Are you looking to pick up the perfect Valentine's Day treat for your sweet? Let your love shine through with the Heart Tongs from the NeatoShop. This lucious kitchen gadget is perfect for serving up some food for the soul.
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more great Kitchen Stuff.
In 1949 Charles and Ray Eames constructed Case Study House No. 8. This beautiful landmark of modern architecture still stands on the 1.4-acre property in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on which it was erected. The Eames house is regarded as a structural masterpiece. One that integrated a concept of harmony between the live and work home.
Now, with the Eames House Blocks set from the NeatoShop, you can inspire your budding architect to build equally impressive and striking structures. Structures that provoke a love of language, mathematics, and a unity with the playtime environment.
Thirty-six blocks are included in this striking set. Twenty blocks for the house and 16 blocks for the studio. They are handcrafted from sustainable Michigan basswood and hand painted with non-toxic ink.
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more stimulating Educational & Science Toys.
Jonty Hurwitz's three-dimensional objects look like amorphous blobs or a random assortment of objects. But when viewed from certain angles and often in mirrors, their intended impressions suddenly become clear. Hurwitz begins the creative process by scanning a three-dimensional object, then uses computational software to work out alternate physical forms. You can view many more examples at the link.
A hit man meets Death, with the aim to kill him. But what would that mean in the long run? This short film by Edson Oda is neither live action nor animation, but it tells the story quite well in its own inventive way. With English subtitles. -via Metafilter
Self-inflicted torture? Dennis Storm and Valerio Zeno are the hosts of the Dutch TV show Guinea Pigs. Last week they explored what women experience (sort of) by submitting to simulated labor pains via electrodes, to the delight of the audience and women who administered them. The difference is that they only did it for ten minutes, and they did not simulate the actual birth. See the video (in Dutch) at Time. Link
President Obama took the oath of office for his second presidential term this afternoon, even though Inauguration Day with all its festivities is tomorrow. Why? The 20th Amendment to the Constitution says that a president's term ends on January 20th. This date falls on a Sunday every once in a while. Obama will be sworn in again tomorrow for the public, which will be his fourth swearing-in.
Of course, what would happen if the President, perhaps due to religious convictions, refused to take the oath on a Sunday. Well it happened before, perhaps. Outgoing President James Polk’s term ended on Sunday, March 4, 1849. His successor, Zachary Taylor, refused to be sworn in on a Sunday. Same for incoming VP Millard Filmore.
So who was the President on Sunday, March 4, 1849?
Under the Presidential Succession statute at the time (the Presidential Succession Act of 1792), after the Vice President, the Senatore Pro Tempore was in line. Under this theory, Senator David Atchison of Missouri would have been the President for the Day. However, Atchinson, was the President Pro Temp during the Thirtieth Congress. This position expired when that Congress adjourned on March 4.
Athcinson was in fact sworn in as President Pro Tempore on Monday before either Taylor or Dallas took the oath, so in theory, he was President for a few minutes.
Find out how Atchison spent his day as president at Josh Blackman's Blog. And that wasn't the only time such an anomaly has happened. Blackman has some other odd details of presidential succession and some discussion on the Sunday exception in the Constitution. Link -via Digg
The golden retriever puppies love Alice's slippers! Of course they do; even I love her slippers. They kind of remind me of the monster feet slippers at the NeatShop. -via Daily PIcks and Flicks
The following is an article from the book History's Lists from Uncle John's Bathroom Reader.
They came in all shapes and sizes, and we gawked and gasped, just like we were supposed to do. Ladies and gentlemen and children of all ages: our list of the top ten circus attractions ever to grace the sawdust stage of circus big tops and sideshows!
1. JUMBO
P.T. Barnum brought Jumbo the elephant to New York City on Easter Sunday 1882, just in time for the annual opening of "the Greatest Show on Earth" at Madison Square Garden. In the first six weeks, Jumbo helped the show gross $336,000. Twelve feet tall at the shoulders and weighing in at six and a half tons (in fact, the word "jumbo" as we use it comes from his name), he's considered the greatest circus attraction in American history. Jumbo traveled like royalty in a private railroad car called "Jumbo's palace car," a crimson-and-gold boxcar with huge double doors. Unfortunately, popularity and size were no match for a speeding freight train that took Jumbo's life on September 15, 1885, in St. Thomas, Ontario, as he was being loaded onto his palace.
2. EMMETT KELLY
Emmett Kelly's best known routine was trying to sweep a spotlight onto a dustpan on the Ringling circus stage. From 1942 to 1956, he appeared as a classic tramp clown called "Weary Willie," his version of a Depression-era hobo. Kelly's style was different from his flashy peers: he wandered around the arena dressed in tattered clothing, using pantomime instead of words to connect with the crowd. He died, aged 80, of a heart attack in Sarasota, Florida- the longtime winter quarters of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailer Circus.
