Category Archives: Uncategorized

8427 – more doodles

I like the rain

Today is a better day. (animation here)

I actually prefer the rain, as perverse as that might sound – cool wind, soft white noise in the background, and thunderGeotarget

What’s not to like?

THROUGH 4 PM…SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO DEVELOP ACROSS MIAMI-DADE…BROWARD AND PALM BEACH COUNTIES.
THE SHOWERS OR STORMS WILL AFFECT MAINLY THE METRO AREAS FROM SWEETWATER TO COCONUT CREEK EASTWARD AND NORTH TO BOCA RATON. EXPECT LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN…WIND GUSTS TO 50 MPH AND FREQUENT LIGHTNING STRIKES. SMALL HAIL COULD OCCUR WITH THIS ACTIVITY. THIS ACTIVITY WILL ALSO AFFECT THE NEAR SHORE WATERS WITH SIMILAR WEATHER CONDITIONS.

8425 – random brain dump

I really like the word “cavort“.


Nice dreams last night… pretty surreal for the most part, including some TV crossover With Jimmy Doohan and Barbara Eden – Sort of a Montgomery Scott dreams of Jeannie. “Ye Canna Change the laws of Physics” “Why not, Master?” Arms-fold, *blink* and suddenly, cheese is an explosive.

He then flips out over all the things that will upset the universe, and hilarity ensues.


Illustrated Gravity’s Rainbow.


How to sing the blues


Random Scotto factoid – I think Mother Jefferson looks a lot like Shari Lewis’s Lambchop.

motherjeffersonlambchop


the show with zefrank: 06-26-06 – Ze was having a poopy day like me yesterday. I cheered up in the evening, though. I’m very blessed to have nice people in my life talking about blue stuff and baths and snowflakes and such.


Moment of lyric – Youtube

8423 – Most elephants weigh less than the tongue of the blue whale

While researching world hunger, I stumbled over this guy. Norman E. Borlaug

“Dr. Norman Borlaug is the first person in history to save a billion human lives. But he must also get credit for saving the wild creatures and diverse plant species on 12 million square miles of global forest that would long since have been plowed down without the high-yield farming he pioneered. The two accomplishments combined make him dramatically unique. I am proud to work with the Center for Global Food Issues, of which he is Chairman Emeritus.”

* Senator Rudy Boschwitz, R-MN, former member of the US Senate Agriculture Committee

A billion lives saved.

A *BILLION*.

A *BILLION* lives spared from starvation.

I can’t even properly conceive of that. 1/6th of the planet’s population?

Why had I never heard of him? That’ll teach me not to watch the West Wing or Penn & Teller’s TV show.


I apologize for all of the thighbones. as penance, I present the superhero database and a bunch of cartoons.


Cats that look like Hitler and a big-eyed kitty bath.


Handy Guide to wildflowers. and NatureServe has great databases of North American (Explorer) and Latin American (InfoNatura) plants, animals, ecosystems.


I knew it: (the word pants and trousers were disturbing me a great deal on Saturday, at the salvation army.)

In the early 19th century the words “trousers” and “pants” were considered obscene in England. Woman referred to trousers as “inexpressibles” or “a pair of dittoes.” Later in the century the taboo was carried to such lengths that piano legs were covered up because they reminded people of their human legs. In 1836 Charles Dickens wrote the following lines in Oliver Twist:

” ‘ I tossed off the clothes, got safely in bed, drew on a pair of ________’ ”

” ‘ Ladies present, Mr. Giles,’ murmured the tinker.

” ‘ _________ of shoes, Sir,’ said Mr. Giles, laying great emphasis on the word.”


Moment of Lyric – mp3

8422 – Sunday morning… after a solid night’s sleep

Woke up on Saturday with a slight pinch in my back… must’ve slept a little funny the night prior… a hot shower and some stretching took care of the bulk of the problem in fairly short order.

Had a lovely day meandering about, looking for proper goodies to put in the apartment, sniffing at teak and rattan-type stuff. Saw a few things that had some potential, and a truly grotesque table that was also a drum made from zebra skin (and legs made from the hooves) which will give the more sensitive folk nightmares for weeks.

As always, we got a lot of good gab-time in, and I always enjoy a day’s worth of social-time.

After doing some legwork, we swung by Tijuana Taxi, and the food was jim-dandy. The place was basically a Mexican version of Crabby Jack’s – with better food. I’ll certainly be back. (I’ve got 2 additional good reasons to swing by there, it’s near both Danny’s house and Tina’s.) Since the refried beans were made with lard, I had the chile-cheese smashed potatoes, and they were tasty, though it took a moment to get used to the idea of mashed potatoes with a south of the border flair. I think I’ll have to get something a little lighter next time, because the veggie Chimichanga was just too much after an appetizer.

