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| by Marko Peric |
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Featured Song: Some songs just compel you to nod your head in time to the music. Pink Floyd's "One of These Days" is one of these songs. It's almost entirely instrumental, and it has a constant, driving beat that just works its way into your brain and stays there. The song never was a radio hit, but let's face it, nothing instrumental ever is. When you do hear it, and I highly recommend that you do seek it out and find it, you will be shocked to discover that it was recorded in 1971, for the album Meddle, as the sound is far more advanced than one would expect for that era. It was later released on Pink Floyd's A Collection of Great Dance Songs, where it is the lead track. Featured Ridiculous New Product: I don't know about you, but I consider diapers to be a necessary evil. This is of course the opinion of someone who doesn't have any kids yet, and has never once had to change a diaper. That day will come, I'm sure. In the meantime, I'm doing my best to avoid diapers. Diaper advertising, on the other hand, is utterly unavoidable. So now I see one can now buy Huggies Pull-Ups Glow in the Dark Training Pants, which are basically diapers for kids who are almost old enough to be out of diapers. This of course raises the question — why on earth does anyone need glow in the dark prints of licensed Disney characters on disposable underpants? This is, after all, a product you poop in and then throw away. It doesn't need to glow in the dark. What's more, having a glowing Buzz Lightyear or Cinderella on your underpants is just an excuse to show them off at every opportunity, and do we really need to encourage exhibitionism in preschoolers? Featured TV Show: It happens every single year. There's a new TV show that comes along and which from the advertising looks terrible and I decide before ever watching it that it will be terrible. Then I watch it, and low and behold, it's not. It's actually really good. Past examples include Scrubs, The OC, and Undeclared. Corner Gas can now be added to this list. CTV launched this show mid-season, and it's the closest thing to a good Canadian sitcom ever devised. Now, don't get me wrong, Corner Gas is good. And it's ever so Canadian. But I can't decide if it's strictly a sitcom or not. It has a specific locale and cast of characters with their requisite quirks, as well as occasional guest stars — which are often recognizable from other roles, if not out and out celebrities — and therefore resembles a sitcom. On the other hand, it doesn't have a laugh track, sometimes the absurdity of the plot and the schemes of the characters reach Seinfeldian extremes, and it manages to be genuinely funny and original without being trite and cliched, all of which is very uncommon in sitcoms. So by these standards, if Corner Gas is a sitcom, then so is Trailer Park Boys, and that opens up a whole new pandora's box. That said, be sure to watch Corner Gas when it returns from it's Canadian Idol induced hiatus. Featured Website: Who remembers Super Mario Bros? How about Mega Man? No, not for PS2, the original Mega Man for the original Nintendo? The folks over at Videogamemaps.net do, and they have maps for those and many more games. If you ever used to play any games for the NES, you owe it to yourself to check out the site and experience a blast from the past. On the other hand, if you still happen to have access to an NES, a visit to Videogamemaps.net might be just the thing to encourage you to dust it off and see if you still have what it takes to be an Italian plumber/hero. Featured Game: I have enjoyed playing Risk for as long as I can remember. It's still my old standard that will never go away entirely. It's hard to match the simplicity of play combined with the inherent desire to fulfill the will of Tears for Fears and rule the world, or at least a two-dimensional cardboard facsimile thereof. I even met my wife over a game of Risk. Lately, though, my desire to play has waned somewhat. I hadn't played Risk in almost a year. Until recently. Well, sort of. On the long weekend I had the opportunity to play Lord of the Rings Risk, and now my passion for Risk has been rekindled. Not the regular strength game, but instead this new variant, with it's orcs, archers, and eagles. Not to mention leaders, strongholds, and adventure cards. This version also has a point system and a built-in game ending deadline when the One Ring reaches Mount Doom. If you appreciate Risk and Tolkien, then you absolutely MUST play this game. |
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