My tech blog, Global Nerdy, is largely focused on computer technology and programming, but it also covers nerd culture, of which Star Wars is a significant part. Right now, I’ve got some Star Wars fun on its front page:
The b5media office is just south of Accordion City’s downtown Chinatown, so I encounter “Engrish” — gramatically incorrect versions of English from southeast Asia — quite often. It’s quite rare to encounter Engrish that accidentally makes sense, as with the T-shirt shown below:
“Think twice before making any trunk calls,” the shirt says. Given that the shirt was being sold at a store that carried mostly club clothing for women and the social phenomenon known as drunk dialing, I believe the intended T-shirt slogan was “Think twice before making any drunk calls.”
In spite of this gaffe, the T-shirt slogan makes sense. The term “trunk call” is an archaic term used to refer to a long-distance call. Long distance calls, especially made from mobile phones (on which most “drunk dial” calls are made), can get quite expensive, so you really should think twice before making them.
Maybe they should give away these T-shirts with new mobile phones.
My friend Nancy has had a contest with her sister for years: they’ve been trying to outdo each other in giving the other some kind of “Hello Kitty”-themed gift. In this contest, there are only two criteria for a qualifying gift:
There’s no end of the lineup of Hello Kitty products: I’ve seen laptops and iPods, toasters, vaccuum cleaners and yes, the er…personal massager.
There’s even an airline — EVA Air — that’s adopted Hello Kitty as a mascot. EVA Air use the Hello Kitty brand everywhere. And I mean everywhere, even on their air sickness bags:
Photo courtesy of Miss Fipi Lele.
Last weekend, Wendy and I attended the Good Food Festival, an annual showcase of food vendors and cooking instructors sponsored by Food Network Canada. It features samples galore, either for free or a very low price, which means that you can get a complete lunch simply by “grazing”. Here are some photos I took at the festival.
I can’t resist a photo op with a mascot:
My favourite stall at the festival was Kozlik’s Mustard, who provided peameal bacon (that’s “Canadian bacon” to my American readers) sandwiches made with very nice ciabatta bread and a spread made with one of their spicy mustards.
Anton Kozlik makes a mean mustard — in fact, he make several varieties, both hot and sweet. They’re available at several locations across Canada — if you’re in Accordion City, you can get them at many gourmet food shops including Alex Farms, St. Lawrence Market, and one of my favourite places, The Cheese Boutique.
Another favourite of ours were the sauces by the relatively new Redhead Pantry:
They make some tasty sauces! We got their barbecue sauce and their honey peach jalapeno sipping sauce, which I used to baste some chicken thighs for Sunday dinner. It’s really good stuff, and I hope this stuff finds its way to a store near us soon.
Under the “ready-made” category, my hand-down favourites: Key Lime Tofutti Cuties. Damn, they’re good!
Check out this banner we saw beside the barley tea stand:
Here’s a closer look at the text:
“Drinkable Magazine?” I have no idea what they’re trying to say.
Here’s a photo I’ve been meaning to take for a while: it’s a poster of the “ionCleanse” treatment being offered at a chiropractor’s office not far from my house. The treatment is purported to remove toxins from the body through the feet:
I’d love to see this device in action. I want to know how it muddies up your foot bath to make it appear as if “toxins” are being excreted from your feet. I also want to know what the brown goop is. Clay? Paint? Nestle Quik?
Albert Hoffman, discoverer of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and the man personally responsible for a lot of lost weekends (and possibly Burning Man), died yesterday at the age of 102.
Here’s the quick version of the story of his discovery of LSD, excerpted from Wired News:
Hofmann’s most famous discovery happened on April 16, 1943. He was researching the synthesis of a lysergic acid compound, LSD-25, when he inadvertently absorbed a bit through his fingertips. Intrigued by the effect it had on his perception, Hofmann decided further exploration was warranted. Three days later, on April 19, he ingested 250 micrograms of LSD, embarking on the first full-fledged acid trip. That day became known among LSD fans as “bicycle day” because Hofmann began experiencing the drug’s intense effects on his bicycle trip home from the lab.
For more on Dr. Hofmann’s life and passing, here are some links:
In tribute to Dr. Hofmann, here’s an excellent video treatment of William Shatner’s cover of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, complete with kitschy Star Trek and I Love Lucy graphics:
I’d like to wish Mark Kuznicki, Accordion City’s greatest policy wonk, organizer of events like Metronauts and member of the Toronto Tech Community in good standing, a very happy birthday! I’ll see you at the SummerCamp party tonight, Mark!