A little set theory to start your day.

indexed is a blog that has fun with Venn diagrams.

Ahoy, me hearties

Make the blaggards walk the plank, I say.



Via haha.nu

She's got the Sistine Chapel sewn up.

I was crafty when I was younger and did a lot of cross stitching; nothing this ambitious though!

It took Texan Joanna Lopianowski-Roberts a decade to replicate his feat in a 40 x 80 inch cross stitch made with 1,809 different color combinations and a total of about 628,296 stitches!

Read more about it at Eternally Cool

My Drive Thru

Does this video seem a little two dimensional to you?

Via Dark Roasted Blend

What's under the lavender?

Another one of these:

It allowed me to take this photo and then hopped away to a safer spot in the garden. Yesterday I was working on the deck and a baby skunk ambled out from under it. No shortage of fauna in my backyard even though I live in downtown (such as it is) Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Marian Bantjes: Love Stories

These are beautiful.

Creative Review Monograph

Patrick Burgoyne at Creative Review offered me one of these “Monograph” pieces they send out with subscription editions of the magazine.

For me, it was an opportunity to create all new pieces that I called “Love Stories”, because each one was an illustrated text of the story of someone I love.

Via

Iggy Pop - The Passenger

A very well executed mashup. How many of these movie scenes can you identify?

Seen at Transbuddha

Like animals, like pr0n?

This might be the site you've been waiting for.


Zoophilia pr0n Via Blort

Parcours Saint germain des Près 2008

Parcours Saint germain des Près 2008 was held in June.
This artistic annual event has been held since 2000. ' Il était une fois ... ' 'Once upon a time ...' proposed to build on popular tales and legends, which are a persistent cultural background and universal. The idea is to highlight the influence that the theme of stories has on the human imagination, giving carte blanche to artists and writers to regenerate the imaginary or become agents of their own story.
See the work

Buddha Project

A while back I posted about Lens Culture's buddha project.
I was intrigued by it and submitted a photo and guess what? They accepted it. Here it is:

Poor Little Pikachu

I have a soft spot for Pikachu. It makes me feel bad to see him impaled with spikes and with a cable rammed up his bum. I think that the so called music is actually little Pikachu's cry for help.

See more Circuit-bent Pikachu instruments at Pink Tentacle

The splendour of Versailles

I have been to France many, many times but, I am ashamed to admit, I have never visited Versailles. I vow to take the trip when I'm in Paris in September.

Slideshow: The splendour of Versailles

Vintage paper craft

Lots of gorgeous vintage paper craft at Agence eureka

Season Of The Witch

I was listening to some lame rendition of this song on the radio the other day and I remembered Jools' version. I loved it when I was just a little kid. Open was one of the first albums I bought and I still have the original vinyl. I had Streetnoise at one time but it seems to have disappeared along with so much else from those days. Dig the retro psychedelia.


Julie Driscoll - Season Of The Witch

Les Animaux Amoureux

Trailer for a film by Laurent Charbonnier with music by Philip Glass.

Via Frogsmoke

Intense Stories

Burned By Love
Via

Robert & Shana ParkeHarrison

Robert & Shana ParkeHarrison make wonderful, stark fine art photography.
Via

Off The Map

Visit the works of 10 untrained, visionary artists who have transformed their part of the world in rare and startling ways.

The interactive travelogue is worth a look.

All in all it's just another mosaic in the wall

Port Carling's wall is made up of 9,028 pictures depicting town history.

The wit and wisdom of David Lee Roth

Posting about the imposter Roth the other day led me to this site. You'll have to take my word for it that I was never (cross my heart, hope to die) a fan. He sure had a lot to say about his favourite topics: sex, drugs and rock and roll. Like these:

The perfect woman has an IQ of 150, wants to make love until 4 in the morning, and then turns into a pizza.

Some people say that life is a cesspool of darkness and despair. Well, we in Van Halen are sailing through it on a yacht.

