Rondo Makes USA Nationals Cut

The reason I’m watching this is because our (and by “our” I mean Kentucky) stellar point guard, Rajon Rondo, is still in the running to make the Under-21 USA National Team. As a sophomore competing against older players, Rondo has a lot to prove but no one is questioning his heart or his basketball IQ, both of which may help him make the squad.

Sounds like Coach Martelli won’t cut the last 4 players until after the summer league circuit. The team will compete for the World Championship in Argentina next month.

What’s In a Meme?

Wikipedia admits that memes mean different things to different people. Richard Dawkins, who first created the term in is book The Selfish Gene, defines it like this:

a unit of cultural transmission, or a unit of imitation

but that doesn’t address its self-propagating characteristic. c|net uses the word to describe their Top 10 List of Web Fabs, but it’s not entirely accurate except for Blogger. In reality, blogging is just a good idea that’s catching on and I’m pretty sure that’s not what a meme is. Might be more like multi-level marketing/pyramid scheme ported to the Web. Hmmph.

I don’t know if that makes it any more clear as to what a meme is, but I do know that WuzzaDem hates them.

Daily Dose of Color

And here I thought Wednesday felt more violet.

Armstrong Wins Record 7th Tour

In case anyone doubted, the heart of a figher prevailed… again. For the record-setting 7th Tour de France, Lance Armstrong was unbeatable. In a recent interview, Lance stated that he wanted to be remembered not as a cyclist but as a cancer survivor. If that’s his goal, he better get to work because right now, he’s known the world over as the greatest cyclist in history.

Looking for Mr. Goodfont

Sometimes a designer is looking for that perfect font for their next job. But fonts aren’t like documents. Even though they’re made up of letters, it’s more like searching for photos, without the help of Google Images. Plus, their authors name them like race horses, so searching can be painful.

That is, until TypeNavigator arrived!

Waiting My Turn

I feel it’s my moral duty to inform you that if the next 1,310 persons next in line to the Presidency weren’t able to perform their duties, I, the 21st Century Paladin, will be the next President of the United States.

Kid A: “Look what I got!”
Kid B: “That’s not real.”
Kid A: “Is too!”
Kid B: “Nuh uh.”

[via Presurfer]

In the Next Life

I’m having a bit of a problem. Maybe you can help me out?

I’m not sure what to ask God for when I get to heaven. On this side, I’m basically a musical zero. I have this friend named Todd, who has so much musical ability that it’s almost overflowing. I have to admid, I’m jealous. He’s self-taught and picks up things by ear in mere moments.

Then there’s people like Robin Joseph. This guy is amazingly talented. I can barely stencil stickmen and he’s sketching realistic people in a few minutes.

So here I am… artistic or musical? Maybe if I’m lucky, God will give me both. 8^)

Fisherman Catches 1,100lb Shark

I really don’t need to say anything, just check out this video. There are fishermen and there are people-who-love-to-fish-but-have-
a-general-disreguard-for-their-own-health-or-safety. Wow.

Dojo Info 7/22/05

1. Mark Cuban to relaunch IceRocket
   Cuban’s blog-focused search engine is getting a relaunch and new name—BlogScour. One can never say Mr. Cuban is subtle.
2. Pictures of Matt’s Giant Gummy Bear
   Umm… yummy.
3. Top 10 Deadliest Animals
   One of those jellyfish stung me once. Stung like the dickins!
4. NewsRank but not particularly new
   kottke’s take on an old idea remake. I think his comment about user influence is key.
5. A good reason to be a virgin…
   Sad that they have to bring money into it. There are plenty of other good reasons that people don’t have to courage to promote.

Pikmin 2 Is a Gem of a Video Game

Just a couple of days ago I was bemoaning the decline of creative thought in today’s movies. Today I have a wonderful example of the exact opposite.

Anyone who knows me understands that I’m a video game junkie. Been that way ever since dear ole Dad brought home the world’s first Pong system. Then came Atari, Nintendo and PC games by the boatload. It’s truly an addiction but I’m not seeking a cure.

