That Wasn't There a Second Ago...

Back in 1985, the Venezuelan government flooded the small village of Potosi to create the Uribante-Caparo water reservoir.  The only structure visible after the flooding was the steeple of the 82 foot church that stood in the center of the village. The image above was taken in January 2009.

Venezuela generates almost 70% of it's energy from hydroelectric power plants and this reservoir provided some of that power for the area.

Unfortunately, Venezuela has been experiencing a drought brought on by the effects of El Nino and Global warming. This is what the reservoir looked like in February 2010:

via National Geographic

A similar situation occurred in Spain in 2008:


Back in the 1960's, the town of Sant Roma in the Catalonia region was flooded to create a water reservoir. Severe drought drained the reservoir in 2008 and the region was forced to import drinking water from France. They are working to address the problem with a desalinization plant but the drought, and the lack of water, continues. Barcelona ran out of water earlier this year, resulting in the closing of all city fountains and the implementation of strict water usage requirements.

So at least 2 huge reservoirs, both full of water for the last 25 years (40 years in Spain), now completely dry. But that whole "Global Warming" theory?  Yeah, that's just a bunch of hooey.

Also via National Geographic

Superhero Saturday

Someone needs a membership to the gym...

Taking the Game to a Whole New Level

Be sure to have the sound on

Saw this video and was totally hooked by it - I have no idea why, but I've played the thing 8 times in the last 15 minutes. From what I can figure out, FreddieW (the guy who made it), mashed up a video of himself playing various instruments with the concept behind the video game Rock Band - you know, the game where the colored lights on the monitor tell you which keys to hit on the instrument in order to play a song.  (We're not very video game savvy here at the White House...)

Only Freddie overlays the lights from the game on top of the video - it looks like the signal lights have left the monitor and are connecting directly with the instruments, his vision of what the game might be like in the future.

Even more impressive, it seems like he wrote the music himself.  I would definitely listen to more of that song!

Things I Don't Understand

Because the mailman is height challenged?

Because the living room used to be a swimming pool?

Because the guys laying track were startled?

There's so much wrong with this photo that I just don't have the words...

Woodn't you like one in your house??

File these in the 'wish I could find room in my home' file.

Beautiful cabinet from Elisa Strozyk - a little hard to see from this perspective, but the front of the cabinet is multi-dimensional. Really lovely.

Coffee table from Josh Finkle - bringing the forest to your living room.

The Molly desk and Wishbone Chair from Toby Howes. More art than furniture. Now that I think about it, I'm sure I can find room for the Molly desk somewhere...

Superhero Saturday

I know that 'Superhero' is a big internet meme.  Not a day goes by that I don't see an image or video or story that references one of the Superheroes. 

And why not?  Superheroes are a good thing.  Most of them are fighting for truth, justice and the American Way...

So I've decided (for now), that Saturday will be Superhero Day here at the White House blog.  Once a week, I'll post an image or video clip that caught my eye or made me laugh. 

And to start us off, I'd like to introduce you to Brooklyn Superhero Supply Co. That's right, now those of you in the NYC area can find all your Superhero accessories in one convenient location:

You'll find everything from costume help (capes, tights, masks) to crime fighting paraphernalia like Evil Blob Containment Capsules and Anti-Gravity lotion.  I particularly like the signs, so helpful:

And for those of you who don't live in the NYC metropolitan area, never fear, the internet is here: Brooklyn Superhero Supply.

via Artsytime

For the Birds

The White House cats don't like birds much - all that twittering and flying about is so annoying. Not to mention sitting on the balcony railing like they own the place!

You better believe they wouldn't be so cocky if there wasn't a screen between them and the kids...

Maybe they wouldn't be hanging out on our balcony, taunting the cats if they had one of these fabulous bird houses to go home to.

By Luke Bartels and Jeff Canham for the Curiosity Shoppe in San Francisco. Btw, if you've ever been to SF, you'll know that the Condor actually exists. And yes, it's a strip club.

via You Might Like This

Land of the Giants

By now I'm sure you've seen these electricity generating windmills - they seem to be all over the place these days. Popping up wherever there's a stretch of empty rural land, like majestic alien sentinels. I kind of like them. In addition to the 'alternative energy' perspective, I think they look cool.

Of course, I don't have to live next to them. Although I like they way they look, I can see how folks might feel that they spoil the scenery on the wide open range or the cosy family farm.

