November 30, 2003
Making the rounds...
I got a mention over at FamousJames.com
It's not quite an Instalaunch. It's better. The Instadude probably has no idea who Keel is.
Permalink | Comments (1)November 29, 2003
Curt Schilling - Red Sox
I don't blog a whole lot about the Red Sox too frequently because it is done so much better at those links on the left. Howver, this is too cool to not blog. Not only is Schilling now a Red Sox, he popped into a Red Sox chatroom to mingle with the fans.
He is well on his way to being the most popular guy in Boston.
Pedro
Schilling
Lowe
Wakefield
Kim
That is one hell of a starting rotation.
Permalink | Comments (1)Book Review: Fargo Rock City
This is the book for anyone and everyone who grew up in the 80's listening to bands like Motley Crue, Dokken, Metallica, Tesla, etc. It's part memoir of growing up a metalhead teenager in small midwestern town, part analysis of what (if anything) that music meant, and what legacy it might have. If you are in the target group, you will see yourself at least once in this book.
Chapter 1 is 15 pages on how Shout At The Devil was a defining moment in the author's life.
Also included is:
- The Def Leppard are they metal or not argument. (NOT!)
- Power ballads, good or bad? (It depends..)
- How Nirvana killed hair metal.
- Did all these guys really worship Satan? (mostly no)
- The difference between hard rock and metal. (Your girlfriend would occasionally like a hard rock band, she would never like metal)
- How Poison sold millions of records even though every metalhead in America swore they sucked.
- The relatively short list of non-metal groups / songs that were still cool.
You get the idea. This is a serious timewarp back to your childhood if you are about my age. And yes, I have listened to a boatload of hair metal since I finished this book on Friday.
How could I not?
Permalink | Comments (1)Homeschool Funnies
Hat Tip: Izzy Permalink | Comments (0)
November 28, 2003
We don't need no stinking toilet paper
Introducing The Washlet. The revolutionary toilet with the hygenic wand with the will make toilet paper obsolete. And if they ever make that wand vibrate, it might make husbands obsolete too.
Did I really just say that?
Hat tip, my wife. She assures me she isn't looking to replace our toilet, or me!
Permalink | Comments (0)November 25, 2003
Disturbing Comments in today's email
I'm not sure which is more disturbing, the fact that the commenter below was searching on Marshmellow Fluff and ended up here, or the fact that said commenter thinks Chris "the actor" O'Donnell is posting on the Internet about Marshmellow Fluff.
I am doing a presentaton on Marshmellow Fluff. I searched for Marshmellow Fluff and I got this site out of one of the searches. I thought you were good in Batman and Robin so keep it up. By the by, I'm going to tell my class you do not enjoy Marshmellow Fluf...but it's cool man, I don't know that I'm super fond of it either..... Posted by Chris at November 25, 2003 12:10 PM
Or this one...in response to a two year old post about some loony web site that claims the military is plotting to take over the country, and in preperation are planting secret messages in common road signs and in WalMarts.
Although this topic maybe a couple of years old, I stumbled upon the Free Indeed Research website a few days ago. The aesthetics and layout of the site are very unpleasing, but I looked it over anyway. I thought this mans rantings to be at the height of insanity, until I looked for myself. An associate and I decided it would be good for a laugh to locate and follow the tactical markers. What we noticed was amazing. Never once were we lead to a dead-end. When followed, the tacmars led to schools, dry-storage facilties, airfields, hospitals, and most importantly, a Wal*Mart. I must admit that I already am an opponent of Wal*Mart, as they are draining the economies of many a small town in middle America, but we did notice something different in this particular Wal*Mart. The signs in the aisles had arrows on them...Needless arrows that I've never seen in other Wal*Marts. This was mentioned on the website, and there they were, arbitrary arrows pointing us to seemingly nowhere. After doing some research on the "secret" detention centers in the US that we've heard John Ashcroft speak of, along with the railroad projects in conjunction with these internment camps, I have come to realize something. This is all too real. We are on the verge of something very important, and annyone who chooses to ridicule it is incapable of rational human thought. I laughed at first, but it was intriguing, so I looked into it. Having a functional brain, I was forced to admit that I had been wrong. The signs are all there, quite literally. - Dr. Detlev Bronck Posted by Detlev Bronck at November 25, 2003 01:17 AM
And yet, yet another person that thinks I have personal contact info for Ozzy Osbourne.
Permalink | Comments (0)November 24, 2003
Bling Bling
Because it's never to early to infuse the gangsta rap culture in your child.
Permalink | Comments (2)November 20, 2003
Chow Time
This should be a remaindered link or something similar. Except that ODonnellWeb 9.0, now with remaindered links! is still in phase 0. In other words, I haven't thought about it yet. So it goes into the main blog. Deal with it.