Nowadays I’m on the lookout for games I can play with my two boys. My brother had mentioned Pikmin. I didn’t really give it much thought at the time, but a couple weeks ago I was on the prowl for a new game and Pikmin 2 had been released so I read the glowing reviews and bought a copy. I’m glad I did.

Here’s a brief overview. You are Captain Olimar who’s recently returned from the Pikmin planet to find that your boss had let your shipping company slip into massive debt, 10,000 pokos to be exact. The only way to repay the debt is to return to the Pikmin planet and retrieve their many “treasures.”

The pikmin themselves are tiny, tiny creatures that begin as plants but once picked will follow you around and do your bidding. All they require is to be kept from the many creatures who love to feast on the little fellows.

Each pikmin race has particular attributes. The red are fire proof, blues are water proof and yellows are immune to electricity. The most rare types are the white and purple. Whites are the runts but are super fast and are poison resistant. Purples are the biggest and are 10 times stronger than their fellow pikmin.

At it’s heart Pikmin is a puzzle game, but because it can be so fast-paced it’s also an action game. There are moments of pure panic. Like when these mean creatures are coming to eat my pikmin!

Stuff is falling from the sky, you’ve got new pikmin growing that need to be plucked, big lady bugs want to eat you for dinner and all the while the clock it ticking. It’s quite addictive. What really gets you though is that any time a little pikmin bites the dust (and they do, at times by the boatload) it really hurts. It’s almost like losing a pet, or at least a neighbor’s pet.

Overall, it’s a great game and I highly recommend it. Oh yeah, if you find yourself making little pikmin noises around the house… you’re in good company.

Rock Star: Day 6

America voted and here were the bottom three.

Tara had been in trouble from the start but both Neal and Jessica likely burned themselves with poor performances last time out.

Tara sang Mystify and did it adequately. I thought Neal did Suicide Blonde well, despite an overall lack of intrigue while Jessica stumbled through Don’t Change. After the three songs were completed, I still felt certain that Tara was history, but the feline burned another life and plays on. For some reason, INXS is keeping her around, if only for another week, because I’ve got a couple benjamins that say Tara makes the bottom three again next week.

In the end, INXS gave Neal the boot and gave Jessica another opportunity wriggle and shake on the stage. Not that she was bad really, just that Neal will never be the kind of the singer INXS was looking for. But then, we kinda knew that already, didn’t we?

Still in the Hunt

Bush Nominates John Roberts to Supreme Court

Boy, do they look happy! I’m not sure why. Despite Roberts’ stellar credentials we already know the Democrats are going to fight this tooth and nail. Behaving like hypocrites because both of Clinton’s appointees were passed right on through. Judge Roberts should start expecting the smear campaign to start in… 3… 2… 1!

When considering the weighty matters of law, we should all turn to Hugh Hewitt. He’s perhaps the most qualified and insightful blogger when it comes to matters like these. Hugh praises Bush’s pick of Roberts, but warns that the precedent set in the Ginsburg hearings (.pdf) where she sidestepped any particularly pesky questions, should be something allowed to Roberts as well.

It’s because of crap like this that I don’t blog on politics more often. *sigh*

Update: Came across these predictable responses from leftist groups.

People for the American Way is “extremely disappointed” in the President’s selection, saying it’s “a constitutional catastrophe.”

Alliance for Justice “cannot support Judge Roberts’ elevation to the Supreme Court” because President Bush has a “track record of selecting ideologically-driven, divisive candidates for the bench”.

The National Abortion Federation “calls upon the Senate to stand up to President Bush’s attempt to destroy the fragile balance on the Supreme Court”.

Planned Parenthood stated, “The nomination of John G. Roberts raises serious questions and grave concerns for women’s health and safety.”

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), whose most recent controversial remarks came when he compared American troops to Nazis, called Judge Roberts a “controversial nominee” who guarantees a “controversial nomination process.”

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), immediately announced that “I voted against Judge Roberts for the D.C. Court of Appeals because he didn’t answer questions [about his views] fully and openly when he appeared before the committee.”

