BagOfNothing.com

With the steering wheel in one hand, and a video camera in the other, dad Zachary Russell kept driving as his wife Jennifer gave birth. The couple was racing down Highway 287 in Texas towards a birthing center when Jennifer went into labor. “By the time my water broke, I pushed once and she was out,” the second-time mom told kiiitv .

Jennifer was shocked by how quickly she delivered because, with her first child, she labored for 12 hours. This time, despite the circumstances, Zachary was determined to catch the whole thing on camera. He held his right band behind the passenger side seat, made sure the birth was in frame and managed to keep both eyes on the road. When baby Willow arrived, he even captured Jennifer on film unwrapping the umbilical chord.

The couple told kiitv that the Ford compact they were in will have to be Willow’s first car so she can tell people, “Okay, I was born right there!”

Here’s the full article about it, but click here to watch the YouTube video.

We’re due in about two weeks.  Hmmmm, this could be potential blog material.

For those without access to a simple toilet, poop can be poison. Businessman-turned-sanitation-superhero Jack Sim fights this oft-neglected crisis affecting 2.6 billion people…

It’s amazing how we take modern plumbing for granted and how something as normal as eliminated our waste is so different in other parts of the world, and a major health problem.

A few non-offensive s-bombs are thrown in.

Meet Mr. Toilet | Jessica Yu from Focus Forward Films on Vimeo.

Between Page and Screen contains no text, only stark black-and-white geometric shapes and a web address leading to this site, where the reader follows instructions to display the book on his or her webcam. Our software detects the square markers in the book and displays corresponding word animations mapped to the surface of the page. Because the animations move with the book, they appear to inhabit “real” three-dimensional space—a kind of digital pop-up book.

• This probably deserves its own post, but I think of the modern era, no president has been as disrespected as President Obama in terms of how he is treated by other politicians.  I know presidents of both parties have taken a lot of heat from the general public, but I think for the most part, presidents have been respected by other politicians because they have respect for the actual office.  Now before you get all riled up, can you think of another president been as disrespected by other elected officials like our current president?  Not only while speaking at a joint session of Congress he was interrupted by a congressman yelling at him for being a liar, have a finger pointed at his face on a tarmac by a Governor, but he’s also had to defend his citizenship by numerous elected officials.  Yeah, politicians have thick skin and if they can’t take the heat they have to get out of the kitchen, but I was so moved by Bob Schieffer’s words that I thought I’d start Bag of Randomness off with what he had to say, which you can find at the 40-second mark.
• I will give Obama credit, he’s never complained about any of the examples I stated above with the possible exception of his citizenship being taken in to question because of how it was distracting from more important issues.
• Gov Jan Brewer’s book last week was ranked 311,472  in terms of sales on Amazon.com, after this incident, he book climbed to 14 as of this posting.  That’s a 22,000,000% increase and I’m sure some sort of record.
• In keeping things a little political but moving on to calmer waters, John Tyler was the tenth President of the United States.  He was born in 1790 and took office in 1841, and two of his grandchildren are still alive!
• Matthew Broderick is going to reprise his role as Ferris Bueller for a Super Bowl commercial.  Here’s a preview.
• Suzy Kolber finally addresses the Namath issue.  Many local folks would be surprised to know that she used to be part of Special Edition with Jerry Jones that other than Jones’ ego is still airing.
• Lawrence Taylor recently had something to add about ending Joe Thiesmann’s career, “Hey, listen, I did him a favor, he was on his way out. I’m serious, I gave him a happy accident.”
• That’s a heck of a way to peel a potato.
• Was anyone really surprised to find out that a game show host was drunk on the job?  I mean, really, was that sooo shocking?  Has anyone seen any Family Feud episodes with Richard Dawson?
• Halfsies is a new start up in Austin and NYC that is trying to help people eat less at restaurants while helping to feed the hungry and decrease the amount of food that gets thrown out.  Basically, you pay full price for a half meal, so you eat less and the money goes to feed the hungry.
• Tempting picture of the day – Hockey Ear Injury [Washington Post]
• If you have ever been closely involved with a pregnancy, you are familiar with a book called What to Expect When You are Expecting.  A comedy based on the book will soon hit the big screen and there are some funny movie posters that showcase the film’s stars, such as Cameron Diaz, Elizabeth Banks, Brooklyn Decker

I have not been critical of Newt Gingrich but it is now time to take a stand before it is too late. If Gingrich is the nominee it will have an adverse impact on Republican candidates running for county, state, and federal offices. Hardly anyone who served with Newt in Congress has endorsed him and that fact speaks for itself. He was a one-man-band who rarely took advice. It was his way or the highway.

Read the full quote here.

After 30 years of giving passengers prayer cards with their meals, Alaska Airlines notified customers via email they would end the practice next week.

“Religious beliefs are deeply personal and sharing them with others is an individual choice,” according to Wednesday’s email, signed by airline CEO Bill Ayer and President Brad Tilden.

The cards, which feature excerpts from the Old Testament, have always received mixed reviews from customers. The feedback had been mostly positive until a shift in public opinion in recent years.

Full Article

A teenage girl who has eaten almost nothing else apart from chicken nuggets for 15 years has been warned by doctors that the junk food is killing her.

Stacey Irvine, 17, has been hooked on the treats since her mother bought her some at a McDonald’s restaurant when she was two.

