OOB #9
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All right everyone, it’s that time of the month again! (No, not that time, silly, this time!) Time to step away from the daily grind and take a deep breath. Do a couple of jumping jacks, deep-knee bends, or maybe even some mental gymnastics. Or something.
That’s right, ladies and gentlemen – the time has come for another exciting edition of… OOB!
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Dept. of Dummies
MAKE magazine’s website has something that should interest all you do-it-yourselfers out there – instructions on how to make a stunt dummy out of household items. (I can’t tell you how many times I’ve wished I had one of those around the house!) But what caught my eye was the lead-in quote:
“Ever wanted to make a movie where you wanted somebody to fall down a flight of stairs, or off a building, but didn’t feel like using a real person? Well here’s a tutorial on how to make a decent looking stunt dummy out of free materials.”
Umm, excuse me? Does anyone EVER feel like using a “real person” to fall off a building?
Dead Horse Dept.
It’s not often we get something from THIS department, but when we do…
The news site Boston.com ran this story on Jan. 4 about a mysterious AP photo from the Sheboygan County Historical Research Center (So THIS is what those research dollars are going for?) picturing a well-dressed man sitting on what is apparently a dead horse.
Alas, so far no one has been able to identify the man or anything else about the circumstances. Despite incredible publicity having been generated by everything from caption-writing contests (wish I’d thought of that one) to historical society inquiries, still no luck.
If, on the off chance this turns out to be your long-lost Uncle Horatio, please let us know immediately. There’s a dead-horse disposal bill waiting with his name on it.
Thrills, Chills, and Other Excitement Dept.
Looking for something to justify the cost of your $3,500 worth of high-tech computer equipment? Well, why not join the 49,000 who have already clicked on the (use your best ‘announcer’ voice here, and don’t forget to dial up the reverb) Greatest Show on Earth – watching cheese cure at the West County Farmhouse Cheesemakers website.
I’m tellin’ ya folks, you just can’t make this stuff up!
That’s right, ladies and gentlemen, you read it right. If you’re looking for a solution to those gee-I’m-bored afternoons, you may as well toss out those useless X-Boxes, Nintendos, and all that other entertainment paraphernalia, because literally nothing can hold a candle to this one. Just get a bowl of chips, your favorite soft drink, and click on www.cheddarvision.tv, and in no time, you’ll be, uh, cured.
Dept. of Existentialism
Sometimes even the simplest of actions may have the direst of consequences. This short blurb titled Existential key stroke from the New Scientist website Feedback section is a case in point:
“SOMETIMES, we feel, technology overreaches itself. Ian Flitcroft confesses that he was delighted to reach a hidden menu on his DVD player that would enable him to view DVDs from any region. He quickly pressed the keys on his remote to set this up, only to be presented with a message saying “Press Pause to Exist”.A shaken Flitcroft says he had never imagined that being able to watch DVDs from overseas could have such a dramatic effect on his life.”
Dept. of Justice
From Futility Closet:
“In December 1974, Australian police arrested a man they believed was Lord Lucan, a British peer who had fled a murder investigation in London.
They were mistaken. It wasn’t Lord Lucan — it was British MP John Stonehouse, who had faked his suicide a month earlier.”
Need we say more?
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Shameless Self-Promotion Dept.
And finally, for those of you who are perhaps new to this site, or unfamiliar with the concept of OOB (it stands for “Out Of the Box” and rhymes, appropriately enough, with “boob”), you might want to check out the earlier episodes (#1 will explain it all):
OOB #1
OOB #2
OOB #3
OOB #4
OOB #5
OOB #6
OOB #7
OOB #8
Then again, you might not (but remember, one day you will be assimilated).
You know, it would just be absolutely finer than a frogs hair if you would subscribe to my RSS feed!
5 responses so far
Middle Zone Musings is a comfortable place to stop, have a cup of coffee, swap a few stories and share practical ideas for the real world. I don't ask for much, just a bit of your brain every now and then. Have a seat, take a load off, and relax...
Could have used that dead horse pic in my Teachings Of Grout post!
You’re welcome, Roger! (That’s three… no, five… no, seven - )
Nice list of stuff. Thanks!
(In 6 words or fewer!)
Sorry ’bout that! In the rush to post this morning I inadvertently squibbled up the links.
Now corrected - please try again!
And thanks for the notice, Chip!
All of the previous OOB links seem to go to the same place, that does not exist (maybe I need to press “Pause”)