Wednesday, February 21

Finding: Eggs are nature's miracle food


You might have thought it was mother's milk or something, but you'd be wrong. Dead wrong. It's eggs. From the looks of it, if you have a serious hunger you'd better start getting your egg on. Because nothing hits the spot like 30 hard-boiled eggs. In a wire basket. It's the only proper way to satisfy your egg tooth.

We were so eggstatic to see this billboard at Kearny and Washington that we came back to witness its eggscellence again. To not do so would have been an eggregious mistake.

Finding: The Clown never lets you down


the Clown never lets you down
burgers fries cold coke
the Clown doesn't mess around

Clown Alley, 42 Columbus Avenue (at Gibb St & Ils Ln)

Thursday, February 15

Finding: Moo & Oink is the greatest thing I have ever seen.

I just laughed so hard at the way he says, "MoooooOOO and OiiiiIIIIIInnnKKKK!" at the end that I fell off my chair at work.

Moo & Oink Dance - Classic Commercial

Tuesday, February 13

Finding: You know what's a really bad look?

An umbrella in each back pocket. We saw this on the street last night. They move to the rhythmic beat of your ass.

Friday, February 9

Finding: Cats look cute wearing damn near anything

In terms of cats wearing stuff, you think you've seen it all. But then - BAM! - cat wearing a hardhat. Can't you just picture Foreman Meow driving a mini bulldozer in his litterbox? Cute!!! Cats can wear practically anything and look adorable. Most of it has to do with how pissed they get. Unlike dogs, who appear to enjoy parading around in emasculating froufrou outfits, cats are having none of that. But that just makes you wanna hug 'em and squeeze ' em even more -- beew!

Finding: There's no place like the library on a rainy day

Rainy day, roaming the stacks, pull out a few good reads, some nice picture books. Settle down at a table or just sit in the middle of the stacks for a bit. Can you think of a more pleasant way to spend a rainy day?

(This excludes spending the day at the main branch of the San Francisco Public Library where you will be assaulted by a most unpleasant stink by every stack. And forget about the elevator. Holy Lord!)

Mechanics' Institute Library, 57 Post Street, $95 for a yearly membership

Thursday, February 8

Finding: Big umbrellas do not belong on a city sidewalk

Yes, the umbrella pictured here is obviously some kind of joke. But I'll tell you what is no joking matter: Big-ass sports umbrellas used by a single person on a city sidewalk. Akin to the single person commuting solo in a fatty SUV, the bearer of the sports umbrella is obnoxious, offensive and in the way. Sports umbrellas are for sporting events! Like, say you're at a golf tournament and it starts raining. You pull out your gargantuan umbrella and up to 10 people (depending on individual girths) can take refuge from the rain under its mighty span. That's great. But your striped sports umbrella is most decidedly not for use in the city! I don't care if some tech company or bank gave it to you for free! Go get a normal-sized umbrella and pretend to be the sophisticated human being that you so obviously are not.

Finding: The Queen Mary 2 is hella big


Look at the size of this ship. It could run aground on Alcatraz and go, "island? what island?" And all the teeny tiny boats around it? Those are actually normal-size boats.

Fun facts:
• The QM2 is 1,132 feet long and 134.5 feet wide
• It got under the Golden Gate Bridge by just 30 feet
• There were 2,638 passengers aboard, 2,000 of which disembarked (What's up 638 people? You too good for us or something?)
• From the Chron: "I'm a commercial fisherman, and I've seen a lot of boats, and all I can say is this is huge," said Carl Westrate, 74, who lives in Lafayette.

We went to see it at Pier 27, and I can confirm Carl's finding. That ship is hella big.

Tuesday, February 6

Finding: I gots to get me some of this chicken!


I'm talking Korean-style fried chicken. Just read an article in the nytimes in which the preparation of this delicious-sounding chicken is described thusly:

"Korean-style fried chicken is radically different, reflecting an Asian frying technique that renders out the fat in the skin, transforming it into a thin, crackly and almost transparent crust."

Apparently what you get is something of a cult in Korea, "crunchy, spicy, perfectly nongreasy chicken." Served with hot-pepper sauces and plenty of beer. Now that's my kind of chicken!

