Animal Grossology Oct 19, 2006
A few weeks ago, I went to the Franklin Institute with Wendy and her cousin.  The best part of the museum was this amazing traveling exhibit called Animal Grossology (main site).  It had all sorts of information about animals, their bodily functions, and other assorted "gross" things.  It was thoroughly disgusting while at the same time incredibly fascinating.  The three pictures included below give a little "taste" of what it was all about (taste ... gross things ... joke attempt). 

This first picture shows some animals and some samples of poop.  It was part of a game where you were supposed to match the animal with the poop.  A sign right near it said, "You may think that if you've seen one poop, you've seen them all."  Each type of poop had a specific name, size, color, and shape.  Gross, yet amazing.  I found this particularly interesting because it confirmed that I had indeed encountered "bear skat" on my hike.  There was also a huge display talking about dung beetles, their purpose in life, and where we'd be without them.  Apparently, the earth would be covered in tons of poop if it weren't for these little gross bugs.  Who knew? 



The second picture shows a small dog sniffing the butt of a big dog, who in turn is preparing to sniff some poop on the ground.  This exhibit explained how most animals recognize each other by scents.  There were 5 or 6 samples of scents just below the picture, and Wendy and her cousin convinced me to sniff the one called "Fox urine".  They told me to put my face right near it and take a good long whiff.  I have a really strong sense of smell, so this almost made me throw up.  Thanks, Wendy! 



The third picture says, "'Retch.'  Kitty hurls a warm, hairy hot dog."  It was all about cats and why they have hairballs.  I found it disgusting yet oddly amusing that they compared a hairball to a hairy hot dog.  It really hit home for me because my cats throw up quite a bit, though their "hot dogs" usually consist of the grass they eat when they get outside. 



I would highly recommend visiting this exhibit.  It, like the whole museum, is geared towards kids.  But despite that, I had a great time and learned an incredible amount of information.  Who knew the average owl pellet contains the remains of three animals?  Fascinating stuff. #nature
Dunkin Donuts coffee Oct 19, 2006
I firmly believe that Dunkin Donuts coffee is far superior to all other coffees.  I've tried coffee from all parts of the world (or at least that's what the packaging said), including Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee, Hawaiian Kona coffee, and various kinds of Colombian coffee.  I've tried coffee from many different stores and shops, including Starbucks, QuickChek, Panera, and Wawa.  But nothing I've tried really stands out from any of the others.  If I was blindfolded and asked to identify the coffee based on its taste, I wouldn't be able to.  Unless it was Dunkin Donuts coffee.  Their coffee actually tastes different from all the rest.  It has a nice simple, smooth taste.  Many people tell me that Starbucks makes the best coffee.  But whenever I go there, I can't add enough sugar and/or creamer to make the coffee drinkable.  That's because it's incredibly strong coffee.  It's man coffee.  It's like the Guinness of coffee.  When I drink coffee, I don't enjoy struggling to pour it down my throat.  I don't need an incredible caffeine boost.  I don't need to feel like a man.  I just want a warm beverage that might help me wake up.  Dunkin Donuts is the best for this.  And although it's not cheap ($1.25 for a small cup, compared to $0.99 for a larger cup at most places or $10.99 for a small cup at Starbucks), it's worth the money.  Part of the cost probably comes from the sugar and creamer being added before it's given to you.  That's also part of the reason why it's so good:  It's dependable.  A coffee from a Dunkin Donuts in New Jersey will taste exactly the same as one from California. #food