When we finished, I took the BCT home… route 2 to the West Terminal, Route 22 to Central, and Route 10 right on home. I ate so much, I was *still* feeling a bit overfed 2 hours later.

The bus ride was nice, too… the rain started to pound down, coming in sheets to the point where I couldn’t see more than 25 feet in any direction. Thankfully, the terminals are well covered against the elements. (most street stops aren’t so blessed.) By the time I got home, the streets were clean, but the skies had fairly dried up, for the final walking-leg home.

walkabout pics – found objects and stencil graffiti

hairbrush, beer and onions?mask
Hairbrush, beer and onions & Mask over archives

stairwellYou're loved
Stairwell to Tattoo place & “Relax, You’re Loved” at Chiropractor’s window

optimus prime - near minimalistar2d2
Stencil Graffiti – Optimus Prime and R2-D2

herman munsterprofile
Stencil Graffiti – Herman Munster and Face in profile

detail - keepin mullets evilgraffiti
TNT- Keepin Mullets Evil. (I’m sure that’s really hard work)

pencilsketch
unpainted life-size pencil sketch of some skate-kid.


Current Music – Instrumental – Mp3


Because of the rotation of the earth, an object can be thrown farther if it is thrown west.


1 year ago – weary, Alex Toth’s last birthday, journal entry length, stumbleupon, silver bullets, bso pics, data munging, dork, smashing pumpkins, dalek mood theme, call forwarding, testing flickr’s autopost, newtcam pic!

2 years ago – Ubermensch Baby, walk the drunk, hulk returns to blogville, talked with sedef, tiki beach doodle

3 years ago – sernya, Zod is Jor-El, plushie supers

4 years ago – random adds, new place, sleeping late with cat, riaa shaman defeats bad magic box, Francesco skips out, no cable.

5 years ago – oblation, wonderful world, chopping block

6 years ago – threadsGeotarget

8421

Welp… Danny and I got together briefly, but he petered out about an hour or so afterward… we didn’t have a proper meal, because his blood sugar bottomed out. Better Luck next week. Superman Movie, maybe?


Nice day out and about planned today! It looks like it might be a bit rainy, but that might be what we need to keep it cool.


Video – waiting for the #10

bus stop view, Friday am

Bus Station - 062306


Moment of Lyric – (youtube video)

8419 – Friday, at last!

Danny bailed on yesterday’s lounge time… too fragged to hang. Maybe we’ll get together today if he’s up for it. Just as well, really, as I pooped out at about 9:30 last night, give or take. Just ran plumb out of gas. (actually, I was feeling a bit snoozy even earlier than that.)


Spinny Video Spinny Video
Test – using lj pics to host video rather than stills – click on image, then the “full size” link to view


Moment of Lyric – mp3

(BILL: Let’s go. Ready? From the top.)

8418 – Just Thursday? Not Friday?

Cinnamon Life cereal mixed into blueberry yogurt isn’t as good as I thought it might be… but I was out of rice milk. note to self – get more rice milk.


Nice to hear from Mandy last night – it was good to get few things ironed out, or at least brought into clearer focus.


Dan and I may hang out today… if we’re both not totally tuckered out like Monday. I don’t think I’m going to be in the mood to hear Al Gore grouse about the weather.


Tina and I are shooting for a thrifting trip on Saturday… maybe find a good table or such for the apartment.


No Word from Bro lately. I’m assuming no news is good news.


Moment of Lyric – mp3

8417 – etcetera

Last Night’s Din-din is even better as breakfast (due to it self-marinating) Lazy bachelor recipe, but here it is.

Tasty bean salad

3 cans black beans
2 cans of corn
1 can garbanzo beans
red and green onion, chopped
fresh cilantro to taste
sliced mushrooms
1/2 tsp. cumin
pinch of cinnamon
pepper to season
juice from a lemon
1/2 to 1 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 to 1/2 cup olive oil
salt
pepper
cayenne

Drain everything that comes in a can and put it in a big bowl. Chop all of the veggies and add them in. Mix the olive oil, vinegar and lemon juice in a separate bowl, then stir it in. Add the seasonings and adjust to taste.


How they reworked Brando into the new Superman movie. Pretty nifty!


Free Movies, Cartoons & Documentaries


Keen perspective art in the subway


Japanese War Tubas only a few decades ago were the very pinnacle of modern technology and your best bet for locating an enemy in the distance or in the dark (that’s Hirohito on the right).

japanese war tubas

Brings Overture to “Die schöne Galathee” by Franz von Suppé (mp3) to mind, for some reason.(I really like the Pygmalion scene)

Acoustic location was used from mid-WW1 to the early years of WW2 for the passive detection of aircraft by picking up the noise of the engines. It was rendered obsolete before and during WW2 by the introduction of radar, which was far more effective.


via graypumpkin

Pre-eminent scientist, inventor, and respected mixologist Doctor Bunsen Honeydew reveals and demonstrates (with the help of his trusted assistant, Beaker) the amazing combinant power hidden behind movie theater concessions stands across the globe.

