And Coinstar translated it into Amazon Gift Certificates without

taking a dime (let alone its usual 11% cut). Sweet.

So sad... my twitterings of the last few days have not been automatically posting to the blog, through the kludge-filled solution i have combining Blogmailr with LoudTwitter, to services I don't pay a dime for, so sucks for me. This is a test to see if its Blogmailr's fault... cause I have no idea.

• black friday shopping on amazon... much nicer than 4am at Best Buy or some stupid $#!+ like that. about 3 hours ago from web
• All the gifts I've bought my nephews have a gun/shooting motif... Halo lasertag is less damaging than the cap guns of my youth, right? 4:39 PM Nov 26th from Ping.fm
• my brother has spammed his own Amazon wish list with nothing but expensive watches. As. If. 4:31 PM Nov 26th from Ping.fm
• what am i thankful for this year? Instant messaging. 4:08 PM Nov 26th from Ping.fm
• holiday time: Updates on facebook/twitter, emails, etc., slowing to a trickle. In USA, we do less when we've got more time. 1:53 PM Nov 25th from Ping.fm
• snow + directv dish = me bittorrenting How I Met Your Mother 9:32 AM Nov 25th from twhirl
• uh... yeah. No. I'm not moving to any of these places. http://ping.fm/kLD2v 8:00 AM Nov 25th from Ping.fm

• 08:21 why do birds suddenly appear every time you are are near? Just like me, they long to... crap on you. #

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• 17:13 thermal underwear and blue jeans make it physically possible for a MacBook laptop to actually rest on a lap #
• 18:26 sometimes have to remind myself that free services on the Interweb don't really owe it to me to work flawlessly every time. #
• 18:27 took 2 months to finish latest chapter of work-in-progress novel. At this rate, should finish it by June of 2014. #

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• 14:51 vent fan keeps humidity out of the bathroom, but humidifier keeps bedroom moist. why don't I just sleep in the bathroom? #

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I'm watching the second episode of Cartoon Network's Batman: The Brave and the Bold and loving it. This show has it all. Adam West-esque Bats, voiced by the least famous guy from the Drew Cary Show. Three villians in one ep: Gentleman Ghost, Gorilla Grodd (wearing a mental-enhancement helmet), and KITE MAN. Dinosaurs. Devolved humans. Tibetan techniques for blocking mind control. Sepia-toned flashbacks.

And Plastic Man. Voiced by Spongebob Squarepants himself. And I love that he's greedy as hell. Makes perfect sense, even more than his ability to be shaped like a shovel or lamp.

This ain't no Justice League Unlimited, but it's fun.

Clone Wars, on the other hand, has Jar Jar. The complete opposite of fun.

• 10:05 I have to spend my day playing video games. Srsly, for work. What a back-breaker this job is... #
• 10:16 Your type makes me puke, you vacuous, coffee-nosed, malodorous pervert. is.gd/8qPh Oh, sorry. This is abuse. Stupid git. #

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Remember three weeks ago when I made my Push for Pushing Daisies? Well, you can all forget about it. The show is canceled... or at least isn't getting any more episodes after #13, which is the same thing.

I might not have a huge problem with that if it were going out on a closing note. Hell, it got more episodes than some British shows get in two full seasons. But it's not ending so much as stopping, and rumor is it will go out on a cliffhanger. Sigh. Resolution will come in comic book form, supposedly. That's cold comfort.

So, let it join Wonderfalls, Firefly, Drive, Invasion, Journey Man, Deadwood, and a few other greats shows I'm forgetting, in death before their time. The Piemaker, at least, will understand.

(And yet...Knight Rider continues?)

• 09:06 How much better would this trailer be with Jim Dale narrating? is.gd/8hgb Actually, what isn't better with Jim Dale narrating? #

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She probably thinks the camera is made of meat.

