Friday, November 14, 2008
I Write Dead People!
My preference for the Final Voyage would be a Viking Longboat set aflame.
Getting your ashes shot into space via Celestis was a reasonable second choice...
...but getting your ashes made into pencil lead pretty much trumps that idea.
Just when you think you've heard it all. Thanks to Neil Gaiman for the link.
Art Is Resistance
-Zero
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Getting your ashes shot into space via Celestis was a reasonable second choice...
...but getting your ashes made into pencil lead pretty much trumps that idea.
Just when you think you've heard it all. Thanks to Neil Gaiman for the link.
Art Is Resistance
-Zero
Labels: Cool Product
Friday, July 20, 2007
Reveille Magazine
Can't quite tell you how excited I am to see the birth of Reveille, a new local Minnesota music magazine .
My love for the City Pages as a local music reference has waned ever since the day the Twin Cities Reader gave up the ghost, and C.P. slowly declined to where it is today.
Part of the problem is that City Pages doesn't always focus on local, and it rarely focuses on music. It's ventured so far from its 'Sweet Potato' roots, that it seems to have forgotten where it came from, and worse, doesn't seem to care. And why should it? The advertising $$$ keep rolling in, the XXX ads in the back never change, and deciding ??? to do this weekend is Your problem, not the City Pages.
Sure it works fine to cover the garage floor when you were touching up the paint on that ugly ceramic animal you made back in grade school. What the hell was that thing? A chicken? A fish with a long neck? No telling anymore, maybe you could paint it and sell it at the Maple Grove Art Fair???.... [Author's Note: Um, where was I? Oh yes, the advertisements. I remember now.]
For me, the usefulness of City Pages is reduced to the advertisements for all the local clubs, whick are in one relatively convenient section. For many weekends it was my treasure map for discovering new local music. But I had always wished for something more.
So did others. That's why the Rake, Pulse, Siren, Rift, howwastheshow.com morecowbell.net and minneapolisfuckingrocks.com and about a thousand more online sources came into being. There is SO MUCH art being made in the Minneapolis area, people want someone who can collect it all to one convenient place, and give you an idea of who's who and what's what in the local music scene. Local art by local artists. Put ads in there if you want, and put all the personal ads in the back too, I don't care. But keep it free, keep it local, and keep it away from the sensational-pseudo-journalism. If I want to know about local sports or politics I have better sources for that. I wanna know who is playing, where, when, and why the hell I should go see them! As great as the 'alternatives to the alternative' are, they don't have the distribution and stamina that City Pages has. Siren went under some time ago, the Pulse is gone and Rift is floundering due to production costs, threatening to become web-only.
So I was pleased as punch to see vita.mn emerge. Although it's run by the Star Tribune, but don't judge it too harshly, they have their heart in the right place, and I suspect their distribution will rival the City Pages. Vita.mn pulls everything I liked about City Pages out and puts in in one place. On paper. And their website is fabulously useful, clean, informational and intuitive.
But I'm even more excited about Reveille. If nothing else this line from their mission statement makes me all tingly:
When mainstream media can't afford to cover the depth of music on offer in the Twin Cities and beyond, we're here to go deeper. When the internet seems like nothing but a glut of news tidbits and buzz, we're here to actually write about music. Original, insightful, informative, inspiring: This is what we seek to be.
At the very least, Reveille will provide real competition that was so sorely lacking before. Check out the full mission statement, and the cast of characters here.
http://www.reveillemag.com/about/
KTHXBYE,
-CZ
Part of the problem is that City Pages doesn't always focus on local, and it rarely focuses on music. It's ventured so far from its 'Sweet Potato' roots, that it seems to have forgotten where it came from, and worse, doesn't seem to care. And why should it? The advertising $$$ keep rolling in, the XXX ads in the back never change, and deciding ??? to do this weekend is Your problem, not the City Pages.
Sure it works fine to cover the garage floor when you were touching up the paint on that ugly ceramic animal you made back in grade school. What the hell was that thing? A chicken? A fish with a long neck? No telling anymore, maybe you could paint it and sell it at the Maple Grove Art Fair???.... [Author's Note: Um, where was I? Oh yes, the advertisements. I remember now.]
For me, the usefulness of City Pages is reduced to the advertisements for all the local clubs, whick are in one relatively convenient section. For many weekends it was my treasure map for discovering new local music. But I had always wished for something more.
