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You forgot another Australian jellyfish that is even more dangerous than a chironex. That would be the Irukandji.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irukandji_jellyfish
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Fantastic post! Excellent writing - nearly scared me to death!
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hey "swimming with the fishes" doesn't sound too bad, but how about "sleeping with the fishes" ;)
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hey anonymous, that wikipedia link doesn't make the irukandji sound particularly dangerous.
Irukandji syndrome is produced by a very small amount of venom and includes severe pains at various parts of the body (typically excruciating muscle cramps in the arms and legs, severe pain in the back and kidneys, and a burning sensation of the skin and face), headaches, nausea, restlessness, sweating, vomiting, high heart rate and blood pressure.
Certainly not pleasant, but not exactly in the same league as "dead in 30 seconds."
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Wow, those frogs have fantastic colours!
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Long time reader - first time commenter. One of the best articles that I've read here. Crisp writing and some very good snaps.
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Irukandji is a nasty little bugger. wikipedia doesn't make it sound like much but the discovery channel did. there was a show where these two researchers were trying to capture one and they got stung. the guy suffered immense pain for two days. his colleague for 2 weeks.
so "severe pains at various parts of the body (typically excruciating muscle cramps in the arms and legs, severe pain in the back and kidneys, and a burning sensation of the skin and face), headaches, nausea, restlessness, sweating, vomiting, high heart rate and blood pressure."
may not sound like much but you might wish you were dead after the 3rd day. in fact the guy mentioned some other jellyfish he wished he was working with "with [somthing] the pain goes away in 30 minutes or you die" then he alluded to doing research on elephants instead. because their big and dont sting :)
needles to say next time the went Irukandji hunting they were wearing full protection.
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The non-plus-ultra is "Clostridium botulinum" - a small bacterium producing a really insane poison called botulin toxin (also known as botox...) during the cell division.
Between 50pg/kg and 3ng/kg are needed to kill someone (!!). In my opinion, THAT is impressive.
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Each cone snail has about 100 different variations of its venom. There is no antivenom to its sting. Several victims have survived though with immediate and constant pressure on the wound site and then mechanical ventilation. The risks of getting snuffed by one of these creatures is exceedingly small. Small as they are they can still be made non-existent, which is just what I'm will be doing by never going to their habitat.
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"to use it’s less scientific name,"
Oh please. Learn to spell simple pronouns.
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Lesson one: don't go swimming (period). Lesson two: don't turn an article in without having your copy editor look at it first (sigh). Of course it's supposed to be "its."
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even though the box jellyfish is deadly there is another jellyfish that is deadlier. it is called the Irukandji and can kill a man in 3 minutes.
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What about the blue-ringed octopus? It's pretty dangerous too. From Wikipedia:
"The blue-ringed octopus is the size of a golf ball, but its venom is powerful enough to kill humans. There is no known antidote."
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I am going to lock myself at home and never go out again
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These are all scary creatures, but they seldom kill that many people (a few dozen here or there). How about the most deadly animal of all? It is pretty small.
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Great writing but fatalities from many of these are very rare. Some are easily defended against also. Thin fabric like panty hose or a thin lycra jelly-suit are enough to defend against nematocysts firing, or look into Safe-Sea Sunscreens, that can also protect you. You'll find bottles of vinegar lining Aussie beaches and lifeguard stations, which is sufficient in most cases.
I think I'm just rationalizing myself back into the water for this year's diving season. :(
-R
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The frogs can jump up to 2 inches? That's not very scary.
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This is just FUD. It scares Yankee tourists away from coming to Australia. I can't remember the last time any of these critters actually managed to kill someone.
And for some reason the funnelweb spider, the salt water croc and the great white shark are left off the list. These do kill people. The crocs usually get some drunken swimmer every year. And because of the murky water - you don't see them coming.
But far more deadly - especially in usa - people with cars, guns and/or alcohol. And for a nice slow death - you can't go past cigarettes and high calorie fast food.
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Forget the critters -- something like MRSA can be much, much worse, often fatal, always messy, and easy to pick up these days. Variations such as pneumonic MRSA are terrifying....
