 | In the spirit of the recent opening of X-Men: The Last Stand, I give you this personality quiz. Please let me know your results. You scored as Cyclops. Cyclops is the team leader of the X-Men, and a skilled one at that. He loves Jean Grey very much. He's a strict and sometimes uptight leader, but he believes in his cause and he knows what he's fighting for... Peace between Mutants and Humans.
Most Comprehensive X-Men Personality Quiz 2.0 created with QuizFarm.com |
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Which X-Man or X-Woman are You?
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
Today's Installment of W.T.F.? Part II
Baboons move into S. African beach homes
Locals describe fearless behavior as monkeys go after easy food pickings
By Anton Ferreira
Reuters
Updated: 11:50 a.m. MT May 23, 2006
CAPE TOWN, South Africa - Unruly gangs are raiding the expensive homes that line the spectacular coast of South Africa's Cape Peninsula, clearing out pantries, emptying fridges, and defecating over the designer furnishings.
It's baboon versus human in a string of wealthy ocean-front communities 30 minutes from the trendy center of Cape Town, a top tourist destination.
Jenni Trethowan is among those trying to defuse the conflict raging along the picket fences between suburbia and the rugged mountain slopes of the peninsula -- a jagged tooth of rock projecting into the Atlantic ocean.
She takes groups of paying tourists and residents on walks in a nature reserve to see the wild animals as they forage, scratch for fleas and squabble among themselves.
Her aim is to demonstrate that the baboons are worth protecting because of their tourism revenue potential.
"There's George," she said on a recent walk as the first baboon came into sight, slouched on a rock with a clear view of newly built homes about 300 yards away.
George is one of the biggest baboons in a troop of about 20, an adult male weighing some 110 pounds. He yawns languidly, displaying wickedly curved canine teeth.
"If you think how easily a baboon could rip a person apart, the fact that they don't is quite remarkable," Trethowan said.
She led the group through a grove of pine trees. Baboons perched in the branches overhead, breaking cones apart to get at the seeds and occasionally dropping a surprisingly heavy cone onto the tourists below.
The baboons appeared indifferent to the humans, although some of the younger ones approached a boy in the group and pawed at him tentatively before losing interest.
Trethowan has names for all the baboons and stories about many. Two females are missing a hind leg; one was shot and the other was chased off the top of a high-rise apartment block.
"That's Quizzy," Trethowan said, indicating a lone male, named for his quizzical expression. "He's the nicest baboon you could ever hope to meet. I love that baboon."
Quizzy turned at the approach of the tourists, regarding them with profound melancholy.
"Poor boy, he's sick," Trethowan said. "But we have no idea what's wrong with him."
Troop divides, conquers
Trethowan works with a team of baboon monitors, nine men recruited from a poor community whose job it is to shepherd the animals away from built-up areas.
But the baboons know they will find dustbins full of leftovers in the suburban yards and that an open window can mean there is a bowl of tempting fruit within easy reach.
The troop splits into two and they charge across a road toward the houses. The monitors drive some of them back to the reserve, but others hurdle garden walls and grab what they can.
"They're getting used to getting easy food," said Trethowan. "The way to stop it is for people to install baboon-proof garbage cans, put burglar bars on their windows and avoid growing fruit trees in their gardens."
Cases of baboons attacking humans in the peninsula are rare, although earlier this year a child was reported to have been mauled by a baboon scavenging for food at a picnic site on the coast about 20 miles away.
Many residents have anecdotes about baboons.
"I was sitting outside one day, the kids were swimming in the pool, when Eric just flew through the burglar bars and into the house," said Debbie Ellis, who lives in the Imhoff's Gift district. Eric is the alpha male of the local troop.
"It was a bit frightening to see a five-foot-four male baboon standing behind my three-year-old goddaughter."
She said Eric had also "sauntered" into the home of a neighbor, opened the fridge, scattered eggs on the floor, and left droppings everywhere.
