:: Quipu ::

:: Thursday, January 23, 2003 ::

Posting more soon..taking a little fast from the whole computer thing...stand by
:: Johnny 2:03 AM [+] ::
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A Four-Winged Dinosaur? Cryptozoology run rampant.
:: Johnny 2:01 AM [+] ::
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A Neanderthal in Manhattan.
:: Johnny 3:19 PM [+] ::
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Mantan Moreland. The New York Post review of the new motion picture "Kangaroo Jack" refers to one of the characters as "the Mantan Moreland of the new century. Click on this to get the reference.
:: Johnny 2:53 PM [+] ::
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The Wild Women of Wongo. Check out the cast member names in this flick in which voluptuous females and homely males live together on the fertile island of Wongo, while handsome men and unattractive women reside on the nearby island of Goona...
:: Johnny 2:42 PM [+] ::
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Name Rippers. Who are these spammers and where do the spammers come up with these monikers? Francie and I have been compiling "names" of our spammer correspondents--here are some of them (more to come--send some in if you got 'em):
Barer Lecount
Rochelle Stapenhorst
Leddy Knighton (IRS)
Elisha Brang (Viagra)
Brisbin Prepotente
Maudie Marsaw
Marci Clow
takisha sellers
Nakita Bolgos [Arleneoll@jmail.co.jp]
Jady Peterson [jadepeterson@poetic.com]
Joe Brouillette [jwrgvjt@yahoo.com]
Manuel Collis [sqklxjky@aol.com]
Lean Moosavi [Kathernjre@lycos.ne.jp]
Vicente Bartoletti
Janee Stickel
Marleen Omeara
Mrs. Almond
Clarence Baines
Taryn Egnew
Zak Forest
Phoebe Bohner (no, not a penile enlargement spam)
Alena Camplone
Joanne Whisler

:: Johnny 1:19 PM [+] ::
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Cigarette Cards 1900-1938.
:: Johnny 10:23 AM [+] ::
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Tongue Twisters. The world's largest collection of tongue twisters..in many languages.

:: Johnny 10:23 AM [+] ::
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Scamorama. Oh, those Nigerian lads...
:: Johnny 10:21 AM [+] ::
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Fun Timewaster.
:: Johnny 10:21 AM [+] ::
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Homeland Security Prayer Initiative.
:: Johnny 10:20 AM [+] ::
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ATTENTION ALL HOMELANDERS. Quipu's Ministry of Plenty has announced that the chocolate ration will be increased to 25 grams. Production of pig iron rose in 4Q 2002 by 14%. Doubleplusgood.
:: Johnny 10:04 AM [+] ::
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Little Boy Produces Fire Balls With His Eyes. It's a good thing, Anthony....
:: Johnny 10:01 AM [+] ::
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U.S. Urged Not to Run Amuck. Pyongyang, January 12 (KCNA) -- If the U.S. evades its responsibility and recklessly challenges the DPRK, the army and people of the DPRK will never miss the chance but certainly make them pay for the blood and turn the stronghold of the enemy into a sea of fire. Rodong Sinmun today says this in a signed commentary.
It goes on:
The U.S. reacted to the DPRK's sincere proposal for concluding a non-aggression treaty between the DPRK and the U.S. and its patient efforts for negotiations with the threat of "blockade" and "military punishment". It even instigated the international atomic energy agency to build up a public opinion over the "nuclear program" and internationalized the moves of stifling the DPRK.
The DPRK can not sit with folded arms under the prevailing situation where the supreme interests of the state are being seriously encroached upon by the U.S.
It is the unshakable revolutionary principle and stand of the DPRK to respond to a hard-line with a super hard-line. It has nothing to be afraid of even under the worst situation.
It is the fighting experience and maxim gained by the DPRK in its more than half-a-century-long confrontation with the U.S. that if all the army and the people unite to fight in a do-or-die spirit against the arrogant U.S. imperialists, they would certainly emerge victorious.
The Yankees are well advised to stop running amuck, facing up to the essence of the situation and its consequences.
(Attention North Koreans: it's not "amuck"--it's "amok." You schmucks.)
