Great Ideas...update.

About 5.5 years ago, I posted about an idea about a baby beer smuggler, basically based on the fake boobs or fake beer belly flasks that you fill with beer and sneak into a sporting event or concert.

You can read about it in detail here.

http://gubbyblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/great-ideas.html

Well, I would like to proudly announce that someone has stolen this idea and is working to make it a reality (I have nothing to do with this).

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1295271146/the-cool-baby/

Karaoke as Promotion

I may not sing karaoke often (or well) but I listen a lot.

I've heard great karaoke, funny karaoke, horrible karaoke...and everything in between.  The great thing about karaoke is the variety of songs.  Sure, you hear a lot of the same stuff - Don MacLean's American Pie, Toby Keith's I Love This Bar, Gloria Gaynor's I Will Survive, and Picture by Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow (or worse yet the parody).  You suffer through...distract yourself with your drink or food.  But almost every time - there is at least one song that makes me think "Oh, what's this?" or ""Man, I forgot about this song."  Karaoke has inspired me to buy a lot of music and investigate a lot of artists and bands that I hadn't heard of before.

I think karaoke is great for introducing people to new music and reminding them of old songs.  My problem is that the place rarely has the song I want to sing - sure they will have thousands and thousands of songs but they always seem to be missing the exact song I want.  They'll have Harvey Danger - Flag Pole Sitta but not Little Round Mirrors, they will have Megadeth Trust, but not Symphony of Destruction.

Even worse (and I can't blame the venues since they have to buy the songs, but still it's disappointing), they don't have the obscure and small time bands that I think are awesome and would love to introduce to people.  I always wish that more small time and beginning bands would release karaoke versions of their songs for the fans to download and take to their local karaoke establishment.  I would love to have sing some Speed McQueen, Jupiter Sunrise, or 2 Skinnee Js.  There is tons of music that I would love to sing that most people haven't heard...and I am sure many others have some obscure song that they would like to share with the world.  I wouldn't worry about the quality, I've heard really awful renditions and later looked them up to see what it should sound like.  Any publicity is good publicity right?

Just and idea that I have had stewing in my brain for years...now get on it indie bands.

Once Again a Failure

For the past few years I have been celebrating No-Shave November. I hate having facial hair but also hate shaving and completely lazy. November is my designated month to not even shave my normal two times a week.


No-Shave November exists for a few reasons


A) gives me a chance to hit snooze again in the morning, I hate getting up when the weather starts changing to winter.

B) gives me an excuse to look all scruffy (besides being totally lazy)

C) makes me appreciate shaving for a couple months afterwards

D) lets me see if I have matured into an adult male able to grow a beard.


I am calling an early end to No-Shave November (again). I have once again proven that I am incapable of growing decent looking facial hair, and would rather look clean shaving for the family holiday gathering. It also itches like crazy and makes it hard to sleep. Once again, I am a failure in life (even at my own, pretend holiday). Some day, maybe I will grow up to be a manly man who can grow a respectable beard, but it is not this day.


Goodbye scruffy, weak-ass beard...I will most likely kill you in the morning.

RIP - scraggly beard 2009

The Great PB & J Experiment

Every once in a while I come up with a great idea or invention. Unfortunately, most people seem to think that these ideas are too weird. After I mention it and a few people shoot it down, I usually end up forgetting my great idea. Instead I will document these ideas for you, interwebicon.

Mad Scientist courtesy of Wikimedia Commons and J.J.

I love peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I eat them at least once a week. Many people I know think this is weird since I am in my thirties. I guess they think it is childish or something...but I tell you that deliciousness has no age limit. I am not going to miss out on a great PB&J just because I think I am too sophisticated for it. It tastes great and I don't need any food snobs telling me otherwise.

Photo from: Wikimedia Commons and Mpegman

I am a grape jelly person. It is a classic for a reason, it is awesome. I throw in some other flavors every once in a while to mix it up - appricot, orange marmelade, or cherry jelly all get a little bit of action but grape jelly is by far the most common partner for my peanut butter. It is just something that always works well. Every once in a great while, I am just not in the mood for jelly...grape or otherwise. This leads to experimentation. Past experiments have included:

• Peanut Butter and Fruit - any kind works well, but especially bananas or apples are good.


• Peanut Butter and Sugar - my mom made these for me as a kid - it is basically getting jelly down to its main component. Getting the right mix of sugar is tricky. Too much and it leaks out of the bread (and is really dry), too little and you don't really taste it.


