Black Moon Thursday

Songs

Master Passion Greed by Nightwish
Royals by Lorde
Don't Let Me Be Lonely by The Band Perry
Black Moon Bonus
Timber by Pitbull

Holidaze

from www.brownielocks.com

January is Book Blitz Month. How awesome is that?! Go pick up a book.

January 6 thru February 21 is Carnival Season. That's so cool. A whole season for carnivals. Makes me want to read Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern again. That was an awesome book.

January 27 thru February 1 is National Cowboy Poetry Gathering Week. I had never heard of such a creature until I was composing today's edition of dOrk fOrces, but I fully intend on reading more about this.

January 30 is Inane Answering Message Day. ... :: facepalm ::

Today in History

from www.todayinhistory.com

1920 – Birth of Patrick Heron - abstract painter, author
1933 - "Lone Ranger" begins a 21-year run on ABC radio

1939 - Hitler calls for extermination of European Jews

1948 – Mahatma Gandhi assassinated in New Delhi
"Where there is love there is life." ~Mahatma Gandhi

Word of the Day

from www.dictionary.com

sessile – permanently attached; not freely moving.

Quotes

from www.brainyquote.com

“The past cannot be cured." ~Elizabeth I

WikiWikiWikiWiki

from www.wikipedia.org

Dusky Myzomela

The Dusky Myzomela or Dusky Honeyeater (Myzomela obscura) is a small, brown bird that is a common resident of New Guinea, the Moluccas, the islands of Torres Strait, and northern Australia, where there are two separated populations, one in the Top End, another from Cape York Peninsula along the east coast as far south as the New South Wales border, though the species is rare south of Rockhampton.

Around 12 to 15 cm (5 to 6 in) long, Dusky Myzomelas are dull-coloured but active and fast moving, often hovering to take insects or nectar from flowers in the upper storey. They inhabit a wide range of habitat types, including monsoonal forests and scrubs, woodlands, swamps and almost any area near water.

Dusky Myzomelas tend to be sedentary in sufficiently attractive areas, nomadic or migratory in less attractive districts, particularly in the southern part of their range.

Breeding takes place in the dry season (typically March to September). The small, neat cup nest is usually constructed with fine bark, spiderwebs, and leaves on a well-hidden branch high over water. The two white eggs have fine reddish spots.

Bookworm Fix of the Day

For all you bookworms out there like me.

I have to admit. There's just so many places I want to visit, it's unreal. Unrealistic. Here's just a few.

Red Key Tavern - Featured in Bars Every Book Nerd Needs to Visit, I was drawn to this for almost everything they listed. First of all, it was opened by a WWII Veteran who was a POW. Model airplanes hang from the ceiling. And Kurt Vonnegut did some writing there.

The Maunsell Sea Forts - I originally saw these on 22 Mysterious & Abandoned Places Around the World. I was captivated. It looked like a Dreamscape Reloaded piece by Denis Olivier. Who, by the way, is my favorite photographer.

Sanzhi UFO house - I saw this on Top 10 Interesting Abandoned Places. I don't know what it is about the pictures of this place that make me both sick and excited. They're just so...against the architectural grain. Or maybe it is because of all the deaths that occurred during construction that led to the abandonment of the project. Creepy!! I want to see.

Arizona - Why Arizona? Ever since I was a child, I've been mesmerized by this fictionalized view of Phoenix I had in my head. I have no idea where I got the fantasy from, but it had to do with storms. Seriously. Look up Arizona Storms and look at the pictures. Indescribable. Lightning. Dust storms. Monsoons. Lightning. Oh my gosh. I'm shaking with excitement just thinking about it. They also have Antelope Canyon.

Vaadhoo Island in the Maldives - I saw it listed on 27 Surreal Places to Visit Before You Die. Consider it added to my bucket list.

Waitomo Glowworm Caves - I also saw this on 27 Surreal Places to Visit Before You Die. How beautiful that would be.

Bristol Central Library - As seen on 25 Most Beautiful Libraries. It's a library. It looks like an ancient church. I want to LIVE there.

Oak Island - John recently started watching The Curse of Oak Island on The History Channel. I'm not only addicted, I might be slightly obsessed and have a minor case of treasure hunting fever. I love a good mystery.

Loch Ness - Childhood fantasy. Period.

Helltown, OH - All roads lead from Ohio. That's my quote. Feel free to use it. In a later edition, I will explain what I mean by that quote. It will be amazing. Anyway. I found this 10 Most Terrifying Places on Earth. Now, I don't believe in ghosts. I think if they existed then everyone would believe in them because everyone would have seen them. But this story...is hard to pin down and very creepy. I'd love to visit.



P.S. I took a lot of time on this particular edition. I'd love to hear from you about what you thought. Don't forget to follow me on Facebook and like the dOrk fOrces page!!

All images taken from all-free-download.com except Dusky Myzeloma

Winter's Coming Wednesday

Songs

Control the Storm by Delain
Dark Star by Tarja
Nothing Else Matters by Metallica
Just One of Those Days Bonus
White Walls by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

Holidaze

from www.brownielocks.com

December 18 is Answer the Telephone Like Buddy the Elf Day?!

Today in History

from www.todayinhistory.com

1913 – Birth of Alfred Bester, US, Science Fiction author
1892 - "Nutcracker Suite," Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky's ballet, premieres
1997 – Chris Farley, comedian (SNL, Tommy Boy), dies at 33

Word of the Day

from www.dictionary.com

transpontine – across or beyond a bridge.

Quotes

from www.brainyquote.com

“It is strange to be known so universally and yet to be so lonely." ~Albert Einstein

WikiWikiWikiWiki

from www.wikipedia.org

David Foster Wallace

David Foster Wallace (February 21, 1962 – September 12, 2008) was an award-winning American novelist, short story writer, essayist, professor of English at Illinois State University, and professor of creative writing at Pomona College. Wallace is widely known for his 1996 novel Infinite Jest,[1][2] which was cited as one of the 100 best English-language novels from 1923 to 2005 by Time magazine.[3]

Los Angeles Times book editor David Ulin called Wallace "one of the most influential and innovative writers of the last 20 years".[1] With his suicide, he left behind an unfinished novel, The Pale King, which was subsequently published in 2011, and in 2012 was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for fiction, which was not awarded that year.[4] A biography of Wallace by D. T. Max, Every Love Story Is a Ghost Story, was published in September 2012.[5]

Biography
Early life

Wallace was born in Ithaca, New York, the son of Sally Jean (née Foster) and James Donald Wallace.[6] In his early childhood, Wallace lived in Champaign, Illinois.[7] In fourth grade, he moved to Urbana and attended Yankee Ridge school and Urbana High School. As an adolescent, Wallace was a regionally ranked junior tennis player.

He attended his father's alma mater, Amherst College, and majored in English and philosophy, with a focus on modal logic and mathematics. His philosophy senior thesis on modal logic, Richard Taylor's 'Fatalism' and the Semantics of Physical Modality (described in James Ryerson's 2008 New York Times essay "Consider the Philosopher"[8]), was awarded the Gail Kennedy Memorial Prize.[9] His other senior thesis, written for his English major, would later become his first novel.[10] Wallace graduated summa cum laude for both theses in 1985, and in 1987 received a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing from the University of Arizona.

