The Consumerist is my Friend

The Consumerist and I appear to have formed a special bond, a mind-meld if you will. For instance, today's post: Let Costco Outfit You For The Coming Apocalypse, smacks of zombie preparedness quite literally. 
"...making a total of 5,011 portions of vegetarian deliciousness. Use it to survive in your basement when the zombies or aliens come."
They hit all my key points in just one point five small sentences: Vegetarianism, Zombies.  Well that's about all. But you get my point. 

Zombie at Tiffany's

I think this is swell.

Also from Threadless: some claassics 1, 2, & 3.

And I will forever regret not ordering this shirt when I had the chance. *Tear*

Happy Zombie Jesus Day

"Everything that rises from the dead is a zombie."

http://www.zombiejesusday.org/

TacoBell Shrimp is Full of Chicken and other findings

Ok, so it's not so much full of chicken as made with chicken broth, but its the principle of the matter.

Today I've embarked on a personal goal to not eat corn syrup for 2 days. If i succeed, I will extend the challenge to a week.  A meager goal, but I've done this sort of thing in the past with Veganism and it can be more challenging than expected.

So while watching television with good friend Nian, we began to speculate on the ingredients of KFC food. What I found on their easily accessible "ingredient statement" was that everything is full of MSG. Including the green beans, lemon meringue pie slice and the Hidden Valley® The Original Ranch® Fat Free Dressing.
Lots of Hydrogenated oils too. Lots. Too many to list.

For the record I've never eaten at a KFC in my life. So I decided to check the only fast food restaurant I do frequent: Taco Bell.

What I found in Taco Bell's ingredient statement was disappointing in that it contained hydrogenated oil in surprising places. Places I've been known to consume. Like in the beans. And in the Fiesta Salsa.....hailed as the healthy solution. 
Oh, and the Shrimp not only CONTAINS SELFISH but also chicken stock.  Making it a poor choice for people who eat fish and not chicken...like myself.

Frac Attack

Apart from the piss-poor makeup and the fact that zombies most definitely cannot talk, I really have to congratulate Frac Attack: Dawn of the Watershed for being amazing.
Watch. Enjoy. See the local faces. See the local scenery. See the local children dressed as zombies. Ignore the nonsensical conclusion.

I'm a surprised and very disappointed that I did not hear about this until now, missing the screenings in December. You'd think this is the sort of thing someone would have mentioned.

Ithaca, NY; one step closer to preparedness

Alright, I did it. I followed through for once and created

The Ithaca, NY Regional Zombie Apocalypse Survival Planning Alliance

Please feel free to join. It's open to anyone, even if you are not a resident of the Finger Lakes. It is important to remember that  we may not be at home when the dead rises, so plan accordingly for wherever you travel. 

The Best Facebook Groups Devoted to Zombies

Lets face it, zombies have become an internet meme. While at the same time, Facebook is clearly on a path to global domination. So it goes without saying that there are many Facebook groups centered around the topic of Zombies. In fact there appear to be far too many of them. So please allow me to present to you the BEST of the crop. Join as you see fit. 

Ok, let's get started with a fun one, because we all need a little comic relief sometimes.Though this group is categorized by it's creators as "common beliefs and causes" I using my expert opinion to denounce it a joke. Though it is a good joke. Ladies and Gentleman...

"Michael Jackson Is A Zombie" Conspiracy Supporters

Next we have a very serious group.  I briefly joined this group because I felt it was a good idea to encourage the development of undead defense infrastructure by our government, though this is admittedly a long shot.

Increase Spending on Zombie Defense Infrastructure

Unfortunately the group does little to encourage this sort of political action and instead it's discussion threads center on more asinine topics such as "Can Asian's become Zombies?" and "If you have sex with a Zombie are you at risk of becoming one?".  The answer to both of these questions are almost definitely YES. 

With 136,501 Members, the next group is by far the largest. 

The Hardest Part of a Zombie Apocalypse Will be Pretending I'm Not Excited

So true. This group takes a light hearted approach to the impending apocalypse. However, it includes serious discussion topics on survival techniques. You could do worse than to join this group. 

The next batch of Facebook Groups makes me excited because they take a brilliant and very piratical approach to organizing. 

Regional Zombie Survival Groups  

This category of groups include:

The American Zombie Defense Initiative (AZDI),

 The Kentucky Zombie Defense Program,

The Utah Zombie Defense Agency and

The Cambridge Zombie Defence Plan

Regional organizing is key because your neighbors are both the first threats to your safety, as well as your first option for assistance. A well prepared populous starts in your neighborhood, and with a regional survival group you can ensure your neighbors are as prepared and knowledgeable as you are. I'm strongly considering starting a group for my town.  I encourage you do the same.

Dishonorable mention to the H1N1 Zombie Resistance group.

How the Time Flies...

My goodness, it appears to be March already, so naturally it's time to post some of those Halloween photos.

