Why, oh why, did they make "Tremors 4"? And it takes place in the Old West!! It hurts my brain just to contemplate it. I know Michael Gross needs work, but come on!!

When is "Ed, Edd n Eddy" coming to DVD? And will the episodes come in random order (like PPG) or sequential order?

I don't think I could ever give up my land phone line. Here's why. First, an answering machine is just a one-time payment for usage. Voice mail usually costs a monthly subscription fee. You can get an answering machine for less than $20, while voice mail can costs like $3/month. Second, I can make unlimited, anytime local calls on a land line. Most cell phones limit how much you can talk without billing you extra. Some newer plans give you unlimited nighttime and weekend talk time, but what about the daytime and early evenings, when I want to call people? Third, if you change providers, you can keep the land line phone you have. Usually, you have to buy a new cell phone.

Congratulations to Mr. and Mrs. The Dude on their recent marriage.

I hope the AL West race will go down to the wire. Anaheim, Texas, and Oakland within 2 games of each other with a week left in the season. That'd be fun to watch.

Some updates on my thoughts from the previous post...

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According to the "That 70s Show" Episode Guide on TV Tome, Eric and Donna made love in Episode 41 (Season 2), then broke up in Episode 76 (Season 3 Finale). Donna got together with Kasey Kelso (Michael's brother) in Episode 92 (Season 4), then Kasey dumps her in Episode 103 (Season 4 Finale). Eric and Donna got back together in the Season 5 Premier.

As for Kelso and his van, I believe he lost it in Episode 61 (Season 3). Leo gives Hyde the El Camino in Episode 65 (Season 3). Michael gets a NEW van in a radio contest in Episode 80 (Season 4).

The website above will give you the basic plot lines for all 6 seasons so far. Also, Season 1 of "That 70s Show" is coming to DVD this October.

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The Twins were 2 outs away from sweeping the Yankees. They came back from being down 9-3 in the bottom of the 7th to take a 10-9 lead going into the 9th. Joe Nathan gave up 4 runs and blew the save.

I watched as the Twins started scoring runs in the bottom of that 7th inning, and was getting very excited at the prospect of a sweep of the Yankees, a team they hadn't beat in the regular season in 2 years, and only once in the last 17 games. Not to mention New York beating them in the playoffs.

I was disappointed in the result, but I didn't blame Nathan. I just wanted to give the bully a well-deserved stomach punch. Then maybe watch Joe Torre or, even better, Satanbrenner, blow up about the outcome.

The Twins won the first game in a home series with the Indians, and are currently 5 games ahead of the Tribe. A sweep should open the lead significantly and take the wind out of Cleveland's sails.

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AC/DC does not have a Greatest Hits album, but a very extensive collection. It's currently not worth my time to search for the songs I like.

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It turns out that I was both right and wrong about differences between the rules for Olympic Gymnastics during the 1996 Atlanta and 2004 Athens games.

--I thought that the women competed on 5 apparatuses (apparati?). Turns out it was only 4. I thought they did Rings too, but no. That never changed.

--The scoring did. In Atlanta, you picked 6 people to compete per apparatus, throw out the lowest score. That didn't happen in Athens. You picked 3 people to compete, and all the scores counted.

--In Atlanta, it would appear that there was a compulsatory (required) routine and a optional routine. Both counted towards the team score. Now there is no compulsatory portion.

--Team sizes shrank from 7 to 6.

--The maimxum number of competitors a team sent to the Individual All-Around competetion shrank from 3 to 2.

--You got 2 vaults in Atlanta and Sydney. The lower score was discarded. You only get 1 in Athens (or Paul Hamm would have gotten rid of the one where he fell on his ass if they did).

Any questions you may have about the 1996, 2000, or 2004 Games, or anything else, could be answered at the offical website for USA Gymnastics. (Side note: site is kinda sloppy; they could use a better webmaster)

I don't think AC/DC has a greatest hits album. And that kinda sucks. I like quite a few of their songs, but to find them, I'd have to go through their entire library of albums. And instead of buying one CD with those hits, I'd have to purchase several.

Does anyone know the plotline to "That 70's Show"? Like, what order the episodes go in and what events happen when (relatively). Example 1: Kelso lost his van in the lake. Then Hyde got the El Camino. But how did Kelso and Donna get to California? It seems to me that they took Kelso's van. Example 2: Did Eric and Donna consummate their relationship before or after she went out with Kelso's brother?

The Twins beat the Yankees. Twice. Woot. In danger of watching their lead over the Tribe disappear on Sunday, the Twins have managed to open it back up to 4 1/2. The Indians are too good. I didn't expect them to make a run for the division crown this year. And until Minnesota's lead is safe (8-10 games), I won't be comfortable with Cleveland in our rear view mirror.

Side note: Doug Mientkiewicz at second base. Why the hell didn't we think of that?

