Links for you, have a good weekend everyone!

Paul Epp
Icon Wax Museum
Foundry DX
100 Words
Hiroshi Homma
Photo Mondo
Se7en Cult
Clay Monkeys
hip_atrip
L Foundation

Guess who Haiku?

Shakira shakes it
Oh so very, very well.
Shake it girl, shake it.

Not you Haiku.

Oh how I hate spam.
Clogging my hotmail daily.
Die debt relief, die.

Nor you, Haiku.

Spooky old houses
Haunted by unclean spirits.
Who you gonna call?

Hello out there! It's Hump Day. Woohoo! Comments are back up and only two more days until a much-deserved and highly anticipated vacation. What better way to celebrate than with a Free Will Horoscope? Did I mention I love these things:

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
Now is actually a better time to trot out your New Year's resolutions than January 1. Here are a few to get you started. (1) Resolve to stop fantasizing about work while you're making love. (Vice versa is OK, though.) (2) Resolve to learn the difference between interesting puzzles that inspire you to mutate and boring riddles that numb your soul. (3) Resolve to stand on a hilltop and belly laugh in the direction of heaven until you have a spiritual orgasm. (4) Resolve to not let what you can't do interfere with what you can do. (5) Just in case you are what you eat, resolve to eat chickens only if they've spent their lives running free.

Running around free like a chicken? I like the first resolution much better altho I'm sure I do that already. Resolution two might hurt my brain, I've been trying to minimize my deep analytical thinking lately to keep from going desparately insane. I will definitely utilize resolutions three and four. What about you guys? Oh yea, we also have some news today.

Here we have an interesting article on the logo history of Apple Computers. I've always appreciated that Apple has been so much more design oriented with their computers. Their logo so simple in its representation and recognition is a prime example of that philosophy.

People find the strangest things off the coast of Florida. Not only can you find a little boy floating around in an inner tube, but fisherman have hooked a human head. Makes you wonder if it's really the best place to move to once you retire.

Remember Lance Bass: N'Space? He's now one step closer to achieving his dream. I say we send them all to space. Deep space. Black hole maybe. Especially that Timberlake guy with the funky hair, him first please.

So September 11 is approaching ever so swiftly, and we're still experience fallout, both positive and negative. Unfortunately this happens to be something negative. A landlord in New York is suing a victim's family for neglecting to give three month's notice before the attack. How despicable can a person be? Apparently, this despicable.

Plus some quick hits. evidence shows that the Japanese used germ warfare during World War II. Scary.

The US Army is going to try out a new portable translator. Imperfect, but still cool.

Lastly, are you addicted to the internet at work? Please don't answer for me, I believe I know the answer.

We journey to the east to discover one of Japan's many manga artists who have found success on western shores. Yukito Kishiro's artwork is incredibly detailed, dynamic, and also somewhat disturbing. His first major work, Battle Angel Alita, demonstrated his penchant for graphic representation of action, violence, and athleticism. Not only that, but his vision of a society living in co-dependency with technology was fascinating enough to publish 8 volumes of work. His following work, Aqua Knight, is currently being published in the United States as well, but will be on hiatus until he finishes his next volume of Battle Angel. His style developed from softer and darker, to clean and angular which better suited a fantastic tale of knights that ride on killer whales. The one theme that each work holds in common is the spirituality of the work. Not outright theology, but something vague which we all recognize whether we want to or not. If I drew half as well as he did, I don't think I'd be an engineer anymore. Please excuse the cheesecake-iness of the image I'm posting, it's the best one I could find.

Monday morning and I've already had a nice addition to the start of the week in the form of a flat tire. Isn't life wonderful? On with some funky chicken finger-lickin' good news.

For all of us "pirates" out there, watch what you download. A virus is spreading through Kazaa in the form of a worm called "Duload." Read about it. In my opinion, our generation is no longer generation X. With broadband connections and ever-expanding hard drives, it's all out piracy. I'm not saying it's a bad thing, but just think about the last time most of you bought an actual CD?

