What's Up! [Archive] - Hockey Station Forums

Max Power

10-24-05, 1:58 PM

I don't know what happened to the What?s Up thread and the search functionality doesn't seem to be working so here's a new one

Labels quite a talkerThese animated displays can turn a cereal box into TV screen
By STEVE RENNIE, Sun Media

The latest hi-tech label from Siemens can transmit everything a TV screen or computer monitor can, for a fraction of the cost -- making them a viable option for food packaging. (File photo)
CHOCOLATE bar wrappers flashing moving images and cereal boxes with video games built into the cardboard packaging may sound like something out of a sci-fi movie, but they could be on grocery store shelves by 2007.

It's the latest from Siemens AG, the German electrical engineering and electronics company that showcased its new, wafer-thin colour displays at the Plastics Electronics trade fair in Frankfurt earlier this month.

The company says the miniature Harry Potter-ish displays can do everything a regular TV screen or computer monitor can for a fraction of the cost. And because the displays are cheap to produce (about $60 a square metre), the technology can be used on throwaway packaging, such as foil wrappers and magazine covers.

The new displays have already caught the eye of local advertising firms. Mediaplus Advertising's Don Masters says advertisers are excited about the potential uses of the displays.

'EXTEND MESSAGING'

"I think anything that gives an advertiser or a consumer products company the ability to extend the messaging to their customers and to make it a more rich media experience is a very good thing," says Masters.

"There is so much competition for the consumer's attention that, any advantage you can get, you've got to take it in this day and age."

Masters says the displays will allow companies to cross-promote their products more effectively. A customer who picks up a Nestle chocolate bar, for example, might be encouraged by the animated packaging to buy a Nestle drink to wash it down.

"It's the ability to turn product packaging into advertising for something other than the product that's inside of it," says Masters.

The displays also have practical uses, such as animated step-by-step instructions on equipment boxes, or packaging that allows consumers to change the text size or language of instruction on medicine packaging with the push of a button.

Siemens' Till Moor says electrochromic molecules give the illusion of moving images by changing the way light is absorbed or reflected.

Ultra-thin batteries printed on to the packaging power the displays, which are also recyclable.

"In Germany, we have a system to recycle such packages made of plastic. If the display is made of plastic also, there's no doubt that you can handle it as normal waste," says Moor.

Judith Madill, a Carleton University business professor who specializes in consumer decision-making and the food industry, says how the public responds to animated packaging boils down to implementation.

DON'T BE 'TOO OBTRUSIVE'

"One of the concerns is you don't want to be too obtrusive in the minds of consumers," she says.

"You have to make sure it adds to the experience, as opposed to taking away from their experience.

"If we can implement it so that it adds to their experience, makes it easier, makes it nicer to compare things, then it's great. If it adds to the sense of frustration and being overwhelmed that consumers may experience, then it's not so great."

Masters says flashy packaging may annoy consumers at first, but expects most will eventually get used to it.

He likens the displays to the first billboards.

"At first, people thought they were visual pollution and now we see them and they're kind of at the edge of our consciousness and people don't really complain unless one is going up in their backyard."

bluemeanie

10-24-05, 2:14 PM

I don't know what happened to the What?s Up thread and the search functionality doesn't seem to be working so here's a new one

Isn't your "what's Up!" thread in the Sens forum Maxy? *Blue makes Drinky, Drinky motion*

I read about this a while back, my company is gunning for a sample piece. It's pretty limited in it's capabilities thus far, but it's still very young in design. Can you post a link to your source Max?

I'm thinking continous live porn in my washroom....

Max Power

10-24-05, 2:19 PM

Yah I was thinking the same and that I should have most likely been looking for a differently named thread. But yes thank you I’d love a drink... make it a double please
http://www.ottawasun.com/Money/2005/10/24/1275695-sun.html

Great idea for the washroom though

Mel

10-24-05, 4:36 PM

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?storyID=2005-10-24T150634Z_01_FLE454376_RTRUKOC_0_US-MEXICO-CORPSE.xml

TIJUANA, Mexico (Reuters) - A motorcyclist with a helmet-wearing corpse strapped to his back crashed in this Mexican city on the U.S. border on Friday and fled on foot, setting off a police murder hunt.

The unidentified driver was trying to ride with the body through the center of Tijuana, south of San Diego, California., when he lost control rounding a curve.

He fled the scene, leaving the dead passenger on the curb. Police said the corpse, which had head injuries and bore strangulation marks, had died at least six hours earlier.

"When the police arrived they took the helmet off the corpse, believing at first that he had died in the crash," said Francisco Castro, a spokesman for the Baja California state police's homicide division.

"But he had adhesive tape stuck to his face, a knife wound to his forehead, and showed signs of strangulation," he added.

Castro said the dead man had wraps of methamphetamine in his pocket and an unkempt appearance, which led investigators to believe the killing was drug related.

"We think the killer was trying to take the body to a more deserted area to dispose of it," he said.

LOL

http://motorcyclecruiser.com/newsandupdates/kaw05-Nomad16-act-md.jpg

a4l

10-24-05, 5:24 PM

Ken counts on a make-over to win back Barbie By Nina Goswami (Filed: 23/10/2005)

link (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/10/23/wken23.xml)

They broke up after 43 years together citing irreconcilable differences. Now, after a mere 18 months apart, Ken wants Barbie back. What's more he is prepared to make the effort to change. He will unveil a new look early next year and his spokesman at the manufacturers Mattel promises a radical, highly secret, rethink. In the 1970s this plastic doll's masculine Elvis Presley look made Barbie's plastic heart skip a beat. But more than four decades on, Ken's metrosexual blonde beach boy image helped to lead the love of his life to dump him for an Australian surfer called Blaine. Mattell stopped promoting the two together and Ken was pushed to the back of the toy shop shelves. Russell Arons, the doll's personal manager and publicist, admits that Ken "has been in conversation" with some of Britain's and Hollywood's celebrity stylists in an attempt to win Barbie back. "A make-over may be just what Ken needs," said Ms Arons, the vice-president of marketing at Mattel. A company insider said: "For far too long Blaine has been basking in Ken's limelight. Ken's fans should expect big changes next spring and Blaine should be ready for a fight if he wants to keep Barbie." Ken, who has been 23 for 45 years, admits that he has had plastic surgery to "re-sculpt his face" and has not ruled out another operation. He told The Sunday Telegraph, through a statement from Mattel: "My new look will be something very now. My style will reflect my personality and will change with my mood on any given day." The British stylist Kenny Ho, who has advised David Beckham and Pierce Brosnan, said Ken needed to go "slick and urban" to win back Barbie, and be less of a fashion victim. "Ken needs to look effortless and cool without trying too hard. I'm sure Barbie would appreciate a man who spends less time in the bathroom than she does and wouldn't upstage her on a night out. He should go for slim-fitting shirts, low V-neck knitwear, straight-cut, flat-front trousers, single-breasted jackets and military-inspired coats." Hollywood stylist Phillip Bloch, whose clients include Nicole Kidman, feels that Ken needs to move with the times. "Ken is one of those guys who has too much of one style. You have to be able to change it up - be able to go from Oscars to Emmys to hanging out with friends," Mr Bloch said. Lou Ford, the deputy editor of the women's magazine Cosmopolitan, said Ken had no chance of getting Barbie back looking like "George Michael from the 1980s". "Ken looks gay. His body and face are good but he is too groomed," said Miss Ford. "Women today like their men to be in touch with their feminine side and take pride in their appearance. But they still want them to be masculine." Ken found fame at the 1961 American International Toy Fair. Later that year he met Barbie on the set of a television commercial. Ken's image started to slip in the 1990s as he became a businessman, baseball player, explorer and rock star. Ken said: "Time apart has helped me to realise what's important. Barbie is the love of my life." Barbie was not available for comment but a close friend said: "She's curious as to how Ken will change his look. Whether it will make her want him back, we'll have to wait and see."

bluemeanie

10-24-05, 5:30 PM

TIJUANA, Mexico (Reuters) - A motorcyclist with a helmet-wearing corpse strapped to his back crashed...

Anything in Pizza news these days, Mel?

Mel

10-24-05, 5:42 PM

Anything in Pizza news these days, Mel?

:pimp:

Now that you mention it. I came across this bit about Sir Alex Ferguson being struck with a flying slice of pizza (http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,277-1840605,00.html).

and of course the news is always filled with tales of unsung pizza delivery heroes, who get injured in the line of duty, but still guard the pizza with their lives....

Thugs punch delivery man but don't get the pizza (http://www2.redlandsdailyfacts.com/news/ci_3147373) :thumb:

a4l

10-24-05, 5:56 PM

:pimp:

Now that you mention it. I came across this bit about Sir Alex Ferguson being struck with a flying slice of pizza (http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,277-1840605,00.html).

Ahhh an amazing day. The man got what he deserved. :gulppint: :gulppint: He wouldn't have cried so much if it was Scotch that he got doused with.:laughing:

Purple nose whines too much.

Iced Tea

10-26-05, 3:34 AM

How come many prescription drugs advertised on tv have side effects that are the sole reason for taking the drug? Example being something to help with diarrhea can cause stomach cramps and anal bleeding. Oh joy, make things twice as bad.

Anna Olson, host of the Food Network's "Sugar", is a major babe. The picture on her bio page doesn't do her justice. She could spill desserts in my bed and I wouldn't kick her out. :D

I found a game called If You Were A Flower, What Kind Would You Be? (http://selectsmart.com/FREE/select.php?client=flowerskitseta) Turns out I'm a Stargazer Lily, a really bad ass Stargazer Lily.

Is anyone else freaking out about a possible avian flu pandemic? Any bird that comes near me receives an evil stare and if it fails to get the picture, I give it the beating of its life.

Does anyone else not know the proper time of year to change from summer coat to winter coat and back again. I've lost my timing completely and last spring, I was 2 weeks behind everyone else. Looked stupid with my scarf on at the same time as my shorts.

Why does Bob McCowan wear sunglasses inside the radio station studio. He's not a cool guy so I'm thinking he comes in with a hangover each day and looks like crap.

Does everyone but me have a cell phone? I was at the local junior hockey game last week and I passed a group of eight 9 or 10 year olds and they all had their cell phones out; exchanging messages maybe. I feel so out of touch. Maybe if the ladies were after me, I'd have to get a cell phone. :cry:

Enough for now, I guess.

Mel

10-28-05, 9:42 AM

Does everyone but me have a cell phone?