Family

Wallace's father was James D. Wallace, who accepted a teaching job at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in the fall of 1962 after finishing his graduate course work in philosophy at Cornell University. James D. Wallace received his Ph.D. from Cornell in 1963 and is now Emeritus Professor at Urbana-Champaign. Wallace's mother, Sally Foster Wallace, attended graduate school in English Composition at the University of Illinois and became a professor of English at Parkland College—a community college in Champaign—where she won a national Professor of the Year award in 1996. Wallace's younger sister, Amy Wallace Havens of Tucson, Arizona, has practiced law since 2005.

In the early 1990s, Wallace had a relationship with the poet and memoirist Mary Karr. Wallace married painter Karen L. Green on December 27, 2004.[11][12] Dogs played an important role in Wallace's life:[13] He was very close to his two dogs, Bella and Werner;[12] had spoken of opening a dog shelter;[13] and, according to Jonathan Franzen, "had a predilection for dogs who'd been abused, and [were] unlikely to find other owners who were going to be patient enough for them".[12]

Death

Wallace committed suicide by hanging himself on September 12, 2008.[14] In an interview with The New York Times, Wallace's father reported that Wallace had suffered from depression for more than 20 years and that antidepressant medication had allowed him to be productive.[11] When he experienced severe side effects from the medication, Wallace attempted to wean himself from his primary antidepressant, phenelzine.[12] On his doctor's advice, Wallace stopped taking the medication in June 2007,[11] and the depression returned. Wallace received other treatments, including electroconvulsive therapy. When he returned to phenelzine, he found it had lost its effectiveness.[12] In the months before his death, his depression became severe.[11] The same year Wallace had checked into a nearby motel and taken all the pills he could obtain, ending up in a local hospital. His wife kept a watchful eye on Wallace the following days, but on September 12, after his wife left their home, Wallace went into their garage, wrote a two-page note, and neatly arranged the manuscript for The Pale King before hanging himself on the patio.[15]

Numerous gatherings were held to honor Wallace after his death, including memorial services at Pomona College, Amherst College, University of Arizona, and on October 23, 2008, at New York University—the last with speakers including his sister, Amy Wallace Havens; his agent, Bonnie Nadell; Gerry Howard, the editor of his first two books; Colin Harrison, editor at Harper's Magazine; Michael Pietsch, the editor of Infinite Jest and Wallace's later work; Deborah Treisman, fiction editor at The New Yorker; as well as authors Don DeLillo, Zadie Smith, George Saunders, Mark Costello, Donald Antrim, and Jonathan Franzen.[16][17][18]

Bookworm Fix of the Day

For all you bookworms out there like me.

What Should I Read Next?

Go ahead and check it out. Enter a book. It will populate with recommendations for what to read next. :)

It's the last full moon of the year!!

Songs

Bad Moon Rising by Creedence Clearwater Revival
Moon River by Audrey Hepburn
Blue Moon of Kentucky by Bill Monroe
Last Full Moon Bonus
Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd

Holidaze

from www.brownielocks.com

December 17 is Wright Brothers Day

Word of the Day

from www.dictionary.com

cathexis – the investment of emotional significance in an activity, object, or idea.

Quotes

from www.brainyquote.com

“It is difficult to free fools from the chains they revere." ~Voltaire

WikiWikiWikiWiki

from www.wikipedia.org

Toumani Diabaté

Toumani Diabaté (born August 10, 1965) is a Malian kora player. In addition to performing the traditional music of Mali, he has also been involved in cross-cultural collaborations with flamenco, blues, jazz, and other international styles.

Biography
Diabaté comes from a long family tradition of kora players including his father Sidiki Diabaté, who recorded the first ever kora album in 1970. His family's oral tradition tells of 71 generations of musicians preceding him in a patrilineal line. His cousin Sona Jobarteh is the first female kora player to come from a Griot family. His younger brother Mamadou Sidiki Diabaté is also a prominent kora player.

In 1987, Diabate made his first appearance on an album in the UK, on Ba Togoma, an album featuring his father's ensemble. In 1988 Diabaté released his first album in the West, a solo album entitled Kaira, recorded in one afternoon in London and produced by Lucy Durán.

In addition to performing Malian traditional music, Diabaté has also performed and recorded in cross-cultural settings. He has collaborated with flamenco group Ketama, forming a combined group known as Songhai and releasing two recordings: Songhai I and Songhai II. In 1999, Diabaté collaborated with American blues musician Taj Mahal on the release Kulanjan. "MALIcool" is a collaboration with American jazz trombonist Roswell Rudd. He also collaborated with the Icelandic popular musician Björk on her 2007 album Volta.

In 1999 Diabaté released the album New Ancient Strings, a collaboration with Ballaké Sissoko and in September 2005, he released In the Heart of the Moon, for which he collaborated with Ali Farka Touré. The album went on to win the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Traditional World Music Album. On July 25, 2006 he released his latest album Boulevard de l'Indépendance, recorded with his Symmetric Orchestra. In the Heart of the Moon and Boulevard de l'Indépendance, are both part of the Hotel Mandé Sessions, recorded by Nick Gold and released on World Circuit Records. Both Boulevard and Hotel Mandé are references to landmarks in Mali's capital city, Bamako.

The Symmetric Orchestra led by Toumani Diabaté is composed of musicians (mostly griots)[1] from the across the old Mande Empire of west Africa, who play a mix of traditional instruments including the kora, djembe, balafon and bolombatto, as well as modern ones like the guitar and electronic keyboard.

Diabaté appeared in 2006 at the WOMAD Festival UK, Roskilde Festival in Denmark, and at the Sziget Festival in Budapest, Hungary. In 2007 he performed at the Glastonbury Festival and toured the U.S.A.. In 2008, he was at WOMADelaide (in Adelaide, Australia).[2] In early 2008, Diabaté released his new album of solo Kora music, The Mandé Variations, to widespread critical acclaim. Many reviewers praised the album for its detailed recording of the Kora and careful mastering, in addition to the improvisational skills and wide range of apparent influences displayed on the album.[3]

In October 2008 the Arabic language lyrics in Diabaté's song Tapha Niang (from Boulevard de l'Indépendance) were removed from the PlayStation 3 video game LittleBigPlanet, after it elicited objections from a Muslim individual due to their inclusion of verses from the Qur’an.[4] The publisher Sony Computer Entertainment Europe decided to delay the launch of the game by a week and recall most discs in order to replace the song with a lyric-free instrumental version. However, some copies of the original game had already been sold in the Middle East and United States.[5]

Diabaté was chosen by Matt Groening to perform at the All Tomorrow's Parties festival in May 2010 in Minehead. Diabaté also performed at Hay Festival in June. In July he performed at the Larmer Tree Festival to huge acclaim.

Friday the 13th

Happy Friday the 13th!!

