In an ADD moment late last night, I was flipping channels, and came across The Great White Hype. Having seen it on HBO or one of the other movie channels some time ago, I left it on, especially since my favorite part was coming up: when Brian Setzer does "Oh, Danny Boy." I won't bore you with details, but I really like Setzer's version of the song. Unfortunately, it is not available:

q) Is Brian's version of the song "Oh, Danny Boy" that appeared in the film "Great White Hype" available on CD?

a) No, it is not. The track is in the Surfdog Records vault, but does not appear on the film's soundtrack or any other released CD. There are no plans at this time to release it.

Heather cracks me up.

Every time Jack Nicklaus plays a tournament for the last time, Tiger wins the event.

This has to be the funniest thing I've read all day. Update, 7/14: What do zombies do after a hard day of causing panic? They go to McDonald's, of course. This photoset has had me in stitches.

Actually, it's not about a Slurpee.

Spotted today on the Dallas Craigslist job boards: "Attractive Female Office Needed"

It really helps, when you have events set on a certain day, and you don't look at your calendar every day, to set reminders. So I missed Rick's birthday this past Saturday. Happy Belated, my friend! And I missed Lee's by a few hours. (You could have said something during our IM conversation, you know, Mr. Bennett. You are the older and wiser one, after all.) My best wishes and heartfelt prayers for the both of you.

Only it's on the ukelele. Tom sent this to me via IM, and I see he's blogged it as well. It's really quite mesmerizing. This guy is good.

No, I'm not referring to a particular clock FedEx has. I'm referring to this amusing time diversion, the graphics of which fail to keep pace with actual time. The second count isn't fast enough. Using the analog clock on my wall, just above my monitor, I conducted a pseudo-scientific test. When the Just In Time clock reached the next :00 on the second count, I began counting ticks on my analog clock. Sixty seconds later, the Just In Time clock had only made it to thirty seconds in its count. At this juncture, some of my dear readers may be pondering why I went through so much trouble for something that has been posted merely for fun. Well, fun or no, if you're going to pass something off as a clock, at least get it to tell the time correctly. I have seen other such graphic-based clocks around the Web, and they count the time correctly. [With a wave of the fin to the MAKE News No. 20 e-newsletter.]

Is it just me, or is this a marketing sponsorship that's a wee bit out of whack?

Noting that Dan provides the main link to Archie McPhee, I can tell you I have seen, in person, the Librarian Action Figure. The toy store on the town square in Jackson, Wyoming, had this very figure in stock when we were there the first week of June. Yes, for a split second, I wanted to buy it. That was how long it took me to see the Albert Einstein action figure sitting on the shelf behind the Librarian. I didn't buy Albert, either. But my son got a die-cast, red VW Nu Beetle to fling around our wood floors.

The Phisch Bowl™ is now a Netflix-renting household. Friends of the Phisch should send us invitations to be added to their Friends lists. We have already watched Sideways and The Terminal, with In Good Company on the way.

One of the local semi-independent stations is showing Ronin this evening. Now, being one of my favorite action movies, because it is a thinking-man's action movie and not a mindless blood and gore fest, I figured I would keep it on while I languished away the hours working on my wife's XP box. (Bad, XP, bad!) Those of you who haven't seen the movie can skip the rest, because I'm going to talk about a specific plot point, and it contains kinda-sorta spoiler info. I realize there's a lot of editing that has to go in to a film like this, to put it on non-cable television during "family hours" on the weekend. In addition to filtering out the curse words, and especially bloody scenes, the broadcasters have to be concerned with a time factor as well, mostly so they can get enough advertising in to cover the cost of showing the movie. I can appreciate all of this. But then they go and cut what I consider a central tenant of the movie. Maybe it's because I am a fan of this film, and have seen it a few times. Maybe persons who have never seen it before won't miss the scene because they don't know to miss it. The scene I'm referring to is at Jean-Pierre's, where Vincent (Jean Reno) takes Sam (Robert De Niro) after the latter has been shot. While recovering, Sam watches as Jean-Pierre paints miniature samurai warriors for a diorama he has created. His hobby, as he explains to Sam. We see Jean-Pierre put the latest dry figure on to the diorama, and we cut to the next scene. They completely cut out the rest of the scene with Jean-Pierre, who explains to Sam about the 47 Ronin, and what ronin were: masterless samurai. The 47 Ronin were despondent over failing their master, who was killed by a rival warlord. So, in time, they gave their lives in an attempt to kill the rival. The term ronin in the case of the movie is supposed to refer to agents who have left the fold of their respective agency, like Sam. I always thought this scene was rather important, as it goes a long way toward explaining the title of the film, even if not directly. It's a shame it was cut for the television broadcast.

