Quoted - Paul Schmidtberger on Design Flaws of the Human Condition

“And then one student said that happiness is what happens when you go to bed on the hottest night of the summer, a night so hot you can't even wear a tee-shirt and you sleep on top of the sheets instead of under them, although try to sleep is probably more accurate. And then at some point late, late, late at night, say just a bit before dawn, the heat finally breaks and the night turns into cool and when you briefly wake up, you notice that you're almost chilly, and in your groggy, half-consciousness, you reach over and pull the sheet around you and just that flimsy sheet makes it warm enough and you drift back off into a deep sleep. And it's that reaching, that gesture, that reflex we have to pull what's warm - whether it's something or someone - toward us, that feeling we get when we do that, that feeling of being sad in the world and ready for sleep, that's happiness.” 

                   - Paul Schmidtberger from his book, Design Flaws of the Human Condition

Another Britney???

What the hell is going on with the Biebs lately?  Is he going through a celebrity breakdown or something.  Oh-Oh, not another Britney!!!  Poor Justin, he was sick, he wasn't allowed into a club - geez  -- Things are just not well with him.

Isn't This The Truth? Then & Now

LMAO!

I'm laughing, because these are so true!  Many of you can probably relate to these creative illustrations from Caldwell Tanner over at College Humor.  The following images take a look back at what it was like to sleep, cook, shop, clean, bathe or correspond to one another, versus today.

 

 

 

 

Saturday Morning Coffee Break: Bucket List Night

So this week I thought I'd pull away from the norm and show a comedic short with gay undertones.  Grab your Java, sit back and enjoy this week's Saturday Morning Coffee Break!

Soren and Dan are your quintessential straight best friends who sit down to go over each other's "Bucket List".  Unbeknownst to them they learn things about one another they probably wished they'd never known. LOL.

For those who don't know what a bucket list is; It's a list of things you wish to do before you die, hence the idiom "kicked the bucket".  Check it out, it's pretty funny.

If you wish to look back at some previous issues, click my logo below and enjoy.   

 

Make sure to check out Saturday Morning Coffee Break every Saturday for another classic or current gay short film.

Some Pretty Cool Stuff - Issue No. 009

I have Some Pretty Cool Stuff to show you guys and gals today.  From lace anchors to a levitating mouse, these cool gadgets are just one step closer to your door.  Sure, they can't help you escape like the Titanium Escape Ring I posted last week, but they're items we all should have. :-)

The Breakfast Sandwich Maker by Hamilton Beach

Say what you will, but I got to have this breakfast sandwich maker.  I want it!  Goodbye Mc Donald's Egg McMuffin, hello Cocina De Don Pedro. LOL.  Read below and watch the awesome promo video below!

• Enjoy breakfast sandwiches in the comfort of your own home
• Ready in just 5 minutes
• Use your own fresh ingredients, including eggs, cheese & precooked meat*
• Make sandwiches with English muffins, biscuits, small bagels, and more
• All removable parts are dishwasher safe
• Surfaces are covered with durable, nonstick coating
• Cooks every layer of your breakfast sandwich to perfection:
  1. Top plate: gently toasts the bread on top and holds the heat inside
  2. Egg layer with slide-out egg plate: cooks a fresh egg perfectly, right inside your sandwich
  3. First layer: cooks the bottom half of your breakfast sandwich
  $30.00

BAT - The Levitating Mouse

This is only in it's beginning stages so you can't buy it at the moment, but it's definitely pretty cool and I wouldn't mind having one.  This would also be a great gift idea for anyone who suffers from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.  The mouse, created by Vadim Kibardin hovers over a mousepad using magnets - it's pretty darn impressive.
Check it out.

Lace Anchors 2.0

An awesome invention by Chuck Harris, this is something any of you will want.  And after you watch the video below you will want them even more.  Imagine never having to tie your shoelaces ever again.
$8, $10, $15, $17,or $20

Want "Some Pretty Cool Stuff"?  Click to see more.

