Innocent Bystanders

The Fonz

I’m so proud.

Paris has its Eiffel Tower. Rome’s got the Coliseum. And Milwaukee?

Well, we’re now the proud home of the Fonzie Statue, a 5-foot-6-inch, teal, white and bronze monument to Henry Winkler’s character in the 1970s TV sitcom “Happy Days.”

Update: I’m a glass-half-full kinda guy so I have to say this could be worse. It could be rubber sidewalks.

I have been asked by McCain’s campaign to be the chair of the ‘Veterans for McCain’ Committe for the county I live in. I think I’d rather gouge out one of my eyes but I also have a sense of party loyalty to consider. I’ve been stalling for two weeks to see who he picks for VP because I will be damned if I’ll campaign for a McCain/Lieberman ticket.

So my question is this: principles or party?

The Pupster Boys and Mrs. Pupster have been having loads of fun making videos, mostly clips from characters they create in The Sims, mixed with music in Windows Movie Maker. Since they like to post them on their personal blogs or share them with friends, I’ve been letting them use my YouTube account.

Today I received a sphincter-tightening email from YouTube titled “A YouTube partner made a copyright claim on one of your videos”

Dear impupsterdammit,

UMG has claimed some or all audio content in your video Wake Up Call The Sims 2 Music Video. This claim was made as part of the YouTube Content Identification program.

Your video is still live because UMG has authorized the use of this content on YouTube. As long as UMG has a claim on your video, they will receive public statistics about your video, such as number of views. Viewers may also see advertising on your video’s page.

After I unclenched and began to follow some of the links in the email, I found the situation to be acceptable, and if I may say so myself, handled elegantly. Copyright holders, in this case UMG, provide to YouTube ID files for the material they wish to protect, and YouTube uses a Video Identification Tool to wash all new uploads against the ID files. When they get a match, the copyright holder can choose three courses of action:

There are three usage policies — Block, Track or Monetize. If a rights owner specifies a Block policy, the video will not be viewable on YouTube. If the rights owner specifies a Track policy, the video will continue to be made available on YouTube and the rights owner will receive information about the video, such as how many views it receives. For a Monetize policy, the video will continue to be available on YouTube and ads will appear in conjunction with the video. The policies can be region-specific, so a content owner can allow a particular piece of material in one country and block the material in another.

In the case of Mrs. Pupster’s Wake Up Call The Sims video, USG has allowed the video to remain on YouTube with the addition of Google Ads (which I assume with fill their corporate coffers with untold riches), and will receive tracking and usage information.

It seems like a pretty good application of common sense, and I hope to see more of the same in the future, rather than the heavy handed tactics some other copyright holders pursue.

I have a Stihl chainsaw. I would not have had this difficulty. Must be a Poulan or some such Mickey-Mouse POS. Now weedeaters? I sympathize. Although Stihl does sell them as well. They might be better, but from my experience, weedeaters are notorious bitches to start.

Next step:

“Don’t you even think of going anywhere! You sit your ass down while I plug in this hair dryer! Now come closer! CLOSER I SAID!!

Pantless and poorer.

Dude needs to take a lesson from grizzly boy.

A couple of new crime fighters at Chez Skinbad. Right after we got home from our fun-filled week of mooching at visiting Camp Geezer, Evil Con Carne’s 15th birthday hit. We had been dogless since the first of April and ECC kept telling us the only thing he wanted for his birthday was a dog. Our yard had never looked better, by the way, but I guess I should forget about that.

We had a decompress from the long drive day in Salt Lake at my parents and visited SL County’s animal shelter and the Humane Society’s as well. It was tough. As an aside, I would guess 80% of the dogs were pit/pit mix or labs. We had a couple brought out to meet, but it wasn’t clicking.

(more…)

I attended a housewarming party for my wife’s twin sister. The highlight for me was the free booze and the food. And all that food got me thinking (which is always dangerous) about other food stories I have found. So, here goes:
Somebody else loves Hors d’oeuvres as much as I do.

