Nerd Up Your Christmas with ThinkGeek

It's official. Christmas is less than 2 weeks away. If the geek in your life is still on your shopping list, ThinkGeek has you covered. They have tons of great exclusive apparel that will help your geek fly their nerd flag high and proud.

8-Bit Tie: A few of us monkeys at ThinkGeek had this great shared dream a few months ago. In it, the whole world was 8-Bit, just like the video games we grew up on. We found ourselves having to leap from platform to platform, to search for pieces of the Triforce of Wisdom, and to fight scary mutated plants and animals. The music was awesome (and still stuck in our heads) but the coolest part was what we were wearing: a tie. But not just any tie, an 8-Bit tie!

The Personal Soundtrack Shirt is an amazing new wearable audio solution that features a working speaker embedded into the front of the shirt. When you push the appropriate button on the pocketable remote you get music or sound effects appropriate for any situation... everything from drum roll, to cat call whistle, to western showdown. Check out the chart below to see the extensive list of built in sounds and suggestions on using them for dramatic punctuation in your everyday life.

Electronic Rock Guitar Shirt: Now you can purchase one of these fine Electronic Rock Guitar Shirts and get a little wearable ROCK magic for yourself. The Electronic Guitar Shirt is not a toy that plays pre-canned musical riffs, it is a real musical instrument that allows you to play your favorite songs and sound great doing it.

The 'ties suck' tie is one very stylish and dark blue 100% Silk tie with a grayish silver repeating pattern in binary. Should the binary pattern be translated into it's ASCII equivalent, you'll soon figure out why we called this tie the 'ties suck' tie. It is, truly, The Tie of Ties. The One Tie To Rule Them All And In The Hallways Mock Them.

T-Qualizer Shirt: Here at ThinkGeek we're constantly amazed at the never-ending evolution of new technology. Hey, it's our job. Take the lowly T-Shirt for example: In caveman times you had animal pelts... the Medieval era saw rise to the stylish burlap sack... next came lovely soft cotton and then synthetic polyester. Finally the modern space age delivers a fully functioning graphic equalizer in a handy t-shirt format. Party like it's 2999 with the glowing display on the T-Qualizer that dynamically changes with any ambient sound or music.

Zombie Attack Hoodie: For defending oneself during the upcoming zombie apocalypse, we highly recommend a hoodie. Layering is key. One minute you're going to be running, next minute you're going to be hiding in a cold, dark corner. It pays to have layers.

These pieces of geek wear and loads of other fantastic geek items can be purchased at ThinkGeek.

-Happy last-minute shopping

More Good Times with Grammar

Grammar just got hi-lar-i-ous!

TheOatmeal.com has released four new grammar* posters that will literally change your life cost $11.95 each.

Thanks to The Oatmeal, we can learn

• when to use i.e. in a sentence
• what it means when you say literally
  
• 10 words you need to stop misspelling
  
• how to use a semicolon
  

And don't forget the classic, How to Use an Apostrophe.

Each poster is available for $11.95 in The Oatmeal's shop.

True grammar geeks can purchase the $32.00 poster pack, which includes the Ten Words You Need to Stop Misspelling, How to Use a Semicolon, How to Use an Apostrophe, and When to Use i.e. in a Sentence. For math geeks, that is just $8.00 per poster!

Oh how I love cheap** grammar.

-Happy Grammartizing***

*grammar-ish
**inexpensive
***I just made that up.

found via Lifehacker's Brush Up on Grammar Rules with These Light-Hearted Resources

USB Dead Drops are Awesome . . . in Theory

The Thing: USB flash drives installed into walls and columns throughout New York City, quite literally creating an amazing, street-level, physical peer to peer file sharing network.

The Theory: Plug your laptop or other portable device into these USB Dead Drops and download all the incredible files left behind by those who proceeded you. Upload incredible files for those who will come after you.

The Reality: Plug in your laptop or other portable device and download all the incredible files left behind . . . and a bunch of junk . . . and a virus that will fry your hard drive . . . and some spyware that will aid in the theft of your identity.

Of course, as creator of the USB Dead Drops, Aram Bartholl is quick to point out, downloading via the Internet is a risky proposition as well, but most of us give little thought to the danger and download freely. He implores users to always take necessary precautions to ensure the safety of their systems when using the drops.

Translation: Caveat Emptor Downloader

Although Bartholl's original project has been limited to New York City, many fans of the idea have been installing USB Dead Drops in their own cities. Locations of the new drops can be found in the Database and Map.

Want to create your own USB Dead Drop? Bartholl provides this handy guide to get you started.

To find out more about Aram Bartholl and his USB Dead Drops, visit the project homepage.

-Happy Dead Dropping

found via NPR's "Dead Drops:" Plugging Your Laptop Into Strange Places

Tweenlight: The Simpsons Take on Twilight

In this year's Treehouse of Horrors, The Simpsons take a hilarious jab at Stephenie Meyer's Twilight.

The usually bright and sunny Springfield is transformed into the perfect gloomy, rain-soaked landscape for the unfolding love story between Lisa Simpson and Edmund, the new, handsome vampire in school.

And thus begins "Tweenlight."

From the moment Edmund saved Lisa from being run down by an out of control school bus, followed by a banana seat bicycle, followed by an old-timey car, followed by a tiny clown car, followed by a Segway, I was hooked. "Tweenlight" does a wonderful job of capturing the mood and tone of the novels and films, while infusing each scene with the precision Simpson satire. I loved all 7 minutes of it.

If you would like to watch The Simpsons take on Twilight, Tree House of Horrors XXI can be seen on Hulu or on The Simpsons' website.

Bonus: If you are a fan of Twilight parodies, Saturday Night Live's, "Firelight" is a must see.

Become a Library Book Sale Superstar

Yes! You too can become a library book sale superstar. Not an all-star, not a shining star, not even a rising star, but a full-fledged superstar.

Wise Bread's 5 Tips to Get the Most out of a Library Sale by Jennifer Scott, outlines 5 simple steps to attaining your superstardum.

• Get there early.
• Bring your own bags.
  
• Don't bring a ton of cash.
• Commit yourself to just a few laps.
• Ask yourself "Will I read this?" and answer honestly.
  

As a veteran of library books sales, I feel I should add what I feel is the most important tip for all book sale goers.

• Always remember where you are.

You are at a used book sale. This means, please

• don't gripe about the selection. We are limited to selling what has been donated or discarded.
  
• don't gripe about the condition of the books. See above.
• don't gripe about the prices. Where else are you gonna find a hardback for fifty cents?
  
• just . . . don't gripe. It's a library books sale for Pete's sake. Just enjoy an afternoon of exploring mountains of affordable books.
  

Bonus Tip:

• Be nice to the staff. We have been there all week getting the sale ready for you . . . and . . . we might just know where to find a stash of books by your favorite author.
  

With these handy tips in mind, enjoy your next local book sale and don't be afraid to become a superstar.

-Happy Hunting