You’ve got mail

In an attempt to block “junk mail” in Vermont, a state legislator created a firestorm he didn’t expect.

Chris Pearson, a state legislator in Vermont, had a sense that the people were with him when he proposed a bill last November to allow residents to block junk mail.

He got media attention, radio interview requests and e-mails from constituents eager to stop the credit card offers, furniture catalogues and store fliers that increasingly clog their mailboxes.

Then came the pushback from the postmasters, who told Pearson and other lawmakers that "standard" mail, the post office's name for junk mail, has become the lifeblood of the U.S. Postal Service and that jobs depend on it.

Sure junk mail is a nuisance but if banned, many people would be out of work including a lot of postal service workers.

If the postal service didn’t have the revenue generated by junk mail, our first class postage rates would go through the roof.

Banning junk mail would end many advertising agency jobs. It would also put many printers out of work.

The next time we are tempted to grumble about the junk mail in our mail boxes, we should think of all the jobs that would be lost by banning junk mail as the nearsighted Vermont congressman proposed.

Link

Satellite data: Beijing pollution capital of world

The pictures here were taken in Beijing China which has become the unofficial pollution capitol of the world.

As it gears up to host the 2008 Olympic Games Beijing has been awarded an unwelcome new accolade: the air pollution capital of the world.

Satellite data has revealed that the city is one of the worst environmental victims of China's spectacular economic growth, which has brought with it air pollution levels that are blamed for more than 400,000 premature deaths a year.

According to the European Space Agency, Beijing and its neighboring northeast Chinese provinces have the planet's worst levels of nitrogen dioxide, which can cause fatal damage to the lungs.

China is the world's second-largest producer of greenhouse gases, and the World Bank has warned it is home to 16 of the planet's 20 most air-polluted cities.

Link

Female teachers arrested for fistfight in front of students

Richland County (South Carolina) deputies arrested two middle school teachers (pictured) who got into a fist-fight in front of students over a personal matter.

Investigators say the original incident happened in the hallway of St. Andrews Middle School between two female eighth-grade teachers on Thursday, March 14.

Sheriff Leon Lott said 30-year-old Tawana Horton of Columbia and 28-year-old Cambrella Pickney of Columbia got into a physical altercation in the hallway, after the teachers "bumped into each other."

The resource officer says "an ongoing personal dispute" can be blamed for the reason the teachers were fighting, but he didn't elaborate on what the dispute regarded.

Link

Easter

Ernie Haase and Signature Sound quartet

Ernie Haase and Signature Sound quartet along with the Gaither vocal band sing “He Touched Me”



- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

A bit of Southern Gospel Music history:

Ernie Haase sang tenor for the Cathedrals from 1990 until the group retired in 1999. Ernie then formed his Signature Sound Quartet.

Glen Payne (on left) was lead singer for the Cathedrals from 1963 to 1999. George Younce (on right) was the Cathedrals bass singer from 1963 to 1999.

Liver cancer claimed the life of Glen Payne in October, 1999.

George Younce suffered from heart trouble as well as kidney failure, and was on dialysis during the last years of his life. He passed away in April 2005.

George Younce was Ernie Haase’s father-in-law.

High-tech 4-in-one Murphy computer bed

Short on space? This may be for you.

Think of it as a computer desk, dining room table, couch and bed all in one compact piece of furniture that takes up very little floor space.

This high-tech Murphy bed et all is offered by FlyingBeds of Denver, Colorado. They also offer a TwirlyBed.

Link

Bone conduction 'earphones'

How about these stereo headphones that transmit sound vibrations through users skull bones rather than their eardrums?

They don't actually produce sound and don't go in your ear so they are not earphones. Does that make them bonephones?

More information can be found here.

Padded lampposts to protect distracted cell users

Padded lampposts are being installed as a trial in London to protect inattentive pedestrians.

A study found that one in ten people have hurt themselves while texting with their eyes focused on their mobile phones.

If successful, the concept will be rolled out in Birmingham, Manchester, and Liverpool.

Link

Wi-Fi at Denver airport blocks many web sites

Denver International Airport offers free Wi-Fi service for travelers. However, if you want to browse Vanity Fair magazine, you’re out of luck. You'll have to buy it at the newsstand because DIA's Internet filter blocks Vanity Fair as "provocative."

When attempting to log on to the controversial web site BoingBoing, using Microsoft Vista, a warning will appear on your screen saying, “This program has known computability issues.” Needless to say BoingBoing is also blocked at Denver International Airport.

They say they're using prudent judgment in a public, family-friendly atmosphere

Critics say the airport is using the same technology used by repressive regimes in Sudan and Kuwait.

Link

Obama's first change as president

(click on cartoon to enlarge)

Corbin Sparrow: mini car or scooter?

This is the Corbin “Personal Transportation Module”. In other words, it is a mini car/scooter that instead of getting into you have the feeling of putting it on like a garment.

2001 Corbin Sparrow
The 2001 Sparrow is a 900-pound vehicle with two wheels in front and one wheel in back. It is about the length of a Honda Valkyrie. Its one-piece monocoque construction fiberglass body encloses four batteries up front, “where an engine might otherwise be, a solo cockpit with four more batteries under the seat, and a windowless, trunkless, skirted rear end”.

The Corbin parked with motorcycles
“Drive 60 mph for 60 minutes, then re-charge (wait 6 hours at 110 volt sockets, wait 2 hours at 220 volt sockets) and do it again. Buy no gasoline. No need for tune-ups or oil changes. No need to sit in traffic jams because the Sparrow qualifies for the diamond lanes." How cool is that?

Cockpit of the Sparrow
Price is reported to be in the $12,000 - $13,000 range. Made in Hollister, California by Corbin-Pacific Inc. More information here and here.

Confusing ship propulsion terms

When a sailing ship arrived in port, it was announced by saying, she sailed into port.

The arrival of a steamship was announced by saying, she steamed into port.

The arrival of a modern ship, powered by diesel or gas turbine engines, is never announced by saying, she dieseled into port or she turbined into port. No, of course not. Dieseled or turbined just don’t seem to have the allure of sailed or steamed. Besides, I don’t think dieseled or turbined are even words found in a dictionary.

Why don’t we just say, she pulled into port? Well, actually, sometimes we do but more often it’s sailed or steamed.

I found the following picture and caption on the Internet:

The Royal Caribbean Cruise ship Explorer of the Seas steamed upriver on its way to State Pier in New London this morning.

Since the cruise ship Explorer of the Seas is powered by gas turbine engines, why did they say she steamed upriver?

It must be that we just can’t be logical and nautical at the same time.

Colbert explains the history of ATT&T

The more AT&T changes the more it stays the same as shown here.

Proof that light travels faster than sound

Light travels faster than sound. That’s why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.

For Sale, Saddam’s yacht: rocket launcher and submarine included

At the link below, the Rocky Mountain News reports that a unique yacht is for sale

A palatial pleasure yacht with swimming pools, opulent salons and, should the winds of war blow, a rocket launcher and mini-submarine.



The sale of the 269-foot Ocean Breeze [pictured], built for Saddam Hussein and docked on the French Riviera, could be thwarted, however, if Iraq can prove it belongs to someone in the late dictator's entourage — and now, therefore, to the government in Baghdad.

The yacht was built in 1981 and was originally named Qadisiyah Saddam. It was stored in Saudi Arabia's Red Sea port of Jiddah in 1986. The Yacht has been renamed Ocean Breeze and is now in the harbor at Nice, on the French Riviera.

The yacht has an asking price of Euro 23.5 million (US $34 million).

Link

UFO’s appear on satellite photos

I’m not sure if these photos show actual UFO’s or not but they got my attention.

The pictures below were found on Google Sightseeing - UFO update. Link here.

There are links to over 20 photos that appear to be satellite images containing some sort of ball or disc shaped object.

Eight of the pictures are said to have been taken over Florida. The rest were taken over Los Angeles, California.

Four of them are shown below:

Some of the comments from the site are:

The UFOs are just too big to be water towers (and there’s no shadow).

Definitely they’re NOT marks for picture stitching. In most stitching software (like for making panoramas) the algorithm comes down to finding sharp and contrasting details and aligning those spots with each other

Condensation inside some sort of housing would be my guess. If the drop were directly on the lens it would be effectively invisible. Put it a few inches/feet away and have the camera shooting with a very deep depth of field (as you would with a small aperture) and it would look just like that anomaly.

