The Evolution of the Pocket Protector: Thomas Pink's iPod Necktie, Nerdy No More

By Gendy Alimurung
From: http://blogs.laweekly.com/

Is this nerdy, or isn't it? I honestly can't decide. It's a necktie that holds an iPod Nano, essentially a less dorky version of the quintessential old school nerd pocket protector. Note that the colors correspond with the iPod colors. It's called "The Commuter Tie," and is made by Thomas Pink of London. Their site says, "The music player is placed in the pocket to avoid having expensive devices on display or damaging the line of one's suit."

Avoid damaging the line of one's suit? Okay, maybe it's not nerdy. Maybe it's just gay.

I suppose the next step up from this would be a necktie that holds an iPhone. The tie would have to get bigger, or the iPhone would have to get smaller.

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The Thomas Pink Commuter Ties cost 55 pounds sterling. Or, for around four U.S. bucks, there's always these, from PocketProtectors.com. One even has a built-in badge holder. Kurt Lammon, the guy who founded PocketProtectors.com says he started the site "because, one day, after many years of daily use, I realized that my faithful old protector was starting to look very tired. I made several efforts to locate another good one at the major retail outlets and drug stores, but to no avail." He has since shipped thousands of pocket protectors all over the world. Awesome.

"The Invisible"

​"Go totally incognito with the totally clear Invisible." It's their most popular model. And yes, so incognito! Why, I don't notice it at all.

"The Stealth"

​ "The Stealth," which "hides discretely (sic) in your pocket."

"The Badge Holder"

​"The Badge Holder" for those who need to hold badges. Obviously.

'Iron Man 2' poster featuring Whiplash

Paramount revealed a new one-sheet for "Iron Man 2," this one all about Mickey Rourke as Whiplash. With the dark hues and the glowing chest and whips, the poster continues the overcast mood of the campaign with the only light coming from charged armor.

The whips kind of remind me of bendable lightsabres. They look pretty cool.

Permalink

Santa Brings Strippers To Storefront Windows

By Susan Elaine Cooper

Santa Claus has something for everyone this Christmas, even those that made the naughty list. It seems the clothing brand XOXO had a promotion that involved women changing their clothes day and night in front of a crowd of spectators on New York’s 5th Avenue.

There were two beautiful young women that paraded around like the store window was their bedroom, doing playful things like jumping on the bed, brushing each others hair and even zipping each other up. The crowd, mostly male, shouted to them to get their attention, and even wrote notes to them, however the women were trained to ignore the crowd. This led the men to believe the women could not see them, making this event even more voyeuristic.

Holiday windows have always been an attraction in New York, but this “Christmas” window display literally stole all the traffic from even the very popular Macy’s window. The crowd response was mixed from the women, some saw it as too much for a street view, feeling it should have been restricted from general public viewing. Some women, however were inspired enough by the window to start their own public display of affection with a passionate kiss. One report was made to police, however the officers did not interfere with the successful holiday campaign.

While the holiday window seems to have been a success, their social media campaign was more of a bust (no pun intended). A twitter account was set up at @WatchMeXOXO which only yielded 324 followers, and their Facebook account that has more than 13,000 fans only received one or two likes on each post about the event.

What do you think? Was this a powerful social promotion or is it closer to “street corner” behavior?

The Most Elaborate Gingerbread Houses in the U.S.

By Ariel Schwartz
From: http://blogs.sfweekly.com/foodie/

Gingerbread houses are good for two things: eating and ogling. And while it's fun to get a sugar rush from sloppy homemade concoctions, some gingerbread houses are just too beautiful ― or too weird ― to eat. Allow us to present some of the most ogle-worthy gingerbread houses out there. Try not to eat through your computer monitor.

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8. Earthship Lollipop

This ultra-green gingerbread house, designed by Khai Foo and Elise Young, has rammed-icing walls, a gum-paste roof membrane, sugar solar panels, and edible windmills. According to its designers, the Earthship Lollipop is the first LEAD (Leadership in Edible Architectural Design) gingerbread house. And this tongue-in-cheek example of green architecture can be yours ― if you're willing to pay more than the current highest bid of $50.99

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7. SantaBucks
Cheesy? Yes, but it's hard to begrudge Maryanne Garcia for her Christmas-themed take on Starbucks. The design won first place in the "Authentic Reproduction of a Significant Building" category at Peddlers Village's annual gingerbread house competition.



