The Pointy Side

And, in an ominous development for spaceroo, it seems that people in tropical countries who get bitten a lot by mosquitoes are likely to already have malaria.

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greysontiger has died. It seems a cruel fate for a 26 year old.

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It seems odd to me that the ruins of the Urakami Cathedral in Nagasaki never became an icon of the atomic age like the skeletal dome of the Hiroshima Exhibition Hall did. Looking at them with as dispassionate a view as I can (i.e., trying to disregard that I've been presented with that 'atom dome' my whole life as a symbol of atomic war), the cathedral seems an equally obvious visual reference.

In some ways it should be more portentious for a western audience, with the charred statues of the saints flanking the cracked entryway, and the huge blocks of masonry lying tumbled inside. This could be a church in any European or American city. It doesn't have the graphic-designer starkness of the dome, but it makes up for it in terms of relevance, I'd think. History obviously doesn't agree.

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It seems that the love of layout editors for an ironic headline transcends mere nationality. From the Asahi Shimbun: Nagasaki mayor blasts U.S.

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maxgoof made reference to a headline the other day not following the general 'title' rules of capitalization. Since then I've been paying attention to that, and it seems that most don't anymore. News headlines now seem to be capitalized like ordinary sentences. I have no idea when that changed. I certainly didn't notice it happening.

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I was proud of my deliberate excess for having filled every slot in my case with fans. Then I saw this.

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AJ Foyt has survived a bee attack.


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Film cameras are now becoming a niche market item. I've recently started using the OM-1N again, after relying exclusively on various digitals for five or so years. I've a strong streak of perversity.

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So, the trail of corruption leads ever closer to Kofi Annan...

Skeptical Bob meets the Zinc Stoat of Destiny

Spent I my day at the Stoat Fair. By me was a good time had. Pictures follow. Click to enlarge. The drill you know.


Slick shiny vinyl Dolphins, in such pretty colours, and with such appealing smiles.


Nothing says "Sale" like a giant inflatable Duck.


A big fiberglas Parrot outside of a jungle-themed funhouse.


It's Ludwig vonDrake!


A stuffed Eagle from the DNR exhibit.



A River Otter climbing on a chain-link fence. I'd frankly never have guessed that they could do this. He was scooting right up to the top and poking around, looking for a way out. The first photo is frankly awful, but I've included it for the documentary value to show how high he got. I was way far away but went ahead and shot, because I didn't think he'd do it again. You can see the Hand of Amazement (tm) pointing and going "Hey! Look at that Otter!". The second one shows how he curls his paws over the wire and hangs on. Oliver, Plushlover - have you ever seen them do this?