Tuesday, September 06, 2005
Talk to a human being
Sometimes it’s very frustrating to go thru the telephone answering menu system for some companies… ok, most companies. Here’s a lost of 70 companies with their toll-free numbers and tips on cutting thru their answering systems and possibly talking to a real human being.
Here are a few from the list:
- Bank of America
800-900-9000 Hit zero twice, after menu choices play - Cingular 800-331-0500 For faster service, press the option that you are looking to close your account, You get the same ppl but an immediate answer
- Visa 800-847-2911
Hit zero three times (ignore prompts saying that it's an invalid entry) - AOL 888-346-3704 0
- Dell
888-560-8324 Hit zero twice - SBC 800-585-7928 Again, an (intelligent, this time) IVR wants YOUR phone number first.
- American Airlines 800-433-7300 Press zero twice, then say "agent"
Hard to find phone numbers
Apparently it’s hard to find phone numbers that let you talk to real people at some tech companies. Here are a few:
- Amazon.com Customer Service 800–201-7575
- eBay 408-376-7400
- PayPal 888-221-1161
Hot dog collage of me
Make a collage of images based on Yahoo! image search results. Select a photo to upload. A good photograph is simple, not fussy, and small enough to fit on a computer screen. Then enter a search query to build your collage from.
(Close up below)
Via The Presurfer
Walmart's $8 million gift for hurricane relief is not that much
$7.74
At a press conference this afternoon, President George H. W. Bush singled out the Walton Family for their generosity to Katrina relief efforts:
I don’t think anyone would mind if I singled out the chairman and CEO of Wal-Mart, Lee Scott, who is right here. He told us that they gave the Bush-Clinton fund a total of $23 million…$15 million from the company and then $8 million more from the Walton family, the marvelous philanthropists that they are.
Let’s put that in perspective. The Walton family’s net worth is $90 billion. So $8 million dollars represents .009 percent of their total.
The average family’s net worth is $86,100. If an average family contributed at the same rate as the Waltons, they’d donate $7.74.
There are thousands of families all around country that are being far more generous to Katrina victims than the Waltons. Few of them will be personally thanked by a former President.
via J-Walk blog
Monday, September 05, 2005
Great scenes in rock & roll history
February, 1959
The Day The Marshmallow Died -- a plane crash kills Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Peeper.
January, 1957
Elvis Peepsley appears from the waist up on The Ed Sullivan Show.
Great Scenes in Rock & Roll History
via The Presurfer
Sunday, September 04, 2005
Man bowls over machine
Machine no match for top professional bowler
8/30/2005
By Lucas Wiseman
USBC Communications
In the world of chess in 1997, a machine defeated the world's best human player. On Tuesday, one of the best bowlers in the world demolished his mechanical counterpart.
Defending Masters champion and one of the top professional bowlers in the world Danny Wiseman of Baltimore defeated "Harry" the ball-thrower in a race to five strikes at the United States Bowling Congress Research and Testing Facility on Tuesday.
While "Harry" was far from perfect, Wiseman was right on target, striking on his first five shots. "Harry" only managed one strike in five attempts.
"From what I was told, that thing was dialed in yesterday and was ready for me," Wiseman said. "I'm assuming because the environment changed with the lanes sitting all night that when they turned it on something wasn't right. I've seen it strike at will before, but I was fortunate because I wasn't even loose but was close enough to strike."
via The Raw Feed
Keypod - Miniature car key safe
When people go swimming or surfing, they're faced with figuring out what to do with their car keys. I suppose everyone has a way of dealing with it, though it may be more difficult if you do nude surfing at nude beaches.
The "Keypod" is being marketed to surfers, and other "extreme sports" afficionados. It's a miniature safe that hangs from your car, most likely underneath the car where it's least visible. It can also hold money, credit cards, or a cell phone.
From Strange New Products via Land-o-links
Saturday, September 03, 2005
Landmarks of New Orleans
What’s happened to them in the wake of Hurricane Katrina?
- The French Quarter: This historic district is full of wrought-iron balconies and ornate colonial architecture, but was also a playground for adults who could roam the streets with cocktails in tow and listen to jazz and, during Mardi Gras, grab for beads and go wild. The area escaped much of the flooding.
- Bourbon Street: A hedonistic strip in the Quarter bursting with bars like Pat O'Brien's, Molly's on the Market, and Jean Laffite's Blacksmith Shop. The latter, a piano bar, was supposedly the in-town headquarters of pirate Jean Laffite, who owned more than 10 vessels and raided American, British and Spanish ships in the early 1800s. Located in the French Quarter, the area escaped flooding but remains closed.
- Cafe du Monde: Established in 1862, this coffee shop on Decatur Street in the French Quarter was best known for its cafe au lait, made with hearty New Orleans-style coffee, blended with chicory, and beignets -- crispy, square doughnuts. Still standing.
