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The Mysterious Origins of the Cerne Abbas Giant (NYer) The Cerne Giant is so imposing that he is best viewed from the opposite crest of the valley, or from the air. He is a hundred and eighty feet tall, about as high as a twenty-story apartment building. Held aloft in his right hand is a large, knobby club; his left arm stretches across the slope. Drawn in an outline formed by trenches packed with chalk, he has primitive but expressive facial features, with a line for a mouth and circles for eyes. His raised eyebrows were perhaps intended to indicate ferocity, but they might equally be taken for a look of confusion. His torso is well defined, with lines for ribs and circles for nipples; a line across his waist has been understood to represent a belt. Most well defined of all is his penis, which is erect, and measures twenty-six feet in length. Were the giant not protectively fenced off, a visitor could comfortably lie down within the member and take in the idyllic vista beyond.
posted by bluesky43 at 7:48 PM PST - 37 comments

The Rise Of The Appuccino: How TikTok Is Changing Starbucks (BuzzFeed)

There was a time when the idea of a mere soy latte or mocha Frappuccino was the punchline of dad jokes, an eyeroll about people not drinking “real” coffee. That time is long past, and a set of factors all coming together at once has made incredibly complex orders at Starbucks the norm rather than the exception — sometimes to the chagrin of the workers.

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posted by oakroom at 6:06 PM PST - 178 comments

Obsessive Gabriella Paiella asks how Frasier could afford it all on a radio show salary. Paiella explains her inspiration to ABC Australia’s Jonathan Green. [more inside]
posted by ec2y at 4:46 PM PST - 73 comments

"But the Davids have got themselves a slingshot." A celebration of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development's 50th anniversary, by Together Louisiana. A video, called "When Goliath stays in charge, places stay poor," was created for a celebration of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development's 50th anniversary, by the group Together Louisiana. [more inside]
posted by eustatic at 3:55 PM PST - 2 comments

Of models and memes: Women are reclaiming their images via NFTs [Input] [more inside]
posted by chavenet at 2:34 PM PST - 83 comments

Drain-spotting : Bethan Bell at the BBC writes on the joys of operculism, that is, the study of manhole covers, coalhole covers and drain covers, etc., those "abstract flowers in an otherwise arid field, bringing a note of flippant gaiety into the often depressing city surroundings".
posted by misteraitch at 12:59 PM PST - 12 comments

Only 44 people have reached the summit of all 14 of the world’s 8,000-meter peaks, according to the people who chronicle such things. Or maybe no one has. [more inside]
posted by YoungStencil at 12:50 PM PST - 26 comments

One Note Song (Rob Moitoza, 2000). One Note Piano (Boyan Hristov, 2013). These Notes Number One (Sledg3, 2017). And, of course, One Note Song (Tenacious D, 2001). Inversely, One Chord Songs (Nate Bucklin, 1991 - starts at 19:01 on the pre-selected Hour 2 track).
posted by BiggerJ at 12:15 AM PST - 24 comments