maxelman.com

So, in something that probably should not ever happen, the two worlds of Star Wars and Transformers have been brought together. No, this doesn’t mean Megatron with a lightsaber, it means a transforming Darth Vader. Into the freaking Death Star. That’s right. The completed Death Star, on top of that. Apparently this isn’t the only one - there’s a Chewbacca/Millennium Falcon hybrid as well. Hooray!

And on top of that - I just finished Bioshock. It’s amazing. Crazy, and morally horrible, but amazing. Go play it. But don’t buy it, because it’s a short game.. Rent it, have a few genetic-alteration-full days, and you’ll be happy.

Oh, and for anyone who has played/seen the game, you’ll find this comic very amusing.

Yeah! Alexa ranks maxelman.com at 9,246,050! That’s only 9,246,047 spots behind google!

Alright, so it’s absurd, but it’s a start, right?

Edit (28 August 2007): 7,082,312, take that! up by two million!

Edit (30 August, 2007): 2,425,454, ha! another five million!

Edit (2 September 2007): 1,888,110!

Edit (11 September 2007): 1,731,098

Edit (1 October 2007): 1,151,112

Edit (22 October 2007):  824,939

Inspired by lifehacker and this post, I put together a picture and listing of the contents of my everyday bag. Took a lot longer than I thought, but here it is:

Here’s what goes most everywhere with me around college and town, much of that by bike.

1. Chrome Mini Metro w/ cell phone strap-pouch: Just about the right size for all this, and sometimes my mac. Works fantastically as a biking bag - I suppose that’s fitting from a company of once-was San Francisco bike messengers.
2. Sigg 1L sport bottle: holds lots of water, fits nicely on my bike
3. House of Leaves: my current book - good to have around for those off-times
4. Sunglasses: I’m either wearing these or it’s cloudy.. or night, I suppose
5. Moleskin: A place to jot down important things and non-important things alike
6. Gum: The most amazing flavor ever - Trident ‘tropical twist’
7. 2GB Sandisk USB flash drive: basically indestructible and ever so useful
8. 80GB 5G iPod: Full of music
9. Olympus Stylus 720SW: Also indestructible - waterproof as well
10. Holux GPSlim 240: Pairs with my phone to tell me where I am
11. Micro SD card reader: Get to my phone files whenever
12. HTC TYTN: My phone, gmail checker, etc
13. Highlighter
14. LAMY fountain pen
15. Twin-tip Sharpie
16. Black Felt-tip Pen
17. Purple Pen
18. Black Pen
19. Soma bike multi-tool: Good for all those strange things needing to be fixed on my bike
20. Cateye Bike Light: Have to take this off so it won’t get stolen
21. Crank Bros air pump: This would also get stolen on a bike
22. Shure E3c headphones: The only problem with these is their complete blocking of outside sound that tends to make one oblivious to their surroundings
23. Keys: car, house, bike
24. Timbuk2 Wallet: Great design with elastic closure
25. Chapstick
26. Taped up roll of quarters
27. Prescription eyedrops for allergies
28. Moo business cards in a Etsy-found case
29. Wagner swiss army knife in a case
30. Titanium Zippo
31. Post-it notes

Overall, I think I’d be better off than some if I ever crashed onto a deserted island inhabited by people trying to kill me. Of course, I wouldn’t do as well as the guy traveling with a suitcase chuck full of knives. Or those question-inducing people that just happen to carry around pistols with laser sights…

Edit (August 30, 2007): Up on this Lifehacker post, here

So, I ordered something for a special someone’s birthday, and after the order online was marked as delivered, and UPS told me to contact the shipper (because only they can start a “trace”?), I was a bit frustrated when there was no phone number to be found for Amazon. However, I did find this - a “call me” page where you enter your number and amazon calls you right away on the telly. Shiny.

I told the man who called me all about my problem, and when I suggested starting an official UPS claim, he rebuked that idea and asked if sending a replacement item next day shipping, for free, would make me happy. Of course it did, as I thankfully left a few days until B-Day, so well done Amazon. Of course, I might now end up with two of the gift, which would be especially awkward.. They didn’t even really care if I sent the other back if it even showed up. Crazy.

Good job Amazon. You get points in my book.

Ah, and yes - for anyone who has ever enjoyed Star Trek, look at this. Right now.

Remember Sim City 2000? your “board of advisors”? Who all were really just CRAZY? Well, maybe not entirely crazy, but I came across this page today that shows exactly what would happen if they were as crazy as I remember. Check it out, it’s hilarious.

And speaking of Sim City, who is one of the new characters in the upcoming Super Smash Bros? Dr Wright - that’s right, he makes you the mayor. And in Super Smash Bros, can erect skyscrapers out of nowhere. It’s going to be amazing. Look!