13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. CDXCXV)

Today’s edition was compiled with our hearts & minds vicariously marching with the Black Lives Matter Movement. 1. Fabulous in New York City, Summer of ’69 Vernon Merritt III/Time Life Pictures, found on Pinterest. 2. Where the term “Dreadlocks” came from The term “dreadlocks” comes from a movement of guerrilla warriors who vowed not to…

In Defence of Clutter: The American Castle of a Renaissance Hoarder

Forget the great and gaudy Hearst Castle – why don’t they talk about Fonthill Castle? Now that’s a house worth seeing. Some might call him America’s first hoarder, but for any aspiring collector or lover of eclectic arts, Pennsylvania’s most underrated treasure is an astonishing visual treat at every turn, telling the story of a…

For Sale: The Victorian Butcher Shop You Never Knew You Needed

So generously preserved of its original features, you can almost imagine a portly butcher emerging from his back room to ask whether you want the Sirloin cut or Tenderloin. And yet this “rare survival” in North London has managed to find new life as a wonderful two-bedroom home with a kitchen and front room to…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. CDXCXIV)

1. Restaurants using mannequins to make social distancing less awkward An American Michelin-starred restaurant, the Inn at Little Washington, hopes to make its dining room feel less empty once customers return at limited capacity…. From mannequins to stuffed animals to pool noodles you wear on your head, restaurants around the world are getting pretty “creative” in…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. CDXCXIII)

1. A 1962 Italian Magazine showing how the world would look in 2022 Found on Mildly Interesting. 2. An Open-Air Museum of Abandoned Soviet Trains In a railway deadlock surrounded by a dense forest, there are decommissioned locomotives and tractors… a strategic reserve in case of war… some locomotives are in relatively good condition, with…

France, Is That Really You?

Ah, la douce France! Cobblestone streets and cafés lost in time, quaint little ancient villages surrounded by vineyards, heart-achingly beautiful architecture and skylines, just like you’ve seen it in the movies. Right? Well sure, but that’s only half of the story. Sometimes, France can look like the Eastern Bloc. Sometimes, it can look like the…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. CDXCXII)

1. BBC TV Set Designs Do recognise them? Find the shows they belong to in the BBC Archives via Present & Correct. 2. Perhaps Bandstand Architecture is due for a Comeback? 1930s’ architecture comes to the parks of Whitehaven (above) and Swindon (below). Open air concert halls for a post-Coronavirus world? Found on Leftover London.…

Damn, there’s some Interesting Stuff to See in Yemen

One of these days, I hope to see this 500 year-old ghost town, perched precariously on top of a giant rock, sitting in a canyon somewhere in Yemen. I’d also like to see the world’s oldest skyscraper city, known as Yemen’s “Manhattan of the Desert”. And then there’s that island off the coast that UNESCO…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. CDXCXI)

1. For those with an appreciation for Striped Awnings A little booklet from 1923, found on the Internet Archive. 2. The 1956 Inter 175A Berline Micro Car The Inter was designed and built by an aircraft company. The French engineers at S.N.C.A.N. (Societe Nationale de Construction AeroNautique) had applied all they knew from plane design…

Complete with Art Deco Nightclub, Hearst’s Hollywood Love Nest is (still) For Sale

You’ll see it in the The Godfather, in Francis Ford Coppola’s infamous horse head scene. It was the enviable house of Whitney Houston’s character Rachel Marron in The Bodyguard. Even Jackie and John F. Kennedy stayed there during their honeymoon, and later used it as his West Coast presidential election HQ. The Beverley House has…