10 votes

Offbeat Fridays – The thread where offbeat headlines become front page news

Posted by mycketforvirrad
Tags: ask.discussion, recurring.weekly, offbeat fridays, offbeat

Tildes is a very serious site, where we discuss very serious matters like sourcehut, steam.spring sale and communications workers of america. Tags culled from the highest voted topics from the last seven days, if anyone was keeping track.

But one of my favourite tags happens to be offbeat! Taking its original inspiration from Sir Nils Olav III, this thread is looking for any far-fetched offbeat stories lurking in the newspapers. It may not deserve its own post, but it deserves a wider audience!

13 comments

  1. [4]
    fefellama
    Link
    Rare images of Deimos' backside caught on camera. Sorry @Deimos, saw this article recently and it made me chuckle.

    Rare images of Deimos' backside caught on camera.

    Sorry @Deimos, saw this article recently and it made me chuckle.

    8 votes
    1. [3]
      chocobean
      Link Parent
      Deimos is smoother than I had imagined. Very nice.

      Deimos is smoother than I had imagined. Very nice.

      7 votes
      1. [2]
        fefellama
        Link Parent
        Odd shape though. Not perfectly round like one might think.

        Odd shape though. Not perfectly round like one might think.

        4 votes
        1. DefinitelyNotAFae
          Link Parent
          Whoa whoa, let's not shame here, there is room for backsides of all shapes and sizes

          Whoa whoa, let's not shame here, there is room for backsides of all shapes and sizes

          5 votes
  2. [5]
    mycketforvirrad
    Link
    Polish leader offers actor Jesse Eisenberg military training to ‘land the new James Bond role’ Associated Press – 15th March 2025

    Polish leader offers actor Jesse Eisenberg military training to ‘land the new James Bond role’

    Poland’s prime minister has made a tongue-in-cheek offer to U.S. actor and director Jesse Eisenberg, who recently gained Polish citizenship, to give him military training that would land him “the new James Bond role.”

    In his video, Tusk said: “Dear Jesse, there’s really nothing to be afraid of!” He noted that military training is voluntary.

    Associated Press – 15th March 2025

    6 votes
    1. [4]
      chocobean
      Link Parent
      Huh.....I still have trouble telling him apart from Michael Cera. It's hard to imagine him being Bond

      Huh.....I still have trouble telling him apart from Michael Cera. It's hard to imagine him being Bond

      3 votes
      1. [3]
        nukeman
        Link Parent
        There’s a great meme showing “upgrading” from Michael Cera to Jesse Eisenberg to Andy Samberg.

        There’s a great meme showing “upgrading” from Michael Cera to Jesse Eisenberg to Andy Samberg.

        3 votes
  4. [3]
    fefellama
    Link
    Ancient Greek and Roman Statues Were Not Only Beautiful, but Also Smelled Nice, Too I knew that their statues and buildings were painted, and the reason they're just white marble now is because...

    Ancient Greek and Roman Statues Were Not Only Beautiful, but Also Smelled Nice, Too

    New research suggests that sculptures were perfumed with sweet-smelling fragrances such as rose and beeswax

    I knew that their statues and buildings were painted, and the reason they're just white marble now is because the paints have worn off over the centuries/millennia. But I had no idea they were decorated beyond that, including not just fragrances but also "jewelry, fabrics, flowers, garlands and ribbons". Pretty neat!

    5 votes
    1. [2]
      first-must-burn
      Link Parent
      My next door neighbor when I was a kid (he was in his 80s) had a lamp where the base was carved like a woman. It was probably 3 or 4 feet tall. He called it Geraldine and would change the clothes...

      My next door neighbor when I was a kid (he was in his 80s) had a lamp where the base was carved like a woman. It was probably 3 or 4 feet tall. He called it Geraldine and would change the clothes on it. As I type this out, it sounds super sketchy, but he was an otherwise normal guy living there with his wife.

      The idea that this could be closer to the norm of ancient Rome is .... weird.

      2 votes
      1. fefellama
        Link Parent
        Turns out humans haven’t changed that much after all. There’s some people that live near me that have a manatee-shaped mailbox. Like 4-5 feet tall with a mailbox coming out of the belly. And they...

        Turns out humans haven’t changed that much after all.

        There’s some people that live near me that have a manatee-shaped mailbox. Like 4-5 feet tall with a mailbox coming out of the belly. And they do the same thing, dress it up for different holidays, like a spooky costume for Halloween or some bunny ears for Easter. Guess it’s more normal than one would think.

        2 votes