The End.

It's the last day of 2007, and I'm wishing all my readers all the very best in the new year.
My last post of the year will be a bit of a cop out.
I hate most commercials, so when people do parodies I generally think they're pretty funny.
The commercials I currently hate are the "Whopper Freak Out" ads.

That's why I find Whopper Freak Out: The Ghetto Version funny (NSFW)




Found at YesButNoButYes

I know this was posted here before, but it's too beautiful not to post again...

Sunday Click Around

I've linked to The Pioneers of Striptease before, but it's worth linking to again. You know who's missing from that list? Chesty Morgan. I met her once, She had some great stories...all told in a Polish accent.

While we're on Strippers, what would be next other than Pin Ups?
Here is the art of Gil Elvgren, and Edward Runci...as well as some girlie postcards.

Christopher Huet, Professional retouch artist...the photos are pretty fantastic.

How to walk like a runway model...you know, in case you're asked to stand in during Fashion Week.

Speaking of models, Heather Kuzmich was a contender for "America's Next Top Model", and I read that she got pretty far...I've never seen an entire episode, because...well, I don't care...but had I known that Heather had Asperger's, I totally would have watched, until she was voted off.

This church compilation made me laugh.

I have a girlfriend who has a potty mouth. When I say that, I mean that all of her conversation is peppered with the "F" word...and you know when they say that cuss words are filler for people who don't have a good vocabulary? That's not her...so, why she swears so much is a mystery. That's why I thought this guy's vlog was funny.

I love the art of Gustav Klimt, and here's a lovely website about his life and work....and a very expensive sea house in Ibiza that is for sale, called Klimt House.

Cats just talkin' on the phone.

Celebrity Face Lift is a site where you can do your own pretend plastic surgery.
While we're talking about plastic surgery, it's hard to believe that anyone would enter a contest to be Miss Ugly get plastic surgery....but then, we did have The Swan.

Here are some of the most dangerous roads in the world.

Here is someones opinion of the worst songs of 2007. Frankly, I didn't even notice most of them over the year.

I've linked to this before, but this kid has resurfaced recently: The Evil Eye.

If any of you remember I posted links to Catherine Tate in a previous click around, I can't find the Tempura skit...but I did find a newer one about Shitake Mushrooms.

Life in Drag, Special Poetry Slam...if you look on the sidebar, you can find many other recitals of poetry from The Special Poetry Slam.

Pizdaus, the pictures we like. For anyone who speaks Serbo-Croatian, the name "Pizdaus" is giggle inducing.

CBC News Sunday just did a short little expose on the Freedom Rider's Reunion.
For those of us who grew up in the urban north after The Civil Rights Movement, we don't really appreciate what people went through to secure those civil rights.
The idea that in many places, it would have been illegal for The Mister and me to marry...a mere 40 years ago, is hard to even imagine.
The fact that many of The Freedom Riders are still alive says it all.
Here are a few profiles of some of them.
Here is what comes up on Google Images when you type in The Freedom Riders.
God bless every single last one of them.

That's all.

This boy's story breaks my heart...

Marriage Confidential

Radmila: "How was your day?"
The Mister: "Ok."
Radmila: "Did anything interesting happen?"
The Mister: "Uh-uh"

Two hours later:
Radmila: "Whatcha doin'?"
The Mister: "Watching basketball"

45 minutes later:
Radmila: "Am I buggin' you?"
The Mister: "Yep"

12:15am, in bed

The Mister: "are you sleeping?"

Radmila: "Trying to"

The Mister: "Benazir Bhutto was assassinated. She was pretty bold, eh? She ran the Pakistan Peoples Party, a centre-left political party in Pakistan affiliated to the Socialist International. She was the first woman elected to lead a Muslim state, having been twice elected Prime Minister of Pakistan. She was sworn in for the first time in 1988 at the age of 35, but was removed from office 20 months later under the order of then-president Ghulam Ishaq Khan on grounds of alleged corruption. In 1993 Bhutto was re-elected but was again removed in 1996 on similar charges, this time by President Farooq Leghari.

Bhutto went into self-imposed exile in Dubai in 1998, where she remained until she returned to Pakistan on 18 October 2007, after reaching an understanding with President Musharraf by which she was granted amnesty and all corruption charges were withdrawn.

She was the eldest child of former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, a Pakistani of Sindhi descent, and Begum Nusrat Bhutto, a Pakistani of Iranian-Kurdish descent. Her paternal grandfather was Sir Shah Nawaz Bhutto, who came to Larkana Sindh before partition from his native town of Bhatto Kalan, which was situated in the Indian state of Haryana.

She was assassinated on 27 December 2007, by two gunmen as she was entering her sport utility vehicle after a gathering of the Pakistan People's Party. Shortly thereafter, a suicide bomber exploded in the crowd, killing 14 people and injuring many others. On December 28 it was announced that a member of Al-Qaeda was believed to have masterminded the attack (wiki)."

Radmila, wide awake.

Snoring from the other side of the bed.

Things that bug me: Episode 9,347

Back seat video players.
I know.
I know.

I know you don't want to deal with the kids arguing and all that incessant talking.

...and I understand if you're driving to Montreal, or Vancouver...but if you're driving to Granny's house 20 minutes away, can't your kids just look out the window and pay attention to the world that's spinning around them?
I dunno...maybe think about something.
Ponder?
Perhaps use their imagination a bit?

Do they have to be entertained 24/7?
There is some value and merit in learning to just sit with your own thoughts.
Who knows?
A kid might learn to entertain themselves.
Perhaps learn to converse.

God forbid.

Jews II Men

Posted Dec 19, 2007

Tyra learns that two of the members of Boyz II Men have converted to Judaism. And then she makes a joke.

Tyra Banks is stupid.

【Trans-Siberian Orchestra】
Christmas Eve Sarajevo



Found at Ectoplasmosis.

(Reminds me a bit of early Bijelo Dugme)

Sunday Click Around

The Picture to your left was taken by Piika in Spain. We got to calling him Mr. Fez. This little sculpture graced the door of someone's house. Mr. Fez appears to scrutinize anyone coming to visit from above the doorway. The reason I thought about Mr. Fez was because I saw this link to Intriguing Doors.

Boys will be boys...because if anyone is going to be in denial, your mother will be.

Would you like to learn how to save YouTube video clips on your computer?

Here are 10 Weird Psychological Studies....personally, I'm waiting to see how #2 pans out for me...and number 8 had to be initiated by a guy.