I don't go anywhere without my phoneless cord....

http://www.pcplan-it.com/phone_cord.jpg

a4l

10-28-05, 11:14 AM

I don't go anywhere without my phoneless cord....

http://www.pcplan-it.com/phone_cord.jpg

I also use a phoneless cord. It is much cheaper and less intrusive than a cell phone.

bluemeanie

10-28-05, 12:08 PM

On this day in 1886 thousands or eager New York men showed up to the unveiling of the Statue Of Liberty. The 46-meter figure of a women created by sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi arrived in America in true French form as seen below. Disappointment was abundant when the "unveiling" revealed yet another dress underneath the original... this one, however couldn't come off despite all their efforts. Relations between the Americans and the French have never been the same since.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b217/mrbluemeanie/libsx.jpg

slapshot™

10-29-05, 2:26 PM

I also use a phoneless cord. It is much cheaper and less intrusive than a cell phone.

http://www.toothpastefordinner.com/091405/how-i-always-answer-my-phone.gif

Amoroq

10-31-05, 2:14 PM

I've just hurt myself with the *whip* in the chat room. Which has sparked a visor debate with myself!!!

a4l

10-31-05, 2:24 PM

http://www.toothpastefordinner.com/091405/how-i-always-answer-my-phone.gif

That's great. May I borrow it?

Max Power

11-01-05, 12:54 PM

This is too funny not to post
The irony is obvious

Greenpeace fined for reef damage
Environmental group Greenpeace has been fined almost $7,000 (?4,000) for damaging a coral reef at a World Heritage site in the Philippines.
Their flagship Rainbow Warrior II ran aground at Tubbataha Reef Marine Park, in the Sula Sea, 650km (400 miles) south-east of Manila.

Park officials said almost 100 sq m (1,076 sq ft) of reef had been damaged.

Greenpeace agreed to pay the fine, but blamed the accident on outdated maps provided by the Philippines government.

"The chart indicated we were a mile and a half" from the coral reef when the ship ran around, regional Greenpeace official Red Constantino told AFP news agency.

"This accident could have been avoided if the chart was accurate," he said, adding, however, that Greenpeace felt "responsible" for the damage.

'Immediate action'

The accident happened while the Rainbow Warrior was on a four-month tour of the Asia-Pacific region to promote environmentally-friendly energy sources.

Greenpeace divers were at the Tubbataha park, off the coast of Palawan island, to inspect the effect of global warming on the coral reef.

Mr Constantino said the reef appeared to be healthy, with no evidence of bleaching which is believed to be caused by warmer sea temperatures.
The Rainbow Warrior II escaped serious damage and was towed into deeper water by its own rubber boats.

Tubbataha park manager, Angelique Songco, praised the work Greenpeace was doing to protect the environment.

"We also appreciate the immediate action they took to get the full assessment of the damage," she said.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/asia-pacific/4395572.stm

Published: 2005/11/01 10:54:18 GMT

? BBC MMV

bluemeanie

11-01-05, 1:08 PM

This is too funny not to post
The irony is obvious

And I'm sure that that $7000 dollars will go to the official Philippine "Reef Management & Maintenance" program?

Max Power

11-01-05, 1:14 PM

More news on the Pizza front =]

Thief steals pizza parlour dough
A burglar who raided a California pizza parlour in the dead of night was forced to leave a hand-made pepperoni feast in the oven as he fled with his loot.
The thief, who did make off with cash from the restaurant's safe, was caught on CCTV choosing an apron and creating a large pizza with all the trimmings.

Police in San Clemente, California, hope the footage will help catch him.

Officers suspect the man was disturbed by a restaurant employee, who found the safe empty - and the pizza burning.

The hungry thief entered Sonny's Pizza and Pasta, which describes itself as the "local hot spot" in the coastal town of San Clemente, at about 0200 local time.

Video footage showed the man trying on a series of bakers' aprons before finding one to suit his shape and style.

Suitably attired, the intruder methodically began building a large pepperoni pizza.

Mystery toppings

Not expecting a bill for his late-night snack, he made sure to add liberal helpings of a range of pizza toppings, a spokesman for the Orange County Sheriff's Department said.

According to a menu listed on Sonny's website, a large pepperoni pizza - known to diners as "Sonny's Roman Orgy" - would have cost the thief $15.95 (?9.00).

If ordering from the menu, he would have enjoyed onions, green peppers, black olives, mushrooms, salami, and sausage alongside his pepperoni. Anchovies are available on request.

At the time of the robbery, though, he could have chosen from any number of Sonny's "gourmet toppings", including artichoke hearts, gorgonzola cheese and sun-dried tomato.

But he was forced to make a quick getaway when a restaurant employee arrived for work at about 0300.

The restaurant's safe was missing with an undisclosed amount of cash, while the pizza was smouldering in the oven.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/4395894.stm

Published: 2005/11/01 13:14:24 GMT

? BBC MMV

bluemeanie

11-01-05, 1:26 PM

Who wouldn't want any of those loveable Canadian critters running a muck in their streets??

Operation CBC - the Canadian Beaver Conspiracy:conspire: , will have to go to plan B now...

Government: Beavers may be illegal immigrants

LONDON (AP) - The British government said Friday that six beavers released in an effort to re-establish the species may be illegal immigrants.

The Eurasian beavers were released Thursday into an enclosure at the Lower Mill Estate in the Cotswold Water Park in western England with hopes that the animals, which have been extinct in England since the 12th century, might again freely populate the countryside.

But the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said that Jeremy Paxton, who owns the estate, had not obtained the necessary licence.

British law bans the release into the wild of "any animal which is not ordinarily resident in and is not a regular visitor to Great Britain in a wild state." The offence carries up to two years' imprisonment and an unlimited fine.

Paxton's legal team argues that the beavers' outdoors enclosure does not constitute "the wild"; the department said in a statement that it subscribes to a broad definition of the term, "as once an animal is released from captivity it is difficult if not impossible to prevent its spread." The statement continued: "Mr. Paxton will therefore be committing an offence if he releases any beavers from captivity."

The department said a similar scheme in southeast England, in which two beavers are being kept in an enclosure, had required - and obtained - a licence.

We'll have to somehow disguise the Beavers this time...

http://www.alzmedia.com/images/funny/0030.jpg

butterfly_style

11-01-05, 1:53 PM

We'll have to somehow disguise the Beavers this time...
Maybe we could disguise it as a hat.
http://www.alaskrafts.com/images/hat-sourdough-beaver-flaps%20down.jpg

a4l

11-01-05, 2:23 PM

or reverse it and it will fool everyone.
http://pictureposter.allbrand.nu/pictures/avs/beaverhat.jpeg

Bob burns

11-02-05, 10:20 PM

This is too funny not to post
The irony is obvious

Is this Max Power calling this funny or a right wing nut job?? :eyebug:

a4l

11-03-05, 12:29 AM

I have one question for you guys or maybe two. Why is it that you will toss a female friend aside when you see a skinny poofy haired female?
What is wrong with an intelligent woman who looks less than perfect and has a few extra pounds?

Canadian26

11-03-05, 2:03 AM

I ordered pizza tonight, and I think the pizza guy was really lonely or something... He told me half his life story in like 5 mins... it was kinda werid.

Bob burns

11-03-05, 4:11 AM

I have one question for you guys or maybe two. Why is it that you will toss a female friend aside when you see a skinny poofy haired female?

We are not all that shallow and simple.

What is wrong with an intelligent woman who looks less than perfect and has a few extra pounds?

Nothing. I'd rather be with someone who I can talk to about an assortment of issues as opposed to being with someone who knows nothing except who wore what to the mall and why it is important that JT does not date Britni again after she ate at Burger King three days after having her hair done in the same salon as where the Olsen twins watch reruns of Full House.

:boogie:

bluemeanie

11-03-05, 10:03 AM

I have one question for you guys or maybe two. Why is it that you will toss a female friend aside when you see a skinny poofy haired female?

Toss a female Friend aside??? Heck, for a skinny poofy haired girl I'd toss ANY friend aside, guy or girl. Any good wingman is fully prepared for this. If this is bothering you A4, then I don't think that you really consider yourself a "friend"... well, at least it doesn't seem that you want to remain just a friend.

What is wrong with an intelligent woman who looks less than perfect and has a few extra pounds?

Like Burns said, nothing. But I'll be blunt with you A4l. Most, and not all, but most men are driven by sexual instinct. And that instinct is triggered through visual queues. And whether it's media conditioning or Freudian like insecurities, typically men like their women small. Now this is mostly only a sexual need, and there is no rational or logical thought behind their desire... it doesn't under ANY circumstance make the skinny poofy haired girl a better woman then the next. Just an object of desire. Objects of desire are fleeting and trivial, friendships are lasting and meaningful. Sometimes friendships can turn romantic, often they do not. As I've said to you before A4l, when it comes time for a man to seek companionship on any significant level, the "intelligent woman who looks less than perfect" will be the one that he most likely chooses. Often it will be too late for him though. Which brings me to you. I don't know if this is the same guy that you've seemed to be interested in for a while now, but it would be my sincere advice to you to move the hell on. Clearly you want one thing, and he another. If you can't comfortably live with being just friends, then it's not healthy for your confidence to continue setting your self up for a let down. I understand that going to a place to drink and console in friends can be an enjoyable and fruitful lifestyle, but it may not be the place to seek serious romantic involvement. Especially when it's the same place and the same objective, sometimes having strong objectives, can make us miss out on better opportunities. I'm sorry if I've made any assumptions here, and I'm sorry if this has come off as a little harsh. But, it's the advice of a friend A4l... I've seen many friends get hurt and it can be ugly. Lifes too short to spend it waiting for something to happen.

a4l

11-03-05, 10:32 AM

Actually I want nothing more than to be friends with this person, but last evening was a little odd that's all. I am trying to understand men. LOL easier said than done. ;)

Max Power

11-03-05, 10:39 AM

Blue is wise =]
He needs to be taken care of because he knows too much and is spilling

Is this Max Power calling this funny or a right wing nut job?? :eyebug:

Nahh I didn't mean as in 'dumb ass green peace'
Just the irony of the situation is funny

slapshot™

11-04-05, 2:02 PM

I am trying to understand men. LOL easier said than done. ;)

Maxy explains how the world works (http://hockeystation.com/showpost.php?p=26426&postcount=140)

Canadian26

11-04-05, 7:03 PM

Sometimes friendships can turn romantic, often they do not.

You've actually gotta be the first person that Ive ever heard say that. I think its the opposite to tell you the truth, I dont know very many ppl who havent at some pnt atleast liked one of their friends. I know many other friendships that turned into relationships...

PDO

11-05-05, 1:20 AM

Modern technology as far as health is consered is a ****ing joke.

