Is this a case of life imitating art or vice-versa?  Since Snakes On A Plane was written before Snakes In A Car went down, I'm going to have to go with life imitating art.

Of course, had Samuel L. been there in the car with this dude, he'd have made some kind of obscenity-laden tirade before kicking that snake's ass.

    -Tucker

I decided yesterday that I am going to take up smoking over the summer. I don't like smoking but I've realized that it's the only way to get outside during the warm days. I work in an office building in downtown Allentown and we don't have any opening window, balconies, patios or outdoor tables to each lunch. The only place - besides the scary streets of downtown - is the smoking shelter. It's a little glass bus-stop-looking hut  beside the building where smokers reside for their breaks. It's the perfect solution. Now, I'll have an excuse to go outside a few times a day and take in some sun and I'll have a safe place to hang while I do. Lung cancer is a small price to pay.

- Judianne

This idea came to me during a short stop in the restroom at work. When I walked in I was hit hard by an awful smell and I had to hold my breath. I guickly realized that the offender was still present "silently sitting" in the stall. Then, it hit me.. the idea that would surely get noticed on American Inventor...

Kind of like a glow stick, my invention would be carried around and cracked to release a diluting scent or simple scent killer. And it shall be called "My Shit Don't Stink Stick." (NOTE: Please be warned that I have already applied for a patent and copyright and whatever else so don't try to steal my idea.)

Soon I'll be like Jack Black in "Envy," riding my horse around the front yard of my giant mansion. So look out world... the Lehigh Valley Inventor is on a roll! YES!

- Judianne

That's right, it's the return of Yocco's to MergeDigital.  As if I hadn't eaten enough of "the hot dog king" when we did our grand Yocco's tour last summer, I took a trip last night with two people who'd never been there before.  One was from out of town, the other was new to the area; neither had really heard much about the domain of the little hot dog man with the shoes and hat.

I knew what I was in for, and I did enjoy the dogs/pierogies (probably because I hadn't eaten Yocco's in a long time).  But they raved about it like these were the best hot dogs they'd ever tasted.  I guess it seemed odd to me as a now-jaded Valley resident, but I don't ever recall being blown away by Yocco's the first time I went.  Sure, it was good, and I remember being on a little Yocco's kick for a while (which was quickly ended by the marathon review last year), but no real need to ooh and aah.

Was anyone else's "first time" as amazing as my friends described?

    -Tucker

When the Olympics were on recently, I admit that I watched quite a bit of Curling. Why? Don't know. I'd just start watching and then I couldn't stop and before I knew it the whole night had passed with me just observing a bunch of guys broom a bunch of ice in front of a metal thingy. Last night, all that time spent paid off.

At J.P. MacGrady's in Bethlehem, there is a shuffle board. It's the same basic idea as curling - without the ice and the brushes (although I was tempted to go across to Rite Aid and buy some tooth brushes just for the fun of it). My roommate and I challenged a couple of friends to a game. We beat them twice in a row and choked on the third round (kind of the like the U.S. Curling team when it came down to the medals).

I actually used strategy that I'd seen on TV to block and move our opponents. Yes - it's pretty dorky to even think about, but it feels good to be a winner. I have a sinking feeling we're going to be back there soon for a re-match.

- Judianne

Visiting the dentist is something almost no one looks forward to... no one except me. I get the biggest ego boost out of going to get my teeth cleaned. Twice a year for the past 20-some years, I've gone in for a cleaning and gotten the ooohs and aaahs worthy of a fireworks display. The dentist and hygenists always go on and on about how beautiful my teeth are and how much they enjoy such an easy cleaning. It feels good to know that all the flossing really does pay off and I soak it up every time.

It sounds corny but not many people can say they've never had a cavity. But I can and today was yet another perfect visit (even though the appointment took two hours because I had to wait and get x-rays). I guess sitting there listening to people compliment me is better than sitting at work so I didn't mind the wait.

And what do I get for having such great teeth? Nothing.

Whatever happened to the presents? When I was little I'd always leave the dental office with handfuls of useless and wonderful gifts. Adulthood has it drawbacks since all I got was a stinkin' tooth brush and a box of floss. It's not even the kind I like so it's a total waste. I want a poster or a top or even some sugar-free candy. Is that too much to ask? Everyone wants something to show for their time in the dentist's chair - even something cheap and ridiculous would make it all more worthwhile.

- Judianne

FINALLY! It's taken some time and some serious hard work but I am officially free from credit card debt. I just got my tax return and it was just enough to cover the remaining balance on my Visa. So, with a couple clicks on my computer, it was done and I was suddenly debt-free. (Well, not totally but students loans are a different story.) It was the best feeling in the whole world. Take it from me... don't carry a balance on your credit cards if you can help it. It's always too much and you'll always get screwed. I'm being violated by Visa no longer. SO TAKE THAT EVIL CREDIT CARD PEOPLE!

