Located in Darmstadt, Germany, the Waldspirale apartment-building was designed by Austrian artist, Friedensreich Hundertwasser, and built during the 1990s.

There are other apartment buildings in Darmstadt, but the U-shaped Waldspirale is special. Its diagonal roof is covered with grass, shrubs and trees and the facade follows an irregular grid organization.

Waldspirale has over 1,000 windows, but no two are the same. The handles on the apartment doors and the windows are also unique.

Waldspirale was completed in 2000 and people actually live in it.

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Some people often refer to them as locusts, but cicadas have no relation whatsoever to the true, grasshopper-like locust. They are some of the best known insect in the world, and despite their large size, they pose no danger to humans.

Cicadas are considered a delicacy in some parts of the world, like China, Malaysia, Congo and Latin America, but after witnessing the grosse birth process of this insect, I bet you’ll think twice before putting a cicada in your mouth.

The cicada shell is used in Chinese traditional medicine.

via bbs.163.com

This could be a sign of things to come, in a few years, desk-embedded computers may not seem like a novelty.

Designed by Marlies Romberg, a young graduate of the Utrecht School of Arts, Dear Diary 1.0 aims to be a fusion between the real world and the digital world. Here’s how Marlies explains her artwork:

“Personally, I am fascinated by how the world is changing into a digital world. To me it seems that; the digital world is personal but not private at all. For example, when I Google to find information about a friend, I will most likely find information about his life, his pets, his company and maybe a review on a digital camera that he has recently written. Notice that the digital verb ‘Googling’ has recently got the status of a real verb in the Netherlands. Just another example how the two worlds become one.”

Perhaps the coolest thing about the Dear Diary 1.0 is the porcelain and silicone Signet USB stick.

via Moco Loco

Personally I think it has a shot at the title of weirdest hotel in the world, but it’s definitely not the best looking one.

Located in Hebei province, China, the Tianzi Hotel was built sometime in the 2000-2001 period. It is a ten-story high representation of Fu Lu Shou (good fortune, prosperity and longevity) that apparently holds the Guinness World Record for the “biggest image building”…whatever that means.

You probably won’t find much more info about the Tianzi Hotel on English websites. Don’t know if it will help, but it’s also known as The Emperor Hotel and Son of Heaven Hotel.

via Killer Directory

If you’re looking to scare the hell out of your child or want him to end up a twisted serial killer, you could buy this freaky cyclops-stroller.

Designed by Elmer Presslee, this stroller has the baby sitting on looks to be a cyclops’ brain, which seems to be why his eye is about to pop out. Sure the kid in the photo looks totally cool with her new toy, but I’m pretty sure that’s just not how a baby stroller should look like. Although, I’ve seen some weird steel toddler accessories not so long ago.

Although I wasn’t able to find much info about this spitball competition, I know it was held somewhere in Britain and it’s sort of like the Spitball World Championship. I really liked some of the fancy spitball launchers some of the contestants displayed. They show just how passionate some people can be about a…sport other people find silly.

via Ochevidec

On every second Saturday of July, people gather outside the Mugs Away Saloon, in Laguna Niguel, California, for the annual Mooning of the Amtrack.

Known also as the Mooning of the Train, this tradition dates back to 1979. Legend has it it all started when a rich person walked into the bar and promised free drinks to anyone with enough balls to show their naked behinds to the passing Amtrak train.

This year around 1,000 people attended the mooning and a great time doing so. there were no incidents, unlike last year, when many of the 8,000 mooners got intoxicated in public and the festivities had to be shut down.

The trains are mostly full when they pass by the Mugs Away Saloon and the conductors even slow down so the passengers can really enjoy the view.

Very original chewing-gum-like sculptures by Simone Decker, set up through the streets of Venice. The talented German artists has a lot of other interesting artworks that you can check out on her website, simonedecker.com

Brothers Tiago and Gabriel Primo set up their quarters on the side of a building, in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro.

The two artists spend up to 14 hours a day literally hanging around their outdoor home. They have a hammock, a love chair, some drawers with an old gramophone, all screwed tightly into the wall and they get to them using wall-climbing equipment.

The Primo brothers say the hardest part is listening to drunks who relate their life stories during the night, when their trying to sleep and the rain.

So if you happen to pass by Gonçalves Ledo street, in Rio de Janeiro, by August 22, don’t be surprised to see two men living on the side of a building.

via Like Cool

It’s official, everything can be canned, even the tasty bacon. So prepare to go from “ummm, bacon” to “ummm, canned bacon”.

Apparently, canned bacon isn’t as new as I thought. According to the site that sells this canned delicacy, it was popular in America, over 20 years ago. Well now it’s back, but you can only order online, you won’t be able to find it in stores any time soon.

The bacon is already sliced, cooked and packed in paper, all you have to do is open the can and stuff your face. With a shelf life of over 10 years (???) and, together with the canned cheeseburger, canned bacon makes a great meal out in the wild.

Well doesn’t this strange creation leave you breathless? I think Joe from bookofjoe said it best: “Amazing people bestride our planet. As do their creations”.

Designed and created by the amazing Andrew Chase, this steampunk cheetah is 24 inches tall and 50 inches long, from nose to tail. It weighs just 40 pounds and is able to move just like a real-life cheetah.

Regarded as a pioneer of tightrope-balancing and slacklining, Heinz Zak has pent the last eight years traveling the world and searching for the perfect places to do what he does best.

Unlike other similar artists, the 51-year-old Austrian doesn’t do it for the adrenaline rush. For him this is a way of life, it’s simply what he does. He perceives it as a way of finding himself, by losing himself completely and thinking only about his next step.

Heinz Zak first discovered slacklining back in the early 80s, during a trip to Yosemite National Park and, over the years, he got a lot better at it, succeding in setting a record in the longest slackline distance ever, 173 meters.

via Telegraph.co.uk

Luigi fan creates a 70-cm-tall replica of his favorite video-game character.

So Luigi isn’t quite as popular as his brother, Super Mario, so he usually does all the work while Mario shines in the spotlight, does that mean he doesn’t deserve some attention? “Absolutely not!” said one of his fans and decided to build an awesome LEGO model of Luigi.

LEGO Luigi is 70-cm-tall and is composed of over 80 layers of LEGO bricks. Believe me, it might look like child’s play, but building such LEGO models could definitely be called art. I bet Mario is eating his heart out right now…

via Wii Noob

Animal rights activists gathered in the Spanish town on Las Ventas, for a very original protest against the famous bull fights held there.

Organized by Equanimal, the protest had the participants strip to their underwear, lie down and cover themselves with fake blood, and corrida spears. It took place at the end of May and hoped to convince authorities that the Spanish people no longer support such a cruel and barbaric tradition as bullfighting.

The anti-bullfighting protest took place in Las Ventas because that’s where a large number of bulffighting events take place. Most bull fights are not even profitable anymore, they are sustain themselves through public grants.
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An artistically designed pond that looks like it could be zipped up at any time.

Designed by renowned Taiwanese sculptor Ju Chun, the Zipper Pond has become one of the most popular attractions at the Juming Museum, outside Taipei.  It does look absolutely amazing…I mean I’ve seen some beautiful ponds in my time, but a zipper pond? That’s special.

via Crooked Brains

photos by JT