Happy Halloween!

I was considering Grad School…and then I saw this.

Graduate School Barbie comes in two forms: Delusional Master's Barbie (TM) and Ph.D. Masochist Barbie (TM).

Every Graduate School Barbie comes with these fun-filled features guaranteed to delight and entertain for hours: Grad School Barbie comes out of the box with a big grin on her face that turns into a frown after 2 weeks or her first advisor meeting (whichever comes first). She also has adorable black circles under her delightfully bloodshot eyes.

Comes with two outfits: a grubby pair of blue jeans and 5-year-old gap T-shirt, and a floppy pair of gray sweatpants with a matching "I hate my life" T-shirt. Grad School Barbie talks! Just press the button on her left hand and hear her say such upbeat grad school phrases like, "Yes, Professor, It'll be done by tomorrow", "I'd love to rewrite" and "Why didn't I just get a job, I could have been making $40,000 a year by now if I had just started working with a Bachelor's. But noooooo, I chose to further my education, I wish somebody would drop a bomb on the school so that I'd have an excuse to stop working on my degree that's sucking every last drop of life force out of my withered and degraded excuse for a soul…" (9V lithium batteries sold separately)

http://joannarenteria.com/2011/12/13/i-was-considering-grad-school-and-then-i-saw-this-hilarious/

Been there. Actually done that.

from NY Times obit for Lou Reed

 Among the most noteworthy of those records were "Transformer" (1972), "Berlin" (1973) and "New York" (1989). The most notorious, without question, was "Metal Machine Music" (1975).

Beloved of Mr. Reed and not too many others, "Metal Machine Music" was four sides of electric-guitar feedback strobing between two amplifiers, with Mr. Reed altering the speed of the tape recorder; no singing, no drums, no stated key. 

Mr. Reed wrote in the liner notes that "no one I know has listened to it all the way through, including myself,"

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I have listened to it all the way through.

I was hanging out in a friend's room when his roommate came rushing in, proudly holding a copy of Lou's newest release, Metal Machine Music.

He put it on the turntable and we listened in puzzlement for several minutes.

Eventually we started talking and resumed partying while the record played. When it stopped suddenly  (at 16 minutes and one second) we put on the second side, which sounded the same as the first side. Party continued.

Repeat with side three, then side four.

After about 45 minutes, someone said, "Shouldn't this side be over by now?"

It was then we discovered that side 4 had no lead-out groove that would cause the tonearm to eject. The last groove of the LP was an endless loop.

And the time on Side 4 was listed as "16:01 or [infinity symbol]"

Meet Mr. Balls, testicular cancer’s horrifying new mascot

A Brazilian testicular cancer awareness group has created a mascot for the cause and, my lord, is he terrifying. Meet Mr. Balls, or "Senhor Testiculo", the wide-eyed, dual-toothed, rosy-cheeked, mole-sporting ballsack that will likely haunt the dreams of thousands of small Brazilian children.

http://thenosebleeds.com/meet-mr-balls-testicular-cancers-horrifying-new-mascot/

Justice is served (plus shipping and handling)

TV Pitchman Pleads for Mercy, Jailed Anyway

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But wait, There's MORE!
We'll DOUBLE your jail time, absolutely free!

This American Life - Superpowers 2013

This American Life downloadable podcast;
Subject is SUPERPOWERS
http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/508/superpowers-2013


We answer the following questions about superpowers:

Can superheroes be real people? (No.)
Can real people become superheroes? (Maybe.)
And which is better: flight or invisibility? (Depends who you ask.)


The Podcast features the following:

Host Ira Glass talks to comic artist Chris Ware, who thought about superheroes a lot of the time as a kid. In grade school, Chris drew superheroes, he invented his own character named The Hurricane (not to be confused with Reuben Carter), and he made a superhero costume. Sometimes he wore parts of the costume to school under his regular clothes, which went fine until he realized he would have to change clothes for gym class.

John Hodgman conducts an informal survey in which he asks the age-old question: Which is better: The power of flight or the power of invisibility? He finds that how you answer tells a lot about what kind of person you are. And also, no matter which power people choose, they never use it to fight crime.

Kelly McEvers with the story of Zora, a self-made superhero. From the time she was five, Zora had recurring dreams in which she was a 6'5" warrior queen who could fly and shoot lightning from her hands. She made a list of all the skills she would need to master if she wanted to actually become the superhero she dreamed of being. Sample items: Martial arts, evasive driving and bomb diffusion. She actually checked off most things on the list...and then had a run-in with the CIA

Ira talks with Jonathan Morris, the amazingly funny and charming editor of the website Gone and Forgotten, an Internet archive of failed comic book characters. Jonathan explains what makes a new superhero succeed, and what makes him tank.

Of course you can't be a superhero without a supervillain trying to destroy you. And the most interesting supervillains, of course, are the ones who think that they're the real heroes, not the guys in the capes. Glynn Washington tells the story of Evil D.