Regardless of the very real threat that terrorists might find a way to use this frighteningly accessible technology against us on our own soil, it gives us some comfort to know that when we find ourselves trapped and alone, fighting for our lives against the Gorn on a desolate alien planet made of nothing but Diet Coke and Mentos, by god, we’ll know what to do.


I’m back to playing turn-based pente online. Anyone who’d like to challenge me, the name’s scottobear there.


Keeno druid pocketwatch.


1 year ago – GP & Batman, magic waffle pixies, yubnub, google maps, Lore, grasshoppers, awesomedome, journal scraped

2 years ago – Summertime, silliness, doodleboard, rage icon (since added), extreme heat warning, wifi bike, earbags, pudding pop poll

3 years ago – newt pic, dialects, sacred texts, monkfish, fold up robots, William Marshall RIP

4 years ago – Tope/taupe, cookie puss rap, Francesco ups the rent due to tile, bigbrother time clock installed at FMM, bird pee, random 5, lj virus

5 years ago – Bateman’s smoking cat, communion with dip, W’s approval rating (pre 9/11) & quiz, languor, evil news, mushy thoughts

6 years ago – time poemGeotarget

8416 – ook

Tailing a monkey man in search of healing powers

KOLKATA (Reuters) – Thousands of people are flocking to an impoverished Indian village in eastern West Bengal state to worship a man they believe possesses divine powers because he climbs up trees in seconds, gobbles up bananas and has a “tail.”

Devotees say 27-year-old villager Chandre Oraon is an incarnation of the Hindu monkey god Hanuman — worshipped by millions as a symbol of physical strength, perseverance and devotion.

“He climbs up trees, behaves like a monkey and is a strict vegetarian, but he is no god and his condition is just a congenital defect,” says Bhushan Chakraborty, the local medical officer.

Tucked away in a hamlet in Banarhat, over 400 miles north of Kolkata, the state capital, devotees wait for hours to see or touch Oraon’s 13-inch tail, believing that it has healing powers.

Doctors said the “tail” — made up of some flesh but mostly of dark hair — was simply a rare physical attribute.

“It is a congenital anomaly, but very rarely do we find such cases,” B. Ramana, a Kolkata-based surgeon, told Reuters.


“He climbs up trees, behaves like a monkey and is a strict vegetarian, but he is no god and his condition is just a congenital defect,” says Bhushan Chakraborty, the local medical officer.

If I had a dime for every time I heard someone say that…

8415 – What speak you words that have no meaning?

Danny and I were pretty bushed yesterday, after work.. not in the mood for movies about weather or bigh boats or wacky couples sharing an apartment. Instead, we walked around toys ‘r us, had Thai/Japanese food. (interesting to have veggie rolls as appetizers, and then Pad Thai with tofu for main meal.)

Waitresses were stern, but massively skilled, superb service and swift… smiles flickered to their faces when eye contact was met… only to fade out as they moved on. Danny ventured that they were under cover martial artists, due to the clockwork precision. They were tipped well.

We went back to my place to do a little game of pirates, but were feeling too lazy to roll dice or push 2 inch plastic boats, so we watched an episode of Red Dwarf, Zefrank’s video journal, and about 10 minutes of Land of the lost.

Sleestak and Enik pics from the library of skulls

8413 – Happy B-day juliabee and spacshangalangshang!

I thought I’d be missing my dad more than I did yesterday… but I did fine. Thought about him quite a bit, but didn’t get overly misty. I trundled to the beach, and then the Mango Festival for a bit of lunch – it was a pretty soggy Sunday, so I bailed early on the Mango Festival, but I benefited from some lovely chit-chat with BHK instead.


Dan and I will likely hit the movies after work today, barring anything unforseen. I wonder if I’ll be able to keep awake throughout? Monday is usually fairly taxing due to morning meetnigs and midday catch-up.


Rest in Peace, Weaver the Weatherman. I always thought that Bob Weaver was a really great name. A weatherman for over 50 years, he was a very real institution in Florida TV.


graypumpkin mentioned something about chocolate dice sold at his local game store, so I sniffed ’em out. Both in high quality 6d6 (probably best suited for GURPS, and skill test rolling) and the more multicolored 75d6 foil-wrapped dice (More for Champions team of energy-blasts, I’d expect. Every time you roll low, eat it.) see also – 24 red d6 of hazelnut fudge

Like gamers need another way to put on weight!


