Year: 2020
This Mom Ordered A Shirt And It Arrived, Ahem, A Biiiit Different
Buying clothes online is always a bit of a gamble. Aside from the obvious, which is you can’t try things on through your computer screen so you can’t be sure how they’ll fit, you really won’t even know if the items you bought look like the photos until the packages arrive at your door. It’s shopping roulette, and unfortunately a lot of us have paid for a cute shirt but received a potato sack.
Sometimes, though, if you’re extremely, extremely lucky, you’ll end up with something better than you anticipated.
Kelsey Williamson, a mom from Illinois, ordered a shirt for her 3-year-old daughter off AliExpress. Even if you don’t shop online, if you’ve ever been on Facebook you’ve probably scrolled by one of their ads, maybe you’ve even hovered over the “shop now” button because part of you is dying to know what $5 jeans actually look like.
Williamson told BuzzFeed News that she’s bought a ton of clothes for her daughter off the same site before, so she didn’t expect this time to be any different. OHHH BUT IT WAS.
This was the shirt she WANTED to buy:
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Awwwwwww, cuuuuuute.
Frog and Toad, two of the most wholesome children’s book characters ever. I mean, this is definitely using their picture illegally which is not wholesome but aside from the blatant copyright infringement, super wholesome.
This is the shirt that she got:
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Bigfoot Photographed Peering Through Window in Colorado?
A remarkable series of photographs taken by a man in Colorado may show a Bigfoot peering into a window. The highly intriguing images were captured back in October of 2017 by Scott Yeoman, who shared them with the public for the first time this past weekend on Facebook. According to him, the incident occurred one evening as he and his wife were refurbishing a mobile home on their 11-acre property in the community of Bailey.
Suddenly, the couple were caught off guard by a “very harsh odor” which Yeoman said “smelled like rotting animal flesh, vomit, and excrement.” It was then that he noticed “something moving outside the window from the corner of my eye.” Since the ledge of the window was approximately seven to eight feet tall, Yeoman initially suspected that the proverbial visitor was a bear trying to look into the mobile home.
However, when he caught sight of the creature’s face as it moved closer to the window, Yeoman was struck by how, unlike a bear, its eyes were large and far apart. Upon the realization that the thing outside his window was not a bear, he recalled, “fear struck me hardcore.” He then quickly reached for a camera nearby and snapped a series of pictures. Strangely, Yeoman said, the creature closed its eyes when he first pointed the camera at it. The bewildered witness mused that it was akin to a child acting as if “you can’t see me if my eyes are closed.”
About eight minutes into the encounter, Yeoman wrote, his wife came into the room and he told her what was happening. When she saw the creature, she screamed and ran to a back bedroom in the home. Determined to defend themselves, Yeoman grabbed a gun from a closet. However, the creature was moving away from the window by the time he returned. Since it had not tried to get inside the home, Yeoman opted not to shoot at it and the creature ultimately left the scene in a peaceful fashion.
Unfortunately, this case could have been all the more fantastic as Yeoman said that he actually filmed the creature peering in the window for about 10 minutes. However, a house fire later destroyed the computer that contained the video. According to Yeoman, he occasionally sees signs, such as broken tree limbs and eye shine in the nearby wilderness, that seem to suggest that the creature is still lurking around the property, but the couple have not had any other close encounters.
While it is undoubtedly disappointing that Yeoman’s footage is seemingly lost forever, the photos from that evening are unquestionably thought provoking and, if they really do show Sasquatch, may be some of the best photos of the creature ever taken. That said, skeptics will likely say that the ‘Bigfoot’ is either a bear or the product of a clever hoax involving a gorilla suit.
A Very Very Big Balloon!
Project Echo was the first passive communications satellite experiment. Each of the two American spacecraft, launched in 1960 and 1964, was a metalized balloon satellite acting as a passive reflector of microwave signals. Communication signals were bounced off them from one point on Earth to another.
During ground inflation tests, 40,000 pounds (18,000 kg) of air were needed to fill the balloon, but while in orbit, several pounds of gas were all that was required to fill the sphere. At launch, the balloon weighed 156.995 pounds (71.212 kg), including 33.34 pounds (15.12 kg) of sublimating powders of two types. According to NASA, “To keep the sphere inflated in spite of meteorite punctures and skin permeability, a make-up gas system using evaporating liquid or crystals of a subliming solid were incorporated inside the satellite.” One of the powders weighed 10 pounds (4.5 kg), with a very high vapor pressure; the other had a much lower vapor pressure.
Echo 2 was a 41.1-meter-diameter (135 ft) balloon satellite, the last launched by Project Echo. A revised inflation system was used for the balloon, to improve its smoothness and sphericity. Echo 2’s skin was rigidizable, unlike that of Echo 1A. Therefore, the balloon was capable of maintaining its shape without a constant internal pressure; a long-term supply of inflation gas was not needed, and it could easily survive strikes from micrometeoroids. The balloon was constructed from “a 0.35 mil (9 µm) thick mylar film sandwiched between two layers of 0.18 mil (4.5 µm) thick aluminum foil and bonded together.” It was inflated to a pressure that caused the metal layers of the laminate to slightly plastically deform, while the polymer was still in the elastic range. This resulted in a rigid and very smooth spherical shell.
