Plagerised Loco Theme Song

Meet the new Theme Song for this Blog.
It's blatent plagerism - well... actually I'm borrowing... so here's the relevant credit:
Theme Song from "Loco Roco" (Video Game on Sony PSP - it's awesome btw)


And here's their official website: www.locoroco.com

Please don't ask me what they're saying in the lyrics.
[ed] Okay, I tempted myself instead. The lyrics in their "unknown language gibberish" are at the VERY bottom of this blog. Enjoy the sing-a-long.

You Know it's Tuesday When...

...you think it's actually Wednesday, and then are reminded it's only Tuesday. Suddenly, you feel a little ripped off - like you've lost a day and you have to work an extra day towards the weekend.

I predict in 50 years time they will change the calender to have 8 days in a week.

If you've also suffered Tuesdayitis, brighten up your extended week with a viewing of the new postcard at the bottom of this blog - guaranteed a laugh for 30 seconds.

And don't forget to check out the Bushisms at the bottom of the Blog as well. Great for days when you're not feeling that 'bright', or someone is challenging your IQ.

You Know it's Monday Morning When....

1. You can't find your keys
2. You can't find your purse
3. You get a phone call; the caller informs your keys are in their car
4. You realise your purse is in your car
5. You further realise your spare key for the car is in the purse that is in the car

Crazy Cash-Hungry Oil Bastards

I, like everyone else in the world, have had enough of these fuel prices. They say today that prices are set to go down - first they said "15 cents per litre", now they're saying they're "not sure how much". Next week they'll forget everything they've said this week and the prices will never go down - instead, the profits will line Bush's... I mean the oil companies pockets....

But do they realise, it's not just the cost of living that these prices affect, but also people's relations? I have my parents travelling from Qld to Victoria to visit - the cost now of petrol means that this trip is insanely expensive. Due to my dad's poor health, they're unable to fly, so it doesn't leave them much choice. We also had friends doing a tour of the country who this week had to make a very sad decision - turn around and go home - because the cost of the trip was getting out of control all because of petrol.

So, it's not just higher food and product prices, these fuel prices are also at the cost of relationships, particularly in a country like Australia that is quite large and distances of travel greater than most.

LARP: Nerds Attack

What is LARP? Live Action Role Play.

Basically, a bunch of nerds... I mean people... get dressed up in role-playing scenerios and go to war against each other... Yelling out things like "Lightning Bolt" etc to destroy their enemy.

This is seriously one loco hobby. Makes my postcard collection seem rather trivial and boring :-\

Watch these videos for an enthralling demonstration. (Go lobster claw of death!). I'll be polishing my saucepans and magic spoon this weekend.

Loco News

Today I've added a news thread (side of blog) that will search all crazy, mad & weird news of the day - I'd rather see the unordinary stuff going on in the world - the ordinary is too beige.

Groundhog Day

Ever get the feeling that today feels like yesterday and tomorrow will feel like today that felt like yesterday; and next week will feel like last week and will feel like the week after?

Me too :P

This feeling I have today has inspired the copy and paste posting of the following (mildly humourous) article on Groundhog Day (the Day and the Movie), not only because it's a feeling that I seem to be having a lot lately, but because the tradition of Groundhog itself is one of the most LOCO traditions in the world, deeming itself worthy of an appearance on this blog.

Humans are strange creatures. Somewhere along the line, we decided that we needed to commemorate our important events. Then, we decided to commemorate lesser events. And now we’ve reached the point where we basically commemorate anything. Frankly, it’s kind of moronic. I mean… Citizenship Day? Arbor Day? Secretary’s Day? I’m sorry, I meant Administrative Professional’s Day? Have we seriously reached the point as a society that we now need to be politically correct about the pointless days that we senselessly put on our calendars? I’m amazed we haven’t started celebrating National Daily Moisturizer Day, or Accordion Folder Appreciation Day.

Look, don’t get me wrong — I love Christmas, Thanksgiving and Independence Day, as well as all the other days that enable to me to sit at home and drink in the middle of the the week. Hell, I work in state government — I get days off you people have never heard of. Bunker Hill Day? Got it. Patriots Day? Yup. Evacuation Day, better known as St. Patrick’s Day? Top of the motherfuckin’ morning to ya. But none of this changes the fact that it’s idiotic, this need of ours to attach insipid, meaningless labels to arbitrary days of the year.