I’m sure the photos do not show alien spacecraft. They are not out of this world but they are interesting to look at. Anomalies perhaps, but not flying saucers.

=========================

UPDATE

More similar photos can be found here.

Their last water bill was $8,000? Is that all?

A family in Danville, Kentucky received an $8,000 water bill for a house they say they haven't lived in for more than two years.

The family was told by a water company employee that the $8,000 bill was not a clerical error.

The ground around the home isn't saturated and there are no apparent signs of a leak.

Needless to say, they want an explanation for the $8,000 water bill for the empty house with no water leaks.

Link

When quilt makers get carried away

This is what happens when quilt makers go too far.

(click on picture to enlarge)

The Clinton blueprint

The Washington Post reports on a ‘blueprint’ that will restore the race for the nomination to ’rough parity’ between Hillary and Barack Obama

Talk of a Clinton blueprint reminds Lucianne of an old cartoon showing two prisoners chained hand and foot to a cement wall. One says to the other, "I have a plan."

We wonder if treading water has anything to do with the Hillary blueprint? Or is the blueprint more like finding a way to Fosterize Barack Obama?

Sen. Clinton is probably wishing she was back in her dorm room at Wellesley (pictured) cramming for mid-terms.

Link here to the Hillary blueprint article.

Large RC model of Lockheed Constellation airliner in action

The link below has a video of a very large radio control model of a Lockheed Constellation plane in action.



The video shows the Lockheed “Connie” making two flights with perfect landings, takeoffs and several awesome fly bye’s.

Link

Royal wave: handmade wooden action miniature

Here is something for that ‘hard to buy for’ person on your Christmas shopping list.

It’s a 9 inch tall handmade wooden action miniature of the Queen giving her usual ‘royal wave.’

This ‘way cool’ action figure will only set you back £700.00 ($1,351.00).

Click here and scroll down to see it in action along with sound effects.

Minnesota town wins Icebox of Nation title

International Falls, Minnesota now has the dubious distinction of owning the "Icebox of the Nation" title.

The city on the Canadian border had been fighting the ski town of Fraser, Colorado for the legal right to the trademark.

International Falls claimed victory this week when the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office sent the city attorney a certificate granting the community Reg. No. 3,375,139.

International Falls, Minnesota took the “Icebox” title but no one can take the scenic beauty away from Fraser, Colorado (lower photo).

Link

Helicopter appears to defy gravity

Click here to see this helicopter fly with blades that appear to be motionless.

The FPS (frames per second) of the camera were exactly synchronized with the rotation of the helicopter blades making the blades appear to be motionless.

So much for AT&T’s iPhone exclusivity

BBC News reports that one fourth of all iPhones have been ‘unlocked’ so they can be used on other networks.

The iPhone was designed to be used only on Apple's exclusive partner AT&T.

One million iPhones, or 27% of those sold last year, have been adapted to work on other networks.

Apple recently admitted that the number of unlocked iPhones was "significant".

The iPhone, which was launched last summer, is tied to a single phone network in each country it is on sale.

While AT&T is Apple's chosen partner in the US, in the UK the iPhone is only officially available through O2, while in Germany it is tied to T-Mobile.

The first iPhone ‘unlock’ in the U.S. was soon after the phone was first released last summer.

A college student hacked his iPhone and put it on a T-Mobile network

At that time Apple announced that iPhones would stop working if tempered with. Apparently the Apple iPhone lock is not very secure.

Link

Man’s best friend

If your dog is fat, you aren't getting enough exercise
============================
My dog is worried about the economy because Alpo is up to $3.00 a can.

That's almost $21.00 in dog money!

About those chain e-mails …

An article appearing in the St. Petersburg Times urges peolpe to stop passing on chain e-mails until they at leat try to check them out first.

The writer says, “Please. For the love of humanity. Just stop. Or at the very least, please stop sending them to me.”

He goes on to list some of them that irritate him:

1. Your cell phone is extremely unlikely to blow up your gas tank. [this may have had some validity in the early years of cell phones but static sparks from sliding out of your car seat at a gas station was always a much greater risk].

