Randomness for 8/12

1) A really wonderful webcomic. Seriously. Check it out. You might have to scroll down a little.

2) 28 things that happened in the Harry Potter universe after the books ended. (according to JK Rowling)

3) Whale nearly swallows divers. Video

4) Comedian hides funny/absurd messages in hotel rooms.

5) Ten coolest things you can make with a 3D printer. Yeah, it’s a slide show, but this one’s worth it.

6) Copy machine changes numbers when making copies. h/t Making Light.

7) Very interesting: Husband takes photos to convince wife that her hallucinations aren’t real, but wife sees them in photos, too. After being put on a new drug, the hallucinations mostly go away, except in those photos.

How will Jeff Bezos change WaPo?

How long before

1) Bezos uses the power of WaPo to slam law makers who pass regulations Amazon doesn’t like?

2) Bezos makes Amazon pay licensing fees to him personally to carry the WaPo on Kindle tablets?

3) Lets YOU, the average member of the general public, write your OWN news to be published on the WaPo site without all those gatekeeping editors standing in your way?

Randomness for 8/1

1) A male comic artist puts out webcomics under a female name and sees things from the other side.

2) Saddled with student loans in the U.S.? There are ways to get rid of them without paying.

3) The best places to build wind and solar power by the map, and it’s not where you think.

4) Best way to out a superhero’s secret identity: UV gun. Superhero tan lines.

5) The Machete Order: How to watch the original Star Wars films and the prequels in a way that doesn’t suck too much. h/t LJ user blackhanddpants

6) William Gibson on the visual and thematic virtues of PACIFIC RIM.

7) Vanishing literature: more evidence that our copyright terms are too long.

Randomness for 7/25

1) Weird Ways To Burn 200 Calories. Video.

2) Excaliber, the world’s tallest (121 feet) free-standing climbing wall.

3) First of all, how do the astronauts was their hair in zero G? Awesome! Second of all, female astronaut. Awesome! Last, hair care tips from the woman on board? Hmph. I hope she gets to play guitar or something next time. Video. (Still, zero g hair-washing.)

4) The terrible and wonderful reasons I run long distances, by The Oatmeal.

5) Favorite movies laid out as vintage treasure maps.

6) Ryan Gosling Won’t Eat His Cereal. This is so simple and absurd. I love it.

7) This is what happens when you try to take video of police in Sweden. Video. (h/t to James Nicoll).

Congrats, English-type people

Congratulations to the British royal family on the birth of Tyrion Khaleesi Jeoffrey Cambridge. Don’t drink too much on your boar hunts, kid.

Randomness for 7/9

1) Dungeons & Dragons and the Influence of Tabletop RPGs | Off Book | PBS Digital Arts Video

2) Camera allows you to see parkour from the POV of the traceur. Video.

3) Cartoon rejection rates at the New Yorker. Includes a TEDTalk of course because New Yorker.

4) A Visual Guide To The Mastery Of Kirk-Fu.

5) Extremely unfortunate spelling mistakes on Twitter.

6) How to live with introverts, a comic.

7) I need NEED to become an incredibly wealthy person solely so I can purchase one of these. My wife and kid can have one, too.

Best Purge Holiday Specials

Most of us have favorite holiday specials from when we were kids (and after!) so I thought I’d take a moment to list my favorite holiday-themed movies, specials, and TV episodes about everyone’s favorite holiday, The Purge.

It’s The Purge, Charlie Brown! Sent to buy supplies for all of his friends just before the big night, Charlie Brown returns with only a single, undersized firebomb. The other kids mock him and drive him away until the realize that, with a little laundry soap and a bag of fertilizer, the tiny firebomb isn’t so bad after all, driving home the true meaning of Purge night.

The Grinch Who Stole Purge Living a lonely hermit’s life, The Grinch hates that the Purge disturbs his solitude every year with the sounds of gunfire and screaming. One year, he sneaks into the local village to steal every gun, bladed weapon, and explosive they have only to discover the true meaning of Purge night when the villagers begin to murder each other with their finger nails and teeth.

Purgetown Starring Debbie Reynolds. Three kids find themselves transported to a magical town where every night is Purge night.

It’s a Wonderful Riot Facing scandal, prison, and bankruptcy, George Bailey wishes he had never been born. An angel appears and grants his wish, taking him on a tour of the smoking crater his gated community would be without him.

Miracle on 35th Street The skeptical young daughter of a psychoanalyst experiences the true joy of The Purge when, against all logic and reason, a NY court rules that cathartic rage for therapeutic purposes is totally a real thing.

(This post inspired by @timcarvell’s tweet.)

Randomness for 6/3

1) Thinking of getting a tattoo? An infographic.

2) BMX Parkour. Video. So totally cool.

3) Cat Whack A Mole. Only ten bucks.

4) “The Moon Moth” a short story by recently departed author Jack Vance. According to Neil Gaiman, it’s “a perfect short story.”

5) Dungeon Bastard lays down the final word on D&D edition wars. Video. via @lilyorit

6) Heroes and Villains (Common Grounds) A terrific comic.

7) The Douche to English Dictionary, with a special emphasis on dating profiles.

Randomness for 5/27

1) An innovative student project for simplifying fast food packaging. Me, I hate having to carry the cup separately from the food.

2) 7 Awesome Moments in the Greatest Police Training Video Ever via Chris Sims

3) Making a laser-cut LP out of a disc of wood.

4) The Palme d’Awful: worst films for sale at Cannes. NSFW due to a naked male butt in one of the posters. Wow, do these movies look terrible (except for FDR: AMERICAN BADASS) and every actor whose name I recognize makes me cringe with embarrassment for them. Sharknado, dude? Really? I guess it beats selling air conditioners. via @BarrSteve

5) Public spaces that appear to be private.

6) Fun fantasy chimeras created by Photoshop.

7) Social Media Fails from 19 companies. I love these.