All of which brings me, in a roundabout fashion, to Groundhog Day. In many ways, Groundhog Day is the most idiotic of them all. For some inane reason on February 2, in various cities in the United States and Canada, we drag a tubby, ugly, bloated guinea-pig-looking varmint out of a hole, and arbitrarily decide that if Bucktooth McFatass (sorry, I meant Punxsutawney Phil) sees his shadow, we get six more weeks of winter. I don’t know who thought it up, and I don’t care. Groundhog Day is without question the stupidest goddamn idea in the long and varied history of stupid goddamn ideas. Worse yet, it’s this big to-do where a bunch of old goats dress up like it’s the 19th century, and I still don’t get the damn day off. Look, if we’re going to make a production out of something, at least let me sleep late. Otherwise, you’re wasting my time. Because that’s what Groundhog Day is: a colossal waste of time. Well, except for one little thing …

Groundhog Day, the movie. If there is one warm, shining light to come out of that most asinine of days, regardless of whether that porky marmot sees his shadow, it’s this movie. Filmed in 1993 and directed by Harold Ramis (Ghostbusters, Caddyshack), Groundhog Day stars Bill Murray as a crude, obnoxious misanthrope who for some unexplainable reason is doomed to live the same day (Groundhog Day, obviously) over and over, until he learns to give up his selfish, egotistical ways and learn to be a better person. To those who haven’t seen it, the plot sounds pretty inane and contrived, and in many ways it’s both of those things. Groundhog Day is not exactly groundbreaking cinema. Yet, every time it comes on cable, I find myself drawn to it. That is the power of Bill Murray, who owns this movie completely.

Murray plays Phil Connors, a Pittsburgh weatherman who pretty much hates everything around him. For the past three years, he’s been assigned to go to Punxsutawney, PA, to cover the annual Groundhog Day festival. And so it is that Phil and his co-workers — cameraman Larry (Chris Elliott) and producer Rita (Andie McDowell) — descend upon bucolic little Punxsutawney to watch Punxsutawney Phil the Groundhog decide the fate of America’s weather future. Connors hates everything about the town and spends much of his idle time proving to himself just how superior he is via a variety of smug comments, snide digs and much rolling of the eyes. Rita plays the free-spirited darling who Phil (the guy, not the hog) finds himself inexplicably drawn to. On his first day there, he runs into a variety of characters who he has nothing but disdain for — old high school alum Ned (Stephen Tobolowsky), the town hobo, the wait staff at the local diner, and many others. Despite all of their exuberance and friendliness, he can’t stand any of them. Then suddenly, the bizarre plot device kicks in, and Connors wakes up to the same day, again and again and again.

Watching Murray’s initial reactions to his seemingly eternal predicament is half the fun. He starts out confused and terrified, and then moves through a range of emotional responses from completely deranged to grim acceptance to downright gleeful. At first, he celebrates this consequence-free existence by stealing cars, seducing women, or robbing banks. Once he’s done living out these fantasies of excess, and his efforts to seduce Rita have repeatedly failed, he tries simply killing himself (and in one brilliant sequence, the town’s most famous groundhog along with him). When suicide fails, he turns to trying to learn more about Rita in an effort to woo her. Of course, in the process of doing so, he inevitably learns more about himself.

Murray has always been a master of playing the sardonically flawed and slightly unhinged man, be it in exaggerated fashion (Ghostbusters’ Peter Venkman), or the more somber, honest portrayals (Lost In Translation’s Bob Harris or Rushmore’s Herman Blume). Groundhog Day is no different. Whether he’s lamenting fate’s choice for him (“I was in the Virgin Islands once. I met a girl. We ate lobster and drank pina coladas. At sunset we made love like sea otters. That was a pretty good day. Why couldn’t I get that day over and over and over?”), saving the life of a young boy (“What do you say? Huh? You never thank me!”), or just learning about all of the day’s events, he’s wonderful to watch.

