Extreme Ironing Bureau :: Ironing under the sky

Extreme Ironing Bureau :: Ironing under the sky

People ironing in the oddest places, in the oddest ways. Beyond the humor, there are some great shots of moutians and such. Yes, with people ironing, but good shots, reguardless... ;)

PR Bop

PR Bop

All the weird news that is fit to print... and has been. Strange and wonderful stories off the news wires. Worth a look.

Who Would Buy That? (auction oddities from all over the web)

Who Would Buy That? (auction oddities from all over the web)

Weird and strange web auctions from the web... nothing more to be said. The site speaks for itself.

Weird, rare breed of frog found

Weird, rare breed of frog found



That is a strange looking frog! This type of frog was thought to be long dead, but they found some in India. I love 'lost breeds' type stories. And... come on, it's a purple frog! I had to link it!

PvPonline.com · Hosted By SPEAKEASY.NET

PvPonline.com · Hosted By SPEAKEASY.NET

Helpful guide on how to use Crayons. I'm sure my Mother, the kindergarden teacher could use this.

Disc Golf!

Maybe this will work.

I've got a post that talks about this, but the link didn't show up. It's about Disc Golf, and it's mainly for my brother, Marty. Maybe this will work.

Marty, if you like this, let me know...

OK, it didn't. For some reason, it isn't working. Copy this into the address line of your browser. It's a fun game!

http://www.spillover.com/newsletters/edg/images/discgolf2003.swf

BBC NEWS | Technology | Science plans 'non-stick' submarine

BBC NEWS | Technology | Science plans 'non-stick' submarine

Is a flat surface the most slick? No... if you make the spikes on the surface small enough, you get a surface where water will not stick with more than 99% effectiveness.

It has to do with the water running down on mostly air. It will result in every good, if expensive, rain coats... or better stealth submarines, or ... well, use your imagination.

I'm having trouble with links again... if the link doesn't show up, copy this test in your address line...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/3178136.stm

Money, Money, Money....

I got some of the new $20 bills today. I made 2 purchases, and at both places I got the "What's this" reaction.

The most noticable change is the color. It's still mostly greenish, but there is another color running though it. While in the Navy, I got used to odd colored money. But I was really interested in the reactions I got.

It's funny to see how small and silly changes will throw us off, while lager, harder to see changes don't even rate notice.

Hey... I guess we are just human, after all... ;)

Disc Golf!

Hey, my brother Marty will love this! A web game about Disc Golf. Marty, tell me how you like it!

BarCode 1 Site Contents

BarCode 1 Site Contents

Yet another site that you might not go to. It's about... well, bar codes. History, programs, how to get them, how to decode them, even a list of magazines (!?!?!?!) about them.

OK, it does sound funny. But as much as we accept it today, we have to remember how big a change they made. Even small stores have laser scanners now. And it saves money, too... when the national headquarters for a grocery store chain can know EXACTLY how much Diet Coke they have at store #2345332, they can order things just in time to fill the need.

Live web cam video from the dentist office - DentCam TM

Live web cam video from the dentist office - DentCam TM

Not sure you need, or even want, to go to this site. But I found the idea... Interesting. Strange, but interesting.

A dentist has set up a web cam of his chair. It will show people in it, unless the patient requests that it not be shown (gee, why would they do that?).

Why?

"We are seeking to provide the community at large with an insight into the workings of the dental operators.
We hope that our DentCamTM will serve as an educational tool for individuals wary of dental offices and especially for children who will discover that familiarization is the first step towards acceptance of the dental experience."

Will it work? I don't know. But I'm telling you... Watch for more stuff like this. The next time I have a job with broadband access to the net, and if I have pet rats again, I'm setting up a web cam by the cage so I can check in on my girls!

NASA spots penguins’ hidden havens

The hidden lives of ... penguins! NASA can see where ships can't.

ASL University: American Sign Language courses online

ASL University:  American Sign Language courses online

A totally online course on Americian Sign Language. Looks pretty detailed, and it even tests!

The Memory Hole > The $10,000 Bill and Other Large Denominations

The Memory Hole > The $10,000 Bill and Other Large Denominations

In my time of need... man, it sure is good looking at these big donomination bills! They even have the $100,000 gold note, which never went into public circulation... it's even ilegal to own one!

TIME.com: Life Beyond The Far Side -- Oct. 06, 2003

TIME.com: Life Beyond The Far Side -- Oct. 06, 2003

Fareside was one of my favorite comics. Loved it to death. And the creator of it went out on top. Interesting fellow... he really never was into cartooning.