My excuse for waiting this long is as follows:
Before Halloween my beloved brick of a camera finally ate it. Now I have a brand new gorgeous powershot. However, somewhere in the middle Halloween happened so I had nothing but my camera phone to document the awesomeness.

But now thanks to my good friend Jerry I have some quality photo documentation of this year's Zombie makeup. This year was extra special because not only was I a zombie for Halloween, so were my two best gals.

Please enjoy the following photos to your fullest possible satisfaction.

Kate as a Zombie in a prom dress.

Me as a Zombie in a tux.

 One last shot for realism. 

World's Oldest Zombie Book

National Geographic's got this story about a 330 year old  manuscript tittled "The Chewing Dead".  Check it out this Tuesday on the National Geographic Channel during a program about Vampire Forensics.  Although the program is about vampires; an imaginary threat, the story is clearly a very old example of the very real threat of the walking dead.

Facebook Avertising: doing something right

I would just like to let the world know that the following came up in the advertising on my facebook today. They sure got me pegged.

I should be so lucky one day

Y'all should be very concerned about zombies getting married. It is an erosion of the scantity of marriage. Marriage is between two consulting adults, who are not reanimated courpses. However, technically this video depicts actors, playing zombies, getting engaged. So it's not so bad. In fact, it's downright adorable. Not, however, as adorable as the same couple's zombie wedding cake. Courtsey of Neatorama.

Picnik

I've plugged Picnick before but I just wanted to let you all know that it's even more awesome now then it was before and is offering even more zombie photo editing tools. Including no less than 6 distinct zombie flesh tones!
I tried to use Picnick in the off season (not October), and the zombifying option was under premium (pay) features. I'm now happy to report that this feature is currently available to everyone without making an account or paying. Here's what I was able to do in just a few minutes.

  I take a lot of enjoyment surprising my friends with zombified photos of them. If your persuasion leans more towards vampires, there's new tools for that too. enjoy! (Link)

Dear Vegetarian Spiders, we can be friends.

As I flip through my television stations this evening I found CNN running a story titled "Should we eat meat". The debate revolves around the risk of death or disfigurment from consumption of contaminated red meat. I have a lot of personal beliefs about this topic, as a vegetarian of 13 years myself.  My reasons for not participating in the consumption of meat have more to do with my own sense of morality, and less with the health benefits.

However, what I really want to talk about is vegetarian spiders.

BBC has this story running about one species of arachnid that are herbivores. Vegetarian spiders are interesting because they are unexpected. I've always had issues with spiders, but I think the number one reason they skive me out is their particularly violent method of obtaining nourishment. So I'm offering a open invitation to all the Bagheera Kipling of the world. You and me can be friends.

A brief search of the internet resulted in the discovery of this vegetarian lion. Cool, right?

Imma Let You Finish

Imma let you finish, but the following image is for your enjoyment. Enjoy away.

I'm on a Boat! (Zombie)

Had this idea at the thrift store today. An epic combination of two awesome things; I'm on a boat and zombies. This is defenetly the frontrunner in the Halloween costume competition. I am however, still accepting idea submissions.

Very professional Zombie makeup

I've been spending a little time thinking about zombie costumes in preparation for Halloween this year. I'm currently watching this video about zombie makeup. This guy is so into it. He clearly knows what he's doing but the video is a little tedious. He spents 3 minutes describing the cosmetics he uses. Which is cool, but I'm not going to buy the expensive stuff, I just want to get ideas for technique. The makeup job is very professional and full of good tips,.Plus, it's totally worth it just for the adorable music. Check it out. or a second video by the same people, with a little more liquid latex.

Glitter Skulls

Glitter skulls are so in this season.
Step 1:  Find some plastic skulls at your local dollar store. They look like this but without the string.
Step 2: Dilute some elmers glue and paint it on.
Step 3: Dip in glitter. Very messy. I chose dark blue glitter because its rockin'.
Step 4: Profit? No seriously, I'm working on what to do with these next. Photos to come when I have a good enough idea.

Surprise!

I'm so doing this to everyone I know. It's TP origami. The article only pitches it as a nice thing for hotels to do, but I think it's a nice way to leave a little surprise for people who's bathrooms you've visited.

Of Course

Props to Emily for thinking of this first.
By far the best Halloween costume idea yet: Michael Jackson Zombie!

Pros: Awesome and clever.

Cons: I don't in any way wish to embody MJ. Sorry. Not a supporter.

So I'm going to take a pass on this as my costume. However, I think it's a fantastic idea for another brave soul.

First costume suggestion

The first suggestion for a zombie costume comes from Brian.

Hipster Zombie
Pros: I already own 95% of this costume.

Cons: I'll have to rip and stain most of my prime hipster gear.

This costume may have a very humorous effect if pulled off correctly. However, I feel the irony may be lost on most of the population. I foresee being mistaken for a zombie college student, not clever enough. Sorry Brian