Otters holding hands

Even I have to admit, this is pretty cute (watch until the end)…

The Talking Beer Mug

How about this for a drinking mug? This cup will actually talk to you and remind you when it’s time to fill up.

You can buy one here for $38.99 US.

300, The Graphic Novel

I loved the movie 300, so I decided to see how it all came about and picked up Frank Miller’s graphic novel of the same name.

Like most young boys, I loved comics as a kid. Superheros, art, cool stories… all things kids enjoy. 300 may have originally come out in comic form, but it is so much more than just a simple comic.

I was surprised to see how similar the book and the movie are. I didn’t realize how they pretty much translated the book directly to screen. The camera angles, the writing, and even the look of the characters is almost a dead-on transfer.

300 is a beautiful book. Miller’s art is incredible, and Lynn Varley doesn’t get enough credit for her excellent work in coloring the book. But above all, it’s the writing that makes everything come together. Miller’s writing is so far ahead of anything else I’ve read as far as comics go. All of those great lines in the film? That was all Frank Miller’s doing.

Even if you’re not a fan of comics, I’ll highly suggest picking up this book. It’s probably one of the best comic/graphic novels that I’ve ever read.

Eddie Griffin crashes a Ferrari Enzo

Eddie Griffin is an idiot. The rare Ferrari Enzo, owned by the producer of Griffin’s new movie Redline, is valued at more than a million dollars. Check out the video:

The “Coolest” Shot Glasses I’ve ever seen

How cool are these? All it takes to make these is a specialty shaped ice tray; but instead of getting ice cubes, you get perfectly formed shot glasses.

From Amazon.com:

The coolest way to enjoy your favorite shots, this cool shooters ice shot mold is made of food-grade silicone, so it is nearly indestructible and can be used over and over again. Simply fill it with your choice of juice, then simply set it in the freezer to chill for a bit and viola! — You’ve got some ice cold shooters that pack a refreshing punch! Makes four ice shots at a time, be sure to order extra for the crowds! Shot glasses measure: 2″ x 2″ x 2.5″ tall each.

Amazon is currently sold out, but you can pick up a set here for only $6.99 US each.

Feeling low today? How about an “Ego-boost”?

For those of you that just can’t get through the rough days, this little gadget is here to help.

When pressing the lips on this key chain, it will come back with one of several programmed compliments. Some of the included “boosts” are: “You look fantastic”, “Wow I love what you’ve done with your hair”, and “You look great, have you lost weight?”.

Seriously, is anyone pathetic enough to actually buy one of these?

The website that sells these little gems actually suggests buying one as a Valentine’s Day gift. How would you like getting one of these from your significant other?

Photo of the Day

When I’m bored, I often browse around on Flickr. There are lots of great photos on the site that people have uploaded, and every once and a while when I find one I really like, I’ll post it up here. Here’s a really cool image of goalie sculpted from ice:

Photo taken by: chrissyliz

I need one of these

“The alarm clock that runs away and hides when you don’t wake up. Clocky gives you one chance to get up. But if you snooze, Clocky will jump off of your nightstand and wheel around your room looking for a place to hide. Clocky is kind of like a misbehaving pet, only he will get up at the right time.”

It’s a cool idea, but I can imagine how impressed I’d be with it at 7:00am when I’m crawling around on the floor, reaching to the far corner underneath my bed trying to grab the little sneaky bastard. I’m sure it would work well at getting me up; but after a few days of playing hide n’ seek with “Clocky”, he’d probably look more like a heap of broken parts, than a cute little clock.

Link: http://www.nandahome.com/products.clocky.html

Since when is self-interest a bad thing?

Today I read a good post over at a blog called, The Journey Out.

The author makes several points, but the one I agree most with is her comment on self-interest. These days, it seems everyone is brainwashed into thinking that if you act for yourself, you are being selfish, and are therefor not a very good person. What are we doing here, if not to live our lives to make ourselves happy?

