Month: February 2022

Everyone loves Wordle, except for the people who use their Twitter accounts to complain about folks who post their Wordle scores every day. The success of the popular game, which was recently purchased by the New York Times, has led to a number of fun spin-offs — my preferred one is Worldle, where you get an outline of a country and have to guess what it is.

Well, it was my favorite one until the newest idea for this sort of game has hit the internet. Thanks to Gabe Danon, the producer of the podcast Dunktown, we now have a Wordle-inspired game called Poeltl.

Here’s how it works: Like Wordle, you type in your guess and a green, yellow, or gray (well, gray-ish) square let you know how you did. You guess an NBA player, and have to find a perfect match based on their team, conference, division, forward, height, age, and number. The particular rules look like this:

There is a decent enough chance that, if you’re a big basketball fan, the silhouette mode and a guess or two can get you across the finish line without too much trouble. My highest recommendation is that you don’t click on the silhouette mode unless you’re really, really stuck, but regardless, the game is a blast and worth your time. Don’t take my word for it, take it from the subject of Friday’s puzzle (this is, of course, a spoiler, so be warned). We’ll let you know if Karl-Anthony Towns faces (ultimately unfounded) accusations of cheating on this one, too.

Anyone who grew up in the late ’80s and early ’90s—Gen X, I’m looking at you—grew up in a world that was dominated by 8-bit graphics. Back in the day, computers and video game systems had a limited amount of processing power so the graphics had to be simple.

That meant the heroes that we played with such as Mario from Super Mario Brothers or Link from The Legend of Zelda, had to be super simple looking and we had to fill in the rest with our imaginations.

Video graphics have come a long way over the past 30-plus years, but people still love the old designs because it takes them back to a simpler time. This has led to an 8-bit movement where people use their creativity to make art within the confines of the limited medium.

Some people also use the limited 8-bit soundscape to create music that’s reminiscent of the old games. Sure, computer game music may be much more sophisticated these days, but is there anything better than the soundtrack to the original Tetris? Would Super Mario Brothers be the same with a sophisticated soundtrack? I think not.

Swedish artist Johan Karlgren, who goes by the name Pappas Pärlor, creates pixelated 8-bit-looking art and then inserts it into everyday scenes. The interesting thing is that his 8-bit art isn’t done with computer graphics, but Perler beads.

Perler beads are small, plastic beads that one places on a grid, and when the picture is done, they are melted with a household clothing iron. The beads are a fun hobby for kids who love to see the melting beads ooze their way into a fully-formed picture.

Although they weren’t originally intended to make 8-bit art, because the beads are placed on a grid when they melt together the designs look like they came straight out of a Nintendo Entertainment System.

Super Mario 3 Tanooki Suit Perler Beads Timelapsepic.twitter.com/Ywed4B3y47

— Soma ud83dudc9cud83cudf19 | AlleyCat ud83dude38ud83dudc08u200du2b1b (@Soma ud83dudc9cud83cudf19 | AlleyCat ud83dude38ud83dudc08u200du2b1b)
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Karlgren recreates iconic images from comics, cartoons, video games and movies with the beads and then adds them to the scenarios, turning the mundane into the whimsical.

What’s Karlgren’s big inspiration? “Anything that makes me feel something,” he told Bored Panda. “It could be anything from childhood memories to politics or people doing awesome stuff that I wanna interpret.”

See on Instagram

For Karlgren, his work is the byproduct of having a good time. “I don’t really choose what to create. My work is sprung from playing, and I’ll try to go with the ideas that come up in my head,” he said.

One of the hallmarks of Karlgen’s work is taking drab places such as a parking lot or other types of urban infrastructure and livening them up with the addition of one of his Perler bead creations. “It’s something that makes me happy, and hopefully other people [when] seeing it as well,” he told Newsweek.

Karlgren is a father of four and started posting his creations on Instagram back in April 2014. Since then, his fun, old-school designs have earned him more than 144,000 followers. Here are some of his coolest, and funniest 8-bit designs.

8-Bit Joker

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“Rose!”

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Raiders of the Lost Fence Knob

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Mario Kart: Snow Speeders

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“Here’s 8-Bit Johnny!”

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The Man of Steel

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That Creep Can Roll

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Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man

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​Anthony Adams Rubbing Hands Meme​

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“I Said God Damn!”

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“Take My Money!”

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Darth’s Day Off

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Jaws

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“Go Ahead, Make My Day.”

