Jack: 1. Butthole Surfers. 2. If you love looking at pictures of payphones, check out these old motel postcards.
Shoe: Baze and I caught Ocean's 11 at (surprise, surprise) Alamo North. In fact, the idea for the current use of bellyfuzz was born immediately thereafter over coffee and surfing at Starbucks. Decaf is Satan. Anyway, the film was fun in a kind of flat way. I haven't seen the original, so I can't compare them. But Salon posted a pretty damning review.
Blane: Wow.
Herman: Well, I think your current booklist could kick mine's ass in the school yard and take it's lunch money. I'm currently soaking up Sticky Kisses.
All of ya: Please let me know if there are any links and/or causes you'd like us to add to the left-hand navigation. Thanks!
OK, I'm no Osama fan, but the marketing of an Osama "Pin-Laden" voo-doo doll worries me. I have visions of a "That's My Bush"-realized Dubya commissioning the "Pin-Laden" doll so he can roll play military tribunals with his "Hide-and-Go Seek Dick" and "Skeletor" (currently standing in for Donald Rumsfeld while Mattel perfects the injection molds) dolls. Oy! I need a cocktail!
Oh, and Mark, I saw Ocean's 11 last week. Even though it was the cinematic equivalent of a Dairy Queen Banana Split Blizzard, I found it quite entertaining. George Clooney played himself, Brad Pitt had the most depth of any character, Matt Damon was a dork (but a damned cute one), and Elliot Gould was over-the-top in his gold lemais. They didn't let Julia Roberts talk very much, which probably wasn't too bad of an idea given the fact she most recently starred in America's Sweethearts, and Casey Affleck was so adorable I could've pinched his little cheeks off. All in all, not a bad flick.
Is it wrong to take your meds with coffee? (Philosophically rather than medically speaking). I am in the midst (I hope) of trying to decaffeinate for the Nth time. Steel spikes through the head comes to mind.
By the by, the Alamo Drafthouse will be showing Lord of the Rings (Elijah Wood, Orlando Bloom, yum!). I saw Harry Potter there and it was quite wonderful: cool previews, beer, food, and a distinct lack of children (they have an 18+ policy). Not that I'm anti-kid – it was quite wonderful to see Monsters, Inc. with children in the audience. It's a contextual thing.
Hello All.... Sitting here at work suffering from a bad case of the bottle flu, I needed some comfort food - quick. So off I headed to the place with the best french fries in Austin, Lucky Dog. A couple of Polish sausages and a large fries later, I'm resembling something like a productive person again.
Nice to hear from you Shoester. It seems as if lately all we ever get to say to each other face to face is "I have a show tonite" "See you soon".
My personal bizzare site of the moment is: http://www.payphone-directory.org The fact that people have the time and energy to take pictures of non-descript pay phones around the country is fascinating to me. I course, I think Basile is fascinating, too, so you have to factor in my poor judgment.
I can't wait to see The Royal Tannenbaums. I love Gene Hackman in comedy roles. And couldn't you just pinch that Ben Stiller's cheeks?
Well, not too pithy or intellectual, but I'm hung over. I'll leave the intellectual crap to Lori....
Where to begin? (Certainly not by breaking into Do-Re-Mi, I suppose).
Thanks to Baze for inviting me to share lint with you.
Blane, thank you for your masterful monograph on laundry (any hints on cat hair removal (from my clothes)?).
Jerry, well... thanks. (I so want you all to like me).
On to a random smattering of random thoughts...
Since the 5th of December, the American Statesman has called me no less than 16 times. I haven't answered and they haven't left a message. Is this a sign of codependency?
I'm currently (re)reading book three of the Otherland series by Tad Williams. The premise involves a virtual reality network so powerful that the environments it provides are indistinguishable from (real) reality (different technology but to the same effect as Star Trek's holodeck). What I find compelling is how Williams uses the VR conceit to create a large set of diverse, rich, fully textured settings for his characters to live in or move through. I agree with the review that said "it sticks in your head like Zen toffee."
If anyone knows why I'm not in bed yet, please let me know.
I am soooo happy that BellyFuzz is finally spreading its fragrant lint to the masses! My first post shall have to be one of the original concept treatises behind the first bellyfuzz.com (the one that never got beyond a splash screen, despite the $300 or so I spent having it hosted for 18 months ... sigh). So, without further ado, I am here to elucidate a solution to the enduring dilemma of how to do the perfect load of laundry. Perfect being such an imperfect word because of its inherent relativity, let's establish our criteria for perfect laundry right now:
Softness: Kitten fur is the litmus test here ... if a load of cotton clothing is adequately soft, you should feel compelled to rush to the dryer the moment it buzzes, throw down the door, pile all of your clothes on the floor and roll around back and forth until they aren't warm anymore. Any sexual pleasure one gets from this should be discussed with one's therapist.
Smell-Goodness: Clean laundry should smell vaguely feminine, yet crisp. Like the scent of fresh bread or cookies in the oven, you should be drawn to the scent of newly clean laundry. However, the smell should not be overpowering; instead it should fade into the background as you relish the softness of your laundry (see above).
Cleanliness: Let there be no mistake that dirt and smegma eradication is the raison d' etre for doing laundry, so your clothes had better be clean when you pull them out of the dryer. Clean means no dirt, no grime, no stains, just clean goodness.
So, you ask, what are the ingredients for such laundry perfection? Well, I'll tell you ...
Gain Detergent (Ultra Liquid): It really does smell better (don't smell before the wash, smell after). Cleans pretty well too -- just use the normal amount.
