Daily One Inch Button - Tony Clifton

Who is Tony Clifton? Was it Andy Kaufman? This excellent video from the Muppet show featuring not just Tony Clifton but Andy Kaufman as well says that is not the case. Some say that at some points, Tony was Andy, and at some points (like when he makes appearances now) he is Bob Zmuda. Could it be that Tony Clifton is really Tony Clifton? Who else would sing Volare so obnoxiously, and yet so beautifully?

He really was the counterpart to Andy Kaufman. Loud, obnoxious, smoking cigarettes and eating / doing just about whatever he wanted. Yet somehow, we lost Andy but got stuck with him. Who said that there was fairness in life, right?

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Daily One Inch Button - Vampire Bear Laughing

Vampire bear loves a good laugh - especially when he has just taught three letters in the Hebrew aleph bet in one lesson! Oh, darling little Vampire Bear, who would have thought that in the course of teaching a course called "Learn The Hebrew Language with Vampire Bear," a sweet little bear would get the opportunity to have such a good laugh? I had a feeling it might be the case but we're pretty tight, so to speak.

If you've ever wanted to see all of our Vampire Bear buttons, here is the link.

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Daily One Inch Button - Follow Suit

In the delightful card game of bridge, you have to play the same suit of card that is being played in the hand (unless you lead) which is where the phrase "follow suit" started. The only exception to this is when you don't have a card of that kind, in which case you play any other card. This comes in handy when you have a trump card, the suit of which is determined in the bidding stage of the game. It does you no good, naturally, if the bid is determined to be NT, or no trump.

In case that was all too confusing, a Bridge button might just not be for you. Just saying.

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Daily One Inch Button - Eggplant

When I was a kid growing up in New Jersey, I had a friend named Eric who one time got a grilled eggplant dish when my family went out to eat at some restaurant. I thought it looked pretty gross at the time and I didn't care for the taste. My, how things change.

A couple of decades later, eggplant is of course my favorite vegetable. I wonder why there's no eggplant sushi. Did you know that most of the world's eggplant comes from New Jersey? It is, indeed, a fact. That is why eggplant most likely is coming to you from New Jersey with love.

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Daily One Inch Button - Carrier Pigeon

No, they don't always smuggle drugs - though some of them are being used for that nefarious purpose right now. Sometimes they were used for transporting important messages, as seen in this clip of someone playing a Nancy Drew video game. Were they the inspiration for the pet owls that transported letters in the wizarding world of Harry Potter?

Of course they were, silly. Actually, one of my favourite clips from the movies is this one, where Hermione tells Harry that she is not an owl. The owl depicted on the button looks like he's up to no good. Or maybe he's up to nothing but good?

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Daily One Inch Button - Andrew Kaufman

1984. That was the last year that this amazing man was seen alive. Why did it have to end? Why did I have to be a child when this legendary genius passed away? He sang Mighty Mouse on SNL. (He even inspired elementary school children to try and imitate that feat.) He played a silly role on Taxi and on the side did all kinds of things like have standup specials, at Carnegie Hall no less, where the entire audience was taken out for milk and cookies after the program.

Here's a tribute video to Andy Kaufman. We will tremendously miss you.

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Daily One Inch Button - Vampire Bear Sour Milk

Sour milk is nothing like sour kisses. No, for while both are undesirable, only sour milk has a terrible smell. It really helps Vampire Bear in a way because it reminds him of the ches with a patach underneath it - does that sound Greek to you? It shouldn't, because it is actually Hebrew. Did you know that Vampire Bear teaches a weekly course called Learn How To Read Hebrew with Vampire Bear? I hope you knew that. I just love the look on little Goobie Bear's face and how darling little Shrimpy is running away in horror.

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Daily One Inch Button - The Internet Makes Me Feel Ill-Informed

Please note that all orders placed on Tuesday and Wednesday will be shipped on Thursday due to the Jewish holidays of Simchas Torah and Shemini Atzeres.

