'One Year Renovating Two Stone Cabins in the Italian Alps'

Very calming.

A bit over three hours long.

Stain Removal For Dummies

The Decline of Movies and the Rise of Streaming Series

For a long time I avoided streaming series in favor of movies.

Having to follow a narrative over weeks or months seemed old fashioned and way too much trouble.

Then it occurred to me that if I waited until near the end of a show's run, I could stack up episodes and binge, watching 2-3 episodes/night and really getting into the story.

That's what I've been doing in recent years and it's great, especially with series I've liked that have multiple seasons.

Meanwhile, I still love movies but there are so many duds constantly coming out that it's impossible for me to find the gems on a consistent basis even with protracted searching: I start and quit as many as I watch all the way through.

Whenever a new series I'm looking forward to is announced, I immediately head to Wikipedia for an episode calendar 

and then post a binging schedule on X.

Why Are Some People Mosquito Magnets?

Long story short: 20% of the people end up with 95% of the mosquito bites.

More?

Your wish is my demand.

"6 Ways to Fight Mosquitos, According to Hardcore Experts"

World On Fire: Fire Emissions Watch

Res ipsa loquitur.

Plank Yoga Mat

From websites:

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No more trying to figure out which yoga mat is yours and which are covered in others' shvitz.

Just the thing for perfecting your Plank pose: Bring the outdoors in!

This mat features a rich digital image of a wooden plank that will add just the right touch of rusticism to your routine.

Made from extremely durable non-slip neoprene that provides just the right amount of cushioning.

71" x 26".

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$64.27 CAD.

Supersonic Trebuchet

BehindTheMedspeak: Sticks and stones may break your bones — but a doctor who uses these abbreviations can kill you

Via the Medical Board of California January 2007 newsletter; equally relevant today.

What is it?

Answer here this time tomorrow.

Hint: bigger than a bread box when fully deployed.

Another: Not found in nature.

A third: no moving parts.

Let us now praise things that last

Chuckles: One from the freezer lasts 33+ minutes when I'm out running on a sunny 71° day. I'm fine with any of the five flavors except licorice for running purposes.

Maytag Washing Machine (1986 edition): I bought mine (Model A112; electric) on August 16, 1986; I paid $505 (above). We just celebrated our 40th anniversary. Works like the day I got it. Maybe you bought a washing machine this year: what do you think are the chances it will still be working like new in 2066? Hint: it's an imaginary number.

Amazon Kindle Paperwhite: I bought mine a couple years ago when I got tired of trying to maneuver hardback books into reading position while my cat slept up against my chest while still managing to turn the pages without dropping the book or waking her up. I've knocked the Kindle to the floor at least five times while thrashing around in my sleep; usually I find it in the morning under the bed, in the middle of the underside, which means my cat was probably awoken by the crash to the floor and then toyed with it for a while. The Kindle continues to work perfectly, no cracks or damage to the cover glass.

'I know when to go out, know when to stay in, get things done.' — Opening words of David Bowie's 'Modern Love'

I recently heard this great 1983 song when Anya Taylor-Joy and her husband Cary sang along when it played on their car radio while they were on the road in the superb series "Lucky." 

It was in Episode 2 (of 7).

A History of Soap

When I went to college I used what I'd always used at home: Ivory soap.

After several decades I decided to take my soap game to the next level so I started using a very expensive, wonderfully citrus-scented soap from Williams-Sonoma.

One day I decided spending all that money was silly so I reverted to Dial, which kept me clean for 87 cents/bar.

Then a couple weeks ago I read an interview with Annette Bening, superb in "Lucky," in which she said that growing up in Wichita, Kansas, she and her sister got a bar of Skin Trip soap in their Christmas stockings every year.

I wondered if that soap is still being made: it is!

I ponied up $39.99 for six (6) bars and I'm liking it a lot.

Does it get me eight times cleaner than Dial?

No — but it smells at least eight times better.

One caveat: It goes really fast!

'Barcelona'

I learned about this 1994 film after reading an appreciation in The Guardian: it's as wonderful as the writer said.

No need to have/subscribe to a streaming service to watch it: YouTube opens it up to all.

Helpful Hints from joeeze: Storing Ginger

Q. I don't use fresh ginger very often, so whenever I buy it, I end up having a lot left over. What's the best way to store it?

