So here it is, Black Friday. One day we spend giving thanks for all that God has given us. The next day, we dedicate fully to complaining about how there’s entirely too much.

“Hey, guys, we should play baseball. . . . And we should fight crime.”

I know, it just doesn’t seem right. I’m barely able to keep this blog fresh, let alone the other (oh, crap, I don’t even want to count them) blogs I have suspended in lethargy. So why start a new one?

Because my friend wanted to start a new one, a blog that was mainly political . . . basically, it’s the blog you never talk about at parties. But you want us on that blog. You need us on that blog. We’ll try to keep it funny, fresh, and . . . for some reason I can’t think of a third F word that really fits.

So, we’ll both be contributing to it. I’m excited for a few reasons: The elections brought arguing back into fashion; I love distractions; I can free up this space to offend people in less traditional ways than religion and politics; But mostly I’m excited about yet another opportunity to collaborate with one of my favorite people. She’s a gifted, sharp, wickedly talented writer and an all-around awesome human being.

I can’t promise a steady font of political commentary like we’re some sort of 24-7 news outlet. But when something major/controversial happens, you’ll know where to turn for an unexpected and irreverent take on the news . . . or the olds. We’ll keep you guessing like that.

So please, feel free to check out Satirically Correct at your leisure. Not much to look at yet, but it’ll get there.

Yeah, so maybe it’s a bit hypocritical of me to chastise Yahoo! for changing their look right when I’m set to give my own blog a facelift.

Henry Smith, “Give Thanks” (performed by Don Moen)

It’s hard to believe it’s been more than 100 years since Einstein proposed his theory of relativity, the equation everybody knows and no one understands . . . until now. A team of scientists professes to have proven the groundbreaking theorem using a massive block of supercomputers and a fun little game they call chromodynamics. I don’t pretend to understand it any more than I understand the economy, but as the Internets have explained it to me, only 5% of the mass of an atom comes from the actual particles that comprise its structure. The other 95% of the perceived mass comes from the energy that binds the subatomic particles together. Einstein’s theory proposed that energy and mass were equivalent and somehow interchangeable (correct me if I’m wrong, please). People have bought the idea for a long time, but now it’s undisputed, signed, sealed, delivered . . . it’s yours.

I always wondered about this. I was taught that if an atom was enlarged to the size of a football field, the nucleus would be the size of a flea resting at the 50-yard line. I never understood how there could be that much empty space between the center of an atom and the electrons circling it. By that rationale, most of what we call solid matter would, in fact, be . . . nothing. But according to Einstein’s theory and the ramifications of what I’m reading, as pathetically as I understand it, we are more energy than matter . . . more soul than substance, if you will. If the metaphysical implications don’t get your brain working and wondering about the nature of our existence and the faultiness of humanistic and naturalistic thought, then I don’t know what will. And doesn’t the nerd in you wonder how long it can be, now that Einstein has been proved right, before George Lucas’s theory of midichloreans is proved right as well?

FOR THOSE OF YOU SCROLLING DOWN PAST THE NONSENSE, STOP HERE.

Here’s today’s question:

What two countries are connected by the Simplon Tunnel that runs through the Alps?

And here’s who knew that a barrel of oil is 42 gallons:

Karen M (the M stands for Me And Only Me)

Congrats!!

Over the 15 or so years I’ve been using the Internet, I’ve grown accustomed to seeing my favorite pages undergo changes, tweaks, and massive overhauls. But there is almost always some indication given by the Web site–some warning, some note, some acknowledgment given to draw my attention to what the change is and why it was made.

The first time I heard of Redbox, I thought it was a business model doomed to fail. DVD rental for a dollar made absolutely no sense to me. Yeah, I knew they could operate with a fraction of the work force of a Blockbuster. Yes, it removed the postal fees from the Netflix equation. And yes, they could get by carrying fewer titles than either competitor. But how could they make money?