Our long national nightmare is over

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) -- Jose Lima sprinted out of the dugout and threw his arms around Mike MacDougal, who had just closed out Kansas City's first victory in more than three weeks.

A few minutes later, the eccentric pitcher started pouring glasses of Dom Perignon champagne he'd been hiding in the clubhouse for this very moment.

Not quite a pennant or a playoff victory, but no matter.

The Royals ended baseball's longest losing streak in 17 years Saturday night, defeating the Oakland Athletics 2-1 to snap a club-record 19-game skid.

But when the next streak begins tomorrow, don't forget -- there are upsides to losing.

Insomniac grab bag

Free RPG! Violence: The Roleplaying Game of Egregious and Repulsive Bloodshed has been released under a Creative Commons license. Warning: may not be playable.

A Flickr magazine-cover generator. It's...cute. Wish there were more styles, though.

A Flash timeline clock. Not complicated, but elegant somehow.

And one of my new matters of trepidation: MRI scanners. Oh, I do hope I never have to get one....

"Spike the Vampire" movie front-burnered? And helmed by Tim Minear? Sweet.

NFL lineman dies after game

San Francisco offensive lineman Thomas Herrion collapsed in the locker room and died Sunday morning, shortly after the 49ers played the Denver Broncos in a preseason game. He was 23.

Guy plays his way through NFL Europe, earns a shot in the big league...and it ends this way. Nothing short of tragic.

Can't take my bricks away from me

Serenity in Lego. Also with cast. And don't miss the Block Head Iconizer, a nice addendum to the MiniMizer or the more-realistic but less-imaginative Minifig Generator.

Best TV show title ever

Mongolian Cow Sour Yoghurt Supergirl Contest.