Do a barrel roll, Google, do a barrel role

Magnet #1322 - Loch Ness Takes Manhattan

Love this magnet my sister got me. It reminds of that latest Mashable article on the special Google Easter eggs - one of which is when you set your Google home page to the beach theme and at 3:14am Nessie comes out to play.

Mind you, I haven't done it, but it does crack me up.

As does making Google do the barrel roll.

Or going looking for Chuck Norris.

Seriously. Go read that article I linked above.

So interesting how Google has become such a presence in our lives, that we totally take it for granted. You could extend that to all of the Internet, plus mobile technology. Still...for all the wonderful things it's brought us in the last 20 years, I have to say I am still very, very, very glad that I went to college without the presence of either Facebook , mobile communications or any form of instant communications.

My UNC experience would have been so much different had they been around. And I'm pretty sure it wouldn't have been for the better.

I'm a MacDonald

Magnet #585 - Loch Ness, Urquhart Castle

Picked a Scotland magnet, because today, in 1829, the Bobbies started operating as the Scotland Yard. And, even if Scotland Yard is really London's Metro police who just took their name from Great Scotland Yard (a street in Whitehall, London), I'm still using this magnet my sister brought back for me. Because I can.

Urquhart Castle was once the largest castle in all of Loch Ness, and because of its strategic importance, it's been the site of many historic battles. She can't help it, methinks. I mean, the castle's been around since the 13th century, before ultimately getting blown up in 1692.

Now, you can run around the ruins, climbing the five-story tower to get the best views of the loch. Or, check it out, if you don't get motion sickness, there's a 360 virtual tour of the grounds. Pretty neat.

By the way, I'm totally not a MacDonald, but that's part of David Tennant quote from an old radio interview. Three major historic families owned this castle over the last 500 years - the Durwards, MacDonalds and Grants. They didn't tie him to this castle in his episode of Who Do You Think You Are?, but when have I ever passed up a chance to mention David? Even with as thin a thread as this one.

Anyway, to close out this rather silly and somewhat all over the place magnetpost, supposedly, Urquhart is near the castle where the Loch Ness Monster's usually sighted. Personally, I think Nessie's totally nestled underneath, deep below the castle.

Totally.