Permalink | Comments (3)Proof that I am smarter than just about everybody else
Not that any of my regular readers would ever doubt this fact ;)
This is a picture of the final scoreboard from Who Wants To Be A Millionaire at Disney MGM Studios. There were 625 people in the studio playing. Scoring is a little different in that speed matters. The faster you answer the more points you get.
Look close - see seat 206 in 10th place?
That was me.
Permalink | Comments (4)Opus returns on Sunday
Opus will be gracing 1/2 of the front page of the comics on Sunday in about 150 papers nationwide. Here is an entertaining interview with Berke Breathed to hold you over until Sunday. (Salon link - may have to do the Salon day pass thing to read)
Note: If you have to ask "Who is Opus?" you are forever banned from this website. Go away. Now.
Permalink | Comments (0)From the back of my property tax bill...
Estimated Expenditures
School Operating....................$171,059,126..........63%
School Capital Projects............$37,644,885............14%
Public Safety...........................$21,058,812............8%
Nothing else exceeds 4% of the budget
There were 14,203 students in the county public schools in 2002. Lets assume a 5% increase as we are a fast growing county. We have approximately 14,913 students in 2003 then.
Doing the math with the operating budget, we get $11,470 per student.
I doubt we spend $1000 per year to educate both of our kids, and they are getting a far better education.
The school system is not short on funds.
Permalink | Comments (2)November 19, 2003
Tigger hit on my wife
Our last evening at Disney we had dinner at The Crystal Palace in The Magic Kingdom. It is a buffett with the Pooh characters roaming the area for pictures, etc. Michelle mentioned that while standing in a line she felt an arm around her and a poke in the ribs. It was Tigger.
Fast forward about 45 minutes. Tigger is making his rounds to the tables, hamming it up with the kids, etc. When he gets to our table, he initially skips the kids and heads straight for Michelle and wraps his big ole polyester paws around her for a hug. And that is when it hit me.
Tigger is hitting on my wife!
Luckily his job required him to mingle with the kids, so he mingled and then was on his way to the next table. Since this was happening at the end of the meal we were on our way too.
Who knows what would have happened if he had more oppportunity to work his Tigger magic on my wife. How can I, a mere mortal man, compete with a Tigger? He's orange, with stripes, and a tail. I can probably get orange by overusing a cheap self tanning lotion, but the black strips and tail are problematic. Further, he's Tigger! He's bouncy. I'm not bouncy. I can't be bouncy no matter how hard I try. Only Tiggers can be bouncy.
I have no hard feeling though. I mean really, how could I be mad at Tigger?
Tigger rules!
Permalink | Comments (2)November 17, 2003
Disney: A Review of the other parks
Epcot
Epcot has evolved or devolved (depending on your POV) into being mostly about the World Marketplace, the collection of movie set like facades from various countries around the world. It's the most adult of the parks, with activity being centered mostly on eating, drinking, and shopping with a handful of "attractions." The History of Communications ride through the golf ball is still mostly lame, Test Track, the new thrill ride, is only thrilling if you are under 10. It's quite tame for the rest of us. Mission:Space sounds cool, I didn't ride it because I have a history of vomiting on rides that screw with your equilibrium.
MGM Studios
MGM may be the most fun park for adults. Space Tours is a simulation ride that put you in the Star Wars universe. It was Breck's 3rd favorite ride of the week. The Indiana Jones and Little Mermaid shows are truly spectacular and not to be missed. I passed on The Rock and Roll Coaster and Tower of Terror because I'm not a heights and speed guy.
Animal Kingdom
Animal Kingdom is unbelievable. Disney has re-created the Serenghetti Plains, in central Florida. Giraffes, elephants, gazelles and other natives of the Africa roam apparently freely throughout the park. We stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge and could often see these animals roaming outside our hotel window. The safari tour takes you out in Range Rovers for a 20 minute drive through the plain and some up close looks and the animals. The Its's Tough To be a Bug 3-D show is incredible and has some very well done bio feedback stuff in the seats that I won't ruin for future visitors by disclosing here. The Dinosaur thrill ride is entertaining, although again calling it a thrill ride is a stretch.
From the Comments
A new comment has been posted on your blog O'DonnellWeb, on entry #665 (I am way cooler than Batman).http://www.odonnellweb.com/mtarchives/000665.html
IP Address: 68.224.206.166
Name: Ariana
Email Address: starfire181275@netscape.net
URL:Comments:
I really think ur cute, and I melt when i see u on the movie screen. And ur right, Batman stinks compared to Robin! U have super cool moves and a great body ( embarrassed) A fan forever,
Ariana
from Rhode
Island
My wife would agree. I do have a great body :)
Permalink | Comments (0)November 16, 2003
Disney: A review of The Magic Kingdom
We spent 2 days in the Magic Kingdom, one day each at Animal Kingdom, Epcot, and MGM, and a few hours at Downtown Disney and DisnetQuest. The longest we waited in any line was about 30 minutes, and we only did that once. Beyond that, I don't think we were ever in line for more than 15 minutes.
