Potpourri for $500

The Face of Cowbell Fever

noreply@blogger.com (Dave S.) — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 01:05:00 +0000

Or not.

Update: J has informed me via comments that the subject of an ostensibly-amusing video is in fact blind, a fact of which I was not aware when I grabbed it from Awful Announcing. I have removed the clip and replaced it with this apology. (Subsitute "blog post" for "fork" in the dialogue.)

On the original subject I defer to the authority:

Luckiest or Unluckiest?

noreply@blogger.com (jjv) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 15:39:00 +0000

This NYT obit of a fellow who survived both atomic bomb attacks on the Empire of Japan got me thinking. Is he the luckiest sob ever, or the least? Also, this reminds me of why in the 80's every0ne thought Japan would take over the world. An atomic bomb drops on him and within a day he is back at work! Also, what's with the NYT "the so-called Little Boy" device?

I find it interesting James Cameron went to see him. No doubt part of a multi-billion dollar 3d movie on how America disturbed the native religion and harmony of Japan by a nefarious industrial attack on a peaceful agrarian community.

Heh Indeed

noreply@blogger.com (Dave S.) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Congratulations to JJV for bringing down Chris Dodd with a skillfully-crafted memetic attack. Not that I minded the subsequent Instapundit link and insane albeit brief spike in traffic.

Of course, this means that Dodd's Senate seat, in danger of going Republican had he stayed in the race, will almost certainly remain Democratic. So, congratulations, JJV!

Showcase Showdown on the High Seas

noreply@blogger.com (Dave S.) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 01:20:00 +0000

Regardless of how one feels about whaling, who among us except for JJV can deny the coolness of an anti-whaling ship named Bob Barker?

On a more serious note, it is hard to believe no one was killed when the Japanese ship ~~Kobayashi~~ Shonan Maru rammed and sank another anti-whaling ship (not named Johnny Olson, for the record). This dramatic video appears to show the Japanese ship altering course to ram the smaller vessel, although you'd have to take into account the relative motion of the Bob Barker, from which I believe the footage was taken.

Please submit the best sentence tying this in with "Come on down!" in comments.

Update 1/7: According to this the de facto flagship of the anti-whaling group is named Steve Irwin. Crikey!

Ammunition?

noreply@blogger.com (CRH) — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 18:07:00 +0000

It's daunting to follow an inspiring post like JWT's with nothing more than a link or two, but I saw this post on Cocktail Party Physics recently and have been meaning to bring it to the attention of the throng because, after all, reading about drinking is second only to actually drinking. It makes me wish I liked martinis.

The post particularly captured my interest by leading off with a reference to The Thin Man, perhaps the finest film in the alcoholic private detective genre. Coincidentally, those unfamilar with the movie could catch it tonight in a booze-soaked double-feature at the Black Cat. Mid-week booze-soakings, unfortunately, have become a thing of the past for most of us.

Happy Hour Chronicles, No. 1

noreply@blogger.com (JWT) — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 01:55:00 +0000

Most of the masthead of this blog and many of the occasional commenters met through a certain regularly scheduled happy hour that has taken place in and around Washington, DC, for the past many years. If you know the history or just want to know where to get a drink this Friday, please scroll to the final paragraph. Otherwise, please read on.

It all really started before the digital age when, in 1991, I started to run into former college classmate JWE while commuting into the city via Metro. That's how we did it in the old days, folks, before Facebook. We scheduled a few after work gatherings, until one evening during the winter of 1991-92, when four alums got together for a few beers. For the sake of posterity, their number included JWE, a fellow named MAK, me, and a lass whose name needn't be bandied about in these parts. At the end of the evening, I mentioned to MAK that it would be nice to hold the meetings more regularly, and so the happy hour has met weekly and with very few interruptions since that date.