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Mini Bernie

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Tony Montana

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The Homer Meme

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Have you ever been boarding an airplane and said to yourself, “There’s got to be a more efficient way to do this”?

People love to debate the quickest way to get people and their luggage aboard an aircraft. Every airline has its own method, which largely revolves around boarding people with some kind of status—first-class/premium seats or loyalty program status—first, followed by the nonstatus coach folk in various groupings. (I personally like to spend as little time as possible on the actual airplane, so I’ve never understood the “perk” of early boarding. I guess you get your pick of overhead bin space, but that alone isn’t worth it to me.) Airlines are always tweaking their methods, both to be more efficient and to keep their customers happy.

But none of them do it in the truly most efficient way. And why not? Well, because people are involved.

If humans were robots we could program to do what we want them to do without getting their knickers in a twist over not getting to be first, we could theoretically board airplanes in a way that would minimize bottlenecks and get everyone seated quickly. But alas, we are not.

And what is the most efficient way? I would have assumed it would be back-to-front, but it’s not. As a video from CGP Grey explains, boarding methods that intuitively seem like they might work best actually don’t. There are several reasons for this, from the unpredictability of who is going to struggle to get their carry-on bag into the overhead bin to the fact that, as the video points out, “The human inability to follow instructions is breathtaking.”

The video is really fascinating in addition to being entertaining. (There’s poetry involved.) Check it out:

So it turns out the best way to board is every other row, back to front, window seats first, followed by the same pattern with middle and then aisle seats. Seems perfectly logical.

And the only barrier to this method is getting people to line up in a specific order? That doesn’t seem like it should be that hard of a task. Southwest Airlines already does that with its boarding groups (everyone gets a number and lines up accordingly), though they don’t have assigned seats. Has no airline ever even given it a try? Seems like it might be worth a shot at least.

And if nothing else, at least now we know that we’re doing it all wrong. If we’re going to be inefficient, we should at least be aware that we’re doing it on purpose.

“When You Clean your Weapon” tells the story of war from the perspective of a young soldier, who treats his gun like a child, swaddling it and shielding it from the rain. This happens before the young man has even held a real child. He climbs into the earth, which takes him in like a womb. For a moment, he remembers his connection to nature. But then he shoots. And never again can he get rid of the smell of gunpowder. For he and the war are now one.

The poem captures how humanity is lost on the battlefield, even to those who survive. We become one with the weapon, instead of each other. Violence repeatedly gets chosen as the solution, and yet perpetuates the same problematic cycle … trench after trench. The truth is, the weapon is never clean, once it’s fired.

“When You Clean Your Weapon” by Borys Humenyuk 

When you clean your weapon

When time and again, you clean your weapon

When you rub strong-smelling oils into your weapon

And shield it from the rain with your own body

When you swaddle it like a baby

Even though you’ve never swaddled a baby before —

You’re only nineteen, no baby, no wife —

The weapon becomes your only kin

You and the weapon are one.

When you dig trench after trench

When you dig this precious this hateful earth by handfuls

Every other handful reaches your soul

You grind this earth between your teeth

You don’t, you never will have another

You climb into the earth like into your mother’s womb

You are warm and snug

You’ve never felt this close to anyone before

You and earth are one.

When you shoot

Even when it’s at night and you don’t see the enemy’s face

Even when night hides the enemy from you and you from the enemy

And embraces each of you as her own

You smell like gunpowder

Your hands, face, hair, clothing, shoes —

No matter how much you wash them — smell of gunpowder

They smell of war

You smell of war

You and war are one.

This poem comes from an anthology series of several poems titled “Words for War: New Poems from Ukraine,” translated by Oksana Maksymchuk and Max Rosochinksy.

There’s an old trope in movies and TV where a criminal will return to the scene of a crime shortly after it was committed. It’s a great way to create a sense of drama and to give an easy way for the heroes to catch the perpetrator, but does it happen in real life?

It doesn’t make much sense for a criminal to put themselves in a position to get caught, but neither does committing a crime in the first place.

If a criminal does return to the scene, it’s often so they can relive some of the sensations they felt while committing the crime.

Such was the case with alleged dog-napper Kyle Gariepy, 29.

On Friday, May 7, 2021, the Cambridge Police Department in Massachusetts reported that a 13-month-old German shorthaired pointer named “Titus” was stolen out of a parked vehicle. The department released footage of the alleged dog-napper walking the dog over the Boston University bridge.