A. We purchased several knobs of ginger, cut one end off of each to replicate the way they would normally be used in the kitchen, and stored them using several different methods: unwrapped in a cool, dark pantry; on the counter exposed to sunlight; in the refrigerator (unwrapped, wrapped in foil, wrapped in plastic wrap, and placed in a zipper-lock bag); and in the freezer (wrapped in foil).

After two weeks, we examined the samples, all of which had dried out and sealed up where they had been cut. The frozen ginger fared the worst: Following a brief thaw, it was porous and mushy, rendering the process of grating or mincing nearly impossible. Both samples of room temperature-stored ginger were shriveled and had started to sprout. All of the wrapped, refrigerated ginger retained a smooth, taut exterior but exhibited spots of mold where condensation had gotten trapped in the wrapper. The unwrapped, refrigerated ginger, however, had a relatively fresh appearance, with no mold. So the next time you have a leftover knob of ginger, just toss it into the refrigerator unwrapped.

[via Cook's Illustrated]

My Favorite Cartoon

By Jack Ziegler, it appeared in the April 21, 1986 issue of the New Yorker — 40 years ago!

When I turned the page and happened on it back then I was dumbstruck.

So perfect.

So true.

So sad.

The iteration pictured up top — ancient, yellow, spotted, torn, taped and cracked, missing bits here and there —has been on all my refrigerators since it appeared.

And will be when I drop dead.

No doubt a fat check will arrive later that day.

Wait a sec — what's that song they'll be playing?

bookofjoe's Favorite Thing: White Sharpie MegaMarker

I happened on this and took a flutter: love it!

Very elegant and so opposite the usual Sharpie presentation.

Big (5.7" long x 1.15"Ø) and hefty in your hand (1.44 ounces).

Oil-based so it works on anything: glass, ceramics, etc.

Wide point.

$8.93.

Casio F-91W Easter Eggs

I've owned at least one of these throwback classics since they debuted in June 1989.

As best I recall they cost $8 or so back then: now they're around $25.

As of 2026 over 100 million have been produced, making it the most sold watch in the world.

And yet even though I've been wearing one for decades (they're superlight (20 grams), indestructible, the battery lasts for seven (7) years, the original design is unchanged, and the look has become classic) I only learned of the wonderful Easter Eggs pictured up two weeks ago.

If you can't be bothered watching the video or for some reason it doesn't play, they are:

1) Press and hold the button on the right for three (3) seconds and the word CASIo will appear

2) Press all three (3) buttons simultaneously and a crazy busy array mostly consisting of the number eight (8) will appear

White noise, distractions and 'mostly say hooray for our side'

99% of what I read falls into one of the three categories in the headline up top.

White noise is the Guardian's current jones about what it gleefully labels Meta's "Pervert glasses."

Distractions are things like Xfinity breaking into whatever I happen to be watching on TV several times a week with its full blue screen-of-annoyance Thunderstorm Alerts that stay up for several minutes.

"Mostly say hooray for our side" is my sardonic "Whoopee!" when Apple sporadically releases a 15-minute-long immersive video for Vision Pro.

The 1% that doesn't fit into one (or more) of these categories is where I live.

"If you're not living on the edge, you're taking up too much space."*

Just so.

*Jim Whittaker, the alpine climber who in 1963 became the first American to summit Mount Everest.

Tranquileyes — 'See the world with fresh eyes'

From websites:

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The Tranquileyes Eye Hydrating System is a revolutionary breakthrough, enabling you to create a personalized therapeutic environment for your eyes and the sensitive surrounding skin.

Our warm water therapy soothes and relieves eyes of dryness and fatigue resulting from aging, lifestyle and environmental conditions such as contact lens wear, computer use, air travel, allergies, LASIK, and medical conditions such as Sjögren's syndrome.

Use our proven system to:

• Rejuvenate dry, tired eyes

• Moisturize skin surrounding eyes

• Relieve migraine and sinus headaches

• Improve quality of rest and sleep

• Offset symptoms of jet-lag

• Reduce eye puffiness

...............................

Includes one pair of Tranquileyes, Bead Packs for Cold Therapy, Instant Gel Packs for optimal Moist Heat, Black Comfort Wrap, Foam Replacement Set, White Mesh Travel Bag, and User Manual.

$93.75.

'Earth is a Polka Dot' — Yayoi Kusama

YouTube description:

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Interview with Japan's legendary artist, who has been painting polka dots ever since she started as an artist. 