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6. Gingerbread White House
This 56- by 29-inch monster of a gingerbread house, constructed by White House pastry chef Bill Yosse, contains 140 pounds of gingerbread coated with 250 pounds of white chocolate. Enough said.


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5. Life-Size Gingerbread House
The Ritz Carlton in Greensboro, Ga., might win the prize for biggest gingerbread house, with a mammoth model that measures 9 feet tall and 14 feet wide. Some fun facts about the house: it contains 720 eggs, 346 pounds of sugar, 26 pounds of gingerbread spice, 800 pounds of gumdrops, and 400 pounds of icing.

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4. Christmas Island
Why build a gingerbread house when you can build a whole village --or in this case a whole island. This design, which was an entrant in the 2009 Grove Park Inn National Gingerbread Competition, is painstakingly detailed ― from the inside of each of the homes to the inhabitants of the island.


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3. The Biltmore
Another entrant in the National Gingerbread Competition, this gingerbread mansion is a reproduction of Asheville, North Carolina's Biltmore House. We still prefer to think of it as Hogwarts in miniature.

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2. Gingerbread Castle
Arizona may not have snow, but it does, apparently, have lots of gingerbread. This castle, created by the pastry team at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort and Spa, took 400 hours to make and used 500 pounds of gingerbread dough.

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1. The Disney Version
What is it with hotels and gingerbread houses? This life-size gingerbread house at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort is so big that it has an actual bake shop operating inside. The whole thing took 400 hours to bake and 160 hours to decorate ― presumably, by a very large team of Disney elves.

The Christmas Season: By the Numbers

by: BillShrink Guy

From: http://www.billshrink.com/

‘Tis the season for Christmas trees, lights and gifts, and in the past that has also meant the season of outrageous spending. While the holidays may not be cheap, hard times sometimes call for desperate measures and drastic budget changes. Here’s a look at the hard facts and numbers of this most wonderful time of the year.

(click to enlarge)

Chad Ochocinco Changing His Last Name Yet Again

Posted By Glenn S. Moore

Oh boy. If NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell thought Chad Ochocinco’s name changing days were over, he has another thing coming.

Ochocinco announced on his live USTREAM broadcast Sunday morning that he will be legally changing his last name to “Hachi Go” next season.

“Hachi Go” is Japanese for 8 - 5.

While cooking breakfast, only six hours before his Cincinnati Bengals took on the Detroit Lions, he held up a custom made Cincinnati Bengals jersey with “Hachi Go” on the back.

“I’m not sure how Mr. Goodell is going to take it,” Ochocinco said as he held up the jersey.

But why “Hachi Go”?

A Japanese film crew was in town a couple weeks ago to do a piece on the Bengals for a NFL show over there. They said all NFL fans in Japan know who Chad Ochocinco is and they seriously made a proposal to Chad to change his last name to “Hachi Go”.

“Some fans of mine that are Japanese said I should change my last name to ‘Hachi Go’.”

He legally changed his name to Chad Javon Ochocinco on August 29, 2008. The Cincinnati Bengals decided to allow him to have it on the back of his jersey, though Ochocinco continued to wear his old “C. Johnson” jersey during the 2008 football season, due to contractual obligations with Reebok. He has played with “Ochocinco” on the back of his jersey since the 2009 preseason. He wanted it to read “Ocho Cinco” but the NFL will only allow his legal name as spelled on his name change paperwork.

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Couple Gets Married on Ostriches

The FACTS about Bottled Water

Presented by Online Education

'Pee-Wee's Playhouse: The Movie' Is Incoming, And We've Got Story Details

From: http://moviesblog.mtv.com/

by Larry Carroll

For my money, 1985’s “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” remains one of the funniest, most endearing depictions of childhood silliness ever captured on camera. Now, the man with the high-pitched laugh and bowtie is finally back – and dishing exclusive details on his recently-completed screenplay for “Pee-Wee’s Playhouse: The Movie.”

“Boy, I sure hope [it gets made]. Yeah, we’re going to [do it],” explained an energetic (is there any other kind?) Pee-Wee Herman when I interviewed him in character on Monday. “I’m going to make a movie based on my kids show. Based on ‘Pee Wee’s Playhouse.’”