In the early years, MAK set the venue and issued the call to arms by telephone, by which I mean landline, of course. Regular attendance increased over time, in large part thanks to JJV, who happens to know a lot of people who don't think similarly to himself, so those folks were all welcome. When work caused MAK to move out of town for a few years, he bequeathed administration of the events to me. I converted the still growing list of attendees to e-mail, which helped to solidify the expanded following. After many years, I had to pass the torch to Dave P., who has ably managed the weekly events while parenting has caused many of us to drift in and out of the regular scene.

Dave P. recently embarked on a three-month tour abroad, where he is keeping the world safe for longstanding happy hours. While he is away, MAK and I are coming out of retirement to make sure that things remain organized until Dave P's return in April. That's not to say that we won't tinker with the formula, but we hope to deliver the same kind of old-school professional and social networking that the events have always offered.

In the meantime, feel free to share in the comments section--without naming any names--your favorite memories from the past 18 years of general foolishness. Among my personal favorites was the Burning Coffee Table of Cleveland Park, which was unfortunately a JWE heirloom. It was no Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch, but it spoke to me in its own way. Others might wax rapsodic over a 1996 RV trip to Ann Arbor to deliver some happy hour joy to two of the treasured regulars. There's much confusion over everything that happened that weekend, and I'd have to say that's probably for the best.

For this week, please report this Friday, January 8, to the Old Dominion Brewhouse, which is located at 1219 Ninth Street, NW. It's very convenient to the Mt. Vernon Square-Seventh Street-Convention Center Metro Station on Metro's Yellow and Green lines. The festivities start at 6:30. If you don't know me, I look Midwestern and answer to JWT.

S Novym godom!

noreply@blogger.com (Dave S.) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 01:48:00 +0000

Happy New Year from all of us here at Potpourri for $500. I hope the year ahead brings more good than bad your way.

Had blogging been available 24 years ago JJV and I could have liveblogged from the Astoria Hotel in then-Leningrad. OK, to be honest my liveblogging would have tailed off before midnight, but JJV would have kept the entries coming.

I look forward to seeing what my co-contributors can come up with in the coming year. For my part I hope a layout update is in the near future, as I have pulled the trigger on a couple of gift certificates for tools and scenery items. A man can dream...

European and African Swallows: We Did It First!

noreply@blogger.com (Dave S.) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 02:01:00 +0000

Octopi have a reputation for high intelligence, but rehearsing for Spamalot?

Don't Scry for Me Grand Old Party

noreply@blogger.com (jjv) — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 20:52:00 +0000

Byron York reports on the discrepency between Democrats and Republicans in reporting contacts with the dead, ghosts, consulting fortune tellers etc.... What he does not comment on is the proven preference of the dead to vote Democrat for years after their demise. Could this not be politics 101: "If you want a man's vote you have to ask for it?"

The supposed superior scientific rationality of the Democratic Party to we snake handling Republicans has always seemed questionable to me. This survey is far more in keeping with observed propenisty of the Left. Charlie Don't Surf and Supply Siders Don't Scry.

A Festival of Lights for the Rest of Us

noreply@blogger.com (Dave S.) — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 17:00:00 +0000

The Waitresses' "Christmas Wrapping" has been one of my favorite songs for the last I-can't-believe-it's-been-eighteen years. Last year I was disappointed to not hear it, but I was able to check it off this year on the day after Thanksgiving, as I heard it while more or less supervising the kids at the McDonald's indoor playground down the street from our house.

Imagine my delight when I found this:

I was about to post this last night when I realized that it was the first night of the holiday everyone transliterates slightly differently. Desirous of preserving my reputation as one of the more sensitive bloggers out there*, I postponed its publication until today.

*JJV's tenure on the masthead now makes more sense, ne c'est pas?

Ode to an old boyfriend...

noreply@blogger.com (EMM) — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 00:33:00 +0000

My high school boyfriend's birthday is today*. BVD turns 44...which means I'LL BE 44 IN SIX MONTHS - EEEK!!!

BVD was a nice, smart, easy going jock. We were so cute and non-dramatic, we were voted class couple - AAAAWWW!

To this day, I still quote him. One day, after having done something stupid**, I just stared at him until he said in his low key manner, "you know EMM, have a dick be a dick". At the time, I found it to be funny and profound (he also apologized), and I forgave him.