- U.S. Mint building: The building housed Confederate soldiers during the Civil War and produced money for the federal government until 1909. It later became home to jazz and Mardi Gras exhibits and the streetcar immortalized in Tennessee Williams' play "A Streetcar Named Desire." The mint is still standing. The fate of the streetcar is unknown.
- St. Louis Cathedral: Located in Jackson Square and consecrated in 1794, it was said to be the oldest continuously active cathedral in the country. Still standing.
via J-Walk Blog
The "Love Boat" heading to New Orleans?
Updated: 2:00 p.m. ET Sept. 3, 2005Federal officials are chartering three of Carnival Cruise Lines' ships for six months, part of a plan to provide shelter for as many as 7,000 people displaced by devastating Hurricane Katrina.
The three ships — the Ecstasy, Sensation and Holiday — will be pulled from regular use starting Monday.
Ecstasy, normally ported at Galveston for four-and five-day cruises, and Sensation, normally in New Orleans for similar trips, will both be pulled Monday and are scheduled to dock and house Katrina refugees in Galveston, Texas.
Just what these people want to see… more water.
via J-Walk blog
Friday, September 02, 2005
Tastes like chicken - and you can buy it on eBay
You are bidding on a deep fried jumbo shrimp that has a very unique shape that looks exactly like female genitalia. AKA Vagina.
You've seen jumbo shrimp before, and most of you have seen female genitalia before, but I know none of you have seen Female Genitalia Jumbo Shrimp before.
You will be the life of the party when you whip out your Female Genitalia Jumbo Shrimp. All of your friends will envy you. GUARANTEED*!
SNATCH THIS ONE UP! DON'T LET ANOTHER ONE SLIP THROUGH YOUR FINGERS!!!
Current Bid is $1.00
via 4 all fun
What did people use before toilet paper was invented?
Answer: You should thank your lucky stars you live in the twentieth century, bucko. Let me tell you about ... corncobs. You may not believe this, but it was once common practice in rural America to leave a corncob hanging from a string in the outhouse for purposes of personal hygiene. The string, I gather, was to permit the cob to be reused. For those who were punctilious in these matters, or else blessed with an abundance of corncobs, a box of disposable cobs might be provided instead. In coastal regions, the cob might be replaced by a mussel shell.
Read the complete answer at The Straight Dope.
via New Links
Big Easy Psychic?
This from the May 23, 2005 edition of the American Perospect:
Thinking Big About Hurricanes
It's time to get serious about saving New Orleans. – May 23, 2005In the event of a slow-moving Category 4 or Category 5 hurricane (with winds up to or exceeding 155 miles per hour), it's possible that only those crow's nests would remain above the water level. Such a storm, plowing over the lake, could generate a 20-foot surge that would easily overwhelm the levees of New Orleans, which only protect against a hybrid Category 2 or Category 3 storm (with winds up to about 110 miles per hour and a storm surge up to 12 feet). Soon the geographical "bowl" of the Crescent City would fill up with the waters of the lake, leaving those unable to evacuate with little option but to cluster on rooftops -- terrain they would have to share with hungry rats, fire ants, nutria, snakes, and perhaps alligators. The water itself would become a festering stew of sewage, gasoline, refinery chemicals, and debris.
And… there is this article printed Dec 01, 2001:
KEEPING ITS HEAD ABOVE WATER – New Orleans faces doomsday scenario
New Orleans is sinking.
And its main buffer from a hurricane, the protective Mississippi River delta, is quickly eroding away, leaving the historic city perilously close to disaster.
So vulnerable, in fact, that earlier this year the Federal Emergency Management Agency ranked the potential damage to New Orleans as among the three likeliest, most castastrophic disasters facing this country.
The other two? A massive earthquake in San Francisco, and, almost prophetically, a terrorist attack on New York City.
via growabrain
217 Best band names ever
A few selections from the list:
- Mishap Happens
- Elemenopee
- The Reading Weepers
- The Way Back Whens
- Vowel Movement
- Apparition H
- Jif and the Choosy Mothers
- I Dream of Weenie
- Airtight Grannies
- Victorious Secret
- Pubic Zirconia
- Punch Us Pilot
- The Oh God No's
- Free The Willy
- Endangered Feces
- Ballistic Beavers
- Urethra Franklin
- Shitpig Express
- Born on the Cob
- Loose Stoolpigeon
Here’s the complete list: 217 Best Band Names Ever.
A bit of Google magic
Here's a magic trick to surprise friends with; go to the flash-based fake Google homepage by Dark Arts Media. Ask someone casually to watch the Google logo. Now click anywhere on the page while pointing at the logo with the other hand, and then move two of your fingers to completely cover the the 'o's in the Google logo. When you remove the fingers, hopefully to much surprise, the letters 'o' will be missing from the logo.
