All Things Cool: May 2006

How to build a paper airplane

Not just any paper airplane but, "How to build the best paper airplane in the world."

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Thanks Drew

No Granny no!

Our society is crumbling right before our eyes:

Doctors said sexually transmitted diseases among senior citizens are running rampant at a popular Central Florida retirement community, according to a Local 6 News report.

I only hope I have this problem if I live to be old enough!

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Neuticals

"Testicular Implantation For Pets."

I actually came up with this idea a long time ago, but for people.

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Thanks CH

Creepy wedding

I don't understand so I'm not going to even try.

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Las Vegas real estate prices

This is an article on how unbelievably expensive real estate is in Las Vegas. Even Donald Trump cannot build a casino there:

"We were very interested in Las Vegas until the price got so high," Trump Entertainment Resorts Inc. Chief Executive James Perry told Reuters in a recent interview. "We don't see ... having an opportunity there in the short term."

"The costs are getting to be prohibitive," Penn National Gaming Inc. Chief Executive Peter Carlino said in a recent interview. The numbers are out of control over there," Carlino said, referring to the Hard Rock deal.

"Land is not available in that area," said Peter Dunay, chief investment strategist at Leeb Group. "So it is very competitive and very tough."

In 24 hours I will be leaving Chicago forever to relocate to Nevada for at least a year. I hope I have better luck than these guys?

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Labels: Architecture and Buildings

Memorial Day is today, by the way

This is from QT at the Chicago Sun Times:

It was decided long ago that May 30 would be set aside so we could honor the soldiers killed in our wars. It was to be thought of as the day the flowers were most in bloom. But this meant we couldn't always have a three-day weekend, so we moved it a few years ago to whatever is the last Monday in May. Now Memorial Day no longer inconveniences us.

Goshdamn, I'm beginning to think this weekend is never going to end!?!

My Rattlesnake Bite

Have you ever wondered what it's like to be bitten by a rattlesnake?

On July 21, 2002, just after my 13th birthday, I was bitten by a Western Diamondback rattlesnake. I was located on a trail in a hiking area near Yosemite National Park, California. The bite occurred when I was sitting on a small boulder at a distance of 4.5 miles from the trailhead with my cabin group at camp. I had my arms dangling at my side, and a 5 foot long rattlesnake bit me in the middle of my left palm.

This is a very graphic journal of what appears to be quite a painful experience.

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This is a description of the band Slayer and this is what we are supposed to do on June 6th (6/6/06):

Slayer is a band from California. Their music has come to epitomize Satanic speed metal music in the latter half of the 20th century. Their 1986 album, "Reign in Blood" is one of the single most influential metal albums of all time, typified by the modern classic "Angel of Death".

- Listen to Slayer at full blast in your car.
- Listen to Slayer at full blast in your home.
- Listen to Slayer at full blast at your place of employment.
- Listen to Slayer at full blast in any public place you prefer.

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WWII photos

This is a great link for Memorial Day. Some of these scanned pictures from this WW2 slide show are very graphic:

All these photos were developed by my grandfather in his clandestine photo lab he ran while stationed on the island of Tinian. I would like to thank him, and all those who served before me, for their sacrifice so that others may be free.

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Photos of disappearing Shanghai

Here is a great collection of professional pics of Shanghai, China:

From my "Disappearing Shanghai" series, this is Dongjiadu, a very old neighborhood that will be leveled in a matter of weeks.

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Thanks Mefi

New RailRoad Station

This is the new train station in Berlin, Germany. Can't you just smell the construction?

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Casual Slack

This is my new friend Jen and her website Casual Slack. She's obviously got great taste (she likes my weblog)! I hope she's older than her picture? Go check it out if you get the chance!

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Graffit design on trains

Colorful and commuting go together great! Somebody has really taken the time to decorate these trains.

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Paul Gleason dies

The world lost a great actor today. I LOVED this guy in Trading Places, and I loved this guy in The Breakfast Club when he proudly boasted, "I make $31,000.00 a year!" That was a lot of money back then! He was also great as Deputy Police Chief Dwayne T. Robinson in the movie Die Hard!

Gone but not forgotten, Paul Gleason was 67 years young.

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Top 10 Signs of a U.S. Police State

"Is the U.S. becoming a police state? Here are the top 10 signs that it may well be the case."

From secret detention centers to warrantless wiretapping, Bush and Co. give free rein to their totalitarian impulses.

This is a sad article because it is true.

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Thanks C

Technorati tags: sec ret, communis m, totalitarian, bush, evil

Dinnertime for kitty

Sometimes I just don't understand people.

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Another Geography test

Scroll down to test you skills at U.S. geography. I made an 88% (in 580 seconds) with an average error of 22 miles off target.

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10 things I hate about Star Trek - TNG

One of my favorite television shows is a program called Star Trek – The Next Generation (or TNG for short). It is an hour-long sci-fi program from the ‘80’s that was well written and respected when it was originally aired. It is still being played in syndication here and still has a strong following even today! Most of the episodes are thrilling but some are tiresome and boring. As much as I love the show, here are ten things I hate about Star Trek:

10. Music – Hang on to your hats because this might come as a shock, but music doesn’t get any better in the future. In fact they revert all the way back to classical music for their listening pleasure. Okay, maybe that wasn’t such a shock seeing the music industry as it is today?

