If I had this Super Mario theme in my house I’d spend a lot of time running around bashing my head against bricks and trying to jump into drain pipes. So it’s probably a good thing I don’t…
Category: Curiosities
CoffeeTalkies: For driving in convoy in Europe
Did I mention that I just got back from two and a half weeks in Greece and Turkey on an, ahem, study tour. I learned two things. Driving in convoys (difficult, but essential) is better with walkie talkies, and the coffee is terrible.
So I give you the perfect solution. CoffeeTalkies. A real product1, brought to you by the Onion.
1 The box is real. The product is not.
Matchstick Tirith
You know you’ve got too much time on your hands if you can recreate an incredibly complex structure from a piece of fiction entirely out of matchsticks. But if you go to the trouble your work kind of deserves the international attention it garners on blogs around the world.
From a website called matchstick marvels, which is as awesome as it sounds.
“Iowa artist Patrick Acton has glued over 3 million ordinary wooden matchsticks into more than 60 incredibly detailed scale models of life-like sculptures, complex machines, and world renown architecture. Acton has used the tiny 2 inch long sticks to build huge models like his 13-foot long true-to-scale model of the battleship USS Iowa, and a 12-foot lighted model of the United States capitol. The Matchstick Marvels display has drawn visitors from all over the United States and dozens of foreign countries. “
Now I know my ABCs, won’t you come play games with me…
If you want to raise your child, future child, or friend’s child as a nerd then you should give them this alphabet chart and explain it to them in context.
Via Geekologie.
How to pass wind in public
Friends, countrymen, lend these your rears… this is a life changer. Stick them in your pants and pass gas to your heart’s content (though perhaps try to keep the volume down, unless you want to admit to wearing fart suppressing underwear liners). I’d also avoid passing wind in public places in time with the beat of the music you’re listening to, especially if you’ve forgotten that you’re wearing headphones and others can hear your rhythmic bellows from below.
Friends, five of these bad boys, called Subtle Butt, will set you back $12, a small price to pay for being able to pass wind comfortably on long flights and in elevators.
Here’s the low down.
“Each 3.25″ square filter is made of soft fabric with an antimicrobial treatment on the side touching the skin. The fabric is impregnated with activated carbon, which faces the underwear or the pants and has a vast surface area for bad odors to adhere to and get neutralized. Two adhesive strips are strategically placed so you know which side is which. And at around 1/32” thick, you will never know it’s there. Now with improved adhesive! “
Musical table
Want a piano but don’t know where to fit it? Hide it in your dining table.
Via likecool, designed by Georg Bohle.
It makes your dining table singalongs a whole lot more classy.
Alien v Pooh
Some mash-ups are meant to be. Mashing up the Alien movie protagonists and Winnie doesn’t really fit into that category. But it’s pretty cool nonetheless.
Food lift: because food is heavy
Feeling less than robust? The Weak Shop sells products for the weak and lazy. Like this food lift.
This is honestly the dumbest product I think I’ve ever posted.
Office shock tactics
If you’re sick of being pestered by people wanting to borrow your stationery why not pick some from this range of office supplies loaded with electric shock devices. Just be careful not to give them to somebody with a pacemaker.
Colourblind Clock the perfect excuse for tardiness
I’m slightly colourblind. It doesn’t trouble me all that much, because it’s pretty rare that one is confronted with one of those dot tests with obscured numbers.
But this clock, which takes the form of said dot tests, gives me the perfect excuse to be late for everything… the same way I have the perfect excuse to run red lights (ie. by the age of 26 I should know where the correct lights and numbers sit on the traffic lights or clock).
It’s worth just 35 pounds. A small price to pay.
Fontasic cookie cutter
Everybody’s favourite font (Helvetica) can now be everybody’s favourite cookie word. What would Cookie Monster say about that?
They’re from designer Beverly Hsu, who is researching mass producing them. They’ll probably use a lot of dough though.
Weapons for women
Being a woman is tough. You’re always vulnerable. Or you were. Until this book was published in days gone by. Now men are living in fear.
101 Weapons for Women: Implement Weaponry: A Unique Concept in Women’s Self-Defense
by Rodney R Rice
1991
by Rodney R Rice
1991
From Awful Library Books.
Here are some of the pages. Why you wouldn’t just go foot or elbow to the groin is beyond me.
Specialhero Toys: Almost better than the real thing
Cheap Chinese toy knock offs hold a special place in my heart. My GI Joe collection was bolstered by some quasi-equivalents from Fair Dinkum Bargains. So this little online repository warmed the cockles of my heart for a moment.
How Tetris helps you move house better
Gaming blog Kotaku spoke to a Tetris whiz to find some practical application (other than its documented benefits for your sanity) for the classic block arranging game. Most of them are pretty obvious, and the Simpsons once made a Tetris joke when Homer stuff his car boot full of stuff. But it’s an interesting exercise that you can try out on your parent/spouse next time they tell you you’re wasting your time.
Image Credit: Kotaku
Here are the tips.
- Take a glimpse at your next pieces (moving boxes in this case) to determine the best placement positions.
- If you have a box that doesn’t fit neatly, hold onto it and un-hold it when it won’t mess everything up.
- Stack as flat as possible. The even field will save you reaction time and give you more stacking options.
- Avoid creating unnecessary gaps to maximize space usage.
- Leave an empty column open for your long boxes, and if you don’t have any long boxes buy some.
- Don’t waste your long boxes! (Don’t use ’em until you need ’em to fit a space)
- Multiplayer will help you reach a faster time, so have some friends and family help you out.