Funny

Growing up in Africa was a strange combination. Seeing as my parents were linguists, we had computers around even before the were widely adopted in Europe and the US. Mind you, we had access to computers, but no regular electricity. Or, we had access to computers but no new clothes. Get the picture? All that to say, I was very computer literate by the time I graduated from high school in Kenya and went to the US for college.

David, would frequent the game arcades in YaYa and the Sarit Centre. I also had a couple friends who actually owned Nintendos – a very rare thing indeed in those days – and we would have great times playing Zelda and Street Fighter together. Mix that with the Kings Quest games of yore on our PC and you see that even in Africa gamers are developed.

The natural progression of one such as I was to get into the console games of that era; Sega, Nintendo, Nintendo 64, Playstation, etc… However, I was never a natural console gamer – and truthfully I still suck at them. I got into playing strategy games like Civilization II, but also moved on to other fun client-based games. Everquest came out, but I didn’t have the money to buy the computer needed or the money to pay the monthly fee, so it passed by.

I unwittingly opened up a whole new world of games when I found Ultima Online in 2001, and it’s been downhill ever since. I played that for a while, then switched to Star Wars Galaxies when it came out and was a hopeless addict of that game for a couple months before I realized I had a real life to live. I tried to go back to client-based games (offline games), and picked up Civ III, Sim Golf, Diablo II, Baldur’s Gate and others, but once you’ve tried online games there’s simply no going back. No non-player character (NPC) interaction can equal interaction with real players like you get online.

So, what do I do now? I’m to old to play games right? Not really, I play World of Warcraft (look up Dawa, my priest on Stonemaul, if you play too) in my free time. Usually this means after the girls are in bed and I have chosen to rot my brain rather than read a book or do something else constructive. I guess I’m what is called a “casual gamer” these days, but I still get to go and have fun with my other 1337 friends every once in a while.

By the way, for some very funny reading – if you’re a gamer, or if you want to learn gamer speak – go to the Unencyclopedia where you can learn what a Roflcopter is.

A hilarious look at how IT and Web projects work. Unfortunately, I’d say that there is more truth here than exaggeration. You’ll also notice who generally get’s the worse end of the deal – yes, the client.

Funny stuff, definately a very bad day!

Click image to see the full story.

[edit: yes, the last image is probably doctored, but still funny.]

I love this, it pokes fun at all the politically correct idiocy that is so rampant in our culture(s) these days. (From Threadwatch)

Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasions and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular
traditions at all;
Read the rest here

Thanks JasonD! This made me laugh.

Is it a bad thing for your daughter to learn Christmas music sung by Jimmy Buffet Christmas? A favorite in our house, I just heard her singing along to the CD and realized that I should probably play some more traditional Christmas music soon.

Also, since we’re talking music, head over to Seruyange’s blog to find out about Pandora. He says you won’t regret it, and I’m not musical enough to know.

Here’s my Jimmy Buffett Channel

Please, waste a moment of your day and watch this great animation. Sure to put Kenya on the tourism map again! (forget Norway) It’s very catchy. Listen to it a minimum of 10 times and you’ll be singing it the rest of the day.

As some readers might have guessed, I like motorcycles – you can read a past post on the new Diesel offroad bikes here.

A website called RatBikes recently garnered my attention (as if the term “ratbike” wouldn’t get yours too). First, you just have to appreciate the name. Second, what is a ratbike?

No Bullsh*t involved. Just do the minimum to keep them healthy and Ride. rat sidecar Let your bike wear it’s visual history with pride. No time consuming cleaning, washing, polishing, adding shiny parts that do nothing. None of that, forget about it! Embrace The Pure and Essential Essence of Riding – Ride A Ratbike!

That’s great, It’s like Mad Max meets The Postman. Make sure you check out the galleries.

Yes, I have my first flame war. You see, I had no idea that there was such a place as Somaliland (which is in dispute between a couple of readers at the moment), which was carved out of Somalia. Currently, Yasmiin is telling me that there is no such thing as Somaliland, and his friend Faisal is questioning Yasmiin’s mother’s heritage. I quote:

We in Somaliland are on the up while you guys down south are still killing one another like savages who have escaped from a zoo.

I’m all about healthy debate, and though I find flame wars very funny, I must ask that my two Somali readers try and reign themselves in a little bit while debating this topic. I also understand how any political discussion can become hot very quickly, whether it be about US policies or Somaliland independence.

I must put some ground-rules into play for future flame wars:

• No crude obscenities – I prefer my obscenities witty and humorous
• When referring to your enemy-of-the moment, please refer to them as “the honorable ____”
• Try to remember that though there are others who read my blog daily, but I HAVE to read it – so keep it informative and interesting for me

Now, back to Somaliland.

After 4 months of life White African is worth:

This just made me laugh. If there was ever a moment that caught the press with it’s proverbial trousers down, this was it. Please, take a look at the video footage as a reporter tries to make a normal story into a BIG story.

JibJab has done it again. The guys who put together the famous This Land song/video starring George Bush and John Kerry have struck again. This time they target all that is wrong with American materialism in Big Box Mart.

Back to funny and meaningless drivel. I came across this hilarious article that was in the New York Post concerning the upcoming Xbox 360 (which is releasing on November 22). An exerpt:

The Core pack has been called the “’tard” pack, as in that’s what your mom is if she buys you this for Christmas.

Really, that’s just funny. Anyway, you really are retarded if you buy the $299 version instead of the $399 version – it just doesn’t make sense. You’ll easily end up paying $150-200 more getting the additional accessories at a later date, just bite the bullet and buy it all at once.

Have you ever come across something so odd that you don’t know quite what to say? Please, take a moment to watch the following video to see what I mean.

Samples:

I’m not really sure what to say… besides, go get a hamster and “let’s get it on!”
(Link)

M over at Thinker’s Room has written up a dandy little article on why you should know more about Alternative Secure Shopping and about his travails in this part of the online industry. I couldn’t agree with him more on how hot ASSes are getting in todays marketplace.

I always find it gratifying when people move from the strategizing phase to the hands-on phase, which appears to be what M has been up to for the last 6 months. Please, take the time to read this wonderful insiders account: Me and my ASS