Oddly enough, the boyfriends that followed never found the "HADBAD" analogy funny, especially when directed at them. I could go into my theory as to why, but that would be a different post. Women however, tend to agree.

When Tigergate broke, "HADBAD" was the first thing I thought.

Happy B-Day BVD.

* remember, as in we dated so long as to not forget, not that I'm baking a cake and crying over old photos - EEEWWW!

** "stupid" as in 17 year old behavior, not cheating.

Layout Update 8A: Shortages and a Return to Incrementalism

noreply@blogger.com (Dave S.) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 01:16:00 +0000

As Bryan's birthday and the holiday season loom ever larger, there is understandably even less time to spend in the train room, and as a result, and as pointed out in a comment to the most recent update, progress is approaching sub-prototypical speed. (Although I should note that contra the commenter, where I grew up - western New York - the Irish dug the Erie Canal and the Italians built the New York Central.)

However, I have once more adopted the incremental approach I adopted when building the benchwork (as described here), applying it mostly to the transcribing of the trackplan onto the foam by pricking holes through the paper overlay. I also managed to glue down the final section of ascending gradient on the rural section, and have been marking locations for mainline gradient supports on and near the engine terminal section.

In this I have made a virtue of necessity, as I need to get some spackle to level some minor height differences between foam sections to ensure smooth track, and more importantly I need to get a new soldering iron for the actual laying of track. Accordingly I have asked Santa for gift certificates from here and here. Hopefully the arrival of needed supplies and equipment will coincide with at least a small uptick in available time, as I am itching to get some track down - any track, frankly - and get things literally moving.

Happy Holidays, and in the meantime go here for the complete set of updates.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year, Except for This

noreply@blogger.com (Dave S.) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 01:00:00 +0000

Continuing a holiday tradition, please assume crash positions and enjoy.

Justice is Blind and Also Hungry

noreply@blogger.com (Dave S.) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 02:05:00 +0000

Even the most casual reader of this blog noticed this piece about a Virginia jurisdiction suing Krispy Kreme Donuts over the fouling of sewage pipes by grease from a donut factory. I would be remiss if I did not bring you up to speed on the lates developments in the case.

The parties have, like a breakfast of Krispy Kreme donuts in your stomach, settled.

You just know the writer of that article could barely contain his glee by being able to write this as the opening sentence:

Krispy Kreme and Fairfax County have settled a years-long dispute over whether grease flowing from the doughnut maker's Lorton factory clogged the county's artery-like sewage system.

That one goes right to the top of his resume's clip file.

The Mile High Club Is Too Low

noreply@blogger.com (jjv) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 19:29:00 +0000

Now Richard Branson can be annoying but I think that the advent of a commercial space ship is the coolest thing I've heard of since the stealth fighter. How long before people complain "I was tied up for two hours going into space and they only served peanuts and charged extra for beer."

Infamy!

noreply@blogger.com (jjv) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 17:36:00 +0000

December 7, 1941-a fleet of Imperial Japan, undetected by the American Navy, approached Hawaii, then a territory, not yet a state, and destroyed the better part of America's battleships in the Pacific. By a miracle no American aircraft carriers were present. America having avoided the World War for two years was now in it. The attack came without declaration of war. Our possessions in the Phillipines were soon attacked and taken over in the greatest defeat of American arms since the Civil War. The British fortress of Singapore was destroyed in the worst surrender of a British garrison since maybe ever. Australia itself would be threatened. The entire AngloSphere tetered on the brink of ultimate defeat in every theatre of the globe. Yet, it is Imperial Japan and Nazi Germany that are no more.

There are now no men living who remember Belleau Wood. But Pearl is still within living memory. Incredibly, Pearl Harbor is now temporally more distant to us than the Battle of Little Big Horn, was from American's of that day. But surprise in war never goes away.

When we look at the American economy and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan it is comforting to recall the aftermath of December 7, 1941.

