Albert and Otis go to pick up their friend Euripedes.

I always end-up running out of things to read on vacation. I hoped to have that beat by bringing my Amazon Kindle on vacation, but alas — it had not arrived yet (I got it the day after I came home, will take it traveling soon. I love it at home).

I lugged a ton of scifi stuff I picked up from reading recommendations all over the net, but never have time to read at home. Never takes long before I’ve burnt through it all. This is what I found in a giftshop: 50 Ways to Save the Ocean.

The book manages to put a great, inclusive presentation around recommendations that all too often come off as preachy. When people find the right tone, and I believe the authors have, this kind of informations becomes a lot of fun. Its short lists with a descriptive introductions around categories of ways to fine tune your life towards to eco-friendly. While many of the things aren’t Ocean-specific, they go to great lengths to explain how dependent our ecology is upon the sea.

Certainly a fun under-the-umbrella-on-the-beach read and it shared a few new ideas. Certainly made me more sensitive to the amount of plastic that I’m throwing away on a daily basis. I believe the number they shares was that the averae American throws away 70lbs of plastic a year. If true, that is crazy. I’m sure it’ll get passed around the family.

50 Ways to Save the Ocean (Inner Ocean Action Guide)

After a shit day yesterday, this is exactly what I needed to see. Thanks, John!

Trip down memory lane…

Michael Dietsch attended a butchering demo at Brooklyn Kitchen, where a Berkshire hog from upstate New York was dismembered and divided into twelve portions. He’s posted a large photoset showing the entire process, which is only grisly if you never thought about where your meat comes from.

Butchering the pig [Flickr via Kottke]

I’ve been enthralled with this pen since I was a teenager. In college, I had a part-time job selling men’s clothes in an upscale shop on an upscale shopping street. Every day I would wander into this small vintage gift shop across the road and look at the 2 or 3 Parker 51s they had in the case. They seemed complete out of reach, price-wise, for a college kid.

Later in life I saw one that was just beautiful. I should have bought it for myself but I made a mistake and gave it to someone as a gift. I’ve regretted it for years. These pens are just marvels. Its part engineering and part history that make them so “I gotta have it” for me. From its early use of Lucite, to the Tonight, in chatting with one of my bestest pals, I was led to search on them and came across this fantastic website, VintagePens.Com

This site has a lovely collection of pens from all over the world, including a special edition Parker DuoFold I’m now just head-over-heels for.

I bought one of their Parker 51s. **UPDATE** The pen I bought was already sold. Oh well. I’m still looking, but someday I’ll get one.

Sometimes, we all just need to laugh. When I do, I pull the Court Jester DVD off the shelf. While no one will ever Out Fox the Fox, this may be one of the funniest moments in movie history. Danny Kaye is one of my favorite comedic actors of all time; Basil Rathbone is just excellent and the young Angela Lansbury makes me wonder about that old bat on Murder She Wrote.

**WARNING** You may caught wandering around work muttering about the Flagon with the Dragon

I know I promised to review the Flip Ultra a few weeks back, but I wanted to wait until I had a chance to really mess around with it. I have. It rules.

There isn’t much to say — low light, bright sunlight: it doesn’t matter! There is really only one button to press: Record.

The real win, for me: the $40 UNDER WATER HOUSING. I wanted to take it diving, I have used many of these clear housings before; Olympus and Panasonic. They rule. They tend to work well-below their rated depth, but the buttons get funky. I’ve never had one leak, but I have seen MANY people flood them on dive trips. Be careful.

I was too stuffed up to dive, but I did get a lot of family video with it and took it on a waterslide. Enjoy!

I had intend to write more a preamble to this video of the “Iron Mic” rap battle, but rather than waiting I just wanted to put it up here so you guys don’t miss it. The beginning is sort of amusing or whatever, but stick around for Eli, who after one false start ends up doing pretty fucking awesome. The Rosie O’Donnell line slays me.

Doug Benson, a former STONER OF THE YEAR at High Times Magazine, has filmed a documentary where he smokes out for 30 days then does not for 30 days.

Here’s a hint. From the Times (UK):

Researchers remained puzzled as to why the women most likely to settle for a one-night stand were judged to be the most attractive. It was suggested that the lack of effort required on the part of men compensated for “any costs from long-term relationship breakdown”.

Looks like you should always go for the girl you find the most attractive. Who knew?

Face gives away sexual intentions, new study says [TimesOnline.co.uk]

Traveling and not sure where to find a quality slice of pizza? Feel the need to voice your opinion on a truly horrible pizza joint?

Recently launched SliceFinder.com is a forum for just that. This site lets users rank the best (and worst) pizza in the country.

It’s about time for a website dedicated to finding the perfect slice!

Service Page [SliceFinder.com]