Carol's Chaotic Collection of Curiosities

Tue, 25 Oct 2005 20:41:17 GMT

Checking In

Well, I'm still too broke to renew or pay for more space here. So for the time being, I'm blogging at The Temporary Squirrel. See you there.

Note: I actually posted this on 25 October but for whatever reason, it's showing up for 25 August. Not going to mess with troubleshooting right now. Just thought you should know.

Fri, 26 Aug 2005 01:14:58 GMT

Not Vanishing on Purpose

Well, after reinstalling Radio I seem to be out of space. And out of money to buy more space right now. (How the files that were re-uploaded can take up almost 5 MB more space than they did the first time is beyond me.)

I'm just hoping this brief message will post!

Fri, 05 Aug 2005 03:44:40 GMT

Miscellany

Imagine trying this in the Majors! - Umpire Bans Youth Team From Speaking Spanish on Field

Let the punishment fit the crime - Student Sentenced to Vomit Cleanup

A rookie mistake - Police Dog Attacks Officer Instead of Suspect

Did anybody get any DNA samples?! - Unidentified Sea Creature Found After Typhoon

Duh! - Duwamish Crab, Fish Are Unsafe to Eat, State Warns

Thu, 28 Jul 2005 19:31:29 GMT

How Weird Are You?

You Are 50% Weird

Normal enough to know that you're weird...
But too damn weird to do anything about it!

How Weird Are You?

Sat, 23 Jul 2005 00:20:35 GMT

A Bad Call

Yuck! This is the ad that just showed up with the AP World News feed:

ADV: Discreet Adult Personals at -----. Intimate, anonymous and millions of sexy singles. Register and browse 1000s of ads today then find a new lover tonight at -----.com!

Guess I expected a bit more taste from a major news source.

Thu, 14 Jul 2005 07:35:22 GMT

Road Hazards!

Again, but I Have an Excuse

Airborne Car Lands on Sleeping Man - photo

Another WhackMobile

Banned Driver Given Choice of Bail or Jail

Bear Roams Auto Dealership

Blingbling Pimp Car

Brazil Star Robbed During Interview

Bridge Raised for Tall Ships, Stays Up for the Birds

Bus Chiefs Slam the Door on Fraudsters and Fare Dodgers

Bush Begins Trip With a Thud, Crashing Bicycle Into Policeman

Car Covered in Computer Keys
Homer Simpson Computer Key Car
Computer Key Car Mosaic Maker Speaks Out!

Car-Crash Investigators Partner With Computers

Car Dealers Beware

Car Vs. Truck

Check the Rules Before You "Pimp" Your Ride

Chicken Little - another photo
Chicken Little II

CPS Goal to Prevent Hot Car Deaths

The Daily Commute

D.C. Chief's Vehicle Snatched
Ramsey Car Theft Generates Laughs, if Not Leads

Don't Box Me In

Driver Caught in Ticket Trap

Driver Remains Free After Killing Unborn Child in Car Crash

Drivers, Police Need to Know Laws

Drivers Put in Danger by Garages That 'Fail to Service Cars Properly'

Drivers to Take Orders From Fawlty

Driving and Throwing Cans at Highway Signs Do Not Mix

French Fry Holder

Garage Floor Collapses, Taking New SUV With It

Getting Quick Cash for Cars

Guided Buses Bump to a Halt

Hacking Up a Lung - or Two

Hooked!

'Horrible, Horrible' Tragedy

How a Greer, SC Police Officer Witnessed for the Baptists

How to Buy a Used Car Without Getting Screwed

I-5 Speed Will Drop

Introducing... White Zombie!

Issues Thorny for Older Drivers

Jury Sends a Message in Case Involving Teen's Cell Use

Leave the Scene!

Life's Not Such a Gas for Men Who Fill Their Cars With Wrong Fuel

A Long Time Ago...

Man Swallows Key, Locksmith Uses X-Ray

Meanie Drivers

Messenger Family Celebrates Small Victories

'My Ferrari's Too Slow'

New York's "Natural Wonder": Street Sinkhole

No Sign of a Line.. but That's Fine for Wardens

Now Arriving on Your Doorstep

Out of Control

Overnight Chase, Crash Injures Resident

The Parking-Building-Built-on-the-Stream's Cup Runneth Over

Parking Lots Paving the Way for Pollution

Police Cruiser, Car Crash Into House

The Power of 'Sorry'

Private Toll Roads

Public Service Announcement - Don't Be Stupid Like Smoochdog

Push Is on to Boost Use of Corn-Based Fuel in Vehicles, Well, Sort Of

Rancher to Stand Trial in Auto-Cow Fatality

Red-Light Cameras Stop Rolling in N.Va.

