Happy 2011

"There will come a time when you believe everything is finished. That will be the beginning."
- Louis L'Amour

A lot of my friends are concerned right now with their lives and where they are in relation to where they think they should be. I hope they see the quote above and realize how true it is. We really have no idea what life has in store for any of us. That's what makes life fun AND infuriating :)

There's another quote that goes something like, "This new year, let's get down on our knees and thank God that we're still on our feet." I'm having surgery next week, so that one really hits close to home for me. We're still on our feet... still plodding along. I'm going to try to be better about setting and meeting goals in 2011. I have totally sucked at that this year. It's not really a New Year's resolution... more like a promise.

Healthwise, this has been a tough year... or at least a tough end to my year, but I'm trying to focus on the many good things that have happened this year.

I'm spending tonight with friends... and I wouldn't have it any other way. I love each and every one of them (Steve most of all, of course) and I feel so blessed to have all of these people in my life. It amazes me that none of these people were in my life a little over a year ago, and now they are some of the most important people to me in the world. I'm exhausted and should probably be in bed, but I'm excited to be celebrating with people who make me laugh and smile every day.

Here's to 2011. All good things!

Top Secret Drum Corps

You will watch this with your mouth wide open and you will be reminded that, even in your wildest dreams, you don't know how to do anything even half as cool as this:

British Animal Voiceovers

This made me laugh out loud... for real. Thank you, Paul T, for making my night! :)

Night time... Day Time! Night time... Day Time!

Desaturated Santa

Very cool...

This Looks Shopped (But It Isn’t) of the Day: For the second year in a row (previously), Flickr user BrodyQat arrives at San Francisco’s SantaCon sporting her signature “Desaturated Santa” costume.

Angel Flight

Thanks, dad, for sending this over. Every American needs to see this. God bless our troops.

Totally Awesome

You'll want to watch this a couple of times :)

I Can't Stop Laughing

This is the kind of stuff that makes life worth living:

Hooters Girl Competes In Contest Thinking She'll Win A Toyota, Actually Wins Toy Yoda

I Love New York

Yesterday, today and forever... still the best city in the world. This mashup is well done. It makes me want to be in Bryant Park dancing in the rain with Nicole again!

Words of Wisdom

... everything you do is fun. Keep doing what you're doing. It's not boring, and that's all that counts in life.
~ Bored to Death, HBO

Hahahaha

Very cool mashup

These mashups are getting more and more creative. This is one of the best I've seen. I also like the Nirvana/Jackson 5 one (also below.) Feel free to post some other cool ones you've stumbled across!

Addendum: Another cool mashup:

Back II The Future Is Still Awesome

I love this :)



Addendum: THIS is even cooler... the original trailer and the recreated one - side by side.

LOL Columbus

What item?

And Steve's comment... "Do they think we just remember where everything is?"

Moon Shoes

I'm fairly certain that this is a cartoon about me leaving Corporate America only to end up working at a place I LOVE... and of what I would look like if I ever went back to the daily grind. Thanks for the reminder, Mike Rianda! Brilliant :) 

I do miss being able to buy the moon shoes, though. But just look at how much cooler this kid's real friends are!

Cute dog

This is a very cute, very confused dog. If you're having a bad day, this video will help:

It goes on and on and on and on...

Any Journey fans out there? Or, more recently, Glee fans? :)

Mario

This grocery store stock boy is AWESOME.

These make me laugh :)

Submitted without comment

Dammit! I HATE when this happens!

Dolph Lundgren for Norton Internet Security 2010

This is pretty much the greatest thing I've ever seen.

How To Defrag Your Computer

Some Funnies

Someone please explain to me why I don't work here. Or maybe I do...

I like this dog's style:

This needs to be hanging above my desk...

And... lest you forget... you're not in fairyland:

iPhone 5

I'm really interested in the part where it does my hair...

So emo

SuperBatMan?

If this doesn't make you laugh out loud, you probably don't work with me.

Dance Montage

I'll say this now because I haven't said it in awhile...

I still miss Patrick Swayze.

Jensen Kimmitt 2010 World YoYo Champ

Don't act like this doesn't impress you! This guy should be untangling all of my necklaces for me.

Marcel the Shell with Shoes On

This is so freakin' cute. Dean Fleischer-Camp interviewing SNL's Jenny Slate as Marcel the Shell with Shoes On:

MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON from Dean Fleischer-Camp on Vimeo.

Nesting Golden Girls Dolls

All kidding aside, why don't I own these??

Double Rainbow Cat

Stream of Consciousness Stuff

Working where I work, it has become apparent to me that things have changed too much since I was a kid. I've heard kids beg their parents for $2,000 computers and then pout and throw tantrums if they don't get them. I used to beg my parents for embroidery thread so I could make friendship bracelets by hand... and I didn't even always get THAT. I had to EARN embroidery thread and these parents throw down $2,000 without even thinking about whether their children have earned it. Despicable.

