June 18-24th is national lightning safety awareness week.

Each year lightning kills 50 to 100 people in the USA (500 injuries). During an average year in Colorado, lightning will kill 3 and injur 18 people. Men are struck by lightning four times more often than women. Colorado has the 3rd highest lightning casualty rate in the nation. A typical 100-million volt lightning flash can heat the air to more than 40,000°F. The contact voltage of a typical industrial electrical shock is 20 to 63 kilovolts, a lightning strike delivers about 300 kilovolts. The saying “lightning never strikes twice in the same place” is false. The Empire State Building is struck by lightning on average 100 times each year, and was once struck 15 times in 15 minutes.

People are struck by lightening all the time. In fact, here in Colorado, just last week a man was killed by lightning while walking to his parked car at the Mile-Hi Flea Market. Over the last few days, 69 people were killed by lightning in India.

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Even airplanes get struck by lightning.

Although most lightning mortality is through cardiac and neurologic events, other organ systems can be affected. Further complications may include respiratory distress syndrome, pulmonary edema, renal failure, retinal lesions, and rhabdomyolysis. Most of the current from a lightning strike passes over the surface of the body in a process called “external flashover” and results in deep burns at the point of contact most commonly on the head, neck and shoulders. Sometimes the burns come in the form of Lichtenberg figures (graphic picture but SFW). Lightning can catch your hair on fire. All lightening strike burns are highly prone to infection. Other complications caused from lightening strike include: Contusion or internal hemorrhage of brain, lungs, liver, intestine or other organs, bone fractures and brusies, numbness/weakness in limbs, partial or complete (but temporary) paralysis, tympanic membrane ruptured (typical), transient blindness, photophobia , conjunctivitis, corneal damage, retinal abnormalities (macular hole), and cataracts.

If the physical effects weren’t enough, 70 percent of lightning survivors experience residual effects, most commonly affecting the brain (neuropsychiatric, vision and hearing). These effects can develop slowly, only becoming apparent much later. Survivors complain of intense headaches, ringing in the ears, dizziness, nausea, vomiting and other post-concussion types of symptoms. Survivors also experience difficulty sleeping, often sleeping excessively at first and then only two or three hours at a time. some develop seizure-like activity several weeks to months after the injury. Many lightning victims may suffer personality changes because of frontal lobe damage and become quite irritable and easy to anger. As a result, many isolate themselves, withdrawing from church, friends, family and other activities. Othe neuroligic disorders include: loss of consciousness or coma, amnesia, anxiety, confusion, aphasia, seizures, electroencephalographic abnormalities, brain damage, neuropathy, memory disorders, concentration disturbances, irritability, lightning storm phobia, and post traumatic stress disorder. The experience can be so dramatic that there is a Lightning Strike Survivors Support Group. The pathology of lightning, or keraunopathy, is known only to a few specialists.

And if all that wasn’t enough lightning will often explode, tear, shred, or burn your clothes right off you - leaving you not only very disorientated, but at least partially naked.

On a happier note, only about 20 percent of lightning victims are immediately struck dead.

Other links of note:

Wearing a bra can get you struck by lightening.

A recent scientific study strengthens the belief that metallic supports in modern bras could attract lightning and strike their wearers dead. An unconfirmed instance of this occured circa 2000 in Hyde Park, London, when two women hiding under a tree died after being struck by lightening. The forensic report said “lightning discharge was channeled into the metal brassieres, leaving burn marks on the women’s chests.”

Roy Sullivan was struck by lightning seven times. His wife was struck once. He died by suicide.

US lightning strikes during the last two hours
Selected Incidents from the “It Can’t Happen to Me” Library
Over 200 cool lightning photos
Tips on taking photographs of lightening
Stories of lightning strike survivors
Your chance of being struck by lightening: 1 in 280,000
Lightning Kills! posters
Lightning Kills public service announcement

On Saturday I went to a backyard BBQ/ summer kickoff party. It was a lot of fun. Tons of good grub, and beer, and all you can drink mojitos with fresh crushed mint. It was a little bit of a different crew than I see normally so it was great to mix it up that way too.

Our wonderful hosts booked Gypsy Swing Revue to play for the shindig. Their sound is a throw back to the 30’s and 40’s with large influences from Django Reinhardt, Stephane Grappelli (they played songs by both of these artists), and the like. If you’re so inclined, you can check them out most Wednesday nights at the Snug. It was the perfect music for dancing through a late, sweltering, Denver night. The band was talked into playing till 12:30 in the morning, allowing everyone to get there dancing shoes well greased.

• Holy Tango of Literature
  What would happen if poets and playwrights wrote works whose titles were anagrams of their names? Lux, I think you’ll love this.
  (tags: literature toread art parody language free books)
• Let them sing it for you
  I’ve been complaining about my signing skills a lot lately. Maybe next time I go kareoke I bring my laptop and let this application do the job. Now that wouldn’t get me funny looks!
  (tags: mp3 Music wtf fun)
• Bill Owens
  Bill Owens is an amazing photographer. He captures America well. All it’s glory and embarassments. Check out his America, Suburbs, and Food sections. Chevy, I think you’ll like these in particular.
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• Blue Ball Machine
  I’ll let you find out.
  (tags: fun wtf animation)
• MyDeathSpace
  Your global resource for MySpace.com member obituaries.
  (tags: death culture)

Despite my earlier experiences I participated in a karaoke night again. This time is wasn’t nearly as much of a disaster as last time. Not to say it wasn’t a disaster though. I rocked out AC/DC’s (I wish my keyboard had a lighting bolt symbol on it) “Back In Black”. It’s a great song for karaoke because you can basically scream the whole thing. I had always thought that I had wanted this song as my theme tune. A theme tune, in my ideal world, is the song that plays behind me anytime I enter a room full of friends, family, or strangers. It doesn’t play when I enter toilets, funerals, or hospitals.