The ORIGINAL Illustrated Catalog Of ACME Products

The ORIGINAL Illustrated Catalog Of ACME Products

Remember the old road runner and Bugs Bunny cartoons... and remember how they always ordered death traps and more from ACME? Well, someone has even less of a life than I do, and made a catalog from pictures of the products from the cartoons.

Enjoy...

Lighter Camera

JBcamera.com

It looks like a zippo lighter, but it's a lo res digital camera! Not very practical, but I'd love to have one!

Electronic paper reaches video speed: Colour movies might soon be playing on single sheets.

Electronic paper reaches video speed: Colour movies might soon be playing on single sheets.

E-paper is something I've alway kept an eye on. It's a technology that will change how we use and see computers. We now picture them as that ugly box on the desk, but with a vaible e-paper solution, the computer becomes invisible. And as this is the first I've heard of something that could display motion and color, it's getting closer.

I think I remember my Mom (if it wasn't you, Mom, correct me!) calling the moniter the computer, and the computer the hard drive. The reason is that all she did on the computer was on the screen, so of course it was the computer, right?

Well, when you put out a tube from your pocket and pull out a flat, flexible screen, and read all the latest news, and even see videos on it, you stop thinking about the computer. You just have the information. And when you no longer have to be at a desk to get your e-mail, or see all your personal information, then even location becomes less important.

Before you say this is way more than you'd ever use... just think about having every picture of your family you ever made ready to display at any time... all in a tiny pocket of your purse.

Download lawsuit dismissed / RIAA drops claim that grandmother stole online music

Download lawsuit dismissed / RIAA drops claim that grandmother stole online music

OK, I'm sure you are hearing lots of things about file sharing and people stealing music online. Despite what some say, it is stealing. Period. End of story.

But that isn't all there is. The RIAA is going about this all wrong. And when a story like this happens, you have to wonder how the RIAA, who are not cops and don't have training cops have in how to go after someone correctly, is getting their list of names.

Read the story. She is a nice older lady with an old computer that can't even run the program they are claiming she uses. They also say she is downloading Snopp Dog and other rap type music.

Now, they dropped the case, but you have to wonder... is this the only one they got wrong?

Welcome to Monopoly.com!

Welcome to Monopoly.com!

Ever lose all your Monopoly money? Or play a long game where the money runs out? Never again! Print your own money!

On this site are high res (meaning very detailed) PDF's (files that Acrobat Reader and veiw and print.... it's a free download if you don't have it) of each Monlopoly bill.

If you ever need good fake money for any game, or for teaching kids about it, you can't do better than this!

Zoo testing DNA of mystery apes

Zoo testing DNA of mystery apes

Weird animal time again. It has the body of a gorilla and facial features of a chip. They also sleep on the ground like gorillas and eat high fruit diets like chips.

Founders of 'Talk Like a Pirate Day' report busy times.

SignOnSanDiego.com > News > Features -- Founders of 'Talk Like a Pirate Day' report busy times.

I saw this "Talk Like a Pirate" stuff all over the web today. In these dark times, it's kind of nice just to be silly for a day.

Oh, you can also go to the site that started it... Talk Like a Pirate Day .

Hurricane Isabel

Hurricane Isabel

Very good shot of the recent hurricane. Isabel is huge, friends. Lovely and scarey at the same time.

Ancient rodent the size of a buffalo

Ancient rodent the size of a buffalo

I like rats, and wouldn't this one make a great pet! I can just see the 'Warning: Rat On Guard' signs now.

Colorado Bloggers

Lifestyles

Hey... I'm a Colorado blogger! Where am I in this? OK, other than leaving me out, it's a nice writeup about what blogging is. Those of you who are wondering what the heck I'm doing here might want to check it out.

Back To Publishing!

Links are working again. In fact, they started working sooner than I thought, and I just made some bad test links. I'm keeping the bad posts so the tech can look at it if he wants. I'll fix them later with the actual links.

WTC Ground Zero spherical VR panos

Takes lots of bandwidth, but some stunning views of Ground Zero in panoramic views.

I tried to avoid 9/11 stuff today. I'm starting a new job tonight, and I didn't want to dewl on it. But I couldn't, really.

Test For Titles

This is a test, just a test. Had this been a real post, actual content would have been provided....

Told you... ;)

Just testing... Blogger just foldded some of the Pro features into the free version. One of those things is putting pictures in. Also a spell checker. Might even use that.

Expect to see some pictures and samples of whatever graphics I'm playing with soon...

NBC 17 - News - Man Buys Groceries With Fake $200 Bill

Some key things that make this really funny... first of all, there IS no $200 bill. Secondly, President Bush's face is on it. However you stand on him, I very much doubt that anybody wants to put someone still alive on a bill!

