room one o'seven

using wonderfully shot photographs, a man named lyndon tells the story of a motel room

economic hiphop

half-truths on napkins

"love is everything"

parkour

not so fast, suckers

i think this is one my favourite headlines of 2009, just for the sheer randomness of it.
Octopus Snatches Coconut And Runs

blink...oh and you missed it

straight from new york magazine, "thirty-five short-lived looks from an attention-deficient decade"

i think my favourite name for a trend has to be the "whale tail". so apt.

muppet chicken orchestra

beautiful words

WPPD Cream

each year, WPP judge the most creative and innovative advertising campaigns to have been produced by their various agencies.

this short film for the environment defense league shows the power of simplicity

of course there's a random japanese ad in there

...and i guarantee you will not guess what this gymnastics ad from china is really about.

run run run gingerbread man

do you remember those adventure books you read when you were younger - the ones where at the end of the page it would say, "if you want to go through the door, go to page 14. if you want to go up the stairs, go to page 18" ?
well...here's the updated version: can you catch the gingerbread man?

buffy vs. edward

stuff....you may like?

*Stuff Jewish People Like ..."Florida: Jews frickin LOVE Florida" and more specifically Jewish Young Adults .

*Stuff Unemployed People Like :When rich kids want to look cool, they shop at thrift stores to look poor. When unemployed people want to look clothed, they shop at thrift stores so they don’t get arrested for wearing nothing but their tattered former company’s t-shirt and dirty socks.

*Stuff Stick People Like (because stick figures are people too)

my current obsession

walking through the streets in this winter darkness with this song entertaining my ears...wonderful.

mail surprise

November 18th, 2009.

Join the The Random Card Project and make some stranger's day.

it's called ACTING, mr gervais

obsession + (chocolate * web 2.0)

...that would be this blog right here:

the london twirls project

OK, I could just about accept Borders selling Twirls, but B&Q? Really? But, yes - in a vending machine near the tills, they sell all sorts of chocolates and sweets in what I guess is intended as a way of silencing bored youngsters as they are dragged around, while their parents pick out the particular type of solid wood flooring boards they want for the front room. B&Q is amazing though, it's the perfect shop if you're a serial killer - they sell everything. In fact, I'm amazed any parent would need to resort to bribing their child with chocolate in B&Q - they sell AXES. If that's not enough to make a kid shut the f*%k up, I don't know what is.

between the sheets

Random Breathy Noises Do Not Equal Enjoyment.
How Not To Make Love Like a Porn Star

snowpirates

snapBack

looks like the magic of the internet is bringing out people's inner digital altruist:

inspired by PostSecret - I Found Your Camera .

Cult of the Somewhat Delayed

Lore Sjoberg: "It seems to me that the best way to instantly raise your standard of living is to live in the past. If you subsist entirely on two-year-old entertainment, and the corresponding two-year-old technology used to power it, you’re cutting your fun budget in half, freeing up that money for more exciting expenditures like parking meters and postage."

woof

dogs x (NYC + October) = hallowe'en costumes for dogs

SWPL/WSPL

gentle, clever parody is a technique which feeds some of the more creative sites on the internet.

you've already bookmarked the original . So now go check out White Stuff People Like .

I quite like the blurb for #2: Apparently a lot of people like cocaine. People seem to really like it! Sometimes they will kill each other to get it, too. He has such a way with words, don't you think?

p.s. if you want something vaguely amusing to listen to on your ipod this week, right-click here to download a lecture given by the founder of SWPL at the LSE last week.

pay the bill

...or see what happens when you don't

whatever tickles your hoo-ha

for the unashamedly proud females amongst us: a 'downstairs' self-portrait pendant . The website says, "Each piece is an original, one of a kind hand sculpted image of its owner..."

as the creator of Happy Pootie merrily proclaims, "This is so FUN! Who wouldn't want to wear happy poo around their neck?!" Could I put my hand up right now and say, "me?"

finally, just the thing to put the perfect finishing touch to your bathroom: a special candle

snowboarders do it all year round

(the "making of" is also really nice to watch - it doesn't take any of the magic away. and don't worry...the schwiizerduutsch is subtitled :) Click Here To Watch

shorthair beware

this is why i love elle magazine (but the US edition, mind) so much.

"Do Hairstyles Affect Your Lovelife?"

(the answer is "yes" btw. step away from the scissors...)

voluntary butler scheme

cake gone wrong

when good cakes go bad, it is a sad day. actually...no. no it isn't. because then you can remove shame from the cake-eating equation.
the fug girls have some great examples that will make you go "what were you thinking?"
and then to make your eyes feel better, let them feast on these steampunk cakes .

yum.

magical mystery cafe

once upon a time, in a place in japan there was a little cafe. the Kashiwa Mystery Cafe to be more precise. you could walk in and order an orange juice...and get an Appletizer and a candy bar instead. and then, it magically disappeared.

enchantment

swiss'otel

as well being world champions at glass recycling, switzerland is also the home of a few unusual hotels.

the null stern hotel ("zero star hotel") in Appenzeller-Ausserhoden is the brainchild of two conceptual artists.

In Scuol, you can find Europe's largest kosher hotel - whilst the village residents grumble about jews littering their valley.

and, on a side note, it turns out no one tortured witches quite like the Swiss

dining underground

new york city has seen the revival of the speakeasy . london is seeing the creation of underground dining . metaphorically speaking.

the urban guide to etiquette

life in new york is perhaps unlike life in any other city. so, to help ease the transition NYMag have helpfully compiled The Urban Guide to Etiquette.

bain de paquis, geneva

men in tights

it's nicknamed "mantyhose". men in tights... yay or nay?
the bbc says.... not so much

La Miss

Susan Travers would have been 100 this week. Who was she?
The only woman to ever be admitted to the French Foreign Legion.

Respect.

go go gossip girl

is this a good thing or a bad thing?

lord knows.

church of the who what why

if you're disenchanted with your current religion, why not trawl the internet in the hope of finding spiritual enlightenment?

try these for size:
The Church of the Banana
The Virtual Church of the Blind Chihuahua
The Church of Ed Wood (yes, the one who directed Plan 9 From Outer Space)

...and my personal favourite, meet Reverend Billy and the Church of Life After Shopping

Amen, sister.

pigeons...faster than the internet

well, in South Africa anyways. a man at a company said a pigeon would be faster than their broadband. so of course, the company gets a pigeon and tests it. it's true. apparently, winston the pigeon is 'over the moon'

are you allowed to do this....yet?

when does making fun of tragedy become acceptable? it's difficult to know - do those who were personally involved or affected decide? them collectively?
or is it society who determines when it's "ok" to do so?

I'm asking because i don't know how to react to this magazine:
Heeb Magazine: The German Issue
To give you an idea, this tasty and colourful treat pictured above is called Final Solution German Chocolate Cake (Death By Chocolate Is For Pussies)...
"Inspired by Black Forest cake, this version of the chocolate and cherry creation ratchets up the intensity with a cocoa-logged filling, espresso and a crown of sugar shards. Execute with thoroughness and precision. Like the Germans would."

share some candy

is the name of a design blog i discovered last week. the photos, videos and artwork displayed are simply enchanting.

make your eyes happy.

share some candy.

--->
you cannot prevent the birds of sadness from passing over your head but you can prevent them making a nest in your hair

shadowplay

beautiful. heart-breaking. thought-provoking.

Shadowplay (2002) from Dan B. on Vimeo.

Colonel Ghaddafi: A Life In Fashion

A quick look through the Libyan ruler's wardrobe courtesy of this Vanity Fair photo slideshow

xckd windows

you read the text and go.."what?!!"

then you read the caption underneath.

oh windows, sometimes it's just too easy.

venn diagram of what you knew already

from despair.com

periodic table of the fonts

happy post it

if aliens were watching terrestrial TV....

taken from btw, this is my blog

don't play with your food

...make art instead.

which is exactly what FunkyLunch food magicians do . Looks good enough to eat....wait...