In this video, she talks about one of her works, a light installation depicting her cosmic vision. 

Yayoi Kusama was the most important contemporary artist living in Japan. 

In this video, she talks about her life, how her parents were against her becoming an artist, and how she decided to go to New York because she wanted to compete with the best artists. 

She also describes her working process and how she is always surprised by the result. 

Interview by Christian Lund, Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, London, February 2012.

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Kusama died in Tokyo on August 14 at 97.

'Distress' — Greg Egan

In his 1995 novel set in 2055, the great sci-fi writer described the standard accessory of the mid-21st century: the notepad.*

Features:

• Voice controlled, it provides information the same way — by voice — along with a hi-res 3D color screen to illustrate things as needed.

• Built into the notepad are Sisyphus, a knowledge mining program; Witness, which lets an individual's eyes and ears channel their real-time inputs into an essentially infinite memory as a record; and Hermes, communications software which serves as a control point for information in and out.

• All input is automatically uploaded via satellite so that nothing is ever lost; losing one's notepad is thus no big deal, as you can go into any dealer (they're everywhere), buy a new one, and in a few seconds download your life via satellite, ready to go on from where you were.

I think I'm gonna read it again, just thinking about this.

............................................

*We're well ahead of schedule IRL

What is it?

Answer here this time tomorrow.

Hint: smaller than a bread box.

Another: one size fits all.

Nothing Doing

Recess, County Galway, Ireland:

Image: Wikimedia Commons

Aspelt, Luxembourg:

Image: Wikimedia Commons

Bechyne, Czech Republic:

Image: Wikimedia Commons

(“In this house, no important person was born, lived, and most importantly did not die, and that is why we live well here.”)

Záblatí-Hlásná Lhota, Czech Republic:

Image: Wikimedia Commons

(“Hlásná Lhota – a stone in whose surroundings nothing significant has demonstrably happened for several hundred years”)

Míšov, Czech Republic:

Image: Wikimedia Commons

(“On 8 May 1915 in Míšov, the great Czech genius Jára Cimrman just barely missed being involved in something historically important.”)

O’Hungry’s Café, Old Town San Diego State Historic Park:

Image: Wikimedia Commons

York, Western Australia:

Image: Wikimedia Commons

Villa de Leyva, Boyacá Department, Colombia:

(“On October 13, 1825, nothing happened in this house, nor was anyone important born.”)

[via Futility Closet]

I have retired Google Search

Since it first appeared in 1998, Google Search has become so embedded into everyday life that it's become a verb ("Google it").

I haven't used it for at least a month and won't be in the future.

That's because AI is now markedly better for everyday queries and boy is it fast: it's rare to wait even a minute for a detailed answer like that above.

In the past I would've been visiting website after website looking for the particular song — David Bowie's "Modern Love" — that Perplexity Pro spit out in about 30 seconds.

If you're not using AI now, you will be soon.

Brussels' Grand-Place Is Carpeted with 750,000 Fresh Dahlias in a Tribute to Hokusai

In Brussels' iconic Grand-Place, a summer tradition literally blossoms in monumental style. The city's Flower Carpet event, which this year celebrated its 24th edition, celebrates art, community, and diplomacy in the heart of Belgium's capital, which is also the hub of the European Union. From August 13 to 16, the event marked 160 years of friendship between the nation and Japan, inviting artist Hiro Sugiyama to design a city square-sized composition, which he conceived as a tribute to ukiyo-e artist Katsushika Hokusai.

Titled "Neo Hokusai," the monumental arrangement comprised more than 750,000 fresh dahlias, covering nearly 14,000 square feet. Framed with ornate patterns, the reimagining of the famous woodblock print "The Great Wave Off Kanagawa," from Hokusai's series Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji (1830-1832), glows in bright magenta, vermilion, and yellow. Flowers covered about 80 percent of the entire design.

Dahlias aren't the only species artists have chosen for the carpet in the past, although the 2024 edition also incorporated the voluminous blossoms. In 2018, a design highlighting the central Mexican region of Guanajuato grew out of one million begonias and was captured in an aerial timelapse by Joerg Daiber.

This year, the dahlias were sourced in partnership with Bloemencorso Loenhout, a giant flower parade that has been running for three quarters of a century in the northern city of Loenhout. This year, that event kicks off on September 12.

[via Colossal]