KB in Kelowna

11-05-05, 11:51 AM

Modern technology as far as health is consered is a ****ing joke.
I beg to differ, advances in caridac surgery and diagnostic imaging have been very important in my life.

a4l

11-05-05, 2:34 PM

New cancer diagnostics and laser surgery saved my life and rte lives of a few other people I know.

Madferret

11-05-05, 4:20 PM

I like PB & J sandwhiches..

TimmyTabasco

11-05-05, 5:15 PM

I beg to differ, advances in caridac surgery and diagnostic imaging have been very important in my life.

I wish they could have had that sooner

But hey, it is what it is

Max Power

11-08-05, 3:05 PM

Venezuelan baseball star arrested
The Venezuelan baseball star Ugueth Urbina, of the Philadelphia Phillies, has been arrested in his home country on a charge of attempted murder.
Mr Urbina and a group of men have been accused of wielding machetes at several employees at his family's ranch.

They are also alleged to have poured petrol on them in an attempt to set them on fire.

Mr Urbina, who is one of a dozen of Venezuelans playing baseball in the US, denies any wrongdoing.

He was a star pitcher for the 2003 World Series champion Florida Marlins.

Five workers were injured during the incident last month in Ocumare del Tuy, 80km (50 miles) south of the capital, Caracas.

'Sleeping'

Mr Urbina was reportedly celebrating his return to Venezuela after the end of the US baseball season.

One of the workers, Argenis Farias, accused him of being among the attackers.

But Mr Urbina's lawyer said that his client was sleeping at the time of the incident.

He was detained at his home on the outskirts of Caracas and is due to be formally charged when he appears before a judge.

The pitcher's mother was kidnapped in September 2004, and rescued five months later in southern Venezuela.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/4418676.stm

Published: 2005/11/08 17:07:29 GMT

? BBC MMV

Newfie John

11-08-05, 4:47 PM

I was just playing ball hockey and I split my head open. :thumb:

TimmyTabasco

11-15-05, 6:30 PM

butterfly_style

11-16-05, 9:30 AM

I've got a nasty throat infection of some sort

Last week figured it was a sore throat. So, took some tylenol..and drank some whiskey to numb the pain :laughing:

Went to see the doctor on Saturday, and put me on antibiotics. Its feeling a bit better each day :thumb:
Ummm . . . are you contagious ?
I mean you can't catch someone's disease over cyber-space, can you ?
*butterfly wipes down keyboard with alcohol . . .goes to wash his hands . . .throws out monitor*

TimmyTabasco

11-20-05, 9:15 PM

The infection healed. Good old antibiotics :thumb:

Iced Tea

11-23-05, 2:58 AM

A few things I've noticed in the past week.
1. I'm forgetting a lot of names. It wasn't too bad until recently when I started forgetting the names of beautiful single women I know. I had a ten minute conversation with a woman last week and after she left the gym, I asked the gym owner who she was. Turns out I've know her casually for 5 years. Everyone should have to wear name tags.

2. I'm easily distracted. I darn near had a traffic accident this afternoon. I was stopped at a traffic light, the vehicle in front of me turned left and I went to turn left but failed to see that the light had turned red. Good thing a cop wasn't around.

3. People keep staring at me like I have a tumor or giant mole on my face. My paranoia is tingling and I keep checking to make sure I wore clothes when I left the apartment.

4. I can't wait for it to get cold and snow. Back in the 70's and 80's, I dreaded winter because it was 20 - 30 C below zero and snowed 2 - 3 feet of snow. Now Salmon Arm is lucky to hit -30 C for a week and maybe a foot of snow in downtown Salmon Arm. How weak is that? Thinking of moving into the snowbelt near the Rockies in a few years. Wouldn't mind 6 feet of snow per winter.

a4l

11-23-05, 8:47 AM

charlio lemieux

11-23-05, 10:40 AM

Mel

11-23-05, 1:42 PM

lol :laughing:

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Michael Fisk is a street fighting man. And the street he's fighting is named Dicks.

Fisk, who lives on Dicks Street in the Los Angeles suburb of West Hollywood, has gone to city hall to get the road's name changed -- saying that its slang meaning has made life difficult for homeowners.

"Since we moved in four years ago its just become such a hassle," Fisk said. "It's embarrassing. Something definitely needs to be changed. I realize that it's a man's name, but words change meaning, and this one has."

Dicks Street is in a neighborhood that fancies first names for its roads, with Keith and Norma among the choices.

Fisk, who collected signatures on a petition from more than half of the residents on Dicks Street, has so far been met with a lack of interest from city officials, who say that changing a street name is too much work.

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?storyID=2005-11-23T143528Z_01_HAR352519_RTRUKOC_0_US-LIFE-DICKS.xml

bluemeanie

11-23-05, 1:45 PM

lol :laughing:
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?storyID=2005-11-23T143528Z_01_HAR352519_RTRUKOC_0_US-LIFE-DICKS.xml

I wonder if anyone named Mike Hunt lives on Dicks Street?

slapshot™

11-23-05, 4:10 PM

It's time once again to review the winners of the Annual "Stella Awards."
The Stella Awards are named after 81 year-old Stella Liebeck who spilled hot coffee on herself and successfully sued McDonald's (in NM).

That case inspired the Stella awards for the most frivolous, ridiculous, successful lawsuits in the United States.

Here are this year's winners:

5th Place (tie):

Kathleen Robertson of Austin, Texas, was awarded $80,000 by a jury of her peers after breaking her ankle tripping over a toddler who was running inside a furniture store. The owners of the store were understandably surprised at the verdict, considering the misbehaving little toddler was Ms. Robertson's son.

5th Place (tie):

19-year-old Carl Truman of Los Angeleswon $74,000 and medical expenses when his neighbor ran over his hand with a Honda Accord! Mr. Truman apparently didn't notice there was someone at the wheel of the car when he was trying to steal his neighbor's hubcaps.

5th Place (tie):

Terrence Dickson of Bristol, Pennsylvania, was leaving a house he had just finished robbing by way of the garage. He was not able to get the garage door to go up since the automatic door opener was malfunctioning. He couldn't re-enter the house because the door connecting the house and garage locked when he pulled it shut. The family was on vacation, and Mr. Dickson found himself locked in the garage for eight days. He subsisted on a case of Pepsi he found, and a large bag of dry dog food. He sued the home owner's insurance claiming the situation caused him undue mental anguish. The jury
agreed to the tune of $500,000.

4th Place:

Jerry Williams of Little Rock, Arkansas, was awarded $14,500 and medical expenses after being bitten on the buttocks by his next door neighbor's beagle. The beagle was on a chain in its owner's fenced yard! The award was less than sought because the jury felt the dog might have been just a little provoked at the time by Mr. Williams who had climbed over the fence into the yard and was shooting it repeatedly with a pellet gun.

3rd Place:

A Philadelphia restaurant was ordered to pay Amber Carson of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, $113,500 after she slipped on a soft drink and broke her coccyx (tail bone). The beverage was on the floor because Ms. Carson had thrown it at her boyfriend 30 seconds earlier during an argument.

2nd Place:

Kara Walton of Claymont, Delaware, successfully sued the owner of a night club in a neighboring city when she fell from the bathroom window to the floor and knocked out her two front teeth. This occurred while Ms.Walton was trying to sneak through the window in the ladies room to avoid paying the $3.50 cover charge. She was awarded $12,000 and dental expenses.

1st Place:

This year's run away winner was Mrs. Merv Grazinski of Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma. Mrs. Grazinski purchased a brand new 32-foot Winnebago motor home. On her first trip home, (from an OU football game), having driven onto the freeway, she set the cruise control at 70 mph and calmly left the drivers seat to go into the back & make herself a sandwich. Not surprisingly, the RV left the freeway, crashed and overturned.

Mrs.Grazinski sued Winnebago for not advising her in the owner's manual that she couldn't actually do this. The jury awarded her $1,750,000 plus a new motor home. The company actually changed their manuals on the basis of this suit, just in case there were any other complete morons around.

Max Power

11-23-05, 4:44 PM

Good on slapshot, I read that a few years ago... I wonder if there are new ones or if it was just a joke.
The only thing that changed is the last one used to be a 50 year old man not a lady?

I thought this was funny

Liberal MP calls on immigration minister to ban rapper over gun lyrics TERRY PEDWELL
Wed Nov 23, 1:28 AM ET

OTTAWA (CP) - Immigration Minister Joe Volpe has been asked by one of his Liberal colleagues to prevent rap artist Fifty Cent from coming to Canada.

Born Curtis Jackson in Queen's N.Y., Fifty Cent - or "Fiddy" as he's known in rap circles - is scheduled to launch a Canadian tour Dec. 3 in Vancouver. But the rapper promotes gun violence, says Toronto MP Dan McTeague, who wants Volpe to turn back Fifty Cent at the border. "I don't think people in Toronto or any urban centre need or want to hear Mr. Jackson's message right now," McTeague said.

The musician performed in Toronto in 2003, where McTeague points out there was a shooting.

"I think it's time we send a message of our own to those who glorify violence that their gratuitous violence and movies are not welcome in our country," McTeague said. "We need to do a better job at protecting Canadians from people who's message runs counter to all of our efforts of trying to curb gun violence."

A spokesman for Volpe was unaware of the letter when contacted late Tuesday.

But the minister would not comment about an individual case anyway, said Steven Heckbert.

"Whether the minister or departmental officials make a decision about intervening or not, it's really not appropriate for us to be talking about it in a public forum," said Heckbert.

The rapper has a criminal record, and would be required to obtain a ministerial permit to enter Canada, although such permits are issued regularly, he added.

"It's permission that's granted typically about 12,000 times a year," said Heckbert. "In many of those cases the minister does not intervene directly. The department has delegated authority to make such decisions.

Some U.S. critics have criticized Fifty Cent's music for celebrating guns and drugs, without any emphasis on social or moral consciousness.

Paramount Pictures last month pulled some billboards for the movie Get Rich or Die Tryin after community activists complained they glorified gun violence in tough areas of south Los Angeles.

The posters featured Fifty Cent, the movie's star, holding a gun in his left hand and a microphone in his right.

The singer denounced the move as proof that rappers get a bad rap when it comes to violence.

Fifty Cent's Canadian tour is also scheduled for performances in Halifax, Saint John, Montreal, Quebec City, Toronto and Ottawa.

It's not known if the musician obtained a special permit to enter Canada in advance of booking his tour dates.

A coalition of African-Canadian organizations met Tuesday with Prime Minister Paul Martin in Ottawa, urging him to adopt a program to curb the escalating gun violence in Toronto.

