Former GM chairman, who's speaking at EMU next month, wins pushup challenge against Stephen Colbert

Here's a side of a former auto executive you never get to see.

Bob Lutz, the former chairman of GM, appeared on the Colbert Report last night, talking about the auto bailout, the Chevy Volt and other auto-related tidbits.

But some would say the best part came at the end, when Lutz, who's speaking at EMU May 10, said he does 40 push-ups a day when he wakes up. Stephen Colbert seemingly challenged Lutz to a "push-up challenge" on camera.

Lutz performed, out-muscling Colbert. Take a look at the clip below and see for yourself:

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Impin' ain't easy

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How to blog about HBO's Game of Thrones without sounding like a traditional review? That's the question I asked myself, right before doing a Tyrion Lannister/Daenerys Targaryen 2012 title. But while searching for an image of the greatest imp that ever lived, I stumbled upon the title we're rolling with for this blog post.

I'm still shocked at how few people know about George R.R. Martin or his A Song of Fire and Ice series of books, which have spawned the incredible cable television series. If the first paragraph of this blog post confused you, it's time to hit up Amazon or the local library, because despite there being a television program, the books should be read first.

Somehow the visual recreations of the people, places and events of the books look exactly as I had pictured them while reading. I'm still trying to figure out of it was superb writing or a faithful cast and crew at HBO, but the end result is glorious. It's also a great way to spend a day, as I did Easter Sunday, watching 7 of the 10 episodes in the first season.

It feels kind of weird enjoying AGoT's television adaptation this much after writing a positive review of "White Buffalo" at the Purple Rose Theatre, the latter of which actively went out of it's way to avoid the gritty reality of real life humanity. Martin's story revels in the worst that human behaviour has to offer, which is why this is a great tale for even non-fantasy fans to use as a gateway to the genre, or maybe just a brief pit stop on Flirtation Lane.

Want to comment? Please share your favorite character from the series, and prepare to explain yourself if your answer is something other than Tyrion Lannister.

A little "masked-avenger" fun during a lecture at U-M

College is supposed to be fun, right? Everyone tries to have a little fun in college. Some local students seemed to have taken this to the next level and have shared their fun with the greater Ann Arbor community.

A Facebook friend of mine shared a video claiming to be from a University of Michigan lecture hall shot last month, and if it's authentic, it's pretty darn funny.

The description claims the following video was shot unknowingly during an organic chemistry lecture at U-M. It includes Zorro, a sword fight and a mariachi band. It's hard to describe; you'll have to see it for yourself.

Everyone seems to get a good laugh out of the episode, including the professor. Be sure to watch it through to the end and see how the prof reacts.

 

Ground floor

What is "cool stuff and neat things?"

It is broad and all encompassing, which is why it's the name of this blog.

As time goes by the hope is that my coworkers and even members of the community decide to make contributions here. It's a blog with frontage on a major local news network, so that's something cool for those of us who like to share our interests.

"Sounds good, Sean. So what do I post here?"

The criteria aren't tough to follow. If you went out to see a local concert take some pics and come blog about it. If you just went out and saw the Lorax and feel particularly strongly about it, come post about it. If you have your own band post about your gigs. Post about events like Relay for Life or about an album that's coming out.

Some of us play video games in the office and I know there will be contributions like that from time to time. Some of us who do this probably don't read as much as we should, so dedicated readers are welcome to swing by to pick up that slack.

Hopefully we'll whip up some satirical and comedic reactions to what's going on and share them here.

That's probably the most awful introductory post to a blog ever written, so with the bar set pretty low, here we go!