Offbeat

Cliffs Notes of 2009 Movies

This video is awesome. It’s a mashup of the trailers from the last year or so, stitched together to make them look like one movie. See? Gear Diary just saved you the trouble of digging your way out from underneath your overstuffed Netflix queue! via Seattleist


Do-It-Yourself Book Scanning

Do you have a library of books that are not available in eBook form? Do you love combining power tools with classic novels? Then give this DIY book scanner a shot! Apparently it can scan up to 1200 pages an hour, depending on how fast you can manually turn the pages. I highly recommend watching the video, as not only does it explain the reasons why the inventor created his book scanner, but he also gives a succinct, persuasive argument for the proliferation of eBooks over paper books. Plus it’s always worth watching when the instructions for how to build…


Playboy releases their Official iPhone App

Oh don’t be shocked; we’ve all read it for the articles, and now you can do so from the privacy of your iPhone. You won’t find full nudity (although it is still rated 17+), but you will find “iconic monthly features” including the Playboy Interview, Playboy Advisor, 20 Questions, Party Jokes, Celebrities Hangin’ with Hef, and Fashion. Along with those items, you’ll also get some extra goodies… The new Playboy iphone app gives fans of the magazine a glimpse of the latest issue, along with exclusive content such as free Rabbit Head and Playmate wallpapers, and a Playmate video clip….


Garia: Golf Cart made by the hands that build Porsches

The Garia Golf Cart is a truly unique vehicle for the links.  Made at the same factory where both the Porsche Boxster and Cayman are born, the Garia features the same level of meticulous attention to design and luxury. The cart features a built refrigerator, hand-stitched seats, and an exclusive personalization program where you can choose to have the Garia painted in your favorite color or matched to your other cars. The Garia features a double wishbone front suspension similar to those found in sports cars and inspired by Formula 1 cars. The drive train is built by an Italian…



Walmart Selling Caskets Online

Wal-Mart has started offering caskets and urns at prices that are probably cheaper than what you’d pay at your local funeral home. Online casket sales are not a totally new concept as Amazon offers them and so does Costco. But somehow a Wal-Mart casket seems, well, cheap. Take comfort knowing that you didn’t overpay for Mom or Dad to be laid to rest in a specially designed $999 “Dad Remembered” or “Mom Remembered” casket. Wal-Mart even ships coffins directly (embalming sold separately) to the funeral home which I’m sure will cause your local funeral director to be really friendly when…


Pet bunk bed would be great item for crazy cat lady line of home furnishings

This Merry Pet Room-With-A-View is perfect for pet owners who spare no expense on accessorizing for their animals. If you’re regularly buying cat food from  the refrigerated food case  in the pet food aisle  -this pet bunk bed may be right up your alley. Made from kiln-dried Asian fir treated with natural color stains. Steps along one side lead to roof-top balcony surrounded by latticework. Measures 29 by 21 by 26 inches; interior measures 18 by 18 by 14 inches. Pet Bunk Bed – $87


Cellphones Recreate Tchaikovsky

This is absolutely fabulous. Check out the above video from Vodafone NZ; I’ve watched it 3 times today already! Engadget has more details on how it was made if you’re curious. Now to convince the team here to pool our vast cell phone collections and make something similar…maybe with something more modern like the Thong Song. Via Engadget


Motorcycle Grip Opener Pops Bottle Tops with Authentic Revving Sound

Why rip open beer bottles with your teeth when this talking motorcycle grip bottle opener can make the experience more entertaining. Using the grip you’ll be able to remove the cap while listening to a cheesy revving sound. Great gift for the beer drinking Hells Angel wannabe in your life. Talking Motorcycle Grip Bottle Opener via Nerd Approved



Balloon Boy – a Timeline of Deception

Where were you when you first heard about the now-infamous “Balloon Boy” incident? On Thursday, October 15th, at a little past 2 p.m. Central Time, Dan and I were IM’ing when he abruptly told me to turn on CNN. Once I did, the screen was filled with the image of a large silver balloon speeding and spinning, thousands of feet above the Colorado countryside. The balloon supposedly carried a six-year-old boy, appropriately named Falcon. For the next hour, Dan and I chatted back and forth – with interjections from the Gear Diary Team as we all emailed about the situation….


Is buying green a free pass to lie?