Songs

Our Solemn Hour by Within Temptation
Burning in the Skies by Linkin Park
Like I Roll by Black Stone Cherry
Friday the 13th Bonus
Stay by Florida Georgia Line

Holidaze

from www.brownielocks.com

December 13 is Pick a Pathologist Day

Today in History

from www.todayinhistory.com

1967 – Birth of Jamie Foxx, comedian
1913 - Mona Lisa stolen in Aug 1911 returned to Louvre
1996 – Mae Barnes, singer, dies at 89

Word of the Day

from www.dictionary.com

umbriferous – casting or making shade.

Quotes

from www.brainyquote.com

“You may delay, but time will not." ~Benjamin Franklin

WikiWikiWikiWiki

from www.wikipedia.org

Paphinia hirtzii

About

The classification of this orchid species was published by Calaway H. Dodson in Icones Plantarum Tropicarum ser. 2, 6: t. 566. 1989 - Sarasota, Florida. Collected by C.H.Dodson & A.C.Hirtz 8 km from Chaco on the road to Santa Rosa de Chaco, off the road Ibarra to Lita, 1400 m, Esmeraldas (Ecuador, Western South America, Southern America). The holotype is kept at Herbario Nacional del Ecuador (QCNE). The isotype is kept at Rio Palenque Science Center (RPSC), Ecuador.

Plant Morphology
Description: Epiphyte. Rhizome short. Pseudobulbs appressed, laterally compressed, narrowly ovate, costate, to 2 cm wide and 8 cm long, 2 to 30 folite, with 2 to 3 distichous, foliaceous sheaths surrounding the base. Leaves thin, heavily veined on the underside, narrowly ovate, acuminate, to 8 cm wide and 32 cm long. Infloresence produced from the base of the pseudobulb, pendant, surrounded by 2 to 4 sheaths, 1 to 3-flowered.

Bookworm Fix of the Day

For all you bookworms out there like me.

Making Yesterday Available Today

This seller makes available books on CD and DVD-ROM. I have purchased for myself a CD on the history of dreams and the study thereof. I got the CD-ROM earlier this week, and I have to say, I am thoroughly impressed with the quality. These are books dating back decades if not centuries, and it makes me very happy that someone took the time to keep these books alive. They sell many subjects including paranormal, language, psychology, philosophy, and religion. Definitely worth checking out!!

Don't miss this, either: 50 Reasons You Should Be a Bookworm. Short and sweet and complete with book covers.

Kickstarter

Yup. That's right. I have started a Kickstarter project. You can view it here.

Also, you have view my updates on my progress on both the Kickstarter funding as well as my progress in the books on my other blog.

Annnnd.......just an update, I will be mainly posting to this blog on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays with the exception of days I do not work. I hope you are all having a dorktastic day.

Cusp

There is a man at work who, without fail, reminds us all of two very important days of the week. The first is timesheet day - the cutoff day for us to make sure our tinesheets are correct so we do not have payroll issues. The second is, of course, hump day. Thanks, Gus!

Songs

Sleep Well, My Angel by We Are the Fallen
Nemo by Nightwish
Ghost Riders in the Sky by Johnny Cash
Hump Day Bonus
Everybody Knows by Leonard Cohen

Holidaze

from www.brownielocks.com

December 9-15 is Computer Science Awareness week
December 11 is International Mountain Day

Today in History

from www.todayinhistory.com

1475 – Birth of Leo X (Giovanni de' Medici), Italy, Pope (1513-21) 1844 – 1st dental use of nitrous oxide, Hartford, CT 1911 – Thomas Ball, US sculptor/painter/singer, died at 92

Word of the Day

from www.dictionary.com

cusp – a point or pointed end.

Quotes

from www.brainyquote.com

“At the heart of any terror is the fear of losing what we find meaningful." ~Mark Z. Danielewski

WikiWikiWikiWiki

from www.wikipedia.org

Erikson's stages of psychosocial development

Erikson's stages of psychosocial development, as articulated by Erik Erikson, explain eight stages through which a healthily developing human should pass from infancy to late adulthood. In each stage, the person confronts, and hopefully masters, new challenges. Each stage builds upon the successful completion of earlier stages. The challenges of stages not successfully completed may be expected to reappear as problems in the future.

However, mastery of a stage is not required to advance to the next stage. Erikson's stage theory characterizes an individual advancing through the eight life stages as a function of negotiating his or her biological forces and sociocultural forces. Each stage is characterized by a psychosocial crisis of these two conflicting forces (as shown in the table below). If an individual does indeed successfully reconcile these forces (favoring the first mentioned attribute in the crisis), he or she emerges from the stage with the corresponding virtue. For example, if an infant enters into the toddler stage (autonomy vs. shame & doubt) with more trust than mistrust, he or she carries the virtue of hope into the remaining life stages.[1]

Bookworm Fix of the Day

For all you bookworms out there like me.

BOOKish

This website is just full of fun stuff, including news articles, gift guides, books to read before you die. You can get notified of recommendations, personalized for you, and check out new and notable releases. Truly a great website!

And there is this. Talk about a rant. I imagine every time someone misspells something, uses improper grammar, etc., this person is right there to correct them. Not that I have a problem with that, but this struck me as a little...too far. I imagine this person to be very serious, with fake laughs at proper times and a flaring anger problem. I might be wrong.

New & Improved

Well, hello there strangers. It’s been a while. My apologies. I…had 3 more kids. But I’m back! Somewhat.

Of course, with a full time job and 4 kids…I will never be completely anywhere. LOL

Let’s see if I can keep up with this between job, children, cooking, husband, and Christmas shopping. (I’m purposely leaving reading out of this because…well…any spare moment is usually spend with my nose in a book. You know that!)

Songz/

Frozen by Delain
Never Enough by Epica
Wagon Wheel by Darius Rucker
Moody Monday Bonus
Monster by Eminem



Holidaze
from www.brownielocks.com

December is Awareness Month of Awareness Months Month (yup)

December 9 is International Anti-Corruption Day

Today in History
from www.todayinhistory.com

1902 – Birth of Margaret Hamilton, Cleveland, OH, actress (Wicked Witch – Wizard of Oz)

1965 – “A Charlie Brown Christmas” premieres
1982 – Marty Robbins, country singer, dies


Word of the Day
from www.dictionary.com

calorifacient – (of foods) producing heat.


Quotes
from www.brainyquote.com

“Money won’t create success, the freedom to make it well.” ~Nelson Mandela
“It is one of the blessings of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson


WikiWikiWikiWiki

from www.wikipedia.org

The Bush Stone-curlew or Bush Thick-knee (Burhinus grallarius, obsolete name Burhinus magnirostris) is a large, ground-dwelling bird endemic to Australia. Although it looks rather like a wader and is related to the oystercatchers, avocets and plovers, it is a terrestrial predator filling an ecological niche similar to that of the roadrunners of North America.

Like most stone-curlews, it is mainly nocturnal and specialises in hunting small grassland animals: frogs, spiders, insects, molluscs, crustaceans, snakes, lizards and small mammals are all taken, mostly gleaned or probed from soft soil or rotting wood; also a few seeds or tubers, particularly in drought years. Birds usually forage individually or in pairs over a large home range, particularly on moonlit nights.