:: Johnny 4:57 PM [+] ::
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Drama "The Fog Hanging Low Over the Motherland Is Breaking Away" Pyongyang, January 14 (KCNA) -- The revolutionary drama "The Fog Hanging Low Over The Motherland Is Breaking Away" has been performed again with a large attendance after many years. Originally, the drama, recast by the state drama troupe, was created in Juche 49 (1960).
It covers the period from the autumn of 1936 when President Kim Il Sung advanced into the Changbai area, leading the main unit of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army to early June next year, a few days before he organized the Pochonbo Battle.
It shows distinguished intelligence and superb tactics of the president, an outstanding military strategist who smashed the Japanese imperialists' vicious moves to check the KPRA unit's advance into Korea by massing huge forces in border areas.
The drama gives a profound truth that the destiny of the Korean nation was shaped by arms and arms are the only thing to defend the destiny of the nation.
It enjoys great acclamation from audience for its three-dimensional belt stage arts, solid composition, combined music, talented performance of actors and actresses and philosophical lines.
:: Johnny 4:52 PM [+] ::
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Rallies Held to Vow to Frustrate U.S. Moves. Pyongyang, January 14 (KCNA) -- Rallies were held in north and South Phyongan provinces and Kaesong city on January 12 and 13 to support the DPRK Government's statement on its withdrawal from the NPT. At the rallies the government statement was read out and representatives of all strata made speeches.
They noted that the statement is a just measure for defending the national dignity and sovereignty as it reflects the unanimous will and demand of the Koreans.
They accused the U.S. of instigating the IAEA to launch an anti-DPRK campaign after listing the DPRK as part of "an axis of evil" and as a target of its preemptive nuclear attack.
The Korean people have the strong will and gut to settle accounts with the U.S. imperialists and the national power for self-defence to wipe out any aggressors, they said.
Noting that the Korean people are vigorously advancing along the road of army-centered revolution, united close around Kim Jong Il, the illustrious general born of Mt. Paektu who leads any huge enemy forces by the nose, they stressed: This single-hearted unity and do-or-die will can never be broken by any atomic bomb. The U.S. imperialist aggressors had better properly judge their rival and stop acting rashly.
:: Johnny 4:49 PM [+] ::
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Doc Bwana's House of Shrunken Heads.
:: Johnny 4:18 PM [+] ::
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Engrish. "The reason we mentioned the evolution instead of revolution is that Portwell thinks about the reality all the time. No one is entitled to lead customer to unrealistic stage and chaos just to fulfill own ego ship or paranoid conception."
--Japanese Motherboard Website
And check out the helmets on group members of the Chicken Zombies--right there next to Eric Crapton.
(Thanks, Christian.)

:: Johnny 1:54 PM [+] ::
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The Costa Rican Mystery Spheres.
:: Johnny 1:45 PM [+] ::
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Oldest Complex Life Form Found in Newfoundland. As the son of goofy newfies, maybe this is my ancestor...
:: Johnny 12:44 PM [+] ::
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Severed Cow Head Leads to Rioting, Arson. Where did this happen? India, of course.
:: Johnny 12:39 PM [+] ::
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More Subcontinental News: The Kashmir Snowman Attacks. Is this yeti any relation to the Monkey-Man that terrorized another part of the Subcontinent?
:: Johnny 12:34 PM [+] ::
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The Downloadable Desktop Theremin.
:: Johnny 11:42 AM [+] ::
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DNA Cowboys Trilogy. just got a reccommendation for this from Judy. I'm gonna check it out.
:: Johnny 11:07 AM [+] ::
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Klaudija on Language.
Do not speak “English”? You never know who is listening….
When you live in a small Croatian town, placed behind the God’s back, where something happens once in ten years, every small thing that makes you stop to think is like a small sparkle in the darkness of monotony. Being an English teacher in such a place is like being an alien hidden in a human body who observes humans.
Once I was rushing through the noisy corridors of my school to enjoy my coffee in the quietness of the staff room. All of a sudden I heard a child’s voice shouting loudly: “Fuck you! Fuck you! Fuck you! Fuck you! “ I had to turn around to trace the source of the so called F.. words; and to my surprise I saw a small eight-year old boy.
I called him: ”Adam, come here.” The small man with big blue eyes and white head approached to me gazing at me questionably.
