Readers Go Ape Over New Portrait Book

Jill Greenberg, famous for her portraits of humans, also knows what to do with a monkey pic and a trusty copy of Photoshop. Monkey Portraits consists of studio shots of monkey-celebs. Great coffee table book. [Link]



[Photos by Jill Greenberg]

Vista Mayhem?

Here's a cartoon that'll assist you with your Vista purchase. [Link]

SF Chronicle Complaint Line

I'm wondering if this irate caller to the San Francisco Chronicle is something of an unmanned aircraft himself, if you know what I mean. [Audio]

Correct me if I'm Wrong is a new Podcast being offered by the San Francisco Chronicle highlighting (or should I say lowlighting) the readers who call in to complain about mistakes in their paper.

Elderly Woman Beats Mountain Lion Into Submission

Nell Hamm is a strong woman. While hiking in Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park in California, a mountain lion pounced, attacking her husband, and had his head locked in his ferocious jaws. After beating the lion repeatedly with a 4-inch wide log, the lion released his death grip, and stared at the 65-year-old woman. She screamed and waved the log until the animal finally walked away.

"You messed with the wrong grandma!"

LINK

Man's Life sold for $5800 and change

A man's life Sold! on eBay. This completed auction included:

A New Life in the coastal town of Wollongong, Australia of a 24-year-old male.
Ownership of seller's
- Name
- Phone number
- All seller's possessions which included the following:

- Clothes,
- Roughly 300 CDs
- Surfboard
- Laptop (minus certain information with my discretion),
- Pushbike (Has wonky handlebars, may need some work)
- Books,
- Bed
- CD player
- Backpack
- Tennis racquets
- Golf Clubs(which you will have no idea how to use)
- Childhood photos
- Skateboard
- Nice lamp which his ex-girlfriend bought him.

- Seller to teach his skills which include the following

- Surfing (Expert)
- Climbing (Intermediate)
- Skateboarding (Novice)
- Handstand Skills (Expert)
- Fire Twirling Skills (Intermediate)
- Devil Stick Twirling (Expert)
(Plus many more)

###
The winner also received extras including

- A 4-week training course by the former me which includes the following:
- Many anecdotes and stories from a very interesting and intriguing past 24 years of my life
- 6 Jokes
- Haircut like seller's
- Piercings to the value of $180.

Plus 2 months of on-call support. Winning bidder also inherits 2 nemeses. I would want to know if the jokes were any good, first.

LINK

We literally caught him with his pants down

"Police said they caught a 16-year-old robbery suspect who had eluded authorities on several previous occasions when his baggy pants fell down, causing him to stumble as officers chased him." I guess that once they got him back to the police station, he was at least able to make a fashion statement.

Death to the suit?

I don't wear suits, either, Mark Cuban.

"If you are a CEO , are there not better things your employees could spend money on than multiple suits, ties, dress shirts, dress shoes, dress socks, dry cleaning, and all the other associated costs? Gee, no suits would be the same as giving your employees a tax free raise. Think that might make them happy? Or do employees consider having to spend money on suits a perk?"

[LINK]

Ford hit by record $12.7bn loss

Newsflash! Consumers want fewer gas guzzlers, and finally, in 2007, after it's largest loss in its 103-year history, Ford says it gets the message.

Ford had previously put much weight on sales of pick-up trucks and SUVs, or sport utility vehicles, to generate profits.

But a peak in the price of oil last year, which pushed US petrol prices up to $3 a gallon, saw customers abandon gas-guzzling vehicles in favour of smaller, more fuel-efficient cars.

Mr Mulally said Ford planned to "operate profitably at lower volumes and with a product mix that better reflects consumer demand for smaller, more fuel efficient vehicles".

Living in Texas, though, I'm not sure people here have gotten the message. Big dumb trucks here everywhere you look. Sometimes companies need to be brave and lead the way down the right path, even if consumers are slow to follow at first. Years later, once consumers catch up, companies such as Toyota, Google, and Whole Foods market are years ahead of competitors because they made the right choices early on. Ford? Not so much.

Unions play a part in this as well. It's no longer just "big evil company vs. poor opressed worker class." The reality is companies are not evil, especially the ones putting your kids through college, and American companies don't live in a vacuum. They have to compete with companies like Toyota, whose American-based non-union workers get paid equally, are more satisfied, and have better job security thanks to Toyota's superior marketing strategies.

Toyota workers in the Georgetown plant reportedly earn about $24 an hour, which is slightly less than UAW-represented employees make, but Truth Finders, an anti-union group at the plant, points out that workers are provided 24-hour day care, an on-site discount pharmacy and a credit union, along with other perks like parties for perfect attendance that feature big-name talent like Jay Leno.

Additionally, the old adage that unionized workers make more money than their nonunion peers is less true now than it used to be. According to the UAW, in 1990 unionized autoworkers earned 85 percent more per week than nonunion workers. By 1999, the premium had fallen to 59 percent. In the Midwest and South regions, where auto industry employment is concentrated, inflation-adjusted earnings rose 8 percent and 14 percent, respectively, for union workers; for nonunion work-ers, they jumped 23 percent and 27 percent, respectively. Link

Scottie tails - Date With Barney?

I know this dog really wants to talk but is frustrated because he doesn't speak English, and his owner doesn't speak doggie.



Cute little White Scottish Terrier too.

Hey Robot! Grab me a beer while you're in there!

Here it is folks - the robot servant. Now if only we could teach it to close the refrigerator door when it's done. Maybe it could also be trained to close the toilet lid and pick up the damn clothes off the floor!

Alexandra Pelosi's Good Intentions

OK - after reading this I have to feel some remorse for Alexandra Pelosi, daughter of Nancy, whose documentary "Friends of God" airs on HBO January 25. She chose the "former" Reverend Ted Haggard to be her leading man. Imagine, you're just about to wrap up filming of your new docudrama, you flip on the TV, and there's your guy, splashed all over the news, admitting to drug abuse and having sex with a male prostitute.

"I chose the wrong leading man" quips Pelosi. Unfortunately, Jesus was not available.

"I believe in the culture war," Pelosi continues. "And you know what? If I have to take a side in the culture war I'll take their side," meaning the Christian conservatives. "Because if you give me the choice of Paris Hilton or Jesus, I'll take Jesus."

After much editing and de-emphasizing of Haggard, viewers will get to see only what's left of her film. And if what's left is just Jerry Falwell and Joel Osteen, I'd hazard a guess that this'll be another missed-the-mark film like "Jesus People." But I'll reserve judgement until the film maks its way to Netflix.

Climate Survey Debate is not over

I rented "An Inconvenient Truth" because I wanted to understand more about the debate over global warming, which I have later learned is also commonly referred to as climate change.


The movie, however, states emphatically that there is not even a debate. The debate is over. But what do scientists and environmental professionals say? In a Global Climate Change Survey conducted by The National Registry of Environmental Professionals, I think you'll find that the results don't suggest that there is no longer a debate. Maybe in the mind of Al Gore, however, Gore (I like to point out) was also the winner of "the most classless election loser" award in history, and still believes he won the election of 2000. Imagine if all the Republican losers in 2006 behaved like Al Gore did... we may still be counting votes and not getting anything done.

I hate to bring Gore's politics into a post about Global Climate Change, but that's what Gore himself was compelled to do in his movie. One moment we're talking about environmental issues, and the next we're talking about the race of 2000 and how he still disagrees with the Supreme Court. Maybe we should let them decide the debate on climate change as well, although I'd rather let the scientists have that one.

Still, I found the DVD worth my time, as it spells out in layman's terms at least part of the debate, and is thought provoking.

Hockey Coach Was Illiterate

An amazing story if you haven't heard it... Stanley Cup winning coach Jacques Demers could not even read the lineup cards with his players names listed, or a menu in a restaurant. It was a secret he kept to himself for as many years as he could, although he did finally admit to his wife that the reason he was not paying the bills promptly was because he could not read them!

Finally, after becoming GM of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Demers realized for the good of the team he needed to come clean. Being GM meant lots of paperwork, and his only option was to hire assistants to cover for his disability.

Fortunately, 2 years after coming clean before a shocked hockey world, he has now gotten help and is well on his way to overcoming his biggest obstacle in life.

Science Myths Debunked

True or false?

Water drains backwards in the Southern Hemisphere due to the Earth's rotation

A falling cat will always land on its feet

A penny dropped from the top of a tall building could kill a pedestrian

You probably know these already. Or do you? Link

Don't fret - just play your bass!

OK - as a guy who plays both fretless and fretted bases - I know it can be hard sometimes to decide which one to play. Here's a guy, Jonas Hellborg, who thumbs his nose at indecision, as he thumbs his bass.

Gettin' Piggy With It

Seriously - being a vegetarian is awesome, and even more so after reading articles like this one. My wife and I have been vegetarians for a few years now and it's amazingly easy to do.

Here's one tax audit that won't take long

"A jury ruled Thursday that Ed Brown and his wife, Elaine, plotted to hide their income and avoid taxes on Elaine Brown's income of $1.9 million between 1996 and 2003."

If only I had known that I didn't have to pay!

The Mighty Duck

Here's one mighty duck who had a bit of a surprise in store for his captor. Sources say he remained cool throughout the ordeal.