WTF?!?

Slum Gothic?

http://www.slumgothic.co.uk/

Slum Gothic is a characterisation of the architectural style of the former Church of St. John the Divine in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, UK

Slumgothic is the operating system for x-church

x-church is a space where visual arts projects and other things happen

The space is run in the spirit of
I could, you could, we could... do... whatever

Whatever includes artist residencies, teenage sessions with artists, performing arts club with 30 local kids, National Allotment Week, karaoke... whatever

Contact Marcus
0790 877 1107
info@slumgothic.co.uk

Marcus must be a lucky guy.

If You're Going to Commit Fraud; Go Big 'Rogue trader to cost SocGen $7bn'

A billion here, a billion there and it starts adding up:

French bank Societe Generale says it has uncovered "massive" fraud by a Paris-based trader which resulted in a loss of 4.9bn euros ($7.1bn; £3.7bn).

More info on a new Nick Leeson here.

Only in Amerca: 'bigger than a Walmart' and in America, Texas no less, that's big

Steve Allen points to the spot in the sky where he first saw the U.F.O. in Stephenville, Texas. He estimated that it was “bigger than a Wal-Mart.” (Photo: Jessica Horton/Stephenville Empire-Tribune, via AP)

More here:

Best of Paxman

What I Love About Britain; A Public Debate About the Quality of M&S Underwear

For the English and Anglophiles in general Jeremy Paxman is the model of a great interviewer, never suffering fools gladly on Newsnight. And like most Englishmen, not only does he put on his underwear on one leg at a time, he buys his pants at Marks and Spencer. Paxman is not, however, pleased with the quality of Mark's current offerings.

"Their pants no longer provide adequate support," he was quoted as saying after an e-mail to the company was leaked.

Socks were "wearing out much more quickly" than before, the star added.

"I've noticed that something very troubling has happened," he told the newspaper.

"There's no other way to put this. Their pants no longer provide adequate support.

"The other thing is socks. Even among those of us who clip our toenails very rigorously, they appear to be wearing out much more quickly on the big toe."

So far, the story has been covered in The Sun, The Guardian, and the BBC to name three. The fact that this could be an issue of public debate -- as it has become -- is what I love about Britain.

Paxman in all his glory:

A Nutbar Without Question But A Great Chess Player Nonetheless

I thought this NYT article put it well. Everything Fischer did was controversial, but we can say one thing of him: he put Iceland on the map.

Office meets 300

Some Countries will do Anything for a Free Breakfast

Syria Attends Mideast Peace Talks For Free Continental Breakfast

ANNAPOLIS, MD—"We are here in the interest of peace," said a member of the Syrian delegation, also noting the availability of free milk, tea, and assorted juices.

You Have to Admit, This Was Funny: Gizmodo messes up CES 2008 with TV-B-Gone

A TV-Begone would be a lot of fun. Though I pity the poor geek who they suspect of raining on their parade. Grown men in front of $8,000 plasmas learning that they are not the only ones with the remote a pretty site do not make.

Number of Google Results for "Died in a Blogging Accident' as of Saturday Evening: 'About 275,000' Try it!

Try it!

From the Register, 'Polish teen derails tram after hacking train network'

LBJ Orders a Pair of Pants

Went out to lunch today with JS and SBS and the subject of Lyndon B. Johnson came up. This in itself was uninteresting as the topic of LBJ was inevitable. What was odd, however, was that the two discussions of LBJ concerned and his relation to pants. My story concerned the eloquence of the below order. SBS's concerned the peculiar fact that when ever LBJ had the opportunity -- Air Force One, Camp David, a hotel room in the middle of Texas no-where -- LBJ would remove his pants or as the British would say, trousers. For our concerned British readers, there is no evidence that LBJ ever let his pants, in the British sense, down.

Please note the burp around 2:30.

President Johnson orders pants from Joe Haggar.
Aug. 9, 1964

Listen

Operator: Go ahead sir

LBJ: Mr. Haggar?

JH: Yes this is Joe Haggar

LBJ: Joe, is your father the one that makes clothes?