We call our selves the Fabulous Picasso brothers because Picasso represents fine art... and brothers..makes it sound like pizza delivery...

We’ve all got our vices. Self-destructive bad habits. The trick is to find the 4 or 5 you personally like the best, …and just do those all the time.

Oriental lilies

I planted a lot of these last year and they fill the whole garden with their fragrance.

Conversation

Yesterday Mr. Nag and I were driving, perhaps a little too swiftly, along a country road.
Mr. Nag: Sometimes it's hard to obey the law.
Nag: I know, sometimes I can barely restrain myself from killing you.
Mr. Nag: I was thinking more of a Highway Traffic Act violation.

Lost In Translation

Via clusterflock

Stories Of Burmese Refugees

From Burma To New York is a multimedia reporting project completed as a master's thesis at Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism.
Via

Misaki Kawai

Misaki Kawai's naive and darkly humourous art via Your Monkey Called

All The Virtues

All The Virtues - Anna Maria Jopek

My cousin's new blog

My cousin John, on the Irish side of the family, has a brand new blog at the Cleveland Plain Dealer's Mosaic Ireland, in association with the International Community Council and cleveland.com. This blog is about Ireland - news, history, blurb, events, issues and discussion. Give it a read!

Let's hope you never need to know, but if you do...

Cemetery workers strike puts focus on secrets of gravediggers' trade:

"Gravediggers went on strike at nine Mount Pleasant Group of Cemeteries this week, leaving managers, office clerks and salespeople to fill in the holes by jumping on backhoes to dig some more of them."

The Toronto Star has compiled information on how to dig a grave, how to fill it and things to look out for. I can't imagine needing this information - unless Mr. Nag says "Goggle" instead of "Google" one more time.

Retrospective of an over the hill philanderer

And in celebutard news today are some of the women Mick Jagger is rumoured to have shagged. A couple of surprises. I notice that none are all that recent; perhaps he's slowing down? If you're interested in seeing the complete list click on the image below and many, many more will be revealed.

As you reach 65, Mick, how many of these 65 conquests do you remember?

I'm not sure what my reaction would be if someone posted a similar list of my (youthful) conquests. I suspect it would involve Dr. Phil's voice taking over my brain, repeating over and over, "What were you thinking?"

Les Paul and Mary Ford

Great video. (Contrary to common belief I was much too young to be a fan.)

Via RaShOmoN

Lou Reed's Berlin

Lou Reid recorded the album Berlin in 1973.
It was a commercial failure.
Over the next 33 years he never performed the album live.

LOU REED'S BERLIN a film by JULIAN SCHNABEL

Mid century ship interiors

A wonderful Flickr set of luxury ocean travel in the sixties.

Below, a couple enjoying their cruise; they bear an uncanny resemblance to Mr. Nag and I right down to the distinguished grey hair at his temples. They'd probably be having this conversation:
He ,"I'm jonesin' for a martini, Nag."
She, "Not until you change out of those ridiculous gold pants!"


And seconds of fun for the kids, too, in this brilliantly designed space simulator.

See the entire set .

Stephen Wiltshire, Living Camera

I've read about this guy before but I don't think I've seen this video. It's mind blowing.

Via 3quarksdaily

A Flickr set of cartoon noises

retronomatopeya

Click the image to see the whole set.
Via the excellent Fed By Birds

Renovating Beijing’s Historic Homes

"Chinese believe that in a siheyuan you can feel the spirit of the earth because unlike in a high-rise apartment, you step on it every day."

These historic homes in Beijing appeal to me but scores of these buildings have been demolished to make room for highrises. Many owners/restorers of these old houses are wealthy foreigners which raises all the sorts of issues around gentrification but they are perhaps the only hope for the preservation of Beijing's historic architecture.

