Daddy Has a Brand New Blog.

click on the pic.

Low California Video.

Howdy folks.

The latest Low video is up on the web! I uploaded it to PDD since the link on the Low sight was SLLOOWWW. Anyway it's a pretty straight interpretation of the song "California" and it seems like they spent some money having it made.


Low's California | 8.3mb | WMV

I Hate You Too

Well actually I hate U2...

Whenever their newest hit, vertigo, comes on I can only think of one thing - the supremes.

Go ahead sing the following to it:

Set me free why doncha babe
Let me be why doncha babe
Cuz you don't really love me, you just keep me hangin' on
Now you don't really want me, you just keep me hangin' on

Product 1, Process 0

All respect to Barrett's manifesto, but we here at Gonzo Headquarters like process as much as we like product. To wit:

destandardizelanguage.blogspot.com
streamofvulgarityblog.blogspot.com

The Product

   

So as Starfire mentioned, tomorrow would be the two-year anniversary of my blog, so I've pulled my archives, revamped everything, and renamed it The Product.

The new site will be part blog/part vlog/part springer spaniel, and there is no reason why I shouldn't just release the damn thing right now.

So here it is. Expect more video and some comics in the next few days. Let me know what you think of this decision of mine, and let me know if anything on the site is broken.

Thank you and may God have mercy on your souls.

On the subject of gnomes...

Since we're bringing up things of the gnomish persuasion, I thought I'd share a glimpse of Igor.

Igor lives on the windowsill in my kitchen, and scares away any nefarious pigeons that land outside who try to spook my cat. (The cat is easily spooked.) Some are amazed that Igor himself doesn't spook my cat, given his slightly creepy posture and penetrating black eyes. But I find that Igor reminds me of that guy on the Simpsons who says "yeeeeeeeeees?" And thus, I am not afraid of sweet Igor. He is to be trusted.

what I do with my day off

because I love you all and want to haunt you always

In a freak psychic-computing accident, I've gone through a transmogrification. Part of me now exsists entirely online. Ebaci is the result of arcane research and experinmentation with an old commodore pet, jungian alchemical manuscripts, and this odd thing I bought at an estate sale.

I know, I know, you're all worried about my saftey. Well, rest assured, I've never felt better...kind of like a newly empty cup or a chalkboard which has just been wiped clean.

so here's the result...you can now visit with my online simulacra.

BTW please read the works of Jean Baudrillard for a further understanding of simulacra.

you can even chat with me(it) 24/7 on AIM.

welcome to the future.

The Product!

In case you haven't noticed BarrettChase.com is undergoing some changes. He has pulled down his Blog and replaced it with his manifesto. More changes will start popping up as soon as tomorrow, stay tuned.

---

While surfing around tonight I found a new Blog called Fontleech. They post links to free fonts so I downloaded a couple and made some headers for Barrett's new project. Feel free to use em Barrett.

Who else is qualified to carry the Pulp Fiction "Bad Mother Fucker" Wallet?

One of the minor plot points of the movie Pulp Fiction, is that the wallet carried by Jules Winnfield is adorned with three powerful words... Bad. Motha. Fucka.
When Jules first mentions this to the Tim Roth character, he seems to think it's a joke. When prompted, he finds the wallet, and seems a bit bemused by the fact that this man, THIS MAN, carries with him something that looks like an eighth grade summer camp project... Then he remembers the gun pointed at his balls.
So who else is qualified to carry the Bad Mother Fucker Wallet? Here's a list of 100.

Ask the Fruitcake Lady

For the first time in my life I've chosen a personal hero. I was never that into sports growing up, movie stars, or specific musicians. Especially none that I thought were worthy of being in a special position to me. But this star of Jay Leno's "Ask the Fruitcake Lady" has risen to the rank of 'hero' in my book. I don't think I've had more respect for any one person before. Anyway, I digress, I just wanted to share.

Marie Rudisill is the Fruitcake Lady. She's a 93-year-old Floridian with a unique history. For starters, she's the aunt of famed American novelist Truman Capote. In fact, she lived with Truman during his childhood and helped raise him during his formative years in Alabama and New York City.

Marie was born and raised in Alabama. She married James Rudisill in 1939. She has a son and three grandchildren. She's also the owner of Chrissy, a pit bull terrier.

Marie Rudisill is the author of eight books including "Fruitcake, Memories of Truman Capote & Sook." It was her fruitcake book that led to her first appearance on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" in December of 2000. Marie taught Jay and Mel Gibson how to make a fruitcake. The segment is considered a "Tonight Show" classic and earned Marie the title of "The Fruitcake Lady." She has since returned to NBC in Burbank to cook cherry pie with Cuba Gooding Jr., stuff a turkey with Hugh Grant and make another fruitcake with Tom Cruise. When asked which of her cooking partners she'd most like to end up with on a deserted island, Marie replied, "None of them. I prefer Arnold Schwarzenegger because he's so clean-cut, has a good sense of humor and would be a lot of fun to have around."