Why I Attend Only the Dinner Parties of Close Friends

noreply@blogger.com (JWT) — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 22:12:00 +0000

What does a devoted anti-consumerist do on the average weekend when the G8 countries aren't getting together or there isn't an Olympic bid to thwart? Why, she goes food shopping just like everyone else, of course. For the record, my Thanksgiving preparation bore no relation to this practice, and I trust that all the guests who brought a dish can boast the same. Please, Lord, can I trust?

Mashed (by) Potatoes

noreply@blogger.com (Dave S.) — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 01:30:00 +0000

We are looking forward to EMM's yummy mashed potatoes at tomorrow's Orphans' Thanksgiving. Here is an audiovisual masterpiece, hopefully not giving away any culinary secrets, for your digesting pleasure:

It's Root, Root, Root for the Root Vegetables

noreply@blogger.com (Dave S.) — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 01:28:00 +0000

Behold the 2009 rutabagas!

This blog has a tradition dating back to its earliest days of rutablogging, with a very slight bump last year, when Laura was sick and I ended up making the rutabagas. Fortunately, and for many more reasons than rutabagas, Laura is back in action this year and she will be peeling, cubing, boiling, Cuisinarting and buttering the 'bagas once more. In fact, she has already done one batch for our friends' Thanksgiving dry run last weekend and they were as yummy as always.

On behalf of all of us here at Potpourri for $500, we wish you a safe and happy Thanksgiving.

Four, Plus a Bit More

noreply@blogger.com (Dave S.) — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 14:28:00 +0000

Happy Birthday to us! We actually started up on November 17, 2005, so as is often the case we are slightly late in the self-congratulations.

Many thanks to the masthead for their contributions* over the years! Please stay tuned for, well, more of the same. What, you wanted something different? I didn't think so.

I also look forward to spending Thanksgiving with nearly the entire masthead. By tradition, we have set JCF adrift in the North Sea with a three-day supply of Nutella to ensure blog continuity in the event of a mass tryptophan event.

*Everyone has posted at least twice so we were just barely able to use the plural.

Layout Update #8: There Will Be Foam

noreply@blogger.com (Dave S.) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:15:00 +0000

In real life, railroads surmounted geographical challenges like mountains, rivers etc. by often-spectacular feats of engineering, such as the Starucca Viaduct or the Tehachapi Loop. The modeler usually wants to represent at least some sort of modest conquest of nature to provide some visual interest. Unlike the real world, however, the modeler is responsible not only for the feats of engineering, but for the actual geographical challenges. Further, the challenges themselves must usually be subjected to what is known as "selective compression," the trade-off of "actual-size" rivers/mountains/etc. for something that can a) suggest the actual-size challenge and b) fit the allotted space. (As an example, a full-size model of the Starucca Viaduct in N scale, in which one inch represents 13.3 feet, would be 6.5 feet long and 7.5 inches tall.)

Despite these various challenges, most model railroaders, including myself, want to have their trains pass through different kinds of scenery, and in fact, when I was planning the layout, I specifically included a tunnel, a bridge, and a change in track elevation in the requirements for a layout.

Over the past weekend I was able to put in a pretty good chunk of relatively uninterrupted time in the basement, and am close to completing one of the major engineering challenges: the transitions from the lower track elevation to the higher elevation, then back down. These transitions take place on the "rural" section, primarily within the curving tunnel, and in the loop around the engine terminal. I judged the rural transition to be the easier of the two, and so decided to get some experience by tackling that first.

First, here is the layout in two dimensions:

And now, for the first time, in glorious 3-D!

You can see that I used the "blunt instrument" approach within the tunnel by raising the entire outside section of the foam from left to right; this happens inside a mountain so technically no one can "see" it. (The side of the mountain nearest the camera will be open for maintenance, however.)