Over the course of the film, everything about him changes. The way he looks, the way his face reacts to people, his body language. I’m consistently amazed at Murray’s subtle mannerisms — it’s what enables him to be so wry and deadpan, yet still convey a wealth of information about his character. By the end of the film, he is spending his day rushing around the town, doing as many good deeds as he can, and it shows on his face — the warmth it conveys when he’s successful, and the sadness when he fails. Contrasted to the beginning of the film, where he is nothing but acerbic jokes, frowns and sarcasm, it really is something of a revelation. One of the things that make this transition work is the lack of the derivative, epiphanous moments that plague most movies in the “people can change” genre of romantic comedy. Instead the change is gradual, taking endless iterations of this same day for him to evolve into the man he wants to be. There’s no way to tell how many times he lives the day over again, but given that by the end he speaks French, and is both a talented pianist and ice sculptor, one can only imagine.

Groundhog Day is hard to call a classic — it’s not particularly quotable like many of Murray’s other roles, it lacks the depth of Lost In Translation or Broken Flowers, nor is it as maniacally funny as Ghostbusters (my personal favorite) or Quick Change. It is at times cloying, obvious and in many ways trite. And yet, due to Murray’s ample skills and McDowell’s plucky charm, it works. It’s written and directed so that you can grasp the eternity of this single day, while maintaining a sense of dry wit throughout it. Maybe I’m just not as hard-hearted as I think I am, but every time I see it, it makes me grin. There are plenty of movies that are funnier or more complex, but none of them are quite like Groundhog Day. So, if you’re idly drunk and looking for a way to celebrate Grenadian Independence Day, you could do far worse, but not much better.

TK can be found wandering aimlessly through suburban Massachusetts, wondering how the hell he got there while yelling at the kids on his lawn. You can find him wasting his time at Uncooked Meat.

More Words from Poland and Other Stuff

The second postcard from Poland is now showing at the bottom of the blog - this one is probably one of my favourites ;) Speaking of strange words, another Bushism is also featuring... keep em coming George!

In an 80s update, it was my sister's 37th birthday yesterday. She was wearing a wide belt over a cardigan.... I thought at first that maybe she's never left the 80s.... Until I went to the shops, saw the latest range of clothes in a surf shop and realised that the 80s are actually coming BACK. WTF! It's only been 20 years! Surely not long enough for a resurgence in wide belts and fluro shirts! Come on, I've already had to live through that fashion era once, don't make me do it again - it's cruel.

The 80s were fun but it belongs in the 80s. The "naughties" isn't the time and place for 80s fashion. The 80s were an optimistic time (probably the last), that was 'light and bright' and full of 'hope'. This mood of the 80s was reflected in clothing, music, movies etc. This is certainly not the mindset of today.... so bringing back the 80s now isn't appropriate - let's wait for a 'happier' time.

Don't make me wear leg warmers! PLEASE

Ze Moon is Comin!

But then again.......

By JOHN COLES

Published: 05 Jul 2008

Police sent out a patrol car to check out claims of a huge mystery object in the sky.

A recording of the bizarre 999 call was released yesterday. The anonymous caller said: "I need to inform you that across the mountain there’s a bright stationary object." Control room: "Right."

Caller: "If you’ve got a couple of minutes perhaps you could find out what it is? It’s been there at least half an hour and it’s still there."

Control: "Is it actually on the mountain or in the sky?" Caller: "It’s in the air." Control: "I will send someone up there now to check it out."

Minutes later, a patrol car arrived at the scene in the South Wales valleys. The control room asked the officer: "This object in the sky, did anyone have a look at it?"

The officer: "Yes, it’s the Moon."

Ze Aliens are Comin!

Just had to post this. I love alien stories (or anything about the unknown really). Always have since I was a kid when my fascination for the unknown was insatiable - I couldn't read enough about it. I haven't heard or seen a good 'alien sighting' story for a while, but came across this and just had to toss it up here. Those who have claimed to have seen aliens or had encounters are often viewed by the general public as being LOCO... but if they are, then why all the fascination in the first place?

So, where credit is due, this is a copy/paste from the link.

25 June 2008

A SHAKEN soldier told last night how he saw THIRTEEN UFOs spinning in the skies above his military barracks.

He was among three squaddies who spotted the objects while out on night patrol.

He filmed them on his mobile phone and reported the close encounter to Army top brass.