“Your English is perfect, Adam!” His eyes became even bigger in a second, and he ran away from me as fast as he could.
Since English is spoken only by a few people at school the boy felt safe to express himself in that way. Children are smarter than we think. And they have a nose for ignorance of adults.


:: Johnny 11:00 AM [+] ::
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This Is Strange, But Somehow Highly Creative and Appealing. Answers your question, "What if GWB was a girl?" (Thanks, Sue.)
:: Johnny 10:56 AM [+] ::
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Daily Confession.com "...is the only place in the world that you can go to truly confess your sin (or sins), your transgressions, your humanity, in complete anonymity." (Thanks Sue C.)
:: Johnny 10:53 AM [+] ::
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Clippings, Photographs, and Road Signs. "Welcome to the most powerful metasearch engine and an interesting collection of clippings, photographs, and road signs from all over the world. These are actual photographs and clippings from articles, newspapers, and products." Pretty funny stuff. (Thanks, Jack.)
:: Johnny 10:23 AM [+] ::
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Dumbasses. "That means the average victim handed over no less than $342,000 to the scammers to keep the bogus money-transfer scheme in play."
:: Johnny 4:33 PM [+] ::
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Quipu Body Count Continues. Sung a Who song the other night and look what happens. (See Dec. 23rd entry)
:: Johnny 3:50 PM [+] ::
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Does Anyone Have Any Suggestions On How I Can Learn a Scottish Accent?
:: Johnny 3:20 PM [+] ::
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Karaoke. Didn't think I'd make it Friday last, but I did at a late hour. Went well. The usual rock and roll. Jesse the Sing King did the bass parts for me on "Summertime Blues" and, due to popular audience demand, let my hair down for "I Saw Her Standing There" and whipped it around.
:: Johnny 3:17 PM [+] ::
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Movie Renting Frenzy Continues. In the past week or so, I saw:
"Hannibal." The ending was a little bit over the top, and Lector's cutesy "okie dokies" were annoying, but I loved this movie for its setting in Florence, Italy. Man, what a gorgeous place. I liked the opera scene, as well.
"Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon." Geez, what was the big deal about this flick? Sure it was beautifully shot, the fighting scenes were well done, and I was able to suspend my disbelief at the flying martial artists. The story though was nothing short of the most pedestrian soap opera. Jen, the young Wudan fighter, was very cute. I wonder if "Wudan" is a transliteration of "Wu-Tang."? (Hello, Ghostface Killah, RZA, Method Man, and Ol' Dirty Bastard.)
"Ninteen Eighty-Four." I saw this John Hurt version in 1986 when very drunk, so it was all very new to me. I liked the low-tech feel of it, what with rotary dial phones and pneumatic tubes etc. Richard Burton, in his last big-screen appearance, does a good job as O'Brien, the inner party member who tortures Winston Smith. I recently re-read Orwell's book, and this pretty much followed it. I'm still waiting for the original 1954 Edmund O'Brien version to appear on video. I've never seen it on tape--neither in stores nor catalogs. The last time I saw that was in September of 1973, when it was featured as part of Science Fiction Week on WABC-TV Channel 7's 4:30 Movie. I'll never forget the parade of Eurasian prisoners and what a powerful image it was.
"Minority Report." This made several 2002 top-10 lists. Roger Ebert ranked it #1. I probably would not have rented it if not for the fact it was based on a Philip K. Dick tale. Excellent movie. The pre-cogs were the best. A good murder mystery. And the very high-tech accoutrements contrasted nicely with the low tech of "1984."
Have in hand, but yet to watch: "Quills." The Marquis de Sade beckons...
:: Johnny 2:58 PM [+] ::
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I Dunno, I Kinda Like Mayonnaise on Occasion. At least it's better than that Miracle Whip crapola. (Thanks, Thalia.)
:: Johnny 11:50 AM [+] ::
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Is Music the Highest Art Form? The universe began with a sound...
:: Johnny 11:49 AM [+] ::
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Or, are Words? In the beginning was The Word (logos)... (Thanks again, Thalia.)
:: Johnny 11:46 AM [+] ::
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Meet Freeze, Blade, and Da Flame. Otherwise known as Icy Hot Suntaz. A put-on (I hope).
