Overnight Weird Distraction

Does this qualify as elder abuse?

Afternoon Weird Distractions

Soft on news but full of weird this afternoon so I'm going to throw out some stuff that might tickle you. But this, this is cool-

Foreign Service language courses—for free

You can use language courses developed for U.S. diplomats for free. The courses, which usually feature PDF texts and MP3 audio—plus tests—were created before 1989 and are now in the public domain. Currently, you can't download anything, because the site's servers got swamped after a mention on Lifehacker. But I thought y'all might want to bookmark for future use, once things get up and running again.

Final spin: Grieving families offered environmentally friendly cremations... with a £300,000 'tumble dryer'

An Illustrated Guide to Hollywood Jailhouse Tats

Science Fiction magazine art gallery from LIFE

Dogs doing yoga

Headline of the Day

Proposal to make it unlawful to sell fake urine

Now the real stuff...

Headline of the Day

Fake genital billboard ad draws complaints

Afternoon Distraction

Department of People Who Should Not Be Allowed To Make Decisions For Themselves

I hope someone does an intervention before this next one is born.

People.com reports that Jamie Oliver, the affable British food star, is expecting his fourth child with wife Jools. The baby will join join sisters Poppy Honey, 8, Daisy Boo, 6, and Petal Blossom Rainbow, 11 months.

Afternoon Weird Distractions

Just some weird stuff that caught my attention.

Does this spooky image show ghost boy watching builders demolish his old school?

Web site markets glow-in-the-dark TP

Here they are: The people-pet look-alikes

Faking it for god

Fisher Price's Bigfoot the Monster

Finally, I really want one of these- Enter button doormat

May I just ask

Anyone else weirded out by the "fat filter" Face The Nation must have put on their cameras today? The images are really disconcerting.

Mid Day Distraction

Just kills me. Via WT.

Pabst becomes World's Ugliest Dog

Because I've got nothing else and I thought he was cute. Figures he'd be named after the worst beer ever.

PETALUMA, Calif. – A prominent under-bite, scrunched face and floppy ears are the hallmarks of a winner.

The winner of the World's Ugliest Dog contest, that is.

Pabst, a boxer-mix rescued from a shelter by Miles Egstad of Citrus Heights, Calif., won the annual contest on Friday at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Northern California.

It was an upset victory for Pabst, who beat former champion Rascal, a pedigree Chinese Crested.

Pabst's owner took home $1,600 in prize money, pet supplies and a modeling contract with House of Dog.

Mark Sanford (R Gov SC) Disappearance Sparks Political Fight

In case you missed it yesterday, Josh has a good rundown here of what happened, but it looks like this is something that just might stick for a while. I can see the attack ads already forming up.

"In a new twist to an already-bizarre episode, South Carolina's lieutenant governor said Monday night that neither he nor Gov. Mark Sanford's staff know where the governor is and that Sanford's office refused his demand to talk to his fellow Republican," reports Politico.

Said Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer: "That request was denied because the governor's chief of staff does not know where the governor is, and has not communicated with the governor since he left South Carolina last Thursday. I cannot take lightly that his staff has not had communication with him for more than four days, and that no one, including his own family, knows his whereabouts."

"The extraordinary back-and-forth between the state's top two officials is suffused with politics. Sanford and Bauer have a distant relationship and Bauer is positioning himself to run for governor next year, when Sanford is term-limited out of office."

First ever 'Google alphabet' formed using satellite images

Am I a geek for thinking this is something I would have liked to do?

The first ever 'Google alphabet' has been created using the internet giant's satellite service. Graphic designer Rhett Dashwood picked out natural features and building which resembled each of the 26 letters. The Australian did not even have look outside his home state of Victoria to find the full set.

(snip)

'I found them exactly as you think I might have,' he said. 'Slowly moving from page to page over the maps and visually scanning.' 'I did it in my spare time - it was better than doing a sudoku,' he said.'I set a little puzzle for myself.''I put some simple restrictions on my project, like sticking to my home state of Victoria and not manipulating (rotating or Photoshopping) the images in any way.

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