Thursday, December 30, 2010

You know what's annoying?

It's annoying when you're Facebook-stalking your significant other and then in the top right sidebar, Facebook is all like, "Hey!  Click right here to look at old pictures of your man with his ex-girlfriend!"

And then you click on it!  Because you're a total asshole!

So annoying!

The sexiest girls are the ones who don’t give a fuck

Once again, from IMBoyCrazy:

What Men Think (words to live by) is a really good list of suggestions for women from a guy reader of Alexi's site.

Some of my favorite parts [my comments in italics]:
  • Yep, your ex was an asshole. We kind of want to know why, but there’s a point where you’re just dumping daddy-rage on him... Take some responsibility for the relationship not working out.  [I need to learn this one!  I'm still bitter about some of my past breakups and I catch myself still shit-talking my exes on occasion.  Why?? So lame!]
  • Don’t give up on giving head or hand jobs cos your neck/hands are tired. You’d think we’re assholes if we did the same.  [Whoa!  I've totally done this to a guy before, now I feel bad!]
  • Around the first date it’s all on us: Don’t call us... Don’t go text fishing. You have to kind of let us know you’re open to our advances (being super aloof just looks like the same as “fuck off” to us), but MAKE US DO THE WORK.  [I have a problem with being super aloof...  This is kind of a "Rules" rule, by letting the guy do most of the work in the beginning.  I totally agree with this!]
  • Rarely give us the benefit of the doubt. Like once or twice.  After that, you’re letting shit slide and soon you’ll be making excuses for us. Call us out on our shit.  [This one takes a long time to learn.]  
  • Girls can be curvy. Girls can have small boobs and be slim. The sexiest girls are the ones who don’t give a fuck what we think about how they look. WE REALLY LIKE THAT.  [I don't have as many body issues as I used to, but this is another one I learned over a long time.]
  • You can never fix us. If we’re douches, we’re staying that way. You are not going to be the one. Save yourself some heartache.  

In space, no one can hear you scream. Because there's not enough molecules in space for the sound to propogate. DER!

click for larger version.  img src: http://io9.com/
I got a kick out of this post from io9:  Bad Move Physics Report Card, which rates the accuracy of science in movies about space.

Star Wars got the worst score.  (You can't dodge a laser, dum dum, it moves at the speed of light!)  Yet, the 1983 film The Right Stuff got a clean bill of health for its accurate portrayal of space-related phenomenon.

The Right Stuff was nominated for Best Picture the year it was released and is one of my all-time favorites movies.  It's based on a book by Tom Wolfe about the original Mercury 7 Astronauts and early NASA days. A lot of it was filmed at Edwards Air Force Base, where I lived and worked for a few years. Beautifully shot, touching, funny, and a great ensemble cast. Highly recommended!

The original trailer does not do the film justice. So here's the first few minutes of the movie:

Wednesday, December 29, 2010

You're a princess from a society of immortal warriors, I'm a rich kid with issues

Batman explains why "It's complicated" for him and Wonder Woman to get into a relationship...

Monday, December 27, 2010

OMG Joan Jett Barbie!

Hey, check it out-- it's Joan Jett Barbie! I kinda want one. I love her studded bracelet and little red converse.

Mattel just released the doll as part of a Ladies of the 80s special collectors edition along with Cyndi Lauper, Debbie Harry and Cher.  If you wanted to be authentic, you could get all four and have them move into a1970's Barbie Dream House, with an elevator.  (I had one of these when I was really little, I thought I was so cool.)

So glad that Joan Jett stood the test of time.  She rules.  I even liked The Runaways, about the beginning of her career with her first band.  See it if you haven't yet.

Man, only circa early 1980's Joan Jett can pull off a mullet.

 

Thursday, December 16, 2010

"Lonely is a freedom... lonely is healing if you make it."

I love this video!  I was reminded of it today from Frank Warren of PostSecret, who said it was one of his favorite memes of 2010.

"If you're happy in your head then solitude is blessed and alone is okay."


It's called "How To Be Alone" by filmmaker, Andrea Dorfman, and poet/singer/songwriter, Tanya Davis.  The full poem is listed at the Youtube page.

There's something sacred about being content with being alone.  It's what to strive for when you're in-between relationships, when you have time and space to figure out who you really are and to love yourself.  Even within a relationship, alone time is important.  Maybe I live too much in my head, but I always feel off-center if I don't spend quality time alone, just me and my thoughts.  And maybe some coffee.  And maybe a sunny day.  And maybe my bike.

