Here’s an interesting bit of trivia I unearthed last week: in trying to prove to somebody at work that aspirin is a coal tar derivative, I found out that Bayer developed and registered the drug as a trademark in 1899. By itself, that’s not so interesting, I know. However, it turns out Bayer also discovered,… Continue reading Bayer
Tag: Random
Edgefield History
This is just a little bit of history and trivia that popped into my head tonight, about McMenamins Edgefield in Troutdale, Oregon (just outside of Portland). The Edgefield is a 38-acre estate that features lodging, restaurants, a brewery, a vineyard and winery, a distillery, and more, dominated by a Georgian-revival style manor. It’s a fantastic,… Continue reading Edgefield History
Upside down calculator spelling
Here’s how it works (in case you didn’t know). Find a calculator—a single line LCD display one, not a fancy thousand-button monster or the Windows calculator (!). Turn the calculator upside down. When you punch in the numbers, they will look like crappy LCD versions of letters. The challenge is to spell words using those… Continue reading Upside down calculator spelling
Mazda Autobot
Something cool this morning: a Flash animation from Mazda showing one of their cars transorming into an Autobot. The only thing missing, though, is the Transformer sound effects. Found via Boing Boing.
Turkey Soda
Just in time for the holidays comes Jones Soda’s newest beverage—Turkey & Gravy Soda! Wow.
How to Win a Barfight
Another fun little tidbit reprinted from a friend’s daily “Survival” calendar. Most state laws stipulate that you may use sufficient force to stop the attack, but you may not deliver any sort of punitive retribution to your attacker. Knowing this may save you a costly trip to court. Attack the most sensitive areas of your… Continue reading How to Win a Barfight
More Fun Links
A large part of the process of writing, I think, is just throwing stuff out there and seeing what sticks. Doesn’t matter if you’re writing online content (like blogs), or fiction, or news, or whatever. Anyway. Some more fun links from around the Web. Tha Shizzolator is another one of those goofy translator sites, only… Continue reading More Fun Links
A Few Things
So yeah, I haven’t been able to think of anything to blog about lately. Sue me! Anyway, here’s a few things: Stealth Disco. I’m behind the curve a bit on linking to this, but who cares? It’s definitely out there. Something I could see myself doing back in the day. Garth Ennis’ Marvel comic “Thor:… Continue reading A Few Things
Sugar High Friday
Sugar High Friday was an event that I single-handedly started when I was working for Dakotah Direct in Spokane, Washington. Here’s the gist of it (hearts and arteries, beware): Some arbitrary Friday, maybe one Friday a month, there is a suggestion and a mutual consensus to have the Event. There is no overt advertising, simply… Continue reading Sugar High Friday
Towel Amnesty Day
Am I just cynical? Holiday Inn is declaring today Towel Amnesty Day in which anyone who has ever stolen a towel (or anything else, I imagine) from a hotel can tell their story, and Holiday Inn will donate $1.00 to charity (plus 25 lucky people will “win” a souvenir towel). You know what I see… Continue reading Towel Amnesty Day