nourishing obscurity

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Filed under: Chuckles, Diversions

There are many Grand Arcades throughout the capitals of Europe, some are truly magnificent and this is one of them. Question 1 The city where this one resides. 2 Its name,  the arcade that is. 3 Its distinction.

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Filed under: Diversions, Wiggia

Two Johns Hopkins professors think they have come up with a more rational way to run the planet. Astrophysicist Richard Conn Henry and economist Steve Hanke argue that we should all adopt Greenwich Mean Time, also known as Universal Time. That would make it the same time everywhere, regardless of the sun’s position in the [...]

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Filed under: Diversions, JD, Technology & ideas

What if Chelsea is correct and it does depend on on the 400 wheel turns in a mile, which takes her 9 minutes out of shape to run and 7 minutes if she’s in shape, then logically it varies, doesn’t it?  Haven’t you ever heard of Einstein’s relativity? As for making a video of it [...]

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Filed under: Diversions

# Last evening’s Nightcap went way longer than intended and a therapist might say: “Ah, cognitive dissonance.” When you’ve grown up with such good female role models as I’ve been lucky enough to have, you develop love for the female, not Greer’s version of hate. The reason I don’t mince words these days is that the [...]

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Filed under: Blogging, Diversions

It would be nice if this could become a regular feature – we’ll see how we go. Answers might prove more interesting than the post itself: 1. What mythological figure is the famous statue in Piccadilly Circus, erected in 1892 to commemorate the work of Lord Shaftesbury, dedicated to? 2. Which gesture did Roman emperors/crowds [...]

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Filed under: Diversions

Missed last Friday but here we are again.  On a horticultural theme, saw this plant starting to flower in Adelaide botanical gardens.  This was the first flowering in ten years and was much commented on in the press at the time, amazing colour. Question 1 Name of plant species. 2 Country of origin.

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Filed under: Diversions, Earth and cosmos, Wiggia

Are you aware that Crufts is on from March 8th to 11th?  Be there or be square! The downside is that it’s in Brummieland but here’s a translator to help you.  Whatever you do, make sure you don’t drop into Black Country dialect, otherwise you’ll have a bit of aggro on your hands. The upside [...]

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Filed under: Diversions, Leisure, travel & sport, Wildlife & nature

A more soothing one this week: Questions 1 In the first photo is a valley of what species of very old trees. 2 They are in this range of European mountains,name the mountain range and country.

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Filed under: Diversions, Earth and cosmos, Wiggia

A growing number of apps are being created for cats — not cat owners. Seriously. (Do a YouTube search for “iPad and cats” or “cat plays with iPad” and you’ll see some amusing examples.) The apps do for pets what they generally do for people: help them fight boredom while also letting them look cool. [...]

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Filed under: Diversions, haiku, Technology & ideas

Babylonia Aivaz [gotta love that name] recently got married at a warehouse in Seattle, Wash. Well, not so much at the warehouse as to the warehouse: she said she was marrying the building itself as an “Occupy Seattle” protest against the “gentrification” of the neighborhood. She said she wanted to “reclaim” the block for “community [...]

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Filed under: Diversions, Society & human issues

This is Icelandic national news: Stolen Noses The city of Akureyri in north Iceland has made a plea: anyone who knows who stole the nose of Frosti, the big snowman at Ráðhústorgið, Akureyri City Hall Square, please contact the city office at; akureyrarstofa@akureyri.is Frosti’s nose was stolen earlier this week and replaced only to have [...]

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Filed under: Diversions, History & Culture

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Filed under: Diversions, haiku, Technology & ideas

H/T boingboing More Dalek fun here

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Filed under: Diversions, JD

Brought by our latest Spanish correspondent, Hope Towers:

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Filed under: Diversions, Hope Towers, Leisure, travel & sport, Technology & ideas