To fellow dads out there, my best wishes for a happy Fathers' Day. There are two men I need to specifically mention: Bucky, thank you for raising the daughter that grew in to the incredible woman who is my wife, and mother of our child. I am so glad she had a strong father to look up to. Dad, just in case you ever worry, yes, everything you ever tried to teach me did get through. It's my own fault if I don't use the wisdom and experience you passed on, and continue to pass on. Thank you for always being around, and available. I love you.

Lee has his first meal, first tv viewing, and first 'net access in his new place. Congrats on becoming a homeowner, compadre!

Throughout history, the wolf has often been the target of misguided hatred on the part of humans. Personally, I love wolves, the largest of the canine species. I learned a lot about how to deal with my own domestic dogs from reading about wolf pack behavior. Just as I admire tigers and other big cats on the feline side, I find the gray wolf to be a majestic creature. Our recent vacation to Wyoming included Yellowstone National Park, where they are marking the tenth anniversary of the reintroduction of gray wolves to the Yellowstone region. (For the record, we did not have any wolf sightings on our trip, but with only 174 believed to be in the entire Yellowstone region, you've got to get up pretty early in the morning--literally--to have a 60-70% chance of seeing wolves in areas they are known to frequent.) I used to run "Wolf Fun Facts" on my old blog, and you may see them popping up again. Here's one: each member of a pack can be distinguished by its call, a sort of code that keeps strangers from venturing too far in to a pack's territory.

Click on the image to see a short movie of the Lower Falls of Yellowstone in action.

The hike down to the brink was only three-eighths of a mile, but that three-eighths took place within 600 feet. The words you're looking for here are "steep switchbacks." Still, very much worth it, and images do not do it justice. Plan your own trip as soon as you are able.

Matthew Baldwin:

That's right: fifteen months old and my son has already McGuyvered up a rocket launcher. finslippy: But why do we resist, you ask? Why not get dressed and enter the playground, where fun could possibly had? Because, that’s why. Because because because. Because we must take every stand we are able to take. Also! Because Caregiver is deceiving you. There is another, better playground, a Naked Playground, with balloons and ice cream and cake. The soiled diaper will lead the way. [The above via Heather.] Chris Anderson: I love the thought that our children are growing up used to having domestic robots in the house. Robots for them are slightly dim but friendly vacuum cleaners, not fearsome weapons or fantasy toys. "Robot love me," declares the two-year-old.

Less than 16 hours after arriving back in DFW from Jackson Hole, Wyoming, both the missus and I had stuffy noses, no doubt driven by allergens. Neither of us had this problem this past week, except for the time or two when we were in the cold, wet weather. So, when we strike it rich, summer home in Jackson Hole, winter home on Kaua'i. Hey, at least I have a plan.

The Rice Owls ended the LSU baseball team's season this past weekend, coming from behind to beat the Tigers 5-4. So, no trip to Omaha this year for one of the most successful college baseball teams in the last two decades. With a record of 40-22, the Tigers have nothing to be ashamed of, and they already have players being selected in the MLB draft.

Yeah, right. Like I care this week about the biggest news in the computing industry quite possibly ever.

Click the picture to see a larger version.

Being in Wyoming on vacation, I'll need some time to digest Apple's move to Intel. In the mean time, this is me and the little phisch enjoying the rapids coming off of the base of Hidden Falls, in Grand Teton National Park.

LSU fell behind early, allowing four runs in the top of the first inning today against Marist. The twelfth-ranked Tigers would only allow one more run in the next eight innings, and would win big, finishing the game 14-5. LSU will face Rice, which defeated Northwestern, 7-3, tomorrow night. Geaux Tigers!

Lawson and I agree that "Survivor: Hoth" would be one reality show we'd tune in to. Me: "Your challenge today, castaways, will be to drag the tauntaun carcass across the mouth of this cave, during the nightly blizzard, while avoiding the wampa..." Lawson: "I'm sorry, Brady, but you were too slow gutting your tauntaun and getting inside. You will face the vote tonight at tribal council. Provided enough of you survive the freezing cold to have tribal council." Oh, what fun it would be, watching some accountant from Miami flounder around on the wastes of the Arctic Circle...

I haven't blogged much about the LSU baseball team this year, mainly because I've been focusing more on the local Texas Rangers when it comes to the sport. The Tigers finished the regular season with a winning record, good enough to get them in to the NCAA tournament. The Tigers were eliminated from the SEC tournament last month, but now stand to host their 16th straight regional for the national tournament. LSU will open play against Marist on Friday, June 3d. Geaux Tigers!