Inverted Musings

Linkmania -- things

Sun, 13 Jul 2008 05:04:42 GMT

So if I drive next to one, I can gank Internet?

Available on 2009 Chrysler products is a wi-fi access point for your car...and yes, it includes cellular Internet service.

Not the usual sort of lap pillow

We already know the Japanese are among the world's leaders in strangely suggestive products. Now there's this...sleep aid.

These people need to die in a fire

So you can get this new Liberian non-circulating $20 bill (worth less than US$1) that "commmemorates" 9/11 (in part by showing the denomination of the bill in two parts...because 9+11=20 after all). Then the National Collectors Mint decides to cover it with silver leaf and sell it for "face value".

Linkmania -- things that make me blink a bit

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 02:19:57 GMT

Doubleyou. Tee....

Last July, a North Caronlina resident complained about her license plate starting with WTF after her grandchildren told her its common Internet meaning. North Carolina will now be issuing free replacement plates on request for anyone offended.

Not what most people mean by "having a crush"

BoingBoing last year reported the existence of a DVD for those who derive sexual enjoyment from watching an attractive woman stomp on model trains. (Mildly NSFW.)

I'd be more worried if it *wasn't* vague....

And finally, a 2005 story about how someone in Germany was going around and putting little flags with W's face on them in piles of dog poop. The article notes that authorities were a bit uncertain what they could have done about this, as "there is no law against using feces as a flag stand and the federal constitution is vague on the issue. " (Probably NSFW, has picture of dog poop.)

Linkmania - sites I may or may not start following...

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 04:17:02 GMT

Well...we kinda knew this:

Comics make no sense

People are amazingly weird:

Overheard Everywhere

Political, but sometimes surprising:

Things Younger Than John McCain

Voice Post:

Sat, 28 Jun 2008 18:06:40 GMT

Labor Dispute!

Fri, 27 Jun 2008 21:46:04 GMT

So Teresa and I leave the hotel to go get some lunch. As we pass by the Doubletree, we see that there's one of those giant "Labor Dispute! Shame!" banners out front. As we're walking back from lunch, we see a similar banner being set up in front of our hotel. Bemused, we stop off at the lobby and ask if they can say anything about what's going on. The desk clerk hands us a flyer, which reads as follows:

In case you were wondering...
...why people are passing out flyers in front of the hotel.

The carpenter's union is protesting against one of the hotel's minority investors. The investor is building a hotel in San Diego, and they have chosen not to hire a contractor associated with the carpenter's union. The union is NOT protesting against our hotel, the management, or the employees.

We are excited to welcome all of our guests and look forward to providing you with warm and caring service during your stay.

Well, I guess I don't need to worry about whether the staff is going to walk out.

Taking a step back, I have an issue with the whole "labor dispute banner" thing. It's fine as far as it goes, but the complete lack of either additional information on the banner or a simple website link means that people driving by have no way of knowing whether such a banner means "our employer beats us with sticks and wants us to pay for the sticks" or, as in this case "a minority owner is using non-union labor somewhere completely else." And I'd like to know this, because while I'm not fond of some of the unions out there, I recognize that many of them have served and continue to serve useful purposes. Logically, this is something the NLRB should handle...but if not them, somebody. Just a searchable database of labor disputes, with 500 words from labor and 500 words from management trying to lay out their positions.

Linkmania - Canada is having a bad month

Fri, 27 Jun 2008 18:53:41 GMT

Out DMCA-ing the DMCA

Canada is looking at approving an international treaty that looks like it was written by the RIAA. (The best part is, treaties are apparently not subject to full parliamentary approval, so the government could actually do this all by itself.)

Not being offended trumps free speech

The article is somewhat biased, but there's enough actual quoting of the decision in question to make it clear that, no really, it is that messed up.

Parental authority? Wossat?

So...a twelve-year-old who was grounded took her dad to court...and won.

Voice Post:

Fri, 27 Jun 2008 01:20:21 GMT

Linkmania -- Two pieces of interior design and a doughnut

Sat, 21 Jun 2008 22:17:55 GMT

For your culinary-themed house:

It's a room divider that's...not particularly safe around children and pets.

A little too much artistic freedom?

When you give somebody creative $1.2 million to renovate your apartment...you can get some really cool results.

A different sort of doughnut:

Check out the third picture down on the left. Yes, it's a maple bar with bacon strips.

Nala

Thu, 29 May 2008 17:45:43 GMT

It is done. It was quick and I was there with her. She's not hurting anymore.

I think the decision is made...

Mon, 26 May 2008 17:15:24 GMT

So Nala hasn't left the bedroom of her own accord in over two months. Teresa picked her up and carried her out here the other night; she started shaking as soon as they got past the bedroom door. She spends the day huddled under the bed, coming out only to eat or use the box. She spends at least some of the night on the bed...but we've not gone as much as a week lately without having to unexpectedly dump bedding in the laundry.

She's incontinent, arthritic, and mentally...Not The Same Cat. (And, lest we forget, at some point dying of cancer.)

She has no quality of life.

She goes in Thursday morning for what would normally be a checkup. Unless they have a miracle cure for most or all of her issues on hand, she's very likely not coming back.

Voice Post:

Tue, 20 May 2008 16:02:46 GMT

It usually doesn't take this long...

Sun, 18 May 2008 21:58:08 GMT

I note that the current official temperature at Sky Harbor is 103.

The ice on the Salt River has cracked.

That is all.

You have not left feedback for...

Tue, 13 May 2008 22:21:11 GMT

A year ago yesterday, Teresa and I stood up in front of God and many of y'all and agreed to a bunch of things.