In 2002, Marie began giving millions of Americans her own special advice in her "Ask the Fruitcake Lady" segments. Audience members, viewers and web surfers have the opportunity to ask the Fruitcake Lady questions. Her no-nonsense answers come straight from a place that is 93 years in the making.

Ask the Fruitcake Lady

A sample (verbatim):

"When my wife and I want to make love she lights candles to get in the mood. The only problem is she looks better in the dark. What should I do fruitcake lady?"

"You... You're a real bastard you know that? If I was your wife I'd.. I'd kick you.... I'd light one of those candles, and shove it up your ass."

... my hero.

i'm a bad little monster.

Luce Art Exhibit

Both in.dog.neato and myself will be having an art exhibit at Pizza Luce starting tonight through March 6th. The opening reception will be tonight from 6pm to 8pm.

in.dog.neato's are will be suspended mobiles from the ceiling(? hanging down anyway ;) while my photos will adorn the walls.

Everyone is invited to come to tonight's reception.

Sorry for such late notice.

-jadin

Chicken-Chick-Chick-Chick-Chicken.

I found another one of those video remix contests today and edited up something quick. The original Estonian commercial can be viewed here.

My entry can be viewed right here | 16mb Quicktime.

Why don't you take a stab at it.

Unidentified tracks found by Duluth campers

I don't think I'm betraying any confidences by spilling this cryptozoological scoop so here goes. Three people me and Allen work with were hiking about three miles into the woods around Grand Marais this weekend. They were making their way to a cabin out there and snoeshoeing a thin trail through waist deep snow around one or two AM. They wore headlamps, and even with snowshoes on they were sinking a foot and a half or so into the snow.

Apparently they came upon some large tracks, with a roughly four-or-five-foot stride, along a trail running perpindicular to theirs. It spooked them all pretty good on account of the great length of stride, which persisted as far up and down the trail as their lights were able to see. The tracks also left no kicked up snow like snowshoes leave, implying great height in whoever made the tracks. One of the people assured me that the tracks were bipedal and not moose tracks or anything. He was also the one who inspected it closest of the two I talked to (I have yet to take the report of the third person). He said that he could discern, in his close examination, that it was a large footprint.

This one person is really pretty certain that nothing identifiable made those tracks, and leans towards a bigfoot explanation. The other two guys are hedging their bets a little more, but not much. The one person I haven't spoke with yet is apparently making the case that it could have been some crazy snowshoer because they were roughly sized like swowshoe prints. Neither of the people I spoke with were very happy with that explanation. They're both being good skeptics though and saying the tracks are "unidentified." So there's a definite mixture of opinion among them although I want to talk to the third witness. What can be said with some certainty is the experience spooked them all, and the two I spoke with had clearly not come down from it yet.

So there you have it. The legend of the Minnesota Bigfoot lives on in reports like these. You be the judge.

(Cross-posted from the new Gonzo Science blog gonzoscience.blogspot.com.)

MANIMAL - US denies patent for part-human hybrid

Scientist aimed to prevent others' use


By Rick Weiss, Washington Post | February 13, 2005

WASHINGTON -- A New York scientist's seven-year effort to win a patent on a laboratory-conceived creature that is part human and part animal ended in failure Friday, closing a historic and somewhat ghoulish chapter in US intellectual property law.

original story here.

I say finally!! I was getting really depressed with the idea that we were the last stage of human development...I was hoping that all the babies born in duluth after the benzine spill would have webbed feet or a third eyeball or would be able to use psionic powers to enslave adults....needless to say, I was disappointed by the hohum outcome on that one. Now news like this...sounds like the scientist had "good" intentions.

Can't get enough of pantyhose guy?

Well, then read this. And maybe this. And, if you're really obsessed, this.

There. That ought to hold you for a while.

I would like to thank "Captain Avenger" for the tip. And you can thank me for wrecking the blog for today and knocking Barrett's important item down a notch.

Great Rewards

I'm sending out the call. I will personally reward anyone who can post the Telly Savalas "Duluth: Who Loves You Baby?" TV ad from the 1980s. To the best of my knowledge, it doesn't exist on the Web, and for all I know it may not exist anywhere anymore. But should it still be out there, I think that hosting that ad would be just about the greastest service this site could ever provide for the community.

What is the reward? Well, I'm not sure. A PDD T-shirt and a Slim Goodbuzz ladies' tank top. And a fancy coffee drink from Beaner's Central. Plus the honor of being King or Queen of Perfect Duluth Day for an unspecified span of time.

If anyone actually comes through with this, I can help post the video, should you have trouble.

Dare to dream.

More Photo Stuff

If anyone in PDD land is in the Twin Cities this month, I'm showing photos at the Sebastian Joe's located at 4321 Upton Ave. S. in the Linden Hills neighborhood of Minneapolis. This one's in the show which runs until the end of February.