Imagine the response to these guys:

From Choi + Shine Architects, these one hundred fifty foot tall electricity pylons were designed for use in Iceland. The towers can be configured to respond to their environment, arms up for height, in a crouch to get low, side by side or in single file.

Regardless of configuration, these pylons would definitely add something to the scenery.

See more at Choi + Shine

via Dezeen

Spots V Stripes

I really like the Cadbury ads - the one a couple years ago with the two kids was priceless so when I saw this on YouTube I was all prepared for something really good. Take a look, I'll wait. (audio isn't required but it does add to the video)

OK, do you have any idea what is going on here?? I know that Cadbury's is an English company and that I am probably not the target market, but it was only after I clicked on the link at the end of the video that I understood.

It seems that Cadbury's has just been named the Official Treat Provider* of the 2012 Olympic Games being held in London. And this is part of the ad campaign they are using in the lead up to the games. I think the video is very well done and I liked it better the second time around. But I'm not sure it works unless you #1 know that its by Cadbury and #2 know that they are now an Olympic sponsor. Like I said, I'm probably not the target market.


*I think Official Telephone Sanitizers is next...

Floating Dinner

Image: School of Fish Foundation

Now this is a restaurant that I'd like to try: The Plastic Dining Room, a temporary outdoor dining room on the False Creek in Vancouver, BC.

Developed by the The Goodweather Collective, the structure floats on approximately 1,700 recycled 2 liter pop bottles.

The project was built for The School of Fish Foundation, which was co-founded by Shannon Ronalds and Chef Robert Clark of C Restaurant in Vancouver. The Foundation is dedicated to persuading culinary schools throughout the world to include a comprehensive sustainable seafood course as a requirement prior to graduation.

Image: Goodweather Design

The Plastic Dining Room is also a fundraiser - every night between July 21st and September 30th, 12 guests will enjoy a multicourse sustainable seafood dinner, complete with matching wines, as designed by Chef Robert Clark.  The seats are going for $215 - not bad for a fabulous dinner in a unique setting.

I would love to see something like this on the Chicago River.  I can see the menu now - Asian Carp six ways...

via DesignBoom

What's in your bookbag?

I like books, I usually read them.

The Slovakian artist Matej Kren does something different with his books...he stacks them. His latest project is Scanner, a tower of stacked books at MAMbo, the Museum of Modern Art in Bologna, Italy.

The narrow inside space, multiplied and complicated by mirrors, evoke a sensation of sublime terror, an alteration referring to a puzzling infinity itself created to destabilize conventional spatial habits. Mirrors become an instrument to create illusion and, at the same time, to unmask it. Since the public can easily see themselves reflected in a false infinite – thus discovering the illusion – the problem becomes the latency of perception.
~MAMbo

I'm not sure if it's the translation or the really profound artsy description, but I have no idea what that means. I do, however, think it's pretty cool.

I'm also pretty sure I have enough books to build my own igloo, or maybe a teepee?

via Inhabitat

Rain, rain go away

I would say click to enlarge but that probably won't help

We've had some violent weather here in Chicago this summer. First it was the micro bursts that took down trees and littered the streets with debris. It's kind of spooky when you hear tornado sirens in the city.

Lately it's been heavy storms. I can't remember a week without a major storm coming through, often more than one. The folks in the burbs know all about this - flooding has been rampant.

I don't have to worry about flooding here at the White House, but I am having some issues keeping the balcony plants happy. It's so hot that they wilt unless I water daily. Unfortunately, I water in the morning and the storms seem to be coming through in the evenings, resulting in drowned parsley, basil and tomatoes. If only there was a way to know ahead of time if it was going to rain...

According to this Infographic, all I need to do is keep an eye on the cats - apparently their ears need cleaning when it's going to rain.

btw, if you want to actually read the Infographic above, go to Marisys

Wandering through dreamland

These acrylics by Katherine Lewis are absolutely beautiful. I saw them at the Mosswood Market Cafe in downtown Boonville CA where they made walking into this little coffee shop / lunch room feel like stepping into a dream.

Had I known that they wouldn't be gracing the walls the next time I was there, I would have bought one (the horses below) and left clothing behind in order to get it back on the plane with me.

The two pieces above are acrylic on canvas but she also does them on wood. I like how the wood grain and the breaks in the planks show through on these two, primitive while still feeling light and airy.

See more at her site: Katherine Lewis Art

Moron Monday

A pictorial roundup of the not so bright: