Saturday, May 18, 2013

People involved with marketing claim that the rest of us do not understand and cannot produce "creative".

Then they create this gem:

 photo NonAspirin.jpg

I am glad the label eliminates one possibility concerning the substance I am about to ingest.  Maybe the brand positioning appeals to people looking for a little more spontaneity and shock in their lives?  These pills do not contain aspirin; try them and see if you can solve the mystery.  Cyanide, chalk, vicodin, who knows?  Maybe the label soothes people that have a score to settle with aspirin.  Regardless, the biggest mystery is why a company paid for this.

Sunday, June 10, 2012

Mix Me Up Another

In 1999, George Lucas released Episode 1: The Phantom Menace.  Fans of Star Wars had waited 16 years to journey back into the universe Lucas had created.  After the initial fanfare cooled off, the movie ultimately disappointed most.  However, before Episode 2 opened, an article appeared that provided a glimmer of hope.

[Bringing Back the Force]

Does it solve all of the turmoil that Episode 1 created?  Not really, but at least it makes things interesting.  Readers had many questions and trouble believing Lucas could pull off another clever twist.  As a result, another article appeared to address these concerns.

[Bringing Back the Force part II]

To my chagrin, Episode 2 came out a year later and killed that theory.  Then Episode 3 came out and tormented viewers even more.  Much worse than the actual three movies is the wasted potential that they represent.  Fan theories prove to be much more appealing and creative than what actually ended up on the screen.  Below you will find some other interesting speculation.

[This] article is pro-Empire.

Is Obi-Wan Kenobi actually [OB1]?

Chewbacca & R2-D2, the [top spies] for the rebel alliance.


Sunday, June 03, 2012

I want to reach out and grab ya

At times we need to look past the obvious.

Movies celebrate stealing towels from hotels; it has become very cliche.  During my many stays in motels, inns, hostels, resorts, and hotels of the globe, I have not observed any advancement or safeguard to protect these precious pieces of cloth.  Bathroom policy evolved urging patrons to reuse towels to "save the planet", but that simply plays upon the popularity of the environmental movement to conserve the hotel's laundry budget.  Despite the popularity of pinching towels, it remains painfully easy to do so.  

On the other hand, the hotels went through engineering and innovation to safeguard a most precious asset: hangers.  I would not have guessed that these would be the most coveted treasure in the room.  Glassware or curtains can certainly fetch more on the black market.  Popular culture leads us to believe towels are more popular.  You can grab quality wooden hangers for a bit more than 50 cents each at Target!  Yet, the facts tell a different story.  Most rooms have a shortage of hangers.  Three or four will accommodate a shirt, suit, and jacket.  What happens if you have a second dress shirt?  In addition, the hotels have safeguarded them by creating the peg and loop design.  Not only does this protect their investment, it also makes hanging anything a major pain.



Hotels 1, patrons 0.  Right?  Wrong...  You might be wondering how a person can outwit the brilliant foresight and design.  You do not need to be MacGyver or cut any metal.  Simply look at the situation holistically and it becomes clear one simple step stands between you and those alluring hangers.



Yes, lift the bar out of the support bracket and slide the rings off.



Done.  I suggest leaving the wooden hangers and adding to your hanger ring collection!

Ultimately, though the pilfering process only requires one easy additional step, I bet these rings virtually eliminate hanger larceny.

Saturday, May 12, 2012

Suite: Julie Blue Eyes

Many moons ago, I sat at a Detroit Tigers game talking with friends.  At some point the conversation strayed from baseball, and Bob informed the group that the government of Sacramento planted fruit trees in public places so that homeless people could graze.  What?!?!?!  Really?!?!?!  This blew my mind; it is equal parts absurd and practical.  Coincidentally, Detroit has a surplus of vacant land and starving people.  Adding trees that produce fruits and nuts to the landscape could beautify the city and provide food for the less fortunate.  I pictured people in tattered clothes lining the streets enjoying sweet oranges, juicy peaches, and crisp apples.  That is certainly less intimidating than the same group begging for cash or sleeping on sewer grates.

As time passed the idea stuck with me.  Several years ago, I attempted to compose an article for this blog.  Fate prevented that.  I scoured the internet looking to confirm Bob's story.  I searched for things like "Sacramento fruit trees", "homeless grazing", and "urban foraging".  The only article remotely related to the subject followed a father and son in the UK as they took food from the branches of neighbors' trees.  [bbc.co.uk]  Disappointed, the idea slipped to the back of my consciousness.

The world has changed a lot since then.  Returning to my blog, I gathered some ideas for new stories.  This topic represented a personal quest for information I failed to attain earlier.  Due to some persistence, a larger offering of online content, and a little luck, I gathered the facts.

Davis, CA lies just West of Sacramento with a population around 65,000 people.  The city's motto is "The Most Bicycle Friendly Town in the World" and the University of California has a campus there.  Stressing a quality lifestyle, the city led the way with concepts like recycling, bike lanes, and anti-smoking laws.  The modern day term for this type of city is "Green".  However, I speculate that in the 20th century it was closer to "Tree-Huggin Hippies".

