• Starz: “Superman the Movie in 30 seconds (and re-enacted by bunnies)” (via Screenhead)

You’ve been waiting for it. I’ve been waiting for it. We’ve all been waiting for it.

How to begin the game:

1. Small child enters front porch.
2. Small child closes french door to front porch.
3. Small child waves through the glass and says, “Bye-bye!”
4. The game now begins.

How to play the game:

1. Press your face against window of french door, make a troll face, and in your trolliest voice say, “BU-BYE!”
2. Watch small child giggle uncontrollably.
3. Open the french door briskly — moving your head quickly out of the way — make a goofball face, and in your goofballiest voice say, “HELLooOOOOoooOOOOOO!”
4. Watch small child giggle uncontrollably.
5. Close the french door briskly — moving your head quickly out of the way — and go to Step 1.

How to end the game:

1. Open the french door briskly — moving your head a little too far and a little too quickly out of the way — and slam your forehead with concussive force into the adjacent wall.
2. Stagger into the living room, bend over, and valiantly refrain from explosive cursing.
3. Lie down on the couch and wait for Your Lovely Wife to bring ice for your head.
4. Listen to voice of small child in front porch say, “Bye-bye?”

Suh-wamped right now, so please accept this tiny morsel in lieu of something with a weightier (yet still questionable) substance.

…

Me and the Brother-In-Law-Known-As-Rummie are in line this weekend to fill up my propane tank. I look up and spy a woman walking past the line — a line filled with people holding/standing next to/sitting on/juggling propane tanks in various states of emptiness.

Wait. Allow me to clarify the situation:

The women walks past with a lit cigarette clamped between her lips.

This is bad enough, until I look down and see the propane tank gripped in her right hand.

My eyes follow her in flabbergasted befuddlement as she dumps her tank at the end of the line. She then takes cigarette out of her mouth, looks around, and then walks back towards the parking lot.

For a moment I relax in the assumption (resulting from a combination of naivety, faulty information, and a misguided belief in the innate intelligence of the human race) that my brief moment of terror has passed.

But she stops at a car, places the still lit cigarette back between her lips, open the trunk, and pulls out another propane tank.

She then proceeds to walk back to the end of the line, still puffing furiously at the cigarette between her lips, while holding the propane tank in both arms against her chest.

I stood there… and did nothing. My propane tank got filled. We left.

And not once did I succumb to the urge to flee in terror.

Nor the urge to punch her.

…

But I wanted to.

Something that does have to be said for iPods and the experience of ubiquitous music…

Holy crap you can get bored with your music. I mean come on, how many times can you listen to the same stuff? Really?

So, if I’m noticing anything — besides an itchy neck and an existential fear of a secretive government agency planting microchips in my brain and can I just say that would so totally be a waste of time I mean COME ON couldn’t they find someone a little more high-profile to plant their chips in because they won’t be getting nothin’ from me other than a lot of data on CSI reruns which I’m watching probably a little more than is really good for me and wow I seem to have rambled WILDLY off-course I do apologise aaaaaaaand we’re back — it’s how often I’m skipping a whole whack of songs.

Par exemple:

“Nope.” (press) “Nope.” (press) “Nope.” (press) “Oh good god NO!” (press) “Not in the mood.” (press) “Didn’t I just hear that?” (press) “Not in the mood.” (press) “Nope.” (press) “Nope.” (press) “What song is this?… Nope.” (press) “Ah… The Go-Gos… I love The Go-Gos…” (press) “Nope.” (press) “Is that?… Nope.” (press) “Urlggh…” (press) “Wait… yes. That’s what I want… wait. Nope.” (press) “AHHHHHHH!” (press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press press) “Oh sweet Christmas on toast I am so totally gonna throw this thing out the friggin’ window RIGHT NO- Oh. Wait.” (pause) “Hmm. That’s ok.”

Basically, I’m very conscious of the stuff that I’m NOT skipping over. And really, it’s down to about five albums that I can’t remember skipping over for the past week or so. So, my honey-coated readers, please allow me to present…

THE THUMBS-UP: Five Albums That Totally Rule This Week!

• Spoon, Gimme Fiction (This is by far my favourite album right now. Really. Go get it.)
• Band of Horses, Everything All the Time
• Metric, Old World Underground
• Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Show Your Bones
• Beach Boys, Pet Sounds

For what it’s worth, those albums rock.

For now.

And so, they get the thumbs-up.

• Flicker—Photos from The Cats Jungle: “North American River Otter” (sort of via Cute Overload)

Geez. What do you expect? It’s Thursday.

Of course I’m going to have a picture of an otter.

Weirdo.