2. Starbucks (or Target, or insert name of retailer here) does not hate veterans.

3. A dying 7-year-old girl did not write a moving poem that will raise money for cancer.

4. The United States is not merging with Canada and Mexico in 2010.

5. There is no "Life is Beautiful" computer virus.

The writer goes on to explain how e-mail claims can be checked:

Type the words "Internet hoax" into an Internet search.

You'll find several sites that specialize in tracking down the truth or falsity of rumors. His favorite is snopes.com.

In turn, those sites usually have their own search function. (Don't be fooled, by the way, by e-mails that claim to have been "checked out." Do it yourself anyway.)

Link

Hillary skipped out on New Hampshire rent

The Hillary Clinton campaign rented a building in Portsmouth, New Hampshire

The landlord, Dr. Terry Bennett, said it was a 3,000-square-foot building with office space, a kitchen, bathroom and a 1,800-foot warehouse. They used the property as a campaign center and dormitory.

When they were done, they left the place trashed and skipped without paying rent.

Link

Leroy Van Dyke video - The Auctioneer

Click here for a YouTube video of The Auctioneer sung by trained auctioneer and country music artist, Leroy Van Dyke.

It’s always fun to hear the rhythmic chant of a good auctioneer.

Racers from erasers

These cool e-racers are made from Pink Pearl trapezoidal erasers.

They are probably fairly easy to make and can be made to look really cool.

Draw on them with a pen as on the right or carve them as shown on the left.

A great rainy-day project for kids.

Move over Rubik’s. Make way for Idiot's cube

This is a spoof on Rubik’s Cube, the classic puzzle that has been driving us nuts for the last thirty years.

The Idiot's Cube is the perfect gag gift and you can get one of your very own for thirteen bucks.

It’s a puzzle that absolutely any one can solve. No matter which way you turn it, the puzzle is solved. Keep turning as much as you want and it remains solved.

A great item for the puzzle hater on your gift list.

Link

A house to die for

So desperate to sell house they offer full refund when they die

A Pittsburgh area couple seem dead serious (pun intended) about selling their house.

It's the deal of a lifetime. Bob and Ricki Husick of Pittsburgh are offering anyone who buys their home a full refund when they die.

The Husicks have been trying to sell their suburban home for almost a year, but have failed to do so in the current shaky market.

Some area homeowners have lowered prices, offered free trips and tried a variety of other gimmicks, but the Husicks came up with their own unique incentive.

The couple have no heirs and built the house in 1993. They want $399,900 for the four-bedroom, 3 1/2-bath home, which is located about 20 miles north of Pittsburgh.

Under the Husicks' offer, the buyer would get the sale price back when they die.

Link

Icy curbs do not forgive

Some people will use any excuse to re-use old blog postings.

Manure reduces development of lung cancer

Scientists have discovered that working with manure drastically reduces the risk of developing lung cancer.

Dairy farmers are five times less likely than the general populace to develop the disease, New Scientist magazine reports.

The study found farmers typically breathed in dust that consisted largely of dried manure, and all the bacteria that grew in it.

New Scientist said adults who had a greater exposure to germs than usual might build up a better resistance to bugs, including cancer.

What about politicians? They should never need to worry about lung cancer.

Link

ICE your cell phone for safety

If you have read this on this blog before it’s because I think this is imortant enough to post here every so often.

The American College of Emergency Physicians wants you to add a listing in your cell phone directory.

By entering the acronym ICE (In Case of Emergency) – into your cell phone book, users can list the name and number of someone who should be contacted in an emergency.

Will this ensure that all emergency personnel will look in your cell phone for your ICE listing in an emergency?

The answer is no, not every time.

Put ICE in your phone anyway. What if doctors, firefighters, police or paramedics looked in your cell phone for an emergency contact (ICE) listing and it wasn’t there?

Be safe and ICE your phone!

Link

Scorpion venom offers improved cancer surgery

An article from Britain in the Independent claims that a substance derived from scorpion venom could be the key to more effective treatment for a wide range of cancers.

Turned into a "paint" which can distinguish even a small number of cancerous cells from healthy tissue, the venom would vastly improve surgeons' accuracy when removing tumors.

Link

Bumper sticker mania

===================
All men are animals

some just make better pets
===================

Charts showing fat in fast food: where did you eat today?

There is a chart at the link below comparing fat, calories, etc. in French fries. The chart compares the french fries by restaurant.