If anyone has ever doubted that being loved makes you glow, look at these before and after photos of adopted Russian children.

A Bitter Film, is a perfect example of how people feel when they've had some negative experiences with love. I'm not saying that the filmmaker hates women...I'm just sayin'.

A French Spanking blog. No. Seriously. I can't remember where I got this, but it was from a long list of links a person had on their blog.

Bible Rap...kinda funny. I think I might have linked to it before.

Didier Massard is a Photographer who does movie sets...I think. Some pretty interesting photos there.

Fashion Ads from Ebony Magazine 1970-76...is...I have no words. The seventies have to have had the most bizarre fashion ideas ever....ok, next to powdered wigs, tights and high heels for men....no wait...THIS has to be the most ridiculous outfit of ALL TIME...

Error 404 - File not found....a passive aggressive little ditty....speaking of passive aggressive, here's Passive Aggressive Notes. I've linked to this before, but it's just too good.

Found Magazine is along the same lines, and I found it on the Passive Aggressive link bar.

This Heineken commercial makes me laugh.

This animation is very Second Life-ish...even the music and sound effects.

Mascara Speed Painting...pretty amazing.

There is no such thing as an old junkie.

Let's have an 80's moment: Straight Up - Paula Abdul (with an Arsenio Hall cameo), Rapper's Delight - The Sugarhill Gang, and Glamorous Life - Sheila E.

A great simple and clean little Russian animation; The Wind Along the Coast.

...and last but not least, from Square America (I LOVE Square America) - The Party.
Found photos of some weirdo, strange party back in the late '60's? Early '70's.
Seriously, can you imagine these resurfacing 40 years later?

That's all

Sour Cherry and Apple Crumble Pie at Papamo

and...



Pepperpot at Papamo

Cellphone Tales

I've had the same cellphone number for a very long time.
But, that doesn't change the fact that I still get wrong numbers from time to time.

Some of them have been pretty funny.
Like the time I was in a grocery store and my phone rang.
I answered, and the person said in Serbian:

"Pa, gde si? Vec te nema 3 stata"
(Where are you? You've been gone for 3 hours!)

I was confused for a second, for obvious reasons...when he realized he had the wrong number, we both laughed and hung up.

Another time, I got a text from someone named "Richie".
The text was a long message about how we met last night and that he couldn't "get over" me. That he was at the airport and to please call him...pleasepleaseplease.

Just for fun, I texted that I was married and not the cheatin' kind.

He texted back that he figured that was the case, but that I should still call him.

I called to put him out of his misery...I left a message telling him that he had the wrong number...that I wasn't the person he was looking for.

He called back and left a long message telling me that I didn't have to pretend, it was ok...he was boarding a plane to Vancouver and just wanted one last conversation before he left.

I shook my head...

Then, my phone rang again and it was him....talking to me for a few seconds helped him to realize that I wasn't Anastasia or Annabella...or whatever her name was.
...and we both laughed. He was one number off.

Have you ever had a strange wrong number on your cell?

What are "Human Rights"?

I always thought that human rights were about discrimination.
You know....the right to rent an apartment, get a job, and be protected from discrimination due to race, religion, or sexual orientation.

It would be foolish to assume that people in power don't skirt the law by behaving in a politically correct manner...while still discriminating.
Finding loopholes or other excuses for not giving someone a job, or an apartment, or any number of things.

Opportunists are resourceful, and always have been.

I suppose that once the commission was formed, jobs
appointed...and discriminators properly scared shitless by the existence of the commission...clear cases became fewer and further between.
Meaning that perhaps, re-defining human rights is in order to justify it's existence.
Or maybe lines and logic become blurred when lawyers and bureaucrats get together to  feed at the trough of endless public money for tribunals.

Who knows?

I read this article by Ezra Levant on Censorship in the Name of Human Rights.

He says:

"Few human rights complaints still fall into those categories. A quick canvass of Alberta’s cases over the past few years, for example, reveals not a single complaint from someone denied rental housing based on race. The most common cases seem to be employees quitting over squabbles with other staff — a female back-hoe operator claimed her rights as a woman were violated for being called “honey” and other locker-room talk on a construction site; a male hair stylist claimed his rights were violated because the girls at salon school called him a “loser.” Another common complaint is sick or injured people being dismissed for not being able to do their jobs anymore, claiming that they have a “human right” not to be fired. In 2004, Albert’s Family Restaurant in Red Deer was ordered to pay $4,900 to a kitchen manager who was fired because she had contagious Hepatitis-C — illegal discrimination based on disability, said the commission."

This is something I'm confused about.
What about the "human rights" of all the customers and other employees of the restaurant who don't care to contract Hepatitis-C?

The guy in the hair salon school...was this really worth a tribunal?
Couldn't this be handled by Labour Board?
Or a stern talking to of staff and students during a meeting?
Is this what "human rights" have been boiled down to?

So, apparently...you can file a complaint with the commission if you're pissed off or unhappy...or if your feelings have been hurt by your employer.

Who knew?

Damn.
What's the statute of limitations on that shit?
I've got some filing to do.

Just for good measure, here's a horror story about how a hard working immigrants life was ruined by a hidden agenda, and the human rights commissions role in his financial and emotional ruin.

Tales of the Insecure and Screwed Up.

I read this article about Alycia Lane the TV Anchor Charged With Assaulting a NY Cop.

Now, I've never heard of Alycia Lane, but it sounds like she's pretty successful.
It never ceases to amaze me how some people manage to make a successful life for themselves, and then proceed to screw that shit up.

She was in the news just a few months ago for sending provocative photos of herself to married NFL Network Anchor Rich Eisen.
Photos which his wife intercepted, that were leaked to the media.


Good looking.
Smokin' body.
Successful Anchor.
...bad judgment in personal affairs.

Is it drug and/or alcohol problems?....Or just batshit crazy?

Is even bad publicity good publicity?
Even if you want people to take you seriously?

I'm shakin' my head.

Sunday Click Around

Remember how clever Sesame Street was?
I do, and there are a lot of Sesame Street songs that come back pretty quick when you hear them start up. Here's The Sesame Workshop, where you can watch lots of old Sesame Street clips..."C" is for Cookie, that's good enough for me....

Some strange photoshopped pictures that makes everyone in them look like anime characters.

