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The place where the world comes together in honesty and mirth.
Windmills Tilted, Scared Cows Butchered, Lies Skewered on the Lance of Reality ... or something to that effect.


Tuesday, February 8, 2011

The Daily Drift

The Daily Drift
Today's horoscope says:
Maybe all your career plans aren't moving forward as quickly as you'd like.
Maybe that terse conversation you had with a friend is still unresolved.
Maybe you're tired of waiting for that phone call that seems less and less likely to come.
No matter what negatives you're feeling now, you need to remember that there are many new opportunities and ideas that have achieved a solid foothold in your life.
Good things are about to happen, and they'll make you forget all the bad stuff!

Some of our readers today have been in:
Perth, Western Australia, Australia
Puchong, Selangor, Malaysia
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
London, England, United Kingdom
Stuttgart, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany
Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands
Ausburg, Bayern, Germany
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
Seoul, Kyonggi-Do, Korea
Turku, Western Finland, Finland
Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Valencia, Comunidad Valencia, Spain
Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

as well as Slovakia, Malta, Bulgaria, Israel, Finland, Austria, Norway, Georgia, Mexico, Peru, Kuwait, Serbia, Bangladesh, Latvia, Greece, Scotland, Hong Kong, Denmark, Wales, Iran, Singapore, Poland, Taiwan, Sweden, Afghanistan, Belgium, Tibet, Croatia, Pakistan, Romania, Paraguay, Sudan, Vietnam, Argentina, Cambodia, Egypt, France, Estonia, Puerto Rico, Maldives, Qatar, Brazil, New Zealand, United Arab Emirates, Slovenia, China, Iraq, Ecuador, Nigeria, Colombia, Chile, Honduras, Paupa New Guinea, Moldova, Venezuela, Germany, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Ireland, Czech Republic, Vietnam, Norway, Finland and in cities across the United States such as Dretrehan, Lithia, Valle Cruces, Oshkosh and more.

Today is:
Today is Tuesday, February 8, the 39th day of 2011.
There are 326 days left in the year.


Today's unusual holidays or celebrations are: 
Extraterrestrial Culture Day
and
Laugh and Get Rich Day.


Don't forget to visit our sister blog!

Keith Olbermann goes to Current TV

Unabashed liberal news anchor Keith Olbermann will return to television on Current TV, taking a leadership position and holding an equity stake at the public affairs channel run by former Vice President Al Gore.
Take that MSNBC!
So much for your 'no compete' clauses, eh?
Current TV is not one of your 'competitors', but you'll be hard pressed to 'compete' with them.

Suprising Saudi act of defiance

A protest by a few dozen women hints at growing trouble for powerful Mideast dynasties.  
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Freed executive energizes Egypt

A day after an emotional TV interview, Google's Wael Ghonim is the new face of Egyptian protests. 
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The Golden Hour

 

Have you ever taken a photograph that seems to have a magical quality to it, because of the way in which the light has been captured in the shot? The chances are that you took the picture during the two times of day that photographers know as the golden hour.

The first hour of sunlight of the day makes the first golden hour. As the sun rises the light is softer than later in the day when the full and harsh rays of the sun shine down upon us. Likewise at the end of the day in the hour before sunset, the sun is close to the horizon again. As in the morning, the light travels in an oblique manner and so, instead of hitting objects straight down, hits them at an angle.

Slaughterhouse Five


The former butchering facility in Dresden, Germany featured in Kurt Vonnegut’s 1969 book Slaughterhouse Five is a real place that you can visit.

The book is a work of fiction, but Vonnegut was really held prisoner in Dresden’s Schlachthof Fünf (Slaughterhouse Five) during the city’s fire bombing in World War II.

Read more about the underground meat locker that saved the lives of POWs like Vonnegut at Atlas Obscura.

Blaze swallows Carnival floats

Thousands watch in shock as flames rip through elaborate floats and costumes a year in the making.  
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Awesome Pictures

Odds and Sods

A California man attending a cockfight has died after being stabbed in the leg by a bird that had a knife attached to its own limb.

Prosecutors in Washington state have filed a felony assault charge against a woman accused of biting the lower lip off another woman at a Yakima nightclub.

A local authority in England has given the go ahead for a swimming pool to use energy created by the next-door crematorium to heat its water.

Hungary's notorious octogenarian thief is not ready for retirement. Police say the 84-year-old woman, known as "Flying Gizi," whose criminal record goes back to the 1950s, is again in custody for suspected theft.

