John Farrier's Blog Posts

Bagpipe Bungee Jumping

This gentleman (we are certain that he is one because he knows how to play the pipes and does so) performs "Scotland the Brave" while bungee jumping.

Doing so reveals, as he plunges to the crevasse below, that he has failed to dress regimental style and thus is no true Scotsman.

-via TYWKIWDBI


You Can Rent a Lisa Frank-Themed Hotel Room

I have two daughters, so I know all about Lisa Frank. For those of you not so blessed: Lisa Frank is a person, a company, and a brand of rainbow-y psychedelic merchandise of all kinds aimed at young girls.

If you can think of it, there is Lisa Frank of it.

And now there's a Lisa Frank hotel suite in Los Angeles.

It's a wonderland of bright--very bright--colors in all of the rooms, along with appropriate accessories. All of this is available for $199 a night. You can see a photo slideshow here.

-via Ian Miles Cheong | Photos: Hotels.com


Jean Marie Smith's Hay Bale Sculptures

Jean Marie Smith is the artist-in-residence at the Creasey Mahan Nature Preserve in Goshen, Kentucky. It's a garden and family fun center that educates people about nature. To entertain visiting kids (and probably adults), Smith decorates hay bales for Halloween. She writes:

After reviewing popular trends and interviewing friends and family, I finally settled on which characters I would use. My criteria include one book character, one iconic cartoon character, and something for all ages. Some of the bales are double-stacked, or placed on end or on sides, depending on the character to be sculpted.

You can see them all at Bored Panda.

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Squirrels Stash 200 Walnuts and Lots of Grass in a Car

Holly Persic of Pittsburgh found that her car made an odd sound and smelled strange when she drove it. Opening the hood revealed a vast reserve of winter supplies left by enterprising squirrels. A cornucopia of more than 200 walnuts and lots of grass filled the engine compartment. Q13 FOX reports:

There were so many walnuts and so much grass under the hood of the car that it took almost a full hour to get the car clean enough to take it to a local auto repair shop.
Once they got the car to the shop, mechanics were able to put it up on a lift and remove the protective plate from under the car. Walnuts they couldn’t reach fell out and covered the floor. There were enough walnuts to fill half a trash can.

The car worked fine once it was cleaned. But given the destruction of their winter nest, the squirrels may be in for a rough time.

-via Geekologie | Photo: Chris Persic


Why Yooperlite Rocks Glow

Erik Rintamaki of Michigan is an avid rock collector. While searching for agates along Lake Michigan in 2017, he found stones that glowed under ultraviolet light. This is how he discovered a previously unknown mineral: yooperlight.

The name comes from the word "yooper" -- someone who lives on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Rintamaki has trademarked that name. The scientific term is "cyenite clasts containing fluorescent sodalite." These stones were brought to Michigan from Ontario by glaciers thousands of years ago. You can learn more about yooperlites in this video by Wonder World.

-via TYWKIWDBI


A StairMaster for Cowboys

The manufacturer calls it the "SteerMaster." If riding the range is too hard on your joints, you can still get a thorough cardio workout on this custom-built stairclimbing machine by eBay seller Gym Store.

It's built onto a StairMaster 4400CL stairclimber. The spur and nose ring are a nice touch. Now go burn off those calories you picked up at the chuckwagon.

-via Dave Reaboi


The University of Michigan's Upside-Down Drummer

Michigan's band went all-out for the halftime show with Iowa on Saturday. During that spectacular show, band members held a drummer upside-down while he performed flawlessly.

The football team did well, too, beating Iowa 10-3.

We can only hope/fear that some enterprising bagpipe band will attempt the same stunt at Michigan's drummer.

-via Super Punch


Why Is the Floor Always Wet When We Return Home?

Because the cats have found a wonderful new toy: an ice machine. Just press your paw here to annoy the humans.

