Relax with Some Calming Drawing

Feeling stressed out this afternoon? Take a minute and watch this drawing/watercolor work from Alissa Burke. It's called "Be Carefree" and helps me be just that.

be carefree from Alisa Burke on Vimeo.

Relaxed yet?

[thanks, Carolyn]

Get 'Lost' with These Parody Videos of the Hit Show

The final season of ABC's Lost is in full swing and I can't help but completely geek out every Tuesday thinking about the night's episode. To hold off your (and mine, mostly) excitement for this evening's ep please take a minute to watch these awesome Lost parodies from YouTuber Sophie.

Lost gets the Baywatch treatment


Who says Hurley doesn't like being on the Island? Looks fun to me!


A beautiful look at Lost's love stories

Which one is your fave? And what the heck do you think Smokey really is? Gimme your theories.

Need An Airsick Bag? The World's 18 Strangest Airports

I have a feeling that if you are not the world's calmest flier (Carolyn, I'm lookin' at you!) you may want to check out this gallery by Popular Mechanics before your next flight. The site features the world's 18 strangest airports, including some on man-made islands, one that doubles as a major highway, and this one pictured below:


That is Princess Juliana International Airport in Simpson Bay, Saint Maarten, where casual sunbathers are doused with jet fumes every few minutes. The landings don't pose much of a threat to the beach goers, but they have been known to blow over semi trucks passing on the road just short of the runway. Check out a clip of some now-deaf tourists capturing a landing in progress.



How's that for some home movies? Click here to see the full list of strange airports.

Fan ABlogAboutThings.com on Facebook!

After a small break A Blog About Things is back in action and better than ever! In addition to a few design changes to the site (like our new header? It's going to change from time to time.) you can now fan A Blog About Things.com on Facebook!


It's another great way to stay connected to the site and its readers. Plus it's easier to interact and share with others. So, if you like the site please take a minute and become a fan today!

Watch Pat in iVillage.com's Likes or Yikes Video

Check out me and my buddy Jacki Garfinkel in iVillage.com's Likes or Yikes series. This week we're talking about Kate Gosselin on Dancing With the Stars, Jon Gosselin's potential Playgirl spread and this Sunday's Oscars.


What story are you obsessed with this week?

OK Go Wows Again with "This Too Shall Pass" Video

The guys of OK Go are back with another revolutionary music video. You may remember their remarkable treadmill video for "Here It Goes Again" (one take!), but the boys have outdone themselves with the new clip for "This Too Shall Pass." Check it out!




The whole thing is like a big game of Mousetrap... but technically is a Rube Goldberg machine. The video was filmed in a two story warehouse, in L.A. The "machine" was designed and built by the band, along with members of Synn Labs over the course of several months. Wonder how many takes they had to do before it was perfect? Very cool!

If you happen to be a big fan of Rube Goldberg machines:

1. You're a tool.
2. You might like this version which cracks a Cadbury Creme Egg!
   

Yay, Science!

iVillage.com Names Best and Worst-Dressed at the Grammys

Sharing this gallery I wrote for iVillage.com with the best and worst-dressed at the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards. The theme of the night seemed to be all about neutral colors with extra/surprise details. Check it out here.


And just so you know, I wasn't in complete say of who was best and worst-dressed so don't slay me if you don't agree! Some that are listed as best I would have totally named worst *coughKatyPerrycough*

Who do you think rocked it on the red carpet? Leave a comment!

Put Your Mind at Ease with RainyMood.com

I feel like I say this all the time, but the Internet is awesome. There is a website for anything and everything. I just stumbled across this new site over the weekend and it's definitely going to be one that I frequent often.

Ever find yourself sitting at home thinking, "I wish it was a rainy day so I could just stay under a blanket"? Well, now you can have a rainy day whenever you want. RainyMood.com turns your computer into a gloomy day in a simple and clean display.


Just go to the site for a 30-minute high-quality look of a thunderstorm. When the 30 minutes is over it just reloads and starts again. I used to to take a nap and it was amazingly relaxing. Better yet, you can play your most relaxing iTunes playlist at the same time for even more zen!

Happy lounging.

Dad Helps His Daughter Dance Through 2009

Check out this really cute father/daughter video. Inspired by Matt Harding's "Where the Hell is Matt?" video, this father helps his daughter find the courage to dance through the last year. Don't worry, nothing bad happens to her at the end (that's what I was expecting).


Cute!

[thanks, Carolyn]

'Lost' Premiere to Make Fans More Annoying Than Ever

The final season of Lost is set to premiere on Tuesday Feb. 2 on ABC and Lost nerds like me are already foaming at the mouth. Check out this news report from The Onion on why non-Lost fans are going to want to gouge their own eyes out.


Final Season Of 'Lost' Promises To Make Fans More Annoying Than Ever
The Island is PEOPLE!

It Made My Day!

Feeling bad? Having a rough day? Need a pick me up so badly that even a LOLcat can't suffice? Check out It Made My Day! Think of it as the anti-FML site, It Made My Day serves up little moments of WIN from people's day.

For example...

"During the first day of class one of my professors was handing out the course syllabus. Underneath the grading scale there was a quote. "You shall not pass!" -Gandalf the Grey. IMMD."

