Realm of the Wombat

Dragon Bike

We all know that the english language does not always make sense. It’s not surprising then that there have been attempts to reform spelling rules. Apparently Andrew Carnegie [wikipedia entry], the steel tycoon and philanthropist, was a proponent of these reforms. He wrote a scathing attack on “ough” words in the New York Times in 1906 [pdf]. What I found most interesting is that Carnegie saw this as a step toward world peace. His reasoning was that english was emerging as a worldwide language, and that non-native speakers would resist learning english due to its inconsistent spelling rules. That’s quite a contrast from what the U.S. does now in the name of world peace.

Inspired by Neatorama
Article on Carnegie from the Journal of the Simplified Spelling Society

This is the low budget CTA holiday train:

The Chicago Transit Authority gets into the holiday spirit by running a special train decked out with fancy decorations, lights, and Santa Claus. I’ve never ridden it, but I did see it when it was pulling into the station at Garfield the other day. There was a family with two young kids that were very excited about it, and Santa called them over to say hi. Apparently the conversation went on too long, because when the family left Santa and tried to get on the train, it pulled away without letting them on. I guess the holiday spirit only goes so far.

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch isn’t twice the size of Texas; Texas is half the size of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch

W. is a great teacher

More art transportation: Bison Bike

Next Halloween: Tetris Fight

Seinfeld guest stars: Where are they now?

Send Rep. Steve King a Flying Spaghetti Monster holiday e-card!

Steve King represents the 5th District of Iowa in Congress. He was kind enough to take time out of his busy schedule dealing with America’s problems to put together House Resolution 847: Recognizing the importance of Christmas and the Christian faith. Among other things, H. Res. 847 “expresses continued support for Christians in the United States and worldwide” and “acknowledges the international religious and historical importance of Christmas and the Christian faith.” As a Christian myself, I feel so glad to be supported by Rep. King and the United States House of Representatives.

Let me add that the fine people of Iowa who voted Steve King into office deserve more political power. Maybe we let them pick the presidential nominees too.

(In the final vote, there were nine representatives that voted against H. Res. 847, including Barbara Lee (D-CA), and 21 representatives did not vote, including Steve King himself and republican presidential candidates Duncan Hunter, Ron Paul, and Tom Tancredo.)
Yea Christmas and yea Iowa!

A few times a week I play the Sudoku in the Red Eye, the horrible free version of the Tribune. They list the time it took for this radio host John Williams. I hate looking at his smug face, so I really enjoy beating his time. For some reason, I usually have no chance against him on the easier puzzles early in the week, but I’m competitive on the tougher ones. Sometimes I win, sometimes not. But last Friday, I blew this clown out of the water:

Byahhh! 27 minutes, sucka!