to beyond

this is just pretty darned cool. and it's hard for me to understand why he's unemployed. do businesses not understand what an imagination this guy has?

it's a 6-minute clip, but it's so interesting you don't even realize the time it's taking. enjoy!

graffiti wars

got this from the husband. it is totally cool!

make music!!!

THIS is absolutely the coolest thing in almost forever!!!  Google rocks!  And you can play it back! (on 06.09.11)

how-to see tiny

i forgot to say that if you're curious about seeing a chip and trying to find a message, this article gives a little more info. click on the circuit board with the red square and you'll have a picture of a full chip with circuits -- the tiny message is highlighted.

hee, hee ... a whole new world we didn't even realize was there.

teeny tiny coolness

and speaking of tiny things, this article was very interesting. even if you aren't very computer savvy, you are probably aware that the chips inside a computer are pretty small. and they have very small circuits and semiconductors on the chips. but did you realize that if there's any blank space on a chip that mischievous computer geek chip-makers can lay out their sense of humor?

you probably won't search out any humor laying around on your own computer chips, so take a look at this article and click on 'view all' so you can see them and go back to them and wonder at them. it's pretty neat and i have to think that if i were doing this job, that i would come up with stuff to put on the chips, too. i mean, way cool!

little bitty movies

i've seen a number of stop-action shorts in my life, and mainly i'm left thinking about the hours involved in making tiny moves, taking the shot, making more tiny moves, taking the shot. it must be painstaking.

this 7-minute short, however, is so absorbing that i didn't give tiny moves a single thought. you really have to see it -- a ski-resort in jackson hole. it's just so well-done ... litte bitty trees, little bitty people, little bitty building and mountains and ski lifts. the whole thing is riveting.

spoiler alert: it's real people.

how does he do that and keep himself secret?

so, you've heard of banksy, right? i have seen his name lately, as i scroll past this headline or that, but finally i decided to check him out and see what the buzz was about.

go here to get a quick view of the guy. you can also go to google images to see more of his work. it sounds like he's quite the character and some of his stuff is really great. some of it left me wondering what the deal was, though. regardless, now you know about him and may even know more than your friends do.

there are many paths to success.

spring cleaning ....

have you ever heard of frazzil ice? i had no knowledge of this trick up nature's sleeve until my cousin sent me this link to a very cool (so to speak) phenomenon. maybe we should have a family reunion there in late march or early april.

the future is coming ....

want to see a machine made out of legos, build a house made out of legos? go here (background article here) ... and be sure to stay until the end.

Ph.D. time!

MYS has finally gotten a date to defend his thesis: august 10. i'm not real clear on the difference between a thesis and dissertation in his field; maybe it doesn't matter. regardless, he's nearing the end of the tunnel.

we'll be attending his defense and i'm excited to see if i can understand anything he says. i've been able to follow along, over the years, as he has explained things to me, but still, since neither physics nor astronomy were ever a big part of my education, it could be a little foggy.

regardless, one huge CONGRATULATIONS to him on seeing a payoff for all his hard work -- may i present the-soon-to-be Dr. Yirak!

a beginning...

the daughter-in-law has written a book! and it is good -- very very good! she asked me to read through it and see if there were inconsistencies or problems, so i'm doing that now. but i keep forgetting to proof because i keep getting drawn back into the story.

if she's got more of this stuff in her, she could really go somewhere with it!

life!

in spite of the fact that i never seem to have any free time anymore, i chanced upon several very neat videos recently.

i wonder what this cat is thinking.
i love this although i suppose everyone has seen it already except for me.
do not watch this if you are a prude. i thought it was very clever, but some people ....
pure joy!!
i think i already posted this one, but i don't remember and it's too cool to not add.

