ForcedPerspective

Just because we need natural disasters at opposite corners

I used to check the Recent Quake List regularly (it used to usually have about ten entries—Note that they've given up on updating it with St Helens data for now; there's apparently just too much activity). If St Helens is going to be engaging in this kind of nonsense, I'll have to check in more frequently.

Update: Current news can be found here.

Fake Trees for Beauty

Maybe this will be one of those things where you hear about it for the first time and then see it everywhere: fake trees as cell towers. Even a giant pencil would be more fun than the big green-painted metal cylinder down the street from my house.

Past futures of transportation

If there's one thing we collectively love, it's visions of the future from history. Here are some visions of future transportation.

Cheesy Political Writing

Loyal reader John (who gets bonus points for making me look up the work "fossick") recommends the entertaining article by Christopher Buckley, "The Roquefort Wars." If even Republicans aren't happy, is anyone enthused about voting for W? I also do not recommend making choices based on the behavior of Michael Moore

Language density from census data

I finally figured out how to use/had a browser that did the right things with the MLA's Language Map. It demonstrates that I moved from one hotbed of Russian speakers to within shouting distance of another. Well, walking distance, anyway.

Another quiz

This one's not on Quizilla, even, and it's old enough that the characteristics might be out of date. Regardless, here's my result:

Which OS are You?

Sarah says:

Does this mean we're incompatible?

Oh, for fast train service

We have trains that tilt, but ours can't (yet) go 125 mph, dammit. I would dearly love to make the Portland run in fewer parsecs.

Trailing behind...

Inspired by Susan Juby's vacation, I'm eyeing vintage trailers. Mmmmm, another expensive and bulky hobby! But if you just want to visit, try Shady Dell.

Baby Superstar

What a great idea for a baby gift: customized white-noise CD! This guy used a hairdrier, but other babies I know might enjoy clothes drier, Volvo, old gas furnace, or freeway whoosh.

Washing My Hands of You

Yes, the kids are back in school and the germ soup is bubbling away- it's time to start fruitlessly avoiding colds. The CDC and the American Society for Microbiology have some hand-washing tips to help you:
"Wet your hands with warm, running water and apply liquid or clean bar soap. Lather well. Rub your hands vigorously together for at least 10 to 15 seconds. Scrub all surfaces, including the backs of your hands, wrists, between your fingers and under your fingernails. Rinse well. Dry your hands with a clean or disposable towel."
They also recommend that crazy turn-off-the-tap-with-the-towel thing which never works out for me. They also like those alcohol-based hand sanitizers.

Bloggers love slit-your-wrist musicians

To mark his 70th, 70 things you might not know about Leonard Cohen.

sounds like

Book title that sounds like a euphemism of the day: Tempting the Highlander.

From the back cover: "Catherine Daniels arrives in Pine Creek, Maine, at the right time for Robbie MacBain. She is on the run from her ex-husband, and Robbie is a sexy, single foster parent who needs a housekeeper while he travels back in time to medieval Scotland."

Do you just put a card up at the co-op for that?

Unhappy Anniversary

Since I have to work on September 11, can I commemmorate the anniversary by throwing unattended bags into the dumpster?

Need any heavy equipment? A used car?

Mondo auction tomorrow in Kenmore.

More difficult-to-believe spam quotes

In a piece of spam advertising a famous drug to treat a condition that I had no idea was so common until the drug became so famous:

No more excuses, no more frustration, no more having to solely satisfy my girlfriend orally.

Prithee, check this shit out

The British Library (we [heart] libraries) has put working scripts of Shakespeare's plays online. One of the features reportedly allows you to track changes in the text from version to version.

I'm not sure you appreciate the gravity of the situation

Next time I'm in Southeast WA on the second Saturday of a month, I should tour the Hanford Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory.

That might be worth getting the infernal box

If this is true, I'll think hard about getting a TiVo. I don't think my tv has any spare inputs, though...