There are also other funny details, and I imagine that the person that accepted the bill isn't finding this as funny as I am.

Oh, and there is a graphic of the bill with the story.

Got a job, folks! OK, it's part time, but it pays good (over 9 an hour) and I can do it from home. Could mean 10 to 20 hours a week, and I get discounts on pizza!

It's a cool system, and I'll talk about it in more detail later. Go here for more info, if you want it... Alpine Access .

MyQuicknet

Don't go here if you are about to fly. Pictures of a plane that ran into a hail storm.

stock.xchng - the leading free stock photo site

Free pictures! Really... for any use, personal or otherwise. Some nice pictures, and I like the concept. Get people that like to take pictures and don't mind others using them and put it on the web.

Anybody that needs cheap (FREE!) stock shots for work, or for fun, needs to check this out.

Humming Bird Nest
Great little home page where someone documents the story of humming bird eggs, from the nest being built to the hatchings! Great quality pictures, and be sure to look for the picture where they put up a tooth pick to show how small the eggs are.

Automatic Flatterer

Had a bad day? Go to this sight and give them your name. Then send it to a friend. You'll feel better!

The Boy in Camp Granada

There may be a free registration required on this, but it's worth it. Summer camp has had been an important part of my life. I grew up in Dry Creek Camp... was there every summer, either with my folks, or taking a camp, or working there. Know every inch of it. And I worked in another came a few years ago, Singin' River Ranch, which led me to where I currently live, Denver, CO.

And anybody that has been to camp knows the Camp Granada song. You know, the one that starts "Hello, Mutter, Hello Fadder, here I am in Camp Granada".

The story is written by a person that actually went to came with the boy that inspired the song. I went there expecting the normal fluff piece that normally happens for stuff like this. It isn't. It gives a clear and interesting history of the song, and the sad but interesting story of the man that wrote it.

And then, it tells the happier story of the son, the one the song is based on. He was much like his father, but took a different path.

Even if you never heard that song, it's a great read. Check it out.

The Blackout

For those that found the coverage of the blackout interesting, here is another viewpoint... or viewpoints. Look at 'on the ground' coverage from people that were their, using their camera phones.

We will be seeing more and more of this. Look for the first camera phone picture of a news story being sold in the near future, but that isn't even the biggest change.

The real thing to look for is coverage of events by the people there. The pictures won't be professional all the time, but they will be there, in the event.

You will know it's a mainstream, accepted happening when news outlets start to have automated/quick ways for people to submit their photos and get paid for them. The only thing that might stop this is that so many might be doing it, payment might not be needed... just credit.

Highlights || Blackout History Project

Given the NYC blackout being in the news, here is a sight with tons of information and timelines on blackouts in the past, like the one in NYC in '77.

Herald Sun: Whale flatulence stuns scientists [14aug03]

OK, I'm sorry, Mom. My Mother, after years of teaching little boys with way too much need to laugh at rude body funtions... her son is posting a story about a farting whale.

I can't help it. I love science stories. And the little boy in me gets a real kick out of it too! In case you want to know, it was enough to clear the bow of a ship.

ZDNet: Editor Selected ResultsAbout ZDNet

And they said you can't make money off the internet! Well, I am! OK, it's just a tiny bit of money, but it's fun. I'm the editor of the AboutResults: ZDNet page. I'll be putting links on the page useful for someone doing a search on ZDNet, guiding them to something useful rather than the million page hits they just got in the search.

Go check it out.

New Scientist

OK, a bit morbid, but as a CSI (television show that deals with how police scientists find the clues they do), I live this stuff. It's a computer program that builds a face from the skull.

This is currently a very hard and long task done by hand. It can also give the face an expression, or put different light on it, to help match with pictures.

OJR article: For Snopes.com, Debunking the Bambi Hoax Was All in a Day's Work

I've often refered people to the Snopes.com web site. I'll get an email with a strange story, or a virus claim, and the first place I go is Snopes.com. More often than not, I'll find it there... as a hoax.

It's run by a husband and wife team (they have cats and rats as pets... how cool!) who just take the extra steps that even reporters don't do these days.

The article is interesting, and it will make you a bit more careful about what you believe on the net.

ElectricNews.net:News:Say 'cheese' to mobile fridge camera

A digital camera in your fridge. It takes a picture everytime you shut the door (I'm assuming the light is on for that!). Why? Simple... if you have a picute enabled phone or handheld, you can log into the system and see the picture to see what you are missing... say, if you are at the grocery store. "Hmmm.. More milk, and who keeps drinking the sodas?"

Out of all the weird things I've seen in 'enabled' kitchen ware, this one makes the most sense, but it does have problems. Until then, the best solution remains the 'Honey-Check' method...

