Ok Go - White Knuckles

And if you like dogs, chairs, and 'cute' innovation, here's Ok Go with their music video for White Knuckles:

Ok Go - Rube Goldberg Machine

Ok Go is back with even more! This time, they have worked with a team of developers to create a stunningly elaborate Rube Goldberg machine that runs in sync with their song This Too Shall Pass. Amazing!

Ok Go - back again with a marching band

Ok Go is my favorite band when it comes to creativity, innovation, and just using 'everyday stuff' in their music videos. Their treadmill dance is a perennial favorite. In 2009, they returned with a new album and a new music video, this time dressed as marching band members. I don't know why - the song itself is not fantastic, but there's just something about the work/joy/humor/surprises that they put into their performance that makes it wonderful.

Destroy your own site

Netdisaster is a quick and fun way to creatively destroy your own website. Choose your destructive effect (nuke, flood, dinosaur, or one of many others), copy and paste a bit of javascript code onto your page, and voila! Your site is beautifully (and, of course, temporarily) ruined! It serves no useful purpose other than being a lot of fun.

Join the fun at http://www.netdisaster.com/mynd/index.html.

Ronald McDonald: The Wild Years

Life has not always been perfect for Ronald McDonald, the iconic clown who represents happiness, fun, and food that kids love. As with all men (and clowns), Ronald McDonald had his wild years

There were the torrid love affairs

Many torrid love affairs

The experimental period

His many addictions

Hanging out in dodgy parts of town

Run-ins with bad folk; narrowly avoiding serious injury

Of course, he did his share of fighting, too

And got arrested on more than one occasion

But fortunately, he found religion and changed his life

He settled down with someone of his ilk

And together, they created an heir

St. Andrews Face Transformer

Check out this 'toy': the St. Andrews Face of the Future Face Transformer does an incredible job of transforming any face photo into a variety of styles, including manga, cavemen, botticelli, and various races.

Click here to try the face transformer

Sanford Having An Affair, Not Hiking the Appalachian Trail

Disgraced South Carolina governor Mark Sanford has surprised no one by revealing that he would rather have an affair with an Argentinian woman than hike the Appalachian Trail.

The story began a few days ago, when Sanford went missing. No one knew where he was: not his staff, his security detail, or his wife and children. Although somewhat unusual for a head of state, the absence occurred during a break period, and his staff suggested that the governor was just escaping to get away from it all.

After four days, his staff said that the governor was hiking the Appalachian Trail. Was this true? A person does not just 'hike the Appalachian Trail' for four days. It takes preparation, timing, and transport. But that was the story at that time.

The next day, the governor was tracked at the airport, where he had flown in from Argentina. Just a mistake, the staff said; he was having a little Argentine vacation, not hiking the Appalachian Trail.

And finally, today, Sanford has admitted that he flew to Argentina to have an affair with an Argentinian women. That's much more fun that slogging across the Appalachian Range with a 40 pound backpack. But it's also more damaging to the political career of a possible future presidential candidate.

Sanford has resigned as chairman of the Republican Governors Association. He stated that he went to Argentina to end the affair. He has split with his wife, but he is trying to salvage his political career.

Read the Washington Post article here

Barrel Monster Man Charged With Vandalism

Joseph Carnevale, a street artist and junior at North Carolina University, was inspired to steal three construction barrels and create a hulking barrel monster on the construction site. The barrel monster has been received well locally, and even the construction company is happy with the publicity and does not want to press charges. But the local police are not being carried along in this wave of good will. They have arrested Carnevale for a misdemeanor and intend to press charges despite the lack of public support.

Check on Facebook and join one of the groups that are supporting Carnevale. Hopefully the police will realize that this is not a case that needs to be prosecuted (I believe he would be looking at a fine at best, anyway).

Read the full Barrel Monster story here

Girl Sues Tattoo Artist For 56 Stars On Her Face

An 18 year old girl in Belgium is suing a tattoo artist for tattooing 56 stars on her face when she only asked for 3. Kimberley Vlaminck claims she felt no pain during the tattooing, so she fell asleep. When she awoke, she was appalled to see half of her face covered in stars.

The tattoo artist, Rouslan Toumaniantz, has denied the allegations, claiming that the girl was awake all the time, and that the problems only began when the girl's father saw the tattoos.

