Image roundup

Homemade bee-killing suit.







MLK memorial.







Bottle cap.







16-bit memories.







Puppies growing up.







Wild facts from Reddit.

Link roundup

1. Johnny Depp has apparently made $350 million from the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.

2. The Netherlands is apparently the world's third largest agricultural exporter, despite having little land, thanks to hydroponic agriculture that uses computer-controlled feeding of high-quality chemicals. (Presumably such techniques could be applied elsewhere if there was a serious danger of food shortages.)

3. For Los Angeles residents, if there's a police helicopter hovering over your house, you can call 213-485-2600 to find out why. (I had need of this today.) Via.

Link roundup

1. Is this why they're called honeymoons?

In many parts of Europe it was traditional to supply a newly married couple with enough mead for a month, ensuring happiness and fertility. From this practice we get honeymoon or, as the French say, lune de miel [lit. "moon of honey"].

2. This is the kind of place that could star in American Gods (I wonder which god would be in charge?):

The secretive business havens of Cyprus and the Cayman Islands face a potent rival: Cheyenne, Wyoming.

At a single address in this sleepy city of 60,000 people, more than 2,000 companies are registered. The building, 2710 Thomes Avenue, isn't a shimmering skyscraper filled with A-list corporations. It's a 1,700-square-foot brick house with a manicured lawn, a few blocks from the State Capitol.

Via.

3. T-shirts are 17.76% off at Zazzle with the code LANDOFTHETEE. Might I recommend Adam Koford's store.

Link roundup

1. Wild, probably NSFW book cover for The Princess Bride.

2. "Cow tipping or cow pushing is the purported activity of sneaking up on a sleeping, upright cow and pushing it over for fun. As cattle do not sleep standing up, cow tipping is a myth." Via.

3. Muppets t-shirt design contest at Threadless.

Link roundup

1. Fascinating explanations for why it's bad luck to walk under a ladder and why we bless people who sneeze(I'm going to assume this person knows what they're talking about.) Via.

2. Cake Wrecks is giving away prizes this month.

3. This last item is sort of a spoiler for All-Star Superman so...





Here's a long list of clues indicating that Lex Luthor is Leo Quintum. The overall argument is a good one, but this "clue" cracked me up:

Leo Quintum's wardrobe is "365 rainbow coats, all identical!" Luthor always did like to wear the same oufit. But note that the rainbow coats are Luthor's colors (green, purple, orange) plus Superman's colors (red, yellow, blue).

Via.

*Buy All-Star Superman toys at eBay.

Link roundup

1. Lincoln Logs were invented in 1916 by John L. Wright, son of Frank Lloyd Wright. They were named for Frank (his middle name was actually Lincoln), and based on the basement of the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo, which Frank designed. Via these sites.

2. Cool, simple surface tension experiment.

3. Drop a Raymond Chandler plot in William Gibson's Neuromancer world, and you get Richard Morgan's Altered Carbon. I enjoyed it enough to add the next two novels in the series to my wishlist. 526 pages of hard-boiled, vatgrown ninjas for $8 Amazon.

*Buy home science kits at Amazon.

Shakespeare invented the phrase, "knock knock, who's there?"

Learn something every day.

*Buy Shakespeare posters at Amazon.

Rocket ride (link roundup)

Rocket Ride by Bill Cotter. See also: Monk and monster.

And a few more links:

1. Einstein snowboard.

2. Franz Kafka invented the hard hat (he worked for an insurance company).

3. More pictures of the Alice in Wonderland book sent out to bloggers. Via.

*Previously: Four versions of Kafka's The Metamorphosis.

*Buy Alice in Wonderland toys at eBay.

Frankenstein Lego CubeDude (link roundup)

Frankenstein Lego CubeDude by Larry Lars.

And a few more links:

1. Superman helped defeat the KKK in the real world. Via.

2. A revisionist telling of The Three Little Pigs and The Big Bad Wolf in Lego. Via.

3. Los Angeles has a new police chief. He's the current Police and Fire Motocross national champion and at least in some shots looks not totally unlike Magnum P.I.