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Australia is home to loads of poisonous things. However, the death rate there is extremely low (as in 1 or 2 every year). Due to their comprehensive knowledge of the poisons, and prompt medical attention. In the toxicology world, Chironex is generally thought of as more dangerous than the Irukanji - just because severe poisoning from the Irukanji is very rare. Blue ringed octopi are not always toxic, they absorb their toxin from prey/water. In general, CPR will save a person bitten by a B.R.O.
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Chuck Norris could kick the livin'shit right outta those critters without even dilating a nostril and then chop them up to eat in his salad...
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I've worked with most of these animals before and they aren't all lethal. A stonefish will hurt an incredible amount if you step on it and you will probably wish you were dead but unless you get an infection in the wound I wouldn't chisel out a tombstone any time soon. The Stonefish venom is a type of toxin that will simply break down under high temperatures, so throw that foot in some hot water and you will be fine (very sore but fine).
Box jellyfish are in the same boat. If you get stung on the arm or leg you will be in mind numbing pain but you probably won't die. Get stung around the torso and you are in big trouble though. Stop the sting and remove the tentacles all you need to do is cover the area in vinegar (which is at most affected beaches) and do CPR if they happen to stop breathing. But the vast majority of stings are not that bad (I have been stung dozens of times).
All said and done though, if you follow the warnings and listen to what locals say you won't get hurt. It is rare to die from these things but if you insist on frolicking in the water in the middle of summer on a beach that has a closed sign on it don't be surprised if you end up having an extremely painful holiday experience.
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Thank you Elmark - most fascinating comment.
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"But far more deadly - especially in usa - people with cars, guns and/or alcohol. And for a nice slow death - you can't go past cigarettes and high calorie fast food."
Who ever wrote this is a douche nozzle
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"Oh please. Learn to spell simple pronouns."
Okay...
"simple pronouns"
How's that?
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I like how everyone is bitching about this persons post.
Complaining about spelling and such? Come ON get a frakkin life...
And hey, just because they dont cause MANY deaths, does not mean a person is safe from them. Just cause there is vinigar and lifeguards on the beaches, does not mean you wont die from it.
And what you dont know can kill you. Just because YOU know about these critters, does NOT mean everyone else knows. Most people ouside of Australia dont know that the Platypus is venomous.
I myself would rather have something like this posted, and be scared, than go hiking in the amazon and suddenly feel sick and find myself convulsing and dying and not even know why.
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What's that frog in the Amazon that makes you hallucinate?
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fun article, reasonably well written, but as elmark's already hinted a trifle sensationalist.
eg, sea snakes do possess a dreadful venom, but their fangs are located at the back of their mouths, so it's very difficult for them to get a grip on humans sufficiently to deliver a fatal dose. the webs between your fingers and toes, or your earlobes, are about the only place they can do it. they're not particularly aggressive critters, either.
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Hmm... wondering about the people who were nasty about pronouns but didn't notice the following:
"...as viscous and deadly as they are quiet and unassuming..." - should be "vicious," unless you're referring to their ability to run in your car's engine; and "...knock full grown monkey's out of the trees..." should be "monkeys" without the apostrophe.
Other than those (and I'm just a wee bit picky when it comes to language), a fine article. Thanks!
To Anonymous: no need to be nasty, not everybody's a pedant!
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hi, that was some really AWESOME writing! i read it twice because it was so good. have you considered writing a book?
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Great article! Meanwhile the snail may fire it's harpoon, loaded with venom.
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"What's that frog in the Amazon that makes you hallucinate?"
Ahh yes, that would be the Marijuana Frog
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Makes me even more scared of what lurks in the sea...
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Great article. But the mob says, "sleeping with the fishes", not "swimming with the fishes".
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Actually, the Irukandji is not more dangerous than the box jellyfish. They only sting fom the tip of their tentacle, as opposed to the whole length... and it causes Irukandji syndrome, which is seldom lethal. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irukandji_syndrome
But thanks for showing that you know another type of dangerous jellyfish. You just don't need to pretend it's more dangerous for attention.
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DaviMack you need to look up the definition of the word viscous, before you post. The word doesn't necessarily have a thing to do with car engines.
