're not familiar with Eddie Izzard, this New York Times article is a decent place to start. I became a fan after watching his stand-up special, "Dress to Kill", and listening to it countless times in the car much like I used to do with Bill Cosby tapes when i was a kid. He'll be touring the US soon. Check here for dates. I saw him in New York a few years ago and he was great. Don't miss it.

For those of you keeping track at home, my Xbox 360 has been returned to me once again after THREE "repairs". I played a Sesame Street DVD for Matthew on it to test it out and had no trouble. Fingers crossed, folks.

Great Art for a Great Candidate

I'm a fan of Shepard Fairey (the Obey Giant guy) so I was thrilled to see his contribution to the Obama campaign. You can purchase the limited edition print here.

Batman Fans...

check out this article in the NY Times about the upcoming film and director Nolan in particular.

Remember when Leia disguises herself as Boussh, the bounty hunter in Return of the Jedi? Remember her voice in that mask? Matthew's got some chest congestion and when he talks quietly, he sounds EXACTLY like that.

Loss For Words

At the grocery store today, a slightly disheveled man wearing sunglasses asked me directly:

"Why is it women always assume we actually like Fruit Loops? I can't stand that sh*t."

A woman was with him. I didn't know what to say.

"Abra, Abracadabra
I wanna reach out and grab ya"
-The Steve Miller Band

If you think there are better rhymes from 1980s pop music, post a comment below.

Okay, this is cool. If you're my age, you know Randall "Tex" Cobb from Raising Arizona, The Golden Child, and from the funniest exchange in Fletch Lives:

"Bend Over"
"Ben? Nice to meet you, Victor Hugo"

He graduated magna cum laude in January from Temple University.
Read the article here.

Maybe next time, Mr. Jaynes...

Well, the Coen Brothers walked away with adapted screenplay, director(s), and best picture. If you haven't seen it, do yourself a favor. It's a really good movie. The one award I was really hoping they would win was for editing because I wanted to see "Roderick Jaynes" accept the award. The introduction of the nominees last night included a great photo of the imaginary film editor. Well, maybe next time. In the meantime, enjoy a piece of his bio from the No Country For Old Men website:

Mr. Jaynes resides in Hove, Sussex, with his Chow, Otto. He remains widely admired in the film industry for his impeccable grooming and is the world's foremost collector of Margaret Thatcher nudes, many of them drawn from life.

Also, a quick note about Jack Nicholson. Does anyone else get the impression he's constantly being whispered a joke no one else can hear?

Does Kevin Spacey do the voice-over for "previously on In Treatment"?
Watch the first 8 seconds here and add a comment with your vote.

List

Who I'd Like To See At Bonnaroo 2008:

* Pearl Jam
* Metallica
* Jack Johnson
* Kanye West
* Chris Rock
* Robert Plant and Alison Krauss featuring T Bone Burnett
* Phil Lesh & Friends
* My Morning Jacket
* The Allman Brothers Band
* The Raconteurs
* Willie Nelson
* Death Cab for Cutie
* B.B. King
* Sigur Ros
* Levon Helm and the Ramble on the Road
* Ben Folds
* The Bluegrass Allstars
* Iron & Wine
* The Swell Season
* Talib Kweli
* Derek Trucks & Susan Tedeschi Soul Stew Revival
* Broken Social Scene
* Bonnaroo Late Night Chat About with David Cross
* Robert Randolph's Revival
* Rilo Kiley
* Mastodon
* Drive-By Truckers
* Abigail Washburn & The Sparrow Quartet featuring Bela Fleck
* Aimee Mann
* Janeane Garofalo
* Jose Gonzalez
* Zach Galifianakis
* Donavon Frankenreiter
* State Radio
* Brian Posehn

In Treatment

The wife and I are enjoying a new show on HBO called In Treatment.
It's one of those shows that makes you glad you've got TiVo.
A half-hour each weeknight is made up of a therapy session.
Gabriel Byrne is fantastic in it and the supporting cast is great too.
There are monologues here ripe for interpretation by psychology majors that need theater credits.

Other Things There Will Be, In Addition to Blood
A McSweeney's list by Meredith and Scott Rodkey

Vote!

I'll be voting in the Georgia primary tuesday morning and I hope that if you live in a primary state, that you'll be voting as well.
If you live in Georgia, you can find your polling place by clicking here.

