Tag Archive for: Water

I CAN C MICROBEZ IN DA WATR!

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Maybe you’d better GIMIE TEH WATR DAT COMEZ IN BOTTLE PLZ! If you did a mashup of LOL cats, Mystery Science Theater and your 10th grade Biology class, it would look exactly like this makeshift science experiment in which a green laser was shined through a drop of scummy water. (See the clever home-hacked setup here.) And, revisit the 1933 version as documented in our post last year, When Protozoa Came to the Big Screen.

Grossed out? DOAN WORRY DIS ISNT TAP WATR THAZ MEANT 4 DRINKIN.

h2o mp3: Fats, Oils and Grease: Steve Anderson

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You loved Steve Anderson’s “Dope in the Water” mp3 and now he’s back with a followup! We’re pleased to present the worldwide premiere of “Fats, Oils and Grease”…written and performed by Steve and inspired by Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Call Me the Breeze.” I’ll bet this tune comes from the heart, because Steve is Read more

UFO H2O: It Came From Outer Space?

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I’ve been looking at strange bottled waters for years so why have I never seen this one? Government cover-up, I’ll bet! Available right now on eBay is UFO H2O, which according the seller’s description was “bottled in 2004 by ‘The Alien H2O Company’ and sold at the Roswell, NM UFO Festival, site of the supposed 1947 alien UFO crash!” (Some connection to Dr. Who? Or Astronaut Water? You tell me!)

What’s better, we’re told that the bottle says “Preferred by Aliens thruout all galaxies.” Guess that proves there’s water on the moon, Mars and wherever else! Especially since the seller’s disclaimer states, “Sold as Novelty Souvenir and not for Human Consumption.”

Jump right on this one for $4.95 plus $2.95 shipping. Unless of course, this listing mysteriously disappears…

Start Spreadin’ the News: Codepods

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Who can blame New York Citians if they prefer their shrimp on salads and skewers instead of in their drinking water? This is why a loud and collective “Ewwww!” is rising over some recently posted photos of “tiny shrimp” codepods in New York City’s much-praised drinking water. (The issue of codepods has come up before in this blog in the 2009 post “The Codepod Army, Defending your Water). The teeny crustaceans are 1-2 mm in length and feed on mosquito larvae.

The Consumerist helpfully explains that “New York’s water is of such high quality that it isn’t required by the EPA to mechanically filter its H2O, which means you get to gulp down these cute little guys with every glassful.”

Codepods are completely harmless so keep repeating that to yourself as you feast on the fascinating photos. One possible glitch, pointed out by Gizmodo, is that this means NYC’s water might not be kosher. Oy vey!

trompe loiel swimming pool

World’s Best Swimming Pool for Dry Climates

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Now this is a sweet swimming pool for a parched landscape because it uses absolutely no water at all! In fact, it’s a dreamy, creative illusion!

Virginia-based master gardener and talented painter Patty Butters created this trompe l’oeil panorama on top of an existing concrete pad that had seen better days. Nice touch, too, with the inflatable chaises, where guests can relax and float away on a fantasy. I’m sorry that my photos don’t do justice to the “pool’s” realism…during my visit to her wonderful garden, I did not realize the pool was an illusion until I was about 8 feet from its “edge.”  How cool..conceptually-speaking!

trompe loeil painted swimming pool

trompe loiel swimming pool

Trompe loeil painted swimming pool

trompe loeil painted swimming pool

My Favorite (Unofficial) Water Conservation PSAs

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Water conservation messages are usually 60% boring and 40% preachy; here are two from Australia created by The Chardonnay Club that are just 100% funny. As you might guess, they are not officially sanctioned and, as one video notes in the endframe, “Never ever will be authorized by the Queensland Government Brisbane.” Maybe that’s why I love them!

The first is a parody of government psa spots that urge citizens to report friends & neighbors for water violations. Just call 1-800-DOBBER (For the non-Australians, a dobber is what we’d call a snitch or tattletale.)

“Warren’s Water Warehouse”  is a hysterical take-off on those low-brow, low-fi clearance sale spots we’re all so fond of…

D’ja Ever Wonder How Much PR Flacks Make?

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Several news outlets this week alterted us to the premiere of a new video from the International Bottled Water Association, “The Inner Workings of a Bottled Water Plant. Featuring the de rigueur fresh-faced teen narrator (who begins the clip with the grabby intro, “D’ja ever wonder…”) the video takes the unnaturally-curious teen through the plant with a throbbing club music background beat.

I can’t tell you much more about the video because at ELEVEN MINUTES in length, this was about 9 minutes longer than I personally could bear. (FastCompany.com toughed it out and has a snarky writeup, found here.) Well, can’t blame a flack for trying, right? But sorry, FAIL.

This fellow is the “credible source” offered by IBWA.

A little poking around among IBWA’s other videos unearths some crazier items, like “The Real Story of Bottled Water.” Believe it our not, the video describes the clay-faced spokesbottle shown below as a “credible, informed & charming source.” But I really bolted straight in my chair when I looked at the hands. Why, YES it is! The VERY SAME HANDS of the bird-shooting swag noted earlier on this blog. They are of the same species! I smell a conspiracy.

I looks like this cute little water drop swag is making a rude gesture!

Our Mad Future Foretold in 1971

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It’s giddy fun to look at vintage ephemera that predicts the future, usually because the predictions turn out to be so charmingly wrong. This 1971 item from Mad Magazine, though, turns out to be alarmingly right…except for the ultra-convenient home delivery! Four decades ago, a “Scene We’d Hate to See.” Today, a Scene We Wait to See. Mad, for sure!

1971 MAD MAGAZINE Spoof Advertisement Back Page Clean Air Water Milk

From the awesome Flickr photostream of Christian Montone

Party with the Petunias

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I’m on vacation right now so I’m coasting instead of posting…but enjoy this entertaining psa from Denver Water from a couple summers ago!

Drunk Flowers: Denver Water by Ad Agency: Sukle Advertising & Design, Denver, USA, July 2008

Itty-Bitty Baths Inspire Daft Designs

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While urban dwellers enjoy ready access to city amenities, a trade-off is the distinctly urban micro-bath. Why, I could fit most of these city loos inside my obnoxious suburban garden tub…which I never use, as it requires an obnoxious amount of water!

If you’re dealing with cramped quarters in your citified bath, the solution, as always, is abundant dollars and over-the-top design ideas. Read more