• 07:56 would could make this day not suck? Ted Stevenson getting kicked didn't do it. Not having to plow didn't do it. Maybe M&Ms will do it... #
• 07:58 D'OH! I meant Ted STEVENS....Ted Stevenson is my old boss and he doesn't deserve to be kicked at all. He didn't accept any fish sculptures. #
• 11:03 looks like I picked a GOOD day to stop sniffing glue (that holds together the bindings of monthly print magazines) #

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• 09:23 hitting one of those brief moments of the day where all emails, RSS posts, tweets, and IMs are read or dormant.... ahhh. Okay, that's over. #

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• 10:06 The president can't use email? This is progress? (Tho, actually, imagine the spam sent to the White House, maybe Obama's lucking out.) #
• 11:13 "meh" has entered the dictionary. #
• 12:56 working through our top 100 blogs for future story. Discovering that most blogs suck. #
• 16:42 totally had this as a kid: is.gd/7SPi You shrunk the "heads" over any standard house lamp's light bulb. Gruesome fun... good times. #

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Do you remember a time before everyone knew your every move?

I don't, but I'm a blogger. I over-share. In fact, we're a culture of oversharing now with social networks, blogs, sharing accounts galore... but if you're not into that and want to keep things to yourself, there's steps you can take. Yes, it's sad that it takes more work to be stealthy online than not. Tough noogies. Do the work if you value your privacy. I've got lots of tips in tricks you can follow in this story, How to Reclaim Your Online Privacy.

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My friend Josh asked me what I think of Quantum of Solace. I agree pretty much 100% with John Scalzi's take on it. Though I did like Casino Royale better, probably because it was even more realistic (parkour chases aside). I mean, seriously, [[SPOILER]] was the hotel at the end of Solace the most flammable building ever built, or what?

Though, the theme song was pretty bad. Actually, not a bad song, but why let Jack White sing anything? Ever? Listen to it here (streaming)... it's almost good until he opens his mouth; sounds like he recorded his part on cassette recorder in 1987.

• 19:09 spent the day shopping. all I bought was socks. Irregular socks, no less. But they will warm my toes for the winter to come. #

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• 08:42 My friend Steven interviews my favorite author (for radio, on camera!)... I still gotta buy that book! is.gd/7tAX #
• 08:45 That's StePHen, not SteVen. I should be more aware having been called GriffiN all my life. and my mom's maiden name is Stephens. my bad. #
• 08:58 12seconds - pre-shower productivity plans tiny12.tv/WI7GE #
• 10:23 my hatred of one of the local DJs is such that I risked electrocution reaching out of the shower to turn off the radio. That'll teach 'em. #
• 10:55 and the day was going so well... until this: ping.fm/QEcBd #
• 21:42 watched Quantum of Solace from an aisle seat with my head at just the slightest angle. Still have headache that caused. More booze, pleeze! #

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• 08:57 joke received today in spam: Amish Flu -- first you get a little horse, then you get a little buggy! HAR! #

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• 08:25 didja ever notice the bottles of shampoo in hotels can last a week, but they always give you more? What's up with that? (me, doing Seinfeld) #
• 09:21 last day in the NYC office means last day with big windows. must soak up copious Vit D before returning to my cellar dwelling... #
• 09:44 how to keep your belongings secure in NYC: leave them in the hotel room mini-safe when you check out. #
• 10:54 motto for the military's new www.trooptube.tv : don't watch, don' tell. #
• 11:44 motto for twitter: ultimate place to post clever things you wish you'd said in a meeting. #

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• 08:24 morning, NY NY. I'm told you're a helluva town. Hard to tell from the view of a brickwall I have out my hotel window. #
• 09:16 DHL going under. No more Linens N Things. Circuit City files Chap 11. Benningans RIP. And I will miss none of them. Bad, bad consumer. #
• 10:17 got placed temporarily in an empty office with the nice view of 28th St. Sweet. but I may be moving soon. Bitter. #
• 14:48 also, i have to wear pants here. God damn social mores. #
• 16:12 spent most of my afternoon flitting about the office, playing social butterfly. When I do this at home, the dogs look at me like I'm simple. #

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• 09:42 For years, i loathed buses with the heat of a sun going nova. Today, I'm looking forward to 4.5 hours in one. See you soon, NYC. #
• 11:47 On the magic bus, just made it into the fine state of Pennsylvania. Just watched a girl bash head into the overhead bins. Avoided laughing. #

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• 08:46 thinking walks in the rain are nicer with a full-sized umbrella #

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• 13:40 confirmed: guy doing local radio ads for www.fingerlakeshelpwanted.com is non-other than Dick Orkin, AKA Chicken Man! (He's Everywhere!) #
• 15:10 Obama sez: "The dog is a major issue." One of his kids is allergic... they need a hypo-allergenic dog, but want a mutt ("like me" he adds.) #

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• 07:47 wondering why I bother to start a day at 7:30AM when no one else does. #
• 13:57 changing DNS entries for www.CBLDF.com Check out the new store. It's purty. (Main site still www.CBLDF.org ) #
• 14:33 got my frist SMS text message spam on my crappy phone today. Phone was in my pocket. Naturally, ad was for Cialis. #

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• 09:34 Today the real work begins: time to figure out what kind of puppy is going to the White House. (Suggestion: Black Lab.) #

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What the hell, California?