So did others. That's why the Rake, Pulse, Siren, Rift, howwastheshow.com morecowbell.net and minneapolisfuckingrocks.com and about a thousand more online sources came into being. There is SO MUCH art being made in the Minneapolis area, people want someone who can collect it all to one convenient place, and give you an idea of who's who and what's what in the local music scene. Local art by local artists. Put ads in there if you want, and put all the personal ads in the back too, I don't care. But keep it free, keep it local, and keep it away from the sensational-pseudo-journalism. If I want to know about local sports or politics I have better sources for that. I wanna know who is playing, where, when, and why the hell I should go see them! As great as the 'alternatives to the alternative' are, they don't have the distribution and stamina that City Pages has. Siren went under some time ago, the Pulse is gone and Rift is floundering due to production costs, threatening to become web-only.
So I was pleased as punch to see vita.mn emerge. Although it's run by the Star Tribune, but don't judge it too harshly, they have their heart in the right place, and I suspect their distribution will rival the City Pages. Vita.mn pulls everything I liked about City Pages out and puts in in one place. On paper. And their website is fabulously useful, clean, informational and intuitive.
But I'm even more excited about Reveille. If nothing else this line from their mission statement makes me all tingly:
When mainstream media can't afford to cover the depth of music on offer in the Twin Cities and beyond, we're here to go deeper. When the internet seems like nothing but a glut of news tidbits and buzz, we're here to actually write about music. Original, insightful, informative, inspiring: This is what we seek to be.
At the very least, Reveille will provide real competition that was so sorely lacking before. Check out the full mission statement, and the cast of characters here.
http://www.reveillemag.com/about/
KTHXBYE,
-CZ
Labels: Cool Product, Cool Website, Minneapolis Event, music, music reviews
Friday, March 30, 2007
Snark Attack!
Not to be confused with the band of the same name.
I want one.
Blog on,
-CZ
Labels: Cool Invention, Cool Product, Ubercool
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
First Milk Plus, Now Diet Coke Plus
Man, this is OLD news.
http://money.cnn.com/2006/12/08/news/companies/coke/?postversion=2006120813
I've been spiking my Diet Coke with a multivitamin for years. Every hardcore D&D-er / LAN gamer / 3rd Shifter / Time-To-Sleep-When-You're-Dead-er knows this trick. I only eat real food at my moms place for the holidays.
Thanks to Energy Fiend for the linkage....
Blog on,
-CZ
0 Comments
Permalink
http://money.cnn.com/2006/12/08/news/companies/coke/?postversion=2006120813
I've been spiking my Diet Coke with a multivitamin for years. Every hardcore D&D-er / LAN gamer / 3rd Shifter / Time-To-Sleep-When-You're-Dead-er knows this trick. I only eat real food at my moms place for the holidays.
Thanks to Energy Fiend for the linkage....
Blog on,
-CZ
Labels: Caffeine, Cool Product, new release
Monday, November 21, 2005
Pink is the new Black
Look out! This heater is off the hook! Bomb-diggity and all dat, but I am TORN! Does the Hello Kitty Strat really define me as a musical individual, or am I selling out? How do I keep it real?
How about this?
Blog on,
-CZ
0 Comments
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How about this?
Blog on,
-CZ
Labels: Cool Product
Monday, November 07, 2005
Cola Review : Jolt Cola
Jolt cola has been re-released in convenient, resealable, 695ml, battery-shaped cans, and several new flavors. As a public service, I have sampled each flavor, and here are my findings:
Jolt Cola - The original. Ick. I never liked the original Jolt, but then again, you didn't drink Jolt because it tasted good; same as Red Bull and the other energy drink clones. You drink it because the mail server is *down* and I don't care if it is 3AM, By God, if you don't get that thing fixed by the time the boss gets to the office to check his daily milflist, you might just as well jump in the car, head to Canada, and never look back...
Appearance: Color was standard dark-brown cola crossed with coffee.
Aroma: Earthy Bittersweet Cola mixed with Hydrochloric Acid and Wookie Scrotum.
Taste: The taste was flat, stale, Pepsi, only more bitter, and more sweet, and still more bitter.
Effect: The ghastly taste has more effect on your state of awareness than the caffeine and sugar combined.
Overall Evaluation: Like I said, Ick. With other flavors to choose from, the only use for this is to mix with alcohols for interesting effect and for stripping paint. Do not take on an empty stomach.
Jolt Cherry Bomb - Now we are talking. I have always loved Jolt Cherry Bomb, and the fact that it was difficult to find only made it more attractive.