"Hello, honey... I love you too. Just calling to tell you I love you... oh, could you look in the fridge?"

New Scientist

Sumulated food! It's a device that mimics the feel, texture and taste of food, but they are still working on smell, a very important factor in taste.

The use put forth is for companies to use computers in making food stuff, making it a quicker process. Me, I very much doubt it will ever come close to what came out of my Mom's Crock Pot on Sundays, or the whole experience that is her red beans and rice... which tastes great no matter how much mustard Dad puts on it. ;)

Blogging for better bins

I talked generally about our leaders using blogs to keep in touch with the people (or more likely, to blow smoke at us). But as my Mother pointed out, I didn't really put a link to the Brits that were doing it. Here is a story about it.

Mom... always correcting me. Gotta love her. ;)

Digging for Googleholes - Google may be our new god, but it's not omnipotent. By Steven Johnson

We all use Google, but now some problems with using it are coming up. Here many are listed, and it's something to think about. The most interesting one to me was that, as we are researching more and more by net rather than book, and books aren't on the net, it's making for a very big collective blind spot.

At some point, we need a system where a book can be on the web and able to be searched, with maybe paid access or some other system.

I knew for years (just ask my Mom) that we would have a global information market. We ain't there yet, and we are going though the growing pains now.

Ransom Center: Exhibitions & Events: Permanent Exhibitions: The Gutenberg Bible: Introduction

For anyone interested in the bible and it's history, here is one of the best copies of the Gutenberg Bible fully digitized. Each page, in flip style like a book, or you can zoom in on one page and see the lovely lettering.

Also included is a good overview of it's history, and of the history of books.

I've only been doing this blog thing for a bit, and to a very, very small crowd (OK... can't really call 'em a crowd either), but I've been hearing some stuff that got me thinking.

There have been some stories about two people in England that are in office who blog (no links... linking isn't working well right now. I'll try to add some later). This strikes me as a great idea. And the very reasons it's a great idea is why we won't see it happen much here in the US... for now.

The reasons it's good are the very reasons why blogging work... it's a clear, close connection to the people. If you have comments, you even have a way to see what people think about what you say, both from those that agree with you and those that don't. It's also a great way to get your side of the story out, and do it even before the press does if you do it right.

But you see, most of our guys don't want that. They don't want a clear connection, or instant communications to the people. They want filtered access... both ways. They want a dozen people to parse what they say before you hear it, and they want even more people picking who gets to talk to them. I'm not picking sides here... both parties are this way.

It's going to take a dark horse runner that uses blogging to gain votes to get this started. Nobody is going to do this until someone makes it work for them.

Sadly, even if it gets going, it will just be filtered anyway. Can you imagine anybody that has a staff going over his each word blogging his actual unfiltered thoughts?

I sure can't... and it's a shame.

Just saw a great story on CBS News Sunday Morning. It's about a Red Hawk that made it's home in NYC, putting a nest up on one of the most exclusive buildings with a park view. It's been there for a deacade, and raises chicks even.

It seems quite a group has formed around watching him and his family. Here is a website put out by them. Interesting stuff, and lovely pictures.

It's dumb, over the top, strange... and a must see. Think of it as the Japanese version of the Super Bowl, or Boxing... except with cooking. No... really. It's really interesting. The Chairman (always in an over the top outfit) shows the theme food that the cooks must use and focus on. The channeling picks an Iron Chef to take on. And they both spend one hour cooking as many meals with the theme in focus using the arena style kitchen (no, really... it's exactly as you'd imagine such a thing!) to fix them all. A group of judges taste each dish, and vote for a winner.

Is it as strange as it sounds? No, of course not... it's stranger. It's a mix of sports, cooking, campy fun and culture clash... with a dash of actual cooking knowlege that you learn as you watch.

If you have the food network and never bothered to watch it before (and really, I don't blame you... I didn't either when we first got it), watch this. Give it one show to see if you like it. You'll either find it boring or utterly love it.

Sea blob a sperm whale, experts say

Big, huge sea creatures... yep, another post about that. This one is a dead whale that some thought was a dead squid. The bit about why they are often confused is very interesting.

I'm soooo glad our Cable got upgraded!

Just recently, our cable company (TCI, then AT&T, now Comcast... don't ask, long story) finally made good on promises made years ago... they improved the channel lineup! Not only do we now have several more Discovery and History type channels, we have a channel about video games and ! And Tech TV has a show called Screen Savers, which gave me this tip for a great little program for publishing my blog. It's a real program, not a web page... and it has word processing type controls, so it's easy to use. And my Mother will be glad that it has a spell checker! Hey, Mom... I might even use it!

