Kara Jean

It is often observed that I do not like strangers to hug me! A recent study by Oxford University shows I'm not even close to alone. Many folks are uncomfortable hugging, or kissing, strangers too.

The Telegraph reports:

The biggest study ever conducted into physical contact suggests that most people harbour an underlying reticence at being touched by a stranger anywhere but on their hands.

In recent years, it has become fashionable to greet new acquaintances with a kiss on one, or even both cheeks. But the new research indicates that people are actually perturbed by such a high level of intimacy from a stranger.

rairaiken424:

ピタゴラスイッチ

So very satisfying.

For generations, members of the Kashia band of the Pomo people have been landlocked. For the first time in 200 years, the coastal tribe will have unmitigated access to the sea.

NBC Bay Area shares the story:

Antone grew up not far away from the spot, on the 40 acre Kashia band of Pomo Indians reservation. By the time Antone was born, the Kashia had long been cut-off from their native coastal lands — a coastal tribe without access to the coast. As a boy, Antone’s father had to ask permission of the land owners to access the same cliffs which once fed his ancestors. These days, tribal members sometimes snuck through the fences in order to conduct traditional coming-of-age ceremonies.

“Made me feel shutout,” Antone said. “It’s land where we used to go before but now you can’t — we’re fenced off.”

But in a groundbreaking land sale, 700 acres of coastal lands will return soon to Kashia control for the first time in 200 years. Sonoma County leaders voted last week to pledge more than $2 million to a coalition of groups which have raised $6 million to purchase the one mile strip of coastal land from a private family, ensuring its future as open space.

Tom Mazanec's uncle recently came across this sign in a restaurant in Chiang Rai, Thailand:

There was no evidence of parallel wording in Thai, so I began my inquiry by assuming that this is not a translation error, but rather some sort of motto that is saying exactly what it seems to be saying.

Lo and behold, it turns out that this is the slogan of a restaurant called Cabbages & Condoms.  I'll let the proprietors explain the peculiar name and slogan themselves:

As one of the most unique restaurants in Metropolitan Bangkok, the Cabbages & Condoms (C&C) Restaurant has attracted international attention. Conveniently located near one of Bangkok's main business districts, C&C is very popular among local and foreign clients.

Our restaurant was conceptualized in part to promote better understanding and acceptance of family planning and to generate income to support various development activities of the Population and Community Development Association (PDA)

We also provide catering services to meet all requirements. And remember, our food is guaranteed not to cause pregnancy.

The interior decoration consists mostly of condoms arranged in various ways, and instead of after-dinner mints, they hand out condoms.  The food is apparently quite good.  For reviews and additional information, see here and here.

The restaurant is based in Bangkok, but has several branches in other parts of Thailand, with Chiang Rai being in the far north.  They even have a branch in England!

[Thanks to Pattira Thaithosaeng]

"The Art of The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien" is a new collection of the drawings, maps, diagrams, and sketches that Tolkien drew to help him navigate Middle-earth, and the entire complex universe he created for his novels. Edited by Tolkien scholars Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull, the hardcover book contains nearly 200 images, the majority of which have never been published before.

"The Art of The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien" (Amazon)

(via Wired)

buy this print!

I'm still on book tour with Step Aside Pops! We hit #1 on the New York Times graphic novel bestseller list! Thank you! Ahh you are the best!

Soon there will be the annual rollout of TOPATOCO merchandise so I'll be sure to let you know when! There will be some fun new shirts as well as PLUSHIE PONIES! I hope they get here soon! They look great.

Check them out here! I've been waiting so lonnggg for them to commmee (we hear November from the company).