Some uplifting news from Latin America. Brazil has decided to create the world's largest rainforest reserve. Although there is some speculation that the land will fall prey to corruption and who knows what else, it's good to see that they're attempting to protect their natural resources not just for themselves, but for the world as well. Smile when you think about that.

Seems like Britney Spears just can't stay out of the news for too long. Along with her recent insistance that she's open to exploring certain "aspects of life," she was gullible enough to fall for a prank call from a local radio show. One of her mistakes was agreeing to sing a duet with Tiger Woods. She's been on the road for waaaaaay too long.

As Ed already asserted, there are a ton of greatly anticipated games coming out for game consoles within the next few months. One of them happens to be Nintendo's "Super Mario Sunshine." So highly anticipated is this game that CNN has decided to run a feature story on the fever surrounding it's release. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to this game either. Not only does it look pretty, but it's sure to be tons of fun.

People are obsessed with themselves. Well, not always, but obsessed with their self-image at least. Weight consciousness is at an all-time high, and Time believes we need to know what makes us fat. Maybe this cover story will shed some light on the subject.

And finally, Time also brings us a special feature on new technology that's good for the environment. Read it and think about the future when you buy your consumables.

Friday and the links never cease. I have a ton more than usual for your consumption on this glorious, sunny day. Divert yourselves from the daily routine and feast your blurry, computerized eyes on some fancy shmancy webjunk.

City Creator
Gnome Darts (in German)
db-db
Psyop
Heroes
Tile Machine
Lebonze
Bubble Soap
Esao
Velocity Works
bmace
Fluid Interactive

As Friday comes about, so do the Something Awful crazies who bring you your weekly Photoshop Phriday. Additionally, I'll also provide you with an article straight out of Rolling Stone about the 50 Greatest Rock and Roll Meltdowns. Check it all out, and have a good weekend!

Alas, I regret to inform you all that a story shalt not be posted this week due to lack of internet access at my new domicile. It was to be a nice tale, of which I shalt not reveal the details lest I ruin whatever I might have in store for everyone. Perhaps I'll post a short rant of a sort later on. We'll see how it works out.

Sacre Bleu, Haiku!

Dragging out the leaves
Freshly raked and stored in bags.
Summertime's over.

Haiku part deux!

Rhythmic, heated breaths,
Dazzling, starlight summer sweat,
Hearts burning as one.

Argh! I had a nice and long 2 hour meeting today at work and it prevented me with coming up with some new and neat stories for y'all to digest along with your daily lunch. But never fear, I'm resourceful enough to come up with something. But let's start where we always do, with a Free Will Horoscope:

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
Are you brave enough to invite reality's messy richness to replace your pristine but inert fantasies? Are you mature enough to renounce your naive hopes and fears so as to see the raw truths that are right in front of you? Are you crafty enough to shed the part of your innocence that's based on delusion even as you strengthen the part of your innocence that's rooted in your love of life? Here's my answer to those questions, Virgo: Maybe you weren't brave or mature or crafty enough to pull off these heroic feats in the past, but you are now.

My horoscopes lately seem eerily on target. Is one of you out there tipping them off? Fess up before I take my revenge on an undeserving soul.

If you hadn't heard, the designer of the modern-age frisbee, Ed Headrick, died recently. As a dying wish, he wanted his ashes to be molded into a flying disc. Looks like his relatives are ready to fulfill that wish.

Another study in the United Kingdom shows that it's quite deadly to be single. More deadly than smoking, you ask? Turns out, the answer is "yes."

Hands-free typing a new reality? Why not?

Lastly, an ancient skull has been discovered that may prove ancient people really knew more than we may have previously thought. The fascinating discovery isn't in the size of the brain cavity in the skull, but in the fact that it shows evidence of ancient brain surgery.

Ah, more strange and amusing artists for today. Notably, one Dan Piraro who you may or may not have heard of. His daily comic strip, Bizarro, appears in the newspaper everyday, so open one up and see if he's there. Always surreal and very pointed with its view on reality, his strip lives up to its name everyday. Somehow, I'm fascinated by the unreality of his imagination, and he surprises me everyday with something new. Not only does his strip amuse and maybe disturb, but his regular artwork is something to behold as well. Check out his website for some nice gallery showings of his work, and then head on over to UComics to read his daily strip. Keep life interesting and check it out.

This weekend can be summarized with one word: evacuation. Think about it for a bit and it makes sense in my case. On with the news.

Millions of people are tuning in every week to see who will be the next "American Idol." Out of the thousands of people weeded out by three "judges," four are currently left standing to perform songs. Whether they perform them well or awful people are encouraged to vote in by telephone for the contestant they think should win. As in all telephone voting, people will find a way to beat the system. Apparently, someone has.

Remember a few years ago when we were living in a liberal era of politics with a president who lied to us, but also brought us economic prosperity? Well, his wife seems to be making her move to run for president in 2008. If she receives public approval remains to be seen.

NASA has a nice history recently of losing things. What's suprising about another one?

Do you also remember when everyone was scared to get carjacked? Maybe some carjackers should watch who they mess with.

Howard Hughes must have had some prehistoric vision when he built the Spruce Goose. How else would he have known such a thing existed.

Finally, Lego is researching the use of their building blocks as tools for business in their new line of "Serious Play" bricks. I wish I could go to work and play with Legos. Maybe I will...

Lots of cool links to post today, eat it up. Oh, and if you really want to see Photoshop Phriday, go there. It's particularly awful today so don't say I didn't warn you.

Pixel Breaker
Blank Image
Falcoon's Gallery
Yulia Nau
Kyle Johnson
Jon Burgerman
PogoGallery
Evaq
Trevor van Meter
Destructive Design
Big Myth
Kenny Morrison

Conversation
“Hey.”
“Hey.”
“You work today?”
“Little bit.”
“Yea?”
“Yea.”
“I went out to the market, tried to buy myself something to eat.”
“Cool.”
“Sure.”
“Oh, did you catch Tom Cruise on Letterman last night?”
“Never, I actually went to bed early so I could wake up for work.”
“OK, you missed out.”
“Sure thing, I know you love Tom Cruise.”
“Not like you love his ass.”
“…”
“Anyway, he was talking about scientology.”
“You mean that Battlefield Earth stuff?”
“No, no, that L. Ron Hubbard stuff.”
”Same difference. Interesting?”
“Not really, I fell asleep while he was talking about it.”
“Why’d you bring it up?”
“Don’t know, you believe in any of that?”
“Any of what, Scientology?”
“No, like God and stuff.”
“God? Well probably only before I’m about to die.”
“Serious? Geez you and faith.”
“Faith? I need a woman more than I need faith.”
“In God?”
“Not necessarily, in general maybe.”
Yea, and maybe I should start taking steroids too.”
“What?”
“Nothing, anyway, what happened with Carmen anyway?”
“You mean like the opera?”
“…”
“Oh, you mean Carmen Carmen. That girl I met at the library.”
“I still can’t believe you met someone there, weirdo.”
“Better than meeting someone online, freak.”
“Screw you.”
“You wish.”
“Forget it, so Carmen…”
“Yea, we went out.”
“And…?”
“And nothing, she’s a nice girl, but not my type.”
“Not your type? She’s everyone’s type. I saw her with you.”
“Naw, she does this thing where she breathes loudly through her nose.”
“And you can’t deal?”
“Yea, freakin’ strange.”
“How many times you go out with her?”
“Once.”
“And no chance after that?”
“If she wants to go out again she’ll call.”
“But you’ll say ‘no’ because of the breathing.”
“Naw, she cool.”
“But you just said…”
“If she wants to go out again, she’ll call.”
“Umm.. sounds like you don’t mind her nose at all.”
“Naw, she’s still a freak.”

