Tag Archive 'art'

oddments

Posted on 11 Aug 2008 at 10:15 pm | 21 comments so far

That’s an odd title, isn’t it? Why oddments? Oddments is a word that means remnants, leftovers, odds and ends, hodgepodge, etc. You get the idea. So… why oddments? What I’m posting today is little bits of stuff, none of which would make a real blog post, but they’re things just too good not to share! Mainly it’s stuff that I’ve received or found that has something to do with previous posts on my blog. I’ll put a link to the various posts that the oddments are related to. And some of it is simply interesting little oddments I’d like to share, not related to much of anything. Emphasis, I guess, on odd….

A while back I had a post called 10,000 words - 10 really crazy pictures, each worth 1,000 words. I have since learned that one of the pictures actually could/should have been part of a later blog post dangerous hike and freebies. Here’s the picture…

outhouse on the Mt. Huashan hike

Here’s another outhouse that could have been part of the post nice bathroom humor

double decker outhouse

That’s something we could all keep in mind as we go into the elections this fall!

Here’s a picture that could have been part of the post sign language The picture is of a martial arts school.

martial arts school signs

I ran across a neat picture that I think could make a great header picture for my blog (if it weren’t the wrong size and proportion, let alone all the potential copyright issues). Just think, instead of having an ancient gargoyle looking over the skyline of Paris, I could have Ratatouille looking at it from a different angle….

Ratatouille looking over Paris

My wife found a great recipe online for the ratatouille that Ratatouille made in that animated film. We love this dish and have declared it her recipe find of 2008! If you’d like to try it out, you can find it at http://smittenkitchen.com/2007/07/rat-a-too-ee-for-you-ee

I tried something new in the garden this year - Thai Red-Seeded Long Beans. They’re like the green beans we’ve eaten in China and like the ones in many Chinese buffets here in the USA. The name “long beans” is not an exaggeration! Here’s a picture of me measuring several against a yardstick. I don’t know if you can make it out in the picture, but the longer of the two beans measures 30 inches - 6 inches longer than they’re supposed to be! Just a couple of beans is enough for a meal for the two of us!

30 inch long beans

Recently I’ve found a couple of neat “toys” online. Anyone who reads my blog finds out pretty quickly that I am a word person. I love puns and other forms of wordplay. Well, here are several visual forms of wordplay. In both them them you can tweak the font and colors to your liking.

The first one is called Wordle. You can create your own “wordle” in several ways - either by pasting in “a bunch of text” (as they say) or by entering a URL. I chose the second, entering the URL of my most recent blog post last Thursday. Here’s the wordle of that post…

wordle of my post called English must be difficult

Another word toy I ran across is a text animator called textanim. Here’s my little creation from that site…

animated text of ivman's blague

Several weeks ago I had a post called t-shirt slogans. Someone sent me a great video clip on how to fold a t-shirt in seconds. It’s in Japanese (I think), but if you watch it a few times, you should be able to do it too. My wife has mastered the technique and says, “This has revolutionized my recreational laundry!” Click in the square below to start the video.


Now I think you’ll agree that my calling this blog post “oddments” (with a heavy emphasis on odd) was appropriate. I’m looking forward to some really odd comments now. :-D

quotation…

“Most problems in our lives go back to a false idea of who God is.” - Dr. Chris Barney

=^..^= =^..^=
Rob

If you tell a joke in the forest, but nobody laughs, was it a joke?

21 comments so far

t-shirt slogans

Posted on 22 Jul 2008 at 8:03 pm | 18 comments so far

My wife Becka and I have been talking about going to a Greenville Drive baseball game for a long time, but we just haven’t done it. After finding out in choir practice at church Sunday afternoon that my young friend Dan was going to be singing the national anthem at Monday night’s game, Becka and I talked about it half seriously in spite of being crazy busy. At the last minute Monday afternoon we decided we’d go to that game. (Such spontaneity, huh?!) Dan did a great job! (I knew he would because you know what the person who sits beside you in choir sounds like.)

There were a lot of things we enjoyed about our evening and a few things we could have lived nicely without, but all in all, it was a fun evening! One of the fun things was reading the slogans on the t-shirts people were wearing. Some of the t-shirts were among the things we could live nicely without, but some were clever and hilarious.

Here are some funny slogans from t-shirts. I also found some pictures of t-shirts online and add them to the mix.

fantasy baseball T

Volunteering: It doesn’t pay

Camping is in-tents!

South Korea’s got Seoul

You Have the Right to Remain Silent, So Please Shut Up!

