I can’t wait to see the Olympics! I mean wait I can’t see the Olympics

Beijing losing battle against Olympic smog

By Clifford Coonan in BeijingTuesday, 29 July 2008

With 10 days to go until the Beijing Olympics opens, the smog simply refuses to lift and the Games organizers are preparing emergency measures to clear the air ahead of the big day.
The traffic on the streets of Beijing is noticeably lighter, and many of the big steelworks and coal-fired power stations have been silenced. But the capital was still enveloped yesterday in a haze that restricted visibility to a couple of hundred yards.
It is still not clear exactly how bad the air has to be for an event to be cancelled, and it is forbidden to bring in measuring equipment for any independent measurement of air quality.
Jacques Rogge, the head of the International Olympic Committee, has warned that poor air quality during the Games could result in the suspension of endurance races such as long-distance cycling and the marathon.

I'm Still Here

Hello to the very few people that check this site from time to time. I haven’t posted anything for quite sometime. This is probably because I got caught up in another website called listverse.com. I have always loved lists so it was easy for me to be addicted to this site. I started contributing some lists to the site a couple of months ago and a few were posted. If anybody is interested and is still reading this post these are some of the lists of mine that were posted on listverse.com.
http://listverse.com/movies/top-10-memorable-movie-stunts/
http://listverse.com/people/12-notable-people-who-died-by-drowning/
http://listverse.com/people/top-10-sole-survivors-of-a-plane-crash/
http://listverse.com/sports/top-12-pro-athletes-turned-actors/


I now plan to get back to posting stuff on the good old No Agenda Zone.

Don’t Run With Your Mortar Board You Could Poke an Eye Out

I read in another article they have been doing this since 1912 and because someone needed some stitches a couple of years ago from a flying mortar board they want to put it to a stop .

I mean come on!

Students have been asked not to throw their hats in the air when they graduate because it is too DANGEROUS

May 27, 2008 Anglia Ruskin University, which has campuses in Cambridge and Chelmsford, Essex, does not want graduates to throw their mortar boards into the sky in case the corner of the hat injures someone. The request was made in a statement on the university's website.
Alongside details about which robes students should wear at graduation ceremonies, the statement reads: "It is requested that graduates do not throw the hat up into the air.
"This not only causes damage to the hats but it can also cause injury if the corner of the hat hits the graduate or others who may be nearby."

AIRBAGS

It seems like every time I look up there is another use for airbags. We started with the basic car airbags then there was the passenger airbags & then side airbags and then recently someone invented a motorcycle jacket airbag.

Then I just ran across this invention. If you hit a pedestrian your bumper senses that you have just hit a human being and an airbag deploys on your hood to protect the guy you just hit.

So I’m thinking I better get on this airbag bandwagon before it passes me by.
So I came up with a couple of ideas of my own. These are hot off the drawing board, patents pending.

We have all heard of taking a bite out of crime now you can take a crime out of a bite. After surgically implanting this special tooth into mans best friend your lawsuit worries are over. This clever little incisor senses human skin only and if more than 10 lbs of pressure is applied Fido has a mouthful of airbag. K9 airbag tooth can be reloaded & used over & over again.

There is nothing worse when you are receiving CPR and have somebody pumping too hard on your chest. Not only do you have to worry about your stopped heart you suffer additional pain with cracked ribs. When50 lbs plus of pressure is applied out pops your rib saving airbag from you CPR glove. Now with CPR glove your ribs can take a sigh of relief.

What kind of flake would buy somthing like this ?

CHICAGO, Illinois (AP) -- Two sisters from Virginia sold their Illinois-shaped cornflake on eBay Friday night for $1,350. "We were biting our nails all the way up to the finish, seeing what would happen," said Melissa McIntire, 23. "There's a lot of relief involved."
The winner of the auction, which lasted more than a week, is the owner of a trivia Web site who wants to add the cornflake to a traveling museum. "We're starting a collection of pop culture and Americana items," said Monty Kerr of Austin, Texas. "We thought this was a fantastic one." Kerr owns TriviaMania.com and said he will likely send someone to Virginia to pick up the flake by hand, so it won't be damaged.
This isn't the first cornflake that Kerr has tried to buy. He said he purchased a flake billed as the world's largest, but that by the time it was delivered it had crumbled into three pieces. McIntire and her sister Emily, 15, listed the cornflake on eBay last week, but eBay canceled the auction, saying it violated the Web site's policy against selling food. The sisters restarted their eBay auction, advertising a coupon redeemable for their cornflake instead of the cereal itself. The McIntires said they'll likely use the money for a family vacation.
Copycat items have popped up on eBay, including cornflakes shaped like Hawaii and Virginia. There's also been a potato chip shaped like Florida, and Illinois cornflake paraphernalia, including T-shirts and buttons.