:: Johnny 5:47 PM [+] ::
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The Most Remote Place on Earth.
:: Johnny 5:24 PM [+] ::
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Let's Go Drinking on Easter Island. This hotel has a "cozy bar."
:: Johnny 5:22 PM [+] ::
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Easter Island, The Movie. It's called "Rapa Nui." I saw it several years ago. Wait til you find out what the "Great White Raft" is...
:: Johnny 5:03 PM [+] ::
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Easter Island, The Tablets.
:: Johnny 5:01 PM [+] ::
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Let's Speak Like A Native Easter Islander. ákuáku, spirit of the otherworld (good or evil). Ki a au te ákuáku oga apó. I have a dream of bad omen last night.
:: Johnny 5:00 PM [+] ::
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Easter Island Con Job?
:: Johnny 4:59 PM [+] ::
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A Raelian Supporter. "Take a moment to consider that there is considerably more evidence for UFOs and extraterrestrials than there is for an invisible man/woman in the sky (aka "God")."
:: Johnny 4:51 PM [+] ::
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Scorpion Frenzy. "It was as if the whole scorpion population of the Kalahari suddenly said to themselves, 'Tonight's the night!'"
:: Johnny 4:51 PM [+] ::
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The Bum Hunter. This is sick and sad. The Bum Hunter is basically all about a guy who dresses up as that moron Steve Irwin (The Crocodile Hunter from Animal Planet) and goes out and harasses and terrorizes street bums while they're sleeping and pretends that they're wild animals and marks them with spray paint or a black marker so he can "track" the bums. I saw clips of this tape on "Industrial Television" on Staten Island Cable. Even the lowbrows who host that show were horrified.
:: Johnny 4:49 PM [+] ::
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The Insecurities Project.
:: Johnny 6:28 PM [+] ::
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Thaipusam is January 18. "This Singaporean festival, which may seem strange to Westerners, is a display of mind over matter in which Hindu penitents attach large metal frames called kavadis to their bodies using a horrific array of hooks and spikes."
:: Johnny 6:06 PM [+] ::
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God, I Laughed at This. The guy is eloquent in describing all the gross bodily fluid action going on. Jeez, I hope this never happens to me...
:: Johnny 5:59 PM [+] ::
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The Highbrow Bohemians of Baghdad. Goatees and everything, daddy-o.
:: Johnny 5:38 PM [+] ::
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Pygmies Get Eaten. You don't see Pygmies in the news much, but when they do show up, you can count on a doozy of a tale.
"We hear reports of MLC and RCD-N commanders feeding on sexual organs of Pygmies, apparently believing this would give them strength," Alimasi said by telephone from Kinshasa. "We also have reports of Pygmies being forced to feed on cooked remains of their colleagues." Feed? Humans don't "feed"--animals in wildlife documentaries do.
:: Johnny 5:00 PM [+] ::
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What's Going On? As I type this, I'm watching three news choppers hover over somewhere between here and Midtown (might be Greenwich Village). I've gots to know...
okay I've got an update "At Least 12 Injured As Car Smashes Into Downtown Building" At least a dozen people were injured about 4 p.m. today when a car jumped the curb and smashed into a building on Canal Street. No other details yet.

:: Johnny 4:36 PM [+] ::
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Cap'n Wacky's Boatload of Blarney. Check out the Leprechaun Hall of Shame and the Gallery of Unfortunate Greeting Cards. (Thanks, Sue.)
:: Johnny 4:12 PM [+] ::
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The Strange Death of Bobby Fuller. The Texan rock and roller's demise certainly was as bizarre as they get. Was he murdered, or did he commit suicide by drinking gasoline? If you've only heard The Clash's version of his "I Fought The Law," you have to hear his original.
:: Johnny 12:33 PM [+] ::
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OF BIG OIL, BY BIG OIL, FOR BIG OIL. The 10 Most Startling Speculations and "Conspiracy Theories" About September 11 and America's New War

:: Johnny 12:17 PM [+] ::
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Escalator Frenzy Sweeps Cambodia.
:: Johnny 9:49 AM [+] ::
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Crane Accidents.Com. "The premier source for crane accident reports, photos of crane accidents and professional commentary." The "premier source"??? Possibly the only one?