Medical Masterpieces by Sarah Hargis

Regardless if you're in the medical profession or not, I highly recommend looking at these amazing drawings made by Sarah Hargis.  I had previously seen The Brain and The Nervous System but now she's gone and created The Human Heart, and I had to blog about her. 

Sarah is just a regular gal like you and I, she's a grad student at Virginia Tech and during her spare time she likes to draw and do "crafty things".  If you read her profile, she states that she drew these diagrams as a study guide for a friend of hers who is in medical school.  Personally, I can see this becoming really huge - really, really huge.  So I'm glad to be one of the first to blog about her. :-)  She recently created a site on Etsy and is now selling her Medical Masterpieces.  

Keep them coming Sarah!

 

A Very Special Moment - Issue #4: The Last Mile

Last night, Ryan and I were balling our eyes out after watching this astounding video.  And it isn't so much that it's a 15-yr-old boy sharing his feelings or his thoughts on a matter that is close to our hearts, but the fact the boy has the courage and willpower to stand up in front of hundreds of people and tell it like it truly is.

Watching this video last night made me witness the power of marriage, the power of love and the power of family come together; And it will for you too.  Watch this video, you won't regret it.   This truly is... A Very Special Moment.
 

Post Secret Fridays - Issue 107

PostSecret is an ongoing community art project where people mail in their secrets anonymously on one side of a homemade postcard.

See More Secrets. Follow PostSecret on Twitter.

Want to see older Post Secret Friday issues?
Click my Post Secret Logo Below.

Daylight Saving Time Explained

It's that time of year again.  Time to move your clocks forward one hour.  Yep, you'll be losing an hour of sleep and an extra hour at the bar.  LOL.  How many of you actually know why we even have Daylight Saving Time?  

If you've ever been curious, this video does a great job of explaining it.  The questions is... should we even have this ridiculous time change every six months, year after year? 

From the same guy who brought you  "2012 & The End of The World," comes this excellent video on Daylight Saving Time, and quite frankly, I learned more about Daylight Saving Time than I ever thought I knew.  Hope you enjoy it.

If you live in the United States make sure to move your watches and clocks forward one hour, starting Sunday, March 10th, at 2AM. Unless you live in Arizona or Hawaii.

If you liked this video you will definitely want to check out CGPgrey's other fantastic videos I previously blogged about. In addition to the one I highlighted above the video.

Coffee: The Greatest Addiction Ever
Daylight Saving Time Explained
Pennies Should Be Abolished
8 animal Misconceptions Rundown.
Primary Elections Explained 
10 Misconceptions Rundown

Quoted - Kristin Chenoweth on Being Anti-Christian

"I think it is very anti-Christian [to hate gay people]. It is the antithesis of what I believe. It is the antithesis of what you should believe if you believe in Jesus. It’s not what he taught, it’s the opposite of what he taught. If Jesus was to walk the Earth today, or Buddha or anybody, they would be horrified. Those people saying they’re doing it in the name of God? No no no no no. I speak as a Christian person, and as a woman and as an artist. I would love nothing more for my friends who love each other to get married. I don’t think it’s a sin, I think we’re born how we’re born. Look at me, I’m 4’11’’, and so if it was a sin to be short, what would I do? Well I’d just be, you know, it’s how God made me." 

- Kristin Chenoweth, in a recent interview with the Gay Star News.

Rates of Travel in The 1800's

And you get frustrated because it takes so long to get somewhere or hate standing in line at the airport.  Take a look at this map that uses New York as the starting point and continues as you go westward.  Using an excerpt from Mother Nature Network, "it took a whole day to barely get outside of the city; two weeks to reach Georgia or Ohio; and in five weeks, you could just about get to Illinois and Louisiana."

Can you imagine?  Most of you folks would die.  I was so frustrated when I left work yesterday and it took me an hour to get home.  And this is why I come in early and leave early.  While living back in the 1800's would be something I would like to experience for a day, a week, or two;  A lifetime would be excruciating.  Then again, I'd more than likely be shot, being that I'm Latino and all. LOL.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry in LEGO!

