TV

Being productive this fall just got a little harder:

Boy Meets World's Ben Savage will be guest-starring on Chuck.

The Rock, Paper, Scissors Championship will be broadcast on national television.

For a Laugh

From Here on Out, George, the Garnish is Free

Make that three obituary posts. And talk about synergy: This one, unfortunately, is quite related to yesterday's post about my favorite night of the year.

By Rich Connell and Jason Song

Los Angeles Times

George Carlin, the acerbic, Grammy-winning comedian whose career spanned more than 50 years, died of heart failure Sunday after being admitted to the hospital complaining of chest pains, a hospital spokesman said. He was 71.

One of the very first books I couldn't put down was George Carlin's Braindroppings. It included this line, which has become a family favorite. Ways to confuse a waiter at a restaurant: "Ask him if the garnish is free. If it is, tell him all you're having is a large plate of garnish."

It's Coming - Date Just Announced

What is . . .

My favorite night of the year?
Located at my favorite venue in DC?


Go here to find out. Tickets go on sale August 11. Remind me.

Getting Better at Charity

While I know it's strange to blog about obituaries twice in one week (unless you're this blog), I do want to comment on the NJ Herald. They took an interesting step this past week when they updated their website. If you look at this obit, you'll see that they give you a link at the bottom to donate to the charity mentioned in the obituary. I think this is a logical thing to do, and I am surprised this is the first time I'm seeing it. It puts the charity request in a convenient spot to benefit from the emotions of the reader. There's an immediate "ask".

However, it still requires you to click and go to a different website (and enter payment info). Once websites get a little better at talking with each other, we'll see Paypal and Google Checkout integrated right there on the NJ Herald site. By linking the payment process with the emotional experience, and not the experience of filling out a check or trying to find your credit card number, it will make it more enjoyable for the person donating and boost funds for the charity. The dead person will probably remain indifferent.

Also, my condolences.

Also, can you believe the NJ Herald updated their website? As a result, I recommend avoiding air travel this week. There's bound to be some flying pigs sucked into jet engines.

[update: After more thorough investigation, it turns out the Herald is still a bit lazy. If the charity suggested by the family is not a major one, they don't make any effort to direct readers to the proper site; instead they keep recommending the same 3 or 4 charities regardless of what the person actually died of. C'mon, Herald.]

LOLCats

This cat is nuts. On the bright side, if I can harness its laser vision, I won't have to go upstairs to use the microwave.

A Sign Seen in a Shirlington Park Demonstrating Exercise

Unfortunate trick of the eye? Or attempt to corrupt our youth? Or has my sense of humor just reached the lowest common denominator?

Metro Opens Doors. Then Closes Them Behind You.

A whole metro to myself. Looks like my new French deodorant, Nonexistant, is working.

In Memoriam

I still read Iowa's Le Mars Daily Sentinel and, unfortunately, recognize way too many names in the obituaries. The folks below are people who invited me into their home for one reason or another. This isn't much of a memoriam, I know, but curtisraye.com is what I've got.

Ronald D. Wilmot (06/13/08)
Ronald D. Wilmot, 69, of Akron, died unexpectedly Monday, June 9, 2008, while on a volunteer mission trip in Jalingo, Nigeria. Memorial services will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday, June 18, at Akron-Westfield School gymnasium. Neil Peck, CLS, of Wesley United Methodist Church in Akron will officiate. ...

For 6 months, Ron was never home when I called. But his wife spoke glowingly about him and said if I ever wanted to stop by, I'd recognize their house by the huge Ham Radio antenna in the back yard. Well, in my last week in Iowa, I looked for the tower, knocked on the door, and Ron invited me, a complete stranger, into his house to see his radio equipment.

Alice M. Naese (06/06/08)
Alice M. Naese, 88, of Kingsley, died Friday, June 6, 2008, at Mercy Medical Center in Sioux City. The Johnson -- Earnest Funeral Home of Kingsley is assisting Alice's family with funeral arrangements. Expressions of sympathy may be directed through www.mauerjohnsonfh.com...

Edwin J. Meyer (03/18/08)
Edwin J. Meyer, 81, of Le Mars, died Friday, March 14, 2008, at the Hallmark Care Center in Sioux City, Iowa after an extended illness. Edwin J. Meyer was born Nov. 26, 1926, on a farm in Grant Township, rural Plymouth County, the son of Ernest and Dorette (Janssen) Meyer. ...

Ed and his wife Charlotte invited me in twice. Despite the fact that he had to travel to Sioux City 3 times a week for dialysis, he still managed to find the energy to give me his opinion on which candidates were best. A veteran, he even told me some stories about his brief stint at military points in New Jersey.

Geraldine Betsworth (03/26/08)
Geraldine Betsworth, 76, of Le Mars, died Tuesday, March 25, 2008, at her home in Le Mars. Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at St. James Catholic Church in Le Mars with the Rev. James Tigges officiating. Interment will be in Calvary Cemetery in Le Mars. ...

Good Samaritan of the Day

A pleasant thing to spot while walking down the street today . . .

My Generation's Mr. Wizard

Mr. Wizard for the Internet Generation. He posts videos regularly at Krampf.com.

They're about 3 minutes each. You should enjoy all of them when you've got a minute.

The Unity . . . oh, the unity

Denny Crane for President

Bob Barr

Stephen with a photo of Libertarian presidential candidate, Bob Barr.






















Get it? Say the name out loud if you have to.
Still don't get it? Watch some more cartoons when you were younger and then come back and look again.

Update

Thanks to Yahoo Answers, I've discovered that "insect" was actually a harmless cricket. As a result, Indie has now been brought up on crimes against humanity. Shame.

When I arrived at my new place a two months ago, I displaced a cat who previouly had free reign in the basement where I now stay. So we were at odds from the beginning. Usually I close the door to keep it out. However, the other day, Indie did me a solid by killing a gross insect that had been terrorizing me for weeks. So here's a photo of us having a moment.

Executive Decision

Rather than sit in traffic today, I pulled into an Applebee's and took a nap.

Call up Malcolm Baldridge: I think we have a new best practice.