Month: December 2020

Crate of Curios part 14

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Here we are in a mellow after-Christmas mood, ready to open yet another Crate of Curios. So let’s get to it!

  1. Cats, as we all already know, are the rulers of Internet and generally fascinating creatures. Those among us who do not cohabit with any, might not even know that one of their strange features is chirping when stalking their prey. This is thought to be either an expression of frustration or excitement or a more or less successful attempt to mimic the sounds of the creature they happen to be hunting. Ekekekkekkek has a great collection of the chirps on Instagram, but this feature is not unique for house cats, as proven by this Chilean güiña.

2. How came there always seems to be a little room left for dessert no matter how much you’ve eaten before? The culprit is to be found in our hormonal system.

3. Could the color of dried blood ever be fashionable with anyone except vampires? Well, in fact it has had its heyday in royal court.

4. This beauty is the very rare South Philippine Dwarf Kingfisher.

5. Did you know how the different types of screw drives are called? Me neither before I found this nifty little chart.

And that was it for this time. Happy reading and until the next Crate that’ll be opened already in 2021!

Crate of Curios part 13

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This week has passed unnoticeably as the lockdown lasts – days merge into a mellow river of time recently illuminated by the lonely Christmas lights on the streets. In short, it’s Sunday again and time to open a new Crate! So, here we go without further ado.

  1. If you for whatever reason happen to be wondering what the national animals of European (and its neighbouring) countries might be, you can see all of them on this gorgeous map (link leads to larger resolution version).

2. The maddening crowd might be everywhere – especially if one happens to be an urban dweller, but there are still places in the world where you can in a very literal sense get away from it all. Tristan da Cunha, the tiny island in the middle of the Atlantic, is even more remote than Napoleon’s geographical prison St. Helena.

3. Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the recently passed US Supreme Court Justice, was known both for her tireless work to advance women’s rights and her sublime sense of fashion expressed by her robe collars.

4. To put it shortly – “Man has no garden, creates a stunning nano pond.” The man in question is ethnobotanist James Wong.

5. Lest we forget that writers are also humans who eat, The Paris Review is running a fascinating column called ‘Writers’ Fridges’.

And that was it for this time. Happy reading and until next week!

Crate of Curios part 12

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Lockdown is proceeding along with the winter months of 2020 and bookshops will be open from tomorrow on! As relishing small joys is all 2020 has been about, let’s waste no time in diving into yet another Crate of Curios.

  1. Gingerbread houses seem to be the place for major overhaul this year. I already touched upon charcuterie chalets in Crate no.9, but now it’s time to modernize the construction itself and move from the Middle Ages to Mid Century Modern gingerbread architecture.

2. An interesting table I came across, that shows the crossroads between tea-making and philosophy (well, ontology in particular) and examines how far the concept of tea can possibly stretch.

3. If you ever gave much thought to the ex-Soviet countries, I’m quite sure that mind-enhancing drugs were not a part of that mental image. However, Czechoslovakia was the leading manufacturer and exporter of LSD in the 1960’s. (Picture is of the rock group ‘Plastic People of the Universe’ – one of the most famous psychedelic Czech bands of the era.)

4. Although now we are very familiar with the concept of x-rays and their effects, it was not always so. Marie Curie, when working to extract radium wore ordinary lab clothing and often handled the materials with her bare hands. As a result, her notes and other belongings are still radioactive and will continue to be so for the next 1500 years.

5. Instead of poetry spamming, today I’ll add a literary tweet by Tom Waits.

And that was it for this time. Happy reading and until next week!

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Crate of Curios part 11

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This week is only 2 hours from ending, and thus I’m in a hurry to open this Crate of Curios before it’s done. Here we go!

  1. Most people have probably heard of Burning Man festival and its reputation for out-of-this-world costumes and installations. Well, established in 1986, it’s becoming an establishing presence and now it has a young rival kicking at its heels – welcome to the scene the 10-year-old Wasteland Weekend!

2. Why is Athens full of similar residential buildings? There is a good reason for that. The polykatoikia was a bottom-up solution for the post-war housing shortage in the Greek capital. (the illustration is by Josh Kramer).

3. This week’s poetry spamming originates from the pen of Iain Crichton Smith.

4. Grant Snider has a beautiful short comic on shadows.

5. Remember when Jon Stewart used to run “The Daily Show”? Then you might just remember this epic rant on deep dish pizza as well. No dish has even been dissed so thoroughly.

So, this was it for this week. Happy reading and until next time!