It’s really hard to believe somebody actually paid $1,350.00 for a cornflake but I guess somebody did. Anyway I was looking around my house to see if I could find something like this that I could sell on e-bay. I was really surprised how much stuff I have that’s shaped like other things. I found a Cheerio shaped just like my car tire and some Trix cereal shaped very similar to my beach ball collection just to name a few.The one below is my favorite and will probably bring in the most cash.

Elephant Paints Self Portrait

Elephant Paints Self Portrait Part 2

When I first saw the above clip I said to my self no way this is real but believe it or not it is. I checked it out on Snopes HERE to make sure. It’s kind of humiliating to see an elephant draw better than I can.
But can this elephant cut & paste like me? I don’t think so.

Mean and Crotchety Law for Men

This is a true news story. "Honest"
Other sources here: http://www.adnkronos.com/AKI/English/CultureAndMedia/?id=1.0.1918751113
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/02/28/wcrotch128.xml
one moe thing: Can anybody tell me why Italian men touch themselves below for good luck - or when watching a hearse pass by?
Italy: Court rules crotch-scratching a crime
Thursday, February 28, 2008
It may be a harmless and instinctive reflex for many men - but scratching your crotch has been outlawed in Italy. The country's Court of Appeal has issued a "hands-off" ruling which threatens to fine anyone caught touching or reshuffling below the belt. The judges condemned what they saw as "an act contrary to decorum and public decency". But the ruling has sparked a backlash in Italy, where many touch themselves below for good luck - or when watching a hearse pass by. A 42-year-old man from Como had been appealing against a 200 euro fine for gross indecency last May, claiming he was innocently adjusting his overalls. But the judges have now rejected his bid, saying: "The touching of genitalia in public is a sign of ill manners and must be considered against public decency. "The rules of social etiquette require all of us to abstain from what might be considered offensive to public decorum." The defendant not only had to pay his 200 euro fine - but ordered to hand over another 1,000 euros.

Wherefore art thou, Romeo

Meet the world's smallest bodybuilder

At just 2ft 9in, Indian muscleman Aditya 'Romeo' Dev is the world's smallest bodybuilder. Pint-sized Romeo is well-known in his hometown of Phagwara, India - for his ability to lift 1.5kg dumbbells - despite his overall 9kg body weight. Every day, crowds flock to the local gym to the see the mini-muscleman in training
Unlike many dwarfs, Romeo is well proportioned, with a head circumference of 15in and a chest measurement of 20in. Romeo said: "I've been training as a bodybuilder for the last two years and by now I think I must be the strongest dwarf in the world. "I have always been fit but since I started working out, I have become famous for my strength. "My size has never stopped me. I train with dumbbells and do aerobics and dance. People are always pleased to see me. I have been invited on TV shows and dance on stage."
His trainer Ranjeet Pal spents hours helping his 19-year-old protege build his small muscles to perfection. Because of his small size, I don't assign him hard exercises. But Romeo trains more or less the same as anyone else and he's much more determined.
"When he first started, I insisted he did a month of basic exercises like aerobics, push-ups and basic gymnastics to prepare his body.
























OK, besides seeing a 2ft 9in body builder with yellow hair and a black mustache and spindly legs there was a couple of things that kind of stood out when I first saw these *pictures above.
The first thing that I noticed is why the heck can’t he find some weight lifting clothes that don’t look like they came from the toddlers department at Kmart?
The other thing I noticed is that that you would think if you were 1/3 the size of an average person one of the few advantages you might have is not looking your full age. This guy looks at least 40 and it says in the article he is only 19!

*These are real pictures. (No Blogball photo manipulation could compete with the real thing in this case)

Some Current Events

Garbage collectors will wear uniforms made from the same recycled bottles they collect Muncie, Indiana - Employees of the Muncie Sanitary District will wear uniforms made from the same recycled bottles they collect each week. With a $5,000 grant from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, the district will purchase 100-percent recycled jackets, T-shirts and polo shirts for its 140 employees.Lina Gordy, grant specialist for the district, said securing the grant is the city's latest effort to "go green." It's also a way for local government to save money from its own coffers that typically gets spent on uniforms of city employees.






Ice from airplane potty crashes through Calgary roof
Last Updated: Thursday, February 7, 2008 5:00 PM MT
Chunks of ice that smashed through a Calgary woman's roof came from the lavatory of an airplane flying overhead, transportation investigators said Thursday.
Marian Liknes was sitting and talking on the phone in the bedroom of her southeast home Thursday morning when she heard what she thought was an explosion behind her, said her husband, Wade.
Firefighters found two to three 15-centimetre chunks of ice on a bed inside the home, along with pieces of shingles, plywood, drywall and insulation.
The falling ice broke a hole about 30 centimetres wide in the roof.
John Lee, a manager with the Transportation Safety Board, confirmed the ice — made up of toilet water, antifreeze, disinfectant and human waste — came from an airplane bathroom.
He told CBC News planes can't evacuate the contents of a tank while in flight, but flying into warmer air can trigger some melting, which can cause a holding tank to malfunction.