This is an absolute truth. Have you ever heard the expression, "The more I learn, the more I realize how little I actually know?" This is particularly more true in the past quarter century as computer technology has advanced and people have made the spread of knowledge so incredibly easy. There are hundreds of thousands of fields of study about which I am completely ignorant, and about which I will be forever ignorant because one cannot possibly learn everything there is to learn in one lifetime.

One can only do ones best and focus on things that really are interesting - but that is, of course, subjective.

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Daily One Inch Button - WOTLK Countdown

Please note that all orders placed on Tuesday and Wednesday will be shipped on Thursday due to the Jewish holidays of Simchas Torah and Shemini Atzeres.

I don't know about you but lately I have been pretty much playing exactly one game, and that game happens to be a massive multi-player online role playing game that involves all kinds of exciting storylines and intricate plots and, as of late, the rewarding of achievements such as the one that I got for getting my character a haircut. Well, really, a change in hair style, but who is counting? It's only a matter of a few weeks before the next major expansion for this game is coming out and I am carefully counting down the days - I, along with quite a few million eager fans.

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Daily One Inch Button - The Grumpy Disappearing Bees

It's a mystery that will make honey disappear from our kitchen if we don't do something to fix it. Why are millions of bees dying across North America? Are they just so unhappy with us that they are leaving us in this gruesome manner? From the look of this bee, the answer may just be yes. It's a problem that is affecting small and large beekeeper alike - many have had to go out of business as a result of lack of bee. 60 Minutes even has had a special report: Why Are Honeybees Disappearing? Let us hope that this problem is resolved quickly, with a sweet resolution. Rosh Hashana wouldn't be the same without apples dipped in honey.

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Daily One Inch Button - Buddy Holly

I honestly knew about Buddy Holly well before the song by Weezer was popular - I guess that dates me just a little bit. However, have you ever seen this video of Buddy Holly live with Peggy Sue?

Buddy Holly is an American icon even though he was most popular while alive for less than two years. He turned to rock and roll after seeing Elvis perform in 1955 and started playing with a band called The Crickets. When The Crickets were inadvertently booked at The Apollo Theater he slowly won over a black audience, a feat unheard of in those days of severe racial segregation.

Shortly after The Crickets split up, Buddy Holly began a tour that involved Ritchie Valens, the very tour which would be his last. Tragically, it was early on February 3, 1959, when the plane he was on crashed, taking his life. Who knows what amazing recordings he could have laid down had he not passed away at such a young age?

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Daily One Inch Button - Vampire Bear Cookie

Vampire Bear enjoys a nice cookie now and again - but not often, because they are not good for you, unlike apples. Surely you know about the interview he has with a bag of apples. Anyhow, he not only enjoys the occasional cookie because they taste so nice but they remind him of the letter kof in the Hebrew aleph bet. For the last number of weeks he has been teaching a video series called Learn to Read Hebrew with Vampire Bear. Enjoy the lesson and enjoy the occasional cookie.

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Daily One Inch Button - How about that economy?

Please note that all orders placed today will not be shipped until tomorrow, October 16.

It's hitting us from every angle.

Homeowners are being forced to give up their houses that they have owned for decades.

People are being downsized and rightsized and wrongsized, left and right.

When are we going to see some change?

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Daily One Inch Button - PBS : Nothing but sheer awesome

Please note that all orders placed during the Jewish holiday of Succos will be shipped on Thursday, October 16. When I was a kid, growing up, PBS wasn't considered 'cool' because it was all about education. Now that I have passed 31, PBS is nothing but cool for that very same reason. It's funny how perspectives change. It's a bit like how much I now enjoy listening to NPR versus when I was a child and only wanted to watch the most blatantly obvious comedies rather than more subtle stuff.

Maybe this button will help show your friends how you really feel about PBS.

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Daily One Inch Button - Gyudon

Beef bowl. That's the literal translation, anyhow. This dish actually includes a good serving of rice as well as nicely simmered onion and the occasional shiritaki. Gyudon is so popular that it has restaurants that serve nothing but it, Yoshinoya being one of them. Actually, Yoshinoya is popular enough that there's even one of them on the New 42nd Street, not too far from Times Square. Check out this awesome commercial.

