More tests are being run on the home and workspace of a Manhattan man in the city’s first known case of anthrax exposure since shortly after the September 11th terror attacks. Unlike those incidents, health officials believe 44-year-old Vado Diomande contracted the disease from animal skins he brought back from Africa to use to make drums. Diomande remains hospitalized in Pennsylvania Thursday morning where he had traveled to perform with a dance troupe.

City officials stress there is no cause for alarm, but they aren’t taking any chances.

Police, fire and emergency crews are testing his Brooklyn workspace and his West Village apartment for any signs of the bacteria. They believe the skins were kept in the warehouse in DUMBO.

Well, I’m perturbed by this, I’ll be honest. Weird that I was playing a freaking djambe drum last night at the Sugar Lounge in Brooklyn… I think I’ll go and wash my hands.

After numerous pints of the good stuff, and ending on a shot of tequila, my night of birthday debauchery has left me with a stinker of a hangover… I can’t type for long, I lose focus.

I just went involuntarily cross-eyed and almost covered my screen in vomitous.

A little over a week ago I wrote about the comedic genius of The Ricky Gervais Show, a brand new podcast to the ‘cast world, and how I couldn’t get enough of this sharp wit and the hapless Karl Pilkington. They released their final 12th episode the other day, and to my complete surprise, Ricky announced that they would start charging a fee for their season 2 of the podcast.

CHARGING FOR A PODCAST?!?! Is he serious?

Ricky, Podcasts are so popular because they’re FREE… you have the largest downloads of any podcast because:

1. your show is hilarious

and…

2. IT WAS FREE!

Rick, you tight bastard - don’t you make enough money as it is without charging $6.95 for 4 of the new episodes? I can guarantee, you will lose about 60% of your podcast fan base over this. Besides all that, #11 and #12 were utter shite - what are you thinking doing the ads with a Mr T voice? TERRIBLE!

What a wanker.

I turned 34 today. Doesn’t feel like it typically did in my earlier years - you know, 21 was a blast, 25 was kinda cool, and my 30th was a lot of fun (in fact, that was my first birthday here in NYC).

Had a party thrown for me at the office today. Sweet of them, got a card signed by everyone - some of which I fucking loathe… two-faced twats. We ate pizza, which was good - can’t beat New York pizza.

Anyway, I plan on sampling some good ale tonight - probably head on down to The Room on Sullivan (at Houston) tonight for a few beers… say hello to some old friends.

30 minutes to go and I’m out of here - then the partying begins! If you see me, give me a 5 yard perimeter, I plan on getting rowdy.

Enryu’s 15-foot arms are powerful enough to lift a small passenger car, and its hands are almost as dexterous as a human being’s. And the 5-ton, 11.5-foot robot may soon be helping communities across Japan reach avalanche sites and clear snow, as the nation struggles to deal with its snowiest winter in decades, said Japanese company Tmsuk Co.

A model tested Thursday in Niigata prefecture, at the heart of Japan’s snow country, has two hydraulically operated arms with a reach of 16 feet, each capable of lifting 1,102 pounds, according to company spokesman Shiro Fujita.

The City of New York could have done with a hundred Enryu’s this last weekend! How awesome would it look seeing dozens of these clunking around the streets of Manhattan?!

The “Brief Safe” is an innovative diversion safe that can secure your cash, documents, and other small valuables from inquisitive eyes and thieving hands, both at home and when you’re traveling. Items can be hidden right under their noses with these specially-designed briefs which contain a fly-accessed 4″ x 10″ secret compartment with Velcro closure and “special markings” on the lower rear portion. Leave the “Brief Safe” in plain view in your laundry basket or washing machine at home, or in your suitcase in a hotel room - even the most hardened burglar or most curious snoop will “skid” to a screeching halt as soon as they see them.

So, next time you go away on business, or take a trip to your in-laws, don’t forget to pack these puppies - could save you a shit load.

As if it couldn’t get any better, there’s also this:

One size. Color: white (and brown). To add realistic smell, check out “Doo Drops” on Page 65.

Who comes up with this shit?!