The Official Communist Party Guide To The 2008 Beijing Olympics

This Guide will tell you everything you need to know about the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Greetings, roundeye! The Glorious Party of Chairman Mao eagerly awaits your arrival here in Beijing for these Games of the 2008 Summer Olympiad. Our preparations for the Games are now complete. We’d just like to let you know that 4 million construction workers DEFINITELY DID NOT DIE during the construction of the Bird’s Nest. Those cries and shrieks you hear from countless mothers and fathers as you walk down the street are not from grief. They are simply overwhelmed about the fact that the Games will soon arrive at long last.

More

Great Minds Tease Alike

Baby Nag phoned this morning. After Mr. Nag had chatted for awhile he said, "Gotta go, my breakfast has congealed on the plate." To which Baby Nag and I responded in stereo, "Just the way you like it!"
Success is mine! The teasing gene has been passed on to the next generation.

Records with homemade sleeves

Artist Stephen Fowler shares his collection of records he's found with homemade sleeves .

Slideshow

Vive le Québec libre!

In Montreal on this day in 1967, French President Charles de Gaulle was welcomed by the mayor, Jean Drapeau, and then made an unscheduled address from the balcony of the city hall to an enthusiastic crowd, ending the speech with the words, "Vive Montréal ! Vive le Québec ! Vive le Québec libre ! Vive le Canada français et Vive la France ! (Long live Montreal ! Long live Quebec ! Long live free Quebec ! Long live French Canada and long live France !)"
"Vive le Quebec libre!" - three words that unleashed an unbelievable furor. It was a breach of international protocol that reverberated for years and gave momentum to the Quebec sovereignty movement.

Alaska: An Unveiled Secret

Magnum In Motion produced this powerful multimedia piece about the sexual abuse of 110 Eskimo children in Alaska by 12 priests and 3 Catholic Church volunteers. It's hard to watch but very moving.
Via

Bush or Batman?

Who Said It?
It's not as simple as you think.

Rejected New Yorker Cover Art

Fighting satire with satire. Don't push that red button, McCain!


Seen at 2 Political Junkies

JR in Paris

Here is a video of street artist JR's Face Project in Paris. I'm looking forward to seeing it and some of his other stuff when I'm there in September.

JR - a set on Flickr

Font Fun

Font Conference Via Transbuddha


What font are you? Take the quiz below:

I am Times New Roman -
You can come off slightly stodgy. You are often found in intellectual circles, but the average person finds you boring.
In my unbiased opinion I am anything but stodgy. In fact I am the anti-stodge.

Siskel and Ebert Outtakes

These outtakes are hilarious - unless you're Siskel (which you're not because he's dead).

Via WRECK & SALVAGE

Robyn Cumming

John at Uncertain Times pointed me to the site of Toronto photographer Robyn Cumming.
She has an exquisite eye.

Robots are our Friends

....or are they our enemies?

Via plime.com

Summer on the Brandywine

I came across this great webcomic via Wreck and Salvage.

Daylilies

We have loads of daylilies today, all colours.

Dianne Bos Photography

Dianne Bos creates beautiful low-tech pinhole photos like Paris Rain 2006:

Girls On Wheels

I was busy having babies when the original roller derby trend was happening. As a woman who is 5' 1" and 115 lbs I sense that I'm not a candidate for the sport. We won't even mention my age.

Via Clusterflock

Amend Section 6 of Bill 50

A friend and fellow animal advocate asked me to post this issue that is facing the Toronto Humane Society. Section 6 of Bill 50 would strip this 121 year old agency of its name. Here is the presentation they made to the Standing Committee on Justice Policy at Queen's Park today:

CHAIR, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to explain why we have requested the removal of section 6 from Bill 50.

We believe that if section 6 of Bill 50 were to become law and The Toronto Humane Society stripped of its name and identity, people needing shelter or hospitalization for animals might not know where to find it. We also believe that our revenue, which comes 100% from donations, would plummet because it is based on name recognition and public faith in our history of community service.

