Sand Glass Traffic Lights

The Regular Joe spends lots of time standing in traffic lights. They’ve become a big part of urban life.

Whenever I stand in a red light long enough, I can see human nature in its best; drivers trying to steal another inch, bikes trying to make their way to the front, people get out buying some coffee leaving their car in the middle of the road and many other wonderful gestures.  Let people sit long enough in one place and you discover amazing things.

That’s why I love the traffic light design by Thanva Tivawong. It is not the first time I see a design for traffic lights but this one really stands out.

Flamingos in Flamingo formation

You know I am trying to stay out of world new or what not and keep it close to our real, everyday life. But sometimes something truly remarkable is happening that I just can’t ignore.

This picture, taken by ex-lawyer/investment banker Robert Haas, is what he called “the holy grail of photographs”.

While he flew over Yucatan, Mexico, he captured a photo of Flamingos in Flamingo formation.

It’s like a flamingo’s Autobots or something.

Check it out:

what's next? a $ shaped bankers?!?

Small change can go a long way

Like everyone else on the bus, the street, family dinners or where ever, the regular Joe knows the best way to save the global economy. If you have a cousin on the Nobel Prize committee, I suggest you send him this mission statement now.

We all agree that privet spending will improve the economy. Let’s say I earn $1000 a month. I spend $700 on girls, cars and gambling and put $300 in a savings account. That’s nice. Off course I could spend the whole $1000 and allow the market to enjoy my full salary but then I wouldn’t save nothing. No girls and gambling for the retired Regular Joe then.

So how can you earn the same salary, save the same amount of dollars but still spend a little bit more?

Change!! Yeah, that’s right, change. I assume that as you read these lines you have at least $50-$30 worth of small change between your couch, a glass on the shelf and pants. Around the world there must be millions of dollars worth of small change unused just because some crazy people collect them in jars, leave them laying around or just don’t pay much attention to them. I used to be one of those people.

Since I was young I saved all the small pennies I had in a big can that says ‘Metallica’ on it. the plan was to pay a parking ticket with it some day. So when I wanted to get rid of that rusty can, I started to think of ways to spend all these coins with the most value to me and the global economy.

So gather all your small change (you don’t have to count it) and pick which option suits you the most.

Make a call on a pay phone - nobody uses payphones any more. If you have to call someone it can be   very nostalgic and nice. Plus, it’s a great opportunity to make a prank call to someone without him recognizing the number.

New slang

I like to think of myself as a trend setter. Basically people do whatever I say is cool.

Among my many pop culture creations, there are 2 slang phrases which I’m ready to share.

Them both are the product of  technology's  influence on our lives.

“Buffering”

Wikipedia defines buffering as “a region of memory used to temporarily hold data while it is being moved from one place to another.

Joe’s definition: When a certain someone finds himself in need for additional time and thought to reply on a question, he may announce “buffering”.

First dates, job interviews and everything between

“Dating is pressure and tension. What is a date, really, but a job interview that lasts all night? The only difference between a date and a job interview is that in not many job interviews is there a chance you'll end up naked at the end of it” – Jerry Seinfeld 

Our partner in life and our job has a lot in common. They both define us in some level, they both work on a ‘what you give is what you get’ basis and we spend a lot of time and energy finding the right one. Usually we go through several before we find it.

Accordingly, I feel first dates and job interviews are basically  the same. All we want is to leave the right impression and to get our shot.
Jerry Seifeld said "What is a date really, but a job interview that lasts all night? The only difference is that in not many job interviews is there a chance you’ll wind up naked."

Lucky for you, the regular Joe went through enough job interviews and first dates holding a solid success rate.

I gathered a few pointers and similarities between the two with some examples for each case to help you get  through it. Because the regular Joe always keeps his feet on the ground and keeping it real, we will pick a typical situation where the manager at the interview will be ‘Mark Zuckerberg’ and my date is ‘Adriana Lima’.

Spoonachos

That is really The Regular Joe kind of idea

Tapi by Dreamfarm

Check out the Tapi by the Australian Dreamfarm. It’s simple, useful and makes my life easier.  Re cool!

N stool by Nir Meiri

A brilliant bench with removal stools by Israeli designer Nir Meiri. It shows that furniture should better suit our life style as modular and multi optional.

House in Bequia

A beautiful architectural example of a house in the Caribbean by  Edgley Design

Traffic

There are many things in the world I don’t understand: I don’t understand how people can still  watch ‘Friends’ reruns, I don’t understand how come I work all year and get paid only 12 times, I don’t understand how accountants get up in the morning.

But what always struck me the most is traffic. Every morning, millions of people around the world get into their cars and 15 minutes later they are, most likely, stand in traffic. The Regular Joe of course takes his motorcycle to work. And I always think to myself “who are all those people who stand every morning at that light who is just ever red? They knew it’s going to be jammed just like the day before. What brought them to it?”

Equilibrium Bookcase

Love this re cool bookcase by Malagana design

I think it will go great in my ‘see all those book I might have read’ corner.

We didn't start the fire - Billy Joel

Back again with crazy lyrics. This  great song  acts as a time capsule of sorts. It also has a cool video. And an ‘office’ homage.

I always wanted someone to rewrite it to fit our times.

So thats the 'Millennium challenge' of you all.

We didn't start the fire - lyrics

Harry Truman, Doris Day, Red China, Johnnie Ray
South Pacific, Walter Winchell, Joe DiMaggio

Joe McCarthy, Richard Nixon, Studebaker, television
North Korea, South Korea, Marilyn Monroe

Rosenbergs, H-Bomb, Sugar Ray, Panmunjom
Brando, "The King and I", and "The Catcher in the Rye"

Eisenhower, vaccine, England's got a new queen
Marciano, Liberace, Santayana goodbye