Roads and Rails

Schools Get Graphic on Safety

Secret CIA Conspiracy Revealed on Abandoned Car

Sinkhole Jams Traffic in Maryland

Slow Down, Triangle

A Small Tactical Nuke Is Called For, I Think

Special Courts Could Cut DUI Toll, Say Advocates

State Patrol Captain Saves Woman's Life in I-5 Crash
'He Took It Upon Himself to Stop and Help Me'

Sunnyvale Traffic Signal Prankster on the Loose

Suspects Thought Police Couldn't Chase

SUV Rollover Ratings Show Improvements

Time to Watch How and What We're Driving

Traffic School Moves to the Web

Traffic Stop Reveals Body

Troopers Using New Laser Equipment to Catch Speeders

Trucking Industry Challenges Fingerprint Checks

Two Head-On Accidents Injure Several

2 School Buses Involved in Wreck

Uninsured Cars Face Crusher

Vandals Ransack Cars in Everett

Walkway Failure Shuts Laurel Mall

Watching Out for Bumps

Were Turn Signals Optional for Your Car Model That Year??

White Cars a Hit for Bird Droppings

White Flash in Stoplights Meant to Get Drivers' Attention

Who Needs a Humvee When You've Got This

Why Not Just Flush Your Money Down the Toilet?

Wrong Tyre Pressures 'Hit UK Motorists for £1 Billion'

Sun, 03 Jul 2005 16:26:30 GMT

Red Lights, Black Boxes, and Buicks

"What's next, a chip in our cars that tracks everything that we do wrong?" - Mark Stollenwerk

Well, since you asked... Same newspaper, same day:

The detective then removed the black box—actually silver, in this case—from the Buick's center console. The device helps deploy the car's air bags and monitors various systems. During a crash, it collects the last five seconds of data—ranging from the car's speed to its throttle position—and locks the information into its memory. Most General Motors and Ford vehicles carry such recorders. About 33 million cars on U.S. roads, or 15 percent, have them, according to the automotive industry. - Car-Crash Investigators Partner With Computers

Of course, countering Mr. Stollenwerk's contention that red light cameras violate civil liberties, my thinking is that if you're out in public, you should assume witnesses! Whether or not the witness is a camera is incidental.

Interestingly enough, the accident being investigated in the second article was caused by someone running a red light. I guess Mr. Stollenwerk will be more concerned about the rights of the driver who caused the accident (male, age 22—driving a Buick?!) than the rights of the victim, who was killed while following the rules. (Hmmm... Wonder if there was a red light camera in action at that intersection?)

P.S. I will concede that I am prejudiced against Buicks. Used to have a job where I was driving about 300 miles a day. One thing I learned from that experience is that Buicks seem to influence their drivers into all sorts of strange and annoying antics on the road! Actually, speeding to beat a light is the most normal thing I've heard of in the realm of Buick Behavior! That car going 20 miles under the speed limit with the signal flashing even though they don't turn? Probably a Buick. Those folks who stop at every light—even if it's green? Probably a Buick.

Sat, 25 Jun 2005 06:45:31 GMT

Miscellany

Politicians always call for "further information." And this time, I don't blame them. Further information would be helpful, all right. Too bad the paper didn't print any. - Ilyka Damen

Why stupid people run the world - Principal Urges Teachers to Pass Failing Students

Why stupid people run the world, part 2 - Should These People Be Voting

Hear! Hear! - Smoke Smells: A Minor Rant

This needs further investigation - My Little Bathroom Escapade

For Jerry - Punny

For Stuart (and Homer) - Over 200 Gallons of Animal Fat Spill

For Julia - Slush: Noted in Passing

For Marge Simpson - Brawny Man Takes to Web

We've got rat runs in the U.S., just not a name for them - Call for Speed Bumps to Keep Out Rat Runners

Another vocabulary lesson - No Chink in My Armour

Spanish lesson - A Friday Cubanism

I was talking recently to a family friend, a professional editor, about the essay section on the new SAT's. She suggested a reason for it that had not occurred to me: It gives the colleges an example of the student's writing that is guaranteed not to have been written by their parents. - Amanda Butler

Thu, 23 Jun 2005 22:18:54 GMT

Consumer Retorts

AARGH!! Lowe's
AOL's "Quit Now!" Incentive
Broken: American Airlines "Why You Fly" Contest
Broken TV Leads to Charges
Did I Ever Tell You How Much I Hate PG&E?
Happy Father's Day: Bank Rant
I Feel So USED!
I Want to Talk to a Person ...
Microsoft and Other Pains in the Butt
My Truck Story
24 Hour Dipshits
What We Have Here, Is a Failure to Manage Customer Expectations

Sat, 18 Jun 2005 07:59:30 GMT

Road Hazards!