"My friend’s mother was recently admitted to the hospital for heart troubles. A few hours later, she called my friend to remind him to maintain her FarmVille! IMMD."

"My mom and I were shopping and we have a game where she throws the toilet paper into the cart. This time, a random stranger screams "GIANTS WIN THE SUPERBOWL!" from out of nowhere. IMMD."

"I work in an animal clinic, and a man brought in his pet python. It’s name? Lt. Dan. (Because "he ain’t got no legs") IMMD."

My most recent IMMD would have to be yesterday when I was at the NY Aquarium. We were watching the walrus tank from underneath and this little boy couldn't stop yelling about how the last time he was there the walrus had diarrhea all over the window. His mom was desperately trying to shut him up but the kid couldn't help himself. IMMD!

What made your day?

CollegeHumor.com Debuts 'Web Site Story' Musical

Guh, I really hate when people sing. People who aren't singing behind a microphone... and I really hate musicals, mostly, too.  But CollegeHumor.com has tricked me into liking a musical with their original production of Web Site Story.  Twitter, Facebook and Pandora all sung about like classic show tunes?  See for yourself.

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

I only barfed 2 times during thing! 

[Thanks, Eric]

Internet Archaeologists Find Ruins of 'Friendster' Civilization

The folks at The Onion strike again! This time the Today Now anchors dig up the remains of an ancient social networking site. 



How long do you think it will be before MySpace ends up in the social network graveyard like Friendster? 

Also, how do I get a job at The Onion?  They continually crack me up.


[Thanks, Jacki]

2009's Best News Photos

As 2009 comes to a close there are countless numbers of "best of" lists coming out.  One of the galleries that I look forward to the most is the Year in Pictures from MSNBC.  



Photo: Muhammed Muheisen/AP

Check out the gallery of 2009's best news photos with some great audio commentary from NBC's news anchors.  Plus there are 2009's best sports photos, too.   My favorite is this shot of balloons and an antenna by Muhammed Muheisen of the Associated Press.  What's yours?

These Signs Are Oddly Specific

I secretly dream of the day when A Blog About Things gets its own book deal, just like the hundreds of other blogs that seem to get them each year. Alas, I know this will most likely never happen because it would be the most random, boring-est book ever.

There are, however, a plethora of blogs out there that are destined to have a book deal down the line. The latest one to come onto my radar is OddlySpecific.com, a blog of signage that seems to be a little too particularly in its warnings.

What are you allowed to do here?


Lucky for them, no?


If you attempt to go on this road I think a black hole opens up.

There is even more ridiculous signage at OddlySpecific.com so go check it out!

[thanks, Eric!]

The Year 2009 In Auto Tune

I find most of the Auto Tune videos on the web to be annoying (with Charlie bit my finger Auto Tune being an exception), but this 2009 year in review medley was hypnotic! Watch it to take a musical tour through the year that was.


People have a lot of free time.

[via Some Kinda Blog]

Turn Your Social Networks Into Art

I can't tell you the last time I thought about the clothing company Land's End, but I stumbled across a really unique part of their website last week that soaked up almost an hour of my day. I guess you could say that a body is a blank canvas you decorate with clothes, so why not decorate your own canvas with your own photos?

Ok... maybe that's a stretch, but at MyCanvas.LandsEnd.com you can draw inspiration from your Facebook, Flickr and/or Twitter accounts to generate some personalized collage-y goodness. Simply input your username to MyCanvas and voila! Check out the art that pops out...






The collages are creating using your profile photos and your latest Tweet, so it may take you a few tries to get an image that isn't completely insane, but the results are pretty fun to create. There's a little movie you have to watch before you can make yours, but don't get discouraged.

Go to MyCanvas.LandsEnd.com and make a canvas and then show it to me!

Pat & Carolyn Are on Oprah.com

In a continuation of our 15 minutes of Oprah fame Carolyn and I have somehow ended up appearing on the main page of Oprah's Book Club on her website! Check it out from Oprah.com:


And we're also apparently featured in the Oprah.com newsletter!


If you missed our initial web-chat with Oprah you can now easily view on Oprah.com.

Now... how long until we get our own show?

Beautiful Cyber Monday Gift Guide

Being that today is the biggest online shopping day of the year (and probably the lowest work productivity day of the year, too) I thought I'd share with you one of the most appealing online shopping guides I've seen in quite some time.

Style.com has put together some of their favorite holiday gift ideas for 2009 in a very unique way. Instead of simply creating a gallery of their gift suggestions they have paired them with the beautiful animal photos from photographer and author Andrew Zuckerman from this book Creature (which I own and love!) Take a look at some of the images...





Cool, right? You can check out the entire gallery of beautiful photos, and if you're looking to shop elsewhere check out a zillion and one online coupon codes from The Fashionator.

The Faces of 'Old Dogs'

There are so many random blogs and sites out there that really make no sense, but are thoroughly entertaining. On this Thanksgiving I give thanks to the Faces of Old Dogs, a blog full of screen grabs of the faces of the actors in the new film Old Dogs. Enjoy!





Stupid! Have a great holiday!