Hinting at a possible judicial filibuster of the President’s nominee, Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) announced on Fox News, “The fact that Sandra Day O’Connor stepped down creates an extraordinary circumstance.”

MoveOn.org raised $1.3 million to fight Judge Roberts… BEFORE he was even nominated, and reacted to the nomination by calling Roberts “another right-wing crony.”

NOW (the National Organization for Women) said of Judge Roberts that “our hard-won rights will be in jeopardy if he is confirmed,” and that President Bush chose “to pick a fight. We intend to give him one.”

NARAL stated that “President Bush has consciously chosen the path of confrontation, and he should know that we… are ready for the battle ahead.”

Padiddle 2000

With the summer travel season upon us (and us driving to a friend’s wedding in Pennsylvania), I thought I’d check and see if my Padiddle 2000 web site was still up. After all, I made it back in 2000. In Web-years that’s ages ago. Sure enough… it was! Here’s the overview:

padiddle is simply a travel game—a game to play while driving about in your car or minivan. be warned however, because it is highly contagious and does increase your risk of having an automobile accident. the basis of the game is finding objects. different objects have different point values and different actions/statements are required to receive those points.

If anyone has anything new to add or other variations that I can link up, please let me know.

Rock Star: Day 5

Before we begin, it must be stated that Navarro isn’t helping the show. He reminds me of that kid in high school who wanted everyone to like him so he was constantly complimenting them and trying to be their pal, kinda like Eddie Haskel. Ok, on to the recap.

Bottom of the Barrel

Played guitar while singing Summer of ’69 in the wrong key. Painful.

We thought The One I Love was going to be a problem and sure enough. I imagine it’s tough to perform a song you don’t even like.

Fine, If You Like That Sort of Thing

The ghost of Ozzie past came and inhabited Tara’s body to sing Paranoid. To some that might be a good thing. But he must have brought with him a case of the runs beause it looked like Tara was cramping up.

She sang her life message—I Hate Myself For Loving You. At least she didn’t have her hair covering her face like Cousin It.

He probably doesn’t belong here but he’s become a bit one dimensional with his song selection. Heck, he played Sweet Home Alabama just yesterday when he got that new Gibson.

Good, But Not Great

What I Like About You is fairly straight-forward. Keep up, jump around and there you have it.

Somebody Told Me by The Killers is the most recent big hit yet to be performed. Ty did it well, but still wasn’t edgy enough, IMO. Needed a different setting.

Roxanne is right up Suzie’s ally. Would have been even better had she actually worn the red dress.

I was hoping Mig would do Run-DMC’s version of Walk This Way, but that might have pissed off the band.

It’s Only Rock-N-Roll is one of those songs that people profess to love while inwardly they think it boring and played out. Heather performed well and Navarro requested to sleep with her later that night.

Jordis is the strongest of the women competitors and has a decent shot at this gig. The Reason by Hoobastank, however, is not her best work.

Before she went on I told my wife, “This is gonna suck.” But Jessica actually did a decent job with Purple Haze, one of Rock’s classics. Not that it’ll help Jessica because the band paid her no compliments. Of course, Navarro praised her performance.

Knocked ‘Em Dead

JD took Hand in My Pocket and made it his own. That led the band to say, he was “the most focused on the prize.” Which led to this revelation that the difference between himself and the other (wonderful, talented, blah, blah, blah) contestants was that they were just learning INXS’s music, and he already loves it. Highlight of the night.

Google Earth Brings It Home

Last night my brother sent me a link to Google Earth. Now, I’ve seen Google Maps and was impressed. That Ajax engine is pretty slick. But Google Earth takes it a step further. It’s truly amazing.

For now, the biggest issue is the quality and date of the satalite photos. But how can I complain… I’m getting this for free? Do you think they’ll offer a subscription version where the photos are updated weekly? Can’t you just see terrorists and criminals thanking their lucky stars for this wonderful intel that’s only costing them $19.95/month?

If you don’t want to download and install the program (requires broadband) here’s a quick taste of it’s power. We start out in space. Imagine a low orbit passing over France.

All we have to do, is zoom in a bit.

A bit more.

And voila! Les Eiffel Tower.