Insanewiches go one stop further on the crazy train....the 'Rubik's Cubewich' may give you an idea of what they get up to.

And for those of you with more refined palates... Fancy Fast Food is a genius site with the tagline, "Yeah, it's still bad for you - but see how good it can look!" You will be impressed with what you can create from Dunkin' Donuts, McDonalds or Taco Bell...

music video...literally

Update: for more literal videos, go to DustFilms

potbellies are so hot right now

apparently so ...and we're not talking pigs. No, we are talking hipsters in NYC

perspective

when you think you're having a bad day, bookmark this page to remind you that it wasn't you who was run over on Bolivia's Road of Death

down the drain

brasil is trying to help you save water. just pee in the shower, and save litres and litres of toilet water. the etiquette behind this act? a helpful guide to fill in the blanks

bump + grind

it's always cool seeing a place you think you know...from a different perspective. the place is the Swiss town called Zug. the perspective being..."can i do a 360 kickflip off that?"

refugees

Will a trade in human beings ever be acceptable? One of the issues Professor Michael Sandel raises in the first of his 2009 Reith Lectures on "A New Citizenship"

found

it's deceptively simple...and like PostSecret could get very, very addictive. they collect found stuff: "love letters, birthday cards, kids' homework, to-do lists, ticket stubs, poetry on napkins, telephone bills, doodles - anything that gives a glimpse into someone else's life. Anything goes..." so go get your voyeuristic glasses on and begin to wonder, if i make some crap does it automatically become more important when someone else finds it?

the dangers of smoking lettuce

apparently, it's not very good for you . so says Representative from Indiana, steve buyer. clever man.

barack obama's ears: a history

that's right. a look at some notable events in the life of Barack Obama’s ears.

music on the surfaweb

we all know about LastFM and Pandora but they don't really help you when it's just one specific song you want to listen to.

and here's where Songza comes in. type in a song/artist...and off you go.

my recommendations for songs to songza?
* "Kiss the Sky" - Shawn Lee's Ping Pong Orchestra
* "Make Light" - Passion Pit
* "Collection of Stamps" - I'm From Barcelona"
* one of my favourite songs, "Be Still My Heart" - Silje Niergaard

montage a gogo

it's a very easy, pleasant way to waste five minutes: montage-a-google . typing in your own name can be quite interesting...and bizarre.

hammer pants

i like flash mobs. i like the creativity, the diversity of people involved, and the element of surprise that comes with them. so it's no surprise that i think this is brilliant...

what compels a man to wear a hat?

Once upon a time, men felt naked without hats. That's certainly not the case anymore. But we shouldn't be too quick to pronounce the death of the hat, however.

the exhilaration of survival

Tim Kreider: Fourteen years ago I was stabbed in the throat. This is kind of a long story and it’s not the point of this essay.
The point is that after my unsuccessful murder I wasn’t unhappy for an entire year.

I wish I could recommend this experience to everyone. The catch is that to get the full effect you have to be genuinely uncertain that you’re going to survive. The best approximation would be to hire an incompetent hit man to assassinate you.

more penguins

so it turns out that penguin poo is visible from space. apparently that's how they track the little blighters....

blossom in spring

gay penguins

two penguins in a german zoo, both boys, were given an egg to look after.

They are doing a wonderful job of it by all accounts.

No surprise there then?

eyes wide shut

Damon Rose: oh how I'd love to be able to sit here and tell you that blind people are without prejudice. It's not true.

"a blind friend of mine fell completely head over heels in love with a girl he thought the world of. They started dating. He talked about her all the time and, as mates do, he stopped going down the pub and started to prefer homemade meals and a nice bottle of wine with his loved one.

I remember him saying how much he liked her soft voice and her perfume. They had similar politics, liked the same films, read the same books - a match made in heaven.

