carldr.com

# It Couldn't Be Easier

sudo gem install dancroak-twitter-search -s http://gems.github.com

require "rubygems" 
require "twitter_search" 
TwitterSearch::Client.new( "twittb0t" ).query( :q => "carldr" ).each do |t|
  puts t.text
end

Read all about it.

# You're The Shit And I'm Knee-Deep In it

Today, I revived Justwatchthesky from the internet graveyard/landfill of “coming soon” pages. The scope is narrow: An exercise in documenting words in the music I listen to with color and type. The constraints are simple: (1) Only use Georgia (serif) or Helvetica (sans) and (2) try to post as often as possible.

Ryan Sims, justwatchthesky.com

Another idea I wish I had come up with, although I doubt I would have executed it half as well.

Also, I know a good number of the songs he’s quoted so far, so they have been particularly interesting – I hope it remains that way.

# My kinda town!

Drinkwater, Saskatchewan, Canada! The photo was taken by Greg, one of the employees of 29degrees, on a recent trip across Canada.

Sadly though, I know it’s nothing to do with my family – Apparently, it doesn’t have a pub …

# News Stories in Photographs

Small fishing boats tied to the banks of the Chaohu lake, where a pollution-linked algae bloom has reappeared.

From The Big Picture. Read through all the stories, there are many, many fantastic pictures.

It’s brilliant to see such high quality pictures of news events. The only improvement I’d make is to allow linking to specific pictures within a story, so I don’t have to hotlink like I have done in the ‘fantastic’ picture above.

# Big Ideas : Don't Get Any

Radiohead held an online contest to remix “Nude” from their album – “In Rainbows” ... I decided to take the piss a bit, as the contest seemed to be in that spirit.

James Houston

Awesome for two reasons : 1) Radiohead, and 2) Old hardware. Watch and listen.

# Biggest Drawing In The World

With the help of a GPS device and DHL, I have drawn a self-portrait on our planet. My pen was a briefcase containing the GPS device, being sent around the world. The paths the briefcase took around the globe became the strokes of the drawing.

Visit the Biggest Drawing In The World site.

Update: Meh, it’s a hoax..

# Drink and Drive

See the larger image to get a better idea of how the optical illusion in this advert works.

# Jyväskylä

Watch this fantastic timelapse video shot in and around Jyväskylä, Finland.

# PermaStore

class PermaStore < Hash
  def self.load
    if File.exists?( "data.dump" )
      File.open( "data.dump", "r" ) do |f|
        return Marshal.load( f )
      end
    end
    return PermaStore.new
  end
  def []=( key, value )
    super
    save
  end
  def delete( value )
    super
    save
  end
  protected
  def save
    File.open( "data.dump", "w" ) do |f|
      Marshal.dump( self, f )
    end
  end
end

Do whatever you will with it. It’s not thread safe, but that’s easily fixable if you’re so inclined.

# Music Of The Week, Part 3

So the salesman said he got one for himself / A charmed life with some kids and some stainless steel knives / Paid in full as of 2029, I’ll need to scrape all my change and give up all my toys but / Really, who needs more than this thing?

“Zero To Love” by Say Hi, off “The Wishes And The Glitch”

Perhaps Zero To Love isn’t the stand-out track of the album, but definitely the most infectious.

The Wishes And The Glitch is definitely more experimental in its sound than Konk and Lucky – The vocals on the first track aren’t a million miles away from Sigur Rós, although the music is undisputedly more guitary.

The album’s other highlights include the chunky electronic sound of Toil and Trouble, the poppy and happy Magic Beans And The Truth Machine, and the building last track We Lost The Albatross. Bluetime strongly reminds me of another song, but I can’t recall which. Either way, you can’t knock a song about Pac-Man.

I don’t think the album will appeal to everyone, but if you like indie rock, I don’t think you could go too far wrong by giving The Wishes And The Glitch a listen.