Links From August 2011
OK Go Cover The Muppets
Funny.
Geeky.
Cute.
Wrong.
Video.
Oh I like this. This cover of the Muppet Show Theme is taken from Muppets: The Green Album with contemporary artists covering various Muppets songs. It's just been released, so you can grab it now if this floats your boat as much as it does mine.
Portal 2 Proposal
Funny.
Geeky.
Cute.
Time-thief.
Video.
On the 19th of June Gary Hudston posted a request for a level designer for a top secret Portal 2 project. It turns out, he wanted to propose to his girlfriend via Portal 2. Once Valve got wind of this they allowed Ellen McLain to provide an authentic GLaDOS voice-over. Personally, I think that's kinda cool.
If you like you can see the full version of the puzzle they created here.
The Life & Times Of Guy Sibley
Funny.
Cute.
Wrong.
Video.
Well, this is kind of awesome. Already being a fan of Fraser Davidson after seeing his work for Tim Minchin on Storm and a Pope Song I'm happy to report that there's plenty more where that came from. Worth checking out Challenge Your World too.
Bunny-Fu VS BOQ
Funny.
Cute.
Time-thief.
So Seb (AKA Bunny-Fu) appears to be having some difficulties with his bank. Luckily for us he decided to bust out some sass and get a bit verbose when sending a complaint email to the bank, and not only that but he's put it online for us to enjoy.
I love the warm, contented feeling of not being the guy getting fucked around by a bank.
The Dark Side Of Oz
Geeky.
Old-school.
Time-thief.
Video.
The Dark Side of Oz from Bryan Pugh on Vimeo.
Well this is damned convenient, thanks Bryan Pugh for removing the worry of having to sync things up just right, he's done it for us! Yes I know it's an obvious thing to do and all, but now that I've posted it here I'll always know where to find it.
Combined Family Member Portraiture
Geeky.
Cute.
Wrong.
French photographer Ulric Collette has put together a series of photographs of family members, joining their faces through the magic of (I assume) photoshop. Some of them are pretty jarring as pictured here, some are quite subtle. They're all pretty awesome though.
Thanks to Jasmine for this one.
Urinal Slip N Slide
Funny.
Wrong.
Wrong.
Wrong.
Video.
Wow. There is not a whole lot needs to be said about this. That's just not cool. I hope he had a lot of money riding on that. Yeah, I know it's sterile and all, but damn!
Girl From Oklahoma - Steel Panther
Funny.
Wrong.
Video.
So the other day I was sitting in a tattoo parlour when this came on, and it cracked me up. I'm not sure that my friend Melly appreciated me getting distracted from being her moral support, but sometimes you can't help these things.
In an effort to make it up to her I'm encouraging people to go vote for her in a competition she's in at the moment. Go onnnnnnn, do it, get me out of trouble.
Screwy Sex Toys
Funny.
Wrong.
Time-thief.
Oh wow, definitely not a safe for work site, but this just has so much gold! I think my favourite so far is the My Little Secret Talking Head, the vibrator that talks dirty to you. It's just so bad at it! Don't get me wrong, I'm sure I'm terrible at sex talk, but I'm all distracted by the awesome naked lady at the time!
Wrongtown Top Tips For Scripting Sex Talk
Think carefully about what your clients will find sexy rather than just going with bland, repetative talk. Maybe offer different "scenes" with different vibes?
Script more than 4 minutes of dialogue before the "Mystery Man" blows his load. Seriously, I'm going out on a limb here, but I imagine most women don't want their sex toy to suffer from "premature ejaculation".
Don't let your voice actor hesitate awkwardly when he says "I'm going to put a finger in your... pussy"
Banned Apps
Funny.
Geeky.
Wrong.
Time-thief.
Okay, so let's just say I'm more than a little suspicious about the veracity of these supposedly banned iPhone Apps. However for some reason I just can't stop reading through them. I'm glad though, otherwise I never would've witnessed the blurb of the "False Positive Pregnancy" App.
Tampons 101
Funny.
Cute.
Wrong.
Video.
Wow, this has got to be the most manic tampon education video ever. I have to admit I'm mostly posting this because I'm one of those lucky guys who doesn't lose his mind when these things are mentioned, so it amuses me to think some of you might be turning green as you watch this. I'm willing to bet a shiny dollar that most of you still hang around for the cleavage though.