Four dozen shootings in Toronto this year, out of a total of 70 homicides, involved guns.
http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/153/817589.jpg

Iced Tea

11-24-05, 5:25 PM

This is what Thanksgiving is all about. :rolleyes:

100-pound woman dubbed 'The Black Widow' wins NYC turkey-eating contest

NEW YORK (AP) - It's a question just begging to be asked: How much turkey can a person gobble down in 12 minutes?

A group of competitive American eaters assembled at Artie's Deli in New York on Wednesday to find out by noshing on 4.5-kilogram roast turkeys.

Eric (Badlands) Booker started quickly, ripping through two turkey breasts and establishing an eight-ounce lead after three minutes. As time ticked down and the competitors faced moister meat in the drumsticks and shoulders, Sonya (The Black Widow) Thomas, Chip Simpson and Tim Janus gained speed.

After 12 minutes, nearly all had stripped their bird to the bone.

After examining the scales, the judges announced a verdict: the 100-pound Thomas, of Alexandria, Va., had taken first prize, worth $2,500. Booker dropped to sixth place.

How much turkey did Thomas eat? A total of 1.9 kilograms.

Thomas says she took the Black Widow nickname because she likes to "eliminate the males" in eating contests.

Her other records include eating 65 hard-boiled eggs in six minutes and 40 seconds.

Her idol? Japanese competitive eating champion Takeru Kobayashi.
Link (http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2005/11/24/1321653-ap.html)
She can eat a lot and is only 100 pounds, other women must hate her. "She ate 1.9 kilograms of turkey and didn't gain an ounce, I had a piece of celery and packed 5 pounds onto my thighs." :laughing:

Max Power

11-24-05, 5:29 PM

That's over 4 pounds of turkey and in 12 minutes
Crazy
Especially without stuffing or gravy

TimmyTabasco

11-24-05, 5:44 PM

This is what Thanksgiving is all about. :rolleyes:

I never understood why the Yanks have Thanksgiving, so close to Christmas :no: :D

Iced Tea

11-24-05, 5:59 PM

That's over 4 pounds of turkey and in 12 minutes
Crazy
Especially without stuffing or gravyThat's it, 4 pounds? I could have taken her although I'd need cranberry sauce to keep my throat from drying out, and the contest should include stuffing and gravy because who eats turkey without the fixings, only crazy contestants.

I wonder if there is a second part to this contest, involving who can drive home without falling asleep behind the wheel due to the Tryptophan in turkey.

That brings me to an interesting point. During the holidays, the big push is for not driving drunk but what about not eating too much turkey and falling asleep behind the wheel. Maybe more ham should be eaten during the holidays.

TimmyTabasco

11-24-05, 6:05 PM

That's it, 4 pounds? I could have taken her although I'd need cranberry sauce to keep my throat from drying out

Would you get the Easter Bunny to help you out? :thumb: :nod:

http://n2.umicache.com/p/purevolume.com/profile/-130-1115047586-donnie.jpg

Iced Tea

11-24-05, 8:13 PM

Would you get the Easter Bunny to help you out? :thumb: :nod: Sorry, he's been a vegetarian ever since the avian flu pandemic started.

Iced Tea

11-24-05, 8:29 PM

I found the greatest site ever. I know everyone likes to do it so go pop some virtual bubblewrap (http://www.virtual-bubblewrap.com/popnow.shtml) :D Make sure your speakers are on.

Main page (http://www.virtual-bubblewrap.com/index.shtml)

Etiquette page (http://www.virtual-bubblewrap.com/etiquette.shtml) says
Chicks dig bubble wrap. Always bring it along on a date.I knew it. :laughing:

a4l

11-24-05, 11:31 PM

I found the greatest site ever. I know everyone likes to do it so go pop some virtual bubblewrap (http://www.virtual-bubblewrap.com/popnow.shtml) :D Make sure your speakers are on.

Main page (http://www.virtual-bubblewrap.com/index.shtml)

Etiquette page (http://www.virtual-bubblewrap.com/etiquette.shtml) says
I knew it. :laughing:

Oh great anew adiction. Didn't you know that bubble wrap is essential for a great date. :laughing::laughing:

Iced Tea

11-26-05, 9:56 AM

CNN.com (http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/11/25/bear.attack.ap/index.html) says
Bear shot by hunter bites back, dies

Saturday, November 26, 2005; Posted: 7:40 a.m. EST (12:40 GMT)

HARRISBURG, Pennsylvania (AP) -- A black bear bit and clawed a hunter who had just shot it four times in what game authorities said appeared to be a first for the state.

Samuel H. Beauchamp, 47, said he was approaching the downed 320-pound bear in Rothrock State Forest in central Pennsylvania on Monday, the first day of bear-hunting season, when it came after him.

Beauchamp, of nearby Newville, had just shot the bear with a .444-caliber rifle and was within 15 feet of it. He turned to run, but the bear put a claw around his hip and bit him twice, once in each thigh, before dying.

"The bear wasn't attacking 100 percent. I mean really, it was dead on its feet when it came up. If it would have been 100 percent I wouldn't have been standing there," Beauchamp said Friday.

Other hunters heard a growl and came to Beauchamp's aid.

"It was shock at first. It's like he came alive, like 'boom.' I guess he growled, like the other people heard. That motivated me to turn around and start running away," he said.

Game commission bear biologist Mark Ternent said the attack was the first case known to state officials in which a bear had attacked a hunter who had just shot it and was attempting to recover it.

Beauchamp was released from the hospital after about two hours of treatment. One bite went down to the bone.

"I didn't feel any pain after it happened," he said Friday. "I'm a little sore now."Hey moron, you shot the bear, there was a good chance the bear was pissed off seeing as how you shot it. I don't feel one ounce of sympathy for you, you idiot. You want to go into the woods, which is the bear's house, and shoot a bear, it serves you right if the bear attacked you. It's morons like you that go hunting for shark and wondered why the shark tore their arm or leg off.

Same goes for bullfighters; you're sticking swords into the bull when it charges by. If the bull catches you with a horn and rips you in half, it's your own fault for making the bull mad.

Just to even things up; bears, sharks and bulls should have weapons as well just to even out the playing field. :burning: :talkhand:

a4l

11-26-05, 10:04 AM

Kiss may have been fatal for Quebec teen

Last Updated Fri, 25 Nov 2005 11:06:20 EST CBC News (http://www.cbc.ca/news/credit.html)
An autopsy will be performed on the body of a 15-year-old girl in Quebec's Saguenay region who officials believe died from an allergic reaction to her boyfriend's kiss.
The girl was allergic to peanuts, and while she did not actually consume the nuts herself, officials believe she reacted after kissing her boyfriend who had eaten peanut butter.
The apparently fatal kiss took place last Sunday in Jonqui?re, Que.
Although an adrenaline shot was administered almost immediately, the teen did not recover, Montreal newspaper La Presse reports.
The girl was rushed to hospital, where she eventually died after suffering respiratory failure.

I got this off the CBC website.

charlio lemieux

11-26-05, 11:19 AM

That is a nutty story A4l.

TimmyTabasco

11-26-05, 4:38 PM

That is a nutty story A4l.

:no: :D

TimmyTabasco

11-26-05, 4:41 PM

CNN.com (http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/11/25/bear.attack.ap/index.html) says
Hey moron, you shot the bear, there was a good chance the bear was pissed off seeing as how you shot it. I don't feel one ounce of sympathy for you, you idiot. You want to go into the woods, which is the bear's house, and shoot a bear, it serves you right if the bear attacked you. It's morons like you that go hunting for shark and wondered why the shark tore their arm or leg off.

Same goes for bullfighters; you're sticking swords into the bull when it charges by. If the bull catches you with a horn and rips you in half, it's your own fault for making the bull mad.

Just to even things up; bears, sharks and bulls should have weapons as well just to even out the playing field. :burning: :talkhand:

Well said TeaBag

Too bad Pooh Bear didn't finish the moron off :no: :boogie:

Once I stayed with a local, up North. He used to tell me all the stories of going fishing etc. He never hunted bear, as you have to have a respect for the animal. Plus a trophy is something for a weak man, someone who needs a boost to the ego.

Its different for the First Nations...who needed to hunt for survival..and used the whole animal.

Anyway :D

Iced Tea

11-27-05, 9:32 PM

Brazilian prisons crown Miss Penitentiary 2005
By PAULO WINTERSTEIN

SAO PAULO, Brazil (AP) - South America's latest beauty queen won't be campaigning abroad for world peace any time soon. Unless, of course, it helps get her out of prison.

Angelica Mazua, a statuesque Angolan facing international drug smuggling charges, on Thursday was voted Miss Penitentiary 2005 after a six-hour contest pitting 40 female inmates from 10 prisons around Brazil's largest city, Sao Paulo.

"People told me, 'You're tall. You should enter the contest,' so that's why I entered," said Mazua, who has been jailed for four months and faces about five years behind bars if convicted. "I've always been interested in fashion."

Other women imprisoned on charges of everything from armed robbery to drug trafficking took part in the contest that prison officials began last year as a way of trying to boost inmates' self-confidence.

"It helps their self-esteem," said Irani Torres, director of a prison in the city of Rio Claro. "It helps them feel human. It shows that they're capable people, that independent of the crime, they are a part of society."

The title also brings a prize equivalent to about $185 Cdn and a much-needed break from dreary routine.

The sweltering heat inside the Capital Female Penitentiary was only made worse by the dozens of hair dryers working overtime. But anxious contestants did not seem to mind.

Contestant Caroline Goncalves said before the vote that she hoped a victory could launch her modelling career. But she also said she'd be satisfied if she could shave some time off her prison sentence.

"This will put me a little closer to getting out of here," the 25-year-old convict said as stylists tugged at her long blond hair and put the finishing touches on her pencilled-in eyebrows.

"Afterward, we're going to be able to talk to people from (fashion) magazines," said a clearly nervous Goncalves, who is serving five years and four months for assault with a deadly weapon.

Last year's winner, Fernanda Maria de Jesus, gained early release months after her victory, but prison officials insist the shortened sentence had nothing to do with her winning the title.

The contest is more than just a beauty pageant. Judges include celebrities, soccer players and journalists, and there are prizes in three other categories including writing, public speaking and congeniality.

But one of the contestants in the writing competition, Viviane Souza, 23, complained that the beauty pageant winner gets all the attention, including appearances on television shows.

"Last year they just showed the beauty contest winner. Why not show the ones who wrote, the ones who used their minds?" asked Souza, who hopes to become a journalist when she finishes her 21-month sentence for drug dealing.

Even so, many were glad for the chance to let their hair down - or to fix it up.

"I'm not bothered by the attention the beauty contest (winner) receives," said Maria Aparecida de Almeida, 39. "She is raising the banner for all of us. She's a prisoner and she managed to make it. She helps all of us."

