An amazing phenomenon.

Ok. If you haven't heard of or seen "ferrofluid," you need to. It's a colloidal mixture of magnetic ink and any type of oil. There are a few other ways to make it too. The stuff will make amazing shapes and displays when a magnetic surface is nearby. It seems unnatural. Hit the link to see it in action!

The Colbert Nation salutes you.

My, oh my. Where to begin with Mr. Stephen Colbert. Is he a singer/songwriter, a clever political analyzer, or a man who commands his show with confidence and prowess? All three I believe!

The Colbert Report on Comedy Central has been around since 2005, and it has been hilarious ever since. Colbert worked with The Daily Show before his own show was created, and the persona on The Daily Show is the very same Colbert presents on his show.

The show always begins with a ridiculous introductory video with patriotic red-white-and-blue themes. The most recent introductory video even shows Mr. Colbert grabbing the American flag and jumping off an imaginary cliff, fearlessly, and then slamming the pole into the ground. A shock-wave ensues. This video sets the tone for the show. It's somewhat serious, and somewhat show-business. It is, however, fully humorous. Colbert always walks in the show with a massive and extended applause from his audience and he often has to hush them before he can even begin the show. His fan-base is not small by any means. He has his own segments throughout the show, such as "The Word," which is where Colbert reports on an issue while very ironic and clever bulletins are posted as he speaks. He like, Jon Stewart on The Daily Show, has a guest every episode. He even had Snoop Dogg rap in front of his live audience after interviewing him.

The show often covers a variety of topics, but focuses mainly on politics and news. Colbert often ridicules Fox and members of the Fox network, such as Bill O'Reilly and Glenn Beck. However often these jokes on Fox may occur, rest assured nobody on network television is safe from mockery. The jokes Colbert unleashes are often very clever, even uncanny. He may not write every joke in the script, but he sure can deliver. I'm sure he is even impromptu sometimes. He even has skits and videos that are made prior to episodes, sometimes involving a comical interview with somebody who is expecting a legitimate one and even footage of Colbert out and about, such as his series of videos where he samples Olympic Winter Sport.

Colbert is not liked by many critics, because of his sometimes distasteful jokes, and I'll admit, some are. But in general, the show is incredibly funny. Colbert sometimes even shows his heart, by donating money to the Haiti Relief fund, and he even made "The Colbert Nation" the official sponsor of the US Speed-skating team, whom without the support, would not have been able to compete this year.

Despite the problems some people have with Colbert, I respect him. He may not agree with the same political viewpoints I have and I may not agree with his (though how can one be sure of these anyways?), I feel that he is a confident, funny, and intelligent guy. His show always makes me laugh and it actually covers a good bit of political news, allowing me to keep up with current events, and all the while laugh.

"Nation...you and I both know..."

Why does this even exist?

Ok so this is The Cleveland Show. It's a wonder why this show exists. Cleveland Brown was doing just fine on Family Guy. Seth MacFarlane just wanted to create another show, and he has. But why did he need to remove a character from another show to bump-start this one? Cleveland fit very well in the Family Guy environment! He was pretty funny in an awkward way, but in this show, he is NOT funny. The jokes are unclever, stale, childish, and more often than not, stupid. Family Guy has its dumb moments, but I feel that The Cleveland Show is always stupid. The characters are spitting images of Family Guy. Nothing original is seen in the show. It feels lazy. If the show was cancelled, MacFarlane could focus on his one and only "funny" show, Family Guy. Let's not forget that awful show, American Dad.

I guess what I'm trying to say is...The Cleveland Show sucks. It isn't original or funny. I have only laughed at one or two jokes since it was created. We need Cleveland back on Spooner Street!

The Wii.