9. Commander William T. Riker – He should wear a t-shirt like Jerry Seinfeld’s dad that says, “Number 1,” on it because that is all he’ll ever be in his life. Commander Riker is tough enough to grow a beard yet he’s just not tough enough to become captain of a ship, or to bed down a proper woman. He just can’t seem to close the deal. He was even offered an opportunity to join the “Q” to become omnipotent, omniscient, and immortal; AND HE TURNED THEM DOWN!!! I guess he thought it would be more fun to play second mate to a grumpy French guy, grow old, and die.

8. The Replicator – This is an ingenious device that can synthetically duplicate almost any object, like a guitar, a cup of tea, reading material, and on, and on. I said “almost” any object because it obviously cannot replicate a pair of eyes for poor Geordi LaForge. They can’t even replicate a device that will keep Geordi’s glasses from falling off his head rendering him blind as a bat! When he is alone with the machine, in his quarters, I’ll bet he kicks the replicator.

7. Aliens – Is it me, or is it disappointing to find out that all alien species will have two eyes, two nostrils, two ears, a mouth, two legs, walk upright, and obey logic? Except for the markings on their foreheads and ears, aliens in the future really don’t frighten me that much. And you mean to tell me that in all the space travels they never once come across a planet full of dope smoking hippie aliens? “Yo, you dudes need to chill right here for a while. We got all the intergalactic space weed you can smoke. Replicate a bong and beam on over!”

6. Too Much English Spoken – And have you noticed that all the aliens have cool names that end conveniently in “ns”? Do they ever come across a race of species that doesn’t speak some form of grammatical English? Even here on planet earth we have a group of people in Africa that speak and communicate with a series of clicks, grunts, and whistles. Heck, even in places like Florida and Texas the road signs are in Spanish. Yet in outer-space everyone seems to speak English.

5. No Mexicans – The future does not bode well for my little, brown friends south of the border. No matter how hard I look I can’t see them anywhere on the spaceship? Did the Klingons eat them? Are they back on planet earth with the “REAL” jobs? I guess Gene Roddenberry never looked at the population predictions for the future. If he did he would have created a separate spaceship full of Mexicans that went from galaxy to galaxy illegally demanding free health care and education at the expense of the American taxpayers.

4. No Greed – In the future greed has been eliminated? Ha! I’d like to live long enough to see that! As long as there are human beings breathing there will always be greed. It’s what separates us from animals, I think? Besides, if there is no greed, how does one become captain of the Starship Enterprise? By accident? Luck? I mean if there is no greed how do you choose to risk your life in a coffin floating through space when you could be at home smoking intergalactic space weed and learning to play the sitar!

3. Nothing Is Shocking – These people float through space into unknown galaxies and new dimensions and never take the time to look at something in shock and amazement. Don’t you think that just once somebody on the ship would rush over to the window and shout, “Aw shit! Look at that! That’s fucking COOL!!!” Hell, I've seen mountains hundreds of times in magazines and on movies but every time I confront one I look at it in complete awe! I’m an idiot of course.

2. No bathrooms – Have you noticed that nobody ever stops to excuse themselves to go to the restrooms? Even in England they go to the water closet!!! Wouldn’t it be nice if just once the dialogue went like this, “Captain, the Klingons are appearing off the starboard bow.” To which the Captain would reply, “Okay, can you hang on two minutes while I go squeeze one out?” We all know the Klingons have a good ten or fifteen minutes of dialogue before anything exciting starts to happen. I promise that if a Klingon vessel ever appeared off YOUR starboard bow you’d want to get to the lavatory pretty damn fast!
1. Whoopi Goldberg – This is probably the most depressing thing about the future. My bartender is going to be an out of work, black-Jewish, liberal, with a bad standup routine.

Thanks for letting me vent.

Technorati tags: 10 things, hate, star, trek, cool

Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

To everybody heading out for vacation this weekend; Good luck, God Bless, and think about the troops far away from home and respect everyone who has died in war fighting for their country!!!

Goodbye laptop

Okay, well this is my first post with my old, slow computer. I had to send the bad-ass laptop back to my partner in California. I was going to break-down and buy a new one but ya' know what? Sometimes slow is not so bad (as long as it's paid for)...

If anyone can afford a Toshiba laptop computer I highly recommend it. It was very fast, very smart, and it never crashed. It had wireless LAN so I could connect almost anywhere in downtown Chicago.

I go to QVC for electronics but with these Toshiba's you'd better go fast. The prices have gone up since two days ago!

Japanese fish market

Some great pictures of the fish market in Japan:

Tsukiji is the largest fish market in the world handling more than 2000 tons of more than 450 types of seafood. I was told today 1/6th of the world’s fish passes through this market before it goes around the world every single day.

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Labels: Japan

Japan 2005

I love these pictures of Japan.

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Labels: Japan

New York City Architecture

I'm not a big "New York City" guy but I do like architecture. These are some great photos!

