Around the world with Dorothy Gambrell
24 Jul 2008 2:16pm GMT I mentioned passenger travel on cargo ships the other day. Dorothy Gambrell and her companion went on an around-the-world trip a couple of years ago, traveling mostly by boat and train. To get from North America to Asia, they booked passage on a cargo ship leaving from Oakland and bound for Taiwan. You can read about their adventures online...start here and use the "next entries" link at the bottom of the page to keep reading. They warned us. They warned us about the food. The freighter agency...
Contents shifting
24 Jul 2008 5:51am GMT I'm moving some things around on the backend of the site so those of you reading kottke.org in RSS may have noticed some duplicate items. Sorry about that...it's a one time occurance and was mostly unavoidable. (link)
The Wieners Circle
24 Jul 2008 12:26am GMT Here's a clip from the This American Life TV show about a hot dog joint in Chicago called The Wieners Circle. On weekend nights after the bars close, the staff and drunken patrons yell verbal abuse at one another like prison inmates or Jerry Springer's guests. This, this free-for-all has doubled their business, Larry and Barry figure. They end up seeing a side of people that, honestly, changes how you feel about everybody. You really wish you never saw it. There are several other Wieners...
Popular boat names
23 Jul 2008 11:16pm GMT According to a boat name database, here are the top 15 boat names: Orion Zephyr Stargazer Free Spirit TBD Cheers Mariah Solitude Sandpiper Calypso Banana Wind MoonDance PATRIOT Mental Floss valhalla (link)
Roma people
23 Jul 2008 10:02pm GMT The internet is an excellent machine for revealing ignorance. Until a few hours ago, I didn't know that the Romani people (also commonly referred to as Gypsies) are a distinct ethnic group that originated in India about a millennia ago. I had always assumed that being a Gypsy was more of a religious or cultural thing. (link)