What really happened? From photos seen on free-to-air news, the tattoo artist is covered in tattoos and piercings. Did he drug the girl, tattoo her extensively against her will, and then hope that when she awakened, she would want to be his bride, a la Bride of Frankenstein? Or was the girl awake all the time, just going along with what was happening, and was it the father's reaction that caused the whole situation to change? Or was it a combination of the two?

The Night Googler is alternatively intrigued and frustrated by these types of news stories; of wanting to know the truth, but realizing that we will never know.

Read the full article here

Update (25 June 2009): Kimberley Vlaminck has admitted that she asked for all those stars and was fully awake while it happened. She was actually happy with the tattoos, but her dad's reaction caused her to change her story. So this time I think we know the truth.

Nation's Girlfriends Unveil New Economic Plan: "Let's Move In Together"

I've watched this Onion video a couple of times now, just to appreciate the way they have combined typical sniping 'couples argument' language into the context of a news interview. Priceless!

Nation's Girlfriends Unveil New Economic Plan: 'Let's Move In Together'

Green Porno with Isabella Rossellini

Yes, it is not a joke that the classy actress Isabella Rossellini has made a series of extremely short films for the Sundance Channel on the sex lives of insects. Just to outdo David Attenborough (in so many ways), she narrates - and acts out - the insect roles as they do it like they do on the Sundance Channel. There's something extremely sexy about Isabella, in snail suit, saying, "I can withdraw my entire body into my shell, where I can hide my vagina and my penis. I have both!" in that sultry European accent. Biologists must be absolutely going off!



Click here for more of Isabella Rossellini's Green Porno

Star Trek: The Next Generation (directed by gazorra)

gazorra is a YouTube poster who painstakingly collects and reassembles choice bits of Star Trek: The Next Generation into original mini-webisodes. Gazorra's best efforts are a highly inspired retake on the series and the personality of its cast.

US Army Mascot 'Liberty' is Dead

The Onion takes a moment from comedy to honor the memory of joyful army mascot 'Liberty', who died tragically when he cartwheeled into a roadside bomb.

Pentagon Reports Army Mascot 'Liberty' Killed in Iraq

Trekkers Bash New Star Trek Film as 'Fun', 'Watchable'

The Onion has given itself away; obviously, at least one person there is a Star Trek fan. You would have to be to produce this lovely parody of Trekkers and their strange attitude toward Star Trek. Yes, there are huge elements of truth in this parody. I have found myself having those same thoughts: "Will I like this movie if it appeals to the masses - if it is a straight up action film and doesn't have moments of quiet scripted discussions in the ready room of a starship?" We'll find out the answer to this question tomorrow, when the film opens and I see and review it. In the meantime, enjoy this spoiler-free comic gem!

Trekkies Bash New Star Trek Film As 'Fun, Watchable'

Follow this Twitterer: jbwhaley

Here's someone you should follow on Twitter: the prolific, poignant indie filmmaker, jbwhaley, who just today Tweeted:

"A family is worth waking up for. Making a name for one's self is worth staying awake for. The rest is just sleeping, or death."

Can I use this as my new credo without paying royalties?

XKCD - Brilliant, Amusing WebComic

Check out XKCD's clever, witty webcomics, updating three times a week. The one I've picked out for you is a look at how Twitter users react to the Swine Flu pandemic.

Click here to visit XKCD

The Onion: More Americans Outsourcing Their Jobs

Be sure to stick around for this entire Onion take on Americans outsourcing their jobs. This is a classic example of The Onion creating its own comic universe:


More American Workers Outsourcing Own Jobs Overseas

Bio-bak: Innovative Interactive Website

See what happens when an imaginative Flash animator/cartoonist is let loose on the web! This interactive (R-rated) website lets you search for missing tools in a scrollable world populated with the occasional weird character.

Click here to visit Bio-bak

Star Trek: Next Generation - 'gazorra' style

Only a Star Trek: Next Generation afficionado could appreciate the amount of editing that 'gazorra' undertakes to create his/her Next Generation remixes:

Sesame Street has the Coolest Website!

While looking around for kids websites for my daughter, we came across the Sesame Street website. I've seen a lot of sites try to make themselves cool and kid-friendly, but this simple, elegant interface is the best I've ever seen.

To start, two Muppet hands squirt glue on a panel and then attach the menu items that run along the top. But the best part is at the bottom of the page. A series of pictures of various Muppet characters are hung from strings. They are clickable gateways to various activities you can do with each character. And together, moving the mouse over the pictures produces a lovely xylophone sound! The games and other activities are lots of fun, too!

Experience the site now; it's wonderful! Check out the cool Sesame Street website here!