Today, my family rode the carousel in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. Usually, the soundtrack is recorded organ and calliope music. But this morning, Abraham, the cool clown who was at the helm, was playing awesomely insane music that reminded me of the Pogues vs. a crazy circus sideshow band. He told us the music was by Gogol Bordello, a Gypsy punk band of Eastern European immigrants now living in New York City. I looked them up online and they're terriric. Oddly, I also read that Gogol Bordello performed with Madonna last year at the London Live Earth concert. Apparently, their live shows are insanely exhilarating musical extravaganzas too. (Live photo from Wikipedia.)
Link to Gogol Bordello's site, Link to their MySpace page

This Ann Arbor, MI Craiglist "missed connections" ad is a sincere and lovely note of thanks from one toker to another:

I called you from my cell phone but had completely forgot who I was calling by the time you answered the phone. Of course, you were also baked to bajeezus and forgot to tell me that I had called Cottage Inn.

When you answered and said, “Whatsup?” I thought about it, and after a 20 second pause I told you that was hungry. You suggested I try a pizza, and I agreed that it was probably a good idea.

Then I asked you if you sold pizza and you said that you could make me one. I said I wanted anchovies and something else on my pizza. You asked me what that something else was.

We spent five minutes listing toppings until we figured out that I was trying to remember how to say: “Sun dried Tomatoes.” When you said: “We'll bake that right up for you,” we both started laughing uncontrollably.

It was the best pizza I ever had; I just wanted to thank you for helping me out.

Link (via Growabrain)

Artist Gerald Scarfe created this chair/sculpture that looks like Chairman Mao (by way of Jabba the Hutt), so you can be cushioned by the gentle curves of the Great Helmsman as you play on your Xbox. Link

In July, 1961, Popular Mechanix brought its readers "a life-size, remote-controlled servomechanical robot built by Vienna engineer Claus Scholz. The MM47 can do almost anything from housework to handling radioactive materials or fighting fires from the inside while the operator stays at a safe distance. The 105-pound plastic robot cost about $760 to build."

Another one lost to the ages. Link

Merlin Mann's hilarious steampunk comedy monologue had me laughing hard enough to burst my gauges. Link