This is for you LEGO fans or anyone fascinated by anything made with LEGO bricks.  Alice Finch built this amazing, amazing replica of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry from the Harry Potter series.  It is absolutely stunning, and the amount of time she spent creating this masterpiece is almost unheard of.  She recently won the "People's Choice" and "Best in Show" award for this spectacular project.

Using 400,000 bricks, she created every nook and crevice you could think of.  From the Great Hall to the Quidditch Courtyard, Hospital Wing, Clock Tower and The Bridge.  I've included a few pics, but you can read more about Alice and her interview with The Brothers Brick here.

Magical Fun 101: The Invisible Driver

Let me start your day off on the right track.  Let's laugh, smile, and watch some Magical Fun!

You all remember Rahat, right?  He was the one who lit his wallet on fire, made a dollar float in mid-air, levitated a fountain drink and when reaching for his meal got static shocked in front of bewildered and confused drive-thru employees.  

Well, the fun and magic is about to continue as Rahat explains how he's going to play an invisible driver at several drive-thrus.  The video is hilarious and fun to watch.  If you haven't seen the others, you can view them by clicking on the links above.  Enjoy!

Quoted: Days of Future Past by Ryan Joseph Lopez

"You just can't debate with crazy, or practically anyone anymore. The world is changing for the better, but some people just can't accept that. All they have left to hold on to are their beliefs. When those once common ideas are now considered outdated, irrational and even hateful, and can be justly proven so, people get angry and desperate and will fight to the very end to protect an ideology that they hold sacred. It's an unfortunate sign of the most conservative parts of the Republican party. Never give up, never surrender, never admit you're wrong, just keep screaming nonsense until you drown out your opponent and every last one of his facts. Well I have a few facts to share myself: Gay people can get married without the sky falling or your family being affected in anyway, shape or form aside from the possibility of them not sharing your homophobic hate. Black people can be in charge of a country that once considered them property. Being a Liberal is not the same thing as being weak. Trust me. We fight against income inequality in the Occupy Movement. We fight for the right to unionize in Wisconsin, Indiana, Arizona and any other states controlled by a Republican majority that wishes for it to be a "right to work" state. We fight for the health of our women when conservative wolves in pink sheep's clothing attempt to break down Planned Parenthood. And we fight for our right to marry the person we love to not only receive the same benefits that everyone else gets, but to also simply show that we are no different from any straight couple and hence should not be treated differently as such. California is another footstep in the marathon that is the fight for marriage equality and gay rights everywhere. We will continue fighting. We are not weak. We are stronger than ever and we will fight for Obama this year and we will win. We must. This country needs to show the world that we stand for common sense, compassion and an ability to inspire hope in others by getting back up after being knocked down hard. Screaming at the top of your lungs until you can't hear the facts just won't do for this country of ours, and neither will defeat, hatred, or the desire to divide. We can come together to make sure our country continues to succeed and head in its' current, correct direction. We can vote for Obama 2012, because hope is nothing without people to believe in it and change is impossible without people to fight for it."  

- Ryan Joseph Lopez on Blade7184's post 

"Quoted: Miley Cyrus on Her Marriage Equality Tattoo"

Cyanide and Happiness: You Did What?

Keeping It Old Skool - Issue No. 12 - The Giving Tree

Geez, okay it's been over a year since a posted an issue of "Keeping It Old Skool" so I want to start my first issue of 2013 with a book I will remember forever.

I can honestly say,  I would be hard-pressed to find anyone who has never read "The Giving Tree," "Where The Sidewalk Ends," "The Missing Piece," or "A Light In The Attic".

The children's books written by the late Shel Silverstein became a staple in every child's classroom .  We either read them at the park, with our friends, or at bedtime when our parents put us to sleep.  And while today we can read them with our iPhones or iPads; They can never replace the actual books themselves.  I still have mine.  

One of my favorite books, "The Giving Tree" was recently named the Teacher's Top 100 Books for Children and is one of the Top 100 Picture Books of all time.

I remember reading this for the first time and balling my eyes out.  I was furious at the boy who took apart this giving tree limb for limb,  And yet the tree loved the boy from adolescence to adulthood.  The tree literally gave all it had.