:: Johnny 9:31 AM [+] ::
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Get a Life! I Mean Get Another Life! You can do so at Cybertown. (Thanks, Vicky.)
:: Johnny 9:11 AM [+] ::
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African Postcards.
:: Johnny 5:31 PM [+] ::
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Hello, My Name Is Scott. This guy has been wearing one of those nametags on his chest for 798 days--all ding-dong day long--and he has written a book about his experiences wearing the tag.
:: Johnny 5:27 PM [+] ::
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Let's Go Drinking in Bulgaria. The Cafe Chervilo in Sofia looks interesting....
:: Johnny 5:10 PM [+] ::
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I Hate Your Truck. Powerful images!! (Thanks, Matthew.)
:: Johnny 4:57 PM [+] ::
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Let's Go Drinking in Zanzibar. Shall it be the Garage Club or the Komba Discotheque?
:: Johnny 3:57 PM [+] ::
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Cats That Hate You. Because you suck. (Thanks, F.)
:: Johnny 2:34 PM [+] ::
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The Art of Single Cell. (Thanks to Francie, Quipu's steadfast friend.)
:: Johnny 2:31 PM [+] ::
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Who Are These People? Why do old-timey folks have a certain creep-orocity about them?
:: Johnny 1:46 PM [+] ::
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Letters to the President. People write Dubya (via McSweeney's) about what's on their mind, tell him he's stupid, forgive him, and ask him to babysit cats, etc. (Thanks, Justin.)
:: Johnny 1:35 PM [+] ::
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Disco Step By Step. The first television show dedicated to disco music, dance instruction and hustle dancing. (Thanks, Johnny. Wait, that's me!)
:: Johnny 12:19 PM [+] ::
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Grand Illusions. The site for the enquiring mind. Optical illusions, scientific toys, visual effects, and even a little magic. (Thanks, Jade double X licensed to ill)
:: Johnny 11:09 AM [+] ::
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Spin. Fun animation. (Thanks, Jade.)
:: Johnny 11:07 AM [+] ::
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Another Fun Animation Via Jade.
:: Johnny 11:04 AM [+] ::
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Osama’s Kidneys.Com. 9/11 Skeptics (via a link supplied by Stephanie. Thank you!)
:: Johnny 10:56 AM [+] ::
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Priceless Quotes from Students of English. Some exceprts:
Priceless Quote:
"The specimen test made me too hard."
Intended Meaning:
"The sample test was too difficult for me."
Priceless Quote:
"At first, only a few people were permitted to
touch his new organ."
Intended Meaning:
"At first, only a few people were permitted to play
his new organ."
(Thanks, Elena.)

:: Johnny 10:54 AM [+] ::
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Steak and Cheese. Pics, movies, exes, sounds, stuff. Probably not work-safe. (Thanks, Stephanie.)
:: Johnny 10:53 AM [+] ::
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Clock Fun. (Thanks, Pam.)
:: Johnny 10:51 AM [+] ::
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Frank’s Vinyl Museum. The Internet home of weird records. (Thanks, Robert.)
:: Johnny 10:50 AM [+] ::
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Pork Gravy News. Contains the Three D's: Dedicated. Determined. Drunk. (Thanks Jade --double X- licensed to ill.)
:: Johnny 12:11 AM [+] ::
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It's Drinking in Far-Flung Outposts/Non-Johnny Contributor Day at Quipu.
:: Johnny 5:32 PM [+] ::
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Let's Go Drinking in Indonesia. Hmm, maybe not. "We continue to caution Australians about 'sweeping' operations (raids) by militant Islamic groups against bars, nightclubs and other public places. These groups may seek to specifically identify Australians in their 'sweeping' activities."
:: Johnny 5:28 PM [+] ::
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Let's Drink at These Hotel Bars in Papua New Guinea. We might need this to get around, though.
:: Johnny 5:22 PM [+] ::
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Too Stupid to Be President. Haven't posted a Bush "comedy" site in a while. (Thanks, Alina.)
:: Johnny 5:07 PM [+] ::
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Let's Go Drinking in Monte Carlo in the Principality of Monaco. I think Jimmy Z is the choice here. It is, after all, for the Jet Set. maybe Princess Grace will show up. Oh wait, she can't.
