Here’s some fuzzy video of Republican Assemblyman Mike Duvall bragging about sticking it to a couple different female lobbyists. Oooooh sexy talk. Way to represent the OC with flair Mike! Maybe you should have moved to South Carolina – maybe then you wouldn’t feel the need to resign from office.

The car hit some sort of electrical doodad ... I think.

I was at the Spectrum today when the electricity went out, for a few minutes. I thought it was from all of the air conditioning units working overtime. By the way, didn’t every single weatherperson say it was going to cool down? Whatever.

So anyhoo, this electrical snafu happened around 2:30 p.m. or so. When I was walking to my car, which was parked near Target, a short while later I think I discovered the cause of the short-lived power outage. I’m assuming this car crashed into what appears to be an electrical transformer is what made everything go wonky for a few minutes. However, we all know what it means to assume.

Did anyone else happen to see this? What a bummer of a way to kick-off Labor Day weekend. Speaking of … stay safe everyone!

Two more photos after the jump.

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You’ve no doubt by now noticed that the sites got a bit of a re-design and some things got changed around last week. We wanted to highlight two changes to make sure everyone knows what changed.

The first and biggest is COMMENTS! Registration is no longer required to post a comment on any post. Of course if you already have an account you can still login to ensure your comments are attributed to you, but those who don’t can now post a comment without any long term commitment. Also, on the right you can see some of the recent comments so you’ll always know what the active discussions are. This was the most requested thing we’ve heard from people since our last redesign and we’re excited to see where it leads.

The next change is also something that was heavily requested, and that is a change to the ADS on the sites. You’ll immediately notice fewer of them, but what might not be as obvious is those smaller square ones to the right are specific to this city only and are being sold for a flat rate for a period of time rather than a confusing CPM/traffic/network model. Depending on the city, these range from $7-$175 for a full week. If you purchase one, during that time your ad will be the only one in that spot and will show on every page. We set these up both to make it easier for smaller local businesses to get their ads on our site, and also to help us bring in ads that relate better to our local audiences. Also, keeping these sites online is expensive and every little bit helps.

There are a bunch of other things we changed but we’ll leave those to you to investigate and take advantage of. Hope you like it, and we look forward to seeing you in the comments!!

Love,
The folks at MBHQ

In an attempt to show that Orange County is not so douche-baggy, I wanted to give a quick acknowledgement of the horrible fires that are raging all around our fellow Southern Californians.

We know what you’re going through, we wish you the best. 

Stay safe.

Gary Robbins reports that Cal State Fullerton has officially fired Tuffy the Titan, the school mascot for over fifty years.  Tuffy was a prominent part of the University’s identity, as Tuffy was featured on almost everything.  Well, Tuffy will still be featured at sporting events, since it’s pretty hard to get inspired by a tree, which is part of the new logo.

The reason Fullerton chose an elephant as a mascot is due to the fact that early in the school’s history, some silly elephant races were held on the fields that are now the Student Union buildings.

As many commenters on the Register noted, I’m suprised that in the budgetary crisis we have, CSUF can justify all the money it will take to change the logo.  Guess that’s what those fee increases were for!

So, now Tuffy is gone, replaced by an extremely generic looking logo.  Ugh.

What do you do when 75 gallons of raw sewage comes spewing out of your toilet? Imagine just sitting in your bed reading a good book when a literal shit-storm is unleashed in your master bath – leaving sewage all over every surface in the bathroom and bedroom. Well that very thing happened to one unlucky Huntington Beach family… twice. Oy gevalt.

Apparently, the city was cleaning out a sewage pipe outside their home causing 75 gallons of shit to hit the (ceiling) fan. The family is asking the city for ten thousand dollars to help them clean up the mess and restore order to their lives. This seems like a very reasonable request to me and I think the city ought to cough it up. What do you think?

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Sprouts!

Well, OK. It’s been open for a few weeks now, but it’s still new. Sprouts Farmer’s Market is pretty much a cross between Mother’s Market and Trader Joe’s. The prices are very reasonable. I’ve shopped there twice, getting a decent amount of food and have gotten out under $40 both times.

Mmmmmm....fresh fish.

For location and more pictures, follow after the jump! (more…)

Above is a screenshot of a story The Register posted yesterday about Ryan Jenkins being found dead in his hotel room in Canada. Now look to the right at the ad for “Killer White Teeth”. So tacky!

If you haven’t been following, it is alleged Jenkin’s committed suicide because he was suspected of killing his wife, whose “body, found in a suitcase in a Buena Park dumpster, was missing her fingers and teeth.” The OC Register’s ad-generating-gizmo apparently picked up on the fact that the article was about ‘teeth’ and decided depositing an advertisement next to it exclaiming “Killer White Teeth” was appropriate.

Now, I know this wasn’t on purpose but still… they need to rethink their advertising strategy and make sure someone vets inappropriate ad-couplings before they publish. I suppose it could just be a tacky coincidence but somehow I doubt it.

Much to the chagrin of its students, Chapman University College Irvine is changing it’s name to Brandman University – due largely in part to a $10 million donation by The Brandman Foundation. The new Brandman University, which recently expanded it’s Irvine campus into an all-new and larger complex, is a separate and fully accredited university within the Chapman University System. They are trying to pitch this to students as a simple name change, sort of like how they have the Argyros School of Business & Economics, Dodge College of Film & Media Arts, Schmid College of Science and the Wilkinson College of Humanities & Social Sciences. The difference is, those students will all have a degree that says Chapman University while the new Brandman students will have a really classy crap-ass diploma from Brandman. I ask you this? Why would you knowingly pay Chapman prices for a degree that’s really not from Chapman anymore?

Since they will no longer be the Chapman Panthers, some of my friends and myself came up with a new mascot for the rebranded university. We’ve been colloquially referring to them as the Brandman Asshats. Most (if not all) CUCI students I spoke with are PISSED! Lucky for them, if they were already enrolled they are still considered Chapman University students and will graduate with a Chapman University degree. However, all those new students enrolling will get a big fat Brandman degree. I wish them the best of luck in selling this new brand (and inflated prices) to a group consumers who may be looking for style and substance; brand and comfort.

As I was leaving work today I noticed the doors were open to the Taryn Rose Outlet, so me being me I poked my head in and asked when they’d be opening. As luck would have it the manager, Erin Escobar, was there and was able to give me the store details. She was even aware of this. :)

Shoe lovers of Southern California rejoice, the Taryn Rose Outlet is reopening this Friday, August 21, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. at the Irvine Spectrum Center. Many of you probably remember them from their previous location in Rancho Santa Margarita.

The Spectrum store, like the one in RSM, will, most likely, be temporary. However, this may change depending on any number of factors. Ms. Escobar explained it’s a business decision as rents/leases are much more flexible for – what the retail industry calls – pop-up stores (think Halloween or Christmas). Rest assured they will be at their current location for at least two months. For all of you who will be traveling from L.A. and San Diego Counties this location is much more accessible from both the 5 and 405 freeways (the mall literally sits between the two at the split). This is the ONLY Taryn Rose Outlet in the country. Again, depending on how things go another may open somewhere else. Continue reading for pricing and contact information.

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