This Japanese video of "The Village of Windmills" has a band at the end that sounds pretty similar to an Eastern European Gypsy Band.

Child labour in America. Some pretty great pictures.

Here's the Scottish Drink Test.

Porn for Girls. Not what you think.

Irish Bank Robbers...I thought it was funny.

Scottish Star Trek.

...and since it's coming on to Christmas....

Ok...I know this week the click around sucks, but I was sick as a dog all week long.
I've been on Buckley's all week, and I still haven't fully recovered.
I haven't been able to sit up long enough to find any good stuff.

SPECIAL NEWS REPORT: SNOW IN TORONTO

Should Animals Be Doing More For The Animal Rights Movement?

Mature Conversations that go on at our house:

Me: "I'm going upstairs to change"

The Mister: "Into what?"

Me: "Into a beyooootiful princess"

The Mister: (eye roll)

Sunday Click Around

The picture is from Dark Roasted Blends Collection of Chicks and Cars. Some great shots there...and while we're on Chicks in adverts, here are some old magazine ads that show you how far women have actually come in a relatively short time.
Let's face it, a hundred and fifty years ago, you could buy a wife...ok you can still buy a wife...never mind.

Since we're talking about politically incorrect things...last night I happened to catch the movie Blazing Saddles for the hundredth time. I was really, really pissed to realize that it had been edited. Entire sentences were removed....entire screamingly funny sentences!
Here is Madeline Khan's (Lilly VanShtup) performance of "I'm Tired" from the movie.

It got me thinking about all the old politically incorrect but hilarious movies, of which Blazing Saddles is one of the classics. Here is someone's list of politically incorrect movies.
While looking at that list, I was reminded of a scene in the movie Airplane.
A little while ago, a friend sent me an email with "You, as a little girl" in the subject line. This video was attached. Laugh? Yes, I did.

Last night I also saw a commercial featuring Cuba Gooding Jr. He makes me sad.
What happened to him? He had such promise.
He was making good choices in films...and then all of a sudden, he committed suicide, careerwise. Now, when I see him in anything that he made after "As Good as it Gets" (and that role wasn't great...just not horrific), I cringe.
Here's someone's open letter to Cuba Gooding Jr.

Ever wonder what Joe Piscopo looks like now?
Did you think that he would end up looking like the President of the Liza Minelli Fan Club?

Celebrity forclosures. Yeah, I had to look.

I know this child is way overweight for his 8 months...but holy crap! He's friggin' adorable! I could just squeeze him.

Skarabej is a website dedicated to old photos of the Eastern European sort. A pretty fascinating collection of photos. This photo reminded me of the people who lived across the street from my grandparents. They had the funeral coach in their yard. The top of which could always be seen above the Kapija. It was a thing of curiousity for me as a child.

After posting GGM's Indian Santa the other day...I went on a GGM search to find some of my favourites to post today.

Here they are:

The Queen is Indian.
Dance Like the Vind.
Very Bad.
Arranged Shag.
The 3 Wise Men were Indian.
English Wife.

Ok...that's just about all.

Look.

I'm sorry...but I absolutely had to.

No.
Really.

Laugh?
I thought I'd die.

Oldie but a goodie

So, there I was lined up at the bank in a certain neighbourhood, where there are lots of a certain nationality.

There was an elderly lady who was having trouble understanding the Teller, and the one Teller who was there that spoke her language was busy with another customer.
The elderly lady was getting frustrated because her Teller could only speak her language in a limited way.

There was a lady in line in front of me, who turned to me, shook her head, and said something to me in a language I can only assume was the language of the elderly lady.
I shrugged my shoulders, and didn't say anything.

When I got to the wicket, my Teller told me that the woman that spoke to me had been pissed off that there was only one person there who could speak the language.

Is it wrong of me to tell the Teller: "She's lucky anyone speaks her language in the bank...considering she's not banking in (the country of the language she spoke)"?

Listen, I'm all for multiculturalism, and making the effort to help those that don't speak the language...what I have a problem with is the expectation that everyone in that bank should speak it.

Back in the day, you had to make an effort to learn to speak English.
Apparently, you don't anymore.

Gilson Lubin



So, the other day, I linked to the above video of Toronto Comedian Gilson Lubin.
I thought his set on Comedy Now was so funny, that I wanted to see him live.
I went to his website, and found that the section giving us tour dates was out of date.

I used the "Contact" e-mail to inquire.

I was expecting some computer generated, cut and paste, auto-reply...with the obligatory "please do not reply to this e-mail" type thing.
To my surprise...Gilson himself replied.....and not just once.

Here are his upcoming appearances:

Dec 9th - Toronto
(Diesel Playhouse,
56 Blue Jay Way) - 416 971 5656
Dec 13th - 15th Montreal (Comedy Works on Bishop south of St. Catherines)
Dec 21st - Halifax (Gingers)

Now, I've got to see him live...what a mensch!

More Money Than Sense:
The 'Are you $&*#^@  serious?!?' Edition



It never ceases to amaze me what people will spend money on.
I'm not saying that people shouldn't live well if they have money, but there's a point when it becomes either just damn stupid or downright obscene.

If you remember a while ago I did this entry on Bling H20...designer water with Swarovski crystals clinking around on the bottom of the bottle...I think that this falls into the 'stupid' category.

...another that falls into the stupid family of things is hiring people to do stupid shit. Like hiring a Nameologist. That's right, for $350 you can hire someone to choose a name for you or someone that you love.
$350 is just cheap enough for aspiring idiots to engage in entry level frivolous spending.

How about building a catapult in your backyard?

How about putting Lamborghini doors on your Cavalier?

Once you get to the big leagues....here is Canadian Business Magazines'

"Top 10 must haves for today's multi-million dollar homes"

Elevator car lifts? Indoor car wash? Concierge?

Just in case you wanted to know how the other side lives....

Skeletons in the Washing Bucket

I was reminded the other day about second families... but, not the "blended" or "step" families that we're used to talking about.

I was thinking about past, or secret families.

Let me explain.

I remember when I was about 17, talking to a friend of my third stepmother, Nada.
Her friend Ljubica was a rather large woman, who was clearly of peasant stock.

She was in her 50's back then, and was loud, and masculine.
She smoked like a chimney, cursed like a Russian Sailor and sometimes sucked her silver eye tooth loudly...and she didn't give a crap if you didn't like it.

