Male Restroom Etiquette

Happy 50th Post To Me!! :-)

Male Restroom Etiquette
Why you never talk in a mens restroom

Housewarming Party! - Reminder

Might be more of a 'Show-'n'-Tell'/Tour/Walkthrough kinda thing. But who knows! My family will probably turn it into a big blow out...I hope it's a least a little worth wild! Will at least get a chance to piss off the neighbors when I run through some Home Theater/Audiophile demos :-D

It happens just one week from today!

Sunday, Oct 1, 2006 - Noon-6pm

Hope to see everyone here!

That Strange Falling Sensation

One of lifes weirdest little things! I haven't had this happen to me in a while. Typically, though, when it does happen, I'm 'dreaming' that I'm stepping off a street curb without judging the depth of the step, resulting in a over exertion, stepping down too hard. Then I 'JERK!' Then I have to try to fall asleep again.
I used to think that this was all in my mind and I never actully moved.
Interesting stuff! I love researching odd little things like these...
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Do you ever wake up suddenly to a falling sensation and a strong muscle twitch just after you have fallen asleep?

This strange falling sensation and muscle twitch is known as a hypnagogic myoclonic twitch or “Hypnic jerk” If this has happened to you on more than one occasion, don’t worry, you are not alone. Close to 70 percent of all people experience this phenomenon just after nodding off, according to a recent study at the Mayo Clinic.

Most experts agree that this is a natural part of the sleeping process, much like slower breathing and a reduced heartbeat. The occurance is well known and has been well documented. However, experts are still not completely sure why the body does this.

The general consensus among researchers is that, as your muscles begin to slack and go into a restful state just as you are falling asleep; your brain senses these relaxation signals and misinterprets them, thinking you are falling down. The brain then sends signals to the muscles in your arms and legs in an attempt to jerk you back upright. This misinterpretation that takes place in your brain may also be responsible for the “falling” dreams that accompany the falling sensation. These “dreams” are not really normal dreams, as they are not produced from R.E.M sleep, but rather more like a daydream or hallucination in response to the body’s sensations.

SleepingWhile this phenomenon happens to most everyone, studies have recently begun to link occurrences of “Hypnic jerks” to sleep anxiety, fatigue, and discomfort. People who are having trouble sleeping or can’t get comfortable in bed appear to experience the sensation more often throughout the night. It is especially more common with people who are trying to fight falling asleep or have deprived themselves of sleep for more than 24 hours.

Researchers believe that the lack of sleep from sleep anxiety or sleep deprivation confuses the muscles and the brain. The muscles continually attempt to relax and shut down for rest, while your brain remains awake creating continued “misinterpretations” of falling or loss of balance.

Scientists and researchers continue to study sleep twitching and jerking in a small capacity, but state that the sensation is completely normal for our bodies and is “of little medical significance”. Our bodies go through several procedures of shutting down and preparing for an extended period of rest. “Hypnic jerking” is just one of them. It doesn’t appear to cause damage to body and poses no danger to our physical wellbeing. That may be true, but it could pose a significant danger to my bed when I mess my pants next time I wake up thinking I just fell off of a building.
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SOURCE:
http://www.failedsuccess.com/index.php?/weblog/comments/falling_sleep_hypnic_jerk

It's - An - Awe - some - Spec- ta - cle!

Home is where Heart is!

Forgot my camera!!! :-( So sorry, no pics as of yet, but I did find some pics on Flickr from their concert at Thunder Bay. Same stage, close to the same clothes they were wearing too!

Excellent concert! Could have listened to Ann sing all night! She NAILED the song Alone! The theatre was going nuts cheering and standing ovations through out the show.

Glad I finally got to see them! :-)

Green tea shown to prolong life in Japanese study

I love green tea! And white teas (similar to green tea, but 10x the antioxidants, more delicate, and sweeter tasting. Not to mention more expensive! Some cost up to $50, or more, an ounce!). Always nice to read about the benefits of tea, something you don't see in mainstream media too often.

Green tea shown to prolong life in Japanese study
September 12, 2006

A study of more than 40,000 men and women in Japan has found that those who drink a lot of green tea live longer, researchers said on Tuesday.

The investigation by Dr. Shinichi Kuriyama and colleagues at the Tohoku University School of Public Policy, Sendai, Japan, found the beverage was particularly effective in fighting heart disease but did not reduce the death rate due to cancer, as some earlier animal studies had suggested.

Polyphenols -- plant compounds known to be antioxidants -- found in green tea may explain the life prolonging benefit it confers, said the study published in this week's Journal of the American Medical Association.

The 11-year study was conducted in northeastern Japan, a region where 80 percent of the population drinks green tea and more than half drink three or more cups daily.

Those involved in the study ranged in age from 40 to 79 and had no history of stroke, heart disease or cancer when the study began in 1994.

Those who drank five or more cups of green tea a day had a death rate overall and from heart disease in particular that was 16 percent lower than those who drank less than one cup daily, over the course of 11 years.

Over the first seven years of the study the death rate of the heavy tea drinkers was 26 percent lower.

Where heart disease was concerned the effect was stronger among women than men in the study, perhaps because men were more likely to be cigarette smokers, the authors reported.

Tea of all kinds is the most consumed beverage in the world aside from water, while heart disease and cancer are the two leading causes of death worldwide.