:: Johnny 5:03 PM [+] ::
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Attrition Image Gallery. (Thanks, Martin from Espana.)
:: Johnny 4:54 PM [+] ::
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Baby Names. A Primer on Parent Cruelty. (Thanks, Francie.)
:: Johnny 4:47 PM [+] ::
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Let's Go Drinking in Paceville on Malta. Howza 'bout this jernt? "Footloose Fun Bar, Malta's No.1 bar for Fun, Fun, and more Fun! Great D.J's nightly, great parties, funkiest music and more!" Or maybe Teasers Pub Gozo, for great music, happy atmosphere, genuine drinks and reasonable bar prices! On the road from Marsalforn to Xaghra...
:: Johnny 4:33 PM [+] ::
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Let's Go Drinking in Ouga Dougou, Burkina Faso. I guess the Continental is out though--"Bar, sans alcohol." Does this mean they just don't have it or they temporaily ran out, or what? Can it truely be a "bar" without booze?
:: Johnny 3:36 PM [+] ::
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Joe Romby's Dream. "Yo, I just woke up and set down at my dad's computer when you e-mailed me and the funniest thing is that I had a dream about you last night that you were at my mother and father's house (but it was n West Brighton) and you were my older sister's "gentleman caller" (in the Tennessee Williams sense).
Your big talent was that you could sing the song "Young Love, Precious Love" I think by Russ Columbo, but that you also made up your own words for it and it was actually the ONLY way you communicated. So when you wanted to say, "Thank you for the dinner" you sang it to the tune of that song. The only other detail I remember is that you were going to be moving to New Mexico, Juarez I think, except Juarez is in Texas, idn't it? The dream ended with me carrying an unpacked bass fiddle on the bus to St. George while some punky little kid was taunting me to play it."

:: Johnny 3:22 PM [+] ::
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Iraq. This guy Rall, usually a cartoonist, visited Afghanistan last year about this time and wrote of his harrowing experience. Shoot, I forget where I read it. This article has an "alternative" view to the whole Iraq thing. (Thanks, Britney.)
:: Johnny 12:46 PM [+] ::
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Happy New Year! New Year’s party in Hravtska (that's Croatia to you). (Thanks, Klaudija.)
:: Johnny 12:42 PM [+] ::
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Weird Food. Have some Blocky, Men’s Pocky, Pikey and A WHOLE LOT MORE at the Foreign Groceries Museum. (Thanks, Jack.)
:: Johnny 12:40 PM [+] ::
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War on Terror. It continues apace...
:: Johnny 5:12 AM [+] ::
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Choke Job. I'm not a big gridiron fan, but I watched the New York Football Giants playoff game Sunday. The Giants blew the big one in the second half. My God, did they ever.
:: Johnny 5:10 AM [+] ::
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Inexplicable Japanese Characters. No, not the kanji writing--just Tissue-San and his pals. Great Engrish is in use all over the site--"Please pet this innocent tissue to be used without any complain every day." And, on the "My Little Mew" section, "If you like it or not, you will like these cute kittys for sure !! Choose you favorite !" Brought to you from the fine folks at San-X. Is that supposed to sound like Sanrio?
:: Johnny 4:10 AM [+] ::
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Updates. I updated with links, etc. a bunch of posts from the past few days. (F., check out "New York Groove")
:: Johnny 4:01 AM [+] ::
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Saaaaay, What the Heck Is a Quipu, Anyhow? Refresh your memories here. It's all about the information....
:: Johnny 3:49 AM [+] ::
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ATWA. ATWA stands for "Air*Trees*Water*Animals. Oh, a nice environmental site, you might say. Beware--it's the Manson Family site, still going strong...
:: Johnny 3:26 AM [+] ::
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January 6, 2003. Hmmm. Kind of looks like a date you'd see in an old "The Twilight Zone" for some futuristic happening. Speaking of Twilight Zone, my kids and I watched a good portion of the SciFi Channel marathon on New Year's. They had never seen it before. They really dug "Anthony," that evil psychokinetic kid played so well by that creepy child actor Billy Mumy, and they felt sad when Burgess Meredith broke his glasses.