If you're a fan of Tommy Lee Jones you can see him at Yoshinoya in this commercial. Side note: the fear of mad cow disease, which halted the Japanese importation of beef in 2004 and again in early 2006, had a strong affect on gyudon sales; some places substituted pork for the beef and it had to be called butadon instead.

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Daily One Inch Button - Pat Tillman

Where to begin? Pat Tillman was a remarkable football player who, unlike so many sports heroes, decided to turn away the big money out of his loyalty to his team. He eventually decided to enlist in the US Army out of loyalty to his country but he tragically lost his life in what was initially thought to be an ambush but turned out to be a friendly fire attack.

The details of his death are still being investigated. One of the more controversial aspects of his death is that it was attempted to be made to look like hostile fire to take the pressure off those who accidentally caused it.

If you want to know more about Pat Tillman, check out this excellent Pat Tillman tribute video. Here is another excellent tribute video.

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Daily One Inch Button - Rerun - General Tso

Please Note: We are running a rerun due to the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. The text is a bit different from the original because I live in NY now.

When I was a kid I used to eat General Tso's chicken whenever I would go to Chinese restaurants. I switched to tofu for awhile but now that I live in NY I take every opportunity to enjoy some great General Tso when I go out for Chinese food. (In China they just call it "food." Mmm. Who was General Tso? A chicken, apparently.

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Daily One Inch Button - Support Your Local Library

It's pretty easy. You go in and you borrow books.

You go in and you buy used books from the used book shelves or you donate money directly to the library.

You tell your friends to stop throwing away their money on cheap liquor and start supporting their local library instead.

Okay, maybe that last part might be a bit tricky. I'm sure you will be able to do it.

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Daily One Inch Button - Nothing Like a Book!

It's true.

What are resources you should be using? How about the public library, or if you want to own a few good books, a nice used bookstore?

You don't have to pay a lot of money for a good book and you can find some beautiful treasures in a used bookstore like the Strand in New York City.

Turn your brain on every once in awhile; read a book!

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Daily One Inch Button - Omurice

Omelet? Omelette? No, omurice. What's that, you ask? Great question. It's the deliciousness of an omelet with the tremendous power of rice. Yes, it etymologically derives from the words omelet and rice and is, in fact, a Japanese concoction said to have come about at the turn of the twentieth century in the Ginza district.

Would you like to make your own omurice? Well perhaps the awesome film Tampopo can help you, courtesy of this instructional video. If you prefer a little less comedy in your instruction, try オムライスの作り方[how to make an omurice] instead. Either way, you can get your learn on, so to speak.

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Daily One Inch Button - Bobby Darin

Pop. Jazz. Folk. Rock and Roll. You tell me who conquered those fields of music that wasn't Bobby Darin, and I will be one impressed lover of one inch buttons. There is so much more that Bobby Darin could have done had he not died at such a tender young age.

He could sing about Mack the Knife and nobody could touch his recording other than Louis and Ella, I think. The song remains one of our favorites here at the Daily One Inch Button, by the way. Would have have done as well had he gone by his birth name, Walden Robert Cassotto? Possibly not, but that would have been a tragedy in its own right.

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Daily One Inch Button - Vampire Bear Zebra

Though you don't really see too many zebras on a typical farm, our dear little friend Vampire Bear managed to get a few because he just loves the way they look. He also is fond of the fact that he can use the first letter of their name to help teach a letter in the hebrew language - that is, the letter called Zion. I'm sure you know by now that Vampire Bear teaches a weekly course called Learn To Read Hebrew with Vampire Bear. Haven't you started your lessons yet? The zebras look happy to get that food. Incidentally, if you like the button image, you will love the image used in the lesson itself.

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Daily One Inch Button - Me on a Good Day

During the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashana, the posting of buttons will continue (thanks, post options!) but orders will not be processed until Wednesday night iy"H.

So you want to send out a certain, somewhat sarcastic message. I think you have found the right button for the job. They say that nobody bats a thousand and on those not so fresh feeling days, you can slap this bad boy on and confuse everyone that looks your way. Either that, or get a nice chortle out of people. That might work even better in your favor.

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