People nowadays may not realize that in 1887 The Toronto Humane Society was the first organization in Canada to call itself “humane society”. All others chose “society for the prevention of cruelty to animals”. We have never been known by any other name. (Animal Welfare and Human Values, Preece & Chamberlain, 1995, Wilfred Laurier University Press, p. 35).

Possible fraud or public confusion over policing are concerns that have led to the inclusion of section 6 in Bill 50. We don’t share these concerns. Were we to be outside the Ontario SPCA, we would not then be delivering policing or other Government programs from which confusion could arise. Inside or outside the Ontario SPCA, given our 121 year record, no one could ever suggest that our fundraising might become dishonest.

Fortunately, together we can all be assured because Minister Kwinter commissioned the management consultants Grant, Thornton in 2005 and 2006 to study the present and future of the Ontario SPCA. These studies found no issues of fraud or confusion.

Please vote to remove section 6 from Bill 50. It is superfluous to the animal protection provisions that are contained in the Bill and poses unnecessary risk to The Toronto Humane Society.

Thank you.

Tim Trow,
President

If you live in Ontario call your MPP and ask that Section 6 be amended. Help the THS get on with their work. Thanks for making me aware of this, Terry.

Twitterings

I know this is exactly what I'd be doing if I twittered. See more of the same at Geek And Poke via Beancounters

Can anyone help me?

The previous post got me thinking about a poster that the Ontario Ministry of Labour put out in the early 90's. It was a circa 1930 photo of an elderly striking worker wearing a sandwich board calling for a 6 day working week. It hung in my office for years but I misplaced it and I'd like to get another one. I've done an exhaustive search of the web but came up with bupkes.
Does anyone out there know where I can find one?

Prevent It

I found this at, of all places, Canadian Design Resource. Warning: these clips about workplace safety are disturbing.

As a political assistant to my party's labour critic I spent a good part of my working career helping injured workers negotiate the maze that is Ontario's Workplace Safety and Insurance Board. I saw many of these nightmare scenarios over the course of my career.

Buddha Collapsed out of Shame

Here's the trailer for Buddha Collapsed out of Shame.a film by 19 year old Iranian director Hana Makhmalbaf. Il est en français mais c'est correct?



It's about the effects of war on children in Afghanistan and I hope to see it (mais de préférence en anglais). Read today's article in the Guardian.

Learned something new today

I'd never heard the term "bingo wing" until I read this article in The Daily Mail.

According to Urban Dictionary bingo wings are the loose, flabby upper-arm flesh of women in cap-sleeved rayon blouses who attend bingo halls. Bingo wing development can be accelerated by consuming vast quantities of C.Cola and burgers. See also bingo flaps, though my def has more 'ring' to it!
Check the bingo wing on that! If she flapped those arms, she'd take off!

To my relief Mr. Nag assures me that I don't have them - yet.

Official Obama Jokes

Karen posted this piece from The Borowitz Report :

Saying he is 'sympathetic to late night comedians' struggle to find jokes to make about me,' Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill) today issued a list of official campaign-approved Barack Obama jokes.

A horse walks into a bar. The bartender says, "Why the long face?" Barack Obama replies, "His jockey just lost his health insurance, which should be the right of all Americans."

Q: What's black and white and red all over?
Barack Obama: The New Yorker magazine, which should be embarrassed after publishing such a tasteless and offensive cover, which I reject and denounce.

Read all the jokes here.

5,000 Years of Chairs in 5 Minutes

Seen at The Moment Blog

Four poems about string theory

Seen at Short Sharp Science Blog:

Building Blocks, by Robert Borski

Morons are not elementary particles,
birds do not quark, and half-
dead cats fail to constitute roadkill.

On the other hand
silly string may underpin much
of the universe, and in
the toychest of infinities
both larger and smaller sets can be
found side by side.

God as a boy must have been
a strange child, if not actually gifted.

Read the others here.