Holy fuck, I am seriously hungover. Of course that’s what happens when you drag your lazy ass off the couch to attend a friend’s birthday party on a weeknight. So what could have possessed me to do such a thing? Was it my affection for the birthday girl or the two hours of open bar featuring all of my favorite top shelf liquor, beer, and champagne? Fuck no, it’s all about the possibility for those delicious little hors d’oeuvres.

So today, while I’m burping up a delightful combination of Hendricks, Macallan, and Veuve at my desk, I’m still regretting that one last fried risotto ball I missed out on. Dear god those fuckers were tasty.

Bacon is under assault in the Nanny State for having “too much” Sodium.

But ham and bacon processors say the move will reduce the shelf life of products, and put customers off. A 10-slice packet of ham contains just under two teaspoons of salt.

Claire Cheney, director-general of the Provision Trade Federation, representing leading processed meats companies and supermarkets said the targets were a potential health risk.

She told The Grocer magazine: ‘If you have not got sufficient preservative in a product like ham you get pockets where the salt levels are too low to prevent the formation of the botulism toxin.

‘This will force us to reduce the shelf life further and with that come serious food safety concerns, not least the risk of botulism.’

She was backed by Elizabeth Andoh-Kesson, technical manager of the British Meat Processors Association.

She said: ‘We are very worried about the stricter targets and believe that reducing salt further has implications for food safety and the shelf life of products.’

And one guy REALLY didn’t appreciate Subway screwing up his order.

When police did arrive Peterson told the officer he had ordered two sandwiches, checked out, and then walked outside to find the subs did not have “everything” he ordered.

He told police he became “very upset” and “belligerent” because the employee making the sandwich was not doing it correctly.

Witnesses inside the store say Peterson eventually started screaming at everyone inside. When Peterson went outside to call police. Employees closed the store and locked the door to keep him from returning.

According to the report, the officer tried to calm Petterson and explain to him the proper way to use 911, but he would not cooperate.

Coming up on your left

So he’s wrestling the crocodile and filming it. And he’s driving 150 km/hr. Granted, not mph, but still, that’s pretty fast. Using Sobek’s cocaine price per kilo calculations as a basis, that’s got to be like, 80 or something.* How many hands does this guy have?

Loaded .22 rifle and a bunch of weed in the car as well. Great, great explanation for the rifle:

Mr Erhardt also told police he had used the rifle to shoot “kangaroos from the vehicle whilst driving north”.

Found whilst perusing Fark

*93 mph

If you set the proverbial million monkeys typing and checked back with them in 25 years, you might find a story that included the following elements:

• a “text messaging squabble”
• a pissed-off recipient of a sexually transmitted disease 
• a four-edged medieval battle ax
• “Juggalos” (fans of the painted-face rappers Insane Clown Posse)

I think it’s possible. Kind of funny how the cops caught the brainiacs.

Picture of Conan’s weapon here.

So, Mr. “loving husband” traipses off and leaves you in a death trap. I wondered why the food on the counter never cooled off.

Pardon me sir? Have you any shit for brains?

But of course!

Meet Ezra Welch, a 40-year-old guy living in Berlin. He loves Batman so much, he has dedicated everything in his life to the caped crusader.

The collection is a diverse one, ranging from framed movie posters to a utility belt and even a large ceramic cookie jar shaped like Batman. He has even deemed one corner of the collection a “Rogues Gallery” and uses it to showcase Batman’s foes.

Welch, who works at Precision Graphics in East Berlin, doesn’t know exactly how much he has spent on his collection over the years but estimates it is at least $5,000, maybe even $10,000.

Even with all the money he has spent, he says his favorite item didn’t cost him a thing.

“It’s a Batrock,” he says, pointing to a chunk of stone he got during a visit to the cave used to film part of the 1960’s “Batman” TV show that starred Adam West. “It’s from the Batcave. I don’t know if anyone else has something like this.”

Wow. And like all Batman fans, he seems to relish wearing the costume at the wrong and inappropriate times.

Occasionally he will even don a full-size Batman costume, though he prefers to do it to mark special events; one photo on the wall of the “Batcave” features him, fully-costumed, kissing his wife in front of their Christmas tree.

Yeah, but does he molest retired stagehands while wearing it?