Echo 2 was launched January 25, 1964, on a Thor Agena rocket. In addition to passive communications experiments, it was used to investigate the dynamics of large spacecraft and for global geometric geodesy. Since it was larger than Echo 1A and orbiting in a near-polar orbit, Echo 2 was conspicuously visible to the unaided eye over all of the Earth. It reentered Earth’s atmosphere and burned up on June 7, 1969.
Both Echo 1A and Echo 2 experienced a solar sail effect due to their large size and low mass. Later passive communications satellites, such as OV1-08 PasComSat, solved the problems associated with this by using a grid-sphere design instead of a covered surface. Later yet, NASA abandoned passive communications systems altogether, in favor of active satellites.
A naval hospital ship is coming to New York
Governor Cuomo also said on Wednesday that President Trump had agreed to dispatch a 1,000-bed hospital ship to New York Harbor as the state struggles to deal with a stark jump in coronavirus cases. The governor’s office later clarified was not expected to arrive in until April.
The ship, the U.S.N.S. Comfort, has previously been deployed to natural disaster zones, including to Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria in 2017.
“It has operating rooms,” Mr. Cuomo said. Drawing further on the U.S. military, Mr. Cuomo said he would meet with the Army Corps of Engineers on Wednesday as he seeks to rapidly add hospital beds.
Although Mr. Cuomo said the president had said he would dispatch the 894-foot ship “immediately,” Jonathan Hoffman, a Pentagon spokesman, told reporters at a news conference on Wednesday that the vessel was undergoing repairs in Norfolk, Va., and that it would be weeks before it sailed for New York.
USNS Comfort (T-AH-20) is the third United States Navy ship to bear the name Comfort, and the second Mercy-class hospital ship to join the U.S. Navy’s fleet. The USNS prefix identifies Comfort as a non-commissioned ship owned by the U.S. Navy and operationally crewed by civilians from the Military Sealift Command (MSC). A uniformed naval hospital staff and naval support staff is embarked when Comfort is deployed, said staffs consisting primarily of naval officers from the Navy’s Medical Corps, Dental Corps, Medical Service Corps, Nurse Corps and Chaplain Corps, and naval enlisted personnel from the Hospital Corpsman rating and various administrative and technical support ratings (e.g., Yeoman, Personnel Specialist, Information Systems Technician, Religious Program Specialist, etc.).
General characteristics
Displacement: 69,360 tons (70,470 t)
Length: 894 ft (272 m)
Beam: 105 ft 7 in (32.18 m)
Draft: 33 ft (10 m)
Propulsion: two boilers, two GE turbines, one shaft, 24,500 hp (18.3 MW)
Speed: 17.5 knots (20.1 mph; 32.4 km/h)
Complement: 63 civilian, 956 naval hospital staff, 258 naval support staff, up to 1,000 bed patients
Time to activate: 5 days
Aviation facilities: A flight deck that can handle military helicopters (CH-53D, CH-53E, MH-53E, Mi-17, UH 60)
Out-Of-Sight Photos from around The World
What the circus looked like in 1931, Brooklyn, NY
Mount Fuji, Japan
Venice sunset
Village in the Alps
Heavy clouds moving into Duluth, Minnesota
Blue Lake Michigan water in Chicago
Guy changing a bulb on top of the Penobscot building in Detroit
Israeli Defense Force Search and Rescue soldier
Pingualuit Crater, northern Quebec
Temples in Burma
Seattle sunrise
Apocalyptic sunset in Tel Aviv
Amazing topography in China
Little guy has a front row seat
A ship in deep trouble
Cool Photos
Unloading potatoes in Minnesota
Coiling Dragon Cliff Walk in China
Great view when taking a leak, location unknown.
Giant sinkhole in Fukuoka, Japan. Completely repaired in 2 weeks.
Sunset over a volcano
San Diego, the city with perpetual perfect weather.
New Zealand earthquake. Wire like rail tracks.
Great shot of Joe Biden in 2016. He takes a 3 point football stance when faced with a Maori warrior.
Whales feeding in Alaska. New underwear for those fisherman.
Angolan President’s palace juxtaposed beside the slums that he rules.
The Big Apple at night.
ISIS suicide “Frankentruck” speeding towards Kurdish lines. These thing are packed with over a thousand pounds of explosives and plated with steel sheeting to protect the driver and engine. Packs a hell of a punch. The key is to hit it with a missile before it gets too close.
Tourists checking out Yosemite in the late 1880’s.
