I caught Brian Haner’s appearance on the Bob & Tom Show this week, where he performed this song. It was stuck in my head the rest of the week. Needless to say, it’s not hard to understand why he’s opening for Jeff Dunham right now.
A little unsafe for work, but if they’re letting you watch YouTube videos there maybe you can get away with it.
Several friends of mine are big fans of The Secret, the new age self-help book that was all the rage a few years ago, so I’m not going to dog on it here. It is what it is. The following review, found at Amazon.com doesn’t put the book down either. In fact, it’s a rave review, but not for the reasons you’d expect…
The Secret Saved My Life (December 4, 2007)
Please allow me to share with you how “The Secret” changed my life and in a very real and substantive way allowed me to overcome a severe crisis in my personal life. It is well known that the premise of “The Secret” is the science of attracting the things in life that you desire and need and in removing from your life those things that you don’t want. Before finding this book, I knew nothing of these principles, the process of positive visualization, and had actually engaged in reckless behaviors to the point of endangering my own life and wellbeing.
At age 36, I found myself in a medium security prison serving 3-5 years for destruction of government property and public intoxication. This was stiff punishment for drunkenly defecating in a mailbox but as the judge pointed out, this was my third conviction for the exact same crime. I obviously had an alcohol problem and a deep and intense disrespect for the postal system, but even more importantly I was ignoring the very fabric of our metaphysical reality and inviting destructive influences into my life.
My fourth day in prison was the first day that I was allowed in general population and while in the recreation yard I was approached by a prisoner named Marcus who calmly informed me that as a new prisoner I had been purchased by him for three packs of Winston cigarettes and 8 ounces of Pruno (prison wine). Marcus elaborated further that I could expect to be raped by him on a daily basis and that I had pretty eyes.
Needless to say, I was deeply shocked that my life had sunk to this level. Although I’ve never been homophobic I was discovering that I was very rape phobic and dismayed by my overall personal street value of roughly $15. I returned to my cell and sat very quietly, searching myself for answers on how I could improve my life and distance myself from harmful outside influences. At that point, in what I consider to be a miraculous moment, my cell mate Jim Norton informed me that he knew about the Marcus situation and that he had something that could solve my problems. He handed me a copy of “The Secret”. Normally I wouldn’t have turned to a self help book to resolve such a severe and immediate threat but I literally didn’t have any other available alternatives. I immediately opened the book and began to read.
The first few chapters deal with the essence of something called the “Law of Attraction” in which a primal universal force is available to us and can be harnessed for the betterment of our lives. The theoretical nature of the first few chapters wasn’t exactly putting me at peace. In fact, I had never meditated and had great difficulty with closing out the chaotic noises of the prison and visualizing the positive changes that I so dearly needed. It was when I reached Chapter 6 “The Secret to Relationships” that I realized how this book could help me distance myself from Marcus and his negative intentions. Starting with chapter six there was a cavity carved into the book and in that cavity was a prison shiv. This particular shiv was a toothbrush with a handle that had been repeatedly melted and ground into a razor sharp point.
The next day in the exercise yard I carried “The Secret” with me and when Marcus approached me I opened the book and stabbed him in the neck. The next eight weeks in solitary confinement provided ample time to practice positive visualization and the 16 hours per day of absolute darkness made visualization about the only thing that I actually could do. I’m not sure that everybody’s life will be changed in such a dramatic way by this book but I’m very thankful to have found it and will continue to recommend it heartily.
(Found via Peter David.net)
I have to admit I didn’t get into Mystery Science Theater until far too late. It had already jumped networks (and, in many people’s minds, the shark along with it) by the time I saw the show, and even then I wasn’t a regular viewer. I always enjoyed what I got to see though, and I would probably pick up more of the series on DVD if some of my favorite episodes/movies were released.
One of the limitations of MST3K is that it was stuck in the realm of no budget. This meant public domain pictures or movies they could acquire permission or rights for on the cheap. I’ve always wondered what the cast could do if they were given something more contemporary. Now I don’t have to wonder anymore.
