'Ashton House' by Richard Cuerden
A slideshow of my favorite artists. Click on the image to start.
-- Folks, apparently I have reached bloggebrity. Ha!
-- MacGyver's ultimate multitool! The only tool you'll ever need (click image to biggify).
-- 'Natural Viagra' ice cream and 100 other Frightening Ice Cream Flavors from around the world (mostly from Japan).
-- There's something seriously wrong about this. (Click unless you have really good eyes)
-- "Dad sells $90 video game for $9000 after catching son smoking pot." ... And for smoking pot you are now sentenced to a Winnie The Poo for Christmas.
Only on Wikipedia...
-- My mom bought me a small potted plant over the weekend (which will soon die since plants don’t like me, but that’s okay). Therefore instead of a Christmas tree this year, I threw some lights at it and called it a day.
This doesn't mean I don't have the Christmas spirit?!
-- I discovered this cute video of a cat eating (and loving) broccoli. Guys, apparently this is like the next catnip. I sent it to my best friend PiB and told her she should try this with her cat. Maybe the green stuff effect will be the same. If so, she’ll soon be shooting her own ‘Cat Broccoli’ porno. PiB is on vacation now but we she comes back, she’ll tell me all about the action that was ‘PiB scooping out the litter box the morning after’. Good times.
-- I've seen this sign at the subway several times in the Big Apple, but I don't understand it quite well. If I'm sick, the last thing I want to do is take the subway. Therefore if I'm on it, it's because I HAVE to be, don't you think? (Click on the image for maxi-view)
-- This is by far the dumbest political analysis I've ever read since the Presidential elections. Fox News, please cover real stories.
-- Australian scientists published last Friday that people with dementia can't detect sarcasm. Researchers at the University of New South Wales are using it to diagnose dementia.
'Sarcasm may be the lowest form of wit.' - the author said.
... I could have told you that!
-- Free wireless Internet nationwide would be awesome. I mean, why not? The airwaves are owned by all of us.
-- Gee, thank you USPS.
-- iGod, I mean iPhone, has failed to find buyers in India. According to the International Business Times, India is the second largest cellphone market in the world, selling close to 10 million phones a month. So far only 12,000 Apple iPhone 3Gs have been sold. Go figure.
-- According to the Technorati 2008 State of the Blogosphere, of the 133 million blogs the site tracks only 7.4 million have been updated in the last 120 days. That translates to 125.6 million abandoned (or at least unloved) blogs. Interesting.
-- I watched a very interesting PBS show on Fractals the other night. I was in front of the tele like a magnet from beginning to end. I love shows that explain cool mathematical things.
Oh, and it doesn't require cable.
-- Oh, my eyes! My eyes! Back in the horror of the seventies, the Apple company released their first logo. Yeap, you guessed right: it's Newton sitting under an apple tree.
Thursday, April 2, 2009 at 10:29PM 
Happy Birthday to this,
Happy Birthday to this,
Happy Birthday to The Pompomist,
Happy Birthday to this.
Today The Pompomist celebrates its 2nd year anniversary. Even with my moving moratorium, readers have stayed loyal and I'm quite pleased with that.
Thank you for visiting and hope you come by for more!
Sunday, March 29, 2009 at 9:56PM 
Time Magazine recently published a very interesting article about the next 10 newspapers to fold or go online only. The Miami Herald is part of the list. This due especially to the drastic decrease of real estate advertisement. But worst case scenario it will remain online in English and Spanish.
Looks like they'll be around for a while.
Sunday, March 29, 2009 at 4:42PM 
A lot of stuff happened very quickly in March, and here’s the basic gist: I moved to New Jersey.
Sure, I had some idea that I wanted to move out of Miami, but this was something I wanted to do sometime in the near future, not in 12 days! But certain job opportunities within my company required for me to relocate immediately... March 9th to be exact. So after 13 magnificent years, I moved out of Miami.
But this doesn’t mean that I will never be back. Heck, I’ll be back in April to help my mother move to her new condo. And then again for Mother’s day. And then again possibly for my birthday, and over the holidays at the end of the year.
The last week in Miami and the first week in Jersey were rough. I slept about 4-5 hours a night, falling asleep after hours in bed, waking up occasionally, and then going back to bed and waking up hours before my alarm went off. But now things are slowly back on track... adapting slowly but surely.
It was no easy move, but ultimately easier than most. I moved to NJ/NYC… cities that I’ve been visiting monthly for as long as I can remember, where I have a lot of friends, where I have my father and siblings, and where I’m able to continue with the same job.