If you're outside the state of Georgia, here's the national page that will help you find all the information you need:
USA.gov Voting Information

Why Reading IS Important, Even For Business Students

Headline: Shop pulls 'Lolita' bed for young girls

He Finds You

Saw this over on the Politico.com site.
If you type in "Find Chuck Norris" at Google
and hit the I'm Feeling Lucky button,
you get this.

Here's a fun story. After sending my Xbox 360 back for repairs a second time, I finally got it back earlier this week. I plugged it in, fired it up, and you guessed it...it DOES NOT work. This time, instead of "repairing" it, they're sending me a new one. Seems I'm not alone.

According to the NY Times, The MPAA now says it was wrong to blame illegal downloads by college students for 44% of the film industry's domestic losses. Apparently, they say college students are only responsible for 15% of the losses. I'd like to suggest that the studios are partially responsible because they're making stuff like this.

U23D

I had the chance to see an advance screening of the new 3D Imax film U23D (thanks Best Buy!). Despite some "ghosting", it was by far the best 3D I've yet seen. It wasn't overly gimmicky, in fact the film focused mainly on accurately reproducing the performance space and so I got wrapped up in the music, much as I did when I saw the band perform in Memphis years ago. Great setlist, so if you're a fan of the band, definitely take the kids and go to the Imax.

By the way, these Irish kids are an incredibly tight and expansive band. If you didn't see it, read Springsteen's Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction speech here. There's no better description of who they are and what they do.

Watchmen

I just finished reading Watchmen and I'm really interested to see how the film will develop. The little bit that I've read and seen online leads me to believe that it will be a pretty faithful interpretation. I like the casting I've read about (Billy Crudup as Dr. Manhattan and Jackie Earl Haley as Rorshach) although I wonder how well some of the younger actors will portray "retired" superheroes.

Ferrell on Broadway

I would give my left elbow for tickets to this

Rent to Own music

I've been thinking alot lately about the future of music sales and how this will change with technology. Folks like Rick Rubin, David Geffen, and my friend Josh, believe the subscription model is the future of the industry. They say you'll pay a certain amount each month to gain access to virtually any music you're interested in hearing. It sounds great, but I'm not thrilled about having to pay yet another monthly bill. And since the beginning of recorded music sales, we've owned our music. I just can't believe that we'll all be content to pay $19.95 per month (Rubin's figure, not mine) to essentially RENT music. If I decide I can't afford it anymore, I'm stuck with...NO music. We're collectors of music. That's part of the fun of it, right?

What about a "rent to own" option? Say you've rented for 12 months and you decide you can't afford it anymore. You decide you'll stop paying, but you'll get to keep a portion of the music you've downloaded equal to the amount you've paid. For example, you've spent $239.40 for the year ($19.95 per month) and you've downloaded 500 songs. When you leave the rental agreement you get to keep 239 of those songs (you didn't think the record companies would round up to 240 did you?). You choose which ones you want.

Has this been proposed anywhere? Your thoughts?

UPDATE: PLEASE SEE THE COMMENT BELOW. THERE'S AN IMPORTANT CLARIFICATION MADE BY ONE OF THE THREE PEOPLE REFERENCED IN THE FIRST PARAGRAPH. OBVIOUSLY I APOLOGIZE FOR THE MISREPRESENTATION.

Here's a great article about my friend and co-worker Srdjan Plecas, in today's Chattanooga Times Free Press.

NPR - Source for Great (free) Music

There's an amazing group of free concerts (Jose Gonzales, Iron & Wine, Rilo Kiley, Bjork) from NPR's All Songs Considered podcast.
Click here to go to the iTunes page.

Also, check out their new NPR Music site.

Every episode of Lost is now streaming online for free

I was talking to a friend the other night who had never watched Lost and I suggested that he should rent the first three seasons on DVD and catch up before we get too far into the fourth season which begins on Jan. 31st. I just discovered that all three seasons of Lost are streaming "in HD" on abc.com. Forget renting the DVDs. The quality's pretty good, so if you wanna save a few bucks and don't mind watching on your computer (I know, that's the dealbreaker), check it out.