She looked like she could kick the shit out of a man...I was pretty sure she could, even though I had never seen it happen...but, she also had the biggest heart.
If she liked you, you could do no wrong and she lavished you with as many endearments as she did homemade pastries.
She was a brutally honest graduate of the Sledgehammer School of Etiquette.
I shouldn't say "was"...I think she's might still be alive and living in Scarborough somewhere.

Anyhow, Ljubica was a cleaning lady, and she did industrial cleaning for my father. One weekend (yeah, I tried working for my father for a bit) I was paired with her to clean some apartments in a new complex close to the A.G.O., and over lunch sitting on the floor of an empty apartment with the radio on, we got to talking about pro-choice or pro-life. Ljubica told me that during the war, she had performed "many, many abortions", and she didn't see what the big deal was...she also told me that she left a family behind.
Two children, and a husband, and she didn't know where they were or what happened to them.

She told me that her story wasn't unusual, that many lost family in the camps and had to start over...move along with life.

Get over it.

There are so many things that are connected to war that we don't really think about, but when someone says it...you say to yourself, "Of course. It would have to be like that wouldn't it?"

I thought about her the other day.
I don't know why I'm telling you this story...I just am.

Last night, the neighbours kids built a snow woman...as you can see, she's ready to walk down the isle.

This morning...she was headless.

Sunday Click Around

Why don't you MagYourPic too?

Since it's coming on to that time of year...here's Ali G's Christmas confusion.

I love Penn & Teller's Bullshit espisodes.
There used to be a link on google video where you could watch the entire episodes, but I suppose Showtime didn't appreciate it as much as I did.
Here are a few clips from some of my favourties:

Bullshit: PETA
Bullshit: Bottled Water
Bullshit: I got tired of looking for the Feng Shui one...

It's too bad the full episodes aren't online anymore.

Gallery of the Absurd showcases art that magnify's celebrity flaws.

Earlier this week, I was hearing all this uproar about Kurt Kauper painting hockey legend Bobby Orr as he imagined him naked, as well as Cary Grant..and a few other celebrities. It was such a big deal...I had to see it.
Meh.

Caligynephobia: The Fear of Beautiful Women.  
(I'm pretty sure your mom has something to do with this.)

I saw Toronto Comedian Gilson Lubin recently, and I love him. Too bad the entire episode isn't available.

Everyone loves to make fun of government employees...Here's a Government Employee Trick and The Problem with Government Employees.

Here's Italian Spiderman.

Pets in Uniform...kind of like those paintings of the dogs playing cards, only you can put your own pet in the picture.

Related to yesterdays post: Being Poor. (Thanks Chris)

The 20 Most Intriguing Billionaire Heiresses...I can only imagine.

The strange photo gallery...is strange.

Ice Road Truckers...the virtually unknown occupation of ice road trucking, considered to be one of the world's most dangerous jobs. I can't even imagine.

Beautiful pictures of Iceland.

People need things to believe in...but some of them are super strange. Here is a list of Bizarre Religions and Cults.

Band Name Origins...pretty interesting.

Pimp your fridge. People are nuts.

K...that's it for today.

What is Poor?

I was over at a blog commenting on The Definition of Needy.

And while the blogger makes a good point about video games, or cellphones not being items of the "needy", there is a big point being missed.

We live in Canada.
Poor here is not like poor somewhere else.
Our poor live better than a large percentage of the rest of the world's middle class.
"Poor" is gauged by the society we live in.
We cannot compare a poor child in say, India or Afganistan to a poor child in North America.
We just can't. We don't have the same standard of living.

I've worked with "the poor" for some time now.
And while there are some families who take advantage of social services, there are others who do not qualify for welfare or choose not to be a part of it.
The working poor, with no medical and dental...and who scrape by on their wits and hard work.
I've worked with them, and I would be lying to you if I told you that the inequity didn't boil my blood.

There is a school of thought that the poor should be just grateful for anything that they get, and years ago, I would have agreed.

I work with shelter families, and the shelter does not take your old clothes, and used items.
Shocked?
I was...but, we shouldn't be.
I've sorted through the things that people donate, and thrown a lot of it out.
Is it not enough that a family is in crisis, they have to wear your discarded old underwear, and dirty ripped clothing?
Garbage that is disguised as a donation.
Food drives where the food donated is shit you've had in your cupboard past the expiry date?

Please.

I realize that this is not what the blogger's post was about...it was just that the general tone of the comments made me think about what I've written above, and rather than start a misunderstood riot on the bloggers entry, I'm doing my own.

Far be it from me to say that a kid needs a cellphone, or XBox or whathaveyou.
But, this is a society where most kids have everything.

The problem is that when we're asked to participate in a toy drive, or adopt-a-family for the Holidays kind of thing...we don't get to assess the poverty level of the family.
A social service does...and children will submit a "wish list". It's up to you whether you want to fulfill that wish.
The issue appears to be "the nerve" of the child to submit their wish.
Children are children, and they wish for things...and if wishes were horses, beggars would ride.

The assumption that a Canadian child in a crisis situation should be happy with "food and clothing" is a tad superior. We're talking about children. Children who are surrounded by others who have so much that it's sickening.

I was one of those children...and my mother was too proud to ask for help.

That kid you're donating to may be living a life that you wouldn't wish for your own children in a million years.
There are thousands of people in this city who have no business being parents...and they have children.
Children who have no choice but to follow their abusive, mentally challenged, mentally ill, drug addicted, or merely poorly skilled, or refugee parents through life.
There are millions of different situations, and each "poor" family is unique in their reasons for their poverty....that's not even including the children in foster care, or in the custody of 
social services.

Would it be so horrible to give a kid something they wish for?

Even Dieter thinks you're an asshole.

I wasn't going to even comment on the stupid stunt disguised as "art" that OCAD (Ontario College of Art & Design) student Thorarinn Ingi Jonsson pulled the other day.

Not until I saw him actually speak.

His comment:

"Needless to say I think it was a crazed overreaction and I think it's a shame that all these resources went into it." Does he blame himself? 'No,' he answers without much hesitation. 'I put it on the situation.'"

WHAT!?!

Crazed overreaction?
Are you kidding me?


Watch his unapologetic arrogance on video in this interview with CityNews.

He actually thinks that the public and police "overreacted" to a bag stuffed with what looked like actual bombs...just because he put a note on it saying that it wasn't a bomb.

Listen, it's not like he stuffed the bag with teddy bears...he stuffed it with shit that actually looked like bombs.

