Why do so many of the phone-spam calls involve air duct cleaning?  I'd have thought that the market for that scam was more than saturated.  Not that I want phone spam for carpet cleaning, pet laundering, tree washing, etc., but they might get more business out of the population they're pestering ( Read more... )

I have always been somewhat creeped out by commercials that feature animated food or animals urging people to eat them.  See also: Douglas Adams's "Dish of the Day", and Alice being introduced to Mutton and Plum Pudding on the other side of the Looking-Glass; not to mention Paul Gallico's charming children's book ManxmouseBut recent commercials for ( Read more... )

I just had an unpleasant thought: The eviction of "the Necromancer" (AKA Sauron) from his base in Mirkwood, in the Hobbit movie, is going to involve the wizards standing around, zapping the Evil Eyeball with their wands/staves.  Bleah.

ETA: "Expello maloculus!"

In harmony.

Aaargh.
 

I had a sleep study last night, the latest step in the ongoing investigation of "find all the things independently wrong".  I'm extremely tired today.  What they tell you before the study and the way things really are are somewhat different.

"You can sleep in any position you want as long as it doesn't involve your face being downwards into the ( Read more... )

I am not a fan of Peter Jackson's work in Tolkien's mythos ( Read more... )

Recent events hereabouts have reminded me of an old comedy sketch by Ronnie Barker, of the Two Ronnies:

Click to view

The Two Ronnies was not exactly known for highbrow humour - they leaned more towards vaudevillian, variety-show stuff with a certain amount of satire.  But there's a line there: "Diagnosis is very like diarrhoea only you get it in your gnosis ( Read more... )

I've noticed that a lot of the ready-to-cook food items now carry warnings about how well-cooked the food has to be to be safe.

But how do I measure the internal temperature of, say, ravioli immersed in boiling water, to make sure that it's at least 74°C?  (Just 73° wouldn't be safe.  Or just waiting until it floats and has a reasonable texture for ( Read more... )

We spent a little while this afternoon at the annual Gem and Mineral Show.  There were many pretty rocks and crystals and beads and such.  But was a bit disconcerting to see how much of the merchandise was being marketed for the paranormal/occult crowd. After a while, I started wishing that the little cards in the boxes of stones said something ( Read more... )

"... And can you, can you imagine fifty people a day, I said fifty people a day walking out singin' a bar of "Alice's CEGEP" and walking in. And friends they may think it's a movement.

"And that's what it is, the Alice's CEGEP Anti-Fee-Increase Movement, and all you got to do to join is sing it the next time it comes around on the guitar."

When the utility scammers come to my door "needing" to see my Enbridge bill on whatever pretext.  Or when some asshole phones me about my credit card or my debt or, god help me, because there's a "virus" on my computer that he needs to help me "remove".

Merely yelling at them to get off my property isn't good enough.  Nor yelling about the federal ( Read more... )