Arm & Hammer Baking Soda: Add about 2/3 of a cup of baking soda at the same time you add your detergent. You may want to go to Costco or Sam's Club to get the 5 lb box. Baking Soda adds a softness simply unattainable with other chemical concoctions. It also claims to "freshen" your clothes; however, I cannot substantiate this.
Oxy-Clean: Just so you know, I did NOT buy this stuff off of the TV commercial. It's cheaper in the store (especially at Sam's Club). One scoop per load ... works wonders.
Ultra Clorox Advantage Bleach (for Whites): This is Clorox's premium bleach. It's thicker, splashes less and seems to whiten a wee bit better. Oh yeah, it costs more too.
April Fresh Downy: Adds softness and a gentle smell. I recommend the nifty Downy ball if you don't have a built in fabric softener dispenser.
Bounce Outdoor Fresh Scent Dryer Sheets: The original Bounce is by far the best. Combined with Gain and Downy, Bounce in the dryer produces the most excellent laundry scent you'll find. The cationic agents help keep the scourge of "static cling" in check, to boot.
It would be a crime for me not to share my latest discovery, Downy Wrinkle Releaser, which I've been using for at least a year now. If you're like me, you don't always get a chance to fold your clothes the instant the dryer buzzes (you may just pull them out, roll around in them for a while, and leave them piled in the middle of the floor for weeks on end). In the olden days, this meant a certain date with the ironing board on at least a daily basis to make your clothes presentable to the general public. Not any more, my friend ... Downy Wrinkle Releaser can take care of most wrinkle situations within 2 minutes. Just lightly dust your garment with the DWR spray, tug at the edges, smooth the wrinkles out with your hands, and wear. It's a blessing, I tell you, a blessing.
Well, that's all she wrote for now. The jury's still out on Dryel do-it-yourself dry cleaning -- I'll let you know when I've figured out if it really works. Please send me any hints or suggestions you may have, because like all things in life, laundry is a journey, not a destination. (Speaking of which, I'm going to be starting an experiment with bluing my whites ... oh there are just so many possibilities!) So, friends, eat, drink, be merry ... and for godssakes, do your laundry so that you don't have to wear dirty underwear.
Glad to join. Hello guyz! I'll probably bore everyone with my reading interests, but hey, Jerry invited me (and Baze) so it's their fault! Because of the conflict in Afghanistan, and many other reasons, I am reading a lot of ancient Greek history; especially military. The parallels between that time and today are profound. So, ... that's all I'll say for now. Except I think highly of the work of Victor Davis Hanson of CSU/Fresno (Prof. of Classics). I'm reading Carnage and Culture (2001).
Finally, if anyone hasn't tried Vaspio's (Italian restaurant, spelling?) on S. Congress it's excellent! Bring $$, though; it's not inexpensive. lol
Hi, all. I'm quite excited to get this off the ground. Bellyfuzz.com has been sitting dormant for nearly a year, I think. Maybe longer. So when Baze brought up the fact that it would be nice to find a way to easily share and discuss thoughtful, controversial, entertaining or fun things with a smart group of people, I knew this dusty domain could finally be put to good use. I hope our experiment works. Here are a few requests for each of you to help us get off to a good start:
See the navigation down the left-hand side of bellyfuzz.com? It needs your input. Namely, the goal is to include at least one link and/or cause from everyone. It will help us to see in a quick glance the varied interests of our group. Please e-mail Jerry or Baze with your suggestions.
Do you have a homepage? Can we link to it? Please? Let me know what it is. For those of you without homepages, we can create a page on bellyfuzz.com for you. And you can put whatever the hell you want on it. Really. Oh, wait a minute. There is an exception. I kindly ask that you refrain from including things that would get me thrown in jail. Well, unless you're really into the thought of helping me live out my prison fantasy.
One last thing: Please complete your PROFILE on blogger.com. You can do that by logging into the bellyfuzz blog on blogger. Once you're at the spot where you're able to post comments, click on the "Team" button along the top of the page. Click your name. Next, click on "edit my profile" in the upper right-hand corner under the blogger logo. It's most important for you to fill in your nickname. That will be the name that shows up at the bottom of each of your posts. And if you have a URL, please include that, too. It will link your nickname to whatever site you plug in.
Here's an item: Chrysler is set to take the wraps off a concept car powered by soap. According to snippets I'm seeing coming from the AP, it doesn't produce any emissions. And, I bet it really cleans up at the pump. ba-dump-bump.
It will be interesting to see some final spec sheets on it. But I have to give it to Chrysler for coming up with something that may have a positive impact on mankind. I can't say I hold the same opinion of Mr. Dean Kamen's latest invention.
So Jerry and I were sitting around talking (actually, surfing--at Starbuck's, on their cool Airport-compatible network) about sharing interesting things that we and other friends find intriguing. Websites, movies, books, magazine articles, whatever strikes a fancy. Discussion turns to web groups like Yahoo, mailing lists, potential dot-com opportunities, and eventually, to some weirdo domain name that Jerry and Blane registered a while back.
The name was perfect--this is anything but important (at least in concept) and truly self-indulgent, so why not BellyFuzz? So it's here, trying (excuse my anthropomorphism) to avoid the infant mortality that plagues so many similar projects. We each know several people whose opinion we trust, or at least enjoy hearing. We all surf and read and watch and listen, why not share? We can each serve as tour guides to navigate from under the overwhelming mass of unfiltered content that threatens to drown us in mediocrity. Maybe, just maybe, we might find diamonds. If nothing else, we'll discover new and unusual lumps of coal.