This chick loves mathematical doodling.

Saw this via NPR's science correspondent, Robert Krulwich.



More videos at Vi Hart's website.

Green Porno

If you've never seen Isabella Rossellini's 'Green Porno' or 'Seduce Me' series from the Sundance channel, stop what you're doing and watch them!



I just heard more than I wanted to know about ducks reproductive systems from the Sperm episode of Radiolab (which you can hear for yourself, embedded below).

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Bat for Lashes on a bike!

My friend Ingrid reminded me of this video today.  I love the creepy Donnie Darko feel and the sweet gem sweater.  The song is pretty great, too.

"What's A Girl To Do" from her debut album Fur and Gold from 2006


Nathasha Khan is known for her "rad personal style," lots of gold and headbands.  According to Wikipedia, she was born in 1979, just like me.  Hooray for hot 31-year-olds!

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Breakups

I started reading the comic Questionable Content two years ago.  It's about a bunch of nerdy hip 20 year olds who work in a coffee shop together.  It reads like a soap opera.   

Two of the characters, who had been dating for a while, had a fight recently that ended in a break-up.  It all started around here with an otherwise innocent conversation about porn...
I'm looking forward to how the author explores how two main characters deal with a failed relationship.  Since their social lives are so intertwined, it's bound to have a huge affect on the other characters as well.

Saturday, December 11, 2010

Warpaint

The new Warpaint album "The Fool" is really good.

The latest single, "Undertow"


"Billie Holiday" (live version) from 2009's Exquisite Corpse:


I'm also digging "Set Your Arms Down" (live version) The kinda remind me of Electrelane, who are great.

This one's for the ladies

Dad emailed me this today:

Friday, December 10, 2010

"Wear a turtle-neck, retard!"


This cracked me up this morning:

from the always hilarious ImBoyCrazy

(img ganked from etsy.com)

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Bedroom Databank

Atlas Sound, aka Bradford Cox, aka the really skinny guy from Deerhunter, has just released a four part "Bedroom Databank" series of previously unreleased material, mostly home recordings.  The best part is that you can download them for free from http://deerhuntertheband.blogspot.com/  I highly recommend!

"Mona Lisa" from Bedroom Databank Volume 3
This might make my Best of 2010.  I really, really like this song!

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child

This movie was pretty good!  It's on instant Netflix too, if that means anything to you.



It's a well-done documentary based on Basquiat's short career in the 1980's Manhattan art world.  Not to be confused with the dramatic movie from 1996, "Basquiat," which I want to rewatch.



I always liked Basquiat's work.  It's really sad that he died so young, however at the appropriate rockstar age of 27.  Cause of death: speedballs.

  

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Daniel Johnston, the devil, and being talented

I finally saw 'The Devil and Daniel Johnston', the documentary about the singer-songwriter's rise to fame, as well as his struggles with manic depression. It's fascinating to see how debilitating mental illness can be, yet how the love of art and self-expression can persevere.



I'm fully convinced that there's a certain amount of obsession that anyone who's talented requires, some internal motivation to keep working and create.  My friend, an artist at Dolphin & Condor, once wrote about how she works on projects constantly.  She explains, "my lifestyle of creating something everyday does not make me special. I do it because I have to. I do it because otherwise I can't sleep."

Malcom Gladwell, of The Tipping Point (2000),Blink (2005), Outliers (2008), and What the Dog Saw: And Other Adventures (2009), believes that exceptional talent simply comes from lots of practice, not necessarily some innate ability.  (I first heard him on Radiolab, explaining the secret of success.)

I feel like my younger years were spent obsessed with getting A's in my classes.  Maybe that's why I've spent so much time in school.  It's easy to tell that Daniel Johnston, even at a young age, was truly obsessed with making art and music.  I wish I could be a fraction of the musician he was.  I can almost play three chords on the guitar, but can never get myself to practice.  Instead I plod away in my research lab, listening to a lot of other people's music.

Probably my favorite song of his:


One of my favorite Yo La Tengo songs is actually a Daniel Johnston song:


I really hope they make a dramatic movie about Daniel's life one day.  And if so, can Sam Rockwell please play him?


(That's a young Daniel on the left and Sam on the right.  They look so similar! You think?  Besides, Sam Rockwell is awesome!  He'd be so good in this!)

Saturday, December 4, 2010

Facebook takes all the fun out if it

From the comic HappySad... 
Thanks, Annie!

