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Random Object Generator

Installment #7:

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What is it? “white mouse”

What’s its deal? one of hundreds of cat toys that, at any time, can be right under your feet when it’s dark in the house

Where does it live? wherever our cats feel like tossing it today – sometimes in the toy basket, though

Any notable facts? “white mouse” is less popular than “brown mouse” for reasons we’ll never fully understand

BMW (USA,) we have to talk

Specifically, we have to talk about this ad:

You see, the more I see it (and it’s in heavy rotation on the channels I frequent – like 10 times last night on the History Channel), the more it’s driving me mad. Let’s break it down, shall we?

  1. Americans did not create Efficient Dynamics. That would be the Germans, probably spurred on by the European Union and countries like England giving incentives to drivers with lower carbon emissions and higher overall fuel efficiency. When you are peddling cars with inline 6s, you really do need to create a way for them to be as intelligently efficient as possible. I understand this, but please don’t tell me that it was American Ingenuity™ that created Efficient Dynamics. Or else I’m claiming schnitzel, too.
  2. On that point, Efficient Dynamics should not be confused with the two diesel models that BMW has decided to sell here in the US. The Efficient Dynamics program, as it exists in its native lands, is actually about stop/start technologies, regenerative braking and other ingenious solutions to bump up fuel economy while driving down emissions. In Europe, diesel is often the standard choice for vehicles like the X5 and even the 3 Series – because they are efficient. It’s not Redundant Dynamics.
  3. That being said, can we talk for a second about the advertisement itself? Holding a CFL bulb and talking about greener car technologies seems logical enough. Where this ad goes batshit fucking insane is when it continues to talk about being better to the Earth while TWO THOUSAND LIGHTBULBS BLAZE TO LIFE! Even if it was computer generated, it’s still completely daft.
  4. I’m also not entirely convinced that a diesel X5 that gets 25 MPG highway is all that much greener than a gasoline X5 that gets 21 MPG highway (and costs $4,000 less.) Additionally, I’m not sure that a gasoline 328i that gets 28 MPG is that much worse than a diesel 335d that gets 36 MPG and costs $10,000 more.

Now BMW, you know that I love you. I defend your honor any time Clarkson trashes the X3. I think that the Efficient Dynamics program is brilliant when looked at as a whole. I even get past your weird fascination with using the abbreviation E.D. for both this program and European Delivery when you know full well that many of your buyers have a little blue pill for another E.D. all together. But, the next time you decide to talk about efficiency, let’s at least have the 320d, X5 30d and the rest of the “d” variants on the screen for US consumption, okay?

Perhaps, perhaps…

The Daily Galaxy (a blog I’ve not read before) ran a small article on the 14th regarding the (from America, anyway) minute possibility that the Universe is poised to become the new religion. While I’d like to think that awe over the grandeur of the entirety of space and the elegance of quantum theory will replace belief in myths and fables at the center of human existence, I do worry about calling anything a religion. I think that implies an attachment and rigidity that we should probably avoid going forward – if the Universe teaches anything it’s that change is constant and entropy is a-comin’.

Richard Dawkins & Carl Sagan: “Will the Universe Be the New Religion?”

There is, of course, something reassuring about saying “the Universe works in mysterious ways” instead of the usual statement. Richard Dawkin’s interview (included in the article) is delightful, but it could be the Religulous talking.

So long, ScaryGoRound!

As of Friday, ScaryGoRound has said goodbye to its present form. Its creator, John Allison, moves on to a new comic endeavor – can’t blame him! I get bored with my artsy activities about an hour in, so I can’t quite imagine seven years! I’m going to miss this amazing little gem of Brit-humor and quirky monster tales. My SGR fix has been a daily institution for at least the last five years and it’s going to be hard to let Amy, Shelly, Ryan, Bat-Friend, Desmond, etc go.

I’m certain, though, that whatever Mr. Allison has in store for us will be fantastic. I’m just glad I finally got around to ordering my “Nosferatu doesn’t share his toffees” t-shirt before they all ran out.

Now, what to do with the SGR link in my right sidebar? Suggestions?

What’s for dinner?

Well, tonight it was this:

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Baked salmon with rosemary (from the patio garden) and lemon, asparagus seared in sesame oil and rough-mashed redskin potatoes with parmesan cheese and garlic. Complimented by a vodka tonic with a twist of lemon and blackberries.

It was so fantastic that we had a visitor join our candlelit table moments later:

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She is not a very good table top dancer. And she nearly doused herself in vodka before walking past the flames. So much for romance…

Ever wonder what it’s like to see time?

And not just as a clock on the wall…

The BBC has an audio clip with a synaesthete named Holly Branigan that explains just that. Unlike most patients suffering (I’m not sure it sounds like something to suffer through, frankly) from synaesthesia, Holly can see time in addition to space instead of smelling colors or feeling sounds. Her description is absolutely fascinating, if you have a moment to spare:

What is it like to see time? (BBC)

Happy 7 years of this blogging

Readers, I’ve been blogging in earnest for seven years, as of today.  Strange, I know, that it happens to fall on September 11th.  So what was I up to seven years ago?  Reading through the dead posts on my “nickblog” account on Blogger, it seems that I was:

  • excited about Dusty integrating a blog for me into the now defunct AResultofBoredom.org
  • about to be ripped off for 850 college-student dollars for a never-delivered Sony VAIO
  • questioning one of many truly stupid decisions perpetuated by my high school/college girlfriend
  • preparing to embark on a job interview at the Moxie cafe in West Halls

I can actually remembering hammering out that first post on Blogger, if you can believe it.  Just me and the 2400c/180 in my first dorm room.   I had been writing for an indeterminate amount of time using Blogger and HTML-based web pages.  (Probably back to at least 2000.) But I can’t find any of these materials, so we are going to have to call 9/11/02 the beginning.

So, happy blog-day to me.  Thanks for reading.

Random Object Generator

Installment #6:

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What is it? carved Chinese box

What’s its deal? souvenir from Beth to me following her journey across China (sometimes on camel)

Where does it live? atop of a stack of books on the ladder-style bookshelf in the living room

Any notable facts? this box is empty inside, though it seems like it would be the perfect size for something…

Gag me. Now.

The fact that Ted Nugent has a hunting cabin near my home, making him a favorite of my dad and his buddies only adds to how infuriating the existence of this event is to me:

Verizon Wireless Sponsors Anti-Energy Bill, Right Wing Event

It’s like, can Verizon make itself look any more evil?  Align itself any more with the WalMart, phone holster and buckshot crowd? Can the rally attendees be any more the stereotype of themselves?  “God gave us the right to keep and bear arms?”  Seriously?

(Thanks, NewsJunkiePost.)

Update: Ironically, this is post number 1776, according to WordPress’s numbering.