Over the last few years, fans of veteran funnyman Paul Reubens have heard rumblings that he was feeling out the studios to see if they’d be willing to bring the world’s oldest little boy back to the big-screen for a third movie following Tim Burton’s “Adventure” and the 1988 spiritual sequel “Big Top Pee-wee.” Rumors were that he had two competing ideas: A darker adult one he’d call “The Pee-wee Herman Story” or a PG-friendly one based on his classic Saturday morning show. Well, the second idea won out – and now, the script is finished.

“It’s already done, the script is already fully written; It’s ready to shoot,” explained Pee-wee in his trademark style. “It’s ready to shoot tomorrow. Oh wait, not tomorrow! I’m not available tomorrow. I had a conflict, forgot.”

These days, Pee-wee is actually quite busy putting the final touches on “The Pee-wee Herman Show,” a live multimedia stage production that runs at L.A.’s Club Nokia for several weeks beginning January 12th. If those dates go well, Reubens hopes it will show Hollywood that moviegoers would pay to see a “Playhouse” flick that would have Pee-wee and such old friends as Jambi the genie and Magic Screen leaving the playhouse after one of their own goes missing.

“[Will we be] going out into the real world in the movie?” Pee-wee explained, answering a question about the script. “It’s not really the real world, it’s Puppetland. On ‘Pee Wee’s Playhouse,’ on the television series we never left the playhouse, we were always inside the playhouse.”

“The movie is all out of the playhouse,” he revealed. “There are two scenes in the playhouse, but the rest is out of the playhouse.”

Once out in Puppetland, Pee-wee said, the group will encounter all sorts of eccentric new characters. “Yeah,” he said of new friends, who could possibly be created via Claymation, a la Penny or Large Marge or the food often glimpsed in Pee-Wee’s fridge back in the day. “But I can’t really tell anything about the movie at this time; it’s pretty much top-secret in Hollywood.”

So, if Pee-wee’s stage show goes well, keep your ears out for more news on “Pee-wee’s Playhouse: The Movie.” “It’s a catchy title,” he said with a grin. “It was catchier than ‘Dukes of Hazzard: The Movie.’ Plus, that was already taken.”

Are you eager to see Pee-wee on the big-screen again?

2010 World Cup to be Telecast in 3-D

By Brett Zarda

Green Point Stadium, South Africa FIFA

While FIFA made the unfortunate call yesterday to pass on TV replay capability for the upcoming World Cup, there will still be new broadcast technology unveiled this summer in South Africa. According to FIFA, up to 25 games from the competition will be filmed using Sony 3-D technology. There are no specific plans for broadcasting the 3-D games live, but it remains a possibility. And a compilation of footage will be turned into a feature-length film after the World Cup.

The announcement is the highest-profile appearance yet in what's been a steady trend towards 3-D technology for sports. From the live rugby battle between England and Scotland, to the NBA all-star game we reported on last year, to the announcement from SkyTV in England that it will launch a dedicated 3-D channel, get used to wearing goofy glasses (though some versions of the tech, sadly, won't require spectacles).

How Sony's 3-D Broadcast Works: Sony

So let us get this right: with thousands of hooligans gathered in South Africa, FIFA might now have 3-D footage of the next Ireland/France-Thierry Henry-handball-controversy, but will only use it for its highlight reel? Brilliant.

Four Hanukkahs

Four Hanukkahs is a parody of the movie Four Christmases. For more information visit: www.FourHanukkahs.com

Watch in normal quality if audio and video are out of sync in HD. (Youtube's HD is experiencing technical difficulties.)


Written by Julie Marsh, Dan Schoffer, Rodman Spilling & Steven Wolkoff

Produced by Julie Marsh, Dan Schoffer, Rodman Spilling & Steven Wolkoff

Directed by Steven Wolkoff
Motion Graphics, Additional Camera & Lighting by Rodman Spilling

Edited by Steven Wolkoff & Rodman Spilling

Starring:
Dan Schoffer as Avi

Laurel Reese as Sarah

Amy McRae as Avis Mother

Martin Dusig as Avis Grandfather

Gertrude Dubrow as Avis Grandmother

James Young as Sarahs Father

Michael Rachlis as Aaron Schwartz

Jamie McRae as Maya

Jackie McRae as Dreidel Singer

Rodman Spilling as Avis Brother

Eli Margolis as Menorah Slinging Kid

Hidekun Hah as The Dreidel Roulette Master

Voiceover by Rob Steinberg

Additional Appearances by Emily Margolis, Andrea Spilling, Julie Marsh, Samantha Reed & Yael McRae

Special Thanks to The McRae Family, Andrea Spilling, Margaret Sheridan, GirlProps.com & Alan Hysinger

"Hava Na Wha?" Song provided by Etan G www.TheJewishRapper.com

Van Damme Friday - Happy Hannukkah!!!