And Florida and Arizona, you can suck it, too... but CA? That's just cold. Taking AWAY a right already given.

I would make a joke her about how you're going to make Mr. Sulu cry, but it's not even funny. 18,000 couples got married. The ONLY reason for those who voted yes on California's Prop 8 to take that away from them is because you're afraid you'll get gay cooties that will infect your naughty bits. That just makes anyone who voted yes on 8 an idiot. And a bigot.

Californians: Massachusetts is a really, really nice state. Progressive. And tolerant. (Shame about the snow.)

• 08:00 No lines at my polling place (they were prepared) but the lot was jammed at 7:20. Glad I didn't wait for noon. #
• 08:02 CNN.com still doesn't support Shockwave/Flash 10? WTF? I may have to turn on a TELEVISION. #
• 08:04 Maybe it's not Flash. What the hell's a Turner Media Plugin? Naming plugins after CEOs now? Where's my Jobs Plugin? My Gates Player? #
• 08:07 I can't believe I'm going to type this: IE FTW. #
• 20:35 I'm glad MoveOn.org finally got me my free Obama pin today, just in time so I couldn't wear it during the campaign. Collector's item now. #
• 21:10 how much fun will it be to be a senator with Al Franken in the room? answer=plenty. #
• 21:26 Kinda boring to vote in a state where CNN can project winner 1 minute after polls close. Then again, who needs the agita? #
• 22:00 10pm coming... time to break from actual news to watch Mackey vs. Vendrell and/or Colbert vs. Stewart. #
• 23:12 I just finished watching The Shield... did I miss anything? Did Hillary win? #

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• 10:19 Holy crap, poor Kevin Smith. Then again, he knows a good sandwich, I'm sure. ping.fm/dj9QV #
• 17:17 how much must it suck to miss seeing your grandkid become US President by 1 day? I hope she haunts McCain out of spite. #

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• 10:52 for once, I did not need, nor even really want, this extra hour today. next weekend would have been better. #
• 12:43 Not only did I not need the extra hour nor did I want the extra hour. I wasted the extra hour showing up too early for my crit group meeting. #

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• 10:09 dreading installing the plow. #
• 15:42 plow is installed. that was too easy. what can I dread now? #

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I was at a Halloween party last night and among many conversations I had was one about what's good on TV. Because, duh, people know I'm an addict. Except I made a mistake. I said the only two shows on this season that I consider true "appointment TV" are The Shield and The Office. Both are, indeed, unmissable. But as Yoda said: There Is Another.

Pushing Daisies is, as IO9 just said, the best show on TV that you're not watching. The problem is, it's getting utterly destroyed in the ratings -- last week by Barack Obama's infomercial. While I want him to win, I don't want it at the expense of seeing Ned the Piemaker every week.

The IO9 article covers four areas where the show excels: that it is cynical as hell while also being saccharine sweet (which is easier to take with fewer musical interludes), follows its own rules (unlike the idiocy exhibited each week this season on Heroes -- is there anyone left who doesn't paint the frickin' future on that show?), has a cast and guest stars and even a narrator to die for, and looks unlike anything else on television.

Unfortunately, my (and IO9's) entreaty to you to watch comes at a terrible time. The show isn't even on for the next two weeks, as its pre-empted by some dancing reality foo-fraw and then the CMA awards. But  I will revisit this topic on November 19 so you don't forget. Oh, and if you've got Netflix, rent the first season. It's only nine episodes (cut short by the strike). At the very least, go watch a full episode on ABC.com. In HD. It is totally worth it for the title alone: "Dim Sum Lose Some."

(And when you're done, got rent The Shield and The Wire.)