If you haven’t already heard about this, check out the amazing (and somewhat disturbing) story about a 13-foot Burmese python that burst while swallowing a six-foot alligator whole.
Python Pops After Swallowing Alligator (!)
Smart Beer Mat
CNN reports on a “smart” beer mat “created by Matthias Hahnen and Robert Doerr from Saarland University in Saarbruecken, southwest Germany [that] can sense when a glass is nearly empty, sending an alert to a central computer behind the bar so waiters know there are thirsty customers.” Now that’s useful technology… 😉
Strange Baseball Cards
The page Funny and Strange Baseball Cards is chock full of fun stuff. For some reason I’m still partial to the Bill Ripken card above… 🙂
“10th Planet” Discovered To Have Moon
Although scientists still debate whether the 10th planet should be classified as a planet, they have all but confirmed that the object has a moon. One of the discoverers, Michael Brown of the California Institute of Technology, “labeled the object a planet and nicknamed it Xena after the lead character in the former TV series Xena: Warrior Princess. The moon was nicknamed Gabrielle, after Xena’s faithful traveling sidekick.” I can’t think of anything to say that isn’t offensive… 😉
Flora Bush: The Child Left Behind
“On November 25th, 1981, George W. Bush became the loving father of twins. Unfortunately, Laura gave birth to triplets.” Take a look at the video Flora Bush: The Child Left Behind (embedded QuickTime video; slightly NSFW) to hear the sordid tale of the third Bush “Twin” that W didn’t want the world to find out about… 😉
Danish Air Force Pays Santa
The BBC reports that the Danish Air Force paid reparations to “Olovi Nikkanoff, one of Denmark’s professional Santa Clauses,” after low-flying fighter jets caused one of his reindeer to die of shock. “After the air force’s decision [Nikkanoff] declared himself happy with the payout and said he was looking forward to this year’s festive season with a new animal on his team.”
DeLay, Frist To Wed
The Borowitz Report reports that “Embattled Republicans [Tom Delay and Bill Frist] Seek Legal Protection as Gay Married Couple”:
Holding hands on the steps of the Capitol, Sen. Frist and Rep. DeLay denied that there were any ulterior motives for their stunning decision to wed.
“Let our critics say what they want,” Rep. DeLay said. “Bill and I have never been more in love.”
But before reporters could question the two smitten lawmakers, Sen. Frist added, “And as a gay married couple, we expect to be protected from harassment by the government, including prosecution for conspiracy and investigation of insider stock sales.”
Rep. DeLay, seemingly fighting back tears, concurred: “We refuse to be attacked by those who won’t accept our love.”
I can’t type any of this without laughing… 🙂
The Shining Redux
Screenhead posts about The Shining Redux (direct link to QuickTime video, thanks to waxy.org’s mirror):
The Shining, made into something truly horrifying: a Nora Ephron-esque chick flick.
“A post-production house organized a competition where assistant editors ’re-cut’ trailers for famous movies to try and make them seem like different movies … this is the one that won.”
Almost more disturbing than the original… 😉
The Eighties Man Video
The Eighties Man Video (embedded QuickTime video) is hilarious! 🙂
Russian Admiral Named Patron Saint Of Nuclear Bomber Force
Those wacky Russians… 😉 Yahoo News reports that:
Historic Russian admiral Fyodor Ushakov – a hero of Russia’s wars against Turkey and Napoleon Bonaparte – was designated the patron saint of nuclear-armed, long-distance Russian bombers by the Orthodox Church.
Russian Patriarch Alexei II, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, carried a reliquary and an icon of the admiral, who was canonised in 2004, into the Moscow chapel of the Russian Air Force’s 37th Air Army in Moscow, Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency said Monday.
“I am sure he will become your intermediary as you fulfil your responsible duties to the fatherland in the long-range air force,” the patriarch said.