Then, his brother met her, unpleasantly told him she looked "a right dog" and my friend dumped her."

get me a wife

the Chinese spouse market is flourishing...hang an advert on a piece of string and hope the parents are enticed to give you a try...

i got an envelope

i got an envelope is the newest project from the people who brought you "photochaining".

it's simply really. write your name and address on an envelope, put a stamp on, leave it somewhere public...and see what gets sent to you.

that's a whole lot of trust right there...

sad panda

Sad Panda: The Story Of An Obsession

Sad Panda hangs out near Wall Street in lower manhattan.
why does panda do this?

adtisveirng arunod teh wolrd

Australia: if you really want to touch someone...send them a letter

Germany: Loewe. Extremely realistic sound

Brasil: Global Warming

extreme shepherding

what do you get when you cross Welsh shepherds with an advertising agency?

This...


The people are real...and no animals were hurt in the making of this video ;)

news to music

auto-tuning the news.
hamid karzai serenading hillary clinton.
katie couric warblin on cuba.
you can also follow them on Twitter

word up

what does the kid on the street
think bout politics?
fusty old men in suits
spending money on things
spouting "change" but then
not doing anything
to bring it about?

maybe.


but who knows?! oh, hold up. here we go.

Rap Log. Aiming to bring some hip-hop panache to the world of political blogging .

Recognise

the beginnings of something

it's got a kinda clunky name, "meatless monday". but it alliterates, so it's not all bad. is this the first Flexitarian ad campaign?

great news!

this is some of the best news there's been in ages . yahoooo. stupid shoe-like things.

soda tax

ingenious way to raise some money #74498 - levy a tax on all non-diet sodas.
Brilliant thinking there, batman. You go for calories (which can be burnt off through exercise), you get charged more. Choose the one with questionable chemicals that you don't really know what they do to your brain...bingo!

xylopholks

the quirky xylopholks like nothing better than dressing up in furry costumes and playing the xylophone. ragtime style. in public places. like the NY Subway. Brilliant. Here's an introduction to the group...

and here's a performance they did in the subway.

Know Your Meme

Those crazy kids at Rocketboom have gone and gotten all scientifical about those annoying/amusing* mini-crazes that fly round the internet. Very simply, Know. Your. Meme. The ridiculously-appropriate costumes are a bonus, for sure.
* delete as appropriate

guess what happens next (2)

so, more Britain's Got Talent. Greg is a waiter. He decided to sing a song on TV to try for the chance to perform for the Queen. If you correctly predict what happens...congratulations. You are perhaps the only person on the planet who did.

add break

out of all the Fanta teachers in these subtitled Japanese adverts , I think "Mr Blackbeard" is my favourite (known in the UK as "pop up pirate")

If you can work out what this Little Red Riding Hood commercial is for, give yourself a medal. I have no clue.

and finally, a cookie sings the blues . Poor thing.

bert + ernie go street

the muppets are classic. and their relatives who can tell you how to get, how to get to Sesame Street are also up there in the halls of fame. I have a feeling Bert + Ernie may even be overtaking Oscar the Grouch after this attempt...

rudo y cursi

it has gael garcia bernal and diego luna in it. I'm in.

if world leaders used facebook...

is this what a week would look like for them?

chicks got rhythm

Previously, it was thought that only humans had the ability to groove. no more....

anarchy + alcohol

"Drink, like caffeine or sugar in the body, only plays a role in life that life itself can provide for otherwise. The woman who never drinks coffee does not require it in the morning when she awakens: her body produces energy and focus on its
own, as thousands of generations of evolution have prepared it to do. If she drinks
coffee regularly, soon her body lets the coffee take over that role, and she becomes dependent upon it. Thus does alcohol artificially provide for temporary moments of relaxation and release while impoverishing life of all that is genuinely restful and liberating.

If some sober people in this society do not seem as reckless and free as their boozer counterparts, that is a mere accident of culture, mere circumstantial evidence. Those puritans exist all the same in the world drained of all magic and genius by the alcoholism of their fellows (and the capitalism, hierarchy, misery it helps maintain) – the only difference is that they are so self-abnegating as to refuse even the false magic, the genie of the bottle. But other “sober” folk, whose orientation to living might better be described as enchanted or ecstatic, are plentiful, if you look hard enough. For these individuals – for us – life is a constant celebration, one which needs no augmentation and from which we need no respite.
...
When one or two persons cease to drink, it just seems senseless, like they are ejecting themselves from the company (or at least customs) of their fellow human beings for nothing. But a community of such people can develop a radical culture of sober adventure and engagement, one that could eventually offer exciting opportunities for drink-free activity and merriment for all. Yesterday’s geeks and loners could be the pioneers of tomorrow’s new world: “lucid bacchanalism” is a new horizon, a new possibility for transgression and transformation..."

