|
Dr. Seuss Went to War: A Catalog of Political Cartoons by Dr. Seuss
Who knew? Dr. Seuss, in addition to writing kids' books, was a political cartoonist in the early 1940s. This Web site from the library that archives the originals lets you browse through the whole collection. You can browse by year or by subject. Some of these are not, of course, politically correct by 2004 standards. Others are still pretty darned topical - check out the "appeasement" or "defeatism" categories.
Because of the fame of his children's books (and because we often misunderstand these books) and because his political cartoons have remained largely unknown, we do not think of Dr. Seuss as a political cartoonist. But for two years, 1941-1943, he was the chief editorial cartoonist for the New York newspaper PM (1940-1948), and for that journal he drew over 400 editorial cartoons.
Mike Gunderloy
3/26/2004
|
|
|
The SnoMold
When I was a kid, we had to make our snowmen by hand. Well, actually, I grew up in southern California so we got to make sand castles, but we darned sure WOULD have made our snowmen by hand. Well, no more. Buy this resizable green plastic mold thingie, shovel the snow in, and you can get back inside and in front of the TV in no time. I don't believe I'll be introducing our kids to this product.
It's new and fun for everyone!
1-2-3 and you have a snowman!
Everyone's smiling, and no one's back is hurting
Your family and friends will love it!
Have a great time building a snowman or snow sculpture
Mike Gunderloy
2/24/2004
|
|
|
The Word Spy
A Web site in the fine tradition of the Oxford English Dictionary, the Word Spy is full of new words, along with definitions and citations. They seem to manage a word a day, and also have quotations, various indexes, and a mailing list for logophiles.
Notes:
This word combines pomo, shorthand for postmodern, with the suffix -sexual. Although she didn't invent the word, pomosexual was made famous (in certain circles, anyway) by editor Carol Queen who used it in the title of a 1997 anthology of essays, PoMoSexuals: Challenging Assumptions About Gender and Sexuality (Cleis Press). On the back cover of the book, PoMoSexual is described, unhelpfully, as the "erotic reality beyond the boundaries of gender, separatism, and essentialist notions of sexual orientation."
Mike Gunderloy
2/21/2004
|
|
|
Out of the Box Computers
Home of the Think Tank, a computer built into a motorcycle gas tank. Available with your choice of flame or US flag finish, and with a built-in radio and CD player. Appears that it won't actually mount on your bike, though. I guess there's no room left for gasoline.
Each Think Tank is fabricated, hand-painted & assembled right here in the United States of America. Could we have done it cheaper and faster overseas? You bet. But each Think Tank is a monument to the American dream, which can only be crafted by the heart and soul of an American worker. Use it with pride.
Mike Gunderloy
2/4/2004
|
|
|
chair
It's this really old ratty armchair in a corner, see? But it's not just any chair - an artist, Rodney McMillian, found it and put it in an art gallery, to make a statement. The piece sold for $2800, and the artspeak on this site is, well, priceless.
Rodney McMillian's work limns absence as an unmitigated presence. His take on absence is more sensuous than cerebral. He doesn't deconstruct the idea of absence and then rebuild it as a dialectical opposition which posits that what's not seen, felt, experienced is as significant, perhaps moreso, as that which is.
Robert Orenstein
1/30/2004
|
|
|
Ancient Scripts
All the skinny on a few dozen obsolete alphabets. Everything from Linear B to strange (to us) Asian scripts is here, illustrated and briefly explained. There are links to external sites for more information, as well as bonus pages on phonetics and historical linguistics.
The Cherokee syllabary was invented by a member of the Cherokee nation named Sequoya around 1821. The appearance of some of the signs indicate visual borrowing from the English alphabet, but the phonetic values of these signs do not correspond to their counterpart in English. In other words, Sequoyah simply took the shape of these English letters and assigned new syllabic values to them. The other signs do not resemble any English letter, and therefore were likely completely invented by Sequoya.
Mike Gunderloy
1/26/2004
|
|
|
Dean Goes Nuts
Ah, the joys of the Internet. Howard Dean screeches on tape for a while, and a dozen people all get the same idea: let's set it to dance music! This page has right now 15 Dean remixes, and the author is looking for more.
I am currently searching for any Dean Remix that isn't on this site. If, by chance, you have some mixes that I don't have, let me know. I will host them and put them up, credited/linked to you/your website.