Plus life in NJ/NYC is superb: the bright NYC skyline from my father’s home in NJ, and in there, two million people on a tiny island. In there, they are living, they are eating, they are drinking, sleeping (and doing it too, haha), and in there some of my friends and relatives, my past construction projects, my museums, my bars, my walks.
I am missing Florida tremendously but I believe this change will be good for me physically, emotionally, mentally and professionally.
God knows very well what He’s doing.
Monday, March 9, 2009 at 8:54PM 
Moving from Miami to New Jersey. This site will resume late this week, so stay tuned!
Thank you for your patience.
Sunday, March 1, 2009 at 8:06PM The Old: 'Mother of Pearl' - Roxy Music
I actually re-discovered Roxy Music recently through a friend. To be honest with you, some of their songs are 'Holy molly! That's fenomenal!'. Other songs are mediocre.
This song in particular is one of the best rock songs I've ever heard. Just listen to the lyrics, the instrumentation... perfect to blast on the iPod or while driving.
I know, I know. The video is from 1974 and the band looks like they're ready for a Halloween party, but you know what? No matter what anyone says, I'm cool and awesome.
The New: 'Missing' - Beck
Beck is the master of music creativity and this song is from the 2005 album ‘Guero’. It’s laid back, smooth, atmospheric, and almost latin-flavored. Totally infectious.
Sunday, March 1, 2009 at 7:23PM 
Interesting New York Times article about scientific objectivity and political advocacy published a few days ago:
But climate change, like most political issues, isn’t so simple. While most scientists agree that anthropogenic global warming is a threat, they’re not certain about its scale or its timing or its precise consequences (like the condition of California’s water supply in 2090). And while most members of the public want to avoid future harm from climate change, they have conflicting values about which sacrifices are worthwhile today.
A scientist can enter the fray by becoming an advocate for certain policies, like limits on carbon emissions or subsidies for wind power. That’s a perfectly legitimate role for scientists, as long as they acknowledge that they’re promoting their own agendas.
But too often, Dr. Pielke says, they pose as impartial experts pointing politicians to the only option that makes scientific sense. To bolster their case, they’re prone to exaggerate their expertise (like enumerating the catastrophes that would occur if their policies aren’t adopted), while denigrating their political opponents as “unqualified” or “unscientific.”
Read the full article here.
Friday, February 20, 2009 at 12:02AM 
Vivian Jin from WE Design informed us about their recently launched conceptual design competition in an attempt to rebuild a Chinese school in Sichuan province after the earthquake disaster last year.
WE Design is a non-for-profit organization of professional designers, architect, curator, artists, scholars, design students and business executives concerned with China's contemporary design development.
WE Design invites you to participate in this competition. It is open for designers and students with background of architecture, masterplan, interior, product design, fashion design and art. Click on the PDF competition poster to find out more.
The submission deadline for the Sichuan School International Conceptual Design Competition is 20 March 2009, so get the ball rolling!
Sunday, February 15, 2009 at 10:07AM 
Don't understand the stimulus package recently approved by the senate? Here at The Pompomist, we are suckers for informational graphics. And the Washington Post has posted an excellent one that'll leave no questions unanswered.
Click the image for access.
Sunday, February 15, 2009 at 9:47AM Le Monde des montagnes is a project mixing images and animation to the content of a book, creating a ficticious pop-up effect.
The set-up is simple: a book, a lamp and a laptop. As soon as you open the book under the lamp, the pages take on a new animated dimension on the screen.
It doesn't have the same charm as a real pop-up book, but the end result is impressive nonetheless.
Via Cuarto Derecha
Saturday, February 14, 2009 at 4:49PM Today is Valentine’s Day: a day of romanticism and consumerism. Some people (mainly singles) dislike this day because is a reminder of their current romantic relationship status (or lack thereof). I personally don’t feel anything about it, but one thing is true and I think you’ll agree with me: this day is a celebration of love.
Yes, I’m single, but I’ve got love... not the romantic kind, but I'm loved by friends and family nonetheless.
As far as relationships go, I wouldn’t mind having a beautiful, fun and comfortable relationship. Having someone’s company and physical attention would be wonderful, as long as is not one of those suffocating, overwhelming, dramatic, no room to breathe relationships.
Maybe that’s the reason why I’m single: the fear of a consuming relationship. But I personally think is good to know what you want and don’t want in life.