My favorite character on CSI is Greg.

If you're going to sit down and play multiple Mega Man NES games, play them in order. There are some things you can do in the later installments that you can't do in the earlier ones. Like trying to slide in MM2. Not possible. Or power-up the regular weapon in MM3. And for the love of God, do not play the versions found on the Anniversary Collection. Those boneheads at Capcom farmed the work out to another developer, and they fucked it up to hell. The shoot and jump buttons switched around. Using BINK on a console. Slow menu controls. The disc sucks ass. Don't buy it, don't rent it, don't play it, and don't give it any undeserved praise.

Cal Ripken Jr. and the Osbourne Kids in a Radio Shack commercial. WTF?

You know, I thought I understood how team all-around gymnastics worked in the Olympics from watching the Atlanta games, but seeing it on TV this year, I'm confused. Can someone explain it to me?

Lastly: this bear is freakin' awesome.

I was driving in Fargo on Saturday afternoon, when I came to a stoplight, and some guy with a Harley pulled up beside me. I had my window down, so I told him that I liked it. And I meant it. I'm not a motorcycle guy, but I was really impressed by that shiny bike. If I ever got a motorcycle, I'd want one just like that.

Girls can pull off the whole Goth thing a whole lot better than guys can.

Dr. Angus is dumb. What with his fake quasi-German accent? And having a helicopter? Honestly, those commercials are so bad, I'm almost ashamed to say that I like Burger King.

How does a nerdy accountant type like John Clayton become a top football analyst for ESPN, the #1 sports network in the world? He looks like a guy who should be doing your taxes or sitting in front of a computer. He looks like an atypical football fan. I just don't get it.

I just realized something the other day. Star Trek, or any of its spinoffs, never did a clip show. How weird is that? Every mildly successful TV show does at least one during its run. Heck, "Clerks" (the animated series) did one as its SECOND episode. And clip shows are not tough to do. They require a lot less writing. Just some weak story to tie the clips together.

I've been able to coax a few of my friends into playing in a fantasy football league. It'll give me an excuse to get into football, which I really haven't been able to do since the Broncos won their two Super Bowls and Elway retired.

Why do women/girls in Hollywood between the ages of 14 and 34 feel like need to pursue a career in both acting and singing? Is it really necessary? Are they so unhappy with the one profession that they have to follow a second, equally demanding one? And do you ever notice that it's always pop music? They take the easy way out and choose a genre that requires (relatively) less work. Maybe if they focused on one task, they'd be better at that...

The problem with Subway sandwiches is that a six-inch sub is not filling enough and a footlong is too expensive.

Any Tom, Dick, and Harry can become President in America. Just ask Jefferson, Nixon, and Truman.

Speaking of politics, am I the only one who thinks the geeks of the world should unite and fight for our own political causes? American geeks have much to worry about. Copyright law, online censorship, outsourcing of jobs, the Microsoft monopoly. Together as a single voice, we would be heard.

Do you remember when poker was cool? I do. It was during the 2003 World Series of Poker. When Chris Moneymaker came out of nowhere to win the $2.5 million in the main event. Then, everybody and their mom realized, "Hey, if this guy played in some Internet tournaments to make his way through and win it all, I can too!" ESPN deserves a large amount of blame too. Before, it was just a short series of hour-long episodes that showed the action from the main event. Now, they have to show practically EVERY tournament. It's just not an interesting. Like watching the first three and a half quarters of a basketball game just to get to the last few minutes of nail-biting, edge-of-your-seat competition.

If I knew what the hell what was going on, I could probably get into Stargate SG-1. But I have no freakin' clue. Really, the only thing stopping me is experience. Like Star Trek. I've seen mostly every episode of TNG, DS9, and VOY. I grew up watching it. Not so much with the SG-1. Any suggestions?

Why were they called "8-track" cassettes?

You know, I'm guessing that the only person who finds Andy Dick funny is Andy Dick.

Top 10 teams I'd like to see win the World Series: Twins, Cubs, Red Sox, A's, Cardinals, Astros, Rangers, Phillies, Dodgers, Angels.

A fun skill to have would be the ability to stop your involuntary body functions (read: breathing and heart-beating) on a whim. I would love to take a blow to the head or torso, then fake everyone out by falling to the ground, closing my eyes, stop my breathing and heartbeat, and have them think I was dead. Then popping awake and scaring the crap out of them. Unfortunately, I probably couldn't hide the grin on my face or hold back the laughter. Still a neat idea though.

The City of Fargo will not be happy (read: stop growing) until half the population of North Dakota lives within its city limits.

Did you see the Twins games this weekend? Those hideous powder blue uniforms.  What were they thinking?

In the words of Mr. Burns: "Non-violence never solves anything!"