....and is calling it an "art installation"

Check out his student profile...he lists the destruction of the World Trade Center as his "favourite art".

You know what?

I now want to do an "art installation" too.
I want Thorarinn Ingi Jonsson to be sentenced to 5 years in jail, and I'll film his reaction in court, and post it on YouTube and call it my art installation titled, "Public Retribution".

WSIB isn't screwing around.
They mean it.

Consider it a warning...



...and if that one wasn't enough of a sledgehammer, how about this one:

Cross Border Cougaring


You know that women have finally punched a hole in the glass ceiling when they start going to foreign countries to procure sex.


I read this article: "Older white women join Kenya's sex tourists"

"Sex Tourist".
Is this a new form of tourism?

"The health risks are stark in a country with an AIDS prevalence of 6.9 percent. Although condom use can only be guessed at, Julia Davidson, an academic at Nottingham University who writes on sex tourism, said that in the course of her research she had met women who shunned condoms -- finding them too "businesslike" for their exotic fantasies.

The white beaches of the Indian Ocean coast stretched before the friends as they both walked arm-in-arm with young African men, Allie resting her white haired-head on the shoulder of her companion, a six-foot-four 23-year-old from the Maasai tribe.

He wore new sunglasses he said were a gift from her.

"We both get something we want -- where's the negative?" Allie asked in a bar later, nursing a strong, golden cocktail."

I'm sorry, but the whole article had the "eeeeewwwwwww" factor going really strong for me.

It's not because it's older women and young men, or older white women and younger black men...it's because it's about foreign prostitution, and it's so...blatantly desperate.

I know that for a lot of my girlfriends (single and married), Cougars are "The Ghost of Christmas Future", and scares the crap out of them....Hell, it scares me too.

Do cougars know they're cougars?

Jumping Off the Fence?

Truth be told, I'm not an advocate of foreign adoption.
Not for any other reason other than the fact that there are children right here in this country that need adopting.
The problem appears to be that many are not babies....and adoption is so complicated here...with pesky birth parents showing up down the line, and all.

The new celebrity trend seems to be foreign adoption, and forgive me for saying...seems "petlike" in acquirement...as though getting a Lhasa Apso from Tibet is just no longer good enough...how about a kid from Namibia, or Cambodia instead?
Now, I know a lot of you may jump all over me with "at least these celebrities are giving children from another place a good life!", and you'd be right...since most pets of celebrities do and will live a better life than you, or I will.

Yesterday, I read a blowup of outrage over something that a has-been, pseudo-80's new wave satire writer named Tama Janowitz said in this article in the N.Y. Times:

"A girlfriend who is now on the waiting list for a child from Ethiopia says that the talk of her adoption group is a recently published book in which many Midwestern Asian adoptees now entering their 30s and 40s complain bitterly about being treated as if they did not come from a different cultural background. They feel that this treatment was an attempt to blot out their differences, and because of this, they resent their adoptive parents.

So in a way it is kind of nice to know as a parent of a child, biological or otherwise – whatever you do is going to be wrong. Like I say to Willow: 'Well, you know, if you were still in China you would be working in a factory for 14 hours a day with only limited bathroom breaks!' "

There was a shitload of anger that boomeranged back at her for this comment.
Now, I know that she's supposed to be some sort of humourist writer, and I understand what she was saying...kids are ungrateful, regardless.
It was just so inappropriate, I don't know what kind of response she was expecting to get after saying it...laughter?
"Oh, Tama...you're sooooo edgy".

The fact that she said it in a public forum shows how out of touch she is.

Sun Yun Shin (a Co-Author of the "recently published book in which many Midwestern Asian adoptees now entering their 30s and 40s complain bitterly about being treated as if they did not come from a different cultural background"), responds to Tama Janowitz in this blog post.

I am certainly no one to talk about what it's like to be adopted in to a family of a different race...and my Kumbaya side wants to believe that it's all good.
But most certainly there will be important elements that will not/cannot be provided to a child who is adopted, much less of a different race.

Perhaps the key is coming to terms in your own way.
....and we all have reasons to complain about our childhoods, perhaps this just seems overdone because an element of what Janowitz says has merit.
C'mon,...let's face it, women don't put their children up for adoption because they're in a position to raise them, whether that's in Kenya or Newmarket, Ontario...it's just that she (Janowitz), as a white person, and adoptive parent of a non-white child had no right to say it.

Sun Yung Shin says:

"I am not here to state that one culture is better than the other, that it's better to be adopted than to "languish in an orphanage" etc., or to promote nostalgia for one's "biological mother," or to imply that (some American) children don't complain bitterly about what they don't have or their parents' "parenting,"--I know all the arguments against adopted people speaking for themselves, unless they say, "I don't care about my home country. Don't send me to camp. ______ is dirty and smelly, I don't want to go back. You are my real mother. I love being American," etc. I really do, I've heard them all. I've said them--when I actually _was_ a child. I get it. As an _adult_--things are more complicated. Absolutes such as "real" and "where I belong" are oversimplifications for many of us who are in fact immigrants. People are free to pathologize me (or any immigrant, or any minority) as wanting to be part of the "Victim Olympics" and so forth. People have the freedom to chastise me as taking advantage of my "model minority status" and "biting the hand that feeds me." Everyone has a right to her or his opinion. Certainly I'm at risk of blindness as much as anyone else. But, what's at stake if the critiques of people like me are actually valid?"

Ahhh, the North American right to publicly complain...how we caress it, love it, and nurture it.
...and so we should....it's a luxury that 75% of the world doesn't have.

Sunday Click Around

The video to your left is about John Bramblitt, who is blind due to an epileptic seizure...and paints from the memory he has of colour. He's pretty amazing, and it's easy to want to believe that it isn't possible.

Here are some classic optical illusions. I still can't see the "I love Paris in the springtime". If you can, please tell me what it's supposed to say.
Check out this other kind of illusion.

Alfred Hitchcock's cure from insomnia. Anyone who has ever had a bout of insomnia that has lasted more than a couple of nights has considered this. (Thanks Chris)

Here is an amazing way to close any bag without a clip.

I dare you to watch The African Children's Choir, and not smile.

Ok...please explain to me how this isn't an elaborate, self-deceiving justification to participate in sexual abnormalities...and still consider yourself a Christian....

Coolest business cards. Some of them are pretty cool.