SOME SPORTING NEWS

South Korean players dislocate shoulders to dodge draft
SEOUL, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Ninety-two current and former South Korean soccer players have been indicted for dodging military service by intentionally dislocating their shoulders to receive medical exemptions, a prosecutor said on Monday.
South Korean men spend up to 24 months in the military as part of mandatory service in the 670,000-strong armed forces, a duty which can hamper the careers of athletes.
The players, including 15 professional K-League players, dislocated their shoulders by methods such as swinging their arms while holding heavy weights or having fellow players jump on their shoulders, the official said.

PITTSBURGH — A high school wrestling coach accused of biting a wrestler in the leg has agreed to resign rather than face possible criminal charges, police said.
Mike Marshall bit the Central Cambria High School wrestler at practice on Jan. 21, Cambria Township police Officer James McGough said.
"The coach was wrestling with him and bit him in the leg, the upper thigh," McGough said.
Marshall's attorney, John D. Messina, said the incident was "completely innocent" and not malicious."The incident occurred while he was joking around with one of the wrestlers," Messina said. "Certainly it was poor judgment and it cost him his job."
Marshall was expected to resign Wednesday, Messina said.

AFTER - BEFORE

I just read about this lady recently but I guess she has been around for awhile.
Her name is Jocelyne Wildenstein. You can read about her sad story
HERE
Believe it or not the 2nd picture is the after picture from almost 4 million dollars of plastic surgery. What amazes me is that she was an attractive woman to start with. I’m not totally against plastic surgery but I guess it’s like everything else. One needs to know when enough is enough. (And the same goes for the doctors performing the surgery) I’m sure we have all seen example of famous people where they actually look better before than after.

So I was thinking.. wow I’m sure glad plastic surgery wasn’t as popular in the past as it is now.

Then I thought.. hey I wonder what some of the famous people from the past would look like with a little nip & tuck.
So here are a few No Agenda Zone examples.

NOTE: The last subject was the most difficult because of her unsightly cracks.

Another Blogball Hidden Talent

During a successful art show where I was showing off my latest abstract art pieces I was asked to perform with a famous orchestra playing 1st cello. Not ever playing the cello I was a bit apprehensive but I’m a pretty quick study so I said OK. This clip shows me playing a piece called 4’33”.
NOTE: This was all self taught on my part. (Not one lesson) Even though this was the only piece they let me play it was still a thrilling experience.

Just Call me Blogball the Arteest

WE HAVE A WINNER (SEE COMMENTS)

Because I can’t draw or paint when I have a certain idea or image in my mind for the No Agenda Zone I have to resort to cutting, pasting, tweaking, etc. a bunch of images together to create one illustration. Then I saw some abstract paintings on display and said to myself “hey now this is more up my alley"

Four (4) of these paintings below are legitimate modern/ abstract art pieces the other four (4) are the works by the new, up & coming abstract artist Blogball. Can you spot the legit ones?

The winner will receive a signed & numbered lithograph of one of Blogball's works.

By the way one of these paintings below just sold for 140 Million Dollars. I’m not kidding you.

Click HERE and make your own Jackson Pollock painting




Note: Click on picture again to have a better shot at winning this valuable prize

Another Study Way Too Hip For Me

OK here’s another study that proves once again we are running out of things to study. Before I get to this latest study here are a few more examples

Democrats and Republicans Both Adept at Ignoring Facts, Study ...

Infant, Adult Sleep Similar, Rat Study Says

Parasite "Brainwashes" Rats Into Craving Cat Urine, Study Finds

Ok as promised here is the latest study:

Study Shows Curvy Hips Make Women Smarter

LONDON, Nov. 11 (UPI) -- Women with small waists and big hips also have big IQs, a new U.S. study has found.A study of 16,000 women determined those with hourglass figures were more intelligent than their counterparts with round or straight bodies, The Sunday Times of London reported.Curvier women also tended to have more intelligent children, possibly because omega3 fatty acids are stored in their hips, the British newspaper said. Skinny women, or those whose fat deposits are around their waists do not have such deposits.The study, to be published in the journal Evolution and Human Behavior this week, may explain earlier findings that men prefer women with smaller waists than hips even if they are compared to slimmer women, said the study's authors at the University of Pittsburgh and the University of California, Santa Barbara.

We might be running out of things to study

This is an actual article from the National Geographic Website.
I couldn’t wait to share it with everybody.