Yesterday at approximately 12:32p, an unknown suspect broke into and entered a vehicle that was parked atu00a0620 Memorial Driveu00a0& stole a 13-month-old white German Short Haired Pointer out of the vehicle. The suspect was then observed walking the dog over the BU Bridge into Boston.pic.twitter.com/titQ0WvPMM

— Cambridge Policeud83dudc6eud83cudffd (@Cambridge Policeud83dudc6eud83cudffd)
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The dog was wearing an orange collar with the name “Titu.”

If anyone has any information about this incident, they are strongly encouraged to call the Cambridge Police at 617-349-3300. #CambMA pic.twitter.com/iUQAO62u9L

— Cambridge Police👮🏽 (@CambridgePolice) May 8, 2021

The next day, members of the local 7NEWS crew, including Juliana Mazza and photojournalist John Guice, posted up in the parking lot where the dog was stolen to report on the theft. While the news crew was setting up, they noticed a man who looked like the person in the surveillance cam footage walking a dog that looked like Titus.

Guice walked over to the man, whose name is Kyle Gariepy, and struck up a conversation with him while the news team rolled the camera. Mazza then walked over and asked if she could pet the dog so she could surreptitiously see if he had a name tag.

When she found out the dog was Titus, she asked the man why he didn’t call the number on the tag and he said his phone was “broken.” This begged a follow-up question. It’s been a day, why haven’t you contacted the owner or the authorities?

#ICYMI: I HAD to repost this story told by the lovely @MeganAlexander of @InsideEdition ! It aired last night after #7News at 6pm!pic.twitter.com/KvW176Q6xQ

— Juliana Mazza (@Juliana Mazza)
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Gariepy gave a very strange excuse for why he had the dog.

“He was just barking in the car, and I walked past the car, and I thought it was supposed to be a dog I was dog walking,” Gariepy told the crew. “It wasn’t a kidnapping. It was just a simple mistake.”

Why in the world would someone ask him to walk a dog that was in a parked car?

Gariepy’s story didn’t add up, so the news crew called the police and Gariepy stood there and waited until they arrived. Gariepy was arrested and charged with larceny of more than $1,200, and breaking and entering into a vehicle to commit a felony.

Just need to say how grateful I am to my photojournalist that day, John Guice! He actually spoke with the man first about how beautiful Titus was. As I walked over I quickly realized we found the dog and had the suspect. Wouldnu2019t have been possible without him!https://twitter.com/InsideEdition/status/1391913529243049984u00a0u2026

— Juliana Mazza (@Juliana Mazza)
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Later, the police called Titus’ owner Greg Siesczkiewicz and asked him to come and pick up his dog.

“I’m thrilled to have Titus back. I think, he is thrilled to have me back,” he told Inside Edition.

“I’m just glad that the person came back and I’m just glad that you guys were there,” Siesczkiewicz told 7NEWS. “If anyone ever sees this who questions the value of media, social media, broadcast media, this proves it.”

In 1994, Pulp Fiction made Quentin Tarantino one of the most famous filmmakers in Hollywood. What did he do with his newfound clout? Direct an episode of ER, of course. Ten years later, in the time between Kill Bill: Volume 2 and Death Proof, he stepped behind the camera for another TV show: CSI, a one-off gig that earned him his only Emmy nomination (his role as an Elvis impersonator on The Golden Girls was sadly overlooked). Those are, to date, the only times Tarantino has directed for TV. But Deadline reports that he’s in “early talks to direct one or two episodes” of Justified: City Primeval, the Justified limited series with Timothy Olyphant reprising his role as Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens (not to be confused with Space Raylan):

Tarantino and Olyphant worked together on the director’s most recent film, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. There also is the filmmaker’s devotion to Elmore Leonard, who created the Givens character… He optioned several Leonard titles during his career and has talked about possibly directing one of his Westerns, Forty Lashes Less One.

One Leonard adaptation that actually got made is Jackie Brown, based on his 1992 novel Rum Punch. If you want to make a case that it’s Tarantino’s best movie, well, you wouldn’t be the only one.

Tarantino also worked with Olyphant’s Justified co-star Walton Goggins on Django Unchained and The Hateful Eight, and you can hear his voice in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. There’s no word on whether Boyd Crowder will, like Raylan, be in City Primeval, but if he is, one thing’s for sure: his hair will look incredible.