• Peanut Butter and Cinnamon and Sugar - the extra kick of the cinnamon allows you to use less sugar but get more taste. Still a little dry though.


• Peanut Butter and Honey - good but I've never been a big fan of the stickiness of honey.


• Peanut Butter and Cereal - who hasn't tried this since the Breakfast club came out? Fruity Pebbles are my favorite (since they are my favorite cereal) but Cap'n Crunch, Cookie Crisp, and corn pops all work well. Not a big fan of marshmallow cereals on my sandwich. Something this crunchy is a weird texture for a sandwich.


• Peanut Butter and Maple Syrup - tasted good but was too runny. Syrup just soaked into bread making it squishy.


• Peanut Butter and Hersey Syrup - thought this would make a good Reese's type sandwich. It was good but like maple before it, it was too thin and messy and just soaked into the bread. Using Hersey Candy Bars or mini chocolate chips works better. How about using chocolate cake for bread with peanut butter between them?


• Peanut Butter and Bacon - kind of a take on the Elvis special but I didn't have any bananas and didn't fry it. Not a bad sandwich at all. I can see how the bananas are needed for a hint of sweetness though.


• Peanut Butter and Potato Chips - decent, I was hoping for kind of a salted nut roll type flavor, but it didn't quite match that. Also too crispy for me (like the cereal). Would probably be really good (sweet & salty, creamy & crunchy) if someone was high.

There has been many other variations...and most are surprisingly good. The other night, I came up with new inspiration and I can't believe I hadn't thought of this before:

Peanut Butter and Pudding Sandwiches



I used half a chocolate pudding snack-pack for the filling with my peanut butter. This has turned out much better for the sandwich than chocolate syrup or even candy bars. It is pretty close to a traditional PB&J as far as consistency, texture, and ease. The creaminess of both the peanut butter and the pudding made it a delight to eat. It tasted pretty darn good. Plus PB&P works as an acronym too. I wish I would have taken a picture because it really was a thing of beauty.



Now I am really looking forward to trying something a little more exotic - PB & Tapioca or maybe PB & Butterscotch. I bet PB with banana pudding and banana slices would be wonderful. Oh just had another idea - Peanut Butter and Cake Frosting!



Don't be afraid of PB&J and don't be afraid to mix it up a little.

Great Ideas

Every once in a while I come up with a great idea or invention. Unfortunately, most people seem to think that these ideas are too weird. After I mention it and a few people shoot it down, I usually end up forgetting my great idea. Maybe I should take one to that show SharkTank. Instead I will document these ideas for you, interwebicon.


Baby Beer Smuggler


This idea was obviously inspired by the genius of The Beer Belly but combined with the desire not to look like an out of shape loser. Sure you want to have free drinks but you also want to be able to attract the opposite sex right?


So my idea was to take a semi-realistic baby doll (kind of like a Reborn but not as creepy..and cheaper), hollow it out and insert a beer bladder, throw it in a bjorn type carrier and take it with you. There you go, easy access to beer (you can have a straw like the beer belly or maybe a little tap in the baby's foot), while not looking disgusting to the ladies.







The real genius of this idea:

• When entering a location - sporting event, restaurant, elementary school musical, etc... no one will ever really question a baby (and babies get in free!). Pat it softly and say that it is sleeping and don't want to bother him and no one will think twice.


• Babies allow you a lot of other (barely searched) baggage. Diaper and Bottle bags - fill non-translucent bottles with beer! Hide Twizzlers, nachos, and more in with the diapers. You can probably hide a case of beer on a stroller or a few in a car seat. No one is going to look through all those blankets and stuff.


• You can easily unstrap the baby and set it in a seat by you...try doing that with a beer belly that is hidden under your shirt.


• When finished with the stock inside the baby, simply toss it in the diaper bag. Then you can move about as normal...you are not committed to wearing the baby all night!


• Lights will be probably be dimmed at most functions, so there is very little danger of getting caught.


• Babies are a magnet for many women, again just use the "sleeping excuse" and no one will look too close. You get to meet women that you might not have approached otherwise. Also just say you are babysitting for a brother or friend and you are golden for an future dates (plus you come off as a responsible and trustworthy person).

• This baby never cries or poops but instead provides you with sweet, sweet alcohol.


• Might make you feel a little like a zombie...More Brains!

Gubby:Super-Genius