He's My Man

In January 2005, an ensemble of the world's finest performers came together to pay tribute to the great Leonard Cohen.

Picture Paradise

Asia–Pacific photography 1840s–1940s
From an exhibition at at the National Gallery of Australia.

Via gmtPlus9

It's all good fun until someone gets raped, drowns or vomits up their liver.

Try not to drink yourself into a coma, s'il vous plait.

Campagne - Boire trop, des sensations trop extrêmes
by sante-jeunesse-sports

Via Frogsmoke.com

Turn it off!!!

Something Awful, Something New
Yes it's awful and it's new and I hope I never have to undergo another such assault on my aural sense ever again.

Two Things

Seen at bad banana blog

Beautiful time lapse

Ryazan Uspenskiy sobor time lapse

Found at Rashomon who wisely advises watching this full screen.

Got a hankering for pedantry?

The Llectuals is a show about a group of young, hip, annoying know-it-alls.


Via UniqueDaily.com

Are you an old person?

Are you an old person? Take the quiz and find out. (Via)

With a score of 3 it looks like I'm safe for the time being.

I answered yes to:

• up at 5:30am
• won't miss Coronation Street
• can't work the goddamn video recorder

Happy birthday dear Nelson

On this day in 1918 Nelson Mandela was born to Nosekeni Fanny and Gadla Henry Mphakanyiswa, Chief Counsellor to the Chief of the Tembu tribe. See a timeline of his Long Walk to Freedom

Here's a video for the song "Nelson Mandela" from the album "In the Studio" by Special AKA (the Specials).

Building a revolution in Burma

'If we have guns we will shoot back'

3-D Guernica

I have never seen the original painting but I have seen studies for Guernica at the Picasso Museum in Paris. I was incredibly moved by them and became a huge Picasso fan as a result. I finally got what he was about. Here's an interesting video that takes Guernica to a new dimension (make that 3).



Via bad banana blog

Roses

I have not yet lost the war against black spot.

Mother liked her white wine

White Winos is one of my favourite Louden Wainwright songs. He's got a way with a lyric.


I saw an audio link to this song at Fabulist

Drunk History

It's better told this way, don't you think?



Via

The Stills - Still In Love Song

The Stills are a very good Montreal band. They'll be opening for Paul McCartney at a free concert in Quebec City June 20. It's a huge gig for them.
McCartney's appearance has drawn a lot of criticism from those who say the choice of McCartney violates the spirit of the 400th anniversary celebrations, which commemorate the fight for the survival of the French language in North America. I agree that McCartney was an odd choice for the Plains of Abraham venue where the French and British duked it out for sovereignty of Canada. The concert is expected to draw between 150,000 and 300,000 people.

Pandas invade Paris

WWF Save The Pandas Ad Campaign

Here's a video about making the 1600 pandas.

Amazing choreography

Great Italian Motorbike Display - video powered by Metacafe
via haha.nu

Superheroes you may not have heard of

Like Insomnia Man, the hero who never sleeps. I'm lovin' it.


Superheroes Flickr set
Via Mefi

How I Roll

Via the inimitable raincoaster

10,000 Page Colouring Book

This should keep you busy for awhile. Download or check out more of this black and white line art here

Now we know

David Lee Roth impersonator identified
Now that they've managed to solve this mystery perhaps they'll move on to crack the secrets of Stonehenge and The Shroud of Turin.

An earlier story reported :

After being treated in hospital, Mystery Dave took two nurses to the nearby Liquid Lounge, where he got up and performed with a local band. He even had his picture taken. Liquid Lounge owner Cheri Welsh was drawn in by the flashy scarves and alligator shoes.

Even Phatstick, the St. Catharines band that jammed out Van Halen's Ice Cream Man with the mystery man doing the singing — was impressed.

The mystery man also went to the U Are Beautiful salon in Cambridge several times over a two-week period for tanning treatments, hair cuts and dye jobs. "He always paid in cash," said Lesley, who asked that her last name not be used. "He even bought gift certificates."