Amazon's got a real shot at dethroning iTunes when it comes to selling major-label music online. They just announced they'll be selling Warner Music too without any kind of DRM, and they're doing it cheaper than iTunes. The ability to purchase music cheaply, legally, without strings and to play it on any player, including iPod and iPhone, is the only way ANYONE could compete with Apple in this market and it's taken Amazon's clout to make it happen. And it's not just music. They're also selling e-books with the Kindle which was pretty well-reviewed and movies that can be downloaded directly to the TiVo. We've done the movies a few times and have been moderately happy with the results. Once they work out a few kinks, it'll be great. They'll often have deals on relatively new rentals. We paid only a buck each to rent The Lives of Others, Hot Fuzz, Zodiac, and Ocean's Thirteen. Four movies for what it would cost us to rent one movie from Blockbuster and no trip to the store.
The DRM is a real pain though. If I start watching a movie at 8pm on tuesday night and my son wakes up and I can't finish the film that night, there's a 24 hour countdown 'til it disappears from the TiVo. It'll take a few years of competition before the restrictions are loosened for film rentals and books, but it's a trend, and I'm sure we'll get there eventually. Just don't expect to get there without some kicking and screaming.

Hulu Testing

This is a test of Hulu's embed capabilities. This SHOULD be a Kings of Leon performance from The Tonight Show. If it is, enjoy.

Consumed

Great conversation last night on Bill Moyers Journal with Benjamin Barber about consumerism and democracy. The best part? There's no commercials. Enjoy. You can watch video or read the transcript here.

I saw this on Boing Boing.
You'll see it eventually. Might as well be here.

"Extras", like "The Office", gone too soon

I just watched the Extras series finale that I recorded the other night. It played like a feature film. More serious than the regular episodes, I thought, and rightfully so. It's an odd series that way. Definitely a comedy, but comfortable being more. The show at times felt a diatribe about our fascination with celebrities. And yet Gervais himself seems to have an obsession with the idea of fame. Take a look at his most recent stand-up DVD. I love his talent and his integrity and can't wait to see what he does next. Apparently a film called Ghost Town will be released this summer also starring the very funny Kristen Wiig and Cameron Frye himself, Alan Ruck.

One More Drifter...

Aimee Mann released One More Drifter in the Snow last year.
It's a great Christmas album. If you're looking for new tunes to stir that holiday spirit in the coming weeks, you could do a lot worse.

New "Lost" content online

I didn't hear about these 'til today so I assume others may have missed them as well. Go to http://abc.go.com/primetime/lost/missingpieces to watch. Here's the official description:

Lost: Missing Pieces are 13 two- to three-minute stories of compelling, new, never-before-seen moments from the hit television show LOST. These newly-created scenes (not deleted scenes from previous episodes) reveal answers and new details about your favorite characters. For each story, we leave it up to the fans to figure out where these pieces fit into the overall mythology. The new stories are from the same creative team responsible for the series and feature the show's main actors in stories that have all the compelling values that make LOST one of the most popular dramas on television around the world.

I'm not sure if there's a contest for "most rockin' Thanksgiving photo", but if there is, I think we've got it won, hands down.

(I just hope we're not brought up on charges by the SMC)

Multimedia message

Matthew was watching sesame street on my ipod at the airport and he turned it over and saw the logo on the back and looked up at me and said "apple!". you have to start 'em young.

How cool is this?

Strike or No Strike, for a Select Few, Saturday Night Was Live

Jimmy Carter: Man From Plains

I'm really excited about the new documentary from one of my favorite filmmakers, Jonathan Demme. It's about one of my favorite people.
Jimmy Carter: Man From Plains should be out soon.



Here's a pic of me and my sister at the Carter headquarters a (very) long time ago.

Kite

Erin, Matthew, and I had a great time flying a kite on monday

THIS IS NOT ME

Here's the funny thing. This picture IS NOT ME.
I've had THREE people now tell me that I have a Doppelgänger.
His name is Matt McCarthy and he's a comedian/actor from New York.
You can see more pics here at his myspace page. Now, some photos are closer than others, but a few are just uncanny. I've spoken to my mother about this and she assures me Heather and I don't have a hidden triplet.

24

new season of 24 coming soon. thanks Taj for the heads-up.

Jimmy Carter

This quote is in response to a question from Bob Edwards on whether our "image problem" around the world is fixable.