Donald Garlick, another homeowner, said baboons and humans had lived in harmony for decades. But in recent years baboons had become problematic, partly because of tourists feeding them.
'Didn't flinch' on being hit
One resident who did not want to be named said he had tried in vain to drive off a big male baboon with a powerful catapult -- against the law because the animals are protected.
"I also hit him with a wooden pole, and he didn't flinch," the resident said. "He was totally fearless. You can be sitting in your front room with a bowl of fruit on the table, and a baboon will come through the door and steal it."
Trethowan said the introduction of monitors had helped but many more would be needed to keep watch over all the baboons in the peninsula -- 253 divided into 11 troops.
Researcher Esme Beamish, who conducted the latest baboon census, said the population had increased 1.6 percent since last year, thanks partly to the work of the monitors who were reducing conflict.
"Baboons in southern Africa are not currently at risk ... but the Cape Peninsula troops are under threat," she said.
She said the troops that had the most contact with humans had suffered a string of deaths in the last year -- four were shot dead, two were killed by dogs, one was clubbed to death, two were run over by vehicles, and one was electrocuted.
Copyright 2006 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters.
© 2006 MSNBC.com
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12936096/
Damn dirty apes!
Locals describe fearless behavior as monkeys go after easy food pickings
By Anton Ferreira
Reuters
Updated: 11:50 a.m. MT May 23, 2006
CAPE TOWN, South Africa - Unruly gangs are raiding the expensive homes that line the spectacular coast of South Africa's Cape Peninsula, clearing out pantries, emptying fridges, and defecating over the designer furnishings.
It's baboon versus human in a string of wealthy ocean-front communities 30 minutes from the trendy center of Cape Town, a top tourist destination.
Jenni Trethowan is among those trying to defuse the conflict raging along the picket fences between suburbia and the rugged mountain slopes of the peninsula -- a jagged tooth of rock projecting into the Atlantic ocean.
She takes groups of paying tourists and residents on walks in a nature reserve to see the wild animals as they forage, scratch for fleas and squabble among themselves.
Her aim is to demonstrate that the baboons are worth protecting because of their tourism revenue potential.
"There's George," she said on a recent walk as the first baboon came into sight, slouched on a rock with a clear view of newly built homes about 300 yards away.
George is one of the biggest baboons in a troop of about 20, an adult male weighing some 110 pounds. He yawns languidly, displaying wickedly curved canine teeth.
"If you think how easily a baboon could rip a person apart, the fact that they don't is quite remarkable," Trethowan said.
She led the group through a grove of pine trees. Baboons perched in the branches overhead, breaking cones apart to get at the seeds and occasionally dropping a surprisingly heavy cone onto the tourists below.
The baboons appeared indifferent to the humans, although some of the younger ones approached a boy in the group and pawed at him tentatively before losing interest.
Trethowan has names for all the baboons and stories about many. Two females are missing a hind leg; one was shot and the other was chased off the top of a high-rise apartment block.
"That's Quizzy," Trethowan said, indicating a lone male, named for his quizzical expression. "He's the nicest baboon you could ever hope to meet. I love that baboon."
Quizzy turned at the approach of the tourists, regarding them with profound melancholy.
"Poor boy, he's sick," Trethowan said. "But we have no idea what's wrong with him."
Troop divides, conquers
Trethowan works with a team of baboon monitors, nine men recruited from a poor community whose job it is to shepherd the animals away from built-up areas.
But the baboons know they will find dustbins full of leftovers in the suburban yards and that an open window can mean there is a bowl of tempting fruit within easy reach.
The troop splits into two and they charge across a road toward the houses. The monitors drive some of them back to the reserve, but others hurdle garden walls and grab what they can.
"They're getting used to getting easy food," said Trethowan. "The way to stop it is for people to install baboon-proof garbage cans, put burglar bars on their windows and avoid growing fruit trees in their gardens."
Cases of baboons attacking humans in the peninsula are rare, although earlier this year a child was reported to have been mauled by a baboon scavenging for food at a picnic site on the coast about 20 miles away.