I nornally don't post anything else on Thursdays, but this was too rich not to post. The novel The Rules of Attraction by Bret Easton Ellis is being turned into a movie. This appropriately edgy teen flick by the same title boasts a somewhat interesting cast of actors. What else is so interesting about this movie? Take one look at the poster and tell me what you think. Don't forget to check out the website which should be launching very soon.

Retinue Haiku...

Alone we fight on
To forget all our sorrows
And keep hope alive.

As most Wednesdays start, this one is no different. Time for a Free Will Horoscope:

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
Many smart, educated people think astrology is bunk perpetrated by quacks. For any stargazer with an ego, this threatens to be depressing. We want to be loved and appreciated like everyone else. On the other hand, I've found that being in a field that gets so little respect has for the most part been liberating. It has been impossible for me to get all puffed up with overbearing pride; I've had to learn to practice astrology primarily for the joy it brings me, not as a means of seeking recognition. In a backhanded way, then, a seemingly demoralizing curse has become an invigorating boon. I predict that you, Virgo, will soon harvest an analogous mutation.

I wonder what it means. Maybe I'll have some sort of epiphany regarding my chosen career. Or maybe one regarding a career I should choose instead even if I'm somehow afraid of scrutiniy. At any rate, this is the second of somewhat positive Free Will Horoscopes in two weeks. "Things are looking up."

In other news, it has been reported that Microsoft Internet Explorer leaves your credit card vulnerable to attack. Once again, another argument for downloading Mozilla.

If any of you watch that show on MTV, '"Cribs," then I'm sure you're very familiar with the concept of a television system installed everywhere in a car. Particularly in large Escalades with 22" rims. This study shows that such a practice is not only stupid, but also unsafe for a TV screen to be installed in the steering wheel of your "ride." I always wondered how people were supposed to drive while watching movies in their cars. My guess is they don't. They just crash.

We wonder how well our government systems work for us, well we have a partial answer. The Florida Child Welfare system has been put to shame by a local newspaper as 9 missing children were found easily and quickly. Read about it here. Looks like anyone can find another person on the internet if they look hard enough. Now I just have to make sure no one's stalking me...

Lastly, we have this news that people have an inherent instinct to know when they're being cheated. No surprise to me, I've known I've been cheating myself out of sleep for years now, will I do anything about it? What do you think?

Michael Allred is a god.

Well maybe not really, but he's a pretty darn impressive artist. He currently works on his own line of comic books through AAA Pop Comics which includes titles such as Madman and The Atomics. All of these are written and drawn by Mr. Allred, and graced with the lovely palette of colors by his wife Laura. The look of his stuff is so simplistic, yet the little details make it so realistic at the same time. It screams 'pop art' at the same time it remains contemporary, and his sense of humor is downright quirky. How can you go wrong with someone who labels one of his titles as "snazzy?"

You ever have one of those weekends that chews you up and then pukes you out on Monday Morning. I feel like I just had such a weekend. Fun, but strenuous and definitley memorable. Hope you all had as much fun as I did. News news news by the way.

In the ongoing battle between the recording industry and all those file-swappers out there, a new development has come about. US lawmakers are lobbying John Ashcroft to turn his attention to peer to peer networks such as Kazaa and Morpheus. Reuters has the story right here.

Some of you may have already seen this, but it's still fascinating how far paranoia in our nation has gone. At John F. Kennedy airport in New York, a woman was forced to drink breast milk to prove she wasn't attempting to transport harmful substances in the air. What's next, making people take off their shoes and belts at the gate? Oh wait...

So affirmative action has effectively been killed throughout the University of California system, now it looks like it may die altogether as a new case looks to settle the dispute on how race determines acceptance to education programs. An applicant to the University of Michigan's Law school was denied entrance, even though she believes her grades and qualifications were more adequate than those of other ethnic backgrounds. Read the story here.

Appears that some people are actually allergic to Disney.

A man hacked the Al Quaida website in fascinating fashion. It seems like a nice slap in the face, but at the same time I'm almost wondering if they should have just kept it a secret so they could try and monitor its activity.

