ALEX DEELEY

Gilbert, Axe, Taco Bell WHAT VEHICLE WOULD KILL YOU THE FASTEST? is the topic of the latest blog post by the writing staff over at Zackipedia , using the pseudonym Zack Pruitt. I'd like to illustrate just how short-sighted this "blog post" really is, and how the political machinations behind Zackipedia, as well as being in the pocket of 'Big Grape Nuts' and taking their blood money, have tainted its ethical standards. Let's start at the beginning... here is a direct quote from the article in question: On the popular website twitter.com @edsbs poses the following question: "... what vehicle, with no prior experience, would you kill yourself fastest attempting to pilot?" There is only one answer, and I will tell you what it is. But I will first list the other answers that were suggested, and explain why they are wrong. First off, this wild accusation that there is a user on Twitter going by the handle "[at sign]edsbs...

Tasty I'M NOT A BIG FAST FOOD FAN, so this doesn't come as much of a surprise, or a repulsion as it might for others.  Over at The Daily Mail, they've run a story detailing a man's archive of a single McDonald's hamburger . He bought the sandwich to show his friends how, after a month, it would be preserved.  Then, he forgot about it.  Two years later, he found it in a coat pocket and decided to keep it around. Delightful, eh?

Senator Robert La Follette A survey in 1987 asked Americans to name the best U.S. senators, based on their accomplishments.  Senator Robert La Follette took first place (tying with Henry Clay).  This is striking, given the vast unpopularity he faced when, in 1917, he was one of six members of the Senate to vote against President Wilson’s call for a declaration of war against Germany.  This of course, being the same Woodrow Wilson who, just the previous year, ran on the slogan, “He Kept Us Out Of War.”  So strong was the reaction to La Follette’s anti-war stance that President Roosevelt, a fellow liberal, called for his expulsion from the Senate and a Texas judge said that he was a traitor who ought to be shot.  Though, to be fair, Texas. In the run-up to the war,  organizations throughout the world were pre-emptively standing against the possibility of war.  Many of these groups were socialist organizations or labor unions, among ...

A Toyota Prius, outfitted to drive itself LAST YEAR Google unveiled its driver-less car .  In 2011, Nevada became the first state to legalize cars which ostensibly steer themselves.  Florida followed suit in 2012. As we careen into the future, problems like blindness (or many other illnesses that prevent someone from driving, such as limb loss or tetriplegia) will have less and less bearing on the mobility, and thus, the independence of these people.  The advances being made in the auto industry, by Google in particular, have a certain meaning to a part of society that may not seem as drastic as it is. When I was thirteen years old I found out that I would never be able to drive.  It didn't affect me then, and I'm happy I knew at that age, rather than when I went to apply for a driver's license, say.  But, growing up was different because of this.  I never took a girl on a date in high school.  Now, can I blame this one problem exclusively, ove...

THIS GUY, Christopher Knight, has spent the last 27 years living as a hermit in Maine .  He was caught stealing food and supplies from a local camp, and that's why he's not a hermit anymore.  This story is pretty strange, but I can relate in a weird way.  I wouldn't want to not talk to anyone for 27 years, but the appeal of just existing out in the woods somewhere and reading and meditating all day is pretty cool.

This is astounding.  It makes me feel something weird inside.  I can't explain it.  I'm happy that I've seen it -- and I want you to see it, too -- but, god.  What a torture device Snake is. Well, here's how ya beat it.

This article talks about something that doesn't affect my running style yet, as I only run about four miles at the most.  However, it's something I'm going to take into consideration as I expand my range and start moving more toward distance-running. The motion of the arms as you run is vital to your ability to keep going without getting fatigued.  I'm going to experiment with it and see if it improves my running. Below is the video featured in the article.  I recommend at least watching this.

