Machete shooting rifle slingshot

This handy gentleman has built an (arguably ill-conceived, but nevertheless impressive) rifle-cum-slingshot that fires machetes, should you find yourself with the need to fire machetes. He also has a sideline in selling parts for making your own insane slingshot-like inventions.

Styrofoam cloud ring

Designer Baiyang made this funny (albeit impractical) and lovely cocktail ring out of sterling silver and polystyrene. 
Is it a good engagement ring?

HOWTO make a pixelated trash can

Instructables user BrittLiv has a fairly intense HOWTO for making a pixelated home trash can made from hand-painted woodblocks and plywood. It's a lot of work, but you can't argue with the results!

Backup Your Computer Day

I just think it would be for the good of everyone to have a reminder to save all your cherished pictures, videos and other important data to somewhere secure.

Companies should also get involved, making sure that their customers and their own data is secure and safe. Maybe even the back-up providers could offer discounts and rates based on the date to encourage sales and participation.

I think this is a good idea.

IRAN creats a Flying Saucer UFO type thing

True story, I just read it on google news, sear for "Iran Flying Saucer"  At least they say they invented it...but I have my doubts...sorry busy day, will make a more interesting blog tomorrow :)

Drug Sniffing Dogs used at local High School

The Tulare Joint Union High School District is looking into reinstating a drug-sniffing dog service at each high school campus due to an increase in drug- and alcohol-related suspensions.

While Tulare high school district suspension rates are down overall, drug and alchohol-related suspensions are on the rise at each high school.

Each high school principal reported to Tulare Joint Union High School District board members Thursday that suspensions overall have dropped significantly. They credit the drop in suspensions with the opening of Mission Oak High School and building a better school culture.

Drug Violence In Mexico (spanish)

Varias camionetas tripuladas con hombres vestidos de negro, encapuchados y fuertemente armados llegaron al poblado Los Limones, perteneciente a Mazatlán, Sinaloa. Se dirigieron a unos domicilios buscaban a ciertas personas que no se encontraban en las casas.

Tres de las viviendas se encontraban vacías, en la cuarta había niños, una mujer y un adulto mayor presentes, fue así que los pistoleros decidieron sacar a las personas de esa casa.

Acto seguido comenzaron a disparar con AK-47 y AR-15 las fachadas de las cuatro viviendas, para después prenderles fuego, así quedaron calcinadas, y los armados huyeron del lugar.

Water is Tulare County California is Polluted

Polluted water has become synonymous with a number of water systems throughout Tulare County — and a new study released this week reveals the problem has placed a significant economic burden on thousands of Valley residents.

Becky Quintana and many of the more than 300 people living in Seville are afraid to drink the water coming from their taps. Instead, she and residents of east Orosi, Lemon Cove and dozens of small Valley communities are forced to buy bottled water for everything from drinking to brushing their teeth.

Yet they still pay the flat rate for tap water they're not using.

"We go through a lot of money to buy bottled water. We should be using that money for better things, like food," said Natalia Frias, 13, an eighth-grade student in Seville. "I've only drank the water from the tap twice."

The study randomly surveyed residents — all of whom have incomes below the poverty line — in four water districts in Tulare County. It found that the customers in those districts spent 4.6 percent of their household income on buying water, nearly three times the national average, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

"It's the people that can least afford it, who are paying the most for water," said Eli Moore, a lead author of the report who represents the Pacific Institute in Oakland.

The study also showed that many of those surveyed paid as much as 65-cents-per-gallon for water — about 200 times the average water rate in California. Furthermore, some residents reported spending as much as $120 on water each month.

"We spend $50 just on bottled water. We drive all the way to Walmart or Costco to get a good deal," said Ricardo Rosales, 14, an eighth grader from Seville. His family makes the 15-mile drive weekly.

Most in Seville only use tap water for showers and watering the lawn.

Quintana routinely has handfuls of sand on her shower floor after each use. She's heard stories of pollywogs coming from the faucet and Thursday she found thousands of little black bugs swarming the pipe that feeds water to the entire city. A pipe with a loose joint.

Japanese earthquake affecting California oranges

Workers at Gillette Citrus Inc. have a little less to do this week after an order of citrus they were supposed to box and prepare for shipment to Japan was canceled.

That's no surprise, considering the level of devastation there following the largest recorded earthquake in Japan's history, said Jim Lamb, the Dinuba packing house's manager.

In fact, what did surprise him was only one of his 10 planned shipments to Japan was canceled.

