Soylent...People?
I plopped down with some buttered up popcorn and a large, fully-leaded Coca-Cola last weekend and watched The Island. I think the plot bears many Soylent Green characteristics. While The Island doesn't have a top 100 memorable line in it, it kept me entertained and I recommend anyone else who likes movies of this ilk to at least give it a look-see.
- posted by Jason @ 3:13 PM |

 
Add One More Person To The Peloton


My foray into the world of road cycling shall commence soon. I put in an order for this orange beast today at my local bike shop. Ain't she purdy?! My wife's bike will probably scoff at the mere presence of a Trek 1000 next to it in the garage, but hey, I'm just a beginner and I don't want to spend a couple grand on a bicycle until I know I really enjoy the sport!
- posted by Jason @ 5:17 PM |

 
Nope, No Recession Here
Well, a few days ago I performed my triennial hairline check. Yup, I shaved my head. I was a tad nervous since I hadn't had my hair that short in at least 3 years. But frankly, I don't think it turned out too bad for a homemade haircut. Plus, more people take the time to get out of my way in public now. In reality, I'm a gentle giant, but sometimes I enjoy taking on the badass persona and putting the fear of God into a few unknowing strangers with little more than a squint and a stare.


- posted by Jason @ 11:09 PM |

 
ROWE ROWE ROWE Yer Boat

...When Tobias needs to find people, she checks the whiteboards hanging outside their cubes, where she and her co-workers write down where they are on any given day: "In the office today." "Out of the office this afternoon, available by e-mail." The impromptu meetings are gone, but business done by cell phone is way up. Because she no longer assumes that everyone is around, Tobias makes more of an effort to catch up with her colleagues by phone or e-mail instead of just dropping by someone's office. "You can still have those conversations," she says, just not always in person. She noticed that e-mails have gotten more concise and meaningful, with much less "FYI." And as everyone started to rethink their priorities, guess what fell to the bottom of the list? "We spend a lot less time in meetings," Tobias says. They used to have a two-hour weekly staff meeting that often devolved into chit-chat. Now, if they don't need to meet, they don't.

Best Buy's new results-oriented work environment sounds great to me. I've never been a good 8 to 5er. Just tell me what to do and when it's due. Don't tell me when I have to work on it. I give much better results when I can do it on my schedule.

For more on Best Buy's experiment, read the entire article.
- posted by Jason @ 10:34 PM |

 
Flip Flops In The Whitehouse, Sans John Kerry
A small controversy has come about after Northwestern's womens lacrosse national championship team visited the Whitehouse recently. Some of the players chose flip flop sandals as their footwear for the event and drew the ire of some friends and family members.
- posted by Jason @ 4:01 PM |

 
Hondas Aren't The Only Civics
Many people in this county will fight for civil rights at the drop of a hat. However, many of the same people have long forgotten about civic responsibilities. That really rubs me the wrong way.
- posted by Jason @ 8:01 AM |

 
I'm No Cricket Expert, But I Get The Drift

Via Yomismo
- posted by Jason @ 7:18 AM |

 
A Real Battle Royale (With Cheese)
Jessica and betteratFL350 began a fiesty little exchange recently in the blogosphere. Could this bout be a cyber Hearns v. Hagler? Or will it more resemble a Tyson v. Spinx debacle? So far, I'd give Jessica the advantage. Her first post landed like a haymaker to the chin and b's feeble responses remind me more of a cheap shot from Andrew Golota.

Put me down for Jessica/Tyson, and somebody get me some popcorn.
- posted by Jason @ 9:35 PM |

 
Remember Rappin' Duke? I Sure Do.

Now I just need a turntable so I can play this bad boy.

DA HA, DA HA, DA HA HA HA HA HA!
- posted by Jason @ 10:25 AM |

 
The Master of the Fender Squier Bullet

I took in a couple more Hosty Duo performances last weekend. Man, they are so fun to watch. Mike Hosty's skills on the guitar stand alone themselves. Add in the bass pedals, kazoo, and hilarious jokes between songs, and you've got an excellent performance.

Saturday night Hosty opened for The Moaners at Auntie Mae's in Manhattan, KS. They are a decent girl rock duo out of Chapel Hill, NC. Really, they should've opened for Hosty, but maybe The Moaners got the later billing since they're on a national tour of sorts.

The Moaners' drummer impressed me by playing some guitar and drums at the same time. However, the skills of the lead singer/guitarist were so-so. She had the vocal range of Mariah Carey's pinkie, and her guitar playing was lackluster, especially following Hosty. I think she summarized her performance the best. After her first song she said, "Man, the Hosty Duo rocked. I feel like I'm playing kindergarten guitar up here." Right on, sister.
- posted by Jason @ 2:42 PM |

 
Are You Wasting Your 0.94 Hours Per Day At Work?
You'd better be, because HR managers assume that much when they come up with compensation figures for salaried employees. According to the recent salary.com survey, the average worker admits to wasting about 2.09 hours per 8 hour work day. If you prefer to daydream a bit more than that, try moving to Missouri, where the average worker wastes 3.2 hours per day. Or, switch to the insurance industry, where workers do their own thing for 2.5 hours per day. Not surprisingly, the public sector and education aren't far behind. I've worked in those areas, and I can vouch for the low motivation levels of the average employee in those sectors. Whatever you do, don't combine manufacturing (#2 on least time wasted list) and Kansas (7th most time-conserving state.) My wife has done that, and she hardly even checks her personal email at work, let alone surfs the net. I guess that's why she keeps getting promoted.
- posted by Jason @ 11:41 AM |

 
Tricksy Hobbitses
So, my wife and I were out in Lawrence a couple nights ago hanging flyers for her gig this Sunday night at the Gaslight Tavern. She and Pam had come up with a simple, black and white flyer with which to advertise their new identity, Fashionably Late; lots of straight lines; very engineer-ish. Well, we get to Papa Kenos to post one, and, lo and behold, we find this flyer already there:

Whoa mama! What the heck is this supposed to be promoting? I appreciate the Gaslight helping out with the publicity, but I don't think this picture properly portrays the kind of show that Pam and Bree typically perform. Oh well, it made us laugh, and it just might attract a few more people to the show who wouldn't have gone otherwise.
- posted by Jason @ 6:07 PM |

 
Dr. Dreidel?
I just watched Nile "The Blizzard" Greenberg become a rapper on MTV's 'Made.' Watching this Jewish kid from Minnesota learn how to freestyle was a real kick, and by the end of the show, he's not half-bad. Even his father, the writer of the song 'Funkytown', was impressed. I'm not normally an aficionado of the 'Made' series, but this episode was great. Check it out if you get the chance. You'll love it!
- posted by Jason @ 12:18 PM |

 
Now That's Some Damn Good Pi
A Japanese man recently recited pi from memory to 84,431 decimal places.

And I thought Carl Bosley was a badass 'cause he memorized the first 100 digits in 8th grade. He's got some work to do to catch up with this guy!
- posted by Jason @ 11:57 AM |

 
To See Or Not To See

Open wheel racing's newest sensation, Danica Patrick, will be down the street from my house this weekend for some IRL racing at the Kansas Speedway. I'd like to see her, and maybe even her team co-owner David Letterman, in person, but I'm sure there are vast throngs of other people with the same thoughts. So, the line for autographs and pictures will probably be horrendous. We'll see how adventurous I feel later today.
- posted by Jason @ 8:56 AM |