Julie Partansky graduated from UC Davis in 1970 and never left.  After college, she worked as an artist, masseuse, handy-woman, and painting contractor.  Voters elected her to the City Council in 1992.  Allegedly, she won despite a meager campaign budget by rallying support against an expensive proposal to cut down trees and widen a street.  A member of the Green party, soon after the election she championed a cause to protect frogs from traffic on a new overpass.  Before construction began, frogs hopped from one side of the dirt lot on the site to a pond on the other end.  Julie and other animal activists convinced the town to spend thousands of dollars to bury a six-inch diameter pipe under the road (Toad Tunnel) that leads to the reservoir (Toad Hollow).  She also served as mayor from 1998 to 2000, during which time she spear-headed her most well-known proposal: the Night Sky Ordinance.  Concerned with the fact that residents had to leave the city to see stars, she pushed for an ordinance to limit light pollution.  To do so, outdoor signs must be lit from top-down, and lighting on stores and apartment complexes include hat-like shields to prevent extra light from illuminating the sky.  In addition, officials monitor and enforce rules governing lights at athletic fields, shutting them down after-hours.



At some point prior to becoming mayor, Julie proposed that the city plant more fruit and nut trees to help feed the homeless.  I found accounts online about relatives telling tales of the city planting up the streets and empty lots.  I even found travelogues detailing visits to the town to see the spectacle and plunder the bounty.  In reality, her idea never came to fruition.  Several sources confirm that the community did not receive the suggestion eagerly.  This and several other failed notions brought negative press to the town earning it the title "The Weirdness Center of the World".  As recently as 2010, a columnist in the Davis Enterprise insists, "there are no more fruit and nut trees now than there were back then".  Maybe her vision was just too outlandish...

Or maybe she was just ahead of her time.  In the environmentally-fanatic world of 2012, I found her cause is alive and thriving.  Trends like Urban Foraging and Guerilla Gardening have massive followings.  Urban Foraging involves finding and consuming fruits, vegetables, and other naturally occuring foods found around cities.  Guerilla Gardeners take over public spaces and transform them into nurseries.  Thanks to the technological revolution, foragers have even mapped out all the food sources in the city of Portland!  [urban edibles]  Organizations have sprouted up to collect unharvested food from residential trees and plants to process and provide to less fortunate people.  Amazingly, this year Seattle will be creating the Nation's first food forest on a seven-acre plot in the Beacon Hill neighborhood.  The base concept for the forest is permaculture; it will be a perennial, self-sustaining ecosystem.  Anyone and everyone will be encouraged to visit and enjoy the harvest.  Though Julie is no longer with us, her ideas live on.




Mayor Partansky on the Daily Show in 1999 [here] (briefly mentions the homeless "grazing")


Sources: 
Barnett, Erica. "Urban Foraging and Guerilla Gardening"
Worldchanging. 19 October 2007. Web. 6 May 2012.
<http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/007438.html>

daviswiki.org

Dunnin, Bob. "It's easy when you break it down logically"
The Davis Enterprise. 19 May 2010. Web. 6 May 2012.
<http://www.davisenterprise.com/Archived-Stories-0/its-easy-when-you-break-it-down-logically/>

Leschin-Hoar, Clare. "It's Not a Fairytale: Seattle to Build Nation's First Food Forest"
TakePart. 21 February 2012. Web. 6 May 2012.
<http://www.takepart.com/article/2012/02/21/its-not-fairytale-seattle-build-nations-first-food-forest>

Pyle, Amy. "Davis' Mayor Urges Law in Quest to See the Stars"
Los Angeles Times. 26 November 1998. Web. 6 May 2012.
<http://articles.latimes.com/1998/nov/26/news/mn-48066>

Trejo, Helen. "Davis pays homage to former mayor Partansky"
The California Aggie. 21 October 2009. Web. 6 May 2012. 
<http://www.theaggie.org/2009/10/21/davis-pays-homage-to-former-mayor-partansky/>


Pictures: waymarking.com
lynnly.com

Tuesday, May 01, 2012

Scratchin the Itch

Aloha

I went to a movie this weekend with friends from high school.  I drove a Cavalier and wore my EMU drumline jacket.  My hair still will not sit down and the Electric Light Orchestra rocked faithfully from the stereo.  I write this on the same computer with which I composed the last post.  Little has changed.

Honestly, a lot has changed.  I have picked up a big bunny, two playful puppies, a handsome house, and a career.  Yet, as briefly illustrated above, my core values remain steadfast.  I intend to honor my simple, classy mission statement crafted many years ago.

I'm back: for better or worse.




Sunday, September 25, 2005

I've been workin on the RailRoad.

I am 100% behind Peninsular Place Apartments and thank EMU for building them.


