It's called w.blogger, and I'm liking it so far. I may be using it for all but my quickie web link entries. Just have to make sure I don't go nuts and start making posts with tons of funky formating in it!

Hmmm.... just checked the spell checker out. Oddly, it doesn't have the word 'blog' or 'blogger' in it. Kind of funny for a program that is for blogging, isn't it?

OK... I'm back now. My DSL line was again down, and again it took longer than Qwest claimed it would. 24 to 48 hours became a week and a half, including the 4th of July weekend. sigh...

I'm back now, and I'll be posting interesting things again starting this weekend. Hope you all had a good 4th of July!

Lady Liberty Fireworks

Fun, pointless site. Make the fireworks fly over NYC! Good for a few moments fun, and a good site to show friends.

Browse the San Francisco Historical Photograph Collection - SFPL.org

Hey, I already posted this, but they 'updated' blogger on me. I had to reset up my stuff!

If you like old pictures, this is a great site. It's all in catagories, so you don't download a bunch of graphics, making it work well for phone line users. Banks, bars, churches, cemiteries, earthquakes ( it is San Franciso, after all! ) and more can be found there.

I Can't Stop Thinking! #2 - July 2000

Geek that I am, this is an online comic book. But this one is more like an artcle told in comic book form. The art is easy on the eyes, and the topic is a good one.

It talks about how, beyond the legal questions of downloadable musci, there are lots of possitives for it as well... if a working system can come out of it.

Very interesting, and a very easy read. Check it out.

9NEWS.com - Newsroom

DON'T test safety gear on a whim. An uncle, in an effort to see if a jacket would protect one from a knife wound, stabbed a 26 year old, and killing him.

Such safety gear is there as a last case protection. No protection scheme is perfect, and you shouldn't depend on them alone.

Moblogs By TextAmerica ::.
Mobile Picture Web Logs! Yah! Um... not yet. Not only do I not have the equipent for it (a picture taking web enabled phone), but I'm not sure the world is ready to see my mug all over a picture web log.

But here is something to think about... it won't be long before you can assume that more than one person in any group of people have a picture taking phone, which can send said picture over the net. now that cell phones are not seen as odd where there is people, will this bring up new concerns? What will it mean to people when your picture in any public event can be on the net in less than a second?

Something to think about.

Wired News: Happy Birthday, Dear DNS

Remember when my site was here, but you couldn't get to it? Short historical note about the system that allows us all to find web pages.

Honeywell, Lebanon firm locked in dispute

In simpliest terms, Honeywell is claiming to own the circle shape, at least when it comes to thermostats. Another company is claiming the shape is functional, so it can use it. from the story..

"Shapes are entitled to trademark protection, but they don't qualify as trademarks if the shape is functional," said Bauer, who specializes in intellectual property issues. "The argument of what qualifies as functional figures to be the case law dispute."

An interesting look into how trademarks work... or don't work, I guess. Now, here is the question... when you see a round thermostat cover... do you think Honeywell? Honeywell thinks so!

Spiky Bra - your sexy accessory

A bit racey comparied to what I normally blog, but I had to. Spikybras.com says it all. The odd thing is I've seen lightbulbs with the same spike effect.

My site (and my e-mail) was down for a couple of days. It caused me to think about a few things.

First of all, it made me really think about why I like having my own domian. When it was gone, I honestly felt disconnected. I had my net connection, and every other thing, but my site and my main e-mail was gone... and it was MINE! It sounds silly, but that was how a felt.

Besides that odd feeling, there are some very practical reasons why having one's own domain is a good thing. You have e-mail that you control with whatever name you want ( I can have up to 30 accounts based on '@maximumword.com', and for very little more I could have unlimited ones) along with access to all those accounts if I wish (great for families that have kids, isn't it?). And then there is the server space... not only do I have a site that I can say whatever I want to the world, but I can also store things that I can access anywhere in the world that I have net access.

I may just write up an article about it. I'll let you know if I do.

The other thing is the problem. My site was there, my server was working.. nothing really was broken! Then why couldn't you get to it? It is what is called a name server problem. You see, the whole internet is actually addressed with numbers. Yes, like phone numbers. So what happened was that my information got changed... so the information in the name server, the server that looks at the the URL that you type in the address bar of your browser and points it to the actual site, had bad information.

I could still get to it, but I would have to type in the actual number address. A real pain... think if you had to use longitude and laditude addresses instead of street addresses to find anybody!

Poor speller busted for misspelled bomb threat

Much of my family is involved in education... and now we have a clear sign why that is so important. This guy so badly spelled a bomb threat note on a fake bomb ("The bom (b-o-m) will bloe (b-l-o-e) if you touch it.") that everybody knew who it was.