Shocked doctors learned of her habit when the factory worker, from Castle Vale, Birmingham, collapsed and was taken to hospital after struggling to breathe.

Miss Irvine, who has never eaten fruit or vegetables, had swollen veins in her tongue and was found to have anaemia.

Medics gave her a series of injections and started her on an urgent course of vitamins.
But, despite being warned that she could die if she sticks to her nugget addiction, she still can’t resist the fast food.

Miss Irvine, who prefers McDonald’s treats but also enjoys KFC’s, told The Sun: ‘I am starting to realise this is really bad for me.’

Full Article

In sports-mad Texas, where Friday-night football is nearly as sacred as Sunday morning church services, one rural school district is taking the once-unthinkable step of shutting down its high-school sports program.

Officials in Premont, about 150 miles south of San Antonio, hope that eliminating sports this spring and next fall will save enough money to keep its struggling schools open and help keep the small ranching town alive.

The state is threatening to shut down the district, whose 570 students have performed poorly on statewide tests for years—and whose truancy rate is high. The district also has longstanding budget problems, which it says have been aggravated by recent state-wide budget cuts.

But closing the schools would mean sending students 35 miles to the nearest districts. It would also eliminate one of the biggest employers in a town of 2,600 people, where the largest tax generators are a restaurant and a gasoline station. The residents of Premont are for the most part low-income, with 80% of the student body qualifying for free lunch.

So the citizens of Premont are rallying reluctantly around the new superintendent’s last-ditch plan to buy time by suspending sports and using the money to make improvements mandated by the state.

Full WSJ Article

To see the actual hi-res version, just click on the pics.

Here is the new photo which I think is spectacular . . .

And here’s the one taken back in 1972 by Apollo 17.

Link

The tale of the last remaining panda in a post-apocalyptic wasteland.

Wastelander Panda Prologue from Epic Films on Vimeo.

• I’ve been really lucky with discounts as of late.
• On Saturday I found a pair of boots that I wanted, and the only ones in my size had a small defect.  The sales rep gave me a 15% discount.
• I’ve been hunting for a Canon EOS Rebel T3i which retails around $850.  I saw that Sears.com was selling a returned one for $594 that was available at the Frisco location, but after I completed my online purchase I received an email saying it was out of stock and my order was cancelled, but I saw a new camera was $711.  I needed to run an errand at the nearby Tiger Direct store and I wanted to see if they would honor a price match.  Not only did they price match it, but they gave it to me for $699.
• I walked into Best Buy near the Tollway to buy two batteries for our cordless phones at home.  The manager helped me find them and I was quite happy to see the batteries were only $7.99 a piece.  However, when I got to the register, I total came to over $50.  I wasn’t willing to spend that much on two little batteries and knew I could get them much cheaper online, so I walked back to replace them where the manager approached me to find out why I wasn’t getting them.  I told them I thought there were $7.99 but when I got to the register, they were listed as $24.99 a piece.  She then said come with me, I’ll give them to you for $7.99, it’s not fair that they were mislabeled and we mislead you.
• Yesterday I got email that was intended for a Dan and a Janet Geeding.  I suppose it’s because I own Geeding.com and have several email addresses with that domain, but it was a bit of a surprise.  In case you are wondering, Geeding.com will just redirect you to this little blog.
• For the last two years, there has been a Tea Party response to the State of the Union.  I wonder if they would have a response if a Republican was president?
• For the past three years, I’ve done a lot of study about church history and denominational differences, and if there’s one thing that has hit me as of late, it’s tolerance of interpretation.  Each denomination or branch of Christianity has their own interpretation on particular hot topics such as predestination, the trinity, salvation, sacraments, and on an on.  Each branch has their own divinity or theology school that supports why they believe in their interpretation.   There’s not one branch of Christianity that has it entirely right, so I feel I have no right to say any of them are entirely wrong.  Well, except the Southern Baptists.
• Come on, I can still kid a little.
• Gabrielle Giffords resignation letter
• The average wait to cremate a body in Japan is four days, and since there are no ‘death laws’ like that in the U.S., many just keep the deceased at home.  But now mourners can purchase a refrigerated coffin at a ‘death hotel’ where an automated storage system will deliver the deceased to viewing room.  Link
• 15 Gnarly Hockey Faces
• Young Canadians sent a Lego man into space
• This kid has eyes like a cat that allows him to see in the dark.
• My blogging friend Barry has an interesting Presidential debt chart post.  Update: Thanks to reader Ben, we know this chart has been rated as Pants on Fire by Politifact.
• A map of Springfield, home to the Simpsons.
• The world’s longest running science experiment includes a funnel and tar and has been going on for 85-years.
• The last zombie gun you’ll ever need comes with a real chainsaw
• Ice rink roof collapse video
• The 15-Year-Old Who Was Killed While Dodging Kisses In The Met Life Building
• L.A. County to widen sidewalks to fight obesity
• Miranda Kerr as Wonder Woman
• A fashion show that took place inside a jumbo jet

With its dazzling colour and intricate embroidery, this golden cape is a work of art.

But look a little closer and, sewn into the cloth itself, you’ll see its rather spine-tingling secret – it is made from spider silk. In fact, the silk of more than a million spiders.

The precious garment was painstakingly woven over four years with silk collected from female Golden Orb Weaver spiders, found in the mountains of Madagascar.

dailymail.co.uk