Whenever you click on the page, the letters will disappear after five seconds. Clicking again will make them reappear after five seconds. A third click will change the page to an actual Google homepage.
via The Presurfer
Thursday, September 01, 2005
Transfer large files
Need to send someone a very large file? You need Dropload. Dropload is a place for you to drop your files off and have them picked up by someone else at a later time. Recipients you specify are sent an email with instructions on how to download the file. Files are removed from the system after 7 days, regardless if they have been picked up or not. You can upload any type of file, mp3, movies, docs, pdfs, up to 100MB each! Recipients can be anyone with an email address.
Once you complete the free registration, you can begin uploading files. The files can be up to a whopping 100 megabytes!
Simply enter the recipient's e-mail address. They'll get an e-mail with a link for downloading the file. Since they're sent the link and not the actual file, you won't overwhelm their inbox. The files are even scanned for viruses.
Go to Dropload
via Kim Komando
Get you free credit report
As of today, September 1, 2005, everyone in the U.S. can get a free credit report from the 3 major credit reporting agencies: Experian, TransUnion and Equifax.
I just got mine and it was fairly painless. They ask for verifying information such as place of employment on a certain date, address on a certain date or mortgage lender and payment range. They also try to sell you more features, Credit Score, etc., but it’s not hard-sell tactics. You just opt out of these features.
You get a list of all your credit cards, loans, etc., including your payment history. It’s actually pretty interesting. I noticed some of the same accounts with different names. But with the banks buying each other out I can’t keep up with who’s who, so I shouldn’t be surprised that the credit reporting agencies can’t either.
Get your free at AnnualCreditReport.com
THIS IS NOT AN ADVERTISEMENT
The Top 20 Rejected Car Names
- 20> Acura Noyeng
- 19> Land Rover Fetch
- 18> Plymouth Rock
- 17> Mercedes Ruehl
- 16> Mercury Poisoning
- 15> Oldsmobile Xtinct
- 14> Buick Naked
- 13> Yugo Sloli
- 12> Hyundai Myundai-Tyuesdai-Wyednesdai-Thyursdai-Frydai-Syaturdai
- 11> Chrysler Onapopsiclestick
- 10> Chevy Splodesonimpact
- 9> Dodge Vindow Viper
- 8> SAAB Storrie
- 7> Jag-u-ar Pretencia
- 6> Tucker Carlson
- 5> Alpha Roflmao
- 4> Infiniti Andbeyond!
- 3> Audi Duty
- 2> Porsche PP Xtension
- 1> Ford Fuctus
via Top 5
Personal ice cream security
Due to roommates that didn't quite understand my displeasure at my consistently disappearing ice cream, I had to resort to this. Not a gag, it is actually is designed with the intention to work. Though I suppose that since the container it is "locking" is made of waxed cardboard (which can be deformed a bit) it won't keep out a serious professional penetration attempt.
I found that it sends a warning message, sort of like one of those little LED's you put in a car to give the appearance of having an alarm.
-- Morgan Davis
Ben and Jerry's Pint Lock
$5
Available from
Ben & Jerry's
Why doesn't Halmark make cards like these?
My tire was thumping.
I thought it was flat
When I looked at the tire...
I noticed your cat.
Sorry!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Heard your wife left you,
How ! upset you must be.
But don't fret about it...
She moved in with me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Looking back over the years
that we've been together,
I can't help but wonder...
"What the hell was! I thinking?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Congratulations on your wedding day!
Too bad no one likes your husband.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
How could two people as beautiful as you
Have such an ugly baby?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I've always wanted to have
someone to hold,
someone to love.
After having met you ..
I've changed my mind.
-------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------! ---------
I must admit, you brought Religion into my life.
I never believed in Hell until I met you.
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
As the days go by, I think of how lucky I am...
That you're not here to ruin it for me.
####################################################
Congratulations on your promotion.
Before you go...
Would you like to take this knife out of my back?
You'll probably need it again.
********************************************************************************
Happy Birthday, Uncle Dad!
(Available only in
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Happy birthday! You look great for your age.
Almost Lifelike!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When we were together,
you always said you'd die for me.
Now that we've broken up,
I think it's time you kept your promise.
/////////////////////////////////////////////////////! /////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
We have been friends for a very long time ..
let's say we stop?
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I'm so miserable without you
it's almost like you're here.
=====================================================
Congratulations on your new bundle of joy.
Did you ever find out who the father was?
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Your friends and I wanted to do
something special for your birthday.
So we're having you put to sleep.
))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))
So your daughter's a hooker,
and it spoiled your day.
Look at the bright side,
it's really good pay.
Thanks Paul
A billion here - a billion there - pretty soon ywe're talking real money
The next time you hear a politician use the word "billion," casually, think about whether or not you want the politician spending your tax money.