Husband disappeared, taking lottery jackpot with him. The Mister and me joke about this all the time, but it's pretty ugly when it actually happens.

This phone call/discussion from The Ellen Show made me laugh.

I've been to Bloorview MacMillan as an observer. It truly is an amazing place. It's good to see it being covered with the respect it deserves in mainstream media.

Miss Landmine is a strange and powerful statement.

How many versions of "Stairway to Heaven" can you listen to?

100 Self-Help Books you can live without. (I loved this)

A Jamaican/Jewish wedding.

The other night, I caught The Tyra Banks Show, quite by accident. I can't believe that people actually watch this show. She's ridiculous...and an airhead of the first order...never mind...that's why they/I watched her.

This is quite the speed bump.

Ok...that's it.

Today's Quote

"There's a 'struggle' you have to go through, and if you make a lot of money it doesn't make the 'struggle' go away. It just makes it more complicated. If you keep poor, the struggle is simple."

Kenny Howard the name and art behind Von Dutch.

Ahhhh, the irony.

Crispy Cold

So, while I hate winter cold and slush...these crisp, sunny Canadian days are still beautiful from the window.



Our backyard is so pretty with all that snow.

Last night, The Mister and me dressed to the nines went to the CFL Awards hosted by Dan Ackroyd.
See that picture in the link?
I was standing inside the foyer, shivering every time the door opened, waiting for The Mister to bring the car around.

There was a wonderful tribute to John Candy (he was a part owner of the Toronto Argos when he died) during the awards, and his daughter Jennifer Candy participated in a number of comedy skits throughout the ceremonies.

What an interesting array of people...lots of tall men in suits, cowboy boots, and  Stetsons...and they weren't being ironic.

Anyhow, it just reminded me how much I miss John Candy's comedy.

Here are some of my favourite characters:

Yuri

Orson Welles

The Schmenge Brothers

Uncle Buck (My fav. Candy film)

Julia Child

Divine

(Click on image to view the site.)

The interesting thing is that I preferred every last one of the "before" pictures.

There is Hope...

So, my lazy self was picking up a Shwarama for dinner tonight.

I went into this new little place, and ordered from the very young man behind the counter. While he was making it, we were chatting.

Then, he asked, "Where are you from?"
"Toronto", says I.
"No," says the boy "What's your heritage?"
"Yugoslavian" came out...sorry...that's where I was born.
"Oh," says the boy. "You're Serbian. Great soccer team".
"How did you know I was Serbian?"
"Only Serbians say they're 'Yugoslavian'".

OMG!
I was vaklempt.
A young (he's 22) person who pays attention to world politics and cultural geography.

"What do you think I am?" he asks.
I look at him for a few seconds before I reply.
"Greek"

He pushed a little piece of baklava across the counter and smiled.

Things I'm Tired of:

In no particular order:

Bullying.
Cyber-bullying. Schoolyard bullying, Office bullying...ferfucksake, kick his ass or ignore him/her...but stop your bitching n' whingin'.


Construction.
Is there one road in this city that isn't dug up?


Oprah.
STFU already.

The Smoking Debate.
I don't smoke in my car, or during the day, and people shouldn't smoke in an enclosed space with children...but the government needs to stay out of my house and car. Unless they're going to pay my mortgage and car insurance/payments they have no right to tell me what I can do or not do in either.

Turbo-Environmentalists.
Maybe this is the way it's supposed to be.
Maybe we're supposed to annihilate ourselves...like so many civilizations before us. But I'm tired of listening to bike ridin', Birkenstock wearin' turbo environmentalists trying to scare the shit out of everyone every five minutes.
What I would prefer is that they engage in a little use of organic soap and water more often.

Organic Food
I cannot be convinced that organic food is better than regular 6 times cheaper food is.
Just because it has dirt on it, is more expensive and is smaller than regular food, doesn't convince me that it's better.

Frightening E-mails.
If I get one more e-mail about "Raspberry Flavoured Meth" threatening our kids, or "New Car Jacking Methods", or "Perfume Bandits" who will knock you unconscious in the mall parking lot during Christmas shopping...I'm going to lose it. I can't even be bothered to link back to Snopes.com anymore.

The word "Holiday" instead of Christmas.
If I can say Hanukkah, Ramadan, Kwanzza, E'id...then I can say Christmas.
White Politicians who pander to the "ethnic" vote, and paid Multicultural alarmists ...Shut. UP. about this already.

That's all for now...

So, while I've hedged back and forth on Dove's "Campaign for Real Beauty", because while I like the whole idea, I just felt that it was just another advertising angle with a feel good twist.

I flipped and flopped on it.
Insincere advertising/just pleased to see real people with a positive message.
Condescending slogans/happy to see women over 30 in ads.

Then I read this:



While one can argue that Unilever is a huge company with many different brands, and departments that run independent of one another, it's just a little hard to swallow that a company that is now pushing this with one hand:



Is pushing this with the other:



...and while it can be argued that consumers are big people (for the most part) and understand the rules of commerce...It's still just a little sick making.

Pot meet Kettle, indeed.

Sunday Click Around.

I found these pictures of African Punk/Skinhead Fashion by Clayton James fascinating.

Again with the People Magazine Sexiest Men Alive thing...here are 100 Sexy Men in 1 Minute.

I commented on Amy Winehouse's very public decline, and Funkaoshi posted Amy Winehouse and the Ethics of Clowning People. He makes a good point.

I've always had a fascination with true crime stories, and particularly women who commit crimes. Here is a site called Bad Girls Do It. It gives info and biographies on infamous females. That's some scary shit. Our Karla is representin'.

12 Products from Hell. Looking at the products is a "what the hell?" moment.

Beer commercials are funny.

The daughter of the real life "American Gangster" has come out of the woodwork, and done an interview.
Here's part one of six of a documentary on The American Gangster. The rest of the parts are easily found on YouTube.

This brilliant little animation from Amnesty International uses a lovely Serbian? Bosnian? Croatian? (what's the difference?)tune. Thanks Piika.

I watched the movie "Snowcake" last night. It was brilliant. I loved it. Here's the trailer.

Men Who Look Like Old Lesbians...need I say more?

Paul Mooney weighs in on Oprah. While we're on Oprah....here are 11 Oprah Blunders from 2007.
Her comment, "This is the worst thing that has ever happened to me in my life" in response to the allegations in connection with her African girl's school rang so false, that I actually laughed when I heard her say it. It confirms to me how out of touch with the real world she actually is.