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The cone snail might not be so dangerous
from wikipedia:
Live cone shells should not be handled, as they are capable of "stinging" humans with unpleasant results. The sting of a few of the larger species of tropical cone snails can be fatal to a human being.
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nice to see a well written article for once
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You forgot to tell that kill people by touch but only when you have a wound. The poison can't travel through your skin so it needs access to your blood by a wound
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every diver knows sea snakes are very poisonous but i dont think there are many documented cases, if any, of people getting stung by them. you'd have to catch one and stuff it in your wetsuit for it to get that far
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(1.) The cone snail is not NEARLY as deadly as you would portray. Only a couple of the larger species are actually deadly to humans and again, only the largest of these would approximate the effects you describe
(2.) There is no such thing as antivenom. It is called antivenin.
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To all the grammar Nazis:
English is one of the most overly complex and derivative languages in the world. Why you would ever care about the proper use of such a paradoxical language is beyond my ability to comprehend. Being able to properly spell even half of the words in the English language should merit you a gold medal.
I'd also like to mention the fact that "Oh please." is not a complete sentence.
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@ paul
marijuana does not make you hallucinate in any way, nice try.
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Overwrought sensationalism; sounds like a National Enquirer article or the voice-over from a cheesy TV documentary.
I liked the casual self-contradiction of "They are the only animal in the world known to be able to kill a human by touch alone." ...followed by the very next paragraph describing how touching a different animal (a caterpillar) will also kill you.
All of this hype gets people worked up about remote possibilities of death from exotic animals. How many people worldwide are killed by all the animals in this list put together? Maybe a few dozen a year.
The real easy-to-miss killers are more mundane. I'd put mosquitoes high up on the list, since the diseases they spread (malaria, typhoid, sleeping sickness, and many more) kill millions of people a year.
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You should have the photo credit for Jake Adams link to his site www.coralidea.com . Good site
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Done, thank you for the note
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that was crazy.. thanks for that. i'm a bio major so i really enjoyed it!
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Amazing... i've just twitted it :P
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Mayby http://www.egeskov.dk/en/titanias-palace
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Re Buckingham Palace. I have a vague recollection of seeing this model on childrens TV, mid to late 70's. Maybe Blue Peter?
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Those Soviet workers are all the same person, no? Am I exceptionally observant, or am I thick and that's an obvious joke to everyone else, or am I completely insane?
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I think you are right that all the Soviet workers are the same person.. good eye. I felt it was too ridiculous to be real but didn't notice that.
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The chap in the soviet worker photo looks like Steve Pemberton from the league of gentlemen...
http://www.theleagueofgentlemen.org.uk/page5.htm
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The model of Buckingham Palace mentioned is almost certainly Queen Mary's Dolls House, in Windsor Castle:
http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/page4488.asp
Genuinely amazing.
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The
Phasr(pdf) is not quite "in use now", as it's an Air Force Research Lab development project.
Prototypes exist and have been tested, but I'm aware of no evidence that it's been deployed - but I wouldn't be surprised if it was soon, as
civilian equivalents are supposedly available now.
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i like the way that longcat seems to pop up here every now and then
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And how do you sell all of these wonderful products? Why, through
Christvertising of course!
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christvertising = WIN
mpb, you've just killed me with that link
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"Tremble" does not have the sense of "Be afraid". It simply means "aspen" in French and is probably just an indication of the tree species along a forested path.
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You may want to check your eyes. Two Marys and a St. Francis do not a Nativity make. Unless, of course it's an alternative lifestyle manger scene.
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I think Eliot Spitzer could use a couple of cases of those air fresheners...
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The answer to the bloated white things = As they said in the movie 'Meatballs', "Some kind of Meat"
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I still havn't seen anything to quite match the sheer off-handed tackiness of this little gem that dropped through my letterbox one day:
http://www.bikersweb.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=16641
HWS
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The nuns are part of a set - 'Racing Nuns'. You pull them back and they move forward; I have some.
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That truck has "are you ready to meet Jesus" on the wrong side! (At least for American trucks!) Or perhaps the right side should simply add... "Now?"