Herring Break Wind to Communicate, Study Suggests

James Owen in England

for National Geographic News

In polite society, flatulence is often a social faux pas—especially when issued deliberately. But in the world of fish, group "raspberry-blowing" sessions appear to perform an important social role. This intriguing idea comes from scientists who discovered that herring create a mysterious underwater noise by farting. Researchers suspect herring hear the bubbles as they're expelled, helping the fish form protective shoals at night. It's the first ever study to suggest fish communicate by breaking wind. The study's findings, now published online in the U.K. science journal Biology Letters, reveal that Atlantic and Pacific herring create high-frequency sounds by releasing air from their anuses.
We know [herring] have excellent hearing but little about what they actually use it for," said research team leader Ben Wilson, a marine biologist at the Bamfield Marine Science Centre, British Columbia, Canada. "It turns out that herring make unusual farting sounds at night."

You can read the whole article Here

Many images came to mind when reading this article. This is just one of them

Another Smoking Ban

California bans smoking in cars with child passengers

LOS ANGELES (AFP) -Arnold Schwarzenegger has passed a law making it an offense to smoke in a car carrying children under the age of 18, official sources said Thursday.
The new law -- the latest in a series of crackdowns on smokers in California -- was signed into law by Hollywood icon Schwarzenegger on Wednesday at the state capitol in Sacramento.

When I read this article it made me think how irritating it is when I see people throw their cigarette butts out of their car window which prompted the illustration below.

This Guy Doesn’t Have a Leg to Stand On

This is one of the strangest (true) news stories I have read in quite a while.

Two men fight for custody of amputated leg
MAIDEN, North Carolina (AP) — A South Carolina man who stored his severed leg in a barbecue smoker that was later auctioned off is locked in a custody dispute with a North Carolina man who found it.
John Wood's leg was amputated near the knee after a 2004 airplane crash. He asked doctors to give it to him so he could be buried as a whole man when he died.
The limb, which Wood had kept in the smoker in a storage facility after he lost his home, was bought by Shannon Whisnant last Tuesday in an auction held by the storage company because Wood had missed his monthly payments.Whisnant initially gave it to police, who subsequently turned it over to a funeral home when it became clear it was not the result of foul play.
But Whisnant, who put a sign on the empty smoker charging adults $3 and children $1 for a look, now wants it back.

"He's making a freak show out of it," Wood told The Charlotte Observer for a Monday story. "He wants to put money in his pocket with this thing."
Whisnant, who was unsuccessful in his bid to get the leg from the funeral home, consulted with a lawyer and decided his best move was to persuade Wood to share custody and profits.
"It's a strange incident and Halloween's just around the corner," Whisnant said. "The price will be going up if I get (a stake in) the leg."
Wood, who is heading to Maiden to pick up his leg, said the two men can meet, but he is not interested in using the leg to make money.
"I just think it's despicable," he said. "I don't mind having the 15 minutes of fame, but I'm not looking to really profit off this thing."

The Royal Flush

Minneapolis Airport Men's Room New Tourist Attraction

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - "Where's the bathroom?" That's the question travelers at the Minneapolis airport are asking. Since U.S. Senator Larry Craig of Idaho was arrested in a sex sting, the bathroom has become a tourist attraction. Airport information specialist Karen Evans says some people are even taking pictures of the infamous bathroom. Craig was arrested June 11th by a Minneapolis airport police officer. The Republican pleaded guilty to misdemeanor disorderly conduct but is trying to withdraw that plea. Many airport workers say they get the question daily, and they watch as people stop by to take pictures. They say the bathroom is by the Lottery shop, next to Royal Zino Shoeshine.

When I saw this article I thought to myself what could be more ridicules.
Then I thought what’s next a brochure to promote this bathroom?
Then I thought hey that might be a fun thing to design.
So I came up with this first brochure daft to promote the Larry Craig Bathroom.
My apologies to the Senator. For details click again

This Airline Can Really Get Your Goat

Goats sacrificed to 'fix' airlines plane troubles
Wed Sep 5, 2007 6:01pm AEST

Nepal Airlines has acknowledged that it sacrificed two goats to appease a Hindu god following a spate of technical problems with one of its aircraft.
The goats were slaughtered in front of the Boeing 757 at Kathmandu airport.
The persistent faults have not been specified but they had led to the postponement of a number of flights. An airline official says after the ceremony, the plane successfully took off to Hong Kong.

"The snag in the plane has now been fixed and the aircraft has resumed its flights," said Raju KC, a senior airline official, without explaining what the problem had been.
Local media last week blamed the company's woes on an electrical fault.
It is common in Nepal to sacrifice animals like goats and buffaloes to appease different Hindu deities.
- BBC/Reuters