The authors said the apparent protective effect found was not likely to be the result of tea drinkers in the study somehow being more health conscious, since almost all Japanese consume green tea as one of their favorite beverages regardless of their other health habits.

The study was paid for by Japan's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.
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SOURCE News:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060912/hl_nm/tea_dc&printer=1
SOURCE Image:
http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/pic/EDL/7197_cat~Green-Tea-Posters.jpg

Singin' in the Rain!

In honor of our lovely rain today...

VW has the best marketing team in the world!! (Well, maybe not, Apple is pretty durn good too!)

I've seen this video many times. It is one of the most entertaining commercials I've ever seen. The popping dancer, David Elsewhere, rocks!

Housewarming Party!

I've set a time and date for my Housewarming Party!

It'll be Sunday, October 1 from Noon to 6pm.

Everyone's invited! Hope to see you there!

SimCity Classic Live! - Free and Online!

Too cool! Anyone who had spent hours and hours on their old 386 and 486 procs can take a walk down memory lane!

http://simcity.ea.com/play/simcity_classic.php

Requires ActiveX. Sorry my fellow wise web surfers...only runs on IE :-(

Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter, has Died

So sad. This man had nothing but passion for life and what he did. A truly tragic loss...

Steve Irwin dead
September 04, 2006 01:56pm (Austrillia)

The Crocodile Man, Steve Irwin, is dead. He was killed in a freak accident in Cairns, police sources said. It appeared that he was killed by a sting-ray barb that went through his chest, Queensland Police Inspector Russell Rhodes said.

He was swimming off the Low Isles at Port Douglas where he had been filming an underwater documentary when it occurred.

Ambulance officers confirmed they attended a reef fatality this morning at Batt Reef off Port Douglas.

Mr Irwin, 44, was killed just after 11am, Eastern Australian time.

His American wife Terri learned for the tragedy from police in Tasmania, where she had been trekking in Cradle Mountain National Park.

His friend and manager John Stainton said Mr Irwin was filming some segment for daughter Bindi's show on the reef between sessions filiming the main documentary.

It is understood Mr Irwin was killed instantly.

A source said Mr Irwin was already dead when his body was brought onto the Isle.

A source said Mr Irwin's body was being airlifted to Cairns Hospital in North Queensland for formal identification.

An Emergency Services Response Management spokeswoman said they received a call about the tragedy at 11.11 am, Australian Eastern Standard Time.

The response unit left in a helicopter for the Batt Reef at 11.18am and arrived shortly after.

Mr Irwin was pronounced dead at the scene immediately, the spokeswoman said.

Steve Irwin's activities went far beyond his universally-known roles as an international TV star and owner of Australia Zoo, north of Brisbane.

They includes assisting Australian Quarantine Inspection service with advertising campaigns warning travellers not to bring foreign matter into the country, and he was becoming a vocal critic of the slaughter of Australian wildlife.

The federal government recently dropped plans to allow crocodile safaris for wealty tourists in the Northern Territority after Irwin intervened, taking Environment Minister Ian Campbell on a tour of croc infested Cape York.

At the time, Irwin told Australian TV program A Current Affair that: ``Killing one of our beautiful animals in the name of trophy hunting will have a very negative impact on tourism, which scares the living daylights out of me.''

The Prime Minister John Howard considered Irwin a friend, inviting him to a barbecue at The Lodge for US President George W. Bush in 2003.

Irwin was a devoted father to his two children Bindi, 8, and Bob, 3.

"Bindi is the reason I was put on this earth. All I want to do is be with her and all she wants to do is be with me. We have such a great time together and it's not just a father and daughter relationship, it's also like I'm a big brother and she's my little sister,'' he told New Idea magazine in 2005.

However the previous year Irwin had created a furore when he took 'Baby Bob' into Australia Zoo's crocodile enclosure while feeding a four-metre salt water crocodile.

Irwin burst onto the media scene with his documentary The Crocodile Hunter in 1992, and his over-the-top persona soon made him a star. In 2002 he burst on to the big screen on Crocodile Hunter: The Collision Course, soon achieving A-list fame.

His celebrity friends include Russell Crowe.

Despite his worldwide popularity, closer to home Irwin got bad press after he was controversially paid $175,000 for a quarantine ad.

Irwin was named Queenslander of the Year in 2003.

SOURCE:
http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,20349534-952,00.html

Gobble Gobble: A Great Bush Impersonation

Hate him or like him, you gotta give some credit to this guy, he pulls off a Bush impersonation better then anyone! Very funny:

Zelda Wall Hanging

There's a few readers out there that may appreciate this. Yes, it's the style from Wind Waker, a style widely unliked by Zelda fans. I for one, though, loved Wind Waker! Anyway....


Zelda wall hanging
Brian Easton commissioned his mom to make this beautiful Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker quilt. From his Free Play post about this textile masterpiece:

The quilt took several months to finish and uses several different techniques. On my end the hardest part of the process was creating a black and white image with simplified design elements. After that I created several different colour schemes (some with the intention of making the quilt "easier" to make) and eventually settled on one that was similar to the original design. The black and white outline was then transferred to an overhead transparency and enlarged. From there the pieces were made while I played the waiting game and received tantalizing email updates somewhat akin to a reverse ransom demand as I saw bits and pieces of Link come together rather than fall apart.

SOURCE:
http://www.boingboing.net/2006/09/01/zelda_wall_hanging.html