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And if you want to buy any of these 'wonderful' items, this bus can take you there: http://tinyurl.com/2bbb6m
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It's a fantastic line up.
I'm also wondering why they use the French name 'Jean' for the pope, while the man actually was Polish (which would make something like Johannus), while he was in fumction in Rome (Giovanni) and the money value is in english Pound (John).
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One of my friends has the pink magic 8-ball Jesus. It makes for much late-night amusement-- when asked "should we make cookies tonight?" it responded with "hallelujah!"
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I'm surprised no one's sent you these sculptures, which were in a window display of a local bookstore. I could only find these two links to pictures of them -- one was just taken with a cellphone camera, the other has been Photoshopped. But you get the idea.
http://didipusrex.multiply.com/photos/album/6/Camphone_Shots#5.jpg
http://isabetlog.multiply.com/photos/album/83/Need_A_Hero
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Ooh, but how could you leave out Nunzilla?
http://www.artistcraftsman.com/catalog/W012491.jpg
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What does it mean that the Deluxe Miracle Jesus action figure is right next to the Freddie Mercury action figure?
FLASH! Aaahhh!, He's a Miracle!
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I'm adding you to my favorites column. And I do own the Wash Your Sins Away lip balm....it's a long story. It's old-red-wine flavored.
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Priceless, if horrifying. Incidentally, the "white bloaty things" I figured out: they're those weird beanbag bookmarks for putting in your bible, I guess so you won't lose your place while you're genuflecting.
And the "Gay black Jewish klansmen for peace" was an idea conceived by Julian Thomas Reid, who lives, oddly, not farm from Smyrna, Georgia but was, in fact, in no way involved. Loved the purple robes with green stars of David!
Julian, by the way, is not black or gay; just Jewish.
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Love these photos. All in one place too. Thanks for sharing.
I am a long time Christian baiter myself, so I understand where you are coming from LOL
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I cannot remember the last time I spent so long on a blog. You have some very interesting stuff here. I enjoyed my visit.
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I'm still rolling around after seeing the Crusaders costumes! So funny and so ridiculously wrong.
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siguen vendiendo a Dios... no se porque? gracias por las imágenes justo me sirvió para algo que ví el día de hoy
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Could those "blasted white things" be ... geoducks?
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If it weren't for cyd watts confirming the existence of the Gay black Jewish klansmen for peace, I would have assumed them to be fake, after reading the fine print below which says: Spoungebob Squarepants fan club meetings in Tyron's mom's basement Every Wednesday at 7:30PM
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Love the iGod billboard. Confirms my belief that placing the letter 'i' before any product name is a surefire way to attract idiots!
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Sorry to burst your bubble, but
this picture is not from the 60s. It's Zooey Deschanel from the movie Almost Famous.
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Very nice old pics and goodlooking women... I luv the old Vespa scooters!
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That "motoring in the 1910's" photo has an interesting date in the upper left corner...March 1922.
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Thank you for a couple of Hayleys I didn't have.
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The following photographs (models inside bubbles) were made by
Melvin Sokolsky, not
Richard Avedon:
2083127102_30ef2f2b91_o.jpg
2082344079_ab3868e6c1_o.jpg
2083127578_e805c3f3c2_o.jpg
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Thank you Flavio, - we are contacting him for permissions.
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Of course the first "groovy times" photo is Gabrielle Drake playing Lt. Ellis from the show UFO that came out in 1970 and took place in 1980.
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For more great shots of Gabrielle Drake, see this
page
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I have to agree that the hardware calendar is my fav, somethign about that vintage style and coloration that i really really like, the betties are also great of course!
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The video with the masked soldier where is mortar explode is realy not funny. If a saw a video on YouTube of a soldier from my country die because of a faulty equipement, and categorize as funny, I would not be happy.
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Anonymous: That video of a jihaddi terrorist getting offed by his own shell was hilarious.
I thank god that he got himself killed in such a stupid and amusing fashion before he had a chance to murder innocent Iraqis, or kill any of our own soldiers there.
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Look at those sweet wildhaired mountain gorilla's... I really hope they will surivive!
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There's a typo: Lake Tawaza -> Lake Tazawa
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Haha, love the bat!
