Recommended

Listening
Girl Talk: Night Ripper
Can’t say enough good things about this album. According to his website (about an earlier album): "it's hotter than your kid sister's truth vs. dare antics." It has not yet lost replay value and continually keeps my heart rate up while I’m at work. I saw him live in Chicago very recently and it was a good show, I got pulled up on stage and all. Good times.

The Roots: Game Theory
The Roots show are still relevant with this album. I skipped them when they came to town recently and I've been regretting it since I got this album.

Artic Monkeys: Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not
This has been hyped but it’s pretty good.

RJD2: Various albums
Bumpin.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
Bad name, solid album. I have one extra ticket to see them at the Vic on Oct 3rd, let me know if you want in.

Kanye West: both albums
Probably not as good as the hype. but close.

Lovage – Music to Make Love To Your Old Lady By
Interesting trip-hop album that works.

The Streets – I prefer his earlier work "Original Pirate Material" to "A Grand Don’t Come For Free" (the one that got critical acclaim).

The Flaming Lips – At War With The Mystics
Not sure of it’s replay value but enjoyable so far.

Noise Isolating Earphones + iPod + iPod Volume Limit Control (don’t kill your ears, yo)
Perfect for taking the El and busy office environments. Not recommended for biking or wondering in traffic.

Reading
Slack
"A Handbook for Managers, Entrepreneurs and CEOs." Sounds like you, enh?

Head First: Design Patterns
This is the only book on software worth reading... that has a girl on the cover.

The Paradox of Choice: Why More is Less
I think this was pretty interesting and immediately useful pop psych.

Watching
OK Go imitation videos

Breakdancing videos on youtube

Youtube videos on how to talk like a pirate (talk like a pirate day tomorrow!)

Quarter Wasting
Q*Bert – classic.

RHIT Homecoming: I am planning on going.
Are you coming?

What the hell happened to August?

So I was with this girl in her bathtub showing her what’s been running through my head day and night for a while now. No, it’s nothing too inappropriate - we were clothed and looking at her laptop (the bathtub is the wi-fi hotspot in her apartment) at OK Go’s backyard dancing video. I guess it’s pretty old news to the ultrahip but I found it Thursday and its pure awesomeness will not get out of my head. For the hardcore fan/timewaster there’s a metric shit-ton of videos of other hardcore fans/timewasters who have made their own renditions of the act, so many in fact that there’s a video mashup and animations (1, 2). So I’ve been convinced: video on the internet is the best new way to waste time (screw you, blogs!). And the bathtub is a good place to do stuff, like compose emails.