Did you know that the formula for calculating Weight Watchers “Points” is actually protected by patent? On one hand that means that WW has a habit of litigating against folks who write Points calculators… but on the other, it means that the formula is publicly available on the patent documents and you can write your own. Which I am doing now.

Oh my God. And I thought having a leech on my foot was bad!

My sister will love this one: FreeKaraoke.com. They’re karaoke MIDI files! How delightfully low-fi. On my machine they play in Quicktime and the words light up as the song plays. How neat (and by neat, I mean sorta lame too) is that? We may need to have a karaoke MIDI party, methinks. The Snook also reports that there are other sites offering these around the internets too.

The Snook makes a grab for my tummy…
Me: Hey, don’t grab my schub! I’ve got a total muffin top today.
Him: “Muffin top”?
Me: Muffin top.
Him: Well, everybody loves muffins.

(Link courtesy of the non-muffin-top-sporting Andrew.)

A comparison of widescreen vs. fullscreen using the Prisoner of Azkaban DVDs. Good grief. This points out exactly why people who object to widescreen are out of their minds. (Link courtesy of Manda.)

The 25 Best Ever REM Songs. You know, I was totally in agreement with this guy from the beginning, nodding my head and murmuring “Hell yes!” each time he name-checked yet another of my favorites (especially the obscure ones that give me a secret thrill from owning, like the “Where’s Captain Kirk?” fan club single which I hope is still in my Mom’s basement somewhere), until it all came to a screeching halt at #5: “Sweetness Follows.” HUH? I hate that song! And where’s “Man on the Moon,” surely one of the best-written songs of the 90’s? So lift out “Sweetness Follows” and replace it with “Man on the Moon” and we’re in business. (Max questions the #1 pick but I can kinda see it, especially since Stipe commented during Unplugged that it was his favorite REM song.) I also thought of a few Honorable Mentions that, while I wouldn’t necessarily put in the Top 25, are definitely in the Top 30: the Untitled song at the end of Green, “Wendell Gee,” “The Flowers of Guatemala,” “Half a World Away,” and “What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?” Interesting omissions: “The One I Love,” “Everybody Hurts,” the last couple radio singles. Again, can’t really disagree too much there. For me, Life’s Rich Pageant is the most overlooked album of the bunch. (Original link courtesy of Max.)

Oh, and why am I suddently all obsessed with REM? BECAUSE WE’RE SEEING THEM TONIGHT!

Ebert takes on the Creationists. Woo!