Historical Populations of Selected Countries
Canada
United States
| Census year |
Population |
|---|---|
|
|
|
| 1610 | 350 |
| 1620 | 2,302 |
| 1630 | 4,646 |
| 1640 | 26,634 |
| 1650 | 50,368 |
| 1660 | 75,058 |
| 1670 | 111,935 |
| 1680 | 151,507 |
| 1690 | 210,372 |
| 1700 | 250,888 |
| 1710 | 331,711 |
| 1720 | 466,185 |
| 1730 | 629,445 |
| 1740 | 905,563 |
| 1750 | 1,170,760 |
| 1760 | 1,593,625 |
| 1770 | 2,148,076 |
| 1780 | 2,780,369 |
| 1790 | 3,929,214 |
| 1800 | 5,308,483 |
| 1810 | 7,239,881 |
| 1820 | 9,638,453 |
| 1830 | 12,866,020 |
| 1840 | 17,069,453 |
| 1850 | 23,191,876 |
| 1860 | 31,443,321 |
| 1870 | 38,558,371 |
| 1880 | 50,189,209 |
| 1890 | 62,979,766 |
| 1900 | 76,212,168 |
| 1910 | 92,228,496 |
| 1920 | 106,021,537 |
| 1930 | 123,202,624 |
| 1940 | 132,164,569 |
| 1950 | 151,325,798 |
| 1960 | 179,323,175 |
| 1970 | 203,211,926 |
| 1980 | 226,545,805 |
| 1990 | 248,709,873 |
| 2000 | 281,421,906 |
| 2010 | 308,745,538 |
Germany
Population of Germany in 1939 was 67 million.
Russia
United Kingdom
Australia
Ayres Rock, Australia: A Kangaroo warning road sign in the desert near Uluru
China
Strange Sports Venues
Coeur d’Alene Resort Golf Course, USA
The Coeur d’Alene Resort is a luxury resort hotel in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. Located on the north shore of Lake Coeur d’Alene, the Coeur d Alene Resort features a marina, convention facilities, spa, as well as a notable 18-hole golf course. The hotel has 338 rooms and suites, and its main tower has 18 floors.
Coeur d’Alene Resort Golf Course in Idaho is best known for its par-3 14th hole, which features the only movable island green in the world. Built on a barge on submerged tracks, the green is moved daily by computer and distance can range from 95 to 200 yards (87-183m).
Water taxis transport golfers to the hole, which can moved to change the difficulty of the shot (you have to swing from the mainland).
Tennis Court at Burj Al Arab, United Arab Emirates
The world’s highest tennis court stands atop the fourth highest hotel in the world – Burj al-Arab at Dubai. The tennis court is circular in shape and when no session is at play, it doubles as a helipad.
The exact height of the tennis court is not known, but the hotel is 321 m (1,053 feet) tall and the court is located very near the top.
In 2005, when Roger Federer and Andre Agassi were at Dubai for a tournament, they were invited to play a few rounds at the Burj’s helipad-converted-tennis court.
Burj Al Arab stands on an artificial island 280 m (920 ft) from Jumeirah beach and is connected to the mainland by a private curving bridge.
Ski Dubai, United Arab Emirates
An indoor ski resort in the middle of the desert? Yes, that’s weird. Ski Dubai is an indoor ski resort with 22,500 square meters (27,000 sq yds) of indoor ski area. It is a part of the Mall of the Emirates, one of the largest shopping malls in the world, located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It was developed by Majid Al Futtaim Properties, which also operates the Mall of the Emirates.
Opened in November 2005, the indoor resort features an 85-meter-high (280ft) indoor mountain with 5 slopes of varying steepness and difficulty, including a 400-metre-long (1,300ft) run, the world’s first indoor black run, and various features (boxes, rails, kickers) that are changed on a regular basis. A quad lift and a tow lift carry skiers and snowboarders up the mountain.
Adjoining the slopes is a 3,000-square-metre (3,590 sq yds) Snow Park play area comprising sled and toboggan runs, an icy body slide, climbing towers, giant snowballs and an ice cave.
Ski Dubai is also home to a number of penguins who come out to play several times a day. Penguin encounters can be booked, allowing the public to interact directly with the penguins. Winter clothing, ski and snowboard equipment are included in the price of admission.
An extremely efficient insulation system helps the facility maintain a temperature of −1 °C during the day and −6 °C at night when the snow is produced.
Rooftop Mini Football Pitch, Japan
There’s no beating the location of this singularly picturesque football (soccer) pitch: it sits atop the Tokyu Tokyo department store, right next to Shibuya Station.
Adidas Futsal Park opened in 2001, in the run-up to the FIFA World Cup that Japan and South Korea co-hosted the following year, and it’s been doing a strong trade ever since.
Kangaroo Island Road
Kangaroo Island, also known as Karta (“island of the dead”), is Australia’s third-largest island, after Tasmania and Melville Island. It lies in the state of South Australia 112 km (70 mi) southwest of Adelaide. Its closest point to the mainland is Snapper Point in Backstairs Passage, which is 13.5 km (8.4 mi) from the Fleurieu Peninsula.
The island and road was affected this year by the devastating bush fires.
The MarkoZen Blog 