When the Nintendo Wii was announced, I thought they were joking about the name. It was awful then, and it still is today. What is "Wii?" I was instantly skeptical on the system. The "motion sensing" capability was not new, but it was fresh for the use of gaming. I was afraid Nintendo would go from their standard ways (classic control stick dictating movement), and begin to overuse the motion control. Turns out I was right. A good majority of the games put out today for the Wii are incredibly gimmicky, making prime use of only the point-and-click abilities of the remote. The "Wiimote" itself is unlike any other controller. I would go as far to say it is just a TV remote that emits a constant signal. No shoulder buttons, no central pause button, no Z button, etc. There is a nunchuck add-on, but that's an add-on! You have to buy the nunchuck to use most games to their full extent! Yes, some games do not require it (the ones like My Baby 2), but Metroid Prime 3 does! The new Super Mario Bros. Wii is not playable unless you remove the nunchuck! There is no consistency, and only a few select games like Mario Kart Wii let you change between Gamecube controllers, Classic controllers, remotes, or a combination of the remote and nunchuck. This is unacceptable. Nintendo, stop making more accessories!

Some of the most ridiculous accessories include the Wii Wheel, the Nerf kits, the Wii Balance Board, and the Wii Motion Plus. Soon enough, you'll find yourself up within the price range of an Xbox 360 or PS3 after you buy all these things! Sure, the Wii is only $199 right now...but you'd be a fool to think you're getting a good deal. If graphics are a problem for you, well, do NOT buy a Wii. Think of it as a GameCube+. My biggest gripe is the sheer volume of "garbage games" that are put out by third-party companies! The Wii has some incredibly bogus titles available, and you can go to Wal-Mart to see what I mean.

Now of course, not everything about the Wii is bad. I, for one, love Nintendo's original titles. I grew up playing Nintendo games. I enjoy Zelda, Mario, and Metroid. I believe these games alone make the Wii worth buying. The Wii is perfect for a few things at least:

1. It can play all your old GameCube games.
2. It has all of Nintendo's great flagship games.
3. Some games are now possible with the motion control.
4. Wii Sports is free.
5. The system is cheap if you know what to NOT buy.
6. If you have children, this is your safest bet.
7. The system is compact, quiet, and lightweight.
8. If you're a system collector, well it's not TOO much $$$.

All in all, the Wii is pretty good. I enjoy it quite a bit, but I just would hope Nintendo realizes that most of the money they make is from quality first-party games. If they made more first-party games and had a better online service, the Wii would be a good competitor in the console war. Sadly, it's not even a contender. I have to give the Nintendo Wii a B-.

Please Nintendo, make something amazing next time around.

Mario Kart 64 is broken.

Honestly, why does this game have to be so incredibly frustrating?! I was doing so well! Then the moles on Moo Moo Farms attack me over and over. Yoshi drops a mystery block in front of me...as soon as I begin to accelerate. No chance to even recover! Oh and what's the worst is trying to make it into that cave on Koopa Troopa Beach, and flying too high so I hit the top of the mountain!!! Cheaters. Straight cheaters. The game is so flawed. How did I put up with this when I was a kid? Did I always win? Did I only play on 50cc?? Frustration=Mario Kart.

Don't You Love...

...when you're out driving through town, through the back-country roads, or just sitting at a red-light; and it hits you, that delicious home-cooked BBQ aroma floating through the air? It's one of my favorite smells. I was driving through town the other day with my windows down (the temperature was nice), and I wasn't in the "best" mood. All of a sudden, a wave of smoked wood and meat rolled through my windows and I just smiled. It's those little things I like to enjoy.

I've always enjoyed cooking outdoors and I love when neighbors are cooking and they are basically making the town smell better, as if they have a large Febreeze BBQ bottle and are spraying everything. It's uplifting, I don't know why, but it just is. It's amazing how smell can affect our mood. Perfume makes men happy, cologne makes women happy, flowers make most people happy, and cooking fresh meat makes me really happy.

Perhaps it's because I usually know I'm about to enjoy a savory meal. One thing's for certain...I cannot live without BBQ.