Paul Merrill
Yes, I really do believe blogs are dying.
One major reason for this change is the many faster and easier ways to put personal content up on the web, such as Instagram and Facebook. And I think a lot of people are getting burned out on posting to and reading blogs.
But I still love blogging, similar to how I love my 1972 Gitane road bike. Some old things are still worth hanging on to.
What once held value is now worth just a little above zero. These two tennis rackets are worth something to someone, but finding that someone would not be worth my time spent looking.
Ebay is a great avenue to sell many things. But the market for old tennis rackets is so small that few are selling there.
I think both of these rackets are beautiful. Sadly, my family does not have the space to store them nor the desire to put them up on a wall. So the thrift shop gets them. And at least a charity will benefit a small amount from the sale.
Here’s another tale of wasted beauty.
Where else can I go to spend $6.99 on 16 ounces of juice?
I didn’t buy any Forager Project juices, but the very fact that they are available at Whole Foods makes me happy. I’m sure there are some amazing health benefits, but I am not willing to spend that amount to discover them.
If you are willing to offer something that no one will buy, it could benefit you – if only to show your customers that you think outside of the box. So go to Whole Foods today to discover a new amazing product that you won’t buy. Chances are, you will buy something else. I did.
Fifty years ago, a college student was bored while reading advertising principles. Little did he know that fifty years later, another person would be entertained by his sketches. And there is no way he would have known his sketches would be seen by people all over the world.
As I was doing research at the University of Denver library, I stumbled on these sketches. The book holding the sketches was published in 1923. The sketches were done around 1962, judging by the car.
Fifty years from now, it will probably be easier for people to see what we were doing today than it is for us to get snapshots of life going the other direction. It’s fun to get little glimpses into the past!
This Ferrari sold for more than $8 million. Yes, million. And it’s probably older than you are.
I tried to think through what would motivate someone to spend that much money on such an old car.
1. It’s art. Yes, it is a beautiful car. And it’s almost as rare as a Picasso painting.
2. The collector is hoping the value will increase. That is a bet; markets could crash and what a singer named Larry Norman sang a long time ago, “A piece of bread could buy a bag of gold,” might come true.
3. The collector has enough money that they are not worried about what brand of laundry detergent to buy.
4. The collector has never been to a slum in Africa or Asia.
5. The collector has enough money to pay insurance for his or her occasional drives. (One year’s insurance must be more than the cost of my house.)
Do you have any ideas on what they were thinking?
Special thanks to Automobile Magazine, where this was featured.
Most people love to hate dandelions. A field of fertile puffy seed balls, waiting to spread their beauty to the next closest lawn, strikes fear in the hearts of most North American lawn-keepers.
But ah – their bright yellow flowers – and exquisite soft seed balls. If you stop to think about it, they are amazing. What an incredible thing that the seed puffs always turn out almost perfectly spherical. And the flowers are unfailingly the same brilliant saturated yellow.
Enjoy them for a moment – if not on your own lawn, on your neighbor’s.
We all enjoy a little change of pace. We enjoy it even more, when we don’t have to pay anything!
If you live in a town with a university, chances are they have art and music departments. If so, there are student music performances and art shows throughout the school year. Most of them are free. Just explore the school’s website, or better yet, spend a little time roaming around campus.
I took these photos of masks at a free exhibit in Fort Collins, Colorado, where my oldest son is attending university.
Why is it that we feel better when someone famous does what we are already doing? It’s our basic human need to be validated.
I experienced that recently. I was watching Top Gear, a British show about cars and driving fast. The most famous of the show’s hosts, Jeremy Clarkson, was interviewing Slash, the guitar player for an 80s rock band. Both of them revealed that they previously owned and enjoyed the Honda CRX (pictured). I owned one too. I loved that car, and so did Heather. While we were dating, my choice of that car impressed her.
We appreciate when our friends say they like something we like. When a celebrity says they like what we like, it’s somehow even better. At some level, we expect that famous people are so far removed from our lives that they wouldn’t experience average things like we do. Recently, Mr. Clarkson’s garage has been home to several Ferraris, and Slash has owned multitudes of Aston Martins. Both brands’ offerings are a bit more expensive than Hondas.
When was the last time a celebrity’s choice mirrored yours?
Photo courtesy of Grant C.
I took this photo during an evening walk with my iPhone. I used no filters. I did nothing to it in Photoshop.
The weird colors were just part of the manhole cover. I’m not sure who painted the edges green or how rust seeped through the white paint to give a pinkish tinge.
My point is to always bring your camera with you. If you have a smartphone has a decent camera, all the better – you’ll have it with you to get that shot you would otherwise miss.
This is the best pen I’ve tried in a long time. Click over to 