(Via Deadline)

Earlier this month, it was reported that Snoop Dogg had acquired Death Row Records’ brand, but was still hammering out negotiations for the accompanying catalog. Today, Billboard reports that he’s officially completed those negotiations and now owns the masters for both of his albums under the label, Doggystyle and The Doggfather, as well as those for his 213 associates Daz Dillinger and Kurupt, along with Lady of Rage and the compilations and soundtracks Death Row released throughout the ’90s. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

However, that impressive collection of music does not include a few of the most well-known Death Row releases. Dr. Dre’s The Chronic is set to be returned to Snoop’s longtime collaborator sometime next year (August at the latest), while Tupac Shakur’s seminal classic All Eyez On Me and The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory (as Makavelli) have already reverted to Amaru Entertainment and the Tupac estate.

Snoop might not miss those exceptions much in the long run, as Billboard notes both of his albums are Death Row’s best sellers. Meanwhile, his newly released BODR (Bacc On Death Row) — his first release for the album in 25 years — is already generating revenue to the tune of 10,000 units, while Doggystyle alone was worth 169,000 units just in 2021. Billboard puts the total revenue for the catalog at around $6 million last year. Combined with the branding — which handles merch and licensing of the Death Row logo — Snoop’s adding about $50 million of value to his name. Billboard notes, however, that Snoop may not have paid that much to MNRK, which previously held the rights to Death Row, due to it no longer having an interest in the brand and having a tendency to return rights to artists, as it did with Dre and Pac.

Snoop says he wants to turn Death Row into an “NFT label,” which holds interesting prospects for the future, while his former protege Bow Wow revealed plans to release his own final album under the imprint earlier today.

After Britney Spears successfully ended her conservatorship last year, fellow child star Amanda Bynes is now following close behind. The former Nickelodeon prodigy has filed court documents to end her conservatorship, which her mother was temporarily granted in 2013, and then reinstated in 2014. The conservatorship is for both her person and her estate, according to Page Six.

Bynes’ lawyers told People that the actress is more stable than she used to be, and wants to end the conservatorship. “Amanda wishes to terminate her conservatorship. She believes her condition is improved and protection of the court is no longer necessary.” Last year, a judge granted the conservatorship to be extended through 2023.

The actress was a huge star in the early 2000s, starting on All That then creating her own sketch comedy The Amanda Show, and starring in a slew of hit movies like Big Fat Liar and Easy A. In 2013, a judge granted Bynes’ mother Lynn with temporary conservatorship after the actress was temporarily sent to a psychiatric facility for setting her neighbor’s driveway on fire. Bynes later admitted she was struggling with mental health issues and drug abuse. She met her now-fiance at an Alcohol Anonymous meeting in 2019.

Recently, Bynes received a degree from the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising and has been reportedly interested in making fragrances. Her hearing is scheduled for March 22.

Isaiah Stewart really wanted to make his elementary school’s basketball team. He doesn’t remember exactly how old he was — he guesses he was about nine or 10 — but at the time, tryouts were ongoing and he was determined to not miss them.

The problem: Stewart’s dad, Dela, was not able to get him to school that morning. Stewart has spoken at length in the past about the role his father has played in his life, instilling values of hard work, determination, and pride in him from the time he was young. One way he did this was to lead by example, working long days in construction to provide for his family.

On that one particular day, Dela heading into work early in the morning meant Isaiah had no way to get to tryouts on the other side of Rochester … well, there was one.

“I convinced my brother to wake up with me and we walked to school,” Stewart tells Dime. “So, we lived on the west side, my school was on the east side, so we got up early, walked to school. I think that just shows work ethic and how bad I wanted it at a young age.”

That work ethic and desire to do whatever he needs — even if it’s not exactly going down the path of least resistance — has helped Stewart get to the NBA, and is on display whenever he suits up for the Detroit Pistons. Now in the midst of his second year in the league, Stewart is part of a young core of players who the Pistons hope will lead them back to prominence.

This sort of rebuilding job is not easy. Since making the Eastern Conference Finals in 2008, the Pistons have made the postseason three times. They were swept in the first round in each appearance. They’ve finished above-.500 once in that time. All of this has happened for a franchise that has a rich history of winning in a specific way — from the Bad Boys of the 1980s to the championship-winning squad in the mid-00s, Detroit basketball has always been about putting on a hardhat and going to work.