A quote from the blog post:

“I find that rational self-interest is the only LOGICAL way to live my life. After living my life at the whims of others, I find that I am entitled to live my life now as I see fit. I am entitled to live a free life, loving my family, and living the way I want to. I’ve earned that right. Some people don’t get the concept of rational self interest because they have been brainwashed into thinking that we must always live for others.

What is it about our society where this concept of the rational pursuit of one’s happiness is considered suspect? In the evolution of mankind we all started out doing exactly this, keeping ourselves and our chosen communities alive, living for our own sakes, living to be happy. In what bizarre twist of evolution does self-sacrifice enter the picture? Sacrifice to further your familial line is logical, but sacrifice for a stranger, it’s not logical nor does it serve a purpose unless you are trying to earn some future reward or accolades from those who look back on the event.”

To read the article in it’s entirety, click here.

Trivia Question

This trivia question came to mind because of my prior post that listed my favorite fast food burgers.

What restaurant chain serves more full service meals than any other in British Columbia, with more than 15 million guests every year?

Any guesses? I’ll post the answer in the comments section.

Oh Rockstar, where would I be without you?

Coming close to topping the list of the “greatest product discoveries of my life”, is the amazing, wonderful “Rockstar” energy drink. I don’t know how I would be able to function in day-to-day life without my morning Rockstar dosage.

Rockstar is sold in the US and Canada, and apparently comes in seven different flavors, although I have only come across three. I stay with the regular, as the diet doesn’t taste as good, and I am yet to try the “juiced” can.

According to the can, you can “party like a rockstar” with this drink. I’m quite happy with simply being able to stay awake, but hey, to each their own. Rockstars have 160 mg of caffeine, which is roughly twice the amount of the average cup of coffee. They are amazing when it comes to helping you stay awake and alert. They also taste great.

Rockstar has partnered up with such high-class companies as the “Girls Gone Wild” DVD’s and “Penthouse Magazine”. They have also been endorsed by well-mannered folks such as Blink182′s Travis Barker, Black Eyed Pea’s man-woman Fergie and UFCer Randy Couture.

Ok, so maybe their company and celebrity associations are, well… lacking to say the least, but that’s not the point here. They work and they taste great. That’s all I need to know.

If you’re like me, and don’t like coffee, Rockstar’s are far superior alternative.

How does this happen?!?

Yes, yes, I know. The Britney Spears “head shaving” incident has been much, much too talked-about, and is old news.

However, yesterday I was watching MuchMusic, and along came the music video for “Toxic”. This music video was released almost exactly three years ago (February 24, 2004 to be exact). In the video, Britney looks about as good as she ever did. It reminded me why Britney became the lusted after celebrity that she was. She was simply perfect as far as her looks were concerned.

But look at her now. My God. What an awful looking human being.

Watching the music video made it really sink in at just how low Britney has become. I started to wonder if there’s ever been such a horrible fall from grace as far as looks are concerned, in such a short period of time. To go from being the hottest Pop star on the planet, to become a complete joke, both in your actions and your looks.

When marrying Kevin Federline is not even close to being the worst mistake you’ve made in your life, you know you have some serious problems.

In just three years, look at the complete and utterly amazing revolution of Britney Spears:

Wow.

The World’s Most Beautiful People?

According to a new study, researchers have come up with a mathematical blueprint that describes the most beautiful people in the world.

“Researchers have thrown away the old vital statistics and, instead, focused on how the dimensions of different parts of the body relate to height and body mass index (BMI) to give the perfect physique. Perhaps surprisingly, two of the most important measurements are the girth of the thigh and the slimness of the calf”, wrote Roger Dobson in an article in “The Independent”.

The article continues:

The researchers, from the University of Gdansk in Poland, studied the vital statistics of 24 finalists in a national beauty competition, together with those of 115 other women. They said that while weight, height and hip ratio were normally used to assess female attractiveness, these might not throw up crucial differences between the super-attractive and others.

