There’s a dirty little secret in the advertising business, you can use a catchy song if you change it enough. Songs are copyrighted material and the publisher needs to give permission for a song to be used in a television show or commercial. You can spot a copy when it sounds enough like the original that you recognize it but different enough that it’s clear they’ve changed it. Here is an AT&T ad called “His, Hers, Theirs” which uses a song that instantly caught my attention. Continue reading
Do it to it. Continue reading
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTRTiOZji6g
Sideshows are common in Oakland, but they are not common during daylight hours and they are not common on a major freeway. This scene happened this past Saturday near the Oakland Colosseum. It should be noted that traffic coming to a complete stop for entirely stupid reasons on 880 is a common occurrence. One more video after the jump. Continue reading
The television trope of a leading male character being a fat, schlubby funny guy and having a hot, skinny and sometimes younger wife has been around since at least Ralph and Alice Kramden in The Honeymooners. These differences always strike people as odd because studies have shown that long term couples tend to have similar BMIs. This makes sense when people share meals and exercise habits. Certainly couples exist in the world where the husband is a tubalub and the wife is thin, but in situation comedies it’s almost a requirement.
Since a list didn’t seem to exist, here is the full accounting of television shows featuring a fat husband and a skinny wife*. Continue reading
When purchasing a home it’s essential that a mortgage loan originator determine if you can afford to make the payments on that home over the long term. During the frenzied run up to the mortgage melt down loans were made based on unrealistic debt to income ratios among other devious schemes to qualify a borrower at any cost. With the new rules going into place today a borrower’s total monthly payments for all loans must be less than 43% of their gross income. Here is an easy way to calculate how much income is needed to qualify for a loan.
First, what qualifies as income is only what can be documented and substantiated. If you’re paid under the table for a side job that’s not income. If you can’t back up claims about commission payments, that’s not income. Only what shows on your pay stub or can be substantiated with multiple years of tax returns.
Norovirus is something you absolutely do not want. It’s like getting food poisoning and influenza all at the same time and it doesn’t let up. To aid researchers in studying norovirus the blokes at the UK’s Health and Safety Laboratory in Derbyshire have built Larry the vomiting robot. Continue reading
If you find yourself having to dial a lot of conference calls using different access numbers and codes you have probably wished there was an easy way to enter all the numbers and redial when you are dropped. After extensive research AHUB‘s Bridge Call Dialer is without a doubt the most functional and easiest to use. Continue reading
Here we are, Boxing Day. I mean, if you’re into that sort of thing. Continue reading
A draft rule has been introduced in Colorado that would force dogs to wear life jackets while at doggie day care and boarding facilities if the dog has access to water that’s deeper than the dog’s shoulders. To further complicate things the facility must also provide a life guard to be on duty when dogs are water are located in the same place at the same time. Continue reading
Don’t you hate it when one of your wives tries to escape your loving and protective custody by fleeing to another country? It’s a good thing that Saudi men now get text message notifications when their children or wives try to bug out. Continue reading