I must admit that I get a little jealous when I see my friends in great relationships. Being perfect for each other and getting along real well… I’d love that. But the truth of the matter is, I’ve got love and I am in no rush of being in a relationship. That’ll come at the right time and when it happens, I’ll welcome it.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Thursday, February 12, 2009 at 9:51PM 
Here at The Pompomist, a drug free magazine, we thrive to give you our most honest opinion on ads from around the globe.
Take a close look at this not-so-bright ad from Skoal. Here’s the scenario: three chicks looking at three dudes who came up with the stupid idea of jumping vigorously from a yacht to a shallow mass of water ('cause you know... water has to be shallow so the advertiser can display the girls’ bikinis).
I don’t know about you but I predict very serious injuries.
Thursday, February 12, 2009 at 12:36PM My favorite part of this cute commercial is the man adjusting the mirror at 0:43. Neat!
Thursday, February 12, 2009 at 12:23PM 
Ordos 100 project is a development of 100 villas located on Ordos, Mongolia. Each villa was designed by an architecture firm chosen by celebrity architects Herzog and de Meuron. The designers were asked to design a villa measuring of 1,000 sq. meters (or 10,763 sq. ft.).
This particular villa was designed by Multiplicities, a New York City based design firm. The structure is oval-shaped in plan with curved exterior walls made from black brick. The ovular form, called the Black Skin by Multiplicities, is bisected by an X-shaped central void that they call the ‘White Lung’ made from white quartz. All of the interior spaces are organized around this X-shaped void.
This design is product of some very interesting section drawings.
Via Sub-Studio
Wednesday, February 11, 2009 at 1:03PM 
This month is Barbie's 50th birthday. She has gone through a lot of criticism for offering girls an unrealistic image of a modern woman. She inspired eating disorders, powerful careers, a closet full of the trendiest clothes, a metrosexual boyfriend and no interest on getting married or have children. Reason why barbie looks pretty good for a woman of her age.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009 at 12:47PM 
Universcale is a really cool (Nikon-sponsored) web-based flash animation, that presents the relative scale of everything from the universe down to the smallest particles. Click on the image above to access.
Via Grow-a-Brain
Tuesday, February 10, 2009 at 10:17PM 
Icoeye has designed a bookmark with a Save icon that you can make yourself. It is part of Icoeye's iconote concept.
All you need to do is download the PDF file, print it out, cut out and voila! You can make a good amount with just one sheet of paper.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009 at 10:02PM Milton Friedman was an American economist and a winner of the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences. He is best known for his research on consumption analysis.
I found this very interesting video of Mr. Freedman talking about capitalism, greed and virtue. He's quite compelling, don't you think?
Tuesday, February 10, 2009 at 9:37PM Introducing... Snuggie, the robe that you wear backwards!
That’s right folks! When it’s cold inside and you are too lazy to remove your arms from under a blanket, why not try a Snuggie?
While retail sales are going down, I cannot believe Snuggies are selling through the roof. More than 4 million sold since September.
'Similar products are sold for $60.'
For real? Where? If you think about it, this isn’t even an original idea. Check out St. Francis in his robe here. He could have patented that centuries ago.
Wanna hear the real truth?
You're welcome.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009 at 7:46PM 
Hey. Sorry about the posting moratorium. Things have been nuts in Jamieland. Short version:
So yeah, busy.
But don’t you worry. Posting will resume immediately.
Saturday, January 24, 2009 at 1:50PM Well.
Uh.
Okay, here’s what happened.
Since my life is a walking comedy, I have been extremely busy and haven’t had a chance to write. And I am sorry to give you the announcement that next week blogging will not be a priority. I am currently working in the Big Apple and will be here for a few weeks surviving the cold.
But don’t you worry! Today I dedicated the entire day for you, my precious snowflakes. Here’s a recap of the last few days:
-- Last Sunday I woke up with the symptoms of an emerging cold. I get together with my mom for lunch, and she gave me a Zicam lozenge to ease the cold. This is just a friendly warning from your Pompomist friend here: IT TASTES LIKE H*LL.
But it worked…Nastiness.
-- Same day in the afternoon I went to the mall to buy winter clothes. Geez! People stopping repeatedly in the middle of the walkway while texting or eating ice cream; restrooms hidden behind the gift wrapping area which is located all the way down the hallway. My deal is: I get in, I get out. Done! I do not mess around.
-- One product I found on Fifth Avenue that anyone can definitely live without is the Tiffany $1,500 sterling silver tennis ball can.
-- I arrived to NYC last Tuesday. For once in my life, could the person sitting next to me for an entire flight be a single, attractive and funny young man?
Anyhoo, happy Saturday everyone!
