guest post by Aaron Muszalski

A drinker, smoker, Irishman and atheist, Dave Allen was, above all, a natural raconteur. A fixture on British television during the sixties and seventies, he became known in America when re-runs of his shows began to air on late-night public television.

Allen’s act was typified by a very relaxed, intimate style — he would sit on a chair, smoking and holding a glass of whiskey. An atheist[1] (according to Allen himself, “what you might call a practising atheist”), he would often make jokes about religion, particularly the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England. Along with his seated stand-up routines, his television shows were interspersed with sketch comedy. He had a lasting influence on British comedy, and influenced many 21st century British comedians. [Wikipedia]

As a child, I remember regularly staying up past my bedtime to watch Dave Allen At Large on PBS, and being struck by his amiable iconoclasm; Allen wasn’t interested in killing sacred cows so much as getting comfortably drunk, and playfully tipping them over. By couching his irreverence in cordiality, he made his free-thinking bent all that much more infectious.

A perfect example of this was Allen’s famous send-off, in which he managed to both gracefully acknowledge the beliefs of others, while simultaneously excusing himself from any part in them:

“Goodnight, thank you, and may your god go with you.”

See Also:

- Dave Allen [Amazon], Dave Allen audio snippets
- Dave Allen At Large intro [YouTube]

Post inspired by (and title borrowed from) His Wholiness The Reverend DrJon

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Dave Allen: The World’s Greatest Sitdown Comedian

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Skeleton Keys by Archie McPhee, frightfully fun little skulls to cover your keys.

Not only do these six soft rubber Skeleton Key key covers make your keys look cool, they also glow in the dark. This is especially helpful when you are in the dark trying to open a door. Also a good reminder that the possibility of death waits behind every closed door. Fits most average sized keys.

See Also: MonKeys & FreaKeys

image via Archie McPhee

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Skeleton Keys by Archie McPhee

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Here’s the trailer for the upcoming film Watchmen directed by Zack Snyder and based on the limited issue DC Comics graphic novel series written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Dave Gibbons. The film is scheduled for release on March 6th, 2009.

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Watchmen Trailer

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The Presidential Memorial Commission was successful in their petition to add a measure to the San Francisco ballot in the November election asking voters to decide on renaming of the Oceanside Water Pollution Control Plant to the “George W Bush Sewage Plant” (see my previous post).

Officials at the Department of Elections announced today that the citizens’ initiative to rename the Oceanside Water Pollution Control Plant the George W. Bush Sewage Plant has qualified for the November 4th San Francisco ballot. Voters will decide on the measure in the general election alongside the presidential election, numerous statewide initiatives, and an expected 20 to 30 local measures.

“We want to thank the dozens of people who volunteered to campaign throughout the city, and the thousands of San Franciscans who lined up to sign this petition to pay tribute to our President,” said initiative co-author Brian McConnell. “With over 100 volunteers, we were able to run a citywide campaign with no donations, no paid signature gatherers - it was a 100% grassroots voter movement.”

The Presidential Memorial Commission is planning a creative, art-driven general election campaign, and is putting out a general call for support from artists who want to design flyers, billboards and other attention-getting devices. “We’re hoping for an election campaign like no other,” said Mr. McConnell.

While the measure is only being presented to San Francisco voters, voters worldwide can contribute to the general election campaign by donating artwork and funds at www.presidentialmemorial.org

See Previously: San Francisco Proposal For George W Bush Sewage Plant

The story recently showed up on Countdown With Keith Olbermann.

More Coverage:

- San Francisco Chronicle
- Associated Press
- SFist
- Curbed SF

photo by Akit

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George W. Bush Sewage Plant Added To San Francisco Ballot

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Here’s a classic coding joke represented by a lovely cross-stitch.

via FFFFOUND!

image via Jenutech Designs

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Cross-Stitch Coding Joke

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Dave Schumaker recently visited Dublin, Ireland and while there he took a tour of the Guinness Storehouse at the St James’s Gate Brewery and shot bunch of beautiful photos of one of the “holy shrines of the beer drinking world”.

Here’s his Guinness Storehouse gallery on Flickr.

photos by Dave Schumaker

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Photo Tour of the Guinness Brewery in Dublin, Ireland

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“Lathe Operator” by Dr. Sphincter and the Hunger, recorded live at The Southern Theater in Minneapolis. This would have made shop class so much more enjoyable.

Here’s an MP3 of “Lathe Operator”.

Thanks to M2 for the tip!

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Lathe Operator by Dr. Sphincter and the Hunger

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