Oh, hello... welcome to my ski lodge

Ah yes, please come in and enjoy some cocoa.

Just wanted to give everyone my best wishes for the holidays. For those of you of the Christmas celebrating persuasion, have a happy and enjoyable Christmas. Here's to a great 2006, a year whose preemptive motto ought to be "hey, it can't get any worse!"

No corners for you!

Apparently, They Might Be Giants have been challenged by an eccentric billionaire to write a new song about each venue or city they perform in on their latest tour. Their song about the Egg in downtown Albany is brilliant! It's an early Christmas present for all of us from the futuristic capital of the state of New York from John and John.

You need Flash to view the site linked above, where the Egg video can be found. Also you need audio. Aw hell, why not buy a new computer?

Best concert of the year - or something

It may not have had the flashiness of U2's show that also went down last night in Buffalo, but I was treated to a local feast of geekiness and laughs at NIPPLEPALOOZA II yesterday.

The Worm Quartet led off the show with a set mixed with favorites about his procreation habits and hair on the soap, along with a couple of mullet-tastic new songs too. For those not in the know, WQ is really just one guy named Shoebox, and he will rock your socks off like Jack Black wishes he could. WQ didn't rock me quite as hard as they did when I caught my very first performance back in May, but then again, I ain't no WQ virgin anymore either. I really want to make a button that says "I asked about the peas" if I can get my hands on the button maker at work. Guess you had to be there.

The inimitable Powered By Satan was next - he of the flashing devil horns and stuffed jock. Strangely enough, PBS's home page is like the 10th result in a Google search. Proof of evil at work? The Man In Red delivered several favorites, including a couple from my own memory vault. To think that this guy played at Risley more than a decade ago - I didn't know what I'd walked in on at first, but he's still around. Powered By Satan appearances are increasingly rare, it seems, so catching him is always a must. With all the evil taking over in today's world, perhaps it's no surprise. BEEF!

WQ and PBS both have Rochester connections, but the soiree's special guest was The Great Luke Ski, coming to us all the way from Wisconsin. Think of a short, blond-haired Weird Al who sings (and raps!) parody lyrics about science fiction and fantasy. If you've ever wanted to hear the story of the original Star Wars movie sung to the tunes of the Grease soundtrack, well... what's wrong with you? But Luke Ski provides. He totally outdid himself with his Subterranean Homesick Blues inspired take on the Star Wars prequels, complete with cue cards. And every male my age will appreciate The Ballad of Optimus Prime.

Dammit, why didn't I bring my camera? I suppose you'll just have to take my word for it.

More comics talk, with a NINJA flair

It's been a while since I posted something, so I'm going back to the well of webcomics for this one. Lately I've been thinking: what is it about the obsessive connection between webcomics and ninjas? Perhaps the best (and weirdest) example is White Ninja Comics. Man, these guys are weird. It's like a sandwich of irony and inanity, between two slices of bizarre bread. A moronic muffuletta, if you will. Check out the latest White Ninja to see what I mean. It's like the proverbial car wreck you can't look away from. You will either think it's utterly stupid, or you'll spend your whole afternoon reading through the archived comics.