Is 'Sex and the City' no longer relevant? Was it ever relevant?

I feel like I grew up watching 'Sex and the City.' I was only 19 when it debuted 12 years ago.  I rewatched the entire series last year during my post-breakup, man-hating, female-empowerment, I'm-alone-at-thirty, overly-sentimental phase.

I have a lot of friends who hate on the show, and logically I understand why, which is why I'm always guilty when I admit I still kinda love the show.  The movie sequel was pretty horrible, I will give you that.  The rest of it, the show itself, is still entertaining and well-written, and still speaks to me... as a middle-class, white, unmarried girl who grew up in front of the tv in the 90s/00s....



Despite my unfashionable love of SATC, I enjoyed this short NPR blog article I saw this week, Please, PLEASE, No More Trend Pieces About Women Based On 'Sex And The City,' It was written in response to a New York Times article that used a scene from 'Sex and the City' (a ten year old tv show!) as an example of modern male/female relationship dynamics.
Remember “Sex and the City,” when Miranda goes speed-dating? She wastes her eight-minute pitch three times by giving away that she is a corporate lawyer. The fourth time she says she is a stewardess and gets asked out by a doctor.
What made the episode poignant was not just that Miranda lied about her success, but that her date did, too: it turned out he worked in a shoe store.
Is female empowerment killing romance?
 The NPR blog wrote in response:
"Remember when this successful career woman couldn't get a date on a canceled show ten years ago? Is female empowerment killing romance?" 
That is ... not a thing. That is not an argument, not a piece of evidence, not a relevant pop-culture reference. It's about as meaningful as, "Remember Mr. Ed? Are horses learning to talk?"

That horrible New York Times article, "Keeping Romance Alive in the Age of Female Empowerment," actually said a lot of other garbage, such as:
Sexual attraction in the 21st century, it seems, still feeds on 20th-century stereotypes. Now, as more women match or overtake men in education and the labor market, they are also turning traditional gender roles on their head, with some profound consequences for relationship dynamics.
Bullshit.  I can't believe this was published in 2010. 

I hate people who complain that it's "so hard" for women to be successful in their careers and their romantic life.  ...What?  Like anyone expected it to be easy?  Haven't men had to balance the two since always?  The NY Times article goes on to list a few examples of specific male/female relationships burdened by the female's success.  Okay, sure, some men will feel insecure if a woman is more successful than them--  because they're assholes!  The same guys are probably insecure if ANYONE is more successful than them.  Who wants to date an asshole?

For a while I felt weird mentioning my PhD in engineering in my OkCupid profile because I thought it might scare away men.  But then I realized I wouldn't want to date a guy who would get intimidated or scared off by that.  So why hide it?

---added 12/5/10---

Updating this post because I read yet another response to that NY Times article!  Seems to be a pretty hot topic!  This one comes from a guy perspective, Charlie Glickman, a sex columnist who happens to be a writer married to a woman who makes more money than him.
I understand that many men feel shame when they don’t live up to their expectations of what a man is “supposed” to be and overcoming that can be challenging...  I’d love to see a world in which women didn’t need to downplay their accomplishments in order to protect men’s egos. And I’d love to see a world in which men didn’t feel the pressure to live up to outdated models of masculinity that have never fit very well. 


Source: www.charlieglickman.com

Friday, December 3, 2010

MTV in the mid 90s.

I was in high school from 1993-1997 and spent nearly every afternoon after school watching MTV.  MTV still ruled back then. They just played videos including alternative Buzzclips, and occasionally shows like Singled Out, Daria, and Beavis and Butthead.  TRL and boy bands didn't even exist yet and alternative music was still cool.



Remember '120 Minutes'?  I used to get all my music recommendations from this show: Bjork, Ben Folds Five, Garbage, Radiohead, and Portishead.  Remember how hard it was to hear music before the internet?  SO hard!



The other day my friends and I were talking about Sifl and Olly.  Do you remember?  I still think of my little sister when I watch this.  I'll still get songs of theirs stuck in my head on occasion.


See also: United States of Whatever

Monday, November 29, 2010

Morning Benders

SAY WHAT.  I heard this Morning Benders song in a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup commercial last night.

Here's a super awesome big band studio version of the song, "Excuses."


"Excuses" is featured on their amazing 2010 album "Big Echo" on Rough Trade. One of my picks for 2010!

