Friday, December 14, 2007

Mele Kalikimaka is Hawaii's way to say Merry Christmas to you



Turn on your speakers and press play:


"Mele Kalikimaka" by Bing Crosby


Mele Kalikimaka is the thing to say on a bright Hawian Christmas Day
That's the island greeting that we send to you from the land where palm trees sway
Here we know that Christmas will be green and bright
The sun to shine by day and all the stars at night
Mele Kalikimaka is Hawaii's way to say Merry Christmas to you

(The Andrew Sisters)
Mele Kalikimaka is the thing to say on a bright Hawian Christmas day
That's the island greeting that we send to you from the land where palm trees sway
Here we know that Christmas will be green and bright
The sun to shine by day and all the stars at night
Mele Kalikimaka is Hawaii's way to say Merry Christmas to you

(The Andrew Sister's and Bing Crosby)
Here we know that Christmas will be green and bright
The sun to shine by day and all the stars at night
Mele Kalikimaka is Hawaii's way to say Merry Christmas to you

Mele Kalikimaka is the thing to say on a bright Hawian Christmas Day
Thats the island greeting that we send to you from the land where palm trees sway
Here we know that Christmas will be green and bright
The sun to shine by day and all the stars at night
Mele Kalikimaka is Hawaii's way to say Merry christmas a
very merry christmas , a very, very, merry,merry Chistmas to youuuuuuuuuu

An open letter to Carolyn Washburn regarding Dennis Kucinich's exclusion from the Iowa Debate

The following is an e-mail I sent to Carolyn Washburn, regarding the exclusion of Dennis Kucinich from the Iowa Debates because his "office" is in his Iowa home. For more info, see: http://blogs.usatoday.com/onpolitics/2007/12/were-only-surpr.html

To: Carolyn Washburn (cwashburn@dmreg.com)
Subject: Political Hackery (that's you!)

Aloha,

I am a 26-year-old working class American. I am by no means a pundit or political extremist or uber-liberal or whatever convenient label you want to throw out there. By excluding Dennis Kucinich in the Iowa Debate, you've stooped to the level of political hackery that is so common among people such as Bill O'Reilly, Bill Maher, and Ann Coulter. What kind of excuse is "His home doesn't count for an office," is that? Beings that he actually LIVES in Iowa and he's a serious candidate, he has more of a right to be there than the rest of them. He's the only HONEST candidate. Obama and Hillary are talking heads supported by the media and have a proven track record of doing the same Goddamn thing that the rest of Washington is doing and it's what is screwing up this country, so why give them preferential treatment?
People like you are the reason that the American people are more and more disenfranchised with the political process. People like you are the reason that more and more our Government believes it's okay to abuse the ignorance of its people. Shame on you.

Sincerely,
Jay Chrisman

Friday, November 30, 2007

The end of Movember

It's been a long, strange journey growing this moustache. I've sported some kind of facial hair since I was about 15, but this is the first time I grew only a moustache. I've never realized how powerful facial hair can be in effecting the way people react to you.
Throughout the month I had at least 3 situations where people assumed that since I had the classic conservative Republican look going, that I was a neo-con. They confronted me on various topics ranging from how much they hate Republicans to how spineless Democrats are. I agreed with most of their opinions, but by then we were so drunk and/or high that it was impossible to convince them that I agreed with their viewpoints.
I've also had friends tell me how much they don't like "clean" Jay, even though I haven't felt like my face was this dirty since I grew my goatee out for like a year, the result being a gnarly, tangled mess of pube-like hair growing from my chin that extended down to about my sternum.
Tomorrow will be a new era of facial hair. I'm going to shave off the Mo and possibly dye my hair. I won't be updating this blog with photos on a daily basis anymore, although I may keep a running tally similar to those vids that were popular a while back of the guy who photographed himself every day for like a year.

The end of Movember!



Day 30

Thursday, November 29, 2007

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Days 22 through 27 of Movember

Over the Thanksgiving Holiday I rented a car and drove to Oregon to suprise my Dad. The visit with all my family was great and I even got to see an old friend from college who I haven't seen in about 2 years. On the way up I stopped and partied in Bend, OR, which is a pretty rockin' town. Someone at that party treated me like a cop/dirty Republican because of my Mo (did I talk about how I got treated like a cop around day 15?), which I'll probably reflect on in a few days. Other than that, pretty smooth sailin'.
If you get a chance, check out my review of the Pontiac Grand Prix I drove up and why you should never buy one.

Here are all the photos:

Day 27



Day 26



Day 25



Day 24



Day 23



Day 22

Click here to make a donation!

Why the 2006/2007 Pontiac Grand Prix sucks balls

Over the Thanksgiving holiday I rented a 2007 (it might have been a 2006) Pontiac Grand Prix so that I could go on a roadtrip. At first I was pretty stoked with the car, but after driving it about 1500 miles there were several design flaws that although minor, seriously detracted from my experience.

The first problem that I noticed and the easiest for a consumer to fix himself is the quality of the factory installed stereo.

