Ramon Watkins, aka Prophet Yahweh claims he can summon UFOs via use of the Hebrew Old Testament. Thinking to mock a wackjob, ABC News Las Vegas challenged him. Then the UFOs appeared on demand, and on camera, just as Watkins promised. Embedded windows media player footage here and a direct stream here. more inside

The Seven Basic Plots Christopher Booker (ironic name), founding editor of Private Eye, writes a tome that espouses the concept of finite archetypal stories that are remixed and repackaged in human myth to become the blueprint for all stories - similar to the concepts of Joseph Campbell. "The Seven Basic Plots: Why We Tell Stories." So is that all there is? Not really, says Denis Dutton.

Bapa Phünsto Wangye , founder of the Tibetan Communist Party. The first chapter of his recently published memoirs can be read on line, a story that challenges overly simplistic readings of the Tibetan experience in "New China".

The Thirty-Six Dramatic Situations by Georges Polti.

This is a mind boggling (but fun) puzzle...apparently the new craze of the day... more inside

"My chief aim in life is to capture some of these eels." Off the coast of Samoa, researchers find hundreds of magical eels squiggling around a toxic and active underwater volcano and nobody knows what their names are. In Australia, some other researchers find zillions of ugly spider crabs having an orgy. Are these events linked? No. Probably not.

Why Coffee Works - Including a charming picture of a rat and a lead on the cause of insomnia (god I hope they fix that).

Crappy Art ...to sell your art, every artist needs an angle

War Stories (1939-1945)

Need to prove you're the smarty? How does it strike you, and does it smart? more inside

LA Meetup Featuring a22lamia at Casa de Calamari It appears that a22lamia (who is visiting the big city after spending weeks staring at Joshua Trees in the Mojave desert) is going to come over to my house in West Hollywood for cocktails tonight. I've got the word out to Mandyman, but if any other LA monkeys want to show up, drop me a line at michael.escher@gmail.com and I will give you directions. The poo will start flinging around 7:00pm. All other monkeys prepair for drunk posting. PS- BYOBAS (Bring Your Own Bottle And Snax).

"I just poured HOT GRITS down my pants." Since its inception, the Wikipedia has accumulated plenty of Bad Jokes and Other Deleted Nonsense. Fortunately, these gems are meticulously collected and archived for future generations to treasure. more inside

Curious, George: Title of an Idependent Documentary Movie A few years ago, my local Rhode Island PBS ran a documentary film about automobile parking issues, that was quite funny. I wrote down the title, but I lost the notebook in which it was written. In the extended description I have written about what I remember about the movie. Any movie monkeys (or PBS monkeys) have any information about the movie, title or where I might find a copy of it? Or maybe just another place to search? more inside

Brains under glass "The brains on the cart are usually displayed in a glass cabinet on the second floor of Uris Hall. They serve no scientific purpose, Professor Finlay said, but they do make a powerful pedagogical point." (NYT article - CNET link) more inside

The crow that adopted a kitten. A more doomed relationship I can hardly imagine. Via

Straight From WTFistan I give thee that known as TRINP! Crossword Puzzle of Personal Given Names! Why our calender blows! Meet the number-crazed Miss Hecksenbasen! more inside

Indian Mosaic Sculpture Gardens

"..over twenty five acres of several thousand sculptures set in large mosaic courtyards linked by walled paths and deep gorges.."

There's even a Monkey Garden.

E-MAIL! Cartoon. If only I were still this excited about the internet. AWESOME!!! ...sort of NSFW...in a harmless animated kind of way.

Lost In Translation

Curious, George I need a name for a dessert-only restaurant. more inside