In other news, isn't all traffic bumper to bumper traffic? Can we stop saying bumper to bumper traffic? It's implied.

Wrapped In Energy

(I wrote this a couple of weeks ago but never posted it. A lot has changed since I wrote this, but only for the better...)

I've been spending a lot of time lately with someone who is incredibly deep and spiritual. I'm amazed by his energy, his outlook on life, his theories about what we're all doing here and what we're supposed to be learning from one another. We talk for hours and I'm never bored. He challenges me in the best way possible to really think about the meaningful things in life. When he talks about what he's passionate about, his energy is tangible -- almost supernatural.

Something we've been talking about a lot lately is how most of the pain in the world comes from rebelling against the things we know have to happen. If we would allow ourselves to let things happen the way we know they are supposed to happen, so much pain and suffering could be avoided or reversed. Why is it that this is so easy to comprehend, but so difficult to do? Why do we rail so vehemently against a fate that we know is coming no matter how hard we resist it?

As I get older, I'm doing this less and less, but I can vividly remember internalizing problems and letting them tear me apart from the inside. I stayed at jobs and I remained in relationships that were bad for me (and I knew it) for a long time and I have no idea why I did it. I have learned to recognize red flags and warning signs now and have forced myself to listen to the signs when they're presented to me. This is only something you can learn from experience. It has to happen to you before you can begin to understand. You have to make mistakes before you can learn to make things right. You have to be in some bad relationships before you can appreciate a wonderful person... someone who truly has your best interests at heart.

I always say I've been through the wringer when it comes to relationships. This is not an exaggeration. I have battle scars. For those of you who know my track record with all things love, you know how significant it is for me to trust someone again. I trust him. Those three words are powerful. I love a lot of people... but I trust very few. I trust him and he makes me happy. There are no games, no agendas, no motives. There's just love. And serendipity. I've seen serendipity defined as "a happy accident." I am happy. There's a comfort level between us that we didn't have to manufacture or attempt to create. I feel protected and safe. I'm home whenever I'm with him. I really can't ask for more because there isn't more... that's everything.

It's a strange dichotomy because I'm at a point in my life where I have so little, yet I have so much. My parents always taught my sister and I that you can have all the "stuff" in the world, but without love, you have nothing but emptiness. They showed us that with love, you can be down to your last box of macaroni and cheese with a paycheck nowhere in sight... and still have everything you need. They were right. They always have been.

Happiness will never come from stuff. It comes from the people we choose to share our crazy little worlds with.

Here's to opening up my crazy little world to someone who was brave enough to step inside without a torch, a flashlight or a road map and still know the way well enough to teach me things I never knew about myself, about relationships... about love.

I love you.

Where Have All The Good Men Gone?

Anyone who watched Days of our Lives in the 80's and 90's remembers this promo. I'm pretty sure Bo Brady has had a hand in ruining every relationship I've ever been in.

Here's the back story: Bo leaves Hope. Hope decides to marry someone else. Bo finds out. Bo hops in his car to get her back. Bo's car breaks down. A police officer stops him, presumably because there is a warrant out for his arrest. Bo punches the cop and steals his motorcycle, speeding to the church with a Where Have All The Good Men Gone? montage playing. Bo gets to the church and breaks down the door. Hope doesn't want to come with him... so he kidnaps her and takes her away from her wedding on the back of his stolen bike. I somehow assumed this was quite possibly the most romantic thing I could ever imagine. Henceforth, I will be blaming Bo Brady for everything.

DOUBLE RAINBOW! WHAT DOES IT MEAN?!

Because I would be remiss if I didn't put this on here...

New Phone

Cy&H

Most Generic News Story Ever

This made my LOL LOL.

Vuvuzela Guy Cheers for Everything

Walk

My walk today was so nice. Only the trees were raining, so if you wanted to cool off, all you had to do was walk under the trees. Then the wind was blowing at all the right times and the sun was on my face and shoulders only when I wanted it to be. I walked and jogged 5.22 miles, too! My longest distance yet!

Nike+ has been the only thing that has ever gotten me to stay on any kind of exercise program ever. Highly recommend it:

Nike+

Fantabulous Video of the Day

We need more things like this!

Viral Ad of the Day: For their latest stair-based...: "

Viral Ad of the Day: For their latest stair-based “fun” viral (previously), VW installed a Fast Lane (i.e. a slide) next to the long staircase leading down to Berlin’s Alexanderplatz U-Bahn station.

Copy: “Which way would you go?”

[myvolkswagen.]

Zach Anner Thanks The Internet

This is pretty much my new favorite person in the entire world...

"Zach Anner Thanks The Internet:

Over-weekend internet sensation Zach Anner put this video out in response to the outpouring of support from 4chan, Reddit, and the rest of the internet, who have given him a staggering lead in Oprah’s Your Own Show contest.

Zach’s Audition Tape"

The Original “Twttr” Sketch

Found this on one of the blogs I read every day. Very inspirational. Twitter was once just an idea in someone's imagination...