Remember ZeFrank's Pre-Date Confidence Booster? It's still great.

The World's Creepiest Places.

...and now the Comedy:
Yesterday's post on "Misery's West Indian Restaurant" sent me on a search for West Indian Comedy. Here is the list:

David Samaroo Trinidadian Stand Up Comedian.

A Sister's Guide to Crappy Excuses.

Auntie and Hyacinth.

The Whining Dog.

Mr. Frasier, and Mr. Frasier and video dating.

Trinidadian Carnival Stand Up.

Deportee.

That's all.

I'm pretty sure they've got another shop at 427 and Derry.

This is the quickest and saddest demise that we're having an opportunity to watch.
Back in the day, media and managers protected us from having to watch a talented but fucked up artist kill themselves.

Now, it's entertainment.



She makes me sad.

What are they smoking over at Orangina?



Whatever it is, it's laced with Viagra, and drawn fresh from an orgy in the forest.

I Hate Performance Art


This is called the Break Up, because it's supposed to show the different emotional stages she went through after a break up.

I challenge you to sit through the entire thing without the urge to click your mouse.
I'll be honest with you. I just find most of performance art flaky.
I touched on this yesterday in my Click Around


Sure, you can argue that performance art is supposed to stimulate you visually, and either entertain or shock you. But, I have to say that there have been few installments of performance art that have impressed me.

I think that a lot of what is out there is not very profound or interesting.
Much of it appears to be attention whoring, and an attempt to convince people that if they don't understand it, they are shallow and/or unintelligent.

I think that if we're creative enough, we can make social commentary out of everything.
We can all read all sorts of things into the acts and words of other people.
I think it's called being "neurotic".


Here...I'll give you an example.
I'll take a simple YouTube clip, and read into it as performance art:



It articulates the frustration of female youth. The innocence. The boredom....looking back at you, the viewer. This is a young women silenced by media influences in our society and lives in intimate association with her opressors....but all this girl, (future woman/mother/sister/daughter/grandmother) wants...the real thing she wants is "World Peace".

See?
I can bullshit you too...and I'll do it for free.

Sunday Click Around

Cynical-C sent me an e-mail with "Yoko is Loco" in the subject line. The link to Yoko's "Cut One Piece" performance art was in it. I'll be honest with you. I'm not a big fan of performance art. I dunno. I just find most of it flaky. I love the comments on "Cut One Piece".
There are two camps it seems: Either you're a pretentious flake, or you're an idiot who isn't pretentiously flaky enough to get it.
One commenter explains it to us idiots:

"its about feminism, like the position of women in the society, always like within submission, and just beeng an object, an people (men) doing whatever they want with her (and you actually can see that)..." [sic]

Yeah.
Or it's a bunch of strangers cutting your clothes off.

This person mentions Marina Abramovic, so I went on a little looksee for her. Here is "Rhythm - 10". I dunno. You tell me. Looking at other installments from Abramovic, I did like her storytelling, but the rest...meh.

All the Right Movies is an 80's movie quiz. Where the hell was I? I don't remember any of these movies.

Andrea Dezco does embroidery of her mother's sayings. I think Andrea might be my aunt. Found on one of Miss Cellania's sites.

Magazines and newspapers have been tampering with photos since the first photo was taken. Here is a list of some of the most famous tampered with photos.

Here are some pretty amazing photos of Hawaiian Volcanos.

I don't really "get" bumper stickers or vanity plates. I was pissed last year when I was told that if I wanted to keep my current license plate number (the front plate is old and beaten, but it took me years to remember it) it would be considered a vanity plate and cost me $200 to replace. So, I found out that it cost $200 to put some stupidness on your plate. What a waste of money. License to Rant rants about vanity plates.

I lovelovelove the Persian accent. I could listen to the accent all day long. Here's Maz Jobrani an Iranian/American comedian. I've linked to Maz Jobrani before when I did a Click Around of "ethnic comedians" and in this clip, I notice that he's picked up some of Russell Peters mannerisms. Ron Josol is pretty funny too, in case you're interested.

Here is some more celebrity plastic surgery. I was particularly shocked at how much prettier Posh Beckham was before surgery. L'il Kim is particularly frightening. It just goes to show you that we're generally not satisfied with ourselves...and plastic surgery doesn't help.

Robert Bruno: Architectural Sculptor.

Sri Lankan Flavaa! I love these cultural mashups....like this beloved Serbian banbo remix.

Chicago suburb installs new stop signs. Cute, but fiscally responsible? Not so much.

Someone from Singular Films noticed that I've got a love on for retro, and sent me some links. Here are vintage cigarette ads using movie stars, and some vintage underwear ads.

When I read about this woman, I felt sorry for her.
How do you even explain that to people?
When people tell me that they like to sneeze...I think about my sneezing fits.
One sneeze, ok. 40 sneezes in 10 minutes, not so much.

Ok kids, that's it.

I can do my own "moping", thank you very much.

My Loony Bun is Fine Benny Lava



I couldn't wait until Sunday Click Around to post this.
Found at Bocks Car.

...and another thing:

I was watching Breakfast Television this morning, and I have one question:

Why is a white woman cooking curry and telling me about Diwali?
Is there some sort of a shortage of South Asians in this city?

That really bugged me.
A lot.

"Former Giller Prize winner Margaret Atwood and her husband, Graeme Gibson – author of The Bedside Book of Birds – quietly declined the food being passed.

The reason: They were protesting the Four Seasons' role in a massive resort development in Grenada that threatens an endangered species: the Grenada dove.

"Until there is a fair resolution of the dispute over the kind of resort being built in Grenada, we cannot accept food or drink from the Four Seasons," explained Gibson, who arrived at the event carrying what appeared to be a gym bag but in fact contained their meal."

...am I the only one who finds this kinda funny?

It's hardly a hunger strike...and I notice that they didn't feel strongly enough about it to...saaaaay....oh, I don't know...not go...I mean, let's not get crazy now....Let's face it...it is The Giller, after all...

Good-bye Adulthood

Krysss sent me this link to an article about women who prefer the fashion and attitude of teens.

Is it that some women think that this is what is attractive to men?
Or are people just taking longer to grow up these days?

Is it that advertising and western culture seem to value youth to the point that it's undesirable to be over 25?

Frankly, both men and women dressed and acting like teenagers is quite sad, and pathetic to be in the presence of.