Moment of Lyric – mp3

Close your eyes and look at me
I’ll be standing by your side
In between the deep blue sea
And the sheltering sky
If we find no words to say
To the rhythm of the waves
Then we’ll both surrender there
Walking on air

And the worries of the day lie down
Under cover of the fading clouds
The secrets of the night
Come alive in your eyes
You don’t have to hurry
You don’t have to try
Cause you don’t have a care
You’re walking on air


1 year ago – pictures(motorcycle and newt), tut, lj interests, jbee b-day, gp dream, severe thunder, ft laud evacuation info for hurricanes, UFO tv losses

2 years ago – palm vnc, Newt Chroma key, paypal spoof warning

3 years ago – doctor’s appointment, time-traveler micronaut, lizard!, clear sky clock, baby dolphin beached

4 years ago – packing, location thoughts, bicycle, brushing newt-teeth

5 years ago – evil news, Jb’s bday, gadabout, lj-topology, time for timer, crown of crap, sambo’s

6 years ago – roadworkGeotarget

8412 – Sundee-fundee

Newt wasn’t the most friendly host yesterday… I suspect it was a combo of smoke and/or illness stress that he was picking up from Tina. We had a nice time watching Monsters, Inc and a couple of Eddie Izzard concerts. Much (perhaps too much) Italian food was consumed, and I think a good time was had by all. The eggplant and garlic pizza is even better as a breakfast food this morning.

Some thoughts came up for a decor style for the apartment… maybe a tiki bachelor pad? If it’s possible to get that look with sturdy, comfy furniture, I’m all for it! The tiki-retro look is a pretty keen one.


The Mango Festival’s music was widely varied… from the amazing to Muzak-level artists played too loudly. I’m going to swing back by later today… many people are there having a grand time, so why not Scotto?

I’ve just switched the phones over to EN from ECN… so I think that maybe after a little morning nap, I’ll take a trek outside, if the skies stay clear.

through 9 am…isolated showers and a few thunderstorms will continue to affect the waters off the broward and Miami-Dade coast. only a few light showers will move onshore to affect the fort Lauderdale and Miami metro areas…though most areas will remain dry. the showers will move west northwest at 10 mph.


Danny contacted me earlier – wants to get together once or twice in the week ahead. (Last week was quite busy for him, and he was unable to comfortably do anything.) Maybe we can catch An Inconvenient Truth{website has some sound}. I’m interested in seeing how well it makes a case.

Side note, websites with flash opening pages / purely flash navbars are a bad idea… especially with sound. At best, it limits the size of your audience (if there are no alternate accessibility options added) and at the worst, it’s an annoying bombardment on the eyes and ears that also damages system security.



KIGALI (Reuters) – Twelve baby gorillas were given names by Western officials on Saturday in a ceremony aimed at attracting more foreign tourists to the tiny central African nation.

Dubbed “the land of a thousand hills”, Rwanda is home to nearly 400 mountain gorillas, one of the world’s most endangered species, which attracted over half of the country’s 22,000 tourists in 2005.

Tourism officials face an uphill battle to lure visitors to Rwanda, where around 800,000 people were massacred in the 1994 civil war.

Representatives from the United States, Britain, Belgium and the Netherlands — where most of Rwanda’s tourists come from — participated in the baby gorillas naming ceremony, normally reserved for newborn children.

The UK ambassador to Rwanda Jeremy Macadie called one of the gorillas “Big Ben” after London’s famous landmark.

“Like the way ‘Big Ben’ is a major tourist spot in London, this young baby gorilla will be a center attraction for tourist to this beautiful nation,” Macadie said.

Rwanda earned over $25 million (14 million pounds) from the tourism sector in 2005 but hopes to make close to $100 million by 2010.

The first public naming ceremony was held last year when 30 baby gorillas were given local names.

Conservationists and researchers have traditionally named the gorillas they track using the patterns formed by wrinkles on the primate’s faces as identifiers.

A 1988 film, “Gorillas in the Mist”, based on the work of primate researcher Dian Fossey, who studied the animals in the 1960s, has put the tiny nation on the world map.


1 year ago – hobo sign icons, Goodyear blimp crash, pictures, Guide to Hobo / ’30s slang

2 years ago – slow email, drunken sailor song, testing remote palm broadcast, running away, nice letter of thanks

3 years ago – creaky knee, infrared zoo (Graypumpkin’s first visit?), remote cpu destruction of file-sharers, tiny robots, ghetto fries

4 years ago – tiling my old place, chocolate doughnuts, happy pill, instinct of awareness, how to make a smoke bomb

5 years ago – Evil News, blimpies heroin story, poop-poll

6 years ago – nuffinGeotarget