They say these things happen in threes.

I was still thinking about James Brown last night when I heard the news. Gerald Ford’s dead.

Gerald Ford and Bill Clinton about to get all like Lil Wayne and Baby.

And then I wake up to hear from my Dad that the Honda CRV you might have seen me driving has died.

Update: it’s back alive and kicking.

No, I’m not putting the car on the same level as an ex-President or The Godfather of Soul, but that’s just because there’s no clear guarantee that Dick Cheney would be the next one to kick the bucket, and without that guarantee, I hope the death ends there.

GODfather-of-Soul DAMN

James Brown has died.

So this is what passes for a Christmas Miracle these days?

Yes, I’m aware of how obsessed I am with this photo.

A new entry on Pop Cult? Holy Hell, Tiny Tim, we’re gonna have a real Christmas after all!

So this is my first Christmas as a non-student, or as a college graduate. I guess I’m supposed to be an adult, but I wouldn’t go that far. So as I realized I’m not falling asleep any time soon, I took a nap yesterday that seriously messed with my sleep cycles, I thought I might as well publish the thoughts on Pop Cult, to give the appearance that I’m not asleep at the wheel. So checklist: Christmas-y music? Yep, courtesy of an e-mail from Akie, representing The Mimetiks, and that dude whose name nobody over 33 can pronounce.

That’s about it for the checklist, though. Never been a nog-er. I once tried it, and I think I spit it back into the sink and pondered drinking Pepto to get the taste out of my mouth.

We have a Christmas tradition or two in the Casey household. Most prominent of them being that my mother feels that she’s the only one who is captured by the spirit of the holiday, and she mentions it once. I can always tell that she might be right because her presents are always wrapped better than mine (I think I need a professional to give me yearly lessons on how to tie a bow using Christmas present ribbon).

The other sign that she’s better possessed by the spirit of Christmas is that her presents look like real presents. You know, that nice stack of small and medium sized boxes on top of one slightly large box? She’s got that down-pat. The collection of presents that comprises her stack are each of smaller stature. But if the laughter that comes from anything Jason “Wee Man” Acuña did/does on/in Jackass/Jackass: The Movie(and Jackass: Number Two, of course) is proof of anything, size doesn’t matter.

What I intended to talk about when I sat down at the computer is as follows: I was an absent minded schmuckface when it came to thinking about acting like an adult this Christmas. I mean, I’m going to try and make up for what I perceive to be the latest round of my mistakes by being better-than-usual at the afternoon gathering of my Mother’s side of the family, but I don’t think I did a good job on quality/variety of presents for my parents this year. I don’t think they’re going to read my blog before they open everything up, so for all intensive purposes, the following jump cut is my way of “hiding” what I got them.

iPods* are just like vampire slayers

As one dies, another is chosen.

top 5 reasons why I own an iPod:

1. I live literally 3 blocks away from Apple SoHo, does any other MP3 player have it’s own store which opens for repairs at 6am?

2. The iPod was replaced in under a half an hour, with no questions from the Genius Bar employee.

3. Works with OS X better than any other MP3 player, and OS X (Tiger) is better than Windows, and, from what I hear, better than Vista.

4. The GUI** of the iPod is superior to every other piece of tech on the market, even that new Zune, I played with it at a Virgin Megastore, is not up to snuff.

5. Stuff like ZSubway is designed for it.

*Applecare supported iPods.

Requiem for, “Logan,” an iPod

NEW YORK, December 6

This afternoon, at approximately 1 p.m. EST, “Logan,” the iPod died. He weighed approximately 47GB, and died of unknown causes. His owner tried to resuscitate him multiple times during the day, but gave up at around 8:30 p.m. EST.

Tomorrow, at the break of dawn, there will be a last ditch effort to save “Logan,” but experts believe he will only be replaced by a scratch-less version of himself. There is hope that his breed’s time is done, and that the iPod pound at the Apple SoHo location will be forced to replace him with a younger more vivacious breed that plays well with videos. Such is the case when an owner thinks ahead and purchases life insurance for their pet iPod.

Possible names include Farva, Azamat, Malicious, Ari, Yancy, Eghck, and Dick (Pronounced “Rish-ard”).

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