Friend of the band Elise said it well: "Her tits...like...WOW."
Wow indeed, Elise. Wow indeed.
The Vendor Client Relationship
Funny.
Video.
This is a fantastic way to explain the Vendor/Client relationship a lot of people try to negotiate with graphic designers, developers and other "techy" types. Check the comments for more examples like "Awesome. But they forgot the part when the diner tells the chef that cooking is fun for him, and he shouldn't be charging for having fun."
34 Digits, No Thumbs
Science.
Wrong.
A boy in India was recently announced as holding the Guinness World Record for digits. 34 fingers and toes all told, but not a thumb amongst them. Which I imagine didn't feel a lot like winning at the time.
He's since had the extras surgically removed, and the doctors made sure to save enough finger pieces to craft him some thumbs so the other kids won't tease him. Which is nice.
Photoshop Looter
Funny.
Wrong.
Time-thief.
In a response to the London Riots of 2011 some people decided not to sit idly by... well... that is they were sitting by, but they were also 'shopping the images of looting rioters into scenes more likely to cause mirth than despair.
They Call Us /Animals/
Video.
I found this at Boing Boing. 
The Concept - THEY CALL US /ANIMALS/ from THEY CALL US /ANIMALS/ on Vimeo.
This is a pretty cool outcome to a shitty situation. Catrin Hedström directed a music video for a song she loved. The band in question allegedly encouraged her, but after a week the band sent a take-down request. As she'd never obtained the rights to the song, she had no choice.
Rather than ditch the footage though, she's making it available for others to remix in a project she's named "THEY CALL US /ANIMALS/", hoping someone can find inspiration and make something of the footage she and her team worked so hard on.
Champion Jockey
Geeky.
Wrong.
Video.
Wow. This is a cultural thing right? I mean this has got to be something that is incredibly cool if you're Russian but Australians just don't get it right? I just don't know what to think...
Great, now I'm having some sort of existential crisis. Thanks Lewis, thanks a bunch.
Super Mario Covering "Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen
Funny.
Geeky.
Cute.
Time-thief.
Video.
I can't help but be impressed by this, not only is the audio recognisable but the way he's managed to sync the visuals is a little bit special too. Your milage may vary, check it out.
The History Of English In 10 Minutes
Funny.
Geeky.
Cute.
Time-thief.
Video.
This is a great little series of videos, if you click here you can watch it from start to finish, the next video will automatically play as it's precursor ends. It seems to err slightly more on the side of the funny than the factual but I think I can forgive it that.
Organ Trail - Oregon Trail, But With Zombies
Funny.
Geeky.
Wrong.
Old-school.
Time-thief.
thrones
I've noticed a fair few visits from Oregon in the USA, so that ties in nicely with this link, not a clumsy segue at all! The Men Who Wear Many Hats have produced a zombie apocolypse game based on the old Oregon Trail edu-tainment game that so many geeks remember fondly.
A bit more of an acquired taste, they also made Blind Samurai, "a high tech training simulation used to teach the blind how to become finely honed killing machines." I recommend practicing until you at least get into the double-digits.
Thanks to Mr Fish for this one.
Holy Smoke - Shoot Your Loved Ones
Funny.
Wrong.
Yeah, packing the cremated ashes of your family into pistol, shotgun or rifle rounds is defintely a normal thing to do and not bizarre at all. I'll let this quote from the site explain:
My friend smiled and said "You know I've thought about this for some time and I want to be cremated. Then I want my ashes put into some turkey load shotgun shells and have someone that knows how to turkey hunt use the shotgun shells with my ashes to shoot a turkey. That way I will rest in peace knowing that the last thing that one turkey will see is me, screaming at him at about 900 feet per second."
Talk about your niche markets.
Bunny Suit A Public Nuisance
Funny.
Wrong.
A 34 year old resident of Idaho Falls has reportedly been ordered to stop wearing his bunny suit as it has been disturbing his neighbours. Apparently the bunny suit is just one of his costumes, he also has cowboy & ballerina outfits.
He's advised he understands the concerns, even though he does enjoy wearing the suit.
This is exactly why I don't wear my clown outfit more often...
Taxidermied Koopa Paratroopa
Geeky.
Wrong.
