Felicia Freakin' Day

There is a young actress by the name of Felicia Day who you may or may not have heard of. She found her way into my life and that of my wife by means of a quirky show called The Guild. She, for lack of more radiant words, exudes awesome. If you have not had the pleasure of watching The Guild, make time to do so, as you will be handsomely rewarded.

Jerry (Tycho) over at Penny-Arcade has previously expressed his similar sentiments about Felicia and was rewarded.

My only regret is that I was not there to witness such a momentous event. The fact that I missed one of my heroes slowly and meticulously brushing the tresses of one such as Felicia Day, keeps me up at night weeping bitter...bitter tears.

But if you're satisfied by "da veedeeohs" then you will enjoy this.



Having Mike (Gabe), Jerry (Tycho), and Felicia all in the same video is beyond words. The only thing that would have made this better is if Jerry had broken out into song, Mike had started berating a radio talk show host, and Felicia had started crying hysterically.

Perhaps my reference is a bit too insider, but it stands just the same.

Oh fine...but remember, you forced me to do this.



I can't help you with the other two references, you'll have to figure those out for yourself.

Dog days of Summer

Oh man, look at that face. 'Tis priceless, wrinkly, adorableness. My darling, beloved husband has always loved bulldogs. Still does. I never gave them much thought. But now I just love 'em.

Much thought & research has gone into dog breed compatibility by the two of us. Don't think we'd actually ever get one, 'cause of the health problems their breed is prone to.

Bulldogs have great personalities, so I'd love to borrow one just to play with.

Scrabble

I love Scrabble. Mostly because I think I'm pretty good at it. I'm not going to go compete in any tournaments or anything, but give me the opportunity and I'll rock your socks off. I came upon an article on Mental Floss about 10 words that will help you win. I thought I'd share it in case you were a Scrabbler like me. If you're too lazy to click the link, here are the words:

1. Aa. And I don’t mean the acronym for Alcoholics Anonymous, either. Aa is “basaltic lava having a rough surface.”
2. Qat – a flowering plant native to East Africa and the Arabian peninsula.
3. Zax – a slater or slate mason, or the tool used to cut and punch nail holes in roofing slate.
4. Cwm – a valley, especially one created by glacial movement. Be warned: this one won’t get you many points, but it is good for using up pesky, low-score consonants taking up valuable space on your rack.
5. Xu – Vietnamese money
6. Qua – as or as being, or in the character of.
7. Suq – a market, or part of a market, in an Arab city.
8. Adz – an axe-like tool.
9. Jo – sweetheart or dear
10. Qadi – a judge in the Muslim community.

Scrabble is big, in case you don't know. It's all over the place and you don't even see it. My wife and I watched a documentary about it a while back. Here's a trailer:



We actually enjoyed the documentary which was kind of weird since the most interesting character is a balding nerd who has gastro-intestinal problems.

I also found this one panel comic, which isn't specifically about Scrabble, yet still manages to bring it up.


Just to bring our video quota up another notch for this post, I came upon this video on "The Youtube" which is just hilarious if you have ever played the game and understand the kind of emotions that course through you while playing.



If you have never played Scrabble, or haven't played in a long time, you owe it to yourself to play. Go out, get one, and get Scrabblin'.

Guyland...

I've noticed in recent times that it takes boys a long long time to become men. I don't believe it was always like this, because the process usually involved a job and a wife, but now the latter and sometimes the former are being put off for years and years. There is now what we call, "Guys" all over the place. Not boys, not men, but a whole lot of ridiculousness. I found this article that goes into the details of this phenomenon. It makes mention of a number of reasons, but here's one:

Once the preserve of whacked-out teens and college slackers, this testosterone-filled landscape is the new normal for American males until what used to be considered creeping middle age, according to the sociologist Michael Kimmel. In his new book, "Guyland," the State University of New York at Stony Brook professor notes that the traditional markers of manhood—leaving home, getting an education, finding a partner, starting work and becoming a father—have moved downfield as the passage from adolescence to adulthood has evolved from "a transitional moment to a whole new stage of life." In 1960, almost 70 percent of men had reached these milestones by the age of 30. Today, less than a third of males that age can say the same.

It also doesn't help that society is perpetuating the idea that it's okay to take your time to grow up. Go to college, get laid, have a few brewskies, don't worry about growing up, have fun first. This whole concept really bothers me.

Hollywood has not helped this either. They are constantly portraying men in this way. Here are a few examples.







When they have Matthew McConaughey behaving like a 12 year old, things have got to change.

Tiger Dog!

The Shiba Inu is a Japanese dog which appeals to me greatly for many reasons. It's a beautiful dog which is quick, nimble, loyal, and an all around goofy kind of dog. I picked up a trio of videos to show off different aspects of the dog.

This first video is a nice well put together Japanese video about the dog and I like also that it gives a little bit of info about Japan if you watch closely enough.



This next video shows just how fastidious these animals are. This REALLY appeals to me. I don't think I could handle any dog that wasn't clean at least to a certain degree, but according to Wikipedia...

The Shiba is a fastidious breed and feels the need to maintain themselves in a clean state. They can often be seen licking their paws and legs much like a cat. They generally go out of their way to keep their coats clean, and while walking will avoid stepping in puddles, mud and dirt. Because of their fastidious nature, the Shiba puppy is easy to housebreak and in many cases will housebreak themselves. Having their owner simply place them outside after meal times and naps is generally enough to teach the Shiba the appropriate method of toileting.

This is so awesome it makes me want to go out and buy one right now. Check out this video if you think they're exaggerating.



The puppy is barking at it's own poo. Now THAT is fastidious.

This next video demonstrates what's called the Shiba Scream. It's not QUITE the distinct scream, but more often then not, a Shiba will scream or howl rather than bark.



I know you want one.

The Haunted Mansion

I am a huge, and I mean HUGE Disneyland fan. I've been there a number of times since my youth and it never seems to lose it's luster. My wife and I even went there for our honeymoon and it was a blast. I love just about everything about Disneyland, but if I had to choose my favorite attraction, it would be the Haunted Mansion, I'm just a Haunted Mansion nut. I even have a framed print of the original ride poster hanging on my bedroom wall.

I found a couple of videos from the now distant past featuring Kurt Russel when he was still a Disney kid, talking about the creation of the Haunted Mansion, and there's even a really well lit ride through. Check them out.






These videos are great for several reasons, but mostly because they feature my beloved Haunted Mansion. If you too are a Haunted Mansion fanatic like I am, you can find a wealth of information over at DoomBuggies. Those guys have collected the absolute most information you'll find about the mansion on the web. Give it a peek.

I'll leave you with a little audio snippet from the Mansion. Enjoy.

Oh those crazy Japanese...

I love Japan. No, I'm not "part" Japanese. Japan and it's people and culture just appeals to me on many different levels. I am constantly intrigued by their many customs and interesting forms of entertainment, but I stumbled upon a video that demonstrates a facet of their culture which boggles the mind.



Wow. Just...wow. Now, I've been in this kind of situation before. The last Comic-Con I went to there was a giveaway of some G.I. Joe posters and a few other things, and me being the connoisseur of swag that I am, I knew I had to have them. Thus, I piled in with the rest of the nerds. My wife was watching from a safe distance and told me it looked like I was consumed by a hideous flesh monster. I have never been so close to so many people before in my entire life, I felt I knew them all on a level that their own mothers even didn't.

This though, yeesh. Although, I must admit, being crammed together with geishas, sumos, samurais, ninja, and Japanese schoolgirls appeals to me on a very strange and demented level. Pardon my sterotypes.

The Japanese also will be a frequently featured topic on this blog. Be forewarned.