Apparently, the physically ideal man is “more than 6ft tall, with legs the same length as his upper body. The leg-to-body ratio of 1 makes him appear more muscular, which is why the ideal BMI for men is higher than for women.”

For the “perfect woman”?

“Super beautiful” women have waists a third smaller than their hips and three-quarters their bust measurement. They have longer legs, and slimmer thighs and calves than the average woman.

So, who out there matches these perfect ratios? According to this study, here are the two people considered to fit the measurements of the world’s most beautiful people:

Naomi Campbell and Christian Bale

I’m not sure how much I agree with the results, but it’s an interesting thought at using science to determine what exactly is beauty.

Click Here to read the original article in its entirety.

Transforming Shoes?!?

Wow. I don’t know what to say about these. I mean there’s a certain nostalgia with the Transformers for me, but I really hope these don’t come in mens’ sizes. I can’t imagine what kind of grown man would walk around in these all day:

Want a great book? Try author Vince Flynn

A few months ago, well-known local author Jack Whyte recommended the Mitch Rapp book series by author Vince Flynn to me. I had been reading different books from different authors, and for quite a while I hadn’t found a series I could really get into. But wow, these books have blown me away. Flynn has an excellent writing style, that both informs you and also keeps you interested and entertained, at the same time. I find too many authors over-describe with their writing, and it just ends up boring me. That’s not the case with Vince Flynn.

Flynn’s series of books are centered around CIA operative Mitch Rapp. Rapp is the world’s greatest assassin, and he’s under employment of the US Government. His job is to hunt down and neutralize terrorists before they can attack the US.

If you’re a fan of the TV series 24, then you will love these books. Vince Flynn was actually hired as a consultant for 24, and the character Mitch Rapp was the inspiration for 24′s Jack Bauer.

There are currently 8 books in the series. The first book, however, does not include Mitch Rapp, but several other characters do appear. You could skip this book, and head straight to the second book in the series, Transfer of Power.

Here are the current books in the series, and I recommend reading them in order, as the later books do reference earlier storylines.

1. Term Limits (Mitch Rapp does not appear)

2. Transfer of Power

3. The Third Option

4. Separation of Power

5. Executive Power

6. Memorial Day

7. Consent to Kill

8. Act of Treason (just released in Hardcover)

So, if you’re looking for a great new series, I highly recommend you check out Vince Flynn. Start with “Transfer of Power”, and enjoy the read.

Baby Animals

It may not be the most masculine website around, but well… who doesn’t love baby animals? In the running for probably the cutest site on the ‘net, is babyanimalz.com. If you’ve got some time to waste, check out this site.

This post is for the girls like Michaela (and Jason) who come to my blog and want to read about things other than guy stuff like hockey and super heroes.

Link: babyanimalz.com

Did You Know?

Here are 13 random “fun facts” you probably haven’t heard before…

1. The first couple to be shown in bed together on prime time television were Fred and Wilma Flintstone.

2. Madrid is the only European capital city not situated on a river.

3. Iguanas, Koalas and Komodo dragons all have two penises.

4. M & M’s were developed so that soldiers could eat candy without getting their fingers sticky.

5. Cats have over one hundred vocal sounds, while dogs only have about ten.

6. The tune for the “Now I know my ABC’s” song is the same as “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.”

7. There are only three animals with blue tongues, the Black Bear, the Chow Chow dog and the blue-tongued lizard.

8. The name Jeep came from the abbreviation used in the army for the “General Purpose” vehicle, G.P.

9. February 1865 is the only month in recorded history not to have a full moon.

10. Giraffes have no vocal cords.

11. No word in the English language rhymes with month.

12. Leonardo Da Vinci invented the scissors.

13. Polar bears’ fur is not white, it’s clear. Polar bear skin is actually black. Their hair is hollow and acts like fiber optics, directing sunlight to warm their skin.