Finally, some new trailers have hit the web, including the full trailer for the upcoming action flick Ballistic: Ecks Vs. Sever. Cheesy name, but it looks like a classic shoot 'em up spy flick starring Antonio Banderas and Lucy Liu. Check it out here.

Friday linky linky. Clicky clicky.

All Maple
L'oreille
Digitally Grown
Machine
Bacardi DJ
WSK
Nate Maldonado
Grapefruits and Ties
Capoeira Fighter

Unfortunately, I will not be able to post a story until sometime this weekend, for now you'll just have to try and finish those haikus.

Screw you, Haiku!

Trashy, trashy trash
Trashing all the trashy trash
Trashed trashy trash trash

I'm digging my Free Will Horoscope today:

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
Looks like the Season of a Million Emotions hasn't wiped you out completely. Though it might be hard to tell because of the puddles of tears by your bed and the piles of ashes from your burnt offerings, you've managed to maintain a modicum of poise. I mean, you're not spitting into the wind and throwing stones at heaven while trying to dance naked on the roof with a hangover, right? That in itself is a sign you've escaped a trap you've always been a sucker for in the past. I bet that if you can just hold on to your sanity for another eight days or so, you'll finally graduate from the University of Senseless Pain, where you've been matriculating for way too long.

It's almost as if someone's been reading my mind. Can't wait to return to some semblance of normalcy. Who's to say that I've been living in such deep pain though? They make it sound like I've been gnashing and weeping every night before I go to bed.

In news today, three English people have been accused of cheating on the United Kingdom's version of "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" I don't think anyone's going to get outta this one unscathed. It's like when a group of people get caught cheating on a test. You think to yourslelf, "Why didn't I think of that?" and then you realize, oh yea, it's because I'm too smart. Alas, Click here for the story.

The fallout from the Microsoft anti-trust case has brought some interesting developments. Particularly their agreement to make some of their code public. Not like I really get into this all that much, but I know at least one of you out there wants to "look under the hood."

New Jersey isn't exactly the most pleasant of places. Looks like it got a whole lot worse.

And if you though that Destiny's Child singer, Beyonce, was too young to be acting how she does, then she just got one-upped by her younger sister, Solange. Don't get any ideas, she's 15.

Lastly, if you've never seen the sketch comedy show "The State" then you missed out on a classic piece of comedy. They took more risks than "Saturday Night Live," they were more talented than any of the pretenders on "Mad TV," and they are definitely as edgy as those guys on "The Kids in the Hall." Now you can catch up to the madness at StateMedia, a website featuring links and tons of videos of their best sketches. Before you start saying, "Now why were they so good if the show got cancelled?" you must know that MTV notoriously devises shows that are made to be replaced. If these shows gain any form of obscene popularity, the morons in corporate try to make it have that genuine MTV smell. Just imagine, Carson Daly might actually not be the big tool that MTV makes him seem. On that note, "I'm outta hee-eeeeeeeere."

Today you are going to meet a guy named Frank Cho. Frank hapens to be an illustrator/cartoonist who regularly pumps out the strip "Liberty Meadows" which is also published by Image Comics. His brand of humor borders on peurile, but it's better than the space occupied by the Family Circus. Check out his stuff when you have a chance. The art section on his website is run rampant with apes, scantily clad women, and some genuine artistry.

Monday madness. The weekend was wrapped with a nice mushy tortilla-like substance and smothered in enchilada sauce. Sounds quite tasty to me, but I think others may have found it a bit messy. No matter, news is the task at hand, read and reread to your heart's content.

Go out and see Signs right now, I command you. M. Night Shyamalan once agan crafts a deliberate and methodical film that somehow grabs your attention in this MTV-edited world. Being different is good since his movie grabbed large sums of cash over the weekend. Glad to see it happen, since I really like his unique style of storytelling and his penchant for making old genres seem new. In my opinion, subtlety is the key.