During the day, Bush Stone-curlews tend to remain inactive, sheltering amongst tall grass or low shrubs and relying on their cryptic plumage to protect them from predators. When disturbed, they freeze motionless, often in odd-looking postures. For visual predators like raptors (and humans), this works well, but it serves little purpose with animals that hunt by scent such as foxes, dingoes or goannas.
Despite their ungainly appearance and habit of freezing motionless, they are sure-footed, fast and agile on the ground, and although they seldom fly during daylight hours, they are far from clumsy in the air; flight is rapid and direct on long, broad wings.
The Bush Stone-curlew is probably heard more than it is seen. Its call sounds like a wail or a scream in the night. When scared, it screeches – a sound similar to the screech of a possum.[2] When threatened (presumably in the presence of a nest), they may raise their wings wide and high in an impressive threat posture and emit a loud, hoarse hissing noise.

My Life is Average
from www.mylifeisaverage.com

I made my favourite soup today. I was very eager to start eating it and because of my haste I burnt my tongue. Sadly I couldn't taste the rest of it.

Today after reading about Dumbledore's death I cried for half an hour while my 6 year old daughter comforted me. MLIA


Customers are Fun
from www.notalwaysright.com

I Don’t Work Here Does Not Work Here, Part 13

SUPERMARKET | IN, USA | CRAZY REQUESTS

(My roommate and I are doing some shopping at a popular supermarket chain. The employees wear red shirts with white name tags. My roommate works at a day spa and hasn’t changed out of her uniform yet, which is a black dress with a bronze name tag. As we are heading to check out, an elderly woman grabs my friend’s arm.)
Woman: “Can you tell me where the house robes are?”
My Roommate: “I’m sorry. I don’t know.”
(The woman is still holding on to my friend’s arm, so my friend gently pulls herself loose.)
Woman: “Excuse me! I asked you a question!”
My Roommate: “Ma’am, I’m sorry, but I really don’t know where they are. I don’t work here.”
(At this point, a store employee has noticed us and approaches.)
Employee: “Can I help you ladies?”
Woman: “This lady won’t help me find the house robes! She isn’t doing her job. I asked a simple question, and she’s ignoring me to hang out with her little friend instead. I want to speak to a manager.”
Employee: “Ma’am, I don’t believe she works here.”
Me: “She doesn’t.”
Woman: “Well, then why is she wearing a name tag?”
My Roommate: “I work at a day spa down the street and I haven’t had time to change out my uniform yet.”
Woman: “Oh. How was I supposed to know that?”
(She’s being very rude and I’m getting fed up with it.)
Me: “Because her uniform looks absolutely nothing like his?”

Woman: “Excuse me? I won’t be talked to like that.”

Employee: “Ma’am, I apologize for this misunderstanding. If you’ll come with me, I’ll show you the—”

Woman: “No! I want to see a manager! I want both of these girls fired!”
My Roommate: “Neither of us work here!”

Bookworm Fix of the Day

For all you bookworms out there like me.

There are two websites I’d like to share with you today.


The first is www.bookriot.com. I love this website. It has reviews of books, gift guides, giveaways, recommendations, and then there’s this: http://bookriot.com/2013/12/02/20-things-happen-youre-book-nerd/ which describes me perfectly.

Also, I’d like to share http://imaginebookstore.com/. This bookstore is located in San Antonio on Culebra and I just adore this place. I can’t promote it enough because the owner, Don Hurd is living **my** dream. And even though I’m not the one living my dream, I have absolutely no problem living vicariously through him, his wife, and his two sons, all of whom run the store.

Imagine Books and Records boasts not only being a family owned and ran bookstore, but also the added amazing quality of providing a venue for local bands to play, authors to come and sign books, and poets to gather and commune.

They are having some upcoming winter events which I am hoping to be able to make, if I can find someone to watch my 4 kids.

And! They have started a publishing “house” which publishes paperback books under the name Toad Press Paperback.

June 3, 2010

For those of you here in San Antonio...who caught that storm last night? My mother & I were out in Castroville at the time it hit. It was calm...and within 3 minutes...I am not exaggerating...within 3 minutes the wind had picked up and the skies went almost completely black. 5 minutes later the entire town had lost power, the street signs were blowing around, and there were the beginning whirls of a tornado in the fields. It was...intense. But beautiful. Absolutely amazing. Once again, I must point out how one can feel the electricity of the storm in one's veins. Dramatic? You should have been there. It was awesome.


Scary Spice's Songz

Leaving on a Jet Plane by John Denver
Right Where I Need to Be by Gary Allan
Feels Like Home by Chantal Kreviazuk

Thursday Bonus
Amazing by Aerosmith




Holidaze
from www.brownielocks.com

June is Rebuild Your Life Month!!

June 3 is my son's birthday.



Today in History
from www.todayinhistory.com

1860 Comanche, Iowa completely destroyed by 1 of a series of tornadoes
1921 A sudden cloudburst kills 120 near Pikes Peak, Colorado
1967 Aretha Franklin's "Respect" reaches #1
1979 World's worst oil spillage occurred in the Gulf of Mexico
1991 Mount Unzen erupts in Japan, worst eruption in Japanese history
1994 5.9 earthquake/floods SE Java (150+ killed




Word of the Day
from www.dictionary.com

swain - a male admirer or love




Quotes
from http://www.corsinet.com/braincandy/miscsong.html

Life is to be fortified by many friendships. To love and to be loved is the greatest happiness of existence. ~Sydney Smith

I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me. ~Dudley Field Malone

I believe in prayer. It's the best way we have to draw strength from heaven. ~Josephine Baker

Maybe the words that I say is just another way to pray. ~Curtis Mayfield




Quotes
from random family, friends, overheard conversations, etc.

"Oh...but not knowing is the magic." ~Julianna




WikiWikiWikiWiki
from www.wikipedia.org

The chupacabras[1] (Spanish pronunciation: [tʃupaˈkaβɾas], from chupar "to suck" and cabra "goat", literally "goat sucker"), is a legendary cryptid (a creature whose existence has been suggested but is regarded as highly unlikely) rumored to inhabit parts of the Americas. It is associated more recently with sightings of an allegedly unknown animal in Puerto Rico (where these sightings were first reported), Mexico, and the United States, especially in the latter's Latin American communities.[2] The name comes from the animal's reported habit of attacking and drinking the blood of livestock, especially goats. Physical descriptions of the creature vary. Eyewitness sightings have been claimed as early as 1990 in Puerto Rico, and have since been reported as far north as Maine, and as far south as Chile. It is supposedly a heavy creature, the size of a small bear, with a row of spines reaching from the neck to the base of the tail. Biologists and wildlife management officials view the chupacabras as a contemporary legend.[3]



My Life is Average
from www.mylifeisaverage.com

Today, while working as a camp counselor, I heard two boys talking. One, about 4, asked the other if they could be best friends forever." The other's response? "Maybe, but we may need a few breaks." Smartest little kid ever. MLIA

Today, I was eating Veggie Tales fruit snacks. Fruit snacks in the shape of vegetables. That has got to be the most contradictory idea i've heard. MLIA.