They shield our apartment from a lot of the noise trains make when they pass at night. THANKS!

Sunday, June 12, 2005

My Next Vacation

Eastern Pennsylvania contains some of the largest coal beds on the planet. When the Europeans inhabited the state, they discovered the immense amount of the black fuel. Most of the supply is Anthracite, which rendered it useless for centuries. Anthracite is an extremely hard type of coal; it is 95% carbon. Consequently, no one could figure out how to ignite it. Finally, in 1828, a man from Scotland named James Neilson invented the hot blast procedure. Introducing flame while injecting heated air into an iron furnace using a bellows will cause Anthracite to burn. By the end of the nineteenth century, America produced nearly as much coal as the rest of the world combined. Most came from the Eastern Pennsylvania Anthracite belt. This new boom and the discovery of oil in various areas of the state combined to make Pennsylvania the center of big, fuel-intensive industries such as steelmaking and chemicals. Many mining towns sprung up and prospered.

Though it may be hard to ignite Anthracite, it is even harder to extinguish it.

In 1855, the Locust Mountain Coal and Iron Company surveyed and purchased land in what is now Columbia County, 120 miles Northwest of Philadelphia. Thus began the saga of Centralia. This hard-working, homely mining community reached a maximum of 2,761 residents midway through the twentieth century. At one point, it had 19 general stores, 2 jewelry stores, 26 saloons, 2 theaters, a dairy, an ice cream parlor, 5 hotels, 7 churches, a bottling factory, and 6 major colleries. For a time, Centralia symbolized small, hard-working, anonymous Americana. In 2005, the city has only 12 occupants. The forces that build a town also have the power to destroy it.




Centralia sat on 24 million tons of Anthracite. Many families made their living by mining it, but by the mid 1950s workers abandoned most of these mines. Then, in May of 1962, sanitation workers began burning trash at a site over an abandoned mine entrance on the outskirts of town; this ignited a coal seam. The fire department poured thousands of gallons on the blaze, but never extinguished it. In all, 8 attempts were made to control the fire, but none worked. Slowly, the inferno worked its way along subterranean seams underneath Centralia. Smoke began to rise from the ground in various places. Route 61, the main road into town, dropped 8 feet and began emitting steam through the cracked pavement. The surface grew warm to the touch, earning it the nickname "The Highway to Hell". Residents could harvest tomatoes from their gardens at Christmas, and many no longer needed to shovel snow. Centralians found this all a novelty, but slowly things began to get worse. In 1979, the tanks at Coddington's Esso gas station, near St Ignatius Church, started heating up. The sensors in the tank registered a temperature of 172 degrees Fahrenheit. 13 feet below the tank, they captured a reading near 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. Basement floors and walls became hot to the touch. Residents began passing out in their houses from the dangerous Carbon Monoxide levels. It all culminated in 1981. As 12-year-old Todd Domanski played innocently in his grandmother's backyard, a hole opened around him and he disappeared into the white smoke. The boy clung desperately to some tree roots until his cousin pulled him out. The hole was found to be 80 feet deep.




That was the beginning of the end for the town. The federal government came up with 45 million dollars to relocate citizens. As people moved, the government demolished their houses and neatly cleared the rubble. Over 600 buildings were removed. In 1992, the state condemned the remaining buildings and took title to Centralia. The remaining residents became squatters. In 2002, the US Postal Service revoked their postal code: 17927. It is a unique type of ghost town, resembling something out of a surreal science fiction film. It is a large open space with a grid of empty streets furnished with street signs and fire hydrants. Every thirty feet or so, a driveway splits off to nowhere. A couple of buildings, abandoned and inhabited, still exist here and there. Warning signs now deter visitors from visiting the area.




Yet, Centralia continues to hold municipal elections; 8 out of the 12 residents hold office. The state offers a $4,000 maintenance budget. Near an empty intersection sits the volunteer fire engine, ready to go. Ironically, Centralia rarely has any fires above ground. Wildlife fills the void where houses used to be. No one pays property taxes since their property has been condemned, and parking never seems to be a problem. City Councilman John Comarnisky considers purchasing bison and billing Centralia as the "Yellowstone of the East". Residents also believe that opening a time capsule in 2016 (placed in 1966) will generate attention to the town. Many adventurers find the town on the internet and conduct their own investigations. To hear some people talk, you might think the town is coming back.



Estimates differ greatly on the subject of how long the fire will burn. Experts give guesses between 100 and 1000 years. Centralia is not alone, however. At least 38 coal fires burn underground in Pennsylvania today. Most have not had such a devastating effect on a town, however. On the bright side, the Centralia fire has not claimed any lives.

I am glad I do not live above Anthracite.

Sources: Smithsonian Magazine, May 2005 Issue
A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson

Pictures: personal.psu.edu/users/bsbso112/centralia_pictures
centraliapa.com
offroaders.com
Smithsonian Magazine

Go [HERE] for more information.