The tables are sortable. Clicking a category (calories, total fat, saturated fat, trans fat, sodium, etc.) will sort the data in that column from lowest to highest. Clicking it again will sort it from highest to lowest.

One thing to consider is serving size. For instance, Sonic has the least amount of fat. However, the serving size is the smallest which skews the comparison chart.

The chart is useful only when considering serving size.

Two columns to pay close attention to are the saturated fat column and the trans fat column.

What all this really does is to remind us to avoid eating at fast food restaurants as much as possible.

Link

Guinevere and Lancelot

If you like ‘em punny, this is for you:
Guinevere and Lancelot had a huge argument. Eventually, they reached an impasse.

Guinevere told Lancelot that she never wanted to see him again. Heartbroken, Lancelot headed to the local tavern.

Eventually, Guinever calmed down and went out to find him.

Spotting Lancelot’s horse outside the tavern, she went inside. A man who was leaving recognized her.

He asked, “What’s a knight’s girl like you doing in a place like this?”

NY Post scathingly denounces Hillary - endorses Obama

The New York Post endorses Barack Obama - sort of.

The endorsement of Obama is almost an afterthought as most of the page is a scathing denouncement of Hillary Clinton. A portion of anti-Hillary tirade follows - the rest can be found at the link below:

Democrats in 22 states across America go to the polls next Tuesday to pick between two presidential prospects: Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.



We urge them to choose Obama - an untried candidate, to be sure, but preferable to the junior senator from New York.

Obama represents a fresh start.

His opponent, and her husband, stand for déjà vu all over again - a return to the opportunistic, scandal-scarred, morally muddled years of the almost infinitely self-indulgent Clinton co-presidency.

Does America really want to go through all that once again?

It will - if Sen. Clinton becomes president.
Bill Clinton's thuggishly self-centered campaign antics conjure so many bad, sad memories that it's hard to know where to begin.

Suffice it to say that his Peck's-Bad-Boy smirk - the Clinton trademark - wore thin a very long time ago.

Far more to the point, Sen. Clinton could have reined him in at any time. But she chose not to - which tells the nation all it needs to know about what a Clinton II presidency would be like.

Tell us what you really think Mr. Murdock. Don’t hold back.

Link

Wisconsin wants to shed cheesy image

The state of Wisconsin is serious about shedding the cheesehead stereotype.

America's Dairyland wants you to know it's not just full of cheeseheads.

Problem is, it is hard to alter a stereotype that has been around for so long.

To start with, it will be an uphill battle just to clear the cheesehead hats from Lambeau Field during Packers home games. Packer fans wearing their cheeseheads are seen on TV by millions of fans every year.

It will be a slow process to remove the stereotype whatever method they use.

Link

The Washington pork barrel king of all time

When it comes to congressional pork, this Byrd really brings home the bacon!

The Democrat from West Virginia tops tham all for spending tax dollars on his own pet projects.

At age 90, Sen. Robert Byrd (pictured) of West Virginia has been in the Senate longer than anybody else.

And he's spent much of that time as head of the most powerful spending committee, with extraordinary control over earmarks - grants of your tax dollars without the normal public review.

Byrd was the first senator to rack up a total of $1 billion in earmarks for his home state.

That was in 1999. Today he's past the $3 billion mark.

And though tradition frowns on sitting members of Congress funding projects in their own name, they don't seem to have a problem with it in Byrd Country. West Virginia is full of ventures paid for with your tax dollars but named after him.

You can take the Robert C. Byrd Highway to the Robert C. Byrd Locks and Dam, explore space through the Robert C. Byrd Telescope, and work at the Robert C. Byrd Hilltop Office Complex.

In all, we found more than 40 projects bearing the Byrd name. Many of them sound perfectly reasonable, but the problem is other needy communities never get a crack at the money.

The worst part is the money was not his to spend.

Link

For sale: 4 bedrooms, 3 bath, 1 scandal

So much for curb appeal.

When a house's reputation is tainted, selling can be tough.

A stylish new house sits on South Tampa's Vasconia Street, for sale or rent.

But yellow crime-scene tape rings the front yard. A chunk of the stairway apparently has been cut away. Pieces of the slab are stacked in the garage. The foyer has a foxhole.

And a murder victim may be buried under it all.