The North American leg of this fall tour is over, and I was really lucky to meet a lot of great people! SPX was great as always, and the brand new CXC in Columbus was a delight. Now we are off to the UK! Dates here:

October 16-17: Kendal
Lakes International Comic Art Festival

October 20: London
GOSH! Comics
launch party 7-9pm

November 9-15: Leeds
Thought Bubble Festival


November 23: Bristol
Bristol Festival of Ideas
Cape Comic Creations Night

Not content to merely say that he’d refuse to help any of the hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing the civil war in Syria, Donald Trump promised that he will return all Syrian refugees that the United States has already taken in. “I’m putting the people on notice that are coming here from Syria as part of this mass migration, that if I win, they’re going back. They’re going back, I’m telling you,” declared the alleged human being at a rally in Keene, New Hampshire Wednesday. Trump didn’t specify whether he’d be satisfied with merely declaring refugees stateless and deporting them, or whether he genuinely meant “going back” to Syria, which would require returning the refugees to a war zone. Not that Trump supporters would have a problem with that. But congratulations, Mr. Trump: You may have just passed Mike Huckabee and Rand Paul in the competition to take the most hideously inhuman position on the refugee crisis.

Read more on Donald Trump Tells Syrian Refugees To Go Back To Mexico…

The post Donald Trump Tells Syrian Refugees To Go Back To Mexico appeared first on Wonkette.

What are we supposed to tell you about the man who murdered 10 people at Umpqua Community College in Oregon on Thursday morning?

Read more on Another Mass Shooting In America. What The Hell Are We Supposed To Say?…

The post Another Mass Shooting In America. What The Hell Are We Supposed To Say? appeared first on Wonkette.

Says the uploader of this superb video, “I built my rabbit a cart and now he delivers me beer! This event marks the release of an epic accomplishment.”

(more…)

In Beijing, China banned 2.5 million cars from driving for 2 weeks to get this beautiful blue sky for a World War II commemorative parade. As soon as the parade was over, the ban was lifted, and the blue vanished within 24 hours. Read the rest

Maddie just joined our family. She loves to chew on sticks, play in water, eat peanut butter, run in the grass, and wrestle with her buddy Tucker. She has a playful spirit and is always up for a good run or play session.

buy this print!

Alice! That cat is full of it.

Remember that a tour could be coming your way, sooner rather than later!

We have a lot of interviews and things on the go for Step Aside Pops as it gets near the release date, so expect to see a whole lot of activity! If you're listening to the CBC, I'll be on As It Happens in the next while, and on Q later in the month.

Waylon the raccoon sure would feel a lot better if his brother Willie would stop screwing around and get back on dry land. If you grew up with a more adventurous sibling who seemed to think they were invincible, you know the feeling.

spicyalien:

digitalfrontiers:

I dont often reblog stuff, but when i do, its something like this.

FUCk lmAo

Dorina Rosin, a "spiritual healer," plans to give birth in the sea with the aid of dolphins. Among other benefits, Rosin and partner Maika Suneagle believe that their baby will speak dolphin. Read the rest

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 01, 2015 is:

rigmarole • \RIG-uh-muh-rol\  • noun
1 : confused or meaningless talk 2 : a complex and sometimes ritualistic procedure

Examples:
Rather than go through the annual rigmarole of filling out tax forms, Maureen would rather pay an accountant to do her taxes for her.

"After years of procrastinating, I logged on to my retirement account. Just working my way through the rigmarole of retrieving lost passwords and locating my investments was bad enough." —Sendhil Mullainathan, The New York Times, 11 July 2015

Did you know?
In the Middle Ages, the term Rageman or Ragman referred to a game in which a player randomly selected a string attached to a roll of verses and read the selected verse. The roll was called a Ragman roll after a fictional king purported to be the author of the verses. By the 16th century, ragman and ragman roll were being used figuratively to mean "a list or catalog." Both terms fell out of written use, but ragman roll persisted in speech, and in the 18th century it resurfaced in writing as rigmarole, with the meaning "a succession of confused, meaningless, or foolish statements." In the mid-19th century rigmarole (also spelled rigamarole, reflecting its common pronunciation) acquired its most recent sense, "a complex and ritualistic procedure."

Most people tie their shoes with the inefficient "bunny loop" shoelace knot. Let kindly Professor Shoelace show you the superior “Ian Knot."

Besides being faster, the Ian Knot is also more symmetrical, works equally for right or left handed people, and has fewer steps to memorize, all of which make it easier to learn.