Many residents have anecdotes about baboons.
"I was sitting outside one day, the kids were swimming in the pool, when Eric just flew through the burglar bars and into the house," said Debbie Ellis, who lives in the Imhoff's Gift district. Eric is the alpha male of the local troop.
"It was a bit frightening to see a five-foot-four male baboon standing behind my three-year-old goddaughter."
She said Eric had also "sauntered" into the home of a neighbor, opened the fridge, scattered eggs on the floor, and left droppings everywhere.
Donald Garlick, another homeowner, said baboons and humans had lived in harmony for decades. But in recent years baboons had become problematic, partly because of tourists feeding them.
'Didn't flinch' on being hit
One resident who did not want to be named said he had tried in vain to drive off a big male baboon with a powerful catapult -- against the law because the animals are protected.
"I also hit him with a wooden pole, and he didn't flinch," the resident said. "He was totally fearless. You can be sitting in your front room with a bowl of fruit on the table, and a baboon will come through the door and steal it."
Trethowan said the introduction of monitors had helped but many more would be needed to keep watch over all the baboons in the peninsula -- 253 divided into 11 troops.
Researcher Esme Beamish, who conducted the latest baboon census, said the population had increased 1.6 percent since last year, thanks partly to the work of the monitors who were reducing conflict.
"Baboons in southern Africa are not currently at risk ... but the Cape Peninsula troops are under threat," she said.
She said the troops that had the most contact with humans had suffered a string of deaths in the last year -- four were shot dead, two were killed by dogs, one was clubbed to death, two were run over by vehicles, and one was electrocuted.
Copyright 2006 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters.
© 2006 MSNBC.com
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12936096/
Damn dirty apes!
Monday, May 22, 2006
States I Have Visited
create your own visited states map
or check out these Google Hacks.
I didn't include Illinois, New York, or Pennsylvania, because I have only been to airports in those states. What states have you visited? Airports don't count!
Friday, May 19, 2006
'Star Wars' Goes Back to Basics
If you haven't already seen the news...
By Mike Snider, USA TODAYThu May 4, 6:53 AM ET
Die-hard Star Wars fans soon can see the original theatrical versions of the first three Star Wars films on DVD.
Even though George Lucas adamantly declared 2004's digitally restored Star Wars Trilogy DVDs the definitive versions of his movies, fans have held out hope for DVDs of the originals.
Their wishes will be granted Sept. 12 when Fox releases new two-disc DVDs ($30 each) of Star Wars (since retitled as Episode IV: A New Hope), The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi that include the films as they first appeared in theaters, along with the new, restored versions (now available in the four-disc $70 Star Wars Trilogy).
The individual DVDs will be taken off the market on Dec. 31, a strategy that Disney uses on many of its classic releases.
Lucas re-released his original three Star Wars films in theaters in 1997 with inserted scenes and improved special effects. Those "special editions" were further enhanced for the four-disc DVD set. With the original versions coming to DVD, here's what you'll see again:
• In Star Wars, Han Solo shoots a bounty hunter named Greedo. Lucas changed the scene later so it seemed that Greedo draws first, and changed it again for the DVD so that they appear to shoot simultaneously.
• In Empire Strikes Back, the ice creature that captures Luke Skywalker gets less screen time.
• In Jedi, Sebastian Shaw returns as Anakin in the movie's final scene. Lucas substituted Hayden Christiansen, who plays Anakin in the more recent films, for the 2004 DVD.
Back in 2004, Lucas told the New York Post, "The special edition is the one I wanted out there."
This new set of DVDs does not constitute "George changing his mind," says Lucasfilm's Jim Ward. "What we've always said is George viewed the revised versions of the films as the definitive versions."
Fan attachment to the originals is strong. The movies topped entertainment website IGN.com's recent chart of Top 25 Most Wanted DVDs.
"People want the option of having the movies that they remember and people are opposed to George Lucas' revisionist tendencies," says the site's Chris Carle.