For now, the 3,200-square foot home at 3908 W Vasconia isn't exactly open for showing.

Link

Give me the cash. No, wait. Let me think

The story of a conflicted bank robber in Lynchburg, Virginia.

A 72-year-old man entered Carter Bank and Trust armed with a gun and told the branch manager, "give me all your money."

He then changed his mind, handed the money back and told the teller to call the police. He also tried to give her his gun.

Link

‘Green Eggs and Ham’ ruling by rhyming judge

A U.S. District Court Judge received a hard-boiled egg in the mail from an inmate who was protesting his prison diet.

Judge James Muirhead reached for Dr. Seuss' "Green Eggs and Ham" for inspiration after getting the egg from inmate Charles Jay Wolff.

The judge wrote:

I do not like eggs in the file
I do not like them in any style.
I will not take them fried or boiled.
I will not take them poached or broiled.
I will not take them soft or scrambled
Despite an argument well-rambled.

The judge then ordered the egg destroyed saying:

No fan I am
Of the egg at hand.
Destroy that egg!
Today! Today! Today I say!
Without delay!"

Dr. Seuss would have been proud.

Link

Piggy bank: updated version

Does this mean the piggy bank is making a comeback?

The updated piggy bank shown here has four separate compartments so you can earmark your coins by category.

Notice that “invest” doesn’t get much respect. Its the compartment located at the pigs rear-end.

Link here.

101-year-old ship still working the Great Lakes

The St. Marys Challenger is a 101-year-old cement carrier that is still plying the waters of the Great Lakes.

Challenger was christened as the William P. Snyder when originally launched in Detroit. Over the years, the ship also was known as the Alex D. Chisholm, Medusa Challenger and Southdown Challenger.

The ship is currently known as the St. Marys Challenger and holds the honors of being the oldest lake boat still trading on the Great Lakes.

Powered by a steam engine, the Challenger was launched in 1906 - six years before the RMS Titanic set sail on its doomed maiden voyage.

Link

Bill Clinton unleashed: unloads on the press

Bill Clinton is accustomed to being treated kindly by the media. Especially “Clinton friendly” media such as CNN, the network that has patronized him for the last 15 years.

When the media asks him tough questions he lashes out.

The most recent Bill Clinton barrage can be found here.

With a history of coronary artery disease, it would seem be in his best interest to calm down.

Make a survival kit from an Altoids Tin

Link here to a Field & Stream magazine article that shows how to pack a survival kit into an Altoids tin.

Several versions are listed so you can make one for many purposes including a Pocket Kit, Day Kit, and Wilderness Kit.

I never dreamed an Altoids mint tin could have such an interesting and useful second life.

Conscience …

--------------------------------------
Conscience is what hurts

when everything else feels good
--------------------------------------

Qees

Qees are 2 & 1/2-inch tall collectable key chain figures. The Qees (pronounced ‘keys’) are also available in a large 8 inch size. You would need big pockets to use the large size as a key chain, but then your keys never get lost.

A small collection of Qees
They have been out for a few years so maybe it’s not just a passing fad. Wonder if they are traded on playgrounds like football stickers? Or maybe like pog trading in the early 1990’s. Remember pogs? Kids gathered ‘em in by the bag full for a very short time - until they discovered how worthless they were and tossed them out.

Collecting Qees sounds like it could be fun. A lot more exciting to kids than collecting stamps and not as addictive as baseball cards. Qee links here and here.

Lightning strikes and rainbow in same photo

(click on picture to enlarge)

Awesome picture of lightning strikes and a rainbow. Photo taken near Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Link

The "living in a garbage truck" hoax

Have you seen this hoax on the Internet, or maybe received it by e-mail?

The story of a garbage truck converted to a motor home has been posted several places on the Internet.

The postings are usually titled, Living in a garbage truck. Don’t you believe it. It’s just another hoax floating around on the Internet.



It’s a TerraCross Home on Wheels made by UNICAT. The TerraCross web site is here. The UNICAT home page is here.

The myth buster web site is here.

Study shows cell phone users tie up traffic

Do you use your wireless phone while driving? If so, you may be slowing traffic as well as your arrival time to say nothing of the safety of yourself and other drivers.

The University of Utah's Traffic Lab found that drivers who use cell phones behind the wheel impede the flow of traffic and extend commute times.