*Previously: Dwight Howard as Superman sculpture.

*Buy Frankenstein posters at eBay.

Frankenstein Lego CubeDude (link roundup)

Frankenstein Lego CubeDude by Larry Lars.

And a few more links:

1. Superman helped defeat the KKK in the real world. Via.

2. A revisionist telling of The Three Little Pigs and The Big Bad Wolf in Lego. Via.

3. Los Angeles has a new police chief. He's the current Police and Fire Motocross national champion and at least in some shots looks not totally unlike Magnum P.I.

*Previously: Dwight Howard as Superman sculpture.

*Buy Frankenstein posters at eBay.

Kurt Russell's oh so painful Star Wars audition (link roundup)

Kurt Russell tries out as Han Solo. Just another reminder that Lucas' genius lies in design. And far, far away from dialogue. Via.

And a few more links:

1. Ever wonder why Swedish meatballs were smaller than American meatballs?

2. The cynic in me says this is a clever way to get publicity for a book signing tour when you don't expect very many people to actually show up, but internet personality Gary Vaynerchuk is going to visit various airport bookstores to promote his new book.

3. If you lose all your iTunes purchases due to a crashed computer (and failed to make a backup, which is silly, it's really easy - - just drag a copy onto a flash drive or burn them), you can ask Apple nicely and they might help you out.

*Previously: Olive Garden's spaghetti with meatballs is comparable in calories to three Quarter Pounders.

*Buy Star Wars wind-up toys at eBay.

Kurt Russell's oh so painful Star Wars audition (link roundup)

Kurt Russell tries out as Han Solo. Just another reminder that Lucas' genius lies in design. And far, far away from dialogue. Via.

And a few more links:

1. Ever wonder why Swedish meatballs were smaller than American meatballs?

2. The cynic in me says this is a clever way to get publicity for a book signing tour when you don't expect very many people to actually show up, but internet personality Gary Vaynerchuk is going to visit various airport bookstores to promote his new book.

3. If you lose all your iTunes purchases due to a crashed computer (and failed to make a backup, which is silly, it's really easy - - just drag a copy onto a flash drive or burn them), you can ask Apple nicely and they might help you out.

*Previously: Olive Garden's spaghetti with meatballs is comparable in calories to three Quarter Pounders.

*Buy Star Wars wind-up toys at eBay.

Pirate paper doll (link roundup)

Go here to download a pirate paper doll, created to promote a pop-up book called The Castaway Pirates (the download link is immediately above the pirate video). Via.

And a few more links:

1. I sure read a lot of people opining about Obama winning the Nobel Peace Prize, but almost no one identified someone who should have won. Well, here's a nomination for Zimbabwe's Morgan Tsvangirai.

2. In case you ever wondered - - the answer to the question of whether zero is odd or even.

3. Watched Wolverine on the plane and thought it was fine - - better than X2 (I've only seen the atrocious end of X3). Watched Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs in the theater and was thrilled when, after an hour, my oldest asked to leave. Boy, how did that get even half decent reviews?

*Previously: Bruce Lee paper doll.

*Buy pirate toys at eBay.

Pirate paper doll (link roundup)

Go here to download a pirate paper doll, created to promote a pop-up book called The Castaway Pirates (the download link is immediately above the pirate video). Via.

And a few more links:

1. I sure read a lot of people opining about Obama winning the Nobel Peace Prize, but almost no one identified someone who should have won. Well, here's a nomination for Zimbabwe's Morgan Tsvangirai.

2. In case you ever wondered - - the answer to the question of whether zero is odd or even.

3. Watched Wolverine on the plane and thought it was fine - - better than X2 (I've only seen the atrocious end of X3). Watched Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs in the theater and was thrilled when, after an hour, my oldest asked to leave. Boy, how did that get even half decent reviews?

*Previously: Bruce Lee paper doll.