Wasted, indeed.

dee pee are kay

ever wondered what North Korea looks like? you have, huh? Ok. Cold and empty seems to be the order of the day . brrrr. just don't be takin' no early mornin' walks at the Kumgang tourist zone, y'hear?!

so they continue to try take over the world

google, bless its little megalomaniac heart, now wishes to turn the global population into self-obsessed ego-maniacs. latest advice from google? "go on...google yourself. do it. do it. DO IT!"

history is a weapon

History isn't what happened, but a story of what happened.

"We must choose whose interests are best: those who want to keep things going as they are or those who want to work to make a better world. If we choose the latter, we must seek out the tools we will need. History is just one tool to shape our understanding of our world. And every tool is a weapon if you hold it right."

a criminal's guide

to surviving prison. I hope I never, ever, end up in gaol. However, like this site says, you never know what may happen. So, perhaps it's best to at least be prepared . I think the one piece of advice that stood out for me was "find one of the few dedicated to self-improvement. they will stand out. and they can help you"

and now for something completely different

the obama administration is bringing the issue of torture closer to the surface - and it seems to be agreed that torture ain't a good thing. this article addresses the fascinating question, is solitary confinement a form of torture?" it's thought-provoking stuff. and scary.

poo paper

seems the credit crunch of '08 and the global dissolving of '09 will at least have led to the creation of one much-needed product in these trying and difficult times. Paper made from wombat poo .

guess what happens next

All these talent shows on TV, and just not enough talented people to fill the airtime. In this cynical world, it's easy to write someone off. See if you can guess what happens when this lady gets on stage in Britain's Got Talent . Did you get it right?

"Scotland's Number One Male Barbie"

"orange or darker is one of the best skin colours you can have"

troping

this brilliant sort-of-wiki explains the plot devices, terminology and errors that keep coming up over...and over..oh, and over again whether it be movies, music, advertising or TV.
for example, the French continually being referred to as "cheese-eating surrender monkeys",
a character being easily identifiable as British from their slightly obsessive devotion to a cup of tea ,
how in the Caribbean, no-one works - nope, they sit on beaches drinking cocktails out of coconuts
when you watch something and think, did they really just not care?!
and finally, the practice of "Lampshade Hanging"...

how to upset the video game nerds

it's easy really. become a director or producer, make movies, TV, animations. and no matter what game the characters are supposed to be playing, simply have them mash all the buttons on the game controller and use Pac Man 2600 Music. Repeatedly.

and who says the Swiss are humourless....

absolute. genius.

diet tips from old people

it's a simple question to ask people who have managed to make it past the big 1-0-0. "What's the key to getting as old you?" This article will get you started . However, a rather important answer is missing. "A large pension".

ashes to ashes

i LOVE "improv everywhere" and hope to be part of one of their projects someday.

however...i don't know how i feel about this mission: "Best Funeral Ever" . part of me thinks, that's a lovely idea. then again....

p.s. apparently, this was an april fool's

fully flared

have you ever wondered what 'balletic destruction on skateboards' would look like? Even if you haven't, watch Skate Fairy's 'Fully Flared' remix and be mesmerised...

the world beard championships

the next world beard and moustache championships are to be held on May 23, 2009, in Anchorage, Alaska. "Wonderful", you say, slightly confused. Have a look at this gallery of previous winners to get an idea of what it's all about. I think my personal favourite category is "freestyle moustache"...kinda sounds like a bad teenage band

this is heartbreaking

with not many other options, Afghani girls have taken to setting themselves on fire . Truly upsetting.

crunch crunch crunch

a snappy animation illustrating how the credit crisis of '08 went down...