Are you struggling with filthy paw prints on your lino or new plush velour sofa? Fret not, the revolutionary Paw Plunger is at the epicenter of your happiness.

Just fill the Paw Plunger with warm water, dunk your dog’s dannies one by one and towel dry - what could be simpler?

I love shit like this.

A jury on Friday said Southwest Airlines did not racially discriminate against a black woman when she was asked to buy a second seat on a plane because of her size.The jury deliberated for a little over an hour before finding against Nadine Thompson, who sued Southwest in federal court. She claimed the airline’s “customer of size” policy was unfairly applied to her after she boarded a flight at Manchester Airport in 2003.

Joel Drake, a Southwest employee, testified earlier that Thompson accused him of being a “racist pig” when he tried to explain the company’s policy and swore at him. He said in 18 years with Southwest, he’d never encountered such horrible accusations and told his boss he couldn’t do his job anymore. He took six weeks off and requested a lower position.

Thompson testified that Drake was bullying her and she felt scared, so words were her only way to fight back. She said that no Southwest employees, including Drake, ever explained to her why she needed to buy a second seat.

“Even if you’re the only black person on a flight … you still can’t prove race,” Thompson said after the verdict. “If they don’t fix these problems with their policy, other people are going to come at them.”

I love this story. Again, another example of this nation’s adept ability to sue at the drop of a hat. What makes me laugh is the part about her suing for racial discrimination - how on earth does being asked to buy an extra seat because your arse is the size of a fucking truck constitute a racial slur? I get it, she knows only full well she’s of large proportion, but there’s isn’t a law protecting her from having her lard arse commented upon, so she went with the most obvious… get real woman.

Seriously, what’s wrong with people in the US?

With so much time on my hands yesterday due to the snow storm, I fancied a wee surf in the iTunes Music Store… I was in the market for some new Podcasts. After some fruitless searching for anything that really caught my eye, I noticed a listing for the most popular podcasts pertaining to the number of downloads - the #1 spot was held by The Ricky Gervais Show. If you’re British, Ricky won’t need an introduction - if you’re not, he’s the bloke behind the UK version of The Office - that’d be the funny version, not the fucking American rip off, starring Steve “Fudgenugget McAssbandit” Carell.

[back to point]

So I decide to give Ricky’s podcast a listen to - and bare in mind, I have a very limited podcast library… just one, to be exact - which is the PGRevolution.com PSP Podcast. Seeing as I had the extra space on my Nano, I felt like downloading the entire list from iTunes (which was the most recent 4 episodes) and load ‘em up.

The Ricky Gervais Show Podcast has 3 chaps sounding off - Ricky Gervais, Steve Merchant and Karl Pilkington. From listener e-mails to readings of Karl’s personal diary, this podcast is the funniest thing I have ever heard. If you have a mp3 player, download it. If you don’t have a mp3 player, download it and play it on your PC.

Just so we’re clear, download the fucking podcast - Ricky, you personify comedic genius.

www.rickygervais.com.

Wow, what a Sunday! I was going to write yesterday, but I was tied up amongst other things - and enjoying watching the Olympics. Well, no doubt you all heard about our record snowfall yesterday - over 2 feet of the lovely white stuff. Not many of my American friends like the snow, but coming from a country that doesn’t get that much in the way of the flakes, I LOVE the stuff.

…and it’s always fun watching the City of New York come to a grinding halt.

Crammed into subway cars with hundreds of other commuters during the morning rush, New Yorkers have cultivated all kinds of fantasies about what they would rather be doing — but acting on them is another matter.
Officials are axing advertisements that playfully urge subway riders to pretend they’re on vacation — showing cartoon figures fly fishing on the tracks and lounging across subway seats. The ads, part of a Bahamas Ministry of Tourism campaign, “advocate behavior that is clearly unsafe” and will be replaced, said Jodi Senese, a spokeswoman for CBS Outdoor, the company that distributes advertising in New York’s underground.

Under the heading “Instant Escape No. 2: How to Fly Fish with a Scarf and a cellphone,” one ad seems to instruct riders to fish for trash on the tracks by putting something sticky on a cellphone and attaching it to a scarf.

