I'm not often shocked by what I see. However, this item in a catalogue
of tools for tradesmen did catch me by surprise me. At first I though it might be a gag-gift, but a quick search of the web showed it to be an accessory for hunter/fisher/outdoor people.
Weird/clever idea.
This is the man who designed the DWR Airstream Trailer. In this video he discusses the creative processes that lead to his design for the interior of this iconic caravan.
Thanks Dwell magazine
Living in San Francisco, I miss seeing sparrows. Never mind that sparrows displace native birds, or that there have been attempts to eradicate them here in America, I miss seeing the scrappy little birds. They're always the underdog in a fight for food, but they're small, maneuverable, and smart, so they often win. There's something admirable about sparrows.
Photo from Wanamassa
The phone booths at the factory where I toil are being removed. The booths outside the cafeteria were the most visible and plentiful. Now they're almost all gone. But back in the far corners of the factory, the phones have been removed, but the booths remain in place. And my coworkers have converted them into closets for their street clothes. Brilliant thinking!
Photo by Pixieclipx
Good citizens show their patriotism with a "Support the War" ribbon stuck on the back of their cars.
I've been waiting for a ribbon for the rest of us. So far this is the best we've got.
Can't we do better than answer one empty gesture with another empty gesture!
Enrique Metinides was a Mexico City tabloid photographer from 1949 to 1979. His subjects are the victims of "Bus crashes, train crashes, plane crashes, car crashes ... If it crashed, Enrique Metinides was there with his camera .... Stabbings, shootings, suicides, drownings, fires, freak accidents , natural and unnatural disasters ..... like a crash-course in the diverse ways people get mangled and killed." -Telegraph
"...a beautiful blond-haired woman’s lifeless body lies across a toppled metal pole ... Her dead eyes are open, gazing up past the camera. Blood drips across her cheeks; her limbs are skewed, broken." -artnet
If you're going to chose some arbitrary day of the week for a holiday, then it should be Friday or Monday. Thursday makes no sense at all, since most people will have to work on the Friday!
But here's how it happened to be Thursday:
Colonial Governor Jonathan Belcher's 1749 Thanksgiving Day Proclamation established Thursday, November 23 as a Thanksgiving Day.
George Washington was the first president to declare a Thanksgiving holiday He probably followed Belchers lead, because he chose Thursday November 26 1789.
The actual day that Thanksgiving is celebrated was often different in different states. And it still took a presidential proclamation to organize the nation to celebrate on a particular day.
In 1863, during the Civil War, President Lincoln gave his Thanksgiving Proclamation, declaring the last Thursday in November a day of thanksgiving. Lincoln probably choose Thursday to coincide with Washington's date.
In 1939, 1940, and 1941 Franklin D. Roosevelt, seeking to lengthen the Christmas shopping season, proclaimed Thanksgiving the third Thursday in November. Controversy followed, and Congress passed a joint resolution in 1941 decreeing that Thanksgiving should fall on the fourth Thursday of November, where it remains....
Thanks Belcher Foundation
NY has ice skating at Rockefeller Plaza. We have ice skating at Justin Herman Plaza.
Categories:San Francisco
"Leave it to beaver" (1957-1963) is an iconic American television situation comedy about an idealized American family of the 1950s and early 1960s. It stars Barbara Billingsley, Hugh Beaumont, Tony Dow and Jerry Mathers as the Beaver. - Wikipedia
In this episode, the letter Ward is holding can be read in freeze-frame: 
From Shorpy via Laughing Squid
This playground fence has been warped in a very clever way to create places to sit and chat.
By Tejo Remy.
Thanks Dwell
Jon, Esti and Robot have moved to the Wellington, NZ suburb of Seatoun. Marvelous name!
"... it's a suburb over the hill from where we used to live ... across the road from the beach called Worser Bay."
"Just looking out the window and realised that I'll probably never own 3 cars at the same time again so got a quick shot of them with my cell phone..."
Thanks Jon
I've been holding off buying a MacBook or iPhone until after the MacWorld Expo in January because I'm guessing Apple will announce a 16 GB iPhone and I'm also expecting a tablet MacBook that might resemble a large iTouch, and it might come ready for 3G wireless broadband (given Apple's ties to ATT, a working 3G wireless connection will have to wait until late 2008).