Mike Gunderloy
1/22/2004
|
|
|
MyPetFat
Here's a weight-loss program that stands out from the others. They sell you a replica lump of human fat (at least, I hope it's a replica) and a set of instructions that tell you how to change your thinking to be less fat. No, I couldn't make this up if I tried.
The 5lb mypetfat is for those who want the most visual and visceral tool to help them stay on their course.
Use it as a centerpiece or mantle piece. Believe us this is one tool that you won't ever forget.
Mike Gunderloy
1/21/2004
|
|
|
Don's Maps
"Resources for the Study of the Paleolithic" - as well as maps of the areas covered, real and imagines, in the Clan of the Cave Bear books. There are indeed plenty of maps here, very well executed. There are also, if you hunt around, lots of photos and drawings, excerpts from archaeological texts, and other info.
The recounting of the long evolutionary history of the cave bear line may seem tedious, but it should give some understanding of how complete the evidence of its evolution really is. From the early Ursus minimus of 5 million years ago to the late Pleistocene cave bear, which became extinct only a few thousand years ago, there is a perfectly complete evolutionary sequence without any real gaps. The transition is slow and gradual throughout, and it is quite difficult to say where one species ends and the next begins. Where should we draw the boundary between Ursus minimus and Ursus etruscus, or between Ursus savini and Ursus spelaeus? The history of the cave bear becomes a demonstration of evolution, not as a hypothesis or theory but as a simple fact of record.
Mike Gunderloy
1/18/2004
|
|
|
VenomousReptiles.org
If you're the sort of person who's squeamish about rattlesnakes and other critters with venom, you probably don't even want to visit this site: it's a community of people who like and keep such reptiles. Discussion areas, product reviews, lots of articles, an attempt to photograph every known species of rattlesnake…it's quite a large and impressive, though sometimes scary, website.
In my opinion, Bothrops asper is one of the most spectacular species in the entire world and is one of my personal favorites. Yet, it is probably also one of the most over looked. It has a reputation as being a psychotic, unpredictable snake, but this is not entirely true. However, I would recommend that only very experienced keepers maintain this species. I would further recommend that shift boxes be used, as it is by far the safest way to deal with them, as well as many other species of venomous snakes. And it is much less stressful on the animal. With aspers, shift boxes totally prevent the explosion that they are famous for when disturbed. On most occasions an asper will sit motionless until you physically contact it in some way, however if you happen to bump it with your hook it will explode into a spastic missile, usually in the opposite direction of the disturbance. Aspers are also known to ambush their pursuers (…by initially fleeing then doing a lightning quick 180 and waiting for the pursuer to get within striking range. This has been noted by several herpetologists such as Harry Greene and Dean Ripa). I have witnessed this personally, it is quite startling, and you could be in real trouble if unprepared for this tactic.
Mike Gunderloy
1/15/2004
|
|
|
Tonight's Menu Intelligent Ovens
One of the sillier products to be announced at this year's Consumer Electronics Expo. It's an oven with a refrigerated compartment and an Internet connection, so you can toss in your roast in the morning, have it stay cool during the day, and then start it cooking via a Web browser when you know you're on your way home. Unless of course someone hacks it and burns your roast to a crisp, of course.
Until now, the Smart Home lifestyle has been about adding the electronic conveniences of lighting
controls, HVAC, audio/video systems and security systems. The TMIO oven finally brings the
Kitchen into the Home Automation arena. And with good reason. We all eat and we all have time
problems.
Inspired by the Jetsons, the TMIO Oven uses the latest technology to provide one of our most basic
needs. . . a good, hot dinner. This is the keystone appliance of the Smart kitchen, where the task
of cooking is finally done for you.
Mike Gunderloy
1/14/2004
|
|
|
Cowboy Showcase
Doesn't everyone still secretly wish to be a cowboy? If you're in that boat, visit this site. They've got cowboy lore and cooking, horse training tips, photos, and lots of other goodies related to cowboys, classic and modern. There's also a gear section with links to lots of online cowboy shops. Hmmm, maybe I should make Dutch oven biscuits one of these days.
Fill coffee pot with COLD water.
Add one rounded tablespoon of ground coffee for each two cups of water. (Add the coffee directly to the water.)
Bring the water just to a rolling boil. Take off heat.