CARTER: In my opinion, the next president could make major repairs the first day in office, the first 30 minutes in office. In the inaugural address, if the next president would announce:

The United States of America is rejecting pre-emptive war as a policy, and we will not attack another nation unless our own security is in danger, as has been the policy of every president since, since uh, George Washington until recently.

The United States will observe every nuclear arms control agreement that has been negotiated since Eisenhower, and we’ll comply with a non-proliferation treaty by working to bring the nuclear arsenals to zero.

The United States will never torture another prisoner, and we will comply with the Geneva Conventions on the treatment of those who are incarcerated. We’ll make sure that they have knowledge of their own crimes and that they have legal counsel and they have a right to outside contact with their families.

The United States will be at the forefront of controlling global warming, and will work with other nations persistently and enthusiastically to reduce the threat to the environment.

The United States will raise high the banner of human rights. From now on, we’ll be the champions of human rights.

The United States will take a balanced position in the Middle East and negotiate without ceasing to bring peace between Israel and Israel’s neighbors with justice to both sides.

Those kind of statements, which I think are rational and defensible and would be very unequivocal, I think, would arouse the admiration of Americans, and would also help to alleviate the concerns that are now so patently obvious in other people’s attitude toward us.

Mad Men

I've got about five episodes backed up on the TiVo of this show on AMC called Mad Men. If you don't know anything about it, check out the short video above. The season finale aired tonight but of course I won't watch it 'til I catch up. I've been watching since the premiere and think it's uncommonly good. I'm sure they'll do a marathon at some point. If so, be sure to watch. I'm never quite sure where it's headed. There are some terrific performances, so don't be surprised if you hear more about it come Emmy time.

In my dreams...my fingers are made of butter

Some thoughts about Gore

Speculation is again rampant that Al Gore might enter the presidential race now that he's won the Nobel Peace Prize. While I'm not sure he's interested, I've got an idea for the next president (Democrat or Republican). Cabinet positions are rarely coveted but there is potential for real policy influence (see Rumsfeld). Of course, cabinet members don't usually get much credit but they often take the blame when things go wrong (again...see Rumsfeld). Nevertheless, I think Al Gore would be a brilliant choice for the next Secretary of Energy. He's got the momentum and the passion to affect real change.

Everybody's Got Something To Hide...

Now Steve Jobs is just toying with us. Take a look at this screen-shot from iTunes. I think it's inevitable at this point that the Beatles catalog on iTunes gets announced at the launch of the "Leopard" OS later this month. But then, doesn't everyone already have all the Beatles tunes on vinyl, cassette, CD, and ripped MP3s?

A thought about the radiohead record. It really is an exercise in trust. Fans trust the band enough to buy a record without hearing a note of it. Band trusts the fans to pay enough for it so that this becomes a viable distribution method. I like that.

Anyone else think this is odd?

I took this photo this weekend with my cell phone.
Anyone else concerned that this "non-dairy creamer" contains...dairy?

It's Up To You

I'm sure you've heard, but if you haven't, Radiohead has decided to release their new album without the help (read hindrance) of a label. It's available through their website, radiohead.com, and with four simple words, they may have single-handedly changed the way we buy music.

When you go to purchase the album, you'll see a blank box where the price would normally be. Click the question mark next to it and you'll see
"It's Up To You" staring back at you.




You wanna pay a nickel? Go ahead. 9.99? Go ahead.
How cool is that?

(a note. Radiohead isn't the first to do this sort of thing. They're just the best.)

Multimedia message

It's a common mistake to misspell caesar but it's usually misspelled differently. Did i misspell misspell?

The Seeker???

I can't ever remember seeing this happen before...
I saw a trailer in the theater for The Dark is Rising, a film based on a book of the same name by Susan Cooper. It's been about 20 years since I read the book, but I remember really enjoying it. The movie looks like it'll be fun for 12 year olds and possibly even for an older audience.

Anyway, I see the commercial today on television and they've changed the title to the very generic-sounding The Seeker. Now, I've heard of title changes before the marketing really begins, but how confusing is it to show people a trailer for a film with one name, then show them a commercial with a lot of the same content with a different title?

At some point I think they decided on "The Seeker: The Dark is Rising" because I've seen it that way too. But now it seems it's just "The Seeker".