Peru and Colombia also hold beauty contests in prisons. Sao Paulo's is one of the largest, drawing from its female population of almost 4,000 inmates.
Link (http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2005/11/25/1323642-ap.html)

Hmmm, I need to become a pen pal to some female inmates in Brazil. :D

I wouldn't want to be the fashion model agent who gets shivved after telling Caroline Goncalves she's not good enough to be a model.

Iced Tea

11-27-05, 9:38 PM

Man leads police on slow lawnmower chase

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) - Bad idea: fleeing from police in a stolen car. Terrible idea: fleeing in a stolen lawnmower. But that's what police say a "happy drunk" did, a decision that landed the suspect back in prison for violating his parole.

Police say they got a tip about a stolen riding lawnmower. When they investigated, they spotted a man driving across a cornfield near Springfield.

"I happened to be driving south when the call went out, and lo and behold, off to the west there was this man bouncing through the cornfield with his ponytail flopping in the breeze," said Kurt Taraba, a police officer in the suburb of Southern View. Sangamon County Sheriff's Deputy Jim Tapscott said authorities set up a perimeter while he and another deputy drove into the field to talk to the lawnmower driver. They identified themselves and told him to stop, but he allegedly tried to drive off.

"I thought, 'You're on a riding mower, and we're in a car,'" Tapscott said with a laugh. "He was only going four or five miles per hour, so I got out and jogged alongside him." The driver finally stopped when police threatened to stun him with a Taser. Police arrested Charles H. Carter, 45, and returned him to the Illinois Department of Corrections. Carter was wearing an ankle monitor because he'd been on home confinement. The Prisoner Review Board will decide whether he goes back on parole or remains in prison to serve the rest of his two-year sentence for theft. Deputies have been unable to determine who owns the Craftsman mower. They said Carter had a handwritten bill of sale for it, but was unable to tell them where it was purchased or provide any other details.
Link (http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2005/11/25/1323490-ap.html)

:laughing:

Reminds me of the idiots who stole a golf cart and ended up in a slow speed chase in downtown Salmon Arm. :laughing:

a4l

11-27-05, 11:45 PM

'Buy Nothing Christmas' carollers bring message to mall

Last Updated Sun, 27 Nov 2005 16:39:58 EST CBC News (http://www.cbc.ca/news/credit.html)
Cheerful demonstrators opposed to the commercialization of Christmas managed to sing six anti-consumer carols at a Winnipeg mall before security evicted them.
About a dozen members of a group promoting a "Buy Nothing Christmas" set up near Santa's house in Polo Park Mall on Saturday and sang their versions of the old Christmas favourites.

"So, we enter the retail space, we put on our hats, we form a little semicircle two rows deep and start singing our song. And then we just launch into our songs, like 'profits here, profits there, profits everywhere,' you know those kind of things," said Aiden Enns, one of the singers and a veteran anti-consumerism activist.
"It's kind of an in-your-face way of saying stop and think about what your actions mean for you and for the world and the environment ... get people to re-think how they celebrate the season, " said group member Linda Trono.
In Halifax, one Buy Nothing participant is facing charges after Friday night's protest there. The woman was charged with obstruction and assaulting a police officer after about 50 people gathered in front of City Hall. As they marched through a downtown street, shopping carts blocked the way. The woman was arrested after the police tried to clear the path.
Buy Nothing Christmas was started by Canadian Mennonites several years ago. "My participation in Buy Nothing Christmas directs me to a larger, spiritual perspective on the season," Enns said.
Trono's family makes things like breads to give to each other, instead of spending money on what she said are meaningless gifts.
Enns ran a full-page ad about the buy nothing idea in 2000 when he was editor of Canadian Mennonite magazine. He later became managing editor of the anti-consumerism magazine AdBusters, which promoted the cause as Buy Nothing Day.
That campaign later changed into a broader Christmas campaign. The Buy Nothing Day website says it is now observed in 55 countries.

link (http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/11/27/anti-gift051127.html)

These guys have a point. I usually make my Christmas gifts.

Max Power

11-30-05, 4:35 PM

I'm a little faint

Rugby fan can't explain self-mutilation
Email Print Normal font Large font November 16, 2005 - 6:49AM

A rugby fan who cut out his testicles with wire cutters to mark a Wales victory is at a loss to explain why he did it.

Geoffrey Huish, 31, performed the impromptu self-surgery in February when his beloved Wales beat world champions England.

After performing the deed, Mr Huish put his severed anatomy in a bag and took them to his local social club to show fellow fans.

He collapsed with blood loss and was rushed to hospital but surgeons could not reattach his missing parts.

He was put in a psychiatric ward but has no history of mental illness and was at a loss to explain why he did it.

"I'd told my pal Gethin Probert before the game that Wales didn't stand a chance," Mr Huish told The Sun.

"It wasn't a bet but I said I'd cut my b*lls off if we won.

"I listened to the game on the radio at home by myself.

"After the match I got up for a pee and saw the cutters in the bathroom.

"Gethin had left them after repairing the chain on my toilet.

"I remembered what I'd said and thought he had left them for me.

"I thought 'Oh no, I haven't got to do anything like that have I' and then I thought 'You can do it'.

"So I started hacking away at my tackle.

"It took about 10 minutes and there was quite a bit of pain but I just kept going.

"The cutters were blunt so I had to keep snipping."

After picking his testicles from the toilet bowl, he went to the social club.

"I went in and shouted out 'I've done it!'," Mr Huish said.

"I took my b*lls out and passed them in the bag to a friend.

"Some people then laid me on the floor."

Mr Huish continues to see a psychiatrist.

"I think about what happened every day and still haven't come up with a good reason why," he said.

"I'd had a lot going on and felt a bit down.

"I can't have kids now but still want a family - maybe I'll adopt."

http://www.smh.com.au/news/breaking-news/rugby-fan-cant-explain-cutting-out-testicles/2005/11/16/1132016820398.html?oneclick=true#

slapshot™

11-30-05, 6:42 PM

I can't have kids now but still want a family - maybe I'll adopt

Like he has a choice. Maybe it's best for everyone that he will be unable to sire a child.

a4l

11-30-05, 7:22 PM

I'm a little faint

:eek: The guy is insane.

Newfie John

11-30-05, 7:55 PM

"It took about 10 minutes and there was quite a bit of pain but I just kept going.

"The cutters were blunt so I had to keep snipping."

WTF?

KeithM

11-30-05, 11:23 PM

I just bought a Motorola Razor, I guess thats whats up with me.

http://www.cable-land.net/imagenes/telefonos/motorola/razorv3negro.jpg

Amoroq

12-01-05, 1:26 AM

I was at work a few minutes early tonight and I decided to go over to country style and grab a coffee and bagel. As I was crossing the street, this big menacing hulk of a man with a big bad mean look wearing a Denver Broncos Jacket was crossing over to my side of the street. The first person I thought about was JR, he knows I work in the Falls. I was a bit worried that JR was going to beat me up, but then I thought, Big mean and menacing?? Nah can't be JR ;)

Iced Tea

12-01-05, 1:34 AM

Iced Tea

12-01-05, 1:49 AM

My Big Cell Phone
By Allen Narcisse (NJ), Featured Columnist
Published: Monday, October 28, 2002

Fellas. Don't ever believe a woman who says that size doesn't matter. That notion couldn't be more false.

Recently at dinner, while sitting across from a classmate who I wouldn't mind impressing, I got a phone call. When I took my phone from my pocket, I heard a collective gasp that bordered on a shriek.

"What's that?" the classmate said.

"It's my cellphone," I replied, while turning off the ringer to discard the incoming call. There was a sarcastic 'duh' hiding behind my words.
She continued, "It can't be, it's too huge."

A giant smile grew on my face as I couldn't resist my juvenile tendencies. "Thanks," I said while giving high-fives with my eyes to all of the guys around the table who were paying attention to the conversation.

"That's not at all a good thing. My God, it's like a payphone."
At this point, let me tell you a little more about my portable pay phone. I was an early adopter of Kyocera's Smartphone - one of the first American phones that combined a tri-mode phone with a palm pilot. I needed a palm pilot, as I was and still am poorly organized, as well as a new cell phone.

When receiving the phone, my first thought was "Hey, it's not too big." Not that big, of course, is a relative statement. Relative as a portable phone to a house, it's small. However, looking at the phone forces the onlooker to conjure up an image of a military radio or a gray, thick antennaed, 1984 Miami Vice coke dealer phone.

Due to some MBA, the world is under tremendous, inexplicable pressure to shrink phones each year and excommunicate any person with last year's phone model. Buying a new phone that is above the currently acceptable size of a Ritz cracker borders on blasphemy.

Early on, I was in the denial stage, the first stage of the Smartphone process. When people would insult me and then my phone in that order, I would flaunt the phone's features, just like I was paid for product placement.

..it's a phone and palm pilot. No more copying names numbers and addresses. It's all in one convenient place.

It was the quintessential consultant phone and I touted it as such.
While some nodded in agreement others continued insulting the phone (and me) with jabs like:
"Are you the telephone repairman?"
"Can I borrow your cash register?"
"Does your vending machine have Coke?"
"Are you checking the air quality?"
"Is that a graphing calculator?"
"Shall I take you to our leader? I'll do it, just put that thing away."

Even random children joined in on the good laughs by asking me why I was talking into my remote control.

The jokes flung me into the second stage: acceptance, the self-deprecating David Spade stage. I played into my handicap. When people would respond to the phone, I would no longer open the flip to reveal the phone's thousand and one qualities. It got to the point that I not only made jokes about the phone, but would arbitrarily take it out without cause and shout, "Hey, look at my big phone."

Quickly, I realized that this wouldn't take me very far, and that this wasn't the kind of life that I wanted to live.

Which led me to the last stage, where I reside now: the "I hate this phone and I hope I lose it" phase. Ironically, the Kyocera is theoretically a great phone. I say in theory because it locks more than a prison warden. It's also had one mechanical problem after another. And it's more fragile than a Wharton MBA's self-esteem while in Boston. Worst of all, it's super-sized. But it's convenient and it has served every purpose that I wanted it to, from date book to anchor.

All of the above said, you cannot get a girl with this phone regardless of your game, looks, build, clothes or money. You could be Taye Diggs. If you take this phone out at a club, even the band camp girl will shut you down.

My only recourse after seeing the phone in action, was to try to lose the damn thing. But of course, it's a called a Smartphone for a reason, and thus it's always found its way home. The only problem with trying to lose the phone is that, like a typical HBS student, I'm concerned about return on investment. The phone which retails for $99 now cost nearly $500 when I bought it (sucker). I figure that I will give it another six months before I try to lose the phone again.