Add a splash (a couple of tablespoons) of cold water. This is to settle the coffee grounds. Allow the coffee to set for a couple of minutes for the settling to take place.
Pour and enjoy a taste of the old west.
Mike Gunderloy
1/12/2004
|
|
|
Braingle
Care for a brain teaser? How about 6,000 or so of them? This is a community site for swapping and discussing such things. Rebuses, riddles, math puzzles, language puzzles, games, and more. A rating system makes it easy to find things that people thought were fun, hard, or easy. (If the excerpt below stumps you, look under "Favorites" on the site).
A man is sitting in a pub feeling rather poor He sees the man next to him pull a wad of £50 notes out of his wallet.
He turns to the rich man and says to him
”I have an amazing talent: I know almost every song that has ever existed.”
The rich man laughs.
The poor man says “I am willing to bet you all the money you have in you wallet that I can sing a genuine song with a lady's name of your choice in it.”
The rich man laughs again and says “Ok how about my daughters name, Joanna Armstrong-Miller.”
The rich man goes home poor. The poor man goes home rich.
What song did he sing?
Mike Gunderloy
1/11/2004
|
|
|
Yossie's Handcuff Collection
You name it, somebody out there collects it -- and by now they've put it on the Web. This guy collects handcuffs, as well as leg irons and sundry other restraints. Nearly 500 items on display here, with photos and descriptions, plus some other odds and ends of handcuffology.
Thompson Plug chain handcuffs. Made by the U.S. handcuff maker Thompson during the Civil War period. Not many examples now survive. This rare handcuff predates such patented U.S. cuffs such as Rankin and Kimball, and was the first handcuff to be mass produced in America. Cuffs are stamped "THOMPSON" and "HARD".
Mike Gunderloy
1/9/2004
|
|
|
The Spoonbill Generator
An online collaborative poetry writing session. There are four poems being written concurrently, each on its own Web form. Whoever comes along can submit the next line, and there are a ton of past poems already archived. Naturally, the quality is widely variable. There's also some collaborative prose, and a bulletin board where contributors can discuss the results.
Untitled
A cannon-ball into the pool [Apsley]
A scimitar under the bed [Roland]
A carving-knife into the fool [Kansas Sam]
Who tramped on my grandfather's head [loaf]
Mike Gunderloy
1/8/2004
|
|
|
Seattle's Finest Exotic Meats
This is one of those sites that I'm bookmarking here just to be sure I find it again. I like to cook, and I like a variety of ingredients, and these folks certainly have the variety when it comes to meat: antelope, ostrich, elk, squab, frog legs, wild boar, and much more. All natural and farm raised. They also provide recipes and cooking instructions.
Kangaroo Loin Rib Rack
Average 1.7 lb pack of frenched rack at $17.95
Mike Gunderloy
1/7/2004
|
|
|
Life in Elizabethan England: A Compendium of Common Knowledge
Written as a guide for re-enactors (such as the sort of folks who go to the Renaissance Pleasure Faires), this is a collection of all sorts of tidbits of knowledge on late sixteenth century England. Food, forms of address, servant wages, domestic details, education…this is a fun place to just browse around.
A private education takes a slightly broader view. The young earl of Essex followed this daily programme while a ward in Burghley's house:
7:00-7:30 Dancing 1:00-2:00 Cosmography
7:30-8:00 Breakfast 2:00-3:00 Latin
8:00-9:00 French 3:00-4:00 French
9:00-10:00 Latin 4:00-4:30 Writing
10:00-10:30 Writing and Drawing 4:30-5:30 Prayers, Recreation, Supper
10:30-1:00 Prayers, Recreation, Dinner
Notice that there is time for writing but not for spelling. After all, what good is a man who can only spell his name one way?
Mike Gunderloy
1/6/2004
|
|
|
Taquitos.net
"The Crunchiest Site on the Interweb", this one is all about snack foods -- and it has a lot of information about snack foods indeed. Mostly they review chips and other snack foods, but they also have a FAQ, some essays, links to snack shopping, top ten lists, a whole Krispy Kreme section, and more.