Friday, February 2

Finding: Chocolate muffins ruin your appetite

File this under "Things a six-year-old would know that we, as grown women are still finding out the hard way." Some baked goods were left out in the kitchen a half hour before lunchtime. I don't know what it is about free food, but I am on it like a raccoon on shiny objects. Can noo resist it. Noo, Jenny. Add to that the sneaky pleasure of getting away with something bad. It is for the TAKING! The perfect crime! I even cut it in half, ate it, and went back for the other half. Hours later, I am still not hungry for lunch. And in this worker-bee neighborhood after 3 o'clock lunch becomes slim pickins. You're lucky if you can buy some Twizzlers and DP at Sammy's. So much for eating healthy.

Wednesday, January 31

Finding: Peanuts will never let you down

On one particularly illuminating evening at the Bow Bow, it was declared that the peanut is "the nut of the people." It is a common nut with no pretenses. It is cheap, sometimes even free. You can crack it open with your teeth, and throw the shells on the floor (and step on them for a most satisfying crunch). Open its charmingly textured casing and you are presented with not one but two tiny snacks. Oh, peanut, you are plebeian yet precious. A perfect treasure from Mother Nature's loins. Ever-reliable and rewarding. A mainstay and a marvel. Hats off to the peanut!

$1 for a brown bag of hot nuts at the Hemlock

Finding: The workday is several hours in length

Recently I came down with the flu, and was out of the office for nearly a week. When I returned I came to a startling discovery -- one which I must make public immediately. The duration of time that you are expected to sit at your desk is several hours. I know -- I couldn't believe it either. You cannot just leave when you are bored, or restless, or you need a nap, or a game of tennis, or your butt hurts from sitting, or god forbid -- you finished your work. You are supposed to just sit there for the entire day. Sure, you get paid. But when you look at the clock because you just can't take it anymore, and it's only 2:30 pm, a little part of you dies inside. Can you put a price on that?

Tuesday, January 30

Finding: Moles are cute but also strange


I'm not sure why I keep poking around this eco-gardening site, seeing as my backyard is a concrete hole covered in dog doo. But it must have to do with either their great products (see: deer fly head trap) or their pictures. Look at this poor thing. Smashed betwixt thumb and forefinger, this mole was probably moments before just digging around for something to eat. Is it his fault for having been born with huge, wide hands perfect for tunneling? Maybe he hates his job, but those are the cards he was dealt! I can totally relate to that. Totally. Also? He's kind of cute in a way but also kind of creepstervich, no?

Mole-Relief™ Dry Mole Repellent

Finding: The Queen is as satisfying as a stale crumpet


Ever wish you could be a fly on the wall at Tony Blair's breakfast table? Just dying to know what the Queen and her mother might talk about on a stroll through their garden? Your dreams have come true.

The critics would have you believe that this painfully predictable piece of rubbish is "witty" (it is not), "poignant" (what movie isn't, according to them?), and i'm sure at least one has called it a "tour de force." They are wrong. See the movie and you will begin to wonder just whom Tony Blair had to sleep with to get this poorly disguised propaganda film produced. It is as interesting as watching your grandmother working on a needlepoint portrait of a cucumber sandwich.

Finding: I want nothing to do with this.


Let it be known that I want nothing to do with having a flystrip on the back of my head that attracts deer flies. You couldn't stick it on your back, or a special stick or something? You want huge dying flies on your head? F that.

Deer Fly Defense Patch

Friday, December 8

Holiday Gift Guide: For the Post-Op Pet

I was telling, well, shouting to someone about this at a noisy bar last night, and even I couldn't believe the words coming out of my mouth.

"TESTICULAR IMPLANTS FOR PETS."

"WHAT?"

"TESTICULAR IMPLANTS. FOR PETS THAT HAVE BEEN NEUTERED."

Prices range from $79 for Neuticles Original($94 a pair, naturally) to $719 for Neuticles Ultraplus with ScarRetard. I would also like to point out that three firmness selections are available. Wouldn't you like one, just to play with on your desk while you're working? I think it would feel nice.

Neuticles. Testicular Implantation for Pets.
"Neuticles allowing [sic] your pet to retain his natural look, self esteem and aids in the trauma associated with neutering." Ahem.

Finding: Dicktard is the new twatwaffle


The other week I though maybe twatwaffle would be the new douchebag. But then I reconsidered it, thinking, twatwaffle is pretty good, but douchebag? Douchebag is like the bitch mother of insults somehow. Douche. Bag. Reserved for the truly contemptuous. Point out a douchebag to someone and they KNOW. That's a fucking bag of douche, no question about it.