For my class, I had to come up with what my weekly routine is going to look like for the next few months.  Here's what I've got: M - W - F Running (4 miles) Lunges (2 sets of 10) One Leg Calf Raise (2 sets of 10) Crunches (2 sets of 30) Cross Crunches (2 sets of 30) Chest Stretch (2 @ 30s) Triceps Stretch (1 @ 30s) Upper Back Stretch (1 @ 30s) Partial Cobra (4 @ 30s) T - Th - Su Push-ups (1 set of 15) Lateral Fly (3 sets of 15) Narrow Push-ups (1 set of 15) Bicep Curl (3x15) Corner Row (2x15) Crunches (2 sets of 30) Cross Crunches (2 sets of 30) Chest Stretch (2 @ 30s) Triceps Stretch (1 @ 30s) Upper Back Stretch (1 @ 30s) Partial Cobra (4 @ 30s) And Saturday is when I plan my funeral.

Happy Friday, everyone!  Here are a few stories you might find enjoyable on this lovely, rain-soaked end of the week.   Six Weird Theories on the Evolution of Human Intelligence is an article on MentalFloss discussing the theories on how we got antidumb. Why Do Old-Timey Announcers Talk Like That? Well, this article from Discovery.com gives a satisfying answer on exactly that, in two forms.  Technology dictated it and culture dictated it.  And, yes, they were quite aware of how they sounded. 600 hours, 200,000 LEGO bricks and one man.  Mike Doyle's conceptual brick city is breathtaking and beautiful.  It's five feet by six feet and HUGE. I can only imagine how pissed he'd be if someone bumped into the table.  This story came from The Atlantic.

WITH ALL of the news about cruise ships being stranded in the middle of the ocean, I've found the topic to be somewhat interesting, but this story takes the cake. The MV Lyubov Orlovaw is a boat, built in 1976, in Yugoslavia.  It was built to conduct expeditions through the ice-laden waters of the North Atlantic.  It has an interesting history. Here's its Wikipedia page. In 1999, it was refurbished and outfitted with amenities to become an Arctic expedition cruise ship.  In 2002, she was chartered by another company to continue her exploring cruise ship job. The funny part starts in 2010, when docked in Newfoundland, the boat was seized, due to the owner's owing $251,000 and kind of not having paid the crew for five months.  Here's an article detailing some of the transaction. So, an American company was hired to two the old boat down to the Dominican Republic, where it was going to be scrapped.  It must have been essentially worthless, or at least th...

I JUST FINISHED reading this article on Gizmodo concerning the distance that sports stars run.  No big surprises here.  They break it down as such: Per game, an average player runs: Baseball: at MOST half a mile American Football: 1.25 miles Basketball: the highest is 2.72 miles Tennis: ~3 miles in a five-set match Soccer: As much as 9.5 miles!

IT'S BEEN ABOUT two years since I picked up the habit of running.  In which time, I have done the following: Lost 62 lbs Improved my heart health significantly Crashed into the ground and mangled by money-makin' face Gained 40 lbs back Loved myself Hated myself Gave up Tried again Gave up again Tried, yet again I'm on the upswing again.  Winter's over and I'm more able (and inclined) to run because of the warmth, as well as the ability to see where I'm going.  Plus, I recently bought a pair of Brooks Adrenaline shoes , which have turned out to be a god-send for my poor, achin' feet. One of the biggest helps in my previous running attempts was the fact that my home at the time was conveniently located so I had a five-mile circuit I could enjoy running. My current home is downtown.  While I certainly have more options as far as where I can run, there's definitely a different aesthetic to an urban run.  No longer can I breathe the fresh air...

This article I plucked from HowStuffWorks examines five major cities, which are now ghost towns.  These kind of abandoned dwellings are very interesting to me.  I'm not sure what their charm is; perhaps it's the solitude of it all, or the simplicity of knowing that nobody is there, but seeing man-made structures left to the ages just gives me a weird, good feeling.

I like making lists of goals.  Here are a few things I'd like to tackle by the end of this Summer: Go on a camping trip (or a few) Take some epic hike -- maybe not the big Wonderland Trail, but something. Create a large-scale painting