Snack Review: Tako Chips Octopus Flavored
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Categories: Asian Chips (78 reviews) | Seafood Chips (36 reviews)
Taste: When we put these out in the chip bowl, the "octopus" in the name scared away just about everyone. Most people weren't even willing to try them. The chips are shaped sort of like Goldfish crackers, except that the whole fish shape has been curved into sort of a scoop. When you first bite in, it tastes sort of like lobster and isn't bad. That lasts for about a second, and then you get a fairly bad taste, which lasts for a little while as you chew. Once that taste goes away, the lingering taste really isn't that bad.
Mike Gunderloy
1/5/2004
|
|
|
Onion Trivia
New Mexico State University apparently has an onion research program. I don’t think this page is really the results of their research, but it's a quick and fun read anyhow.
What country boasts the highest per capita consumption of onions?
Libya, with 66.8 pounds of onions consumed per person each year.
Mike Gunderloy
1/4/2004
|
|
|
PropertyRoom
eBay auctions too boring for you? Try this site, which is working with police departments actoss the nation to clean out rooms full of unclaimed stolen property and no longer needed evidence. Judging by what's on the site, stuff must hang around for quite a while before the cops get rid of it. Features plenty of grab bags of just plain junk as well as some gems.
Sin City "Marv" statue by Frank Miller. It is from 1997, and it is number 2131/4000. It has one chip on the collar of his jacket. It measures 5.5" tall.
Mike Gunderloy
1/3/2004
|
|
|
Magic Squares
A nice site of magic squares, from tiny 3x3 ones to huge monsters. It explains some of the esoteric terminology of the pastime such as ultramagic or pandiagonal, and lets you construct a batch of the squares using online algorithms. You can even watch the squares being assembled if you have Flash installed.
Pandiagonal magic squares are magic squares, where also the broken diagonals sum to the magic constant. This means when you go off of one edge on a diagonal, continue (wrap-around) to the corresponding cell on the opposite edge. These squares are considered as one of the top classes of magic squares.
Mike Gunderloy
1/2/2004
|
|
|
APRONYMS
A site of wordplay. Apronyms are acronyms with a little something extra: the expanded version is relevant to the original word. For example, "Apronym" itself can be turned into an apronym as "A Phrase Reminiscent Of Name You Made Shorter". There are over 8000 of 'em here, which is far more than anyone will care to read.
GARLIC Garnish - A Renowned Love Inhibiting Condiment
Mike Gunderloy
1/1/2004
|
|
|
Bogus Petronius Quote
"We trained hard . . . But it seemed that every time we were beginning to form up into teams we would be reorganized. I was to learn later in life that we tend to meet any new situation by reorganizing; and a wonderful method it can be for creating the illusion of progress while producing confusion, inefficiency, and demoralization." That quote gets credited to Petronius Arbiter all over the place. Turns out it ain't so. I would chalk this up to the power of the Internet to spread rumors, but I remember posters with this misinformation predating the net.
... let me give my tentative account, which I hope other readers can correct, of its provenance. Some disgruntled soldier of a literary bent, whether commissioned or noncommissioned I do not know, pinned this ``quotation'' to a bulletin board in one of the camps of the armies occupying Germany sometime after 1945 (the style suggests a British occupying force). Since the sentiment is impeccable, whether applied to military, governmental, or academic administration, it has enjoyed a cachet borrowed from Petronius ever since.
Mike Gunderloy
12/29/2003
|
|
|
The Log Home Builder's Association of North America
This one seems to be about two-thirds sales pitch to take one of their $345 seminars on the right way to build log homes, and one-third screeds about unconstitutional building codes, keeping the revenooers off your property, and similar topics. However, they do claim that they can teach you to build a log home for less than the cost of a mobile home, and apparently have a fair number of satisfied students who agree. So it might be worth checking out if dropping out and self-sufficiency interest you.
After drawing their plans (or otherwise obtaining them), the students generally build a scale model of their log home, using ½" dowels. The model is taken to the next meeting where it is constructively criticized by the other builders. At the meetings, you always hear people say how glad they are that they built a scale model of their home before they built the real thing.
Mike Gunderloy
12/14/2003
|
|
|
Iowa State University's Tasty Insect Recipes
About this time of year most families in the US are debating what to do with the rest of the leftover turkey, and dreading the results. Consider this a motivational link: more turkey might not be the worst meal in the world after all.
Directions:
Melt baker's chocolate in double boiler.
Fill molds halfway with chocolate, add grasshoppers, fill rest of the way.
A tasty surprise in every one!
Mike Gunderloy
11/29/2003
|
|