Mystery ... UFO seen on soldier's video

Ministry of Defence experts were studying his report and video yesterday — after ordering the soldier and his pals NOT to say anything else about the incident. [LM: WHY NOT?!]

And three hours before a couple claimed they were followed by a strange light in the sky along the A5 near Shrewsbury.

Yesterday further mind-boggling evidence emerged as dog walker Bonnie Lewis, 29, told how she filmed seven UFOs at Bromsgrove, Worcs, last Friday.

The soldier recalled how he saw the amazing "craft" just after 11pm on Saturday, June 7 (2008).

Sky lights ... strange shapes seen by Bonnie

He said: "I was on duty in the guard room when the other boys outside began shouting. I went out to see what the commotion was about and could see thirteen craft in the skies.

"They were zig-zagging, but I filmed two before they disappeared. They were like rotating cubes with multiple colours.

"I made a full report to my commanding officers and gave them my footage. The other lads were as amazed by it as I was."

Astonishing ... map indicating UFO discoveries

A 19-year-old private on patrol said he also saw the "fleet".

The soldier, who asked not to be named, said: "I saw these things flying in the sky and I told my guard commander.

"There were about 30 lights passing over for a few minutes, very high but not at a great speed. They were bright red. Another soldier saw them too."

An MoD spokesman said: "We deal with any UFO sightings to see if there was a military threat."

The Sun told last week how helicopter cops were confronted by an object as they attempted to land at their base near Cardiff the same night.

Cabaret duo Katy Cunnion and Russell Quinn claimed they were pursued by the light in the sky for nearly an hour at 1am the following morning.

And last night Bonnie told of seeing cylinder-shaped craft.

She said: "They weren’t from this world. They made no sound and had flashing dots inside."

80s Trippen #2

Anyone know who this is?

Really can't recall how the hell I came across this in the first place (one of those weird Google searches where you type "tomatoes" and it comes up with porn or something... anyway... )

It's Sweet & Sour if you haven't guessed - I absolutely hated that show/band in the 80s, and looking back on it 20 years later, I can see that at least I had my "you suck" radar on during the 80s and wasn't drawn in to this rather popular 'gem' like my fluro-coloured friends were. David Reyne to me was a wanker.

80s Trippen

Lately I've been thinking alot about the 80s. Why? Because an old friend from high school got back in contact on Facebook, resurrecting all of these memories of the late 80s, high school, the music, films, and most of all, who I was and what I wanted to do with my future.

When thinking about this, I realised that so many things that are 'normal' in my life today would've (most likely) to have been considered unordinary, weird or bordering on "lock her up in the nuthouse" in the 80s.

So herein starts my 80s Trippen: a time-warped look back that shows how far (and sometimes backward) we've come in only 20 years.

80s Trippen #1
I made some toast this morning for breakfast. If you'd told me 20 years ago that the bread I would eat in 20 years time contained fish oil, I would've gagged. Yet, here I sit eating my peanut butter and fish oil bread toast, enjoying it. Odd thing is I know it's not really 'fish oil'....(or is it?)... but I swear it did taste...a little fishy..to me.... I used to think the 80s were a little strange; but really, we're not any less stranger today, we're just strange about different things.

Pointless Drivel?

Given that this is my first ever blog entry on my first ever blog, I wanted to make it clear that if you think this is drivel, then you've missed the point.

Pointless drivel is just one of the loco elements of conversation that make life fun and give it depth. That kind of light/shade thing - without it all "images" of life would be black.

I don't want to give too much away about myself (just yet); but what I will say is that what inspires me are people and moments in life that are left of centre. The unique, the strange, the crazy; something that makes you stop, turn, have a laugh, cringe, cry, scream in terror.

From the ridiculous, to the stupid, to Monty Python, to strange uses of duct tape... this blog honours those who aren't beige-coloured sheep.

So, big diversion now. One thing that this blog will contain is my weekly honouring of postcards. I have a (no longer secret) obsession with them. I damn well miss them too. I do love computers and the internet, but I miss receiving letters and postcards from people. (I'm wondering how many people actually remember what to do with a pen, and where to buy stamps).

In tradition of the Blog's theme, I'll be posting some of my favourites - my ode to a (soon-to-be obselete?) tradition. So, keep an eye on the section at the very bottom of the blog called "Goin' Postal!"