Why those hamburgers on TV look so good

A segment from the popular series "Buy Me That." We'll meet a "makeup artist for food," who surprises us all with this behind-the-scenes look at how burgers (and fries) are made to look
their best for television.

KNEEL BEFORE ZOD OR FOREVER HOLD YOUR PEACE

from: http://gammasquad.uproxx.com/

Get ready to cringe, folks. When the Burgers got married, some surprise guests showed up to reenact a scene from Superman II. Only a few members of the wedding party and the groom were in on it:

From the anonymous woman who sent me the video:
“This is the wedding reception of my husband’s best friend. My husband is Lex Luthor. The bride had no idea this was going to happen.” [GreatWhiteSnark]

I give it about 3 more years till every argument ends with, “Well at least I didn’t turn our special day into a Richard Donner cosplay convention, superdork.” And then he’ll say, “You said you like surprises!” And then she’ll say, “But I meant surprise me by bringing home Bill from the office for a threesome.”

Classic WWE Moments: Macho Man Randy Savage Interviews

This week in WWE classic moments, TPS profiles the one and only Macho Man Randy Savage. Known for his flashy outfits, his beautiful manager Elizabeth, and his patented elbow drop from the top ropes, Savage’s Macho Man persona quickly became one of the wwe’s top draws of the late 80’s and early 90’s.

Savage was one of, if not the most, charismatic wrestlers of his time. He was a two time WWE champion, a onetime intercontinental champion, and a four time WCW champion. Even with all these accomplishment in the ring, fans may have truly loved the Macho Man for his out of ring charisma.

Here is a montage of classic Macho Man Randy Savage interviews showcasing what the Macho Madness was all about.

Surf's up as biggest waves in five years come to Hawaii after North Pacific storm

By Daily Mail Reporter

Thousands of spectators and surfers are flocking to Hawaii's beaches to see the biggest waves in years crash ashore.

Heavy traffic backed up for miles yesterday along roads leading to Oahu's North Shore. Some of the world's most daring surfers took on the powerful and dangerous waves, which forecasters say could reach heights of 50ft (15 metres) by tomorrow.

The surf grew so large that a few beaches on Oahu and Maui were closed because lifeguards feared inexperienced sightseers could drown, according to state officials.

Two surfers ride a huge wave at Waimea Bay on the north shore of Oahu in Haleiwa, Hawaii, yesterday

'After the water comes in, it can drag you back out with it,' said Eric Basta, a manager at Surf N Sea in Haleiwa. 'Be mindful of how powerful the surf really is.'

As violent as the waves were, they are expected to growth in strength, according to the National Weather Service. The high waves are expected to continue throughout Wednesday.

A legendary big wave surfing contest, the Quicksilver in Memory of Eddie Aikau, may be held today for the first time since 2004 if waves reach a minimum of 40 feet (12 meters), organisers said. The event is only held in perfect conditions, and the waves weren't quite big or smooth enough on Monday.

'The swell energy is continuing to grow, and the waves may get larger,' said Robert Ballard, a forecaster for the National Weather Service. 'A large storm over the North Pacific has sent a wave train at us.'

Hawaii hasn't seen such large waves since 2004 or 1998, he said. Teams of tow-in surfers - who use jet watercraft to race into waves too big to paddle - are flying to Maui from Brazil, South Africa and Australia, The Honolulu Advertiser reported.

The Quicksilver in Memory of Eddie Aikau surf contest was postponed because the surf did not reach the 30-40 foot wave high requirement yesterday

But forecasters say waves could reach heights of 50 feet (15 meters) by tomorrow, with plans to hold the surf contest today

Professional surfer Reef McIntosh expertly navigates the waters

A large storm over the North Pacific has resulted in bringing what are expected to be the biggest waves to Hawaii in five years

The surf grew so large that a few beaches on Oahu and Maui were closed because lifeguards feared inexperienced sightseers could drown

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1234047/Surfs-biggest-waves-years-come-Hawaii-North-Pacific-storm.html#ixzz0ZKMS2aJf

Prisoner dupes guards, grows pot in cell

From: http://www.upi.com/

PORTLAND, England, Dec. 7 (UPI) -- A British prisoner convinced guards his marijuana plants were tomato plants -- and they even allowed him to decorate one as a Christmas tree, a source said.