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

What Liz Lemon realizes she wants in a guy


From Season 4, Episode 17:
I want someone who will be monogamous and nice to his mother. And I want someone who likes musicals but knows to just shut his mouth when I'm watching 'Lost.'  And I want someone who thinks being really into cars is lame and strip clubs are gross.  I want someone who will actually empty the dishwasher, instead of just taking out forks as needed, like I do.  I want someone with clean hands and feet and beefy forearms like a damn Disney prince.  And I want him to genuinely like me, even when I'm old.

Monday, November 22, 2010

Gayngs

I'm into these guys this week.



Definitely smooth jams.



Both these songs appear on their 2010 album "Relayted" on Jagjaguar Records.  SO GOOD!!

    Thursday, November 11, 2010

    Deadmau5

    Deadmau5 is a 29 year old electro-house artist from Toronto. He dresses up as a mouse when he performs.

    From Boing Boing, some hipster dad built a Deadmau5 Halloween costume for his 3 year old son, who requested it after they saw him perform at Treasure Island Festival. So cute!

    Wednesday, November 10, 2010

    This is weird.

    ...but I like it!

    Check out the grey sweatpants action in this Bonnie "Prince" Billy and Hot Chip collaboration

    Monday, November 8, 2010

    Gala Darling says he's just not that into you.

    src: galadarling.com
    I've been following Gala Darling's fashion/lifestyle blog for a few years now. It's overly girly, overly positive, at times narcissistic (but what blog isn't?) yet fun to read and beautifully constructed. Sometimes I kind of hate on her for getting away with writing about designer clothes and cupcakes for a living, but hey! The girl's making it work! Gotta admire that!

    Once in a while Gala will whip out an advice column based on some reader-submitted social dilemma, usually from a 17 year old girl, and I'm always impressed with her good advice. Just recently, a young girl asks, "Does friends with benefits ruin everything?" It's a 'I'm in love with my best guy friend but he's only willing to have sex with me.' Gala basically tells her like it is. She even quotes the book "He's Just Not That Into You," which again some people hate, but I love.  The column is long but worth a read.

    I realized recently that I don't do casual relationships.  I'm just not into being around guys who don't really want to spend time with me. Of course, it took months of frustration to finally realize this.  It wasn't ME, it was HIM. Sometimes it helps to hear someone else explain it.
    You want to be in a relationship with someone who doesn’t want to be in one. There is no saving this situation. You are in different places. You cannot spin it or change it. Please don’t think, Oh, but if only I was more _____, or Oh, if only I did _______, because this is a sure route to disappointment & confusion. You need to let him go. He’s not into it, & that’s okay. It HURTS like mad, but it won’t kill you. Life goes on.
    I also enjoyed her advice on how to say goodbye gracefully:
    Help organise his going-away party. Blow up balloons, rent a bubble machine, drink scotch from the other side of the room & watch him say goodbye to his friends. Wear lots of eyeliner & send him off with a kiss on the cheek. It will be marvellous & poetic, you can write about it later.
    Which is another thing I've learned over the years.  When love goes unrequited, all you can do is be the best version of yourself and pretend you've moved on.  Eventually, you will.

    More advice columns

    Friday, November 5, 2010

    Tuesday, November 2, 2010

    Rainy days and mondays

    Gizmodo shared this interesting data on Facebook relationship status statistics.  Looks like most people are likely to break up during Spring break or Christmas Break.

    The little peak on April Fool's Day cracks me up!


    Thanks D!

    Thursday, October 21, 2010

    Fun with graphs

    I love David McCandless's Information is Beautiful, which is full of beautiful graphs.  I'm a nerd so it's totally my bag, baby.  Some of my favorites include Colours in Cultures and Time Travel in Popular TV.

    He recently posted about the Varieties of Intimate Relationships and included a nod to Franklin Veaux's Map of Non-Monogamy, below.  I'm definitely a monogamist so I can't say I identify with this, but as a chart, it's pretty epic.  

    (Click for a larger version)

    Wednesday, October 20, 2010

    Sleigh Bells

    Saw these guys perform at Soho in downtown SB this week.  OMG SO GOOD.  The set was short and sweet, no encores.  They sounded great, looked great, and their songs were synced with a lightshow.  My friend Dana jizzed her pants over the show at her fabric design blog, Dolphin and Condor.

    One of my top favorite bands/albums of the year.  Here's their first official music video, for the song "Infinity Guitars."

    Tuesday, October 19, 2010

    Being comfortable

    I enjoyed this short video from Mike Skinner of The Streets on the benefits of being comfortable while you're at work.