There is something very wrong with a society that doesn't embrace and respect the reality of aging.

This is so wrong, it makes my blood boil.

There are already schools in this city that are predominantly mono racial. We don't need this. Let's teach Ebonics there too, then maybe eventually the White Supremest dream of a return to segregation will come true.

Isolating young black students like this only serves to sequester further a community that already feels disconnected.


 
What the hell was the whole Civil Rights Movement about again?

Monday Click Around.

Sorry people...I spent the weekend with a bunch of girlfriends, and was recovering yesterday.
What do you get when you cross 9 women in a suite at The Royal York with booze, music, and 3 hours sleep?
A gigantic hangover, that's what...So, here's the Monday Click Around.

The picture to your left is "Disaster in Littletown".
I love those littletown pictures.

Have an "Art Break" with that guy on PBS...remember him? THH22M has done a number of parodies...but these two are pretty good. Number 1, and Number 2.

Having trouble finding a babysitter? The Home Purchasing Club, has the answer!

Here are The Beatles in Yiddish, and Yiddish Hillbillies from Bob From Brockley.

Don't you totally wish you could charge someone for being an "asshole"?

How much money can one person have...No. Seriously. There should be a cap on wealth.
Once you go over a certain amount, you should have to share the rest with the starving of the world. That kind of wealth is obscene.

I can't figure out if this is for real, or staged.
But, I'll tell you what...there are plenty of people going to work every day who are teetering on the edge of insanity. Just one push, and they're gone for monitored stay at the "Mental Health Centre".

Rotten Neighbors is a website where you can read about particular areas or streets in limited cities and see what it's like before you decide to live there. Like any other site that depends on anonymous postings, "rating" things...it's all perspective, and some people are grinding axes..so, taking things with a grain of salt..it's still interesting to read what people are pissed off about.

This is one of my favourite Rick Mercer rants. Enjoy.

That's all kids

Must see.
Must see.

Lee's Palace,
November 13th

"Watch out for those people with 3 names..."




I had forgotten about Mrs. Seinfeld and her cookbook trumpery...until I saw this little bit on The Defamer, where Jerry ridicules the writer whose book was published before his wifes.

Now, I'm Team Lapine.

The interview and his comments about Lapine make him look pompous, condescending and superior.

Now, I hope she sues.

Bobby Brown and Iron Mike doing The Monster Mash...




Shield your eyes and ears!
Happy Halloween.

Riddle Me This

I am a cynic for many reasons.
If I have a 50/50 chance of things going easily...generally, chance takes the other 50.
So, when in a hurry I'm never surprised that my route usually takes on Police Training video proportions.

Garbage trucks, and cement mixers appear out
of nowhere. Little old ladies with disabilities and
shopping carts teeter out in front of me. Parades I didn't know about block the intersection I need to get across...you get the picture...

This morning was no exception since I was running late, and in a hurry that I would be driving behind someone who was touring the city at his leisure.
So, there I was stuck behind a Cavalier (the irony didn't escape me) getting off the Gardiner at Dunn.
My boy was leading a convoy off the highway, going 20 in a 40, and stopping for a full 50 seconds at every stop sign, with no traffic going in any direction except piling up behind him.

Imagine my surprise when we got to Queen Street and he proceeded to attempt to mow down about five pedestrians while making a right turn.

If you're going to take qualudes, keep your ass at home on the couch.

Sunday Click Around

The picture to your left is from the "Museum of Broken Relationships" exhibit from Zagreb-based artists Olinka Vistica and Drazen Grubisic.
It's getting a lot of press, and for me is a little reminiscent of "The Saddest Thing I Own" website...only I think that the website looks better. But, hey...if any Balkan country can cash in on the fleeting interest of the West...svaka ti cast.

Beautiful Girls...is kinda cute.

Katerina from Idle Thoughts had this video up of Howie Miller.
He's pretty funny....she also sent me this video of a little future metalhead. I watched the whole video...but I just couldn't do it with the sound on.

This Canadian commercial for the Nissan Bonavista made me laugh the first time around, and then I saw the THH22M spoof, and laughed again.
..and here's Eric O'Shea making fun of commercials.

Glacia posted this little morsel from the past, and I had to share it.
For anyone who grew up in Canada, The Friendly Giant was a staple.

Richard McNair, wanted fugitive was finally captured in New Brunswick this week. When I heard the story of the "Houdini Fugitive", I found it humourous.
I mean, he's escaped police a number of times...once by using lip balm to squeeze out of handcuffs...and a number of other times that sound like something out of a movie.
While listening to the whole story on CBC, the interviewer asked a North Dakota Sheriff if he had any advice for the RCMP in regards to McNair, he said: "Yeah, I'd have at least 4 Officers on him at all times".
Here's the police video of McNair talking his way out of the grasp of police.
I'd hate to be this police officer after the fact. Can you imagine the ribbing at the station?

I love The Onion.
Here are: "Newly Out Gay Man Overdoing it", and "Pregnant Woman Acting Like No One Ever Got Pregnant Before".
(Thanks Cynical-C)

I've always said that no one can cuss your ass like a Balkan can. Here is a Serbian Basketball player who does just that. You may be horrified and shocked...I found it hilarious, because I've seen more than one display similar to it.

That's all.

Tales From the Retarded

Worry over soccer violence leads to split decision:

"Two soccer games will be played in Toronto this weekend with one of the strangest rules ever devised to avoid potential problems: only fans from one team allowed on Saturday, and only fans from the other team on Sunday.

When the Serbian White Eagles and Toronto Croatia face each other in the Canadian Soccer League it can be an explosive affair.

But fans like Serbian White Eagles supporter Dragan Jankovic says that's how soccer should be enjoyed. "It's nothing major, nobody kill anybody," he said."

Ummm, so how are they going to do this?
Passports?
Citizenship papers?
Honour/Honesty?

Gimme a fuckin' break.
Serbs and Croats can't even tell each other apart until they start talking and asking questions.

The White Eagle/Croatian games have always included slurs and nationalistic rivalry.
I've been to a few games in my time, and it's a fact.

Isn't there some sort of human rights violation here?
Maybe I want to go with my Croatian/Serbian spouse?
Maybe I want to take my half Croatian/half Serbian kids.
Maybe I want to take my Croatian Grandmother.
Get the picture?

Besides, after a few slivos...and they do bring them...a Balkan will fight their own brother.

This is stupid in the stupidest way.