Toddler fails at hula hoop, but remains blissfully ignorant of said failure: “In this uncredited, random video, a toddler fails at hula hooping, yet succeeds at the art of making you and millions of other strangers he will never meet laugh. [Thanks, Tara McGinley!]
Tortura
Tortura: “
A glorious find from A Sound Awareness, who say:
Here’s an odd record. Basically it’s a recording of people screaming, moaning, crying, groaning and laughing while being whipped. It was released in 1965 which is odd in itself. What is even odder is that some people will pay a lot of money to own a copy...

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DeepSurplus
DeepSurplus: “
Deep Surplus is a fantastic source for an encyclopedic array of cables.
For example, Apple sells a mini to mini cable for connecting your iPod to your stereo for $24.95. The same cable can be had for less than a dollar from Deep Surplus.
For work I buy all of our networking patch cables, USB cables, etc. for 10% of the cost of buying them at Staples, Microcenter, or Best Buy. I recently bought some rather hard to find white, two-lead speaker wire, which elsewhere was as pricey as $80, for $12 for a 25-foot length. I also bought a 6-foot mini (iPod) to dual RCA (for my older audiophile amplifier) cable for $2.75, compared to $24.95 at the Apple store.
I rely on them whenever I need essential cables affordably.
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Terrific 180-square-foot shack houses family of four plus dog
Terrific 180-square-foot shack houses family of four plus dog: “
Tammy and her husband John built this fantastic 180-square-foot shack on Gambier Island, British Columbia. They spent about $7,000 in materials. Tammy wrote a great article about it at Apartment Therapy, which includes the mistakes they made. But as you can tell from the photos, it’s bright and happy, and filled with just the right amount of furniture and other neat stuff.
Before I get started with this tour, I cannot emphasize this enough: My husband and I are not rich and we are not particularly handy. Heck, we’re not even all that smart. This latter fact was probably the driver behind why two people with little money and even fewer skills would even attempt to build a cabin on an isolated island with no amenities. But armed with a hacked $25 shed plan and an incredibly generous friend with actual skills, we gave it a shot.
Four People (and a Dog) Living in 180 Square Feet
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The Land Of Giants
[Aw hell yeah. -egg]
american firmchoi + shine architectsrecently received the 2010 boston society of architects
award for unbuilt architecture for their project ’the land of giants’, which they originally
designed for the icelandic high voltage electrical pylon competition back in 2008.making only minor alterations to well established steel-framed pylon design, the architects
created a series of towers that are powerful, solemn and variable. these iconic pylon-figures
will become monuments in the landscape.


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What it’s really like to work in a music store (a series of superb reality-comedy videos)
What it’s really like to work in a music store (a series of superb reality-comedy videos): “
Tara McGinley points us to this seemingly real series of funny videos on YouTube documenting the Kafkaesque hell that is the daily life of a music store employee.
Not only are you laughing at the ‘musicians’ testing out instruments at the store, but when this guy makes his cameo appearance, the look on his face will have you in tears. He doesn’t have to say anything at all and it’s side-splitting. When you make eye-contact, you know what he’s thinking!
It’s all the creation of a YouTube vlogger named Avery Ellis, aka ‘Mostly Harmless.’ He lives and plays music in Alabama, in a band called The Exhibits. Guy’s a genius.
Dangerous Minds has collected a series of his videos for you to enjoy here.
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Macro photos of eyes
Our boy Dean Putney spotted a series of gorgeous macro photographs of eyes by Suren Manvelyan. ‘Your beautiful eyes‘ (Photography Served via Reddit)
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Intricately carved vintage vinyl records
Intricately carved vintage vinyl records: “
By artist Scott Marr, who is based in Australia: ‘Records revert to time.’ Carved record and ochre, 25cm. View more from this series of artwork. He explains that these are all carved by hand using a dremel, which sounds awfully time-consuming and delicate. Really beautiful stuff. (via Bibliodyssey)
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TESTING ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT
TESTING ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT: “After buying new electronic equipment, use it for 48 hours straight. If it doesn’t fail, it probably won’t. Submitted by: Norman Brenner, Fleetwood, New York”
Costco Photo Center
Though I claim to be a photographer I don’t own a printer. I can’t stand dealing with ink cartridges or printer profiles. Instead, I rely on Costco Photo for most, if not all, of my photo printing needs.
Costco is the cheapest place I have found that prints on high quality Fuji archival photo paper in sizes up to 20′ x 30′. At $9.99 for a 20’x30′ print, it’s 1/3rd the cost of the previously reviewed Pictopia (though, admittedly, they lack the same range in sizes). You do not need a membership to use the Costco Photo Center service on-line but it necessitates that the prints are shipped to you. Larger prints are shipped rolled in a tube. If you are a Costco member you are allowed to use custom color profiles while also adding the option of picking up your order at the nearest Costco which can cut down on turn-around time.
I have heard on forums that Costco Photo Centers vary significantly in quality, and that some labs are run incredibly well and are capable of producing results equivalent to far more expensive services, while others have wonky colors with less than dedicated staff. In my experience, if I ever have a problem with a photo, no matter how minor, they are very, very quick to reprint while also letting me keep both (which is a nice bonus).
— Oliver Hulland
Costco Photo Center
20’x30′ print on Fuji archival photo paper
$10
Available from Costco Photo Center
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Not only are you laughing at the ‘musicians’ testing out instruments at the store, but when this guy makes his cameo appearance, the look on his face will have you in tears. He doesn’t have to say anything at all and it’s side-splitting. When you make eye-contact, you know what he’s thinking!