And Dean Hajas, a local songwriter and recording engineer, said he's still certain the man who stayed at his house for three weeks is the real David Lee Roth.

It appears that we Canucks are a gullible bunch. I feel sort of sorry for the guy who put up with this couch surfing imposter for three whole weeks although I'd probably feel the same if the guy was the real David Lee Roth.

Mr. Nag was pulled over for speeding a few days ago. (This is, I assure you, a very rare occurrence. He's not an habitual felon.) Maybe he should have told the cop he was Justin Timberlake.

How much do you know about cities of the world?

I've been playing around at National Geographic Traveller City Quizzes and it turns out I know quite a lot about every city but my own hometown, Montreal.

House of Cards

In Radiohead's new video for "House of Cards", no cameras or lights were used. Instead, 3D plotting technologies collected information about the shapes and relative distances of objects.

The Teapottery

Home of the eccentric teapot!
I'm a morning coffee drinker but I like a cup of tea after lunch and sometimes in the mid-afternoon before I hit the hard stuff. I use a Brown Betty teapot though - not a fancy little number like this Orient Express teapot:

Two funny conversations

1. My aunt asked me if I'd heard from a relative and I answered "Only on Facebook." I immediately wondered how I was going to explain the concept of social networking to this elderly, computer illiterate, invalid shut-in.
Turns out I didn't have to. "Is that like Myspace?" she asked.

2. I was walking the dog with Mr. Nag and we got caught in a torrential downpour. "Great!" he said, eyeing me a little too enthusiastically, "Wet t-shirt time."
To which I replied, tongue-in-cheek, "You like it when your t-shirt gets wet?"
"Of course not. That would be like googling myself."

A very pretty flickr set

My friend Tom's flower series is lovely

Banksy Outed?

Graffiti artist Banksy unmasked ... as a former public schoolboy from middle-class suburbia

Eiffel Tower Panorama

Une vue fine le jour de bastille


Eiffel Tower Panorama
Via Frogsmoke

A Proud Day In Canadian History

On This Day - July 14, 1976

Does the government have the right to take the life of one of its citizens? For the first time, the Canadian government says no. After a decade of fierce debate and an impassioned, last-minute speech by Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, the House of Commons narrowly passes Bill C-84, abolishing the death penalty in Canada.

James Driskel, Romeo Phillion, Thomas Sophonow, David Milgaard, Donald Marshall Jr., Guy Paul Morin, Simon Marshall,William Mullins-Johnson, Steven Truscott, Erin Walsh and Anthony Hanemaayer are all Canadians who spent time in jail for crimes they did not commit.
I cannot begin to imagine the frustration of the wrongly convicted. In my view this is a mighty strong argument against capital punishment.

Vive La France!

I think this very rousing scene from Casablanca makes a perfect Bastille Day post.

Francis Bacon

An excellent film on this controversial artist. It's given me a better understanding and appreciation of his work although I still find much of it unpleasant. I know it's 54 minutes long but, if you like art, you might enjoy this.

All-Canadian Chucks

I would love to have a pair of these Sole Brother custom sneakers! But with the price ranging somewhere between $400 - $700 USD I think I'll have to put that purchase on hold for now.


Via The CANADIAN DESIGN RESOURCE

The poetry of silence

Slideshow - Vilhelm Hammershøi at the Royal Academy

'Personally I am fond of the old; of old houses, of old furniture, of that quite special mood that these things possess.'

I share this fondness for old things with him.

Gone to the dogs

A couple of articles that left this dog lover rolling her eyes and saying,"WTF?":
This is my dog on Prozac.
Painted pooches.

The battle is over but the war goes on.

