The Iron Yuppie

This Red Interactive Agency site is really fun, though I'd be hard pressed as to say why. Great characters (thanks digg.com)

To use some of the more interesting characters, here's a list of the keywords... just type them in the message box and hit return and you'll be transformed (thanks Tim Matheson):

nay nay give me some hay = ed (Horse)

dead men tell no tales = nub (Pirate)

jiminy cricket! = hopper (Bug)

the last straw = cameljoe (Camel Man)

surley you jest = jester (Jester)

rumpelstiltskin is my name = unclesam (Uncle sam on stilts, he wont speak a word)

may i please have some blueberry pie? = gordon (Overweight man)

i shot a man in reno = jailbird (Bring back the convict, man with ball and chain)

i dreamt i was a butterfly = sun (Woman character that was removed, carries two fans)

Aw-e-some.

Lounging Pillow (thanks UberGizmo)

Just thinking about all those stereo effects that I've never heard while trying to be comfortable because the pillow blocked out half of the goodness makes me weep. Of course this doesn't quite explain how the material would be rigid enough to hold the shape (and keep the holes open) yet still be comfortable after I lay my giant melon down on it, but I'll leave that as an exercise to the reader.

Here are some pictures of it in action (thanks Coolhunting)

I have to agree, this is such a simple idea whose time came so long ago, it's come all the way back around.

Save Money Using Winter

Simple summary... when it's cold outside, use the cold air to cool your fridge (walk-ins only, not sure if it could be adapted for regular fridges as well). Genius.

In my recently purchased house, the first in Seattle I've ever owned with an Air Conditioner btw, I was noticing how great the disparity in heat there is between the top floor and the basement. Yesterday it was in the high 80s and upstairs was practically a sweathouse, while in the basement I practically had to put on a sweater. Smartly, the designers only put the AC on the top floor. Smart.

Anyhow, to this invention, I have always been astounded with how inefficiently our appliances and houses have generally been designed, because they try really hard to split up temperatures. Take your average refridgerator... you know that defrost setting? That's actually a mini heater in the walls of the fridge. Which basically means in the coldest part of the fridge (the freezer) you have a mini heater cancelling out the effect. Or in the winter, you have cold outside, then warm inside (through heating) then cold in your fridge (through electric cooling). I thought this invention is a nice way to minimize that redundant work, without having to put your milk outside in a snowbank..

Class analysis tool:

Class Tool on the NYTimes

Apparently it's based on the 2000-2003 census, and it is pretty interesting. The only one that doesn't seem sensical to me is the prestige one.

#1, Doctors - Ok works for me

#2, Lawyers - No surprise

#3, Database Administrators - ??????

#4, Computer Systems Administrators - ?????????????????

#5, Astronomers & Physicists - this is MARGINALLY more acceptible

#6, Chemical Engineers - ????????????????????????????????????

#7-20 appear to be all computer/engineering related...

Who knew that being a nerd was such a sexy profession.

Veronica Mars cancelled? FUCK. Oh TV you horrible horrible mistress. How many more times will you beat me before I am able to break away.

While I'm on the subject... here are a couple more priceless pieces:

For $2300... (thanks Gizmodo)

And whatever the hell this thing is:

For only $2950! I'd be crazy NOT to buy it!

Man, here I've been looking for months(!) for decent:

1. Office desk chairs
2. Furniture to read on

...and in one day's blog reading I find BOTH.

Pimp your office - (thanks reddit)

The prices on this:

... is a steep $625 (though that's definitely cheaper than an Aeron)... while the pricing on the bean bag is a mere $125 or so.

BTW, for anyone who has even browsed through a Men's Magazine (FHM, Maxim, etc), they always have these "look at all the incredible sexual positions you will be able to imagine (but never succeed) in get your wife/girlfriend/mistress/drunk bar chick in on this giant foam thing." The ads on this page remind me strongly of that.

Thanks Reddit and flickr...

Of course, now that I'm married it doesn't feel like that at all. In fact, sometimes it feels like I'm on the show The Most Dangerous Catch where the fish are all over the place but just being around them feels like I'm on the edge of death.

I've had quite a lovely time being married for 10 months, and I highly recommend it. However, like all couples, we have had our "disagreements". Men's Health had a nice article that I just came upon that would have allowed me to at least REALIZE what I was doing wrong at the time. Listed for your enjoyment:

1. Build Capital - Flowers, foot rubs, and any other gestures of goodwill are best extended when they're least expected. Just crashed her car? Call Maaco, not 1-800-flowers - digging yourself out of a hole gains you zero emotional capital. [...]
2. Flirt Like She's Watching - [...] Never say anything to yanother woman that you wouldn't want your significant other to hear. [...]
3. Be Angry, Not Apathetic - [...] Conflict sucks, but it's actually a sign of an engaged relationship. [...]
4. Don't Coach Her - [...] How can you teach her [anything] without causing her to hate you? You can't. [...]
5. Clean To Her Peeves - [...] News flash: You don't have to keep everything clean all the time. You just have to keep the mess out of her hot zones. Collect intel: Figure out what she cleans first -- and make sure you're never the source of messes.
6. Help Her Assess Her Dress - [...] [For any event she'll be attending with people she hasn't met means you need to tell her:] Who will be there, what they will be wearing, and what everyone will be doing? [...]
7. Don't Force Your Friends On Her - [...] She hates Joe. [...] You can go out with Joe; just don't bring him home. And meet Joe out with her once in a while. But agree in advance that when she's had it with him, she can give you a signal [...] and you'll acquiesce. She'll love that you let her take the social reins.
8. Choose Jealousy Wisely - [...] Suck it up if you're inventing the cause of jealousy; stand your ground if you're not. [...]

Some of these are remarkably boring, but #3, #4 and #5 are really spot on.

Updated: Erm, "Assess" not "Asses". What an odd typo.

Include some varient of the words (thanks Kirk Report for both of these):

• It'll be different this time (like here)
• Declare whatever is going on will have no end (or will continue for a long long time) (like here)

Honestly, the amount I know about the stock market could fill a thimble with room for your thumb, and I certainly did not win the "2006 Lawrence R. Klein Award for Blue Chip Forecasting Accuracy", but honestly, when have either of these statements ever held true?

In other news, there were a couple of pieces in there on seasonal investing. Apparently, during the summer months the stock market does nothing (or very close to that) and in the winter months it does 15% (or whatever). The piece says over 76 years, $10k would turn to $23 MM in the winter and $5.7 MM in the summer. They also go on to say that the trading costs and taxes likely would have killed the difference, but even so, why is this the case? Shouldn't intelligent markets quickly drive this difference away?