Halo 3

Erin's list for things to pick up at wal-mart is: milk, halo 3

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Sweet Tea

One of the things I really missed while I was living up north is sweet tea. I've ordered it at every opportunity since moving back in June (and my tendency towards drinking five or more glasses in one sitting amuses my co-workers to no end). I recommend this great article from Slate.com on sweet tea that I saw posted on a bulletin board at Two Squares A Day restaurant in Chattanooga. Also, on the same subject, check out this study.

Tuesday...

Halo 3 comes out Tuesday. I first blogged about this back in May and the day is fast approaching. I'm really excited...and I'm 30. No judgments, please.

NY Times is now free & complete online

The New York Times has offered a subscription to their "Times Select" content for a while now. It's always a bummer to know that there's something interesting that I'd like to read but that it isn't easily accessible to me because I can't afford to pay for it. As of a day or so ago, "Select" is no more. You may still have to register, I'm not sure, but read on folks.
Here's a couple of good articles from the Times from the last couple months:
The Music Man
Summer Express: 101 Simple Meals Ready in 10 Minutes or Less

Sub Pop...Free MP3s

I think I've posted about the Sub Pop Records site in the past as a place to check for great free music. Well, I checked today and there are at least four free tracks here that are worth your time. A great band called Band of Horses has a new record coming soon and you can download one of the tracks. The very funny Patton Oswalt compares our commander in chief to a Duke boy in a track from his comedy album Werewolves and Lollipops. Iron and Wine's new album (with an awesome cover, by the by) drops on the 25th of September. Download "Boy with a Coin".
And last but not least...it's Business Time.

Lookout

Great day today with the in-laws. We went up to Point Park and got some great photos of downtown Chattanooga and then to the Chickamauga battlefield & the museum there. It's been years since I've done that.

"The War" Preview / Honoring Local Veterans

I don't usually blog about work here, but I'm making an exception for this. For all of you folks in the area, I'd like to invite you to a special free screening at the Tivoli in Chattanooga on Tuesday, Sept. 18th at 6:30pm. You'll see an hour-long preview of the new seven-part Ken Burns documentary, The War, which begins airing on WTCI on Sept. 23rd.

In addition, I've produced five short pieces honoring some incredible World War II veterans that live right here in the Tennessee Valley. These will precede the preview of The War. Be sure to tell friends & family to join us. We want a packed house!

Papa John's has a Korean website.
And I think they have a different 'papa' judging from the little video that loops on the site. Great jingle at the end too.

We just got done watching the amazing documentary Be Here To Love Me: A Film About Townes Van Zandt on Sundance Channel. You don't have to know a thing about Townes to enjoy this film. But you'll sure feel like you know a lot when it's over.

New episodes of Frisky Dingo just started on Adult Swim.
If you missed the first one, you can watch here.

One of the oddest collaborations I can recall and yet I'm anxious to hear how this one turns out. T-Bone produced. It's out October 23rd.

Photosynth

Once in a blue moon, Microsoft comes through with some technology that's just indescribably cool. The latest? Their Photosynth online demo. Just go play around with it. And apparently there's now a plug-in so you can use this with Firefox.

Great Commercial

This commercial's been around for a long time. Just saw it again tonight by chance and had to post it.

You learn something new every day. For instance, did you know that there is a National Toothpick Holder Collector's Society? Their convention is in Chattanooga this weekend and we ran into a fraction of the organization's 700 members on a cruise aboard the Southern Belle. Friday was our fifth anniversary so we stepped out on the town (and on a watercraft on the river adjacent to the town).

A Love Supreme

Two things led me to this post. The first is a lunch spot I've been to a few times in the last month. Every time I go in there, they're playing John Coltrane.

Second is iTunes and their 'blue note' sale. Now, part of this sale is Coltrane's "Blue Train", which is a great record and you should probably get that one too, if you have the means. But...if you don't have "A Love Supreme" (I know, not a Blue Note recording but it's still on sale) and you have any interest at all in jazz, you need to just go ahead and pay the $8 at iTunes and get it now. Listen to the whole thing through the first time, then listen as you like. And if you can find the record at a used store, even better.

Wow...I never thought I'd say this, but Dick Cheney was
ABSOLUTELY RIGHT.



*thanks to Boing Boing.

If you have HBO and you've decided not to watch Flight of the Conchords, you should know that you're wasting your money. The clip below is from a couple episodes back. Jemaine appears to Brett in a dream as David Bowie. Enjoy.