Prior studies have equated the risk of driving while talking on a cell phone with driving while drunk. Some 50 countries have banned use of hand-held phones while driving.

The study showed tha when drivers were distracted by a phone conversation, they made fewer lane changes, drove slower and took longer to get where they are going. It made no difference if they used a hands-free phone.

Link

Cooking spray helps clear snow from a satellite dish

A clever solution for keeping snow and ice buildup off your satellite dish is to put a plastic trash bag over it and pull it tight to prevent sagging.

Use duct tape to seal the bag to the back of the dish. The snow and ice will fall off the bag and give you clear reception.

If snow and ice starts to build up on the bag, spray the bag with PAM (or similar) cooking spray.

Satellite dish heaters and covers are available but you can’t beat the price of the remedy outlined above.

Optical illusions

These soldiers are all exactly the same height.

Another simple yet very cool optical illusion.

Solar car from Taiwan to hit market soon

A solar car from Taiwan is slated to hit the market soon, but it won't be a hit in this country.

The battery charges in just a few hours sunlight and can power the car for three hours.

It will have a top speed of 70kph (43 mph). It may work out as a golf cart but it would be a menace on the freeway.

We wonder how many will be standing in line to pay 800,000 New Taiwanese Dollars ($24,617) for this vehicle.

Link

The ant and the grasshopper

There are two versions of this story.

OLD VERSION:

The ant worked hard in the steamy summer heat building his house and storing food and supplies for winter.

The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and plays around all summer.

The next winter the ant is warm and well fed.

The grasshopper has no food or shelter and he dies out in the cold.

MODERN VERSION:

The ant worked hard in the steamy summer heat building his house and storing food and supplies for winter.

The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and plays around all summer.

The next winter the ant is warm and well fed.

The grasshopper has no food or shelter so he calls a press conference and demands to know why the ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while others are starving out in the cold.

Reporters from CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN, and MSNBC show up and take pictures of the starving, shivering grasshopper and show a video of the ant in his comfortable home with food on the table.

America is stunned by the contrast.

How can it be that in a country of such wealth this poor grasshopper is allowed to suffer like this?

Kermit the Frog appears on Oprah with the grasshopper and everyone cries when they sing: It’s Not Easy Being Green.

Jesse Jackson organizes a demonstration in front of the ant’s house. The news networks film the group singing: We Shall Overcome.

John Kerry and Ted Kennedy appear in a joint interview on Larry King Live. They discuss why the ant has gotten rich off the back of the grasshopper.

Congress calls for an immediate tax hike on all ants.

The EEOC drafts the Economic Equity & Anti-Grasshopper Act which is made retroactive to the beginning of the summer.

The ant is fined for failing to hire a proportionate number of green bugs.

The ant has no money left to pay his retroactive taxes. The government confiscates his home.

Hillary arranges for her old law firm to represent the grasshopper in a defamation suit against the ant.

The case is tried before a panel of federal judges that Bill Clinton appointed from a list of single-parent welfare recipients.

The ant loses the case.

The story ends with the grasshopper eating the last of the food in his house (which just happens to be the ant’s old house) as the house crumbles around him because he hasn’t maintained the building.

The ant has disappeared in the snow.

The grasshopper is found dead in a drug related incident.

The house, now abandoned, is taken over by a gang of spiders who terrorize the once peaceful neighborhood.

Hillary Meal Deal fake advertisement

This political satire button looks like it was inspired by the MoveOn organization except for one thing -- MoveOn only attacks conservatives.



An article at the link below asks if this is a shot at Hillary from the Obama campaign.

The article shows a similar Hillary Meal Deal ad that appeared on a laptop at the Holiday Inn in Des Moines where Obama’s campaign team is staying.

Obama himself is staying at the Residence Inn in West Des Moines so he’s probably not guilty. It was likely someone on the Obama team having a little fun at Hillary’s expense.

Link

In the classroom

TEACHER: Jonathan, your composition on "My Dog" is exactly the same as your brother's. Did you copy his?

JONATHAN: No, teacher, it's the same dog.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

TEACHER: James, what do you call a person who keeps on talking when people are no longer interested?

JAMES: A teacher.

McCow

They’ll advertise anywhere!