Don't get me wrong, I'm a fan of Nintendo's famous plumber, but this seems a little macabre. I do think though that it'd make a great addition to some hunting cabin somewhere, with no explanation at all given to the bemused guests.
Game Of Thrones: The RPG
Funny.
Geeky.
Cute.
Wrong.
Old-school.
Video.
This is wonderfully done, it's hard to pick a favourite part. Is it the intro sequence? Jamie & Tyrion Lannister's fighting options (and Tyrion's level up)? Jon Snow's fourth-wall breaking moment? The hugely simplified investigation by Ned Stark? I don't know! Stop asking me questions! How did you get into my house!?
Battlepug!
Funny.
Geeky.
Cute.
Wrong.
Time-thief.
I have to admit, I was initially skeptical about a high fantasy webcomic based around pugs. However only a few strips in I'm already reconsidering.
It's definitely pretty, and I'm not just saying that because it has implied nudity and gigantic seal cubs. Check it out.
Mariachis Serenade Beluga Whale
Cute.
Time-thief.
Video.
I found this at Boing Boing.
I figure after reading about the Catholic church entrusting the wrong people yet again I figure we can do with some cheering up. So here's a Beluga Whale getting serenaded by a Mariachi Band. You're welcome.
Is The Catholic Church A Force For Good In The World?
Cute.
Religion.
Time-thief.
Video.
This animation is based around audio excerpts from a debate in 2009 on the topic "Is The Catholic church a force for good in the world?". If you want to see the whole thing it's available, you could start here if you're having trouble finding it.
Catholic Child Protection Chief Caught With Child Porn
Wrong.
Wrong.
Wrong.
Religion.
If you wanted to go for maximum irony regarding the Catholic Church and their alleged attempts to clean up their act after being plagued by sex scandals, you couldn't do much better than this. The very man who had the job of monitoring the Diocese of Plymouth for the last 9 years to ensure paedophiles didn't make contact with children within the church congregation has admitted to 12 counts of making, possessing and distributing indecent images.
Honestly, how deluded do you have to be to think that the Catholic Church has a loving, powerful god on their side when this sort of thing is happening?
To quote Zach Weiner "I want to thank the Catholic Church for their sustained efforts to protect us from child porn by collecting it all."
Cured Of Hearing His Eyeballs Move
Science.
Wrong.
I found this at Boing Boing.
Okay, so imagine how distrating it'd be if you could constantly hear small things happening within your body, such as the rolling of your eyeballs in their sockets and your own heartbeat constantly in your ears. That's what this guy had to put up with.
Apparently the condition is called Superior Canal Dehiscence Syndrome and he had the doctors stumped for a while, until a specialist noticed little perforations in his ear canals. It's only about a 1/500,000 chance of developing the condition, so I think it's understandable that the average GP would be left scratching his head.
In Lithuania They Take Their Bike Lane Seriously
Funny.
Wrong.
Video.
I know, I know, this is a publicity stunt, it was staged, but this is a publicity stunt after my own heart. A public servant with a sense of humour who isn't actually insane to go with it, who'd have thunk it?
Run For Your Lives
Geeky.
Wrong.
Video.
So I'm not going to beat around the bush, this looks like it's going to be pure awesome for those competing. A 5k Obstacle Course full of "Zombies" who want to sup on your brainy parts.
Humble Indie Bundle #3
Geeky.
Once again the Humble Indie Bundle is available, part proceeds going to the EFF and Child's Play. The best part is you get to choose not only how much you donate, but how your donation is split between the developers, the organisers and the charities. Oh yeah, all the games work on Windows/Mac/Linux. Go check it out.
Animals Walking Into Shit
Funny.
Cute.
Wrong.
Time-thief.
Video.
Okay so it doesn't provide exactly what it says... there's a whole lot of them walking and jumping into shit too, but you still kinda know what to expect here. A perfect way to burn some time if you've got it to spare.
Happy Meal - The Movie
Funny.
Wrong.
Video.
This short was made years ago and yet I've only just come across it. I feel as if I've failed as a person somehow. Coulrophobes beware, this will mess with you.
McRoll'd
Wrong.
Time-thief.
Video.
At first I was pretty much just thinking okay yeah whatever... but there's a point during this clip where it takes hold of you and you just have to see it through...