Macworld Conference & Expo
The Moscone Center, San Francisco, CA
Conference: January 14 - 18
Expo: January 15 - 18
The discount code 08-E-SP04 gives you a $45 Exhibit Hall Pass for just $10, if you register here before December 14, 2007.
360 Electrical has finally brought their swiveling power outlet to the marketplace in four different colours. It's a great idea for dealing with overlapping power bricks. And it's a simple DIY job to replace the existing outlet. Only costs $10!
Categories:Gadgets
If you want to make your apartment a better place to live, then I recommend following the Apartment Therapy NY/LA/SF/Chicago Blogs. Apartment Therapy is where design, comfort, and cost intersect. Think; IKEA meets DWR, and they become good friends.
To get some good ideas, start with their Top 10 List. Mmm mmm good!
Made from cheap foam pipe insulation, this is as good as any commercially available charging station.
However, I would suggest using automotive roll bar padding because it comes in various bright colours.
Thanks Unclutterer
Categories:Gadgets
While he was in NY covering the NY Marathon, photographer Rocky Arroyo took time out to take some pictures for himself.
Categories:Art
"Where I'm from, the sun don't shine
We keep the lights on all the time"
Billy Bragg could have been singing about San Francisco last Wednesday. The fog was very heavy, and I didn't see the sun all day, even though I drove 45 miles around the bay to Fremont.
This was the same day a container ship smacked into the Bay Bridge and spilled 58,000 gallons of oil. The first reports were of no oil spill. Then just 140 gallons. Finally, the ships draft was measured and compared to the draft before the collision. The arithmetic was done, and the true extent of the the spill was known.
Categories:San Francisco
From WhatISee. This photo was taken at the Edward Hopper exhibit at the National Gallery of Art in Washington.
The Hannspree showroom on Sutter at Stockton has a unique selection of LCD TV designs. Their designs are a throwback to the 1950's and 60's (they also have sport team themed TVs for those who like that sort of thing).
The beautiful HANNSlounge television seems to have been inspired by the Eames lounge chair.
Categories:Gadgets Design
Julie Braucksick takes a river smoothed rock and paints a detailed and accurate 3-D image of a curled up cat. Turn the rock over to see its' belly and paws.
Price varies. This one was $200.
"Cremation - the choice of 70 per cent of Britons - creates pollution. The incineration of bodies with mercury-based tooth fillings has been blamed for creating mercury poisoning, which can attack the nervous system and cause brain damage.
"The ecologically friendly method, which has been invented in Sweden, involves bodies being frozen very quickly then dipped in liquid nitrogen to cool them to minus 196C.
"A simple vibration is then used to shatter the extremely brittle body into powder. This is then placed first in a vacuum chamber, which removes the water, then in a metal separator, which removes toxic metal fillings and surgical parts." -Telegraph
Wait, wait. I've got a new complaint!
I like to listen to people complaining (about poor design). But when I have problems with poor design, I keep it to myself. I bottle up the feeling and put a cork in it.
Not anymore! Now I can document my complaints at Redesignme.org. The site is just a few weeks old, and they need complaints...
Thanks Apartment Therapy: Home Tech
It's heartening to see old British cars still used for daily transportation here in California.
This Rover P6 looked original and unrestored. It's in great condition for its' age. Those seats still look as comfortable and supportive as I remember.
But this Federalized Rover has the hideous bonnet scoops, side markers, hubcaps, and Union Jacks. And I'd prefer a manual gearbox.
The legend goes that the P6 was originally designed to be powered by a Rover Turbine engine. But instead it got a 2 litre 4-cylinder engine, followed by a 2.2 litre and the 3.5 litre V8 as used in the Rover P5. The rear suspension was by de Dion axle.
The P6 was a popular British police car (or jam sandwich). The main competition for the P6 was the Triumph 2000 with its straight 6 cylinder engine.
Categories:Cars
It's easy enough to find an excellent reproduction of a Wenger or Eames chair at Design Within Reach, or Room and Board. But some of those designs have become cliches.
Now here's a chair you won't see every day:
It's the Planner Group Occasional Chair by Paul McCobb. McCobb was a contemporary of George Nelson and he helped introduce Americans to modular furniture. He became a household name in the 1950's, earning himself the nickname "America's Decorator".
The chair is for sale now on CraigsList. Link will expire.
Thanks LostCityArts
Categories:Furniture
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