See? Had this person had a proper education, he cold have wrote a bomb note with no misspellings and would have gotten away with it!

Marvin The Martian and Daffy Duck as Duck Dodgers Prepare for Upcoming NASA Missions to Mars | SpaceRef - Your Space Reference

The headline says it all. The patches are shown on the page. Worth seeing.

Wired News: Probing the Power of Corked Bats

In the wake of the current Sammy Sosa story, here is an article about how maybe corking a bat isn't as good as one might think.

Girls Teach Teen Cyber Gab to FBI Agents (washingtonpost.com)

It's a very serious subject, but it also had me giggling. Teen age girls teach FBI agents to chat online like... well, teen age girls.

"The girls were recruited after one of their fathers, an agent involved in the pedophile investigations, watched her instant messaging a friend and couldn't understand what she was typing. He realized that FBI training wasn't enough."

Yes, indeed... for being a teen age girl, FBI training wasn't enough.

The Eric Eldred Act
OK, I tend not to get political here, but I thought I'd add this. It's about copy right laws and how we are losing works in Public Domain. Why should you care? Well... read the site. But consider Disney, a company that fought hard to retain the current law that extends copy right by decades. Despite this, you have to wonder where they would be if the law was this way before. After all, what are Disney's big hits? The Little Meremad, Snow White, and others... all works they got from the public domain and remade into new classics. Where would those works be if some company still owned those works, decades after the actual author was gone?

XE.com - The Universal Currency Converter ®

Need to convert money, or see a story about money in a forien coin and wonder how much it really is (sort of like the story below this one)? Here is where you go. Type an amount, select the money it's in, then select the money you want to convert it to and hit a button... it's that easy. And it's based on live data feeds for their converstion values.

KEANU REEVES GIVES £50 MILLION TO UNSUNG HEROES OF 'THE MATRIX'

Keanu Reeves, the star of the recent blockbuster "Matrix: Reloaded", gave millions to the Special Effects team. Very nice... they are the ones that made him look so good, after all.

OK, I'm adding something new... comments. Just like everything else here, it's mainly as a learning thing, seeing how things work.

Do you see the 'comments(0)' thing on the end of this post? Well, if you click on it a pop up window .... well, it pops up. In that window you can leave a comment on the post. "Gee, that was the dumbest website I ever went to... why did you post it?" or "Son, you haven't called me in a week. You have time to post web game sites and pictures of giant squids, but you don't have time to call your Mother?". Whatever you want.

Since I only have a few viewers (Mom, and my room mate when I force her to check my page out), I doubt I'll get many comments. But It was interesting to set it up, even fairly easy (and free!).

For anybody interested, the site that gave me this interesting feature is here.

Gizmodo : The Gadgets Weblog

For those that like gagets, this is the place. It covers new gagets as news of them hit the net. Even non-geeks can enjoy it, as it's keeps the entries as simple summeries, with a link if you want to go deeper.

Orisinal : Morning Sunshine

Some nice, simple and a bit oddball flash games. Very interesting themes, and pleasent, pastel game graphics. Give it a try... nice and pleasent instead of loud and flashy.

Details

Wanna Air Craft Carrier? This one is for sale... just 4.5 million. I'm sure they would be willing to work with you on the financing.

The Manila Times Internet Edition | TOP STORIES > With apologies to the weasel

A short article about the use of the word 'weasel' in the english language. I'm always on the look out for such things... I love words. And I have a friend with ferret pets, which we all call weasels. So I may have enjoyed this one more than most!

BBC NEWS | England | Manchester | Huge hailstones cause flight 'mayhem'

And you thought your last plane flight was rough... this one went though a hail storm, which not only put a big hole in it's front, but cracked the pilot's window. Nice picture of the hole included.

A Visit from... Mr. Winkle!

The site is about an unbearably cute dog. I've seen it on TV before. The owner has done a book or two using the dog as a model. It really is cute, but very odd looking... like a cartoon dog come to life.

The Straight Dope Front Page
What's the difference between Diet Coke and Tab? What is the origion of April Fool's Day? For those answers, and hundreds of others, all written with both humor and accuracy, check out the Straight Dope. Always informative, always fun... and you learn something even on the more silly questions. For instance, check out the Tab/Diet Coke question and learn some interesting things about the strange world of marketing.

Dave Raggett's Introduction to HTML

For those with an interest in how web pages are made, and maybe think about making them yourself, try here. I know it seems as if it's magic or something, but at the core it's just text pages. Just put in some tags (and most of them are fairly easy to understand... the italics tag is call.... well, italics) with a little thought to order, and you got a page.