I haven’t decided if it’s necessary for one to be able to at least sing along to the entire song before it is allowed to become your theme tune. Or maybe just knowing the words should be enough. If either of those requirements are put into place, I have some work to do before I can claim “Back In Black” as my theme song.

I think I brought the house down though, despite my screwing up what I thought was the “daddy loose mama goose” line. My apologies go out to the old man in the front row who was so horrified by my performance, and his experience, that he refused to look me in the eye during the entire song.

On a not-so-completely different subject, I have a new book review up.

Today is June 6th, 2006 (6/6/06), and that can only mean one thing National Slayer Day!!! From the web site:

6.6.06 isn’t a date that comes around very often (once per millennium, to be exact), and while plenty of stupid horror movies and terrible albums will be released for the hype value of the day that bears “the number of the beast”, we here at NDoS decided that this would be a perfect day for Hessians across the country to come together and engage in something upon which we can all agree - listening to Slayer! Also, do you really want those evangelical Neo-Cons to have all the fun with their “National Day of Prayer”?

I’m trusting that each and every one of you have “Reign In Blood” in your CD collection so I have decided that for my part, I will post a few covers of Slayer song for you to listen to. Turn your speakers up to 11 now!

First off we have som a capella Slayer with Japanese beatboxer, Dokaka, playing “Angel Of Death”

After that we have some classical (not classic, that’ll come later) Slayer with the String Quartet playing “Expendable Youth”

Next is Wckr Spgt perfoming a folkish version of “South Of Heaven”

Here is the just plain wierd Dictionaraoke performing “South Of Heaven”

On a more nerdy note we have “Angel Of Death” played on a NES Chip

And for something harder, here is Vader doing a live cover of “Raining Blood”

Lastly is a few short clips of live Slayer banter in between songs.

Remember, DO NOT use headphones! The objective of this day is for everyone within earshot to understand that it is the National Day of Slayer. National holidays in America aren’t just about celebrating; they’re about forcing it upon non-participants.

Below is a video of classic Slayer, in their heyday of 1985, playing “The Antichrist” live at Studio 54. Slayer owns your soul!

And oh yeah, Slayer is playing the Filmore on Friday.

On Friday after work I headed over to My Brother’s Bar to meet up with a few peeps. After a couple of beers I was able to talk everyone into going to my favorite secret bar. I’m not sure why I wanted to take everyone there, I guess because I don’t want to go by myself. When we arrived, G and I climbed the apartment stairs and knocked on the door. I could see the dim bar lights in the small gap of space between the door and it’s jamb. A high pitched woman’s voice screamed from the other side:
“What do you want?”
“We came for a beer.”
“We ain’t open.”
“OK. But we brought Mattie”
Silence.

So my plan was spoiled but I’m not surprised because, as everyone knows, secret bars are only open during weird hours. Anyway, I’m not gonna talk about my secret bar on this blog anymore for fear of other people finding out about it.

Somehow we ended up at the new Quixotes. I hadn’t been to its (semi) new location yet so it was worth checking out. The place was huge. There was free ping pong. We also got to check out a little bit of Great American Taxi. They were all right I guess, just really typical for a place like that. In the back of the place is this tape trading room/smoking lounge. The dude who worked back there was so creepy it was freaked me out a little. G didn’t want to go back there by herself. This guy refused to answer any question I gave him with more than one word, never left his computer station, and never greeted anyone who walked in. He would only engage in conversation (if you can call it that) if someone asked him a direct question. He was probably just too cool for everyone but it sure did come off sort of disturbing. It didn’t stop me from buying a live (Oct. 10th 2003) Ween CD off him though.

• How to brew your own Tangpagne
  Tang+Champagne=Tangpagne
  (tags: howto recipes diy tutorial)
• Castles for sale worldwide
  Before I had linked to Islands for sale. This is a similar website but for castles. I think this one would work for me: 23 reception rooms, 25 bedrooms, 25 bathrooms.
  (tags: realestate shopping entertainment)
• Listible
  Is a website that contains a list of lists. It’s a quick way to get resources on all sorts of stuff.
  (tags: lists tools reference services)
• The Hidden In-N-Out Burger (aka In and Out Burger) Menu
  The most accurate secret In-n-out Burger menu you’re gonna find. The animal style burger sounds good to me.
  (tags: food restaurant)

Over at this site you can get a cool graphic representation of your website. Basically, this Java Applet lets you see the HTML tag hierarchy that your site uses to lay out your content. Below is what the DOM tree at Artifacting looks like. What does that mean for people like me and you? Unique, cool, tropical flower-like pictures, I guess. This Flickr set has graphic site-maps for a bunch of other blogs.

blue: for links (the A tag)
red: for tables (TABLE, TR and TD tags)
green: for the DIV tag
violet: for images (the IMG tag)
yellow: for forms (FORM, INPUT, TEXTAREA, SELECT and OPTION tags)
orange: for linebreaks and blockquotes (BR, P, and BLOCKQUOTE tags)
black: the HTML tag, the root node
gray: all other tags