I’d Kill for a Nobel Peace Prize

faux paw T

I’m Not Cynical - Just Experienced

Shin: A Device for Finding Furniture in the Dark

Out of My Mind - Will Be Back Shortly

If You Can Read This, My Wife Fell Off (on the back of a biker’s t-shirt)

goodbye cruel world T

I Used to Be Schizophrenic, but We’re OK Now

Don’t Treat Me Any Differently Than You Would the Queen

First National Bank of Dad - Sorry, Closed

In Dog Years, I’m Dead

Get a New Car for Your Spouse. It’ll Be a Great Trade

Kenya dig it T

It’s Hard to Be Nostalgic When You Can’t Remember Anything

Dinner Is Ready When the Smoke Alarm Goes Off

I’m Going to Graduate on Time, No Matter How Long It Takes

Anything Not Worth Doing Is Not Worth Doing Well

Your Village Called - Their Idiot Is Missing

lousy T

No, I’m Not on Steroids, But Thanks for Asking

I Am a Bomb Technician; If You See Me Running, You Should Keep Up

For Every Action, There Is an Equal and Opposite Government Program

I Don’t Suffer From Insanity - I Enjoy Every Minute of It

Missouri T

Nice Perfume - Must You Marinate In It?

I Hate Golf, I Hate Golf, I Hate Golf, NICE SHOT, I Love Golf…

Nobody Knows I’m Elvis

Those Who Live by the Sword Get Shot by Those Who Don’t

outstanding T

You Have the Right to Remain Silent - Anything You Say Will Be Misquoted, Then Used Against You

Actually, I Am a Rocket Scientist!

Blessed Are They Who Can Laugh at Themselves, for They Shall Never Cease to Be Amused

My Dog Can Lick Anyone

Prague T

I Got to Vietnam Before McDonald’s Did

I’d Quit This Job But I Need the Sleep

The Secret: Find an Age You Like and Stick to It!

I Am Not a Pack Rat - I Am a Collector

Today Was a Total Waste of Makeup

Wikipedia T

I’m Your Father, Not an ATM

I Got This Shirt When I Turned 40. I HATE This Shirt!

Never Underestimate the Power of Stupid People in Large Groups

Yes, It’s Lonely at the Top - But I Eat a Lot Better Than You

I Chose the Road Less Traveled - Now Where in the World Am I?

Buddah T

The Weather Is Here - Wish You Were Beautiful!

And You’re Telling Me This Because…

Don’t Make Me Put My Hand on My Hip

I Can Fix Anything - Where’s the Duct Tape?

I’m Only Wearing Black Until They Find Something Darker

My Cat Kneads Me

dyslexia T

Dad Knows a Lot, But Grandpa Knows EVERYTHING!

I’m Dressed and Out of Bed - What More Do You Want?

You’re Just Jealous Because the Little Voices Are Talking to Me

Now I Know Why Some Animals Eat Their Young!

earthquakes T

You Non-Conformists Are All Alike

If All the World’s a Stage, I Want Better Lighting

Our Lady of Perpetual Mood Swings

Below is a t-shirt slogan that I wanted to display larger so that the detail is more visible.

accuracy T

I never quite know what to wear when an invitation to an event calls for “dressy casual.” This t-shirt seems to be just the thing for such an occasion….

dressy casual T

Our daughter Nora loves t-shirts. Here’s a picture of her and her friend Beth in front of their world view classroom map of Europe. They have t-shirts to go with the theme. (For any readers who don’t know her, Nora’s the one on the right.)

Nora and Beth

If you’d like to read more t-shirt slogans, you can find them on my pre-blog archives at http://ivman.com/tshirts.html

Have you seen any great t-shirt slogans lately? Please add a comment and tell us what you saw.

quotation…

“Today we worship the earth and deny its Creator exists.” - Dr. Drew Conley

=^..^= =^..^=
Rob

Plan to be spontaneous tomorrow!

18 comments so far

art theft in Paris!

Posted on 24 Jan 2008 at 7:36 am | Be the first to comment!

Since many people know I’m a French teacher, they send me a lot of French-related news and humor. I’ve decided to post one of those news items to my blog today. Prepare yourself - this is pretty shocking!

A thief in Paris planned to steal some paintings from the Louvre.

After much careful planning, he craftily got past security, stole the paintings, and made it safely to his van. However, he was captured only two blocks away when his van ran out of gas!

When asked how he could mastermind such a crime and then make such an obvious error, he replied, “Monsieur that is the reason I stole the paintings.

I had no Monet

to buy Degas

to make the Van Gogh.”

This is Rob again. Hope that wasn’t too painful for those of you who aren’t into puns. I received what I’m posting today by e-mail from several people. I think none of them thought I would have De Gaulle

to post this on my blog, but I figured after everything else I’ve posted, what have I got Toulouse?