The Crisis of Credit Visualized from Jonathan Jarvis on Vimeo.

mash it up

may i present... "kutiman". three months of love went into this. enjoy and be amazed.

let's...um...PIZZA!

to be filed under the "i want one of those even though i have nowhere to put it" section. It's a vending machine. that makes fresh pizza. mmmmm mamma mia

sitting on the edge

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to sit on the edge of the world?

from one extreme to another

you choose.
the ten greatest con-men , or...
an unusual mixed commune in San Francisco.
Like I said. you choose.

vokuhila

is the german word for "mullet" (means VOrne KUrz, HInter LAng = short front, long at the back). in english it translates as "what were you thinking!?? a good question to ask these lovely ladies

it's not my fault i'm short

probably what the 'sausage pony' would say if it could talk instead of neigh. The emergency services keep being called out to rescue the pony ...but it's not stuck. It just has short legs. Bless.

go live with a stranger

that's what this guy suggests as a way to make the world a better place. just for a week, live as part of someone else's life.

whatever happened to...

the sultry, sexy, dangerous femme fatale ? A lot of female lead characters are now bland, shopping obsessed ditzes who for some reason have to have a man in their life, or dress like a stripper. But could a 1940s femme fatale survive in the world of today?

good friends can make you cry

when they do something like this for you .

ninety nine things

i was quite happy reading this list as it made me realise that i don't spend as much time on the internet as i think i do. or something.
p.s. charlie bit me

augustine

they're a band from the west midlands. they've been together a long time. they make great music. just please don't watch the video if you suffer from epilepsy.

Knucklebox from Joe Whittle on Vimeo.

mr taxi man

here's another random job you don't even think about: being a taxi cab dispatcher . Apparently it's a cut-throat world, taxi driving...

grissom and sara

i ♥ csi:las vegas. i love the colours, the characters and the music. and i also agree with Bill Savage in this article about the unconventiality of grissom and sara .

two seconds to run away

there's a guy in the netherlands whose hobby is setting his camera timer for two seconds and then seeing how far away he can get . sweetly charming. give it a try.

it's all in a name

A lot of people, including me, don't really like their name. In fact, only my parents call me by my real name anymore. However, thankfully my parents were suffering from a sense-of-humour withdrawal when I was being christened so at least my name, whilst unusual, isn't ridiculous. Unlike these people. And it turns out, giving your child a strange name in New Zealand is frowned upon...poor Talulah Does the Hula From Hawaii just had to wait 9 years for the court ruling acknowledging the idiocy of her parents.

someone had too much time and a fluffy animal addiction

cute. but idiotic.

disappeared news

stories that were huge....and have now fallen off the radar. 'oh, that was...so 2007 darling.' but this one I think is important - the model-weight debate. And, topical too after Heidi Klum got blasted for being too fat. hello, real world? time to come back from vacation.
In this thoughtful article from the New York Magazine, Emily Nussbaum aims to find out, what's going on with the incredible shrinking models?

save the goatees

that's right kids, another device you never knew you never needed. because a goatee "is much more than just facial hair" . that's right. it helps fashion your identity. wow.

♥beautifullosers

like a lot of great cool films made independently, i'll probably never get to see this. which is sad. Beautiful Losers from NYC.

let's get sushi.

sleepwalking for hours

i ♥ mashups. i just love 'em.

hearing songs you love melted with ones you never expected or knew. it's a mind-opening experience. my current favourite is a blissed out trip from Phil RetroSpector... "sleepwalking for hours" . turn off the lights, close your eyes. enjoy.

it's a slow news day (2)

this time, the BBC is reporting on how the woman with the world's longest fingernails has lost them after being in a car accident.

what would be more interesting would be a report on WTF she does all day with those huge creepy talons...

bee porn

perhaps one of the strangest videos you will watch this week.
It's Isabella Rossellini being a bee.
And then her penis drops off.

