3) How English got its current alphabet, and why people say “Ye Olde”. I’m showing this to my son.
4) The origin of common user interface symbols.
5) Kitchy old ceramic statues turned into horror art.
6) Poems made by stacking books.
7) Father makes posters out of strange things he’s said to his kids. I wonder if he’d make one for me: “Do not drink water out of the duck’s butt.”
Christmas has twelve days–at least, according to the song it does–so I thought I’d do you the favor of sharing 12 Giftmas nopes (presents you really want nothing to do with. Here you go:
1. The Tom Hiddleston Sex Pillow. Also available in Cumberbatch.
2. A belly button brush. For the disgusting Pig Pen in your life.
3. A farting Santa butt to hang on your tree.
4. Generic “Weener Kleener” Soap. I assume it has that name because of the shape. “Fits most men!”
5. Real nightvision goggles for kids. Only someone desperate to be the “cool aunt/cool uncle” would buy this, especially if they wanted to be cut out of their siblings’ will.
6. A hot pink rabbit fur poncho.
7. A single blue-raspberry flavored Gummi Bear that weighs five pounds. In case you want to spend months gnawing on something vaguely bear-cub shaped.
8. A goatee-shaving template. Don’t bother pointing out that it’s actually a Van Dyke. That battle’s lost.
9. A Unisex Adult The Big Lebowski The Dude Wig and Beard Kit. In case your loved one has too much pride to use a shaving template.
10. A Nose Shower Gel Dispenser. For people who want to imagine themselves rubbing snot all over their bodies.
11. A coffee mug shaped like a toilet bowl. For loved ones trying to quit coffee.
12. Shittens. Not a typo.
Be honest now. You’re tempted by the pink rabbit fur poncho, aren’t you?
1) Parents convince kids their toys come alive at night and take pictures. Actually, there’s no proof these toys are owned by kids or their parents. They might belong to a lonely middle-aged guy who figured out a way to get page views. Still: fun.
2) English has a new preposition, because internet.
4) Shit Roleplayers Say. Video. Why does “I attack the darkness” sound so familiar?
5) An extremely funny and very short video: Carpark. Video. h/t +Jonathan King
6) Marvel, DC, and The Problem, a really great longread by Chris Sims about the history and evolution of superhero comics. Even if you’re not a comics fan, you might be interested in the history of two behemoth competitors in a creative field.
7) Six ways to beat reader’s block. I needed this.
1) Surgeons make fewer mistakes when they warm up by playing Super Monkey Ball first.
2) Steve Rogers: Premature Anti-Facist. h/t James Nicoll
3) 5 Reasons Packages Get Destroyed (Learned Working at UPS).
4) Unfortunate Publishing Layouts of Our Time.
5) A History of Los Angeles as Told Through 232 Objects.
6) Pacific Rim in the Power Rangers style! Video.
7) Want to deter pests without using chemicals or traps? Try an automatic lawn sprinkler with a motion-sensor attached.
2) Your request to play Devil’s Advocate has been denied.
3) A Captain America motorcycle suit. No turned-down pirate boots, though.
4) Honest Slogans.
6) We’re more creative when we’re tired: ten surprising facts about how brains work.
7) Tips For Improving Street Harassment, in comic form. So. Good.
1) Another drive-through prank, skeleton edition. Video. This one is funny and Halloween is coming up, so… (h/t Nick Kaufmann)
2) Banksy kicks off an art institute on the streets of New York.
3) What your style of beer says about you.
4) Hyperbole and a Half explains power, identity, and changing yourself with costumes.
5) 44 of the Best Scared Bros at Haunted House (2013 pictures). I will confess to enjoying these pictures of absolute terror to an unhealthy degree. Oh, and the body language is instructive for any writer, I guess.
6) Test your color IQ with an online test. My wife, who took the analog version of this test in art school, scored a 26, which is pretty good. Then my son took it and scored a perfect zero. I haven’t tried it myself.
7) The internet is full of “life hacks” but how many of them actually work? 30 Common Life Hacks Debunked. Video.
1) How to clean your ear buds. I had no reason to google this. Nope. No reason at all.
2) Ladies and gentlemen, a cat playing a theremin: video.
3) Classical sculptures dressed as hipsters, and they look great.
4) THE MATRIX as retold by Mom. Video.
5) Hilariously Bad Book Covers.
6) Attention filmmakers: The future is already here. I have been tricked by an April Fools article in September! It even says “April Fools” right there in the tags! Let’s pretend that’s a rare thing, and thank you Rose Fox for catching that.
1) Myths over Miami: Homeless children create an elaborate mythology of the city all on their own. I swear, this is the most amazing thing.
2) Amazon collects the funniest reviews on its site.
3) A convention attendance discussion for authors on reddit.
4) What every New Yorker should know, in .gif form.
5) Gifs of gelatin cubes dropped onto solid surfaces. There’s something strangely healing about this.
6) Take a virtual tour of the world’s largest cave, discovered recently in Vietnam. Video.
7) “Attacks of Opportunity” helpfully explained and demonstrated. Video. This is funny enough that I’m looking up other videos on this channel. h/t Tracy Hurley
1) Darkseid is impressed by Thanos’s coffee.
2) 40 Maps That Will Help You Make Sense Of The World. James Nicoll, some of these are relevant to your interests.
4) How to build a cat fountain in Minecraft. Video. Note: that’s not a fountain for cats to drink from. No, it is not.
5) The Most Important Book on Color Theory Is Now an iPad App.
7) A printer with no paper tray. You just set it on top of a stack of paper and let it go. h/t @KeithCalder