Today, one of the boys at my school asked me what kind of girl I am. My reply? "The kind who get's sunburned from being outside blowing bubbles too long." I have a date this Friday. MLIA

Today, I was on an airplane and was handed some peanuts. Turns out, there's directions on the packet; open bag, eat peanuts. Gee thanks, I would have never figured it out. MLIA.

Today in chemistry, my teacher was talking about acids and bases, and giving demostrations for some. Just as the class was ending, a girl in the back of the room puts up her hand and asks if a banana is a base. Somehow, we're testing it tomorrow. MLIA.




Learn From My Fail
from www.learnfrommyfail.com

Do not make an improvised facial mask out of leftover canned pumpkin puree even if it is full of vitamins. The vitamins might be good for your skin, but the pumpkin will leave a bit of a stain. #LFMF

When deciding what marshmallows to use in your instant hot cocoa, never decide on the extra-giant ones and then put them in the cold cocoa while you’re microwaving it to make it "melt faster". You will not be able to access your cocoa once it’s done. #LFMF

General rule about status updates on facebook:If it feels inappropriate even when excessively drunk.it probably is. #LFMF

When cutting your own bangs ONLY TO YOUR EYEBROWS, make sure your eyebrows weren’t raised in concentration. Your bangs will be very short when you stand back and lower your eyebrows. #LFMF



Customers are Fun
from www.notalwaysright.com

Free Cop Holder With Drink
Movie Theater Durham, NC, USA

(A customer approaches the ticket drop, holding a half bottle of wine.)
Me: “You cannot bring that in here, ma’am. That is against the law.”
Customer: “What! I need to bring this in! I can’t just leave it in my car! There is a law about open containers being in cars in this state.”
Me: “How did you manage to bring it all the way here, then?”
Customer: “Oh, it wasn’t opened when I left. I drank it on the way here.”
Me: “So you had an open container and you were drinking on the way here in your car?”
Customer: “No! I hung the bottle out the window on the way here, and put my head out the window when I was drinking, so it doesn’t count!”
Me: “Okay, I’m going to call the police now. You wait here.”
Customer: “Okay! Is he going to hold this for me while I watch my movie?”




Chuck Norris!
from www.chucknorrisfacts.com

According to Einstein's theory of relativity, Chuck Norris can actually roundhouse kick you yesterday.



The 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon

"Nicholas Cage"

Nicholas Cage was in Rumble Fish with J T Turner
J T Turner was in Mystic River with Kevin Bacon



Funny Pics
from the www.icanhascheezburger.com collection

June 1, 2010

Welcome to JUNE!!! Enter with a bang.



I want to take a moment to promote my friend's blog.
Click here to read it
His latest entry is about child abuse/violence. It is disturbing and heartbreaking. And intelligent. So, Aaron Chandler, here's your promotion because your blog touched me that much.



Scary Spice's Songz

Have You Ever Seen the Rain by Creedence Clearwater Revival
Alabama by Cross Canadian Ragweed
Bela Lugosi is Dead by Bauhaus

Tuesday Bonus
Tomorrow by Sixx AM



Scruffles' Songz

About a Girl by Nirvana
Get the Funk Outta Ma Face by The Brothers Johnson
Somebody Told Me by the Killers

Tuesday Bonus
All I Wanna Do is Make Love to You by Heart



Aaron Chandler's Songz

Tongue Tied from the show Red Dwarf
Trapped in the Drive Thru by Weird Al
Chihuahua by DJ BoBo

Tuesday Bonus
Ding Ding Dong by Gunther




Holidaze
from www.brownielocks.com

June is Adopt a Shelter Cat Month!!

June 1 is National Go Barefoot Day && Say Something Nice Day!!



Today in History
from www.todayinhistory.com

1495 1st written record of Scotch Whiskey appears in Exchequer Rolls of Scotland, Friar John Cor is the distiller
^Epic.
1792 Kentucky admitted as 15th US state
1796 Tennessee admitted as 16th US state
1808 1st US land-grant university founded-Ohio Univ, Athens, Ohio
1813 Capt John Lawrence utters Navy motto "Don't give up the ship
1843 It snows in Buffalo & Rochester NY & Cleveland Ohio
^Not important? Think about what day it is.
1880 US census at 50,155,783
1890 US census at 62,622,250
1938 Superman 1st appears in DC Comics' Action Comics Series issue #1




Word of the Day
from www.dictionary.com

threnody - a poem, speech, or song of lamentation, esp for the dead.



Personal
from the life & times of jessi bean
♥jmb♥

zomg!
My good friend, and excellent poet, Janeece, has allowed me to be the one to write her biography. I am epically honored.
Read her poetry here.
Wow.

♥john♥ will be here Wednesday night. yayz!





In the Spotlight
from the life & times of YOU!!

My nephew, Jake Flanders, is now on FaceBook. HA! We are gaining on you, MySpace. Oh wait. FB trumps MS any day. If you search him, he is the one with the spiky colorful face thing. Yeah.



Quotes
from http://www.corsinet.com/braincandy/miscsong.html

"All you touch and all you see is all your life will ever be." ~Breathe by Pink Floyd

"And if she asks you why you can tell her that I told you that I'm tired of Castles in the Air." ~Castles in the Air by Don McLean

"And the words of the prophets are written on the subway walls, and tenement halls, and whispered in the sounds of silence." ~Sounds of Silence by Paul Simon




Quotes
from random family, friends, overheard conversations, etc.

"Would you love a monsterman (monsterwoman in a guy's case), could you understand, the beauty of the beast?"
~from Lordi as requested by Scruffles (Xzavier)




WikiWikiWikiWiki
from www.wikipedia.org

A Jenny Haniver is the carcass of a ray or a skate which has been modified and subsequently dried, resulting in a grotesque preserved specimen.

One suggestion for the origin of the term was the French phrase jeune d'Anvers ('young [person] of Antwerp'). British sailors "cockneyed" this description into the personal name "Jenny Hanvers." They are also widely known as "Jenny Haviers".

For centuries, sailors sat on the Antwerp docks and carved these "mermaids" out of dried skates. They then preserved them further with a coat of varnish. They supported themselves by selling their artistic creations to working sailors as well as to tourists visiting the docks.

Jenny Hanivers have been created to look like devils, angels and dragons. Some writers have suggested the sea monk may have been a Jenny Haniver.




Nifty Websites

SEED
A truly fascinating website about science.



My Life is Average
from www.mylifeisaverage.com

Today, I learned that the prefix "sham" means fake. Apparently, I've been washing my hair with fake poo for sixteen years. MLIA

Friday night, my friends and I went out to eat. After eating we all went out to Dairy Queen for some desert. I had bought a bouncy ball from the place we had eaten so we were bouncing it off the table and trying to make cool shots. One of my friends hadn't had a turn to bounce it yet so I gave her the ball and said "Let's see what you got!" She proceeded to bounce it off of an empty bowl, off of the table, and straight into the open mouth of our other friend. She is officially a ninja. MLIA

Today, I woke up and there was a bagel under my pillow. There was also a banana in my toilet. I live alone. What? MLIA

The other day i wore my "I only date ninjas" shirt to school for the first time. The guy i REALY like came up to me and said "is that so"? then walked away. The next day he came up to me in a ninja holloween costume and said "now do i quallify to date you"? he is perfect.:D

Today I watched a German movie, with English subtitles... on the French channel. MLIA.