    Originally from The Streets blog, via Mike's Twitter account.

    I posted a video from The Streets last year, but here's another older video for "Let's Push Things Forward" from 2002.  Mike was 24.

    Friday, October 15, 2010

    I feel weird admitting it, but...

    I'm seeing someone.  I met him in real life, not online.  Go figure.

    If it makes you feel better, he has an OkCupid profile and according to their algorithm we're a 96% match.  So maybe there's something to OkCupid's matchmaking, afterall. We're 12% enemies too, which always makes me wonder... Are we 12% incompatible?  Is that a lot?  I think it has something to do with the way we answered our match questions.  For example, when I clicked on "The Two Of Us" tab, I found this:


    Dealbreaker?  I hope not. :)

    The problem with analyzing our profiles after the fact, after we met and started spending time together, is it feels like it's cheating somehow. Are online profiles filled with too much information? Does it take away from the whole getting-to-know-you process?

    It's amazing how little free time you have in the beginning of a relationship, which is probably why I'm not paying attention to this blog lately. (Sorry.) I'll try to refrain from posting about my own relationship, but still update at least once a week with other stuff about love/sex/relationships/dating, or the lack thereof.  Feel free to submit ideas for posts via okstoopid at gmail.com or in the comments.

    Wednesday, October 13, 2010

    Eh.

    I'm bored of this blog. Should I delete it?

    The Longboard Girls Crew in Madrid, Spain

    This makes me want to learn to ride a skateboard so bad! I regret not taking up skating when I was in high school, hanging out with skaters all the time. I guess it's never too late to learn?


    Longboard Girls Crew from Juan Rayos on Vimeo.
    Saturday morning cruising and rocking around Madrid with the Longboard Girls Crew.

    Music:
     Go Outside - Cults
     The Late Great Cassiopia - Essex Green
     Tremendous Dynamite - Eels

    Like everything cool, I got this from Doobybrain.

    Monday, October 11, 2010

    I want to ride bicycles with you

    I've decided to take my biking hobby and my relationship to the next level.
    I'm not sure what that means yet, but I think it costs more money.


    Another amazing comic from Exploding Dog

    Thursday, October 7, 2010

    Grow a pair.

    I have several amazing lady friends who are single and looking for a guy, and most of them are trying out the online dating thing to varying degrees, with varying success.

    My pal N. posted this frustrated rant the other day and it made me laugh.

    - - - - -
    boy: hey you seem really cool and interesting, if you want to know a little more about me, here's my facebook page : ...

    another boy: if you'd like to get a glass of wine sometime here's my email : ...


    really? no phone number? i can't even get to know you face to face? i have to test you out on the internet for weeks on end? i have to follow you on twitter and be on foursquare or check out your blog to get to know you? you don't even want to take the time to tell me yourself? do you even want to know anything about me or are you just so awesome that everyone should friend you? do you ever get out into the real world and talk to real people?

    what the fuck is this? grow a pair.

    Wednesday, October 6, 2010

    Creeper face.

    Doobybrain posted this a while back. It's just a video of a guy giving the creeper face over and over. Lulz.

    Monday, October 4, 2010

    Fifteen minutes

    A picture of my friend and I are in Sunset Magazine's October issue.  Total surprise!  The pic was taken during a group ride called Santa Barbara Cycle Chic.

    I wonder if this will become a stock photo?

    I feel like I've gotten a lot of small press this year.  They said everyone gets fifteen minutes of fame, maybe I'm getting mine in nanosecond increments.

    Monday, September 27, 2010

    Nerds

    There's a saying for tasks considered not too difficult that goes "It's not Rocket Science."  What do rocket scientists say in this situation? "It's not like talking to girls."



    Saturday, September 11, 2010

    I'm ignoring you.

    I almost feel bad for ignoring these guys... but at least they have a good sense of humor about it.





    Public service announcement:
    School/work got crazy for me this week and I'll be away on travel the next two.  I probably will not be updating this blog either.  (Sorry)

    Tuesday, September 7, 2010

    Dinosaurs

    One of my methods for an effective online dating profile, besides being short and sweet, and besides being genuine, is to include at least unique fact.  Something unusual and interesting that makes the profile stand out and hopefully inspires further inquiry.  An attention getter.  A conversation starter.