"The book details the events occurring throughout the life of a small boy, and the friendship that he shares with a tree—with which he is apparently able to communicate. In his childhood, he enjoys climbing her branches and enjoying imaginative play with her; however, as he gradually passes into maturity his requests from the tree change. After entering adolescence, he requests to pick her apples with which to make profit, and after reaching adulthood he cuts down the tree's limbs to construct a house. Years later, he returns to the lonesome Giving Tree as an old man to cut her down and use her wood to craft a boat with which to sail away, after the maturity of his family, reducing her to nothing more than a stump. However, eventually he returns to his friend, asking for a resting place, and peacefully drifts off to sleep on the tree stump." [source]

This book and countless others have helped guide me through life and it will be part of those memories I will honor and cherish forever.  If you've never read them, and I can't believe you haven't, click on the book titles above.

What a Hot Mess: Boyfriend Pushes Girlfriend Off a Cliff

What a hot mess of a boyfriend.  LMAO.  

OMG, I would die.  But I guess for those who skydive, tightrope between high-rises, or mountain climb - it's no big deal.  But if Ryan pushed me off a cliff our relationship would be over; Plain and Simple.

The Joys of Being a Parent: Tooth Fairy, I'm Not Mad

A 7-yr old girl left a note for the Tooth Fairy and it was simply adorable.  I had to include it as part of "The Joys of Being a Parent," because boy, it surely is!

Things We Can Do To Save The Environment - Issue No. 11 - Take Another Look at Vintage Clothes

So you may think I'm a crazy nut for saying this, but I like going to second-hand stores.  Yes, I'll admit it.  I like looking for anything vintage; Whether it be clothing, antiques or little knick-knacks here and there.  But little do you know that by me purchasing these items the second time around I am helping the environment.

Giving credit to TIME,  I'd like to thank them for showing us the many ways we can help save the environment.  Just one person can make a difference, and it starts with YOU!  
                                                   ~ Peter aka Blade7184  

11. Take Another Look at Vintage Clothes

High-end hand-me-downs (the smart set calls them vintage) are more ecologically sound than new clothes. Why? Buying a shirt the second time around means you avoid consuming all the energy used in producing and shipping a new one and, therefore, the carbon emissions associated with it. Every item of clothing you own has an impact on the environment. Some synthetic textiles are made with petroleum products. Cotton accounts for less than 3% of farmed land globally but consumes about a quarter of the pesticides. One quick way to change your duds: invite friends over for a closet swap, to which everyone brings a few items they want to trade. It's easy on the environment—and your pocketbook.

Make sure to follow Blade 7184 every Tuesday for a new issue of Things We Can Do To Save The Environment.  Each issue is thought-provoking, informative and may hold the key to saving your children and grandchildren's future.

Please feel free to click on my logo to read any of the back-issues.

The Culling - The Torch Keeper (Book One)

Courtesy of Michelle Visage over at WOW, I came across her post yesterday and wanted to share it with any Hunger Games fan or folks who like to read books.

"If you loved The Hunger Games and other dystopian reads, you will absolutely FLIP over The Culling. Here is the official blurb:

“Recruitment Day is here…if you fail, a loved one will die… Lucky will do everything he can to keep his brother alive, even if it means sacrificing the lives of other Recruits’ loved ones. What Lucky isn’t prepared for is his undeniable attraction to the handsome, rebellious Digory Tycho. While Lucky and Digory train together, their relationship grows. But daring to care for another Recruit in a world where love is used as the ultimate weapon is extremely dangerous. As Lucky soon learns, the consequences can be deadly….”

As you can see, The Culling has a gay lead character and it’s about damn time. The author was told that no one would buy a book with a gay main character and was asked several times to either change the character’s gender or make him hetero, and Steven refused and stood by his convictions. Let’s celebrate this advancement as a community and support author Steven Dos Santos by buying a copy of this amazing book. Available today on Amazon.com in both book and Kindle form and coming to stores nationwide on March 8." 
                                                         - Michelle Visage