So that's, you know, coming along.

I really can't think of a more appropriate venue to promote this than the ol' blog.
Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog is a 40-minute, 3-part musical comedy produced for the Internet, telling the story of a low-rent supervillain, the hero who keeps beating him up, and the cute girl from the laundromat he's too shy to talk to. The movie was written by Joss Whedon (of Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame) and his brothers Zack Whedon (a lesser known television writer), Jed Whedon (a composer) and Jed's fiancée, Maurissa Tancharoen (an actress).
The writing team penned the musical during the WGA Writer's Strike. The idea was to create something small and inexpensive, yet professionally done, in a way that would circumvent the issues that were being protested during the strike. Whedon funded the project himself and everyone else worked for free.
Having seen the first two acts, it's surprisingly really good. You can watch it for free here until Sunday, when it will only be viewable by purchasing it on iTunes.
I just really love the fact that there are people out there in Hollywood who are willing to just go out and make things, not for the paycheck or popularity, but to create something for its own sake. It's kind of inspiring.
I say "kind of" because the flip-side is you have to be super-successful at playing the game to begin with to even get the opportunity to do something like this, but you get the idea.

Mike says a mouthful.

First, a little history - Spoonerisms. A spoonerism is a play on words in which corresponding consonants, vowels or morphemes (I had to look it up) are switched. It is named after the Reverend William Archibald Spooner (1944-1930), Warden of New College, Oxford, who was notoriously prone to this tendency. Here are a few examples:

• "The Lord is a shoving leopard" ("loving shepherd")
• "Mardon me, padam, this pie is occupewed. Can I sew you to another sheet?" (Pardon me, madam, this pew is occupied. Can I show you to another seat?")
• And this masterpiece, said to a student: "You have hissed all my mystery lectures, and were caught fighting a liar in the quad. Having tasted two worms, you will leave by the next town drain" ("missed ... history," "lighting a fire," "wasted two terms," "down train")

Again this week, I honor Mike "Cobra" Kimbrel (click here to see marvelous Mike at top form, i.e. Bono-kicking) . Mike, like the Rev. Spooner also has a linguistic phenomenon named after him: the Kimbrelism. Most times, a kimbrelism occurs when Mike is singing or citing a pop culture reference. A list of favorites, compiled over the years:

• Anklets - instead of cankles
• Huckenberries - huckleberries
• Kong fu hustle - kung-fu hustle
• Shiser Kozay - Kaiser Soze
  
• A candlelight virgil - candlelight vigil
  
• Bing bing - bling bling
• Ken-yuh West and his popular hit, Jesus Rocks - that would be Kanye West's "Jesus Walks"
  
• Roofers - roofies
• Pinot garagio - pinot grigio
• Greaseling - reisling
• The fur pull - full pour, used in a sentence: Give me a fur pull of pinot garagio, or on second thought, do you have a nice greaseling?
  
• Calvin Simpson - former OU b-ball coach, Kelvin Sampson
  
• Telebabies - Teletubbies
  
• Hereby, hereby - Hear ye, hear ye
  
• Soap duds - soap suds
• The KGBI - a nefarious combo of the FBI and KGB that followed Sly Stallone around in Rocky IV
  
• Garndorf - Gandolf from Lord of the Rings
• Bruce Williamson in "The Lost Boy Scout" - that's Bruce Willis in "The Last Boy Scout"
• Roy Lolita - Ray Liota
• Phil Huffman and Phyllis Seymour Hartman - both Phillip Seymour Hoffman
• Deznel Washington - this one is pretty common, though it's Denzel Washington
• Civil War - silverware
• Bone Pickens - Boone Pickens
  
• Besides she is way hotter than you - said to Jenn, his future wife to reassure her that he was not looking at that other girl
  
• Jello fish - jellyfish
  
• Eskimoos live in iglows - Eskimos and igloos
  
• Beaming W - BMW
  
• Jojo beans - jelly beans
  
• Decaficated - defecated (perhaps after coffee?)
  
• Angelhair - Angelfire, NM
• Dinky - DKNY
• Turtle, Texas - Tuttle, Oklahoma
• Someone slipped a Ru Paul in my drink. - again, "roofie"
  
• Parishonal vision - peripheral vision
  
• Third winner - I'm third
• Darson's queek - Dawson's Creek
• All in a day's night - all in a day's work
• Livin it up, Elvita - Aerosmith's "Love in an Elevator"
  
• Somebody told me, it was it was your birthday... - The Killers "Somebody Told Me, You Had A Boyfriend"
  
• Oooo oooo oooo oooo - Crash Test Dummies song "Mmmm mmmm mmmm mmmm"
• Happy trails to you. Again I say hello. - sort of changes the meaning of the song, eh?
• What's cooler than being ice cold? - Outkast's "Hey Yah," the question being: "What's cooler than being cool?" Answer: "Ice cold." But in Mike's world, the answer is: "Nothing, I guess."
• Shake it like a polaroid camera - same song, that should be: "shake it like a polaroid picture"
• Five Young Cannonballs - the band, Fine Young Cannibals
• And finally, Mike singing the song, "Jenny, 867-5309" - with video evidence, courtesy of Jeff T. Roberts (Rated PG-13 for Language - but no "F" bombs)

Congratulations, Mike & Jenn! Remember, "It is kisstomary to cuss the bride!"

Happy Mux of July.

Hey team, is anyone out there listening? Here's my muxtape for the month of July. Kicking it off like the Fourth is Explosions in the Sky. I like to imagine this whole list set to fireworks.

1. Explosions in the Sky - Your Hand In Mine
2. Beck - Gamma Ray
3. Fleet Foxes - Blue Ridge Mountains
4. Weezer - Heart Songs
5. My Morning Jacket - I'm Amazed
6. What Made Milwaukee Famous - And The Grief Goes On...
7. Coldplay - Lost!
8. Born Ruffians - Badonka Donkey
9. The Envy Corps - Wire & Wool
10. We Are Scientists - It's A Hit
11. Spoon - Anything You Want
12. Weezer - The Greatest Man That Ever Lived (Variations On A Shaker Hymn)

click the boombox to listen

Best weekend ever, coming up.

I'm not kidding you when I say that I could not be more excited about what's coming up this next weekend, starting July 18th. Not one, but TWO, amazing things are going down!
First, Mike "Cobra" Kimbrel is getting married. Leeanne and I will be heading up to Tulsa Thursday night to kick off the festivities on Friday. You may be thinking, "Oh, the wedding's in Tulsa...wouldn't it be great if they had the rehearsal dinner at Showbiz Pizza? The Rock-a-fire Explosion could provide the music." I wish., but sadly, no. I'm sure they've lined up something else, though, equally as terrific. Mike and Jenn deserve no less than the best.
Second, and let me shift into full Comic Book Guy mode here, The Dark Knight comes out in theaters. Seriously, I'm way excited to see this movie. Top-notch actors in a movie about a comic book character dressed as a bat from a director that actually takes the material seriously? I'm geeking out.
But, even more incredible...to top it all off and tie it all together with a bow... a photo from 1999. Coincidence? Maybe. Another sign pointing to an all-knowing and powerful God, who loves his people so much he created movies, comic books, friendship and marriage for their enjoyment? I think so.
Batman enjoying a beverage of unknown origin in a styrofoam cup available for photo ops? Apparently.