2004 Super Bowl Halftime Show - Over 500,000 complaints to the FCC about Janet's "wardrobe malfunction"
2005 Super Bowl Halftime Show - 2 complaints to the FCC that Paul McCartney was "boring"

PDD T-shirt time!

You probably have your sticker but now you can have the PDD T-shirt! Yes it's true, a 100% cotton black T-shirt emblazoned with the famous PDD logo. I am making a very limited amount of these to start with unless there is great interest. So if you really have to have one leave a comment with the size you desire.

They will be available for the first time at the Blogumentary screening this Friday at the Playground.

By the way, PDD has upgraded our hosting to UNLIMITED BANDWIDTH! This only cost 2 dollars more a month and we also have tons more disc space. So post away! Videoblog, Podcast, Photoblog you name it we can host it. T-shirt sales will help support the 10 dollars a month we now pay so BUY ONE THIS FRIDAY.

out.

Got Free Duluth Pics?

Any photos from Friday night's Free Republic of Duluth event have a good chance of making it into the Reader this week if you got 'em; they want to do a two-page spread in color. Any format will be well recieved, but emailed digital photos (jpegs or otherwise) to jim@freeduluth.com would be best. Thank you to the community for being in effect. [Starfire: we would particularly love that one of Allen being thrown through the wall of boxes if you can swing it.]

Found Fun

I was walking around by the lakewalk today and found a photo in a snowbank. I think it may be the greatest photo ever taken.

Come play at the Playground.

At 4:45pm today they are cutting the ribbon on The Playground. For those of you that have not heard of it The Playground is the new Black Box Theatre for the Duluth Playhouse in the Technology Village. They will be hosting more "cutting edge" fare and starting next week is "The Laramie Project." Also starting next week is Friday, Etc. which is a late night cabaret of sorts. The first installment is a screening of Blogumentary. Yes, Chuck Olsen is heading up in his VW filled with DVD copies of his documentary on Blogs. All the details are here.

There is limited seating (like 100) so come a bit early for good seats. Oh and if you read this now come on down for some free wine and cheese.

Clancy Needs to Stop Lowering the Boom

The last few days I have been a powder-keg of stress waiting to blow up ("The idiot didn't change that document yet?!?", "Wasn't this supposed to be done three weeks ago?!?", "Overtime again?!?"). I was letting stressful situations get more stressful by responding with anger and making it worse.
See, I'm set up for a lethal double-combination of quick anger: fiery Irish blood and ADD (which provides me with the ability to say stupid things before my brain can stop me). I was about five seconds from freaking out at work and getting my ass fired when I decided I needed to leave and get a massage.
While Jan at Comfort Zone worked out the worse-than-usual knots in my back, I realized that I had to let everything go. I was taking too much on and it was harming my emotional and physical well-being. I had to stop thinking of other's actions as personal attacks, and even if they are, I need to blow them off and move on. The tension in my back released, and a zen-like state washed over me. All was right with the world. I needed to go back to work, let the stress roll off of me, get over old hurts, and work towards stopping new ones. The universe was telling me that all would be well.
I walked back to work with a new feeling of calm, until I heard the screeching tires and saw my reflection in the truck's grill one foot to the left of me. I laughed - the universe was telling me that all may be right with you, but we're still going to send you crazy shit to fuck with you. Ha. Ha. Ha.
So now, like Tomasz's "OctSober", I am going to attempt a month of not "getting my Irish up." Let's see if it works and I can make it until (fittingly) St. Patrick's day. Please don't poke me with a stick.

(Note 1: Jan at Comfort Zone is awesome - go see her!)
(Note 2: I had right-of-way, crossing with the Walk sign and the woman in the big truck was turning onto Superior Street. If you happened to be in Jitters at the time, you got a great view of the action.)
(Note 3: I always though that if I were about to be hit by a car, I would have time to react and jump out of the way like some action hero. I was wrong. I would be thrown to the ground like a crash test dummy.)
(Note 4: OK, I didn't actually laugh - I actually said "Jezuz Ker-rist!!!")
(Note 5: At no time have I ever liked Notre Dame and/or given a rats ass about football in general - I just figured the mascot was a fitting Irish stereotype)
(Note 6: More fiery Irish stereotypes that I used to sing about in school: "Clancy Lowered the Boom")
(Note 7: Now I can't get the song "Clancy Lowered the Boom" out of my head.)
(Note 8: Don't make fun of specific departments when people know where you work. Getting fired would definitely get my Irish up.)

How to Build an Igloo

I have always been fascinated with Igloos.

Recently I discovered a company through a Google ad that made the Eskimold. Well I ordered one and we had a hoot making this lopsided Igloo. I recommend it for a fun winter activity.

Of course I filmed the process and made a short movie.

How to Build an Igloo | Quicktime 8.7mb