Cargo containers as building materials

A couple of years ago I found Hybrid's Cargotecture via the now-defunct Tablet magazine. Recycling isn't the only reason to be excited about using cargo containers as building materials. They can also be modular, so many can be ready for a variety of uses, and assembled very quickly once ordered. Shipping them is also easy, since that's what they're designed for.

It's been disappointing to see that Hybrid has some great designs, but nobody seems to be buying yet. I see one completed project on their site, and love it, but that's all that's there.

This morning I was surprised to find it's already being done elsewhere, and done very well. Container City has a dozen or so projects outlined on their site, and some are already complete.

Container City II	Freitag flagship store

Freitag makes bags out of used truck tarps, so a store built from used shipping containers is a natural next step for them.
(article at  Telstar Logistics, Freitag's flickr page)

By the way, the shipping container recently turned 50.

Quote of the day

"I'm writing this down so I can put out a new bible called "Bible 2: Guess What? T-Rex Blows at Describing Mountains"
-God

Dream

This morning I dreamed I was on stage, performing "Criminal" by Fiona Apple with a hundred other singers. At the end, during the "hahda da dah dah dadah da" part, everyone else bounced off the stage like the dancers in the video for "These Boots Were Made for Walkin'" do at the end. I didn't know we were supposed to do that. I think I dreamed this because I spent a long time last night thinking about how fun it would be to do "Star Trekkin'" by The Firm in karaoke with a group of friends. It's probably never been made into a karaoke track, though.

I also dreamed that I broke into Lisa's apartment. That is not her real name, but I don't like her any more and it'd be rude to use her real name. We used to be good friends, but we haven't talked in a couple of years now, and I don't really want to ever again. She lives in Seattle, so running into her is always a possibility. In the dream, I broke into the apartment in order to pee in a weird water feature. It was a bit like a smaller version of the fountain at the bottom of the escalators at the convention center. As I was sneaking out, I ran into her outside, and pretended it was a coincidence that I was there. She invited me in, and we talked and caught up. Her haircut was short and terrible. In dreams, I run into her a lot and am always nice to her, but I don't think that I would be in real life. Her apartment was really big, and I was jealous of the fountain and huge fireplace, but it was in the middle of a busy area of Albuquerque, and I didn't want to live there.

There were some bits of a mystery woven in and out of the whole dream, and I was supposed to figure it out at the end, the way the Saw movies come together in a big whirlwind of flashbacks with a dramatic score playing in the background. I realized the answer (the answer!) was on a milk carton in the fridge, under my nose all along. I think this worked its way into my dream because I have half-and-half in the fridge for the first time in over a year now that I'm having breakfast at home again. The mystery was about to be solved, but as I reached for the milk carton, my alarm clock startled me awake.

For the DJs

Wired News reviews a $500 record cleaner. Worth buying as a group and sharing?