All My Life For Sale

I just got reminded of this site. It's what I call a 'dead' site, in that it was an ongoing project that ended. But it's still an interesting read, and can get you to think about things a bit.

A fellow was looking to sell some of his stuff, but couldn't find a good website name to put them all on. He then found that allmylifeforsale.com wasn't taken, so took it.

But then... the name says ALL mylife for sale, so he put it all up. Clothes, old records, books, food, toothpaste and... well, everything. He even went to vist his 'stuff' whereever they found their way, and put up reports on what people did with it.

It's strange, but an interesting thing, and it does make you think about our relationship with the stuff we have.

PCWorld.com - Maximum Google

For anybody that uses Google.com (and that should be just about anybody on the net these days), here are some useful tips and some hidden (or hard to find) features of the most used search site on the net. I even found some interesting tips, including how to use it as a reverse phone book (it was kind of spooky when my own address popped up from my phone number, along with links to show it on a map!).

Mercury News | 05/08/2003 | SideKick, other devices benefit the deaf

I have a family member that is involved with the deaf, so I found this very interestiong. I still remember seeing a phone call using one of those horrid phone text things (can't remember for the life of me what they were called). I can see how having e-mail at your hip would be useful.

Electronic paper is on a roll

Folks, this is a tech to keep an eye on... e-paper. In the next few years, we will see cheap, flexible and low power screens come out and they will change things for PDAs, cell phones and just about every protable electronic device. Even home applinances... currently it's too expensive to put a full display on a VCR, Microwave or stero. Just think about a VCR that has a full TV schedule up for you to select what you record, or a microwave that can show you suggested heating times on a range of things, instead of finding that darn book that came with it.

Haunted Paper Toys

Know some kids that just can't let Halloween go? Great... go to this site and get some free craft projects to cut up and put together!

The Daily News Online: Egg hunt interupted by blazing cow

And you thought you had a bad Easter...

CIA - The World Factbook 2002

With all the interest in things international, give this link a try. It gives you a basic rundown of whatever country you select. For anybody with an interest in the world, or high schoolers with school papers to do, this should go on your hot links list.

ThinkGeek :: Shower Shock Caffeinated Soap

The scarey part is... I think it's real. Each bar has about 12 servings/showers, and you absorb it though your skin.

The official U.S. time

Want to know the time? Go here and get the official time! OK, OK, all kidding aside, a useful site. Pick your time zone and see how off your computer time is. It's given in military time, so if it's in the afternoon, just subtract 12 from the hour.

Hey, it's accurate within 0.2 seconds!

The words of war

An interesting history of how war has effected our language, and a helpful list of words of our current war that may find common use after it's over.

Kellogg's popular, pioneering Pop-Tarts turn 40 this year - 04/05/03

Hey, they were test marketed in the 60's, and I ate some just today. So why not link to a story about their history? Come on... can you hate Pop-Tarts?

Times Online

I just commented on http://boingboing.net/ as a site. I've also commented on logoed (for those not as up on it, logoed means 'something with a logo on it'. I could have said that, but logoed sounds so much more hip, and everybody that knows me knows I need all the help I can get with hip) surgical masks showing up in Hong Kong due to the SARS problem.

Well, Boing Boing pointed out yet another story about that (I also got the first one from it) and it points to another side of the story.

I've been to Hong Kong before, and I know how commen ripping off copyright and trademark is there. And that seems to be the trend there... Disney isn't really selling Winnie the Poo masks, and they aren't happy that you can get them and get your covered mug put up on a web page.

I've had two people give me positive and negative spins on this, and I find it interesting. Think I'll watch this trend. Given the global nature of human life these days, you may be getting your mask from the local 7-11 soon.

Boing Boing: A Directory of Wonderful Things

I know I put a link to this place before, but I want to comment on it... this is an excellent site. It goes from political to tech to just cool things. The tag ling says it all... A Directory of Wonderful Things.

As I've started to put links on my own blog, I've been even more impressed with this one. He not only is a publised writer (I'm reading his recent release as an e-book now), but has a real finger on the pulse of the net, finding interesting things everywhere. He also has a rep now, and gets suggestions from lots of people.

The best a person can do with links in a blog is be a great filter and searcher. This site is a fine example of that.

Do yourself a favor and check it out. You'll learn something.

Access to Archival Databases (AAD) System

Part of the ADD system is now online. It contains...

Online access to a selection of nearly 50 million historic electronic records created by more than 20 federal agencies on a wide range of topics

the ability to search for records with the specific information that you seek

important contextual information to help you understand the records better, including code lists, explanatory notes from NARA archivists, and for some series or files in AAD, related documents.