A recent study by the Rotman School of Management indicates that being near products that are considered “green” can make people behave nicer to each other, but when they actually purchase these green items the products actually have the opposite effect. The researchers found that buying green products leads people into behaving less than nice towards each other, even making them more apt to steal and lie.  It seems buying such products makes people believe they’ve earned “moral credentials” and gives them a “license” to act in a questionable fashion. The study conducted three different experiments.  The first showed people…


Toilet Coffee Mug Puts Fun Back into Holiday Grab Bag Gifts

Do you detest office holiday parties as much as I do? Luckily most companies have toned down their festivities in favor of some fake niceties less formal gatherings in the company lunchroom. While the fancy dinners might be gone – one thing that lives on is the stupid grab bag gift giving. No matter how hard you try you’re going to pick something lousy for a gift – so why try? At $15 this mug’s a little pricy – but it’s guaranteed to be the talk of the office. You can get it on Amazon. 


Firefighter Robot might save lives one day

Hoya Robot, A South Korean company, is developing a robot that one day might just help save the lives of both victims and firefighters.  The Firefighter’s Assistant Robot can enter burning building and size up the scene as well as check for victims who may be trapped inside. The unit can operate for up to 30 minutes and withstand temperatures of up to 320 degrees F.  Weighing in at only 3 pounds the robot is water resistant and it can survive falls of up to 6 feet.  It’s small enough that it can fit in the palm of your hand….


Table Saw cake knife

Are you one of those people who has trouble cutting that first (or second) piece of cake without it crumbling to pieces. This Table Saw cake cutter may help you to disguise your lack of cake cutting skills. Disguised as a saw, this 12 inch plastic knife does double duty to help scoop the cake after you’ve cut it. There’s no indication whether it will saw through rock hard ice cream cakes that seem to ship at a temperature of absolute zero or whether you’d have to purchase a chain saw cake knife for those. Table Saw Cake Knife –…


Delete your cell phone’s information before you sell

In case you missed this story, Yahoo posted a funny little PSA on how to go about what not to do when it comes to dispose of your old cell phone. Clearly the folks at Missouri University didn’t read Carly’s recent reminder about how to go about deleting information off your cell phone before you get rid of it. It seems the athletic department at Missouri University had some old cell phones to get rid of.  The phones were sold at a University surplus sale and when the buyer, Bellman, purchased 25 of them for $190 he discovered that none…


Crime scene toilet paper is a perfect gift for that Uncle you see once a year during holidays

This roll of crime scene labeled toilet paper is perfect for that hard to shop for person or even a grab bag for the office holiday party. Imagine their glee when they open this in front of their peers only to be greeted with a suggestion that their use of the bathroom could be considered a crime scene. Given the current economic climate it’s best not to gift this to the boss but it’s probably ok as a gift to relatives you see infrequently. Crime Scene Toilet Paper


White collar grime – disposable shirt protectors for those who hate washing their neck

Are you someone who wears collared shirts? Do you hate to wash your neck (or your shirts). Here’s the product for you. The White Collar Grime protector is applied inside your shirt to stave off those stubborn rings around the collar. You try scrubbing and scrubbing yet those dirty rings still stay on your collar. Why bother with pesky personal hygiene chores like washing your neck when instead you can buy these collar grime protectors. At the end of the day, peel off the tape, dispose, and your white, blue, pink or any color collar won’t look criminal. It’s perfect…


Bioshock Bento is too Cute to Eat!

I’ve long been fascinated by the patience and artistry that goes into making a Japanese Bento Box; if you aren’t familiar with these, then you should start by looking at these images on Google as well as this Flicker Pool. As explained in the introduction on one of the multitudes of Bento Box sites I’ve found: As with so much of modern Japanese culture, the aesthetic (especially for children and young women) is strongly based on a compact cuteness. If you went to a school where kids brought packed lunches, you know how much it means to a kid when…


Jedi bathrobe keeps you warm while you use the force to make breakfast

The creators of this Jedi bathrobe may have latched onto a hot new clothing market. Did you know that according to Wikipedia over half a million people throughout the world declared themselves as Jedi on their census forms? While I think that might be considered to be a practical joke and probably doesn’t reflect the real number of Jedi in the countries concerned – there’s still got to be a fair number that would buy this bathrobe. The Jedi Dressing Gown has a Jedi logo embroidered on the front, is made of 100% cotton velour and is machine washable. It…


Pseudoscience at its best: the Uxsight 1.3M Pixels Portable Digital USB Iriscope

You’ve got to hand it to pseudoscience. Why? Because how else could someone like me – a person without an MD – have a chance to speak with absolute authority about things of which I know absolutely nothing. And there are even cool gadgets that you can use while practicing pseudoscience, things that can help make you seem professional and knowledgeable, things like the Uxsight 1.3M Pixels Portable Digital USB Iriscope. Allow me to digress for a moment… Back in the fall of ’86,  I went home from college with one of my sorority sisters for the weekend. Before we…