JH: Yes sir - we're all together

LBJ: Uh huh. You all made me some real lightweight slacks, uh, that he just made up on his own and sent to me 3 or 4 months ago. There's a light brown and a light green, a rather soft green, a soft brown.

JH: Yes sir

LBJ: and they're real lightweight now and I need about six pairs for summer wear.

JH: yes sir

LBJ: I want a couple, maybe three of the light brown kind of a almost powder color like a powder on a ladies face. Then they were some green and some light pair, if you had a blue in that or a black, then I'd have one blue and one black. I need about six pairs to wear around in the evening when I come in from work

JH: yes sir

LBJ: I need...they're about a half a inch too tight in the waist.

JH: Do you recall sir the exact size, I just want to make sure we get them right for you

LBJ: No, I don't know - you all just guessed at 'em I think, some - wouldn't you the measurement there?

JH: we can find it for you

LBJ: well I can send you a pair. I want them half a inch larger in the waist than they were before except I want two or three inches of stuff left back in there so I can take them up. I vary ten or 15 pounds a month.

JH: alright sir

LBJ: So leave me at least two and a half, three inches in the back where I can let them out or take them up. And make these a half an inch bigger in the waist. And make the pockets at least an inch longer, my money, my knife, everything falls out - wait just a minute.

Operator: Would you hold on a minute please?

[conversation on hold for two minutes]

LBJ: Now the pockets, when you sit down, everything falls out, your money, your knife, everything, so I need at least another inch in the pockets. And another thing - the crotch, down where your nuts hang - is always a little too tight, so when you make them up, give me an inch that I can let out there, uh because they cut me, it's just like riding a wire fence. These are almost, these are the best I've had anywhere in the United States,

JH: Fine

LBJ: But, uh when I gain a little weight they cut me under there. So, leave me , you never do have much of margin there. See if you can't leave me an inch from where the zipper (burps) ends, round, under my, back to my bunghole, so I can let it out there if I need to.

JH: Right

LBJ: Now be sure you have the best zippers in them. These are good that I have. If you get those to me I would sure be grateful

JH: Fine, Now where would you like them sent please?

LBJ: White House.

JH: Fine

LBJ: Now, uh, I don't guess there is any chance of getting a very lightweight shirt, sport shirt to go with that slack, is there? That same color?

JH: We don't make them, but we can have them made up for you.

LBJ: If you might look around, I wear about a 17, extra long.

JH: Would you like in the same fabric?

LBJ: Yeah I sure would, I don't know whether that's too heavy for a shirt.

JH: I think it'd be too heavy for a shirt.

LBJ: I sure want the lightest I can, in the same color or matching it. If you don't mind, find me somebody up there who makes good shirts and make a shirt to match each one of them and if they're good, we'll order some more.

JH: Fine

LBJ: I just sure will appreciate this, I need it more than anything. And uh, now that's a..about it. I guess I could get a jacket made outta that if I wanted to, couldn't I?

JH: I think that - didn't Sam Haggar have some jackets made?

LBJ: Yeah you sent me some jackets some earlier, but they were way too short. They hit me about halfway down my belly. I have a much longer waist. But I thought if they had material like that and somebody could make me a jacket, I'd sent them a sample to copy from.

JH: Well I tell you what, you send us this, we'll find someone to make it

LBJ: - ok

JH: We'll supply the material to match it

LBJ: Ok, I'll do that. Uh now, how do I - can you give this boy the address because I'm running to a funeral and give this boy the address to where we can send the trousers - don't worry, you'll get the measurements out of them and add a half an inch to the back and an give us couple of an inch to the pockets and a inch underneath to we can let them out.

JH: What you 'd like is a little more stride in the crotch

LBJ: Yeah that's right. What I'd like is to give me a half a inch more then leave me some more. Ok here he is.

JH: Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed the others

Listen

Life is (on occasion) a Beach

I know that there are those out there that hang on every word that this blog publishes. To them, I apologize. We were nearly two weeks stateside without a computer. For those who would like to see what we were up to, do check out our internet vanity here. One thing we did happen to notice, even without a PC is that it would appear there is an election in the works.

Yes. We're back from Florida!

Yes. We're back from Florida, where you don't need a sun bed, though the effect is often the same.