Ok, I know I'm an old fart. As such, I also know I'm a gigantic pussy. See that on my face? That's not my nose, that's my clitoris. After reading ConMan's post on Real Life Superheroes the image of someone swooping down out of the sky to stop evil doers immediately popped into my pea sized brain.

In any case, I've been watching these guys with wing suits BASE jumping. When it first started getting popular, I thought it was pretty interesting - a bunch of people flitting about like Rocky the Flying Squirrel.

I mean, it is amazing what these people can do...

wingsuit base jumping from Ali on Vimeo.

The freedom, the exhiliration, the rush must be phenomenal. I mean, man isn't meant to fly, right? And here he is gliding almost effortlessly over Mother Earth and thumbing his nose at he can and cannot do.


But at what risk? Hitting a bridge or some other object at 120mph?


That's it. No more Mountain Dew for me.

Konichiwa, Bitches...

It sure has been a while since we've had one of these, hasn't it? I was captivated by a thread on reddit which posed the question: who wishes they would start showing the original iron chef episodes instead of iron chef america?. It seems somewhat innocuous, especially if you've only seen the American version and haven't seen the original.

Face it, Americans have a way of stealing television shows and movies from other countries and treating them as if they just invented toast. Threes Company? The Office? The Ring? Well, Iron Chef proved no different. The program consists of two chefs and their crews going head to head for an hour, preparing meals using the day's secret ingredient. Bananas, truffles, lobster, coconut - anything is game. I would love to come up with some of their secret ingredients. 'Today's secret ingredient is...Pepto Bismal!'

I remember watching the original Iron Chef on the Food Network years ago and I instantly fell in love with it. I thought it mixed in both campy fun (really? a cape?) and the creativity of world class chefs. I'll also be honest and say that I've never, EVER seen an episode of the American version. Why? For one reason, really -

I think Bobby Flay is a douchenozzle. Can't stand him.

In any event, for those of you who are familiar with this series: which version do you prefer?

Now I have to find the 'Battle Cranberry: Giada De Laurentis vs. Rachel Ray' episode.

It's been a while, hasn't it. I'll be back to posting regularly. I've just been having a few personal issues to get through. Anyhow, with it being New Year's and all (Happy New Year's people in Future Land!), I thought that I would caution all of you to show a little restraint.

Not with the boozin'. More like with the eatin'. Why? Well, 'tis the season and also I saw this while I was away:



The only reason I show that is because 1) I think Paula Deen is a whack job but she's big in North Carolina where my inlaws live and 2) I know a lot of you will have New Year's Resolutions to go on a diet.


Nigela Lawson > Paula Deen




Giada De Laurentis > Nigela

She only turned 18 eight months ago, but Harry Potter star Emma Watson is already considering stripping off on screen.
In what many might see as further evidence of the pressure on women in the industry, the young actress admits she is prepared to go nude - if the role demands it.
The news will shock fans who have watched her grown up as Hermione Granger in the series of JK Rowling adaptations and still think of her as a child.



But when asked by a Sunday magazine if she would ever film naked, she admitted: 'Yes. For Bernardo Bertolucci. It ... depends.
'I’m not getting my kit off any time soon, but it is part of my job.

'I’m at a strange age. I’m not a woman yet, but I’m not a girl any more.
'They [film companies] say: "Oh, in a couple of years you’ll be perfect for this."
'I’ll be like, yeah, but I want to be studying English then, so it’s going to be quite tough to choose between the two.'



Meanwhile, the university-bound actress showed her youth as she donned mouse ears - and a fasionable dress of course - for her latest Hollywood premiere last night.
She may have graced the cover of Vogue, but she looked at home promoting the animated movie, The Tale of Despereaux, which is set to be a big Christmas hit.
The British star had a big smile for the camera as she posed on the red carpet in the satin dress and a pair of peep-toe black heels.



She posed with co-stars Dustin Hoffman and Matthew Broderick in Los Angeles.
In the CGI film she provides the voice for the character Princess Pea, who forms a friendship with a brave little mouse with huge ears.
The Harry Potter star signed a deal with Kate Moss's modelling agency Storm last summer and was a fixture at both London and Paris Fashion Week this year.

The young actress has admitted to having a big interest in the fashion world and has become a regular face on the fashion circuit of late.
'I've always been really interested in art and fashion', she has said.
But despite her hugely successful acting career and the interest from the fashion industry, Emma has pledged to continue her academic career following her current gap year.
After gaining straight As at A-level, she plans to study English literature in the UK or a liberal arts degree in the U.S.



Source: MailOnline

In the past I have seen Michael Neff's work on the web and it was, in its own way, an interesting way of looking at objects. Neff takes objects and does one of two things to them: he either traces it's shadow with chack or he fills in the negative space. A lot of work is similar to whether or not you see a crime scene and they've just drawn a chalk outline of a body. Yep. Same concept. In fact, for you Photoshop users out there a lot of his work looks like what you'd see if you were either applying a mask or performing an extract. If you check out his site some very nice photos of his work as well as other nice pics he's snapped.

For an interesting look at how this is done, check out Marie Digby's video 'Paint Me In Your Sunshine':


At first I was delighted by how quickly that it was all done but then, if you sit and think about it for a while, it is a very poignant and subtle message about perspective, time and impermanence.

With that in mind, for this very American holiday today, Thanksgiving, I'd like to issue my thanks to everyone who frequents this board - frequent posters, lurkers, people validating. I'd especially like to thank those of you who have been on this board for many, many years; from its very first incantations by our Yellow friend, Justin, to what it is now.

The web itself is a place of impermanence with people coming and going, fads shifting and changing and people's attention span growing shorter and shorter as they're inundated with more and more information, flashing lights and a cacophony of sounds.

So, that's what I'm thankful for. I'm grateful to have this board here and you.













Oh, and boobies. Can't forget the boobies.