    For example, in my OkCupid profile under "the most private thing I'm willing to admit" I wrote: I collect plastic dinosaurs.  This is more or less true.  I'm not an avid collector, but I have about five that pepper my desk at work.  They make me smile.  I mention them in my profile because I think it makes me sound quirky and young at heart, which I am.

    You can't imagine how many messages I get about plastic dinosaurs.  Lots.

    I got one the other day that had me scratching my head.


    ...Who or what is Wash?

    Wikipedias disambiguation page says it may refer to this guy from the show Firefly.  Is that it?  But he's a guy, and a ginger at that, plus his eyes are really close together.  Should I be offended?

    Sunday, September 5, 2010

    FYF Fest 2010

    FYF Fest had a pretty good lineup this year.  I got in for free thanks to KCSB (hooray for staff tickets!).  Unfortunately, it meant waiting in line over an hour to pick up my ticket at will call.  What a cluster fuck that was.

    LA isn't that far away, but it was so much hotter than here in SB!  The first few hours were pretty miserable, but luckily we found shade in the beer garden.

    I dressed for comfort and station pride and wore cutoff jean shorts, KCSB tee, and converse.  Inevitably feel self conscious with whatever I wear to a summer festival.  (Still!  At my age!)  There were so many cute hipster girls with little floral sundresses on.  I kept thinking, "Damn, why don't I wear more dresses?"


    Heard some great sets by: Vetiver, Local Natives, Best Coast and Man Man.  Also enjoyed the Cults, Warpaint, and Washed Out.  Wavves was a little disappointing, too much stupid on-stage banter.  I liked their show at Soho in SB a few weeks ago, though, but thought the same thing.  Man Man and The Growlers are  playing in SB again tonight, so it will be fun to see them up close in a more intimate setting.

    Overall it was a pretty relaxed festival.  Seemed busier than last year.  Great people watching as always.  I ran into 5 people I knew from KCSB, plus Jeff Shuman of Club Mercy.  I had some non-indie friends with me, felt a little bad dragging them all over the park to listen to bands they never heard of, but they were good sports about it.


    Didn't stay for the headliners, so I missed out on !!!, School of Seven Bells, Mountain Goats and The Rapture, even though like a few were playing at the same time so I would have missed one or two anyway.  We left the show early to grab late night moo shu in Chinatown.  Then I drove the long 2 hours home blasting Daft Punk's "Homework."

    The guy I brought with me said !!! should change their name to so people would know how to pronounce it.  I can never figure out where their albums are filed in our station's music library.  Under "C"?  Under "#"?

    EDITORS NOTE:  !!! is filed under the # section, before the letter "A"

    Wednesday, September 1, 2010

    Summer music

    These videos make me happy to be a hipster in California.

    Best Coast - "When I'm With You"


    Wavves - "Post Acid"

    My mother forwarded this to me yesterday.

    "A Real Man"

    A real man is a woman's best friend. He will never stand her up and never let her down. He will reassure her when she feels insecure and comfort her after a bad day.

    He will inspire her to do things she never thought she could do; to live without fear and regret. He will help her express her deepest emotions and give in to her most intimate desires.

    He will make sure she always feels as though she's the most beautiful woman in the room and will enable her to be the most confident, sexy, seductive, and invincible.

    No wait... sorry... I'm thinking of wine. It's wine that does all that...

    Never mind.

    Tuesday, August 31, 2010

    Friends & benefits

    From A Softer World comics:



    Has a friends with benefits scenario ever worked for you?  Is it just like dating someone you know you have no potential long-term future with? If so, that might describe all my past relationships... 

    I've definitely dated guys I didn't even like as friends. What's that called?  Sad?

    "S that D. Shut it down. Dealbreaker."

    My friends and I like to joke about relationship deal-breakers. Our conversations go something like:

    Me: "He wore cargo shorts."
    Friend: "OMG. Deal-breaker!"
    Me: "LOL"

    We got it from 30 Rock. Love that show. Love Liz Lemon.  I think the older I get the more I become like her.

    These are good ideas for Tumblr blogs



    How about some Album Tacos?

    Sunday, August 29, 2010

    Saturday, August 28, 2010

    Oh hai...

    Haven't updated in almost two weeks.  Oops.

    Here's a video of the band Times New Viking lip-syncing to Yo La Tengo's "Nothing To Lose."

    Thursday, August 26, 2010

    Cougar expert

    I know I'm only 31, but I think I can learn a lot from this chick.



    More Cougar Channel videos.