A 61 year-old man was attacked by a cougar and killed it with his pocketknife. For some reason I can picture this guy thinking he's invincible while he's in his hospital bed. But what about that poor cougar's family? I'm sure he just went out for a stroll...

I know at least one of you is going to be interested in this article. Security experts at the Defcon conference in Las Vegas showed attendees how to use a Dreamcast to hack into networks. Finally, the dreamcast is good for something rather than playing outdated fighting games.

Also, the Marriott was sued for carrying hardcore porn on their pay-per-view services. Looks like someone we know won't be staying at the Marriott anytime soon...

Scientists have discovered how cancer spreads throughout the body. Coupled with other recent discoveries, it becomes moer and more apparent that the cure for cancer may be found within our lifetime. Whoever said there are no significant scientific discoveries in our lifetime is not seeing the big picture here.

Finally in an interesting bit, Japanese Manga legend Kia Asamiya will be taking over the art chores on Marvel Comics' "Uncanny X-Men." Here's some small preview art, but read the article for some additional art as well as more in-depth coverage. Kinda cool that we have a crossover between cultures. I wonder if it'll set a precedent for more Eastern artists to try their hand at American comic icons.

I've decided Friday's will not be exlusively Flash-based links, but may include some artistry as well. Have some fun with them.

Design For Freedom
Type Organism
Heavy Rotation
Normal Natural
Intersection
A Medicine For Apathy
Guillotine Game
Threadless T-shirts

By the way, don't forget that it's Photoshop Phriday. And if you already didn't know, Guess what time it is!

Since people enjoyed the experiment so much, it returns...

Better

I thought I could make it better…

After we came to the cabin. It occurred to me that we’d forgotten something vital. For the life of me I couldn’t remember what it was I was looking for. Or what was missing. I’d picked her up late, so it must have been something I missed in my haste.

It started as a simple argument, but escalated tremendously. You know, one of those heated discussions where you can’t remember what you were angry about? One of those arguments where there’s something else wrong? We’d missed each other by moments. I’d mistakenly thought that she was supposed to meet me outside of the terminal and waited for her in the garage - at the wrong airport.

Her hands told me she was angry. They’re like an extension of her feelings, but she never reacted with violence. Like a manic hurricane of nervousness, she threw them about, but it was more like extreme emphasis. I tried to hold them, to calm her down with my touch, but she brushed them aside and I died a little.

We talked aggressively, giving no verbal quarter. Snipping out of bitterness and agitation. What she said to me did not hurt as much as the effects my statements had on her. Epithets streamed from our mouths with reckless abandon, escaping our minds before we could think about what we were saying. I always knew that she could bring out the best in me, but it follows that she could also bring out the worst. How we made such a commotion over a simple misunderstanding was evidence of something more; something amiss from our ardor.

Her eyes were always so passionate. It was a torrent of daggers at times, but I could still see the obvious hurt. Trembling with frustration, but still exuding confidence. Their deep brown paralyzed me, but my own eyes blurred with confusion over the row. She’d brush her hair out of her eyes with her slender hands, and I’d fall in love all over again.

I remember waiting for her, being so afraid something had occurred. Afraid something happened on the flight. I walked around frantically looking for her. I had her paged to no avail. Unfortunately, my mistake wasn’t apparent for an hour’s time.

Hot tears streamed from my eyes as I drove home cursing myself for stupidity. Moronic I believed myself to be and even worse is how she made me feel for what I had done, and for things I had no knowledge of.

She yelled and looked at me with dismay. On the verge of tears and with her voice quivering she looked so forlorn. I told her it was ok, because she was there with me now. I told her it was ok to be angry, our anger was born from our feelings for each other. I told her even though I knew it was wrong to believe so, for the damage was irreparable and a chasm had been excavated fiercely through our ire.

I thought I could make it better, but all I remember is her voice drifting off like satin sheets moving wistfully in a light breeze. Blowing away while our tears intermingled on the pillow and the love evaporated from our lives.

How're you, Haiku?

Hearts apart, in love.
They feel each other's closeness
Miles across the sea.