6:28 PM Absinthe is a liqueur derived from wormwood with a long and storied past.
Absinthe itself is a deep green color, and is usually consumed diluted with water which has been poured over a sugar cube. Special absinthe spoons have been created for this sole purpose. The end result is a milky-colored concoction which over the years has been blamed for everything from epilepsy to insanity.
Some varieties of absinthe have an alcohol content as high as 80% (160 proof). It's currently illegal to sell absinthe in the United States or to have it imported from abroad, but UK retailer AbsintheOnline.com is willing to ship it anywhere in the world. You'll wind up playing "Customs Roulette," but as an American it's your best shot at obtaining the stuff without leaving the country.
I myself have never had the privilege of tasting absinthe, but I'm intrigued by any food or beverage that has a unique history, complicated preparation rituals, and is hard to obtain.
11:10 AM
JPL is broadcasting all shuttle communications on 147.15 MHz.
If you're too far from Pasadena to get a good feed, it's being repeated all over Southern California on 446.125, 448.5, 448.625, 448.65, 448.675, and 449.0.
9:27 AM
Windows Vista just hit Beta this morning, and the first official screenshots are online.
While the start menu and taskbar are still part of the GUI, everything else looks a bit different. It's too soon to really form an opinion of where things are going, but it looks interesting that's for sure.
edit: PC Magazine's got a boatload of screenshots.
4:10 PM
It turns out that Kevin Smith is a huge Degrassi fan and I don't know what to think of Jay & Silent Bob Do Degrassi.
They appeared in three episodes which aired months ago in Canada. They haven't aired here in the USA because The N has no idea what television is or how it's supposed to work.
Allow me to point out another example of The N's retardedness. They declined to air two awesome episodes in Season 3 entitled "Accidents Will Happen" in which Manny got an abortion. Yes, it really happened and if you look hard enough, you can download the episodes online. I was able to track down a copy on Soulseek of all places.
3:07 PM
Who among us hasn't been approached by strange men selling speakers out of an unmarked white van? As crazy as this scenario sounds, it's happened to me twice in my lifetime.
Apparently this is a scam that's being perpetrated on a global scale, and nobody's really sure who's behind it.
Remember, the next time you buy speakers out of an unmarked van, you're funding TERRORISM!
11:25 AM
My next door neighbors are selling their house!
Anyone looking for a nice four-bedroom, 2.5 bath, with updated kitchen and wood laminate floors in Anaheim Hills? It's a nice corner lot with wonderful neighbors! Loud people need not apply!
9:49 AM
Windows XP's successor will be named Windows Vista. What's the deal with all these fancy version names anyway? Why can't we just stick to numbers?
3:04 PM
It was this article that inspired me to recently procure a double-edged safety razor and all the accessories that go with it. This is how people used to shave in the 50s before disposable razors were invented.
Ever since I started shaving in high school I've been using an electric razor. I'd dabbled in the world of disposable razors but was never really happy with the end result, or with the mess of using modern-day shaving cream that smelled like deodorant.
Let me tell you. Old school shaving died an unjust death when disposables came around. I have seen the light, my friends!
I'll never throw away my electric razor. It's just too convenient. But on mornings when I've got enough time to devote to the ritual, you'll find me wetshaving in the style of my ancestors!
10:40 AM
America is about to extend daylight savings time by two months!
This has Canada, which shares our time zones and our use of daylight savings, shitting their pants!
The proposal is still waiting for the President's signature, but it's got my vote! I love getting home from work in what feels like the middle of the afternoon.
4:02 PM
If you've been playing VMK and have found yourself short on cash, a screwup on the part of Kellogg's Flash designers should help you out!
Play Conquer The Sea to get a secret code that you can redeem within VMK for three pirate-themed prizes. It doesn't matter what level you play on, or even if you lose - Kelloggs' game will still give you a code.
You're only supposed to get one unique code, but through the miracle of shoddy coding you'll receive a new unique code each and every time you play!
Play it for about an hour (or as long as you can stand) to rack up a bunch of codes, then redeem them all within VMK. You'll then wind up with a jazillion pirate items that you can sell for 10 credits each!
Better hurry and do this quick before they figure out their mistake...Although to be fair it's been like this for nearly a week now and they haven't changed a thing.
If you've been trying to finish up the hidden mickey quest but don't have enough cash to buy all that film, this is your answer!
9:19 AM
Disneyland yesterday was a hoot. The park never filled up though, so I felt sorry for the 20,000 people who started camping out at midnight and had to sleep in the streets of DCA. We got there at 8 in the morning, and while the line to get into the security gate stretched all the way from the trams to the monorail and back again, things always kept moving and everybody was excited to be there. Once we were inside the park, lines for rides were relatively short and there were free birthday cupcakes around every corner.
MousePlanet has a few photos of the day's events. (Every guest received free golden mickey ears, hence the sea of gold you'll see in a few of the pictures.) I'll try and post some pictures I took a little later.