*Buy pirate toys at eBay.

Domo at 7-Eleven (link roundup)

Go here for a gallery of photos of Domo-themed packaging and goods at 7-Eleven. There's also a minisite. Via.

And a few more links:

1. "The Swimming Cities of Serenissima is a fleet of handmade boats and a crew of artists traveling the Adriatic Sea from Slovenia to Venice this May and June, 2009. Here's the dedicated site." Via.

2. You know the phrase "heard it through the grapevine?" Well, this is the grapevine. Via.

3. Microsoft's ads all seem to go viral for the wrong reasons, but if you do want to throw a Windows 7 party, you might be able to get some swag like this. Via.

*Previously: Domo/Jaws mashup.

*Buy Domo toys at Amazon.

Domo at 7-Eleven (link roundup)

Go here for a gallery of photos of Domo-themed packaging and goods at 7-Eleven. There's also a minisite. Via.

And a few more links:

1. "The Swimming Cities of Serenissima is a fleet of handmade boats and a crew of artists traveling the Adriatic Sea from Slovenia to Venice this May and June, 2009. Here's the dedicated site." Via.

2. You know the phrase "heard it through the grapevine?" Well, this is the grapevine. Via.

3. Microsoft's ads all seem to go viral for the wrong reasons, but if you do want to throw a Windows 7 party, you might be able to get some swag like this. Via.

*Previously: Domo/Jaws mashup.

*Buy Domo toys at Amazon.

Now this is a screenshot (link roundup)

Just enjoy this giant octopus-filled screenshot from upcoming Wii game Muramasa: The Demon Blade. The gameplay on display in this trailer looks awfully lackluster. Via.

And a few more links:

1. Were the British defeated in Iraq?

2. Before there was the internet, the hot craze was hunkerin? Via.

3. A government employee who went on the same Mexico trip as Obama became infected with swine flu and passed it to his family, and yet Obama's doctors "see no need to conduct any tests?"

4. Jose Canseco is going to fight a 7'2" Korean in a mixed martial arts fight?

*Previously: Samurai octopus.

*Buy samurai helmets at eBay.

Now this is a screenshot (link roundup)

Just enjoy this giant octopus-filled screenshot from upcoming Wii game Muramasa: The Demon Blade. The gameplay on display in this trailer looks awfully lackluster. Via.

And a few more links:

1. Were the British defeated in Iraq?

2. Before there was the internet, the hot craze was hunkerin? Via.

3. A government employee who went on the same Mexico trip as Obama became infected with swine flu and passed it to his family, and yet Obama's doctors "see no need to conduct any tests?"

4. Jose Canseco is going to fight a 7'2" Korean in a mixed martial arts fight?

*Previously: Samurai octopus.

*Buy samurai helmets at eBay.

Grand Theft Auto: Spider-Man (link roundup)

Grand Theft Auto: Spider-Man and GTA: Dark Knight. See also GTA: Tarzan. Relatedly, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars for the DS is the best game I've played for the DS. A+. Via these sites.

And a few more links:

1. Trivia from the movie Clue, including Jane Wiedlin of the GoGos played the Singing Telegram Girl.

2. A whirlpool of rocks.

3. How to create "fake" 3D in Photoshop. Via.

4. Law and Order billboard makes clever use of a light.

*Previously: Giant billboard with real cars attached.

*Buy Venom toys at eBay.

Grand Theft Auto: Spider-Man (link roundup)

Grand Theft Auto: Spider-Man and GTA: Dark Knight. See also GTA: Tarzan. Relatedly, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars for the DS is the best game I've played for the DS. A+. Via these sites.

And a few more links:

1. Trivia from the movie Clue, including Jane Wiedlin of the GoGos played the Singing Telegram Girl.

2. A whirlpool of rocks.

3. How to create "fake" 3D in Photoshop. Via.

4. Law and Order billboard makes clever use of a light.

*Previously: Giant billboard with real cars attached.

*Buy Venom toys at eBay.