Ye Olde Periodic Table

The Most Important Image Captured By Hubble

In 1996, scientists took a huge risk when they pointed the Hubble telescope to an inky field that they believed to be void of stars and planets. As images from Hubble are in constant demand, the worry was that devoting so much time to a black space would prove futile.

Once the photons finally registered, though, that leap of faith proved fruitful: light from over three thousand galaxies illuminated the image. A few years and missions later, Hubble's glimpse into what is known as the deep field has revealed that we are just one tiny part of a vast system comprising 100 billion galaxies.

http://all-that-is-interesting.com/important-image-captured-by-hubble

(based on the red-shift of the distant galaxies in the photo, a 3-D animation was produced to give the effect of flying through the field.)

Two Monkeys Were Paid Unequally:

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What happens when you pay two monkeys unequally?
Watch what happens.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meiU6TxysCg

Unleash your inner Monty Python

 

Info and a light tutorial on how to make cut-out animations. 

 

http://www.retrothing.com/2013/08/learn-cut-out-animation-with-terry-gilliam.html

 

Ummmmm... no thanks.

Everyday products you probably use the wrong way .....good info

 

Everyday products you probably use the wrong way .....good info

 

 

1. You've probably been ignoring this feature.

Most aluminum foil boxes have press-in tabs that secure the roll in place, so you don't have worry about it flying out every time you rip off a sheet.

 

2. You've been dispensing Tic Tacs the hard way.

You know how when you violently shake a container of Tic Tacs into your palm it seems as though you always end up with zero or seven? Avoid that altogether by letting a mint gently glide into the tiny lid crevice.

 

3. Forget to pack a spoon with that applesauce? No problem.

 

4. You've been storing peanut butter the wrong way.

 

Never arm wrestle with a jar of peanut butter, just to make sure it's not oily on top and crumby on the bottom, again. Store it upside down, so the oils distribute evenly.

 

5. You haven't been using ketchup cups to their full potential.

 

Instead of grabbing multiple cups of ketchup, simply pull apart at the edges for twice the space.

 

6. You're probably using the wrong plunger.

 

This is easily the most recognizable plunger. Chances are you have one lying around the house. BUT, did you know it's only meant to be used on clogged sinks?

 

To unclog a toilet, you need a flange plunger, which doesn't have a flat bottom.

 

7. Chinese takeout containers are actually made to fold out into plates.

 

The containers actually are meant to unfold into a makeshift plate, which you can easily reassemble into a box for storing leftovers.

 

8. You're brushing with too much toothpaste.

 

You only need to use a pea-sized amount of toothpaste for effective cleaning. Most ads feature globs of toothpaste the size of the brush because a.) it looks nice and b.) it makes you use up more toothpaste.

 

9. Greek yogurt containers are meant to be folded in half.

 

Chances are you've been scooping the toppings with your spoon onto the yogurt.

But, have you realized, the topping holder folds over, so you can pour the toppings DIRECTLY ON TOP?

10. You've probably been placing toilet seat covers in the wrong direction.

 

The flap is meant to be placed toward the front. This prevents the agony of sitting down on a toilet seat, only to realize you've dragged the cover down into the bowl.

11. Soda tabs double as straw holders.

 

Turn the tab around so that it acts as holder that can stop the straw from raising out of the can as the soda fizzes.

12. There's a foolproof way to keep your extension cords from coming undone.

 

Plug the cords into a loop to avoid disconnection.

 

 

13. Pipe cleaners can be used to clean..ACTUAL PIPES.

 

OK, sure, you can use them to make mess free crafts with your kids, but did you know you can also use them…;

 

14. You've been serving juice boxes the wrong way.

 

Pull the sides out so you child has something to grasp onto, stopping them from spilling.

15. Never break off more chocolate than you can chew again.

 

To easily break off a single piece of Toblerone, pull toward the bar, not away from it.

16. You probably don't realize it, but your pots come with built-in spoon rests.

 

That hanging hole doubles as a spoon rest, in a pinch.

 

17. There's a much easier way to floss.

 

Tie floss into a loop and never strangle your fingers again.

18. Soft-drink lids can double as coasters.

 

Take the lid from the top of cup (or grab an extra) and use it as a perfectly sized coaster.

 

This Saturday : Revolutionary War reenactment of the Battle of Germantown

Join with the 6th Pennsylvania Regiment and Revolutionary War reenactors from throughout the region at the Revolutionary Germantown Festival "Battle of Germantown", on the grounds of historic Cliveden in Philadelphia.

The day will feature reenactments of the October 4, 1777 Battle of Germantown, 18th century shopping in the sutler's grove, food vendors, maps for walking tours of Germantown, and much more.

http://www.revolutionarygermantown.org/web/events.htm