The folks behind MST3K are taking advantage of the Internet and distributing commentary tracks for more beloved movies online through RiffTrax.com. We’re talking about movies like Brittany Spears’s Crossroads, Star Wars: A New Hope, and even The Dark Knight.
Now RiffTrax has been around for a while, but I’ve only recently come across them. The samples on the webpage are hilarious enough that I might venture into purchasing a commentary track or two. I hate that they charge – it seems so contrary to Internet spread commentary tracks… but I also get that they’re trying to make a living doing what they once did, and the RiffTrax crew are talented enough to get some compensation for what they do.
Check out more over at RiffTrax.com and let us know if you listen/have listened to one of their tracks.
Try this one today:
I Know You're Listening
From the “You can’t make this up” file, a man in Scotland dressed up as Thor for a costume party came home in time to find his house being burglarized, proceeding to chase the robber from his house (a visual image I would love to have seen captured on film). From The Times of the Internet:
Torvald Alexander, 38, a construction firm manager who stands at 6 feet tall, said he ran after the burglar with his red cape and silver-winged helmet still in place, making for an intimidating sight, The Daily Telegraph reported Thursday.
As soon as he saw me his eyes went wide with terror, Alexander said of the burglar. He looked like he had had a few drinks and decided to do a late night break in, but he hadn’t counted on the God of Thunder living here.
I had just got back from a fancy dress New Year’s party and because I have a Norwegian name I decided to go as Thor, he said.
Funny, I always thought Thor was a Norse god, not a Scotsman. 
This one is particularly funny to me, considering a few things:
1. Studios have a horrible tendency to think that a popular movie will make a successful television series (see: Ferris Bueller’s Day Off), so I could totally see Fox doing something like this with their X-Men franchise.
2. My wife is currently pregnant, so I could totally see her acting like this… minus the shapeshifting, of course, which is why it wouldn’t be nearly as funny as this clip from Funny or Die.
Warning: does contain minor explicit language/concepts
Welcome to 2009. As you may have noticed, we got a bit lost toward the end of 2008… and a little bit around the middle. Oh well, at least we’re found now.
I’m pushing to do more with Jolly Laughs in 2009. For starters, I’m hoping to finally get this site looking a little more like I’d like to to – something that matches our hope for jovality (is that even a word? I looked it up and it doesn’t seem to be, but it matches what I want… maybe that’s why I can’t seem to get anyone to understand what I want….). First and foremost, however, the site has to have content, so site appearance be damned, I’ll be posting funny stuff as often as I can. My new goal is four or five posts a week, and I have someone who may be coming on board to help make that happen. Every site needs a helper elf, right?
So Happy 2009. Remember – a laugh a day keeps you smiling. We can’t promise anything more than that.
I’m not usually a fan of video mashups – taking the video from one source and the audio from another and creating something new. They are far too frequently a poorly done art. When they’re done right, however, they create something phenomenal. That’s the case with this offering found on YouTube, which takes one of The Dark Knight’s trailers and depicts a slightly different battle…
Josh Sneed is one of the comedians I’ve been introduced to thanks to Comedy Central’s addictive maranthons of stand-up. His new album, titled Unacceptable hit the internet in digital format last week. Since the site has been a lower priority, I didn’t get the chance to announce it in advance. Now I have.
Check out the album at iTunes or Amazon.com. The album comes out from Comedy Central Records and contains a few elements of Sneed’s previous album, as well as the hilarious “Unacceptable” but about farting on Jessica Simpson that is on his television special. Yes, it sounds crude, but damn if it isn’t a hilarious story when he tells it.
I’ll be running a review of the album here in the next few days, as soon as I get a chance to listen to it myself. In the meantime, here’s a clip of Josh Sneed setting up for the excitement of his own album. At least the success hasn’t gone to his head too much:
You will rarely see me promote anything Paris Hilton does, but this is funny: