bookofjoe

Dreamline is closing

What's Dreamline? you ask.

Surely you jest.

Friday, August 31, 2007 marks the final day of the nine year history of this website, devoted to the work of legendary artist Dave McKean.

Better head over there quickly — and prepare to enter a very alternative universe.

Vertical Bike Rack

Pretty nifty.

From the website:
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Vertical Bike Rack — Wall-Mount Rack Turns Bike Into Work of Art

Space-saving Vertical Bike Rack safely cradles front tire in easy-to-mount powder-coated steel wall bracket.

Separate back tire tray protects wall from scuffs.

12-1/2"H x 3-1/8"W x 4"D.
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$19.99.

A boy called Sue is one thing — but a baby named "@"?

Long story short: A Chinese couple wants to name their baby boy "@" but the government's state language commission is not happy with it.

Here's a link to Fred Attewill's August 16, 2007 Guardian story about the dustup; the article follows.

What's in @ name? Chinese watchdog queries parents' choice

A Chinese couple who wanted a distinctive name for their baby boy and came up with the symbol @ have earned a rebuke from the government's language watchdog.

The parents claimed the commonly used email symbol, pronounced in English as "at", sounded like the Mandarin for "love him" when spoken by Chinese.

But the government's state language commission has taken a dim view of the attempt to break the mould in a country where almost 90% of the country's 1.3 billion people share just 129 surnames.

The father "said the whole world uses it to write e-mails and translated into Chinese it means 'love him'", Li Yuming, the vice director of the commission, said today.

Many Chinese use the English word "at" in pronouncing the symbol @, and when said with a drawn out "t" it sounds like "ai ta", or "love him" in Mandarin.

Mr Li told reporters it was not an isolated example of parents ignoring Chinese convention and choosing unusual names for their offspring.

"There was even a Zhao-A, a King Osrina and other extremely individualistic names," Mr Li said, according to the government's website.

Despite the commission's disapproval, Mr Li did not say whether police, who are the arbiters of names because they issue identity cards, rejected @ as a suitable name.

But earlier this year the government banned names using Arabic numerals, foreign languages and symbols that do not belong to Chinese languages.

Sixty million Chinese have names which use ancient Chinese characters so obscure that computers cannot recognise them and even fluent speakers were left nonplussed, Mr Li added.

Mandarin and Cantonese do not have an alphabet but instead use thousands of complex characters to depict words.

The system, which Mao Zedong had wanted to change, can make it difficult to develop words for new or foreign objects and ideas.

Bag Resealer

From the website:

EuroSealer™ Bag Sealer

Do your chips go stale before you can finish the bag?

Re-seal 'em with the convenient, affordable EuroSealer!

Just run this hand-held sealer along the edge of any open plastic bag to create an airtight seal.

Re-seal big bags again and again!

Requires 2 AA batteries (not included).

Magnetic back.

4¼''L.

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Full disclosure: My chips never, ever go stale before I finish the bag — no matter how big.

$9.99 (You want Doritos with yours? Seven-11's got what you need).

bookofjoe makes 'Best Websites of Charlottesville' — Cited as 'A hodgepodge of useless information'

No higher praise exists — from my perspective, anyway.

The latest issue (August 14-20, 2007) of C-Ville, a Charlottesville newsweekly, features its annual "Best of Charlottesville" selection of the top everything in town.

Lo and behold, standing in the checkout line at the Barracks Road Harris Teeter last night and perusing it, I happened on page 107 where, in Nell Boeschenstein's weekly feature, "Hit This Site," she selects her "Best of Charlottesville" websites.

Her column appears up top.

Don't encourage him, is what's often said about me.

w00t!

Aqualibrium Pool Float

From the website:

Aqualibrium Pool Float

Cast a new light on style and comfort in our Italian-designed Aqualibrium Pool Float.

Unlike any other raft, this luxurious pool float lets you drift away on a sleek work of art.

Then, as the sun fades, a removable battery-operated lamp adds ambient charm.

• Expertly crafted from all-weather, pliable polyurethane

• Includes an inflatable headrest for maximum comfort

• Specially designed to conform to your body shape

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Originally $995, now priced to fly out of the pool at a cool $795.

Protopage — 'Free personal start pages'

What's this?

Never heard of it before last evening: turns out to be a London, England-based company whose blog went up in late 2005.

Word travels fast.

Hey, it's free — what more do you want?

It would also appear simple enough for even moi to get up and running.

That's the way uh huh uh huh I like it.

But then, I would, wouldn't I?

Check it out and if you like tell 'em joe sent you.

Me, I wouldn't do that but hey, you're not me, are you?

Lucky you.

But I digress.

Adjustable Door-Back Mirror

No tools needed, no holes required — I like it.

From the website:

Adjustable Door-Back Mirror

White enameled steel hooks slip over the top of any door without screws or scratches.

38"H x 12"W x 1.5D mirror attaches at choice of 3 heights.

$39.98.