PS Blog

The Feelies

  • by Drew

There are a lot of Black Friday TV deals. I mean, besides those Walmart deals where they get cheap knock off copies of real brand name TV models and make their customers think they are getting big 4am bargains. I’m not making it up, pick and search engine and look it up. The big blue star factory (big is really the only important adjective there) is full of dirty tricks.

But you know what I haven’t seen, even in the pirated Best Buy BF flyer? Not a whole helluvalot of 3d TVs. Jeez, is this the dark ages or something? Come on kids, don’t we need to see it all up close and personal…and sort of chunky? Well, maybe.

I’m not even sold on Blu-ray. I’m thinking I’ll stick with regular DVDs until the next big thing comes along. Cyber-movie goggles maybe. Or did you read Brave New World? I’m holding out for the feelies and soma. Rock on.

Life

Presence

  • by Drew

The presence of presents…oh how it makes the kids go wild.

This year my kids will be pretty toy happy. Pretty happy indeed. Quite a bit will be due to past clearance sale success combined with careful holiday shopping, as noted in a recent post. Sure, there may be baby clothes and otherwise un-playlike items under the tree or in boxes from the relatives, but those packages won’t have my name in the FROM space…can you dig it. I can dig it.

Actually, it is a big help that some of the relatives go out and buy some nice outfits for the kids. It lets me focus on Spider-Man tees and Lego Batman pajamas.

Life

The Day After…

  • by Drew

It’s coming! It’s coming! No, not a nuclear missile circa 1983. Black Friday is on its way. Only a few days a way. And the deals…oh the deals.

Actually, I’ve been cruising a couple of the pirate scan sites that get disgruntled employees or fame seekers (whose concept of fame is really lo-fi) to get them early copies of the ads that will be in the paper on Thanksgiving. Turns out a lot of the Friday deals aren’t that impressive. At least ot on kids toys. There are some gems hidden in there, especially when it comes to electronics and some jewelry and clothes. But toys…not so much. We have actually finished toy shopping for all three kids and there’s not a Friday price that beats any of the early Toy Book and coupon-based sales we’ve tracked. Mostly Target with a little Toys R Us. Supplement that with stuff we bought over the past year on clearance and our kids are going to get Santa-fied in a big BIG way.

Confessions

Surprises

  • by Drew

I mentioned a while back that I want to do a site for my favorite comic shop, and it made me think of something. See, whenever I talk about my renewed love of comics, I get some nonsense from some people. Actually, most of my friends either think it’s cool (because many of them were into comics at some point in their youth and now miss them) or they just pretend it’s okay. After all, most people have some sort of hobby that seems weird to others. Like macrame or model ship-in-a-bottle-building, or…I don’t know, but comics are cool, so shut up.

Anyway, even though I am a new comic lover, I have to admit some stereotyping. Even I, a comic lover, expect a certain…character type in the shop. And to be straight, I don’t see it. No, the shop is not a haven for Star Trek geeks and super fatties and kids that need to be scanning the acne treatment reviews. I mean, yeah, there are some total freakazoids in the comic shop, but I would probably count myself pretty high among their ranks. Still, these comic-loving dudes have nothing, and I mean NOTHING, on the horror show that shops at Wal Mart, so there.

Life

Time for a change

  • by Drew

I’ve got this insurance agent I’ve been working with for quite a few years. I got his name from my Mom, and I always thought he was pretty good. But in a few recent transactions I’ve come to find that he might not be the nicest guy in the world. I remember back in the day when he had a secretary who always answered the phone at his office, but lately I’m pretty sure that the secretary and office are gone and he’s more or less working off his cell phone out of his car. In addition, in buying our last car a year or so ago, and even more recently in refinancing our mortgage, I discovered that this agent is, well, kind of a dick. Yeah, he’s super rude. I mean, not to me, but to the people who are representing me and doing things like dealing with the insurance company so I don’t have to. I don’t really need my agent being a total schmuck to…well, anybody, so I think I need some fresh car insurance quotes…homeowner’s too.