It’s not difficult to see how a guy like Stewart is a cultural fit for this sort of team. A five-star prospect out of La Lumiere School in Indiana and a first-round pick out of Washington, Stewart came into the NBA with big time credentials. Despite this, Stewart says he saw plenty of skepticism about how his game would translate.

As a 6’8 center who didn’t come into the league with a reputation for being a freakish athlete or a lethal jump shooter, Stewart saw people writing him off before he ever stepped on the floor. Add in the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic meant rookies didn’t get Summer League or a proper preseason to ease their way into the Association and Stewart had to learn everything on the fly.

“The way I play and everything, and being a strong player going against a lot of grown men at 19, there’s a lot of welcome to the NBA moments,” he says with a laugh.

Still, Stewart was willing to whatever was necessary to contribute as a young player. He knows that there is always going to be a place in the league for a guy like him, someone who is willing to do the dirty work and never take a possession off. Mistakes on defense, he knew, were easier to swallow (both for himself and the team’s coaching staff) if they were the result of playing hard. It helped Stewart be comfortable switching onto guards on the perimeter, one of those aforementioned bits of skepticism he faced coming into the league. “I played in the 2-3 [zone] in college, and they didn’t think I was able to guard guards,” he says. “I proved I can do that from the day I stepped foot in the NBA.”

While he concedes he’s struggled to hit threes this year (he’s converting them at a 16 percent clip), Stewart took pride in the fact that his jumper started falling in the second half of his rookie campaign — he knocked down 20 percent of his threes before the All-Star break as a rookie and 34.5 percent of them after. He’s also confident that all of this will come, and that even if he hits bumps in the road, they’re all parts of a process.

“I just feel like you reap what you sow,” Stewart says. “If you’re working hard, and you’re putting in the work, you’re gonna get good things out of it. Might not be now, but when it does for me, you can say, ‘I know I put the work in for it.’

“The funnest thing to do,” he continues, “is prove doubters wrong and make doubters believers.”

This goes for more than just the man affectionately known as Beef Stew. The Pistons are banking on a ton of younger guys to usher in a new era of excellence. Trade deadline acquisition Marvin Bagley is the latest member of their youth movement, and Stewart thinks they’ll fit well together as they continue to gel. Reigning No. 1 overall pick Cade Cunningham is one of the best rookies in the league, while Saddiq Bey and Stewart were first and second-team All-Rookie selections, respectively, last season. Of the team’s 14 players who have appeared in at least 20 games this year, nine of them are 25 or younger.

It hasn’t yet translated to wins — Detroit is 14-45 this year, the second-worst record in the NBA. There are flashes of promise across the roster, but the goal is to build something sustainable so playoff berths are the norm, not the exception. And with guys like Stewart in tow, the Pistons are building up a roster that is willing to stay focused on their long-term goals and put in whatever work is required to get to that point.

“We feel like it’s worth it,” Stewart says. “And know the wins might not be showing now, but we know it’s gonna show later. We also know it’s not an easy process. It ain’t easy, but it’s going to happen with working hard, and putting trust in your work. And at the end of it, we feel like we gonna get good out of it.”

In a terrifying sign that we’re undoubtedly living in the Biblical End Times, Fox News praised President Joe Biden‘s Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson on Friday. That’s right, the Fox News. We’ll give you a moment to collect yourself.

The surprising moment went down during America Reports as Fox News anchor and chief legal correspondent Shannon Bream had nothing but positive things to say about Jackson. Via Mediaite:

“She’s got a sterling resume, as noted there. Harvard undergrad, Harvard Law School,” Bream said on America Reports. “She clerked for Justice Breyer, the very man that she’s said mentored her, the man she wants emulate and be able to – she said, I can’t fill his shoes but I’m maybe going to fill that seat. That’s what she aspires to now.”

Surely, this was a fluke, and the next Fox News pundit would have something negative to say about Biden’s pick. Guess again. Fox News contributor and legal scholar Jonathan Turley also heaped praise on Jackson calling her remarks on being chosen by Biden as “pitch-perfect.”

“They were terrific in terms of laying out the great honor that’s been given to her, but also these compelling aspects of her life,” Turley said. “There is a life story to be told here. Hers is a particularly impressive one.”

If you’re confused by this turn of events, join the club. We have no freaking clue what’s going on here, and we’re not necessarily complaining, but… it feels like a trap, right? Definitely has the feel of a trap. Stay on your toes, people.

(Via Mediaite)