The Magic Kingdom is, of course, the original Disney World park. However, parts of it feel very dated. Tomorrowland, home of Space Mountain, really looks like a bad parody of The Jetsons. The Tomorrowland Transit Authority, those slow moving people movers that run above ground throughout Tomorrowland, really need to go. The commentary about the transit of the future is just laughable. Also, the Tomorrowland Speedway is out of place. On one hand, you have Disney touting its eco-friendliness at every opportunity, particularly in the Animal Kingdom and Epcot. On the other hand, you have the kiddie-Indy cars which are powered by gasoline engines that I think are just hyped up lawn mower engines. They are loud, smelly, and to a generation of kids growing up on virtual racing games, probably somewhat outdated. It might be time to find a better use for that real estate. The new Buzz Lightyear ride in Tomorrowland is a big hit with the under 10 year old crowd.
Other classic attractions hold up well. The Haunted Mansion is still a blast. I wonder if I enjoyed it more because I've read Down & Out in the Magic Kingdom? The Pirates of the Caribbean is still fun, and although they may have PC'ed it up a bit, they missed a bunch of stuff too. Yes, we did It's a Small World, and it is still a damn annoying way to spend 5 minutes. The Tiki Birds have been updated and are quite funny, and the Hall Of Presidents has added George W Bush. I have always thought the animotronic Presidents were very cool.
Disney has added an awesome 3D show based on classic Disney tunes called Mickey's PhillHarMagic. It is a must see event when you are there.
With a real Animal Kingdom down the road, The Jungle Cruise seems particularly pointless. The only redeeming value is the constant witty banter from your river guide. It's almost like they know they are the whole show for that ride.
The Frontierland Shooting Gallery is still there, which was a surprise. I would have thought the anti-gun crowd would have gotten that removed years ago.
The characters are a bigger part of the park than I remember. They have designated places to appear and kids form long lines to get autographs and pictures. Getting autographs from the characters is a huge deal, every kid there had an autograph book and pen handy at all times. The character meals are a better place to get up close with the characters. More on that in my "low stress" post later this week.
Maybe I'm just a jaded adult, but the park just feels too commercial these days. Maybe it was that way 25 years ago and I just didn't see it because I was a kid and it was all about the magic. Most of the major rides empty out through an associated gift shop. As you try to leave the park, Main Street USA is clogged with vendors selling balloons, light sticks, and anything else they can think of to take a few more dollars out of your pocket. All the thrill rides take your picture on the big drop or other scary part and have them available for sale as you leave the ride. $12.95 for a 5 x 7 printout of a digital photograph. Are they smoking crack? The cost of the Disney experience in general is way out of hand.
Don't get me wrong. I had a great time. The kids proclaimed it "our best vacation ever." And that is what is really all about. Maybe I'm just bummed out that as an adult, some of the Disney magic is gone, and now I see it for what it really is. Commercialism done at a level few organizations will ever match. As a "selling machine" The Magic Kingdom is just about perfect.
Permalink | Comments (0)Back Home
We made it home, 13 hours and 45 minutes after we left. That works out to an average speed of 60.36 mph for the trip home. I averaged 65 mph on the way to Disney. 14 hours behind the wheel gave me ample time to mentally outline a few Disney related posts. Watch this space in the coming days for...
- A review of the parks
- Chris' hints for a stress free Disney vacation
- Things adults should never do at Disney World
- Proof that I really am smarter than just about everybody else
- Tigger hit on my wife
- If your kids are screaming maybe they are trying to tell you something
- The cult of Disney
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November 14, 2003
Disney'ed Out
We head back home tomorrow after 6 days in the Magic Kingdom, an environment perfectly created and managed to seperate money from parents. We've had a great time and I'll have stories and pictures to post next week. Right now though, I don't want to see another theme park for a very long time.
Permalink | Comments (0)November 07, 2003
On Assignment...
Superhero duties are going to require me to go underground for the next week. Unfortunately the mission will not involve covert operations with Jennifer Garner. I may pop in and blog something but don't count on it.
Be back next week - same bat time, same bat channel.
Permalink | Comments (0)I had no idea...
For many New Englanders, Fredericksburg Virginia is the halfway point of an annual winter pilgrimage to sunny Florida... likewise for southerners in their summer exodus north. Fredericksburg's exit 130 has the unique distinction of offering more travel - related services than any other exit on I-95 from Maine to Florida, and that makes it a great overnite stop
That is my exit. I had no idea...