The next picture shows how I supported the foam on a riser of 1x2 and 1/4" plywood scraps, with the plywood extending to support the next section of foam:

Here we see the next section of foam in position:

Since this section of the gradient will be visible, I needed to be a lot more careful in designing and building it. I decided to cut two parallel lines about 2" apart, resulting in a strip of foam on which the roadbed and track will be placed. The foam on each side of the strip will be shaped to represent a cut through a hillside. Since tunnels are expensive to build and maintain, real railroads relied as much as possible on cuts, tunneling only when necessary.

Here is a shot of the yard and industrial section. The yard will be set on a second layer of foam, providing a contrast between it and the industrial trackage.

Finally, here is a shot of the engine terminal area, which will also be mounted on a second level of foam. The mainline curves around the terminal, with a downgrade from the right of the roundhouse to the end of the far left-hand curve.

It's very encouraging to get some idea of how the plan is translating from paper to wood and foam. So far, so good!

I Do Not Drink... Syrup

noreply@blogger.com (Dave S.) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 23:25:00 +0000

Yahoo Finance lives up to its name by combining a story about the all-too-real Eggo shortage with a clumsy Twilight cross-promotion.

Also, "King Sooper" runs a close second to "Piggly Wiggly" in terms of dumb grovery store names. This should bring any stealth Southern readers out into the open.

Dead or Canadian?

noreply@blogger.com (EMM) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 02:45:00 +0000

Sadly, the former. Ken Ober has passed away.

Back when we really wanted our MTV, you know, when we had plentiful and awesome music videos, we also had a silly little game show called Remote Control .

RIP Ken Ober .

Toys, Games and a Garbage Plate?

noreply@blogger.com (EMM) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:47:00 +0000

Rochester, New York, my hometown is the home to the National Toy Hall of Fame . Who knew? Not me.

Jon Stewart was outraged on Monday after the latest inductions to the THoF were announced the video was funny enough...however, what made me laugh out loud was his mention of the "Garbage Plate".

After a night out, nothing beat a Garbage Plate. The hours at Nick Tahous have changed, so I'm not sure how one of these would go over before midnight (or without having had a few beers). Part of the fun at Nick's was the people watching. Half of the restaurant was full of college kids, the other cops and a very interesting array of street people. Fun and games, indeed!

Ra-cha-cha!

Sorry, 2nd try on the video !

I Am Already a Winner

noreply@blogger.com (Dave S.) — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 02:30:00 +0000

Earlier this month I paid a visit to my friend and fellow blogger J's site and saw that she was fluffing up her blog hits by flacking for a pillow manufacturer. But not just any pillow! Here's just some of what the pillow has to offer:

# Cream Velour covering
# Designed for side and back sleepers
# 100% renewable environmentally and eco-friendly material
# Naturally grown soybeans/corn are converted into a soft fluffy ultra thin fibrous fill containing 18 amino acids beneficial to the human body
# Properties in soybean fiber activate growth of collagen protein in one’s skin, while corn properties provide high resilience
# Naturally hypo-allergenic and resistant to mildew, bacteria and dust mites
# Moisture and heat resistant with superior ventilation
# Using Azlon*/Soybean “bio-based” polyols provides important benefits to farmers and the environment
# Designed with two covers for longevity and protection against microbes / dust mites; Inner Cover is hand sewn 100% natural cotton, 300 TC and Outer Cover is hand sewn luxurious Azlon* fiber (65% soybeans/35% cotton) with a cashmere-like feel that is “naturally allergenresistant” — removable and washable for easy care
# Firm comfort level

*[This asterisk does not go anywhere - perhaps its note got so comfy it drifted off the page.]

In return for linking to the vendor, said vendor would award a free pillow to the commenter submitting the best self-justification for needing a new pillow. Drawing on extremely recent and actual experience, my entry, in its entirety, was:

Our daughter threw up on hers last night. How about it?

To my more or less shock and surprise, I won, and just today, this turned up:

But where's the pillow, is my question. (Ba-dump. Ow! Blogging from the bedroom has its own unique challenges.)

If I could somehow convert this kind of thing into an actual career my annual base salary would be somewhere north of $7.5 million.

On the other hand, how I am going to explain the amino acid stains is beyond me.