Surprisingly, I've noticed that two of my section mates also had the Smartphone (both guys). Before HBS, I had only met one other person with the phone. Immediately, I had approached my section mates to start a support group. I wanted to tell then that I understood how they felt, and that it wasn't their fault.:laughing:

Link (http://www.harbus.org/media/paper343/news/2002/10/28/Humor/My.Big.Cell.Phone-308214.shtml)

Canadian26

12-01-05, 3:32 AM

Today I learned a big lession: girls are bi*ches

Iced Tea

12-01-05, 3:57 AM

Today I learned a big lesson: girls are bi*chesI could have told you that 20 years ago. :laughing:

Please explain the circumstances by which you learned this lesson. Was there a cat fight with hair pulling and nail gouging? Was there any unexpected partial nudity, ie a body part falling out of a shirt or top? Did anyone end up in the hospital? Could I see the same thing dragged out over a two week period on a soap opera?

TimmyTabasco

12-04-05, 6:43 PM

Newfie John

12-04-05, 6:58 PM

a4l

12-04-05, 7:39 PM

slapshot™

12-04-05, 8:08 PM

Can you say whipped. What a wanker

Totally.

You must, as every brother would, (especially an older bro - as you are) ride him about it every possible opportunity you can.

Since this is so close to Christmas time you could come out far ahead. If you play your cards right he will feel sheepish and inadequate as well as come to the realization that he folded like a cheap lawn chair when it came to this hussy instead of honouring an agreement that he intentionally set out to fullfill with his older bro.

Don't back down Timmy and many riches could be yours come Christmas day!

http://www.purplemoon.com/Stickers/pirate-girl-treasure.jpg

Iced Tea

12-05-05, 2:56 AM

So, I'm a little pissed at my younger brother

He comes in, and asks if I want to go to the Boston-Canucks game tonight. There are cheap tickets at 40 dollars each.

So, he calls up..but can only get two tickets to the game.

Instead of taking his brother(who would have paid for his own ticket), he apologizes to me..and takes his girlfriend. A chick that knows perhaps nothing of the game, and is not much more than a wagon rider.

Can you say whipped. What a wankerDid she even watch the game or was she busy talking on her cellphone, reading a magazine, looking around, or commenting on other people's fashion choices?

If my brother tried to pull that crap on me so he could take his wife, who never watches hockey on tv, I'd be so pissed off I wouldn't talk to him for weeks or months. Then bring the game up every time I was around him and other guys. "You remember that big win the Canucks had over the Bruins which lead to the Canuck's big run to the playoffs? Well bro here went to the game. I would have liked to go but he tooks his former girlfriend/wife who doesn't care about hockey. Yes, it was probably the most heartless thing he has ever done. By the way, I have two prime seat tickets for the first round playoffs, who other than my brother wants to go? I'll be sure to wave to you, bro, if they put me on tv."

Or you could stop talking to him forever.

Canadian26

12-09-05, 12:41 AM

I could have told you that 20 years ago. :laughing:

Please explain the circumstances by which you learned this lesson. Was there a cat fight with hair pulling and nail gouging? Was there any unexpected partial nudity, ie a body part falling out of a shirt or top? Did anyone end up in the hospital? Could I see the same thing dragged out over a two week period on a soap opera?

Haha, nothing to get to exicited about (although I know two girls who got into an actual fight in a club)... its more like a soap opera like circumstances.

Iced Tea

12-09-05, 8:39 PM

Big Apple warms up as pleasant, syrupy, mystery smell is reported in New York

NEW YORK (AP) - Was it the sweet smell of success? For the second time in two months, a mysterious maple syrup aroma wafted over Manhattan on Thursday, and city officials still don't know what caused it.

Callers to the city's 311 help line and the Fire Department reported the pleasant scent around 3:30 p.m. in neighbourhoods from midtown to the Upper East and West sides.

"The calls aren't exactly complaints," city Department of Environmental Protection spokesman Ian Michaels said Friday. That's no surprise in a city where a host of less appetizing smells are often on the menu.

Michaels said the odor appeared to be the same one people detected in late October, mostly in lower Manhattan.

The agency sent out its hazardous materials team to take instant readings of the air from neighbourhoods where the calls originated, but nothing dangerous was found. Air samples brought in for additional testing were also negative.

"It is once again a mystery. It seems to be gone," Michaels said.Link (http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2005/12/09/1346323-ap.html)

Mel, can you smell it? Has it been determined if it's a maple cloud from Vermont or did a tanker truck spill a load on top of a heat grate or are you eating a lot of pancakes right now?

Mel

12-09-05, 9:46 PM

Link (http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2005/12/09/1346323-ap.html)

Mel, can you smell it? Has it been determined if it's a maple cloud from Vermont or did a tanker truck spill a load on top of a heat grate or are you eating a lot of pancakes right now?

No I can't say that I smell it... all I smell at the moment is food burning downstairs. Possible fire.

Usually when I'm in NYC... any noticable odors on the street are not what I'd classify as pleasant. Dead animals, mountains of garbage, hobos in need of a good wash... that's the norm.

It could be maple scented acid rain from Vermont.

At any rate, I'm glad there's a 311 line (I had no idea). Next time I smell something out of the ordinary, I'll be sure to dial 311. I can see it now.

~ Hello, Strange odor hotline...
# hello is this 311?
~ go ahead please.
# I smell maple syrup
~ OK, where did the smelling take place
# It's everywhere! It's following me
~ OK sir just stay calm sir. Where are you located right now.
# West 14th street...... but I'm not here pick up prostitutes.
~ Sure, nobody ever does that.
# Look, we need an tactical odor team out here immediately - I SMELL MAPLE SYRUP!!
~ OK sir stay calm, all of our strange odor tactical units are on coffee break.
# WHAT???
~ The brotherhood of strange odor detecters, pastry chefs, circus acrobats and electrical workers union, has a mandatory 10-11 AM coffee break in their contract.
# Oh this is just great!
~ I do have a bad music canine patrol unit currently undispatched.......

Only in new york :rolleyes:

Madferret

12-09-05, 9:57 PM

Mel do you live right in NYC or outside in the 'burbs?

Iced Tea

12-09-05, 10:06 PM

Mel do you live right in NYC or outside in the 'burbs?I believe he recently moved to Hell's Kitchen.

Hell's Kitchen and Midtown West

Known for: Young, monied professionals and a sizable gay community have joined the blue collars and largely Latino old-timers calling Hell's Kitchen home. Now you'll find chichi boutiques among the many reasonably priced ethnic restaurants that dot Ninth Avenue?trendy bars and restaurants are even popping up on the strip south of seedy Port Authority. Locally owned shops and cheap eats are supplanted by chain stores and gawking tourists once you head east of Eighth Avenue and into Midtown West.

Boundaries: Roughly 59th to 40th Streets, and bounded by the Hudson River and Fifth Avenue; Eighth Avenue demarcates the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood and the impersonal, tourist-heavy Midtown West.

Borders: The Upper West Side and Chelsea sandwich Hell's Kitchen; Central Park, Midtown East, and the Flatiron District surround Midtown West.Link (http://www.newyorkmetro.com/realestate/articles/neighborhoods/hellskitchen.htm)

Mel told me he is unhappy about the young professionals moving in and the seedy strip clubs being closed. :D

Mel

12-09-05, 11:34 PM

Mel do you live right in NYC or outside in the 'burbs?

No I don't live in NYC... still waiting to hit the lottery for that. :) But I live pretty close in. In a city called New Rochelle straight up I-95 from the bronx. It's about a few Tiger Woods drives out of the NYC border. :laughing: I can be in Manhattan in 20 minutes drive, or just jump on the train to Grand Central.

It is the burbs, but it's somewhat urban at the same time. It's a city of I believe 80K or so. Yonkers, Mount Vernon, New Rochelle, White Plains are all cities that sit just north of NYC. It's a crowded area over all, but there's plenty of wealthy exclusive areas too, being so close to Manhattan.

Hell's Kitchen was a great old-school Irish neighborhood that has gone the way of many great old-school neighborhoods. The developers and yuppies wind up taking it over because of the prime location. The long timers just wind up getting squeezed out. Hell if Mayor Bloomberg had his way, most of Hell's Kitchen would be a Jets football stadium right now.

That happens a lot in Boston too, where I'm from originally. It's even worse up there than down here I think. The old ethnic neighborhoods fade away. Kinda sad if you ask me.

Madferret

12-12-05, 4:25 PM

Seniors Charged With Selling Prescriptions
By ROGER ALFORD
Associated Press Writer

PRESTONSBURG, Ky. - Dottie Neeley, 87, was fingerprinted, photographed and thrown in jail, imprisoned as much by the tubing from her oxygen tank as by the concrete and steel around her.

The woman ? who spent two days in jail after her arrest last December ? is among a growing number of Kentucky senior citizens charged in a crackdown on a crime authorities say is rampant in Appalachia: Elderly people are reselling their painkillers and other medications to addicts.

"When a person is on Social Security, drawing $500 a month, and they can sell their pain pills for $10 apiece, they'll take half of them for themselves and sell the other half to pay their electric bills or buy groceries," Floyd County jailer Roger Webb said.

Since April 2004, Operation UNITE, a Kentucky anti-drug task force crated largely in response to rampant abuse of the powerful and sometimes lethal painkiller OxyContin, has charged more than 40 people 60 or older with selling primarily prescription drugs in the mountains.

"It used to be a rare occasion to have an elderly inmate," Webb said. "Five years ago it was a rarity."

Local jails are having to bear the increased cost of caring for old and often sickly inmates.

"You've got to give them more attention," Webb said. "It's putting a strain on my deputies. We're understaffed anyway. You've got to get them doctors, and meet their medical needs."

Researchers suspect the problem is not limited to Appalachia.

Elderly people "may be looking for a way to bring in a little extra money," said Erin Artigiani, deputy director of the University of Maryland Center for Substance Abuse Research. "We haven't heard a lot about senior citizens being a source of those drugs. We know college students do this. It's not much a stretch to think that seniors could do it, too."

Dr. Anita Cornett, a physician in Hyden, said one of her patients, a reformed drug addict, told her that he bought all his drugs not from a known dealer, but from elderly people.

Cornett said she does random drug screenings to make sure her patients are taking their prescription drugs instead of selling them. In addition, staffers routinely call patients and ask them to bring their prescription bottles in so that the pills can be counted.

The Rev. Doug Abner, pastor of Community Church in Manchester and an anti-drug activist, said senior citizens may not understand the seriousness of selling prescription drugs.