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Absolutely beautiful.
Those mine pictures were scary as hell> I kept expecting something to reach out and grab the dancer.
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exquisite photos and commentary!
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Regarding "Coffee cups and t-shirts
Do they sell these in stores?"
They do sell that coffee cup (and I own one). It's called "Mr P series". You can get it and some other great products at http://www.gdp.com.sg/Category.asp?CID=11
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the tshirt is available from think geek
http://www.thinkgeek.com/tshirts/generic/8ba2/
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The spring pics make me very happy... :-))
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Give me a napkin please. I laugh until tears with the musical.
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Amazing pictures! I have to visit this place.
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Looks beautiful!
And cold! :D
Nice photos.
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Echt starke Bilder!
Kurtchen (Bremen/Germany)
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Besutiful especailly the pics from Reykjavik I think, I really wanna go there sometime...
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These pictures remind me a lot of Armenia's neighbor, Georgia. And the distinctive dome-cross architecture of the churches in the photos is the same as found in old and new Georgian churches. example:
Svetitskhoveli Cathedral
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How beautiful! The beauty of the wilderness is enhanced by there being not one single person in each of those pictures
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Thank you for posting this!! I'm Armenian and am proud of the beautiful country =) These are gorgeous photos!
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I'm glad you guys are enjoying the photos. Do you want more??? :)
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yes post some more =)
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Ethiopia (and not Armenia) was the first Christian country by the way
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it's been established that armenia was, in fact, the first christian nation...but bickering over that would be pretty un-christian, huh?
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great shots.
I love this site
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Sorry raphtee you are mistaken, the Armenians were indeed the first nation to become Christians in 301.
In 2001 Canada post issued a commemorative stamp in this honour...check out the history pages...Google search Gregory the Illuminator, very interesting historical facts :)
Breathtaking pics by the way!
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Thank you for collecting and sharing these wonderful pictures of the land of my ancestors. My Armenian mother was born in Iran and raised in France, living 60 years in Denmark now. The rest of my family is mostly in California.
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thank you guys for all great comments... Visit Armenia, and be a blessing to Armenian people.
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If the temple at the beginning of the article was built over 2000 years ago it could not have been paid for by Nero. Nero was emperor of Rome from 54 AD to 68 AD. Also, if Nero did pay for it, or it was built approximately 2000 years ago, that would firmly make it Roman, not Greek.
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Adam, when they write Greek, this means Helenist style, and not from Greece or having Greek nationality!
David
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Could the girls with the guns be a ballet rehearsing the "nutcracker" stroy .. ?
then the guy with the mask would fit in as well ..
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The first picture shows the top of New Zealand's South Island, and Cook Strait
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Obviously it's a Nutcracker rehearsal.
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I would love one of those nap stations
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Awesome -- thanks for the link to my airline certificate article! They're one of those things that I had never known existed until one showed up in my hands...and then I HAD to find out more about them.
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They had those nap stations at Macworld Expo in San Francisco in January. While you were inside you could listen to a nap soundtrack generated by the Pzizz software:
http://www.pzizz.com/
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'Tis true that he's the Nutcracker King and that the girls are the toy soldiers, taking on the army of rats in Clara's dream.
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to Azrael Brown:
You got some very cool vintage stuff on your sites. Send us a note when something neat comes up again, we'll link it.
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They claim they lost the site of Hitlers Bunker. Ironically it was recently rediscovered when the Jewish Memorial was being built nearly over it.
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7 Comments:
About the mystery picture:
I think it was taken in the Republic of San Marino, a small independent state in the middle of the Italian Republic. It's on its eastern medieval ramparts, facing a sheer (and very high) cliff to the right.
Yes, I confirm.
This is a famous "passeggiata delle streghe" (witchs' promenade).
another picture:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Sanmarino5.jpg
The Urban Surprise picture was taken in Venice. It is an (I think temporary) art object in front of one of the city's many museums located at the Canal Grande.
Esther D., The Netherlands
That are a lot of cats in one tree!
Thank you for the San Marino info - post updated.
http://www.core77.com/competitions/GreenerGadgets/projects/4609/
About the "weird" toilet seat.
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