A+++, would do so again.

Linkmania -- images

Mon, 12 May 2008 06:09:53 GMT

Badass:

The ash plume from a Chilean volcanic eruption...with lightning.

Elegant:

It's a chalk-stripe waistcoat cuirass.

Nifty:

It's a map of the United States composed entirely of streets. No political boundaries, no terrain features...just streets.

Dry-cleaning...a pick and a pan

Sun, 20 Apr 2008 08:28:56 GMT

So about a month back, Nala peed on Teresa's (nylon & polyester) trenchcoat. I volunteered to take it down to the drycleaner...and promptly forgot about it. Wednesday of last week, I get a call from her asking if I've taken it in. No. Turns out she'd *just* been told that she was going to have to do a presentation *the next morning* for the kids at her school trying to sell them on her proposed summer day-camp activity. Said activity is a mystery camp, which she pitches wearing the aforementioned trenchcoat. I somehow have to get this trenchcoat cleaned by not much after 7am...and it's already near 6pm. I call the drycleaner I've used lately...they can't do it that fast. Crap.

I pull out the phone book and spot the ad for One Hour Martinizing. It claims one-hour service on items brought in in the morning...and they open at 6am. So I call them, and the guy on the other end confirms that yes, if I bring the item in at 6am, it'll be done by 7am. Sweet! It then occurs to me that I can avoid getting up at 5:30am to drop that off if I can get the coat there before they close at 6:30pm. I make it by 8 minutes, aided by having used it before and thus knowing where it was. (They're the ones who failed to get the cat vomit out of the wool blanket a few years back.) And suddenly, no, they can't get it done before 8am. Despite what they told me over the phone not 20 minutes previously. I am...displeased. (When I call her, Teresa isn't any happier.)

For lack of anything better to do, I head back over to our we've-used-them-recently drycleaners, 5 Star Cleaners. (These are the ones who succeeded in getting the cat vomit out of the wool blanket without damaging it.) The girl behind the counter calls the owner...who allows as how he could get it done by 7am. Ecstatic, I hand over the coat. When Teresa picks it up the next morning, the owner explains that he hadn't managed to get it completely done, but that it should be done enough for her purposes. (I get to live!) Because it's not done, he charges her half...and invites her to bring it back to get it finished (for the other half of the money). We did that this past week, and the finished coat is immaculate.

So yeah...no question about who we're going to from now on.

More weird spam

Sat, 19 Apr 2008 20:54:39 GMT

In the past few weeks, I've gotten two more noteworthily odd spams. The first appeared to be a fairly standard Nigerian scam...except it claimed the money was in Japan. Last I checked, Japan isn't the sort of lawless place where you can just be disappeared without anyone caring.

As for the second...well, it's not as good as the death threat one, but it's still pretty amusing:

Dear Sir,

Believe it or not, This Stone makes you to be Invulnerable.
This Stone filled with very Strong White Energy from secret prayer.
It will come powerfull in Danger or Accident.
You can test it by cut/hurt your hand using knife.
Using knife it leaves only little scratch or little wound.
Using very sharp knife/blade it leaves little wound but not till bleeding.
This Stone specially filled with protection energy but also have another benefits:
- Increase Self Confidence.
- In a real Fighting, you will have very strong Inner Power, be UntouchableMan
- Safe from Criminal with any kind of Weapon.
- Safe[Decrease] from any kind of Accident.
- Safe from any kind of Magic.
- Protect you on Haunted place, they will move or make distance with you.
- Bring more Luck.
- Makes better Aura, more easy to Attract people.
- Increase Supremacy
You can get it only US$1000 [negotiable], Very Cheap than hiring Security Guard and
All Benefits you Get.
If you have Questions please Contact me.

Thanks,
Willy

Voice Post

Fri, 18 Apr 2008 20:19:59 GMT

Voice Post:

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 03:16:59 GMT

Linkmania -- Two odd, one not

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 06:38:27 GMT

Amusingly plausible:

Time travel, wiki editing...it's all the same.

No, really...

In the 1950's, the Brits seriously considered developing and deploying a chicken-powered atomic landmine.

Government being useful:

Ever driven past those zoning hearing signs and wondered what was going to be discussed, but certainly weren't about to stop, park, walk over, and read the signs? The city of Chandler has solved this by putting zoning hearing notices on a map-based web site.

Voice Post:

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 21:38:15 GMT

Voice Post: Calling in from THEM

Fri, 07 Mar 2008 01:45:12 GMT

Reasonably something from the knees up...

Tue, 04 Mar 2008 06:25:41 GMT

T. already had her garb, but when we left the house Sunday morning for Faire, I owned the hat. The rest is new.

I still need a belt and some boots.

Most annoying

Mon, 03 Mar 2008 00:14:50 GMT

Around 11 this morning, our Internet connection here at the house started dropping packets. Cox can't be out here to look at it until Tuesday morning. Until then, our contact with the rest of the world will be erratic.

Voice Post:

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 17:32:52 GMT

Linkmania -- arguably odder than usual

Wed, 27 Feb 2008 06:39:10 GMT

And it should totally come pre-loaded with the theme from Cops
It's a holster for your Taser, with a built-in 1GB mp3 player. Because apparently everything needs an mp3 player.

Less is, apparently, more
It seems that removing Garfield himself from the Garfield comic strip results in a very strange but oddly cool comic strip.

. . .
It seems the US government is spending actual money on trying to develop software that will detect violent extremists infiltrating WoW.