egads, of course!

images to come shortly of the amazing resealing pop-tab aluminum can. seriously, why didn't we do this sooner? are we not brainy bipedal chimps wielding wii controllers?! what a perfect idea. i don't even drink that much soda or beer or really anything that comes in a pop-tab can, but sometimes i do like a little grapefruit pop. and a resealable would be great for when i want to, say, go on a bumpy drive. or have a sip during an earthquake. or even just - gasp - save some of my soda for later without it going flat, OMFG.

what genius is this? geekologie provided, and probably other people, too. we are all astounded by the simple and elegant solution to a problem we didn't even know we had. that's brilliance, folks.

ferrets in art history = an awesome web page!

so first i started looking up "pet ferrets" on wikipedia, and ended up reading a short history of ferrets as hunting aids. the wiki article also mentioned the "ermine" in a portrait of Elizabeth the 1st, so then i had to look that up...anyway, i'm very interested in ferrets now. and queen elizabeth. hence the following links:

ferrets on wikipedia!

ferrets in art history!

portraits of queen elizabeth I with descriptions!

i heart OverheardEverywhere.com

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Stupid Alphabet
Girl #1: That library isn't much help at all.
Girl #2: Yeah, I buy my own books. Libraries are only good for poor people that want to read.
Overheard by: Courtney
via Overheard Everywhere, Nov 1, 2007

(PSHAW!)

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A Squirrel?
Ghetto woman, indignantly: And then he told my mama he wanted me to get tested 'cause he didn't think the baby was his!
Ghetto man, outraged: Inconsiderate fuck! It was his, wasn't it?
Ghetto woman: Hell no! I don't know who I be sleeping with! [They laugh.] Bitch, please -- I fuck like a squirrel!
Overheard by: Tiki
via Overheard Everywhere, Sep 23, 2007

(HAH! i snorted a little.)

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And the Cat Keeps Eating It
Customer: I want to return this mouse.
CSR: Okay. May I ask why?
Customer: No, you'll laugh at me.
CSR: I promise I won't.
Customer: Every time I move it around it squeaks.

Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Canadia
via Overheard Everywhere, Sep 30, 2007

(AH-HAHAHAHA! HAH! AHHHHHH! omg.)

remember that movie, The Rocketeer?

i thought that guy's golden helmet was rad. but anyway - jetman is real, and he's swiss, and he's actually a little cooler than you thought he would be. who doesn't want to fly, say, 186 miles per hour through the grand canyon? with a pair of 8-foot wings that call to mind some of batman's gadgets? wow, i'm sold. the alpine backdrop and the "effortless loops" this guy can fly a thousand feet off the ground - that's salesmanship. also, i love the description of how he steps out of the plane, begins a gentle glide, then literally rockets into full-flight!

goosebumps just thinking about it. (yeah, i had a flying dream once. shut up. everybody does!) watch the youtube vid, this guys kicks ass. but stopping with a parachute like that must suck. way!

creative thai baker makes grotesque sculptures out of BREADomg

they're so gross and life-like, i actually stopped eating my dinner just now. amazing! i might feel timorous trying to cut into one, but perhaps it would smell like delicious warm bread in person? instead of blood-soaked human carnage? ugh. the picture is too much for me. thanks to geekologie and other people for grossing me out with delicious bread. ugh, ugh! i think i need to go watch some cartoons now. mom, i'm cold.

the something store is a real commercial venture!

so neatorama led me to The Something Store, to which you pay $10 and they will send you...something. it could be anything! they have some pictures of previous somethings on their site. average customer reviews are five stars! it's like the solution to stumper birthday gifts and stumper-deluxe winter holiday gifts. (christmakuh? channumas? i prefer a secular winter holiday, myself. food for festivities, gifts for gifting's sake.) i wonder if they have a Something of the Month club? it may be the nicest way to waste money this side of exercise-based arcade games.

somebody buy me something right now! curiosity is a dangerous condition for librarians - causes rabies, hair-pulling, cracked teeth, ear-aches, even gout. so obvy you'll want to help me avoid curiosity-dependent sequelae by buying me Something.

i'm not a man, but i still like to read Maxim (sometimes)

also, i enjoy Field & Stream, Men's Fitness, and occasionally Stuff. why am i telling you this? because entertainment knows no gender boundaries! yes, forget what the majority is telling you - this blog, called The Art of Manliness, should entertain, enlighten, and probably offend all sorts of freaky, geeky human beans. (i'm a little offended at some of the articles, myself. but still i'm strangely drawn in...) thanks to neatorama for the link, because they really are frickin' neat.

please, do not eat your cake drive. (eat mine!)

usb cake drives on keychains...good idea, bad idea? very cute idea. gizmodo doesn't give me much information, but they do have nifty pictures. so what the hell. i'm not sure how these plug into your computer, but they do have a fresh-berries-and-mille-feuille "flavor". and that's enough for me!

living mouse-skin coat - stylish! - dies after growing too large

see the article here in ArtNews, but you can also find it on geekologie and gizmodo. apparently some MOMA artists are doing this exhibit with living tissues, and well, one of their exhibits was a tiny coat made out of living stem cells taken from mice. and the picture is quite cute, in that condensation-glassball-creepy kind of way.

ah, so when the coat grew too large and clogged it's own nutrient dispersal system, the curator had to "kill" it. o, the ethical entanglements! or maybe not - it's just skin, after all. no brain to feel pain, experience loneliness, or kill the humans who created it. just skin.

now i feel creepy. time for a hamtaro moment.

bento box instructions!

can i just say, finally? explicit instructions on how to create a visually appealing and very appetizing boxed lunch, japanese-style. with food pyramid rations and fractions and everything! go read more at LunchInABox, because it's awesome.

but be warned, you will probably be hungry after you read a few posts. and jealous, because your mom doesn't make your lunches anymore. (or does she?) and she never put cherries in a tiny steel bowl for you, or roasted fresh mushrooms in the toaster-oven for you, or laid a tiny fish-shaped bottle of tonkatsu saunce next to your corn croquettes!

how did any of us survive a childhood of cool ranch doritos, bugles, warped carrot sticks, and tuna fish? i will never know the answer. (nor will i ever eat another COOL RANCH DORITO <- ARRRGH!)

for the record, my mom totally took my lunch orders and put fresh alfalfa sprouts and dijon mustard on my ham and cheese sandwich. that's why it's good to be an only child = i done been spoilt! (c'mon, you wish you were me.)

icthyology

the marine sunfish can grow to be 10 feet tall and long, and up to 3000some pounds. and it looks really, really strange; it grazes on jellyfish, basks sideways at the surface of the ocean, and has a really hard time making sharp turns. it's latin name "mola" means millstone.

in contrast to the ponderous mcsunnersons, swordfish are fierce, fast predators with that nifty sword on their nose. they grow to be about 1400 lbs or more, and are a diving, leaping, swerving balls of hell for nervy sport anglers. here's a pic of a world-record swordfish from back in the day.

according to wikipedia, swordfish have special organs that heat their eyeballs and brains, for fast thinking - i guess - and sharper vision in the deep. they use their nose-swords to thwap prey fish left and right, consuming them as they flop around in a daze. when angered, swordfish will plunge their swords through the sides of attacking sharks, rude rowboats, and even deep into the muddy bottom of the (shallow) sea. they've a reputation for strength, speed, and ire - so basically, swordfish kick ass. (just watch the vid below.) who knew?

seems a shame to catch them, or even eat them (mercury, my god). don't you feel sorry for this guy, all pretty and dead in the boat?