Today I came across this article in the Onion, which immediately interests me because it's about holiday shopping, which if nothing else seems to me like a critical mass of total douchebags. And I'm all about douchebags. All of a sudden, bam pow! DICKTARD. It's no douchebag -- yet. But I have high hopes for it.

Holiday Advertisers Seek Coveted Dicktard Demographic

Thursday, November 30

Holiday Gift Guide: For the Collector

Bag of Lint, culled by artisans from an authentic "Speed Queen" for over 8 months. Soft and supple, Bag of Lint makes a perfect gift for the collector, looking just fantastic alongside stacks and stacks of newspaper. You will never find lint so fine at a price so reasonable.*

Bag Of Lint, $12.75 (or barter)

*Garbage can not included. Bag of Lint not guaranteed to reverse aging. Bag of Lint is not fuel or food.

Holiday Gift Guide: For Your Large Friends


Perfect Bodies Duvet

Now your fat—sorry—large friends can really have perfect bodies in their dreams! Like, in their dreams, but also really. So, like, while they’re dreaming, they really will have the “perfect” bodies they dream about. So it’s like in their dreams? But real? At the same time? Whoa.

Perfect Bodies Duvet, $32.95

Holiday Gift Guide: For the Sasquatch

Introducing the Mangroomer, which claims to "opens to a staggering 135-degrees so you can reach all areas of your back from different angles with ease." Guys, I think you know what all this flexibility really means. No more embarrassing trips to the salon for your bi-monthly Boyzilian.

MANGROOMER Do-it-yourself Electric Back Hair Shaver, $39.99 at Amazon.

Holiday Gift Guide: For the Skank


Cold Sore Inhibitor

What’s great about this gift is that it’s a gift to both you and your skanky friend. He or she can nip those nasty cold sores in the bud (saving themselves the embarrassment and pain of social revulsion), and you don’t have to keep trying to pretend that you don’t notice anything icky in the general mouth area as they regale you with stories of their skankdom. It’s what you would call a “win-win” gift.

Cold Sore Inhibitor, $129.95-$159.95

Wednesday, November 29

Holiday Gift Guide: For the Homebody


Ladies, we know you like to fight off that winter chill in style. We also know you hate leaving the comforts of home just to go to stupid holiday parties. So this year, have it all with the Pantalaine Couch Dress. A true multitasker that's hard to ignore!

Custom Couch Dress, $349 at Pantalaine

Findings Holiday Gift Guide: For the Pet Lovers

For the Cat Lover: Hidden Litter Box

We’d have to agree with the makers of this ingenious contraption when they call it “The Greatest Gift.” What cat lover wouldn’t cherish the “Tuscany handfinish” or the charming look of a plastic plant in their home? Plus, nothing adds that homey feeling to a family room like the smell of cat shit. What a find!

Hidden Litter Box, $129.95




For the Dog Lover: Pet Memorial

Granted, the recipient of this thoughtful gift might cry upon opening it, but here’s what to do: Just gently pat them on the back and say, “It’s ok. You’ll thank me for it soon enough.”

Pet Memorial, $39-$55

Findings Holiday Gift Guide 2006

Red Starbucks cups. Visions of shiny red-and-green packaging lining the Walgreen’s candy aisle. Gift baskets filled with shrink-wrapped sausages and $40 pears crowding the office kitchen counters. Oh yes, the holidays have pounced upon us once again. And that means it’s time to break out the plastic and spend, spend, spend! Buy until you can buy no more! Literally! Go for broke! But what to get for everyone??? Well, we wouldn’t be Finders if we couldn’t find the perfect holiday gifts. So that is exactly what we have done. Over the next few weeks we will present you with the ultimate gifts for the holiday season for everyone on your list—and more!

We hope you enjoy buying these items as much as we enjoyed finding them. Happy holidays.

Finding: Some people do not belong on this planet

When you look at this picture you are struck with a natural question: Is her hair standing on end like this because the photographer caught it in movement, at just the moment when it looked like a kooshball-like sea creature, or is this hair A-bomb the handiwork of her hairdresser and her 'do was just like this even when she was standing very still? (Let's not even consider the possibility of it being a wig. Because that is just so not funny.)

(By the way, this is Phyllis Diller, some sort of "comedian" who started out her last show with "You know you're old when they discontinue your blood type...and your birth certificate is on a scroll...and your walker has an airbag." Hahahaha. Oh God, hahaha, walker with an airbag...hahhaha. Oh that is just priceless. PRICELESS.)