£1.30 a Mile to Drive in a City at Rush Hour
      Drivers Could Be Tracked by Satellite & Taxed on Miles Driven Says DfT's Darling
...and I Was Very, Very Scared
Part 1: The Anguish of Senseless Deaths
      Part 2: Lives Shattered by Recklessness
      Part 3: A Murky Picture
Are Cops Nostalgic for the Old Days?
Ban Young Male Drivers, Says Judge
Barred From the Long Haul
Big Drop in Number of Children Killed or Badly Hurt on Roads
Bike Path Signs Point the Way to Vision of a Car-Free Future
Biker Watches £10,000 Blown Away
Blunder Clears Motorist Accused of Doing 156mph While on Mobile
Bothell Man Arrested After Drive-By Shooting
Boy Band Run Over Fan
Boy, 3, Found Dead in Day-Care Center Van
Bucks Official's Free Gas Pass Fuels Questions
Bugging Device Is Just the Ticket for Abused Traffic Wardens
Cable Barriers Are Flawed Technology
      Trooper's Remarks Were Inappropriate
Call for Speed Bumps to Keep Out Rat Runners
Car Drives Into Skippers Restaurant
      Driver Leaves Edmonds Restaurant in Shambles
Climate Neutral Driving Gets in Gear
Cars in China: Dream Machines
Crash
Crashes Bring Call for Rail Crossing Upgrades
Decorative Freeway Walls Prompt Debate
Doesn't Anybody Else Drive the Speed Limit These Days?
Don't Say You Weren't Warned
Double Trouble: Man Hit by Ambulance, Cab
Drivers Angry as Unsafe Wall Closes Rat Run
Drivers Pay £1bn a Year for Parking
Drivers Stuck With Traffic Nationwide
Driving Instructor and Pupil Banned Over 'Drink' Lesson
Driving Me Crazy
Drunken Student Died in Prank With Store Trolley
E. Greenville Man Crashes Into Store, Takes Register
Ehrlich Decries Seat Belt Patrol
Fairness of D.C. Speed Limits Debated
Fire Closes 8-Mile Tunnel in France
4 Teens Arrested for Throwing Eggs at Taxi
Free Metered Parking for Hybrid Cars
Girl, 6, Killed by Car While Trying to Save Turtle
The Give-Way Signs That Really Do...
Grid Schlock
How We Live: Metro Bus Stop, Third Avenue and Union Street, Downtown Seattle
Hurt Soldier Sues Over Stryker Seat-Belt Design
Hybrid Car Savings Don't Add Up
Identity Crisis
If You Had Any Doubts
'I'm Still Angry for What He Did to Donny'
Learn to Drive
Litter Bins That Kept Crashing Into Things
Magnetic Ribbon Rebel
Man Dies in Head-On I-5 Wreck
Motorcyclist Lands in Bed of Pickup Truck After Being Hit by Vehicle on Route 19
Mr Whippy Flaked Out
My Truck Story
Mystery Road Metal Baffles Japan
No Legal Reason to License This...
Officer Runs Over Hit-and-Run Victim
Open Source DUI
Park and Glide!
PC Drove at 112mph So Girlfriend Could Get Home for a Sleep
Phones Distract Drivers; Slow Reaction Time
Plant Carbs Harnessed to Power Cars
Police Ticket Cars in Lieu of Teens
Polite People on the Metro? What?
Poor Parkers Face Getting Tickets If They Stray Too Far From the Kerb
      Third of Cars a Foot Out of Place
Rounders
Run! Run! Go Without Me!
Salt Lake County Changes Police Chase Policy
Schadenfreude? Alas, No. Anthropology.
Scot Killed After Falling Asleep in Road
Seven Peugeot Cars Spontaneously Catch Fire in Denmark
Starting the Weekend Off With a Bang (and a Crash)
Stuff Happens ...
Texas Fog Light Laws
TOO Funny!!
Towtruck Driver Finds Body Missed by Troopers in Rear-Ended Van
Traffic Control
12 in Seattle-to-Vegas Rally Ticketed
Volvo Honors Local Hero With a New Car Every Three Years for Life
Ways to Smooth the Road When Driving Becomes Issue
What My Daddy Always Said
Whoa!
Wild Animals May Get Bridges to Cross I-90

Mon, 06 Jun 2005 18:18:06 GMT

The Animal Quiz

You're a Human!
With extreme power comes extreme destructiveness, and you've had plenty of both to share with your peers. While you're capable of a great deal of beauty and joy, your skill in creating misery seems almost boundless at times. You've made a big fuss about how you're smarter than everyone else, but all they can see is how you've used those smarts for ill. At this point, your best hope is to turn to those around you and start caring about them. It would also be advisable to get rid of some of your stuff, and preferably not by throwing it away.
Take the Animal Quiz at the Blue Pyramid.

Via Slat Rat