Life

Sites

  • by Drew

There are a lot of options out there when it comes to building sites. The major URL registrars all have packages, there are tons of inexpensive hosting providers, there’s white label site creator and such site building tools and there are free sites. I’ve been paying attention because a couple of friends and acquaintances are in the “I need a web site” space. I’ve been doing sites for small businesses – mostly start ups by buddies – for years. It’s been a while, though, since someone came to me with a new project, but my all time favorite comic shop need a site and man, I want to do it. I don’ care about the money or anything like that, I just want to help. After all, I’ve been doing this stuff for 15 years. Through some of my employers during that time I’ve built as much as $300 an hour for this work. Why not share that experience with people who really need it, right? P&G, Johnsons and Johnson, Citibank, Chase, Ernst and Young…those dudes can pay for it. But when someone has the stones and the where with all to go it on their own…those guys get the budget price. Can you dig?

Life

as a dog…

  • by Drew

Yup, sick as one, that’s me. I went to the doctor this morning and I have some sort of upper respiratory infection. Cutting wood last Sunday probably did me in. It was bitter cold, but it was the only day in a while that wasn’t super rainy.

If there are scales of sickness, I’m way up near the top right now. I have this massive swollen gland in my neck, I can’t breathe or stop coughing and I haven’t slept in days. My ability to complain about it remains firmly intact.

Life

Another Floss Post

  • by Drew

You may remember that I reviewed a number of dental hygiene products way back when, including a couple types of floss. This is not a post about that type of floss. In fact, it is much more of a post about diets that work, or exercise plans one can follow…stuff like that.

You need clarification? And explanation? Here goes:

I was in Target a couple weeks ago with the family. We had just gone to dinner at someplace like Friendly’s where I had unlimited refills, and if you know me, you know I like to get the most bang for my buck. At Friendly’s I usually have at least 2 refills on my soda, meaning 3 full glasses. And since I am not a wasteful person (thanks Mom) I finish the sodas they bring. What does that mean other than that I am a frugal diner? It means I pee a lot after dinner at Friendly’s.

So, again, we’re shopping at Target after a Friendly’s dinner and the urge came upon me. Fast and sure, because I had just sucked down about a liter and half of diet cola and my bladder can handle only so much.

So I left the kids with Mom in the toys and did the goosestep march across the store to the bathrooms. Then I rounded the corner of an aisle in the craft section and nearly went blind. Seriously. For there, before me, was a woman in her late 30s or early 40s, medium height and about 50 pounds overweight. She was bent over looking at paper goods on the bottom shelf and her jeans were dropping a bit. If it were a man you might think plumber’s crack.

But here’s the funny/tragic part. Pulled up on her back bacon, well out of her jeans, was a bit of bright red floss. Let me paint the picture even more clearly. This woman, this overinflated woman, was wearing a candy apple red thong. And I saw it. riding in and up as she bent over and shared her plumber butt with the world.

I gagged slightly, re-tasted my turkey supermelt, and then did what any modern american gentleman would be compelled by decency to do. I took a picture with my iPhone to show my wife later.

Yes, I still have it, and no, it will never grace the pages of this blog. I do have some modicum of taste, after all. That said, if you really want to see it, drop me a line.

Booze

Hard as a Rock

  • by Drew

I’ve been watching a lot of shows about Pawn Stars and police stings lately. I’m not sure why – aybe because they hearken back to a simpler time before ubiquitous breast implants and popularity contests that charge their “judges” top dollar to vote by phone, disguises these money makers as talent seeking enterprises.

Among the commercials I see while watching my fake-u-mentary-but-I0can-pretend-it-ain’t-reality-TV-television is one for a Hard Rock Cafe party rehab place. I don’t know if this is one of those famous or infamous los angeles detox rehabs or if it is just a stunt, but I can’t for the life of me figure it out. Is this really a rehab? With all those bartenders and bikinis? Is this about the “guests” or the staff. But wait…please don’t answer. I really don’t think I want to know. I’m just going to go and see if I can find out if those pawn shop guys ever unloaded that Civil War cannon. I hope they were able to make a few bucks!

Life

Did I say huck or yuck?

  • by Drew

Following on my Kubrick-ian review of blue huck towels, I submit this, my sequel, for your approval. All huckles and chuckles aside, this is a more or less true story of backseat cleanup a couple weeks ago. And lest you think this is all a big joke, let me emphasize that never before has a kitchen towel performed so well in the backseat.

Yeah, I’m going to just walk away from that one.

 I understand that my video offers a trifecta of difficulties for the viewer, namely:

1. Crappy battery life cuts off the last sentence.
2. Not much in the way of a pretty spokesperson.
3. It’s a story about a kid throwing up!

Still, I want to make sure that my feelings about these towels are clear and true – they are tough and sturdy and they clean up the yuke as good as any paper towel I’ve ever used.

Rock and roll.

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