The librarian in me finds mutilating books deeply unsettling. But if a book is already damaged, why not put its corpse to a good use? Perhaps Inès Mélia, an artist in Paris, agrees. She turns old books into classy tissue boxes that would look elegant in any home.
-via Messy Nessy Chic
Lamanna's Bakery in Toronto is famous for its preposterously huge slices of pizza. But the bakers don't stop there. What toppings belong on a pizza? The bakers are willing to try anything, and the results are clever and beautiful, such as this pizza inspired by Homer Simpson's favorite donut.
Food artist ent.co_mam used pastry dough and neatly cut hot dogs to make edible versions of the walking brooms from Disney's Fantasia.
These brooms are less menacing than the ones that the sorcerer's apprentice foolishly created.
The Mespilus germanica was known as the "open-arse" due to its shape, resembling an anus opening to extrude its contents. Although extremely rare today, this fruit was loved in Medieval Europe, in part because it bloomed during the winter. Thus it was one of the few sources of sugar available to eat during the winter. But Europeans didn't eat it right away. The medlar, as the fruit is called today, becomes edible only after it has rotted for a few weeks. BBC describes this lost, beloved foodway:
When they're first picked, medlars are greenish brown and resemble oddly-shaped onions or alien-looking persimmons. If they're eaten straight away, they can make you violently ill – one 18th Century doctor and botanist said that they cause diarrhoea. But if you put them in a crate of sawdust or straw and forget about them for several weeks, they gradually darken and their hard, astringent flesh softens to the consistency of a baked apple.
The exact chemical mechanism involved remains elusive, but broadly, enzymes in the fruit break down complex carbohydrates into simple sugars such as fructose and glucose, and it becomes richer in malic acid – the main culprit behind the sour taste of other fruits such as apples. Meanwhile, harsh tannins, which contribute to the bitter astringency of younger red wines, and antioxidants such as ascorbic acid (Vitamin C), are depleted.
-via Kottke | Photo: Solange Cabe
The police who staff this station comment:
If you do drink and drive, please be so kind to hand yourselves in like this chap.
The suspect delivered himself directly to (but, fortunately, not through) the front door of the police station in Northwich, Cheshire, UK early on Saturday morning. It looks like he slipped through those poles in a non-lethal manner.
-via Dave Barry | Photo: Northwich Police
Curious about the menu item, redditor Vozembouch69 asked the waiter at the restaurant in Žilina, Slovakia for "Pizza Americana." This was the result. It is deeply offensive and correct (aside from the absence of a Bud Light).
In the background is a more tempting pizza with Niva blue cheese.
What "American foods" have you encountered around the world?
Maik, a sous chef in Bremen, Germany, wants a sauce to be evenly and elegantly spread across the center of a plate. So he sets a fidget spinner in motion to splatter the sauce perfectly. How clever!
-via Gastro Obscura
Artist Maxtropolitan made this stylish and tasteful bed that is ideal for the home of a dentist. It holds a California king size mattress and comes with a tongue comforter. Although the bed requires a high ceiling, the height is actually adjustable from 11 to 14 feet.
-via Rusty Blazenhoff
For five days, the Suez Canal and the world's sea traffic that flows through it has been disabled because a container ship is stuck inside of it. The sailors waiting at either end to make the transit may be getting bored and lonely, so Danielle Baskin made a dating app for them.
Forever Given, named after the now-famous ship Ever Given, offers to connect lonely hearts among these beleaguered seamen. As ships have, in the past, been trapped in the Suez Canal as long as 8 years, this may be a good time to start long-term thinking.
Easter is right around the corner, so PepsiCo is offering a new way to safely place Peeps inside your body. The substance is appropriately called Peepsi. Although it is not currently listed with OSHA's hazardous materials Safety Data Sheets, we know that PepsiCo plans to offer it in 7.5-ounce cans dyed yellow, blue, and pink. The company's press release quotes its vice president of marketing:
"The PEEPS® Brand always finds great joy in teaming up with partners to bring our beloved Marshmallow flavor to fans in new and exciting ways, which is why we're thrilled to collaborate with PEPSI on this limited-edition PEPSI x PEEPS® beverage leading up to the Easter holiday," said PEEPS® Brand Manager Caitlin Servian. "We look forward to seeing how fans express their PEEPSONALITY® as part of the #HangingWithMyPEEPS sweepstakes and hope they enjoy this sweet new cola offering."
-via Nag on the Lake | Image: PepsiCo
Brent Davidson's glider is moving at 53 MPH into a headwind moving at 53 MPH. So he's perfectly stationary, floating motionless two and a half miles above the ground. The physics make sense, but it still seems like magic.
-via Born in Space
The original music video for "Y.M.C.A." is a happy, upbeat song. It's no wonder that people like to sing and dance to it a public events.
The Melodicka Bros, a duet from Italy, offer this more somber and melancholy version. Without changing the lyrics, "Y.M.C.A." becomes a downbeat message to young men who can find their only hope of respite at the local YMCA boarding house.
-via Laughing Squid
Have you watched a video in which the visual and audio tracks aren't synced correctly? Gracie Scullion can create that effect with her mouth. Her trick is to mouth the word silently before she voices it in her back of her throat. It only works well with words that don't require touching the lips together. But if you choose the right words, it can mess with people's heads very effectively.
-via Born in Space
Mariah Reading is a professionally trained artist who works as a ranger with the National Park Service. She takes the trash that people leave behind in these scenic wonders and transforms them into beautiful landscapes.
Oh, so you want a goth look? It's been done long before you first walked into a Spencer's Gifts. The Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, UK owns this impressive pocket watch that dates back to about 1690 from a workshop in Paris. It's made of silver, gold, and enamel. The use of a deathly image refers to the inevitable loss of time and life:
[...] which recalls the verse from Psalm 89, ‘Remember how short my time’. Recording the passage of time, and thus serving as memento mori, watches were often associated with skulls in other artforms, such as still-life vanitas paintings, or portraits.