:: Johnny 3:17 AM [+] ::
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Joe Queenan. Got hipped by AKO that an article of his appeared in the Times today. So I went on line (registration required; then do a search for "queenan") and read the article by the self-described "prick." He is one funny prick, I tell you. I recently read his "Balsamic Dreams," in which he skewers baby boomers, but if you really want to laugh out loud , and I ain't kidding either, get yourself a copy of "Red Lobster, White Trash and the Blue Lagoon: Joe Queenan's America." In it, he explores the popular culture that regular, normal Americans like. His conclusion? "Mainstream culture is infinitely more idiotic than I had ever suspected." (Umm, AKO, I'll return your copy as soon as I can find it....).
:: Johnny 3:05 AM [+] ::
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The Ninth Gate. The movie renting continues... I got this one not only because it sounded/looked interesting when it first came out a couple of years ago, but Rob the Bartender and his squeeze Maura told me I was a dead ringer for Johnny Depp's character. They were right... Holy moley! Some scenes more than others, but it was spooky watching myself on the screen. And the character loves to smoke, drink, and peruse unusual books...hmmm. The movie was okay--Depp (see stills here) plays an unscrupulous rare book dealer who gets involved with some occult claptrap. Roman Polanski directed, and thus several breaking and entering scenes were included (think "Manson murders"). Part of the movie was filmed in New York (a cab ride from Bleecker St. to one of the airports included an inexplicable southbound detour through Times Square), so who stood in Roman's directorial shoes here? He can't come back to this country. The rest was beautifully shot in France, Spain, and Portugal. Ahh, Europe beckons once again...
:: Johnny 2:35 AM [+] ::
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Emmanuelle Seigner. This European cutie caught my eye in "The Ninth Gate," in which she plays, simply, "The Girl." I think it's the eyebrows that snagged me... Also in the motion picture was Lena Olin, a beauty who has been in several movies I've heard of, but have never seen before viewing "The Ninth Gate." In addition, the soundtrack includes some lovely vocalizations by the Korean songbird, Sumi Jo.
:: Johnny 2:04 AM [+] ::
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Foot Binding in China. “We also found that women with deformed feet were far less able to squat, an ability that is particularly important to toileting and other daily activities in China,” Cummings says.
:: Johnny 1:53 AM [+] ::
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CLONAID (tm). Well, let's all welcome the clone to the world. Thanks, Raelians, you nutty kooks. Besides cloning services, you can get an RMX 2010 cell fusion device specialized in embryonic cell fusion from CLONAID. Only $9,220.
:: Johnny 12:43 PM [+] ::
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Back in the New York Groove. No, not the execrable Ace Frehley song. I am back in the NY groovmatism after a week away in the Land of the Frost Giants, i.e., upstate New York.
:: Johnny 12:39 PM [+] ::
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Jack Chick Addresses 9/11 and Islam. The Christian cartoonist says " Allah doesn't care for you."
:: Johnny 10:38 AM [+] ::
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Book Score! A brand-spankin' new used bookstore has opened up in the Village of Liverpool. Always dug checking out the fare in these establishments. This one did not have the ubiquitous "Sometimes God Has a Kid's Face" by the alleged pedophile Fr. Bruce Ritter, but I did manage to get "Great Operatic Disasters", "The Strange Ways of Man: Rites and Rituals and Their Incredible Origins"*, and the first paperback edition (1964) of Philip K. Dick's "The Game Players of Titan." A buck-fifty each--a bargain at twice the price.
(*One review of this book I looked at included this: "This book deals with many customs throughout the world, such as hara-kiri in Japan, suttee or the immolation of widows in India, the binding of feet in 19th century China, the self-inflicted torture of the fakirs of India, the completely tattooed skin of the Papuans of Borneo, and a number of other customs, strange to our culture." Fair enough, but this smart-ass know-it-all would like to point out that Papuans do not live on Borneo--they live on New Guinea. And it is the indigenous people of Borneo, not Papuans, who practice, with much skill and beauty, tattooing.)
:: Johnny 3:38 PM [+] ::
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Greetings From Liverpool. Just took the ferry cross the Mersey. Nah, not that Liverpool, but the one in upstate New York. No moptops in evidence here. Just a lot of snow and ice.
:: Johnny 12:57 PM [+] ::
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