Another sign in the series, “How to Turn a Subway Seat into a Hammock,” shows a figure draped over several seats.

Track fishing and seat hogging are both forbidden by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s official rules.

Senese told The New York Times for Wednesday editions that the Bahamas campaign escaped her company’s notice because tourism ads do not usually require heavy scrutiny. The ads are plastered throughout as many as a quarter of the city’s 6,210 subway cars.

I’ve seen these ads over the last few weeks, and they’re eye catching - and fun with it. Makes a nice change from seeing ad after ad for some English language school bribing foreigners with the notion of speaking English will actually increase their network of friends.

I’m confused though… wouldn’t their campaign have had to been approved by the MTA in the first place? Moreover, I’m glad they’re taking down the ads, I mean, god forbid I feel compelled enough to stick a hook and maggot on the end of my scarf one day on the platform at Washington/Clinton… [rolls eyes]

Happy Groundhog Day everyone! In the time honored tradition of waking the groundhog in the wee hours on February 2nd each year, Punxsutawney Phil peeked outside, then quickly scarpered back into his home, bringing forth 6 weeks of further wintery weather.

A centerdaily.com article reads:

The world’s most famous weather prognosticating groundhog was roused from his burrow at 7:23 a.m. Thursday and saw his shadow, a sign that there’ll be six more weeks of winter.And though the crowds booed, it didn’t deter many who were dressed in black and gold and swirling Pittsburgh Steelers Terrible Towels in the air in anticipation of Sunday’s Super Bowl.

Phil even got in on the impromptu Steelers pep rally, with his handler Bill Deeley draping a Terrible Towel over him as he emerged. Earlier, members of the groudhog’s famed Inner Circle threw the trademark towels at the crowds as they sang “Here we go Steelers.”

But even though Phil’s handlers left no doubt about their allegiance on the gridiron, Phil didn’t make a prediction about the outcome of the game.
Many of the hundreds in attendance had waited outside for hours in 30-degree weather, much warmer than in years past when temperatures traditionally have been only in the teens.

“This is just a ball. I’m having so much fun,” said Nancy Durr, of Paxton, Neb., who came to Gobbler’s Knob at about 2:15 a.m. Durr, who had rub-on Punxsutawney Phil tattoos on each of her cheeks, came with her six brothers and sisters to celebrate her 50th birthday.

“I just always wanted to spend my birthday here,” she said.
Each Feb. 2, thousands of people descend on Punxsutawney, a town of about 6,100 people located about 65 miles northeast of Pittsburgh, for a little midwinter revelry, celebrating what had essentially been a German superstition.
The Germans believed that if a hibernating animal casts a shadow Feb. 2 - the Christian holiday of Candlemas - winter will last another six weeks. If no shadow is seen, legend says spring will come early.

Don’t put your coats away just yet folks, I feel snow a-coming our way… remember last February? Brrrrr…

Lindsay Lohan was treated at a London hospital last week after she cut her leg in an accident at Bryan Adams’ home, according to published reports.The 19-year-old “Mean Girls” star had 10 stitches to close a gash on her shin after she slipped on a set of stairs Friday. Lohan was released from the hospital later that day, the reports said.

“She and her friends were preparing breakfast, with eggs and everything, and Lindsay was going up the stairs, carrying a ceramic teacup,” her mother, Dina Lohan, was quoted as telling Star magazine.

“She had just come out of the shower so she was still wet and had some lotion on, and she completely flipped on the stairs since it was slippery. The teacup went flying, it was shattered, and one of the pieces cut Lindsay in her shin. It was an accident.”

I have one question… who gives a fuck?

You know the media are getting desperate when they print shit like this… what’s up CNN, the war becoming a tad blase for you?

How about some real news, news about something other than superficial excuses for human beings? Take this article about a baby Hippo and a giant tortoise that have bonded post-Tsunami, after the Hippo was carried down-river then rescued by wildlife rangers, for example. Now that’s good reading!

Lindsay Lohan’s chin, I mean come on for christ’s sake.