coloring books

the 1960s gave us some great things. Astroturf. Twister. the ATM machine. but I don't think they will make you snigger as much as this, The Executive's Coloring Book, from 1961. Genius. I think my favourite line (though there are many choice phrases to choose from) is:
"Executives are important. They go to important offices and do important things. Color my underwear important."

hug zone

a little more creative than those tired generic "free hug" signs. valentine's day is comin' up fast. spread the love.

oddities

When I tell people where I live, I get slightly odd looks and questions as to why I'm living in 'the ghetto'. Now, mindful of the definition: "a ghetto is an area, usually within a city, in which members of a particular cultural, ethnic, religious or national group live in high concentration" - simply read "foreigner". Anyway, I was waiting at the bus stop one snowy Thursday afternoon last week when from down across the road, snippets of a rather loud conversation could be heard. The group of us at the bus stop all turned to see where this was coming from, and noticed an older man, speaking into what looked to be a rather large mobile phone from a distance. He was merrily chattering away about terrorism, which websites it was important to look at ("make sure you put in .ch, not .com!") and other odd things, coming ever closer to us. It was then that we saw what he was actually doing.

Having a conversation with a bag of bananas.

He looked at us looking at him. He removed the bananas from his ear, looked at them, looked at us....then continued as before.

It made my day.

radical ideas

also tagged as "60 seconds to change the world" on the BBC website.
I'm quite in favour of this one. Ban all make-up.

freedom of information?

if you're a student, you will have undoubtedly come across the situation whereby you find a brilliant article on the internet, love the abstract - think it would be perfect for your research or just interesting to read in general. You click... and it's in an access-restricted journal. Wonderful, if you belong to an institution that subscribes. Not so much if you don't. At around $15 an article (for one-day access, that you may not even be able to print thanks to DRM) it's simply makes better sense to keep looking for a different source.

Danah Boyd, a PhD student has written an article criticising this: Open Access Is The Future, and the comments below the article are also thought-provoking.

Open Access Journals already exist and allow access to article, topics, reviews of things you may normally not consider but by reading let you expand your horizons and broaden your mind. Find them here, at the Directory of Open Access Journals .

it's a slow news day

but how can you tell? Maybe by the fact that international news agency REUTERS have made a news-clip video... about a toilet-trained parrot.

Told you.

smoking is bad for you

so says this drain.

how to open things

keys open locks. dentists open mouths.
that's common knowledge. what isn't so much is
how to open a coconut

or a personal favourite...a beer bottle - with a newspaper

and once you're bored of opening things, then go have fun carbonating some fruit.

Play safe, kids. Enjoy. And don't forget, burping in public is sometimes frowned up.

unusual sports (2)

number 26: Aerial Skiing. It's a mad cross between diving, gymnastics, skiing and bladder control. Maybe. But it's amazing to watch...my old housemate does this crazy sport, representing France, and he's really very good...especially since he's about the only one from France that does the sport. Literally.
May I present... Nicolas Teapot in action

pets in clothes

it's pretty self-explanatory really

because you can never get enough poo-flinging

at least Weusi McGowan, on trial for kidnapping can't. Yuck.

and if you're already eaten, maybe take a look at this site. Must admit i'm a bit surprised a) that this site exists and b) people actually take part...

ICRC

somewhat incongruously to be found under the "fun" section of the International Committee of the Red Cross/Crescent, here's an interesting and enlightening quiz about prisoners of war and the Geneva Convention.

"don't underestimate the talent of your children"

after being continually bombarded with advertisements trying to persuade you to buy something, lose weight, feel ashamed of yourself, make you jealous or con you, it's nice to have an ad with a different purpose.

best friends

“As stupid as it sounds, maybe if more people had a duck in their life, maybe we wouldn’t be all so mad at each other.”


You tell them, Frank...you...quack whore

a young guy, an old guy, and keeping it in the family

I can see a movie coming out of this, sometime in the future: Jon Favreau, crasher, mindreader and obama-channeller . The fact he's hot won't hinder him either.

Some people have way to much time on their hands, and not enough brain cells to compensate for that fact - so, they send hate mail to Sir David Attenborough.

