The notorious feud between the Hatfield clan in West Virginia and the McCoy family in Kentucky lasted for over 100 years. Over the past few decades, doctors have tracked a disease in the McCoys that may explain at least some of the violence. Von Hippel-Lindau disease has been diagnosed in many members of the McCoy family over several generations. It causes tumors, especially in the adrenal gland, which can lead to high blood pressure, pounding headaches, and too much adrenaline. Researchers have known about the disease in the McCoys for decades, but did not reveal the patient’s names due to confidentiality and insurance concerns. Link -via Metafilter

Dark Roasted Blend has a gallery of vehicles from all over that they call “ghost cars”. Some are just ugly and past their prime, but some will make you scratch you head and wonder how they still run. It may make you feel better about driving your old junker around! Link -via the Presurfer

Artist Mark Bennett drew floor plans for the homes of TV and movie characters. See where the Cleavers, the Clampetts, the Brady Bunch, Luke Skywalker, and others lived! This print shows the Wayne Manor, including the underground Batcave. Bennett also published a book of fictional floor plans. Link to a gallery. Link to another gallery. -via J-Walk Blog

Defenders of Wildlife is a non-profit environmental group. To get your notice, they offer an animated morphing application that can change your picture into one of 20 wild animals! I turned one of my children into a panda bear, the other into an elephant, and myself into an owl. Link

Problem: The ball you were playing with went into the pool, and you don’t want to swim after it. On top of that, you have no opposable thumbs, so using a tool is out of the question. What to do? See how this clever dog solved the problem. Push play or go to YouTube. -via Arbroath

Te land ter zee en in de lucht is a TV show that has been amusing the Dutch for 36 years. From Wikipedia:

Contestants must race along a track in self-made vehicles. Most parts of the game take place above water, and getting to the end of the track without becoming wet is nearly impossible. But to win, you'll have to be the fastest who reaches the end of the track, without becoming wet.

The show is recorded in various locations throughout The Netherlands and Belgium. Push play or go to YouTube.

A recruitment ad doesn’t have to be understood by everyone, just by those who are qualified for the position, right? Some ads can leave the rest of us scratching our heads, like this billboard* seeking computer geeks. Texturl has more l33t advertising aimed at very specific audiences. Link -via Metafilter

*In case you'd like to try figuring this out on your own, I put the translation in the comments.

The West Virginia Mountaineers won the National Invitational (basketball) Tournament (NIT) by beating Clemson 78-73. As they celebrated their win, the team was handed commemorative t-shirts printed by the NIT. Tournament sponsors normally print up t-shirts for both teams in the championship game, then destroy the unused shirts with the losing team name. You can tell they printed these in a hurry, because they misspelled West Virginia. The final “i” is missing! http://www.nbcsports.com/cbk/1295007/detail.html

(YouTube link)

Setting the clock, or setting the time? From Sheepfilms, who has more surrealistic clips here. -via b3ta

Five-year-old Young-Jin Kim fell nine floors from the balcony of his apartment in Hamilton, Ontario and survived! The ground was soft from recent rains, which probably saved his life. He left the imprint you see in the picture. The boy suffered two broken legs and a broken pelvis, but no life-threatening injuries. Link -via Arbroath

Neatorama has received an update on the story of the amazing dog Skidboot.

We were not ready to start our blog just yet but this needed to be mentioned. Skidboot, an amazing dog, has left us. This was an outstanding example of the relationship between owner and dog that faced many an issue and overcame them through effort.
We have put together a brief tribute to Skidboot and David named “Skidboot Has Left Us” on YouTube along with a link to the Texas Country Reporter segment.

Skidboot was neither a Briard (a herding dog of French origin) nor a Gordon setter (a birddog) that we will be writing about in our blog. He and David are an excellent example of that wide and diverse world of partnerships between man and dog that we will also explore.

I first met Skidboot and David at the State Fair of Texas in the late 90’s. It was amazing even then to see the close partnership between them even then. I remember last fall when their story seemed to be everywhere on the internet as well as TV. One of the best segments was the Texas Country Reporter piece by Bob Phillips .They appeared with Leno, Letterman, Oprah and many others. Internet hits were over four million.

The segment points out how Skidboot was not an easy dog to handle in the beginning (a trait that can also be found in both Briards and Gordons). It took work on David’s part to bring out the best in Skidboot. The segment also pointed out that the dog was going blind and the future was uncertain. Monday (3/26/07) David was talking to one of the Dallas radio folks with his “bittersweet news” – Skidboot was dead but now he could see and frolic with the likes of Lassie and Rin Tin Tin.

David will not be alone in missing his partner, Skidboot - millions of others will also!

Tom
BriardsTexas

Push play or go to YouTube. Thanks, Tom.

The Harry Potter gang portrayed by the Potter Puppet Pals! This video by Neil Cicierega is cute, but watch to the end before you show the kids. Push play or go to YouTube. Link to puppet site. -via Meerschweinchenreport (Hamlet Hamster)

Male Birds of Paradise in Papua, New Guinea have a bizarre courtship dance you must see to believe. This fellow's "housecleaning" beforehand is pretty impressive, too! Push play or go to YouTube. -via I-Am-Bored

This baby duck is feeding fish that are twice his size! I don’t know if its duck feed or fish food, but they seem to enjoy it. Just too cute not to share. Push play or go to YouTube. -via Videosift

Dinner in the Sky is a Brussels based restaurant that serves dinner for up to 22 people... 150 feet in the air! The specially-designed table and chairs are lifted by a crane. Dinner anywhere in Belgium will set you back almost 8 million thousand euros, other locations are also available. Remember, you must wear your seat belt, and don’t drop your fork! Link -via Cynical-C