Appearance: Color was standard cherry cola color, no surprises.
Aroma: Unmistakable cherry cola and a hint of tangy, wet leather.
Taste: Thankfully, the taste has not changed - Sweet cherry and slightly bitter cola with a surprisingly smooth finish.
Effect: Similar to the effect of eating a kilo of chocolate and a kilo of raw Sumatra coffee beans. Decreases reaction time to a negative number, meaning the body can react slightly before stimulus occurs. Increases eye-hand coordination along with speed; making it possible to thread a sewing machine while it is still running.
Overall Evaluation: OMFG. Without question, the best cherry cola ever made. Do not exceed .733 of one can in a 24-hour period, or Spontaneous Human Combustion can occur.
Jolt Red - Be careful, this can is very similar to the regular Jolt Cola but significantly different in both taste and effects.
Appearance: Unnatural glowing bright red. Actually glows in the dark. Glow increases when shaken (Warning: DO NOT SHAKE!)
Aroma: Pungent floral and tropical fruit with a splash of turpentine.
Taste: So impossibly sweet that the taste of smoked salmon, guava and an entire acre of condensed pseudo-fruit is nearly imperceptible.
Effect: Limited superhuman abilities, possibly including the ability to fly (I was not able to test this due to non-availability of someone to spot me, but I was quite sure I could fly if I only jumped off something high enough.)
Overall Evaluation: Dangerous, possibly flammable. Do not smoke while drinking this product. Attracts killer bees. Do NOT sell to third world countries or terrorists. Does not stain; instead, it actually disintegrates most common elements.
Jolt Blue - Surprise! I had low expectations from a beverage I thought might actually stain my tongue permanently blue, but was overjoyed when I tasted it. I was not so overjoyed when it foamed all over the place when the can was opened.
Appearance: Liquefied Smurf.
Aroma: Extremely strong odor of Grey Latex Paint and Cilantro massively overpowered by Dark Fruity Citrus and Raspberries.
Taste: Highly carbonated, Blue Raspberry Snow Cone, mixed with Ammonia and Tang.
Effect: Hysteria, Dementia, Visual and Auditory Hallucinations, Blackouts, Memory Loss.
Overall Evaluation: Excellent cohesion, bonds in seconds. Stains everything it comes in contact with bright blue, but cleans up easily with Liquid Nitrogen. May attack some plastics. Mixes well with tequila; best results were achieved when mixed one part Jolt Blue to 6x10^3 parts Cuervo 1600. Seems to negate the effects of Jolt Red, resulting in a warm sparkling water when mixed together.
Jolt Ultra - This sugar/carb free alternative was another unexpected pleasure, and a fine addition to the Jolt family. Contains Splenda sweetener.
Appearance: New Bright Green Radiator Fluid mixed with Old Bright Green Alien Urine.
Aroma: Weak Citrus Fruit with a hint of overripe bananas and seawater.
Taste: Radiator Fluid and Uranium 238, but mostly watered down Mountain Dew.
Effect: Heightened sensory awareness, body temperature raised enough to melt snow within one meter; making this a poor choice for those attempting winter sports. Causes all bodily fluids to glow in the dark.
Overall Evaluation: I always wondered what they did with the used coolant from nuclear reactors. Slightly less flavor than the rest of the Jolt family, but with no carbs, this is still a great alternative to Crystal Meth. Half life of 4.5 billion years. Contact the EPA for disposal of containers.
Nutrition info from the website (like you care):
Jolt Cola:
Serving Size: 8 fl. oz.
Amount Per Serving
Calories 100
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0 g 0%
Sodium 10 mg 1%
Potassium 0 mg 0%
Total Carbohydrate 27 g 9%
Sugars 27 g
Protein 0 g 0%
Vitamin C 0%
Not a significant source of other nutrients.
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
Blog on,
-CZ
0 Comments
Permalink
Jolt Cola - The original. Ick. I never liked the original Jolt, but then again, you didn't drink Jolt because it tasted good; same as Red Bull and the other energy drink clones. You drink it because the mail server is *down* and I don't care if it is 3AM, By God, if you don't get that thing fixed by the time the boss gets to the office to check his daily milflist, you might just as well jump in the car, head to Canada, and never look back...
Appearance: Color was standard dark-brown cola crossed with coffee.
Aroma: Earthy Bittersweet Cola mixed with Hydrochloric Acid and Wookie Scrotum.
Taste: The taste was flat, stale, Pepsi, only more bitter, and more sweet, and still more bitter.
Effect: The ghastly taste has more effect on your state of awareness than the caffeine and sugar combined.
Overall Evaluation: Like I said, Ick. With other flavors to choose from, the only use for this is to mix with alcohols for interesting effect and for stripping paint. Do not take on an empty stomach.
Jolt Cherry Bomb - Now we are talking. I have always loved Jolt Cherry Bomb, and the fact that it was difficult to find only made it more attractive.
Appearance: Color was standard cherry cola color, no surprises.
Aroma: Unmistakable cherry cola and a hint of tangy, wet leather.
Taste: Thankfully, the taste has not changed - Sweet cherry and slightly bitter cola with a surprisingly smooth finish.
Effect: Similar to the effect of eating a kilo of chocolate and a kilo of raw Sumatra coffee beans. Decreases reaction time to a negative number, meaning the body can react slightly before stimulus occurs. Increases eye-hand coordination along with speed; making it possible to thread a sewing machine while it is still running.
Overall Evaluation: OMFG. Without question, the best cherry cola ever made. Do not exceed .733 of one can in a 24-hour period, or Spontaneous Human Combustion can occur.
Jolt Red - Be careful, this can is very similar to the regular Jolt Cola but significantly different in both taste and effects.
Appearance: Unnatural glowing bright red. Actually glows in the dark. Glow increases when shaken (Warning: DO NOT SHAKE!)
Aroma: Pungent floral and tropical fruit with a splash of turpentine.
Taste: So impossibly sweet that the taste of smoked salmon, guava and an entire acre of condensed pseudo-fruit is nearly imperceptible.
Effect: Limited superhuman abilities, possibly including the ability to fly (I was not able to test this due to non-availability of someone to spot me, but I was quite sure I could fly if I only jumped off something high enough.)
Overall Evaluation: Dangerous, possibly flammable. Do not smoke while drinking this product. Attracts killer bees. Do NOT sell to third world countries or terrorists. Does not stain; instead, it actually disintegrates most common elements.
Jolt Blue - Surprise! I had low expectations from a beverage I thought might actually stain my tongue permanently blue, but was overjoyed when I tasted it. I was not so overjoyed when it foamed all over the place when the can was opened.
Appearance: Liquefied Smurf.
Aroma: Extremely strong odor of Grey Latex Paint and Cilantro massively overpowered by Dark Fruity Citrus and Raspberries.
Taste: Highly carbonated, Blue Raspberry Snow Cone, mixed with Ammonia and Tang.
Effect: Hysteria, Dementia, Visual and Auditory Hallucinations, Blackouts, Memory Loss.
Overall Evaluation: Excellent cohesion, bonds in seconds. Stains everything it comes in contact with bright blue, but cleans up easily with Liquid Nitrogen. May attack some plastics. Mixes well with tequila; best results were achieved when mixed one part Jolt Blue to 6x10^3 parts Cuervo 1600. Seems to negate the effects of Jolt Red, resulting in a warm sparkling water when mixed together.
Jolt Ultra - This sugar/carb free alternative was another unexpected pleasure, and a fine addition to the Jolt family. Contains Splenda sweetener.
Appearance: New Bright Green Radiator Fluid mixed with Old Bright Green Alien Urine.
Aroma: Weak Citrus Fruit with a hint of overripe bananas and seawater.
Taste: Radiator Fluid and Uranium 238, but mostly watered down Mountain Dew.
Effect: Heightened sensory awareness, body temperature raised enough to melt snow within one meter; making this a poor choice for those attempting winter sports. Causes all bodily fluids to glow in the dark.
Overall Evaluation: I always wondered what they did with the used coolant from nuclear reactors. Slightly less flavor than the rest of the Jolt family, but with no carbs, this is still a great alternative to Crystal Meth. Half life of 4.5 billion years. Contact the EPA for disposal of containers.
Nutrition info from the website (like you care):
Jolt Cola:
Serving Size: 8 fl. oz.
Amount Per Serving
Calories 100
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0 g 0%
Sodium 10 mg 1%
Potassium 0 mg 0%
Total Carbohydrate 27 g 9%
Sugars 27 g
Protein 0 g 0%
Vitamin C 0%
Not a significant source of other nutrients.
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
Blog on,
-CZ
Labels: A Day In The Life, Caffeine, Cool Product, Funny
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