Let’s get this party started: I can’t stand Neil deGrasse Tyson. I’d probably say “hate”, but that would be un-Christian of me, and he’d jump at the chance to point out my spiritual folly.
For those not familiar with him, Neil deGrasse Tyson is apparently the only black scientist in America. He’s the go-to personality whenever some media outlet wants a scientific take on things. So, he’s like the Toure or Al Sharpton of Science. Somehow, this guy has risen to the top of the pile, while still looking like the night manager of a KFC. I know, I know…we shouldn’t judge books by their covers. If that were true, books wouldn’t HAVE covers!
Anyway, he’s an astrophysicist, and he’s the pope of the “I Fucking Love Science” cult of the internet. On twitter, someone told me that they thought deGrasse Tyson made science more “approachable”, which I just couldn’t grasp. Bill Nye made science approachable. Mr. Wizard made science approachable. Hell, even Beakman and that giant rat made science approachable. deGrasse Tyson does NOT. He’s antagonistic, as he tries to foster “belief” in science, while using the delivery style of a condescending atheist. While what he’s saying might be true, he comes off like the Debbie Downer of science. He’ll say shit like, “You may think the stars in the night sky are pretty. What you don’t realize is that they are in their death throes, light years away, and don’t even know that you exist.” Yay, science? If a small child went up to him and said, “I wanna be an astronaut and go to space.”, deGrasse Tyson would just shake his head and say, “Well, son, nobody’s ever really been to space. Most space expeditions are basically low Earth orbit. You could get the same experience by going to the top of the Eiffel Tower.” He’d walk away, smirking to himself that he had educated another fool.
I have nothing against science. Science is cool and all that shit. But I’d rather be in the blissfully ignorant masses than to be talked down to by some Magical Science Negro. Yeah, that’s fucked up, but that’s how he makes me feel.
I also want to give a HUGE “thank you” to Dr. Matt Guzy of Awesome Toy Blog! He sent me the new Donatello, reuniting my toy turtle brothers! There was a pic but this site’s acting wonky today. Anyway, check out his site for some great Toy Fair coverage!
LEGO has the BEST customer service! Like, I don’t even know how they’re still in business it’s so good. This was gonna be a Thrift Justice entry, but it’s a slow West Week, so here it goes. I bought this DC Super Heroes LEGO set at a thrift store. It was taped shut, so I figured someone had opened it, stolen the minifigures and chucked it. Still, it was only about $7, which is a fraction of its retail cost. So, I decided to take a chance. Well, once I got home I was surprised to see that the minifigures were still there. Oddly enough, it was smaller pieces that were missing. I was able to complete about 80% of Lex Luthor’s robot, but couldn’t attach the top to the bottom (missing rod).
I’ve never purchased my own LEGO set before (yeah, I know that’s strange), so I didn’t really know how replacement parts worked. Well, they had a list of parts in the manual (which was also still in the box), and directed me to a website. I went to the website, which asked me to specify what I needed. Well, since there wasn’t a “I bought this on the secondary market, and some little bastard named Cody or Juan clearly pilfered some important pieces” option, I simplified it and clicked “missing parts”. I entered the numbers specified in the manual, and submitted the order. I waited for them to give me a total. Instead, I got an email confirmation that my pieces were on the way. That’s right, the parts were FREE! HOLLA ATCHA BOY!
I tend to hate “save our show” bandwagoning, but this awesome post about Community’s Easter eggs proves why this show deserves a longer life. Folks who appreciate tight continuity will LOVE this!
Memorex from Smash TV on Vimeo.
I only made it through 3 minutes of this video because my nostalgia boner was raging so hard! If you’re a child of the 80s, just see how long you make it. I may have stolen this from one of you reading this. If that’s the case, then…thanks?
I actually like this version better. “Losing My Religion” falls into the “A Cappella Killed This Song for Me” category. Yup, my group used to sing it, and I got tired of it. I actually like it better in a minor key. It could be a TV theme song now!
Another week, another podcast. A guy could get used to this! Last Sunday, I was invited back to the Cold Slither Podcast to talk about breakfast cereal. As always, it was a great time, and you can listen to it here.
I didn’t blog this week, so here are some posts that I enjoyed:
What Happened to My Childhood (Toys)? -Underscoop Voltron member Joe discusses how he get back into collecting toys. This seems to be a going theme over there lately, and I’m loving these posts!
Has Pitbull Ever Actually Had Sex? A Scientific Investigation – the folks over at Popdust dissect Pitbull’s lyrics to determine whether or not he has actually had sex. Hint: signs point to No.
And go buy some stuff from Will’s World of Wonder! There’s NEW stuff. Promise!
Damn Cody and Juan struck again. Hate those kids!
I’m a little saddened there’s no mention about your discovery of our mutual affection for Ace of Base in this post.
Aww, don’t be sad! The secret of WWE is that I write it earlier in the week. This one was especially rushed because I didn’t even include the link to my Cold Slither Podcast appearance.
(From Classick Materia, who experienced technical difficulties)
Oddly enough, “Nostalgia Boner” was the name of my A Cappella group in college, but we were never booked for any shows off campus, not sure why…
That Memorex video is like 80’s Viagra!!
I’ve seen Neil deGrasse Tyson’s name around a lot these days, but other than the recent “How much does Thor’s hammer really weigh?” piece, I’ve never paid any real attention to him. The “Toure of science” tag tells me I’m not missing much, but other than you, I’m usually wary of people who use all three names. For awhile, I figured it was deGrasse-Tyson and he was probably taking on the names of both of his divorced parents, which is annoying to me seeing men do that. Pick one, already!! Anyway, I’ll take your word for it.
I’m surprised this “Free LEGO pieces” thing hasn’t turned into some sort of hustle. I can see someone exploiting this and building entire LEGO sets out of multiple orders of replacement pieces shipped free to various addresses. Wouldn’t you open up a P.O. Box or two to do this? Have LEGOs shipped to a friend’s house and to various relatives and bars that you frequent? This is like the Columbia House 10 CD’s for a penny thing all over again!! But who has the time for such a racket? Oh… someone does, believe you me!!