"They justify it because they're having a hard time financially," he said. "Left to ourselves, we can justify anything, but they're really part of the problem."

However, Dan Smoot, a former state police drug detective who heads the task force, said the elderly people being charged are not necessarily struggling to put food on the table.

"Most of the elderly we arrest are merely continuing a family tradition," he said. "It has been part of their culture for a long time."

Neeley, the old woman who was arrested along with her son and his girlfriend, faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted of trafficking in prescription drugs as well as marijuana.

However, a prosecutor has agreed not to oppose "shock probation" if Neeley enters a guilty plea at her next court appearance, Dec. 29. Under shock probation, a defendant who is unlikely to repeat the crime is released after getting a brief taste of life behind bars.

Her attorney, Terry Jacobs, said the plea bargain would be a gamble, because the judge could decide not to grant her shock probation, and "six months is a death sentence for her."

In a telephone interview, Neeley denied selling drugs. She said she suffers from emphysema and asthma and sometimes uses a wheelchair. She said she was shocked when police arrived to arrest her and made the 4-foot 8-inch, 120-pound woman walk from her house to a cruiser.

"I had to hold my hands up all the way," she said. "They wouldn't let me hold them down."

Her lawyer declined to discuss specifics of the charges. But speaking generally, he said: "You've got a depressed economy. You've got an opportunity for these folks to make money. If you're seeing a disproportionate number of elderly, it's because they are the people who are going to be prescribed most of the drugs."

:conspire:

a4l

12-12-05, 5:08 PM

That is insane.

Amoroq

12-14-05, 1:11 AM

No I don't live in NYC... still waiting to hit the lottery for that. :) But I live pretty close in. In a city called New Rochelle straight up I-95 from the bronx. It's about a few Tiger Woods drives out of the NYC border. :laughing: I can be in Manhattan in 20 minutes drive, or just jump on the train to Grand Central.My wife has family that live in New Rochelle.

Amoroq

12-14-05, 1:17 AM

If anyone watched the Elton John Special on NBC the other night there was one thing that was edited out, Pamela Anderson and pole dancing. The actress moved suggestively around a dance pole to the Elton John hit The Bitch Is Back.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051213/ap_on_en_tv/tv_anderson_censored Damn sensors!

a4l

12-14-05, 2:17 AM

Holy Crap that is my song. Why would they allow her to do such a thing? :shrug: :gulppint: :rollover:

Rusty

12-14-05, 8:13 PM

No I don't live in NYC... still waiting to hit the lottery for that. :) But I live pretty close in. In a city called New Rochelle ............

Isn't that where Rob Petrie (sp?) lived?

:D :D :D

a4l

12-14-05, 8:17 PM

You are showing your age Rusty. Yes that is where Rob & Laura lived.

Rusty

12-14-05, 8:19 PM

I loved that show......

a4l

12-14-05, 8:24 PM

Me too. The cast was magnificent.

Max Power

12-16-05, 2:22 PM

Interesting read

Highways deadliest spot to be in the Middle East
By Jim Krane
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published December 14, 2005

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- On urban highways in the Middle East, cars pinball across lanes at more than 100 mph, and crashes are so gory and damage so great that one might think the mangled vehicles were destroyed by a bomb.
The region is plagued by some of the world's highest accident rates, with reckless drivers and speeders blamed for about 3,000 traffic deaths per month in Arab nations.
The carnage has emerged as a public-health crisis -- the second-leading cause of death, after heart disease, in wealthy Persian Gulf countries -- and a chief cause of gridlock gripping many of the Middle East's fast-growing cities.
World Health Organization statistics show that the "Eastern Mediterranean region," which includes most Arab countries, Israel, Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan -- has a rate of 26.3 deaths from traffic accidents per 100,000 population. Only Africa's rate is higher, at 28.3. In North and South America, the rate is 15.7; the rate in Europe is 14.5.
In Arab nations, it amounts to 3,000 deaths a month, according to a study by the Tunis, Tunisia-based Arab Road Safety Organization.
"That's equivalent to the number of September 11 victims," Riadh Dabbou, chief of the organization, told the Gulf Traffic Convention in Dubai on Monday.
Gulf nations are the worst offenders in the Arab world. Dubai police say a traffic crash occurs in the city every three minutes -- every two minutes during the rush home for the evening meal during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.
"It's horrifying," said Glenn Havinoviski, a traffic technology expert with the U.S. consultancy firm Wilbur Smith Associates. "You have a tremendous safety problem. More traffic means more and more accidents."
Boomtown Dubai has mushroomed to 1.5 million people from about 20,000 in the 1950s. The number of registered cars in the city is projected to reach 800,000 next year -- doubling from 2001, said Baher Abdulhai, director of the University of Toronto's Intelligent Transportation Systems Center.
In the United Arab Emirates, there are 21 traffic deaths per 100,000 people, compared with 15 in the United States and about six in Britain. Saudi Arabia has a rate as high as 30 deaths, according to some figures.
Even worse are the number of deaths per 100,000 vehicles -- 116 in the Emirates, six times the U.S. rate, according to a study done by University of Nottingham in England.
The Nottingham study blamed 62 percent of the crashes on a combination of reckless driving and speeding. It said reckless local driving habits had not changed despite rapid modernization in the Gulf.
Non-Arab countries in the Middle East are just as bad. Israel reported 27 fatalities per 100,000 vehicles, compared with 18 in the United States and 11 in Britain.
Iran has one of the highest rates of road accidents in the world -- 38 deaths per year per 100,000 people. One person is killed every 40 minutes in accidents in Iran, and one is injured every seven minutes, according to the Iranian state news agency.
A video aired at the Gulf Traffic Convention showed dozens of children orphaned by traffic wrecks marching recently in the Emirates capital, Abu Dhabi. The children wore black mourning robes, and some carried banners reading, "They were killed by speed."
"We lost our fathers," the children chanted. "Why didn't he go slowly?"
Wilbur Smith is overseeing Dubai's installation of a high-tech "intelligent traffic system" by Germany's Siemens AG, with sensors and video cameras linked to a command center and electronic signs warning drivers of crashes.
A University of Bahrain traffic expert called for better public transport, saying the automobile is wreaking destruction on Arab society.
"We have adopted a transportation system that is killing people," said Abdul Rahman al-Janahi. "Is this sustainable? It's a transport system with no mercy."
But his proclamations appeared to stand little chance of catching on. Across the convention center from the road safety gathering was a far more popular event -- the Middle East International Motor Show, where throngs ogled Ferraris, Porsches and customized Mercedes sports cars.

charlio lemieux

12-16-05, 2:29 PM

Yoata

12-16-05, 2:37 PM

Its all that rich aromatic traditional coffee they drink with their rich aromatic traditional hash. ;):)
A ferrari is a long way from a camel, maybe there should be a middle ground. Like start off with a moped an work your way up.:D

Well Shrub had better get on his white horse and invade those countries too, save those poor people from themselves...

charlio lemieux

12-16-05, 2:44 PM

Well Shrub had better get on his white horse and invade those countries too, save those poor people from themselves...

Hmmm....we could call the cars WMD's.

KB in Kelowna

12-16-05, 6:42 PM

I just found out that one of my wife's freinds bought my son the same gift we got him from Santa Claus :eek: Oh well now he will have two.:shrug:

Iced Tea

12-16-05, 7:13 PM

I just found out that one of my wife's freinds bought my son the same gift we got him from Santa Claus :eek: Oh well now he will have two.:shrug:Maybe your wife will let you play with the second one. :laughing:

Yoata

12-16-05, 7:17 PM

http://sympaticomsn.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20051216/edmonton_abuse_051216

These mother#@$%ers need to be mercilessly tortured 2 years for every year that poor kid was.

Iced Tea

12-16-05, 7:45 PM

http://sympaticomsn.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20051216/edmonton_abuse_051216

These mother#@$%ers need to be mercilessly tortured 2 years for every year that poor kid was.This makes me very sad and very angry.

The sad part of me feels so bad for the poor kid, being abused by obviously sick people. Why couldn't someone have seen this sooner and told the police than.

The angry part of me wants the death penalty brought back just for sick bastards like this girl's mother and stepfather. If no death penalty, then life in prison with the both of them being taken care of by the general population of the prisons.

I just listened to the video of the police press spokesperson and the mother is out on bail. How can any judge agree to bail on such a sick and depraved person?

Yoata

12-16-05, 7:53 PM

Death is too good for those two.

I can't imagine being a cop or a prison guard and not being able to absolutely @#$% those pieces of garbage up beyond repair.

Bob burns

12-17-05, 1:44 AM

Death is too good for those two.

I can't imagine being a cop or a prison guard and not being able to absolutely @#$% those pieces of garbage up beyond repair.

And people say advocates for the death penalty are hypocritical. :rolleyes:

a4l

12-17-05, 2:12 AM

All they have to do is be subjected to the same conditions as the poor kid was.

Yoata

12-17-05, 12:09 PM

And people say advocates for the death penalty are hypocritical. :rolleyes:

What is hypocritical about wanting to see people suffer who tortured a baby for the first 4 years of her life?

Max Power

12-21-05, 1:27 PM

YES!!!!!

I mean.. weird

C B C . C A N e w s - F u l l S t o r y :

Swingers clubs don't harm society, top court rules
Last Updated Wed, 21 Dec 2005 10:34:09 EST
CBC News
Clubs that allow group sex and partner swapping do not harm Canadian society and should not be considered criminal, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled Wednesday.

The high court, which was ruling on two Quebec cases, said Canadian standards can tolerate the activities, even when they are done amid spectators.

Interior of a Montreal swinger club
The judges, in a 7-2 ruling, said the test for indecency is the harm it causes, and not simply community standards.

The cases involve two swingers clubs in Montreal that allowed sex acts, including swapping.

One case involved James Kouri, owner of a club called Coeur a Corps.

He was convicted by a lower court on two counts of keeping a common bawdy house and fined $7,500.

The other case involved Jean-Paul Labaye who ran a members-only club called L'Orage.

He was convicted of keeping a bawdy house and fined $2,500.

At the Court of Appeal, however, the cases took different turns. Labaye's conviction was upheld while Kouri's conviction was overturned. Now the Supreme Court has given a favourable ruling in both cases.

charlio lemieux

12-21-05, 1:57 PM

YES!!!!!

I mean.. weird

What, you mean you aren't going to organize a tour to go one or both of these clubs.

bluemeanie

12-21-05, 1:58 PM

YES!!!!!

I mean.. weird

lol. I just finished reading that article and came here to see if I should post it. Should have known you'd be on top of it Max.

So, we'll see you Saturday at the annual Meanie Christmas swinger party, then?