Learn From My Fail
from www.learnfrommyfail.com

If you find a dead carpenter bee in the garage and take it in the house so the kids can see it up close and not be afraid of them anymore, be prepared to have at least one of the children cry for half an hour over the dead bee. #LFMF

when using the disabled toilet because the other is in use, the big red cord is NOT the flush cord. #LFMF

Just because Violet Beauregarde says she sticks her gum behind her ear for safekeeping, it does not mean it’s a good idea. #LFMF




Text Faux Pas
from www.textsfromlastnight.com

(949):
The dentist just giggled when he accidentally shot water across my face, I can sense how he treats women.

(781):
I'm pretty sure I saw a man standing on a table with no shirt on getting sugar thrown at him while "pour some sugar on me" blaring while the cops were in the house.

(440):
omfg. get on facebook. the science olympiad team had a rave.

(412):
Turns out they use me as an example of What Not To Do at freshman orientation. My little brother told me.

(810):
Xanax and allergy medicine look a lot alike when you spill them on the floor. Just saying that I still have allergies but I'm unsure if I still have legs



Customers are Fun
from www.notalwaysright.com

No Fortitude For Longitude, Part 4
Call Center | Ohio, USA

(After unlocking the caller’s account and beginning to explain when it can be used.)
Me: “Okay, sir. The account will be unlocked in a half hour.”
Caller: “Okay, I’m in Florida, where y’all located?”
Me: “Sir, we are in Ohio.”
Caller: “Okay. So is that 30 minutes Central or 30 minutes Eastern?”



Chuck Norris!
from www.chucknorrisfacts.com

When Chuck Norris wants an egg, he cracks open a chicken.



The 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon

"Henry Rollins"

Henry Rollins was in Johnny Mnemonic with Keanu Reeves.
Keanu Reeves was in Something's Gotta Give with Paul Glaser.
Paul Glaser was in The Air Up There with Kevin Bacon.



Random Video Hilarity
from www.youtube.com

Thank you, Aaron Chandler, for finding this for me!
((WAIT FOR ITT.........................)))





Funny Pics
from the www.icanhascheezburger.com collection



see more Lolcats and funny pictures

see more

see more Lol Celebs

May 31, 2010

I am sleep-deprived & zoombehfied. (Thank you, Scruffles.)
So. If I messed up, please forgive me.

I need sleep.



Scary Spice's Songz

Johnny Cash by Jason Aldean
Nickajack Cave by Gary Allan
Johnny and June by Heidi Newfield

Monday Bonus
Ring of Fire by Johnny Cash

Memorial Day Bonus
Devils and Dust by Bruce Springsteen


Scruffles' Songz

Jenny Was a Friend of Mine by the killers
Time to Dance by Panic! At the Disco
Skulls by the Misfits

Monday Bonus
Scream by the Misfits




Holidaze
from www.brownielocks.com

*****Today is Memorial Day*****

Today is also World No-Tobacco Day.



Today in History
from www.todayinhistory.com

1678 Lady Godiva rode naked through Coventry in a protest of taxes
1790 US copyright law enacted
1868 First Memorial Day parade held in Ironton, Ohio
1884 Dr John Harvey Kellogg patents "flaked cereal"
1907 Taxis first began running in NYC
1917 First jazz record released (Dark Town Strutters Ball)
1941 First issue of "Parade" goes on sale
1985 41 tornadoes hit Northeast US, killing 88 (in Penn, Ohio, & NY)



Word of the Day
from www.dictionary.com

scuttle - to run with quick, hasty steps; scurry



Personal
from the life & times of jessi bean
♥jmb♥

So I attempted to write more in my book. That did not work out well, at all. But I did get offered the chance to write a biography for a good friend of mine. That is definitely an epic plus.

I pulled some cheats online for Scooby-Doo Night of 100 Frights. Something like that. As well as for Lego Star Wars. Yes, my son is playing video games. And I am listening to Chris LeDoux's This Cowboy's Hat.

I found a song called "North Dakota" by Chris Knight (singer, songwriter). It is...flooring. I don't know quite how to describe this song. Beautiful, haunting, raw, emotional. It is amazing.

I found her on the first warm day
The rain had washed the snow away
Went for wood and lost her way back home
And I ain’t the kind believes in ghosts
But some nights I get pretty close
When the North Dakota winter moans
When the North Dakota winter moans



Find more about Chris Knight at his website.




In the Spotlight
from the life & times of YOU!!

My sister, Lynette, is having some serious fun over there! Let's see. Will is getting married! Robert & Jessica are about to welcome little Maddie into the world. And! There's talk that she is moving to Las Vegas! You go, sis. I love you!



Quotes
from www.imdb.com

from the movie Fried Green Tomatoes (my all-time favorite movie)

A heart can be broken, but it will keep beating just the same. ~Ninny Threadgoode

You are absolutely, unconditionally, positively the most stubborn person I've ever known in my life! ~Grady Kilgore

See, now is a time for courage. I guess you already know that there are angels masquerading as people walking around this planet and your mom was the bravest one of those. ~Idgie Threadgoode



Quotes
from random family, friends, overheard conversations, etc.

"YOU ARE AN ORANGE"
~Scruffles (Xzavier)



WikiWikiWikiWiki
from www.wikipedia.org

Government Conspiracy Theories

The Philadelphia Experiment
The Philadelphia Experiment is the conspiracy theory regarding a naval military experiment at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, sometime around October 28, 1943, in which the U.S. Navy destroyer escort USS Eldridge was to be rendered invisible (i.e., cloaked) to human observers for a brief period of time. That is also referred to sometimes as Project Rainbow.

Montauk Project
The Montauk Project was alleged to be a series of secret United States government projects conducted at Camp Hero or Montauk Air Force Station on Montauk, Long Island for the purpose of developing psychological warfare techniques and exotic research including time travel. Jacques Vallée[1] describes allegations of the Montauk Project as an outgrowth of stories about the Philadelphia Experiment.

Great books to read:
Footprints of God by Greg Iles
The Philadelphia Experiment by William L Moore and
Charles Berlitz




Nifty Websites

Urban Dictionary
Sample
intexticated - describes people who drive while sending text messages on their phones.



My Life is Average
from www.mylifeisaverage.com

Last night I heard my brother get 'The Talk'. From his 6 year old son. MLIA

Today, me and my friend were looking a Facebook group called "IF i miss 11/11/11 11:11:11 I will be pissed". She looked confused, gasped and

asked me "WHEN IS THAT?" MLIA.

