monologue

forced christmas carols for california schoolkids!

2009-12-11T19:40:12Z

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/12/10/merry-hyatt-tea-party-pat_n_387408.html

woo!

just what's going on here?

2009-11-25T20:26:18Z

my legs have been falling asleep really easily lately. it seems like i have to move them to a different position every minute or two. also, my extremities are getting really cold, which is unusual for me. i wear sandals year round normally, and this year, i've actually considered putting on shoes. hmmmm.

well this is sad

2009-11-23T18:22:32Z

http://www.unknownnews.org/DannellLites.html

i'm lucky that i live in a much better situation than that lady, but it does bother me when i think of what could happen if i got hurt or killed and no one thought to tell my online friends. some of yall i know or i've met in real life, but for those i haven't, i'm glad you're my friends :)

so tell me something about your real life! i've got a new obsession lately that i don't talk about very much on here: my car. it's a 1976 datsun, and i'm documenting all the work i'm doing on it. i just got the engine rebuilt, and i'm shopping around for someone to fix up the body for me, cause i'm lazy. here's the photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26373558@N08/sets/72157614845473644/

ohhhhhh, oh god.....

2009-11-19T03:28:09Z

a followup on maine (sorry for the image-heavy post)

2009-11-04T18:55:45Z

i've got a bone to pick with the folks running the gay marriage campaigns in states like maine. this is something i've been wanting to say from the beginning. i've heard lines like, "we did our absolute best in the fight for marriage," "we had the best tools at our disposal in this campaign," etc etc. but when i look at the media materials that were used, i'm really just speechless.

look at this sign. i mean, look at this fucking sign. who the hell could say no to this? most of your ignorant voters have no idea what the actual content of a proposition or referendum is. and when exposed to signage without the benefit of knowing what a proposition is about, they're gonna vote for the most appealing sign. i've heard voters say that they will vote for the politician with the best hair, and folks, this sign has awesome hair.

this sign has it all... bright, happy colors. good use of negative space. positive imagery of a happy family. use of an accessible font like helvetica, a font most often used for important public messages. there isn't a font that's more populist and american (for a swiss font) than helvetica. it says, "read this because it's important for you as a citizen." the family silhouette is done in the style of a road sign to again reinforce the idea that this message is important for the public. "say yes to one because it's safe like a road sign, american as helvetica, as boring and harmless as a government form."

now let's look at our sign:

let's start with the color. what is up with this drab aqua/green/blue shit? i don't even know what i'd call this color. and teamed up with the crowd-pleasing dark-green-almost-black, this combo is a really winner!

the whole design is off-kilter, as if it can't decide itself which way it should go. "should i lean towards this multi-stroked rectangle thing on the left, or the ghostly puke state silhouette on the right? the lumpy mass of maine does not lend itself well to your typical rectangular sign, so having it exploding off of one side of the message was a big mistake. the strokes around the message and the state bother me because they're so angular, almost spiky. "vote NO or we will stab you with the bottom of our Maine-shaped dagger!" this is the direction i could see using if the campaigners wanted to strike fear in people's hearts, which, judging from the heart-warming TV and radio spots, was not No On 1's intention.

i hate to hate on Futura, cause i love the font, but it was not the right choice for this sign. especially futura condensed, which looks uncomfortable and uptight. where helvetica is attention-grabbing and important, futura evokes elitism and expense. No On 1 really suffered in the rural parts of maine... could it be because out there there isn't much demand for red bull, louis vuitton, volkswagen or ikea?

what is even going on with the 1? what IS that font? is it straight? is it rounded? why is the top of it so deformed-looking? note the differences between this 1 and the 1 on the opposition's sign, which looks crisp and upbeat.

granted, it's really hard to make people absorb the message of NO while making it seem fun and approachable. but really, this effort is pathetic, and i believe it's partially to blame for the loss.

well crap

2009-11-04T15:32:12Z

that really blows about maine... but at least washington looks like it's going to pass.

also, am i the only one who finds this vaguely suggestive?