A billion is a difficult number to comprehend, but one advertising agency did a good job of putting that figure into perspective in one of its releases.
a. A billion seconds ago it was 1973.
b. A billion minutes ago Jesus was alive.
c. A billion hours ago our ancestors were living in the Stone Age.
d. A billion days ago no-one walked on two feet on earth.
e. A billion dollars ago was only 8 hours and 20 minutes, at the rate our government spends it.
Thanks Paul
Katrina picture galleries
Here is a large collection of pictures form hurricane Katrina’s aftermath. Some incredible pictures there. Here are a few from the collection.
Very descriptive interseaction
Welcome to the city of New Orleans
Makeshift shoes Dry Bourbon – so far
Fido still needs to be walked…. or swam.
Christ statue at St. louis Cathedral in New Orleans. Massive oak trees fell all around but didn’t touch the statue.
Just the necessities from Walmart
Thanks Paul
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Top 10 windiest cities
- 1.Blue Hill, MA
- 2.Dodge City, KS
- 3.Amarillo, TX
- 4.Rochester, MN
- 5.Casper, WY [and]
- 6.Cheyenne, WY [tie]
- 7.Great Falls, MT
- 8.Goodland, KS
- 9.Boston, MA
- 10.Lubbock, TX
Notice Chicago is not on this list?
Actually, none of the cities on this list have anywhere near 1 million people, and with the exception of perhaps Boston, do not have many tall buildings. Whereas New York City, Chicago, and even Indianapolis, have a concentrated downtown with many tall buildings. Thus, the more populated cities, or larger cities, have a greater number of taller buildings which hinders the wind from gaining speed.
Thus, Chicago which is known as "the windy city", has a claim to fame which is almost paradoxical. That is, being a city usually means lots of buildings, and that slows the wind down. However, Chicago is likely one of the top ten windiest cities with more than 1 millions people.
So, when someone throws out the fact that Chicago is not one of the windiest cities, you can debate with them if Blue Hill, MA is really a "city". See how fun science can be in social situations? You'll make all sorts of new friends, just none from Blue Hill, Mass.
From Weather Savy via Information Junk
Does hurricane Katrina looks like a 6 week fetus?
Here’s the link to this story. Be sure to read the comments. They’re hillarious. Some people just have way too much time.
From Eve’s Apple via Linkfilter
Man forced to have sex with 3 women at gunpoint
From the Mercury newspaper in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa
August 25, 2005 By Alex Eliseev Johannesburg:
The hunt is on for three women who ambushed a 30-year-old man and forced him to have sex with them at gunpoint.
According to police spokeswoman Paula Nothnagel, a case of indecent assault had been opened and identity kits would be released soon. The man cannot be named because of the nature of the offence.
Nothnagel said that on Saturday night the man was walking through Roodepoort when the women pulled up next to him in their maroon BMW.
They asked him for directions to the Savoy Hotel and he got into the car to show them the way.
At the hotel the women persuaded him to join them for a drink, before asking him for directions to yet another hotel.
While on the road to the Station Hotel the women suddenly changed direction and drove to a dark and empty field near the Durban Deep mine.
"One woman produced a firearm and held the man at gunpoint," Nothnagel said.
"The women got undressed and all three took turns to have intercourse with him."
The man was then ordered back into the car and dropped off along Main Reef Road.
Nothnagel said the man then went home before opening a case at the local police station. The West Rand Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit is investigating. They suspect the women were all aged between 20 and 30.
via Blogywood
Cool pin clock
You Can Hear a Pin Clock
PIN CLOCK
The first of its kind, the pill-shaped precision engineered pin clock uses 3,000 pins to display the hours and minutes of the day. Inspired by the popular Pin Art toy that uses moving pins to form the impression of one’s hand, this creation makes watching the clock a mesmerizing experience. The minutes click ahead with a sound that evokes the classic flip of the numbers at airports or train stations, combining aural ambience with visual style. Imported.
$70.00 Get one at uncommon goods.
via Look at this
Dig a deep hole in your back yard - where will you end up?
If I go out into my backyard and dig a verrrry deep hole… all the way through the earth, where would I end up? I’d end up off the west coast of Australia. Where would you end up? Dig a hole.
via New Links
Obscenities uttered by Jesus
"Dad damn you."
"Holy Mom, mother of me."
"Dad."
"Myself almighty."
"Good me."
"Me, Mom, and Mom's husband ..."
"Me."
From McSweeney’s via growabrain
Neo Orleans to replace New Orleans
An idea from dorking out:
First I'd like to say that the events surrounding the hurricane this week were(are) very tragic we don't intend this to make light of the humanitarian situation at all. There is no nice way to say it, but New Orleans is, quite literally, up shit creek without a paddle. Getting straight to the point: They should bail on New Orleans, and build Neo Orleans as a floating megacity on Lake Pontchartrain....
via J-Walk blog
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
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