hand jive or out of the park

Little did we know that not only is the origin of the high five as a congratulatory greeting well documented, it is also a fairly recent one and was conceived (on 2 October, 1977 to be precise—although there are antecedent anecdotes and competing stories) by a largely forgotten professional athlete called Glenn Burke, who just happens was and remains the only major league baseball player in the US to come out as a homosexual during his career. Visit Æon magazine at the link above to watch a documentary on the Burke, his struggle with prejudice and his salute.

journeyman

For those nomadic souls that could set up shop and work from anywhere or need to be at hand for a particular gig or assignment one automotive company with a significant manufacturing presence in the UK has created a fully electric mobile office space, housed in a minivan. Although not as impressive or committed, in my opinion, as the gentleman that shared his custom project to live on the road, the portable, pop-up office looks really clever and conducive to productivity. Designing the interior to look like a coffee shop is also a nice touch. Click on the link up top to get a full tour of the features and watch a demonstration video.

oppdemmingspolitikk

I was a bit floored by the by posturing and threats that Russia had for Norway over plans to host a rotational detachment of some three hundred US Marines in Værnes near Trondheim, not so much for the way plenipotentiaries are want to escalate anything to do with the perception of NATO expansion, but that Norway wasn’t already host—or considered host to US troops. I didn’t think the small but continued presence at Stavanger was a secret (or had closed shop)—we even passed by it, and maybe the locations are secret but the US is known also to store vast amounts of materiel and munitions in tunnels and bunkers in the fjords and mountains as forward supply in case tensions were to rise. Who would have guessed that policies and plans implemented back during the Cold War era, and sustained out of inertia, would now be the object of scrutiny and contention?

macguffin

Not to diminish the acclaim or original nature of Black Mirror, which makes us confront our relations to technology and convenience in the same way shows like the Twilight Zone or the Outer Limits made us question our tenuous hold on reality and moral uprightness, I think I’d like to preview this adaptation inspired by Roald Dahl’s collection of short stories, thrillers for adults. Despite running for eleven seasons, I have no recollection of Tales of the Unexpected—the plot summaries of the episodes do sound archetypal, not formulaic, and leave the view challenged and draw his or her own conclusions.