    Blue/print/matic

    img src: Printmatic
    Blueprint is an emcee/producer/rapper from Columbus, Ohio.  I know him from his work with the slightly more famous RJD2, and was featured on his amazing debut album "Deadringer."

    What? You never heard of RJD2?  He's the guy who wrote the theme song to Mad Men.

    Anyway, I don't know how I came across Blueprint's blog, Printmatic, but I've been following it for a while now. He talks a lot about music, drinking (or not drinking), partying and relationships.  His writing cracks me up and I feel like I could hang out with this guy and have a great time.

    One of my favorite entries is Top Ten Reasons Why 21-23 Year Old Women Suck, which includes such delightful insights as "They can’t handle their liquor" and "They don’t pay for shit." Read the rest.

    Other Blueprint gems:

    Tuesday, August 24, 2010

    Gay dating and Grindr

    I love Brian Safi's That's Gay segment on the show Infomania. I was cracking up when Brian learns about Grindr, an iPhone app made specifically for gay hook-ups.



    I heard about Grindr through Ragan Fox, who talked about it during one of his podcasts Fox And The City.  Ragan's Summer Fling (a.k.a. Seasonal Top) Questionnaire asks questions like, "According to Grindr, how many feet away are you?"

    Someone pointed out that Grindr would never work for straight people.  No right-minded woman would ever want her location advertised on a dating website.  Stalker alert!

    Monday, August 23, 2010

    Dating oneself.

    Spoken word by Poetri on HBO's 'Def Poetry'.



    By the way, Mos Def is kinda hot.

    Peaches

    Just when I start to get bored with OkCupid, I get a message like this and love it and hate it all over again.

    Wednesday, August 18, 2010

    Fuck that ghost.

    This flowchart is pretty amazing.  It comes from an advice column on This Morning News when someone asked if it's okay to date his brother’s wife’s cousin.

    click on it for high resolution

    Thanks, A.

    Tuesday, August 17, 2010

    In the business of love, or lack thereof.

    Why You'll Never Find Real Love Online from Marie Claire is a Q & A with a psychologist who used to work for Match.com, who lost his belief in the system when he realized he "hated the way we overpromised and underdelivered."

    My favorite quote:
    Sexual compatibility is a keystone to a relationship's long-term success, and it requires three things: a similar emotional approach (positive, friendly, and fun, or dark and mysterious); a similar activity level (fast and active, or slow and mellow); and a complementary power dynamic (strong, confident, and powerful, or gentle and submissive). These qualities often line up with what you want interpersonally, too.

    via @vaughanbell via @jonahlehrer

    Hey, man. (a public service announcement)

    Look, if you have a profile on a free online dating website, you are putting yourself out there to be critiqued.  That's the whole point, right?  To judge others and be judged?

    I have a genuine dating profile up at OkCupid and have been genuinely looking for men on there for several months.  I'm not ashamed about it.  Lots of people do online dating these days.  I haven't actually met anyone yet, but only because I happen to be very picky.

    I created OkStoopid because I just got tired of emailing screenshots to my girlfriends all the time.  The objective of this blog is to point out the sometimes ridiculous experience of online dating and being single and over 30.  I'm not out to humiliate anyone.

    I made the blog public (technically) to make it easier for my friends to read.  However, I don't actively advertise it's existence.  As far as I know, only 5 people read this blog regularly, most of them are real life friends of mine, and most of them are single, and most of them have experience with online dating also.

    I understand that it's not 'fair' to post incriminating information about guys who contact me or my friends on OkCupid on a (technically) public blog. I haven't been very careful about this because I assumed my readership was so small.

     It has recently come to my attention that I should be more discreet on this blog, as Google searches make me instantly findable.  From now on I will censor both usernames and photos of anyone I plan to discuss/critique so that they're completely unrecognizable.  It will take me a few days to go through and fix all the past entries, so if you're browsing the archives, there are several missing entries that will be reposted later.

    I wanted to apologize to the few guys who found their likeness posted on here.  (More than one!  What the hell!)  I'm still not sure how you found it, and have yet to completely rule out honest-to-god internet stalking, for which you should well be ashamed. But perhaps it's just "the power of social networking," as someone else put it. I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt, and with that, my apologies.

    Monday, August 16, 2010

    To the cool dudes who live very far away

    Thanks for your message, cool long-distance dude.  Your compliment from far away made me smile.


    I probably won't write back, but I still appreciate you.  It's the thought that counts.


    Maybe I showed up in your match results when you expanded your search to include women "everywhere." We probably have a lot in common except for our time zone.


