thought of the day

Have you ever noticed how if you're eating with someone else while chatting away, that you rarely notice anything annoying? Have you ever noticed how if you are not eating, and someone else in the room is, that it is suddenly apparent to you that the way that they chew is gross, or that they feel the need to hit their teeth with their fork every single time they take a bite which ends up sounding like nails on a chalk board?

Just a thought...

a story about a garbage man

Gilles Eichenbaum, a Paris based artist, collects old out of date kitchen items, such as these, and gives them a new lease on life by repurposing them into lamps. I think it's an awesome idea, and definitely for those into the who "kitch" movement that is in full effect right now. To me, this is a terrific example of someone seeing something, seemingly of little or no value, and turning it into something beautiful. Brings a tear to my eye.. sniff*

These items can be purchased at craft2eu, and they range from 150 to 450 euros. Craft2eu is worth a look as well. It's a German site that showcases and promotes the work of talented artists (which is also available for purchase via their catalog) Check it out, see what people are doing, look for inspiration, gallery shows, and maybe for something new for your home.

Check out Gilles here to see more about him, his work, and where he's showing

l'affiche moderne

In my wanderings I stumbled upon this cute little place called L'Affiche Moderne where one can find a diverse showcasing of graphic design and photography which are available to purchase as posters. Each image shown is sold in limited edition runs of 300, which are numbered. The nice thing is that you can order them in 2 sizes, and the prices are very reasonable, from 30 to 60 euros. Again, having unique art on your walls isn't always so easy to do, but it's always nice when you can make it possible, and without dipping into your savings account.

Julien Pacaud (online portfolio)

Perdita Corleone (Le Blog de...)

that'snot art!

Marcel Wanders, a Dutch design guru of sorts has come up with a surprising inspiration for a line of vases. Aptly titled "the airborne snotty vase"... this design is created by digitally capturing the spray pattern of molecules that fly out of your mouth and nose when you sneeze. After the shape is captured and enlarged by 1000x, a mesh rendering is scanned into a computer (SLS machine), which produces a replica - with an end use of a glass receptacle for flowers! (aka "vase")

Digital laser cutting has become increasingly popular and this concept takes it further, by beginning with a biological expulsion, using extremely high tech methods for capturing it and producing it, but the end result returns to its misshapen, biological form... which sort of betrays the techie methods which were used in its realization.

Antwerpen 2

Di got me started on how beautiful the sun is against her city in the late afternoon. She's a smart bunny, she is.

Leiden

Antwerpen

Brussels

Place St. Catherine

Strasbourg

ingenious

I've heard recently that in the US, they're going to stop making pennies, because the coin is actually more expensive than what it's worth. Go America!

My experiences in Belgium and the Netherlands are that a lot of cashiers don't want to take your 1 cent coins, and sometimes, they don't even want the 5 cents either. I've been left somewhat confused by that, since it is actually considered to be a part of the monetary system here... but what do I know?

So look, if you live in the US, or in Europe, or if you just happen to have a huge mass of mixed out of circulation coins (make sure they're not valuable!), this is a fantastic way to use them - and - you don't have to pay for tiles... so you also save some money for more important things. Like wine for example.

See how smart I am?

random image find

I was looking online for a "silhouette" of a woman for a project I'm working on, and I found this, which is perhaps not going to work for my assignment... but hey, she's pinching her boobie...

so says BBC....

These are actually laws.....

It is legal for a male to urinate in public, as long it is on the rear wheel of his motor vehicle and his right hand is on the vehicle (and your left hand is on....)

A bed may not be hung out of a window

Taxi drivers are required to ask all passengers if they have smallpox or the plague (I get this all the time from cabbies)

Any person found breaking a boiled egg at the sharp end will be sentenced to 24 hours in the village stocks (enacted by Edward VI)

Any boy under the age of 10 may not see a naked mannequin (but a priest is OK?)

Throughout the whole of England it is illegal to eat mince pies on the 25th of December

It is illegal to be drunk on licensed premises (and what is a pub good for then?)

Here is proof

Bueller.... Bueller....

Took this at the grocery store in Clinton Hill, NY back in 2005. When I moved back there in 2007, it was still there. Apparently, it wasn't an accident.

So, question of the day:
Just what is KNORK?

as if you needed another reason...

Go there. Do it now.
The Onion

random question?

Ever see an old photo and think, hey... where the hell are those sunglasses?

a scenario

Sitting in the waiting area

I listen to you speak for a little while
you don't know this...but..I am quietly getting to know you
"Where is my wife?" you ask a woman, who jokingly replies, "You didn't sell her, did you?"
You laugh.

...I'm sure in the back of your mind you're thinking, "Sometimes that seems like a good idea."

the not so distant past, when life was far less technically saavy

LIVING WITHOUT CONNECTION ~ August 6, 2004

I was thinking that by having to visit the library to get online, it would curb my web abuse. And it has. However, I believe I reached a low point in my addiction the other night when I tried to access my space via my cell phone's web. Much to my chagrin, it did not work. Leaving me wanting it all the more.

(I obviously wrote this long before the iphone)

written on the body

"Articulacy of fingers, the language of the deaf and dumb, signing on the body longing. Who taught you to write in blood on my back? Who taught you to use your hands as branding irons? You have scored your name into my shoulders, referenced me with your mark. The pads of your fingers have become printing blocks, you tap a message on to my skin, tap meaning into my body. Your morse code interferes with my heart beat. I had a steady heart before I met you, I relied upon it, it had seen active service and grown strong. Now you alter it's pace with your own rhythm, you play upon me, drumming me taut. Written on the body is a secret code only visible in certain lights; the accumulations of a lifetime gather there. " ~ J. Winterson

before you forget me...

I know one bit of html, and it has allowed me to manually insert this image into this post. Somehow I feel triumphant, mainly because I've temporarily solved a dilemma.

For a few days, there's been a problem with my browser (Firefox) and certain applications (including Blogger) are not working properly. Is it a virus? We'll have to see.. I'm running a scan and having it looked at.

So... not certain how long it'll be before I start posting more, but I'm sure no one will lose any sleep over it.

extraordinary

by Andre Jordan