Shoe

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Ronny Raygun's Top Ten Flaws

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repugicans like to pretend these don't exist
 
1. He was a serial tax raiser.

2. He nearly tripled the federal budget deficit.

3. Unemployment soared after his 1981 tax 'cuts'. 

4. He grew the size of the federal government tremendously.

5. He did little to fight a woman’s right to chose.

6. He was a “bellicose peacenik.”

7. He gave amnesty to 3 million undocumented immigrants.

8. He illegally funneled weapons to Iran.

9. He vetoed a comprehensive anti-Apartheid act

10. He helped create the Taliban and Osama Bin Laden. 
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A repugican makes (a not so) veiled threat against federal judges

And he knew perfectly well what he was doing.

The repugicans regularly traffic in veiled violence.

Its uneducated base loves it.

At times you have to wonder if the wingnuts running the repugican party like anything about our current system of government, checks and balances, Constitution (other than their horrid misreading of the 2nd Amendment).

They talk a good talk about loving Amurika, but when it comes to the details, repugicans disdain everything our country actually stands for.

Most miserable cities in the U.S.

For the second time in three years, one California city tops the infamous Forbes magazine list.   
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Illegal fast food workers

A crackdown on illegal workers forces popular restaurants like Chipotle to fire hundreds.  
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Bad Cops

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State wants to end pension for Chicago cop linked to torture
The state of Illinois wants to take pension benefits from an ex-Chicago police commander convicted of lying about the use of police torture to gain confessions, according to a lawsuit filed on Monday.

Louisiana Woman Accused of Beefsteak Assault

Police in the southern Louisiana city of Houma say a woman upset over her lack of freezer space allegedly hit her boyfriend in the face with a frozen beefsteak.

Elevenyear-old Colombian girl caught smuggling 74 phones and a gun into prison

Prison officials in Colombia say they have caught an 11-year-old girl trying to smuggle dozens of mobile phones and a gun into a jail. The guards became suspicious when they saw what they described as irregular shapes underneath the girl's jumper.

When they investigated they found 74 mobile phones and a revolver taped to her back. The girl said she had come to the prison in Medellin to visit a relative jailed for illegal gun possession. She was accompanied by a 25-year-old woman who identified herself as the girl's sister.


Authorities at the Bellavista prison say the two had made it past one security control, where the woman's identity was checked. Reports say the girl was trying to slip past the second checkpoint, where visitors are patted down and their bags searched.

It was there that security personnel spotted something on her back and carried out the search, where a guard revealed "two Blackberries, 72 mobile phones of varying quality, and a .38-calibre gun". The two are being held pending further investigation.

Near-collision prompts probe

An American Airlines jet and two military planes narrowly averted disaster last month.  
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Custom Painted Firearms


Hard Corps Weaponry is a studio that specializes in the custom painting of guns, including this nifty FNP9 in a John Deere theme. Other guns in the gallery include a Hello Kitty shotgun, a Miami Hurricanes Glock 23, and many exotic camouflage schemes.

Motorway maximus

Unearthed: a stunning Roman super highway built 1900 years ago.
The 15ft-high road ran from London to Exeter
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It was a route once trod by legionnaires as they marched across a conquered land.
But, eventually, the Romans left Britain and the magnificent highway they created was reclaimed by nature and seemingly lost for ever.
Now, some 2,000 years after it was built, it has been uncovered in the depths of a forest in Dorset.
And, remarkably, it shows no sign of the potholes that blight our modern roads.

Electrified kids' toys of 1950

From the July, 1950 issue of Mechanix Illustrated, a glorious collection of kids' toys -- some you might find today, but others no contemporary corporate lawyer would approve:
Atomic Lab Set. shown at the American Toy Fair in New York, has cloud chamber that makes visible the paths taken by speeding alpha particles, a Geiger counter, and a screen that shows the break-up of radio-active material. A. C. Gilbert Co., of New Haven, Conn. Fly a Plane-Kite and have fun. The red Bakelite plastic plane has revolving wings which lift it in even a slight wind and buzz as if motor-propelled. It can be cast off from a standing position and hauled in with rod and reel. Skycraft, 1340 Canal, Long Beach, Cal.
Flyboy scale model plane was also on display at the recent toy fair. This young fellow is thrilled by its realistic performance. The plane can take off at a finger's flip, cruise around the room, bank, make turns and come in for a perfect landing every time. It runs on a battery.
Tiny Electric Organ is a true musical instrument with 25 piano keys. It's practical for adults as well as the kiddies who want to learn to play, Made of plastic, it weighs only seven pounds, sounds like its big brothers. Magnus Harmonica Corp., Newark, N. J.

