World Toilet Day 2008

Toilet on wheels - for bowel movements on the move!

That's right folks! You read correctly. November 19th is World Toilet Day.

In fact World Toilet Day has a serious message. November 19th was the founding date of the World Toilet Organization (WTO) and so they declared it World Toilet Day to raise awareness of their cause. Which is to improve toilets and sanitation conditions worldwide.

Sim Jae-Duck (toilet duck, lol), chairman of a very similar organization called the World Toilet Association (WTA) built a giant toilet sized house last year in Suwon, Gyeonggi-do (Province) to commemorate the WTA's General Assembly in Seoul that year.
The toilet-shaped house is called "Haewoojae", which means "a place where one can solve one's worries," (a euphemistic expression describing a toilet). It was also registered in the Guinness Book of Records as the first and largest toilet-shaped building in the world.

But saying that, there are also the images appearing on Google Earth, of a giant toilet-shaped building in Orlando, Florida. It's a birdseye view only of course and the more I look at it, I can't decide whether I think it's meant to look more like a giant horseshoe on the roof.

A month ago the UK newspaper The Mail On Sunday did an article called "Loo with a view: The world's toilets with the best vistas".
The article has some good photos of toilets around the world with weird and wonderful views. My favourite being the watch tower guard's toilet in Alcatraz.

One of the other great toilets they mention, is the toilet built inside an aquarium at the Mumin Papa Cafe in Japan, as seen in this video below.



But if you thought that having a toilet inside an aquarium was weird, how about the other way round? How do you feel about having the aquarium inside your toilet?
Well if that sounds like your sort of thing, then you can purchase your very own aquarium-in-a-toilet from the guys at Fish 'n' Flush for just $299.

Although, seeing as the toilet is the last place a goldfish usually ends up, it could be thought of as a beautifully illuminated death row for goldfish. Haha.

90th armistice of WWI

British machine gunners in anti-phosgene masks - 1916

I had meant to post this a few days back on the 11th, to mark the 90th anniversary of the armistice of the First World War. But somehow didn't get around to it. But here we are anyway, if a few days late.

It's a short history lesson in the form of animated maps progressing through a timeline from 1914-1918.
Here is a small embedded version.



But if you need a clearer (larger) view then click HERE for full screen.

Source: BBC History.

Spray to untangle your Slinky?

Tangled Slinky - Don't you hate it when that happens?

Are you a Slinky owner? Have you or (usually) someone else not been careful and gotten it into a tangled mess?
Well, if so then you will know what a complete nightmare that is to sort out. Perhaps even impossible!

And even if you are lucky enough to save it before it gets too bad, the Slinky looks all bent out of shape. Especially if it's a traditional metal one.

But wait! Trawling around the internet, guess what I've found? Yep. A "Slinky Detangler" spray!
So if you come home one day to find your Slinky 'murdered' and looking like the picture above (the culprit, knowing how wrecked it is, never sticking around to face the music), fear not, help is at hand.

The "Slinky Detangler" spray from Sebastian.
I haven't tried it myself, but I'm assuming you just spray on this magical spray and hey presto!
Hopefully it does exactly what it says on the tin.

Available HERE.

Slinky related:
Human Slinky