Incompetent bathroom architecture
The photo above is of a new residence being finished in Singapore. The large full-length window is for the bathroom. You can see a shower, a toilet, and a sink. The bathroom has a lovely southwestern exposure, and overlooks the sidewalk and another condo complex across the street. There's nothing wrong with a sunny bathroom, and I really liked the skylight in the bathroom in my last apartment, but this design would challenge my modesty.
The room seems to be rather narrow (maybe five feet), and I am not sure what kind of window treatment would be appropriate for this window. Otherwise, I guess the new residents will be introducing themselves to their neighbors in dramatic fashion.
As if the tsunami weren't enough of a reminder that water isn't something to fool around with, we now know that water can also kill you from drinking it.
I suggest strict global controls on water. It should not be allowed to be shipped across international borders, and probably prohibited from domestic flights, too. Since the damage that water could cause in terrorists' hands is unimaginable, people should need licenses to possess it. Though this might be somewhat inconvenient and I'm sure the civil libertarians will get all upset about it, it is a small price to pay for guaranteeing our safety from this increasingly dangerous chemical.
My teammate Carl took us up in his ultralight plane to show us around Desaru in February. I don't think I showed Brian or anybody else the pictures. Other than this one I sent to my aunt. As Carl said, it's how the birds fly. I said it was the ham radio of aviation. I guess Carl is more fun than I am.
Snarky in Singapore?
I don't know how I missed this for months, but this sign, which is in all the MRT stations in Singapore, subtly makes fun of Singapore's (now relaxed) chewing gum ban. You can't tell from this photo, and nobody can draw in Singapore, but the item on the left is a pack of chewing gum. (Also, how would a Singaporean sign artist know what chewing gum looks like?) To make up for the lack of artistry, it is labeled "CHEWING GUM."
Other things I noticed:
- Chewing gum is not normally subject to "eating" or "drinking"
- I thought the fine was different for food and drink vs. chewing gum.
- This is obviously biased against clueless westerners; hamburgers are not local food.
- For that matter, beverages to go are normally packaged in plastic bags, not cardboard cups like the one depicted.
- I need to find other things to do with my brain next time I take the MRT.
Johnny Lechner, 28, an 11th-year senior at the Univeristy of Wisconsin-Whitewater is scheduled to appear tonight's Letterman. Something's unusual about that?
Maybe it's just a plot by Starbucks to capitalize on anti-Starbucks sentiment, but Delocate is a tool to find non-Starbucks coffee shops.
Channelnewsasia points out how unusual earthquakes are in Singapore. . .
"I was in the room. My head was basically down on the floor. And I just feel giddy. I thought it was just my blood pressure playing tricks on me. I heard everyone shouting earthquake," said one [negligently unnamed] resident.
The first earthquake I felt was in Massachusetts. Unlike the 700 Singaporeans who called the police, I and my dormmates did what any American would do: we asked the kids from California how to behave. Tip: fainting and tying up the phone when you have no information is not productive. Shouting earthquake?!
A tiny crystal, believed to have been formed at low temperatures during our planet's earliest days has caught the attention of Madison, Wisconsin.
"This is our first glimpse into the earliest history of the Earth. The miraculous thing about the crystal is that we've been able to make such wide-ranging inferences about the early Earth."
So a crystal that is almost too small to be seen with the naked eye has changed our attitudes more than piles of dinosaur bones? Wow.