The original films' video quality will not match up to that of the restored versions. "It is state of the art, as of 1993, and that's not as good as state of the art 2006," Ward says.
I have to admit, I am a little conflicted about this news. For one, it is an obvious grab for more money by Lucas & Co., but on the other hand, I am forced to admit that I simply will not be able to keep myself from buying them. After all, HAN SHOT FIRST!!! To see what the new covers will look like, click here.
By Mike Snider, USA TODAYThu May 4, 6:53 AM ET
Die-hard Star Wars fans soon can see the original theatrical versions of the first three Star Wars films on DVD.
Even though George Lucas adamantly declared 2004's digitally restored Star Wars Trilogy DVDs the definitive versions of his movies, fans have held out hope for DVDs of the originals.
Their wishes will be granted Sept. 12 when Fox releases new two-disc DVDs ($30 each) of Star Wars (since retitled as Episode IV: A New Hope), The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi that include the films as they first appeared in theaters, along with the new, restored versions (now available in the four-disc $70 Star Wars Trilogy).
The individual DVDs will be taken off the market on Dec. 31, a strategy that Disney uses on many of its classic releases.
Lucas re-released his original three Star Wars films in theaters in 1997 with inserted scenes and improved special effects. Those "special editions" were further enhanced for the four-disc DVD set. With the original versions coming to DVD, here's what you'll see again:
• In Star Wars, Han Solo shoots a bounty hunter named Greedo. Lucas changed the scene later so it seemed that Greedo draws first, and changed it again for the DVD so that they appear to shoot simultaneously.
• In Empire Strikes Back, the ice creature that captures Luke Skywalker gets less screen time.
• In Jedi, Sebastian Shaw returns as Anakin in the movie's final scene. Lucas substituted Hayden Christiansen, who plays Anakin in the more recent films, for the 2004 DVD.
Back in 2004, Lucas told the New York Post, "The special edition is the one I wanted out there."
This new set of DVDs does not constitute "George changing his mind," says Lucasfilm's Jim Ward. "What we've always said is George viewed the revised versions of the films as the definitive versions."
Fan attachment to the originals is strong. The movies topped entertainment website IGN.com's recent chart of Top 25 Most Wanted DVDs.
"People want the option of having the movies that they remember and people are opposed to George Lucas' revisionist tendencies," says the site's Chris Carle.
The original films' video quality will not match up to that of the restored versions. "It is state of the art, as of 1993, and that's not as good as state of the art 2006," Ward says.
I have to admit, I am a little conflicted about this news. For one, it is an obvious grab for more money by Lucas & Co., but on the other hand, I am forced to admit that I simply will not be able to keep myself from buying them. After all, HAN SHOT FIRST!!! To see what the new covers will look like, click here.
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Today's Installment of W.T.F.?
Town Cracks Down On Unwed CouplesBLACK JACK, Mo., May 17, 2006
(CBS/AP) The city council in Black Jack, Mo., has rejected a measure allowing unmarried couples with multiple children to live together. The mayor said those who fall into that category could soon face eviction.
Olivia Shelltrack and Fondrey Loving were denied an occupancy permit after moving into a home in this St. Louis suburb because they have three children and are not married.
The town's planning and zoning commission proposed a change in the law, but the measure was rejected Tuesday by the city council in a 5-3 vote.
"I'm just shocked," Shelltrack said. "I really thought this would all be over, and we could go on with our lives."
Mayor Norman McCourt said starting Wednesday the city will begin trying to evict groups who do not fit into Black Jack’s definition of family, reports CBS affiliate KMOV-TV in St. Louis.
The current ordinance prohibits more than three people from living together unless they are related by "blood, marriage or adoption." The defeated measure would have changed the definition of a family to include unmarried couples with two or more children.
McCourt declined to be interviewed, but said in a statement that those who do not meet the town's definition of family could soon face eviction.
In the statement, McCourt said, "the city provides information about its occupancy permit requirements to anyone who requests it. ... As mayor, I am required by state law to uphold the laws of the city of Black Jack."