I haven't spent an entire day at a theme park in a long time. It really wipes you out!
11:17 AM
There's just two days left to get your free Tivo!
Once you've received your Tivo and you go to activate it online, it'd be awesome if you listed me as your referrer. You can find my email address here. I would appreciate it!
11:46 AM
The Album of the Week over at Rato Records is Bert Kaempfert's most excellent "A Swingin' Safari" from 1962. This is the either the cleanest vinyl rip I've ever heard, or it's the remastered import Polygram release from 1999. Either way, it's crystal clear and way better than the old LP rip that's been floating around p2p.
Forget everything you thought you knew about easy-listening music and get your download on!
Besides, how can you say no to a cover like this?
The album's broken up into two zips, and the Rapid Share download service seems to limit you to one per hour. It's worth the wait - A Swingin Safari made Bert Kaempfert an international superstar!
11:23 AM
Right outside my office window are a few palm trees. Today the gardeners were here trimming them. What a show!
First they climb the tree using spiked heels and a rope that wraps around the tree.
Then they unhook a chainsaw from their belt and they GO TO TOWN.
You can't really see it in this photo, but this guy just got attacked by a SWARM OF BEES. He's so tough he was like "I don't have time for you shitty bees" and he acted like they weren't even there! He must have special gardener skin that is resistent to insects.
This was his buddy working a few trees down.
Then through some elaborate rope trickery they SWING FROM TREE TO TREE to save themselves from having to climb more trees than they have to.
ACTION SHOT!
Although it looks like he was about to swing through my window and into my office, I assure you this is not the case! The job is complete!
The aftermath
In summary, we can conclude that palm tree trimming is a danergous job that I will never ever do.
3:52 PM
Disneyland officially turns 50 this Sunday the 17th.
There is a very real possibility that the park will reach its maximum capacity and that the entrance gates will be closed. It's rare, but it does happen! I think the last time might have been Christmas day last year.
The 50th birthday itself is bound to draw in tons of guests, but the fact that it falls on a Sunday in the middle of summer compounds the problem!
Disneyland is going to allow people to start lining up for entry as early as 2AM on the 17th. They're expecting the lines to be so long that they're letting people stand in line (or sit, or sleep) inside California Adventure all morning until the semi-official opening at 7am.
If you do make it into the park (one way or another) it'll probably be one of your more memorable trips. It's not every day that an American icon turns 50 and you're there to see it!
A consultancy agency with government and police connections was running an exercise for an unnamed company that revolved around the London Underground being bombed at the exact same times and locations as happened in real life on the morning of July 7th.
Gentlemen, start your conspiracy-theory-generating engines!
The exact same times AND locations? Whoever orchestrated the bombing had to have known about the scheduled drill. Right? Dale Gribble, the world needs your expert analysis!
The Walt Disney Company, Roy E. Disney and Stanley P. Gold announced today that they have agreed to put aside the differences that have characterized their relationship over the past several years.
9:28 AM
Google just released three interesting, if not completely useless, Firefox Extensions.
The Google Toolbar looks interesting enough, but Firefox already has its own Google search box, and I don't think the extra features the Toolbar adds are ever used by anybody!
If you're looking for a good Firefox extension that actually enhances Google, try BetterSearch. It'll add thumbnail views of websites your search results!
1:42 PM
You know how when someone tells you you need to watch some TV show because "It's HILARIOUS" and "YOU'LL LOVE IT!" then you go and watch the show and you're like "Eh." and "That was dumb."
I am here today to tell you that if you watch Stella you will not say "Eh." In fact, you will explode into laughter multiple times.
The show moves fast though, so you have to pay attention!
8:51 AM
We rode the new-and-improved Space Mountain last night. It's hard to believe that it's been closed for more than two years!
The track layout is unchanged, although the track itself has been completely rebuilt from scratch. The ride experience really isn't much different at all. The queue has been given a show upgrade and looks quite a bit different. I was sad to see that the package-scanning FedEx robot is now gone. :( The launch and re-entry tunnels are all-new, and the old soundtrack was ditched for a new one that Tammy said sounded "a little too James Bond".
It all amounts to a refreshing facelift for a classic indoor coaster built in 1977.
While we didn't have time to finish any of them last night, we also picked up the three in-park quests for VMK. If you finish them all you'll get a pretty sweet non-virtual prize!
11:08 AM
My X-ROM arrived over the weekend and it's all kinds of wonderful.
I upgraded from a first-generation battery-sucking 128M parallel port linker that was a little taller than an actual GBA cartridge, and this new energy-efficient USB-enabled 512M wonder has changed my portable gaming life for the better.
PocketNES and Goomba were of course loaded on right away, but Mario vs Donkey Kong and Mario Pinball Land are tons of fun too.
They're not going to be available forever, and at just $69 a pop the XROM is going to bring you hours and hours of fun.
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