3. GENERAL TOM THUMB
In 1842, Barnum hired four-year-old dwarf Charles Stratton, who soon became famous as General Tom Thumb. Only 25 inches tall, Stratton started touring the United States with Barnum's circus, impersonating characters like Cupid and Napoleon Bonaparte. He also sang, danced, and participated in skits. Barnum took him on a European tour, where he appeared twice before Queen Victoria and became an international celebrity. But it was his wedding (by which time he'd grown to his adult height of 2' 11") to 2' 8" Lavinia Warren, in 1863 that drew the greatest public attention. Barnum charged $75 a ticket and 2,000 people -including congressional representatives, millionaires, and generals- attended. During their honeymoon, the little couple were wined and dined by President and Mrs. Lincoln at the White House.
4. ZIP THE PINHEAD
Stop! Come back with that bar! We need it! Clet Abraham, a street artist in Florence, Italy, adds stickers of little people to street signs to alter their meanings. He writes:
My adhesives are developed to add a further level of reading [to street signs] constructed on the base of their original signification in order to maintain its utility but give it some intellectual, spiritual, or simply amusing interest. The final objective? That traffic keeps flowing without us feeling spoken down to!
Link -via Amusing Planet | Photos: Clet Abraham, Philosophia
If you've ever wanted to eat a Wookie, here's your chance! Jill of Kitchen Fun with My Three Sons has spent the past week making s'more pops that look like characters from Star Wars. Click through the gallery to see them all. At the link, you can find instructions on how to make your own.
Last week, Australian teenager Matt Corby uploaded a photograph showing an 11-inch Subway sandwich. The original Facebook post has since been deleted, but Subway did respond to Corby.
"Hi, Matt. Thanks for writing. Looking at this photo, this bread is not baked to our standards," Subway wrote on Thursday in response to his post.
"We have policies in place to ensure that our fresh baked bread is consistent and has the same great taste no matter which Subway restaurant around the world you visit. We value your feedback and want to thank you again for being a fan."
If it were just one sandwich, the picture probably would not have gone viral, but apparently it touched a nerve with sub sandwich eaters. Quite a few other Facebook users posted similar pictures of a Subway footlong as 11 inches or a bit less. By the time Subway Australia responded in the comments of this Facebook post, they could no longer pretend it was an isolated incident.
So if a Subway Footlong® is not intended to be a measurement of length, does the same logic apply to a 6-inch sandwich, which is made from cutting a Footlong® in half? And is the ® symbol a new version of "quote" marks in that when you see them, you automatically think that it doesn't mean what the words say?
I have not seen a picture of a 13 inch sandwich, at least not yet. A quick survey of New York City sandwiches found four out of seven at 11 or 11.5 inches.
Some say that the internet uproar over an inch of sandwich is silly. Others point out some of the greater implications of the controversy:
1. Will it still be silly when next year, the Footlong® is only ten inches? Or nine?
2. What if we decided the dollars we pay for the sandwiches are not intended to be a measurement of money?
3. Would it be silly to complain if a gallon of gas were to become 10% smaller?
So what do you think -is this a tempest in a teapot or a place where customers should draw the line?
Does your little one have trouble tearing themselves away from the iPad to go potty? Not to worry. CTA Digital has created a product just for you. It is a potty chair with built-in iPad holder. Now you can hook their iPad, or your co-opted iPad, onto the potty for more uninterrupted play time.
The iPotty comes with a removable seat for easy cleaning and a attachable splash guard for boys. But wait ... there is more. The iPotty also comes complete with a plastic shield to help protect the iPad from contamination.
Truly what will they think of next.
Does your feline companion spend his days sitting by the window gazing at far off snow capped mountains? Does he dream off having his very own ski chalet? Indulge your pampered pet with the Cat Cabin from the Neatoshop. This easy to assemble cardboard playhouse comes with 4 ornamental decorations for customization. The Cat Cabin makes a truly purr-fect vacation retreat.
Cat Teepee also available. Spoil your cat and get him both.
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more great Pet Stuff.
Fletcher had never seen snow before. He is surprised and puzzled, but immediately takes full advantage of the fun things you can do with snow. Taste it! Dig it! Throw it! Run in it! Jump in it! Find joy in it! -via reddit
P.S. The reddit thread makes it clear this was recorded in the UK, where they believe a couple of inches is a lot of snow and businesses shut down. Scandinavians puzzle over that, while Americans tell stories of how different states handle snow.