Oel ngati kameie.

i've got mixed feelings about james cameron. he's brilliant and has an incredibly inventive mind, but also seems to have a colossol ego and a really bad temper. he's been married five times, which shows he has flaws and keeps him from being a genuine role model. regardless, i'm excited about avatar and want to see it in a movie house. with it's own language and planet, it's got to be interesting, even if it flops. as if.

from down to waaaaay up

feeling out-0f-sorts? depressed? ticked off? disgusted? numb? majorly pissed?

take a moment to center yourself .... this is so cool.

i had completely forgotten about it. thanks, husband!

wha..???

ohmygod. you have to check this out. i've never seen anything like it and wish i could in person. i've been wanting to go to scotland and that's where these are. can you imagine coming upon them on a walk in the woods? it would be totally spooky, then totally cool!!

update: dammit! i thought the link would take you right to the picture i was in love with, but it doesn't! go to picture 8 of 15 to see the correct image.

playtime

MYS decided to make a coffee table. he's had one in mind for quite awhile now and decided it was time to do it. yes, he's writing papers and preparing to argue his dissertation, but there's a time for work and a time for play.

(my sweetie is the cutie on the left) and here it is:

nice!!!

you go, craigslist!!!

i didn't realize craigslist had so many people trying to get in and change things. and had no idea the person behind craigslist was adament about people being basically good. but after reading this, i'm totally in love with craigslist!

i've used craigslist before and wondered what the 'gimmick' was. surprise! there's no gimmick!

they purposely do not try to figure out a way to get money from people. how refreshing!! and how oddly anti-establishment right now -- the establishment of the almightly fleecers.

anyhow, read the article and come away feeling victorious. and enjoy the haikus. although the last paragraph seems to conflict with some of what i thought i just read. hmmm...

lighten up!

a good friend sent me this link to a very very fun happening!

i remembered it was probably the improv everywhere group and went to their website to see what they've been up to lately. (after looking through their site, i think it must not have been them. or at least not that branch.)

check this out -- it's pretty neat!

and this is hilarious (reach out and touch someone...)

(the one with no pants is pretty funny, too!)

there are lots more on http://improveverywhere.com -- i just wish they'd come close to us. i want to play!!!

i'm gonna wash that stuff right outta my hair ....

the daughter-in-law got me some neat soap for christmas. it smells exactly like chocolate milk. last year she got me this gift thingy which had some lavender vanilla hand lotion in it. i always put that cream on my hands every night because i loved falling asleep while i was smelling it. it was heavenly.

at any rate, i was looking online, trying to find some lavender vanilla products. i came across this web site from iowa called prairieland herbs. they have a shampoo BAR which i just had to try. i chose the peppermint and tea tree and have absolutely loved it!! they suggest to use a vinegar rinse for the first week while your hair is recovering from the commercial stuff you've used on it forever.

i've been using it for about 2 weeks now (the bar lathers up just fabulously) and sometimes i still use the vinegar rinse and sometimes not. but my hair is soft and a prettier color (brown with 'clear' hairs mixed in) than it was before. and i think it holds my style better, too.

i really happy with it and plan on continuing buying it. if you want a kick, try it out!

take a deep breath and blooooooowww ...

it seems like there's just no time anymore to play. work makes me tired. so i am behind in relating all my fun experiences: listening to bagpipes and eating haggis, enjoying the weekend with my older son, dau-in-law, and grandaughter, forgetting things i wanted to relate.

slim jim, from work, and i went up into canada to a fundraiser for several bagpipe bands. there were about 320 people there and we had a really nice dinner plus all kinds of dessert. the meal was a salad, mashed carrots-and-turnips, mashed potatoes, and a huge roll of roast beef. plus, traditional haggis, of course. i've always heard about haggis and this was the real stuff. i knew it had oatmeal in it so i had no qualms about trying it. i just refused to remember what else was in it. it had an interesting taste -- not quite like anything else -- but it wasn't bad and slim jim and i both had seconds. i mean, why not.

there was a silent auction, too, and slim jim and i both came away with stuff -- i mean, it was a fundraiser and we were surprised that people weren't doing more bidding. so it was great for us -- he came away with a bunch of coffee and i got a bunch of kitchen stuff -- teas, dishtowels, candy, utensils, etc.

i totally enjoyed listening to the bagpipes!! there were three different bands, one of them a youth band, and it was just very satisfying to watch and listen to all that energy! yay scotland, forever!!

but the cutest part of the evening was the 4-yr olds doing scottish line dancing. if you ever get to see that, you'll love it. they were even good! all the dancers were good and it was easy to see why none of them were overweight!

all-in-all slim jim and i were glad we went (the husband doesn't like to leave the country) and plan on going again next year. yay, fun! forever!!!