What right or reason does Sum 41 have to "Rock Against Bush"? They're CANADIAN!! They have no right to say who our leaders should be or what they should do. If they got a problem with W, go back to Canada, eh? Those hosers.

I want to build a Human Foosball table. A REAL one. With actual people. But I do recgonize two possible problems. One is safety. How do you design a harness that can safely hold a human in place? You'd need something to keep their feet/legs in place. Ideally, you'd also want them to keep their hands at their sides, but you want to give them some method to defend themselves. Helmets would be required, obviously. Second, turning the people. You'd need to rig up some gear system so you can make a normal foosball-type handle to turn a much larger version. And the person spinning the foosball players would probably have to be standing on a platform above the action, so they can see the whole field.

I'll gladly pay more for my groceries if it means that someone will bag them for me.

If today is your birthday, Happy Birthday!! If not, Happy Unbirthday!!

Have you seen that show "Quintuplets" on FOX? The one with Andy Richter.  Did you notice how extremely portrayed their characters are? First, you got the short boy, who's a lot like Bud Bundy, but he doesn't come off disgusting, like Bud. Then, there's the stupid guy. He says a lot of the same things you'd expect a kid like that to say if he were stoned. Next, is the athletic, popular guy. Finally, there are the two girls. They're kinda like the two girls on "8 Simple Rules", but again, taken to more of an extreme. The popular blonde is even more worried about popularity, while the cute mousey brunette girl is just a little more anti-establishment than her ABC counterpart. Each kid is a stereotype of the teenage population he/she is trying to represent.

I've got a face for radio...

On my way to work this morning, I was listening to the radio. On FM 105, they were playing "Jane's Box". It was a matching game. Each letter had a prize associated with it. Pick two letters with the same prize, and win that item. There were two letters left. E and B. I called in. And won some rubber vegetables!! w00t! Oh, and a butter dish. Score!

I wish I was a famous celebrity, just so I wouldn't feel awkward and uncomfortable about approaching and talking to famous celebrities.

There needs to be an IMDB-esque database/website for music videos.

Maybe the reason diseases aren't being cured is because the reasearchers are too worried about their own job security. For example, Dr. Foo does AIDS reasearch. If he were to find a cure, he'd get worldwide recognition and be remembered for generations. But he'd also be out of a job. And so would every other doctor doing AIDS research.

Why wasn't "Dogma" turned into a cartoon? The cast and characters were great. Bartleby, Loki, Cardinal Glick, Bethany, Rufus, Jay, Silent Bob, Metatron, Serendipity, God, Azrael. Kevin Smith is a good writer; I'm sure he could have done an excellent job transforming the movie into an animated series. The world needs more Matt Damon and Ben Affleck arguing and fighting like a married couple.

I wonder, how difficult would it be to make a game like Grand Theft Auto multiplayer? Just add some networking capabilities. Let players work together on a team, or compete to complete objectives or be the most dominant figure in the game. GTA might also work as an MMORPG.

I feel that McAfee makes superior anti-virus products, but Symantec's analysis of viruses to be more complete than McAfee's.

You what would be fun? Putting a cat in a zero-G environment. Let the cat get all freaked out from the lack of gravity. Watch it continuously roll its body over in a futile attempt to land on its feet. The more cats, the better. Hopefully, the idiots at PETA wouldn't start bitchin' about it.

Mother Nature can be such a bitch

I hate storms. Specifically, severe thunderstorms and tornadoes. The Fargo area has had some nasty weather since about 8 PM on Saturday. Heavy rain, hail, lightning, thunder.

Saturday evening, I tried to drive home in it. I only had 3 miles to go from Applebee's to my house, but it seemed like it took forever. I didn't go any faster than 25. Then, at the intersection of 13th Ave South and 38th Street, a van was going east on the westbound lanes. And he wanted to turn left (probably to get into the correct lanes of the divided avenue). I would have changed to a different lane if there weren't two very large semi-trucks in the lane to my right. As soon as those trucks progressed to a point where I could pull behind them, the van finally got into the correct eastbound side of the street. Shortly after that, the hail started coming down. I couldn't see it with all the rain, so I had no idea how big it was. But I knew it was hitting my car. I didn't want a large piece to come through my windshield and cause me to get into a fatal accident. As I was coming down 45th Street, my car started hydroplaning. Not fun. I was worried I'd lose control. Lastly, on my way over the interstate, a truck on my right sped up and splashed so much water on my windshield. I couldn't see nothing. I slowed down, but didn't want to get hit from behind either. I don't ever wanna drive in that crap again.

Anywho, my previous point. I hate storms. They bring so much uncertainty. I don't know where it's going to go or what it's going to do. And I have no control over the situation. I'm at the mercy of God and Mother Nature. Like waiting for a jury to reach a verdict and sentence you (if applicable) when you're on trial for a felony. I just have to sit and wait it out.