Things I Love #59

Happy December you guys.  Can't believe there are only 31 days left of 2013!!  Rolo the hamster got an early Christmas present this afternoon when I cleaned his cage which is why this picture is at the tops of this week's list:

I might have posted this before but how hilarious are these cats in tights??

Although if I had these super cute Totoro tights I would not put them on my cat (if I had a cat).

There are rumours circulating that Joseph Gordon-Levitt will star in a Sandman adaptation and Norman Reedus will make an appearance in The Crow.

Duncan Shotton's Rainbow Pencils leave beautiful paper rainbows when you sharpen them.  Such a pretty idea...

5 Rules For Being a Grown-up is about how the "real requirements of life don't require genius, just lots of practice."

3 previously unpublished J.D. Salinger stories have been leaked online.

I am busy reading The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay and its making me want to learn to pick locks.  I think I need these lock pick earrings to get me started.

How cute is this Winnie the Pooh Oh Bother supercut from Disney?  Still one of my very favourite characters:

The 30 Greatest Comic Book Moments of 2013.  I haven't read all of these but I think the exchange between Harley Quinn and the Green Arrow is my favourite.  And the puppy bomb.  

Check out this awesome collection of the Christmas sweaters worn by the inhabitants of Ooo.  

I just love this Skeletal Beauty photo series by Pauline Darley.  Someone come and do my makeup like this please!!

Fernando Reza has created a set of retro travel posters featuring mythical beasts.  Check out Series One as well.

Make boring meals more fun with Manga Plates!!!  Seriously wishing for all of these....

Looooooove this Skull Armchair by French designer Harold Sangouard:  

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The Moment After the Show is a pretty awesome collection of pictures of musicians right after they leave the stage.  Check out the book here.

10 Star Wars Episode VII Fan Posters that are really, really great.  Cautiously optimistic about the new movies...

And finally, I am loving Uetsuji Shotaro's dream-like visions of alien encounters and ghostly visitations.

Seen anything you love this week?  Let me know in the comments:)

Things I Love #55

It's cold, miserable and wet this morning.  The perfect day for couches and food and doing nothing.  Here's some internet goodness to keep you company:

Ordinary Batman is one of my favourite new things on the internet!  Check out this awesome Buzzfeed collection and the artist's tumblr.

Dying to read Dave Eggers' new book The Circle!  Here's one reader's reaction that I found quite interesting.

Leland Bobbe's photo series Half Drag...A Different Kind of Beauty is really awesome.

A list of bus stops in Japan where Totoro actually shows up.  All on my list of places to visit when I eventually get to Japan...

On a related note, here are some pics of real Catbuses! So cool!!

10 Reasons It's Not That Bad To Be A Walker From The Walking Dead.  So glad to be finally caught up with show and to be able to watch the online reaction after each episode!!

I held a hedgehog on Thursday night.  So cute and so much spikier that I expected:

Wax Nostalgic is  a tumblr dedicated to wax crayon carvings of pop culture characters.  They are AMAZING!!

Ceramics melting like ice cream...so pretty.

Bee and Puppcat have a Kickstarter.  I don't know about you guys but I would love to see this turned into a series!!

Pretty rings on Etsy:  Han Solo in carbonite,  Boba Fett and Godzilla.

Check out these gorgeous photos of the Hindu Fesitval Holi.  

Look at this super unusual cactus/succulent my folks found for me.  Love the colours:

Joel Micah Harris has put together the most awesome collection of X-men Manatees.  I want them all!!

Neil Gaiman did a Sandman Q&A with Rolling Stone.  Yay!

And, you can read Haruki Murakami's new short story Samsa In Love on The New Yorker site.

Awesome, awesome customised Stromtrooper helmets.  I want them all!

Wired put together a collection of some really amazing Lego art.  It's pretty impressive what you can create with such a simple toy.

Seen anything you love this week?  Let me know in the comments:)

Things I Love #53

Believe it or not, this is the last Sunday in September.  That means my birthday is just short of two weeks away and Christmas is around the corner.  And I am not kidding about the Christmas part, I have already seen Christmas chocolates and decorations in the stores!!  Earlier and earlier every year!!  Anyway, here is what I loved this week:

Strawberries.  Tons and tons of strawberries:

How cute are these cats in sweaters?? Adorable.

Check out these 19 amazing photos of female riveters during World Wars II.

New Adventure Time comic unites your favourite weird princesses for a single quest.  With LSP, Skeleton Princess and Breakfast Princess, this sounds like a winner.

Want to see some of the outfits Finn has sported in Adventure Time?  Click here.

Jay Hynes has an awesome photo-series called Grandmas Rock.  It's super cool.

Overheard in New York is exactly what the name suggests: snippets of overheard conversations in New York.

Spencer Chamberlain from UnderOath has a new band called Sleepwave.  Very curious about this...

Oreo Peanut Butter sounds like the most amazing thing ever.

4 Rules to make Star Wars Great again - an animated open letter to JJ Abrams.

 

How awesome is this X-Wing and Millenium Falcon pencil skirt from Her Universe?  Must.  Have.

Society, Science, Survival:  Lessons from AMC's The Walking Dead.  This is a real course you can take.  Sign me up please!

Also, how The Walking Dead and Toy Story are the same.  This is crazy!

Eau De Toast because you wouldn't want to smell like toast?!?  Sadly it's limited edition and all gone...

30 Pieces of wisdom from Haruki Murakami books.

My Little Pony taxidermy custom made for you by Misfit Menagerie.

And lastly, I won my first ever internet giveaway recently and the prize was this super awesome print by Kim Longhurst:

Thanks again Kim, I love her so much!!

And that's all for this week.  If you've seen anything you love this week, let me know in the comments.

Things I Love #50

Happy Sunday!  It's a beautiful warm morning here in Durban which is a sure sign that Summer is coming.  I'm kind of looking forward to this week actually. My essay is due on Tuesday which means it'll finally be off my back and work is shaping up to be quite an interesting week too.  Good interesting I think.  Also, Thursday will be exactly one month to my birthday!  Yay!!

I am going to start with something serious this week.  If you live in Durban, you would've heard about Thursday's horrific truck accident on the M13.  This is an intersection I use daily and I've seen just how badly the trucks drive in this area.  Please check out the Ban Trucks on the M13 Facebook page and sign the petition.  It's time they do something about this.

Take a trip back in time with Old Punk Flyers, my new favourite Tumblr.

Animation Master Hayao Miyazaki Retires from Feature Filmmaking.  Now this is not news I love at all but it's news all the same...sigh...

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Now, to make yourself feel more cheerful, check out these Miyazaki reaction gifs.

If they were real, I would buy every single one of these Monty Python and the Holy Grail Lego sets.

Haruki Murakami is releasing a short story called Samsa where the main character wakes up as Gregor Samsa, the protagonist from Kafka's Metamorphosis.

And, Murakami is currently the favourite to take home this year's Nobel Prize for Literature.  Yay!

I just love this Dancers Among Us photo series by Jordan Matter.  The photos are graceful and in some cases, hilarious.  Look out for the guy in the shower.

How adorable is the BMO knit craft special from We Love Fine?  Must. Have.

Okay, this is a very long and a very academic read BUT it basically says that our yawns are not only contagious to other humans but also our dogs!  Cute!!

Here is a first look review of Salinger, the JD Salinger documentary that I only heard abut yesterday!!  There seems to be a fair amount of negativity around it but I remain undecided.

Angry Birds turned into Angry Brands.  This made me laugh.

Here are some amazing Muppet/Superhero mashups from Comic Book Resources.  My favourite is Animal as Wolverine.

And speaking of mashups, here are the X-Men drawn as Star Wars characters.

Also, how cool is Grumpy Ratchet?

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And finally, the AV Club has an awesome series called Gateway to Geekery that provides entry points to different fandoms.  Here is their articles on the music genres of my youth Emo and Screamo.

Seen anything you love this week?  Let me know in the comments:)

Things I Love #47

Happy Sunday everyone.  Its been a very quiet weekend in these parts.  I have a ton of reading to do and an essay to write so I've been desk bound.  That said, procrastination is great for finding additions to today's list of things I love:

Journalism is not narcissism.  An interesting read from Gawker about the line between journalism and confessionals.

Penguin is launching a series of Adventure Time books.  Hooray!

I found this list while looking for a quote this week.  It made me laugh.

23 Things everyone believes that have been disproven by Mythbusters.  I love the Mythbusters.

Continuing with the list theme, here are 15 things you probably didn't know about Wolverine.

Dogs dressed as crustaceans is all kinds of cute.  Sorry future-dog, you will have at least one of these outfits...

A trailer for The Wind Rises with English subtitles:

 

What if Disney Princesses had Instagram?  B for Bel has created some awesome mock-ups.

The Power Trip is a super interesting essay about how people in power often betray the very values that get them there.

Rocksound has some pictures of Deftones in Cape Town.  I wish I had been at this show...

Google Poetics creates poetry out of Google's auto-complete suggestions.

Did you know that you can get a Pirate Certificate from MIT??  Just fulfill the physical education requirements by taking sailing, archery, fencing and pistol shooting.

Last weekend, three different people sent me pictures of skateboarding mice.  I found out later that it's an actual thing!!  I also found out that my friends know me really well:)

How adorable is this http://dailybunny.org/2013/08/12/determined-bunny-will-free-this-leaf-from-the-parsley/Daily Bunny?  I get this in my inbox every day and I couldn't recommend it more:

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Check out this awesome PANTONE - Rain edition on Behance.

Lastly, here are some awesome My Neighbor Totoro mashups - Guillermo Del Totoro and the Grumpy Catbus.  Awesome.

Seen anything you love this week?  Let me know in the comments:)

Things I Love #46

Another Sunday, another list of things I love.  We had a long weekend in this part of the world and, combined with a day of leave, I have been off for 4 days in a row!  Bliss!!

First on this week's list is the amazing cartoon depicting Hayao Miyazaki's philosophy on good and evil in films.  It's profound!

Have you heard of weird Twitter?  Me neither until I read this explanation.

The second episode of Bee and Puppycat is out.  Do yourself a favour and check out this awesomely quirky series, you won't be disappointed.

 Check out Merilee Allred's The Awkward Years Project.  A good reminder that we all had an awkward phase...

Finn and Jake got a super short cameo appearance on Futurama:

Also check out this super awesome video of the Adventure Time intro made out of Lego!!

I love these Star Wars noir film posters by Dean Reeves.  So cool!!

Star Wars toys made me who I am is an article in praise of action figures.

This spherical Jupiter cake is AMAZING.  Not sure I would feel right eating it though, it's too pretty.

Here are 24 Disney comebacks for every occasion.  I particularly love the first one.

How awesome is my new dinosaur bones necklace from Sass Diva?  I am in love..

Having a Face is my new favourite tumblr.  Faces on inanimate objects always make me smile...

Ever wondered what it costs to be a superhero?  Well check out the awesome The Price of Being Superheroes Infographics.

How awesome is this shark sushi plate?  I want...

And finally, sticking with sharks, here is a video of a cat dressed as a shark riding a Roomba (thanks Sam!!!)

I could watch that video for ages!!  Anyway, that's it for this week.  If you've seen anything you love this week then let me know in the comments:)

Things I Love #41

What a cool weekend it has been - mexican food with friends, two awesome dogs to play with, the Durban July and Wakaberry with Sam!  All that goodness makes it just a little bit harder to go into work tomorrow *sigh*  Anyway, after 3 weeks (I think) of no Things I Love, I have quite a collection of links/pictures/randomness to share with you today:

Today I had Wakaberry for the first time in months!!  They had peanut butter flavour and speckled eggs which is officially my new favourite combination.

How beautiful are these abandoned places?  Out of all of them I'd choose to explore Nara Dreamland in Japan (#30), the Maunsell Sea Forts in England (#14) and the fishing hut in Germany (#6).

The Decline and Fall of the English Major.  As an English major and now an English Honours student, I found this rather interesting.

22 Things Poncho the Pug is Better at than You.  Isn't he just the cutest?!?

Boston Shoes is an amazing project that asked anyway involved (running, responding or simply watching) in the Boston Marathon bombings to submit a photo of their shoes.

So did you know that there is a Russian Criminal Tattoo Archive?  Me neither!!  Check out some pics here.

The Militant Baker shared some of the most amazing writing advice I have ever read.  Seriously.

WTF, Evolution? is my new favourite Tumblr.  Funny and truly bizarre.

Okay, We Love Fine officially have the best leggings in the business!  Marvel, Sanrio and most importantly...ADVENTURE TIME.  

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Speaking of Adventure Time, I honestly want ALL of this Adventure Time art from Mondo...so beautiful!

These high speed photos of exploding lightbulbs filled with objects are super awesome.  And colourful.

This slide show of adorable dogs enjoying summer is exactly as promised...ADORABLE! 

I may not be British but this list of 30 Very British Problems kinda describes me life.  You can also find them on twitter. 

The Fiction show at the Modern Eden Gallery features portraits of literary characters that are breathtaking!  I'd love to be able to see this in real life...

The Little Free Library is possibly one of the best ideas I have seen in ages.  I'd love to be able to set one up somewhere some day!

These sci-fi author portraits by Megan Murphy are too cool.  Edgar Allan Poe is my favourite.

I may not be super sciencey but this 3D Printed Subatomic Particle Jewelry is gorgeous!

Honestly, I am kinda desperate for a local convention to appear so that I can dabble in cosplaying.  These Hipster Disney Princesses and Mermaid Avengers are not helping.

And finally, Poko the Cockatiel wants to sing you the Totoro theme:

Seen anything you love lately?  Let me know in the comments:)

Things I Love #39

Its been a pretty slow week for me so I'm afraid I don't have too many things to share on this week's Things I Love.  Unless you have a strange desire to read journal articles on the diaspora and the difference between exile and migrant writing?  No?  Are you sure?  Okay then, moving along:

Humans of Durban is a photo collection inspired by Brandon Stanton's Humans of New York blog.  It's a pretty nifty way to see all the different people that make up my home town.  Check out their Facebook page here.

Iceland is one of my dream destinations.  I love how it looks so raw and unfinished.  A real work in progress.  Killian Schoenberger has some breathtaking landscape pictures of Iceland that make me want to go tomorrow!!

Dirty Royal played another gig at Amsterdam on Friday night.  Here are some photos:

So rumour has it that there is a Fables movie in the works.  Not too sure what to think about that to be honest.  I only discovered Fables last year when my friend Clare kindly lent me some of hers and i'd be devasted to see it done poorly.  Same goes for the rumours about the HBO adaptation of American Gods!!

I love these photos of Hunter S. Thompson just sitting around.  He is one of my favourites.

PowerUp Collage makes art from upcycled comic boooks and it's fantastically cool!  One thing that has always endeared me to comics are the awesome sound effects so I'd love to own a few of these.

Please, please, please can someone send me these Stars Wars Light Up Lightsabre sunglasses?  Too cool and if Hot Topic didn't require me to sell a limb to afford their international shipping, I'd buy them this instant!!

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Excel is the bane of my existence.  Seriously, when people at work come and ask me for help with their spreadsheet or worse, to create an Excel template, I want to hide under my desk.  That's why I find this Excel artwork by Tatsuo Horiuchi so impressive.

I love these pictures of Rain Frogs on Buzzfeed.  I feel like they capture the way I've been feeling this week perfectly!!

I am in love with these birds illustrated on vintage envelopes by Mark Powell.  Just gorgeous.

And finally, here are 8 seconds of pug awesomeness.  You're welcome:

 

Seen anything you love this week?  Let me know in the comments:)

Things I Love #35

So yesterday, I typed up this whole post and then Safari crashed and I lost EVERYTHING.  Seriously.  I tried to redo it and then the internet kept dying so I just gave up and watched Brave and ate toast.  It seemed like the better option frustration wise.  Anyway, here is your day-late list of Things I Love:

First up, Oh So Plush has some new creatures.  I really, really want Fuja...anyone?

I love these Pokemon literary mashups.  Especially The Great Gastly one.

This collection of Instagram photos were taken during the manhunt for the Boston Bombers.  Social media definitely gives us a whole new perspective on new events.

These animated GIFs of earth over time are quite breathtaking.  I'd be lying if I said that the glacier one doesn't make me feel just the tiniest bit insecure!

If you can spare 8 minutes and you need a laugh then check out this awesome Star Wars/Snatch mashup!  Think Darth Vader as Brick Top:

Curious about the new City & Colour album?  You can check out a song preview here.  I rather like it. Also can I just say how much I like the album/song name, The Hurry and the Harm.

I just love this slide show of Europe's Wild Men.  So quirky.

This website has a rundown of all the gadets used in every James Bond movie ever.  Pretty cool.  And while we're on the subject, who do you think the best Bond is?  I'm a Sean Connery fan.

This Cartoon Brew article has some pics from the Princess Mononoke theatre production in London.  Would absolutely LOVE to see this.

The Oatmeal is so good at portraying dogs.  Check out How I See My Dog vs How My Dog Sees Me.

I thought that Rolo's yawns were scary until Kyla Roma shared this link of terrifying bunny yawns.  They are both creepy and cute.  

Here are some random pics from my Saturday - a photo of a rainbow out my mom and dad's flat window and our new orchid:

How great is this chandelier that projects tree shadows onto the wall?  In theory I want one but I know in reality, it'd probably creep me out a little.

I basically want to do all the Galactic DIYs in this list.  Especially the nails and the pants and the shirt and, and, and...

And lastly, tomorrow is my Mom's happy birthday and considering I love her and she is awesome, I thought I'd include her on this list.  Happy (early) birthday my Mother xx

Seen anything you love this week?  Let me know in the comments:)