I know you're probably sick of my robin ranting but I don't work any longer and I have lots of time to dwell on things. Things like robins trying to run my life. They prevented us from using our front door and from doing yard work in the area for approximately 3 weeks. I was in fear of losing an eye to their sharp beaks every time I left the house. Then the babies left the nest and I thought all was well. But no! I saw the parents fornicating again - in plain view! And hanging around the Boston fern where they already had a nest. I was all like "No way Jose" and removed the plant to a screened-in sun porch. How do ya like that, avian bullies?
Today I discovered that they were executing their lewd activities in the back yard and had constructed a nest in the wisteria arbour over the back deck - where I drink wine and listen to jazz! There is no way those bastards are going to prevent me from listening to music in my garden while inebriated (me, not them). Knowing them as I do I realize that it would also be impossible to weed or mow or deadhead for the next three weeks if they were to take up residence there. So I took strong action! I told Mr. Nag to go out and dismantle the nest before that floozy dropped another bunch of eggs. Instead he hung a bunch of his freshly washed shirts out to dry in the vicinity of said nest and it is our sincere hope that they will vacate without further incident. I can't help but think that his dirty shirts might have worked to better effect. Let's hope they are spooked enough to relocate. If not I'm sure Mr. Nag will pull out the big guns (Not literally, of course. This isn't the US. We don't even have teeny weeny guns here.) It'll take more than a couple of feathered terrorists to keep me out of my garden.

The Crusader

Lee Philips intends to sue Warner Bros. for mis-representation. Lee believes the Batman franchise is based on his life. "It's not the money; it's the glamourization. Does this look like a mansion to you? I'm on the dole, mate."

I am a big fan of The Caped Crusader. Came upon this when I followed a link to Futureshorts via Uncertain Times.

Return of the ivory trade

Poaching tusks of endangered animals to make tourist trinkets? I'm disgusted.

The world trade in ivory, banned 19 years ago to save the African elephant from extinction, is about to take off again, with the emergence of China as a major ivory buyer.Read more

Smoking Etiquette Posters

Japan Tobacco's 'Smoking Manners for Adults' Ads

Japan Tobacco finds itself in a bind. Like other cigarette makers and distributors, JT is saddled with a product that is at the same time popular and unhealthy. Advertising cigarettes, when it is allowed at all, has to be handled with care and discretion. With their “Smoking Manners for Adults” ads, JT avoids the whole “to smoke or not to smoke” conundrum, focusing instead on ways smokers can lower their profile and not annoy non-smokers.

Here are a couple from this amusing collection. See more here.

Street Heat

Mary Mack's hip hop shoutout to her ride. Hilarious.

See more funny videos at Funny or Die

via

Never drink alone again

Virtual Drinking Buddy - much more engaging than the folks I usually drink with. I don't really mind that he won't make me an appletini.
Via

Holy daily photo, Batman!

The Daily Batman where you will find a new photo of the Caped Crusader each and every day!


Via

A British Ghost Town

Tyneham a small parish in the Isle of Purbeck 6 miles south-west of Corfe Castle and 7 miles from Wareham is Dorsets' most famous lost village. In November of 1943 notice was given to the villagers and those in the surrounding area that they would be required to leave within 28 days as the area was needed for training. On 17th December 1943 the last villagers left believing that one day they would be able to return. Sadly this was never to happen.

It must have been very hard for these villagers to give up the homes that their families had lived in for generations but they did so out of patriotism. Below are pictures of Post Office Row as it was then and the ruin that it is today. Only the church and the village school have been restored.
Via Metafilter

Communist Utopia

I've posted a lot of Chinese propaganda posters but I'm pretty sure I haven't posted these.

China as paradise (1972-1976)

The chaos of the civil war is hidden behind the optimistic images of the early 1970s. They create the impression that China is a paradise, where abundance reigns and everyone is happy.

And I say to myself, what a wonderful world

30 Satellite Images of Earth
These would look at home in any art gallery.

Aleutian Islands

Bahamas

Lake Carnegie, Australia

Via Rashomon