Reasons the factory installed stereo sucks balls:
• The equalizer settings made all of my CDs sound like shit. I tried to find the best sounding EQ setting for every CD I put in, but none of them sounded good. I’ve come to the conclusion that the only CDs that would sound good on this stereo are ones with spoken word or heavy bass.
• Acceleration caused the volume to increase. I’m not sure if this feature was on purpose, but if it was, the guy who thought it was a good idea should get a solid kick to the nuts. It was kind of nice for about the first hour that the stereo adjusted the volume for road and engine noise, but after that it just got annoying that I wasn’t in control of how loud or quiet the stereo got.
• If I put a CD in, it was either loud or quiet – no happy medium. The volume knob clicked for each increment of volume. A comfortable volume for the radio was about 10-15 clicks, however for CDs, 3 clicks meant I could hardly hear my music and 4 meant it was too loud for my passenger to put on headphones and watch a movie.

The second problem I noticed was the cruise control.
• Most car manufacturers have figured out that the cruise control is most easily accessible on the steering wheel, near where you rest your thumbs. Not the case for the Grand Prix. Instead they put it on the turn signal branch, which wouldn’t have been too bad if the controls weren’t useless.

• There was no decelerate option. That meant every time I hit some slower traffic, I either had to turn the toggle switch to off or tap the brakes to turn the cruise control off, let the speed of the car decelerate until it matched traffic and then turn it back on. That wouldn’t have been too bad except it got annoying that every time some idiot was hanging out in the passing lane – going slower than the speed limit – I had to take my hands off the steering wheel to fuck with the cruise control.
• The designer had the good sense to make the accelerate side of the toggle switch spring loaded, but not the off switch. I know, minor detail, but the on button doesn’t override the off switch and I forgot to switch the damn thing back to the middle enough times that it got really annoying.

My third and final complaint didn’t rear its ugly head until after dark. The dome light sits in the middle of this big upside-down dome thing that extends down from the ceiling. Whenever you switch the rear-view mirror to nighttime, the lights from the car behind you are bright enough on the dome light area that it reflects in the rear-view mirror and obstructs your view.
Why is that big upside-down dome thing there? I couldn’t find a purpose for it other than an aesthetic one. If it was put there purely for aesthetics, I’d like to know the address of the guy who thought that was a cool aesthetic because I’d like to go over to his house and shine a floodlight through his bedroom windows at 3 o’clock in the morning until he realizes how shitty I thought his idea was.

Other than those three complaints, I was really impressed with the performance of the vehicle. It handled well, the acceleration – even on an incline – was impressive, and the gas mileage was superb for a non-hybrid vehicle. If the interior design hadn’t completely pissed me off, I would probably recommend the Pontiac Grand Prix to anyone who would listen.

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Monday, November 19, 2007

Day 17, 18, and 19 of Movember

Had an awesome weekend. Went to a pretty dope little house party on Friday and went to the Snowboard Expo at CalExpo in Sacramento on Sunday. It always feels great when you get a good deal on something and I did just that at CalExpo. The Zumiez employees work off of commission so this good looking girl was being real flirtatious in order to ensure she got the commission. I turned it back on her however when I told her I hadn't planned on spending so much and I could only afford to pay $160, which was about $30 less than the total cost of the already discounted snowboard jacket, pants and goggles I was holding. It took about 5 minutes for her to verify it with a supervisor and I was out the door with my brand new gear.
Anyway, here's my Movember photos and a fun little animated gif of my new fake product, MoGrow!

MoGrow ad:


Day 19



Day 18



Day 17
Please visit my original post about Movember to find out more or make a donation to support the cause.

Friday, November 16, 2007

Day 16 of Movember

Quiksilver Announces Participation in Movember.

I'm glad to see that a lot of people in America are joining in to make a difference for a good cause. Kudos to Kelly Slater, Dane Reynolds, Reese Forbes and all the guys over at Quiksilver who have volunteered to grow Mos.

Day 16
Please visit my original post about Movember to find out more or make a donation to support the cause.

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Day 13 of Movember

Last night I attended a charity fundraiser for a musician with a heart condition and attempted to spread the good word of Movember among wine connoisseurs. Hopefully some of them actually take a look at the cool little business card sized flyers I made.

Day 13

Monday, November 12, 2007

Days 10, 11, and 12 plus a weekend update

This weekend was pretty crazy so my internet availability was sporadic and I was unable to upload until today.

Friday night Marc and I went to Folsom Hotel (bar) to watch his friend's band Point Dexter. Folsom Hotel is a definate Cougar Den. In the first 5 minutes of being in the bar this woman who had to be at least 50 offered both of us blowjobs and told us she could show us things the younger girls we're used to could or would never do... Then she liked the side of Marc's face and almost fell over.
Then Saturday and Sunday we spent most of the day four-wheeling and hiking. It was a pretty eventful weekend, but I won't divulge for the sake of not incriminating myself or others.
On with the photos! I'm putting them in reverse order so that you can go from bottom to top to follow the progression:

Day 12


Day 11


Day 10

Friday, November 9, 2007

Day 9 of Movember!