NSFW

2009-10-31T05:41:10Z

uh, what the fuck? http://contexts.org/socimages/2009/10/22/what-would-a-rock-star-do/#more-14682

NOT SAFE FOR WORK OR THE INNOCENT

saridout @ 2009-10-15T15:04:00

2009-10-15T20:06:11Z

for those of you following the story about the boy (supposedly) in the balloon, here's a strange clip of him and his brother from the show Wife Swap, which his parents appeared on:

awwww

2009-09-28T16:37:55Z

the first daughters of Spain are so cute!

http://wonkette.com/411309/spanish-witches-attack-poor-barry-obama

saridout @ 2009-09-22T12:34:00

2009-09-22T17:34:28Z

oh the horror

http://marvel.com/news/comicstories.7021.FIRST_LOOK~colon~_Pride~and~Prejudice_%231

cognitive dissonance much?

2009-09-17T16:45:37Z

Texas Rep. Kevin Brady upset that public transportation didn't spend more money to accommodate passengers traveling to Washington mall to protest government spending.

shit.

2009-09-17T02:48:57Z

Mary Travers dead at 72."

i wanted to go see them this year :'(

great photo

2009-09-16T20:16:20Z

tragedy

2009-09-15T00:46:02Z

http://www.newser.com/article/d9andln80/dirty-dancing-star-patrick-swayze-dies-after-nearly-2-year-battle-with-pancreatic-cancer.html

rip

christ almighty

2009-09-08T16:36:39Z

ugh.

2009-09-08T15:12:04Z

behold, one of the dumbest things i've ever heard a Dallasite say:

Some of the president's critics have been adamantly opposed to the idea of an address by Obama to children.

"The president's speeches tend to be [about] what's wrong with the country and what can we do to fix it," said Bill Hogsett, a parent from Dallas, Texas. "I believe this is the greatest country on Earth, and I try to teach that to my children. ... I don't want them hearing that there's a fundamental flaw with the country and the kids need to go forward to fix it."

yes! i want my children to grow up completely ignorant of any problems our great country might have. it's the american way!

fandom SPLODE!

2009-08-31T04:51:28Z

http://ogi-ogas.livejournal.com/681.html

ps: DON'T take the survey.

a quick antidote to my last post

2009-08-25T17:14:02Z

oy vey

2009-08-25T14:38:47Z

saridout @ 2009-08-23T02:13:00

2009-08-23T07:17:35Z

yknow, i don't know that i could handle the pressure of dating a guy who is gay. i'm sure i'd be constantly worrying that things i do are too girly, even more than when i'm around the guys in my car club. bisexuals seem the way to go for me... i think. i've always thought that bisexuals have the potential to go for trans people, but could it be that most bi folks like men and women as being two mutually exclusive groups? what do you think?

saridout @ 2009-08-22T03:17:00

2009-08-22T08:21:13Z

one of the best things about returning to fandom after a hiatus: catching up on all the fic you missed :3

saridout @ 2009-08-18T23:00:00

2009-08-19T04:01:51Z

http://www.pamshouseblend.com/diary/12554/woman-screams-heil-hitler-at-jewish-man-during-las-vegas-town-hall

yknow, sometimes i feel like maybe i oughta just get the hell out of here. these people make me feel so tired...

Rick Perry compares Texas to Israel, Mexico to Gaza Strip

2009-08-14T22:32:03Z

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/081509dnmetperry.dc350b73.html

because the relationship between israel and gaza is so awesome? god dammit, i can't stand this man. what a humiliating governor.

i cannot STAND this

2009-08-13T17:30:53Z

minimalist typography logos?

more like, let's see how illegible and generic we can make this sucker! what a great idea! ZOMG we r such awlsom grafic desiners amirite?

end of an era

2009-08-13T16:49:57Z

wow, dad and i flew to new york to see him play in march...

http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/Music/08/13/obit.les.paul/index.html