First off, let me say that I really hate the word “blog.” I never wanted to refer to this website as a blog, even though that’s exactly what it is. They really could not have come up with a more awkward and negative sounding word to describe personal websites. Say it to yourself — blog. It just sits there like a nasty, smelly lump. After saying the word blog, you really don’t feel like talking anymore. The sky turns grey and chickadees turn into vultures.

The source word from which blog is taken — weblog — is nicer sounding, but a little cold. A computer engineer would create a weblog. “Journal” doesn’t fit the bill either. Online journals are often filled with too much information. I don’t like to open up a friend’s blog and read about how depressed he’s feeling or how he’s been constipated for the last three weeks.

That’s point one: gotta find a name that is not “blog.” Point two is: what am I doing here? The original purpose of putting together this new website was so that I could update it easily. My last website was all hard-coded, and it was a pain in the ass to do anything. Word Press allows me to log on from anywhere in the world and add new things to my site. As a writer, of course, I like writing, and it’s nice to have someplace to put my writing that feels at least slightly more productive than squirreling it away on my hard drive.

But there’s no real theme, which is a problem, especially if I ever hope to grab someone outside of my extended circle of friends. Com$tock’s site has a great theme: science and video games. My theme is “things I find interesting.” And they aren’t even well-hidden things … do you see those sites on the right hand side of the page here? Those are the sites I go to. Boingboing, Salon, Neatorama and HuffPo are pretty much fueling my entire knowledge of all things interesting. You could just bypass the middleman and read those sites yourself, if you were so inclined.

Yet, once you get started, it’s difficult to stop, and once you stop, it’s impossible to get started again. Sarah and I had a blog when we first moved to LA. We stopped. Now, it is sadly lying there in the Blogspot universe like a drunken cow who cannot raise itself back on its feet. For months, people would say, “when are you going to update your blog?” And then you get into the whole trap of having to start each post with an apology for not writing earlier … this is a trap into which I am determined to not fall again. So like it or not, audience or no, I will continue to update this site. It could be something as inconsequential as this post, something that you will get to the end of and say, “why did I take the time to read that?” Or it could be something so monumentally hysterical and life changing that you will shower me with praise and email me off to all your closest friends. The only way to know for sure is to read every damn word I write.

Is that too much information? I don’t even really know anymore. My life has become my blog (for lack of a better term). If all goes according to plan, my entire identity will soon be moved online, and my body will be propped up in a corner somewhere, collecting dust. If you want to interact with me, just visit jeffreydinsmore.com.

Oh, gadgets. How do you infuse yourselves in my brain, rendering me incapable of any other thoughts? The Nintendo Wii-lust is strong right now, my friends. Particularly since I insist on torturing myself by continually refreshing the Amazon forums, which is filled with parents freaking out about their inability to get the material goods that will finally make their children like them.

Here’s what I’ve learned from the savvy moms and dads of America: Wal-Mart and CompUSA have plenty of product, but if you’re going to buy from them, you have to buy the Wiis as part of a bundle with 6 other products. Which brings your total from $250 to $600. Not my preferred route. Some customers have had success ordering the bundle and then canceling everything except the system. If you want to engage in these kind of high-level shenanigans, you be my guest. Me, I’m using it as an opportunity to develop self-control. The other news is that 2 million units are to be shipped to the US before Christmas. The debate rages as to whether that’s a lot or not many.

Sarah played it in New York and said it was “fun.” She went on a week-long vacation, and the only thing I was interested in hearing about was her video gaming experience. That’s how bad it’s gotten. But I must be calm. I must take deep breaths and tell myself, “it’s going to be okay.”

Damn you, Nintendo. Why can’t you be like any other product and just be available for consumers to purchase?

I’m watching David Letterman right now, which I haven’t done in many moons. I grew up with the impression that Letterman was the cutting-edge of comedy. It’s odd to watch the show and realize that what was once cutting-edge is now the norm, almost corny. Do the kids of today watch Letterman the way that I watched Carson, as an old guy who my parents might like but who didn’t really speak to me?

Another thought, which I read somewhere else before: it is interesting that the way to show appreciation for a good joke is no longer laughter, but applause. It’s not enough to think a joke is funny, you have to act as if it’s the BEST THING THAT HAS EVER HAPPENED TO YOU.

Com$tock has the shocking story of the half-dog/half-cat hybrid that is guaranteed to be a prime stocking stuffer this Christmas.

The honors for the first Random Wikipedia Link of the Day go to A Different World. It’s interesting how The Cosby Show really killed the idea of the blaxploitation sitcom, only to have it resurrected a few years later by UPN and the WB. A Different World was set in an entirely black universe, yet it was on a major network and did well in the ratings, lasting for 6 seasons.

I can’t really comment on black-centric TV shows that first aired when I was young, like Sanford and Son, Good Times, and What’s Happening?, but I would assume that because there were very few viewing options in those days, the shows were just worked into the regular schedule. Now, we have black-centric shows on black-centric nights, totally marginalized to ensure that white people don’t watch them.

Sure, there are a few crossover sitcoms every now and again, like Everyone Hates Chris or The Bernie Mac Show, but these are only considered crossover because they’re centered around black stars who have a proven ability to attract white audiences. Could it be that, in our quest to target every walk of life to the appropriate demographic, we are undermining the very principles of integration? Discuss, my white friends. (Or if someone who isn’t white happens to stumble across this post — doubtful that it will be one of my black friends, as I don’t actually have any black friends — I would love to hear your opinion, too.)

Okay, don’t ask me what I was doing on the Dilbert blog, but this is a pretty fascinating story. The dude who created Dilbert lost his voice 18 months ago. He spoke totally normally his entire life, and then boom, he lost his voice.

As regular readers of my blog know, I lost my voice about 18 months ago. Permanently. It’s something exotic called Spasmodic Dysphonia. Essentially a part of the brain that controls speech just shuts down in some people, usually after you strain your voice during a bout with allergies (in my case) or some other sort of normal laryngitis. It happens to people in my age bracket.

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John Kricfalusi, creator of “Ren and Stimpy” and an animator on the hilarious (and sadly unavailable) “Mighty Mouse: the New Adventures”, wrote this great post about the death of form. Although I am not an animator or toy designer, the idea of form disappearing from our lives is pretty interesting.

I am a strong believer in rules. One night a few years ago, I was hanging out with my friend Don and his ex-girlfriend in Queens. I started flipping through the dictionary, finding weird words and asking Don & his ex- to guess their definitions. The Dictionary Game, I called it. We went through a few words, and I suddenly realized that the ex- was secretly copping looks at the dictionary. Cheating on the Dictionary Game! That realization has always stayed with me. The idea of cheating on a totally made-up game with no consequence in the real world…nuts. Why? Why would someone cheat on the Dictionary Game? Sometimes character is revealed in the most unlikely places.

(Thanks to Boingboing.)