I'm probably gonna be partying and havin' a good time this weekend, so there may not be an update until Monday, but I'll still have my camera with me, taking pictures.

Please visit my original post about Movember to find out more or make a donation to support the cause.

Thursday, November 8, 2007

Day 8 of Movember. Haircut!

Yesterday I went and got a haircut at SuperCuts. I've gotta say, every other SuperCuts I've been to has old asian ladies working there, but this one is different. It's in Placerville, CA on Missourri Flats and it is staffed by all beautiful girls who are also very good at cutting hair. Shampoo for an extra $4? Yes please!
My MO is starting to fill out nicely. Along with my new haircut, I think by the end of the month I could pull off a Super Troopers' Officer Farva very nicely.

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Day 7 of Movember

I was going to shave today to make the moustache look more prominent than the rest of the stubble on my face, but then I couldn't muster the ambition to do it this morning. Eh... Maybe tomorrow.

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

Radiohead has made 2.7 Million so far on "In Rainbows" sales

Using data mined from this article by Breitbart, I have figured that Radiohead has made 2.7 million dollars on the "In Rainbows" experiment.
This is a far greater amount than the pennies per CD that most bands make on their CDs.
Here are the numbers:

- 1.2 million people have downloaded the album

- 38% paid an average of $6. 38%x1.2mil=456,000, 456,000x$6=$2,736,000

That means that Radiohead has made $2,736,000 off of sales of "In Rainbows" so far.

Furthermore, if you factor in the other 62% of the people that didn't pay a penny for the album, Radiohead still averaged $2.28 in their pockets per album downloaded, versus the pennies per CD that most artists recieve from their labels.

Day 6 of Movember

Day 6

It's really starting to grow in a bit now. It's definately visible. Give it 2 or 3 more days and I will officially have a moustace instead of just stubble. Then I just need to spend the rest of the month shaping it in the best Mo of all times.

Monday, November 5, 2007

Days 4 & 5

Sorry folks, didn't have internet access on Sunday so here's yesterday and today.

Day 4


Day 5

Saturday, November 3, 2007

Day 3

Here's a pic of Day 3 from my hotel room at The Block Hotel

Friday, November 2, 2007

THE Block - Snowboard Hotel

I'm staying in Lake Tahoe,NV/CA this weekend at The Block, self-proclaimed snowboard hotel. It's the most badass hotel I've ever been in. They've got a hangout room with computers, pool tables, etc. in the lobby and a lanai with a hot tub and BBQ.
Our room cost us $140 and as we were paying the dude handed us beers out of a fridge from behind the counter. All the rooms come with big TVs, stereos, PS2s, XXX and PPV. From what I hear, they've got dope-ass parties during the snowboard season too.

My first Movember Photos

Proof that I was clean-shaven on November 1st (this news story happened on Nov. 1st)



Day 1 of Movember


Day 2 of Movember

Friday, October 26, 2007

Info about Movember

Yesterday's post did not include information about Movember, so here's some useful info and links:

Donate to the Prostate Cancer Foundation using my code:
Go to http://www.movember.com/donate.php and use code 87374

Movember originally started in Australia or New Zealand and involves clean shaven faces on Nov. 1st and culminates at the end of November when contestants display their "Mo's" to be judged for originality, style, celebrity resemblance, etc. The idea of Movember is to raise money and awareness for Prostate Cancer and the Prostate Cancer Foundation (prostatecancerfoundation.org).

The Rules:
- On day "Mo-1" (October 31), the complete moustache region, including the entire upper lip and the handlebar zones, must be completely shaved.
- For the entire duration of Movember (Movember 1 - 31 inclusive), no hair shall be allowed to grow in the goatee zone - being any facial area below the bottom lip.
- There is to be no joining of the moustache to sideburns.
- Failure to conform to all of these rules may, at the discretion of the official Movember Committee, result in instant blacklisting and may void invitation to the Mo Ball.
- Movember Committee accepts no responsibility for lost jobs, rashes, food/beer encrustments or any other such mishaps caused to the wearer (or his partner) of a Movember Moustache. You grew it yourself.

The Movember Web site(US):
Movember.com/us

Get your workplace involved:
http://www.movember.com/us/howtogetmo-ing/07/Work-or-Social-Team

Host a Movember party sponsored by PlayboyU.com:
http://www.movember.com/us/moparties/mocampusparties.php

The original(?) Movember site (not very organized and they advocate just giving the money to whatever charity you feel like):
Movember.org

Thursday, October 25, 2007

Celebrating Movember

Last night I was watching Current_TV when they ran a story about a fundraiser for testicular cancer in Australia called Movember. Participants in Movember shave their faces clean on the first of November and then compete all month long to see who can grow the best moustache. I'll be chronicling the entire thing here on this blog and probably posting a time-lapsesque video of my progress at the end.

Here is a picture of me today, growing my man-beard for Halloween. November 1st it'll be gone in order to make way for the best Super Troopers stache ever seen.