Now to do something productive with my money instead... hmm... where to begin?

- Judianne

I've always loved so-cheesy-they're-funny flicks.  Some bad movies are just genuinely terrible.  They take themselves too seriously, they try to be real cinematic achievements.  Others bad movies take a lighter view and poke fun at themselves and the genre.  Eight-Legged Freaks is a good example of one such film.

Well, there are two upcoming movies that I'm really looking forward to for precisely those reasons.  Slither, which comes out next week, and Snakes On A Plane, which will be out in August.  Slither looks like a pretty typical campy/gross-out flick, so it's got points right there.  But SoaP, that's a different story altogether.  Let's do a quick rundown of why this movie is going to be awesome

1. Samuel L. Jackson - 'nuff said.
2. The title - What you read is what you get.  In fact, Samuel L. liked it so much for the same reasons he threatened to walk off when producers were considering changing it.
3. Producers are listening to fans - Buzz generated across the Internet got the filmmakers to go back and shoot new footage so rather than trimming for a PG-13 they added for an R
4. Samuel L. Jackson - I mean, come on, some of the additional footage includes the fan-prompted line "I want these motherf'ing snakes off the motherf'ing  plane!"
5. CNN already did a story on it - You know a movie is worth seeing when the buzz is so strong even CNN has to comment on it.
6. The director is a stuntman - David R. Ellis has more than 60 stunt credits on his filmography.  He also directed Final Destination 2, which was awesome, and Cellular.  Ok, maybe scratch that one off the list.

I already caught hell in the office once today for talking about wanting to see these movies, so I'll just go ahead and open it up for some more.  I don't care - SoaP (and possibly Slither) is going to be a lot of fun.

    -Tucker

I don't buy music and movies through iTunes or any other sort of pay-to-download service. To a certain extent, I do agree with the copyright and legal isses surrounding downloading stuff you haven't paid for, but I believe pay-to-download services are a complete waste of money and an insult to consumers' intelligence.  So when I saw this article, I was prepared to dismiss it as yet another attempt by studios to cash in on the "Internets."

Here's my beef, and one that looks like it'll be addressed with this proposed scheme (of course it's UK-only for now).  If I choose to purchase digital content, whether it's audio or video (and remember, unless you're still using cassette tapes and VHS, everything you buy is digital), I should own the content.  If I buy a CD, I should also have the option to get download and use digital copies.  Hell, it's already legal for me to rip my own MP3s.  Same thing with movies, I buy a DVD I should be able to throw a copy on my PSP, iPod, computer, whatever.

While we *can* do all those things as consumers, our rights to do so are under continuous fire - not to mention the hurdles put in place by copy protection - but the point is that we can convert commercial CDs or DVDs into copies for our PC or other devices.  The reverse, however, is completely untrue by a staggering amount.  Download a song from iTunes music store on your PC and try to send it to your laptop.  Or try to make a DVD out of some of those TV shows they have available.  You can't.

Studios and the purveyors of digital download stores fully expect consumers to pay for something twice and smile about it.  Well that's bullshit.  I refuse to buy a CD or DVD and then pay more to purchase an inferior digital copy (since ALL pay-to-download services compress their files).  Content is content, and there is almost NO additional cost for companies to provide digital copies of their stuff.

That's where the article comes in - it says Universal will provide digital downloads of their movies after midnight on their release dates, IN ADDITION to sending a DVD copy in the mail.  Now THAT'S what I'm talking about.  I'm not one of these crazy software/movie/music pirates saying "screw The Man, everything should be freeeee."  Throw on all the copy protection you want, as long as you give me the freedom to use the content the way I want.  I don't think that's so much to ask.

I can pontificate on this ad nauseum, and I already have, but here's hoping more studios wise up and start embracing technology instead of fearing it and forcing consumers into legal grey areas.  Props to Universal (even if they are only doing it in the UK for now).

    -Tucker

I was watching a couple of guys play video poker and it was driving me nuts. They were times that they had four diamonds and they'd throw all their cards back and get a new deal instead of going for the flush. Once I saw them throw away a chance at three 10s because they wanted to go for the one jack in their hand. They took turns pounding on the buttons as fast as they could and ultimately lost a bunch of money because they weren't thinking.

It kind of ticked me off because it was such a blatent disregard for all the "rules" or gambling. If you're going to just toss your money away and not even try to win, then you might as well give it to a better cause than that. Why not toss it at a homeless person instead?

Or, hell, give it to me and I'll try to win some dough - I'm no expert but I can certainly do better. I'll even give you your money back with an extra couple bucks when I'm done to show that I'm a good sport.

- Judianne