The Original “Twttr” Sketch: "

Posted by Jack Dorsey a couple months after he published the first Twitter message.

“On May 31st, 2000, I signed up with a new service called LiveJournal. I was user 4,136 which entitled me a permanent account and street cred in some alternate geeky universe which I have not yet visited. I was living in the Sunshine Biscuit Factory in Oakland California and starting a company to dispatch couriers, taxis, and emergency services from the web.

One night in July of that year I had an idea to make a more “live” LiveJournal. Real-time, up-to-date, from the road. Akin to updating your AIM status from wherever you are, and sharing it. For the next 5 years, I thought about this concept and tried to silently introduce it into my various projects. It slipped into my dispatch work. It slipped into my networks of medical devices. It slipped into an idea for a frictionless service market. It was everywhere I looked: a wonderful abstraction which was easy to implement and understand.

The 6th year; the idea has finally solidified (thanks to the massively creative environment my employer Odeo provides) and taken a novel form. We’re calling it twttr (though this original rendering calls it stat.us; I love the word.ed domains, e.g. gu.st/). It’s evolved a lot in the past few months. From an excited discussion and persuasion on the South Park playground to a recently approved application for a SMS shortcode. I’m happy this idea has taken root; I hope it thrives.

Some things are worth the wait. “

Now over 190 million users strong. Madness.

"

Riding Bikes

Last night, my sister and I rode bikes together for the first time since we were kids. Riding a bike truly makes you feel like a kid again (which is never a bad thing). I couldn't stop smiling and laughing and reminiscing. Erin and I talked about riding our bikes around the neighborhood when we were growing up, we talked about all of our old friendships and rivalries. We laughed like hyenas as we tried to remember how to ride a bike and how to turn without putting our feet down. We laughed every time my brakes squeaked -- (they sound like Rudolph's nose).

Toward the end of the night, I was speeding along the street we grew up on, thinking that Erin had pedaled back home. I heard a quiet noise and looked back. Sure enough, there was Erin pedaling right behind me with a big smile on her face and the wind whipping through her hair... just like old times.

These are the moments people talk about... the ones you never want to forget.

Weird Sign of the Day

Because if you do leave your child unattended, he will turn into a piece of paper and you will have to throw him in the trash can.

Funny if you're geeky :)

So... you know... funny for most of the people I know :)

Fireflies - Brian Gaynor

This is one of the most inspiring things I've seen on So You Think You Can Dance. Bravo to this young man!

Fire @ Yahoo! Video

Braces

Can anyone explain to me how it's possible that two human beings can create and produce a whole live human being in 9 short months, and yet it takes over a year and a half to make my teeth come together?

These effing things are never coming off.

Vacation Quote

Saw this and I understand it completely:

"A vacation is what you take when you can no longer take what you've been taking."

I need a vacation.

Another Wow

Danny MacAskill

Here's a great example of a guy who is insanely good at what he does. Watched this in awe...

Jimmy Fallon and The Roots Perform an Ode To Hot Pockets

This is why Jimmy Fallon is still my imaginary boyfriend.

Follow That Bird

Netflix just sent me a recommendation for the "critically acclaimed" film Follow That Bird.



I wonder which critic they're referring to.

It's probably just Grover.

Work In Progress

My blog turns 2 next month and I have renewed the domain name marvelouslycomical.com (because as I'm sure you can imagine, people have been clamoring for it.) My sarcasm is scathing.

I've neglected this blog a lot recently but I do want to start writing again. I did make some updates to the layout so if you normally read the blog in an RSS reader (Adam S.) make sure you head over to www.marvelouslycomical.com to check out the updates!

For now, my blog (much like myself) remains a...



Thanks to everyone who keeps checking to see if I've posted something new :) I love you guys!

Telephone

Right, like you haven't seen this already...

Flight of the Bumblebee on the iPad!

Yet another example of how amazing the iPad really is!

This is pretty cool... if you're a geek like me.

Steve Jobs answers emails, just like the rest of us!

http://stevemail.tumblr.com/

The iPad Does Not Need A Tan

Dear Crazy People I Deal With All Day,

Do not bring your iPads to the beach. It's hard enough keeping sand out of an iPhone. You will never be able to keep sand away from the iPad. The first iPad I see with sand on it will be confiscated (for my personal use).

You've been warned.

READ THIS

Hoarders

I've been watching a lot of Hoarders episodes and I find these people fascinating. I can't go to sleep at night if I don't put my laundry away and these people have piles and piles of STUFF everywhere in their homes. Some of them don't even throw their garbage away. They just throw it on the floor.

The last time I was home I made my dad watch Hoarders and he thought it would be fun to throw a plastic cup on the floor when he was done drinking from it. We all laughed... and then he picked it up... like a normal person would have to. What is WRONG with people??!? Not only do I not want trash in the house... I want it out as soon as possible. It wouldn't even occur to me to throw trash on my floor. If a crumb falls on my floor, Roomba isn't far behind to clean it up.

Roomba is my robot maid.

Don't judge me.