Today, I jokingly asked my elderly nerdy physics teacher if he had ever been in a gang...to which he replied "back in the day, me and a couple puerto ricans would go around and cause some mischief." I will never look at him the same again. MLIA

Today, I realized that the pokemon Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres end with uno, dos, tres. I didn't know pokemon were Spanish. MLIA

Today, my mother informed me that I was conceived in China. Even though I really didn't need to know that, now I kind of want a tattoo that says "Made in China"...MLIA



Learn From My Fail
from www.learnfrommyfail.com

If it looks like a potato, and acts like a potato, there is the distinct possibility that it is a moldy kiwi. #LFMF

If you have an indoor/outdoor cat who likes to hunt, keep your bedroom very clean. It will make finding the rotting, dead chipmunk she hid there much easier… #LFMF

Whether your parents know you are coming home at 3 am or not, do not use a flashlight to find the lock on the door. You mother will attack you with a rolling pin. #LFMF

When licking your finger to get a smudge off your child, NEVER re-lick your finger if it turns out to be stubborn. Also, never assume just because it’s on the arm, it’s not poop. #LFMF



Text Faux Pas
from www.textsfromlastnight.com

(720):
Downstairs neighbor just asked me to tell people when they jump off the balcony next time not to land on her flowers

(815):
Pretending to be straight requires way more energy than I'm willing to use in this heat.

(714):
i just opened the overnight bag i packed at 2am last night. Apparently all i thought id need was a handful of quarters, mascara and one sock




Customers are Fun
from www.notalwaysright.com

Pause For (Lack Of) Thought
Fast Food | Waukesha, WI, USA

Me: “Thank you for calling [Fast Food Restaurant]. How can I help you?”
Caller: “Yea, I’m calling about the nuts you put in my son’s ice cream.”
Me: “Um, sir, we don’t sell ice cream here.”
Caller: “Yeah, you did. I came in last night.”
Me: “Sir, this is [Fast Food Restaurant]. We don’t serve ice cream here.”
Caller: “Yeah, you do. For 49 cents. And you put nuts in my son’s ice cream! I’d like to speak to your manager!”
Me: “You’re speaking to her.”
Caller: “Oh, and you said you don’t serve ice cream here?”
Me: “No sir, we don’t. I think you needed the number for [other restaurant] across the street.”
Caller: You own both the restaurants?
Me: “No sir, we don’t. We’re just us.”
Caller: *long pause* “So what kind of desserts do you sell there?”
Me: “Cinnamon Twists.”
Caller: “I hate those things. What else you got?”
Me: “Cinnamon Twists. That’s it.”
Caller: “I heard you say that! What else do you have?”
Me: “That’s it.”
Caller: *longer pause* “Well, can you concoct something for me if I came in?”
Me: “No, sir, we can’t do that.”
Caller: “Oh…”
Me: “Was there anything else you needed help with?”
Caller: “No. Just to clarify, you don’t sell ice cream?”
Me: “That’s right.”
Caller: *long pause* “You should probably hang up now.”



Chuck Norris!
from www.chucknorrisfacts.com

Chuck Norris uses tabasco sauce instead of visine.



The 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon

"Channing Tatum"

Channing Tatum acted in A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints with Shia LaBeouf
Shia LaBeouf acted in The Battle of Shaker Heights with Kathleen Quintan
Kathleen QUintan acted in Apollo 13 with Kevin Bacon

^Ummm....grrr.



Funny Pics
from the www.icanhascheezburger.com collection





see more

see more





Bwa ha ha
Any suggestions? Let me know. Coming soon: Awkward? Or Not? from Scruffles & pals.

May 30, 2010

I know I already went through the whole "this is the first edition of the second style of dOrk fOrces" or something like that, but...
This is the first revamped issue.
Oh hell. Who am I kidding? I am just playing around with this DF blog thing because it's fun and I can.


**Carl Poole!....if you read this...that whole "How to Save Money" thing you posted on your status...yeah. How long you think you can come up with those? Cuz that was funny...**


The songs are being moved to the top of the page now, just in case you want to pull up the songs and listen to them while you are intaking your daily dose of dOrk.


MuZaK

Scary Spice's Songz

I Know You Want Me (Calla Ocho) by Pitbull
Hair In My Eyes Like a Highland Steer by Corb Lund
My Tree by Snoop Dogg

Sunday Remix
Losing My Religion - Arthur Project & Mike Tsoff Remix


Scruffles' Songz

We Ran Out of CD Space by Psychostick
Ring My Bell by Anita Ward
Jive Talkin' by Bee Gees




Holidaze
from www.brownielocks.com

5/9-6/20 is National Family Week.
Those who are close to me have lost those close to them recently. Don't forget to tell the ones you love that, well, you know. That you love them.

***Today is HUG YOUR CAT DAY***



Today in History
from www.todayinhistory.com

1868 Memorial Day 1st observed when 2 women in Columbus Mississippi placed flowers on both Confederate & Union graves

1908 First federal workmen's compensation law approved
1967 Robert "Evel" Knievel's motorcycle jumps 16 automobiles
1971 36 hospitalized during Grateful Dead concert; drunk LSD apple juice




Word of the Day
from www.dictionary.com

epoch - the beginning of a distinctive period in history



Personal
from the life & times of jessi bean
♥JMB♥

All day long I have been questioning the how of why I am awake. And yet, here I am, still awake. I am listening to remixes of Metallica, REM, and Sarah McLachlan on YouTube. I took a 15 minute doze earlier whilst watching Penguins of Madagascar with my son, but then I was awakened and got a second wind. That second wind has long since been hammered from me and I am just running on pure desire to not sleep.

Dang. I can be so stubborn.

Also, I stretched and possibly tore some scar tissue in my feet. It feels at once like I have multiple lacerations on my feet, as well as a possible dousing in rubbing alcohol followed by a lit match.
Owwie.

Oh yeah. Have a movie suggestion. Dragon Hunters. It's a cartoon/movie. With a purple bunny, wanna-be knights, and a precoscious little princess. I love that movie. It. Is. Epic.



In the Spotlight
from the life & times of....YOU!!

Okay. Since I am no longer sending these out from my work e-mail, please contact me either at jysp1982@myspace.com, spydurpoet@gmail.com, or on FaceBook. On FaceBook you'll have to search me out under spydurpoet@yahoo.com

Send me your stories, your experiences, your "get this" moments (thanks, Stef-sis), your "awkward!" moments (thanks, Scruffles), and whatever and whatnot jazz and glitter you feel needs to go down in history because it is the epic-ness of your dailies that break the monotony of ours.

Don't forget pictures!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes, I am drunk on lack of SLEEP so if that made no sense, it probably didn't. But you get the gist, yeah?



Quotes
from http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?id=149998542119

^Yeah. So liked that.
I won't be posting from there in the future, but I had to let ya'll know it is out there. :)

What's the use? I shall never be shaking my booty or anything else ever again. What´s the point? It's not the same without my Lemmy. ~King Julian

This is the most advanced encryption I've ever seen. It's got sudoku with fractions! ~Kowalski

In case of a loss of oxygen, please place your masks over your faces to hide your terrified expressions from the other passengers. ~Private




Quotes
from random family, friends, overheard conversations, etc.

