Saturday, June 1, 2013

Song of the Day: Lissie - Go Your Own Way (Live)


Here's a great cover of a great song:
Lissie - Go Your Own Way (Live)



And the original.  Actually, originals, because I couldn't decide on just one version.  Check out that 1977 live version!

Fleetwood Mac - Go Your Own Way (HQ)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ul-cZyuYq4

Fleetwood Mac - Go Your Own Way - 1977
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GN2kpBoFs4

Fleetwood Mac/Lindsey Buckingham ~ Go Your Own Way ~ Live 1982
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBYcbJBtjgE




Friday, May 31, 2013

Google Poetics

Why are manhole covers round
If we knew what we were doing it wouldn't be called research
Poets are eaten as a delicacy in Japan


What did we ever do before the Internet?  Seriously, there is so much material out there, there are so many great sites!

With that in mind, consider this site:
Google Poetics
http://www.googlepoetics.com/

Click the "Archive" or "Random" links on the age to start reading.  Maybe even think about how you might contribute!

I find these "poems" to be a FASCINATING look at what people are actually thinking (and typing).  Absolutely fascinating.



As I've pointed out before: There is one person (thing?) you never lie to--your search engine!  As such, the Google algorithms will attempt to autocomplete your search based on what others have searched for.  The general objective of Google Poetics appears to be to capture some of the more interesting and amusing autocompletions that result.

From Google Poetics:
http://www.googlepoetics.com/post/35060155182/info
Google Poetics is born when Google autocomplete suggestions are viewed as poems.
Google’s algorithm offers searches after just a few keystrokes when typing in the search box, in an attempt to predict what the user wants to type. The combination of these suggestions can be funny, absurd, dadaistic - and sometimes even deeply moving.

There is, however, more to these poems than just the occasional chuckle. The Google autocomplete suggestions are based on previous searches by actual people all around the world. In the cold blue glow of their computer screens, they ask “why am I alone” and “why do fat girls have high standards”. They wonder how to roll a joint and whether it is too early to say “I love you”. They seek information on ninjas, cannibals, and Rihanna, and sometimes they just ask “am I better off dead?”

Despite the seemingly open nature of Western society, forbidden questions and thoughts still remain. When faced with these issues, people do not reach out to one another, instead they turn to Google in the privacy of their own homes. The all-knowing search engine accepts and embraces these questions and tangles them with popular song lyrics, book titles and names of celebrities: often with hilarious results.

Obviously Google is not Shakespeare, Whitman or Dickinson - it can not illuminate the unknown. But it does reveal our inner workings, our fears and prejudices, secrets and shames, the hope and longing of a modern individual.

This is why Google Poetics is important.
November 4th 2012
Helsinki, Finland

Sampsa Nuotio and Raisa Omaheimo
[Side note: Why am I not surprised that this site originated in Finland?]

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Quote of the Day: Ron Paul on the Year 1913

Ah, the old "kill two birds with one stone" approach...

"What we really need to do is repeal 1913.  That way we could get rid of the income tax and the Federal Reserve at the same time."  - Dr. Ron Paul

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Stray Dogs, Smarter than Urban Planners?

Love this story, from ABC News:
"Stray Dogs Master Complex Moscow Subway System" by Alex Marquardt, Bill Blakemore, and Ross Eichenholz 

I love the fact that dogs are able to master this aspect of life in a big city.  Good for them!

But there's more.

Did you catch how they have a statue dedicated to a stray in Mendeleyevskaya station?  "It commemorates Malchik, a stray who lived there until he was stabbed by a fashion model in 2002 who didn't like how Malchik barked at her terrier." Looks like fashion models and terriers are the same all over the world.

I also love how even dogs are smarter than politicians and urban planners who want to pack everybody into high density housing.  It's not for everybody, or even for every dog!

Kind of reminds me of our immigration policy, too...

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Those Crazy Finns!

If you think I'm crazy, check this out!  And Ice Fishing to top it all off!

From some guys that call themselves the "StuntFreaks Team", here is a crazy video:
StuntFreaksTeam - Killing IT - The Movie
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaMk_nt1AHg





Monday, May 27, 2013

Road Trip, Anyone?

This is kind of a creampuff article, as all articles are in USA Weekend.  What can I say, I get this inside a free local paper and it has a good Sudoku so I read it. 

From USA Weekend:
"USA's 5 best road trips"
http://www.usaweekend.com/article/20130517/LIVING01/305170007/USA-s-5-best-road-trips

Apologies to you, my seven readers*, if this blog post is not up to my normal standards.  I confess, I'm only posting it here so I can easily find this article if I want to read it again, for some road trip ideas, particularly when I'm out west.

I've ridden the length of the Blue Ridge Parkway (but not Newfound Gap Road and Skyline Drive).  And I've driven a good chunk of U.S. 2 (North Dakato, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan--I used to live a couple miles from it, in Upper Michigan).  Both very nice drives.  I suspect the other drives are very nice, too.




* estimated

Sunday, May 26, 2013

Quote of the Day: George MacDonald on why politicians are not good men

This explains a lot, and from what I have seen is absolutely true.  This explains why good people are a minority in the political class.

"It is not in the nature of politics that the best men should be elected.  The best men do not want to govern their fellowmen."  - George MacDonald