I went from the north end of the walk to the Breakers. There was only one small section closed where I was.
Ah, so you were able to get around it, then.
Last time I was in Chicago, I tried the transparent viewing booths at the observation lounge at the…whatever the hell the Sears Tower is. Given my problems with heights, I was sure I’d be able to set foot on the transparent lucite floor 1,353 feet above Wacker Drive. I found I could, but only if I kept one hand on the (equally transparent) wall. Stand in the middle of the ledge? Nope.
The YouTuber Tom Scott, who does a series called Interesting Places, was invited to tour the steel mesh just below the glass dome of the Albert Hall, 40 meters above the auditorium floor. He reported that it was terrifying.
I do NOT know why, with my fear of heights*, this doesn’t get to me. Same with the Tokyo Tower that has a glass floor.
I think my brain’s good at assessing the chances of dying. Almost none at the Sears Tower, but on a steel mesh 125’ feet above a concert hall? (How many holes does it take to fill the Albert Hall… with my screaming?)
.
*There I was, all roped in, about to rappel down a cliff for the first time, when I realized my rope was anchored to the base of a bush that was below my knees. That meant the first seconds would be free fall until the slack got taken up. I asked my guide/friend if I’d mentioned a crippling fear of heights.
He said “Look up. Are you afraid?”
“No…”
“Look down.”
“Afraid, afraid, afraaaid!”
“See? You don’t have a fear of heights, you have a fear of depths!”
And while we were laughing, I sat back with no support 
and, five minutes later (or so it felt)… the rope finally caught and I was actually able to have fun rappeling.
A lot of people are afraid of heights. Not me, I’m afraid of widths
Ok, I’m going to show you a stupid motherfucker.
I mean, I’m just at a loss for words.
Cocaine is a helluva drug!
Just now watched on YT - kinda funny.
Yeah, his channel is pretty much always worth watching.
Nope, it’s been found. But that Goiânia link was a good read.
Here’s one found over on the Hackaday website:
Four (or maybe 6?) deaths and 17 other exposures. Ukraine sure has had its share of radiation problems! 
Shell Oil reports record profits.
Who does he think he is? Al Capone?
Depends. Has he paid his taxes?
An ‘influencer’ asks an Irish hotel to give her a free room in exchange for ‘exposure’ through her YouTube channel. The hotel’s owner replied [redacted parts by me]:
If I let you stay here in return for a feature in your video, who is going to pay the staff who look after you? Who is going to pay the housekeepers who clean your room? The waiters who serve you breakfast? The receptionist who checks you in? Who is going to pay for the light and heat you use during your stay? The laundering of your bed sheets? The water rates? Maybe I should tell my staff they will be featured in your video in lieu of receiving payment for work carried out while you’re in residence?In future, I’d advise you to offer to pay your way like everyone else, and if the hotel in question believes your coverage will help them, maybe they’ll give you a complimentary upgrade to a suite. This would show more self-respect on your part and, let’s face it, it would be less embarrassing for you. Best regards, Paul Stenson [redacted website address] P.S. The answer is no.
But the smackdown isn’t all.
White Moose Cafe and Charleville Lodge owner Paul Stenson posted a picture of a bill he planned to send to Elle Darby. In it, he charges her 4,300,000 Euro (~$5.3 million) for “the provision of features in 114 articles across 20 countries with a potential reach of 450 million people.” That’s before taxes.
He also notes payments must be made with actual money and that “mentions in videos will not qualify as payment.”
Stupid ‘influencers’ think they’re actually doing something worth money! Good on the hotel owner.
Whenever I see such articles, the first question popping into my mind is: What the fuck is an “influencer”? Oddly enough, none of the articles manages to explain WTF that is. Color me not surprised.
It’s modern-day speak for someone who has a lot of online followers.
It doesn’t matter what they’re famous for. Most often they are people who upload a lot of popular videos to a social media platform.
Imagine that Michael Jordan got people to buy Nike shoes without actually having accomplishments like being a good basketball player. Instead he just put up TikTok videos where he filmed himself pranking people or trying on different outfits or lip syncing.
They’re basically cult web celebrities. They’re usually don’t enjoy widespread fame, but their fans are especially dedicated.
That’s a bit complicated to explain in an article though. Imagine if every article about NFTs tried to explain what they were. 99% of the article would be filled with that.
Let me follow up… Sometimes a conscientious author will link a term that readers might be unfamiliar with to an article (or some other page) explaining what it is. But at this point, I think it’s such a common term that is used so much in modern day speech that they assume the average reader knows what it is.
Oh, the Internet-era version of Kardashians.
The influencer concept has become so mainstream that it’s being parodied in at least one ad I’ve seen (30 second video on Youtube).