"We're a pretty large exporter to Japan," said Lamb, who has double-checked with buyer representatives for his Japanese customers to make sure more orders weren't being canceled.

So far, the disaster doesn't appear to be having much effect on the export of citrus and other crops raised here in the Valley to Japan. But the fuller effects on exports may not appear for weeks.

"We are watching that closely," said Kevin Severns, general manager for Orange Cove-Sanger Citrus Association, noting that his cooperative has a light shipment of citrus heading to Japan this week.

"I think everybody's anticipating there will be some effect. How severe we don't know," he said.

Japan was the third-biggest buyer of agriculture commodities from Tulare County in 2009, with purchases totaling more than $3.88 million.

Rice, which isn't grown commercially in this county, was Japan's biggest import from California that year, with $422 million in purchases. Of the commodities that Japan buys that do originate in Tulare County, the California Farm Bureau Federation reports the following 2009 California sales:

> $96 million in almonds

> $67 million in beef

> $61 million in citrus and

> $52 million in walnuts

> $31 million in dairy products

Mike Poindexter, general manager of Poindexter Nut Co. in Selma, said a shipment of walnuts from his company sailed from the Port of Oakland to Japan this morning as scheduled. So far, he's not hearing of any major delays in shipping there despite reports of at least one major Japanese port severely damaged by a tsunami.

"We are operating under normal conditions," with no reports of major delays for the ships heading to Japan, said Robert Bernardo, a spokesman for the Port of Oakland, which ships $3.4 billion worth of goods annually, the largest part of which are agricultural goods from the Valley.

That's because the two largest shipping ports in Yokohama and Tokyo -†where most of shipments from California to Japan go — weren't damaged, he said.

"A lot of the farms [in Japan] that produced ag products have just been devastated. I see there will be an export of those products to that country that are a necessity items," said Manuel Cunha, president of the Nisei Farmers League, a Fresno-based grower-support group originally started by Japanese- American — or "Nisei" — farmers.

It seems likely rice will be in high demand, as it's a major staple of that the Japanese diet, and it's a dry good that can last a long time and without refrigeration.

Similarly, nuts, dry fruits — including raisins -†dry milk, canned foods and other non-perishable foods from this region could see demand from Japan rise 10-20 percent, Cunha estimated.

"Not a lot of dairy is shipped into Japan. They have some pretty high tariffs," said Richard Cotta, chief executive officer of California Dairies Inc. in Visalia.

But he said it seems likely Japan could have an increased demand for dry milk because the country's damaged electrical grids limits availability of reliable refrigeration, and "if we were to have requests for that, we would have product available. We could get it very quickly."

Not that requests for more non-perishables have begun pouring in yet from Japanese buyers, said Poindexter, whose company's primary source of walnuts are Tulare County groves.

He said the buyers he deals with aren't increasing or decreasing orders of agricultural goods until they get a better handle of what is needed and what will be in demand.

"In my mind, if other customers need product, they will not have to wait. Japan will be my number-one priority for shipping product," he said. "I would hope it's like that everywhere. When you have somebody that's in an emergency situation, you go to the front of the line."

But experts seem less sure about what will happen to sales of non-perishable goods -†including citrus -†to Japan.

"There's gong to be a significant effect on our exports to Japan. It's probably our biggest export market after [South] Korea," said California Citrus Mutual President Joel Nelsen.

A big part of the reason is the damage to Japan's transportation infrastructure, he said. "Moving the stuff from the dock to the rest of the market is a major challenge."

It's far from the only problem. Lamb noted that the buyer who canceled citrus shipment said it was because of a lack of gas to transport the fruit once it arrives in Japan.

"A lot of the warehouses in Japan are robotic," capable of stacking pallets of goods up to 100 feet high, and many aren't operating right now because of earthquake damage and lack of power, Poindexter said.

He said one of his Japanese contacts told him the warehouse he works at is being abandoned.

The there's the disaster's effects on people's ability to buy goods.

Poindexter said he's heard from his buyers that trains aren't running in several parts of the country, making it difficult, if not impossible, for Japanese people to get to work and to shop.

And the disaster could cause the country's economy to slip so badly that some U.S. goods may decline in demand while other staple items may experience greater sales.

"It's too early to tell if this will be a long-term market [effect]. We've got to get a better assessment on the infrastructure there," he said.

"Food's going to take priority, I'm sure," Poindexter said. "I just hope the freight rates in Japan don't skyrocket just because they need product there."