Jenna Daily

(via graphjam)

Naturally, this doesn’t surprise me as much as the McRib did.

(via thinkprogress)

Citing cases dating back as far as 1928, a judge has ruled that a young girl accused of running down an elderly woman while racing a bicycle with training wheels on a Manhattan sidewalk two years ago can be sued for negligence.

The ruling by the judge, Justice Paul Wooten of State Supreme Court in Manhattan, did not find that the girl was liable, but merely permitted a lawsuit brought against her, another boy and their parents to move forward.

(via nytimes)

Gah. Don’t want to read things like this when on cup of coffee #3. 

Ugh.

An artist who wanted to make art more accessible has installed vending machines across Germany offering unique art miniatures in small boxes. 

Lars Kaiser, a 35-year-old artist from Potsdam, said he came up with the novel idea to give art lovers the chance to buy the inexpensive art samples from vending machines around the clock.

 

He has installed about 100 of the uniquely decorated art vending machines in public buildings, bars and on exterior walls throughout Germany. The refurbished vending machines once sold cigarettes, chewing gum or condoms in the 1960s and 1970s.

(via Reuters)

Oh, right. JET SKI.

(via geekosystem)

(via: putting photobombs in your photobombs).

My vote: something like this

(Newser) – Should you need a reason to hate your job a little bit more, get a load of the latest perk Google is offering its employees: “runners” (or, as Gawker helpfully identifies them, “servants”) who can empty the trash, scrub the bathroom, or do any other pesky chore Googlers aren’t into. In a bid to woo engineers, the tech giant is giving its workers credits for TaskRabbit, an online service that allows users to post an errand and have background-checked runners fight for the privilege (and pay) that comes from completing tasks like “cook dinner for 2” or “assemble four items from Ikea.”

It’s 5 o’clock somewhere, right?

I wish. I’m stuck here with iced instant coffee (ick) and a lot of things in my “to do” pile.

Come to the office (or don’t come) — and feel alright.

In an era where technology leaves everything (including work) at your fingertips, some employees feel stretched thin. Then, the anomaly rolls along — an idea so unconventional that it creates an undertow of consideration.

ABC New York profiled an office on its Tuesday evening newscast that is testing out unlimited vacation time for its staffers. This “social media marketing company” grants its workers the freedom to take time off, without a limited lineup of dates set in stone. Within that freedom lies the expectation that work will still be completed within its deadlines, regardless of where the team member is stationed.

While the company went unnamed during ABC 7’s report, NewsFeed did some digging and found that Social Media Group is the mastermind behind the movement. The outlet helps “businesses navigate the social web” and in the process allows employees to navigate their own slate of personal circumstances.

You know what I’ve noticed? Nobody panics when things go “according to plan.” Even if the plan is horrifying! If, tomorrow, I tell the press that, like, a gang banger will get shot, or a truckload of soldiers will be blown up, nobody panics, because it’s all “part of the plan.” —The Joker (The Dark Knight)

—————————————

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — A roof collapsed on Wednesday during a wedding in a remote area in northern Afghanistan, killing 65 people, nearly all women and children, said police.

Most of the dead were women celebrating the wedding on the top floor of a mud brick house packed with guests, said Jawad Bashart, spokesman of the Baghlan provincial police. Only one adult male was killed.

He added that 12 children were among the dead and another 40 people were wounded at the wedding which took place in the remote Jelga district. Women and men traditionally have separate celebrations at weddings.

“This is a very tragic incident,” said provincial Governor Abdul Majid. He said an exact death toll was difficult to establish because of conflicting reports and the remoteness of the area.

—————————————

In the worst hit region of the Mentawai Islands, health and rescue workers were still trying to reach some isolated areas nearly two days after a 7.7-magnitude quake sent a tsunami more than 10 feet high crashing into coastal villages. But a cargo plane loaded with 16 tons of tents, medicine, food and clothes arrived in the area Wednesday afternoon while four helicopters landed in Sikakap, a town on North Pagai island, which will be the center of relief operations, The Associated Press reported.

Ade Edward, the emergency head of West Sumatra Province’s Disaster Management Agency, said that at least 282 people were killed and 411 were missing, Reuters reported. Thousands more have been displaced.

At the same time, aid workers on the island of Java, 750 miles to the east, scrambled to provide water, food and medicine to more than 13,000 people driven from their homes after Mount Merapi erupted, killing at least 30 people and spewing hot gas, ash and debris over the densely populated countryside.

24 Hours of Agony: Indonesia Hit By Deadly Tsunami, Then Volcano

Located in one of the world’s most active areas for earthquakes and volcanoes, Indonesia endured two days of environmental disaster after a powerful earthquake, a tsunami and an erupting volcano struck in separate regions of the Indonesian archipelago on Monday and Tuesday, killing hundreds and displacing thousands, reports the New York Times.

The tsunami, triggered by a 7.7-magnitude undersea quake, hit the Mentawai Islands late Monday, which killed at least 113 people and left hundreds missing, including at least eight foreigners, officials said. Thousands more were left homeless.  Meanwhile, the Mount Merapi volcano in Indonesia erupted at least three times Tuesday, forcing thousands of nearby residents to flee amid choking smoke.  One person was killed and at least 10 people were injured, some with severe burns.

A German Company Has Patented a New Milk Product With High Levels of Sleep-Regulating Hormone Melatonin

A herd of 1,400 cows is being milked between the hours of 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. under the theory that they will produce more sleep inducing melatonin in their milk at a time when they are usually lying down in the dark.

To further boost the melatonin production, the bovines are fed clover and soothed under warm red lights to lower stress levels while being milked. And during the day when the weather is good, the pampered animals are turned out in a pen with grass and deep, cozy sand, which the workers call “cow beach.”

By giving the cows special treatment, the Milchkristalle company says it’s getting special milk with 10 times more of the sleep-regulating hormone melatonin than normal milk.

The milk is freeze-dried and turned into a product known as Nightmilk Crystals, which can be mixed with regular milk or with yogurt and consumed before going to bed.

“It tastes like milk, maybe a little bit stronger,” said Maike Schnittger, a Hamburg resident who uses Nightmilk Crystals.