I know I have a few relatives that like mapping out the branches on the old family tree, so they and anybody else that might be interested in that type of info should check this out.

The Birthday Thing...

I've been wondering what I'd write today about my birthday. I mean, birthdays are suppost to be when you consider your life just a bit. And my life isn't going too well right now. I'm unemployed, and it's a soft market for any kind of job right now. And I'm getting close to 40, and I still haven't got a career or even a sign I'll get out of the paycheck to paycheck life.

All that is important, but so are other things. And one of them caught me between the eyes today. I treated myself to a good lunch at a local greasy spoon (Tom's Diner, for anybody that live in the Denver area) and ordered liver and onions... even had pie afterwards. And as I read the paper and people watched out the big window, I realized that in at least one sense, things were good.

Tom's is on the main drag here in Denver, a street called Colefax. You can find the best and the worse of Denver on that street, and it's also the longest street. Out the window there isn't a great view... there is a Office Depot in an old building and a Guardian Angel's office (those guys that wear the red hats and walk about trying to keep things safe) and not much else. But traffic, both auto and foot, is heavy.

I felt good. I really did. And it reminded me why I like living in Denver. It's a large city, but not huge. It has a small town vibe, while at the same time offering up anything the larger cities have. Like sports? We got every major type of sports here.. football, baseball, hockey, scoocer, even area football. The arts? Every kind of museum you can think of, and lots of art shows and stores. Food? Lots of that too, from diners to fine dining. And yet the lady serving me my meal today still chated about school and the zoo, and gave me a free dip of ice cream on my pie becuase it was my birthday. I could picture that happening back home.

Whatever I end up doing on the job front, I'm glad I'm here. It's a nice place to be.

Deep-sea monster caught on tape

Yeah, I know... I already did something on big squids. This is something different. It's a lovely creature that is unlike any other squid known. The story also has a short video clip, and I suggest you watch it... the thing is just lovely when it moves, and it's arms just dangle behind it.

Happy Birthday to Me!

It's now my birthday. I was born today in 1966... which seems very long away right now. Of course, my Mom will be laughing at me considering that a long time ago!

I was really hoping to come up with something interesting to say about it... but nothing comes to mind, really. Maybe I will think of something after some sleep. And I'll be heading, after I pour myself a birthday drink to toast myself with. ;)

Oh... Thanks, Stacy. You were the first one to get a e-card to me on my birthday, and it felt good getting it.

KRT Wire | 04/03/2003 | Iraqi informer angered by treatment of POW

Interesting story about how Jessica Lynch was rescued. A part of the story I haven't seen in detail until this story. It's about a man that saw something he didn't like, and he did something about it, putting his own life and the lives of his family at risk.

Z A Z Z L E Poster

Hey, guys... I created a poster! It's from an old poem I wrote, with a little design work thrown in. I did it mainly to test how easy the Zazzle.com system worked, and it was pretty easy. When I have some funds, I may buy one (the prices range from $9.95 for card stock, to $39.95 on glossy canvas with 'archival inks'!)

It's an interesting system. I get 10% of sales, and keep the rights to the work. They have cards and tee shirts too. www.cafepress.com offers a similar service too, though with more products an a differrent system of payment.

Anybody that needs such a service, give it a try. When I actually buy the poster, I'll report on the quality.

Rare Colossal Squid Found Near Antarctica

With eyes the size of dinner plates and teeth like hooks, this monster of the deep is... well, a monster.

Why? Becuase I like huge mosters from the deep.

MadBlast - Pong... It's Not Just A Game

Cool Flash animation involving that old fond memory... Pong! Some language and more than a bit of abstract (read: Green stick men) fighting.

OK, a bit of an update... for anybody reading this thing, I'm giving it a bit of focus. I'll be putting interesting links that I find in my surfing. Feel free to send me any links you think are interesting, and I'll add them if I agree.

smh.com.au - The Sydney Morning Herald

In Hong Kong, fashionable masks are showing up (due to the SARS sickness), with even characters like Winnie the Pooh and such. It's a scary thing to see, but humans get used to anything and go on existing... and put carton pictures on it.

Boing Boing: A Directory of Wonderful Things

I'm getting some decent hits on my guide to getting flowers! Glad I could be some help.

OK, I'm back... for all 2 of you that wondered.

My move got me off line for about 3 weeks. It was a nightmare. But the apartment is great... love it. Oh.. then I lost my job!

It's been fun. You haven't missed much.

So... why am I back? Well, I DO have more time to post. And I thought that getting my site going again will be a good thing to focus on. I have put up a new page about how to buy flowers, so read it before Valentine's day. Link is on the front page of Maximumword.com .