"You know, theres like a million things wrong with Flo-gay-bots song that says that he can ride a bike with no handle bars. NO YOU CANNOT! You are teaching kids wrong, how are you supposed to turn?! If you can do that -- then I can cook without fire and pots/pans, read without text involved, and beat someone to a pulp... WITH MY MIND! Oh, and I would be able to walk with nothing but a head, neck, and torso. BUH-BLAAAAAM!"
~Scruffles/Xzavier



WikiWikiWiki
from www.wikipedia.org

***Special thanks to Daniel Poole for providing the links and the excellent suggestion to feature lost, forgotten, abandoned places, ghost towns, etc.***

Hashima Island
I couldn't find one paragraph that I wanted to post in its entirety without wanting to post the whole page, so here are the highlights. Please take note that these are exact quotes from the page unless otherwise noted.
*Hashima Island is one of about 505 uninhabited islands in the Nagasaki Prefecture about 15 kilometers from Nagasaki itself.
*As petroleum replaced coal in Japan in the 1960s, coal mines began shutting down all over the country, and Hashima's mines were no exception. Mitsubishi officially announced the closing of the mine in 1974, and today it is empty and bare, which is why it is called the Ghost Island. Travel to Hashima was re-opened on April 22, 2009 after more than 20 years of closure.
*The island has been featured in numerous films, such as the 2003 film Battle Royale II: Requiem. The 1949 film Midori Naki Shima (The Greenless Island) was also shot on Hashima Island. The island is also the setting of the final stage in the 2005 video game killer7, where it is strictly referred to as Battleship Island. It was also referenced in the manga Midori Days and the anime Get Backers.
*The video game Forbidden Siren 2 takes place at Yamijima Island, that was directly modeled after Hashima Island.
*The island is increasingly gaining international attention not only as one of the modern international heritages in the region, but also as the housing complex remnants in the years from Taisho Era to Showa Era. Moreover, the island has become the frequent subject of a discussion among enthusiasts for ruins.



Centralia, Pennsylvania
*Centralia is a borough and ghost town in Columbia County, Pennsylvania, United States. Its population has dwindled from over 1,000 residents in 1981 to 12 in 2005[1] and 9 in 2007,[2] as a result of a mine fire burning beneath the borough since 1962. Centralia is now the least-populous municipality in Pennsylvania, with four fewer residents than the borough of S.N.P.J..
The borough was also a hotbed of Molly Maguires activity during the 1860s and 1870s. The borough's founder, Alexander Rea, was one of the victims of the secret order when he was murdered just outside of the borough on October 17, 1868.[4] Three individuals were convicted of the crime and hanged in the county seat of Bloomsburg, on March 25, 1878. Several other murders and arsons also occurred during this period.
*The only indications of the fire, which underlies some 400 acres (1.6 km²) spreading along four fronts, are low round metal steam vents in the south of the borough and several signs warning of underground fire, unstable ground, and carbon monoxide. Additional smoke and steam can be seen coming from an abandoned portion of Pennsylvania Route 61, the area just behind the hilltop cemetery, and other cracks in the ground scattered about the area. Route 61 was repaired several times until its final closing.



Prypiat
**Daniel, when you mentioned this, I thought it sounded familiar. In "The Last Oracle" by James Rollins (I think Galvan has my copy), that place is mentioned, along with some other very interesting places. Check out the synopsis online somewhere, and if you're interested in reading it, I think Chris is done. Just get it from him. Excellent, fascinating, interesting book. Yes.

*Prypiat was founded in 1970 to house the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant workers, officially proclaimed a city in 1979, and was abandoned in 1986 following the Chernobyl disaster.
*A mission in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare takes place in Prypiat, where the player is tasked with sniping a target and then exfiltrating near the Ferris wheel. At one point, Captain MacMillan, the leader of the mission, remarks, "Look at this place. 50,000 people used to live in this city. Now it's a ghost town. I've never seen anything like it." The mission was especially notable due to the accuracy with which it portrays the city.



Pompeii
**I already included this in a previous dOrk fOrces, but it goes along with this section, so if you missed it, or if you feel like re-reading, there is it.


Nifty Websites

Number Nut
Click & see. :)




My Life is Average
from www.mylifeisaverage.com

Today, I went to a Dunkin Donuts drive-through. My dad decided to be funny and ask for a Big Mac and a Whopper Jr. The man at the other end of the drive-through proceeded to answer "Alright, that will be nine hundred and five dollars." MLIA

Today, I was play fighting with my dad. He made his hand into a gun and shot me, so I cocked my 'shotgun' and fired at him. He then shot me with a 'rocket launcher'. I tried to die in a dignified way but fell off my chair laughing. I'm 24. I love my dad. MLIA

Today, I saw and advertisement for non-drowsy sleep aids. MLIA

I saw a Chuck Norris fact that said, "Chuck Norris is the reason Waldo hides." No wonder Waldo is such a good hider. MLIA

Today, I was extremely tired, and making a grilled cheese. When I was done, I cleaned up the kitchen and went to watch T.V. My mom went into the kitchen, then came back and said, "You'd better see this." Apparently I put all of the dirty dishes in the fridge, and the ketchup and cheese in the sink. Fail. MLIA
^^:: nodding head vigorously :: I've done this! Or something similar. I think it was with orange juice.



Learn From My Fail
from www.learnfrommyfail.com

If someone calls your office and asks to speak with Dick, don’t say "do you know his last name? There are a lot of dick who work here," at least not when your boss is within hearing range and has a mouth full of coffee. #LFMF

Scaring a friend walking by herself on a dark street is a bad idea. Scaring a friend who can readily use tae-kwan-doe to kick your ass when grabbed from behind is an even worse idea. #LFMF

Never toast a marshmallow over the stove flame on a fork and then eat it. 4 burn lines on my lips for days. #LFMF

Always remember that catnip is in the mint family of plants. A nice, relaxing, peppermint scented pedicure will end with the cat violently attacking and licking your feet. #LFMF

If your boxers seem to be roomier than normal in front, yet are riding up your butt crack, they’re on backwards. #LFMF



Text Faux Pas
from www.textsfromlastnight.com

(602):
You'll be the guy with the raft that sells burritos on the river. You'd be legendary.

(951):
my dentist asked me why my tooth was chipped, i told him i couldn't remember. i think he understands.

(210):
Went to use to bathroom and walked in on karaoke. Two girls singing "a whole new world" to each other in the shower. I'm gonna miss this place in the summer

(210):
Somebody was walking their dog with their car. seriously





Chuck Norris!
from http://www.chucknorrisfacts.com/

Chuck Norris never wet his bed as a child. The bed wet itself out of fear.



The 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon

Johnny Depp --> Kevin Bacon

Johnny Depp was in Once Upon a Time in Mexico with Cheech Marin
Cheech Marin was in Masked and Anonymous with Ed Harris
Ed Harris was in Apollo 13 with Kevin Bacon

^I promise I am not intentionally linking everything to KB thru Apollo 13.


Funny Pics
from the www.icanhascheezburger.com collection of websites






^^The RED SQUIRREL (( :: sigh :: from Penguins of Madagascar?? Yes? No? I know. I am a dOrk))

Thank you! Thank you! I am here for all eternity!!

♥jessi