Blurry Painting, Blurry Photos, and Blurry Meanings

As seems to be usual recently, I am finding little to share via my blog. However, I did come across this disturbing story about Converse trademarking a man's soul. I know companies own much of our lives, but isn't this going a bit too far? Oh, wait. It is about them trademarking a 'sole', not a 'soul'. Sorry for the confusion.

Last summer, I shared an article about semi-trailers painted in surprising ways. Now, I want to share the photos themselves. Here's one that looks like a giant candy bar. Sweet paint job, isn't it?

Hey, check out this art photograph. How did the photographer accomplish this? The lower part of the image is clear, and the upper part is blurry. Did they do something in post-image processing? Or did he actually do something cool in the camera? I don't know.

One of the jokes that our chorale director tells often is one about a cowboy who drinks three beers simultaneously in a bar. Have you heard it?
A man walks into a bar and orders three beers. The bartender brings him the three beers, and the man proceeds to alternately sip one, then the other, then the third, until they're gone. He then orders three more and the bartender says, "Sir, I know you like them cold, so you can start with one, and I'll bring you a fresh one as soon as you're low." The man says, "You don't understand. I have two brothers, one in Australia and one in the Ireland. We made a vow to each other that every Saturday night, we'd still drink together. So right now, my brothers have three beers, too, and we're drinking together."

The bartender thinks it's a wonderful tradition, and every week he sets up the guy's three beers. Then one week, the man comes in and orders only two. He drinks them and then orders two more. The bartender says sadly, "Knowing your tradition, I'd just like to just say that I'm sorry you've lost a brother." The man replies, "Oh, my brothers are fine -- I became a Baptist recently, so obviously, I had quit drinking."

Another he told in yesterday's concert was about an insulting parrot.
A lady is walking down the street to work and sees a parrot in a pet store. She stops to admire the bird. The parrot says to her, "Hey lady, you are really ugly." Well, the lady is furious! She storms past the store to her work. On the way home she saw the same parrot in the window and the parrot upon seeing her says, "Hey lady, you are really ugly." She was incredibly ticked now. The next day on the way to work, she saw the same parrot and once again it said, "Hey lady, you are really ugly." The lady was so furious that she stormed into the store and threatened to sue the store and have the bird killed. The store manager apologized profusely and promised the bird wouldn't say it again. The next day, when the lady walked past the store after work the parrot said to her, "Hey lady." She paused, scowled with an icy and deadly stare, and said with a hoarse voice, "Yes?" The bird, strutting back and forth on its perch in a cocky manner, said, "You know."

Remember when we went to CA for a great-nephew's graduation? Well, here he is. See that icon in the lower part of the photo? It was actually a physical item in the yard, and not a digital addition like it appears.

Here he is with his maternal grandparents.

And with his paternal grandmother and step-grandfather.

I did find one other fascinating article this morning. A company offers a way for any car company to shoot a commercial without the car. Yes, you read that correctly. It has no body, just the frame and wheels that can be adjusted to fit the sizing required. Go read the story yourself.

I don't pay much attention to the advertising hype that says you should replace your mattress every eight years. Our current mattress has been giving us a comfortable sleep for 20 years. Whoops. That is, it was fine until recently, when MBH starting experiencing some back pain. Could it be the bed? We tested that theory by having her sleep on the couch. Please, no insinuation about my snoring or tossing and turning being the problem. Anyway, when she slept on the couch, her back did not hurt. So, we decided to bite the bullet and purchase a new mattress. Off to The Dump. No, that's a store, not the actual dump. Anyway, we found one we liked and it is coming later this week. It is a wrapped inner-spring mattress with a pillow top. Stay tuned.

Here's a clever Clarity of Vision comic about mishearing someone's comments and playing them against our internal biases.

I get up waaaay too early. As a result, I don't want to get up even earlier for exercise. What about you? Are you a morning exerciser or an afternoon/evening worker-outer? Well, it may work any time of day, but this lady has a routine to give you a full-body workout in 15 minutes. Try it if you dare.

Subtraction, it's not just for math class. Clever, right? Anyway, it seems that is the type of budgeting that I use to run our household. However, as you can see in this article, there are other, equally effective ways to get your spending and saving under control. Go check it out when you are ready to put some controls in place.

Time's up. I heard my blogging alarm go off, so I need to put this post away. I hope you enjoyed it. I would not be surprised if, one day, when you least expect, I come back for a new post. Until then, let's make it through Monday.