Many here in the US are enjoying a nice break from global warming recently with absolutely frigid temps. It’s supposed to get down into the teens here tonight! I know for some of you, that would be a nice spring day, but for those of us here in South Carolina, that is very cold!

For those of you who receive my blog posts by e-mail, any pictures that I include in blog posts should come through in the e-mail version. Some people have to click on something in their e-mail to make the images load. Sometimes that is found in a little bar at the very top of the e-mail - it all depends on the e-mail program you’re using. In the last week or so, I have also inserted a couple of video clips into my blog posts - one of tractor square dancing and another of a man singing the song I mentioned in my last blog post. In order to view those, you must go to the blog. You can do that by clicking on the words “latest post to ivman’s blague” or on the title of that blog post - both of those links are in the body of the e-mail message.

quotation…

“If heaven wouldn’t be heaven without God, how can this life be good without Him?” - Dr. Drew Conley

=^..^= =^..^=
Rob

Nothing is fool-proof to a sufficiently talented fool.

Be the first to comment!

really bad album covers

Posted on 02 Jan 2008 at 9:43 pm | 3 comments so far

I’ve really enjoyed having all my favorite music from the CD’s we own now on my new iPod. One of the features I haven’t taken advantage of yet is to download the artwork from the covers from iTunes.

The CD covers got me thinking about an e-mail I received recently that had some of the most ghastly LP album covers. Below are two dozen of what I think have to be among the worst album covers ever made! (Actually there are many that are even worse, but I would not include them on my blog.) Of course, by virtue of the fact that these are album jackets for LP records, that already dates them - you’ll definitely note some looks of by-gone eras. Some of these people obviously didn’t ask close friends or family if they should go with the picture they’d chosen.

I’m posting most of the album covers without comment. Some of the album jackets are immediately hilarious, but for others, you will have to look at carefully to see why they are just plain wrong! Some that I have included are not necessarily for the faint-hearted, though, so be forewarned! Scroll on at your own risk!

In the one below (I’ll translate the German), this album by Heino is called “Dear Mother… a bouquet that never withers.” Then in the little blue circle, it says, “A gift for the whole year”

quotation…

“You are stuck on stupid. I’m not going to answer that question.” - Lt. General Russel Honore, U.S. Army

=^..^= =^..^=
Rob

Write all complaints legibly in this space –> [ ]

3 comments so far

beauty and symmetry

Posted on 23 Sep 2007 at 7:45 pm | 3 comments so far

Today was the first day of autumn, though the temps in the low 90s here said otherwise. I was thinking about God’s creation and its wonderful orderliness, of which the changing of seasons is just one example. I received several things lately that went along with my pondering of the order and the beauty of the creation.

First, here are some of the pictures from an e-mail called “When God paints”

Part of the beauty in what God created is not just the colors He chose, but also the symmetry and design, as seen in the two pictures below…

God’s universe is mathematical. Though students may beg to differ, I must say that math has a beauty all its own, as you’ll see from the contents of an e-mail I received recently.

Examples of the beauty of math…

1 x 8 + 1 = 9

12 x 8 + 2 = 98

123 x 8 + 3 = 987

1234 x 8 + 4 = 9876

12345 x 8 + 5 = 98765

123456 x 8 + 6 = 987654

1234567 x 8 + 7 = 9876543

12345678 x 8 + 8 = 98765432

123456789 x 8 + 9 = 987654321

1 x 9 + 2 = 11

12 x 9 + 3 = 111

123 x 9 + 4 = 1111

1234 x 9 + 5 = 11111

12345 x 9 + 6 = 111111

123456 x 9 + 7 = 1111111

1234567 x 9 + 8 = 11111111

12345678 x 9 + 9 = 111111111

123456789 x 9 +10= 1111111111

9 x 9 + 7 = 88

98 x 9 + 6 = 888

987 x 9 + 5 = 8888

9876 x 9 + 4 = 88888

98765 x 9 + 3 = 888888

987654 x 9 + 2 = 8888888

9876543 x 9 + 1 = 88888888

98765432 x 9 + 0 = 888888888

And look at this symmetry…

1 x 1 = 1

11 x 11 = 121

111 x 111 = 12321

1111 x 1111 = 1234321

11111 x 11111 = 123454321

111111 x 111111 = 12345654321

1111111 x 1111111 = 1234567654321

11111111 x 11111111 = 123456787654321

111111111 x 111111111=12345678987654321

Brilliant and amazing in its beautiful symmetry, isn’t it?! And it’s not just a happy coincidence!

quotation…

“Let the Word of God say what it says.” - Dr. Drew Conley

=^..^= =^..^=
Rob

Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it.

3 comments so far