-via Super Punch


Cell Phone Functions over Time

Are you more likely to use the light on your phone or an actual flashlight? Do you open your car with a car key? Randall Munroe of xckd shows how the phone is becoming a universal multi-tool.

I grate enough cheese that I'd probably try a cheese grating app.

One tool that could be added to this graph: dice. I see many young Dungeons &Dragons players using dice rolling apps instead of actual physical dice. It's unsettling for reasons I can't explain, but Douglas Adams could:

I've come up with a set of rules that describe our reactions to technologies:
1. Anything that is in the world when you’re born is normal and ordinary and is just a natural part of the way the world works.
2. Anything that's invented between when you’re fifteen and thirty-five is new and exciting and revolutionary and you can probably get a career in it.
3. Anything invented after you're thirty-five is against the natural order of things.


Cat Walking in Place on Extremely Smooth Concrete

Poor kitty can't get any traction! The polished floor is just too smooth.

That's my best explanation. Alternatively, he's dancing with expertise.

-via Geekologie


Pigs Observed Using Tools for the First Time

Meredith Root-Bernstein, an ecologist, observed Visayan pigs for three years at an anthropological museum in Paris. During that time, she saw two mated pigs repeatedly digging in the ground with sticks. The Daily Mail reports:

Whenever nesting season would return, the warty pig would find a stick and burrow, though the pigs didn't shows signs of tool use at any other time during the year.
Over the course of three years, she observe both the mother and father pig using tools a total of 11 times.
As part of her research, she introduced four kitchen spatulas to the pig habitat to see if they might prefer those slightly more efficient tools.
Root-Bernstein observed one pig try the spatula out on two separate occasions, but sticks seemed to be their preferred helper.

It's only a matter of time before they start building and using spears and other weapons once they realize that we humans regard them as food.

-via Dave Barry


Wonderfully Weird Custom Coffins and Urns

Crazy Coffins is a company in Nottingham, UK that makes unique coffins and urns for people who wish to depart this world in style. Each one is custom-designed and built to suit the specialized tastes of the deceased customer.

Great art takes time, though, so be sure to order yours before your expiration date. This kind of work can't be done quickly. Browse the gallery and read the stories behind these designs as you plan your own.

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Avner the Eccentric: A Master Clown

I had never heard of Avner the Eccentric until a couple days ago. I've missed out on so much!

Avner Eisenberg has spent decades perfecting his crafts, which include clowning, prestidigitation, pantomime, and acting. Every detail in his staging, movement, and expression is executed at genius level. He is a wonder to watch.

You can watch a much longer performance here.

-via reddit


Glenlivet Capsules Are Like Tide Pods for Adults

The Glenlivet is a brand of refined Scotch whisky. It is an icon of high taste and sophistication.

So people like you and I probably wouldn't even reach for a bottle. So The Glenlivet wants to reach us where we are.

Eating Tide laundry detergent pods is so 2018. But let's give The Glenlivet plaudits for at least trying to keep up with the times. The distiller now offers its aged whisky in packets that you can safely swallow whole. Food and Wine magazine reports:

Speyside distillery The Glenlivet—the world's second best-selling brand of Scotch—has unveiled its "Capsule Collection," described as "glassless cocktails" that are instead served in a casing produced from seaweed-extract, billed as "one of nature's most renewable resources." (Apparently, reusable glassware just isn't sustainable enough!) Each capsule contains 23 milliliters of booze that can be enjoyed simply by popping the whole thing in your mouth and biting for "an instant burst of flavor." Drinkers can then simply swallow the capsule which is "fully biodegradable" (which hopefully could have gone without saying!)

-via Ian Miles Cheong | Photo: The Glenlivet


This Dog Groomer Can Make Your Pooch Look Like a Rainbow Fairy

It can take Anais Hayden seven hours to complete a dog's haircut and dye job. But people will wait patiently for this groomer in Atlanta, Georgia to complete her work because the results are absolutely fabulous.

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Profile for John Farrier

  • Member Since 2012/08/04


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