Ziggy

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High Speed Rail

President Barack Obama to call for $53 billion for high-speed rail in budget proposal

President Barack Obama is calling for a six-year, $53 billion spending plan for high-speed rail, as he seeks to use infrastructure spending to jumpstart job creation.

On The Job

When telling a prospective employer about yourself, avoid the chronological approach and try this.
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States reject fed jobless aid

Even with budget shortfalls, nearly $1 billion set aside for extending jobless benefits goes unclaimed. 
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Retirement advice dangers

The conventional wisdom of saving early and investing in a diversified portfolio may not be enough.  
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The truth be told

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What U.S. credit score would be

Here's what the number would be if lenders rated federal borrowing the way they score consumers.
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The truth about 'high' taxes

You might think otherwise, but tax bills haven't been this low since the 1950s.
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Your house…

…as seen by you
Your house1

… as seen by your buyer
Your house2

… as seen by your lender
Your house3

… as seen by your appraiser
Your house4

… as seen by your county assessor
Your house5

Five splurges worth the money

Upgrading kitchen appliances can cut energy bills 30 percent and boost your home’s value.  
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Should teens skip college?

A financial adviser says young people are better off pursuing these eight goals instead of a degree.
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Six kids' online safety myths

Many parents aren't sure what they need to know about their children's Web use.  
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In Matters Of Health

Many Americans could be saving a lot on prescriptions, a new analysis finds.  
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Kids’ eating-disorder signs

The best way to protect your child is to be alert to some of these warning signs. 
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Culinary DeLites

Fresh vegetables, tangy pasta sauce, and pork make for a hearty stew.
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The world's healthiest foods
The world's healthiest foods
The country's top dietitians and nutritionists share which super-powered fruits, vegetables, dairy, and grains we all should be eating, all of the time.

Bonus: simple and delicious ways to prepare them.

How to make food last longer

Stop cheese from drying out by spreading butter on the cut sides. 
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Top Ten Most Nutritious Vegetables and How to Grow Them in Your Garden

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A perfectly ripe, juicy tomato, still warm from the sun. Sweet carrots, pulled from the garden minutes (or even seconds!) before they're eaten. Growing your own vegetables is one of those activities that balances practicality and indulgence. In addition to the convenience of having the fixings for a salad or light supper right outside your door (or on your windowsill), when you grow your own vegetables, you're getting the most nutritional bang for your buck as well. Vegetables start losing nutrients as soon as they're harvested, and quality diminishes as sugars are turned into starches. For the tastiest veggies with the best nutrition, try growing a few of these nutrient-dense foods in your own garden. And don't let the lack of a yard stop you - all of them can be grown in containers as well.
Article continues: Top Ten Most Nutritious Vegetables and How to Grow Them in Your Garden

Military's 'mad scientist' lab

One agency's extreme research projects have led to GPS, night vision, and the Web.
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Shipwreck beer to be brewed again

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Beer found in a 200-year-old shipwreck, the world's oldest surviving beer sample, is to be chemically analyzed by Finnish scientists - and brewed again.

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Scientific Minds Want To Know

Studying how snakes got legless
A 95-million-year-old fossil snake is helping scientists understand how these creatures lost their legs through the course of evolutionary time.

Biggest fish could be even bigger

Dear NASA

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Asteroid report spikes online

A disputed report of a 900-foot asteroid's threat to Earth prompts a search for answers.  
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Wizard of Id

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Striking ice sculptures

An international event in Sapporo, Japan, wows visitors with its array of giant ice sculptures.  
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Ice volcanoes stoke curiosity

A "lunar landscape" along the shores of Lake Michigan draws crowds of curious tourists.
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Destiny

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Rare Mountain Gorilla Twins Born in Rwanda

mountain gorilla mother child photo
According to WWF, the population of mountain gorillas increased by more than 25 percent in Central African Parks between 2003 and 2010. Now, gorilla conservationists in Rwanda have more reason to celebrate: The extremely rare birth of twins to a mother called Kabatwa.
Threatened by poaching, war, habitat loss, and the bushmeat trade, the population of the critically endangered mountain gorilla is thought to number only 790 individuals.
Article continues: Rare Mountain Gorilla Twins Born in Rwanda