Just like it says, Popcorn Shorts is about the kind of things we think are really interesting, but don’t really need a large article to explain them.  From the sublime to the ridiculous, check in here for crunchy bits of info you’ll love to munch.  By the way, much (but not all) of our delicious Popcorn comes from articles we’ve posted on our Facebook page.  If you’re on Facebook, please stop by and “Like” us and we’ll keep a fairly-constant-but-not-frequent-enough-to-be-annoying stream of these coming to your virtual door!

The Perfect Political Stump Speeches

When any political party is functioning well, they speak the language of their constituents.  They know which arguments, which wording, which emphasis will ring the bells of their crowd, and the speechwriters uses these techniques and language consciously and consistently.  You can really see the difference between generic Pub and Dem speeches in this side-by-side comparison of stump speeches written for generic Pub and Dem candidates by expert Pub and Dem speechwriters.  Read them both and you’ll have a unique insight into everything else you’re seeing in the Media.

The Era of the Bathing Machine

One of the joys of summer is furtively checking out the attractive-to-you sex as they cavort around the beach in their swimsuits.  Return with us now to a time when that wasn’t possible, not just because the swimsuits looked like winter clothing for Detroit but because the Victorian culture of the time had perfected BATHING MACHINES!  Most popular during the 18^th and 19^th centuries, bathers would enter these carts on wheels to be hauled out into the water where they could swim to their hearts content without tumbling the moral bastions of the people on shore.

Drone Surfing

If you work for a Seattle company that makes cinematography equipment, what do you do when you’re bored?  There’s just one answer… you hook up your $17,500 heavy duty aerial drone filming platform to a surfboard and go drone surfing!  It’s not ready for primetime yet though.  Aside from the hefty sticker price, there’s only a 10-minute battery life and a very low towing capacity (surfers must start from a running start on the beach) but don’t worry… we bet you’ll be seeing these next to the parasailing boats on your 2025 trip to Puerto Vallarta.

How Far Can You Drive Your Car On ‘Empty’?

Your car’s gas tank is ‘empty’ when it hits a half a tank.  We advise our clients to think that way because, even though it may not happen often, you never want the 3-in-the-morning call to come and find out you don’t have enough gas to get to a hospital.  But even the most conscientious drivers have found themselves on an Interstate in the middle of nowhere with the fuel light on and no idea how far it is to the next station.  DON’T DO THAT, but if you DID, how far could you go?  This chart tells you for 50 different makes and models of vehicle.  Never use this information.