Max Power

12-21-05, 3:09 PM

So, we'll see you Saturday at the annual Meanie Christmas swinger party, then?

As long as you promise not to show up in your crotch-less 1970's batman suite again?

What, you mean you aren't going to organize a tour to go one or both of these clubs.

I swear on my good name Jean-Paul Labaye that I?d never go to one of these establishments

Iced Tea

12-22-05, 8:46 PM

I've watched my three LOTR DVDs over the past week and come to the conclusion that Elijah Wood made Frodo Baggins the biggest sissy ever. That high voice when saying, "Sam", his helpless look in every scene, and even in the big climax, he still looks like Sam should be holding his hand.

I know it follows the book faithfully but Elijah could have protray Frodo as having a pair and a backbone once in a while.

Canadian26

12-22-05, 9:13 PM

Finally done school... Finished 2 days ago!!

TimmyTabasco

12-23-05, 12:27 AM

Close to my house, we have a very busy intersection.

Anyway, a senior in a wheelchair was crossing the road, and was runover by a semi-trailer.

Moral of the story, Slow the :curse: down

slapshot™

12-23-05, 12:48 AM

Moral of the story, Slow the :curse: down

Holy crap....how fast was he doing in the wheelchair?

Sorry, just kidding. I hope the guy was ok.

I heard that in Toronto (or, Ontario?) that pedestrians do not have the right-of-way. Perhaps you Easterners can confirm this. I LIKE the idea that pedestrians have to wait and can only cross at marked crosswalks.

TimmyTabasco

12-23-05, 4:19 AM

I hope the guy was ok.

I didn't mention it, but he was killed.

Something about the crosswalk not allowing him enough time to cross

That intersection is really dangerous. You have to always watch yourself while crossing

MadDevil

12-23-05, 4:46 AM

Timmy, that story reminds me of about a month ago when an 80 year old woman drove her car into the lobby at one of the local hospitals here, running over two people in the process. Apparently she meant to hit the break but slammed on the accelerator instead.

Moral of the story: Old people should not be allowed to drive.:laughing:

Canadian26

12-23-05, 5:56 AM

MadDevil

12-23-05, 6:05 AM

I seriously hate pedisterians sometimes, I dont really mind the ones that cross at designated lights or during the walk light but those that just randomly walk out on the street make me mad. Also those ones that walk when you have the extended green, so you can turn. I also hate ppl on bikes, that dont ride on the sidewalk... but I guess its supposidly a law in alberta that they're not allowd to ride their bike on the sidewalk anymore...

It's technically illegal to ride a bike on the sidewalk here as well, although it's obviously never enforced. Of course, it's also technically still legal to shoot a Native American crossing the river in a canoe from a covered wagon here.:laughing:

TimmyTabasco

12-23-05, 3:14 PM

I also hate ppl on bikes, that dont ride on the sidewalk... but I guess its supposidly a law in alberta that they're not allowd to ride their bike on the sidewalk anymore...

You shouldn't really ride your bikes on the sidewalks. Here in BC you can be ticketed.

But, I do it..its safer than the busy roads.

Newfie John

12-23-05, 3:18 PM

a4l

12-23-05, 3:38 PM

YOung people have done the accelerator/brake confusion as well. One guy in his early 20's ran through the front of the Dairy Queen a couple of years back. Luckily he didn't hit anybody but it took a while to get the car out again.

MadDevil

12-24-05, 4:00 PM

Woman swallows cell phone to end fight
Lovers' spat ends with choking on disputed device

BLUE SPRINGS, Mo. - A lovers? dispute over a cell phone ended suddenly when the woman swallowed the phone whole, police said.

Police said they received a call at 4:52 a.m. Friday from a Blue Springs man who said his girlfriend was having trouble breathing. When they arrived at the house they found the 24-year-old woman had a cell phone lodged in her throat.

?He wanted the phone and she wouldn?t give it to him, so she attempted to swallow it,? Detective Sgt. Steve Decker of the Blue Springs Police Department. ?She just put the entire phone in her mouth so he couldn?t get it.?

Police said an ambulance transported the woman to St. Mary?s Medical Center in Blue Springs. A hospital spokeswoman said she couldn?t give details about the woman?s health since police have not released her identity.

Link (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10594017/)

Talk about choking on your words.:laughing:

a4l

12-24-05, 6:49 PM

I heard that on the news and just shook my head. Just when you think you've heard it all.

leaferfan87

1-01-06, 11:04 PM

If any of ye can get down to Fort Lauderdale I recommend you go see the Tutankhamun exhibit at the Museum of Art there. It has artifacts found in the tomb of King Tut and it's cool to see objects that are 3,000 years old and are so well preserved. It's worth it if you're a history buff.

Max Power

1-17-06, 12:49 PM

Parrot squawks on woman's affair
A parrot owner was alerted to his girlfriend's infidelity when his talkative pet let the cat out of the bag by squawking "I love you Gary".
Suzy Collins had been meeting ex-work colleague "Gary" for four months in the Leeds flat she shared with her partner Chris Taylor, according to reports.

Mr Taylor apparently became suspicious after Ziggy croaked "Hiya Gary" when Ms Collins answered her mobile phone.

The parrot also made smooching sounds whenever the name Gary was said on TV.

New home

Mr Taylor, 30, a computer programmer, confronted the woman he had lived with for a year who admitted the affair and moved out, several newspapers reported.

He also gave up his eight-year-old African Grey parrot after the bird continued to call out Gary's name and refused to stop squawking the phrases in his ex-girlfriend's voice.

"I wasn't sorry to see the back of Suzy after what she did, but it really broke my heart to let Ziggy go," he said.

"I love him to bits and I really miss having him around, but it was torture hearing him repeat that name over and over again."

Ms Collins, 25, said: "I'm not proud of what I did but I'm sure Chris would be the first to admit we were having problems."

Ziggy - named after David Bowie's former alter ego Ziggy Stardust - has now found a new home through the offices of a local parrot dealer.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/4619764.stm

http://www.portraitsofanimals.com/Ziggysmall.jpg

Canucklehead

2-13-06, 2:18 AM

Cheney Accidentally Shoots Fellow Hunter in Texas

WASHINGTON ? Late night comedy stars are probably planning a slew of new jokes after news broke Sunday that Vice President Dick Cheney accidentally shot and injured a hunting buddy.

Harry Whittington, 78, was hunting quail with Cheney on Armstrong Ranch in south Texas when Cheney sprayed his friend in the face and chest with the birdshot from a 28-gauge shotgun. Birdshot disperses a spray of small pellets rather than a single larger shotgun round.

According to Armstrong, who is friends with both the Cheneys and the Whittingtons and set up the two for the hunting trip at her property, a group of hunters was traveling in a vehicle on the ranch when it spotted a covey of quail in the late afternoon.

Armstrong, who remained in the car, said Whittington shot a bird and went to look for it in the tall grass, while Cheney and a third hunter walked to another spot and found a second covey.

Whittington "came up from behind the vice president and the other hunter and didn't signal them or indicate to them or announce himself," Armstrong told The Associated Press.

Armstrong told FOX News that Cheney, thinking he was the last hunter on the right of the party, turned and fired at a quail. Whittington was standing 30 yards away on lower ground with the sun to his back. He was knocked to the ground, but not knocked out. All members of the hunting party were wearing blaze orange, she said.

"The vice president didn't see him," Amstrong told The AP. "The covey flushed and the vice president picked out a bird and was following it and shot. And by God, Harry was in the line of fire and got peppered pretty good.

The shots "broke the skin," Armstrong said. "It knocked him silly. But he was fine. He was talking. His eyes were open. It didn't get in his eyes or anything like that."

The shooting was first reported by the Corpus Christi Caller-Times.

"It was just one of those things that unfortunately happens quite often when hunting," said Kathryn Garcia, who broke the news for the Caller-Times.

Armstrong said the vice president's emergency personnel team responded more quickly than she would have.

"Fortunately, the vice president has got a lot of medical people around him and so they were right there and probably more cautious than we would have been," she said. "The vice president has got an ambulance on call, so the ambulance came."

Texas Monthly Executive Editor Paul Burka told FOX News that the area where the men were hunting is well-removed from major medical centers, and the hospital in Corpus Christi is about 80-100 miles from the ranch, which is in the coastal south of Texas.

"The country down there is mostly brush, it's not open country at all, it's mesquite, cat claw, everything down there sticks or stings. So you're going through difficult country and you can't see for very large distances so it would be a situation where something like that would occur," Burka said.

Peter Banko, a spokesman for Christus Spohn Memorial Center said Whittington was brought in around 8:15 pm local time on Saturday night where he was treated by the trauma unit. He said Whittington is in stable condition, as he was when he arrived, and he is aware of no major injuries. Banko added that Whittington was alert when he saw him earlier in the day.

Cheney's spokeswoman, Lea Anne McBride, said the vice president visited with Whittington and his wife at the hospital on Sunday afternoon. After the visit, a vice presidential spokesman said Cheney is "pleased Mr Whittington is in good shape and good spirits."

Whittington sent word through a hospital official that he would have no comment on the incident out of respect for Cheney.

Armstrong said Cheney was very apologetic after the shot, held Whittington's face and cleaned up the blood.

"This is something that happens from time to time. You now, I've been peppered pretty well myself," said Armstrong.

The shooting is unlikely one of a dispute over politics as Burka said Whittington has strong Republican credentials. However, he is also known as an exemplary individual.

"He's the kind of person who when he got an appointment it wasn't because he was a crony but because he was somebody of extraordinary public service," Burka said.

Roll Call Executive Editor and FOX News contributor Mort Kondracke said since Whittington wasn't hurt badly, it's unlikely much damage would be done to Cheney's reputation as a politician or a hunter. He added that Americans are likely to be deluged with late-night jokes in the coming days.

"This will just play into 'Dick Cheney is a meanie kind of guy, but we didn't know that he shot people too.' That sort of thing, but all fun and games," Kondracke said.

Already heading down that path, Weekly Standard Editor Fred Barnes added that he didn't think the accident would serve as a distraction from Cheney's problems over the 2003 CIA leak and reports that his former chief of staff, I Lewis "Scooter" Libby testified Cheney permitted him to leak classified information from President Bush's daily briefing to justify war in Iraq.

Cheney was legally hunting with a license he purchased in November, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department spokesman Steve Lightfoot said. The vice president flew back to Washington on Sunday evening, according to his office.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,184617,00.html

Tell me I'm not the only one who noticed a bit of innuendo in the second paragraph.

And what's up with this one:

"The shooting is unlikely one of a dispute over politics as Burka said Whittington has strong Republican credentials. However, he is also known as an exemplary individual."

:D "However"???