Mohamed Jalloh, 28, of Brent, North London, grew his pot plants at Verne Prison in Portland, Dorset, in southern England, and for five months, guards admired his gardening, The Sun reported Saturday.

But after another inmate told guards what the plants really were, they checked out photos of marijuana plants on the Internet, and the jig was up.

"You could see the plants from the grounds, as his cell looks on to the education department and communal outside area," a source said. "They were on show for the world to see."

Jalloh is serving eight years for supplying drugs.

© 2009 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Crazy Asian Nunchuk World Champion

fandome.com — Now this is what you call mastery of a skill.....

The Most Psychedelic Lake on Earth

From: http://www.environmentalgraffiti.com/

Looks like a painting, doesn’t it?
Image via bored-bored

The Spotted Lake near the city of Osoyoos in British Columbia, right at the Washington state border, is not the result of someone’s too vivid imagination but of the many different mineral deposits found in it: The lake is rich in calcium, sodium and magnesium sulphate (Epsom salts) and even silver and titanium. It is called Kliluk by the Okanagan Indians who have known of the lake’s therapeutic powers for generations.

The lake changes colour throughout the year and therefore is beautiful to look at in any season. But it is only in the summer from about June to mid September that the lake water level lowers due to evaporation and reveals the “walkways” and different pools, the lake’s “spots.” Osoyoos in fact means “narrowing of the waters” in the Okanagan language.

Like a giant painter’s palette full of greens:

Image via spotcoolstuff

Image via yousaytoo

Beautiful silver composition:

Image: Tim Gage

The region around Osoyoos Lake is one of Canada’s hottest areas, with summer temperatures reaching 38 degrees Celsius (100 Fahrenheit) regularly. No wonder it is known for its vineyards and recreational appeal, letting the town’s population of around 5,000 increase quite a bit during the summer months. Especially pensioners value the relatively milder winters and hot summers – the average age of Oyosoos’ population is 59 years!

Like moon craters:

Image via yousaytoo

The lake reflecting the cloud cover:

Image via atlasobscura

For the First Nations’ tribes, Spotted Lake was always a sacred site known for its healing powers, which they would use to cure ailments like warts, skin diseases, body aches and battle wounds. In the early 20th century, the lake and the land surrounding it became the property of Ernest Smith and his family who had the idea in the ‘70s to capitalise on it and build a spa.

Looks like an amoeba:

Image via VisionBeTa

This would have meant digging and heavy commercialisation of the area; a fact the Native Indians were not happy with. For more than 20 years since 1979, they tried buying the lake and its surroundings but reached a compromise with the Smith family only in 2001: For several hundred thousand dollars, they bought 22 hectares, paid for partly by the First Nations and party by the Indian Affairs Department.

During WWI, the lake’s minerals were even used to make ammunition!

Image: Andrew Enns

Today, the Osoyoos Indian Reservation with its about 370 members is one of the only Indian Bands in British Columbia with virtually no unemployment, and self-sufficiency on the horizon. Spotted Lake is still private property that visitors can either admire from Highway 3 (8 km or 5.5 miles west of Osoyoos) or at closer range after obtaining permission from the Okanagan tribe.

Here’s the view from Highway 3:

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Wireworld's Platinum Starlight HDMI cable is only $1,000, better than your HDMI cable

By Paul Miller
From: http://www.engadget.com/

You idiot. Where did you buy those cables? Walmart? You probably think you're getting the whole 1080p, don't you! Boy, you couldn't be more wrong. What the big box doesn't want you to know, with their cheap-ass $150 cables is that there are, um, waves and some, uh... electromagnetic spectrats. And they eat your pixels! Yeah, that's right! Pixel-eating EM spectrats! Not even making this stuff up. How much did you spend on that TV? $1,000? You did buy that $1,800 power cable from Furutech, right? Well, don't you think you should spend at least that much on the all-important cables that are going to funnel the dynamic 1080p transmissions from your Blu-ray player to your TV? Here, try this Platinum Starlight HDMI cable from Wireworld. It has a patent-pending DNA Helix conductor design formed by the gods themselves out of 24 solid silver conductors. Hell, $1,000 is probably a bargain for one of these one meter cables. Your eyes are worth it, after all. You're welcome.