T e n / b y / T e n

Bing was here

From a recent search on Bing.  I don't usually use Bing, but I couldn't find something on Google, so I went to Bing and stumbled on this image.  Note the surf instructor on the far left.  Alas, I did not find what I was searching for on Bing either.

Nietzche was here

Found on a log bench during a recent hike up Cathedral Rock. 

There is a tremor in the Force

Wish I came up with this, but alas, I did not.  For more entertaining Lego minifig wallpapers, see here. 

Riding out the Apocalypse in style

I must be part nomad.  Content as I am with my day to day life, I periodically get fed up and hanker for a mobile lifestyle.  There's just a part of me that likes the thought of leaving it all behind and living on the road.

So when I see this, a part of me starts to hoot and holler on the inside.  This may be is overkill, and internally inconsistent -- if you're really seceding from civilization at 7 mpg, where are you going to get your diesel? -- but prithee, let not practicality detract from its awesomeness.  Let's face it, after gazing upon its all wheel driven, hermetically sealed visage, you find yourself thinking:  'Like whoa, all that's missing is the shotgun for the zombie horde, and you're pretty much set.'  Sold at your finer separatist supply depots.  ATV not included.

 

For more details, including the recessed espresso machine, and the integrated ATV storage compartment, click here and here.  Below, notice the recessed passenger compartment that extends to reveal windows for non-armored situations.

Penn & Teller

Didn't think I'd be scribbling about this today, but I stumbled across an interesting article in Wired magazine about Penn & Teller.  Now, I'm vaguely aware that they are a duo of magicians, whose act consists of playing tricks on each other.  And that one of them doesn't speak.  But I wasn't aware how imaginative their routines were. Here are the 7 basic principles of magic, very neatly demonstrated. 

The Nerd in Chief

John Hodgman, guest speaker at the Radio & Television Correspondents' Association Dinner, proclaims President Obama as the First Nerd President.  "He is not only comfortable with technology," says Hodgman, "but he is apparently addicted to his name-brand smartphone that I shall not name for contractual reasons." And his observations, in urging the unsung contributions of we pale underbred, are trenchant:  "At this very moment, the fate of Iran is strangely entwined with the sleep schedules of the geeks who maintain the servers at Twitter and YouTube."  Amen, brother.  Right on.

To the well-tanned, capped teeth crowd of glamorous television correspondents -- clearly, jocks -- this video induces nervous laughter.  But to those of us who work with computers and who go entire days without seeing a single photon of sunlight, this video is funny.  Funny and insidious.  It's a litmus test for closeted nerds everywhere, the nerdtastic equivalent of the Cosmo Quiz.  So for those who think they have evolved beyond their nerd roots, beware if you find yourself chuckling knowingly to Hodgman's comic book references.  You may just give yourself away. 

Huntington Gardens: desert garden

From a recent visit to Huntington Gardens, the desert garden wing.  Almost makes you wonder if the two bees savored the pollen of a desert plant they would not normally have had a chance to sample. 

Apocalypse...Tomorrow!

Choose your own disaster! 
Nine more years until Rollerball -- the future is grim indeed. 

Courtesy of gizmodo.com.

Cold Souls

Now here is something that catches the eye:  Cold Souls, a Sundance selection and apparently, a successful one at that because it's also an upcoming movie.  Do I know more than that?  I do not, but the always excellent Paul Giamatti plays ... himself, rumpled and pensive as ever.  Check out a clip here, courtesy of Yahoo.com.

Sneakers

Okay, let's take a break from skateboarders and bad photography.  Ever see Sneakers?*  Robert Redford, Sidney Poitier, Dan Akroyd, Mary McDonnell, River Phoenix and scene-stealer David Strathairn in a great caper film that has stood the test of time. Plus it has the best Scrabble scene devised by man.

Why do I mention this?  Because in Sneakers, there's a scene where they have to defeat a heat/motion sensor.  And what have we here, but the true story of the world's biggest diamond heist -- $100 million in losses -- and one with a clever twist.  The Genius, the Monster, Speedy and the King of Keys all acting in concert under the direction of Leonardo Notarbartolo to crack the Antwerp Diamond Center and its vaunted 10 layers of security.  More Sneakers than Oceans 11 or Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, and they may still have gotten away.  

The Door 1.    Combination dial (0-99) 2.    Keyed lock 3.    Seismic sensor (built-in) 4.    Locked steel grate 5.    Magnetic sensor 6.    External security camera

The Vault 7.    Keypad for disarming sensors 8.    Light sensor 9.    Internal security camera 10.  Heat/motion sensor (approximate location)

Illustration: Joe McKendry, courtesy of Wired.com.

*  Of course you have.  What--you haven't?  Go rent it right now.  And if you click on the link, take heart:  the trailer's cheesy 80s-era music appears nowhere in the movie.  Instead, here is a link to James Horner & Branford Marsalis' elegant soundtrack.