From a 2001 paper by George R. Priest, Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries, Newport, Oregon: —Cascadia subduction zone tsunamis could conceivably cause the loss of tens of thousands of lives on the Pacific Northwest coast of North America. Paleoseismic and other data support…
Date Archives December 2004
The taste of ink is getting old
America's fastest growing franchise in the private education industry is Tutoring Club, or as my mother calls it, the Stupid Gentile Children Club. I don't like how the spine of the "k" is truncated on posters for Meet the Fockers. It's poor typography and aesthetically…
An astute observation has led to laughter
I saw Wake Up, Ron Burgundy. Chuck D, of all people, plays one of the villains. A few of my favorite lines: —Eli Whitney's nose! —Son of a man nipple! —I'm Ron Burgundy, reporting from life! —Spider-Man's balls, that hurt! —It hurts like a bitchy-bitch!…
Letters and Tomatoes Department
I received a strange letter in the mail yesterday. The envelope is addressed to "Jonathan Yu" and the return address says that the letter is from "The John Hawthorne Family" of "Puposky, MN."I have no idea who these people are. I opened the envelope and…
Disasterbation
All around Los Angeles, I've seen ads for an upcoming Discovery Channel special called Pompeii: The Last Day. The ads feature slogans like "Where do you run when the sky is falling?" and "How do you escape what you don't see coming?" This is all,…
Non-Zero Possibility
Sonic Mania is a consecutive-day music festival in Japan in early February. Organizers assemble two different line-ups — one line-up plays Tokyo on day one and then Osaka on day two, the other plays Osaka on day one and then Tokyo on day two. For…
Popn' Off At The F
Did anyone see yesterday's episode of The Price Is Right? A contestant successfully bid for a grandfather clock and then Bob showed her the prize she would be playing for: an all-expense-paid trip for two to Thailand. Then… Bob: Jeanette, you're going to play "What's…
I'm gonna burn this city, burn this city
I saw an ad for Xzibit's latest album. "Pre-loaded with high-impact, bass-blessed, agressive [sic], street-hardened, West Coast hip-hop [the copywriter must really like hyphens], 'Weapons of Mass Destruction' finds Xzibit digging deeper into his soul to create scorching salvos that get the party started while…
A Jaw-Grind Disposition to a Panic Attack
Very rarely am I hesitant to see a movie, particularly a horror movie, but I'm currently torn over whether or not to see this one horror movie. The movie is Murder-Set-Pieces by Nick Palumbo (Nutbag), which opened on Christmas Eve in Los Angeles and will…