    It means something that you liked my profile enough to send a message, even if we live a few thousand miles apart and will never ever meet.


    It reminds me that there are actually cool dudes out there who might be into me.  Kinda hoping for a cool dude who lives in the same town, but then again, you're probably thinking the same thing about me.

    Hats off to you, cool long distance dudes, you will not be forgotten.

    Saturday, August 14, 2010

    All time top five.

    This week, NPR's All Songs Considered blog asks What's Your Most Played Song on your computer?

    Here's my top five according to number of iTunes plays.  I couldn't stop at just one!

    #1.  "Haiti" by Arcade Fire


    #2. "Showroom Dummies (Cha Cha Cha)" by Senor Coconut. (no idea why)


    #3. "Rock My Boat (feat. Mia Doi Todd)" by Dntel


    #4. "Girl" by Beck.
    I've never seen this video before, but I love it!  I makes me want to hang out with Beck in LA.  I always wondered what the correct words to the chorus are.  I found several interpretations online: "Hey, My cyanide Girl."  "Hey, my summer girl."  "Hey, my sun-eyed girl."  What do you think?


    #5 (tie)  "Neon Syrup for the Cemetary Sisters" by Black Moth Super Rainbow.  Love this band!!


    ...and "Til The End of Time" by Devotchka

    Friday, August 13, 2010

    My dick goes to yoga.

    Mickey Avalon's "My Dick" gets stuck in my head on multiple occasions. The lyrics are hilarious.



    The song also features Andre Legacy & Dirt Nasty (yep, that's Simon Rex from Mtv)

    Monday, August 9, 2010

    Men and Facebook

    I just read* a post on the blog Sex In The Digital City called:
    7 Ways Facebook Can Show That He's Just Not Into You.  Among these,
    If he doesn’t comment back to you when you post cute and witty comments and responses on his wall or status updates – HE IS JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU.
    Really?  I'm confused.  Didn't we agree that real men don't use Facebook?


    * via Gala Darling

    Stupid Cupid

    I always loved this design from Threadless
    Stupid Cupid by Budi Satria Kwan  

    Thursday, August 5, 2010

    Who is this purple man?

    I pretty much ignore PlentyofFish, but I received this gem in my inbox today:



    Clearly this man is not attractive. It makes me wonder what's wrong with him. Is he old and fat? Short and bald? Is he missing body parts? Is he a ginger? I kinda wonder if he has an eye patch and a flipper for a hand.

    He sounds bitter. It's as if other women have given him a hard time about not having a profile picture, and now he's all up-front about it and calling me shallow.

    Is it really so shallow to prefer attractive men? Look, I'm a reasonably attractive lady. If I wanted to date ugly guys, I wouldn't need an online dating site.

    Out of curiosity, I clicked over to this guys profile and right away it says:
    Thank you for taking the time to read this. I'm 30 yrs old. I'm not a fake person or some guy trying to make u go and look at his website. I'm 100% real.
    Him saying that he's 100% real makes me think he's not real.

    Wednesday, August 4, 2010

    Best of Craigslist > Vancouver, BC > Penis Measuring

    Originally Posted: Tue, 2 Mar 18:01 PST

    Penis Measuring


    Date: 2010-03-02, 6:01PM PST


    A friend of mine and I have been having a long-standing argument about whose penis is larger. We've tried having our girlfriends confirm to the other the exact size, but neither one of us buy it. I don't want to see his penis and he doesn't want to see mine. I don't want my girlfriend looking at his penis and he doesn't was his looking at mine.

    So... We just need a girl to look at both of our penises (individually) and then to both of our faces say which one is bigger. We can't pay much. $50.
    • Location: Vancouver
    • it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests
    • Compensation: $50
    PostingID: 1625829503

    I really like what she's doing here.


    This blog rules: http://hownottodateonline.com/

    She's kinda doing what I'm trying to do with OkStoopid, only way better.

    Hide your kids, Hide your wife

    This silly meme remix has been stuck in my head the past several days. The Gregory Brothers are the same guys behind Auto-tune the News.

    Fucking genius.



    NPR just published a great story about Antoine Dodson and the meme his interview generated.

    Tuesday, August 3, 2010

    Click on my face and tell me that you love me.

    "I Heart You Online" by the comedy music duo Rocky and Balls



    These girls are going viral.  Watch more fun videos on their Youtube page.

    Thanks, N!

    Monday, August 2, 2010

    dominant lady feet

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