Bee keepers to chimney sweeps - no, not the latest lifestyle-life-swap tv craze but rather, the apparent key to success.

letter writing isn't dead

...as this letter of complaint to the head of Virgin, Sir Richard Branson , demonstrates. Make sure your mouth is empty or else you might spray the screen in front of you. "What is this white stuff, Richard?!"

the art of invisibility

for those people who have always wanted to just blend in with their surroundings - now you too can be a chameleon. But only in one specific place.... Street Surveillance Camera Project

forget anti-wrinkle Q10 Nivea Regenerist age-defying supercream....

Do this instead. Save yourself a lot of money. May I present ... "The Lion"

boy + questionable taste = opportunity

Your boyfriend got you a present. You didn't like it...but accepted it anyway. And you've since broken up. What to do?! Throwing it away would be just plain stupid...no problem, here's the solution: Ex-Boyfriend Jewelry . With a tag-line like "You Don't Want It. He Can't Have It Back", this site is sure to raise a little smile. Now you can offload your "gifts" with a clear conscience. Don't forget to post a catty story to go with the item...

taken from eatingsandwiches

I wonder what would happen if everyone did this? Took a polaroid every day, each day of their life. Jamie Livingston got up to 6,697.

Bored? Got Sharpies? and a car? Then...why not give your car a tattoo with a Sharpie? Just don't get bored half-way through...

And if that hasn't cured your boredom, then get Etch-a-Sketch'in with GPS. DHL did it. Mercedes did it. Now it's your turn.

useless heroes

any thing that uses the word "doppeluseless" deserves a mention - and it's this blog, the wonderful Superuseless Superpowers. My personal favourite is the Complementary Chameleon...

green + art

Reverse Graffiti.

A Living Carpet.

Then you get bored and think 'what the hell', i'll combine the two.

Graffiti Moss.
Who knew?

link & rhett

two guys.
two sets of interesting facial furniture.
one rap ... about ordering healthy drive-thru from McDonald's.
Brilliant.

BCN

sometimes, once the rain has come and gone, all you need to cheer you up and get you back into that sunshinestate mentality is a bit of colour. thankyou, random plastic chairs.

unusual jobs (2)

I don't think I'm alone in not even realising certain jobs existed, until some online magazine runs a special on them. The Sex-Doll Repairman is definitely one of them.

shortcuts

Whilst there are a lot of things in this modern day and age that claim to make your life that little bit easier - and actually don't - however, here's a quick and simple guide if you're thinking of renting a movie: If Movie Posters Were Honest

fujiya & miyagi

staying on the theme of wicked music videos, fujiya & miyaga have some great ones.
if you have around 1000 dice and an artistic streak, you too could try re-creating Ankle Injuries.
Or if you're a fan of taking things literally, Knickerbocker might be more up your street.
to finish, a little bit of beautifully illustrated whimsy from labelmates Psapp: About Fun .

the art of a great music video

this beautiful cartoon, done by Joel Trussell, is simply lovely to look at. The music (by the Atomic Swindlers) does indeed float over you as watch robo-owl save the day.

cash-trashing

As the value of money changes around 367 times a minute (just a guess), perhaps now it's time to value those colourful pieces of paper that can buy you things as a creative outlet for your existential angst at world economic systems, capitalism and those who still harbour warm feelings for Milton Friedman. Or you could just draw prettty pictures. Up to you.

the wonder boner

the wonder boner. definitely at the top of my 

christmas list for next year....on account of the

name alone.

how to (2)

Some 'How-to's' to see you through the next few months. Sometimes, I can't believe people have to even write these 'how-to' guides; for example, in this one : "How to avoid looking like an American Tourist" , one sage piece of advice is, "don't wear your camera round your neck." Or, a favourite, "eat local food". What are these people doing in a country if they're not even going to try the food?! Why bother.
On a completely unrelated topic, how about How To Hunt for an Apartment in NYC ?
And maybe a bit late, since the festive season is already over/coming to a close...."How To Deal With Relatives You Hate" . Wise words indeed.