Permalink | Comments (0)November 05, 2003
Xanadu is back?
Xanadu has a fan club? A Broadway musical in the works? What are these people smoking? I like Xanadu as much as any red blooded American boy who was just hitting puberty around 1980. But I like it in a "Gawd, was Olivia Newton John hot..." sort of way that causes me to stop and watch when I see it on TBS.
I certainly never considered an Olivia Newton John tatoo.
Permalink | Comments (0)November 04, 2003
Kim Du Toit on "Real Men"
I agree with a lot of this, certainly with the overall premise that the Western male is an endangered species. The one place where I think he is way off base is blaming the civilizing influence of women on men. Women civilizing us is a good thing.(Read his essay - its too long to excerpt here)
We need women. Most of us spend our lives prior to meeting our wives stumbling from one stupid mistake to another. Whether it is bad choices with girlfriends, what we choose to consume (both legal and illegal), how we spend our money, our careers, etc. Most guys make really shitty choices when they are young and single. And when we get older and wiser we look back and wonder how we didn't end up a felon, dead, or worse.
The delimiting point seems to be meeting the one you will marry. Suddenly, shit matters. Somewhere between saying "I do" and hearing her say "I'm expecting" we get responsible. It happens to almost all of us. Granted, some men bail at that point, but we aren't talking about them because they are not Real Men." A Real Man would never bail on a women in need, especially his wife. They are fucking losers not worthy of our time. Actually, given how screwed up most of us are before we get married, its a wonder our wives ever agreed to marry us in the first place. They must see the potential that will come out later, long before we have a clue it is there, lurking in our DNA waiting for the stimulus to activate.
That stimulus is the woman that we love. I wouldn't want to live in a world without that change, it would be a jungle. Scientists go on a lot about the similarity between man and monkey, with us sharing about 97% of our DNA. I think that 3 % difference is summed up in the fact that when men get married we quit flinging our feces around, the monkeys never quit.
And that my friends, is a good thing.
Permalink | Comments (2)November 02, 2003
Operation PS2 Successful
My Playstation 2 started making funny noises over the weekend. Kind of a grinding sound when it was loading a game. It stopped loading games today. Weirdly, it still played audio CD's and DVD movies just fine. My son was not happy.
I bought a cleaning disc. Games worked for about 5 minutes and then it froze up again. I cleaned it again, no improvement. The game geek at Toys R Us told me that the average lifespan of a first gen PS2 is about 2 -3 years. Mine is 3 years old. He also said that if it was still loading movies there was a chance that cleaning it would help. It didn't.
At this point, I had nothing to lose, so I opened it up. I cleaned out the dust bunnies with compressed air, then cleaned the laser eye with alcohol, and also cleaned the rails that the laser moves on. They were gunked up with something.The spindle that holds the spinning CD also seemed to be oily. Hand oil transferred from the discs over the years I guess. I also adjusted the angle of the laser under the theory that eyes go bad with time and need to get closer to see without magnification.
It seems to have worked. My son reports that everything is functioning normally.
Permalink | Comments (0)Obligatory Halloween Photo
In case you can't figure it out...it's General Grant and a horse. But she is not General Grant's horse, she was very clear about that!
Permalink | Comments (3)November 01, 2003
An old Elizabeth Smart comment
I got this comment today on an old post from back when Elizabeth Smart was found
This girl had more opportunities to run than any other kidnapped victim in history. Look at Erica Pratt, the young lady chewed through duct tape! Elizabeth Smart didn't run, didn't cry out, didn't even try because she didn't want to escape. She ran away. Plain and simple. Her mother and father are now raking in millions and I believe it was Elizabeth Smart herself who wanted to play the role of herself in her upcoming movie. When she was rejected, she was quoted as saying "why don't they want me?" Dig further, you will find the truth. This was the biggest scam ever pulled off by a mormon family yet to date.
Curiosity got the best of me so I goggled the author and found her on a few sites discussing the case. The official story has never sounded believable to me.
1. She never tried to escape, and from what they have told us on the news, it seems like she had ample opportunity.
2. The official explanation for the above is the she was totally brainwashed. That by itself is plausible, but how did she go from not knowing her name to hugging her family in about 120 minutes? If she was that brainwashed it doesn't seem reasonable that was on her way back to normal in 2 hours.
3. She had obviously gained weight during her absence, yet we are told she was living the life of a homeless gypsy. That doesn't pass the smell test either.
I don't know, but I think there a few very hairy skeletons in the Smart case, and they will probably come out of that closet sooner or later.
Permalink | Comments (1)