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Thanks Steve

Labels: Architecture and Buildings

Break dancing contest

I don't know if this is dancing or just being silly, but it's cool!

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Blue lobster found

Rare blue lobster on display:

According to the Gulf of Maine Institute, a blue lobster occurs once in every 3 to 4 million lobsters. The chances of finding a red lobster, still alive, are 1 in 10 million.

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Aggie wedding cake

For all you Texas A&M fans out there!!!

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Technorati tags: Texas, aggie, wedding, cake, designs, cool

The English Language

This is fucking hilarious! It's a video about the funniest fucking word in the English fucking language! But don't click if the "F" word is offensive to you.

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InSex (Insects-took me a week to get it)

This is a great video/movie that starts off sexy and gets a little bit creepy. The ending is funny though! Definitely safe for all ages unless bugs give you nightmares?

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World languages

All the different languages of the world laid out on a map makes for a very colorful design!

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Kottke

The Concerto Table

What do you think about this table? Is it goofy or cool?

I'm not much of a furniture expert but since it is odd shaped and partly unusable, I consider it goofy.

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Riding on Square Wheels

I was never any good at math so I don't understand, but this is pretty cool!

Stan Wagon, a mathematician at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn., has a bicycle with square wheels. It's a weird contraption, but he can ride it perfectly smoothly. His secret is the shape of the road over which the wheels roll.

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Happy (belated) New Year!

Sunset Beach Bar

These are some very cool pics from Sunset Beach Bar in St. Maarten!!!

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Inflatable structures

Cool, utilitarian architecture, or cheap advertising gimmick? You decide.

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World record feat

That is a lot of damn balloons!!!

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A short video about humans

Are we really all that bad?

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Thanks Steve

Racing crashes

These are some of the most violent racing crashes I have ever seen. The music is cool too!

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Solar power

Someday when I have my own house I will make sure it is solar powered:

SPG Solar, Inc. (SPG), the most experienced installer of solar energy systems for homes and business, can eliminate your electric bill with solar power. Solar provides insulation from fast-rising electric bills.

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China's military buildup

This is a very important issue:

China has retained its long-standing focus on rival Taiwan but years of double-digit growth in arms spending and new missiles, ships and aircraft meant it could project power further afield, the 2006 China Military Power Report said.

"The pace and scope of China's military build-up already place regional military balances at risk," the 58-page report said.

It said China has deployed some 710-790 short-range ballistic missiles opposite Taiwan -- up from the estimated 650-730 such missiles in the 2005 report. And Taipei's defense spending has declined, shifting the Taiwan Strait military balance in China's favor, the Pentagon analysis said.

China, which has claimed Taiwan as its own since 1949, has vowed to attack the self-ruled democratic island if it formally declares independence. The United States is obliged by law to help Taiwan defend itself.

That cannot be good. I emphasized that last sentance because it is important to know that if China does invade TW, the U.S. will not go against China to defend Taiwan because China has more money than Taiwan.

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Technorati tags: china, taiwan, military, spending, cool

Giant hairbrush

For people with big heads and large wallets.

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The Ant Store

Here is where you go to buy some ants.

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Top Soccer Goals

Why are soccer highlights much more interesting than football highlights?

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Napmosphere?

What the hell?

The stable forms of the spheres create a cavity, which guarantee the airflow and breathability of the capsule. It allows the individual to bury himself and relax fully.

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Oriskany Sinking

"The ex-Oriskany was sunk 24 miles off the coast of pensacola as an artificial reef. The 888ft carrier sunk in 37 minutes. The little gray boat on the deck held the detonation equipment and floated free during the sinking."

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Thanks B&P

Cutest twins in the world

Is is true that these are the cutest twins in the world?

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European Geography Test

This is a cool game to test your knowledge of Geography. I scored a 77% on my first try. That's about normal for me.

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Fieldvertising?

Next they will be putting advertising in our dreams:

Here’s one for Switzerland’s airline group Swiss Air, created by Artfield (website in german), a company shaping agricultural land into art but also advertising.

Believe it or not, I think this is a very smart idea!

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Thanks CBI

Pentagon video

This is what the newly released video of the Pentagon SHOULD have looked like if an airplane really hit the building:

Thanks to our friends at Onnouscachetout, we can finally present you with the video the Pentagon should have released... if a Boeing 757 had really hit the Pentagon.

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Technorati tags: pentagon, video, terrorist, 757, cool

Heliodisplay

Like something right out of Star Wars:

The Heliodisplay is suspended in the air, and because it is not attached to a physical surface you will notice that there is some waviness to the projections.

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Technorati tags: heliodisplay, star wars, graphic, designs, displays, cool

Some millionaires decorate their mansions with rare paintings. Richard Moriarty bolted a 1974 Lamborghini to the wall of his Newport Beach estate early Friday.

Because Home Depot doesn't sell kits to hang cars as artwork, Moriarty hired a 70-ton crane to lower the Italian sports car through a skylight in his living room.

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Thanks Cityrag

Architecture and hygiene?

I am not much of an architecture-person but I like this website. I can't figure out his infatuation with the boxes though?

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Technorati tags: architecture, home, designs, cool

Labels: Architecture and Buildings