Black Jack's special counsel, Sheldon Stock, declined to say whether the city will seek to remove Loving and Shelltrack from their home.
Seriously, what the F$%K?!?
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
How American Are You?
| You Are 64% American |
 Most times you are proud to be an American. Though sometimes the good ole US of A makes you cringe Still, you know there's no place better suited to be your home. You love your freedom and no one's going to take it away from you! |
America F$%K Yeah!
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Know What This Is?
... a recent picture of Mount St. Helens. %Global Warming my ass!% (% denotes sarcasm)
To read the story click here.
Monday, May 08, 2006
Tool-Vicarious
One of my favorite bands, Tool, has a new album out, Ten Thousand Days. The first single off of the album, Vicarious, has some *interesting* lyrics. Duh! Anywho, I would like to know what you guys think. Also, feel free to purchase the album here.
Eye on the the TV
'Cause tragedy thrills me
Whatever flavor it happens to be, like...
"Killed by the husband"
"Drowned by the ocean"
"Shot by his own son"
"She used a poison
in his tea...kissed him goodbye"
That's my kind of story
It's no fun 'til someone dies
Don't look at me like
I am a monster
Frown out your one face
But with the other
Stare like a junkie
Into the TV
Stare like a zombie
While the mother holds her child
Watches them die
Hands to the sky crying,
"Why, oh why?"
Cause I need to watch things die... from a distance
Vicariously I live while the whole world dies
YOU ALL NEED IT TOO, DON'T LIE
Why can't we just admit it?
Why can't we just admit it?
We won't give pause until the blood is flowing
Neither the brave nor bold
Will write as the story's told
We won't give pause until the blood is flowing
I need to watch things die... from a good safe distance
Vicariously I live while the whole world dies
You all feel the same, so...
Why can't we just admit it?
Blood like rain come down
Drown my grave and ground
Part vampire
Part warrior
Carnivore and Voyeur
Stare at the transmittal
Sing to the death rattle
La, la, la, la, la, la-la-lie (x4)
Credulous at best
Your desire to believe in
Angels in the hearts of men
Pull your head on out you hippies
please, and give a listen
Shouldn't have to say it all again
The universe is hostile, so impersonal
Devour to survive... so it is, so it's always been
We all feed on tragedy
It's like blood to a vampire
Vicariously I live while the whole world dies
Much better you than I
How is that for a critique of our society?
Eye on the the TV
'Cause tragedy thrills me
Whatever flavor it happens to be, like...
"Killed by the husband"
"Drowned by the ocean"
"Shot by his own son"
"She used a poison
in his tea...kissed him goodbye"
That's my kind of story
It's no fun 'til someone dies
Don't look at me like
I am a monster
Frown out your one face
But with the other
Stare like a junkie
Into the TV
Stare like a zombie
While the mother holds her child
Watches them die
Hands to the sky crying,
"Why, oh why?"
Cause I need to watch things die... from a distance
Vicariously I live while the whole world dies
YOU ALL NEED IT TOO, DON'T LIE
Why can't we just admit it?
Why can't we just admit it?
We won't give pause until the blood is flowing
Neither the brave nor bold
Will write as the story's told
We won't give pause until the blood is flowing
I need to watch things die... from a good safe distance
Vicariously I live while the whole world dies
You all feel the same, so...
Why can't we just admit it?
Blood like rain come down
Drown my grave and ground
Part vampire
Part warrior
Carnivore and Voyeur
Stare at the transmittal
Sing to the death rattle
La, la, la, la, la, la-la-lie (x4)
Credulous at best
Your desire to believe in
Angels in the hearts of men
Pull your head on out you hippies
please, and give a listen
Shouldn't have to say it all again
The universe is hostile, so impersonal
Devour to survive... so it is, so it's always been
We all feed on tragedy
It's like blood to a vampire
Vicariously I live while the whole world dies
Much better you than I
How is that for a critique of our society?
Friday, May 05, 2006
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